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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD TUESDAY, MARCH 10, 2015
VOLUME CL, ISSUE 33
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Watson ’14 urges men to support feminism New venue to blend liberal
COURTESY OF SOCIAL NEWS DAILY
Emma Watson ’14 said her speech to the United Nations Sept. 20 was a “wake-up call” and “the most important thing I could possibly do.”
Groups across campus unite to watch livestream of Q&A session promoting HeForShe campaign By KATE TALERICO SENIOR STAFF WRITER
“Males are ready to get on board, but now they’re asking ‘How do I help?’”
said Emma Watson ’14 in a questionand-answer session promoting the HeForShe campaign, an initiative that encourages men to join the movement toward gender equality. A live stream of the event, which was held in Wilson 301 on International Women’s Day Sunday, was sponsored by multiple student groups, including Women in Science and Engineering, Feminists at Brown and Alpha Epsilon Pi.
“International Women’s Day is an important time to raise awareness that gender equality is still very much an issue,” said Nicole Shimer ’16, co-president of Brown’s Socially Responsible Investment Fund and former Herald general manager, another sponsor of the event. The majority of the Q&A focused on the importance of men’s roles in the feminist movement. Watson unpacked the definition of feminism — a word people have come to associate with “man hate.” “I don’t think that’s what feminism is about at all. I think it’s something that’s actually incredibly positive,” she said, adding that people have recently returned back to the true meaning of feminism, “which is equality economically, politically, socially.” “I think men think it’s a women’s word, but it really just means that you believe in equality. And if you stand for equality, you’re a feminist, I’m sorry to tell you,” Watson said. Watson, a UN Women Goodwill Ambassador, first launched the HeForShe campaign in a speech delivered to the United Nations Sept. 20. The video of her speech went viral, and has accumulated over 6 million views worldwide on YouTube since September. “It felt like one of the most surreal moments of my life,” Watson said. » See, WATSON, page 3
and performing arts Initiatives will bring orchestra out of Sayles, new faculty members to Brown, Brown to Berlin By CATHERINE WALKER-JACKS CONTRIBUTING WRITER
The University will likely have a site selected for its new performing arts venue by this summer, said Michael Steinberg, vice provost for the arts. Other key initiatives Steinberg is currently pursuing include better integrating the arts into the greater Brown curriculum and establishing a “global conservatory” in Berlin. “Brown has decided it’s going to do something very exciting with the arts that combines the arts with the liberal arts,” Steinberg said. Specifically, the University is looking to blend the arts more fully into the liberal arts curriculum, including both humanities and sciences, he added. Steinberg said there are “two halves” to completing this goal: the program and the facilities. “There is a commitment to develop both sides of that. And to think of an academic program that will, in fact, combine arts and the liberal arts education with new possibilities, new resources, new programs, new faculty and new kinds of faculty,” he said. Hiring visiting professors and
academics in art-related fields will be important for integrating arts within other departments. Steinberg said that the process is in motion and requires a lot of conversation with departments, faculty members and students. “We’ve been brainstorming with groups of students and faculty about what they would like to see happen at Brown. … The kinds of faculty, the kinds of programs, the kinds of space on campus, but also off-campus” are all topics of discussion, Steinberg said. The University hopes to have a campus site for a new performance venue chosen by this summer, Steinberg said. “We’ve been working with some very interesting design and consulting firms in New York to talk to about not only the site but the type of space and also the kind of acoustics for the performance space,” he said. Grace Stokan ’16 and Dharsan Chandrakumar ’18, members of the orchestra, stressed the need for and expressed excitement about a new performance venue on campus. “We have quite a good music program, so we really should have the facilities for it,” Stokan said. Currently, the orchestra performs in Sayles Hall, a space that both students said is inadequate due to its poor acoustics and limited seating. » See ARTS, page 2
U. to offer five online courses this summer Online courses aim to give more personal, intensive learning experiences for undergrads who enroll By SHAVON BELL SENIOR STAFF WRITER
The School of Professional Studies will offer five online undergraduate courses this summer, marking an uptick from last year’s two. Each course will last seven weeks and provide full semester credit. James Chansky, director of summer session and pre-college programs at the School of Professional Studies, said he began planning this summer’s courses about a year ago, when he emailed faculty members asking them to consider developing online coursework. The project accelerated soon after, as Chansky worked with Ren Whitaker, director of online development for the School of Professional Studies, as well as structural designers and deans to adapt each faculty member’s curricular goals to an online course format, he added.
INSIDE
Professor of CognitiveScience and Psychology Dave Sobel, who will teach CLPS 0610: “Children’s Thinking: Introduction to Cognitive Development,” met with a designer once a week throughout the fall semester to design the course, he said. Sobel said he was drawn to teaching an online course because the format will allow him to “explore a very different aspect of pedagogy.” The online format will contrast starkly with the large lectures in which introductory courses are usually taught, he added. “What appealed to me about the style of this kind of online course was that it was going to be very interactive; it was going to be much smaller; it was going to be discussion-based,” he said. Using Canvas, faculty members will participate in discussion boards with their students, as well as post assignments and videos of themselves giving lectures and outlining lessons, Chansky said. Assistant Professor of Humanities Johanna Hanink said she anticipates » See ONLINE, page 2
DAVID DECKEY / HERALD
Griffin Thompson ’16, Assistant Professor Katherine Smith, President Christina Paxson P ’19, Senior Lecturer Richard Bungiro PhD ’99 and Instructional Coordinator for Biology Sarah Taylor attend Day of Biology.
Craig Mello ’82 gives biology keynote Nobel Prize winner Mello presents research on RNA interference, lectures on gene expression By GABRIELLA REYES SENIOR STAFF WRITER
“Gene expression is really simple. Everyone should know it and feel comfortable
thinking about it,” said Nobel laureate Craig Mello ’82, professor of molecular medicine at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, at a lecture Saturday morning in a packed Salomon 101. Mello’s keynote lecture, entitled “RNA memories: Secrets of inheritance and immortality,” kicked off Day
SCIENCE & RESEARCH
of Biology, a day-long event commemorating life sciences at Brown. His lecture was followed by colloquia on a variety of topics in biology as well as current relevant University research. Mello provided an introduction to genetics before delving into his own research on RNA interference, which won him the 2006 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. He began by discussing germ lines, » See BIOLOGY, page 4
WEATHER
TUESDAY, MARCH 10, 2015
SCIENCE & RESEARCH Researchers discover implications for human fertility in gene study of male mice
SPORTS Blasberg ’18: Boston sports teams boast star players in four major sports, with Chicago on its heels
COMMENTARY Asker ’17: Concerns over Phi Psi member’s preferential treatment are unfounded
COMMENTARY SATF undergrads: University mishandled case, denied agency to survivors of alleged assault
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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
an “investment,” Chandrakumar said. But it could “attract a lot of interest in the school from prospective students” and “make attending orchestra performances more enticing” he said. Steinberg said that the new facility would have both performance and studio space, and include “various kinds of incubator spaces for collaborative
projects that will involve visiting artists and students.” He hopes that the new facility “will become a kind of hub of creative life on campus.” Steinberg also stressed a “global component” of his initiatives that would provide students with expanded opportunities away from Providence. A major project in the works is to establish a
“global conservatory” program in Berlin, beginning with partnerships with existing programs. Steinberg cited the city’s unique history of being “not only a major city, but a city of cultural and political encounter” and a “pioneering city with a long history in the arts.” Brown will be aided by its “several key partners in Berlin” Steinberg said, including three major Berlin universities, U.S. colleges with Berlin campuses and other smaller research and arts institutions in the city. Steinberg hopes that collaboration will start this summer for a few Brown students with a theater program in Berlin run by Bard College. There is an existing program for Brown students in Berlin that is run by the Department of German Studies that “will be very important as an example,” Steinberg said. Steinberg added that he has taken three groups of students to Berlin on pilot programs over spring break in the last four years. “They’ve all had to write reports about how Berlin could become important to their curriculum, and so I’ve gotten a lot of feedback from students who are very excited about it,” he said.
Sobel plans to use voice threads, in which the professor poses a question, and “every student generates 10 seconds of speech using their webcam to answer the question,” he explained. In relation to these highly personal modules, Chansky said he believes the online course format will require more constant concentration from students than some large lecture courses on campus. “It’s just a lot easier to show up in
a room at 10 o’clock and pay half attention. … But you can’t really coast and be invisible in an online course. It requires more self-discipline and focus,” he said. Hanink noted that online courses also require increased attention on the part of instructors. “The standards for best practice are higher, because it’s so scrutinized,” since online coursework is such a new format for learning, she said. Faculty members must be sure that
they are “being really clear about their learning objectives and (are) making sure that the content matches up with those objectives,” she added. Sobel echoed Hanink’s sentiment, saying that he expects to “learn as much about how to teach in this format as the students will hopefully learn about the content of the course.” Other courses to be offered online this summer include Professor of
ELI WHITE / HERALD
New performing arts facilities and programs are coming to campus soon to support students’ interest in performing arts and “will become a kind of hub of creative life on campus,” said Vice Provost for the Arts Michael Steinberg.
» ARTS, from page 1 In envisioning a new venue, Stokan said she would love a “classical style to match the old architecture on Brown’s campus,” but, more than anything else, the venue should be “acoustically good and fit a large audience comfortably.” A new performance space would be
» ONLINE, from page 1 using video technology to enhance course materials. She added that she intends to teach her CLAS 0900: “Greek Mythology” while in Greece, where she usually spends her summers. The online courses will be capped at 18 students, so that each student can take a prominent role in discussion and have valuable interactions with peers.
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This initiative “is growing,” Steinberg said, adding that he thinks “there will be several stages to it.” There are many opportunities for professional opportunities for students in the arts in Berlin, and Brown has many contacts, “either direct or indirect, with artists who have studios in Berlin” that offer internship programs, Steinberg said. These include internships with artists in all fields, including visual arts, graphics, music, museum studies and more, he said. This year, Steinberg added, a student has applied for a summer internship in Berlin with one of the most famous installation sculpture artists in the world. Brown has the chance to combine the arts with the liberal arts “in a really cutting-edge way,” Steinberg said. “And frankly, I don’t think that’s been done.” Steinberg, formerly the director of the Cogut Center for the Humanities and a professor of history, said he is enjoying his role as vice provost for the arts, a new position the administration announced in November. “I get to talk to all sorts of people both off campus and on campus and brainstorm with creative people.” Steinberg assumed the position Jan. 1. Classics Joseph Pucci’s CLAS 1120U: “The American Presidents and the Western Tradition,” Senior Lecturer in English Elizabeth Taylor’s and Associate Professor of English and Comparative Literature Stephen Foley’s ’74 P’04 P’07 sections of ENGL 0930: “Introduction to Creative Nonfiction” and Senior Lecturer in German Studies Jane Sokolosky’s GRMN 0120: “German for Reading.”
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
This Week in Higher Ed BY CAROLINE KELLY, UNIVERSITY NEWS EDITOR
University of Oklahoma suspends fraternity over racist chant A 10-second video has surfaced showing members of the University of Oklahoma chapter of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity chanting racist slurs, the Washington Post reported Monday. The clip was first posted online Sunday night by Unheard, a black student activist group, with the caption “Racism is alive at the University of Oklahoma.” The national SAE organization closed the campus chapter the same night the video was released, KOCO-TV reported. “All of the members have been suspended, and those members who are responsible for the incident may have their membership privileges revoked permanently,” the national SAE organization posted on the chapter’s website. “We apologize for the unacceptable and racist behavior of the individuals in the video, and we are disgusted that any member would act in such a way.” A crowd of OU community members gathered in protest Monday morning, and OU President David Boren announced that SAE members would be required to leave campus by midnight Monday. “All of us will redouble our efforts to create the strongest sense of family and community,” Boren wrote in a letter to the community. “We vow that we will be an example to the entire country of how to deal with this issue. There must be zero tolerance for racism everywhere in our nation.”
UC Irvine vetoes campus ban on American flags Leaders of the Associated Students of the University of California at Irvine met Saturday to veto resolution R50-70, a motion to ban the American flag on campus, NBC Los Angeles and CBS Los Angeles reported. In a six-to-four vote Thursday, with two abstaining, the group’s general body passed a resolution written by Matthew Guevara stating that the presence of the flag creates “paradigms of conformity and sets homogenized standards for others to obtain which, in this country, typically are idolized as freedom, equality and democracy.” ASUCI President Reza Zomorrodian expressed opposition to the vote despite its passing. An administrative post on the school’s website stated that the legislation passed by the student council did not reflect the views of campus leaders or the university and that “the American flag is still proudly flying throughout our campus and will continue to do so,” NBC reported.
UCLA student council catches heat for questioning Jewish candidate The Undergraduate Students Association Council at the University of California at Los Angeles has come under fire for inappropriately questioning a Jewish candidate for the Student Judicial Board and subsequently removing a video of the Feb. 10 meeting from its website, the Huffington Post reported. The USAC asked student Rachel Beyda about whether she could be “unbiased” while being “a Jewish student and very active in the Jewish community” and if she held “any political affiliations that could cause a conflict of interest” were she to be elected to the position. Beyda had been nominated by USAC President Avinoam Baral, who tells USAC members in the video that he does not “think that’s a question we’d feel comfortable asking other students,” according to the Huffington Post. Video recordings of the meetings are typically published on the group’s website. After the video had been taken down, the university responded to requests for its republication, informing interested parties that the decision to take it down had been made by USAC’s internal vice president’s office. Minutes from the meeting show the vote on accepting Beyda changed from 4-4 to unanimous after USAC was presented with its conflict of interest policy, which reflected that Beyda’s religious identity was not, in fact, a possible conflict of interest, the Huffington Post reported. “No student should feel threatened that they would be unable to participate in a university activity because of their religion,” wrote UCLA Chancellor Gene Block in a campus-wide email following the incident, the Huffington Post reported.
UNIVERSITY NEWS TUESDAY, MARCH 10, 2015 • PAGE 3
» WATSON, from page 1 “I remember at the end of it seeing people start to stand up. I felt like I could die happy. I felt like I’d done the most important thing I could possibly do,” she added. Watson said she has felt pulled toward the feminist movement since she was young. “I was clearing out my room a while ago, and I was going through diary entries I’d written when I was 15, and I saw that my speech to the UN had been gestating in my head for years.” “She’s clearly a very intelligent woman who has a clear idea of what her goals are. Since she happens to be a role model in the eyes of many men and women … that puts her in a position to really raise awareness,” Shimer said. Watson said she has received a positive response from many of her fans since giving her speech at the UN. “I got a lot of emails from my peer group, guys I was at university with,” she said, eliciting whispers of “That’s us!” throughout the live stream room. Watson added that she has also gathered support from various corporations and institutions, such as Tupperware and the University of Oxford, which she said have vowed to support the campaign. During the speech, Watson encouraged men specifically to sign the petition on her site, HeForShe.org, which has already garnered 200,000 signatures from men across the globe. “I really believe in equality for everybody,” said Jordan Shaw ’16, a member of AEPi. “Men and women aren’t treated as equally as they should be.” Shaw said that AEPi decided to support the event to create a space where “interaction between men and women” could occur and men could feel safe to “participate in discussion,” though he added that he was not surprised by the small number of men in attendance. Though Watson repeatedly encouraged men to sign the petition
throughout the live broadcast, students were confused about the campaign’s practical efforts to end gender inequality. “I didn’t really get what HeForShe was about and what it’s doing to achieve the change she was talking about,” said Patris Pustina ’18, adding that the Q&A session “seemed pretty watered down, pretty mellow.” Despite her campaign’s success, Watson said she has encountered setbacks. “Some of the harshest criticism I’ve had have been comments from other women,” she said. “It’s not enough to ask men to come and support us — we really need to support each other.” Watson added that certain people have tried to undermine her role as a feminist spokesperson. Shortly after Watson’s UN speech was posted online, someone launched a website with a countdown to the release of naked photos of her, even though she “knew the pictures didn’t exist,” she said. Many people think that gender inequality is a thing of the past, but “the moment I stepped up to talk about women’s rights, they saw that I was immediately threatened,” Watson said. “It was a wake-up call.” The hoax website did not tame Watson’s feminist fire, but rather ignited it. “I was raging. I thought, ‘This is why I have to do this,’” she said. Some of the female students in attendance said they felt similarly incited by backlash from peers and family members and regard Watson’s work as a model for their own. Caroline Carper ’17 said some of her family members do not believe the gender gap exists in the modern age. “I obviously am one day going to be in the workforce. I don’t want to be left behind,” she said. “I want to know if (the gender gap) is a thing or isn’t, and if it is, how I can change that and encourage people to partake in that change as well.” “Not only do I agree with the movement, but I wanted to understand it better,” said Kate Ferguson ’18, a member of Feminists at Brown. “I also
want to be able to relay information to people who can’t be here from back home. … I come from a place where feminism isn’t widely known about, where people aren’t widely versed in the issues.” In her September speech, Watson discussed the pressure put on men to express masculine qualities. She was disturbed by the idea that men shouldn’t cry or express emotion, she said. “What you feel — being passionate, being emotional — it’s not what makes you a girl. It’s what makes you human,” she said. She also stressed the importance of young women’s right to defy gendered stereotypes. “Don’t let anyone tell you what you can or cannot do, or can or cannot achieve. Be whatever you want to be.” One audience member at the Q&A asked about the discrepancy in pay between Watson and her co-stars Daniel Radcliffe and Rupert Grint from the Harry Potter series. Watson chose not to single out her castmates, choosing instead to address gender inequality problems within the film industry more broadly. Currently, women comprise 7 percent of directors, 7 percent of writers and 13 percent of film executives, she added. “Why are we not telling women’s story? Why are women not telling their own stories?” she asked. Watson also prepared facts that emphasize current gender discrimination in the United Kingdom: About 85,000 women are raped in the U.K. each year; there exists a 16 percent gender pay gap; the parliament is 77 percent male. “We’re meant to be one of the biggest, most progressive democracies in the world. We should be at the forefront of this. We should be leading the way, and yet we’re straggling behind,” she said. Watson said that at the current rate of progress, she does not expect to see gender discrimination eradicated in her lifetime. “But I think I will just refuse to die (until that happens),” she added.
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SPORTS
PAGE 4 • TUESDAY, MARCH 10, 2015
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Boston claims more top athletes than any other city BY CHARLIE BLASBERG sports columnist
After Tom Brady’s Patriots won their fourth Super Bowl last month, Brady solidified himself as one of the best quarterbacks ever. But he is just one of many great Boston sports figures that have graced the world of sports. The legends and lore of the Celtics, Red Sox, Bruins and Patriots are among the richest icons, and the characters that feature prominently in those stories are among the greatest athletes to compete in major American sports. Boston is unique and the argument can be made that, for each of the four major sports, the greatest, most important athlete played the majority of his career in Boston. First, I’d like to clarify that this is not an argument about who is the greatest player in each sport. I despise those conversations. They are arbitrary and rarely move beyond two or three names. My point is that the sports teams of Boston have produced a phenomenal athlete in each sport,
» BIOLOGY, from page 1 the cells used for sexual reproduction. “Germ lines exist on a cosmic time scale. Every animal on this planet is related to each other — we’re all related to each other.” The germ lines of humans and nematodes — also known as roundworms — “have journeyed together on this planet for three million years,” he said, adding that a wide range of animal biology can inform the study of human anatomy and physiology. Mello discussed the relationship
and no other city can say that. The Bruins were home to Bobby Orr, the wonder kid from Perry Sound, Ontario. He revolutionized the role of defenseman, and his vision and talent were unmatched. In conversations of the greatest NHL players, Orr and Wayne Gretzky dominate as the unquestioned two best. Though Orr played two seasons with the Chicago Blackhawks, knee injuries prevented him from being successful there. He will always be remembered as a Bruin. The Celtics produced the great Bill Russell, who has more championship rings than fingers to put them on. A player-coach for three seasons, Russell was the undisputed best defender of his time and remains the greatest player basketball has ever seen. For baseball, in 1939, the Boston Red Sox picked up 19-year-old Ted Williams, whom an announcer at the 1999 All Star Game described as “the greatest hitter that ever lived.” The Splinter was the last player to bat over .400, and he did it 74 years ago, which leads me to believe that it may not happen again. The Patriots have produced Tom Brady, a four-time Super Bowl
champion, who has been the undisputed leader of the franchise for over a decade. During his tenure, the Patriots have won 12 of 14 AFC East titles, and for one of the two years they didn’t win, Brady missed the season with an injury. Many cities have produced great players. There is nothing unique about that. What is special about Boston is that each team has produced figures that are legends in their respective sports. New York has brought slews of great Yankees, but the Knicks, Nets, Giants, Jets and Rangers haven’t boasted players that can be considered the greatest of all time. The same goes for Dallas. Their Cowboys have three all-time greats in Emmitt Smith, Troy Aikman and Roger Staubach, but other Dallas sports fall short. The two cities that can challenge Boston are Los Angeles and Chicago. The city of Los Angeles has a tradition of great athletes that is comparable to but cannot rival that of Boston. The Kings were home to Wayne Gretzky for eight years in the middle of his career, but Gretzky’s greatest years came in Edmonton, where he
won all four of his Stanley Cups. The Lakers have brought us Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Magic Johnson, both of whom are worthy candidates for the best ever. The greatest L.A. baseball player was Sandy Koufax, a great southpaw pitcher who led the Dodgers to two World Series, but neither his level of play nor his overall contribution to the sport eclipses that of Ted Williams. The L.A. Rams’ Fearsome Foursome dominated during the 1960s, but no one player stands out as one of the greatest of all time. Chicago is the city that most challenges Boston. The Chicago Bulls had Michael Jordan, who won six championships in the Windy City. Though Jordan played elsewhere, 13 of his 15 seasons came with the Bulls. While he did not win as many titles as Russell, he won his in a more competitive era. The Blackhawks, an Original Six team, produced two stars in Bobby Hull and Stan Mikita, but both of these players usually rank from 10 to 15 on all-time-greatest lists, while the likes of Orr and Gretzky consistently appear in the top three. The Bears had Walter Payton, a dynamic running back out of Jackson State University.
“Sweetness,” along with Barry Sanders and Emmitt Smith, is one of the three most effective running backs the game has seen. Because of the nature of football, it is difficult to compare players of different positions; Brady’s Patriots have been more successful than Payton’s Bears, but Payton has picked up more MVPs than Brady has. Finally, the greatest baseball player to come out of Chicago has to be Ernie Banks, a rare shortstop who hit for power. His career, characterized by both longevity and magnificence, is asterisked somewhat because he never played in the playoffs, but I see that as more reflective of the lowly Cubs organization than of Banks. The only thing I see keeping Chicago from Boston’s level is a great hockey player, and if Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane can augment their success in the next five seasons, they may enter the conversation. But for now, Boston holds the crown as the only city with an all-time great in every sport. If this decade is any indication, Boston teams will continue to boast the greatest players of all time for years to come.
between DNA, RNA, ribosomes — the part of the cell that creates proteins — and gene expression. DNA encodes information that is transformed into messenger RNA, which brings the genetic information to the ribosomes, linking amino acids in ordered pairs to create an organism’s proteins. Mello said there are four building block nucleotides that combine to form codons, which code for the twenty amino acids — the precursor molecules of proteins. “Four letters in the alphabet make 20 different words, which are the amino
acids,” Mello said, adding that “RNA is really simple, but proteins are really diverse.” Mello also discussed his research on RNA interference, for which he and his collaborator Andrew Fire, professor of pathology and genetics at the Stanford University School of Medicine, shared their Nobel Prize. RNA interference can turn genes off, preventing their expression in the organism and its offspring. “We discovered that cells need a search engine,” Mello said. “They’re dealing with information in much the same way that we all do on the (Internet). The
precise chemical information allows a query to precisely identify a matching RNA cell.” By targeting messenger RNA, Mello and Fire “learned how to enter search queries inside of cells. We can find genes and regulate them. This is really transforming what we can do in the laboratory.” Using the mechanisms of RNA interference, researchers can now selectively turn genes off, he said. This method also has implications for repairing stem cells, Mello said, adding that, “We can modify the human germ
line, but it’s not safe yet.” Researchers can also genetically modify organisms to model human disease for research. “We’re at a time where we really need to educate the public about what we’re doing. As scientists we don’t often educate people about what’s happening, and I think that creates fear,” he said. The lecture was followed by a question-and-answer session, during which medical professionals and undergraduates posed questions about gene therapy and pursuing careers in research. “If you want to be a good scientist, follow your passion,” Mello advised.
TODAY
TUESDAY, MARCH 10, 2015 • PAGE 5
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menu
s p r i n g awa k e n i n g
SATELLITE DINING JOSIAH’S Crepes, Made-to-Order Quesadillas BLUE ROOM Chicken Saag and Avial Coconut Vegetable Curry Soups: Butternut Squash, Turkey Sausage and Kale, Three Bean Chili ANDREWS COMMONS Italian Beef Sandwich Pizzas: Bacon Chicken Ranch, Spicy Five Cheese and Garlic
DINING HALLS SHARPE REFECTORY LUNCH
DINNER
Daiya Cheddar Cheese Quesadilla, Spring Vegetable and Beef Stir-Fry, Freekah Salad LUNCH
Tuscan Parpardelle Pasta, Grilled Sweet Potato with Maple Sugar, Waffle Cut Fries
VERNEY-WOOLLEY
Sticky Rice with Edamame Beans, Vegan Oven Roasted Tofu, Asian Blend Vegetables
DINNER
Butternut Squash with Red Onion, Toasted Ravioli with Italian Salsa, Shepherd’s Pie
sudoku
TIMOTHY HARDER / HERALD
As temperatures slowly start to rise, snow that once formed mounds outside of the Sciences Library has melted to reveal the tables underneath.
comic Class Notes | Philip Trammell ‘15
crossword
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calendar TODAY 12:00 P.M. GENERAL STUDY ABROAD INFO SESSION
The Office of International Programs will talk about the study abroad process and answer students’ questions. J. Walter Wilson 440
TOMORROW 12:00 P.M. EVERYTHING YOU ALWAYS WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT GETTING OP-EDS PUBLISHED
Stephen Cohen ’75 will discuss strategies to improve your odds for getting op-eds published. Taubman Center, Seminar Room
6:00 P.M. VIJAY PRASHAD: DIVERSITY AND SOLIDARITY
Vijay Prishad, professor of international studies at Trinity College, will discuss the challenges facing solidarity in a socially divided world. Salomon 001
5:00 P.M. AN EXPLORATION OF MENTAL WELLNESS
Amy Kinney from PeaceLove Studios will speak about her personal experience with anxiety and depression. BioMed Center 202
7:00 P.M. POLICE PROFILING: CAUSES AND CONSEQUENCES
6:00 P.M. PHONE BANKING FOR MARIJUANA
Experts will explain the effects of policies that have led to police profiling. The panel is sponsored by the Center for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in America. BERT 130
REGULATION IN RI
Students for Sensible Drug Policy will hold a phone banking session in support of regulating marijuana. J. Walter Wilson 402
COMMENTARY PAGE 6 • TUESDAY, MARCH 10, 2015
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
EDITORIAL
Clear, calculated steps for a better Brown Brown hosted its first National Diversity Summit this past weekend to “explore how higher education engages in the work of developing and sustaining an increasingly diverse and inclusive academic community,” according to an online description of the event. Organized by the Office of Institutional Diversity, in collaboration with a number of other centers and offices, the summit brought together students, faculty members, administrators, staff members and thought leaders to discuss how to advance diversity and inclusion in the academy. Under former President Ruth Simmons’ Plan for Academic Enrichment, the size of the faculty increased substantially, but the proportion of faculty of color remained small. According to the Office of Institutional Research, in 2005-06, 7 percent of faculty members were of black, Latino, or American Indian descent, while 80 percent of the faculty was white. Almost a decade later, 8 percent of faculty members are underrepresented minorities, while 77 percent of faculty members are white. Following years of student and alumni criticism, the University has finally set a concrete and non-symbolic timeline to diversify its faculty. At a November 2014 faculty meeting, President Christina Paxson P’19 announced her “very ambitious” goal to double the number of underrepresented minority faculty members in the next decade. Summits and conferences are valuable forums at which to share best practices and ideas between institutions, scholars and practitioners. But conversations must culminate in action, policies and tangible progress, all in the service of disrupting the status quo. As outlined in The Herald’s “Pervasive Prejudice” series, the lack of diversity in academic departments at Brown is the result of several factors: fewer students of color pursuing doctoral degrees (often referred to as the “pipeline problem”), implicit bias in the hiring process, the unnecessary juxtaposition of “excellence” and “diversity” as factors when hiring professors of color. Certainly these structural issues pose significant hurdles for Brown and peer institutions to overcome, but they are not excuses for the disparity between white and faculty of color. Clear objectives, like doubling the number of underrepresented minority faculty members, are key to long-term changes at Brown. Strong, concrete goals alongside adequate time to implement them are vital to translate plans into practice. Many of the impediments that institutions must overcome to diversify their faculty — like tenure, decentralized departmental hiring and the pipeline — are faculty-specific and not applicable to other academic roles. Currently, only three of 21 senior administrators are people of color. If the University is serious about its commitment to diversify Brown, it must set an example and also commit to diversifying its leadership. There is no “diverse-enough” Brown as long as structural and social forces continue to impede low-income individuals and people of color. If the University is committed to the egalitarian values it trumpets, diversifying itself is not only a moral imperative but also a rational one. Editorials are written by The Herald’s editorial page board: its editors, Alexander Kaplan ’15 and James Rattner ’15, and its members, Natasha Bluth ’15, Manuel Contreras ’16, Baxter DiFabrizio ’15 and Aranshi Kumar ’17. Send comments to editorials@browndailyherald.com.
Letters, please! letters@browndailyherald.com
K I M B E R LY S A LT Z ’ 1 7
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Brown should ban fraternities To the Editor: I have been reading with disgust and profound embarrassment the reports about the date-rape drug case at Phi Kappa Psi. While the controversy addresses many of the hot-button topics of the day involving privilege and the treatment of women, the discourse refuses to confront the most important issues of all: the question of why, in 2015, the University (and universities around the nation) tolerates the archaic and misogynistic fraternity system to persist. Supporters of these organizations claim that they promote some type of camaraderie among young male college students. These supporters are generally alums who themselves were members of these organizations who formed close friendships — in many cases lifelong friendships — as a result of their membership. But their support for these organizations ignores the fact that they are breeding grounds for excessive drinking and the mistreatment of women. It may be offensive to them — and to powerful interests on the Corporation and in the administration — to say this aloud, but it was obvious
C L A R I F I C AT I O N An article in Monday’s Herald (“Debate intensifies over U.’s handling of GHB, sexual assault cases,” March 9) included a quote from President of the Undergraduate Council of Students Maahika Srinivasan ’15 expressing her view that it is impossible to confirm or reject the possibility that the case involving the student accused of putting GHB in a drink was swayed by his father’s membership on the Corporation. Srinivasan meant that, given the information currently available, it is unclear whether the University resolved the conflict of interest.
CORRECTION An article in Thursday’s Herald (“Gourmet Heaven owner faces wage lawsuit,” March 5) misstated that Gourmet Heaven owner Chung Cho must respond to a summons by March 5 or lose a federal wage theft suit. In fact, he must respond by March 12. The Herald regrets the error.
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when I attended Brown in the late 1970s and is just as obvious today. Denial will not change the reality that by allowing the fraternity culture to persist, the University is not only placing its female students at risk but is also contradicting the values of sexual equality and female empowerment that it seeks to promote. It is the height of hypocrisy to purport to teach these values in the classroom while hosting on campus the types of behavior that fraternities host on a weekly basis. It is time for Chancellor Thomas Tisch ’76 P’18 and Vice Chancellor Jerome Vascellaro ’74 P’07, who lead the Corporation, as well as the rest of the Corporation and President Christina Paxson P’19, to stand up and lead the nation’s universities by banning fraternities from the Brown campus. Brown has been a leader on so many issues — it is now time for Brown to stand up and serve as a leader to protect the idea that it is unacceptable to behave in ways that no parent of a Brown student would tolerate in his or her home. It is 2015. It is time for the University to evolve socially as it has evolved in so many things. Michael Lewitt ’79
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COMMENTARY TUESDAY, MARCH 10, 2015 • PAGE 7
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
Money, power have no place in Brown’s procedures KATIE BYRON, JUSTICE GAINES, LAUREN STEWART AND YVONNE YU guest columnists
We are writing as undergraduate representatives on the Task Force on Sexual Assault. Our charge is to create “a safe and secure campus environment.” Fundamental to this, we are told, is protection against sexual assault. “Sexual assault cannot be tolerated on campus and must be addressed in the context of all forms of sexual harassment and misconduct.” We believe we have an obligation to hold the University accountable for its recent actions that are inconsistent with this mission and the institution’s legal and moral obligations. We would like, first of all, to express gratitude to the members of the task force for their hard work and dedication to addressing the issues of assault and harassment on campus. Members have spent hours educating themselves on this issue so as to discuss policies that might work best for Brown. We hope that the recommendations of the task force will be robust, creating a safer, more compassionate environment for survivors of sexual violence and a culture that does not tolerate sexual violence in any of its forms.
But changes to Brown’s written policies are meaningless if they fail in their implementation. It is profoundly disturbing to us that many of the obvious problems identified in the task force’s interim report, released in December, were repeated in the University’s handling of a recent sexual misconduct case. Through our work on the task force, we have seen first hand the difficulties in creating change in a bureaucratic system and understand that this process can be lengthy and frustrating. But the issues that the cases discussed over the past week have raised are not mere procedural hiccups. They are clear examples of the impact of bias, power and influence on this process. We strongly believe that policies protecting students who have experienced sexual violence must be implemented consistently and fairly, regardless of the power dynamics at play. From our personal experiences of the process, we know that hearings are held when it has been determined that an incident could plausibly have occurred. As The Herald outlined in a March 4 article, Brown dropped charges against the student accused of serving a drink with GHB. This alleged perpetrator has a father who sits on the Corporation’s Board of Trustees. The decision surprised both women involved, with one writing to an administrator that she thought the University
would hold a hearing given the witness testimony provided. This was our understanding of the hearing process, and we find it highly unusual that these women were not even allowed to present their case in a hearing. The University decided that the testimony of these survivors was not credible enough to be heard. It is uncommon for there to be conclusive physical evidence in such cases. Most, both in university hearings and in the criminal justice system, are decided not on physical evidence but on the testimony of survivors, respondents and witnesses. It is our responsibility as a community to understand that the absence of a positive GHB test does not mean that we cannot adjudicate these cases, and the University must ensure that we have mechanisms to hold individuals accountable for actions and harms that surely still exist. The University must protect its students, and we must hold the University accountable for equitable treatment of all who report such incidents. In the other case — involving a different student, who was accused of sexually assaulting one of the women — the experience of one of the survivors was disregarded because she could not clearly remember what had happened to her. Memory loss being one of the key symptoms of having ingested GHB, we find this decision inexplicable. It is clear from witness accounts that the
complainant exhibited outward signs of intoxication, including diminished motor skills. She also reported flash memories where she recalled not being able to move. The task force’s interim report clearly stated that consent required an outward demonstration, through mutually understandable words or actions, indicating that an individual was freely choosing to engage in a sexual activity. Consent cannot be obtained by taking advantage of the incapacitation of another individual. Silence, passivity or the absence of resistance does not imply consent. Yet in this case the panel was not convinced that incapacitation — however induced — negated the possibility of consent. There is a clear discrepancy between the definition of consent in the University’s policy and that which was applied in this case. This uneven application of policy undermines students’ faith in the University’s disciplinary process and the school’s commitment to addressing sexual violence on campus. One of the task force’s major goals has been to foster an environment of safety and support for survivors. In its handling of these cases, the University has failed in its mission. Through a series of unclear and inconsistent community notifications, the University muddled the narrative, which resulted in discrediting the survivors. Furthermore, when the survivors expressed
that the postering by Phi Kappa Psi made them feel unsafe and the target of retaliation — an act prohibited by Title IX — the University failed to take their concerns seriously and did not act accordingly. The University denied agency to the survivors, who had already had their agency taken from them through the alleged assault. It is imperative that University policies and procedures are carried out equitably and consistently, regardless of connections, power, money or other extenuating factors. Definitions of consent need to be clear and consistent in policy and implementation and incorporate an understanding of the ways that date-rape drugs impact an individual’s ability to consent. In order to regain the trust of the student body, the University needs to take seriously its obligation to protect all students, create a safe learning environment and take a stronger stance against external influence on the adjudication and sanctioning processes for sexual violence. It is our hope that the task force’s substantial efforts will not be undermined by unfair and inconsistent implementation.
Katie Byron ’15, Justice Gaines ’16, Lauren Stewart ’15 and Yvonne Yu ’15 are the undergraduate members of the Task Force on Sexual Assault.
Criticism of U. for canceling hearing unwarranted NICHOLAS ASKER opinions columnist
In recent days, some criticism of the University for its handling of the case against a Phi Kappa Psi member accused of serving a drink that incapacitated the complainants has been warranted, and some not so much. The criticism launched by people behind the hashtag #MoneyTalksAtBrown, which suggests corruption or financial interest contributed to the cancellation of the hearing for this student, who has a parent on the Corporation, is of the latter kind. For one thing, The Herald’s March 6 article stated that “none of the documents reviewed by The Herald point to specific instances of preferential treatment as a result of the accused student’s family connections.” Some hashtaggers claim that the student’s family’s power and resources caused the case to be delayed and unduly influenced the evidence. It is true that the disciplinary proceedings were pushed back, first after an injunction that the accused filed, then once more because initial findings were called into question. Specifically, the urine test originally deemed positive was called into question by an independent expert, a professor at Tufts University School of Medicine, who was hired by the accused student, according to the article. If the University had taken this evidence and used that alone to reverse the initial findings, I agree that this might have been grounds to call foul. For it is possible — though doubtful — that the Phi Psi member swayed the expert’s analysis by virtue of hiring him. But the University acted appropriately. It further delayed the hearing to get another opinion, this time from a University-hired independent expert, director of the division of scientific services at Connecticut’s Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection. It was
right to do so as a way to adjudicate between competing evidence analyses prior to a hearing. This third toxicologist reevaluated the urine test and found it to be inconclusive, according to the March 6 article. Because the University hired this toxicologist, we can be reasonably sure the test was impartially analyzed. Upon reviewing the toxicologist’s reevaluation, the original lab retracted its initial positive finding and has since ceased conducting this kind of test, according to a March 1 community notification. Therefore, it is a good thing that the accused introduced conflicting analysis. It pointed to mistakes that would not have otherwise been caught and would have wrongly influenced the case. The March 6 Herald article describes how J. Timmons Roberts, a professor informally advising one of the complainants, wrote an email
dents attorneys in serious cases is a bad idea, even if allowing them one significantly slows proceedings. We value accuracy over speed. In terms of the slow process, then, it is clear that money isn’t talking. Rights are. In addition to the slow process, the decision not to hear the case has been condemned by hashtaggers. Their thinking can be summed up like this: The inconclusive evidence alone is not reason enough to cancel the hearing, so it necessarily follows that it was dropped because of the student’s Corporation connection. Roberts’ concern in the March 6 article is representative — though I cannot speak to whether he would identify with the hashtaggers — when he expresses apprehension that a hearing not being held “potentially sends a message that some are above being subject to the rules.” Admittedly, there is something that, at first
We should not and cannot reasonably implicate Brown in corruption merely because it made these mistakes and canceled the hearing. to her on Jan. 23 after speaking with an administrator. Noting that administrators were moving as quickly as they could, Roberts wrote, “It sounds like the number of lawyers involved and the resources of (the accused student) have slowed and complicated this,” according to the article. But according to the University’s website on student rights and responsibilities in relation to student conduct complaints, accused students in all conduct cases have a right “to be informed of the evidence upon which a charge is based and accorded an opportunity to offer a relevant response.” So the accused student was only exercising his rights by hiring the independent toxicologist from Tufts who subsequently raised questions about the validity of the urine test. Moreover, we know that denying respon-
glance, seems contradictory when we juxtapose the case of Phi Psi as an organization and the case of the individual member. According to the March 1 community notification, despite inconclusive GHB tests, a plethora of other evidence provided sufficient support for the final review of the Phi Psi case to conclude “that the two students consumed alcohol and/or some other drug diminishing their normal functions to a degree that placed them at risk of harm.” This led the University to find the fraternity responsible for, among other things, “placing students at risk of harm.” Yet the University did not even allow a hearing to take place for the student accused of administering the substance. As The Herald reported March 4, this is because the inconclusive drug tests provided insufficient evidence for the
case to proceed. But if abundant evidence apart from the inconclusive tests proved an incapacitating substance was consumed in the first case, why can’t the person within the organization who supposedly served it at least be subject to a hearing? But the inconclusive GHB tests do not allow the University to distinguish between administering GHB and the mere serving of alcohol at an unregistered event. Even though the University would likely respond to hashtag criticism with the above arguments, which I think have merit, it needs to be transparent and specific if it wants to mitigate concerns that the case was dropped due to the student’s connections. It needs to tell us what standard was required to proceed with a hearing for the individual, how it was not met and how the procedure was different from the whole fraternity’s case. It needs to inform the public of the differences between the cases, or it will continue to face allegations of inconsistency or even corruption. Looking past the unsound claims of the hashtag refuted above, some criticism launched in recent days is definitely well founded. The University’s poor choice of labs and its not offering the women another hair test after learning that the urine test — the only piece of evidence considered positive at the time — had become inconclusive are both worthy subjects of criticism. But I am inclined to think that these were genuine mistakes. We should not and cannot reasonably implicate Brown in corruption merely because it made these mistakes and canceled the hearing. To keep level-headed people from becoming disaffected, the University should explain its rationale and release the facts so that we can discuss the case in light of them and not jump to conclusions.
Nick Asker ’17 can be reached at nicholas_asker@brown.edu.
SCIENCE & RESEARCH THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
TUESDAY, MARCH 10, 2015
Spotlight on the Statehouse BY DREW WILLIAMS, METRO EDITOR
Marijuana legalization bills introduced in Rhode Island Sen. Joshua Miller, D-Cranston, Providence, and Rep. Scott Slater, D-Providence, introduced identical bills last week that would make the possession, growth and sale of marijuana legal in Rhode Island. The drug would be taxed at a rate of 10 percent and would be regulated in various ways: Individuals would not be able to carry more than one ounce or grow more than two marijuana plants, and dispensaries would be subject to random quality testing. If the legislation is passed, Rhode Island will join four states and the District of Columbia as locations in the United States with full legalization. A 2014 poll shows that 53 percent of Rhode Islanders support the measure, and both parties have members co-sponsoring each of the bills. Former Republican candidate for Providence mayor and licensed psychiatrist Daniel Harrop ’76 MD’79 has openly offered to support the measure under his medical expertise. Gov. Gina Raimondo is adopting a “wait-and-see approach” on the matter, while Speaker of the House Nicholas Mattiello, D-Cranston, said he has “no opinion on marijuana other than I know it’s an issue that will come up and we’ll consider it,” RI Future reported. But Senate President Teresa Paiva Weed, D-Newport, said she remains “concerned about the potential health effects” of marijuana. In an op-ed last Thursday, Slater discussed his reasoning for the legislation, namely the inevitability of marijuana’s usage, the revenue that legalization could create for the state and the elimination of gang involvement in the marijuana industry. “Just as Al Capone’s gangsters are no longer engaging in shootouts over turf because of alcohol, in time the illicit marijuana market will evaporate, as customers prefer a safer product in a safer setting,” he wrote. OpenDoors, an advocacy group that supports the formerly incarcerated in Rhode Island, reported last week that legalization of the drug could create $21.5 to $82 million in tax revenue for Rhode Island, RI Future reported.
Former Olympic medalist Kwan named to R.I. arts council Gov. Gina Raimondo nominated four new members to the Rhode Island Council of the Arts Thursday, among them five-time world champion figure skater Michelle Kwan. The five names have been submitted to the Senate for final approval. “The arts influence Rhode Island’s rich culture, and I look forward to collaborating with members of the council on ways to promote and enhance our cultural footprint,” Kwan said in a statement reported by Providence Business News. Kwan helped campaign for her husband Clay Pell in the 2014 R.I. gubernatorial election, Politico reported. She is also currently a senior advisor for public diplomacy and public affairs at the U.S. Department of State, PBN reported.
Campaign finance reform introduced following allegations about Shark bar, Gordon Fox House Majority Leader John DeSimone, D-Providence, submitted a bill March 5 that would mandate that candidates and political action committees file bank statements from their campaign accounts following each quarterly campaign finance report given to the Board of Elections. Former House Speaker Gordon Fox pleaded guilty to transferring $108,000 in campaign contributions to his own personal accounts, The Herald previously reported. “Every time something like this happens, it distracts from the good work everyone in the General Assembly is trying to do day in and day out,” DeSimone said in a R.I. General Assembly press release. The nonpartisan advocacy group Common Cause denounced the legislation, arguing that it does not go far enough to curb corruption in Rhode Island. Common Cause leader John Marion wants to see “a stronger mandate and more resources” for the Board of Elections, Rhode Island Public Radio reported.
Vehicular violations revisited Rhode Island senators brought a wide variety of bills aimed at changing driving-related penalties to the Senate Judiciary Committee Tuesday. Various driving violations will have more severe punishments if their respective bills pass: leaving the scene of an accident, using cellular devices, driving without vehicle ownership information and impaired driving that results in the injury or death of someone other than the driver, among others. Under another bill, the period of time under which a second or third offense conviction for driving under the influence is applicable would be extended from five to 10 years. Two other bills also look to lessen the severity of punishment for driving with a suspended or expired license in the state, downgrading it to a civil violation.
COURTESY OF FREIMAN LAB
New genetic research from the Freiman Laboratory studying male mice found that TAF4b, a protein critical for sperm production, carries implications for the development of infertility treatment methods in human males.
Gene found to drive fertility in male mice Mouse gene similar to one in humans linked to fertility, suggests possible medical interventions By ELENA WEISSMANN STAFF WRITER
University biologists recently discovered a specific gene in human males that may be essential to sperm production later in life. In a study published in the February issue of the journal Stem Cells, researchers revealed that the loss of the protein TAF4b in male mice results in premature infertility. Mutations in the gene responsible for the production of the protein leave mice unable to sustain spermatogenesis after only a few months of sexual maturity, said Richard Freiman, associate professor of medical science and lead author of the paper. After discovering that TAF4b was expressed highly in the ovaries and the testes, the research team became interested in the protein’s role in reproduction, Freiman said. The researchers manipulated the mouse genome through a process known as homologous recombination. “You can knock specific genes out of the mouse genome and then examine the mice that are born and see what function the gene serves in normal development,” Freiman said. The researchers noticed that male mice whose TAF4b gene was
manipulated were only fertile for a month or two, whereas mice with intact TAF4b remained fertile for several years. “Cells that are involved in initial fertility are different than cells involved in subsequent rounds of sperm production. The first set undergoes meiosis and become sperm by a direct route, but the other set develops into precursor cells that become stem cells,” Freiman said. “What we hypothesized about our mice is that they’re able to go through this initial round of spermatogenesis, but they can’t make the stem cell population, so they can’t set themselves up for long-term fertility,” he added. These results may be applicable to human fertility since humans have a TAF4b gene that is very similar to that of the mouse, said Eric Gustafson PhD’09, a postdoctoral research fellow and first author of the paper. A different study published last year examined a population of four infertile brothers in eastern Turkey who each had a homozygous mutation in their TAF4b gene similar to the one created in the mice. These men had very low or no sperm counts, Gustafson said. “So we think these genes have many similar, if not identical functions in humans. What we learn about in the mouse gene may be used to address or diagnose reproductive defects in humans as well,” he added. With couples having children later and later in life, this study has
important implications for family planning, Freiman said. “If we could learn how this process is regulated normally, clinicians might be able to devise better strategies to either monitor or even intervene with cases of infertility,” he added. For instance, if scientists could detect the mutation in teenage boys early on, doctors could freeze their patients’ sperm for later in life, according to a University press release. The study also has important outcomes in terms of stem cell research, said Professor of Biology Gary Wessel, who was not involved in the study. “This research shows us that this particular transcription factor, TAF4b, is involved in the transcription process involved in maintaining the stem cell itself,” Wessel said. “As a consequence, it now gives the investigators a more careful view of what stem cell decisions are like,” he added. The study’s results are relevant to all stem cell research, Wessel said. “Everything in biology is connected. If you make any kind of breakthrough, it’s going to have ripple effects throughout the entire discipline.” The researchers are currently working to identify the precise molecular mechanisms that TAF4b is responsible for, Freiman said. “We now know that TAF4b performs this function, but we don’t know how it does it,” he added. “Once we figure that out, it might reveal new areas of intervention for fertility preservation.”