Boston University Sweethearts Perform A Capella Holiday Concert

A Boston University a cappella group is reveling in great success this holiday season.

The Boston University Sweethearts, an 8-member all-female a cappella group, held their Charlie Brown themed holiday concert on Saturday, December 8. Each performer was dressed as a classic Charlie Brown character complete with nametags and memorable props (Linus did indeed have a blanket, though Lucy did not have a football.)

A sizable crowd funneled in to CAS Stone B50, a large auditorium in the basement of BU’s college of Arts and Sciences, to watch their friends, family members, and peers perform a lively holiday tinged set.

“Most of the gigs we do are typically performed with other groups… and we only get to sing two songs,” said Gabby Miller, a sophomore member who joined the Sweethearts this past semester. “It’s really special that we have a semester concert because it’s our chance to show what we’ve got.”

The crowd was surprised as the young women began belting an a cappella rendition of Nirvana’s famous classic, “Smells Like Teen Spirit.” The lively bobbing and clapping accented the soloist’s impressive vocals extremely well, and the audience was pulled in to the realm of the energetic and animated group right away.

The set list included contemporary pop songs like Adele’s “Someone Like You,” led by junior Chelsea Sageer, unexpected mash-ups, and of course, to help kindle the audience’s holiday spirit, a few classic Christmas songs were sifted intermittently in to the mix.

Most remarkable was the original song written by the Sweethearts’ music director, Rosie Bauder. Bauder announced it was only the second time the group had performed the song together. She shared the lead with Lee Marby.

“We were able to debut the song at BU Night of A Cappella,” Miller said. “It was an awesome experience to be able to perform an original song. It was definitely one of my favorite moments this year.”

Bauder and Marby also performed with Miller in a mash-up of Heart’s “How Do I Get You Alone?” and Jordan Sparks and Chris Brown’s “No Air.” The combination was unexpected, but certainly a crowd pleaser. The group received a rousing applause for the creative number.

“We run the show ourselves,” Sageer said. “It’s really cool to produce the show and perform and see it all come together.”

The group performed “White Christmas” and “Silent Night” to spur some Christmas cheer in the audience.  The a cappella group also performed “White Winter Hymnal,” by Fleet Foxes, the same song they performed in BU Today’s winter music video starring the Sweethearts that will be posted on Wednesday. The Sweethearts have performed in holiday videos for BU Today in the past as well, according to Sageer.

“One of [their] projects was to film a wintery musical and they picked the Sweethearts to do it,” Miller said. “It was last Sunday.  We filmed right on Bay State Road. We actually pre-recorded the song in the BU Today studio that Wednesday night in place of rehearsal.”

The Sweethearts meet for rehearsals twice a week for a total of five hours. The barbershop style group, which consists of four major parts, the lead, tenor, bass and baritone, uses its rehearsals to work on perfecting their vocal harmonies and practice new songs.

Over the last semester, the Sweethearts have been receiving attention from both the University and other local venues in search of talent. They recently sang on Emerson College’s radio station, WERS, which Sageer says was the group’s first time really gigging. Earlier that day, the Sweethearts performed for the public in the Boston Common.

The Sweethearts have also performed at the PrudentialCenter, on Newbury Street, and in the BU Night of A Cappella, where a number of the university’s a cappella groups gave a joint concert open to the entire BU community.

View Boston University Sweethearts' Performance Venues in a larger map
The above is an interactive map of the venues in Boston where the Sweethearts performed over the last semester.

Big opportunities surely lay ahead for the acclaimed group. When their video premieres on BU Today on Wednesday, it will be excellent positive exposure for the group that is looking to do more gigs similar to their stint at WERS.

Dangers of Energy Drinks Increasing with Prevelance (Group 1 FA2)

Energy drinks have been receiving intense criticism as the FDA reported last month that the death toll linked to the consumption of energy drinks is increasing.

The FDA has received 13 reports of death potentially linked to the consumption of 5-Hour Energy shots over the last four years. Five deaths have been linked to Monster Energy Drink since 2004, according to the New York Times.

Toxicologists told ABC News that it generally takes between 5 and 10 grams of caffeine to kill a person, though how much is lethal depends on several factors, including weight, medications, and underlying health conditions.

Energy drink companies, such as Red Bull, promote their products by listing health benefits on the cans. Above the nutrition facts, the packaging boasts that the drink “improves performance, especially during times of increased stress or strain, increases endurance, increases concentration and improves reaction speed and stimulates the metabolism.”

Health care officials are beginning to take a stand against what they call misleading messages.

“In my opinion, some of the marketing messages go overboard about the health benefits of these drinks. The term ‘energy drink’ is misleading. Energy should come from calories -- this is more about stimulation,” Amelia M. Arria, an epidemiologist who serves as director of the Center of Young Adult Health and Development at the University of Maryland School of Public Health, told The New York Times.

The risks behind consuming energy drinks are many. One of the most prominent reasons behind the consumption of energy drinks, particularly shots, is to get a boost before exercising, according to market research firm, Mintel. Going into a work out already having high blood pressure and a fast heart rate can trigger a heart attack, stroke or an episode of extremely high blood pressure, particularly when other underlying health problems are present.

“It’s very difficult to predict one’s response to caffeine. Some people are more sensitive to it than others,” Bruce Goldberger, the director of toxicology at the University of Florida College of Medicine, told ABC News, “Therein lies the problem. If someone has an undiagnosed medical condition, they may ingest caffeine not knowing it may have a deleterious effect, such as cardiac arrhythmia, hypertension or anxiety.”

Energy drinks may also have some dangerous long term side effects. Some of the most common are palpitations, tremor, agitation, gastrointestinal upset and chest pain, according to the Australian Poisons Center. Dizziness, insomnia and headaches are also listed.

What may be even more harmful than the side effects, though, is the dependence on energy drinks that many college students have started to build.

“You do kind of become dependent on it,” said Kavya Nagarajan, a junior at Boston University. “If I don’t have caffeine, my day feels different.”

Studies have shown almost 30 percent of college students consume energy drinks regularly, Arria said. Fifty-one percent of college students consume more than one energy drink each month in an average month, according to a 2007 survey of college students and energy drink consumption by the Nutrition Journal.


View Energy Drink Retailers in a larger map
The Above Map lists popular retail locations for Boston University Students to purchase energy drinks.
Another health danger that college students seem to be particularly susceptible to is mixing energy drinks with alcohol. Because alcohol is a depressant, it slows the heart rate. Contrastingly, the caffeine present in energy drinks does the opposite by rapidly increasing the heart rate. With this combination, people can drink more alcohol for longer periods of time without realizing their level of intoxication.

After a highly publicized episode in the fall of 2010, Four Loko, a caffeinated malt liquor, was taken off the market temporarily. Nine Central Washington University freshmen were hospitalized after drinking it at an off-campus party. Officers found students so highly intoxicated from the drinks that they mistakenly thought they had overdosed on drugs. The caffeine in Four Loko has since been removed as a result of the incident, proving the dangerous combination of alcohol and caffeine.

There was a tenfold increase in emergency room visits linked to energy drinks from 2005 to 2008, according to a November 2011 report by the Drug Abuse Warning Network. About half of the emergency room trips were made by patients 18 to 25 who had also consumed alcohol or used other drugs

Concerns increased as Living Essentials began the energy shot craze with 5-Hour Energy in 2004. Red Bull, Monster Energy and Coca-Cola soon followed suit by creating their own energy shots. Each of these shots contain about as much caffeine as a regular sized energy drink along with B vitamins and taurine, which is an amino acid from animal sources.

The appeal is clear. Energy shots are a quick, portable and low calorie way to get a boost of energy any time of day. The caffeine in the drinks is what provides the jolt of energy, and many nutritionists warn that when these are mixed with other caffeinated drinks (coffee, green tea, soda, etc.) problems may arise.

What is particularly nerve-wracking is that the makers of energy shots are not required to list the amount of caffeine in their product on the label because the FDA doesn’t consider caffeine as a nutrient. Also, since energy shots are sold as dietary supplements, they do not fall under the regulations of the FDA. If energy shots had to follow the agency’s guidelines, they would greatly exceed the caffeine levels deemed safe by the FDA. The agency allows soda to contain 71 milligrams of caffeine per 12 ounces while energy drinks can contain anywhere from 160 to 500 milligrams.

Despite the dangers behind energy drinks, sales have not slowed. Energy drink sales in the US increased 16% last year to $8.9 billion, according to the Wall Street Journal. This account for 12% of the carbonated soft-drink category. Energy shots sales grew 8.5 percent with nearly $1.1 billion, according to market research firm SymphonyIRI Group. 

If this has all put you off of energy drinks for good, here are some ways to produce energy naturally:
·      Eat several small meals throughout the day
·      Avoid large amount of fat and sugar in your diet
·      Do not skip meals, particularly breakfast
·      Take breaks to exercise quickly (a short walk will do)
·      Exercise regularly
·      Reduce stress
·      Get enough sleep




Content produced by Arden Bronstein, Zack Correia, Alayna Eberhart, Lisa Braun, Becca Hildreth, and Lauren Ciuba.

Pushed onto the Subway Tracks: Can One Survive?

A Queens man was killed after being brutally pushed onto the subway tracks in Midtown Manhattan on Monday.

Police arrested a man Tuesday afternoon who is suspected of pushing Ki Suk Han onto the tracks shortly before a Q line train approached. Onlookers tried desperately to get the attention of the operator to stop the train before tragedy struck. But to no avail.

The Queens dad tried to lift himself out of the tracks to safety, but ended up caught between the subway and the tracks as commuters watched in horror. The attacker had reportedly been "menacing" others at the station, and it is still unknown what provoked him to commit such an assault.

Mayor Bloomberg lamented over the tragedy, but maintained that these kinds of occurrences are incredibly rare. According to Slate, only about 3% of subway track fatalities are a result of someone being pushed.

The article further goes on to advise someone who might unluckily find themselves in such a precarious position. One tip is to look for a space underneath the edge of the platform. They note that there is often enough space to fit one person between the platform and the subway. Another suggestion is to lie flat on the tracks and hope there is enough clearance between you and the train to only cause minor injuries (this actually worked in 2007 when a man fell onto the tracks after a seizure and was pinned down by a Vietnam vet).

Foreign transit systems have created ways to prevent these kinds of deaths with separations between the platforms and tracks and by creating deeper trenches beneath the tracks.

Seems your best bet would be to try to escape from the tracks as quickly as possible and return to the platform. I suppose the most positive take away is that this is a very rare occurrence.

Police are investigating the tragedy and more information will surely be released as it becomes available.

Boston University Students Prepare for Holiday Travels

Is the World Ending?

We've all heard the rumors by now that according to the Mayan calendar, the world is set to end on December 21st of this year. But before you break out "4 Minutes" by Justin Timberlake and Madonna at 11:56PM on the 20th, it is important that all of you who are superstitious understand the facts behind the stories.

Slate writer Phil Plait is eager to debunk the doomsday theories. According to the writer, while on a shopping trip to Walgreen's, he came across a magazine ominously titled "Apocalyptic Prophecies." While thumbing through it, Plait found accounts of people defending the end-of-the-world theories and stirring up more fear.

The cherry on top of his investigation of the publication, however, was his discovery on the front cover under the bar code.

Image Courtesy of Phil Plait

Plait aptly ends his article saying, "It kinds make you wonder how seriously the publisher takes all this, doesn't it? I never knew expiration dates themselves had expiration dates past their own expiration date."

But if a publisher's silly mistake isn't enough to convince you that doomsday is merely a sensationalist theory without an ounce of truth behind it, Plait would like to direct your attention to 2012hoax.org.

The website complies factual evidence and devastating stories of what has already happened as a result of the over-the-top hype and what will continue to happen until people understand there is no truth behind the theory.

First of all, the Mayans used two different calendars. One had 365 days and another had 280 days. The information gets particularly complicated here, but it is important to understand that the Mayans never factored leap years into the equation, so technically their version of December 21, 2012 has come and gone without anyone taking notice. According to 2012 hoax's website, the Mayan calendar had an error of about 1 day every 4 years.

If you need more proof that we will all live to see December 22nd - or if you're looking for ways to put your superstitious friends at ease, I encourage you to check their website

Project Delta Glam Raises Funds and Awareness

On November 5, the sisters of the Zeta Zeta chapter of Delta Gamma presented their annual Project Delta Glam, a benefit fashion show and concert that raises money for their philanthropy, Service for Sight.

The audience was in for a night of high fashion, beautiful models, and excellent performers in Boston University’s Metcalf Ballroom. When the doors opened at 7 p.m., dozens of DGs dressed head to toe in black with the exception of a gold masquerade style mask greeted the immense crowd.

In order to incorporate their philanthropy into their event, Vice President of Foundation, Jenna Hamburger and Director of Foundation Events, Zahra Karimi decided on a masquerade theme, using the tagline “mask yourself for a night.”

“The main way that we wanted to make this PDG stand out was by letting everyone know what Service for Sight is and why it is so important to us,” Hamburger said. “We chose the theme in order to center the focus of the night around eyes and make the audience aware of how hard it would be if you were unable to see or had limited sight. We also tried to inform the audience by showing videos with information about the cause and how we contribute.”

Incorporated in 1951, Service for Sight was founded to raise money and awareness for the blind and visually impaired. The creation of Service for Sight made Delta Gamma the first sorority to begin its own foundation. Since the foundation’s incorporation, Delta Gamma has founded four schools for blind children and has raised more than $3.15 million for the cause. Last year, the Zeta Zeta chapter raised over $1500 for Service for Sight at Project Delta Glam 2011.

Various Greek organizations showed their support for Delta Gamma by purchasing tables and rows for their members. Project Delta Glam commanded a full house the night of the event, leaving no open seats in sight.

Delta Gamma invited members from BU’s student organizations to model in the show. Each model was assigned a particular brand or clothing store and modeled a casual and dressy look from each. Twenty-eight models from 15 different organizations participated.

A number of local Boston retailers including LF, Crush Boutique, Johnny Cupcakes, Habit, and a Delta Gamma sister’s own, Caster Collection showed their support for the cause by donating and lending clothes and accessories to the show.

Delta Gamma sisters Jane Merrifield and Selin Thomas represented their chapter on the runway in clothes from Newbury Street’s Crush Boutique. The models said they enjoyed their experience and were proud to support the cause.

“Project Delta Glam is an amazing fundraising event,” Thomas said. “All of the funds go directly to Service for Sight. Obviously it’s a great cause, but it’s also tons of fun.”

In 2007, Chelsea Alexander, a sister in the Zeta Zeta chapter started Project Delta Glam, leaving a legacy unique to Boston University's DGs that has since spread to chapters nationwide.

Delta Gamma seniors Dana Moore and Julie Jackson opened the show with a video by TOMS explaining the new eyewear one for one program, which with every eyewear purchase “gives sight to one in need.” Last year, Delta Gamma Executive Offices partnered with TOMS to raise awareness for Service for Sight and stimulate eyewear sales. Chapters across the country held trunk shows to encourage sales and further support their philanthropy.

In addition to the fashion show, Hamburger and Karimi arranged intermittent musical and dance performances.

DJ Luke Da Duke created the pace for the show, using popular music to liven the crowd throughout the event. Luke Da Duke performed at the Middle East in Cambridge a few nights prior to PDG.

BU a cappella group Terpsichore opened the show with a three-song set, featuring Delta Gamma sister Andrea Vijay as a soloist. BU Dheem, a classical Indian dance troupe, also featuring a Delta Gamma sister, Aisha Rawji performed next, bringing a unique cultural essence to the show. Finally, Cambridge rapper and BU student J. Lye excited the crowd with a short set. He was joined on stage by up and comer Ashley Sophia for a duet at the end of his performance.

The members of Delta Gamma were pleased with the turnout and procedures of the event. They stood on the edges of the ballroom cheering and dancing throughout the night.

“We were so happy with how it turned out and glad to say that this was yet another successful PDG,” Hamburger said.

Video Diary - MFA Boston

On Sunday, I visited the Museum of Fine Arts to visit the new Mario Testino "In Your Face" exhibit. I was particularly impressed by the photos. It was interesting to see so many familiar faces in provocative shoots. It truly showed how influential and professional Testino is that all of these famous faces would be willing to do whatever he requested to get the best possible picture. The exhibit has been met with both heavy criticism and fandom. You can include me in the fan column. Take a look at my day at the MFA!