Daily Herald the Brown
vol. cxliv, no. 13 | Friday, February 6, 2009 | Serving the community daily since 1891
Grad School optimistic amid crunch
loo k ing for rede m ption
High Jinks, old and new, back on campus
By Hannah Moser Senior Staf f Writer
Members of the Graduate School community are attempting to roll with the punches in light of the campus-wide e-mail sent last week by President Ruth Simmons, announcing large-scale reductions to university expenditures. The e-mail outlined a plan to postpone “the planned growth of the Graduate School,” in reaction to the financial crisis and to “reduce expenditures, constrain expansion and limit major new obligations” for the entire Brown community. Simmons had made grad school expansion an important component of the Plan for Academic Enrichment in 2001. But in her e-mail, she wrote that she anticipates “essentially no growth in the number of doctoral students matriculating each year” and “little or no increase in the base graduate student stipend for the next few years.” Sheila Bonde, dean of the Graduate School, said before the economic crisis administrators had hoped for the increase in graduate students to catch up with faculty growth under the plan. Now, the continued on page 2
By Colin Chazen Senior Staff Writer
An unlikely group of a cappella singers — decades older than the average Brown student — gathered in Wilson Hall last night. Five alums returned to campus to help usher in a new generation of one of Brown’s oldest performance groups. After years of looking on wistfully at class reunions as former Jabberwocks joined their group’s current members in song, they would finally get their chance. The students auditioning in front of them would be part of the revival of Brown’s second-oldest all-male a cappella group — the High Jinks. Patrick Gonon ’79, joined the
inside
In the event of an emergency, you could always make your way to the exits by feeling for the draft, said Kurt Teichert, environmental stewardship initiatives manager at the Center for Environmental Studies, pointing to the door in List 120. The comment elicited some snickers from the 50-person audience, but the statement was intended for more than just comic effect: It encapsulated one of the main messages of the three-person panel on Green Energy, that small-scale energy conser vation measures may be the most effective. In other words, those concerned about renewable energy should think about fixing that gap under the door before considering solar power, Teichert said. The event, hosted by the student environmental advocacy group emPOWER, brought together Teichert, Christopher Bull,
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eight-person group in 1976, its second year of existence. For Gonon and other High Jinks members, the group became an essential part of their college experiences and even their careers. And though it fell apart in the early 1990s after several members graduated in the same year, it lived on in Gonon and his friends, who saw salvation in their children. “I always imagined the progeny of the original group would pick up the banner,” said Dean Ziff ’81, whose twin sons were accepted to Brown early decision this fall. “They’ve heard a lot about it over the years.” continued on page 2
Some Vitaminwater flavors contain banned substances By Mitra Anoushiravani Senior Staff Writer Justin Coleman / Herald
W. basketball hosts Dartmouth and Harvard this weekend after two home losses against Ivy rivals. See Sports, page 7
Panel emphasizes fixing the ‘gap under the door’ By Matthew Scult Contributing Writer
SPOTLIGHT
the Department of Engineering’s senior research engineer and Assistant Professor of Economics Sriniketh Nagavarapu to discuss environmental issues, including the benefits of new technologies and the political and economic motivations for using more renewable energy. Bull spoke about the inefficiencies of converting coal to electricity, saying “we lose over half of it along the way” to the wall socket. Part of this inefficiency comes from trying to synchronize use and demand, Bull said. Both politics and the economy, not just technology, will affect future energy use, he added. Nagavarapu discussed the possible effects of the federal stimulus package, saying the economy’s needs in the shor t term don’t necessarily make sense in the long term for renewable energy policy. “It’s not clear (that) we know what will be more competitive down the road,” Nagavarapu said. Instead of throwing money at certain technologies, Nagavarapu
said the government must create disincentives for oil use and fund basic research, and then allow the market to decide which new energies would be successful. Teichert said ver y little might be done to overcome structural and technological barriers to energy efficiency in the next six months, but added that it is possible to create more basic interventions. Training people to help weatherize homes could go a long way toward conser ving energy, he said. Teichert said he always tells people to find ways to conser ve energy before turning to alternative sources of energy. The panel also discussed largescale options, such as using more biofuels and creating a “smar t grid” that would make energy use more efficient, but the emphasis of the event was on local solutions. Rather than relying on fuel produced halfway around the globe, Bull said, the solution is to use “local resources to meet local energy needs.”
The Department of Athletics sent an e-mail to all student-athletes and coaches Tuesday informing them that some flavors of Vitaminwater, the popular flavored-water label, contain substances that are banned or “impermissible” under NCAA guidelines. Six of Vitaminwater’s 15 varieties contain common stimulants or other psychoactive chemicals that could be problematic for both the University and the student-athletes,
according to Drug Free Sport, an organization that conducts drug testing for NCAA schools. A student who tests positive for a banned substance above a certain level, according to the NCAA, loses a year of eligibility. An “impermissible” substance is one that is not banned, but is against the rules for coaches or trainers to provide to students. The flavors known as Power-C, Energy, B-relaxed, Rescue, Vital-T and Balance were all mentioned in continued on page 2
Problematic Vitaminwater flavors Flavor
Banned
impermissible
Power-C Energy
taurine caffeine,* guarana seed extract
B-relaxed Rescue
l-theanine caffeine*
ECGC
Vital-T
rooibos tea extract
Balance
glucosamine
* above 15 micrograms per milliliter
Arts, 5
Sports, 7
Opinions, 11
What’s your Pleasure? “Pleasure Dome” examines life inside your television at T.F. Green Hall.
A weekend at home Four Brown teams play at home this weekend, including 5-1 m. tennis.
Ruthless? Ben Bernstein ’09 criticizes the U.’s lack of transparency in the current financial crisis.
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