The Tufts Daily - Thursday, January 30, 2020 by The Tufts Daily

Q&A: New computer science professor sees growth for field at Tufts see FEATURES / PAGE 3

EDITORIAL BOARD

Editorial: RIAG divestment inquiry must be transparent, timely

Preparations underway for local student film festival see ARTS&LIVING / PAGE 4

SEE OPINION / PAGE 7

THE

VOLUME LXXIX, ISSUE 5

INDEPENDENT

STUDENT

N E W S PA P E R

TUFTS

UNIVERSITY

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T HE T UFTS DAILY Thursday, January 30, 2020

MEDFORD/SOMERVILLE, MASS.

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Tisch College relocates to Barnum, Lincoln Filene to be demolished

by Stephanie Rifkin

Assistant News Editor

The Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life relocated to the newly renovated Barnum Hall , leaving its former home in Lincoln Filene Hall for the first time since its founding. This move also launched the celebration of the 20th anniversary of Tisch College. The move will not be accompanied by the repurposing of Lincoln Filene Hall, according to Vice President for Operations Barbara Stein. Stein explained that this decision is part of a “long-range capital plan” to demolish the building during renovations to Braker Hall, rather than renovate it; these renovations are expected to start after the Economics Department relocates in the fall of 2021 to the new Joyce Cummings Center, according to Stein. Stein added that there are currently no plans to build a new building in its place. In the meantime, Lincoln Filene will continue to be used to fulfill the needs of the university to accommodate student’s academic needs, according to Stein. “Lincoln Filene will be used to meet the need for a testing center to serve the large number of students with accommodations requiring longer test taking times. The classrooms in Lincoln Filene will also remain in use,” Stein said in an email. Alan Solomont (A’70), dean of Tisch College, expressed his excitement about the move, noting the stark contrast between the newly renovated Barnum Hall and the dilapidated Lincoln Filene Hall. “It’s coincidental … that we’re moving from the Lincoln-Filene building, which is a crappy building, and needs more renovation than it’s worth, to what is probably the most iconic building at the university, and at the absolute center of campus,” Solomont said. Tisch College will now enjoy a much larger space on campus in Barnum Hall. In remarks given at the ribbon-cutting ceremony, University President Anthony Monaco recognized that the move to Barnum Hall is a symbolic one. “The renovation of Barnum Hall is one of the signature projects in [the] university over the last few years. This space that it’s at is the center of our academic and student life right here on our Academic Quad and is one of the oldest, and most iconic buildings in our university,” Monaco said. Jennifer McAndrew, director of communications, strategy and planning at Tisch College also emphasized the importance of Tisch College relocating to Barnum Hall. “Putting Tisch College in such a historic building that’s right at the center of campus

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University President Anthony Monaco leads the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life’s new space in Barnum Hall on Jan. 24. sends the message that civic engagement is not just something we do off to the side, some co-curricular nice little service thing to do,” McAndrew said. “It’s actually at the center of our mission as a university, and also at the center of academic learning. It’s therefore symbolic to also have it physically located here.” Solomont added that Tisch College’s new location indicates its importance to the university, as its influence has grown with respect to Tufts’ academic values and civic responsibility “to prepare students for democracy.” “It symbolizes how central Tisch College is to the mission of Tufts University. Tufts has a long tradition of being a leader in civic engagement,” Solomont said.”[Higher education] knows it’s important but it’s never been central to the academic mission … Tufts has been a real leader in terms of breaking through that, especially over the last few decades.” After 20 years of establishing itself at the university and building new programs, the interdisciplinary college outgrew its original space in Lincoln Filene Hall. This also motivated the move to a new space, according to McAndrew. For breaking news, our content archive and exclusive content, visit tuftsdaily.com @tuftsdaily

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“On the practical side, it was a space issue. Tisch College has been growing a lot over the last few years as we’re growing on the research side and on the student program side and we’re really outgrowing the space that we had in Lincoln Filene,” McAndrew said. McAndrew emphasized that the focus of the move is to consolidate the programs already supported by Tisch College and grow into the new space, rather than starting more initiatives. “We are taking this effort to co-locate some of the research enterprises that we support. For example, the Metric Geometry and Gerrymandering Group (MGGG), which is [co]-headed by Professor Moon Duchin from the math department and is supported by Tisch College. Now her whole group is here with us where as they used to be all over because we didn’t have space,” McAndrew said. Furthermore, Tisch College will be able to provide new spaces to support student groups and student events. “We’re taking our student groups that we support, like Jumpstart and the Leonard Carmichael Society, and giving them a space downstairs in the lower level of Barnum,”

McAndrew said. “We also have what we consider to be a civic gathering space in the lobby with a screen where we can show election results, debates, the impeachment trial and anything that students might want to gather to talk about and watch.” For the 2018 midterm election cycle, Tisch College co-hosted an election results watch party in Hotung Café in the Mayer Campus Center, rather than its own space in Lincoln Filene Hall. Solomont expressed his hope that Tisch College’s move to Barnum Hall will help create space that students can use as a gathering place, which welcomes student input to foster a sense of community. “I hope you will all consider Barnum a true civic gathering place. And I believe we need that right now. Perhaps more than ever together in 2020, we will not only celebrate the 20th anniversary of Tisch College, we will also experience a national election of vital importance,” Solomont said. “We hope Tisch College can play a central role in providing that civic space both physically and through our programs, courses and events.” Solomont emphasized the need for student input to cultivate that sense of community. “We don’t just value your participation. We need it,” Solomont said.

NEWS............................................1 FEATURES.................................3 ARTS & LIVING.......................4

FUN & GAMES.........................6 OPINION..................................... 7 SPORTS............................ BACK

THE TUFTS DAILY | News | Thursday, January 30, 2020

THE TUFTS DAILY Ryan Shaffer Editor in Chief

EDITORIAL Alex Viveros Nathan Kyn

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Somerville bridge closures extended due to GLX construction

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Robert Kaplan Alejandra Carrillo Connor Dale Abbie Gruskin Natasha Mayor Matt McGovern Sara Renkert Anton Shenk Seohyun Shim Daniel Weinstein Maddie Aitken Carolina Espinal Alex Janoff Renner Kwittken Bella Maharaj Stephanie Rifkin Sarah Sandlow Elli Sol Strich

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The Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority (MBTA) has extended closures of three Somerville bridges impacted by the construction of the Green Line Extension (GLX) including the Broadway Bridge in Ball Square, an area popular with Tufts students. The Broadway Br idge will now reopen in mid-July of this year, more than three months later than previously scheduled, and the reopening of the Medford Street bridge near Union Square will be delayed five months until the end of October, according to the updated MBTA schedule. The schedule also announced a more minor delay for the Washington St. bridge in Union Square which will now open in May, while the School Street bridge near Somerville City Hall had its closure date pushed back a month and a half to June 2021. At a meeting of the MBTA’s Fiscal Management and Control Board Monday afternoon, Somerville Mayor Joe Curtatone said that he understands that any major project will face delays and reaffirmed his strong support for the project. However, Curtatone, a leading advocate of the GLX, told the board he was frustrated by the delays.

“I need to be able to communicate to the people of my city, neighboring cities and towns with accuracy when we say that a bridge is going to open,” Curtatone said. “Being off by six months on one bridge — I have a hard time explaining that, and we need to know as a community that the timelines we’re adjusting are going to be real. That they’re not going to adjust again.” Curtatone said that the bridge closures are putting a strain on emergency services, who have to go around the bridges to get to people in many cases, as well as police who have to provide details to the sites. The mayor also stressed that the closures have only compounded the city’s congestion. Later on, GLX Program Manager John Dalton told the board that, despite the bridge closure extensions, the project remains on budget and on schedule to be completed in spring 2021. As for the causes of the extensions, however, Dalton said that each had its own specific reason, without going into further detail. The GLX, a $2.3 billion project which officially broke ground in 2018, will eventually extend light rail service all the way to Tufts’ doorstep at the intersection of Boston and College Avenues and will include a stop in Ball Square. For the time being, though, some of the areas most heavily impacted by the

construction and the accompanying bridge closures are the businesses in Ball Square and Magoun Square, which lie across the Broadway bridge from each other and which have already endured 10 and a half months of the closure. The closures are estimated to have reduced circulation in Ball Square by 20%, and one business owner told the Daily in Oct. 2019 that the area feels “dead.” Stephanie Clifford, a night manager at Taco Party, a taqueria just yards from the bridge, said that business had slowed since the closure and expressed disappointment about the delays. “We hope it reopens as soon as possible,” Clifford said. Down the street, Paperworks Store Manager Patrick McShane-Shanley said that he has seen fewer people coming into his store as well, though it has not affected business too badly. The disruption of the MBTA bus route 89, however, has forced him to walk to work. It’s not all bad for McShane-Shanley, however. “I’m getting my steps in,” McShaneShanley said. The MBTA will hold a public meeting to update the community on the progress of the GLX tonight at 6 p.m. at the East Somerville Community School.

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Police Briefs — Week of Jan. 28 by Renner Kwittken Assistant News Editor

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ALEXANDER THOMPSON / THE TUFTS DAILY

Signs and cones in Ball Square alert drivers to the Broadway Bridge closure on Jan. 29.

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BUSINESS Jonah Zwillinger Executive Business Director

On Jan. 14 at 1 p.m., TUPD and the Medford Fire Department (MFD) responded to a fire at the Danish Pastry House located at 330 Boston Ave. The fire started in the bakery section of the establishment, the suspected cause being a ventilation issue. The investigation is currently ongoing. On the same day, TUPD and MFD responded to a burning plastic smell

in Hodgdon Hall. Firefighters identified the source as a blender and confiscated it for investigation. On Jan. 17, TUPD and Tufts Emergency Medical Services responded to an individual who injured their hand while cutting a bar of soap. The individual was taken to the hospital and is expected to recover. On Jan. 19, emergency crews rushed to a construction worker at the Joyce Cummings Center, injured by debris. MFD confirmed that a steel decking sheet struck the worker

in 40 mph winds on the fourth floor of the building. The worker was stabilized on the scene and lowered in a cherry picker to be transported to the hospital. On Jan. 24, Tisch Librar y staff reported a suspicious individual to TUPD whom they suspected of trying to stay in the library after hours. Upon further investigation by TUPD, the individual was a member of the Tufts community and failed to hear the announcement that the library was closing.

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Features

Thursday, January 30, 2020

Q&A: Townsend talks research, goals for semester

SOPHIA ELIA / THE TUFTS DAILY

The exterior of the Science and Engineering Complex is pictured on Sept. 18, 2019. by Claire Fraise

Contributing Writer

Editor’s note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Richard Townsend, new to the Department of Computer Science since this fall, wants to make COMP11 (Introduction to Computer Science) and COMP40 (Machine Structure and Assembly-Language Programming) more effective by understanding why the courses are built the way they are and adding more transparency. Townsend sat down with the Daily to discuss his research, goals for the semester and how he first got involved with his barbershop quartet, Madhattan. Tufts Daily (TD): What brought you to Tufts? Richard Townsend (RT): So I was getting my Ph.D. in computer science at Columbia … in 2013 … By the end of my undergrad, I was like, “What the heck am I doing with my life?” I knew I wanted computer science in my world, but I didn’t know how. At that point, I saw two main paths – either to go work in the industry and work for a company, or go into academia and keep learning, you know, get a Ph.D. and then work at a university or college. At that point, all I really knew was that I liked talking about computer science and learning about it more than just programming for hours. So based on that, it seemed like staying in academia was a good fit. Over time, I learned that teaching was my favorite thing about it so I started looking for teaching-focused faculty positions. When I was gearing up to defend my dissertation last year, Tufts had an opening. I went to Oberlin [College] for undergrad which is like super liberal and artsy and it seemed, just based on the materials that I saw that Tufts — at least in the Computer Science department — had a similar vibe to liberal arts, especially with its accessibility to students and its focus on learning for learning’s sake as opposed to what job is it going to get you. TD: What made you decide that you wanted to do computer science? RT: I took a class called Intro to Java. It was a single trimester course in my junior year of high school and I just found that programming aligned really well with how my thought process works. At that point, I thought that computer science was just

learning how to program really well. And I was into that. So I decided I would major [in it] when I got to undergrad. But then every class I took continued to divorce me from that idea, and I realized that programming is a tool. One of my favorite analogies says that “a computer to a computer scientist is like a telescope to an astronomer — it’s a tool that we use to perform our craft as opposed to being the craft itself.” That blew my mind and the deeper I went, the more I got hooked on just how everything works together. TD: Could you describe your research a little bit? RT: My subfield of computer science is programming languages and compilers. So when we write a computer program, the computer can’t actually understand it. We either have to use another program to interpret it or use another program to translate it into a form that can actually be executed by the hardware. That form is usually a bunch of zeros and ones that look like gobbledygook to us. The hardware that we have in our machines is pretty good at doing anything, but if you designed a piece of hardware to do one specific task, it would probably do that task much better than the general purpose process of hardware that we have in our machines. There’s this burgeoning field called special purpose hardware, where instead of doing everything pretty well, it does one thing unbelievably efficiently. This is super important in like our phones because if we actually tried to utilize all of the computing power at its maximum potential, our phones would melt in our pockets. So instead, hardware designers have looked at trying to build more special purpose hardware and simplify the process of designing and testing those things. My research went into how … [we can] simplify that process because traditionally, hardware designers have to think like hardware — think at the level of zeros and ones and wires and electricity. But if you have a bunch of numbers and just want to sort them — which is a typical problem — and you have to figure out how to manipulate bits and wires to complete that task, it is much harder than writing another computer program that just does it for you. So my research goes into figuring out whether we can take a programming language that humans are more

interested in working with than just zeros and ones and wires and, given a program, somehow translate it into blueprints for a hardware circuit that does the same thing. In other words, a special purpose piece of hardware that does the same thing as a software program. TD: Are you going to continue researching while you’re at Tufts? RT: Almost certainly not: I’m a teaching professor. There are no research expectations or requirements for me. I was looking forward at the end of my Ph.D. career, [to] just leaving the research behind and getting to focus on how I teach and the pedagogy. TD: What are you teaching now? RT: Right now, I’m co-teaching COMP11 (Introduction to Computer Science) with Megan Monroe. I am also teaching COMP40, which is [about] the machine structure and assembly level programming. That class has two goals. One is to take our CS (Computer Science) folks, or anyone who’s ready to go down this route, from being newer programmers to learning how to program in a much more methodical manner. The other is getting students to understand how the machine actually works. So, diving more into hardware and how memory is actually built. TD: What excites you most about Tufts? RT: The [computer science] department is growing at an insane rate. Definitely in terms of the demand, and because we have such growing demand, we’re also hiring a lot of people that have more specialties. So one thing I’m interested in is having the freedom eventually to teach courses on niche subjects that align with either what I’m most experienced in or a course that I think would just be interesting. So I’m just excited about the potential for more growth in this department, both in terms of courses offered, students taking them and faculty to teach them. TD: Do you have any goals for the end of the semester? RT: They’re specific to my courses. One of the reasons that COMP40 is so notorious is because the assignments are like these beasts. With one assignment, the directions might be like 14 pages long and 50 or 100 tests are run

on student assignments. My goal is to really understand the class framework that’s existed for years so that I actually know how we are assessing students in this course and can determine whether it aligns with the learning objectives. I also want to be more transparent with students so they have a sense of how well they’re doing. In COMP11 last semester, Megan [Monroe] mostly, and I helped rewrite basically every homework and lab. Some of them were very successful and some of them led to dumpster fires, so I’m really excited about shoring up the weaker points that we found over the course of last semester and hopefully just continuing to improve. TD: I read that you were in a barbershop quartet. RT: I am. TD: Are you still doing that? RT: I am. I go back to New York about twice a month. One of those weekends is for an intensive weekend of rehearsing with my quartet. TD: How did you get into doing that? RT: Since like eighth grade I was obsessed with collegiate a cappella music. Initially, I wanted to go to college so I could sing a cappella music. So when I got to Oberlin, I joined the Obertones. A member of the Obertones was super into barbershop music and one day after rehearsal he was like, “Hey, you want to sing a tag?” The tag is the end of a barbershop song. We did some tag singing and then he asked if I wanted to be in a quartet with him and some other members of the a cappella group and I was like, “Alright,” but I was still much more into the college a cappella scene than the barbershop scene. When I moved to New York, I went a year without singing and I missed it a lot. Then the same person who first got me in a barbershop told me about this great barbershop chorus in New York called the Voices of Gotham. Eventually, I went to rehearsals and they were unbelievable. I joined them and was a member … for four years before I moved here. As part of that, I also formed a quartet with members of the chorus who were also members of the Obertones at Oberlin. We’re called Madhattan, and I’ve been singing ever since.

Thursday, January 30, 2020

ARTS&LIVING

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Organizers of Boston Student Film Festival prepare for this year’s screening by Stephanie Hoechst Executive Video Editor

For student filmmakers, entering into big festivals can be intimidating. Festivals often require fees to submit work, and it can be difficult for students to feel welcome in what is usually a very competitive space. Luckily, the organizers of the Boston Student Film Festival, currently working on this year’s event, seek to create an opportunity for undergraduates to share their work and meet other student filmmakers in the Boston area. The Boston Student Film Festival, previously known as the Hub Student Film Festival, is a one-day event at the Brattle Theatre in Harvard Square meant to bring together student filmmakers from different schools and showcase their work. Benedikt Reynolds, the festival’s director, originally created the festival to address the fear surrounding festival submission for students. “We realized that film festivals are super intimidating for a lot of people and cost a lot to submit, and because of that most students don’t enter the film festival circuit,” he said. “So, we were like, okay, let’s make it free to submit … let’s get rid of all the judges and that stuff. Let’s just say, ‘Hey, we wanna show off your work.’” This year’s event, scheduled for March 21, will be only the second iteration of the festival.

Any film or piece created during an undergraduate career is eligible (under 15 minutes due to the time constraints of the screening), and all genres and forms are welcome. Brigitte Gong, a fifth-year at Northeastern and the festival’s marketing director, originally got involved in planning the festival after her film was screened at last year’s event. “A lot of film festivals are hard to get into — you have to pay a lot of fees, you’re competing with people who probably have a lot better access to equipment and time,” Gong said. “So I think for students to have the ability to see their work somewhere and also other people’s work is really cool, especially — at least for undergrads — it’s a little more even footing in terms of what we’re given and what we have time to do.” In addition to allowing students to see their own work in a real theater — which can be a rare experience for student filmmakers — Reynolds and the event organizers also hope that the festival builds community between different Boston-area schools. For Gong, attending the festival last year was an opportunity for just that. “The thing I liked most about it was seeing other people’s work because I had no idea what my peers at, you know, Harvard or Emerson or Brandeis were making and it was really cool to see what they film. Especially because we’re all

in a similar space — we use the city as a backdrop, which is really cool,” Gong said. In addition, the genres of the selected films varied greatly last year, creating a program that screened a wide selection of styles. “We’re really trying to create a space where any type of work is welcome,” Gong said. “Something that I really liked seeing last year was that there were so many different genres of videos. We had music videos, more experimental work, animation.” “It depends on the school’s personality,” Reynolds said. “For example, Emerson had a little bit longer, more production-heavy films, whereas MassArt had short little one-minute films and animations … Making it one regional film festival as well as providing it to undergrads, you kind of hone in on a lot of the niche students bring.” Last year, the festival screened 29 films from 12 colleges; this year, the planners hope to increase the number of colleges involved. According to Reynolds, the festival received no submissions from Tufts last year; the organizers are eager to showcase Tufts films this year. In addition, the creators are looking to make the event itself as collaborative and welcoming a space as possible so that students have the opportunity to interact with their peers at other universities. Savannah Edmondson, a senior at Brandeis and the fes-

tival’s producer, said, “The Boston schools are a little spread out and everybody is working on stuff during the semester, so this is a place where they can come and feel like there’s no pressure to live up to a certain standard and everyone can just revel in being creative and being around other creatives.” To that end, the organizers are considering building in time for mingling after the screening, as well as possible Q&A sessions. “Last year, the time was a little crunched, and people weren’t allowed that opportunity to mingle afterward, so we’re just trying to make sure we have enough time so that students can hang out and feel comfortable talking to each other about what they just saw, rather than leaving and staying in your bubbles,” Edmondson said. “We really want to make sure that everyone feels comfortable in the space and talks to each other after.” Gong and Edmondson also stressed that anyone who is interested in seeing student film should come to this year’s festival. “Come out to see something super creative,” Edmondson said. “You might get inspired to make something.” This year’s Boston Student Film Festival will be on March 21 at the Brattle Theatre. The submission deadline for this year’s festival is March 7. Submission information can be found at www.bostonstudentfilm.org.

FILM REVIEW

‘Uncut Gems’ transfixes, shows desire run amok by Myshko Chumak Contributing Writer

A well-established modern aphorism is that human civilization has attained unprecedented levels of connectivity and that, accordingly, everyday life flies by at a blistering clip. Things get worse if you consume news on even a semi-regular basis, as that probably means you spend a not-insignificant portion of your conscious (and likely unconscious) time feeling like the whole world is falling over and over. In a word, these are anxious times. Seeing and undoubtedly acutely feeling this, the Safdie brothers present us with a folk tale for our late-capitalist times. “Uncut Gems” (2019) is a beautiful emergency, centering on a gambling-addicted Jewish jeweler in New York’s Diamond District: Howard Ratner (Adam Sandler). This casting choice is as wonderful as it is bold. Sandler draws on the many goofy (at best) and grotesque (at worst) roles many of us associate him with, creating a man of gross excess who is surprisingly sympathetic (albeit sometimes verging on pathetic) and even endearing. The risk-averse might cringe at Ratner’s gambling to pay his debts, but his ambition and sheer hustle are bound to be just as entrancing, and it is these traits that leave us rooting for his bets to hit. The depth of Ratner’s infinite want is reflected in the titular uncut gem he acquires, an Ethiopian black opal. The opal’s beauty is evident from when we first set eyes on it. The camera zooms into one of its iridescent nodes until the audience finds itself swimming through the nebulae within, a sprawling universe of color and textures. Its charms are not lost on Ratner nor on then-Celtics star Kevin Garnett, who plays himself. Garnett is brought to Ratner’s shop by Demany (LaKeith Stanfield), Ratner’s associate, in the hopes of selling him some of Ratner’s regular stock, an idea abandoned once Garnett is shown the opal. Looking into it, Garnett glimpses some long and rich history, perhaps his own, rushing toward him out from the firmament within. He is rapt by this vision, telling Ratner that the gem makes him feel superhuman and, accordingly, that he feels like he must have it.

The gem becomes central to both Garnett and Ratner’s story; Garnett needs it to win on the court and Ratner needs it to pay his debts. Ratner’s reluctant agreement to temporarily give the gem to Garnett sets off a long, anxiety-inducing tumble, which never truly comes to a halt but does neatly entwine their fates and unexpectedly, the fates of those around them. Among these others are Ratner’s wife, Dinah (Idina Menzel) and his girlfriend, Julia, played by first-time actress Julia Fox, both of whom provide superb performances. The visual spectacle of “Uncut Gems” is as engrossing as its narrative. Simply put, the sights on offer are sublime. The aforementioned dives into the opal’s rich and spacious interior contrast well with the cooltoned and kinetic claustrophobia of much of the rest of the film. The same images which dazzle tend to overwhelm and give rise to anxiety, as each scene with more than two people teems with errant activity and noise. The original soundtrack for the movie, created by Daniel Lopatin of Oneohtrix Point Never fame, toes the same line as the visuals. Lopatin’s music is positively enchanted and enchanting, replete with vistas of dancing synth tones and woodwinds and exultant vocal chants. The visual, audible and narrative are masterfully joined, all exemplary and united in purpose. That purpose is the creation of the aforementioned late-capitalist folk tale. The relevance of Ratner’s story to our moment goes beyond the film’s dominant mood of anxiety. In fact, many of us share unexpected similarities to Ratner: we do not really own anything and yet find ourselves owing more and more; we live in a world where terror and remarkable beauty coexist; we seek to succeed, to win, in the face of issues and systems which often literally blot out the light of the sky. The line which is the subject of many “Uncut Gems” memes is also one of its most moving; “This is how I win” carries a delightful energy, at once playful and obdurate. To see Ratner’s declaration as one of hubris is dull cynicism, a sentiment our world is increasingly unable to afford.

VIA IMDB

A promotional poster for “Uncut Gems” (2019) The ballad of Howard Ratner is an ode to persistence in all its forms. Finding himself caught between fear and ruin, Ratner

is pictured. raises the stakes. He insists on doing things his way, because, for him, the alternative is unimaginable.

Thursday, January 30, 2020 | Arts & Living | THE TUFTS DAILY

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ALBUM REVIEW

Poppy’s ‘I Disagree’ destined to be a crucial moment in her discography by Geoff Tobia Jr.

Assistant Arts Editor

COURTESY WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

The album cover for “I Disagree” by Poppy is pictured. Throughout the album, we get a ton of metal-fusion bangers. Title track “I Disagree” has one of the heaviest choruses and most addictive lyrics on the record, and “BLOODMONEY,” being one of the noisiest songs on the record, shows a super cool blend of dubstep and metal. “Bite Your Teeth” follows a similar structure to “Concrete,” making drastic switches back and forth from intense metal to bright pop. While not necessarily intending to be a metal album, the album likely would have benefitted from more authentic-sounding guitar and drums. However, despite sounding more digital, the album does not take harm from artificiality.

Slower moments on the record also hold a value that contributes to the album’s likability. In the intro to the cut “Anything Like Me,” Poppy expresses her desire to leave the cage that her previous self kept her inside. This could also be a direct, but subtle, attack on Titanic Sinclair and the way that he treated her while she was starting to gain popularity. “Sick of the Sun” is one of Poppy’s best vocal performances on the album, as her melody and inflection bring the album to an eventual slow. “Don’t Go Outside” is a longer closing song that starts off mellow, but does not neglect the metal-oriented theme of the project. The outro to the song is awesome, interpolating the second song (“I Disagree”)

in a new key, having an excellent closing texture. Overall, Poppy deserves credit for executing a radical shift from her previous sonic stylings and becoming more independent as an artist. “I Disagree” certainly has room for improvement, as some moments get repetitive, the album lacks originality (apart from the awesome genre blending) and it could have benefited from more authentic-sounding metal instruments. Nonetheless, it’s easy to adore what Poppy has to offer on this record. There are super memorable songs, the album is generally fun to listen to and there’s a lot to appreciate artistically from Poppy’s appreciation for many different genres.

ION OF STA IAT TE OC

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Breaking convention is not uncommon. We see plenty of artists performing in ways that break the mold that they formed through their earlier work. Typically, it pays off, but it takes fans and critics a couple months, or even years, to realize that the artist’s decisions were going to be an important step in their discography. Enter Poppy. Known for her delightfully entertaining electro-pop on albums like “Poppy.Computer” (2017), Poppy has decided, as seen through some teaser tracks that she released in 2019, to foray into a whole new music realm: metal. Through Poppy’s third studio album, “I Disagree” (2020), however, there is no doubt that this totally new artistic vision is already paying off for her. In fact, fans listening to the teaser tracks seemed to already know that this album was going to be a memorable and important part of her career. After multiple listens, this album is undoubtedly a mark of evolution for Poppy. “I Disagree” marks the end of her artistic partnership with Titanic Sinclair, a songwriter who helped creatively direct Poppy’s early work. It also marks her first release through Sumerian Records, a metal label that also signs outfits such as Asking Alexandria, Born of Osiris, Chon and Black Veil Brides. Without knowing anything about Poppy’s latest release, placing her name amongst these bands seems ludicrous. After listening to this album, however, you could see how she’d fit on the label. While she didn’t give her opinion on which genre to put it in, the metal influence is certainly highlighted. But beyond metal, we see her blend this genre with her addictive electropop sound, along with some dubstep and rock. The opening song on the record, “Concrete,” starts off with a siren that leads into an immediately intimidating drum/synth combination, with lyrics like “Bury me six feet deep, cover me in concrete, turn me into a street” that only make it more in-your-face. Then, the guitar riff kicks in, which already tells listeners that Poppy isn’t messing around. After the introduction, we get a brighter chorus that emanates a similar electropop energy to her previous works, with much more welcoming lyrics like “Chewy, chewy, yummy yummy yummy… tasty treat.” This song in itself is a roller coaster, but it also shows the versatility of Poppy as an artist, while also carving out her own spot among pop and metal artists alike.

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THE TUFTS DAILY | Comics | Thursday, January 30, 2020

F &G FUN & GAMES

LATE NIGHT AT THE DAILY Robert “Tech Wiz” Kaplan: “I’m in now, but every click is slow.”

LINDA C. BLACK ASTROLOGY

SUDOKU

Puzzle 1 (Hard, difficulty rating 0.68)

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2 6

Aquarius (Jan. 20–Feb. 18)

Observe and study the news. A barrier blocks progress on a creative project. Consider potential strategies and options. Make requests. Take what you get.

8 3

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SEARCHING FOR HEADLINES...

Generated by http://www.opensky.ca/sudoku on Thu Jan 30 00:00:07 2020 GMT. Enjoy!

Difficulty Level: Getting the last pringle out of the can

Tuesday’s Solutions

CROSSWORD

d A c c o d f i B p p l t H t i i c H t 2 A d d i T f n

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Opinion

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Thursday, January 30, 2020

EDITORIAL

As the divestment review process begins, Tufts must stay true to the movement’s values

For the past seven years, Tufts student groups, such as Tufts Climate Action ( TCA), have ceaselessly advocated for the university to address the climate crisis through the divestment of fossil fuels, which means liquidating all investments in the fossil fuel industry. Their adamant efforts include weekly protests in front of Ballou Hall, collecting pledges from parents, alumni and students in support of divestment, and most recently submitting a formal proposal to Executive Vice President Michael Howard. This TCA proposal calls for the divestment of all university holdings in the fossil fuel industry, describing the importance of this action in combating the climate emergency. However, this advocacy spans beyond the current student population. In 2013 the Daily published a 17 person alumni-written op-ed calling for student support of a divestment referendum, and 322 alumni signed a pledge in 2015 to withhold donations to the Tufts endowment until Tufts divests from the top 200 fossil fuel companies. Finally, the university responded to these voices with a substantial plan. Last week, the Daily reported on Tufts’ decision to convene an investment advisory committee, known as the Responsible Investment Advisory Group (RIAG), that will advise the Bo a rd o f Tr u s t e e s’ In ve s t m e n t Committee based on their findings about Tufts’ fossil fuel investments.

By finally moving on this issue, Tufts demonstrates the importance of listening to student voices about the environmental impact of its choices. This is a step in the right direction, but as Tufts moves forward with this advisory committee it is vital that it remains comprehensive, transparent and timely with its review of this pressing matter. Given the current committee’s makeup, it has the potential to provide a one-sided review of this complex matter; the group must be adjusted in order to ensure a truly holistic review of Tufts’ investments. The committee is expected to consist of three trustees appointed by the Board, Tufts’ chief investment officer, the vice president of finance or his representatives, two students and two faculty members. As representatives of the university, the trustees, chief investment officer and finance representative likely will provide a fiscally conservative recommendation in favor of keeping fossil fuel investments, especially given the university’s track record of denying calls for divestment on financial grounds. While the students and faculty members likely will remain more unbiased in their review, the provost — another university official — will appoint these individuals, which could lead to similar perspectives as the other committee members. Thus, the university must take into account community input about appointed students and faculty mem-

bers, either before or after the group’s announcement depending on time constraints. Additionally, the committee lacks a scientific perspective, another aspect of a comprehensive review. As this is both an issue of science and finance, an environmental economist should also consult on the committee in order to balance other committee viewpoints and provide insight into the expected repercussive effects of climate change on Tufts’ financial assets. In order to fully understand the feasibility and successful method of divestment, Tufts should observe its peer universities who have already divested and demonstrated their commitment to environmental protection. Unity College, the first U.S. college to divest, has a proven track record of successful divestment that resulted in fossil-free investments at no cost to its endowment. Similarly, the University of California (UC) system reports divestment success after succumbing to student demand for a fossil-free portfolio. The decision resulted in the divestment of its $13.4 billion endowment and an $80 billion pension fund, partially due to the financial risk of remaining invested in fossil fuels, according to UC officials. Thus, this success highlights the practicality and fiscal responsibility of this action: Tufts need not reinvent the wheel but rather can use the past successes of other universities in its divestment review.

Throughout this review and recommendation process, Tufts must sustain values of transparency in order to ensure accountability and accuracy in its decisions. During the review process, the committee should provide updates about the group’s work and must commit to following the expected timeline, thus establishing a sense of accountability in ensuring timely progress on this urgent review. Additionally, as done with the Stern report, all recommendations provided by this committee must remain extensively fact-based in order to provide credibility and clarity. As the process comes to a close, the Board of Trustees’ Investment Committee must continue this trend by giving our campus an in-depth explanation of its final decision. In this form, the university keeps the original reason for this review in mind: to respond to tireless student activism calling for divestment. Ultimately, the review committee is a great step, but without effort to retain values of transparency, accuracy and holistic decision-making, it remains just that — one step. Tufts must follow through on its positive intentions by addressing these potential issues with the review process and keep the divestment effort what it was from the start — a community-based movement to address the urgency of climate change. It is simply a matter of thoroughness and commitment.

CARTOON

EDITORIAL CARTOON

BY ANNABEL NIED

Happy Lunar New Year

BY NASRIN LIN

The Tufts Daily is a nonprofit, independent newspaper, published Monday through Friday during the academic year, and distributed free to the Tufts community. The content of letters, advertisements, signed columns, cartoons and graphics does not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Tufts Daily editorial board. EDITORIALS Editorials represent the position of The Tufts Daily. Individual editors are not necessarily responsible for, or in agreement with, the policies and editorials of The Tufts Daily. OP-EDS The Op-Ed section of The Tufts Daily, an open forum for campus editorial commentary, is printed Monday through Thursday. The Daily welcomes submissions from all members of the Tufts community; the opinions expressed in the Op-Ed section do not necessarily represent the opinions of the Daily itself. Opinion articles on campus, national and international issues should be 600 to 1,200 words in length and submitted to opinion@tuftsdaily.com. The editors reserve the right to edit letters for clarity, space and length. All material is subject to editorial discretion and is not guaranteed to appear in the Daily. Authors must submit their telephone numbers and day-of availability for editing questions. ADVERTISING All advertising copy is subject to the approval of the Editor-in-Chief, Executive Board and Executive Business Director.

Thursday, January 30, 2020

Sports

Men’s basketball now 14–4 after win over Bates, loss to New England College by Henry Gorelik

Assistant Sports Editor

After a thrilling 76–72 win over Bates on Saturday, the men’s basketball team saw its three-game winning streak come to an end after losing 59–56 to New England College (NEC) on Tuesday. With the loss, the Jumbos now stand at 14–4 on the season overall, while they remain undefeated, 4–0, in NESCAC play. Going into the game against NEC at Henniker, N.H., Tufts expected that it was going to be a challenging out-of-conference matchup. “They like to get out and run,” assistant coach Stephen Haladyna said. “They’re a good team, they haven’t lost at home yet this season, so it’s a tough place to play.” Despite holding the Pilgrims — who average 88.9 points per game — to just 59 points, the Jumbos turned the ball over 23 times. After coming out of halftime down 34–27, a 3-point shot from first-year guard Dylan Thoerner with about 12 minutes left in the game gave the Jumbos’ their first lead of the night. A series of missed shots and turnovers allowed the Pilgrims to retake a 46–41 lead with nine-and-a-half minutes left. With less than a minute to play, junior center Luke Rogers

brought the Jumbos within three points after flushing a dunk to make the score 59–56. On the following possession, junior guard Brennan Morris had a chance to tie the game with 11 seconds left but missed the 3-point attempt. Sophomore guard Tyler Aronson grabbed the rebound and kicked it out to senior guard and co-captain Eric Savage for one last chance to tie the game. With five seconds left, Savage’s last-ditch attempt narrowly sealed the victory for the Pilgrims. Overall, sophomore guard Jamal Allen of NEC led all scorers with 16 points on six for 13 shooting, while Morris led Tufts in scoring with 13 points on five for 12 shooting. On Saturday, Tufts extended its undefeated NESCAC play after its narrow victory over Bates. The Bobcats, who came into the game 9–6 overall and 2–1 in NESCAC matchups, went up 34–29 after a back-and-forth first half. Bates’ first half lead was erased by Tufts’ 47 points in the second half. The Jumbos were led by Savage, who finished the game with 21 points, 11 rebounds and two assists. Rogers also added 20 points and 17 rebounds. Savage credited the tight win to his teammates’ efforts and the team’s chemistry.

“I think [that] down the stretch my friends and I came together to make the necessary plays to win,” Savage said. “[Junior guard and co-captain] Will [Brady] and [junior guard] Justin [Kouyoumdijan] fueled a big run in the middle of the second half and then of course [Aronson] made a huge shot for us in the final minute. Overall, it was our friendship and commitment to staying together in order to make plays down the stretch to get the win.” Kouyoumdijan and Brady both hit timely 3-pointers in the second half, adding to the Jumbos’ comeback: Kouyoumdijan scored six straight points to bring the Jumbos within five points with 10 minutes left, and Brady proceeded to hit a 3-pointer, shrinking the deficit to two with nine minutes left. Coach Bob Sheldon praised the team for sticking together down the stretch and believing in themselves, despite only shooting only 42.5% from the field. “I was most happy that we stayed together as a team and when we weren’t shooting well, the defense did step up and when we had to make stops, we made stops,” Sheldon said. “When we weren’t making shots, we started to rush them instead of … [trusting] the system a little bit. I think in the second

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half we were really starting to trust it — what we have — and trust each other.” Savage exemplified this sense of trust at the end of the game. With about 15 seconds left and the Jumbos down by one, Savage drove to the hoop. Instead of forcing a layup through the arms of two Bates defenders, he hung under the hoop in midair and kicked out a pass to Aronson. Aronson caught it, quickly set his feet and sunk the 3-point shot to put the Jumbos up 74–72. Tufts held onto this lead and secured the 76–72 victory with two free throws from sophomore guard Carson Cohen. Sheldon especially appreciated this win because it provided the team with a challenge throughout the entire game. “That was a good game for us because it was the first real game of the year that came right down to the last minute, and even though we weren’t shooting that well, we came together with our defense and did what we had to do to win the game,” Sheldon said. “It was good to have a situation that we haven’t had and be able to come out on top.” The team takes the court on Friday when they host Bowdoin at 7 p.m., and then on Saturday when they host Colby at 3 p.m.

Men’s, women’s swim and dive set several pool records despite losses to MIT by Ethan Ling

Contributing Writer

The Tufts men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams hosted their final home meet of the season at Hamilton Pool against Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the annual Senior Day meet. In the second meet against MIT this season, both the men’s and women’s teams suffered narrow defeats, with the men’s team falling 155–139 and the women’s falling 156–144. On the men’s side, the Jumbos were spearheaded by senior Roger Gu, who capped off his last ever home meet in record-breaking fashion. In the 50-yard freestyle, Gu was in a class of his own, blazing to a pool-record time of 19.71 seconds. No other competitor in the event was able to break the 20-second mark. Gu also dominated the 100-yard freestyle, finishing nearly a second clear of the next-fastest swimmer.With his winning time of 45.07, Gu was only 0.11 seconds off his performance last week against Wheaton. Aside from his individual performances, Gu also provided key relay splits for the Jumbos, first anchoring the 200-yard medley relay to a win and setting the pool record, alongside senior Matthew Manfre, senior co-captain Costa Camerona and sophomore Nate Tingen. He then finished off the meet by splitting 19.35 on the second leg of the 200-yard freestyle relay and helping the Jumbos to a close second place finish at 1:22.57. Gu talked about the emotions that he carried with him in his final home meet, and how they empowered him throughout the course of the competition. “Sadness that it was over, but also gratitude for all the amazing memories that took place at the home meets,” Gu said. “[The emotions] definitely played a role, as I wanted to go out giving it all I had and leave on a high note.” Coach Adam Hoyt praised Gu for his contributions over the past four years, detailing the kind of impact that Gu has left on the Tufts swimming program. “It’s hard to realize the impact that Roger has had on our team,” Hoyt said. “[His] competitiveness and his support of his teammates are both special qualities he possesses. I think his impact will be long lasting and we’re proud to have him as a member of our team.” Behind Gu, the rest of the men’s team rallied and swam lights out the entire afternoon. Junior

COURTESY TUFTS SWIMMING AND DIVING

Scott Simpson (LA’18) swims the breast stroke during a meet for Tufts Swimming and Diving. John LaLime kept with the record-breaking theme by setting a new pool record in the 1,000-yard freestyle at 9:47.10, with first-year Evan Szablewski following closely for second at 9:47.96. Sophomore Tar Tar Jarusinchai continued to dazzle with a first-place time of 58.88 in the 100yard breaststroke, while also finishing second in the 200-yard breaststroke (2:08.24) and third in the 200-yard individual medley (IM) with a time of 1:54.27. In the sprints, first-year Peter LaBarge came up with a third-place finish in the 50-yard freestyle at 20.80. For the women’s team, various pool records were also shattered, despite the team’s loss. First-year Claire Brennan swam to a win and a pool-record time of 1:55.08 in the 200-yard freestyle, while sophomore Mary Hufziger finished in a close second at 1:55.88. Firstyear Elle Morse eclipsed the pool record in the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 24.28, with senior co-captain Brooke Bernstein (24.77) and first-year Hannah Lesser (24.84) grabbing third and fifth respectively. Junior Amy Socha led the way in the butterfly events with a pool-record time of 57.29 in the 100-

yard race, while first-years Katelin Isakoff (58.59) and Camille Ross (58.70) finished third and fourth. The final pool record for the female Jumbos came in the 200 yard IM, in which senior co-captain Grace Goetcheus capped off her final home meet with an emphatic swim of 2:10.80; she narrowly out touched junior Abby Claus (2:10.94) for the win. The Jumbos also got great swims out of their distance group, as junior Sook-Hee Evans (10:44.17) and first-years Allison Cremer (10:45.98) and Allison Brea (11:00.31) completed a podium sweep in the 1,000-yard freestyle. Evans also nabbed a win in the 500-yard freestyle with a 5:13.24, with Brennan maintaining a steady lead over the other swimmers to finish second in 5:17.84. As the competition came to a close, all of the seniors were celebrated and embraced by their teammates and parents alike. For these seniors, this was their final time competing at Hamilton Pool, a bittersweet moment for many. After the meet, Isakoff shared her thoughts on the departing seniors. “I would describe our seniors as great leaders, super friendly and incredibly welcoming,” Isakoff

said. “From my first day on this team, they made me feel so at home. They created an amazing team atmosphere and cultivated a strong team culture. I’m going to miss the way they kept our spirits up through hard sets and their words of encouragement before each meet.” Hoyt also expressed his gratitude for the graduating class. “They’re a special group that cares deeply about our program, their teammates and their legacy,” Hoyt said. “They’ve made our team more competitive but also more supportive of each other. We will miss them next year.” Up next, the Jumbos travel to Boston University for the two-day BU Invitational on Friday and Saturday. This will be the Jumbos’ final meet of their regular season. “I think our season has been culminating through our dual meets and the team is set up to perform well at BU,” Hoyt said. “It’s our first championship meet and will set the tone for our championship season. I have a lot of confidence in our group and am excited to see them rise to the occasion.”