March 21, 2014

THE HILL NEWS e s t a b l i s h e d i n 1 9 1 1 at s t . l aw r e n c e u n i v e r s i t y

FRIDAY, MARCH 21, 2014

VOLUME CXXVIII, ISSUE 6

How “Green” Is Green?

SLU NEWS

A

University wins Negawatt Challenge

SLU successfully reduced its electricity usage by 3.3%, edging out Hamilton College at 3.1%. The threeweek competition pitted St. Lawrence against four other liberal arts colleges in New York State.

This day in history:

Alcatraz Prison in San Francisco, the infamous maximum security prison, closes in 1963. Each prisoner had a cell of precisely 45 square feet in what is now one of San Francisco’s most popular attractions.

Laugh some more

Tonight at 7pm, standup comedian Cameron Esposito makes an appearance in the Winston Room, sponsored by ACE, SaGA, and the Advocates.

APR 2.0 approaches

Learn more about the brand-new course registration system by visiting stlawu.edu/apr2.

Real-time registration begins at 7am on March 31.

The Hill Goes Digital

Read Online: issuu.com/ the-hill-news Tweet At Us: @thehillnews Find Us On The Book: facebook.com/ the-hill-news

Contents:

Opinions pg. 2 News pg. 4

Features pg. 6 A&E pg. 8 Sports pg. 11

ANNA TRAVERS/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

New Residence Hall Allows for Return of Lounge Spaces

By MAUREEN PELLERIN STAFF WRITER The development of the new residence hall on the St. Lawrence campus will help to return lounges that the University converted into student rooms in order to meet increasing student housing need.

According to Associate Director of Residence Life Stacie Olney LaPierre, the Residence Life office projects the return of approximately 17 lounges to campus.

Over the summer, LaPierre said, the rooms will be refurnished with lounge furniture so they can return to their original function.

Additionally, buildings such as Whitman and 48 Park that do not currently have kitchen space will regain their kitchens as well.

Currently, many of the lounges serve as quads for upperclassman students, so students can expect to see fewer quad options at multiples room draw in the future, LaPierre said.

However, LaPierre asserted that the conversion of student rooms back into common spaces in residence halls is of utmost importance because students need plac-

es to study and socialize in their dormitories. As of now, LaPierre said, many buildings are lacking a place to gather, and students are forced to stay in their rooms or sit in hallways to study or meet. She said, “As a residential campus, we think it is crucial for students to have common space in the residence halls. This gives students a place to study or socialize. We hear of communities hanging out in the halls currently because they don’t have a lounge. Returning lounges to residences will give these communities a place to gather. It also provides a place to study if it is late at night and your roommate wants to sleep or it is too cold to walk to the library.”

While the new residence hall will be a unique living opportunity for 155 students, LaPierre asserts that the development will impact the whole campus. She said, “We are almost as excited about regaining this community space as we are about the new residence hall. The new residence will be an exciting opportunity for 155 students, but much of the campus population will benefit from having these lounges returned to their original purposes.”

weekend weather

today

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hat did you do over Spring Break? SLU students participated in a variety of trips: the Laurentian Singers’ tour in Trinidad, OC trips, spring training sports trips to Florida, and a career services alumni panel in Boston. Check out page 10 to see photos of what students were doing on our week off.

NEIL SEIFERT / GUEST PHOTOGRAPHER

Gigi Gadenne ‘16 sending it in the New River Gorge, West Virginia.

saturday sunday

32 -1

20 -4

lthough St. Lawrence prides itself on its enthusiasm for the outdoors, we seem to be falling behind when it comes to our overall environmental awareness.

Despite the work done by environmental groups on campus, SLU students could do more to contribute to minimize our environmental impact. Especially in the wake of the Negawatt Challenge and the SLU Reuse campaign, the discrepancy between student awareness and engagement is growing.

Inside on page 5, THE HILL NEWS investigates just how “green” the university really is.

In This Issue: Issues with campus living conditions, page 2 Valuable GMOs, page 3 Northstar Cafe introduces new coffee flavors, page 5 Laurentian home concert, page 8 Track and Field team wins state championship, page 12

OPINIONS

2 | THE HILL NEWS

THE HILL NEWS St. Lawrence University, Canton, New York 13617 • hillnews@stlawu.edu • (315) 229-5139

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Amy Yao ‘14

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Natalie Dignam ‘15

DISTRIBUTION Brett Ford ‘14

MANAGING EDITORS Lexi Beckwith ‘14 Caitlin Matson-McDonald ‘14

FEATURES Connor Martin ‘15 Assistant: Olivia White ‘17

CHIEF COPY EDITOR Hannah Kinsey ‘14

EDITOR-AT-LARGE Conant Neville ‘14

SPORTS Joshua Cameron ‘15

NEWS Emma Cummings-Krueger ‘16 Elle Lucas ‘16

PHOTOGRAPHY Amanda Brooks ‘17

OPINIONS Russell King ‘14

BUSINESS MANAGER Haley Burrowes ‘14

COPY EDITORS Alex Gladwin ‘14 Emily Rebehn ‘14 Michael Brewer ‘14 Andrew MacKinlay ‘15 Charlotte Crawford ‘16 Emily Harrington ‘16 Allison Talbot ‘14

EDITORIAL POLICY

LETTER SUBMISSIONS

The Hill News is published every Friday of the school year, except during holidays and examination periods, by the students of St. Lawrence University, Canton, NY 13617.

Unsolicited manuscripts, articles, and letters to the editor must be typed and signed. Copy and advertisement deadlines are 12:00 p.m. on the Monday prior to publication. All materials submitted for publication are the property of The Hill News and are subject to revision.

The Hill News office is located on the third floor of the Student Center; our telephone number is (315) 229-5139.

We have the ability to receive e-mails at hillnews@stlawu. edu. The comments and opinions of our readers are welcome.

Letters may be no more than 500 words in length. All letters must be typed, signed by the author, and include the author’s full name and telephone number. The name of the author may be withheld only for compelling reasons, and after discussion with the editorial board. The Hill News reserves the right to edit letters for space, clarity, style, and taste. The printing or omission of letters is entirely at the discretion of the editors and The Hill News. Any letter received after deadline will not be considered for publication in that week’s issue.

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The opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the newspaper, the staff, or St. Lawrence University.

COPYRIGHT 2014 — VOLUME CXXVIII, ISSUE 6

MARCH 21, 2014

Letter to the Editor Dear Editor, I am writing this in response to last week’s letter regarding Grace Potter and Senior Week. I believe there has been some miscommunication between members of the senior class, and I would like to use this occasion to set the record straight about the intentions of the Senior Class Council.

As we all know, senior week acts as a post-finals buffer while providing us with seven more precious days to relish in all that St. Lawrence has to offer, and spend some last minute quality time with the amazing people with whom we’ve grown so close. Upon hearing the exciting news that Grace Potter would be receiving an honorary diploma alongside our class at graduation, the Senior Class Council decided to use this opportunity to do something different. If Grace Potter would be in the area around graduation time, why not give it a shot and try to get her involved in our Senior Week?

We thought this would be something

really unique that would be special to our class. Additionally, the council thought that this would be something our classmates would greatly enjoy. In order to even begin this conversation with Grace Potter’s agents, it was necessary to have a price figure that we could offer, which prompted the sudden contingency to Thelmo. After graciously receiving the money, the situation is out of our hands as we wait for a response.

In the event that Grace Potter does accept our offer, I would like to make it clear that no major events will be sacrificed. As a council, we have worked extremely hard to earn enough money to have as many events as possible. Additionally, the officers have met with the OC and Java to make sure that their special events during senior week will still be an option. The class officers have been organizing our Senior Week since July, and they deserve a lot more credit for the work they have put in than has been previously expressed.

Furthermore, the council holds

open meetings every Monday and each member of our class is encouraged to come and express their opinions. If you cannot make the meetings, by all means please post ideas or comments on the Class of 2014 Facebook group or e-mail the officers directly. As you can imagine, planning an event to cater the expectations of 600 people is not an easy task, so all feedback is welcomed and encouraged.

Ultimately, the Senior Class Council just wants to please the members of our class and make Senior Week amazing for all. I truly believe this year’s graduating class is so extraordinary and incredibly strong-willed, and our cohesion has always been remarkable. I just want to ensure that credit is given where it is due, and that the misconceptions between members of our class are cleared up so we can remain wholeheartedly unified throughout our final days at St. Lawrence and beyond.

Kimberly Lepine ‘14

Campus Living: A Whole SLU of Problems

By EMILY LIEBELT ‘16 GUEST WRITER Are we seeing what appears to be excessive spending in the wrong places because students aren’t voicing their concerns, needs, and wants about their living spaces? Students are quick to complain amongst friends, but do they have the ambition to speak up? I frequently hear students use the line “I pay enough to go here…” to justify the criticism that follows and I would have to agree. The recently increased cost of a SLU education should merit satisfactory living conditions for every student. Of course I can take a few steps outside my residence hall and see many reasons why SLU students do have a very high-quality education. But I can’t help feeling gipped when I see classrooms full of chairs that cost $400 a pop when I can’t park my car in my dorm’s lot because it’s already full. Or when I see electric car charging stations (yet no electric cars…) or a $13 million construction in the middle of campus. These things make

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SLU look fancy, but when my own dorm goes without much needed maintenance, I have to question the decision-making.

The 150 students that will be living in the new dorm will experience absolute luxury compared to the students living in the cramped and drafty old dorms, which lack working kitchens and common space. Unlike me, the students in the new dorm will have windows that close all the way, so they won’t be stuffing newspaper in the cracks to keep the wind out. They will have sustainable geothermal heating (and COOLING) systems that won’t fail during the coldest months or explode all over their futons. And a café located right down stairs? We have a single vending machine in my dorm, which takes cash and sells soda only.

What are students more likely to complain about: a lack of electric car charging stations, or substandard dorm room conditions?

When we talk up our school to prospective students, will students boast the touchscreen capabilities of the computers and

adjustable chairs on wheels in classrooms? Or would they rather fondly describe ample study spaces and comfortable dorm rooms?

The student center has four of the newest computers for student use, but there are hundreds of students studying there every day.

I try to stay current with the improvements SLU is making and it is exciting to see where our school is heading and the advancements we are making for the future. But to the people making these decisions, I suggest paying closer attention to the existing problems before spending more money on things we don’t have a pressing need for. More students are being admitted than ever before, but the ones already here would like to see some changes.

As I slip and slide on unplowed sidewalks and stuff more newspaper in my window, I watch a new dorm being constructed that I will never live in. I propose we create more dialogue between the students and the decision makers, to highlight the real needs and put more power in the hands of the students that pay to live here.

Dear Dub: Real Men Cry Dear Dub, Why is it more common for a perpetrator in violent acts to be male?

Statistics on crime show that nearly 90% of the violence in society is committed by men.

There are many more that specify where exactly these violent acts are focused (85% of murders are by men, 95% of domestic violence is by men, 99% of rapes in prison are by men, etc.), but the answer to why this phenomenon exists still remains.

In search of the question, one must look at the social structure of our society. We live in a gender divided community that pushes to navigate children to act in a certain manner. Boys are supposed to be tough, repress their emotions, and act manly to reiterate their masculinity.

In opposition, girls are taught to be quaint, subordinate, and innocent.

How does this all play out when those little boys and girls continue to grow up? Men are stripped of their outlet to express emotion as they are directed

to hide their feelings. As many people have experienced, this only results in pent up problems.

Imagine a sealed bottle that is being stuffed with more and more pressure (those wonderful pent up feelings that apparently are so easy to control).

Eventually, that bottle becomes a rocket that has the potential to explode at any moment. Girls, on the other, hand are capable of expressing their inner-self without much judgment… it is simply a girly thing to do.

SEE DUB ON PAGE 3

OPINIONS

MARCH 21, 2014

No Spitting: The Future This Spring Break was just like other breaks I have had at my time at SLU. I went home. I ate my weight in my mother’s cooking for each meal (I weigh about 13 stone or .09 tons). I “relaxed” with my not-soextended-butdefinitely-notnot-extended family. I also watched more

By LUKE MATYS ‘15 television out COLUMNIST of boredom than I have at SLU at any length of time. But this break was a little different. Here is my anecdote: My 88 year old grandmother, who I am incredibly close with (not hydrogen and oxygen in a water molecule close, but pretty similar), asked me what I was doing with my life. “You’ll be graduating soon!” she said; I’m a junior.

Restraining my response to say something rude, witty, and oh so very funny…was not very successful. I told her I planned on being homeless and addicted to at least half a dozen drugs by this time five years from now. After a Grandmother Gasp, I told her my serious plan of applying to numerous internships ranging from museums to radio shows in places as far away and as exotic as Wyoming.

After hearing my serious plan, my beloved grandmother said: “Why couldn’t you have been a doctor, lawyer, or Indian chief?” I was not as surprised as I should have been about those three careers being the only grandmother-approved ones.

I told her that I’m thinking about a career in Indian Chief-ing.

This is a common thing for a lot of my peers too. Whenever we describe our education at this fine institution, the common response is “Oh, what are you going to do with that?” I hate this question with a

Saint: Surviving spring break. Saint:

passion. They can’t believe anyone would major in something as exotic and “useless” as a Liberal Arts degree. I’ve answered it with anything from “teacher” to “your job,” depending on how long I want the conversation to continue.

I totally understand why the question is asked. We live in a society which values wealth, and where people judge the very being of another by their job, car, relationship status, and physical appearance. So what I’m going to do with this mystical Liberal Arts degree seems important, but I’ve still got no idea how to answer this question. And why should I? I can’t predict the future. I could say that I’m going to be a teacher, but that’s as much of a guess as Indian Chief.

I know that some of you think you have it all planned out. CONGRATS! Of course, you’re going to be a lawyer, make a comfortable amount of money, live in the perfect house just outside of the city, marry your college sweetheart, and have 2 kids (Terry and Ryan [notice the gender neutrality]) because everything always goes as planned… wait.

Unless you plan on hiding under a rock with your eyes closed in your favorite SLU hoodie for the rest of your life, change will happen. That’s a certainty. What these changes are is out of your control.

Be active in these changes! Do what you can to get your way, but also go with the flow. There is another certainty besides change, and that’s that it may all end tomorrow **shoulder shrug**. To quote The Doors (the band…not the symbol of opportunities opening and closing): “The future’s uncertain and the end is always near.” But don’t worry about it, embrace it!

No Spitting.

Cool It, Gender Police DUB FROM PAGE 2 In addition, men seem to have an obligation to conform to the masculine stereotype regardless if they agree with the norms or not. Rather than freely presenting themselves how they see fit, boys/ men adopt the manly definition to avoid belittlement by others.

Often times, a group of peers who can be referred to as ‘gender police,’ take it upon themselves to enforce gender roles amongst community members. Pussy, wimp, emotional, bitch, queer, fag-– words we have all heard used before. Some people, though, experience such abuse to where it causes psychological ailments.

Potential side effects have been associated with violent acts. For instance, a male who is brutalized by ‘gender police’ may believe that committing violent acts will reestablish their masculinity. I mean after all, they were taught at a young age that aggression is a means to establish manliness.

Such a trend has only seemed to

progress over time. Just take a look at the evolution of action films… bigger guns, bigger muscles, more intense fights.

It has gotten to the point where some people blame testosterone levels for the gender bias of the perpetrators. While this may be a part of the puzzle, one must realize the complex nature/ nurture relationship of our society.

There is a vast web of explanation as to why men commit crimes more frequently than women.

While women are not free from the spotlight, societal norms of masculinization strongly correspond with the increase in male perpetrators. The topic itself has great depths that simply can’t be summarized in 500 words, so for those intrigued for further discussion I highly suggest watching Tough Guise (1&2).

For more questions, sludeardub@gmail.com Sincerely, The DUBers

ask

THE HILL NEWS | 3

at

Let’s give ourselves a pat on the back for that one.

Maybe it’s a blessing in disguise they’re not offering that “beef ” in Dana. Amirite?

Saint: Ordering food when you’re actually sober. Hint: not as good.

Purgatory: Falling in love Purgatory: Not having any Purgatory: Getting in trouble with your road trip stops. Now you have even less idea what you’re gonna do with your life.

material for SPS because you’re all too damn well-behaved. Go out and get it this weekend, my God.

with security for riding the rails behind the Stud Cent. Crampin’ our style.

Sinner: Not being willing to

Sinner: Bet the guy who came

Sinner: Mistaking your friend’s

admit spring break is over, you bring the rage back to campus.

Oh, did we have things due?

up with the phrase “luck o’ the Irish” didn’t factor in the hangover o’ the 18th.

refrigerator as the hall’s urinal.

Three cheers for inebriation.

Op-Ed: The Value of GMOs

By GARRETT WATSON ‘14 GUEST WRITER

Since the creation of modern genetic engineering techniques in the 1970s, genetically modified foods have come under increased scrutiny and skepticism by both the scientific community and the public at large.

Many U.S. states are currently considering bills that would mandate the labeling of genetically modified food, largely influenced by a belief that GMOs pose a threat to human health and the environment.

The large body of scientific research conducted since the inception of GMOs, however, disagrees. A team of Italian scientists out of the University of Perugia evaluated over 1,700 peer reviewed studies on the safety and environmental impacts of GMO foods, and concluded that “the scientific research conducted so far has not detected any significant hazards directly connected with the use of GMOs”. This conclusion has been endorsed by dozens of scientific organizations around the world, including the World Health Organization and the American National Academy of Sciences.

Genetic modification of food has the potential to save millions of children from death from malnourishment around the world. For example, German biologists Ingo Potrykus and Peter Beyor helped genetically engineer golden rice in 2000, which helps prevent vitamin A deficiency. The effectiveness of golden rice to provide additional vitamin A to its consumers was further validated by the American Society for Nutrition in 2009 and the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 2012.

Some have been concerned not with genetically modified food itself, but with the pesticides that are associated with it. A 2005 study by the University of California published in the journal Science, however, concluded that there are “higher crop yields, reduced pesticide use and fewer pesticide-related health problems,” among Chinese farmers who used GM rice strains. A comprehensive report by Graham Brookes and Peter Barfoot (published in two peer-reviewed journals) concluded that a total of 965 million pounds of pesticide have not been used due to the adoption of GM crops, largely from the adoption of insect-resistant

cotton and herbicide-tolerant maize.

While the initial research shows evidence that there has been a decline in pesticide usage, further evidence should be gathered to determine the effects of GM crops on pesticide use. A recent study conducted by scientists at Iowa State University found that the monarch butterfly population has been adversely affected by the increased use of weed killer, which was a byproduct of the adoption of herbicide-resistant crops. Critics of GMOs are right to point out that GMOs are not a panacea for all global ills. Further research should be implemented to study the negative effects of GMO usage and find ways to curb those effects without throwing the baby out with the bathwater.

While there is little evidence of environmental or human harm stemming from GM foods, this fact shouldn’t be used to provide cover for dubious business practices. One particular multinational corporation in the spotlight recently is Monsanto, creator of the herbicide known as Roundup. Monsanto has been under fire for suing small farmers who are accused of violating Monsanto’s seed patents. The case of Vernon Bowman, a small farmer in Indiana, illustrates this point rather well. According to NPR, Monsanto maintains patents on 94% of all of the soybeans in Indiana, and retains the rights to all of the offspring of those seeds. This makes it effectively impossible for many farmers to plant seeds without paying Monsanto a hefty “technology fee”. The existing intellectual property laws surrounding genetic engineering should be overhauled to prevent corporations from deliberately harming smaller competition.

Contrary to what many believe, genetically modified food offers substantial benefits to the world in the form of increased yields and better nourishment to the world’s least well-off. While GMOs may not completely solve complex problems related to global hunger and malnourishment, they must play a vital role in overcoming these issues. Along with other strategies such as financially supporting small farmers and encouraging cleaner food production techniques, GMOs have the potential to take us one step forward in the effort to feed the entire world in a healthy and environmentally safe manner.

4 | THE HILL NEWS

Security Blotter February 26, 4:49 p.m. Marijuana grinder confiscated from 78 Park St. during fire inspections.

February 27, 11:05 p.m. Vandalism at 13 University, holes were kicked in a wall.

February 28, 1:35 a.m. Marijuana complain in Dean Eaton, confiscated paraphernalia.

March 1, 12:15 a.m. Room party in Rebert Hall, marijuana grinder and liquor confiscated.

March 1, 3:06 a.m. Gaines Hall vending machines vandalized, security cameras have since been installed.

March 1, 10:52 p.m. Knife found stuck in a wall at 13 University.

March 1, 11:44 a.m. Student struck in the face with a bottle, culprits identified and facing charges from Canton PD. March 2, 12:44 a.m. Student attempted to enter local residence without permission, person was intoxicated and transported.

March 2, 1:39 a.m. Student reported missing, he was found by security in under an hour.

March 2, 3:12 a.m. Verbal altercation in Dean Eaton between a male student and his female guest.

March 2, 8:38 p.m. Drug abuse violation in Dean Eaton, smoke alarm covered with winter hat, marijuana and grinder confiscated.

March 3, 8:30 a.m. SLU Outing Program van involved in fender bender in Saranac Lake, no injuries reported.

March 4, 1:41 p.m. Front window reported broken at 78 Park St. March 7, 5:32 p.m. Pick axe reported in Rebert Hall during room closings.

March 7, 6:30 p.m. Axe found in 70 Park St. March 7, 7:13 p.m. Hot-plate confiscated from Rebert Hall March 7, 11:12 p.m. Vehicle speeding on Romoda Dr., ticket issued for Reckless Operation March 8, 8:51 a.m. SLU van vandalized, break-in attempted at side doors, tool marks found around locks March 10, 8:32 a.m. Larceny reported from the London offcampus study program, $500 cash was taken from a desk in their academic building March 15, 11:26 p.m. 20 student cited for a drinking game at 78 Park St. March 16, 5:10 p.m. Marijuana complaint at Reiff Hall, joint had already been smoked upon security’s arrival and nothing was confiscated.

SEMESTER RUNNING TALLIES: Bike Thefts: 0 | DWIs: 3 Open Containers: 2 | Transports: 3

What is Thelmo up to?

Wednesday, March 19 Office Hours: President Kelly Appenzeller, Monday through Wednesday 8 to 10 p.m. Vice President of Senate Affairs, Annie Dietderich, Friday 2 to 3 p.m.

Contingency Requests: -District proposal received second approval.

New Business: -SLU came in first in the NegaWatt Challenge!

-Canton Bar Tour April 8th- keep an eye out for sign-ups!

-Surveys will be sent out to the student body shortly regarding study abroad and weekend health center hours.

-Coffee event this week, be sure to stop by and try out the options.

-All organizations are urged to allocated an extra 4% in their budget proposals to accomodate rising costs for Dana food preparation.

-Applications for Board of Trustees and class council executive boards will be released soon.

-ACE hosts comedian Friday at 7 in the Winston Room.

NEWS

MARCH 21, 2014

How “Green”Is SLU, Really?

By KAREN BLAKELOCK STAFF WRITER With our close proximity to the Adirondack Park, and the enthusiasm that the student body seems to possess for going outdoors and getting after it, St. Lawrence appears to be an incredibly outdoor oriented university with high esteem for the environment. While there are many individuals on campus who care deeply about these issues, SLU seems to be falling behind when it comes to our overall environmental awareness.

For those who dedicate time and effort to clubs like EAO and other environmentally conscious groups on campus, this may seem to be an unfair assessment, but take a moment to walk into the recycling center of any dorm on campus (excluding Rebert with the pilot single stream recycling program, set to go campus wide in Fall 2014). What do you see but trash cans with an embarrassingly obvious lack of effort dedicated to sorting paper, from plastic, from cans, from trash. Admittedly, the bins are often unclearly labeled, but what is even more apparent is the lack of effort put into sorting recyclables from trash. St. Lawrence, do we not care?

Co-President of EAO Jeff Mogavero ‘16, feels that, “other schools are making much larger efforts on the ground to reduce environmental impacts, such as widespread composting and more/easier recycling. But for all the university has and hasn’t done, I think a lot of it comes down to the students. Many SLU students don’t care or don’t know about the decisions they make and how they impact

the earth. There really isn’t an excuse for this. If more students took an active role in being even a moderately environmentally conscious person, SLU would immediately see reductions in waste production and energy consumption.”

Undoubtedly, there is more that can be done by students and the University alike to help increase environmentalism on campus. However, that’s not to say that we haven’t been working towards this already.

Thus far, the University has implemented measures to ensure our increasing efforts towards sustainability are met. SLU has committed to being carbon neutral by 2040, a goal that the LEED certified Johnson Hall of Science and the new dorm will help reach. Additionally, the SLU administration has already added an environmental literacy graduation requirement that began this past fall with the matriculation of the class of 2017. This new requirement seeks to familiarize students with “the consequences of human activities on natural systems and [increase] awareness of the cultural, economic and political forces that affect environmental policies.”

On the student side of things, SLU recently won the Negawatt Challenge for the first time ever. This victory is due to the efforts of students who decided to decrease their energy consumption. Maybe you did it for the Pub Cookie (shout out to the OC and 13), maybe for the glory of bringing home the W or maybe you did it for the environment. Regardless, well done, Saints! According to the Negawatt Challenge website, the combination of five small

liberal arts schools in New York participating in the challenge has collectively averted 155,473 pounds of carbon dioxide and saved over $28,000 (look how much we accomplished despite Union College’s 3% increase in energy consumption!).

But this isn’t enough. Thelmo’s Environmental Conservation Committee Chair Mariah Dignan ‘16 said, “overall, we are not living up to what we are capable of when it comes to sustainability on campus.

Although new renewable energy resources are in the works [such as] solar panels for ODY, we are still greatly dependent on finite sources of energy, and I do not see a lot of strides to stop that.”

We’ve got a long way to go before carbon neutrality becomes a reality on the St. Lawrence campus, so we had better get started now.

EAO’s water bottle garland in the student center before break provided a visual of the more than 280 plastic water bottles sold in the pub every week. Although the school has decided that the economic benefits of selling plastic water bottles outweigh the negative environmental effects, EAO describes their mission “to create a social stigma on disposable water bottles”— one that exists at most top liberal arts schools, many of which have banned disposable water bottles.

Mogavero and other members of EAO seek to inform students why these bottles are simply not acceptable in the world we live in.

“We are looking to educate the student body about their decisions and make them aware of how [their choices] affect the world around them,” they said.

This Week in the News International Updates

By LEXI BECKWITH MANAGING EDITOR

Malaysian Plane Goes Missing Mid-Flight: the newest update At the time of publication, the newest update in the missing plane ordeal comes from Australia: Prime Minister Tony Abbott announced Wednesday that two objects found in the south Indian Ocean may be related to Malaysian Airlines Flight MH730. Found using satellite imagery, an air force aircraft was redirected to the area to locate them, with three additional aircraft to follow in

order to conduct more research.

Though this first discovery of evidence has offered hope for many, Abbott warns that the objects may be unrelated to MH730; one object measures a mere 78 feet, shedding doubt on the direct correlation with its presence and that of the missing flight. With new evidence being sought out each day, the world awaits an answer on the events surrounding the aircraft’s suspicious disappearance.

Crimea Annexes from Ukraine, to Unite with Russian Federation With Crimea’s recent vote

determining its annexation to Russia (as 97 percent of ballots favored an alliance), Putin has signed a treaty to incorporate the nation into the Russian Federation. He has accused Ukrainian government of abusing ethnic Russians’ rights, while Ukraine’s Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk has vowed to crack down on separatists. Both the US and Europe have condemned the referendum as illegal, as it is contrary to Ukraine’s constitution. Though the international community refuses to recognize a poll taken under violent threats from the Russian military, Moscow vetoed the UN resolution.

NEWS

MARCH 21, 2014

THE HILL NEWS | 5

Students Attend Boston Psychology Conference Academic writing deemed difficult for more than just students

By JOHN ROMAN STAFF WRITER Each year St. Lawrence University Psychology majors travel to the Eastern Psychology Association conference, which provides students throughout the east an opportunity to hear from the field’s brightest minds and share research on various topics.

This year the conference was held in Boston at the Park Plaza Hotel and Towers and consisted of three days of workshops, symposiums, and forums for students to share ideas with fellow undergraduates and graduates.

St. Lawrence professors presented work on a number of topics including work done here on campus pertaining to perceptions of pleasantness in

our environment.

One of the most notable speakers at the event was Steven Pinker. Pinker, the Johnstone Family Professor of Psychology at Harvard University, is well known for his work in the field of psycholinguistics which is the study of the comprehension, reproduction, and acquisition of language.

Pinker’s address was titled The Sense of Style: Why Academic Writing is So Bad, and How to Make it Better. As students we can all relate to the often esoteric wording of the academic papers we use for our own research papers and projects.

Pinker asserted that it isn’t merely the jargon (language specific to a discipline) that confuses students and the

average reader when attempting to fully understand the content of academic writing.

Rather, he pointed to the overwhelming use of unnecessarily abstract language

If the presumed goal of academia is to further our understanding of the world, why make these findings so difficult ... to understand? which further muddles already difficult topics.

One of the best examples of this sort of academic overload is provided by the annual Bad Writing Contest, sponsored by the scholarly journal Philosophy and Literature.

Pinker cited the following passage, the winner of this years’ bad writing prize, several times throughout his lecture: “The move from a structuralist account in which capital is understood to structure social relations in relatively homologous ways to a view of hegemony in which power relations are subject to repetition, convergence, and rearticulation brought the question of temporality into the thinking of structure, and marked a shift from a form of Althusserian theory that takes structural totalities as theoretical objects to one in which the insights into the contingent possibility of structure inaugurate a renewed conception of hegemony as bound up with the contingent sites and strategies

of the rearticulation of power.”

This excerpt, though an extreme example, probably looks similar to something most students have encountered in their academic careers.

The discussion begged the question of who is serviced by making academic writing so unnecessarily complicated. If the presumed goal of academia is to further our understanding of the world, why make these findings so difficult for the average person to understand?

Without effective communication, all the work that is done in our universities is of interest only to a select group of people who are capable of decoding these linguistic nightmares.

As Pinker concluded, good writing isn’t fancy. It’s functional.

COFFEE TO DIVERSIFY AT PUB

By CAROLINE SEELEN STAFF WRITER Many students at St. Lawrence would agree that the coffee provided here does not taste good. Students are constantly complaining about the taste of the coffee.

The Thelmo Student Life Committee, chaired by sophomore Maya Williams, is trying to do something about the coffee problem.

The coffee is provided by Sun Roasters Coffee, and on March 25th, there will be a coffee tasting provided by Sun Roasters in the Student Center atrium from 11am to 2pm and in the Winston Room from 5 to 6pm.

Everyone who goes to the tasting will be given at least two tickets to vote for their favorite blend.

Three basic roasts will be tasted. The first is “Coastal Road,” a medium-dark roast

with “a small kick that will transport you any time of the day.”

The second basic roast is “Costa Rican,” a medium-dark roast, which is “characterized by low acidity, medium intensity, and a lively, fruity finish.”

The third basic roast that will be tasted is called “Dante’s Inferno,” and it is a dark roast and an “intense smoky blend of Central American beans… free of the bitter after-taste of many other dark roasts.”

In addition, three flavored roasts will also be tasted. The first is “Sun & Moon,” which is a medium-dark roast that blends together flavors of chocolate and fruit.

The second flavored roast is called “Jamaican Me Crazy,” and it is a medium roast that has “sweet notes of coconut and heady aromas of tropical spice.”

The last flavored roast being tasted is “French Vanilla

or Vanilla Nut,” which is a medium roast “made with natural vanilla and gently roasted to preserve its nuanced taste and sweet, creamy body.”

After the tasting, the coffee brewer will give a talk from 6-6:30 p.m. about his recent travels through Mexico in search of free and fair trade, certified organic blends.

Maya Williams believes that hopefully, by getting the students’ input, the coffee at SLU will improve. She says “there are days where [the current coffee] tastes so bad that even I, caffeine addicted as I am, cant stand it.

“On a college campus where we live on a schedule determined by exams and papers and extracurricular activities, coffee is important to a lot of us! Hopefully, these new blends will restore our coffee reputation, and we’ll be able to drink it without cringing!”

ATTN: ALL SLUSAF funded organizations:

Budgets are due Sunday, March 23 @ 4pm Submit a hard copy to the Student Center Info Desk to the SLUSAF email

Questions? Contact George Barrett at gcbarr10@stlawu.edu

features

6 | THE HILL NEWS

MARCH 21, 2014

Governor Cuomo Invests in Inmates, Submits Education Proposal

By ALIE MIHUTA STAFF WRITER

PHOTO BY AMY FEIEREISEL

French Style, Something To Strive For

By AMY FEIEREISEL GUEST WRITER I lay warm and snuggly underneath my duvet, comfortably curled sideways on the bed. I have the vague feeling I’ve just slept for a very long time, and my mind drifts in between consciousness and sleep, mixing French phrases with American ones, and I smile a little because I can sense the sun rays pouring through my windows.

CRAP. I bolt upright, realizing that if I can see the sun, something is terribly wrong. Blearily, I make the calculations. It’s Tuesday. Today I have a lot of classes. And they begin at 9:00. It’s definitely past my usual 7:30 wake-up call, because it’s not gloomy out.

Fast forward ten minutes, and I’ve thrown on some clothes, pushed my contacts into my eyes, and hastily put everything near me that resembles a notebook into my backpack.

After grappling with the lock of the house (which I can never seem to LOCK), I actually begin half-running up the hill towards my metro station, which, with a loose backpack and the grace of a drowning hippopotamus, is never a good idea.

But I make it onto the train. I disregarded crosswalks, I came from the wrong side of the platform, but I am ON THE TRAIN. (Just so this doesn’t seem entirely insane, it’s really bad to be late to class in France.

It’s not exactly gold-star material in the States, but here it’s a definite no-no.) Of course, after you’ve been sprinting across busy roadways, and you’re suddenly sitting still in a quiet and clean piece of public transportation, there is the inevitable moment when you realize: a. there exists the possibility that everyone on the train saw you sprinting through the nice, big, clear windows, b. you’re breathing really loudly, and… c. you look a little crazy.

Three for three, people. Three for

three. I knew the last one to be true because I got a nice little glimpse of myself in the aforementioned nice, big, clear windows, and I was one hot mess of mussed hair, tangled scarf, and untied raincoat, accompanied by a sort of desperate look that tipped off anyone who was looking that I was stressed.

Bad enough, right? But then I glance around (discreetly, I’m sure), and am met by the sight of perhaps ten other French people (of all ages, genders, and races), looking ravishingly stylish at 8:40 in the morning.

And I knew. I was the odd duck out.

There was an elderly French woman across from me, wrapped up in a classic black wool coat with the cutest flipped collar, holding an elegantly simple purse. There was an awesome French twenty-something, rocking a soft grey trench, a magenta scarf, and DREADS, for goodness’ sake. And then there was

“You’ll be hard pressed to find anyone looking loud.” a French teenage girl, wearing all navy, with a dashing red lip and hair tumbling down around her shoulders, but in a very neat way. There was nothing overtly trendy or fashionable about anyone – just coats, scarves, tights. And I was stumped.

What was it about these people that made the world hail them as the most stylish on our planet? I decided to begin with the obvious: 1. The French buy nice things.

It’s true. They have really beautiful shoes, extremely well made and sometimes tailored coats, lucious, soft felt hats. But then that’s it. For example, my friend Louise looks fantastic every time I see her. But I’ve only seen her wearing two coats, ever. They are both gorgeous, simple, and get worn all the time 2. The French aren’t afraid of rep-

etition. In fact, it’s the opposite. If you looked fantastic the first time…. this plays into the whole having a small yet functional wardrobe.

3. The French don’t over-do it.

You’ll be hard pressed to find anyone looking “loud.” There’s usually a single, dicreet pop of color for interest, but then everything else will be navy, black, or camel colored.

The pop can be small (a scarf, some gloves) or big (like a red coat), but it’s never overwhelming. Basic colors and shapes aren’t boring, they’re just classic.

But it’s more than that, somehow, I thought to myself. I adhere pretty closely to the formula, hoping to get “Ah, tu aimes les HAMBURGERS?!” a little less, but most of the time, I still don’t feel chic or put together. Then I caught another glimpse of myself in the glass, and in my disheveled and still breathinghard state, it came to me. It’s their: 4. COMPOSURE. These people, they have it in spades. I never see anyone running anywhere, or even walking frantically (a trademark of my life). Every person on the train had taken their time getting ready, had at least run a brush through their hair and made sure there was nothing stuck to the bottom of their shoes. No need to rush, because I’m sure everyone left with a little time to spare. They just all looked so damn calm!

Now, sometimes this composure can come off as cold, aloof, or unfriendly, a stereotype I have heard often about the French. And to be honest, that might be a little true.

Strangers sort of keep to themselves, and I think I actually freak people out when I randomly smile at them on the bus. But sometimes the composure is nice; being in the eye of the storm rather than next to a flying bathtub can be sort of pleasant sometimes.

So that’s the goal. A little more composure, and the air of style will come.

Governor Andrew Cuomo defended a proposal last month which would provide inmates of New York State with the opportunity to take college level courses while serving time. This is pertinent to us as students of St. Lawrence University not only because we are New York State residents, but also because we live in the North Country, a hot spot for correctional facilities.

Cuomo argues that this proposal will, in the long run, save tax payer dollars because it will reduce recidivism rates, or the rate at which ex-convicts return to prison. In New York State, the recidivism rate is 40%. Duchess County, a model county in New York State for prison reform, has experimented with a program providing college courses to inmates. The recidivism rate in the program is 4%.

The idea is that once an inmate has educational skills, he or she will have a better chance at making it upon being released. After receiving a college education, ex-offenders will be more qualified for jobs and they will also be more motivated to seek out jobs. They are less likely to return to their old lifestyle of burglary or selling drugs in order to make a living, which usually gets them thrown back in prison.

New York State spends $60,000 a year to house a prisoner. The proposal that Cuomo supports would spend $5,000 per prisoner to help them get a college degree.

For tax payers, the fewer inmates there are in prison, the less taxes they have to pay. Therefore, this $5,000 can be seen as an investment or because it has the potential to reduce the inmate population.

Cuomo asserts that conservatives who want to save money should be all in favor of this proposal. However, conservatives and other opponents across the political spectrum take issue with providing free education to criminals when many tax payers are struggling to put their own children through college. Senator James Seward of Otsego County referred to the proposal as a “slap in the face to the law-abiding.”

Other ideas have circulated about cutting per-prisoner spending in order to provide student loans to inmates.

While this proposal may seem unfair to some, it should be noted that the unfairness really hangs across the shoulders of the offenders, who serve time

with very little to no access to vocational, educational or other rehabilitation programs. Upon being released, ex-convicts are in no better position than they were when they were first arrested.

Arguably they are worse off after serving a prison sentence; they’ve lost touch with their families and friends, they’re stripped of their right to vote, and it’s virtually impossible for them to get a job. Many have no choice but to return to a life of crime. Is it really fair to argue that it’s their fault when they end up in prison again?

The bottom line is that we have to do more for offenders. What is the point of a correctional facility if there is no correcting taking place? Simply locking a lot of people away in prison does not solve crime. Magic doesn’t happen in prisons. No one is transformed just by sitting in a cell. Something has to be DONE. And this proposal is that something.

If this bill makes you uncomfortable and seems inappropriate to you, then let’s think about it this way. The United States has the highest rates of incarceration in the world. We beat communist China as well as Russia. Yep- we win again. We are the best in the world at locking away our citizens. But in this situation, being the best isn’t a good thing.

These rates demonstrate that the U.S. does not do enough for its citizens; we do not help the people who need help the most. We put people in prison as quickly as we can because “we’re tough on crime” looks good on paper. But what is it that we’re really tough on? The majority of offenders are convicted for non-violent crimes, particularly drug offenses. And these drug offenders are overwhelmingly African American or Hispanic.

And they are overwhelmingly poor. Does that make you uncomfortable?

The criminal justice system in the United States is its own island. We do it like no one else.

But being unique in this regard is not something to be proud of. It’s time we look to other countries like Sweden that deal with crime in more appropriate and effective ways than we do.

We need to borrow some ideas and implement reform. Those ideas and reforms are imbedded in Cuomo’s proposal. So support your country and support your fellow citizens who need a path out of the cycle of prison. Support Cuomo and this proposal.

MARCH 21, 2014

features

THE HILL NEWS|7

Greek Corner

By EMILY BALDWIN COLUMNIST

Less is More,With Pokemon

GRAPHIC BY CONNOR MARTIN

By ALEX GLADWIN GUEST WRITER “Controlled Chaos” is a beautiful oxymoron, one that refers to a situation in which everything appears to be in complete chaos but is actually under control by a select group of people or an uneasily discerned system. For example, consider the New York Stock Exchange trading floor: in movies, it is often depicted as people yelling random abbreviations and numbers; however, there is a system in place, one that allows the buyers and sellers to communicate efficiently through whawould othewrwise appear to be white noise. The people with an unseen knowledge of the system control the chaos.

The Internet provides numerous examples, such as Twitter’s constantly shifting trends that appear to move at hectic speeds with seemingly no rhyme or reason. Yet, its users understand the shifts, follow them, and discuss the subjects in 140 character statements, creating massive discourses that have focuses embedded in the staggering number of tweets sent for a popular hashtag every second.

One of the more intriguing examples to pop up over the last few weeks is “Twitch Plays Pokémon,” a live stream on the website Twitch, which is a video platform for gamers and gaming events. Basically, the Twitch user TwitchPlaysPokemon streams a hacked ROM of Pokémon Red Version, and the viewers type commands into the live chat that correspond to the controls on a Gameboy (up, down, left, right, a, b, select, and start). An IRC bot interprets the words from the chat and enacts them in the streamed game.

While that might sound straightforward, the result can be easily described as chaos. Simply moving in the correct direction becomes incredibly difficult, because no matter how many users try to move “up” in the direction of the next gym leader (read: boss), just as many—if not more, because a high proportion of Internet denizens might be called “contrarian”—type “down” as rapidly as possible.

One particularly dramatic moment

came when, in an attempt to deposit a Flareon into a PC (the in-game storage system), the users accidentally released their beloved Charmeleon and Ratatat, renamed through chat commands as ABBBBBBK and JLVWNNOOOO, respectively, into the wild. The loss of the Pokéfriends, who had been a part of the player-character’s team since the beginning, left thousands upset like children in sad animal movies.

This is undoubtedly chaotic, although the systems (the IRC bot, namely) apply a control that creates an experience that is both divisive and unifying. There is a frustrating beauty in watching such a process that is run by so many people who are emotionally invested in something that might seem trivial; in fact, one week into watching this live stream, there have been 16 million views so far, with over 80 thousand people watching at this exact moment.

Think of the aforementioned trading floor, and multiply the number of people on it by approximately fifteen- then you have an idea about the extent of the chaos. The magnification, though, reveals some interesting social aspects underlying what might seem like a frivolous exploration of the inane.

Namely, I refer to the emotional investments of the live stream’s followers. When Abby and Jay Leno, the affectionately nicknamed Charmeleon and Ratatat mentioned previously, were released, the response was emotional, to put it lightly.

People cared. Any forum about the “Twitch Plays Pokémon” experience—and it is an experience—will mention those names as though they are bygone legends. Mock-religions have been formed around items in the game, which get selected hundreds of times on accident despite the inability to use them in most situations. The mere repetition of attempts—and failures—to use “The Helix Fossil” has created a reverence for it, and forums (e.g. a subreddit with 55+ thousand followers) are littered with comments hailing the “almighty Helix Fossil” and “Helix Fossil, the Father” (of a reference-laden “Holy Trinity”). Although we live in an increasingly secular age, our tendency to mythologize is clearly

fresh. Thousands of people are creating a mock-society amongst those ‘in the know’ that is both meant in jest, but also backed by honest emotions. The fact that the genesis is a live stream of a video game where people say “up” or “a” over and over shows the Internet’s powerful utility as a forum for people to interact and feel a sense of community—a major symbol of restraint and order—through Controlled Chaos.

The political element is also fascinating. Following 24 hours where no progress was made— and in general there is progress toward the end of the game being made, albeit slowly—the creators of TwitchPlaysPokemon implemented a voting system, where a 75% vote would determine whether the control inputs are selected through “Anarchy” (the bot reads every command as a direct input) or “Democracy” (the bot only applies commands that win the majority in a voting process). What has followed is a division in the community that separates those in favor of Anarchy—who argue that the experiment was started in this vein, and thus can only rightfully be continued in it—and those in favor of Democracy—who make politically-minded claims that freedom must be sacrificed to achieve success.

Again, the debates are purposefully hyperbolic, but the emotions run deep, and the debates take on an ideological shape that reveals the Internet’s propensity for microcosmic social reflections through seemingly arbitrary situations.

“Twitch Plays Pokemon” is, without a doubt, a fad. Its popularity will pass, and the in-jokes will fade, spare the occasional reference meant for those ‘in the know.’ But that is the nature of a lot of our culture in this age, and the thought-provoking social and societal reflections that exist for those who do not dismiss things for their viral nature are worth as much consideration as any other text or movement. The Helix Fossil might fade, but new Abbys and Jay Lenos will enter our minds, and—if we wish— reveal both new and longstanding truths about how we behave when we find something to unify us— even if it’s just a live stream of a two-decade-old video game.

The St. Lawrence University Greek System is back in action!

While everyone loves Spring Break, each chapter is excited to jump back into what they really love—Greek life. Chapters are always up to exciting events here at SLU and are very pleased to share them within the community.

The sisters of Kappa Kappa Gamma have become more involved in Canton this semester.

Every Wednesday three sisters go to a local church to cook and serve a meal to local residents.

The church loves KKG’s involvement in this program and the sisters love helping out in any way possible.

The brothers of Beta Theta Pi will be partaking in a full chapter philanthropy trip to Bittersweet Farm this weekend. This is Beta’s main philanthropy organization and the brothers always look for-

ward to their trip each semester.

Congratulations to the new Beta brothers who were initiated on February 22nd!

Save the date! March 30th marks Make a Difference Day and the sisters of Kappa Delta Sigma are excited to show what’s really important to them. The women hope to make a difference in the lives of students who attend Foust Elementary School in Greensboro, NC. KDS will raise money through their new event, Brunch for Books, and look forward to a great day spent with sisters and friends.

The sisters of Chi Omega would like to congratulate everyone who is going abroad both this summer and next Fall. Chi Omega hopes that their sisters in Denmark, Kenya, Spain and New York City have a great time and requests many pictures upon their return.

Tri Delta will soon be helping with “Bear Packs” a local organization that works to ensure that students in need will not go hungry over the weekends during the school year. Tri Delta will also be hosting “Tri-Hop” in early April, so keep your eyes out for more details to come!

Greeks, don’t forget to apply for Greek awards! Applications are due by noon on March 31st and can be found at the info desk.

GRACE CONRAD/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Tonight’s Forecast:Deception

By KATE BROOKER STAFF WRITER Ever since I can remember, my mom has been telling me, “Don’t listen to the weather reports. The weather men are never right.” This mantra has stuck with me; even now, I always have some mistrust when I check the Weather Channel app on my phone. It seems that no matter what, the weather never agrees with what the forecaster has predicted.

Living in a place like St. Lawrence, it is imperative that the weather be accurate during the winter- not just for walking to class, but also for the many outdoor activities that students participate in every day. It tends to get annoying when the weatherman predicts that eight inches of snow will be coming and instead we are fraught with a

monsoon in December. Even the other weekend I paid strict attention to the weather for Sunday with plans to ski. Now if, when I woke up bright and early, I had listened to the weather (Whiteface was a balmy 15 and it had just rained), I would not have gone skiing. But I went against the facts and traveled to Whiteface anyway and it was the best skiing of my life. Weather is not always predictable.

It cannot be an easy task, being a weatherman. The pressure to predict weather that makes people happy is near impossible.

People will always find something to complain about no matter what. Look at it this way: one man’s god-awful snowfall is another man’s paradise. There are times when mother nature just wants to mess with us and there is no way for any human to predict that.

8 | THE HILL NEWS

Arts & Entertainment Book Review: How to Escape from a Leper Colony

By TESSA YANG COLUMNIST

Laurentian Singers Perform At Home

By NATALIE DIGNAM A&E EDITOR This Friday at 8 p.m., the Laurentian Singers will be performing their home concert in P.K. Hall following their spring break performance tour in Trinidad & Tobago. They will be singing their repertoire intended for the Kenya trip (replaced by a tour in Trinidad), so traditional

spirituals such as “Sometimes I Feel” (arr. A. Parker and R. Shaw) and “The Battle of Jericho” (arr.

M. Hogan) will be featured, along with the 2010 Soccer World Cup favorite “Wavin’ Flag” by K’naan and Young Artists for Haiti.

Liebeslieder Waltzer, Op. 52 by Johannes Brahms (1833-1897), a collection of love songs, will also be included. Make sure to come out and support the Laurentians!

Cabinet Kills It At Java

By STEVEN YARDLEY and RAINA PUELS STAFF WRITERS I love upright bass. The sound rushes into your body, rumbling in your torso, and elevating happiness. It moves you. You move to it. There’s something so authentic about folk music; especially when its Cabinet, who fused bluegrass, reggae, banjo rap, and rock Friday 28th for an excellent show. They were a bunch of incredibly talented musicians disguised as junkyard dogs, scorching back porch melodies, harmonies, and riffs from mandolin to violin, and rocking real smooth to reggae.

Cabinet has been playing together since 2006, so they’ve had eight years to explore the limits of their souls and strings. They’re comprised of a violin, mandolin, banjo, guitar, electric bass, standup bass, and drum-set. The same instruments and players were on the Java Stage at Springfest, but due to the cold weather only a few people saw the set. Thankfully, this show had a great turn out, with a much older group of outof-towners than normal. The band members brandished beards so fierce I had trouble telling their ages—older than me, but younger than my dad. I think there was some strange magic hiding in their chin hairs, because everyone at the show was happily flailing their limbs instead of playing tonsil hockey.

The first song they played was called “Love.” The entire night seemed to wrap nicely into that

word. Love of banjo, love of bluegrass variety, love of dancing to your own interpretation of the beat. I saw some pretty creative dance moves where body parts were moving in several different directions at once. Or was that the crazy, fast changing, bright different colored lights people were controlling in the sound booth?

The snack bar was particularly excellent that week. There were crispy vanilla and strawberry wafer cookies that really sent the concert-goers into a frenzy.

Even the vegheads appreciated the switch in food. The green beans were the biggest hit though.

Several people filled entire solo cups with them so they could munch and dance at the same time. It’s a special hobby of mine (Raina’s) to watch you fools stuff your face from the other side of the snack bar. I can also see you filling your pockets with cookies.

Please, please, please be conscious to make sure your glass bottles find their way into a recycling bin before you go through the doors. The past few shows we’ve found a ton of broken glass bottles inside of the venue.

It’s super dangerous for there to be broken glass around. With the warm weather around the corner we’ll be seeing a lot more bare feet inside and outside of the venue.

We are looking forward to another open-mic night on Apri 3rd, so start practicing and looking for that essential tambourine player. Inquiries about playing should be sent to Steven Yardley at styard12@stlawu.edu.

Do you ever find yourself trapped on an island filled with people suffering from leprosy?

Do you, on these occasions, find yourself wishing for way to get out? If so, this is the book for you! I’m just kidding.

If you’ve made it this far into the book review (shout-out to English majors / friends of mine who maybe read this), congratulations!

The real review starts here.

How to Escape from a Leper Colony is not, in fact, a how-to guide on devising an escape from a leper colony (misnomer, I know). It is the debut collection of Tiphanie Yanique, a fiction writer born in the Virgin Islands, who draws on her own cultural roots to explore the colorful postcolonial narratives of the Caribbean.

These are at once brutal stories, frankly handling the tough themes of prejudice, displacement, and loss, and incredibly touching portraits of a group of people who feel intimately tied to the stark beauty and despair of their homeland. The Caribbean emerges as a region still struggling with the legacy of colonialism, but with a strength of spirit that is to be admired.

I’ll mention what I think were the most stand-out pieces in this collection, starting with the title story,

in which a 14-year-old girl is sent to the Trinidadian isle of Chacachacare back when it was still used as a leper colony.

There she befriends a boy her age, Lazaro, whose mother was murdered on the island when he was an infant. This tragedy haunts the entire story, setting the stage for Lazaro’s retribution and the dramatic unraveling of the ordered lives the nuns of Chacachacare have tirelessly worked to create. Yet like most of Yanique’s stories, “How to Escape from a Leper Colony” contains many moments of humor and compassion. It feels generous to the characters, allowing them to display a full range of complex passions and desires.

It also treads, at times, on the border with the supernatural, giving it the mythic quality of a tale one might pass down from generation to generation, as is the tradition in so many Caribbean cultures.

“Street Man” was my second favorite. Here, Yanique dives right into the rich vernacular of a drug dealer struggling to comprehend how he’s landed a “straight” girl and how he might keep her separate from his work. Once more, the characterization is generous.

The narrator emerges as a sympathetic but flawed man whose drive to balance his two worlds ultimately prevents him from granting his girlfriend any complexities of her own.

It is also probably worth mentioning “The Bridge Stories,” which are as intriguing in structure—several mini stories linked together in their own collection—as in content. Yanique amplifies the supernatural element that first took hold in “How to Escape from a Leper Colony.”

MARCH 21, 2014

The four tales come across as pieces of legend, with special emphasis on the narrator or teller of the story: “The Story of the Burka and the Habit: as told by a Catholic Lady in a big hat,” for example. The mythical bridge in question, which spans the distance between islands, becomes a metaphor for both unity and separation. The characters are inevitably drawn toward it, their narratives finally coalescing in a dramatic, shattering finale.

Interestingly, apart from these three stories, I didn’t feel really attached to Yanique’s collection. I often struggled to find empathy for many of the characters, who seemed to remain flat on the page. That haunting, mythic quality—so artfully managed in “How to Escape from a Leper Colony” and “The Bridge Stories”— became forced in later stories.

In particular, the novella, “The International Shop of Coffins,” felt self-conscious.

The word-for-word repetition at the start of each section was first jarring, then annoying, and never succeeded in smoothing transitions the way the author probably intended.

Still, Yanique is doing enough interesting things with voice and structure to make most of her stories a worthwhile read. How to Escape from a Leper Colony also provides a generous and authentic depiction of a region that pop culture frequently exaggerates, if not completely misunderstands.

(I love Pirates of the Caribbean as much as the next girl, but if a dreadlocked Johnny Depp is your only image of the Caribbean, you should definitely give Yanique’s collection a try).

Writers Series: Kirsten Kashock MFA or PhD in creative writing and at least two published books—provides ample time for writers to develop new work and immerse themselves in the St. Lawrence writing culture over the span of one academic year. This includes teaching two classes each

By MAGGIE SULLIVAN STAFF WRITER On February 27th, the English department hosted a Writers Series event that was quite special for a few reasons. To begin with, it was the first event of the new semester. But more importantly, the featured writer, Kirsten Kashock, is SLU’s very own Viebranz Visiting Professor of Creative Writing.

Kashock’s teaching position— designed for professors with an

Her writing mirrors her passion as a dancer: dainty and delicate, elegantly floating across the page semester, hosting occasional writing workshops or salons, potentially assisting seniors with independent work, and reading at one of the monthly Writers Series events- and how lucky we were to hear Kaschock’s beautiful reading the other week!

Most participants in the

Writers Series tend to read a few excerpts from only one or two of their published books. However, Kaschock went above and beyond by reading such a large variety of work, from portions of a novel about dancers mixing and coping with art and murder, to an excerpt about all the different “F” names (Frances, Fay, Fink, etc.) that you could unfortunately give a baby girl, and yes, of course wonderful poetry. Her writing mirrors her passion as a dancer: dainty and delicate, elegantly floating across the page, and yet strong; powerful; tender. It was impossible to not feel enthralled by the beautiful words escaping her mouth.

Kaschock has written two published books of poetry: Unfathoms and A Beautiful Name for a Girl. On top of this, she has also written a book of speculative fiction called Sleight, and her most recent book of poetry, The Dottery will be published in 2014.

MARCH 21, 2014

Arts & Entertainment

THE HILL NEWS | 9

Moving In Stereo Gets Happy

By WILL STANDISH COLUMNIST

Second Breakfast: 300: Rise of an Empire (2014) The Plot: Slightly before, partly during, and mostly after

By CHRIS MELVILLE the events COLUMNIST of Zach Snyder’s abhorrent 300, them plucky Greeks have yet more problems from them pesky Persians. Naval problems. Led

by Themistocles (Sullivan Stapleton), the Greeks assemble their ragtag navy of tiny ships and engage in a series of battles against the mighty Persian force, commanded by Artemisia (Eva Green).

Ah, what to address first.

Shall we begin with the history?

So yes, the Persian Wars were decided largely by three battles: Marathon, Thermopylae, and Salamis. Regardless of who won, they were all incredibly well fought, and victories were won by tacticians, not by shirtless men in capes flailing about and hoping their sword connects with a Persian stereotype.

Perhaps the most impressive achievement of 300 II: Intolerable Cruelty is that the action sequences are somehow boring to watch. While a few of them did make me laugh in confused bewilderment, none of them quite managed to entertain me.

Who knows, though, maybe I would have found them intriguing if there were any real people involved.

What do I mean by “real people”? This stuff really happened. Blue-cape Leonidas was a real dude. Artemisia was a real chick. Salamis was a real battle, and a pretty interesting one at that. What’s more, Themistocles was a fascinating, wily character, and Artemisia was a wise commander and, according to Herodotus, the only female commander. Let me tell you

about Themistocles and Artemisia a little bit.

Themistocles was a clever guy. After his pseudo-defeat at Artemisium, he thought to himself, “Crap, this isn’t going well.

I know, I’ll send a message to

“Now, I don’t like to bandy around the word ‘misogyny,’ but it is altogether prudent to criticize films that seem to go out of their way to create bad female characters. ” Xerxes, who’s probably pretty content in his victory as is, and tell him that if he acts quickly, he can probably crush the remaining Greek forces, and I’ll tell him that I’m on his side, but still command the Greeks. That way, if we win, awesome, but if we lose, I’m still in the clear.”

Sneaky and morally corrupt, but clever. Well, not in 300: Episode 2: Attack of the Persians, Again.

No, in this cinematic wonder, Themistocles is reduced to, well, to just being another Leonidas.

The closest he comes to subterfuge is just really scummy.

That’s a good segue.

SO, about Artemisia. Now, I don’t like to bandy around the word “misogyny,” but it is altogether prudent to criticize films that seem to go out of their way to create bad female characters. Artemisia, in real life, was a well-respected, much loved queen of Halicarnassus, who allied herself with Xerxes against

the Greeks and did a pretty good job as a wise leader and strong tactician. Her political fluidity rivaled Themistocles. You could say that they were appropriately matched as adversaries. She was cunning and manipulative and everyone respected her.

Now, the lazy option in this case would be to just keep her as she is in history. But no, they actively sought out a way to make her a weak character. Despite her power and sensibility, she still can’t think of a better way to sway Themistocles’ allegiance than by seducing him.

This leads to possibly the most arbitrary, gratuitous, and badly directed sex scene I have ever seen. So, Artemisia’s strategy boils down to, “If you agree to side with Xerxes, we can have sex.” Flawed, but it seems effective. Themistocles’ reaction is essentially, “Der, okay,” followed by the aforementioned awful sex scene, followed by Themistocles triumphantly shouting, “PSYCH!” That’s what I meant when I referred to his scummy almost-subterfuge. So yes, this intriguing, powerful historical figure is (quite literally) stripped down to the object of a teenager’s sex fantasy, and then later Themistocles kills her because I guess why not? For those interested parties, the real life Artemisia survived Salamis.

Gosh, badly developed characters aside, this movie actually just sucked. The historical “interpretations” were only slightly less confusing than interpretations of things like fire, general physics, blood, the moon, and what someone’s diary led the writers to believe what sex must be like. I think the runtime would have been about forty minutes without slow motion.

Do yourself and everyone you know a favor, skip 302.

The Pharrell Williams – G I R L: There are relatively few people who are going to dispute that in 2013, the title of the King of the Summer Jam deservedly went to singer/ producer/ potential ageless being Pharrell Williams. Between his appearances on Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky” and Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines,” it was nigh-impossible to go a few miutes listening to the radio without hearing the dude’s voice at least once. And now, just as winter was threatening to drag on forever and ever (seriously, this needs to stop), Pharrell has emerged- not unlike a lithe nature spirit- to deliver to the masses a collection of Spring jams to ring in the new season with his second solo album G I R L. And he’s brought along an eclectic group of guest stars to help him. Guesting on G I R L’s ten tracks is a diverse lineup including, but not limited to Justin Timberlake, Miley Cyrus, Alicia Keys, and Daft Punk.

“Marilyn Monroe” opens the album with a sweeping strings arrangement courtesy of Hans Zimmer. “This one goes out to all the lovers,” he declares in the first verse. Right away, the tone and flow of the album are established.

Pharrell pledges his song to the love-struck peoples of the world as he pines for the girl of his dreams, whose beauty can’t be matched by such historical beauties as the titular Marilyn Monroe, Cleopatra, or Joan of Arc (?). Right off the bat, the album is charged with hints of the retro soul and disco flair that characterizes so much of Pharrell’s summer collaborations. He continues into similar territory on “Brand New,” its Nile Rodgers inspired guitar track aided by a peppy electric piano lick and an energetic horn section during the chorus. Pharrell’s voice is matched and elevated by the intermingling vocals of Timberlake, who makes this one of the brightest tracks on an aggressively bright album.

By next two tracks, Pharrell has moved into some serious, dirtyfunk territory. “Hunter” is an awesomely raunchy throwback to early 80s funk in the tradition of Rick James. If you are left physically unmoved by its bassline, I truly pity you and your deficit of groove. The song drips with sexuality. In perhaps one of the greatest, most strangely topical lines I have ever heard, Pharrell informs us that “Duck Dynasty’s cool and all/ But they got nothin’ on a female’s call.” Pharrell’s tongue is so firmly in cheek on this track, it’s threatening to poke out the other side. The unapologetic dirtiness of this track is rivaled only by “Gush,” a track that is peppered liberally with a sound-bite of a woman having an orgasm. These two tracks make the Academy Award -nominated “Happy (From Despicable Me 2)” seem strangely out of place. An excellent, infectious pop song, it’s

squeaky clean (to the point where it announces it’s from a Dreamworks animated movie in the title) lyrics are a whiplash from the preceding track where the singer repeatedly declares that he’s going to “light that ass on fire.” Musically, it makes sense. Lyrically, they have no place being on the same album.

The next two tracks feature some of the album’s most highprofile (or at least most surprising) cameos. “Come Get it Bae” sounds somewhat similar to Pharrell’s summer guest track, “Blurred Lines” and, appropriately enough, features Miley Cyrus. Driven by a simple guitar riff rhythmic chants, the sound is a bit sparser than some of the other tracks on the album, but it just as effective and catchy as any of them. “Gust of Wind,” features vocals by Daft Punk and is characterized by the same kind of string arrangements and guitar work that characterized Random Access Memories. While these two tracks recall Pharell’s summer collaborations, they feel more like the product of Pharrell than that of his collaborators.

“Lost Queen” is perhaps one of the best and strangest tracks on G I R L, partially because it’s in reality two different songs. The first part is led by hand percussion and sampled vocal harmonies, but at the halfway mark –after a transition marked by the sound of crashing waves—the song becomes a laid back R&B song. Think of it as a secret bonus track that arrives in the middle of the album.

“Know Who You Are” is female empowerment anthem that can be seen as the themes of the album coming to a head. Some of the questionable messages of “Hunter” aside, the album treats women as people rather than conquests, even at its most unabashedly sexual. It’s Alicia Keys’s presence on the track that truly makes the song. Her vocals lend the song an authenticity that otherwise wouldn’t be there.

It’s fair to say that she dominates the track, but rather than detraction, it’s nice to see Pharrell let a collaborator take the reins on a song, the singer content to play support to Keys’s central verses.

G I R L is, appropriately enough, closed with the track “It Girl.” Every bit as sexual as many of the songs on the album, it is a gentler, mellower track that closes the album perfectly. It’s the quiet snuggling at the end of a particularly playful night.

G I R L is an ideal follow-up to the strengths that Pharrell exhibited in his recent cameo appearance work. Williams has a knack for synthesizing a multitude of sounds and old school jams into fresh and interesting songs, and this is certainly evidenced on the eclectic G I R L. Just as “Get Lucky” and “Blurred Lines” provided a soundtrack to this past summer, G I R L promises to aspire to similar heights as we finally, slowly, thaw out of North Country winter.

NEWS

10 | THE HILL NEWS

MARCH 21, 2014

Habitat for Humanity constructiing a roof in North Carolina.

Henry Eckerson chasin’ the pow in the Chic-Chocs. ADAM SILVERSTEIN/GUEST PHOTOGRAPHER

JULIA SIMOES/GUEST PHOTOGRAPHER

SPRING BREAK 2014 Over 10 SLU-sponsored groups traveled across the country and the world, studying geology, networking with alumni, building houses, performing concerts, climbing rocks, playing frisbee, and training for athletics to name a few. Here are some snapshots taken by our adventurous Saints!

Students suiting up with alumni in Boston, MA

Eric McIntrye crushing in West Virginia.

Women’s Crew practicing in Tampa, Florida.

NEIL SEIFERT/GUEST PHOTOGRAPHER

Carbonite Sedimentology students from the Geology Department in Jamaica.

AMANDA BREWER/GUEST PHOTOGRAPHER

PHOTO COURTESY OF CAREER SERVICES

KALEN GRIFFIN/GUEST PHOTOGRAPHER

Outing Club canoes through the swamps of Georgia. SAMUEL HECKLAU/GUEST PHOTOGRAPHER

Saints Sports

NATIONAL RESULTS

03/19 Memphis v. Utah, W 96-86 03/19 Knicks v. Indiana, W 92-86 03/19 Winnipeg v. Colorado, W 5-4 OT 03/19 Blackhawks v. Blues, W 4-0

WWW.SAINTSATHLETICS.COM

Rowing Q&A with Michael Brewer

By KRISSY DI PERNO GUEST WRITER How long have you rowed crew?

I started rowing my freshman year.

What inspired you to join the team?

My sister Amanda, who is two years older than me and the current women’s assistant, also walked-on as a freshman at St. Lawrence.

She really enjoyed her experience, so I figured I would try it as well.

What is your favorite memory of rowing crew at SLU? Our race versus Union last April. The weather and water conditions were not great, and we fell behind by quite a bit. When we went past the spectator area it appeared to everyone as if we were going to lose.

However, we were able to fight back and won by .8 seconds, which is a close margin in a 2,000 meter race. I will always remember how PHOTO COURTESY OF UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS exhausted, yet ecstatic everyone in the boat was. The fact that the men and women swept Union just added to the moment and set the tone for the rest of the season. It was a quintessential win for a team that does not stop battling and is used to dealing with tough conditions.

Did you play any other sports before committing to crew?

I’ve played a lot of sports. I played football, soccer, basketball, skiing, baseball, lacrosse, and track and field growing up. In high school I played soccer, basketball, and track.

Who is your biggest fan (why)?

My biggest fans are my parents. Despite their busy schedules, they both have been very invested in my athletics, attending and supporting me in all or nearly all of my games and races since I was young.

How do you feel crew is different from other sports on campus?

Crew presents a lot of unique challenges relative to other sports I have played. Like other sports, it is very physically demanding, requiring a mix of strength, power, and endurance. What is different is that you have to synchronize your effort exactly with teammates and control refined technique during high intensity work. In other team sports, you may still be able to stand out individually, but in rowing you have to swallow your pride a bit because there are no stars. Regardless of individual ability, one is completely reliant on working with all of his or her teammates to be successful.

What was your favorite race to compete in and why?

My favorite race to compete in is the ECACs because it is the culminating race of a year-long effort. I also like that it is a straight, head-to-head sprint race with fully-buoyed lanes against great competition.

What are your favorite teams to race against, and why?

My favorite team to race against is Hamilton. The crew team has a rivalry with them and it has been fun because we have had the upper hand of late.

Do you have any big plans for this semester - bucket list fulfillments, etc?

Regarding rowing, a team goal is to medal at the state championships in May. Other than that, I hope to have a good time with friends and finish strong in my last semester.

Do you have any superstitious pre-race rituals?

Nothing superstitious, I just like to follow a similar routine in terms of pre-race preparation so I am ready physically and mentally.

As race season approaches, how do you think your Spring Break Tampa trip helped you prepare?

We had a very successful winter training and made significant progress in Tampa. Even though the cold will prevent us from practicing on the water, I think we are confident in our experience and the strides we have made in our fitness. We have a really great group of guys who will take it in stride and focus on maximizing our time when we do get in the boats.

Stanley Cup Prediction

By WILL MESINGER STAFF WRITER Hey guys, remember when I predicted Russia would win gold in Olympic ice hockey? Given how well that last one went, I probably shouldn’t be writing a prediction article. I was wrong and you guys were right. I owe you all a single Mike’s Hard Lemonade (Virgin Mike’s for those of you under 21) – email me and I’ll hand-deliver one to you (wmesi12@stlawu.edu).

But, because I’m feeling confident, and because we needed to fill a 500 word space, here’s my prediction for who will win this year’s Stanley Cup. The St. Louis Blues!

It’s a safe bet, I know. At the time of writing this article, the Blues have the best record in the NHL with 99 points. They’ve got seven players with over forty points on their roster, meaning that they don’t necessarily have to rely on all-star winger T.J. Oshie or their leading scorer Alexander Steen (30g) to carry the team.

They average 3.2 goals per game by relying on a team effort and an aggressive forecheck. Seriously, look up videos of their forecheck on Youtube. The Blues are able to sustain a ridiculous forecheck for minutes at a time. They also have depth – their third line consists of Steve Ott, Patrik Berglund and Derek Roy. Their defense revolves around a solid core consisting of Pietrangelo, Shattenkirk and Boumeester. Acquiring arguably the best American goaltender in the league in Ryan Miller helps too.

This guy has been between the pipes for Buffalo all year. Buffalo.

With the Blues he won’t have to face the type of shots Buffalo’s abysmal defense subjected him to game after game. Since he and Steve Ott (who also, thankfully, found his way out of Buffalo) joined the team, the Blues have gone undefeated in five games.

In terms of special teams, they

PHOTO COURTESY OF ST. LOUIS BLUES

have the third best powerplay in the league and the second best penalty kill. The latter will be extremely important come playoff time, where one bad penalty can result in elimination. St. Louis takes a lot of penalties – they currently have 915 PIM and average 13.5 PIM/Game. But this isn’t that much of a problem for a team that only allows an average of 2.19 GA/Game (putting them third behind Los Angeles and Boston).

If anything, it just shows that the Blues are a tough team. David Backes and Steve Ott are two of the most physical players in the league. Backes has 229 hits on the season, and Ott clocks in at 213. They’re aggressive, and I don’t see them being pushed around in the playoffs.

Still, there’s always a decent chance the Blues won’t win. First of all, it would just make too much sense. The best team never wins, because sports exist in a world full of intangibles, much to the dismay of St. Lawrence’s statistics department. Second, they probably won’t win because I predicted them to. After I predict anybody to win anything, it immediately becomes impossible for them to do so (see: previous sports articles). Hopefully the Blues can break their Stanley Cup drought, and also break my incorrect prediction streak.

What is your favorite thing to order from the pub?

Rodeo quesadilla.

What are your suggestions for this weekend’s playlist?

Not a new song, but Don’t You Worry Child by Swedish House Mafia. Also, a good workout/pre-competition song is 300 Violin Orchestra by Jorge Quintero.

Do you have any advice for student athletes?

Don’t be afraid to challenge yourself out of fear of failure. It’s not always going to be easy. Being persistent and preparing by taking care of things you can control, such as outlining your weekly obligations, is important. I think that overcoming any challenges that come with being a successful student-athlete is very rewarding and completely worth it.

Anything else you’d like to say?

Good luck to all the teams competing this weekend and be sure to sign up for the “Student Athlete Alumni Panel” this Sunday if you are able to attend!

PHOTO COURTESY OF UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS

The Hill News would like to give a big shout out to Greg Carey for signing a one year entry-level contract with the Phoenix Coyotes!

Saints Sports

LATEST RESULTS

03/15 Men’s Tennis v. Oneonta, W 7-2 03/15 Men’s Ice Hockey @ Colgate, L 3-4 03/15 Men’s Baseball v. Coast Guard, L 3-18 03/18 Men’s Lacrosse @ Middlebury, W 14-7

WWW.SAINTSATHLETICS.COM

Fantasy Basketball

By BRANDON DI PERNO STAFF WRITER

Woah, boy!

Despite suffering a shooting slump during Miami’s losing streak LeBron James seems to have returned to form. He posted 45 points on 73% shooting along with six rebounds, four assists, two steals and three blocks. If you’re lucky enough to have LeBron on your team during the next few playoff weeks start him.

Dwyane Wade has finally become the Wade of the past once again.

After seasons riddled with injuries he’s once again playing at an elite level averaging 21 points, on 66% shooting over the first five games. Miami is being cautious with him however, so make sure he is indeed playing before you start him.

PHOTO COURTESY OF UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS

SLU Track and Field: State Champions!

By ELLIS TOLL STAFF WRITER On February 28th and March 1st, the New York State Collegiate Track Conference held its championship in Newell Field House. After nineteen hours of competition, history was made. For the first time in the program’s history, both the St. Lawrence men and women were NYSCTC champions at the same time.

Day 1 featured finals in the women’s pentathlon, the 5000 meter run, 4x200 meter relay, Distance Medley Relay and several field events. The Lady Saints had control of the meet from the start after Carly Stine (2nd place, 2920 points) along with Ally Scarf (3rd, 2843) and Teresa Grigg (6th, 2509) all scored in the pentathlon. For the men, the highlight of the first day came in the 5000 meter run. Trevor Bibb and Thomas Caulfield were two of the top seeds prior to the race, and did not disappoint. At the 3k mark, Bibb and Caulfield were both part of the lead pack when Bibb and RPI senior, Sean Quinn broke away. Bibb would outkick Quinn for the victory in 15:03.46 while Caulfield led the chase pack for much of the race before finishing 7th in 15:20.02. In the women’s 5k, the Saints placed two in the top eight, with Lisa

By THOMAS MATHIASEN & CHIP GLOVER STAFF WRITERS With the regular season over, it was time for the hockey playoffs to begin. Following a weekend where a pair of games against Quinnipiac and Princeton were split, it was time for the St. Lawrence Men’s hockey team to focus their attention towards a playoff run. In the playoffs, St. Lawrence squared off against Brown University in the first round of the ECAC tournament. The first game sparked fireworks with an incredible finale. After three full frames of play, the score remained tied at 2-2. With regulation goals coming

Grohn 2nd (17:22.43) and Ariel Beccia 3rd (17:26.43). The last event on the track Friday evening was the 4x200 meter relay. The men’s team of Adrian Wilson, Omaru Kabia, Shawn Lillie and Karim Creary won in a time of 1:31.61 despite Lillie competing with a broken hand.

The women’s team of Divya Biswal, Ketura Mason, Stine and Hannah Kinsey also won the event, with a time of 1:45.58, less than one second off the meet record.

Competition on Saturday began at 10 AM and lasted until nearly 5 PM, providing hours of exciting finishes and tense competition. The women extended their lead consistently throughout the second day, with six event victories. These came in the triple jump, mile, 200meter, 400 meter, 500 meter, 3000 meter and 4x400 meter events.

Seniors Amy Cymerman (Mile, 3k, DMR) and Hannah Kinsey (4x400, 4x200) played key roles in many of the Saints event victories across both days. Even more impressive was the depth the Saints showed, with eight different athletes placing in multiple events. In addition to Cymerman and Kinsey, Linder, Stine, Biswal, Grohn, Mason and Marisa Turner all accomplished this feat.

For the men, victory was much less certain. A victory for junior

Scotty Smolensky in the mile (4:24.43) would prove to be the only one for the Saints before noon, and one of only three on Saturday.

Instead, there were several events were the Saints had multiple scorers rather than the top one. This occurred in the 400 meters (Wilson 6th, Danny Viscardi 8th), 60 meter dash (Kabia 3rd, Creary 4th) and 1000 meters (Joe Smith 2nd, Corey Hahnl 6th). This podiumpacking gave the Saints a small lead with three events scored. In the Heptathlon, a SLU record for Payton (4209 points, 4th) was met with a 2nd place finisher by Samuel Ellis of challenger RPI to cut into the lead. The 4x800 meter relay of Smith, Hahnl, Dennis Korir and Spencer Patterson restored the lead to 4 points going into the final event with a win in a time of 8:00.17.

The final race of the day was the 4x400, with the Saints needing to finish behind RPI by just one place to win. Throughout the entire race, the teams traded the lead.

At the finish line, Harrison Sloan made what Assistant Athletic Director, Mike Howard later called an “epic dive to the finish”, but came up just short, .02 seconds behind the runner from RPI. It was enough, though, and for the second time in three weeks, both teams rang the victory bell.

Anthony Davis has been a monster lately putting up 40 points and 20 rebounds against the Celtics. Davis has been great all year, and one should expect this trend to continue into the future.

Buy Despite suffering career lows from behind the arc all season Ray Allen has finally found his shooting stroke and with it a bigger role in the Heat rotation. He’s definitely worth picking up while he has the hot hand.

Bledsoe finally returned to Phoenix after suffering a meniscus tear in January. He’s been essential to their lineup in his return, and should continue to be as they make a run for the playoffs.

If you’re in need of a player who gets you points in almost all categories Tucker is your guy. He’s been extremely consistent in getting boards and steals as well making him a worthwhile guy if you’re desperate for points this late in the season.

Sell Danny Green seems to have hurt his wrist again and with that his play has faltered. There are better players on your waiver wire while he suffers from lackluster play.

Irving hurt his bicep and with that finds himself out of Cleveland’s roster indefinitely. With very little time left in the “fantasy” season, you may want to get rid of him while you still can.

Iguodala will miss three games with injury. If you are in the playoff in your league and have him active this week it might be worth looking somewhere else where you can get immediate production.

A Season in Review: Saints Hockey

from seniors Kyle Essery ‘14 and Greg Carey ‘14, St. Lawrence would only need one more goal to end the sudden death overtime. After an intense extra frame, neither team was able to score in the first overtime.

In the second overtime, however, freshman defender Eric Sweetman was able to end the stalemate by scoring his second goal of the season and securing the double overtime win for the Saints.

The following night, St. Lawrence was again able to overcome Brown University and sweep them in the three game series. While this game did not need another double overtime finish, the Saints were able to quickly finish off Brown in the first

round with a 3-2 win over the Bears.

The three goals, scored by Eric Sweetman ‘17, Gavin Bayreuther ‘17 and Woody Hudson ‘17, were accompanied by a good showing in net by senior Matt Weninger, his seventh career playoff win. After the sweep of Brown, St. Lawrence’s next opponent would be Colgate in the ECAC Quarterfinals.

Colgate remained the only obstacle for the Saints in order to reach the ECAC semi-finals in Lake Placid. In the first game of another best-of-three series, Colgate quickly jumped out to an early 2-0 lead against the Saints, capitalizing on two power play opportunities. After a scoreless second period, the Saints

rallied after a goal in the third from senior defenseman Justin Baker.

Despite the late surge, Colgate was able to hold off the Saints attack and secure a 2-1 win in the first game of the series.

The following night, the Saints were able to take the early 2-1 lead against Colgate, with goals from freshman Woody Hudson and senior Greg Carey. After three unanswered goals by Colgate, the score stood at 4-2 in the middle of the third period. Again, St. Lawrence tried again at another late surge with another goal from Greg Carey, his second of the game.

Unfortunately, despite the late rally, Colgate was able to hand onto the

lead, thus ending the season and the playoff run for the Saints.

Despite being eliminated from the ECAC playoffs in the quarterfinals, the Saints saw many areas of success and promise throughout the season. For seniors Patrick Raley, Justin Baker, Matt Weninger, Kyle Essery, Riley Austin, Jeremy Wick, Greg Carey, this marks the end of their hockey careers at St. Lawrence and we wish them the best in their futures in hockey and in whatever they choose to pursue. The future, however, looks bright for the Saints, with a young team growing a year older, hoping to bring another exciting season to SLU next year!