Skip to main content

Friday, October 11, 2013

Page 1

Daily

Herald

THE BROWN

vol. cxlviii, no. 88

since 1891

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2013

U. officials deny ‘crackdown’ on frat parties Lectures Some students say they have noticed more rigid enforcement of security and safety policies By JILLIAN LANNEY SENIOR STAFF WRITER

Fraternity members and unaffiliated students alike have perceived an increase in the University’s efforts to police Greek and program house parties this semester, but University officals denied any increased focus. “There is no deliberate crackdown on frats. If there was a deliberate crackdown on frats, you would know about it,” said Richard Bova, senior associate dean of the Office of Residential Life.

Discussions about any alleged “crackdown” primarily center around Class F events — parties where admission is charged, alcohol is sold and permits must be obtained from the city — thrown by fraternities and program houses such as Buxton House and Machado House. Natalie Basil, director of Residential Experience for ResLife, added that though sororities tend not to throw Class Fs due to their national affiliations, they would be allowed to if they expressed interest. “These are permits that are pulled from the city, and we have a fiduciary responsibility to ensure that they are managed correctly,” Bova said, adding that while the University recognizes the need to ensure such events run » See FRATS, page 5

aim to promote creativity

‘Creative Mind’ speakers included Michael Stewart, Julian Jimarez Howard ’11 and Maria Popova By EMMAJEAN HOLLEY SENIOR STAFF WRITER CORRINE SZCZESNY / HERALD

The University now requires hosts of Class F parties to pay for contracted security officers, who must check IDs at the door.

Under strategic plan, Ratty could receive overhaul Renovations would focus on plumbing and other utilities, as well as building aesthetics By JOSEPH ZAPPA CONTRIBUTING WRITER

CORRINE SZCZESNY / HERALD

Renovations to the Ratty need to be approved as part of Paxson’s strategic plan, and administrators said they did not yet have a project cost estimate.

The Sharpe Refectory will be renovated in the next few years, pending approval of President Christina Paxson’s strategic plan. Renovations would address the Ratty’s electricity, plumbing, heating and air circulation, while focusing on making the building “more convenient and comfortable for students,” wrote Provost Mark Schlissel P’15 in an email to The Herald. Specific plans for when and how the Ratty will be renovated have yet to be made,

Schlissel wrote. Due to the early stages of planning, administrators said they do not yet know the cost of possible renovations. If the building did not undergo renovations, its utility systems would face “imminent failure sometime in the near future,” said Senior Associate Dean of Residential Life and Dining Services Richard Bova. Administrators would “definitely be working with students” in determining how to make the building more student-friendly, said Margaret Klawunn, vice president for campus life and student services. The Office of Campus Life and Student Services is in dialogue with the student-run Residential Council, she added. Students expressed mixed » See RATTY, page 2

In a snapshot of a page from a writer’s notebook, strips of text overlapped at perpendicular angles like woven ribbons. The notebook belongs to Lecturer in English Michael Stewart, one of three speakers at the Creative Mind lecture this past Wednesday. The lecture, which took place in the Englander Studio of the Perry and Marty Granoff Center for the Creative Arts, was the first Creative Mind lecture of the 2013-2014 academic year. The series aims to promote and explore creativity across multiple fields of study. In addition to Stewart, speakers included curator Julian Jimarez Howard ’11 and blogger Maria Popova. Aside from his award-winning publications in fiction and poetry, Stewart, who spoke first, more recently authored “The Answers,” a website of responses to anonymously submitted questions. Stewart’s poetic but often tangentially related answers aim not to serve a practical purpose, but an artistic one. » See CREATIVITY, page 6

ARTS & CULTURE

Physics professor not included in Nobel Prize spotlight By ISOBEL HECK AND STEVEN MICHAEL SENIOR STAFF WRITERS

Every October, the world awaits the announcement of the year’s Nobel Prize winners, but when it comes to awarding the Nobel in scientific fields, there is often not enough room in the spotlight to recognize the many scientists whose efforts contribute to breakthrough discoveries. The scientific community was especially aware of the narrow spotlight this

inside

SCIENCE & RESEARCH

year — while it was widely expected that the physics prize would be awarded to the individuals who made last summer’s discovery of the Higgs boson possible, there was less consensus as to which physicists would receive the honor. Many news sources named University Professor of Physics Gerald Guralnik as a possible contender for the prize, but he ultimately was not recognized. Peter Higgs, professor emeritus of theoretical physics at the University of Edinburgh, and Francois Englert, professor emeritus of physics at the Universite libre de Bruxelles, were announced as this year’s winners of the Nobel Prize in Physics Tuesday for their pioneering theory of the Higgs boson — a particle that helps explain the existence of mass. Their theoretical paper was originally » See BOSON, page 5

COURTESY OF BROWN UNIVERSITY

The origin of the Higgs boson’s discovery remains contested: Three papers about this particle were published in 1964 in the Physical Review Letters. Scientists Peter Higgs and Francois Englert were ultimately honored.

CS surge

Art-oui!

D&C

The number of students taking CS courses increased drastically in recent years

Items from a Parisian factory are transformed in the “Toluca Editions” exhibit

Jhumpa Lahiri gets a diamond this week — find out why

UNIVERSITY NEWS, 3

ARTS & CULTURE, 7

COMMENTARY, 10

weather

The more collaborative nature of science means not all researchers could be honored

t o d ay

tomorrow

65 / 52

64 / 42


2 university news

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2013

calendar TODAY

OCTOBER 11

10 A.M.

TOMORROW

OCTOBER 12

12 A.M. Free Flu Shots

National Coming Out Day

Campus Center 12 P.M.

Main Green 5 P.M.

Academic Technology Showcase

Birding Club Meeting

CIT 201

Wilson Hall

menu SHARPE REFECTORY

VERNEY-WOOLLEY

LUNCH Basque Salad, Ginger Chicken Pasta, Fire Braised Pork Shoulder Sandwich, Red Potatoes With Chive Sauce

Manhattan Clam Chownder, Breaded Chicken Fingers, Vegan Lentil Stew, Vegan Nuggets, Vegan Rice Pilaf

DINNER Eggplant Parmesan, Vegan Tofu Pups, Lemon Broiled Chicken, Italian Chicken Parmesan, Potato Salad

Corn On The Cob, Tortellini Italiano With Sausage, Grilled Turkey Burger, Brownies, Krinkle Cut Fries

sudoku

BRITTANY COMUNALE / HERALD

Wait times at the J. Walter Wilson and Graduate Center package pickup stations often increase in the fall, when students order textbooks and other classroom materials in the mail.

Admins report no clear spike in packages The mailroom in J. Walter Wilson may be moved to a more central location By ALIZA REISNER CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Though students have reported long waiting lines at both the J. Walter Wilson and Graduate Center package pickup stations this fall, Mail Services administrators said it is difficult to gauge whether the package wait-time is longer than in years past. Between the last week of August and the end of September, 30,419 packages arrived on campus, said Elizabeth Gentry, assistant vice president of financial and administrative services. In the first week of October, 3,700

» RATTY, from page 1

crossword

reactions about the possibility of renovating the Ratty, with some saying the move could divert funds from other important priorities and others saying the building could use an upgrade. Alex Mechanick ’15, president of Brown for Financial Aid, said construction on the Ratty and other buildings on campus could divert funds from expanding financial aid. “Financial aid should be one of Brown’s top spending priorities because of the massive impact it has on learning, students’ quality of life and the value of a Brown degree,” Mechanick said. “Expansion in financial aid must take place alongside many other investments, but we should not let other investments exhaust the resources needed to expand financial aid.”

packages were delivered. Due to the large number of packages that arrive at the start of fall semester, Mail Services usually operates package pickup stations at both J. Walter Wilson and the Graduate Center, Gentry said. Fred Yattaw, manager of Mail Services, said a staff member manually emails students in groups of 25 to alert them that packages have arrived. The University uses this manual system in an attempt to stagger when students will pick up their packages to minimize wait times. But several students expressed frustration with the long waiting times for packages. Many students reported waiting up to an hour toward the beginning of the semester, with shorter waiting times around 20 minutes. A few students also reported not

receiving emails notifying them their packages had arrived. Abby Malone ’16 said she did not receive an email, and waited at Grad Center to see if her package had arrived after the date she thought it would arrive had passed. Though Mail Services had not notified her, the package was at Grad Center and labeled with her mailbox number, she said. Gentry and Yattaw said all students receive emails when their packages arrive on campus. Gentry said she has requested a new space for Mail Services that is “more suitable, more central for everybody.” She added that a new and larger space would make it “easier for both the Mail Services staff to handle all of the packages but also (make) it easier for students,” so that they would not have to carry packages across campus.

Renovating campus buildings is “part of balancing the needs and requirements of maintaining a 250-yearold university,” Schlissel wrote. Other students said renovations could add necessary new components to the building. Julia Elia ’17 suggested the University add a “quiet room for doing work” in the building, and others said the dining hall could benefit from greater culinary variety. Renovations could improve how food is served and prepared in the Ratty, as well as increase the number of culinary options available, Klawunn said. Bova laid out several options for maintaining a “well-crafted, easily accessible” dining service that could still provide approximately 8,000 meals a day while the Ratty undergoes renovation. Options include keeping the Ratty

open while building a new dining hall on a separate site and re-purposing the space the dining hall currently occupies, implementing a phased renovation that would leave the Ratty partially open or revamping the building’s infrastructure without disrupting daily operations. Administrators have not yet determined how they would accommodate students if the Ratty were out of use during the renovation. But Bova said he did not anticipate any problems in setting up a site for students to eat. Dining services workers — including students, hourly workers and management staff — would not lose their jobs during a renovation, Bova said, but would instead be “re-purposed to provide some level of service to students.” “We are not looking at any reductions during this period,” he said.

CORRINE SZCZESNY / HERALD

Students differed in their opinions about the proposed Ratty renovations. Some said renovations are unnecessary and would redirect funds from more important projects like financial aid, while others welcomed changes .


university news 3

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2013

Computer science enrollment doubles since 2005 An estimated 12 percent of all undergraduates are currently enrolled in a computer science class By CHRISTIAN PETROSKE CONTRIBUTING WRITER

The Department of Computer Science has seen a significant increase in introductory course enrollment numbers and concentrators in recent years, a change faculty members and students attributed to strong employment prospects and widening interest in developing better technological skill sets. The number of students enrolled in computer science courses has doubled since the 2005-06 academic year, according to figures from the Office of Institutional Research. Recent years have also seen a spike in the number of computer science concentrators, with the number of concentrators increasing by 35 percent between the class of 2011 and the class of 2012, and 22 percent between the class of 2012 and the class of 2013, which had 66 computer science concentrators. This surge mirrors a national upward trend in the number of students pursuing bachelor’s degrees in computer science. The average number of computer science majors at U.S. colleges and universities rose 29 percent from 2011 to 2012, according to a study from the Computing Research Association. National data from the class of 2013 was not yet available. Enrollment figures for the University’s introductory computer science courses have also seen a spike. CSCI 0150: “Introduction to

Object-Oriented Programming and Computer Science,” has 279 enrolled students this semester, up from 173 last fall and 54 percent higher than fall 2008, according to data provided by the Office of the Registrar. CSCI 0170: “Computer Science: An Integrated Introduction,” has an estimated 188 enrolled students this fall, a significant jump from last year’s enrollment of 118 and a 67 percent rise from fall 2008, according to the Office of the Registrar. CSCI 0190: “Accelerated Introduction to Computer Science” has an estimated 40 students, largely unchanged from last fall’s total of 38 students but 33 percent higher than fall 2011, according to the Office of the Registrar. Faculty members and teaching assistants in the department said the enrollment figures have been unexpectedly high. This semester’s enrollments in computer science courses represent a 25 percent increase from last year, wrote Roberto Tamassia, department chair and professor of computer science, in an email to The Herald. Tamassia estimated that introductory computer courses this semester have enrolled about 12 percent of all undergraduates. Some faculty members and students attributed the department’s rising popularity to a belief that a computer science degree yields strong employment prospects. Tamassia highlighted a May 11 column in the Seattle Times by Edward Lazowska ’72, in which Lazowska — a computer science professor at the University of Washington — touts the

professional benefits of majoring in computer science. “Computer science: It’s where the jobs are. It’s also where the future is,” Lazowska wrote in the column. Almost all computer science concentrators receive job offers, Tamassia wrote — software companies, biotech, engineering, financial and media firms all compete for computer science undergraduates. “There’s a lot of demand for CS grads from Brown,” said Aisha Ferrazares ’15, one of the head TAs for CSCI 0150. Tech companies such as Dropbox, Adobe and Mozilla comprised a large share of the employers attending the University’s fall career fair last month. The computer and mathematical fields added nearly 230,000 jobs between 2006 and 2010, according to a January 2012 report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The report projected that these fields will add nearly 780,000 new jobs between 2010 and 2020. But some faculty members and students said job prospects are not the only reason behind the rise in computer science enrollment. “Students are probably also realizing that there are a lot of interesting things happening in our world that have to do with computers and related technology,” wrote Professor of Computer Science David Laidlaw in an email to The Herald. “Being connected with that is appealing.” Some faculty members wrote that this semester’s enrollment figures in introductory courses are somewhat surprising. CSCI 0150 saw such overflow that the course had to move from MacMillan Hall 117, where the class was

KATIE LIEBOWITZ / HERALD

If computer science enrollment keeps going up, more faculty members may need to be hired, Department Chair Roberto Tamassia wrote in an email. taught in recent years, to Salomon 101. Managing the new space “was not easy,” Ferrazares said. The department expanded the number of TAs for CSCI 0150 from 23 to 30 this semester to keep its ideal 10-to-1 student-to-TA ratio, Ferrazares said. Some faculty members suggested the upsurge in numbers could strain departmental resources. “It’s not quite clear where the funding for these additional TAs will come from, so some events in the department may be a little more frugal this year,” Laidlaw wrote. “We need more instructional lab space,” Tamassia wrote, adding that the department will need to hire more faculty members if course enrollments continue

to rise at the current pace. The recently released draft of President Christina Paxson’s strategic plan prioritized making Brown community members more “fluent with data,” emphasizing technology’s role in higher education and stressing the creation of a “virtual campus” as the University moves forward. Tamassia wrote that the department will work to accommodate the increased number of students enrolled in computer science courses, adding that he looks forward to “a future where computational thinking and innovation are at the forefront of research and education on our campus.” — With reporting by Mathias Heller

Rising computer science enrollment With a total of 507 students this fall compared to 220 in 2008, the three introductory computer science courses have seen a 130 percent increase in enrollment. The largest increases were in 2011 and 2013. 300

CSCI 0150 279 students 120% increase

250

200

CSCI 0170 188 students (est.) 203% increase

150 127 100

50

62

CSCI 0190 40 students (est.) 29% increase

31 KATIE LIEBOWITZ / HERALD

CSCI 0150: “Introduction to Object Oriented Programming and Computer Science,” experienced such a boost in popularity that it shifted from MacMillan Hall 117 to Salomon Center.

0

2008

'09

'10

'11

Data source: Registrar’s Office

'12

'13 GREG JORDAN-DETAMORE / HERALD

U. one of two Ivies not to sign ‘Say Yes’ higher education compact Brown has not signed the compact, which is intended to help students secure financial aid By EUNICE KIM CONTRIBUTING WRITER

The University is one of two Ivy League institutions that has not signed the Say Yes Higher Education Compact, an agreement between member universities and the nonprofit organization Say Yes to Education to provide financial aid to low-income students from urban

backgrounds. Cornell, Dartmouth and Princeton committed last month to the compact, which aims to connect public high school graduates with the financial support necessary to attend a partner institution that admits them, multiple news outlets reported. Brown and Yale are the only universities out of the eight Ivies not to have joined the compact, which now has 54 partner colleges and universities, according to Say Yes to Education’s website. The compact currently focuses on high school graduates in the Buffalo, N.Y. and Syracuse, N.Y. areas, according

to Say Yes to Education’s website. But compact members are in the process of expanding aid offerings to high school graduates in New York City and Philadelphia, said Jacques Steinberg, senior vice president for higher education and communications at Say Yes to Education. “To give our students as broad a range of higher education options as possible, we would be honored if Brown would consider joining the higher education compact,” Steinberg said. Penn, New York University and Tufts University have pledged to provide full financial aid to high school graduates

with family incomes below $75,000. But the University already provides substantial aid to low-income students, Director of Financial Aid James Tilton wrote in email to The Herald. “Currently at Brown, families with total annual incomes of less than $60,000 are not expected to contribute any funds from income toward college costs, nor do the students have any loans in their initial financial aid packages,” Tilton wrote, adding this policy allows most students in this income bracket to afford the University. Tilton wrote he could not provide further information on whether the University plans to sign the compact.

Yale Dean of Admissions Jeremiah Quinlan has begun negotiating with Steinberg about joining the compact, the Yale Daily News reported Sept. 26. Cornell decided to partner with Say Yes to Education to help spread awareness among low-income students from urban school districts of financial aid opportunities that make college accessible, said Cornell Vice Provost Barbara Knuth in a Sept. 18 Cornell press release. Dartmouth signed the compact to show support for Say Yes to Education’s ongoing efforts, said Dartmouth Assistant Director of Financial Aid Katie Kobylenski.


4 university news

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2013

After leaving the nest, undergrads hire ‘Mother Goose’ Founded by an alum, Campus Goose aims to provide the comforts of home on College Hill By EMILY DUPUIS CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Campus Goose, a new College Hill concierge and errand service starting this year, offers students and their family members a range of services provided by staff members in packages of time ranging from 10 to 100 half-hour units. Services range from decorating dorm rooms, cleaning apartments and running errands to providing transportation from the airport to Brown’s campus, organizing reservations for family visits and providing parking spots, according

to the Campus Goose website. But the staff is prepared to accommodate most requests that abide by the University’s Code of Conduct and local laws, said “Chief Goose” Michala Kepple. The company aims to be another useful University resource and help students navigate the resources Brown already provides, she said. One sample service listed under the “TLC” section of the service’s website offers to “send a local mom to discreetly check in and see what’s going on” for parents who have not heard from their student recently or feel “unsettled” after

last speaking to him or her. Campus Goose was created by Mimi Sternlicht ’83 and her business partner Amy Jurkowitz, both mothers who discovered the challenges of college life through the experiences of their children, Kepple said. The founders “discovered as their kids went through college certain things are tough to do from miles away” and thought a business offering services that can fill the void left by students’ caretakers would be a “great idea,” Kepple said. The company’s name is a play on the fairytale character of Mother Goose, Kepple said. The two worked for months “getting to know the area and the best services,

like restaurants,” and created the Campus Goose network, Kepple said. Requests for Campus Goose services come “half and half ” from parents and students, Kepple said. Students typically ask for day-to-day services like help with utilities issues or last-minute errands, with the most common request being the company’s door-to-door laundry service and dry cleaning, which helps students to maximize their time, she added. “Campus Goose is a great opportunity for time management for many students. Their time is valuable, so it ends up being a worthwhile expense,” Kepple said. Parents generally tend to request presents or cleaning services for their

children, Kepple said. One of Campus Goose’s more unique services is the opportunity for parents to send students a surprise on their birthdays, such as cupcakes, balloons and cards, she added. Students said they had positive experiences with Campus Goose. Eleni Samara ’15 learned of the company through a Facebook advertisement and used it to get help assembling the IKEA furniture for her apartment and handling electrical problems. Campus Goose was “very helpful” and efficient in rendering the necessary services, she said. The company and Chief Goose Kepple are “accessible” and easy to use, Samara said.

UCS may issue referendum about Citizens United decision The Council may solicit student opinion and then issue a statement about the controversial court case By KIAN IVEY CONTRIBUTING WRITER

The Undergraduate Council of Students may issue a referendum later this month asking the student body for its thoughts on the Citizens United Supreme Court decision. Citizens United, a 2010 Supreme Court decision, affirmed the First Amendment right of corporations, labor unions and other groups to spend independently for political purposes, and has spurred controversy over the influence in Washington of special interest groups and lobbies. It has been criticized by politicians including President Obama and Senator John McCain. In issuing a referendum, the

Council would solicit opinions from the student body about the controversial court ruling. Depending on the response UCS finds, it may or may not issue a resolution taking a stance on the case. The idea stems from the Brown Political Forum, which was approached this past summer by a nonprofit called Free Speech for People. The group asked BPF to pass a “resolution taking a stance against Citizens United,” said Ben Resnik ’15, president of BPF and editor-in-chief of Post- magazine. Because BPF is a discussion group and does not take official political stances, the group passed the suggestion to UCS and offered to host a forum on the potential resolution, Resnik said.

BPF will host a student discussion Oct. 29 about Citizens United. Following the forum, attendees will vote on whether or not UCS should issue the potential referendum, Resnik said. After issuing the referendum, UCS would decide if taking a stance for or against Citizens United would be appropriate. “I think that whatever happens at our meeting on Oct. 29, UCS should listen to, because it’s their constituent who will be speaking,” Resnik said. Though UCS and BPF have not yet met, UCS President Todd Harris ’14.5 and UCS Vice President Sam Gilman ’15 wrote in an email to The Herald that they are “planning to meet in person to hear more about their ideas.” “It is important for UCS to meet with student leaders and help them find the appropriate avenues to advocate for their interests,” they wrote.

“UCS members have to get a certain number of signatures and want to represent students’ interests,” Resnik said. “This is a large, obvious opportunity to engage with the student body and have an important conversation.” Resnik said the conversation is about whether or not students and the academic world should be influential in having a role in the national political scene. “So I do think that there’s a great deal of nuance within the question itself because we’re having it here,” he said. There is precedent for UCS to issue political stances, which happened last year when UCS supported a resolution encouraging the University to divest from a particular group of coal companies. UCS has also “written resolutions in the past on campus issues to send strong, specific language to the

administration on our stances,” which has been done to stress the importance of dorm renovation, Harris and Gilman wrote. UCS has sponsored other resolutions on “timely national issues such as the student loan crisis,” Harris and Gilman wrote. Though the Citizens United decision occurred in 2010, the BPF discussion is timely because of arguments Monday in front of the Supreme Court in the McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission case, Resnik said. McCutcheon v. FEC could result in decreased regulations surrounding individuals making political donations, which are currently capped at $123,200 per election cycle. “It is a particularly significant moment. I mean, you saw 2012: more than a billion dollars spent by either candidate for the election,” Resnik said.

Panelists weigh possibility of U.S. health care reform Former President of Chile Ricardo Lagos talked about his work in bringing universal health care to Chile By EMILY DUPUIS CONTRIBUTING WRITER

The prospect of universal health care in the United States, particularly compared to international equivalents, was explored in depth at a panel discussion at the Alpert Medical School entitled “American Health Care Reform: Lessons Learned from International Systems” Thursday evening. Former President of Chile and Professor-at-Large Ricardo Lagos spoke extensively about his experience enacting a universal health care system in Chile. Lagos emphasized the importance of access to preventative health care and the ethical implications of denying universal health care. “If you don’t have the money, then you are not entitled to have that pathology solved. Is that the kind of society

you want to be living in?” Lagos asked the audience. Lagos also spoke about the necessity of looking beyond political lobbies when considering health care policies. “The only ones who have no lobby are those future patients that are going to die of cancer,” Lagos said. The success of Chile’s health care reform was evident in the “famous” 56 pathologies program, Lagos said. When establishing the system, the Chilean government selected 56 medical conditions that it would cover for all citizens. Currently about 70 conditions are covered, and another 10 will be added within a couple of years, Lagos said. The most important part of health care is “to go from the concept that you have the right to be attended to a guarantee,” Lagos said. “Human beings in this world are entitled to good health,”

he added. The panel also discussed how public and private sectors could work together to benefit the U.S. health care system and how to best implement universal health care in the United States. James Morone, professor of political science and urban studies, argued that the United States needs to follow its own path for universal health care. “There is no nirvana, no Chile for us to perfectly emulate,” Morone said, adding that health care systems tend to reflect the individual values of a country. Monroe also addressed the politics of the federal government shutdown partially caused by partisan disputes on health care reform. The shutdown is “the last gas of a party that feels itself losing its grip, a white man’s 55-and-older party losing its grip and now frantically overstepping and painting itself into a corner,” Monroe said. Elizabeth Roberts, lieutenant governor of Rhode Island, focused on the role

state governments can play in implementing health care. “Significant delivery reforms will be on a state-by-state level,” Roberts said, adding that she did not view an entirely new health care system stemming from the national government as realistic. “I am a believer in incremental change. We have a country that believes in incremental change, not revolutionary change,” she said. Monroe disagreed with this view, saying that health care is a national problem and the federal government must be involved in its solution. Until the United States meets international standards, health care will remain a “national problem,” Monroe said. Monroe also added that state governments have a role to play in creating a system that serves people equally and said the federal government has held a “remarkable” silence on this issue. Vincent Mor, professor of health services, policy and practice, spoke on the

ability of universal health care to equalize access to health insurance. “This is the first time people will be able to buy health care without being skewered,” Mor said. “If you’re buying your private health insurance and your neighbor gets a subsidy, it’s the same plan that’s actually delivering it,” he added. Richard Locke, director of the Watson Institute for International Studies, addressed the economic gains that could result from universal health care. “Access to good quality health care is important to economic prosperity,” Locke said. Businesses should support health care reform because “we know that when workers are healthy, they pay more attention, productivity is higher, they’re not focused on some other problem and can be focused on the job. It’s good for their profits if there’s actually good health care,” Locke said. The discussion was moderated by Terrie Fox Wetle, dean of the public school of health.


THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2013

science & research 5

Lecturer discusses hypochondria’s role in narrative medicine Individual perceptions of illness require physicians to adopt creative and sympathetic approaches By KERRI COLFER CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Medical care is often based on the way patients describe their afflictions to doctors. But people with hypochondria — a condition in which patients are plagued with anxiety about perceived medical afflictions — present a distinctive challenge because the stories they tell about their own health are often unreliable. The illness narrative of a hypochondriac doesn’t follow the typical linear narrative of other medical stories related by patients, said Catherine Belling, associate professor in medical humanities and bioethics at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine and author of “A Condition of Doubt: The Meanings of Hypochondria,” during a lecture Wednesday night

» BOSON, from page 1 published nearly 50 years ago, but on July 4, 2012, two independent teams of physicists working for CERN at the Large Hadron Collider near Geneva, Switzerland confirmed the existence of the particle. But Higgs and Englert were not the only physicists who contributed to the discovery. In 1964, three papers related to the boson were published in the prestigious physics journal Physical Review Letters. Englert, along with Robert Brout, who died in 2011, collaborated on the first paper. Higgs wrote the second. The third paper was a collaboration between Carl Hagen, a professor of physics at the University of Rochester, Tom Kibble, professor emeritus of physics at the Imperial College London, and Guralnik. Guralnik called this third paper the “most complete work,” citing its explanation of how the proposed

» FRATS, from page 1 smoothly, it has not made efforts to limit Class F event frequency or make these events more difficult to hold. But some students said this year is different from years past. Students interviewed said they have noticed harsher scrutiny surrounding alcohol consumption, stricter rules for capacity and instances of parties being shut down early, as well as a greater presence of Evening Event Managers from the Student Activities Office and monitors from the Department of Public Safety and Green Mountain Concert Services, a University-contracted security company. Bobby Lusi ’15, a brother of the Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity, said party monitors seem more hands-on this year. Previously, GMCS personnel and EEMs were mostly present outside and let the fraternity brothers manage the party inside, he said. But at Body Chemistry, a party AEPi held Sept. 21, Lusi noticed that EEMs officers were inside, “roaming the entire party.” A smaller number of Class F events may be creating a perception of more intense monitoring because the EEMs

in Pembroke Hall. Part of the Creative Medicine Series, the talk “Plotless Stories and Poor Historians: Hypochondria’s Challenge to Illness Narrative” focused on the broader issue of storytelling in medicine, but honed in on the specific challenges that hypochondriacs present to clinicians. In narrative medicine, illness is considered a “subjective experience” and refers to the way each patient personally experiences and manages illness, Belling said. Narrative medicine goes beyond the diagnosis and helps physicians understand the meaning of patients’ descriptions of their illnesses in order to determine what is best for each individual, said Jay Baruch, associate professor of emergency medicine and founder of the Creative Medicine Series. “Before you can respond to patients with diagnosis or treatment, you must first understand their story,” Baruch said. “It requires a different set of skills, more creative skills,” he added.

Belling began the lecture by explaining the three plots that illnesses often follow: acute, progressive and chronic. The narrative of hypochondria, Belling said, takes on a fourth plot called the “recursive.” In the hypochondriac’s experience of illness — a condition in which the patient repeatedly perceives medical afflictions affecting them — the story “contains itself,” Belling said. Hypochondriacs’ stories never begin, which means they also never end, she added. The patients are unable to forget about the possibility of future disease, all the while “looking ironically on the past false start.” In most cases, the patient’s narration functions as a source of data for the medical provider, Belling said. The patient’s narrative is most helpful to the clinician if it is “clear, internally-consistent, logical, and not fictional,” she said. The hypochondriac’s illness narrative defies this set of criteria, but the story that the hypochondriac believes to be true, “remains significant and

continues to be a meaningful story,” she added. Understanding a patient’s story can change the course doctors follow in diagnosis and treatment, Baruch said. The patient’s story prompts doctors to ask a different set of questions, which can result in better medical care, Baruch said. Focusing solely on diagnosis may lead to certain errors, Baruch said. “We’re focused on outcomes nowadays, but we have to see that in medicine patients are all different and come with complex stories,” Baruch said. “You have to understand it all to understand the illness,” he said. Relying on the patient’s story can be difficult when dealing with hypochondria, because the story is often unreliable. But listening to a hypochondriac’s story is a more beneficial approach than dismissal of the story entirely, Belling said. In treating hypochondria, “making the symptoms go away actually makes things worse, because now

you’ve dropped the clues,” Belling said. Treating a hypochondriac’s current symptoms alone is merely scratching the surface of their condition. But trying to understand the symptoms’ future implications in the context of the hypochondriac’s life — “that’s the real story,” Belling said. Emma Barrett ’15 said the lecture was “particularly interesting” to her because she hopes to become a doctor. Barrett attended the lecture as part of the “Medical Humanities: Critical Perspectives on Illness, Healing, and Culture” course, which requires students to write their own illness narratives. As part of the Creative Medicine Series, the lecture corresponds with a broader movement to prepare future physicians to be creative in medical care, Baruch said. “There are a growing amount of people from different disciplines looking at the role of creativity and how to apply that to medicine in order to meet the challenges of a world that is in transformation.”

boson did not conflict with fundamental principles of physics. In a twist, Guralnik’s paper may have been written first, but he and his team were not sure if their paper was correct. They waited to confirm their findings and sent their paper to the journal after the other two papers were already published, but Guralnik’s team reached their conclusions independently. Guralnik said he guessed that Higgs and Englert would win the Nobel Prize based on the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences’governing rules. The body recognizes a maximum of three scientists for one prize and gives preference to those with the earliest publication date, Guralnik said.

three in developing an idea. As science gets more complex, there are more people solving a problem,” Guralnik said. “Am I a little hurt that I’m not on it? Sure.” Guralnik pointed to an op-ed in the New York Times by Sean Carroll, a theoretical physicist at the California Institute of Technology, entitled “No Physicist Is an Island.” In the piece, Carroll argues that the science Nobel Prizes should each be able to be awarded to more than three individuals. “What the New York Times article did so well was accentuate the collaborative nature of science,” Valles said. Heintz also said other prizes, such as the J. J. Sakurai Prize for Theoretical Particle Physics, may be given to a greater number of individuals, avoiding the limitations of the Nobel. For example, the 2010 Sakurai Prize was awarded to all of the authors of the three theoretical papers, including Guralnik, for their work on the Higgs

mechanism.

‘No physicist is an island’ The Nobel Prize is “a limited prize,” said James Valles, professor of physics and chair of the physics department. “There are times when people form a

fruit and pick it, and that’s what the Nobel Prize is able to recognize,” he said. “In some sense the structure of the Nobel Prize doesn’t fit particle physics or any other science very well,” said Professor of Physics Ulrich Heintz, who worked with the team of experimental physicists at CERN. “The way we do science has evolved. It is impossible to whittle it down to three people.” In the case of the Higgs boson, thousands of physicists contributed to the discovery of a particle that is likely the one described in the three theoretical papers from 1964. The awarding of the prize solely to theoretical physicists does not fully recognize the tremendous contributions of the people who worked more experimentally, Heintz said. In addition to Heintz, Professors of Physics Meenakshi Narain, David Cutts and Greg Landsberg also contributed to the experimental side of the discovery. “There are more than one, two or

are less spread out, Bova said. But members of other fraternities said they have also noticed a security change. Tommy Komendzinski ’16, a brother of Phi Kappa Psi, said he also thought security seemed stricter compared to last year, especially at Class F parties his fraternity has thrown. Kate Tompkins, assistant director of ResLife and adviser to the Greek Council, disputed the assertion that there has actually been an increase in University monitoring of Class F events. “Every year at this time there is this perception … that we’re cracking down,” Tompkins said. She said these perceptions are often due to changes in house leadership and occupants. The impression of a crackdown is also common among independents living in the residence halls housing both fraternities and students unassociated with Greek life. Kavia Khosla ’16, an independent living in Marcy House, where AEPi and Zeta Delta Xi are located, said she noticed both stricter rules for event capacities and instances of officials shutting down parties early. The early endings have led to intoxicated students roaming around campus in

search of other places to go — a situation Khosla, a Herald video staffer, said she feels is less safe. Fraternity members seem to be more cautious about noise and capacity even in small, unofficial events because of increased fears of being shut down by DPS officers, she said. A member of the Greek community, who asked to remain anonymous, said officers were previously more lenient in their enforcement of Class F rules regarding issues such as capacity and underage drinking. He added that certain changes to the University’s policies concerning Class Fs have made parties less fun and less profitable for fraternities. But many fraternities and program houses are actually grateful for University support, Bova said. Some students have struggled in the past to enforce capacity and alcohol rules when engaging with their peers, he said. EEMs are responsible for ensuring that events across campus run smoothly, safely and according to plan, Topmkins said. While Tompkins said rules about capacity remain constant, she added there have been two definitive changes this year concerning Class F policy

— the responsibility of checking students’ ID cards at the door has shifted from student hosts to GMCS staff members, and the host organizations are now responsible for paying the GMCS fee, which a Greek Council member who asked to remain anonymous said amounts to $190. The new ID policy helps the University ensure students adhere to the Student Code of Conduct, which prohibits underage drinking, said J. Allen Ward, senior associate dean of the Office of Student Life. The GMCS fee was once covered by ResLife, Tompkins said. In response to concerns that party hosts relied on official monitors, instead of themselves, to enforce the rules and ensure guest safety, a policy was instituted last spring to split the GMCS fee between ResLife and the hosting fraternity. Fraternities were then given the choice to host parties without security, but the University ultimately determined outside help was necessary for all Class F events, Tompkins said, adding that now all hosts are required to pay the entire charge. Since the houses charge admission, they should be responsible for this fee, she added.

Fraternities used to often make a slight profit on their events or break even, the Greek Council member said. He added that the fee, accompanied with stricter enforcement of capacity rules, impacts an organization’s ability to make up the costs of putting on a party. The new rules could result in more off-campus parties, he said, adding that these events can pose a greater risk to safety because they require students to walk farther from campus and are often less regulated by hosts. “I would not say there is a direct corollary with more parties thrown off campus,” Bova said, adding that such parties are an inevitable part of student life. DPS officers and GMCS staff members are “really there to support the students so that they can have a successful event,” said Paul Shanley, deputy chief of police for DPS. Officers can help manage lines, prevent students from sneaking in and ensure that parties do not exceed capacity, he said. Shanley said there have not been any focused efforts on the part of DPS this semester to shut down Class F parties more often or earlier.

‘A milestone for all of us’ Though the Nobel Prize could not recognize everyone who contributed to the Higgs discovery, Guralnik, Valles and Heintz all said the awarding of the prize to Higgs and Englert drew welcome attention to the field of theoretical particle physics. Heintz said it would have been nice for the University’s physics department and community as a whole had Guralnik been awarded the prize. But still, he said, “it’s a milestone for all of us in particle physics.” Despite not being publicly recognized, Guralnik said he was happy to find out his work in theoretical physics was correct. “The public has seen abstract science can be exciting. … It renews my faith in humanity,” Guralnik said. “I’m glad they got the prize. It’s good for the work and good for physics.”


6 arts & culture » CREATIVITY, from page 1 Stewart’s vision of creativity is “curiosity applied,” he told The Herald. While questions are necessary, they may not probe for answers so much as serve to explore and observe a medium, he added. “The subject (of exploration) is inert, but the speaker is alive,” he told The Herald. “If artists can dive in and dive deeply into that, everything else will follow.” Emblematic of his medium of writing, his notebook is a place to sprinkle “seeds,” he said. “It (creates) a place to pause and be present, think ‘this thing is important but I have no idea why.’ It’s a place for it (to) sit, aware, the whole time.” Despite this emphasis on active immersion in the creative process, Stewart also acknowledged the importance of occasionally detaching focus from the task at hand. “Let go of what you can’t grasp — the tighter you hold on, the less likely you are to get anything out of it,” he said, adding that the “mingling perspectives” of conversation can be a stimulating muse. Jimarez Howard, the next speaker, is a curator and writer. One of his most recent projects was co-founding OUTLET Fine Arts, a commercial art space in Brooklyn aiming to “(promote) creativity through exhibitions, collaborations and out-of-the-box explorations,” according to the company website. In his lecture, Jimarez Howard defined curating as an “idiosyncratic methodology to create a system of

relationships,” adding that the etymological root of the word “curate” — to care for — is a crucial bedrock to his ideology. He said that while some say applying a relationship of “symbol and emotion” to a collection of objects involves too much attachment to the material, this systematic construction of meaning is an integral aspect of the human experience. Stewart’s notebook, an image on one of Jimarez Howard’s slides, revealed “(his), but also everyone’s creative process — organizing things into certain patterns and certain ways of beings,” Jimarez Howard said. “Everyone does this one way or another,” he added, whether through the arrangements of books on a bookshelf or the opened tabs in an internet browser. He closed his lecture with a slide of gold prospectors in California, explaining that humans similarly “(mine) for nuggets” in an age of “increasingly inundating” information, thus curating reality by applying “our own method of creating worth and value.” Popova, the final speaker, is the impetus behind Brain Pickings, a critically acclaimed blog, which is described on its information page as a “human-powered discovery engine for interestingness.” In her posts, Popova explores eclectic avenues she finds to be of cultural and intellectual merit — including literature, history, art, science and philosophy. Popova said the multidisciplinary scope of her work is driven by her notion of “combinatorial creativity,” which is the synthesis of preexisting concepts into an “original” idea.

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2013

INDIRA PRANABUDI / HERALD

“Brain Pickings” blogger Maria Popova, who spoke at the Creative Minds lecture, said her writing is informed by the theory of “combinatorial creativity” which involves synthesizing concepts into a new idea. “This is more than a theoretical, conceptual thing — it lives in everything we touch,” she said. Everything builds upon what came before it, she said, citing inventions such as the radio and the Gutenberg printing press as created through the mixing of existing ideas. Popova, herself borrowing from theories put forth by the social psychologist Graham Wallas, said the most important element of the creative process is “incubation” — otherwise known as “unconscious cerebration” by Alexander Graham Bell and “mental mastication” by Lewis Carroll. Incubation is the brain’s stewing of information — “where the alchemy

takes place,” Popova said, “but we don’t allow our minds to distill long enough for this to happen.” She added that society’s goal-oriented outlook toward creativity has resulted in a “cult of productivity over presence,” citing an overemphasis on “how to optimize (creativity), maximize it … force it into a blueprint.” Students had positive reactions to the lectures. “I feel like the creative process is so varied between different people that one of the biggest challenges is to find your own,” Deivid Ribeiro ’13.5 said. “The speakers did a great job of showing how this process can be brought out through other people’s ideas and

applied to create something new.” Alex Herbert-Rapport ’15 said he was especially inspired by the notion of “interrupting your schedule to enable yourself to new concepts.” “Breaking from your work to reflect during the creative process can be applied not only to writing books and blogs, but to everything,” he said. Kamille Johnson ’16 echoed this sentiment. “What was most interesting is that they brought the field of creativity into a tangible realm,” she said. “They showed that productivity isn’t the only goal — value comes from a longer, more cumulative process that can’t be finished in a day’s work.”


arts & culture 7

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2013

‘Homesick’ an energetic throwback to Motown sounds Clyde Lawrence’s ’15 EP showcases his soulful vocals but only ‘scrapes the surface’ of his original music By JACOB DOUGLAS CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Listen to the album “Homesick,” a catchy Motown revival album, and you’ll be transported back to an era when Stevie Wonder dominated the charts and Detroit buzzed with a thriving music scene. Released in January, the EP marks the debut of Clyde Lawrence ’15. The album opens with the bright, energetic “Wake Up.” Showcasing Lawrence’s talent for writing straight-up catchy music, it features

his preferred choice of instrumentation — pounding piano, bluesy guitar and organ riffs. Similarly infectious, the album’s second song, “Homesick,” starts with powerful jabs of guitar, filling out with the addition of a funky clavinet keyboard line that could be lifted straight from Stevie Wonder. Hand claps and a repeating piano line drive the track along before it explodes into a full-on boisterous jam. The album offers a pleasant change in tone with another highlight — “So Damn Fast,” a more melancholy track

about moving on and the passage of time. About halfway into the song, Lawrence’s talented younger sister comes in with robust backup vocals, adding a welcome depth to the music. Lawrence shines on faster songs that boast more of a groove. “Homesick” hits a weak spot on slower songs, such as “Columbus Avenue” — the lyrics move to sappier territory, losing the energetic cheer that characterizes the album at its best. Lawrence, who sings and plays both piano and bass on the album, said it surprises him when people call his work “throwback” and “oldschool.” To him, he said, it sounds just like what he “grew up listening to.”

Though “Homesick” was put out under Lawrence’s name, he said he usually performs with a band, often referred to as “Clyde Lawrence Band.” In addition to Lawrence’s compositions, the group plays covers — including one on Youtube of Britney Spears’ “Toxic,” which manages to remarkably transform the track into a song that would sound right at home on “Homesick.” Lawrence called the Jackson 5 and Stevie Wonder two of his biggest influences, adding that you can hear him “ripping off ” their style on the album. These influences are definitely worn on Lawrence’s sleeve, and it is this bluesy sound that makes the album

such a pleasure to listen to. Lawrence said his EP “only scrapes the surface of the original music” he has written, and he mostly recorded it to have an easy way to showcase his music and sound. “Homesick” may not offer anything new. But there is nothing wrong with that. The album offers a set of nicely crafted, catchy and well-produced songs, all anchored by Lawrence’s soulful voice. It’s almost impossible not to get into the groove of a song like “Wake Up.” Not everyone can pull off revivalist music, but Lawrence proves himself more than qualified to rekindle the Motown sound.

Creative Arts Council displays collaborative exhibit ‘Toluca Editions: 6 Projects’ shows works by writers, artists and industrial designers By MICHELLE MEHRTENS CONTRIBUTING WRITER

The watery blue of a bright sky recedes behind lush gardens and asphalt highways. Strangely intense faces look forward and sideways — both watching and ignoring you. Stories and thoughts travel in wide arcs and boxy texts, in Spanish, French, German and English. The Creative Arts Council displays these works at its exhibition “Toluca Editions: 6 Projects,” running through Oct. 18 in the Cohen Gallery at the Perry and Marty Granoff Center for the Creative Arts. “Toluca Editions” are original pieces from a Paris publishing house founded 10 years ago by Alexis Fabry and Olivier Andreotti, said Director of the Creative Arts Council Richard Fishman. Fabry and Andreotti started out as book publishers who presented important work on contemporary photography. Fishman added that Fabry and Andreotti chose six artists they admired for the exhibit. Inside the gallery, each piece has been created through the collaborative efforts of an artist, a writer and an industrial designer. According to the readings at the exhibition, each collaboration, or “hybrid art object,” is considered an “artist’s book,” including photographic images, text and a decorated box. Each industrial designer’s decorated case is placed in one of six glass displays in front of the gallery’s windows and corresponds to a work of art presented in the room. “Every Toluca project is more than a project bringing together a fine artist, industrial designer and literary artist. It is the passionate end result of Alexis Fabry’s desire to elevate the book to a precious art object,” wrote Steven Perelman ’90, member of the board of governors of the Rhode Island Institute of Design Museum, in an email to The Herald. The exhibit shows that everyone interprets art — paintings, portraits, photographs and stories — in different ways. People’s reactions to images and words are shaped by their own experiences. In “What Man Is Really Like,” German writer Ingo Shulze describes the life of his alcoholic friend Andreas in Berlin. The melancholy of Andreas’ life can be seen in Turner Prize winner Rachel Whiteread’s photographs of battered cardboard boxes

left on dirty deserted streets. The simplicity of such sadness is then traced in Japanese designer Naoto Fukasawa’s carefully crafted wooden casing. “Morgues,” five photographs taken by Andres Serrano, unflinchingly depict the corpses of both men and women. According to the gallery reading, Serrano believes the focus of these photographs is life, not death. “To me they are very present, almost alive. There’s a strong, natural force that comes forth in this series — its skin breathes,” he wrote in the reading. Black paintings of skirts swing beside the pictures, their silhouettes conjuring up images of pumping aortas and ventricles. Finnish designer Harri Koskinen’s container is made of stainless steel, reminiscent of the metal morgue tables that display the lifeless bodies. Mexican writer Mario Bellatin’s perspective on humanity from the view of a podiatrist’s magnifying glass finishes off the work. All three element of the display come together like pieces of a giant puzzle to address the peculiarities of mortality in innovative ways. The exhibit’s themes include love, death, loneliness, paranoia and greed, threads that are strung together through endless loops. The themes are distorted and reworked through the lenses of the artists, whose own histories influence the way they react to heartbreak, violence and childhood nostalgia. Shulze sees his lonely friend Andreas while Whiteread sees the inherent sorrow of crushed boxes on a gray street. They both evoke an unnerving sense of despondency. “I liked the connection between the visual and the text. They all mixed well together,” said Paula Abarca ’17. Fishman said he hoped students would see the value of artists working collaboratively at the highest caliber. “The principles on which Toluca was founded are similar to the Open Curriculum because of its interdisciplinary nature,” he added. “You have to choose a writer, artist and designer to come together and form a cohesive element.” Perelman agreed — “Exposing Brown students to that passion and creativity is what is most important to me,” he wrote. He wrote that both he and Fishman have visited art galleries in New York City, including Josee Bienvenu Gallery, “the exclusive representative of Toluca Editions.” “The most challenging parts of presenting this exhibition were the logistics of bringing the principals and the materials of Toluca from Paris to Providence.

SOPHIE PUTKA / HERALD

The exhibit is a “hybrid art project,” mixing various media — including writing, photography and painting — to highlight different interpretations. (But) with instant communication and international travel, that wasn’t very challenging,” wrote Perelman. He added that Fishman’s “desire not only to foster continued interdisciplinary learning among Brown’s various concentrations but also to explore opportunities for students at both Brown and RISD to learn together” influenced Perelman’s desire to bring “Toluca Editions” to Fishman’s attention.

Fishman said the exhibit has inspired a jointly taught Brown-RISD course — “Built Thoughts: Collaborative Theory and Practice,” which will be offered next semester and require students to work in groups to produce their own portfolios. Professor of Literary Arts and Department Chair Cole Swensen will teach the course with RISD faculty members Thomas Wedell, from the department

of graphic design, and Khipra Nichols, from the department of industrial design. “I look forward to hearing and seeing the community’s response to the exhibition, what develops in terms (of) educational opportunities and then whether there is an exhibition of student work product at Josee Bienvenu Gallery in New York City,” Perelman wrote.


8 sports friday

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2013

DAVID DECKEY / HERALD

Nick Deaver ’15 will play an important role in the squad’s weekend home campaign against Harvard, Fordham and Iona. The Bears will then compete in the Ivy League Championships the following weekend at the University of Pennsylvania. Herald file photo.

MEN’S WATER POLO

Bears finish 1-2 over weekend, prepare for final stand at home The team has now three times come up short against the powerhouse St. Francis College Terriers By GEORGE SANCHEZ SPORTS STAFF WRITER

The Bears went 1-2 over the weekend at home in the Katherine Moran Coleman Aquatics Center, winning their first game of the weekend against the Connecticut College Camels, but losing the last two by close margins against the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Engineers and the St. Francis College Terriers. The squad (10-8, 5-4) first faced off against the Camels (1-14, CWPA 0-6), and the team gained an early lead it maintained throughout the game.

The Bears scored six goals in the first quarter and added on another five goals in the second quarter. The team went into halftime with an 11-0 lead. The squad widened its margin even further during the second half, holding the Camels to only four goals while scoring seven of their own. The match finished as an 18-4 Bruno victory — a season-high goal total for the squad. Warren Smith ’17 scored four goals, and Luke Irwin ’17 tallied another three goals, leading the way to the largest margin of victory this season. The Bears’ first match Saturday put them against the Engineers (6-9, 6-5), as the two teams faced each other for a third time this season. Though Bruno had defeated the Engineers the first two times the teams met, the Bears fell short this weekend. Going into halftime, the score was even at 8-8, but

the Engineers pulled away with a two point lead. Henry Fox ’15 contributed seven goals, while Walker Shockley ’14 made a total of eight saves. Later that day, the Bears took on the Terriers (10-4, 5-1) for the third time this season — Bruno had come up short twice against St. Francis this season, by a total of three points. In this match, the score was tied at 5-5 going into the third quarter, before the Bears began to pull away. The squad scored four points in the third quarter and limited the Terriers to just one point. But the Terriers emerged victorious yet again — St. Francis responded by scoring four goals while holding Bruno scoreless in the fourth quarter. The match finished with a 10-9 win for the Terriers, resulting in the third loss for the Bears in the season series.

Fox led the scorecard with four goals, finishing the weekend with a total of 12 scores in three matches. Shockley was between the bars against the Terriers and stopped seven shots. “We had lots of great opportunities to score, but we were not able to put them away,” Fox said. “They were able to take advantage of our mistakes, and there was a total shift of momentum … but it was a good learning experience.” The Bears finish off their regular season home schedule this weekend with three conference games, including rematches against the Harvard Crimson (8-8, 6-1), Iona College Gaels (3-16, 2-3) and Fordham College Rams (11-7, 3-2). “We have been focusing on putting all the pieces of the puzzle together,” Fox said. “We want to be at our best on both offense and defense

this weekend.” The Bears will celebrate Senior Night Saturday, honoring the five squad members who will leave the team after this season: James McNamara ’14, Shockley, Chris Culin ’14, Eric Robb ’14 and Grant Villeneuve ’14. “They have been great teammates,” Fox said. “We look forward to finishing the season with their leadership.” After this weekend’s conference games, Bruno will travel to Penn to compete in the Ivy League Championships from Oct. 19-20. “Every weekend we want to build on the previous weekend — we are especially looking forward to getting our first look this season at our rival, Princeton,” Fox said. “We want to take the momentum from these games for our California trip the weekend after.”

» BRYANT, from page 12

last week, but Donnelly said the injuries were not serious and that they expect to have “all hands on deck” against Bryant. Donnelly said the film has shown man-to-man coverage schemes in the Bulldogs’ defense, and he said he will look to spread the ball and take what the defense gives him when attacking Bryant. Wide receiver Tellef Lundevall ’13.5 hauled in 10 catches last week and expects to be a major target for Donnelly. As for the Northeast Conference competitor, the Bulldogs’ early season success has centered on a strong running game led by dual tailbacks Paul Canevari and Ricardo McCray. Despite splitting the carries, each back averages more than 85 yards a game, and the pair has combined for eight touchdowns. Bruno defensive end and

co-captain Michael Yules ’14 said the Bears can stifle the Bulldog’s ground attack if defenders stay disciplined in their jobs because their defense is “predicated around stopping the run.” While the trenches will likely be the site of much of the action, there will be an interesting matchup on the outside as Bryant senior receiver Jordan Harris, who has accounted for almost half the Bulldog’s receiving yards, will be pitted against preseason All-Ivy cornerback Emory Polley ’14, who grabbed two interceptions in last Saturday’s Governor’s Cup. Though this is the first time Brown will battle Bryant, Donnelly was quick to call the Bulldogs a “rival” and recognize the matchup’s gravity. “We go in thinking this is a game we must win,” he said. “It’s another team in-state. It’s another big rivalry game.”

The Bulldogs have some impressive wins, including a victory over Holy Cross University (2-4), a team that beat Ivy competitor Dartmouth (1-2, 0-1) and took Harvard (3-0, 1-0) to three overtimes before falling. The Bears will look to their productive offense to overpower the Bulldog defense. The offensive attack is averaging more than 400 yards and 33 points per game this season. Look for them to start early, as Bruno has notched five first-quarter touchdowns this season and grabbed the first lead in every game. Speedy running back John Spooney ’14, the offensive sparkplug and leading scorer for the Bears, left last week’s game with an injury, but he is expected to return to the backfield Saturday. Multiple players were hurt


sports friday 9

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2013

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK

Polley ’14 pulls down two interceptions against URI The defensive back brought down 11 passes last year, a conferenceleading accomplishment By ALEXANDRA CONWAY

It was flag football, and then I played a year of tackle. I was an offensive tackle, and we lost a lot of our games by over 60 points. It was just really fun for me, and I like hitting people. I didn’t want to originally play, but my dad made me, and I have loved it ever since.

SPORTS STAFF WRITER

Defensive back Emory Polley ’14 played a key role in the football team’s 31-14 Saturday victory over the University of Rhode Island, helping the team retain the Governor’s Cup for the third consecutive year. Polley was the defense line’s main man with two key interceptions, in addition to seven tackles and six solo hits. Polley has been a linchpin player on the rise since last season. Last year, Polley led the Ivy League in passes defended, knocking down 11. He intercepted four passes, the second most in the conference, and made 32 tackles for the season. This summer Polley earned a spot on the watch list for the 2013 College Football Performance Defensive Back Award, which highlights the top 36 returning performers vying for the top individual honor. For his versatility and success in anchoring the Bruno defense, Polley has been chosen as The Herald’s Athlete of the Week. The Herald: When did you first start playing football? Polley: I first started when I was 7.

» MCCOY, from page 12 in FIFA, I dutifully monitored the happenings of the transfer window, editing Liverpool’s rosters and players to make sure that everything was up to date. But as I grew older and my fandom deepened, I realized I was an outsider to Liverpool. I couldn’t watch any games on TV. I couldn’t turn on the evening news and hear the latest reports on that day’s transfer saga. And I sure as hell couldn’t grab a ticket and pop over to Anfield to take in a match. This was compounded by my own futility on the pitch. I had played soccer since I was 5, yet slowly but surely my skills fell behind those of my peers. I never mastered how to kick an instep. When I headed the ball, I had no clue where it was going. Knowing the limits of my talents, I kept the ball as far away from my left foot as possible. And so came my existential crisis as a Liverpool fan — what qualified me to count myself as a follower of this storied club? I couldn’t watch games live. I couldn’t master the most basic skills of the game itself. And I had never even been to the city of Liverpool, let alone knew what it was like to grow up in a place where loving Liverpool and hating Everton and Manchester United was a way of life. But even with my doubts, the draw of Liverpool was too strong — I couldn’t have left the Reds even if I tried. As high school turned to college, I found ways to live stream matches, followed Twitter accounts devoted to club news and bought a real jersey with letters that did not wash off. Last summer, I finally got to lay eyes on the team, stalking them as they practiced

Why did you choose Brown? It was a combination of being able to take the classes I wanted, and I really like the atmosphere here. … It has a real hometown feel for me. What are you concentrating in and why? American history — it was the most interesting thing to me. I study adolescence and morality from the 1920s to now. So basically how teenagers grow up in our society. What do you find is the hardest thing balancing academics and Division I athletics? Definitely the time management. Right now I’m taking five classes and doing football. It’s tough making yourself get up and go to class and study and perform well on the football field. But if you want to be good you have to do all these things. It’s not easy, but everyone knows that. What are your goals for this year on and off the field? On the field I want an Ivy League championship. Off the field, I want to

at Harvard during their American preseason tour and meeting and taking pictures with manager Brendan Rodgers and woefully inept midfielder Charlie Adam (who has since thankfully been sold to Stoke City). Despite my devotion to the club, I still feel as if I don’t belong among the ranks of real fans. When I was abroad in Scotland — my great chance to live in a real, football-loving country — I shied away from showing my cards as a fan. At the activities fair during orientation, I walked up to the “Football Supporters Society” table, and upon hearing me say in my American accent that I was a Liverpool fan, the two guys manning the table made some wise cracks about the Reds’ recent woes. I laughed meekly and walked away. Later, at the pub, I heard Liverpool come up in conversation at the other end of my table. I butted in, asking excitedly, “What are you guys talking about?” The girl next to me turned and replied, “Steven Gerrard,” naming the Liverpool great whose legacy and otherworldly talent I was more than well aware of. She paused and spoke down to me like I was a 4 year old: “He’s a footballer.” “Right,” I said, and turned back to the other end of the table. I partly think my feelings are irrational. After all, Premier League fans are all over the United States — as demonstrated by NBC’s massive television deal that now allows Americans to watch every EPL game live. Fans are here at Brown in dozens, including many who know a whole lot more than I do, and Liverpool itself has one of the largest global followings in all of soccer. There are local supporters clubs and European sports bars. Of course I’m not isolated — it’s

make sure I do well and get a lot out of all my classes. What are your plans for next year? I don’t have any set plans yet. I’m applying to a lot of different places mostly in the financial space, but aside from applying I’m going to try to play football still and see how that goes. And then I can play potentially overseas as well. Do you have any role models or inspirations? My biggest role model is definitely my high school football coach. His name is Jeff Rotsky — he coached at my high school, and he also worked for Morgan Stanley. He worked on Wall Street, made a ton of money but then came back and gave back to the community by being a football coach, and that’s probably what I would like to do. What are your pre-game rituals and your favorite way to celebrate after a win? I just make sure when I get to the stadium — we have about two hours — I do a little 15-minute warm-up on my own to just warm up my legs. My best way to celebrate is honestly to just hang out with my teammates. I really enjoy seeing all the parents that come to watch us because it means a lot to me that they want to come and see us do well. I like enjoying the moments with my teammates because I was just out there with them.

Emory Polley ‘14 makes sure to do a ‘little 15-minute warm-up’ before every game to make sure his legs are ready to go for his defensive back duties.

impossible to be isolated from the most lucrative and far-reaching sports league in the world. But I still can’t shake that feeling. So I watch games alone, cursing every post hit, throwing my arm up at every offside call missed. (I’m much more demonstrative when I watch sports alone — when I watch in a group I go quiet and stoic and am not fun to be around.) I’ll tweet about a match, expecting no reaction or dialogue to ensue — I just need to get things off my chest somewhere. When the match ends, I’ll go on with my day displaying no outward sign that the last 90 minutes of my life had been a roller coaster ride combining pride, stress,

letdown, frustration and joy. Irrational as it may be, I prefer it this way. In actuality, I’m not in a bubble. I’m not in isolation. English theorist Benedict Anderson coined the idea that individuals can become a part of an “imagined community” and identify with an ethos shared with others whom they have never even met. Sure, I’m no Scouser — I can barely understand a word that comes out of Jamie Carragher’s mouth (Youtube it — you try). But in those 90 minutes I’m on my own, I can become part of that world and share in the collective highs and lows that those seated in the Kop experience when Luis Suarez conjures up another bit of magic or lowly

DAVID DECKEY / HERALD

comics Cat Ears | Najatee’ McNeil

A Horse of Any Other Name | Zach Silberberg

Southampton snags an equalizer at the death to cost the Reds three points. Liverpool’s motto is “You’ll never walk alone,” from the song made popular by the Liverpool-native band Gerry and the Pacemakers. It appears on the Anfield gates, is sung at every match and the club and players sign off messages with “YNWA.” In the most trite of ways, this is quite fitting for my relationship with Liverpool. And I’m not sure if I’d have it any other way. Ethan McCoy ’14 is not as much of an introvert as this column made him seem. Talk Liverpool, EPL and sports with him at Ethan_McCoy@ brown.edu.


10 commentary

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2013

DIAMONDS & COAL A diamond to the student who said, “Apparently I’m a love hipster,” after describing the ring he made in the seventh grade and eventually gave to his fiancee. Does this mean your engagement is ironic? Cubic zirconia to Tim Springfield, head coach of the men’s cross country team, who said, “Because of the weather, we were a little bit more conservative.” As we learned in our political science class, people usually look for mild cloud cover and a 50 percent chance of rain before voting Republican. Coal to the the new business Campus Goose for providing a service that sends local moms to check up on students. We have our own moms right where we like them — at home. A diamond to Provost Mark Schlissel P’15, who said of the search for the new Dean of the College, “It’s so important that whoever takes the job understands Brown and its culture.” Jesse Waters need not apply. Cubic zirconia to the student who said, “When I started practicing (yoga), there were so many parts of my body that I wasn’t even aware of.” Those calming breathing exercises will come in handy when she finds out she has a tail. A diamond to Michael Hughes, head coach of the men’s golf team, who said, “We performed exactly like we should.” Cheers to you coach — some men only wish they could say the same.

A N G E L IA WA N G

Plan shortchanges undergrad education JESSICA MONTES

Coal to the senior who said about splitting eight semesters, “Brown doesn’t want people floating around.” Guess Brown is less like Hogwarts than we thought. A diamond to Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jhumpa Lahiri, who said it took her 10 years to write a single scene in her latest novel. You’ve just given us our next excuse for why we couldn’t finish that English paper by the deadline. Cubic zirconia to former national security advisor Thomas Donilon, who said in a lecture that U.S. counterterrorism policy shows other countries that “you can run, but you can’t hide.” We’ve already learned this from the John Street masturbator. A diamond to the recent alum who “went to New Mexico to become a beekeeper, moved to Montana to become a goat herder and currently works at an oyster farm in Providence.” Baaaaaa, we can’t bee-lieve how busy you’ve been — shellfishly, we’re a little jealous.

opinions columnist

The strategic plan is probably not good for undergraduates. Brown is known for its undergraduate focus. It is what attracts prospective students and what sets us apart from rival schools. But President Christina Paxson’s newly released draft of her strategic plan seems to threaten that. It highlights graduate programs, campus expansion and an increase in student numbers. These are all great things. Under Paxson’s vision, the University will thrive. But the question is, will it thrive in the right ways? The plan states, “A major focus in the coming years will be to continue to improve the quality and vis-

ibility of Brown’s doctoral programs” and to “expand and diversify master’s education at Brown.” Essentially, the University wants to work on improving departments beyond undergraduates. Under the plan, Brown would evolve into a university known for its graduate institutions. A focus on master’s and doctoral programs will change Brown’s undergraduate center. The University will put essential resources towards graduate programs, which will hamper our undergraduate experience. With this change in priority, graduate student needs may be priotized over those of undergraduates. While this will probably increase our national recognition and prestige, I can’t help but wonder — do we really need it? Brown’s foundation is its undergraduate core. It is a university devoted to providing an intimate academic setting for its students. Why change that? The plan seems to call

for changes that could transform Brown permanently. Paxson also wishes to increase the number of undergraduates, graduate students and faculty each year, expanding the campus in order to facilitate these changes. Brown will become bigger. An increase in students and an extension of the College Hill campus could harm our undergraduate experience. With more students, Brown will become less intimate, a quality the University prides itself on. In addition to its goals, the plan’s omissions alone hurt undergraduates. The lack of details in regards to financial aid reveals where the University’s priorities currently are. Changes are coming, and we can only hope that what defines Brown will remain constant.

Jessica Montes ’16 can be reached at jessica_montes@brown.edu

Q U O T E O F T H E D AY

“If there was a deliberate crackdown on frats, you would know about it.” ­— Richard Bova, associate dean of the Office of Residential Life See frats, page 1. Editorial Leadership

Sections

Visuals & Production

Business

Editors-in-Chief Lucy Feldman Shefali Luthra

Arts & Culture Editors Hannah Abelow Maddie Berg

Head Photo Editor Emily Gilbert

General Managers Julia Kuwahara Samuel Plotner

Managing Editors Elizabeth Carr Jordan Hendricks

City & State Editors Sona Mkrttchian Adam Toobin

Senior Editors Aparna Bansal Alexa Pugh

Features Editors Jennifer Kaplan Elizabeth Koh

Strategic Director Greg Jordan-Detamore

Science & Research Editors Phoebe Draper Kate Nussenbaum

BLOG DAILY HERALD Editor-in-Chief Meredith Bilski

Sports Editors James Blum Connor Grealy

Managing Editor David Oyer

University News Editors David Chung Mathias Heller Eli Okun

POST- MAGAZINE

Editorial Page Editor Rachel Occhiogrosso

Editor-in-Chief Ben Resnik

Opinions Editors Gabby Corvese Garret Johnson Maggie Tennis

Photo Editors Brittany Comunale David Deckey Samuel Kase Sports Photo Editor Jesse Schwimmer Video Editors Henry Chaisson Assistant: Danny Garfield Data Science Editor Andersen Chen Web Producer Joseph Stein Design Editors Kyle McNamara Mie Morikubo Julia Shube Assistant: Sandra Yan

facebook.com/browndailyherald

@the_herald

browndailyherald.com

Directors Sales: Eliza Coogan Finance: Nicole Shimer Alumni Relations: Emily Chu Business Dev.: Justin Lee

Location: 195 Angell St., Providence, R.I. www.browndailyherald.com

Office Manager Shawn Reilly

Corrections: 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.

Sales Managers Regional: Jennifer Aitken Regional: Jaqueline Chang Regional: Leslie Chen Regional: Wenli Shao Regional: Carolyn Stichnoth Student Group: Anisa Holmes Finance Managers Collections: Sameer Sarkar Collections: Timothy Sharng Operations: Sarah Levine

Copy Desk Chief Sara Palasits

Alumni Relations Manager Engagement: Alison Pruzan

Illustrations Editor Angelia Wang

Business Dev. Managers Project Leader: Melody Cao Project Leader: Kaden Lee

Editorial contact: 401-351-3372 herald@browndailyherald.com

Business contact: 401-351-3260 gm@browndailyherald.com

Commentary: 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: 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: The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. reserves the right to accept or decline any advertisement at its discretion. 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. Subscription prices: $280 one year daily, $140 one semester daily. Copyright 2013 by The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. All rights reserved. Periodicals postage paid at Providence, R.I. Postmaster: Please send corrections to P.O. Box 2538, Providence, RI 02906.


commentary 11

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2013

Undergraduates must trust administrators SAMANTHA ISMAN opinions columnist

The publication of President Christina Paxson’s strategic plan has caused doubt and confusion rather than the desired confidence and support. The student body seems unhappy with many of the things that were left unsaid or remained vague. But we have to put more faith in our university’s leader and believe that whatever she is planning will be for the best of the student body. I believe that the vagueness of the plan could work to our advantage. As a university, Brown has always been known for its focus on undergraduate

education. The shift from referring to Brown as a university-college to just a university is a result of the growth we have already undergone. Additionally, it represents the openness to continued growth and expansion of our global influence, both of which are part of Brown’s mission. Paxson is not going to change what Brown stands for: its amazing undergraduate experience. The emergence of stronger and larger graduate programs means that we will be attracting brighter minds to our campus. This could be a huge benefit to undergraduates, who would get to work with faculty members at the forefront of their fields. Paxson acknowledges the possibilities that this opens for undergraduates by saying that “we will continue to emphasize close interactions between

students and faculty.” Her ideas for increasing the liberal learning curriculum and creating sophomore seminars as well as new undergraduate courses prove that she has undergraduate education in mind when discussing Brown’s future. This is not a large change from what the University stands for today. The plan strives to mainstain Brown as an institution of higher learning respected throughout the world. The plan includes ideas to connect Brown courses with actual international fieldwork, mainly through Undergraduate Teaching and Research Awards. These programs provide students with the possibility of putting the skills they learn in classrooms to use without having to work without pay. They allow students to continue learn-

ing what they want and to make use of the Open Curriculum at their discretion, even in the summer months. This will lead to a wider range of possible internships and research opportunities for undergraduates. The separation of Brown into an undergraduate hub on College Hill and a graduate space in the Jewelry District and downtown will not harm undergraduates. In fact, a common complaint from many undergraduates today is that there is not enough space for classes and student groups. Paxson’s plan to increase the availability of these spaces will mean more opportunities for students to enjoy all that Brown has to offer. There will be less competition with graduate students for space on College Hill, which is undoubtedly a good thing.

The planned changes for Brown all involve undergraduates in some form or another — this plan was drafted with us in mind. While a large part of the plan focuses on graduate programs, it seems unfair and selfish for the undergraduate population to expect the plan to be completely centered on us. Brown also must focus on the improvement of its professional schools. Though Brown is an undergraduate-focused institution, the University is not just for undergraduates. We have to remember that Paxson’s plan is not proposing changes itoBrown’s mission and focus — it is trying to improve them.

Sami Isman ‘15 wishes everyone were more positive. She can be reached at samantha_isman@brown.edu.

R O U N D TA B L E

Is the strategic plan good for undergraduates? Helping grads helps undergrads

Plan ignores key student needs

job prospects are abysmal and that the last thing you need is a loan because you wouldn’t be able to meet your five-year deadline. On your desk is a sizeable stack of lab reports or papers waiting to be graded. Naturally, self-interest will prevail — not for lack of good intention, but with the prospect of a student loan ominously looming overhead. Grading might get short shrift, let alone writing elaborate constructive criticism. This obviously sells all parties short. If Brown wants excellence in research and teaching, it needs to alleviate the tensions between scholar and teacher. This is why the extra funding going to the graduate programs will benefit undergraduates just as much as graduate students. In short, it will buy them time. Time that graduate students can spend with them or on them as teachers. I’d like to think a one-on-one conversation with a graduate TA or instructor on how to avoid those pesky run-on sentences, on how to read that 18th-century primary source or on how to go from lab data to an argument is a lot more helpful than reading the MLA handbook or Schmoop. It is direct contact with faculty and graduate instructors that will benefit undergraduate students the most, and vice versa. When I think about my time in school, the first thing that comes to mind is not the essay on the Frankfurt School or the “Sopranos” episode I watched for class — yes, I was a humanities major — but the professor who showed me how texts spoke to each other and how I could analyze them in a meaningful way. The buzzword for tools such as these is “transferable skills,” and they are only cultivated through close personal interaction.To give undergraduates the time they deserve, graduate students need continued and expanded support from the Graduate School. This is what the strategic plan commits to, and I hope the administration will keep its promise when it starts filling in the framework proposed in it. As Provost Mark Schlissel P’15 recently said in a different context, “the devil’s in the details.” The plan holds significant promise for the undergraduate community and not just under the section that carries its name.

Serious changes need to be made to Brown’s housing, as well. The quality discrepancy between dorms has ballooned in recent times. While Metcalf Hall and Miller Hall boast spacious personal bathrooms with finished sinks, Graduate Center bathrooms are filled with shoddy light fixtures and cramped showers and stalls, all expected to be cleaned by students. Some dorms come with lounges on every floor, while others don’t even have a communal area for their residents. This growing inequity leads to student stress over the housing lottery, since a randomly assigned number determines a student’s quality of housing. This is a matter that deserves more than one line in the plan. Paxson should be forthright in outlining which of Brown’s dorms she intends to renovate, identifying to what degree these changes will address some of the issues listed above and setting a strict timetable to follow. Without giving any direct cost estimates, calculations or projections, the strategic plan claims it will do everything from fostering Brown’s educational programs to expanding and diversifying the faculty to becoming fully need-blind. Paxson claims funding will come from new revenue streams, grants, donations and cost control. A shorter way of saying this is higher tuition and student fees to subsidize the University’s expenditures. Look no further than Brown’s 5.6 percent expansion of financial aid for fiscal year 2014 enacted last February. The change was accompanied by a 4 percent increase in total undergraduate tuition and fees, raising them to $57,232 per year. Given that the University’s balance sheet and endowment are significantly smaller than those of other Ivy League institutions, this likely won’t change on the basis of a vague, eleven-page plan. The administration will almost definitely pass increased costs on to students. If they’re going to do so, then they should at least focus on undergraduate needs. The strategic plan should enrich Brown’s economics program, genuinely address housing and food problems and maintain its overall ethos of making Brown need-blind and socially responsible. Until it does that, I don’t see how it can have any serious positive impact on the undergraduate body.

SUZANNE ENZERINK GS opinions columnist

Will the strategic plan benefit undergraduates? The question can be answered succinctly: yes. While the phrasing presupposes there are discrete interests for the constituencies within the University, most commitments made in the plan will reverberate beyond the body that receives actual funding. It is not competition, but rather cooperation that defines the University. One example of such impact is the ambition articulated to give graduate students the resources to become “more effective teachers.” The ability to fully devote time to teaching is directly contingent upon funding. All of this acquires extra immediacy if the University decides to go forward with the proposed “modest growth” in the size of its student body, as the liberal arts are grounded in low student-faculty ratios and close personal mentorship. Let me start by saying this: Being a graduate student is a privileged position. Coming from a large public university, I am cognizant of the fact that being at Brown multiplies the privilege. I get to pursue what I love, work with some of the smartest, most encouraging people I’ve met — faculty members and peers — and work to push the boundaries of understanding. I get to share my knowledge through a variety of media, from publishing to conferences. But I mostly get to share it through teaching. I am a new graduate student, still — perhaps naively — invested in the idea that teaching and researching are not only compatible but in fact enhance each other. I count the days until I can start being a teaching assistant and talk with undergraduates about topics I think matter. But this requires that I have the time to immerse myself in such dialogues. Undergraduates frequently ask me what graduate students do on a day-to-day basis. As a first-year student, I’m somewhat of the odd one out. But picture this scenario, elevated to an almost mythological status in the graduate community: It is 11 p.m. You are reading for comprehensive exams while trying to figure out how to keep your apartment for the summer. The devil on your shoulder looks a lot like the National Science Foundation chair, reminding you that

Suzanne Enzerink GS is in the American Studies department, and likes teaching so much that she spent one year doing it before coming to Brown.

JAY UPADHYAY opinions columnist

The strategic plan in its current form is insufficient in meeting undergraduate student needs and is downright unrealistic. It fails to propose improvements to critical concentrations, doesn’t key in on the most relevant student concerns and glosses over funding requisite to make these changes. President Christina Paxson emphasizes further developing the humanities in conjunction with medical education, creative arts and a few other disciplines. Yet little to no attention is given to Brown’s economics concentration. Since 2009, economics has been the University’s most popular concentration. Because Brown doesn’t have an undergraduate business degree, those interested in finance and business flock to these courses to learn about corporate finance, investments and markets. Compound that with the near-full enrollment in classes such as ENGN 0090: “Management of Industrial and Nonprofit Organizations,” ENGN 0900: “Managerial Decision Making” and ENGN 1010: “The Entrepreneurial Process: Innovation and Practice,” which attempt to teach basic managerial decision-making and case study analysis, and Brown is left with insufficient resources to meet growing demand from its students. Paxson does not necessarily need to create an undergraduate business degree, but doing something to offer real management courses to the droves of Brown students interested in the material would be appreciated. The strategic plan does not propose serious changes to two important student concerns: housing and food. Renovations to the Sharpe Refectory and unnamed dorms are mentioned, but this should be a focal point, not a side note. Not only are items at many of Brown’s eateries marked up for the sheer purpose of matching the value of one meal credit, such as sandwiches at the Blue Room and Josiah’s, but the quality of food offered also pales in comparison to what’s served at surrounding restaurants on Thayer. Street. Making changes to existing dining halls isn’t enough. Paxson needs to find a way for Brown students to get a wider selection of quality food, even if it means bringing in outside enterprises like Stanford University has done.

Jay Upadhyay ’15 can be reached at jay_upadhyay@brown.edu.


daily herald sports friday THE BROWN

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2013

Bears seek to bully Bulldogs McCoy ’14: You’ll FOOTBALL

never walk alone

The squad hopes to go undefeated against nonconference opponents for the third year in a row

ETHAN MCCOY sports columnist

By CALEB MILLER SENIOR STAFF WRITER

The football team captured the Governor’s Cup last weekend and its Rhode Island matchups continue Saturday when the Bears travel to Bryant University. The in-state foe is the only team standing between Bruno (2-1, Ivy 0-1) and its third consecutive undefeated season against non-conference opponents. The squad has gone 8-0 in these matchups since 2010, but Saturday will mark the first time in team history that Brown has squared off against Bryant (3-2, NEC 1-0). The team considers non-conference games as important to success as Ivy League games, said quarterback and co-captain Patrick Donnelly ’13.5, adding that “outsiders” might overlook a non-league opponent. Watching film of the talented Bryant team has shown the Bears how focused their play must be to win Saturday, Donnelly said. “They have a lot of good players and particularly a good defense,” Donnelly said. “We’re thinking this is as tough a team as we’ve seen all season.” » See BRYANT, page 8

EMILY GILBERT / HERALD

Wide receiver Jordan Evans ’14 pulled down six receptions in the team’s last match-up against the University of Rhode Island.

I’ve been a diehard Liverpool fan since 2006, but most people don’t know that about me. I wake up early on weekends to watch grainy and buffering feeds of matches I’m certain will spell the demise of my laptop. I follow players on the rise in the youth academy. I know not to trust any transfer rumor until the club itself announces it. But I do all this on my own. No watch parties. No banter. I’m not an antisocial sports fan — I’ll talk your ear off about the Patriots, Celtics or Red Sox. But these are the teams I grew up with. I identify with them, the place they call home and their fans who feel the same way. But in my obsession with Liverpool as an American, I find isolation. The seeds of my obsession were sown in the second grade, when my parents allowed me to go over to the house of a friend who had FIFA 2002 and a Playstation. For some reason, which I now attribute to cosmic forces, I was drawn to the Liverpool strike force of Emile Heskey and Michael Owen. I had never seen the two play in real life or on television, but in their

pixilated forms, I found my two favorite footballers — players I imagined myself as when playing during recess (narrating my every movement with the accent of a British sportscaster in my head). Four years later, when watching Univision coverage of the 2006 World Cup that I couldn’t understand, I fell in love with Peter Crouch, a goofy 6-foot-8 beanpole of a striker with mediocre skills who ran awkwardly about the pitch and did the robot after he scored. When I looked him up and discovered he played for Liverpool (at the time I was still operating with the starting 11 from my friend’s out-ofdate video game), I knew that it was destiny — this club, in a hardscrabble English port city miles away that I had never heard of before, was the one for me. So I bought a knockoff Crouch No.15 jersey from Thailand on eBay, the letters and numbers of which disintegrated the first time through the wash. I updated my MySpace with bandwidth-sucking videos of a Crouch bicycle kick goal in the Champions League group stage against Galatasaray and top 10 compilations of the captain Steven Gerrard’s best goals. My parents reluctantly bought me a Playstation 2 of my own, and » See MCCOY, page 9


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Friday, October 11, 2013 by The Brown Daily Herald - Issuu