For the past year or so now we've heard about this "change" thing floating about. But I propose that we've borne witness to a change even more drastic and far-reaching than anything else before: the integration of the nerd culture into the mainstream. But when did this happen? And how could such a revolutionary change go unnoticed? There are many factors, but I tend to believe that it all started in 1997. It was in this year that Square released "Final Fantasy VII."

I have 561 Facebook friends. I might only talk to about 65 of them on a regular basis, maybe as many as 200 if you include miscellaneous birthday wishes. My roommate has 707. In a conversation with one of my guy friends the other day, he lamented having 40 less friends then me, and has since acquired an average of 7 a day. (He feels much better about himself now.) Sadly, I accepted a friend request from my best friend's little sister's babysitter's aunt the other day. Houston, we have a problem. Luckily, Burger King has the answer. It's called the Whopper Sacrifice. Trade 10 of your friends in exchange for a free whopper!

THE SOCIAList: Before high definition television, there was a television craze over a genre that most people even myself began to criticize. That was reality TV. Reality TV seemed to be the new cop-out for networks that were suffering in the sitcom or drama series department. "COPS" aired in 1989 as one of the first reality TV shows due to a Writers Guild of America strike. Many people denigrated reality TV as "stupid" because producers were just putting crazy people in insane situations and letting the world feast off of it. You know what? Those cast members signed up for it, and I am along for the ride.

He saw his father murdered by the machete of a Mau Mau rebel when he was 13 and he forgave the killer. A genetic ailment lay dormant for much of his life, then sprung itself upon him, impairing his motor functions, but he kept teaching. One of the few professors brave enough to dole out a deserved D+, he was unfairly called a fascist, and he still gave students the chance to rewrite. Richard Kroll was tough and fair.

LECTURE: Washington Post reporter describes experiences with private security in post-war Iraq.

AWARD: Second-year UCI students receive cash prize for renewable energy idea pitched in online video.

TREND: UCI online courses see surge of popularity due to poor economy and desire for cheaper education.

UCI Center Appreciates Postdoctoral Scholars; UCI Medical Center Appoints Temporary Chief Executive

FINANCE: UCI officials make strategic cuts in certain areas to maintain effective education.

PROPOSAL: UCI official vouches for release of evaluations to increase feedback and effectiveness.

Joshua Swamindass, a medical student at the UC Irvine Medical School gives a presentation on HIV/AIDS during the Africa Project's inspi(RED) HIV/AIDS education seminar last Wednesday.

TRAGEDY: Faculty member with nearly two decades of teaching experience at UCI passes away.

Anyone who has opened a newspaper, turned on the TV or even been in contact with human life forms in the last few months knows the downside of the current financial crisis. Millions of jobs have been lost, California has been forced to put thousands of workers on furlough and mortgage defaults have left entire cul-de-sacs in foreclosure. However, if we are to believe the cliché that every cloud has a silver lining, then what is the upside of this recession? Here is a list...

Amir-Abdel Malik Ali, with a smile of pride on his face, recounted the story of a Hamas militant from the Gaza offensive to a crowd at the flagpoles on Jan. 29. "There was a story of one brother brought into a Gaza hospital who said, ‘Patch me up, I have to go back out,' " Ali shouted to his listeners. Someone proceeded to ask Ali, "How can you be smiling? Look at all the suffering that's going on; look at what the people are going through." Ali responded, "If they have people that died in their families, they're martyrs and they should be happy ... I want to die the death of a martyr." However, would Ali be so jubilant about Gazans being "martyred" if it was his mother or father who died in the recent offensive in Gaza?