Performers from Chi Alpha Iota diaternity took to the stage with XAI's annual drag show for a “night of selfexploration, discovery and acceptance" on Nov. 11 and 12.
Student performers danced and lip-synced to songs like "I'm Coming Out," "Akh Lad Jaave" and "Cigarette Ahegao." In addition, the show featured special guest performances from Novis A Cappella and Temoc. Half of all proceeds went to the Native
Comets showed their love for cosplaying at Comet Con, the Xai Drag Show and the Halloween ATEC party.
See PG 4 & 5
Ten minutes down Coit Road lies some of the best coffee anywhere near UTD, Mojo’s Java.
Mojo’s Java sits inside Cottonwood Market on Coit and Belt Line and is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday.
Alex Deer, the owner, named the shop after his cat Mojo. Although the space is small and the seating limited, Deer is dedicated to making stellar coffee. He roasts his own
beans with his own recipe and has a wide variety of choices. The prices are comparable to other independent shops, with an iced vanilla latte at $5.50, and it is worth every penny.
Imagine the relief of taking a breath of fresh air after coming up from underwater. That’s what it felt like drinking an espresso from Mojo’s after drinking constant sugary drinks from Starbucks and other chains. It is easy to forget that coffee is supposed to have a flavor profile beyond just “bitter,” and get-
ting any one of the drinks on the menu is a perfect reminder. Deer even offers a coffee milkshake, although it may not suit you as well now that second summer has ended. Though Mojo's hours may be difficult for students, during the stress of finals season, you deserve a higher quality caffeine fix. And to student organizations: Mojo’s caters! They also have a 10% student discount, so if you ever get the chance, take a short drive and get your morning fix at Mojo’s Java.
MARTIN FRIEDENTHAL Mercury Staff
With the southern region of the U.S. the least likely to retain college graduates, the Richardson-based Innovation Quarter offers UTD students several incentives to stay in North Texas.
The IQ Headquarters, as The Mercury reported, officially opened in September and plans to be “the next step in student entrepreneurship and city development.” But instead of functioning as another overlooked organization, the center streamlines the process of recruiting.
“Now, when you think of intrapreneurship, startups, technology … all of this stuff and Texas, a lot of people
would look to places like Austin,” said Eugene Garza, program coordinator for UTD at the IQ. “In reality, we here in the DFW area have a better sort of setup.
DFW is already growing intensely and immensely following places like Boston and Philly.”
The IQ Headquarters has even attracted business outside of Texas.
“We had a call with a company out of Seattle and they’re interested in the idea of coming to Texas and establish[ing] a headquarters here,” Garza said. “But they want to be able to recruit from the university. These guys would
love to have that ‘pipeline’ set up.”
Additionally, Marketing Communications Manager Sarah Crowe believes that employers will recognize the value of a UTD degree.
“Most corporations nowadays want a student that has what we call the ‘entrepreneurial mindset,’” Crowe said. “We know that UTD has the talent. People
SEE IQ, PAGE 8
MIA NGUYEN Mercury Staff
Murder mystery wows with a vintage aesthetic and quirky cast.
If Agatha Christie and Wes Anderson had a lovechild, it would be “See How They Run,” a classic ‘whodunnit’ that makes up for its predictability with a delightful cast and a whimsical filming style.
“See How They Run” completely immerses viewers in the entertainment industry of 1950s London. The film may rely too heavily on its actors, but it proves a whimsical gem amongst dry humored murder mysteries.
The film begins with the death of repugnant Hollywood director Leo Köpernick (Adrian Brody), who was creating the film adaptation of Agatha Christie’s long running play “The Mousetrap.”
Motives for the murder abound, as Köpernick’s disrespectful and crude attitude earned the disdain of producers, writers, and actors alike. It is up to jaded Inspector Stoppard (Sam Rockwell) and rookie Constable Stalker (Saoirse Ronan) to find the killer with more than a few bumps along the way.
“The Mousetrap'' — which the film is
centered around — is the longest running play in history, still being shown to this day. Fittingly drenched in British theatre lore, “See They How They Run” pokes fun at the absurdity of both the entertainment industry and mystery films. The filmmakers keep the dark tone balanced with plenty of puns and cartoonish characterization and
SEE RUN, PAGE 8
Opinion Editor Jack Sierputowski opinioneditor@ utdmercury.com
reported funds taken from his Visa Vanilla Gift card and placed on a Comet Card without his consent.
October 28 • UTD student stated her apartment was burglarized on Aug. 5, 2022.
Corrections/ Clarifications
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A fire at Founders caused extensive damage but it could have been worse. Founders has no smoke detectors. A cleaning lady spotted smoke on Nov. 20 and called police dispatch from an elevator phone. Police received her call at about 3:09 a.m.
“Had the fire expanded, it would have been vastly more serious,” said David Dunn, dean of Natural Sciences and Mathematics.
After requesting assistance, Officer Guy J. Hooper arrived at Founders at 3:10 a.m. He dashed up to the third floor and saw the center hall filled with brown smoke.
Hooper searched the area for people quickly. Reassured nobody was left on the third floor, he called the police dispatcher and asked the dispatcher to call the Richardson Fire Department.
Meanwhile, Officer Felton, Hugo Can-
dler and John Mauzy, from Central Data Acquisition System, evacuated the rest of the building. Hooper jumped in his car and drove out to Lookout Drive and Floyd Road to guide the RFD to Founders.
At 3:16 a.m., sirens wailing, the first fire truck arrived on campus. Because of the possibility that toxic materials may have leaked into the air, RFD immediately asked for more units.
Two pumpers, one snorkel truck and a hazardous material team met at Founders. At first, firefighters couldn’t find the fire. Deputy Fire Chief Brown was “extremely concerned” about the danger his men faced if toxic materials had escaped into the air, police said.
Hooper, Felton and Bill Stancliff, UTD safety officer, were also in Founders with firefighters giving directions where to go.
“There was no unusual hazardous material in the lab,” Dunn said. “But the smell of
burning formica is horrible.”
Firefighters found the fire in 3.612 at 4:02 a.m. The fire was so hot it melted water lines in the lab causing extensive water damage through the second and the third floor south hallways, police said.
Four minutes later firefighters shot water at the fire and subsequently put it out. Later, Deputy Fire Marshall Cowart and Deputy Fire Chief Brown ordered Founders secured and sealed. The fire was confined to the lab area
at 3.612, Dunn said. The fire walls did the job they were supposed to. A heavy oak door kept the fire confined.
The cause of the fire and its cost are not known yet. But Dean Dunn ventured a guess.
“I’ll give you a rank speculation on the cost of the fire,” Dunn said. “It could be $200,000, but this is based on no hard evidence. And it’s better than a cost of $2 million.”
Exactly 12 hours later, on Saturday, a smoldering two by
four reignited the fire. Heavy smoke rose from a utility corridor and inside 3.612. Richardson firefighters tore more of the west wall, got to the source of the smoke and put the fire out. Two UTD guards and two police officers were exposed to the smoke.
Fire marshals were supposed to return to campus last week and investigate the cause of the fire. But Safety Officer Stancliff told campus police that two ovens in the lab may have shorted out and caused the fire.
UNT and UTA got to face each other and we got to face each team. It was a lot of fun.”
During the games, UTD hyped up the crowd with multiple team compositions and meme picks. Cheers of “What
is that melody” and high audience engagement kept the room lively. After
UTD’s new Omega Strikers club team competed at their first online tournament on November 11, 2022.
Omega Strikers is a top-down game which consists of two teams of three players, who fight to score by sending “the Core,” a large hockey puck, into the opponent's goal. Players can choose from a cast of characters, known as Strikers. Each Striker has a unique set of abilities which can attack enemy players, move the Core, buff allies, debuff enemies, and more. On the starting line-up, the team has Daniyal “BluBlazing” Ghayasuddin playing forward, Andrew “Windoge” Harper-Hill playing mid, Noah “Amerats” Brown playing goalie, and first backup Rinaldo “Brickbat” Del Gallo playing forward.
Ghayasuddin said that the team has been preparing by practicing with top opponents.
“As a group, we're arranged on average diamond to challenger area,” Ghayasuddin said. “When we're going against these teams such as Esports at UCF or Waterloo, they tend to have one or two Omega players — one of the top ranks in the game. But this game is all about angles. It's all about coordination and teamwork so if we iron that out, I think we will be running smooth.”
Without coordination, the top tier teams can fall from grace because of meta shifts. Brown said that the meta shifts from the latest patch are likely to benefit UTD going into their first tournament.
“Recently the meta just shifted to prioritize less on getting kills and more on controlling the core,” Brown said. “And our team, our play style works well toward that. Lots of other teams are more geared towards getting kills and then converting those into goals. So, I think the meta is in our favor for this tournament overall.”
the matches, ATEC senior Daniel “Tinspire” Muckelbauer said that the team was working well together going into the sequel.
“We got a huge result against one of the top teams, Fisher Esports,” Muckelbauer said. "So we’re just gonna keep building on that. We’re feeling really good.”
While the visiting teams did not defeat the home defenders, the in-person
experience was still valuable to the players. UNT player Hunter “Roycenix” Spears said that playing LAN Overwatch was a dream come true.
“Previously I played at a community college, and that was one of the biggest things I wanted to do in my career as a student athlete,” Spears said, "which is to play at an in-person event. And it was really nice that UTD hosted this for us, and honestly, I could not have asked for more … we were kind of hoping for a closer match, but I’m really glad we were able to show up for the second match and at least show we were not washed or trash.” While the Comet Con show match only featured three schools, Salinas said that the team hopes to host larger events in the future.
“Be on the lookout for more events like this,” Salinas said. “Hopefully next semester we can run a [larger] scale event, get more schools out here, and it’ll be a lot of fun. It takes a lot of time, planning, logistics, a lot of figuring out to do, so hopefully we can do a lot more stuff like this.”
“We’ve been scrimming a lot of good teams,”Ghayasuddin said. “We've been scrimming fourth and fifth seeds and I think before the tournament, we have a good plan scrimming against the rank two seeds. So honestly, we're just looking up to optimizing and looking at their VOD’s and just figuring out how they play and capitalizing on it.”
The team said that they had high hopes going into the tournament, but some highlevel opponents outranked them. Brown said that the University of Central Florida will be one of their toughest competitors.
The team ended up dropping to Esports at NC State in the loser's bracket after making top eight winner's side, ending the tournament in the top eight.
“It was amazing what we accomplished with only a week's worth of practice,” Ghayasuddin said. “We dominated on stream, went 12-0 on the first day, scoring 30 goals and only allowing three in our net ... I am happy there's a clear chance for us to rise above the ashes we laid here today. The team will be ready for future Omega Strikers tournaments!”
UTD invited UNT and UTA to best of three matches in a LAN environment
It’s poggers. I feel very poggers right now.
— Kashir Khan on his Torbjorn hammer kills
and Halloween and Halloween
Spread Credits
Merger Mash | Viet Khue Vu | Mercury Staff Comet Con | Katheryn Ho | Mercury Staff
Drag Show | Tatwik Bodepudi | Mercury Staff Layout | Jamie Lin | Mercury Staff
Comets’ passion for costuming took center stage at several events this fall. Students displayed their best Halloween costumes at the ATEC-AHT Merger Mash, which featured clubs like Fashion Club and the UX/UI Design club. At the Comet Con costuming contest, cosplayers took center stage, where a Baymax cosplayer won ‘cutest’ cosplay, and Kill La Kill cosplayers won ‘fan-favorite.’ At the XAI drag show, drag queens and kings danced up and down aisles for tips.
JACK SIERPUTOWSKI Mercury Staff
Dallas’ median ban is a thinly veiled attempt to criminalize poverty and pedestrianism, not a public safety measure.
The Dallas City Council approved an ordinance 14-1 on Oct. 26 to allow city marshals to issue citations up to $500 to people standing in roadways — which includes medians. Many city council members appealed to public safety, claiming that the goal of the ordinance is to protect pedestrians. But the best way to reduce pedestrian deaths is better urban design.
This ordinance only criminalizes panhandling and homelessness (indirectly) and makes streets even less friendly to pedes-
trians in a city that is already aggressively car dependent.
While I am not surprised that only one member of the city council voted against the ordinance, I am deeply disappointed. I am even more frustrated by the nonsensical reasons given for their support.
"I think it’s justified on public safety grounds," Councilman Paul Ridley said supporting the ordinance.
It is true that in 2021, Dallas was the second worst city in the nation for traffic deaths, more than a third of which were pedestrian deaths. But I hardly need to explain that to UTD students. If you have
Participation of young voters is more important now than ever, despite the fatalism expressed by many.
There is a common narrative that floats around the leftist side of Twitter and is repeated by young people in general: that “voting is pointless.” The reasons people provide for disenfranchising themselves are numerous, ranging from the reductive “both parties are bad” to the simply false “it won’t make a difference anyway.” Both are harmful, infectious narratives that distract us from reality. Luckily, despite these counterproductive narratives, young people showed up to the midterms in record numbers and made a difference.
Those on the left who choose not to vote generally emphasize the idea that both parties are corrupt. The Democrats are not far enough left for them, and I suppose that is true. The Overton window of our country has become skewed enough to where the “progressive” party — Democrats — are
mostly centrists. But a lack of representation of truly progressive policies doesn’t mean young people should just give up altogether.
Yes, it is true that the Democrats are not much better than the Republicans. The U.S.’ absurd wealth gap has been on the rise since the 80s, thanks in part to the fact that regardless of the image they project, the Democratic party generally capitulates to corporations. Young people like to claim that “politicians are all bought,” and while I dislike overly reductive statements, I can see where they get this sentiment in our current political system. But that doesn’t mean that choosing not to vote makes you morally superior. Democrats may capitulate to regressive politics, but Republicans actively advocate them.
There are many arguments I could make for why the Republican party should be kept out of office, but I think the most powerful is that it repeatedly and aggressively seeks to dismantle protections for ba-
sic human rights. This includes threats to drastically cut Medicare and Social Security and efforts to disenfranchise minorities, push queer people back into invisibility, and humiliate and persecute trans people in every aspect of their lives.
You may have very emotional reactions to any of the issues I just mentioned. Maybe you are in favor of more conservative policy choices, and I am not here to worsen polarization. Regardless of your specific political affiliation, there is one key reason you should fear the Republican party: their current goal is to undermine the very values that make democracy possible. Never before has election denialism so widely infiltrated political discourse. Never before has the U.S. faced a serious threat to the peaceful transition of power. Terrifyingly, an Associate Press review found that nearly one-third of Republican candidates for statewide offices connected to overseeing
Did you vote in the midterm election?
“I did vote. I still have a lot going on in my community and I really wanted to take part in my community. There’s a lot of things going on, especially with the shooting stuff and then abortion laws which are kind of messed up. I kinda wanted my voice to be heard.”
- Taylor Gee, Junior, Healthcare Studies“I did not, unfortunately. It’s because I’m registered in Austin and I wasn’t able to go back home. But I would’ve voted if I was registered here. I realized a little too late.”
- Asti Raamann, Senior, Healthcare Studies
“I did [vote] because I think it’s important to vote, to be involved, make your voice heard. Not voting doesn’t give you any advantages.”
- Liz Wigglesworth, Senior,
Science
Computer
DRAG CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 American Rights Fund and House of Rebirth.
After Saturday night's performance, featured performers
acknowledge that there’s a university campus and [they] know there’s a lot of sciencey stuff that happens there. So a space like the Innovation Quarter makes it more accessible and reachable to people in this area to really understand the kind of impact that is coming out of our laboratories and the kinds of potential that our students have.”
use split screens and other dramatic filming sequences to create a matching aesthetic.
The film instantly had me sold on the dynamic of peppy Saoirse Ronan and grump Sam Rockwell in a comically small cop car. Unfortunately, the duo was heavily underutilized. The
VOTING
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 7
elections supported overturning the results of the 2020 election — an issue fought through dozens of lawsuits that were all settled for lack of evidence. Even moderate Republican politicians endorse or are suspiciously silent on baseless conspiracy theories
MEDIAN CONTINUED FROM PAGE 7
ever walked anywhere in North Dallas, you already know why there are so many deaths. On Campbell Road, cars regularly speed and pull turns unexpectedly without looking. Sometimes while crossing, the road median becomes your only protection from a deadly game of Frogger. Perhaps those in government are out of touch, but if you aren’t fortunate enough to own a car, the practical answer is obvious: get rid of the five-lane roads. Wide roads don’t just endanger pedestrians, they also worsen congestion, which lengthens commutes and disadvantages even drivers.
I find it disingenuous that 14 supposedly intelligent and educated city council members would focus
spoke to The Mercury about what drag means to them personally. Visual and Performing Arts senior Cal Thompson, AKA "Hot Sauce," shared his thoughts. "It's not just about dressing
Steve Guengerich, associate vice president of innovation and commercialization at UTD, pointed to efforts by the Blackstone Launchpad — the “retail storefront” of the IQ Center — to help students find employment through their career fair.
“[They] will invite some two dozen or so startup companies that are looking for interns and future employees and take resumes,” Gueng-
two leads had great potential, and their friendship should have been a highlight of the film. Unfortunately, their interactions were so limited that their relationship stayed relatively stagnant, making their bond seem one dimensional. Ronan and Rockwell remained a delight on screen, but at times were overshadowed by the
that threaten the foundation of our government.
You don’t have to like the Democratic party. I certainly don’t. But it takes only a minute to realize that at this point in history, the Democratic party is the lesser of two evils. And if you choose to abstain from voting, you effectively cast your vote
on this ordinance rather than strategies that are proven to protect pedestrians. Bump-outs, fewer lanes, removing slip lanes and right turn on red can literally save lives. The best way to protect pedestrians is aggressive traffic calming. However, many Texas cities dislike this strategy as their true motive is to prioritize drivers over everyone else. The best way to reduce pedestrian deaths is to slow down cars, not make it illegal to be a pedestrian in the first place.
“Pedestrian safety” is a brushout. The Dallas City Council does not want pedestrians to be safe, it wants them to be invisible.
COVID-19, an economic recession and rising costs of living have all contributed to a housing crisis that is gripping America as we
as the opposite gender... for me, drag is kind of this form of gender anarchy — of taking abstract ideas and turning them into a performance," Thompson said. "Drag is performance art that is
erich said. “And, despite going virtual over the pandemic, Blackstone still keeps an online resume book for students to showcase their profiles ... it would be a way to break into an industry and get some experience and make some connections.”
Richardson city manager Don Magner said that a “diverse group of stakeholders” has its eye on ideas being made at UTD. The IQ Headquarters’ website, for instance, lists
band of charming murder suspects. Constable Stalker is vivacious, naive and brings a flash of joy to every scene she’s in. Her comedic timing and fanatic interest in theatre makes every interrogation feel personal, and her obsession with theatre lightens the tone. As another layer of irony, the entire
with the GOP. You enable the breakdown of our democratic system. You allow and encourage the persecution of gay and trans people. You betray members of the working class everywhere.
However, with midterm voting now behind us, it seems that the internet’s fatalism about voter participation was misplaced.
speak. This situation has worsened in particular in North Dallas and near campus. With the city cracking down more on homeless camps and few shelters able to accept newcomers, it is inevitable that the average person will come to see more homeless people on the street seeking refuge. But now, with an ordinance indirectly targeting panhandlers — who disproportionately end up on medians or in the street — those who most need our help will be invisible.
If you are primarily a driver, you may wonder why any of this is relevant to you, but I promise you it is critical. Cars are the only form of transportation where more people means longer waits, longer commutes, and more time wasted. It is
looking back at you."
Biology senior Alex Xavier, AKA "Lady Monarch," also spoke to The Mercury . Xavier shared that the character of Lady Monarch was inspired partially
prominent companies like Dell, Ericsson, Honeywell and Raytheon that call the “1,200-acre urban hub” home.
And according to a September 2022 RichardsonToday article, about 20% of Richardson’s employment base comes from the center. Magner stressed that a lot of their current projects are in the development and negotiation stage, but that their past partnerships speak for themselves.
film is a satire of theatre, and the rest of the cast is coincidentally made up of actors well-seasoned in British television and theatre. The murder suspects were the perfect whodunnit cast. Despite their limited screen time, they all performed their scenes with intense warmth and fervor and made their
The Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement estimated that those in the age range of 18 to 29 had one of their highest midterm turnout rates ever, with around 27% having voted over the weekend. Those same young voters overwhelming favored progressive candidates, with a
no coincidence that over the past few decades, as our country has shifted toward car dependence, average commute time has skyrocketed. If you are a driver, it is in your best interest to advocate for pedestrians and public transit. The more people feel comfortable walking, the more they will choose forms of transportation besides driving, which means fewer cars on the road. Pedestrian advocacy ultimately leads to less congestion and traffic.
“Having been a carpool parent, I can’t imagine having all the distraction in your car with having to worry about what may be outside of your car in the middle of a roadway,” Councilman Gay Willis said supporting the ordinance.
When you choose to drive a car,
by Lady Gaga, but also by other students.
"After seeing other queer people my age perform, I was like maybe I can do that too! 'Cause I was a shy person," Xavier said.
“A recent example is a light manufacturing company that uses 3D printing,” Magner said. “We were able to work with them, and they relocated their headquarters from Plano to Richardson IQ, largely because they believe in what we’re trying to accomplish.”
Beyond sophisticated projects, the IQ Headquarters offers an optimal environment for all UTD students.
personalities crystal clear with just a few lines of dialogue. Harris Dickinson was a standout actor in this film. His portrayal of Dickie Attenborough screams lead man while layering undertones of comical sensitivity and giddiness, erasing the stereotypical characterization that plagues Agatha Christie knock-offs.
notable impact on races in swing states like Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin and Georgia.
I know it can be easy to become hopeless or feel that your vote or your input doesn’t matter. But if we all collectively decide we have no say, then our generation gets boxed out of having a say by default. The 2022
you are picking up a loaded gun. It is the only form of transportation where you can accidentally become a murderer. You are behind the wheel of a two-ton death machine that can pop an infant’s skull like a watermelon. The burden of vigilance for watching the roadway is unequivocally on you. So yes, Councilman Willis, you should worry. Safer streets have complications and obstacles and bends because it forces you to slow down and pay attention. Without that worry, you could just as easily do a 50 in a 25 like half the drivers in Dallas.
If you want fewer pedestrians to die, focus on the people doing the killing: drivers. Wide roads are an implicit invitation to speed and zone out. Bump-outs and narrower
“The IQ’s a really beautiful space. It's a quiet space right now during the day, and even in the evenings,” Guengerich said. “I could see myself going to a place like that just to hunker down and get some work done ... we have food and drinks that we're making available for the folks that come there, so it's kind of a nice place to have as a part of student life ... that’s open to everyone in the university.”
While “See How They Run” follows the blueprint of comedic murder mysteries in a visually stunning mash of quirky personas, at times, it is hard to distinguish satire from lazy writing. Regardless of the director’s true intentions, “See How They Run” is sure to go on British film fanatics’ comfort lists.
midterms show that when young people come together, they truly can change the status quo. Yes, our generation faces more problems than ever. But now is not the time to politically disengage. We have the potential to shape our country for the better, if we only put in a little effort.
lanes prevent pedestrian deaths similarly by slowing drivers down and forcing them to pay more attention. Especially near busy intersections like Campbell and Coit, these bump-outs can actually be an asset to local businesses, by adding seating areas protected by concrete barriers. But more important than additional construction is simply stopping sprawling development from doing even more damage. Even now, TxDOT has invested $1.74 billion into widening I-635, despite the fact that studies have established that creating more lanes only creates more traffic. Stop destroying neighborhoods for cars and leave space for the people who actually live there.
"Drag to me is an art form that's rooted in queer history, but anyone can really participate in it… it's about entertaining people and being true to yourself."