Issue 17

Baseball Looks to Contend for NESCAC Title See Sports, Page 9

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Book & Plow Farm Finds Fertile Ground

Courtesy of Book & Plow Farm Facebook

The new College farm will provide produce for Dining Services and educational opportunities for students and faculty beginning this spring.

Rainer Lempert ’15 Staff Writer The dream of having a campus farm that produces vegetables for the dining hall is now a reality. Since Amherst signed a deal leasing a plot of land to farmers Tobin Porter-Brown and Peter McLean in November, the newly dubbed Book & Plow Farm has been quickly developing and growing. “We were really happy to find Pete and Tobin,� said Alex Propp ’13, a student leader of the farm. “The project has become a lot bigger since they came on board.�

The original intent behind the farm was for it to provide produce for Valentine Dining

Hall, but under the guidance of the new farmers the end-goal has increased. “Our first priority is Valentine, but we are in talks with the other Five College schools and their dining halls as well,� Porter-Brown said. “We want to be the academic farm of this region.�

In order to meet this goal lots of work still needs to be done. The farmers are anticipating the construction of the farm’s first greenhouse and washing station to be complete by the beginning of May, and they will start working on the fields once the snow thaws out.

In addition to providing fresh food for the dining hall, the farm will also serve as a means of education.

“There are a variety of things we could do to utilize the farm for teaching,� Propp said. “Biology professors could investigate it to see soil composition. Seniors could potentially use it for their theses. Classes could take field trips.�

The farm’s ambitious goal has been met with a large amount of support from the College. The farmers have been able to meet and interact with students during biweekly meals help at 1 p.m. Fridays at Valentine and have been impressed with Amherst student’s views on sustainable, local agriculture. “I’ve been amazed at the amount of interest and good will in food sustainability — both from students and the administration,� Porter-

Brown said.

Due to this interest, and also the needs of the farm to start up, there are going to be internships at Book & Plow Farm over the summer. The internships are through the Pioneer Valley Citizen Summer program. “We are looking to have three interns over the summer from Amherst and one or two from Smith College,� Porter-Brown said.

The interns will spend around 80 percent of their time working on the farm, doing fieldwork such as transplanting, weeding, tying tomatoes, and harvesting. The other 20 percent of their time will be spent pursuing individual projects of their own choosing. These projects Continued on Page 2

Faculty Meeting Discusses SMOC and Title IX Reports Brianda Reyes ’14 Editor-in-Chief On March 3, the faculty met for the first meeting of the spring semester. The top three items on the agenda were the presentation of the Special Oversight Committee on Sexual Misconduct (SMOC) report, the presentation of the Title IX report and a vote on the OpenAccess Resolution, which was presented during the last faculty meeting in the fall.

Margaret Hunt, the chair of the SMOC committee and Professor of History, presented some of the report’s more important points to the faculty. According to Professor Hunt, the main finding of the committee’s report was that the College’s statistics fall in line with other four-year residential colleges. The committee also found that the main victims of sexual assault are first-year women, often in the fall semester.

Professor Hunt also provided some statistics that answered questions about the involvement of athletes in sexual misconduct cases at

the College. According to Professor Hunt, 23 percent of the perpetrators in these cases were athletes, while 77 percent were non-athletes.

Furthermore, she said, 100 percent of the athletes who committed sexual assault appeared before the hearing board, while only 30 percent of non-athlete perpetrators came before the board.

Other issues that the SMOC committee reported were problems concerning the lack of suitable space for safe drinking environments, better coordination in the Dean of Students Office and triggering content in courses.

A summary of the SMOC committee’s recommendations with a proposed timeline and responsible offices was presented to the faculty. President Carolyn “Biddy� Martin stressed that this list is not a final document and that the committee is open to concerns or comments.

Suzanne Coffey, Director of Athletics and Coordinator of the Title IX Committee, then presented the findings of that committee. Ac-

cording to the Coffey’s presentation, the obligations under Title IX are to: “publish a notice of non-discrimination; designate a Title IX coordinator; adopt and publish grievance procedures providing for prompt and equitable resolution following a reliable and impartial investigation of complaints; [and] take immediate, effective steps to end sexual violence, prevent its recurrence and address its effects.�

Coffey described some of the recommendations the Title IX Committee made, including a different hearing board for sexual harassment complaints. Before, the board was composed of faculty and students; the proposed plan is a three-person panel, in which the members are chosen from a previously determined list of nine people from the Five-College area. Coffey explained that the Committee would identify members of the community whose line or work or expertise is related to sexual misconduct.

Furthermore, Coffey explained that the College would not support outside settlements

and that, while lawyers could provide counsel, they would not be allowed to participate in the hearing process. Professor Lawrence Douglas questioned the explanation behind those decisions. Coffey, along with Gina Smith, the consultant hired last semester to review the College’s sexual assault policies, explained that this decision was taken to make sure that the hearing process was as fair and balanced as possible. Smith explained that there is great imbalance, in terms of socioeconomic status, when it comes to hiring outside counsel, therefore it would not be fair to allow legal counsel from one party, but not the other.

Professor Jessica Reyes also wondered whether parents would play a role during the hearing process. Professor Catherine Sanderson, a member of the Title IX committee, said that parents were not to be included in the process for the same reason that legal counselors could not be included: to provide a fair hearing to both parties.

Continued on Page 2

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News Entries from Feb. 27 to Mar. 3, 2013 >>Feb. 27, 2013 7:41 p.m., Valentine Dining Hall A student reported the theft of a coat, which is manufactured by Spiewak, from the coatroom at Valentine Hall. It is valued at $200. Case open. >>Feb. 28, 2013 12:24 a.m., Keefe Campus Center An officer discovered writing on the ceiling in the basement level of the Campus Center. Case open.

7:31 a.m., Scott House An officer investigated an intrusion alarm and found it was accidentally set off by an employee.

3:17 p.m., Keefe Health Center An employee reported that a man entered the Health Center claiming to be updating the floor plans. He then left. A check with Facilities found that no one was assigned to do that. Case open.

9:40 p.m., Pond Dormitory An officer encountered a group of students with alcohol playing beer pong in the basement. Several students were underage. The alcohol was confiscated, and the matter was referred to the Dean’s Office.

10:06 p.m., James Dormitory While in the building, an officer observed a hole punched in the wall on the fourth floor. Facilities was notified. >>Mar. 1, 2013 12:17 a.m., Stone Dormitory Officers responded to a noise complaint and cleared out a group of approximately 30 students from a first-floor suite.

12:21 a.m., Stone While responding to a noise complaint, officers confiscated a keg. The room group was fined $100.

1:39 p.m., Hills Lot A caller reported a smashed window on a car parked in the Hills Lot. An officer determined the window had been shot out by a BB gun. The owner of the car was notified. A BB gun was confiscated from a nearby residence. Investigation continuing.

8:28 p.m., The Cage Officers investigated a fire alarm and found that a pull station was accidentally hit by a ball. The system was reset.

10:18 p.m., Pond An officer discovered an unauthorized party in the basement with alcohol and shut it down. The alcohol was confiscated. >>Mar. 2, 2013 12:55 a.m., Plaza An officer encountered a student who had a lit candle in his room. It was confiscated, and he was fined $100 for creating an endangering condition.

1:16 a.m., Wieland Dormitory An officer encountered a group of students on the second floor with alcohol and a beer pong table set up. The alcohol was confiscated, and the matter was referred to the Dean’s Office.

1:44 a.m., Crossett Dormitory An officer discovered a smashed Amherst College chair in an entryway.

3:16 a.m., Pond A caller reported the sound of someone yelling and a chair being smashed. The exact location was unknown. Officers walked through the building but found nothing unusual.

3:20 a.m., North Dormitory Officers responded to a report that a resi-

dent was unaccounted for. Campus Police located the man approximately eight hours later.

6:39 a.m., Moore Dormitory A caller reported a white powder on the floor outside his room. Upon arrival, officers found the substance, which was determined to be laundry detergent, in the hall near several rooms. The custodial department was notified.

2:36 p.m., Converse Hall An officer investigated an intrusion alarm and found it was accidentally set off by an employee.

11:24 p.m., Stearns Dormitory Officers investigated a smoke detector sounding in a third-floor room and discovered it activated because a hair dryer was used too close to it. The system was reset. >>Mar. 3, 2013 12:37 a.m., Stone An officer on patrol discovered a smashed window in an entryway door. Case open.

1:03 a.m., Pond Officers observed a large gathering of people in the stairway outside a second-floor room. A party inside a suite was shut down, and people were cleared from the common areas.

1:08 a.m., Beneski Earth Science and Natural History Museum An officer responded to a report that a man just smashed a window in the building and fled. Based upon information received from witnesses, a student was identified as being responsible. The matter was referred to the Dean’s Office.

1:34 a.m., Social Quad An officer encountered an underage student with alcohol. It was disposed of and the matter was referred to the Dean’s Office.

1:48 a.m., South Dormitory While on the second floor of South, an officer detected the odor of marijuana smoke at a second-floor room. After speaking with the resident, a small amount of marijuana was confiscated. The matter was referred to the Dean’s Office.

2:03 a.m., Waldorf-Astoria While passing by the building, an officer observed a student standing in front of an open window smoking from a pipe commonly used to smoke marijuana. He was fined $100, and the matter was referred to the Dean’s Office.

2:21 a.m., King Dormitory An officer discovered a smashed window in a door at one of the entryways. A member of Facilities was called in for repair.

2:25 a.m., Lipton House An officer responded to a report of a man banging on an exterior door and found that it was the DJ from an event who was locked out.

2:30 a.m., Off Campus Locations Amherst Police requested assistance in searching for a man near Snell Street. He was located a short time later.

3:08 a.m., Charles Drew House Officers responded to a report of an unknown male banging on an exterior door.

The man, who was intoxicated, was identified as a student at a neighboring college.

He was transported to his residence on College Street.

3:23 a.m., Stone Officers responded to a complaint of loud music but nothing was found.

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Faculty Approves Open Access Resolution For Academic Publications Continued from Page 1 Coffey and Smith also discussed the role of the independent investigator within these hearings. The investigator would take care of all of the interviews and information gathering before the hearing began. Paul Murphy, the College’s Legal and Administrative Counsel, said that the administration is currently interviewing independent investigators.

President Martin said that the College’s policies have improved greatly since five months ago when the College first began to draft changes. The College is now fully compliant with Title IX and will continue to improve in the future.

The last item on the agenda was a vote on the Open-Access Resolution, which was presented last semester. The Open-Access Resolution’s description, according to the Library’s website is described as follows: “Each faculty member grants to Amherst College permission to make available his or her scholarly articles and to exercise the copyright in those articles.

More specifically, each faculty member grants to Amherst College a nonexclusive, irrevocable, worldwide license to exercise any and all rights under copyright relating to each of his or her scholarly articles, in any medium, provided that the articles are not sold for a profit, and to authorize others, including faculty members, to do the same.”

The resolution would change the open access policy from an opt-in system to an opt-out sys-

tem. Faculty members could request a waiver, which would be granted automatically. A similar system is implemented at peer institutions, including Harvard Univ., Princeton Univ., MIT, Duke, Oberlin and Wellesley.

Professors voiced concerns about the way in which this policy would affect journals, particularly small and independent ones. They wondered if journals would lose subscriptions once readers could access their articles for free online. However, Bryn Geffert, Librarian of the College, and Professor Chris Kingston explained that evidence proved that this would not be the case. Harvard’s Office of Scholarly Communications tracked the effect of Harvard’s policy, as well as 30 other policies, over the last four and half years. The office found no change in journal publishing.

Other professors remained confused about the legal implications of the copyright and licensing, as stated in the resolution. Professor Kingston emphasized that ultimately the professor would own the copyright. Professor Hunt said that the reason she found the resolution so appealing was because she would own the copyright to her work. Often, she said, the journals for which she submitted articles would go out of business and her work would be lost. Owning the copyright would make sure that this situation would not happen again.

After discussing further discussing the legal implications of the resolution, the faculty voted to adopt the open-access policy.

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An affirmative action/equal opportunity institution. Photo: Matthew Sussman.

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News

Fresh Faculty: Hannah Holleman

Sociology Prof.

Holleman grew up in Okmulgee, Oklahoma. She graduated from Oklahoma State with a B.A. in English and a B.S. in Sociology. She got her M.S. and Ph.D. in Sociology from the Univ. of Oregon. She has taught courses at the Univ. of Vermont and the Univ. of Oregon before coming to the College.

Q: How did you begin studying sociology and what made you decide to pursue it?

A: I grew up in an interracial extended family in Okmulgee, Okla. — the tribal capital of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, and a small city in the center of a ring of historically all-black towns founded to create an independent political force amidst the whitedominated national politics. The diverse intellectual currents there broaden the range of conversations you can have compared to other places I’ve lived. Families are more racially and ethnically integrated than in most parts of the U.S. and there are serious discussions about persistent class and racial inequality, how oil money affects local politics, etc. Given the history of Oklahoma that you have to learn to understand anything there, and all of the great elders we have in our community that have been involved in struggles over civil and tribal rights and so forth, it might go without saying that the origin myths of what we now call the United States certainly were not taken for granted in my upbringing.

This probably meant I was more open to social science than some of my peers in college.

Once at university, there were two pivotal experiences that convinced me I needed training in sociology. The first occurred at an international public health conference in Edinburgh, Scotland, which I attended with my professors. I witnessed a debate between North American and African health professionals over the causes of Africa’s public health crises at that time. The professionals from Africa — I don’t remember which countries because they spoke about Africa as a continent in this meeting — talked about all kinds of trade negotiations, the extraction of resources to fuel wealthier economies, the destruction of local agriculture and many other things I don’t remember. This was the first time I connected what was going on globally to what I learned in Oklahoma about colonialism, racism, U.S. foreign and

domestic policy and other issues that continue to shape this country. I realized that no matter how smart I was, I was still really ignorant about fundamental social realities.

But I wanted to learn.

The second pivotal moment occurred when I walked into a classroom on gender, sexuality and the family to find an older white man in cowboy duds at the head of the class.

He had boots, a big buckle — everything you wouldn’t want to see as a young woman in Oklahoma interested in gender and sexuality. But within an hour, this professor blew up all my preconceptions and facilitated an exciting debate over the supposed naturalness or ordained-ness of gender, marriage, monogamy, heterosexuality, capitalism and even nation-states. He wouldn’t let anyone make a lazy argument, the most lazy being that this is just the way it is because it is either genetic or ordained by God (you would get both of these arguments in Oklahoma — I hear them here at Amherst, too). He made clear there is no “natural order” of things wherein oppression and inequality were inevitable and greed and dominance were universally elevated to acceptable principles of social action. Biology conditioned possibilities, but didn’t determine all of social life.

We, in fact, have and live a broad range of social options.

The idea that social science could provide tools to investigate all of these issues that are fundamental to our lives, even to our most intimate relationships and identities, without reverting to assumed inevitability, was exhilarating to me. It also opened the door to the idea that if things are not inevitable, they can be changed. Then, of course, you start to wonder why you didn’t know all of this before, how our social myths develop, in whose interests, how they are perpetuated, etc., and you just get further and further into the realm of social science. All the big “why” questions that bothered me so much as a kid about society found expression in the themes of my sociology and anthropology courses.

Q: Why did you decide to teach at Amherst?

A: I love Amherst’s model. For me, the fact that the college has changed over time indicates an intellectual openness that is crucial in avoiding stagnation. It is central to Amherst’s success that we have made an effort to recruit the very best students and faculty regardless of race, class and gender. As a result of these efforts, Amherst is a very attractive place to teach and conduct research.

So, I love the model, I love the promise

and trajectory of change at Amherst College. But I didn’t really know that I wanted to teach here specifically until I had my first campus visit. The fabulous students from Anthropology and Sociology took me out to lunch and I spent a couple of days meeting my wonderful faculty colleagues in what is now my home department, as well as scholars from other disciplines, and the Dean of Faculty. The collegiality really came through in the interactions I observed amongst faculty, administration and students. This meant a lot to me.

producing Social Order: Prisons, Schools, and the Military.

Q: What is your research? Are you currently working on publishing anything, or have you published anything before?

A: I’ve published quite a few articles on my own and with coauthors in both academic journals, like Rural Sociology and the American Journal of Sociology, as well as in nonacademic journals that reach a broader audience. I also have coauthored a couple of book chapters. Most recently (this past month), I finished revisions for an article, originating from my dissertation research, that I expect to appear in one of my favorite sociology of development journals. It brings together ecological and social theory and method to examine ecological inequalities embedded in global trade.

My book project focuses on the history and theory of democratic ecological planning through the lens of water issues and social movements in the Southwest of the United States. I am interested in the Southwest because my roots are deep there, it is an area facing severe drought once again, and it serves as a microcosm of broader issues facing our society and the world right now.

I think this lens will help us re-envision possibilities for democratic modes of decisionmaking — across communities, cultures and borders — in efforts to address long-standing injustices, as well as worsening ecological problems.

The other project I’m working on is related to a paper on the history of Cuba’s socioecological regimes and energy policies that I will present this summer at the American Sociological Association’s annual meeting.

Q: What do you hope to contribute to Amherst during your time here?

A: I hope to build on and contribute to the legacy that Amherst already has of preparing great leaders and people who are prepared to meet the challenges that a 21st century society faces. For me, one thing this means is contributing to the further development of spaces on campus for thinking through the relationship between knowledge and purpose, which is connected to the formation of each of our social and intellectual commitments.

For example, if you are going to be the greatest chemist in your particular area of specialization, you are also going to be a private citizen (I mean this in the broad sense) that is responsible, along with the rest of us, for deciding whether the knowledge you help create is used to develop chemical weaponry or put to peaceful purposes. This is the same if you are an investment banker, economist, doctor, politician, analyst, consultant or lawyer and so on. You will have to make ethical choices with respect to what ends your work serves and also what you will support and oppose through your political activities. I’d like to contribute to the creation of more spaces in your career as students to think through these things so that you know what you are about when you go into the working and political world.

Q: What classes do you teach?

A: Last semester I taught Footprints on the Earth: The Environmental Consequences of Modernity and Financial Crises and the Future of Democracy. This semester I am teaching Making Peace with the Planet: Environmental Movements and Ideas and Re-

Q: What aspects of Amherst do you like so far?

A: I love the people in Amherst and I love the land, the scenery. I love it that I can walk a few blocks down my street with my dog and pass cows on my way to a trail through the woods.

My students, colleagues and other people I have met in the community make me feel very at home here, both at Amherst College and in the Five-Colleges.

Q: What do you like to do in your spare time?

A: Spare time? What’s that? No one told me we were to expect spare time. Just kidding. I really appreciate my time spent hiking, visiting with friends and family and checking out the local arts and music scene. I also have always spent time in community work of some kind. I volunteer for a non-profit magazine right now, and as I learn about this area I am sure that I’ll participate in initiatives around environmental change and social justice.

-Alissa Rothman ’15

Book & Plow Combines Learning with Farm Work

Continued from Page 1

could range from shooting a video to create exposure for the farm to doing research to see if an apple orchard on unused farm space is feasible. This internship, with time split between producing vegetables and education, reflects “the duality of the operation,” Porter-Brown said.

This duality is also referenced by the farm’s new name. In addition to choosing the name because it speaks to education and vegetable production, Porter-Brown and McLean chose “Book and Plow Farm” because it “makes reference to its geographical location. The Amherst town seal has both a book and a plow on it,” Porter-Brown said.

Along with the new name, the farm is in need of a logo and a slogan. In order to choose this slogan there will be a contest, which is being led and promoted by Monica Cesinger ’15, a member of the farm committee.

“There will be a prize of $100 for the winner, along with fame and recognition and everlasting glory,” Cesinger said.

There will also be a $50 prize for the person who comes up with the best farm slogan. The logo and slogan will be displayed on various things, such as the Book and Plow website, t-shirts, hats, perhaps even a flag.

“This will be everywhere — it’s an awesome opportunity for a creative person to design a logo,” Porter-Brown said.

Along with the logo, the farm is planning a ground-breaking celebration in May. This will celebrate the opening of the farm to produce vegetables, as well as the construction of the greenhouse and the washing station. There will likely be a picnic, where students and faculty alike will have the opportunity to go and see the farm. There might also be salad greens grown at the farm ready to be harvested and consumed at this point, Cesinger said.

Courtesy of Book & Plow Farm Facebook

The Book & Plow Farm will offer internships during the summer and the academic year.

Opinion

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Editorial

Some Departments Do, and Some Do Less Dining Services this semester has really rolled out the red-carpet for students — in response to student demand, they have extended meal hours and gone out of their way to facilitate their GrabN-Go option. To the best of our knowledge, the managers at Dining Services worked to make their budget go far, and the employees put in extra effort to pull off this alternative meal option. Many students see a strong determination to serve, and it’s not just Dining Services students seem to appreciate these days.

Frost Library also has been spearheading an initiative to open up their rooms and floors for student activities, sensing student demand for programming spaces and locations for gathering. Information Technology this semester recently visited student government on a fact-finding mission to gather student input for new ideas and potential problems with their systems. I.T. also frequently works with student leaders to consult students on their individual projects and to roll out new features.

The will to reach out to students and adapt or innovate accordingly weakens in some departments, however. In these departments, the desire to reach out to students is muffled by the somewhat natural urge to take the path of least resistance.

Residential Life often seems less than accommodating to students. While this is partly due to their being at the confluence of multiple campus interests, students generally recognize that things surrounding Residential Life do not have to be so difficult for students. In addition to complaints about confusion regarding policy and living accommodations, students generally feel that the rapid deadlines to vacate housing, long delays concerning

commencement housing etc. are largely unnecessary. Additionally, the way in which the Athletics Department fails to make itself approachable to non-athletes who suggest new ideas likely stems from a lack of the drive that Dining Services possesses.

Keefe Health Center takes the brunt of a disproportionate share of student complaints, and it could stem from the perception that their department doesn’t make the extra effort to tailor their operations for student needs. Adjustments that would be very popular, such as extended operation hours, could take root if departments reached out to uncover student need and made it a priority to accommodate such need.

It’s easy to default to justifications concerning funding, but undoubtedly mixed into the equation is an element of pro-activeness and eagerness to put students first, above some imagined need of the Department. The administration, illustrated in the way that they helped out with Grab-N-Go, is entirely willing to fund innovative ideas by departments that go a long way toward improving student lives.

Student government and other sources of funding would also be ready to subsidize cool new programs and features that students desire.

The Amherst Student commends the efforts of departments like Dining Services, and we recognize that innovation arises from a proactive mindset and drive to make meeting student need a priority. We hopes that other departments will soon follow their lead in working to make themselves more open to change, since this will be the only way that ideas for innovation will start flowing toward departments themselves.

On Social Justice

,BUSJO .BSRVF[ Contributing Writer

During the EDU meeting two weeks ago, Larissa Davis ’13, a member of a committee working on changes to the MRC, asked attendants to give recommendations for desirable qualifications of the new MRC Interim Director sought to be hired in the coming months. Last Tuesday, the College posted a job description designed with student input and meant to attract the applicants most suited for the position. Many of the students at the EDU meeting enthusiastically spoke and several commented on the necessity that the Interim Director come from a social justice background. While I commend the committee for its efforts to include student voices in this process, the best candidate for Interim Director will not be someone with a social justice background. Due to the social and political ideals inherent in social justice, having the lead person in charge of the MRC come from such a background will be inevitably exclusionary. I do not mean to say that someone from a social justice background will intentionally create an atmosphere that is uncomfortable for certain groups of students on campus, but because of the way in which a social

E X E C U T I V E B OA R D Editor-in-Chief Brianda Reyes Managing News Ethan Corey, Alissa Rothman Managing Opinion Erik Christianson, James Liu, Meghna Sridhar Managing Arts and Living Nicole Chi, Annalise Nurme , Clara Yoon Managing Sports Emmett Knowlton, Karl Greenblatt

justice perspective tends to frames arguments about race and class, the MRC will not feel like a safe space for some students under such leadership.

In order for the MRC to become a meaningful institution, it needs to function in a way that promotes real inclusivity — inclusivity that goes beyond often times deterministic arguments for racial and ethnic diversity that exclude political and ideological diversity. The way in which the College has repeatedly presented issues of diversity since President Anthony Marx’s tenure has been to emphasize the importance of including minority and economically disadvantaged students in our community.

Such an understanding, however, is insufficient if the school wants to promote genuine discussion among its students, since it creates an automatic divide between those students who “increase diversity” and those who do not. Having the MRC be led by someone coming from a social justice perspective is likely to have the same divisive effect.

Social justice has no real meaning; it is used almost exclusively as a politically convenient code word for redistribution. Because social justice implies the existence of a form of Continued on Page 5

Letters to the Editor Ronald C. Rosbottom, Winifred Arms Professor in the Arts & Humanities, writes about discussion among the College community.

After considering the responses to Professor Dumm’s piece, “The Elephant in the Room,” on-line and in The Student (Feb. 13 and Feb. 20 issues), I am struck that, for a “reading” college, so many students, administrators, faculty members and alumni seemed to have eschewed critical reading skills in order to excoriate sternly and emotionally the attitudes of a respected member of the community. We may not agree with our critics, but we should at least treat them honorably.

False analogies, character attacks, disingenuous expressions of “sadness” and “disappointment,” accusations of insensitivity, vituperation, selective analysis, questioning of motives: all of these are devices of rhetorical discourse that we try to teach our students to challenge. Yet, if one studies the responses to the article, it would seem that critical reading is not a skill as widely shared by the College community as I had thought.

Professor Dumm raises three key points in his article: why didn’t the SMOC look more probingly into an aspect of our culture that may, just may, have a relationship with sexual violence? Why did the Committee apparently dismiss any further examination of that question? And, given that he had no ready answer, he offered a suggestion, one that many found offensive: is it perhaps because of the importance of athletics to the image of the College, especially among alumni?

That’s it. He does not attack athletes or their sports. He does not state or imply that athletes are bad students. He certainly does not suggest that student athletes are disreputable individuals. Nor does he criticize coaches or our athletic programs, including football. He simply raises questions.

Suppose that, in our classes, every time they brought up an unpleasant topic, our students were attacked this casually, with so much foggy misinformation, so much sar-

Ryland Richards ’13 writes on the use of a pronoun, “ze,” in an editorial “Students Desire Clarity on Direction of Alcohol Policy,” which appeared in the Feb. 6 issue of The Student.

A letter appeared in The Student a couple of weeks ago denouncing the use of “ze” as gender-neutral pronoun. “Ze” is not an ideal pronoun to use in reference to all genders, but I say that because of its meaning, not its grammatical unfamiliarity. We all know that people who identify as male generally go by “he,” and people who identify as female go by “she.” Each of these pronouns refers to a specific gender identity. “Ze” works in the same way; many people who do not identify as either male or female — for example, genderqueer, genderfluid or agender people — choose it as their preferred pronoun.

Although “ze” is sometimes classified as an inclusive pronoun, it is much more frequently associated with people whose identities lie outside the gender binary. If you need an inclusive pronoun, singular “they” is the best option. “They” has no gender connotations, which, in fact, is why some people who have non-binary gender identities use singular “they” to refer to themselves. Grammatical qualms have no place here; if the options are experiencing syntactic discomfort with the singular “they” or having one’s identity denied and invalidated by a refusal to acknowledge one’s gender pronoun, I’m sure you can figure out which is the greater hardship to bear.

Pope Says ‘Nope’ %BOJFM %JOFS Contributing Writer On Feb. 11 the Vatican confirmed that Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, known to most of the world as Pope Benedict XVI, has decided to resign his post, leaving the Holy See vacant for a reason other than papal death for the first time since 1417, when Pope Gregory XII resigned to resolve the Western (‘Great’) Schism. Pope Gregory XII, however, was forced into resignation by a specially formed ecumenical council.

The last time a pope stepped down of his own volition was in 1294, when Pope Celestine V retired five months after his appointment due to political impotence, an action that soon led to his imprisonment at the hands of his predecessor.

Returning to contemporary Vatican politics, the break in the 719-year tradition of popes sticking to their post until death was formalized on Feb. 28. The announcement, which

shocked most of the world’s Catholics, including those working within the Vatican itself, was delivered in front of a collection of cardinals gathered to discuss the canonization of three new saints. His reasoning was simple and humble: “Before God, I have come to the certainty of my strengths, due to an advanced age, are no longer suited to an adequate exercise of the Petrine ministry.” The 85-year-old German bishop realized that he was simply too old to carry on with the responsibility of leading the world’s 1.16 billion Catholics in their spiritual lives. Benedict, who was one of the oldest popes ever to serve the Holy See, has already outlived the average modern pope by 11 years.

He has carried a pacemaker since he was a cardinal, has lived through multiple strokes and has been suffering through age-related health concerns for over a decade. These concerns were so dire that he had hoped to resign as a Continued on Page 5

Letters Policy

S TA F F Design Editor Brendan Hsu Opinion Section Editors Diana Babineau, Julia Milmed Sports Section Editors Varun Iyengar Arts and Living Section Editors Jeffrey Feldman Publishers Mary Byrne, Chris Friend, Nazir Khan, Mike Osorio, David Walchak

casm and insult and so much disdain. What kind of “teaching” college would we be then?

Can we not agree that to raise a sensitive and controversial issue does not imply a bad character, a prejudiced teacher or hidden motives?

Is there a safe haven where sensitive aspects of our campus culture can be freely discussed with frankness, yet good will?

At least, we can still call ourselves the “singing” college.

Copy Editors Marisa Dolmatch Photographers Janita Chalam, Jennifer Lee, Peter Mack, Olivia Tarantino Senior Editor Amro El-Adle

The opinion pages of The Amherst Student are intended as an open forum for the Amherst community.

The Student will print letters under 450 words in length if they are submitted to The Student offices in the Campus Center or to the paper’s e-mail account (astudent@amherst.edu) by 12 p.m. on Sunday, after which they will not be accepted.

The editors reserve the right to edit any letters exceeding the 450-word limit or to withhold any letter because of considerations of space or content.

Letters must bear the names of all contributors and a phone number where the author or authors may be reached. Letters and columns may be edited for clarity and Student style.

The Student will not print personal or group defamation.

Publication Standards

The Amherst Student is published weekly except during College vacations. The subscription rate is $75 per year or $40 per semester. Subscription requests and address changes should be sent to: Subscriptions, The Amherst Student; Box 1912, Amherst College: Amherst, MA 01002-5000. The offices of The Student are located on the second floor of the Keefe Campus Center, Amherst College. Phone: (413) 542-2304. All contents copyright © 2011 by The Amherst Student, Inc. All rights reserved. The Amherst Student logo is a trademark of The Amherst Student, Inc. Additionally, The Amherst Student does not discriminate on the basis of gender, race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation or age.

The views expressed in this publication do not reflect the views of The Amherst Student.

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A Papal Resignation Finding the Right Interim Director for the MRC to Embrace Continued from “Social”

Continued from “Pope”

cardinal at the customary age of 75, staying at his post only at the request of Pope John Paul II. For all intents and purposes, Benedict was, at the time of his election in 2005, already a man who was in no shape to assume the responsibilities of the papacy. It is insane to believe that any 85 year-old, let alone one with an already long history of grave medical concerns, could or should take on such a cardinal (pun hugely intended) position.

However, tradition is still unrelentingly conservative tradition in the Catholic world, and the Pope’s announcement stirred huge amounts of apprehension. Benedict’s decision was ultimately accepted and, at least officially, respected by the world’s political and religious leaders. Cardinal Juan Luis Cipriani, the archbishop of Lima, called the resignation a “great message of humility and a tribute to the truth.” U.S. President Barack Obama wished Benedict and the Catholic cardinals well, and Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti, who presides over a population that was far more heavily affected by the resignation, recognized that Benedict made his decision in good faith and that it was “inspired by the will to serve the church to the end.” Still many Catholics have not yet come to terms with the resignation. Common sentiment is that the Papal conclave, the meeting of the College of Cardinals in the Sistine Chapel to elect a new pope, is to at least some degree an attempt to divine the will of God. If it were God’s will for Benedict to serve out the papal role, they reason, surely there is something very much wrong with his abdication of the responsibility.

Theological concerns aside, I argue that while a break in so many centuries of tradition is in itself distasteful, we ought to happily embrace Benedict’s resignation. Practical concerns do play into this thought: historically popes have had shorter life spans than they do currently and have simply not generally been faced with the prospect of presiding at such advanced ages. His resignation has

already sparked conversation amongst Catholic leaders and academics about considerations for age caps in the future elections of popes, either official or unofficial. More importantly, however, Pope Benedict XVI was simply dreadful. It is widely acknowledged that the abdication of his seat is the most meaningful legacy he has left the office.

In terms of policy that he either supported or enacted, he was disastrous, if not criminal. This is the guy who, when faced with Africa’s debilitating AIDS epidemic, in 2005 categorically condemned the use of condoms. It is difficult to even imagine the crippling effect this would have had on anyone fool enough to listen to him. Moreover, in Africa, a continent plagued by poverty, severe undereducation and very high religious influence (three phenomena that by no means of coincidence are frequently observed to exist simultaneously), one can imagine that the pope’s message did not fall on deaf ears. We are talking about the leader who not only failed to take serious action against the worldwide sexual abuse of children at the hands of their (sometimes globally prominent) Catholic priests, but who on several occasions acted to shield the pedophile priests and to silence their victims. This is the pope who spent substantial resources on propagating the anti-homosexual hate campaign, who blessed Ugandan parliamentary speaker Rebecca Kadaga, backer of the infamous Uganda Anti-Homosexuality (‘Kill the Gays’) Bill.

Had the now Pope Emeritus any sense of decency or dignity he would have resigned long ago, in response to any one of these critical and devastating failures. Sadly, the papacy has frequently been filled by men devoid of either feature (research the career of Pope Pius XII, or ‘Hitler’s Pope’, to learn more), and such a gesture was probably too much to hope for. Let us hope that the next pope holds a regard for humanity that surpasses his dogmatic conservatism and that he focuses more on the well-being of Catholic parishioners than he does on the prestige of his church.

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structural social injustice that needs to be actively fought, it is a phrase that ignores the multi-causal nature of inequity in American society and places blame on certain groups. It is true that our world is unjust, but the notion of justice promoted through this conception is highly flawed because it assumes that people, by virtue of their backgrounds, either belong to the category of the oppressed or that of the oppressor. While there is a space for those thought to be oppressed to empower themselves and for those marked as the oppressor to function as positive agents of change, this is still a divisive assumption. It stems from the belief that inequity results primarily, perhaps even exclusively, from an injustice perpetuated by the privileged against the underprivileged and, perhaps inadvertently, promotes guilt within those groups that are considered to be privileged. Under the framework of social justice there is little space for individual achievement because everything you do is tied to who you are, and who you are is defined by your group’s narrative of subjection to greater structural forces based on historical power inequities.

To have someone that accepts these notions as the head of the MRC will only reinforce the divisions already present on campus.

An MRC Interim Director with a social justicebased background will act on the implications of that understanding, considering this a good way of empowering our underprivileged students and educating our privileged ones. In fact, all that will be achieved will be to push the seemingly more privileged students even further away from the MRC. Though it is true that many students already believe the MRC is not a space for them, that is no excuse to make this space appear unwelcoming.

While the director may be well-intentioned, it is unlikely that his or her programming will appeal to students who do not already have an interest in social justice because their understanding of their role will necessarily involve the perpetuation of these ideas. Discussions of privilege are not meant to be accusatory, but often times they are.

Last semester, as one of the discussion leaders for the Day of Dialogue, I saw how calls to dismantle privilege put certain peoples on the defensive. The group I co-led was composed primarily of white, affluent male athletes and it was easy to see that they felt attacked by Professor Cobham-Sander’s presentation on privilege; even the white male facilities staff member in our group seemed uncomfortable. At first all discussion was stifled because these men felt labeled as oppressors, as perpetrators of rape or willing bystanders. As soon as the conversation moved away from the accusatory tone of privilege, these students opened up and had insightful recommendations for needed changes. As a community, we need to make sure that our campus promotes inclusive dialogue, not the blaming and awkward floor-staring that results from the politically-motivated perspective of social justice. The MRC, if it is to have a real purpose on campus, needs to make all students feel welcome, not just those who agree with the agenda inherent in social justice.

Though it may not be the worst amongst its peers, Amherst College is notorious for putting the liberal in liberal arts education. From anonymous attacks on The Student website after Andrew Kaake’s pro-life article last year, to gleeful comments concerning the retirement of conservative professors and distinguished scholars Hadley Arkes and Walter Nicholson, to private ridicules of the Amherst College Republicans regardless of

their impressive work in the last few months, hostility against conservative ideals is rampant on our campus. The hiring of an Interim Director from a social justice background will aggravate this hostility. The ideology that informs the social justice understanding is one based on the idea that equity should be the aim of social and political institutions. It demands the primacy of the collective over the individual and is therefore perfectly in line with contemporary liberal agendas demanding increased welfare benefits. To hire an Interim Director from a social justice background will be an implicit endorsement of these politics. Already the campus promotes liberal ideas in the way in presents certain issues to its students, but to continue this pattern with the one person whose primary purpose is to promote inclusivity on campus is going much too far. This move will serve as the College’s way of saying that conservative values and ideologies are not really welcome here, that notions of inclusivity go only as far as race, ethnicity and socio-economic status will allow.

In the abstract, it seems like a good idea to hire an Interim Director from a social justice background. Unfortunately, the reality is very different. Our campus is already divided, with many students feeling as though they have no authority to speak about these issues because their background is not “diverse” enough. When I wrote an article last semester criticizing affirmative action, I received emails from students and professors alike that felt as I did, but could not articulate those feelings because they feared being publically attacked as people who could not understand the struggles of minority students. One alum wrote a caustic blog post about me in which he argued my ideas were wrong simply because I looked too white to actually understand what it means to be a person of color in America; he had never seen me in person or spoken with me. When it comes to issues of diversity and inclusivity at Amherst, we need to move beyond what we know will only perpetuate the divisions on campus. We need to do this because it matters, because it is of dire importance that we create one community, not many disparate ones.

Everyone at Amherst has been excluded at some point or another, even those within groups that are generally thought of as privileged. This past weekend, a presumably racially-motivated prank occurred on campus. At approximately four in the morning on Saturday, a student discovered that piles of white powder were left in front of the doors of the white male students living in the second floor of Moore dormitory. Because the resident counselor responded quickly to the incident, the police wrote a report and the powder was cleaned up before many knew anything had happened. That was it. No campus-wide email.

No discussion. Having spoken to a student that actually witnessed this event, I know they were deeply troubled, but no one else seemed to care.

Last semester, there was a huge backlash when the n-word was found written in snow, and rightfully so. Why is it, however, that attacks against students that are generally labeled as privileged do not garner such attention? Something is wrong at Amherst and it needs to be addressed now by reframing our discussions about inclusivity. We need to think critically about what we need the MRC to be in our community, and the first step in doing so is to realize that social justice is not the best means to promote true inclusivity. We need a great leader to be our Interim Director, but that leader should not have a social justice background.

Arts&Living

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The World, Seen: On Beauty and Science

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%FOJT %VUUPO QSPQPTFT BO FWPMVUJPOBSZ FYQMBOBUJPO PG IVNBOT QFSDFQUJPO PG CFBVUZ IPMEJOH B SPDL UIBU JT CPUI ACFBVUJGVM BOE B VTFGVM UPPM ;BDI #MFFNFS Staff Writer Two weeks ago, Amherst College bought us a Festival of Ice, complete with fire-blowers, icecarvers and (what I believe to be) the yummiest Hamantaschen ever tri-cornered. To advertise for the event, a large ice sculpture of a snowflake was placed in front of Val, and Amherst’s Februaries are so cold that the sculpture lasted several days before the sun’s mild rays took their toll.

In my opinion, the snowflake sculpture was beautiful. Some, I am sure, did not share my enthusiasm, and maybe some did not notice that the sculpture was there at all. The same thing was true last week, when Val served a marvelously delicious goat-cheese-and-arugula pizza; I thought that it provided a wonderful eating experience, while others, presumably, were unimpressed (or disgusted, or didn’t notice).

Both experiences were pleasant, but the pleasures seem different in kind. For instance, eating

even one bite of the pizza made me want to run back for more, and more and more; eating the pizza made me want more of it, until I was full.

That was not the case with the sculpture, though; I did not feel mounting anticipation as I walked towards Val’s exit, and I did not stand staring at the sculpture until I “had my fill.� Kant calls the sculpture’s pleasure “contemplative:� rather than making me want to see it more, looking at the sculpture was just a pleasant thing to do.

One might wonder, then: what is the difference between these two experiences, such that one of them led to desire and the other did not?

In particular, is there something distinctive about the pleasure of the ice sculpture that would explain my taking pleasure in it, yet not feeling the desire to take more pleasure in it?

Amherst College teaches its students a large number of ways to approach broad questions like these. For instance, consider an evolutionary answer to the question. In his TED talk on the subject, Denis Dutton argues that people find certain

shapes beautiful and other shapes not beautiful because objects with those shapes were once important tools used by prehistoric men and women in their daily lives. For example, he argues that people find tear-shaped objects beautiful because tear-shaped rocks were both particularly prevalent and useful as tools, and individuals evolved to take pleasure in seeing those tear-shapes so that they were more likely to take advantage of such tools when they are available.

Maybe, then, the pleasures are not so different after all, both written into my genetic code in order that I make the best use of my available resources. However, this explanation seems somewhat deficient in at least two ways. First, as biologist Stephen Jay Gould puts it, “Evolutionary biology has been severely hampered by a speculative style of argument that records anatomy and ecology and then tries to construct historical or adaptive explanations for why this bone looked like that or why this creature lived here.� In other words: you can come up with an evolutionary story for anything. But if your only evidence for that story is the manifestation that you created the story to explain in the first place, then why should the story be given any credence?

However, Gould’s criticism aside, a second concern with the evolutionary answer is much more serious. Even if someone gives a really good evolutionary explanation for the difference between these pleasures, does that explanation answer the right question? After all, I am interested in the difference between these two pleasures, in me. I was not asking about what people in general think about pizza and ice sculptures, and I was not asking for the historical conditions that explain my pleasures. I want to know what the difference was between them, not why (or in whom, or whether) the difference exists.

A similar criticism applies to a neurological answer to the question above. After all, I could get a neuroscience major to hook me up to a complicated machine and watch my brain as it feels the pleasure of pizza, and then the pleasure of the

ice sculpture, and then she could perform some complicated analysis and tell me all of the differences in my brain’s activity in the two cases. Then I would know what happened in my brain, but that does not tell me anything about the content of the difference between the pleasures; instead, it just tells me that there is a difference.

Say the amygdala was more active in the pizza case than in the ice sculpture case. What was the difference between the two experiences?

Was there something about the ice sculpture, or about seen objects in general, that made that pleasure contemplative, while the pizza’s pleasure was desire-producing? Did the pleasures feel different, and if so, how? Is the difference between them the same as that between all art and food in general, and if so, why would those pleasures be different?

Did I (or, is there reason to) prefer one pleasure over the other, independent of the degree of the pleasure? No matter how much one knows about the activity of the amygdala, that knowledge cannot be used to answer any of these questions.

A similar argument also goes for anthropology. Cultural information might explain why people prefer pizza to sculptures in general, or why one person’s upbringing might lead them to different preferences from another person. But culture offers no significant insight into questions about the actual differences between the two pleasures, since pleasures happen to individuals, not groups. Anthropologists might point at the difference, but they cannot explain it.

Evolutionary argumentation can answer many questions, just as neurological argumentation and anthropological argumentation can. But if we’re interested in the questions listed above, the only viable answers lie in the arts and philosophy.

Think Joyce in “Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man�. Think Frost’s “Dust of Snow�. Think Plato, Kant and Scruton. Though the value of various answers might be ambiguous, at least these writers are answering the right questions. In my next column, I will explore some of these various answers.

Five College Events Wednesday, March 6

“Do I Need a Pill For This? Growing up in the Age of Psychiatric Medications,�

Mount Holyoke College, 7:30 p.m.

A public lecture by Katherine Sharpe followed by a panel discussion and open community dialogue. To a degree unimaginable just 20 years ago, many American children, teens and young adults use antidepressants, ADHD medications or other psychiatric drugs as a routine part of their lives. What does it feel like to “come of age� on psychiatric medication? How have these medications changed the ways we understand ourselves and the World— whether we take them or not? What new challenges does the culture of medication pose to our collective search for mental health? How does it affect our lives on campus?

Thursday, March 7

“Auditions: Staging Human Trafficking,�

Smith College, 4:00 p.m.–6:00 p.m.

A kind of performance activism, this drama centers around women and human trafficking in the Middle East. Seeking passionate, expressive individuals who want to make their voices heard. The final performance will be shown on the evening of May 1. Open to all Five-College students and faculty. For more information, contact jhodder@smith.edu.

Friday, March 8

“VOX Presents: Oh Megan!,� Smith College, 4:00 p.m.

Who is Megan Andelloux? She is a nationally Certified Sexuality Educator (CSE) through The American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors and Therapists, an HIV educator and a Board Certified Sexologist through The American College of Sexologists. Ms. Andelloux worked for nine years as a youth-focused sexuality educator in N.Y., R.I., Conn. and N.J. before bringing her love for teaching at a locally run feminist sex-shop in Providence, R.I. She noticed that adults hold many of the same questions teens do when it comes to sexual issues, and so she merged into working in the world of adult sexuality education. “Korea Night 2013: Korean Style,�

Mount Holyoke College, 6:00 p.m.–9:00 p.m.

KASA (Korean American Sisters’ Association) of Mount Holyoke College invites you to Korea Night 2013: KOREAN STYLE. Come and join us to eat scrumptious Korean food, watch some talented singers/ dancers, learn more about Korean culture and more! All in Korean-Style. Admission: Show $4; Show & Dinner $8.

by Annalise Nurme ’15

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A Chat With Indie Game Developers been wanting to make a game forever.

MB: Were there any major roadblocks in the year it took you to develop Anodyne, besides the difficulty of balancing schoolwork?

Jon: Hmm, not too much that I can think of. Managing time, commitments and motivation were sometimes tough, but there weren’t really any big or unexpected problems for me.

Sean: Nope, there were things that I feared throughout development (putting it on mobile! making the music all work together! window resizing! Cross-platform deployment! Marketing the game! Release date! Controller support! Testing!

Bugfixing!), but those were overcome — nothing really got me too stuck. Working in parallel with other commitments became second nature after a while, though during deadlines (self-imposed/competition entries), it got a little crunch-time-ish.

Image courtesy of XXX BOPEZOFHBNF DPN

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MB: First off, thank you for agreeing to this interview! I’ve been pretty excited for the past few days in anticipation of learning more about the game and the development process. For starters, mind sharing a little bit about your history with video games?

Jon: I’ve been playing and making games for as long as I can remember. First with pencil and notebook paper, then with ZZT, the OHRRPGCE, and Game Maker, and recently with Sean on Anodyne!

Sean: Played all my life (mostly Nintendo console/handheld, some bigger PS/PS2 titles, then PC games), and I did some pencil/paper game world design stuff throughout childhood, some Cave Story modding, and made some really awful games, less awful but still awful games and then Anodyne!

MB: Have you attempted developing games before Anodyne?

Jon: Yep, although I haven’t really completed many projects.

I’ve mostly just worked solo and gotten hung up on things, especially the programming.

Sean: Yeah. Made like two awful/unfinished things in high school, then a bunch of smaller (finished) and bad things in the eight months or so before starting Anodyne.

MB: Besides Legend of Zelda, did you find inspiration from any other games while developing Anodyne?

Jon: Not super directly, but I think that a lot of games that I’ve played have influenced the way I think about graphics, dialogue and design. Games like Chrono Trigger, Shadow of the Co-

lossus and Final Fantasies are some that stick out.

Sean: I always had Yume Nikki in the back of my mind for world design and the layout of the areas, as well of the reminder to have a strong aesthetic to the game and to also keep a sense of exploration to it all. Plenty of other passive influences for the music/game design/etc. — Fez, An Untitled Story, Metroid Prime are a few.

MB: It says on the Anodyne website that Sean began the project in March of last year before meeting Jon. Sean, what inspired you to start developing Anodyne, especially given that you were going solo at first?

Sean: I decided I wanted to combine GBC Zelda with the dream ideas/gameplay of Yume Nikki. This was after finishing a platformer game, and I decided I wanted to move onto something bigger since I’d always wanted to implement Zelda-like dungeons in a world that interested me. I also wanted more chances to work on composing music, too!

MB: How did you first conceive Anodyne and how has it changed from that original conception, if at all?

Sean: Mostly the “make a game with Zelda mechanics,� and then wanting to put a bit of my thoughts/ideas into the game, which I felt worked well with that aesthetic of Yume Nikki. The biggest change is that the game was going to be a lot less structured and have no written narrative. That is a hard thing to do, and we decided early on to structure the world more and give a written narrative, which I think made it a lot better than if we hadn’t.

MB: Jon, what got you interested in joining the project? How much had already been developed by that point?

Jon: Sean had a little sort of tech demo of the game worked out. There were a couple incomplete areas that you could walk around and you could move dust and kill some enemies. Even though it was very rough and simple at that point, I was really impressed with how much atmosphere it already conveyed. Although really, it didn’t take that much convincing because I had

MB: It feels like you packed a lot of polish into that one year, which undoubtedly took a lot of play-testing. Do you still play Anodyne at this point?

Jon: Sean played through a lot more than I did. I have actually just played through the entire game once, and not even 100 percent. Maybe one day, but I’ve been really busy with school during and since release.

Sean: Yes, I have play-tested every area far too many times.

Especially the dungeons, agh! No, I don’t play Anodyne anymore, though I might have to for the mobile versions (theoretically they should just work because we just wrap it differently for mobile with AIR, but you never know). I played through it completely 3-4 times, and could basically play through the entire game in my head at this point!

MB: In my review, I praised the soundtrack for being particularly fresh, especially for video game music, and satisfying in its complexity. What were your inspirations, if any, in composing Anodyne’s soundtrack?

Sean: Thanks! I really liked game music that strongly accompanied the current gameplay, and easily conjures up the memory of the feeling of that gameplay when listened to outside of the game — so David Wise (DKC2), Rich Vreeland on Fez, Terence Lee on Dustforce, a few of Yasunori Mitsuda’s tracks from CC/CT, etc. And outside of that—Mussorgsky, Satie, Debussy, Ravel, Liszt, Chopin, etc., the pieces that vividly paint scenes were important, as well as just paying attention while going through life. I still think that listening to a lot of music (attentively), paying attention in life, you build up this subconscious vocabulary of what sounds might work to convey a certain atmosphere. So yeah, game music, other music and life!

MB: Is there any one thing you think an aspiring game developer should know?

Jon: If you love making games, then keep on trying!

Sean: Work your butt off! If you are pretty young and welloff, you have (or can have) much more time than you realize... so just go for it now before you start to accumulate other responsibilities.

I’d like to thank the developers again for taking the time to answer my questions. The full interview, including some useful links provided by Sean and Jon and their preferences in soda and men’s underwear, can be found on The Amherst Student website.

“Girls:� The Return of OCD...and Adam +FGGSFZ 'FMENBO Arts & Living Managing Editor In this week’s episode of “Girls,�

Hannah, Marnie and Shoshanna stand face-to-face with extreme manifestations of the problems they confront every day. When the episode opens and we see Hannah compulsively opening and closing her door, stuffing chips in her mouth, it seems like yet another overblown, desperate cry for attention. Though the resurgence of her OCD — which, we learn, plagued her in high school — doesn’t cause her to abandon her exasperating capacity for selfishness, it really does take a toll on her. Dunham calls into question the audience’s judgment of Hannah: are we being fair when we criticize the way she treats her parents or anyone else? Maybe she can’t help but be a

narcissist.

Marnie’s delusion that she has her life in order comes close to being shattered (as it has in several recent episodes) when she discovers Charlie’s newfound success. But even when she’s forced to confront the fact that she’s let the world get ahead of her, she refuses to let reality in. For Hannah, nothing goes well because she’s always the victim; for Marnie, nothing can go wrong, because in her story, she’s always the hero. It doesn’t help that Forbid, Charlie’s moneymaking app, was created with her in mind; for Marnie, this just confirms that she deserves his success.

Shoshanna, always out of place among the more adult characters of the show, realizes how much she doesn’t belong to her own scene: the college world. As if she hears

Ray’s inspirational speech to Marnie, Shoshanna takes advantage of her outsider status to step out of character and live a little. Of course, she didn’t hear Ray’s speech — Shosh was dealing with the aftermath of Jessa’s n-th disappearance, figuring out how one could live life so aloof.

On a more positive note, Adam has found a new outlet — Alcoholics Anonymous. And it proves to be a great one too because, at his first meeting, an odd-looking woman named Cloris sets him up with her daughter.

Adam, with his budding romance, and Charlie, with his cushy new lifestyle, seem to have found the key to their happiness: a new group of people to spend their time with. If only it were that easy, or even possible, for Hannah, Marnie, Shosh and Jessa — they can’t escape themselves.

Image courtesy of 1.bp.blogspot.com/

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“The Thin White Duke� Strikes Again

+BLF 8BMUFST Staff Writer

In late January, I remember scratching my head in elation when I heard that David Bowie, the famously press-shy, eccentric whirlwind of a musician who all but promised us he would never release new music again, announced a new album, “The Next Day.� It was due in March (only two months away!), and a song was made immediately available with no prior announcement.

I thought I would have to wait until its proper release date of March 12 to enjoy it, but Bowie, proving his marketing skills may very well match his skills on record, let loose the whole album a few weeks early through streaming on iTunes. You can’t buy any songs, but you can hear all of them, and I’m about as glad as I could be that I took advantage of that option. British newspaper “The Independent� referred to “The Next Day� as “the greatest comeback album in rock ’n’ roll history.� While that sounds a little hyperbolic, the album may just live up to that statement, and not only because there aren’t many great comeback albums in rock ’n’ roll. Judging it on its own

Image courtesy of nbhap.com

#PXJF VTFT DSZQUJD BMCVN BSU GPS i5IF /FYU %BZ w merits, it’s exactly what Bowie needed to deliver in 2013, even though I’m not sure anyone knew exactly what that was before the album’s creation. Simply put, it’s terrific, easily the best album released in months and Bowie’s finest album in many, many years. Bowie’s creation reminds us how important and singular a talent he is: “The Next Day�

feels rooted in his past yet is entirely appropriate for the present. The album, like the man, is timeless, and it’s about as fantastic a way to kick off 2013 (if a couple months late) as I can think of.

An album whose lyrics manifest an obsession with old age and the past, “The Next Day� immediately reminds us that Bowie, for all his arty tendencies, has always been a rocker at heart in the weirdest sense of the term. The title track kicks in with that same angular guitar the original-hipster is known for and in 2013 it’s comforting yet disconcerting, as though we’ve regained an old, forgotten friend whom we didn’t ever expect to return. One track, “The Stars (Are Out Tonight),� reminds us that, to Bowie, there’s really no difference between the outer space in which he spent his past or the suburbia in which he lives his present life. And that’s one of the most fascinating aspects of the album really, both lyrically and musically. It’s pop to be sure, but it’s pop as only David Bowie could deliver it, twisted and contorted, cut up, devoured and spit out, into something that barely resembles its original incarnation.

The second song, “Dirty Boys,� pays tribute to post-Bowie art rockers in an age where it’s no longer relevant to point out what is postBowie. The track is a dead-on rendition of a Tom Waits song, complete with sultry, slinky horns and piercing guitars that jab into the night. It would have fit right in on Waits’ terrific “Bad as Me� two years ago, and it fights right in on this album too.

Bowie lands a knockout with the aforementioned “The Stars (Are Out Tonight),� one of his finest songs ever. With a classic Bowie vibe and insightful lyrics about stardom, both past and present, he croons about where he sees himself now and how he copes with fame. It’s truly terrific stuff, and the song’s intense, rocking yet hushed groove contributes well to the Bowie legend. “Love is Lost� slips only slightly, with piano straight out of a dozen classic horror films, though Bowie manages to turn it into something else entirely. It’s creepy, but there’s

Image courtesy of http://media.npr.org/

%BWJE #PXJF T MBUFTU BMCVN i5IF /FYU %BZ w JT B TUFMMBS DPNFCBDL GPS BO BSUJTU XIP BMM CVU MFGU UIF NVTJD JOEVTUSZ BMUPHFUIFS also the faintest aura of love and hope still remaining amidst the dire loneliness the title suggests. It’s fitting then that “Where Are We Now,� a simultaneously lush yet stark midtempo ballad in Bowie’s late 1970s “Berlin Period� style, has lyrics whose detail evokes the separation of Berlin and its efforts to regain a sense of togetherness. It maintains the lonely/lovely dynamic of the previous song, with some evocative tribal-sounding drums.

The Thin White Duke then delivers “Valentine’s Day� as a respite from the darkness, at least musically speaking. While his lyrics are as ambiguous as ever and suggest a less cheery theme, this poppier number, with its grungy guitars and some propulsive percussion, seems capable of brightening one’s day. But again, it’s Bowie, so he turns what would be a fairly straightforward song into a sumptuous cocktail of bitterness and hope.

At the risk of going on too much about every song (because every song here deserves it), I’ll briefly discuss the album’s solid core. “If You

Can See Me� is one of his artiest songs on the album, with Christmas bell-synths with an icy vibe that contrasts with the fire-spewing Bowie and the tribal drums designed to set your feet ablaze. “I’d Rather Be High� has a classic rock sound that’s a little doo-woppy, with ringing guitars and a psyche-

The album, like the “ man, is timeless, and it’s about as fantastic a way to kick off 2013 as I can think of.

�

delic vibe reminiscent of the artist’s earliest stuff emerging out of the Summer of Love. “Boss of Me� has a jazzy vibe with some slick horns and plenty of snapping. It’s catchy, but it’s outdone by “Dancing Out in Space,� which has a four on the floor rhythm and is reminiscent of his earlier hit “Golden Years.�

As the album moves into its home stretch, “How Does the Grass Grow� proves it shows no signs of stopping with its warped, spacey

guitar intro and some great, bluesy guitar interjections. As if taking on a challenge, this song also manages the seemingly impossible task of making a chorus composed almost entirely of the word “yeah� sound cool. “(You Will) Set the World on Fire� is another highlight, a hard hitting, rocking, intense number with a stomping riff and biting, sarcastic lyrics. “You Feel so Lonely You Could Die� is its stark opposite, reminding me of “Hallelujah�

by Leonard Cohen, so much so that I wouldn’t be surprised if the song was Bowie’s inspiration.

Album closer “Heat� is an appropriately stately and melancholic finale in which Bowie repeatedly questions who he is now, at 66 years of age. As “The Stars (Are Out Tonight)� reminds us, one answer would be: exactly what he’s always been, regardless of his attempts to change. Lucky for us, that happens to be one of the finest, strangest and most electrifying musicians of the last 40 years. Many would call Bowie a born star, and he damn sure proves it with this album.

Comic by &JSFOF 8BOH

5IF "NIFSTU 4UVEFOU t .BSDI

Sports 9

SPRING SPORTS PREVIEW

Men’s Lacrosse Looks for Bounce-Back Season after Disappointing 2012 Campaign

Megan Robertson ’15 Public Affairs Office

Senior Jeff Izzo will be an integral QBSU PG UIF +FGGT BT UIFZ MPPL UP rebound.

Brenton Arnaboldi ’14 Staff Writer After falling spectacularly short of expectations last year, the men’s lacrosse team begins the new season with a chip on its shoulder, eager to reassert its status as one of

the top teams in the NESCAC. Starting fresh after a disappointing 9-7 (5-5 NESCAC) season in 2012, the Jeffs hope to rebound with an influx of new young talent.

“We will be a fairly young squad,” thirdyear head coach Jon Thompson said. “My goals will be to relentlessly pursue individual and collective improvement so that we are playing our best lacrosse in late April.”

Two years ago — in 2011 — Amherst finished No. 2 in the NESCAC standings and reached the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament. After the breakthrough campaign, the Jeffs seemed poised for a dominating run in 2012. The Jeffs surged to a strong start, winning their first seven games and rising to No. 3 in the national rankings. Following the 7-0 streak, however, the Jeffs went just 2-7 down the stretch. Amherst plummeted to the No. 8 position in the NESCAC before losing to Tufts in the conference quarterfinals.

Having endured the nightmarish spell in 2012, Thompson plans to focus more attention to player and team development this season, seeking to rebuild the program’s confidence, identity and swagger. By adopting a long-term perspective — rather than dwelling on short-term results — Thompson hopes to reestablish a winning culture at Amherst.

“One of the ways that we have addressed this issue [the 2-7 finish] is to focus more on the process and less on the outcomes. Winning was the outcome, and we did not focus as much as we should have on the process it took to get there last year,” Thompson said.

“We need to earn the respect of the League and the nation before we have the privilege of playing with a bulls-eye on our backs again.”

Returning to the upper echelons of the NESCAC won’t be easy this year, however.

The Jeffs lost three of their top five scorers (Evan Redwood, Alex Fox and Cole Cherney) to graduation, leaving a significant void on offense. Redwood and Fox led the team in assists (23, 12 respectively), while Cherney ranked second with 31 goals scored.

Having lost such prolific scorers, the Jeffs will depend on co-captain Devin Acton ’14 to shoulder even more of the offensive burden this season. As the focal point of attack, Acton led the Jeffs with 44 goals last year, producing 28 percent of the team’s scoring output.

Aaron Mathias ’14 (23 goals) will be expected to provide a second scoring threat, while midfielder and co-Captain Ramsey Bates ’13 will be asked to become one of team’s primary distributors (or passers). Among the 13 first-year players, the Jeffs are confident that Dylan Park and Quinn Moroney can provide an immediate spark on offense.

“I think you will see Aaron Mathias, Dylan Park, Ramsey Bates and Quinn Moroney really shoulder a load. They are names you may not recognize yet, but we have utter confidence in our guys this year,” Thompson said. “Aaron and Dylan can shoot the lights out, while Ramsey and Quinn can really create for their teammates.”

On defense, the Jeffs are looking to repair a unit that conceded the second-most goals (97) in NESCAC play last season.

Aside from goaltender Sam Jakimo, however, the Jeffs have lost few significant defensive players, returning much of the same personnel from last season. Anchoring the

team defense will be co-captain Danny Gold ’13, who operates as a long-stick defensive midfielder. Matt Virgilio ’15, Kevin Curry ’15, and first-years Ryan Cassidy and Connor Crump will also receive substantial playing time.

“We have added a significant amount of depth to our defensive side,” Thompson said.

In the search for a No. 1 goaltender, Thompson has not committed to a firm decision. Gregory Majno ’15, Rob Dickinson ’15 and Thomas Gilligan ’16 are contending for the position.

“We have yet to make a decision on a starter for this weekend,” Thompson said.

“This is a good thing. We have some true, authentic competition in the goal this year, and there is nothing more valuable than that. We hope to get improved play in the goal when compared to last year.”

The Jeffs begin the regular season this weekend with a road doubleheader at Colby and Bates. While Sunday’s contest at Bates (49, 2-8 NESCAC last year) seems like a winnable game, the Jeffs expect a daunting challenge from Colby (9-5, 6-4 NESCAC).

Colby — Thompson’s previous team before coming to Amherst in 2011 — went undefeated (6-0) on its home turf last season.

“We are the underdog versus Colby. They have two all-Americans [Ian Deveau and John Jennings] in their senior class who we are very concerned about. Our play defensively this weekend will be key,” Thompson said.

“Both places are very hard to win, and we are really looking forward to opening up with such a fun environment,” Thompson said.

Lord Jeffs Baseball Seeking First NESCAC Championship since 2005 Karl Greenblatt ’15 Managing Sports Editor To say that the Lord Jeffs have lost talent to graduation would be a considerable understatement.

Last year’s senior class featured two fearsome bats in the middle of the lineup, Mike Samela and Kevin Heller. In June of last year, Heller, the program’s all-time leader in four offensive categories, was selected by the Red Sox in the MLB Amateur Draft; after a stint in the Gulf Coast League, he was called up to the Class A Lowell Spinners in September.

Samela, though he was not selected in last summer’s draft, signed with the Worcester Tornadoes of the Independent Can-Am League and still has his sights set on the majors.

Opposing pitchers won’t have to contend with either of those two, but they aren’t out of the woods yet. The Jeffs return pitcher and first baseman Bob Cook ’13, who hit .380 in 2012, and outfielder Alex Hero ’14, a career .356 hitter; outfielder Brendon Hardin ’15 and sure-handed shortstop Taiki Kasuga ’14, both offensive threats in their own right, will also be back in the mix.

The Jeffs will also be looking for contributions from a crop of 14 first-years, some of whom are currently vying for roster spots and most of whom are viable position players.

Jeff hitters will receive guidance from new hitting coach Mike Armstrong, who was hired

this offseason after a two-year tenure as an assistant coach with Ithaca College.

While the offense will be strong, the main upside for the 2013 Jeffs will be their pitching staff, which looks to be largely the same as a year ago.

Megan Robertson ’15 Public Affairs Office

Junior outfielder Alex Hero will be a key to the Jeffs offensive success, batting a career .380.

Starters Cook and his brother John ’15 both excelled on the mound in 2012, and junior left-hander Fred Shepard will also rejoin the Jeffs after a strong summer in which he helped lead the Wareham Gatemen to the Cape Cod Baseball League Championship.

Juniors Dylan Driscoll and Robert Cahill, along with senior Adam Medoff, also saw significant time last year and will be instrumental in bolstering the bullpen.

In both 2011 and 2012, the Jeffs showed their ability to be an elite team during the regular season. A year ago, the Jeffs headed into the NESCAC tournament at 23-8; they swept the season series against Williams, and, at one point, they won 11 out of 12 games.

Similarly, in 2011, the Jeffs were 24-8 at the close of the regular season. Both seasons, however, ended abruptly once the Jeffs reached the double-elimination NESCAC playoffs. In last year’s tournament, the Jeffs followed a heartbreaking, 11-inning loss to Bowdoin with an uncharacteristically weak effort against the Ephs, falling 9-3 in their final game.

Two years ago, Bowdoin was also the Jeffs’ nemesis, downing them by one run twice to knock them out of contention. More surprisingly, in both years, the Jeffs swept the Polar Bears in convincing fashion during their regular-season meetings.

Given this, the Jeffs’ mantra for the 2013 season will undoubtedly be: finish. Their focus will largely be on staying healthy during

the regular season to prepare for mid-May, when they will hope to avenge those stillfresh losses.

As for their regular season schedule, the Jeffs will face no surprises, squaring off with familiar foes Hamilton, Williams, Middlebury, Wesleyan and Colby.

Their week-long road trip to the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational starts on Saturday, March 16, when they face off against Western New England. After a meeting with Keene State on March 27, the Jeffs will begin league play in earnest with three games against the Panthers over the weekend of April 5-6.

The following weekend (April 12-13), the Jeffs will face the Ephs for a home-and-home series; they travel to Clinton, N.Y. to face the Continentals on April 20-21 and then play a home-and-home with Wesleyan on the weekend of April 26.

A road double-header against Colby on May 4 will be the Jeffs’ final tune-up for the playoffs.

Coach Brian Hamm’s squad will be looking once again to capture the Little Three title and finally, come playoff time, to make a serious run at the NESCAC title, a feat for which they will be equipped with the necessary talent.

Though it would be a bonus, a trip to the NCAA Div. III Tournament is, as was the case in 2011 and 2012, certainly not out of the question.

e

10 Sports

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Schedule

Game of the Week

FRIDAY Men’s & Women’s Indoor Track & Field NCAA Championships (@ North Central, IL, Day 1 of 2), All Day Women’s Basketball vs. Tufts (NCAA Sectional Semifinals), TBD SATURDAY Women’s Lacrosse vs. Colby, 12 p.m.

Men’s Lacrosse @ Colby, 12 p.m.

Women’s Tennis @ Wesleyan, 1 p.m.

Men’s Basketball vs. SUNY Plattsburgh (NCAA Second Round), TBD Women’s Basketball NCAA Sectional Finals, TBD SUNDAY Baseball vs. ECHU (DH), 11 a.m.

Women’s Lacrosse vs. Bates, 1:30 p.m.

Men’s Lacrosse @ Bates, 2 p.m.

1MBZFST PG UIF 8FFL

Noah Browne ’16 capped a successful season with a run that landed him in the quarterfinals of the Molloy Division of the CSA Individual Squash Championships. After winning two matches on Friday, March 1, Browne pulled off a stunning upset of the top-seeded player in the tournament, Columbia’s Mohamed Abel Maksoud. When Browne finally fell to Dartmouth’s Robbie Maycock, it snapped a streak of seven consecutive victories. It’s hardly fair to expect Browne to top such a stellar season in 2013-14, but he has the potential to do just that. —Karl Greenblatt ’15

MEN’S BASKETBALL vs. SUNY Plattsburgh When and Where: Saturday, March 9 Lefrak Gymnasium TBD After a thrilling , one-point win over Williams in the NESCAC title game, the Jeffs were awarded a first-round bye in the NCAA Div. III Tournament. Now, they will face off against SUNY Plattsburgh in the second round. It would be hard to have any more positive momentum than the Jeffs have at the moment:

the title game was one of the most exhilarating in recent memory, and it featured a well-balanced scoring attack that saw four Jeffs score in double figures. On the other hand, the Jeffs have not seen action in two weeks, a factor of which the Amherst squad will have to be conscious.

The same cannot be said for Amherst’s opponent, SUNY Plattsburgh.

They played in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, handily beating Husson behind a similarly wellrounded offensive game (six Cardinals scored in double figures). The higherranked Jeffs should have the edge, but they will need to match the Cardinals’ intensity. —Karl Greenblatt ’15

Bridget Crowley ’13 would like nothing more than to see her team win an NCAA title in her senior season, and, so far, she’s certainly doing her part. With consecutive double-doubles in the first two games of the tournament, Crowley has led the Lady Jeffs to two big and convincing wins. Against Farmingdale State (a 6739 win for Amherst), Crowley put in 18 points to go along with 10 boards. The following day, in a 71-34 rout of the Univ. of New England, Crowley followed that effort with another 17 and 11. Can she do it again?

Don’t count her out. —Karl Greenblatt ’15

Women’s Ice Hockey Falls to Bowdoin 3-1 in NESCAC Semifinals

Niahlah Hope ’15 Public Affairs Office

5IF -BEZ +FGGT TFNJmOBM MPTT UP #PXEPJO NBSLT UIF mSTU UJNF TJODF UIBU UIF TRVBE EJEO U SFBDI UIF /&4$"$ UJUMF HBNF .BHHJF -BX Staff Writer The Amherst women’s hockey team suffered a heartbreaking loss Saturday afternoon, falling to Bowdoin, 3-1, in the NESCAC Championship semifinals. The Jeffs finished with a 13-111 overall record, missing the title game for the first time since the 2005-06 season.

Bowdoin went on to defeat host Middlebury, 2-1, for their first NESCAC Championship since 2004.

Bowdoin jumped on the board early Saturday afternoon, taking a 1-0 lead six minutes into the first period.

A shot from Madeline Lane ’14 deflected off a defender and past Amherst goaltender Kerri Stuart ’14, giving the junior her third goal of the season.

Barrett McBride ’14 saw a great chance for the Jeffs on a breakaway late in the first, but

Polar Bear goalie Kayla Lessard ’13 made a key save to preserve the shutout.

Amherst saw another chance with three minutes left in the first on an odd-man rush, but Lessard stopped a shot from first-year Erin Martin to keep the Polar Bears ahead. Despite a late power-play attempt from Megan Doyen ’13, the Jeffs entered the first intermission down, 1-0.

Neither team saw great scoring chances in the second period, with Amherst’s best look coming from Emily Flom ’15 midway through the frame. The Jeffs tried to capitalize on a Polar Bear error that sent a loose puck into the crease, but Lessard kept it out of danger as Flom charged the net.

Bowdoin had its best look with five minutes left in the period on a breakaway from first-year Rachel Kennedy, the Polar Bears’ top scorer and NESCAC Rookie of the Year, but Stuart managed to push the puck wide to keep the Jeffs

within one.

Bowdoin generated a majority of the offense in the second period, outshooting Amherst 131.

Geneva Lloyd ’13 started an offensive charge for Amherst seven minutes into the third period on a 3-on-2, but Lessard stopped a low shot to keep the Jeffs off the board.

Going on the power-play midway through the frame, Amherst kept up momentum with looks from Kaitlyn McInnis ’13 and Doyen in point-blank range, but Lessard stood strong again to keep the score at 1-0.

Bowdoin went on a power play at the 14:49 mark, gaining a two-goal lead 53 seconds into the advantage. Senior Kenzie Novak sent one in from the right boards, finding the stick of classmate Stephanie Ludy, who sent the redirection past Stuart for her 14th goal of the season.

With 33 seconds remaining in regulation, Amherst drew within one after pulling Stuart for the extra skater. Ashley Salerno ’14 found Lloyd at the top of the zone, who ripped a shot into the back of the net for her 14th tally of the year.

The Jeffs pulled Stuart again after the goal to keep six skaters on the ice, but a turnover led to an empty-net goal by Kennedy to seal the Polar Bear victory with 10 seconds remaining.

Amherst held a 14-8 shot advantage in the final 20 minutes, but Bowdoin outshot the Jeffs overall by a slim 29-28 margin. Both teams went 1-for-4 on the power play, with Stuart making 26 saves in net for the Jeffs.

The contest marked the last in the careers of McInnis, Doyen and Lloyd, who led Amherst to a 76-25-8 record over their past four seasons.

The trio also helped the Jeffs to a NESCAC Championship and a national championship during their rookie season, in addition to a pair of NCAA Tournament berths and three trips to the NESCAC finals.

Last Thursday, Lloyd took home the league’s highest honor, earning her second consecutive NESCAC Player of the Year award.

In addition to earning top honors, Lloyd was appointed to the All-NESCAC First Team for the fourth consecutive year, making her the only player in NESCAC women’s history to earn four consecutive nods since the award began 11 years ago.

She is also the second player to ever win

consecutive Player of the Year awards and the third to earn the honor multiple times.

Over the course of 25 games this season, Lloyd led all league defenders in scoring and topped the Amherst offense with 28 points on 14 goals and 14 assists. The two-time AllAmerican also became the seventh member of Amherst’s 100-point club earlier in the year on a two-goal, four-assist performance against Colby on Jan. 4.

She now sits at fifth all-time on the career scoring list with 115 points on 44 goals and 71 assists, all while playing as a defender.

Sophomore Tori Salmon joined Lloyd on the First Team after leading the NESCAC with 18 assists this year, finishing second on the team with 25 points and tying Lloyd with six multi-point performances this season.

Salerno earned second team honors for the second consecutive season after anchoring the Jeff defense alongside Lloyd. The junior cocaptain has also reached double-digit points for the last three seasons, finishing up the year with three goals and eight assists.

Niahlah Hope ’15 Public Affairs Office

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5IF "NIFSTU 4UVEFOU t .BSDI

Six Jeffs To Race at Indoor Nationals the 26th-fastest time this year. Teammates Abbeh Anderson ’14 (7.92) and Taylor Summers ’16 (8.03) crossed the finish line in fourth and fifth, respectively.

Later in the meet, Bates took second in the long jump, jumping 5.32 meters.

In the long distance events, Lambert led the way for the women, winning the 3000 meter in 9:53.90 — nearly 30 seconds ahead of the race’s second place finisher. Teammate Lexi Sinclair ’16 placed seventh overall in 10:55.52.

This weekend, Lambert and Bates will join Lauren Almeida ’13 and Amy Dao ’14 to represent the Lady Jeffs at the Div. III National Championship, hosted by North Central College in Naperville, Ill.

Photo courtesy of the Public Affairs Office

1BU (SJNFT XJMM SBDF JO UIF NJMF BU /BUJPOBMT UIJT XFFLFOE IFME BU /PSUI $FOUSBM $PMMFHF &NNFUU ,OPXMUPO Managing Sports Editor The men’s and women’s indoor track and field teams traveled to Tufts last weekend to compete in the Tufts Last Chance Meet.

Women Keri Lambert ’13 and Naomi Bates ’14 led the Jeffs, as they have all season, winning individual events and posting some of the fastest times in Div. III running this season.

Bates started her meet off in strong form, winning the 60-meter dash in 7.87 seconds,

Men Meanwhile, the men’s indoor team also competed individually at the Tufts Last Chance meet.

Middle-distance runners Pat Grimes ’13 and junior Matt Melton ’14 let the way for the Jeffs, both winning events and posting their fastest times of the season in lieu of national qualifying the upcoming Monday.

In the mile, Grimes finished in a stellar time of 4:11.72, the sixth-fastest time of the year, and more than a second ahead of the next finisher.

In the 800, Matt Melton took gold and also posted a personal-best time of 1:53.47, the 11th-fastest time of the season.

Also racing in the 800, Romey Sklar ’15 took 10th in 1:57.50.

Grimes and Bates will also travel to North Central College this weekend to compete at Nationals. Grimes effort last weekend in the mile makes him Amherst’s top-seeder competitor, ranked fourth in the mile.

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Contact The Student at astudent@amherst.edu

Sports 11

NBA Fashion Victims 5XFFOFST

"NSP &M "EMF Amro examines soon-to-be-ex-NBA Commissioner David Stern’s dubious history of enforcing the league’s policy on uniforms and accessories.

On the eve of his retirement as commissioner of the NBA, among some other noteworthy legacies, David Stern will leave a residing impact on player fashion in the world’s premier basketball league.

Far from a fashionista, Stern is famous as a hard-ball negotiator and a commissioner who’s presided over consistent increases in league revenues and popularity. Nevertheless, he is duly infamous for setting out sartorial standards for NBA players at the start of the 2005-06 season. In the name of dusting off the NBA’s less than sterling corporate image, Stern spearheaded an initiative banning ballers from wearing jeans, hats, do-rags or large jewelry whilst conducting NBA business — most notably while attending press interviews and sitting courtside.

At the time, Stern withstood criticism for a draconian overture into player conduct by professing that his guiding principle in all matters dress code was maintaining the professionalism of the league.

Stern’s tenure as the NBA’s head outfitter, however, has also been marked by questionable developments in on-the-court fashion.

Paradoxically, while Stern “cleaned up� the league’s image by instituting fashion policies off the court, on-the-court styles came into vogue that had never been seen before. NBA players have popularized ingame equipment (I use that term generously) with limited and often nonexistent functional value — gear like shooting sleeves, power wristbands and even BandAids branded with nicknames.

So some of the uniform accessories Stern has allowed to come into vogue in the NBA are at odds with his fashion principles. And on the flip side, players have claimed that some of the accessories he’s banned were actually integral to their health and performance and ultimately their ability to play basketball professionally.

Back in 2005, Stern was clear about his rationale for instituting a dress code in the NBA: “There’s the uniform you wear on the court, there’s the uniform you wear when you are on business, there’s the uniform you might wear on your casual downtime with your friends and there’s the uniform you might wear when you go back home,� the commissioner explained. “We’re just changing the definition of the uniform that you wear when you are on NBA business.�

For Stern, the NBA’s business extended beyond the court and into the pressrooms and locker rooms where the limelight followed the game’s biggest stars. And as the game’s popularity has grown, the chances to cash in on the NBA’s on-the-court business have become ever more attractive.

My prime example is an accessory that first appeared in the league during the 2000-01 season and has managed to find its way onto players’ arms ever since.

Shooting sleeves, as they’re called, are the spandex-y accessories that stretch to cover a player’s arm. Allen Iverson, arguably the league’s biggest star when he became the first NBA player to wear a shooting sleeve in a game, suffered from elbow inflammation that year, so his sleeve was presumably meant to alleviate further pain. Indeed, perhaps because it helped his elbow heal, or because he felt it helped him in some other way, Iverson continued wearing the sleeve.

In the span of a few seasons, shooting

sleeves became all the rage in the NBA. Players whose elbows were perfectly fine begun wearing them — the league’s star players, in fact, became some of the quickest adopters.

So, naturally, fans became fascinated with the accessory. Useful or not, shooting sleeves became cool. All too happy to oblige that new demand, sports apparel manufacturers made sleeves with zestier team colors and a host of other wow factors. Adidas, the manufacturer of the league’s jerseys, in fact continues to provide the players it sponsors with specially branded sleeves whose garish design is hard to miss on television.

Some players maintained that the accessory helps keep their shooting arms warm (apparently a problem NBA players of lore never faced nor managed to overcome). I’ve never played basketball professionally, so admittedly my ability to gauge the impact of these sleeves on shooting performance is limited. But let’s suppose for now that sleeves do positively impact shooting, and in fact help players who wear them. That makes it easy to see why the league would approve of their use during games.

In contrast, consider the rise of tights in the NBA. During the same season that Stern instituted his dress code, journeyman Jerry Stackhouse began donning compression leggings during games to help deal with a groin injury he’d suffered.

Just like the shooting sleeves, Stackhouse claimed the leggings helped keep his legs warm after stretching.

After hearing Stackhouse swear by the leggings, eventually there was a growing cadre of NBA players following suit.

Again, superstars led the way in adopting the new fad. And again, as fans grew attracted to the fashion, apparel manufacturers made commercially available tights cool. But before the start of the next season, Stern ruled the tights a fashion faux pas, and the NBA instituted a new uniform policy that banned players from wearing them during games.

So why the discrepancy in the rulings of the NBA’s fashion police? In terms of functionality, the tights can’t be much more or less useful than the shooting sleeves because they serve precisely the same purpose. And for every NBA player who found the tights more distasteful than cool, there was another who was more than happy to give them a try.

Let’s consider Stern’s criterion for acceptable NBA fashion, then: how did the tights and the shooting sleeves reflect on the NBA business? The sleeves, as I’ve written above, were prominently branded.

The tights, however, for somewhat understandable reasons, didn’t feature enough room for branding. And the only room for branding on the tights would have been between a player’s knees and his shoes — space already occupied with NBA branding. Simple as it sounds — and like it or not — NBA fashion boils down to NBA business.

In his reign as NBA head tailor, Stern found a way to align player performance and NBA business interests both on and off the court. And best of all, he did it while keeping the players happy — or more specifically, while keeping the players looking snazzy. For all the flak he’s received for his fashion sense, NBA players should hope Stern’s replacement will be as sharp as he is dapper.

Sports

5IF "NIFSTU 4UVEFOU t .BSDI

Niahlah Hope ’15 Public Affairs Office

Women’s Hoops Cruise to Sweet 16

Two Blowout Wins Set Up Rematch with Tufts Kevin Hoogstraten ’15 Staff Writer Women’s basketball opened NCAA tournament play in style over the weekend, winning their two opening-round games by a combined total of 64 points. The team jumped out to a 21-3 lead and cruised to a 67-39 victory over Farmingdale State before dropping 41 second-half points on the Univ. of New England in a 71-34 beat down. The victories set up a tantalizing rematch as the Lord Jeffs (28-1) will host Tufts on Friday in Sweet 16 action.

Farmingdale (12-13), who lost by 22 to Amherst in January, came out in an 2-3 zone and full-court press on dead-ball situations in an attempt to disrupt the Lord Jeffs’ offensive flow.

The Rams’ offense was predicated on aggressive drives to the basket, and the strategy appeared to pay off early as Siobhan Purvis got to the line and hit one of two to start the game.

The Lord Jeff defense tightened, however, and cutters found themselves hoisting up wild shots with no space to operate in the lane. The Rams never altered their offense and as a result shot just 26.5 percent from the field, with their leading scorer going 0-13.

On the other end, Amherst moved the ball well against the zone and hit their open looks, shooting a lights-out 48.1 percent. Megan Robertson ’15 opened the scoring with a nice post move, and the Rams called timeout just three minutes in after Jasmine Hardy ’13 drilled a three on the secondary break.

The Lord Jeffs continued scoring after the timeout, with two Marcia Voigt ’13 free throws making it 21-3 after just eight minutes. The Rams finally awoke on the offensive end, with foul shooting and a couple of tough three-pointers bringing them within 10 at the 6:45 mark.

From there on out it was all Amherst, as the team ended the half on a 12-3 run to go into the break up 39-20. Bridget Crowley ’13 paced the team’s early efforts with 12 of her 18 points coming in the first half.

The Rams once again scored first in the second half, and once again the Lord Jeffs promptly went on a run. This time, it was Lushanta Savadel laying it in for Farmingdale before Voigt answered with a three as the shot clock was running down. Balanced scoring from the starting five stretched the lead to 51-26 at the 12:57 mark,

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which was when Coach G.P. Gromacki began to substitute liberally, resting Voigt and Roberson for the game’s remainder.

Farmingdale never seriously threatened down the stretch, as first-years Haley Zwecker and Marley Giddins combined for 11 points. For the game, Crowley blocked four shots, posted a double-double and led all scorers with 18 points, while Hardy added nine points and a game-high five assists. No Lord Jeff played over 30 minutes as the team prepared for Sunday’s game.

Although the final score suggests otherwise, the Univ. of New England (25-5) kept things close for virtually the entire first half, in part by holding the Lord Jeffs to 37.5 percent shooting.

The Nor’Easters made just six field goals in the first half but used 7-9 free-throw shooting to stay within touching distance of Amherst until the Lord Jeffs went on devastating runs on both sides of the break.

Amherst raced out to a 7-2 lead early on, only to see UNE retake the lead with two spectacular three-point plays. Crowley answered with a jumper to beat the shot clock before Voigt picked up a quick second foul and had to sit the remainder of the half. With Voigt sitting, the Nor’easters took the lead and made it 14-11 with 11:30 remaining on a jump shot.

Crowley stemmed the mini-run with a jumper of her own before Hardy nailed a threepointer to regain the lead. After a UNE basket, Cheyenne Pritchard ’16 converted a wild threepoint play on a bank shot. The teams traded turnovers before Zwecker, seeing significant minutes in Voigt’s absence, grabbed a rebound and went coast to coast for a layup to make it 21-16.

Zwecker continued to affect play, swiping the ball and feeding Crowley on the break for an easy two. UNE responded with a foul shot followed

by a tough layup as the teams traded baskets to bring the score to 25-19 with 4:53 remaining.

Both teams went cold down the stretch, but the Lord Jeffs crucially managed to salvage some points out of the period. Zwecker hit a jumper with 1:23 left before Pritchard hit a monster three as time expired, giving the team their first double-digit lead of the day, 30-19.

The Lord Jeffs built on their momentum in the early second half, pouncing on the Nor’easters and quickly turning the game into a rout. Robertson got things started with three straight baskets down low, and after a UNE layup to respond Hardy drained a three-pointer to make the lead 18.

The Nor’easters scored the next three points, only to see Crowley score after a media timeout and Voigt hit a wide-open transition three-pointer to give Amherst a 20-point lead with just under 15 minutes still remaining.

The Lord Jeffs kept pressing, scoring 16 of the next 20 points over an eight-minute stretch to ice the game. The team was remarkably balanced on offense with five players scoring in double digits, led by Crowley’s 17 point, 11 rebound performance. Robertson notched her own doubledouble with 12 points and 11 rebounds and added five blocks, while Hardy stuffed the stat sheet with 11 points, nine rebounds and seven assists.

The team shot 53.6 percent from the field in the second half and limited the Nor’easters to 19.6 percent shooting for the game. The Lord Jeffs held the rebounding edge, 51-32, and combined for10 blocks.

Amherst’s matchup with Tufts, who the Lord Jeffs defeated 54-48 in a tight regular season contest, is set for 5 p.m. on Friday at LeFrak. The winner will play either Widener or Messiah for a trip to the Final Four on Saturday, also at LeFrak.