THE
VOLUME LXXX, ISSUE 22
INDEPENDENT
STUDENT
N E W S PA P E R
OF
TUFTS
UNIVERSITY
E S T. 1 9 8 0
T HE T UFTS DAILY
MEDFORD/SOMERVILLE, MASS.
tuftsdaily.com
Thursday, October 15, 2020
ARTS & POPULAR CULTURE Tufts to lead 5-year Weekender: Hallowed tunes for All research program on zoonotic disease spillover Hallow's month by Sarah Sandlow News Editor
Tufts will lead a $100 million project called Strategies to Prevent Spillover (STOP Spillover). The five-year program was launched by the U.S. Agency for International Development and aims to address the impact of zoonotic diseases, which are transmitted from animals to humans. According to the U.S. Agency’s press release, the initiative is critical to understanding the effects of emerging diseases, more than 70% of which derive from animals. The findings of the program will also be used to implement the U.S. government’s Global Health Security Strategy. Deborah Kochevar, Dean Emerita at the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine, is the program director of STOP Spillover. She outlined the goals of the initiative and its widespread impact.
“Our program aims to enhance the capacity of the local, national, and regional institutions in countries across Africa and Asia to do three things: understand factors that contribute to the risk of zoonotic spillover, develop and implement measures to reduce early risk of spillover and spread, and quickly identify and respond to spillover events,” Kochevar wrote in an email to the Daily. Kochevar added that Tufts’ various schools and network can provide the necessary support to achieve the program’s goals. Jeffrey Griffiths, associate professor of public health and medicine at Tufts University School of Medicine, described a spillover event as the transfer of a typically viral, zoonotic disease, originally transmitted between animals, to the human population. Griffiths used COVID-19 as an example of this phenomenon. “All these zoonotic diseases like COVID-19, that spillover, see PROGRAM, page 2
by Megan Szostak
Executive Arts Editor
For Tufts students, October is not only marked by the brilliant foliage of a New England fall, the surge of “polar vortexes” promulgated by the local news and even the mini pumpkins available for purchase at Hodgdon Food-onthe-Run, but also by the revving up of coursework and the dreaded midterm season. Forgoing exam preparation in favor of getting into the autumn spirit is an age-old dilemma, but it doesn’t have to be. Studies have shown that listening to classical music spurs the brain to release dopamine, putting the listener into a heightened emotional state, and thus able to better absorb information. So, why sacrifice getting into the spirit of October when you can “feed two birds with one scone” and do so while you study? Here’s a playlist of some of the spookiest classical tunes to help you get started. ‘Autumn Night’ from ‘Wood Notes’ (1947): William Grant Still
ANN MARIE BURKE / THE TUFTS DAILY
The covers of the spookiest classical pieces as selected by Executive Arts Editor Megan Szostak are pictured. As an African American man composing during the Harlem Renaissance, Still overcame many obstacles in his career while still gaining widespread recognition for his work. Still was the first African American to have a symphony performed by a major American orchestra; although Black representation in classical music still has a
long way to go, Still certainly made leaps and bounds in a very positive direction. Still’s four-movement orchestral suite “Wood Notes” includes many of his signature forms of blues, spirituals and jazz, which contribute to his American nationalistic style. see PLAYLIST, page 3
Jean Mayer Prize awarded to HEAL Food Alliance, James Beard Foundation, World Central Kitchen by Zoe Kava
Contributing Writer
VIA TUFTS UNIVERSITY
The Tufts Jaharis Family Center for Biomedical and Nutrition Sciences building is pictured.
The 2020 Jean Mayer Prize for Excellence in Nutrition Science and Policy was recently awarded to the HEAL Food Alliance, the James Beard Foundation and World Central Kitchen (WCK). The $100,000 prize, given by the Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, will be split evenly among the three recipients. The Jean Mayer Prize, which honors the legacy of nutrition scientist and former Tufts President Jean Mayer, is awarded to individuals and organizations for their exceptional efforts in improving health and nutrition and addressing food disparities. Past recipients include former Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and the Center for Science in the Public Interest. The COVID-19 pandemic prompted the Friedman School to put a different spin on this year’s selection process. “The COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare the many broken aspects of our food system,” Dariush Mozaffarian, dean of the
Friedman School, wrote in an email to the Daily. “For the 2020 prize, the selection committee is recognizing three organizations who are making a real difference in food and nutrition during the COVID-19 pandemic.” A virtual awards ceremony, moderated discussion and Q&A session with representatives from each of the three organizations was held Wednesday over Zoom. The HEAL (health, environment, agriculture, and labor) Food Alliance, one of the three organizations recognized, works to create healthy, easily accessible and affordable food systems by providing a platform for people from various sectors of the food justice movement to come together, according to its website. HEAL also has a network of member organizations that represent farmers, scientists, environmentalists, public health advocates and food chain workers, among others. “The recognition of the work of our alliance means a lot, especially right now,” Navina Khanna, director of the HEAL Food Alliance, wrote in an email to the Daily. Khanna emphasized that members of the organization
ARTS / page 3
SPORTS / back
‘The Haunting of Bly Manor’ provides a haunting October drop
Predictions for the 2021 basketball landscape
fight for equitable food systems and agricultural practices in different communities. “Many of our members … work by organizing on the frontlines of food and agriculture justice work in BIPOC communities,” she said. Khanna also explained that working to minimize the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic will prepare the HEAL Food Alliance to combat similar problems that may arise in the future. “Together, we’re creating, organizing, and advocating for the kinds of food systems that will get us through crises like future pandemics, as well as the chaos of climate change,” she said. The James Beard Foundation, another award recipient, is a nonprofit organization that offers a variety of industry programs, scholarships and hands-on learning experiences, with the goal of making food culture in the United States more sustainable, according to its website. The foundation recently launched a new initiative, Open For Good, see PRIZE, page 2 NEWS
1
ARTS & POP CULTURE
3
FUN & GAMES
4
OPINION
5
SPORTS
BACK
2
THE TUFTS DAILY | News | Thursday, October 15, 2020
THE TUFTS DAILY Alex Viveros Editor in Chief
EDITORIAL Managing Editors Jake Freudberg Associate Editors Jilly Rolnick Alejandra Carrillo Maddie Aitken Jessica Blough Tom Guan Liza Harris Alex Janoff Matt McGovern Sara Renkert Sarah Sandlow Anton Shenk Carolina Espinal Sam Klugherz Alexander Thompson Alicia Zou
Executive News Editor Deputy News Editor News Editors
Assistant News Editors
Ryan Shaffer Executive Features Editor Sid Anand Features Editors Amelia Becker Jillian Collins Claire Fraise Evelyn McClure Kayla Butera Assistant Features Editor Megan Szostak Executive Arts Editor Devina Bhalla Arts Editors Ryan Eggers Steph Hoechst Tuna Margalit Chris Panella Yas Salon Elizabeth Sander Colette Smith Rebecca Tang Geoff Tobia Drew Weisberg Assistant Arts Editor Liz Shelbred Priya Padhye Paloma Delgado Amulya Mutnuri Mike Wilkinson Caroline Wolinsky Milli Lu Emily Nadler Julia Baroni Carys Kong Annabel Nied Valeria Velasquez Juju Zweifach
Executive Opinion Editor Senior Editorialists
Editorialists Editorial Cartoonists
Austin Clementi Executive Investigative Editor Arlo Moore-Bloom Executive Audio Editor Anne Marie Burke Executive Photo Editors Nicole Garay Aidan Chang Staff Photographers Patrick Milewski Menqi Irina Wang Austen Money Executive Video Editor
PRODUCTION Kevin Zhang Production Director Rachel Hsin Executive Layout Editors Yanqing Huang Laura Mogannam Campbell Devlin Layout Editors Miriam Shamash Tys Sweeney Executive Graphics Editor Sam Farbman Graphic Designers Freya Gupta Helen He Kristina Marchand Calisa Sana Ethan Schreiber
Michelle Li Tiffany Namkoong
Executive Copy Editors Deputy Copy Editors
Copy Editors Assistant Copy Editors
Executive Social Media Editors
BUSINESS Robert Kaplan Business Director Devina Bhalla Account Managers Coley Goren Sharan Bhansali Business Managers Norice Lu Evelyn McClure Patrick Milewski Luke Allocco Outreach Coordinators Sam Russo
Contact Us P.O. Box 53018, Medford, MA 02155 daily@tuftsdaily.com thetuftsdaily tuftsdaily tuftsdaily
continued from page 1 many of them are viral diseases, not bacterial, and these viral diseases, essentially, are in animals,” Griffiths said. “If we knew how to prevent COVID-19 from spilling over, we would have [taken the necessary measures], right?” Kochevar echoed Griffiths’ statements by relating spillover events to COVID-19. “The importance of this work has been highlighted this year by the global COVID-19 pandemic, which has its origins in zoonotic spillover. These spillover events are happening with increasing frequency,” she said. While Tufts will lead the program, a collection of experts in areas relating to wildlife and
Please rec ycle this newspaper!
human disease will participate in the program, including the Broad Institute and the Africa One Health University Network, according to the press release. Griffiths, who is a co-leader for surveillance and risk communication on the project, explained that the program is mostly focused on countries in which spillover events typically occur. He added that STOP Spillover is not a research study but rather a practical implementation of effective ways to prevent spillovers. According to Griffiths, the opportunity for extensive collaboration between Tufts and various different groups and experts, who also represent institutions like the University of California, Los Angeles, the University of
Glasgow and the University of Washington Institute for Risk Analysis, is a key characteristic of the program. “I think we’re going to have a much better sense of the interconnectedness between the spheres or these domains,” Griffiths said. He indicated that the program will help identify agents necessary to combat spillover events, such as teams of medical and veterinary specialists, as well as public health and environmental professionals. Griffiths detailed that program members will observe laboratories in countries particularly vulnerable to zoonotic spillovers and initiate a process of outcome mapping, which means they will gather experts and ask
critical questions, such as what the possible underlying reasons for such spillovers may be. “We’re going to do a deep dive into each of these countries [to do] a process of digging up what’s known already,” Griffiths said. Kochevar noted that the program launch meetings began the week of Oct. 5. The members of the project are in the process of preparing for what will be a fiveyear program. “We are looking forward to this critically important work and are proud of Tufts’ lead role in it, which speaks volumes about the university’s expertise, the collaboration of its experts across schools, and its commitment to making the world a better, healthier, safer place,” she said.
Award recipients fight to end hunger, create food resiliency PRIZE
Sruthi Kocherlakota Executive Sports Editor Tim Chiang Sports Editors Matt Goguen Jeremy Goldstein Aiden Herrod Pranav Jain Ananda Kao Delaney Tantillo Arpan Barua Assistant Sports Editors Jacob Dreyer Henry Gorelik Ethan Ling Arnav Sacheti Alex Sharp Eric Spencer
Ethan Steinberg Colton Wolk Brendan Hartnett Julian Perry Mariel Priven Kate Seklir Abigail Zielinski Mykhaylo Chumak Justin Yu Aedan Brown Elizabeth Kenneally Makenna Law Grace Prendergast
Tufts to collaborate with higher education institutions, experts to combat zoonotic spillovers PROGRAM
Rebecca Barker Hannah Harris
tuftsdaily.com
continued from page 1 which provides resources to help independent restaurants across the United States survive the ongoing pandemic. World Central Kitchen , founded by chef José Andrés, received the award for its efforts to reduce world hunger and create food resiliency. WCK partners with other
organizations to provide food to communities that have suffered from natural disasters and other emergencies. “We’re used to operating in crisis mode,” Russell Bermel, a special projects coordinator at WCK, said. Despite these experiences, the pandemic has still presented WCK with a new set of challenges.
“We’re not able to line up people and do a buffet, or a traditional soup kitchen. We’re making individual meals, meals have to be prepackaged,” Bermel said. Bermel expressed gratitude for the prize and recognized the other award recipients. “These [other organizations receiving the prize] are incredible long standing organizations and to
be held in that class, I think makes it even more special,” Bermel said. Mozaffarian hopes the award showcases the organizations’ achievements and work. “We hope that the Prize … highlights the Friedman School’s commitment to these issues, and builds stronger relationships between us all to tackle the remarkable challenges, and opportunities, in food and nutrition today,” he said.
ARTS & POP CULTURE
tuftsdaily.com
3
Thursday, October 15, 2020
'The Haunting of Bly Manor' is a perfectly dreadful 'Turn of the Screw' Miranda Feinberg Contributing Writer
“The Haunting of Bly Manor” (2020), the second installment in director Mike Flanagan’s ever-growing anthology of adapted gothic literature, has, at long last, dropped on Netflix. The show is a ghostly re-telling of Henry James’s novella “The Turn of the Screw” (1898), here taking place in England in the 1980s. The show tells the story of a haunted governess, who cares for two tragically haunted kids within the haunted grounds of Bly Manor. With a tight cast of compelling characters, a gripping plot and a grand, labyrinthine mansion, the series is a lofty, ghastly tale of sadness and woe. The mysteries that lie in wait at Bly Manor are fittingly introduced through somewhat mysterious circumstances. The story begins as guests at a wedding rehearsal dinner try to scare each other with some spooky stories. One woman, stand-offish and cryptic, begins the story of Bly Manor (and offers bits of narration throughout the rest of the series). The main focus is on Dani (Victoria Pedretti) who, after moving from the United States to England, is hired to teach and look after two orphaned kids — 10-year-old Miles (Benjamin
Evan Ainsworth) and 8-year-old Flora (Amelie Bea Smith) — by their uncle, Henry Wingrave (Henry Thomas). Isolated on the grounds of the sprawling manor, things begin to creep in and they all begin to experience the unexplainable, the daunting, the terrifying. The definite highlight of the show is the characters. The monstrous ways in which each one is haunted — some by external and some by internal demons — create well-rounded, sympathetic characters with whom the audience can identify and empathize. Their chemistry, camaraderie and shared terror are palpable in each episode, and each character’s interior worlds and inner feelings are expressed in such sympathetic lights. The acting lends a lot to the success of all the characters. Alongside Pedretti, the show features the talents of T’Nia Miller, Oliver Jackson-Cohen, Amelia Eve and Rahul Kohli, who play some of the central roles in the series. Displaying camaraderie, terror and a deep-seated awfulness, the actors all keep the fantastic world of the story grounded in the realistic world of its people. The two child actors, too, blend the haunting and haunted sides of their characters together so well and organically. As Flora would say, the performances are all “perfectly splendid.”
The world of Bly, too, is “perfectly splendid.” The manor is made up of the main castle-like mansion, a church, the woods and, most importantly, a small pond. The production design is wonderfully done, and the setting paints an idyllic backdrop on which the horror fits so nicely. With the dark reds and greens and dark-stained wood of the manor, the airy openness of the kitchen, the fog of the pond and the bright gloom of the church, the story stays grounded in its own reality and place. The costumes are fitting for the ‘80s, as is the hair. Beauty mirrors horror, and just like so much other horror media, the beautiful aesthetic is the perfect antithesis to the dark and grim horrors of the plot. Though “The Haunting of Bly Manor” is meant to be a spooky story fit for late night conversation, the series is noticeably less scary than Flanagan’s “The Haunting of Hill House” (2018). More trauma than terror, “Bly Manor” continues to explore existential and emotional routes, this time with only a few splashes of horror along the way. Ghosts lurk in every shadow, crevice and corner, but the scares are spaced out and dimmed. Though not quite scary, the series creates a perfect atmosphere of pure haunting. The haunting is layered and refracted, as the Manor’s ghosts and the char-
PHOTO CREDIT / VIA IMBD
A promotional poster for “The Haunting of Bly Manor” (2020) is pictured. acter’s selves fold in on top of one another. An uneasy eeriness wafts throughout the series. Overall, the new series is great, even if it doesn’t measure up to its “Hill House” counterpart. The characters are all compelling, the plot binding, and the story unfolds in such an exciting manner that makes for an enjoyable and electric show.
The game is afoot in 'Enola Holmes' Alexis Enderle
Contributing Writer
Everyone has heard of fictional detective Sherlock Holmes of 221B Baker Street. However, the Holmes headlining this movie isn’t from Arthur Conan Doyle’s imagination. Nancy Springer’s book series, “The Enola Holmes Mysteries” (2006–10), was the foundation for Netflix’s new film, “Enola Holmes” (2020), where audiences are introduced to Enola (Millie Bobby Brown), the younger sister of Mycroft (Sam Claflin) and Sherlock (Henry Cavill). Millie Bobby Brown of “Stranger Things” (2016–) fame plays the titular character alongside Helena Bonham Carter as Eudoria Holmes and Louis Partridge as Tewksbury. As expected from the “Holmes” moniker, mysteries and the twisting plot of “Enola Holmes” leave view-
ers questioning what they know about the story every few minutes. “Enola Holmes” is a modern — yet historical — coming-of-age tale that will inspire young girls. Enola isn’t the detective’s female sidekick but the headstrong, stubborn sleuth herself. She refuses to fit into the role expected of her by ‘polite’ society. She can be ladylike and graceful, but in the next instant will run off and throw manners to the wind. Enola’s dynamic characterization leads her down paths of failed bike rides, tearooms doubling as martial arts training studios for women and introducing herself as a widow to avoid answering questions. Brown’s portrayal of the young detective is fantastic. She once again proves to audiences how much depth she can bring to a character through facial expressions and tone of voice.
“Enola Holmes” has a different approach to how it shows audiences Enola’s deductive reasoning compared to other recent Sherlock Holmes adaptations. We get to see how her mind catches details in flashbacks, which allows more answers to become clear, while creating more questions for both Enola and the audience. Another way the audience becomes privy to Enola’s insights is when Enola directly addresses the audience. Not many movies choose to use fourth-wall breaks due to the possible fallback, but the daring decision pays off as it adds greatly to the storyline and surprises audiences, keeping them hooked into the story. Along with witty banter, the score of “Enola Holmes” has a youthful energy and upbeat tone that follows Enola throughout her journey. Composer Daniel Pemberton, who
notably also wrote music for “Birds of Prey” (2020) and “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” (2018), adds to the mystery of the film by heightening your curiosity with high notes and steady beats. While it has similar music to past Sherlock adaptations, the score for “Enola Holmes” feels unique. It shies away from the darker sound heard in mysteries and suspense movies. Similarly, Viscount Tewksbury, Marquess of Basilwether, is on his own journey to escape the hold of his family in favor of his own dreams. Partridge, an up-and-coming actor whom you’re sure to see in many projects to come, plays Tewksbury spectacularly and compliments Brown as the movie’s main male character. A notable attribute of the film is that a portion of it takes place on the eve of a reform bill vote in
Parliament’s House of Lords. As we approach a significant vote ourselves, this movie feels especially relevant. At one point, you hear “All votes for men!” as Enola explores London. Political commentary isn’t often found in movies marketed toward family audiences, but “Enola Holmes” does it in a way that avoids offending any particular modern political stances. It also shows audiences young and old why it’s so important for marginalized communities to be involved in politics. Filled with word games, codes, combat, an assassination plot, battles of wits, fencing, historical London and feminism, this movie has something for everyone: families, adults and college students alike. Now it’s your turn to go watch this fantastic movie and solve the mystery along with Enola. Are you up to it? The game is afoot!
Classical works in the spirit of spooky season PLAYLIST
continued from page 1 Nature is placed at the center of this piece, and is given a different character in each movement. The second movement, subtitled “Autumn Night,” perfectly encompasses the ethereal feel of a crisp and foggy autumn night. Simultaneously ghostly and tender, this movement sets a great tone for an evening of autumn delights. ‘Don Giovanni’ (1787): Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Perhaps Mozart’s magnum opus, “Don Giovanni” tells the story of Don Giovanni, an immoral and devious character based on the legend of Don Juan. Paired with Lorenzo Da Ponte’s Italian libretto, this tragicomedy includes themes ranging from murder in the name of masculinity to dinner party hijinks.
Without spoiling too much of the plot for all of those who are prepared to sit down and watch a recorded production of the approximately three-hour opera, I would recommend listening to the finale of this magnificent oeuvre this October. Featuring a surprise cameo of the late Commandatore (who was killed by Don Giovanni at the beginning of the first act), the titular Don is dragged to a hellish place as penance for his sinful life. ‘October’ and ‘November’ from ‘Das Jahr’ (1841): Fanny Mendelssohn-Hensel Often considered her most important piano work, Mendelssohn’s piano song-cycle, “Das Jahr,” is made up of 12 musical vignettes for solo piano along with a choral postlude, each representing a different month of the year. As
a female in the world of classical composition during a time of great misogyny, Fanny Mendelssohn, the elder sister of composer Felix Mendelssohn, often published her works under her brother’s name. “Das Jahr,” however, was published as her own, against the wishes of her family. Each song in the cycle is accompanied by a brief poem, which can be found written in its original German in Mendelssohn’s manuscript. The measured militance and gaiety of “October” is starkly contrasted by the dirge-like opening of “November,” which melts into a cantabile melody played in various registers of the piano. The textural breadth of these two songs perfectly captures the natural transformations that characterize the season.
‘Night on Bald Mountain’(1867): Modest Mussorgsky A classic that many of us will recognize from the final segment of Disney’s “Fantasia” (1940), “Night on Bald Mountain” (or “Night on the Bare Mountain,” as the work sometimes translates), tells the truly haunting story of St. John as he witnesses a witches sabbath on the slopes of the Bald Mountain, near Kiev in the Old Russian empire. Mussorgsky’s epic tone poem begins in a swelling frenzy of sound interrupted by a brief brass fanfare which leads right back into chaos. The distemper that characterizes this piece, juxtaposed with an extremely rhythmic upper-wind line, is extremely unsettling and doesn’t cease until the end of the piece, which welcomes in an archetypical sunrise and return to order.
‘Danse Macabre’ (1874): Camille Saint-Saëns Perhaps the most bone-rattling song on the list, and a perfectly chilling apex to your Halloween night playlist, “Danse Macabre” is a symphonic work based on a poem of the same name by Henri Cazalis. In the poem, Cazilis writes: “Death at midnight plays a dance-tune, / zig, zig, zig, on his violin,” which practically orchestrates Saent-Saëns’s composition for him. The work begins with a single harp, plucked twelve times to represent a clock striking midnight, followed by a solo violin sounds a harsh tritone, a notoriously unsettling musical interval that is often used to represent the devil. The work progresses like the maniacal waltz that it is, with added chromatic passages that give the impression of autumn gusts of wind.
4
THE TUFTS DAILY | Fun & Games | Thursday, October 15, 2020
F& G
tuftsdaily.com LATE NIGHT AT THE DAILY Campbell: “Guys please say something funny.”
Fun & Games
SUDOKU
LINDA C. BLACK ASTROLOGY
Libra (Sept. 23–Oct. 22) Your personal limits may get tested. New methods disrupt old routines. Adapt to changes. Pamper yourself with small luxuries like hot water and bubbles.
SEARCHING FOR HEADLINES...
Difficulty Level: Coming up with a Late Night when no one says anything funny
Wednesday’s Solution
Wednesday’s Solution
CROSSWORD
tuftsdaily.com
Jack Clohisy The Weekly Rewind
Let’s Marvin Gaye and get it on (top)!
R
olling Stone magazine released its first edition of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time in 2003, with The Beatles’ “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” claiming the top spot. Voted on by people ranging from producers to pop stars, this list
Opinion aimed to define which albums left the greatest impact on audiences through the years. However, after updating in September, the list now reflects a broader scope of genres and artists, emphasizing the notion that a more diverse playlist is a better representation of the music industry as a whole. The original list features all male artists in the top 10, with only one artist of color, Marvin Gaye, holding the No. 6 spot with “What’s Going On.” The 2020 version boosts Gaye to the top spot. While the 2003 list only included one woman in the top 25, the 2020 list now features three women in the top 10: Joni Mitchell, Stevie Nicks (Fleetwood
Mac) and Lauryn Hill. These shifts account for a societal push for inclusivity and equitable representation of all artists. No one is denying the success and influence of The Beatles in the music industry, but having four of their albums in the top 10 of the original list detracts attention from the societal impact of artists outside of The Beatles’ genre. One of the only ways to quantifiably measure an artists’ legacy throughout the years is through music sales, but quantity does not always equate to quality. With physical album sales on the decline in the recent decade, the sales of albums today cannot be objectively compared to those of the past; lists like
5 Thursday, October 15, 2020
this must take a more subjective approach to their rankings. This year has highlighted the necessity of diverse voices in the mainstream. “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill” and “Lemonade” albums, centered around social issues, received their respective nods in the 2020 list, with the former skyrocketing from No. 314 to No. 10, while the latter debuted at No. 32. The 2020 list rightfully addresses some of the injustices popular artists faced in the past when pushed to the bottom of the 2003 list. Historically excluded groups should have an equal opportunity to a lasting legacy. The Beatles should be respected and
idolized in their own right, but with a larger, more diverse playlist of artists to listen to today, more icons can emerge into the mainstream. Representation is critical in music, and with the recent adjustment to Rolling Stone’s list, this ranking is more representative of talent in the global music industry. Although there is no definitive way to conclude which album is the “greatest,” it is undeniable that global impact, as the Rolling Stone list ranks, must be measured equitably. Jack Clohisy is a sophomore who has not yet declared a major. Jack can be reached at Jack.Clohisy@tufts.edu.
AT FIRST I WAS EMBARRASSED. ME, A CAT, LIVING WITH A SINGLE GUY. BUT WHEN I WATCH HIM PICK SOMETHING UP WITH HIS HANDS AND EAT IT, I CAN’T HELP BUT LOVE HIM. — MARU adopted 01-10-10
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 Business Director.
6 Thursday, October 15, 2020
Aiden Herrod The Turf Monster
The 14 NBA teams that can win a title in 2021
W
hen basketball wraps up, it always leaves you wanting more. The 2020 restart was the most fun I’ve had watching sports in a very long time, and it was sad to see the season wrap up. To fill some of that basketball void that’s been lingering since the finals wrapped up, I’ve decided to look ahead and evaluate what the basketball landscape will look like in 2021. There are some exciting narratives and teams to explore, as well as several key players coming back from prolonged absences. So let’s dig into the 14 teams I think can win a title next year. The Los Angeles teams The Lakers are an obvious choice to repeat, given how dom-
Sports
inant they looked throughout the regular season and playoffs. They will in all likelihood return Lebron James and Anthony Davis, a duo that we now know can propel just about any roster to the finals. Meanwhile, the Clippers will emerge from the Bubble hungrier and bearing a vicious chip on their shoulder. This roster is still one of the most talented in the league in my opinion, and its success will come down to two things: more consistent locker-room leadership and a creative new coach that can squeeze every last drop of potential from this squad. The LA teams are my two favorite picks to win a title in 2021. The Eastern Conference powerhouses The Miami Heat were so close to NBA immortality, but James and Davis were simply too much. I love their roster, and the Butler-Adebayo pairing is only going to get better. This team has room to add another star, and if they do they’ll immediately be my pick to represent the East in 2021. The Milwaukee Bucks and Giannis Antetokounmpo
will look to add more firepower to bring Giannis that ring he so righteously deserves. Even if they return more or less the same roster, this is still a team that has claimed back-to-back leaguebest records the past two years. Meanwhile, Boston and Toronto both showed out in the playoffs, but fell short in their own ways. They will both look to run it back and count on fringe or internal improvements. Brooklyn will also look to add themselves to this list of powerhouses, and they have every right to land themselves here. Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and Steve Nash at head coach are just too exciting to count out. This team will score in bunches, and could shake up the Eastern Conference hierarchy in 2021. The rest of the West The West is always a dogfight of contending teams. The dreadful 2020 regular season and exclusion from the restart made the basketball world forget this team for a while, but Golden State is still very much a powerhouse. Barring injury, the Warriors should return their
dreaded trio of Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green, whom everyone knows boast a finals-caliber ceiling. They also have the resources to swing another impact trade or bolster the depth on their roster. Denver made history in the Bubble, coming back from not one but two 3–1 deficits in the playoffs, only to fall short against the Lakers. They ran a devastating gauntlet of playoff competition, and this roster now boasts some serious experience and chemistry to make noise next year. Dallas and Houston are both interesting and boast arguable top-five players on their roster, so they can never truly be counted out. Luka Dončić was a revelation for Dallas this year, and could push for an MVP season in his third year, while James Harden and Russell Westbrook have all offseason to give Houston a more schematically functioning star duo. The dark horses Utah has more questions than answers right now, but Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert are bona fide stars that shouldn’t be ignored. This team still has some
tuftsdaily.com options to boost its ceiling in the playoffs, but it’ll take serious creativity on the front office and coaching fronts. Beyond them, I can’t see any team in the West boasting a championship-caliber ceiling, outside of a surprise season from New Orleans. Zion Williamson is a generational talent whose potential impact knows no bounds, even if he looked the part of an inexperienced rookie for most of the Bubble. Brandon Ingram and the rest of the Pelican’s young talent could take leaps and bounds under new coaching leadership, and they’ll be a trendy pick to make the West playoffs. For the East, I have many doubts for the 76ers being more than a low-seed playoff team. I like the Doc Rivers hire to give this team a respectable floor, but I cannot in any way see them making a run past the second round with the awkwardness of their roster fit. Aiden is a junior studying film and media studies and entrepreneurial leadership. Aiden can be reached at aiden.herrod@tufts.edu