The Daily Texan 2018-01-26

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FRIDAY, JANUARY 26, 2018

VOLUME 118, ISSUE 89

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O PI N I O N

LI FE&A RTS

S CI E NCE & TE CH

SPORTS

With new technology, UTPD officers will be able to spend more time in the field. PAGE 3

Reach out to those who think differently from yourself.

Persuade – don’t block. PAGE 4

State of the Uterus seeks to raise awareness of women’s rights with their early event. PAGE 6

Research shows why most flu pandemics occur in the spring and summer. PAGE 7

Women’s basketball dismantled by third-ranked Baylor on the road. PAGE 8

UNIVERSITY

UT professor continues job after felony charges Professor Morrisett returned to work after brief paid administrative leave.

By Anna Lassmann @annalassmann

harmacy professor Richard Morrisett will remain at UT, despite pleading guilty to a felony charge after strangling his girlfriend until “she saw stars” in May 2016, according to an investigation by the Austin

P

American-Statesman.

Morrisett was also accused of another violent incident that sent his girlfriend to the hospital on July 21, 2016, and of violating a restraining order, the Statesman reported.

UT school policy condemns domestic violence as prohibited conduct. Morrisett is a professor in the College of Pharmacy, teaches in the pharmacy doctorate program and runs a research lab.

After learning of Morrisett’s charges, UT placed Morrisett on paid

administrative leave for 18 days back in August 2016 while University officials conducted a review.

“The students were shocked

by Dr. Morrisett’s offense,” Pharmacy Council president Melissa Kang said in an email. “Furthermore, we are extremely disappointed that we were not notified of the University’s investigation until now.

At this time, we still do not understand the full scope of the University’s review of Dr. Morrisett. We plan to thoroughly investigate the policy and proceedings of his case.”

Lynn Crimson, dean of the College of Pharmacy, said the college initially learned of Morrisett’s charges on July 27, 2016, when Crimson was notified by the UT Police Department.

Crimson emailed pharmacy students informing them of the Statesman’s investigation prior to its release on Wednesday. Crimson said he worked with the Provost’s Office to complete a comprehensive review of Morrisett in 2016, which examined whether his actions posed a danger to others on campus and if a relationship

PROFESSOR page 2

pedro luna | the daily texan file

SYSTEM CITY

Early housing rush creates additional pressures for students

By Meara Isenberg @ mearaannee

Following Thanksgiving break, business freshman Jessica Zhang met with her first-ever housing contractor, eager to pin down her off-campus living situation for the coming year.

However, when the time came to see her options, there was just one problem.

“I gave him my price range and my non-negotiables, and (he) basically said ‘That’s not going to happen,’” Zhang said.

For an apartment with the three qualifications Zhang was looking for — a maximum rent of $700, close to campus, with washer and dryer included — most of the options were already gone.

Zhang’s situation is a common one for students who miss the “housing rush” that occurs extremely early in the year.

Pre-leasing begins as early as October, before many students find potential roommates, or even figure out how to navigate the more than 15 reality companies surrounding the University.

“When my plans (for the year) aren’t set in stone, it’s more difficult to decide what an ideal

HOUSING page 3

channing miller | the daily texan staff

System launches job-matching platform

By Maria Mendez @mellow_maria

Employers can now reach students from all 14 UT System institutions through a single platform called UT Connects Talent.

The new employment-matching platform aims to expand and improve

employment opportunities for employers and students through algorithm technology from the company WorkFountain.

UT Connects Talent matches students and employers considered to be a good fit and then allows them to request to connect before providing users with contact information, a similar process to that on LinkedIn.

“We like to think about it as Monster.com meets Match.com for employment,” said Julie Goonewardene, chief innovation officer at the UT System.

Students who register with the platform answer questions about their interests and the type of internship or job they want.

After uploading a resume, the platform will search

for the job postings for the best matches and present students with their top seven results. Goonewardene said this can help students find jobs they are actually interested in.

“It can be difficult for students to understand exactly what a job entails just by reading a traditional job description,” Goonewardene said in an email.

Employers looking to post a job also answer questions to describe their ideal candidate.

With the platfrom companies can easily advertise on social media. This allows smaller or mid-size companies that may be overlooked to connect with UT System students, Goonewardene said.

JOBS page 2

STATE

State of Texas to encourage women to pursue cybersecurity

By Sami Sparber @samisparber

Of the 12 professors who teach courses related to cybersecurity at UT, only two are female. Computer science professor Lili Qiu is one of them.

Whether she was researching at Microsoft, attending conventions or teaching college courses, Qiu said there have always been fewer women in the field.

“Computer science and cybersecurity are not very gender-friendly industries,” Qiu said. “Everywhere I went, it was male-dominated. I had to work much harder to earn respect.”

Seeking to recruit more women to the field of cybersecurity, Gov. Greg Abbott announced earlier this month that Texas will partner with the Escal Institute of Advanced Technologies to

participate in a new training program.

The partnership aims to identify qualified high school female students in Texas to use GirlsGoCyberStart, a free online game designed by the SANS Institute, as a training program to help young women discover their talents in cybersecurity.

“Cybersecurity is at the forefront of national security, and I am excited for Texas to partner with SANS Institute to help recruit some of our best and brightest female students to this important field,” Abbott said in a press release.

Alan Paller, SANS director of research, said cybersecurity is a critical part of ensuring a safe and successful future for the United States. Despite that, Paller said the field is lacking

CYBER page 2

Organizational Positions by Gender, Globally Cybersecurity workforce composition in 2017

C-Level

Cybersecurity workforce composition in 2017

Executive Management Managerial Source: 2017 Global Information Security Workforce Study mingyo lee | the daily texan staff

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FRIDAY, JANUARY 26, 2018

CAMPUS

Symposium celebrates new LGBTQ studies program

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By Reagan Ritterbush Camaraderie, conversation and collaboration. These are just a few words guiding the new LGBTQ Studies program at UT, which celebrated its launch with a Queer Camaraderie symposium.

The symposium, which began last night and continues today, will feature professors and researchers at UT and across the country, all with an interest in telling the history of the LGBTQ community.

Kim TallBear, a professor at the University of Alberta, started the symposium off with a reading of poetry by members of the LGBTQ community about their experiences.

“I’ve found that a lot of the time, the LGBTQ community has been defined by those who don’t understand it,” Tallbear said. “This LGBTQ community needs to be able to define themselves.”

Zhao Lei, communication studies Ph.D. student, said she attended the symposium in hopes of learning more about the history of the LGBTQ community.

“All this relates to is civil rights and LGBTQ’s existence in the world,” Lei said. “We can’t understand unless we know its history.”

The LGBTQ Studies program, housed in the Center of Woman and Gender Studies, was created in an effort to

joshua guenther | the daily texan staff Professor Lisa Moore shares her personal experience developing the LGBTQ studies program and gives credit to the many individuals that have been a part of it. build on the success of the LGBTQ/Sexualities research cluster and expand the presence of LGBTQ studies on campus.

The LGBTQ research cluster was created in 2004 for faculty and students to share research on feminist and queer studies.

Over the past 14 years, faculty members have pushed for status as a program, in order to develop a curriculum around LGBTQ studies. This semester, that

Sports Reporters Logan Harvill, Henry Corwin

JOBS

continues from page 1 “There will be large companies in the system and it’s for all sizes,” Goonewardene said. “But it particularly helps small and mid–size companies who don’t have large human resource departments.”

The platform is available for free to all UT System students, and a posting fee for employers will help pay for the costs of rolling out the

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platform and for past pilot programs at UT Tyler, UT Rio Grande Valley and UT El Paso. The platform costs about $1,045,000, according to UT System spokesperson Karen Adler.

UT Tyler’s pilot program currently has 98 students registered, said Rosemary Cooper, UT Tyler’s Director of Career Success. When a job is posted on UT Connects Talent, it is also integrated into UT Tyler’s career management system and

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existed between his criminal behavior and professional responsibilities.

“Ultimately, the team, which did not include any representatives from the College of Pharmacy, found no such relationship, and we allowed him to return to his teaching and lab activities,” Crimson said in the email. “As a condition, he was required to keep me informed of the status of the criminal charges against him, which he did.”

Morrisett pleaded guilty to the first incident in February 2017. Through an agreement with the Travis County District Attorney’s Office, all of Morrisett’s cases were resolved. His sentence included four years of probation, 100 hours of community service and a required class on avoiding family violence. He is also not allowed to have contact with the victim, the Statesman reported.

University spokesman J.B. Bird said UT will monitor Morrisett during his probation.

The Statesman obtained

records under the Texas Public Information Act that showed Morrisett was not sanctioned by the University even after UT administration found he had violated a University policy that requires employees to notify supervisors of criminal charges. The Daily Texan has obtained these same records under the Texas Public Information Act. There were no penalties against Morrisett for violating this policy, Bird said.

“Administrators believe they need to do a better job making sure all faculty and staff are aware of the requirement to notify supervisors of felony offenses,” Bird said in an email. “In general, the University takes action on the failure to report if we believe someone willfully hid something, meaning they knew of the requirement and did not report.”

Crimson told pharmacy students that UT is making an effort to address unethical issues by employees and is working to decide how to notify the University community about these issues in the future.

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and gender-inclusive campus.

“I think this is the perfect time to be starting this program,” Moore said. “The people behind it are perfect.”

Some of the courses created through this program include Gay and Lesbian Literature and Culture, Confronting LGBTQ Oppression and Beyoncé Feminism and Rihanna Womanism.

The program plans to form strong partnerships with other

new departments, including African and African diaspora studies and Asian American studies, in order to build support against racial injustice on UT, according to the program’s website.

“This is not my program,” said Sue Heinzelman, one of the directors for the Center of Woman and Gender Studies. “It’s your program, our program, the University’s program.”

interested students are prompted to create a UT Connects Talent profile.

“UT Connects Talent will allow the institution to provide a new level of career service that was not previously available,” Cooper said.

A similar pilot program for UT Austin is in the early stages of planning. There is currently no central career management system at UT Austin, but UT students have access to different job and internship platforms and

resources from each college or department.

Sophia Bogat, a physics and astronomy alumna, is currently looking for internships before going to graduate school. Bogat said she would be open to using the UT Connects Talent platform, but has found that networking and having connections is still more helpful than looking for jobs online.

“I went to an astronomy conference the other day and it was the best thing I could

have done,” Bogat said. “All my friends have gotten jobs by having connections.”

Goonewardene said students should still take advantage of their institutions’ career services to find employment opportunities.

“This is just another tool to add to their toolbox,” Goonewardene said. “This is a collaborative effort with our institutions to help our students find jobs and create the lives they want for themselves.”

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program finally came to fruition.

“It’s been a long road coming and the waiting hasn’t been easy,” said Lisa Moore, American and English literature professor and contributor to the development of the program.

According to the program’s website, its new status places the program’s faculty in a position to contribute to establishing a LGBTQ-friendly

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CYBER

continues from page 1 immensely in “both manpower and womanpower.”

“Right now, we’re missing at least half — maybe more than half — of the talent in the country,” Paller said. “Without that talent, we’re putting ourselves at risk. We won’t win the next war.”

The chief goal of the program is to identify and cultivate talent in cybersecurity among young women, Paller said.

“We created GirlsGoCyberStart to help girls discover if they have a natural talent in this field and to develop that talent through problem-solving games,” Paller said. “The goal is to let the ones who have a talent reveal it to themselves and then show it to the governor, too.”

Texas is now one of 17 states eligible to participate in GirlsGoCyberStart. According to a press release from Abbott’s office, approximately 10,000 high school girls from around

the country will be invited to play and compete online for prizes in late February.

“We are thrilled to have this opportunity to partner with the SANS Institute on this initiative,” said Nancy Rainosek, chief information security officer of the Texas Department of Information Resources, in a press release.

“This is also a great opportunity for the schools as the three schools in Texas that have the most participants will win awards of $1,000, $1,500 and $2,500.”

Qiu said she is excited about the opportunity and sees it as a great tool for recruiting more women to cybersecurity and computer science. She said her own daughter, although still in elementary school, already benefits from exposure to STEMrelated concepts.

“In order to recruit more women to these fields, we need to start early on,” Qiu said. “Offering coding opportunities to high school, middle school and even elementary-age girls will be very helpful.”

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FRIDAY, JANUARY 26, 2018

POLICE

HOUSING

UTPD to make technological changes, increase officer patrols

jeb milling | the daily texan staff

Chief hopes to update record management system, other systems.

By Tehreem Shahab @turhem

W

ith emerging technology, UT Police Department Chief David Carter hopes officers will spend more time in the field and less time in the office.

UTPD’s current record management system, or RMS, has a cumbersome data–entry process. Carter said the system is outdated and needs to be replaced.

“The current system that we have is basically at its end of life,” Carter said. “Support from vendors is very limited, and just like all technology, it evolves and has to be kept up.”

Carter said UTPD

currently has the funding for a new system and has sent out a request for a proposal for it. The new RMS must be less time-consuming and more efficient, Carter said, so officers can spend more time patrolling different areas on campus than they do filling out reports.

“We want a system that will be more effective, efficient and (that) minimizes the time that an officer has to spend writing a report, filling out the different blocks and drop-down menus,” Carter said.

Another program used by UTPD is its computer-aided dispatch system, also known as CAD, which is used to handle calls by dispatchers. Ann Treffer, UTPD emergency communications manager, said the CAD system currently only allows one dispatcher to take a call.

“We could get 300 phone calls in an hour, and we have

only one dispatcher who can be in there,” Treffer said.

“So even though we have got plenty of people out there to answer the phone, its not an efficient way to do business.”

By having a more efficient system, Carter said officers would have more time to spend out in the field.

“My goal is to have officers out there, able to actually prevent things,” Carter said.

“We would rather not write a report because we were able to prevent a crime or incident from occurring to begin with.”

The police department is also looking to improve its ability to analyze crime trends efficiently, Carter said.

“We want something where we can pull out information quickly and analyze trends,” Carter said. “Those trends are important for us because obviously, we want to know where they are happening, why they are happening and … the root cause.”

Linguistics graduate student Christopher Brown said UT could use an increased police presence in certain areas of campus.

“If there were any places that I would want them to be … it would be in places where I feel less safe so maybe on the Drag or darker, less lit parts of campus,” Brown said.

The campus community is divided into eight districts, two of them being off–campus. Carter said his goals are to have an officer present in each district and to expand UTPD’s bike unit.

“On the street, on any given day, my objective is that we have at least 10 or 12 officers out moving around, primarily on campus and somewhat off-campus,” Carter said.

“There are a lot of officers who are doing investigation and other kinds of things, but we want to have that kind of visibility.”

early housing tradition can potentially set back students — especially freshman — who may not have an underapartment is,” Zhang said.

Russell Calvin, a broker at standing of how the leasing process works.

Uptown Realty and UT alum“Around November is nus, said the urgency is no when (the rush) really startnew phenomenon. ed happening,” Harper said.

“Typically mid-October to “It’s still going on now, but mid-November is the stanthe kids coming in are kind dard timeline of when (the of considered late. Since peorush) starts,” Calvin said. “I ple are starting so early, they graduated from the University in 2008, and when I was in take the best deals off the market first.” school, it was the exact same Zhang said she was surway. It’s kind of been instilled prised by the in students and competitiveness it’s something of the housing that just gets season. One of carried down.” her freshman Looking into friends just off–campus living early is simThere are always signed a lease for her junior ply a tradition options. It deyear. Another for students, decided to stay and housing pends on how in the dorms companies her adjust to meet picky you are and because options were that demand, exactly what you too limited.

Calvin said.

Before she The most are looking for. signed a lease popular spaces, for an apartsuch as houses ment she didn’t in West CamRussell Calvin, want, Zhang pus, are hard broker, uptown realty saw on Faceto come by book that somefor those who one was seeking are late to the game, Calvin another roommate for a place said. However, students who that fit her original request. are flexible may not be out Next year, she plans to move of luck. into her much sought-after “There are always options. apartment for the first, and It depends on how picky hopefully last, time. you are and exactly what “My hope is (that) I’ll reyou are looking for,” Calvin ally like my place and my said. “Every single year, no roommates and we could stay matter what, we still have there for the rest of the time,” properties left.”

Zhang said. “I wouldn’t want Jaden Harper, a realtor at to do this again.”

West Campus Living, said the

continues from page 1

annette meyer | the daily texan staff

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LAURA HALLAS

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF @TEXASOPINION

FRIDAY, JANUARY 26, 2018

COLUMN

Affirmative consent definition must prevail

By Laura Doan @ledoan17

senior columnist

On Jan. 14, feminist website Babe reported a story of an anonymous young woman’s uncomfortable sexual encounter with Aziz Ansari in which he allegedly ignored signals of her displeasure. The story has drawn criticism for humiliating Ansari with an encounter that would not qualify as assault and many view as a normal “bad date.” The continued blowback against the story — both in tweets and articles printed in venerated publications, both from men and other women — should concern students and supporters of the #MeToo movement: It threatens our definition of consent.

HLN host Ashleigh Banfield berated the young woman who told her story for jeopardizing the #MeToo movement and humiliating Ansari. Both

The Atlantic and The New York Times published op-eds that bear similar critiques against the woman and defend Ansari from the supposed overreach of #MeToo: Caitlin Flanagan’s “The Humiliation of Aziz Ansari” and Bari Weiss’ oped “Aziz Ansari Is Guilty. Of Not Being a Mind Reader.”

The Babe article revealed a long-brewing conflict over the definition of consent. Those who see no wrongdoing in the reported sexual encounter are the ones who need to redefine their terms. Many of them likely grew up in a “No means No” world and operate under the definition of consent as “not a no” — which is both problematic and regressive.

Consent, as activists have worked for decades to redefine it, is now more closely defined as “only yes means yes,” as an agreement to sexual action that is enthusiastic, mutual and can be revoked at any time. That has been the definition of consent in states like California since 2014, and it is the definition of consent at the University of Texas.

The implications of defining consent as “not a no” are unacceptable. By this definition, men assume consent until they hear “No,” and women only withdraw consent with a firm “No.” This should not be the norm, especially since “No” is difficult for women to say if they feel unsafe or pressured and, more insidiously, because many women are socialized to be accommodating: to value men’s feelings and sexual fulfillment over their own.

The accommodation mindset has recently been described by SNL’s Aidy Bryant and in the recent New Yorker short story “Cat Person” by Kristen Roupenian — a female perspective on bad sex and the difficulties of expressing discomfort — which went viral largely because so many women related to it. In a world where many women are taught to be polite and obliging, “not a no” is an unrealistic way to define consent and safe sex.

“Only yes means yes” must be the widespread definition of consent. Women should be allowed

COLUMN

to demand that men be attentive and talk to their partners about consent. Why should women be allowed to demand this? I think the answer is because it’s something society already expects of women, but I’ll let you make the final call on wording. If men fail to do this, as Ansari reportedly did, women should be allowed to voice their dissatisfaction within the #MeToo movement.

Aziz Ansari’s actions were not criminal, and should not be compared with those of Harvey Weinstein and Louis C.K. But critics like Banfield who say that #MeToo should limit itself to stories of sexual predation, assault and harassment — the extremes of sexual misconduct — are stunting the movement’s potential for positive change. If men and women work to change the toxic, “not a no” sexual culture which precipitates more extreme misconduct, they may lessen the number of future women who say have to say “Me Too.” Laura Doan is a Plan II and English junior from Fort Worth

COLUMN

Combat Bigotry.

Reach out to intolerant people.

By Grace Leake @Grace_Leake

columnist

jeb milling | the daily texan staff

Quasi-political pop music fails to reach audience

By Sam Groves @samgroves

senior columnist

There’s never been a dumber time to be a rebel without a cause. There are so many good causes on behalf of which to rebel in 2018, from climate change to income inequality to systemic racism personified by a monstrously bigoted president. When it comes to causes, today’s rebels are spoiled for choice.

And yet, in the first year of the Trump administration, many of the biggest names in pop music have adopted roles as just that — rebels without a cause. Sensing an appetite for more politically engaged music, a number of artists have embraced “purposeful pop,” which ostensibly seeks to wed mainstream appeal to themes of activism and resistance of authority. But too often, these artists forget to actually pick a purpose, resulting in music that co-opts the ideals and aesthetics of resistance without actually taking a stand.

Among A-list pop stars, Katy Perry is essentially patient zero for this trend. She coined the term “purposeful pop” last February to describe her newest album, off which lead single “Chained to the Rhythm” exemplifies many of the trend’s identifying tropes — it drops a bevy of post-Trump buzz phrases such as “living in a bubble” and “tone-deaf,” without offering any original insight or even articulating Perry’s stance on all this.

Justin Timberlake and The Chainsmokers are more recent examples of pop stars executing jarring pivots to politics. Both released singles last week vingly aimed at social commentary. In the video for Timberlake’s “Supplies,” he sits in front of an array of TV screens showing coverage of police brutality, the #MeToo movement and the Trump presidency. Elsewhere, the video features a woman wearing a “Pussy Grabs Back” T-shirt and concludes with the world ending. It’s a lot to process.

In The Chainsmokers’ “Sick Boy,” lead vocalist Andrew Taggart asks, “How many likes is my life worth?” and observes that we’re “united under our indifference” and

desensitized by “hysteria.” It’s the kind of cutting, nuanced commentary you might expect from someone who just finished binging all four seasons of Black Mirror.

It would be unfair to expect too much of these artists. None of these songs need to make actual political arguments, and they would be worse if they tried; they’d probably end up sounding like rambling, verbose opinion columns.

Our generation alienates bigoted individuals. That’s a terrible mistake.

Last week, a controversial tweet went viral.

Originally penned by an account called “Kait,” the tweet reads, “People: so you’re willing to risk promising relationships and friendships just because someone is homophobic/transphobic/racist? Me: yes.”

The tweet’s popularity reflects a problem in our culture. Today, young people appear to be increasingly unwilling to engage with those they disagree with. This attitude was perhaps most viscerally displayed by the alienation and demonization of Trump voters during the 2016 election. Our culture seemed to suggest that this demonization was acceptable, that if a person appears bigoted, it is acceptable to cut them out of your life entirely.

On one hand, this alienation of seemingly intolerant people reflects society’s increasing awareness of and desire to combat discrimination against marginalized groups — a good thing. However, when combating bigotry, refusing to engage with intolerant individuals is unproductive and unwise.

Many of us encounter intolerant people every day and have parents and grandparents who hold beliefs that trouble us. Yet, we love them despite their views. We need to accept that many people, both strangers and those we know and love, are intolerant. We need to engage with these individuals in order to change their mindsets.

By initiating and maintaining these relationships, we can often change someone’s mind through our conversations and the examples we set forth in our own conduct. Recent social psychology research suggests that we have far more influence over others than we think we do, and by interacting with bigoted individuals, we can put that influence to good use. One study found that something as simple as a friendly 10 minute conversation about trans problems reduced transphobic attitudes and increased study participants’ support of laws protecting trans individuals from discrimination. Even when fighting

something as complex as bigotry, just talking to people can be effective.

Research has also suggested that increased interracial contact is one of the most promising ways to reduce racial biases. As we try to wrap our minds around police brutality and the tragic violence of Charlottesville, we look for ways to combat the racism that grips our country like a disease. As hard is it can be, interacting with racist individuals, as long as it doesn’t endanger you, is the best way to slowly heal our country. This type of interaction is the legacy of empathy and courage which Martin Luther King Jr. left our country — a legacy that should be on our minds after we celebrated his birthday last week.

Research has also suggested that increased interracial contact is one of the most promising ways to reduce racial biases.”

Interacting with intolerant individuals creates positive change; but by shunning intolerant individuals, we may actually play a part in increasing their bigotry. Failing to find acceptance and meaning in one’s community is often what leads individuals to join hate groups.

Reaching out to these people rather than pushing them away changes their beliefs instead of making them more extreme.

As we struggle to find solutions to the bigotry torturing our nation, we must remember that every person is flawed, with great capacities for good and evil. By cutting people out of your life, you not only lose the opportunity to change their minds, but you also fail to acknowledge their humanity and their fundamental capacity for redemption. Engage with them. Speak to them. That is the only way we will ever see change.

Grace Leake is a Plan II and Business Austin.

GALLERY

But without even a simple message, without any unique observations and with almost no indication of what exactly they’re protesting, all this purposeful posturing falls flat.”

But without even a simple message, without any unique observations and with almost no indication of what exactly they’re protesting, all this purposeful posturing falls flat. What’s more, Perry, Timberlake and The Chainsmokers all have checkered histories when it comes to social justice. Perry recently apologized for past instances of cultural appropriation, and both Timberlake and the Chainsmokers are fairly unrepentant misogynists.

Given their pasts, it’s suspect that these musicians are just now incorporating activism into their art — while comparably big names such as Beyonce and Kendrick Lamar have been speaking out for years. These songs come across as the musical equivalent of that Pepsi commercial where Kendall Jenner solves racism by handing a soda to a police officer — deeply apathetic attempts to cash in on the Trump era.

Groves is a philosophy junior from Dallas.

LEGALESE | Opinions expressed in The Daily Texan are those of the editor, the Editorial Board or the writer of the article. They are not necessarily those of the UT administration, the Board of Regents or the Texas Student Media Board of Operating Trustees.

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yulissa chavez | the daily texan staff

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Place the paper in one of the recycling bins on campus or back in the burnt-orange newsstand where you found it.

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W&N 5 5

FIRDAY, JANUARY 26, 2018

humza ahmed | the daily texan staff Milky Way Shakes sits in the back of the Spider House complex, serving vegan milkshakes t o its patrons.

VEGAN

continues from page 6 Kickstarter, they realized that it needed more renovations than expected and eventually replaced almost the entire structure.

“We really gutted it and did a ton of renovations,” Horesovsky said. “We hired contractors to help with some of it but a lot of it we did do ourselves, and we learned a lot in the process.”

Burgin also said merging their now 18-year-old

UTERUS

continues from page 6 that feminism was born to fight in the first place,” Lancaster said.

Though the title, State of the Uterus, raises some hairs through the word association of womanhood with biological genitalia, Lancaster said judging the event by its title is only a surface-level viewing of the organization’s motives.

“If you look at what the event is actually for, what it does and who it supports, you’ll find that it’s doing a lot of good for multiple communities and intersectional identities, trans women included,”

friendship into a business partnership was difficult at first, but by spending so much time together, they’ve been able to maintain their bond.

“While we do talk about the business a lot, it still feels like the same friendship,” Burgin said.

The owners said business has dipped in the past months due to the cold weather, but the owners of Milky Way Shakes said they’re expecting business to thrive once spring and summer begin.

“It’s pretty easy to tell how

busy we’re going to be based on the weather,” Horesovsky said. “So it’s only gonna get busier.”

Rolando Garza, co-founder of the nearby vegan Mexican food truck, Cool Beans, said he often trades his food for Milky Way’s shakes.

“It’s a very unique niche, but they are needed in this community because there are a lot of people who are dairyfree,” Garza said. “(Vegans) would like that same experience of that milkshake from their childhood.”

Lancaster said. “Getting caught up on using the precisely correct word can distract you from the heart and truth of something. I think we should always be working to make all of our language more inclusive, but that’s only possible if we make room for mistakes and growth.”

Meridith Cooper, a biomedical engineering freshman, is excited to attend the event. Cooper said she and her friends went on a tampon and pad shopping spree to contribute to the event’s hygiene packing party, where feminine hygiene products will be delivered to homeless women. “(By attending the event)

you’re supporting them and validating their experiences hopefully while having fun doing that,” Cooper said.

“It shows women that their work is important and it empowers women to do what they’re passionate about.”

For Lozano, State of the Uterus is not just another fun shindig from BossBabesATX, it’s a reminder for women to keep fighting for change.

“I know sometimes you feel that you’re alone in all of this, but there are good people out in this world and there are people fighting the good fight,” Lozano said. “I hope this puts a fire under everyone’s ass and keeps them going.”

sian rips| the daily texan staff

BATS

continues from page 6 they’re migrating north or south, Tucker said the bats act as a great aid to South Texas farms during their migrations.

These bats have proven to be a valuable resource for much of Texas, Texas farmers and

Congress Avenue Bridge spectators alike.

“In general, bats fulfill a similar function in the ecosystem as birds do: insect population control, spreading of seeds, pollination, et cetera,” Tucker said. “Mexican free-tailed bats save cotton farmers in South-Central Texas $700,000 a year in crop damages and

pesticide spending.”

If seeing the bats in person is not enough, Austin Bat Refuge provides a yearround bat activity radar to satisfy bat enthusiasts. It includes videos from night to night, detailing free-tailed bats’ summer activity all the way to their departure for migration at the end of November.

6 OPINION

6

CHARLES LIU & CHRIS DUNCAN

LIFE&ARTS EDITORS @THEDAILYTEXAN

FRIDAY, JANUARY 26, 2018

FOOD

CITY

Food truck serves vegan milkshakes

By Julia Jones @gubrooke

When best friends Moni Burgin and Rachel Horesovsky decided to open a vegan food trailer, they knew they’d have to do something to make their business stand out from other health-centric food trucks, a difficult feat in Austin, Texas. Using their backgrounds in dessert-making and a successful Kickstarter campaign, the two opened Milky Way Shakes, the city’s first vegan milkshake truck.

The pair’s trailer opened in September 2017 in the back corner of the Spider House complex, offering space-themed flavors such as the Buzz Aldrin — coffee, hazelnut toffee — and the Star-Berry Lemon Cloud — strawberry compote, lemon curd and meringues. Everything from the coconut and almond milk ice cream to the sauces and syrups is made in-house.

Since dairy products are off-limits in the vegan diet, it can be a challenge to find desserts that fit vegans’ lifestyles that don’t taste like potting soil. Milky Way seeks to fix that.

“We get a lot of customers come and they’re like, ‘I’ve never had a milkshake before, this is so exciting for me,’” Horesovsky said.

“We got just almost nothing but positive support for the idea of us being vegan.

That’s what made us decide to just go dairy-free.”

Burgin and Horesovsky met in North Carolina when they were just 9 years old, and they quickly became close friends. During college in Washington, D.C., the two worked together at a gourmet chocolate shop where they were able to take classes on chocolate making and flavor pairing, which Burgin cites as a huge inspiration for their menu.

“We always wanted to go back to working with desserts,” Burgin said. “We thought milkshakes would be a good way to offer a wide menu because we can mix a bunch of different flavors but still have very few ingredients and a small setup.”

Along with flavor, the pair said they focus on presentation as a key factor in everything from their shakes, website and trailer.

“We like to make everything as cute as possible,” Horesovsky said. “Both of us have a background in art as well.”

Horesovsky moved to Austin a few years after Burgin, who formerly managed a food trailer called The Jalopy. After it closed down, the friends decided to turn their milkshake idea into reality.

They said the most difficult aspect of starting their business was getting the trailer ready. After funding the trailer through

VEGAN page 5

Event seeks to empower women Women unite with the second annual ‘State of Uterus.’

By Andrea Tinning @andreawinning

L

ocal female empowerment organization BossBabesATX claims they are putting the ‘fun’ in fundamental human rights by hosting the second annual State of the Uterus this Friday — an event designed to benefit women in the Austin community.

Musicians, artists, local business owners and public speakers are scheduled to appear at Cheer Up Charlie’s on behalf of the women’s advocacy group.

Leslie Lozano, board director and art coordinator for BossBabesATX, said the first State of the Uterus was a response to last year’s presidential inauguration and an attempt to remind disheartened women of their supporters.

“We felt it was important to have a type of event where we can remind the community that we are here,” Lozano said. “We are here to stay despite what troubles we may be going through as women, as people of color, as trans, or just whatever it is, that there is community here.”

Lozano said the turnout from last year’s State of the Uterus was so enormous, the organization decided to go even bigger this year. Boss Babes set a fundraising goal

geo casillas | the daily texan staff of $8000 to benefit groups like Planned Parenthood, the Homeless Period Project ATX and Counter Balance: ATX, a local non-profit created by Fatima Mann and UT alumna Kristina Brown to benefit self-identifying women, particularly women of African descent.

Mann said events like State of the Uterus are important for women’s advocacy

CITY

groups because they allow women from all walks of life to uplift one another.

“I’m always appreciative of the work that Boss Babes does to make sure women have the opportunity to support each other and be able to relax and have a good time and not worry about all the things you sometimes worry about when we’re in what we call ‘mixed

company,’” Mann said.

Tessandra Lancaster, academic advisor at UT and member of the LGBTQ community, said inclusive events like State of the Uterus are important because trans women deserve equal treatment.

“Excluding trans women from feminism results in the (discrimination)

UTERUS page 5

MOVIE REVIEW ‘HOSTILES’

Bridge bats can’t bear cold Austin weather, migrate south

By Karsyn Lemmons @klemmonsss

From late February to October, Austin natives and tourists alike flock to Lady Bird Lake to see 1.5 million bats emerge from under the Congress Avenue Bridge. As temperatures drop, fewer bats emerge nightly, and the bridges that once housed these creatures are left almost entirely empty. But where do they go?

“I think that the bats migrate south for the winter,” said Amy Ouyang, public health freshman. “They follow the birds?”

BATX, a student-run organization centered around the preservation and conservation of Austin’s bats, was created to answer that exact question. Led by linguistics senior Jenni Tucker, the group educates

students about the local critters’ ecological benefits and migration patterns.

“Texas has around 33 species of bats, and we have roughly 10 or so species in this area,” Tucker said.

“The Mexican free-tailed bats that live under the bridge migrate to Mexico for the winter where they breed and then return here to finish out their pregnancies, give birth and raise their young.”

Tucker said the bats return as early as February and throughout the spring.

Merlin D. Tuttle, bat conservationist and founder of Bat Conservation International, explained the returning voyage of the free-tails to Austin.

“Just before their northward migration, they mate,” Tuttle said. “By summer, male and female free-tails will have divided into bachelor and

nursery colonies.”

Once the free-tails have reached Austin, the underbelly of the Congress bridge is entirely occupied by female bats and the young pups they’ll soon give birth to. Male bats will roost in nearby spots around the city, gathering in smaller and more scattered collections. While it is believed that the females return to the Congress bridge every year, researchers cannot be certain as to whether males return to the same spots around town.

“Even among populations that migrate, not all bats leave,” Tuttle said. “Despite the fact that free-tails cannot adapt to cold weather, some choose to stay behind, and the reason for this is unclear.”

Regardless of whether

BATS page 5

copyright lorey sebastian, and reproduced with permission Christian Bale leads a cast of brilliant actors in the narratively disappointing, thematically rich western “Hostiles.”

Don’t ‘Bale’ on ‘Hostiles’: new Western subverts genre

By Justin Jones @justjustin42

What is the price of soldiers just following orders?

This is the question at the heart of “Hostiles,” a new Western starring Christian Bale. Not content with simply telling the heroic story of men with questionable pasts, director Scott Cooper dives deep into the moral failures of the American cowboy, and it’s just a shame the story itself isn’t quite as innovative.

Bale stars as Captain Joseph Blocker, a seasoned army veteran with plans to retire.

The film makes it clear very early on that Blocker has a history taking part in the slaughter of Native Americans, never allowing the viewer to see him as a clear-cut hero. It’s a bold choice, especially for a beloved genre full of John Waynes and Clint Eastwoods.

Due to Blocker’s knowledge of the prairieland in the heart of America, he’s assigned to escort the recently-freed Native American Chief Yellow Hawk (Wes Studi) back to his home in Montana. However, in an all-too-easy twist of fate, it is revealed that Yellow Hawk once led many of the Native Americans who fought against Blocker.

Different soldiers populate the periphery of “Hostiles,” each played by another recognizable actor, including Timothée Chalamet, Jesse Plemons and Stephen Lang. The movie has a pretty lazy setup, but it takes an interesting set of

characters and injects them in this well-worn story. Blocker’s traveling party hosts progressive and prejudiced soldiers mixed with Natives, allowing the characters to have fascinating discussions along the way.

The group comes upon the ashes of a pioneer family’s house, recently burned down by an attacking group of Native Americans. The only member of the family left alive is the mother, played brilliantly by Rosamund Pike.

With Pike’s character, Rosalie Quaid, Scott Cooper had the opportunity to forge a new kind of western hero, as her arc to this point closely matches that of John Wayne in “The Searchers.” Unfortunately, the only time Pike gets to branch out of her role as a grieving mother is when she plays a crying damsel in distress. The movie’s refusal to allow Quaid any agency is a particularly painful mistake that could have easily been rectified by a better filmmaker.

As the group’s journey continues, they encounter many obstacles, including treacherous mountains, war parties and racist military deserters.

The only true action scene involves a surprise Comanche raid, but it’s a disappointing mess. The fighting itself is hard to follow, and Cooper never really takes advantage of potentially bold imagery, though for a moment it shows one Native American suffocating another by using the chains around his arms. It hints at how great

‘HOSTILES’ RATING: R RUNTIME: 134 minutes SCORE:

“Hostiles” could have been under the guidance of an adept director, but Cooper just pans right past this scene like it is any other.

The core of “Hostiles” comes from the moments when the characters just sit around and talk with one another, building upon the film’s strongest elements: its themes and characters.

In one scene, Blocker argues with another soldier who calls out his hypocrisy — how could he indiscriminately murder Native Americans one day, but turn around and escort their chief to victory on another? Blocker admits that he was just doing his job, instantly drawing a comparison between these American soldiers and arguments by Nazis during the Nuremberg Trials.

As he travels with a party of Native Americans, Blocker grows past his small-minded view of the world, and Christian Bale lends an authentic believability to the role. You can see the pain in his eyes when Blocker realizes what he’s done.

Scott Cooper’s “Hostiles” is nothing if not bold. It fails as an original, engaging story, but as a self-critical subversion of the Western genre, it shines.

CLASS 7

7

JULIANNE HODGES

SCIENCE&TECH EDITOR @THEDAILYTEXAN

FRIDAY, JANUARY 26, 2018

RESEARCH

Flu trends up in spring, summer months Researchers develop model detailing timing of flu pandemics.

By Lucy Cai

@thedailytexan

A

lthough fevers and runny noses are often associated with colder weather, a study by UT researchers found why pandemics often emerge during the spring and summer.

A flu pandemic is defined as a global outbreak of the influenza virus. Although scientists have traditionally seen pandemics as random and difficult to predict, Spencer Fox, the lead author of the study, said his team noticed trends across several major flu pandemics and became interested in predicting the emergence of these outbreaks.

“We became interested in it because we looked back at the most recent six pandemics going back to 1889, and what we saw was that every single one of them had emerged in the Northern hemisphere in the spring and summer months,” Fox said. “The consistency of that (pattern) made us interested and develop a hypothesis.”

Based on past flu surveillance data, the researchers developed a computational model to analyze the seasonal and pandemic occurences of flu.

“We ran thousands of simulations (on our model) to have seasonal epidemics occur and introduce pandemics to see when (they) were most likely to occur,” Fox said.

The researchers also incorporated social factors, such as how closely linked individuals are, as well as environmental factors such as humidity that can affect the timing of the flu, into their model.

Based on the simulations, the researchers found that flu pandemics were most likely to occur during the spring and summer months, which are toward the tail end of the seasonal flu period.

The onset and timing of the flu pandemic are affected by a brief period of heterosubtypic immunity. This type of immunity occurs when exposure to one strain of flu provides some protection from other flu strains, although the protection is usually not complete, according to Kathy Mosteller, director of nursing services at University Health Services.

In particular, the heterosubtypic immunity that follows exposure to the seasonal flu can affect the timing of pandemic emergence.

“When seasonal epidemics come into a population, they immunize the population for a short period of time against new types of influenza,” Fox said. “So pandemics are not able to, or are less likely to, emerge when that

immunity is in the population, but once that immunity is lost after 30 (or) 40 days, then pandemics are more likely to emerge. That creates a predictive window for spring-summer emergence of pandemics.”

The researchers’ work may also explain why pandemic severity has been underestimated by models in the past, such as with the H1N1 pandemic in 2009.

“We found that when a pandemic is emerging, if you don’t take into account the population structure of the community or the immunological characteristics (of the flu virus), you’re likely to underestimate the severity of the pandemic,” Fox said.

For example, early risk assessments of a pandemic that fail to account for the “leftover” immunity from the seasonal flu may predict too slow a rate of transmission.

“When you’re doing an early risk assessment of a pandemic, you’re looking at that early spread of the pandemic,” Fox said. “When that ‘leftover’ immunity is gone in the fall, it’s much more explosive.

If you don’t take into account that immunity in that initial assessment, you’re going to underestimate the pandemic during that fall wave.”

The researchers’ work has important implications for future public health surveillance and predictive modeling for pandemics.

“Our paper shows that there is

some predictability to pandemic emergence, which could help public health officials who are doing surveillance for pandemics to properly allocate their resources to risk times of the years,” Fox said.

Specifically, more accurate predictions regarding the timing of flu pandemics can help agencies such as the Center for Disease Control and Prevention disseminate useful information to medical and public health professionals.

This can improve

SPACE

health outcomes and reduce the spread of the virus, Mosteller said.

“H1N1 was the most recent (pandemic) I was involved in,” Mosteller said. “(After) they found that everyone was getting sick even though they had the flu shot, they identified that it was this H1N1 virus. There was no protection in the vaccine for that, so they very quickly came out with a vaccine and supplied doctors’ offices everywhere with it.”

MEDICINE

Novel drug-screening technique slays bacterial antibiotic resistance

By Jennifer Liu @jenn_liu98

katie bauer | the daily texan staff Astronomy research professor William Cochran welcomed students and specialists Monday to the introduction of a pop-up institute exploring extraplanetary habitability. The Office of the Vice President for Research will host the pop-up in June and July.

Study will look to stars during summer for signs of extraterrestrial life

By Kevin Dural @kevindural26

Does life exist on other planets? Leading researchers across multiple disciplines at UT are coming together in an effort to settle this question once and for all.

The Office of the Vice President for Research will host a popup institute exploring extraplanetary habitability for six weeks this June and July. Held across the University’s main campus and J.J. Pickle Research Campus, a 30-minute bus ride away, the institute will host keynote speakers and chief researchers.

The institute, which will feature informal discussions designed to engage audience members, held a town hall meeting Monday where leaders listened to suggestions from students and professors.

The pop-up institute welcomes everyone from experts in their respective fields to interested students. Astronomy researcher William Cochran said the event is an opportunity for students to be intimately involved in discussions with specialists in a variety of fields.

Aerospace engineering professor David Goldstein, whose research focuses on the movement of gases, said investigating the habitability of other planets has become relevant in the last 20 years due to recent advances in space observation.

“Until recently, it was not known for sure that most other stars have planets,” he said.

“There are now great advances in searching for life. It used to

be considered laughable to listen for radio transmissions from other planets; now, searching for this life is a serious scientific endeavor.”

Goldstein said life on other planets is certainly possible.

He added liquid water has been found to exist or has existed elsewhere in the universe, and these places are certainly worth exploring for the possibility of life. In fact, according to astronomy assistant professor Brendan Bowler, up to 20 percent of planets within the universe are within the habitable zone, meaning they are a certain distance from their stars that could allow for liquid water to remain on their surface.

“We didn’t know this information too long ago, but Earth-like planets are incredibly common,” he said. “Coinciding with the expansion of finding and characterizing exoplanets, or planets outside of our solar system, many planets exist that are similar to Earth in terms of size and orbital distance.”

Ultimately, the goal of the institute is to bring together professors and researchers from a variety of specialties to establish plans for long-term collaborative research.

“There’s a whole community of people across the UT campus; however, everyone is isolated,” Cochran said. “One of the institute’s major purposes is to bring us together, get to know each other and to develop long-term collaborations moving forward.”

Goldstein said UT-Austin has a diverse community of scientific and engineering ability to investigate extraplanetary life.

“UT has a strong background

in biology, planetary sciences, observational astronomy, geosciences and engineering related to building instruments to make these observations,” Goldstein said. “We are a large institution capable of making strong contributions in this area.”

Significant in this endeavor, Cochran said, is its interdisciplinary approach. He said answering fundamental questions about humans, evolution and the origin of life on Earth is really attractive to those of all research areas.

“For this particular pop-up institute, we will have expertise in every discipline you can envision,” Cochran said. “We will explore the cultural implications (of finding life on other planets) and analyze atmospherical, geological and other concepts. All of the speakers are experts in their own area.”

Benny Meltzer, a physics sophomore who attended the town hall meeting, said the appeal of finding extraplanetary life extends to beyond those in academia.

“Not only is finding life on other planets an academic endeavor, this is interesting to everyone,” Meltzer said. “Who wouldn’t be interested in this? This captivates everyone from young children to tenured professors.”

Meltzer added that scientists are doing the vital job of empirically investigating what science fiction enthusiasts only dream about. He said wonder and science work hand-in-hand in the realm of finding extraplanetary life.

“Science fiction sparks people’s interest in this,” Meltzer said. “Just as important are the scientists that work to find this life.”

In response to the dilemma of bacterial antibiotic resistance, a research laboratory at UT has developed a novel method of screening named SLAY, for Surface Localized Antimicrobial Display.

“Antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections are a growing medical problem,” said Bryan Davies, an assistant professor in molecular biosciences.

As a result, the supply of available effective antibiotics is dwindling, said Ashley Tucker, a postdoctoral fellow at UT and member of the Davies Lab. Pharmaceutical companies have resorted to deriving already existing antibiotics that have been around for the last 40 years.

“The bacteria will always win, because they are incredible at adapting to challenges, but we can get one step ahead if we can more quickly discover new scaffolds for antibiotics,” Tucker said.

can then be determined using next-generation sequencing.

“The beauty of SLAY is the sheer chemical diversity that you are able to sample when you screen upwards of a million compounds at once,” Tucker said. “We have a real potential to find antibiotic chemistry that nature hasn’t yet tapped into.”

SLAY is faster, cheaper and more effective than any current drug-screening platform on the market, and it has received an overwhelmingly positive response from academia, industry and military collaborators, Tucker said. This project was supported by the National Institutes of Health, Sanofi, the Welch Foundation, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and the U.S. Army Research Office.

“We ultimately hope to see multiple groups using our SLAY technology to fight the problem of antimicrobial resistance because having that many groups working toward a single goal together will give the world a better chance at finding antibiotics that really work,” Tucker said.

“We ultimately hope to see multiple groups using our SLAY technology to fight the problem of antimicrobial resistance ... ” Ashley Tucker, ut postdoctoral fellow

Antibiotic resistance arises when bacteria mutate their own genomes or acquire DNA that encodes for antibiotic resistance, Davies explained.

Because of this, it can be very challenging to identify new antibiotic leads, but SLAY provides a new way to do so.

“You need to screen drugs to find a lead antibiotic,” Davies said. “SLAY allows us to screen large numbers of peptides at once, (and the) more peptides screened, the (better) chance of finding a good lead antibiotic.”

Essentially, SLAY is a method that puts bacteria to work for the researchers, Tucker said.

SLAY allows bacteria to make their own unique genetically encoded peptide — a simpler protein structure — and tether the peptide to its surface.

If the peptide kills the bacteria, there exists potential antimicrobial properties and the amino acid sequence of the peptide

And SLAY’s novelty doesn’t just lie in its efficacy and potential — there’s also a double meaning to the method’s name.

“The timing of coming up with an acronym happened to coincide with Beyonce’s viral pregnancy announcement — and that’s what sparked the idea of blending science with pop culture — to get people really excited about our technology,” Tucker said. “Beyonce is a native Texan, a force in the music industry, and has really popularized the term ‘slay,’ and so the concept just worked. You can also think about ‘slay’ in terms of killing, which is exactly the intention of the technology – to find peptides that slay the bacteria.”

The battle isn’t over yet, though.

“I hope SLAY will spark something in the antibiotic research community to think outside of the box,” Tucker said.

8 SPORTS

8

TRENTON DAESCHNER

SPORTS EDITOR @TEXANSPORTS

FRIDAY, JANUARY 26, 2018

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Longhorns mauled by Bears in Waco Texas couldn’t match Baylor’s intensity in lopsided loss.

By Drew King @drewking0222

W

ACO, Texas — Three looks inside and zero points to show for it.

Late in the second quarter of No. 6 Texas’ 81-56 loss to No. 3 Baylor on Thursday night, sophomore guard Alecia Sutton received an inbound pass near the left block, a halfstep in front of her defender.

Another dribble would have given her a chance at a layup.

Instead, Sutton just glanced inside and dribbled back near the top of the key to reset the offense. She noticed junior forward Olamide Aborowa wide open on the opposite side of the lane and lobbed a pass.

Aborowa mishandled the catch. She pump-faked once, then pitched it to Jada Underwood in the middle of the floor. The sophomore wing hesitated, then tried for an up-and-under post move right before the shot clock ran out.

A thicket of long-limbed Bears loomed in the paint.

The Longhorns couldn’t explode their way through it.

They tried dancing around it instead, but never found the right rhythm. The ball rimmed out, completing a sequence that encapsulated Texas’ night.

“I didn’t think they played scared. I just didn’t think they

matched Baylor’s passion,” Texas head coach Karen Aston said. “There’s been a couple of times this year when we haven’t done that. And this was by far our worst performance as far as simple things like competition.”

Baylor sophomore forward Lauren Cox collected the rebound and found freshman guard Alexis Morris on the outlet pass. Morris zoomed to the opposite end of the court and hit a mid-range jumper in transition, putting Baylor up 44-25 with 41 seconds left in the quarter.

Senior guard Brooke McCarty dripped in a buzzer-beating floater to end the half, but Texas was ultimately exiled to the perimeter. The Bears finished the game with seven blocks — including six from Cox alone — and out-rebounded the Longhorns, 50-34.

“I would say that their size and their length definitely makes it a little bit more difficult,” junior guard Lashann Higgs said. “But we’re just not competitive. They out-competed us. They were just tougher than us and were playing with a purpose.”

The Longhorns struggled just as much from outside.

Texas launched plenty of open triples and jump shots, but the ball rarely found the bottom of the net. McCarty and fellow senior guard Ariel Atkins combined to shoot just 8-for30 from the field and 3-for-10 from three for 27 points.

Atkins’ composure suffered.

juan figueroa | the daily texan staff Junior forward/center Jatarie White posts up Baylor center Kalani Brown during No. 6 Texas’ 81-56 loss to No. 3 Baylor in Waco on Thursday night. White scored nine points during 26 minutes of play.

Once the game slipped away, she began setting the ball on the floor after every call against Texas rather than handing it to the referee. She committed seven of the team’s 16 turnovers.

“It is frustrating when you don’t show up,” Atkins said.

“They out-worked us, had more energy, they played with passion. They were a team tonight and we weren’t.”

Baylor (18–1, 8–0 Big 12) was one of the toughest

opponents Texas (15–4, 6–2 Big 12) has played all season.

Still, Aston knew her team could have performed better.

“I was a little surprised — a lot surprised by the lack of composure and competitiveness,” Aston said. “It was just a little bit of an old-fashioned butt-kicking.”

The Longhorns can’t afford to dwell on the loss. The Big 12 doesn’t allow teams much time to rest between games, and Texas is no exception.

“You’ve just got to go on to the next thing and just get back into the gym,” Higgs said. “Baylor wanted it more, so we can’t dwell on it.”

Texas hosts Iowa State on Saturday at 7 p.m.

“We have to turn the page really quickly,” Aston said. “(Friday) will be more of a mental day. It’s not one of those times where you can go in there and run them to death or try to fix a competitive thing. They know —

TOP

PERFORMERS player

pts

reb

fg

Brooke McCarty

16

5

5-19

Lashann Higgs

13

4

5-11

Ariel Atkins

11

9

3-11

they’re competitive players.

They know that they didn’t show up tonight. We have to turn the page and get ready for Iowa State.”

MEN’S BASKETBALL

MEN’S SWIMMING AND DIVING

Texas takes break from conference play, hosts Ole Miss for Big 12/SEC Challenge

Longhorns ready for pair of meets in Grand Canyon State

By Ross Burkhart

By Dalton Phillips

@ross_burkhart

@dalton_tweets

After nearly a month of grueling Big 12 matchups, this weekend offers a much-needed respite for a worn-down Longhorn roster.

Texas turns its attention to an SEC opponent for the second time this season as it prepares to host Ole Miss on Saturday afternoon at the Frank Erwin Center.

The conference detour is part of the annual Big 12/SEC Challenge. The 10-game spread features matchups between the two big-name conferences, although the Big 12 has yet to lose a series in the four years since the event began.

More importantly, the rivalry offers nine days of rest from rigorous conference play.

“We know going into the last five weeks of conference play there are going to be a ton of battles,” head coach Shaka Smart said.

“Physically, we have some guys that are banged up.

Snoop (Kerwin Roach II) still has to get his hand all the way back. Matt (Coleman) has played heavy minutes, Dylan (Osetkowski) has played heavy minutes. So getting a little bit of rest for those guys will be big.”

Texas is coming off a bounce-back win over Iowa State on Monday night. The team’s star duo of Roach and freshman forward Mo Bamba both posted career nights against the Cyclones, scoring 22 and 24 points, respectively.

Bamba also collected a game-high 12 rebounds for

anthony mireles | the daily texan staff Head coach Shaka Smart stands on the sideline at the Frank Erwin Center. Texas will take a break from conference play to participate in the annual Big 12/SEC Challenge on Saturday.

He’s really a one-man rebounding machine. You look sometimes ... he still goes up and gets the rebound.”

Kerwin Roach II, junior guard

Texas in the victory. The NBA prospect is currently ranked 12th in the nation in rebounds per game at 10.7, and his interior presence has been crucial for the Longhorns.

“He’s really a one-man rebounding machine,” Roach said. “You look sometimes, there will be like three guys blocking him out, and he still goes up and gets the rebound.”

Saturday’s game will be about continuing to build momentum for the second half of the season.

Ole Miss is coming off a dominant win of its own

over defensive-minded Alabama. In that game, Ole Miss senior guard Deandre Burnett joined the career 1,000-point club, reaching the milestone in only 80 career games. The Rebels guard is averaging a teamhigh 16 points per game in his final season.

For a Texas team that has yet to win consecutive conference games this season, recovering and improving will be vital for any NCAA Tournament aspirations. In the absence of sophomore guard Andrew Jones, Texas has been forced to employ a tighter rotation. The team

has leaned heavily on its starters in Big 12 play thus far, and the wear-and-tear is evident.

Saturday’s game against Ole Miss is a rare opportunity to tinker with new lineups and give role players big minutes without jeopardizing Texas’ conference record.

And Smart is the first to acknowledge the value a nonconference game offers this late into the season.

“We have one more nonconference game Saturday. It’s a phenomenal opportunity,” Smart said.

“The ESPN people will make a big deal out of the Big 12 versus the SEC, but we have to focus on Texas. And we need to put together an opportunity to win multiple games in a row.

“Fortunately we’re at home and our guys can get some rest. Then we need to go attack them.”

The Longhorns look to further cement a strong start to 2018 as they head to Tempe, Arizona, on Friday and Tucson, Arizona on Saturday for head-to-head meets against No. 10 Arizona State and No. 18 Arizona.

Despite an unusual string of dual-meet losses in the fall against Florida, Indiana, Texas A&M and NC State, head coach Eddie Reese sends his athletes into this weekend’s meet as the No. 2 team in the country.

The Longhorns currently hold a 2–4 record on the season in dual-meets but have proved victorious in their last two. Earlier this month, the team hosted its first dual-meet of the season against Auburn, which resulted in a closely-contested outcome — a 160-140 win over the Tigers.

Two of the greatest assets for Texas as of late have been senior Joseph Schooling, who was recognized as the Big 12 Men’s Swimmer of the Week after the win, and freshman Jordan Windle, who earned a spot as the conference’s Men’s Diver of the Week. Schooling’s standout performance against Auburn included wins in the 100-yard butterfly and the 200-yard butterfly, while Windle

claimed second in the one-meter dive behind fellow diver, sophomore Grayson Campbell.

With the Longhorn men seemingly hitting their stride at the right time, Reese’s history of success demonstrates that the team will likely once again compete for an NCAA national championship come March.

Reese has led the program to all 13 of its national titles, including one in each of the past three seasons. In his 40th season at Texas, he has established an unprecedented standard of success in the sport. Last season’s championship victory over California crowned Texas as the winningest men’s swimming and diving program in NCAA Division I history.

The two Pac-12 opponents the Longhorns will face this weekend could prove to be challenging tests for the team as it hopes to increase its chances of repeating as champion for the fourth season in a row.

Following this weekend’s events, the team will participate in just one more dual-meet event against TCU before the Big 12 Championships begin in Austin on Feb. 21.

The matchup against the Sun Devils is set to begin at 3 p.m. on Friday. The team will face the Wildcats on Saturday at 12 p.m.

angela wang | the daily texan file Senior Joseph Schooling swims the butterfly at Lee & Joe Jamail Texas Swim Center. Texas will face Arizona and Arizona State on the road this weekend.

COMICS 9 9

FRIDAY, JANUARY 26, 2018

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