Culture Feature

Why Is an AP Exam Asking Questions About Taylor Swift?

Is education meant to challenge students and expand their awareness, or should it just tap into their existing interests?

Taylor Swift at the Toronto International Film Festival

By Evan Agostini (Shutterstock)

Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, Rosa Parks, Taylor Swift.

One of these things is not like the others. In this case, we're not talking about the fact that one of these people enslaved hundreds — including several of his own children — or the fact that one of those women was a descendant of enslaved Black Americans. We're talking about the pop star.

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Music Lists

15 Songs to Sing While You Wash Away Coronavirus

We've all been taught to sing "Happy Birthday" twice, but times are tough, and we need a change.

Since the COVID-19 (coronavirus) outbreak reached the U.S., a number of states—including Washington, New York, and California—have called a state of emergency and canceled large gatherings.

Originally scheduled to take place this week, Austin's South by Southwest was canceled for the first time in its 32-year history. Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden both just called off rallies in Ohio due to fears surrounding the virus, while Coachella is in talks to be rescheduled for October. As the number of confirmed cases climbs, more and more employees are working from home. Harvard University is evacuating its dorms for the remainder of the semester. Times are tough.

Still, experts assure us that as long as we're generally healthy, we don't need to worry so much about coronavirus. But with so much media coverage and the reality of quarantine feeling more imminent, what better way to help us through the crisis than with song?

Health officials maintain that the best way to ease the spread of coronavirus is to avoid touching your face and, of course, wash your hands thoroughly–for at least 20 seconds. Singing "Happy Birthday" twice is a tried-and-true method, but times are changing. It's 2020. We need better songs to wash our hands to.

So, here are just a few options to sing to yourself while you get your hands squeaky clean. Go ahead and sing them out loud. We won't judge.

"Sugar, We're Goin' Down" by Fall Out Boy

Am I more than you bargained for yet?
I've been dying to tell you anything you want to hear
'Cause that's just who I am this week
Lie in the grass next to the mausoleum
I'm just a notch in your bedpost
But you're just a line in a song

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