Published by the Students of Johns Hopkins since 1896
January 27, 2025

Magazine



COURTESY OF DIVA PAREKH
Parekh was able to find a family at Hopkins by leaning on friends for support throughout the years.

Advice for freshmen: embrace failures and new friends

I’m writing an article called “Advice from a senior to a freshman.” Has it really been that long? It doesn’t feel like that long ago I was walking onto Homewood for the first time, standing in the middle of the Gilman Quad utterly and completely lost. I don’t think I’m ready to leave yet. 



No fun and no humanities? Your Hopkins stereotypes, debunked

During my first days at Hopkins, I was incredibly anxious about how I would fare and whether I would be happy. But after forging meaningful relationships with friends from diverse backgrounds and getting a taste of the undergraduate experience, I learned that the negative stereotypes concerning Hopkins are based more on fearful speculation than actual experience. 



COURTESY OF CLARISSA CHEN

Stand up, be heard: a spotlight on student activism at Hopkins

Clarissa Chen, president of Refuel our Future, explained that one thing she learned from her efforts to persuade Hopkins to divest from fossil fuels is the unique ability of Hopkins students to sway the University. She reminded future student activists to recognize and use this. 


Why I joined The News-Letter, and why you should too

People often say that love makes you do crazy things. During the winter break of my freshman year — still sad about the end of my first high school relationship — those crazy things included watching clips of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind on loop, crying in bed for hours and rereading old messages late at night. Needless to say, I was not the most fun person to be around. 



Luna

Clarissa was a passionate collector of the small toys that were dispensed in capsules from the gumball machines in front of grocery stores. Her first full collection, comprised of mini Sailor Moon bobbleheads, had been paid for by the quarters her dad collected from his addiction to vending machine snacks. 








PUBLIC DOMAIN
Kim argues that women, unlike men, face social pressure to remain virgins.

Why are we still talking about my virginity?

It is nice, I suppose, to be told that as women, we don’t need men to kick ass. It would be nicer, though, if we women had the luxury of exploring our sexuality without feeling that our power would be somehow diminished.



COURTESY OF HBO
Despite what some may think, the gratuitous sex in GoT serves a purpose.

A Song of Sex and Power: Portrayals of Sex in Game of Thrones

The Emmy-winning HBO fantasy drama Game of Thrones (GoT) is famous for a lot of things, like its elaborate sets and costumes, its eagerness to kill off main characters, and of course its innumerable graphic sex scenes. Many have criticized the show for being overly pornographic or displaying excessive sexual violence.