Daily
Herald
the Brown
vol. cxxii, no. 37
Monday, March 19, 2012
Since 1891
New student apartments proposed for Thayer
After Brook St. attack, senior chases down, catches mugger
By Elizabeth Carr City & State Editor
By Lucy Feldman News Editor
Aristides Nakos ’12 stepped out of a party and into a crime scene early Saturday morning. At approximately 1:10 a.m., Nakos saw three unknown men beat and rob a student at the intersection of Euclid Avenue and Brook Street — “two males grabbing at him, the other punching him,” he said. The suspects fled west on Euclid and south on Thayer, with Nakos, a former member of the men’s rugby team, chasing close behind. City sport
“My natural instinct was to chase down the robbers because I thought it would just be another crime report that ends with the robbers fleeing the scene,” he said. Minutes later, in front of City Sports on Thayer Street, Nakos was holding one of the suspects, waiting for police to arrive. “He was aggressive,” Nakos said. “He was trying to escape, tried to talk me out of it, but I identified him as the person who assaulted (the student) and held him there.” People on the street encouraged a physical altercation, Nakos said. When Department of Public continued on page 2
Gilbane Development Corporation has proposed the construction of a four-story luxury apartment complex on Thayer Street between Meeting Street and Euclid Avenue. The building would be modeled after others built around the country near college campuses, said Robert Gilbane ’71 P’02 P’05, chief executive officer and chairman of the company. The complex would consist of 102 furnished apartments, housing a total of 277 students in single bedrooms, each with a private bathroom and connected to a living room with a 42-inch plasma screen television, Gilbane said. Residents would have access to yoga studios, fitness clubs, group study rooms, an underground parking lot, bike
storage and an interior courtyard encircled by the building complete with barbeque pits. “We’re developing the next level of student housing,” Gilbane said. He estimated that rent for these “luxury” apartments would cost between $1,000 and $1,400 per month. Gilbane said the rate was comparable to rents at other buildings in the area, particularly considering that the estimates reflect 2014 price levels and include heating, cooling, electricity, cable and wireless Internet. “What the students are getting is a higherquality apartment,” he added. Gilbane said he hoped the complex would help Thayer Street merchants by bringing students closer to their businesses. “A bunch of the continued on page 5
Courtesy of Stephen Souls
A company bills a proposed apartment complex as luxury student housing.
Soviet battleship becomes R.I. museum U. proposes By Claire Schlessinger Staff Writer
Bell Gallery curator Ian Russell was driving along the highway with his girlfriend on Valentine’s Day two years ago when he noticed a sign for a battleship in Fall River, Mass. The two stopped to check it out, and, captivated by the sight of a Soviet vessel in the middle of New England, he brought some visiting colleagues to see the ship again early this year. After speaking with Matthew Perry, the ship’s curator, it occurred to Russell that working with a treasure like the Hiddensee battleship might appeal to Brown
students interested in history. The battleship, stationed at Battleship Cove, has captured the attention of a group of students who are working on various activities to improve the Hiddensee exhibit’s quality and depth.
feature A military treasure
Battleship Cove is home to the largest naval warship collection in the world and features ships that date as far back as World War II. The Hiddensee is a Soviet missile corvette built in 1984 during a period when the Soviet Union made military ships for export, primari-
ly to East Asia. Russell said people need top-secret military clearance to visit a battleship of the same model in India, which is still in operation today. The Hiddensee was a part of the East German navy during the Cold War and was therefore associated with the Soviet Union until the German navy gave it to the United States after Germany’s reunification. The USSR designed the ships with the latest technology for military power and to maximize profit in sales, Russell said. When the U.S. Navy received the ship in 1991, officials realized the ship’s
The chamber performance only presented the opera’s music without the acting or staging. The full performance was presented for the first time last night and will be presented again tonight in Alumnae Hall. The show opened with a quiet cello solo that soon developed into vibrant orchestral and vocal performances. The plot’s drama and comedy were projected through actors’ exaggerated but natural motions and facial expressions that accompanied the changing tone and intensity of music. The music of “Don Pasquale” “requires incredible voices from the four lead characters,” including Don Pasquale (John Brakatselos ’15), Dr. Malatesta (Zal Shroff ’14), Ernesto (Andrew Brown ’15) and Norina (Kathryn Cohen ’13), as well as from continued on page 9
continued on page 2
continued on page 7
arts & culture
Sam Kase / Herald
inside
Two student singers confront the challenging classic opera “Don Pasquale.”
news....................2-4 Science.............5 feature............6 sports.............7 editorial...........10 Opinions.........11
premiere of “Don Pasquale.” “‘Don Pasquale’ is one of (Gaetano) Donizetti’s last operas and stands as one of his greatest comic masterpieces from his prolific operatic career,” said Jacob Klapholz ’13, the music director. It is “a huge spectacle and a physical show,” said Director Michelle Migliori ’14. The plot and music are “silly and fun,” featuring humor, action and an interesting stage in the style of downtown Chicago, she added.
Outer space Enterprise Dumbphone Physics professors teach children to stargaze
Science, 5
SEEED lays base for growth in enterprise
Features, 6
Husted ’13 complains about smartphone dependency opinions, 11
weather
With the desks cleared out and chairs pushed aside, Foxboro Auditorium was transformed into a miniature concert hall Friday night for Brown Opera Productions’ chamber performance
By lee bernstein Contributing Writer
As part of an effort to become more global, the University is planning to open an office that will serve as a one-stop shop for international student services. By consolidating services, the University aims to create a more welcoming and stress-free environment for international students, said Margaret Klawunn, vice president for campus life and student services. Though the plan is still in an early, exploratory phase, the University regards it as a top priority, administrators said. The idea was raised at a January 2011 retreat with deans of the college, campus life staff, the director of the Office of International Student and Scholar Services and other international faculty. At the retreat, an international student panel pointed to the need to better coordinate services for international students in one location, Klawunn said. Under the current plan, the international space will consolidate pre-existing services into one house and combine the “international efforts and supporting of (the) community” on campus, Klawunn said. “It’s a strange way to be welcomed to a campus if the first
Performers infuse classic opera with humor By ju myoung kim Staff Writer
consolidating international services
t o d ay
tomorrow
68 / 42
66 / 51