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DOPAMINE MAKE BRAIN GO BRRRR

Remember that feeling of opening a birthday card and seeing a crisp $20 note fall out? Why did your brain do that? It's just a piece of plastic with no actual physical benefit, right? Well, it all comes down to a little molecule called Dopamine.

Dopamine is a neurotransmitter. These are naturally occurring chemicals that play a key role in transferring information across the body. Dopamine, in particular, is responsible for our sense of pleasure and reward. Whether it be listening to your favourite music or enjoying a delicious meal, your brain interprets these activities as enjoyable and releases dopamine which activates a particular part of the brain known as the striatum. Activation of the striatum is what we recognise as pleasure. When completing a task or achieving a goal, dopamine is there to give you a pat on the back for a job well done. Dopamine also plays a massive role in motivation. If your brain determines that doing something won't produce high levels of dopamine, you feel less inclined to do it.

Some things release more dopamine and leave our brain wanting more. This is an addiction. Our brain becomes used to high levels of dopamine and begins to reduce the production of dopamine and associated dopamine receptors. Decreases in dopamine levels create a feeling of withdrawal as we need something to increase our dopamine, leading to addiction. Drugs such as cocaine and nicotine in cigarettes and vapes contain chemicals that are similar to ATP. These doppelganger molecules bind to adenosine receptors and instigate a chemical reaction to release lots of dopamine in the brain. Your brain likes to have lots of dopamine despite knowing the negative effects of the substance. This is why it's difficult to quit. Alcohol and coffee can have similar effects. Sometimes, everyday things such as eating can develop addictive tendencies. That feeling of craving sugar after a sweet drink. That's a mild form of addiction. As long as something is seen as rewarding, the brain will crave it. It has been recently found that anticipation actually causes higher levels of dopamine. From clickbait titles to commercials, companies often exploit this to keep you coming back for more in search of reward.

Since the dawn of humankind, we have assigned value to an object to be given in exchange for goods and services. This is the basic concept of money. While these days, it's mostly digital, it still instals the same sense of fulfilment in its use. Spending money produces dopamine as we are receiving something that we know is enjoyable. And receiving money also produces dopamine as we are rewarded for doing something.

However, like anything that releases dopamine, we can become reliant on it for satisfaction. They say

"Money makes the world go round, "

and it does this with the universal currency of dopamine.

YOU KNOW WHAT STUDENTS HAVE?

Money to spare - or at least according to Studylink. Here’s a quick breakdown of the max you can get a week for those of you who are lucky enough to not get living loan costs:

- $281. 60 total for the week. - Rent (for me)= $170. - Fuel= $20 (I can’t use public transport, don't @me about it). - Food= $60-70 depending on what’s on special.

(Leaves me with 80 to save or pay extra bills that pop up- like my car shitting itself again… note – don’t get a Volkswagen)

- Average appointment for a psychiatrist= $600 upwards.

Dear Studylink- tell me HOW THE FUCK students are meant to get help, if they aren’t lucky enough to get a funded appointment?

Personally, I’m going through the process of ADHD diagnosis – got told to go private – looked at the cost, said fuck that and continued to struggle. Studylink very much does not cover that. Buying a bloody block of cheese for myself puts my budget off – so to say the least I do not have that kind of money. After bitching to the student health centre enough I got referred through the DHB only to be diagnosed with anxiety???? I again went down the path of trying to get a referral. And luckily, I got myself a funded appointment through the Uni with a clinical psychologist, who promptly diagnosed me with ADHD. Now here’s the thing- she can’t prescribe meds- only a psychiatrist can. So now I’m waiting for yet ANOTHER REFERRAL. But if I could have afforded a private psychiatrist I’d already be where I needed to be.

My main point I’m bitching about here in my little ramble is the fact that for students, who have no other income except Studylink, and whose parents can’t help them financially, seeking a diagnosis for something affecting your study is a hell of a journey.

The only advice I have is keep pushing. I know I still have it better off than some, so I’m grateful, but at the same time it would be great if there was an additional loan concept for mental health through study link. And if there is already a system for that they don’t make it known, or at least I haven’t been told.

Money, the thing that makes the world go round. Nevermind the existence of gravity, this stuff will bring you back down to Earth. Unfortunately though, it’s not always used as a force for good. Fossil fuel companies - I’m looking at you.

As always, I’m writing about climate change. And for this week’s issue, that means there’s a lot to unpack. There’s a lot to write about if you’re trying to explain the history, forces, and systems that have led us to our current economic system. For now, I’ll do my best to put it simply.

We live in a world where nature is worth more, financially, dead than alive. A tree is worth more dead than alive, animals are worth more dead than alive. Oil is worth more when it’s burnt than it is staying in the ground. The Amazon rainforest, the Great Barrier Reef, New Zealand’s expansive biodiversity- it’s all worth destroying to the past of no return, because it’s worth more that way. Those who profit from these activities have turned our attention to what they want us to look at. Even when they know it’s destroying our planet, even when they know the consequences that it is having now and into the future.

The fossil fuel industry, aware of the consequences of climate change back in the 70’s created a multi-decade, multibillion dollar disinformation campaign to ensure public discourse and policy maintained their profit. It started with repositioning global warming as a theory and economic scaremongering, and now ads that push greenwashing, carbon footprints, and that fossil fuels are ‘part of the solution’.

Not only is this form of economic thinking causing the issue, it’s also making every attempt to hinder climate action. In almost every piece of legislation the New Zealand government has passed around climate action, agriculture has been excluded or exempt because of its role in our economy. Despite contributing 48% of emissions, dairy products are our largest export group. We shouldn’t rely on market-based emissions if the New Zealand government intends to make meaningful cuts in our emissions. Where this leaves us today is a society that is obsessed with sustained economic growth, regardless of the consequences, which is affecting us in other ways too. In New Zealand, the poorest 50% own 2% of all wealth. That means we live in a country where one half owns 2% of wealth and the other half owns 98%. More so, under our economic system, everything is produced for a profit. Food isn’t made to produce food and homes aren’t built to house people. When it’s not profitable to feed people, or ensure everyone has shelter, we let the food go to waste, the people starve, and the homes stay empty.

We prioritise our constructs of economic growth over basic human rights and needs. So when the climate crisis threatens our rights, that isn’t enough to constitute action from leaders, corporations, and those in power.

What I hope awakens people to how screwed up and frightening this economic theory is, is that we are also the trees and the animals. The loss of life from the climate crisis, from the floods, hurricanes, and wildfires, is deemed less important than the current profit to be gained from fossil fuels. What that means for humanity, is that we’ve created a way of thinking that places expansive loss of lives and the environment is placed below something we created. Are we interested in scapegoating humanity for the greed and corruption of a tiny elite? What would it mean to construct society around our actual values and lives?

The purpose of what I’m writing is to make people enraged and engaged, but not defeated. This is an economic system, which means it can be changed. We are capable of constructing ourselves within planetary and ecological boundaries. In fact, we have for the vast majority of our history, and many Indigenous cultures keep earth-centred philosophies alive to this day.

It’s our time, now, to find our collective voice and power to stand up to that elite that is risking our lives and livelihoods. Make sure to follow @climateactionhub on Instagram or email me at Hannah@ envirocentre.org.nz to get involved.

Why you should be a Marxist

Do YOU hate hustle culture? The idea of a 9-5? Racism? Gas prices? Rewearing underwear?

If so, I’d like to introduce you to the title Marxist and why you should be one. Previously in ‘Marx is My Cousin’, I introduced you to communism, defined what it means, and discussed why it’s relevant nowadays. This topic on Marxism is in some ways similar. Today, we’ll start by outlining Marxism, strip away the gate-keeping of this academic word as people often ask, ‘what does that mean?’

A Marxist is someone who supports the works of Karl Marx. You might’ve heard the name Marx in sociology or chucked around (improperly) in anti-vaxx propaganda. If you aren’t familiar with this guy, hear it from me. Marx wrote a bunch of anti-status quo manifestos in the 19th century. He critiqued the current way of living as it was characterised by increasing divisions between the poor and rich, extending work hours, and an increasing focus on individualism. In other words, he said working be bad and we need alternatives otherwise we will continue to be poor and sad.

This is where being a Marxist becomes important. The 19th century way of living adapted overtime but kept the same premises. Nowadays, we live in a similar framework to that which Marx critiqued: long hours such as the 9-5, rising living costs, the divide between rich and poor being bigger than ever. For a more concrete example, it’s becoming impossible to rent a house in Hamilton. The housing crisis means ridiculous and unaffordable housing. Families/ people are forced to stay in rentals which limits available rental property. That means us students will have a difficult time finding a flat. Take it from me who went through 34 rental applications over the course of three months before landing one. If you despise the living conditions in this modern world, congratulations! You have the same values of a Marxist.

Why should you care about being a Marxist? Because most things in life suck and we need to do something about it. I don’t want to work in an office for most of my life and go on holiday once a year. I don’t want to invest in stocks. I don’t want to buy into hustle culture and pump my ears with Joe Rogan, Ben Shapiro, or Jordan Peterson. I don’t want to feel alienated from myself, my body being used for labour. Because the more I think about modern working conditions, the more unnatural it seems to me. We are not made to sit in front of screens for eight hours, long commutes, and burnouts. In Marx’s time, his work incited uprisings across Europe. People wanted change, liberation from strenuous living conditions, and I believe we’re no different. Be my comrade, be a Marxist.

Recently I’ve been overwhelmed by the influx of mates that have become OnlyFans stars. Not overwhelmed because my close friends are popping their asses all over the internet, but rather the screenshots of implied incomes, and their bank accounts overflowing with gratuity from older men just frothing at the idea of owning something. Though there’s never any judgment from me because sex work is work at the end of the day, and you gotta get your bag somehow.

So let’s have a kōrero with one of my friends that have made rent several times thanks to the beauty that is OnlyFans. Their identity is gonna be kept secret, unless you love the idea of their content…

(This was impromptu and over drinks, so yeah)

Dr. Sex: Do you, like, post all the time? What’s your posting schedule like?

OF Boy: Not all the time, I kind of like to have small breaks in between big posts. It helps keep up excitement and has my fans wanting more and willing to pay more for PPV and some of the more intimate stuff. It’s all about understanding supply and demand, whatever that may be.

Dr. Sex: I have thoughts. PPV? Like pay per view? Are you selling a live boxing match?

OF Boy: Bruh. No. The way OF works for me, is that I post teasers and more covered stuff on my main page. So you pay that initial fee and that gives you access to my back catalogue and whatever posts I put up within the month. Then there’s DMs, and that’s where you’ll find things like fucking or dick.

Dr. Sex: Right… I mean it’s blunt but regarding PPV, what do you charge for that? My concern would be that it seems like you’re almost deceiving the user and deliberately misleading them into thinking they’ll have complete access to, well, you.

OF Boy: Oh, I make it abundantly clear that I have paywalls as a means of combating anyone thinking they own me or my body. They’re not entitled to shit unless they pay me. It’s kind of toxic, but they don’t have to come to my page if they don’t want to. The price depends entirely on what it is. Things like my dick, which isn’t that new anymore, I’ll charge like $5 for a few photos and a short video. But recently I made some porn with my girlfriend (she’s also an OF creator) and that was like $25? I don’t know, it’s a weird one since there’s not that much business advice.

Dr Sex: I was gonna ask about your girlfriend and whether or not she knew. I guess if it makes sense, then keep at it?

OF Boy: Well there’s an expiration date for sure, so I’m trying to just get my bag now before I’m too old or the platform loses its appeal. There’s always a worry that I’m ripping people off, but I remind myself that they don’t have to pay for shit and they could just ignore me. It’s their choice.

Oh also there’s tips and I do requests and things like that. That’s where the real money is. I’m nothing like the Tana Mongeau’s of the world, coming on for a month and making millions, but I make more per month than I do as a tradie. It’s all good fun and I can get my klt off and make some cash.

Some final words from me: only do OnlyFans if you’re ready to receive scrutiny and criticism for your body or your ethics. Sex work is work and you shouldn’t feel embarrased of disgusted in your decision to fuck on video. It’s your life and you need to feel comfortable in your decisions to make content that gets people off. Just be safe and do your research aye.

Well, it’s finally that time of the year when all of you assholes that walk around in NBA jerseys without watching basketball at all tune in for the NBA Finals, and no - Lebron isn’t in the finals this year. Why? Because he’s trash and washed up and it’s time to learn the name of another basketball player. Luckily for you, here at Nexus we’re giving you a quick run down of the finals so you can sit there and pretend to know what the fuck is going on. And even though my beloved Raptors got eliminated in the second round, I’ve been kind of paying attention to the rest of the playoffs, so I know exactly what’s going on. Kind of.

So wait, what’s going on in the finals? A team called the Boston Celtics is playing a team called the Golden State Warriors in the NBA finals to find out who is the best team in the world and also which player will be assigned a Kardashian to date for their upcoming second season on Hulu. The finals are a best of seven series, meaning the eventual champions will have to win four times against their opponent to get the ‘chip. Teams don’t necessarily have to play all seven of the games - it’s whoever wins four times first. The Warriors are probably slight favourites to win, as they’re a bit of a dynasty, have been to the finals six times in the past eight seasons, and Steph Curry has the power of Jesus Christ behind him.

I’ve never watched basketball, what does it all mean? Who knows, really. Who even cares. The goal is to get the ball in the basket more than the other team. Once your team gets the ball, you have 24 seconds to get it in the hole at the other side of the court, unless you’re James Harden in which case you can just pretend to get hurt by another player and get a couple of free throws. Free throws are when the refs fix the game for ratings and advertising money in their attempt to make the NBA generally unwatchable. Why are there so many fucking timeouts?

They need to squeeze in as many ads as possible, especially in the finals when casual fans such as yourself tune in during the playoffs. Again, generally unwatchable. Who are the players I need to be looking out for? The aforementioned Steph Curry is considered one of the best of all time at getting the ball in the hole, and he plays for the Warriors. You could watch him if you like. I can’t name a single Celtics player off the top of my head but I’m sure they’re pretty good - they got to the finals, right? Celts are one of the best defensive teams in the NBA too, so it’ll be mildly exciting to watch them try and stop Steph Curry from getting the ball in the hole.

How do I watch the finals? There’ll be a game every few days this week until someone wins four of them. They’re usually on around midday NZ time, and there are plenty of illegal streams you can watch if you Google ‘nba streams reddit.’ Just make sure you have your adblocker on when you use these websites, unless you really do want to know this one simple trick doctors don’t want you to know to make your penis enlarge. Otherwise if your parents have Sky you can watch the games on ESPN - just get ready to see the same three ads over and over again for the next three hours. Oh yeah, by the way the games take around three hours, sometimes more. What a joy.

Sports is stupid, why should I care? Everything is stupid when you think about it for long enough. How is basketball any less stupid than a marketing degree, or whatever hot garbage Netflix is shoving down our throats this year? Watching people who have dedicated their entire lives to being as good as they can at one specific thing is pretty dope, unless you’re one of those joyless bastards that makes jokes about ‘getting a try’ in basketball, or people playing ‘sportsball,’ or how you really hate the word ‘moist.’ We get it. You’re super funny.

Who’s gonna win? Maaaaaybe proooobably the Warriors, although they must be kinda trash because old-ass Kyle Lowry and the Toronto Craptors beat them with ease a few years ago, so anything is possible. They’re both pretty good teams. I just hope everyone has fun, you know?

“we’re all just flowers”

Alexander den Heijer once said; “When a flower doesn’t bloom, you fix the environment in which it grows, not the flower.”

I like to think that that’s how life goes. We’re all just flowers, and somehow we never leave environments that don’t make us grow.

Is it because of the comfort? The joy it brings to be needed but not wanted? Does anyone ever realise, that people can love us,

But do they like us? I often think about how much sunshine our own flower would gather, if we just left the environment in which we do not grow.

Why stay trapped in a soilless garden, when we could shine in a field of green? Where the bees ponder aimlessly, and rain pours so gently at just the right time.

I believe that there are people out there who don’t just love us, they like us as well. And the difference in the feeling of the two, is only found when we grow somewhere else.

Somewhere that isn’t our comfort. Somewhere that we aren’t paralysed in the fear of others opinions. Somewhere, where your precious flower will grow. Somewhere beautiful.

Chelsea James (She/Her)

Stranger Things Season 4

TV Show | Libbie Gillard 90%

SPOILER WARNING

I like boobies. You like boobies. Vickie likes boobies! I mean ugh,,, everyone likes Stranger Things!

Stranger Things season 4 volume 1. 7 episodes. 8 hours and 56 minutes. And your boy watched all of that in 2 days. First of all, let me just say that this show is just as stunning as always. Each setting from Hawkins to California to Russia is so distinctly visually pleasing to look at as well as being oh so 80’s. Mrs Wheeler really upped the ante on the whole 80’s milf vibe. The camera work in this season is also once again very commendable. Beautiful transition after transition, especially the one in episode 7 with the two groups of the Hawkins gang biking simultaneously in the regular world and the upside down. MWUAH!

Although there were some not so beautiful aspects. Some of the CGI moments were a bit odd.

Stranger Things pulls a Grand Moff Tarkin moment and de-ages Eleven on multiple occasions. The sheer discomfort this uncanny valley child gave me was incredible and honestly scarier than any Demogorgon or Vecna-related death. Thankfully, they decided to just have regular Millie Bobby Brown act out the flashback scenes with a demon CGI young version of her being shown in reflections on mirrors. This slight issue of ageing at times did rear its ugly head. It has been 6 years since the start of Stranger Things, but only 3 inuniverse years have passed. They have 20-year-olds playing 15-yearolds, and 30-year-olds playing 18-year-olds. And yea you can tell, Eddie Munson *cough cough*.

The storyline, overall, is great. The main monster this season, Vecna, was really cool and well designed. I actually enjoyed the twist at the end with the 3 different characters all turning out to be the same person. Would have just been happy with 2 characters intertwining, but I guess the Duffer Brothers wanted it to tie into previous seasons as well and add a bit more pizzazz? They didn’t hide their inspiration for Vecna, name dropping Freddy Krueger and even including the actor to play Victor Creel. Both Vecna and Freddy love killing and tormenting the teens of a town using their minds. For a fan of classic slasher films it was a nice addition. The lake Watergate was also very Friday the 13th, another classic slasher targeting teenagers.

Loved catching up with the gang once again and the actors all do a wonderful job this season. David Harbour as Jim Hopper, Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven, and Sadie Sink as Max Mayfield all produced stand-out performances. Maya Hawke and her character Robin Buckley will always hold a special place in my heart as well. It was a shame to see some characters take a backseat this season though. Mike, Jonathan, and Will all just kinda didn’t do a lot which sucked even if Mike is annoying. The split up of the OG gang allowed for other relationships to flourish, including a potential rekindling of Steve and Nancy’s season 1 romance. Dustin also was fantastic and showed off immense charm that made me love him even more. New character Argyle also provided great comedic relief.

Overall this season, well the first half of it, was really good and I’m excited to see what the last two episodes have in store for us in July.

Dancing with the Stars

Reality TV | Caitlin Walters-Freke (She/Her)

You may or may not remember that a few weeks ago, I did a review on the first two weeks of Dancing with the Stars NZ. It was negative but it was almost as if someone at Mediaworks read my last review and did something about it. This caused the show to improve for a bit… and by that, I mean two episodes. (Spoiler alert btw).

If you don’t know the format, read my last review which covers it. However, they changed it from being a 50:50 split between judge score and public vote by incorporating a dance off for the bottom two which is solely based on the judge’s opinion. I think that was a much better way of doing the show because it meant the people with dancing ability stayed (clearly, I’m still salty about Eli’s premature departure).

I was truly pissed when COVID reared its ugly head and took out my two favourites (Eric and Loryn and Rhys and Phoebe) in one week. They then brought back the two weaker couples to replace them, but I “coped” and found a new favourite in broadcaster Brodie Kane and her partner Enrique.

The finale felt as if it was not to the same high standard as in previous years but, frankly the whole series seemed quite rushed with fewer couples competing. As I predicted last time, Jazz and Brad won which was fair because they did consistently well.

Ultimately, I’m hoping for a better season 10 (if there is one).

点评 / AROTAKENGA

NEXUS 50%

Demon Slayer

Anime | Tehana De Klerk (She/Her)

It’s been a while since I did a review on the most mainstream anime out there. So, I’m back with Demon Slayer. Why? Well because I really don’t want to wait a year for the next season and writing about it means I can rant. And, it’s also because the teachings in anime are just brilliant.

Yo. YO. Demon Slayer is fucking cool. It’s kinda predictable, but I still enjoy it. The animation is top tier, and the fighting sequences, oh my fuck. And ugh, my poor heart can’t take my comfort characters going through so much.

Demon Slayer has a sick as storyline. A kid (Tanjiro) comes home to find his family dead, but then realises his sister is alive but has been turned into a demon and said kid goes on to become a badass demon slayer with lengthy inner monologues and two cracked teammates. Sounds awesome to me.

I gotta mention the Entertainment District Arc purely because that shit was so cool. My boy Zenitsu was doing God tier work in his sleep; Thunder breathing, first form, thunder clap and flash, GODLIKE SPEED? Bro. And then Nezuko going ballistic at Daki? And Inosuke, I love him; totally out of touch with the norm but he’s got talent. Tanjiro though, wow. Mixing his fighting styles together? Beautiful. And I like Tengen, he’s got style. Gotta be flashy, right?

87%

Don't quote me

“I'm so silly. I be laughing”

- Lil Nas X, replicating my brain when I got ghosted for the 10th time this week

“First thing you should do in the morning is drink water”

- Straight fax from Wiz Khalifa

“How u bag the baddest? Treat it like it’s average? I could do you nasty, but I’m moving past it”

- Latto just saying what we’re all thinking

“Thought u were a real one.”

- Pour one out for Future

Crush of the week

Millie Bobby-Brown

Miss Girl showed up and showed off with the recent drop of Stranger Things Season 4 Part 1, and we couldn’t be happier. While a lot of us may look at the young actress as ‘just a child’, she’s been showing us she’s anything but. Serving looks and absolutely destroying the mould, Millie is killing it and we love her.

Also, fuck yes to the Blonde sis!

Clickbait Moodboard Twitter Treading

Diminuitive Post

1Students inspect damages on campus Does the Village Green have crop circles? Are extraterrestrials coming to visit? Was there some big ass doof that left us with the marks on the grass? Who knows, but the brand new grass is fucked.

2Groundbreaking Performance Wailing could be heard from the J basement hallways late last week, but the sounds couldn’t be effectively traced. They thought it could be a crying first year, but it’s likely to be the ghost of J block.

3God is crying Students have become painfully aware of their sins as God lets it rain all over the ground. Creating puddles and turmoil everywhere they can. Or it’s global warming, fuck knows.

Top 10

ways to make easy money

10.

Feet pics don’t really take that much energy, trust me.

9.

You know that one weird neighbour who keeps offering you cash to mow the lawns? Just me? Okay…

8.

Sell your things. Semen, Eggs, Plasma. You name it, sell it.

7.

Clothing is overrated, start a DePop and DeClutter.

6.

Not saying you should start an OnlyFans buttttt….

5.

Proof-read your fellow classmates' work, it’s good fun editing ;)

Deliver leaflets for The Warehouse – is this still relevant?

Apparently you can share your browser history for like $100, if you’ve got the balls.

Put your room on AirBnB.

Sue Amber Heard.