Author Archives: Jed Levine

The sight of four gray whales off the California coast Saturday morning was the perfect sign for 26-year-old Irwin Sanchez, a day-labor landscaper from New Jersey. “It was like the four elements of nature that gave us the blessing to go forward,” he said through a translator. This weekend, Sanchez began an odyssey he never […]

As dozens of his peers looked on and jeered him, high school freshman Edgar Gonzalez awkwardly grasped a banana while attempting to slip the blue latex condom over it. Third-year UCLA biology student Ashley Fonseca stepped in to complete the condom demonstration, but not before placing her entire forearm inside the condom to illustrate that […]

PHI PHI ISLANDS, Thailand “”mdash; The pristine island of Koh Phi Phi had been the jewel of Thailand’s Andaman Coast. The movie “The Beach” revealed the island’s natural splendor to the world: crystal blue water, white sand beaches and striking limestone cliffs. But the Asian tsunami on December 26, 2004, which claimed over 250,000 lives […]

BANGKOK, Thailand “”mdash; Even at 4 p.m. the touts are at it on Thanon Patpong, a small Bangkok street of great infamy. “DVD, video, sex?” “Very beautiful women.” “Pingpong show, you come mister.” “May ow,” I say, avoiding eye contact as I walk away. “I don’t want.” The route down the street is overshadowed by […]

Editor’s note: Due to the fact that the government of Myanmar has threatened to imprison citizens who speak to reporters, the full names of quoted sources have been withheld for their protection. MYANMAR “”mdash; Sitting across the table from me on a sweltering Yangon summer day, sipping iced coffee and talking politics, Aung might appear […]

UCLA’s normally bustling campus seems eerily quiet at 9 p.m. on a foggy Friday night. Its 36,000 students have all left for the weekend and signs of life are few. But inside a classroom in Haines Hall, Will Arnold’s night has only begun. As he prepares for his “lunch break,” Arnold sweeps through the rows […]

Students who are actively religious are less likely to suffer from depression and engage in risky behavior like drinking alcohol, according to a study recently released at UCLA. The study by the Higher Education Research Institute surveyed students at 46 colleges and universities and found that students who did not regularly attend religious services were […]