The Tufts Daily

03/07/2025

SPORTS | Overtime playoff hockey is about as exciting as sports can get, and No. 5 seeded Tufts continued to prove that with their 2–1 win over No. 4 seeded Bowdoin in the quarterfinals of the NESCAC tournament on Saturday.

The Jumbos had to play like their season was on the line — because it was — and the Polar Bears were fighting just as hard to move on to keep their season alive. The energy that comes with playoffs is unmatched and brings teams together. With a NESCAC semifinal and a potential NESCAC championship game coming up, that competitive mentality is only going to increase.

“When we are at our best, we’re playing as a team, we’re playing for the guy next to you,” senior forward Tyler Sedlak said. “There’s not really anybody playing for themselves. I think the past two weeks, we’ve really known that we’ve come together as a team. … All we want to do is win. Nobody cares if they score; we just want to be the one that comes out on top.”

Tara Wirtschoreck writes. Link in bio for more.

03/07/2025

ARTS | As Generation Z gets older, things from our childhoods start to become nostalgic. However, unlike some of the other generations, a lot of nostalgia for Gen Z exists on an entirely new medium: the internet and mobile devices. Online spaces like Club Penguin or Wizard101 are relics of the past and apps you had on your iPod Touch probably don’t exist anymore. There is a rich trove of defunct apps and games from the late 2000s and 2010s, yet no one talks about them. No one except for today’s Youtuber: Li Speaks.

Born on the edge of being a millenial and a part of Gen Z, Speaks, who uses any pronouns, spent a lot of their time on the internet as a child and has a deep knowledge of flash games that spanned the early to late 2000s. Their coverage of flash games centers mostly on those targeted towards female audiences, like the websites GirlsSense and GirlGoGames. Speaks has gone into specifics with GirlsGoGames with their “Shopaholic” series, their three mascots and the genre of “kissing and flirting games” in general. Not all of their flash coverage is gendered, as they discuss large children’s websites like Club Penguin or Neopets and just flash games in general, such as the bizarre catalog of PETA parody games.

Basil Hand writes. Link in bio for more.

03/07/2025

FEATURES | This past week, one of my future housemates gave me a challenge for this column. She texted me (ignoring the very important text I had previously sent her) to say that I should make this column about “Tufts geese s---ing up a storm all over campus and then like to draw some sort of moral parallel to that.”

When I initially got this text (after crashing out about her not answering my important question), I decided not to write about geese because, one, I do not bend my knee when it comes to this column and, two, I had a great idea for this column including an engaging and hilarious story about fighting with the security guards at Tisch.

I stood my ground for about a day until I was walking to class and realized I had a trail of goose p**p coming from my brand new shoes. After throwing another temper tantrum on the Academic Quad, I decided that this column should be about those f---ing geese and their p**ps. And, I guess I am bending my knee to her — but in reality, she is a huge follower of both this column and myself, so it’s the least I can do for a devout and loyal fan.

Ben Rachel writes. Link in bio for more.

This past week, one of my future housemates gave me a challenge for this column. She texted me (ignoring the very important text I had previously sent her) to say that I should make this column about “Tufts geese s-------ting up a storm all over campus and then like to draw some sort of moral para...

03/07/2025

NEWS | The city of Somerville announced on Feb. 19 that it is participating in a Rodent Fertility Control Study using Evolve, which is a hormonal fertility control product designed to curb rat reproduction in a humane manner. This is in partnership with the Cambridge Public Health Department and Cambridge Inspectional Services Department.

Although Boston has yet to explore the product, cities like New York City have tested Evolve. The product was placed in two commercial locations, Somerville High School and Cambridge Rindge and Latin School. Lincoln Park is set to be the first residential location for the study.

ContraPest, also made by SenesTech, is a similar pest control that was widely used around Somerville before Evolve. A major downside to this product is that it is liquid and freezes in the winter, making it hard for rats to consume and therefore rendering it ineffective.

Amelia Sammons writes. Link in bio for more.

03/06/2025

SPORTS | When a team that finished the 2024 season 16–4 — making the Elite Eight for the fifth consecutive season — returns many of its starters from the quarterfinal, the No. 2 ranking in the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association’s poll seems appropriate. This weekend, the Jumbos more than proved their mettle by taking care of two opponents with double-digit victories to start their 2025 season.

The season opened Saturday afternoon with a visit from NESCAC opponent Connecticut College, who were looking to build off a 7–8 season from a year ago. The Camels started strong defensively, with goalie Ava Virga recording four saves in the first six minutes of play before being a woman up when the Jumbos’ senior midfielder Caroline Cromwell received a yellow card. Ironically, playing down a woman proved to wake the Jumbos up, as halfway through the penalty, senior midfielder Ella Lesperance scored the Jumbos’ first goal of the season off a transition opportunity. Under a minute later, after winning a free position, junior midfielder Elsa Schutt, making her first career start, buried another shot into the back of the net, giving the Jumbos a 2–0 lead before the penalty expired. After graduate student midfielder Madeline Delaney scored her first goal of the season, the Camels scored the last two goals of the quarter, leaving the Jumbos up by only one goal.

Riley Daniel writes.

When a team that finished the 2024 season 16–4 –– making the Elite Eight for the fifth consecutive season –– returns many of its starters from the quarterfinal, the No. 2 ranking in the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association’s poll seems appropriate. This weekend, th...

03/06/2025

VIEWPOINT | The American retail market can be described with three words: variety, variety and still more variety. Anything and everything one could need is available for purchase at the biggest retail providers. Just walk into the closest Target, Walmart or Aldi, peruse the meticulously organized aisles and walk past the food, makeup, hardware, clothes, toys and technology. Tell me you haven’t found exactly what you're looking for. Now, imagine you could indulge in that same sense of pure bliss, calm and convenience from the comfort of your home. Fortunately, you can with Amazon.

Brought to life in 1994 by Jeff Bezos and his then-wife, MacKenzie Scott, the multinational conglomerate began as a small online bookselling service operating out of a rented garage. By 1999, Amazon had seen such success in the bookselling market that Bezos was named Time’s Person of the Year. By 2001, Amazon had a market cap of around $4 billion and was staffed by approximately 8,000 employees. Bezos had always maintained that Amazon’s true purpose was not bookselling but rather becoming a technology company intended to facilitate online transactions and deliveries to users. Bezos’ vision was partly represented by the creation of Amazon Web Services, a data service and cloud storage provider.

Ahmad Abdul-Basser writes.

The American retail market can be described with three words: variety, variety and still more variety. Anything and everything one could need is available for purchase at the biggest retail providers. Just walk into the closest Target, Walmart or Aldi, peruse the meticu...

03/06/2025

ARTS | “Cabaret” has been performed and reimagined time and time again, uncovering new meanings as societal contexts evolve. Today, under the direction of Professor Barbara Wallace Grossman, this iconic musical takes on new urgency amidst the backdrop of President Donald Trump’s return to power, inviting audiences to reflect on its poignant relevance in our turbulent political landscape.

“The resonance between these two dark historical moments – Germany in 1929-1930 three years before Hi**er became Chancellor and the start of the second Trump presidency – is as striking as it is chilling,” Grossman wrote.

Fiona Hinrichsen writes.

“Cabaret” has been performed and reimagined time and time again, uncovering new meanings as societal contexts evolve. Today, under the direction of Professor Barbara Wallace Grossman, this iconic musical takes on new urgency amidst the backdrop of President Donald Trump....

03/06/2025

FEATURES | College campuses are responsible for around 22 million pounds of food waste every year. On Tufts campus, a group of students is helping to lower that number by making free food one buzz away with their mobile app, Freebites, which launched on Oct. 15, 2024.

Anyone who has the app can post about a free food opportunity on campus, browse through others’ posts, turn on notifications for any time there is a new post and access chats for status updates on available food in real-time.

Co-founder Sarah Jun, a senior, conceptualized the app and brought a team together to help see her vision through.
“I’m a first [generation] student, so I was trying to find ways I could give back to my community. And I realized there’s a lot of food waste on campus,” Jun said. “So, I just got a group of friends [together] who were also looking for a project, and they’re the kind of friends who are kind of down to do anything.”

The other co-founder and technical lead, Clarence Ye, is a senior who joined the Freebites team in 2023. He was brought on for the development side of the app where he, along with the team he built, was able to code a mobile app, a skillset that goes beyond the teaching of Tufts’ computer science department.
“Tufts is a really good program to teach you those fundamentals. But when it comes to a specific language, you’ve got to learn it yourself,” Ye said.

Dylan Fee writes.

College campuses are responsible for around 22 million pounds of food waste every year. On Tufts campus, a group of students is helping to lower that number by making free food one buzz away with their mobile app, Freebites, which launched on Oct. 15, 2024.

03/06/2025

NEWS | The cities of Somerville and Chelsea filed a lawsuit in a Massachusetts district court challenging federal immigration policy on Feb. 24. The cities, represented by Lawyers for Civil Rights, argue that recent federal actions unconstitutionally pressure sanctuary cities to participate in federal immigration enforcement.

The lawsuit claims that President Donald Trump’s administration’s directives ending federal funding to sanctuary cities violate constitutional principles such as separation of powers, due process and states’ rights.

“The president cannot use federal funds as a weapon to bend cities to his will,” Oren Sellstrom, the litigation director at Lawyers for Civil Rights, said. “He cannot sign executive orders and with the stroke of a pen, take away the right of both governments to make decisions that keep their residents safe.”

Local officials argue that they are best equipped to meet their residents’ needs and that sanctuary city policies ultimately serve the public safety of their communities.
“Our residents know that communities are safer when police focus on preventing crimes and leave federal immigration enforcement to the feds,” Somerville Mayor Katjana Ballantyne said.

Anika Parr writes.

The cities of Somerville and Chelsea filed a lawsuit in a Massachusetts district court challenging federal immigration policy on Feb. 24. The cities, represented by Lawyers for Civil Rights, argue that recent federal actions unconstitutionally pressure sanctuary cities to participate in fe...

03/05/2025

SPORTS | Tufts women’s softball began their season last weekend at the National Fastpitch Coaches Association Leadoff Classic in Columbus, Georgia. Coming off a 39–10 record, a NESCAC semifinal appearance and an NCAA Division-III College World Series appearance last season, the Jumbos were looking to start this season off strong at the showcase.

After a strenuous preseason, the Jumbos were ready to see results. “The team is super excited to get back onto the dirt and see how all of our hard work in the offseason, whether in the weight room or on the field, pays off,” first-year Kenzie Sturgill wrote in an email to the Daily.

Eliza Warren writes.

Tufts women’s softball began their season last weekend at the National Fastpitch Coaches Association Leadoff Classic in Columbus, Georgia. Coming off a 39–10 record, a NESCAC semifinal appearance and an NCAA Division-III College World Series appearance last season, the Jumbos were...

03/05/2025

OPINION | Some conservatives are known for using simple-minded but harmful vocabulary in their rhetoric, especially online. They have a schoolyard bully-like tendency to simply cry ‘snowflake’ and mockingly ask “Why are you so triggered?” in response to many of the serious arguments liberals attempt to make on the internet. This enables them to disregard any of the substance of their liberal opponent’s arguments, while simultaneously attacking them as being ‘too weak.’ According to these right-wingers, it is impossible to form a logical argument while incorporating one’s personal feelings, and cold-hard facts alone should be the only evidence appealed to. I happen to believe this is completely false. In fact, empathy has been shown to be key to conflict diffusion, and thus, online conflicts, particularly political arguments, could stand to benefit from increased civility if both participants were to attempt to be more empathetic. Additionally, growing research is linking empathy to liberal political views, while failing to do so for right-leaning views, indicating a clear empathy gap among the parties.

Michaela Loughran writes.

Some conservatives are known for using simple-minded but harmful vocabulary in their rhetoric, especially online. They have a schoolyard bully-like tendency to simply cry ‘snowflake’ and mockingly ask “Why are you so triggered?” in response to many of the serious arguments liberals...

03/05/2025

ARTS | Tufts is home to more than a dozen dance groups, many of which are entirely run, choreographed and performed by students. Amid a crowded dance scene, it can be hard for groups to carve out a niche and set themselves apart from the rest of the pack.

This is not a problem for Tufts Tap Ensemble, the only campus group devoted to tap dancing. Tufts Tap has been active for more than 20 years, and with an ensemble of 24 talented performers, they’re showing no signs of stopping.

Senior Hannah Oshinsky, co-director of the ensemble, grew up in the dance world, with experience in ballet, jazz and tap. She stopped dancing in high school, but she decided to join Tufts Tap as a freshman.

Nate Hall writes.

Tufts is home to more than a dozen dance groups, many of which are entirely run, choreographed and performed by students. Amid a crowded dance scene, it can be hard for groups to carve out a niche and set themselves apart from the rest of the pack.

03/05/2025

FEATURES | Boston is a city of stories. The regal names of squares and streets, the faded bronze plaques nestled within brick facades, the rivers decussating its low hills; Boston is a composite of many, many stories. Once I began to notice the whispered stories etched into the cobblestones beneath my wayward feet, I could not help but find that my whole world was suffused with like whisperings. There is the story of my life — the narrative of my perception and those who vie for control of it — and there is the rich, boundless story of my world. And one, invariably, speaks to the other.

The story I seek to share has an acrid scent; it smells of gunpowder, of beacon fires, of men perspiring from fear and of thousands more perspiring in the exultant heat of a rebellious September sun. I first glimpsed it as I crossed the Mystic River in 1774, spying 13 British boats glide silently through its dark waters. I saw soldiers disembark on the shore closest to Tufts using lanterns to guide their noiseless passage through the pre-dawn stillness of Somerville.

Max Turnacioglu writes.

Boston is a city of stories. The regal names of squares and streets, the faded bronze plaques nestled within brick facades, the rivers decussating its low hills; Boston is a composite of many, many stories. Once I began to notice the whispered stories etched into the cobblestones bene...

03/05/2025

NEWS | The Tufts Community Union Senate met with representatives from the Office of Residential Life & Learning to discuss student housing concerns. Senators discussed the club funding, late stays at the end of the semester for international students and possible collaborations between ResLife and Tufts Dining among other issues.

Associate Director of Residential Operations at ResLife, Perry Doherty, told senators about their future plans, including the opening of the newly renovated Blakeley Hall and preparing students for summer housing.

Angy Sosa, associate director for Residential Education for off campus engagement, spoke of her efforts to inform students about the best practices for off-campus living, including a variety of upcoming webinars such as helping students negotiate with landlords and maintain their security deposits.

Spenser Walsh writes.

The Tufts Community Union Senate met with representatives from the Office of Residential Life & Learning to discuss student housing concerns. Senators discussed the club funding, late stays at the end of the semester for international students and possible collaborations between ResLife and...

03/04/2025

SCIENCE | When you think of bees, what comes to mind? It might be the sweet taste of honey or an ever present buzzing next to your ear. It may even be the 2007 cinematic masterpiece, “Bee Movie.”

What you might not expect is that the grand majority of bee species do not produce honey or even live in hives. Roughly 77% of the bees on earth are classified as solitary. This classification exists in contrast to social bees, which are those that organize themselves into hives, with each bee serving a role to protect and sustain the community. On the other hand, solitary bees do it all themselves, with females building and provisioning nests with no assistance.

Carmen Smoak writes.

When you think of bees, what comes to mind? It might be the sweet taste of honey or an ever present buzzing next to your ear. It may even be the 2007 cinematic masterpiece, “Bee Movie.”

03/04/2025

SPORTS | The Tufts men’s tennis team has long been a powerhouse in Division III, consistently pushing for NESCAC and NCAA titles. Every season, the team welcomes a new wave of talent — players eager to prove themselves and leave their mark on the program. Whether it’s their energy, work ethic or undeniable confidence, these first-years are fitting right in with a squad filled with championship aspirations.

With a mix of raw talent, confidence and a team culture that pushes players to be their best, this first-year class has all the tools to succeed. Whether they can help Tufts finally lift the conference trophy remains to be seen. But one thing is certain: They won’t be lacking in energy, personality or banter along the way.

Thomas Leung writes.

The Tufts men’s tennis team has long been a powerhouse in Division III, consistently pushing for NESCAC and NCAA titles. Every season, the team welcomes a new wave of talent — players eager to prove themselves and leave their mark on the program. Whether it’s their energy, work ethic or u...

03/04/2025

OPINION | New York’s mayoral race and U.S.-Ukraine relations leave lots to talk about.

Sadie Roraback-Meagher: Evan, what’s the difference between an expired pie and this year’s New York mayoral election?

Evan Wang: What?

Sadie: Nothing, they’re both full of rotten apples.

Evan: I’m going to quit the column.

Evan Wang and Sadie Roraback-Meagher write.

The independent student newspaper of Tufts University

03/04/2025

ARTS | Bruno Mars is back in the spotlight. Of course, he never fully disappeared, living atop his colossal success and sprinkling his presence here and there in ads and song features. Still, he hit a peak of fame and then fell back for a few years.

Mars’ commercial peak was during his first two albums, but now he’s back — almost as big as before. The elephant(s) in the room? “Die With a Smile” and “APT." His collaboration with Lady Gaga was the perfect refreshment for early 2000s pop fans. As unexpected as it was, it felt like a song they were always meant to make. “Die With a Smile” is as dramatic sonically as it is lyrically, and I love it for that. The track also won Best Pop Duo/Group Performance at the Grammys and recently became the fastest song to hit 1 billion Spotify streams.

Dominic Matos writes.