October 7, 2025

Oh dearest Red Door quesadilla, Longing for you at a quarter til eleven Summer means lights off Missing a taste of heaven Reminiscing you sometimes being burnt to a crisp Yet enjoyed with and guac Sometimes my extra Taco Bell mild sauce Accompanied by friends as we munch and talk You were often shared between two So one is not such a big back But summer nights, not even. Awaiting the return of the midnight snack Oh dearest Red Door quesadilla, You’ve finally came back as it is fall

David Baltimore, the Judge Shirley Hufstedler Professor of Biology and President Emeritus of the California Institute of Technology, passed away on September 6 at his home in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. He was 87. Baltimore’s career spanned over six decades, playing a crucial role in developing our current understanding of viral and cell biology. In 1975, at the age

On September 17, international students arrived on Caltech’s campus to attend a 3-day orientation meant to ease their transition to the United States. The group consisted of both undergraduate and graduate students, including exchange students from the U.K. and Denmark. An array of snacks and e

In an abrupt move, the National Science Foundation (N.S.F.) has narrowed eligibility for its Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP). With effectively no transition period and little advance notice, the change has caught thousands of prospective applicants by surprise. Only senior undergraduates, first-year graduate students in their first graduate degree program, and bachelor’s degree holders with no prior enrollment in any graduate degree program can apply. Previously, students could also

With the academic year starting up, our Caltech fall athletes have been working at their craft since before everyone else arrived on campus. Volleyball, cross country, men’s and women’s soccer, and men’s water polo are all deep into their season so far. Let’s look at a few of our beavers’ early feats into the 2025-2026 season: Cross Country The cross country season has begun with major wins already. At the Redlands Invitational, the women’s runners averaged a time of 18:32 on a 4.5K race to

From packed stadiums to sold-out arenas, 2025 is a landmark year for live music—and nowhere is the excitement more electric than in Los Angeles. As an Asian American raised in Southern California, although it may be typical, my musical interests heavily lie in K-Pop and Asian Artists. And this summer, the concert scene in SoCal is nothing less than POPPIN. So, I wanted to share a glimpse of my concert adventures this summer—just a little taste of what’s been filling my heart (and draining my wal

[This article has two parts, between Damian’s and Camilla’s perspective:] The email pops up on my screen: of course, today is FoodFest! Who knows what surprises Tom Mannion—the mastermind of it all—has planned for us. I was finishing my last physics problem when suddenly Californian tunes started whistling through the Fleming window

This is going to be an exercise in writing, in word vomiting, for me. I don’t have any clear idea of the scope of this piece, nor how much I’ll revise it in between typing these words and you reading them, but we have to start somewhere. The vaguely-uniformed “random inspection" officer gatekeeping the security checkpoint at the Venice airport asked me and Sarah what we did in Europe for—how long had we been traveling?—72 days. ![Our travels around the continent.](https://xguzskbxiptvhbyggkp

One of the articles I have been featured in stated that the future Dulbecco is Camilla Fezzi, who is flying to Caltech, where he was. At that time, I did not know precisely who he was…I am honest, but today, after a year and numerous books, I really want to dedicate this article to one of my fo

There is an inner crack that runs through women’s journeys in science—a silent fissure, impossible to ignore. It’s the tremor before raising your hand in class, the hesitation before asking a question in a seminar, the sudden feeling of being out of place when surrounded by colleagues who seem so effortlessly confident. But as Leonard Cohen once wrote, “There is a crack in everything, that’s how the light gets in.” That crack does not represent failure—it is the place where beauty and resilience

I bought the 2025 Pasadena Coffee Passport back in February so that I had something fun to look forward to this year and support local businesses. It is now September, and I have only been to four of the fourteen shops in the passport! I’m determined to visit them all before the end of the year, so stay tuned for my next round of reviews. For now, read about the drinks, locations, and interior descriptions of the four coffee shops I visited thus far. ![Photo cred: Victoria Davis](https://xguzsk

This fall, Caltech introduced its pilot Integrated Core curriculum, a new approach to the first-year experience designed by faculty members collaborating across all five divisions. The program emerged from two years of faculty discussions convened by the Provost and Vice Provost for Education, focused on how to improve retention of foundational material and rekindle the sense of excitement students bring to campus. Rather than teaching physics, chemistry, biology, earth science, and math in iso

The Rose is a South Korean band that unexpectedly had their big break in Europe after their 2017 single “Sorry” went viral on YouTube. Their documentary, “Come Back To Me,” chronicles the group’s rise and struggles, detailing the band’s beginnings and the passion each member has for music, as well as the challenges and obstacles that nearly ended the band. A pivotal moment in The Rose’s trajectory was a lawsuit against their former management, which they fought for two years and eventually won.

10:30 p.m. Heavy eyelids slowly closing, a reassuring lethargy gets hold of the body, tired after training. A comforting fog hugs the brain, readily shutting down consciousness to make space for confused fantastic stories. 11:30 p.m. An itch makes me twirl twice, a sudden jolt shakes the leg, a noise outside catches my attention. Comfort slips away as I lie in the twin sized bed; misleadingly labeled X.L. to convince us that’s big enough. 12:00 a.m. Nothing comforting about this darkness, my s

Jupiter was getting brighter than I’d ever seen it, brighter in real terms, closer to the earth, than it had been since 1963. And not only was it getting closer than ever, the online forums said it would be in “opposition”—directly opposite the sun from the earth’s perspective, like a full moon, only a fu

When the sky turned red from wildfire smoke and the acrid air stung the eyes of Southern Californians, a different kind of fire emerged—one lit by the

The Houston heat wrapped around me like an invisible shield as I navigated the city with the strange feeling that I was not walking to a lab or a museum, but to something that provided silence. The Rothko Chapel is hostile to sound: black walls, enormous canvases, light that doesn’t so much illuminate them as permeate through like some ancient sigh. There, in that weightless inner space, I found myself having a thought that does not frequently occur to me at Caltech, amidst equations and lab equ

![A curious fox squirrel. All photos courtesy of Jieyu Zheng.](https://xguzskbxiptvhbyggkpl.supabase.co/storage/v1/object/public/media/2761

For many frosh (your author included), Orientation Week provides the foremost introduction to Caltech Dining Services (C.D.S.). While the fall term meal plan activated on the fourth day of orientation (September 24), meals remained catered throughout the event. “We wanted to create intentional opportunities for new students to build community,” explains Isabel Peng, the director of New Student Transition Programs and First Year Experience at Caltech, “and shared meals were one way to do that.”

Once again this will most likely be somewhat outdated, as Day of the Devs takes place immediately after the live Summer Games Fest presentation. However, I enjoy it a lot more than the live presentation as it gives a deeper look into the games, and it specifically focuses on games made by indie studios. I’ve rated them mostly on how likely I am to buy them when they come out. Snap and Grab (2026) – 8/10 Amazing 80s aesthetics with high fashion and high class capers. The game centers around t

I bought the 2025 Pasadena Coffee Passport back in February so that I had something fun to look forward to this year and support local businesses. It is now September, and I have only been to four of the fourteen shops in the passport! I’m determined to visit them all before the end of the year, so stay tuned for my next round of reviews. For now, read about the drinks, locations, and interior descriptions of the four coffee shops I visited thus far. ![](https://xguzskbxiptvhbyggkpl.supabase.c

Oh dearest Red Door quesadilla, Longing for you at a quarter til eleven Summer means lights off Missing a taste of heaven Reminiscing you sometimes being burnt to a crisp Yet enjoyed with and guac Sometimes my extra Taco Bell mild sauce Accompanied by friends as we munch and talk You were often shared between two So one is not such a big back But summer nights, not even. Awaiting the return of the midnight snack Oh dearest Red Door quesadilla, You’ve finally came back as it is fall