May 5, 2016

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How does Cal Poly crime compare to other college towns?

James Hayes @ jimbles_hayes

American universities are required to publish an annual security report called the Clery Act, which details campus policy regarding safety and security measures, crime prevention program descriptions, and includes crime statistics for the past three years.

With this information available on university websites, it is easy to compare either college towns such as University of California, Davis (UCD); University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB); and California State University (CSU) Chico to Cal Poly, and determine how safe different small university towns are.

The Clery Act lists the number of crimes in the past three years such as burglary, vehicle theft and alcohol and drug violations as well as whether the crimes occurred on or off campus.

UNIVERSITY CRIME STATS On nearby college town universities: 2014: CRIMES PER 5,000 PEOPLE Cal Poly Burglary

Vehicle thefts

Liquor violations

4

2

8

Drug violations

21

Liquor violations Created by Arthur Shlain the Noun Project Cal Poly has alsofrom seen a rise in liquor violations. Three counts of liquor violations were reported, in 2012, but that number jumped to 34 in 2014.

However, UCSB has the most of the four universities with 89 counts. UCD follows with 47 counts and CSU Chico has the least with only six counts.

UCSB Police Department Records Supervisor Lisa Murphy said that the bump in liquor violations can be attributed to an increase in patrols by the department.

With more officers out on the streets, students were more likely to be caught.

UC Davis

Created by Luis Prado from the Noun Project

Burglary Cal Poly has the second least counts of burglary out of the four universities, with only 18 counts total both on and off campus in 2014. UCD has the most with 66 counts, followed by UCSB with 48 counts. CSU Chico has the least with only nine counts in 2014.

Despite it’s low number comparatively, Cal Poly has seen a rise in burglaries in the past three years.

Eleven counts of burglary were reported in 2012, 10 in 2013 and the number rose to 18 in 2014. Other schools, such as CSU Chico and UCSB, have seen a decline in burglaries.

Created by Luis Prado from the Noun Project

Vehicle theft Vehicle theft at Cal Poly is higher than both CSU Chico and UCSB, but is not as high as UCD. Eight counts of vehicle theft were reported at Cal Poly in 2014 compared to two counts at CSU Chico and one count at UCSB. UCD, however, has the most with 13 counts in 2014.

Burglary

Vehicle thefts

Liquor violations

9

2

7

Drug violations

3

UC Santa Barbara Burglary

Vehicle thefts

Liquor violations

7

.5

19

Drug violations

3

CSU Chico Burglary

Vehicle thefts

Liquor violations

3

.5

2

*A reinterpretation of the Clery Act caused crime citation numbers to be included with arrest numbers. This resulted in an increase of reported violation numbers in 2013 and 2014 compared to 2012.

Drug violations

9

Created by David Courey from the Noun Project

Drug violations Cal Poly has the highest number of drug violations with 88 counts reported. This is significantly higher than the other schools, as the second highest is CSU Chico with 31 counts.

UCSB has the lowest number of drug violations with only 15 counts, and the number of violations has decreased the past three years from 44 counts in 2012.

Cal Poly had a significant increase in drug violations from 2012 to 2013, going from nine violations in 2012 to 80 in 2013. Cal Poly’s Records Dispatch Supervisor Patty Cash-Henning said this was caused by a reinterpretation of the Clery Act that determined citations should be reported when originally only arrests had been reported.

Universities’ annual security report is useful information in comparing different universities and providing an in-depth look at the crime that occurs within a college community. Security reports are published in October of each year, and the statistics provided within the report are a useful tool for parents as well as students.

The University PoliCe Department at CSU Chico declined to comment.

SOURCE: Clery Act security report

The crime statistics reported are for 2014 unless otherwise stated. Crime statistics for 2015 are not available until the 2016 annual security report is published. These statistics are potentially inaccurate because they do not include instances where victims did not report the crime, such as instances of sexual assault.

Chris Brown signs with Dallas Cowboys Ayrton Ostly @ayrtonostly

The NFL draft finished last Saturday night with 253 players selected by 32 teams.

Former Cal Poly quarterback Chris Brown was not one of the players whose name was called.

But Sunday morning, Brown received a call from his agent Jim Miller.

“He called and asked me if I had a bag packed,” Brown told The Tribune. “Told me, ‘we’re going to Dallas.’”

As one of the most prolific quarterbacks in Cal Poly history, the Dallas Cowboys were interested in Brown’s talent and want to sign him as an undrafted free agent. They plan to work him out at their three-day rookie minicamp in Dallas this weekend.

Due to his speed and quickness showcased in his consecu-

tive 1,000-yard rushing seasons, the Cowboys will try him out at both quarterback and wide receiver. He’ll have a chance at both positions with the health of quarterback Tony Romo in question following an injury-riddled 2015 season and a lack of depth at wide receiver.

With this signing, Brown has a chance to join the likes of Nick Dzubnar, Asa Jackson, Ramses Barden, Chris Gocong and Jordan Beck as recent Cal Poly football players that played in the NFL. Brown hopes to emulate Dzubnar’s path following the draft last year. Dzubnar was signed by the Chargers after rookie minicamp and played all 16 games as a rookie, primarily on special teams.

With a good performance this weekend, Brown could see similar time on special teams if he signs as a wide receiver.

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“I definitely put a lot of effort and a lot of time in to make sure that I was going to be able to adapt to whatever it is that they told me that they wanted me to do,” Brown said to The Tribune.

If any team understands the value of undrafted free agents, it’s the Dallas Cowboys. Romo, a four-time Pro Bowler, was signed out of Eastern Illinois after the 2003 draft.

Brown’s older brother, Terrence, also signed a free-agent contract after the draft in 2013 with the Cincinnati Bengals.

The older Brown had some words of wisdom for his younger brother.

“He just told me to be ready to use this opportunity to show them what I can do,” Brown told The Tribune. “I’m just excited to get that chance.”

Continued on page 5

Thursday, May 5, 2016

NEWS | 2

Big changes planned for WOW, fall quarter Elena Wasserman

Changes are coming in Fall 2016 — classes start on a Thursday in the middle of Week of Welcome (WOW), and WOW will be more integrated with Cal Poly’s cultural-focused orientation program, OUR. The administration chose to start school two days early to give more time during holiday breaks, according to Director of New Student and Transition Programs Andrene Kaiwi-Lenting.

Kaiwi-Lenting said Wednesday night that WOW activities will stop as students attend class Thursday and Friday, and then will resume during the week-

@ElenaWasserman

end, attempting to bring everyone back together for more WOW activities.

“It’s kind of nice to have the welcome week inclusive of classes because I think it really helps set the tone for students of why they’re really here,” Kaiwi-Lenting said.

“We also may attempt to tap into programming (for the weekend) that is open to all students, but have a WOW presence there.”

Biological sciences junior and returning orientation team member Ashley Purviance said the new format will ultimately have a positive effect.

“I think it’s going to be definite-

ly different than FILE PHOTO | MUSTANG NE WS we’re used to and initially scary, LONGER WOW | Classes will start during WOW and will be more coordinated with OUR, the cultural orientation program. but will have a lot of positive effects,” tration senior and coordinator of for us to program and do a little “I think administration wants Purviance said.

OUR Caterin Miralda. more blending (this year) but the us to also be able to fully integrate Along with two days of school OUR leaders have done spring importance of why OUR is OUR, the students into Cal Poly and get in the middle of WOW, Orien- training with WOW and have it’s still a priority.” them to understand what it’s like tation for United Raza (OUR) been integrated into WOW in Though WOW is looking for- to be a student at Cal Poly,” Miwill become more incorporated years past. But this upcoming fall, ward to this integration, OUR ralda said. “But they haven’t given into WOW this upcoming fall, the administration and WOW are isn’t sure what the integration us a clear answer to why they’re according to Kaiwi-Lenting. hoping to integrate OUR into will entail for its program. doing that. Currently, we don’t OUR is an orientation team more WOWs programs, accordOUR will still be separate, but have any concrete answers as to focused on helping students of ing to Kaiwi-Lenting. administration and WOW hope what is going to happen.” color and different backgrounds “OUR has been incorporat- integrating OUR into more WOW, administration and overcome the culture shock they ed into WOW for many, many WOW programming will better OUR are still working on the may have coming to Cal Poly, years,” Kaiwi-Lenting said. “I connect the incoming class, ac- specific changes to WOW for according to business adminis- think there is an opportunity cording to Kaiwi-Lenting. this fall.

Ag programs look to embrace sustainability Michelle Zaludek @michellenistic

The buzz phrase in environmental articles: sustainable agriculture.

It’s nuanced — maybe even a little lofty. And experts in the field say there’s debate over what the word really means. But it’s been weaving itself into policies at Cal Poly for the past 30 years, and it’s probably here to stay.

One of the first prominent uses of sustainability in reference to agriculture was from Congress in the 1990 Farm Bill.

The law stated that long-term sustainable agriculture would become an integrated system of plant and animal production that satisfied human food needs, enhanced the natural resource base that agriculture draws from, made efficient use of nonrenewable resources, kept feasible economic practices and enhanced

the quality of life for farmers and It’s a sentiment that horticulture society as a whole. and crop science department head It was an ambiguous defi- Scott Steinmaus said he thinks is nition that left a lot of room already prevalent for most peofor interpretation. ple working on the ground in “People quibble over the the industry. word ‘sustainabili“There is no ty’ and whether farmer who we should be doesn’t want calling it to be able to People quibble over the word ‘regenerhand over ‘sustainability’ and whether ative’ or their farm ‘resilient’ to the we should be calling it or things next gen‘regenerative’ or ‘resilient’ or like that,” erat ion,” said HuntSteinmaus things like that. er Francis, said in an HUNTER FRANCIS director and email. “How founder of the Cal you define susPoly Center for Sustainable is very easy tainability. “But I think the main from a desk and extremely difpoint in all of this is ... that we ficult from a tractor cab, and less don’t expend all of our resources than 1 percent of the workforce in a way that will make it difficult is in a tractor cab … it is easy to for future generations to be able point fingers when you have a to meet their needs.” cush job in a bank.”

Cal Poly and other universities nationwide took a more definitive step toward sustainability in 2004 by signing the Talloires Declaration. Universities pledged to create more sustainable campuses by collaborating with people outside of the college members and promoting sustainability programs.

“It basically says that the signatory university will try to incorporate sustainability into the curriculum, and will also work toward the food on campus more sustainable in terms of its facilities and operations,” Francis said.

Additionally, Cal Poly was one of 23 California State University (CSU) campuses impacted by the approval of the CSU Sustainability Policy in 2014. The policy required universities to focus on several key areas to move toward more sustainable campus environments. The creation of im-

proved waste and water management, sustainable food services and procurement and a climate action plan all made the list.

Cal Poly’s Climate Action Planning Conference held its first meeting this past August.

“The growth of interest in sustainability (at Cal Poly) is reflective of the growth of interest in sustainability in society,” Francis said.

The Center for Sustainability has been around since 2000, and has grown over the years because of support from administration and community members, according to Francis.

Regarding agriculture, the organic agriculture program has been able to hire new faculty in recent years to focus on production systems. Meanwhile, everything from soil and water conservation to sustainable vineyard practices, to managed graz-

ing programs have come to the forefront of programs at Cal Poly.

And Swanton Pacific Ranch, a 3,200-acre property in Santa Cruz County that was donated to Cal Poly in 1993, now includes “organic vegetable production … wonderful grazing programs, they produce grass-fed beef, and sustainable certified forests,” Francis said.

Student-run programs such as the Real Food Cooperative — created in 2013 as a business arm to the Real Food Collaborative — also promote sustainable food practices on campus by distributing local and mostly organic food products, according to environmental management and protection senior Jesse Gibson, the cooperative’s co-founder and former president.

Continued on page 6

Cal Poly students hack into new ideas Alex Davidson Special to Mustang News

Hackathons have risen in popularity in the past several years — from Cal Poly to big corporations, hackathons are used as a way to gain new ideas while honing participants’ skills.

Many companies put on problem-solving hackathons that allow for teams to create solutions to issues that arise within a company’s product.

Eventbrite has 52 hackathon events between April and July in California alone.

These events include everything from the “Apple TV App Challenge,” which challenges teams to create an Apple TV app, to “Playcrafting and Microsoft Tool Jam,” which challenges teams to create useful software tools for game developers.

Cal Poly has hosted hackathons this year, and independent ones have taken place in San Luis Obispo as well.

Transunion, a credit information and information management company that has nexus within SLO, is hosting a hackathon on Friday. The event will challenge competitors to design an educational desktop or mobile app game that uses a score simulator based on life events.

Why do people participate in hackathons?

It isn’t just competition that drives people to join the hackathons.

There is a level of excitement involved. These events allow students and professionals to have a product to add to their resume. There’s fulfillment in seeing a final product come to life.

“It’s so exciting to try and put something together in such a short period of time with people that you either just met or that you were already friends with,” said Vivian Fong, a computer science senior who participated in Cal Poly’s Third Annual Design and Dev Hackathon this year. “Everybody has a set of skills that they bring to the table and at the end of the day, you get to see all these creations that each team has made in such a short period of time.”

Hackathons aren’t merely about fun; they’re about turning an idea into something more concrete.

Even the Facebook “like” option is a product of a hackathon. And it’s creations like these that bring out sponsors like Red Bull, Transunion and Apple at Cal Poly hackathons, especially at Design and Dev. “These are top-notch Google engineers that came to help people all day long on their Saturday,” said Lorraine Donegan, a Cal Poly graphic communication professor who was in charge of setting up the event.

Some companies will bring in their own software and see what products can work off that, Donegan said.

But not all hackathons are as serious. On May 14, San Francisco will host the “Shit No One Needs & Terrible Ideas 2.0” hackathon that boasts a banana zipper as its promotional picture.

Hackathons in San Luis Obispo Cal Poly’s Third Annual Design and Dev Hackathon challenged computer science majors, graphic designers and business entrepreneurs to work as a team to create a web-based, phone-based or digital watch app that is worthy of a jaw-dropping stare and a standing ovation.

It was once a couple of $50 gift card prizes and a somewhat small group of Cal Poly students, but has ballooned to a roaring storm of students competing for more than $9,000 in prizes.

More than 100 students gathered at the sold out event on April 8 to pitch ideas for the creation of an app that would be fully realized the following day. Pitches included everything from an app that makes cooking easier by using a recipe-sharing service to one that allows the Woods Humane Society, a local animal service, to map which dogs need to be fed and which ones need to be walked.

On April 9, teams of students

JARED HIRATA | COURTESY PHOTO VICTORIOUS

| Team “Repay,” above, took home the win in the Third Annual Design and Dev Hackathon.

met at 7 a.m. to start working on their apps. The building was quickly filled with the chatter of voices, the tapping of keyboards and the smell of free food.

Teams started hacking away at their projects while various workshops were held throughout the day, including a workshop where a Google representative taught programming languages and one where an Apple representative taught Swift, the program that helps developers create apps for the Apple Watch.

“You learn a lot and that’s such a huge incentive,” Fong said.

“The people around you have all these skills that you don’t have and you have skills that maybe other people don’t have so that sharing of skills was really fun.”

Some of the notable apps created at the Cal Poly hackathon were: • Gleam: to generate a connection between creators and causes • Shoal: to give discounts based on community service time at local businesses • Echo: to bring up difficult conversations that sometimes go unspoken in relationships and family through simplistic means • The winner, Repay: to create a streamlined service for interviewees to be repaid by companies The concept of “Repay” plays off an idea that many graduating students go through. According to the team, there isn’t an efficient process for interviewees to be repaid for ex-

penses from traveling to and from an interview.

The app allows for a speedy reimbursement of expenses by cutting out the cumbersome process of multiple e-mails and/or phone calls — instead, the app allows immediate results. While the team wasn’t able to complete the entire app within the time frame, like most of the teams, they were able to create a working product within the time constraints that left the judges wanting more.

“There’s just instant gratification (with hackathons),” said Esha Joshi, a computer science senior and “Repay” team member. “Realistically in that sort of time frame, you can’t get that much done, but when it’s a hackathon, you just have to in order to compete with the other teams.”

Thursday, May 5, 2016

NEWS | 3

Cal Poly students help keep Pozo tradition alive

CHLOE CARLSON | MUSTANG NE WS BOTTOMS UP

| Pozo Stampede is a cheaper alternative to Stagecoach Festival and has a large sense of community, as Central Coast locals celebrate their favorite music artists in the hot sun.

their trucks, the front of their sweaters and even on the face of their cornhole boards.

A 40-minute road trip north For the past two years, soil up Highway 58 will take you to science senior Robert Cronk an off-the-beaten-path scene attended the event with plans for a music festival. Past San- to come back the following year. ta Margarita Lake is Pozo, “Just enjoying the atmosphere home to the annual Pozo and environment with your Stampede country mu- friends (is why I come),” Cronk sic festival. said. “The music comes second.”

The event attracts Then there’s a whole other a number of stu- side to the festival — camping. dents, shown Campers purchased their spots by the Cal in addition to two-day concert Poly logos tickets to take part in a two-day on the tailgate. back Along the rows of RVs and of tents are American flags and sun-kissed college students taking a break from school work while bonding over country music.

Agricultural business sophomore Gill Howison said Pozo is a new family tradition among his brothers and him, and that Pozo was a lot cheaper and closer to attend CHLOE CARLSON | MUSTANG NE WS for a Cal Poly ENVIRONMENT | Pozo Stampede is more about the fun atmosphere than the music. student comChloe Carlson @chloecarlsun

pared to Stagecoach.

“If they had to choose between the two and they were willing to pay then I would say Stagecoach, but if just (camping) is what they were going for then I would say come here,” Howison said. “Just like price honestly, I am not trying to throw down $500 on a weekend. Like I would rather throw down a buck-fifty and have just as much fun.”

The rules are clear. No hard alcohol is allowed on the campgrounds. Event staff patrols the rows of campsites to make sure campers abide by this rule. At one point, a game of endless flip-cup started between approximately 30 campers.

Elias Stokes, an event staff member, said the students seem to come back each year for the Pozo culture.

“I forgot that there was a concert, this seems to just be a big tailgating event,” Stokes said jokingly.

This was the seventh year Pozo Saloon hosted the two-day event, Saturday, April 30 to Sunday, May 1. The venue is all outdoors and this year’s headliners

were Justin Moore, Joe Nichols and The Band Perry along with Old Dominion and Eric Paslay, among others. Music started up around noon and played until 10:30 p.m. both nights.

Just enjoying the atmosphere J u s t i n Moore took and environment with your t he st age on Saturday friends (is why I come), the night and played clasmusic comes second. sics like “Bait GILL HOWISON a Hook,” “If Heaven Wasn’t So Far Away,” and “Til My Last Day.” Howison said the crowd erupted when Moore took stage.

“Justin Moore was really cool and I definitely enjoy the music,” Howison said.

Many of the Saturday and Sunday acts at Pozo Stampede had played at Stagecoach the nights prior. The Band Perry headlined at Stagecoach on Saturday night and made its way up to Pozo to close the sold-out country music festival Sunday night.

CHLOE CARLSON | MUSTANG NE WS COUNTRY GIRL

| This year’s Pozo Stampede drew bands like The Band Perry, Justin Moore, Jana Kramer, Eric Paslay and Old Dominion.

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Thursday, May 5, 2016

ARTS | 4

K AT Y BARNARD| MUSTANG NE WS MEASURING SUCCESS | Fialta’s career has been spattered with various successes, from having their music featured in commercials and TV shows to simply growing their local fanbase.

Finding Fialta: The past, present and future of its music Carly Quinn @carlyaquinn

Their music has been heard in commercials and TV shows — but with only one released album and another in the works it’s only the beginning for this talented quartet.

This is Fialta and their sunsoaked summery sound sits perfectly with the scenery of San Luis Obispo.

Fialta memb ers David Provenzano and Michael Leibovich met while attending Cal Poly, but dropped out to tour together for their former band

Sherwood. On the road they met Beth Clements and Sarah Shotwell, who they began to collaborate with, spurring the beginnings of Fialta.

The band plucked its name from the short story by Vladimir Nabokov, “Spring in Fialta.”

Using the imaginary town put a spin on the common trend at the time of naming bands after places.

Each member of the group holds a plethora of talents, ranging from singing to playing various instruments, such as the keyboard, ukulele and the trumpet.

“Really, from the first time I

picked up a guitar, I was more interested in creating something and making my own thing than just learning other people’s songs,” Provenzano said.

Taking bits and pieces of different genres of music, from indie to pop, Fialta found its sound in happy strums of guitar and upbeat keyboard notes. Warm tones and cheerful vibes ooze out of every song.

Their first album, Summer Winter, was released on July 23, 2013, and the group’s talent was quickly recognized. Their songs have been used in commercials for Chipotle and Kmart, and

have been featured in shows such as “Awkward” on MTV and NBC. “I think success is a really relative term,” Shotwell said. “The ways we feel we’ve been successful so far is being involved and building a local fanbase.”

Soon after this, the group began work on their second album Shadow of a Drought, set to release on August 5. This album encompasses the band members passing into their 30s and their experiences entering this new stage in life.

The group received immense support for the creation of

this LP, reaching 244 percent of their goal on Kickstarter with more than a week left in the campaign.

After finishing the album, Fialta plans on taking a regional tour through California and Oregon in mid-July. The group said it’s excited for the opportunities and music to come.

According to the quartet, moving to and staying in San Luis Obispo has given them the space and lifestyle they need to create music while working other jobs. Shotwell is a teacher and the other three work at a local tech company.

“(Fialta) is like a full-time child,” Clements said. “But for me personally, I am so stoked to have a creative outlet outside of work.”

Despite fame and a growing fanbase, creating music for the fun of it seems to be the group’s main goal.

“We have serious thoughts and ideas, but we don’t take ourselves or the music we make too seriously,” Leibovich said.

“At the end of the day, we just want to dance our legs off and remember what it is to be fully alive, and we hope our music can be a vehicle for that.”

Thursday, May 5, 2016

ARTS | 5

Lantern Festival to showcase Asian American culture at Cal Poly

Regine Smith @regine321

One critique commonly received by Cal Poly is the lack of student diversity. To address this issue, many cultural clubs host events to bring the community together to celebrate the diversity that is present on campus.

Cal Poly’s Asian cultural fraternity Omega Xi Delta is partnering with its sister sorority Chi Delta Theta to host the 22nd annual Lantern Festival this Saturday. The event, which is free and open to the public, is intended to celebrate Asian American culture and diversity.

“The cultural community here is a

little different just because we are so small here,” Omega Xi Delta member Patrick Cheung said. “We are like the minority of the minority; it’s really small compared to, like, UCLA.” Cheung highlighted the supportive atmosphere at events like the Lantern Festival.

“Whenever there’s a cultural

event, everyone comes out,” he said. “Even for an Asian American cultural awareness event, every club — like Latinos, African Americans — everyone comes out to support each other. It just goes to show that our cultural community here is really tight-knit. We are small, but we’re loud and proud. It’s a little

hard for one ethnic group to stand on its own here. So we bring everyone together.”

The Lantern Festival will be held this Saturday at 4 p.m. in the Julian A. McPhee University Union (UU).

The event will include live performances, cultural food booths and lantern decor.

Let them eat cake: Dining with a French host family Kristine Xu @kristiners

I couldn’t believe my luck the first time I had a proper home-cooked French meal. Not only are there numerous courses of the meal, but it’s also paired with delicious wines from around Europe, supplemented with a glorious plate of cheese. It was a cliche come true.

While the foods I’ve eaten in Paris have been the stuff of every foodie’s dreams, there’s something special about sharing a

home-cooked meal. Don’t get me wrong, I can’t picture a better day spent than sampling the parade of good eats that grace these streets, but I’ve also fallen in love with the decadent evening meals that I share with my French parents twice a week.

I have a firm belief that the best way of getting to know a city is through tasting the food it has to offer. Though dining in restaurants is one way to do this, homecooked meals achieve the same result — and sometimes surpass

it. The ingredients are lovingly plucked from grocery stores and farmers’ markets in the neighborhood, while the cooking and dining traditions of my French family heavily influence the taste of the meal.

My French parents are fantastic cooks who not only prepare all their meals at home, but they also put an equal importance in the presentation. The amount of love, creativity and thoughtfulness put into every meal showed me how big of a role food plays in French

culture. It also showed me a different perspective on America’s relationship with food.

Every night my French parents come home around 7:30 p.m. and start preparing dinner. By 8:00 p.m. the rickety dining table has been gorgeously plated with glittering silverware and polished porcelain dinner plates. Cloth napkins rest neatly on the plates, while a wicker basket of fresh baguette slices sits next to a newly uncorked wine bottle. Every meal I’ve had with my French parents has been an absolute treat, because it’s a feast for the eyes as well as the taste buds.

Dinner starts with my French dad pouring wine into sparkling glasses sitting just to the upper right corner of the dinner plate.

My French mom starts serving some sort of entree, usually in the form of fuchsia turnips, a crisp green salad or steamed vegetables. I wait until everyone has been served before digging in.

In contrast to the dinners spent in the company of my laptop, dinner at my French family’s house consists of nourishing your brain as well as your stomach.

The dinner table serves the dual purpose of hosting meals as well as debates. It’s at this very dinner table that I explored the topics of politics, economy, current events, grammar and French culture purely in French. It’s also at this table that I overcame my fear of speaking and really made strides with the French language.

After the first course is finished, my French mom dips into the kitchen to pluck a large crockpot off the stove. She returns, lifts the lid and serves me a portion of the

IN CONTRAST TO THE DINNERS SPENT IN THE COMPANY OF MY LAPTOP, DINNER AT MY FRENCH FAMILY’S HOUSE CONSISTS OF NOURISHING YOUR BRAIN AS WELL AS YOUR STOMACH.

meat or fish she prepared. The main course is usually accompanied by more vegetables and always paired with the correct corresponding wine — whites for light meals and reds for heavier ones.

The cheese plate arrives next, with an assortment of different tastes, textures and smells to choose from. There’s the usual chunk of my preferred choice of Compté, a sharp cheese made from unpasteurized cow’s milk, as well as three petite wheels of softer cheese. I slice off a little bit of each and sandwich them between pieces of crusty baguette.

Of course, I learned quickly the importance of pacing myself, because there is much food to be had. It’s amusing to see the expression on my French parents’ faces when they witness the herculean amounts of food I manage to tuck away at each meal.

While I usually eat just a bite too much, there’s always room for dessert. The day of the week and the tone of the meal usually dic-

tates the kind of dessert served.

If it’s a normal weekday night, dessert is a ripe piece of fruit and tea. If it’s a more formal meal or a Sunday night, dessert means a freshly baked tart served with a mountain of whipped cream.

As I share more and more meals with my French parents, my vocabulary and initiative to speak French grow exponentially. The worn dictionary sitting within reach of the dinner table has become less and less necessary in our dinner conversations as I learn to navigate the subtleties of French conversation.

Despite living thousands of miles away from home this year, I’ve discovered a second home in Paris by indulging in familiar foods from back home, as well as experimenting with new foods that have enriched my palette and expanded the possibilities of future meals. Even though returning home will be a bittersweet experience, I’ll smile every time I see a freshly baked baguette or a hearty slice of cheese.

Thursday, May 5, 2016

OPINION | 6

The gym and me Daniel Park @CPMustangnews

Daniel Park is a journalism senior and Mustang News humor columnist. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect the viewpoints and editorial coverage of Mustang News.

I’m sure most people have experienced the joys of the gym as I have. The glistening sweat as the beads roll down supple breasts. The gorgeous movement of beautiful asses as they undulate.

And the women aren’t bad either.

Of course, the gym is a wonderful opportunity for me to show how much I don’t exercise. Every time I go to the gym, I climb up onto the elliptical and change the television to my favorite show — “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.”

I’ve learned quickly to change the channel to ESPN whenever someone walks by, but deep down I know I can wear that dress better. I will go to the dinner party, damn it.

Perhaps what I’m most scared of at the gym is the overly enthusiastic spin instructors hell-bent on ensuring your time there is spent in fear that they’ll notice you. There you are, pumping

I’m not complaining about them. In fact, I’m grateful for them. If it weren’t for the overly enthusiastic spin instructors, the only exercise I’d be doing is sticking my tongue out violently to naughtyvegetables.com. God, I’ve never been more turned on by bell peppers in my life. That’s why any time I see any vegetables, I go crazy. No wonder I’m barred from Whole Foods.

What I do hate are the stupid t u r n s t i l e s at the entrance of the gym. I have to tr y at least twice before it lets me through to the Promised Land.

Kind of like women. Of course, turnstiles and women are very different. One says you need to try again when you fail to press the right buttons, and the other is a turnstile.

Not only that, but the men’s locker rooms are something to fear. The older men especially.

There I am, sitting on the wooden benches, trying desperately to untie my sneakers, when I see a man in his late 120s, his raisin-like body dragging his scro-

Maybe the gym should provide complementary speedos that must be worn at all times.

HUMOR COLUMNIST DANIEL PARK

your legs as fast as possible, and the spin instructor invariably named Sarah or Laura yells at you, “Keep it up!” Keep what up? Is my erection showing?

Oh, God. My dreams are finally coming true.

Their demeanor is quite interesting. How can anyone be so cheerful, whether forced or natural?

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tum across the tile floor. I say scrotum because I assume that’s what it is. I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if it was a skinned cat or a worn out sack of potatoes.

There is absolutely no shame in the locker room at all. It would be nice if people covered up more often, but I realize that that isn’t going to happen any time soon. Maybe the gym should provide complimentary speedos that must be worn at all times. Yes, the locker rooms now look like a beach in Europe. That can change, hopefully.

And if I’m on the topic of improving the gym, I might as well continue with another

suggestion — how about putting a McDonald’s restaurant in there somewhere? I know that this alone would bring more people to the gym. Yes, critics may argue putting in a fast food restaurant at the gym seems at best counterintuitive.

And I would argue absolutely nothing, because they are correct, but I would enjoy it.

Of course, the gym is only one of many blessings I have so far. I’m especially thankful for the small things in life. And I’m thankful for many of the things that I get to complain about and do absolutely nothing to solve. But I’ll save that for another article.

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FILE PHOTO | MUSTANG NE WS DON’T HAVE A COW | Switching away from a meat-heavy diet, especially one rich in beef, would result in less water use for farmers and lower amounts of methane gas in the atmosphere.

Continued from page 2

“We’re trying to nudge people toward a plant-based diet,” Gibson said. “You generally eat food three times a day, it’s something you encounter a lot. So changing that just a little bit can aggregate a lot of change.”

A recent study from the Oxford Martin School supports that, having found that global adoption of vegetarian diets could help avoid up to 7.3 million deaths by the year 2050 — while the implementation of vegan diets could avoid 8.1 million deaths.

Further, the study found that the widespread application of vegetarian diets could cut projected greenhouse emissions by as much as 63 percent by 2050.

And it could save $700 billion$1,000 billion per year on health care, unpaid informal care and lost work days.

“If you’re in a difficult situation where you need to buy less expensive processed foods, I can understand,” Gibson said. “But most people going to Cal Poly are pretty privileged, and they should be using their purchasing power better.”

One of the best ways to keep moving forward with sustainability, according to Francis, is to continuously strive to do better and to keep the conversation going.

Cal Poly is now in the process of working with the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE). The program’s self-re-

porting sustainability checklist — the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS) — allows participating campuses to create a baseline for sustainability to grow from and generate new ideas with other participating campuses.

“We’ve committed to completing that program,” Francis said.

“So that’s going to be happening this year.”

The obligation to the program could help churn the wider conversation of what sustainability is and how to support it.

“In my mind, that’s the first place to start,” Francis said. “To let people know the current initiative that we do have. And then really lend their support to those projects in a meaningful way, whether it’s the grazing pro-

gram, or the organic program, or programs for conservation — all of these things need support.”

Cal Poly could do more small things to bring sustainable practices into the limelight, including simple changes such breaking down composting options with more specific signage as to what can be composted, according to Gibson.

Cal Poly has one of the nation’s largest university composting stations, Francis said, and using it to the fullest extent could improve the processing of organic material, keeping it out of landfills.

“There could also be more aggressive efforts to serve more healthy food on campus,” Gibson said. “I think they’re on the right course, but they could be

doing a better job … maybe by having a less adversarial attitude toward criticism.”

And at the end of the day, working toward sustainable agriculture has co-benefits that could appeal to people whether or not they’re invested in sustainability.

“It also transfers to a cost savings,” Francis said, explaining that utilizing sustainable techniques can be just as beneficial for the banker as they are for the farmer, by making the product able to generate longer and better over time.

“We have to look for approaches to meet our needs across society,” he said. “Whether that’s in agriculture or any other sector, in a way that will be viable in the long term.”

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SPORTS | 8

Continued from page 1

As one of the most prolific quarterbacks in Cal Poly history, the Dallas Cowboys were interested in Brown’s talent and want to sign him as an undrafted free agent. They plan to work him out at their threeday rookie minicamp in Dallas this weekend.

Due to his speed and quickness showcased by his consecutive 1,000-yard rushing seasons, the Cowboys will try him out at both quarterback and wide receiver. He’ll have a chance at both positions with the health of quarterback Tony Romo in question following an injury-riddled 2015 season and a

lack of depth at wide receiver.

With this signing, Brown has a chance to join the likes of Nick Dzubnar, Asa Jackson, Ramses Barden, Chris Gocong and Jordan Beck as recent Cal Poly football players that played in the NFL. Brown hopes to emulate Dzubnar’s path following the draft last year. Dzubnar was signed by the Chargers after rookie minicamp and played all 16 games as a rookie, primarily on special teams.

With a good performance this weekend, Brown could see similar time on special teams if he signs as a wide receiver.

“I definitely put a lot of effort and a lot of time in to make sure that I was going to be able to

adapt to whatever it is that they told me that they wanted me to do,” Brown said to The Tribune.

If any team understands the value of undrafted free agents, it’s the Dallas Cowboys. Romo, a four-time Pro Bowler, was signed out of Eastern Illinois after the 2003 draft.

Brown’s older brother, Terrence, also signed a free-agent contract after the draft in 2013 with the Cincinnati Bengals.

The older Brown had some words of wisdom for his younger brother.

“He just told me to be ready to use this opportunity to show them what I can do,” Brown told The Tribune. “I’m just excited to get that chance.”

CHRISTA L AM | MUSTANG NE WS

Baseball beats Santa Clara 6-2 in nonconference game Tommy Tran @tommytran_

The Cal Poly baseball team snapped a four-game losing streak on Tuesday night after beating Santa Clara 6-2 at Baggett Stadium.

The victory improves the Mustangs’ overall record to 26-17, but their Big West Conference record remains at 7-5, as Santa Clara is a nonconference opponent.

Santa Clara’s junior left fielder Tyler Meditz opened the game with a run in the top of the second inning, scoring off a sacrifice fly by sophomore catcher Braden Frankfort.

The Broncos scoring early on in the game, combined with the

fact that Cal Poly lost to Santa Clara 10-1 during the last time the two teams met — and that the Mustangs’ were on a four-game losing streak prior to Tuesday night’s victory — made for a nervous crowd in Baggett Stadium.

The Mustangs felt the pressure and answered with three runs in the bottom of the third inning.

Junior center fielder Brett Barbier and senior right fielder John Schuknecht scored on a double by junior third baseman Michael Sanderson, then Sanderson came home on a single by junior left fielder Kevin Morgan to give the Mustangs a 3-1 lead.

After a quiet fourth inning, freshman catcher Nick Meyer

committed a throwing error in the top of the fifth inning that allowed Santa Clara’s senior first baseman Ryan Budnick to advance to second base. Budnick eventually scored, cutting the Mustangs’ lead to 3-2.

But freshman starting pitcher Bobby Ay held on for a scoreless sixth inning before giving way to Justin Bruihl and Spencer Howard, two other freshmen. The two relievers combined to strike out five Santa Clara batters and scatter two hits.

Behind the stellar pitching, the Mustangs took control of the game. Two more runs in the bottom of the seventh inning allowed them to push their lead to 5-2, with Morgan and freshman

first baseman Cooper Moore both scoring on a double down the left field line by freshman designated hitter Dylan Doherty.

Doherty also drew a bases-loaded walk in the eighth inning, scoring Schuknecht.

Junior pitcher Justin Calomeni took control of the mound in the ninth inning, closing off the game without allowing a baserunner to earn Ay his first collegiate win.

Cal Poly returns to Big West Conference play this weekend with a three-game away series against Cal State Northridge (25-16, 4-11 Big West) — one of four conference series left for the Mustangs in the regular season.

HANNA CROWLEY | MUSTANG NE WS SLUMP BUSTED | The win on Tuesday was the Mustangs’ first in five games.