In This Week in News, we cover UC Santa Cruz’s failing grade by Californians Aware and the survey about class availability.

As the pressure to excel mounts on many athletes, the possibility for the development of disordered eating rises. From issues of aesthetics to the demand to make certain weight classes, male and female athletes struggle to walk the line between healthy lifestyles and extreme dieting.

Student organization STAND is hosting STAND Up for Burma. Burmese human rights activist Myra Dahgaypaw will provide her story as an internally displaced person and a refugee. A screening of the film “Crossing Midnight” will also be shown.

The UCSC swim team prepares to travel to Long Beach for their final meet of the season. Their performance at this weekend’s Pacific Collegiate Swim Conference will determine whether they can move forward to nationals.

With the recent slashes to the University of California’s budget and the resulting fee hikes, many students have expressed dissatisfaction with the quality of their education. Organizers of the Class and and Lecture Availability Student Survey (CLASS) are hoping this frustration will be vocalized by students through their UC-wide survey, which can be taken up until Feb. 20.

California’s recidivism rate is at an all-time high, and with no financial help in sight, it’s time for a serious reexamining of the prison system. By refocusing on rehabilitation and deterring future crimes, the California prison system can begin to make strides towards change and financial and philosophical reorganization.

With Judge Jeremy Fogel set to rule on the constitutionality of California’s lethal injection procedure after a five-year execution moratorium, the death penalty debate has reentered Californian’s psyche.

Two very different women in recent pop culture, Nicki Minaj and Nina Sayers of “Black Swan,” embrace their alter egos in order to express their true self. Writer Blair Stenvick analyzes what this means for women in the media and the dimensionality of their personas.

Eroticism takes on a new feel as expressed by performers of the 418 project’s annual fundraiser “What Is Erotic?” The show — a combination of art, dance, video, and spoken word — made “wet dreams” a melting pleasure pot.
