The Brown Daily Herald T uesday, O ctober 9, 2007
Volume CXLII, No. 84
Since 1866, Daily Since 1891
Only 3 violent campus crimes reported to FBI in 2006
Admissions officers question value of SAT writing section
By Simon Van Zuylen-Wood Contributing Writer
By Sophia Li Contributing Writer
Crime rates at Brown and in Providence dropped in 2006 from 2005, according to a recent FBI report. But Mark Porter, Brown’s chief of police and director of public safety, said he believes the report could be misleading because local agencies sometimes define and classify crimes differently than the FBI.
Yet McCracken said he feels the project gives voters information they ought to know. “It’s really important for the people to know where the candidates stand — and have stood — to know how they’ll actually act when they’re in office,” he said. That’s why McCracken is determined to keep the site’s content fresh. “I’m trying to figure out a way to either get other people who are interested in it, or to fit it into (my) schedule,” he said. Reality Check ’08 tries to catch presidential contenders in their own double-talk, which will hopefully encourage them to clarify their positions. “What we’re really trying to do is look at what the different candidates are saying on the campaign trail,” McCracken said. “So
For two years, college applicants have had to complete a writing section on the SAT, but Brown and other universities are still reserving judgement on how much the section actually tells them, and it remains a relatively minor component of a student’s application, admission officials say. “I think we’re all still waiting to see how valid of a credential it is and how it compares to performance in the classroom,” said Dean of Admission Jim Miller ’73. “We haven’t yet given it the same credence we give other credentials with which we’re more familiar, like the standard SATs and the (Advanced Placement) scores and the subject tests,” Miller said. Miller noted that SAT writing scores have been used as a factor since the implementation of the writing section in 2005. Previously, Brown required that applicants complete the SAT Subject Test in writing. Miller said he hopes the writing section will prove to be a useful predictor of how applicants would perform in college, but he said there is no clear evidence for that yet. Nancy Viggiano, a spokeswoman for the College Board, which administers the SAT, said colleges should wait and see how the writing section plays out. “The SAT writing section is new and scores should be fully evaluated before they are used for making any kind of high-stakes decision,” she wrote in an e-mail to The Herald. Viggiano wrote that colleges should collect the writing scores of their matriculating students and
continued on page 8
continued on page 8
METRO The University and the city annually submit their crime statistics to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting program, which gathers data from about 17,000 law enforcement agencies around the country, said bureau spokesman Steve Fischer. Agencies voluntarily submit crime data to the FBI program. Violent crimes in Providence dropped from 1,207 in 2005 to 972 in 2006. These crimes, as defined by the FBI’s report, comprise murder, forcible rape, robbery or aggravated assault. The city’s property crimes — which include burglaries, thefts and arson — fell from 9,124 to 8,585 in the same period. The University’s crime trends matched the city’s — property crimes dropped from 230 in 2005 to 178 in 2006, according to the Sept. 24 report. Brown’s three violent crimes in 2006 — versus two in 2005 — were the lowest among the Ivy League schools who reported to the FBI. Yale, Cornell and Harvard universities — with larger student bodies than Brown’s — each had more violent crimes: Six at Yale, four at Cornell and 11 at Har vard. The University of Rhode Island, the only other Ocean State university to report, had six violent crimes on its Kingston campus. Brown’s Department of Public Safety, like the law enforcement agencies at many universities and in most U.S. cities, reports all criminal offenses that occur on or around campus. Because the information is presented to the FBI on a voluntary basis, there is no guarantee it is complete. Unlike Brown, many universities don’t send any information. Porter said DPS reports all on-campus crime to the FBI and that he is confident the department is doing all it can to provide valuable information to the FBI. We send data to the FBI “because we take dealing with crime issues very seriously. In order to do that we think it’s important to understand the information and understand the data that we have, and certainly share that data.” When Brown students are involved in off-campus crimes, DPS is alerted, but the Providence Police continued on page 6
INSIDE:
3
METRO
www.browndailyherald.com
Scott Kunstadt / Herald
Cash McCracken ’08 has started Reality Check ’08, a blog that tracks political candidates who “flip-flop” on issues.
Flip-floppers beware: McCracken ’08 is watching By Abe Lubetkin Staf f Writer
Cash McCracken ’08 and three classmates — all self-described “political junkies” — developed an ambitious idea last spring. For their group project in PPAI 1700U: “Communications, Advocacy and Public Affairs,” they created a Web site called Reality Check 08 (realitycheck08.org) to catch presidential candidates “flip-flopping” on issues. Now McCracken is facing a reality check of his own. As the presidential primar y heats up, the Web site is more pertinent than it has ever been. But McCracken’s three fellow bloggers have graduated and started full-time jobs, and McCracken is taking a full course load while trying to land a job of his own for next year. With little time and few helpers, he’s strug-
gling to keep the Web site up to speed. “Last semester we each had our own responsibilities and would help each other research,” he said. “It’s harder now that
FEATURE there’s not that class element.” Last spring, McCracken, Matt Listro ’07, John Butler ’07 and former Herald opinions columnist Jesse Adams ’07 researched for several hours each day and updated the site regularly. Their work drew quick notice: After a few months, Reality Check ’08 was linked on Time Magazine’s political blog and was attracting about 500 visitors a day. But with a political news cycle that rarely lasts longer than 24 hours, blogs are only as good as they are recent. McCracken last posted on Aug. 20.
Birth control prices jump, but students are largely unaffected By Gaurie Tilak Contributing Writer
Daniela Postigo / Herald
Birth control pills, such as those pictured here, have become more expensive for some students due to federal legislation.
Ris ’05 in R.I. for good Despite his loss in last fall’s City Council election, Ethan Ris ’05 says he is sticking in Rhode Island — and politics
5
CAMPUS NEWS
mycourses for them MyCourses allows professors the ability to track student use but few use the feature
Due to federal legislation, students at Brown and around the nation can no longer get birth control pills for less than market price, but the number of students getting birth control through University Health Services has remained about the same. In the past, pharmaceutical companies provided large discounts on sales of birth control pills to universities, allowing colleges to provide birth control to students at low cost without using health insurance from either the school or parents. That birth control was offered in “clinic packs,” which could be used for three or four months. But that changed with the introduction of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, which was signed into law
11
OPINIONS
195 Angell Street, Providence, Rhode Island
Olympic odds Adam Cambier ’09 handicaps those cities in the lead to land the 2016 Summer Olympics
in February 2006. The new birth control policy has been in place since this January. The law was designed to save taxpayers close to $40 billion over the next five years by slowing the rate of growth on mandatory spending for federal programs like Medicare and Medicaid. But a provision in the law meant pharmaceutical companies no longer provided reduced-price birth control to student health centers — Brown’s included — according to a Sept. 10 article in the Boston Globe. The legislation has also affected health clinics such as Planned Parenthood. For a period of time, the change went largely unnoticed because most university pharmacies, including Brown’s, stocked up before continued on page 8
12 SPORTS
Crossed up The football team’s defense couldn’t figure out a way to slow down Holy Cross in a 48-37 loss
News tips: herald@browndailyherald.com
T oday Page 2
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
We a t h e r
But Seriously | Charlie Custer and Stephen Barlow
Today
TOMORROW
partly cloudy 67 / 51
rain 60 / 52
Menu
Sharpe Refectory
Verney-Woolley Dining Hall
Lunch — Pasta Spinach Casserole, Corn Cobbets, Sweet Potato Fries, Grilled Tuna Sandwich with Cheese, Cajun Potatoes, Sun Dried Tomato Calzone
Lunch — Shaved Steak Sandwich, Spinach Strudel, Mandarin Blend Vegetables, Enchilada Bar
Dinner — Vegan Vegetable Saute with Tempeh, Sticky Rice, Vegetables in Honey Ginger Sauce, Sugar Snap Peas, Beef Barley Soup, Sesame Chicken Strips with Mustard Sauce
Dinner — Roast Pork Ouvert, Pastito, Baked Potatoes with Sour Cream, Carrot Casserole, Brussels Sprouts, Stir Fry Station, Boston Cream Pie, Vegetarian Liz’s Great Vegetable Soup, Chicken Gumbo Soup
Sudoku Fill in the grid so that every row, every column and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1 through 9.
Aibohphobia | Roxanne Palmer
Nightmarishly Elastic | Adam Robbins
RELEASE DATE– Tuesday, October 9, 2007 © Puzzles by Pappocom
Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle
C
o s and s wo d Lewis Edited by RichrNorris Joyce r Nichols
ACROSS 1 Coffee-chocolate mix 6 “The Grapes of Wrath” family name 10 Not on time 14 WWII German sub 15 Mystical emanation 16 Letters on a phone’s “0” button 17 1992 k.d. lang hit song 20 Mauna __ 21 Pre-owned 22 Dirge tempo 23 Direct air service 27 After-taxes 28 Ground-ball bounces 29 Anemic 32 __ Tuck 34 Ram’s call 37 Theoretical unending phenomenon 41 “The A-Team” costar 42 Mortgage percentages 43 In a lazy way 44 Singer Guthrie 45 Word before Jose or Diego 47 The Beatles’ “I Feel Fine” begins with one 53 Follow, as a recommendation 54 Pinot __ 55 Illuminated 58 “Hold all questions!” (and title of this puzzle) 62 Diarist Frank 63 Nincompoop 64 Dogfightingfighting gp. 65 Tiny colony laborers 66 Crooked 67 Thrown weapon DOWN 1 Pond mud 2 Wind quintet instrument 3 TV host O’Brien 4 Is down with 5 Bring into harmony
6 Pop singer Jackson 7 Surpass 8 Joan of __ 9 Patriotic women’s org. 10 Brian McKnight/ Vanessa Williams duet 11 Imitating 12 One after a decimal point 13 Grain disease 18 Type of prof. 19 Crème de la crème athlete 24 Like a pvt. peeling potatoes 25 Donahue and Esposito 26 Fire extinguisher output 29 Steno stat 30 Suffix with musket or market 31 Photographs, paintings, etc. 32 Collapsible bed 33 Charlotte of “The Facts of Life” 34 Bridge player’s call 35 IM provider 36 __ which way: carelessly
38 Off-course 39 Anklebones 40 Eyeglasses option 44 Makes amends 45 Scissors sound 46 Major heart vessels 47 Yemen’s capital 48 Sch. with a Stamford campus 49 Tour of duty
50 Bankrupt energy company 51 Feel uncertain about 52 Wed like Romeo and Juliet 56 Peruvian ancestor 57 Abdicator of 1917 59 Flow back 60 Fish eggs 61 Web user’s need, for short
Octopus on Hallucinogens | Toni Liu and Stephanie Le
ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:
Classic How To Get Down | Nate Saunders
xwordeditor@aol.com
10/9/07
T he B rown D aily H erald Editorial Phone: 401.351.3372 Business Phone: 401.351.3260
University community since 1891. It is published Monday through Friday during the aca-
Eric Beck, President
once in July by The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. POSTMASTER please send corrections to
Mary-Catherine Lader, Vice President Mandeep Gill, Treasurer Dan DeNorch, Secretary By Raymond Hamel (c)2007 Tribune Media Services, Inc.
10/9/07
The Brown Daily Herald (USPS 067.740) is an independent newspaper serving the Brown demic year, excluding vacations, once during Commencement, once during Orientation and P.O. Box 2538, Providence, RI 02906. Periodicals postage paid at Providence, R.I. Offices are located at 195 Angell St., Providence, R.I. E-mail herald@browndailyherald.com. World Wide Web: http://www.browndailyherald.com. Subscription prices: $319 one year daily, $139 one semester daily. Copyright 2007 by The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. All rights reserved.
M etro Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Me
t r o
Page 3
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
i n
Br
i e f
Carcieri ’65 releases budget balancing plans Rhode Island could be $200 million in debt next year, but Gov. Donald Carcieri ’65 announced last week he has plans to balance the budget. At a dinner Wednesday night, the Republican governor unveiled general plans to reduce state spending that include reducing state jobs, cutting benefits for remaining jobs and eliminating or reducing state social programs, the Providence Journal reported Thursday. The specifics of these cuts will be announced Oct. 15. According to the Journal, Carcieri announced in June that he planned to eliminate $100 million of the projected deficit by laying off 1,000 state employees. On Wednesday, the governor confirmed those plans and further stated plans to eliminate $50 million from the budget in pension and healthcare benefits for state workers. He hopes to eliminate the last $50 million in entitlement programs, which provide benefits — such as state-subsidized childcare — to low-income state residents. Many state legislators and labor leaders are waiting for Carcieri to unveil the details of his plans before reacting, according to a Journal article Friday. — Sara Molinaro
Despite Providence City Council loss, Ris ’05 says he’s in the Ocean State for good By Caitlin Browne Staff Writer
Last September, in a hotly contested primary election that garnered significant attention on campus, Ethan Ris ’05 was defeated by Seth Yurdin for the Democratic nomination for the Ward 1 City Council seat, with 458 votes to Yurdin’s 641. Now, the 23-year-old former president of the Brown Democrats is focusing on his job at the Met Center, a public college preparatory school in South Providence. But Ris said he still keeps an eye on political happenings, both locally and nationally. After last fall’s primary defeat in Ward 1, which encompasses the Fox Point neighborhood and most of Brown’s campus, Ris got the chance “to relax a little bit” and follow the 2006 elections as a spectator. “I got the chance to blog about it for Comedy Central, which was a lot of fun,” Ris said. He was also elected vice president of the Fox Point Citizens’ Association last year, where he “focused on a lot of local issues,” like promoting small businesses and dealing with waterfront issues affecting Fox Point. While he’s not without regrets, Ris has moved on from the disappointment of last year’s city council defeat. “Probably, for me, it was a good thing I lost. I realize I have plenty of time and more to learn,” Ris said, adding, “I don’t think the city’s going to hell or anything.” Overall, Ris said he is pretty satisfied with the current state of affairs in the city. “I’d like to see more action, as always, (but) I think the City Council is in a much better place than it was before the ’06 election,” he said. He praised City Council President Peter Mancini and Mayor David Cicilline ’83 for their leadership. But Ris is not a fan of former Mayor Vincent “Buddy” Cianci, now a radio show host after his recent release from prison, where he served five years for racketeering and other corruption charges. “He has a right to free speech,” Ris said, but added that “it doesn’t change the fact that he’s a crimi-
Jean Yves Chainon / Herald File Photo
A year after losing the Democratic nomination for the Ward 1 City Council seat, Ethan Ris ’05 (pictured here in 2005) says he remains committed to Providence.
nal, that he stole from the people of Providence.” The main issue Ris said he would like to see garner more local focus is education. “A lot of people are still turning a blind eye to education, not willing to engage the issue,” Ris said. “For the first time, the council has a committee on education, which is great, but so far it has accomplished nothing.” Ris said he was disappointed at the council’s lack of action during teacher contract negotiations that took place earlier this fall. For his part, Ris enjoys being directly involved in improving education in Providence. He plans to continue in his position at the Met indefinitely, calling it “a great job.” “It’s pretty morally unambiguous, helping poor kids get into college,” he said.
Ris said he will likely return to school for a graduate degree at some point, but he said he sees himself settling in Rhode Island permanently. “It’s certainly a great place to work, a great place to raise a family,” he said. A native of Washington, D.C., Ris said he’s always been interested in politics. Upon arriving at Brown, he quickly got involved with the Brown Democrats and served as its president his sophomore year. “I pretty quickly got to know all of our players in the political arena,” he said. His junior and senior years, he got more involved with political campaigns and got a job with the Mayor’s Office in City Hall. By that time, he “felt very much a part of the Rhode Island political scene.” Meanwhile, Ris is looking forward to the 2008 presidential elections. He is supporting Sen. Hillary Clinton’s, D-N.Y., campaign for the nomination. “I think the Democrats have an excellent chance of winning this election,” he said. “What we need right now is competence, and Hillary is certainly competent.” He plans to be actively involved in the elections. “I’ll probably be in a swing state, working, going doorto-door,” he said. Asked whether he’ll be blogging again for Comedy Central, Ris laughed. “I’d be open to it. … Comedy Central hasn’t called yet.” While Ris said he’s not currently planning another campaign, “that doesn’t mean I won’t run again in the future.” “I definitely have a desire to serve in public life at some point. I don’t think losing a city council election at age 23 has knocked me out of politics for life,” he said. “I’m not in a rush.” “I feel I have a good grasp of the issues, but more time observing and more time participating will help me become a better person in the political world,” he said. “I’m committed to Providence, I love Rhode Island. ... I have no intention of giving up on that.”
Page 4
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
C ampus n ews Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Ne
w s
Page 5
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
i n
Br
i e f
Researchers develop longer-lasting, more powerful battery Everyone has experienced the frustration that comes from sitting on the Main Green and realizing your laptop’s battery is running out. But thanks to the work of Professor of Engineering Tayhas Palmore and Hyun-Kon Song, a former postdoctoral research associate at Brown who now works as a researcher at LG Chemical Ltd., a longer-lasting, more powerful and smaller battery may soon be a realistic proposition. After almost two years of work, Palmore and Song have created a prototype for a plastic hybrid battery that is flexible and biodegradable. The battery functions like a hybrid device, acting as both a battery — with an ability to store energy over longer periods of time — and a capacitor — a device which can discharge large amounts of energy. “The benefit of our battery is that it has the properties of two electronic devices in one device,” Palmore said. “When you make a discovery like this, people think of what can they do now that they couldn’t before because of that hybrid property.” Originally, Palmore and Song were interested in examining the limits of batteries, in order to extend their lifespans. The scientists coated plastic in a chemical compound called polypyrrole and created a completely organic battery smaller than an iPod Nano that can be molded into any shape during production. The battery is currently in a prototype stage and is not as efficient as mainstream commercial batteries. While the device is comparable to current ultracapacitors in terms of power, its storage capacity is still closer to that of an alkaline battery, Palmore said. “What we have now is a proof of concept,” she said. “We are now working on improvements to make it perform better.” Palmore is working to commercialize the battery, and she sees the discovery as having great benefits for consumers once perfected. “Any improvement in battery technology makes things more comfortable, more convenient,” Palmore said. Since many products are made from plastic, the jump from a plastic battery to putting the plastic battery in every day plastic things is not that big, Palmore said. Also, because of its malleable properties, the battery can be easily incorporated into many things, including textiles. “Once in a while you make a discovery that opens the door to many new things,” Palmore said.
— Caroline Sedano
Econ prof Loury takes on the blogosphere By George Miller Contributing Writer
After years in the media spotlight, on the opinion pages of national newspapers and in countless radio interviews, Professor of Economics Glenn Loury has entered a new forum: the blogosphere. The Web site Bloggingheads.tv was started about two years ago, according to co-founder Robert Wright, with the idea that “the Internet makes high-brow video economically feasible.” The site features hundreds of “diavlogs” (dialog plus vlog, or video blog) between two people — whether bloggers, like most of the regulars, or authors or public intellectuals, such as Loury. “This is a pretty cool thing that Bob Wright and company have developed,” Loury said. He said he got involved with the site through “pure chance” when his friend Joshua Cohen — a professor of philosophy, political science and law at Stanford and co-editor of the Boston Review — asked if he wanted to do it. Loury said he has had two conversations broadcast on the site so far, both with Cohen, and has more scheduled. The conversations take place in an unusual format, with participants talking on the telephone and recording video of themselves at the same time. The split screen result is exactly what the Web site’s name suggests: two heads talking to each other. In their first conversation, Loury can be seen relaxed on the phone, apparently at home, and Cohen sits in front of a bookcase in his office, a hands-free set on his head.
The result is a far cry from debate shows on cable television, and that’s part of the draw, Loury said. With just two participants, a personal tone and conversations usually lasting about an hour, it’s “more civilized than that,” he said. “We agree too much to call it debating,” Cohen said. “It’s not a five-minute ... bumper-sticker sort of conversation.” The “heads” are free to choose topics of discussion between themselves — whether one issue, such as Loury’s recent article in the Boston Review on race and incarceration, or a range of topics, as in their second conversation. “We don’t do much in the way of controlling content,” Wright said. After the site’s operators pick pairs, the two agree on whatever topics they might want to discuss, for however long they wish, although the site does prefer topical and varied issues, he said. Loury seems comfortable with the medium and is bringing new topics to the table, Wright said, adding that Loury could become a regular. Loury’s presence on Bloggingheads.tv illustrates the Internet’s importance as an intellectual forum, particularly given Lour y’s background. Loury was once considered one of the foremost conservative voices in the nation. “I was a foremost conservative because I was black,” Loury said, explaining that his views were not particularly interesting otherwise. By the early 1990s, he said, he had left the leading edge of conservatism, and today he considers himself a progressive, he said.
Courtesy of brown.edu
Professor of Economics Glenn Loury
For future programs on Bloggingheads.tv, Loury said anything could be game, whether it be American politics, international affairs or academic life. Race, the subject of his last book, will likely come up, he said. But his commitment to the site could become more than a monthly phone conversation — Wright is “keen to get me to do more,” Loury said. Loury, who arrived at Brown two years ago as a tenured professor of economics, said he is happy with his decision to come to College Hill. “This place seems to have its head on straight,” Loury said — as opposed to Boston University, he said, where he was unhappy with the administration before leaving. “He’s having a tremendous impact on my department,” said Professor of Economics Andrew Foster, who is chair of the department. Foster said he has seen more graduate students working on issues of race, an issue of particular interest to Loury.
Smile: Your prof can see you on MyCourses By Tanmay Misra Contributing Writer
While students use MyCourses to conveniently print out their homework assignments, they may not be aware that their professors can track their every move. A “detailed summary of activity” allows professors to check on MyCourses use for each student in their class and see whether or not students downloaded required reading or other assignments. The activity report notes when students access an item posted on the site, how long they were online
and the frequency of their use. Another feature lets professors view information about all students in a course, including average time per session, total time and the number of sessions for every online tool. MyCourses can also generate graphical representations of student tracking data. Though students can view who else in their courses is online, only instructors have access to the tracking tools. Information about the tracking feature is not available on the MyCourses Web site, so students are largely unaware that such features exist. When Brown transitioned from using the WebCT online course management system to Blackboard’s MyCourses, student tracking tools became more extensive. Professors can now view information per student or per an individual student’s session, including the number of files or entries viewed, the number of mail messages read and the number of assignments started or completed. The purpose of student tracking, according to CIS Senior Instructional Technologist Patricia Zudeck, is to allow professors to see which online tools the students actually use. “We don’t really promote it because there hasn’t been a lot of interest in it,” Zudeck said. Regina DeAngelo, who is also a CIS senior instructional technologist and is responsible for teaching professors to use MyCourses’ features, agreed that few professors use the tracking capabilities. “I have actually never had a professor who has mentioned
using it,” she said. Ross Cheit, associate professor of public policy, has used the tracking tools for the past two or three years as an additional indicator of students’ involvement in his course. “Sure enough it identified a few people who I didn’t know were very engaged in the course,” he said. Cheit said last year he invited to lunch the 10 students who used the site the most to get their feedback about the course’s site. He added that though monitoring students’ use of the site is helpful, it is only a crude measure of their actual academic performance. “It has a very tempting quality,” he said. Students were not unnerved by the tracking features, but said it is important to notify students if professors are using them. “It is unethical for them to do that and not inform us,” Daniel MacCombie ’08 said. “Students don’t really have a choice in whether or not to use MyCourses.” Alex Morse ’11, a freshman representative on the Undergraduate Council of Students, said UCS could help inform students of the tracking feature if students consider it a problem. Both students said the site should indicate that these tools exist. The tracking feature does have limitations. Professors at the University of British Columbia, where the system was developed, found the tracking platform was an insignificant measure of student activity. For example, a student may access the file through a friend’s account or access a file on their own account but never actually view it.
Page 6
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
Crime incidence in Rhode Island, 2006 Providence
No. of offenses known
R.I. cities other than Providence
Crime incidence in Providence and Rhode Island, 2006 Providence 0 11 52 379 530 972 1,733 1,746 5,106 8,585 19,114
Arson Murder and Nonnegligent Manslaughter Forcible Rape Robbery Aggravated Assault Violent Crime Motor Vehicle Theft Burglary Larceny-Theft Property Crime Total
Rhode Island 3 28 285 735 1381 2429 3582 5415 18621 27618 60097
Breakdown of law-enforcement employees by university, 2006 total officers
mu
rde
ght er for cib le r ape rob ber agg y rav ate da ssa ult vio len t cr mo ime tor veh icle the ft bur gla ry larc eny -th eft pro per ty c rim e
r an
dn
onn
egl
ige
nt m
ans
lau
ars
on
total civilians
Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation
Cornell
Brown
Yale
Harvard
FBI reports decrease in R.I. crime continued from page 1 Department files the FBI report, Porter said. If a Brown student is mugged in downtown Providence, the crime will show up in the Providence crime database on the FBI Web site, and not in the Brown University crimes database. It is difficult, therefore, to determine how many Brown students have been involved in crimes in Providence. Porter said he is confident that DPS nevertheless has a good idea of how many Brown students are involved in crime around the city. “Whenever a student or a member of this community is involved in a crime, I think that they are more prone to contacting the Department of Public Safety,” Porter said. “If they call us and ... they say ‘I was down at the mall and this incident happened to me,’ we’ll call the PPD and send down a cruiser.” The FBI and DPS classify some crimes differently. For example, the FBI’s database provides data for forcible rape but not for other sexual assaults, while the federal Department of Education requires universities to report other kinds of sex offenses, Porter said. Universities are required to report crime statistics in accordance with the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, named after a young woman who was raped and murdered in her Lehigh University dorm room in 1986. “Sex offenses (that DPS reports) could also include rape and also include other things,” Porter said, adding that the FBI’s data could be confusing. In 2005, DPS reported four sexual assaults to the Department of Education, and one rape to the FBI.
happy leif ericson day!
W orld & n ation Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Democrats plan to unveil new spy proposal By Siobhan Gorman Baltimore Sun
WASHINGTON — Democrats plan to unveil a new surveillance proposal Tuesday , attempting to overhaul portions of a law they passed under political pressure in August. To prevail, however, they must persuade both liberal lawmakers and President Bush to accept the measure. With the 2008 campaign looming, Democratic leaders find themselves largely playing defense in this battle over controversial spy measures. They are trying to avoid both Republican attacks that they are promoting lax security laws and Democratic charges that they are caving in to Republican pressure. Privately, some Democratic congressional aides are already jittery about being outmaneuvered — again — by the Republicans. It’s with good reason, said Bruce Fein, a former Justice Department official under President Reagan and outspoken critic of the Bush administration’s expansion of spy power, because the postSept. 11 pressures facing lawmakers favor the Republicans in this equation. “You’ll never be criticized for spying too much, only for spying too little,” he said. That is why he expects the coming surveillance debate to mirror the one last summer, adding, “It’s going to be the same scenario all over again.” The Democrats’ new proposal would require the government to obtain court approval every year for intelligence programs that monitor communications between the United States and abroad for possible national security threats,
Page 7
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
according to congressional aides and sources who have seen the new plan. This compromise approach aims for the “sensible center,” as one aide who helped draft the proposal put it. The court would review the procedures for selecting spy targets and safeguarding privacy. It would require quarterly audits of the surveillance activities approved by the court, and the law would be renegotiated at the end of 2009. It would also require that Congress receive the same data on past spy programs. The law passed in August, the Protect America Act, expires in February, so some version of this proposal is likely to pass by then. The Protect America Act allows intelligence agencies to monitor, without a warrant, the communications of all foreign intelligence targets, not just terrorist suspects, including calls and e-mails with individuals in the United States. The law requires the government to submit its procedures to a secret national security court, but it severely limits the court’s ability to rule on their legality. Bush has called on Congress to retain the Protect America Act and provide new legal protections for companies that have assisted the government since the 2001 terrorist attacks. The Democratic proposal does not include a legal immunity provision, the congressional aide said, because the administration has not given lawmakers the documents on the origins of the controversial warrantless surveillance program. The White House told lawmakers they will provide that information on Oct. 22, a week after the Democratic bill is to be debated on the
House floor. Senate Democrats, who plan to introduce their plan next week, are considering ways to include some version of legal immunity. Democrats, many suf fering from buyer’s remorse over the law passed in August, have said they want to revise the law now to avoid another round of rash, politically driven decisions in the middle of a presidential primary season that begins in January. Some lawmakers, however, said political calculations continue to drive the debate over this obscure corner of the law, which has become the latest battleground in the fight to claim the national-security mantle. “The politics has trumped the substance, so far,” said Rep. Jane Harman, D-Calif. , who heads the Homeland Security subcommittee on intelligence. “The administration has played the fear card brilliantly.” Meanwhile, Sen. Christopher “Kit” Bond, R-Mo., accused Harman of playing politics after she charged recently that Republicans used a “bogus claim” about a possible attack on the Capitol to pressure Congress to pass the surveillance measure in August. Behind the scenes, however, Republicans are acutely aware of the political opportunities within the surveillance debate, and they’re angling to use it to their advantage, said a House Republican leadership aide. Republicans, he said, would be satisfied with making the Protect America Act permanent, adding that they would have the best chance of success if they can back the Democrats against a deadline, as they did in August.
Fox defends his wealth while promoting book By Hector Tobar Los Angeles T imes
MEXICO CITY— Vicente Fox, former president of Mexico, wants his countrymen to know he will never abandon his beloved rancho in central Mexico, which opponents and the media have attacked as a gaudy display of opulence rarely seen in a country wracked by poverty. On tour in the United States to promote his autobiography “A Revolution of Hope,” Fox is under fire at home for the wealth he appears to have accumulated during his six years as president. Fox handed over the top office to fellow conservative Felipe Calderon last year. In a telephone interview Monday with the Los Angeles Times, Fox blamed the controversy on detractors angry that he refuses to act like other former Mexican presidents: He won’t allow himself to fade into obscurity, like Ernesto Zedillo, or to be pushed into ignominious exile, like Carlos Salinas. “My enemies are trying to stop me in my path,” Fox said from a hotel in New York. “I have absolutely nothing to hide. I am the only president to make his wealth public, and to open his home to everyone.” The issue of Fox’s wealth exploded into the public discourse last month, after the magazine Quien published a glossy spread of Fox and his wife, Marta, at San Cristobal, the couple’s ranch in the central Mexican state of Guanajuato. Quien depicted Fox walking with his herd of cattle and sitting at a desk in his librar y with several equine-inspired decorations. It showed off his collection of dolls
modeled after Mexican presidents (including him), and a large pond stocked with fish, which a caption described as “an enormous lake.” To an American reader, it might have seemed a relatively harmless display of post-presidential comfort. But to many observers in this country, where nearly half the population lives in poverty, the pictures were offensive. Former aide Lino Korrodi called it a “cynical” display of wealth. There were calls in Congress for an investigation into Fox’s finances. “This is just the tip of the iceberg of the corrupt practices that will surely come to public light,” said Antonio Ortega, a legislator with the leftist Democratic Revolution Party. Fox said such statements perplexed him, because his home always has been open to visitors. He said speculation about his wealth was being fed by a traditional distrust of politicians in a countr y where a single party, the Institutional Revolutionary Party — known in Mexico as the PRI — dominated politics for 72 years. Fox’s victory in 2000 ended the PRI’s political dominance. “In that twisted culture of the PRI dictatorship, an ex-president had to shut up, he had to disappear, usually because he was charged with corruption,” Fox said. “I am changing that culture with my actions.” Fox broke a taboo with the Quien photo shoot: few could recall an expresident purposefully drawing so much attention to himself. In the weeks since, Mexican media have gone after Fox with a vengeance.
Private intelligence company says leak ruined its terrorist spying effort By Joby Warrick Washington Post
WASHINGTON — A small private intelligence company that monitors Islamic terrorist groups obtained a new Osama bin Laden video ahead of its official release last month, and around 10 a.m. on Sept. 7, it notified the Bush administration of its secret acquisition. It gave two senior officials access on the condition that the officials not reveal they had it until the al-Qaida release. Within 20 minutes, a range of intelligence agencies had begun downloading it from the company’s Web site. By midafternoon that day, the video and a transcript of its audio track had been leaked from within the Bush administration to cable television news and broadcast worldwide. The founder of the company, the SITE Intelligence Group, says this premature disclosure tipped al-Qaida to a security breach and destroyed a years-long surveillance operation that the company has used to intercept and pass along secret messages, videos and advance warnings of suicide bombings from the terrorist group’s communications network. “Techniques that took years to develop are now ineffective and wor thless,” said Rita Katz, the firm’s 44-year-old founder, who has garnered wide attention by publicizing statements and videos from extremist chat rooms and Web sites,
while attracting controversy over the secrecy of SITE’s methodology. Her firm provides intelligence about terrorist groups to a wide range of paying clients, including private firms and military and intelligence agencies from the United States and several other countries. The precise source of the leak remains unknown. Government officials declined to be interviewed about the circumstances on the record, but they did not challenge Katz’s version of events. They also said the incident had no effect on U.S. intelligence-gathering efforts and did not diminish the government’s ability to anticipate attacks. While acknowledging that SITE had achieved success, the officials said U.S. agencies have their own sophisticated means of watching al-Qaida on the Web. “We have individuals in the right places dealing with all these issues, across all 16 intelligence agencies,” said Ross Feinstein, spokesman for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. But privately, some intelligence officials called the incident regrettable, and one official said SITE had been “tremendously helpful” in ferreting out al-Qaida secrets over time. The al-Qaida video aired on Sept. 7 attracted international attention as the first new video message from the group’s leader in three years. In it, a dark-bearded bin Laden urges Americans to convert to Islam and
predicts failure for the Bush administration in Iraq and Afghanistan. The video was aired on hundreds of Western news Web sites nearly a full day before its release by a distribution company linked to al-Qaida. Computer logs and records reviewed by the Washington Post support SITE’s claim that it snatched the video from al-Qaida days beforehand. Katz requested that the precise date and details of the acquisition not be made public, saying such disclosures could reveal sensitive details about the company’s methods. SITE — an acronym for the Search for International Terrorist Entities — was established in 2002 with the stated goal of tracking and exposing terrorist groups, according to the company’s Web site. Katz, an Iraqi-born Israeli citizen whose father was executed by Saddam Hussein in the 1960s, has made the investigation of terrorist groups a passionate quest. “We were able to establish sources that provided us with unique and important information into al-Qaida’s hidden world,” Katz said. Her company’s income is drawn from subscriber fees and contracts. Katz said she decided to offer an advance copy of the bin Laden video to the White House without charge so officials there could prepare for its eventual release. She spoke first with White House counsel Fred Fielding, whom she had previously met, and then with
Joel Bagnal, deputy assistant to the president for homeland security. Both expressed interest in obtaining a copy, and Bagnal suggested that she send a copy to Michael Leiter, who holds the No. 2 job at the National Counterterrorism Center. Administration and intelligence officials would not comment on whether they had obtained the video separately. Katz said Fielding and Bagnal made it clear to her that the White House did not possess a copy at the time she offered hers. Around 10 a.m. on Sept. 7, Katz sent both Leiter and Fielding an email with a link to a private SITE Web page containing the video and an English transcript. “Please understand the necessity for secrecy,” Katz wrote in her e-mail. “We ask you not to distribute ... (as) it could harm our investigations.” Fielding replied with an e-mail expressing gratitude to Katz. “It is you who deserves the thanks,” he wrote, according to a copy of the message. There was no record of a response from Leiter or the national intelligence director’s office. Exactly what happened next is unclear. But within minutes of Katz’s e-mail to the White House, government-registered computers began downloading the video from SITE’s server, according to a log of file transfers. The records show dozens of downloads over the next three hours from computers with addresses registered to defense and intelligence agencies.
By midafternoon, several television news networks reported obtaining copies of the transcript. A copy posted around 3 p.m. on Fox News’ Web site referred to SITE and included page markers identical to those used by the group. “This confirms that the U.S. government was responsible for the leak of this document,” Katz wrote in an e-mail to Leiter at 5 p.m. Al-Qaida supporters, now alerted to the intrusion into their secret network, put up new obstacles that prevented SITE from gaining the kind of access it had obtained in the past, according to Katz. A small number of private intelligence companies compete with SITE in scouring terrorists’ networks for information and messages, and some have questioned the company’s motives and methods, including the claim that its access to al-Qaida’s network was unique. One competitor, Ben Venzke, founder of IntelCenter, said he questions SITE’s decision — as described by Katz — to offer the video to White House policy-makers rather than quietly share it with intelligence analysts. “It is not just about getting the video first,” Venzke said. “It is about having the proper methods and procedures in place to make sure that the appropriate intelligence gets to where it needs to go in the intelligence community and elsewhere in order to support ongoing counterterrorism operations.”
Page 8
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
SAT writing test gets little attention in admission continued from page 1 their grades in first-year English composition courses and first-year grade point averages to determine how valid a predictor the SAT writing section is. The College Board created the SAT writing section two years ago to test students’ knowledge of “grammar, usage and word choice,” Viggiano wrote. Its two components are a 35-minute multiple choice section and a 25-minute short essay. The multiple choice section requires students to identify grammatical errors and improve sentences, while the short essay asks students to articulate their opinions on an issue using examples drawn from past readings as well as their personal experiences and observations. The essays are graded on organization, grammar, clarity and the development and support of the thesis statement. Ben Xiong ’11 said he wasn’t concerned with the writing section “because all the colleges said they
wouldn’t count it since it was new.” Miller said both the University’s required open-ended admission essay and the SAT writing section are of value to the Office of Admission. “Application essays are thoughtful,” he said. “Students have time to write them and the opportunity to proofread them and have them proofread.” On the other hand, he said, the writing section of the SAT is “an unvarnished look at people’s writing ability.” Miller said both types of writing are relevant to predicting an applicant’s potential success at a university. “Writing in college happens in a variety of environments,” he said. “There are extended paper topics as well as exam writing.” Stephen Hebson, a senior at Falmouth High School in Maine who recently visited Brown, said he had been told that the writing section was “the least important of the three sections” in the eyes of colleges. Hebson plans to apply to Brown
this year. “I’d rank it the least important,” agreed Amita Maram, a senior at West Windsor–Plainsboro High School South Campus in New Jersey who plans to apply early decision to Brown this fall. Maram said her perception was that the “essay graders pay more attention to content and examples than writing ability and form.” She also characterized the mechanics of written language that form the basis of the multiple choice section as “really technical things” that are subordinate to the abilities tested by the other sections, such as critical reading. Miller emphasized that SAT scores only play one role within the larger context of a student’s application. “What we want to do is always put them in proper perspective,” he said. “The SATs are a piece of what we look at. ... They’re not the end all, be all.” “We will continue to use standardized tests, but we will make sure they are used properly,” Miller added.
Reality Check ’08 tracks candidates continued from page 1 if they’re in Iowa talking to corn farmers about ethanol, what are they going to say about ethanol to people in New York City?” “Flip-flop” and its derivatives — flip-flopping and flip-flopper — became buzzwords for Republicans talking about former presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., during the 2004 election. McCracken and fellow creators hoped to play off the term’s popularity when, on their home page, they called their site a chronicle of “all the flip-flops fit to print.” But McCracken said their definition of “flip-flop” differs from that of Karl Rove, the former political adviser to President Bush. “The conventional notion (of spotting flip-flopping) is: You look at a debate, you parse out one sentence from the debate, you parse out another sentence the candidate said 20 years ago, and say, ‘wow, they’re
a flip-flopper,’ ” McCracken said. He said Reality Check ’08 examines stances on a more macro level, looking for fundamental disparities in a given candidate’s positions. So if a candidate gives a speech defending abortion rights, then later gives a speech railing against abortion rights, Reality Check ’08 would call out him or her for flip-flopping. McCracken said it’s okay for candidates to develop new opinions if they have legitimate explanations. “To be consistent for the sake of being consistent — that’s not useful for anybody,” he said. “But I think we want consistency of a thought process.” In searching for candidates’ thought processes, the site differentiates itself from other political blogs. Myriad bloggers summarize, link and sound off on the day’s top political stories. But analyzing daily news in view of candidates’ previous statements requires more time and
consideration, and it’s how Reality Check ’08 has garnered attention. Mark McKinnon, former media adviser to President Bush and current campaign adviser to Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., praised the site. “If only the rest of the blogosphere was this thoughtful, incisive, articulate and interesting! Then all of America would be paying attention,” he wrote on its testimonials section. To delve deeply into candidates’ pasts requires a certain fascination with politics — which makes McCracken right for the job. Even when he isn’t updating Reality Check ’08, he reads the Economist and tracks several popular political blogs daily. But he says his site provides more than political trivia — it helps to create an informed electorate. “Hopefully we can get to a point where it’s updated daily,” he said. “Otherwise no one’s going to come.”
Legislation affects birth control prices continued from page 1 the legislation went into effect. But since early this year, newspapers around the country have been reporting significant price hikes for birth control. Under the old system, students could either purchase birth control through their insurance and pay a co-pay on the market price or buy discounted clinic packs without insurance, said Edward Wheeler, director of Health Services. At the time, for many students, it was actually cheaper and more convenient to purchase the clinic
packs. Since clinic packs are no longer available, many students have simply started buying birth control using insurance. “Most students are okay with charging their insurance,” Wheeler said. Paul Bergeron, director of the Health Ser vices pharmacy, said that a year ago, students could purchase clinic packs for about $14 per month, while the market price for a one-month supply of pills ranges from $28 to $55. The co-pay for birth control bought using the University’s insurance plan ranges from $10 for generic to $25 for brand-name. Some insurance companies cover the entire cost of the prescription. Despite the price changes, there has been no noticeable decrease in the number of students receiving birth control from Health Services, though initially “we were worried that it actually would decrease our numbers,” Wheeler said. The prices for birth control have risen for the uninsured, but Wheeler said the number of students affected is very small — less than 5 percent of students purchasing birth control
from Brown, he estimated. Students who had been buying birth control through their insurance companies all along have not noticed any price change, since those companies have only been covering market price dr ugs, Wheeler said. A more prominent effect of the policy is that students can only purchase a one-month supply of birth control at a time. “Students just feel that it is an inconvenience to come back every month,” Bergeron said. Naomi Ninneman, a health educator at Health Services, said though Brown hasn’t been hit hard by the legislation, nationally it could become a problem for many women. “Ideally, you don’t choose a method based on cost,” she said. But, she said, poor women may be forced to do just that. “It’s cheaper to subsidize prevention than deal with unintended pregnancy,” Ninneman said. “If this becomes a pattern of not funding prevention, in the long run, it’s certainly going to have some negative consequences.”
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Crusaders’ offense outscores football continued from page 12 pass and rumbled 19 yards to the two, where Strickland punched the ball in for his second touchdown of the game at 14:11 in the fourth quarter. A big play on special teams gave Brown great field position for its game-tying drive. Facing a 4th-andfour at the Brown 47, Holy Cross sent out its offense but elected to have quarterback Dominic Randolph pooch punt, an attempt which was blocked by linebacker Frank Nuzzo ’09. Dougherty then hit Farnham for 24 yards, wide out Bobby Sewall ’10 for 17 yards and found Farnham in the flat for a seven-yard catch-and-run which tied the score at 34. “At halftime, we knew we were going to have to put up some points,” Dougherty said. “We really started throwing the ball, and in the second half things clicked on offense.” Dougherty finished the game 42for-65 for 422 yards and two touchdowns and also had no interceptions. His 65 passing attempts set a Brown single-game record. Farnham, Sewall and Raymond were the primary targets, finishing with 99, 100 and 138 yards, respectively. “Spreading the ball around is just a part of our offense,” Dougherty said. “Different guys do different plays well — we had a lot of variety.” Holy Cross responded to Brown’s game-tying score with another passing touchdown from Randolph, but Brown drove back down the field once again. On first down from the Crusader six, Sewall lined up at quarterback and ran into the end zone, but the touchdown
was called back due to a holding penalty and Brown was forced to settle for a field goal with 5:46 to play. “That holding call was a big, big play,” Estes said. “We didn’t want three (points) there.” The penalty “took the wind out of our sails a little bit,” Dougherty added. Needing to stop Holy Cross to have a chance on the ensuing drive, Brown’s defense was pushed aside by the Crusdaers who scored on a 19-yard touchdown pass to seal the Bears’ fate. That Brown was unable to pull out the victory hurt even more due to the steep hill it had climbed to get back into the game. In the first half it looked like a long shot for Brown to make the game interesting. The Bears got off to a good start after Holy Cross opened the scoring. The Crusaders started with an impressive drive capped by a 19-yard touchdown run, but Brown responded when Dougherty hit Sewall in stride on the right side of the field. Sewall made a move to the middle, split two defenders and dove into the end zone for a 31-yard touchdown. The visitors drove straight down the field for a field goal and touchdown on successive possessions in the first quarter, giving them a 17-7 lead at the end of the first quarter. Brown then drove to the Holy Cross three-yard line, but after Dougherty was tackled behind the line of scrimmage and was sacked on consecutive plays, the team settled for a 30-yard field goal from Steve Morgan ’08 with 10:44 to go in the second quarter. Mor-
gan’s field goal gave the senior the all-time Ivy League record for points from a kicker. But the field goal only halted the Crusaders’ onslaught temporarily. They scored on 14- and 30-yard passing touchdowns to open up a 31-10 lead that remained until halftime. In a last desperate attempt, Brown drove to the Holy Cross 12, where Dougherty was pummeled for a sack and three-yard loss on 2nd-and-8. Clearly shaken, Dougherty threw a quick, nervous pass on third down before throwing low to Paul Raymond on fourth down to end the drive a minute before intermission. When asked whether he should have called a time out before the fourth down play to allow the Bears offense more time to regroup, Estes responded, “Yeah, probably.” Estes emphasized that the team cannot “let teams get ahead of us like that,” especially in next week’s game against Princeton. Brewer said the key to turning around the team’s season is the defense. “It was just poor execution,” he said. “We missed a lot of tackles. We have to cut down on mistakes and get back to the basics.” Despite the improvements the team needs to make, Brewer is optimistic about the team’s Ivy chances, with a loss to Harvard their lone blemish. “I’m looking forward to getting out there and getting a win under our belts,” he said. “We just gotta put these losses behind us because we still have a great shot at winning the conference.”
Same result for w. soccer in New Jersey continued from page 12 “When you’re playing well … and then all of a sudden you’re down 1-0, it’s going to take something out of you,” Pincince said. It did not take long for Matheson to strike again. After a struggle for possession, she emerged with the ball and crushed a shot into the net from the top of the box in the 30th minute. Princeton threatened again two minutes later, but Yellin made a leaping save on a shot to the back post by Melissa Whitley. The first half ended with the Bears trailing 2-0 despite leading the Tigers 9-6 in shots, but the team remained upbeat about its chances. “The first half I felt we played pretty well,” Cunningham said. “The score wasn’t really indicative of how we played.” Co-captain Julia Shapira ’08 added, “(Matheson) capitalized on two great
goals. There’s really nothing we could do about that.” With the Bears desperately searching for an early second-half goal to get back into the game, Princeton put the game out of reach with a goal in the 50th minute. The Tigers had possession in the Bears end and Brown cleared the ball out of the box, but Regina Yang struck a perfect onetimer from 35 yards out over Yellin’s head for a 3-0 lead. “The third goal I thought broke the camel’s back,” Pincince said. “We needed to get a goal in the first 15 minutes to make this a 2-1 game.” Princeton tallied its fourth goal in the 61st minute after a controversial no-call. Matheson played a long ball toward the box, and defender Paige Reidy ’10 got tangled up with Princeton forward Allison Williams. Reidy fell to the pitch, leaving Williams alone, and she made no mistake by sliding the ball past Yellin. A couple of minutes later, Brown
drew a foul in the box for a penalty kick. Shapira took the kick and drilled the ball to the upper-left corner to get the Bears on the scoreboard. “(Penalty kicks) never really make me that nervous, so I just focused on the corner and went for it,” Shapira said. Matheson nearly scored again in the 82nd minute, as she blasted a shot from 20 yards out. Yellin made a great save by punching the ball over the net to prevent Matheson from recording the hat trick. The Bears had a final opportunity for a score in the 85th minute off of a corner kick. Melissa Kim ’10 had a shot from inside the six-yard box, but Dale made the save. After the game, Pincince paid Matheson the ultimate compliment. “I’m glad you’re graduating this year,” he told her. Brown will head to Harvard on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. for another Ivy League showdown.
M. soccer finally trap Tigers in overtime continued from page 12 The next five minutes were frantic for the Bears as they rushed to take back control of the game. “There were a few minutes where we were kind of just launching the ball forward and trying to put them under pressure,” Howerton said. “Then I think we started to slow down, they got the red card, and then we opened up the game a lot.” The Bears had planned for many different situations coming into this game, and although it was an unlucky position to be in, they were ready to rebound. “We had a prepared kind of a formation that we were going to go to
Page 9
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
and how we were going to play,” said co-captain Matt Britner ’07.5. After the goal, the game turned very physical, and Princeton’s Ben Burton was ejected with 7:18 left on the clock after receiving his second yellow card. Four minutes later, Brown capitalized on its man advantage. Chris Roland ’10 found the back of the net with only 3:35 remaining off a corner kick from David Walls ’11. “We lost our concentration for a minute and (Princeton) scored a goal,” said Head Coach Mike Noonan. “But (the Bears) never gave up … I’m very, very proud of the team.” In a situation jarringly similar to
last season’s match against Princeton, the Bears headed into overtime, hoping they could dig up the same results they had the previous year. For regular season games, two suddendeath overtime periods of 10 minutes each are played when a game is tied after 90 minutes of play. After the late goal, the momentum was with the Bears heading into OT. With 4:49 left in the first period of overtime, Elenz-Martin drilled a shot into the lower right corner of Princeton’s goal for the win. Kevin Davies ’08 provided the assist. In a matchup of teams with identical records, Brown hosts No. 6 Boston College at Stevenson Field tomorrow at 7 p.m..
West’s best prove better than Bears in m. water polo continued from page 12 because it plays its home games so far away due to pool renovations. “It made the team feel that they have support, which is sometimes hard because we don’t have a pool,” Mercado said. “We had parents, friends and even alumni out there cheering for us.” Holland added that playing outdoors was a nice change of scenery for the team. “The guys enjoy playing outside,” he said. “It’s a good change of pace from indoor pools, especially for the guys from the West Coast who grew up playing
outside.” The Bears will try to take what they learned from playing the big boys of the water polo world and improve going into their Northeastern schedule. “This is where the season starts,” Mercado said. “It’s the stretch run against teams we can beat.” Brown will start the stretch run this weekend, when it takes on the Massachusetts Institute of Technology on Thursday, Fordham University on Friday and Iona College on Saturday. All the games will be held in Cambridge this weekend.
E ditorial & L etters Page 10
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
S t a f f E d i to r i a l
Fuzzy math After sifting through the Department of Public Safety’s crime data from 2006, we hardly feel we’re getting the full story on College Hill crime. Though the criteria for the statistics are public, the selectivity of reported drug and alcohol incidents is misleading and other numbers downright confusing. Particularly hard to understand is how burglaries on College Hill could fluctuate so dramatically over the past three years. Forty burglaries were reported to DPS in 2004, followed by 16 a year later and 56 in 2006. Those numbers represent a 60 percent drop in burglaries at a time when DPS was cutting back on patrolling dorms, according to Chief of Police Mark Porter, followed by a significant 250 percent rise in a one-year span. Porter chalked the numbers up to a flood of new technology in student dorm rooms. While each new class of students does bring along a selection of electronics, laptops and iPods, it’s hard to believe that in 2005 students locked their doors and kept pricey possessions safe while in 2006, they drastically changed their behavior, causing a spike in theft. The drug and alcohol statistics included in the DPS report are equally surprising. Of course, as on any college campus, drug and alcohol use are unlikely to be reported with the same frequency and fervor as laptop thefts or muggings. Still, DPS has reported zero arrests for drugs, alcohol or weapons violations over the past three years. Last year’s increase in discipilinary incidents for drug use — 21 in 2006, up from 9 in 2005 — was thanks to two incidents in which large groups of students were caught at once. DPS and campus life officials openly indicated the statistics are inconclusive. Associate Vice President for Campus Life and Dean of Student Life Margaret Klawunn told The Herald, “We know there are things we’re not catching.” And this year’s increase is an anomaly in a sharp downward trend since 2003 when 103 students were referred for drug-related disciplinary action. While DPS’ impressive record of no arrests for drugs, alcohol or weapons arrests is largely because such incidents are passed onto the Providence Police Department, that practice brings us to wonder why the department even releases numbers on arrests for these violations. If DPS isn’t dealing with drug and alcohol arrests, why even suggest we have a remarkably completely drug-free campus, which these statistics show? (The statement explaining the reasons for such low numbers is listed separately from the report on DPS’ Web site.) In light of what transpired earlier this year on the campus of Eastern Michigan University, these figures are even more disheartening. On that campus, when a student was murdered in her dorm, officials initially informed students that there was “no reason to suspect foul play,” even though student had been found partially naked and possibly sexually assaulted. A suspect was not arrested until more than two months later. The truth eventually came to light, and the university’s president and other administrators lost their jobs Though we doubt DPS would ever intentionally conceal information or endanger the campus by not telling a story to the fullest extent legally permissible, splicing statistics or reporting them without context is the wrong message to send to students. Crime happens everywhere, even in those College Hill dorms where most students don’t bother to lock their doors, possibly recalling that only 46 burglaries happened last year and that a minor theft couldn’t possibly happen to them in the moment they step out of their Keeney double to use the bathroom down the hall.
T he B rown D aily H erald Editors-in-Chief Eric Beck Mary-Catherine Lader
Executive Editors Stephen Colelli Allison Kwong Ben Leubsdorf
Senior Editors Jonathan Sidhu Anne Wootton
editorial Lydia Gidwitz Robin Steele Oliver Bowers Stephanie Bernhard Simmi Aujla Sara Molinaro Ross Frazier Karla Bertrand Jacob Schuman Peter Cipparone Erin Frauenhofer Stu Woo Benjy Asher Amy Ehrhart Jason Harris
Arts & Culture Editor Arts & Culture Editor Campus Watch Editor Features Editor Metro Editor Metro Editor News Editor Opinions Editor Opinions Editor Sports Editor Sports Editor Sports Editor Asst. Sports Editor Asst. Sports Editor Asst. Sports Editor
photo Christopher Bennett Rahul Keerthi Ashley Hess
Photo Editor Photo Editor Sports Photo Editor
Business Mandeep Gill General Manager Darren Ball Executive Manager Dan DeNorch Executive Manager Laurie-Ann Paliotti Sr. Advertising Manager Susan Dansereau Office Manager production Steve DeLucia Catherine Cullen Roxanne Palmer
Design Editor Copy Desk Chief Graphics Editor
alexander gard - murray
L e tt e r s Operation Iraqi Freedom supports Lt. Watada To the Editor: This Tuesday, Lieutenant Ehren Watada, the first officer to publicly refuse service in Iraq, will face his second court-martial. Watada’s first court martial, which resulted in a mistrial in February of 2007, charged him with “conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman” for publicly criticizing the Bush administration and for missing the departure of his brigade in June 2006. We know in advance that Watada is unlikely to win. For the court to allow his refusal to fight is for the court to admit the illegality of the war. But from a logical standpoint, Watada’s case is strong: Congress has ignored and distorted its original objectives. Watada believes that the war violates the principles of the Constitution, saying that the founders could never believe “a standing army would be used for profit and manifest destiny.” He also cites international law in his case, claiming that the Nuremberg principles call for soldiers to disobey illegal orders. It is of paramount importance that we support Watada in his stand against his superiors. Petitions, vigils, and protests — all of these actions are effective in terms of
making a government take action. But if a government refuses to end this illegal war, the only real way we can stop it is if the soldiers themselves refuse to fight. Watada said in his speech at the Veterans For Peace Convention last year, “If soldiers realized this war is contrary to what the Constitution extols — if they stood up and threw their weapons down — no president could ever initiate a war of choice again.” The military is attempting to make a symbol out of Watada, to show how insubordination will not be tolerated. It is our job as conscientious citizens to stand up and support Watada, and every other soldier who refuses to fight. It is time we showed the military and the government that it is time to end the war, and to show the soldiers that we are behind them when they risk everything to oppose it. Please join Operation Iraqi Freedom, Brown’s antiwar group, on the Main Green on Tuesday, Oct. 9 for more information on Watada. Harry Stark ’11 Andrea Dillon ’11 Oct. 4
have an opinion? write a letter.
post- magazine Hillary Dixler Melanie Duch Taryn Martinez Rajiv Jayadevan Sonia Kim Matt Hill
Managing Editor Managing Editor Managing Editor Features Editor Features Editor Associate Editor
Brianna Barzola, Alex Unger, Steve DeLucia, Designers Catherine Cullen, Alexander Rosenberg, Meha Verghese, Copy Editors Senior Staff Writers Rachel Arndt, Michael Bechek, Irene Chen, Chaz Firestone, Isabel Gottlieb, Nandini Jayakrishna, Franklin Kanin, Kristina Kelleher, Debbie Lehmann, Scott Lowenstein, Michael Skocpol, Nick Werle Staff Writers Amanda Bauer, Brianna Barzola, Evan Boggs, Aubry Bracco, Caitlin Browne, Joy Chua, Patrick Corey, Catherine Goldberg, Olivia Hoffman, Jessica Kerry, Cameron Lee, Hannah Levintova, Abe Lubetkin, Christian Martell, Taryn Martinez, Anna Millman, Marielle Segarra, Matt Varley, Meha Verghese Sports Staff Writers Andrew Braca, Han Cui, Kaitlyn Laabs, Kathleen Loughlin, Alex Mazerov, Megan McCahill Business Staff Diogo Alves, Emilie Aries, Beth Berger, Steven Butschi, Timothy Carey, Jilyn Chao, Ellen DaSilva, Pete Drinan, Dana Feuchtbaum, Patrick Free, Sarah Glick, Alexander Hughes, Claire Kiely, Soobin Kim, Katelyn Koh, Darren Kong, Christie Liu, Philip Maynard, Ingrid Pangandoyon, Mariya Perelyubskaya, Viseth San, Paolo Servado, Kaustubh Shah, Saira Shervani, Yelena Shteynberg, Jon Spector, Robert Stefani, Lily Tran, Hari Tyagi, Lindsay Walls, Benjamin Xiong Design Staff Brianna Barzola, Chaz Kelsh,Ting Lawrence, Philip Maynard, Alex Unger, Aditya Voleti, Wudan Yan Photo Staff Stuart Duncan-Smith, Austin Freeman, Tai Ho Shin Copy Editors Ayelet Brinn, Rafael Chaiken, Erin Cummings, Katie Delaney, Jake Frank, Jennifer Grayson, Ted Lamm, Max Mankin, Alex Mazerov, Ben Mercer, Ezra Miller, Seth Motel, Alexander Rosenberg, Emily Sanford, Sara Slama, Jenna Stark, Laura Straub, Meha Verghese, Elena Weissman
letters@browndailyherald.com
E d i to r ’ s
n ot e
A letter to the editor in Friday’s Herald (“Chinese students urge against Olympics boycott,” Oct. 5) included as authors the names of two students who, in fact, did not write or endorse the letter. Youngmin Lee GS and Jaemin Kim GS were erroneously included in a list of names provided to The Herald as authors or supporters of the letter. The Herald apologizes for the error.
C O R R E C T I O N S P olicy The Brown Daily Herald is committed to providing the Brown University community with the most accurate information possible. Corrections may be submitted up to seven calendar days after publication. C ommentary P O L I C Y The staff editorial is the majority opinion of the editorial board of The Brown Daily Herald. The editorial viewpoint does not necessarily reflect the views of The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. Columns, letters and comics reflect the opinions of their authors only. L etters to the E ditor P olicy Send letters to letters@browndailyherald.com. Include a telephone number with all letters. The Herald reserves the right to edit all letters for length and cannot assure the publication of any letter. Please limit letters to 250 words. Under special circumstances writers may request anonymity, but no letter will be printed if the author’s identity is unknown to the editors. Announcements of events will not be printed. advertising P olicy The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. reserves the right to accept or decline any advertisement at its discretion.
O pinions Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Page 11
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
Math department argues retention is not a problem THOMAS BANCHOFF, JEFFREY BROCK, JEFFREY HOFFSTEIN, STEVEN MILLER, JILL PIPHER Guest Columnists Are students fleeing mathematics courses? That’s not what the facts show. “Problems in introductory courses have resulted in noticeable attrition,” a recent Herald article asserted (“As students shy from physics and math, U. looks at reasons,” Sept. 28). What do the numbers really show? In the mathematics department, the enrollments in lower division courses in the Fall semesters of years 2004-2007 have been exactly: 796, 803, 827, 901. There is no “noticeable attrition” over the last few years — quite the opposite in fact. Enrollments are steadily rising. “Perhaps worst of all — students unaware of ways to get help” the article said. Yet on the right-hand side of Brown’s math department Web site there are two links under the heading “Getting Help.” From here one can find the office hours of faculty and teaching assistants and information about the Math Resource Center, a graduate- and undergraduate-staffed help center open four evenings a week, every week, for students taking certain mathematics courses. In addition to the information on the math department Web site, instructors advise students about tutoring opportunities through the Office of the Dean of the College, and confer with and counsel freshmen advisers in other departments about math placement. This past
summer, Professor of Mathematics Tom Banchoff’s online freshman placement survey was inaugurated. Hundreds of entering freshmen received individual e-mail responses to questions about math courses. Helping students is not confined to placement advice or academic support. The department works to create a generally supportive and congenial environment: funding and advising active undergraduate groups (the Math Departmental Undergraduate Group and Women in Science and Engineering), offering prize examinations (at various levels), participating in faculty-student events such as luncheons, open houses, undergraduate seminars and supporting the now well-known Brown Symposium for Undergraduates in the Mathematical Sciences. In the math department, there are several types of lower-division courses: service courses for other departments or concentrations whose content adjusts to reflect current needs, introductory exploratory courses for the nonscience but mathematically interested student and preparatory courses for those students who will be taking upper division mathematics courses (either for a math concentration or for other disciplines with serious mathematical requirements). “None of the professors want to teach these courses,” one student said. Indeed, do our professors enjoy teaching these lower division courses? As one might imagine, that depends a great deal on the dynamic of the class. At every college and university across the nation, students in various disciplines (which may have a minimal intersection with mathematics) are required
to take calculus classes. Pre-med students are often required to take a college calculus. Economics concentrations have a requirement of MATH 0090: “Introductory Calculus, Part I” or the equivalent. Many science concentrations expect up to three semesters of calculus and a semester of linear algebra. Students who are forced to take classes in subjects that are challenging but do not interest them are unhappy students. The typical student in MATH 0090, MATH 0100, MATH 0170 or MATH 0190 is taking this course to satisfy a requirement. Moreover, the subject material is hard: The homework and test preparation will be demanding. The combination of challenging material and student disinterest is a recipe for frustration, even hostility. In addition, the last few years have brought us the new challenge of educating many “advanced placement” calculus students whose preparation for college mathematics consists primarily of having been coached for the AP tests. Unfortunately, the test-taking strategies learned in high school do not generally provide the right preparation for college-level mathematics courses. The other specific suggestion for improvement (also highlighted in the Undergraduate Science Education Committee report) concerned the availability of Undergraduate Teaching and Research Awards. While additional research funds and awards are certainly important, these primarily benefit the math/ science interested students who have already learned the basics of multivariable calculus and linear algebra. A number of undergraduate mathematics concentrators have pursued summer projects under the direction of faculty members, or have been helped to find and
participate in specialized research groups at other colleges and universities. On the other hand, to help the beginning student, we offer eight different calculus classes, as well as freshmen seminars, introductory number theory, and basic and honors linear algebra. In addition to the undergraduate adviser, we also have a placement adviser (and diagnostic exams and a departmental open house) to help students figure out which courses are right for them. Can the mathematics department improve its teaching and course offerings? Of course, and our faculty devote time and attention to teaching and curricular issues every year. Do we experience attrition in lower division courses at the beginning of each fall semester? Yes, and that is to be expected. Some students will find that a science or mathematics class is simply quite different from what they experienced in high school. Others will choose to pursue other fields, or explore subjects they could not in high school. We look forward to the implementation of recommendations from the undergraduate science committee to improve mathematics and science education at Brown. In the meantime, the mathematics department welcomes feedback and suggestions from students on curricular issues. Please contact the chair at jpipher@math.brown.edu.
Thomas Banchoff (Professor, Placement Adviser), Jeffrey Brock (Profesor, USEC Member), Jeffrey Hoffstein (Professor and Undergraduate Adviser), Steven Miller (Tamarkin Assistant Professor), Jill Pipher (Professor and Chair)
Like even brighter torches in the wind: 2016’s Olympic frontrunners ADAM CAMBIER Opinions Columnist
Two weeks ago, I shared my thoughts on the longshots in the race to host the 2016 Summer Olympics (“Like torches in the wind: 2016’s Olympic underdogs,” Sept. 26). These four cities — Baku, Doha, Prague, and Rio de Janeiro — are, for all intents and purposes, the little fish the very large pond of Olympic tradition. Considering that the race has just begun, now is the perfect time to handicap the three remaining competitors. Chicago, Madrid and Tokyo are the real deals. Considering that in nine years’ time the world’s attention will in all likelihood be focused on one of these three cities, I thought it would hardly be appropriate to give them such short shrift so quickly out of the starting gate. Thus, I present you with the Olympic frontrunners for 2016: Chicago: In the words of All-American Renaissance Man Will Smith, we all know Chi-town’s got it goin’ on. Although the city was awarded the Games near the start of the modern Olympic movement in 1904, the IOC voted to move the games to St. Louis so that they could coincide with the more popular World Fair going on there at the time, thus boosting the profile of the burgeoning sporting event. Consequently, Chicago has never had the chance to showcase its one-of-a-kind blend of cosmopolitan street smarts and Midwestern warmth and charm. The city’s bid looks to be technically excellent: Opening and closing ceremonies would be held in a stadium to be built in the historic Washington Park area, beach and water events would be held along Lake Michigan and famed venues like Wrigley Field and Soldier Field are being considered to host field events. The city has tens
of thousands of hotel rooms in the immediate vicinity of the downtown area, and the worldclass public transportation infrastructure can easily accommodate the influx of international visitors that comes with the Olympics. Helping matters is the fact that by 2016 North America won’t have hosted the Olympics for a full twenty years, meaning that it could be this continent’s “turn.” The city is easily the leading candidate at this early stage of the game. In fact, the city’s perceived inevitability is so strong that United States Olympic Committee head (and former MLB commissioner) Pete Ueberroth is publicly stating that the city is
by the warmth and openness of the Spanish people. Unfortunately, London ended up winning the 2012 Olympics, putting Madrid at a serious disadvantage for this go around. Although their experience in the past bidding season will have only improved their already incredible attempt to win the Games, the IOC’s general guideline of spreading the wealth among continents makes it unlikely that Madrid can win for 2016 (after all, two of three prior Summer Olympic installments will have taken place in Europe by the time 2016 rolls around, with Athens in 2004 and London in 2012). Ultimately, Madrid’s best
Geopolitical concerns can play into cultural trends and throw the race in a completely different direction, and any one of these current frontrunners could be left hanging. currently running third or fourth place in an attempt to discourage International Olympic Committee members from voting against Chicago in a backlash against its apparent status as the Chosen One. Madrid: Madrid is this Olympic season’s ultimate paradox. Their bid for the 2012 games was one of the strongest — with the backing of influential former IOC president Juan Antonio Samaranch and the memory of the stellar 1992 Games in Barcelona, the citizens of Spain’s capital put forth a technically excellent bid that was complemented
chance relies on their being the guaranteed successful alternative if Chicago and Tokyo (and possibly Rio) stumble. Although they may not win in 2016, it would come as no surprise to see a Madrid Olympics within the next decade or two. Tokyo: Tokyo is the only pony in this horserace to have hosted before — they held the Summer Games back in 1964. Tokyo’s bid would bring a typical Japanese sensibility to the Games — they would undoubtedly be elegant and sophisticated, and the financial acumen of Tokyo’s business community would
make sure the Games stay in the black. The big draw of a Tokyo Olympics in 2016 would be its efficiency. Most of the venues needed are already in place — only two new ones would eed to be built. Moreover, the Games would be centered around an extremely compact area along Tokyo’s dramatic waterfront district. All in all, the Games in Tokyo are projected to have breathtakingly low costs. Some say that this efficiency is actually a drawback, as the IOC likes to leave a significant legacy wherever it goes: after all, the technically strong bid for the 2014 Olympics of the Austrian city of Salzburg was rejected because it didn’t make enough of an impact on the host city itself. Tokyo circumvents this by focusing its venues in a run-down part of town that would be revitalized by the Games. In addition, it hopes to leave a legacy of hosting the greenest Olympics to date. Although Beijing’s 2008 Olympics may scare voters away from awarding the Games to nearby Japan, Asia hosts the big tamale so infrequently that they likely wouldn’t mind throwing the region a bone. In the end, Tokyo is positioning itself to be the one big alternative to big, bad American Chicago. Like I said in my column two weeks ago, these cities, strong though they may be, are hardly guaranteed to host the Games this time. Geopolitical concerns can play into cultural trends and throw the race in a completely different direction, and any one of these current frontrunners could be left hanging. Chicago, Madrid and Tokyo are indeed the most likely hosts for the upcoming Olympics, but almost any of their competitors could snatch them away. In the end, nobody can know anything solid until the votes are tallied two years from now in 2009, but the one guarantee that can be made is that an excellent Olympic Games will be crafted by 2016.
Adam Cambier ’09 is taking bets.
S ports T uesday Page 12
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
Tigers maul Bears
Comeback completed in OT for No. 10 m.
By Evan Kantor Sports Staff Writer
As the buzzer sounded at the end of regulation play, the No. 10 men’s soccer team was tied with Princeton, 1-1, in an all-too-familiar Ivy League opener Saturday night at Stevenson Field. Brown downed Princeton last season in New Jersey, 2-1, thanks to two late goals after trailing for most of the game. This year, however, Brown couldn’t find the winning strike in regulation so extra time was necessary. Midfielder Nick ElenzMartin ’10 nailed down the Bears’ first Ivy League win of the year five minutes into overtime with a strike into the lower right-hand corner of the cage. With the win, Brown moved to 1-0 in the conference and 7-1-1 overall. After their first loss of the season last weekend against Boston University, the Bears were focused and ready for the Tigers. “Our mindset was that this was a new season,” said midfielder Darren Howerton ’09. “We kind of just restarted and said this is the Ivy League, it’s totally different,” Elenz-Martin said. From the opening kick, Brown dominated and rarely left Princeton’s half of the field. Within the first five minutes, the Bears had already managed two corner kick opportunities. Princeton’s first chance didn’t come until the 38th minute. Brown wore down the Tigers’ defense in the first half. The Princeton offense was only mildly threatening in the last five minutes with a shot on goal, but that was easily stopped by goalkeeper Jarrett Leech ’09. Early in the second half, the Bears created as many scoring opportunities as they had in the first half. Howerton took three flip
It was the smallest player on the field who propelled Princeton (5-4-1) to a 4-1 victory Saturday over the women’s soccer team at Stevenson Field. At just under 5-feet 6-inches, Diana Matheson was the difference-maker for the Tigers. She scored both firsthalf goals and added a second-half assist, and despite the Bears’ efforts to contain her, Brown fell to 2-7-1 on the season. “She’s the one that makes that team click. … She’s so clever,” said Brown’s Head Coach Phil Pincince. “She just played with the Canadian national team (at the Women’s World Cup in China). … Coming to the collegiate game must look like ‘this is slow-mo.’ ” Brown outplayed Princeton for the first 21 minutes of the match. In the second minute, the Bears earned a corner kick that Julie Wu ’09 drove to the back post. The ball was loose in front of the goal, but Tigers goalkepper Maren Dale covered the ball to stop the threat. The Bears had another chance in the 12th minute, when Lindsay Cunningham ’09 played the ball to the left corner for Susie Keller ’08. Keller crossed the ball to Jamie Mize ’09, who struck a hard shot that barely missed wide left. Just when it looked like the Bears were in control, Matheson dribbled through the entire Bears defense and put the Tigers on top in the 22nd minute. She received the ball on the left side and worked her way across the field as she maneuvered around defenders. She then buried a hard, low shot from 25 yards out to the far post past Bears goalie Steffi Yellin ’10. continued on page 9
By Whitney Clark Sports Staff Writer
By Jason Harris Assistant Sports Editor
ran twice for 21 yards, Jonathan Edwards ’09 broke free up the middle for a 28-yard gain to the Holy Cross 6-yard line, and Chris Strickland ’10 ran into the end zone from two yards out at the 11:03 mark to cut the deficit to 14. “At halftime we talked about believing in ourselves, believing we could score and could make stops,” said Head Coach Phil Estes. “But we gotta click in the first half (on offense). We have to start scoring early and often.” The Brown defense came up big on the next possession. After a oneyard loss and 10-yard completion, defensive lineman James Develin ’10 stuffed the Holy Cross running back for no gain to force a punt. “We came out in the second half with a lot of excitement,” Brewer said. “It was encouraging to see there was no quit.” After trading field goals with Holy Cross, Brown’s serious comeback came on a drive that started with 1:33 left in the third quarter. On 2nd-and-18 at the Brown 36, Paul Raymond ’08 made a diving catch on a lofted ball from Dougherty for a 31-yard gain. Two plays later, tight end Colin Cloherty ’09 took a short
This weekend in California, the men’s water polo team discovered there is nothing quite like going against the best opposition the country can offer. The team dropped four of six games in a four-day span, each loss coming to a nationally ranked opponent. The weekend puts the team at 9-7 heading into league play this upcoming weekend. On Thursday, No. 20 Brown defeated Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges, 6-5, just hours after arriving on the West Coast. The defense proved strong, led by seven saves from goalkeeper Kent Holland ’10 and a team-high three steals from Hank Weintraub ’09. Scoring was spread among six Bears, including Mike Gartner ’09, who put the gamewinner in the back of the cage with 2:44 remaining in the game. While the traveling situation was tough, Brown persevered. “It was not an ideal situation for us,” said Head Coach Felix Mercado. “I don’t like the kids missing school. Going cross-country is difficult.” The team was less concerned with results than matching itself up with some of the best competition in the country. “For the most part we were successful,” Holland said. “The goal was to see where we stood against better teams and find out what we need to focus on between now and the end of the season.” Mercado also wanted to focus on the team’s play rather than the winloss column on this trip. “When we play powerhouse teams that practice for six hours a day, we see where we are,” he said. “It’s something that East Coast teams have to do.” On Friday and Saturday, Brown participated in the Claremont Convergence tournament, which pitted the Bears against No. 5 Pepperdine Unversity, California Lutheran University and Santa Clara University, with whom Brown shared the No. 20 ranking at the time. The Bears fell 17-4 to Pepperdine but came back later that day to defeat Cal Lutheran 9-8, outscoring the Kingsmen 6-4 in the second half in a comeback effort. On Saturday morning, the Bears lost a heartbreaker to Santa Clara, 8-7. Grant LeBeau ’09 shined against the Broncos, beating the opposing goalie five times in a game that had national ranking implications because the two teams were tied at the time. “In the Santa Clara game we had more incentive because they are tied at (No.) 20 with us,” Mercado said. Brown finished up the road trip with a 16-4 loss to No. 4 University of California, Los Angeles, on Saturday and a 10-4 loss to No. 7 Long Beach State University on Sunday. Despite the rough results, the team was very happy with the effort and the fan support. Many of the players are from the West Coast originally, and even some parents from the Midwest came out for the games. The 30-person contingenct cheering the team on was more than the team often gets at home games
continued on page 9
continued on page 9
Ashley Hess / Herald File Photo
Tied through 95 minutes of play, men’s soccer’s Nick Elenz-Martin ’10 finally knocked Princeton out with an overtime goal.
throws, and though none of them materialized into goals, it was an indication of the Bears control of the play. As the game remained in Princeton’s end of the field, the crowd was left gasping at every other play as several Bears tested the Princeton goalie. But what came next shocked the faithful Bears in attendance. Princeton’s Kyle McHugh
took a quick throw-in to Teddy Schneider, catching Leech — who had just come out of his goal on the previous play to kick a ball out of bounds–off guard. With Leech scrambling to get back in the goal, Schneider easily knocked it into the net to put the Tigers up, 1-0, with 35 minutes left in the second half. continued on page 9
Cross offense befuddles football’s defense in loss
LAX FALL
By Peter Cipparone Sports Editor
Ashley Hess / Herald
Nick Bell ’10 and the men’s lacrosse team hosted an exhibition over the weekend with four games at the Brown Fall Tournament.
M. water polo swims with the best of the West
When wide receiver Buddy Farnham ’10 snuck into the end zone to tie the score at 34-34, with 11:02 to play in Saturday’s football game, the Brown Stadium crowd cheered in disbelief. At halftime, the Bears faced a seemingly insurmountable 31-10 deficit, but the team charged back into contention in its matchup against the College of the Holy Cross. Unfortunately, the crowd had little to cheer about for the rest of the game. The Crusaders pulled away from the Bears (1-3, 0-1 Ivy League) with two fourth quarter touchdowns to hand Brown its third straight loss, with a final score of 48-37. “We have to come together as a team,” said co-captain Eric Brewer ’08. “We couldn’t get (defensive) stops when it counted. The defense just couldn’t get off the field, and that’s what hurt us.” Trailing 31-10, Brown received the ball first in the second half and confidently marched up the field. In contrast to the rest of the game, the Bears gained most of their yardage on the ground in their opening drive. Quarterback Michael Dougherty ’09