1-29-15

Vol. 105 Issue 102

@thepittnews

Thursday, January 29, 2015

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Former Steelers Students cash out with bartending jobs quarterback, Pitt team up for startup Harrison Kaminsky News Editor Charlie Batch’s Pittsburgh heroics started with his gamewinning drive for the Steelers in 2012. Now, he looks to take that sports fame off of the field and into the doctor’s office.

Impellia, a Pittsburgh-based sports medicine startup led by now-retired quarterback Batch, has partnered with Pitt to develop and commercialize Pitt-created sports medicine technologies and innovations, according to a University press release on Tuesday. Impellia will act as a middleman by preparing those technologies for market. According to Marc Malandro, associate vice chancellor for technology management and commercialization and interim director of the Innovation Institute, Pitt completed the deal with Impellia because “we thought they had the best ability to commercialize our technologies, with the added benefit of having a

Batch

2 Vince Donohue, an of-age bartender at Peter’s Pub in Oakland, enjoys one of the more preferable part-time jobs for young adults. Christine Lim | Staff Photographer

Aubrey Cofield For The Pitt News

Reach for it:

Pitt women’s team will measure up against Duke’s height

With their finances on the rocks during college years, bartending offers students the perfect pour for their wallets’ thirst.

Due to the prevalence of tip-heavy salaries in bartending jobs, DailyFinance.com calls it one of the top part-time gigs for college students.

Pennsylvania is one of 24 states where the minimum age to bartend is 18, according to the Alcohol Policy Information System, which is a project of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. For students at Pitt and their peers across the country, bartending promises a steady flow of cold, hard cash for people not yet of the legal drinking

age. Yet, the decision to hire underage bartenders ultimately lies with the individual bar owners and managers, and, for some students, bartending leaves a hangover of conflicted emotions.

While Amanda Boutain couldn’t legally drink the butter shots, mint and Kahlua she served in her small town bar in Minnesota, the drinks helped the then 19-year-old student put herself through college. Boutain, now 21, is a graduate of Ridgewater College, located in Willmar, Minn.

Similarly, Taylor Knight, a Texas native, now 22, dealt with her alcohol inexperience as she began bartending at the age of 18.

“A friend of mine opened a bar and needed bartenders. I had zero experience and hadn’t even been in-

side a bar before. It was intimidating but exciting. I chose to take the job because it sounded like fun and I had friends who told me about the money they made bartending,” Knight said.

“I was intrigued.”

Adam Reed, an officer working with the Bureau of Liquor Control Enforcement (BCLE), said underage bartenders occasionally violate liquor laws by drinking on the job, but added that it’s not a commonly reported occurrence.

“The minimum age was established when the law was enacted. I can’t speculate as to why that age was chosen,” Reed said. “It’s not a common problem. The violation is

Bartending

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January 29, 2015 | The Pitt News | www.pittnews.com

What is that 529 college savings plan Obama mentioned?

Kevin G. Hall TNS WASHINGTON _ President Barack Obama’s about-face this week on his proposal to end college savings accounts, called 529s, just days after proposing it in his State of the Union speech, left many Americans wondering just what they are and how they work.

Here are some answers to questions about the college-savings tool: Q: What are 529s?

A: They take their name from a section in the federal tax code that helps taxpayers set aside money for college tuition or other qualified expenses. Most states now offer 529s, and they work like a 401(k) or an individual retirement account, where contributions usually are invested in a mutual fund or other financial instrument that grows in value over time.

Q: What are the tax advantages of 529s?

A: As the investment grows, the profits are not taxed. If, at the point of withdrawal, they’re used for college tuition or qualifying college expenses, they’re never taxed.

However, if the money is withdrawn for non-education purposes, the earnings will be taxed and subjected to a 10 percent penalty.

Q: Are there any restrictions on participating?

A: Few. There are no income limitations. They can be opened for yourself, a spouse, a child, a grandkid or even a friend.

But the same rules governing the plan apply: The profits must be used for college and related qualified expenses or be subject to taxes and the additional penalty.

Q: How about restrictions on contributions?

A: Annual contributions above $13,000 are generally subject to gift taxes, but a contributor can give anywhere from $13,000 to $65,000 and treat it as hav-

ing been given over five calendar years without being hit with federal gift taxes.

Q: Is there a limit on how much can remain in a 529 account?

A: There’s no monetary limit, per se.

But because earnings are tax free only if they’re used for college and qualified expenses, there’d be no real value in having large sums in the account after families are finished with college expenses, as earnings would not only be taxed but also hit with a 10 percent penalty. The center-left Center for American Progress proposes capping tax-free account balances at $200,000.

(EDITORS: BEGIN OPTIONAL TRIM) Q: Are these plans a tax shelter for great wealth?

A: No, given that their earnings are taxed with a penalty if they’re used for anything other than college education.

Q: Are they for the rich?

A: It depends on how you define rich and where you live. The midpoint annual

FROM PAGE 1

BATCH

new company here in Pittsburgh to benefit the region.”

According to the release, these Pitt-researched innovations include interACTION, PIVOT and Versatile and Integrated System for Telerehabilitation, or VISYTER. InterACTION is a joint-function monitoring tool used to improve physical rehabilitation. PIVOT is a tablet application that quantitatively assesses the pivot shift test, the most specific clinical exam for diagnosing a torn ACL. VISYTER is a software platform that can be the base for developing telerehabilitation applications.

According to Richard Walker, co-founder and managing member of Impellia, Pitt was “a good place to start” for the company because of its “outstanding reputation in sports medicine, healthcare and engineering space.”

Malandro also said Batch’s NFL experience will help drive Impellia’s success.

“When we start companies around Pitt innovations, we try to find people with ‘domain expertise’ to serve as leaders of those teams,”

Batch

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January 29, 2015 | The Pitt News | www.pittnews.com FROM PAGE 2

BATCH Malandro said. “Who better to partner with than a company that has a professional athlete as a key part of the team?” The specific terms of the deal are confidential, according to Malandro.

Walker said Impellia’s technologies will benefit a mix of people.

“We can go after the professional sports leagues, major colleges and universities, high school and youth sports,” Walker said.

“There’s also the healthcare side to it. Grandma, who just had her knee replaced, can use it as well. There’s a nice blend between sports and health care.”

According to the release, plans for the partnership between Pitt and Impellia began last summer with an introduction to the Pittsburgh Technology Council, a regional trade organization for local technologybased companies.

“We had a getting-to-know-you meeting with Impellia,” Evan Facher, director of enterprise development for the Innovation Institute, said in the release. “They had a

list of some of our technologies they were interested in, so we brought in those innovators to give 30-minute presentations to the group.”

Walker said, aside from his football career, Batch is a businessman.

“He’s owned multiple companies and is a partner in [Impellia],” Walker said. “He really brings the professional sports experience and relationships.”

Batch has previously worked in the restaurant and real estate industries, and Walker said Impellia is his first technologyfocused venture.

“Through Charlie’s 15 years in the NFL, he had six surgeries and knows top class, top-notch medical service,” Walker said.

“Part of our goal is to bring that top-notch, elite technology to the public.”

Impellia is not the first company to partner with Pitt as a developer and licensor.

According to Malandro, since 1996, “more than 104 companies have been started based on Pitt innovations, including six in fiscal year 2014.”

Notable partners Pitt has worked with

Batch

FROM PAGE 1

BARTENDING

discovered on occasion, however.”

Underage violations by underage drinkers, though, are much more common than by underage bartenders, according to Stackiewicz.

“I’ve got BLCE in here all the time,” Stackiewicz said. “If an underage [drinker] gets caught they get a $1,000 fine and I get a $1,500 fine. I don’t think a lot of people know that.”

Unlike Boutain and Knight’s bartending gig, Peter’s Pub in Oakland doesn’t hire underage bartenders.

Andrew Stackiewicz, general manager of Peter’s, prefers of-age bartenders because he said underage bartenders may not be mature enough.

“Mainly, they don’t know a lot about alcohol to begin with,” Stackiewicz said.

Knight said she felt uncomfortable being the youngest in an atmosphere that was mostly, if not all, over the drinking age.

4 “Bartenders are allowed to take shots

3 with their customers, with managers’ approval, and I obviously couldn’t do that,” Knight said. “I feel like that may have affected my tips as well. Customers couldn’t connect with me. Most saw me as the baby.”

Regardless, Knight said she found the job to be a positive experience while making “good money.”

“It’s a great way to meet people and have some fun,” Knight said. “You’re making money, too.”

After a few months, Boutain decided to leave the bar where she was working.

“I left because the job started to change me. I started doing things I normally wouldn’t have been OK with. The people were nice, but the atmosphere was hard for me,” she said. “I ended up getting drunk for the first time. I hated it.”

Despite the struggles, Boutain said, the money was good and she made lots of tips on a busy night.

“One of the best parts of the night was leaving on a busy night with a hundred dollars in [my] pocket,” she said.

Bartending

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January 29, 2015 | The Pitt News | www.pittnews.com

FROM PAGE 3

BARTENDING Monetary benefits aside, Boutain eventually decided that, for her, it wasn’t worth the sacrifices she had to make.

“I let the job affect my studying and I ended up dropping out of a class, and it was just really bad. It made me not want to go to school,” Boutain said. “I would go to school in the morning and then work in the afternoon. I wouldn’t get home

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until 3 a.m.,” Boutain said.

Boutain said before one can work as a bartender underage, one must be prepared to handle the environment.

“I feel like it would be different if I did it now because I’m very different than I was when I was 19,” Boutain said. “I’ve learned a lot and I know who I am now.

As a teenager, you’re still trying to figure out who you are and you’re kind of lost. You just want everyone to like you.

I think I would not give in so easily now that I’m older.”

E S T A B L I S HE D 1 9 1 0

Danielle Fox, Managing Editor manager@pittnews.com

Abbey Reighard, Assistant News Editor Dale Shoemaker, Assistant News Editor Courtney Linder, Assistant Opinions Editor Dan Sostek, Assistant Sports Editor Jeff Ahearn, Assistant Visual Editor Mason Lazarcheff, Multimedia Editor David Gardner, Social Media Editor Sam McGinley, Assistant Copy Chief Emily Hower, Assistant Layout Editor

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FROM PAGE 3

BATCH include ALung Technologies, Inc., Cohera Medical, Inc., Panther Learning Systems, Inc., NanoVision Diagnostics, Inc. and Diamond Kinetics, Inc., among others.

Walker said Impellia will use the “option period” to do customer discovery and kick the tires on the technologies to identify the best-use cases.

“The period allows us greater access to

the innovations. As we figure out the best use cases for the technology, we also want to identify the type of people that can use it,” Walker said. “Ultimately, we want a suite of integrated tools that address the growing rehabilitation and wellness market.”

Walker said Impellia’s partners are looking forward to the future opportunities they have with Pitt and other institutions.

“The folks at the Innovation Institute are very helpful, and we’re looking at this as the beginning of a long-term relationship,” Walker said.

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January 29, 2015 | The Pitt News | www.pittnews.com

EDITORIAL

OPINIONS HABTE

Tom Wolf: Playing politics?

Gov. Tom Wolf, D-Pa., has been in office for little more than a week, and already he’s facing controversy. The Pennsylvania Senate is suing Wolf over his decision to fire Office of Open Records Director, Erik Arneson. According to pennlive. com, the lawsuit seeks an injunction to restore Arneson to his position.

Two weeks prior to leaving office, former Gov. Tom Corbett, R-Pa., appointed Arneson to head the office, which is devoted to serving as a resource for citizens to obtain public records of their government. Wolf says that Corbett appointed Arneson at the “eleventh hour.” Even still, law requires Arneson serve his position for six years. Wolf did not even allow him to serve one month, undermining the integrity of Arneson’s office.

When running for the commonwealth’s highest executive position, Wolf stressed that he would not play politics.

His recent actions say otherwise.

In addition to swiftly and unilaterally removing the commonwealth’s Office of Open Records director, Wolf removed Ed Mann as State Fire Commissioner two weeks before he took office. Mann was the commonwealth’s fire commissioner for 14 years. To make matters worse, according to abcnews27.com, Wolf did not even call Mann himself. Instead, Mann received a call from a Wolf staffer informing him of his termination.

Despite Mann’s stellar commitment to public safety over the past decade and a half, Wolf decided to replace him with recently defeated Democratic state Senator Tim Solobay. Solobay has served in fire and emergency services before.

However, Mann has successfully served four governors, both republicans and democrats, as Fire Commissioner, per-

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forming his job with devotion to public safety. We have little evidence to suggest that Gov. Wolf had legitimate reasons to remove him other than to make room for a recently ousted Democratic legislator.

Again, Mr. Wolf, what happened to not playing politics?

As college students, we must remember that the actions and decisions of our governor play a major role in shaping Pennsylvania’s future. In November, The Pitt News endorsed Tom Wolf for Pennsylvania governor. We looked with optimism to his pledge to remain above the petty politics that so often disillusion the public. Wolf’s success equates to the commonwealth’s success. Therefore, we hope lawmakers in Harrisburg can work together to promote the goals on which Gov. Wolf campaigned. However, that can only happen if lawmakers and executives put politics aside and prioritize cooperation — Tom Wolf is no exception. If he is dissatisfied with an official such as the Office of Open Records director, Wolf should outline his grievances with the legislature and offer an open discussion about it. For the governor to do otherwise is to undermine the Democratic process and discourage bipartisan governmental efforts.

We urge Tom Wolf to work with the Republican House and Senate, not to act unilaterally as he did with the examples above, and to follow through on his campaign pledge to rise above partisan politics.

We trusted a man promising to practice his pledges. Now, Gov. Wolf has time to redeem himself. However, as Pennsylvania Governor, he is not off to a good start. Going forward, let’s hope our trust in him is not lost and that Pennsylvania receives the governor he promised to be.

Climate change: Let’s get off of the tipping point Bethel Habte Columnist

Fun fact: Mixologist Steven Dragun of the World Bar created a drink named “The Tipping Point” to represent the onset of climate change.

But it’s not the Tipping Point I’m concerned with.

I’m talking about the Tipping Point upon which we’ve precariously placed ourselves. Of course, when this one goes up in flames, it’s not quite as charming as a bar trick.

However, this past year has seen a significant shift in climate change conversation.

Yet, fear-driven dialogue continues to threaten progress. For our nation to economically and environmentally develop responsibly, we must provide job alternatives to individuals facing the economic backlash of environmental regulations, rather than submit to dogged pessimism.

On Sept. 21, 2014, more than 400,000 people marched in New York to raise awareness for climate change. Later that month, the United Nations Climate Summit brought world leaders together to discuss plans addressing the imminent danger that

climate change poses.

The Summit’s opening followed the first world conference of indigenous peoples. The groups’ representation at the summit was a hallmark milestone on the path to making peace with our planet.

While the U.S. historically has been adamant about refusing to ratify legally-binding deals, Obama recently struck a deal with China to double the rate at which we reduce emissions. This, in turn, encouraged China to begin reducing its emissions output, as well as rely more on alternative energy.

Gradually, we are moving from the discourse raised over the reality of climate change. After all, we’ve heard the facts, and we have no reason to believe that a majority of the scientific community is plotting to destroy the modern world by insinuating that we may be at the root of our planet’s demise.

According to NASA, 97 percent of climate scientists believe that human activity has influenced warming trends over the past century.

Yet, when it comes to polarized issues like that of climate change, debate

is unavoidable.

The factor of economic perils recently began to dominate the climate change debate.

With so much of our society reliant on fossil fuels, opponents of Obama’s ambitious deals warn that over-regulation of emissions producers will hurt the economy.

Some Republicans have dubbed Obama’s climate initiatives a “war on coal.”

Well, when you consider small towns like that of Grundy, Va., it’s not hard to see climate reform as a “war” against the coal industry — and, more importantly, the many employees that it encompasses.

But to insinuate that we should not advance with climate reform in order to preserve the livelihood of coal towns like Grundy is absurd.

Grundy is strictly a coal-mining town. If you’re not working in the coal mine, there are few alternatives for employment. There are only 18 businesses in all of Grundy, ranging from a YMCA to a Pizza Hut. But work in coal is hardly sustainable. As

Habte

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HABTE

author John C. Tucker wrote in “May God Have Mercy”: “For a miner who avoids being crippled, burned or buried alive, the usual question is which will give out first — his lungs, his back or his knees.”

As a result, about a fifth of Grundy’s population receives disability payments.

Martin Wegbreit, director of litigation at the Central Virginia Legal Aid Society, described of Grundy, “Here you have a Pandora’s box of every social issue that might contribute to disability.”

A conglomerate of issues: the town’s association with coal, lack of access to medical care, indulgence in tobacco and alcohol has earned Grundy the title of “the sickest town in America.”

Given that coal is the largest private employer in Grundy, it’s also safe to say that the town’s members aren’t pleased with the government enacting measures to decrease our dependence on coal.

When the town faced a slew of layoffs,

January 29, 2015 | The Pitt News | www.pittnews.com citizens blamed the Environmental Protection Agency’s stringent regulations.

Grundy is the perfect example of where climate change resolution reaches a dead end.

At its simplest, climate change can be explained as an excess of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere, adding to an accumulating greenhouse effect. We are currently living in high-carbon societies. The first step in addressing climate change is to make the transition to a low-carbon society.

That involves adhering to global agreements that set specific targets for emission reduction. However, it also means making deep structural changes to our way of life.

And it’s possible, because many communities have already taken the initiative to do so, and a great number of indigenous communities already model relatively sustainable lives.

On Jan. 22, the Global Studies Center held a video conference at Pitt, titled “‘Sustainability’ or Survival? Popular Responses to Global Climate Change,” . The conference was part of a 5-part

video series addressing issues associated with climate change. Speakers Jacqueline Patterson and Ahmina Maxey spoke on effective mobilization efforts already being enacted by communities, but they also highlighted the disproportionate effects that climate change has on low-income communities, as opposed to those that are more affluent.

It isn’t right that climate change should affect low-income communities like Grundy to a more substantial degree simply because of location. Being situated in the Appalachians makes Grundy a prime location for coal-mining, but it also makes the town susceptible to environmental disasters.

Grundy has had to relocate to higher ground after facing nine major floods within the past century, which is not only an economically taxing process, but also an emotional one.

It’s also clear that we cannot continue to be as reliant on fossil fuels like coal, and need measures enacted that reduce emissions — measures that citizens in towns like Grundy will, understandably, oppose.

T P N S U D O K U

But preserving the livelihood of Grundy citizens means maintaining our already swamped disability systems. Are we so desperate to continue to rely on coal that we are willing to pump tax dollars into the disability system to do so?

More importantly, however, there are alternatives for Grundy citizen’s employment — certainly, there is room for more than 18 businesses in Grundy.

Our government can help make more white collar positions available to Grundy citizens, which will dissipate their dependence on disability systems.

It cannot, however, make alternatives for our planet.

Fears of economic downfall should not halt our advancements in climate legislation, as economic alternatives should inspire environmental change.

It’s the only way we’re going to get out of the Tipping Point.

Bethel primarily writes about social issues and current events for The Pitt News.

Write Bethel at beh56@pitt.edu.

Today’s difficulty level: Hard Puzzles by Dailysudoku.com

January 29, 2015 | The Pitt News | www.pittnews.com

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ARTS and ENTERTAINMENT Beat the lines with these revamped Super Bowl recipes Grace Kelly Staff Writer

The Super Bowl is not just about the game, the commercials or how much air is in the footballs. It’s also about the delectable spread you lay before your amigos and the carnal pleasure of licking your fingers after consuming way too many Buffalo wings.

But all too often we sit back after the game in a food-induced haze, the TV light flickering and the full effect of having consumed two servings of frozen mac ‘n’ cheese, 25 cent wings (you get what you pay for in the flavor department) and a few cheap beers — all of it hitting you hard with each labored breath. To avoid the food coma induced by an overabundance of cheap food, consider a homemade dinner made with quality ingredients.

This menu is a revamp of the classic Super Bowl finger food and dishes — one that will leave you with a night of constant comments on your amazing cooking skills instead of a preservative-laced caloric monster. Classic Buffalo wings, green goddess dip and veggies and a healthy chocolate pudding round out a satisfying, healthy Super Bowl meal.

Serve alongside sea-salt chips and Samuel Smith’s Organic Apricot Ale (I’m not one for fruity beers, but this has a mellow apricot sweetness, as well as some caramel notes that make for a refreshing, clean finish), and touchdown, you’ve won big.

CLASSIC BUFFALO WINGS (adapted from Matt Reynolds and Ric Kealoha’s Championship Buffalo Wings recipe): Servings: 10 3 dozen chicken wings Salt and pepper to taste 32 ounces vegetable oil Hot sauce of choice (Recommended: Frank’s RedHot Original Cayenne Pepper Sauce) Rinse the wings, pat them dry, sprinkle with salt and pepper and let them warm to room temperature. This ensures that the skin is nice and crispy when baked.

Heat oil to 375 F in a medium-sized, deep skillet. Use a cooking thermometer to maintain a consistent oil temperature. Fry the chicken wings in batches of five, turning once, until golden and cooked through, for 8-10 minutes. Place the fried wings on a cookie sheet lined with paper towels. Once you have cooked all the wings, place them into a large bowl and add hot sauce. Toss to cover, and add more sauce as desired.

HEALTHY CHOCOLATE PUDDING (adapted from Mark Bittman’s recipe): 1 pack of silken tofu (the softest you can get) 8 ounces of semisweet chocolate 3/4 cup of sugar 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1 teaspoon vanilla extract Place the chocolate and sugar in a heatproof bowl, and set the bowl over a pot filled with 1 inch of water. Heat over medium-low heat until melted, stirring constantly and taking care not to overcook. Set aside.

Place drained tofu, cinnamon and vanilla extract in the blender. Add the melted chocolate, and blend until smooth. Spoon pudding into serving dishes and chill for at least an hour. Serve with a dollop of whipped cream.

GREEN GODDESS DIP (adapted from Food & Wine magazine): 2 tablespoons Greek yogurt 2 teaspoon white wine vinegar 1/2 avocado 1 clove garlic, minced 1 cup flat leaf parsley, loosely packed 1/2 cucumber 1 small shallot, chopped 3 tablespoon olive oil Salt and pepper to taste Combine all of the ingredients except the olive oil, salt and pepper in a blender or food processor. Blend until combined. Slowly add the olive oil until the dip is smooth.

Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve chilled alongside cut-up veggies (such as celery, radishes, kohlrabi or carrots), chips and crackers.

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January 29, 2015 | The Pitt News | www.pittnews.com

Belle and Sebastian tinker and evolve on new album Danah Bialoruski For The Pitt News

Belle and Sebastian Girls in Peacetime Want to Dance Grade: A-

Matador

Almost 20 years in, Belle and Sebastian explores new territory on its ninth album, Girls in Peacetime Want to Dance, but the result is unmistakably true to the band’s history.

Stuart Murdoch, lead singer and songwriter of the Scottish indie pop act, suffered from myalgic encephalomyelitis — or chronic fatigue syndrome — for seven years before his time with Belle and Sebastian. Murdoch opens the album with an ode to his illness, “Nobody’s Empire.”

The piece is the most personal song on the album — and possibly in the band’s career. He croons, “I clung to the bed, and I clung to the past / And I clung to the welcome darkness,” to describe his hellish symptoms. This song goes back to the roots of the band and to where it all began — Murdoch credits his illness as the inspiration for the songs he wrote during the late ’80s and early ’90s, just before classics like Tigermilk and If You’re Feeling Sinister were released.

“Nobody’s Empire” dually embodies Belle and Sebastian’s beginnings and where the band seems to be headed. While the song’s melody favors the understated sound of their older records, the lyrics suggest a different direction for the new album. In Girls in Peacetime Want to Dance, the delicate, yet full-

Review

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January 29, 2015 | The Pitt News | www.pittnews.com FROM PAGE 8

REVIEW bodied sound meets a new, energetic dynamism.

With the classic tones of some songs, Belle and Sebastian use Girls in Peacetime as a chance to expand and really develop a new sound — that they don’t fail at. Lead single “The Party Line” hinted to listeners that the new album was not going to be as whimsical as their previous one s. Its high and quick beats are something you might hear at a house party — in certain hip sectors of the country. Their use of more chintzy synths gives the song a sanguine tone.

Album highlight “The Everlasting Muse” sounds reminiscent of an oldworld European polka dance. At first glance, you don’t know what’s to come, but the song really grows and develops into something unexpected. It starts off with smooth bass accompanied by a silky voice before switching to a disorienting polka beat at the chorus. “Be popular, play pop and you will win my

love” ties up the end of the song, which describes a boy realizing that his kind — the unpopular and ordinary kid — isn’t good enough to be with the girl of his dreams. He says that the only way this girl will be with him is if he changes and conforms to how his peers act.

Ben H. Allen, producer of Washed Out, Animal Collective, CeeLo Green and more, helmed the album, and the buoyant and floaty sounds on Girls in Peacetime are consistent with much of Allen’s previous work. But Belle and Sebastian take those characteristics and make them fresh, new and their own. The album begins with a more upbeat tempo from the band, peaks in the middle and ends with the melodic sound that is so familiar to old fans. After nearly two decades of mostly consistent records with little tinkering from one release to the next, Belle and Sebastian have used their sophistication to finally explore more experimentation and show that the band has no fear in how the music sounds or where it could end up going.

This week Sat., Jan. 31 Pig Destroyer Altar Bar 1620 Penn Ave. 8 p.m. $18

Mon., Feb. 2 “Defective” Book Signing Rickert & Beagle Books 3233 West Liberty Ave. 7:30 p.m.

Free

Pig Destroyer’s show this weekend should be a pummeling, rapid-fire blitz of grindcore — with very few songs passing the two-minute mark. But it will be a departure from the band’s most recent release, the Mass and Volume EP, which is far more brutal and methodical than full-length releases. Its title track is nearly ten times as long as the average Pig Destroyer song.

Pitt alum Susan Sofayov will hold a book signing for her first novel, “Defective,” this Monday at Rickert & Beagle Books in South Hills. “Defective” follows Maggie Hovis, a Pitt law student grappling with her fiance, grades and, unknowingly, bipolar II disorder. Sofayov herself struggled from the disorder — undiagnosed — for decades before receiving treatment, so it’s a deeply personal debut.

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January 29, 2015 | The Pitt News | www.pittnews.com

TPN’s gaming guru previews 2015’s mostanticipated t d releases Stephanie Roman Staff Writer Already, 2015 boasts a huge catalog of video games to look forward to, and the dizzying excitement makes it hard to choose what to plug into my systems. Let me sift through some of these anticipated titles, and deliberate on what games I’m most eager to play.

My Top 5: Final Fantasy XV (Square-Enix, TBA 2015) First of all, “Final Fantasy XV” has effectively been in development since 2006 — under a different name and for last generation’s set of consoles. It’s unacceptable that the Japanese video game developer and publisher Square-Enix took nine years to make the game playable, and even then it’s not guaranteed to actually hit retail this year.

However, if and when it does finally make it to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, the stakes will be huge. “Final Fantasy XV” has a lot to prove to the JRPG (Japanese role playing game) console market and to the 27-year-old series, which is why I look forward to it as my most anticipated game of 2015.

Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (Kojima Productions, TBA 2015) It’s showtime again for Kiefer Sutherland’s performance as Big Boss (who might actually go by the codename of Venom Snake, for

some reason) as “The Phantom Pain” follows up on the events of 2014’s “Ground Zeroes.” What will Hideo Kojima dream up this time? Whatever the case, snag it on PC, PlayStation and Xbox systems whenever this monstrosity retails.

Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End (Naughty Dog, TBA 2015) Treasure hunter Nathan Drake ccomes out of retirement for one final mission. With a remarkably fin dark a tone and aesthetic atypical of previous r Sony-exclusive “Uncharted” games, let’s l hope Drake makes it out OK. Star Wars: ar Battlefront (EA, Holiday 2015) Let’s not o for a second forget that “Star Wars: Thee Force Awakens” debuts this year.

“Star Wars: r Battlefront,” the long-awaited return to the th third-person shooter franchise, will definitely t set the bar high for the holiday season’s release e of both the game and film.

No Man’s n Sky (Hello Games, TBA 2015) The premise: em in a starship, fly from planet to planet through h an infinite, procedurallygenerated open p universe. Discover indigenous flora and fauna un and battle for domain over these planetss aand galaxies. Did I mention the dinosaurs yet? Note N that Nintendo and Microsoft owners are excluded xclud from this deal, so consider looking into a PlayStation layS 4 or PC alternative because this game’ss art a style and music are totally awesome.

In addition to the games I’m extremely e invested in, there are several dropss by prominent game developers, studios and franchises f to get pumped about. Three brand nd new IPs (intellectual properties) already lookk lik like they can seize the industry and upset the sequelequeloriented design process — however, that certainly doesn’t mean I discount the sequels so easily, as there are some pretty notable ones.

TOP 5 AAAs

Bloodborne (From Software, Inc., 3/24/15) Directed by Hidetaka Miyazaki of the acclaimed “Dark Souls” and “Demon’s Souls” games, “Bloodborne” looks to be every bit as cruel and challenging as its predecessors, but with huge increases in its pace and dynamism.

Weirdly, it’s a PlayStation 4 exclusive, but that means fewer smashed controllers and gameinduced fits for everyone else.

The Order: 1886 (Ready at Dawn, 2/20/15) Monsters threaten to kill everyone in this highly steampunk vision of 1886 Victorian London. The game revolves around four protagonists who are knights in the crusade against the beasts, and a group of monsters who are part man, part animal.

None other than King Arthur and his Knights of the Round founded this hunting tradition, which appears now as a PlayStation 4 exclusive. Perhaps if it’s successful enough, it’ll jump to other systems.

Tom Clancy’s The Division (Ubisoft Massive, TBA 2015) A pandemic-stricken U.S. reels against despair. Enter special forces known as the Division. Part survival game, part RPG (role-

playing game), part shooter and entirely online, “The Division” appears to be a totally cool mix of gaming genres and shouldn’t be skipped. Gamers on PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One should definitely look into this.

Batman: Arkham Knight (Rocksteady Studios, 6/2/15) Batman is back to tackle his familiar nemesis Scarecrow as well as newcomer Arkham Knight, one year after the super-prison and anarchic events of 2011’s “Batman: Arkham City.” Expect the familiar mechanics of batarangs, fluid combat and detective vision. Most excitingly, “Batman: Arkham Knight” introduces a new feature that hopefully operates smoothly: a driveable Batmobile.

Halo 5: Guardians (343 Industries, TBA 2015) It’s always a huge ordeal when a new Microsoft-exclusive “Halo” game is released. Right now, there is little knowledge out about the forthcoming fifth installment, except that main man Master Chief is missing and he’s the only one who can save the galaxy from an unspecified threat.

“Tom Clancy’s The Division.” Photo via the game’s Facebook page

January 29, 2015 | The Pitt News | www.pittnews.com

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SPORTS

BASKETBALL

Panthers continue ACC gauntlet against No. 17 Duke Jeremy Tepper Staff Writer

Out of all the strengths of the Duke women’s basketball team, there’s one thing that sticks out to senior point guard Brianna Kiesel.

“Their height,” Kiesel said, with little hesitation.

Of the 11 players on Duke’s roster, eight stand 6 feet or taller. Out of those eight, all but one measure at least 6-foot-3 inches.

It’s this height that stands as the main hindrance in Pitt’s efforts to secure its fourth ACC win, as Pitt (13-6, 3-3 in ACC) faces off against No. 17 Duke (14-6, 5-2) at 6:30 tonight in Durham, N.C. Conversely, Pitt has three players 6 feet or taller — four, if Bubbles Anderson, who is missing the season with a torn ACL, is included.

Head coach Suzie McConnell-Serio is quite frank in describing the size difference.

“They’re very long and we’re not,” McConnell-Serio said.

Duke uses this height to its advantage, shaping its strategy to beat teams with their size edge.

Notably, Duke boasts a 14.4 rebound margin, good for second in the country.

With Pitt’s height being largely trumped, McConnell-Serio said Pitt will have to box out and pursue the basketball to compete on the boards.

On the defensive end, the Blue Devils play a matchup zone, using their height to disconcert their opponents.

“They’re long, they’re athletic and they’re just disruptive,” McConnell-Serio said.

Because of this height, opponents are forced to adjust their gameplans, refraining from bringing the ball inside.

“It’s very difficult to get the ball inside because they’re so long. And when you do go inside, there’s a double team and they’re blocking shots,” McConnell-Serio said.

Instead, Duke’s competitors have often resorted to shooting a heavy amount of 3-point shots. In the last five games, Duke’s opponents have taken 30, 35, 37, 33 and 31 threes, respectively.

Basketball

12 Brianna Kiesel will lead Pitt on Thursday. Alyson Derrick | Staff Photographer

COLUMN

ʻIʼm just playing so I donʼt get finedʼ: Super Bowl predictions Alex Wise Staff Writer

Tom Brady leads the Patriots in another Super Bowl. TNS

I’ve never been good at traditional predictions — you know, the probable winner and the score and all that basic stuff. But I did predict before the World Cup that Luis Suarez would bite somebody, which gives me the credibility and the confidence to make some more bold guesses as to what will happen at this Sunday’s Super Bowl. So here are a few quick and random picks of what I think will happen in the Super Bowl on Sunday.

Richard Sherman Will Get Burned And burned badly. Not necessarily for a touchdown, but at least for a big gain — I’ll say 40 plus yards — that helps to set up a New England Patriots touchdown. You know the old expression about getting burned when you fly too close to the sun? Well, in this instance, Sherman’s ego is the flying object and Tom Brady is the sun.

I scoff at a self-respecting man wearing Ugg boots as much as the next guy, but there’s no denying Brady’s exceptional abilities, especially in high-pressure situations. So, consequently, “cooler heads will prevail,” and other clichés.

Marshawn Lynch Will Be Special, On and Off the Field If I were in charge of chiseling a Mount Rushmore of sports media darlings, Marshawn Lynch’s recent endeavors would make him the unanimous number one pick. (For those that are interested, Randy Moss, Manny Ramirez and Dennis Rodman would complete the structure.) Saying “thanks for asking” to every single question asked of you at Super Bowl’s Media Day was entertaining, but also a genius protest of the rule that players must make themselves available to the media. At Tuesday’s media day, Lynch dodged the im-

Column

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January 29, 2015 | The Pitt News | www.pittnews.com FROM PAGE 11

BASKETBALL “They force teams into taking an absurd amount of threes,” McConnell-Serio said.

“They play the percentages. They believe that teams won’t shoot a high percentage from three.”

Spearheading Duke’s defense is Elizabeth Williams, a 6-foot-3 center and three-time Associated Press All-America and ACC Defensive Player of the Year.

“They have one of the best post players, in my opinion, in the ACC,” Kiesel said.

Averaging three blocks a game — good for 19th in the country — Williams serves as a large deterrent in the middle of Duke’s defense. Largely because of Williams, Pitt will likely attempt more threes than usual. Knocking down these shots behind the arc will be key in beating Duke, McConnell-Serio said.

And when Pitt does choose to challenge Williams inside, Kiesel noted that Pitt will need to use pump fakes, among other tactics, to throw the center’s timing off.

To combat Duke’s defense, McConnellSerio said solid defense by her team can help corrupt their scheme.

“If we can get stops on the defensive end and create more of an up-tempo game, that

is where we need to try to be successful. Not allowing them to get their defense set and being able to attack in transition,” she said.

On the offensive end, Duke uses its size to pound the ball inside. Williams averages 15.1 points per game, while Azurá Stevens (6-foot-5) averages 13.2 and Oderah Chidom (6-foot-4) averages 8.4.

With facing such a physically challenging adversary, one might think beating Duke would be a difficult task. Kiesel, nevertheless, said she was confident that the matchup would not ruffle Pitt.

“We go in expecting to win every game that we play, no matter who we play,” she said.

Over her four years at Pitt, Kiesel said she and her teammates always believed they could take on anybody. Though, she did concede that her team’s current confidence level is higher than it has been over her career.

Partly, this assurance is a result of the work she and her teammates have expended this season — work which finally seems to be yielding success.

Her teammate, graduate student forward Monica Wignot, agreed and added that Pitt’s recent practice habits should benefit the team.

“We’re confident, but not overconfident,” Wignot said. “We’ve put hours into the gym and we know that they’re going to pay off.”

Monica Wignot scored 18 points in her last game. Alyson Derrick | Staff Photographer

FROM PAGE 11

COLUMN pending $500,000 fine with which the league used to make him talk.

“I’m here so I won’t get fined,” or some variation of that expression, was his answer to every question.

Personally, I think that Lynch is just so focused on upcoming games that he doesn’t want any distractions beforehand. Therefore, after Sunday’s game, Lynch will unleash an hour-long soliloquy on the media that answers any and all questions from their wildest dreams.

Bill Belichick Will Smile I’m joking, of course.

A New Patriots “Scandal” Will Unfold They’ve spied. They’ve deflated. They’ve been every kind of villain the NFL fears.

Personally, I think “Deflategate” was just a precursor to something much greater. So, the question remains: what will the Patriots do next? Maybe they’ll run a bunch of formations with only nine guys on the field. Someone is bound to claim this is an advantage for them.

Maybe Julian Edelman will wear titaniumtipped cleats and set the world on fire.

It’s cold in New England during football season. The Patriots have become comfortable playing in this weather. It will not be cold in the University of Phoenix Stadium in Arizona on Sunday. While officials are busy monitoring the Patriots’ ball bag to make sure each is of sufficient weight (let’s all be adults here), the team will send a hired team of professionals to the stadium’s underbelly, where they’ll pay off security with donuts (because how else do you pay off security guards?) and crank up the air conditioning.

This will cause temperatures in the building to plummet, giving the Patriots an advantage.

As soon as this happens, officials will be forced to investigate. But you can only have so many officials on hand, so the “Official Ball Guarders” will become the “Official Heat Inspectors” and abandon their posts by the ball bags. Tight end Rob “Gronk” Gronkowski will then spike the balls with superhuman strength, deflating them and giving the Patriots a double advantage.

The media will call it HeaterSmashDistractionDonutGronkSpikeGate.

Oh, yeah. I need a score prediction. Uh… Patriots 31, Seahawks 21.

The Pitt News Crossword, 01/29/2015

January 29, 2015 | The Pitt News | www.pittnews.com ACROSS 1 Audio problem 4 Finish paying a bill, perhaps 10 Controlled 14 Radio host Glass 15 Ethically indifferent 16 Adidas rival 17 *Motown Records founder 19 Baptismal basin 20 Spanish royalty 21 Oceanic reflux 23 Jessica of “Dark Angel” 24 *Cubs broadcaster known for singing along with “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” during the seventh-inning stretch 27 Mental grasp 29 McCain or McCaskill: Abbr.

30 Tummy muscles 32 Circular gasket 34 Time at the inn 38 Shad eggs 39 Biblical trio ... and a homophonic hint to the answers to starred clues 42 Have a mortgage, e.g.

43 Send to the canvas 45 Graceful swimmers 46 Pull down 47 Dorm monitors, briefly 50 Windpipe, e.g.

52 *“That’ll Be the Day” singer 56 Grand Forks locale: Abbr.

59 “It’s finally clear to me” 60 Accustom 61 Sushi option 62 *Longtime “60 Minutes” closer 66 Follow, or follower 67 Listen to, as a podcast 68 Bearded beast 69 Suburban street liners 70 Physical jerks 71 Blather

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2/11/15

By Peter A. Collins

DOWN 1 Heavenly scales 2 Spinning 3 *“The [52-Across] Story” Oscar nominee 4 Big name in chips 5 Texter’s “Unbelievable!”

6 Icky stuff 7 Rink legend Bobby 8 Sound system control 9 Spacecraft datacollection passes 10 Lounging robes 11 To have, in Le Havre 12 Lavin or Blair 13 Swabby’s chum 18 Gather 22 Abbr. in ancient dates 24 Mata __ 25 Words before and after “is still” in “As Time Goes By” 26 Time extension?

28 Garage service 30 Storied vessel 31 Flapper’s wrap 33 Google Apps component

Tuesday’s Puzzle Solved

©2015 Tribune Content Agency, LLC

35 *“Football Night in America” analyst 36 Knock the socks off 37 Still 40 Professor ‘iggins 41 Sydney is its cap.

44 Tough times 48 Writer Rand 49 Young pigs 51 Latin word on a cornerstone

2/11/15

52 Please, in Potsdam 53 Same as always 54 Jeans material 55 Come clean 57 Place for matches 58 Light a fire under 60 Charged atoms 63 Genes material 64 “I’m listening” 65 Grand Canyon viewing spot