MAY 11, 2018
THE INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO SINCE 1892
VOL. 129, ISSUE 47
New Sosc Options Added BY TONY BROOKS DEPUTY NEWS EDITOR
Spencer Dembner
The University’s annual Scavenger Hunt kicked off with the midnight list-reading in Ida Noyes.
Highlights From the Scav List BY TONY BROOKS DEPUTY NEWS EDITOR
With a List of over 30 0 items, there are abundant opportunities to win points during this year’s Scav. From Adam Smith to ancient sea monsters, below are a few of our favorite items from this year’s List. Sith Senate (#111) Teams must procure “concrete evidence of the dark side of the government by getting a United States senator to say ‘I am the Senate’ along with [their] team’s name. [25 points for federal senator; 5 points for state senator; 0 points for using pre-existing clips].” Our only disappointment is that they did not make this Item 66. UofC Security Alert Apocalypse (#77) For this item, teams must create “an apocalyptic UofC Security Alert generator. [At approximately 16 points].” Bishop Sea Monster (#163) According to legend, a fishlike monster appeared in the sea 500 years ago and was captured and held by the king of Poland. When a group of Catholic bishops gathered to see
the monster, they released the beast and before it swam away, it made the sign of the cross to the congregation, never to be seen again. So, students are expected to bring one to Judgement on Sunday for five points (one for every century since the fish was last spotted, we presume). Adam Smith Roast (#215) Last night, one student per team dressed as “a world-renowned scholar from an era and discipline of [their] choice to Hutch Commons…where [they razzed] Adam and other thinkers in attendance with peer-reviewed burns.” For participating, teams received ♂ points “based on fidelity of impression and shadiness of zingers.” Bayesian Bear (#15) According to whoever creates the List, “[their] prior is that there’s always a Bayesian bear! Bring a bear to Judgement…. The Bayesian bear is recognizable as a bear, but beyond this we recommend a flat prior. [15 points].” To help them get it right, participants are allowed to present two candidate bears to judges at events prior to Judgement.
“There is this sense that the Core [Curriculum] is the Core, and cannot change,” Jenny Trinitapoli, associate professor of sociology and director of the Center for International Social Science Research, told The Maroon. But Trinitapoli and her colleagues in the Social Sciences Collegiate Division believe the Core can evolve—and two major changes are in store for the Social Sciences Core, including a new course that Trinitapoli will be chairing. In the 2018–2019 College Catalog, released online in early April, the Social Sciences Collegiate Division revealed two major additions to the Social Sciences Core. An entirely new course, Global Society, will be offered starting in the fall. Meanwhile, the existing course So-
cial Science Inquiry (SSI) will be expanded into three distinct versions, each with a different focus. Elisabeth Clemens, sociology professor and master in the Social Sciences Collegiate Division, said that Global Society is the first new sequence since Democracy and Social Science—which is now SSI— was introduced in the 1990s. Trinitapoli said the idea for Global Society developed out of conversations over the past several years within her department. “[We were] trying to think about how we can expand our notions of what constitutes social theory, [to] think about problems in the world that we actually live in, ranging from migration crisis to climate change, and population sustainability,” she said. According to Global Society’s course description, “The sequence Continued on page 3
Basma’s Kitchen Finds a Home in Hutch — Uncommon Interview — BY SARAH LEWIS NEWS REPORTER
“It’s a group effort. It’s not just something that I do, but it’s something that all of my family and our employees and team do—it’s everyone’s kitchen.” Basma Wallace, owner of Basma’s Kitchen in Hutchinson Commons, has led the way for her restaurant along with the help of her family and coworkers since its conception. She hopes to develop her restaurant into a franchise, but says that the restaurant will always remain true to its roots here at UChicago. The Maroon sat down with Basma to discuss the progress of her restaurant and her life outside of Basma’s Kitchen. Chicago Maroon: How and when did Basma’s Kitchen begin? Who came up with the idea? What inspired you? Basma Wallace: We had Saffron, my family’s business, for over 10 years, and I basically grew up learning the restaurant business. So we had the opportunity to bring a new concept to campus. And we knew we wanted to bring Mediterranean food because you have the grill, so it’s hot food, and it’s also
Top Ranked Men look for NCAA Redemption Page 8 The Maroon men’s tennis team is set to host the five-team NCAA regional this weekend as the number one seed. Third-year Charlie Pei feels good about the team’s chances. “We just made history by winning the UAA title by beating Emory, defending national champions, so obviously we feel good. That being said, we need to go back to work this weekend and stay focused because in the end your season is measured mostly by your performance at NCAAs. We were disappointed last year but are more than ready to prove ourselves this year.”
vegan food, so it’s a little bit of some- working at Basma’s Kitchen, or just thing that everyone can enjoy. One working with customers in general? BW: Employees. You can only of our dear family friends, Chris, is one of the directors at Hutch, train people and work with people and he’s helped us bring this idea so much, but getting people to actuto life…I remember when we were ally genuinely care about their jobs picking our name, I knew I wanted is the difficult part of working in a it to be some cool Mediterranean restaurant. Because some people name. And so we had literally two treat it as, “This is my business, this days to pick it before it was final- is my livelihood” and some look at it ized. And I come back the next day, as, “This is my job…at the end of the Continued on page 2 and there’s a file on the table. And I was like, “Okay, you know, it’s ready to go. Well, what did you guys name it?” And it’s…Basma’s Kitchen! I was like, “Oh my God!” CM: What is your go-to dish to eat on your own menu? BW: Baba ghanoush is just the best. Because when I’m not very hungry and I don’t have a lot of time to eat anyways, just some baba ghanoush and pita with some tabbouleh, or maybe I’ll go for a beef shawarma platter, with baba ghanoush, pita, and tabbouleh, and that’s just it for me. I only eat like once or twice a day at most because when you’re constantly around food… Sarah Lewis CM: Of course. So kind of on the opposite side of that, what is Wallace runs Basma’s Kitchen the most challenging part about in Hutchinson Commons.
Hasty Calculations: Reclaiming Math Page 5 Santhanam: Women are discouraged from pursuing math—we can start reversing this in our words.
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