The Wake

Words are interesting in that if you say them enough, they lose all meaning. When certain phrases are repeated endlessly, they eventually end up as configurations of letters held in vacuum with no context to give them weight or meaning. To wit: what the hell is Islamo-Fascism? It’s an important question given that October 22-26 was “Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week” (IFAW) and, believe it or not, our campus was a “participant.”IFAW is the brainchild of David Horowitz, a neocon writer and activist whose Terrorism Awareness Project (TAP) seeks to bring a right-wing presence to college campuses. Of course, it’s not as …

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Any college student who loves to play videogames wants an Xbox 360. They also want a Nintendo Wii. Some of the more affluent students just might want a Playstation 3. Myself, I want all three. When I heard about this website RadioFreeXbox.com, I thought it was too good to be true. I was driving to school when an ad for it came on the radio, complete with the standard testimonials from people who I can only assume are paid actors. A website that promises a free Xbox 360?! Score! Upon further investigation my hopes melted away like ice cream in …

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In the middle of the night in a dark parking lot in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood, I recently shouted at a complete stranger that I was going to rob him. My actual words were, “Man, I’ll rob your ass!” In a way, I wanted to mean it, although I have never robbed anyone in my life and do not plan to. In order to explain my vicious threat in the dark of night, I need to make a series of stops that will first take us through the world of college hockey, then on to postcolonial East Africa and finally to …

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I believe that my Halloween roots were much like any other child’s. There are photographs of me in costumes I don’t recall wearing, with other children I don’t know. I remember that my aunt and uncle would bring us to Edina to trick-or-treat, where they handed out the king-sized candy bars. I know that I was an angel, a rabbit, a Kirsten doll, a clown, and a pumpkin. My elementary school had a Halloween parade every year where the local business owners would stand outside their shops and give us goodies. Things were looking good for me in the Halloween …

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Dear Uncle Ethan,I’m a TA for an intro anatomy course and I’m in a bit of a pickle. I have a bit of a crush on one of the students in my lab section. I’m not too worried about the age gap (it’s small); It’s the ethics of dating a student that I’m concerned about. I know student-professor relationships are explicitly forbidden, but I haven’t heard anything regarding TAs. Thoughts?
-Extra CreditDear EC,I, for one, have always been an advocate of student-teacher relationships. Shared academic interests naturally translate to romantic compatibility. I’ve seen many such …

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They meet in high school and college, respond to ads in the newspaper or get assembled by producers. Bands are forming constantly. Some dream of platinum records and spots on MTV; other just hope to secure that fist gig.“We took it into our own hands,” says Nick Wellner, former vocalist for After the Burial. “We wanted to play with bigger bands, but it was hard to get shows at first.”In 2004 five friends from White Bear Lake, Minn., formed the hardcore group. Wellner, a graphic designer, made posters and fliers advertising the band and their shows. Like most bands today, …

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It is often forgotten how bands begin. They play dingy holes in the wall, arriving five hours prior to their gig, lost in cities that they’ve never been to. They ride around in a not-so-white van for hours until they get to another strange town. Then they get stuck in the middle of Minnesota’s Iron Range, blinded by blizzard conditions, driving on right through the storm. Last year Tokyo Police Club canceled their Minneapolis date when they got stuck in Minnesota’s harsh winter weather after an arduous two day trek from Toronto, the band’s hometown. Once the …

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Our beloved Dinkytown; the hot spots are too numerous to count. From a hung-over morning at Al’s Breakfast, to a drunken stupor into Mesa’s pizza, or a custom “waterpipe” from the Hideaway, it’s a fine tradition. When it comes to the matter of evening date activities, is there any competition? The Varsity Theater, on any given night, can be your sure shot option. With its comfortable interior and diverse lineup of acts, you’re likely to find your night. Matt Pond PA’s performance on Oct. 8th exemplified this matter to perfection.Hailing from New Hampshire, Matt Pond PA brought in a casual …

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Though their name hints at an influence of psychedelics, White Rabbits haven’t got anything to do with Jefferson Airplane, or feeding your head. And although they’re residents of NYC, originally from Missouri, their sound isn’t geographically linked to either. Of their six members, two are full time drummers. Their use of various percussion instruments, tinkering, then pounded pianos have led to a self described, “honky-tonk calypso,” sound. Their constant use of shakers and maracas, and their admiration of prohibition era clothing, is reminiscent of last years “it” band, Cold War Kids. Album opener, “Kid On My Shoulders,” is a can’t …

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Radiohead - In Rainbows

You’ve heard all the rumors. Radiohead, a British rock group, recently released their seventh full length album on the Internet… for free. Now I know what you’re thinking, “Where can I, a law abiding college student, obtain a free copy of this trendy new intangible record?” My answer is “Sssssssssssshhhh, if you’re very quiet you can hear it seeping under your roommate’s door, knock before you enter because he’s probably doing his best Thom Yorke impression over the subtle …

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The new Harlots album shines like a polished pearl atop a mountain of shit. In a genre glutted with mediocre Converge and Pig Destroyer impressions, breakdown-overloaded astructural deathcore, and boring Neur-Isis look-alikes, Harlots have managed to put out a record that is inspired, interesting, and unique.Though Betrayer does clearly draw from the schools of thought listed above, it is not subservient to them. When the album gets brutal (which happens early and often,) some riffs may be reminiscent of something you might hear coming from Scott Hull or Kurt Ballou’s guitar, but only if you separate them entirely from their …

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At the dawn of 2004, just as Britney Spears was marrying and annulling Jason Allen Alexander in Las Vegas, and nine US soldiers were killed in a Black Hawk helicopter crash in Falluja, President George W. Bush, hot on the re-election trail, stepped up to a blue-gray podium at NASA headquarters in Washington DC.With childlike wonder he outlined a series of ambitious space exploration projects. He compared our current thirst for discovery to that of the Lewis and Clark Expedition two centuries ago, nearly implying a modern Manifest Destiny for the United States and our eventual conquering of our Solar …

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A few years ago, actress Gwyneth Paltrow named her daughter Apple. If only the naming of actual apples was so simple.“Naming an apple is worse than naming a kid,” Dr. James Luby says, professor of plant genetics and director of the fruit breeding program at the Horticultural Research Center, a division of the University of Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. “It’s okay if there are two or three Emilys in the class, but no two apples in the world can have the same name.”Possibly because the University of Minnesota’s team of apple namers are creatively exhausted after coming up with names for …

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Getting dirty, planting seeds, and watching them mature. No, it’s not a description of your baby’s daddy; it’s what the Horticulture Club does year round.The Horticulture Club, which became an official club at the University of Minnesota in 1983, is for those who enjoy the wonderful world of plants. However it’s not just exclusive to horticulture majors. Any student who loves to get their hands a little dirty is welcomed to join.“I think we almost doubled membership this year,” Horticulture Club advisor Professor Neil Anderson says. “We’ve been attracting a lot of students outside of the …

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To the average person the topic of evolution is thought of as less a field of study than a hot-button issue, the source of commotion regarding its teaching in public schools. For scientists like Bell Museum director Scott Lanyon, evolution isn’t about legal and political squabbles but about the work of mapping the branches that trace evolution’s path and show connections between species. Lanyon is involved with a research project called “Assembling the Tree of Life.” “Science has shown that all organisms are descended from a common ancestor,” Lanyon explains. “The tree of life is a genealogy for how all …

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