It is often said that football is a game of inches. Hours of intense competition boil down to a single snap, a single penalty, a single playcall. Victory and defeat hang in the balance.

Sometimes these moments are obvious. When Texas’s Vince Young rolled to the right and ran past the first-down marker and into the end zone in the 2006 Rose Bowl, viewers knew at the time that they were watching a historic moment. The plucky Longhorns had defeated a juggernaut USC squad to win a national championship, bringing a title to perhaps the most football-obsessed state in the nation (sorry, Wisconsin).

I agree with the sentiment. Football is about small moments. But the beauty of those snapshots is that they don’t always seem like moments to celebrate at the time.

Take, for instance, the Jackets’ announcement shortly before their season opener that TaQuon Marshall would be the starter. I remember hearing it in the press box at Mercedes-Benz Stadium and being mildly surprised. After all, Jordan was a more known commodity. He had started a road game against a formidable Virginia Tech team the previous season and led the team to an impressive win, one of its most complete performances of the season. Yes, he was a much different player than Justin Thomas — while Thomas made his name dashing around hapless defenders, Jordan preferred a more direct approach — but certainly the offense could be built around him.

By the game’s end, Marshall had validated the decision that left me quizzical just a few hours before. His record-breaking performance against the Volunteers, albeit in a heartbreaking loss, defined itself by two moments: J.J. Green’s late fumble and the fateful failed two-point conversion in overtime. It was a sign of things to come throughout the rest of the season, as we have seen.

The same goes for his backfield mate, B-back KirVonte Benson. Benson was supposed to be an adequate replacement for the outstanding Dedrick Mills, who was dismissed from the team for his third rules violation since arriving on the Flats a year earlier.

Benson redshirted his freshman year and didn’t record any statistics in 2016. Coach Johnson sang his virtues. I thought it was boilerplate praise. I was wrong. He, too, has burst onto the scene as a bruising back able to provide the one element that Mills could not during his time at Tech: breakaway speed to snap off long runs and demoralizing touchdowns. With Marshall, he is the second of two lethal options the team didn’t have last year.

Many things about Tech football have not changed. Ted Roof’s late-game soft coverage still frustrates fans (see wide receiver screen after wide receiver screen the Hurricanes ran a few weeks ago.) The Jackets still have a standout special teams player in Pressley Harvin III, who has kicked some absolutely beautiful punts in the last few weeks.

But what makes watching college football exciting is the constant change. Players stay at most for four years, so even the most durable and reliable athletes must soon be replaced. In 2017, it looks like the Jackets have made all the right decisions. Those decisions will continue to pay dividends
as this season concludes and the next approaches.

They lost to Syracuse. Can Tech take down Clemson?

Bruised Bryant?

With previous Clemson star quarterback Deshaun Watson drafted by the Houston Texans this past April, Kelly Bryant has taken over at quarterback for the Tigers this year. He has done well, leading his team to a 6-1 record, but in the Tigers’ most recent game against Syracuse, Bryant suffered a concussion. He has since cleared the concussion protocol (he has had two weeks to heal up since last week was Clemson’s bye week), but the team might limit his practice repetitions.

Additionally, Bryant re-injured his ankle against Syracuse, which he had originally rolled in a game against Wake Forest. An ankle injury can limit Bryant’s effectiveness as a mobile quarterback and render his game one-dimensional, and he has recently admitted that his ankle is still not 100 percent. While Bryant is ready to play against Tech this Saturday, his nagging injuries may hinder his ability as a dual-threat quarterback thus making him easier to defend.

Test for Offense

Coming into this game, Clemson’s defense is ranked No. 10 in the country in total defense, a statistic that combines allowed yards per play, allowed yards per game, allowed points per game and other relevant defensive performance details. This is by far the best defense the Jackets have faced all year, and it will be a telling test as to how the Tech offense adapts and remains effective during
the game.

Usually, the Tech offense is able to run the ball so efficiently that it rarely finds itself in a position where it needs to throw. However, expect more third down situations in this game, especially third-and-long situations where Tech will be forced to throw the ball to move the chains.

Clemson defensive coordinator Brent Venables has had the Jackets’ number in the last few contests. His highly athletic defense is less vulnerable to Tech’s tricky scheme. That scheme will have to provide the Jackets an edge.

Blame it on the bye

Clemson is coming off a bye week after a devastating loss against Syracuse, and that bye week came at a perfect time for them. Firstly, it gives players a chance to rest and heal up if they are injured, such as Kelly Bryant. After playing seven consecutive games, having an extra week to rest and not get hit helps players feel refreshed and recharged. Football teams tend to perform much better after their bye weeks, so unfortunately for the Jackets, they will be playing against a healthier and replenished Tigers team.

This bye week allows the Tigers to recuperate and mentally overcome the defeat rather than dwell on the loss and play worse as a result. Clemson’s bye week also allows them to prepare more for their next opponent: Tech. Given that Tech plays a unique style of football, particularly on offense with the triple option, an extra week of preparation for Clemson might give them an edge, not that they really needed another one.

Keys to victory

For Tech, the key to winning is being able to play consistently throughout the game. With an opponent as tough as the Tigers, Tech will not be able to dominate in this game like it did against Pitt and North Carolina. It should be a close game that comes down to the wire, but the Jackets have faltered in two close games this season, giving up leads to lose by one point in the end. Overcoming a double-digit deficit against Wake Forest is a start in bucking the trend of late-game failure.

For Clemson, the key to winning is playing quickly and intelligently on defense. Given the potential quarterback concerns of Clemson, they need their top-tier defense to step up to the plate and contain Tech’s dynamic offense. Yes, the Tigers stopped the combination of Justin Thomas and Dedrick Mills last year in impressive fashion. TaQuon Marshall and KirVonte Benson bring a different style of play. Clemson will have to shut them down early.

“Loudermilk” is a new TV series that premiered on the AT&T audience network this October. Written by Peter Farrelly (“Dumb and Dumber”), the plot of “Loudermilk” centers on a four-year sober alcoholic. Still, the show differs from other AA based TV series like Netflix’s “Flaked.”

Sam Loudermilk (Ron Livingston, “The Conjuring”) is a substance abuse counselor himself. His uninvolved demeanor and aloof attitude are refreshing when he acts as a counselor. Loudermilk is a man who has been known “to get through to people who have lost their way.”

In the first episode, his experience in counseling leads him to a teenage heroin addict’s doorstep. Some plot points in the story are underdeveloped — Loudermilk is forced to visit an addict’s house even though he has his own substance abuse recovery  group.

He only goes to the house because the minister that provides his group their meeting space threatened to take it away unless Loudermilk made the house call. The minister’s defense for the blackmail is that Sam Loudermilk is the worst behaved counselor that he has even seen.

The gist of the first episode is essentially that Sam’s unlikable attitude ultimately leads to conflict and chaos during interactions with new characters or during his work in the group sessions.

He engages in conflict prematurely, gets “Asshole” written as his name in a coffee shop and is caught pushing an old man down the stairs. Like many first-person centered shows, the audience empathizes with Loudermilk, understanding that he comes from a place of sincerity.

Loudermilk’s lack of social skills puts him in trouble and ruins most of his life. The episode only slightly explores a bit of his backstory, but it is the same removed attitude that allows him to break through to the heroin addict. Loudermilk’s success in being a substance abuse counselor is because recovering addicts see themselves in him.

Since Loudermilk has such a fragmented life, the group members find it easy to confide in him. Even with the heroin addict, Loudermilk put his group session space on the line if he did not get her started on a path to reform.

Despite the stakes, he initially does not pursue the teenage girl with tenacity, and even speaks rudely to her. This treatment stems from a strategy of reverse psychology, but after Loudermilk’s tactics fail, he visits the girl again at a strip club and breaks through to her — getting her to admit that she really misses her father.

This outcome is predictable and too abrupt for a 20-minute TV show. Loudermilk lacks real depth of content, and the writing needs realism. Loudermilk broke through to a teenage girl with a heavy heroin addiction in only two five-minute meetings.

This success is dramatized and does not fall in line with the plotline of “Loudermilk.” The story’s focal points are substance abuse and recovery, two serious themes that should not be reduced to such simple solutions.

The writing is derivative of sitcom-like jokes. After the delivery of a joke, there were awkward breaks in writing, as if the show was written with a laugh track. When Loudermilk first came to the teenage girl’s house, he peeps inside, jokingly looking for “the hoarder’s crew.”

Some material is good in its essence, but the way the content is used is irregular and leads to silences between conversations and cringeworthy moments for the audience. Farrelly’s comedic touch needs a second draft. One-liners and short jokes have no space in “Loudermilk” because they are not suited to the heavy themes.

The plot still throws the audience for a loop by the end of the first episode. Although some portions of the writing are predictable, “Loudermilk” catches its stride as the show continues and more backstories are unraveled.

The story remains interesting, especially with the short 20-minute runtime. The show’s inclusion of many characters and their individual stories keeps the audience wanting more. For viewers that do not care as much for realism like in award-winning comedy series like “Maron” and “Louie,” “Loudermilk” is a good choice.

“Loudermilk” is picturized like a more mainstream TV series and may appeal to a larger audience. The show is still heavily uncensored and adult, at some points turning surprisingly crass and raunchy.

The writing shows potential for laugh-out-loud jokes, and the future of the show is bright due to Farrelly’s legendary comic status.

It can be easy to take for granted the school spirit and pride that now pervades campus, but it wasn’t always that way. In the late 1920s, school spirit was at a low. The Great Depression and lack of student leaders made for a campus without enthusiasm or pride for its traditions.

Tech Football Coach William Alexander recognized this void in leadership and took the issue to Professor Fred Wenn who agreed to help solve the issue. In 1930, what is currently known as the Reck Club was founded. Right away, the group began establishing traditions and spreading Tech pride by enforcing practices such as the “RAT Rules.”

While its goal remains the same, some of the events and traditions upheld by the club since its founding have changed.

The Reck Club is now responsible not only for establishing and maintaining tradition, but also hosting the Freshman Cake Race, the Mini 500 and, perhaps most importantly, the upkeep and display of the Reck, a 1930 Ford Model A Sport Coupe.

Since its reception in 1960, the Reck has been a symbol of the Institute and a way to inspire pride in the student body.

“Ramblin Reck Club was formed in 1930 as a way to spread joy on an otherwise pretty dull campus. We received the Reck in 1960 and she hasn’t missed a home football game since 1961,” says Reck Club President Zachary Freels, fifth-year AE.

As the president, Freels works hard to manage events and ensure that they are executed smoothly. Additionally, he is the representative of the club to the Institute and to Tech staff. His work, along with that of all of those in Reck Club, was evident in the recent homecoming activities and highlights the continued dedication of the Reck Club and its leadership to its mission.

Together, the Reck and its club form a duo that work to promote Tech spirit both internally to the campus, and externally to alumni, prospective students and the community.

“Externally, the club acts as a symbol for the Institute, the Reck is always present at important Tech functions because alumni love the Reck,” Freels said. “Internally, we handle all the traditions of Tech and any traditions related events.”

While some of the more major events sponsored by the club are now behind them, that doesn’t mean they get to take a break. Events, such as football games and Reck appearances, are key to maintaining the spirit of the student body especially as the semester winds down and finals begin to approach.

“Right now, I’m hoping for the club to finish the football season strong and to put on a Georgia game experience that’s bigger than ever with new events surrounding the date,” Freels said of his expectations for the club.

As much as the Reck Club is focused on preserving the past and promoting tradition at the present, the club must keep looking forward in order to ensure that spirit is preserved and the club is able to fulfill its mission. As such, Freels has a definitive vision for the club.

“In the future, I want the club to expand,” he said. “We had a vision this year of being the best spirit organization in the country so that’s what we’ll be working towards, and as always, we’re gonna keep the Reck in great shape.”

Amidst all of the excitement and administrative concerns that surround running such an important and complex organization, it is important to not lose sight of the core purpose of the club, and the reason behind events such as the Freshman Cake Race and the Mini 500.

“Reck club has and always will be the maintainers of the Reck, the traditions keepers of the school, and the organization in charge of spreading joy in campus,” Freels said. “I think it’s unique for an institute that’s so focused on moving forward into the future to be so passionate about preserving the past.”

These are the reasons for which the club was founded, and for which it works today.

It is in the everyday interactions that people have with the traditions of Tech that make a difference in the community, and it is this which the Reck Club hopes to accomplish.

“The Reck is important because it’s been a part of game-day and a part of campus for so long,” Freels said. “It’s a constant for Tech and students need that.”

Moreover, it’s the personal relationships that are made with Tech and its unique spirit and traditions that help foster pride and community at the Institute.

“I would hope that the club, if not just the Reck, adds a little fun to campus,” Freels said. “When things are stressful I know the Reck always puts a smile on my face.”

The Reck Club serves to preserve and promote Tech pride and tradition, but it is on everyone to embrace it.

Next time you see a stranger sporting the white and gold or hear the Reck’s horn as it drives down the road, don’t hesitate to say, “Go Jackets!” and help spread some Tech spirit. The Institute will be all the better for it.

On Oct. 13th, 2017, the National Collegiate Athletic Association — college athletics’ highest governing body — announced that the University of North Carolina, which had been under investigation for giving student athletes access to fraudulent classes to help athletes maintain eligibility for their organization, would not face any sanctions from them.

These “paper” classes were designed to be deliberately easy and serve as GPA boosters to athletes, allowing UNC student athletes to skirt the organization’s guidelines for academic eligibility so that they could continue to represent UNC as members of their athletic
organizations.

Such a ruling cements the reputation of the NCAA as a farce of an organization, bogged down in hypocrisy and ruined by greed.

The charges I levy against the NCAA are nothing new. Countless others have criticized them for charges lesser and harsher than these.

Yet the results of this past month should remind college sports fans everywhere about what type of organization the NCAA exactly is.

The NCAA, in allowing UNC to escape any punishment for its actions, shows that they care little about giving an education to deserving athletes, despite a recent advertising campaign attempting to convince fans of the opposite. Had the NCAA truly cared about the education of student athletes, it would not have allowed UNC to escape punishment for offering the aforementioned classes. Instead, they have now condoned the practice by refusing to sanction the university.

What purpose, then, does the NCAA serve?

It does not serve as an advocacy group, protecting the interests, rights and education of student athletes — that much is evident from this decision.

Nor does it serve as a true regulatory organization for college athletics — refusing to punish UNC for its transgressions shows that the NCAA is all bark and no bite.

It is too afraid of punishing one of its premier programs and the reigning NCAA College Basketball Champs, out of fear that revenue will be harmed or prestige ruined.

Compare this to the response of the MLB confronting allegations that one of its biggest stars, Pete Rose, had bet illegally on games.

Rather than skirt handing out serious punishment for his transgression, the MLB banned him for life for breaking the rules. The NCAA has no such integrity, evidently.

Remember when the state of North Carolina passed legislature discriminating against transgender rights, the notorious “bathroom bill”?

The NCAA pulled two championship games from the state in a move that was
widely applauded.

However, it reinstated its operations in North Carolina after a “soft-repeal” of the bill, a repeal that kept in place a moratorium on localities passing laws to protect LGBT individuals.

The spirit of the law (and the discriminatory practices of North Carolina’s government) hardly changed, but since a surface level, intangible change (the soft-repeal of the bill) had been accomplished, the NCAA was content to return its business to a state that to this day continues to discriminate against LGBT individuals.

All bark, no bite.

The NCAA stands for nothing but itself. It serves as a leeching organization, monopolizing college sports. No college can leave its relationship with the NCAA, because there would be no other colleges to compete against. Hence, the NCAA can hold colleges hostage in a parasitic relationship.

But college sports can exist without the NCAA. Colleges can create their own schedules of competition, college athletes can be paid by colleges for competing and students do not need to be cheated out of their education — but with the NCAA in the picture, none of these mutually beneficial arrangements between athletes and colleges
can exist.

One can argue about the necessity of a regulatory agency for college sports — after all, it is important to ensure the safety of college athletes and protect their rights.

But perhaps that should fall to the government — not to a private entity such as the NCAA. It is a self-serving, parasitic, farce of an organization, and its paralyzing influence over college athletics must be removed.

We need a real regulatory agency in college sports — not the running punchline of the NCAA.

When I started college, I put my camera in the bottom drawer of my rickety freshman desk in Hefner and decided it would be easier to take photos with my phone. I decided that no one needed professional photography, not even I, and shoved my side-hustle under the rug.

Why did I do that? Because I was a newly-minted high school graduate who felt like she needed to focus all of her time on her new job as a full-time
college student.

We’ve heard it all before. You’re a musician. You’re a photographer. You’re an artist. You want to chase your dreams and become a full-time musician but your parents tell you — and you tell yourself — to find that 9-5 job to keep you stable, and then you can pick up that guitar “on the side.”

As the weeks went on to months and my camera collected enough dust particles to turn a sort of grayish color, I realized what a stupid decision I had made. I was going crazy.

Call me a naive dream-chaser, but I just could not go another day without pulling out my camera, waking up at dawn to take photos at sunrise, then rushing to upload the photos to my computer so I could edit my work. I did that once during my freshman year, and now I get to do that every day.

In my two years of building my brand as a freelance photographer in Atlanta, I have learned an immense amount of information on the technical and artistic sides of photography, and the client-facing and financial side of the craft as well. The work isn’t consistent, though — sometimes I’ll have five photoshoots during one week, and sometimes a month will go by without a single client request.

But it is called a “side-hustle” for a reason. I find myself hustling at three in the morning, finishing up client edits for delivery the next day, but I think that’s what makes it exciting.

Nothing better complements a structured-student or full-time job lifestyle quite like freelancing. From what I have learned, this is a comfortable situation to be in if you have a separate full-time job, and if you don’t, then you have more time to commit to your freelance gigs.

To put it simply, you get out of it what you put into it.

If you choose to commit to the freelancer lifestyle, you will not be the only one. The gig economy, freelancing, entrepreneurship and side hustling all tell us that pushing our interests to the side and working a cubicle job of 40 hours per week is no longer the norm.

We now have websites that connect wedding photographers with couples, countless entries on programming forums that begin with, “So I’m making my own app … ” and dozens of workshops that encourage the entrepreneurship career path.

The idea of being your own boss is attractive, and freelancing provides you with a more flexible schedule.

Free-lancers make up about a third of the workforce in the United States, and that number is expected to rise to 50 percent by 2020.

Hiring free-lancers saves businesses and organizations money by allowing them to hire on a need-basis, without having to worry about screening candidates for full-time employment or providing benefits or physical office space for their consulting hirees. Outsourcing work can also help a business become more efficient in completing its projects and is a great way to create business relationships and networking circles.

The gig economy is booming, and it’s open to everyone. Even if you don’t have a passion project, a lonely guitar waiting to be played or a family member who needs a website built for their own side hustle, find a way to get involved in the gig economy and ditch relying on just the
traditional 9-5.

Turn your full-time software consulting job into your own software consulting business.

Combine your engineering experience and your eye for design and create beautiful, functional products and open up your own Etsy shop.

Or keep your full-time job and make time to cultivate your interests and personal projects, especially if your full-time job is being a student at Tech.

We are the generation of go-getters that will move the gig economy forward.

Jason Hall’s directorial debut, “Thank You for Your Service,” stars Miles Teller (“Whiplash”) as a war hero who, upon returning home, struggles to refamiliarize himself with civilian life.

In theatres Oct. 27, the film is based on a nonfiction book of the same name by David Finkel, who spent months following and reporting on the soldiers of the Army’s 2nd Battalion, 16th Infantry Regiment.

In creating the “Thank You for Your Service,” Hall wanted to illustrate veterans’ struggle: the struggle to belong, to explain and to rebuild. Despite being an integral aspect of American society, soldiers are often overlooked once they return home from war.

Everyone knows the buzzwords: PTSD, service, honor, bravery. Everyone knows to say, “Thank you for your service.” But do Americans know what they are really thanking them for?

Adam Schumann (Miles Teller) was a well-liked staff sergeant in Iraq. At home, he’s a “normal,” unemployed father of two. Living in a limbo of flashbacks, nostalgia, depression and the present, he attempts to rediscover a sense of belonging and purpose.

As Hall explained, “The family expects them to be the same people they’ve sent off to war — the dad, the husband — but there’s this shadow life, there in the periphery.”

The damaging effects of that lack of belonging are illustrated most sharply by the character of Will Waller (Joe Cole, “Secret in Their Eyes”). Waller is the only totally fictionalized character, and Hall explained that this addition was necessary to represent all possible paths that veterans may take in their lives.

“We’re telling the story of three veterans coming home, and I looked at that as … one soldier making three different decisions,” Hall said. Waller, devastated by his personal circumstances, felt the utmost isolation and took the most definitive action: suicide.

For the other two veterans, Adam Schumann and his closest friend, Tausolo “Solo” Aeiti (Beulah Koale, “The Last Saint”), perhaps the only thing that keeps them going is their connection to each other.

Gradually, viewers realize that despite the horrible events and immense burden of war, these men felt more at home in Iraq with their band of brothers than they do in American civilian life. This startling fact could not have been developed without Teller’s artful and poignant silences, during which his eyes and face express more than words could.

Teller, who was nearly killed in a car accident when he was twenty, said that his own near-death experience aided him in portraying the veterans: “I guess in a way I was fortunate [that] I had some real-life stuff and didn’t have to imagine what it would be like.”

To fill in the blanks, the actors were put through a boot camp with a SEAL Team Six trainer before filming, which also helped to boost camaraderie among the actors.

But most veterans agree that recovery from post-traumatic stress is far more challenging than the boot camps were. A key theme of the movie is that silence is not the answer, no matter how awful it may be to discuss the trauma.

Rehashing the past is painful, but “you have to bring it up. It’s just going to stew in you… You have to find someone who’s willing to bear a little bit of that burden for you,” real-life Schumann said.

As Hall said, “they slip back into society, put on civilian clothes and these heroes are walking around among us who have been through extraordinary things,” and civilians are none the wiser. The point of the film is to fill in that gap of societal understanding.

Though it only traces the paths of a few men, “Thank You for Your Service” has the ability to represent millions of veterans.

“It’s my belief that if you make something super personal, it becomes universal because the more personal it is, the more human it is,” Hall said. “You get to the core of the human experience that way.”

The movie was not created as an entertainment piece or a typical Hollywood war film. It was meant to be the “most real and authentic and intense” experience of war conflict that an ordinary person could receive in the comfort of their chair.

Somehow, despite being predominantly set in Kansas (and filmed in Atlanta), viewers will leave the theatre feeling like they have been to Iraq.

However, this feeling may only apply to men. Women in the film were relegated to the typical wife-and-mother role. The primary female characters are exclusively wives of the male veterans, who are the real focus, and the few other females are disposable: extras, a Veterans Association counselor and other unimportant roles.

In defense of this choice, Hall hid behind the authenticity, claiming he was simply following the facts as reported in Finkel’s book — but the invention of Will Waller’s character begs to differ. If another male veteran could be fictionalized, why not a female one?

Moreover, specifically for these veterans, Hall may have sacrificed a bit of authenticity for the sake of a rosy, feel-good ending — the dream house, the white picket fence, the happy nuclear family.

The reality is that there may not be a cure to PTSD, at least not yet, and dealing with it in the meantime is an intensely difficult test of patience and resilience for all those involved.

Aside from those flaws, however, “Thank You for Your Service” is a unique, enlightening film. By shining a light on veterans’ shadow lives, Hall aims to deliver a message of hope.

Through understanding the sacrifice that all armed forces make, viewers can reach true gratitude, and perhaps that cliché phrase can regain its meaning.

On Oct. 8, California firefighters began a lengthy battle with multiple wildfires that have since engulfed swaths of the Golden State. Recent research published by Tech professors reveals that lasting environmental damage caused by these wildfires will be even more severe than
previously believed.

One of these new studies, led by researchers from the School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, analyzed the presence of wildfire related carbon-containing aerosols in the upper atmosphere, uncovering a higher than anticipated concentration of brown carbon at high altitudes.

The results have important implications for how brown carbon, an organic aerosol that results from the incomplete combustion of vegetation and organic material, is included in climate models.

The aerosols emitted by burning biomass consists of black carbon and other organics. Black carbon, an aerosol formed by mostly pure carbon that can also be produced by burning fossil fuels, is well studied and understood to be a powerful atmospheric warming agent, though less is known about brown carbon.

Brown carbon, like black carbon, can absorb sunlight and heat the atmosphere, though accurate measurements of its concentration in the upper atmosphere were previously limited. In the study, a NASA DC-8 research aircraft was used to extract a distribution of aerosol samples at tropospheric altitudes over the United States. Results showed that a fraction of this light-absorbing brown carbon was transported into the
upper atmosphere.

At these high altitudes, brown carbon has a disproportionately large effect on the radiation balance by absorbing the sun’s rays — an effect considerably more pronounced in the troposphere than it is at ground level. The highest levels of this radiation absorption were observed during a wildfire plume event.

The research concluded that high-altitude brown carbon emitted by wildfires has a more profound climate impact than previously thought, one not fully accounted for in current climate change projections.

A second study — published in June 2017 and co-authored by Tech researchers — helped to shed further light on wildfire events like California by analyzing the particulate matter present in wildfire plumes. Particulate matter from plumes consists primarily of organic aerosols such as brown carbon.

It was discovered that levels of wildfire particulate matter emissions have been underestimated for years. According to the researchers, it can also be spread over a large area.

“It can be very widespread since the smoke plumes can travel long distances,” said Dr. Rodney Weber, a professor in the School of Earth & Atmospheric Sciences who was one of the authors from the paper released in May. “We have been on studies in the past where fires in western Canada were detected over New England.”

Traditionally, the wildfire emissions estimates have been based on controlled agricultural burns. This technique has limited accuracy as controlled burns often have a different mix of biomass fuels and generally consume less fuel per unit area than a wildfire.

The new study took the innovative approach of flying heavily instrumented NASA and US Department of Energy research aircraft directly into wildfire plumes to gain high fidelity
measurements.

The research concluded that wildfire particulate matter pollution is three times the current EPA National Emissions Inventory estimate of PM2.5 (particulate matter finer than 2.5 microns), and almost two times the estimated level of PM2.5 from all other sources combined.

The correlation between climate change and the frequency of wildfires is yet to be completely understood, but as these recent studies show, research from Tech is playing a key role in the understanding of the lasting, if more subtle, environmental effects of wildfire.

The 2016 Tony Award Winning musical, “The Color Purple,” has found its way to Atlanta’s own Fabulous Fox Theatre. The musical depicts the tragic and joyous story of Celie (Adrianna Hicks), a young woman stuck in an age where her choices are often not her own.

Set in 1928 Georgia, the musical “re-imagines” Alice Walker’s novel about Celie’s life as she triumphs over the problems that African American women faced in everyday life.

Other characters, such as Shug Avery (Carla R. Stewart), Sofia (Carrie Compere) and Mister (Gavin Gregory), demonstrate or experience other issues like incest, poverty, sexism, racism, abuse and sexuality.

The actors achieved greatness and left audiences reeling with their vocal range and sheer talent. Every voice fit the passion of the characters that they portrayed, and the supporting ensemble was phenomenal. There was no note out of tune, no choreography out of time and no prop out of place.

Each cast member brought vivid light to the character that they played and marvelously
depicted a community of people whose unique experiences all contributed to the story. Whether it be the three women who acted as pseudo-narrators, the men who worked for Mister telling Celie what to prepare for or the other minor characters, every actor made the stage their home. The audience was left gasping, laughing and shouting with joy when they contributed to the scene.

The lighting and staging in this musical were especially impressive. The lighting team worked to illuminate the faces of the people that would inspire hope in not only Celie but in the audience, too. The smooth light changes depicted the transitions between times and scenes and filled the story with an extra emphasis on certain actions and movements. This masterful lighting significantly helped the show along.

The simple set was the most impressive element. Only adorned with three tall panels and several baskets, the stage was barren except for the scattering of chairs from time to time.

Though at first the set seemed incomplete, the openness of the stage and the minimal props allowed the audience to focus more on the characters’ words, feelings and actions.

The actors, to their credit, ended up doing a lot with the small amount of props at hand. Dance routines were refined, and settings were placed with only a few chairs. Watchers were not left wondering what was going on — the imagery was painted so perfectly by the cast that there was no room to wonder where they were or what they were about to do.

“The Color Purple” did not need the normal pageantry and tricks to be an enthralling show; the cast and crew crafted a perfectly entertaining and vibrant production with what they had.

Celie is a major part in the movement of the musical from start to finish, staking her claim on the stage from the moment she appears in Act One. Throughout the musical, she stands on a lower stage until she finds her voice with the help of other strong women such as Sofia and Shug. As the show goes on, Celie grows more confident and no longer feels like she sits below the other people, mostly men, in her life.

Sofia, an outspoken and sensual woman who marries Mister’s son Harpo, inspires her voice and helps Celie to create a dichotomy between how she addresses Mister in a hilarious, sarcastic way and how she addresses all other community members with slow-growing confidence.

Despite obstacles that stand in the way of her using her voice, Sofia never entirely loses her passion for putting men in their place and being the powerful, independent woman she is.

Shug plays a more relatable and flawed character. Her indecisiveness about love and her free-spiritedness bring fresh light onto the stage when she rolls into town, but she is also a heartbreaker. Through the events of the play, the audience comes to love the enthusiastic but tender woman despite what the people in town may think.

Through Celie, the audience is able to view Shug in a new light, despite the rocky relationship the two may have towards the end of the musical. Shug brings color into the boring, dull lives of the people she leaves behind and always returns to.

The real story is about self-discovery, outward expression of love and how life gets better. Being stuck in a bad place is not forever. Believing in oneself and knowing your worth — regardless of race, time, age, family, inheritance, desire or gender — gives one immense power to overcome any type of adversity.

Celie is completely transformed as she finds her own worth through Shug and Sofia’s help. She reclaims her life and self in a way that she had never attempted.

Another part of the show that was refreshing to experience was the representation provided in the cast. For a white audience, the production may have been just another diverse musical that had garnered attention from the media in recent years. For black audiences, however, this show holds more importance.

The all African-American cast singing lyrics that celebrated black culture was uplifting for all, even though the experience of Celie, or even black women today, is not universal. Though some may not have been able to relate fully to the show’s specific conflicts or the prejudices described, it was a worthwhile experience looking at the late 1920s and further on through new eyes.

The national tour production with an uplifting score of gospel, jazz and blues should not be missed. The story of Celie is one that deserves to be heard and felt by all who are willing to listen. Catch “The Color Purple” at the Fox Theatre  through Oct. 29.

In the past weeks, members of the Tech community have begun multiple efforts to help with relief efforts for Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma
and Maria.

According to Puerto Rican government reports, as of Oct. 18, only 19 percent of the island has power, and only 69 percent of the island has potable water.

A food bank that  group of undergraduate, graduate, and faculty members at Tech gathered 126 boxes of food and 139 cases of water that will be sent to be Caritas de Puerto Rico, a non-profit organization that focuses on aid to Puerto Rico.

A GoFundMe, called “Puerto Rico We’re PResent,” was created by members of the Tech community on Sept. 20 and has already garnered over $8,500 of its $50,000 goal.

However, devastation in the Caribbean from Hurricane Irma and Maria was not restricted to Puerto Rico — the U.S. Virgin Islands was also hit hard, as Sidharth Parwani, a second-year ME whose family is from St. Thomas, knows all too well.

In the days after Hurricane Irma, Parwani was anxious because almost all communications was knocked out from the island, making it difficult family and friends on St. Thomas to see if they were okay.

“Thousands of people lost their homes,” Parwani said. “Friends of mine called and said they were now homeless. I think it was two or three days after Irma when I finally got to call my parents.”

Luckily, Parwani found out that his parent’s house was still standing, and that his family members were not hurt, but the reports of damage around the island were overwhelming.

After Irma, Puerto Rico had been assisting with relief efforts in the U.S. Virgin Islands, but everything changed when Hurricane Maria roared through.

“Maria was a direct hit on us and Puerto Rico, and completely knocked Puerto Rico off the grid,” Parwani said. “So our sister island that was basically mothering us back to health also went dark.”

Parwani’s fraternity brothers at the Triangle Fraternity were concerned with situation in St. Thomas, and decided to try to do something to help. After contacting Kantwon Rogers, a CS 1371 instructor, and teaming up with MATLAB TAs, Parwani and the Triangle Fraternity decided to organize a Pie Your Matlab TA event in order to raise funds for U.S. Virgin Islands relief.

For every $30 donated, the student with the largest donation got the opportunity to try a pie at the face of their TA on Thursday, October 19. In total, twenty-four TAs signed up to be pied.

The Pie Your Matlab TA initiative raised over $1000 in total to be donated to the Community Foundation of the Virgin Islands, a non-profit organization which has been collecting funds for hurricane relief over the past month.

Following in the footsteps of other universities around the country, members of the Tech community have also digitally worked to assist Puerto Rico through a Mapathon event.

On Thursday, Oct. 19, students, staff and faculty at Tech joined efforts with the Digital Integrative Liberal Arts Center to update local maps of Puerto Rico using satellite images to assist responders during recovery.