The Metal Man: A Poem by Ananya S.

The Metal Man

You gaze upon me with disdain;

I have disappointed yet again.

You think I don’t try hard enough, but the truth is

There is only so much I can do.

For I am not a superhero

Nor am I a wizard or magician.

I cannot toil endlessly, urged on by you

Because I am not a metal man.

Though my heart may beat like clockwork

And my expression remain unchanging

Do not assume, even for a second

That I am beyond human.

For the heart that beats holds passions

Secrets lie behind my eyes

I yearn for freedom only as a human can

Because I am not a metal man.

~Ananya Swaminathan

Decisions: A Poem by Ananya S.

Decisions

It’s coming.

Run, run through the forest

As fast as you can go.

Just don’t get caught.

You must keep moving

Or it will catch you

And trap you forever

In the palm of its hand.

But be warned for ahead of you lies

A fork in the road.

One path leads to safety eternal,

Another betrays the wanderer,

A third path never ends

And always keeps you running.

One path is covered with flower petals

And beckons with birdsong and light.

Another path lies shrouded in mist and darkness,

Gloomy, forbidding, and daunting.

The last path appears simple and plain

With dirt, shrubs, and small animals.

But who knows if light ends in dark

Or if the darkness ends in light?

What appears simple could be more complex,

For looks can be deceiving.

Or maybe they aren’t after all;

Maybe light will lead to light

But no one knows the right path,

And no one can be sure.

The decision is yours.

You can never turn back, so –

Choose wisely.

~Ananya Swaminathan

PS4 or Xbox One?

PS4 or Xbox One

With black Friday soon approaching many of us gamers are looking to buy the flagship consoles from both Sony and Microsoft.  With both the PS4 and Xbox One having been released for a year, the decision of which one to buy is difficult. Both consoles are great and are legendary in the gaming industry.  Personally I think cost is going to play a big factor into which console someone will buy. The PS4 is $100 cheaper than the Xbox One. But you have to realize the Xbox One comes with the Kinect system which is why the price is higher.  With black Friday these prices may go down since the consoles have been out for a while.  When I had the opportunity to test both consoles I really did like both. The only thing that I liked better was the PS4 controller and that is what made me like the PS4 better ultimately. Now that may be a bit biased as I own a PS3 and am familiar with the layout of the controller while the Xbox controller is very new to me.  It brings me to the second most important factor. Most likely if someone owns an Xbox 360 they will stick with the Microsoft gaming console family. Just as if someone owns a PS3 most likely they will buy a PS4. This is usually to you being used to how the consoles relate to each other throughout the different generations.   Call us fan boys but we really love our consoles and stay loyal to them!  Now whichever console you buy is totally up to you, but you should actually test them both out just to see what you like. Do not get a console just because you heard that everyone is buying that one.  Personally I really want the PS4 but when I realized I would have to pay to play online I decided just to stick with the good old PS3! Hope you make your decision wisely when buying and enjoy the holiday shopping season!

Aman Tomar

Logic: Under Pressure Album Review

Logic: Under Pressure Album Review

Robert Hall, better known as the Maryland-based rapper Logic, has been on the rise for a couple of years now. Ever since the first Young Sinatra mixtape, his fans have yearned for more. With his commercial debut Under Pressure, Logic gave fans everything they could have hoped for-and then some, as he poured out his soul into this album. In his song Nikki, he discusses his addiction with nicotine. Later, he talks about his relationship with his crack-addicted father in the second half of the title track, Under Pressure. His soul searching is refreshing, as rap has become incredibly superficial with the majority of rappers writing verses about going to the club or doing drugs. Rapping about real things makes him special, as his storytelling at some points in the album makes him seem like a young Eminem. However, as Logic delves into his issues on the album, he does not lose touch with the things that made him such an admirable artist to start. His lyrical skill continues to shine through with verses like the speedy lines at the end of the Bounce. Also, his clever beat production continues, as he turned an intricate guitar solo into an entire beat in the title track, while he used a series of beat drops in Bounce to create a hip and fun track to dance to. Overall, this album was a pleasure, and I definitely recommend the album to any lover of great rap.

Aditya Nadkarni

The Amazon Echo

The Amazon Echo

The Amazon Echo is Amazon's latest gadget. It is a Siri without the need of an iPhone. I recently stumbled upon this nifty device on YouTube where Amazon demonstrated its abilities. It is a cylinder that is extremely smart! The Amazon Echo is both a device that listens to you and responds to you. It is like a new member to any family. The Amazon Echo can be programmed to work on commands such as a name. You can set a certain name for it and whenever it hears that name it will wake up and listen to your command or question. The cool thing about it is that it can tell a lot of things such as spelling of words, facts, and play songs just to name a few. It is able to do all this through it being connected to the cloud. It is such a great value not only because of the features it has but because of its price. The price is only $99 for Amazon Prime members while non members have to pay $199. In both conditions it is a great device for the value considering all the things it can do. I think I will end up getting Amazon Prime just to buy the Echo but there is a downside to it. Since it is being offered at such a great price Amazon has made the Echo invite only. They will only sell to the people they invite to try out the device which is a big downside.  If anyone is interested in the Echo I would suggest watching Amazon’s demonstration video either on YouTube or Amazon.com. If you’re able to get your hands on the Echo I would strongly suggest buying it!

Aman Tomar

iPhone 6 Plus Review

iPhone 6 Plus Review

Having owned the iPhone 6 plus for close to two months I want to give my impressions on it. The iPhone 6 plus is a great phone, it certainily keeps up with cunsomers expectations from Apple. For me I used to be an Android user and what made me make the switch to iPhone was the simplicity of it. The new ios8 is great on the iPhone 6 plus with its easy to use design and very responsive interphase. The main issue I was having with my Android phone was freezing. The new A8 chip in the iPhone 6 plus makes the device run very smoothly and so far I have not expierenced any lag or freezing issues. The phone is great it certainly complies to Apple's standards. The iPhone 6 plus is also great as it has such a big screen. It certainly replaced my kindle for me and now I often use my iPhone to read e-books. Its like a laptop and phone all in one device. All though it does have many good features with its big screen it also makes it have a downside. Now I have not had any probems with the phone bending in my pocket like others have claimed but the big size makes the phone very noticible. Yes it may not be the best phone to have around school as the teachers will easily catch you! If you can be responsibile and not use it during class that should not be a problem. I also love the accessories available for the iPhone 6 plus. It is such a great phone and there are so many cases for it, its so customizable! As a user I would recommend getting a glass screen protector to protect your phone. The screen is so big that it can be easily damaged. Personally the screen protector I got was one from gorilla glass and I really recommend that one as it is high quality and will certainly protect the iPhone. So far I really can not say anything bad about the iPhone 6 plus. The only downside is the cost which is a little on the high side as with all Apple devices. If you shopping for a new phone I really suggest looking at the iPhone 6 plus as it will not disappoint you.

Aman Tomar