Whether you’re a slave to studio, indentured to essays or bonded to biology, chances are you’ve missed out on some pop culture this semester. Don’t worry though, Cadenza has you covered. Use winter break (or reading week, it’s really up to you) to catch up on what you’ve missed.

Obama killed Osama Bin Laden.

Romney wants to kill Big Bird. I think that says enough.#FactCheck.

— Big Bird (@BigBirdRomney) October 4, 2012

Who's unemployed now?

Burn.@MittRomney

— Big Bird (@BigBirdRomney) November 7, 2012

@BigBirdRomney

Just in case you haven’t heard because you’ve been stuck in the library for the past three months, Obama will still be our president in January. But, in the midst of presidential debates, Romney unleashed a very angry Big Bird fighting for his own survival. In the first presidential debate, Romney said, “I like PBS. I love Big Bird. I actually like you, too. But I’m not gonna keep on spending money on things to borrow money from China to pay for it.” And that got Big Bird going—on Twitter, that is. If you haven’t checked out @BigBirdRomney on Twitter, it’s well worth your time. Plus, if you’re in political science classes, you can totally count this as studying. Scroll back to the very beginning of his Twitter feed and read. – Alieza Schvimer

Jay L. Clendenin | Los Angeles Times | MCT

If you haven’t heard Justin Bieber’s new-ish song “Beauty and a Beat” that’s a crime in itself. However, if you haven’t seen the music video, I’ll forgive you and just say you should get on that. First, the song is extremely catchy and has a great beat. But even more importantly, for part of the close-to-five-minute music video, it’s questionable whether J. Biebs is wearing pants (they’re white, but he’s in water…). The whole “I made this video by myself” vibe—Bieber holds the camera for most of the video—is cool because the video clearly wasn’t just made by him alone. Plus, Nicki Minaj’s appearance at the end is great—they grind on each other for a few seconds and it’s clear no one is comfortable. When Nicki Minaj raps her line, “I gotta keep an eye out for Selena,” I cry a little inside because of her and Bieber’s break-up (but really, are they broken up?). Altogether, it’s a great five-minute study break because after you watch, all you’ll want to do is learn Nicki Minaj’s rap. And who actually studies during reading week? – Alieza Schvimer

The final season of “30 Rock”

There are only five episodes left of Tina Fey’s hit television show. Let that sink in. Only two and a half hours left. Your University College class is longer than what we have left of this brilliant comedy. It’s a national tragedy that “30 Rock” is ending, but a bit of a miracle that the show even made it to seven seasons, considering it’s on NBC. But props to NBC for allowing the show to go out with its head held high—this season has been consistently hilarious with nary an episode wasting any screen time of its core ensemble cast. Jane Krakowski has been particularly amazing, turning every moment she’s on screen as Jenna Maroney into an instantly quotable moment. If you haven’t been keeping up with the exploits of Liz Lemon and company this season, take a quick trip to Hulu and get yourself caught up. It’s your last chance, after all. – Georgie Morvis

The Future of Video Games

2012 has been a mediocre year for gaming, as seen through the fixation with games that haven’t been announced (“Half-Life 3”) over the ones that actually have come out. The beloved Gabe Newell announced on Saturday during an interview with Kotaku that he anticipates companies, including Valve, will sell PCs for the living room. These are systems that would run Steam, a gaming platform for PCs, out of the box and would compete directly with the Big Three’s eighth generation consoles. Newell believes that “consumers and developers are gonna find that [the PC is] a better environment,” echoing the sentiments of countless PC gamers. Newell also stated that Valve’s “hardware will be a very controlled environment,” a statement that unfortunately seems to go against the company’s typical modus operandi. Despite this, a PC/console hybrid, one that combines the customization of PC gaming with the local multiplayer typically reserved for consoles, has been one of the most intensely desired objects of the gaming community for years. While many analysts have come to see the eighth generation as the decline of console gaming, Newell’s “Steambox” has the potential to integrate our gaming experiences across multiple platforms into the acclaimed Steam system, which could serve to reinvigorate the console market. So over break, as you’re pondering reviewing organic chemistry or procrastinating, why not have intellectual, thought provoking discussions about the future of video games? – Glenn Harris

“Sherlock”

Netflix instant watch. Six episodes. An hour and a half each. British accents. Brilliance. This is not Sherlock Holmes with Robert Downey Jr. or Sherlock Holmes in antique print. This is the BBC television series “Sherlock,” and it will blow your mind. The creators of this show took inspiration from the Sherlock Holmes stories and completely modernized them. I’m talking iPhone ringtones, terrorist threats, CSI-style labs, etc. The two stars of the show, Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock Holmes) and Martin Freeman (Dr. Watson) are all the rage right now, and after watching the show, you’ll know why. They’re not too bad as eye candy either. Every episode is well put-together, with a genius plot and stunning cinematography. In fact, it is very likely that you will want to devote nine hours straight to watching the whole shebang. I don’t blame you, but maybe your family will when they are waiting for you to get your act together before their holiday party. Better yet, just rope your family into watching so you can all be late. You’ll thank me later. – Jamie Gottlieb

Timothy McSweeney’s Internet Tendency (http://www.mcsweeneys.net/tendency)

My love affair with Internet Tendency began when I was directed to “Monologue: I’m Comic Sans, A–hole” and has exponentially grown since. Not only are the pieces entertaining to read (and short), but they serve as reminders of how fun writing can be, which is very necessary post-essay writing binge (a.k.a. finals). The majority of the pieces are LOL-inducing and some even inform the reader about pop culture, such as “Harold Brodkey Explains Carly Rae Jepsen’s ‘Call Me Maybe.’” McSweeney’s is a publishing company in San Francisco that produces a variety of literary media, such as Internet Tendency, various literary paper publications and books. More recently, it worked with Beck Hansen (Beck) to produce his latest work, Song Reader, a music book that encourages fans to play along with his new songs instead of playing his music on Spotify. Internet Tendency and the McSweeney’s website as a whole is a fun, innovative way to spend the holiday season. Not to mention there’s a store, so you can check some names off of your holiday gift list—and add some items to your own wish list. Happy holidays and merry reading! – Jamie Gottlieb