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the 2013 anti-oscars

the guardian brings you the movie awards the academy wAS too scared to present.

see weekend p. 8 VOLUME 46, ISSUE 36

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2013

www.ucsdguardian.org

A.s. COUNCIL

Council Addresses Divestment For the fourth year in a row, councilmembers will address the merits of voting to pull funds from companies who do business with Israel.

BY mekala neelakantan

A

associate news editor

heated debate took place at A.S. Council’s public input meeting last night in light of an upcoming vote on the controversial Students for Justice in Palestine divestment resolution. Approximately 250 people, including students and community members, attended the meeting at the Institute of the Americas, which lasted several hours.

The resolution, presented by SJP, called for a UC-wide financial divestment from General Electric, Northrup Grumman and other companies that SJP believes are profiting from a “non-neutral” and “unethical financial role” in the ongoing IsraeliPalestinian conflict.

“The purpose of divesting from corporations profiting from the illegal siege, blockade and occupation of Palestine is to signal to these companies that we, as students of a public institution, do not con-

photo by brian monroe

done their participation in human rights abuses,” SJP wrote in an official statement to the Guardian, after declining to participate in individual interviews.

“Divestment will cleanse our portfolios of unjust and socially irresponsible investments by withdrawing our institution’s money from American companies that profit from occupation and violence.”

This divestment was first proposed by SJP in the spring of 2010 and indefinitely tabled by the A.S. Campus Affairs Committee after debates between SJP and Tritons for Israel, a group in opposition to the divestment, failed to result in compromise.

Following a reintroduction of the resolution in 2011 that once again postponed the vote, A.S. Council made history by voting down the resolution in 2012.

This year, the resolution has reached council

weekend

Somewhere Over Oz

See DIVESTMENT, page 3

Oscar-nominated actor James Franco and director Sam Raimi talk wizards, scorned women and creating the new world of Oz.

BY Jacey Aldredge

associate A&E editor

T

OBITUARY

ERC Alum Hit and Killed By Train Friends describe Samir Mathur, 22, who walked for graduation in June as “genuine.”

BY rebecca horwitz

Mathur received a bachelor’s degree in cognitive science with a specialization in human computer interaction and walked for graduation in June 2012. Mathur’s former roommate Rohan Kazi said Mathur was planning on staying at UCSD to take enough courses to double major.

Mathur was a member of the Order of the Tritons.

He had been in the process of creating a marketing Samir mathur club at UCSD to bring stuphoto COurtesy oF dent entrepreneurs together Mathur family

associate news editor A UCSD alumnus was killed on Monday, Feb. 18 when he was hit by a train in Northern California.

Samir Mathur, a 22-year-old graduate of Eleanor Roosevelt College, was struck by a Union Pacific Railroad Co. freight train in Palo Alto, Calif. at 9:30 p.m.

because he felt that there were few resources for students interested in the marketing industry.

Kazi said that if he had to describe Mathur in one word, it would be “genuine.”

“His unfiltered authenticity shone through in everything he did, whether he was starting an on-campus organization or organizing an off-campus celebration,” Kazi said in a eulogy he wrote for Mathur.

readers can contact rebecca horwitz

rahorwit@ucsd.edu

here may be no place like home, but there is a place like hell for James Franco.

“When I worked on ‘SpiderMan’ with [Sam Raimi], I was a supporting character, and Sam identifies with his lead characters very closely,” Franco said. “Because my character was trying to kill Peter Parker, I think Sam blamed me for that. I got a little less love than Tobey McGuire on those films [laughs].”

However, Franco and Raimi’s newest collaboration provides a little more love for the assiduous actor. Picking up the titular role in “Oz the Great and Powerful” (opening March 8) amid the rest of his schedule shouldn’t come as much of a surprise, though. Aside from his various stints on daytime soaps, graduate studies on both coasts and directing fashion ads, Franco’s kept up an exhausting shoot schedule — by April of this year, he’ll already have four films touring the screens.

Of those four, though, only one will recreate the consummate land of Oz through the eyes of the infamous Wizard (before the illustrious white mustache and that giant green mask face). Director Sam Raimi and James Franco spoke to the Guardian about this reimagined world, the inspirations behind it and the enigma that is the Wonderful Wizard of Oz. “I drew it all from the great author L. Frank Baum [and] his vision of Oz,” Raimi said. “I was inspired by the [original] illustrator, [W. W.] Denslow, so a lot of inspiration was taken from his drawings. But I was also inspired by the classic movie ‘[The] Wizard of Oz’ [and] a lot of the visuals of the movie.”

Finding this middle cinematic ground — staying true to the original while establishing his own footprint — is Sam Raimi’s trademark.

Raimi’s claims to fame are concoctions of moth-eaten horror films customary to the garish ’80s and ’90s, eventually leading up to 2002’s “Spider-Man.” The subsequent trilogy (which followed the original Stan Lee source material) would seem to be a far cry from his thriller alma mater, but by incorporating design elements common in ’50s horror comics, Raimi instilled a little something different in the franchise. Moving into the domain of the Emerald City proved an entirely different challenge for Raimi, who cut the musical aspect of the film’s Garland counterpart in favor of 3-D terrains and a focus on the history of the witches and the Wizard himself.

“You want to find the right person for the role,” Raimi said. “With Mila Kunis’ character, she plays Theodora [who] is a good and innocent character, so I’m looking for someone who could portray that innocence and also make a turn for the wicked side. With Glinda the Good Witch, the most important thing is a source of pure goodness. And I needed an actress that had a good soul, so suddenly that ruled [out] about 90 percent of the actresses in Hollywood.”

Michelle Williams fit in that 10 percent, claiming the role of young Glinda alongside Rachel Weisz’s malevolent Evanora and Kunis’ Theodora. Raimi’s representation of “Oz” revolves around these three sisters and the consequential man who stirs up their unresolved grudges and scorned womanhoods, Oscar “Oz” Diggs. Oscar (Franco), a duplicitous magician and con man, See oz, page 6

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N EWS

T he U C S D G U A R D I A N | T H U R S D A Y, F E B R U A R Y 2 8 , 2 0 1 3 | w w w . u c sd g uardia n . or g

Fleeting Thoughts By Irene Chiang Arielle Sallai Madeline Mann Ren Ebel Zev Hurwitz Rebecca Horwitz Mekala Neelakantan Hilary Lee

Managing Editors News Editor Associate News Editors Opinion Editor

Rachel Uda

Sports Editor

Ayan Kusari

Features Editor

Stacey Chien Laira Martin

Quite Frankly By Lior Schenk

Editor in Chief

Ashley Kwon Jacey Aldredge Andrew Whitworth Brian Monroe Taylor Sanderson Sara Shroyer Leo Bui Zoë McCracken Jeffrey Lau Janella Payumo Allie Kiekhofer Claire Yee

Associate Features Editor Lifestyle Editor Associate Lifestyle Editor Associate A&E Editors Photo Editor Associate Photo Editor Design Editor Associate Design Editors Art Editor Associate Art Editor Copy Editor Associate Copy Editor

Editorial Assistants Cedric Eicher, Jean Lee, Sebastian Brady Page Layout Bobee Kim, Katie Persons, Amber Shroyer, Laura Gama

science & technology

Online Student Interactions Correlate Wwith Academic SucBY HELEN HEJRAN

Staff writer

UCSD scientists have discovered that there is a link between students who interact together and academic success, which creates a group of higher-performing stu-

dents. The research revolves around these high-performing students, who form closed off groups, dubbed “rich clubs,” and the effects it has on the low-performing students.

Computer scientist at the Jacobs School of Engineering in UCSD

illustration by jeffrey lau /Guardian

Manuel Cebrian and his colleagues conducted the research, which was published on Jan. 30 in Nature Publishing Group’s Scientific Reports journal, after observing 290 students and 80,000 interactions.

“I have been working at the intersection of the computer and social sciences for the last 10 years, and I felt there was a gap in making use of social media to understand better the structure and dynamics of students in the classroom.” Cebrian said.

These observations showed that the more interactions a student had with other students, the higher the score the student received.

“We showed that there is a very strong correspondence between social interaction and exchange of information — a 72-percent correlation,” Cebrian said. “But almost equally interesting is the fact that these high-performing students form ‘rich-clubs,’ which shield themselves from low-performing students.”

Even if lower-performing students attempt to join the high-performing students, the rich-clubs decline to

include them. This shunning also has a correlation with the dropout rates among these low-performing students.

However, rich-clubs can be ben-

Copy Readers Kim Brinckerhoff, Rachel Huang, Jacqueline Kim, Beca Truong Business Manager Emily Ku Advertising Director Christina Doo Marketing Nicholas Paladino Advertising Noelle Batema, Vivek Medepalli Advertising Design Alfredo H. Vilano Jr. A.S. Graphic Studio

See CLUBS, page 3

Correction In the Feb. 25 issue, Staff Writer Aleksandra Konstantinovic’s name was misspelled in a story on page 1.

In the same issue, an infographic on page 12 incorrectly labeled UCSD’s Women’s Basketball team’s league as “WWPA.” UCSD plays in the CCAA league.

The UCSD Guardian is published Mondays and Thursdays during the academic year by UCSD students and for the UCSD community. Reproduction of this newspaper in any form, whether in whole or in part, without permission is strictly prohibited. © 2013, all rights reserved. The UCSD Guardian is not responsible for the return of unsolicited manuscripts or art. The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the opinions of the UCSD Guardian, the University of California or Associated Students. The UCSD Guardian is funded by advertising. Arielle’s Not Mitzvah.

General Editorial: 858-534-6580 editor@ucsdguardian.org

News: news@ucsdguardian.org Opinion: opinion@ucsdguardian.org Sports: sports@ucsdguardian.org Features: features@ucsdguardian.org Lifestyle: lifestyle@ucsdguardian.org A&E: entertainment@ucsdguardian.org Photo: photo@ucsdguardian.org Design: design@ucsdguardian.org Art: art@ucsdguardian.org

Advertising: 858-534-3467 ads@ucsdguardian.org

Fax: 858-534-7035

The Guardian corrects all errors brought to the attention of the editors. Send corrections to editor@ucsdguardian.org.

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ucsdguardian

N EWS

A.s. council

SOVAC Launches Online Polling Tool The OVAL system will allow students to weigh in on resolutions brought to A.S. Council.

BY daniel song

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T he U C S D G U A R D I A N | T H U R S D A Y, F E B R U A R Y 2 8 , 2 0 1 3 | w w w . u c sd g uardia n . or g

staff writer

In an attempt to make the decisions of A.S. Council more accessible to the general student body, Student Organized Voter Access Committee has launched a new website named the Online Voter Access Link. OVAL, according to its creators, seeks to especially serve those who have time constraints and can’t be physically present to offer their opinions to Council.

The OVAL website will be connected to SOVAC’s main website and will poll students, who log in through Single Sign-On, on university issues that go before A.S. Council. OVAL will tally votes while displaying the results in real time so students have continuous coverage of the issues they are faced with.

“This new program is intended to provide all students an equal opportunity to voice their opinion on issues that A.S. Council will address,” newly appointed SOVAC President Kyle Heiskala said.

SOVAC’s first resolution that UCSD students could vote on was the Resolution in Support of UC San Diego Corporate Accountability through Divestment from Corporations Profiting from the Illegal Occupation, Siege and Blockade of Palestine. Though launched on Feb. 25, the resolution had some technical issues that caused it to be temporarily out of commission early in the week. According to Heiskala, the site was operational again on Tuesday.

Heiskala also said that the system is in “beta testing” and that some unwanted features, such as the ability for graduate students and alumni to participate, were being addressed.

The SOVAC subordinate is expected to launch before spring quarter begins, just in time to be implemented before a new batch of council members are elected into their terms.

SOVAC seeks to maximize participation with OVAL so that it can be taken as an accurate measure of

student opinion.

“It is SOVAC’s hope that this will dramatically increase student involvement,” Heiskala said.

SOVAC also hopes that in addition to increasing student involvement, OVAL will also increase student awareness. The hope is that through OVAL, students will be able to learn more about the types of issues that our student government reviews in general, from the mundane to those of paramount importance.

While several A.S. executives and senators have already been able to provide their feedback, Heiskala said SOVAC is relying on students to utilize the comments feature of the site to help develop it.

“We need feedback to make this program work,” Heiskala said. “All feedback on the site will be highly considered.”

readers can contact daniel song

D9song@ucsd.edu

Integrating Social Media in Classes Levels the Playing Field ▶ CLUBS, from page 2

eficial in classrooms, if it becomes more inclusive to low-performing students.

“Our results prove that tension is resolved in favor of the “chat” and that the students self-organize in highly cohesive groups that exchange important pieces of information,” Cebrian said. “These pieces of information, ultimately, are what make a difference in the performance of students.”

Cebrian suggested that creating social networks within classes is a good way to close the gaps made through the “rich-club” groups.

“This [inclusion] could be done by making social network interventions in the classroom, [for example] rewarding the top students for helping out students that are falling behind,” Cebrian said.

Cebrian noted that many educators are under the impression that independent work is more beneficial than talking online. In his research,

the results show that students who independently form groups that exchange information ends up being the key to high performance. “[The study] shows that the idea of the ‘lone genius’ is either a myth, or gone,” Cebrian said. “Working as a team is — and here, I am speculating — is more important than having a high IQ, hiring a private tutor or having educated parents.”

readers can contact helen hejran

hhejran@ucsd.edu

SJP, TFI Will Present at Next A.S. Meeting ▶ DIVESTMENT, from page 1

once again, released on Sunday of Week 8, and is still facing heated discussion between members of council as well as between campus groups including SJP, TFI, J Street and the Union of Jewish Students.

“I’m here as a student, as a friend and as a fellow classmate,” Eleanor Roosevelt College freshman Matthew Lurie said, during public input last night. “I’m here for peace. However, the divestment bill we are speaking on tonight is not a step in that direction. This bill is the end of cooperation, divisive at its core and in the past … it severs any and all ties that we have.”

Other students spoke in favor of the resolution.

“We, as a public institution, have to take accountability blame for the continuous support for the apartheid occurring abroad,” ERC senior Jennifer Christine Mondonado said during public input. “UCSD sits and colonizes indigenous lands. Israel sits and colonizes indigenous lands in Palestine … respond to your responsibility. Your duty. Divest now.”

In addition to problems surrounding the language of the resolution, there have been issues regarding TFI and SJP group presentations, as well as the resolution’s voting method, which is yet to be decided. However, voting is scheduled to take place at the Week 9 council meeting.

A.S. Council and UJS were especially concerned with the possibility of a secret vote, proposed by Senator Sean Estelle over the weekend, after concerns arose for the safety of council members if an open roll-call vote were to take place.

“For the sake of the mental and/ or physical safety of folks, I think that we need to have a serious conversation about having a secret ballot vote,” Arts and Humanities Senator Sean Estelle wrote in an

email to A.S. Council.

Campuswide Senator Brad Segal said that he opposes a secret vote because it undermines the democratic process.

“As elected officials, we are 100 percent accountable to our constituents for how we vote,” he said.

There were also debates about the timing of TFI and SJP special presentations, previously scheduled to occur at last night’s meeting, after concerns were raised that TFI would not have enough time to prepare a presentation regarding the SJP resolution at the Week 8 meeting.

“We are aware that there is a proposed change in the presentation,” SJP officers wrote in an email to A.S. Council. “We strongly advise the council to reconsider its inconsiderate treatment of our organization and our resolution … Perhaps TFI should work on their time management.”

In response, TFI wrote, “We made the request because unfortunately the language of the resolution was not released until Sunday, and we need more than three days to properly research and analyze the document which has clearly been the result of months of preparation.

This document is a direct attack on Israel and the Israeli students on campus … we feel that our request is not unreasonable.”

Following the conflicts, A.S. President Meggie Le called for a senate meeting on Wednesday and finalized the timeline for SJP and TFI presentations, moving both presentations to the Week 9 council meeting with the stipulation that SJP gives its presentation after TFI. The decision was reached after about 40 minutes of debate, passing by a very close margin. It was also decided that there would be limited public input at next week’s meeting.

readers can contact mekala neelakantan

mneelaka@ucsd.edu

REAPPLY FOR

FINANCIAL AID 2013-14 Priority Deadline for filing the FAFSA or California Dream Act Application is:

MARCH 2, 2013

Students who are U.S. Citizens or Permanent Residents can submit the FAFSA online at:

www.fafsa.ed.gov

Use UCSD school code 001317.

Students who are AB540 eligible and who are not eligible to submit a FAFSA, can submit the California Dream Act Application at:

www.CalDreamAct.org

Use UCSD school code 001317.

If you have not yet completed your 2012 tax return, estimate the amounts and then update your estimates once your tax returns are filed. FAFSA filers can update using the IRS Data Retrieval tool via FAFSA on the web. California Dream Act Application can update your estimates at www.CalDreamAct.org.

If you need assistance, please contact the Financial Aid Office at (858) 534-4480.

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OPINION

contact the editor

HILARY LEE opinion@ucsdguardian.org

Follow Your Instincts, Do the Harlem Shake

In With the New UCSD is undergoing a major overhaul in administration this year, which may affect its ability to stay highly ranked among universities across the globe.

Thinking Caps Kelvin Noronha

knoronha@ucsd.edu

N

Illustration by Janella Payumo

T

his is the year of fresh faces, but UCSD won’t be gleefully singing “Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes.”

Just this past Tuesday, the Office of the Executive Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs announced its appointment of John Moore as the new Muir provost, beginning Fall 2013. Other new UCSD staff members this year include: the first ever vice chancellor for equity, diversity and inclusion, a new vice chancellor of student affairs, a new director of Scripps Institution of Oceanography and a new dean of the Jacobs School of Engineering.

These changes come after UCSD welcomed Pradeep K. Khosla as its new chancellor this year. If anything, this major administrative turnover reflects upon UCSD’s capability of retaining key administrators. In order for UCSD to keep its high global ranking, it needs to work on keeping staff members around for longer than a few years.

It’s hard to have long-term goals in mind when staff members are continuously coming and going. While UCSD has the potential to find skilled replacements, it takes time to construct search

committees and then select and train the right candidates. Some of these searches can extend for months. Most of the exiting faculty members have only been with UCSD for under a decade. Penny Rue, our departing vice chancellor of student affairs, will be leaving after only serving five years. Susan Smith, the current Muir provost, will retire from the position she has only had since 2005. Tony Haymet, vice chancellor for marine sciences and director of Scripps Institution of Oceanography retired at the beginning of January after serving for six years.

As with other universities or businesses, UCSD needs to have the same people oversee the same areas for a continuous period of time in order for progress to best occur. It takes time to enact initiatives and new programs, and time is lost when main administrators leave. Not only is Scripps changing hands three times in a period of a few months confusing (an interim is currently filling in for Dr. Haymet), the extensive international search for his replacement is takSee Turnover, page 9

To Increase Student Engagement, Move Forums Online There are almost 7,000 members in the “UCSD Students Against Transportation Changes” Facebook group, yet only 50 or so students — including members of A.S. Council and a Guardian reporter and photographer — attended the last town hall meeting. This is a dismal turnout.

The whole purpose of the town halls is to gain student input — a useless feat if only a fraction of students show up.

Admittedly, since A.S. President Meggie Le announced two weeks ago the postponement of any changes until we discuss alternatives, we won’t necessarily be having such town halls for the transportation issues again. Instead, the administration will seek to establish a committee for deliberating on how to solve the crisis. That committee might then hold town halls or just accumulate student input through a survey, but that remains to be seen.

Regardless, town halls aren’t just for transportation.

On Feb. 19, for example, council and the Well-being Cluster Student Advisory Board held a town hall meeting about the growing UC Student Health Insurance Program deficit. Only around 20 students attended, even though the UC SHIP deficit problem will affect every student who uses the campus insurance policy.

Now, we can go on and on about how important it is that student outrage is followed up with action and how people should participate in ongoing discussions if they hope to see the changes they want.

But that won’t do us any good.

The kind of physical engagement involved in attending something like a town hall clearly doesn’t work for our campus. It’s hard enough getting people to come to a party let alone a meeting. When classes are over we go home and sit on our computers and proceed to fume

about university issues, so the Internet is where we should focus on engagement.

The Student Organized Voter Access Committee’s new Organized Voter Access Link program is a great medium for such scattered action. OVAL is an online tool for giving students access to campus issues, allowing students to login with their UCSD account information and vote (anonymously) on resolutions that A.S. Council will be reviewing. It’s a great way of engaging with the students who would never step foot in a town hall, let alone a council meeting.

Perhaps we could curb the poor town hall turnout by streaming the events online and accepting questions through mediums like OVAL or even Facebook and Twitter.

While there’s still no substitute for the impact a large group of students can make, we must get student input in the most efficient, encouraging way possible.

Editorial Board Arielle Sallai

Editor In Chief

Ren Ebel Madeline Mann

Managing Editors

Hilary Lee Opinion Editor

Zev Hurwitz News Editor

The UCSD Guardian is published twice a week at the University of California at San Diego. Contents © 2012. Views expressed herein represent the majority vote of the editorial board and are not necessarily those of the UC Board of Regents, the ASUCSD or the members of the Guardian staff.

estled among the ice hockey highlights and Russell Peters clips that populate my YouTube history are upwards of 70 Harlem Shake videos. I’m not the only one. In a mere 13 days, the Harlem Shake phenomenon took the world by storm, gaining over 175 million views. Yet the attraction doesn’t seem to be the neon tights, the cries of “con los terroristas” or even the snarling lion.

Millions of people flocked to the Internet to watch it simply because others had, too.

Nineteenth-century psychologist Gustave Le Bon chalked up instances such as these to the idea of “mob mentality,” a natural inclination to follow one’s peers in making decisions. Whether this is buying the same MacBook as everyone else in the lecture hall, suffering through “Gangnam Style” or watching the Super Bowl despite your hatred of football, we are basically a bunch of trend-followers at heart.

But why is this societal compliance so attractive? Self-described nonconformists would attribute it to tired “1984” references and the idea of “doublethink,” in which external factors change our minds for us.

We are not, however, living in an enforced Orwellian world. University of London researchers credit mob mentality to a primal instinct originally developed to avoid predation.

The experiment involved a flock of sheep being chased by a potential predator, such as a border collie.

Every sheep made a beeline for the center of the pack, shielding itself from the predator and, so to speak, fitting in with the crowd. While this may seem a far cry from the urge to partake in YouTube trends, the concept is still the same. It’s just like in elementary school, when nobody wanted to be that one loser without a JanSport backpack. While there are some people who fly the flag of eccentricity in a concerted attempt to stand out, humans are, by and large, rather obsessed with being at the center of the pack.

Unfortunately, the effects of mob mentality don’t stop at minor things like school supplies. Investigations of riots in Los Angeles, Vancouver and London showed that a good proportion of the felons went about smashing windows and grabbing TVs merely because their peers did. Much as the sheep expects to be shielded from the dog by the rest of the herd, rioters assume that their misdeeds will be overlooked because of the sheer number of other criminals.

Advertising agencies also manipulate our desire to fit in.

Whether through images of children enthralled by Nerf guns or ads with archetypal soccer moms and “parent-approved” minivans, Madison Avenue’s marketing wizards target this mob mentality with great success, inducing us to purchase goods that our peers have already endorsed.

So before watching the next viral video or buying the iPhone 6, think twice about what makes you want it and whether you want to be at the center of the pack. After all, who wants to be a sheep? Maybe you should just wear a propeller hat.

You’ll stand out.

Arts & TV to Do | Living | film | Music | Things | film | Music | Things Arts || Food Food&&Drink Drink| Living & TV to Do

Weekend Arts &Entertainment Entertainment Editor: Arts & & Entertainment Editor:entertainment@ucsdguardian.org Ren Ebel Ebel •• entertainment@ucsdguardian.org entertainment@ucsdguardian.org Editor: Ren LifestyleLifestyle Editor: lifestyle@ucsdguardian.org • Laira Martin Martin • lifestyle@ucsdguardian.org lifestyle@ucsdguardian.org Lifestyle Editor: Laira

San Diego’s Finest Farmers Markets

Editorial Assistant

BY Jean Lee

UTC Certified Farmers Market

The UTC Farmers Market is smaller than most, but don’t let that deceive you. It’s still larger than ours on campus, and although it hosts some of the same vendors, many others make the drive worth your while.

Held every Thursday from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., it’s perfect for picking up ingredients for cooking a fresh dinner or, even more conveniently, picking up a meal from the numerous food vendors. Produce stands make it easy to find fresh seasonal picks, and a variety of food vendors will satisfy most palettes. A crowd favorite is Poppa’s Fresh Fish Company, whose fish is fresh, never frozen and is locally sourced. Check out their $5 tub of shrimp ceviche that’s made on-site and their happy hour special from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m., when freshly shucked oysters are sold for only $1.25.

Craving a fish taco fix? Try Casanova Fish Tacos, served grilled or fried for $7 with chips. For those who want something more exotic, Egyptian Oasis makes gyros and falafel, and there is also an Indian food booth that sells a variety of curries. For those who like their meals juiced, GreenFix Organic Smoothie can blend together uber-healthy ingredients, like greens, fruit, apple juice and flax seed. No meal is complete without dessert, and Cakey Pops whips up classics, like red velvet, as well as flavors as unusual as green tea.

Check out the unique subscription program provided by Community Supported Agriculture, Location: with which subscribers can get a prepackaged UTC Westfield Shopping Plaza, box of fresh, seasonal produce every week from 9001 Genesee Ave, the UTC Farmers Market staff farms. For $15 per San Diego, CA 92122 week, a box feeds two to three people, whereas a Hours: Thursdays 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., $25-per-week box feeds four to six. Although it’s a rain or shine 12-week commitment with a $30 down payment, the produce is organic, and the money supports local farmers.

If you want to get a sense of the people and culture of La Jolla, the La Jolla Open Aire Market — otherwise known as the La Jolla Farmer’s Market — is a must-visit. Every Sunday morning, the upper playground at La Jolla Elementary School is transformed into a colorful, friendly and wholesome farmer’s market. In the middle of downtown La Jolla, San Diegans and visitors can enjoy their weekend mornings with fun and flavor.

La Jolla Open Aire Market is a decent-sized farmers market that The Little Italy “Mercato” in downtown San Diego is a is smaller than the Little Italy Mercato but larger than the farmers hidden weekend gem. Every Saturday morning from 8 a.m. market at UTC. Akin to a miniature street fair, nearly 130 vendors to 2 p.m., over 150 booths line Date Street from Kettner participate to provide shoppers with fresh, locally grown produce, Boulevard to Front Street with the finest produce, cheese, diverse food court for lunch, interesting and creative artisans, live meat, plants and homemade goods, in addition to jewelry, music and handcrafted gifts. antiques and live musical performances. The Mercato is a lot Many vegetables are in season right now — strawberries and like other farmers markets in San Diego, but there’s sometangerines are especially great at this time of the year. If you are thing to be said about getting out of La Jolla and seeing a determined and patient enough, join the crowds making a beeline new version of an old favorite activity. for the savory crepes at Crepes Up and the sweet cookies at The The organizers of the farmer’s market stay true to the Cravory to make your tummy happy while you walk around the historically colorful neighborhood of Little Italy by adding market. Just in case you’re wandering around town with a pup, be some culture to an otherwise normal Saturday for attendees. forewarned: Dogs are not permitted in the market.

The Mercato offers a number of artisan foods and produce Here are a few tips to get the best out of your Sunday mornthat are incredibly fresh and ideal for same-day cooking for a ing: Go before 10 a.m. not only to beat the crowd, but also to Sunday brunch or dinner. get the best items before vendors run out. Hunt around for betAlthough Little Italy is a bit out of the way for UCSD stuter deals on organic produce and enter to win a $75 gift card to dents, the MTS Route 30 bus travels directly from La Jolla Girard Avenue Collection (no purchase is needed). “Valet” your to downtown San Diego, which makes the trip easy and cuts dogs over to Girard Street, where there’s a great dog sitter; do not out the hassle of finding parking. The Mercato makes for valet park your car for $5 — park on Herschel Avenue or Pearl a nice change of pace from local farmers markets, like the Street for free instead.

UTC Farmers Market or the La Jolla Open Aire Market. The La Jolla Open Aire Market is different than other farmers marMercato began operating in June 2008 and today attracts kets in that it’s part of the fundraising group Friends of La Jolla upwards of 3,500 Elementary, Inc., which means that all proceeds benefit the children Location: attendees each week, of La Jolla Elementary School.

580 W Date St. (between making it one of the Columbia Street and India Street), most popular farmers Location: San Diego, CA 92101 markets in San Diego Location: 7335 Girard Avenue, La Jolla, CA 92037 Hours: Saturdays 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

County.

Hours: Sundays 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., rain or shine

The weekly on-campus farmers market can be a little monotonous at times, but don’t fret. San Diego has more farmers markets than one could imagine. The Guardian chose the top three.

BY ashley kwon

Associate Lifestyle Editor

La Jolla Open Aire Market

BY laira martin

lifestyle editor

LittlE Italy Farmers Market

caffeine fiend

Pannikin Coffee & Tea

BY Adrienne Foley

I

Staff writer

f you are an early bird and enjoy the outdoors, then a good cup of coffee is only a 10-minute drive to downtown La Jolla, where Pannikin Coffee and Tea welcomes you.

Established in 1968, Pannikin’s history is reflected by its run-down interior. Gloomy walls are decorated with coffee-themed posters and odd, mismatched pieces of artwork.

Seating choices include multicolored worn-in sofa benches, rustic wooden chairs by the window and small tables and chairs strewn about. However, seating is limited due to the shop’s small size.

The interior is quite small and can feel cramped at times, but the real space to sit at Pannikin is outside

on the large patio and deck, where guests can soak up the San Diego sunshine. Their outdoor seating wraps around the side of the building, providing ample space to enjoy a cup of Pannikin’s signature blend, a local favorite, which is a medley of beans from four different continents.

Although it’s run-down, Pannikin is always filled with La Jolla locals and regulars who are greeted by the friendly staff. Service is efficient and helpful. The chalk-written menu may be difficult to read, but it’s filled with tons of options, including vegetarian and vegan items. However, the real food to focus on is the selection of pastries, baked fresh every day. Try the chocolate-chip muffin ($2) or any of the scones and have it heated up on the spot. Pair your pas-

Hours: Mon. - Fri. 6 a.m. - 7 p.m.

Sat. - Sun. 6:30 a.m. - 7 p.m.

7467 Girard Ave. 92037

try with a stellar espresso drink, such as the Vietnamese Coffee ($3.75) or a classic Americano ($2), and you won’t be disappointed.

Studying is easy with the free Wi-Fi, which is accessible both inside and outside. Bring your laptop fully charged, though, because the number of outlets is limited. Expect light music and background noise from the chatty employees and customers. Do

not plan on spreading out all of your study materials, since you’re bound to be fairly cozy with your neighbor.

With closing time at 7 p.m., early birds and those who prefer to study outdoors are the perfect crowd — Pannikin opens at 6 a.m. on weekdays and 6:30 a.m. on weekends.

readers can contact Adrienne Foley

acfoley@ucsd.edu

Viva Las Vegas or Viva Las Vexation? mind the gap

lara budge mia fllorin-sefton

Lifestyle@ucsdguardian.org

V

egas: the epitome of capitalist and consumerist America and the land of dreams — yet no one seems to sleep. While some return from the desert metropolis reminiscing about the best weekend of their lives, others leave completely bankrupt, both financially and morally.

Presidents Day weekend saw us driving through the desert on a Friday night and arriving at the Flamingo Hotel to meet our fellow Guardian journalists. The hotels in Vegas are all microcosms of the city itself: they are simultaneously casinos, restaurants, bars, buffets, clubs, shopping malls, beauty parlours, underwear shops and even a Flamingo zoo and aquarium. Any lucky tourist who goes to Vegas has innumerable opportunities to waste their money as soon as they step into their chosen “hotel” destination.

Despite the Flamingo offering all of the above, our weekend in Vegas largely consisted of aimlessly wandering around all the other hotelcasino-malls that dominate the Strip.

We clearly didn’t have the money to live it up in Vegas properly, but no matter — money just cannot buy style. Vegas will always be tacky, no matter how many thousands of dollars you throw down on the table.

If Vegas were a fashion, it would be diamante rhinestones.

This is not to say we did not have a fabulously “wild” weekend. We even found fame in Vegas: We starred in the very first Vegas Harlem Shake video alongside Elvis, a storm trooper and drunken middle-aged women. As it was the worst Harlem Shake video we have ever seen, we are amazed that 6,444 people have already viewed us awkwardly dancing and hurriedly exiting what we call the Harlem Shambles, which can be hilariously seen if you search “The Harlem Shake (Las Vegas Edition)” on YouTube.

You can also find anyone in Vegas.

What do families with young children do in Vegas? Why are there so many old women gambling alone? Are they there just to drink yard-long alcoholic slushies called “Fat Tuesdays” on the streets day and night? Vegas pretends to offer everything, but all it really provides is multiple ways for people to flippantly spend money in the name of having fun. At one point, we learned that you could even pay a dollar to kick a hobo in the balls as hard as you could. Luckily, no women tried — to think of the damage that one could do with a stripper’s stiletto…

Speaking of strippers, we don’t want to preach, but the objectification of women in Vegas was appalling.

Silicone breasts graced billboards, vans and podiums and were also distributed all over the ground in the form of flyers. You can’t walk down the Strip without having a call-girl “be here in 20 minutes” pamphlet flicked in your face.

We left masking our love for See mind the gap, page 7

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Let Sleeping Dogs Lie and Bad TV Shows Die tv uber alles

Rusteen Honardoost rhonardo@ucsd.edu

S

eth MacFarlane hosted the Oscars this year, and it represents the latest area of conquest for the creator of the famously resurrected cartoon “Family Guy.” There was a time when “Family Guy” could have become a forgotten series like any other, but instead, it was one of the few to make it back. That the show’s quality has declined significantly following its return, and that it has simultaneously led to the insufferable domination of MacFarlane on television, in theaters and now at the Oscars begs the important question: Was it worth it to bring “Family Guy,” — or any show, for that matter — back from the dead?

Some of the greatest TV shows were canceled before they could finish their story. Whether they were too ambitious or too anti-commercial, they never stood a chance in the wasteland of network TV. What these shows share is a rabid fan base desperately begging for remakes, revivals and reunions — anything to get them back in the same room as the characters they love so deeply.

But doing so is often a mixed bag, because after a great deal of time, you might find that you and the characters have changed since you last saw each other.

“Community” has been on hiatus for longer than its new 13-episode season is going to air, only returning three weeks ago without its beloved creator Dan Harmon or half of his writing staff. What’s more problematic is that the only thing consistent in this new season is that it’s extraordinarily disappointing. The characters are hollow now, like a finely crafted marionette puppets that are being operated by children. Even episodes that feature the gem of a good idea are so mangled in their execution that it’s hardly an exaggeration to say that if this new season accomplishes anything, it will be to destroy the good will and critical acclaim the show has spent years nurturing.

Yes, “Family Guy” came back as a zombie, and “Community” returned without its brains, but it would be disingenuous to say that a proper resurrection is impossible.

The most notable example is Joss Whedon’s “Firefly,” which, after tons of protests, was able to spawn a feature-length movie that succeeded in pleasing its fans while staying true to the spirit of the show. When a show returns from the dead, its creators usually feel as though they are talking with only the uber-elite fans who clamored for its return.

Whedon realized that playing to your fans’ expectations only leads to disappointment. The answer, then, is to either re-craft your series in order to come to a new conclusion or to stay dead and focus your creative energies on other projects that can draw in your fans.

Rather than by restaging a whole new season at William McKinley High School, Judd Apatow’s “Freaks and Geeks” has managed to return from the dead through spiritual successors like Apatow’s collegiate “Undeclared” and Lena Dunham’s post-grad “Girls.” Instead of attempting to bring back the magic of an old series, the spirit of a show can live on in other series’ that are willing to carry on that same independent spirit. This approach is inherently more difficult, because See TV UBER ALLES, page 7

Illustration by Elyse Yang /Guardian

“Oz” Prequel Cuts Musical, Keeps Emerald City, But Adds Wizard Love Story ▶ Oz, from page 1

lands in Oz after a Kansas tornado whips up his hot air balloon. Believed to be Oz’s saving grace, Oscar is quick to hustle his charm, unaware that the three women he’s swindling are more than just Kansas peasants.

“His character starts off as a flawed man,” Franco said. “[Oscar] is selfish, a bit of a womanizer, he thinks that happiness will come from financial success and fame. It blinds him to the love of the people around him. And I saw that the movie would not just be a physical journey through a mystical land, but it would also involve an inner journey of the character — that he would possibly [become] a better person.”

This element of corruption compared to the sing-songy skipping of the 1939 film drew Franco, who tends to stay away from one-dimensional caricatures, to the role.

“Their emissary into the world [of Oz] was not a male version of Dorothy, fortunately,” he said. “They weren’t just gonna redo it with an innocent young person walking through Oz- instead, my character was stumbling through Oz and because he’s pretending to be something he’s not, he gets into a lot of awkward situations. That comedic edge would help distinguish this version from other versions.”

Aside from combining the Wizard’s humorous and audacious characteristics, Franco established Oscar’s credibility as a magician, training with Las Vegas magician Lance Burton.

“I needed to be able to do those tricks and hold myself on stage like a magician in a convincing way,” Franco said. “[Lance] taught me how to make it look like I’m having people levitate and make it look like they’re evaporating in front of everyone’s eyes — it was great.”

Incorporating this creative integrity was integral to Raimi’s prequel. He envisioned his world, borrowed from Baum’s 14 novels, with minute attention to detail. From the opalescence of Glinda’s kingdom and her corresponding bubbles to the lesser-known creatures of Oz (i.e. the porcelain China Girl from China Town), Raimi didn’t skimp on the background. The film’s score, composed by “SpiderMan” collaborator Danny Elfman, was only an enhancement to the fantasy.

“He connected the dots,” Raimi said. “The Wizard in Kansas has a love story with a girl named Annie, played by Michelle Williams, and this is a love that’s right before the Wizard, if only he would recognize it. Danny Elfman creates a love theme that he’s decided to play with Annie and the Wizard and it’s an incomplete fragile broken thing. But later when the Wizard meets Glinda and their love story blossoms, you’ll hear that theme

in all of its orchestrated fullness. He’s basically the emotion of the picture.”

Despite the fantastical aspects and special effects abound in this film, that emotion is what ties it all together. At its core, after the monkeys and munchkins and brick roads are thrown aside, “Oz the Great and Powerful” is just a fable filled with the same magic and belief that “The Wizard of Oz” bequeathed to us over 70 years ago.

“The best thing that stories do for us is reverberate with truth — they show us [that] there is a way to be happy without material goods, without the pride, without sense of self being all dominating,” Raimi said. “We learn from the Wizard that all of us are broken, lonely individuals. [But] we have within us the thing to make us complete, if only we recognize it.”

readers can contact Jacey aldredge jaldredge@ucsd.edu

lifestyle HAVE A DRINK ON US

WHITE GUMMY BEAR The Guardian asked bartender Shanna Brazil from Voyeur nightclub in the Gaslamp Quarter to recommend a popular cocktail. This was her choice.

This sweet gummy experience features a variety of fruit-flavored liquors and is one of the most popular drinks among female customers.

Ingredients 1 oz. Stolichnaya raspberry vodka 1 oz. peach schnapps 1 oz. sweet-and-sour mix Splash of lemon-lime soda Pour the raspberry vodka and peach schnapps into a glass with ice. Fill it with equal parts sweet-andsour mix and lemon-lime soda. Then garnish with a cherry on top.

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site seen

Ocean Beach Kite Festival

BY Shelby Newallis

T

Staff writer

his year’s kite festival takes the expression, “Go fly a kite” to a new level, with kite stunts, carnival rides and kite-decorating competitions. If you think you might want to try out your kite-making abilities at this free, beloved local tradition, come out this Saturday, March 2, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Dusty Rhodes Park in Ocean Beach.

Kite flying is not the only reason that this 65-year-old tradition has been put on by the Kiwanis Club of Ocean Beach. Since the festival originated in 1948, there has been an emphasis on community and a promise of a good time — something that San Diego locals have grown to love.

Each year, hundreds of people come out to enjoy the live music, craft fair and creative kite designs.

The Ocean Beach Kiwanis Kite Festival is believed to be one of the

oldest yet still successful kite festivals in the country. At the event, participants will learn how to make and fly a unique, personalized kite, and awards will be given to the most impressive creations. Kite making starts at 9 a.m. and goes until 12 p.m., and judging starts at 1 p.m. More recently, the event chairs have added carnival rides, a live band, a craft fair and all sorts of food and drink options to appeal to all

ages. Kiwanis club members and event chairs, Melanie and Jim Nickel, are looking forward to the new additions to this year’s event.

“This year, we are expanding it again, with demonstrations and lessons by professional and skilled amateur kite fliers from all over Southern California. It should be pretty spectacular,” Nickel said.

UCSD students are encouraged to

come out and enjoy this year’s festivities or to volunteer to help teach kids how to make kites.

“We always have a need for volunteers, and college students are ideal for teaching the kids how to make their kites. We will teach the volunteers, of course,” Nickel said.

readers can contact Shelby Newallis

snewalli@ucsd.edu

City of Sin is the City of Shitshows

Some Reawakened TV Shows Should’ve Stayed in the Ground

▶ Mind the gap from page 5

you don’t have the ability to coast on the good will of your original series’ characters; however, that itself is a double-edged sword of expectations. Crafting a new series can be more rewarding because it allows for new explorations of similar topics through new characters.

The problem with supposedly “new” story lines of once-canceled series is that they can often feel like retreats of territory from previous episodes. Ever since “Futurama” re-premiered on Comedy Central, it’s survived by using its characters in situations and settings that are

Vegas through use of heavy irony and sarcasm. Despite our European superiority complex, we admit that we reveled in the Vegas vibes.

Whether this was by hugging strangers, looking at strippers or watching the night unfold from the Flamingo rooftop, we embraced it all. Vegas is terribly unique. Nowhere else is as fake, flashy and flamboyant. You can pay hundreds to see a show in Vegas, but why bother? The real spectacle worth seeing is the human circus that is Vegas itself.

▶ TV UBER ALLES from page 6

directly lifted and repurposed from the original series. And when they do try to branch off to do something new, it’s in such a bizarre fashion that it feels out of place, especially when compared to the more restrained original episodes.

“Futurama” became famous among nerds because it told the kinds of bizarrely interesting stories of a surprisingly mundane future.

Now, it feels like the sort of psychedelic fan fiction written by people who wish they could be in the future themselves.

The king of all revival shows, “Arrested Development,” is returning in May on Netflix, after spend-

ing several years as the rallying cry of television revivalists — both fans and the creators themselves. But there’s a specter hanging over the show: exceedingly high expectations and almost inevitable disappointment. If the show manages to succeed, it will start a new wave of television revivals on Netflix.

Anything and everything will be up for grabs, whether it’s the little-loved “Terra Nova” or some cartoon from the ’90s you kinda remember watching once. If it fails, what will happen to other dead shows is uncertain. The damage done to the credibility of the series, however, will be much clearer.

Take advantage of UC San Diego Extension’s UCSD Student Grant Program

(formerly known as Complimentary Enrollment)

Spring Quarter 2013 Dates: March 4 - 8, 2013 (First-come, first-served, while vouchers last.)

Undergrads - To pick up your vouchers, have your student ID card and go to Extension Student Services Center, Building C.

Graduate and medical students - please contact OGSR and the School of Medicine for their complimentary vouchers.

Choose from these courses and more. Visit extension.ucsd.edu for a complete listing.

ARTS * Drawing: Focus on Perception * Intermediate Piano * Photography: Images and Techniques * Improv 101 * FOREIGN LANGUAGES * Spanish to English Translation * Portuguese for Communication I * HUMANITIES & WRITING * Creative Writing I * Copyediting I * Modern American Poetry * DIGITAL ARTS

* Digital Media * Music Video Production Workshop * Dreamweaver I * BUSINESS * Project Management Essentials * Resume Building * Financial Decision Making * Global Marketing * PUBLIC SERVICE & SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY * Introduction to Sustainability * Energy Management Solutions * Corporate Social Responsibility

* LIFE SCIENCES * Cell and Molecular Biology * Biostatistics * Drug Metabolism * INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY * Web Publishing I * Concepts in Healthcare IT * Mobile Device Programming * HEALTHCARE, BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES * Basic Medical Coding * Medical Terminology * The Physiology of Exercise *

Call (858) 534-3400 or visit Extension Student Services, Building C *Some restrictions apply.

extension.ucsd.edu

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Most Underrated

"Moonrise kingdom"

The 11th Annual

Dieter Joubert Staff Writer

Most Awkward Movie to See with your dad

antiOSCARS The "Thank God, It's Finally over" Award

The "Twilight" Saga

"For a good time, call..."

There was once a time, long ago in history, when vampires were feared, not fantasized. A time when they still dwelled in the horror genre among the likes of Dracula and Nosferatu and not in the romance section as glittery outlets for teenage angst and lust. That was before the great beast known as “Twilight” arose and laid waste to the American pop-culture landscape.

This terrible creation came from the mind of a sexually frustrated Mormon housewife and proceeded to spread its terrible influence upon the youth, convincing teens that repeatedly committing suicide and then having your insides ripped apart by a demon fetus following coitus with a living corpse is what every teenage girl should aspire to do. Like parachute pants and pet rocks, “The Twilight Saga” is doomed to be the trendy faux pas of the century, one we will hopelessly try to justify to the children of the future, who will look back and ask, “What were they thinking?”

Lauren Craig Staff Writer

In some ways, “Moonrise Kingdom” is the typical Wes Anderson film, featuring quirky characters who take their peculiar interests with total seriousness, a bright color palette and camera perspectives that constrain the characters, making them look like playthings scuttling around inside a dollhouse.

If this perfected formula has become boring to the average viewer, Anderson inflicts the deliberate theatricality of “Moonrise Kingdom” with whimsy and delight to revitalize his branch of magical realism. While “The Darjeeling Limited” may have felt too uncaring and prosaic, we are immediately sympathetic to Sam’s sense of isolation on his island home and spellbound as he runs away with his newfound romantic interest, Suzy.

“Moonrise Kingdom” revolves around this ecstatic engagement of young love. But the film never succumbs to melodrama or rom-com cheesiness. Instead of trying to dwarf our own experiences of love and isolation, Anderson presents a blueprint for how we remember both the conviction and awkwardness of childhood romance.

But it’s not obsessed with serious inquiry. With plenty of laughs (and Bill Murray to boot), “Moonrise” is the year’s most underrated film, full of wit, whimsy and understated poignancy.

biggest Fuck You to the Man

"Seven Psychopaths" Raquel Calderon Staff Writer

“Seven Psychopaths” defies conventional categorization. In fact, Martin McDonagh’s screenplay deliberately seeks out overdone movie tropes and violently, wonderfully murders them on screen. With interracial couples, gratuitous violence, a total lack of heroism and a protagonist overshadowed by his quirky, manic friend, “Seven Psychopaths” is as unpredictable as it is rousingly hilarious. Comedy comes paired with liberal use of blood and dares us to laugh at the sick and profane (and know we will).

What’s more, emotional and thought-provoking moments penetrate our core and resound through our bones, marrow, muscle and skin. These moments forcibly hold up a mirror to the viewer without condemning what is reflected. If “Seven Psychopaths” isn’t Oscar-worthy, who cares? If it isn’t a work of genius, it is a cult classic to all those who know that just a little insanity can go a long way. If not a cult classic, the film is a display of filmmaking that grabs at its scattered elements and arranges them into beautiful disorder. And if it is still not that, “Seven Psychopaths” is at least something different.

Nick yang Staff Writer

If a girl wants quality father-daughter bonding time at the theater, “For a Good Time, Call…” is the worst possible selection. Yes, it is well known that the movie revolves entirely around two women running a phone sex line. However, nothing screams, “This is awkward!” like a film consisting of more raunchy noises than lines of dialogue. The girls start off as sworn enemies but magically become the best of friends as they quickly bond through the power of the pink telephone.

The characters do not face enough challenges to keep the movie interesting, leaving the audience with blank stares. The film turns into a dreadfully painful hot mess of orgies, tight dresses, scandalous underwear and matching purses. And aren’t phone sex lines a little dated with all the new technology around these days?

Watching this film is definitely not a good time — but rather an extremely terrible and uncomfortable one.

Most Bewildering Carnage

Kyle Somers Staff Writer

"Prometheus"

“Prometheus” was the widely hyped, Ridley Scott-directed, suspense-packed thriller that dominated the box office in early June, but what really stuck out about the movie was watching the main protagonist abort an alien fetus. Any hope of finishing popcorn or rounding second base with a date ended when the medical machine pulled a writhing squid-thing out of Noomi Rapace’s abdomen before surgically stapling her skin shut. Many other scenes throughout the movie are equally disturbing. In the least forgettable sci-fi death of the last year, one of the crew members decides to pet a phallic-looking alien snake-thing that he finds in a dark cave.

Sounds like a good idea. Predictably, he dies a horrible death, letting out agonizing screams as the creature rips through his spacesuit, burrows under his skin and squirms through his body and out of his face. Given that the first movie in the “Alien” franchise famously had an alien erupt out of a man’s chest during a dinner scene, it’s good to see that Ridley Scott is back to doing what he does best.

Worst Movie

ren ebel Managing Editor

"Cloud Atlas"

There’s a false sense of consolatory praise indebted to the filmmakers and actors involved with the monolithic disaster that was “Cloud Atlas.” Yes, it was bold to attempt an adaptation of David Mitchell’s hyper-complex, award-winning novel. But who honestly thought that the un-filmable parallel story arcs, calibrated intertwining motifs and subtle philosophical underpinnings would best be left in the hands of modern cinema’s least delicate directors? The same people who strapped Keanu Reeves to a wire-fighting harness and surrounded him with a couple hundred high-speed cameras did. If you’re looking for a way to confuse the hell out of your parents, there are plenty of other options that don’t involve several hours of Tom Hanks speaking in an invented pidgin dialect while sporting a tattered bathrobe.

Worst Use of Liam Neeson

Nathan Cook Staff Writer

"Battleship" / "Taken 2" / "Wrath of the titans"

We’re all big fans of Liam Neeson here at the Guardian. Who wouldn’t be? The man’s been a Jedi, lion Jesus and Zeus himself. Unfortunately, 2012 was not the best year for our favorite soft-spoken badass — out of the five movies he was in, only two (“The Grey” and “The Dark Knight Rises”) received positive reviews from critics. The rest — “Wrath of the Titans,” “Battleship” and “Taken 2,” were all varying degrees of bad. The sequel to “Taken” mostly relegates Neeson to looking angry while running around yelling action lines and killing faceless bad guys. Even though he’s the focus of the film, and his acting remains committed, the lines he says are the worst kind of banal. “Wrath” is a slightly better flick, even though Neeson is kept on the bench for most of the movie. The film that combines both of these poor elements into one, however, is “Battleship.”

The film is a masterwork of under-using your best actor. Neeson has 15 lines in the film — they’ve been counted. Mostly, he’s a caricature that spends the film on the sidelines waiting for the main character to do his job. It’s frustrating to see talent wasted like that, and the film is just so incredibly bland that there’s no doubt it deserves the Worst Use of Liam Neeson Award. Heck, make a movie entirely about his character in “Battleship,” and it would have been a better film. “Liam Neeson: Bland Alien Hunter.” Maybe we’d watch that.

album review

album review

Wondrous bughouse by youth lagoon

Anxiety

by Autre ne veut

release Date March 5

release Date February 25

8/10

8/10

Conceptual R&B auteur juggles the accessible and the grotesque.

Look into the void with one of San Diego’s most promising bands.

B

O

ased on pre-release single “Counting,” you’d be forgiven for expecting something entirely different from “Anxiety,” the second album by Brooklyn songwriter Arthur Ashin under his Autre Ne Veut project. The song is all icy minimalism: crisp Art of Noise vocal synths and stuttering hi-hats underlining Ashin’s desperate cries of “I’m counting on the idea / that you’ll stay in our life.”

Perhaps the most foretelling aspect of the song, however, is the grotesque swathes of noisy guitar and saxophone that littered the transitions between its verses and choruses. Indeed, the primary relationship in “Anxiety” is between beauty and unrestrained, glorious ugliness. The soothing, earworm of the chorus on “Ego Free Sex Free,” for example, is perpetually contrasted with the tinny, top-40 trance stabs that populate most of the song. Likewise, the ‘N Sync-baiting melody of “Warning” is paired with foreboding operatic vocal samples and

a frustrating level of vocal echoing. Ashin has made clear the fact that his goal on “Anxiety” was to examine the tension surrounding contemporary conceptions of the body, and on tracks like the aforementioned “Ego Free Sex Free,” this mission is made delightfully explicit.

For all its difficult sonic adornments and its highbrow concept, though, “Anxiety” is a remarkably fun album to listen to. Look at closing track “World War,” which floats in a new-age aether of synthesizer atmosphere before coalescing into a smooth, drummachine led mantra of “No way, no way, no way / you’re gonna be my baby.”

In a musical climate overpopulated by experimental-R&B crossover, Autre Ne Veut’s ability to balance intriguing commentary with aurally pleasing structures is both notable and refreshing.

- Andrew Whitworth Associate A&E Editor

n “Wondrous Bughouse,” the follow-up to the much-lauded 2011 debut “The Year of Hibernation,” Youth Lagoon’s Trevor Powers manages to pull off the difficult feat of discussing issues like mortality and psychological disorders while sacrificing none of the sugarsweet pop histrionics on which he originally made his name.

Given that “bughouse” refers to an old euphemism for an insane asylum, the album’s title fits its content nicely. Starting with a cluttered introduction called “Through the Mind and Back,” “Wondrous Bughouse” really hits its stride with its second track, “Mute,” on which bright synthesizer melodies, fuzzy atmospherics, sampled sounds and an upbeat drum track vie for the listener’s attention. Powers uses this palette throughout the album to great effect, changing and modifying the instruments he works with in such a way that the album rarely sounds monotonous, instead moving with a smooth continuity.

The album’s production as a whole is mar-

velous. Ranging from spacey atmospheric ballads like “Daisyphobia” to sunny, college radiofriendly pop anthems like “Dropla” and “Attic Doctor,” the album seems equally influenced by the psychedelic innovations of late-period Beatles records and the lethargic stride of recent chillwave.

Though lyrics are fairly sparse throughout the album, Powers’ lyrical content tends to be fascinatingly cryptic. On album highlight “Sleep Paralysis,” he throws out metaphysical accusations such as “You have made a grave mistake/ and sleep paralysis is showing me what it really is.” A lot of the album’s lyrics revolve around the ways in which mental patients perceive reality and mortality. This recently acquired lyrical frankness, combined with the album’s shimmering production and innovative arrangements, proves that Youth Lagoon is completely deserving of the big-name status he’s recently garnered.

- Kyle Somers Staff Writer

OPINION

halcyon days By Christie Yi

letter to the editor

Youth Need Intervention to Stop Dating Violence

High Turnover Due to Inability to Offer Competitive Salaries ▶ Turnover, from page 4

ing up valuable time that could have been devoted to furthering research or developing new projects.

One of UCSD’s main concerns is that other universities are taking away its administrators. After spring quarter, Rue will be leaving UCSD for Wake Forest University, which offered her an attractive package to serve as vice president for campus life. Similarly, Dr. Frieder Seible, dean of the Jacobs School of Engineering since 2003, will be leaving UCSD for Monash University.

Both made great progress during their terms, but the changes they have been working on will be cut short by their leaving. This is especially counterintuitive to Rue’s work

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with the new university-wide strategic planning process. According to a statement released by Khosla, Rue played an important role in enacting the new student affairs strategic planning process, as well as pushing for strategic budget reductions and raising over $6 million in scholarships and $18 million for student affairs overall. Rue will still be overseeing the strategic planning process until the end of her term, but someone else will have to pick up where she leaves off in a few months.

This high turnover rate mainly stems from UCSD offering unappealing compensation packages to administrators, but UCSD cannot afford to increase administrator pay. Exiting UC President Mark Yudof announced Feb. 19 that no

UC employees would see salary increases for the 2012–2013 year.

The university operates on federal and state grants, student fees and private donations. If student fees are increased further to raise administrator salaries, thousands of students may protest. A solution doesn’t seem clear, but administration can look to feasible options, such as soliciting more private donations or hiring younger faces who may not seem as good on paper but have fresh ideas and will be able to stay longer for less handsome pay.

The adage goes: “Out with the old, in with the new,” but UCSD needs to keep more of the old. If it fails to keep all of its working parts on payroll, it may start slipping in the ranks in the future.

Dear Editor, I’m sure you know that February is a month associated with love and romance, but did you know that it is also the National Teen Dating Awareness and Prevention Month?

This is because one in three teens in the U.S. is a victim of physical, sexual or emotional abuse, and young women ages 16 to 24 are the most at risk of intimate partner violence, at a rate three times the national average.

Clearly, these statistics are startling, and promoting awareness to young people is key to understanding the complexity of dating violence, but prevention is a further step forward toward breaking the cycle of violence. The media doesn’t help in the promotion of healthy relationships, as we are constantly bombarded with skewed images of what a loving relationship is. Consequently, today’s youth are engulfed in unhealthy and violent relationships that perpetuate the cycle of violence. If we do not intervene now, our youth are at heightened risk of becoming abusers and inflicting pain on others as a way to resolve their own pain. This is a sick cycle, and as social workers, we see the need to help these youth by giving them the support and tools

necessary to empower them to step out of the cycle. We need to take action to change this vicious cycle promoted by our culture by first promoting awareness of healthy versus unhealthy relationships at schools, and second implementing more effective laws that give consequences to juvenile abusers. For example, law enforcement should mandate youth abusers to participate in rehabilitative workshops that teach about healthy communication and boundaries within relationships and the consequences. The mandated program should also include community service relevant to teaching youth offenders empathy. If we do not react, we will continue passive patterns that embrace violence and fail to take a stand for true love. Is this the type of future we want for our children and society? As caring citizens, we need to work together to push against the status quo that encourages silence about personal issues and advocate for effective policy reform that will cultivate a healthier community.

— Jennifer Allen Cynthia Lopez Herrera Annie Ng California State University, Long Beach School of Social Work Master’s students

Guardian Visit Our Website at www. ucsdguardian.org

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SPORTS

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Men’s and Women’s Basketball to Play Sonoma State and San Francisco State

Alwin szeto /Guardian file

▶ BASKETBALL, from page 12

their winning streak and capture the conference lead.

While the women need the victory for seeding purposes, the men’s basketball team desperately needs its last two games to keep its playoff hopes alive. As it currently stands, UCSD is 9–11 in the conference and sits in seventh place. Only the top eight teams have spots at the CCAA playoffs, which means UCSD has not yet clinched a spot.

The men’s team will have an opportunity to give itself a cushion as it plays eighth-seeded team Sonoma State, which currently holds an 8–12 record. UCSD defeated Sonoma State comfortably 85–65 in its last meeting. The Tritons did not have the same success against San

Francisco State in their last matchup, losing 55–70 in San Francisco.

UCSD holds a tiebreaker over its conference opponent Humboldt State, which currently sits in the number nine spot in the standings.

The Triton women will host the first round of the playoffs on March 5, and if they can lock up the No. 1 seed, they will play the eighth seed, up for grabs between San Francisco State and Sonoma State.

The men will have to play their first round on the road, which will either be against second-seed Cal State San Bernardino if the Tritons are able to maintain the No. 7 seed, or first-seeded Cal Poly Pomona if they fall to the No. 8 seed.

readers can contact MATT SMITH m7smith@ucsd.edu

Tritons Split Four-Game Series With Sonoma, to Face Monterey This Week

TED STU OCIA DE S AS

applications due

S NT

march 8

ELECTIONS

2013 NOLAN THOMAS /Guardian FILE

▶ SOFTBALL, from page 12

head coach Patti Gerckens relieved the freshman with sophomore Escamilla, who got taken for four runs in the third inning.

Neither team was able to generate any offense for the next four frames, until the Seawolves recorded five runs in the top of the seventh inning.

GAME 4 — UCSD 1, Sonoma State 0 Junior right-hander Jennifer Manuel — recently removed from the disabled list — went eight

innings against the Seawolves, giving up just two hits. The 1–0 win marks Manuel’s second of the season. The junior has allowed just eight runs in her 22.1 innings pitched, for an ERA of just 1.25.

The Tritons recorded the only run of the game in the bottom of the eighth inning, as redshirt sophomore Taylor Sepulveda doubled to right center, advanced to third on a fielding error and slid home on a throwing error.

readers can contact RACHEL UDA

ruda@ucsd.edu

A.S. is looking for its next Team of SUPERleaders For more information, visit as.ucsd.edu/elections or contact the asgeneral@ucsd.edu.

Apply NOW at as.ucsd.edu/elections.

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SPORTS

contact the editor

RACHEL UDA sports@ucsdguardian.org

follow us @UCSD_sports

BASKETBALL

Jockeying for Position Women have a chance to claim regular season title; men seek to maintain playoff seeding.

BY MATT SMITH

STAFF WRITER

T

he UCSD men’s and women’s basketball regular seasons come to an end this week. Both will play this Thursday, Feb. 28 in a penultimate bout against Sonoma State and then again on Friday, March 1 against San Francisco State. The women kick off play at 5:30 p.m., with the men to follow at 8:30 p.m.

The games will be played at home.

The women’s team is currently tied atop the conference standings with Chico State; each school holds a 16–4 record. Chico State fell in its last game against Cal State Los Angeles, leaving the door open for UCSD to claim the top spot. If UCSD can win its last two games, they will take first place in the conference and head into the tournament as the No. 1 seed.

The Tritons already defeated Chico State twice

photo by alwin szeto

this season, which gives them the tiebreaker and allows them to claim sole possession of first place. If successful, the women’s team will finish the regular season in first for the second consecutive season.

The Tritons have defeated both upcoming opponents before this season. The women beat Sonoma State 62–45 on the road in January.

In a much closer game, they pulled out a 53–51 victory against San Francisco State a day earlier on Jan. 25. UCSD was previously on a nine-game winning streak before it fell to Cal State East Bay, but bounced back in its most recent game and beat Cal State Monterey Bay 56–44. The Tritons will look to extend See bASKETBALL, page 11

2012–2013 UCSD

Athletics All-Academic Team Last Monday, Feb. 25, the UCSD Athletics Department announced its first annual All-Academic Team for the 2012-2013 season.

A total of 20 Tritons were recognized. Each student-athlete will receive a $500 scholarship to go toward tuition. To qualify, the student-athlete must have a cumulative GPA of at least 3.5 and must have participated on the squad for the entire previous season.

Corbin Wirta Baseball MacKenzie McCullough Men’s Basketball Rachel Marty Women’s Basketball Zack Attaran Men’s Crew Michaela Kazek Women’s Crew Ben Rich Men’s Cross Country Melissa Le Roux Women’s Cross Country Alexandra Stanley Women’s Fencing Andisheh Bagheri Men’s Soccer Cassie Callahan Women’s Soccer Luke Calkins Men’s Swimming and Diving Natalie Mouzooni Women’s Swimming and Diving Maxence Dutreix Men’s Tennis Kellie Taylor Women’s Tennis Clint Rosser Men’s Track and Field Natalie Lomayesva Women’s Track and Field Sebastian Brady Men’s Volleyball Lauren Demos Women’s Volleyball Brian Donohoe Men’s Water Polo Andie Nishimi Women’s Water Polo

SOFTBALL

Tritons Have Room for Improvement The UCSD softball team split its first conference series with Sonoma State.

BY RACHEL UDA

Sports editor

Dropping out of the national rankings last weekend after going 1-for-6 at the Division II Leadoff Classic, UCSD split its first conference series against Sonoma State this week at home.

For the past two seasons, the matchup between UCSD and the No. 19 Seawolves has promised the tightest pitching duels in the conference, between 2012 UCSD graduate Camille Gaito and Sonoma ace Samantha Lipperd. Last weekend, Lipperd and company kept the Tritons to just four runs in the fourgame series, while Lipperd allowed just three hits in her two full games.

In contrast, the Tritons did not show much in the way of defense, as sophomores Kayla Hensel, Michelle Escamilla and freshman Alexis Edwards combined to give up 17 runs.

UCSD will now prepare for its first conference road series. The Tritons will travel up to Cal State Monterey Bay this weekend, March

1 and March 2. The Otters are 10–7 after going 1–2 against Cal State East Bay. GAME 1 — Sonoma State 4, UCSD 0 Freshman leadoff hitter Callie Grant was the only Triton to record a hit against the Seawolves in the series opener. Grant notched a double in the bottom of the first but was stranded after the next three Tritons popped up and out.

Sonoma State catcher Kelsi Chinen homered in the top of the second inning to give the Seawolves the early 1–0 lead. Sonoma State kept piling on from there, adding two runs in the fourth inning and one run in the sixth.

GAME 2 — UCSD 3, Sonoma State 2 The Tritons fared far better with Lipperd off the mound, tallying 11 hits against the Otters.

UCSD went down by two runs early and did not manage to get on the board until the fourth inning,

when freshman Amani Proctor — pinch-running for junior Caitlin Brown — was brought around the bases to bring the Tritons to within one point. UCSD picked up its second run in the fifth inning as junior Emily McQuaid doubled to left field and was advanced to third off a sacrifice bunt. McQuaid was brought home by a double by Nicole Spangler — her sixth double of the season.

The Tritons took the lead in the bottom of the seventh off another RBI from Spangler brought McQuaid in to score.

GAME 3 — Sonoma State 11, UCSD 1 UCSD recorded its only run in the bottom of the first inning. Grant — batting leadoff — singled to start, stole second and was brought home from a single by cleanup hitter Brown.

After a solid start by freshman southpaw Edwards, UCSD See SOFTBALL, page 11

beatriz Bajulesos /Guardian file