The creators of the Nalo Juice stand in Honolulu pride themselves in concocting and selling products made from cold-pressed juice, most recently adding shave ice syrup to its line.

After being in Shanghai, China on an internship with the American Managing Association for a few months, Shipeng “Troy“ Ni said he learned “how to interact with people in a business setting.”

Elizabeth Smart spoke for the first time about the role pornography played in her abduction in a new advocacy video posted on CNN. "He would just sit and look at it and stare at it, and he would just talk about these women, and then when he was done, he would turn and look at me, and he would be like, 'Now we're going to do this,'" Smart said referring to Brian Mitchell, who kidnapped Smart in 2002.In the five-minute video, Smart said, "Looking at pornography wasn't enough for him. Having sex with his wife after looking at pornography wasn't enough for him," she said. "He just always wanted more… I witnessed first-hand how damaging it is.”Shem Woo, a biology freshman from Singapore, said pornography is so prevalent and everyone has been exposed to it in one form or another. “Even if you try to avoid it, it will find you,” said Woo. “It is so destructive because online you can watch it a click away, but in real life, it’s not. You can’t just click and find a girl.” He said he is grateful for people like Smart who take a strong stand against pornography and help others see the consequences of a “simple decision to be involved in pornography.” According to CNN, Mitchell kidnapped 14-year old Smart from her bedroom in Salt Lake City, and chained her to a crude campsite in the mountains a few miles from her family’s home. Mitchell raped Smart over and over again for the next nine months while her family frantically searched for her, till she was found on a street in Sandy, Utah in 2003. Smart said Mitchell regularly looked at pornography, which "just led to him raping me more." The now 28-year-old woman says in the new video suggested that porn drove Mitchell to steal and violate her.Princess Donato, an exercise and sports science senior from Qatar, said she has seen pornography destroy families and one's ability to identify lust from love. “I think all of us at some point in our lives will be tempted and Satan wants us to be curious and think it’s an artwork or appreciation for the human body, but it just leads us to so many mistakes and heartaches,” said Donato. Donato added how it was important to realize we cannot be completely shielded from pornography because of technology and social media. “But we need to have courage to stop. We need to know what to do when we deal with it,” said Donato. Sharing how pornography made her “living hell worse,” Smart talked about a specific experience with Mitchell, whom Smart does not name but instead refers to 8as her “captor.”"My captor was really excited and really kind of amped up about something, and he said, 'Oh, you know, I have something and I'm going to show it to you, and you have to look at it,'" Smart said. Mitchell then pulled out a "magazine full of hard-core pornography," she said. "It just led to him raping me more, more than he already did — which was a lot.”Maryann Phillips, a sophomore studying education from Washington, said she felt sad to see how pornography caused Smart a lot of pain. “It’s a big problem even in church, because it’s so addictive and we should stay away from it,” said Phillips. “It will be hard because it is in music videos, lyrics, movies and everywhere, but we have leaders, friends and family to help.”Smart, a devout Mormon, is now an advocate for child safety as the director of the Elizabeth Smart Foundation. The video, posted to YouTube, was produced by Fight the New Drug, an anti-porn non-profit group.

Rated the number one favorite food of the North Shore by Surfer Magazine, Kahuku Superette’s poke – pronounced po kay – has become an island specialty for both locals and tourists of all nationalities.

John John Florence claimed his fourth Volcom Pipe Pro win as he took down 112 of the world’s best surfers on Feb. 2. Florence has won the event—held at Pipeline on the North Shore—four times in the past five years, solidifying his reputation as one of the most dominant Pipe surfers of his time. Florence said to Surfer Magazine, “It feels amazing; I’m pretty stoked. To win four—I can’t believe it yet, to be honest. It’s crazy. I’m just stoked to take the trophy home . . .again.” Scott Messick, a senior from California studying business, said, “John John is surfing like a freak of nature, as always. Since he’s grown up on the North Shore, he has such a better understanding of the break compared to everyone else.” Messick continued, “He has a sixth sense with the ocean, knowing where to be, and which waves to go on. He doesn’t just get barrels, but throws something radical in at the end that just blows your mind.”The Volcom Pipe Pro kicked off round one action with plenty of swell on tap and a light wind that kept the waves groomed to perfection, on Jan. 29. The group of 112 professional surfers and watermen took to the infamous Banzai Pipeline to conquer the most dangerous wave in the world and solidify a good result for the beginning of the 2105 season. “Any event in Hawaii is really important for Hawaii’s competitive surfers, and there are only two that locals can get into: the Pipe Pro and Sunset. But Pipe is the only wave I really care about. I focus all my energy here,” said Reef McIntosh, a professional surfer from Hawaii.The conditions for the contest were not perfect, but they were acceptable, explained Taylor Bramwell, a senior from Kailua studying biology. “It was big and had good potential, but most the time it was a bit funky. It was tough for the boys to find the good ones in some of the heats.” Surfers found it very challenging to pick the waves that would lead to the highest scores. Surfer Mag reported Florence as saying, “Having grown up surfing here, knowing the waves is always an advantage, but at the same time, it’s not really like this that often. And I normally wouldn’t surf it if it were like this.”Florence continues, “But then again, knowing the reef and the boils and the lineups in general always helps. But it was pretty random out there. There were deep ones, there were wide ones. If you had priority and you were in the right spot, then you were going to get the wave.”“I’m glad John John won,” said Bobby Poort, a recent graduate living in TVA. “It’s good to see the local kids doing so well on a wave that means so much to them.”

Electronic Dance Music (EDM) is beginning to surge to the frontlines of the music industries as the sounds of synthesizers and bass are taking over the music charts.Acts like Kaskade (who, according to ldsliving.com, is an active church member), Deadmau5 and Hardwell have come forth out of the EDM movement as world-renowned artists and have achieved international adoration on groundbreaking and revolutionary levels, according to DJmag.BYU-Hawaii student Fabrizio Botalla, an undeclared sophomore from Italy said, “The music is really popular where I’m from. Kids start listening to it as young as about 13. People are always blasting it in their cars too. It’s normal.” However, EDM has only recently began to achieve the mainstream tag. The genre, in its entirety, is anything but new. It began as an underground movement in the 1980s, according to The Huffington Post, similarly to how hip-hop crossed over into the mainstream in the late 1990s and early 2000s.“It’s a popular genre, but not my style. I know a lot of people who do listen to it, and I respect it as it’s own genre,” said Reed Segura, a junior from California studying political science.EDM has dozens of sub-genres such as the polished sounds of trance, dubstep, glitch, break, hardstyle, bigroom and house.Festivals are another part of the EDM scene. Events like Electric Daisy Carnival, Global Dance Festival, Decadence and Tomorrowland are a few successful festivals that can bring over 500,000 people together. Tickets for events like these can range from an average of $200 to $350. EDM artist Tiësto reportedly makes over $250,000 per show, according to Forbes.“The experience of Electronic Daisy Carnival is truly something unique. Everyone is just so happy and in love with the music. I think everyone needs to at least experience one day,” said Alanna Norwood, a junior from California studying biochemistry who has attended the Electronic Daisy Carnival multiple times.Although EDM is a genre on it’s own, it has influenced the pop charts as well. Producers like David Guetta and Zedd have found success by joining forces with pop sensations such as Nicki Minaj, Akon, Kid Cudi and Ariana Grande.Forbes magazine wrote “dance music’s convergence with pop music has made it more accepted as well as opened up the genre to a host of new listeners.” Pop fans are slowly opening themselves up to the EDM genre through what they already deem as familiar.Whether or not the general public will accept this new emergence of music, it is clear that EDM is here to stay. The music industry is beginning to brace itself for what EDMbiz coined as an exploding genre.EDM has already created a massive scene for itself and, at the rate it’s growing, it may be this decade’s definitive genre.Uploaded Jan. 29 2015

Pope Francis addresses issues and important topics while on his visit to the United States with speeches and the release of an album.

Native Hawaiian protestors joined the Native American fight for restricting the North Dakota Access Pipeline construction that possibly threatens sacred sites and water security, according to NBC. Individuals who participated in the protest traveled from the Hawaiian Islands to North Dakota to protest for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, who claims that the crude oil pipeline will destroy sacred sites and negatively affect the water sources.

At the close of the 183rd semiannual General Conference of the LDS Church, BYU-Hawaii students, members, and non-members all over the world reflected on the words and counsel of President Thomas S. Monson, the apostles, and general authorities. This year’s October conference left students feeling inspired and comforted through the talks they heard. Mckelle Sanders, a freshman studying exercise science from Centerville, Utah, said, “Conference always makes me feel the spirit so strongly, and it’s a fresh start and a reminder on how I should be living my life.” Sanders felt inspired by one talk in particular. “Elder L. Tom Perry’s talk was my favorite because of the story about the grandma and her grandson who was in prison. I have some family members who have fallen away from the church and this talk reminded me how great they still are,” she said. Jonathan Larsen, a freshman from Richland, Wash., said, “One of my favorite talks was by Elder Terence M. Vinson. I liked his story about the boy trying to push the large boulder and his dad told him to use all his strength. When the boy said he was, the father said I am part of your strength. I liked how this story talks about how we must all remember to turn to the Lord when we are in need of strength beyond our own.” “One of my favorites was by President Uchtdorf in the priesthood session,” said Jeff Facer, a sophomore studying marine biology from La Canada, Calif. “Basically I like how he said your success isn’t determined by how many times you fall but by how many times you pick yourself back up.” Gabriela Gomez, a freshman studying ICS communications and peace building from Quetzaltenango, Guatemala, said, “My favorite talk was by Elder Christofferson. He reminded me of my value and duty as a woman. He reminded me of the influence and light I give to the world and that I can help priesthood holders around me through my example and spirit.” All sessions of General Conference are available online at LDS.org or in the special General Conference issue in next month’s Ensign magazine.