November 9, 2023

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VOLUME 147, ISSUE 7 | THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2023

UC Davis Police Department reported assault incidents and vandalism at Davis College Republicans event on Nov. 3

Riley Gaines was the featured speaker at the event, which urged around 100 community members to protest outside of the building where she spoke

BY LILY FREEMAN campus@theaggie.org On Nov. 3, the Davis College Republicans (DCR) hosted a speaker event featuring Riley Gaines, a former competitive swimmer. Gaines spoke on “the importance of protecting women’s sports” at the event, according to the Davis College Republicans’ Instagram.

The event raised a response among Davis community members, where posters were hung across campus prior to the event in protest of Gaines speaking. The posters’ header said, in all caps, “Transphobia isn’t welcome in Davis.”

“On November 3rd, Davis College Republicans will be bringing Riley Gaines, a notorious transphobe who cited bomb threats towards the Davis Public library, to speak at UC Davis,” the poster read.

“We will not stand for that bullshit.”

The protest started on Nov. 3 around 5:30 p.m., an hour and a half prior to the time that Gaines spoke.

Around 100 protesters convened outside of the UC Davis Conference Center, which is where the DCR event took place, according to a statement from UC Davis News and Media Relations. There was also a smaller group of counter-protesters who stood outside of the premises.

The UC Davis Police Department reported two incidents of assault at the protest, according to the statement, and no one requested medical attention.

“Police also fielded a separate report of vandalism,” the statement read. “Protesters broke the glass on doors and a window on a campus building a short distance from the event. Graffiti was painted on one building and Egghead statues.”

No one from the protest or event was arrested. The statement concluded with the university’s position on both the DCR event and the protest.

“As a public university, UC Davis is dedicated to the First Amendment and the pursuit of knowledge through the free, open and non-violent exchange of ideas,” the statement concluded. “Allowing registered student groups to use campus facilities does not constitute an endorsement by the university of the event, the speaker or the views expressed.”

“A flyer for a speaker event, hosted by Davis College Republicans, hangs on a lecture hall bulletin board.”

(Aggie File)

Off-campus students speak on the Students For Davis housing crisis, price jacks, Justice in Palestine ant attacks and outdated shacks host walkout and Good and fair-priced off-campus housing is hard to come by according to statistics and students

BY FAITH DEMEULENAERE

The walkout on the Wellman lawn was dedicated toward protesting the conflict in Gaza and Palestine and the rally was aimed at calling out administration

LUNA SU / AGGIE

features@theaggie.org Navigating the realm of off-campus housing poses a lot of challenges for the majority of students, packed with an array of hurdles.

These obstacles encompass complex financial considerations, perplexing regulatory constraints and even potential legal transgressions, casting an unsurprising shadow over the experiences of first-time renters.

This issue is particularly salient among students whose eagerness to secure proximity to campus makes them susceptible to occasional exploitation.

According to the UC Davis Housing Vacancy Report of 2021, “... the average rental rate for all units was $2,034 per month. This represents a 4.7 percent increase over 2020, when the average rental rate for unit-leased apartments was $1,943. This rental rate increase is above the 2.2 percent increase recorded between 2019 and 2020, but is comparable to historical annual rent increases, which range from four to nine percent per year.”

The article also stated per person, rent averaged around just under $1,100 a month. This does not account for anything besides rent, such as utilities, parking, gardening services or WiFi charges. It is estimated that these

READ MORE Upperclassmen give advice on balancing college life, academics and a social life

How do first-year students’ expectations of college measure up against experience?

rally on Oct. 25

BY KAYA DO-KHANH campus@theaggie.org

additional charges can cost anywhere from $50 to $150 per month per person.

According to the Vacancy Report shown above, four plus bedroom units are the most likely to be vacant in Davis by a large lead.

According to most housing websites provided by the Most Affordable Housing in Davis page from the localwiki, four plus bedrooms units seem to be the cheapest in singular and shared bedroom types. Even upon looking at the current rates from one of the various apartment complexes from that list, the cheapest option for a shared bedroom, meaning two people occupying one room, is $884.

According to the UC Davis Housing Vacancy Report of 2010, a student could get an entire studio apartment for an average of $787. Since the cheapest option of 2023 was roughly $884 for a shared bedroom in a house of more than four people, when compared to 2010, a student would be paying only about $283 for the same thing.

In a span of a little over 10 years, what a student could once afford with the same amount of money has shrunk drastically.

With this drastic price change, have any of the housing options gotten better? Better yet, have most of them even been refurbished since 2010?

“My maintenance man had to come

to fix my heater and openly told me it was from the 70s,” Jessica Young, a fifth-year political science major, said. “I pay a little under $1,800 for a studio apartment. [...] I’ve had friends who haven’t had a stove, oven, no free laundry or parking spaces, bug infestations, you name it. They are all still paying over a grand every month.”

Anna Bronstein, a third-year psychology major, brings safety into question when considering certain housing options in Davis, “We had someone going door to door, trying to unlock every door and break in. They [landlords] didn’t even install any sort of safety features or cameras for a while.

When they did, it was a singular camera pointing at, like, one spot out of the entire [apartment] complex.”

Many students could agree that the high pricing of off-campus housing does not always guarantee safety or a number of amenities.

With that in mind, when students are considering renting they should always know their renter’s rights, research the property management or landlords, always alot room in budgeting outside of rent for amenities and have a mental list of what they value as a renter. Which, according to Young, can sometimes come down to valuing having a dishwasher over having your own bedroom: “You just have to pick your battles.”

On Wednesday Oct. 25 at 12 p.m., the Students For Justice in Palestine (SJP) club at UC Davis hosted a walkout and rally on the Wellman lawn to protest the recent siege on Gaza. The walk out was dedicated toward protesting the conflict in Gaza and Palestine as a whole. According to a post on SJP’s Instagram, the rally was held to “call our administration for their complicity in the genocide.”

Draped with the black-and-white Palestinian keffiyeh scarves over their faces, a number of students walked out onto the Wellman lawn carrying signs that read “Free Palestine” and “No Justice No Peace.” Another sign read, “This law student doesn’t want to work for people that turn a blind eye to genocide.”

Before the rally started, a member of SJP told the crowd to grab the free lunch that was provided which included lentils and water from tables set up at the front of the lawn.

They were also handing out free masks as he told the people gathered on the lawn, “I really recommend covering your face because we are being surveillanced by UC Davis

organizations and police.”

A group of students hung a large banner from the front balcony of the second floor of Wellman Hall with a drawing of the Palestinian flag along with writing that read “Free Palestine End The Occupation.”

At 12:30 p.m., a speaker from SJP went to the front of the lawn with a bullhorn, gave a speech and led a series of chants, such as “Free, Free Palestine, Israel, Israel go to hell. Colonizers we don’t need them, what we want is total freedom.” People were waving the Palestinian flag and beating a drum.

The students also chanted, “Up, up with liberation, down, down with occupation. Biden, Biden you can’t hide, we charge you with genocide [..]

“Gary May, you can’t hide, we charge you with genocide.”

There were flyers posted outside of Wellman Hall that had a picture of Chancellor Gary May that read in print, “Gary May sits on the board of Leidos, a defense company that works with the Israeli Ministry of Defense and the Israel Airport Authority [...]

Next time Gary says he rejects violence and hate, ask him if that includes all the refugees he’s helped murder.”

WALKOUT on 2

The Students for Justice in Palestine club at UC Davis hosted a walk-out and rally on the Wellman lawn to protest the recent events in Gaza.

(Kaya Do-Khanh / Aggie)

2 | THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2023

Senate hears quarterly reports, passes three constitutional amendments

Both the Bike Barn and the External Affairs Commission gave their quarterly reports and an amendment looking to move ex-officio positions to the legislative branch was added to the ballot

BY SYDNEY AMESTOY campus@theaggie.org Vice President Aarushi Raghunathan called the Nov. 2 senate meeting to order at 6:15 p.m. After roll call, she read the UC Davis Land Acknowledgement.

The first item on the agenda was the confirmation of four new Student Health and Wellness Committee commissioners.

Candidates told the senate their plans for expanded mental health advocacy on campus and were unanimously confirmed.

A new chairperson for the STEM committee was then confirmed unanimously.

Teddy Mates-Muchin, business manager for the Bike Barn, then presented the senate with the Bike Barn’s quarterly report. This included the current financial standing of the Bike Barn, with employee wages increasing by one dollar and the recent hiring of new mechanics.

According to Mates-Muchin, the Bike Barn’s newest program, “Lit Not Hit,” was successful in its inaugural run.

The program, which gives bikers free headlights, has stopped due to the supply of lights running out. Mates-Muchin then called on ASUCD to help with continually funding the project.

Bike sales halfway through this quarter have been successful and are expected to meet past year expectations, according to Mates-Muchin.

“We’ve sold just about 200 bikes this year, which is about $95,000, which is more than half of our budgeted bike budget,” Mates-Muchin said. “That’s about where you want to be. For labor, we’ve made about $35,000 in labor, which is not bad. In parts sold, we’ve made around $91,000. For these numbers to be so high halfway through the first quarter feels pretty promising.

This is our biggest season, so I feel pretty good about these numbers and that we’ll be able to keep making money as the year goes on.”

However, according to MatesMuchin, there have been some onboarding issues for new employees as well as scheduling issues due to the Bike Barn still relying on manual scheduling systems versus digital ones.

Next on the agenda, the External Affairs Commission (EAC) Chair Daniel Mojica gave the EAC quarterly report.

Mojica told the senate the current goals for the EAC, including providing more adequate lighting around Davis, revitalizing the ASUCD housing committee and advocating for the use of Aggie Cash at downtown establishments.

Mojica also brought up current activity within the EAC, including the promotion of safety and advocacy for the transgender community in Davis, especially following recent events such as the bomb threats made to a local library.

The report ended with a plea from Mojica to the senate for engagement in discussions and projects with the EAC, highlighted by a TikTok edit of the senators who have spoken with the EAC in recent months.

“If you want to be in an ‘emo boy’ TikTok edit, just show up to our meetings,” Mojica said. “That’s all I ask.

We’d really appreciate it if you guys were to include us more in more discussions

WALKOUT FROM PAGE 1 The “Eye on Mrak” and “Bookhead” campus egghead statues were also graffitied with the words “Free Palestine” in black on Wednesday and were cleaned off on Thursday morning.

“We have been overwhelmed by the amount of support we have received these past weeks at all of our events,” a caption on one of SJP’s Instagram posts said. “There is so much strength in numbers, and we never thought we would reach a point where our numbers reached this high. [...] Our fight for liberation is nowhere near over, and we will not stop until Palestine has been freed. Palestine will be free by the people, for the people.

Don’t stop showing up, don’t stop speaking, and never stop fighting.”

WINEMAKING FROM PAGE 3 “Now we have tools where one can look and compare the genetic makeup of a grapevine,” Runnebaum said.

In addition, VEN majors have to be able to collaborate well with others.

“A lot of [courses] are not just you working by yourself in a laboratory class, but also [you] working as part of a team. [...] You’re developing skills that will be helpful once you go into the [wine] industry,” Runnebaum said.

At UC Davis, VEN students have the opportunity to interact with a diverse group of peers.

“I would say that one of the things that makes UC Davis so special is that there’s diversity, not just from a cultural standpoint, but from a

THE CALIFORNIA AGGIE

UC Davis Graduate School of Management becomes first in the UC system to launch a master’s in management program

The program is intended for students who have an undergraduate degree in a non-business field and do not qualify for an MBA program

AGGIE FILE

BY KAYA DO-KHANH campus@theaggie.org

with legislation, whether that be any projects or any ideas you have going on.”

The meeting then went into public comments. First, former ASUCD President and UC Davis alumni Ryan Manriquez raised an issue involving exofficio positions. This was specifically in regards to the executive branch positions such as transfer student representatives and international student representatives having voting rights, which they were recently granted by the senate. He advocated on behalf of Constitutional Amendment #87, which seeks to move such positions to the legislative branch, which would maintain their voting rights, but give them similar duties that senators must perform as well.

The senate was then told to be prepared for a possible spending bill to come to the table in the next few days regarding more backing for the Bike Barn’s “Lit Not Hit” program, a bill that they said could potentially exceed $20,000.

ASUCD Controller Allyson Francisco then cautioned the senate that they have already gone through around a quarter of their budget for the year.

“So I would like everyone to, seriously, if you’re proposing a spending bill, please come and talk to me. Please get my input offerings, I would greatly appreciate it,” Francisco said. “Seeing all these spending bills come through and having no knowledge that they’re happening is kind of hard.”

After public comments, the senate took a break. The meeting was called back to order at 7:53 p.m.

Previous legislation was approved, and new legislation was subsequently moved to the Internal Affairs Commission for review. The consent calendar was also approved.

The meeting then considered old legislation, beginning with Student Resolution (SR) #2, which asks ASUCD to under no condition accept the new Beverage Pouring Rights Contract with PepsiCo that the UC Davis administration may potentially sign soon.

“The Beverage Pouring Rights Contract restricts the beverage options available to students, limiting their ability to make healthy and sustainable decisions,” the resolution read.

SR #2 was passed unanimously.

SB #17, which would allocate $838.76 to the Elections Committee in regards to a voting participation giveaway planned for the upcoming fall ASUCD elections, was then considered.

After discussion on prizes, which was ultimately settled on one iPad and one Apple Pencil, the bill passed

unanimously.

SB #18, which would allow registered student organizations to endorse ASUCD legislation, was then discussed. After deliberation, the bill was passed.

Constitutional Amendment (CA) #86, an amendment that would change the titles of members of the ASUCD judicial branch to justices, was also passed unanimously.

CA #87, which would move the Transfer and International Student Representatives to the legislative branch, was deliberated on next. This, along with CA #88, which would change the number of members in the judicial branch from five to seven, was passed and subsequently added to the spring 2024 ASUCD Elections ballot.

The final agenda item saw the senate move into open forum.

The open forum was dominated by discussions regarding parking after fourth-year anthropology major Jacob Hill, dressed as a pirate, came forward with concerns about new C and C-plus parking rates by the Transportation Services.

“I’m here to talk about ‘p-arrghking,’” Hill said. “I’ve noticed [that with] some of these rates, the way it’s organized doesn’t really make logical sense.

Specifically, the C and C plus parking [are things] I don’t personally agree with or understand. So let’s say you’ve got C plus parking for employees and students, then we have C zone which is just blank so I’m assuming that’s for visitors. There are only three kinds of people coming to campus. Employees, students and visitors are all you can be. So I’m trying to figure out, first of all, why the C plus, which is geared towards employees and students, is more expensive.”

The discussion ultimately led Senator Gaius Ilupeju to ask for two senators to come forward and become the adopted senators for the ASUCD Equitable Parking Oversight Committee.

“Passion,” Ilupeju said, in response to being asked what he was looking for in the adopted senators.

Ultimately, Senators Chasa Monica and Curtis Chen were selected to be the committee’s adopted senators.

Vice President Raghunathan then urged senators to attend a meeting on Nov. 7 with Chancellor May, as well as to read bills for grammar inconsistencies before senate meetings.

“We can’t just stay in questions in text forever,” Raghunathan said. “You should know how you’re going to vote before you get in here.”

The meeting was then adjourned at 10:33 p.m.

professional standpoint as well,” Howe said.

Because viticulture and enology offers a wide array of job possibilities in the field, making friendships and networking in Davis could lead to connections in the larger winemaking industry and beyond.

“I have classmates that are college professors now, I have classmates that are winemakers now and I have classmates that left the wine business.

There’s a lot of connections from the people I met when I was a student,” Howe said.

Katarina Kent, a second-year viticulture and enology major, shares the same sentiment to Runnebaum and Howe.

“Communication is really big, because anybody you meet you’ll probably end up working with in some way or another in the future,” Kent said.

Viticulture and enology branches to diverse career paths as the industry itself is intricate and complex in its own way.

“You can go into grape growing or winemaking, and the companies that hire a graduate can be everything from a mom-and-pop, two-person tiny winery to a huge international conglomerate,” Howe said.

Howe furthered that there are even possibilities of specializing which ranges from doing microbiology at an established company, breeding grapes or being an engineer that supports the winemaking equipment and facilities.

Job applicants can also go into the more commercial and business oriented aspects of the industry, such as marketing or human resources.

“I use the analogy of baseball a lot,” Howe said. “You can be a baseball player, but you can also be a coach, a groundskeeper, a bus driver or a physical therapist.”

All in all, VEN majors have the

freedom to select future employment opportunities tailored to their interests.

Despite being quite a flexible option, VEN is still one of the more niche majors on campus. However, some perceive this as a benefit.

“It’s a really small major,” Kent said. “[But] that was kind of something I was looking for.”

Possibly because of its smaller size, the major has a close community.

“The major itself and the community around it [are] quite tight knit,” Kent said. “I’m really looking forward to making connections [with others in the major].”

Wine is a drink of pleasure and studying viticulture and enology is a source of joy for many too. This is true for Kent.

“Hopefully, I can work in a winery one day, be able to make wine and give people the chance to appreciate good wines.”

UPPERCLASSMENADVICE FROM PAGE 3 Mojica-Palafox says that the studying habits required by college courses were difficult to initially develop.

“In high school, I never needed to study, so studying was a new habit I had to build here. I just recently had my first midterms ever. They didn’t go the way I had wanted them to go but I’m just looking at it from a learning perspective so I can know what I need to work on, how I need to study going forward.”

Nguyen remembers her time adjusting to classes as a first-year and recommends self discipline in forming study habits to other first-year students.

“Don’t skip classes because it

The UC Davis Graduate School of Management is the first school in the UC system to launch a master’s in management program, which will start in April 2024. This is just one of many firsts, as UC Davis was also the first UC school to create an online MBA program in 2019, according to an article from Poets and Quants, a news source that covers matters in the business school world.

The degree program offers a 15-month part-time online version which will start this April and a 9-month full-time program at the UC Davis campus, which is expected to start in fall 2024.

“The ability to take courses both inperson and online is relatively rare for a Master of Management course,” Dean of the Graduate School of Management H. Rao Unnava said. “We provide that flexibility. We are also planning on providing specialization tracks, which is also relatively rare in this type of a program.”

The program curriculum is designed after the MBA@UCDavis program which includes nine courses in the functional areas of business, such as accounting, economics, finance, marketing and strategy. With access to a flexible online option, the degree program will prepare students for the professional world and jobs in the private sector, according to a UC Davis press release. Students will also have the opportunity to meet with the school’s career development team in order to develop a personalized career plan during the program.

“Due to various living arrangements, cost-interferences and other factors, the

multifaceted nature of the management program would be extremely beneficial,” third-year managerial economics major and President of the Davis Accounting Society Misha Chakravarthy said. “It would provide a platform for those with other commitments to continue their career path.”

The program is an option for students who have an undergraduate degree in a non-business field and do not qualify for an MBA program, and there is no work experience requirement prior to the program. The Graduate Management Admission Test and Graduate Record Examination are optional and not required.

“Students can view this as their fifth-year experience, supplementing their learning in their non-business major with a solid introduction to business decision-making,” Unnava said. “Recent graduates, for example those who graduated about three years ago, can use their learning in this program to step into a management track in their jobs.”

The faculty of the program consists of the same faculty that also teach within the UC Davis MBA program.

Unnava said that the main goals for the program once it starts in April 2024 is to launch the program smoothly and grow it to at least 200 students.

“Since UCD only offers managerial economics as their version of a business major, I would believe and hold all members of Davis Accounting Society to be non-business majors,” Chakravarthy said. “That being said, I believe that management is a holistic and necessary skill for almost every field and career.

For instance, we have a bio major on our board and various economics majors in the club, [and they] would all thrive in a management graduate environment.”

West entrance to Gallagher Hall, home of the School of Management.

(Cruz Martinez / Aggie) all builds up. It’s important to not cram. You want to make sure you study the material a little bit each day, or every other day. Add your study habits slowly; you shouldn’t expect to reinvent yourself as a student immediately.”

Miles Bardin, a third-year applied mathematics major, has advice for first-years that they wish someone had told them.

“Go to office hours and utilize the resources that you have. Especially with the lower-division chemistry and physics classes, the weed-out classes that are designed to be hard. If you don’t get help with that by going to office hours, talking to other students, looking at the [class] discord, it’s going to be a lot tougher than it otherwise could be.”

UC Davis offers free drop-in advising services to all students in biology, chemistry, economics, math, physics, statistics and writing.

Bardin recounted when they first came to UC Davis; “I think I still had to make mistakes and find out how to get in the groove of being an academic weapon and also balancing the rest of my life.” They encourage first-years to avoid academic burnout as they find a balance. “Try not to get all consumed by school… Have fun, that’s half of what college is about.”

Bardin also noted a difference in the expectations of one’s personal accountability in high school versus college.

“There is more freedom in college; there’s more freedom to fall off, get out of the loop in terms of doing well academically, or even just doing well in general,” Bardin said. This is especially true for students experiencing living away from home for the first time, they said.

“It’s also the freedom to try new things without too great a fear of messing up irreparably,” Bardin said.

“In terms of freedom, oftentimes you’ll have lots of flexibility with deadlines.

You’ll have to keep yourself adhering to those deadlines so make sure you know how to prioritize what you’re doing, and actually stick to that.”

While first-years are entering the middle of their first quarter at UC Davis, they can continue to build strong habits that can help them throughout their college career.

Finding an academic routine that works for them can help students from feeling overwhelmed as they continue to adjust to living in a new environment.

Similar to academics, socializing is something that many students find takes more initiative and preparation than in high school. On such a large campus, it can be hard to find a sense of belonging, especially when classes change every ten weeks. But clubs and organizations can help with this.

Finding a community on campus to plug into can make all the difference to a student’s college experience, with more than 800 groups to choose between.

Lastly, students can find success in college by finding balance in their lives, prioritizing both academics, extracurriculars and self-care without overloading themselves, which can lead to burn out. Over time, as firstyear students continue to adjust to college life in Davis, they can build a happy studious life filled with new opportunities.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2023 | 3

THE CALIFORNIA AGGIE

Protein has been identified that can be ‘switched’ on to activate cancer cell death The CD95 receptor can be used alongside immunotherapy to kill cancer cells

BY KATIE HELLMAN science@theaggie.org Researchers from the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center have identified a way to trigger the death of cancer cells. This new advancement could pave the way for the development of more effective cancer treatments.

The findings were published in the Nature journal Cell Death & Differentiation, which discusses the epitome, a section of protein that can activate the larger protein, on the CD95 receptor (also known as the death receptor). The subsequent death of cells was observed specifically in ovarian cancer.

“Despite its regulatory role and elevated function in ovarian and other solid tumors, another tumor-enriched death receptor called Fas (CD95) remained undervalued in cancer immunotherapy until recently,” the study states.

The CD95 receptors are located on cell membranes and release a signal upon activation, causing the cells to die.

This new discovery could lead to the

UC DAVIS HEALTH / COURTESY further development of existing cancer therapies, such as chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy. This is a type of immunotherapy treatment that uses genetically modified T-cells (a type of immune cell) to kill cancer cells.

Current cancer treatments typically

involve a combination of surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. These can be very successful and allow patients to go into remission, which is when the signs and symptoms of their cancer are gone. However, patients can also relapse after their original treatment,

which is why immunotherapies can help — they can be more successful at preventing cancers from recurring.

Immunotherapies activate antibodies that allow solid tumors to shrink, although clinical trials are still underway to try and maximize their effects.

Jogender Tushir-Singh, associate professor in the department of medical microbiology and immunology, is hopeful that these new findings will improve the future of cancer treatments.

“This is a definitive marker for bystander treatment efficacy of CAR-T therapy,” Tushir-Singh stated in an interview with UC Davis Health. “But most importantly, this sets the stage to develop antibodies that activate Fas, selectively kill tumor cells, and potentially support CAR T-cell therapy in solid tumors.”

Now that the specific epitome has been identified, Tushir-Singh and other researchers can work on designing a new antibody class that can activate the CD95 receptor. This can also create a CAR-T bystander effect, where cancer cells are killed and CAR-T efficacy increases at the same time.

In bystander killing, “...targeted tumor cells are destroyed along with bystander tumor cells, regardless of whether they express an antigen,” according to an article by hospital network Mount Sinai.

Viticulture and enology courses are Upperclassmen give hands-on, collaborative and prepare advice on balancing college life, academics you for diverse career options A tight-knit major and its department teach the science and a social life behind winemaking and cultivating grapevines

KELLY GUAN/AGGIE

BY LYNN CHEN features@theaggie.org Economics, computer science, philosophy, statistics… and viticulture and enology? These are all different majors at UC Davis for undergraduates –– but, what exactly does viticulture and enology offer?

The Department of Viticulture and Enology at UC Davis is wellrespected and praised. According to the department’s chair, David Block, Ph.D., members of the department have driven innovation in grape growing and winemaking in California and beyond for over 135 years. After all, campus is only 45 minutes away from Napa Valley, one of the world’s elite regions for wine-growing. In fact, UC Davis has strong connections with wine researchers and producers there as well.

Viticulture is the study of grape cultivation, while enology is the study of wine and the winemaking process. Students taking viticulture and enology (VEN) courses learn about the physiology and growth of grapevines, the world history behind grape growing, the chemistry, microbiology and sensory science of wines, as well as the technologies and chemical processes involved in winemaking.

To some, it may be surprising just how much of a “hard science”

the major is, according to Patricia Howe, Ph.D., and lecturer for the Department of Viticulture and Enology.

For instance, the prerequisites for the VEN major include STEM classes that a pre-med student would take as well.

“You take physics, chemistry, biology and statistics,” Howe said. “If you are a scientist, this is a good field.”

VEN majors also participate in hands-on classes regarding wine production, sensory evaluation and wine stability.

“Our department also has a lot of hands-on experience through our laboratory classes,” Ron Runnebaum, Ph.D., an associate professor for the department, said.

Additionally, many students in VEN can also further practical applications of their knowledge through internship and research opportunities. Students may intern at a winery or vineyard over the summer, or travel abroad to famous wine-making regions in countries like France or Italy.

Furthermore, the field of viticulture and enology is an especially interdisciplinary subject.

“This field allows you to make connections across different specialties,” Howe said. “Lots of times, if you’re a biologist, all you do is biology; if you’re a chemist, all you

do is chemistry. But, as a winemaker [...] you need to be able to draw on all of your education, and sometimes even more. [For example], there’s a surprising number of philosophy majors that are winemakers.”

Equipped with high reasoning and logical thinking skills, philosophy majors can easily draw upon the sciences as viticulturists or winemakers.

“It’s an integration of all of the types of learning that you have and applying it to real world problems,” Howe said.

VEN also goes beyond its subject by employing skills one wouldn’t necessarily associate with STEM majors. For example, learning to use proper descriptive language is just as important as in hard sciences.

“In our class on the sensory evaluation of wine [...] a large aspect of that is learning how to describe wines,” Runnebaum said. “Part of the labs [of that class] involve having sensory standards and being able to recognize them and describe them.

Not everyone grows up with the vocabulary for wine, so [developing communication skills] is important.”

He stressed the importance of future winemakers being proficient in describing how wine products affect our senses, like taste or smell, in order to improve the quality.

Howe also agreed with Runnebaum’s point stating, “I mean, how many newspapers have a column on engineering, right? A lot of newspapers have a wine column or a restaurant review column, so I think that shows from a day-to-day living and cultural standpoint how talking about food and wine is important.”

The skill of effective communication has always been a useful tool to viticulture and winemaking, according to Runnebaum. Historically, wine grape growers needed to visually examine the plants and articulate their physical features, such as the leaf structure or characteristics of the clusters of berries.

WINEMAKING on 2

How do first-year students’ expectations of college measure up against experience?

NOVA MAI/AGGIE

BY AMBER WARNKE features@theaggie.org Freshmen at UC Davis are currently finishing up their first months of college, and adjusting to a new life away from home. With this comes excitement and anxiety as students face their first midterms, experience holidays in Davis and continue to branch out and join clubs.

When Gabriel Mojica-Palafox, a first-generation first-year animal science major, came to Davis, he was worried he “wouldn’t have friends or find a safe place.” This fear of not finding community is common among first-year students, with many still searching for their group on campus.

One thing that helped him was living in the CASA Learning Living Community, which “surrounded [him] with lots of groups of people with similar interests.”

Julianne Nguyen, a third-year environmental chemistry major had similar concerns going into college.

“I was really worried about making friends because going into high school you kind of already knew the people, but going into college I didn’t have any friends that were going to UC Davis with me, so it was really hard to find a community at first.” Similar

to Mojica-Palafox, finding others with common interests was what ended up helping Nguyen find a sense of belonging.

“Joining the band really makes finding a community and a friend group much easier… I didn’t join at the start of the year, I joined this time around October, so it was still a struggle … but I feel like the people were really welcoming,” Nguyen said.

For Talia Conn, a first-year sustainable environmental design major, the main difficulty she faced in her adjustment to college life was the workload. “I expected less work than I had in high school because I took a lot of APs, I took a lot of college classes, but this quarter… I have way more school work than I’ve ever had in my life.”

Conn says she could have been better prepared for college academics if she had “learned how to check Canvas, because sometimes I wouldn’t see the assignments I had and I would get behind on reading just because I didn’t see it. You’re expected to figure all of that out on your own and I didn’t know how to.”

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The Davis community honors passed loved ones by celebrating Día de los Muertos

This year’s Día de los Muertos event at Central Park also acknowledged Transgender Day of Remembrance

BY CHRIS PONCE city@theaggie.org While Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) falls on Nov. 1-2, students and Davis residents gathered at Central Park on Friday, Nov. 3 to celebrate the traditional Latino holiday.

The event was hosted by the Davis Phoenix Coalition (DPC), YOLO academy and other community groups. The gathering hosted several vendors as well as ofrendas (offerings left for deceased loved ones) decorated with marigolds.

This year’s celebration also featured an ofrenda of transgender individuals who were killed for their identity. The ofrenda was inspired by the upcoming Transgender Day of Remembrance, an annual observance honoring transgender people who died due to anti-trans violence. The observation falls on Nov. 20.

“I’ve lost a lot of transgender friends and family to violence,” Sol Valdes, a member with the Davis Phoenix Coalition, said. “I have a transgender sibling that I love very dearly. So this holiday to me means celebrating the life of the people that have come into our lives and changed us for the better and showed

us that gender can be a spectrum, to be yourself freely and fully and to celebrate the people we lost to that struggle.”

Valdes has celebrated Día de los Muertos before, but this was the first time she celebrated it alongside Transgender Day of Remembrance.

The ofrenda was decorated with trans flags, marigolds made from paper and photos of more than 20 transgender people who lost their lives. One of the photos was of Sherlyn Marjorie, a Latina trans woman and drag performer.

“Transgender Day of Remembrance is an annual observation on November 20 that honors the memory of the transgender people whose lives were lost in acts of anti-transgender violence,” a note on the ofrenda read.

MariaIsabel Mandujano, a board member with Yolo County Communicare Health Centers, was tabling at the event and shared the importance of Día de los Muertos.

“This is so important because it’s a cultural event from Mexico and it’s very important to us to [celebrate the event with] this generation and future generations,” Mandujano said.

Communicare Health Centers offers a grief support group for Spanish speakers every 2nd Thursday of the

Hundreds gathered for the Dia De Los Muertos event in Central Park. (Cruz Martinez / Aggie) month from 5-6 p.m. The support center is located at 215 West Beamer St. in Woodland.

“We support the Spanish speaking community when they struggle with mental health issues,” Mandujano said when describing the work Communicare does.

Rather than being a day of mourning, Día de los Muertos is a day of celebration and honor. The bright orange marigold flowers that

are placed on the altars are believed to help guide the souls of the deceased to the ofrendas prepared for them.

The event was hosted across the street from the “Compassion Bench.”

Marigolds and a framed photo were placed at the bench to honor the life of David Henry Breaux, also known as the “Compassion Guy.” Mandujano passed out pamphlets that explained the importance of altars and ofrendas on the holiday.

“The altar is a mixture of ideas of our ancestors, who believe in the permanence of the bonds that kept the living with the deceased, who do not abandon this plane at all and live with the living,” Mandujano’s pamphlet read. “For the ancient indigenous peoples of Mexico, and to this day, death is life and transcendence that translates into rituals such as the offerings of the day of the dead.”

4 | THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2023

THE CALIFORNIA AGGIE

Davis events happening in November

Fun events that will get you through midterms and distract you amidst the winter depression

BY LORENA ALVAREZ arts@theaggie.org As we move into the colder season, finding the motivation to participate in activities outside of school work can seem challenging. Luckily, the university as well as the Davis area offers many opportunities to socialize with your peers and Davis residents amidst the brisk weather.

Many events are happening this November that will help get you in the holiday spirit and immerse yourself in the Davis community. For more information and events near you, visit allevents.in and for events specific to UC Davis, see the UC Davis Event Calendar.

The Davis Food Co-op, a grocery store owned by Davis locals, offers organic and local food. This store was established because of community members’ goal to foster sustainability and access to “healthful, local and high-quality food.” The Co-op welcomes members to join them in their establishment, whether that be through joining the team or supporting them by shopping locally and attending the events they host to connect them to the community. The Co-op hosts many cooking classes throughout the year at the Teaching Kitchen, including an upcoming Thanksgiving Sampling

GRINDSET FROM PAGE 6 The bottom line is that you have to take care of yourself. If nothing else, let your motivation be that your performance will only benefit from it. We all hear those sentiments from everybody right around this time of the quarter — professors, TAs and even the UC Davis Instagram page. They all say “drink water, get enough sleep, spend time with your friends and go to the ARC,” but you can see behind their eyes that asterisk that means “only after you finish that midterm paper.” In reality, your degree doesn’t mean anything if you’re not in a state to do anything with it, and you won’t be if you don’t start being your own best influence. Be nice to yourself. Be gentle. Here’s the tough love (emphasis on the love): you have to come before your school work, you have to eat food, you have to drink water, you have to sleep and you have to relax.

Live your life. Do your best. Ditch the “grindset.”

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by individual columnists belong to the columnists alone and do not necessarily indicate the views and opinions held by The California Aggie.

SLASHERBRACKET FROM PAGE 6 Having this in mind, here are the movies that I will be using to base how powerful each killer is.” Friday the 13 part II,” “III” and “Final Chapter,” “Halloween I” and “II,” “A Nightmare on Elm Street,” “Scream” and “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” (TCM).

The killers of “Scream” or TCM movies are exclusively mortal and have no signs of superhuman abilities.

Without these, the Sawyer Family, as well as Billy Loomis and Stu Matcher

Event on Thursday, Nov. 9 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. (you must sign up for a 30-minute time slot). For five dollars per person, you can sample some of their Thanksgiving entrees and sides.

While it is not a cooking class, they will be advertising the food they will be featuring for the holiday and giving customers the opportunity to sample and pre-order their Thanksgiving dinner.

The Middle Eastern, North African and South Asian (MENASA) Student Resources Center is hosting a coloring and coffee session on Nov. 9 to help students destress during midterm season. The event is taking place in Meeting Room D at the Student Community Center from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. They will be providing snacks, coffee and coloring supplies.

All they ask is that students join them in this community-building event and RSVP at RSVP | Chai Chat: Coloring and Coffee or at menasa.ucdavis.edu.

This event is an excellent opportunity to meet new people and take a muchneeded break from studying.

The Cross Culture Center is hosting a festival on Nov. 18 from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the UCD East Quad to showcase the Asian and Pacific Islander and Middle Eastern North African and South Asian (AandPi x MENASA) culture. The festival will feature activity booths, art and food to “shine light” on a few of the cultures

that make up UC Davis’ population.

Don’t miss out on this opportunity to enjoy and learn more about your culture and or other cultures.

Throughout this month, Davis International House is hosting Stan Padilla’s “Presente en el Sagrado Azul’’ art exhibit. The event is funded by generous donations and thus available to the public for free. Stan Padilla is a multi-media artist, educator and social activist. Padilla is a member of the Royal Chicano Air Force, an artistic collective based in Sacramento which was initially called the Rebel Chicano Art Front.

“Initially named the Rebel Chicano Art Front, the RCAF was founded in 1969 to express the goals of the Chicano civil rights and labor organizing movement of the United Farm Workers,” according to the Royal Chicano Air Force Archives website. Through his art and published children’s books, the Yaqui artist illustrates ancient myths and legends. Those interested can also learn more about Native American values and teachings through Padilla’s children’s books: “Dream Feather,” “Deer Dance: Yaqui Legends of Life,” “Chants and Prayers,” “Yaqui Coloring Book: A Yaqui Way” and “A National Education: Native American.”

are ruled out as true contenders since the other three have inhuman and heightened abilities and powers. As much as it pains me — “Scream” is one of my favorite movies — I do not believe that either of those killers would stand a chance against any of the other three.

Looking at the other three now, I am going to start with Freddy Krueger from “A Nightmare on Elm Street.”

This will most likely be the most controversial aspect of this article. The whole franchise has so many different interpretations and no clear answer as to which one is correct. Some speculate that the whole ending of the first film is a dream within a dream, and Nancy (the protagonist) never wakes up throughout the rest of the movie franchise. Others will say the whole movie is a dream, and some believe that Nancy did defeat Freddy but the end was Freddy killing Nancy’s mom. With that said, I am only going to look at the first movie since that was the original story before it started getting meta and convoluted.

Freddy is a psycho killer who invades your dreams and torments you.

After a couple of horrific nightmares that he induces, he will kill his victim in their dream which also kills them in real life. However, Freddy was defeated

by Nancy when she turned her back on him and was no longer afraid of her nightmares. This (in some theories) stopped Freddy from killing her and made him powerless against her for the time being.

Now let’s jump to Jason Voorhies and Michael Myers. Both of these killers have a lot of similarities. They have incredible strength and inhuman resilience to injuries. However, Michael has a bit of an upper hand because he is more resilient. Michael and Jason show similar signs of resiliency within their respective movies, but Michael in one night gets stabbed in the neck and eye and is shot at least six times (“Halloween”). And how does Michael react? He falls off a two-story balcony, escapes capture basically unscathed to

continue his murder spree just a few hours later (“Halloween II”). Jason has taken many hits as well, but it seems like he is more affected by these injuries. After being stabbed in the leg, Jason is seen limping while he chases his victim (“Friday the 13th part III”).

Michael would never. However, the big difference that gives Michael an edge is his lack of emotions and a higher intellect.

In their films, both killers have set traps, used disguises and murdered a handful of people. Jason, however, is more sporadic and clumsy compared to Michael. Michael is more methodical.

Jason runs around and knocks things over in a chase while Michael calmly walks towards his prey. While fighting Jason, multiple people have survived a wrestling match with him. Michael does not give them that chance. The only person to survive Michael after he catches them is the protagonist Laurie Strode. The final nail in the coffin, however, is the fact that Jason has been manipulated by his past on two separate occasions which allows the protagonist to land a very heavy blow. Michael is not plagued by this weakness.

With Michael beating Jason, it just leaves Michael versus Freddy. This is a very easy win for Michael as Freddy only has real power over someone in their nightmares and it is unclear if Michael can even have nightmares. He has been described as someone with no soul, no thoughts or feelings behind his eyes.

He is the “Boogeyman.” If that is true, why would we believe that he can be affected by nightmares, let alone that he even dreams? If this is the case, I believe that it is safe to say that Michael Myers would defeat Freddy similarly to Nancy (by not being afraid), making Michael the winner out of all of these iconic slasher killers.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by individual columnists belong to the columnists alone and do not necessarily indicate the views and opinions held by The California Aggie.

The Arts Desk’s weekly picks for music, movies and more

BY SONORA SLATER arts@theaggie.org Book: “The Scorpio Races” by Maggie Stiefvater (2011) It’s November. Do you know what that means? It’s time for my fourth yearly reread of “The Scorpio Races.” Maggie Stiefvater’s 2011 novel was made for this month, both because it matches the atmosphere of damp mornings and shorter days and because the story is set during the annual November horse races on the coast of the fictional Scorpio Sea. Returning champion Sean Kendrick goes up against Puck Connolly, the first girl to ever enter the competition, and both of them have something to lose if they don’t come out on top.

The stakes are high and the suspense and vibrant characters in this cozy read will keep you turning the pages as the fall leaves blow away outside your window (and yes, they fall in love).

Song: “Evermore” by Mom Cars (2022) I know, I know, you thought I was going to talk about “folklore’s” oft-neglected sister album. That “evermore” is also a masterpiece, but I’m here today to talk about the song by Mom Cars, a four-person indie/alternative rock group from our very own Sacramento area. Disclaimer, the band started at my high school for our February 2020 talent show, so I’m a little biased. They currently have an EP and an album, “Colder,” out on Spotify and Apple Music. “Evermore” is a single that was released separately in 2022, and while I love “Colder,” I keep coming back to this song, both because of the way it was tailor-made to be played at full volume in the car and because of this line that I’ll never get over: “The truth is, you’re no longer stuck in my head.”

TV Show: “Firefly Lane” (2021) Looking for your next show to binge at 2 a.m. with your roommate while a single tear leaks out of your eye and you contemplate the significance of female friendships and the fleeting but meaningful nature of childhood connections? Look no further.

“Firefly Lane” is a two-season show based on the novel of the same name that follows the friendship between two women, Kate Mularkey and Tallulah “Tully” Hart, from their childhood as neighbors in the Seattle area, to their mid-twenties as reporters in a local broadcast news station together, to their 40s, when they’re well-established in their lives and careers. It weaves together stories of first love and marriages, celebrations and arguments, missed connections and second chances to tell a beautiful story about how friendships can change our lives, again and again.

Album: “Stick Season (We’ll All Be Here Forever)” by Noah Kahan (2022) This album is going to absolutely demolish my 2023 Spotify Wrapped — as it should, because Noah put some sort of magic into these songs to make them continue to hit so hard even after 12,000 listens.

The title track, “Stick Season,” perfectly captures the heartbreak of wishing you could turn back time to take back the version of a friend or a lover that you had before time and complications tore you apart, and turned them into someone you can only miss. And the melancholy but oh-so-hopeful “You’re Gonna Go Far,” was written for people from small towns full of people they love, but who have dreams that take them further than the country roads that once marked the journey home.

Davis Film Festival back again for its 15th year

The event was held Nov. 5 at the Veterans Memorial Theatre and featured a myriad of films

BY HANNAH SCHRADER city@theaggie.org The annual Davis Film Festival was held from 2-10 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 5 at the Veterans Memorial Theatre.

The festival featured a variety of films, some of which covered issues facing unhoused individuals in Sacramento, the harms of e-waste and bullying and the long ventures of a newly ordained minister.

According to Bazooka, a local vintage Americana musical duo, performed at 5:30 p.m. to provide entertainment to guests during the dinner break portion of the festival.

The afternoon section of the festival was intended for general audiences but the evening content of the films transitioned to mature audiences only.

The Davis Film Festival director, Judith Plank, talked about the history behind the film fest as well as the local film scene in Davis.

“When I started in 2003, there was no film festival in town,” Plank said. “And now UC Davis has the Student Film Festival and then the Feminist Film Festival. But still, they just kept short films and small categories. I have feature films, short films, the whole thing — we have the niche.”

Plank has been writing and performing since she was 12. Since then she has won several awards in Northern California. She has experience volunteering for film festivals and has worked with the Davis Varsity Theatre.

“I was a volunteer at a couple of festivals in Berkeley for several years,” Plank said. “I loved it. We’d sit there for hours. You know, you volunteer, but then you sit there and you just watch all these films for hours and hours. It’s really a lot of fun. I was a

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Captivating Moments at the Davis Film Festival, hosted by the Festival Director, Judith Plank. (Jersain Medina / Aggie) volunteer for a couple [of ] years, then I brought a film from Sundance to Varsity theater in April [of 2003] — and the place was packed. I mean, I packed the entire theater.”

The festival will also likely expand to have a reception and alcoholic beverages in future years as stated on this year’s festival event information page.

“NO ALCOHOL will be sold at the festival this year. (Next year we probably will have wine and beer,

along with a reception/party),” the website reads.

This year, the festival gave out two “Audience Awards” for films that came in first and second place. Next year they will also add “Juried Awards.” The goal of the festival is to bring the film lovers of Davis together, according to their mission statement.

In recent years, the film festival also faced delays because of the COVID-19 pandemic and other issues.

“You can’t say this is the 15th annual [festival] or anything like that, because with COVID, nothing’s annual anymore,” Plank said. “But anyway, we’ve been going for 15 years here.”

Laura Luke, a volunteer at the film festival, talked about her experience with the festival over the years.

“It is my fourth time [coming] to the Davis Film Festival,” Luke said.

“I enjoy it every time [and] I have volunteered the last couple of times.

It’s wonderful meeting the people who have worked on the films and those who are connected to their stories.”

Luke continued to speak about her experience with the local community.

“I also love meeting the people from Davis. I’m looking forward to next year and watching the festival grow along with the audience. Thank you to Judith for letting me be a part of the Davis Film Festival.”

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THE CALIFORNIA AGGIE

OPINION Advising should be a resource, not a hurdle

Why UC Davis needs to reevaluate the goals of academic advising WRITTEN BY THE EDITORIAL BOARD You’ve just barely crawled across the halfway line of fall quarter and, before you know if you will actually pass CHE 2A, it’s time to schedule your winter quarter classes. You should probably figure out what those classes are. After compiling a list of options and questions, you go to book an advising appointment because, well, you need advice. Sounds simple enough.

Nice try, loser. There are no appointments available for the next three weeks. Maybe check again in February. If you reach out to your major advising email, you can earn yourself a “Please refer to the website,” the website being a decrepit internet cave featuring course listings from 2018 and the contact information of faculty that are probably on sabbatical. Oh, and they just canceled the class you need for your minor. Good luck with that!

Trying to navigate advising at Davis can often feel like fighting through a snowstorm in flip-flops, except instead of frostbite, you’re going to need to take an extra year. Everyone knows someone with a horror story — an abandoned double major, transfer courses that didn’t transfer or a two-year-long attempt to get into DES 001. College is hard enough as it is, and when the

READ MORE Scan to read our editorial about the importance of learning practical skills in college

“mandatory advising hold” kicks in, it can seem like someone behind a desk is trying to make your life harder.

The decentralized advising system of the College of Letters and Sciences, for example, requires that students schedule separate appointments for their college requirements and their major requirements. This ensures that you’re speaking to someone well-versed in the topics they advise. However, if you’re a student with two majors and a minor, you could end up with four advising appointments just to make sure you’re on the right track. Oh, and maybe you want to study abroad this summer — there’s another appointment. You’re an ROTC student or a student athlete?

Another. With lengthy wait times, your simple query could easily stretch into next quarter.

Also, and we hate to be the ones to tell you this, the resources you’re using to check your requirements without advisor approval are deeply flawed. MyDegree is accurate in the way that asking your ex-girlfriend for love advice is useful: it might be true, or it might be some stuff she just made up to ruin your life. Many of these resources — MyDegree, OASIS, even printed departmental worksheets — are not replacements for an advisor’s explicit approval. While they can be helpful, they can just as easily misguide students who put their faith in the wrong spreadsheet.

Generally, advising at UC Davis is doing more right than it is wrong.

Drop-in is a great option for students with simple questions or who just want someone to glance at their schedule.

Advisors themselves are typically kind, patient people. It’s not entirely their fault when they misunderstand a situation after advising their fifth student of the hour.

But with something as important as requirements to graduate, there is little room for error. At UC Davis, advising is not being made the priority it should be for an academic institution.

It’s ridiculous that some majors list requirements on their website that are at odds with the ones described on

OASIS degree worksheets. To value both students’ and advisors’ time, the university should funnel resources into improving this system.

There are simple steps UC Davis can take to defray the hoard of students that stampede toward advising when pass times are released. Every major should have a robust FAQ readily available on their websites. Efforts should be made to encourage students to plan their classes well ahead of time, including by publicizing course offerings by quarter and providing early scheduling workshops.

Naturally, many students will still need to speak to an advisor. Ensuring that all departments are fully staffed proportional to the number of students enrolled is essential. Additionally, too many students have been told something by one advisor just to have it negated by another; advisors should be well-versed in university requirements and in agreement with others in their department.

When something goes wrong on the staff side —- a canceled class, a missed email or a confused course recommendation —- the advising department should take initiative.

Advisors and faculty should work with students to ensure that department confusion or delay doesn’t result in a postponed graduation. Sometimes miscommunication happens, but trusting an advisor or a UC Davis website should never be the reason students have to pay for an extra quarter of tuition.

Hiring and retaining more advisors would streamline the advising process, and not just because staff advisors would be less overwhelmed. Ideally, students would be able to consistently meet with the same advisor throughout their college career. By building a relationship with the student, they could better understand their goals, from career aspirations to intended graduation quarter. Having this knowledge could save time usually dedicated to students explaining their entire academic situation to a new face.

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We still feel the aftermath of Zoom University

Reconnect to your peers, professors and education offline

NATALIE CHENG/AGGIE

BY JOAQUIN WATERS jwat@ucdavis.edu There’s one university that every student my age has attended. This is a school unlike any other. It has only one classroom. The walls of this classroom are either blindingly white or suffocatingly dark, depending on your preference. The desks are similarly malleable; one can hide themselves from view completely if they wish, though sometimes the professors understandably take issue with that.

Distractions are many at this school, and connection with your peers is borderline impossible. I am speaking, of course, of the dreaded Zoom University.

It is undeniable that something crucial was lost in the quick shift to online learning at the onset of the pandemic. Much as we tried, stiff disinterest and awkwardness infected Zoom U almost immediately. The professors struggled with the technology.

The students (myself included) struggled with distractions. One by one, those little squares displaying our “smiling faces” went black, now displaying only our name and the occasional emoji

to indicate we were still there. One by one, the professors stopped caring whether we turned the video back on.

Everyone stopped caring. And like that, my high school years petered out with a whimper.

I am entering my third year at UC Davis, and (other than a mercifully brief period in January 2021) Zoom U is a thing of the past. And yet, I still find consistent reminders of it everywhere I look. It struck me early on in my freshman year that though we may have left Zoom itself behind, the Zoom mentality did not leave us.

The disinterest and awkwardness that were its hallmarks can be found, on some level, in all of my early classes.

And though this has waned in recent years, I still feel its influence. Students (even friends) still tend to sit apart from one another in lecture halls, almost as if unconsciously recreating those little squares. Lab discussions can take an excruciatingly long time to get going, if they ever do; every time I hear a TA awkwardly dismiss students early after realizing that nobody wants to speak, I am uncomfortably reminded of the moment in Zoom U when I observed a

breakout room full of black boxes, all of whom have collectively decided to stay silent until the five-minute “discussion time” was up.

It must be said, of course, that this is not entirely a symptom of the pandemic.

The teacher-student relationship has always been defined by a give-andtake and one that frequently collapses if too little effort is given by either party. Regardless, Zoom University — necessary though it was — cultivated an environment that discouraged passion.

Teachers and students alike were given reasons to contribute less in a scenario that necessitated more. Education suffered greatly as a result. We may have widely left Zoom U behind, but it hasn’t left us behind.

So how can this be fixed? In my opinion, there is a simple (but deceptively difficult) solution: a widespread return to hands-on learning.

At the risk of sounding antiquated, years of the Zoom mentality have led me to the conclusion that the most effective form of education is still the kind that forces us to engage intimately with what we are studying. One can’t be expected to truly understand a subject like botany solely through PowerPoint lectures and discussion posts on Canvas.

A guided trek through the Arboretum would be much more conducive. The same goes for broader things, like note-taking. Many of my professors have admirably tried to adjust to the times by allowing and even encouraging note-taking on our laptops, but I still find that, for me, writing physical penand-paper notes drills things into my head far more effectively than jotting the same concepts down on a Google Doc. The allure of opening another tab —- another thing cultivated by online learning —- is too strong.

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No one should have expectations for winter quarter

We should call it fall quarter session II instead

BY ANDIE TARABZOONI rmtarabzooni@ucdavis.edu Getting out of the festive, “it’s the most wonderful time of the year” mindset and entering winter quarter at the University of California, Davis is the most whiplashing set of events that can occur to an individual. Instead of being blown away by the bright lights and homey feeling during winter break, I am instead blown away by the wind gusts that attempt to return me to my humble abode.

You would expect to encounter comforting events and retreats; in turn you are locked in the Shields Library prisons until you’re free from the 20unit course load that you thought would be a “good idea” midway through your midterm-ridden fall quarter. The problem with winter quarter is the fact that no one knows what to do, ever.

One day the sun is shining and hope is restored in the world, the next day the rain has flooded your room and left you for dead to spiral into the abyss.

None of the fun holidays occur in winter quarter, except for St. Patrick’s Day (shoutout to the Irish). What fun is there to be bombarded by the candy grams crowd outside the Memorial Union on Valentine’s Day? Even if you were in a relationship, what exactly can you do when it’s 40 degrees outside and the grass is just there to fool you into stepping in mud?

The timing really sucks. Winter quarter compensates for the fact that you’re so far away from summer break, (and any break really) by giving you two long weekends, yippee! But seriously, you get winter break — which makes you realize maybe you’ve romanticized your family dynamic a bit too much — only to go through a dreadful three months of gloom, the wind’s reign of tyranny and the most evil professors you’ve ever met. Then,

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once you’re finally free and survive the most character building months of the year, you only get a week off to recover and reload.

Electronics are not your friend in winter either. This might be more personal, but last year, despite using an umbrella and having a protective laptop case, the rain broke my laptop and made me use the open access computer labs on campus for a month. It was really sad. Along with that, my power cut out three times which again, not great when you’re in an academic session.

This is not to say that winter quarter provides nothing, I actually really enjoy winter quarter. But, you have to lock the door and throw away the key to any plans or expectations you have for winter. Winter quarter chooses what happens to you, not you. If you really feel like your life is crashing down during winter, maybe it’s time to leave the Shields cells and get some Black Bear Diner Hot Chocolate or buy yourself some candy grams. The world is not ending; the sun just hasn’t shined in 40 days, but it will.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by individual columnists belong to the columnists alone and do not necessarily indicate the views and opinions held by The California Aggie.

How to turn your apartment into a home

Tips from a recently mooved-in student

BY MAYA KORNYEYEVA mkornyeyeva@ucdavis.edu Often, a blank canvas is seen as daunting and perhaps even overwhelming. The amount of empty space requires quite a bit of imagination to conceptualize, and then lots and lots of patience and hard work to bring into fruition. When I moved into my new apartment in Davis this summer, I felt all those feelings associated with staring at a blank canvas.

I had just a few things with me — my bed, my desk, some kitchen supplies, some clothes and a box of sentimental objects. Now, I just

needed to figure out how to arrange them. Initially, this wasn’t so difficult, but when I finished putting everything away my room looked bare and a little sad: it’s as if I just put some random stuff in an empty space and convinced myself it was fine.

Over the course of the next few weeks, I worked diligently to ensure that my apartment felt less like an assortment of storage rooms and more like a lived-in home — a place where I can feel comfortable and rely on to bring up my mood after a rough day of classes.

Here are a few tips that really created an impact on my interior space, and which I believe made all the difference in

generating a cozy and warm atmosphere in my new apartment.

1. Add some indoor plants: With the off-white walls and the gray carpet, my apartment was initially quite devoid of color: almost like those “sad beige toys” that everyone is advertising nowadays. After walking though Trader Joe’s for the first time this fall quarter and noticing the glorious display of plants in all colors and sizes, I couldn’t help but take a few with me. The second my Monstera entered the living room, I felt my spirit lift.

APARTMENTHOME on 8

MAYA KORNYEYEVA/AGGIE

6 | THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2023

THE CALIFORNIA AGGIE

OPINION

How decolonization Ditch the “grindset” narratives neglect Show up for yourself before you show up for your midterms the ending

BY MOLLY THOMPSON mmtthompson@ucdavis.edu

Western presentations of colonialism say the quiet part out loud when they don’t say anything at all

this presentation of colonialism is that it fundamentally misrepresents what the purpose and motives of the empire are: not humanitarianism, or benefitting its The story of colonization is over- own people — its loyalty is primarily simplified and over-sanitized in almost to expanding its own influence through every retelling: Native Americans the acquisition of land and wealth. The “died out” because of “disease”; the goal of colonialism, both in the past and in the more disguised form British “modernized” the people and it takes today, has always technologies of India; the French been to expand Western “influenced” the culture and food hegemony. of Vietnam. This is the kind Peaceful, nonof slippery disruptive methods of and vague protest are not useful in language that this context. Kwame Ture, dominates a prominent civil m o s t rights organizer, presentations expressed that “in of colonialism, order for nondisguising the violence to work, brutality of your oppressor occupation by has to have a making all of conscience.” The its consequences GARRET URBAN / AGGIE very act of entering sound like they a foreign land and were a matter of circumstance. In actuality, nothing manipulating its socio-economic about colonization is passive, i.e. systems for the benefit of another no part of it “just happens.” It takes nation is evidence of the empire’s lack violence to be able to seize control over of conscience when it came to the an external territory, it takes violence to colonized people. As such, nonviolent be able to maintain a presence there and protest was never an option for those it takes violence to be able to effectively who sought the liberation of their country. Narratives of colonialism resist occupation.

When I was in high school, the that fail to take this into account history textbooks that were used in class distort not only what an independence neglected this last part. Vague references movement looks like, but the nature of to “Gandhi” and “ahimsa” essentially the colonizer. To present any empire or gave readers the impression that empires Western power as an entity that would would occupy a land for a period of just leave a colony assigns them an time, and then retreat after facing some undue amount of grace and humanity.

BY GEETIKA MAHAJAN giamahajan@ucdavis.edu

amount of resistance. Empires, however, do not fade into obscurity. The issue with

GANDHI on 8

Unitrans Driver Anatomy

It’s November. The sun sets earlier, but you go to bed later. Assignments roll in like the fog on ever-cooling mornings, flooding your Canvas dashboard like the floor of a faulty dorm shower stall. You’ve spent enough time in the library to consider bolting yourself in one of those timed locking study rooms for good, and there’s more caffeine in your body than serotonin (Peet’s Coffee is rolling in your Aggie Cash). Welcome to midterm season: you’ve fully submitted yourself to the grind. But before you get your next refill of mediocre, dining-hall coffee, consider the following. This is my case for you to ditch the “grindset”— your body, brain and GPA will thank you.

Here’s the thing: you will, objectively, perform better if you have a healthy balance between your schoolwork and the rest of your life than if you don’t. No ifs, ands or buts.

Firstly, sleep. Yes, Health, Wellness and You was right. The fact of the matter is, when you sleep (and I’m talking seven-to-eight hours, full R.E.M. cycle, dream-that-your-kindergarten-crushis-proctoring-your-drivers-test sleep), your brain goes through and flushes out all the icky gunk that you built up in there all day. All of the things you didn’t

MAYA KORNYEYEVA / AGGIE

know you took in and won’t remember tomorrow? Gone. It’s beautiful. Even better, all the important things that you actually need? They get tucked in nice and cozy, safely seatbelted for the long haul. If you don’t sleep, that gross build-up will get in the way of the good stuff, and you won’t do well on your tests. Cramming isn’t going to do you any good if you can’t remember any of what you read — go to sleep.

Similarly, you need to take breaks. I know it feels like you’re procrastinating, but breaks are crucial. Experts vary in their verdicts on how long the human brain can focus without a break, but the general consensus is that you’re actually more productive if you work for shorter

periods of time with substantial breaks in between. As counterintuitive as it seems, that means no more long blocks of hours on end at your desk. Go get a hot chocolate. Go see the cows. Give Peet’s Coffee more of your Aggie Cash.

I don’t care what you do, just set the work aside for a bit. Then open your computer again — you’ll be amazed at how much more approachable your workload seems from fresh eyes.

Your productivity will improve, your quality of work will improve, your understanding of the material will improve and (get this) you’ll probably be happier too.

GRINDSET on 4

Out of five of the most iconic slasher killers, who would win in a fight?

Let the best slasher killer prevail

BY MALCOLM LANGE mslange@ucdavis.edu In the spirit of Halloween, now come and gone, I found myself watching some classic slasher films over the past month. As I jumped between different iconic franchises, I began to wonder — who out of these villains would win in a fight?

BY SANDHYA PFILE sbpfile@ucdavis.edu

NATALIE CHENG/ AGGIE

So I chose five of the most iconic and classic slasher movies from the 70s, 80s and 90s. The movies and their respective killers are: “Friday the 13th” with Jason Voorhies, “Halloween” with Michael Myers, “A Nightmare on Elm Street” with Freddy Krueger, “Scream” with Billy Loomis and Stu Matcher and “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” with the Sawyer Family. These movies are not only an introduction to some of the most famous killers of cinema, but also the only movies I could find streaming.

Sorry, but I was not about to buy the original “Hellraiser” for $12 to include Pinhead.

Also, I would like to give a disclaimer. There will be spoilers for each movie that I will be comparing the killers from. However, you have had over 30 years to watch all of these films, so I don’t feel too bad ruining their endings.

Before we begin, we have a huge problem to address. Which canon are we basing this on? Canon is what exists in a fictional world. “Halloween,” a movie series that began in 1978 and has gone through many reboot/retconning events — when the newest movie will undo or pretend as if a previous movie or event did not exist, therefore changing the canon. For example, there are 13 total movies in the “Halloween” franchise, but only four of them are canon as the 2018 “Halloween” installment retconned every other movie except the original. What I have chosen as the canon for each movie series is the original works. I am not including any “returns” or “revenge” movies in a franchise. Once the killer is defeated or killed, I count that as the end of the original storyline.

SLASHERBRACKET on 4

Marketing Mayhem: The first step

BY EMMA LAPIDUS eblapidus@ucdavis.edu

Disclaimer: (This cartoon is humor and/or satire, and its content is purely fictional. The story and names of “sources” are fictionalized.)

Disclaimer: (This cartoon is humor and/or satire, and its content is purely fictional.

The story and names of “sources” are fictionalized.)

Davis Sheep Mowers

Drifting

BY MIA PIERCE mnpierce@ucdavis.edu

BY NIMRA FARHAN nfarhan@ucdavis.edu

Disclaimer: (This cartoon is humor and/or satire, and its content is purely fictional.

The story and names of “sources” are fictionalized.)

Disclaimer: (This cartoon is humor and/or satire, and its content is purely fictional. The story and names of “sources” are fictionalized.)

THE CALIFORNIA AGGIE

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2023 | 7

Sudoku

Enter digits from 1 to 9 into the blank spaces.

Every row, column and 3x3 square must contain each digit. Each Sudoku has a unique solution that can be reached logically without guessing.

Answer to previous puzzle 11/02/23

Crossword

Answer to previous puzzle 11/02/23

SANDHYA PFILE / AGGIE

Here’s your chance to prove you’re the funniest student at UC Davis — submit your captions for this graphic to opinion@theaggie.org or on our Instagram @thecaliforniaaggie to be entered for a chance to win.

8 | THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2023

THE CALIFORNIA AGGIE

SPORTS WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

A preview of the UC Davis women’s basketball team 2023-2024 season

The Aggies are favored to finish third in the Big West preseason league

BY MEGAN JOSEPH sports@theaggie.org As cold temperatures and rain start to fall upon Davis, the UC Davis women’s Division I basketball team is starting to prepare for their upcoming season. Starting off strong, the UC Davis Aggies played an exhibition match against the Cal Poly Humboldt Lumberjacks on Oct. 29 that ended in a victory for the Aggies.

The Aggies put up a good fight against the Lumberjacks that resulted in a final score of 101 to 50. A truly inspirational start to the season after last year when the team got knocked out of the Big West Conference Championship in the quarterfinals

by UC Santa Barbara. With such an exhilarating ending and final score for the Aggies, they are favored to place third overall in the Big West preseason league. It’s safe to say the Aggies are looking to make it further this season with their many talented athletes.

Over the course of last spring, Head Coach Jennifer Gross signed lots of lively new talent from all over. One of them was first-year student Theoni Tsami who came from Athens, Greece

UC Davis Women’s Basketball dominates the court with a 101-50 win over Cal Poly Humboldt. (Jersain Medina / Aggie) to play for UC Davis. Tsami has a lot of potential with her gameplay which makes her one of the new players to look out for.

Gross also signed second-year transfer Allie Fitzgerald from the University of Colorado where she

played as a forward for her first year in collegiate women’s basketball.

Fitzgerald had a remarkable season as one of the star players on the Colorado team with her strong technique and ability to read the court. Now that she has become an Aggie, we should

expect to see the same abilities and more from her this season.

In addition to new talent, Davis has some strong talent from older members on their team. Last year, Evanne Turner, a fifth-year team member, dominated the courts as she

was a leading scorer in the conference.

Turner not only was picked for the allBig West first team, but also had one of the best individual performances in UC Davis history. She is returning this season for her last year as an Aggie to set new records and bring home a championship title for the Aggies.

Following her teammates’ lead, fifth-year student Tova Sabel also had an outstanding performance last year playing in the guard position for the Aggies. Sabel was named Big West Player of the Week twice last season with her strong end-of-season performance. Fans are excited to see what she accomplishes this year as an Aggie.

As a result of all this team talent, we should see the Aggies go far in the regular season and hopefully the Big West Conference Championship. In recent years, Davis has made a name for itself as one of three teams in the history of the Big West Conference to win four consecutive championships.

Although this did not occur last year, the coaching staff and players are determined to change that for this upcoming season.

MEN’S SOCCER

UC Davis soccer wins their first game in the Big West Conference Championship

A hard battle for the Aggies against the Cal Poly Mustangs

BY MEGAN JOSEPH sports@theaggie.org With a packed stadium and an enthusiastic student section, UC Davis men’s soccer had their first game of the Big West Conference Championship on Nov. 1. The game proved to be one of the most thrilling and close games of the season so far with both UC Davis and the opposing team fighting for a victory that would let them advance to the semifinals. In the end, the Aggies could not be stopped as they scored the only goal in the game.

Tension and aggression seemed to be in the air as both teams were getting called out for many fouls throughout the game. The Cal Poly Mustangs’ very physical gameplay style could not be ignored as they proved to be an aggressive opponent for the Aggies.

Nonetheless, the Aggies did a great job at stopping all of the Mustang attacks toward their goal.

Starting the game off strong, the Aggies held possession of the ball and took numerous shots on the opposing team’s goal. Second-years Cason Goodman, Zack Lillington and Chase Tanon lead the offensive attack against the Mustangs’ defense. Goodman’s many breakthrough runs and passes helped the team take shots on the opposing team’s goal, utilizing his fast sprints and quick movements.

Lillington had one of his best performances of the entire season.

He alone took a total of seven shots on the goal, which is the most shots

ED11 FROM PAGE 5 Ultimately, this is what advisors are for: not just fixing scheduling emergencies but actually guiding students through their time at UC Davis. Students from small majors often have this relationship with their advisor, but massive majors like political science and psychology are so jampacked that students can go four years and six advising appointments without meeting with the same advisor twice.

When professors and TAs switch each quarter, it can be incredibly impactful to have a consistent, available point of contact. UC Davis is neglecting a very valuable resource, one that would almost certainly improve student success —- and arguably make the advising role more rewarding.

No student should get an unexpected email after proudly walking the commencement stage telling them “Surprise! You didn’t actually graduate,” but it does happen. Adequate staffing, updated websites and reliable resources are the answer. Supporting advising departments is supporting students.

ED11 FROM PAGE 5 Some may argue that one can still get distracted while writing physical notes, which is true but is doodling in the margins really comparable to opening up YouTube?

by any Aggie so far this season. At the 11th minute of the game, Lillington had an outstanding breakthrough run that resulted in him taking a powerful right-footed shot toward the top corner of the net — mere inches away from going into the Mustang’s goal.

It’s shocking we did not see a goal from Lillington in this game, but we are sure to see one in the future in the Big West competition.

Tanon became the only player to score a goal in the entire game when he had his starring moment in the 81st minute of the game. A battle in the box, Tanon showed his dynamic footwork and ability to hold possession of the ball as he accepted a pass in the box from fifth-year Ryan Dieter. Tanon then took a touch away from his defender and passed the ball into the lower right corner of the goal, putting the Aggies one goal ahead of the Mustangs. Tanon has shown his true potential on the team with this goal combined with his other two goals in the past four games.

Not only did the Aggie offense work hard for the win, their defense controlled the entire game with numerous chase downs and preventions to keep the Mustangs from scoring.

Fifth-year Sean Bilter and fourthyear Ethan Hoard had an important job of maintaining teamwork as they both captained the game from the defense. Third-years Cole Pond and Jason Hsu and second-year Luke Goodman all did a fantastic job on defense as they gave it their all to keep the Aggies from getting scored on. The This is not to say that classrooms should ignore modern technology entirely. That is simply not realistic.

Nor is it meant to downplay the work done by so many in a virtual setting.

Online classes should be an option; there are many who are genuinely helped by the format being available, and many who, for whatever reason, have no other option. I would never suggest that the option be removed. All this is only to say that the time spent learning entirely through a screen has given us the false assumption that it is a suitable replacement for learning through experience. Time has proven that it is not. Balance is required. Just as we need to feel the wind in our hair and hear the chirping of birds to remember what it is to be alive, we need to feel the ruled paper between our fingers and hear the squeak of a marker on the whiteboard to remember what it is to learn.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by individual columnists belong to the columnists alone and do not necessarily indicate the views and opinions held by The California Aggie.

APARTMENTHOME FROM PAGE 5 My small pink rose and assortment of fresh herbs followed, and soon the space was brimming with vegetation.

Many indoor plants like the Monstera, Golden Pothos and Snake Plant require minimal maintenance, which makes them perfect for busy college students balancing their school/work schedules.

UC Davis Men’s Soccer earns semifinal spot in Big West Conference Championship with victory over Cal Poly.

(Jersain Medina / Aggie) defense took many strong plays from the Mustangs, but they fired back with some of their own equally powerful plays and did not let the Mustangs score or shoot nearly as many goals as themselves.

Although the defense did a great job at keeping the ball out of their box and goal, fourth-year Chuck Janssen

had some outstanding saves against the Mustangs. In the second half, the Mustangs came back from halftime and put up a strong battle for a goal, but that did not discourage Janssen as he stopped every ball that came close to the net.

Overall, the Aggies had a very exhilarating start to their Big West

Conference Championship, and we will hopefully continue to see wins by the Aggies as they advance to future rounds. After this game, it’s safe to say the Aggies will be a hard team to beat in this championship.

2. Fill up the wall space: Walls are an important part of your apartment not just because they hold up the ceiling (duh), but also because they can hold paintings, posters, calendars, cards, photographs and almost anything else you can think of. These additions to an interior space add so much life to your room and can showcase some of your personality. Whether it’s a poster of your favorite band, a collection of quotes from your friends, a massive painting, a wall mirror, a hanging shelf or even LED lights, optimizing and designing the vertical dimension of your apartment is crucial to creating a room that is curated to you.

I hope these recommendations help make the “blank canvas” of your new apartment or dorm room feel less intimidating, and perhaps a little more like a creative adventure. Just have fun with it, and in no time your residence will start feeling more like a home.

3. Add some decor: My third and final tip is to keep an eye out for interesting objects and/or pieces of furniture. Facebook Marketplace is a great tool to use if you’re looking for cheap, second-hand household items, and often there are some real gems hidden among the old mini fridges and dusty pans. For instance, I recently collected a tall corner shelf for my living room, which proudly holds my wifi router and a miscellaneous assortment of books and gadgets. Not only is it functional for storage, it’s also an unusual piece of furniture that sparks curiosity and conversation amongst my houseguests. Similarly, I also tracked down a gorgeous tinted-glass bowl, now filled with fruits and sitting pretty on the kitchen counter. The bottom line is don’t hoard unnecessary items; instead, collect a few pieces here and there that tell stories and add contrast to the bountiful Ikea furniture already present.

FROM PAGE 6

they were asked politely, but it is often presented as though it was a peaceful resistance that resulted in the end of colonization, or that the empire eroded away with time. This portrayal lacks both nuance and historical accuracy; it does not acknowledge that colonialism in and of itself is an act of violence. The actions of resistance movements cannot be viewed in a bubble because they are symptoms of the original act of violence, perpetrated by the colonial state.

I believe that it is important to keep this in mind, even in the present day.

Though the empires of the past have fallen, Western hegemony is still very much a goal for most Western leaders, even as methods of expanding this sphere of influence grow more subtle and the media uses veiled rhetoric to avoid identifying who the real perpetrators of violence are. It’s important to think about the story of colonialism and who tells it, what kind of language they use and which governments seem to sound more like purposefully vague history textbooks. It’s important because, no matter how much the mouthpieces of the West obfuscate it, it’s a very simple story and it always ends the same way.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by individual columnists belong to the columnists alone and do not necessarily indicate the views and opinions held by The California Aggie.

GANDHI

The issue with this misrepresentation is not just how it affects perceptions of past events; it also colors our view of current events. When “safe” figures like Martin Luther King and Gandhi are celebrated as catalysts of change, while equally important, but perhaps more divisive leaders in liberation movements get a sentence or two dedicated to their efforts, it’s easy to believe that the path to change resides in quiet, peaceful resistance. But systemic issues are deeply ingrained into the way a country functions — oftentimes, there are people who are harmed by these issues, but there are also those that profit off of the systems in place.

Colonialism is the most obvious example of this, which is why decolonization has always been a violent process. The British, French, German or American empires did not leave any of their former colonies because

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by individual columnists belong to the columnists alone and do not necessarily indicate the views and opinions held by The California Aggie.