December 6, 2018

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Wednesday December 5, 2018 vol. CXLII no. 112

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ON CAMPUS

Public Safety plants bait bikes on campus By Benjamin Ball Senior Writer

The Department of Public Safety has placed bait bikes around campus to catch bike thieves in the act and deter bike theft on campus. These bait bikes are locked bicycles equipped with GPS tracking devices. If a bike is taken, Public Safety can track its location and the person in possession of the bike. As part of the Bait Bikes Program, Public Safety will provide registered bike riders with stickers that say “This Could Be a Bait Bike: Think Before You Steal” so potential thieves will not know which bikes are being tracked. In order to obtain a bait bike sticker, students, faculty, and staff must first register their bikes with Transportation and Parking Services. Registration is free. Executive Director of Public Safety Paul Ominsky told the Office of Communications that bike theft is one of the most common crimes on college campuses, and that bikes are the most commonly stolen item at the University. Ben Parker ’20, a bike owner himself, believed that the program could be successful because it forces potential bike thieves to think twice before stealing. “People are less likely to commit a crime when the likelihood of being caught gets higher,” Parker said. “A bike potentially being

ZEYTUN WEST :: PRINCETONIAN STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Public Safety has placed bait bikes around campus and will provide registered bike riders with stickers that say “This Could Be a Bait Bike: Think Before You Steal.”

tagged would do that for sure.” However, Parker had some hesitations about the actual logistics of the program, saying that the program felt like an “icky … entrapment.” Kate O’Brien ’19 had her bike stolen last December. She had gone to MurrayDodge Hall for cookies for about an hour and left her bike outside with the lock on but not secured. When she

left Murray-Dodge, her bike was no longer there. “I had my bike since freshman year, and it was my baby,” O’Brien said. “I don’t walk anywhere. I was very upset.” O’Brien noted that, ironically, she had been writing a paper for her journalism class on bike theft when her bike was stolen. O’Brien used her Snapchat story, Instagram, and

ON CAMPUS

the Butler Buzz listserv to spread the word to her peers about her missing bike. “I had this whole movement going on,” O’Brien said. She found her bike a few days later outside of the second f loor entrance to the Frist Campus Center and has securely locked her bike ever since. She expressed optimism towards Public Safety’s bait bike system,

though she lamented its necessity. “I think it’s worth a shot,” O’Brien said. “It’s kind of sad that we have to do that. So many of my friends have had their bikes stolen, and many haven’t found them.” More recently, about a week ago, Sophie Evans ’21 had her bike stolen outside East Pyne Hall. She has yet to find it or have it returned, although she noted that she did not have her bike registered with Public Safety. “I had hoped someone was taking it to get somewhere in the rain, and I would get it back after, but it was to avail,” Evans said. Should the bait bike system be effective, Evans said she would be interested to see where the stolen bikes end up. “I’d be interested to see if the bikes stay on campus, by the boathouse, or if they [appear] in bike shops across New Jersey,” Evans said. Corporal Martin Krzywicki and Sergeant Sean Ryder are leading the Bait Bike Program. Krzywicki was unavailable for comment at the time of this publication, while Ryder deferred to the Office of Communications and Deputy University Spokesperson Michael Hotchkiss. Members of Public Safety will be answering further questions from students on the Bait Bike Program at the “Coffee with a Cop” event from 8 to 11 a.m. Monday, Dec. 10, at Frist Campus Center.

STUDENT LIFE

Faculty members Burdine, Weber Paid sick leave for student workers starts in February named 2018 science fellows Senior Writer

PHOTOS COURTESY OF OFFICE OF COMMUNICATIONS AND JESSICA BAL

Burdine (l.) used zebrafish to study genes involved in human diseases. Weber explained the decisions that people make are the “perfect storm” for applying cognitive psychology.

By Nick Shashkini Staff Writer

Princeton University faculty members Rebecca Burdine and Elke Weber have been named the 2018 fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). They will be honored on Feb. 16 at the 2019 AAAS Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C. The AAAS, an U.S. international non-profit organization and the world’s largest general scientific society, has over 120,000

In Opinion

members and is the publisher of the scientific journal “Science.” Rebecca Burdine, an associate professor of molecular biology, was recognized for her work in the field of developmental genetics. She used zebrafish to study the genes involved in human diseases and processes such as heart development and the causes of idiopathic scoliosis. Zebrafish are used in modeling human disease since 70 percent of human genes are also found in ze-

Contributing columnist Ethan Li encourages students to look beyond difficulty when selecting courses and guest contributor Will Crawford pushes back against columnist Avner Goldstein’s criticism of the bonfire. PAGE 4

brafish. In addition, they have similar organ pathways, helping to model the progression of human diseases that affect how organs function. Burdine expects to continue her research in the near future and emphasizes the importance of students in her work. “A lot of the accomplishments that I get to take credit for are actually done by the students in the lab,” Burdine said. “We all move science forward as a group, See FELLOWS page 3

Today on Campus

Starting next February, students working on campus will be able to earn paid sick leave under the New Jersey Paid Sick Leave Act. The act stipulated that employees must be notified of the new policy by Nov. 29. On Nov. 21, the University emailed students working hourly jobs on campus informing them that they will start accruing paid sick leave at a rate of one paid hour of leave every 30 hours worked. “By providing compensated sick time, the new paid sick leave policy should provide additional flexibility for hourly student employees,” explained University spokesperson Ben Chang. The New Jersey Paid Sick Leave Act was adopted by the 218th New Jersey State Legislature on March 12, 2018. The act was sponsored by Assemblywoman Pamela R. Lampitt (District 6), Assemblyman Raj Mukherji (District 33), Assemblyman Jerry Green (District 22), Assemblyman Benjie E. Wimberly (District 35), Assemblywoman Shavonda E. Sumter (District 35), and Assemblyman Paul D. Moriarty (District 4). However, few University students will claim much paid sick leave since most students work part-time jobs with hours that are unlikely

12:15 p.m.: A discussion about net neutrality, 5G policy, and financial considerations with Federal Communications Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel and Nick Feamster, professor of computer science. Robertson 016

to accumulate to an amount sufficient for paid leave. “Even though I don’t think I personally will use [the new policy], and I haven’t had a situation where that has come up, I think that it’s a very useful and important rule,” Isaac Wolfe ’20 said. Wolfe explained that this new rule could be crucial for other students who rely a lot more on campus jobs for dayto-day expenses. For Krystal Delnoce, ‘21, who said she is first-generation low-income (FLI) student who works at Dillon Gymnasium as a children’s swim instructor and at Murray-Dodge cafe, the rule may come in handy. She said that she has previously found it difficult to take time off from her jobs when she was ill. “I teach swim lessons, and I’ll be the only instructor teaching three or four kids, so if I don’t show up, who teaches them?” Delnoce said. She explained that she became suddenly ill last semester and received little sympathy from her supervisors when trying to find someone to cover her shifts. “You would get into trouble if you don’t find somebody to cover your shifts,” Delnoce said. “You sometimes have to push through and it’s not always good for the safety of everyone involved.” However, Delnoce worried See SICK LEAVE page 2

WEATHER

By Rose Gilbert

HIGH

36˚

LOW

23˚

Mostly cloudy chance of rain:

0 percent


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