SINCE 1891
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2018
VOLUME CLIII, ISSUE 16
WWW.BROWNDAILYHERALD.COM
Tales of Brunonian love: decades of on-campus courtship Eleven couples recount love stories crafted on College Hill, carried beyond Van Wickle Gates
over the next couple of months — specifically, over crossword puzzles — but were too shy to act, until Middlekauff took the plunge. “My feeling was, ‘Well, it’s now or never, and if she spurns me, it’s not going
to be that bad of a situation because I’m not going to be on College Hill for many more weeks,’” Middlekauff said. Six years after this first encounter, including one year living together in Edinburgh after pooling their money,
Middlekauff and Goldin immortalized their union at their home away from home — at Brown, in Manning Chapel in 1989. Plus, New York “is prohibitively expensive” while Middlekauff ’s home state of Ohio “is prohibitively in Ohio”
By LAUREN ARATANI CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Thirty-five years ago, an arsonist proved to be a Valentine’s Day matchmaker. Brad Middlekauff ’83 was asleep in his room on the second floor of his Waterman Street apartment when he was awoken by loud sirens and the smell of smoke. He and his roommates were able to make it out through the fire escape, but the house was badly burned. That very day, Middlekauff was given a key to a room in Hegeman Hall, where he would spend the rest of his senior year. After moving what was left of his belongings into his new room, Middlekauff was looking to borrow a vacuum cleaner. He found one in a friend’s suite upstairs, where he met his future wife, Nancy Goldin ’84. “I thought you were sort of cute and bedraggled, but I wasn’t really looking for a boyfriend,” Goldin said. “I was struck by the fact that you were borrowing a vacuum.” Middlekauff and Goldin bonded
because all of their friends lived on the east coast, Goldin said. Everyday places, like Hegeman, are landmarks on campus for couples like Middlekauff and Goldin. Brown alums have met their partners at the library, in dorms and during classes. Some were introduced by friends; others met by coincidence. The Herald talked to 19 Brunonians who are a part of 11 couples whose love stories started on some corner of College Hill and have lived on for years. Thank ResLife
COURTESY OF BROWN UNIVERSITY
People usually celebrate special occasions like wedding anniversaries or birthdays. But in 2008, Helene Miller ’80 P’15 and James Kase ’82 P’15 threw an unconventional party at an unconventional place: a first kiss anniversary party at Andrews Hall. Their first kiss took place in 1978, a couple months after they first met in Emery-Woolley Hall, where Miller lived her sophomore year. At a party on her floor, Miller saw Kase from across the room. “It was like there was no one else in the room,” Miller said. They didn’t talk to anyone else for the rest of the night. » See LOVE, page 3
Datamatch pairs over 2,600 Brown students Rubin ’80 discusses morality, Harvard’s matchmaking challenges of journalism algorithm couples students based on humorous survey
New York Times Paris bureau chief recounts experiences reporting in Middle East
By ELISE RYAN SENIOR STAFF WRITER
This morning at 7 a.m., thousands of Brown students opened an email in their inbox with more anticipation than any “Today@Brown” or even “Today’s Café Specials” message could garner. The Valentine’s Day email included the contact information of Brown students who were paired with the user through Harvard Computer Society’s matchmaking service — Datamatch — introduced to the campus this year. By Tuesday night, just over 2,600 Brown students had already filled out the survey. The survey remained open until Tuesday night at 11:59 p.m., inviting more students to leave their Valentine’s day plans to the Computer Society’s algorithm — though there is no obligation to contact a match. “The goal is to provide a fun tradition to people within a school that … has school-specific humor,” said Russell Pekala, one of the co-business leaders for Datamatch at Harvard, adding that
INSIDE
By ANNA KRAMER AND SOPHIE CULPEPPER UNIVERSITY NEWS EDITOR AND SENIOR STAFF WRITER
SARAH MARTINEZ AND MARLIS FLINN / HERALD
Datamatch is “just a fun distraction to keep (students) happy during Valentine’s Day.” The survey is brief, containing 17 mandatory multiple choice questions,
space to include a short bio and other optional features, such as linking a Facebook, LinkedIn or Spotify account. Students can indicate whether they are » See DATAMATCH, page 3
When Alissa Rubin ’80 left Brown with a degree in renaissance studies and a hunger to travel, she did not foresee a future in journalism. But after a brief stint in academia, a transformative trip to apartheid South Africa launched a career that would take her to the Balkans, Afghanistan, Iraq and now Paris. “It’s the most wonderful thing to be able to live a life of asking questions and trying to figure out the answers,” she said in an interview with The Herald. After the interview, she recounted stories from her life as a journalist in a public event hosted by the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs. “In my mind, we’re not powerful people, as journalists. Nor should we
be, necessarily. We’re supposed to be listening to people at every level,” Rubin told The Herald. While Rubin loves her job and cannot imagine a day when she quits or retires, she is often frustrated by the limitations of reporting. “Almost not a day goes by that I don’t wish I’d become a doctor. I wish I could make people better and not hurt,” she said. “Talking to me, in the short term, it doesn’t help anybody,” she said. Being a journalist “is an enormous self-indulgence.” Journalism creates a window into another world, albeit a warped one, Rubin said. “You help people see how complicated and gray and shadowy issues are out there in the world.” Delving into the lives and perspectives of so many makes it difficult “not to become a complete moral relativist,” she added. However, “my job isn’t to tell people which moral axis to choose,” Rubin said, adding that she has the power to show people the consequences of their decisions. “You want to look at why things happen, what drives events and what drives … » See RUBIN, page 2
WEATHER
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2018
NEWS Fire stations opened to provide 24/7 discreet, efficient access for opioid addiction help
COMMENTARY Mulligan ’19: Focus on politicians’ actions, instead of the demographics of their supporters
COMMENTARY Miller ’19: Politicians’ misuse of constitutional vocabulary threatens our democracy
NEWS Professor of Neuroscience Diane Lipscombe to begin presidency of Society of Neuroscience in fall
PAGE 2
PAGE 7
PAGE 7
BACK
TODAY
TOMORROW
50 / 37
55 / 45
NEWS
PAGE 2 • WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2018
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
City’s fire stations open to those battling opioid addiction 12 stations to offer anonymous 24-7 aid based on programs in New Hampshire towns By DYLAN MAJSIAK SENIOR STAFF WRITER
The Providence Safe Stations Program, which opened the city’s 12 fire stations to those battling opioid addiction, treated its second person suffering from addiction Monday, less than two months after its inception, said Acting Emergency Medical Services Chief Captain Zachariah Kenyon, who spearheaded the program. As the program gains publicity, each firehouse is expected to receive over four people a day as the city continues to respond to around 40 overdose-related incidents per week, Kenyon said. This firehouse-based model is meant to discreetly and efficiently provide 24-7 aid to those affected by opioid addiction, Kenyon said. He initially came across the idea for the safe stations through a post on social media in September that featured a model program in Manchester and Nashua, New Hampshire. “When people have addiction problems and they finally reach that small window of opportunity where they want to ask for help, a lot of times they don’t know where to go for help,” Kenyon said. “We are here … to give you that opportunity to know where to go to start your recovery process.” The program aims to give people access to help before they are in crisis, said Director of Recovery Services at the Providence Center for Mental Health and Addiction Treatment Services Deb Dettor. The fire stations worked closely with the Rhode Island Department of Behavioral Healthcare,
BENJAMIN TORUÑO / HERALD
The Providence Safe Stations Program creates a discreet and accessible form of aid for those suffering from opioid addiction, providing immediate help to those who ring the bell of a fire station. Currently offered at all 12 stations in the city, the program has treated two people since it began Jan. 2. Developmental Disabilities and Hos- addition to medical help, he added. for emergency care, the on-site re- Gina Raimondo established the Overpitals, the Providence Center and the “The epidemics of opioid use dis- sponders contact a hotline number, dose Prevention and Intervention Task Anchor Recovery Community Center orders and overdose deaths require provided by the Providence Center Force, which aims to reduce opioid to provide services to those visiting an ‘all hands on deck’ approach, and and Anchor Recovery, which connects overdose deaths by one-third within the station. the Safe Stations program provides the individual with addiction recovery three years, according to Raimondo’s “If we have another avenue where an excellent example of how to ad- coaches and clinicians. official website. people can just walk in the door and dress these challenges head-on,” said The safe stations are currently The Safe Stations Program was get help on the spot, that will help a Geoff Capraro, assistant professor of working to install signs on the out- initially planned to begin Nov. 1 but great deal,” Dettor said, adding that of- emergency medicine and one of the side of the building that advise people was later moved to Jan. 2 when those fering treatment in a firehouse, as op- creators of NaloxBox, a device that al- seeking help to call a dispatch number involved realized that they needed posed to a hospital, may help mitigate lows bystanders to administer Narcan. in case firefighters are out on a run, more time and funds, Kenyon said. the stigma associated with addiction. The recovery process begins when Kenyon said. The dispatcher will redi- Funding for the stations comes from Most conversations surrounding a person rings the doorbell of a fire rect those people to a different station state and federal grants, he added. the opioid epidemic focus on Narcan, station and indicates that they need or reassure them that personnel are “If we can get to one person and the drug used to reverse an opioid help. On-site personnel then complete returning to the site. change their life, we’ve done someoverdose. But while Narcan can be a Field Intake Assessment and check The Providence Safe Stations oper- thing different that helps somebody,” lifesaving, it does not solve the epi- the individual’s vital signs, blood sugar ate as Rhode Island works to reduce Kenyon said. “If I can get one life cordemic at its core, Kenyon said. It is and general condition, Kenyon said. instances of opioid overdoses in the rected and changed to better habits, vital to offer recovery services in After confirming that there is no need state at large. In August 2015, Gov. then I think the program is a success.”
» RUBIN, from page 1
GUS REED / HERALD
Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Alissa Rubin ‘80 discussed the importance of context and history in foreign reporting, particulary in war zones.
people to do what they do,” she said. American perceptions of U.S. motivations and actions in the Middle East are often flawed, which can make reporting with context more difficult, Rubin said. “Americans want to be welcomed, they want to be beloved — and yet, what they do is almost certain to have the opposite effect.” She recounted a day when she met with a man whose son had died in a bombing. “I remember once, having a translator, I said: ‘Well, how does the man feel, his son was killed by that bomb, will he ever help out the … (nearby) American base again?’ My translator said, ‘He said he feels very sad.’” She had picked up some familiar words in Arabic, and the translation sounded off. After she questioned him, the translator eventually said, “Yeah, he would like to have them all killed, just like his son was killed.” Some translators try not to relay information when a source says something particularly negative, especially about Americans, Rubin said. “Most of what we do … is drop bombs and shoot people, and you’re always going to make a lot of enemies when you do that, and you’re always going to make mistakes,” she said. The American people can find it hard to
accept that “most people don’t necessarily want democracy and capitalism,” she added. Rubin’s perspective as a journalist is shaped and informed by a deep appreciation for history. “For me, journalists are a lot like historians and anthropologists,” Rubin said at the talk. This perspective was reflected when, in a moderated discussion with Professor of International Studies Catherine Lutz, Rubin considered the universal causes of war. “You always want to go back and see what happened to people who are disfavored by the war, you want to look at what the losers are doing, because the losers are the ones who carry the seeds of the next war.” When Rubin spoke at the event later in the day, she riveted her audience by reflecting on her experiences as a journalist in an immersive account of the work that went into a story published in 2011, “Costly Afghanistan Road Project Marred by Unsavory Alliances.” The article covered the complications of the construction and corruption surrounding the Gardez-Khost Highway, an ill-maintained American-funded infrastructure project. She discussed this story at the talk to illustrate the enormous costs and labor of thorough overseas reporting and the
importance of firsthand coverage. As publications cut funding, fewer news outlets “are able to afford to send reporters (and) photographers. … Americans are learning more and more about war based on sources that have never been there,” Rubin said. “And that almost always means that they report in a way that glosses over the ambiguities — and instead they get the idea that there’s a coherent story. And war isn’t coherent.” Michelle Schein ’18 said she appreciated Rubin’s “very straightforward and direct commentary on what it means in today’s age to do foreign reporting,” adding that “it’s definitely a good point that we see a lot fewer news sources doing that.” Director of the Watson Institute Edward Steinfeld, who introduced Rubin, said the talk “underscored, to me, not just how difficult it is to cover these warzones (and) not just how much money and resources are required, but it also underscored the unbelievable courage of somebody like Alissa covering these stories.” “She didn’t emphasize that point; it was very obvious from what she said that … there’s an unbelievable amount of dedication and courage that must be required for somebody to risk her life to cover those stories, and I’m personally deeply moved,” he added.
NEWS
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2018 • PAGE 3
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
» LOVE, from page 1 “All my friends told me that it was impossible to date an upperclassman, but I was smitten,” Kase said. The pair ended up dating on and off for the next four years. Even with frequent marshmallow fights in the Verney-Woolley Dining Hall and study dates at the Gate, which is now Andrews Commons, Miller and Kase parted ways after graduation. But in 1984, Kase gave Miller a call out of the blue, speaking for the first time since Kase’s graduation. They agreed to meet at a hotel in New York City — their “first date, the second time around,” Miller said. “The very same way I felt when I saw him across the room in that freshman dorm happened all over again,” Miller said. They married two years later in 1986 and now have four boys. Vannita Simma Chiang ’98 and David Chiang ’97 also owe their marital bliss in part to the Office of Residential Life. Simma Chiang was studying in her freshman room, Jameson 217, when she heard a knock on the door. It turned out to be Chiang, there to visit his old freshman room. “I make fun of him — you could tell he was trying to make a connection and get to know me more,” Simma Chiang said. “And I was kind of like, ‘Okay! Thanks, bye!’ It was awkward in a cute way.” That wasn’t the first time that Simma Chiang had met Chiang. They met the previous spring at an admitted students event (the equivalent of “A Day on College Hill” today) when Simma Chiang was a senior in high school and Chiang was a freshman. While the pair didn’t keep in touch after the event, Simma Chiang said she distinctly remembers meeting Chiang. “We both laugh at that,” Simma Chiang said. “He tells everyone, ‘Yeah, you know, I hit on Vannita ever since she was a high school senior.’ And everyone is like, ‘What, that’s wrong!” The pair grew closer during a Habitat for Humanity trip to Philadelphia during Simma Chiang’s sophomore year. When they got back to campus after the trip, Chiang asked Simma Chiang to go on a date. The pair dined at Tokyo, formerly on Wickenden Street. Now, they have been married for over 15 years and have three kids. While some couples deliver a cohesive account of their first encounter, Laura Reynolds ’84 P’18 and Joe Schertler ’84 P’18 disagree on how they met. Reynolds claims that they met in Harkness, their sophomore hall. “I thought he was a nice, geeky guy from Minnesota who studied too much,” Reynolds said.
» DATAMATCH, from page 1 seeking a romantic or platonic relationship with their Datamatch. Cashen Conroy ’19, Brown’s Datamatch “Cupid” — as she is referred to on the Datamatch website — and a deputy managing editor for the Blognonian, wrote the questions for Brown’s survey with Blognonian Editor-In-Chief Allison Gordon ’20. “We were just trying to think of questions that were funny but also could reveal a little bit of insight into ... the personality of whoever is taking the survey,” Conroy said. The Harvard Computer Society created Datamatch in 1994 for Harvard students as a “humorous and casual”
On the other hand, Schertler swears he met her at an event organized by the “Host Family Program,” which matched students from west of the Mississippi with a local family. According to him, she was crying because her Brown host family did not show up. They also disagree on who asked who out on their first date to the Rosecliffe Dance their senior year. “We argue about that, too. I say I asked him, and he says he asked me,” Reynolds said. “But it is more probable that I asked him.” After over three years of dating, Reynolds asked Schertler to marry her in 1987. “Like I asked him to Rosecliffe, I asked him to marry me,” Reynolds said. “Well, now you know who the catch is!” Schertler fired back. At the time of the proposal, they were sitting on the beach at her house in Newport Beach, California before Reynolds was going to enter law school. “I said, ‘Joe, are we going to get married or not? Because if we don’t, then I want to meet someone in law school,’” Reynolds said. “And Joe said, ‘Uh, okay, but can we wait a year to tell our parents and friends?’” “An outside observer might have thought there was an ultimatum to the proposal,” Schertler replied, adding that “it was sort of a series of negotiations.”
composed and not shaky. But then I was fumbling, and then I realized it was the wrong hand, and then I went to the other hand,” Aranda said. “Then I told her I wanted her to be my best friend for the rest of my life.”
Diane Hunter Tortolani ’64 caught Ed Tortolani’s ’64 eye in 1963 when she was in the John Hay Library studying with one of Tortolani’s high school friends. They were eventually introduced and started dating soon after. A “townie” who had attended Classical High School, Tortolani had a car that allowed the pair to go off campus. The two went on dates on Federal Hill, which Tortolani described as his “stomping ground” as an Italian-American from Providence. Once, while returning to Providence from New York, the couple found themselves on the wrong side of Pembroke dorm’s curfew. But “it was the most innocent of all things,” Hunter Tortolani said. “He had gone to an interview at Rochester for medical school, I went home to Albany for my birthday.” Diane had called her house mother to let her know she was late, but she was still “met at the door with a frown.” Early on in their relationship, the Tortolanis had conversations about the logistics of their religious backgrounds. Hunter Tortolani came from a Protestant family while Tortolani was Catholic. “People in my family thought, ‘Nah, this isn’t the right person. She’s not Italian, she was outspoken,’” Tortolani said. But the pair was determined to make it work.
“Ed kept saying that we couldn’t get married because he was in medical school, or we couldn’t get married because of this,” Hunter Tortolani said. “Finally, I said, ‘This is the story: After you pass your second year of medical school, we’re getting married.’” The couple was married in 1966 in Albany, New York. Their interfaith marriage was even reported on by the local newspaper. Whenever the Tortolanis return to Providence with their family, they make sure to stop at Caserta Pizzeria — a favorite that has lived on to this day. While some couples bond over pizza, others bond over donuts. Even with his busy schedule as a medical student, Marcos Aranda ’13 MD’17 found the time to deliver donuts to Uzo Okoro ’16 MD’20. As Okoro walked into her neuroscience section in Smith-Buonanno Hall her freshman year, she saw that someone in the room was wearing the same Program in Liberal Medical Education shirt she had on. She sat down next to him and started a conversation on the coincidence that they were wearing the same shirt, were PLME students and were athletes. But Aranda recognized Okoro — he had noticed her at the gym earlier. The first time Aranda saw Okoro, he thought “She’s really good-looking. I’m going to talk to her at some point,” Aranda said, adding that he thought it was fate when she ended up in his neuroscience section. “But I didn’t know how big of a nerd she was, and she was going to all the … sections.” After adding each other on Facebook, Okoro and Aranda soon became friends. At the beginning of Okoro’s sophomore year, when Aranda started medical school, the pair started dating. After nearly four years of movie dates (one of the pair’s favorites so far is Disney’s “Moana”) and scoping out the Providence restaurant scene, Aranda proposed to Okoro during his commissioning ceremony on the Quiet Green last May. Okoro was late to the ceremony. Because of roadblocks around campus, her Uber dropped her off four blocks away from campus, and she started running toward the Quiet Green. She eventually got to the ceremony right as it was starting. “I thought she wasn’t going to show up,” Aranda said. He designated Okoro as his First Salute — in which a commissioned or retired military officer is the first to salute a newly commissioned officer — giving him the chance to walk up to Okoro during the ceremony. When she sat down after the salute, Aranda knelt down on one knee. “I thought I was going to be all cool,
Pia Mukherji Owens ’99 and Steve Owens ’99 were also in the same freshman unit. They first met in high school at a conference in Washington D.C. and again at ADOCH. After spending a lot of time together in labs for their computer science classes, they began dating their sophomore year. Eight years after they first met, Mukherji Owens and Owens married at Manning Chapel in an interfaith ceremony that took elements from Hinduism and Catholicism. Brown “is an important place in our relationship. It’s where we started dating, it’s where we spent most of our time together,” Owens said. The couple said they enjoy bringing their two boys to campus to wander around and tell tales of their time at Brown. “My oldest son is so used to hearing stories about Brown that he thinks that college is synonymous with Brown,” Mukherji Owens said. “So he says things like, ‘When I go to Brown…’”
While Mukherji Owens and Owens developed their love in the computer science lab, Fran Bellatoni Condexis and William Condexis ’55 found romance in a dining hall. They met at the new dining hall — the Sharpe Refectory — where they worked in 1951. Condexis was in his freshman year while Bellatoni Condexis worked as a dietician. “She was very efficient and goodlooking,” Condexis said, describing his first impression of Fran. The two started dating after Condexis asked Bellatoni Condexis to a dance. The couple married in 1952 and have three kids. One of their children, Paula Condexis Angell ’78, met her future husband 24 years later and two blocks down from where her parents first met. Paula Condexis Angell bumped into her friend outside of the ladies room at the Rockefeller Library while studying for midterms. The friend introduced her to his roommate, Rob Angell ’78. “After that, we kept running into each other,” Condexis Angell said. By that spring, they started dating, but the pair broke up after college when Angell moved to Cincinnati. They were reunited in New York a couple of years later, started getting breakfast and lunch that turned into dinners and began dating again. In Ed Nicholson’s ’60 P’90 experience too, what appeared to be a false start led him to love. At the end of his freshman year, Nicholson’s date cancelled on him. A mutual friend told Barb Jones Nicholson ’60 P’90 that she should go on the date with Nicholson instead. At the time, it was common for students to go on “terrible blind dates,” Jones Nicholson said. The two ended up getting coffee together and talked for hours while sitting on the steps of Sharpe House. From above, their friends tore up papers and sprinkled them down on them, shouting “It’s snowing!” Around the time of their graduation, Nicholson proposed to Jones Nicholson behind Andrews Hall. They were married in Jones Nicholson’s hometown and eventually settled in different towns in New England; Nicholson held different jobs and Jones Nicholson was an elementary school teacher. They had two children, one of whom was Sarah Nicholson ’90. Sarah graduated from Brown but passed away after a ski incident in 1994. A tree is planted in her memory behind the John Carter Brown Library that Nicholson and Jones Nicholson visit when they come to campus. “I can’t say enough that the most important thing about Brown, besides the education, is the friendship,” Jones Nicholson said. Sarah “had that, and boy, is that everything.”
service which has developed into a lasting Harvard tradition, according to the Datamatch website. This year marks the program’s first year of expansion, reaching Brown, Columbia, Barnard College and Wellesley College this Valentine’s season. In previous years, individuals from many universities, including Brown, had reached out to the Harvard Datamatch team in attempts to bring the service to their institution, Pekala explained. This year, when they were ready to expand, Harvard Computer Society reconnected with those students, many of whom had graduated — including the individual from Brown. After discovering the Brown student
had graduated, the Harvard team reached out to the Blognonian because they found the often humorous tone of the website to be fitting with the survey’s comic questions, Conroy said. Blognonian “agreed because it … seemed like a really fun … way for people to meet other people that they might not have otherwise,” Conroy added. By connecting with campus organizations, the Harvard Computer Society could be sure to preserve the “personal … flair that makes Datamatch so great here at Harvard,” Pekala said. For example, matches from Harvard and Wellesley can pursue their relationship with free food or deals from local businesses, such as heart-shaped
pizzas for Wellesley students and Belgian waffles for Harvard students. This year, the Brown Datamatch team focused on getting the program up and running, Conroy explained. The team aims to add the free food component of the service to campus next year, she added. Sasha Pinto ’21 has never been enthusiastic about the concept of dating apps — “the idea that a click or swipe can magically produce a date is unnatural,” she said — but she signed up for the service. “Datamatch seems different” because it is available only at the five aforementioned schools and “because of its reduced expectations with the option of either a platonic or romantic match,”
she added. Using a survey released each year, the Datamatch team found that platonic friendships have formed through Datamatch, with participants meeting and bridging friend groups or discovering common interests, Pekala said. However, they don’t know of any longstanding relationships forged through Datamatch pairs. With the expansion of Datamatch comes the potential for more success stories. “Our hope is honestly that we take this to as many colleges as we can next year or in the few years after this, because … this is just a great tradition that can easily scale to other colleges,” Pekala said.
Studious encounters
A heralded affair As night editor for The Herald in her second semester, Megan Tracy Benson ’00 had a huge crush on then Editor-inChief Tom Benson ’98. The two spent nights together laying out the paper on the second floor of 195 Angell St. as the rest of the staff worked downstairs. “It was a total running joke between my friends. They would tease me and talk about how I was going to get married to this guy one day,” Tracy Benson said. After dating other people for two years, Benson asked Tracy Benson out at the end of his senior year — though Tracy Benson was very skeptical of dating a graduating senior. They kept their relationship a secret from their newspaper peers as he worked in Washington D.C. and Tracy Benson served as editor-in-chief of the paper. Occasionally, Tracy Benson would put house ads in the paper that would allude to her secret relationship with Benson through code names. The pair got married in Manning Chapel on a hot August day in 2002. Guests fanned themselves with the programs, which were designed to look like copies of The Herald. The front page headline read “Former eds to wed where they led.” Bruno love for generations
NEWS
PAGE 4 • WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2018
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
Changes recommended to student employment practices
MIKAELA CARILLO / HERALD
In the first meeting of the semester, Brown University Community Council received recommendations for the structure of work-study employment at the University.
Suggestions include basing criteria for student employment on University scholarships By MELANIE PINCUS SENIOR STAFF WRITER
A student employment working group recommended several changes to Uni-
versity student employment practices at the Brown University Community Council’s first meeting of the semester yesterday. The group suggested that the University increase the number
of community service jobs available through federal work-study, change criteria for work-study hiring and further publicize employment opportunities, among other suggestions, said Dean of Financial Aid Jim Tilton on behalf of the group. The working group was made up
5HćHFWLRQV RQ WKH $YDWDU 'UHDP D. Fox Harrell, Ph.D. 3URIHVVRU RI 'LJLWDO 0HGLD DQG $UWLĆFLDO ,QWHOOLJHQFH Comparative Media Studies Program & &RPSXWHU 6FLHQFH DQG $UWLĆFLDO ,QWHOOLJHQFH /DERUDWRU\ &6$,/ DW WKH 0DVVDFKXVHWWV ,QVWLWXWH RI 7HFKQRORJ\
7KH ê$YDWDU 'UHDPë LV WKH QRWLRQ WKDW XVLQJ FRPSXWHUV SHRSOH FDQ LPDJLQH WKHPVHOYHV DV ZKRPHYHU RU ZKDWHYHU WKH\ ZDQW WR EH +RZHYHU ZH QHHG DSSURDFKHV LQ ZKLFK WKH SRWHQWLDO VRFLDO DQG FXOWXUDO LPSDFWV RI YLUWXDO LGHQWLW\ WHFKQRORJLHV DUH FRQVLGHUHG LQWULQVLF WR WKH HQJLQHHULQJ SUDFWLFHV RI LQYHQWLQJ WKHP &RPH MRLQ )R[ DV KH explores the Ѳblb|-ࢼomv o= |_; -|-u u;-l D VRFLDOO\ ZLGHVSUHDG WHFKQRORJLFDO DVSLUDWLRQ
7KXUVGD\ )HEUXDU\ S P SALOMON CENTER FOR TEACHING, ROOM 001 Online registration is now open at: brown.edu/thinking-out-loud
of two undergraduates, faculty members, staff members, administrators and others, and it based recommendations on the results of a survey of 18 peer institutions and an internal data-based review, Tilton said. First, the group recommended increasing the number of jobs in community service funded by federal work-study. Currently 7 percent of the money allocated to federal workstudy funds community service jobs, and the group advised that number increase to 10 percent. The federal work-study program requires that participating universities allocate a minimum of 7 percent of their funding for this purpose. “We found that most institutions did more than the 7 percent, which gets our students the opportunity to work off-campus, or for NGOs and other kinds of things,” Tilton said. The group also suggested that university scholarships, and not federal work-study, be used as a criteria for preferential treatment in hiring. Normally, receiving a work-study is a preferred characteristic for applicants, but because the University often gives large scholarships to low-income students without the added work-study, those students can lose out on the chance to receive the benefit in University hiring processes. The group’s recommendation moves to change that practice. Yale currently employs this system, Tilton said. To increase the accessibility of employment, the group also advised increasing outreach on campus. “One of the things the committee agreed on is that we really needed a much more comprehensive employment awareness program on campus, starting (with) their first year and doing a much better job about notifying them about the kinds of jobs available,” Tilton said. In comments after Tilton’s presentation, Provost Richard Locke P’18 proposed considering the quality of work experiences in future reviews of student employment.“It would be interesting if we could get an audit
or some sort of sense of the quality of the jobs,” Locke said. Tilton reported that 3,147 students worked in 4,882 positions on campus during the 2016-17 academic year. Dining Services was the most common employer, offering 577 positions. Students on financial aid received wages comparable to those of students not on aid, although aided students worked on average between 1.5 to 2.25 hours more per week, Tilton said. The Office of Financial Aid recommends that students work at most 10 to 12 hours per week to earn the work-study component of their aid package. Although most students worked fewer than 10 hours per week on average, 79 students worked more than 280 hours over the 28 week 2016-17 academic year. “In combination with Campus Life, the Dean of the College (and) financial aid, (we want to) get an idea of why they might be working” that often, Tilton said. “We want to make sure that’s not something that students are being forced to do but something students are choosing to do.” At the end of the meeting, President Christina Paxson P’19 also offered brief updates on the work of energy and environment groups established in September. Two groups have “been focusing over the fall in a really productive way on how we can change our procurement of electricity in order to reduce our carbon footprint,” Paxson said, adding that these groups will present a plan by May. The University is currently working to reduce emissions to 58 percent of 2007 levels by 2020. “It looks like with some facilities improvements that we’re making, we will get there. We are very, very close to there, and what we need to do now is say, … ‘how quickly do we think we can get to a net zero campus?’” Paxson said. The next meeting of the BUCC will be held on Tuesday, March 20.
TODAY
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2018 • PAGE 5
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
menu
here comes the sun
SATELLITE DINING ANDREWS COMMONS
Pizza: Assorted Mushroom, Spicy Sausage and Garlic Pho JOSIAH’S
BLUE ROOM
Chicken Wings Bar, Mac and Cheese Bacon Burger
Beef Chili With Beans Grain Bowl
DINING HALLS SHARPE REFECTORY LUNCH
DINNER
Vegan Falafel Croquettes, Vegetable Saute, Coconut Bamboo Rice
Philly Cheese Steak Calzone, Home Fried Potatoes, Vegetable Medley Stir Fry
VERNEY-WOOLLEY LUNCH
DINNER
Chicken Mullingatawny Soup, Savory Chicken Stew, Stuffed Shells with Meatless Sauce
Grilled Chicken Cilantro, Broccoli Quiche, Butternut Squash and Leek Risotto
sudoku JASMINE RUIZ / HERALD
The sun finally showed for longer than three hours, bringing with it refreshing light, warmth and the first signs of spring. The weather will stay temperate for the remainder of the week.
Q U O T E O F T H E D AY
“All my friends told me that it was impossible to date an upperclassman, but I was smitten.” — James Kase ’82 P’15
See LOVE on page 1. RELEASE DATE– Tuesday, September 16, 2014
CORRECTION
Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle c rNorris o s sandwJoyce o rNichols d Lewis Edited by Rich ACROSS 1 Fraternal title for a fictional fox 5 Easily bamboozled sort 10 Former Mach 2 fliers, briefly 14 Top-rated 15 Hawaii hello 16 Butterlike spread 17 Steak cut 18 U.S.-Canada defense letters 19 With 54-Down, longtime Jeep competitor 20 Hockey player’s blade cover 22 __ Place: Butch and Sundance companion 23 Music rights gp. 24 Wonderland cake words 26 Bolivian capital 30 Ticked off 33 www help pages 36 Old vendor of cold blocks 39 French king 40 Sch. in Columbus 41 Regain, and hint to a hidden letter arrangement in 20- and 59Across and 11and 35-Down 42 Sound system part 43 Xbox 360 competitor 44 Log-on requirement 45 Work on a keyboard 46 Mechanic on TV’s “Taxi” 48 Foil maker 50 Sinclair Lewis’ “__ Gantry” 53 Swampy areas 57 Senate gofer 59 Meticulous, as premium service 63 Swine’s supper 64 No longer squeaking 65 Fifty-fifty 66 Get a glimpse of 67 Do a bakery job 68 Socially awkward type 69 Bustle 70 “My apologies” 71 Prohibitionists
38 Electrical adapter 54 See 19-Across DOWN 1 Lightweight wood 55 All-inclusive letters 2 Corner adjective 41 Largest of the chessmen 56 Ships Mariana Islands 3 Room-size 57 Subtle “Over 45 Final part computer here!” 47 Compulsive thief, unveiled in 1946 58 Kibbles ’n Bits for short 4 U-Haul vans, e.g. 49 Texter’s alternative 5 Sign of hunger 60 Robert of “The “Zounds!” 6 Baseball family Sopranos” 51 Furry “Star Wars” name 61 Fabric mishap creatures 7 Afghanistan’s __ 52 Thick-skinned 62 Whirling Bora current beast 8 Divvy up 9 When tripled, ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE: “and so on” 10 Serious 11 Roofing color 12 No-frills shelter 13 Fountain drink 21 Org. concerned with greenhouse gases 25 Gas holder 27 Bakery array 28 French play part 29 Striped equine 31 One-sided win 32 “Holy cow!” 33 Pheasant or turkey 34 Sri Lanka setting 35 Rather nice 37 Letters in a box 09/16/14 xwordeditor@aol.com
An earlier version of the article “Evans Molina Fernandez composes vibrant paintings” stated that Scott Moran said that while Evans Molina Fernandez has been a resident of Providence for around 10 years, he also has lived in Miami and Spain for periods. In fact, Fernandez said that while he has been a resident of Providence for around 10 years, he also has lived in Miami and Spain for periods. An earlier version of the article also stated that Steven Pennell said “He’s able to blend a lot of influences from colonial to indigenous, spiritual, santeria.” In fact, Jonny Skye said “He’s able to blend a lot of influences from colonial to indigenous, spiritual, santeria.” In addition, an earlier version of this article used the pronoun “he” to refer to Jonny Skye. In fact, Jonny Sky uses she/her/hers pronouns. The Herald regrets the errors.
CORRECTION An earlier version of the article “Thelma Golden reflects on curatorial experience” stated that Courtney Martin is a former assistant professor of art history. In fact, Courtney Martin is currently on leave from the University as an assistant professor of history of art and architecture. An earlier version of the article also stated that Thelma Golden assumed her current position as director and chief curator of the Studio Museum in 2000. In fact, Thelma Golden came to the Studio Museum in 2000 as deputy director, and became director in 2005. The Herald regrets the errors.
calendar TODAY FEBRUARY MARCH
S
M
T
W
Th
F
S
28
29
30
31 1
12
23
34
45
56
67
87
89
10 9
10 11
Share the Love: Valentine’s Day Sale 11:00 A.M. Sayles Hall, Main Green
International Writers’ Blog - International Love 12:00 P.M. Lower Blue Room
#MeToo Founder Tarana Burke Visits 6:00 P.M. Salomon Center
Princess Bride Screening 8:00 P.M. Harkness House
TOMORROW
By Gail Grabowski and Bruce Venzke ©2014 Tribune Content Agency, LLC
11 12
12 13
13 14
14 15
15 16
16 17
17 18
18 19
19 20
20 21
21 22
22 23
23 24
24 25
25 26 09/16/14
26 27
27 28
28 29
30
31
Intermediate Math Writing LaTeX Workshop 12:00 P.M. Rockefeller Library
Pan Asian Council Open Hour 2:30 P.M. 68 Brown Street
Reading: Poet C.A. Conrad 5:30 P.M. McCormack Family Theater
PASS Class - Advanced Excel 6:00 P.M. Graduate Center E
COMMENTARY PAGE 6 • WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2018
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
Brown University will undergo a comprehensive evaluation visit March 11-14, 2018, by a team representing the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education of the New England Association of Schools and Colleges. The Commission on Institutions of Higher Education is one of seven accrediting commissions in the United States that provide institutional accreditation on a regional basis. Accreditation is voluntary and applies to the institution as a whole. The commission, which is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education, accredits approximately 240 institutions in the six-state New England region. Brown University has been accredited by the commission since 1929 and was last reviewed in April 2009. Its accreditation by the New England Association encompasses the entire institution. For the past year and a half, Brown has been engaged in a process of self-study, addressing the commission’s Standards for Accreditation. An evaluation team will visit the institution to gather evidence that the self-study is thorough and accurate. The team will recommend to the commission a continuing status for the institution. Following a review process, the commission itself will take the final action.
THE PUBLIC IS INVITED TO SUBMIT COMMENTS REGARDING THE INSTITUTION TO: Public Comment on Brown University Commission on Institutions of Higher Education, New England Association of Schools and Colleges 3 Burlington Woods Drive, Suite 100 Burlington, MA 01803-4514 E-mail: cihe@neasc.org
Public Comments must address substantive matters related to the quality of the institution. The commission cannot settle disputes between individuals and institutions, whether those involve faculty, students, administrators or members of other groups. Comments will not be treated as confidential and must include the name, address and telephone number of the person providing the comments. Public Comments must be received by March 14, 2018. The commission cannot guarantee that comments received after that date will be considered.
Find us online! facebook.com/browndailyherald
browndailyherald.com
@the_herald
Location: 195 Angell St., Providence, R.I. www.browndailyherald.com
@browndailyherald
youtube.com/browndailyherald
Editorial Leadership
Sections
Multimedia & Production
Editor-in-Chief Elena Renken
Arts & Culture Editors Connor Sullivan Elizabeth Toledano
Design Editors General Managers Kyle Cui Michael Borrello Eduard Muñoz-Suñé Matilda Lynton Assistants: Julie Wang, Kelvin Yang
Metro Editors Emily Davies Bella Roberts
Photo Editors Sam Berube Anita Sheih
News Editors Anna Kramer Eduard Muñoz-Suñé Priyanka Podugu Sarah Wang
Copy Desk Chief Abby Borges
Managing Editor Kasturi Pananjady Senior Editors Julianne Center Madison Rivlin Alex Skidmore Hattie Xu POST- MAGAZINE Editor Saanya Jain
Science & Research Editors Jonathan Douglas Jackson Wells Sports Editors Alexandra Russell Nicholas Wey COMMENTARY Opinions Editors Connor Cardoso Anuj Krishnamurthy Clare Steinman
Illustrations Editor Pia Mileaf-Patel Directors of Web Development Eli White
Business
Office Manager Diane Silvia Directors Sales: Shreya Raghunandan Finance: Ravi Betzig Strategy: Caroline Ziegler
Editorial contact: 401-351-3372 herald@browndailyherald.com
Advertising contact: 401-351-3372 advertising@browndailyherald.com
Submissions: The Brown Daily Herald publishes submissions in the form of op-eds and letters to the editor. Op-eds are typically between 750 and 1000 words, though we will consider submissions between 500 and 1200 words. Letters to the editor should be around 250 words. While letters to the editor respond to an article or column that has appeared in The Herald, op-eds usually prompt new discussions on campus or frame new arguments about current discourse. All submissions to The Herald cannot have been previously published elsewhere (in print or online — including personal blogs and social media), and they must be exclusive to The Herald. Submissions must include no more than two individual authors. If there are more than two original authors, The Herald can acknowledge the authors in a statement at the end of the letter or op-ed, but the byline can only include up to two names. The Herald will not publish submissions authored by groups. The Herald does not publish anonymous submissions. If you feel your circumstances prevent you from submitting an op-ed or letter with your name, please email herald@browndailyherald.com to explain your situation. You can submit op-eds to opinions@browndailyherald.com and letters to letters@browndailyherald.com. When you email your submission, please include (1) your full name, (2) an evening or mobile phone number in case your submission is chosen for publication and (3) any affiliation with Brown University or any institution or organization relevant to the content of your submission. Please send in submissions at least 24 hours in advance of your desired publication date. The Herald only publishes submissions while it is in print. The Herald reserves the right to edit all submissions. If your piece is considered for publication, an editor will contact you to discuss potential changes to your submission. 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. 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. Advertising: The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. reserves the right to accept or decline any advertisement at its discretion. The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. is a financially independent, nonprofit media organization bringing you The Brown Daily Herald, BlogDailyHerald and Post- Magazine. The Brown Daily Herald has served 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: $200 one year daily, $100 one semester daily. Copyright 2017 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 WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2018 • PAGE 7
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
There’s more to identity than politics CAROLINE MULLIGAN staff columnist
On Feb. 13, 2018, the Brown Republicans and the Watson Center for International Affairs hosted Guy Benson, who was described as “a political editor at Townhall, frequent Fox News contributor and prominent young voice in the conservative movement.” Their description left out the reason why Benson has been making headlines recently: He partnered with PragerU, a conservative video production platform, to create a video called “I’m Gay … Conservative … So What?” The title succinctly sums up the video’s contents: Benson spends five minutes telling viewers how being gay is not an important part of his political identity, and rallies for more people with marginalized identities to step up and be their true, conservative selves. I had never heard of Benson before he spoke on campus, I didn’t go to his talk and frankly, I don’t care that much about him in particular. What I care about more is the problem underscored by his headline-making video. Figures like Benson become sensationalized, as shown by the over 770,000 views on his video, because they contradict popular ideas about how personal identities should intersect with political identities. Yet there are always going to be people who believe their
politics are separate from other aspects of their identity. Assuming that identity validates a belief more than developing critically thought-out arguments is incorrect, demonstrated in part by the ever-present so-called dissenting voices from people who hold the same identity. It’s time to focus on politicians’ actions, not on the demographics of their supporters. I’m not arguing that a person’s background is irrelevant to their political beliefs. Understanding how someone has been impacted by different issues
But a person’s background shouldn’t be the main factor used in evaluating their political beliefs. In his video, Benson asserts that many other gay people think he must be “self-hating” to support a party whose platform has largely been unsupportive of LGBTQ+ rights. He calls this claim “intellectually lazy.” And although I don’t think I’d agree with Benson on anything else, he is right. Dismissing Benson’s conservative politics as a form of internalized homophobia is a form of the “No True Scotsman” fallacy: Critics are saying
selves, then they would support different politicians. Not only is that argument logically unsupportable, it’s also easy to offer evidence to the contrary. When people act as though no one who holds a marginalized identity would ever support conservative stances, then conservatives can just point to the many people with diverse backgrounds who do, in fact, support them. In terms of sexuality, it’s easy to name Benson, his contemporary young gay conservative, Milo Yiannopoulos, or organizations like the Log
Assuming that identity validates a belief more than developing critically thought-out arguments is incorrect, demonstrated in part by the everpresent so-called dissenting voices from people who hold the same identity. It’s time to focus on politicians’ actions, not on the demographics of their supporters. illuminates the sources of their perspectives: If a multibillionaire doesn’t care about SNAP benefits but an unemployed single mother does, then it’s understandable why a commentator would contextualize their background when presenting their views. The latter person is far more likely to be directly affected by policy changes. We are all shaped by our identities and our experiences, and those shouldn’t be treated as irrelevant when assessing the validity of a claim.
that no true self-actualized gay person would support the Republican Party. This claim is completely unsubstantiated, and its adherence to a common rhetorical flaw makes it easy to tear down. There’s just no evidence that Benson, or any other LGBTQ+ Republicans, are conservative because of internalized homophobia. To say otherwise moves political discourse away from how public policy harms certain groups, and focuses instead on the notion that if we could just teach people to love them-
Cabin Republicans as foils. Suggesting that only the rich support Republicans ignores the rural poor who were so key in electing Trump. Bring in racial minorities, and you get stories like the man who held the “Blacks for Trump” sign behind Trump’s podium during a rally in Phoenix in August 2017. People whose political beliefs appear to contradict the interests of an identity group of which they are a part have always existed, and will always exist. Easily-contradicted claims that link
political positions to people’s identities do little besides distract from the actual issues at hand. Trump isn’t unsupportive of the LGBTQ+ community because a lot of LGBTQ+ people believe that he is. He’s unsupportive because he’s made policy decisions that go against the best interests of LGBTQ+ people, such as erasing Obama-era guidelines to protect transgender students and taking steps to allow federal workers to be discriminated against based on their sexual orientation. Accusing LGBTQ+ people who do support Trump of self-hatred does nothing to change his actions. It just provides conservatives with a valid talking point to distract from his political record. Identity isn’t irrelevant. But it also, on its own, does not make an argument for why a politician should or shouldn’t be supported, and insisting that it does is a weak and easily dispelled argument. Benson’s video shouldn’t be sensationalized. We need to stop focusing on who politicians are supported by and instead channel our energy into criticizing the politicians themselves.
Caroline Mulligan ’19 does not, for the record, agree with Benson about anything else at all, and can be reached at caroline_mulligan@brown.edu. Please send responses to this opinion to letters@browndailyherald.com and op-eds to opinions@browndailyherald.com.
Why we can’t call that treason EMILY MILLER staff columnist On Feb. 5, 2018, President Donald Trump remarked to the Sheffer Corporation in Cincinnati that the Democrats’ failure to stand and applaud during his 2018 State of the Union address to Congress amounted to treason. Trump is quoted by CNN as saying that the Democrats “were like death and un-American. Un-American. Somebody said, ‘treasonous.’ I mean, yeah, I guess, why not? Can we call that treason? Why not? I mean, they certainly didn’t seem to love our country very much.” Trump’s remarkably blunt stream of consciousness is ill-informed and demonstrates again that he lacks a basic understanding of the U.S. Constitution, which he has sworn to uphold. Here’s a quick roadmap — Article III of the U.S. Constitution defines “treason.” It is the only crime that is specifically defined in the Constitution: “Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying war against them, or in adhering to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort. No person shall be convicted of treason unless on the testimony of two witnesses to the same overt act, or on confession in open court.” The colonies had recently fought to separate from England where charges of treason were used to silence dissidents. The drafters of our Constitution intended that grounds for treason be expressly defined and, in doing so, narrowed its use to specific circumstances so that an ambiguous characterization could not be politicized as a weapon to silence opposing views. Since 1789, charges of treason have
been few and far between, with only forty federal prosecutions and even fewer convictions. Brown students — and the population at large — need to understand that injudicious use of the word treason threatens the bedrock of our very democracy. The Democrats’ decision not to stand for Trump during his address, whether appropriate or otherwise, undoubtedly does not fit within the definition of the crime described in Article
Those on Brown’s politically-minded and intellectually grounded campus are equipped to make their own decisions on Trump. But I advise awareness that he is not the only one to haphazardly throw constitutionally-derived firecrackers into the mix. Indeed, several others, on both sides of the aisle, are guilty of the same offense as their president: labeling an act or deed as treasonous without having legal justification for their assertion. Are they too just
There is nothing banal about what is meant by treason, and the voices of those who disagree with us are not the intended target, no matter how disagreeable our opponents’ actions or inactions may be.
III. And Trump’s claim of “not loving our country very much” is nothing more than his subjective displeasure at what he observed: a timehonored tradition of dissent from those “across the aisle.” So commonplace is Trump’s ego-centric criticism that we have become inured to it, and find it closer to the annoying buzzing of a mosquito than to a fundamental threat to our freedom. Yet are we underestimating the danger? Is Trump just reckless with words, or has he intentionally misappropriated and misapplied the crime of treason to stifle criticism?
engaging in polemics or is there enough at stake to make this commentary more than just cavil? This controversy has come to the forefront in light of possible Russian collusion in the 2016 election. People from all sides of the political spectrum, from Sen. Tim Kaine D-VA to Steve Bannon, have used the word “treasonous” to describe Donald Trump Jr.’s meeting with a Russian lawyer to get information on opponent Hillary Clinton. Though less blatant than Trump’s misuse, this too is inconsistent with the
treason described in the Constitution. The key word in the context of the Constitution is enemy. Treason laws have narrowly defined enemy as those with which the United States is in an open or declared war. Although the elasticity of our Constitution may allow for a broader definition, it is likely that at the time, the framers meant to encompass only other sovereign countries with which we are at war. Under this definition, while the United States is “in competition” with Russia, we are formally at peace with it. There are other acts and laws which may be or have been violated, but the alleged collusion with Russia does not fit into the constitutional rubric of treason. And to use it in that manner lessens its import and undermines, in a “crying wolf ” manner, its proper and more serious application. There is nothing banal about what is meant by treason, and the voices of those who disagree with us are not the intended target, no matter how disagreeable our opponents’ actions or inactions may be. As the framers intended, accusations of treasonous behavior leave no room for hyperbole. Gaining traction in an argument certainly does not justify corrupting fundamental tenets of our constitution. Brown students need to be cognizant of the historical background of our words, and scrupulously accurate when accusing a political opponent of any form of treason or other serious crime. According to our framers, to do otherwise may endanger our democratic processes.
Emily Miller ’19 can be reached at emily_miller@brown.edu. Please send responses to this opinion to letters@browndailyherald.com and opeds to opinions@browndailyherald.com.
NEWS THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2018
Diane Lipscombe to serve as president of Society of Neuroscience Professor of neuroscience, director of Brown Institute for Brain Science to begin presidency in November By ARJUN GANGA STAFF WRITER
Diane Lipscombe, director of the Brown Institute for Brain Science and professor of neuroscience, will begin her term as president of the Society for Neuroscience in November 2018. She will succeed Richard Huganir, who has served as president since November 2017. The Society for Neuroscience has nearly 38,000 members from 90 countries. The group primarily aims to advance discoveries in neuroscience that benefit society, Lipscombe said, adding that the other goals of the organization are to “understand the value of basic research, translational research and clinical research (while continuing) to bring young scientists into the field.” As president, Lipscombe will advocate for scientific funding and organize the society’s annual meeting for over 30,000
people, among other responsibilities. Lipscombe began studying biology after high school when she started working as a technician for a pharmaceutical company under the mentorship of Sir James Black, who would later go on to win the Nobel Prize in Medicine. The first person in her immediate family to attend college, Lipscombe now runs a major institute at the University that focuses on “advancing discoveries in brain science and engaging the community at Brown.” The institute recently organized a project focusing on gene suppressors in Lou Gehrig’s disease. It also houses the BrainGate group, which seeks to assist humancomputer interaction. Chris Moore, associate director of BIBS and professor of neuroscience lauded Lipscombe’s work in her current position. “She was really crucial in taking our (neuroscience) graduate program to the next level, and that only happens when people truly care deeply about educating students but also about them (personally).” Lipscombe has served on volunteer committees within the Society for
MEAL PLAN
changes
STEP ONE:
Choose a Meal Plan. VIEW OPTIONS AT BROWN.EDU/FOOD
REMINDER:
T DAY THE LASEA L PLAN
TO MAKE M EDNESDAY, CHANGES IS W
FEB. 14!
• You can ADD a new Meal Plan at any time during the year • You can make one CHANGE per semester. The deadline for spring semester changes is Wednesday, Feb. 14. • Meal Plan CANCELLATIONS are not available during the spring
STEP TWO:
Let us help!
EMAIL DINING_SERVICES@BROWN.EDU OR CALL 863-3343 WITH QUESTIONS
• Changes may be made in person weekdays from 9:00AM to 4:00PM at the main Brown Dining office located at 144 Thayer Street (Sharpe Refectory).
Neuroscience and has worked with the group to create its open-access scientific journal, eNeuro. As president-elect, she serves on the group’s executive committee alongside current president Huganir and former president Eric Nestler. Moore thinks that Lipscombe will do well in her new position, adding that she can both navigate the political scene in Washington and lead those within the organization with ease. Kristin Webster PhD’15, a former graduate student in Lipscombe’s lab, said that Lipscombe will be a “fantastic president,” adding that “she’s always been a strong advocate for women in science, … underrepresented populations and … more scientific funding.” Juggling these two demanding executive positions will be manageable with the help of “incredible” faculty around her, Lipscombe said. “I see these two positions as being incredibly synergistic. … Much of what I do here at Brown is very similar to the activities (at the Society for Neuroscience) with a different subset of people.”
ANITA SHEIH / HERALD
The first to attend college in her immediate family, Diane Lipscombe will succeed Richard Huganir as president of the Society for Neuroscience.
Phi Beta Kappa elects 34 new members Academic organization selects Brown juniors for academic rigor, achievement By EMILY DAVIES METRO EDITOR
Thirty-four members of the class of 2019 were elected to the University’s Phi Beta Kappa Society Feb. 6, wrote Chapter Administrator Mary Jo Foley in an email to The Herald. The University’s Rhode Island Alpha Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa is the seventh-oldest chapter in the country, Foley wrote. Phi Beta Kappa, founded in 1776, is the oldest and most prestigious academic honors organization in the nation, she added. Election to Phi Beta Kappa is based on academic achievement within a rigorous curriculum, according to the election procedures posted on the University’s website. Elected as juniors, the University’s newest members of Phi Beta Kappa must have completed a
minimum of 20 courses over five semesters at the University and earned at least 18 grades of “A” or “S with distinction”; two-fifths of the courses must be in the arts, humanities, social sciences or pure mathematics. No more than one-third of a class’s electees may be selected as juniors. The Alpha of Rhode Island holds elections three times a year: in February to elect juniors, in April to elect seniors and in late May to elect seniors who transferred to the University as juniors, according to the election procedures. Those elected are as following: Justin Inho Bai ’19 Yue Bai ’19 Samuel Itzhak Bennett ’19 Kenneth Christopher Berglund ’19 Rebecca Valerie Buxbaum ’19 Connor Joseph Cardoso ’19, Herald opinions editor Devon A. Carter ’19 Julia Choi ’19, former Herald staff writer John Albert Dall’Aglio ’19 Judson Anthony Ellis ’19 Edwin Arthur Farley ’19
Dakota Stone Fenn ’19 Emi Dominique Fogg ’19 Jenna R. Gosciak ’19 Oliver Z. Hermann ’19 Ivan Hofman ’19 Quinton Huang ’19 Elizabeth Huh ’19 Dorothy Ying Xiao Jiang ’19 Anuj Krishnamurthy ’19, Herald opinions editor Andrew John Lawrence ’19 Joshua J. Lebo ’19 Austin Irving Lessin ’19, former Herald sales associate Amy Rebecca Lipman ’19 David William Liu ’19 Flannery Elisabeth McIntyre ’19 Julianna Lee Marino ’19, former Herald photographer Lena Ari Milton ’19 Andrew David Robbin ’19 Misha Wei Sohan ’19 Hwi Jae Shin ’19 Amanda Nicole Siegel ’19 Irene D. Tang ’19 Joshua Aaron Wartel ’19, managing editor of arts and culture for postmagazine