SUNBURSTS | Frozen Tensions

Amid unrest against ICE, Ithacans joined the hundreds of demonstrations across the country. 

‘The Lord of the Rings’ 25th Anniversary — A Meditation on the Franchise Film

On Dec. 19, 2001, Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring was released in theaters. And just this past January, it was re-released in theaters across the world to celebrate its 25th anniversary, taking in $11 million according to Deadline. As one of the highest grossing franchises in film history, its anniversary presents the opportunity to both dig into the story of its production and to break down the franchise film as a historical phenomenon.

In Memoriam: Catherine O'Hara, Best in Show(Biz)

Early in the morning on Friday, Jan. 30, beloved actress and comedian Catherine O’Hara was rushed to the hospital in critical condition. She sadly passed away later that day, the cause of death still unknown. O’Hara was 71 years old when she died, leaving behind a six-decade- long legacy as a Hollywood icon. Most of our generation will recognize her as gaudy Moira Rose from Schitt’s Creek (2015) or Kevin McCallister's loving but forgetful mother in Home Alone (1990), but those projects — while critically-acclaimed — only scratch the surface of her illustrious and impactful career. This article cannot do her genius justice, but I feel honored to be paying tribute to a woman who has made me laugh so much. 

SOLAR FLARE | Gothic Dark Academia

Picture this: You are standing in Sage Chapel as dust particles catch the light of the sun streaming through stained glass windows, feeling nothing less than ethereal. Yet, there is an unsettling, eerie aspect to a quiet church. The genre of dark academia seeks to capture this feeling. It is altogether magnificent and devastating, as if a resentful ghost is haunting the place they died. This playlist is reminiscent of classic literature, nostalgia and an indescribable sense that there is a powerful force at work. 

'Beg Forgiveness' in the Age of Spectacle

In the age of celebrities, an apology loses its strength as a private act, becoming a public ordeal in which millions of people pass judgment on an individual and crowdsource forgiveness. Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, released an apology in the Wall Street Journal, describing his struggles with bipolar disorder and brain trauma. Ye attributes his behavior to struggles with mental illness, though the harm caused outweighs any explanation. Ye underwent a destructive path of antisemitism and disregarded the Black community. Since then, self-awareness has returned as he writes, “My words as a leader in my community have real global impact and influence. In my mania, I lost complete sight of that.”

CLIFFORD | The Middle Man in the Middle East

Go to the Wall Street Journal, type ‘Lebanon’ into the search bar — you won’t find any mention of it on the digital front page — and read the headlines. The website will first show you articles on the basis of their ‘relevance.’ Once you’ve established that the recurring headlines either mention Pope Leo or Hezbollah, filter the pieces by ‘Newest to Oldest,’ and a fuller picture of Lebanese civilian life will begin to emerge. If you then go to The New York Times, you will notice the same headline figures in the articles that are automatically suggested. The Economist, however, has been reporting far more on civilian distress than its American media counterparts which suggests the bias might be national. So is it that, to Americans, life in Lebanon can be encapsulated by the first foreign tour of the nascent pope and by the country’s secessionist strong-arm military? Hardly. It is rather that we perpetually treat Lebanon as a peripheral arena — a symptom of wider regional and international conflicts. 

The Only Team of Its Kind: Inside C2S2, Cornell's Student-Run Chip Design Team

In the Cornell Custom Silicon Systems project team, undergraduates get the opportunity to design and test computer chips — work typically reserved for fourth-year doctoral students or seasoned industry professionals.  

Women’s Gymnastics Takes Second Place After a Postponed Home Meet and Finishes Fourth on the Road in West Virginia

A gymnastics meet against Bowling Green that was scheduled for Sunday, Jan. 25 in Newman Arena was rescheduled to Tuesday, Jan. 27 in the practice facility at Teagle Hall due to a winter storm that kept most people indoors. This was the first time since 2019 that the team competed in Teagle. 

‘Chess’ Makes all the Right Moves … Just Not the Dangerous Ones

There are many things we are grateful for when it comes to ABBA: the undying hit “Dancing Queen,” still soundtracking birthdays across the world; the cult-classic Mamma Mia!; the vague awareness of the Eurovision Song Contest extending beyond Europe; and, of course, the crown jewel of Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus’s careers — a musical about the Cold War and an 800-year-old board game.

Is the Rom-Com Back? Upcoming Emily Henry Adaptations

Ah, the romantic comedy. We know them, we love them. The joys of narrative predictability and romantic clichés run rampant in a brief, one-to-two-hour-long journey in which two strangers follow their fates toward each other and happy endings are the rule. In the freshman writing seminar ENGL 1111: “Much Ado About Rom Coms,” the incredible Lecturer Emily Foster has kept this classic genre alive and well-revered in my head. There’s nothing quite like a slice-of-life story that’ll make you laugh and give you a satisfying ending, guaranteed to leave you hopeful and happy. Sadly, this enthusiasm has been lacking in the rom-com box office. The cozy, nostalgic, Nora Ephron-esque romantic comedy is seemingly done for, replaced by divisive films like Anyone But You and The Kissing Booth. In the 2010s and onwards, rom-coms have suffered from the very thing that had previously made them enjoyable — their predictability. The charm of a chance encounter suddenly felt like a forced meet-cute, and characters became less flawed, tumbling into boring archetypes of “good-girl-bad-boy” or “rich-guy-poor-girl.” What keeps predictability enjoyable is the circumstance it unfolds in. Basic tropes like friends-to-lovers, which we’ve seen hundreds of times, can feel brand new when the characters offer a certain relatability and the story is worthy of your undivided attention. Even if you know how it’ll end, you’re hooked on seeing how they’ll get there. All this to say, I was elated to realize that today's audiences and studios are refusing to let the beloved genre fade away, prioritizing a well-written plot and complex characters. Studios have turned to romance novels as a way to revive the rom-com hype, and who better to turn to than the queen of the modern rom-com, Emily Henry.

Eduroam Outages Disrupt Classes, Coursework Across Campus

Recent outages of Cornell’s primary campus Wi-Fi network, eduroam, have disrupted students’ ability to complete coursework and participate in class, despite efforts from Cornell Information Technologies to remedy the network.

February 2, 2026 | Mini

Around the Sun: 1/24 - 1/31

VIDEO | On this episode of Around the Sun, Multimedia Editor Jade Dubuche, News writer Mary Caitlin Cronin and Social Media staffer Katie Istomin share this week’s top headlines.Hosted by Jade Dubuche, Mary Caitlin Cronin, Katie IstominFilmed by Jade Dubuche, Ben Leynse Edited by Madeline Hung, Ben Leynse

Epstein Corresponded With Former Cornell Undergraduate, According to Latest Batch of Files

This article is part of a series on Jeffrey Epstein’s connections to Cornell University. Find the other pieces here. 

Cornellians for Israel to Host Former IDF Soldier at ‘RSVP-Required’ Campus Event

Cornellians for Israel, a pro-Israel organization, is set to host former Israeli Defense Force soldier Sam Fried on Feb. 2 at 5 p.m. as a guest speaker.  

Athlete, Educator, Diplomat: Jerome Holland ’38 M.S. ’41 and a Life of Service

Cornell was founded on the principle of being “an institution where any person can find instruction in any study.” This philosophy laid a foundation that allowed students of all different races, genders and ethnicities to obtain a higher education and become leaders throughout the world. 

No. 10 Men’s Hockey Beats Brown 4-2, Secures Road Sweep

After netting his first four collegiate goals in his first five collegiate games, freshman forward Gio DiGiulian went on to score just once in his next 14 appearances.

Despite Offensive Barrage, Women’s Hockey Falls Narrowly to Harvard in Season’s Ivy League Finale

Women’s hockey proved it can play with the ECAC’s best when the Red defeated then-No. 7 Princeton 6-1 on Jan. 23, before turning around to fall 4-0 to then-No. 6 Quinnipiac the next day. This week, the embattled squad recorded another surprising split.

How to Stay Productive During an Ithaca Winter

As we settle into a new semester in the midst of a bleak winter, the campus has grown noticeably quieter. With shorter daylight hours and the excruciating cold, students’ routines have begun to shift. For many Cornell students, including myself, this season is more than just the cold weather; it affects our daily moods, brings sluggish mornings and slows us down. While shorter days disrupt routines and make it harder to stay energized, they also offer an opportunity to improve our productivity and build habits that work with the season. Hence, I have a few tips to strategically use social routines and daylight — while it lasts — to stay productive! 

Hundreds Gather for ‘ICE Out of Ithaca Rally’ in the Commons, Joining National Shutdown

Hundreds of students and Ithaca residents rallied at Bernie Milton Pavilion in the Commons on Friday, to take a stand for the people killed by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers. They call to “stop ICE’s reign of terror,” according to an Instagram post made by the rally’s organizers.