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8/14/2019 February 5, 2009 Issue
1/12
www.brownailheral.com 195 Anell Street, Provience, Rhoe Islan [email protected]
News.....1-4Metro........5-6Sports...7-8Eitorial..10Opinion...11Toay........12
NEW EATS ON THAYER
A new burer restaurant
will open on Thayer Street
this sprin
Metro, 5SCIENTIFIC THEATER
Alyssa Ratlee 11 wants
more science classes
aime at non-scientists
Opinions, 11
inside
DailyHeraldthe Brown
vol. cxliv, no. 12 | Thursday, February 5, 2009 | Serving the community daily since 1891
Sk b BY BRIgITTA gREENE
SeniorStaffWriter
Every weekday night in the cinder-
block basement o the Maddock
Alumni Center, students sit head-
sets over their ears, scripts on their
desks in tiny cubicle arrange-
ments. Their job, talking to donors
about giving to the Brown Annual
Fund, has grown more dicult in
the current economic climate.
Posted in the basement, known
as the student call center, is a sign
with the heading Fundraising in an
Uncertain Economic Climate.
Many alumni, parents and riends
have epressed concern about howthe current global nancial crisis is
aecting Brown, the sign warns,
beore giving more detailed advice
to callers.
With less than ve months re-
maining in the 2009 scal year, only
$12.8 million o a $36 million goal
has been raised or the und, said
Tammie Ruda, executive director
o annual giving.
Though the und was only 4 per-
cent behind the previous years pace
as o Dec. 31, according to a Jan. 27
e-mail to the community rom Presi-
dent Ruth Simmons, an economy in
recession may make it dicult to
reach an ambitious, $36 million goalthat would seek to beat last years
haul by almost $1 million.
The Campaign or Academic En-
richment has identifed the progress
o the Annual Fund as its main ocus,
said Ronald Vanden Dorpel MA71,
senior vice president or University
advancement. Simmons wrote in
her e-mail that any reduction in
the Fund total by fscal year end will
mean a dollar-or-dollar reduction in
our operating budget.The Annual Fund, i it reaches
its goal, would supply 7percent o
the Universitys operating budget,
according to Ruda.
Despite the current pace, Ruda
said she is pretty pleased with An-
nual Fund giving so ar. Gits to the
und are heaviest in the ourth quar-
ter o the scal year, with consider-
able donations coming in during May
and June, she said. Over $9.5 million
was raised or the Annual Fund dur-ing the month o June alone last year,
according to the unds Web site.
Were still pushing very hard to
reach this goal, Ruda said.
The Annual Fund is an unrestrict-
ed pool o money that goes directly
toward the operating budget. An
expected 10 percent decline in the
amount raised through the Fund and
other annual und-raising eorts
would reduce operating revenues
by $4 million, according to Simmonse-mail.
b UA BY CHAz KElSH
neWS editor
The number o Undergraduate
Teaching and Research Awards
oered or this summer will re-main steady at about 200, despite
previous plans to expand the
number each year, said Christina
Furtado, assistant dean or upper
class studies.
Though the Task Force on
Undergraduate Education recom-
mended expanding the UTRA pro-
gram in its fnal report released in
September, the Universitys fnan-
cial troubles have precluded the
small increase planned or this
year, said Furtado, who oversees
the program or the Ofce o the
Dean o the College.
Furtado did not know how
large this years increase would
have been. We got hit beore we
got to that point, she said, add-
ing that the size o the program
in any given year also depends
on the quality o the applications
received.
In its report, the task orce
recommended that the Univer-
sity increase unding or inde-
pendent learning experiences,
like research opportunities and
internships.There is currently no plan or
uture increases, Furtado said.
But i you want to be optimistic,
she added, then yes we hope
to be able to turn things around
net year.
Were hoping to do the best
we can or our students, Furtado
said, adding that administrators
are quite committed to the task
orces recommendations.
In an e-mail to The Herald,
Marjorie Thompson, assistant
dean o biological sciences,
wrote that she has seen demand
or UTRAs increasing. As the
number o scholarships remains
steady, students will have to be
more creative in nding und-
ing or summer research, she
wrote.
C
BY JOANNA WOHlmuTH
Metro editor
The College Curriculum Council may
fnish reviewing up to 13 undergradu-
ate concentrations more than it
originally planned by the end o the
academic year, said Karen Krahulik,
the chair o the councils concentra-
tions subcommittee.
The council began comprehensive
reviews o Browns 95 undergradu-
ate concentrations last semester, asrecommended by the Task Force
on Undergraduate Education, which
released its report in September.
The process requires departments
to clariy the goals o concentrations
they oer and to explain how they ul-
ll Browns broader academic aims,
said Krahulik, who is also the asso-
ciate dean o the College or upper
class studies. Departments are also
asked to review advising and senior
capstone opportunities, she said.
Nine concentrations had origi-
nally been slated or review this year.
But some concentrations wishing to
make signicant changes to their
programs have been added to the
schedule, potentially allowing the
M, kBY KEllY mAllAHAN
StaffWriter
As the new semester kicks into high
gear, many students have trouble bal-
ancing classes, sports, extracurricularsand that weekly shit at the Gate they
work to nance their coee habits.
But or a ew Brown undergraduates,
theres an additional element to add to
this balancing act: their marriages.
The University doesnt keep
statistics on the number o married
undergraduate students, nor does
it provide any specic services or
them the only mention o married
students on the Universitys Web site
is their exemption rom on-campus
living requirements. Brown students
who choose to get married beore
getting their degrees are largely on
their own.
According to Alicia Adams 11, who
married her high school boyriend
Brian in July, the hardest part o get-
ting married was guring out her liv-
ing arrangement. Since her husband is
not a Brown student, they were orced
to rent an o-campus apar tment. Its
really expensive, she said, adding that
her rent was almost $1,100 a month.
My loans have denitely gone up,
she added.
Lanna Leite, who enrolled as a
member o the class o 2010 but is
currently taking a year o, got mar-
ried over winter break o her resh-
man year. She works odd jobs and
waits tables to support hersel and
her husband Cassius.
Leites husband is rom Brazil, and
they had to wait six months ater they
got married beore he could join her
in the U.S. She continued to live in
Keeney Quandrangle the spring ol-
lowing their marriage, but she has
since moved o campus. She also
cited housing as the largest obstacle
acing married students. Leite said
it was dicult to nd an apartment
near campus, because no one that
was close by would rent to us.
Even many landlords listed on
Browns auxiliary housing Web site
Enice Hon / Heral
Stent callers, seen here solicitin onations for the Brown Annal Fn, now face an nfavorable econom.
Cortes of Alicia Aams
Alicia Aams 11, seen here with her hsban Brian, sai maintaininher social life on camps is a challene since she ot marrie, bt Brianhelps her maintain a health balance.FEATuRE
continued onpage 4
continued onpage 2
continued onpage 4
continued onpage 4
post- hops to with strappinyoun meicine folkan tosses tea to the
hih life
Insie
8/14/2019 February 5, 2009 Issue
2/12
sudoku
Stephen DeLucia, President
Michael Bechek, Vice President
Jonathan Spector, Treasurer
Aleander Hughes, Secretary
The Brown Daily Herald (USPS 067.740) is an independent newspaper serv-ing the Brown University community daily since 1891. It is published Mondaythrough Friday during the academic year, ecluding vacations, once duringCommencement, once during Orientation and once in July by The Brown DailyHerald, Inc. POSTMASTERplease send corrections to P.O. Bo 2538, Provi-dence, RI 02906. Periodicals postage paid at Providence, R.I. Oces are locatedat 195 Angell St., Providence, R.I. E-mail [email protected] Wide Web: http://www.browndailyherald.com.Subscription prices: $319 one year daily, $139 one semester daily.Copyright 2009 by The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. All rights reserved.
Eitoria Phone: 401.351.3372 | Bsiness Phone: 401.351.3260
DailyHeraldthe Brown
THuRSdAy, FEBRuARy 5, 2009THE BROWN dAILy HERALdPAgE 2
CAMUS wS It oesnt make sense to take awa the onl means of centralize commnication. Cla Wertheimer 10, uCS Commnications Chair, on a new Mornin Mail policMCA z -BY BEN SCHRECKINgER
SeniorStaffWriter
The company that administers the
Medical College Admission Test iscontacting students who received an
e-mail erroneously inorming them
that their exam had been canceled
ater several people may have missed
the eam last Saturday in Warwick.
A spokesperson or the testing
company, Prometric, expressed re-
gret or the conusion and said the
company was reaching out to those
who may have been aected. Pro-
metric does not know how or why
the e-mail was sent.
The Herald reported Monday that
at least our Brown students received
an e-mail last Friday stating that their
MCAT exams, scheduled or the ol-lowing day, had been canceled.
The e-mail originated rom Pro-
metric, the company administering
the test, and was sent to takers o
all exams at Prometrics Warwick
location. An employee in Warwick
reerred questions to the companysnational headquarters in Baltimore.
We sincerely apologize or the
mistake, said Jodi Katz, a Prometric
public relations manager reached
there. To be perectly honest, theres
no simple way to eplain it.
Katz said Prometric was contact-
ing recipients o the message by
phone and e-mail to inorm them o
the error.
Michael Li 10, a Brown student
who originally received the alse can-
cellation message, said he received
one o those ollow-up e-mails rom
the company on Tuesday, three days
ater the exam. Clearly, since I tookthe test, it wasnt a huge deal, he
said.
The Herald previously reported
that three to our test-takers may
have missed the MCAT in Warwick
Saturday. It is unknown whether any
Brown students missed the eam.We are working very closely with
(the Association o American Medi-
cal Colleges) to reach out to each
individual candidate whose exam was
impacted, Katz wrote Wednesday in
an e-mail to The Herald. AAMC is
the organization that oversees the
MCAT.
Prometric is attempting to accom-
modate test-takers needs in terms o
timing, Katz wrote. The next sched-
uled round o MCAT testing will take
place on March 28.
Li said rescheduling could nega-
tively aect a student who had pre-
pared to take the test Saturday. Thatwould really suck to have to take that
in March, he added.
UCS M M BY BEN SCHRECKINgER
SeniorStaffWriter
The Undergraduate Council o Stu-
dents proposed a resolution Tuesday
calling or the University to reverse
its new, more restrictive policy or
posting to Morning Mail.
The new policy, which began in
January, excludes Morning Mail an-
nouncements that advertise events
in venues that hold ewer than 300
people.
The 300-person minimum or
events was arbitrary, UCS Presi-
dent Brian Becker 09 said at the
meeting, and several UCS members
pointed out that ew campus venues
can accommodate that many people.
Council members added that it is
smaller events that beneft most rom
Morning Mails ree publicity.
The size o the venue does not
determine the value o an event to
the Brown community, the proposed
resolution reads in part.
A straw poll o UCS members con-
ducted last Wednesday night showed
overwhelming disapproval o Morn-
ing Mails new policy. Faculty and
sta, not students, had complained
about Morning Mails excessive
length, said UCS Communications
Chair Clay Wertheimer 10, the reso-
lutions sponsor.
It seemed like there was a con-
sensus that students were against
the new policy, Wertheimer told
The Herald.
Theres certainly a lot that can
be done to improve how Brown
distributes inormation, he added.
It doesnt make sense to take away
the only means o centralized com-
munication.
The council will vote on the reso-
lution at its general body meeting
net Wednesday.
Tyler Rosenbaum 11, UCS aca-demic and administrative aairs chair
and a Herald opinions columnist, also
announced that UCS members would
be meeting with academic depart-
ment chairs in the next two weeks
to discuss scaling back the prerequi-
sites that Banner requires or those
departments courses.
Coin soon: breakfast at litte Jos
news inbrief
dante b the trek to the inin hall in the mornin?
Not enoh time to wait in Ble Room lines? In perhaps
jst a few weeks, Little Jos will offer another breakfast
soltion.
The camps retailer ajacent to Josiahs will offer
breakfast from 7:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Mona throh
Fria, sai Ton Antetomaso, a Brown dinin Services
retail spervisor. The new hors are schele to ebt
Feb. 23.
The breakfast offerins at Little Jos will incle coffee,
cereal, jices, scones an other pastries, Antetomaso sai.
BdS concte a cstomer srve at the en of last
semester that inicate stents were intereste in havin
Little Jos open in the mornin, wrote Jacqes Lare,
irector of retail inin operations at Josiahs, in an e-mail
to The Heral.
The start ate was tentative becase we were not sre
how qickl we col et these shifts fille, Lare wrote.
Sophie Fchs 11 was hire earlier this week to work
three of the new mornin shifts each week.
I have the absolte first shift, sai Fchs, who bean
searchin for a job with BdS at the beinnin of the
semester an was hire on the spot jst a few as ao.
Sophia Li
Meara Sharma / Heral File Photo
Little Jos will be expane to incle mornin hors, coffee,cereal, jices, scones, an other pastries.
reused to rent to Leite, she said. She
eventually ound an apartment onWickenden Street, but moved to the
South Side because rent was really
really high at her frst apartment. All
the aordable places said no!
I didnt have a steady job, we
werent 21, he wasnt here, she said.
I was doing it all on my own.
Thats because, in addition to
her classes and housing search, she
had another marriage-related issue
to tackle immigration. Leite lived
in Brazil or two years, and she met
Cassius there. Since he is not a U.S.
citizen, Leite had to put together a gi-
ant scrapbook ull o evidence proving
their marriage was not a hoa.
I did all the immigration work dur-
ing fnals, she said. I you want to go
down this path, you ace a lot more
obstacles than most students.
Another complication is nancial
aid. Adams said though Brown asked
or her husbands income inormation
in addition to her parents, it didnt
aect her aid package because he is
also a student.
I dont think its air that they still
need your parents ino, even i theyre
no longer supporting you, she said.
Once I got married, my mom stopped
supporting me nancially.
Despite the difculties, both Leite
and Adams said they are more than
happy with their decision to get mar-
ried. Adams said that when she had
serious medical problems during high
school, Brian ended up taking care ome, skipping school so that my mom
could go to work. This went on or a
ew years, she said, and he became a
part o my entire amily, and we all just
loved him so much that there wasnt
any other option or me.
Still, staying socially connected to
Brown has been a challenge or Ad-
ams, who went by her maiden name,
Amy Conover, when she frst came to
Brown. Im either in class or at my
apartment, she said, adding that her
husband helps her maintain a balance
in her lie.
He does the dishes and cooking
and most o that stu to allow me to
ocus on school, she said.Leite said she and her husband
were just in love and wanted to be
together. Though it was dierent
socially to be married, she said she
didnt mind it.
I didnt miss out because I never
wanted to be part o the sorority, party-
on-the-weekend culture.
Both Leite and Adams experienced
a variety o responses to the news
about their marital statuses, rom
judgmental and negative to happy
and supportive.
The weirdest reactions are rom
people I dont know like when I
open my computer and have wed-
ding pictures on there, or when Im
talking to a proessor or something,
said Adams, who was engaged when
she came to Brown as a reshman.Many o the people in her reshman
unit didnt believe her when she in-
troduced Brian as her ancee, she
said.
Leite had similar experiences.
There have been great responses,
but there have been more incredulous
what? responses, she said. Though
many people reacted negatively to
the news, her reshman roommate
was supportive. She even helped Leite
shop or a wedding dress.
There are very very ew married
undergrads in any given year, Associ-
ate Dean o Student Lie Carla Han-
sen wrote in an e-mail to The Herald.
What our oce does is just what it
does or students in any anomalous
situation: listen to the students needs,
and make connections and reerrals,
and, i need be plead the students case
with other administrators.
Leite said though Dean Hansen
was wonderul in assisting her and
was supportive about her decision to
get married, it has still been a major
liestyle change.
I Im a ull-time Brown student
and single, I have resources. I have
a dorm, I have meals. But i I choose
to get married, then I dont, Leite
said. It was my decision, but I had to
separate mysel rom Brown.
M b bcontinued frompage 1
8/14/2019 February 5, 2009 Issue
3/12
CAMUS wSTHuRSdAy, FEBRuARy 5, 2009 THE BROWN dAILy HERALd PAgE 3
We cant an wolnt insist on people stain an extra ear.
Allan Bower, professor of enineerin
. q
BY gAuRIE TIlAK
HigHered editor
Changes to the requirements or the
biomedical engineering concentration
in the Department o Engineering
have let some students rustrated.
The requirements or accredi-
tation are set by the Accreditation
Board or Engineering and Technol-
ogy, which reviewed the biomedical
engineering concentration require-
ments and decided that certain elec-
tive options should be made more
restrictive. The change, which was
put into eect this semester, presents
students with a shorter list o elec-
tives rom which to choose.
The board ofcially recommends
that all students complete the most
updated set o requirements or their
program, said Proessor o Engineer-
ing Allan Bower.
But the Department o Engineer-
ing is allowing its students a degree
o leniency. Current seniors may
still graduate ollowing the old re-
quirements, said Anubhav Tripathi,director o undergraduate studies in
biomedical engineering. He added
that while juniors are encouraged to
ollow the revised curriculum, they
will not be orced into it.
We cant and wouldnt insist on
people staying an extra year, Bower
said.
But current sophomores and
rst-years will have to ollow the
new guidelines, which has rustrat-
ed students who did not epect the
change.
Engineering students are advised
to plan out their our years in ad-vance, said Holly Lauridsen 11, a bio-
medical engineering concentrator.
She said revising her course plans
was annoying she had careully
planned her classes to accommodate
her study-abroad plans.
Though Lauridsen said the
changes did not aect her course
schedule this semester, she will end
up having one or two ewer electives
over the next two years. Additionally,
the change will orce her to take a
concentration requirement abroad.
The new changes arent impos-
sible to live with, Lauridsen said,
but they are rustrating.The revised curriculum has the
same number o required courses
as the old version, Tripathi said.
However, several elective options
that were previously available have
been removed. Lower-level engineer-
ing courses and courses designed
or biology majors no longer count
toward a biomedical engineering
degree, he said.
Changes in concentration re-
quirements are not uncommon,
Bower said. Last year, changes were
introduced to the curricula o the
civil and mechanical engineeringprograms.
Biomedical engineering was in-
troduced at Brown in 2004, Bower
said. Since it is not as well-estab-
lished as the other engineering
degree programs, it required more
changes than other concentrations
to meet the accreditation boards
standards.
Bowers and Tripathi both agreed
that graduating rom an accredited
program has advantages or students
who intend to pursue a career in their
chosen eld.
You dont have to be accredited,
Bower said, but its dicult to geta proessional registration ater
graduating rom an unaccredited
program.
Qion Chen / Heral
Revise enineerin reqirements will reqire some to chane plans in orer to receive their erees.
C BY SuzANNAH WEISS
ContributingWriter
Nearly 15.7 percent o courses ini-
tially oered this semester were
canceled, according to Registrar
Michael Pesta.
Pesta said a combination o
things had led to the number o
cancellations and that it was hard to
say theres one dominant actor.
Course cancellations are usually
higher in the spring than in the all
because proessors decide what
second semester classes they will
list in the Course Announcement
Bulletin a year ahead o time, requir-ing them to make predictions about
their availability ar in advance, Pesta
said.
Last spring, 14.7 percent o
classes listed in the course bulletin
were canceled, meaning only about
10 more classes were canceled this
time as compared to a year ago. But
several years ago, course cancella-
tions were less prevalent only 5
percent o courses were canceled in
spring 2004, The Herald reported
that semester.
In all, 166 courses were canceled
this semester. In the all, 106 were
canceled, up rom 91 the year beore,
The Herald reported in October.Common reasons that proes-
sors cancel courses include lack o
student interest, sabbaticals, new
job oerings, illnesses and a needor ewer sections than originally
thought or a particular class, Pesta
said.
Proessor o International Stud-
ies James Der Derian canceled his
senior seminar, INTL1800N: Global
Media: History/Theory/Produc-
tion, largely because he did not get
the administrative support needed
to und the class, which brings in
lmmakers to speak to students.
Its a course that requires a good
deal o support in logistics, he said.
There wasnt evidently any money
available at Brown to do that.
Another actor contributing tothe rise in cancellations in recent
years may be Browns recently re-
vised sabbatical policy, which used
to allow proessors to go on sab-
batical ater six years o teaching
but now grants the privilege to any
proessor who has taught or three
years, said Barry Connors, chair o
the Department o Neuroscience.
This will increase the challenge
o covering all important courses in
every department, Connors said.
The department this semester had
to cancel NEUR1660: Neural Basis
o Cognition, one o the require-
ments or the cognitive neurosci-
ence concentration.Connors said small, specialized
continued onpage 4
8/14/2019 February 5, 2009 Issue
4/12
THuRSdAy, FEBRuARy 5, 2009THE BROWN dAILy HERALdPAgE 4
CAMUS wS Were still fll steam ahea, all sstems o. Ronal Vanen dorpel MA71, senior VP for universit avancement
council to fnish between 11 and 13
reviews by the end o the semester,
Krahulik said. For convenience, the
concentration reviews are timed to
coincide with other departmental
reviews, she added.
Krahulik would not say which
concentrations are currently un-
der review, but according to the
original schedule, the rst nine to
be reviewed were Aricana Studies,
Cognitive Neuroscience, Compara-
tive Literature, Education, Hispanic
Studies, History, International Re-
lations and Psychology, as well as
the Theatre, Speech and Danceconcentration.
The task orce report set a 2011
deadline or reviewing all concen-
trations, which could still be met,
Krahulik said, adding that they
should be completed in no more
than ve years.
Krahulik called the review o a
concentration a thorough process
that extends beyond a departmental
meeting with the council. Each de-
partment prepares the appropriate
documentation, reviewing it with
Krahulik beore sending it to the
other committee members, she
said.
For the most part, concentra-tions know what their strengths and
weaknesses are, so when we get
to the meeting, its more a matter
o just ollowing up with them and
seeing how they are progressing,
Krahulik said.
Ater the meeting, the council
discusses the review and makes
recommendations that Dean o
the College Katherine Bergeroncommunicates to the departments,
Krahulik said.
The Department o Theatre,
Speech and Dance was one o the
irst to have its concentrations
reviewed.
Rebecca Schneider, associate
proessor and chair o the depart-
ment, said the review was well-
timed because the department is
undergoing dramatic modifcation,
including introducing two new
concentration tracks and ocially
changing its name to the Depart-
ment o Theatre and Perormance
Studies.As part o its review, the depart-
ment addressed how to better ar-
ticulate its program and the links
between its concentrations and
University-wide goals, such as in-
ternationalization, Schneider said.
The whole thing was a really
great eercise in sel-eamination
and sel-improvement, Schneider
said. It was a abulous thing to go
through.
One o the most useul parts o
the review, according to Schneider,
was the opportunity to discuss how
components o concentrations,
such as the Department Under-
graduate Group, are run in other
departments.
The concentrations almost al-
ways come to us with areas they
want to strengthen, Krahulik said,
adding that they seek suggestions
or specic improvements. The
conversations are quite invigorating
intellectually.
The onus will be on aculty
to use grants and other eternal
unding to pay students, Thomp-
son wrote, adding that students
could also apply to outside pro-
grams or simply volunteer.
No doubt the program, which
is marvelous, is doing its best
under very daunting times, so
we just have to be realistic about
this (and) get through the crisis,
she wrote.
Proessor o Computer Science
Andries van Dam, who oten uses
UTRA students and describes
himsel as a rm and long-term
believer in the value o under-
graduate research, said he was
disappointed by the news.
There are bound to be reper-
cussions, he said. Im hoping
that in the (Campaign or Aca-
demic Enrichment) there will
still be money earmarked or the
UTRA program, he said.
Sima Patel 10, who is apply-
ing or an UTRA to research
the underlying causes o sepsis
a potentially deadly medical
condition caused by a ull-body
infammatory response said
her decision to apply was not a-
ected by the economic downturn.
I needed to join a lab at Brown
i I wanted to be serious aboutwriting a thesis, she said.
As or the decision to curtail
expansion o the UTRA program,
Patel was pragmatic. I eel like
Im in a bubble sometimes, she
said. I think (the decision) shows
that the University is hard-struck
as well.
The UTRA program has grown
over the last several years to its
current size, Furtado said.
She said it was too early to say
whether more students will apply
or UTRAs this year, given that
summer opportunities elsewhere
could be more scarce. Like most
deadlines at Brown, you really
dont see much activity until
right beore the deadline, she
said. The deadline or students to
apply or UTRAs is tomor row.
Furtado also said administra-
tors are hoping to stay on track
with initiatives to build commu-
nity among students with UTRAs,
like Research Thursdays, which
bring in leading authorities
to talk to students, and the Vir-
tual Symposium, which allows
students to share their projects
online. Those projects are not
terribly resource-intensive, she
said.
continued frompage 1
continued frompage 1
C -
UA ,
But the estimated reduction
based on an examination o recent
trends is minor, according to Van-den Dorpel, when compared to that
expected by many peer schools, some
o which epect 17 or 18 percent de-
creases rom last year, he said.
He said that the Ofce o Advance-
ment has not yet seen large numbers
o layos, but its workers have seen
their bonuses cut. The ofce will wait
or more data beore making conclu-
sive statements, he added.
We dont want to make (the re-
duction) a sel-ulflling prophecy, he
said. Were still ull steam ahead, all
systems go.
Though negative eedback rom
potential donors has not been over-
whelming, he said, the breadth o
the economic downturn cannot be
ignored.
We all read the newspapers, hesaid.
The Campaign or Academic En-
richment has raised $1.317 billion to
date over 94 percent o its $1.4 bil-
lion goal. The Ofce o Advancement
hopes to meet that goal by June 30,
though ofcially the deadline remains
December 2010.
A campaign is a marathon, not
a sprint, Vanden Dorpel said, add-
ing that the University is destined
to hit a wall and struggle at points,
despite coming out o the blocks
very strong.
Vanden Dorpel said that the idea
o raising the goal to $1.7 billion
was toyed with as late as last year,
though the plan was never ormal-
ized.
The Oce o Advancement in-creased its sta by 15 to 20 percent at
the start o the campaign, according
to Vanden Dorpel, and hopes to keep
those individuals on sta even ater
the campaign concludes. Reducing
sta is a mistake the University made
ater its last two campaigns, he said,
adding that gains in undraising rev-
enue during campaign years need
to be maintained or the University
to unction at a high level.
The best measures o success is
how we do against all goals we have
set or ourselves, Vanden Dorpel
said.
F continued frompage 1
classes are hardest to oer when
proessors go on leave, especially in
the neuroscience department, which
has 14 regular aculty members who
are responsible or an abundance o
classes and research.
Smaller courses, however, are
more likely to be canceled than core
requirements or concentrations,
Pesta said. Theres more volatility
in our curriculum because its an open
curriculum, and there arent as manyclasses that the department eels that
they have to oer, he said.
Carolyn Aker 12 elt the eects
o that act when she ound out her
frst-year seminar, PPAI0700D: Reli-
gion and Public Policy, was no longer
being oered. It was disappointing
because it seemed like a really inter-
esting class, she said.
She also ound it hard to have
to register or a dierent rst-year
seminar when she ound out at the last
minute that her class was canceled,
since most seminars are capped at
small numbers. I was kind o annoyed
that they didnt send out an e-mail,
she said.
Peony Sze 12 had a dierent at-
titude toward the cancellation o her
HISP0500: Advanced Spanish Con-
versation section, or which only our
students were registered. Now I dont
have to wake up at 8:00 every morning
to go to Spanish class, she said. So
or me, it was actually pretty good.
Some departments, moreover,
opened windows at the same time
they closed doors. Though fve classes
in the Department o English were
canceled, ve were added, said Pro-
essor o English Philip Gould 83,
the departments acting chair. Wereactually all right, I think, in terms o
the nal tally, he said.
continued frompage 3
8/14/2019 February 5, 2009 Issue
5/12
MetroThe Brown dail Heral
THuRSdAy, FEBRuARy 5, 2009 | PAgE 5
With that kin of mone, we col have hose everone who ha been isplace.
Jim Rczek, exective irector of the Rhoe Islan Coalition for the Homeless
wk BY SARA SuNSHINE
SeniorStaffWriter
EAST PROVIDENCE Nearly 150
people gathered outside the ColibriGroups ormer East Providence man-
uacturing plant Tuesday, shouting,
Yes, we can!
For these Rhode Islanders, the
popular rerain had a dierent mean-
ing than it did or the supporters o
President Barack Obama many
in the protesting crowd were work-
ers let unemployed by the actorys
sudden closure.
Colibri a nationally known jew-
elry-making frm based in Providence
or 80 years unexpectedly shut its
doors on Jan. 20, leaving around 280
workers without a job, according to
a Jan. 21 Providence Journal article.
While some sta were notied o
the closure, many Colibri employees
came to work only to fnd the plants
doors locked.
Workers rights group Fuerza
Laboral, which organized the dem-
onstration, and the ormer Colibri
employees claim that the company
violated the Worker Adjustment
and Retraining Act, which requires
that any actory with more than 100
workers give at least 60 days notice
beore closing. Additionally, the em-
ployee health coverage provided by
Colibri ended shortly ater the clo-
sure, leaving many workers abruptly
uninsured, said Donna Walker, an
employee who had been with the
company or 21 years.
Fuerza Laboral representatives
said the company owes its workers 60
days o wages, health care coverageand severance pay.
Reverend Duane Clinker o the
Open Table o Christ United Meth-
odist Church began Tuesdays rally,
conducted in both English and Span-
ish, by telling workers that in a time o
economic uncertainty, Rhode Island
is looking to you to seek justice.
Clinker said though Colibri is now
bankrupt and incapable o paying its
workers, the companys Manhattan-
based owner Founders Equity Inc.
should be responsible or provid-
ing their benets as required by the
Worker Adjustment and Retraining
Act. Colibri owes HSBC and Sover-
eign Banks about $14 million each,
according to the Journal article.
A call to a number listed on Co-
libris Web site Wednesday aternoon
was not immediately returned.
With ownership comes respon-
sibility, Greg Pehrson, director
o Fuerza Laboral, told the crowd.
(Founders Equity) must ollow la-
bor law.
Some laid-o workers also shared
their eperiences.
I used to be able to hold my head
high (because I was a Colibri em-
ployee). Now Im ashamed to say I
A , bk bkBY lAuREN FEdOR
SeniorStaffWriter
A ceremonial groundbreaking in
North Scituate on Jan. 29 marked an
important milestone in a lengthy and
complicated process or the Rhode
Island State Police, who have been
trying or at least two years to build
a new, state-o-the-art headquarters.
Slated or completion in less than
24 months, the 56,384-square oot
acility will house administrative,
detective and uniorm personnel,
according to a statement released
by the state police last week.
Construction o the headquarters,
which will include a 911 cal l center, is
likely to support nearly 100 jobs.But the loty plans or the acility
havent been met with unanimous
excitement. Advocates or the home-
less in Rhode Island are ambivalent
about the process leading to the new
police acility.
The new headquarters will be
downsized rom the initial proposals,
which called or them to be located
in Cranston on property that earlier
housed Welcome Arnold, the states
largest homeless shelter. The state
spent $3.8 million in March o 2007 to
tear down the shelter, beore decid-
ing rst to scale back on the police
project and then to relocate the head-
quarters to North Scituate.Describing the $3.8 million as
wasted money, Jim Ryczek, execu-
tive director o the Rhode Island Co-
alition or the Homeless, said though
the state police deserve their bar-
racks, the Welcome Arnold issue
needed better planning.
With that kind o money, we
could have housed everyone who
had been displaced (by the shelters
closing) and then some, he said.
The demolition o Welcome Ar-
nold has been a point o contention
between the state government and
local advocates or the homeless,
Ryczek said, adding that the ormer
shelter housed 100 beds available on
a night-to-night basis.
One o Ryczeks main concerns
is that advocates werent included
in the planning process, he said.
According to him, it was only ater
advocates invited themselves to thetable, proposing a plan to care or
those displaced by the shelters clos-
ing, that the state took notice.
A state police ocial declined to
comment on the issues surrounding
Welcome Arnolds demolition and
directed inquiries to the governors
ofce. Representatives o the gover-
nors ofce could not be reached or
comment or this article.
In November 2007, Gov. Donald
Carcieri 65 told the Providence Jour-
nal that the state took the advice
o the homeless advocates. The
state replaced every single bed that
was available at the Welcome Ar-
nold shelter with new beds in other,
smaller acilities. In act, we even
added some beds.
But Ryczek said the replacement
o beds didnt necessarily help the
nearly 200 people his coalition esti-
mates used Welcome Arnold each
month. He said it is naive to think
that scattering an equivalent number
o beds in other night-to-night shel-
ters was the same as providing or
those who used Arnolds services.
Two years later, the need or
those services continues to grow.
In the last 18 months, the number
o homeless Rhode Islanders has
nearly doubled rom 571 to 1,080,
according to data released by the
coalition.
Moreover, since the demolition
o Welcome Arnold, local advocates
have realized that night-to-night
shelters may not be the best way
to support the states homeless.
Ryczek said that by exploring new
programs the coalition has realized
that it would never want to reopen a
acility like Welcome Arnold.
Shelters are only eective at
protecting people rom reezing todeath, he said, adding that closing
down large shelters and replacing
them with subsidies like Housing
First or the Neighborhood Op-
portunities Program is more cost-
eective.
Cortes of Street Sihts
Rhoe Islans larest homeless shelter was emolishe to make wa for a new police heaqarters.
JAZZ T IMES TWO
Qinn Savit / Heral
The Brazilian jazz o Minas ave a concert last niht in grant Recital Hall.
New brer jointcoin to Thayerthis sprin
metro inbrief
Thaer Street resta-
rant manate An Mitre-
lis will soon a another
eater to his empire. The
owner of Anreas, Para-
on an Spats Restarant
sai he will open Bet-
ter Brer Compan, his
sixth brer shop in New
Enlan, this sprin.
The restarant will
open at 217 Thaer St.,
which earlier hose
yans, a fabric an ift
botiqe. Crrentl emp-t, the space is ientifie
onl b sins featrin a
lare brer an the slo-
an The new ki on the
block.
Mitrelis, a veteran
brermoner, sai he
opene his first resta-
rant in Connectict in
1962. I know the bsi-
ness, he sai. Ive been
in it for 47 ears.
Mitrelis sai the res-
tarant will primaril sell
brers, bt will also offer
other sanwiches, pizza
an breakfast foo.
Itll be ver excitin,
he sai.
George Miller
continued onpage 6
Info session tonight at 8 p.m!
195 Angell Street (between Brook and Thayer)
8/14/2019 February 5, 2009 Issue
6/12
THuRSdAy, FEBRuARy 5, 2009THE BROWN dAILy HERALdPAgE 6
M The laws are the floor, not the sk. gre Pehrson, irector of Ferza Laboral
worked or Colibri, because this is not
right, said Iris Medina, who spokein Spanish but was accompanied by
a translator.
No somos basura, she said
we are not trash.
You dont have to be ashamed.
They should be ashamed, Rhode
Island AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer
George Nee later told Medina.
Thanking the workers or being
willing to ght so this law means
something, Nee said that i they won,
their victory would send a message
to the rest o the country.
Many people at the demonstra-tion said they believed that a new
administration in Washington and
a new political climate would help
their cause.
State Senator Juan Pichardo, D-
Dist 2, said progressive Democrats
and the State Houses minority
caucus would support the workers.
Pichardo pledged to write a letter
to his colleagues about the plight o
the Colibri workers and to CC the
President.
Pehrson ended the meeting by
reciting a Fuerza Laboral mantra the laws are the foor, not the sky.
The audience cheered and shook
empty Coca-Cola bottles lled with
dried nuts.
Though the protest gave the
workers hope, it didnt dispel their
rustration altogether. Why do we
have to ght or something thats
the law? Why do we have to beg or
it? Walker said.
. k bfcontinued frompage 5
Sara Snshine / HeralWorkers lai off b jewelr-maker Colibri rop emonstrate in the
snow Tesa.
8/14/2019 February 5, 2009 Issue
7/12
8/14/2019 February 5, 2009 Issue
8/12
THuRSdAy, FEBRuARy 5, 2009THE BROWN dAILy HERALdPAgE 8
SSUSDA I ess I col be an enforcer. Jenna dancewicz 11, womens hocke plaer
All three look roughly the same,
except that Pitcher A looks like he
got lucky due to his lower BABIP.
Their WHIP, GBP and LDP num-
bers are roughly the same, with
only their K/BB ratio diering.
Think o FIP (eplained later) as
ERA and you see that C is clearly
better than B who is clearly better
than A.
Turns out A is Matsuzaka, B
is Sonnanstine and C is Meche.
Thats right, Dice-K was a worse
starter than Sonnanstine (13-9, 4.38
ERA) or Meche (14-11, 3.98 ERA).I know what youre thinking: How
can a pitcher that went 18-3 with a
2.90 ERA last season be the worst
out o the group o small market
pitchers youve never heard o?
This must be a joke, right?
The rst thing you must know
is that wins and ERA are elemen-
tary stats to judge a pitchers
value. Wins and ERA are highly
dependent on your oense, your
deense, your luck that day and
even what park you play in (think
Petco Park vs. Coors Field). I you
get shelled or 10 runs, and your
team puts up 11, you still get the
win. I you leave two men on base,but your bullpen bails you out, or
i you have a host o Gold Glovers
playing deense behind you, your
ERA is still sparkly.
Thankully, sabermetrics has
provided us with more advanced
stats that ocus on what a pitcher
can control, ignoring the deense
behind him. These stats are com-
monly known as DIPS, or Deense
Independent Pitching Statistics.
Things like strikeouts, walks,
home runs and ground balls in-
duced are associated with the
pitcher. Things like Derek Jeters
inability to move to his let to get an
easy out or Grady Sizemore mak-ing a spectacular grab on the wall
or an out arent up to the pitcher.
Matsuzaka benets rom the de-
ense behind him, which includes
above-average elders such as
second baseman Dustin Pedroia,
rst baseman Kevin Youkilis and
outelder Jacoby Ellsbur y.
Pitching is about preventing
runs. These outcomes (strikeouts,
fy balls, etc.) are given epected
run values and then combined to
determine a pitchers value. Outs
are good and runners on base are
bad. The most commonly accepted
pitching statistic is FIP, developedby well-known sabermetrician Tom
Tangotiger Tango. As seen ear-
lier, Matsuzaka posted the worst
FIP out o the three starters last
season. A convenient way to think
o FIP is to imagine it as the ERA a
pitcher should have gotten, based
solely on the actors under his con-
trol, ater removing luck and de-
ense. Would anyone have believed
that two no-names would turn out
to be better, and theoretically add
more wins over the long haul?
It may seem a silly notion,
but statistically, a rotation o Gil
Meches or Andy Sonnanstines
would contribute more wins thana rotation o Daisuke Matsuza-
kas. Understanding some simple
number-crunching goes a long way
to nding quality pitchers more
accurately, and seeing which ones
are over-hyped or undervalued. So
please, lets see less Matsuzaka
love and some more Meche ans
on campus.
Jonathan Hahn 10 asks,
Wait, ore sain baseball
isnt plae on an Excel
spreasheet?
0: M
continued frompage 7
so I could have helped out the team
earlier, but during winter break wehad a lot o practices. That gave me
time to get some extra skating in and
work on my shot and work on getting
the plays down and everything. We
practiced every day and sometimes
twice a day during winter break, so
that probably really helped bring out
my game.
How did it eel to score the
game-winning goal against
Princeton?
It elt really good. My coach said
today we havent beat Princeton in
(three) years, and so it was really
exciting to beat them, and especiallyin their own barn. We really, really
needed these wins to end our season
on a good note and hopeully make
the playos.
Do you eel that these wins
over Quinnipiac and Princeton
are something that the team can
really build on going into the
stretch run?
I think that we denitely have a
big confdence boost, and I think that
we can denitely build upon it or
net weekend. This weekend is go-
ing to be pretty tough Dartmouth
is ranked (No. 2) in our league, and
Harvard is also really up there, so
this will be a tough weekend. We
had a good game against Harvard
last time we played them and then
not so much against Dartmouth. ButI think were ready to keep on win-
ning and keep our winning streak
going and bring some more upsets
to the ECAC.
Youve taken 15 penalties this
year, the most on the team. Does
that make you the enforcer?
Am I the enorcer? I dont know
(laughs). Sorry, my roommate, whos
also my teammate, is laughing right
now. I actually didnt know until a
ew weeks ago that I was leading in
penalties.
I was actually surprised that I was
leading in penalties, but I dont know.There (are) a ew things I need to
work on, like keeping my eet mov-
ing when Im hitting someone or
something. So, I guess I could be
an enorcer. Im denitely more o
a grinding player rather than, like,
ancy-schmancy, so I guess thats
probably why I get more penalties.
And Im not necessarily a small kid,
so I dont know (laughs).
Whats been your favorite mo-
ment from this season?
From our team, our wins over
Colgate and Princeton were prob-
ably my avorite moments, especially
Colgate that was a really good
game, and it was really close. And
then individually, my avorite mo-
ments were when I got my frst goal
versus St. Lawrence, and probablythis past weekend.
You all seem to do much bet-
ter on the road than at home.
Can you explain that?
Not that Browns campus isnt
great or anything, but I think when
we get away rom campus we also put
behind other things that are on our
mind, like academics or whatever,
so were able to really ocus on the
game and hockey and each other
rather than other things. And also,
we get to sleep in nice, warm, comy
beds in the hotel (laughs). So I think
its just like, our mindset is just a lotdierent when were on the road than
when were at home.
What are your goals or the
rest of the season, both individu-
ally and as a team?
As a team, we obviously want to
keep winning. I we win a certain
amount o games, well make it into
playos, so were just really trying to
grind out these wins in this last part
o our season. And then individually,
I just want to help our team keep win-
ning, so I guess keep on scoring and
keep goals out o our net, too, and
just keep working hard and doing the
right things at the right times.
w. k Dz -, continued frompage 7
8/14/2019 February 5, 2009 Issue
9/12
8/14/2019 February 5, 2009 Issue
10/12
ditorial & LettersPage 10 | THuRSdAy, FEBRuARy 5, 2009
The Brown daily Heral
A L E x Y U L Y
U A
C OR R E C T I ONS P OL I C Y
The Brown Daily Herald is committed to providing the Brown University community with the most accurate inormation possible. Corre ctions
may be submitted up to seven calendar days ater publication.
C OM M E NT A R Y P OL I C Y
The editorial is the majority opinion o the editorial page board o The Brown Daily Herald. The editorial viewpoint does not necessarily
refect the views o The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. Columns, letters and comics refect the opinions o their authors only.
L E T T E R S T O T HE E DI T OR P OL I C Y
Send letters to [email protected]. Include a telephone number with all letters. The Herald reserves the right to edit all letters or
length and clarity and cannot assure the publication o any letter. Please limit letters to 250 words. Under special circumstances writers may
request anonymity, but no letter will be printed i the authors identity is unknown to the editors. Announcements o events will not be printed.
A DV E R T I S I NG P OL I C Y
The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. reserves the right to accept or decline any advertisement at its discretion.
The TA shortage chronicled in last weeks Herald would be bad enoughunder ordinary circumstances. However, the nancial crisis has made the
Universitys current situation anything but ordinary. These new scal con-
straints caused the University to put a reeze on graduate program expansion,
a necessary move but one likely to exacerbate the current TA shor tage, given
that the average number o students in Brown undergraduate classes has
continued to increase over the past ew years.
Since we cant do anything about the Universitys fnancial state, it may seem
that the only available option is to grin and bear the unpleasant but inevitable
capping o introductory lecture courses and increase in Scantron eams. We
think theres a better option. Departments should consider making use o a
resource that is plentiul, cheap and capable o shouldering the TA burden:
the undergraduate student body.
This practice is by no means unheard o. Some departments, like eco-
nomics and computer science, regularly employ upper-level undergraduate
concentrators to grade or lead sections in introductory courses. However,
many TA shortages occur in writing-intensive courses, which raises a new seto problems: Are undergraduates qualied to assess their peers writing? Do
they have the depth o knowledge necessary to provide advice on ormulat-
ing paper topics? Can they avoid bias toward riends, absent the constraints
imposed by eam grading?
These problems are not insurmountable. The success o the Writing Fellows
program shows that Brown students are capable o providing useul criticism to
other undergraduates. Restricting undergraduate TAs to reshman-only sections
or introductory classes and requiring them to be senior concentrators ocusing
on the courses specic subeld a model similar to one used in Proessor
James Morones ever-popular POLS 0220: City Politics class would go a
long way toward addressing concerns about eper tise and objectivity.
Further, the stark separation between graduate students and undergraduates
assumed in these criticisms may not be quite accurate. Advanced undergradu-
ates who have developed specic research interests are nearly as qualied
as newer graduate students to lead sections, especially when those sections
cover very basic material.
Were not sure whether any o the departments lacking TAs eel the sameway about undergraduate TAs. We do, however, hope theyll consider the
proposal.
Editorials are written by The Heralds editorial page board. Send comments to
editorial
Senior Staff Writers Mitra Anoshiravani, Colin Chazen, Ellen Cshin, Sne Ember,
Laren Feor, Nicole Frieman, Britta greene, Sarah Hsk, Brian Mastroianni, Hannah
Moser, Ben Schreckiner, Caroline Seano, Melissa Shbe, Anne Simons, Sara Snshine,
Staff Writers Znaira Chohar, Leslie Primack, Christian Martell, Alexanra ulmer,
Laren Pischel, Samel Bker, Anne deelman, Nicole dnca, Cameron Lee, Seth
Motel, Kla Wilkes, Jliana Frien, Kell Mallahan, Jotsna Mllr, Chris dff
Sports Staff Writers Peter Cipparone, Nicole Stock
Bsiness Staff Maximilian Barrows, Thanases Plestis, Allen Mcgonaill, Ben Xion, Bonnie
Kim, Cath Li, Core Schwartz, Evan Smortin, Haar Tan, Jackie golman, Jiln Chao,
Kenneth So, Lnse yess, Mararet Watson, Matthew Brrows, Mara Lnch, Misha desai,
Stassia Chzhkova, Webber X, William Schweitzer
desin Staff Jessica Kirschner, Joanna Lee, Maxwell Rosero
Photo Staff Alex dePaoli, Qinn Savit, Meara Sharma, Min W
Copy Eitors Rafael Chaiken, Ellen Cshin, yonhn Kim, Freeric L, Laren Feor,
Maeleine Rosenber, Kell Mallahan, Jennifer Kim, Tarah Knaresboro, Joran Mainzer,
Janine Lopez, Lis Solis, Aelet Brinn, Rachel Starr, Riva Shah, Jason ym, Simon Lieblin,
geoffre Ki, Anna Joravleva
Web deveopers Jihan Chao, gre Emiston
Jessie Calihan, Jessica Kirschner, Anna Migliaccio Dsns
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Mitra Anoushiravani, Chaz Kelsh, George Miller, Sara Sunshine Nh eds
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Join The Hera!
Info sessions at 195 Anell St.(between Brook an Thaer)
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Reportin, bsiness, photoraph,esin, cop eitin, opinions,
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correction
A eature ar ticle about an alum, Sandeep Parikh 02, who produces Web videos (TA stint launched alums com-edy career, Feb. 4) incorrectly stated that Parikh created the Web series The Guild. Parikh is a regular castmember on the The Guild, but the show was created by Felicia Day.
8/14/2019 February 5, 2009 Issue
11/12
College-going smokers in Boston just got one
more reason to transer. The sale o tobacco
products at drugstores and on college and uni-
versity campuses has been banned there since
December, thanks to the Boston Public Health
Commission (BPHC).
The Commission also etended restrictions
on smoking in public patios, loading docks,
hotels, inns and bed and breakasts have all be-
come smoke-ree zones.
The ban comes on the heels o a report
by state disease trackers showing that heart
attack-related deaths had substantially de-
creased since the enactment o a our-yearstatewide ban on smoking in restaurants and
bars. The commissions goal was to reduce to-
bacco use among youth and the poor.
Since quite a ew Brown students can be
seen lighting up on campus, it would be inter-
esting, to say the least, i the Boston ban in-
spired a similar course o action in Providence.
Rhode Island state ocials have already pro-
posed increasing the cigarette ta by a dollar
per pack. Fortunately, their decision has more
to do with raising revenue than discouraging
smoking.
The commission declares that young
people are particularly at risk or becoming
smokers, and many will not be able to resist
i their very own educational institutions and
nearby drugstores peddle tobacco. Dr. Barba-
ra Ferrer, eecutive director o the BPHC, add-
ed that the ban will ensure that young peopleare not eposed to products that make them
sick when they go to places like pharmacies
to get well.
The commission justied the ban on the
grounds that selling tobacco products goes
against the mission o colleges and phar-
macies. Colleges are meant to educate the
younger population about social, environmen-
tal and health risks and harms, while pharma-
cies are supposed to dispense materials and in-
ormation that contribute to well-being.
By that logic, the ban should also etend
to numerous other unhealthy products sold
at pharmacies and universities soda, candy
bars, energy drinks and ast ood, to name a
ew. I adults cannot make inormed decisions
about smoking, how will they deal with the
conusing array o other temptations?
The bans supporters misunderstand the
thought process o smokers and potential
smokers. Prohibitionists view the latter ascompletely oblivious, and thus unable to make
their own choices without the help o a health
commission. Current smokers must be o the
out o sight, out o mind variety, willing to
give up their habit as soon as maintaining it be-
comes inconvenient.
The Public Health Commission was kind
enough to give cigar and hookah bars a grace
period in light o the current economic situa-
tion, but those establishments will not be the
only ones aected. Walgreens spokesman Mi-
chael Polzin told the Boston Globe that stores
would lose not only the tobacco sale, but
those other items (smokers) also pick up on
the same shopping trip.
Smokers are a rather staunch consumer
presence, and the commission should know
that simply banning a consumer item rom a
ew stores is probably the least e ective way to
eradicate its ill eects. Rather than quitting on
the spot, smokers will simply take their moneyelsewhere, which wont improve the economic
situation in Boston.
Considered alongside eisting anti-smok-
ing measures, the ban is downright patroniz-
ing. Apparently, advertising restrictions, re-
quired health warnings on packages, bans on
smoking in public areas, the eorts o anti-
drug organizations and a cursory knowledge
o chemistry and human anatomy are just not
enough to help college students understand
the adverse eects o smoking. No, a ban on to-
bacco products is what impressionable young
people need to prevent them rom stumbling
into their local CVS and buying cigarettes in-
stead.
By adopting an Im just doing whats bestor you approach, the government is overstep-
ping its bounds. It makes sense to want to edu-
cate and protect minors rom the infuence o
drugs and alcohol, but treating adults like chil-
dren sets a disturbing precedent. College stu-
dents can enlist in the Army, but are apparent-
ly unable to perorm the much less lie-alter-
ing task o choosing whether or not to smoke.
Iv Chan 10 is a hman biolo
concentrator from Los Aneles,
California. She can be reache at
iv_chan @brown.e.
I really enjoyed reading Nick Hagertys 10
recent opinion column (The liberal scienc-
es, Jan. 29). I couldnt agree more with his
thesis too many humanities and socialscience students ignore hard sciences and
mathematics once they arrive at Brown. It
seems obvious that, especially as scientic
advances become more and more relevant
to daily lie, Brown students and society
at large would benet rom a little extra
science in their lives.
But I dont think the cru o the problem
is that Brown students nd science irrele-
vant; rather, the problem is that outside o
rst-year seminars, there arent enough in-
teresting science classes aimed at non-con-
centrators to make lling that ourth spot in
your schedule with a hard science realistic.
I speak rom eperience. As a public
policy concentrator ocusing on the inter-
section o technology and public policy, Ihave tried to nd interesting classes in the
physical and lie science departments in or-
der to understand the science behind tech-
nological advancements without any politi-
cal or policy analysis lter. The problem or
me has been how ew o these classes are
available.
The classes Hagerty cites in his col-
umn are good eamples BIOL0200:
The Foundations o Living Systems and
GEOL0010: Face o the Earth are intro-
ductory classes aimed at everyone, regard-
less o prospective concentration. Plenty o
students do take advantage o these classes
when looking to broaden their academic in-
terests. But or many Brown students, intro-
ductory classes might be too introductory.
Many i not most humanities and social
science concentrators have a strong eist-
ing knowledge base rom several years o
advanced biology, chemistry and physics
in high school. Though some would love
the sort o overview that BIOL0200 and its
abulous proessor, Ken Miller, would give,
others would rather take a class on some-
thing intriguing that builds on our eist-ing knowledge without requiring us to be
eperts.
The physics department makes a great
eample. A current rst-year seminar,
PHYS 0120: Adventures in Nanoworld,
sounds like just the sort o class that would
intrigue students without requiring years o
physics background.But or sophomores, juniors and seniors, theres no similar op-
tion. For an overview, we could take PHYS
0030: Basic Physics though even its
course description lists it as meant or con-
centrators in sciences other than physics.
Thats not reassuring to students o hu-
manities, even i we remember all the me-
chanics we learned in AP Physics. We see
it as inaccessible; we take a philosophy lec-
ture instead. But i there were a class titled,
say, Crazy Ideas In Modern Physics That
Will Blow Your Mind, I bet the room would
overfow during shopping period.
The biology department, by contrast,
oers a ew options or non-concentrators:
beyond rst-year seminars, both BIOL
0030: Principles o Nutritionand BIOL
0170: Biotechnology in Medicinecome
without any prerequisites. Both are inter-
esting classes aimed at concentrators and
non-concentrators alike, and they certainly
draw a variety o students.
But what about classes in genetics or in-
ectious disease or those among us with
strong interest in the topics but no plans
or med school? Both are timely, importantand truly ascinating topics, and they would
certainly be popular with students rom all
backgrounds.
These classes would by no means be
dumbed-down versions o current cours-
es oered to concentrators and advanced
students. This is, o course, the rst worry
when it comes to creating science classesaccessible to non-concentrators unlike
literature classes, or eample, science
classes build on each other directly, e-
panding students knowledge base in a par-
ticular subject in order to eamine more
and more comple topics. That is why its
more common or science concentrators to
take a humanities class than or humanities
concentrators to take a science class: stu-
dents sel-select based on things they know
and work they can do, and humanities class-
es are less likely to have prerequisites than
science classes.
Instead, science classes aimed at non-
concentrators might be similar in ormat
to rst-year seminars, delving into a speci-
ic area o study in an intimate and non-in-
timidating setting. These classes would be
based on the substantial amount o knowl-
edge we have rom high school and other
sources. Maybe we dont understand the in-
tricacies o combinatorial topology, but we
do know calculus, the laws o motion and
thermodynamics and the premises o rela-
tivity and were ready to learn how bi-
zarre quantum mechanics can be. Theres denitely a market or these
sorts o classes. Consider SCSO 1550B:
Neuroethics, the science and society de-
partments only spring class.Though this is
a seminar limited to 20 people, Id estimate
that more than twice that number came to
the rst class meeting. Many were neuro-
science concentrators, true, but plenty were
not just students interested in the topic
and not araid to dive into science. The same
could be said o NEUR 0010: The Brain: An
Introduction to Neuroscience itsel: stu-
dents rom all types o concentrations take
it because it is a stimulating, appealing and,
above all, accessible science class.
There are certainly humanities and so-
cial science concentrators who dont everwant to see a mathematical proo or chemi-
cal compound or the rest o their lives, and
thats perectly air. But there are plenty o
us who would take advantage o the oppor-
tunity to broaden our intellectual pursuits i
it were easible through creative, engag-
ing science classes intended or everyone.
Alssa Ratlee 11 cant ecie
between BIOL1000: deconstrctin
Necrotizin Fasciitis an CHEM1212:
Blowin Stff up.
THuRSdAy, FEBRuARy 5, 2009 | PAgE 11
pinionsThe Brown dail Heral
T b
b
The Commission jstifie the ban on the rons
that sellin tobacco procts oes aainst the
mission of collees an pharmacies... If alts
cannot make informe ecisions abot smokin,
how will the eal with the confsin arra of
other temptations?
If there were a class title Craz Ieas In
Moern Phsics That Will Blow yor Min, I bet
the room wol overflow rin shoppin perio.
By IVy CHANgopinions columnist
By ALySSA RATLEdgE
opinions columnist
8/14/2019 February 5, 2009 Issue
12/12