Matthew R. Powell on Kevin Xiong

Kevin Xiong has been called many things. When he ran for vice president in freshman year (in a mock election), he was dubbed "the X-factor". As any mathematician knows, x is a mysterious variable. x is a number, but what that number is, nobody knows. the goal of the equation is to find out what x is. so what (or who) really is x in this case? we have the equation. we observe kevin as he makes tens of throwing stars or other origami creations, and we wonder to what end. we hear him ask questions in math or spanish that range from intelligent to atrocious and we roll our eyes or hang our heads or stifle laughter. does he look for a reaction in the audience or an answer? i think it's the latter. kevin asks everything thats on his mind, and, while he may have a sub-motivation sometimes to entertain his classmates, i believe that kevin really is, first and foremost, looking for an answer. kevin's color, as with all those who have many questions, is green. the riddler wears green, and, as anyone who wasted 2 hours watching batman returns will know, the riddler's costume was riddled with question marks. so next time kevin asks a horrendous question, go ahead and smirk, but secretly commend him for having the inquisitiveness to keep asking day after day.