A live podcast is coming to the MHCC College Theatre on Dec. 8 – one that is a bit different from the podcasts you may listen to on your commute to school, however. Brady Carey, a communications instructor at MHCC, will be hosting nearly an hour of interesting presentations, all of them centering around one idea, “The Message.” I sat down with Carey to ask more explanation of the central theme for this 7 p.m. event, the sixth podcast in his series. He said that sometimes the

Have you ever wanted to start your own country? A man from San Diego did just that. Randy “R Dub!” Williams is a radio DJ and slow jam connoisseur who runs a syndicated radio show, “Sunday Night Slow Jams,” that airs on over 220 radio stations in 17 countries. Williams had a personal goal of visiting every United Nations-recognized country on Earth, but in 2020 the COVID lockdowns prevented him from doing so. Seeing how he could not travel internationally, Williams decided to

This past Monday, Oct. 30, President Biden issued an Executive Order that aims to ensure that the United States stays at the forefront of artificial intelligence (AI) and that the risks of this new technology are minimized. A White House press release says that the Order includes plans to implement new standards for AI safety and security that protect Americans’ personal privacy, stand up for consumers, and promote innovation and competition among tech companies. Among the cr

Big changes are coming to the Portland area’s TriMet system, primarily to the MAX light rail system, that could improve commuting to Mt. Hood Community College. IN WITH THE NEW, OUT WITH THE OLD Among the biggest will be the introduction of “Type 6” light-rail trains by the end of this year. These new cars will replace the aging Type 1 trains first put into service at the start of MAX service in 1986. They are a huge upgrade from the latter, while similar to some newer Type 5

Conflict between Israel and Palestine has been ongoing since the mid-20th century, but has blown up this past month with more deadly attacks and counterattacks. On Oct. 17, MHCC political science instructor Janet Campbell hosted a Zoom presentation on the conflict’s history and offered a forum for students and faculty to ask questions. The session highlighted the complicated origins of the latest attacks and some possibilities of how this conflict may end, if ever. On Oct. 7,

Andrew Ng speaks at TED2022: A New Era. April 10-14, 2022, Vancouver, BC, Canada. Photo: Ryan Lash / TED Artificial Intelligence has emerged as a game-changing technology, from AI-generated artwork to using AI to quickly analyze data. The tool is very broad in its usage, and even a little bit frightening. All new technologies are scary; a hundred years ago or so cars were seen as a scary new technology, but society has learned to embrace them. Although a lot of the ways AI is

On Oct. 3, U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy was ousted from his position, marking the first time a speaker has been ousted in U.S. history. The historic bipartisan vote ended 216-210, with 8 Republicans joining all 208 Democrats in attendance to vote “yea” on the motion to vacate the speakership. This ordeal came in the immediate aftermath of narrowly avoiding a federal government shutdown, due to McCarthy bargaining with Democrats to pass a stopgap spendi

Signing of the HB2049 cybersecurity bill by Oregon Governor Tina Kotek on Wednesday, Sept. 27 There are two exciting developments that could attract more students into Mt. Hood’s fast-evolving cybersecurity courses. A new degree program is coming to Mt Hood Community College, the Bachelor of Applied Science in Cybersecurity. It’s the first four-year degree of its kind offered in the state of Oregon, set to start in Fall Term 2024. Currently MHCC has two associate degree progr

When you’re under the weather, your local pharmacy is there for you to stock up on all the essentials to get you feeling better. But access to your favorite retail pharmacy – whether Rite Aid, Walgreens, or CVS – may change soon as all three companies continue to shut down hundreds of stores nationwide. These store closures are driven by more and more consumers getting their goods online through services including Amazon and other online RX retailers such as Postal Prescripti

For the first time since the campus was shut down during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Associated Student Government of Mt Hood Community College (ASMHCC) can proudly say it has both a student body president and vice president working together! During the tumultuous three years post-COVID outbreak, the group has had one or the other in office – but not both. Now Javier Estrada and Emily Phoun, elected by fellow students last spring, will represent the student body this 2023-24 a

One of the most extraordinary things you can witness in a lifetime is a solar eclipse – when the moon slide in between the sun and the Earth, and blocks out the light cast onto us. This is most spectacular when the moon blocks out the sun completely; we call this a total solar eclipse. A slightly less dramatic version occurs when the moon is too close to the sun, therefore appearing smaller, and blocks out the sun almost completely, but leaving a bright ring around it. This l

When tax season arrives next spring, Oregonians can look forward to receiving bigger income tax refunds from the state government than they might have expected. Oregon’s state economists are predicting a whopping $5.6 billion in tax refunds for the 2023 tax year, which under the “kicker” law are divvied out to individual taxpayers (and businesses) when tax revenues far exceed official projections. These refunds depend on a person’s income and will vary widely. On average, eac

There’s a looming threat to the education of the nearly 50,000 students in Oregon’s largest school district: a teachers union strike at Portland Public Schools may be imminent. The threat comes from continued failed contract negotiations between the school district and its biggest teachers union, the Portland Association of Teachers. Due to this failure, the union’s nearly 4,500 members have been teaching without a work contract with the district since June. Although negotia

Well – school is back in session, and student clubs at Mt. Hood Community College are starting back up again. There are many clubs that can mesh with those amazing talents so many people have, or new talents they may wish to embark on. These clubs give students the opportunity to get a deeper more meaningful grasp of community and learn more about the things they are interested in, without the added pressure. Truly, these clubs are a great way to expand one’s horizons and ope

For the first time since the campus was shut down during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Associated Student Government of Mt Hood Community College (ASMHCC) can proudly say it has both a student body president and vice president working together! During the tumultuous three years post-COVID outbreak, the group has had one or the other in office – but not both. Now Javier Estrada and Emily Phoun, elected by fellow students last spring, will represent the student body this 2023-24 a

Well – school is back in session, and student clubs at Mt. Hood Community College are starting back up again. There are many clubs that can mesh with those amazing talents so many people have, or new talents they may wish to embark on. These clubs give students the opportunity to get a deeper more meaningful grasp of community and learn more about the things they are interested in, without the added pressure. Truly, these clubs are a great way to expand one’s horizons and ope

The United States Surgeon General, Dr. Vivek Murthy, has released a 25-page advisory on the impact of social media on the mental health of children and adolescents. The document calls for increased awareness of how social media affects youth and creates recommendations for what can be done to protect their mental health. The advisory issued on May 23 begins by acknowledging that social media can have both positive and negative effects on youth. Potential benefits of social me

Results of the Mt. Hood student body vote for Associated Student Government president and vice president positions for 2023-24 were announced on May 30. A week later, we were able to catch up with newly elected President Javier Estrada and Vice President Emily Phoun – asking about their plans, inspirations and hopes for MHCC. One of their shared goals is starting up a broadcast/podcast called “The Barney Broadcast,” a shared project of The Advocate and the ASMHCC. This would

There is fun coming all afternoon to Mt. Hood Community College on Thursday, June 1, in the form of Barney Bash, meant to celebrate the end of another successful academic year. Hosted by the MHCC Office of Student Life and Civic Engagement, the Bash will run from noon to 7 p.m. in MHCC’s Main Mall and the Student Union – absolutely free to all visitors, whether students, staff, or community members of all ages. Starting at noon, a photo booth, obstacle course, bungee obstacle

Republican Oregon state senators have been walking out of this year’s session of the Oregon Legislature for over two weeks now and show no sign of stopping soon. This has brought action in Salem largely to a halt. This isn’t the first walkout in recent times. In 2021, House Republicans walked out for two days over a bill that would redrawn Oregon congressional districts heavily in Democrats’ favor. The GOP has participated in six walkouts just since 2019. Democrats are not st