CSUN was awarded over $3.7 million in August to fund a program that encourages students from minority and underrepresented communities to complete doctoral programs. Most if not all of the money will go to students in the Minority Biomedical Research Support Research Initiative for Scientific Enhancement (MBRS RISE) program, which pairs students with CSUN researchers. “A person’s socioeconomic standing determines (their) health, but more importantly, (their) access to education,”said Maria Elena Zavala, director of the program and CSUN biology professor…. Read more

Canadian singer-songwriter Lights’ debut album, “The Listening,” brings her hit singles “Drive My Soul” and “February Air”, along with her other quirky synthpop songs to our ears. I don’t really care for the genre, because I tend to think that singer-songwriter albums are something I would decide to buy while waiting in line at Starbucks. I like synthpop or music that use synthesizers even less. However, despite what I find to be repetitive electronic music, Lights’ lyrics and vocals are… Read more

Judging from song titles like “Does this rag smell like chloroform?”, “Panty Dropper”, and “You don’t hire Evel Kneivel to ride a tricycle”, one would expect The Mag Seven’s “Cotton Needle Sessions” to be full of hard punk rock or gritty grunge rock. Surprisingly, the album is all ambient instrumental work. Each of the songs has its own feel, ranging from a noir detective mystery feel to spaghetti western, riding into the sunset type music. It’s very jazzy with the… Read more

I sit down, with my laptop open and eye my phone eagerly. It’s almost 2:10 pm. I should be getting their call any minute now. My phone vibrates on the table, and I pick it up to see who it is. It’s not anyone on my contact list, so I answer it quickly. “Hello. Is this Braulio?” is heard in an Italian accent. Not the over the top kind you see on the Simpsons, just an accent. “Yeah, this is… Read more