W E D N E S D AY NOV. 19, 2003 Vol. 125, No. 35
Sunny and Wind 59 / 41 w w w. s t u d l i f e . c o m
STUDENT LIFE T H E I N D E P E N D E N T N E W S PA P E R O F WA S H I N G T O N U N I V E R S I T Y I N S T. L O U I S S I N C E 1 8 7 8
INSIDE University launches BioMed 21 LIGHTING UP THE SLIFF
$300 million research initiative brings different fields together By Liz Neal q Managing Editor Researchers from the Hilltop campus and the medical school campus will soon be working together to bring technology from the lab to the operating room. Chancellor Mark Wrighton and Larry Shapiro, dean of the Washington University Medical School and executive vice chancellor of medical affairs, announced
the launch of a $300 million research initiative called BioMed 21 at a press conference on Monday. “The focus of BioMed 21 is to try to help to translate some of the recent advances in basic research into things that will help patients, and to do so in a more rapid way than they might occur otherwise,” said Shapiro. Specifically, the initiative will help apply recent advances in human genome sequencing to the diagnosis and treatment of diseases like diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, and cancer. The name BioMed 21 reflects the University’s hopes for redefi ning biomedical practices in the 21st century. BioMed 21 will include new
buildings, new faculty members and interdisciplinary centers to encourage academic input from the engineering school and the College of Arts & Sciences. According to Wrighton, there are three main goals for the initiative. The fi rst goal is the establishment of a Center for Genomics and Human Genetics, which is already underway. The second goal is the formation of a clinical science division designed to bring the results of research into practical medical use more quickly. The third goal of BioMed 21 is to prompt a focus on biological imaging. To help reach some of these goals,
Student robbed on Snow Way
Movie editor Matt Simonton and an army of reporters tackle the first weekend of the St. Louis International Film Festival. Find out how it all works, check out a recap of what’s already happened, and see a preview of what’s still to come. Also in Cadenza: Jess Minnen’s Now Hear This: Wash. U. Band of the Month edition and reviews.
Despite crime alerts, students say they feel safe
PAGE 12
By Stacie Driebush q News Editor
20 Q’s WITH AMY REAHARD
Find out why Amy is the mommy of the equestrian team, what she thinks of “Seabiscuit,” and who on the team has actually sampled Rocky Mountain Oysters.
PAGE 11 DANA KUHN
STUDENT SNAPSHOT the Q:DorightyouthingthinkbyCBSpullingdid the Reagan Miniseries? A. 16% B.6% D. 31%
political figures in a negative light, unless, of course, they’re Democrats. B. Maybe. Then again, how could the same network that deemed “Hollywood Wives” acceptable programming decide any show is inappropriate? C. No. CBS should change their name to Fox News and make Rush Limbaugh the new spokesperson once he gets out of rehab. D. What miniseries? I haven’t seen it. What, the people criticizing it didn’t see it either? Results are unscientific; based on 114 votes cast
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INDEX pages 7-8 pages 5,12 page 9 page 11
Early Monday morning a Washington University student was walking from his car across Snow Way near the Village when a man drew a knife and demanded the student’s wallet. The student obliged, and the assailant fled the scene in an older car with a square back driven by another person. Cheryl Stephens, the Village’s residential college director, said that the student did everything right in the situation. “He was just at the wrong place at the wrong time,” said Stephens. University Chief of Police Don Strom said that progress on the case is being made on various fronts. He said that the University has been in touch with other law enforcement agencies and that, specifically, it has been coordinating with a detective on the St. Louis police force. The University police force has also submitted some physical data for analysis at the crime lab, and is continuing to work with the student to gather more information about the crime. According to the student’s statements thus far, the perpetrator is a black male between the ages of 20 and 30 who is around 6’2” to 6’4” tall. Strom noted that they are not sure whether this robbery was related to other incidents in the area. Another student was recently robbed off-campus by a perpetrator with a car. In
Ballbusters, Magic Squares top four-square tournament By Shara Siegel q Contributing Reporter
liberal media A: A.hasYes.no The right to portray
Forum Cadenza Calendar Sports
Students compete in Beta Theta Pi’s four-square tournament this past weekend. The philanthropic event benefits St. Jude Children’s Hospital. Tournament winners are set to travel to Memphis to compete in a national competition.
Beta’s first philanthropy event proves a big hit
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COURTESY OF PHOTO SERVICES
Larry Shapiro, dean of the medical school
Beta Theta Pi’s fi rst philanthropic event, a national four-square tournament for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, caused an inundation of excitement around the tennis courts on Sunday. Members of the winning female team, “The Ballbusters,” include Jami Cates, Kiley Johns, Rachel Kriwinski and Tonya Ward Murphy. The triumphant male team, the “Magic Squares,” was composed of Steven Knudsen, Ben Dao, Chaz Moody and Tom Paskvan. These two teams will be heading to Memphis, Tennessee on April 16-18, expenses paid, to compete for a grand prize of $10,000. Junior Josh Gantz, Beta’s treasurer, proposed the idea to his chapter after attending the Undergraduate Interfraternity Institute (UIFI) over the summer,
See ROBBERY, page 4
and the National Interfraternity Conference (NIC), which originally developed the idea for a national Four Square Tournament. “Beta has never had an annual philanthropy event, and we hope that its success this year will spark even more interest next year,” said Gantz. “This is the fi rst year we’re doing this, and we’re learning a lot about it.” Beta Philanthropy Chair Brian Lichter, a junior, said that the event was very worthwhile. “[I hope] to make the philanthropic endeavors of [this] chapter more recognizable to the Washington University and St. Louis communities,” said Lichter. To enter the competition, four people registered a team with Beta by fi lling out a form or visiting the designated website. Each team was required to send out 200 letters to family and friends on behalf of St. Jude’s as the “fee” to play. Beta provided the letters and envelopes, and St. Jude’s covered post-
See BETA, page 4
EMILY TOBIAS
The intersection of Big Bend and Snow Way Drive close to the spot where a student was robbed Monday.
University lecturer’s film debuts in St. Louis “12” deals with questions of faith and life By Adrienna Huffman q Contributing Reporter “In faith we live, in faith we love, and in faith we die,” proclaims Herschel, a character in the movie “12”, directed by and starring a Washington University visiting lecturer and several University students. Herschel’s words capture the essence of “12,” a film about two drug-dealing cousins who cope with the past, familial strife and religion. The movie premiered in St. Louis on Sunday at the St. Louis International Film Festival held at the Tivoli Theater on Delmar. Lloyd Silverman, a former lecturer in the Film and Media Studies
STUDENT LIFE
department, directed “12”, which was filmed in the St. Louis area. Silverman produced, designed and directed “12” along with his independent film production company, The Artists’ Colony. “It’s quite remarkable, frankly, how well this movie is doing,” said Silverman at the premiere. “We made this little film with no money as an experiment. Silverman said that last year, while he was still a visiting lecturer at the University, he and his wife decided to move back home to California. In the final semester before his departure, Silverman chose to make a film. “All the shooting was done in under two months and then all the editing, which took the longest, was done [within] six months,” said sophomore Jake Koenig, who played Larry, a main character. “It was filmed mainly on the weekends during the winter of last year and we
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would rehearse on Tuesdays and Thursdays.” Koenig auditioned for the movie last year when he found out about the project through his acting class from a student who knew Silverman. “I didn’t think I was going to be cast,” said Koenig. “I thought I’d hold a boom or something, but I just really wanted to be part of the project.” The script for “12” was written by Scott Hall. Silverman noticed the script after its second place finish at the St. Louis Screenwriters competition. Freshman Sunny Lohrum, who saw “12” at the Tivoli, enjoyed the storyline. “I liked the plot and script writing a lot,” said Lohrum. “But the synopsis says that Jackie (the main character) finds religion the day before he
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See FILM, page 4
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