Archive

The Edge of Edgy

Posted 6:26pm Sunday 1st March 2015 by Olivia Collier

I’ve always envied the edgy, watching them from afar with a David Attenborough-esque focus. For those not up with the lingo, an edgy person is classified as an approachable hipster. It’s someone who’s got just a little bit of mystery about them (not the serial killer kind) and walks to the beat of a Read more...

FFIC101: An Introduction to the Horrors of Fanfiction

Posted 6:26pm Sunday 1st March 2015 by Anonymous Bird

Fans show their love and loyalty to their fandom in a myriad of ways. Some purchase merchandise, some learn every fact there is to know, some dedicate their spare time to developing intricate cosplay, some people do all this and more. And some people write fanfiction. This article is Read more...

The social justice warriors

Posted 4:35pm Sunday 22nd February 2015 by Mandy Te

Mandy Te has had first-hand experience of the difficulties social minority groups can face in the western world. Although these are sometimes difficult to navigate, she believes there's an opportunity for us as human beings to use the internet to grow our acceptance and understanding of one Read more...

The kids are alright

Posted 4:35pm Sunday 22nd February 2015 by Lydia Adams

Midway through last year, one of the world’s oldest and boldest student media publications was closed down. London Student had been in print since the early 1920s and until recently had been representing over 120,000 students as one of the largest university newspapers in Europe. London Student’s Read more...

The social pokédex

Posted 4:35pm Sunday 22nd February 2015 by Nick Ainge-Roy

Nick Ainge-Roy, a judgmental soul with a kind heart, has been navigating the realms of the University of Otago for less than a year. But as a Dunners local, he’s familiar with the characters you’re likely to encounter in your new home and here presents you with a cynical insight into the characters Read more...

A trip on the wild side

Posted 11:58pm Sunday 12th October 2014 by Albert Hoffman

It all started with a little square of paper. It was about the size of a 20-cent coin with a little corner cut out for “beginner reasons.” I held it up to the light with equal parts fear and excitement. I was going to join the hallowed ranks of those who had dared to plumb the hidden levels of human Read more...

Residential halls, paper thin walls and jerking your balls

Posted 11:58pm Sunday 12th October 2014 by Eugene Baker

When I was shown down the floor of my residential hall, the first thing I noticed was how tightly packed the rooms were to each other, with the slightest movement giving away our activity. At first, the only concerns I had about this was how much sleep I would be able to get and if my music would Read more...

Freedom to offend

Posted 11:58pm Sunday 12th October 2014 by Lucy Hunter

"Don't read it. I don't think you should read it,” said my friend while reading American Psycho. “It will upset you. There’s eye-gouging and ... stuff.” He meant it as a well-intentioned warning. But immediately my mind went to “‘Stuff,’ huh? What could this ‘stuff’ be?” As someone who is a Read more...

Hikikomori

Posted 1:49pm Sunday 5th October 2014 by Kate Stewart

It’s 9.30am, the day before your first exam. You’ve finally managed to turn off the snooze button and heave yourself out of bed. After a 40-minute shower and a breakfast worthy of MKR you drag yourself back to your room. You frantically get ready to head to Central to begin the study you planned to Read more...

The Mapuche: The People of the Land and their struggle to retain it

Posted 1:49pm Sunday 5th October 2014 by Bella Macdonald

Sharing their home with a six billion dollar timber industry, the Mapuche people of Aracaunia are the poorest in Chile. After centuries of land wars and inequality, the Mapuches, meaning “people of the land,” are beginning to break the silence, uniting to fight to get their land back and get the Read more...

Return to beneath the shadow

Posted 1:49pm Sunday 5th October 2014 by Loulou Callister-Baker

As the pilot beside me pulled the small plane’s steering wheel towards him, the absent co-pilot’s wheel hit my knees. For this reason (and my resolute pursuit of urban isolation), I pushed my entire body against the side of the plane and placed the clunky headphones on my head. Out the window, I Read more...

A short introduction to Iraq and the rise of ISIS

Posted 2:58pm Sunday 28th September 2014 by Matty Stroller

Earlier this year I had several promising job leads surface in Kurdish Northern Iraq. As a student of Middle Eastern politics, Iraqi Kurdistan (effectively an independent state in all but name) represents the perfect compromise: it’s relatively safe, yet close enough to the region’s “hot-spots” to Read more...

The master cleanse

Posted 2:58pm Sunday 28th September 2014 by Josie Adams

For nearly 70 years, the Master Cleanse has existed to “detoxify” and shed unwanted pounds. Stanley Burroughs, who is conspicuously missing a “Dr” from his title, created it in the 1940s. Regardless of whether or not detoxing is a legitimate concept (it isn’t), the Master Cleanse has been at the Read more...

Alien speculations and human chauvinism

Posted 2:58pm Sunday 28th September 2014 by Lucy Hunter

On 24 June 1947, private pilot Kenneth Arnold reported seeing a string of nine, shiny, unidentified flying objects flying past Mount Rainier at speeds of over 2,000 kilometres per hour. He described the objects’ movement as being “erratic, like a saucer skipping over water.” A newspaper journalist Read more...

From flat out to flatmate

Posted 3:00pm Sunday 21st September 2014 by Mandy Te

Despite Knox College’s desperate attempts at securing third year residents for 2015, all 80 second-year returners have felt that two years is long enough. It’s time to move on from residential advisers banning an open vessel of V (the constant fear of wondering if a security guard will reprimand us Read more...

Original and dark fairy tales

Posted 3:00pm Sunday 21st September 2014 by Anonymous Bird

Fairy tales, we have all been exposed to them. Whether it was a toned down Disney adaptation, a dramatic retelling like Maleficent, or even a book collection from our childhood, we’ve all experienced fairy tales at some point in our lives. They inform our understanding of right and wrong as Read more...

Long time lurker

Posted 4:38pm Sunday 14th September 2014 by Josie Adams

Forget TV and print, the place to be popular right now is the Internet. It’s not just for young people anymore, either: my parents use it to research, read, form friendships, and campaign for the Labour Party; and they’re, like, 100. Unlike the rest of my family, I am singularly terrible at being Read more...

New Zealand general election

Posted 4:38pm Sunday 14th September 2014 by Critic

Behold, Critic’s election analysis! Taking a panel of experts from the University’s staff and beyond, Critic was able to graph the extent to which each party is best for students in different areas. Before you continue reading, know that we acknowledge that this analysis has a single focus, Read more...

Have mic, will yell

Posted 11:52pm Sunday 7th September 2014 by Isaac Yu

It's 8:10pm on a Saturday night. I can see my breath misting in front of me as I sit in my room getting ready. Outside in the cold Dunedin weather you can hear the mating call of the male Scarfie as they proclaim their readiness for town to passing freshers. I go through the checklist in my head: Read more...

Social hair

Posted 11:52pm Sunday 7th September 2014 by Lucy Hunter

By looking at a person’s hair you can make assumptions about their age, ethnicity, gender, occupation, political views, their taste in music, income, lifestyle, religion, health, and sexuality. All from something that makes you want to puke if you find it in your meal. Hair matters. For Read more...