Vol. 105 Issue 89
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UPSET SPECIAL Womenʼs basketball knocks off No. 8 UNC for 1st ACC win Mark Powell Staff Writer One game removed from a narrow loss to a highly ranked Louisville team, the Pitt women’s basketball team was able to play the role of spoiler. The team defeated the eighth-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels 84-59 in a monumental win for the program. Brianna Kiesel led the way, scoring 22 points while recording nine rebounds and five assists. Monica Wignot and Stasha Carey added 18 and 17 points respectively. Having already beaten perennial tournament teams Michigan and Ohio State this season, the Panthers looked calm and collected against one of the top teams in the ACC. They claimed their first win against a ranked opponent since 2011. “I couldn’t be more proud of the way [the team] executed the game plan,” head coach Suzie McConnell-Serio said. “It was a great game to be a part of.” Pitt’s goal was clear from the beginning: to force the Tar Heels to beat them with the outside shot, as UNC has only hit 30 percent of their attempts from behind the arc this year.
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Friday, January 9, 2015
Pittnews.com
Study shows emoticons bust gender stereotypes
Anjana Murali Staff Writer When it comes to emotions, smiley faces are the great gender equalizer between men and women. In a 2000 study, Alecia Wolf, an assistant dean at the University of Texas at Tyler, looked at how people express themselves online through emoticons, keyboard characters used to represent faces. Wolf found that the age-old stereotypes of the emotional woman and inexpressive man may not apply to electronic communications. Through her study, Wolf concluded that, when men and women message as part of a mixed-gender group, gender has little effect on the frequency of emoticon usage. “It’s so hard to convey non-verbal cues, like tone of voice and facial expression, in text-based communication, and I think emoticons do a great job of conveying this information for us,” said Meredith Guthrie, a lecturer in media communication at Pitt. “You can let the
other people in your discussion know that you’re kidding, or that you’re angry, with just a few simple keystrokes.” When Wolf began her research, she said there were two prevalent, yet conflicting, beliefs about the Internet. One belief claimed that, since the Internet was male-dominated, it replicated the offline environment where the gender bias favored males in the working world. “The Internet was viewed by some as inherently masculine and unfriendly at best — hostile at worst — to women,” Wolf said. The second dominant belief was that the Internet was “the great equalizer,” Wolf said, because “on the Internet, nobody knows you’re a dog,” like the old adage states. This means that because men and women can remain anonymous and hide whether or not they are male or female online, it’s much more difficult for readers to uphold gender biases in the Internet world. With this in mind, Wolf wanted to explore if race, sex, class, age, etc., disappeared online, would the internet pos-
sibly be a hostile environment for women. “Since stereotypes already existed regarding gendered emotional expression, and the widespread use of emoticons was also a relatively new phenomenon, it seemed like an interesting place to start,” Wolf said. Wolf ’s research revealed that there is a distinct change in the kinds of emoticons used when men and women converse in a same-gender group, rather than in a mixed-gender group. Wolf said in her study that “the majority of emoticon use by females lies in the meaning category of humor; the bulk of male emoticon use expresses teasing/sarcasm.” Additionally, when moving from same-gender to mixed-gender groups, male frequency of emoticon use increases greatly and use of teasing, sarcasm and humor decreases. Meanwhile, women use more emoticons to express teasing, sarcasm and humor in mixed-gender groups. The study showed that the basic smiley :), the basic frowny :(, and the basic winky
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January 9, 2015 | The Pitt News | www.pittnews.com
New activist group honors MLK, plans protest Dale Shoemaker Assistant News Editor In honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a new Pittsburgh activist group, We Change Pittsburgh, will march against racism and police brutality. “The best way to commemorate Dr. King is to continue his work to end racism at home, war overseas and militarism everywhere,” said Julia Johnson, organizer of We Change Pittsburgh. In a press release announcing the Jan. 19 march, We Change Pittsburgh said the activists “feel that Dr. King’s opposition to war and racism are consistent with the theme of this march.” Activists will march from 6 to 8 p.m. from the intersection of Bigelow Boulevard in Oakland to the City-County Building on Grant Street Downtown. Members of We Change Pittsburgh organized the December Pittsburgh protests against police brutality. Johnson led the way during the three-hour
police brutality protest last December. Johnson and roughly 200 students and community members marched for about eight miles through Pittsburgh. According to the release, We Change
“We will keep marching until police brutality, racism and militarization come to an end.” Pete Shell
Pittsburgh teamed up with the Thomas Merton Center Anti-War Committee, an organization that advocates for peace and social justice, and several other peace and justice groups to organize
the march. Chief Cameron McLay, chief of Pittsburgh’s Bureau of Police, announced his solidarity with anti-police brutality movements on New Year’s Eve when he was photographed holding a protester’s sign that read “I resolve to challenge racism @ work #EndWhiteSilence.” “Chief McLay’s promise to challenge racism at work is a step in the right direction, but we will keep marching until police brutality, racism and militarism come to end,” said Pete Shell of the Anti-War Committee in the release. A message on We Change Pittsburgh’s Facebook page detailed the group’s demands. “[We] demand an end to all forms of racist wars: from the domestic war waged against the poor and working Black and Latino communities to the imperialist wars on the poor and working people all over the world,” the group said.
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EMOTICONS faces ;) are the most commonly used emoticons for both men and women. “I think that men use more emoticons and express less teasing and sarcasm in mixed-gender groups because they want to be understood by women,” Guthrie said. “They don’t want to hurt women’s feelings and so they default to a clearer type of communication that is hopefully better understood.” Pitt’s Slutciety publication adviser Aubrey Hirsch said this behavior may say something significant about how men and women are socialized differently when it comes to self-expression. “Men may feel less comfortable showing real emotion in front of other men because they worry about performing their gender roles incorrectly,” said Hirsch, who is also a visiting lecturer at Pitt. Slutciety is Pitt’s intersectional feminist publication. According to Wolf ’s study, research
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January 9, 2015 | The Pitt News | www.pittnews.com
EDITORIAL
OPINIONS
Casual Fridays
Snake the drains “Harry Potter” fans, rejoice. A five-and-a-half-footlong snake has re-opened the Chamber Pot of Secrets in a San Diego office building. Stephanie Lacsa plunged the office toilet last Tuesday after she noticed the water level was higher than usual. A slippery surprise appeared, as a snake slithered up to greet the unbemused office worker. Someone should have told Little Johnny that flushing snakes isn’t quite like flushing your goldfish.
In the ruff Last week, a homeless Florida resident gave CVS workers everywhere a reason to demand a raise. Jeremiah Patterson, 22, walked into a CVS pharmacy and stripped down to the buff in the men’s room. Following his derobing, Patterson exited the restroom and proceeded to rummage through the dog beds until he picked one fit for his bare body. Officials found Patterson tired as a dog, asleep in the pet bed and receiving furtive glances from shoppers
Man of steel Last Friday, the health of Illinois man Arthur Lampitt took a turn for the worst. He visited his local emergency room after experiencing pain in his right arm. Once there, doctors removed a turn signal lever that had been lodged in his arm since a car
crash in 1953. Today, Lampitt looks forward to no longer setting off metal detectors. If he could turn back time, he would have had it removed sooner.
Pokey little puppy There’s no doubt about it, Chris Shaw and Bradley Justice have a knitwit for a dog. On New Year’s Eve, Tutti, their Papillon, jumped onto the coffee table and landed on a pair of knitting needles, piercing her heart. Tutti went limp and stuck her tongue out, leading Shaw and Justice to believe that she “had expired,” they told WNCN. Luckily, the needle was small enough that minimal injuries were sustained, and Tutti stuck through it all.
Weeding out criminals Florida man John Balmer was not dressed for success when he entered a local Kmart on Tuesday, wearing a T-shirt declaring, “WHO NEEDS DRUGS? No, seriously, I have drugs.” Noting an officer in the store, Balmer panicked and tried to hand off a bag of “green, leafy substance” to another customer. When the customer declined the bag, Balmer nonchalantly dropped it and paid for his items. Authorities detained him — and the “leafy substance,” which turned out to be marijuana and methamphetamine. He was arrested for one count of possession and two counts of absolute idiocy.
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COLUMN
America’s new religion problem Rebecca Peters For The Pitt News
The United States does not have a religion problem — our First Amendment proves that. However, it seems the United States has a people problem. Instead of tolerating diversity, we have adamantly worked against spiritual autonomy. The First Amendment protects our right to religious freedom —this is widely understood. Centuries later, the 1993 Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) addresses the First Amendment’s shortfalls, where the liberty of practicing religion meets secular law. That being said, what happens when the line between church and state becomes blurred? Those who are religious and antireligious alike question the RFRA’s true purpose and actual effectiveness. The act was meant to allow certain religious practices to take priority over secular law—with compelling justification. Yet, the act fails to address social accceptance of religion itself. Ben Carson, popular political conservative leader and author of “America the Beautiful”, commented on the amazing tolerance and harmony that he experienced giving speeches concerning religion. According to his book, Columbine High School school officials asked Carson not to mention God in his speech there, following the tragic mass shootings. Carson felt the community needed such faith and assurance, so he did not comply with the request. He spoke of his Creator and received a standing ovation. The RFRA does not force anyone to believe in any supernatural force in which they do not otherwise believe. It simply allows those who do have religious beliefs to practice them
without undue burden. This does not mean, however, that paramedics who identify as Christians can deny care to the LGBT community, as recent media, such as a recent CBS News’ article on a Michigan religious freedom bill, suggests. Nor does it allow Muslim extremists to freely practice homicidal behaviors. These ideas and actions would not have compelling justifications, as the RFRA requires. To play devil’s advocate: what then, is the purpose of this act? In Employment Division v. Smith (1990), a Native American was denied a job due to a positive drug test for a Schedule I substance, peyote. This hallucinogen is derived from cactuses and is used during religious ceremonies. The Supreme Court sided with the Native Americans and permitted the drug for religious practices. This decision was an important precedent for other cases of similar nature. The results of this precedent are seen in Gonzales v. O Centro Espirita Beneficente Uniao do Vegetal (2006), in which the Supreme Court ruled in favor of a Schedule I substance being used in tea for religious ceremonies. This Schedule I substance, ayahuasca, contains dimethyltryptamine (DMT), a hallucinogenic used in the sacramental tea. The court sided with the Brazilian church in question because the U.S. government could not prove that they had a compelling interest in barring the substance. The RFRA comes in handy for lawful acceptance of religious practices, but what about the social acceptance of religion itself? Is the allowance of hallucinogenic substances during religious practices seen as a triumph or a gateway for illegal drugs to be misused based on a phony religious claim?
The results of the act are limited and controversial, mirroring the complications of the act itself. It does not solve the root of the problem, only the leaves that stem from it. Our nation’s democracy flows through waves of liberalism and conservatism with every election, but no matter the sway, our values should remain the same: tolerance, unity and freedom. According to a Pew Forum poll on religion in the U.S., 78.4 percent of the population identified themselves as Christian, 1.7 percent identified as Jewish, 0.6 percent as Muslim and 1.6 percent as atheist. For every atheist, there are 50 people who identify as Christian, Jewish or Muslim. Why is that one person able to outshout 50 others? Why are the religious so afraid to fight back? They are not afraid. They are simply tolerant. The Religious Freedom Restoration Act serves as little of the population as possible because it does not change the problems the religious majority faces. With the line separating church and state becoming more controversial every day, how is our nation going to be able to return to its Judeo-Christian roots? Carson suggests a cause for this separation:“Freedom to worship or not worship as one pleases would not be an issue were it not for the extreme intolerance of antireligion groups. These are the same people who brand anyone who disagrees with their agenda as bigoted and intolerant.” Those who are antireligious have progress to make, but the religious do, too. Neither side should ask to receive what they are not willing to give — tolerance. Rebecca Peters writes about current political events for The Pitt News. Write Rebecca at rcp30@pitt.edu
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January 9, 2015 | The Pitt News | www.pittnews.com
MEN’S BASKETBALL
SPORTS
Pitt prepares for sputtering Clemson
Sheldon Jeter and the Panthers look to play with more toughness moving forward this season. Heather Tennant | Staff Photographer
Jasper Wilson Staff Traitor The Clemson men’s basketball team isn’t very good at offense. The proof is in the statistics — the Tigers (8-6, 0-2 ACC) rank last in the ACC in scoring, second-to-last in scoring margin, last in field goal percentage with .425 — but Clemson head coach Brad Brownell also hestitantly admitted the team’s weakness. “Scoring’s been a little bit of a problem for us this year,” Brownell said on Monday during the ACC coaches’ teleconference. The issues don’t end there: Clemson is third-to-last in the ACC in 3-point percentage and last in assists. It’s also tied for second-tolast in turnover margin and scoring margin, as well as last in assist-to-turnover ratio. “I think we’re a better shooting team than our stats,” Brownell said before reconsidering, “that’s really not the case. You are what your stats say you are. But I do think we can shoot the ball better.” Despite these major struggles, Pitt head
coach Jamie Dixon knows a team’s offensive success can shift suddenly, which was precisely what happened to the Panthers on Tuesday at Boston College. Trailing by as much as 10 late in the game, the Panthers were able to surge back and notch a 61-60 win in overtime. Pitt hosts the Tigers at the Petersen Events Center on Saturday in its first conference home game of the season. The team will need to build on, or, at least, maintain, its offensive performance from the later portion of the BC contest, while the visitors do the opposite, in order for Pitt to re-establish a winning streak. “It comes and goes,” Dixon said of offensive success. “There’s a lot of things that factor in, but it can change overnight. Just like it changed for us in the middle of a game offensively where we moved better and adjusted and started making some shots.” But consistency has been an issue for Pitt (11-4, 1-1 ACC). Read the rest online at Pittnews.com.
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didn’t let them get second-chance shots.” Despite the first-half lead, the Panthers couldn’t get too comfortable. They held a second-half lead against seventh-ranked Sophomore guard Allisha Gray highlighted Louisville in their last contest, yet lost the the Heels’ four-guard lineup. Gray averages game 57-63. nearly 17 points and eight rebounds per game. “I was a little intense at halftime,” McCoThe Panthers got off to a fast start, match- nnell-Serio said. “I didn’t go in passive at all,” ing the Tar Heels basket-for-basket. Wignot The Panthers pushed the lead to 20 points entered the game as the team’s leading scorer, early in the second half, with key contributions averaging over 17 per contest. Wignot played from freshmen Aysia Bugg, Yacine Diop and the game with a proCarey. Carey became tective mask from an the third Pitt player in undisclosed injury the game to score in against Louisville. double figures. The injury had Bugg finished with little effect, as she her best statistics of scored nine points in the season, scoring just as many minutes eight points and addto open the game. ing six rebounds. Wignot demonstrated “We have all new her range throughout players except a couthe first half, hitting ple of returning semultiple 3-pointers niors ... they’ve been from the right corner. here four years, and I Kiesel entered the don’t think it’s the four game leading the ACC years they wanted to in assists per game have,” Bugg said. and assist-to-turnover “We’re just trying to ratio. She set up three build this program of her teammates’ up.” buckets in the first 20 But the Tar Heels minutes. would not go quiGray did all she etly, as a four-minute could to keep UNC in Pitt scoring drought the game in the first helped UNC trim the half, scoring 12 points lead to 14. on three of five shootKiesel came up ing and grabbing nine big late, as she was rebounds. able to break the Pitt’s defensive Brianna Kiesel led all scorers with 22 UNC press defense strategy paid off, as points. Alyson Derrick | Staff Photographer several times, as well they took a 10-point as provide pressure on lead into the half. The inbounds plays after a Panthers forced the Tar Heels to jack up 14 made basket. 3-pointers, of which they only made three. “She just continues to make plays,” McCoOverall, North Carolina shot 32 percent from nnell-Serio said of Kiesel. the field, compared to Pitt’s 37 percent. Pitt took advantage of UNC’s growing frusThe most relevant stat of the half, how- tration late in the game and pushed the ball in ever, was the differential on the boards. The transition to extend their lead. Panthers out-rebounded the Heels 29-20, The result improves the Panthers to 11-4 on including a 10-5 edge on the offensive glass. the season and evens their conference record “As a team, we did a great job finding their to 1-1. Their next game will be at Florida State girls and boxing them out,” Wignot said. “We on Jan. 15.
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January 9, 2015 | The Pitt News | www.pittnews.com FROM PAGE 2
EMOTICON shows that men are perceived as more technologically inclined and make the rules for online interaction. “It seems men create the terminology and rules for cyberspace, but we must question whether their rules appropriately suit women,” she wrote in her study. Wolf ’s study found that male encoding of emoticons did not silence women in cyberspace but, instead, encouraged them to assert positive feelings in conversation.
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“Emoticons are just a new tool for selfexpression, and I think it’s great that so many women are reading and writing meaning into them and using them to help themselves feel understood,” Hirsch said. In the mixed-gender groups, Wolf found that both men and women increase their emoticon use and were able to express themselves in nontraditional ways. “I’m particularly impressed by the way men and women move toward one another, almost mimicking each others’ communication styles in the mixed-gender environment,” Hirsch said. “There’s something really encouraging about that,
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I think.” Wolf said her research could have a role to play in shaping the Internet for the better. Her study showed that women, as internal agents of change, were able to affect and shape online language use by actively participating in online communities. “The importance of this effort is that as the voices of these groups are heard online, they take an active role in helping to recreate the Internet so that it remains a useful tool for society at large,” Wolf said. For Sarah Offley, a freshman molecular biology major, emoticons are both useful and excessive at times.
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“In some cases, emojis definitely help me figure out the other person’s tone and whether they are joking or not,” Offley said. “If I am texting someone new, emoticons help with the conversation and make sure we are on the same level.” Offley said she uses more emoticons when she texts her female friends. “With girls, a lot of the time it just becomes an excess of emoticons. I tend to use more emojis when I’m talking to my [female] friends, and, if I took them away, there wouldn’t be much of change in the conversation, there just wouldn’t be an excess of smiley faces,” she said. advertising@pittnews.com
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