College Tribune - Volume 33 - Issue 5

COLLEGE TRIBUNE Independent Student Media

Issue_05.33

BELFIELD

PAPERS

20.11.2019

News

Page 7

Tribune Founder Receives L&H James Joyce Award

SPECIAL COVERAGE

Highly Sensitive UCD Documents Found Open To Student Access

Data Protection Office Investigates Potential Data Breach

Big Reads

Page 14

Philosophy of Virtual Reality

Data Protection Commission Receives Late Breach Notification from UCD Conor Capplis Editor

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ighly sensitive employee and student files have been found open to student access, leading to a potentially huge breach in data protection and personal details. A storage room under construction in UCD Student Centre has been discovered to have a large collection of unattended UCD Employee and Student files. Included in these files are payroll reports, employee bank account details, PPS numbers and details of TD

donations to student political societies.

Last week, the College Tribune reported on the now infamous Belfield Papers.

The discovery was made on Friday 8th November.

UCD could face huge consequences for this potential data breach. We’re here to get you up to speed on what we know so far, and what’s next in this spiralling series of events.

Discovering the Documents The UCD Student Centre third-floor storage room contains miscellaneous Continued on page 4...

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his year, the College Tribune celebrates it’s 30th anniversary. Back in February 1989, College Tribune Volume 1 Issue 1 hit the shelves. UCD would never be the same again.

To celebrate this milestone, we’ve dedicated a section to commemorating some of the highlights over the years and reflect upon what we’ve achieved.

Page 28

Sport

Page 32

Ireland’s Must-See Christmas Markets

Pictured Above: The sensitive documents lay open and unattended, with unsupervised student access to the area.

Tribune Celebrates 30 Years Conor Capplis Editor

Culture

This publication was set up with the initial purpose of holding UCD’s institutions to account for their actions. If you take a quick peek at the above article, you’ll notice we haven’t quite lost sight of that.

We hope that this spread allows students of today to get an idea of what it’s like to be part of a student publication, and how it’s dramatically changed over the years...

Continued on page 8...

Sarries Face Uphill Battle for Redemption

Volume 33 - Issue 05

Editorial

Editorial

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elcome to Issue 5 of College Tribune Volume 33. 2019 marks 30 years since the first Volume dropped on campus, all the way back in February 1989. As such, we’ve created a double page spread that takes you through some of the core parts of the Newspaper, celebrating the journey we’ve come on so far.

Being Ireland’s only Independent Student Newspaper hasn’t been easy over the years, but the sheer rich history proves how fruitful the Tribune has been, mandating us to keep the charge going for years to come.

On November 7th, Vincent Browne, a Co-Founder of this Newspaper, received the prestigious L&H award. To tie in nicely with our anniversary celebrations, I sat down with him and chatted about the origins of the Tribune, amongst many other topics (p7). Browne doesn’t hold back as per his usual unforgiving persona, at one point saying: “Student politics achieves nothing, and it’s mainly a form for show-offs. People should be more apathetic…”

The lead for this Issue is our coverage of ‘The Belfield Papers’ (Cover & p4). A couple of weeks ago, we received a news tip regarding unattended highly sensitive files in the UCD Student Centre. What has followed is a cascade of events suggesting a potentially huge breach in UCD Employee and Student Data. A grave error of this nature surely can be avoided with more rigorous standards. As this scandal begins to spiral, we can only hope that its climax will incur an introspective look at UCD’s data protection practices, if not by UCD

Contact Us Editor@collegetribune.ie +353 1 716 8501 PO Box 74, Student Centre, UCD, Belfield Dublin 4 Letters to the Editor should be sent via email and no longer than 600 words.

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20.11.2019

The Team themselves, then from the Data Protection Commission. We do not believe there to be widespread malpractice on an institutional level (although we are not ruling this out), however, this isolated case should serve as a wake-up call to UCD and other public institutions with regards to their data security practices. Our public institutions are still new to this whole GDPR thing, with UCD’s Data Protection Office admirably trying to keep up to these new standards. But the law is the law, and data is a highly valuable resource in 2019. It’s yet to be seen whether the Data Protection Commission will launch an official investigation into the Belfield Papers. If it comes to that, it will likely be within the coming weeks.

It’s obvious to this newspaper that the gravity of the situation is not to be understated, and we pledge to treat it with the seriousness it deserves. The original mission of the College Tribune was to hold UCD’s various institutions to account, we intend to continue this tradition. We will be covering each new development as it happens.

Enjoy this Issue, it’s got all the things you know and love about the Tribune (those silly University Observer guys are totally jealous about our Belfield Papers scoop.

Especially because it all went down directly above their office.

Scandalous indeed!). Seriously though, we hope you like this one.

It’s the last one of the Semester, so you’ll see us back at it again in January for more shenanigans.

Enjoy the read,

College Tribune 05.33

EDITOR’S PICKS

Alex Lohier. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Deputy Editor

30 Proud Years of College Tribune

8-9

By Conor Capplis, Alex Lohier & Hugh Dooley

Adam O’Sullivan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Reporter Alessia Mennitto . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Reporter

Battle for Westminster

18

www.collegetribune.ie

Rob Ó Beacháin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Law

Predicting the Unpredictable Brexit Election

Dugh Hooley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Turbine

By Conor Paterson

Aisling MacAree . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Features Conor Paterson. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Politics

Gig Review:

Daughters Live at the Button Factory

25

Adam Boland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Science Cecily Nic Cionnaith . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Gaeilge

By Matthew Derwin

Aaron Collier. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Philosophy

RTÉ’S 2019 Financial Crisis

29

By Luke Murphy

Matthew Derwin. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Music Brigid Molloy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Film & TV Mallika Venkatramani. . . . . . Arts & Lifestyle

Sarries Face Uphill 32 Battle for Redemption

By Jack McSharry

Matthew Dillon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sport

Original Design Newspaper Produced

By Samuel Mc Sherry

By Conor Capplis @sms.studio

Contributors News Tips Sometimes the best news story is right under your nose.

For any news tips, on and off campus, please contact the editor via social media, telephone, email, or traditional mail.

@collegetribune

Hugh Dooley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Reporter Shannon Fang . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Reporter

Conor

Connect With Us

Conor Capplis. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Editor

Alternatively, you’re welcome to stop by our Newman Building Office.

Patrick Doherty Business Gearoid Dardis Law El Presidente Turbine Eva Earner Features Conall Clarke Politics Keerthana Dhabanal Science Vanessa Gomes Science Aisling Kennedy Science Nicolas Murphy Music Ryan O’Rourke Music Conor McCloskey Music Luke Murphy Music Conor McCloskey Music Gemma Farrell Film & TV Brendan O’Brien Film & TV Anton Rivas Pertile Film & TV Evelyn Tierney Arts & Lifestyle Luke Murphy Arts & Lifestyle Jack McSharry Sport

Volume 33 - Issue 05

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Contents

The College Tribune

20.11.2019

CT Write for Us

Go to www.collegetribune.ie or email editor@collegetribune.ie

Belfield Papers Thrust UCD Into Huge GDPR Scandal

4 Understanding Silicon Synapse Philosophy of Virtual Reality

By Aaron Collier

By Conor Capplis

UCD Academics Generously Paid 5 Let’s Talk About Sex Baby!

As Push For Research Ensues Navigating Contraception in 2019

By Adam O’Sullivan

UCD Researchers Win 2019 Science Foundation Ireland Awards

By Eva Earner

5

By Conor Paterson

6

By Conor Capplis

CRISPR Just Got CRISPRer

Developments in Gene Editing

By Shannon Fang

Tribune Founder Receives L&H James Joyce Award

Battle for Westminster

Predicting the Unpredictable Brexit Election

By Alessia Mennitto

Students Get Wet For Charity

Culture Sport

Big Reads

News

14 Gig Review:

31 25 Scottish Daughters Live Rugby’s at the Button Meandering Factory Efforts

By Matthew Derwin Towards 15 Innovation The American 27

By Matthew Dillon Friend and the Search for Sarries 32 Meaning 18 Face Uphill

By Anton Rivas Battle for Pertile Redemption RTÉ’S 2019 Financial 21 Crisis

By Luke Murphy

By Vanessa Gomes

7

Oireachtas na Samhna - in Citywest?

By Cecily Nic Cionnaith

29

22

Restaurant Review Sprezzatura

By Alex Lohier

29

By Jack McSharry

News Students Get Wet For Charity

UCD Researchers Win 2019 Science Foundation Ireland Awards

Tribune Founder Receives L&H James Joyce Award

SPECIAL COVERAGE

DATA BREACH: Continued from Cover* Conor Capplis Editor furniture items alongside large theatre set pieces used

by UCD Musical Society. The student society has access to this room for storage of large set pieces and enjoy “access to the storage space whenever we need it. When it is locked we can have it opened by a member of staff.”

The Tribune discovered a large collection of files spanning from at least the years 2000 to 2014. The limited number of files seen by the Tribune belonged to UCD, the UCD Student Centre, UCD Campus Sport and Leisure Ltd., UCD Department of Sport and UCD Societies.

Included in the sensitive documentation were: payroll reports, employee bank account details, PPS numbers, employee Revenue and Social Insurance Numbers, UCD societies grant applications, UCD societies income and expenditure accounts, documents regarding student disciplinary hearings and details of TD donations to student political societies; to name only a small fraction on what was left unattended to student access.

Unverified reports also suggest other students to have previously discovered these files while unattended by staff in the storage room.

A UCD Student Centre spokesperson has said: “The third floor of the Student Centre building is confined to support staff operations, with access given and welcomed to all patrons of the University while a staff member is present.” UCD Musical Society has confirmed that “there wouldn’t always be a member of staff with us,”

leading to questions on the security of the vast amounts of personal data.

UCD Musical Society confirmed to The Times that a Student Centre Staff member would open the room for them, and returning to lock it thereafter, leaving students with access to this highly sensitive personal information.

UCD spokesperson Dominic Martella made a statement to The Times saying: “The university takes all notifications of data incidents very seriously. The

data protection office at the university follows up on all reports received in order to directly ascertain the circumstances and facts surrounding all incidents.”

The source who contacted the Tribune regarding the files, who wishes to remain anonymous, said in a statement: “I am astonished at the total and blatant disregard shown of student’s and worker’s personal information. This raises wider questions about the management practices of the student centre in general.”

A spokesperson for UCD Musical Society said: “UCD Musical Society along with several other societies enjoy an extremely good relationship with the student centre. We are so grateful to have been able to store many set pieces and assets on the third floor of the building.

We do have access to the storage space whenever we need it. When it is locked we can have it opened by a member of staff.”

A spokesperson for UCD DramSoc confirmed that they do not have access to

the storage space, nor have any items stored there.

Editor’s Note: The Tribune was contacted with a news tip suggesting a large number of sensitive documents were left unattended. In following with standard procedure, the Tribune investigated into this matter by visiting the location. On arrival, construction work was occurring. After entering the room without any interference from the construction workers, we investigated the

BELFIELD PAPERS THRUST UCD INTO HUGE GDPR SCANDAL

files. After discovering the gravity of the situation, and noting the types of documents available, we vacated the room.

Data Protection Office Investigates Following the Tribune’s reporting on the Belfield Papers, the UCD Data Protection Office set out to assess the situation. The DPO has said they are “following the standard university incident management procedure,” in response to the allegations.

The Tribune contacted

the Data Protection Commission (DPC) regarding the incident. UCD are now liaising with the UCD DPO and the DPC. The DPO is an independent office within UCD, that works to defend the rights of data subjects. A spokesperson for the DPO said they are “following internal protocol whenever a data incident is brought to light.” The DPO is currently categorising this as an “incident” rather than escalating it into an official data breach.

UCD’s website has a

GDPR section with advice on how to “reduce the risk of causing a security related data breach.” Within these guidelines is advice stating: “Leave paper documents containing personal data: If not in use, locked away, Never lying around or behind; Out of sight of unauthorised people…” The section also states that: “for paper documents containing personal information: Never keep them on an open shelf in a general office, Never throw them in the general bin; Never leave them behind af-

ter you are finished with it.”

The Belfield Papers raise questions on how these guidelines are implemented within the UCD’s various institutions.

Data Protection Commission Tags In On Thursday 14th November, the Data Protection Commission (DPC) received a formal Breach Notification from University College Dublin (UCD). A DPC spokesperson has said the “DPC are currently assessing” the issue. It is under-

stood that an assessment of potential data breaches can take some time before further action is considered.

Since 25th May 2018, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) requires organisations to report personal data breaches to the relevant authority. Under GDPR, UCD is required to report to the DPC within 72 hours of being aware of a data breach “without undue delay”. The Tribune informed UCD of this potential breach on Friday 8th November, meaning UCD failed to meet the mandatory time period to report to the DPC. GDPR allows exceptions to this requirement if “the reason given [to the DPC] is sufficient to justify the delay.”

DPC guidelines also recommend in cases where a full breach notification cannot be lodged within 72 hours “the initial notification should be lodged and then information may be provided in phases.” UCD submitted a breach notification more than five days after receiving notice from the Tribune.

Editor’s Note: The DPC’s assessment of the allegations will likely end with either an anticlimactic dead-end with no further action to be taken (this would imply that the breach would be deemed somewhat under control), or with further investigation into the Belfield Papers and surrounding data protection practices within UCD (this could open up a fresh examination of the University’s data protection practices by the DPC).

The Tribune will continue to follow this story as it happens.

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ANALYSIS: Adam O’Sullivan Reporter

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CD academics are paid some of the highest salaries in the country as well as having greater pay packages than their international counterparts. This may be due to UCD being recently ranked low in international research tables and if the university provides higher salaries to researchers and academics this positioning can be improved.

UCD has 271 workers on six figures, with one member of staff having a salary of over 300,000 euro. Out of all the colleges and technological institutes in the country UCD has the highest number of employees on six figures. It could be argued that this is due to the university’s size but UCD’s figures are still not proportional to the other universities based on staff numbers. This means UCD is willing to pay their

key staff more, this is most likely due to the value of these employees’ intellectual property as UCD strives to climb up in research rankings.

The former VP of Research in UCD Des Fitzgerald, who is now the president of UL, previously received a salary of 409,000 euro, however, this was dropped to 263,602 euro as the university came under pressure to justify his pay package. Such a high salary for VP of research emphasises the value UCD places on it. The fact the UCD had to justify such a pay package reminds us that UCD is a public institution.

If we compare UCD with the rest of Europe the results are intriguing. In countries such as France and Belgium, where most universities are also public institutions, such salaries are unheard of. French academics cannot expect to earn more than 100,000 euro due to their civil serv-

The College Tribune

News

20.11.2019

UCD Academics Generously Paid As Push For Research Ensues ant status; a similar story plays out in Belgium. Why do Irish academics have so many opportunities for high pay in public institutions?

For this question I can only speculate that league tables matter immensely to Irish institutions.

However, comparing UCD’s salaries to its equivalents in the USA and Canada paints a wildly different picture. In the USA the average salary of a full professor exceeds $100,000, key researchers can expect over a million dollars in the USA. Such numbers are unheard of over here for our key researchers, mainly due to the public nature of our universities.

It seems UCD would love to pay their vital researchers and academics even larger salaries, as they have done so in the past. Perhaps in order to solidify UCD’s name as a great university for research.

However, the book stops for now with the university’s public institution status.

Pictured Above: UCD’s University Club. The Club’s construction last year was marred by staff protest and condemnation.

UCD Researchers Win 2019 Science Foundation Ireland Awards Alessia Mennitto Reporter

technology that converts a dairy by-product in to an organic acid. The technology has now been patented and implemented “in a world first second generation dairy biorefinery” that has been funded with over €30 million from the EU and industries. This breakthrough

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wo professors from University College Dublin have received the renowned Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) Award at the Annual SFI Science Summit on November 7th. The researchers received the awards for their ground-breaking innovations in the scientific sector.

Among ten Awards winners, Professor Kevin O’Connor UCD School of Biomolecular and Biomedical Science and Director, Beacon, the SFI Bioeconomy Research Centre, received the 2019 SFI Researcher of the Year Award while Professor William Gallagher, UCD School of Biomolecular and Biomedical Science and Director, UCD Conway Institute, received the 2019 SFI Entrepreneurship Award.

Professor O’Connor’s work focuses on the development of technologies to convert waste plastics to biodegradable ones, and the biotechnological production of hydroxytyrosol, a molecule boosting health. The innovation of his research, a result of collaboration with industries in the field, has been the development of a

The researchers received the awards for their groundbreaking innovations in the scientific sector.

Pictured Above: Professor Kevin O’Connor and Professor William Gallagher receiving the prestigious awards.

is supporting the growth of Ireland’s bioeconomy and evidences how scientific collaborations are offering solutions “to address global and societal bioeconomy challenges” says Prof. O’Connor.

It also signals an advance in sustainability and Ireland’s competitiveness nationally and internationally.

The other winner of the SFI Award is Professor William Gallagher. The originality of his research achievement consists in identifying biomarkers of breast cancer and other cancers which allowed the establishment of the company OncoMark. Thanks to pri-

vate and EU funds, the company managed to validate its lead product, OncoMasTR, by using tumour tissue from affected patients. OncoMasTR is a test used for diagnosing early-stage breast cancer in order for patients to avoid unnecessary chemotherapy.

The product was developed through the collaboration between Prof. Gallagher and his team, and Professor Adrian Bracken from Trinity College Dublin. As a result of this cooperation the technology is now patented by both universities to the company. The strong collaboration between the scientific community and the industry has been crucial for the development of this new technology. In fact, it allows working towards clinical implementation and commercialisation of the product.

Being honoured with two distinguished Awards demonstrates the potential and innovation of the scientific community at UCD. In this regard, Professor Orla Feely, UCD Vice-President for Research, Innovation and Impact stated that “the presentation of these prestigious Awards reflects the strength and impact of research and commercialisation activities taking place across UCD.”

News

Volume 33 - Issue 05

Conor Capplis Former Editor Wins Award Former Tribune Editor, Jack Power, was last week awarded the Young Journalist of the Year. Now working at the Irish Times, Power also won Student Journalist of the Year while Editor of the Tribune (2016/2017).

Return Home UCD advises its international students in Hong Kong to return home amidst the escalation of violence in the region.

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20.11.2019

Students Get Wet For Charity

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Shannon Fang Reporter

magine standing on a dock—about to jump into freezing cold water—at seven in the morning. Then, imagine doing this everyday for a month.

Curators of the Instagram account Coldvember UCD don’t have to imagine because they know what it’s like. First-year Isaac Philips, second-year David Shanahan, and fourth-year Andrew Tutty teamed up together to raise money for Depaul, a charity whose mission is to end homeless and support people who are homeless.

The Instagram account documents “a daily dip in the

sea for the month of November to fundraise for Depaul,” and their efforts have raised over 1000 euro in just twelve days.

“

A daily dip in the sea for the month of November to fundraise for Depaul

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The Newsstand

The College Tribune

“We see homelessness as quite a big issue in Dublin and in Ireland, and it suits well that we get cold so that others don’t have to get

cold,” Tutty said.

Tutty noted that UCD has one of the highest proportions of affluent students, but towns just a few kilometers away are some of the poorest in the area. They want to see the University become known for giving back, hence Coldvember UCD. The trio met through their church, and the main catalyst for this fundraiser was their Christian roots.

They said they feel a duty to look out for those who are vulnerable in society and give to those who have less.

NUI Galway started a Coldvember page in 2018, which served as the inspiration behind this somewhat absurd idea. But this absurdity is what makes their fund-

raiser so successful. They’re proving those who doubted them wrong, impressing them with their commitment.

“It’s hard to do. It’s hard to get up early every morning, it’s hard to get in the cold,” Tutty said. “I think people really admire that it’s a challenge, so they give.”

They post Instagram when and where to meet for the morning dip, which is often around 7:15 am at Seapoint. For the first time, it takes a while to get the “mental fortitude” to jump in. However, as the month goes by, they noted that it has been easier getting up and getting in—and they get to see the beautiful sunrise.

Their rule is that they must get their head wet,

dunking themselves in the water for usually no more than 30 seconds. Some brave souls will linger in for a bit longer, while a few are shamed for not being able to get in. Tutty pointed out that most people are truly smiling in the photos, so there is something enjoyable about it. Their recent dip had 18 students participate, and they’re hoping to continue to expand the network throughout the month.

“We’re glad to do it too,” Tutty said. “It’s a joy to see all the money that has come in, and it’s a joy to know that that’s going to a really good place.”

Students can participate in Coldvember or donate by following coldvember_ucd on Instagram.

Food Bank Supports Students Up to 20 students avail of a Food Bank that’s been set up at University College Cork, following the UCC Students’ Union’s inability to offer financial support to them.

Light Reading Bookshare Ireland launch a digital library repository of over 500,000 academic books and material to help visually-impaired students with their studying.

Photo Credit: David Shanahan

157 pupils, aged 10 to 17, attended the first Youth Assembly on Climate Action in the Dáil on Friday, 15 November.

Dublin Bus to Introduce 24 Hour Service Dublin bus introduces 24 hour service for routes 15 (Clongriffen and Knocklyon) and 41 (city centre to Swords).

IUA Launches Digital Learning Initiative Hugh Dooley Reporter

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esigned to cope with an expected 25,000 surge in student population numbers, the Irish Universities Association (IUA) announced on the 7th of November a programme to improve students’ digital learning experiences. The initiative plans to enhance the educational experiences of Irish university students by empowering staff mem-

bers to build confidence in their digital abilities, in order to become the change makers themselves. The initiative was announced at the final event of the World Conference on Online Learning.

The project’s Manager, Dr. Sharon Flynn, admitted at the launch that the “projects is not starting from ground zero.The project will therefore align with existing schemes and resources available through the National Forum for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning and we look for-

ward to making project outputs open for use across the wider HE sector in Ireland” The Universities Association stated that while they attempt to build towards a

“

The initiative plans to enhance the educational experiences of Irish university students

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Climate Change: Youth Assemble

national campaign, they intend to start exploratory programmes across seven pilot universities. Each of these programmes will be tailored to each university in order to match the goals and needs of each individual university.

As the programme intends to improve the experience of, and learning environment for students, the project has partnered with the Union of Students in Ireland in order to ensure that students’ voices are heard throughout the project team. VP for Academic

Affairs at USI Kevin McStravock, explained the union’s reasoning for getting involved with the project: “What we are seeing currently is an increasingly competitive environment globally and students are starting to think of how they can find opportunities internationally for employment.” Mc Stravock added that “having an increased digital capability will allow [Irish students] to set themselves apart from other international graduates in the global market force”.

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The College Tribune

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Tribune Founder Receives L&H James Joyce Award

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n the 7th of November, Vincent Browne received the Literary & Historical Society’s prestigious James Joyce Award. Browne is a highly acclaimed investigative journalist, Editor-In-Chief and news broadcaster/talk show host. The event took place in UCD’s Fitzgerald Chamber. Browne was highly influential in the founding of this newspaper.

I sat down with him to chat origins of the Tribune, university life, and the state of affairs in the media today.

I asked him about how he came about forming the College Tribune all the way back in 1989 (see pages 8 & 9 for a special 30th anniversary spread): “I was out in the Sunday Tribune at the time, and I had been to UCD and was doing courses in UCD at the time. And I thought it would be a good idea to establish a presence for the [Sunday] Tribune newspaper in UCD. Along with Art Cosgrove, who was later President of UCD, […] we decided to set it up.” At the time, Browne was Editor of the Sunday Tribune. “We then advertised for an edi-

tor and we were looking for someone who would be radical and could take on the college establishment. We had difficulty finding one, but we did and that was it.”

Eamonn Dillon was selected as the first Editor of this new

idea, but it wasn’t the purpose of it [tribune].”

In a 2008 statement, Browne said: “The surest way of knowing whether the College Tribune was doing its job was how much the college “authorities” dis-

“

I actually think there isn’t enough apathy. Because, what’s there to be interested in? Student politics achieves nothing, and it’s mainly a form for showoffs. People should be more apathetic and this you should keep up apathy as much as you can.

“

Conor Capplis Editor

university-based Tribune.

I asked Browne on why he thought UCD needed a student newspaper: “I think it’s a good idea to hold lecturers and professors to account, because often lecturers don’t do their jobs properly. There is no way of holding them to account. I was personally of the view that College Tribune should encourage students to rate their lecturers. That was an

liked it, deemed it “irresponsible”, and wanted to shut it down. That’s the test. Go to it” Talking on what production was like back in the late 80’s, Brown said: “It was produced in the Sunday Tribune office and it was a fairly primitive production arrangement then. Though it had come on quite a bit, compared to now it was laborious, [and] now things

have changed.”

Browne is notorious for his relentless charge to hold institutions to account. I asked him about how he thought UCD was doing today: “I wouldn’t know enough about the administration, but I know that one of the difficulties they have is the state doesn’t fund universities properly.

It depends greatly on getting funds from outside from corporate sources and instead of spending the time improving the academic and teaching of subjects, the University’s senior executives […] spend their time raising money. Which is a pity. […] That has a corrosive influence, because universities get drawn into the corporate world in ways that are unhealthy…”

Apathy is a hot topic today amounts young people, and a go-to scapegoat for the unenthused attitude of students towards various extra-curricular activities. I wanted to hear what Browne thought about it, and he didn’t hold back: “When I was in UCD, which was in the early to mid-60s, people were complaining [similarly] about student politics at the time: ‘there is too much apathy.’ I actually think there

isn’t enough apathy. Because, what’s there to be interested in? Student politics achieves nothing, and it’s mainly a form for show-offs.

People should be more apathetic and this you should keep up apathy as much as you can.”

I asked for his advice on aspiring young journalists today. Browne simply responded: “Don’t.” He went on to say: “The media scene has changed very drastically there [are] very few jobs. It is probably going to get worse, but in 10/20 years’ time things will change and I assume that new media will evolve which will be credible in journalistic terms. But I don’t see that at the moment. And it’s a problem.

People are going to get the information about what’s happening in society from questionable sources.”

Browne went on to talk about the issue of the media today and their lack of coverage on the issues that matter: “There’s so much to find out from the internet and to use. Like the Dáil debates are often very boring, but some speeches some contribute to Dáil debates or often very good. They try very hard and their ignored.”

The L&H event consisted of Browne opening with a speech about many things he learnt in his long and fruitful career, sharing insights he wishes he knew earlier. His main argument surrounded his frustration with the large inequalities that are sweeping Irish society today. This was followed an audience Q&A and the presentation of the James Joyce Award.

Volume 33 - Issue 05

1989 - 2019

History of Production Hugh Dooley - Reporter The 33rd volume of the College Tribune is diligently willed into existence in a bright room located in the basement of the Newman Building, its walls are adorned with tinsel and the windows are decorated with signs telling everyone that it isn’t the ‘leap card office’. However, the history of the Tribune hasn’t always been as glamorous as it is today.

While the Tribune’s design now takes place on a light and compact laptop, our first editor, Eamon Dillon recalled how the printing process took place in 1989, where handwritten articles had to be tediously keyed in and saved onto floppy discs before being printed onto bromide paper. The final draft had to make its way to the Navan Chronicle on the back of a bike once it was glued to the necessary cardboard sheets.

Office space in UCD has always been at a premium, starting out in a “foul stinking hole in the Arts block”, Gary O’Shea recounts how smoking was “not just permitted but encouraged” in the dank smelling office. Soon however, the Tribune was to move up in the world as, during the reign of Bernard Cantillon, they took over a space that resembled something other than a “broom closet”, all thanks to constant pestering of the Head of Campus Services.

The College Tribune

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30 PROUD YEARS OF

Where it all began...

Conor Capplis - Editor

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he College Tribune has come a long way since it’s inception in 1989.

The day-to-day running of the paper would certainly be unrecognisable to those involved 30 years ago, with a rich history of progression over all these years. But why did students, national journalists and UCD authorities invest so much time, effort and resources into publishing an independent newspaper in UCD? Back in the late 1980’s, Sunday Tribune Editor Vincent Browne was deeply passionate about holding our institutions to account for their actions. The sprawling metropolis of UCD seemed like a fitting ground to

launch a student publication designed to keep its authorities in check. Browne launched the Tribune in February 1989, with Editor Eamon Dillon at the helm.

Surprisingly, the College Tribune was set up with not just the consent of UCD, but the encouragement of it’s executive. Former UCD President Art Cosgrove was president at the first editorial meeting, along with other student journalists and Browne.

According to Browne, Cosgrove and himself were “of the view that holding institutions of power to account is one of the central purposes of journalism…”

In its early days, the Tribune focused on hard-hitting, news-based, print journalism. Volume 1 had

just three issues (presumably due to production efforts, costs etc.), with each containing campus-based news coverage. Since then, the Tribune has meandered from such bold efforts to a more light-hearted ‘super-tabloidy’ format. The paper today lies somewhere in between all of our history to date, taking influence from each era of the paper, creating a kind of features-style-newspaper-hybrid…thing.

In a 2008 statement for a 21st Anniversary Tribune book, Browne summarised the initial purpose of the Tribune: “The surest way of knowing whether the College Tribune was doing its job was how much the college “authorities” disliked it, deemed it “irresponsible”, and wanted to shut it down.

That’s the test.

Go to it”

Pictured Above: A young Vincent Browne. Find our exclusive interview with him on p7.

Anniversary Projects Conor Capplis - Editor

30 The Hot Takes: Reporting Since ‘89 Hugh Dooley - Reporter

In her early years, the College Tribune kept close ties to the Sunday Tribune, whom our founder, Vincent Brown, was the editor of. The Sunday Tribune helped keep the UCD paper ticking over whenever it came into a sticky patch or two… allowing the student journalists to make use of top-ofthe-line laptops when an occasion required the big guns. Luckily, as time went on and modernity finally caught up to the Belfield campus, the Tribune managed to secure the newest technology, starting the slow and painful circle of technological decline once again!

20.11.2019

2019 marks thirty years of College Tribune of journalists keeping their ears to the grapevine in order to break the news. Here’s a few interesting ones: One of the biggest scandals that rocked UCD in recent years was that Katie Ascough had been impeached in October of 2017 as reported by Rachel O’Neill, that year’s editor. The report marked the culmination of the ‘Ascough Fiasco’ and gave the details of the biggest campus referendum in recent UCD history. Ascough was impeached by a margin of 69% in favour to 31% against.

While it may seem a given in 2019, UCD’s Gay and Lesbian Society was given official recognition in 1990 after 2,300 students and staff signed a petition which was tabled as a meeting of UCD’s academic council, as

reported by the Tribune. The article also featured a section which addressed some common misconceptions surrounding the subject of homosexuality.

One article which swept UCD was ‘The Great Dramsoc Swindle’ which told the harrowing tale of an ex-DramSoc auditor who admitted to stealing £780, roughly €1,000, from the society’s funds to Tribune reporters, Peter Lahiff and Richard Oakley. The article details an interview that the “disgraced society head” gave to the Tribune. The article displays the opportunism of the early volumes of the Tribune perfectly.

When the ‘Cult of Christ’, a fanatical Christian cult, set up in Ireland an unlucky UCD student fell folly to what he described as the cult’s “warmth and friendliness”. The student described, exclusively to the Tribune of how he worked

his way out of the grip of the controlling cult. He recalled how found himself attempting to convert both friends and family, and how he was treated like a criminal by the organisation following the split. (The leader of the cult, one Pastor Butler, appeared to be performing a Roman salute during a speech on the following page.)

1996 was an eventful year, as twenty-eight students were arrested at the Freshers’ Ball in what was dubbed as “the largest offensive against drugs the college [had] ever seen”. The security manager at the time hoped that the arrests sent a message that UCD was a drug-free zone. The piece also informed the public about a first year student who was arrested for allegedly dealing drugs in the Students’ Club prior to even receiving his student card!

years is a huge milestone for us.

As Ireland’s only independent student newspaper, we have relied upon advertising to bring in the bulk of our revenue, meaning it hasn’t been easy.

To celebrate this occasion, we are announcing some projects planned for the coming months.

A special once off anniversary podcast is in development. The podcast will feature a number of Tribune writers and editors, past and present. Discussion topics will include things like the origins of the Tribune, notable stories from over the years, a comparative look at the paper then & now, etc.

Another exciting project in development is digitising of all the physical Tribune’s from the last 30 years. The tribune is in talks with UCD Library about potentially uploading every issue onto the website, a task very much easier said than done. This project should provide students with access to a rich history from UCD over the past 30 years. Should the next couple of months go to plan, UCD’s history will be just a few clicks away.

We’ve come a long way since chaotically running the Tribune from under some stairs in Newman and I think it’s time to honour those committed students by working on the legacy of the paper. Projects like these help leave it in a better position for the students of tomorrow.

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Volume 33 - Issue 05

1989 - 2019

The College Tribune

COLLEGE TRIBUNE Alumni Editors: The College Tribune’s Finest Hugh Dooley - Reporter

S

ince the foundation of the Tribune, our editors have gone on to achieve lofty positions in major journalistic organisations across the country.

Richard Oakley, editor in 1997-1998, was appointed editor of the Sunday Business Post in July of this year.

Meanwhile Roddy O’Sullivan, 19931994, is the current Duty Editor of the Irish Times. More recently, now working for the Irish Times and the reporter who recently broke the surprising news regarding Scouting Ireland, Jack Power, was the editor for the 30th volume of the College Tribune.

Not all of our previous editors have continued to work in journalism, however, many have found excellent success in other fields such as Eoghan Rice, currently head of communications for Trocaire Ireland, or current Green Party Councillor for Killiney-Shankill, Una Power. Ryan Cullen, the Tribune’s editor in 2011 is now a stand-up comedian and co-host of ‘Clear & Oblivious: An NFL Podcast’ Our contributors have been no less successful, the lofty title of Tribune contributor has been applied to current EMEA Director of CNN international, Blathnaid Healy and Sarah Binchy a radio producer at RTÉ Radio.

Alex Lohier Deputy Editor

F

rom its inception in 1989, the College Tribune wanted to report on UCD activities, stories and news.

More importantly, it wanted to hold the university accountable for what it stood for and for what it promised its staff and students. At some stage in the late 90s, the paper veered towards a tabloid-style publication.

Nowadays, we have a balance of both, blending some award-winning journalism with lighter, more laid back writing.

But what does the future of the College Tribune resemble? Personally, I would love to see it steer towards a heavier focus on reporting and investigative journalism. Having come halfway through my term as Depu-

Making Us Look Good (Design) Conor Capplis - Editor We’ve come a long way from the laborious manual design of the newspaper. Thankfully, College Tribune Volume 33 is designed on Adobe InDesign, the epitome of newspaper design software.

It’s sometimes easy to take for granted the technology at our fingertips today; and looking back on the labours of the Tribune’s fledging years, I sure don’t envy those guys.

The Tribune’s design has

been tailored around the style of content. This can be seen from volume to volume, with some designs catering for short news reports and columns, and others designed around the fullpage feature article. Today’s design tends to have a mix of both.

In its teenage years, the Tribune began to find it’s unfiltered voice, and wasn’t afraid to speak up! The outrageously tabloid-like design fostered a comedic and young vibe, which became a

What the future holds... ty Editor, I know this to be both challenging and time consuming, albeit entirely worth it once a story comes together. I say this for two reasons. Firstly, these types of stories are much more

interesting and relatable to our readers, which would improve the Tribune’s popularity amongst the student body, whilst simultaneously providing it with some fascinating reading material.

I really hope people still get Back to the Future references.

mark of the newspaper’s signature look.

Our fresh design this year was laboured upon during this past summer by myself and my buddy Sam McSherry. Studying Visual Communication in IADT, Sam’s expertise helped materialise the ideas we came up with. Since then, I’ve been producing the current volume from the original design. Anybody interested in designing with us, pop me an email at editor@collegetribune.ie

Secondly, I believe it to be our responsibility, alongside other Irish student newspapers, to dig around and hold our universities to their word. Many of the stories which break from student publications are often deemed too small to be covered by bigger papers; until the full extent of the story unfolds that is.

I also see our website and social media channels gaining importance as platforms to voice student news. We have seen massive growth in this area this year, and I believe this will continue for the next few years.

Most importantly, I see the paper reaching new heights. The current design, team, content and social platforms are arguably (in my biased mind!) at their all time best. The foundations are strong for future volumes of the College Tribune; let’s see what exciting times the future holds for it.

20.11.2019

Tribune Today Conor Capplis - Editor The day-to-day running of the paper today is fairly straight forward. The Editor (that’s me) alongside with the Deputy Editor (Alex Lohier) lead the whole operation. It’s our jobs to organise meetings, interviews, manage other writers, source advertising, edit articles, design the newspaper, and generally spend far too much time behind the desk in the Tribune Office.

The structure of the Tribune is fairly regimented. Each section is designated a ‘Section Editor’, who’s job it is to take charge of those pages, under the supervision of the editors, and organise other writers known as ‘Contributors.’

This is all very exciting, I know. But student journalism is really where the fun can be had before entering the big bad world. College newspapers rarely experience major censorship, so this really is the time to have your fun with it.

Each person who contributes to our newspaper, in even the smallest of ways, is doing their job to support campus free speech and student journalism. As an industry that’s gone through difficulty in recent years, student journalism can sometimes struggle to stay afloat. Thankfully, the Tribune has a highly dedicated team to thank for us still being here to voice the independent student voice in UCD. The behind the scenes socialising

There’s me, hard at work in the office! is by far the best part about being involved in a student newspaper (yes even the Observer are allowed to have fun too). Whether you’re working with another student on a story, or just stopping by the office to hog the couch, getting involved is a lot of fun. I highly recommend any writers in UCD to get involved with us, we’re always looking to hear new ideas and expand our team.

Volume 33 - Issue 05

Business

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The College Tribune

20.11.2019

The New Kid on the Block

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he aptly named newcomer to the mobile banking industry, Revolut, has reached over 500,00 customers in Ireland, as announced by their newly appointed head of Irish Operations, Joe Heneghan. These figures come amid news that the platform will launch in the US by the end of the year, in partnership with the payments behemoth Mastercard.

The app offers seamlessly integrated services which outperform the competition in all aspects, including cost. Heneghan announced the company’s plans to

upscale at a conference organised by the Banking and Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI). Heneghan’s appointment coincided with Revolut’s application to the Central Bank of Ireland for an electronic money licence.

Founded in Britain, Revolut have suggested that they may use Dublin as their EU hub in the wake of Brexit.

Heneghan ‘sees Dublin as a hub for technology talent’, with his own team assembled in the company’s new offices on North Wall Quay.

The company’s services are becoming increasingly popular amongst university students, who desire Revolut’s fee-free foreign exchange withdrawals along with the app’s simplistic

method of splitting bills with friends. The median age of its customers is 32, which is significantly lower than other major finan-

olut Junior’ platform by which children as young as seven could learn to manage their finances under the supervision of their parents, in

“

There’s big change happening in the company. It’s gone from a very small operation to having 1,500 people and it’s going to keep growing.

“

Patrick Doherty Business Writer

cial institutions and banks across the globe. Heneghan also stated that the firm plans to launch a new ‘Rev-

a safe learning environment.

Heneghan hopes to capitalise on this growth through the introduction of new and

Start-Up Spotlight:

improved services in the not-so-distant future. ‘’We feel we’ve reached a tipping point’’ he said. ‘’There’s big change happening in the company. It’s gone from a very small operation to having 1,500 people and it’s going to keep growing.”

More traditional banks have been scrambling to try and keep up with Revolut’s effortless system of transferring money, which isn’t guarded behind endlessly long IBAN codes and tedious registration processes. Áine McCleary, Bank of Ireland’s director of distributional channels, confirmed the launch of the bank’s new app by the end of 2019 as part of a €1.15 billion technology overhaul pro-

gramme. The bank is seeking to implement regular updates to their online and mobile platform so as not to fall behind their competitors.

Revolut’s ambitious model of business will now attempt to conquer the United States and undercut major banks such as Bank of America and JP Morgan Chase, by providing the same services but with one simple twist; they’re free.

myStudyPal

Alex Lohier Deputy Editor The company in this week’s Start-up Spotlight tackles a problem many of us faced during our Leaving Cert years; making a study timetable. myStudyPal, founded and run by Mark Nealon, aims to tackle the issues that students face when attempting to create a robust, flexible timetable that meets their specific needs.

With an avid interest in life sciences and business, Mark took the route least expected by his parents; instead of migrating from 6th year into a safe, secure business course, Mark deferred his college studies by one

The start-up is operational [...] offering [students] a free personalised study timetable. year to start myStudyPal. He then went on to study Biomedical Health and Life Science student in UCD, which he is still currently studying.

This bold move is what drew me to Mark and his company; following such a bold path is not the norm at that age and is proof that young people can become successful entrepreneurs at a young age.

The start-up is operational and already servic-

ing students, offering them a free personalised study timetable. Mark’s existing priorities lie in optimising their sales funnel and retention metrics, with the aim being to secure investment.

The company is achieving this through a combination of data analysis and direct customer feedback. Mark believes that ‘too many start-ups rely solely on data to solve their problems’, which is why myStudyPal are

speaking to their customers to seek measures of improvement that would benefit them.

As with all startups, funding is an ongoing obstacle which is hindering the pace the company could be growing at. Happily, the company is struggling with this less than it had been in its early stages. Nowadays, myStudyPal has built credibility for itself, which makes securing investment slightly

less complicated.

It’s very clear that Mark has a hectic schedule; juggling studies and running a company is evidently time-consuming. When I asked him how he manages both of these and finds time for a social life, the answer I get is quite ironic; ‘I manage to balance everything… by timetabling every hour of the day’. Meetings and college work take the bulk of his time, with operation-

myStudyPal [...] aims to tackle the issues that students face when attempting to create a robust, flexible timetable that meets their specific needs.

al work being carried out in between. Mark thinks it is ‘completely counterproductive to enter into the hustle mentality’, and so is more than happy to take Fridays and Saturdays off. This is a refreshing stance from most entrepreneurial mindsets, and perhaps even a contributing factor in the company’s success. If you take anything away from myStudyPal and Mark’s story, this could be it.

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Volume 33 - Issue 05

Law

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The College Tribune

20.11.2019

State Fined €5M Over Galway Wind Farm

“

A periodic penalty of €15,000 per day shall also apply until it complies with court orders from 2008.

sation procedure, enforcing the operators of Irish wind farms to comply with the requirements of the Direct.

Notwithstanding these new laws, 11 years later, neither the wind farm nor the State have given concrete effect to the court’s judgement. November 2019 saw the European Commission bring a second case against Ireland for failure to comply with this legal obligation where these heavy penalties were imposed. The courts

also warned that the farm’s operating licence may yet be removed once the assessment is complete.

Martin Collins, spokesman for the Derrybrien Landslide Action Group told RTÉ he is “delighted” with the judgement, claiming the group’s efforts over the years have been vindicated, claiming the matter was a “complete failure on the part of State agencies and the Irish authorities.”

Attrachta Uí Bhroin, environmental law officer at the Irish Environmental Network commented on that case, stating that “if ever there was a need for an example to show how deeply problematic and flawed the State’s position on environmental law is - this morning’s judgement sets that out with knobs on.” Uí Bhroin’s statement is qualified by Ireland’s last place ranking among EU countries for climate action, where the Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) 2019 concludes existing climate mitigation efforts in reducing carbon emissions “will not enable Ireland to achieve either its EU 2020 or 2030 targets.”

European Court of Justice To Hear First Case Through Irish Gearoid Dardis Law Writer

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he Court of Justice of the European Union (the ECJ) will, for the first time ever, hear a case brought before it in the Irish language.

The case is being brought by Peadar Mac Fhlannchadha against the Irish State and the Minister for Agriculture, Food, and the Marine.

An tUasal Mac Fhlannchachadha, and his legal team, argued successfully before the High Court that the state failed in its duty to implement a European Union directive which required the packaging of animal health products to be in the official languages of the state, Irish and English, not English only.

Ms Justice Úna Ní Raifeartaigh heard the case through Irish in the High Court, where she made a partial judgement in July of this year as she was aware that another directive will come into force in 2022. This

new directive will allow the Irish Government to choose between Irish or English for packaging of veterinary medicinal products which would be sold in Ireland.

Ms Justice Ní Raifeartaigh, who last month was appointed to the Court of Appeal, referred an issue to the ECJ regarding the freedom of courts to exercise judicial discretion where

while taking the particular circumstances of the case into account. This is different in civil law jurisdictions, such as France, Italy, or Spain, where the letter of the law is applied strictly.

If the ECJ find there is no scope for judicial discretion, it is likely all packaging of animal health products would be required to be labelled in English and Irish however, if

“

The case is being brought by Peadar Mac Fhlannchadha against the Irish State and the Minister for Agriculture, Food, and the Marine.

“

A

fter over a decade of legal action, the European Court of Justice has imposed a penalty of €5 million on State for infringing Directive 85/337 in not carrying out an environmental impact assessment (EIA) before the construction of a wind farm in County Galway. A periodic penalty of €15,000 per day shall also apply until it complies with court orders from 2008.

In 2003, the small rural village of Derrybrien saw the construction of a 70-turbine wind farm, one of Europe’s largest at the time. The operation was carried out by a subsidiary company of the ESB, Hibernian Wind Power.

5.5-metre-deep drains were dug in the area without an EIA, causing a devastating 2km-long landslide. Over half a million tonnes of peat and debris was misplaced from the Slieve Aughty mountains, killing fish, polluting waters and the village has since been at high risk of considerable flooding.

The environmental

breach first came to the European Court’s attention in 2008, in European Commission v Ireland (C-261/18) where the State was ordered to undertake retrospective investigations on the issue.

After the ruling, Ireland did succeed in introducing new laws to establish a regulari-

“

Rob Ó Beacháin Law Editor

rights deriving from European Union law are concerned.

In common law jurisdictions, like Ireland, judges enjoy more freedom to decide cases based on the law

it is found judicial discretion is allowed, the High Court may find that the packaging can be in Irish and English or in English only. Ms Justice Ní Raifeartaigh in her

partial judgement in July did comment that a change to bilingual packaging may be “futile”, hence monolingual packaging may be preferred.

Colm Ó hOisín for the State argued in the High Court that the burden would be too high to translate all the packaging concerned and would lead to negative consequences due to the number of animal health products being manufactured abroad which are sold on the Irish market.

The state’s implementation of Directive 2001/82/CE through EC (Animal Remedies) Regulations 2007-2014 is in question.

A European Union directive is a device where EU member states are required to reach a particular result in law while each state has the freedom to choose how to achieve that result considering their individual legal system. The ECJ sits in Luxembourg and is the highest judicial authority of EU law.

It ensures the uniform application and interpretation of EU law throughout the 28 member states.

Volume 33 - Issue 05

13

Turbine

The College Tribune

THE TURBINE “To Thine Own Self Be Satirical”

20.11.2019

It’s satire, please don’t sue us.

UCD ANNOUNCES PLANS TO LEAVE EU El Presidente

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ast Friday, University College Dublin announced it’s plans to leave the European Union. After a four-hour long meeting with UCD executive committee, our glorious leader Andy Cheeks emerged with a plan.

Cheeks stated in a press conference: “Too long have we been held back by those European scoundrels. It’s time for UCD to take back control of it’s gates. We must negotiate our own deals with the tyrant Leo and the rest of those continental heathens.

Take back control of Belfield.

This is a good deal. Mmmm.

Really great for UCD. No more dither and delay. Profit. Great deal.”

After mumbling on for several minutes about “erecting a large statue” of himself, and “enslaving those wretched swans,” Cheeks announced plans to begin a €84 million extension on his office.

The new office extensions would include a seven-story high tower from which he could “oversee the rebuilding of this once great nation.” Cheeks was criticised for his ambitious spending plans, responding to questions on what UCD will do without Irish state funding: “The EU and Irish State have held us back for too long. Our plans to capitalise on the abundant free labour of PhD students will keep this ship afloat.”

The University released a

very vague plan of securing Belfield’s borders, with large concrete walls to border the campus.

The Irish government has responded with plans to lay siege to Belfield campus, stating: “We’ll starve Cheeks and his swans out. They won’t last more than 100 days.” The Minister for Finance created an emergency fund to import a dozen trebuchets from France, alongside a legion of fire archers.

The EU released a video statement from Brussels which entirely consists of MEPs laughing at the South Dublin antics.

Students have responded by doing absolutely nothing, vaguely focusing on their assignments and “kind of know what’s going on.”

Christmas Now Officially Begins November 1st Dugh Hooley

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s drunk and exhausted Halloween partiers returned home, Supermarket workers across the country were called into work to hang up Christmas decorations. This was in reaction to a recent announcement from Pope Francis that “Halloween now literally starts the second that Halloween ends” on the Pontifex Twitter account. Across Ireland, however, the Papal decree

was taken very seriously by Supermarket chains. So, at 11:59pm on October 31st, thousands of shopping centre workers were donning gloves and Santa Hats, ready to tear down the spiders and witches to replace them with small versions of Rudolph the red nosed reindeer.

Critics of the Pope have suggested that this announcement was in reaction to an upcoming bill in the Dáil that seeked to ban christmas music being played before December 1st.

Religious scholars weighed

in on this bill saying that this infringes upon religious freedoms, Irish Taoiseach, Leo the Lion, responded that “Playing Christmas music halfway through November is an assault on [his] humanity.” The U.N. Human Rights council have adjourned to decide whether it is an offence against Humanity itself to play “Baby It’s Cold Outside” before at least December 14th. This issue has been catapulted to the top of their legislative agenda due to the seriousness of the potential aftereffects of having

to deal with lecturers wearing Christmas Jumpers for like two whole months.

A Dáil official has revealed that voting on existing bills to criminalise workplace Kris-Kringles and the plan to institute capital punishment for anyone caught dressing up their car as a Reindeer will go ahead during Friday’s sitting.

‘A+’ Student Hospitalised Over “No Study” Claim Dugh Hooley

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n Garda Síochana have announced that the three UCD students arrested with conjunction to a grave assault of another student have been released and will face no charges for their participation in the incident.

The students who were facing charges of beating another student unconscious with lecture notes over an alleged claim that he “hadn’t even studied” for a test that he received an A+ in. The “victim” of the justified at-

tack has been called an “asshole” by his fellow students who claim to have heard the second year Politics student bragging about his 4.2 GPA shortly after admitting that he hadn’t studied “for like the past 3 months”. It is also claimed that he pretended to have been worried for test results with claims such as “Guys, I swear I’m gonna fail… I haven’t opened a book in months.” However, this terrible claim has not been proven to be accurate.

A source close to the story has called this claim into question after the student was seen leaving the James

Joyce Library shortly before 11pm with his hood up while trying to avoid being recognised. Students have also accused the “Victim” of asking unnecessary questions in lectures just to show off the fact that he is smarter than everyone else.

Speaking to the Turbine, the anonymous “Victim’s” family said that shit behaviour was very unlike the young man that they have known for so long. “I don’t want to believe that he said these utterly despicable things” his father admitted, “If he did, however, he should get ready for another

trip to A&E.” The Turbine has reached out to the “victim’s” employer, for whom he works as a ‘Full-time Mad Bastard’, but they declined to comment on the vicious allegations against their colleague.

UCD’s Student Union have reached out to all students advising them to give this student space when he does come back to lectures as it may be very traumatic for the students that will have to deal with him.

Big Reads Battle for Westminster: Predicting the Unpredictable Brexit Election

Let’s Talk About Sex Baby!

Navigating Contraception in 2019

CRISPR Just Got CRISPRer: Developments in Gene Editing

Understanding Silicon Synapse Philosophy of Virtual Reality

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Aaron Collier Philosophy Columnist

n the world of digital media, the ability to craft virtual worlds is becoming more and more interesting for content creators, videogame developers and artists. Companies like Oculus VR are spearheading innovation within this part of the media market, developing more advanced forms of reality altering headsets, speakers and interactive games. For many people who are unacquainted with VR, the thought of the totally absorbed Pokémon Go player springs to mind, or a Star Trek esque simulation.

However, VR technology is currently being used in new and experimental ways through art and design. Can Virtual Reality provide fruitful insights into the field of philosophy?

To answer this question, I spoke with Alan James, an artist by trade and creator of a new psycho-acoustic installation that combines VR immersion with a stimulating philosophical exploration into technology’s place in relation to nature, consciousness and transhumanism. James’ collaborative installation titled ‘Silicon Synapse’ places

the spectator on a simulated journey into the depths of the artistically rendered, personified conscious mind of ‘technology.’

We can bear witness to a series of dialogues between ‘technology’ and ‘nature,’ whereby questions of sustainability, their future relationship and the possible damage are raised. Through the usage of Oculus Rift VR headsets, James and his team have created an engulfing dream-like experience that attempts to push the boundaries of the medium, and show that VR has a permanent place in the creation of modern art. Within the halls and rooms of the Carnegie Library in Swords, James has crafted sensory artwork that offer both visual and audio stimuli that attempt to transport you a realm unreachable in ordinary life, the consciousness of another.

‘Silicon Synapse’ covers a wide range of contemporary issues, including the climate crisis, transhumanist possibilities and the future cognitive self. James is attempting to present consciousness, a highly subjective experience, in a unique way that blends current advancements in media technology with artistic expression. Within the installation, constructing ‘technology’ and ‘nature’ as two parts of a dysfunctional

relationship comments on the possibility of a transhumanist future, of which James believes to have a place in the future human self. Transhumanism is a continually expanding loosely associated movement of people and theorists who believe that humans can transcend our physical bodies to differing degrees. For example, bodily modification and augmentation can alter us physically, while some grant validity to the idea of “uploading” consciousness onto non-biological computers. For James, technological advancement may be integral in fighting the affects of climate change, and can effectively work with nature for the betterment of our lives on Earth rather than being completely incompatible. While transhumanist capabilities may appear to be small in scale or a form of novelty at the moment, they could prove to be important in the future of human augmentation and raise potentially difficult questions of how we define ourselves as human. Alan James and his team invested time and effort into creating a visual and audio representation of how consciousness can be perceived as an outside spectator gaining a glimpse into the mind of someone outside of ourselves.

This is achieved partly through the usage

of 17 different speakers that can surround the headset wearer, creating a soundscape that triggers all of our sensual capabilities.

This medium allows the installation to integrate different forms of experience to an all-encompassing blend of mediums.

In representing consciousness, the team had to create something visually and sonically resonant, that reflected common aspects of the lived experience of our inner lives. Through this representation, we can relate and marvel at true complexity of consciousness that we can navigate as the spectator walks through the installation.

In the future, we can come to expect a greater influence of VR on the creation of art and media entertainment. While it may be in its early stages, we can already see VR working its way into the training of pilots, soldiers, athletes and the police.

All of these professions are quite hands-on and physical but new technology has come to accommodate changes in the external world. The fields of 3D printing and machine learning also provide untapped problems and possible benefits for the future, that extend into nearly every field of study. Information of the installation can be found at www.siliconsynapse.net

Volume 33 - Issue 05

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The College Tribune

Features

20.11.2019

Let’s Talk About Sex Baby!

Navigating Contraception in 2019 Eva Earner Features Writer

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.arious forms of contraception are now more accessible in Ireland than ever before, and yet for many it remains difficult to find what works best for them.

When it comes to contraceptive devices, one size most certainly does not fit all, and various barriers from cost to pre-existing medical conditions do not make the choice any simpler.

So there’s the male condom, which typically is the first form of contraception anyone learns about thanks to its wide availability without prescription, and it’s 98% effective to boot! With protection from both STIs and pregnancy, what more could you want? Sounds perfect, until it comes to actually putting the thing on. The HSE suggests that proper use of the male condom requires practice and patience. The condom, if used incorrectly, may break or slip during usage, potentially exposing you to those risks related to unprotected intercourse. For this reason, many will use the condom alongside another contraceptive device.

Typically, that other contraceptive device will be the oral contraceptive pill.

Whereas the condom can just be bought in a shop or a pharmacy, the oral contraceptive pill does require a prescription, which makes it that little bit more costly.

There are two types of the pill available on the market: the combined oral contraceptive, which contains both oestrogen and progestogen and is what we usually refer to as just ‘the pill’, and the progestogen-only pill, commonly known as ‘the mini pill’. These two options will alter the user’s body chemistry in different ways, but if taken at the same time every day, the combined oral contraceptive can guarantee 99% protection from pregnancy. In the case of the progestogen-only pill, that figure drops slightly to 96-99%.

If you’re typically a forgetful person, however, the pill

may not be a great option for you. Additionally, the pill is proven to have health risks for those suffering from high blood pressure. At your consultation, your GP will ask you various questions regarding your health and possibly your sexual history and current relationship status to decide whether or not the pill is the best option for you. The pill can interfere severely with the user’s hormonal levels also, and for that reason many of those attempting to use the pill will try various different brands, which each contain different hormone levels. For some, the pill just does not work, as it interferes too strongly with certain symptoms associated with Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS).

These downsides associated with using the pill have pushed many with uteruses towards LARCs (or long-acting reversible contraceptives), that is, intrauterine devices (IUDs) and the implant (which you may know as the bar). With LARCs, the worry of ‘taking it’ on time is eradicated, greatly decreasing the failure rate. IUDs are inserted and removed by a trained doctor directly into the womb, where it does three things: it stops sperm from meeting the egg, it delays the egg from getting to the womb through the fallopian tubes, and it prevents the egg from implanting in the womb. IUDs are available in different materials: copper IUDs, and Mirena IUDs, the latter of which is made of plastic. while usage for the two devices is identical- both are implanted and removed by a doctor- other factors, such as their longevity and side effects on the body, do vary. For example, the copper IUD is said to be safe to remain within the body for up to 10-12 years, whereas the timespan of the Mirena IUD is advertised closer to 5 years. The copper IUD can be used as emergency contraception, whereas Mirena cannot. Whereas Mirena can decrease severe menstrual pain and heavy bleeding, and is therefore often prescribed to those dealing with endometriosis, the copper IUD may actually

increase menstrual pain and bleeding in some users.

The implant, or the bar, unlike its aforementioned LARC counterparts, is inserted in the arm, not the uterus. From there, like an IUD, it releases progestogen into the body, stopping the body from producing an egg

and thickens the fluid in the neck of the womb. The bar can last up to three years before it needs to be removed by a doctor. Like all other forms of contraceptives, the bar comes with its own list of potential health risks, particularly that the user may be allergic to some of

its components. Generally, LARCs boast an effectiveness rate greater than 99%.

For many, the greatest barrier to getting and using contraception is the cost. So which option is the cheapest in the long run?

I currently use Elvinette as my primary form of con-

traceptive. Elvinette is a generic branding of Yasminelle, which I used to use until one of the GPs here in UCD suggested that I swap to the cheaper alternative.

Elvinette is the combination pill,and whereas it was generally accepted for years that it was best to take a 7 day break between each pack, I was more recently advised to only take a 4 day break. First, to be prescribed the pill via UCD Health, you pay €25.

Fortunately, your repeat prescription which comes every 6 months can be done by a nurse, which costs €15. The Procare pharmacy in the student centre offers Elvinette in bundles of up to 6 months at a slight discount. One six month bundle costs €42.70.

If, rhetorically speaking, I were to spend 3 years studying in UCD and continued using my current prescription without needing another GP appointment related to my contraceptive, I would spend €371.20 on the pill.

How does that price point compare to LARCs? The only LARC that UCD Health offers is Implanon (the bar). Again, the doctor consultation costs €25. Your vaccine prior to insertion costs €125 if you can provide a PPS number, or €184 without a PPS number, and the fitting itself costs €50. UCD Health does not provide any removal services of the bar, so supposing one then went to the Dublin Well Woman Centre where removal and removal with same-day re-fit both cost €150, the cost of the bar for its 3 year lifespan comes out between €350€409.

Similar costs, but it’s important to bear in mind how they’re even higher for those not benefitting from discounted services.

When it comes to choosing birth control and contraceptives, there is no obvious answer. Particularly for those of us with cervixes.

From looking at the data, I think it’s important to have an open and comfortable conversation with your doctor or nurse regarding your needs, and to observe your family health and contraceptive history.

Poli-Ticker Conor Paterson Grealish’s Dáil Remarks Criticised as ‘Racist’: Galway-West TD Noel Grealish has been accused of racism after calling out Nigerianborn residents and misstating figures that exceed government calculations on the amount of money being sent back there.

Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan called on Deputy Grealish to correct the Dáil record.

Trump Impeachment Inquiry Goes Public: The intelligence committee of the democrat-controlled US House of Representatives has begun conducting its hearings on whether Trump committed impeachable offences in public. The 10-day long hearings will be followed by an impeachment vote in congress.

Politics

The College Tribune

16

The Meandering Road from Radical Marxism to Reformist Neoliberalism Conall Clarke Politics Writer

T

his year is the 125th anniversary of the formation of the Irish Trades Union Congress which was the first Irish based trade union movement and the precursor to the Irish Labour Party. With the huge influence that social democracy has had on the world, it is prudent to look back at its history and how it has changed since its conception.

To understand social democracy, you must first understand its beginnings in the early Marxist movement. In the early days of Marxism, the various parties were united under the Second International, which was an umbrella group that represented international

threat of a large-scale European war. The Second International, with the support of the Orthodox Marxists, took up a strong anti-war position and called for mechanisms to be put in place to prevent it.

The beginning of World War One was the end for the Second International.

It took up an anti-war position and encouraged its constituent parties to follow suit. However, most of the individual parties decided to support their own countries in the conflict. One of the few influential antimilitarists, Jean Jaurès, the leader of the French Section of the Workers’ International (SFIO), was assassinated by a French nationalist shortly before the war began which was a death knell for any possibility of peace. The few influential antimilitarists remaining were mainly Orthodox Marxists, like Vladimir

which represented the more moderate tendencies of the socialist movement.

These social democratic parties were highly influential in the post-war years.

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After the Second World War social democracy went through a period of change. It argued less for a gradual shift to socialism and instead embraced a more Keynesian economic model.

The Social Democratic Party (SPD) remained the largest party in Weimar Germany until Hitler came to power.

icant instability and was a major factor in Hitler’s rise to power in Germany.

After the Second World War social democracy went through a period of change.

It argued less for a gradual shift to socialism and instead embraced a more Keynesian economic model.

This meant that they were in favour of a large social welfare state, strict regulations, and nationalisation of key industries but they were willing to work within a capitalistic framework provided it doesn’t hinder social justice. This move was rather successful with social democratic parties becoming a staple of most multiparty democracies across the globe.

However, the social-democratic movement faced a crisis in the late seventies and eighties with the rise of Margaret Thatcher in the UK and Ronald Reagan in

After the 2008 banking crisis, social democratic parties faced widespread criticism for their part in the crisis and so, saw their support tumble.

Leo Varadkar has called recent comments by-election candidate Lorraine CliffordLee ‘misogynist’ and ‘racist.’ Senator Clifford-lee, who is running as a Fianna Fáil candidate in Dublin Fingal byelection made derogatory comments about travellers and minorities on twitter.

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Dún Laoghaire TD Maria Bailey has been removed from the Fine Gael ticket for the next election in her constituency. The Fine Gael national executive made the decision following the vote by party members in Dún Laoghaire asking them to urgently review her candidacy.

socialism completely. This model had some significant followers, with both Bill Clinton and Tony Blair being strong advocates for the Third Way. This was highly successful, bringing a significant number of social democratic governments into power.

This model did have its faults. After the 2008 banking crisis, social democratic parties faced widespread criticism for their part in the crisis and so, saw their support tumble. The SPD in Germany, the Socialist Party in France, and the Democratic Party in Italy, among others, saw their vote share hit unprecedented lows.

However, some social democratic groupings have recovered quickly, in particular parties that have distanced themselves from the Third Way. The Labour Party in the UK, the Socialist Party in Portugal, and the progressive wing of the Demo-

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Taoiseach blasts Fianna Fáil and its By-election Candidate:

TD Removed from Fine Gael Ticket:

20.11.2019

Social Democracy

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Volume 33 - Issue 05

socialism. The Second International had two main focuses during its existence.

The first was the question of reform or revolution.

The more moderate Marxists wanted to gradually reform society into socialism through democratic means whereas the more Orthodox Marxists thought a violent revolution was the only way to overthrow capitalism.

The second issue was the

Lenin and Rosa Luxembourg. While there were attempts to reunify the International it was irreparably damaged by this rift and it officially disbanded in 1923.

Two organisations claimed to be the successor to the Second International. They were the Third International, which was set up by the USSR to represent hard-left Leninists, and the Labour and Socialist International,

The UK spent almost seven years under a Labour prime minister. The SFIO in France regularly went into government as part of broad coalitions. However, the movement did face many difficulties. Stalin, through the Third International, ordered the many Leninist parties throughout Europe to refuse to work with social democratic parties. This move brought about signif-

the US. They brought about a Neoliberal shift in politics.

They pushed for broad privatisations, reducing the role of the state in the economy, and shrinking social security. The popularity of these positions forced a deep reflection for many social democratic parties. Many moved toward the Third Way model, which took heavy influence from Neoliberalism and arguably broke with

cratic Party in the US have all made gains while withdrawing from the Neoliberal position and embracing the more left-wing positions of the post-war era.

The history of social democracy is extremely rich, shifting from Marxism, to democratic socialism, to the current situation. Whether the resurgence of the leftwing of the social democratic movement is an enduring change or if the Third Way will return to its former popularity, it’s difficult to deny that the movement has altered the very fabric of society.

Volume 33 - Issue 05

17

The College Tribune

20.11.2019

GET €50 AND UN-CANCEL YOUR PLANS Get €50 when you open a KBC Student Current Account, so you won’t need to live like a student.

KBC.ie Terms & Conditions and eligibility criteria apply. Other fees and charges, including non-euro fees and charges, will apply. For full Terms & Conditions, eligibility criteria and fees & charges see www.kbc.ie/students. KBC Bank Ireland plc is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland.

Volume 33 - Issue 05

Politics

The College Tribune

18

20.11.2019

Battle for Westminster

Predicting the Unpredictable Brexit Election Conor Paterson Politics Editor

W

.hile the United Kingdom is embroiled in a Brexit crisis, the public is heading to the polls for the third general election in just five years. The government lost its majority when Johnson expelled 21 of his MPs for voting against the government. In calling the election Boris Johnson is taking a massive gamble. There is a chance he won’t gain a conservative majority, resulting in another hung parliament.

With strong polling numbers and a Brexit deal on the table, Johnson’s gamble may pay off. However, the Labour party and other smaller parties are desperate to deny him the tory majority that he has staked his premiership on.

The Conservative Party currently holds a large lead in the polls, a rough average of between 10-12% over the second- placed Labour party. However, in the 2017 general election, the conservatives held a similar and often larger polling lead at this stage of the campaign. What followed was a collapse in the vote share and a surge in support for Jeremy Corbyn and Labour. Have the Conservatives learned their les-

son this time? They arguably have a better campaigner in Boris Johnson and despite his gaffe-prone personality still maintains higher net approval rating than opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn.

They also have a good strategy of targeting traditionally Labour voting constituencies that swung heavily in favour of Brexit in 2016.

These areas, mostly in the north and midlands of England were once considered Labour heartlands but now could propel Boris Johnson to a majority. The Conservatives have also worked hard to win over the Brexit vote.

With a deal in place with the EU, it is little wonder why Boris Johnson’s strategy of making Brexit central to the campaign and constantly arguing to ‘get Brexit done’ is popular. There are potential problems for the Conservatives, however. The party is likely to lose seats won in Scotland in 2017 due to its hard Brexit stance and also many remain voting constituencies in London could be lost to Labour and the Liberal Democrats in the south.

In order to win this election, the Conservatives need to make up for the expected losses and gain some on top that elsewhere.

On the other hand, many in the Labour party did not want this general election and it is pretty obvious why. The party is well

behind the Conservatives in polls and leader Jeremy Corbyn is deeply unpopular.

not understand its stance.

The party is under pressure from both remain voters

With strong polling numbers and a Brexit deal on the table, Johnson’s gamble may pay off. However, the Labour party and other smaller parties are desperate to deny him the tory majority that he has staked his premiership on.

On Brexit, the party’s policy has changed considerably and many in the country do

who could favour a more explicitly pro-remain party like the Liberal Democrats

and also leave voters in the north of England and Wales.

Boris Johnson has criticised Labour for its Brexit policy which is to renegotiate a new deal and put that to a referendum. This has not proved popular with both remain and leave voters as it does not resolve Brexit soon and could still take the UK out of the EU. In 2017 Labour faced many of the similar problems but still managed to deny the Tories a majority. Corbyn was praised then for running an effective campaign, although he now faces a stronger Conservative party. If Labour can still perform well enough in traditional working-class seats whilst not allowing its remain voter base to collapse, then we could see Corbyn vindicated in his support for the election.

In this election, the performance of smaller parties will have a massive effect.

The Liberal Democrats will hope to pick up seats as the most explicit remain party.

Along with its new leader, Jo Swinson, came a new Brexit policy; the revocation of article 50. This would ensure the UK remains in the EU without a second referendum.

The Liberal Democrats will hope to persuade remain voters in London, southern

England and some parts of Scotland that they are the only party with real power to stop Brexit. This is a controversial issue as many Labour candidates favour remain too and there is a potential for the remain vote to split.

Other remain parties include the Green Party and Welsh independence party Plaid Cymru. These three parties have agreed to stand aside for each other in 60 seats in a ‘remain alliance.’

In Scotland, the Scottish National Party are expected to gain some Conservative seats and along with the Liberal Democrats could be major players in the next commons should the Conservatives fail to win a majority. The Brexit Party is standing in all seats not won by Conservatives in 2017. The leader, Nigel Farage, appears to hope to win some Labour leave voters in an attempt to secure a pro-Brexit majority in the next parliament.

Nearly three and a half years on from the Brexit vote, which is still unsolved and has fractured British politics, another momentous electoral event is coming up for the United Kingdom. The outcome of this election is very difficult to predict, but drama and bitterness are guaranteed.

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Volume 33 - Issue 05

Science

The College Tribune

Brazilian Butterflies

Chaos Theory and the Weather Forecast

Y

Adam Boland

Astronomers have renamed an object in the Kuiper belt. The object was originally called ‘Ultima Thule’, a term used by the Nazis to describe the promised land of the Aryan race.

Researchers have created the most detailed image ever taken of a full human brain. The image was constructed by scanning a brain in an MRI for 100 hours.

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weather conditions. Likewise, the use of Doppler radar to detect weather patterns is producing ever more efficient predictions.

This technology works by shooting sound waves into the sky then ‘listening’ for the results. If a storm is moving towards the instru-

ments, the noise which returns will be of a higher frequency than the one which was sent out. If the storm is moving away, the frequency will be lower. This is due to the doppler effect; the same reason an ambulance siren will appear to be lower or higher-pitched depending on whether it is moving towards you or away from you.

A computer converts the doppler information into images which show cloud coverage, precipitation, wind direction & speed. This technique has significantly improved forecast accuracy.

Edward Norton Lorenz, an American theoretical meteorologist and mathematician who is now considered the father of Chaos theory, published an article in 1963 which first described the phenomenon that was later termed ‘The Butterfly Effect’.

In 1961, Lorenz built a model which used differential equations representing temperature, pressure and wind to calculate the weather. One day he chose to repeat a few computations from a previous run and restarted the model calculations, changing one line of numbers in the initial conditions. After starting the simulation, Lorenz left to get a coffee.

When he returned, Lorenz was shocked by what the computer was telling

him. In the second run, the system had generated a forecast which did not match with the data from the first, despite the two models being nearly identical. Thinking his machine was busted, Lorenz ran the model again and again, but each time

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[Weather] predictions, however, must be taken with a grain of salt. Weather is unpredictable and any forecast beyond 10 days can be uncertain.

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calculate earth’s rotation in space to draw conclusions about the weather. Even a minute change in the atmosphere can have a severe influence on the future climatic conditions.

Meteorology has improved rapidly over these last two decades. Present-day meteorologists use something called an ensemble forecast, meaning that various different forecasts are generated, giving the range of possible future

It may sound ridiculous, but if we assume that a butterfly flaps its wings rapidly for several days, each time causing a miniscule change in the wind, then it’s conceivable that the cumulative effect could radically alter the trajectory of a tornado, hurricane or a thunderstorm over time.

perature, pressure and humidity using various principles, statistical data and mathematical equations.

In addition, meteorologists must pay attention to factors such as how water changing phase (for example, from water to steam) will affect the flow of energy. They also

The Lab Report

Conservationists in San Francisco have covered an artificial island in plastic birds. The aim is to coax protected migrating terns away from the Columbia river, where they prey on endangered fish.

Keerthana Dhabanal Science Writer

ou might wonder why RTE and Met Eireann can’t seem to accurately and consistently predict the weather. Sometimes, the weather report for a specific day says sunny but shifts the following day to cool with rain. We often hear predictions that this winter will be the worst on record, or that that summer will be the hottest. These predictions, however, must be taken with a grain of salt. Weather is unpredictable and any forecast beyond 10 days can be uncertain.

Weather is an example of a Chaotic system. It is extremely hard to anticipate accurately, despite the fact that the Met Eireann has accurate historical weather data going back decades. It is something of a running joke both in Ireland and abroad that weather forecasts are more likely to be wrong than right. This inaccuracy is not down to incompetency on the part of the forecaster.

Rather, uncertainty is built into the basic mathematical principles which underly how weather systems form and change over time.

Modern meteorologists can predict atmospheric fluctuations in wind, tem-

20.11.2019

got the same result. Lorenz found that the differences between the forecast in the first and second runs steadily increased over time, with all the initial values completely disappearing after a month. This was because the tiny changes he had made to the initial conditions had snowballed, ultimately altering the course of the entire weather system.

This simple model exhibits ‘sensitive dependence on initial conditions’, also known as the butterfly

effect. Can the flap of a butterfly’s wings in Brazil set off a tornado in Texas? It may sound ridiculous, but if we assume that a butterfly flaps its wings rapidly for several days, each time causing a miniscule change in the wind, then it’s conceivable that the cumulative effect could radically alter the trajectory of a tornado, hurricane or a thunderstorm over time.

A common misinterpretation of the butterfly effect is that by purposely changing a small variable, you can force a tornado into existence. In reality, a butterfly flapping its wings could have a massive effect on the weather system, or it could have no effect at all. The problem is that it is next to impossible to tell which the case will be. Lorenz’s great achievement was highlighting our ignorance when it comes to weather systems.

He showed us the complexity of Earth’s systems, and proved that nothing is too small to make a difference.

A study has found no difference between boys and girls when it comes to maths aptitude. Researchers scanned children’s brains while showing them educational videos. Boys and girls processed the information in exactly the same way.

Scientists have worked out how to measure the personality of mice.

Similar to human personality tests, an algorithm is used to determine whether mice are, for example, introverts or extroverts.

Researchers have created a new ‘blackest black’ using carbon nanotubes. The surface absorbs 99.96% of light, making it ten times blacker than the previous blackest black.

A surprising study has found that bad moods are contagious among ravens. The birds, which are very socially intelligent, were found to share negative emotions, but not positive ones.

Volume 33 - Issue 05

The College Tribune

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20.11.2019

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Volume 33 - Issue 05

The College Tribune

Science

CRISPR Just Got CRISPRer

I

t has been nearly 30 years since the gene-editing tool, CRISPR/Cas9 was discovered, and only six since it was used for the first time in human cells.

Of course, its potential was not appreciated when it was discovered, as it was merely another form of a bacterial immune system. While its use in humans and agriculture has sparked controversial debate in recent years, there is no room to overlook CRISPR’s potential to do good. In the past 6 years, the CRISPR system has undergone refinement to ensure specificity and precision. It is not a perfect system, but it is certainly headed in that direction.

Last month, a new variant of the CRISPR model was introduced. Prime editing, although unable to edit the larger sections of DNA like CRISPR/Cas9, is far superior in terms of pre-

cision as it allows for fewer mishaps in the process of removing and replacing DNA segments. This is achieved by lengthening the editing process. Unlike the original CRISPR/Cas9 model, prime

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CRISPR to parts of DNA called transposons which allows for cleaner insertion of DNA segments. Transposons (or ‘jumping genes’) are sequences of DNA which can change their position within

the genome, making it easier to edit without producing dreaded ‘off-target effects’.

Amazingly, amidst all of the updates to the CRISPR system, we are also starting to see tangible results in

Developments in Gene Editing

clinical trials. For example, the University of Pennsylvania is currently using CRISPR/Cas9 as a means of immunotherapy for terminal cancer patients. The excitement over the CRISPR/Cas9

gene-editing tool has far from fizzled out, and there is no doubt that further developments and applications will be discovered in the months and years to come.

The University of Pennsylvania is currently using CRISPR/Cas9 as a means of immunotherapy for terminal cancer patients

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Vanessa Gomes Science Writer

20.11.2019

editing attempts to convey edits in a 3-step process, as opposed to a single step.

Another team from Columbia University cited the successful development of a further refined CRISPR technique by attaching

Hidden Waste Microplastics in Unexpected Places Aisling Kennedy Science Writer

M

icroplastics are any piece of plastic less than 5mm in length. They can originate from the breakdown of larger pieces of plastic,

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Plastics are often used to seal shut tea bags (meaning that most tea bags can’t be composted). [...] both Barry’s and Lyon’s have committed to making their tea bags plastic free ASAP.

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the release of microfibers from synthetic clothing or from cosmetics containing

microbeads. Approximately 90% of microplastics can be removed with standard water treatment procedures but this still allows for 10% to be released into the environment via treated water and sewage sludge.

Plastics are often used to

seal shut tea bags (meaning that most tea bags can’t be composted). Recent studies have shown that we are also drinking these microplastics when enjoying a nice cup of tea, which could seriously affect our health. Thankfully, loose teas appear to be

coming back into fashion anyway. Even better, both Barry’s and Lyon’s have committed to making their tea bags plastic free ASAP. Many people are now aware that cosmetic products can contain microbeads. They are often used for

scrubbing; scrubbing teeth, scrubbing faces, scrubbing legs. It is still possible to get your scrubbing-action from other sources – salt or sugar, for example, or a nice face cloth. Microbeads may be a little tricky to notice in the ingredients, as more than

500 of the listed ingredients could be plastics. Some of the easy ones to identify are polyethylene, polypropylene and polyurethane.

Clothes are commonly made from polyester, acrylic and nylon, all of which are plastics. Natural fibers include cotton, linen and wool.

Each time an item of clothing is washed, thousands of microfibers are released. A study found that over 70% of the plastic debris found in watercourses was microfibers released from fabrics. This can be avoided by opting for clothes made of natural fibers, using a Guppy Friend Bag (wash your clothes in one and it will trap the microfibers) and washing your clothes less.

Buying second-hand clothes reduces the social and environmental pressure of fast fashion even more.

Volume 33 - Issue 05

Gaeilge

The College Tribune

22

20.11.2019 This is a sponsored article*

Big Brain Power Mastermind by Revive Active

T

he brain is the most complicated structure we have yet to encounter in all of nature. Essentially, it is a living biological computer.

Its job, every single day, is to absorb, process, store and recall on request, countless information. Therefore, it is understandable that as a result of the pressures of the modern world demanding increasingly more of our minds in increasingly less time, the job is more difficult now than ever. This holds particularly true for students – held to a higher standard of study, requiring for more information to be absorbed than ever before.

In advance of exams and throughout collage semesters absorbing, processing, storing and recalling information on request is even more important and the more efficient the brain is the better prepared you are for the pressure of exams.

According to extensive research carried out by the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences in Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) the brain relies on nutritional components to perform its daily job to its optimum potential. The research being carried out was designed to understand what a memory is and how a memory is made within the brain. They discovered that for the brain to make a memory it needs to make connections. These connections are essential to the network of neurons (brain cells) which make up our entire brain. Research discovered the fuel for building memories and connections in our brain requires 3 important ingredients – omega 3 fatty acid DHA, uridine and choline. Supplementing balanced diets with Mastermind from Revive Active can help to boost the intake of these key ingredients.

Give yourself the best shot at achieving the results you want from your studies.

Mastermind contains 11 active ingredients in each sachet including DHA powder, Uridine, Choline, Pantothentic Acid, Zinc, Vitamin B9 and Vitamin B6. It has been developed in conjunction with the Brain Performance Nutrition Centre at University of Northumbria and contributes to normal mental performance, normal cognitive function, the maintenance of normal brain function, the reduction of tiredness and fatigue, normal energy-yielding metabolism, normal function of the nervous system and normal psychological function. One sachet really packs a punch.

With 350mg of DHA in every sachet, Mastermind contains 100mg more than the recommended daily intake required to contribute to the maintenance of normal brain function, giving

you an extra boost of this vital nutrient for brain health.

Revive Active source their DHA from sustainable marine algae which is also suitable for vegetarians.

When free radicals damage cells throughout the body – including those im-

portant nerve cells in the brain needed for mental performance – the process is known as oxidative stress.

Mastermind contains 80mg of Vitamin C and 12 mg of Vitamin E which both contribute to the protection of cells from oxidative stress.

Mastermind also contains 2.5µg of Vitamin B12 which contributes to the normal function of the nervous system, 6mg of Vitamin B5 (Pantothenic Acid) which contributes to normal mental performance and 5mg of Zinc which contributes to normal cognitive function.

Mastermind is the ideal companion for an intensive study schedule. With no stimulants or plant extracts, it is easy to take in just one sachet a day, blended in juice or water.

Developed and manufactured in Ireland Mastermind is available in a 12-sachet supply which lasts students one month, as it is recommended that students take 3 sachets per week; Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

To find out more visit Procare Pharmacy on campus or reviveactive.com.

Oireachtas na Samhna - in Citywest?

I

s é Oireachtas na Samhna an féile is mó agus is gaelaí sa tír dóibh siúd le suim sa Ghaeilge agus cultúr na hÉireann, coincheap bunaithe ar Eisteddfod na Breataine Bige agus níl baint ar bith aige le Tithe an Oireachtais!

Bíonn díospóireachtaí, comórtais damhsa, filíocht, leabhair á seoladh, imeachtaí do pháistí chomh maith le oíche na mac léinn agus spórt is spraoi ag Club na Féile. Cloisfidh tú idir óg agus aosta ag caint as Gaeilge agus iad ag freastal ar na himeachtaí.

Bhíodh sé i mBaile Átha Cliath ar feadh na mblianta nuair a cuireadh tús leis ach ó shin i leith is nós d’Oireachtas na Samhna a bheith ar fud na tíre ach i mbliana bhí sé in Iarthar na Cathrach, Baile Átha Cliath.

Tá taithí ar lucht freastal an Oireachtais ar Chill Airne go háirithe agus bíonn siad

sásta leis ar an iomlán mar go bhfuil baile beomhar ann agus go leor brúnna óige ann agus féidir fanacht ann ar chostas réasúnta. Baineann costas réasúnta le mic léinn go spéisialta agus is cuid lárnach iad den fhéile,

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Bíonn díospóireachtaí, comórtais damhsa, filíocht, leabhair á seoladh, imeachtaí do pháistí chomh maith le oíche na mac léinn agus spórt is spraoi ag Club na Féile.

“

Cecily Nic Cionnaith Gaeilge Editor

go háirithe ag an deireadh seachtaine. I mbliana, ní raibh sé de chumas ar na cumainn ollscoile fanacht in Iarthar na Cathrach de dheasca an costais agus ba mhíbhuntáiste é seo. Ní raibh

aon rud timpeall Iarthar na Cathrach seachas an t-óstán, mar sin ba dheacair fanacht ann munar íoc tú thart ar €100 ar sheomra san oíche.

Bhí an tslándáil ann níos déine i mbliana agus iad ag seiceáil na mbandaí (mar is ceart a dhéanamh) ach ní dhéantaí é sin na blianta eile agus is dócha go raibh atmaisféar éagsúil ann mar

gheall ar sin. Ní an raibh cur amach céanna ag daoine is a bhíodh acu ar Chill Airne agus bhí easpa comharthaí ann go háirithe d’imeachtaí na hoíche. Is páirt mhór í an chraic den fhéile ach dhún an beár go luath gach oíche agus bhí línte fada ann, mar sin tháinig deireadh leis an oíche níos luaithe ná ba ghnách.

É sin ráite, is ostán mór é agus bhí na háiseanna ann. Bhí halla breá mór agus oscailte ann d’Aonach an Oireachtais agus bhí go leor spáis do na comórtais, óráidí agus imeachtaí eile.

Mar fhocal scoir, bhí an tOireachtas éagsúil in Iarthar na Cathrach ach fós féin bhí an Ghaeilge beo, láidir agus le cloisteáil. Rud

eile ná go raibh sé i bhfad níos éasca do mhuintir Bhaile Átha Cliath dul abhaile i ndiaidh na féile!

Tá an chaint ar Ghaillimh don bhliain seo chugainn an-dearfach agus beidh le feiceáil ach is dóigh liom go mbeidh sé an-bheomhar agus le craic dochreidte ar fad.

Volume 33 - Issue 05

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The College Tribune

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Part of a UCD Student Society?

Contact us and we’ll send a reporter to your high profile events!

Go to www.collegetribune.ie or email editor@collegetribune.ie

20.11.2019

Culture Netflix Christmas Films

The Ramifications of RTÉ’S 2019 Financial Crisis

Dublin Collective Performs Short Plays Festival

Sound Waves

FEET OF CLAY Earl Sweatshirt

★★★

Nicolas Murphy - Music Writer Earl Sweatshirt’s Some Rap Songs proved to be one of the most critically-acclaimed releases of 2018, with an average critical score of 86/100, as per Metacritic. Some Rap Songs was dark, scattered, and candid, and subsequent to its release, fans wondered what was next for the 25-year-old. Earl had stayed relatively quiet in the music scene, apart from a brilliantly dark solo production credit on Lucki’s ‘All In’. Nearly a year later and fans finally got new material from Earl.

FEET OF CLAY is no significant change of pace from his last release, and it comes with no real developments. Regardless, there are definitely some high points on this project.

‘EL TORO COMBO MEAL’ and ‘TISK TISK / COOKIES’ show Earl as dextrous as ever, in tune with his last efforts. However, for the most part, this 15-minute project feels like a collection of B-Sides left off last year’s album that were only put out to satiate the desires of diehard fans, particularly seen on EAST and 74.

FEET OF CLAY may feel disappointing at times, but it would be hard for anyone to follow the critical success of a project like Some Rap Songs.

Sea of Worry

Have a Nice Life

★★★★

Matthew Derwin - Music Editor Sea of Worry is Have a Nice Life’s third studio album, and their most different yet.

2008’s Deathconsciousness became a cult classic for its suffocatingly atmospheric darkness, but their latest effort has a more hopeful air. While the lyrics are grim as ever, the melodies that accompany them lean even further into post-punk than before.

The album’s first half is devoted to the newer sound they’ve cultivated. ‘Dracula Bells’ could almost pass for an Interpol B-side until it devolves into a dissonant, glorious mess in its last minutes.

‘Trespassers W’ doesn’t necessarily feel like a stylistic fit for the album, yet it’s a fantastic song in its own right. The second half has more in common with their past work and vocalist Dan Barrett’s side project, Giles Corey. ‘Lords of Tresserhorn’ is undoubtedly the album’s standout track, with Barrett’s heavily reverbed vocals accompanying a crunching guitar line that steadily gains distortion as his delivery becomes more deranged. Unfortunately, ‘Everything We Forget’ and ‘Destinos’ are lacking, with the latter being dominated by an unnecessarily lengthy sample.

The band’s apparent new direction does have its merits, but Sea of Worry lacks the character of past releases – the overproduced sheen on some tracks weakens their impact substantially.

Colorado Neil Young and Crazy Horse

★★★★★

Ryan O’Rourke - Music Writer “It’s better to burn out than to fade away.”

Neil Young sang those words forty years ago. With his latest release he’s showing no signs of doing either. Colorado sees Young back with his long-time backing band Crazy Horse for a vibrancy that he hasn’t shown in the studio for nearly a decade. This album displays the politically charged rage which has persisted over his long career.

With a grizzled groove and feedback only Young and Crazy Horse could accomplish, “She Showed Me Love” is their modernday epic. The song deals with themes of ecology and rages against climate change in its relentless thirteen minutes. This rage is accentuated with “Green is Blue”, a gentle ballad with Young’s lamenting voice echoing through the tender cords of the piano.

Young refuses to quit, attacking the Trump administration with ‘Rainbow of Colors’.

He’s roaring loud and clear with lyrics that question the future but simultaneously offer hope as he reassures: “we the people are strong”. Colorado is an album of hopefulness with its love ballads and garage rock stompers. This album shows that Neil Young will never fade away as here, as it was fifty years ago, Young means every word and note he plays.

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Music

The College Tribune

20.11.2019

Gig Review: Daughters Live at the Button Factory Upcoming

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ailing from Rhode Island, Daughters have consistently pushed the envelope with each new release since their formation in 2002. Switching up their genre with every entry in their discography, 2018’s You Won’t Get What You Want settled on horror-tinged noise rock, garnering glowing reviews across the board. This album was a progression of the more experimental sound explored on their 2011 self-titled – their previous efforts, Hell Songs and Canada Songs were heavily indebted to mathcore and grindcore respectively. With a history that’s almost as tumultuous as their music, they’re no strangers when it comes to making noise, and on the 2nd of November they brought one of the most brutal, engaging sets I’ve ever experienced to the Button Factory.

A hush descends on the crowd as the band begins to set up. After opener Jerome’s Dream almost took down the ceiling with their deafening wall of noise, there’s an expectant energy running throughout the decently sized room. Daughters are wellknown for their confrontational and intimate live performances, and tonight proves to be no exception. Frontman Alexis Marshall

“

With a history that’s almost as tumultuous as their music, they’re no strangers when it comes to making noise

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steps on to the stage, briefly surveys the crowd and without wasting a second jerks his head towards the floor as the band launches into a lurching, cacophonous rendition of ‘The Reason They Hate Me’. It’s even louder and more violent than the studio version, which is highly impressive considering just

how raw the album sounds. The audience hangs on his every word, reciting the lyrics with perfection as he stomps across the stage. Like a diet version of GG Allin, he slams the microphone into his forehead repeatedly, drawing blood as he resentfully snarls “don’t tell me how to do my job”. The bassist hunches over the crowd like an angel of death, swaying and eventually falling into their waiting arms before being catapulted back on to the stage, continuing to play the entire time. The band blazes through their setlist at a blistering pace, giving us no respite from Marshall’s erratic howls and discordant screeches from their guitars – I can’t even imagine how beautiful their pedalboards look.

Each track they go through is a highlight in just how genuinely energetic their performance is, making it difficult to pick out specific shining examples. ‘Less Sex’ sounds like Nine Inch Nails undergoing a severe psychological break. Marshall gently croons the lyrics rather than leaning into the all-out vocals he normally adopts. Their rendition of ‘Guest House’ is genuinely haunting, and the few songs performed from their self-titled act as a violent foil to their later, more atmospheric work. A notable omission is ‘The Flammable Man’ from their latest album, which is a strong callback to their early days in its style.

I can barely recall any moments where the crowd actually stopped moving – it was one heaving mass embroiled in a constant moshpit. The front row, where I had decided to post up early – an excellent decision - was essentially a warzone, but the looming chance of getting my nose broken felt completely worth it when my hand was grabbed by Marshall as he reached towards the crowd. It’s a profound experience having someone scream directly into your face as they lock you in a death-grip handshake.

This sense of intimacy and Marshall’s constant audience interaction elevates the performance far beyond most others - during the first and only lull in the sensory assault, he kneels down, sweating buckets, and

begins to monologue. Midway through he stops, eyes locking on someone who’s caught his attention – it’s an unassuming man with exceptionally curly hair. He’s beckoned forward and he obligingly steps towards the front, beaming. Marshall begins to muss the man’s hair violently, and without missing a

“

One of the most impressive qualities of the performance is just how much Marshall manages to resemble a cult leader – the jostling crowd clamours for a chance to touch him, reaching towards him as he leans in to howl into their faces.

“

Matthew Derwin - Music Editor

beat launches right into his next dirge.

‘Ocean Song’ was a perfect choice for a closer, especially considering that its ending consists entirely of guitar feedback – there are none of the typical calls for encores or ‘one more tune’. The band simply abandons their instruments without a word, leaving guitarist Nick Sadler to drone his way through the song’s final minute before exiting the stage.

One of the most impressive qualities of the performance is just how much Marshall manages to resemble a cult leader – the jostling crowd clamours for a chance to touch him, reaching towards him as he leans in to howl into their faces. His preaching takes the form of an intense, almost primal rage running throughout the music. He selfflagellates with his own belt, leaving harsh red welts on his shoulders. The microphone stand becomes his sceptre. If you ever have the good fortune to catch Daughters touring again, you’d be a fool to miss them live – it’s an all-out, uncompromising set that feels more like a hellish sermon than anything else.

Gigs

Conor McCloskey - Music Writer

The Mountain Goats November 20th @ 7:30pm The Button Factory - €23 Indie-folk band The Mountain Goats will be playing The Button Factory as part of their ongoing European tour. Since their formation in 1991, The Mountain Goats have mastered both a grainy lo-fi and an ultrapolished approach to folk rock, firmly establishing themselves in their genre among the likes of Beck and Neutral Milk Hotel. While often shifting their sound, the compositions by the band’s founder John Darnielle have always remained honest and truthful. Tickets are available for €23 online. Doors at 7:30pm.

Electric 6 November 23rd @ 7pm The Academy - €20 Detroit band Electric 6 will be returning to Dublin to mark the release of their 14th studio album, Bride of the Devil. Since the early 2000s, Electric 6 have been combining elements of disco, funk, punk and metal to create semi-satirical music for a serious and passionate fanbase. With hits such as ‘Gay Bar’ and ‘Danger! High Voltage’, they have become revered for their catchy but ambiguous music and their creative stage names. Tickets are available now for €20. Doors at 7pm.

Anna’s Anchor

December 5th @ 8pm The Workman’s Club - €7 Anna’s Anchor will be performing a solo set upstairs at The Workman’s Club with support from Handsome Eric and Kayleigh O’Brien. Marty Ryan of Anna’s Anchor will be bringing an acoustic rendition of his blend of emo and alternative rock to Dublin without the accompaniment of his band. Under the mantra “honest songs for honest people”, Ryan has been creating music from his hometown of Limerick since 2015 and has supported great acts such as Crywank and Aaron West and the Roaring Twenties. Admission is €7.

Doors at 8pm.

Volume 33 - Issue 05

Film & TV

Film & TV News

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The College Tribune

20.11.2019

Film Review: The Good Liar

Gemma Farrrell Film & TV Writer

T

★★

Brendan O’Brien - Film Writer

Of course, with Christmas, comes cheesy Christmas movies. This year is no exception with The Knight Before Christmas featuring Vanessa Hudgens and the third film in the Christmas Prince series, The Royal Baby, coming to Netflix in the coming weeks. Also, the long awaited sequel to Frozen will be released in late November.

Finally, in what is said to be the biggest Christmas Rom-Com since ‘Love Actually’, Emma Thompson’s Last Christmas hits our screens this month. It stars Game of Thrones’s Emilia Clarke and featuring the songs of the late George Michael.

he Good Liar is like a bad book with an incredible cover. The faces of Ian McKellen and Helen Mirren make this film seem as though nothing could go wrong. However, not even these excellent film veterans could save The Good Liar from its abysmal plot. The film consists of Ian McKellen’s character Roy Courtnay, a career con artist, trying to fleece Mirren’s Betty McLeish out of her millions in an attempt to end on a career high.

The main complaints fall into the lap of Bill Condon, the film’s director. He managed to take two marvellous performers and place them in a movie whose plot is as weak as melting wax. The Good Liar struggles to create an identity for itself, flipping from genre to genre in a desperate attempt to find a sense of place. The film cannot decide what it wants to be, as it injects an awkwardly shoehorned plot involving the psychological effects of World War II. One moment, the film feels as though it is going to open up into a brilliant battle of wits, but then swerves into oncoming traffic with its disastrous commentary on war. It does not know what it is, and it is obvious that Condon does not even know what the film was meant to be. It simply takes a multitude of themes and cannot take advantage of

any of them. Condon’s delivery of this plot was amateurish, opting for shock scenes as the main drive of emotion in the film. Yes, these emotional scenes provoke a response, but it is not deserved. Condon should not be falling into these tropey traps of thriller, unless he wants to remain in the depths of dismal directors for the foreseeable future.

The pacing of the film is another issue.

The beginning is reasonably well paced, leaving little threads for audiences to tug on

“

This is by far one of the worst films released in the past few months, and with others such as Doctor Sleep, Joker and The Irishman releasing around it, there is no reason to waste time or money on seeing the The Good Liar.

“

Winter has officially come, and with the season, also comes a host of holiday viewing to watch during the dark evenings ahead. Almost two years since its triumphant second season, The Crown is back on Netflix from the 17th of November, with Oscar-winner Olivia Colman at the helm alongside Helena Bonham Carter and Charles Dance. Also coming to Netfilix on 29th November, is the highly-anticipated documentary series The Movies That Made Us. The episodes will chronicle the production of generational defining films such as Home Alone, Dirty Dancing and Die Hard.

One to watch out for during the Christmas season, is the New Year’s Special of the Great British Bake-off which will feature the stars of Derry Girls including Nicola Coughlan and Saoirse-Monica Jackson.

This Christmas also brings a plethora of new releases in the cinema Jumanji: The Next Level, which stars Doctor Who’s Karen Gillan and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. It will be released on the 11th of November.

Just a week later sees the return of Star Wars with The Rise of Skywalker.

This latest installment will feature the late Carrie Fisher through unreleased footage from The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi. On 20th December, the now infamous film adaptation of Cats will be released. It features a starstudded cast including Taylor Swift and James Corden.

in wonderment; this is the film is at its best.

However, as the film transitions into its next act it slows to crawl, only to skyrocket to its ending with a large dumping of information and explanation. Once again, Condon shows his hand- he does not possess the skills of

McKellen’s conman, and cannot trick his audience into believing that his creation is anything but poor. Condon should have done better with the talent at his disposal; choosing instead to show that years of directing does not equate to masterful skill.

It comes as a surprise, as Condon is not new to the scene. He is most honoured for his writing contributions to The Greatest Showman. In hindsight, Condon should have stuck to writing, as his directing is too stale to create a movie worth watching.

Shifting to a more positive aspect of the film, the wonderful duo of Mirren and McKellen certainly draw in their audience with stellar acting which is only hampered by weak writing. They are veterans of their craft but it is hard to believe that they agreed to star in this film, as it is such a waste of their talent and expertise. The charisma between the two is excellent, with their tone and style complementing each other brilliantly.

Sadly, The Good Liar will go down as an irritating blotch on the records of Mirren and McKellen. The stars of the show simply cannot hold the plot together, as the film commits too many egregious errors to be worth a watch. This is by far one of the worst films released in the past few months, and with others such as Doctor Sleep, Joker and The Irishman releasing around it, there is no reason to waste time or money on seeing the The Good Liar.

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Film & TV

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20.11.2019

Netflix Christmas Films The Holiday Calendar Film

★★

Kat Graham stars in this Christmas romantic comedy; a genre that has become common fare on Netflix. Graham plays Abby a struggling photographer who receives a seemingly magical advent calendar which she believes can predict her future. She finds it difficult to decipher whether the calendar is pushing her towards new guy on the block, Ty or if her old friend Josh has been the guy for her all along. This film is admittedly very cheesy, even more so than the typical Christmas rom com. Graham lacks chemistry between both of her love interests. Ty is bland and Josh seems more like a friend than a romantic partner for Abby. Graham also outshines both of her love interests in acting ability. Nevertheless, it is a heartwarming film and it is significant that the cast is largely black. If you ensure that you have low expectations, this film can be a comforting watch on a bitterly cold winter’s day.

Let it Snow Film

Christmas Inheritance Film

★★

★★★★

Let it Snow is a new Netflix Christmas release which is loosely based on the 2008 YA fix-up novel of the same name. The film follows the lives of multiple characters in a snowed-in midwestern town on Christmas Eve. It is almost like the teen rom com version of Love Actually but of course, it doesn’t manage to be as good. That isn’t to say that the film is not funny or moving at times but in equal measure, it has a tendency to be corny and excessive. There are many storylines, including: a girl’s chance encounter with a famous musician, a boy’s struggle to confess his feelings to his best friend and a girl’s struggle to begin a relationship with someone who won’t come out of the closet. The quality of these plot lines vary; some are moving while others will make you cringe.

A spoiled, rich girl, Ellen, is sent by her father a few days before Christmas to the town where he first founded his successful business. (The town has a very on the nose name of Snow Falls) She agrees because he promises her that she will inherit the

company if she goes on the trip. Ellen leaves a demanding, insensitive fiance behind her in New York and finds herself growing close to the charitable owner of the hotel she stays at. While it is easy to disparage all of the Netflix Christmas rom coms, Christmas Inheritance is the cream of the crop. While of course this film can be corny and the plot is obviously predictable, it does capture the spirit of Christmas. Ellen does genuinely learn during the film to be more charitable and engage with the community surrounding her. I think only the toughest cynic could not be touched by this film.

Brigid Molloy Film & TV Writer

Mariah Carey’s Merriest Christmas Christmas Special

★★★

If you are only in the mood to listen to Christmas music rather than spend an hour and a half watching a film, Mariah Carey’s 2015 Christmas music special is a good option. Of course, this is assuming that you are a fan of “Miss Christmas” herself. The iconic pop diva sings traditional tunes along with some of her own original Christmas songs, including of course, ‘All I want for Christmas is you.’

Carey does not disappoint with her vocals; she even makes sure to include some of her

iconic whistle notes. Do be warned though; Carey’s backlist is name dropped, as are her latest book and film releases. It would not be a Mariah Carey special if she did not make sure to promote herself during it. This special is perfect to have playing in the background as it does not require close attention but it can certainly get you into a festive mood.

The American Friend and the Search for Meaning Anton Rivas Pertile - Film & TV Writer

“

Throughout the film Wenders leaves the viewer in a state of mystery as the story is never quite clear in The American Friend. Instead we are like Zimmerman, an ordinary man swept up into a situation that seems to play behind the scenes and which we can only fleetingly understand.

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N

ew German cinema, marked from 1962 to 1988, is probably best known for churning out directors Wim Wenders and Werner Herzog. But while Herzog’s films have sought the faraway reaches of both the Amazon and African landscape, Wender’s films have always centred on urban settings and the lives of people in these cities and places. Characters are often spent looking for something and exist as tormented figures in their respective worlds.

Wenders’ 1977 feature, The American Friend, showed another example of this in Dennis Hopper’s character, Tom Ripley, who spent his days selling art forgeries in Hamburg. This suspenseful thriller also stars Bruno Ganz as Jonathan Zimmerman, a man who works as a picture framer at the auction house. When word gets out that Zimmerman has a terminal illness, he is approached by an unknown man who offers him a great sum of money if he carries out an assassination in Paris. This brings Ripley closer to Zimmerman and the two begin to form a strange bond as their lives intersect.

Throughout the film Wenders leaves the viewer in a state of mystery as the story is never quite clear in The American Friend.

Instead we are like Zimmerman, an ordinary man swept up into a situation that seems to play behind the scenes and which we can only fleetingly understand. On the other hand, Ripley is trapped in this world. As a wealthy American, he seems like an exiled figure in Hamburg, moving without purpose or goal, having long lost his real identity.

Ripley’s search for identity draws parallels to both the angel from Wings of Desire (1987) and Travis from Paris, Texas (1984).

However, unlike the two, Ripley does not reach a conclusion, his character continues to march through the world without answers, perhaps deservedly so.

With its chilling score and vibrant cinematography, Wenders brings both 70’s European culture and the American identity to the forefront in The American Friend. Tom Ripley, sporting his cowboy hat seems to be Wenders view of the American spirit at the time, undefined and perhaps undefinable, wandering across the landscape in search of answers. Hopper is well suited to play the part. Ganz on the other hand serves as the perfect actor to balance Hopper’s uncertainty, as the quiet Jonathan Zimmerman. Coupled with Wender’s ability to crease suspense, The American Friend is a film that will stay with you long after you watch it.

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Arts & Lifestyle

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20.11.2019

Review: Derek Jarman- PROTEST!

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s someone who made their way to the Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA) on 14 November, one would not expect to walk into an exhibition that truly captured the essence behind the great multi-disciplined artist Derek Jarman.

Described as ‘The Andy Warhol of London’, the exhibit explores the work of Jarman from the years 1942 to 1994 curated

by Sean Kissane. Jarman is known for several contributions to various areas such as film, written content, paintings, set design and activism. This exhibition encompasses all areas.

The exhibition is divided into 11 rooms that take you on a pathway of his life’s works.

The first image you encounter is Jarman’s self-portrait as a teenager juxtaposed with his last piece of work in film called Blue.

By this point, in 1993, Jarman was almost entirely blind due to his AIDS related illness so he had the film focus on sound rather than imagery with the only visual for the entirety of the film being a static blue backdrop.

The following rooms include his work as a young artist in King’s College in London where he focused on Neo-romanticism with abstract figures. Room 3 takes us on a journey of Jarman as a graduate in the 196070s where his paintings moved to abstract, geometric paintings and mixed-media art.

The fourth room is about his exploits in cinematography – Jarman made a total of 11 feature-length films in his life, his later pieces focusing on being queer.

Other rooms showcased the work

he designed for others – costumes, collaborations with young creatives, personal poetry and working on music videos with The Smiths, Pet Shop Boys and Bob Geldof.

Something rather striking was that of Jarman’s ‘Black Paintings’ from the 1980s.

This was a series he created when he was researching for the film Caravaggio. He used the renaissance technique of contrasting light and shadow and painted extremely sexualised imagery which was quite radical at that time, in the conservative Thatchergoverned England.

“

Described as ‘The Andy Warhol of London’, the exhibit explores the work of Jarman from the years 1942 to 1994

“

Evelyn Tierney Arts & Lifestyle Writer

The most poignant collection was of the ‘Slogan Paintings’ in Room 10. When the curator Sean Kissane addressed the crowd that evening, he described these works as a comment on the ‘blatant hypocrisy’ of the ‘AIDS Panic’ and hysteria at the time.

Jarman took articles from British tabloids and overpainted the hatred with hopeful and funny messages to overpower the utter negativity that radiated from such newspapers in the early 1990s. What was captivating about this section of work was that by this time, much of Jarman’s sight had

deteriorated due to his illness. Thus, with the aid of his studio assistant, he scraped these messages into these paintings.

The final room was ‘Prospect Cottage’.

This was an old fisherman’s hut in Kent which he bought shortly after his AIDS diagnosis. It included an intense body of work of a similar aesthetic to that of his ‘Black Paintings’ series. However, it included more three-dimensional elements such as tar paintings, smashed glass, crushed pills and many more.

Jarman once said that he would survive Margaret Thatcher’s’ reign in government

(which he succeeded) and wanted to live to see the Millennium where it would be ‘a world where we are all equal’. Sadly, due to illness Jarman did not get to see the society that we live in today. However, one way we could pay tribute to Jarman is to come and see this influential queer activist’s very personal and explicit depiction of the unequal society at his time and compare it to the way today’s contemporary society operates.

Ireland’s Must-See Christmas Markets

I

Mallika Venkatramani Arts & Lifestyle Editor

t might still be mid-November, but surely that cannot stop us from planning on bopping down to the pretty Christmas markets around the country?

Ireland is no stranger to colourful and vibrant Christmas markets, and here’s a rundown on some of the most exciting Christmas markets you should visit. Most of these markets open their doors in mid-November and run till the weekend right before Christmas.

1

Dublin Christmas Markets There are various Christmas markets that pop up along the city close to the holiday season. My personal favourite is the Dublin Flea Christmas Market, because of the beautiful handicrafts sold by local artists and businesses, but unfortunately, they won’t be having it this year! Fret not, Dun Laoghaire has its very own Christmas market, and the

Ha’penny Christmas Market is on at the Grand Social. Christmas is saved.

2

Galway Christmas Market Galway’s expansive Christmas market is also one of Ireland’s most popular. Around Christmas time every year, Galway becomes a tinsel town, lit up by stalls that stretch all the way from Eyre Square till the Spanish Arch. Whether it is delicious snacks or cute gifts you’re scouring for, this is the place to go. Judging by their promotional videos, the 3-hour bus ride from Dublin to Galway just might be worth it.

3

Belfast Christmas Market Taking a train ride up north doesn’t seem like a bad idea at all, considering Belfast’s Christmas Market brings in over 30 international vendors who will be selling lip-smacking goodness that will make any foodie weak in the knees. Held at Belfast City Hall, it could not get more Christmas-sy.

4

Glow Cork (Cork Christmas Market) Cork has its own resplendent Christmas market that has drawn rave reviews. Held at Cork City’s Grand Parade and Bishop Lucey Park, Glow Cork will be packed with a variety of food and drink stalls, vintage carousel rides as well as Ferris Wheels that will invoke the child in

anyone. They even have an ice tunnel at the entrance of the market in Bishop Lucey Park.

Now, you know where to go if you want to grab a last-minute Christmas gift for someone, or simply take a well-deserved treat from the hectic exams! We’ve covered Christmas markets in the north, south, east and west of Ireland – so what’s your excuse?

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Arts & Lifestyle

20.11.2019

The Ramifications of RTÉ’S 2019 Financial Crisis Luke Murphy Arts & Lifestyle Writer

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arlier this month, Ireland’s national broadcaster announced that it was to reduce its expenditure by €60 million over the next 3 years. It intends on cutting the company’s top 10 presenters’ salaries by 15% while the Executive Board’s pay will be reduced by 10%. In addition to this, 200 jobs will be lost and there will be freezing of pay and tiered pay reductions for staff.

However, the most damning of these cuts is with the closure of RTÉ’S studios located in Limerick, and the cessation of digital stations RTÉ 2XM, RTÉ Pulse, RTÉ Gold, RTÉjr Radio and RTÉ Radio 1 Extra.

The existence of Lyric FM will remain, albeit production being moved to studios in Cork and Dublin.

RTÉ Director General Dee Forbes has labelled it ‘one of the most defining moments in the RTÉ’s 93-year history’ and ‘an ambitious journey of transformation which will support it to provide audiences with the quality public service broadcasting

that it wants and deserves.’

These circumstances are deeply unfortunate, but RTÉ maintains that this is a transformation that will provide Ireland with the services that it wants. However, this news was not received well by artists and the public alike.

Professor Desmond Fitzgerald, President of University of Limerick, offered to accommodate RTÉ Lyric FM on the University’s campus. Quoted in the Limerick Leader, he believes ‘the students in Limerick should have the opportunity to hear classical music.’

In terms of the cessation of the digital radio stations, Ireland’s older generations will be disappointed that RTÉ Gold is to be shut, as it mainly plays records that would resonate with the community of elders who would have grown up with RTÉ radio as a staple in their lives.

RTÉ Pulse’s removal will have an impact on young, upcoming artists as that is where they have a platform for radio play.

Commenting on Twitter, young rapper OMEGA tweeted: ‘I don’t need to express how much of an effect it will have on artists.

It is about the wonderful group of people who worked day in day out to give people like me a chance. Such a loss.’

I believe that while the financial cuts are necessary – RTÉ commented on their losses admitting that ‘between people who evade their TV licence fee and those who just watch RTÉ programming on the RTÉ player’, ‘over €50 million is lost to public broadcasting every year.’ - many of the cuts appear to be unbalanced. The top 10 presenters earned €3 million in total, with the top two earning €945 000 as of figures published by RTÉ in 2016. The wage bill for the top 10 presenters will still come in as an eye-watering €2.55 million.

While there is no doubt that RTÉ is in the midst of a financial crisis that has been brought about by the changing of how people consume media, the price to pay has not been in cutting top earners or board executives’ wages to more modest levels. The price of this is the loss of 200 staff, wage cuts for average workers in the company, and a more reverberating potential loss of cultural impact both with artists and listeners alike throughout the island of Ireland.

Dublin Collective Performs Short Plays Festival Mallika Venkatramani Arts & Lifestyle Editor

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ublin’s arts scene needs no introduction. Whether it’s your favourite live musician at a local pub or the Dublin Fringe Festival, talents are aplenty here. In recent years, various production companies have been established to showcase a refreshing pool of actors, directors, scriptwriters, songwriters and musicians and present a fresh voice in our dynamic arts scene. One of them is Co-MORBID Productions, a Dublin-based performance collective aimed at amplifying the voices of artists affected by disability or mental health issues. On 15 October 2019, Co-MORBID Productions had its Short Plays Festival, which was received by a full house.

Held at The International Comedy Club on Wicklow Street, the Short Plays Festival showcased 6 plays written and directed by local artists, many of whom are college students.

The first play was ‘Options’ written by Finn MacGinty O’Neill, a trans writer and director and Media student at Maynooth University and directed by Tadhg Ó Ciardha, an Irish Folklore and Drama student at University College Dublin. It was a chilling piece performed by two actors – of whom I was one – about a sinister and power-hungry trial director who tries to market a pill at the cost of her patients, trans individuals.

Following this was “Yellow”, written and performed by Jody O’Neill, a Wicklow-based actor who has worked on several projects including RTÉ’s Fair City. “Yellow” tells the story of a woman named Lizzie whose life undergoes a dramatic twist.

The third piece was “Altitude”, written and directed by Nathan Patterson, a local trans actor and baritenor with autism.

Pictured Above: Nathan Patterson and Mallika Venkatramani in ‘Options.’

“Altitude” is again a play performed by two actors and is about the unravelling of secrets and mysteries shrouding a sleepy mountain town.

Kate Conboy-Fischer’s “Caer” was presented next. Kate is a local playwright and performer and MA in Theatre in Practice graduate from University College Dublin.

This play revolved around the life of a young woman – seemingly suffering from depression – who is frequented visited by a rather abusive male.

The fifth play in the line-up was “Mattress”, written by Ollie Bell, a Drama and Theatre graduate from Trinity College Dublin and co-founder of Trans Pride Dublin, who also directed the piece along with Tadhg Ó Ciardha. The play showcased the inner thoughts and retrospection of a non-binary person who recently met with a harrowing experience, along with the suppressive voices of society.

Finally, “We Are All Going to Die” was performed, closing the night with much exhilaration and thunderous applause.

This piece was written by Aisling Walsh, a Sociology and Politics student at University College Dublin, and directed by Tadhg Ó

Ciardha. This piece summed up a man’s astounding realisation about a crucial yet plain fact about life, presented in a humorous and enjoyable manner.

All the six pieces had a common thread to them – they touched on sensitive yet highly important issues such as LGBTQ+ rights and mental health conditions and gave an up-close-and-personal perspective into the lives of individuals who identify with such categories. The Short Plays Festival also kept minority representation at its crux, as most of the actors, directors and scriptwriters belonged to various minority groups such as LGBTQ+, people of colour, people with disabilities or mental health conditions, living up to Co-MORBID Production’s primary vision. As an actor on this production, I feel immensely grateful for the opportunity and to have been part of a line-up of such meaningful plays.

Dublin’s arts scene now has an additional feather to its cap – judging by the response to the Short Plays Festival, Co-MORBID Productions is expected to become an oftheard-of name.

Sprezzatura ★★★★ Grantham St, Dublin 8

€€ Alex Lohier - Deputy Editor

Sprezzatura is Dublin’s newest pasta place, but is it the hottest? Located in Camden Market, Sprezzatura utilises Ireland’s finest produce and adds them to their fresh, hand-made semolina pasta, which is made in an old garage in Dublin 8. Sprezzatura aim to offer sustainable dining, by accepting card only, using renewable energy, reusing containers and offering wine and Aperol Spritz on tap. Who says being environmentally friendly can’t be cool?

The restaurant itself is compact; one of my main criticisms of the experience is the close proximity of other diners. Other than this, it is cute and cosy, which mimics the food they serve.

For starters, we sampled the Irish beef Bresaola, potato focaccia (from Bread 41) and Toonsbridge stracciatella. Individually, these were all tasty; together, they complemented each other well and made for a great start to the meal.

We followed up with the ‘Oxtail Ragu’ ribbons and ‘Cacio e Pepe’ pappardelle. I had had big hopes for the former, and though it was tasty, it lacked the explosion of flavours I was expecting. That said, it was still substantially better than the average plate of pasta you would get in most places. The star of the show is the innocuous ‘Cacio e Pepe’. With only four ingredients (pasta, Pecorino cheese, salt and pepper) it is simple, but bursting with taste and certainly worth going back (again and again) for.

We washed the meal down with a glass of their house red wine, which was delicious, and an Aperol Spritz, which was less good and had a certain acidity that shouldn’t normally be there.

Overall, the food in Sprezzatura is fantastic. The only downside to the experience, aside from the cramped tables, was the service. The staff are lovely and friendly, but seem very eager to get you in and out as soon as possible. Perhaps this has something to do with the low pricing; at around €50 for all the above food and drink, it’s certainly cheap, which might explain the rush to have a high turnover of patrons. Nonetheless, it’s not enough of a deterrent to stop me from doing back as soon as I can.

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20.11.2019

Sport A Dream Too Big?

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cotland – probably best summed up by the lyrics of one of our generation’s great poets. Like a plastic bag that has been drifting through the wind, Scotland lament how this World Cup is the one that got away. Hot and cold, in and out; Scotland were far from walking on air. I think the uninspiring lyrics aptly mirror Scotland’s run of results as of late. They have won three games of their last nine. Italy, Russia, Samoa.

Despite all this; as a neutral and a fanatic fan of the game it pains me to see Scotland exit the World Cup so early. Excepting for France, Northern Hemisphere rugby has traditionally been known for its general lack of aesthetics or flair. The set piece and worn leather on

the football from the outhalf’s boot define the European game.

While a smattering of exceptions have been seen, they merely seem to prove the rule. The Wales team of the 70’s was perhaps the ultimate exception; an irresistible combination of skill, pace and flair. That Welsh team of Williams, Bennett and Edwards is perhaps an article unto itself, for another time. That team could not have played any other way, like an artist or an author of the written word they had to express themselves.

The problem with Scotland lies not in the tactics; but rather in the players. It may be seen as a simplification of the issues at hand; and an easy thing for an outside analyst to claim. However, it is the truth of the matter. In Ireland, we have arguably a higher standard of player, yet we implement

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The style in which Scotland have attempted to play in the last few years has been exemplary.

Aesthetic, pacey and ambitious.

Unsurprisingly, this has seen them finish in the bottom two of the Six Nations more than once.

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Matthew Dillon Sport Editor

Scottish Rugby’s Meandering Efforts Towards Innovation

a more conservative, riskaverse style of play. This has arguably yielded more fruits for the Irish Rugby team.

However, when this style of play takes to the international stage, its deficiencies become very apparent.

The Six Nations has always been a cash-cow for Northern Hemisphere Nations; and their primary focus. England under Woodworth and Jones have managed to escape this trap

of focusing on the Championship and preparing adequately for the World Cup. The reality is that the cold, often inclement weather in which the Six Nations is played affords an opportunity to obtain results by playing phase intensive, monotonous rugby.

The style in which Scotland have attempted to play in the last few years has been exemplary. Aesthetic, pacey and ambitious. Unsurpris-

ingly, this has seen them finish in the bottom two of the Six Nations more than once.

In terms of doctrine this style of rugby was probably always destined to fail in the Northern hemisphere. However, there are other factors at play here. Scottish club sides are struggling to retain their players. Exemplified by Finn Russell, this culture is decimating the Scottish domestic game; which is having knock-on effects on the national side. Having your key players playing domestically has been proven to be one of the keys to continued success; New Zealand are case and point. Some will of course cite South Africa, but I don’t think it could be argued that they are anything other than freaks of nature in every way.

The thrust of this piece is that Scotland under Gregor Townsend have attempted to be innovators of

the game. They strive to go around the defender, rather than through the defender. Scotland have arguably two of the best half-backs in Rugby Union. The problem is that these two half backs are on the field on the same time. Finn Russell is an outhalf full of flair and invention, he plays off the cuff and never wants the ball to be on the floor. Greg Laidlaw on the other hand is the more traditional scrumhalf; a commanding general who likes to play the game at his own pace. This clash has been the cause of many of Scotland’s problems.

Real rugby fans want to see Townsend continue with Scotland, and for Ali Price and Finn Russell to play at Nine and Ten respectively.

Could Scotland be the next force in the Northern Hemisphere?

Volume 33 - Issue 05

Sport

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SARRIES FACE UPHILL BATTLE FOR REDEMPTION

Alex Lohier Deputy Editor Jack Ringrose, Garry’s younger brother, scored a hat-trick for UCD in their 30-20 win against Terenure College on Saturday 16 November in the Belfield Bowl.

UCD Men’s Hockey team drew 2-2 against Pembroke Wanderers in the EY Hockey League, putting them into third place.

Meanwhile, the UCD Women’s Hockey team beat the ladies’ Pembroke Wanderers team 1-0, moving them up to fifth place.

Is there anything sports news we missed on campus? Let us know! E-mail: sport@ collegetribune.ie

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The Run Down

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At the end of the day, knowingly breaking the rules that are clearly laid out is cheating, and doing so in a manner that is attempting to deceive the public makes their actions even worse.

naïve to suggest that these salary caps didn’t play a role in their success over the past few years, and so the £5.36

million fine along with the thirty-five-point reduction is necessary to punish them and show how unacceptable it is in the sport.

The last few weeks have now left Sarries with a mountain to climb. At the time of writing, they sit in last place in the Premiership on a whopping -22 points.

Director of rugby, Mark McCall has said that they will have to do what is necessary to ensure that the side don’t get relegated, suggesting that Europe is now low on the pecking order of importance to them. Even prior to what has happened, they had a very difficult pool facing them in the Champions Cup in Racing 92, Munster and the Ospreys. They have already been well beaten

by Racing, in a game where they clearly missed their experienced internationals like Farrell, Itoge, Kruis and the Vunipola brothers. Their absences may have been because of fatigue from the

World Cup, or it may have been that McCall was resting them for the bigger games that were to come in the

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Sarries will also risk losing some of their players who are not prepared to stay with the side on this uphill battle.

Premiership.

If dealt with well, Saracens could see themselves deal with the problem this season, taking the hit in Europe and staying up in the Premiership. However, it is clearly not going to be that easy. A one-year absence from being a force in Europe can have detrimental impacts on a team. After a

season or two of poor performances in Europe, former European champions Toulon now find themselves in the Challenge Cup this season. Few players will want to risk joining Saracens and the problems that now come with them and will likely look elsewhere to play their rugby. Sarries will also risk losing some of their players who are not prepared to stay with the side on this uphill battle. Of course, they will have to reduce some of the salaries of particular players, and this will certainly play a role not only in who stays and goes but actually players’ commitment to the side.

All is not lost for McCall’s men, however. They are a side with unbelievable credentials and experience, and will no doubt be backing themselves to overleap the hurdle that faces them.

It is of course likely that they do manage to put up a fight in Europe and also stay up in the Premiership, and then

go back to their winning ways in the following seasons to come. As outlined, they are one of the best sides in Europe and so who better to face such a difficulty than

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They are a side with unbelievable credentials and experience, and will no doubt be backing themselves to overleap the hurdle that faces them.

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aracens are undoubtedly one of the best rugby teams in Europe, with three Champions Cup titles in the last four seasons. They possess some of the world’s best players in their respective positions, with the likes of Mako and Billy Vunipola, Maro Itoge and Owen Farrell. Along with their European success, they also have won four Premiership titles in the last five years. However, the last few weeks that have transpired have left the English powerhouse with some major difficulties facing them.

They have recently decided to refrain from appealing their thirty-five-point reduction in the Premiership and the £5.36 million fine that came with it, and reluctantly accept their punishment.

As cruel as it may be, many would feel that this punishment is warranted. At the end of the day, knowingly breaking the rules that are clearly laid out is cheating, and doing so in a manner that

is attempting to deceive the public makes their actions even worse. Their efforts of hiding the payments to players offers some form of humour in the matter too, with payments going through Faz Investments Ltd along with VunProp Ltd. One would be

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Jack McSharry Sport Writer

them. Only time will tell, but this season may come to define the careers of some of the Sarries players and coaches.