11 19 14 entire issue lo res

Upson Hall to Undergo Major Renovation

Aims to provide resources for project teams

By NOAH RANKIN Sun City Editor

With construction slated to begin in June, the University is currently finalizing plans to renovate Upson Hall in order to increase energy efficiency and provide more resources to student project teams, according to Bill Bader, facilities director for the College of Engineering

Upson a mechanical engineering building constructed in 1956 is due for a “full renovation,” according to Bader

“Like a lot of our buildings, Upson is 60 years old,” Bader said “It’s at the end of its life in terms of the building’s systems to maintain, heat, that sort of thing The plan is to gut the interior in phases, but in the

See UPSON page 5

Student Leaders, Staff Discuss Mental Health Resources at C.U.

By BENEDETTA CARNAGHI Sun Staff Writer

Student leaders and Cornell staff members discussed issues surrounding mental

h e a l t h a n d h ow Un i ve r s i t y i n i t a t i ve s address those issues during a panel Tuesday

C o n ve r s a t i o n s p a r t l y f o c u s e d o n a

Student Assembly resolution which was passed earlier this semester that called on professors to include information on mental health resources in their syllabi

Matthew Stefanko ’16 who co-sponsored the resolution said a “big conversation” in the S A involves the stigmatization that surrounds issues of mental health

“Cornell is a university where a lot of students come [ ] because they’re really smart and they’re supposed to have it

together,” Stefanko said “You’re not just going to kill yourself with work for 24 hours and then be ok These are conversations that we want people to be having ”

According to Yamini Bhandari ’17, vice president for outreach and women ’ s representative for the S A , including mental health resources in syllabi would raise awareness of these resources among students

“

T

y about having the resources everywhere [it] is about having them when you need them,” she said

In

resources that are currently available on c

By AIMEE CHO Sun Senior Writer

Prof Carole Bisogni ’70 M S ’72

Ph D ’76, nutritional sciences, died Saturday of cancer She was 65

Bisogni, who was also the associate dean for academic a f f a i

C

f Hu m a n Ec o l o g y, s t u d i e d nutrition and food sciences as an undergraduate and graduate student at Cornell, according to her biography After joining the nutritional sciences faculty in 1975, she was responsible for “extension educational programs for adults through New York State, as well

as outreach to policy makers related to consumer food issues including food safety, product labeling and seafood ” She also developed nutrition education programs using inter ventions in schools, supermarkets and a f t e r - s c h o o l p ro g r a m s , according to her biography Bi s o g n i c o n d u c t e d research on the ways that people “ manage a myriad of influences and goals when they interact with food ” She was involved in a research team that developed a Food Choice Process Model, in order to represent the decision making

See BISOGNI page 5

Human Ecology Professor Carole Bisongni Dies at 65 Ithaca Landlord Pleads Guilty To 350 Code Violations in Court

By ANNIE BUI Sun News Editor

Ithaca landlord Ronald Bergman agreed to pay fines amounting up to $50,000 after pleading guilty to 350 city and property code violations in Ithaca City Court Thursday Bergman is the owner and landlord of a rental property at 312 Plain St , according to a press release from the City of Ithaca

In August 2012, an inspection of the property found “ numerous longstanding violations,” among them an “unsafe” structure and failure “ to provide safe egress ” from the building

Though the building was then “posted as condemned,” at least one tenant still continued to occupy the premises, according to the release This March, the Ithaca Department of Public Works secured the

property and in April, Bergman was charged “with over 8,000 violations,” according to the City After pleading guilty to the 350 violations Thursday, Bergman agreed to have the house up to standard, remedying all violations within four months, according to the release If Bergman fails to do

See LANDLORD page 4

Today Wednesday, November 19, 2014

weather FORECAST

West Campus Yoga

8:35 - 9:45 a m , Noyes Community Center

Employee Assembly Meeting

12:15 - 1:30 p m , 401 Physical Sciences Building

Beyond GDP: Measuring Human Progress

And Well-Being in the United States

4:30 - 6 p m , 142 Goldwin Smith Hall

Take a Breath Cornell

6:30 - 7:30 p m , Music Room, Willard Straight Hall

The Changing Face of Indian Democracy: From Secularism to Majoritarianism

12:15 - 1 p m , 277 Myron Taylor Hall

The Tragedy of German Naval Ambition Before the First World War 12:15 - 1:30 p m , G08 Uris Hall

Challah for Hunger

4:30 - 5:30 p m , 104! West

Student Assembly Meeting

4:45 - 6:30 p m , Memorial Room, Willard Straight Hall

Weird News of the Week

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Ring Flushed Down Toilet Returned to Family

UNION CITY, Calif (AP) Sanitation workers have returned an heirloom diamond and sapphire ring to a San Francisco Bay Area family whose 3-year-old son flushed it down the toilet

After several attempts, Union Sanitary District crews found the ring last week, over month after it disappeared from Munazzar and Mehvish Tapal’s home in Union City Wastewater Collection Supervisor Shawn Nesgis tells KTVU-TV that the ring traveled about a third of a mile Crews flushed the sewer lines and discovered the ring after vacuuming up debris Nesgis equated the discovery to finding a needle in a haystack

The Tapals say the ring’s return was a miracle Munazzar Tapal estimates the ring has been in his family for 60 years

Maine Man Charged With Breaking Into Homes Naked

FALMOUTH, Maine (AP) Police say an 18-yearold Maine man has been arrested after allegedly breaking into two homes while naked, at about the same time his

own home was destroyed in a fire

Logan Valle faces charges including burglary, theft and attempted theft

Police allege Valle forced his way into two homes late Saturday night looking to steal car keys He was found in the attic of one of them

At about the same time, the nearby home owned by his parents was destroyed in a fire No one was injured

New Jersey Man Accused Of Stealing Bulldozer

HARRISON, N J (AP) Police say a drunken New Jersey man stole a bulldozer in order to get a ride home

Police say 30-year-old Christopher Russell left behind a path of destruction as he tried to maneuver the bulldozer through West Hudson Park The bulldozer leveled signs, three benches, a tree, a drinking fountain, and left a maze of tracks in the grass

Harrison Police Capt Mike Green tells the Jersey Journal that Russell told officers he was cold and was trying to ride home to Newark

Russell was charged with driving while intoxicated, criminal mischief, leaving the scene of an accident and theft of the bulldozer

Prof. Steven Squyres: The man behind the Mars Rover project

By CHRISTOPHER BYRNS Sun Staff Writer

For nearly his entire life, the principal investigator for the Mars Rover Project, Prof Steven Squyres ’78 Ph D ’82, astronomy, has been interested in science

Sagan Medal in 2 0 0 9

s ability to connect the general

In his junior year, Squyres took a graduate-level course in astronomy, where he examined photographs from the recent Viking mission to Mars for a term paper

“[My professor] gave me a key to the Mars Room and I thought, ‘Alright, I’ll go over to the Mars Room, and I’ll flip through some pictures, and I’ll see if I can come up with an idea for a term paper, ’” Squyres said “I figured I would spend 15 or 20 minutes looking at pictures and see if I could come up with a term paper idea ”

Squyres said “If I was asleep and you were awake, you could see pictures of Mars before I saw them ”

From 1987 to 1997, Squyres said he wrote four proposals to NASA for a Mars Rover mission Though his first three proposals were rejected, Squyres said he rebounded from the rejections by refining his next proposal

“Finally, in 2000 NASA said, ‘We will send your rover to Mars in fact, we will send two of them Here’s all the money you need Ready, set, go, ’”

Squyres said “We had to be on top of the rockets and ready to fly in Florida four months later, and it was crazy ”

updates on the Ma

Rove

said the idea of exploration has

childhood

“When I was six years old, I considered myself to be a scientist I just wasn ’ t a very good one yet, ” he said As a child, Squyres said he would read books about explorers in the Arctic, the Antarctic and the deep ocean

“The idea of going some place nobody’s ever been really held an enormous appeal for me, ” Squyres said

During the summer between his senior year of high school and his freshman year at Cornell, Squyres said he participated in a field research project on the Juneau Ice Field in southeastern Alaska

“Over the course of that summer, I decided I was going to major in geology,” he said

However, after studying geology for a few years, Squyres said he felt that too little remained to be discovered in the rocks of the earth

“There just weren ’ t too many places left where nobody had ever been,” he said

That first encounter with Ma r s , h owe ve r, c h a n g e d Squryes’ life

“I was in that room for four hours, and I came out

what I wanted to do for the rest of my life,” he said

astronomer and Cornell faculty member from 1971 to 1996, was one of his greatest influences while he was a graduate student at Cornell According to Squyres, when he applied for graduate schools, Sagan wrote to him saying that “he wanted [Squyres] to be his grad student for the Voyager mission ”

Squyres said he was impressed with the way Sagan communicated his scientific intuition

“He would show you how you could take a problem that looked incomprehensibly hard, and break it down and find the little bits of it that mattered the most, ” Squyres said

Squyres added that he applied these skills when facing media attention surrounding the Mars Rover Mission especially when the mission released all of its pictures in real-time directly to the Internet

“Nobody had ever done that before; this was new, ”

Squyres said he used his training as a geologist to design the rovers as a “robotic field geologist ” The robot needed to be able to “[get] down onto the surface” and “be able to move around ”

“[I needed] a vehicle that you could load up with the kind of stuff a geologist would want to have in their backpack or back in their laboratory and be able to move it around on the surface of Mars,” Squyres said Squyres said that he envisions a new era where “ everyone ” can feel directly involved in exploration

“The exploration that we ’ re doing, we get to take everybody along with us, ” Squyres said “Anybody can follow it basically in real time as its happening and that’s really cool I really like being able to do that ”

Sq u y re s s a i d h e c o n t i n u e s t o e x p l o re Ma r s through the Opportunity rover, which has now surpassed its operating plan by over a decade He added that even though “dealing with the unexpected” may pose challenges, it “is actually the most fun part of the job ”

“[Those challenges are] what makes it to this day still interesting,” he said “Mars is still throwing surprises at us and that is what makes it fun ”

Christopher Byrns can be reached at cbyrns@cornellsun com

Corning CEO: Companies Should Collaborate, Focus on the ‘ Why’

By ANDREW LEE Sun Staff Writer

Wendell P Weeks, chair and chief executive officer of Corning, Inc a manufacturer of glass and other materials spoke to Cornellians about sustaining institutions in the face of technological innovation at a lecture in Gates Hall Monday

Weeks’ lecture focused on the term “ creative destruction,” coined by economist

Joseph Schumpeter, which refers to the continuous process in which old industries are destroyed and new ones are created as a consequence of technological innovation, according to Weeks

Weeks said institutions are important because of their role in fulfilling fundamental human needs

“The highest satisfaction people get is not from getting rich but from serving others,” Weeks said “One of the best ways to do that is through institutions ”

Weeks also said that most great things in histor y were accomplished by “ groups, teams and institutions” rather than by individuals

“Death scares the hell out of us, ” he said “Institutions are one of the few ways we have of beating the reaper since what you do in your life can live beyond you ” Although Weeks said the process of sustaining institutions has become increasingly difficult in a world of creative destruction, he emphasized Schumpeter’s belief that incessant creative destruction was an essential part of capitalism

Weeks said that Corning which has been listed on the S&P 500 since the index’s introduction in 1957 is no exception to this environment of creative destruction

“Of the 500 companies listed on the S&P 500 in 2004, only 300 remain today,” Weeks said “Even people who are successful through [certain] time periods are experiencing the enormous power of creative destruction ” Weeks said that in order to sustain institutions in a world of creative destruction, it is important for companies to understand why their particular institutions were originally created

“Most people know ‘what’ they do in their company, ” Weeks said “Even fewer people know ‘how’ a company or institution actually does what they do It’s very rare that people find their ‘why,’ and it’s one of the reasons why most institutions don’t last ” Weeks added that companies need to organize and create frameworks around the “why ”

“Nothing else matters, ” he said “Companies forget this all the time ” Weeks ended his lecture by suggesting that companies collaborate more often with other companies that share the same vision

“You want to invite others to your ‘why’ vision to give it vibrancy and joy,” Weeks said

The event was a part of the annual Lewis H Durland Memorial Lecture Series and was held under the banner of the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management

Each year, the dean of the school invites a distinguished business leader to campus to meet with students and faculty members and to deliver a major address In the past, the Johnson School of Management has invited William C Weldon, former chair and CEO of Johnson and Johnson, and Irene Rosenfeld ’75 M S ’77 Ph D ’80, former CEO of Kraft Foods

DIALOGUES Continued from page 1

o n l i n e c o u n s e l i n g , a c c o rd i n g t o Gre g o r y Ee l l s , a s s o c i a t e d i re c t o r o f Ga n n e t t He a l t h Se r v i c e s a n d

d i r e c t o r o f C o u n s e l i n g a n d

Ps yc h o l o g i c a l Se r v i c e s K n ow n a s ‘ T h e r a p i s t A s s i s t e d On l i n e , ’ t h e p ro g r a m f o c u s e s o n a n x i e t y t re a t m e n t “ [ T h e p ro g r a m ] w o u l d b e a g re a t f i t f o r u s b e c a u s e t h e y a l s o u s e a t e l e p h o n e a s s e s s m e n t m o d e l , l i k e w e d o , s o t h e y s c re e n p e o p l e w h o m a y h a ve s u i c i d a l i t y o r m o re s e r i o u s c o nd i t i o n s , ” Ee l l s s a i d C o r n e l l a l re a d y h a s a n i n f r as t r u c t u r e i n p l a c e t o d e ve lo p t h e p r og r a m , a c c o rdi n g t o Ee l l s “ It’s j u s t a m a t t e r o f w h a t i t w o u l d c o s t u s a n n ua l l y a n d w h a t t h e f e e w o u l d b e , ” h e s a i d Ee l l s a d d e d t h a t a n i s s u e C o r n e l l f a c e s i n e x p a n d i n g t h e m e n t a l h e a l t h i n i t i a t i ve s i t p rov i d e s i s f i n d i n g a s u s t a i n a b l e f u n d i n g m o d e l “ Cu r re n t l y, C o r n e l l h a s n e ve r t i e d t h e f u n d i n g o f Ga n n e t t ’ s h e a l t h s e r v i c e s o r t h e c o u n s e l i n g s e r v i c e s o n t h e n u m b e r o f s t ud e n t s o n c a m p u s , s o w h a t h a s h a p p e n e d i s t h a t t h e y ’ re f u n d e d o u t o f t u i t i o n m o n e y, ” h e s a i d “ Howe ve r, t h a t d o l l a r a m o u n t s t a y s t h e s a m e e ve n i f m o re s t ud e n t s a re c o m i n g i n ” T h e n e x t p a n e l i s t , Bre n d a n O ’ B r i e n , d i r e c t o r o f t h e I n t e r n a t i o n a l St u d e n t s a n d S c h o l a r s O f f i c e , s a i d i n t e r n at i o n a l s t u d e n t s o f t e n s t r u g g l e

a v a i l a b l e m

n t a l h e a l t h re s o u rc e s o n c a m p u s “ We m a k e s u r e t h a t t h e c o u

“We try to remove this ‘stigmatization’ of counseling services and try to encourage students to take advantage of those resources if they need to ” B r e n d a n O ’ B r i e n

w i t h i s o l a t i o n He a d d e d t h a t i n

l i g h t o f t h e r i s i n g i n t e r n a t i o n a l s t u d e n t p o p u l a t i o n o n c a m p u s , t h e Un i ve r s i t y h a s a c h a l l e n g e t o m a k e t h e s e s t u d e n t s a w a

Benedetta Carnaghi can be reached at bcarnaghi@cornellsun com

Landlord to Pay Thousands

In Fines for Code Violations

s o , h e w i l l u l t i m a t e l y l o s e h i s p ro p e r t y t o t h e c i t y In re s p o n s e t o t h e c o u r t p roc e e d i n g , Ma yo r Sva n t e My r i c k ’ 0 9 i s s

Prof. Bisogni Leaves Legacy In Food Choice Research

BISOGNI Continued from page 1

processes that people engage in when they eat

Prof Carol Devine, nutritional sciences, said Bisogni “believed strongly in her responsibility to foster the next generation of researchers by getting students involved in research ”

“She was a founder, along with Professor Jeffer y Sobal, of the Food Choice Research Group at Cornell,” Devine sad “Her food choice research is carried on today by a generation of scholars who have learned to listen to what people themselves say about the ways they eat ”

Bisogni also taught Nutritional Sciences 2450: Social Science Perspectives on Food and Nutrition, according to her biography

Prof Alan Mathios, dean of the College of Human Ecology, described Bisogni as a “ strong advocate for students” in an email addressed to students of the col-

lege

“[She] was committed to high academic standards and believed that students should be at the center of the college’s work,” Mathios said “Her ability to combine her passion for teaching and depth of knowledge in her field translated into dynamic and enriching student learning experiences, not only for her students and advisees, but for all Human Ecology students ”

As associate dean of the human ecology college, she helped to establish a summer research immersion program for human ecology students to work in faculty labs, according to a University press release

Bisogni is survived by her husband, Prof Emeritus James J Bisogni, Jr M S ’70 Ph D ’73, civil and environmental engineering, and her sons Jared Bisogni MPS ’06 and Adam Bisogni grad, according to the University

Aimee Cho can be reached at acho@cornellsun com

Upson Renovations Aim

To Support Project Teams

end we’ll have a building that will last for another 60 plus years ”

Bader added that the renovat i o n s , w h i c h w i l l t a k e s e ve r a l years, should result in a more logical arrangement for the building, as well as a “better consolidation of functions ”

“ Be s i d e s t h e f a c t t h a t t h e

w h o l e b u i l d i n g g e t s re n e we d inside and out in terms of the appearance and the finishes, I think it will be a lot more welcoming,” he said “There will be improved flow and better ability to find things ”

Upson’s renovations are part of a master plan developed by the engineering college in 2011, according to Bader Other parts of the plan which all have a focus on energy efficiency include a renovation of the second and third floors of Kimball Hall

“ T h e s e re n ova t i o n s w i l l improve the energy performance of the buildings, so the cost and use of electricity, steam and so forth will go down based on the improvements to the systems, ” Bader said Nick Teo ’15, who worked on a project team concerned with Upson’s energy efficiency, said he hopes the renovations will improve the heating of the building

“Most of the building does not c h a n g e i t s h e a t i n g b e h a v i o r throughout the night or weekend, so the heat is on all day, every day Also, some rooms are too hot sometimes, so the thermostats aren ’ t the best,” he said “I hope the renovations will change this so that the building is more energy efficient and comfortable for students ”

A major goal of the building’s update is to provide more space for student project teams, according to Bader

“We wanted to provide more v

space, as well as more of it, because that’s a growing part of our program, ” he said “Our project teams have been scattered

buildings and this will pull them together a little bit more ”

Abhishek Sriraman ’15 said he hopes Upson’s renovations will make it a more comfortable space for students to work, despite it b e i n g “ a n i n c re d i b l y ove r u s e d building ”

“At t h i s p o i n t , e ve r y t h i n g about the building is very old and run-down,” Sriraman said “The computer lab, which is probably the most-used computer lab on campus, has a pretty sad reputation of being smelly and gross Similarly, the Upson lounge is not at all a nice place to work For the students who do constantly work in Upson, changing this ambience would be very desirable ”

The renovations also aim to promote visibility and flexibility of the teams, according to Bader

“It will make people more able to see the exciting things that students are doing on the project teams and how they do it,” Bader said “Some of the classrooms will be more flexible, so we’ll be able to configure them in different w a y s f o r d i f f e re n t p e d a g o g y approaches ”

Sriraman said he thought the plans for increased visibility are “huge,” especially for the mechanical engineering department

“[Upson Hall] isn’t filled with people tinkering on circuits or just working on code, but students literally building race-cars and rockets,” he said “I think there’s a significant portion of the student population that will be astonished to see the incredibly cool projects that [students] work on ”

T h e C o r n e ¬ D a i l y S u n

Independent Since 1880 132ND EDITORIAL BOARD

HALEY VELASCO ’15 Editor in Chief

CATHERINE CHEN ’15

Business Manager

CAROLINE FLAX ’15

Associate Editor

NICK DE TULLIO 15

Web Editor

RACHEL ELLICOTT 15

Blogs Editor

ELIZABETH SOWERS 15

Design Editor

CONNOR ARCHARD 15

Sports Photography Editor

ANNIE BUI ’16

News Editor

KAITLYN TIFFANY ’15

Arts & Entertainment Editor

KATHLEEN BITTER 15 Science Editor

CHARDAE VARLACK 15

Associate Multimedia Editor

EMILY BERMAN 16

Assistant Sports Editor

NICOLE HAMILTON 16

Graphic Design Editor

EMMA LICHTENSTEIN ’16

Marketing Manager

LUISE YANG ’15 Human Resources Manager

ARIELLE CRUZ ’15 Senior Editor

MICHELLE FELDMAN ’15 Senior Editor

ALICEA ’16

STEELE ’15

CHIUSANO 15

REHBERG 16

YANG 15

RANKIN 16

Editor ANUSHKA MEHROTRA ’16

’16

XIAO 16

SYDNEY ALTSCHULER 16

FASMAN 16

RATHORE 15

SHIM ’15

’15

DAVIS ’16

LEVY 16

JAYNE ZUREK ’16

WORKING ON TODAY’S SUN

PHOTO NIGHT DESKERS Michelle Feldman 15 Sonya Ryu 16

ARTS EDITOR Kaitlyn Tiffany 15 Sean Doolittle 16

NEWS DESKERS Noah Rankin 16 Annie Bui ’16

SCIENCE EDITOR Kathleen Bitter ’15 Reem Khondakar ’16

SPORTS DESKER Sydney Altschuler ’16

DESIGN DESKERS Elizabeth Sowers 15 Catherine Leung 16 Melody Li 17

Editorial

Reforming the Quarter System

ON THURSDAY, THE STUDENT ASSEMBLY UNANIMOUSLY endorsed an investigation of the controversial quarter system, which regulates formal contact between freshmen and Greek chapters The system which was established in 2011 in order to curb unsafe behaviors places strict limits on official contact between freshmen and sororities and fraternities The S A ’ s move was prompted by widelyshared concerns that the quarter system has driven contact among members of the Greek community and freshmen underground, popularizing unsafe and unregulated off-campus social events We at The Sun share these concerns and applaud the S A ’ s unanimously approved resolution as a meaningful step towards the improvement and reform of the University’s Greek system

Prior to the institution of the quarter system, freshmen were permitted to attend open parties at fraternities These events were typically heavily regulated, with sober monitors and bouncers present to guarantee the safety of attendees The quarter system which prohibits freshmen from attending Greek events during the first academic quarter and permits them to attend only non-drinking events during the second academic quarter has pushed drinking among freshmen “behind closed doors,” particularly to unregulated, informal events at residences in Collegetown Further, it has severely limited formal Greek contact with new students at Cornell, engendering difficulties for first-semester freshmen who are interested in learning about the fraternities and sororities on campus An investigation and reevaluation of the quarter system by the University community is certainly in order

We at The Sun believe that contact between members of the Greek community and potential new members should be regulated in such a way as to maximize student safety and facilitate engagement The popularity of unsafe, off-campus drinking events and the hurdles that Greek chapters face in establishing relationships with first-year students suggest that the quarter system has failed to achieve both of these aims With this in mind, we welcome the Student Assembly’s unanimous call for an investigation of the quarter system Reforms that improve the accessibility and safety of freshmen contact with the Greek community are certainly within reach, but we at The Sun believe that in order for the evaluation process to be fruitful, it must be informed by input from students

David Brotz | Guest Room

Money Doesn’t Talk, It Whispers

Wo rd a b l e C a re Ac t T h e s e c re t m o n e y g a m e i s a n u n u s ua l a n d c o n t rove r s i a l d y n a m i c t h a t i s p l a yi n g a b i g g e r a n d m o re i m p o r t a n t ro l e i n e a c h s u c c e s s i v e e l e c t i o n D e m o c r a t s o u g h t a n a l y ze t h i s l a t e s t i n d u s t r y a n d l e a r n f ro m i t t o e x p l o i t i t f o r t h e i r ow n g a i n s Eve n t h o u g h t h i s l a t e s t b u s i n e s s e s s h o u l d n o t e x i s t , i t d o e s , a n d i t w o u l d b e i l l - a d v i s e d o f t h e De m o c r a t s n o t t o t a k e a d va n t a g e o f i t b e c a u s e t h e i r o p p on e n t s a re T h e Ko c h b ro t h e r s , f o r e x a m p l e , a re

c a p i t a l i z i n g o n t h e f a c t t h a t t a x - e xe m p t g r o u p s , s u c h a s t h e i r A m e r i c a n s f o r Pro s p e r i t y, c a n c ove r t l y d o n a t e e s s e n t i a l -

l y u n l i m i t e d f u n d s a n d n e ve r d i s c l o s e t h e

n a m e o f d o n o r s Be c a u s e o f t h i s , a n y

c u r r e n t s p e c u l a t i o n o n h o w m u c h t h e Ko c h Bro t h e r s p l a n t o s p e n d t h i s e l e c t i o n i s

m e r e l y c o n j e c t u r e , b u t T h e Ne w Yo r k

Ti m e s i s r e p o r t i n g t h a t t h i s n u m b e r m a y ve r y we l l b e i n t h e

But what does all this mean? It means that we have returned to an era where under-the-table deals and hush-hush transactions are the law of the land

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re t u r n e d t o a n e r a w h e re u n d e r - t h et a b l e d e a l s a n d h u s h - h u s h t r a n s a c t i o n s a re t h e l a w o f t h e l a n d Se c re c y i s j u s t t h e w a y b u s i n e s s i s d o n e i n t h i s n e w c o rp o r a t e A m e r i c a , a n d e l e c t i o n s a re j u s t t h e l a t e s t p l a y t h i n g f o r t h e r i c h e l i t e s t o b u y Ju s t a f e w we a l t h y b i l l i o n a

David Brotz is a freshman in the College of Ar ts and Sciences He

r a n g e o f $ 3 0 0 m i ll i o n On t h e we b s i t e f o r A m e r i c a n s f o r Pr o s p e r i t y, a r t i c l e s i n f o r m p o t e n t i a l vo te r s w i t h h i g h l y d u b io u s c l a i m s s u c h a s t h a t t h e m i n i m u m w a g e a c t u a l l y h a r m s t h e p o o r, a n d t h a t p o l l u t i o n d o e s n o t a c t u a l l y c a u s e a s t h m a b u t t h a t t o o m u c h c l e a n l i n e s s i s p o ss i b l y a c a u s e A n d e ve n t h a t i s p e r h a p s n o t t h e m o s t u n d e r m i n d e d t h i n g t h a t t h e s h a d y o r g a n i z a t i o n i s u p t o A C o l o r a d o n e w s o r g a n i z a t i o n r e p o r t e d t h a t A m e r i c a n s f o r Pro s p e r i t y m a i l e d o u t l e tt e r s t o p e o p l e , c o m p a r i n g t h e i r vo t i n g re c o rd t o t h a t o f t h e i r n e i g h b o r s e s s e n t i a l l y v o t e r s h a m i n g T h e l e t t e r s re a d , “A s y o u c a n s e e b e l ow, p u b l i c re c o rd s i n d i c a t e yo u r n e i g h b o r s h a ve a m o r e c o n s i s t e n t v o t i n g p a t t e r n ” I n A l a s k a , C N N re p o r t e d t h a t re s i d e n t s r e c e i v e d l e t t e r s b y t h e o r g a n i z a t i o n t h r e a t e n i n g l y a s k i n g , “ W h a t i f y o u r f r i e n d s , yo u r n e i g h b o r s a n d yo u r c o mm u n i t y k n e w w h e t h e r y o u v o t e d ? ” Ap p a re n t l y, o n e ’ s vo t i n g re c o rd , b u t n o t w h o m t h e y vo t e d f o r, i s p u b l i c re c o rd , a n d t h e o r g a n i z a t i o n i s s h a m e l e s s l y e x p l o i t i n g t h i s A n o t h e r c l a n d e s t i n e c o n s e r v a t i v e o r g a n i z a t i o n , Cro s s ro a d s G P S , w a s p l a nn i n g t o s p e n

G u e s t s u b m i s s i o n s m a y b e s e n t

t o o p i n i o n @ c o r n e l l s u n . c o m .

L e t t e r s t o t h e e d i t o r m u s t b e i n

r e s p o n s e t o a p i e c e i n T h e S u n ,

w h i l e g u e s t c o l u m n s c a n b e o n

a n y t o p i c c h o s e n .

A l l o p i n i o n s w e l c o m e .

Wanderlust

At this point in the year, we find ourselves in the doldrums of fall semester Ithaca, it seems, has finally “made it official” with winter, and the perpetual cold weather drags on ceaselessly Even though the sky is constantly gray, we don’t get the chance to see it because some architect decided that it would be great to minimize the number of windows in campus buildings in an effort to “ conser ve energy ” (Energy is always conser ved; it is all really just another Cornell money-grabber conspiracy ) We find ourselves working diligently in the stacks ( ladies), cramming for impending exams and thinking about how awkward the wording in our papers is Let me premise the rest of this column by first stating that by and large the problems Cornell throws at us are not that compelling in the grand scheme of things, and we are, for the most part, quite lucky to be here Especially around now, people will more and more often think about being someplace else Thanksgiving is soon, and many of us will be returning home Abroad application deadlines are looming (Aside: I have no idea if this true or not ) The drear y weather synergizes with our academic and extracurricular lives, making it easy to wish we were somewhere, anywhere but Cornell True masochists will go onto The Weather Channel website and type in zip code 96753 (Wailea, Hawaii) At the time this is being written, not one of the next 10 days is projected to under 80 degrees It also stays lighter longer, and they have sea turtles So it is always a little jarring to snap back to reality and out of your daydream only to realize that Maui and enjoying its white sand beaches and beautiful Hula danc- I mean, ukulele music, is a roughly 15-hour flight away

I can ’ t imagine that anyone goes through college without experiencing some sort of wanderlust College is perhaps the stage in our lives where the impulse to explore is strongest Look around in your large lectures and you can probably catch people browsing galleries of exotic locales like Seychelles, St Lucia, Yosemite National Park and any number of other places on the Internet Some significant percentage of us (though I’m sure a much smaller figure than what the tour guides tell visiting high school students) choose to go abroad and literally explore the world Go abroad in Europe and have the opportunity to see breathtaking German castles and geography Go to Tokyo and learn how to

Though we are told at a young age that we can be whatever we want when we grow u we never fully grasp the idea that the choic we make growing up lead to who we are

speak Japanese and navigate public transportation like no one else Go to South America and get a nice handmade alpaca hat

Even though most of us choose to spend all four (or five or six or eight) years at Cornell in Ithaca, college forces us all to act on our wanderlust in a sense As you progress through your coursework en route to your degree, you explore your major and learn more than you could ever care to know about heat transfer (or analogous topic for your major) If you are doing Cornell right, you also explore the extracurricular goingson on campus and outside 14853 Though I subscribe to the “ seen one tree, seen ‘ em all” mantra, some people seem to be quite taken with the surrounding scener y and explore that

The class of 2015 finds itself acting on its wanderlust in a new way It’s true what they say: time keeps on slipping, slipping, slipping into the future, and May 2015 gets closer almost ever y day Here’s to hoping that the Cornell cocoon transformed me from a repulsive caterpillar (sorr y, freshmen) into a beautiful butterfly able to spread my wings and make enough money to buy a cabin in Banff and a 200-foot yacht I keep at my Hawaiian surf cottage Just like browsing through images of places we may never visit, wanderlust may take our imaginations down impossible roads Though we are told at a young age that we can be whatever we want when we grow up, we never fully grasp the idea that the choices we make growing up lead to who we are grown up and soon I have to will enter the workforce with an engineering degree, crushed that I will never be able to live out my life as an Australian Shepherd on a ranch in Montana

We all have to, at times, think about our life’s direction There is certainly something to be said about Ferris Bueller’s “ stop and look around ever y once in a while” lifestyle, but there is equal value in exploring where you ’ re going before forging ahead My dream of being a happy canine with room to roam may not have been all that realistic, but my dream of being an NBA star certainly was just a couple of different choices (like choosing to be 6’8” instead of my height) would have had me convincing Lebron to join me in bringing a title to Denver If your dream is to make candles in Maine and have running water (but only cold running water) then think about what you can be doing today to make that a reality Cornell will set you up nicely to join the professional or academic world, but if you want them to do the whole thing there will have to be some tuition hikes Envision yourself in 10 years and make that person real

Also for those of you who were disappointed in the lack of a hip-hop epigraph, let me leave you with this:

“Closing time, You don’t have to go home, But you can ’ t stay here ” Semisonic

Web

day

How to Get Away With Graduating Com men t of the

“An election with the lowest turn out since WWII is hardly indicative of a mandate when well less than 40 percent of registered voters, an ever shrinking number itself in the face of the wave of GOP voter suppression legislation in all those states they control, showed up at the polls A minority of a minority elected all those Republicans ”

Joe Magid

Re: “ THROWDOWN THURSDAY: The Republican Moment,” Opinion published November 13, 2014

Said

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a p l a n A f t e r p r e - s c h o o l , i t w a s e l e m e n t a r y s c h o o l a n d t h e n m i d d l e s c h o o l I n m i d d l e s c h o o l , w e t r a i n e d f o r h i g h s c h o o l c l a s s e s , w h e r e w e w o r k e d i n o r d e r t o g e t i n t o c o l l e g e I n c o l l e g e , w e w o r k t o p r e p a r e o u r s e l v e s f o r t h e “ r e a l w o r l d ” B u t u n l i k e a l l o f o u r o t h e r g r a d u a t i o n s , a f t e r t h i s o n e , t h e r e i s n o t a s e t p l a n ( t h a t s o c i e t y h a s s e t f o r u s ) i n p l a c e Un l i k e m a n y o f m y p e e r s w h o a re g o i n g t o g r a d u a t e s c h o o l o r a l r e a d y h a v e j o b o f f e r s , I d o n o t ye t k n ow w h a t I w i l l b e d o i n g c o m e Ju n e o f n e x t y e a r Fo r t h e f i r s t t i m e e ve r, m y n e x t s t e p s a re a m y s t e r y t o m e A s a t y p e - A

Though my last year here on the H is not fictional, I have found myse “suspending my disbelief” when it comes to senior year and my future.

w h o p l a n s e ve r y t h i n g f ro m

, a m o m e n

t h a t t h e s h ow h a s b e e n b u i l d i n g t o a l l s e a s o n T h o u g h w e h a v e b e e n g i v e n g l i m p s e s o f T h e Mu rd e r, t h e l o o m i n

c h o o s i n g a l l o f m y c l a s s e s f o r e ve r y s e m e s t e r o f c o l l e g e d u r i n g f re s h m a n ye a r t o m y s p re a ds h e e t o f t h e T V s h ow s I w a t c h s o I d o n ’ t l o s e t r a c k i t i s a s t r a n g e s e n s a t i o n n o t t o k n ow w h a t I w i l l b e d o i n g e ve r y d a y s e ve n m o n t h s f ro m n ow In o rd e r t o s t a y p o s i t i ve a n d a p p r e c i a t e w h a t I h a v e r i g h t n ow, i n s t e a d o f w a l l ow i n g i n t h e s t re s s o f w h a t c o u l d g o w ro n g , I t r y ove r l o o k t h e p o t e n t i a l f o r d i s a s t e r a n d e n j oy C o r n e l l w h i l e I c a n Now, I w o u l d b e re m i s s i f I d i d n o t s o m e h ow re l a t e t h i s t o f e m i n i s m o r t e l e v i s i o n , a s p e r u s u a l It j u s t s o h a p p e n s t h a t t h i s c o l u m n w a s , i n f a c t , i n s p i re d by ( m y q u e e n ) Sh o n d a R h i m e s ’ a n d Pe t e r No r w a l k’s n e w s h ow, How To Ge t Aw a y Wi t h Mu rd e r Fo r t h o s e o f yo u w h o d o n o t k n ow o r i f yo u h a ve n ’ t i n t e ra c t e d w i t h m e s i n c e t h e s h ow p r e m i e r e d i n S e p t e m b e r A B C ’ s H TG AW M s t a r s Vi o l a Da v i s a s a l a w p ro f e s s o r a n d d e f e n s e a t t o r n e y w h o s e s t u d e n t s g e t e n t a n g l e d i n a m u rd e r Sh e h i r e s f i r s t y e a r l a w s t u d e n t s f r o m h e r C r i m i n a l L a w 1 0 1 c l a s s ( n i c k n a m e d H TG AW M ) t o w o rk a t h e r p re s t i g i o u s l a w f i r m E a c h we e k , i n a d d i t i o n t o s h ow i n g u s a f l a s h - f o r w a rd t o t h e n i g h t o f T h e Mu rd e r, we s e e a C a s e o f t h e We e k , t h a t i n f l ue n c e s t h e c h a r a c t e r s a n d t h e i r ow n l i ve s No t o n e o f t h e c h a ra c t e r s h a s a p e r f e c t m o r a l c o mp a s s , a n d e ve r yo n e h a s s c a nd a l o u s s e c re t s T h e k e y t o e n j o y i n g H TG AW M i s t h e i d e a k n ow n a s “ s u s p e n s i o n o f d i s b e l i e f, ” t h e c o n c e p t t h a t i n o rd e r t o a p p rec i a t e a s t o r y, o n e m u s t s u s p e n d j u d g m e n t o f h ow i m p l a u s i b l e i t i s We u s u a l l y e m p l oy s u s p e ns i o n o f d i s b e l i e f w h e n w a t c h i n g o r re a d i n g s t o r i e s , i n o rd e r t o a c c e p t w h a t i s h a p p e n i n g a s “ re a l” f o r t h e s t o r y, a n d l o o k p a s t w h a t we k n ow t o b e f a rf e t c h e d Do i n g t h i s a l l ow s u s t o e n g a g e w i t h t h e n a r r a t i ve , l e a r n f ro m i t a n d d e ve l o p a c r i t i c a l u n d e r s t a n d i n g , w i t h o u t l e t t i n g h ow re a l i s t i c o r u n re a l i s t i c i t i s i m p a c t t h o s e j u d g m e n t s Obv i o u s l y, H TG AW M i s f a r f ro m re a l i s t i c No d e f e n s e a t t o rn e y i n t h e i r r i g h t m i n d w o u l d h i re f i r s t ye a r l a w s t u d e n t s a s h i s o r h e r o n l y i n t e r n s o r a l l ow t h e m t o d o t h e w o r k t h a t A n a l i s e Ke a t i n g h a s h e r i n t e r n s d o Fu r t h e r m o re , t h e s e i n t e r n s w o u l d n o t b e t h e o n l y s t u d e n t s t h a t s h e c a l l s o n t o a n s we r q u e st i o n s i n c l a s s T h e d i r t y t r i c k s t h a t t h e y a l l p u l l i n o rd e r t o l i te ra l l y g e t a w a y w i t h m u rd e r t h e i r c l i e n t s ’ o r t h e i r ow n w o u l d n o t b e s o e a s y t o d o i n re a l l i f e L o o k i n g p a s t i t s o u t l a n d i s hn e s s , Pe t e r No r w a l k’s c re a t i o n i s f i l l e d w i t h p ro g re s s i ve c h a r a ct e r s , m e a n i n g f u l m e s s a g e s a n d f a s c i n a t i n g s o c i a l c o m m e n t a r y On e o f t h e m o s t - w a t c h e d n e w s h ow s o f t h e s e a s o n , i t i s c l e ve r, we l l w r i t t e n a n d t h o u g h t - p rovo k i n g If v i e we r s a re n o t a b l e t o l o o k b e yo n d t h e c r a z i n e s s o f t h e s h ow, t h e s e re l e va n t a n d s i gn i f i c a n t m e s s a g e s w o u l d b e m i s s e d T h o u g h m y l a s t ye a r h e re o n t h e Hi l l i s n o t f i c t i o n a l , I h a ve f o u n d m y s e l f “ s u s p e n d i n g m y d i s b e l i e f ” w h e n i t c o m e s t o s e n i o r ye a r a n d m y f u t u re I d o n ’ t w a n t t o m i s s o u t o n a n y i m p o r t a n t l e s s o n s I m i g h t l e a r n o r l i f e - c h a n g i n g e x p e r i e n c e s I c o u l d h a ve b e c a u s e I a m w o rr i e d a b o u t w h a t I w i l l b e d o i n g t h i s t i m e n e x t ye a r If I c a n l o o k p a s t t h e c r a z i n e s s t h a t i s t h e f a c t t h a t I a m g o i n g t o g r a d u a t e n e x t s e m e s t e r ( b e c a u s e i t r e a l l y i s a n i n s a n e t h o u g h t ) , t h e n m a y b e I h a ve a b e t t e r c h a n c e o f m a

SCIENCE

Cor nell Resear chers Cr eate a Mor e Efficient Plant Using Genes Fr om C yanobacteria

By

Genetically-modified greenery | Researchers in plant molecular biology have genetically modified a tobacco plant to be able to photosynthesize more efficiently This technology could eventually lead to crop plants capapble of producing more food

to Hanson Rubisco will react with oxygen, but in order to successfully fix carbon for a plant, it must only react with carbon dioxide

much more efficiently, most notably into the form of glucose

“This knowledge has been known for quite some time, but it is only in recent years that the technology available has made its application feasible,” Hanson said

The three-year-old project was started in partnership with Rothamsted Research, a United Kingdom-based research group, after an Ideas Lab conference hosted by the National Science Foundation, Hanson said

With concerns growing about crop productivity due to burgeoning global population, the NSF began searching for high risk, high reward projects to fund Ideas Lab invites 15 scientists from the United States and 15 scientists from the United Kingdom to participate Lin and Hanson’s project proposal was selected and they began the research in introducing genes for the carbon concentrating mechanism and Rubisco into plants

Previous research by Lin, the Hanson lab and colleagues had introduced genes for carboxysomes into tobacco The challenge was introducing the gene for cyanobacteria Rubisco

“Assembly of Rubisco is very complex and is made of two unique subunits,” Lin said “I put together the two genes that encode these two subunits of cyanobacteria Rubisco and introduced them into the tobacco genome ”

For the first time, a genetically engineered plant is able to turn carbon dioxide from the atmosphere into sugars more efficiently by using using a bacterial enzyme

Maureen Hanson, the Liberty Hyde Bailey professor of plant molecular biology, and Myat Lin, a postdoctoral fellow in Hanson’s lab, have successfully introduced a gene coding for a cyanobacteria protein into the chloroplasts of tobacco By doing so, the transgenic plants are able to perform photosynthesis more efficiently

“Rubisco is critical for carbon fixation in all plants,” Hanson said

Photosynthesis is the series of reactions plants use to take light energy and convert it into chemical energy, or ‘food ’

The amount of an enzyme called Rubisco controls the speed of photosynthesis as a whole Because of its importance in the photosynthetic cycle, Rubisco became the target of Hanson’s research, she said

Because Rubisco evolved at a time when the Earth’s atmosphere was primarily carbon dioxide and had little to no oxygen, the modern-day enzyme is unable to differentiate between the two similarly-shaped molecules, according

By SARAH COHEN Sun Senior Writer

In the next fifty years, the world’s population will continue to expand, as will its need for basic supplies such as food and energy

Eleanore O’Neil ’15, a food science major, researches the diets of commercial chickens in the lab of Prof Xin Gen Lei, animal science, to combat these important global issues

Algae fuel is a type of renewable biofuel

According to the United States Department of Energy, to make fuel from algae, first, large amounts of algae are grown Once enough algae is grown, fuel precursors, such as carbohydrates, are extracted from the algae These compounds will later be processed into usable fuel

However, once the fuel-producing compounds are extracted, algae fuel producers are left with the unusable parts of the algae This large amount of residual biomass is not useful to fuel production, but it still contains nutritional content

Many chickens that are raised for either meat or egg production live predominantly on diets of corn and soybeans Algae can be used to supplement these diets

As the abundance of photosynthetic organisms increased and Earth’s atmospheric composition changed from having very little oxygen to being about one-fifth oxygen, photosynthetic organisms gradually had more trouble with Rubisco reacting with oxygen instead of carbon dioxide

Most crop plants solve this problem by producing massive amounts of Rubisco, which ensures that at least some of its enzyme will end up reacting with carbon dioxide and helping produce sugars However, because so much of the produced Rubisco is not actually fixing any carbon but rather reacting with oxygen, the photosynthetic process is considered very inefficient, according to Hanson

Besides plants, other organisms like cyanobacteria are also able to carry out photosynthesis Cyanobacteria, however, prevent their Rubisco from reacting oxygen by enclosing it in a carbon concentrating mechanism, a micro-compartment called a carboxysome The carboxysome prevents oxygen from entering and reacting with Rubisco while selectively allowing carbon dioxide to enter in order to carry out photosynthesis, according to Hanson Because of the carboxysome, cyanobacteria are thought to be able to fix carbon

The transgenic plants were able to carry out photosynthesis and “supported autotrophic growth,” according to Lin These tobacco plants subsequently were able to process more carbon dioxide per unit enzyme than their wild-type counterparts

“We still have a few things to work out, such as regulating the cyanobacteria genes once they are introduced into the plant,” Lin said

Once genes are introduced, their activity needs to be regulated in order for them to be considered fully functional, according to Lin

The next step for Lin is to create plants that contain both the carboxysome genes and the Rubisco genes that were successfully introduced in this experiment

“Of course, we don’t want to just do tobacco,” Hanson said “Tobacco is a very good model system because of its convenience but eventually we would like to put this system into crop plants such as rice or wheat ”

Yvonne Huang can be reached at yhuang@cornellsun com

Eleanore O’Neil ’15 Raises Chickens on Energy-Efficient Feed

Supplementing algae into chicken diets, according to O’Neil, produces chicken meat which is healthier than that of chickens only raised on traditional diets that lack algae

According to O’Neil, algae-fed chickens are considered healthier because their meat contains heightened levels of omega-3 fatty acids as compared to omega-6 fatty acids

Omega-3 fatty acids, commonly found in plant and marine oils, are important in our metabolism and, according to the Mayo Clinic, have many health benefits, including a lowered risk of heart attacks

and soybeans, the other four groups were given two, four, eight, and 16 percent algae supplements in their diets, respectively

Omega-3 fatty acids are also the reason many call fish a healthy alternative to other meats

O’Neil said she found the optimal level of algae in chickens’ diets through a six-week trial using five groups of broiler chickens

One group was fed a traditional diet of corn

“You can ’ t completely switch [the chickens] over to algae there just aren ’ t enough nutrients or energy there to have a completely algae diet,” O’Neil said Broiler chickens, which are bred for fast growth, were then monitored for growth, feed intake and water consumption throughout the six weeks A fe w birds in each group, O’Neil said, were euthanized at three and six weeks old in order to look at blood components, omega-3 fatty acid levels, and organ weights

O’Neil said her final results found that the optimal level of algae inclusion in chicken diets is about eight to 10 percent, depending on the type of algae Higher amounts of algae in the diet, although not fatal to the

chickens, did cause reduced growth rates, making such a diet not ideal for large-scale chicken production, according to O’Neil

Although omega-3 fatty acids are healthy, higher levels of these compounds can cause meat to spoil faster This is because unsaturated fatty acids are susceptible to oxidation

O’Neil is currently studying the effect of supplementing chicken diets with antioxidants, such as vitamin E, to promote the shelf-life of meat According to O’Neil, antioxidants also improve meat quality and increase the amount of omega-3 fatty acids deposited in the meat

In the future, the Lei lab also plans to continue this research by testing the taste of chicken meat when chickens are fed algae According to O’Neil, they will do this by partnering up with another lab outside Cornell as there are additional health laws to follow when working foods for human consumption to ensure safety Others in the Lei lab are researching algal supplement effects on egg-laying as opposed to meat-producing chickens for similar purposes, O’Neil said

Sarah Cohen can be reached at scohen@cornellsun com

Science Around Ithaca

‘Wee Stinky’ Blooms Again

Every day this week, 9 a m to 4 p m

Kenneth Post Laboratory Greenhouse, 512 Tower Rd

Titan arum is blooming again for the first time since 2012

The greenhouse will be open to visitors during the day Titan arum is native to Sumatra and is known for having the largest unbranched inflorescence or cluster of flowers of any plant in the world

It is also known for smelling like rotting meat

Kathleen Bitter

The Marvelous Display of the Superb Lyrebird

Thursday, Nov 20 at 12:30 p m

Morison Room A106 Corson-Mudd Hall

As part of the Department of Neurobiology and Behavior’s seminar series, Anastasia Dalziell will be speaking about the focus of her Ph D thesis the superb lyrebird, which is one of the world’s greatest imitators

Reem Khondakar

Old Problem, New Solutions: The Return of the American Chestnut

11:15 a m to 12:10 p m on Friday, Nov 21

404 Plant Science Building

Researchers at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Foresty have developed an American chestnut tree that is resistant to the deadly fungus that nearly eradicated it over the course of the 20th centur y Prof William Powell of SUNY ESF will talk about how he intends to bring back the American chestnut tree

Reem Khondakar

Shifting the Paradigm: Microbes as Animal Helpmates

Exhibit Runs Through Jan 30 Mann Library Gallery, 2nd Floor

and science

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Mykki Blanco, Princess Nokia and Cakes de Killa

BY TROY SHERMAN Sun Staff Writer

I may have had the most absurd (and absurdly entertaining) musical experience of my life on Sunday night There was bad music, good music, intimate twerking and microphone masturbation There were man-skirts, septum piercings, experimental baseball hats and technological difficulties There was colored hair, cross-dressing, gender ambiguity and female body hair There was crowd-surfing, mosh-pitting, shit-talking and drug referencing Most mind-boggling, though, was the fact that there was all of this (and definitely more) for a crowd of fewer than 100 people in Duffield Hall On the Engineering Quad For a Cornell-sponsored event Truly perplexing, truly weird and genuinely, wholly enthralling, this show (and a show it certainly was), put on by Princess Nokia, Cakes da Killa and Mykki Blanco, was an anti-brilliant, quasi-surrealist, utterly awesome party-rap fiasco in the most enticingly unlikely of settings; all-in-all a great fucking way to close a weekend

I got to the doors a little bit before 9:00 p m (the supposed start time) and, after proving that I had already paid my (ridiculously low) three-dollar admittance fee online, was allowed into the sprawling main lobby of Duffield Lining the corridor which led to the more open concert area were numerous crude drawings of various grotesque and miscreant sex acts, which were being lackadaisically perused by Cornell’s most ostentatiously artsy and nonconformist Both of these the sex paintings and the academic rebels seemed wildly out of place in the Engineering building Paintings of dementedly ejaculatory penises juxtaposed against lightly waving banners proclaiming the endless merit of and future security afforded to anyone wise enough to choose Cornell Engineering The weirdness, however, merely started with this bizarre junction; the night hadn’t even begun

The festivities were kicked off by the somewhat disappointing set of Princess Nokia After leaving everyone to mull about apprehensively for a few minutes and realizing, presumably with a moderate level of disappointment, that the almost-butnot-quite-100-person-strong crowd would have to suffice, two scantily clad performers and a conspicuously white and middle aged D J who, donning a Thrasher sweatshirt, knit beanie and apathetic visage, looked like a slowly Westernizing exChechen rebel bounced onto the stage The ensuing set which included, among other things, a poorly received wel-

come to “Princeto- I mean, Cornell!,” references to Warped Tour, light-hearted interrogations about the crowd’s acid use, every sexualized dance move imaginable and a laudation of our (the crowd’s) pursuit of higher education was verging on pathetic And not because it was bad, per se, but just because, as the ill-fated and yet-developing opening performer, Princess Nokia, try as she valiantly did, could not engage the crowd I imagine that her extra-dimensional fairy House-rap could have easily worked on a bigger crowd, or in a smaller venue, but the area-to-crowd-member ratio left a lot of space unfilled, and a lot off uninterested shoulder-dancers Sadly, Nokia was obviously affected by the apathy, which contorted her face into a perpetually awkward smirk and transformed her twerking (which I imagine would have thrilled in another setting) into a desperate cry for crowd enthusiasm The music was alright, but at this point the crowd wasn ’ t yet bubbling Nokia, upon completion of her set, exited stage rather dejectedly, but apparently unfazed in the long run, as she was seen exuberantly dancing in the crowd later on in the night

Following Nokia came the king (queen?) of the concert, New York’s (Gay) Pride, the lyrically garish, refreshingly brash, uncompromisingly and brilliantly queer, up-and-coming gay rap icon: Cakes da Killa Quite simply, Cakes killed it His charismatic anti-machismo swept over the audience immediately, and he held us in close (even through several microphone failures) for the entirety of his set His raps (which he claims can “make a homophobe a hypocrite,” and I think I agree) were just as inyour-face and aggressively entertaining live as they are on record, and he especially succeeded in retaining (and even amplifying) the general tongue-in-cheek (but not really) goofiness that makes lines like “Niggas pay my loans just to fingerfuck my asshole sound not only acceptable, but necessary Sure he was brash and showy (as so many rappers nowadays are), but beneath that layer of rap-game braggadocio was a core message: I’m a gay rapper, so what? And so, with that in mind, he stunned the crowd with his lyrical skill, carelessness as to whether he offended anybody, sexified bodily movements and, at times, downright silly ploys (such as a mid-song deluge of meowing)

As phenomenal as Cakes and his anti-masculine performance were, failing to give credit to his D J here would be sinful Physically, the D J stood in stark contrast to Cakes (a goodsized, rather flamboyant black dude) He was short and white with jutting curly brown hair, wearing a jacket which, once removed, revealed a periodic table t-shirt Seriously, this kid could have been an engineer from New Jersey who, in hopes of some Sunday night studying in Duffield, accidentally wandered

into the midst of a rap show Nevertheless, when he started blasting Cakes’s beats, he went absolutely nuts He rapped along, jumped around, screamed at the crowd and even had his own mini rap at the tail end of the set The mixture of his energy and unassumingness combined into perhaps the most absurd aspect of the absurd night: A short white kid in a periodic table t-shirt as the most outrageous and heated performer

Following Cakes and his D J came the night’s closer: Mykki Blanco Blanco opened up with a caustic freestyle, and proceeded, for the rest of her act, to crucify herself on the micstand, jump on the speakers, mosh with the audience, rap in Latin, dance paroxysmally and (in contrast to Princess Nokia’s celebration of education) lambast the audience for “thinking you ’ re so fucking smart ” Although not as effortlessly entertaining as Cakes, Mykki proved to be a perfect way to close the night With her purposefully raucous and ridiculous rave-raps and her over-the-top stage persona, she encapsulated the homo-absurdity and downright craziness of the entire bizarre concert, proving that, if there was meant to be any unifying message for the night, it was that it doesn’t matter whether you ’ re gay, straight, anything in-between or beyond, as long as you can boogie with a hundred strangers for three hours on a Sunday night to the sonic pulsations of a dude in drag

Troy Sherman is a freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences He can be reached at tsherman@cornellsun com

Rebuilding the Wreckage: Neil Labute’s Wrecks

BY GWEN AVILES Sun Staff Writer

Writing theater previews is a particularly difficult task when you ’ re a performer yourself I’ve been acting ever since coming home from the first Spiderman movie, whereupon I ran to my room with a half-eaten bag of buttery popcorn and proceeded to jump from my sister’s bed to my own, pretending I was Mary Jane on Spiderman’s back and he was webbing us from building to building Needless to say, I love theater for the transformative, magical process it is I know how much work is put into a production from character development to intensive rehearsals to elaborate scenery, costumes and lights Theater is a commitment from all involved to tell someone else’s story So much work is put into a production but by the end of the rehearsal process, all one can do is put one ’ s work out there to be judged Knowing this, it is hard for me not to enjoy a show I see, or at the very least appreciate the show and the valiant efforts of the cast and crew I am not the harshest reviewer or audience member out there by any means But while I appreciate nearly every performance I see, I am rarely moved by them

That said, the Readers’ Theatre’s production of Wrecks by Neil LaBute has been the first axe for the frozen sea inside me in a long while At first, I was skeptical about the production Wrecks is an 80-minute, one-man play, and one man/woman shows can be difficult to pull off It’s one thing to hear lengthy monologues from one character peppered throughout a full-length show but to listen to one character speak for almost an hour and half without interacting with any other char-

acters runs the risk of becoming tiresome While there were moments in the middle of Wrecks that seemed to drag on, the one man organization of the play proved not to be a major issue Wrecks stars Chris Nickerson as Edward Carr, a bereaved widower recounting his wife Mary Jo’s life as he stands by her coffin But the play is not that straightforward Nickerson (who wore three pound weights on each ankle in preparation for his role) as Carr explains to us that he is actually talking to the funeral guests at the moment Thus, during the show we are outsiders looking in, privy to Carr’s innermost thoughts, which are relayed to us in a

gushing stream of consciousness Carr goes from lighting a cigarette to poking fun at the pretentiousness of the word “indeed,” to launching into an ode to his dead wife Nickerson wasn ’ t just speaking at the audience, however; with each ripple of the stream of his consciousness, he discovered something new along with us He was a natural conversationalist So much so that the entertain-

ing details subdued paramount ones that led to the play’s thrilling twist

What is that twist? Well, I can ’ t tell you that (But you wouldn ’ t want me to anyway) Many TV shows/movies/plays fall into a few cliché storylines: Girl meets boy, girl gets boy, good conquers evil, the neat resolution of all the problems the character ever had Even more disturbingly cliché is the ardent attempt not to be cliché: Girl meeting boy and not getting boy for no apparent reason other than it being cliché, evil conquering good because benevolence prevailing would be too cliché, characters living with unresolved conflict because hope for new beginnings are just way too cliché Fortunately, Wrecks does not fall into any of this categories

Playwright Neil LaBute has always been known for his innovative, dark and candid writing style and Wrecks is no exception in his oeuvre It is a psychological thriller appearing under the guise of a traditional romance and will have you questioning truths and values you’d previously considered indubitable What is love? Can love ever be wrong? How has society influenced and/or brainwashed me into believing what I believe? How do I limit myself in my pursuit of my heart’s desires in yearning for society’s acceptance? It is refreshing to attend a play that is both enjoyable and challenging, to walk away thinking, “that was wow instead of just boxing it up in simple “that was really good” gift wrap

Wrecks will be performed this weekend (November 21 to November 23) by the Readers Theatre of Ithaca at Cinemapolis with an onscreen interview with its playwright Neil LaBute after the show Tickets can be bought in person at Cinemapolis (in advance or at the door) or at thereaderstheatre com

Gwen Aviles is a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences She can be reached at gaviles@cornellsun com

Labels or Love: The Industry of Criticism

ov e r a h u n d r e d r e v i e w s a n d a r r i v i n g , s o m eh ow, a t a n u m e r i c a l g r a d e O n e f o u r - s t a r r e v i e w h o l d s n o w e i g h t : A b u z z w o r t h y m ov i e n e e d s d o z e n s , t o p l a s t e r ov e r a f u l lp a g e Ne w Yo r k Ti m e s s p r e a d a n d t o b u m p

i t s To m a t o m e t e r r a t i n g c l o s e t o t r i p l e d i gi t s I n d i v i d u a l o p i n i o n s c o l l a p s e i n t o u n q u a l i f i e d p r a i s e o r e l s e t h e m o s t f i e r y i n v e c t i v e , t h o s e b i n a r y v e rd i c t s f i l l i n t o a c o n s e n s u s a n d t h a t c o n s e n s u s c e m e n t s a s s o m e o b j e c t i v e t r u t h , e g “ L o o k , Bi rd m a n h a s a 9 4 p e r c e n t , w h a t d o y o u m e a n y o u d o n ’ t l i k e i t ? ” T h e w o rd s t h a t s u r v i v e i n t h i s e c o s y s t e m a r e , f i t t i n g l y, t h e l o u d e s t C r i t i c s l i k e

Ta b i t h a k n ow h ow t o p e n a l i n e t o h a m m e r h o m e t h e “f r e s h n e s s ” o r “ r o t t e n n e s s ” o f t h e w o r k t h e y h a v e d e i g n e d t o r e v i e w W h y b o t h e r r e a d i n g t h e f u l l p i e c e , w h e n i t ’ s a l l t h e r e i n o n e c o n c l u s i v e s e n t e n c e ? Bl u r b -

m a s t e r s l i k e t h e a f o r e m e n t i o n e d Tr a v e r s r e w a rd n o c r i t i c a l i n v e s t m e n t , s i n c e t h e y

o f t e n r e p e a t t h e m s e l v e s ( s e r i o u s l y, s e a r c h

Tr a v e r s ’ n a m e a n d t h e p h r a s e “ s n e a k s u p a n d f l o o r s y o u ” ) a n d p a y l i t t l e a t t e n t i o n t o f i l m s a s t e x t s w i t h n u a n c e d s t r u c t u r e s t h a t p r o d u c e d e n s e , v i t a l i m a g e s w o r t h u n p a c ki n g No w o n d e r Tr a v e r s l ov e s Bi rd m a n s o m u c h : T h e p e d d l

Freshman Sweezer Wins Two Events, 500 and 1000 Free

SWIMMING AND DIVING

Continued from page 16

Douglas

“ We just need to keep focused going into our next tri meet this weekend,” she said “Focusing on our team, our goals, and our spirit really helped us not get distracted by what our competitors plans and goals were for this past weekend's meet ”

For the men ’ s side, Hallowell echoed Douglas’ sentiments and added that the squad needs to emphasize health, nutrition and

mental toughness looking ahead

“I think we have to continue to think about our goals and keep a strong attitude” he said “ We performed well and made a big statement in the League, but we have to continue to swim fast and compete hard Resting and s t a y i n g h e a l t h y w i l l k e e p u s physically ready to compete with our Ivy rivals, but keeping a strong attitude will help us sustain it through Februar y ”

John McGrorty can be reached at wonderboy@cornellsun com

Red Looks Ahead to Annual William S. Field Invitational

Sophomore Hortense Gimonet rotated in during the second chukker Cornell ended the first half holding the edge over Skidmore Throughout the contest, the women rotated in and out, playing three chukkers each Ultimately, the match ended with a final score of 24-3 in the Red’s favor This was a high scoring match for the Red: Winslow tallied 12 points, followed by Wicker with six and Stieg and Gimonet having two goals each There were also two pony goals

“Our game against Skidmore was a lot of fun and everyone on the team played well,” Stieg said “Traveling to play another team comes with a few challenges

because you have to ride in an unfamiliar arena on horses that you ' re not used to, but everyone quickly found their bearings and had a good time ”

With this blowout win against Skidmore, the women ’ s team looks for ward to the Bill Field Invitational, in which the Red will take on Skidmore College once again as well as the University of Massachusetts at home The men ’ s squad will also be competing in the invitational and will welcome Skidmore College and Colorado State

“I’m confident that we will be ready for the field tournament, hoping to get to the finals and win the whole thing,” Langlois said

Elani Cohen can be reached at ecohen@cornellsun com

Mets Give up First Round Pick, Sign Veteran Michael Cuddyer

Overall prediction: N.Y. Mets win at least 90 games this year

Continued from page 16

lot of sense for this team The Mets needed to fill a hole in the outfield that can also provide a power bat in the lineup, and the fact that Cuddyer is a known close-friend of David Wright makes this deal make a lot of sense As far as the management continuing to be aggressive, the team has been linked to rumors of trading for big time shortstop like Alexi Ramirez, Troy Tulowitzki or Starlin Castro If any of those deals pan out, this team will have all the needed pieces for success

The early and aggressive move to bring in Cuddyer isn’t the main indication of the potential success of this team Many returning players, both young and old, are ready to make splashes in their offensive production this upcoming season Last year, the Mets were one of the worst offensive teams in the Majors Many things are looking up this year Young players like Travis dArnaud and Lucas Duda ended the second half of the 2014 season on a tear Duda was known around the league as one of the top long-ball hitters in baseball, while d’Arnaud flew under the radar in the second half due to a very poor

first half If both youngsters come back with the same production, things are looking good for the Mets Veteran Mets stars that flopped in 2014 are also primed to have a good year Curtis Granderson, who struggled to hit with consistency last season, has potential to make a comeback year as the Mets organization brought in ex-Yankees hitting coach Kevin Long to work with the former Yankee slugger

Another great comeback story will be David Wright, who struggled with an ailing shoulder that limited his offensive production A healthy return and the new ballpark dimensions in Citi Field should greatly help to change the Mets captain’s fortunes on offense

On the other end of the field, the Mets are also poised for success Center fielder Juan Lagares is one of the finest young fielders in the game, and he helps lead the Mets defense The pitching is the most consistent and best assets that the Mets have With the return of ace Matt Harvey after a season off due to injury, the starting rotation looks ready to do some damage in the league Harvey, young star Zach Wheeler, NL Rookie of the Year winner Jacob deGrom and seasoned

pitchers Jon Niese and Dillon Gee currently make up the starting five If these five young stars can mimic their performances on the mound from their last seasons of play, the Mets rotation would arguably be the best in the Majors The relievers are not too bad in their own regard On top of that, the farm system is going to graduate several top prospects to the MLB squad early this season Most notably, Noah Syndergaard is one of the top pitching prospects in the minors who is expected to move up to the big league squad and only improve the already exceptionally talented starting rotation

With all that being considered, it is clear that the New York Mets are primed for a season of success My prediction is that the team is set to win at least 90 games this year After 6 seasons of extremely poor play and continual losing, that sort of turnaround would be a great change for the team ’ s faithful fans The pieces certainly seems like they are coming together for the Mets and watch the team to be one of the best stories in the MLB this season

Nikita Dubnov can be reached at ndubnov@cornellsun com

Spor ts

Cornell Splits Weekend Meet Against Ivy Rivals Harvard and Dartmouth

By JOHN MCGRORTY Sun Staff Writer

This past Saturday, the Cornell men ’ s and women ’ s swimming and diving teams traveled to Cambridge, Massachusetts to compete against Harvard and Dartmouth at Blodgett Pool Both

t h e m e n a n d w o m e n split the meet against the Ivy foes The men beat Dartmouth with a score of 213-87 and lost to Harvard with a final score of 169-131 On the women ’ s side, the

Re d d e f e a t e d

Da r t m o u t h , 2 1 6 - 8 4 , and fell to Harvard in a tight meet with a final score of 156-144

Senior Thomas Hallowell said that the Red welcomed the chance to kick off its Ivy season with a pair of challenging contests

“Because we had time to rest and prepare for this meet, the team was really con-

fident and excited to go into the first Ivy meet of the year, ” he said “Having an opportunity to compete against rivals after a strong preseason is a privilege, and we we re

Dartmouth ”

Hallowell also said that team morale was high throughout the competition and the Red w

f i t s freshmen who took to the pool at the Ivy level for the first time

“The best part about the meet was the attitude of all the guys and the s u p p o r t t h e y d e m o nstrated for the team, ” he said “For the freshmen it was their first exposure to the atmosphere of an Ivy meet and all of them performed really well

During the 1000, it was almost surreal to see two freshmen (Ryan Sharkey and Brandon Sweezer) out in front of a race we had never had a lot of success in before From the start of the meet there was no

At Last: A Bright Future for Mets

It is always pretty hard to tell people that I am a Mets fan It usually spawns a question about why I don’t like the Yankees or a statement about how bad the team is There is no argument to be made The New York Mets have been exceptionally subpar in their play in recent years However, the national news media is beginning to recognize the team ’ s potential for this upcoming season

Why has there not been any success in Queens in recent years? There isn’t one concrete answer, but in general, the combination of an overhaul of the organization and a mass of young players, coupled with a variety of crucial injuries, limited the success of the Amazins

However, things are changing quickly for the Mets and there is a lot of hope for the upcoming season The first thing that seems to indicate this is a big, early splash that the management made this offseason In the past, the team ’ s owners and GM have been under a great deal of scrutiny from fans for not making big moves Although this has resulted in the development of one of the better farm systems in baseball, as the team looked to develop prospect more than trade for stars, the signing of veteran Michael Cuddyer just over a week ago to a twoyear deal came as a bit of a surprise to the fanbase The Mets gave up their first round pick to bring in Cuddyer, which is somewhat of a signal that the team management is ready win On top of that, the veteran makes a

Race to the finish | Junior Jenna Immormino recorded three of the Red’s eight wins,

nating

doubt we were going to swim well and it was even more exciting to keep it close w

Har vard ”

The Red was in striking distance of Har vard throughout the entire meet With a variety of underclassmen, such as sophomore Dylan Sali and freshman Brandon Sweezer, having strong days, the Red illustrated just how competitive it can be

“The team felt great going into this weekend We got a few days of rest so ever yone knew we were going to swim fast and everyone was excited to see their work from the fall pay off,” said senior Timothy Satterthwaite

For the women, the day was also a success According to senior Bethany Douglas, the Red went into the match excited and

would yield strong results

“ We were excited to have our first Ivy League duel, and even though we didn't rest, we knew we were ready,” she said “We were pumped up as a team and felt the work we had put in since September would help lead us to a win ”

With junior Jenna Immormino having an outstanding showing for the Red, and strong performances from underclassmen such as Freshman Emily Rhodes and Micaela Luders, the Red opened its season on a positive note

Moving for ward, the Red needs to maintain a narrow focus to continue performing well this season, according to

Women Earn Decisive Win Against Skidmore

With Masias missing from lineup, men’s team falls to Gardernertown Polo Club

By ELANI COHEN Sun Staff Writer

future areas of improvement for the men, accord-

Langlois “ The game this weekend was against a group of

w e re k i n d enough to come back to give us some extra practice for the tournament, ” he said “ The game didn’t go as we initially intended, but it proved useful is seeing where it is we need to improve ” Expecting to miss one of its starters, sophomore Ignacio Masias who w i l l b e p l a y i n g i n t h e

Fe d e r a t i o n o f International Polo World Championships, the Red b e g a n i t s m a t c h w i t h f re s h m a n K i m r a n Pirasteh and seniors Nick Stieg and Hakan Karabey T h e Ga rd n e r t ow n Po l o Club scored the first eight goals of the match, a lead that Cornell could not relinquish during the first h a l f T h e s e c o n d h a l f began with Masias and s e n i o r A l e x L a n g l o i s

Gardnertown kept up its

conquer the foe’s advant a g e , C

match, 26-15 Stieg and Ma s i

goals followed by Pirasteh with three, Langlois with t w

h one There was also one pony goal “ We had a great match up against some of the best players that walked this campus before us It was a ver y important warm-up as we prepare for the Bill Fi

where some of the

programs in the

Karabey said “ The match helped polish some aspects of our game that needed shining ” The women, however, found success in its weekend away match against Skidmore Juniors Anna Winslow, Claire Stieg and Elena Wicker started for