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Pharmacy adds mental health first aid to curriculum
‘Imaginary Invalid’ brings comedy and costume to Dunham stage
Volleyball raises money for cancer research in memory of player’s mom
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Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
the student voice since 1960
Thursday, October 28, 2021 Vol. 75 No. 9
GABE BRADY lifestyles editor
Philosophy and architecture don’t always mix, but they did for Buckminster Fuller. And, in 1968, he was commissioned to build the Fuller Dome on campus, which serves as SIUE’s Center for Spirituality and Sustainability. 50 years later, the dome is still campus staple, and plenty of work is still done there. Al Deibert, a volunteer at the dome, said the reason he volunteers at the Fuller Dome is the same reason he attended the 50th anniversary event — he loves the writings and work Fuller did. “I’ve been a volunteer here for over 20 years now, and I’m something of a Fuller devotee. I love Fuller and his philosophy, and all he represents,” Deibert said. “The whole idea of world unity, world citizenship and all of these other phenomenal ideas his mind created are amazing.” The event featured a reading of Fuller’s speech, “Geoview, Go In To Go Out,” and according to Deibert, it was a highlight of the event. “The idea of having family members and friends [of Fuller] read parts of the ‘Geoview,’ as they did, is just wonderful,” Deibert said. “That was also read when the building was dedicated, and now, here, 50 years later, it brings it all back.” After the reading of “Geoview,” there was a performance by the Katherine Dunham Dance Troupe, and music, courtesy of the orchestra department on campus. The music served as background as members of the public were encouraged to view an exhibition of Fuller’s original writings and architectural plans. Benjamin Lowder, center director at the Fuller Dome, said the dance performance was dedicated to a member of Fuller’s family. “We had a Katherine Dunham-style dance tribute to Buckminster Fuller’s daughter, Allegra Fuller Snyder, who passed away this year on July 11,” Lowder said. “She was really crucial in recognizing this building and this region of southern Illinois as the most important region in the world for sustainable structures.” Also in attendance was Rick Rader, an SIUE alumni, and his wife, Robin Rader. Rick said they saw information about the event on Facebook, and decided pretty quickly he wanted to come.
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Jere Hochman (left) met Buckminster Fuller when the dome on SIUE’s campus was first made. He is showing his son, Benjamin Hochman history about the Fuller Dome. I Clair Sollenberger / The Alestle
SIUE’s orchestra plays classical music for the guests attending the 50th anniversary of the Fuller Dome. I Clair Sollenberger / The Alestle
According to Rick, he made that decision because not only was he a student when the Fuller Dome was fully established on campus, but he also worked there. “I was the first custodian here, when
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I was attending in ‘71. I was a sophomore, and I was studying geography and earth science,” Rick said. “It’s just really eerie. I mean, nothing’s changed.” Rick said he got the job from Bob
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Tree, who used to be one of SIUE’s campus pastors. “I was in the Wesley Foundation, with Bob Tree, who was one of the campus pastors back then. There was a Baptist, a Catholic, a Methodist, all represented here, and they all had their offices [in the dome],” Rick said. “Bob Tree, who was the Methodist pastor, he was the one who hired me to do the cleaning here when it just opened.” Robin said her and Rick’s son attended SIUE in 2016. According to Robin, one of the reasons he attended was how close the campus was to them. “It’s nice to have that connection. This is our own backyard. We live in Roxana, so this is close by for us,” Robin said. “Rick worked here and studied here, and now our son’s gone through. It’s just amazing to see how the campus has grown.” Like Rick, Lowder’s connection to Buckminster Fuller’s history reaches back far as well. Lowder has a background in sustainability and architecture, and according to him, he was invited on campus by Linda Markowitz, chair and professor of sociology, to discuss the social impact of his work. “I came and parked in visitor parking lot B … At the time, I was working with the Bucky Fuller Dome Home in Carbondale and doing fundraising, graphic design, commercial artwork, to help raise money to restore it,” Lowder said. “So, I immediately came over and asked if [the dome on campus] was done by Buckminster Fuller, and they said it was, so I said, ‘I will be back.’ I’ve been working here ever since.” This interconnectedness between things is exactly what Fuller wrote about in “Geoview.” The full essay can be found on the Fuller Dome’s website. “One goes inside to go outside one’s self and into the center of the Earth and thence outward to the stars in seconds. The [Center for Spirituality and Sustainability] becomes at once the cathedral of universal reality and cathedral of universal mystery, in which is simultaneously revealed the macro-dome designing integrity,” Fuller wrote. “Whose infinitely inclusive, detailed and tireless concern and competence are overwhelming manifests of the eternal, timeless, cosmically regenerative love-intellect governance of Universe.” For more information, visit the Fuller Dome website.
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Pharmacy students required to take mental health first aid, ‘like CPR’ NICOLE BOYD social media manager
All students in the School of Pharmacy must participate in an eight-hour training program to learn to recognize and help mental illnesses and crises as pharmacists. Nicole Scott, a pharmacy graduate student from Bonne Terre, Missouri, who completed Mental Health First Aid, said when she first heard about the program, she wondered what she could do as a pharmacist, until a patient approached the counter on the verge of suicide. Scott said the pharmacist sat down and talked with her and gave her some resources. “It was a couple weeks later she came back and she said, ‘I was gonna kill myself that night. I was done, I couldn’t handle my life anymore,’” Scott said. “And at that point it made me realize that these relationships being taught, the information to be able to recognize it and how to approach them without pulling out a textbook and having to go down into a setting of, ‘OK, we’re gonna go sit down on a couch and we’re gonna talk,’ And being able to do that just in everyday life.” Scott said mental health first aid is important for pharmacists because in a lot of cases, they see patients more often than doctors do. “We can really connect with our patients,” Scott said. “And that was the whole point of doing this, was to be able to make that connection and be able to recognize, ‘Hey, they’re not OK. We need to step in and see what we can do to help.’” Scott said students are taught that they cannot diagnose or treat mental illness, but to observe and help. She also said they are taught about the stigma surrounding mental health. “A lot of people don’t wanna ask for help, they see it as a sign that society really looks down upon [them], so they really helped us try to put ourselves in their position and don’t think down upon them and try to understand that what they’re going through is a mental disorder, is a mental crisis, that they need help,” Scott said. “It’s not something that they brought upon themselves.” Misty Gonzalez, clinical associate professor in the Department of Pharmacy Practice, said there’s been a recent push in graduate programs, and specifically in pharmacy schools, to support general wellbeing, especially students’, who often live
in a higher stress environment. that they were going through something “Most students tend to seek their peers where they could have benefited from for support or talk to their peers about any someone who was mental health trained to problems that they have, and we wanted to help guide them through how they can seek make sure that our peers are well equipped help,” Gonzalez said. “So now they know to recognize when somebody is having that all of their peers are mental health more significant problems and help con- trained and they can feel more comfortable nect them to care, and so it’s something talking to them about what’s going on.” that we thought we knew some other Kelly Gable, professor and director schools of pharmacy were incorporating of wellbeing and resilience in the School into their curriculum to get everybody of Pharmacy, said the class is required trained as a mental for all pharmacy health first aider,” students. Gonzalez said. “Our class “A lot of people don’t Gonzalez said that was not inwant to ask for help, the goal is not to cluded in this betrain students to cause of the timthey see it as a sign be mental health ing is our current that society really looks professionals. fourth year phar“It’s just to macy students, down upon [them], so recognize some of so we offered up the symptoms that two opportunities they really helped us try are more troubling this fall, actually, to put ourselves in their or more problemfor them to come atic and help relay back and take the position and don’t think that person to an class if they wantappropriate person ed to,” Gable said. down upon them and try of care, whether “So not everyone to understand that what it’s their prescribreceived the trainer, or maybe they ing in the class, they’re going through is need to call 911,” but people who a mental disorder, is a Gonzalez said. were interested Scott said the had the oppormental crisis, that they videos bring viewtunity to do it.” ers into the mind Gable said in need help. It’s not of what it’s like to the future, they’re something that they experience various hoping to train mental illnesses, as brought upon themselves. those precepting well as what it’s like students, such as to watch someone those who work in NICOLE SCOTT else experience it local hospital sysPharmacy graduate student and how to handle tems and commuof Bonne Terre, Missouri it. Gonzalez said nity pharmacies. students then dis“They’re rocuss the case scenarios together. tating through and learning from them,” “We have the students discuss like, Gable said. “So our hope is to offer up ‘What would you do in this scenario? What mental health first aid to our precepwould be optimal, what were things that tors and to our alumni who didn’t have the characters did in this scenario that the opportunity to take it while they could have been better?’” Gonzalez said. were here.” Gonzalez said since the first trainGable said anyone interested in mening, they’ve been assessing how the class tal health first aid can participate in uses mental health first aid and retention the program. through surveys. “I think it’s such a beautiful course “The vast majority of the students have for health care providers, but it’s for anyused that training for primarily their peers one: neighbors, friends, family, clergy, or somebody that they know, which is anybody,” Gable said. “It has practical amazing, and a significant majority of stu- utility just like CPR does in cardiac and dents have also said that there were times respiratory lifesaving.”
Thursday, 10.28.21
10.19.21 Officer responded to an active fire alarm and advised the alarm was activated due to cooking. Edwardsville Fire Department was dispatched and aired out the smoke. Officer took a report of a resident receiving a scam email.
10.20.21 Officer took a report of a water bottle being stolen. Officer advised the water bottle was later recovered. Victim declined to prosecute.
10.21.21 Officer took a report of a subject stealing food from the food court. Investigation continues. Officer responded to a report of records being under a windshield wiper of a vehicle.
10.22.21 Officer responded to a welfare check on a subject. Officer made contact with the subject and the subject advised he was leaving campus. Officer took a report of a catalytic converter being stolen from a vehicle.
10.23.21 Officer responded to a welfare check and advised the subject did not need police assistance. Subject was issued warnings for possession of alcohol by person under the age of 21.
10.24.21 Officer responded to a suspicious activity call. Investigation continues.
10.25.21 Officer responded to an active fire alarm. Officer advised the alarm was activated due to steam from the shower. Officer took a report regarding a subject throwing away items in a bathroom.
Philosophy department to host keynote speaker on philosophy of anger at annual conference, moral psychology ANDREW CROWDUS reporter
The philosophy department will be hosting an author and podcast host to discuss allies and racial injustice at their annual Undergraduate Philosophy Conference. Myisha Cherry, assistant professor of philosophy at the University of California, Riverside, will deliver her speech “Rage Renegades: A Message to “Allies.” Susan Dieleman, assistant professor of philosophy, who is coordinating the event, said Cherry’s philosophical work on rage will be part of her speech at the conference. “She is also the host of a very popular podcast called ‘The UnMute Podcast.’ In this podcast, she interviews diverse philosophers — philosophers of color, women philosophers and talks about their philosophical work,” said Dieleman. Dieleman said Cherry’s recently pub-
lished book, “The Case for Rage: Why Anger is Essential to Anti-Racist Struggle,” will be referenced. “This lecture sort of ends up being part of her book tour for this topic,” Dieleman said. “She is going to be looking at, from a philosophical perspective, what anger is all about. Sometimes it is referred to as moral psychology, looking at the usefulness or the value or the nature of various sorts of emotions that we have. So, she is looking specifically at anger or rage and how it is relevant to things like activism.” Shannon Strom, senior philosophy major, whose hometown is Peoria, Illinois, said she looks forward to meeting Cherry. “I am really excited about the opportunity to have a more connected conversation with Dr. Cherry,” Strom said. “I’ve been listening to her podcast — The Un-
Mute Podcast — since around the time the pandemic started, and it had helped me feel really connected to philosophy. Dr. Cherry and her work remind me of how powerful philosophy can be, especially when working toward a transformative change, and I’m excited to have the opportunity to thank her for that.” Christopher Pearson, professor and chair of philosophy said a lot of factors went into the decision for Cherry as keynote speaker. “We have students come to this conference from all over the country. We want to make sure that the speaker is going to be someone that is great for the students. We have learned that some topics and some people work a lot better than others,” Pearson said. “It’s really timely and socially important and it should be really exciting for the undergrads who are participating. It came together really beautifully, that she
ended up being the keynote speaker given her interest.” Dieleman said she is interested in hearing Cherry’s ideas and the student’s reception of them. “One of the things about philosophy is that it tends to not be the most diverse of disciplines and somewhere I am interested [is] showing people that philosophy is not necessarily the stodgy old discipline that people might think,” Dieleman said. “Young scholars are doing exciting work that is relevant and I am hoping that comes across with Cherry’s talk.” The keynote speech will be held at 4 p.m. on Oct. 29. Anyone interested in attending should contact Dieleman at sdielem@siue.edu. The event will also be broadcast as a live webinar, which can be joined using the QR code on flyers that have been circulated on campus through Dieleman for a link to the webinar.
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BY THE NUMBERS
COVID-19 at SIUE
New confirmed positive cases (from tests conducted by SIUE and self-reporting):
Oct. 15 - Oct. 21: 10 students, 3 faculty/staff Oct. 8 - Oct. 14: 9 students, 2 faculty/staff
14-day new positive tests: 19 students, 5 faculty/staff All prior weeks positive tests (Aug. 6 - Oct. 13): 182 students, 30 faculty/staff Total positive cases: 182 students, 30 faculty/staff
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Madison County confirmed cases by day
225 200 175 150 125 100 75 50 25 0 OCTOBER
26
25
24
23
22
21
20
19
18
Source: Madison County Health Department COVID-19 Dashboard under the Cases by Day tab as of Oct. 26
Percentage of isolation/quarantine space available on campus (as of October 26): 99 percent Source: Health, Reporting, and Testing page on SIUE’s COVID-19 website, as of October 26
Tests conducted by SIUE Oct. 15 - Oct. 21: 1,883
COVID-19’S impact on Madison County
14-day new tests conducted: 3,676
All of Illinois’ regions remain under Phase 5, which went into
Oct. 1 - Oct. 7: 1,793
All prior weeks tests conducted (Aug. 6 - Oct. 13): 14,571
effect June 11. All sectors of the economy reopened with new health and hygiene practices permanently in place:
Total tests conducted: 18,247
• •
Positive cases identified by SIUE testing: Oct. 15 - Oct. 21: 10 Oct. 8 - Oct. 14: 9
14-day new positive cases: 19
All prior weeks positive cases (Aug. 6 - Oct.13): 127 Total: 146
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Large gatherings of all sizes can resume. All sectors of the economy reopen with businesses, schools and recreation resuming normal operations with new safety guidance and procedures. Conventions, festivals and large events can take place. On June 30, Illinois returned to mandated masks indoors regardless of vaccination status. Source: dph.illinois.gov
| Kirsten O’Loughlin / The Alestle
Alpha Phi Omega accepting stuffed animals for SAFE Drive BRANDON WELLS sports editor
Co-ed fraternity Alpha Phi Omega is teaming up with Stuffed Animals For Emergencies to take on donations of stuffed animals for children in emergency situations. Sophomore biology major Abby Spitler of Mascoutah, Illinois, was the member who initially wanted to get involved in SAFE and is one of the APO members hosting the drive. An idea stemming from her own desire to donate her stuffed animals, Spitler said the drive is part of a way she can give what she can to kids in need. “When I was a kid I always had stuffed animals … and now I’m at that age — a little late — but I’m at that age where I want to get rid of them but I want to do it in a meaningful way,” Spitler said. Looking for a way to donate during the pandemic, Spitler said she searched around until she found the St. Louis chapter of SAFE. “I figured, ‘Well, I have something I want to donate, I have a service fraternity that I’m in, so I might as well try to combine those so that I can donate my stuffed animals but I can also incorporate my university in trying to get more stuffed animals,’” Spitler said. Spitler said the stress of the pandemic is one of the factors she considered when thinking about donating her stuffed animals. “Especially because of COVID-19, there’s a lot of stress and [different] situations — and children, they need stuffed animals,” Spitler said. The SAFE organization is a national nonprofit organization that helps gives items such as books and stuffed animals to kids in emergency situations that often involve trauma and emotional distress. Robin Scott, the chapter member for Missouri in the St. Louis area, is the one behind the drive being put on by the fraternity. Scott, a volunteer for ten years, said she has been involved with numerous agencies that have requested help, but in recent years was forced to close when all SAFE chapters were impacted by the pandemic. Among the various chapters throughout the nation, the Missouri and Florida chapters are the only ones still running at
the moment. Scott’s chapter remains open only during the fall to ensure that she can handle the intake of items. “My chapter was one of the chapters that was first reopened and is still open to receiving donations, so that speaks well of our community and also how the stuffed animals are cleaned and handled and received,” Scott said. Junior psychology major Zoe Bonds of Johnston City, Illinois, and vice president of service for APO, said the drive has gone well and they’ve already received donations, but initially had trouble with getting permission to place the boxes in the different locations. With the first week of the drive being primarily about spreading word of the donation locations, Bonds said she hopes to get most of their donations this week, with her personal goal being over 50 if possible.
Bonds said she’s enjoyed being a part of this drive so far and has high hopes for this week based on what was already given. “I just really like that we’re helping kids. These toys are going to be donated to kids, and a lot of our work in the fraternity focuses on the Edwardsville community and people our age or older adults … But I think it’s really cool to be able to do something for kiddos,” Bonds said. Junior mechanical engineering major Kimberly Roskamp of Green Valley, Illinois, is the former vice president of service for APO and has gotten involved in different projects throughout her time in the fraternity. With the SAFE drive, Roskamp said the goal of the drive is personal for her. “When I was a kid, I was hospitalized a couple times for a couple different things … So I actually received a teddy bear [but]
it wasn’t from SAFE, it was from an organization very similar to it,” Roskamp said. Roskamp said an idea involving a drive like this has been on her mind since she joined APO, and when Spitler brought it up, she immediately was on board. “I know firsthand that when you’re in the hospital as a child, it’s very scary … Having something to cuddle is super comforting for these kids that are sick,” Roskamp said. The donation boxes are located at Lovejoy Library, the Student Success Center and every residence hall lobby and in the Cougar Village commons building. All stuffed animals under 18 inches aside from motor-operated ones are accepted. The SAFE Drive will accept donations until Oct. 30. For more information about how to get involved with SAFE visit their website.
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Imaginary Invalid is “playful, colorful and farce” as first faculty-produced show of the season FRANCESCA BOSTON reporter Left: EJ Davis (left) plays Angélique, the daughter of Argan in the show, and Montana Hughey-Takacs (right) plays Toinette during the first day of dress rehearsal. The cast will be able to remove their masks for the public performances. The costumes reflect animals that would have been found on vintage carousels. For example, Angélique is a swan and Toinette is a fox.
Bottom Left: Holly Ingram, a sophomore, is part of the ensemble and during the prologue of the show poses as part of her act. The prologue includes the four ensemble members throwing red beach balls into the audience and a call and response song.
Bottom Right: Ally Butler, a senior theater education major, is the lighting designer for the show. She works on completing final lightning checks before the show starts. The show uses lights to introduce several characters, which adds an extra level to the comedic aspect. | Jihun Han / The Alestle
Thursday, 10.28.21
SIUE Theater and Dance Department is putting on “The Imaginary Invalid”, a comedy by the French playwright Moliere, and adapted by Constance Congdon. With fun costumes and hilarious dialogue, students are excited to bring the show before an audience. Tress Kurzym is a theater education coordinator and instructor, as well as director of the show. She said the show is a modern adaptation of the original. Kurzym said she chose Congdon’s adaptation not only for its inclusion of both the prologue and epilogue but that it was adapted by a woman and the department is trying to show a full representation of playwrights. “I found this particular adaptation, which I loved because it has the prologue and epilogue the way that Moliere would have performed it. The other thing that I particularly like about “[The] Imaginary Invalid” is that it has more of a low comedy. This is our first fully produced show for our season since COVID[-19], so it just feels right to do a comedy,” Kurzym said. Senior Tucker Greer, a theater performance and education major from Owensboro, Kentucky, plays Argan, the male lead. He said it’s important and appropriate that they are doing a comedy as the first full show back after COVID-19. “People just want to laugh. People don’t want to be sad right now. We’ve been dealing with so much sadness, and people just want to enjoy, and not think too hard,” Greer said. “There are so many good old fart jokes. Just the classic humor that everybody loves. Potty humor is funny, it can be annoying sometimes but it’s so refreshing just to laugh at something childlike.” Kurzym said she designed the show around a carousel she remembers seeing in front of the Eiffel Tower in Paris since her goal was to keep the show very French, but with a modern take on the 17th-century show. “I was thinking about everything that was just very French. I knew it was set in that Baroque period. I wanted to just push it a little forward into Rococo. Without being super true, but that’s what commedia would have done, they would have made jokes about whatever was period-appropriate then,” Kurzym said. The carousel idea carried throughout the entire show from costume to set design, according to Kurzym. Laura Hanson, a professor in the theater department and
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Director Tress Kurzym addresses the cast prior to the show giving final instructions before the first dress rehearsal starts. | Jihun Han / The Alestle the costume designer for the show, said character, Argan, is an old goat, so he she ran with the idea of a carousel in her has ears on his hat and little goats on the trim of his robe. costume deShe said the sign. costumes bring “ [ T h e the characters vintage carouto life and make sel] inspired the personalime to sort of ties more visible give each of to the audience. the characters “People an animal percould come to sonality, assign see the show them with one just for the cosof the animals tumes because on the carouthey’re just sel. There are phenomenal,” little bits of anGreer said. imals in each of Senior Julia the costumes Wolz, a theater for that characeducation major ter. If you look from Lake Saint really closely, Louis, Missouri, you can see JULIA WOLZ is stage managsome of the theater education major from Lake Saint Louis, er for the show. fabrics or the Missouri She said she’s shapes sort of excited to be back in the theater to feel mimic the animal,” Hanson said. Hanson said for example the main the audience’s energy and excitement.
“It’s really real, how much [the audience] affects the way that I’m feeling too, so it’s really exciting. Being overcome with the feelings and emotions that happen in live theater, it is okay to feel those feelings and express that laughter and express if something pulls at your heartstrings.
Tucker Greer (left) who plays Argan, the lead main character, and Sadie Harvey (right) who plays Béline, Argan’s second wife rehearse for their first time in costume. | Jihun Han / The Alestle
“It’s really real, how much [the audience] affects the way that I’m feeling too, so it’s really exciting,” Wolz said. ”Being overcome with the feelings and emotions that happen in live theater, it is okay to feel those feelings and express that laughter and express if something pulls at your heartstrings.” Wolz said the cast has been amazing, especially since a majority of them are upperclassmen, they have had time to perfect their craft. Senior Montana Allison Hughey-Takacs, a theater performance major from Bloomington, Illinois, who plays Toinette also said the cast has been wonderful to work with, coming together to create something that’s just fluff and fun. “Everyone is wonderful. Tress [Kurzym] did so well with casting. It’s so stacked. It’s such a team,” Hughey-Takacs said. “The Imaginary Invalid” opening night is at 7:30 p.m. Wed. Oct. 27 in Dunham. The show will run through Oct. 31. Tickets and information can be found on the Theater and Dance Department website.
Senior Wayne Chi Wong, a theater education major from Houston Texas, is the sound designer for the show. He is in charge of the music and sound effects that occur throughout the show. | Jihun Han / The Alestle
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BMI is an outdated relic of diet culture THE ALESTLE STAFF editorial board
We rely on medical professionals to help us in our journey of taking care of our bodies and our health, but some continue to use outdated measurements to our detriment. The body mass index, created by Lambert Adolphe Jacques Quetelet in the 19th century, has been used by doctors to determine if someone is obese for decades. It is even being used to determine obesity in relation to COVID-19 vaccine eligibility, despite the creator himself saying it should not be used to indicate someone’s fatness. Quetelet was a mathematician and not a doctor, yet many medical professionals still rely on it. BMI is someone’s weight
divided by the square of their height. This simple formula lacks a lot of nuance and doesn’t take into account the weight added by muscle and strong bones, according to NPR. It also leaves out different fat distributions for those assigned female at birth, including the added weight of breasts. For example, Olympic weightlifters would often be classified as obese under the BMI system. These oversights make BMI alone a drastically inaccurate indicator of health. Using BMI to label someone as obese is like calling a rectangle a square. Someone who is obese will have a high BMI, but not everyone with a high BMI is actually obese. Insurance and diet companies also have a history of lobbying for and abusing the BMI
system. In 1998, the obesity threshold was lowered from 27.8 to 25 due to consulting with an organization funded by Weight Watchers International, according to Mother Jones. This caused millions of Americans to suddenly be classified as fat at the behest of diet companies. People with higher BMIs are also more likely to pay higher insurance premiums according to NPR. BMI also further enables the fatphobia of the medical field. Numerous fat people have experienced doctors dismissing health concerns by attributing it to their weight. With BMI being such a simple formula, it makes it easier for a doctor to tell a patient to lose weight and lower their BMI rather than trying to treat the patient’s concerns. Fatness also isn’t inherently
bad or unhealthy. One’s activity level is a better indicator of their health than their weight. Regardless whether someone is fat or skinny, they’re going to be out of shape if they live a predominantly sedentary lifestyle. There are people like singer-songwriter Lizzo who are fat and work out regularly and are likely more healthy than someone who sits around all day. The misguidance of BMI impacts the entire medical field and lowers the quality of care individuals get. Doctors need to use more scientific ways to determine a patient’s bodily health rather than taking the easier option. Individual bodies can’t be reduced down to a mathematical formula and their medical care should reflect that by being tailored to them.
to an article published by Food Dive, its place as the top nondairy option in America is being challenged by my new personal favorite, oat milk. Although it has a strange taste, I like the taste of ground oats in normal dairy milk, which I would often use as parts of protein shakes, and oat milk has almost the exact same taste with similar benefits of the carbs and protein I need in my diet without the dairy. Dairy options are great, but there are also obvious benefits that can’t be overlooked with nondairy options. According to an article from the American Society for Nutrition, some of the benefits include giving more options to people who are lactose intolerant, have milk allergies, inflammation issues or those with different lifestyle choices and ethical concerns. Nondairy options also have the added benefit of leading to clearer skin. According to an ar-
ticle published by Go Dairy Free, there have been various reasons cited for why dairy can cause things such as acne, but regardless, dermatologists have been recommending nondairy options as a treatment. Dairy itself isn’t necessarily bad for people who don’t have aversions to it, but according to an article by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, the well-known drawbacks include the increased amount of saturated fats inside dairy and contrary to popular belief, poor bone health. I, for one, remember being told as a child that drinking more milk would make my bones strong, and yet a study published by the National Center for Biotechnology shows that milk doesn’t seem to have any extra benefits when consumed in larger amounts. Dairy can still have some bone-fortifying properties when consumed in smaller amounts
due to the nutrients it contains. According to Cleveland Clinic, usually one glass a day is a good option for getting the nutrients milk can provide. Having been raised on dairy, I am not opposed to it, and according to MyPlate, the benefits of vitamin D, calcium and protein are necessary for a balanced diet. It’s important to note that substitutes, including plant-based milks, are also added to the list of acceptable substitutes for these benefits. Nondairy substitutes do have some drawbacks, one being that they can be more expensive than dairy. According to an article published by the New York Post, in 2020, the prices of nondairy were almost double in comparison to dairy. It’s great to experiment with different options in terms of diet, and if you’re hesitant towards trying a full plant-based diet, trying dairy alternatives might be a good place to start.
Nondairy options are worth giving a try BRANDON WELLS sports editor
Just like the case with veganism, a variety of dairy substitutes are becoming more popular, and that’s a good thing. Dairy substitutes have been around for some time, with soy milk having been around for over a century and only in recent years being popularized alongside other options such as almond milk, oat milk, rice milk, pea milk, cashew milk and flax milk. Milk substitutes made from beans are now becoming staples in many grocery stores, being sold in similar areas to dairy milk options, but some types are more available than others. Not only are these substitutes varying in taste and consistency, but they also each have their own added health benefits. A personal favorite of a younger me, almond milk, has become one of the most common nondairy milks. According
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Thursday, 10.28.21
REVIEW: ‘Squid Game’ challenges the truth of human nature DAMIAN MORRIS managing editor
At their most desperate, hundreds of people strapped for money are manipulated into a competition to play children’s games for a large cash prize, unknowingly risking their lives in Netflix’s number one global hit, Squid Game. The show creates a brilliant opening about the struggles of an everyday guy, Seong Gi-Hun (played by Lee Jung-jae), who has just about given up on life before taking the opportunity offered to him to join this competition. Throughout the show, his character is in a moral conflict of joining with those he knows are better for his game and helping those with almost no shot, despite being an underdog himself. Although director Hwang Dong-hyuk in no way shies away from the hyper-violent elements of the show, it never feels out of place and works well to drive the show’s premise in showing the raw cruelty people are capable of. Even amidst the violence, the show somehow finds a way to remain largely a character piece and social commentary on what money and survival can drive people to do. Even though some have criticized this use of violence and gore as romanticizing the loss of human life, I would argue it does quite the opposite, and only includes these elements to show the horrors in its truest form, which is far from the “torture porn” some have used to describe it. Every death is portrayed as heart wrenching, even among the nameless extras and most unlikable characters in the show, which causes the audience to feel horrified by the inhumanity within, and even outside, the game.
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Among the standout performances of almost the entire Squid Game cast, HoYeon Jung and Anupam Tripathi ‘s characters were particularly compelling. Jung played the untrusting, private pickpocket number 067 and Tripathi played the very trusting, friendly Pakistani immigrant Ali Abdul. Both these characters, despite being polar opposites in personality, carry the struggle of trying to survive in a country unfamiliar to them. Even the videography choices in the show largely set a very specific tone and intensity, as well as help to instill the personalities of each character through choice of tone. Every scene was either incredibly lively and vibrant, or dark and eerie. This element allowed it to be unnerving at very specific moments, but also keep the contra-
diction of an otherwise innocent environment full of color and children’s games filled with the nonchalant murder of contenstents from the faceless enforcers of the game. This same contrast is seen in the highly detailed set designs that clearly set an equivalent tone to the video being shot. Even the structure of the main room where they slept was designed both in set and plot as comparable to that of a schoolyard, showing how much the simplest form of human nature and societal structure is synonymous with that of an elementary school. This ranges from the environment structure to social groups and even the rules and regulations they set. One of the things the show does best is keeping the tenseness at almost every moment. I would sometimes be holding my
breath for moments at a time and other times I would forget to breathe entirely for almost every scene in an episode. This was cemented even further by the video editing choices of when to zoom in on a scene, pan out and cut from a scene or angle completely to keep the audience on edge. The soundtrack for Squid Game, composed by Jung Jaeil, even furthered this strained feeling through usually very simple, but effective tracks such as “Pink Soldiers” and “The Rope is Tied.” Squid Game is a show that has and will continue to bring fear, tears and thought-provoking discussions among viewers all over the globe. This is a perfect show choice for anyone who is able to handle not only the physical brutality, but the psychologically draining clash of human nature and morality.
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SIUE Standings WOMEN’S SOCCER
OVERALL OVC
SIUE Murray State UT Martin Belmont Tennessee Tech Southeast Missouri Austin Peay Eastern Illinois Morehead State
9-6 9-7-1 10-5-1 8-7-1 4-5-4 5-9-2 4-10-3 4-10-2 4-9-4
MEN’S SOCCER
OVERALL MVC
SIUE Bradley Loyola Missouri State Drake Evansville
4-8-2 3-9-1 8-3-1 12-1 6-5 1-12-1
SOFTBALL
OVERALL OVC
Morehead State Murray State Belmont Austin Peay SIUE Jacksonville State UT Martin Eastern Illinois Tennessee Tech Eastern Kentucky Southeast Missouri Tennessee State
11-30 22-29 15-25 27-16 18-21 24-25 27-19 25-19 19-30 35-17 30-17 9-33
All stats are from the OVC and MVC Websites
UPCOMING Men’s Soccer at SIUE vs. Loyola 2 p.m., Oct. 31
Savannah Christian, a redshirt sophomore middle blocker from Washington, Missouri, reaches for a tip. The Cougars won two sets against UT Martin. | Nicole Boyd / The Alestle NICOLE BOYD social media manager
Women’s volleyball hosted a fundraiser to raise money for the Side-Out Foundation in honor of Dig Pink Weekend. While the team has participated in Dig Pink Weekend for years, the event has become personal. Ellen LeMasters, a senior outside hitter from Indianapolis, lost her mother to breast cancer her freshman year. She said it’s empowering to honor her and those her teammates have known who have battled breast cancer. “It can be hard at times just because it’s definitely a constant remembrance of her, but on the flip side of that, it’s a good way to remember and honor her and honor her fight and her battle,” LeMasters said. “So it brings hope to me that by raising money with this Side-Out Foundation and their Dig Pink organization that someone else in a position like me, their mother, grandmother, sister, whatnot, can find the right treatment that will give them more time with their loved one.”
She said it was important to her that the money raised would be used for research because her mother was administered a treatment that didn’t work for her body and caused certain organs to fail. All of the money raised for the Side-Out Foundation goes to stage 4 breast cancer research, which is the most underfunded and most critical stage, according to LeMasters. “It’s kind of crazy that this area is so underfunded when it’s the most critical,” LeMasters said. “This organization and this research is so important to me because they tailor their foundation toward treatments, toward researching newer or improving on older treatments that [are] used for stage 4 breast cancer patients, or that is given or administered to these patients so that they can find the right treatment for each patient specifically.” She said while she thinks the team was motivated to raise money before her specific experience, a lot of the girls have been by her side ever since she lost her mom. “We choose this weekend in October as our Dig Pink week, they make it extra special,” LeMas-
ters said. “They just know how closely I hold this organization and this area of research … to my heart.” Head Coach Kendall Paulus said while the team has had a Dig Pink event for many years, LeMasters had to miss about half of the season freshman year due to her mother’s diagnosis, making this a time of year the team remembers. “It’s something that’s changed her life and we want to be able to do as much as we can. A lot of us have had someone that’s been affected by breast cancer, but Ellen’s story is very near and dear to our hearts and something that we want to get behind for her and her family,” Paulus said. According to Paulus, the team was able to tie the fundraiser into the game because it was a home game. “We encourage everyone to wear pink over the weekend. We don’t get to interact with the crowd a ton by any means, so for us it’s more of an in-house experience where we talk about Ellen’s story,” Paulus said. “The idea of playing for something bigger than us
makes it more special.” Annie Ellis, a redshirt senior middle blocker and nursing major from Edwardsville said having someone on the team who has such a connection to the cause adds an extra push of meaning. “Obviously we play for loved ones, we honor them in memory, but also we do it for Ellen as well now. It just makes it even that more special of a game,” Ellis said. LeMasters said she hopes the tradition continues after she graduates. “I just hope that the team and SIUE and the volleyball program as a whole, they just continue to raise money and raise awareness and raise more hope that others … or other families who have been in a situation like mine, that they give them hope by raising this research that their loved one will find a treatment that is tailored to them, and it will give them more time,” LeMasters said. “So I just hope that it’s never forgotten.” To donate to Side-Out, visit the SIUE fundraising page.
Men’s Basketball at SIUE vs. Quincy 7 p.m., Nov. 4 Volleyball vs. Tennessee State 6 p.m., Nov. 5 Women’s Soccer at OVC Championship 7 p.m., Nov. 5 Women’s Basketball at SIUE vs. UMSL 1 p.m., Nov. 6 Volleyball vs. Tennessee State 2 p.m., Nov. 6 Men’s Soccer vs. Drake 7 p.m., Nov. 6