Daily
THE BROWN
vol. cxlviii, no. 21
INSIDE
Herald
since 1891
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013
Science faculty dominate Pop the bubble admin search committee
AT H L E T E O F T H E W E E K
Page 3
Debate focuses on changing face of higher education
The committee to select the new vice president of research includes one humanities professor By PHOEBE DRAPER
Page 4
Find your zen Researchers discover benefits of meditation Page 8
Frenching Annual French Film Festival says bonjour to College Hill today
40 / 29
tomorrow
40 / 37
SENIOR STAFF WRITER
The search committee for a new vice president for research has launched the selection process and expects to fill the position within the month, said Provost Mark Schlissel P’15. Five out of the seven faculty members on the committee, which Schlissel formed, work in math and the life and physical sciences, though the vice president position oversees research in all disciplines. When current Vice President for Research Clyde Briant announced in January that he will step down at the end of the academic year, Schlissel sent
an email to the faculty inviting interested members to nominate themselves or their colleagues for the position. “I would hope that the makeup of the committee is not representative of the amount of attention the humanities will get,” said Evelyn Lincoln, associate professor of history of art and architecture and Italian studies. The search has been conducted internally and has focused on current tenured faculty members who are “already familiar with the way we do business,” Schlissel said. About 10 faculty members have submitted letters of interest regarding the available position, Schlissel said. The search committee will meet for the first time this week and at the end of its process will recommend three finalists, Schlissel said. The new vice president for research will be selected by President Christina Paxson, Schlissel said. / / Science page 3
TOM SULLIVAN / HERALD
Alena Polenska ’13 has racked up eight goals and nine assists for Bruno this season, while co-captaining the Czech national team. See page 8.
National focus on guns may influence U.’s emergency plan John Hay Student and government discussions could impact the U.’s gun and hostile intruder policies By CALEB MILLER SENIOR STAFF WRITER
In the wake of the mass shooting in Newtown, Conn., universities across the nation have been called on to review their emergency response plans. Brown’s current emergency plan for hostile intruders has been in place since 2009 and is designed to provide “practical” guidelines for students in the event of a shooter’s presence on campus, said Russell Carey ’91 MA’06, executive vice president for policy and planning. The plan includes directions to run and hide, as well as instructions
for calling for help and fighting back.
Revisiting policies The hostile intruder guidelines make up one section of the Emergency Action Plan, an umbrella policy created by the Office of Environmental Health and Safety. Steve Morin, director of the Office of Environmental Health and Safety, headed the creation of the guidelines in February 2009, Carey said. He added that Morin collaborated heavily with the Department of Public Safety, Psychological Services, the Office of Student Life and other University departments while creating the plan. Review and revision of the plan is a constant process, involving meetings throughout the year between Morin, Carey, Deputy Chief of Police for DPS Paul Shanley and many different department heads, Carey said. These
meetings involve informing departments of their specific roles in the plan and making changes if necessary. Emergency plans were brought to the foreground with campus administrators last month when President Obama issued an executive action calling for universities to create emergency response plans, according to a Jan. 16 Chronicle of Higher Education article. Since Brown already has a plan in place, Carey said the executive action has little effect on the University’s current policymaking. But Carey added that the federal government provided information after past emergencies — and he expects more to come. “We have benefited a lot from our relationship with the Secret Service. The Secret Service ... has done a lot of work on warning signs in a school environment,” he said. “I would
expect that they will be doing more of that on a national level, and that will be beneficial to us.”
Police preparedness The other component of the University’s response plan involves the protocol and training of DPS officers. Because incidents of school shootings have recently increased across the nation, DPS has a detailed response code as part of its standard procedures, Shanley said. “We have policies that we use that outline from what the individual officer first on the scene should do to the next steps taken,” Shanley said. DPS participates in an annual training with the Providence Police Department for scenarios with active shooters. The training takes place in an abandoned / / Guns page 3
Big screen Bruno: Alums contribute to Oscar-nominated films One professor and three alums were involved in films up for the industry’s highest awards By ANDREW SMYTH SENIOR STAFF WRITER
As the darlings of the film industry descend upon Los Angeles’ Dolby Theatre for the 85th Academy Awards Sunday, audiences on College Hill could be cheering for homegrown contenders. Three alums — a producer, a composer and an actor — and a current professor were involved with Academy Awardnominated films this year.
ARTS & CULTURE
Animation acclaim Allison Abbate ’87 has earned praise as producer of “Frankenweenie” — Tim
Burton’s latest stop-motion film about a boy and his twice-resurrected dog — that has been nominated for Best Animated Feature Film. Over the course of her career, Abbate has also worked with Wes Anderson on Oscar-nominated “Fantastic Mr. Fox,” won a BAFTA — the British Academy Film and Television Awards — for Brad Bird’s “Iron Giant” and co-produced the Michael Jordan blockbuster “Space Jam.” Before rubbing shoulders with the likes of Meryl Streep and Johnny Depp, Abbate studied semiotics at Brown, a first-of-its-kind concentration that was incorporated into the Department of Modern Culture and Media in the 1990s. “It was a pretty exciting major to have and definitely very unique to Brown,” she said. Abbate moved to California to make movies soon after graduating, though she did not plan to pursue a career in animation, she said. “It was a pretty dynamic time in the business, and I got to work
with amazing people like Tim, so I sort of kept going from there,” she said in reference to her decision to be an animator. Working with Tim Burton is “wonderful,” she said. “He is incredibly … artistic and creative, and he has amazing ideas — amazing visuals — but he is also one of the sweetest people I have ever met and … the most collaborative.” In addition to “Frankenweenie,” she also worked with Burton on “The Nightmare Before Christmas” and “The Corpse Bride,” which received an Oscar nomination. Though she will attend Sunday’s ceremony, she will not go home with any hardware. “The animation category is an odd one, because they only give one statuette and it goes to the director,” she said. “But I will definitely be there.” “Frankenweenie” faces stiff competition from Disney’s “Brave” and “Wreck It Ralph,” but Abbate says she thinks the movie has a shot. “I think our movie is the most artistic of offerings that is up there,” she said. “It’s such a personal
JILLIAN LANNEY / HERALD
project for Tim — it’s black-and-white. It was such a labor of love.” / / Oscar page 5 And who
Library to undergo renovations The Hay will close temporarily while the library’s reading room is expanded By MICHAEL DUBIN CONTRIBUTING WRITER
The John Hay Library is set to undergo major renovations that will make the entire main reading room available to students as a study space. The planned renovations come after the Corporation approved an anonymous $3 million gift for the project last week. The renovations, which received a separate go-ahead from the Corporation, will establish a new area for special collections reading and expand exhibition space, said University Librarian Harriette Hemmasi. A timetable for the renovations has not been finalized, but Hemmasi said she is hopeful they will begin this summer, adding that they will likely take at least a year to complete. The John Hay will be closed during at least part of the renovation period. The University previously received an anonymous $6 million gift for John Hay renovations, The Herald reported in April 2011, but the project was still in development at the time. Hemmasi said plans to renovate the library have been a priority for her since she came to the University in 2005. Currently, the main reading room is divided into three parts with only the center of the room open to the public, while the other two areas contain offices. After the renovations, all 4,400 square feet of the main reading room will be / / Library page 2 available to the
2 university news C ALENDAR FRIDAY
FEBRUARY 22
4:30 P.M.
SATURDAY
FEBRUARY 23
12 P.M. The Veritas Forum
Rhode Island Fiscal Summit
Salomon 101
Alumnae Hall
7:30 P.M.
8 P.M. Zoot Suit Ball
DIVA jazz orchestra concert
Alumnae Hall
Granoff Center for the Arts
MENU SHARPE REFECTORY
VERNEY-WOOLLEY
LUNCH Fried Fish Sandwich, Roasted Fingerling Potatoes, Onion Rings, Grilled Lemon Pepper Chicken, Cake
Chicken Fingers, Veggie Patties, Backed Beans, Roasted Potatoes with Shallots, Enchilada Bar
DINNER Orange Crusted Turkey, Mashed Potatoes, Salmon, Cavatelli Primavera, Pumpkin Tofu Cheesecake
Red Potato Fritata, Stir Fried Tofu, Pacific Vegetable of Chicken Stir Fry. Green Beans, S’mores cupcakes
SUDOKU
CROSSWORD
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013
NE WS IN BRIEF
/ / Library page 1
Juniors receive Phi Beta Kappa honors
public, Hemmasi said. “It will be sort of this grand, inspiring place but also really just a great quiet space to study,” Hemmasi said. Andy Moul, library associate specialist, told The Herald in October 2011 that opening up the space could jeopardize the security of the library’s rare book and manuscript collections. But special collections will be moved to the room that now houses the University archives, Hemmasi said. Moul said this move addresses his previous concerns about security. Many books have already been moved to a shelving facility in Cranston in preparation for the renovation, Hemmasi said. Hemmasi said the main reading room’s atmosphere should be more relaxed because cameras will be installed. Librarians will no longer need to watch students read to ensure proper care of the books. No computers will be installed in the main reading room, but some will be installed on the outside of the room, she said. Opening up the main reading room will also allow the University to host larger events there, Hemmasi said. Bill Monroe, senior scholarly resources librarian, who also expressed hesitation about the renovation project in October 2011, wrote in an email to The Herald that he thinks the planned renovations are “very positive.” “I do think the plans are very positive, and the building will be much better after the renovation, though I think it’s going to be difficult for all of us to have the library closed for a year,” he wrote. Moul said the renovations could cause confusion among staff members but added that such confusion is inevitable. “When there’s a renovation going on, it puts everything topsy-turvy,” Moul said. “It’s like telling a bunch of moles they’ve got only half the same amount of tunnels to climb through, so you can imagine what happens — the panic that ensues. But it’s a process of change.”
Thirty-five juniors were elected to the Rhode Island Alpha chapter of Phi Beta Kappa Feb. 12, Chapter Administrator Mary Jo Foley wrote in an email to The Herald. Founded at the College of William and Mary in 1776, Phi Beta Kappa is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and becoming a member is considered one of the most prestigious undergraduate achievements. The Brown chapter — founded in 1830 — is the seventh-oldest of the 270 chapters in existence. The members of the class of 2014 who were inducted include: Vivianne Lynne Andersen Aparna Bansal, Herald senior editor Lena Mariel Barsky Bryn Boyce Bliska Trevor Sheldon Covey Reva Dhingra Ryan Samad Din Wesley Michael Durand Nathaniel Benson Edwards Amelia Carmen Friedman Michael Robert Galant Michael Modesto Gale Zoe Lawson Henry, former Herald copy editor Kelvin Charles P. Jackson Garret Michael Johnson, former Herald opinions editor Kamna Kathuria Austin Carter Lillywhite Nicholas Alexander Lourie Ryan Roberts McKeown Lan Mei Lorenzo Moretti Kuleen Nimkar Patrick Liam O’Neill Elijah John Petzold Devon May Reynolds J Young Seol Alan Shan Zal Kotval Shroff Carmen Marie Sobczak Jonathan Michael Storch Daniel Egan Tatar Sophie Eugenie Van Horne Nathaniel Thomas Wardwell Katherine Brenda Xiong Clifton Guo C. Yeo — Mathias Heller
The Oscar-nominated film by Wes Anderson was shot on Rhode Island’s coastal bay By RILEY DAVIS STAFF WRITER
For anyone who has ever had a summer romance, visited Rhode Island’s rustic coast or been an angsty preteen, Wes Anderson’s “Moonrise Kingdom” is the
The Brown Daily Herald (USPS 067.740) is an independent newspaper serving the Brown University community daily since 1891. It is published Monday through Friday during the academic year, excluding vacations, once during Commencement and once during Orientation by The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. Single copy free for each member of the community. POSTMASTER please send corrections to P.O. Box 2538, Providence, RI 02906. Periodicals postage paid at Providence, R.I. Subscription prices: $280 one year daily, $140 one semester daily. Copyright 2013 by The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. All rights reserved. EDITORIAL
-With additional reporting by Eli Okun
‘Lil’ Rhody’ gets spotlight in ‘Moonrise Kingdom’
www.browndailyherald.com 195 Angell St., Providence, R.I. Shefali Luthra, President Samuel Plotner, Treasurer Lucy Feldman, Vice President Julia Kuwahara, Secretary
(401) 351-3372 herald@browndailyherald.com
The special collections reading room will no longer be restricted to those doing special collections reading, Hemmasi said. Other renovations include installing sprinklers, improving the building’s security system and adding a student lounge area and more restrooms to the first floor. The $3 million gift approved last week came at a crucial time in the project’s development, Hemmasi said. “We thought that we had enough money, and then we realized that we didn’t actually have enough money for the whole project,” Hemmasi said. “Without this gift, the project might have gone bust.” The reading room will be named after the anonymous $3 million donor, Hemmasi said, but the name has not yet been released. The Library Advisory Council, which is composed of alums, supported the renovation plans and contributed financially to the project, Hemmasi said. The University will contract with Selldorf Architects, located in New York City, for the project. Annabelle Selldorf, who will give a talk at the Marty and Perry Granoff Center for the Creative Arts in March, is the principal of Selldorf Architects and will lead the John Hay renovation. After receiving proposals from a number of architectural firms, the University selected Selldorf, in part because of her previous work on Neue Gallerie New York, Hemmasi said. “If you’ve been in there, you know it’s really beautiful,” she said. “And it’s also really tastefully done, so it’s not just sort of sugary, drippy, old-fashioned. But it has sort of an edge to it, sort of a modern and old mix. And that’s what I envisioned for the John Hay, too.” Hemmasi said Selldorf understands that vision and was able to articulate it well. “She convinced us by this sort of creative and insightful approach that she brought to the conversation,” Hemmasi said.
BUSINESS
(401) 351-3260 gm@browndailyherald.com
film to watch. The 2012 film is up for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay Sunday, received a slew of other awards and nominations, did well at the box office and was filmed right here in little Rhode Island. “Moonrise Kingdom” takes place on the fictional island of New Penzance, a remote location off the New England coast. Set in the 1960s, the story follows two 12 year olds, Suzy and Sam, played by Kara Hayward and Jared Gilman, respectively. Sam, a misfit orphan, is sent to Camp Ivanhoe, a boy’s camp for Khaki Scouts, while Suzy, a misunderstood dreamer, seeks to escape the tedium of a home life where no one understands her. After the two become pen pals over the course of a year, they decide to run off together one summer. Escaping their respective prisons, the two meet up and set off to explore New Penzance, falling in love in the process. According to a story in The Boston Globe, Anderson considered location a very important part of his film. Inspiration for the setting came from Anderson’s yearly travels to remote East Coast islands near Cape Cod, particularly Naushon Island, The Globe reported. “It’s a place that is institutionally protected from any / / Rhody page 5
university news 3
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013
/ / Science page 1 A science bent The eight-member search committee is dominated by faculty members “from the math and science and engineering side of the house,” Schlissel said. Amanda Anderson, professor of English, serves as the sole representative of the humanities, while Rajiv Vohra P’07, professor of economics and former dean of the faculty, is the only social science faculty member on the committee. “I wanted to select a group that represents the breadth of the research community at Brown, but with a particular skewing toward the community that’s most dependent on the functioning of the vice president for research’s office,” Schlissel said. The Office of the Vice President for Research is responsible for all facultywritten grant proposals that are submitted to federal agencies, Schlissel said. “The classics department doesn’t submit as many grant proposals as the engineers,” he said.
/ / Guns page 1 building and involves weapons similar to paint guns to simulate an intruder scenario, Shanley said. He added that these sessions with Providence officers are vital because times of emergency require respondents from both police forces to be on the same page. “We’re trained the exact same way that the Providence officers are because we’re going to be partnering up with them,” he said. “We know as tactics change over the years, both departments are doing the exact same things.” The DPS plan for hostile intruders underwent a major change in 2006 when officers were first permitted to carry firearms. Former President Ruth Simmons’ decision to arm the officers was very important for the hostile intruder scenario because it allowed DPS officers to take action without waiting for Providence Police, Carey said. ‘Comfortable’ policies Another effect of the growing national attention to school shootings is the debate over gun control. The issue has been highly contentious in the state and federal government, with special focus given to concealed weapons in schools as a potential safety measure.
‘Where the money is’ The breakdown of sponsored research funding granted to University faculty members for fiscal year 2012 was heavily skewed toward research in the life and physical sciences, math and engineering, Briant wrote in an email to The Herald. The majority of these funds come from federal agencies, he wrote. Researchers in the life sciences, which include public health and cognitive, linguistic and psychological sciences, were awarded $98.6 million in funding, Briant wrote. In the realm of the physical sciences, which includes physics, geology, math, applied math and engineering, $53 million of funding was awarded. The social sciences trailed behind at $11 million and researchers in the humanities received $46,000. This disparity is not campus-based, but rather founded in decision-making on the national scale, Schlissel said. The amount of grant money the federal government apportions to the humanities and arts pales in comparison to the tens of millions of dollars that go toward supporting research in the fields of math, science and engineering, he said.
“It’s really following where the money is,” he said.
Many states around the country, including Texas, Tennessee and Virginia, have proposed legislation to allow teachers with the appropriate training to carry concealed weapons, according to a Jan. 30 Fox News article. But the political attention surrounding gun control has not affected the University’s policy making, Carey said. “Our policy about no weapons on campus of any sort has been longstanding and not something that we’ve ever debated internally or as a community,” he said. “You certainly see that in other campuses and other states. ... That hasn’t been an issue in Rhode Island, and we’re very comfortable with our policy the way it stands.” But the administration does not want to ignore the issue, said Marisa Quinn, vice president for public affairs and University relations. The administration is looking to foster discussion and receive student input on the issue, she said. Last month, President Christina Paxson reached out to the Janus Forum to sponsor a series of campus-wide forums on gun control, The Herald previously reported.
campuses around the country, including Harvard and the University of Maryland, both of which contributed memos to a brief compiled by the National Campus Leadership Council and sent to Vice President Joe Biden. Though Brown is a member of the NCLC, the Undergraduate Council of Students chose not to submit a brief because extensive campus discussion on the issue has yet to take place, said Anthony White ’13, UCS president. White said that at the time, he had
Student perspectives The Sandy Hook shooting drew student responses from a number of
Lecturers debate future of higher ed A Janus Forum lecture discussed the affordability and value of a college degree By KATE DESIMONE STAFF WRITER
The place of higher education in a rapidly changing world was the focus of a contentious debate between two speakers at a Janus Lecture Series event last night in MacMillan 117. Richard Vedder, professor of economics at Ohio University and director of the Center for College Affordability and Productivity, began the debate — called “The Education Bubble: Is College Worth It?” — with an economic argument criti-
cizing what he called the United States’ over-investment in higher education. The widespread notion that a college degree is necessary to succeed has led many young people to enroll in schools, only to drop out and become burdened with debt, Vedder said. “Should all go to college? Absolutely no,” said Vedder. “Should some go to college? Absolutely yes.” Vedder listed 10 facts to support his argument, such as the over $1 trillion owed in student debt, declining literacy rates among college graduates and the high numbers of college graduates with jobs not requiring a degree. Vedder argued that studies showing a high rate of return on investments in college education do not take into account the financial / / College page 4
Ignoring the dollar signs While the life and medical sciences dominate the research breakdown when it comes to amount of research funding, the humanities and social sciences are not as research-barren as the dollar signs imply, said Kenneth Wong, chair for education policy. “The size of the grants are smaller on a per-grant basis, but the sheer number of grants (awarded to humanities and social sciences researchers) is significant,” Wong said. “There is a perception that research in the humanities and social sciences is inexpensive and personal, not done in teams and therefore simpler,” Lincoln said. “We don’t set up labs, we don’t hire 30 graduate students … but in fact we do need some help,” she said. Lincoln and Wong said the Cogut Center for the Humanities, Joukowsky Institute for Archaeology and the Ancient World and Pembroke Center for Teaching and Research on Women are all organizations that support humanities
and social sciences researchers. “I would just hope their important work would be recognized by the new vice president,” Lincoln said. Lincoln said while humanities researchers may require less funding than science-oriented researchers, they could use support and attention in different forms. She said she wished there was a stronger network of support for humanities professors engaging in “digital humanities” research and an infrastructure to help humanities faculty build a website to make their work accessible to people outside of the University community. When it comes to humanities professors finding funding and getting assistance in applying for grants, she said, “You have to go out and do it yourself.” Committee breakdown Anderson’s presence on the search committee brings a broader perspective to the group, Schlissel said. “But if we were to have a significant fraction of the committee be people that never interact with this office, then it would be hard for them to make a good decision,” he said. Wong said he thought the search not discussed the issue with the UCS executive board or Paxson, who he knew was planning a campus-wide discussion of gun violence. “I did not feel comfortable presenting a brief until I consulted with all of those parties,” he said. “If we determine that there’s definitely a need to make a statement on it, we will.” Several students said it is important to have more campus discussion on gun control, but most added that they had little knowledge of the University’s
committee’s discipline distribution was “about right,” given the necessity of the vice president being familiar with the federal grant process. Instead of altering the discipline breakdown, Wong suggested the committee more fully represent faculty members in a more diverse array of career stages. “Associate professors and assistant professors may be very actively applying for grants and have direct experience they may be able to contribute to this conversation,” Wong said. The new vice president for research supports research at Brown but also serves as one of the main advisers to the provost and as a member of a senior leadership team that makes decisions about campus issues, Schlissel said. The vice president will be responsible for overseeing a lot of inter-agency, inter-institutional and even international agreements, Wong said. In addition to familiarity with the federal grant process, Schlissel said the committee is looking for a candidate with an open personality and willingness to engage and represent the University well — traits, he said, that “can be judged by faculty regardless of discipline.” guidelines and policies on the issue. Carey said distributing that type of information is something the University often struggles with. “There’s a constant effort to inform and create awareness, but we’re always seeking new and better ways to do that,” he said. “People hear the safety information all the time and don’t always pay attention until something happens.” — With additional reporting by Maxine Joselow
4 science & research
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013
Engineering symposium Study reveals benefits of meditation found offers insight on research Researchers mindfulness meditation Undergraduates explore research options in presentations led by lab representatives By SARAH PERELMAN SENIOR STAFF WRITER
HAZMAT suits could have a new look and house contaminants could be better monitored if the research in various University engineering labs yields applicable results. Representatives from the labs presented their work to approximately 30 undergraduates at the inaugural Engineering Undergraduate Research Symposium yesterday. For engineering students, there are three major pathways after graduation — industry, medical school and research or graduate school,” said Kohana Leuba ’14, one of the event’s organizers. Since existing events present industry and medical opportunities for students interested in those facets of engineering, “we wanted to have some sort of event that would represent the research side,” she said. At the symposium, engineering graduate student Megan Creighton GS spoke about research being conducted in Professor of Engineering Robert Hurt’s lab, where she works. He has led recent experiments with one-atom thick sheets of graphene — a substance composed entirely of carbon — that reveal that even the smallest atom, helium, cannot pass through the material on its own, she said. This material has the potential to provide a type of leak-proof lab attire that is less cumbersome to wear than current HAZMAT suits, which can be suffocatingly hot, Creighton said. It could also be used to create containers better at keeping out substances that age food, she added. Another lab takes its inspiration from photosynthesis and is working to
create an artificial process to convert carbon dioxide into the usable fuel fixed carbon, said Andrew Peterson, assistant professor of engineering. Since this process would emit oxygen, it would create an environmentally sound alternative to burning fossil fuels or biomass, he said. When houses’ foundations crack, vapor from the soil can seep through the floor and have hazardous effects, said Jim Rice, a postdoctoral fellow in Professor of Engineering Eric Suuberg’s lab. His research team has dug into the soil under homes in Rhode Island to determine the concentration of hazardous organic compounds, he said. The team also created models of the paths these contaminants may take to enter peoples’ houses, he said. Rice said he hopes this research will eventually help the Environmental Protection Agency and other regulators more accurately predict the risk that various underground contaminants pose to homes. A representative from the bioengineering laboratory presented research on sports and wrist and knee physiology, and a representative from Assistant Professor of Medical Science Eric Darling’s research lab spoke about projects related to adult stem cells. After each of the presentations, students took out notebooks and pens as researchers gave out their email addresses to undergraduates in the audience who were interested in applying for research positions. “I want to do research, and I haven’t heard about many labs,” said engineering student Chezev Matthew ’15, adding that she plans to apply to some of the labs she heard about during the symposium. Leuba said she hopes the symposium will expand next year. “We will probably try to get a more diverse set of researchers, maybe some from civil and mechanical engineering,” she said.
can positively affect brain activity By ADAM HOFFMAN CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Mindfulness meditation may play a role in preventing depression relapse and in managing chronic pain, according to new neuroscientific research led by Catherine Kerr, assistant professor of family medicine at Alpert Medical School and the director of translational neuroscience for Brown’s Contemplative Studies Initiative. Christopher Moore and Stephanie Jones, assistant professors of neuroscience co-authored the study, published in the journal Frontiers in Human Neuroscience last week. Mindfulness meditation is the practice of focusing attention on one’s breathing and internal bodily sensations, according to the study. The “present-moment focus” that mindfulness meditation enables “is thought to improve well-being by allowing individuals to become aware of sensations, emotions and thoughts that arise in the mind without judgment or reactivity,” according to the study. The study suggests those who engage in this mindfulness practice gain enhanced control over their cortical alpha rhythms — the synchronous firing of a population of neurons in the brain at a specific frequency. These rhythms help control how the brain processes sensory information, such as pain, and negative emotional states, like depression. They
/ / College page 3 plight of the many aspiring graduates who begin but do not finish college. The earning potential of a degree has lured more and more high school graduates into higher education, Vedder said, but these students are only “dimly aware of the risks of not graduating.” With almost 50 percent of students at some schools failing to earn a degree within six years, “colleges are complicit in leading millions of young Americans to a path not of financial salvation, but one of despair,” Vedder said. Higher education “served the American dream” when a small part of the population pursued college degrees — now only degrees from highly selective schools are deemed valuable, Vedder said. Rather than leveling the playing field, higher education serves to “reinforce inequality” in a kind of “aristocracy,” he added. Vedder’s remarks were followed by a presentation from Vivek Wadhwa, vice president of innovation and research at Singularity University, which offers short education programs for post-grads and midcareer executives. Wadhwa emphasized a rapidly changing and globalizing world in his argument for the increasing importance of education. Wadhwa said he disagrees with many analysts who are “moaning about the cost
also help organize the general flow of information in the brain. The researchers found that better control of these rhythms enables meditators to bias their attention away from negative states. Kerr said mindfulness meditation “debiases the body map representation so that attention is not captured by chronic pain sensation. ... You have equanimity towards it.” Effective meditators may modulate their firing of alpha rhythms to allow for the most favorable filtering of sensory information, according to the study. These hypotheses are built in part on prior experiments conducted by the group, according to a University press release. In a 2011 study published in Research Bulletin, the researchers separated subjects into two groups — an experimental group that practiced mindfulness meditation for eight weeks and a control group that did not, according to the press release. At the end of the eight-week period, the researchers asked the participants to focus attention to their hands and then to switch their attention to their feet. The meditators displayed larger and more rapid changes in alpha wave amplitudes in the cortical hand representations during the attention shifts than the nonmeditating controls, according to the release. In their most recent study, the researchers also developed a computational model that effectively simulates the firing patterns of the network of neurons between the thalamus, which acts as a relay station through which a majority of
sensory information passes, and the cortex, where the information is processed. This particular model has replicated the actual alpha rhythm data from past human studies. According to the model, mindfulness meditation leads to a topdown influence on alpha waves, which allows for more “precise alterations in timing and efficacy” of the connections between the thalamus and the cortex. Harold Roth, professor of religious studies and the director of the Contemplative Studies Initiative, said Kerr’s study is important “because it begins to give neuroscientific foundation to what we have known for many years” — that pain can be modulated through meditation. Roth is trying to establish a department of contemplative studies that merges “scientific, humanistic and artistic” perspectives. “This research is foundational for what we are attempting to build here,” he said. Despite a lack of direct financial support from the University, there are 14 independent concentrators who fall under the umbrella of contemplative studies, he said. “I think it’s very exciting that investigators that are associated with Brown are finding out the mechanisms of Buddhist practice from a highly empirical scientific perspective,” said Hiroe Hue ’13, who is concentrating in contemplative psychology and chemical and biochemical engineering. “Professor Roth is working hard to make contemplative studies a department at Brown and this new article from Professor Kerr is moving us one step closer,” Hue said.
of education.” “I think, ‘What are these people smoking?’” he said. Instead of looking at the high cost of educating more students in a traditional system, he added, people should be looking at the shifting future of technology and education, in which “knowledge has become free.” Wadhwa cited massive open online courses as an example of the evolving face of education but described them as “primitive.” He compared them to the early phases of television — early television producers didn’t have a clear vision of what the new medium could do, so they simply put radio stars in front of a camera, Wadhwa explained. MOOCs, he said, don’t take advantage of how rapid advances in digital technology can make education a personal and immersive experience. Exponential growth in technology has made it impossible to predict what the job market will look like in 10 years, Wadhwa said. Vedder cited the high number of janitors and taxi drivers who have college degrees as an argument against investment in education, but Wadhwa countered, “Forget about educated taxi drivers.” Self-driving cars could soon completely eliminate the need for taxi drivers, he said. With the advent of devices that can do what humans do, call centers in India and manufacturing
companies in China will be “toast” in the next decade, Wadhwa claimed. “Imagine having pizzas delivered to you by a drone,” Wadhwa said. That technology is not a futuristic dream, he said, but in fact already exists. “By the time many of you will have finished your PhDs, the world will have changed,” Wadhwa said. Three-dimensional printing technology will revolutionize the way goods are developed, and machines like IBM’s Watson could develop diagnostic capabilities surpassing that of physicians, he added. “People don’t believe things are changing this fast.” An educated workforce that is prepared for the changes ahead is essential for the nation’s success, Wadhwa said. Though they disagreed on the value and role of education, both Vedder and Wadhwa said there will be an enduring place for elite schools in an evolving world. Vedder said he foresees a continuing role for top institutions in a world of new and different kinds of education. Rankings of these schools rarely change significantly, and not one institution has gone under in the manner of private companies, such as Kodak, whose products have become outdated, Vedder said. Wadhwa added that elite universities are only a small part of the broader picture of education’s future. He said he envisions “a new type of institution” emerging that emphasizes interactions and discussions better than the current model of MOOCs. While Wadhwa said he doesn’t think elite schools will ever evolve into such a model, he also said they won’t lose their influence. He compared changes in education to the advent of online retail. “I can’t tell you the last time I’ve been to a shopping mall, but they still exist,” Wadhwa said. “That’s what’s going to happen to education.”
arts & culture 5
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013
/ / Oscar page 1
Brown Alum Oscar Nods: Nominations and Wins
will she be wearing? “Jenny Packham, an English designer,” she said, laughing. “And you’re the only person who will ask me.” A score for the sea Composer Theodore Shapiro ’93 was also involved in a stop-motion film nominated for Best Animated Feature this year. He wrote the score for “The Pirates! Band of Misfits,” which follows a ragtag team of amateur pirates on their quest to prove themselves on the high seas. It is the fifth feature from Aardman Animations, the English production company that brought “Wallace and Gromit” to the world, according to its website. After graduating from Brown with a degree in music, Shapiro went on to the Juilliard School to study composition and has since made a name for himself writing film scores. He wrote the music for “The Devil Wears Prada,” “Marley and Me” and “Hope Springs,” according to the International Movie Database. The combination of the “intellectual background” he received at Brown with “the purely practical approach” he found at Juilliard was “a very fortunate confluence of experience,” he said. Early in his career, he said, he toed the line between writing for film and writing for the concert hall. “Both paths really were attractive and enjoyable,” he said. “But ultimately, the thing I love doing the most is writing music for narrative forms, and film is one that’s always intrigued me the most.” Writing the music for a comedy like “The Pirates! Band of Misfits” is not much different from composing for drama, he said. “Your job as a film composer is to assist the filmmakers as a storyteller,” he added. He has also worked on “Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story,” “Tropic Thunder” and “Blades of Glory.” Working with Aardman “was such a dream job for me because I’m such a fan of (the studio’s) work,” he said. “I’m thrilled that it got the nomination, because I hope that it will promote more people to see it.” Composers do not traditionally attend the Oscars, but Shapiro said he does not miss the invitation. “I’m not a big awards ceremony person,” he said. “I think I’m going to tape them. Maybe I’ll watch them afterwards.” Links to ‘Lincoln’ With 12 nominations, Steven Spielberg’s “Lincoln” is this year’s most lauded film. Tim Blake Nelson ’86 has a supporting role, playing former Congressman Richard Schell of New York. Nelson
Best Best Original Documentary Screenplay
Best Actress
Best Supporting Actress JILLIAN LANNEY / HERALD
was a classics concentrator at Brown and served as senior orator during graduation. After graduation, Nelson moved from studying the classics to living them — he starred in the Coen brothers’ Academy Award-winning “O Brother, Where Art Thou?,” which set Homer’s Odyssey in 1930s Mississippi. He was also featured on the film’s soundtrack, which won the 2002 Grammy Award for Album of the Year. Nelson could not be reached for comment. Campus conversation about “Lincoln” has centered on the influence of Associate Professor of History Professor Michael Vorenberg and his book, “Final Freedom: The Civil War, the Abolition of Slavery and the Thirteenth Amendment.” A Jan. 10 New Republic article suggested Vorenberg’s book is a more likely candidate for the source material than Doris Kearns Goodwin’s “Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln,” which screenwriter Tony Kushner has credited. In a follow-up article, Kushner listed Vorenberg’s book as among 20 or 30 he read as part of his research for the film.
“I think it would be a mistake to say that my book was the source for the film,” Vorenberg said. “I know that my book was a source used by the screenwriter, Tony Kushner, and he has been generous in saying that he used it as a source. But he used a number of books, and he certainly used Doris Kearns Goodwin’s ‘Team of Rivals’ quite a bit.” But Vorenberg said he does not think filmmakers are obligated to specifically acknowledge their source materials. “I think it’s a question better asked of screenwriters, film producers and film historians. … It’s clear that the tradition has been not to cite sources, and I think that’s fine.” Questions of the accuracy of the representations of historical reality in films like “Lincoln,” “Zero Dark Thirty” and “Argo” — all of which were nominated for Best Picture — have figured prominently in critical discourse this season. Vorenberg declined to pick favorite films because he has not yet seen all of those up for awards Sunday night. “I wouldn’t have a preference in an election where I didn’t have a sense of the candidates running,” he said.
Highlights from Brown Alum Oscar History
2007: David Guggenheim ‘86 wins for Best Documentary for “An Inconvenient Truth” 2003: Todd Haynes ’85 nominated for Best Writing in an Original Screenplay for “Far from Heaven” 1940: Ruth Hussey ’33 is nominated for Best Actress for “The Philadelphia Story”
1956: Sidney “S.J.” Perelman ‘25 wins Best Screenplay for “Around the World in 80 Days”
1985: Kurt Luedtke ’61 wins Best Screenplay for “Out of Africa”
2007: Laura Linney ‘86 gets her third Oscar nomination for Best Actress in “The Savages”
JILLIAN LANNEY / HERALD
/ / French page 8 her husband and that the queen has showered favors upon the duchess’ family. It is not until the film’s end that the relationship becomes more explicit, though it is never consummated on screen. The film is seen through the eyes of Sidonie, one of the queen’s ladies. The girl is a fictive character, which gives the director liberty to explore the queen’s nature in a more intimate way than historical records would, SaintAmand said. “It’s all captured at the level of fantasy,” he said. Sidonie has a profound, but unfulfilled, affection for her queen, which manifests as a constant parallel between her character and that of de Polignac. At times, this equivalence seems heavyhanded — the duchess is described as a “country bumpkin,” while Sidonie trips over her skirts and seems ill at ease at Petit Trianon, the queen’s estate at Versailles. In the end, the parallel becomes transformative as Sidonie takes the place of de Polignac to allow the latter to escape the mobs of the French Revolution. Un Evenement Populaire “Les adieux a la reine” was the first screening offered by this year’s Providence French Film Festival, an annual event that began 17 years ago. The festival aims to expose students and community members to European cinema, which often cannot be found elsewhere, said Shoggy Waryn, senior lecturer of French studies and the festival’s artistic director. Of the films that will screen at the festival this year, 50 percent are premiers or near-premiers in the United States, Waryn said. Though over 300 French language films are produced each year, only five to 10 of them reached American audiences, he added. The event shows works in the French language from across the world — among the selections are films from Canada, Belgium, Switzerland, francophone Africa and France itself, Waryn said. Among audience favorites are directors Christophe Honore, Michel Ocelot and Alain Resnais, whose films have made multiple appearances at the festival, said Richard Manning, film archivist for the Department of Modern Culture and Media. Though the festival was originally targeted at students to be used as class
/ / Rhody page 2 change, and when you go there, it feels like stepping back at least 40 years into the past,” Anderson told the Globe. To recreate the feel of Naushon Island, the “Moonrise Kingdom” crew shot in locations all over Rhode Island, primarily in and around the Aquidneck Islands. Production designer Adam Stockhausen told The Globe that “much of the film was developed around the terrain itself,” citing the use of forests and streams in Sam and Souzy’s adventure. The film encompasses themes like the turbulence of adolescence, the beauty and simplicity of young love and the quiet sadness of being misunderstood. While these are powerful themes on their own, the isolated and beautiful Rhode Island scenery proves instrumental in communicating these ideas. Watching young Sam and Suzy navigate through the woods or make camp in an isolated cove gives the viewer the sense that the pair stumbled into their own magical world — somewhere where no one judges
material, its audience has grown to encompass a viewership across the city and state. “We developed a sort of cult following in the Rhode Island and Providence population,” Waryn said. Some festival attendees will stay for three to four films in a row on the weekends, said Stephen Crocker ’05.5, who has volunteered for the festival since 2004. With Cable Car Cinema as its venue, the festival encourages students to venture off College Hill and become part of the wider community, Kamil said. It also permits the festival to reach a larger audience. The festival brings some levity to Providence during the long winter months, which are “usually kind of a gloomy time,” Crocker said. This year’s festival includes many light-hearted treatments of serious material, Waryn said. French cinema has a tendency toward darkness, but many of the films currently on show have a happier tone than in past years. “Even serious topics are dealt with with some amount of humor,” he added. Bienvenue a Providence The festival began as a collaboration between the French studies and MCM departments, Manning said. During its first two years, the festival only showed two to four films per weekend during April and May. But it tended to lose attendance toward the end of the semester as students became occupied with school obligations, so the switch to a more continuous format followed, Manning said. The festival now runs for approximately two weeks with multiple screenings each day. The screenings have evolved from analog to digital over the festival’s history Though many movies are still shot and screened on 35mm film, the Providence French Film Festival now screens much of the material on DVD or Bluray, Manning said. “I think there’s something special about seeing a film on film,” Crocker said. But he added that the simple “collective experience” of seeing a film in a theatrical setting is exceptional in itself. In the past, the festival has brought in directors, writers and other industry professionals, though there will be no guests this year, Waryn said. “It’s interesting, but it’s not necessary,” he said. “Bringing films is the core of the festival.” them, yells at them for being different or resents them for being a burden. Many native Rhode Islanders are proud to see their home state so prominently displayed. “It (was) neat to see places where I live near or frequent during the summer, but I think the setting definitely contributed to the film’s allure and success,” R.I. native Neal Rooney ’13.5 wrote in an email to the Herald. Even Rhode Islanders who have not seen the film were pleased to learn that Rhode Island had been featured in a commercially successful film yet again. “Moonrise Kingdom” is not the first film shot in R.I., which has set the stage for scenes for many other films, including “27 Dresses,” “Dan in Real Life” and the 1974 version of “The Great Gatsby.” “I actually have never seen ‘Moonrise Kingdom,’” Warwick resident Amanda Ruggieri ’16 said. “There have been other movies filmed in Rhode Island, and generally I always get a little burst of pride that Lil’ Rhody is getting some attention, given the fact that a lot of people don’t even know Rhode Island is a state.”
6 diamonds & coal DIAMONDS & COAL
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013
EDITORIAL CARTOON b y j a s o n co n n o r
A diamond to federal agencies that, with the prospect of the sequestration looming, “are just holding off until they know what’s going to happen,” according to Beppie Huidekoper, executive vice president for finance and administration. It’s reassuring to know they approach national policy the same way we approached managing coursework during Winter Storm Nemo. Cubic zirconia to Associate Dean of the College Ann Gaylin, who recommended students “take a dessert class,” adding that “it has no calories. It is so juicy and delicious-looking you can’t resist it.” We’d rather put our course load on a diet by dropping organic chemistry. Coal to the Barrington High School freshman who said, “Neuroscience has been something that’s sort of not what people study.” Unfortunately, our professor realized this after our first midterm. A diamond to Allison Abbate ’87, who co-produced “Space Jam.” That is all. Cubic zirconia to the assistant director of admission and coordinator of Early Admitted Students Day who said, “We wanted to show them that we’re not robots or grumpy old men around a table.” And here we always pictured the admissions process as poker night at a futuristic retirement home. A diamond to the member of The Bear Necessities, who said “Beyonce could start a revolution” and that “people would take up arms.” Just in case, we’re keeping our army fatigues in a box to the left. Cubic zirconia to Adjunct Professor of Economics David Wyss who said, as a teacher, “It helps to know what the real world is all about.” Someone once told us it’s what happens when people stop being polite … and start getting real. A diamond to Mail Services, which will maintain its Saturday hours despite the U.S. Postal Service’s decision to discontinue Saturday deliveries. We think. What’s “mail” again? Is there an app for that? Coal to the Undergraduate Finance Board member who said of filling the board’s recent opening, “It would be a little difficult to throw someone in who’s not seasoned.” The culinary architects in the Sharpe Refectory seem to have no trouble doing this every time sloppy joe day rolls around. A Brunonian class ring diamond to the parent of the early-admitted student who said, “Behind the birth of my two children, the day my daughter was accepted was the third happiest day of my life.” Wear it with pride.
LE T TER TO THE EDITOR New technology should facilitate teaching To the Editor: Teacher evaluations should be based on how well these teachers perform in the classroom. Therefore, to evaluate teacher productivity, educators have to start using 21st-century computer technology to store the daily lessons to be taught by teachers during the school year. For example, all ninth grade math teachers would be evaluated on how well they teach the same basic lessons during the school year. Each daily computerized lesson would match the curriculum and each printout of the lesson would include the lesson plan and the materials needed for the lesson. Printouts would also include student
t h e b row n da i ly h e r a l d Editors-in-Chief Lucy Feldman Shefali Luthra
Managing Editors Elizabeth Carr Jordan Hendricks
EDITORIAL Greg Jordan-Detamore Strategic Director Sections Hannah Abelow Arts & Culture Editor Maddie Berg Arts & Culture Editor Sona Mkrttchian City & State Editor Adam Toobin City & State Editor Elizabeth Koh Features Editor Alison Silver Features Editor Sahil Luthra Science & Research Editor Kate Nussenbaum Science & Research Editor James Blum Sports Editor Connor Grealy Sports Editor Mathias Heller University News Editor Alexandra Macfarlane University News Editor Eli Okun University News Editor Dan Jeon Editorial Page Editor Matt Brundage Opinions Editor Lucas Husted Opinions Editor Maggie Tennis Opinions Editor Multimedia Emily Gilbert Photo Editor Sam Kase Photo Editor Sydney Mondry Photo Editor Tom Sullivan Photo Editor Danny Garfield Video Editor Angelia Wang Ilustrations Editor Production Copy Desk Chief Sara Palasits Design Editor Brisa Bodell Design Editor Einat Brenner Design Editor Kyle McNamara Assistant Design Editor Sandra Yan Web Producer Joseph Stein Assistant Web Producer Neal Poole
Senior Editors Aparna Bansal Alexa Pugh
BUSINESS General Managers Office Manager Julia Kuwahara Shawn Reilly Samuel Plotner Directors Sales Eliza Coogan Finance Luka Ursic Emily Chu Alumni Relations Business Strategy Angel Lee Justin Lee Business Development Managers Jacqueline Chang Regional Sales Leslie Chen Regional Sales Anisa Holmes Regional Sales Wenli Shao Regional Sales Carolyn Stichnoth Regional Sales Chae Suh Regional Sales William Barkeley Collections Nicole Shimer Collections Josh Ezickson Operations Alison Pruzan Alumni Engagement Melody Cao Human Resources Owen Millard Research & Development POST- MAGAZINE Editor-in-Chief Zoë Hoffman Editor-in-Chief Claire Luchette BLOG DAILY HERALD Meredith Bilski Editor-in-Chief William Janover Managing Editor Connor McGuigan Deputy Managing Editor Cara Newlon Deputy Managing Editor Georgia Tollin Deputy Managing Editor Jason Hu Creative Director
reading material. Computer technology would allow this reading material to be tailored to meet the individual needs of each student. Teaching lessons in this manner would also ensure that all students cover the required curriculum skills. If a teacher is absent, the substitute would be able to teach the required lessons. When a student is absent for a period of time, these computer lessons would allow for successful homeschooling that would exactly match the lessons being taught in school. In addition, a computer record of all drills, quizzes and tests will be available to evaluators. Kenneth Berwick Smithfield, R.I.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Imagine having pizzas delivered to you by a drone.” — Vivek Wadwha, vice president of innovation and research at Singularity University See library on page 3. facebook.com/browndailyherald
@the_herald
browndailyherald.com
CORRECTIONS POLICY The Brown Daily Herald is committed to providing the Brown University community with the most accurate information possible. Corrections may be submitted up to seven calendar days after publication. C O M M E N TA R Y P O L I C Y The editorial is the majority opinion of the editorial page board of The Brown Daily Herald. The editorial viewpoint does not necessarily reflect the views of The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. Columns, letters and comics reflect the opinions of their authors only. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR POLICY Send letters to letters@browndailyherald.com. Include a telephone number with all letters. The Herald reserves the right to edit all letters for length and clarity and cannot assure the publication of any letter. Please limit letters to 250 words. Under special circumstances writers may request anonymity, but no letter will be printed if the author’s identity is unknown to the editors. Announcements of events will not be printed. ADVERTISING POLICY The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. reserves the right to accept or decline any advertisement at its discretion.
taking sides 7
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013
Should Brown have a foreign language requirement? YES
NO
to exist as functioning, employed adults. Worse, Brown is not encouraging us to step outside of our comfort zones to communicate, interact and understand our fellow huOpinions Columnist man beings. Even America is far from monolingual. Life beyond College Hill demands knowlOnce upon a time in the hazy realms of edge of at least a second language. Our myth-history, all of mankind spoke one greatest opportunities and our greatest challanguage and, migrating together, resolved lenges present themselves on a global level to build a city. God saw their progress and — economically, intellectually and environwas all like uh-oh, “They are one people mentally. and have one language, and nothing will be Language classes can be awkward and withheld from them which they purpose to painful. But challenge builds character, do. ... Come, let us go down and confound and students should not be able to breeze their speech.” through a college degree by studying soleThis is the story ly those subjects in of the Tower of Babel they excel, Brown, by not requiring which as told in the Book of especially at Brown. Genesis, and it holds What are we here us to study another an important lesson for if not to grow language, is promoting as individuals and for us. The power of communication is contributhe misguided attitude become humanity’s greatest tors and leaders of gift. It is the ability to of complacency held by our communities? communicate with We cannot do that too many in the English- if we stay stuck in one another that allows us to strive toour comfort zones, speaking world. ward lofty heights. afraid or unwilling Language is our to try something tool of communication. Its colloquialisms new and difficult. are an organic expression of culture, cusThe freedom of the open curriculum is tom and cognition. It gives us knowledge of a powerful tool in adventurous and ambiand insight into foreign places and ways of tious hands. But it can also foster laziness. thinking and provides a new, comparative A language requirement would challenge perspective on our own backgrounds. It can us to expand our ways of thinking about even improve the ease and creativity of com- and approaching the world. It would cultimunication in our native cultures. vate global citizens ready to use their subject So why don’t we have a language require- matter expertise for any opportunity that ment? You have to be fluent in English to may arise. study at Brown, and right now English is our lingua franca. Brown, by not requiring us to study another language, is promoting Claire Gianotti ’13 is still scarred by that the misguided attitude of complacency held one time freshman year she forgot to by too many in the English-speaking world. bring a poem to share with her Spanish Brown does us a disservice by not pre- class and instead gave an impromptu recparing us to exist in the diverse, global comitation of Damelo by Juanes. She can be munity in which we will all eventually have contacted at claire_gianotti@brown.edu.
Brown students to accept and celebrate our differences — recognizing that everyone has his or her own views, but that it is not his right to forcibly impose them Opinions Columnist upon others. We pride ourselves on our open-mindedness and understand that, through exposure to countless — and The University’s fourth president, Francis usually conflicting — perspectives, we Wayland, famously proposed in his 1850 render ourselves able to learn and mature report to the Corporation that “every stu- as a community. dent might study what he chose, all that Most other eminent universities stipuhe chose, and nothing but what he chose.” late that their students take up to a year’s This visionary ambition — of a University worth of “general education.” This demthat supported all manners of intellectu- onstrates an ignorant dearth of respect alism — was finally realized with the en- by these administrations for their excepactment of the New Curriculum in 1969. tional student bodies. It essentially tells The notion that them, “You are inBrown should have capable of choosa language requireing your own edument is completely cational path and Who is anyone to claim a superior antithetical to both we’ve decided that its history and ac- understanding of someone else’s life goals you need to be coademic mission. and the means by which he or she must erced for your own Furthermore, it is good.” Who is anyachieve them? an underhanded one to claim a supeinsult to the intellirior understanding gence of every stuof someone else’s dent, even of those life goals and the who voluntarily take language classes. means by which he or she must achieve As one of the leading universities them? We deserve better than that. in the world, Brown accepts outstandIf you desire requirements — if you ing scholars from an extensive pool of yearn to be treated as the intellectual domestic and international applicants. equivalent of a child — then Brown is Many of these matriculants could have not the place for you. Perhaps Harvard attended other top universities but chose would be more fitting. I take no issue Brown because of the Open Curriculum. with those who recognize their own acTo introduce a language requirement ademic immaturity, but this inadequacy would undermine that which sets Brown should not be projected indiscriminately — and, consequently, its students — on those who do want to take advantage apart. But this is not just a question of en- of the unique and highly coveted opporrollment or free course slots. It’s a point tunity a Brown education affords. Such fundamental to our beloved University’s inability should not be accommodated character. and certainly not at the price of inhibitWe have the rare privilege of being ing genius. members of a diverse population comprising innumerable cultures, religions and political ideologies in a state of tolAndrew Powers ’15 can be reached at erant coexistence. It is a hallmark of andrew_powers@brown.edu
Powers’ Rebuttal
Gianotti’s Rebuttal
CLAIRE GIANOTTI
My opponent’s conclusion is essentially based on a single premise — that the study of foreign language is necessary for success in post-undergraduate life. Yet the term “success” is context-dependent with respect to the individual in question. Communication is valuable, but certainly not imperative in such a “global” sense. I’d like to illustrate this with a personal counterexample. A close friend of mine is double concentrating in computer science and applied mathematics–economics. Forcing him to take language classes would not further his success and would waste his time and intellect. Neither my opponent, nor any collegiate administration, can alter the utility derivable from these classes simply by decreeing what “success” means for him. Moreover, there is a ridiculous claim entailed by my opponent’s argument, which is that language concentrators are more prepared for success after Brown than science concentrators who comprehensively eschew the study of foreign language. Obviously the blanket metric of success being used would not
be income or employment opportunities. Otherwise the conclusion would be to mandate that students study science. If I had to invest in the future success of either my friend or an arbitrary language concentrator — who would, presumably, fulfill a hypothetical language requirement — I know where I’d put my money every time. Of course, monetary value is not the only form of value, and my point here is not to denigrate the humanities as worthless pursuits of fancy. Rather, it’s to exemplify how naive it is to impose any requirements so universally, particularly at a school like Brown where individuals have such contrasting aspirations. In fact, such a concept is so alien to the Brown student that it seems it is not even possible for one to advocate it consistently. Although my opponent’s column supports a more unified student population, she would “not [say] that we should have a community that instructs us on how to act — that would be much too restrictive for the Brown student and would never fit here.” I couldn’t have said it better myself.
ANDREW POWERS
My colleague employs in his defense the integrity of Brown’s Open Curriculum. This is the reason why many of us came to Brown. Thanks to our Brunonian forefathers we are free from the tyranny of core curricula. But what exactly does this freedom entail? Brown is an institution of “higher” education. In the olden days, this meant a Brown graduate was one well-versed in Ancient Greek and Latin texts with a sprinkling of theology on top. The pioneers of the Open Curriculum rejected this notion of an education as the mastery of a defined set of scholarly subjects. So today a math concentrator may tell you he or she is free from the archaisms of the humanities. An anthropology concentrator may celebrate an escape from the horrors of chemistry. Leaving the high language of noble intellectualism aside, the Open Curriculum is freedom from wasting time on things we aren’t any good at and don’t find interesting. We pay a lot of money for access to the cerebral smorgasbord that is our course catalog — we
should get to choose what we put on our plates. The rejection of a patriarchal and elitist curriculum — N.B. I am a classics concentrator — articulated by Francis Wayland in 1850 is a reflection of the Brunonian tendency for innovation, introspection and adaptability. But the New Curriculum is not so new. This day and age may require a different interpretation of Brown’s mission as a university whose primary goal is to support the diverse and ambitious academic goals of its undergraduates. To hold on to our Open Curriculum for its own sake is no better than to insist on the superiority of an education dominated by the classics of Western civilization. To truly achieve this open-minded community so eloquently described by my colleague is much more than a matter of rhetoric. Admittance into Brown is not equivalent to being declared perfect, already equipped with all the tools we need to flower into the geniuses we are. It is haughty and anti-Brunonian to think we need no guidance to fulfill our true potentials.
daily herald sports friday THE BROWN
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2013
M. BASKETBALL
Bears vanquish Lions, come up short against Big Red A loss to Cornell snaps a six-game win streak at home dating back to Nov. 29 By SAM WICKHAM SPORTS STAFF WRITER
The men’s basketball team returned home after a five-game road trip, competing against Ivy foes last weekend, beating Columbia and losing to Cornell. The Bears (9-13, Ivy League 3-5) hit big shots at the end of regulation to down the Lions (10-12, 2-6) in dramatic fashion. Bruno came close to coming back against the Big Red (13-12, 5-3), but could not surmount a double-digit first-half deficit. Cedric Kuakumensah ’16 earned Ivy League Rookie of the Week honors for his performances, scoring a career-high 19 points against Columbia and grabbing 19 rebounds against Cornell. Brown 58, Columbia 55 Co-captain Matt Sullivan ’13 led the Bears with 27 points and five steals to help Bruno snap a three-game losing streak in Ivy League play. Sullivan was recently named to the Capital One Academic All-American First Team, putting him in the company of Indiana University’s Cody Zeller and Duke University’s Mason Plumlee. The first men’s basketball player to be selected for the honor since 1986, Sullivan was named to the Capital One Academic All-American Third Team last year. Bruno held its own against the Lions
early, as a triple from Sullivan, with six minutes to play in the first half, brought the lead within one to 18-17. But the Lions made a 13-3 run to close out the half and took a commanding 31-20 advantage into intermission. “It’s something we’ve done all year. We go down, but we never stop fighting,” Sullivan said. “Even if we don’t play well in the first half, we don’t let it bother us in the second half.” The Bears slowly chipped away at the deficit in the second half, thanks to consistent scoring from Sullivan and Kuakumensah. Aside from an early layup by Rafael Maia ’15, the pair scored all of Bruno’s second half points. “The defensive effort in the second half, led by (co-captain) Tyler Ponticelli (’13) and Cedric Kuakumensah, was the reason we won the game,” said Head Coach Mike Martin ’04. The Bears took a late lead as Sullivan hit a trey with ten seconds remaining to put his team up 56-55. Kuakumensah came up with a big defensive rebound after the resulting Lions’ possession and was intentionally fouled, sending him to the line. The first-year knocked down both free throws to cement Bruno’s victory, 58-55. “He’s a joy to coach, he’s humble, he works hard, he asks all the right questions,” Martin said of Kuakumensah. “He’s already a good player for us, and he’s going to get better and better.” Cornell 69, Brown 66 Kuakumensah continued his strong play, scoring 13 points and nabbing an impressive 19 rebounds — notch-
ing Bruno’s only double-double of the night. Finding themselves in an early hole, the Bears could not complete the comeback against the Big Red despite chances towards the end of the game. The Bears kept up with the Big Red for most of the first half and only trailed 24-20 after a layup from co-captain Sean McGonagill ’14. But Cornell went off on a 16-9 run that included three triples to put the Bears in a 40-29 hole at halftime. “It’s tough to (fall behind early) two nights in a row,” Sullivan said. “We have to do better in the first half so we don’t put ourselves into that hole and have to dig out of it later.” The Bears slowly cut into Cornell’s large lead, following their pattern from the previous night, thanks to some sharp shooting from McGonagill and buckets in the paint from Maia and Kuakumensah. Bruno came within one after Sullivan netted back-to-back threes to bring the score to 57-56. The teams swapped buckets in the final five minutes, and a big shot from McGonagill brought the Bears within two. After a Big Red free throw, the Bears had a chance to tie with an outside attempt from Stephen Albrecht ’13, but the shot rimmed out and Bruno fell 69-66. The Bears will host Harvard (15-7, 7-1) on Friday and Dartmouth (6-16, 2-6) on Saturday before taking a twogame road trip next weekend. “I expect two tough games,” Sullivan said. “Both teams won some games last weekend, and I expect them to come in and play hard, so we’ll need to play well if we want to win.”
TOM SULLIVAN / HERALD
Matt Sullivan ’13 is the first men’s basketball player to be honored with Academic All-American honors since 1986.
ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Polenska ’13 owns the ice in Czech Republic and Providence By LLOYD SY CONTRIBUTING WRITER
HOME GAMES THIS WEEKEND FRIDAY
M. Basketball vs. Harvard 7 p.m. @ Pizzitola W. Ice Hockey vs. Princeton 7 p.m. @ Meehan Aud. SATURDAY
Wrestling vs. Columbia 12 p.m. @ Pizzitola Wrestling vs. Sacred Heart 2 p.m. @ Pizzitola M. Lacrosse vs. Quinnipiac 1 p.m. @ Stevenson Field W. Ice Hockey vs. Quinnipiac 4 p.m. @ Meehan Aud. M. Basketball vs. Dartmouth 6 p.m. @ Pizzitola
Originally hailing from the Czech Republic, Alena Polenska ’13 serves double duty as co-captain of the No. 12 Czech national women’s ice hockey team and co-captain of Bruno’s ice hockey squad. The Kutna Hora native recently scored her team-leading eighth goal of the season in a 5-2 victory last Saturday over Rensselaer. The win, which came a day after a 2-1 triumph over Union, completed Brown’s first weekend sweep since 2009. In recognition of her accomplishments in these games, Polenska was recently named the ECAC Hockey Player of the Week. The team will play its final two regular season games this weekend against Princeton and Quinnipiac. For her integral role on the team (6-18-1, 5-15 ECAC), Polenska has been named The Herald’s Athlete of the Week. Herald: How did it feel for the team
to gain its first weekend sweep since 2009? Polenska: It was really cool. I wouldn’t say we didn’t expect it, but we were all really happy. Especially for the seniors, it was something we really wanted to do. How does the team feel about its performance this season? It’s been up and down. Some games were great — others were not so great. It all depends on this weekend — making the playoffs is our only goal. When did you first get into hockey and why? I was a year old when I first stepped onto the ice. I had an older brother who played. I always stole his hockey stick, and so our parents figured they had to buy me one for myself. I really loved the speed of the game.
I went to high school in Pennsylvania, and so I figured that if I was in the States, I might as well finish my education here. How is life back home different from here? There are a lot more options here. Here you can go to school, play sports and have a job all at the same time. It would be impossible at home. You’re co-captain of the Czech national team. How do you deal with playing on such a big stage? I’ve been doing it for a long time. It’s fun and it keeps life interesting, and it helps me stay refreshed.
Coming from the Czech Republic, how did you end up at Brown?
What’s your concentration, and why? I was a (Business, Entrepreneurship and Organizations) concentrator until last spring, when I switched over, kind of late, to International Relations. I guess I just like the IR classes and find
Laborde, and she is the queen’s reader in 18th-century Versailles. And so begins “Les adieux a la reine” — “Farewell, My Queen” in English. The film, directed by Benoit Jacquot, tracks the life of Marie Antoinette in the three days following the fall of the Bastille and was screened at last night’s opening of the Providence French Film Festival.
The film closes in on Marie Antoinette as an individual, rather than a historical player in the French Revolution. Diane Kruger’s Marie Antoinette is a flighty and whimsical queen, given to lapses in memory and violent emotions. The suggestion of a romantic relationship between Marie Antoinette and one of her closest friends, the duchess Gabrielle de Polignac, is a subtext that runs throughout the film.
them more interesting than my business classes. What do you plan to do after graduating this year? I have no idea. I don’t want to start working yet, and I need a break from schools. I was thinking of having fun, maybe playing hockey for one or two years before getting a job or going back to graduate school. What are your favorite things to do on campus? I actually love working a lot. I work for BuDS, and the kids I work with are really fun. What’s been the best part about going to school in America? Being able to balance hockey and school, both at a high level. And what’s been the worst part? Not having enough sleep.
Film fest brings taste of France to Cable Car The Providence French Film Festival features royal fare, global offerings and digital film By KATHERINE CUSUMANO SENIOR STAFF WRITER
It is 6 a.m., and a young woman is just rising from bed. Her name is Sidonie
ARTS & CULTURE
During her reign, those who disliked the queen spread gossip about her possible homosexuality, though there is no historical proof of her sexual orientation. “It belongs now to her legend,” said Pierre Saint-Amand, professor of French studies and comparative literature. The film successfully navigates this uncertainty. It contains implications throughout that de Polignac has been unfaithful to / / French page 5