the
Case Western Reserve University volume L, issue 15 friday, 1/18/2019
Observer CWRU takes CES
Campus representatives attend consumer tech conference
Eddie Kerekes Executive Editor
While most students returned home for winter break, over three dozen Case Western Reserve University students, faculty and alumni traveled to Las Vegas at the beginning of January. It wasn’t all casinos, buffets and large productions. The CWRU representatives attended CES 2019 from Jan. 8-11. CWRU reserved 12 booths in the Eureka Park section of the showcase, displaying everything from a new type of bandage that comes off easily when exposed to ultraviolet light to an augmented reality (AR) company aimed at overlaying AR on products to engage and educate consumers. According to Bob Sopko, director of CWRU LaunchNet, CWRU had the largest presence of any university at the event in which over 170,000 people attended.
Courtesy of Andrew Dupuis Members of the CWRU-affiliated Beauty and the Bolt team speak with visitors to their table at CES.
Xyla Foxlin, a fourth-year mechanical and aerospace engineering major, attended CES for the fourth time in her undergraduate career. She tweeted, “Although the shine of attending has worn off a bit over the years, I can’t ignore how incredible of an opportunity this show is.” Foxlin co-founded Beauty and the Bolt with Andrew Dupuis, an alumnus and current doctoral student in biomedical engineering. It is a YouTube teaching site focused on engineering that “aims to make learning engineering easy, inexpensive, and accessible for anyone,” according to the company’s website. Other CWRU-affiliated people who are on the Beauty and the Bolt team include fourth-year students Graciela Marez, Jahlyn Reyes-McKinley and Avery Zhou, second-year student AJ Jackson and alumnae Hannah Evans. Much of the innovation CWRU brought to CES 2019 was related to the health industry. Lumen Polymer, a startup created
by materials science and engineering doctoral students students Donghui Li and Zhe Ren, created a switchable adhesive bandage. The bandage can be removed easier with an application of ultraviolet light and can be used by the elderly and people with very sensitive skin. The startup also presented at the Innovation ShowCASE during the fall semester. Another group of students, two MBA candidates from the Weatherhead School of Management and two students from the Cleveland Institute of Art, represented Inspirit. Inspirit is currently developing a “real-time, hydration-monitoring device” that would also help the elderly by improving their quality of life and reducing nursing home negligence. Another booth was run by Enabled Robotics, a company and product aimed at helping people with physical limitations created in 2017 by second-year mechanical engineering student Robert Steward.
Prince Ghosh, a fourth-year mechanical and aerospace engineering student, presented Boundary Labs, a digital platform for industrial manufacturing. Ghosh also serves as the Undergraduate Student Government Speaker. CWRU also sent a contingent of people focused on robotics. In addition to Enabled Robotics, RoadPrintz, a company started by CWRU electrical engineering and computer science professor Wyatt Newman, and a visual AI platform called Path-Robotics were featured along with the Case Robotics Team. Notably absent was Matt Campagna, a former CES attendee for CWRU who is the CEO of Reflexion. The company, based in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, created Edge, which measures and trains cognitive performance. Mary McPheeters contributed reporting.
Government shutdown hits CWRU
The partial government shutdown, now in its fourth week, is affecting research universities across the United
States, including Case Western Reserve University. Now, professors and students who receive funding from national agencies like the National Science Foundation (NSF), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA),
the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) or NASA are having to halt their research until the new budget is approved. Organizations like the NEH, the NSF, the USDA and NASA are hit the hardest by the government shutdown because they have not yet been funded for this year. As a result, around 800,000 federal employees are currently either working without pay or on leave, and are operating without funding for this year. The partial government shutdown began on Dec. 21 after President Donald Trump vetoed the federal spending bill and stated that he would not approve the budget until it included provisions for a wall along the U.S.-Mexican border. Trump insisted that the budget include $5.7 billion for this wall—significantly more than the $1.6 billion allocated to border security already included in the budget. According to a recent article pub-
lished in The Daily, the National Institutes of Health took almost four months to recover from the effects of the 16 day government shutdown in 2013. The repercussions of the 2013 shutdown lead researchers and administration to worry about the long-term effects of the current shutdown, now the longest in history. But second-year political science major Chloe Mieras worries more about the direct impact of the shutdown upon CWRU students. “More than anything else, I worry about the students whose parents were affected by the shutdown,” Mieras said. “Students who are worried about how they’re going to afford their textbooks or their sorority or fraternity dues without help from their parents. That’s not even considering the fact that tuition is due in just a few weeks.” As of press time, no deal had been reached to pass the federal spending bill and fund the government.
News
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Opinion
Sports
pg. 3 Think Big initiative begins
pg. 6 Five years “Home Alone”
pg. 7 Keeping up with Uptown
pg. 12 Bouncing into 2019
Courtesy of AFGE/Flickr Furloughed federal workers protest the government shutdown. Among the agencies not currenlty funded are NASA and the National Science Foundation.
Katharine Toldeo Staff Reporter
news Large grant expands options for Cleveland humanities students Ginny Behmer Staff Reporter
A $2 million grant to the Cleveland Humanities Collaborative (CHC) will expand opportunities at Case Western Reserve University for local humanities students. An existing collaborative humanities program at Cuyahoga Community College (Tri-C) will become available to students at Lorain County and Lakeland Community Colleges, 30 minutes east and west of CWRU, respectively. The CHC was created in 2014 by a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and it initiated the Tri-C and CWRU collaborative program. It is one of 11 collaborative humanities programs funded by the Mellon Foundation. According to their website, these programs aim to respond to the growing presence of community colleges in higher education. Community college students make up one-third of the United States’ undergraduates and represent the most diverse population. Many of these students seek liberal arts and humanities degrees. The CHC intends to bring this mission to other locations in Northeast Ohio, potentially forming a “consortium of humanities programs,” according to The Daily.
The current program at Tri-C creates a path for participating scholars to transfer to CWRU for a Bachelor of Arts degree in the humanities after completing an associate’s degree at Tri-C. It also includes research funds for independent study or short-term study abroad, as well as mentoring and advising opportunities for participating faculty, graduate students and undergraduate students. Seven Tri-C students were accepted by the program to CWRU in the past two years, with nine more accepted this past fall. The CHC director Kurt Koenigsberger, who is also an associate professor of English and an associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at CWRU, emphasized the nationally unique nature of the CHC. “The [CHC] remains one of the few partnerships between a public two-year university and a four-year private research university that builds deep and enduring relationships among all of our academic constituencies: undergraduate students, graduate students and faculty,” Koenigsberger said. The CHC is the first of its counterparts to receive a second round of funding. Koenigsberger attributes this to the CHC being one of the first programs originally funded by the Mellon Foundation, as well as the program’s “significant signs of success and [worthiness of] continued support.”
With this $2 million expansion, Lorain County and Lakeland Community Colleges will create their own collaborative humanities programs with CWRU. According to their website, Lakeland Community College has a mission to “provide quality learning opportunities to meet the social and economic needs of the community,” fitting in well with the CHC mission. Lorain County Community College (LCCC) Provost and Vice President for Academic and Learner Services, Jonathan Dryden, believes the expansions in funding will further develop the school’s existing University Partnership programs. “The [CHC] represents an outstanding opportunity for Lorain County Community College students interested in the humanities,” said Dryden. “Raising the educational attainment level of our community, especially bachelor degree attainment, has been a top priority for us, and providing our community affordable access to great universities like CWRU is what our University Partnership is all about.” LCCC has been named the top community college in the country for Excellence in Student Success by the American Association of Community Colleges, the leading advocacy organization for the nation’s community colleges. “Key to that success is building clear
academic pathways that prepare students to thrive in a quickly changing world, a world characterized by technological innovation and the growth of artificial intelligence. The humanities in particular teach students to think critically and creatively, to collaborate with others, to communicate, and they also foster a sense of social justice,” said Dryden. Although participating students are not given merit scholarships toward CWRU, Koenigsberger says the CHC is “absolutely working toward fostering access to CWRU.” “Where the CHC really works on the question of access is in helping to break down the cultural and logistical obstacles to transfer from a public two-year institution to a private fouryear research institution and by providing holistic support and opportunities to our scholars when they are at Case Western Reserve,” said Koenigsberger. “Such obstacles often present students with insurmountable barriers to transfer.” “It’s fair to say that simply providing [LCCC] students an avenue to the high-level academic courses and programs at CWRU will be huge,” said Dryden. “It will help our students see that anything is possible.” Current Lorain County and Lakeland Community College students will be able to apply to their respective programs for the 2021-22 school year.
Think summer and plan for success! View the preliminary CWRU Summer Session course schedule at summer.case.edu Meet with advisor and navigator to discuss summer classes Check with professors about summer research opportunities
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Provost starts Think Big initiative Justin Hu
Advertising Manager Case Western Reserve University will be piloting a new initiative known as “Think Big” this semester, an ambitious project that hopes to integrate the university community in directing its future. The brainchild of Provost Ben Vinson III, it will involve three distinct parts: Talk, Test and Act. Talk, which will start in January, features conversations on topics relevant to the university’s future and will be done in facilitated “thinking groups,” with each group discussion revolving around books, articles and other media. Students, staff and faculty are all allowed to volunteer to be facilitators, and the university also hopes to feature guest speakers. Although the focus of the dialogues will primarily be on the future of higher education, they will also touch on other relevant subjects such as work and society. While it will be a large effort, the university received positive feedback when surveying students in the fall. Out of around 2,200 responses, more than 650 of them responded that they were willing to contribute. “It has become increasingly clear that creating a new future for Case Western Reserve demands a different approach,” said Vinson in a video explaining the program. The Test stage will be carried out primarily through “seed sprints,” school sponsored projects which can range anywhere from academic research to more operational endeavors such as improving food service. “We know some of you may have ideas you are eager to pursue or even
Screenshot from CWRU Youtube channel Provost Ben Vinson III explaining the Think Big initiative in a release video uploaded to Youtube in December. projects primed to launch,” Vinson said, “so next semester we will be funding a series of ‘seed sprints’ to test promising concepts”. So far, the budget will be capped at $10,000 for the co-curricular and administrative projects and $25,000 for academic ones. Collaboration during these projects is not only encouraged but mandated. Each must involve at least two groups out of faculty, students and staff. Forms for those interested must be submitted by 5
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p.m. on Friday, Jan. 18, with finalists notified Tuesday, Jan. 22. The finalists will then go through a second round of selection and the winners will be announced Tuesday, Feb. 5. Throughout its entirety, Think Big will be overseen by a group of community members known as “Thinkers.” The role of the Thinkers will be to compile information during the Talk and Test stages in order to inform the provost about emerging ideas as well as act as a liaison to the community. Reviewers will
give applicants a rating from one to five and out of the 25 highest-ranked applicants, Vinson will appoint eight to ten to be Thinkers. At the beginning of May, the Seed Projects will come to a conclusion, marking the beginning of the Act stage. The Thinkers will narrow down the most successful Seed Sprints, and the winners from those will be known as the “Big Ideas and Directions.” The school then hopes to use these as a launching point to something greater.
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arts & entertainment Film Society prepares for 44th marathon Yvonne Pan
Arts & Entertainment Editor The first week of spring semester, also known as “syllabus week”, is full of exciting activities from sorority and fraternity recruitment to new classes. Another beginning of spring semester staple is the CWRU Film Society’s annual science fiction marathon, which will begin at 8 p.m. on Jan. 18 in Strosacker Auditorium. This year marks its 44th year, and the preparation for this event has been extensive. Advertising for this event is ubiquitous, reaching both community members and students. In fact, an estimated three quarters of expected full marathoners are community members, which makes sense considering the hectic schedules of students cannot afford them the luxury of a marathon lasting well into Sunday morning. Film Society members have posted on their Facebook page, their website, placed flyers all over campus and tabled from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. everyday in the Tinkham Veale University Center. Cashier and webmaster Erik Espinosa, a second-year computer science major, explained the process
of selecting films for the marathon. First, the Film Society’s members pose suggestions to a committee of former directors, business managers and projectionists. The committee then whittles down the choices to a select few films. If you want a good seat, Espinosa suggests camping out around 6 p.m. There will not be anywhere to camp out before 6 p.m. Espinosa estimates between 300 and 350 people will stay for the full marathon, about 250 of whom have already bought the full marathon pass, with others coming into Strosacker for select films. He plans to stay for the entire marathon. “I’m looking forward to seeing ‘Demolition Man,’ ‘Space Jam,’ ‘A Quiet Place’ and ‘Gremlins’ the most,” he said. If you want to stay but fear you may not be able to stay awake, the organizers have planned for that. Many people bring sleeping bags and air mattresses, and 43 years of experience have encouraged designated sleeping areas on the stage and upper balcony area. If you are not a fan of science fiction, the CWRU Film Society offers several other events that may also be worth attending. On Friday, Jan. 25 they will be showing “Fast Five,” and on Saturday, Jan. 26, they are
Ryan Yoo/Observer Members of the Film Society selling tickets in the Tinkham Veale University Center earlier this week.
showing “Yappie.” The last weekend of films will be People’s Choices weekend, held during the first week of March, right before spring break. The Film Society will be showing “Ready Player One” on Friday, Mar. 1 and “Hocus Pocus” on Saturday, Mar. 2. Last semester, the Film Society held a poll in Thwing Center, and “Ready Player One” was the most popular film of choice. A similar poll was also conducted in a Google Forms poll through University Media
Board, and “Hocus Pocus” was selected. If you are interested in the marathon, tickets for individual films are still available for $4 and can be purchased right before its showing. Epinosa cautions attendees to check the Facebook page for official times, because the films schedule will be delayed. The Observer and CWRU Film Society are both members of the University Media Board.
“On the Basis of Sex” portrays Supreme Court justice’s early career Ryan Yoo
Staff Reporter “On the Basis of Sex” is a biographical film that follows the early career of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. The film, directed by Mimi Leder, features Felicity Jones as Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Armie Hammer as Ginsburg’s husband, Martin D. Ginsburg and Kathy Bates as civil rights attorney Dorothy Kenyon. Although the movie begins with Ginsburg at Harvard Law School, the movie mainly focuses on her fight for
gender equality and her role in the landmark Supreme Court case, Moritz v Commissioner of Internal Revenue, which led to many gender discriminatory laws being struck down. The movie not only focuses on Ginsburg’s career as a civil rights lawyer, but also her role as a loving wife to her husband and the real life mutually beneficial relationship that the Ginsburgs had. When Martin gets testicular cancer during his second year at Harvard Law School, Ruth Bader Ginsburg goes to his classes and takes notes for him, in addition to doing her own work as a first-year student.
Later in the movie, Martin shows Ruth the Moritz v Commissioner of Internal Revenue case, which started her career and her fight for gender equality. However, the movie is a little indulgent in covering the Ginsbergs’ careers and does not seem to reflect on any of their character flaws. This bias is to be expected though, considering that it was written by Daniel Stiepleman, who is Ginsberg’s nephew. In addition, the movie brilliantly shows how women are perceived within our society. Early in the movie, Ginsberg is invited to dinner at Erwin Griswold’s house, then dean of Har-
vard Law School, where he asks each woman present why they were taking a place of Harvard Law School that should have gone to a man. Although this idea is important to establishing the overall theme of the movie, this idea felt overplayed and overemphasized. Despite its flaws, “On the Basis of Sex” is a well done, cohesive film detailing Ginsberg’s early career as a human rights lawyer. This movie is a testament to the strength of Ginsburg and her perseverance in difficulty and helps to show why Ginsberg is very popular and respected today.
Cleveland Comedy Open features local comedians
Sunayana Jampanaboyana Staff Reporter
The Cleveland Comedy Open (CCO) featured a wide variety of jokes including a super-roach, a barely sane father and an unsuccessful athlete with far too many participation trophies. On Jan. 14, the festival featured 12 distinct comedians on the local Cleveland stand-up comedy scene in the first preliminary round of the first of four series this year, with the top four moving onto the finals. There will be two more preliminary
rounds in this series before 12 finalists compete for a $500 prize and a performing spot at the annual Cleveland Comedy Awards. This complementary show was hosted in Pickwick & Frolic, showcasing humor ranging from the plight of a poor college student and the modern dating environment, to distaste in current political figures and intentional adult humor, all in a very personal setting. There was also an apparent range in experience, with up-and-coming comedians alongside moderately more experienced individuals. Walking into Pickwick & Frolic, there is a highly relaxed energy en-
hanced by subtle lighting that is experienced best surrounded by others in a shared liveliness. Founded by Nick Kostis, the multientertainment complex Pickwick & Frolic is located in downtown Cleveland on E. 4th Street and boasts not only a theater and cabaret room but also a comedy club, restaurants and bars. The complex stands on the site of what was once The Euclid Avenue Opera House, built in the late 1800s, continuing the tradition of entertainment through today. Pickwick & Frolic is notably home to Hilarities 4th Street Theatre, “one of the largest comedy venues in the country.”
“We love the concept that comics can ‘work their way up’ from the Martini Bar to the Cabaret and then, for the best of the best, the main room” said CCO organizer Brent Gambrel. “Comedians are always happy to perform anywhere in Hilarities. Always.” For anyone interested in a more personal standup experience, with a decided focus on local comedians, the next preliminary round will take place on Jan. 28 at 7 p.m. At the forefront of comedy in Cleveland, Pickwick & Frolic also hosts other comedians in shows regularly with more information available online.
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Playlist of the Week
Discovery warps into season two
Kyle Smith
Staff Reporter
New year, new semester, new you. What about new music? Whether you are trying to break out of an old routine, or simply find a new band in your favorite genre, this week’s playlist contains a wide variety of music to usher in the new year.
“Delicate Cycle” - The Uncluded
If different is what you are looking for, look no further than The Uncluded. The band pairs underground rap darling Aesop Rock with singer-songwriter Kimya Dawson, who worked on the soundtrack to the film “Juno.” Over bare instrumentals, Dawson sings about growing up helping her father run a laundromat, while Aesop Rock intercuts with metaphor-heavy verses about his relationship with a close friend.
“Ixtapa” - Rodrigo y Gabriela
Rodrigo Sanchez and Gabriela Quintero met as teenagers, and bonded over a shared interest in music, especially metal. However, when they failed to find a career as a metal band, the two pivoted to a more acoustic sound. A unique take on the flamenco genre, their metal influences show through in the heavy strumming patterns in many of their songs, including covers of songs like Metallica’s “Orion.” “Ixtapa” is named after the resort town where the two began their career as acoustic musicians and contains many different emotional movements.
“This Could Be Anywhere In The World” - Alexisonfire
Alexisonfire is a metal band fronted by singer Dallas Green. Green is better known by the stage name “City and Colour,” a folk singer-songwriter act. The two bands could not be more different, but Green is excellent in both. In “This Could Be Anywhere In The World,” Green provides full, rich voice to choruses cut between versus screamed by vocalist George Pettit. The song is a tirade against a dead-end town that leaves its inhabitants hollow shells of their former selves.
Henry Bendon
Courtesy of vagueonthehow/ Wikimedica Commons Season two of Stark Trek Discovery premiered on Jan. 17.
Staff Reporter
This week, Star Trek returns to the silver screen as its newest starship, the U.S.S. Discovery, returns for season two of the logically named “Star Trek: Discovery.” The Discovery, co-opted from its purpose as a scientific vessel to fight the a war waged between the United Federation of Planets and the Klingon Empire, serves as the setting and focal point of a show designed for two purposes: to capitalize on the successes of the three Chris Pine captained Star Trek reboot movies and to help CBS launch its CBS All Access streaming platform. The show’s first season streamed exclusively behind the paywall of the CBS All Access platform, although the company offers weeklong free trials tuned to help you binge the first season and then make you want to pony up for the second. The show itself stars Sonequa Martin-Green as Michael Burnham, a highly decorated First Officer turned convicted mutineer for her desperate and failed attempt to avert a conflict with with the Klingons. In
SUMMER
“Brooklyn” - Youngblood Brass Band
the first season, Burnham is brought aboard the Discovery by its captain, Gabriel Lorca, played by Jason Isaacs, who uses her background as a xenoanthropologist to help his engineering team fine tune its spore drive, an alternative to the standard Star Trek warp core that allows them to appear anywhere in the universe. The new season offers all kinds of excitement, including a new captain to replace Lorca and the ongoing issue of Michael Burnham’s role serving aboard the Discovery, instead of returning to the cell she had been assigned a life sentence to. The first season of the show hit similar plot points as many past Star Trek series but benefited from an excellent CGI department, quality writing and acting. Fans of the 2009 movie and its sequels are almost assured to like the show—it mirrors the style of the films not just in the writing but the visuals and soundscape as well. The main downside of the show is having to pay for CBS All Access, but with enough free trials and a well-timed binge, the show is not just available to watch, it’s a must view. “Star Trek: Discovery” Season Two premieres on Jan. 17.
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Youngblood Brass Band is just as lively and fun as a ten-member brass band ought to be. Proudly wearing punk and hip-hop influences on its sleeve, Youngblood Brass Band presents a synthesis of old-school big brass and New Orleans jazz with newer musical styles. “Brooklyn” is as upbeat and energetic as it gets, driven forward by sporadic drumming and incredibly agile tuba work. The song is an excellent introduction to the band’s work featuring solos from many of the members.
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ENGR 200T Statics and Strength of Materials May 27–June 11, 2019
France “Nearer My God” - Foxing
In its three studio albums, Foxing has spanned genres from emo to punk to postrock. The title track from its latest album adds alternative-rock to the list. “Nearer My God” is a rock song with electronic influences that make it practically new-wave. Fans of the band Muse’s later work might find something to love in the song’s swelling synth beats and vocalist Conor Murphy’s clear, introspective lyrics.
Find all these tracks online with our weekly Spotify playlist at observer.case.edu All photos courtesy pluspremiers.us, genius.com, directlyrics.com, and wikipedia.com
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Editor’s Choice
The fifth birthday of Totorro’s “Home Alone”
Peter Wilson Staff Reporter
Totorro’s “Home Alone” turns five years old this year, and if these five years have demonstrated anything, it’s that these eight tracks grew riper with age. This album is an explosion of melodies and harmonies which other bands wouldn’t be able to handle. Few modern bands would dare play their instruments as cleanly and without any effects as Totorro plays theirs’ on this album. Each song rolls into the next, making the album more of an experience than a track list. Though the album has no lyrics, it serves as the perfect energizer for any late night studying or early morning classes. The album begins with the title track. “Home Alone” begins with quickly strummed guitar. This fast opening melody evolves into a motif, as each instrument begins playing with the same voracity and in the same style. Even the bassist follows the pattern, and the song ends almost as quickly as it began. A similar, fast melody begins almost immediately where the first track leaves off, and the same speed is carried through the next song. The musicians’ true talents are exhibited here though, as the guitarists and
bassist begin playing together, and the drummer’s talent shines through. Following the light on the drummer, the guitarists begin their work, and each begins to play intricate riffs. These first two songs cannot be played apart, as each compliments the other so well. Between “Chevalier Bulltoe” and “Tonton Alain Michel,” the speakers are filled once again by the crisp, unaltered sounds of the guitars and bass. The song feels almost like a three act play, in which the first act depicts the hero’s rise to stardom, only to fall and have to regain his ground in the second. The song culminates in the third act, in which the hero finally defeats the antagonist in an epic battle, saving the day. The fourth song, “Festivalbini,” stands alone as did “Tonton Alain Michel.” They are similar in that they both have several distinct parts. It opens with a solemn guitar, then speeds up with drum and bass. Totorro takes the initial melody and bends it every way possible. This song has two clear culminations, but the first, which includes great group vocals, plays perfectly into the buildup of the second. “Festivalbini” exemplifies the album because it demonstrates each style that the band plays in and blends them all masterfully.
Courtesy of Thesupermat/Wikimedica Commons Members of the band, Totorro.
“Motte-Rock,” the fifth song, provides a much needed break from the continuous sound experience of the first four songs. The song opens with a simple, repeated riff. The guitar builds with distant, twinkly background strumming, and the umbrella of strumming eventually boils over into a group-wide performance of the same riff. The strength that is accomplished by the whole band playing the same, repeated melody is not found elsewhere in the album. Then, just like that, it all falls, and the guitarists and drummer trade off on the off-beats, and the next song begins.
The final three songs, “Osao San”, “Eric Colson”, and “Tigers & Gorillas” each show the buildup that Totorro is infamous for. These three songs each draw the listener in, with no lyrics, and make them reconsider what they’ve just heard and how it makes them an anomaly in the contemporary music world. “Home Alone,” is art. Each song is carefully considered and each transition performed masterfully. The album evokes so much emotion. For its fifth anniversary, give it a chance and see what emotions the band evokes in you.
opinion 7
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opinion Editorial
Uptown changes should focus on students For an urban campus, it is often easy to feel isolated at Case Western Reserve University. By the nature of our neighborhood, situated between East Cleveland, Hough and Cleveland Heights, the campus can appear to be its own little bubble adjacent to the city. The construction of Uptown was meant to help bridge both sides of campus and provide a better throughway to nearby neighborhoods like Little Italy and Shaker Heights. The renovations brought new restaurants, living opportunities and nightlife for students, creating a campus that would better stimulate students outside of the classroom. It’s become a staple of life at CWRU and is definitely a welcome improvement to the unique area that is University Circle. In recent years, though, Uptown’s development has faltered. This is not to say that new establishments haven’t been added, but rather that what was once meant to be its own, new slice of Cleveland just feels like a homogenized strip of chain restaurants with similar, but slightly different fare. Moreover, it looks like this issue may only get worse with the planned replacements for
now-defunct businesses. CWRU students appreciate convenience when it comes to food. Sit-down places are usually inhibited by a lack of time and money. Adding restaurants with a quick ordering and preparation process makes sense, but at a certain point, you can oversaturate the area. At the moment, there are simply too many places to go for a rice bowl or a rolled up version of that very rice bowl. Competitive markets are great and all, but not in a microcosm where there only needs to be one fast casual Tex-Mex restaurant. Local favorites, rather than be located centrally in Uptown, tend to be scattered around the area. Getting a good cup of coffee requires either a stop near the North Residential Village at the Coffee House or Rising Star in Little Italy. Quirky places like Algebra Tea House are tucked away on Murray Hill near the South Residential Village. Those local establishments that were installed in Uptown have continued to be phased out. Last semester, both Falafel Cafe and Happy Dog shut down despite overwhelming support from CWRU students. While Falafel Cafe has since been given a new space in what used to house Crop Kitchen, there was a brief period
where it seemed that more chains would be called in to replace the more interesting and unique components of Uptown. It is not yet known what will be put into the spaces that Happy Dog and Falafel Cafe once occupied, but with the way additions have gone in recent years, it seems unlikely that less well-known businesses will take root. The philosophy that University Circle Incorporated (UCI) and CWRU have undertaken in developing the area has made it more difficult to see it as a neighborhood catered to the diverse nature of this campus. There is little to no nightlife, and outside of the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA), there aren’t many cultural institutions along the strip. Much like with restaurants, you will have to make a slight detour to other reaches of University Circle to find more museums and parks. Rather than replace Corner Alley with another source of entertainment, new restaurants and a Verizon store are being put in. There is only one grocery store, which has a limited selection and sometimes inflated prices, and the nearest pharmacy is tucked away in University Hospitals. Often, the logic of development
decisions is not elaborated upon by those in charge or announced with any sort of explanation. And when The Observer reached out to UCI for comment regarding the shutdown of Falafel Cafe, they did not respond. Despite this rift, however, there are a number of aspects of Uptown that make it an instrumental part of this community, even with the recent shutdowns. Mitchell’s is, and always will be, a key piece of your CWRU experience beginning as early as the first campus tour. Judy’s Hand Pavilion, as surreal as it is, represents the ways that MOCA works to make the area more culturally rich. Almost every business in the area takes Case Cash, which extends the reach of a meal plan that can sometimes feel limited by campus dining. At the moment, it seems as though there is simply a lack of understanding between the community and its developers. Student opinion seems to favor the smaller, less expanded institutions that make Uptown an interesting and distinct part of CWRU campus. Hopefully, UCI and CWRU will redirect their plans for the area toward achieving this vision.
The president’s visit to my home Case Embraced Christian Reyna On Jan. 10, President Donald Trump visited McAllen, Texas, my home. Trump’s visit brought McAllen to the national spotlight again as he made his case for a wall between the border of the United States and Mexico. Accompanied by both Sens. Ted Cruz and John Cornyn, as well as some of his White House officials, the president saw firsthand where the wall might possibly be built. Visiting my home did not change his mind about the wall, and he still considers it necessary. But I beg to differ. Trump was on a mission to bolster
his plans for his wall. As a result, he made my home seem dangerous. He made my home feel like it is not part of the United States, making it appear low in the eyes of the nation. I am disappointed that he went with this route. Many local officials wanted him to see other parts of the border that need improvements, such as bridges of entry where most illegal drugs enter. It seemed like Trump only wanted to surround himself with people who would agree with him, people that will support him without question and make him feel like the wall is essential. This was the wrong approach. He should’ve also listened to the opinions of local residents. He should’ve accepted the invitation from local officials to see the bridges of entry and hear their opinions. He should’ve visited Sister Norma Pimentel, who is in charge of a local respite center in McAllen that helps
The Observer is the weekly undergraduate student newspaper of Case Western Reserve University. Established in 1969, The Observer reports news affecting students and provides an editorial forum for the university community. Unsigned editorials are typically written by the opinion editor but reflect the majority opinion of the senior editorial staff. Opinion columns are the views of their writers and not necessarily of The Observer staff. For advertising information, contact The Observer at (216) 302-4442 or e-mail observer-ads@case.edu. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR should be e-mailed to observer@case.edu or submitted on our website at observer.case.edu. Letters otherwise can be mailed to Thwing Center 11111 Euclid Avenue, Suite 01, Cleveland, Ohio 44106. For policy and guidelines related to the submission of Letters to the Editor, refer to observer.case.edu/submit-a-letter. The Observer is a proud member of CWRU’s University Media Board. Follow The Observer on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @cwruobserver.
immigrants. I wish he could’ve stayed longer to see the other side of the argument, but I guess that is too much to ask of the President of the United States. I wrote about my home earlier in the academic year. I emphasized how beautiful and safe it is. When I went back for the holidays, my love for my home grew even more. I became even more aware how special it is and how much I missed it. The culture is like no other place in the world. I hate to see it treated and viewed like a bad place when it is the polar opposite. I understand what Trump is trying to achieve. In his mind, he believes that he is doing what is right for the country. But our government’s money should not be used for the wall. The money should be used to hire more border patrol agents,
improve the technology being used and improve the process to seek asylum. It should be used to improve the international bridgeways. We should do everything in our power to ensure that our safe border towns stay safe, but building the wall will not help.The wall will take away land from residents and weaken our relationship with Mexico. Nothing good will come out of it. Trump’s visit to McAllen was an eye-opener to the extent he will go to to get his wall. However, regardless of his persistence, it is unnecessary to construct it, and it is sad that our government has been shut down because of it. Christian Reyna is a first-year biomedical engineering major who is also planning on obtaining a Spanish minor. He absolutely loves dogs and probably procrastinated in writing this article.
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established in 1969 by the undergraduate students of case western reserve university executive editor & publisher EDDIE KEREKES director of web & multimedia ALEXANDRA FACCENDA director of business operations SARAH PARR
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1/18/19
“Subtle Asian traits” brings Asian immigrants together, but questions relationship with current Asian culture Zhusclues
Caroline Zhu
With the sudden rise of the “subtle Asian traits” phenomenon, the Asian immigrant community across the world has never felt more united. However, the development of the “subtle Asian” community has also emphasized more than ever the seemingly unbridgeable divide between Asian immigrants and the modern Asian community. Beginning as a Facebook group and quickly becoming a global phenomenon, the “Subtle Asian Traits” group was created in late 2018, gaining over 1.1 million members in the following months. On the surface, the group offers a public forum for young Asians to post content about the Asian immigrant experience, connecting a group of people that had long been scattered into smaller communities in much larger nations. Often, the popularity of the “subtle Asian traits” sensation has been attributed to the fact that many Asian immigrants have never been able to connect with the rest of the community on this scale. With the rise of the internet age, young Asian immigrants have the opportunity to talk about their childhoods and relate to others about shared experiences. This new forum has allowed the Asian immigrant community to define a clearer notion of a shared
identity, but in doing so, distances the diaspora from those who still live in Asia. It seems obvious that an immigrant community evolves and diverges from the culture of its country of origin. It is particularly worth examining in the United States, as Asian immigrants bridge the gap between Eastern and Western cultures, two societies with opposing values. By merit of growing up in a different nation, most second generation immigrants have a good understanding of the
country they are in, and now with the development of the “subtle Asian traits” culture, they can even define their own Asian immigrant identities. However, most younger Asian immigrants find it difficult to relate to their Asian cultures, as they often lack exposure or connections to them. The growth of the “subtle asians” group has strengthened the Asian immigrant identity, but emphasizes the divide that stands between Asian immigrants and their ethnic backgrounds.
Designed by Jack Lewis/Observer
This is an unintentional effect of the group, but becomes evident when portions of the content posted refer to an inability to understand current Asian culture or feeling distance from it. While this distance is an inevitable consequence of emigrating from a country, the divide feels deeper when young second generation immigrants put up mentions of feeling foreign upon returning to Asia or other isolating factors. However, as the “subtle Asian traits” group sheds light on the divide between Asian immigrants and the current Asian community, it also presents an opportunity for growth and reconnection. In order to resolve an issue, we must first acknowledge the problem, which lies in the fact that so many Asian immigrants feel somewhat disconnected from their ethnic and cultural background. Ultimately, “subtle Asian traits” does more good than harm, providing a public space to define the Asian immigrant experience caused by the merging of Asian culture with Western norms. With time, it may become a new space for Asian immigrants to reconnect with and continue to grow with current Asian culture. Caroline Zhu is a first-year computer science and economics major with a deep and abiding love for Shakespeare. She is currently trapped indefinitely within a block of ice due to the combination of a southern Californian constitution and Cleveland’s cold weather.
Why I love Subtle Curry Traits I Spit My Truth and It’s Blown Viral Mistry Last Thanksgiving, I was with my family when one of my cousins showed me a meme on his computer. “It’s from this Facebook meme page called ‘Subtle Curry Traits’, have you heard of it?” I raised an eyebrow in confusion, as he added: “You’ll love it, it’s basically just memes about being brown.” I was tentatively intrigued, already thrown off by the name of the page. The meme, a video playfully mocking the way the Indian accent changes the spelling of English words, was indeed hilarious. My cousin added me to the page, and for the rest of Thanksgiving break, we kept referencing and showing each other memes from the page. When I got back home, I immediately added my closest brown friends at Case Western Reserve University to it, and we began the endless spiral of being on a meme page. The page floods your timeline, you tag your friends in memes you find relatable, they tag you in memes they find relatable, and on and on it goes. In the passing months since then, I’ve watched the page explode in size. Last time I checked, it had over 266,000 members. Almost every brown person I am friends with on Facebook is on it. Seeing that—and the never-ending stream of unbelievably relatable memes—has filled me with immense joy. Memes about the struggles of
relating to your white peers, strict parenting, Bollywood movies from our childhood, traditional Indian food and the incredible pressure we all feel from our families to succeed. It can be hard to hold on to these aspects of your identity when you are expressing them to people who cannot relate. Even at a school like CWRU, which has a massive South Asian population, these topics never seem to make it into my everyday conversations. The brown community here, in my experience, is too focused on academics, stressing out about the next exam, the next paper or postgraduation endeavors to ever make a tag-yourself meme about Kal Ho Naa Ho—Shahrukh Khan is the greatest of all time, or GOAT, sorry not sorry.
With spaces like Subtle Curry Traits, we can escape the suffocating pressure of the outside world. With a few clicks, we can be connected to a massive community of people just like us, making jokes that only make sense to us because they reflect our stories. It’s the stories we never got to tell, the laughs we never got to find and, even if we can’t make them in person, we can nurture them online. The community is international, just as this struggle is international. The six biggest countries of origin for the page’s members are, in order of size: Australia, the United States, Canada, New Zealand, India and the United Kingdom. Right there, you see the scars of empire, the international diaspora of an ethnicity, setting roots
“With spaces like Subtle Curry Traits, we can escape the suffocating pressure of the outside world.”
thousands of miles apart. But even as forces beyond our control have separated us, we remain connected. We remain in touch, laughing and bonding, never forgetting who we truly are. I had mixed feelings about “Subtle Curry Traits” when I first heard the name. I instantly thought of every time, out of ignorance or malice, someone used curry as a byword for my ethnicity. Every time I was told I smelled like curry, every time I was made to feel small for bringing Indian food to school for lunch, every time I was asked if I was allowed to eat anything other than curry for dinner. But I’ve grown to love the name. In a society that finds ways to package up entire cultures into bite sized pieces for mass consumption, the page’s refusal to let curry be a term of mockery, instead proudly reclaiming the term, gives me strength. At this point, brown culture in the United States has been increasingly reduced to chai tea lattes, hot yoga and samosas. Subtle Curry Traits is unapologetically brown, with all the depth and detail, every hill and valley that comes with that. And that’s exactly why I love it. Viral Mistry is a fourth-year biology and cognitive science double major who is also minoring in chemistry, history, and philosophy. He wears many figurative hats around campus, but if you ever see him, you can guarantee he’d rather be in bed reading a good book.
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Zuckerberg needs to see consequences Dastardly Liberal Schemes Steve Kerby In 2010, the oil rig Deepwater Horizon suffered a major explosion and began gushing toxic chemicals into the Gulf of Mexico. Government investigations found that neglect, reckless cost-reduction and lack of oversight contributed to the disaster. In the face of economic and ecological devastation, BP began paying tens of billions of dollars in damages. BP also started an aggressive PR campaign to repair its public image. Today, it is a profitable, stable company, and continues extraction around the world. The CEO of BP in 2010 is now the CEO of another extraction company. In 2007, risky speculation on unstable investments led to the near-collapse of several major American banks, dragging down the global economy. The federal government “bailed out” the most powerful private financial institutions in the world at the cost of hundreds of billions of dollars. The bailout may have begun the daunting task of stabilizing the economy, but millions of Americans lost their jobs, homes and personal security along the way. The executives of the defaulting banks continue to receive titanic salaries today.
In 2016, Facebook’s administrators allowed shady foreign and domestic agents to spread misinformation on their social media platforms. An already contentious election saw disastrous consequences. When confronted by legislators, Facebook’s officers equivocate. This story is still developing, but every month more misconduct is revealed. The whole truth is not yet out, but Mark Zuckerberg and his employees have not been straightforward or vigilant. Zuckerberg has faced no significant censure from American lawmakers, though European legislatures are making brave policy efforts. This narrative is not new. It is centuries old, growing more prominent as government officials are captured in the orbit of powerful corporations. It combines the deaths of progressivism, of a government of the people and of humanity itself. Like in the Gilded Age of the late 1800s, corporations are not feeling the pain for their misdeeds. Our government is not serving and protecting its citizens. To preserve any semblance of justice, this must change. Consider Iceland. After its three largest banks collapsed in the wake of the 2008 global recession, tens of millions of euros were scattered by roaring waves of economic instability. For a small island nation, this was a staggering
loss. Unlike in the United States, though, some form of justice was exacted. In 2012, executives from those banks were convicted of fraud and sent to jail for their roles in the crash. There is precedent for the punishment of malicious or negligent action by executives of powerful American companies. In the brief trust-busting and muckraking period in the early 20th century, American governments cracked down on powerful corporations. In the early days of the American republic, corporations had to gain legislative approval before selling shares, and were quite limited in scope. These measures might seem onerous to the modern libertarian, but the objective of the progressives of the day was not continued bursts of economic growth, but rather a compassionate and measured relationship between industry and the people. The Gilded Age preceded the Progressive Era, and the age saw many of the same extremities that surface today. Corporations used violence and coercion to break up labor union strikes. Vast monopolies controlled communication, transportation and government policy. It took several years of economic disaster starting in 1893 to jolt the lower classes awake and jump-start reform. Why do recent missteps and crimes by corporations escape justice? The modern
examples I have recounted resulted in fines and scattered firings, but executives continued to collect hefty bonuses and salaries. Often the American public pick up the slack through bailouts. By any measure, this is not capitalism, for companies do not suffer for their otherwise fatal mistakes. This is not socialism, for the aim of government action is not the common well-being. No one except the billionaires benefitting from government largesse have reason to be content. Let some changes be made. If a company goes under, it should not be bailed out, but allowed to die. An executive who breaks the law or causes wanton misfortune should be thrown in jail. Jobs and stability may be lost in the short term, but the economy will be stronger tomorrow if the wheat is separated from the chaff today. Fundamental change is never simple, but dodging complex challenges brought humanity the dozen crises that threaten our collective good. The suggestions I propose sound radical, but all have precedent during more enlightened periods and in more civilized regions. The American public has forgotten how to hold corporate feet to the fire. Steve Kerby is a fourth-year student studying astronomy and physics. When he grows up, he wants to be older.
NASA funding can reignite national pride Peter for You Peter Wilson In 1969, NASA landed the first humans on the Moon. This feat was the culmination of the so-called “Space Race” during the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union. Starting in the late 1940s, the Space Race was a major scientific endeavor, and the United States’ success was a testament to the men and women who accomplished all they did. It was also a major source of national unity and pride. Since the 1960s, the NASA budget has severely been cut and is now dwarfed by the U.S. military budget. In the present day, more space travel is undertaken by private companies such as SpaceX and Sierra Nevada Corporation than by the governmental agency. NASA serves a vital purpose to the United States, both for scientific advancement, but also regarding national pride. Its ability to instill national pride may be the perfect infusion for our current state of political division. NASA cannot be allowed to fall behind the private companies now launching into the space travel and exploration market. Increasing NASA funding can lead to a variety of impressive outcomes. Of
course, the clear purpose would be to achieve more awesome feats of human scientific understanding. However, NASA does much military research as well. The most important reason to increase NASA funding is to reignite much of the lost national pride in this country. Performing the first successful human landing on Mars would be quite the feat. It would also inspire thousands of young men and women to want to become astronauts, space explorers for the United States, as the moon landing once did. What would be more inspiring than watching live footage of a Mars landing, culminating in the planting of the American flag in that dry Martian soil? This increase in NASA funding could easily be done without even increasing taxes on the common American. Simply allocating more funding to the NASA budget from the exorbitant military budget could generate much more national pride
than launching another controversial war. This is not a partisan issue. Scientific research should not be partisan. The fundamental advancement of science in this country has taken a backseat to many other programs issues in this country. Research organizations and institutions have all, in turn, had to endure drops in their funding. A drop as we have seen is categorically detrimental to the nation. NASA has stated that, given budget constraints, it will stop funding the International Space Station (ISS) by 2025. The ISS is partially funded by NASA, which contributes $3 billion a year. Therefore, cutting the ISS funding saves NASA $3 billion a year. President Donald Trump’s proposed military budget for 2019 is $681.1 billion. The importance of the ISS and its research speaks for itself, and an additional $3 billion, especially compared to the massive proposed military budget, is
“What would be more inspiring than watching live footage of a Mars landing, culminating win the planting of the American Flag in that dry Martian soil?”
practically minuscule. That being said, the Trump administration has proposed increasing NASA’s budget, with the goal of creating a base of operations on the moon which would serve as a first stop for longer missions, such as to Mars or beyond. This is evidence that the problem is being looked at, but not seriously considered. Actually increasing the budget for NASA would not come with stipulations, but rather be for pure research and development. Furthermore, one of the Trump administration’s other goals for increasing NASA funding is the implementation of the so-called “Space Force,” which would be an additional branch of the military, but its goal would be to monitor and protect American space travel agencies. NASA was once an amazing source of national pride and fervor. Today, with its proportionally small budget, the organization is frequently overlooked. For the sake of the country and for national unity, increasing the NASA budget would be for the direct benefit of the United States and all its people. Peter Wilson is a second-year biomedical engineering student on the biocomputing and informatics track. He works in the Gustafson Lab and can be found on Twitter at @wpieltseorn.
Difficulties with winter break housing Unsolicited Opinion
Won Hee Kim Securing housing for winter break can be confusing and scary, especially for underclassmen. You live on campus for a large part of the year, creating a home for yourself, and then you’re told to get out without access for about a month. I remember when I was a first-year student and not wanting to go back to New Jersey but not having any other choice. Staying on campus would cost $25 a night, and I didn’t have a job. I would be denied for any loans to pay for the stay, because I wouldn’t be in school over winter break.
From what I can tell, this sort of situation happens everywhere. Last Tuesday, Inside Higher Ed published an article on students that don’t have a place to go and how colleges are responding to the issue. The article states that “programs to help students pay for housing during the winter months (and to feed them) have become much more common.” What has Case Western Reserve University been doing? Here is all the information I found on winter housing at CWRU: A notice from The Daily in 2012, when the cost of winter break housing was $21 per night. It came out on Dec. 20, the date when residence halls closed. A link to the Guest Housing
Application, which seems like it is just for the summer. A Facebook post by Living at Case Western Reserve University in 2016 when costs rose to $25/night. That’s it. There may be more, but that was all I could find online after hours of searching. Walking into the Undergraduate Housing office in Thwing did not give me any further answers. They simply gave me business cards of people to contact. Last semester, students at the Los Angeles location of California State University organized a rally when the university tried to “charge extra” for students staying over winter break. The university announced that the fee would be waived the following week.
Here at CWRU, it feels like this isn’t a problem people are aware of. I live off-campus now, but there are probably others facing similar problems. For students with families who live far away or are in a toxic environment, there are other options, such as subleasing or using Airbnb, both of which can be considerably cheaper. But despite there being outside options, our school needs to work harder to reach out to students who do not know about winter break housing and let them know their options ahead of time. Won Hee Kim is a third-year English major with minors in creative writing and economics.
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fun
Ken Ken The aim of the puzzle is to fill the whole grid with numbers. The only numbers you are allowed to use are 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. No number may repeat in a column or a row. Each “cage” (or a shaded box) contains a target number and the arithmetic method needed to be used to obtain the target number.
1/18/19
Horoscopes Which failed New Year’s resolution are you? Aquarius Going to office hours Pisces Promising to work out twice per week Aries Attending all your classes
Sudoku Normal
Taurus Making new friends Gemini Calling home once per week Cancer Saving up money Leo Stopping procrastination
Hard
Virgo Going to sleep at a healthy hour Libra Eating at places other than Melt University Scorpio Dressing nicely everyday
Riddle of the Week What movies do these two sets of emojis represent?
Capricorn Keeping up with the assigned reading Sagittarius Not drinking or partying
sports
observer.case.edu
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Swimming and diving takes first to end semester Riley Simko
Staff Reporter The Case Western Reserve University swimming and diving teams are starting the new semester on a high note. The Spartans ended last semester at the College of Wooster Invitational, coming in first out of the 11 competing universities. The team swept the board, racking up enough points to launch them into the overall win. The Spartans took first in the women’s 200 yard freestyle relay due to the combined efforts of fourth-year athletes Bhavya Kumaran and Suhan Mestha as well as first-year athletes Daniella Rupert and Skye Fogle. Sean Twomey, a second-year swimmer, took first in the men’s 200 yard individual medley, beating Ohio Northern University (ONU) third-year star swimmer Nolan Huey by 0.51 seconds. Mestha, Rupert and Fogle of the women’s team also swept the board, each earning a coveted spot in the top eight finishers for the women’s 50 yard freestyle. The women again made a splash in the 400 yard medley relay. Second-year swimmer Caitlyn VonFeldt started the team off, followed by fourth-year swimmer Allison Drohosky, then by first-year swimmer Anna Smith and finished with Spartan powerhouse Mestha as the anchor. The team had a heavy lead in the preliminaries, and shortened their final time by about seven seconds, far ahead of the second place team from Edinboro
University of Pennsylvania. In the men’s 400 yard individual medley, CWRU placed five of the top six spots. Twomey again took first place, followed closely by teammates first-year student Ryan Gorman, second-year student Kyle Barclay, fourth-year student Keith Erichsen and A.J. Quinn, a third-year student. Smith placed first in the women’s 100 yard butterfly, followed closely behind by Fogle in fourth-place, a mere two and a half seconds behind Smith in this close race. For the A-list women’s 100 yard backstroke, only two swimmers could edge into placing spots amongst the CWRU Spartans. Mestha came in first, followed closely by VonFeldt, secondyear swimmer Olivia Love and in fourth, Kumaran. Smith took sixth and Jackie Ngu, a first-year student, rounded out the heat scoring eighth. In the women’s 800 yard freestyle relay, the Spartans again showed the other teams that they came to win. Rupert and Drohosky were joined by firstyear student Sarah Krueger and thirdyear student Olivia Picchione, taking the win over Malone University. Erichsen from the men’s team took the 1650 yard freestyle with an impressive time of 16:18.26, almost six seconds ahead of the second place swimmer from the University of Mount Union. First-year student Calvin Tecson also made his mark on the tournament, placing first in Event 30, the men’s 100 yard freestyle in both the preliminary and final heats.
Courtesy of CWRU Athletics The CWRU swimming and diving teams competed at the Wooster Invitational where they recorded six first place finishes, contributing to their first place title out of the 10 competing universities.
Second-year diver Cassiel Yuzik, who placed in both the men’s one meter and three meter diving competitions at the Wooster Invitational, remarked on the team’s hard work already this semester. He said the team came back “a week sooner” for two-aday practices. “The week before the spring semester starts is probably one of the most influential within the whole year. First, because we aren’t distracted or stressed by classwork and exams. Secondly, we like to start small at the beginning of the year, making sure that all of the small particular techniques
Serena Williams pursues record-tying win Claire Nordt
CWRU wrestlers place in winter tournements Andrew Ford
Sports Editor
The Australian Open has begun, meaning Serena Williams is once again fighting for a title. Williams has the opportunity to match Margaret Court’s record for most Grand Slam singles titles of all-time. Court’s record currently sits at 24, a record she set during her career between 1960-1977. Williams holds 23 Grand Slam singles titles at the moment, making her the record holder for most Grand Slam singles titles in the Open era and just two away from becoming the all-time record holder. Two years ago, Williams earned her 23rd Grand Slam singles title at the Australian Open after facing her sister Venus Williams in the finals. She was unable to return to Australia in 2018 due to the birth of her daughter, but she is back and ready to repeat her 2017 performance in order to claim her 24th title, which would be her eighth Grand Slam singles title at the Australian Open. Williams came within inches of the record-tying title twice in 2018. In August of that year, Williams made it to the final round at Wimbledon, losing to opponent Angelique Kerber of Germany with a final score of 6-3, 6-3. In September, she was again able to secure a spot in the final, this time while compet-
have been established, and by this point in the season we can really start putting all the little parts together,” Yuzik said. His favorite part of coming back early is that the team “can practice hard, learn new dives, hit the water a bunch and have much more bonding time, to become a closely knit group of not only teammates but also friends.” Next on the docket for the spring semester for the CWRU Spartans will be the State University of New York (SUNY) Geneseo in Geneseo, New York, for a day of tough competition on Jan. 19.
Staff Reporter
Courtesy of Wikimedia Serena Williams returns to the Australian Open where she has the opportunity to tie Margaret Court’s record.
ing on home turf at the US Open. It came down to a final between Williams and Naomi Osaka, which Williams ultimately lost. The final score was 6-2, 6-4, and the faceoff became one of the most controversial tennis matches in the history of the sport due to a disagreement between the umpire and Williams. Williams has faced additional media attention at the Australian Open due to that controversial final round. News outlets have been speculating if and when she will speak out. So far, Williams has remained focused
on tennis and motherhood. In her first match of the Australian Open, Williams won against Tatjana Maria of Germany, advancing her to the second round where she will face Canadian Eugenie Bouchard. Her sister, Venus Williams, also won her first round match against Mihaela Buzarnescu of Romania. She will face Alize Cornet of France in the second round. The final will be played on Saturday, Jan. 26, with the men’s final a day later. In order to reach the final again, Williams will need to win five more matches.
After a month-long break, the Case Western Reserve University wrestling team returned to competition in early January, partaking in three contests before the start of classes. They began 2019 by taking ninth place at the Waynesburg Invitational. Thirdyear grapplers Jacob Frisch and Alec Hoover led CWRU on their way to second and third place finishes respectively. Frisch won all of his matches except for the championship bout, recording a pin en route to his runner up finish. Hoover lost his opening match, but endeavored to pin his next three opponents and win by major decision in the third place match. Frisch and Hoover combined to score 36.5 of the Spartans’ 59.5 points. On Wednesday Jan. 9, CWRU hosted Thiel College and Lourdes University, but lost to both schools in the tri-meet. Firstyear wrestler Adam Kates, third-year wrestler Isaac Collier and Hoover all won both of their matches on the day. Against Thiel, the Spartans lost 24-14, and they lost 30-20 to Lourdes. At Manchester University in Indiana, the Spartans placed 16th out of 22 teams in the Spartan Mat Classic on Jan. 12. Collier was the top CWRU finisher, placing fourth in his weight class, although he did have to forfeit the third place match. The team finished with 30 points. The Spartans will be back in action at Adrian College on Jan. 17.
sports Men’s basketball wins nailbiter, loses a heartbreaker
Sanjay Annigeri Staff Reporter
The Case Western Reserve University men’s basketball team started the calendar year looking to take on the challenge of playing a tough University Athletic Association (UAA) schedule. So far, the team has played well at home, winning a game 57-55 against New York University (NYU) on Friday, Jan. 11 and losing a 67-65 nailbiter against Brandeis University on Sunday, Jan. 13. Against NYU, CWRU mounted a comeback and held on for the victory. The Spartans had an early seven point lead after a layup by first-year guard James Bittner. A 9-2 run by NYU, combined with CWRU shooting 1-for-14 from the three-point line, evened the score. NYU would go into halftime with a 27-23 lead. In the second half, with a little over 11 minutes left in the game, the Spartans trailed by five points. Third-year guard Monty Khela ensured the team would have a fighting chance, scoring back-toback layups and hitting a three to give CWRU its first lead of the second half, 41-39. The teams traded several baskets, evening the score at 44 with under seven minutes left to play in the game. First-year forward Ryan Newton gave the Spartans a lead they wouldn’t relinquish, as he hit three consecutive threepointers. Down only two points in the final 10 seconds of the game, NYU attempted a comeback. After missing the final lay-up, NYU conceded and the Spartans came
away with the victory. Against Brandeis, the Spartans attempted a comeback but fell short. An early 10-0 run by CWRU allowed the team to take a 10-2 lead in the first three minutes of the game. Bittner would add to this lead with a three to give the team a 19-8 lead. Brandeis scored five straight late points to shrink the gap before halftime, with CWRU leading 35-31. The Brandeis Judges continued this run in the second half, scoring seven points and taking a 38-35 lead with over 17 minutes left in the game. Both teams ended up battling back and forth, with Brandeis taking a 52-51 lead that they wouldn’t give up with seven minutes left in the game. The Spartans made it close in the final minute, cutting a five-point deficit to one point with a three by Newton and free throws by second-year guard Antonio Ionadi. Brandeis made its two free throws and intentionally fouled Khela. He made the first and missed the second to get an attempt for a game-tying shot. However, Brandeis corralled the defensive rebound and won. The Spartans finished last week with a win and a loss, bringing their overall season record to 8-6 and UAA record to 1-2. The team will continue its UAA schedule, starting a four-game road trip with matchups against Emory University on Friday, Jan. 18 and the University of Rochester on Sunday, Jan. 20. “[Emory and Rochester] have been ranked in the top 25. Emory plays very fast and has great talent,” Head Coach Todd McGuinness said. “Rochester starts four seniors and have great experience.”
Courtesy of CWRU Athletics The Spartans played two University Athletic Association (UAA) games last weekend defeating NYU and losing to Brandeis. These games brought the team’s overall season record to 8-6 and their UAA record to 1-2.
Strong start to the new year David Chang Staff Reporter
The Case Western Reserve University women’s basketball team has started 2019 with five wins, highlighted by University Athletic Association (UAA) wins against Carnegie Mellon University (74-63), New York University (72-62) and a (67-64) nailbiter against Brandeis University, as well as an 86-76 win against Wooster and an 80-62 win against Chatham University. The team also traveled to Miami Shores to play in 2018 HoopMIA D3 Holiday Shootout and beat both teams, Thiel College (7159) and Eastern University (102-99) after a clutch comeback in overtime. They are currently 11-3 for the season. First-year guard Abbey Lawrence said the Miami trip was a vital bonding moment for the team, as the team “got closer over break…[by] learning about everyone’s backstories.” Against Eastern, the Spartans trailed most of the first half, until fourth-year
forward Hillary Hellmann turned the heat up, scoring 13 points in the third quarter. Determined to come back from the 12-point deficit, the Spartans went on a 7-0 run to start the fourth. Third-year forward Kendall McConico was a key player in crunch time, scoring a three and a layup to bring the deficit to one point with three minutes remaining in the fourth. With ten seconds left in the game, McConico managed to regain possession of the ball on a missed three by forcing a jump ball. Her hustle play was rewarded when McConico tied the game with a three with one second left in regulation. In overtime, graduate student Kara Hageman took the team’s first lead since the first quarter, 91-90. The Spartans lockdown defence secured the win, with third-year guard Alicia Marie Gonzalez icing the game with made free throws. Lawrence praised Gonzalez as the “floor general” of the team, who “makes big passes, makes sure everyone runs the plays, stays calm throughout the
game...and makes sure everyone is on same page on offense and defense.” Gonzalez has been the assist leader for the Spartans this season, averaging 4 assists per game, and recently tying her career high of 7 against Brandeis. The Spartans started hot against Brandeis, going on a 20-0 run in the first quarter. Hellmann lead the team in scoring, gaining eight points in the opening period. However, Brandeis returned the heat, going on a 13-0 run to even up the score heading into the second half. Both teams remained competitive to start the third, trading points back and forth. Lawrence made a buzzer-beating jumper to take back the lead 51-50 at the end of the third. The Spartans managed to build a six-point lead in the fourth and maintained it, with second-year forward Emma Cain grabbing rebounds and getting to the free throw line. Brandeis chose to foul, and Gonzalez again recorded clutch free throws to secure the win with 14 seconds remaining in the game. Lawrence shared the Spartans’ goals
for the season and steps for improvement in future games: “We made a list of goals...our main goal is to be top three in the UAA, reduce turnovers to 14 a game, seven per half and lastly out rebound the other team.” The Spartans did just that, committing a season-low five turnovers against Brandeis, and out rebounding the opposing team in five games out of their last seven wins. The Spartans are currently 3-0 in UAA conference play, showing signs of a strong contender. Lawrence’s scoring off the bench has taken advantage of building a lead against the opponent’s second unit, as she is averaging 7.8 points and shooting 32.4 percent from the three point line so far this season. She recently recorded a career high of 19 points against Carnegie Mellon, going a perfect 5-for-5 from three. Looking to extend their seven game win streak, the Spartans will take to the road, traveling to Emory University on Jan. 18 and the University of Rochester on Jan. 20.