u/Hie2K0l0b

This is a question for current students. I'm coming back for a masters degree and I'm honestly a little nervous about how much things have changed since I was a student 10 years ago, given the advent of generative AI. I know this might be like asking you guys what oxygen is like, but how do you think I should best prep to return to school given the changes in technology? What are professors looking out for or warning against with AI use? What are some encouraged uses of AI on campus?

Idk. Just trying to get a feel for it all.

This was shot in Brazil while the BYU Wind Symphony was on tour. How do they stack up to other collegiate ensembles?

I almost skipped this review because "father/son indie pop duo from Provo" sounded like the kind of thing I'd politely appreciate but never actually listen to.

But apparently this band is really good. Like. Really good. The review described an album that feels like "heartwarming postcards from the wreckage of a plane crash." That made me actually hit play on some of the embedded tracks.

The track that really got me was the one called "Nonfiction." It's recorded like a voice memo, and it quietly wrestles with hopelessness and the weird artificial reality we all live in.
https://open.spotify.com/track/1teMKw60h1wYQ6s60APKo0?si=f93238dac7234ecf

I went from "this sounds gimmicky" to "how have I never heard of these people?" in about five minutes.

Has anyone here listened to Ultrasound? Is the review overselling it, or did I just stumble onto something special?

My favorite track wasn't listed in the review. It's called "Ruin My Life."
https://open.spotify.com/track/6s7q63JUdpE8sHtfDXw4V1?si=7e859ddf9b274383

I thought the setting of this performance + the richness of their voices was incredibly moving. I've heard a lot of directors preach "una voce" as a goal, and I feel like these girls really achieved it. It's especially apparent in the a cappella sections. Really impressed. Sonja Poulter is a great director.

There's buzz on X right now citing "a source close to the situation". Apparently the BIG 10 and others view BYU athletics as the model for making money in the new era of college sports.

In just its second year in the Big 12, BYU generated over $153 million in athletic revenue despite still receiving only a partial conference revenue share. That's one of the strongest growth stories in college athletics.

For more than a decade, BYU operated as a football independent with ESPN as its media partner. That unique relationship consistently put the Cougars on ABC, ESPN, and ESPN2, giving them national exposure that very few non-power programs have ever enjoyed.

When BYU joined the Big 12, it traded some of that independence for long-term stability, Power Four membership, and conference media revenue. Instead of shrinking the brand, the move seems to have accelerated its growth.

The Big 10 and other conferences are particularly interested in the buying power of the BYU fan base.

BYU has one of the largest, most loyal, and most geographically dispersed fan bases in college sports. In addition to watching games, that community hires people, starts businesses around the brand, invests, travels to games (or shows up to games when the team travels due to Church membership), and spends money year-round. That's a much different kind of asset than simply having strong television audiences or lots of alumni.

When you combine a national audience with that level of economic engagement, you get something that goes beyond media rights and ticket sales. You get a commercial ecosystem that very few athletic programs can match.

I think BYU is positioned extremely well over the next several years. The ESPN years built national reach, and the Big 12 provides the financial platform to capitalize on it. The fan base is what gives the brand staying power.

Not sure if the discourse on X is entirely accurate, but it raises interesting questions:

- Which college football brands do you think are better positioned than BYU over the next 10 years?

- What's the biggest factor that could keep BYU from becoming one of the premier brands in college athletics over the next decade?

BYU Noteworthy AND BYU Living Legends teamed up with Brazilian pop singer Nicole Luz. I thought the arrangement for this one was actually really cool.