Contributing writer

Sam E. Weil

Latest Content


Fifteen Questions: Andrew Manuel Crespo ’05 on Plea Bargaining, Playing Football in High School, and a Fateful Coop Dance Party

The law professor sat down with FM to talk about the potential of collective plea bargaining, meeting his wife on the dance floor of the Dudley Coop, and what’s kept him coming back to Harvard. “The Harvard degree does not confer on you a guarantee that you will use the privilege and power that you get by virtue of being here to make the world better. That’s a choice. It’s always a choice,” he says.


Nesting in Ephemera

I sliced up some magazines, printed out a few photos from my camera roll with a sticker printer I’d just received for my birthday, and stuck it all above my bed. The mere presence of color, and the memories each small picture held, felt like a balm — something consistent and bright and mine to return to. With a couple scraps of paper, I’d planted roots.


Millions of Missing People: Seeking Southeast Asian Studies at Harvard

Faculty and students have long vocalized the need for an institutional home for Southeast Asian studies. What’s at stake goes beyond just an administrative formality. At stake is the recognition that historically neglected regions are worthy of study, and ultimately, the question of who belongs at a place like Harvard.


Sustainability at HUDS, from Crop to Compost

This piece dives into the nitty-gritty of HUDS’ operation, revealing the motivating factors behind their choices. From sourcing produce locally, to composting every scrap during food preparation, all the way to recycling the grease from fryers, HUDS has buckled down on integrating sustainability into their everyday practices.


ChatGPT, Cheating, and the Future of Education

Professors are grappling with whether to ban ChatGPT or let students use it. But beyond this semester, larger questions loom. Will AI simply become another tool in every cheater’s arsenal, or will it radically change what it means to learn?


Our Little Interview with DJ Dinos Mekios

Constantinos “Dinos” Mekios, a 51-year-old resident DJ at WHRB, is a philosophy professor at Stonehill College by day; by night, he selects a record to play out of his collection of over 55,000.


“Tasty Basty” and the Freshman Party Scene

There I stand, on the corner of Mt. Auburn and JFK St, in a pool of my slightly inebriated peers, all of us fidgeting with our phones, eavesdropping on the bouncer’s conversation with the group that’s arrived just before us. Turns out we can get in by Venmoing some guy five dollars.


Wait Wait … It’s Emma Choi!

Emma E. Choi '22 had no expectation that she’d become the host of a new NPR podcast. In fact, she recounts that her supervising producer took aside and told her candidly, “Emma, I don’t think we can hire you. You’re a college student. We’ve never done that before. We just want to see what it’s like.” But to her surprise, she landed the gig.