As seniors end their last year of high school, what comes ahead is the next big step: college. Students leave for a new place, somewhere with no one they've known for the past 18 years. It's a serious transition that determines your future, but what if you're not ready?

Fortunately, high school graduates do not all have to take that path. For those who aren't ready for college, there is something called the gap year, a 12-month break before making the transition to college. More and more students are choosing to wait a year before college, and it's no surprise why.

They're in many students' bedrooms. They hide under piles of clothes, sit atop desks, lie in between blankets on beds. No one suspects a thing.

That's how the students of Harrington High School in Ardmore, Penn., viewed the school-issues laptops they received freshmen year. That is, until they discovered the school can remotely access the webcams installed in the MacBooks and see what the student is doing.

n the interest of reusing test questions in the future, some teachers do not allow students to look their graded tests. As much as this decision benefits these teachers, who are often swamped with tests, homework and projects to grade, it undermines a key component of a good education: self-learning and reflection.

Recently, Prop 8 has once again been cast in the limelight. With all the controversy surrounding its passing, it is hardly surprising that the proposition is under debate again. However, what is different this time is that lawyers Theodore Olson and David Boies have joined the fight to overturn the decision. But even their legal might isn't enough to make their case right, or for that matter, necessary.

No application fee, no essay, no letters of recommendation and a decision within three weeks—fast track applications, also known as "snap applications," seem like a breeze. In fact, with such lax requirements, they are a breeze. A growing number of colleges and universities have begun to send out these fast-track apps, hoping to entice essay-weary seniors to their school; however, students are should fill out these applications with a grain of salt.

In the '70s, Muslim women who had recently arrived to France were usually kept behind suburban doors by the heavy-handed control of their husbands. Often, they were forced to wear the characteristic Muslim veil both in and outdoors; however, this practice was so ingrained into their culture that the women did not particularly mind. Ironically, only when the veil had emerged voluntarily during the '80s, visibly flaunted by a new generation of determined young Frenchwomen, did concern began to rise.

Sure, the Internet is convenient. Sure, it's fun, practical, and entertaining. However, its ability to be dangerous is no secret, thanks to the multitude of sketchy strangers lurking online.

The most wanted terrorist in the world, Osama bin Laden, recently released an audiotape through the Afghani al-Jazeera news network assuming responsibility for the foiled bombing attempt on Northwest Airlines Flight 253 flying from Amsterdam to Detroit on Christmas Day. He claimed that "the messages delivered to [the United States] through the plane of the heroic warrior Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab was a confirmation of previous messages sent by the heroes of September 11th."

The recent release of the multi-billion dollar movie "Avatar" has become the highest grossing movie of all time but it has also sparked controversy from varied interest groups around the globe.

The blue men with golden stripes. The lush, beautiful, and green environment. It seems like the Na'vi's world in the movie is a paradise to be envied—especially since here on Earth, the innocent world is under fire for about every controversy there could be about a movie.

"We can do better!" Massachusetts Senator-elect Scott Brown (R-Wentham) declared to an audience of supporters following his landmark victory. As much as disgruntled Democrats would like to believe he was referring to his election, Brown was instead alluding to the lack of tangible change made on Capitol Hill in the year since President Obama was sworn in.