1 - The Independent Florida Alligator

This Tuesday, April 10, 2018 file photo shows vaping devices, including a Juul, center, that were confiscated from students at a high school in Marshfield, Mass. On Tuesday, Nov. 13, 2018, San Francisco-based Juul Labs Inc. announced it had stopped filling orders for its mango, fruit, creme and cucumber pods but not menthol and mint. It will sell all flavors through its website and limit sales to those 21 and older. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

METRO

Youth vaping increases in Alachua County

By Precious Polycarpe | Jan. 21, 2019

Youth vaping has increased about 60 percent in two years.

Guard Funda Nakkasoglu scored 30 points to help the Gators' women's basketball team snap a three-game losing streak in a 70-60 win over Charleston Southern.

SPORTS | WOMEN'S BASKETBALL

Ole Miss leads start to finish to down Gators

By Sam Campisano | Jan. 20, 2019

Ole Miss guard Mimi Reid drilled a three on the first possession of Sunday’s game in Oxford, Mississippi.

Florida guard KeVaughn Allen scored 18 points during Florida's 57-51 win over Arkansas. He went 11 of 12 from the free-throw line.

SPORTS | MEN'S BASKETBALL

Florida outlasts Georgia behind defensive effort

By Tyler Nettuno | Jan. 19, 2019

The last five games played out about the same way for the Florida men’s basketball team.

Florida freshman Trinity Thomas earned SEC Freshman of the Week for her performance during Florida’s 197.30-196.45 win over Missouri on Friday. Thomas scored a 9.950 on the uneven bars and a 9.900 on her floor routine, for which she finished third.

SPORTS | GYMNASTICS

UF ends LSU’s 35-meet home win streak

By River Wells | Jan. 18, 2019

The crowd at Pete Maravich Assembly Center rose to its feet when LSU’s McKenna Kelley finished her floor routine. Kelley needed a 9.975 on the routine for the Tigers to win, and she diligently watched the judges with the rest of her teammates as they wrote down her score: 9.875.

Guidance is executive produced by fMichelle Tractenberg. She also starred as the original guidance counselor in the first season.

THE AVENUE | MOVIES AND TV

Series review of the week: Hulu’s ‘Guidance’

By Tranelle Maner | Jan. 18, 2019

This Awesomeness TV drama explores the complications of high school when huge scandals occur.

Gary Mormino, a professor from the University of South Florida, visited the Matheson History Museum of Art on Jan. 12 and explored Florida food history in his lecture, “10 Foods that Define Florida."

THE AVENUE | FOOD

10 Foods That Define Florida

By Sara Han | Jan. 18, 2019

Have you ever wondered what makes foods in the Sunshine State iconic or where they originally came from?

Mayor Lauren Poe, Gainesville city commissioners and city staff listen to the public’s comments Jan. 18, 2019, during the Gainesville City Commission meeting at City Hall. The meeting was over four hours long, and the panel of legislators passed legislation that banned the use of plastic bags in Gainesville.

METRO | CITY COUNTY COMMISSION

The plastic ban: Gainesville will be 100 percent waste free by 2040

By Karina Elwood | Jan. 17, 2019

Citations will cost $250.

Two-week-old Jordan Decker lies on his mother, Sandra Decker, at a La Leche League of Gainesville meeting in April. In Florida, the lowest statewide average for a standard hospital delivery is $9,008.

METRO

Mental health care center for moms opens in Alachua

By Taylor Girtman | Jan. 17, 2019

The center has the first program of its kind in the southeast.

Jimmy Toney, the 45-year-old pastor of The Pentecostals of Gainesville, leads a vigil for the victims of the I-75 accident last Thursday. People filled the church Sunday evening to support the families of the victims and pray for their recovery. “They’ve been stuck in hospitals with doom and gloom and death,” Toney said. “I just think it meant the world.” // Chris Day, The Alligator

METRO | CRIMINAL JUSTICE

Lawsuit filed, donations collected following I-75 crash

By Katherine Wallace-Fernandez | Jan. 17, 2019

More than $5,000 in donations was collected.

Florida track and field coach Mike Holloway boasts the No. 2-best men’s team and the No. 6-best women’s team in the country.

SPORTS | OTHER SPORTS

Gators look to maintain dominance in 2019 campaign

By Bryan Matamoros | Jan. 17, 2019

Coach Mike Holloway and the Florida track and field program will attempt to add more trophies to its display case this upcoming season — just like it has done for the past decade.

OPINION | DARTS LAURELS

Darts and Laurels: Jan. 18, 2019

Jan. 17, 2019

It’s the second week of school, and everyone’s first week excitement has quickly diminished. Thoughts of skipping class are quickly creeping into the minds of students and the need for a distraction is becoming apparent. Monday is a holiday, which means our first break of the semester is just around the corner. You decide it’s the perfect chance to escape Gainesville and all the stress of a new semester.

SPORTS | COLUMNS

Tampa Bay Buccaneers made right decision by hiring Bruce Arians

By Evan Lepak | Jan. 17, 2019

The NFL’s elite teams will be vying for a spot in the Super Bowl this weekend.

OPINION | COLUMNS

In 2019, the best resolution is to stay the same

By Chasity Maynard | Jan. 17, 2019

As we wave goodbye to the second week of 2019, other parts of our life also bid us farewell. The excitement of the holiday season finally fades, we start to get into the meaty part of classes and New Year’s resolutions drop off the radar.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Ditch paper textbooks this semester to save money and the environment

Jan. 17, 2019

Have you ever walked to class and thought to yourself: “Wow, I would love for my backpack to be even heavier.”

OPINION | COLUMNS

From UF President Kent Fuchs: financial aid and how it impacts UF students

Jan. 17, 2019

When UF announces its admissions decisions on Feb. 8, some students will receive good news, but many will not. We received 42,000 applications for only 6,500 available positions.

OPINION | COLUMNS

Pills and why they aren’t for all of us

Jan. 17, 2019

I love coffee as much as the next student. My personal drink of choice is an espresso with soy milk and honey: plain, simple and refreshing. But I don’t drink coffee every morning. When I choose not to drink coffee, I’ll turn to a simple caffeine pill.

Florida guard Ariel Johnson is averaging 5.3 points per game and is second on the team with 22 three-pointers.

SPORTS | WOMEN'S BASKETBALL

Florida’s bench has been one of its few bright spots

By Sam Campisano | Jan. 17, 2019

It has been a frustrating season for the Florida women’s basketball team, but one signal that greener pastures could be on the horizon can be found at the bottom of the stat sheet after every game: bench points.

Florida gymnast Alicia Boren earned SEC gymnast of the week for her performance against Missouri on Friday at the O'Connell Center.

SPORTS | GYMNASTICS

Florida heads to Baton Rouge to face longtime rival in LSU

By River Wells | Jan. 17, 2019

Captain Ahab spends the entirety of the famed 1851 novel Moby Dick attempting to defeat the “white whale.” It’s more of a “white tiger” for the UF gymnastics team.

The Florida men's basketball team's last four games have all come down to the final minutes, with the Gators escaping with just one win. "(We'll) continue to improve," White said.

SPORTS | MEN'S BASKETBALL

Gators attempt to break end-of-game funk against Georgia

By Jake Dreilinger | Jan. 17, 2019

It has been the same story over and over again for the past two weeks.

Mark Daniel, a complete paraplegic, uses the Quix prototype on the cobblestone streets of Zurich, Switzerland. Daniel is the official tester for the exoskeletons developed by Myolyn and the Institute for Human and Machine Cognition. Courtesy to The Alligator.

METRO

UF alumni start-up company becomes finalist in Toyota’s Mobility Unlimited Challenge

By Mikayla Carroll | Jan. 17, 2019

Finalists receive a $50,000 grant for their projects.

El Caimán