About

The Short Loop is a collaborative blog by Max Forsyth, Trevor Levin, Simon Ong, Mitch Pollock, Alex Wheaton, and occasionally other contributors.

We write about our overlapping interests — arts, politics, technology, literature, sustainability, and whatever else catches our attention — from the rather unified perspective of five white male boarding school graduates (who ran cross country and wrote for the same student newspaper and acted in the same plays and…). Nevertheless, we hope the divergent directions we’ve taken since create some interesting synergies.

Max! Whose bowl is that?
Max has the rough hands — perfect for pottery — but the tender heart of an almost-vegetarian.

Max Forsyth is an architecture student at Carnegie Mellon University. He writes about architecture, design, and sustainability and does most of the site’s graphic design. He has a lot to learn before he’s ready to save anyone, but I believe Max can save the world. He ran C-squad cross country at Western Reserve Academy, but he is now very fast and strong. He also led the Earth Initiative, and was co-editor-in-chief of the Reserve Record. He is Trevor’s former worst enemy.

Mixing variable and fixed width fonts, I see.
Trevor takes the tough stands, even in the summer sun.

Trevor Levin recently graduated from an interdisciplinary social sciences program at Harvard University, where he wrote and edited for The Harvard Crimson. He writes about politics, economics, and music. He jogged C-squad cross country at Western Reserve Academy, where he co-founded the Young Democrats and was co-editor-in-chief of the Reserve Record. He hates cars and loves tweeting. He is Max’s current worst enemy.

Chest hair transplants.
Simon has the buff strands. Big hair, bigger heart.

Simon Ong recently graduated from the Dramatic Writing program at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. He writes about movies. He ran JV cross country at Western Reserve Academy and was dishonorably discharged by the Reserve Record. Simon is working his way up to wrestling adult bears. He is his own worst enemy.

Mitch is the bluff man. His advice is widely sought and scarcely fought.

Mitch Pollock is a graduate of Vanderbilt University with a degree in computer science and mathematics. He now lives in Washington, D.C. He writes reviews and reflections on books and film, personal essays, and original short stories. He ran JV cross country at Western Reserve Academy and was co-editor-in-chief of the Reserve Record. He has no enemies, but you can apply to be his first by commenting on this page.

Also a proficient driver.
Wheaton surveys the rough lands. He is controversially credited with the discovery of Nebraska.

Alex Wheaton is pursuing a master’s degree in astrophysics at the University of Edinburgh. He writes about science, technology, and literature. With Mitch’s assistance, he also does the computers for the site. He was the captain and most improved runner for varsity cross country at Western Reserve Academy, was associate editor of the Reserve Record, and was named Customer of the Century at the Hudson, Ohio Peet’s Coffee location. He has far too many enemies to count, but Mitch is by far his most deadly.

Our moniker, “The Short Loop,” refers to a section of the Western Reserve Academy cross country course, long enough to count as a warmup but not so long as to be exhausting. It was frequently taken to bypass “The Long Loop” section of the course. It symbolizes sloth and laziness. We also like the way it sounds.