01-26-23 Entire Issue Hi Res

Local Regal Teater to Close

By SOFIA RUBINSON Sun News Editor

Regal Ithaca Mall Stadium 14 is set to turn off its projectors in the coming weeks after its parent company Cineworld announced it was filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September, according to a report by Business Insider.

On Jan. 17, Cineworld detailed its plan to reject the leases of 39 Regal theaters nationwide starting Feb. 15. Regal did not respond to requests for comment about whether the reports on the Ithaca location’s closing are accurate.

The Ithaca Mall location has held a movie theater since 1976 and opened as a Regal Cinema in 2007. Cornell students have expressed deep sadness over the announced closing of the largest movie theater within a TCAT ride from campus.

“I saw going to the movie theater as being a chance to escape for a couple of hours and forget about everything else that’s going on,” said Jacob Gonzalez ’26, who would see a movie about once a month. “Classes can be very hard at Cornell, and it was really comfortable being able to just go out and disappear for about two and a half hours and get to watch a great movie and eat some popcorn. I think that was really important for a lot of people.”

Although there are other theaters in town, students told The Sun that Regal’s movie offerings were better for movie-goers who want a wide variety of blockbuster films.

“I would prefer to have a Regal theater. I’m from New York City, and we have Regal a lot, so it’s definitely a different experience,” said Lina Liu ’25, who recently picked up a film minor and was excited to watch the latest blockbusters at Regal.

Cinemapolis is located in Downtown Ithaca and specializes in independent, foreign and locally-produced films. There is also Cornell Cinema, which plays classic Hollywood and foreign films, documentaries, silent films, cult classics, experimental work and recent Hollywood and arthouse movies.

Gonzalez expressed concerns about these theaters’ niche demographics.

“Now that there’s no big movie theater that has some of the bigger movies, like Marvel movies, I think it’s not a good thing,” Gonzalez said. “A lot of people are going to have to find other stuff to do. There’s definitely a lot of other things to do, but that just takes away one of the big activities.”

According to Cinemapolis Executive Director Kate Donohue, the five-screen theater has not shown

C-Town Resumes After Slow Break

By CARLIN REYEN Sun Staff Writer

As winter break came to an end and classes began Jan. 22, Cornell students brought life back to the dorms, libraries and classrooms that had been vacant over the holiday season. For many Collegetown restaurants, this means a return to business as usual — a vital part of the year that keeps the doors of these establishments open.

Mia Jeong, manager of Four Seasons, a Korean barbecue restaurant located on Eddy Street, said that business at the restaurant was very slow over the break and that the restaurant has seen more customers — although it is not yet busy — following the return of students to campus.

Four Seasons was closed for two weeks of the winter season, reopening Jan. 9. Jeong estimated that about 90 percent of the restaurant’s customers are Cornell students.

“I’m expecting it to get better this weekend [Jan. 28 - 29],”

Jeong said, noting that January and February are typically slower months. The restaurant has historically been busy from March until the end of May.

Local Hawaiian-inspired restaurant PokeLava also closed for at least part of the winter recess. Jenny Zhang, manager of PokeLava, wrote in an email to The Sun that the restaurant had been closed from Dec. 23 to Jan.10, referencing that 98 percent of its customers are Cornell students and that business was “extremely slow” during the break.

The restaurant gains “a lot more business when students return,” Zhang said.

The College Avenue location of Collegetown Bagels, affectionately known by students and locals alike as “CTB”, is the company’s busiest location.

To continue reading this article, please visit www.cornellsun.com.

Carlin Reyen can be reached at creyen@cornellsun.com.

Cold Culture Shock for Freshmen

By MARISA CEFOLA Sun Staff Writer

Although seasoned Cornellians have learned to manage Ithaca’s winters, freshmen from warm climates are learning to navigate the snow and freezing temperatures for the first time — some students expressed excitement to engage in winter activities, while others miss their hometowns’ warm weather.

Ellie Gardner ’26 lives in Ithaca

year round and offered a word of warning to her peers who now find themselves swapping hoodies for heavy jackets and snow boots.

“I would say that winter weather in Ithaca is erratic,” Gardner said. “You can get snow, sleet and sun all in one week. But the winters are always cold and last into March!”

Miami native Camila Morata ’26 is excited for the new experience, despite the warnings from locals.

“I have always wanted to experi-

ence winter, especially snow based on seeing Christmas movies and winter in the media,” Morata said.

“However, based on what I have heard from others, it can seem intimidating not knowing what to expect.”

To continue reading this article, please visit www.cornellsun.com.

Marisa Cefola can be reached at mcefola@cornellsun.com.

Roll credits | Neon lights illuminate the box office at Regal Ithaca Mall on Jan. 24. Regular moviegoers are lamenting over the theater's closing, slated for the coming months.

JASON WU / SUN ASSISTANT PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR

Back in business | Students return to College Ave. following a restful winter break.

HANNAH ROSENBERG / SUN SENIOR EDITOR

First frost | Freshmen from warm climates get cold feet as they experience their first Ithaca winter.

MING DEMERS / SUN STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Daybook

A LISTING OF FREE CAMPUS EVENTS

Soup and Hope 2023: Lauren Free 12 p.m., Sage Chapel

Silk Stockings Film 7:30 p.m., Cornell Cinema

Applied Water Research in NYS: Carbon Sequestration in Ponds 1 p.m., Virtual Event

Social Fabric: Land, Labor and the World the Textile Industry Created 9 a.m., Carl A. Kroch Library, Hirshland Gallery

Tomorrow

CANCELED: FGSS Faculty Work Luncheon with Julia Chang 12 p.m., Rockefeller Hall, 190

Bienvenidos

6:30 p.m., Anna Comstock Hall (Latino Living Center)

Today

Melody Zhou: To Better Times 8 a.m., Experimental Gallery, Tjaden Hall

Winter Career Carnival 5:30 p.m., Toni Morrison Hall, Multipurpose Room AB

LASSP & AEP Seminar by Noah Mitchell 12:20 p.m., Clark Hall, 701

Image Text M.F.A. 2 p.m., Virtual Event

Challenging the Deep: An exhibit celebrating the 150-year anniversary of the H.M.S. Challenger 8 a.m., Mann Library

Cornell Center for Historical Keyboards Salon: CU Music 5 p.m., A.D. White House

Cornell Women’s Ice Hockey vs Harvard University 6 p.m., Lynah Rink

BME7900 Seminar Series: Shuibing Chen, Ph.D. 2:45 p.m., Weill Hall, 226

COURTESY OF CORNELL UNIVERSITY

Ongoing tension | Eugene Fishel and Yaropolk Kulchyckyj will provide insider perspectives into Russia’s war with Ukraine on Thursday with a focus on Democratic and Republican Ukraine-related policies seen over the years.

Last Act for Regal Ithaca Mall

According to Cinemapolis Executive Director Kate Donohue, the fve-screen theater has not shown Marvel movies in the past, but it could be a possibility in the future.

“Cinemapolis is evolving with the movie industry,” Donohue said. “We are really committed to playing a wide variety of movies that are enriching but also entertaining for the whole community.”

Students Prepare For Winter Activities

By AIMÉE EICHER Sun Assistant News Editor

As snow falls and temperatures sit below freezing, winter sports organizations and facilities across Cornell and the greater Ithaca area hope to engage Cornellians in cold-weather activities.

Julia Forte ’24 and Tory Watnick ’23, co-captains of the Cornell University Figure Skating Club, said they hope to involve the Cornell community in their events this semester. Although figure skaters practice the sport year-round, Forte recognized the sport’s increase in popularity amongst the general public during the winter.

“[For] figure skaters who are competing or do it as an actual sport, it’s definitely a year-round sport. I think it’s just a little bit of a misconception that it’s a winter sport,” Forte said. “But I think the general public just gets into it in the winter, because it’s such a fun thing to do, to skate outside, and that’s the only weather that permits that.”

Last semester, CUFSC hosted Lynahmation, a figure skating show during which skaters portrayed

animated characters. The club also hosted a public skate night, where students could skate at Lynah Rink with the team.

Watnick said that CUFSC will put on another show this semester and hopes to host another skate night. Forte echoed Watnick’s sentiment, adding that she enjoys engaging the Cornell community in figure skating.

“I’d say it’s really great for us to have our campus involved — in the shows, in skate night,” Forte said.

Lynah Rink is open to the Cornell community for public skating as well, although the rink reduced its hours last semester due to lack of staffing. The rink will resume its Sunday public skating session this semester, which will take place from 8 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., Lynah Rink manager Phil Graham wrote in an email to The Sun.

In addition to ice skating, Cornellians can enjoy skiing this winter.

To continue reading this article, please visit www.cornellsun.com.

Students who purchased the Regal Unlimited pass for $18.99 a month are feeling particularly devastated. Rayvaughn Brown ’26 would frequent the Regal theater weekly to see the latest films, with trips in the Ithaca Mall becoming part of his routine.

For Jakene Reaves ’26, the unlimited pass meant visits to the theater almost every other day over the summer. He participated in the Pre-Collegiate Summer Scholars program, leaving him with plenty of time to watch movies. Reaves has gone to the movies once or twice a week since the beginning of the school year.

“The biggest value [of the Regal theater] is we don’t have any other options, so it’s a great place — if people like watching movies — to go congregate with their friends,” Reaves said. “Not that many

people were going there, but at least it was the place to go. Now that there is no place to go, you just can’t watch movies. You’re either forced to stream or forced to go to Syracuse,” he continued, referring to the nearest Regal north of Ithaca.

Frequent movie-goers noticed low showings for most films, with the exception of opening nights and on National Cinema Day, when all tickets were $3. Reaves said on most occasions, it was just him and a few others in a theater.

The Regal cinema has left lasting impacts on Cornell alumni. Violet Fwwermin ’13 still has memories of spending time with close friends at the theater. After seeing a highly-anticipated Tyler Perry movie, she recalls missing the last TCAT back to campus.

“We had to walk back to campus in the dark from the theater, super late at night, and we were making jokes about it, but we were also a little bit nervous, but we made it back okay,” Fermin said.

To continue reading this article, please visit www. cornellsun.com.

Sofa Rubinson can be reached at srubinson@cornellsun.com.

Students Refect: Internal Transfers

By MARIAN CABALLO Sun Staff Writer

Nearly 80 majors are offered among the colleges and schools at Cornell, and finding the right one requires some students to transfer to other colleges and schools after admission.

Prospective students apply for admission into one of Cornell’s eight undergraduate colleges and schools: the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the College of Architecture, Art and Planning, the College of Arts and Sciences, the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business, the Cornell Ann S. Bowers College of Computing and Information Science, the College of Engineering, the College of Human Ecology, the School of Industrial and Labor Relations and

the Cornell Jeb E. Brooks School of Public Policy.

Upon further exploration of the University’s academic resources, students may decide to transfer internally.

“‘Any person, any study’ is 100 percent compatible with students’ exploring their interests and learning that their goals have changed,” wrote Jonathan Burdick, vice provost for Enrollment, in an email to The Sun. “If that self-discovery is happening to a Cornell student, at any point after the first semester of enrollment, they’re eligible to apply for an internal transfer.”

This was the case for Isabel Hou ’24, who transferred from the Nolan School of Hotel Administration to ILR last fall as her interests shifted from business

to law.

“The ILR curriculum is much better suited for me as a student with a desire to pursue classes that focus on analytical writing and critical thinking,” Hou told The Sun. “I am certain I made the right decision in transferring.”

Kayciel Ramos ’24 switched from Dyson to CALS last fall to pursue a major in information science.

“[Transferring] was sparked by not feeling motivated or engaged in the classes and not doing well,” Ramos said.

To continue reading this article, please visit www.cornellsun.com.

Marian Caballo can be reached at mcaballo@cornellsun.com.

Postal Information: The Cornell Daily Sun (USPS 132680 ISSN 1095-8169) is published by the Cornell Daily Sun, a New York corporation, 139 W. State St., Ithaca, N.Y. 14850. The Sun is published Tuesday and Thursday during the academic year, and every weekday online. Three special issues — one for seniors in May, one for reunion alumni in June and one for incoming freshmen in July — make for a total of 61 issues this academic year. Subscriptions are: $60.00 for fall term, $60.00 for spring term and $120.00 for both terms if paid in advance. Standard postage paid at Ithaca, New York. Postmaster: Send address changes to The Cornell Daily Sun, 139 W. State St., Ithaca, N.Y. 14850.

At their peak | Students snowboard at Greek Peak, a favorite winter destination among Cornellians.

COURTESY OF GREEK PEAK

Aimée Eicher can be reached at aeicher@cornellsun.com.

Dining Guide

Your source for good food

New Year, More Food:

Your 2023 Resolution Guide

By Kyle Roth Sun Staff Writer

Winter break is officially at a close, marking the beginning of a new semester of interesting classes, rewarding extracurricular activities and long-lasting memories. A deeply rooted tradition to focus on self-care and self-improvement, New Year’s resolutions are in full swing for many approaching the New Year with goals and ambitions to change.

Surveys reveal that behind improving mental health, improving fitness and losing weight, an improved diet consistently ranks in the top five of the most common New Year’s resolutions. But what does a food-related resolution look like and how can students accomplish this goal? After all, the ball has already dropped — now let’s get it rolling.

1.) Try New Foods, Ingredients, and Cuisines

Exploring and expanding the types and compositions of food one eats can be a great way to experience new tastes and cultures. Additionally, including more variation can benefit your metabolic and gut health. The Cleveland Clinic wisely recommends, “Add a little spark to your meal routine and you’ll avoid diet burnout” by keeping things fresh and exciting on a consistent basis. Although it can be daunting to step out of your food comfort zones, trying unfamiliar foods can often produce surprising results.

At Cornell, kosher dining is readily available at 104West! and Morrison Dining, in addition to other dining halls throughout the campus. Halal meals are also available at Morrison Dining and upon request at Keeton House Dining Room.

Experimenting with new vegetarian and vegan options can also introduce a variety of tasty alternatives to meat and dairy products. Off-campus, visiting restaurants that you’ve never tried or are unfamiliar with can be an exciting way to become more familiar with Ithaca, support small businesses and offer a pleasant surprise to your taste buds. Visitithaca. com reveals that, shockingly, Ithaca has more restaurants per capita than New York City itself, highlighting the local diversity of restaurants that can be made the most of while living in Ithaca.

2.) Clean Up Food Regrets with Balanced Meals

Eating in moderation and including products from all food groups can be an excellent method to get in balanced nutrients. Harvard’s Healthy Eating Plate recommends making one-half of your plate fruits and veggies, one-fourth whole grains and one-fourth protein while consuming healthy plant oils such as olive oil and peanut oil in moderation.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention point out that maintaining balance between food groups “keeps skin, teeth and eyes healthy, supports muscles,strengthens

bones, boosts immunity, and helps achieve and maintain a healthy weight.” Although sometimes not as tasty or appetizing, these cleaner whole foods will have you on the fast track to an improved diet.

3.) Limit Food Waste

The Cornell Food Recovery Network details that “40 percent of food in the U.S. is wasted…[and] 3.6 million tons of food are wasted by universities across the U.S. each year.” Earth.org emphasizes that wasting food pointlessly uses up water, creates greenhouse gasses and harms land and marine biodiversity.

“When we throw away food, we also throw away the precious resources that went into producing this food…[and] there is a huge need to reduce this environmental footprint,” Earth.org stresses.

Food waste can be mitigated by only taking food you can finish, shopping responsibly,

and being on top of expiration dates. Any leftovers can creatively be reinvented into new meals instead of being immediately fated for the trash can. Left-over proteins, veggies, and grains can be quickly stirfried or roasted, fruits and veggies juiced, and bread blitzed into bread crumbs following the advice of various easily accessible recipes for left-overs.

Additionally, composting food and paper products takes advantage of “nature’s way of recycling” that the United States Environmental Protection Agency illustrates can resourcefully “reduce our trash, address climate change and build healthy soil.”

4.) Home-Cooking

For those living off-campus or on limited meal plans, cooking your own meals can allow for more control over ingredients and cooking styles, which can offer much more flexibility in sticking to a diet that best

fits your goals. Additionally, public health experts Julia A. Wolfson and Sara N. Bleich suggest that home-cooking meals “more frequently is associated with lower consumption of total kilojoules, carbohydrates, fat, sugar and fast food.”

While it is undoubtedly difficult finding where to start on your food-related goals for 2023, there are fortunately many options and opportunities available at Cornell to give a try. Changing goals into habits can be the hardest part of a New Year’s resolution, but hopefully some of the objectives listed above can offer insight into achieving an improved diet. Happy Dining and Happy New Year!

Kyle Roth is a sophomore in the College of Human Ecology. He can be reached at ksr73@ cornell.edu.

The Corne¬ Daily Sun

Independent Since 1880

140th Editorial Board

VEE CIPPERMAN ’23 Editor in Chief

ANGELA BUNAY ’24 Managing Editor

EMMA

SURITA BASU ’23 Assistant

SERENA editor in chief Angela Bunay ’24 managing desker Aimee Eicher ’24 opinion deskers Hugo Amador ’24 news deskers Marissa Cefola ’26 Carlin Reyen ’25 Marian Caballo ’26 science deskers Daniella Garcia ’25 dining desker Jimmy Cawley ’25 Kyle Roth ’25 ad layout Katrien De Waard ’24 photo desker Julia Nagel ’24 layout deskers Kate Kim ’24

TRACY ZENG ’24 Advertising Manager

DEVAN FLORES ’24 Web Editor

KATHERINE YAO ’23 Opinion Editor

SOFIA RUBINSON ’24 News Editor

JOHN COLIE ’23 Arts & Culture Editor

DANIELA WISE-ROJAS ’25 Dining Editor

AARON SNYDER ’23 Sports Editor

TENZIN KUNSANG ’25 Science Editor

ANDIE KIM ’24 Multimedia Editor

AIMEE EICHER ’24 Assistant News Editor

SARAH YOUNG ’24 Assistant News Editor

NIHAR HEGDE ’24 Assistant Arts & Culture Editor

CLAIRE LI ’24 Assistant Photography Editor

GABRIELLA PACITTO ’24 Assistant Sports Editor

RUTH ABRAHAM ’24 Assistant Sports Editor

DANIEL BERNSTEIN ’23 Senior Editor

Halle Swasing Goes Without Swasing

Halle Swasing ‘24 (she/her) is a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences. She can be reached at hls87@cornell.edu. Goes Without Swasing runs every other Sunday this semester.

Long-Term, Long-Distance, Long Shot

Last week, my boyfriend and I celebrated our 4-year anniversary. Thankfully, it lined up with Thanksgiving break, otherwise we would have been celebrating over the phone. We’re long-distance during the school year so that I can be at school in Ithaca, and he can work at his job back home. I’ve found that being in a long-term, long-distance relationship is somewhat off the beaten path for college

reasons for this.

The first is that my peers are so deeply ingrained in the casual dating scene and campus hookup culture that as soon as they know I am not a devout member, they stamp the mark of disapproval on my forehead, and I am instantly marked as an unrelatable outcast.

Okay, this might be a bit dramatic, but the point stands. While their idea of a fun Friday night is finding a new frat guy to kiss, mine is binge watching The Vampire Diaries with my boyfriend — he doesn’t like to admit it, but I got him hooked on the series a few years back.

The second reason is the doubtful glimmer in their eye as if to say, “what makes you think that you’re so special that you’ve already found your person when the rest of us haven’t?”

students, and I have struggled to figure out how my relationship fits into my life as a student, both academically and socially.

In today’s world of technology, we’ve found ways to make the distance work. We video chat often and work to find creative ways to spend time together even while apart. Teleparty has been a godsend so we can continue to watch our favorite Netflix shows, and because my hometown is less than a 4-hour drive away, we also find time to visit each other a few times each semester.

In general, I’ve found the distance to be much less of an obstacle than I originally anticipated. The truth is that I’m so busy with everything that being a college student entails that even if we were in the same city, we’d still spend a lot of time apart. Speaking of being a busy college student, it can be really challenging to balance academics with my relationship while still setting aside time for other aspects of my life such as my job and extracurriculars. My boyfriend has a fairly regular schedule as a full-time employee, whereas you may find me waking up at 7 a.m. some days or almost noon others and staying up past midnight working on assignments or just to get some much needed “me time.”

It’s often difficult to find times that our schedules line up, and a lot of communication and time-management has gone into making all these factors come together (somewhat) harmoniously. I am thankful that it has always been an important pillar of understanding in our relationship that education always comes first. This allows me to prioritize what I need to do to be successful while still maintaining the integrity of our relationship.

All that aside, the facet of my college life in which I most struggle to integrate my relationship is socially. In most social situations, I am usually the only one (or one of very few) in a committed, long-term relationship. Because of this, I find myself struggling to relate to and be accepted by my peers. I feel like I inadvertently give off a snooty, holier-than-thou vibe when I share my relationship status. There are two

The truth is, being the independent person that I am, I really struggled with allowing myself to succumb to a serious relationship at my age and to have it become a defining part of my life.

As the title says, I’m well aware that young love can be a long shot, but my honest answer is that I’ve learned that relationships are what you make of them, no matter your age.

We have cultivated a relationship where we leave space for each other to grow and actively encourage each other to thrive,

and quite frankly, I couldn’t ask for much more.

The stark divide in dating attitudes between me and many of my peers has made it difficult for me to feel like I am getting the typical college student social experience, but at the end of the day, I know that my relationship situation is right for me.

I certainly don’t long for the days of “Why hasn’t he called?” followed by “I didn’t like him anyways.”

Being in a healthy long-term relationship offers a support system that I have been thankful to lean back on many times throughout college, and I’m thankful to have ventured off the beaten path to find a trail that better suits my life and values. It’s not for everyone, and that’s okay, but it is for me.

Cynicism Isn’t (Always) Wisdom

filled the 1990s. Even if authoritarianism resurfaced, Fukuyama wrote, it would undoubtedly be triumphed by democracy.

It might be abundantly clear by now that I’m in the middle of writing my government final papers. But, I present this example not to subliminally sell you on enrolling in a political science course or to argue about the merits of Fukuyama’s work — political scientists have been doing that since it was published in 1992.

Lia Sokol

My So-Kolled Life

Some of my fellow government major friends and I have a recurring joke about which of us is the most cynical. Competition is fierce: the state of global politics, it would appear, has not been breeding a strong sense of optimism.

While I can safely say that I was a cynic long before I was a government major, I’ve also started to question whether this default mindset of mine is doing much good. Does my skepticism — which I diplomatically prefer to market as realism — make me more equipped to confront the challenges of our world? Or, realistically, does it just make me sad?

To be clear, I think there is much to be cynical about. In fact, I would argue that my disillusionment is at least in part a product of our time — a time that is markedly different from the one in which our parents, for instance, grew up.

Tree decades ago, for example, American political scientist Francis Fukuyama ’74 wrote a book called Te End of History and the Last Man. In it, he argued that the expansion of liberal democracy marked an end-point in humanity’s ideological development. Te Cold War was over, the Soviet Union dissolved; an air of optimism

Lili Mkrtchyan

Tea With Lily

College of Arts and Sciences. She can be reached at lm688@ cornell.edu. Tea with Lily runs every other Monday this semester.

Some of you might recall one of my previous columns when I described my struggles getting an SDS accommodation. It has since only gone downhill from there. In this column, I will be bringing my experience as an example of how staff and faculty at Cornell can mistreat and mislead students trying to get SDS accommodations.

As a person with Student Disability Services accommodations, I was entitled to ask my instructors for deadline extensions along with many other accommodations. In fact, I had two letters back to back, one for mental health reasons and one for my physical health after I was hospitalized. Te SDS email sent to me stated: “Te letters will not disclose your condition, just that accommodations are necessary

Rather, I see it as an indication of how much times have changed. Te Ithaca that Fukuyama learned in is not the same one we inhabit now. Today, it would be much harder to argue that liberal democracy has superseded above all. Te optimistic fervor of the 90s has given way to something distinctly darker, not only in politics but in society at large.

As young adults, our lives have been marked by recessions, political polarization, war, climate change, unemployment, a pandemic … all of which we have the privilege of watching on screens in hand-held real time, coping with collective grief through Tweets that would take an archaeologist years to decipher — assuming, of course, that Twitter exists long enough for that. It’s harder to buy a house and get a job than it was several

my day-to-day life. I have erroneously translated the existential anxiety of the time we live in to the way I see myself and the microcosms I inhabit: Why bother making new friends if I’m a senior, destined to leave Ithaca in a semester’s time? Why apply for a certain fellowship

decades ago, much less to reckon with the broader state of the world we live in.

In short, I think there is reason to be cynical, and I don’t think you need to drown yourself in political science books to recognize that.

Yet, I also find that I have fallen into a trap of conflating my fears and cynicism towards the world with

if I know it’s competitive and unrealistic to win? Why enjoy the sunset if it’s going to get dark at 4 p.m.?

I’m exaggerating, of course — I would never question appreciating an Ithaca sunset. But it is in these moments that I’m trying to catch myself, to feel grounded in the present moment without lamenting the past, dreading the future or fearing the world too much.

I am still resistant towards perpetual optimism, what the Internet has termed “toxic positivity” — a dismissal of negative emotions in favor of constant cheer. Pastel Instagram posts spewing platitudes about how “everything will work out” and “there are no bad days” can only go so far.

However, there has to be a middle ground: a space for acknowledging the difficulties of the world while embracing the day-to-day joys, leaving room for cynicism towards the outside while appreciating the hope that lies within.

A song called “Cynicism” by Nana Grizol came up in my Spotify recommended list about a year ago. Expecting a relatable track full of bitter skepticism against the world, I gave it a listen. I still return to it today for a melancholy reminder of the value that optimism holds.

“Cynicism isn’t wisdom, it’s a lazy way to say that you’ve been burned.

It seems, if anything, you’d be less certain after everything you ever learned.”

My Trust Issues With Cornell

during this time. You do not need to share with your professors why accommodations are needed.” My CS 2800 instructors gave me an extension only theoretically, while practically keeping the problem set locked so I had no access to it. Tey refused to prolong the extension even when it was their fault that the problem set was locked.

Te SDS office asked the instructors to meet with me and discuss this situation. My CS instructors started talking at me despite the fact that they knew nothing about the reasons behind my accommodations. Tey cut me short when I was trying to explain.

Tey told me that it was in my best interest to disclose my health condition, for them to “assess the seriousness” of it and base their decision on that. Well, everyone, let’s congratulate the CS 2800 instructors on their new degrees in medicine, now it seems like they are qualified doctors to “assess the seriousness” of a health condition even when I had a letter from actual doctors that stated that I needed accommodations. Tat is exactly what happened to me, and apparently they did not agree with the SDS letter, as they told my advisor that I had ample opportunity to catch up.

I tried telling them about my background, that I had three cases of pneumonia before and I had barely survived one as a child, making me emotional and vulnerable after my recent hospitalization. Te professor was feeling especially kind on that day to say that she thought that the other instructor was kind enough to send me the PDF, and that she wouldn’t have sent it to me, as she thought it was my responsibility to download it. Te PDF preview feature is silently crying in the corner. You know what is more ironic than a professor not knowing about the preview feature for homework: a Computer Science

professor not knowing about this feature.

In hindsight, they did everything to scare me off by saying that “whatever I am trying to achieve, the answer is no.” Funny enough, I was not trying to achieve anything that they can say no to.

On a more serious note, as someone who had mental health accommodations because of the war back home in Armenia, I find it

one referring to my mental health because of the war, and one referring to my physical condition because of my bronchitis, asking them to consider this as a drop because of my “special circumstances.” Te Sr. Assistant Registrar at Arts & Sciences Student Services emailed me back stating: “Te deadline to drop a course is a firm deadline, and we are not able to fulfill your request to drop (without a W) at this date.” Interestingly enough, right after I mentioned that I know that they have made exceptions before, they replied saying that they had made exceptions for students who thought they had dropped a class and did not realize they were still enrolled.

Now, obviously, “a firm deadline” and “few cases [of exceptions]” directly contradict each other, and I am not sure if it is allowed to say something that they absolutely know is wrong. However, can we talk about how a sane person would consider an inattentive student who “thought they dropped a class and did not realize that they were still enrolled” a special exception, but not me, who had two student disability service letters and an obvious failure to be accommodated by the instructors?

concerning that the instructors can attack and blame a student like me without even knowing the reason for accommodations. Hear me out — maybe if the University wants people to stop jumping off of bridges, it should educate its instructors to be understanding and compassionate.

Because of this conversation and the instructors’ lack of cooperation and compassion, I decided to drop the class because I was going through a hard time mentally and physically at the time. I was told that for “special occasions” the Arts and Sciences College would consider a withdrawal as a drop. Hence, in my petition I cited both of my SDS letters,

Te faculty and staff here at Cornell are not perfect, and unless you are stubborn and outspoken, they will likely do nothing to help you. In my case, the University failed me because I was physically sick and mentally vulnerable because of the war back home: circumstances that did not depend on me. If you are in a vulnerable situation, try to read all the policies by yourself rather than relying on someone’s words, and have all the conversations on record in your email. Prioritize your physical and mental health despite the toxic culture of Cornell. And finally, be resilient and outspoken, because nothing scares an institution more than people who can stand up for themselves.

Lili Mkrtchyan is a sophomore in the

Lia Sokol (she/her) is a senior in the College of Arts & Sciences. She can be reached at lbs222@cornell.edu. My So-kolled Life runs every other Sunday this semester.

The optimistic fervor of the 90s has given way to something distinctly darker, not only in politics but in society at large.

There has to be a middle ground: a space for acknowledging the difficulties of the world while embracing the day-to-day joys.

In hindsight, they did everything to scare me off by saying that “whatever I am trying to achieve, the answer is no.”

Attention

Mortality

PAYPHONE

Fill in the empty cells, one number in each, so that each column, row, and region contains the numbers 1-9 exactly once. Each number in the solution therefore occurs only once in each of the three “directions,” hence the “single numbers” implied by the puzzle’s name.

(Rules from wikipedia.org/wiki/ Sudoku)

Snowbound

414 Stewart Ave. 4, 6, 8, 10, 14 Bedrooms

Free parking & laundry. Large kitchens. Updated bathrooms. Sunny. Call or text 607-227-1923

We have availability for the 2023-2024 school year beginning June 1st at Hudson Heights apartments. These studios include electric, heat, water, garbage and parking.

Coin-operated laundry facilities available on site. Prices start at $850/month for a 12 month lease, with options for 10 month and semester leases with different rates.

If you have any questions or would like to schedule a tour contact us by email: renting@ithacaLS.com. Please visit our website www.ithacalivingsolutions.com for photos and more information.

ForTheDefense.com can now be yours! Go to ForTheDefense.com for details on how to purchase this exceptional domain name.

Still Hate Work

SC I ENCE C.U. Researchers Build Camera to Track Movement

By ADITYA SYAM Sun Contributor

The SciFi Lab at Cornell has made a breakthrough in body movement tracking with its miniature wristband camera, BodyTrak, which is capable of tracking full-body postures in 3-D. The team, led by Prof. Cheng Zhang, computing and information science, combined images of partial silhouettes with machine-learning techniques to recreate entire body postures of users.

The team published a research paper demonstrating the efficacy of this new technology. The prototype was able to successfully track 13 different types of body movements with a higher accuracy than more conventional movement-tracking devices.

Technology for the tracking and estimation of body movements has become increasingly important due to its use in varied scenarios, from sports analysis to the study of physical disorders such as Parkinson’s. Traditional methods of tracking a person’s body movements required complete monitoring of the surrounding environment, along with wearable devices that would record users’ movements. However, these methods tend to become ineffective when the subject is

in motion or is outdoors, making these devices difficult to use alongside daily activities.

The SciFi lab’s new prototype aimed to solve these problems by focusing on minimizing the complexity of the monitoring setup. The prototype employs a miniature camera that can be mounted on a smartwatch, aided by a customized deep neural network — a method of training computers using machine learning — that is capable of reconstructing the user’s entire body.

“The key motivation is that we believe the future of smartwatches should be able to sense more than just wrist motion or number of steps. It should be able to capture full body poses that could provide a lot of information,” Zhang said.

BodyTrak achieves a high level of accuracy in the reconstruction of body movements without an elaborate setup.

Additionally, it avoids the privacy concerns that were associated with other forms of movement tracking.

For example, a head-mounted camera would likely also record information from the user’s surroundings, which could include other people.

However, in this prototype, the camera is pointed towards the body, so the chance of captur-

ing background information is lower.

“This is a unique feature of BodyTrak. We design the way the camera is pointed at the body,” said Hyunchul Lim, co-author of the paper.

BodyTrak first uses a red-green-blue camera — a standard color camera — to capture and store partial body images, such as a partially-covered image of the user’s arm and torso. Due to the angle of the wrist-mounted camera, however, some body parts block others in the images, preventing all parts from being captured.

According to Zhang, the BodyTrak algorithm in the AI prototype uses occlusion as useful data input.

“Our system takes occlusion as information. How your different body parts occlude each other can implicitly provide insights about the full body pose,” Zhang said.

The images are fed into BodyTrak’s deep learning model that is built using image classification software. However, unlike traditional body-tracking technology, BodyTrak’s, networks are modified to serve a different purpose. Instead of simply classifying images using machine learning, they are made to reconstruct the user’s full body based on a dataset of

full-body images.

To ensure that the model is applicable to as many users as possible, the team also modified the input before running it through the model. This process involved converting the data into a generalized form that is applicable to a larger set of users.

“People have different lengths of limbs, and we need to modify [the data] to account for this difference,” Lim said. The developments made

by the team at the SciFi Lab could play a role in changing the way self-tracking devices, such as smartwatches, are built in the future.

“In the long term, human body poses are related to human activities,” Lim said. “There is currently a lack of tech to track full body poses, but with this new technology there is potential for this to be achieved much sooner.”

Aditya Syam can be reached at as2839@cornell.edu.

C.U. Biologists Reveal COVID-19 Pathology, Therapeutic Targets

By KAITLIN CHUNG Sun Contributor

Researchers of the Yu Lab, led by Principal Investigator Haiyuan Yu, recently published a study revealing a comprehensive list of SARS-CoV-2-viral and human proteins that interact with each other in the pathobiology of COVID-19. These findings open doors to new research avenues for identifying potential treatments for the virus that can target protein-binding sites.

Mauricio Paramo grad and Shagun Gupta grad, both members of the Yu Lab who contributed to the study, began their studies in pathobiology to broaden their understanding of the relationship between the SARS CoV-2 virus and its host cells.

When viruses enter a cell, they are able to replicate themselves and

evade the body’s immune response by interacting with proteins. Studying the mechanisms of these interactions is key in understanding how the SARS-CoV-2 virus affects human bodily responses.

Prior to this study, information about protein interaction networks for COVID-19 was scarce. To create a more complete and precise database, the authors applied two cutting-edge complementary methods: high-throughput yeast two-hybrid and a combination of tandem mass tag affinity purification and mass spectrometry. Y2H is a technique that detects interacting proteins in living yeast cells. TMTAP-MS is a technique that isolates and identifies protein complexes.

The researchers used Y2H to observe the affinity between viral and human proteins by providing a binary interactome, which highlighted important connec -

tions between different protein complexes and pathways. A binary interactome describes an interaction between two proteins.

“You’re doing pairwise testing of all viral factors across all host proteins. There are about 20 viral proteins that make up SARSCoV-2, so we did pairwise testing across almost 16,000 human factors. This method will give you interactions where only the two factors — one viral and one host protein — are interacting,” Paramo said.

Based on the interactomes identified by Y2H, researchers used TMT-AP-MS to label binary and co-complex proteins and their interactions by breaking down proteins into their peptide components to put them into a mass spec machine.

“For example, to test the effect of a specific drug, you can track how much of the peptide you find with no drug treatment and how much you find with drug treatment. This allows us to have more precise measurements,” Gupta said.

The combination of these two novel methods enabled researchers to generate high-quality protein interactome networks. To assess the quality of the data, they performed orthogonal methods with co-immunoprecipitation assays, a technique that evaluates the relevance of reported protein interactions using human immune proteins called antibodies.

Once the researchers were able

to validate their findings, they confirmed that there were 739 high-confidence protein-protein interactions among 579 human proteins and 28 SARS-CoV-2 proteins. This validated 218 known human proteins that interact with SARSCoV-2 and revealed 361 novel ones.

Based on this interactome, it was possible to identify 23 candidate drugs to target COVID-19.

The final results indicated carvedilol, usually used to treat heart failure and high blood pressure, as the drug with the most potential for treatment because of its strong network proximity to SARSCoV-2 host factors.

“Carvedilol had a strong network proximity in that it directly influenced the network of human proteins and was a short distance away from a viral protein. The assumption is that it is more likely to have an influence on a viral protein and its effect in the cell and is, therefore, a strong drug candidate,” Gupta said.

The researchers extracted further biological information from the data with the help of fellow researchers at Cornell, including Profs. Cédric Feschotte and John T. Lis, molecular biology and genetics.

Researchers learned more about transcription, the process of converting genetic instructions into a form that can be directly used to make proteins.

“We learned that one of the viral proteins was interacting with human transcription factors. From this, we were able to demonstrate

direct viral impact on host transcription. This was previously unknown about SARS-CoV-2 proteins and offers a pathway to learn about how viruses evade host immunity,” Paramo said.

There are a number of pathways for future research to gain more insight into how SARSCoV-2 works in the body and its implications for other viruses.

“There are two people in the lab who are working on a viral human interactome study to examine a broad range of viruses and interacting interfaces on human protein. Also, when we were looking at direct drug binding targets based on our networks, we found some other interesting targets that we are looking to patent,” Gupta said.

Reflecting back on the study process and results, Paramo highlighted the importance of collaboration as a driver of scientific discovery, especially in pioneering COVID-19 research.

“This study really shows how these large scale efforts are driven by collaboration with other groups,” Paramo said. “We came in with a network systems biology perspective, and we worked with people with many different backgrounds to ultimately make very important discoveries that have real-world applications.”

Kaitlin Chung can be reached at khc73@cornell.edu.

SARS-CoV-2 | The blue spike proteins on the red virus surface enable interaction with human proteins, called binary interactome.

NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES / CREATIVE COMMONS

Camera watch | The BodyTrak prototype is a miniature wristband camera capable of tracking full-body postures in 3-D.

SCIFI LAB / COURTESY CORNELL UNIVERSITY