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Research brings students to Middle East

by Sarah

Zheng

Daily Editorial Board

More than 40 Tufts students traveled to Tunisia, Egypt, Turkey, Israel and Palestine during winter break for research related to the Institute for Global Leadership (IGL).

The IGL sends 75 to 110 students abroad to conduct research throughout the course of the year, according to Heather Barry, the associate director of IGL. This year, however, IGL saw many more students participate in winter break trips.

“The goal was for students to go out as a group to gain a better understanding of the place that they’re going to and of their individual research projects — some on

Syrian refugees, some on the internal versus the international perspective of Jordan, some on health and access to water there,” Barry said.

Many of the students traveled from Dec. 30 to Jan. 12 to Amman, the capital of Jordan, according to freshman Umar Shareef, one of the trip members. While the trip to Jordan was funded largely through IGL, students also received supplemental grants from organizations including the Carnegie Corporation of New York, according to Barry.

“Students received anywhere from $1,000 to $17,000 from the Institute, depending on need, where they were going [and] where they were staying,” Barry said.

see JORDAN, page 2

Somerville Mayor calls for divestment by

Meredith Braunstein Daily Editorial Board

In his sixth inaugural address, Somerville Mayor Joseph Curtatone outlined his goals for the city, with many pertaining specifically to the environment and divestment from fossil fuels.

“Our environment, in fact, is priceless,” Curtatone, Somerville’s mayor since 2004, said in his inaugural address. “Around the world, cities are taking the lead in sustainability. As we have done in so many other areas, Somerville will lead the way there, too. So, let’s advocate together for the city’s retirement system to divest from fossil fuels.”

Many students expressed interest in the mayor’s stance.

Devyn Powell, a member of Tufts Divest for Our Future, said that Curtatone’s call for divestment shows Tufts students that divestment is spreading to communities around the world.

“I think that now that the mayor is coming out in support of [divestment], there’s going to be a lot more movement around divestment in Somerville [and] within the community in general,” Powell, a senior, said. “I’m sure that that will attract some students because divestment is an international movement.”

Sophomore Will Pearl, also a member of Tufts Divest, said that Mayor Curtatone’s vocal support of fossil fuel

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Thursday, January 23, 2014

VOLUME LXVII, NUMBER 4

divestment is valuable in informing others about the benefits of finding renewable energy solutions. “[Curtatone] has some pretty awesome, ambitious goals in the area of climate policy,” Pearl said. “If the federal government could be at that level that would be great because he’s got some seriously progressive climate related goals.”

In a Jan. 16 op-ed in the Somerville Times, Curtatone elaborated on his economic and ethical reasoning for supporting city-wide divestment.

“There is a looming $20 trillion carbon bubble, according to a report by London School of Economics’ Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, in collaboration with nonprofit organization Carbon Tracker,” Curtatone wrote in the op-ed. “Divesting from fossil fuels is not only the moral choice; it’s the financially responsible choice.”

Pearl said that Curtatone’s goals and vision are important in creating a link between the objectives of divestment on a college level and divestment as it pertains to cities like Somerville.

“We want to see that our institution isn’t investing in polluting corporations, and we don’t think we should be profiting from that,” Pearl said. “If a politician like Curtatone is on board with that as an investment policy see CURTATONE, page 2

Where You Read It First Est. 1980

Recent assaults on Somerville women under investigation A series of assaults in the Union Square and Porter Square areas were recently reported to the Somerville Police Department (SPD).

The attacks on women occurred in the past three months — two in early January, according to a Jan. 15 SPD safety alert. Each took place in the time between late evening and early nighttime. The Jan. 2 incident took place between Summer St. and Highland Ave. in the Porter Square area, and the next followed 10 days later on Hawkins St. in Union Square.

The description for the suspect in both January assaults closely resembled that of a suspect for a similar offense on Nov. 18, according to the SPD. Police have not caught the perpetrator.

SPD published a sketch of the suspect on their website and local news outlets. At press time, police continue to investigate the crimes as they actively search for the suspect.

Despite the crimes’ proximity to Tufts, the Tufts University Police Department (TUPD) has not issued a university safety alert. Because Porter and Union Squares are not directly adjacent to the Medford/Somerville campus, crimes in the former region are not subject to safety alerts, according to Kevin Maguire, the Director of the Department of Public and Environmental Safety.

“While we work in close partnership with the cities of Medford and Somerville to monitor the areas that are [next to] the Medford/Somerville campus, activity [in Porter and Union Squares] would not be the subject of a joint safety alert to the university community,” Maguire said.

Courtesy Lydia Chevalier

Hawkins St. was the site of a recent assault in the Union Square area.

has also recommended that pedestrians take extra precautions in the Porter Square and Union Square areas, according to the most recent alert.

“Do not wear ear buds while walking, avoid poorly lit areas, be aware of your surroundings and, if possible, do not walk alone,” the department stated in their most recent alert. “Keep your cell phone handy, so you can make a call to police quickly. If you are approached by a man you do not know, call 911 right away.”

The investigation of the assaults is exclusively under the SPD jurisdiction, he added. Maguire said he encourages Tufts students, faculty and staff to take advantage of the ways they can ensure their own protection. “[Those] living outside the area adjacent to the Medford/ Somerville campus are provided with law enforcement and safety services by the city they reside in,” Maguire said. “They should practice good safety habits and heed the advice provided by their law enforcement officials.”

The Somerville Police Department

—by Dana Guth

Tufts students participate in spa event at Chabad House

Courtesy Nicholas Pfosi Photography

A group of students and some of the Backman children prepare for a photo at the Chabad House spa event on Jan. 20th, 2014. The event, Spa for the Body, Spa for the Soul, is hosted annually by the Chabad House and anyone is welcome to attend. This year’s guest speaker was the Education Director of the Rohr Chabad Jewish Center for Student Life at Binghamton University, Rivkah Slonim who spoke on religious aspects of relationship success.

Inside this issue

Today’s sections

Tufts faculty discuss the history of the beloved Tufts mascot, Jumbo the elephant.

Young the Giant’s new album shows limited musical development.

see FEATURES, page 3

see ARTS, page 5

News Features Arts & Living Editorial | Letters

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Op-Ed Comics Sports

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Students to present research at EPIIC symposium JORDAN

continued from page 1

Many students also received $200 from the Tufts undergraduate research fund, she added.

Eight of the students on the Jordan trip were a part of the Tufts New Initiative for Middle East Peace (NIMEP), a collaborative education, dialogue and research group with a focus on the Middle East, according to sophomore participant Adrienne Larson.

Three of the students were part of the Education for Public Inquiry and International Citizenship (EPIIC), a yearlong, multidisciplinary course with a global political theme, according to Larson. This year’s class focuses on “the Future of the Middle East and North Africa,” according to the IGL website.

As one of the EPIIC students, Shareef had the opportunity to visit the Zaatari refugee camp for Syrian refugees fleeing from the ongoing Syrian Civil War. His research explored how spirituality is affected when someone is evicted from his or her homeland, according to Shareef.

“It was eye-opening for me, in the sense that I got to see one of the sides of war that is not normally seen, the gross trauma and inequities [and] the human tragedy of war,” Shareef said. “[It has] nothing to do with politics.

Not only do you see this side of war, but you begin to realize that there is no separation between you and them, and that it is by chance that you are not in their position. It’s humbling.”

Shareef will present his research at the EPIIC symposium later this year.

He said he hopes to publish his findings, and return to Jordan to continue

his work.

The remaining two students on the Jordan trip were from the Power and Poverty Research Initiative (PPRI), a student-run group that explores the power structures in various systems and how they affect different forms of poverty, according to Larson.

Larson, one of the two students from PPRI, focused her research on the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) program in Jordan.

“For our research, we looked into the legitimacy of the [United Nations Commissioner for Refugees] cash assistance program and the vulnerability criteria used in assessing which refugees were eligible for the cash or not,” Larson said.

Larson explained that she and her partner had decided on going to Jordan because of the focus of this year’s EPIIC symposium, where she will present her research.

“For me, it was out of my comfort zone in that I’m not an expert on the Middle East, and it was my first time in an Arab country,” she said. “It was really enlightening and I loved it. It’s certainly a conservative country, and I have lived in an Islamic country before in West Africa, so it was interesting for me to compare the two worlds.”

Barry emphasized the breakthrough quality of the Tufts IGL program in allowing undergraduates to go abroad to pursue their own research and interests.

“It’s unique in terms of everything else that we’ve seen and heard,” she said. “These can be transformative experiences for students in terms of what’s out there and what they can do.”

Courtesy Rebecca Varley

Senior Rebecca Varley’s EPIIC research trip to Istanbul, Turkey over winter break was funded through Tufts.

Somerville working to reduce carbon emissions, footprint CURTATONE

continued from page 1

... that really strengthens our hopes for big climate legislation because divestment is really a tactic towards engaging the public in pressuring those in political positions to enact real, solid climate legislation. And he already has kind of set his sights on that for Somerville.”

In laying out his environmental vision for the City of Somerville, Curtatone also noted that the city has already made progress in encouraging environmentally friendly programs.

“Our community has already led the way on taking responsibility for our environment, from increasing recycling and installing solar panels on our schools, to green building incentives in the rezoning of Union Square and Boynton Yards, to energy-efficient LED lights for our streetlights,” Curtatone said.

According to Somerville Ward 7 Alderwoman Katjana Ballantyne, Mayor Curtatone is working on additional legislation, called the “Plastic Bag Act,” which is currently under discussion in the Somerville Legislative Matters Committee. “[‘The Plastic Bag Act’] deals with the idea that after a certain amount of square footage for a particular business, you should find something alternative to plastic bags,” Ballantyne said.

In his inauguration address, Curtatone used specific goals to encourage all Somerville citizens to work together to reduce their carbon footprint.

“I’m calling on you tonight to make our citywide goal no less than to reduce our net carbon emissions to zero — zero — by 2050,” he said. “It’s an investment in our people. It’s an investment in our children. And in their children. They deserve no less.”

Pearl said that the specific goals outlined

by Curtatone are all important in the ongoing discussion about how to reduce carbon emission and fossil fuel dependency.

“These collaborations are really the ones that are going to broaden the discourse about what’s acceptable, what our money can really go towards because ... it’s these collaborations that are going to bring us an energy policy that can be fossil free,” Pearl said.

Powell said that Curtatone’s positive opinions regarding divestment might lead Tufts students to view the concept of divestment in a new light.

Wikimedia Commons

Somerville Mayor Joseph Curtatone highlighted environmental goals for the city in his sixth inaugural address.

“I want the Tufts community to look at Mayor Curtatone’s statement and recognize that what this means is that divestment is serious,” Powell said.

“It’s not something that’s just limited

to Tufts and it’s not something that’s just coming from students.”

Powell added that Curtatone’s approach to divestment also sets a moral example.

“It’s a call that is being echoed around

the world because it’s absolutely the right thing to do,” she said. “I’m really glad that Mayor Curtatone joined the ranks of people who are recognizing that, and I hope that Tufts will soon.”

Features

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The story behind Jumbo the Elephant

University archivist, athletic director discuss history of the Tufts Mascot

by Sophie

Laing

Daily Editorial Board

Jumbo the elephant, a figure that most Tufts students wear on sweatshirts, hats and hoodies with pride, is one of the only animal mascots in the nation chosen for his heroism.

The elephant is a circus legend of bravery who also gave origin to the modern use of the term “jumbo” to mean “large in size.”

Tufts’ mascot, however, possesses a rich legacy shrouded in mystery that has often blurred the line between fact and fiction.

While Tufts remains in possession of Jumbo’s ashes, how did he actually die?

“There are some interesting firsthand accounts of the death of Jumbo,” said Anne Sauer, Director and University Archivist in the Department of Digital Collections and Archives.

According to the common legend, Jumbo died saving a smaller elephant named Tom Thumb from an oncoming train. Both Sauer and Professor of Art and Art History Andrew McClellan dismiss this account as a myth, saying that Jumbo was probably just acting out of instinct.

“The legend was that he saved Tom Thumb from the oncoming train and sacrificed himself, but, of course, the reality is that Jumbo was an animal and there was a train heading for him,” Sauer said.

“So there are accounts that say, ‘Well, no, Jumbo was fleeing the train and knocked the smaller elephant out of his way in a frenzy to get out of the way of the train.’”

Athletic Director William

Gehling also questioned the legend, though he said he enjoys the values that have emerged from the story in connection to athletics at Tufts.

“For me, anyway, I like the story of Jumbo saving the baby elephant,” Gehling said. “It’s about taking one for the team, sacrificing yourself for the good of the group, of the whole.

I think that’s the main value that I attribute to Jumbo that I think is what sports should be all about.”

Despite debates over the veracity of the Tom Thumb incident, the tale of the majestic Jumbo is an interesting story.

Captured in Abyssinia (present-day Ethiopia) and sold to a collector, Jumbo was delivered to the Jardin des Plantes in Paris, where he fell ill, according to McClellan.

The elephant was moved to the London Zoo in 1865 when he was purchased by the Royal Zoological Society, where he flourished and became a favorite of zoo visitors. Jumbo was sold to P.T. Barnum in 1882 and quickly became a star in America, traveling with the circus and captivating audiences with his massive size, which was unusual even for an elephant. “[P.T. Barnum’s purchase of Jumbo] was very controversial because Jumbo was a very popular part of the London Zoo, and so the thought that this brash American would come over, throw money and say ‘I’m taking your elephant,’ was really shocking to everyone,” Sauer said. “So there was some controversy over Jumbo being bought by an American and then leaving his

John Hampson for the Tufts Daily

Jumbo the elephant’s tail survives in the university’s archives. adoring fans.”

When Jumbo died after being hit by a train, with the explanation for the tragedy still unknown, P.T. Barnum donated his body to Tufts in 1889. He was then put on display in Barnum Hall where he stayed until the building burned down in 1975.

While the stylization of Jumbo has changed over the years, he has remained as Tufts’ mascot since his adoption by students soon after his arrival on campus. Few other colleges have an elephant as their mascot and Jumbo stands out even in the interesting mix of mascots from other New England schools, such as the White Mules of Colby

College, the Ephs of Williams College or the Lord Jeffs of Amherst College.

Some schools have discussed the need for new mascots.

Middlebury, for example, has debated changing their mascot from the panther, which some have found too common and feel lacks meaningful history and connection to the college.

While Jumbo has been the consistent mascot of Tufts since he was donated by P.T. Barnum, the university was without a mascot before then.

“Jumbo really became [our mascot], very quickly after arriving. He was adopted by the students as the mascot, though he didn’t become the

Daderot via Wikimedia Commons

Tufts is one of only a few schools in the nation that has an elephant as its mascot.

official mascot until much, much later,” Sauer said. “It was [former Athletic Director] Rocky Carzo who led the effort to officially make Jumbo the mascot. It was when Rocky was working on the athletics’ history ... that he was able to put together the proposal to officially recognize Jumbo.”

When Gehling took over Carzo’s position as Athletic Director, a ceremony for the passing of the ashes to the new director that also brought the story of Jumbo to more prominence.

“It really was when Rocky retired and I became the [athletic director], that this became a bigger deal,” Gehling said. “Rocky had [the ashes] in his office, but it wasn’t really something that he celebrated. It turned out to be one of the coolest events you have ever seen.” “[The passing of the ashes] was really moving and it was cool, and it actually got picked up by Yankee magazine and the Wall Street Journal, and it got some coverage,” Gehling said.

Not only does Tufts have Jumbo’s ashes, but his tail as well.

Preserved in the archives, it was removed before the fire in Barnum to prevent deterioration.

“It’s probably the most frequented single item in the collection,” Sauer said. “[People] are variously fascinated, horrified, amused [and] appalled, when we pull it out and we say, ‘There it is!’ And I think it’s very, it’s very cool on the one hand, and funny on the other hand that we have this relic of Jumbo, a piece of him that still exists.”

While only a few schools in the nation, including Tufts, the University of Alabama and Cal State Fullerton have an elephant as their mascot, Gehling and Sauer both highlighted the novelty of having Jumbo as opposed to simply any other elephant.

“Every school has a mascot,” Gehling said. “What has always kind of been unique about Tufts is that, while most schools are tigers or lions or polar bears, or camels or panthers, Tufts’ [mascot] is the only school that I know of that is named after a very specific animal. We are not the elephants — we are the Jumbos, which I take every opportunity to remind everybody who asks.”

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Oscar race heats up as nominees are announced Blanchett, Leto are Actress and Supporting Actor frontrunners by

Lancy Downs

Daily Editorial Board

It’s a busy season for Hollywood. Four days after Tina Fey and Amy Poehler returned to host the Golden Globes on Jan. 12, the Oscar nominees were announced. The Screen Actors Guilds (SAG) Awards were broadcast Jan. 18 and the very next night, envelopes were opened at the Producers Guild Awards. With less than two months until the Academy Awards, the Daily takes a look at how some of the Oscar races are shaping up.

Best Actor Every year there seems to be a race that is decidedly more competitive than the rest — and this year, that honor goes to the race for Best Actor. This is a category so tough that not even Tom Hanks — who has been nominated for five Academy Awards and won two — could garner a nomination for his powerhouse, critically acclaimed performance in last year’s “Captain Phillips.”

Nor did Joaquin Phoenix score

a nod for his turn in Spike Jonez’s buzzy “Her” (2013), where he played a man who falls in love with an operating system. So far, Matthew McConaughey currently has momentum on his side — the actor is a firsttime nominee for his role as Ron Woodruff in “Dallas Buyers Club” (2013). Though he took home trophies at the Golden Globes, the SAGs and the Critics Choice Awards, McConaughey is not guaranteed an Oscar come March 2nd.

There’s a fair amount of support for veteran actor Bruce Dern of “Nebraska” (2013). But voters will unlikely be able to forget Chiwetel Ejiofor’s haunting performance in “12 Years A Slave” (2013). Leonardo DiCaprio shouldn’t be counted out either — the Academy showed that it has a lot of love for “Wolf of Wall Street” (2013), which picked up five nominations. With such a strong group of nominees, the Best Actor race will likely remain too close to call until the envelope is opened.

Best Actress and Supporting Actor

Best

Siebbi via Wikimedia Commons

Leonardo DiCaprio could score a long-awaited Oscar for his starring role in ‘Wolf of Wall Street.’

These two races are much easier to predict as both have clear front-runners. Cate Blanchett will likely accept an Oscar for her rol as a socialite who has fallen from grace in “Blue Jasmine” (2013).

She does have formidable competition in Amy Adams, Sandra Bullock, Judi Dench and Meryl Streep, but their chances of winning are slim.

Interestingly, all the Best Actress nominees this year have scored nods in the past — and all of them, except for Adams, are Oscar winners. There’s a possibility that a swell of support for Adams could rise up if voters want to reward the actress who has been nominated four times in the past six years.

As for Best Supporting Actor, the trophy will certainly go to Jared Leto. The actor-turnedmusician, known for playing Jordan Catalano on “My So-Called Life” (1994-1995), made a triumphant return to the acting scene in “Dallas Buyers Club.” He plays Rayon, a transgender woman with AIDS. Like McConaughey, Leto picked up a trio of trophies at the Golden Globes, the SAGs and the Critics Choice Awards.

Unlike his co-star, Leto is the clear front-runner in a category with three first-time nominees.

Snubs Every year, the Oscar nominations upset fans and critics whose favorite artists were overlooked by the Academy.

This year was no different — and with the Best Actor race so competitive, the furor seemed louder than ever. Chief among the snubs in this category were Hanks for “Captain Phillips” and Robert Redford for “All Is Lost” (2013). Both men delivered impressive performances that many thought could win them the Oscar.

Emma Thompson also did not receive a nod for her role as British author P.L. Travers in

Garry Knight via Wikimedia Commons

Suprisingly, Emma Thompson was not recognized by the Academy for ‘Saving Mr. Banks.’

“Saving Mr. Banks” (2013). In fact, the Academy didn’t seem to care much for the Disney movie, which picked up just one nomination for Best Original Score.

Although the Academy tends to favor directors Joel and Ethan Coen, they were not keen on “Inside Llewyn Davis” (2013), the filmmaking brothers’ latest effort. It received only two nods in minor categories.

This year’s nominees also reflect the importance of tim-

TV Review

‘True Detective’ stands out as promising crime drama Matthew McConaughey, Woody Harrelson excel in dark roles by

Dana Guth

Daily Editorial Board

List off all the typical ingredients of the standard crime drama, and “True Detective” seems like a perfectly cal-

True Detective Starring Matthew McConaughey, Woody Harrelson, Michelle Monaghan

Airs Sundays at 9 p.m. on HBO culated recipe: two mismatched male detectives trying to solve a gruesome, inexplicable murder in a decrepit southern gothic town. But as the show develops, it becomes clear that HBO’s new anthology series is anything but a clich袠sum of its parts. Writer and creator Nic Pizzolatto subverts the centricity of the actual mystery and instead demands a closer examination of the cops’ damaged psyches, revealing demons that slowly unfold to make “True Detective” one of the network’s

most intriguing releases of 2014.

Taking on these heavy roles are Woody Harrelson and an affectingly somber Matthew McConaughey, who both double as executive producers. In the first episode, the men encounter a murdered prostitute in the middle of a Louisiana cane field. The show then takes us back and forth on a 17-year timeline as the pair rehashes memories of a similar past case. These flashbacks take their toll on the men — evidenced in their hollowed cheekbone and the circles under their eyes. Each has hefty baggage to bear, and the actors skillfully internalize the effects that years of exposure to grizzly crimes has had on their characters’ bodies and minds.

McConaughey subtly dominates the screen as alcoholic Rust Cohle, who is described in the pilot’s first few minutes as someone who “would pick a fight with the sky if he didn’t like its shade of blue.” He is a sort of offkilter philosopher — or what a philoso-

see DETECTIVE, page 6

ing in when films are released.

Michael B. Jordan was not recognized for his work in “Fruitvale Station” (2013) — a summer release — nor did “Lee Daniels’ The Butler” (2013), which hit theaters in late August, garner any nominations.

The Best Documentary race also left out two critically acclaimed films: Sarah Polley’s “Stories We Tell” (2013) and the headline-generating “Blackfish” (2013).

Album Review

Young the Giant’s sophomore album cheap, derivative

by Veronica

Little

Daily Editorial Board

A band’s personality can make or break its fan base, its credibility and its ability to establish itself in the indus-

Mind Over Matter Young the Giant Fueled by Ramen

Steve Rogers via Wikimedia Commons

Woody Harrelson convincingly brings to life a man caught between love, family and soul-wrenching work.

try. Best Coast, the west-coast crooners with simple, frank and sincere songs, has inspired a generation of teens with poignant nostalgia. Vampire Weekend, whose outrageous lead singer (Ezra Koenig) and trademark melodies have garnered a massive and loyal following, is a great example of successful personality development. Simply put, the character of a group can define how a listener enjoys its music. Bands are undeniably tied to how they present themselves and to the kinds of associations they evoke see YOUNG, page 6

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Indie-pop group Young the Giant disappoints with incoherent second album YOUNG continued from page 5

for the audience.

Young the Giant, however, is the kind of band that has no personality at all. While perusing the sophomore release

“Mind Over Matter,” a listener may very well find him or herself wondering exactly what band is even playing on the record. It becomes painfully evident while listening to this newest effort that Young the

Mark Runyon via Flickr Creative Commons

Sameer Gadhia, lead vocalist for Young the Giant, produces uninspired vocals in the band’s sophomore album, ‘Mind over Matter.’

Giant is totally confused. Each song on the 13-track album sounds like a sloppy cover of a B-side from some nondescript indie-pop band. Yet, at any particular moment, Young the Giant also can appear to be a cheap knockoff of Yeasayer, Coldplay, Grizzly Bear or Two Door Cinema Club. This is disconcerting, to say the least.

Young the Giant seems like a chameleon too frightened to pick a color and stay that way.

This trepidation may be buttressed by the perceived benefits of such musical inconsistency — Young the Giant is apparently convinced that channeling the worst parts of all of the best bands will possibly bring some notoriety or attention.

Unfortunately for the group, this formula represents a tragic miscalculation. “Mind Over Matter” follows the first, eponymous album released in 2010.

Interestingly, that album drew similar criticism for a lack of discernible voice or purpose to what “Mind of Matter” is receiving now. Young the Giant, apparently, has failed to take past criticism to heart, creating another album as incoherent as its last.

Songs like “It’s About Time,” one of the singles off of the album, aptly showcase the band’s disingenuous songwriting. This number, marked by a distorted guitar riff, falsetto singing and pounding percussion, could easily be an Animal Collective or a Clap Your Hands Say Yeah track. Either way, the single reeks of anonymity — it is as vague as Young the Giant is lazy. What’s more, the title track of the album, “Mind Over

HBO dials down violence in new, understated thriller DETECTIVE

continued from page 5

pher would become if the blinds were let down around every corner of his conscience, casting shadows across his perception of everything around him.

The genial, charismatic charm usually oozing from McConaughey’s every line has all been drained here. Indeed, Cohle is a godless, humorless man — one who thinks the human race should offer itself up for extinction — and watching McConaughey get lost in this twisted psyche is both intriguing and horrifying.

Harrelson’s Marty Hart stands cheerfully in comparison, though his whiskeyladen southern drawl is far from exuberant and his family life is troubled at best. Hart is Cohle’s reluctant audience, recognizing him for his skilled detective work, while begrudgingly listening to his partner’s angst-ridden musings like a frustrated parent to a teenager. If there is comic relief (an element otherwise absent in “True Detective”), this is it: Hart is just as unsettled as we are when Cohle utters lines like, “[Life] is a giant gutter in outer space.” All he wants is to finish work, go home and act like the family man he so desperately wants to become.

Aside from these differences, there is hardly a contrast between Cohle and Hart. They are both the kind of conventional detectives — middle-aged white men with a penchant for smoking cigars and drinking at noon — anyone would expect from a standard crime drama.

Both are more sad than bad, however, and McConaughey and Harrelson, though excellent in their respective roles, share a dejected southern mumble that renders each man’s mannerisms and actions only slightly distinguishable from the other.

“True Detective” still easily sets itself apart from its peers on HBO, where superfluous sex, violence and profanity have become the norm. These entertaining elements are present but subverted,

remaining latent as most scenes boast a grimmer subtlety. This is highlighted by the show’s remarkably slow pace. The audience feels the sluggish heartbeat of the dying Louisiana town where the crimes take place — a sort of slow breath manifesting itself in the background of a rural wasteland.

“True Detective” offers no instant gratification by solving its central crime.

Instead, the real mystery is how — and for how long — the cops will endure the weight of the job. This undoubtedly requires work from the viewer, too — especially since the show is intended to restart each season with a new cast and storyline. This is an effort that will likely be rewarded as the plot develops, suspense builds and the characters reveal more about their dark pasts.

David Torcivia via Wikimedia Commons

Matthew McConaughey explores new territory as a full-time cop and tortured pessimist in his role as detective Rust Cohle.

Mark Runyon via Flickr Creative Commons

Jacob Tilley is the lead guitarist for Young the Giant, whose recent release harkens back to the failure of it’s eponymous first album.

Matter,” sounds like a strange mix of Coldplay and Daughtry and, as you would expect, this fusion is a horrendous musical nightmare.

The songs on the album vary from utterly forgettable to entirely offensive. The irony is that, whether or not the songs should upset the listener, the album is so monotonous and unimportant that it’s hard to even care about any aspect of it in earnest. How fans of Young the Giant will receive “Mind Over Matter,” however, is hard to speculate. Steadfast devotees of the band’s first

effort may still enjoy the new release. But when an album represents no growth or forward motion — even the most loyal or simple audiences — tend to notice. Frankly, this album would be best put to use in the background of a conversation, just audible enough to hint at vague indie sensibilities but not so loud as to disrupt the discussion. For music fans with tastes that depend on both the musical integrity of bands and their sonic personalities, Young the Giant will only ever be a knock-off — and an offensive one at that.

Thursday, January 23, 2014

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THE TUFTS DAILY Caroline A. Welch Editor-in-Chief

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Editorial

Editorial | Letters

Oscars perpetuate minority exclusion

Over 40 million Americans are expected to tune in to the 86th Academy Awards on March 2. Although film buffs are aware that the voting members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences decide which talented artists receive an Oscar, few know the demographics of what many simply refer to as “the Academy.” The Los Angeles Times reported that out of the 5,765 members listed in the Academy roster, only six percent are not white, and 77 percent are men. After reflecting on the lack of diversity within the Academy, it is important to not only question the significance of the Oscars, but also how voting members reinforce the lack of visibility for minority actors and actresses.

This year, some of the biggest Oscar snubs affected demographically underrepresented artists: Oprah Winfrey for Best Supporting Actress for her powerful performance in “The Butler” (2013), and Octavia Spencer for her supporting role in “Fruitvale Station” (2013).

Halle Berry remains the only African-

American woman that has ever won the Oscar for Best Actress.

“The Butler” and “Fruitvale Station” both failed to secure Best Picture nominations in a year with many successful, African-American-led films. Only one film with non-white lead actors, “12 Years a Slave,” is nominated this year. “12 Years a Slave” director Steve McQueen is only the third African-American director to ever be nominated in his category. If he wins this year, he will make history as the first ever.

Even though the most popular films are never guaranteed wins, many assume the awards reflect the motion pictures acclaimed by all Americans, regardless of race or gender. In reality, the results reflect what older, predominantly white men consider excellent acting, directing, etc. Thus, the coveted 2014 Oscar for Best Picture will reflect what old, white men fell in love with this year in theaters. This does not nescessarily mean that these members vote solely for artists like them. But the numbers don’t lie: most Oscar winners are white men.

As a result, an admired cultural institution, which should recognize art regardless of race, gender and age, has repeatedly honored artists that echo a narrow demographic. Predominantly white and male Academy Award winners go on with their careers, brandishing their golden statue and the subsequent draw and incentive to be cast in future films with other Oscar-winning artists. Many will be invited to become members of the Academy themselves, and will then have a say in determining the next generation of honorees.

The failure to fairly represent minorities, women and younger artists in the ranks of Academy members is endemic to the motion picture industry and ultimately reflective of the worth assigned to the stories we wish to tell and celebrate. We can reject this by supporting and affirming art made by exceptionally talented minority artists who are some of the most important contributors to our greater American “Academy.”

Alma Mater and her fellow statues — will always be somewhat foreign and never wholly familiar to any of us.

This reminds me of a passage from T.S. Eliot’s “Little Gidding,” from his “Four Quartets:” “If you came this way, Taking the route you would be likely to take From the place you would be likely to come from, If you came this way in may time, you would find the hedges White again, in May, with voluptuary sweetness.

It would be the same at the end of the journey, If you came at night like a broken king, If you came by day not knowing what you came for, It would be the same, when you leave the rough road.“ Eliot speaks to the strange phenom-

enon of coming back to someplace familiar. The place feels, in a way, thoroughly alien. But the place, of course, “would be the same.” It has not changed. Later in the poem Eliot calls this contradiction “the intersection of the timeless moment.”

To return is to rediscover and to discover in even the familiar new depths. As Eliot puts it, “We shall not cease from exploration, / And at the end of all our exploring / Will be to arrive where we started / And know the place for the first time.” Coming back, we come back for the first time, even if we’ve returned a thousand times.

After a month-long hiatus, it is natural that everything at Columbia should seem endowed with a sense of newness. In everything we see, there are new experiences to be had and a future still to occur.

Returning to Columbia after any length of time, the feeling will be the same, as all around us the ghosts of our now and future selves hover — the realities of our past and the possibilities of our futures.

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Off the Hill | Columbia University by

CiarଠConners

Columbia Daily Spectator

We’re back on campus, or at least we’re getting back on campus — buses, airplanes, and snowstorms willing — and though we’ve all been here for at least a semester beforehand, everything still seems quite fresh when we walk through the gates on 116th and Broadway, as if it were the first time again. But given that the campus is over 100 years old, we might suppose that it shouldn’t feel terribly new to anyone who has attended Columbia since, say, at least 1920.

Whenever we enter through the gates and walk down College Walk, we’ll see Low and Butler and Hamilton and all the rest of that waspish swarm, and of course we’ll remember all the things that transpired here — loves, breakups, failures, successes. But in addition, this campus — a temporary home to all of us, a permanent home to none really (except

BUSINESS Daphne Wu Executive Business Director Li Liang Receivables Editor P.O. Box 53018, Medford, MA 02155 617 627 3090 FAX 617 627 3910 daily@tuftsdaily.com

Correction In the Jan. 21 sports article “Jumbos go 1-2 over holiday weekend,” the headline incorrectly stated that the women’s squash team went 1-2 the weekend of January 18, when in fact they went 2-2. Additionally, the article later went on to state that sophomore Paget Stanco both lost and won her match in the No. 1 position against Drexel. In fact, Stanco only lost her match against Drexel, 9-11. 2-11, 8-11.

The Tufts Daily is a nonprofit, independent newspaper, published Monday through Friday during the academic year, and distributed free to the Tufts community. EDITORIAL POLICY 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. The content of letters, advertisements, signed columns, cartoons and graphics does not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Tufts Daily editorial board.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters must be submitted by 2 p.m. and should be handed into the Daily office or sent to letters@tuftsdaily.com.

All letters must be word processed and include the writer’s name and telephone number. There is a 450-word limit and letters must be verified.

The editors reserve the right to edit letters for clarity, space and length.

ADVERTISING POLICY All advertising copy is subject to the approval of the Editorin-Chief, Executive Board and Executive Business Director. A publication schedule and rate card are available upon request.

The Tufts Daily Off the Hill | University of Michigan

by James

Brennan

The Michigan Daily

Almost a decade ago, a single question completely changed my life.

Sitting in my catechism classroom with a dozen other 5th graders, we had just finished discussing some Biblical story and the instructor was taking a short break to transition to our next subject. I raised my hand and she called on me.

“How do we know any of this is real?” I asked.

This question was not some type of challenge to authority or cross-examination — it just seemed natural that I should ask for confirmation about all of these fantastic stories I was being exposed to. Rather than my teacher citing historical record or some scientific study — which was for some reason what I expected her to do — she simply responded by saying, “We just have to believe. That’s what it means to have faith. You just believe.”

All of a sudden my perceptions of God, religion and the meaning of life were completely shattered. By the time I reached middle school I had completed my transition to agnosticism, on my way to full-blown atheism.

It all started with a single question, one that challenged the status quo and, in essence, authority.

Today, American political and media culture seems far too afraid of these types of questions.

I’m not talking about questions challenging religion, but rather questions that ask for hard

9

Op-Ed

A profession in crisis verification of what we’re all told every day.

Journalists and citizens alike take too many statements at face value, backing down from challenging people in power and asking them to verify what they claim. Despite an established history of government and big business peddling half-truths and flat-out lies about their more controversial activities, we too often sit back and accept what people or organizations say rather than what they actually do.

Years after asking my catechism teacher to prove what she was telling me, I found myself sitting in another classroom facing a similar situation.

Last June, journalist Glenn Greenwald began publishing articles with The Guardian about the vast meta-data collection of the NSA thanks to documents provided by whistleblower Edward Snowden. In my public policy class we spent time debating the merits of our massive intelligence state, with a central question asking whether or not such a huge system was necessary. Like seemingly all debates about the NSA, the conversation quickly became a matter of safety weighed against liberty.

Most of my classmates were apprehensive about such an invasive surveillance system, but deferred to threats of terrorism as justification for its existence. Over and over again, students shot down any challenge to the NSA’s behavior by referencing the claim that metadata had stopped some 50 terrorist plots. It seemed to be a closed case; programs like PRISM were saving American lives, plain and simple.

At no point did anyone ask how we knew the government was telling the truth. I tried to raise the claim that just because someone says something does not make it true, but instead of my peers nodding their heads in agreement, they stared at me as if I said the President was born in Kenya.

It may have been a bit conspiratorial to assume the government was telling its citizens bold-faced lies, but it’s not like it hadn’t happened before. I reminded my peers that General Keith Alexander had lied to Congress under oath about the same program we were discussing — a claim that didn’t seem to help my argument.

Early this month, a US federal judge and a comprehensive study have come to the same conclusion. Claims made by the Obama administration have been untrue — the NSA meta-data collection has had a minimal role in fighting terrorism.

While I certainly feel vindicated by such findings, I find it deeply troubling that journalists — and students, for that matter — whose job is to question what they’re told, simply took claims from the government and ran with them as verified facts. While there is a small group of people committed to exposing truth rather than simply reporting what is said, most of these writers are pushed to the fringes for refusing to trade journalistic access for supportive stories.

For a young journalist, it may seem like being “fair” (i.e., sympathetic) to people in power is the way to make a name for yourself,

refusing to ask your God to prove himself. That isn’t what journalism is about. It isn’t some career to use to become rich or famous — it’s a public service to inform your fellow citizens and hold people accountable.

On a closing note, I’d like ask all of my fellow young writers to remember something.

Edward Snowden didn’t go to The Washington Post or The New York Times when he decided it was time to blow the whistle. He went to a journalist at The Guardian known for asking the questions no one else would. Why? Because that meant he could trust him.

Elza Fiúza / Agência Brasil wikimedia commons

Op-Ed

Why Tufts deserves an on-campus pub, and why I’m trying to make it happen If you are over 21, I am asking you to order a drink or two from Hotung this Friday night. Here’s why: It’s been a busy and productive first half of a year on the TCU Senate — in particular, the Services Committee headed by senators Christie Maciejewski, a senior, and Janna Karatas, a sophomore. We’ve churned out projects that will take effect quickly — like adding the Commons to the meal plan this semester — and projects that will come to fruition later — like hotair hand dryers in dorms as they are renovated on rotation. We’ve managed recurring projects, like the Turkey Shuttle, the Cause Dinners and the recent late-night study at Carm during finals.

I was recruited for Services when I walked onto Senate as a senior. Why did I want to try my hand in Senate-ing as a senior? I guess I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. I was abroad in London all of last year, which meant I missed one of the most (apparently) contentious sessions in recent memory of the body.

I spent my first semester poking around and learning the ropes, and now I am ready to take on my own project.

The idea for a bar came to me when I was asked to bring a handful of ideas to my first committee meeting. My reason-

ing was that, instead of thinking about what was wrong with Tufts (because I felt enough people were working on that), I would identify what I liked about my experience at University College London and see if aspects of that could be recreated here at Tufts. UCL’s Student Union owned and operated two bars and a pub for its students; UCL students also had full access to the bar, pub and club run by the student union at the university across the street.

Students crowded the bars every night of the week, attracted by the hip, studentrun atmosphere and the heaps of deals on drinks. In a city with over 7,000 bars and pubs — and one of the greatest club scenes in the world — you couldn’t get a seat in the UCL bars on the weekends. I knew what I wanted to bring to Tufts.

However, the truth is that my school in London was much larger, and everyone could legally get into the bar. Tufts used to have a bar housed in Dewick, but it closed when the drinking age was increased to 21. The logic in closing the Dewick bar was that, with only approximately a quarter of students of legal age, it could not be sufficiently supported.

I think the time has come to think about a bar again. Tufts has increased its undergraduate and graduate programs

Caroline geiling / the Tufts daily

significantly since 1984 and could feasibly support an on-campus bar. Middlebury, another much smaller NESCAC college, has two student-run establishments that serve alcohol. At Tufts, the only place on campus that does serve alcohol (we have one?) is Hotung Café in the Mayer Campus Center, which is open for alcohol from 5 p.m. until close on weekdays.

There is a mini-fridge with a choice of bottled beers and wine coolers, limited to two drinks per Tufts ID. It’s no wonder no one knows about it!

Tufts can do better. I want to realize some manifestation of an on-campus watering hole for Tufts for several reasons.

First: to improve the campus experience for seniors. For the majority of my class, who live off campus in a radius around Tufts, there is very little to draw us back to campus for any semblance of a cohesive student experience. Frat parties are tiresome, meal plans have been dropped and dorms are a distant memory. There are loads of student programming dollars aimed at on-campus students, but little offered to upperclassmen, except limited tickets for sporadic Senior Pub Nights. Half of the student body goes abroad during their junior year, only to come back feeling like they should have stayed abroad — like they’ve lost track of people and the Tufts experience they remembered. I want to create an institution that attracts seniors back to campus and makes sure the Tufts experience is inclusive for all years.

However, my project is not just for seniors. One of the most persistent problems on college campuses across the country is the inadequacy of institutional responses to the dangerous culture of overdrinking. At Tufts this has been manifested in the cancellation of literally almost every full-campus tradition in my four years here: Naked Quad Run, Fall Ball, Winter Bash and, almost after last semester’s debacle, TDC. By creating fewer ‘big’ events, the university has increased the pressure on students to make those events ‘special,’ which leads to more TEMS incidents. I think it is time to try something new.

A student bar that can serve as an oncampus example of responsible drinking could set the tone for the rest of the university. Imagine a chill atmosphere, craft brews on draft and students behind

the bar watching their peers for safety.

Imagine running into your graduate student TAs and sharing a laugh about a professor. Imagine performance events in an intimate venue, maybe turning it up once a week for a party where you don’t need to wear your basement shoes and don’t have to worry about noise complaints.

Imagine looking forward to turning 21, for a chance to be part of a fun, responsible campus institution with maybe a little bit of school spirit.

Rome was not built in a day — a student bar at Tufts might be a long ways off. The campaign I am envisioning for this project started with the fall survey sent out by the Services Committee to judge interest in potential projects. Of 984 student respondents from all grades, 84.3 percent said they would go to a Tufts bar ‘often or sometimes.’ That clearly demonstrated interest. The next step was achieved this past weekend, when the Senate unanimously approved this project, authorizing me to explore options and ideas to make it happen. Finally, I have written this op-ed now in your hands to get my idea out there, raise visibility and get some feedback from the Tufts community.

The next step for the bar project — and this is where I’m asking for help — is to gain weight for negotiations with administrators. The bar project needs to demonstrate not only student interest, but also demand. As a senior, odds are that by the time I leave nothing substantial will have happened. But current seniors owe it to the other classes to help establish new traditions, since so many have been lost on our watch. I propose a buy-out of the Hotung mini-fridge. This Friday, Jan. 24, I hope all over-21s interested in the bar project will join me at 6 p.m. at Hotung to have our two-drink allocation and polish off the fridge — consumer activism at its best! If enough folks come, we’ll do it the next Friday, and the next and the next while I work with members of the Senate and Tufts to make this vision a reality. I’ll keep you posted, and I’ll see you there!

Cheers!

Andrew Hunter is a senior majoring in political science. He can be reached at Andrew.Hunter@tufts.edu.

Op-ed Policy 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. Op-Ed cartoons are also welcomed for the Campus Canvas feature. All material is subject to editorial discretion and is not guaranteed to appear in the Daily. All material should be submitted to oped@tuftsdaily.com no later than noon on the day prior to the desired day of publication; authors must submit their telephone numbers and day-of availability for editing questions. Submissions may not be published elsewhere prior to their appearance in the Daily, including but not limited to other on- and off-campus newspapers, magazines, blogs and online news websites, as well as Facebook. Republishing of the same piece in a different source is permissible as long as the Daily is credited with originally running the article.

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Thursday, January 23, 2014

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SUDOKU Level: Pulling off a 5-for-5 class swap on iSIS.

Late Night at the Daily

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Sports

Young talent steps up for Jumbos against Bantams, Lord Jeffs MEN’S BASKETBALL continued from back

ished 17-of-18 from the free throw line, netting eight straight foul shots in the closing minutes.

Rebounding was once again problematic, as the undersized Tufts team got beat 42-28 on the boards by Amherst.

“We need to box out as a team, to get everybody out there and then go get a rebound instead of just turning.

[Then we have to] go get it,” coach Bob Sheldon said. “We only have one or two big guys. We have to box out on every shot, and then when they take a shot everbody’s got to go, we have to have five guys on the boards.”

Sophomore Stephen Haladyna hit two 3-pointers en route to 17 points for the Jumbos, while Cohen snatched a game-high seven steals from the Lord Jeffs.

The most impressive play this game

Caroline Geiling / The Tufts Daily

Sophomore Stephen Haladyna hit two 3-pointers for Tufts this weekend against Amherst this past Friday. came from freshman center Hunter Sabety, the Jumbos’ game leader in three statistical categories: points,

Tufts blows leads in both losses HOCKEY

continued from back

Pat Curtis found the back of the net to put his Continentals on top midway through the second period.

“Hamilton capitalized on their forward’s speed for line rushes, which caused some problems in our defensive zone [throughout the night],” Fadden said.

As the second period wore on, Kyle Gallegos drew a penalty for cross-checking, but the Jumbos’ defense managed a successful kill. After returning to the ice, Gallegos put an unassisted goal past Hamilton keeper Charlie Fennell to lock things at 2-2 at the 19:34 mark.

The third period was scoreless, although players from each team racked up a series of penalties. Neither team succeeded in finishing a scoring opportunity, however, forcing the game into overtime.

“Hamilton was good at taking away the wingers for our break-out passes,” Gallegos said. “I think our forecheck was very effective in creating scoring chanc-

es [throughout the game], but we really struggled with capitalizing on those scoring chances down the stretch.”

In overtime, more than four scoreless minutes elapsed as the Jumbos and Continentals battled to find the winning shot. Then, with less than a minute remaining in the first overtime period, senior forward Evan Haney finished the golden goal past Kellenberger, ending the game with a Hamilton victory.

“For the overtime goal, Hamilton broke the puck out of their zone and entered the neutral zone,” Fadden said.

“I hesitated and made an incorrect step, and the puck just slipped past me along with the Hamilton player. He entered our zone uncontested and was able to sneak it past [Kellenberger].”

Of Tufts’ eight conference games, five have been decided by a single goal, and the Jumbos are a dismal 0-5 in those contests.

Including an 8-4 blowout loss at Bowdoin, Tufts has had a chance to challenge or win every NESCAC game this season, but time and again the Jumbos

blocks and rebounds. Along with teamhighs of 18 points, eight rebounds and five blocks, Sabety displayed basketball knowledge that eludes most freshmen — refusing to swat for foolish blocks and hedging on picks to assist Tufts’ guards.

Though the sky is the limit for Sabety’s potential, the Jumbos haven’t yet placed a lot of responsibility and expectation on the young center, especially with the loss of sophomore Tom Palleschi.

“He’s still young — in his league he was the biggest guy, so now it’s a little different, and he’s learning as he goes,” Sheldon said. “But we need to get a faster learning curve. When he goes hard, and he goes at it, nobody can stop him.”

Sabety and the Jumbos will be looking to stop the three game conferenceplay slide on Saturday at 4 p.m. against the Bates Bobcats.

seem to lose energy and confidence during the second period.

“This is definitely a recent focus point of ours,” Fadden said. “In video and practice this week we have been focusing on situational hockey to eliminate late period goals-against and shift after goals-against, which kill our momentum. We have great skill in all positions — we just have to bear down, be more aware of the time on the clock, avoid making mental mistakes and continue to be disciplined with avoiding penalties.”

Going forward, the Jumbos are aware that their odds of making the conference playoffs are not good if they do not begin to turn the momentum around.

Close results thus far indicate that the Jumbos have the skill to compete in games, but have to work on maintaining their fundamentals for a full 60 minutes. With 10 conference games remaining on the schedule, however, there is plenty of time for Tufts to rise in the standings and make a run for a spot in the postseason.

Tufts remains undefeated despite difficult schedule WOMEN’S BASKETBALL continued from back

Coming off their first win, Tufts avoided the post-victory hangover, appearing just as sharp for the Trinity game as they had against Amherst.

With a 17-6 score in the first 8 minutes of the game, the Jumbos quickly took control of the Bantams. From there, Tufts only continued to grow its lead, thanks in large part to a defense that held Trinity to 33.3 percent shooting from the field.

While the game against Trinity was largely a one-sided affair, with their team never coming within eight points of Tufts throughout the second half, the game versus Amherst was much more closely contested — even with the departure of Amherst’s leading scorer, junior Megan Robertson, early in the game due to injury.

“Megan Robertson is an incredible player,” Kanner said. “I think she’s leading the team in points, blocks, rebounds, leading the NESCAC in certain things as well, and I can only imagine having her off the court just changes the dynamic.

That being said, I think we responded very well, shutting down the other players who were trying to step up.”

Down 21-9 with just over five minutes left in the first half, the Lord Jeffs outscored the Jumbos by 12 points to tie the score 25-25 at halftime. With three lead changes during the first fourteen minutes of the second half, the Lord Jeffs pulled ahead by one, 50-49, with 5:46 left in the game, before the Jumbos went on a 14-6 run to secure the win.

While acknowledging that the longawaited victory against Amherst was an emotional one for the team, Kanner and senior tri-captain Liz Moynihan were quick to hold off any celebration until the game against Trinity. Both emphasized vigilance and consistency for the rest of the season.

“It’s great to be able to come out of weekends like we just had and say that we’re not even playing our best basketball,” Moynihan said. “It’s refreshing to be able to get through games like that and know that we still have room for improvement.”

Elephants in the Room Winter break was...

Sarah Mahoney Sophomore Women’s Swimming and Diving

Hugo Meggitt Junior Men’s Squash

Austin Wood Senior tri-captain Men’s Swimming and Diving

Tarik Smith Freshman Men’s Basketball

Too cold in Minnesota

Way too short

Sunny and warm

Refreshing back home in New York City

Dream New Year’s kiss

Toss-up between Luca G. and Matt Damon (I wouldn’t resist Jude Law)

My girlfriend Risa Meyers

Emma Watson

Paula Patton

My stocking was stuffed with...

the “freshman 15”

Socks and Sour Patch Watermelons

Candy

A new phone

Super bowl prediction

Seahawks but both teams will probably freeze in Jersey

I will be watching

Broncos hands down

The Seattle Seahawks, their defense is too good

PHOTOS COURTeSY TUFTS ATHLETICS

Sports

16

tuftsdaily.com

Women’s Basketball

Jumbos on top in NESCAC after pair of weekend wins by

Alison Kuah

Daily Editorial Board

The No. 4 Tufts women’s basketball continued their undefeated season over the weekend, beating strong opponents Amherst and Trinity. In doing so, the Jumbos are the only NESCAC team with a perfect winning streak.

The Jumbos remedied a sevenyear drought against the four-time defending league champions, the Lord Jeffs, in a game that featured the NESCAC’s only two undefeated teams. With the loss, Amherst moved to 15-1 overall and 3-1 in the conference, tying for second place with Bowdoin and Trinity.

Trinity’s sole loss also came at Tufts’ hands. The Jumbos routed the Bantams 68-48 a day after beating the Lord Jeffs 63-56.

Junior Hayley Kanner, who is the Tufts all-time leader in blocked shots, played a key role in both victories over the weekend, logging game-highs in both matchups.

Kanner scored 18 points against Amherst on 7-of-13 shooting, and 16 points against Trinity on 7-of10 shooting. Kanner credits her success to her teammates and their camaraderie this season.

“Our team is just so close on and off the court, we want to see each other play our best,” Kanner said. “I think individually, or as a team, we’ve been playing together and that’s where our success has been coming from, not from a record-breaking block or gamehigh points.”

Matthew Schreiber / The Tufts Daily

see WOMEN’S BASKETBALL, page 15

Junior Hayley Kanner was critical in the Tufts’ wins this weekend, as the game-high scorer against both Amherst and Trinity.

Men’s Basketball

Tufts drops two home NESCAC contests by

Alex Schroeder

Daily Editorial Board

After winning five of its first six games in November, the Tufts men’s basketball team has now dropped seven of its last nine contests and is tied for last place in the NESCAC. After dropping their first conference game at Middlebury, the Jumbos lost matchups at home against Amherst and Trinity on Friday and Saturday.

Put simply, it’s not an ideal start for a team that last year claimed the fourth-seed in the NESCAC Championship tournament and advanced to the semifinals for the first time since 2006.

“It’s certainly not the way I want to go out, so hopefully we can turn it all around from here,” senior tri-captain guard Oliver Cohen said.

The Jumbos fell to the Bantams in the second contest of the weekend 64-54, as Trinity outrebounded Tufts by a 48-34 margin, reeling in 18 offensive rebounds. The Jumbos shot a poor 31.6 percent from behind the arc, compared to the Bantam’s 57.1 percent, and only hit 2-of-13 attempted 3-pointers in the second half, Tufts also got in early foul trouble in the second half, putting Trinity in the bonus with over six minutes remaining.

At the time, Tufts was already trailing 51-48. The Bantams

were able to hold that lead for the rest of the game on and close out the Jumbos.

“We need to focus on playing more as a team, not [playing] as selfish,” Cohen said. “A lot of times, guys will start to go one-on-one and try to take over the game, not necessarily playing within the team and playing together. We have to work on that, effort and having some heart.”

The biggest spark for the Jumbos was freshman guard Tarik Smith’s 12 points off the bench on 3-of-4 shooting from downtown.

“My role off the bench is to come in with energy and make plays either defensively or offensively. If I’m open, not hesitating to shoot, and if not, trying to drive to the lane and get a basket, or look for my teammates,” Smith said.

On the previous night, the Jumbos hosted NESCAC No. 1 and national No. 6 Amherst.

Though the Jumbos competed to the end against the Lord Jeffs, outshooting them 43.3 percent to 40 percent from the field, Amherst, led by senior guard tri-captain Aaron Toomey’s game-high 28 points, pulled out a 75-67 victory to remain undefeated in the conference.

Toomey, who became the all-time leading scorer for Amherst after his performance in Cousens Gymnasium, finsee MEN’S BASKETBALL, page 15

Men’s Ice Hockey

Jumbos lose back-to-back home games by

Kate Klots

Daily Editorial Board

The men’s ice hockey team just can’t seem to catch a break. This past weekend, the Jumbos had two devastating home losses, continuing the season-long trend of last-second heartbreak. The losses, which were both in-conference, dropped the Jumbos to 1-7 in the NESCAC and made the possibility of a playoff berth increasingly unlikely.

The weekend marked the Jumbos’ sixth and seventh one-goal losses and their second overtime loss in the last two weeks. Saturday’s disappointing loss to Amherst capped off the letdown, as the visiting Lord Jeffs rebounded from a 3-0 second-period deficit to top the Jumbos with just five minutes remaining in regulation.

In the first period, things looked promising for the Jumbos, with freshman forward Matt Pugh scoring his second goal of the season early. Receiving the puck from junior defenseman Shawn Power on a power play, he shot past Amherst sophomore goalie Dave Cunningham to give the Jumbos an early lead.

Fewer than 10 minutes later, junior forward George Pantazopoulos doubled Tufts’ advantage, working with linemates freshman Conal Lynch and senior Tim Mitropoulos to find the back of the net at the 15:22 mark.

Going into the first intermission with a solid lead, the Jumbos looked to keep up the offensive pressure in the second stanza. Initially, they were successful, as Pugh once again found the back of the net to tally his third goal of the season, putting his team up 3-0. The scoring effort took the Jumbos just 58 seconds and things looked to be going their way as the second period wore on.

Midway through the period, however, momentum shifted and the Lord Jeffs began to increase the pressure at the Jumbos’ defensive end. Senior defenseman Elliot Bostrom finished his first goal of the season past Jumbos’ rookie goalkeeper Ryan Kellenberger, pulling Amherst within two. For much of the remaining 12 minutes, Tufts’ defense was able to hold the line, and it was not until the final minute of play that the seams started to come apart. At the 19:02 mark, sophomore forward Brendan Burke beat Kellenberger to put the Lord Jeffs in striking distance.

Then, trailing by just one goal with less than a minute in the second period, Amherst struck again. This time junior forward Andrew Fenwick capitalized on a tired Tufts defense, collecting an equalizing goal as time expired.

“We outplayed Amherst for the majority of the second, but they were able to climb back into it with two late second period goals,” senior forward Brendan Fadden said. “The late goals going into the intermission killed the momentum that we had been generating throughout the game. We are a well-conditioned team, so their goals were more a result of our mental mistakes rather than our execution.”

By the time the third period rolled around, it was as if the Jumbos had given into an inevitable defeat. Although the defense played strong and the offense continued to challenge, Tufts was unable to regain the lead it had built up early in the contest.

The Lord Jeffs successfully killed three penalties in the closing minutes, before sophomore forward Topher Flannigan emerged from the penalty box and finished a shot past Kellenberger, dashing the Jumbos’ hopes.

JJ Zhou for the Tufts Daily

The men’s ice hockey team is now 1-7 in the NESCAC after two tough losses this weekend.

“We came out very strong against a pretty tough Amherst team,” senior forward Kyle Gallegos said. “They were able to capitalize on a couple opportunities late in the second period, though. That really slowed our momentum and finally put us away after the lucky bounce [for them] in the third.”

The previous evening provided no happier ending for the hosts, who fell 3-2 in overtime to visiting Hamilton after seizing another early lead. Kellenberger’s 34-save performance was not enough to keep the Jumbos out of trouble after advancing to extra time against the Continentals.

Late in the first period, Tufts jumped to a lead when Fadden notched an even strength goal with help from linemate Keith Campbell, a sophomore forward, in

the final minute of play.

“Campbell won a battle in the corner for the puck and made a really heads-up play and passed it to me in the high slot. I was able to beat the goalie with a shot low blocker-side,” Fadden said.

Looking to stop the bleeding, the Continentals jumped out of the gates quickly in the second period and it took just 13 seconds for Hamilton sophomore forward Kenny Matheson to beat Kellenberger for the equalizer.

With the game tied at one goal apiece, Hamilton continued to pressure and capitalized when Tufts sophomore James Randaccio was whistled for hooking. On the ensuing power play, junior forward see HOCKEY, page 15