Opinion

The rise of “algospeak” has created a new era of self-censorship By SABRINA FIGUEROA — sfigueroaavila@ucdavis.edu I’ve spent a lot of my time at The California Aggie writing columns about language, and so have many others. But, my writing comes from a place of good intention — literacy and critical thinking are important, especially in […]

Independent contractors control their own hours, but they lose more than they gain By SAGE KAMOCSAY— skamocsay@ucdavis.edu DoorDash, Uber (and UberEats), Postmates, Lyft, Grubhub: We all know these apps — some of us rely on them a little more than we would like to admit. Many of us use them on a regular basis for […]

Is our unbridled criticism just another way we enforce gender essentialism? By ANJALI IYER — amiyer@ucdavis.edu Picture this: you’re rushing across campus on your way to class. You adjust your bag and look across the Quad when you happen to spot a “performative male” in the wild — the sight alone provokes an exasperated sigh […]

Travel encourages an invaluable shift in perspective   By VIOLET ZANZOT— vmzanzot@ucdavis.edu Daft Punk once created a song with a duration of 7 minutes and 9 seconds, the only lyrics being “Around the world, around the world” — and I think I finally get it now. Three simple words repeated a lot of times, and for […]

Proprietary technology and struggling rivals spell victory for the tech giant By MILES BARRY — mabarry@ucdavis.edu For the past few years, Google has been written off as the new International Business Machine (IBM) — an organization that invented cutting-edge technology, but couldn’t use it as well as their competitors. Google researchers are arguably responsible for […]

The rise of aesthetics has led to the death of subcultures  By SABRINA FIGUEROA — sfigueroaavila@ucdavis.edu During the COVID-19 lockdown, I remember scrolling through my TikTok “For You” page, watching videos of people dressing in what they called an “alt kid” style. My feed was full of thick eyeliner, bright-colored clothes, hyperpop, anime and arguments […]

A not-so-merry standard encounters a camaraderie By NEVAEH KARRAKER — nakarraker@ucdavis.edu The quote “Let’s enforce the idea that women are born equal, not made equal by their experiences,” was written in fading sharpie on the walls of the women’s restroom in Bainer Hall on campus.  More anonymous quotes: “Stand strong, young women. XO from a […]

The rise of platforms like Substack make it easy for anyone to publish their work, but does it come at the cost of the art of writing? By ABHINAYA KASAGANI — akasagani@ucdavis.edu I first made my way onto Substack — an online publishing platform for writers and creatives — in the fall of 2022, deliberating […]

The Editorial Board’s recommendations for crafts, experiences and all things handmade    By THE EDITORIAL BOARD   When the days grow colder and the nights are lit up by sparkling Christmas lights, the feeling of merriment and wonder is almost palpable; it is a time for cozying up with a fuzzy blanket and a cup […]

Recent mass shootings remind us of the continued widespread harm firearms inflict on modern life   By THE EDITORIAL BOARD — opinon@theaggie.org   As many families gathered and enjoyed the Thanksgiving weekend, too many across the nation were forced to face the consequences of gun violence.   In Washington D.C., a shooting against two members of […]

America’s elites are exploiting working-class women to produce the next upper echelon By ANJALI IYER — amiyer@ucdavis.edu In 2023, Rebecca Smith (a pseudonym) agreed to become a surrogate for Silicon Valley venture capitalist Cindy Bi. Once Smith signed the contract, she was promptly impregnated with a male embryo and saddled with binding legal ties to […]

As Gen Z heads to trade schools, it’s time to talk about how we view college education By SABRINA FIGUEROA — sfigueroaavila@ucdavis.edu At the end of high school, my peers and I were constantly swarmed with questions about our plans after graduation. Many were heading off to a traditional college or university, but a few […]