The Rice Thresher | Wednesday, November 8, 2022

VOLUME 107, ISSUE NO. 11 | STUDENT-RUN SINCE 1916 | RICETHRESHER.ORG | WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2022

Sewall voting location sees hour-plus wait times Rice’s Sewall Hall served as an Election Day voting location for around 900 voters on Tuesday. According to Vivian Zheng, the presiding election judge, people waited in line for one to two hours before casting their ballots, though wait times dropped off significatly as it got closer to 7 p.m.

Zheng, a Baker College junior, said that she knew there would be lines but wasn’t sure how long they would be.

“I feel like it’s kind of hard to expect how it will be [in different elections],” Zheng said.“I knew the lines would be crazy … but definitely not to this extent. But we haven’t had any major issues, like no technical issues, which is so good. That’s the most we can ask for.”

According to Zheng, the lines were exacerbated by the length of Harris County’s ballot — one of the longest in the country — and the lack of voting equipment at the location.

COURTESY RICE ATHLETICS

“People are taking their time to vote, which is very understandable,” Zheng said. “But because of the length of the ballot, it just takes longer for each person to do everything, and then also we don’t have enough equipment.

That’s just the reality of it.”

Of the people that took advantage of the voting in Sewall, most chose to do so because of its location. Eliot Solomon, a McMurtry College senior, said he appreciated the location’s proximity to his classes.

“I feel like the location is good, and the wait is a little longer, but seems pretty standard [in comparison to my previous voting experiences],” Solomon said. “It’s really nice to be able to walk out of class and come vote.”

The lines at Sewall held more than just members of the Rice community. Nathan Drake, who lives near campus, said he chose to vote at Sewall because of its proximity

KATHERINE HUI / THRESHER

BEN BAKER-KATZ

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

to his house. Others, like Tung Shu, a physician who works in the Medical Center, said that all things considered, the experience could have been worse. “[The Sewall location] is very convenient.

My office is literally across the street,” Shu said. “[I] expected some line, but it’s not bad … Also it’s inside, it’s got AC. [I] can’t complain.”

According to Zheng, the long lines were an encouraging sign for democracy, but she and the other judges did try to urge people to seek out other voting locations to keep the lines as short as possible.

“The lines are good, because it’s showing that people are coming out to vote,” Zheng said. “We have been encouraging people to try to find other polling locations that are closer to campus … and I do think people [took that] advice.”

One of those people was Elysia Wu, a

Lovett College senior, who intended to vote at Sewall but heard about the long lines and decided to vote at Congregation Emanu El, a voting location across the street from campus on Sunset Boulevard.

“I was actually planning to vote on campus, but I bumped into a friend who told me about a shorter wait time [at a different location] so we both went offcampus together,” Wu said. “All in all, it probably cut my wait time in half, even with the 10 minute walk.”

In all, the attitudes of most voters at Sewall were summed up by Emily Searles, a graduate student in the Chemistry department.

“Who has the time [to early vote]?”

Searles said. “I need to vote … and I’ve already [been] in line for like 36 minutes, I’ve committed.”

Maria Morkas and Bonnie Zhao contributed to this reporting.

This article has been condensed for print.

Read the full article at ricethresher.org.

Volleyball heads to No. 22 Western Kentucky for rivalry’s potential final chapter DANIEL SCHRAGER

SPORTS EDITOR

The last time Rice volleyball lost a conference regular season game, back in 2019, it took Western Kentucky University two match points to knock off the Owls in a five-set battle that ultimately decided the regular season conference title. The two teams would meet again that year, this time in the conference championship game, but the result was the same: a five-set Hilltopper victory.

Only three players from that Owls team are still with the program, but according to fifthyear setter Carly Graham, the losses still haven’t faded from memory.

“Yeah. We remember that,” Graham said. “[It was] on our home court,” fifth-year middle blocker Anota Adekunle added.

Each year since then, the Owls and Hilltoppers have met in the Conference USA title game, and each time, the Hilltoppers have come out on top. In

that span, the Owls are 53-0 against all other conference opponents, but 0-4 against Western Kentucky. They’ve beaten perennial national championship contenders the University of Texas at Austin twice in that time, but haven’t been able to get past the Hilltoppers. According to head coach Genny Volpe, when the Owls head to Bowling Green this Thursday, it will mean more than just any other game.

“I’d be lying if I said it didn’t,” Volpe said.

Going into the game, the two teams are separated by only one spot in the American Volleyball Coaches Association poll, with Rice ranked No. 21 and WKU at No. 22, and tied atop C-USA going into the final week of conference play. According to Volpe, the matchup has turned into an unlikely rivalry simply as a product of both programs’ success.

“When we first moved into Conference USA, I would have never thought that Western Kentucky was going to be our rival,” Volpe said. “It’s not anywhere close to us. But [their] consistent success and the fact that we would keep meeting up in the conference championship game … the rivalry has definitely built up over time.”

Despite their recent results, Graham said the Owls still look forward to the challenge of playing the Hilltoppers, who

this year are led by reigning conference player of the year Lauren Matthews.

“I think it’s definitely a rivalry game,” Graham said. “It’s typically two top-25 programs so it’s usually a really good matchup, super competitive and some good volleyball.”

Under head coach Travis Hudson, the Hilltoppers have won the conference every year since 2014, with the exception of the Owls’ title in 2018. Volpe said that the most impressive part of WKU’s success all these years has been their consistency.

“Western is very consistent,” Volpe said. “They run a particular style of offense that is really successful. They have the same pieces [as in previous years].”

This will be the last time the Owls face the Hilltoppers in the regular season before they leave C-USA for the American Athletic Conference. While Volpe said she’s discussed scheduling WKU for non-conference play going forward, she knows this is the Owls’ last shot to take the conference title from their rival.

“This one’s going to be extra special just because it’s our last time in the league and so we want to leave on a positive note,” Volpe said. “It’s time for us to change the narrative. It’s definitely time.”

2 • WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2022

THE RICE THRESHER

Two Rice professors named among top 35 women in robotics at IROS DANIKA LI

FOR THE THRESHER Rice professors Lydia Kavraki and Marcia O’Malley were named among 35 Women in Robotics Engineering and Science honorees at the 2022 International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems in Kyoto, Japan on Oct. 25. IROS is one of the largest international conferences in robotics and intelligent systems.

Kavraki is the Noah Harding Professor of Computer Science and director of the Ken Kennedy Institute, and O’Malley is the Thomas Michael Panos Family Professor in Mechanical Engineering and associate dean for research and innovation.

Additionally, both have teaching appointments across multiple engineering disciplines.

Kavraki said she believes the honor is not singular, but reflective of the work of scores of students who have passed through her lab.

“I’ve been at Rice for all my career, and what I have achieved, I didn’t achieve myself, I achieved it working with the students — graduate, undergraduate, Ph.D. and postdoctoral students at Rice,” Kavraki said. “So it’s a recognition for me, but really, it’s a recognition for the work that has been done by several people in my group over the years.”

O’Malley said the robotics community has been progressive in thinking about representation, and the WiRES award was an opportunity for the community to recognize that there are many groups that are underrepresented, not just women.

“I was really honored to be one of these 35,” O’Malley said. “It was a really nice recognition that captured a lot of folks in all regions of the world and across a number of different sub-disciplines, [and] a nice opportunity to think of the community recognizing that there are groups that are underrepresented. Now we can look to the future and think about future upcoming women, but also other groups that should have equal footing and representation in the field.”

Vice President for Research Ramamoorthy Ramesh said that he was proud of Kavraki and O’Malley’s accomplishments at Rice and recent recognition from IROS. “They both are superstars at Rice. As Rice embarks on its new journey with a strong focus on research, colleagues such as Lydia and Marcie will be leading the charge into the future with even greater discoveries that will lead to even bigger peer recognition,” Ramesh wrote in an email to the Thresher.

President Reginald DesRoches commended the two women for their achievements as well.

“Lydia and Marcie are doing pioneering research in the field of robotics engineering and science,” DesRoches said. “In many cases, their work has resulted in or is on the brink of finding solutions to problems related to space exploration, new cancerfighting drugs, rehabilitation robotics, haptics and robotic surgery.”

Both O’Malley and Kavraki pioneer research in robotics, particularly in how robotics can be used to benefit both human health and society at large.

Lydia Kavraki

COURTESY RICE UNIVERSITY

Marcia O’ Malley

COURTESY RICE UNIVERSITY

They both are superstars at Rice.

As Rice embarks on its new journey with a strong focus on research, colleagues, such as Lydia and Marcie, will be leading the charge into the future with even greater discoveries that will lead to even bigger peer recognition.

Ramamoorthy Ramesh Vice President for Research

One focus of the Kavraki Lab is using robotics and artificial intelligence to provide human-centered assistance in a variety of applications, from assistive robotics in home or surgical environments to robots that can assist in building space habitats.

“Our goal in robotics is to create systems, robotic systems that will work for people and in the service of people,” Kavraki said. “So while making systems more and more autonomous, [we are always thinking about] interaction with humans, and how we can have these robots accommodate the preferences and the desires of humans.”

Kavraki’s research also specializes in modeling structural biology using computational methods. The lab is currently in collaboration with the MD Anderson Cancer Center, with the long-term goal of developing the design of personalized immunotherapy.

Rahul Shome, a current tenure track lecturer at the school of computing at the Australian National University, worked closely with Professor Kavraki as a postdoctoral researcher from 2020 to 2022.

Shome said Kavraki was an empathetic mentor and inspiring scientist. “[Professor Kavraki]’s impact on the current state of robotics cannot be overstated,” Shome said. “My experience working with her [was] indeed profoundly inspiring. When I joined her lab and even now that I have started on my own academic journey, I cannot help but look back and feel equally starstruck by her brilliance.”

Kavraki said she is excited to continue her research and is looking forward to hosting an AI in health conference next week, with over 300 expected attendees.

In a different vein of biomedical robotics, O’Malley’s Mechatronics and Haptic Interfaces lab studies how human performance can be enhanced with haptic feedback, both in and out of medical settings.

“That haptic or touch feedback might come through an exoskeleton helping somebody rehabilitate from stroke or spinal cord injury,” O’Malley said. “That haptic feedback might be a simple wearable that’s giving a vibration cue to train surgeons … [or] just a really cool, wearable device that can squeeze and stretch the skin and make your interactions in virtual reality feel better.”

O’Malley said she hopes to begin launching surgical skill training using haptic cues, a project that has been in the works since 2005. During training, haptic feedback could be administered in real time while surgeons perform endovascular navigation.

“We’ve done all the proof of concepts, so we know that these performance measures correlate with expertise; we’ve done this feedback in non surgical tasks,” O’Malley said. “We’re getting ready to launch it with a bunch of medical residency programs to test and see will this haptic feedback work for the surgeons, so I’m equally excited and hopeful.”

O’Malley, who also serves as the associate dean of research and innovation, said she is looking forward to expanding research collaborations with industry and increasing faculty proposals across engineering departments to access NIH funding mechanisms.

Biden appoints Turley to National Board of Education Sciences VIOLA HSIA

SENIOR WRITER

COURTESY JEFF FITLOW

Professor Ruth López Turley, director of Rice University’s Kinder Institute, was appointed to the National Board of Education Sciences by President Joe Biden.

The National Board for Education Sciences is composed of 15 nonpartisan members, who advise and approve priorities for the Institute of Education Sciences, the research, evaluation and statistics branch of the Department of Education.

López Turley, whose work at Kinder includes founding the Houston Education Research Consortium, a research partnership between the Kinder Institute and 11 Houston-based schools, said she hopes to apply her experience at the federal level.

“My goal is to help advance an equityoriented approach to education research,” López Turley said. “The US Department of Education is already doing this to some extent, but there are many ways to take it further. In particular, a report was released earlier this year by the National Academies, which outlines specific recommendations for the future of education research. I think that many of the recommendations in this report are the right direction for the US Department of Education.”

Kinder’s Senior Director of External Affairs Rose Rougeau said that López Turley’s equity-oriented focus on education was backed by her previous experiences both within and outside of Rice.

“Her life experiences have inspired her life’s work, and that’s to use research that she has been doing to improve educational inequalities,” Rougeau said. “So for us, and for me, there was no one better positioned and more dedicated to improving educational equity for students.”

President Reginald DesRoches said that López Turley’s appointment is a reflection of the work and research being done at the Kinder Institute, and he hopes students will be inspired by it.

“Ruth’s appointment is a testament to the relationships she has built across the country and the impactful work she is doing through Rice’s Kinder Institute for Urban Research to make educational opportunities more equitable,” DesRoches said. “When a member of our faculty is asked to be a voice at such a high level, it’s extraordinarily beneficial to our students. It shows them that research and scholarship never lives in a vacuum and that it has a real and important impact on the world.”

López Turley said she’s excited to share what she’s learned from working with undergraduate and graduate students.

“I’m very eager to share my experiences, and what I’m learning in real-time with my students,” López Turley said. “It’s important to talk about research not only in the academic sense but also in the realworld sense. I’ve been doing this already through my work at the local and state levels, and I look forward to adding the federal level perspective.”

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2022 • 3

NEWS

BISF debate canceled amid a variety of concerns BEN BAKER-KATZ

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

The debate between the Rice University College Republicans and the Rice Young Democrats hosted by the Baker Institute Student Forum was canceled over the weekend after both groups declined to participate. The debate was originally set for Monday, Nov. 7.

According to BISF presidents Thomas Kovac and Oliver Hutt-Sierra, the RUCR first informed BISF they were dropping out of the debate on Nov. 4. BISF tried to replace the RUCR with Torch, a Libertarian club, but upon informing RYD of this change, RYD also opted not to participate.

According to Dimitri Galterio, junior external vice president of RUCR and head of their debate team, all parties had agreed that BISF would send the questions to the RURC and RYD by Oct. 26, but the questions weren’t sent out until Nov. 3 at 11:37 p.m. In a statement to the Thresher, Kovac, a Wiess College senior, and Hutt-Sierra, a Martel College senior, said that BISF regrets that there was a misunderstanding about when the questions were to be provided; BISF had intended to provide them on Nov. 2, and last second edits caused a one-day delay.

Galterio said the delay was the primary reason RUCR dropped out of the debate.

“Right from the get go, we were faced with incredibly disorganized and slow communication [from BISF],” Galterio, a Lovett College junior, said. “We did not receive replies on important elements of the debate for days, and in some cases, weeks … Given the disorder, we didn’t feel confident that the debate itself would be run in a professional manner.”

Kavya Sahni, president of RYD, said that the timeline wasn’t an issue for the Democratic debaters.

KATHERINE HUI / THRESHER

“We were fine getting prepared for the debate. We had enough people [and] there was enough time to practice,” Sahni, a Will Rice College senior, said. “Given [the debate’s structure], it wouldn’t be more than three minutes [of speaking] per question anyway … a couple days [was] more than enough time to prepare.”

Galterio said that he was disappointed in the way the events surrounding the debate unfolded.

“We were very much looking forward to having the debate with the Young Democrats,” Galterio said. “But in order to have a fair and meaningful debate that’s intellectually stimulating … both sides have to have access to the topics in advance and need a reasonable time to prepare.”

The debate, which BISF said had been in the works since mid-September, planned to focus on three topics: healthcare, gun control and the Russia-Ukraine War.

According to BISF, the topics were emailed to both RUCR and RYD on Oct. 23.

According to Joseph Barbour, Torch’s president, his club did not hesitate in accepting BISF’s offer to join the debate.

“On Saturday, I got an email [from BISF] saying ‘the Republicans withdrew, would you like to prepare last minute to take their place,’” Barbour, a McMurtry College senior, said. “I said ‘yeah, sure, we’re ready to go.

I can provide three debaters, just send me the questions’ ... We would have required a little bit of studying, but we had a couple of members that were absolutely willing to put in the work.”

According to Sahni, RYD viewed BISF’s invitation to debate Torch as an invitation to a new event.

“The tradition has been for this to be the [RYD] versus [RUCR] debate,” Sahni said.

“It’s Republicans versus Democrats. That’s what the thing is. And it was scheduled to be held one day before election day,

highlighting the conversation that most people are paying attention to right now.”

Barbour said he was disappointed and confused by RYD’s decision not to debate Torch.

“I think that given the nature of the topics, the debate between [RYD] and the Libertarians would have been relevant,” Barbour said. “I question that decision on their part.”

Kovac and Hutt-Sierra said that BISF would welcome the opportunity to host a policy-minded debate between campus political groups beyond just RYD and RUCR. “In the future, BISF would gladly host a debate with more than two campus political groups,” Kovac and Hutt-Sierra said. “BISF dedicates itself to encouraging discussions among undergraduates on policy issues [and] would support any debate in which speakers engage with their opponents and the student body in a respectful, constructive manner.”

4 • WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2022

NEWS

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Rice undergrads, alumni celebrate HACER 50th anniversary

COURTESY FERNANDA PIERRE HACER celebrated its 50th anniversary this past Saturday Nov. 5 with a gala.

KEEGAN LEIBROCK

ASST. NEWS EDITOR

The Hispanic Association for Cultural Enrichment at Rice celebrated its 50th anniversary this past Saturday. The celebration included a gala with speakers such as Germaine Franco, an AcademyAward nominated Rice alumna and composer of the “Encanto” soundtrack, and Dr. Richard Tapia, the University Professor of Rice, who was awarded the National Medal of Science in 2011.

David Medina, director of Multicultural Community Relations, said that the fundraising portion of the anniversary celebration reached its goal of raising $50,000. All proceeds will go to benefit Rice HACER. “[Celebrating HACER’s 50th anniversary] means that we’re celebrating a community that’s important to Houston and to Rice,” Medina said. “By celebrating the 50th anniversary of HACER, Rice is showing that [it] holds a lot of interest and value to Hispanic community … Rice values diversity as a contribution to make the university more dynamic.”

The Society of Latino Alumni at Rice presented at the fundraiser. Fernanda Pierre, a Rice alum (‘14) and the CoPresident of SOLAR, helped in planning the event. “[SOLAR’s] mission is to coordinate the efforts of Latinx alumni to increase opportunities for Rice community members to connect, learn and serve, and you can see how that’s coming into play for this event,” Pierre said. “We’re having a celebration with 280 people, and we’re fostering new connections and strengthening existing connections.”

Pierre said SOLAR works closely with HACER students to encourage active engagement with the greater community post-graduation. “[SOLAR’s] vision is to develop engaged alumni ready to serve and ready to lead our communities as visible Latinx alumni,” Pierre said. “Wherever that community is [for Rice graduates], they are equipped with the skills necessary to serve and lead as their communities require.”

Richard Tapia, the Maxfield-Oshman chair in engineering and director of the Tapia Center for Excellence and Equity, founded the Rice Association of Mexican American Students with others in 1972.

Later on, Tapia said that RAMAS evolved into HACER to be more inclusive of all Latin American Rice students. “[RAMAS] was another component for Rice to be proud of. Instead of having people look back at [Mexican-American students] and say, ‘Oh, you don’t belong here’ It was more of a sales pitch where yes, we do belong here,” Tapia said.

“While Rice may give a lot to [Mexican and Latin American students], we as a group give back much more to Rice.”

Jaime Fuentes Salgado, the HACER copresident, said that HACER offers a sense of community and familiarity to incoming Latin American students.

“A lot of Hispanic students come into Rice and they’re kind of scared of not finding community,” Salgado, a Sid Richardson College senior, said. “HACER and SOLAR have done the most we can to increase that sense of community and make them feel comfortable at Rice, not only through our cultural shows but also through events that are geared towards underclassmen to give them that support network they may need.”

Tapia said that students’ involvement in HACER helps to encourage Latin American and Hispanic students of all backgrounds to share their cultures with students around campus.

“Sharing our culture and sharing our activities, may it be food, music or dance, allows us to instill pride and say, ‘Look, I’m sharing who I am, I’m sharing my culture, and I’m sharing how I grew up,’” Tapia said. “[Sharing our culture] allows [HACER members] to say, ‘Let me show you some of the wonderful things that come from my culture. Let me show you some of the wonderful things that come with being Mexican-American.’”

Tapia said that he appreciates the progress HACER has made for Hispanic and Latin American students at Rice.

“I think [members of HACER] have done wonderfully. I want them [to continue] to build community, pride, identity and to be an active part of Rice,” Tapia said.

Tapia said that, despite advances in the rights and representation of Latin Americans, there is still work to be done in increasing representation and opportunity.

“Last week, we had a speaker who was Mexican-American, and he spoke to the math department and the statistics department; that would not have happened 20 years ago. What’s happening [at the HACER Gala] would not have happened 20 years ago,” Tapia said. “We’re moving from the back of the bus towards the front of the bus. Are we at the front of the bus? No. But are we headed in that direction? Yes.” Salgado said that he hopes to see HACER grow, both in terms of student membership and inclusion and interaction with the broader Rice community.

“I hope [HACER] continues to grow; it’s our biggest goal to grow our membership body but also to become more involved here in the community at Rice,” Salgado said. “A big thing this year is that my copresident and I are trying to promote inclusivity, because, in the past, HACER has been very Mexican dominated … We have students from Colombia, Bolivia, Brazil and from all these other Latin American countries, and we want to give them a voice to represent their food, their music and their culture.”

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WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2022 • 5

THE RICE THRESHER

EDITORIAL

Campus deserves an actual policy debate If you had stumbled into the Baker Institute on Nov. 7 expecting a showdown between the Rice Democrats and Rice Republicans, you would’ve been sorely disappointed. The debate, a tradition which has not occurred since 2018, was canceled. We are not missing much, though: the debate would have just regurgitated generic and predetermined political party talking points. If we want campus discussions on politics to have an impact beyond elections, we should invite all voices to the table and talk policy on a comprehensive level.

With the hot-button topics originally planned for the debate — the RussiaUkraine War, healthcare and gun control — the possibility of voters’ opinions being swayed by the debate right before Election Day was slim. Ultimately, a more productive conversation would focus on long-term policy outcomes and not just electoral victory, which is especially useless with a student population that votes majority Democratic.

More importantly, the debate should bring in other political organizations on campus such as Torch — Rice’s Libertarian student organization — and

Ultimately, a more productive conversation would focus on long-term policy outcomes and not just electoral victory, which is especially useless with a student population that votes majority Democratic.

Rice Left to debate the merits of various policy positions on all dimensions of the political spectrum.

While it’s true that elections typically end up being between Democrats and Republicans, this is a product of

our electoral system, which can be debated in and of itself. But within the two parties on the ticket, there is room to push each more towards the extremes or to the center by focusing on specific policies. These discussions should continue year-round to motivate students to talk to their representatives, participate in primaries and get more involved in politics.

The shallow “debate” that was planned is an affront to what the university stands for. Rice is dedicated to research, conversation and the pursuit of knowledge, not to recycled talking points. We cannot make advancements in public policy if our sole purpose is scoring sound bites. The debate should not simply be an opportunity for self affirmation. Instead, the goal of political organizations on this campus should be to mobilize students to dedicate their time to advocating for the best policies for the people of Harris County, Texas and the United States.

GUEST OPINION

The Honor Council needs to act more responsibly For the past year, I have served as an at-large representative on the Rice Honor Council. I have sat through dozens of cases, read hundreds of pages of evidence and spent countless hours working to improve the transparency and fairness of the Honor System. While there are a myriad of issues with the Honor System, as there are with any institutional system, there is one in particular that needs to be addressed with expediency.

The Honor Council is currently not an effective deliberative body due to the general lack of engagement from some of its members, which include elected representatives.

During the year that I have been a member, the Honor Council has met only half a dozen times as a larger body outside of individual cases. Of these meetings, half have been “bonding events” during which no Honor Council business was conducted or discussed.

That leaves just three or four meetings amounting to well under ten hours of council-wide conversation over a 12-month period. But wait, it gets worse.

These meetings normally only have a little over half of the sitting members in attendance. The quorum necessary to hold a vote or make any decisions is three-quarters of council members; there has not been a single meeting, bonding or otherwise, in the year I have been a member at which the quorum has been met. While there are council members who make an effort, the Honor Council as a whole is rendered ineffective by those who do not.

While there is a process to remove members with poor participation, it

requires a vote of the entire Council, which in turn requires quorum. This remarkable catch-22 makes it virtually impossible to implement any substantial changes to a system that needs substantial change. Despite several conversations regarding the topic, the Honor Council has yet to make a single

The problem is that the Honor Council does not appreciate the gravity of its responsibilities, preventing Honor System improvements that should take at most months to deliberate on. substantive change to the Honor System in the past 12 months. If the current lack of participation continues, it is likely that few, if any, changes to the Honor System will be made in the coming year. The problem is that the Honor Council does not appreciate the gravity of its responsibilities, preventing Honor System improvements that should take at most months to deliberate on.

Many Rice students might be alarmed to know that the group with the power to recommend grade reductions, suspensions or even expulsions spends a negligible amount of its time considering ways to improve this critical part of our university. While it is likely not deliberate, lack of participation by

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council members effectively silences the voices of those who elected them, whether it be their college or their class.

To be fair, Rice students lead busy lives and finding time for anything beyond classwork is always a challenge.

But the Honor Council is more than a club to make friends or bolster a resume; Honor Council decisions often determine the academic future of our peers. Honor Council members not only have a moral obligation to uphold the Honor Code through full participation, but we also have an obligation to our peers who are the mercy of the Council’s policies and deliberations and deserve to be judged by people who understand the significance of their actions The Honor Council Constitution begins with the words “We, the Student Body of Rice University.” At its core, the Honor Council is supposed to serve at the pleasure of the students, but we are currently not fulfilling that obligation.

It seems we are incapable of making the internal changes needed to live up to the ideals upon which the Honor System was founded. But it is never too late. Just maybe, if enough people insist on more from the Honor Council, if they talk to their representatives and demand more accountability, then maybe there can be change after all.

Simon Yellen

DUNCAN COLLEGE SOPHOMORE

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CORRECTIONS In “Exchange student Paulina Quiros finds a new community at Rice,” Lovett College’s college night theme is “Drunkingham Palace: Queen Elizabeers United Kegdom.”

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6 • WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2022

THE RICE THRESHER

‘C’est banana’: Unique courses to enroll in this semester Kasner said that in addition to learning stand-up, students can improve their communication skills. “[We hope people will] become better presenters, better storytellers, and if they want, fully fledged stand-up comics,” Kasner said.

COLL 108 will be offered on Thursdays from 7 to 7:50 p.m.

ALLISON HE

THRESHER STAFF It’s that time of the year again — spring semester course registration. From agricultural techniques to monsters to the linguistics of made-up languages, the Thresher compiled a list of both distribution and student-led courses that any student can take to satisfy their graduation requirements or thirst for knowledge.

Distribution I PHIL 231: Animal Minds with Alexander Morgan What are Rice squirrels thinking? Can squirrels think like we do? How does an animal’s mind work anyway? Animal Minds explores questions of animal consciousness and cognition through a philosophical lens. Students delve into discussion of what consciousness is, how consciousness may manifest in animals and what it means for animals to have consciousness.

PHIL 231 will be offered on Mondays and Wednesdays from 2 to 3:15 p.m.

Distribution II ANTH 389: The Archeology of Food with Molly Morgan From hunting and gathering to harvesting crops, humans have explored methods of food production and consumption for millions of years. This course digs into the ways archaeologists have investigated the technology used to acquire and distribute food and the relationship between food, culture and identity.

ANTH 389 will be offered on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10:50 a.m. to 12:05 p.m.

GUILLIAN PAGUILA /THRESHER

Distribution III BIOS 368: Conceiving and Misconceiving: The Monstrous in Fiction and in Art, in Medicine, and in Bioscience with Michael Gustin and Deborah Harter BIOS 368 takes an interdisciplinary approach to teaching students about the “monstrous” and what their understanding of the “monstrous” can reveal about themselves. According to the course description, this course is discussionbased and accessible to students of all backgrounds and interests. Regardless of your major, this could be a course for you.

BIOS 368 will be offered on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 2:30 to 3:45 p.m.

College Course COLL 108: Will the Real Comedian Please Stand-Up? with Jacob Kasner and Connor Taylor

As COLL 108 instructor Jacob Kasner pointed out, the name of the course is a play on words that communicates its goal: teaching students how to perform stand-up comedy. Kasner, a Brown College sophomore, and co-instructor Connor Taylor, a Hanszen College sophomore, took a spring 2022 version of this course and were inspired to teach the course themselves.

Through scripting jokes every week, having open mic nights and asking students to present their own stand-up, Kasner and Taylor hope to show students that they can learn to be stand-up comics.

“Our big hypothesis … is that everyone can really be a stand-up comic if they want to,” Kasner said. “There’s a big element where people are like, ‘Oh, I’m not funny,’ [...] but in general, everyone has something in their history that they could turn into material.”

College Course COLL 114: C’est Banana - A Linguistic Take on Conlangs with Nikhaz Omar and Zoe Katz While the language spoken by Minions in the “Minions” franchise may sound like gibberish, it’s actually a constructed language, or a “conlang,” called Minionese.

It’s also COLL 114 instructor Nikhaz Omar’s favorite conlang. Omar and his co-instructor Zoe Katz are both linguistics majors who hope to teach linguistics through the study of conlangs, which they hope students will find more engaging than a traditional linguistics lecture.

“I wanted to show my peers that linguistics can be fun. I think there’s sometimes this idea that linguistics is boring, when in fact linguistics is such a diverse field, it has something for everyone,” Katz, a Will Rice College junior, said.

Omar said that students will get the opportunity to create their own conlang.

“I hope students will learn linguistics by way of something they’re already familiar with [or] entertained by, and the goal is that they can make their own conlang by the end of course,” Omar, a Will Rice senior, said.

COLL 114 will be offered on Wednesdays from 7 to 7:50 p.m.

This article has been condensed for print.

Read the full article at ricethresher.org.

Juan José Castellón talks inspiration behind new exhibit NISHANKA KUTHURU

THRESHER STAFF

Juan José Castellón’s award winning exhibit “Building Ecologies: Collective Urban Infrastructures in Houston” is now open for visitors at POST Houston.

Partnering with the TEDxHouston Countdown event, this project features sustainability and attempted solutions to the ongoing climate crisis through rooftop urban infrastructure.

In an ongoing research collaboration with different departments, Castellón, an architecture professor at Rice, has created a sustainable architectural structure with a practical function.

“I am designing and building lightweight structures that can be

COURTESY JUAN JOSÉ CASTELLÓN

installed on rooftops or in open spaces … these are structures that can collect water, store it and reuse it for different purposes, such as irrigation systems for farming or heating and cooling systems,” Castellón said.

Castellón said he finds the intersection between architecture and engineering fascinating, often combining the two subjects as a source of inspiration for his research and projects.

“This [project] is not in the typical architectural reference that you have because it’s a bit in the threshold between engineering and architecture. I like this spacing between [the two subjects],” Castellón said.

Qilin Li, a civil and environmental engineering professor developing research on water purification technologies, has been collaborating with Castellón to add functional value to the architectural infrastructures. “[This is] a structure that can provide a space for the people who live in the building, but it’s also a structure that can be used to collect stormwater and at the same time [purify] that stormwater to the degree that’s suitable for a local end use,” Li said.

Outside of his collaborations with Castellón said. “The competition was fellow Rice faculty, Castellón said for young architects and students [who] are looking that his students for solutions to were also crucial rethink how we can in developing the build a better city project. and create better “I also work Nature is a big source dialogue with the on the project in of inspiration for me. environment. And my design studio. And being in Houston, then the installation My design studio I always talk about is to create a place in almost works like a the city for meeting laboratory, and we the rain and the and discussing and test different ideas trees. What I do with sharing different with students,” architecture is try to ideas.”

Castellón said. create a dialogue with Castellón said he In collaboration inspiration with Rice Carbon this natural ecosystem. seeks for his projects in Hub, Castellón has Juan José Castellón nature. He especially been able to gain ARCHITECTURE PROFESSOR appreciated the understanding surrounding and access to more sustainable and environmentally geography of Houston.

“Nature is a big source of inspiration friendly materials.

“So at the Carbon Hub, we are for me. And being in Houston, I working on a new class of materials always talk about the rain and the that can be made sustainably from trees,” Castellón said. “What I do with hydrocarbons. There are no carbon architecture is try to create a dialogue dioxide emissions because the carbon with this natural ecosystem.”

Castellón’s achievements with his stays in the material,” Matteo Pasquali, professor of chemical and biomolecular recent exhibit echo this collaboration engineering and director of the Carbon across ecosystems and disciplines.

“I applaud Juan José for conceiving Hub, said.

In an attempt to organize a bigger and then bringing to life this important, event in order to put all the parts of timely project that will engage the project together, the opening of Houston in a powerful way,” President this exhibit featured numerous events, Reginald DesRoches wrote in an email such as a TED Talk, a competition and to the Thresher. “The collaborative, interdisciplinary nature of this exhibit is openings of different installations.

“The TED Talk was to invite people really what Rice is all about and is what to speak about the future of ecology and will help us find solutions to the pressing the future of Earth and sustainability,” challenges of today and the future.”

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2022 • 7

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35 Streaming sevice Rice undergraduates are seriously missing 36 Lower in rank 38 Tried to persuade 40 “Hey” 42 Greek letter sometimes used to denote change 43 Troy of “High School Musical 2” 45 Greek letter sometimes used to denote shear stress 47 Way of walking 48 Honest president 49 Political walk against the patriarchy 52 “____ bigger and better things!”

53 Charged particle 54 Model of Earth 57 Tired out 60 “Did not need to know that bro” 63 Take something apart to learn how to put it back together, or a clue to the shaded squares in this puzzle 66 Grows old 67 Checked out 68 “Our Great National Parks” narrator 69 Skeleton material 70 Common recipe measures, for short 71 Izzi, Jayaker, and Rose

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‘Students helping students’: RHAs discuss their roles JENNIFER LIU / THRESHER

ARTIE THROOP

FOR THE THRESHER Whether offering you a Band-Aid, chatting about mental health or putting on a health education event, Rice Health Advisors are here for you.

Piper Winn, a Baker College RHA, said that being an RHA requires acting as a support system and liaison to campus wellbeing resources for fellow Rice students.

“It’s a lot of just being there as a source of support and information for your peers,” Piper Winn, a sophomore, said. “I was really grateful to be a part of the Baker College community, and I [applied to be an RHA because] I wanted to be able to serve the community and give back in that way.”

Vishnu Susheer, a head RHA for Jones College, said he shares Winn’s sentiment about connecting with his peers.

“Even [living] off-campus, [being an RHA] allows me to be very connected to the college … It’s encouraged people to reach out to me if they need help,” Susheer, a junior, said.

Sarah Yang, a Will Rice College sophomore, said that while RHAs often act

as support systems for their peers, her experience as an RHA has mostly rested upon casual check-ins and interactions.

“I think a lot of what I learned from becoming an RHA isn’t really formal,” Yang said “It isn’t like ‘Oh let’s sit down and have this talk.’ You’ll pass someone [and check in with them] and then you might talk for a bit.”

As a mixed-race student, Yang said she also hopes that the scope of her RHA duties can extend to students of a similar demographic.

“It’s a unique experience for mixed students where some of us feel like we don’t really connect as strongly with our community because we’re part of two communities,” Yang said. “[I wanted to] be able to connect with other students that way.”

Beyond acting as a resource for their peers, RHAs also frequently host wellbeing events that are open to Rice students. Every week, you can find five to 10 Jonesians doing yoga with the Jones head RHAs. Susheer said he hopes these events can provide a break from stress and fretting for students.

“I think life as a college student [means] there’s always something else to be done.

[Yoga] is just thirty minutes out of your week you can set aside to enjoy yourself,” Susheer said.

These events are also often also twofold, providing a physical space to connect with RHAs. Indeed, Susheer said that weekly yoga grants students a regular opportunity to approach the RHAs about anything.

“After yoga and meditation, anyone who wants to come to talk to me or Vanessa, the other head RHA, they know where to find us,” Susheer said. “It’s a space for people to come approach us if they need [to] because they know where we’re [going to] be.”

Saralyn McMorris, the Student Wellbeing secondary staff advisor has been fulfilling. I Office staff advisor for the RHA program, really appreciate getting to see the program’s said that the peer support aspect of the RHA progress and success during the time I have been away from it,” program is its biggest Moralez said. asset.

“The RHA program When the helps students connect I think life as a college pandemic hit, Moralez with their peers for student [means] there’s found herself reflecting wellbeing resources. on the RHA program Sometimes it’s easier always something else and realizing what for students asking for to be done. [Yoga] is just this work meant to assistance to connect thirty minutes out of her. These reflections, with their peers who Moralez said, allowed your week you can set are experiencing her to discover her similar situations,” aside to enjoy yourself. career passions.

McMorris said. “It’s all Vishnu Susheer “The RHA program about students helping … helped me realize JONES COLLEGE JUNIOR students.” that what I am really Elisa Moralez, a Wellbeing advisor and passionate about is mental health and Brown College alum, said she was an RHA psychoeducation,” Moralez said. “I wanted and a cross-campus RHA coordinator when to return to Rice, my second home, to try to she attended Rice. help students like myself get the assistance “I worked very closely with Saralyn as an they deserve and connect them to resources RHA and one of the coords, so helping as a that are readily available.”

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8 • WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2022

THE RICE THRESHER

Author Wayétu Moore explores dating, intersectionality

MICHELLE GACHELIN / THRESHER Liberian-American author Wayétu Moore hosted a book reading on Nov. 3 in the Rice Memorial Chapel.

RIYA MISRA

FEATURES EDITOR Liberian-American author and entrepreneur Wayétu Moore hosted a book reading Nov. 3 in the Rice Memorial Chapel.

The reading delved into themes of Blackness, dating and intersectionality, and was sponsored by the Cherry Reading Series, R2: The Rice Review and Rice’s Department of English.

The critically acclaimed Lannan Literary Fellow read excerpts from her novel “She Would Be King,” which Publishers Weekly, Booklist, Entertainment Weekly and Buzzfeed named a Best Book of 2018. Moore also read chapters from her memoir “The Dragons, The Giant, The Women,” which was named a 2020 New York Times Notable Book, a Time Magazine 10 Best Nonfiction

Books of 2020 and a Publishers Weekly Top 5 Nonfiction Books of 2020.

While reading “The Dragons, The Giant, The Women,” which the New York Times described as “challenging false popular narratives that migration is optional, permanent and always results in a better life,” Moore is forced to contend with how her identities interact with her broader social and romantic life. Many of these moments range from awkwardly relatable to downright uneasy, and Moore eagerly invites her audience to share in this discomfort.

In one anecdote, Moore muses upon a past “black girl/white boy” relationship with Johnny Boy, a blithely ignorant, sharply handsome Midwesterner who proudly touted “You know ... I just ... I don’t see color.”

Moore is shoved into a position where she must shoulder the racial burden that

In a series of small anecdotes that are her ultra-liberal, protest-inclined boyfriend refuses to hold on to himself, his color- at once hilarious and painfully relatable, blindness gradually rendering Moore more Moore reminisces on her series of swipes: and more invisible. This tension comes to men who smile with their mouths open, a head when Moore is in the shower and who want to “make love to your mind,” who Johnny Boy makes a smart-aleck comment wear Freddy Krueger gloves in the bathroom mirror and, worst of all, men who you know. about her afro.

“Ian. He’s six feet. NYU. Not much “Don’t you wish you had hair like information, but he’s Christian and he mine?” Johnny Boy said.

Moore, whose tone during the reading quotes Scripture and he’s wearing a tended to be softer and even-voiced, Commes des Garçons sweater. He’s cute, he punctuates the air with her response: works in finance, which, ugh, but whatever ... Right. Ian messages right away. Ian “What the fuck did you just say?” wants you to sit on The audience, his face,” Moore not unlike recites and is met Johnny Boy, with an ensuing din finds themselves Ian. He’s six feet. NYU. of laughter. snapped out of Not much information, After the reading, a sort of reverie, but he’s Christian and Moore was met with startled into several questions listening to Moore’s he quotes Scripture and from the audience, voice. he’s wearing a Commes ranging from her The next chapter des Garçons sweater. He’s dating life — with in the reading Moore admitting provided the perfect cute, he works in finance, that she readily opportunity for which, ugh, but whatever swiped left on men Moore’s underrated ... Ian messages right seemed “too wit to shine through away. Ian wants you to sit who correct” — to her as she recounted the research process and acute pains of the on his face. career. cultural hellscape Wayétu Moore When giving that is the New York AUTHOR advice to people City dating scene.

Rifling through a number of Tinder profiles hoping to break into creative writing, Moore — because indeed, Moore admits that stressed the importance of interpersonal nothing else is as emblematic of dating relationships to inform one’s writing.

“Reading can be an isolating activity,” as a young adult — Moore’s short, terse prose mirrors her growing exasperation Moore said. “What I recommend is at the number of disappointing men she balancing that ... Try to understand people as best as possible.” encounters.

Review: ‘Weird: The Al Yankovic Story’ is hilariously bizarre IVY LI

THRESHER STAFF Eric Appel’s 2010 movie trailer spoof from Funny or Die has expanded into a full-length film “biopic” about and cowritten with Al Yankovic. Starring Daniel Radcliffe in a curly wig and colorful Hawaiian shirts, “Weird: The Al Yankovic Story” is hilarious, dramatic and, most importantly, almost entirely fictional.

It’s something of an honor to have your music parodied by “Weird Al” Yankovic.

His tongue-in-cheek songwriting has earned him numerous accolades for decades. More importantly, Yankovic is known for his graciousness and notable lack of scandals, so it’s unsurprising that when choosing the subject for a film to satirize the drama and scandal-obsessed biopic genre, Appel chose Yankovic.

In the film, Yankovic argues with his parents as a child to play the accordion and write song parodies. Taken to the extreme, his father Nick Yankovic (Toby Huss) nearly beats a salesman to death to keep him from selling an accordion to young Al (Richard Aaron Anderson).

Afterwards, Mary Yankovic (Julianne Nicholson) hilariously tells her son with a straight face, “Your dad and I had a long talk, and we agreed it would be best for all of us if you stop being who you are and doing the things you love.” It’s a testament to the actors’ talent how something so callous comes across as even more hilarious through its seriousness.

Nevertheless, his mother ends up buying him the accordion. To his delight, Al Yankovic discovers that he is talented when he is put on the spot at a party and delivers a brilliant accordion performance to thunderous applause. As Yankovic rises to stardom, signing onto record labels and

releasing more songs, the attention and wealth go to his head.

Beat by beat, this film satirizes and exaggerates the biopic tropes we’ve grown accustomed to. In recent years, rockstar biopics have evolved into something edgy and dramatic, adhering to the myth that artistic genius goes hand in hand with copious amounts of drugs, alcohol and sex.

“Weird” embraces this to great comedic effect, but it also blurs genres. The film hits the story beats of a father figure arc with Yankovic’s mentor, radio broadcaster Dr. Demento (Rainn Wilson), who first discovers his talents. But the film also hits romantic comedy elements, thanks to a meet-cute and eventual relationship

with Madonna (Evan Rachel Wood), This ties together with an action thriller beat when Pablo Escobar (Arturo Castro) gets involved as a Yankovic superfan.

Radcliffe plays both sides of Yankovic with ease, balancing his earnest sincerity with his over-the-top absurdity. Yankovic’s identities develop from an awkward teenager at a party into an older Yankovic tripping on LSD, who in turn becomes a man earnestly telling Madonna he’s in love with her. None of this felt out of the ordinary, as the absurdity scaled with the length of the film.

Radcliffe’s Yankovic is a caricature of the role, but never completely. Although scenes are cut with jokes and asides, the film plays some biopic tropes with such sincerity that it shows the seriousness of Al Yankovic’s involvement and empathy for those who are underappreciated

and misunderstood. The film ends with Yankovic telling an audience, “Live the life you want to live. Be as weird as you want to be. Believe me, you will never find true happiness until you can truly accept who you are.” Even if the biopic’s events aren’t to be believed, this life philosophy is.

The film embodies this weirdness, straddling multiple genres all at once, sometimes to great effect but also to irritating extremes: a joke occasionally runs too long or the drama may run dry.

However, I applaud the film’s wide range of notes, from fight sequences to music performances to family drama and absurd comedy — “Weird” has it all.

The filmmakers accomplished what they set out to do: parody a music artist biopic about a music artist who parodies other music artists. If that isn’t meta-level comedy, I don’t know what is.

COURTESY THE ROKU CHANNEL

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2022 • 9

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

‘As wonky as possible’: Rice Chorale finds joy in music

COURTESY PIPPA JARVIS The Rice Chorale prepares for their upcoming performance on Nov. 15.

VIVIAN LANG / THRESHER

SHREYA CHALLA

THRESHER STAFF

Every Monday and Wednesday, music director Tom Jaber shepherds the Rice Chorale, a group of students plucked from various majors and years, into a practice room to sing choir music. Currently, the chorus is preparing for their upcoming show on Nov. 15 at 7:30 p.m. in the Edythe Bates Old Organ Hall at the Shepherd School of Music. This is Jaber’s 35th year as a professor and director of choral music at the Shepherd School of Music. Throughout the years, he has led the Chorale through multiple changes in the voice department and revived the group after disbanding during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Though the Chorale is a required course for certain undergraduate students at Shepherd, Jaber said that it is open to people of all skill levels, and auditions aren’t required to join. Save for the semesters during the pandemic, the course has been offered every semester for one credit hour.

“I hear from prospective students who are not going to be music majors, but they want to continue singing,” Jaber said. “The most important trait they can have is just a desire to want to be there, to find some sort of joy and fulfillment out of singing beautiful music.”

Taylor Stowers, one of Chorale’s members, said that participating in the Chorale is her way of staying in touch with different types of music without taking on a large commitment. She said that though she majors in psychology, she is passionate about singing.

“There are not as many musical opportunities made for non-music majors in any significant way,” Stowers, a Duncan College sophomore, said. “This is by far one of the easiest and most fun opportunities to continue to be involved in music … Being able to keep up my technique and sing in a group like I did in high school, it’s nostalgic, and it’s fun.”

Chorale also includes other members of the Rice community, including professors,

staff and alumni. Marce Stayer, a Rice jokes all the time, and he demands the best alumna, is one such member of Chorale. from us, as a good teacher does.”

Jaber has also pushed for the group Stayer said that being a part of the choir is to have opportunities to showcase their a way for her to learn new pieces of music.

“It’s a way for me to stretch and learn talents. For instance, they performed at different languages,” Stayer said. “I mean, President Reginald Desroches’ inauguration we sing in Latin, we sing in German, we on Oct. 22. Their upcoming performance sing in Spanish … I have no idea what will include two works by French composer I’m singing. I do enjoy learning different Maurice Duruflé: “Requiem” and “Messe composers, learning different types and Cum Jubilo.” Jaber, who has been the backbone of the Chorale throughout their styles of music.”

Jaber says that because the Chorale challenges, said he hopes that the singers brings in a diverse group of people, it find their experience in the Chorale just as meaningful as he does. resembles a microcosm of the university.

“It really does speak to me, and I figure if “I think that the Rice Chorale sort of looks like the face of the university,” Jaber it speaks to me, it has a chance of speaking said. “We are certainly diverse within the to them,” Jaber said. “These are the kinds of schools and the various departments and pieces that bring people comfort in the face age groups and all of that. We’re about as of disasters.”

Frampton echoed Jaber and said that the wonky as possible. I love it that way.”

Stayer said that one of the reasons she Chorale is mostly made up of non-music is still involved in the Chorale is because majors.

“It’s just a bunch of people who really she likes to meet new people and still feel love to sing getting together and making involved in the Rice community.

“I’m not a superstar singer by any some music,” Frampton said. “It feels like there’s a different stretch, but I fit in energy because pretty well with a they’re doing it group,” Stayer said. purely for the joy “One of my favorite The Rice Chorale — I tell of making music. things is watching It’s not part of a the way the kids them every semester, and requirement for grow throughout I mean it sincerely — is them, so it’s been their years. I see my favorite thing that I do really fun.” them come in as at Rice University. I want Above all, Jaber freshmen and really encourages any blossom. It’s just everybody to know that interested students such a joy to listen to they’re welcome. If they to join Chorale, them.” want to sing, by golly, regardless of Hanna Frampton, they’re welcome to come. experience level. a vocal performance “The Rice student at Shepherd Tom Jaber Chorale, I tell them who is in Chorale for MUSIC DIRECTOR every semester, and the second semester, I mean it sincerely, is my favorite thing that emphasized Jaber’s love for the group.

“I feel like Chorale is his Shepherd baby I do at Rice University,” Jaber said. “I want — he’s had it since he first came to Shepherd everybody to know that they’re welcome. If … It’s joy-filled,” Frampton said. “He does they want to sing, by golly, they’re welcome everything because he loves it. He cracks to come.”

Celebrate Indigenous heritage in HTX SARA DAVIDSON

THRESHER STAFF

This November is Native American Heritage Month, and places both near and far from campus in the greater Houston area are hosting several events.

Ranging from intimate readings to lively performances, this list includes representation from many of the tribes, not only regionally, but also from across the United States. Learn about several of the many things coming to Houston for this heritage month and be sure to check out your favorites.

Native American Championship Pow Wow Traders Village, as mentioned in the Thresher’s local markets article, not only has great steals on the market scene, but is also hosting the 32nd Annual Native American Championship Pow Wow. This is a two day event happening Nov. 12 and 13 that will have tribal dance contests, an arts and crafts show, music and more.

Hundreds of Native Americans from across the country will be there to represent their heritage with authentic food and other offerings. Authentic tipis will also be on display with more information about various tribal histories.

This event has something for everyone, whether you want to learn about the history, see and taste authentic traditions or stroll among the many shops selling goods from the represented tribes.

Inprint at Brockman Hall Within the hedges of campus, Brockman Hall will host Inprint, a literacy arts nonprofit, on Nov 14.

Guest speaker and three-term U.S. Poet

Laureate Joy Harjo will be reading her new poetry collection “Weaving Sundown in a Scarlet Light: 50 Poems for 50 Years.” She was the first Native American to hold the U.S. Poet Laureate position, and is part of the nonprofit Margarett Root Brown Reading Series. Rice students can receive free tickets upon request, otherwise tickets are $5.

American Indian Center of Houston This cultural center is “devoted to enhancing the Native American community in the Greater Houston area through personal, social, health and cultural development.” They have been open since early 2020 and seek to serve the over 60,000 Native Americans that call Houston home. While they have no upcoming events hosted by them listed on their website, they do have great resources about Native American culture.

This article has been cut off for print.

Read the full article at ricethresher.org.

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VIVIAN LANG / THRESHER

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10 • WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2022

THE RICE THRESHER

FB bests UTEP in shootout, needs one win for bowl Top-seeded

RENLY LIU / THRESHER Quarterback TJ McMahon rushes for a touchdown against UTEP. McMahon’s three total touchdowns helped the Owls beat the Miners 37-30.

BEN BAKER-KATZ

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Rice football beat the University of Texas at El Paso 37-30 on Thursday thanks to a last second touchdown pass from junior quarterback TJ McMahon to senior wide receiver Bradley Rozner. The win improved the Owls to 5-4 on the season, one win away from securing a postseason berth with three games remaining in the season. According to head coach Mike Bloomgren, this win was crucial for the team, especially on a short turnaround after their disappointing loss to the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

“The way that they approached [this game] was the only way we could,” Bloomgren said. “We had to move forward … to be able to handle all of the things that this UTEP team presents with only one real day of physical practice. My hat’s off to these guys for the way they worked.”

The game was a back-and-forth battle between the Owls and Miners, as neither

team ever held more than a one touchdown advantage. Rice racked up 284 yards of offense in the first half, scoring on four of their five possessions. But their one scoreless drive ended in a McMahon interception that the Miners were able to convert into a game-tying touchdown late in the second quarter. The second of three field goals from graduate kicker Christian VanSickle gave Rice a 20-17 lead heading into halftime.

The second half was more of the same; both teams traded blows late into the fourth quarter, and a UTEP field goal tied the game at 30 with 2:35 left on the clock. McMahon and the Rice offense moved the ball 52 yards to the UTEP 23 yardline in two minutes and five seconds, before calling their final timeout with 30 seconds remaining. On the next play, McMahon found Rozner in the back corner of the endzone for the game sealing touchdown.

Rozner said that he was able to take advantage of the Miners showing a similar defensive coverage to the play before the last-second touchdown.

“We were in the same formation the play right before, [and they gave us] almost the same look,” Rozner said. “I just gave the corner an inside move and took off. TJ put the ball up there and [I] just made a play.”

McMahon finished the game with 334 passing yards and three total touchdowns (two passing and one rushing), and Rozner led Rice’s receivers with six receptions for 142 yards and a touchdown. On the ground, redshirt senior running back Cameron Montgomery and redshirt junior running back Juma Otoviano received a relatively split workload. Montgomery, who saw most of his touches in the first half, rushed for 59 yards and a touchdown on eight attempts. Otoviano, who was favored more in the second half, rushed for 65 yards on six attempts.

According to Bloomgren, the transition from Montgomery to Otoviano was a matter of game progression, and the team plans to rely on both running backs in the final stretch of the season.

“Cameron’s explosiveness is something we love to have,” Bloomgren said. “But as the game went on, I didn’t feel like Cam was seeing the game as well … so we started leaning on Juma a little bit.”

Needing one more win to ensure bowl eligibility, the Owls face a challenging end to their schedule. Their next match-up will be on Saturday, Nov. 12 on the road against Western Kentucky University, currently the third place team in Conference USA. From there, they will host C-USA leading University of Texas at San Antonio before ending their season on the road against the University of North Texas.

“We have everything that we want right in front of us,” Rozner said. “We just have to take it one game at a time.”

No. 21 volleyball tramples LA Tech on Senior Day MICHELLE GACHELIN & RIYA MISRA

A&E EDITOR AND FEATURES EDITOR Last Sunday, the No. 21 Rice volleyball team swept Louisiana Tech University on Senior Day, winning three straight sets and recording the second-highest hitting percentage they’ve had this season at 0.432.

Head coach Genny Volpe said that the team’s focus and drive on Sunday’s game is attributed, at least in part, to Senior Day and the lasting impact of the senior COURTESY RICE ATHLETICS players, specifically the team’s fifth-year Middle blocker Satasha Kostelecky celebrates a point during Rice’s Senior seniors, setter Carly Graham and middle Day. The Owls beat LA Tech to continue their undefeated conference season. blocker Anota Adekunle.

“Usually on Senior Day, it’s a pretty focused day. The team has no problem getting motivated to play for their seniors, game with 35 assists, said that the team and know that we can count on people and have each other’s backs always.” especially this group of seniors,” Volpe was satisfied with their victory.

Amid the team’s recent sweeps, Volpe “I think we all felt really good about it,” said. “We’ve been very successful over the last five years. Carly and Anota helped Graham said. “We were just having fun. said she hopes to keep up this momentum That was one of in the coming matches. start that tradition “We’ve swept the last few matches, our biggest goals, of success — they was just to go out so that means we’re playing pretty just are winners. there and have clean volleyball … Western [Kentucky They came in Usually on Senior Day, University] is next, and that’s going to be fun.” and made an it’s a pretty focused day.

Adekunle also a huge game. It always is, and it’s at their immediate impact The team has no problem said that another place,” Volpe said. “So that’s a tough place [as freshmen].” one of the team’s to play, but we’re playing for a conference Rice started off getting motivated to goals this season championship.” running, taking play for their seniors, The team has two more matches has been to the first set 25-12 especially this group of build their group on their regular season schedule and and the second 25will need to win both games to earn a dynamic.

13. LA Tech came seniors.

“That’s one conference regular season title. Their out fighting in the Genny Volpe thing that was next game will be against No. 22 Western third set, holding HEAD COACH really big for us Kentucky University on Nov. 10 at 6 p.m. an 8-6 lead, but “We really try to take it one day at a the Owls went on a 7-1 run to reclaim the as well — just making sure we have team lead and complete the sweep with a 25-15 chemistry,” Adekunle said. “The bond time, one match at a time,” Volpe said. “I we’ve built already is just amazing [and] think if we can continue to keep that focus, third set victory.

Graham, who led all players in the unbreakable. So it’s always great to go out then things are looking pretty good.”

soccer stunned in first round of C-USA tourney DIEGO PALOS-RODRIGUEZ

THRESHER STAFF

After an undefeated Conference USA regular season, the top-seeded Owls came into the first round of the conference tournament against the eighth-seeded University of North Carolina at Charlotte as the heavy favorites. But history repeated itself in this David and Goliath match that saw the top-ranked Owls lose to the eighth seed in the first round for the second time in school history, the first also being against the 49ers in 2017.

According to freshman defender Carsyn Martz, who returned from injury for the match, Charlotte’s persistence made the difference in the game.

“I don’t think it’s my place to say where we went wrong, but it seemed like we were outplayed by our opponent.

Respect to them for coming out stronger than we did,” Martz said.

The Owls got off to a quick start with graduate forward Grace Collins putting pressure on the 49ers defense. Her efforts paid off in the 14th minute with a goal just under the crossbar. Despite the early concession, Charlotte picked up their pace and attacked the Owls defense just as quickly. After a series of counterattack attempts and shots, the 49ers found themselves deep in the Owls’ 18yard box, consistently challenging senior goalkeeper Bella Killgore. The 49ers were able to catch a rebound off a deflected shot and equalized with a shot to the bottom left corner just past Killgore.

While the teams stalled in production for the rest of the half, going into the locker room tied 1-1, the 49ers controlled most of the possession throughout the first half and were able to contain the Owls to just one more shot.

The start of the second half was similar to the first with neither team producing any clear chances. The stalemate was broken by the 49ers in the minute 62 after a cross by their left winger found itself in Rice’s box. While attempting to clear the cross, sophomore midfielder Mikala Furuto clipped the ball at the wrong angle and her attempt flew backwards and over Killgore, giving the 49ers a 2-1 lead. Six minutes later, a chip from midfield into the box found a leaping 49er, heading the ball over Killgore and adding another goal for Charlotte. While the Owls picked up their pace after conceding their third goal, they weren’t able to put away any chances. The closest they were to scoring came with sophomore midfielder Catarina Albuquerque nearly beating the Charlotte goalkeeper from close range, but the ball was too far away from Albuquerque, and her attempt rolled into the keeper’s hands with ease. In the midst of an all-out attack in garbage time, the Owls conceded their fourth goal in the last five minutes of the game, surpassing the total amount they had conceded in the regular season combined against conference opponents. The stark change of form took everyone by surprise, and according to Martz, the team was just as disappointed with the result.

“We were all disappointed to have had such a successful season come to an end so soon,” Martz said.

This article has been cut off for print.

Read the full article at ricethresher.org.

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2022 • 11

SPORTS

WBB returns every starter, bolsters bench, in Edmonds’ second year SPRING CHENJP

FOR THE THRESHER The Rice women’s basketball team has high hopes for the upcoming season. With every starter from last year returning and the addition of six new freshmen and one transfer, the Owls look to improve their 8-9 conference record from last season in what will be head coach Lindsay Edmonds’ second year with the team.

According to Edmonds, the Owls struggled at the beginning of last season before eventually settling in.

“We were dealt a really tough hand,” Edmonds said. “There was a lot of adversity, injury troubles [and a] low roster. [But] we really hit our stride, and we got on a roll the last, eight, nine, ten games of the season.”

The Owls’ conference record reflects those struggles, starting their conference season with a five-game losing streak, before winning eight of the next 12 games heading into the Conference USA tournament. In the 2022 C-USA preseason coaches’ poll, Rice was ranked fourth out of 11 teams, with Ashlee Austin, a senior forward, being named to the preseason all-conference team.

According to fifth-year guard Haylee Swayze, the team is determined after their second-round exit from the postseason.

“Last year we didn’t go as far into [the] postseason as we had hoped for, [which is] a motivator for this year,” Swayze said.

Both players and Edmonds point to the team’s new additions as a turning point for the Owls. Notable additions include two centers: junior Fatou Samb, a 6-foot-4 transfer from the University of California, Berkeley and freshman Shelby Hayes.

“In C-USA we don’t have a lot of true centers,” Austin said. “Having two true centers will really [bring] a different level of competition you don’t usually see in [C-USA].”

According to Austin, the Owls, who struggled with a small roster last season, hope to improve their play with more players.

“It was really tough [last year] having to only play with seven people some nights.”

Austin said. “We’re going to be able to press up, play … tighter defense just because we have a lot more bodies now.”

Additionally, players speak highly of Edmonds, who looks to improve on her first year leading the team.

“She’s a great coach on and off the court,” Swayze said. “She really brought in this family atmosphere we’ve all adopted.”

Prior to joining Rice, Edmonds was a former North Carolina State University assistant coach. In the 2020-21 season, Edmonds helped the Wolfpack to a 22-3 record, their second consecutive Atlantic

LUPITA FRIAS / THRESHER Guard Haylee Swayze dribbles during Rice’s preseason game against Texas College.

After a strong run late last season, the Owls return nearly every member of their team.

Coast Conference championship and their third Sweet 16 appearance in as many years.

According to Edmonds, the team has a lot of potential with the starters that they return.

“This team is still really young and the players that played with me last season, those were some of their first experiences on the court,” Edmonds said. “We’ve got to grow in who we are as a basketball team.”

The Owls’ first game will be held in Tudor Fieldhouse on Thursday, Nov. 10

Spitz’s school record highlights Swimming’s Senior Day

at 7 p.m. against Stephen F. Austin State University. After a non-conference schedule that includes matches with Texas A&M University, Texas Christian University and the University of Houston, the Owls’ conference season starts with a home game against Middle Tennessee State University Dec. 10. The conference will culminate in the C-USA championships in Frisco, Texas from March 8 to 11, where the Owls will be looking to win a championship for the first time since 2019.

READ ONLINE AT ricethresher.org CADAN HANSON

SENIOR WRITER

Meltdown in Malibu: MBB drops opener to Pepperdine PAVITHR GOLI

ASST. SPORTS EDITOR The Rice men’s basketball team fell to Pepperdine University with a final score of 106-67 on Monday night’s season opener. Starting their season with a loss in Malibu, the Owls main contributor on offense was junior guard Quincy Olivari, who led the team in scoring with 15 points, and assists with six. The Owls struggled to score throughout the game, shooting 38% from the field while the Waves made 63% of their shots and converted 50% of their three-pointers.

Head coach Scott Pera attributed his team’s poor performance to inefficient shooting and leaky defense.

“We shot it poorly early,” Pera said.

“We missed point-blank layups. We missed shots from guys who usually make them, and their good shooters didn’t miss shots. It is a make-or-miss game, but our defense was obviously less than stellar.

It’s extremely disappointing.”

For much of the first half, both teams were evenly matched. After being down 7-4 early in the game, the Owls were

able to construct a run that gave them a 12-7 lead. However, that didn’t stand for long, as the Waves engineered their own drive that gave them a 17-13 advantage.

With 10 lead changes and five times that the score was tied, this back-and-forth

Their players were better than ours, by a lot. This is something that we cannot forget. This is something we cannot let happen.

To perform like that on opening night is a hard pill to swallow.

Scott Pera HEAD COACH

continued for the majority of the first half. However, a buzzer-beating threepoint shot by the Waves gave the hosts a 46-38 halftime lead.

At the start of the second half, both teams continued to trade baskets.

However, four minutes into the half, the Waves started to pull away after putting together a 14-3 run, giving them a 62-43 lead with 16 minutes left in the game.

The Waves followed this up with a 15-4 run, putting the game firmly out of the reach for the Owls. The hosts were able to protect the lead through the remainder of the game to hand the Owls their first loss of the season.

According to Pera, the defeat was an unforgettable one but he assured that his team will improve from their opening day defeat.

“Their players were better than ours, by a lot,” Pera said. “This is something that we cannot forget. This is something that we cannot let happen. To perform like that on opening night is a hard pill to swallow. We have got to play better, and we will.”

The Owls hope to get their first win of the season when they host the University of St. Thomas on Thursday, Nov. 10 at 5 p.m. for their home opener.

COURTESY MARTIN FOLB PEPPERDINE ATHLETICS Sophomore guard/forward Cam Sheffield attempts a shot against Pepperdine. The Owls lost to the Waves 106-67 to open their season.

The De Lange Conference will focus on the exploration of technology, how it’s shaped by society and culture, and how society should respond to the challenges posed by technological change.

Information and Registration: delange.rice.edu Call for Posters: delange.rice.edu/call-posters

DE LANGE CONFERENCE XII | DEC. 5–6, 2022 | RICE UNIVERSITY

12 • WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2022

BACKPAGE

ELECTORAL RESULTS 2022 Mario 40% Sonic 28% Results 32%

Yesterday, the nation made its voices heard in the most heated debate of the era: Mario or Sonic? And after last night’s tabulation of the votes, the consensus is clear—Mario captivated voters this cycle running on a platform of forward momentum and consuming mushrooms. Below is our exclusive coverage on the final electoral outcome and the hotbutton issue stances that informed voters’ decisions.

THE CANDIDATES ON THE ISSUES

Sonic

Mario

As a hedgehog, the only way I’ve been able to maintain my peak health is with steep out-ofpocket vet costs—we must expand Medicare coverage to all species. Abolish Big Pharma!

Healthcare

Wahoo!

Unlike Mario, I’ve gotten shot at a good amount in my day. They haven’t caused any issues for me; I just run away really fast. No need to change anything if everyone else can do the same.

Gun Control

Wawawawawa!

Inflation is out of control! It’s about time we bring back the gold ring standard to bring back some much-needed stability.

The Economy

Oh yeah!

Eh, not sure really. Let’s go with against for now.

Death Penalty

Let’s-a-go!

The Environment

The era of mega-corporations wreaking havoc on our planet is over. Beyond expansive regulations on pollution by manufacturers, we must also funnel more resources into research on carbon sequestration and renewable energy in order to redirect our current trajectory towards irreversible global warming.

I have personally enjoyed the warmer weather and don’t get the rush to change it. I ate a pack of AAA batteries the other day. I think a turtle can handle swallowing one straw if it means we get to speed ahead with industry.

The Backpage is the satire section of the Thresher, written this week by Ndidi Nwosu, Andrew Kim, and Timmy Mansfield and designed by Lauren Yu. For questions or comments, please email dilfhunter69@rice.edu.

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