Thursday, March 14, 2002

T H U R S D A Y MARCH 14, 2002

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD Volume CXXXVII, No. 35

An independent newspaper serving the Brown community since 1891

Stephen Sondheim waxes melodic on American theater, critics, inevitability

BY JAMAY LIU

Stephen Sondheim, one of the great musical geniuses of American theater, spoke about his career, his colleagues and his opinions on matters ranging from opera to his critics Wednesday afternoon.

A songwriter and lyricist for shows including “Candide,” “Into the Woods,” “West Side Story” and “A Little Night Music,” Sondheim received standing ovations from the enthusiastic audience in Leeds Theater at the beginning and end of the discussion, which was in question and answer format.

Sondheim described how his career began after his parents divorced and he moved to Pennsylvania with his mother at the age of 10.

Their neighbor, Oscar Hammerstein II, a Broadway lyricist, immediately had a big influence on his life, and Sondheim said, “I wanted to be whatever Oscar was.”

Sondheim described how he and two classmates wrote a show when he was 14, called “By George.”

“I knew it was brilliant, and I knew Oscar would want to produce it,” Sondheim said.

Hammerstein told Sondheim it was the worst show he’d ever read.

“But, he treated me like a professional,” Sondheim said. “He sat down with me one afternoon, and within four hours, we’d gone over about a quarter of the show. In that afternoon, I learned more about theater and songwriting than most do in a lifetime.

“Like all good teachers, Oscar was a gentle prodder, not a hitter.”

Sondheim also addressed the previous remarks he had made about opera.

“I don’t mean to disparage opera, but I don’t enjoy it,” Sondheim said. “I enjoy stories.

Opera is for people who enjoy the human voice, but that’s not enough for me to go to the theater.

“I’m a guy brought up on movies, on stories. What happens to me at the opera house is, I get bored,” he said.

Sondheim said he has no respect for music reviewers.

“When I get criticism, and what is said echoes in my stomach, then I’ll change it,” he said.

“But other times, when I don’t know what they’re talking about, I won’t.

“Listen carefully to the people whose opinions you respect –— but don’t do it until the song is formed,” he said. “Otherwise, it’s disruptive.”

Sondheim emphasized the importance of getting involved in every aspect of theater to student musical writers.

“Be a stage manager, be an actor, if possible,” he said. “Do not put on your show in front of family and friends in a living room, because that’s weighted.

Do it in front of strangers.”

Sondheim said good music is “fresh, but inevitable.”

“This is true for any art that takes place during time,” he said. “You want the audience to feel not only surprise, but that that’s the only way for it to have gone.”

The Department of Music, the Department of Theater, Speech and Dance and the Creative Arts Council co-sponsored the program.

Wednesday before Sondheim spoke, the Stephen Sondheim Scholarship and the Stephen Sondheim Graduate Fellowship in the Arts were established in his name by Marty and Perry Granoff.

“Both will be awarded in honor of Stephen Sondheim’s incredible career,” Spencer Golub, professor of theater, speech and dance, said.

Herald staff writer Jamay Liu ’05 can be reached at jliu@browndailyherald.com.

Dean Armstrong, faculty, push for pluses and minuses in grading system

BY NEEMA GULIANI

The University is considering changing the grading policy at Brown to include pluses and minuses, said Dean of the College Paul Armstrong.

Although no firm decision regarding the grading system has been made, the policy change “was worth talking about,” Armstrong said.

Armstrong said he is in favor of the change because a recent survey given to faculty members indicated support for such a change. Out of the 160 faculty members who returned the survey, 82 percent said they would be in favor of the grading policy change, he said.

Only a small number of faculty members responded to the survey, so it cannot yet be determined if the majority of Brown’s faculty would be in favor of adding plusses and minuses to the grading system, said Rebecca More, director of the Sheridan Center for Teaching and Learning.

More said she suspects that most of the faculty use plusses and minuses internally when grading students. But these dis-

tinctions in grades do not appear on official student transcripts.

Armstrong said he believes the change in the grading system would better enable teachers to signal differences in students’ performances.

“Grades are sending messages,” he said.

Armstrong said he believes there is not enough distinction in the messages sent by S/NC grades and A, B, and C grades.

The majority of students receive an A, B or S as their semester grade and the change in policy would “restore the difference between taking a class S/NC and taking a class for a grade,” Armstrong said.

More said grades communicate an understanding between faculty and students.

Students have been choosing the grades over the S/NC option recently, More said, citing a study done by the Office of Institutional Research. Though she said she is not sure why this phenomenon has occurred, More said it is important to determine if it was a signal that students want more specific

feedback when it comes to grades.

Faculty and students are uncertain whether a change in the grading policy would have an adverse effect on the learning environment at Brown.

Professor of Computer Science and Chair of the Faculty Executive Committee John Savage said that although he was unsure if he was in favor of the policy change, it would be unfortunate if it caused students to reflect too much on grades because “the purpose is to learn the material.”

Laura Riascos ’04 said pluses and minuses “would disrupt the idea of healthy competitiveness.

“If grading is more complex, competition will become more exacerbated in a negative way,” she said. “There will be a greater divide between people who want to do really well and people who are more indifferent.”

Herald Opinions Columnist Dmitri Seals ’02 said he is opposed to the change in grading policy because he believes it will “increase competition see GRADES, page 4

U. fails to match offer for tenure track position, Arabic program dwindles BRIAN BASKIN

This May, the Arabic studies language program will lose its third lecturer in three years, leaving the program without a replacement months after most faculty searches have begun.

In February, the Academic Council, chaired by Dean of the Faculty Mary Fennell, declined to match Dartmouth College’s offer of a tenure track position to Lecturer Jocelyn Sharlet, who teaches all six Arabic language courses.

The administration has not yet announced the creation of a search committee to find Sharlet’s replacement, though most faculty searches for the next academic year began in December or earlier.

Dean of the College Paul Armstrong, who sits on the Council, said the lateness of the decision not to retain Sharlet would not jeopardize the Arabic program.

“People are reading this as a sign we’re backing off the teaching of Arabic,” Armstrong said.

“That’s not the case.”

With its decision, the University only postponed its inevitable responsibility to improve the state of the program, said Arnold Weinstein, chair of the Department of Comparative Literature.

At Brown, the Department of Comparative Literature houses the three Arabic studies courses per semester, in which 41 students are currently enrolled.

“I think they made a mistake,” said Arnold Weinstein, of the Academic Council’s decision not to match Sharlet’s offer. “But I also respect (Fennell’s) judgment.”

Armstrong said Brown could not match Dartmouth’s offer because it meant upgrading Sharlet’s position from lecturer to assistant professor.

The University requires a full national search to fill assistant professorships, which was not possible before Sharlet accepted the position at Dartmouth, Weinstein and Armstrong said.

The greater problem, Armstrong said, is the structure of the language program. At peer institutions, Arabic language programs are often at the center of Middle Eastern studies departments. Such programs experience less turnover than Brown’s Arabic studies program because lecturers can teach Arabic while still having the opportunity to research or teach Middle Eastern culture and history, Armstrong said.

Though a lecturer with a master’s degree would generally fill

I N S I D E T H U R S D AY, M A RC H 1 4 , 2 0 0 2 Providence City Council considers crackdown on panhandlers page 3

David Cicilline ’83 begins 25 week walking tour to build support for mayoral bid page 3

Brett Cohen ’03 says people should be nicer to nerds, geeks and fantasy gamers column,page 11

www.browndailyherald.com

such a position, those with Ph.D.s might be attracted to a faculty position elsewhere, where they could teach fewer courses and focus on research as well as teaching, he said.

“She knew she was going to be teaching three courses (each semester), but obviously she aspired for more,” Armstrong said.

Sharlet teaches six courses yearly, which is standard for a lecturer but two more than a professor teaches. As the only faculty member attached to Arabic studies, she is responsible for managing the program, Sharlet said.

Sharlet said she would have liked to stay at Brown if the University had been able to make her a competitive offer.

“It’s definitely a larger workload than Arabic lecturers at many institutions,” she said. “The (comparative literature) department was very supportive about the possibility of investing more in the Arabic program.”

She said she was encouraged to apply for positions at other universities, because professors in the Comparative Literature Department expected Brown to match any offer.

Weinstein said a department search committee at Brown selected Sharlet last year before she had completed her doctoral dissertation, beating the fierce competition for Arabic language instructors with Ph.D.s. Once she earned her Ph.D. and entered the market, it was only a matter of time before another university offered a tenure track position, Weinstein said. At that point, the department hoped to present a strong case to the Academic Council and have that offer matched, he said.

Weinstein said he understood the Council’s reasoning but was nevertheless surprised by their decision.

“There’s a general academic truism that when people receive offers and they’re highly valued, Brown does whatever it can to respond in kind,” Weinstein said.

“The president made it clear that Brown will find ways to avoid being raided.”

Weinstein said that since the department, rather than the professor, requested that the University match the offer, he hoped Comparative Literature would demonstrate enough confidence in Sharlet’s abilities to convince the Council to retain her.

“She is highly valued for what she did in this department,” he said. see ARABIC, page 4

TO D AY ’ S F O R E C A S T Ramon Stern ’04 says academia and reality are not always on the same page column,page 11

Germain ’04, Dreyer ’03 keep women’s hockey in ECAC title hunt page 12

sunny high 61 low 33

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

THIS MORNING THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2002 · PAGE 2 Ted’s World Ted Wu

W E AT H E R TODAY

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

SUNDAY

High 61 Low 33 sunny

High 54 Low 38 cloudy

High 55 Low 24 partly cloudy

High 40 Low 28 partly cloudy

GRAPHICS BY TED WU

!#$% HAPPENS Peter Quon and Grant Chu

CALENDAR LECTURE — “Hume Variations,” Jerry Fodor, Rutgers University, Gerard House 119, 4 p.m.

LECTURE — “Deimaging Chinese: Radical Chinese Poetry,”Yunte Huang , Barker Presentation Room, 70 Brown Street, 4 p.m.

SEMINAR — “Entry, Pricing and Product Design in an Initially Monopolized Market,” Steve Davis, University of Chicago, Robinson Hall 301, 4 p.m.

LECTURE — “Four Catalan Poets,” A reading by visiting poets, Eduard Sanahuja, Vicenc Llorca, Margalida Pons, and Anna Aguilar-Amat, Rochambeau House, 5:30 p.m.

THEATER — “Candide,” Stuart Theatre, 8 p.m.

Abstract Fantasy Nate Pollard

PERFORMANCE — “The Vagina Monologues,” Lower Manning, 8 p.m.

PERFORMANCE — Fusion Dance Company, Ashamu Dance Studio, 8 p.m.

LECTURE — “Participant Observer: Margaret Mead and Culture in Transition,” Mary Catherine Bateson, George Mason University, Starr Auditorium, 8 p.m.

PERFORMANCE — Work in Progress, Production Workshop, 8 p.m.

CROSSWORD ACROSS 1 Damon of “Good Will Hunting” 5 Deep fissure 10 Short distance 14 It may come from a cave 15 Barcelona beach 16 “Clair de __” 17 Trendy sandwich 18 Leg tendons 20 German codiscoverer of calculus 22 Wheeled server 23 Used horses 24 Outer limit 25 Kind of shirt or shop 28 CD-__ 30 Watergate senator 34 Christmas adornment 36 They have some crust 38 “All About __”: 1950 film 39 88 or 98, briefly 40 Expel 42 Quaker State port 43 Work on an urn 44 Agemate 45 Discontinued 47 Brake activator 49 Like some data 51 News coverage 52 Tied bundle 54 Surrounded by 56 South America’s smallest republic 59 Sign up 63 Tropical coolers 65 Cancel 66 Brute 67 Nostrils 68 Bearing 69 Garden invader 70 Of questionable character 71 Linger DOWN 1 Whimper

2 Caldwell’s “God’s Little __” 3 Trendy cuisine 4 Higher-ups 5 Farmer’s foe 6 Chevy SUV 7 It may be candied 8 Affecting the whole body 9 Stuffed 10 Deli need 11 Cat food flavoring 12 Career for a sci. major 13 Nudnik 19 Goes ballistic 21 One on a staff 25 Condescend 26 Dorian Gray’s creator 27 Discontinued 29 “Falstaff,” e.g.

31 Lots of feet?

32 Campus climbers 33 Deficiencies 35 “Clockers” director Spike

37 List catchall 41 Book after Isaiah 42 They’re found in canals 44 Geometric surface 46 Grand-scale tale 48 Put up with 50 Averted, with “off”

53 Homeowners’ prides 55 Disordered 56 Tuck away 57 Craving 58 Scarce 60 Hospital division 61 Inkling 62 Blair of Britain 64 Org. headed by Heston

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

METRO THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2002 · PAGE 3

IN BRIEF Almond proposes stiffer penalties for first-time drunk driving offenders Governor Lincoln Almond urged the State House Judiciary Committee Tuesday to adopt stiffer legislation that would make drunk driving with a blood alcohol level of .08 a misdemeanor on the first offense.

“It took us 11 years to lower the blood alcohol content level to .08 — I hope it won’t take us 11 years to make the first offense a misdemeanor,” he said.

He also called for legislation imposing tougher penalties on drivers who refuse to submit to breathalyzer tests to determine if they are driving under the influence of alcohol.

“Too often, when pulled over by law enforcement officers, drivers refuse to submit to a test to determine if they are intoxicated,” Almond said.

Currently, Rhode Island law makes it a civil violation for a first-time offender who drives with a blood alcohol level of .08, following a law passed in July 2000.

The violation currently carries a 45-day license suspension, a fine of $100 to $250 and community service of up to 60 hours. Second-time offenses are a misdemeanor crime.

For motorists who refuse to submit to blood alcohol content tests, Almond proposes raising the minimum fine to between $500 and $1000, up from the current $250 to $500. Additionally, a second violation would constitute a misdemeanor offense and would include a fine of $600 to $1,000 and 10 to 60 hours of community service.

Almond’s discussion follows the arrest of State Rep. Leon Tejada on Mar. 3 for refusing to submit to a breathalyzer test.

Patrolman Clarence Gough told the Providence Journal Tejada was flashing his lights and honking his horn while tailgating cars before he pulled him over.

Tejada smelled strongly of alcohol, had bloodshot and watery eyes and failed a field sobriety test, Gough told the Journal.

— Chris Byrnes

Murderer of 14-year-old Rivera pleads guilty in Providence Superior Court Dennard Walker, 20, of Providence pleaded guilty Wednesday in Providence County Superior Court to the murder of 14-year-old Jennifer Rivera on May 21, 2000.

He also pleaded guilty to other charges, including conspiracy to commit murder, carrying a pistol without a license and obstruction of justice.

The state was prepared to prove that Walker killed Rivera because she overheard and might have testified about his plans to avenge the murder of Honda Brown, a relative of his killed only weeks before.

The case against Walker included a long and complicated investigation that included six law enforcement agencies, used an undercover Drug Enforcement Agency agent and employed high-tech surveillance equipment brought in from FBI headquarters.

Attorney General Sheldon Whitehouse is proposing an amendment to state law to permit prosecutors to seek a sentence of life without parole for anyone who murders a witness to prevent that person’s testimony, according to a press release from the Department of Attorney General Wednesday.

— Chris Byrnes

City Council drafts legislation to restrict panhandling on City street, including Thayer

BY CHRIS BYRNES

The Providence City Council is currently drafting an ordinance that would outlaw panhandling, or begging for money, that is aggressive in nature. Whether a solicitation is legal is determined by one of 15 restrictions and is defined as “aggressive” in eight distinct ways in the most recent draft of the ordinance.

Councilwoman Rita Williams, who represents Brown students and other constituents north of Angell Street, including the northern part of Thayer, spoke of a need to restrict or discourage panhandling.

“Over the years, I think that Thayer Street has been a targeted area. I think that people who do panhandling on a regular basis see the students as easy targets — as sympathetic people who … are advantaged individuals,” she said.

Williams said that though the proposed ordinance stops short of banning solicitation outright, it will effectively end the practice.

“I think this will ban panhandling itself. It will ban people being approached by an individual who they don’t want to be approached by.”

She suggested that panhandlers might otherwise be charged with some other offense when appropriate, such as loitering or public disturbance.

Bernie Beaudreau, executive director of Rhode Island Community Food Bank, said the bill would not have any substantive impact on hunger in Rhode Island.

“Aggression is aggression,” he said. “I think there’s some reasonableness about it.”

He said it will be interesting to see how the police enforce the ordinance if it is passed.

But Beaudreau defended panhandling in general.

“If someone has to panhandle money, they are at a

point of desperation. To make it against the law is basically, in my mind, sort of a death sentence.”

Councilman Robert Clarkin, who represents Brown students and other constituents south of Angel Street, said in the past the U.S. Supreme Court has struck down legislation that bans begging for money. It ruled that people have a right to ask for money, he said.

Though unfamiliar with the specifics of the proposal, which is currently being debated in a committee that he does not serve on, Clarkin said he does not think City Council can pass a law making panhandling illegal, but “we can restrict it some.”

“If there was some way we can do it, I think it would have a positive effect on Thayer Street,” he added.

Councilman John Igliozzi, who introduced the ordinance, could not be reached for comment as of press time.

The proposed ordinance itself is dual in purpose: it seeks to eliminate all soliciting it deems “aggressive” and restricts specific acts of solicitation.

In eliminating aggressive panhandling, the draft ordinance banned behavior that “is likely to cause a reasonable person to fear bodily harm to oneself or to another … or otherwise be intimidated into giving money or other thing of value.”

It also would prohibit continued solicitation after a negative response, intentional contact without the person’s consent and blocking a person’s safe and free passage of the solicitor.

Also, the draft considers following the person being solicited, speaking at unreasonable volumes, or soliciting anyone waiting in line to constitute “aggressive manner.” see ORDINANCE, page 6

Cicilline kicks off 25 week walking tour of city neighborhoods, hoping to build support

BY CHRIS BYRNES

Democratic mayoral candidate and state Rep. David Cicilline ’83 commenced a walking tour of Providence Wednesday at the Webster Avenue School, his childhood elementary school. The tour is scheduled to walk through 25 neighborhoods in 25 weeks.

“It is as much about hearing what our citizens have to say as it is about telling them who I am and what my hopes and plans are for this great city,” Cicilline said.

He praised Providence’s neighborhoods for making the city great. And while the downtown area has seen dramatic improvement over the past several years, he said that the city’s surrounding neighborhoods often lag behind.

Besides Cicilline, incumbent Mayor Vincent Cianci and Green Party candidate Greg Gerritt have also launched campaigns to win the mayorship.

“The purpose of (the walking tour) is to engage the residents of this city … about such things as how we can improve education, prevent crime, reduce taxes and bring ethics and reform to City government,” he said.

Cicilline said that the function of the walking tour was to help him identify the “real” problems facing city residents, including abandoned housing, decaying playgrounds, insufficient public services, juvenile crime, inadequate business infrastructure and poor traffic con-

ditions.

He added that the nature of Providence neighborhoods has changed, with people feeling increasingly disconnected from each other.

After beginning the tour in the Silver Lake neighborhood, he will continue in coming weeks in Elmurst, South Providence, the East Side and Federal Hill, his campaign press release said.

Cicilline, who announced his candidacy for mayor a month ago, also at the Webster Avenue School, has represented the East Side in the General Assembly for four twoyear terms.

Beginning his career as a public defender in Washington, D.C., he moved back to Providence and established a private law practice based on Federal Hill.

A graduate of Brown and of Georgetown Law School, Cicilline hired Chris Bizzacco ’03.5 to manage his campaign.

Cicilline told The Herald that his campaign plans to focus on Providence neighborhoods and how they’ve fallen behind downtown in the “Providence Renaissance.” He also plans to stress education, city services, crime and taxes.

Herald staff writer Chris Byrnes ’04 edits the metro section.

He can be reached at cbyrnes@browndailyherald.com.

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Arabic continued from page 1 If Sharlet were retained as an assistant professor, the next step would have been to request a second position in the Arabic program to ease her workload.

“We never got that far. The stumbling block was Jocelyn (Sharlet)’s level,” Weinstein said.

“My hunch is that the University is willing to move on a second person,” but with Sharlet leaving “nobody is willing to come and take the load she did.”

Armstrong said proposals for the long-term future of Arabic studies centered around creating a second teaching position. He said it has not been determined whether either of the positions would be tenured.

Grades continued from page 1 which is detrimental to education … It will increase the power gap between teachers and students.”

Albert Ciao ‘03.5 said the increased competition that may result from the addition of pluses and minuses to the grading system is not necessarily a bad thing.

Pluses and minuses are “prob-

Weinstein said the best solution would be to create a Middle Eastern program or department that allowed professors to focus their research on Arabic culture and history, in addition to teaching the language. Brown currently offers a Middle East Studies concentration that requires basic competence in a Middle Eastern language, though not necessarily Arabic.

Though the Department of Comparative Literature has housed Arabic for over ten years, Weinstein said the department did so “almost as a courtesy to the University.”

“It’s anomalous for comparative literature to teach Arabic,” he said. “The only reason we have it is that there’s no Middle Eastern program.”

If the creation of a new program or department proves

infeasible, Weinstein said the Center for Language Studies could be given the power to create faculty positions for languages such as Arabic that have no clear departmental affiliation.

Armstrong said both options had been discussed, but the University was not close to making a decision about the future of the program.

Until a permanent solution is found, Brown’s Arabic program will suffer, Sharlet said. Since the program has only one instructor, the introductory course cannot be divided into sections. Students have fewer chances to speak, causing average and slower learners to fall behind as a result, she said.

ably a good idea because it would be more accurate,” Ciao said.

“Professors could express what they think.”

Cameron Colpitts ’05 said he supported the change because pluses and minuses are “a better way to differentiate” between grades.

“You need to differentiate between people because you want the best people to get into graduate schools,” he said.

Armstrong said he believes students’ obsession with grades is probably the result of a mis-

conception about the importance of grades to graduate schools and potential employers.

Students are recruited at Brown not only because of their grades, Savage said.

Recruitment is “based on their personalities, area of concentration, and the fact that they have already been chosen by Brown,” he said.

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Herald staff writer Brian Baskin is a news editor. He can be reached at bbaskin@browndailyherald.com.

Herald staff writer Neema Guliani ’05 can be reached at nguliani@browndailyherald.com.

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

CAMPUS NEWS THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2002 · PAGE 5

Simmons begins cabinet meetings with chief University officers The officers, selected to represent the breadth of the University, were selected to advise the president and help implement her Proposal for Academic Enrichment

BY CARLA BLUMENKRANZ

President Ruth Simmons designated a group of high-ranking University officers as her cabinet, which held the first of its closed weekly meetings recently.

Simmons’ cabinet members, who will serve as her chief advisors, were selected “to represent the breadth of the University,” said Laura Freid, executive vice president for public affairs and University relations. All cabinet members are University administrators.

Cabinet members include Executive Vice President for Planning Richard Spies, Vice President for Campus Life and Student Services Janina Montero, Assistant to the President David Greene, Secretary of the Corporation Russell Carey and Freid.

Dean of the College Paul Armstrong, Dean of the Faculty Mary Fennell, Dean of the Graduate School and Research Peder Estrup and Dean of the Medical School Donald Marsh are also members, Freid said.

Robert Zimmer, who assumes the position of Provost in July, will join the cabinet, possibly with other new members.

The composition of the cabinet will fluctuate from semester to semester based on Simmons’ advising needs, Freid said.

The cabinet has held the first of its weekly meetings, the agenda of which has not been disclosed. “The discussions are

not going to be made public,” Freid said.

Freid said she anticipates that this semester’s cabinet meetings will focus on the implementation of Simmons’ recently approved Proposal for Academic Enrichment.

Fennell may discuss faculty expansion with Simmons and Estrup may address increased graduate student compensation, Freid said.

Simmons will also begin meeting with an executive committee on a monthly basis. The committee will be larger than the cabinet and will focus on communication rather than advising, Freid said.

The establishment of a cabinet is consistent with the administrative organization at many universities, members of Simmons’ office said.

At Smith College, Simmons worked with a comparable group, called the Senior Staff Committee, and at Princeton she was a member of a presidential advisory board also called the cabinet, Greene said.

Former University Presidents Gordon Gee and Vartan Gregorian met with an operations committee and executive committee, respectively, which served the same functions as Simmons’ cabinet, Freid said.

“Every university president has a way of organizing university officers,” she added.

The word cabinet designates a group “in a more confidential position” that, along with an executive, govern the “determination and administration of affairs,” according to the Oxford English Dictionary.

Herald staff writer Carla Blumenkranz ’05 covers the Office of the President. She can be reached at cblumenkranz@browndailyherald.com.

Anti-virus protections stifle e-mail delivery campus wide

BY BETHANY RALLIS

Computing and Information Services’ March 4 installation of Norton AntiVirus successfully protected Brown network users from threatening e-mail viruses, but it also clogged the network with junk mail and delayed mail from reaching recipients.

The CIS help desk first heard complaints that e-mails were not being received on Tuesday, March 5, said CIS Manager Patricia Falcon.

The program ran smoothly on the first day of installation, said John Spadaro, associate director of CIS. Problems with the system began on Tuesday when CIS made a change to the program configuration, allowing it to scan outgoing mail as well as incoming.

When spam or junk mail senders see an opening in the mail relay “Brown.edu,” they use it to send their mail under a Brown address.

“We became a junk mail magnet,” Spadaro said.

The onslaught of junk mail caused delays in sending and receiving e-mail, as mass e-mailers clogged the network with their mail.

In response, CIS closed open relays in the network. Open relays are those that accept non-Brown e-mail and are not secure. But the 24-hour window caused sites that filter junk mail to begin rejecting e-mails that originated from Brown accounts.

CIS thought they had solved the problem by closing the relays, but being blacklisted by the junk mail monitors threw them for another loop, he said.

“We removed ourselves from the blacklist,” Spadaro said.

CIS added more relays to process the

No mail has been lost in the backup, and network users should receive all outdated mail over the next few days. backlogged e-mails.

On Sunday one of the relays had a configuration error, causing more delays, he said.

Spadaro said that since Monday at 9:30 a.m. the back up in mail has been decreasing, and e-mail now seems to be running smoothly.

No mail has been lost in the backup, and network users should receive all outdated mail over the next few days, he said.

Students found themselves inconvenienced by the delays.

Jessica Wisdom ’04 said she had been corresponding with a woman over email about a summer job. “Parts of our conversation were all out of order,” she said.

After Wisdom had been talking to the woman for a week, she “received an outdated e-mail from her saying ‘I got your request for information about the job,’” Wisdom said, baffled that this e-mail had come a week late.

“We all count on e-mail as being a reliable way to communicate,” said Britt Doran ’04.

Herald staff writer Bethany Rallis ’04 is a campus news editor. She can be reached a brallis@browndailyherald.com.

PAGE 6 THE BROWN DAILY HERALD THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2002

Final Grade continued from page 12 saw the movie, hopefully you know what I’m going to say. It was not good, not good at all.

NC - Jayson Williams, ExForward, New Jersey Nets Williams is quickly moving up the “not the sharpest tack in the box” meter with his recently discovered actions to cover up his

involvement with the killing of his limousine driver, Costas Cristofi.

The former NBA star was charged with manslaughter as a result of the death on Feb. 14.

However, the charges do not end there.

Williams was charged this past Monday with hindering apprehension, two counts of evidence tampering, one count of witness tampering and one count of conspiracy to obstruct the law.

Athlete continued from page 12 Germain was also a member of Team Ontario, winning a gold medal at the Canada Winter Games, and was a standout athlete in basketball and soccer, as she captained both teams and captured city championships in both as well.

Dreyer and Germain have been a constant force all season

long, and with the Bears now in the ECAC Semifinals this weekend at Dartmouth, expectations are high. Brown hopes not only to win the ECAC tournament, but also to make a bid at the national title.

With Dreyer and Germain playing so well in net, the Bears will have a legitimate shot.

Sports staff writer Jonathan Bloom ’03 edits the sports section. He can be reached at jbloom@browndailyherald.com.

Ordinance continued from page 3 Aside from aggressive solicitation, the proposed ordinance bans soliciting after dusk or under the influence of alcohol and seeking payment from someone in a motor vehicle in exchange for reserving a parking place or performing a service connected with that vehicle.

Soliciting would be outlawed anywhere that is within 20 feet of a financial institution or ATM, unless the owner permits the solicitor to do so, at public toilets, at a vendor that is certified by the city or at a pay phone.

Also, according to the draft, panhandling would be illegal within 10 feet of the entrance of a building or 50 yards away from an off-ramp to any freeway.

No one may solicit in a group of two or more or when aboard any public transportation vehicle or stop, the draft ordinance stipulates.

Any violation would be considered a misdemeanor by law and would carry a punishment of either a maximum of 30 days in jail, a fine of up to $500 or both.

Herald staff writer Chris Byrnes ’04 edits the metro section. He can be reached at cbyrnes@browndailyherald.com.

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CLASSIFIEDS POLICY The charge for classified advertising is $1.25 per line for 1 day of advertising. Each line measures 1 standard column size and can fit up to 25 characters (including spaces & punctuation). There is a minimum advertisement size of 4 lines. Weekly & monthly discounts apply; the rate is $5.00 per line for 1 week (5 days); $15.00 per line for 1 month (20 days). Currently enrolled Brown University Students receive a 50% discount on all classified advertising rates with valid Brown ID. (Deadlines: All insertion orders must be prepaid & submitted by 11am, 1 business day prior to the publication date. Submit online at www.browndailyherald.com, in person at Herald offices, located at 195 Angell Street or mail to P.O. Box 2538, Providence, RI 02906. Personal checks, Visa, & Mastercard accepted. Lost & found are free. Policy: No refunds for cancelled classified ads. The Brown Daily Herald will assume responsibility for errors only the first day an ad runs. The Brown Daily Herald reserves the right to edit ads it feels are unfit to print.

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WORLD & NATION THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2002 · PAGE 7

IN BRIEF Fashion Designers as Personalities PARIS (Washington Post) — Stardom can be like volatile

magic. Celebrity designers infuse their collections with more than sharp cuts and nice fabrics. They brush the clothes with sparks from their own fame. When that happens, the result is powerful voodoo. Somehow, every skirt length seems sexy, every color appears flattering. And the completely unnecessary becomes utterly essential.

Famous designers — the kind that appear in gossip columns and on talk shows — no longer have to guess at how consumers are feeling. No longer do they have to work without a compass to determine in which direction the culture will shift. They help create the wave of change.

A celebrity designer will get credit for starting a trend. A lesser-known designer’s contribution goes unrecorded. For in fashion — as in other industries — success is not simply based on the message, but also on the fame of the messenger.

Mugabe declared winner in Zimbabwe HARARE, Zimbabwe (Washington Post) — State elections officials Wednesday declared President Robert Mugabe the winner of a ferociously contested election that many international observers described as deeply flawed and the opposition’s candidate rejected, saying the vote was rigged.

Unofficial results showed the 78-year-old Mugabe winning a fifth term in a landslide over Morgan Tsvangirai, a former labor organizer and leader of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change. With about 3.1 million of the nation’s 5.6 million registered voters casting ballots, officials said, Mugabe won more than 1.6 million votes to Tsvangirai’s 1.2 million.

Several pre-election polls had showed Mugabe trailing Tsvangirai, and the announcement Wednesday of the president’s wide margin of victory drew prompt accusations by the opposition of fraud. “The Movement for Democratic Change is firmly of the view that the election results do not reflect the true will of the people of Zimbabwe and are consequently illegitimate in the eyes

of the people,” Tsvangirai told reporters here Wednesday.

“We therefore do not accept them.”

Likewise, several election monitoring groups cast doubt on the validity of the vote, describing an electoral process disfigured by violence, intimidation, mass arrests and last-minute changes to election laws and logistics that effectively disenfranchised tens of thousands of voters. Monitors from a handful of African nations, however, declared the election free and fair.

In Washington, President Bush said the United States does not recognize the result.

“We do not recognize the outcome of the election because we think it’s flawed,” he told a White House news conference.

“We are dealing with our friends to figure out how to deal with this flawed election,” he added.

Earlier in the day, Secretary of State Colin Powell said the election result did not reflect the will of the people. “As a result, Mr. Mugabe may claim victory, but not democratic legitimacy,” Powell said in a statement.

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

LETTERS THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2002 · PAGE 9

Errors in CAIC article show little respect for Third World community To the Editor: I would like to correct flagrant errors that appeared in the article “Chinese American Conference Opens With a Call for Student Activism in Political Arena” (3/11). First, the person in the accompanying photo was erroneously identified as keynote speaker Eric Tang, when it was workshop speaker Professor Frank Wu. Second, the article states that the Chinese American Intercollegiate Conference (CAIC) was held at the Westin Hotel. However, if The Herald were present Saturday to gather the facts to accurately write this story, it is puzzling to say the least how they could have mistaken Smith-Buonanno, where all the workshops were held, for the Westin Hotel.

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same time offensive to those who took the time to organize and attend the conference. We thank you for the coverage; however, in the future, steps must be taken to ensure that Third World events on campus are reported with more care and respect.

It’s funny how The Herald makes a special effort to disgrace the communities of color at this school, and fails to acknowledge all the good works we do as well.

Onyeka Iloabachie ’03 Mar. 13

Vincent Chong ’03 Mar. 13

Cartoon offensive, Cape Verdean misrepresents Heritage weekend BUPS as sadistic not first ever To the Editor: To the Editor: I was amazed when I read the article written about Cape Verdean Heritage Weekend, because clearly The Herald did not have the facts straight (“First-ever Heritage weekend examines unique Cape Verdean challenges,” 3/11). This was not the first Cape Verdean Heritage Weekend, because I believe there was one run last year by Ana Lyman ’03. Please make sure all facts are correct before running articles.

I could not be more offended by the cartoon, “Give Brown Cops Swords,” (3/13).

What a clever way to kick the dead horse topic of arming Brown Police! It suggests that Brown law enforcement is racist, violent and even sadistic. I would like to know what evidence this loaded accusation is based on. It seems to be nothing short of conforming to a trend on this campus to question any form of authority or order.

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was one of the things that drew me to Brown, and I agree that more people need to question the tradition of racism that still pervades our social order. But where many Brown students fail (and particularly where this cartoon has failed) is in going beyond criticism of authority and offering realistic solutions to tangible problems. From my understanding, The Herald believes (or at least seeks to convince others) that BUPS is racist and evil, and therefore shouldn’t be armed. The Herald naively glosses over the many ways BUPS protects and serves our community, and assigns little pride to their profession.

I have nothing but respect for BUPS, as “un-trendy” as that might be. From my experience, they are friendly, committed and dedicated people, and until I have evidence otherwise, I will continue to treat them with the respect and authority their position commands. Part of that respect includes standing up to ignorant, outspoken individuals who seek to unfairly categorize them as anything else.

J. Murphy, ’02 Mar.13

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

EDITORIAL/LETTERS THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2002 · PAGE 10 S T A F F

E D I T O R I A L

Focus on faculty?

Once again, the University finds itself searching for a lecturer in the Arabic studies language program. By choosing not to match Dartmouth College’s offer of a tenure track position to Lecturer Jocelyn Sharlet, the University’s Academic Council has failed to retain a woman who is, by all credible accounts, an excellent instructor — and further condemned the Arabic studies program to an unacceptable period of prolonged instability.

Sadly, the Academic Council’s decision comes at a time when the University is renewing its commitment to first-rate scholarship. The beauty of President Ruth Simmons’ Proposal for Academic Enrichment is precisely that it mandates a commitment to attracting and maintaining faculty of the highest caliber. Moreover, the study of Arabic as a tool of communication is of utmost importance in today’s world, as East-West relations increasingly become the key factor in understanding many of the world’s most serious problems.

To keep Sharlet, the University would have had to upgrade Sharlet’s position from lecturer to assistant professor. The Academic Council, chaired by Dean of the Faculty Mary Fennell, has defended its decision on the basis of University regulations which require a national search before awarding assistant professorships. While the Academic Council may have done right by sticking to the rules, this instance called for sounder judgment and sharper foresight: For the Arabic studies program to lose its third lecturer in as many years, and the only instructor in the program, demonstrates an unacceptable failure to meet the expectations of first-class teaching and scholarship. At this point, the University will be hard-pressed to find a lecturer of any sort to teach Arabic next year, let alone an instructor of Sharlet’s ability.

What is worse, had the Academic Council elected to match Sharlet’s offer and retain her, the Arabic studies program would still have faced formidable challenges. Having only one lecturer to teach six courses places an unreasonable burden upon that single instructor. Thus, the council should be looking to add to, and not subtract from, the program’s teaching roster. Sadly, that roster has fallen from one to none.

Arnold Weinstein, chair of the Department of Comparative Literature, was correct to call the Academic Council’s decision a “mistake.” Despite having the rules on its side, the Academic Council betrayed its ultimate purpose: to strengthen the quality of scholarship and instruction in our classrooms.

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD EDITORIAL Beth Farnstrom, Editor-in-Chief Seth Kerschner, Editor-in-Chief David Rivello, Editor-in-Chief Will Hurwitz, Executive Editor Sheryl Shapiro, Executive Editor Brian Baskin, News Editor Kavita Mishra, News Editor Andy Golodny, Campus News Editor Bethany Rallis, Campus News Editor Elena Lesley, Arts & Culture Editor Juan Nunez, Asst. Arts & Culture Editor Jonathan Noble, Campus Watch Editor Chris Byrnes, Metro Editor Victoria Harris, Opinions Editor Sanders Kleinfeld, Opinions Editor Shana Jalbert, Listings Editor Maria DiMento, Listings Editor Marion Billings, Design Editor Stephen Lazar, Design Editor Stephanie Harris, Copy Desk Chief Jonathan Skolnick, Copy Desk Chief Josh Apte, Photography Editor Makini Chisolm-Straker,Asst.Photography Editor Allie Silverman, Asst.Photography Editor Grace Farris, Graphics Editor Nathan Pollard, Graphics Editor Brett Cohen, Systems Manager

BUSINESS Stacey Doynow, General Manager Jamie Wolosky, Executive Manager Jared Gerber, Associate Manager Angela Kim, Local Accounts Manager Hyebin Joo, Local Accounts Manager Moon-Suk Oh, University Accounts Manager Jan Vezikov, University Accounts Manager Eugene C. Cha, National Accounts Manager Joseph Laganas, National Accounts Manager Josh Miller, Classifieds Account Manager Elizabeth Tietz, Marketing Coordinator Shereen Kassam, Marketing Coordinator Tugba Erem, Marketing Coordinator Miguel Escobar, Subscriptions Manager Laurie-Ann Paliotti, Senior Advertising Rep. Kate Sparaco, Office Manager Jennifer Gillis, Advertising Representative P O S T- M A G A Z I N E Kerry Miller, Editor-in-Chief Zach Frechette, Executive Editor Morgan Clendaniel, Film Editor Alden Eagle, Theatre Editor Meredith Jones, Calendar Editor Juan Nunez, Asst. Features Editor Alex Schulman, Features Editor Theo Schell-Lambert, Music Editor SPORTS Jonathan Bloom, Sports Editor Nick Gourevitch, Asst. Sports Editor Maggie Haskins, Asst. Sports Editor Jonathan Meachin, Asst. Sports Editor Joshua Troy, Asst. Sports Editor Jesse Warren, Asst. Sports Editor Emily Hunt, Sports Photography Editor Michelle Batoon, Sports Photography Editor

Bronwyn Bryant, Erika Litvin, Keunjung Cho, Night Editors Stephanie Harris, Copy Editor Staff Writers Kathy Babcock, Brian Baskin, Jonathan Bloom, Carla Blumenkranz, Chris Byrnes, Jinhee Chung, Julie DiMartino, Nicholas Foley,Vinay Ganti, Neema Singh Guliani, Ari Gerstman, Andy Golodny, Daniel Gorfine, Ben Gould, Nick Gourevitch, Stephanie Harris, Maggie Haskins, Christopher Hayes, Shara Hegde, Brian Herman, Shana Jalbert, Brent Lang, Elena Lesley, Jamay Liu, Jermaine Matheson, Kerry Miller, Kavita Mishra, Martin Mulkeen, Alicia Mullin, Crystal Z.Y. Ng, Jonathan Noble, Ginny Nuckols, Juan Nunez, Sean Peden, Bethany Rallis, Emir Senturk, Jen Sopchockchai, Anna Stubblefield, Brady Thomas, Jonathon Thompson, Joshua Troy, Miranda Turner, Juliette Wallack, Jesse Warren, Genan Zilkha Pagination Staff Bronwyn Bryant, Jessica Chan, Keunjung Cho, Iris Chung, Sam Cochran, Joshua Gootzeit, Michael Kingsley, Hana Kwan, Erika Litvin, Jessica Morrison, Caroline Novograd, Stacy Wong Staff Photographers Josh Apte, Makini Chisolm-Straker, Matt Rodriguez, Ana Selles, Allie Silverman, Vanessia Wu Copy Editors John Audett, Lanie Davis, Marc Debush, Daniel Jacobson, Harrison Quitman, Sonya Tat, Julia Zuckerman

D AV I N C H E N G

LETTERS Simmons, University must not neglect Grad school needs, concerns To the Editor: For the past several years, Brown’s Graduate School has sat on the margins of the University’s agenda.

During a fall semester reception in President Simmons’ backyard, she acknowledged her concerns about the Graduate School. Simmons pledged to work diligently to increase its stature and improve the financial and academic resources available to both students and faculty.

The recent approval of the plan for academic enrichment signals the commitment of the administration and the Corporation to improving the experience of the entire Brown family, including staff, faculty, undergraduates and graduate students.The officers of the Graduate School Council, which represents the approximately 1,350 graduate students at Brown, applaud the actions of the president, her administration and the Corporation.

We earnestly hope this is the first of many such measures aimed at improving the experience of Brown graduate students. Increased stipends and lower health care costs will diminish some of the financial pressure felt by graduate students.

Furthermore, for the first time in the University’s history, summer funding for graduate students has been included in the operating budget. This has been a top priority of the GSC and the Graduate School for several years.

However, we also need to be concerned with the longer-term positioning of the Graduate School.

Attracting the most promising graduate students is an objective that is critical to the educational mission of the University.

It is a necessity for conducting cutting-edge research and effectively teaching the undergraduate students. The administration and the Corporation must be vigilant in keeping graduate education at Brown a core priority, as it is at our peer institutions. The GSC looks forward to working with the administration and the Corporation on this effort.

The task of improving the Graduate School will require dedication and time. Last semester’s unionization movement illustrated the degree to which

graduate students will organize and push for their concerns. Nonetheless, the administration must also continue to take bold steps to enhance the graduate student experience.

We hope graduate students will remain active and show the administration our dedication. We contend that an active and vocal graduate student body working alongside President Simmons’ administration will facilitate necessary improvement in the Graduate School, producing successful Brown graduates with a sense of commitment to the University.

Aaron Katz GS and Heinrich Hock GS Co-President, Graduate Student Council Terrence L. Johnson GS Vice President, Graduate Student Council Mar. 13

Inman an advocate of bold approach to campus space issues To the Editor: I take great exception to the comment about my defending the status quo in your editorial “A Common Space” (3/13). In the document I prepared for the external reviewers dated Oct. 2, 2001, I asked a number of questions for the reviewers to address.

The first was: “Is Faunce House a University center or a student center?” If it is by definition a student center, then I asked: “Should the space in Faunce be reviewed with reference to the present/future needs of Brown?” If the answer to this question was yes, then I offered a number of suggestions including moving the student leadership (UCS, UFB, Student Union) to the second floor of Faunce and turning T.F. Green into a student performing arts center thus freeing up more space in Faunce.

I concluded that “a bold approach to space needs might be very helpful at this time without waiting for the construction of a new center, which may or may not happen. This “bold approach,” I declare emphatically, is not defending the “status quo.” I don’t know where The Herald got that misconception.

David Inman Director of Student Activities Mar. 13

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OPINIONS THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2002 · PAGE 11

Cool people: be nicer to scientists, nerds, gamers Nerds, gamers deserve grudging respect as defenders of rationalism IT IS A LITTLE-KNOWN FACT THAT moral duty to empower my social inferiors.

Truly, the one remaining group (besides after writing “Fantasy Gaming Society and ISO should join forces” (10/19/01) I sent a stupid people and those afflicted with letter of apology to the group I felt had Turret’s syndrome) that it remains socially been so unfairly slighted by my associating acceptable to stigmatize is the nerdy, and it is high time someone put a it with a club of losers. That’s stop to this, perhaps in an right – I apologized to the ironic way that gives with the Fantasy Gaming Society. (And right hand and takes with the it wasn’t a fake apology like, left. Our popular culture is lit“I’m sorry you’re not cool.”) I tered with negative portrayals realized that when it comes to of scientists, starting with the politics, they’re pretty reasonseemingly innocuous modable, even if some of them ern-day maven of science would likely vote for Captain education, Bill Nye the Picard for US President in 2000 Science Guy. Dressed in an instead of Al Gore; so would I. effeminate costume with an And so what if some of the BRETT COHEN oversized red bow tie, Nye’s guys don’t shave? I would CHECKMATE! foppish characterization is probably sport a six-inch the science teacher equivabeard if I could grow one. lent of an “Uncle Tom” — affaBut some good may yet come out of this trying, Brett-put-his-foot- ble, eager to please and childlike. And this in-his-mouth ordeal. On Valentine’s Day, is supposed to be “positive.”

Popular media is worse. Can you think of shortly after the publication of my first column of this semester, a sophomore a film in which a scientist does good, or even Undergraduate Council of Students repre- one in which he doesn’t cause everyone’s sentative pleaded me to try to tolerate oth- bloody demise? Take the top-grossing 1996 ers, as opposed to vilifying them as hate film “Independence Day.” A scientist, Dr. groups that ought to be defunded. “Don’t Brakish Okun, played by Brent Spiner (Data hate, tolerate,” she inadvertently rhymed. I of Star Trek: TNG), is an inept long-haired knew what I had to do: raise awareness of weirdo whose failure to control a captured negative stereotypes pertaining to scien- alien destroys his laboratory, nearly kills the tists. After all, as a cool person, it is my president and leads to his own demise. In the “Terminator” films, scientists create Ironically, Brett J. Cohen ’03 is also Systems machines that attempt to annihilate all of humankind. Movie villain Dr. Hannibal Manager of The Herald, but he is quite the Lecter, once a renowned psychologist, eats jock. His columns appear on alternate people without even the decency to first Thursdays.

cook his victims or send the bloody carcasses to more needy North Koreans.

In “Jurassic Park,” scientists, vain and ego-driven, attempt to bring back the dinosaurs, who proceed to run amok, causing property damage and at least minor psychological trauma on the young children, who in a rare incorrect creative decision by director Steven Spielberg are not eaten alive by the raptors on camera.

Still, Spielberg redeems himself via the computer programmer, played by “Seinfeld’s” Newman (Wayne Knight), as a greedy, grossly overweight villain: a fair characterization.

An unscientific, rushed, partiallyincompetent scan of the top 250 grossing films of all time in the Internet Movie Database confirms that not one (besides the 1997 flick “Contact” and perhaps the dreadful “Twister”) features an overall positive portrayal of scientists, even including “Batman” or “Mrs. Doubtfire.”

It is thus no surprise that scientists are held in such low esteem by so many Americans, who have been so eager to ignore the testimony of biologists and remove evolution from the classroom, perhaps fearing that the evil scientists will unleash killer Darwin bugs if they’re permitted to grow their ranks. Considering Hollywood’s anti-science propaganda, one can hardly blame them.

Moreover, rationalism and science often find themselves under attack on television. Wrote Richard Dawkins, a leading defender of science: “The X-Files poses a mystery and offers two rival kinds of

explanation, the rational theory and the paranormal theory. And, week after week, the rational explanation loses. But it is only fiction, a bit of fun, why get so hot under the collar? Imagine a crime series in which, every week, there is a white suspect and a black suspect. And every week, lo and behold, the black one turns out to have done it. Unpardonable, of course.

And my point is that you could not defend it by saying: ‘But it’s only fiction, only entertainment.’”

So stereotypes are applied to science proper, as well as to the nerds who actually do the research. But while most of the stereotypes surrounding nerds and fantasy gamers are truthful, some facts are not as well known. For instance, many fantasy gamers travel to the woods as couples, and do indeed “get it on,” in the throngs of passion one might even hear a woman gamer cry out, “Oh, Lord Voldemort, oh!”

We should look past their social awkwardness to see the rational, sometimes robot-like super mind behind the gamer-babble. Sure, sometimes he’ll only respond to you if you address him in character as Frodo, but when he finally does answer, you can be damn sure that either he’ll grab your ring off your finger and try to destroy it or he’ll give you and your question a fair hearing.

With rationalism under assault, these unlikely heroes may be our last defense again the throngs of anti-science and ignorance (and Lord Voldemort) that assail us from all sides.

Objectivity in academia and other power circles Meshing statistics, written word and human experience ONE DAY WHILE I WAS “SURFING THE objects; their agency exists only through net” — Brown lingo for procrastination — his interpretation.

The monopoly of voice and articulaI thought I would look at the web site of the Office of International Programs. I tion by the academic and educated world found a list of the reasons to study abroad, not only reflects existing power relations, but one caught my eye: “The understand- but also assumes a lack of bias and emotional distance of the profesing of another culture unavailsional from the events he able to you through academic describes. Academia tends to study alone.” overestimate the ability of the From my perspective, this intellectual to penetrate and statement reflects a polemic analyze any given communigreater than whether to study ty or society without being abroad: where do we gather handicapped by preconinformation about an increasceived notions. A semblance ingly globalized world? of objectivity when describShould we read newspapers, ing “the other” or cultures academic books or literature? alien to one’s own backShould we travel, speak to RAMON STERN ground requires conditionacademics, elites or masses GONE GLOBAL ing, self-critique and flexibiliabroad? Where does the most ty. objective truth lie? Should we For this very reason, studyrepresent and interpret truth mostly in empirical fact, personal narra- abroad experiences, multilingualism, multives or symbols? How can we integrate all ticulturalism and social acquaintances of these media into our search for knowl- across lines of class, race and ethnicity are necessary for both personal and academic edge?

The academic world tends to underval- growth. An extended exposure to a foreign ue lived experience in comparison to writ- country and to culturally distinct people ten and statistical knowledge. A century- breaks down our mutual isolation and long Western tradition of rigid rationality ignorance of one another and opens the grounded in the intellectual and scientist doors for rational reflection on internastill orients the attitude of many educated tional politics and ethnocentrism. Without elites toward the truth. An assumption of human experiences to both complement the possibility of obtaining objective truth and participate in shaping intellectual disthrough study and the reduction of the course, academia does not extend beyond world’s peoples and problems to objects of the realm of the imaginary.

Though many accuse the advocates of discourse permeates the media and academia. In such a paradigm, the author cosmopolitanism of naiveté, the academreduces the subjects of his research into ic world also commonly divorces itself from reality. A world enamored with books alone is a world of clouds. In fact, Ramon Stern ’04 swears he is writing this the hollow rhetoric of some humanists column from personal experience. derives primarily from books and acaSeriously!

“Though many accuse the advocates of cosmopolitanism of naiveté, the academic world also commonly divorces itself from reality. A world enamored with books alone is a world of clouds.“ demic study, rather than lived experience.

Asserting the importance of the complexity of human stories and experience in academia is not a “hug fest” in the least.

One of the most effective ways to expose harsh, global realities is through lived experience. Stays in impoverished and war-torn countries, and conversations in a new language and environment illuminate the hatred, agony and difficulties of a multi-dimensional and constantly evolving global order. “Taking the hard line” on the war in Afghanistan or on Palestinian terrorism in Israel-Palestine does not presuppose an understanding of harsh reality. Reacting harshly to complicated and distant events at times involves the most acute naiveté of all. There are not only naive humanists, but also a large group of hardliners who purport to understand the world’s chaos with a cold rationality and accuse their humanist counterparts of a feminine nostalgia.

Many journalist and academics seek refuge in the world of empirical fact: the

world of statistics, technology and the beaming of reports to newsrooms. I do not intend to critique the limits of these statistics. Rather, I would like to question the conclusions one draws from the utterance of numbers. The interpretation of empirical realities is just as malleable as that of non-empirical or qualitative data.

Without a sharp assessment of the factors that give the numbers significance, the exaltation of empirical data can lead to a variety of contradictory interpretations of the same events.

Thus, numbers alone, though very important, do not reveal the greater significance of world events without an assessment of the human, political and social context from which the journalist or academic extracts statistics.

In short, we must reevaluate the fight for objectivity in the world of academics.

Personal biases exist on a variety of levels and in peoples of all professional training, races, classes and civilizations. This bias extends to even the most scrupulous academic or journalist.

A network of relationships, family background and value systems shape every human being, no matter how educated.

Therefore, we must not distance ourselves from human testimony and lived experience. Instead, we must engage in constant negotiation among human experience, empirical fact and academic contemplation.

Human contact, instead of hindering rational, objective arguments, serves as a primary ingredient to turn the written word, a graph or a history book into a living, breathing process. An exaggerated distance from humanity as an intellectual turns argument, writing and research into a detached and naive exercise.

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

SPORTS THURSDAY MARCH 14, 2002 · PAGE 12

Agassi, Iverson get top grades, ESPN’s ‘Season On The Brink’ disappoints

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK

A – ANDRE AGASSI, MEN’S TENNIS Agassi, the number one seed, changed his three-year run of bad luck in the Franklin Templeton Tennis Classic by defeating Juan Balcells 6-2, 7-6 (2) to win the 50th title of his career. “It means a lot now,” said the JOHN VERDEAUX 31-year-old ANDREW FRANK Agassi, who last THE FINAL GRADE year became the oldest player to finish in the ATP’s top three since Jimmy Connors did it in 1984. “Before the match you’re really thinking about your opponent and what you need to do. But you get done with it and it kind of hits you,” Agassi said.

By winning two-thirds of his 75 finals, Agassi became just the eighth player to win 50 championships in the open era, which began in 1968. Among active players, he trails only Pete Sampras, who has 63 titles. Many think Agassi has been a little bit “woman whipped” by his wife Steffi Graf this past year. Agassi withdrew from the Australian Open because his wrist hurt. Translation: his wife wanted him to tend to her needs.

However, since the injury, Andre has gotten a new trainer to replace Brad Gilbert, and he seems to be on his way to the top again. I am looking for Agassi to close out the year with at least one more Grand Slam for his career. I think he will capture the US Open if he can stay healthy and if Steffi Graf lets him off her leash to play some serious tennis.

After two dominating performances over Yale last weekend, the women’s ice hockey team (22-7-2) will continue its quest for an ECAC title this Saturday when it faces off against St. Lawrence. In the quarterfinals against Yale, the Bears had stellar play from goalies Pam Dreyer ’03 and Katie Germain ’04, who each started a game against the Bulldogs and held their opponent scoreless. The 5-0 and 7-0 shutouts are symbolic of Dreyer and Germain’s performances all season long and represent a good sign of things to come.

Dreyer, an All-Ivy goalie a year ago, was initially slated as the starter for this season, before undergoing surgery and later suffering from mono. This opened the door for Germain, who made the most of her opportunity, constantly improving and gaining confidence as time went on. Since Dreyer’s return, the two have split ice time, with both having great success and putting forth strikingly similar results.

Dreyer has started 15 games, compiling a record of 10-3-2, and Germain has started 16 with a mark of 12-4. Their save percentages have been practically identical, as Dreyer has played at a .92 clip while Germain has turned shots away at a rate of .921. Dreyer has registered four shutouts this season with Germain getting five, and their goals against average (GAA) is also comparable, at 1.57 and 1.61 respectively.

Interestingly though, the two have completely different styles of play, and this gives the Bears a distinct advantage.

“Teams can’t prepare because they don’t know who they’ll get,” said Head Coach Digit Murphy. “Pam is more of the methodical goalie – laid back, steady, letting the puck come to her, while Katie is more aggressive, coming out of net and

B – Allen Iverson, Point Guard, Philadelphia 76ers The other week, Allen Iverson made a bold statement by saying that his team is still the best team in the Eastern Conference. That night, Iverson came off the bench to torch the Nets, number one in the conference, for 43 points. Since then, Philly has gone 7-1, and Iverson has scored 40 or more points in four of those games.

Iverson, arguably playing at a level higher than anyone in the NBA, is the catalyst for the Sixers, who are without Aaron Mckie (sprained knee). I am giving Allen Iverson fine credit because he wants to win more than anyone in the NBA. He also never seems to get tired during games, a testament to his will and endurance.

C – “Season On The Brink” - The Bobby Knight Story For the past four weeks, ESPN has been advertising “A Season On The Brink” as their first original motion picture. If you watch ESPN, you know that these advertisements were on every 15 minutes. Looking back, now I see why. Anyway, the barrage of commercials served their purpose well because I could not wait to see the movie. It was an attempt to depict the highly controversial personality of Knight through a setting that recreated the 1985-86 Indiana Hoosier’s men’s basketball season.

This was an opportunity to get “behind the scenes” of a man whose uncontrolled temper sparked the curiosity of everyone. Well folks, if you see FINAL GRADE, page 6

The impenetrable wall of Germain and Dreyer keep W. Icers in ECAC title hunt

BY JONATHAN BLOOM

forcing the action. It makes it tough for opposing teams.”

With a combined effort, Dreyer and Germain have helped lead the Bears through an incredible stretch of play, resulting in 16 wins in their last 18 games.

It seems as though Brown has finally hit its stride, and with the remainder of the ECAC tournament and the National tournament still to come, the Bears will look to continue to build on that momentum.

“It’s a coach’s dream,” said Murphy on having two star goalies for the playoffs.

“The team plays well in front of both of them … I’m not sure who will start for which game, but I expect to split them.

They will both see the ice.”

Dreyer, a Human Biology concentrator from Eagle River, AK, has had a tremendous impact throughout her career in a Brown uniform. After only seeing limited action her rookie year, last season she finished first in the nation with a .941 save percentage and tied for first with seven shutouts. She was also second in the nation with a 1.61 GAA, and she was an Honorable Mention All-ECAC selection.

Before coming to Brown, Dreyer was voted Chugiak High School MVP by teammates in 1999, All-State Honorable Mention, and was selected to play in senior All-Star Game in 1999. She also excelled in her studies, as she was a four-year member of the Honor Roll and a threeyear member of the National Honor Society at Chugiak.

Germain, who is from Sarnia, Ontario, was recently named First Team All-Ivy for her play this season. She has been the league’s top goaltender, maintaining a .949 save percentage and a 1.75 GAA in league play. Her overall totals rank first in the ECAC-North in GAA and save percentage.

Emily Hunt / Herald

In Brown’s two-game sweep over Yale, sending the team into the ECAC semifinals, goalies Katie Germain ’04 (above) and Pam Dreyer ’03 split time and combined for 24 saves.

In high school, Germain led the first girls’ varsity hockey team at St. Christopher’s School to the OFSSA Provincial Championship in 1999. She was voted Most Valuable Player by her teammates after posting a .95 save percentage and making 385 saves in 31 games (15 shutouts). She played on the boys’ high school team before that, and she was the first female in her school’s history to accomplish that feat. see ATHLETE page 6

Sir Charles, should ‘role models’ speak their minds?

DID YOU HEAR WHAT CHARLES BARKLEY said the other day? He accused the Masters of “blatant racism” aimed at Tiger Woods because the course was lengthened.

In Barkley’s estimation, it was an attempt by the Augusta National Country Club to “Tigerproof” the tournament after Woods BRADY THOMAS won his second GAME TIME green jacket.

Augusta, a club with a not-so-distant tradition of not allowing blacks to play, refused comment on the alleged plot.

It is not important at this time whether Barkley’s comments were warranted.

Barkley is talk. He has been all about talk since before he was an NBA Legend and continues to have a gift for the gab.

What is important is not whether Barkley, the Round Mound of Profound Sound, is right, but the fact that he said it at all.

This is the same Charles Barkley that was ripped on in every sports talk show in the country after his infamous Nike commercial, in which he proclaimed that parents, not athletes, are role models. In Barkley’s eyes, he simply played basketball. His job was to score points, play defense and rebound; it was the job of parents to raise children.

Needless to say, he caught a whole lot of heat for those comments. The general feeling was that regardless of what he wanted or asked for, Barkley was a role model. If his poster was on a kid’s wall or his shoes on their feet, then he was looked up to and

had better accept the responsibility.

Barkley did. He recognized the validity of the remarks made by those that disagreed with him and made some changes.

He spoke up for himself, like he always had, and for others, which he hadn’t done before.

In fact, he prefaced his remarks about Tiger and Augusta in Sports Illustrated by saying that he was only sticking up for Woods, who he said would never speak out for himself.

“We need black athletes to speak out,” Barkley said. “Michael (Jordan) could do it and Tiger could do it, but you have to be willing to be ridiculed. I’m willing to be ridiculed.”

And that is what Barkley got. The immediate response from pretty much everybody in and out of the media was, “Shut up, Charles” or, “Chuck, you don’t know what you are talking about; stick to basketball.”

But that is the thing: you can’t have it both ways. These high-profile athletes, whose salaries have more zeroes than a ‘Star Trek’ convention, cannot play both sides of the fence.

Either we ask of them what we ask of everyone else in this country—worry about yourself, your family and live your life the way you want—or we accept the unpopular outcomes that arise when they exercise the extra power we have given them.

What Charles Barkley said may or may not be true in any single person’s estimation, but the fact is that he made a comment a role model should make. Do we not

teach children to sometimes make the unpopular decisions and to stand behind what they believe in?

That’s, in essence, what Chuck did. He had an observation he knew would be unpopular, yet he still spoke his mind. So why is everyone so quick to tell him to shut up?

Is it because he is not simply spouting the dry catch phrases of fame: stay in school, say no to drugs, eat your vegetables, listen to your parents, blah, blah, blah?

This is a script that has been played out many times before. Mike Jordan heard the snickers when he joined the Wizards front office. “What is Jordan thinking? He is not qualified to run a franchise.”

Magic Johnson heard it when he started franchising meaningful restaurants, stores and movie theaters in low-income, predominantly minority areas.

Muhmoud Abdul-Rauf, formerly known as Chris Jackson, saw his NBA career briskly come to a close after he refused to stand for the National Anthem in 1996 and had some not-so-patriotic words for America.

Do we want athletes to be merely figureheads with no chance to voice their opinion? Maybe everyone should simply lead by example like Jackie Robinson.

So Charles, from here on out, don’t ruffle any feathers, don’t criticize anyone, don’t stand up for things you believe in and just to be safe don’t comment on anything other than basketball. If you can do all that, then there won’t be any more problems.

Any comments, Mr. Barkley? No? Good.