Amazon sacrificed accountability for efficiency and profit.
When Amazon began its meteoric rise to power, no one could have imagined the company expanding from an online bookstore to the premier source of Nick Cage sequin pillows, real human finger bones, and everything in between. As ascribed to its global shipping networks and logistics management, Amazon's dominance has allowed it to make founder Jeff Bezos the Forbes billionaire record-breaker and propel its quarterly profits to $5.2 billion.
In the past few years, however, Amazon has been hammered by advocacy groups and angry consumers for allowing the sale of counterfeit products intermingled with the genuine. …
Why it is beneficial to guide those in the process of transitioning rather than put-downs.
“If the Democratic nominee isn’t Bernie Sanders, I’m not going to vote in November.”
I often see self-proclaimed “free thinkers” who discriminate against peers who are not “free” enough. Present mostly on internet forums, they judge everyone with a stubborn, gatekeeping mentality under cover of anonymity. An arbitrary bar is set: if a newcomer to the hobby, party, or sport does not fulfill it, they are not “real.” What even is “real”?
Every niche has these zealots — you can find them in disparate fields as veganism, gun lobbyists, and TV show fandoms, pushing their message: “If you are not…
Cultivate daily habits using SMART goals and daily planning.
New Year’s Resolutions don’t work.
It’s currently almost a month into 2021, and every single one of my friends has broken their New Year’s Resolution.
They’re not alone — studies show that only 8% of Americans who make a New Year’s resolution actually keep them all year, and 80% have failed by the start of February.
If you are part of the 80%, don’t worry! The problem isn’t due to self-control or mental fortitude — we fail because we misunderstand what resolutions are and how we can avoid breaking them. …
What is “involution,” and why is it representative of disillusioned American students?
With each passing day, the world appears bleaker. Joblessness, global pandemic, economic and political stagnation — depression is at an all-time high, and mental health care is cut as hospitals and doctors remain overwhelmed. The daily notifications I receive regarding full ICU beds where I live and record infection numbers in my state blend like the days I spend indoors, waiting in limbo for the world to return to normalcy.
Under this backdrop, high school seniors, many of whom have not been in a classroom since March of last year, are currently applying to colleges. A selection of items missing…
How Appearing Bipartisan Wins Quiet Policy Victories
President Biden’s ability to deflect identity politics and to pass popular progressive policy under the broad message of unity and bipartisanship will ensure Democrats maintain control of Congress in 2022 and beyond.
In an age of partisan politics and fiery demagogues, media pundits have been quick to declare bipartisanship as “dead and buried.” Undoubtedly, voters seem divided — belief in the sanctity of elections is split upon party lines, and social media echo chambers plot direct insurrection on the Capital. With the overall despondence surrounding the country, forecasting doom and gloom is à la mode, and any remaining Republican voters…
CS applicants — more competitive and numerous than ever.
The question in the title might at first seem odd — what student applying to Computer Science (CS) doesn’t actually want to study it?
I’ll start by saying — if you compete in Code Jam, go on GitHub more than social media, or spend your free time on Linux forums shilling for Arch — this article isn’t for you.
Where I grew up, however, students were by default a CS major. Unless you had firm beliefs regarding your major or intended career, the common consensus was “just study CS, and you’ll work it out later.”
Perhaps they’re not wrong. CS…
Admissions officers see these as red flags.
The college application process for many students represents the culmination of their high school journey, where all the hard work pays off with a letter of admission to what they hope will be their dream college.
There is much discussion over what to focus on or include on an application — do schools prefer quantity over quality? Should students focus on the breadth or depth of experience? Do readers prefer simple language or sophisticated prose? While there is no single correct answer for how you should fill out your application, there are certain things you would be wrong to include.
…
Stress, Isolation, and Metaphors in the Subconscious Mind.
I am walking down Broadway in the dead of night. Not a soul in sight — empty parked cars reflect the neon screens' light illuminating the street. As I turn my head to look around, the only face I see is that of Conan O’Brien, affixed to the side of the building — a poster promoting his late-night show. I hear rustling behind me. I turn.
It’s Conan himself, walking toward me. He wears a macabre grin, his right hand hidden behind his back. I can feel him laughing at me, but his mouth does not move. …
Short Answer: It is what you make of it.
It was my first day on my high school campus. Between the club booths on Orientation Day were crowds of eager children with parents in tow, pushing and shoving as they moved between the gym and the library (for the historians, this was a few years before social distancing). There were the usual suspects: Speech and Debate, Science Bowl, CSF, Music Boosters, Sports Teams. The one pitch they all gave to me?
“Have you thought of going to a top university? If so, join us!”
I suppose you could call my high school competitive in terms of college admissions; the…
The sooner we admit reopening schools will lead to disaster, the sooner we can begin a smooth transition to distance learning.
In Georgia, a second grader has tested positive for COVID-19 after the first day of school, forcing the class to quarantine.
Every single epidemiologist, doctor, and scientist agrees: reopening schools is a ridiculous idea. It doesn’t take a genius to realize that, after plague rats, children are the strongest form of disease vector on the planet. They lick doorknobs and their fingers. Play in the dirt and shove pencils in their mouth. Don’t wash their hands, hawk loogies, and do all types of unsanitary things that without modern medicine, I’d be surprised so many of us survive to adulthood. …
