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Urban planning thrives on informed decision-making. However, the increasing influence of game theory—a branch of mathematics that studies strategic interactions—can be a recipe for disaster in the messy world of governance. While game theory offers insights in some areas, relying largely on its models...

I aim for humor in my Los Gatan columns. The kind that elicits a chuckle, maybe a snort, not the kind that has readers questioning my grip on reality (though, fair point, the jury is deliberating on that one). Of course, I also try...

The acronym “SOS” stands for save our ship. It can also stand for sorting, othering, and siloing, which is how the acronym is used in “I Never Thought of It That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times,” written by...

What were your favorite school memories as a child? Mine included counting roly-polies in the grass at recess, having mud-sliding contests after school, and picking wildflowers with my friends. Some of my least favorite memories were having to play soccer on plastic turf on...

I mentioned in the article, “Group says Town needs to add more sites to housing list” (Los Gatan, Aug. 30-Sept. 5, 2023), that I thought the leadership, two mayors and the Town Manager have failed us for the past two years. They had to...

Is your current definition of “community center” a dusty gym with dodgeballs older than your grandma’s knitting needles? Fear not, fellow Los Gatos residents. We’re tossing out the tired old model and crafting a vibrant, all-encompassing space that would make Michelangelo himself ditch his...

I did not inherit my father’s handyperson skills, although I remember observing him install central air conditioning and successfully accomplishing other large projects at our house in Kings Point, New York. Perhaps seeing a booklet lying around his workroom describing how to build a...

My North Santa Cruz Avenue business, Beyond Text Bookstore, has now been open for over six months. That’s six months the place has been filled with real people—not just my dreams and hopes. Upon reflection, I wanted to share a little about what I didn’t know...

“Where are you from?” It’s a common question, and one that can be quite loaded for people of diverse ethnicities. On its face, it’s a plain question based on curiosity, filled with nostalgia, or awe. But it could also carry covert racism and hatred, carrying the connotation...

As avid rowers of the Los Gatos Rowing Club, we frequently encounter trash floating in the Lexington Reservoir during our practices. The scope of this problem is alarming. Every year, the San Francisco Bay is overwhelmed by a staggering 7 trillion pieces of microplastics,...