April 8, 2025

Every year, a million people die of a curable disease. Why haven’t you heard about it? Last year, tuberculosis killed more people than malaria, war, and murder combined. More people than COVID-19 or HIV/AIDS. One-quarter of all people alive today currently have tuberculosis, and every twenty seconds, someone dies from it. Tuberculosis is the most deadly disease in the world. It is also curable. So, why haven’t you heard of it, and why do people keep dying from it? **Living With Tuberc

In my time at Caltech, I have found that scientists love to both work hard and play hard. While preparing for a party and hanging decorations at Dabney Garden last Fall, I noticed a statue of the Japanese deity Tenjin, on which I placed an Earth-shaped lantern. This man sitting on a yak with a Japanese name was of particular interest to me, as I have studied the Japanese language for over 10 years. Why had this statue been placed in one of the most historic spaces on campus? Why is Tenjin import

“All individuals, regardless of citizenship or immigration status, have civil and constitutional rights under U.S. law,” reads https://international.caltech.edu/guidance. This idea that the Constitution guarantees basic rights to all - freedom of speech, religion, press, and more – has been fundamental to the American creed for centuries. Today, the current US administration is upending this national value by employing chilling tactics to silence sp

“For stars from Bette Davis to Angelina Jolie, the ultimate rite of passage since the 1950s has been sitting for the legendary Don Bachardy,” Michael Slenske wrote for The Hollywood Reporter. On Saturday, over 100 works of art and archival materials from Bachardy’s life and career will be on display at The Huntington’s MaryLou and George Boone Gallery. One of L.A.’s most acclaimed portraitists, Bachardy’s works convey a sense of intimacy and capture his subjects with remarkable likeness. Whil

The Graduate Student formal has become the latest casualty of DOGE’s sweeping budget cuts. Fear not, however: the Caltech Rugby Club will be hosting their Annual Ball at the Athenaeum, open to both the blossoming club membership and the wider Graduate Student body. Expect crowd-pleasing music, free flowing food and drink, all set amongst the grandeur of our very own Athenaeum Club. ![Save the date: Friday 30th May 2025 -tickets on sale w/c 14th April - follow @caltechruggers to find out how you

Spring at Caltech is a season of rapid transformation. Step away for just a few days, and you’ll return to a campus bursting with changes: the once-bare branches are now decorated with colorful flowers. The drastic changes aren’t limited to flora – migrating wildlife also contributes to the seasonal dynamics. Migration is one of nature’s greatest mysteries. California lies in the heart of a major migration corridor through the Americas, making Caltech a special stopover for many migrators. Take

Few Caltech students will take advantage of the opportunity to study abroad during their undergraduate time here. Understandably, undergrads are some of the busiest people you will meet here: classes throughout the day, sports and house activities through the afternoon, problem sets throughout the night and well into the morning, sleep if you can afford it, rinse and repeat. Our four-year plans are often packed; graduating on time is important when your tuition is, to say the least, exorbitant.

In Search of Meaning Beyond the Microscope There is a question pulsing quietly beneath the surface of every lab bench, every line of code, every equation scribbled onto a whiteboard: Why are we doing this? Is it for discovery, for prestige, for the betterment of humanity—or something more elusive? At Caltech, we pride ourselves on pushing the boundaries of what is knowable, and we do, no one says the opposite. We decode the stars, manipulate the quantum, edit genes and simulate the brain.

The Caltech Y regularly organizes Cultural Cuisine Tours across L.A., allowing people to try out new cuisines for a subsidized rate in the presence of a cultural leader, who understands the cuisine and can provide additional information about the food options. Recently, I helped them organize a Cultural Cuisine Tour to Annapurna Grill, specifically to explore South Indian cuisine. And in so doing, I found out just how little people actually knew about South Indian cuisine. To answer a question

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has opened submissions for the 2025 Student Academy Awards® (SAA), and Caltech students are now eligible to participate. Established in 1972, the SAAs recognize excellence in collegiate filmmaking and support the development of emerging talent in the cinematic arts. Chris Roginski, assistant to Michael Benedict, Director of Academy Awards Events, confirmed this news, saying, “Caltech students are eligible to participate and submit a short film to

Two members of the Caltech faculty have been named 2025 Wolf Prize laureates in recognition of their distinguished scientific accomplishments; the David Baltimore Professor of Biology and Bioengineering, Pamela Björkman, received the accolade in medicine, whereas the Frank J. Roshek Professor of Physics and Applied Physics, emeritus, Jim Eisenstein, received the prize in physics. The Wolf Prize is a prestigious award that recognizes “outstanding achievements in advancing science and the arts fo

Applications are now open for the 23rd annual Wolfram Summer School, taking place June 22–July 11, 2025, at Bentley University in Waltham, Massachusetts. The three-week program offers students, researchers, and innovators the opportunity to work on real-world projects alongside leading technologists, researchers, and physicists. Participants will collaborate directly with Stephen Wolfram to shape and refine their project goals. The program includes specialized tracks such as Science and Techno

One of the projects ASCIT B.o.D. adopted in 2023 was to review the building accessibility policies for undergraduate students outside of normal operational hours. For context, following the pandemic, building access was understandably limited in order to prioritize the safety and health of the campus communities. Since then, many of the previous building accessibility policies have been reinstated. The following outlines what these policies are, and who to reach out to should you experience diff

Ashlyn Roice - ASCIT President Hello! My name is Ashlyn Roice, and I am running for ASCIT President. Here is my statement and my picture: Hey, everyone! I’m Ashlyn Roice, a current junior and Lloydie studying Computer Science and Information & Data Science. You may know me as the current Social Director of ASCIT. This year, I am honored to be running for the ASCIT pre