Editor's Note

Dear reader, Our Valentine’s Day social may have been canceled (Covid is NOT our Valentine this year), but FM still has our love. In this issue, DRZ talks to MacArthur fellow Melanie Matchett Wood for 15Q about her math research, Shakespeare, and her lifetime supply of chalk. MMFW explores ManRay’s history and goes to the club for a lovely night out — despite, or perhaps because of, the piss on the seat. In our first scrutling of the volume, CY profiles Helen Piltner, a Harvard influencer and talks to her about being genuine, connecting with high schoolers, and the Jordan 1s she bought for her dance team. EDP explores the embodiment racial fetishization as she recounts her own experiences with fetishization and reflects on her conversations with Asian woman porn stars for her senior thesis. MEW writes about Sidechat, and how it helps us imagine Harvard as having a cohesive community — even if that may be a little bit of a lie. To go along with these inquiries, we have our new inquiry tab on the website — thank you KL and JYY! NDC, MG, KSG, AVM, and JKW contribute to the first rendition of FMoments of Love, exploring family love, friendship, and homesickness. But if you’ve had a rough Valentine’s Day this year, FM’s execs have got you covered. They gave FM’s forever freshman, Josh, advice on how to deal with heartbreak. AS writes an introspection about the overwhelming grief that comes with Black death. And in a lighthearted but also deeply profound endpaper, BWF writes about children’s agency and Poptropica, the 2000s-era browser game. Feb. 14 isn’t just Valentine’s Day, though. It also marks the anniversary of the first napalm test at Harvard. This week’s scrut is a long awaited look into napalm’s history and legacy. In a meticulously constructed account, RHDN dives into the archives to expose Louis F. Fieser and Vietnam War era protests at Harvard. He explores the ethical fallout of napalm’s invention, talks to Phan Thị Kim Phúc – a survivor of a napalm attack and the subject of the infamous “The Terror of War” photograph – and interviews artists currently working to bring awareness to napalm’s history. Congratulate RHDN if you see him, and wish him luck as he now takes on copyright law… To everyone on the FM staff, you are all our Valentines this year. JJG, JH, MQ, SET, SS, MHS, and SCS, thank you for Maestro fun and for calling BLK in to talk about special snow sculptures. Thank you MX — or should that be MAX, Meimei ‘Admin’ Xu — for saving us Saturday night, as well as all the advice, edits, and hugs/high-fives. Thank you to BLK for proofing, editing, and answering every strange question we threw your way, and to CJC for making sure The Crimson won’t get sued. KT and MG — your presence and messages make my week. AHL — thank you for all the work you do for this magazine, and for all your support. I would not have made it through this week without you. Get well soon! FM Love, IYG and AHL