The Battalion: October 25, 2017 by The Battalion

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LIFE&ARTS: A COMMUNITY OF ROLE PLAY

NEWS: BIKE RIDE FOR BUSH SCHOOL

LIFE&ARTS: THE SOUNDS OF AGGIELAND

Texas A&M professor watches neutron star merger firsthand Jennifer Marshall witnessed historic cosmic event from Chilean outpost By Alex Sein @AlexandrSein A neutron star merger, when two neutron stars collide due to a close orbit and gravitational radiation, is an extremely rare event. A merger that occurred on August 17, 2017 is the only such collision ever witnessed by scientists. Texas A&M astronomy and physics professor Jennifer Marshall was able to watch the merger while researching in Chile. Marshall arrived at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory a few days prior to perform routine checks on the telescope. By doing so, she prepared it for another period of observation with the Dark Energy Survey (DES), a five-year program currently in its final year that aims to map oneeighth of the sky in extreme detail. Several days into her stay, Marshall received an email from a colleague at the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) there had been detection of new gravitational waves. The waves usually serve as an indication of a black hole merger, where two black holes that orbit each other very closely merge. “When LIGO makes a detection of a gravitational wave signature, it’s not like a telescope, it doesn’t point at a region in the sky,” Marshall said. “It makes a measurement that gives you a very large ellipse on the sky where an object might be.” With the help of Virgo, a similar detector Stars colliding is a rare event. A&M Professor Jennifer Marshall witnessed the colliding stars in Chile

in Italy, the LIGO team had narrowed the source down to a relatively small patch of sky, but needed a high-resolution telescope to pinpoint the exact location. “In the email, it said that LIGO had detected a gravitational wave signal from a source that looks like it could be a binary neutron star merger,” Marshall said. Usually, LIGO detects black hole mergers — four in its two years of operation, to be exact. According to Marshall, black hole mergers emit no light, and are thus invisible to conventional telescopes. Neutron star mergers, however, are not. They were predicted to release almost as much light as a supernova, which is an explosion of a large dying star that glows as bright as a galaxy for several weeks, Marshall said. Marshall’s observations showed it was indeed a neutron star merger that LIGO had detected. “From night to night, it changed a lot,” Marshall said. “Our observations matched the theoretical explanation for how these things should work, so we were pretty sure that this is what it was.” Direct observation of a neutron star merger, according to Marshall, is an incredible opportunity to prove, or disprove, theories scientists have held about the universe. For example, until now there ahs been no explanation for how heavy elements like gold or uranium were produced in the quantities that we see them today. According to Lucas Macri, astronomy and physics professor, neutron star mergers, also known as kilonovas, could be how these elements formed. NEUTRON STAR ON PG. 3 Graphic by Alex Sein

Old rivalry renewed for cause Texas A&M will play Texas in an exhibition game in Houston on Wednesday night to raise money for Rebuild Texas.

Meredith Seaver — THE BATTALION

Aggie Bags served as a symbol to passing drivers that the cadet was a respectful student in need of a ride.

Hitchhiking home to A&M Students use Aggie gear to catch safe rides back to College Station By Victoria Fluellen @tori_fluellen Although it has always been slightly dangerous to pick up hitchhikers, Aggie Bags were once a way for students to carry their belongings while also indicating that they were respectful people looking for a ride. In the early days of Texas A&M, students used these bags to hitchhike to their destinations. According to Lisa Kalmus, who works in the Sanders Corps of Cadets Center with aged Aggie Corps items, using homemade bags with the A&M logo painted on them was a common practice that can be dated all the way back to the

‘40s. Kalmus said the goal of using the bags was to grab the attention of drivers who passed by in order to help students hitchhike to their destination. Kalmus noted that the term ‘Aggie Bag’ has no specific meaning: Students would carry anything from a small duffel bag to a satchel to a simple zip-top duffel sack and would either paint or tape the A&M logo on the outside. Using Aggie Bags has not been traced to one origin date, but according to the Curator of the Office of the Commandant, the practice was in full swing around 1942. “Hitchhiking was so much about going on a Corps trip: If the football team was playing out of town or if they were just traveling for other reasons, like for short visits, this was a way for them to get around,” Kalmus said. “People didn’t have AGGIE BAGS ON PG. 2

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Aggies, Horns to play an exhibition game, raise money for Harvey relief By Ryan MacDonald @Ryan_MacDonald2 After a two-year hiatus, the A&M Texas men’s basketball rivalry will be revived at Wednesday’s charity exhibition game at Rice University’s Tudor Fieldhouse in Houston at 7 p.m. All proceeds will go to Rebuild Texas, an organization founded in September by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott to help in Hurricane Harvey relief efforts.

“I saw that Kansas was playing Missouri and someone mentioned to me, ‘Y’all should play Texas’ and I said I’ll try to call [Texas head coach Shaka Smart]. So, I called and he said would be interested in helping the Harvey situation. Neither of us are ready to play a game, but we thought it would be a way to help,” A&M head coach Billy Kennedy said at a press conference Tuesday. John Sharp, Texas A&M University System chancellor, is the Commissioner of Rebuild Texas and said he is proud the famous rivalry will be used to help victims in a time of need. “I have witnessed the great needs in the communities struck by Hurricane HarBASKETBALL ON PG. 4

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LARP participants gather once a month to enter different world By Deborah Anderaos @deborahanderaos A post-apocalyptic world where zombies come to life and sword fights occur with no way out. For 38 hours, this is the world of role play. Live Action Role-Play, or LARP, is a national organization. The Texas branch is managed by the Cephid Variable, a science fiction based organization at Texas A&M. More than 100 people from across the state drive to Belton,Texas for the event. Andrew Hoertt, nuclear engineering junior, said LARP has events in states other than Texas, including Oklahoma, Arkansas and a new branch opening soon in New Mexico. The local LARP group in College Station is called Live Another Life. “LARP has directors and storytellers for each state branch,” Hoertt said. “These are the people who choose what game the event will be. The current game we are doing is dystopia rising, a post-apocalyptic horror zombie event.” Hoertt said the monthly LARP event consists of camping out and stay-

ing in character from arrival on Friday until Sunday afternoon. Bryan Conlee, mechanical engineering senior, said a bell will ring at 10 p.m. on Friday signaling everyone to change personalities to the character they have chosen to become. “Aside from not being able to break out of character for 38 hours, the game really does feel like its own universe,” Conlee said. “If I am at the event and I want a new weapon, I have to go find somebody who I can buy it from, then somebody who can make it and then somebody who can get the materials to make it.” According to Conlee, in a LARP scenario, you create your own character from scratch and utilize the theme of the game to build up your character traits. You research what the world is like and then build on that. “You can have weapons, an accent, and create your own costume,” said Conlee. Morgan Weaver, wildlife and fisheries sciences junior and member ofLive Another Life, said she watches YouTube videos of people with the attributes she wishes to embody in her persona to prepare herself to be in character for extended periods of time. “It can be very tough to stay in character for 38 hours,” Weaver said. “It is constant improv and you never know

what could happen while you are there. It could be 3 a.m. and zombies may come attack your tent.” Hoertt said because the event is widely popular, they are strict about allowing only LARPers to enter the campsite, leading to an atmosphere that is entirely unique. “When you’re dressing up in these ridiculous costumes and having to role play, it is hard to do it with 10 people but when we go to these events with over 100 people and everyone is in character, that is when it feels very real and makes LARPing enjoyable,” Hoertt said. Conlee and Weaver said they heard about LARP through their friends and decided to give it a try despite hearing misconceptions other students had about the activity. “You don’t have to be good at costume-making or talented in acting; once you go through your first LARP event you will get a hang of the world within LARP,” Weaver said. Hoertt said he feels the main misconception people have about LARP is that LARP is nerdy. “We aren’t just a bunch of nerds who go out in the woods and hit people with swords,” Hoertt said. “I love the game, but I go back for the community because everyone is so welcoming.”

Meredith Seaver — THE BATTALION

Aggie Bags ranged in size from a full suitcase to a small duffel and often included personal identification information in the event it was lost or stolen. C.E. Brant, Class of 1967, traveled with a maroon and white duffel.

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AGGIE BAGS CONTINUED cars the way we do now. It was either travel by foot, by train or hitchhike. For most cadets, it was a way of life.” Cadets would line up on the side of the road in the order of who arrived first, rather than classification, sticking their ‘Aggie Bags’ held out. Bags were packed very light so they did not impose or take up room that could be used for other hitchhikers. When a car approached them, the person at the front of the line would respectfully ask where the driver was headed and how many hitchhikers he could take, Kalmus said. These hitchhiking cadets lived by a code of conduct and ethics, according to Kalmus. The A&M handbook for freshman ‘The Cadence’ in 1942 said “a cadet was expected to be friendly, to help out and to always thank the person for giving them a ride.” “They were held to a standard even when they were traveling on their own,” Kalmus said. “As a cadet, they

were a representative of the college and therefore they were expected to put their best foot forward.” Manuel Piña Jr., associate professor in the Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communications in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, said he did around eight to ten hitchhikes during his time at A&M. Trying to get back to his hometown, Piña said he took four different rides from before making it to his home to his front door. “My hometown was Melvin, Texas and our farm ranch was five miles south,” Piña said. “I had a Corps buddy take me out to Highway 21 and the first ride took me to Rockdale. The gentleman was a farmer in the area and he bought me ice cream in Rockdale and then took me to the city limits to catch my next ride.” Piña continued his journey home, catching several different rides from a wide array of people, including roadtrippers on a joyride to a couple

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trying to make it to their grandson’s football game. Although Piña was traveling by himself, his Aggie Bag held him to a the standard of being respectful, friendly and grateful. “The Aggie Bag told everyone who we were,” Piña said. “That we were students and they trusted us.” Pete Hunter, grandfather of Battalion Managing Editor Gracie Mock, said he experienced this respect and trust first hand when he picked up two A&M students in 1963 from Little Rock, Arkansas. “I saw these two people in uniforms down the road and it dawned on me, ‘Those are Aggies,’” Hunter said. “I drove back around and picked them up and told them, ‘Well I can get you within 30 miles to College Station’ and they didn’t believe they could make back to Aggieland that fast. They helped me drive home. We had about another 350 more miles to drive and when I dropped them off, they caught a ride almost before I left them.”

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NEUTRON STAR CONTINUED

Michael Branisa ended his 3,784 mile crosscountry bicycle ride in Portland, Maine. Courtesy of Michael Branisa

Family raises funds for Bush School in son’s honor Branisa patriarch bikes across America, creates memorial fellowship in support of students committed to service By Rachel Bowerman @bowerman_rachel In memory of his late son Ryan, Michael Branisa traveled across the country by bike to raise funds for the Michael Ryan Branisa Endowed Fellowship, a fund overseen by the Bush School of Government. Following the passing of their eldest son Ryan in 2010, the Branisa family sought to support a cause he was passionate about. Inspired by Ryan’s admiration of President George H. W. Bush, they decided to start a fellowship fund in Ryan’s name at the Bush School to support those students. Susan Branisa said President Bush’s legacy of leadership convinced her that the Bush School was a fitting cause for her son’s memorial fellowship. “He exemplified civil service, in the name of public service and leadership without partisan politics,” Susan Branisa said. Michael Branisa said he remembers reaching out to the Dean of the Bush School at the time, Ryan Crocker, who helped him decide that it was indeed the institution through which he wanted Ryan’s fellowship to be established. “We thought that this would be the very best place that we could establish a fellowship in honor of Ryan for the hope of future graduates that will become young leaders of this country and in the world,” Branisa said. On Aug. 14, Michael Branisa completed a 3,784 mile cross-country bicycle ride to raise funds for the fellowship in his son’s name. His trip started in Portland, Oregon and ended in Portland, Maine. He cycled through 153,000 total feet of elevation change and made over 1.5 million tire revolutions. “Essentially it’s the peaks, the valleys: It’s the people,” Branisa said. “The preparation is instrumental in being able to deal with whether it’s a peak or whether it’s a valley, and that’s just like life itself.”

Michael Bottiglieri, director of development at the Bush School, said that he is grateful for the opportunities the Branisa Fellowship provides to students of public service and government. “The Michael Ryan Branisa Endowed Fellowship has created an opportunity for someone who would not have been able to come here without their help now be in a position where they can give back through a career in public service,” Bottiglieri. Bottiglieri wrote that he thinks Branisa’s trip was about more than raising funds for the Bush School. “It is important to note that Mickey’s journey was not strictly about fundraising and was a personal journey of reflection, remembrance and inspiration,” Bottiglieri wrote. “The Branisas are an amazing family with a passion for selfless service and helping others.” Bottiglieri said the Branisa family represents the goals of the Bush School, the values of President Bush and the university as a whole. “Everything we do here is about public service and putting the needs of others above oneself,” Bottiglieri wrote. “If you look at Mickey’s and Susan’s dedication to helping others in the face of adversity, it is an inspiration for others who believe in the values of President Bush and Texas A&M.” Michael Branisa documented his entire bike ride on his Facebook page to promote awareness for Ryan’s fellowship. On Aug. 14, after completing his journey, he wrote directly to those who had supported his cause: “I’ve seen firsthand that this country has a lot to offer, not just in landscapes and terrain, but in the people who make up this great nation. This ride was not about me or what I could do, but rather, it was about us and the difference that we can make when we work together.” Branisa also wrote about the role of the Bush School in educating future leaders: “Together we can help create the leaders of tomorrow at the Bush School of Government and Public Service.” The Bush School continues to offer opportunities for research and education in the field of public service, inspiring members of the community, including Michael and Susan Branisa, to raise funds for students to continue their education in government and service.

“The hypothesis is that the merger of these two neutron stars is going to generate a lot of radioactive material, elements that are high in the periodic table, so things like gold, for example, or platinum,” Macri said. According to Macri, the proof was in the light detected from the kilonova. A redder, dimmer light would indicate the presence of these elements because their electrons, dissociated from their nuclei by extreme temperatures, would block slightly more blue than red light. “They act as sort of a curtain, or a fog, something that dims the light or acts to alter its quality,” Macri said. “You know, if you’re trying to look at the sun during a foggy day, it’s going to look dim and it’s going to look red, for example.” According to Macri, though, the light from this kilonova was bluer and slightly brighter than expected. This meant the telescopes were viewing the event from above the plane the neutron stars had been orbiting on, since the cloud of heavy elements would be most prevalent very close to that plane. Macri explained that a single event like this is not enough to discern exactly what was in the cloud. “Once we have observed 20 or 30 of these events, we will have seen them from all different vantage points,” Macri said. “Each one gives us a unique slice into the conditions that are going on in that merger.” Nicholas Suntzeff, astronomy and physics professor and member of the DES team, was part of a large team of scientists that collected and analyzed data obtained from Dome A, an Antarctic telescope outpost that, due to the four-month-long polar night, could observe the kilonova uninterrupted. According to Suntzeff, part of the significance of the event was that it proved that light traveled at the same speed as gravitational waves; it had been hypothesized that this was the case, but since black hole mergers emit no light, this neutron star merger was the first time the hypothesis could be verified in the real world. According to Louis Strigari, astronomy and physics professor and member of the DES team, the significance of the event was a unifying force for the astronomy community. “This is kind of a holy grail in lots of different types of groups who were waiting for an event like this to happen because you can study it, not only through gravitational waves, but you can study it through regular light in different parts of the electromagnetic spectrum,” Strigari said. There is, nonetheless, some disagreement about what the results of various analyses show, according to Suntzeff, especially concerning the claim that heavy elements were detected in the kilonova.

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The soundtracks of Aggieland Students can now listen to playlists made with College Station in mind By Taylor Fennell @TaylorPFennell Aggies now have the option to tune in to playlists that aim to capture their time at Texas A&M. On Oct. 9, A&M’s marketing and communications department launched the university’s new Spotify account with five playlists. Featuring 30 to 50 songs each, the playlists incorporate a different mood or genre. A&M currently has seven playlists that include a variety of topics, including Rainy Days on Campus and Fightin Texas Aggie Band. The playlists are intended to align with students’ lives, according to Nick Wilson, social media coordinator for A&M. Spotify was chosen as a platform because of its popularity among the student body. “We believe social media should be fun and engaging,” Wilson said. “If you ask any student whether they care about music, you’ll find that most of them really do. We wanted to create soundtracks for unique experiences that students have on campus.” Wilson said Aggies have responded positively to the playlists and seem to be excited about the new account. Followers will

see many new playlists in the future and can expect them to reflect their experiences on campus. “We’re currently working on a study playlist, since college is all about studying,” Wilson said. “We want to create something that will get students in the zone to study, keep up their 4.0 and move forward.” Followers can also look forward to collaborative playlists that have multiple contributors. Wilson said individual departments and colleges would be great partners for this project. “The most recent collaboration we did was with Aggiebound, when we created the Aggieland Happy Dance playlist,” Wilson said. “Whenever [applicants] get the banner that says ‘You’re an Aggie,’ this is the music they can listen and do their happy dance to. It’s their first moment being an Aggie, and we want them to be excited and celebrate. I think our Spotify playlist is a good place for that.” Thomas Eldridge, international studies freshman, said he is excited about the playlists because music is extremely important to him and even helped him decide to attend A&M. “‘Power’ by Kanye West has taken on a new meaning for me,” Eldridge said. “Last year, when I was still trying to choose a college, I saw an awesome video on Twitter of everyone on Kyle Field singing the football intro. That short video honestly made me realize how amazing this place is.”

BASKETBALL CONTINUED vey. I am proud that the A&M–UT rivalry can be employed to help our fellow Texans through Gov. Abbott’s relief fund,” Sharp said in a statement last week. The teams last met in 2015 at the Battle 4 Atlantis non-conference tournament in which A&M won 84-73. Prior to that, the teams had not played since A&M left the Big 12 in 2012. The two teams will come into the season unranked, but both rosters are filled with young talent and are primed for potential runs at the NCAA tournament. The Aggies enter the year with two players on the Preseason All-SEC teams — forward Robert Williams and center Tyler Davis. The two have earned First and Second Team recognitions, respectively. Texas comes into the season with high hopes for five-star freshman forward Mohamed Bamba, who was recognized as the Preseason Big 12 Freshman of the Year. The Longhorns also return with Tevin Mack, averaging 14.8 points per game last season, and Jarrett Allen, averaging 13.4 points per game. Kennedy said he recognizes the immense talent Texas brings into the contest. “Both of us have pretty good front lines, they just signed one of the best big guys in the country [Bamba] that’ll be a freshman

Kevin Chou — THE BATTALION

The new TAMU Spotify account features playlists such as Welcome Home and Tailgates.

Dylan Gonzalez, agriculture business freshman, said he likes the new playlists because he can relate to the songs. He said music is a critical part of his life and listening to it helps him relax. “Music certainly helps me get through the day,” Gonzalez said. “I wake up and listen to music while I get ready, while I’m in my car and even between classes. It’s my outlet. These playlists do what music does best —

and is projected as a lottery pick,” Kennedy said. The two teams have had just over two weeks to prepare for the game, as the “in-season” designation, allowing the teams to practice for a maximum of 20 hours a week, took effect on Oct. 13. Before then, no NCAA team was allowed to practice for more than eight hours a week. Despite the short timeframe, Kennedy said he knows the Longhorns will come prepared. “Shaka does a really good job of preparing his teams, and they’ll be prepared as a team can be in two weeks [of practices],” Kennedy said. Kennedy also said he is going to give some younger guys minutes to get a feel for where they are at. “At this point in the year, you don’t want to put a whole lot of emphasis on just playing your best players,” Kennedy said. “You want to develop your bench players and get to know what these young guys can do.” That said, Kennedy said if the score is close late in the game, they are going for the win. “It’s a big game,” Kennedy said. “We try to win every time we step out on the floor, but it will be different than how we play West Virginia [next game] because we’ve got to learn some things about our guys. Some guys are better in games than practices.” This matchup may be a foreshadow of things to come, as

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they allow you to listen.” Ultimately, according to Wilson, the marketing and communications department wants Aggies to enjoy the Spotify account and use it to enhance their time at A&M. “We just try to keep social media fun and make each Aggie’s experience at Texas A&M as rewarding, fun and unique as possible,” Wilson said. “This is just another tool to do that.”

Kennedy said he and Smart have discussed the possibility of bringing the rivalry back to the hardwood on an annual basis. “Eventually, I would love to play a home-and-home against Texas,” Kennedy said. “I think it would be good for basketball in this state, both universities and both programs.” According to Kennedy, Smart has echoed his thoughts on renewing the rivalry. “It’s got to be two parties [to make the game happen], but I know that Shaka’s interested,” Kennedy said. As for how quickly this could come to fruition, Kennedy thinks it will come sooner rather than later. “We’ve talked about playing a neutral game maybe one year and starting a home-and-home later,” Kennedy said. Despite both coaches’ interest, nothing has been decided yet. Though the renewal of the rivalry could be on the horizon, Kennedy said he is excited for Wednesday’s game. “We open up against West Virginia, so to open up against Texas, who had a top five recruiting class last year, we’ll learn something early and that’s what we’re trying to do,” Kennedy said. The limited number of free student tickets have already been given out, but Kennedy still encourages everyone to go to the game to raise the most money possible for relief efforts. “If you’re a fan, an Aggie, you’ll be there,” Kennedy said.

Don’t forget to preorder your copy of the 2018 Aggieland yearbook. The 116th edition of Texas A&M’s official yearbook. Ordering can be done online at aggieland.tamu.edu, or by calling 979-845-2613. Distribution will be the Fall 2018.

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