Daily Herald the Brown
vol. cxliv, no. 111 | Friday, November 20, 2009 | Serving the community daily since 1891
Years in the making, U. unveils supercomputer Substance
By Sydney Ember
Senior Staff Writer
After months of planning, Brown
is set to unveil a new multimillion-
dollar supercomputer today.
The result of a partnership with
IBM to boost the University’s re-
search capacity and visibility, the
high-performance computing clus-
ter will allow researchers from all
disciplines to conduct powerful,
complicated data analyses.
Researchers and faculty have
been seeking an advanced com-
putational system for more than
three years, said Professor of Ap-
plied Mathematics Jan Hesthaven,
who, along with Vice President for
Research Clyde Briant and Vice
President for Computing and In-
formation Services Michael Pickett,
led the initiative to bring the system
to the University.
The system, which will be the
most powerful supercomputer in
Rhode Island and is capable of per-
forming 14 trillion operations per
second, will be open to educational
and research institutions across the
state, Hesthaven said.
“You can’t have a research insti-
Bears claw past Seawolves to second round
By Katie Wood
Assistant Sports Editor
The men’s soccer team barely
slipped by Stony Brook Thursday
night with a 1-0 double overtime
win in the first round of the NCAA
tournament at Stevenson Field.
Sean Rosa ’12 hit the game-win-
ning goal in the 103rd minute, his
first goal since a two-goal perfor-
mance against Princeton on Oct. 10.
The Bears (11-2-5) reach the second
round of the tournament for the first
time since 2007 and will face off with
“Body Sculpt,” one of many fitness classes taught by part-time instructors.
inside
News.....1-4
Ar ts.......5
Editorial....6
Opinion.....7
Today.........8
www.browndailyherald.com
use steady,
poll shows
A new supercomputer at 180 George St. greatly expands the process-
ing power available to Brown researchers on campus.
tution that would like to be at the
top of its class without having this
type of facility,” Hesthaven said.
“Think of it as a necessity rather
than a luxury.”
No. 5 North Carolina (13-2-3) on
Sunday afternoon in Chapel Hill,
N.C.
Brown entered the contest fresh
off a 3-0 win
Stony Brook 0
Brown 1
over Dart-
mouth last
Saturday
and came out with the same offen-
sive intensity against the Seawolves
(6-10-4), tallying a 14-4 shot advan-
tage in the first half. In the 11th and
23rd minutes, Nick Elenz-Martin ’10
received a cross from the left side to
the far post, but could not convert
Kim Perley / Herald
Sports, 3
OH MY!
No Tigers, but the Columbia
Lions match up with the
football Bears Saturday
195 Angell Street, Providence, Rhode Island
centers, including the University
of Rhode Island and the Marine Bi-
ology Laboratory in Woods Hole,
Mass., he said.
“At this time, computers are like
libraries and laboratories,” Hest-
haven said. “It’s not about physics
or engineering or science, but about
research.”
Today’s official ribbon-cutting
ceremony, featuring speeches by
Gov. Donald Carcieri ’65, Mayor
David Cicilline ’83 and IBM’s Vice
President of Technology, Nick Bo-
wen, marks the conclusion of the
years-long effort to streamline com-
putational research at the University
and bring first-rate equipment to the
state, Briant said.
“This is a big step forward for us
at Brown,” Briant said.
‘A vision’
Hesthaven, who will direct the
Nick Sinnott-Armstrong / Herald computational center, said he first
broached the concept of assembling
a computing cluster at Brown three
The supercomputing network, years ago, when he saw a dearth of
located in the Center for Computa- effective computing power. A cen-
tion and Visualization at 180 George trally located, high-performance
St., will provide opportunities to
collaborate with other research continued on page 2
on either attempt. the open at the opposite post and
Due to excellent defensive play drilled the ball into the back of the
on both sides of the field, neither net for the golden goal and his fifth
the Bears nor the Seawolves could
execute any scoring chances. So the
goal of the season, tying him with
Elenz-Martin, Thomas McNamara
game headed into overtime, tied at
0-0 at the end of regulation.
’13 and Austin Mandel ’12 as team
scoring leaders.
After 100 minutes of play, the Paul Grandstrand ’11 kept the
Bears had one more overtime pe- Seawolves off the scoreboard, tally-
riod to settle the game before it came ing five saves on the night, while An-
down to decisive penalty kicks. Jona- thony Rogic equaled Grandstrand’s
than Okafor ’11 beat his defender go- performance with five saves of his
ing down the left sideline and popped own for Stony Brook, but could not
the ball over the defense along the save the most important shot by
goal line. Rosa waited patiently in Rosa.
PE class instructors
sweat it out, part-time
By Jenna Steckel and martial arts classes taught by
Contributing Writer about 40 instructors.
But for about 2,700 students
“Ditch the workout, join the enrolled in their classes, the dou-
party!” ble life their instructors lead may
This is the mantra of come as a surprise.
Zumba, a type of dance FEATURE The instructors are
aerobics and one of the an eclectic mix of profes-
most popular physical sional trainers, profes-
education classes Brown offers. sors and undergraduates — even
The saying could apply to all including experienced coaches
the alternatives the Department such as Shay Lynch, who was an
of Physical Education and Campus assistant coach for Brown’s men’s
Recreation offers to endless miles and women’s squash teams for
on a treadmill’s belt — an array of
continued on page 4
group workouts and sports, dance
Arts, 5
Go Go ‘Gondoliers’
Brown University Gilbert
and Sullivan brings Venice
to life this weekend
By Max Godnick
Staff Writer
Substance use among students has
stayed relatively unchanged from
two years ago, according to a recent
Herald poll. The data also showed
that more males used marijuana than
females and that more upperclassmen
used alcohol than freshmen.
Herald Poll
The poll found that 77.9 percent of
students used alcohol in the month
before the poll — which was admin-
istered between Nov. 2 and Nov. 4
— 32.3 percent used marijuana and
18.3 percent used tobacco. Prescrip-
tion painkillers (3.9 percent), amphet-
amines (3.8 percent) and cocaine (2.6
percent) were the next-most prevalent
substances used in the one-month
period. These results were nearly iden-
tical to those of the fall 2007 Herald
poll.
Mischa Steiner ’10, head of Brown’s
chapter of Students for a Sensible
Drug Policy, wrote in an e-mail to The
Herald that he thought certain drugs
are more commonly used at specific
points in the academic year.
continued on page 2
Experts
square off on
race issues
By Alex Bell
Staf f Writer
“How are minority groups best
represented?” “Can a member of a
group better represent that group’s
interests than a non-member?”
Those were the key questions
that Harvard Law Professor Lani
Guinier and author Jim Sleeper
wrestled with at Thursday after-
noon’s Janus Forum lecture, “Does
Race Matter?”
Guinier, a former civil rights law-
yer, called for greater government
involvement to ensure representa-
tion of minorities, while Sleeper cau-
tioned against policies that might
worsen racial tensions.
Guinier said most people view
representation in government in
one of three ways. The “trustee”
model stipulates that representa-
tives are elected to consult their
own consciences when voting,
whereas the “delegate” model re-
continued on page 3
Opinions, 7
Glad as Hell
Jonathan Topaz ’12 is
pleasantly surprised with
Lou Dobbs’ replacement
herald@browndailyherald.com
Page 2 THE BROWN DAILY HERALD Friday, November 20, 2009

C ampus N EWS “It’s not just a toy for the select few.”
— Jan Hesthaven, prof. of applied math, on a new campus supercomputer

Herald Poll: 3 in 4 students use alcohol
continued from page 1
Amphetamine use “would be much
higher around finals, and cocaine use
would be much higher around Spring
Weekend,” Steiner wrote. “Especially
for drugs such as mushrooms and acid,
I think the one-month period doesn’t
give an accurate use rate, since even a
regular user of acid often doesn’t use
as often as once a month.”
Director of Health Education Fran-
ces Mantak ’88 said the figures are
consistent with similar polling done
by Health Services, but added that
certain data might be skewed due to
the face-to-face administering of The
Herald’s survey.
“The importance of what our peers
think about us is very real,” Mantak
said, adding that students sometime
exaggerate their alcohol use. “Stu-
dents perceive that others drink more
than they actually do.”
Mantak said she doubted that so
many more students used marijuana
than tobacco in the last month.
“I would be curious about the
stigma of admitting to tobacco use
as compared to using marijuana,” she
said. “Some people believe there are
no health effects related to marijuana,
while they are clear about the negative
repercussions of tobacco.”
The Herald poll found that 39.1
percent of males reported using mari-
juana in the time period, but only 26.4
percent of females did the same.
Steiner wrote that the finding “ap-
plies to drug use in general: Men are
more likely to engage in risk-taking
behavior than women.”
Mantak said these patterns could
be tied to other substance abuse dis-
parities between genders. She cited
body size, body composition and
levels of liver enzymes as possible
reasons for the disparity.
“College males drink more than fe-
males, so it’s not surprising in light of
those consistent statistics,” she said.
The gender gap in marijuana use
was not surprising, said one male
student.
“Guys get very into the methods
behind smoking pot,” said Avery
Houser ’12. “The rolling papers, the
blunts, the vapes — the whole perva-
siveness of the methodology leads to
a machismo effect. Which guy owns
the vape or who can roll the best joint
becomes very important.”
According to the survey, a signifi-
cantly higher number of non-fresh-
men reported drinking alcohol in the
period than first-years, 82.8 percent
to 67.8 percent.
“Older students are probably drink-
ing more frequently, but not drinking
to the point where they would have
In the past month, which of the
following substances — not
any regrets,” Mantak said, adding prescribed to you — have you used?
that there was “a learning process”
for freshman drinkers. “With younger Alcohol 77.9%
students, drinking is more episodic. Marijuana 32.3%
Students may not drink for a month
but then may drink in a way that prob- Tobacco 18.3%
lems might be experienced.” Prescription Painkillers 3.9%
Both Mantak and Senior Associate
Amphetamines 3.8%
Dean for Student Life Allen Ward said
they were pleased at the lower level (including prescription stimulants)
of freshman drinking. Cocaine 2.6%
“We encourage all students to 1.3%
Ecstasy (MDMA)
abide by the laws of Rhode Island,”
Ward said. Speaking specifically about Psychedelic Mushrooms 1.3%
first-years, he added, “During orienta- LSD 1.0%
tion, the message we try to deliver
is to make wise decisions around Opium 0.7%
alcohol, plan in advance, think about Nitrous Oxide 0.3%
how you will handle and manage
Phencyclidine (PCP) 0.3%
alcohol.”
The statistics seemed reasonable Heroin 0.0%
to some students. 0.4%
Other
“Last year, I drank a lot more in the
beginning,” said Bryan Coleman ’12. None of the Above 19.8%
“I could see how older students drink Don’t Know / No answer 0.9%
more. They have a better handle on
life and their schedule, so they can
find more time to go out and party.” The Herald poll was conducted margins of error were 6.9 percent and
Houser said, “Last year, we would from Nov. 2 through Nov. 4 and has 4.2 percent, respectively. A total of 687
drink to get drunk on the weekends. a 3.6 percent margin of error with 95 Brown undergraduates completed the
But this year there’s rarely a night percent confidence. For male-only poll, which The Herald administered
that goes by where I don’t have at data and female-only data, the mar- as a written questionnaire to students
least a beer. It becomes much more gins of error were 5.2 percent and 4.9 in the University Mail Room at J. Wal-
an upperclassman’s life, but not to the percent, respectively. For freshman- ter Wilson during the day and in the
point of drunkenness as much.” only data and non-freshman data, the Sciences Library at night.

Supercomputer, unveiled today, gives researchers a new tool

continued from page 1
cluster would allow researchers to
conduct data analysis on-site, rather
than analyzing their data remotely at
other institutions, Hesthaven said.
“This was a plan for basically what
sudoku
Brown should have, given what we
think we should be,” he said. “This
became a vision.”
Hesthaven said he advocated
technological advancements that
would inspire statewide collabora-
tion, ultimately securing support for
the high-powered cluster from Briant
and other administrators.
As part of the Plan for Academic
Enrichment, Pickett — who built a
similar system at Duke University
before he came to Brown in 2007 —
drafted an information technology
strategic plan last January, which
offered recommendations for advanc-
ing technology at the University.
Pickett said CIS partnered with
the Center for Computation and Vi-
sualization to address the logistics
behind building a high-powered
computing system to promote more
effective research collaboration.
“Researchers can’t share re-
sources if they have to take all the
responsibility themselves,” he said,
emphasizing the University’s need to
adapt to modern technological and
research models.
Despite widespread support for
the network, questions remained
over how the University would ob-
tain the necessary machinery to
construct the supercomputer. But
the problem was solved last May,
when Brown signed a memorandum
of understanding with IBM, which of-
users, including undergraduate and
graduate students.
“This is all about the institution,”
he said. “It’s not just a toy for the
select few.”
Branching out
Though many similar supercom-
puters are reserved for only more
advanced research, Hesthaven said
the facility will also be used by mid-
dle- and high-school students across
the state.
“This is an opportunity for high-
school students to get their feet wet
on equipment,” he said. “It’s an op-
portunity to explore the potential for
collaborative efforts.”
Hesthaven said the University
plans to offer courses and seminars
to undergraduates that would involve
use of the computing cluster.
The opportunity to share re-
sources with other institutions is
also more energy-efficient, Hest-
haven said, because the network of
machines uses an enormous amount
of power to prevent the motors from
overheating.
The cluster is “more environmen-
institutions with their own networks,
Briant said, the University plans to
apply for state and national research
grants that it previously would not
have considered.
A statewide team of researchers
led by Professor of Pediatrics James
Padbury submitted a grant proposal
last month for a clinical and transla-
tional sciences award, which would
bring in $20 million over a five-year
period if the National Institutes of
Health awards Brown and its part-
ners the grant next spring. The su-
percomputer was a key component
of the proposal, Padbury said.
“The supercomputer cluster will
fund high-dimension analysis,” he
said, adding that high-performance
computing is especially important
for biological research. He said col-
laborative projects that would use
the cluster are already in the works,
including “genome-wide association
studies” and a study on sudden car-
diac death.
“Bringing these kinds of tools
in-house opens up all kinds of pos-
sibilities,” said Assistant Professor
of Biology Casey Dunn, who con-

Daily Herald
fered affordable equipment and free tally friendly,” he said. “It’s a much ducts research in developmental and
the Brown
consulting to jumpstart the creation greener way of doing things.” The evolutionary biology. “My work is
of the supercomputer, Briant said. promise of future collaborative state- absolutely dependent upon high-
Editorial Phone: 401.351.3372 | Business Phone: 401.351.3260 Over the summer, the University wide efforts will also help stimulate performance computing.”
Stephen DeLucia, President Jonathan Spector, Treasurer began updating the existing data cen- the knowledge-based economy Dunn said he started using the
Michael Bechek, Vice President Alexander Hughes, Secretary ter to prepare for the cluster, which throughout the state, Briant said, supercomputer in October to ana-
The Brown Daily Herald (USPS 067.740) is an independent newspaper serv- occupies an entire room in the center. adding that the central cluster will lyze data sets, adding that the un-
ing the Brown University community daily since 1891. It is published Monday Since early this fall, the cluster has attract new faculty and larger-scale dergraduates in his lab have used
through Friday during the academic year, excluding vacations, once during been in a trial phase, operating at 90 projects. Having a high-performance the cluster.
Commencement, once during Orientation and once in July by The Brown Daily
Herald, Inc. Single copy free for each members of the community.
percent capacity with researchers computational system at Brown may The computing cluster will
POSTMASTER please send corrections to P.O. Box 2538, Providence, RI volunteering to test the new system also attract future donors, though also benefit researchers in the hu-
02906. Periodicals postage paid at Providence, R.I. Offices are located at 195 before its official launch. the University is not using the su- manities, who can use its power to
Angell St., Providence, R.I. E-mail herald@browndailyherald.com. So far, the supercomputer has percomputer as a “money-maker,” study demographics and analyze
World Wide Web: http://www.browndailyherald.com.
Subscription prices: $319 one year daily, $139 one semester daily.
generated widespread interest from he said. elections.
Copyright 2009 by The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. All rights reserved. researchers across many disciplines Because data analysis can now “It’s exciting,” Dunn said. “It’s all
— Hesthaven said there are about 75 occur at Brown instead of at other very ethereal.”
Friday, November 20, 2009 THE BROWN DAILY HERALD Page 3

C ampus N EWS
Bears to face Lions
in season’s final game
By Dan Alexander
Senior Staf f Writer
When Brown defeated Colum-
bia in a preseason scrimmage
in August, the Bears didn’t even
know who their star ting quar-
terback would be. Now, Kyle
Newhall-Caballero ’11 is at the
top of nearly ever y statistical
passing categor y in the league.
And when the Bears meet the
Lions for the final regular season
game on Saturday, the game may
rest on his throwing arm.
Newhall-Caballero leads the
Ivy League in completions, yards
and touchdowns. But he is also
second-worst in the Ancient
Eight in interceptions, with 12
on the season. This Saturday,
he will face Columbia, whose
defense has a league-leading 18
interceptions on the season.
Columbia is “a dangerous
football team that has had op-
portunities to explode on both
sides of the football,” said Brown
Head Coach Phil Estes. “The one
thing I look at that stands out
is their pass defense. It’s ver y
good. … They really do a good
job of putting pressure on the
quar terback and making him
sometimes throw into some bad
coverage.”
Columbia Head Coach Nor-
ries Wilson knows the challenge
his team will face in stopping
Brown’s offense this weekend.
“The quar terback is a good
player,” Wilson said. “And then
you’ve got wideouts that you
probably couldn’t triple-cover
to keep them from getting the
ball. So we’ve got our work cut
out for us.”
Wilson said his team has had
trouble defending the deep ball
on defense this year. And he
knows Brown has had big plays
all year.
“They’ve got experienced
wideouts who are used to catch-
ing deep balls and taking them
the distance,” Wilson said. “We’ve
got to do a better job of playing
Head-to-Head
Brown
6-3 (4-2 Ivy) Records
25.2 pts/game Scoring Offense
18.8 pts/game Scoring Defense
130.4 yds/game Rushing Offense
269.9 yds/game Passing Offense
the ball in the air. And our pass
rush has to get home.”
The Lions will likely blitz
Newhall-Caballero often this
weekend, and it will be up to
the Brown quarterback and of-
fensive line in front of him to
keep the Bears’ passing attack
alive.
But Brown r unning back
Spiro Theodhosi ’12 — who has
305 r ushing yards in the last
two games — will probably get
plenty of touches, too. Against a
Columbia defense that is second-
to-last in the league against the
rush, the Bears may keep it on
the ground.
The Lions’ attack — which
will be directed by quarterback
M.A. Olawale — is typically
run-focused. After missing two
games to injur y, Olawale stepped
in during the third quarter for
Columbia last week and eventu-
ally scored the winning touch-
down over Cornell.
Olawale is a threat through
the air and on the ground, having
passed 157 times and rushed 111
times this season.
“Olawale is tough to tackle,”
Wilson said. “When you turn him
loose and let him run the ball
and he protects the football, he’s
tough to get down.”
Against a Brown defense that
held Dar tmouth’s scrambling
quarterback Greg Patton to just
35 yards on 19 carries last week
and that gives up — on average
— just 86.8 yards per game, the
Lions will probably look to the
air more often this weekend.
The Bears are last in the Ivy
League in passing defense, hav-
ing given up 246.8 passing yards
per game. Then again, the Brown
defense is second in the league
in interceptions — behind only
Columbia.
Brown “is a lot like Har vard,
where they don’t have any kinks
in their armor in any phase,” Wil-
son said. His Lions are “really go-
ing to have to play their butts off
to have a chance in this one.”
v. Columbia
3-6 (2-4 Ivy)
21.9 pts/game
22.9 pts/game
144.2 yds/game
172.4 yds/game
Author Jim Sleeper (left) and Harvard law professor Lani Guinier discussed race representation Thursday.
Forum explores race’s role in representation
continued from page 1
quires representatives to “carr y
forward their mandates” from their
constituents.
A third “descriptive” view of rep-
resentation follows the thinking that
members of a certain ethnic group
can trust a representative whose
background is similar and who can
understand their needs.
But the flaw in all of these models
of representation, she said, is that
“our commitment to representation
in this country is a commitment to
a winner-take-all system.”
She said certain members of
ethnic groups that do not have ma-
jorities in their districts do not feel
represented because they cannot
elect leaders sympathetic to them.
“It is by focusing on the way in
which blacks and other people of
color are represented that we can
begin to see the flaws in the system
itself,” Guinier said.
She compared the plight of
minorities in America to the pro-
verbial warning of the canary in a
coal mine.
“The experience of those who
have been left out is often a diagnos-
tic tool to help us all to see what’s
wrong with the atmosphere more
generally,” she said.
Sleeper, author of the 1997 book
“Liberal Racism,” called Guinier’s
analogy of the canary in the coal
mine “an apt one,” but warned that
by implementing policies based on
race “we’re beginning to experience
diminishing returns ... in ways that
recapitulate the problems we’re try-
ing to solve.”
“There are reasons why that
makes sense in a transitional way,
but there are reasons why we should
move beyond it,” he said.
To get beyond racism, Sleeper
advocated taking into account race
only temporarily so as not to per-
manently “freeze-frame people into
racial identities.”
Sleeper said President Obama
sets a positive example by taking
pride in being from the heavily Afri-
can-American South Side of Chicago
without expecting special treatment
for his race.
“I do think he walked us through
what ... we should be going through
in terms of graduating from the kind
of racial color-coding,” he said.
Sleeper said he spent time for-
mulating his position while living
in Brooklyn, where he originally
saw districts subdivided to block
blacks from gaining political majori-
ties. In that extreme case, he said,
redistricting with regard to race was
a “necessary step.”
But now, he argues, the govern-
ment has gone too far with re-draw-
ing districts to include more blacks,
citing one New York district shaped
like Bullwinkle to include the poor-
est households in the area.
“If people in this neighborhood
wanted to get together to discuss
what was happening with federal
funding for their school board, the
Alex Bell / Herald
Hispanics in the room would have
one congressman, the Orthodox
Jews would have another congress-
man — it doesn’t make sense,”
Sleeper said.
He also expressed concern that
some policies pressure people to
identify with specific ethnic back-
grounds when they might not oth-
erwise do so.
“I am not saying that a person
should not choose to spend their life
enriching and affirming an ethno-
racial identity,” Sleeper said, noting
that people should commit to an
identity freely.
“No one should feel incentiv-
ized, corralled or coerced by well-
meaning, redress-oriented methods
into making an identification” that
does not come from deep and true
reflection, he added.
Both speakers said a propor-
tional system of representation, in
which there are no districts, is one
potential way to improve minority
representation.
“But once you have proportional
representation, you have to under-
stand what that means,” Sleeper said
in response to an audience mem-
ber’s question. “I may go the polls
and vote as a white man, but I also
may go to the polls and vote as a
homeowner rather than as a tenant.
Or I may go to the polls and vote as
a professor rather than as a working
guy. What you decide to vote on the
basis of is totally up to you under
proportional representation.”

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Page 4
C ampus N EWS
Out of the classroom, into the gym
continued from page 1
20 years. After retiring at the end
of last year, Lynch did anything
but give up the game and instead
continues to teach squash and
tennis to beginners and interme-
diate-level players in Brown’s PE
classes.
During varsity practices, Lynch
said, the emphasis is on “getting
ready to beat Har vard and win
matches” and on improving mental
preparedness to supplement the
skill varsity athletes already have.
But in his PE classes? There’s “a
lot more laughter,” he said.
From brains to bikes
Senior Lecturer in Neurosci-
ence John Stein connects his work-
out to his other passion — human
physiology. Stein, who has biked
seriously for 17 years, teaches both
spinning classes and BIOL 0800:
“Principles of Physiology.”
For someone who “enjoys
teaching in general,” as Stein does,
leading a PE class is a chance to
try a “different type of teaching”
— one that replaces lectures and
slides with “music and exercise,”
he said.
Still, his seemingly different
interests intersect. When teaching
physiology, professors always “use
exercise as the extreme example,”
he said. “Exercise puts stress on
the body, but not the negative
type.”
In his spinning class, Stein does
the reverse too: He goes into the
physiology behind the workout, ex-
plaining topics such as the body’s
switch from using aerobic to an-
aerobic energy during a workout.
He also creates custom playlists to
accompany his classes, drawing on
his experience working as a disc
jockey in college.
While seeing their neuro
professor on a bike instead of
at a podium may be a shock for
some students, Stein thinks most
don’t even realize it’s him at first.
In time, Stein said he dreams of
bringing together the two types
of classes he teaches, perhaps
developing a first-year seminar
that would combine the study of
exercise with actual participation
in fitness programs.
Exercising ‘another part of
themselves’
An assistant professor of art
and visual culture at Rutgers Uni-
versity, Tanya Sheehan PhD ’05
spends half her week in New Jer-
sey. But when she comes home
to Providence, she exchanges De-
gas’ “The Dance Class” for the real
thing, teaching hip-hop and jazz
funk at Brown.
While Sheehan was a graduate
student here, the University only
offered ballet for those interested
in dance, she said. She proposed
a hip-hop class in 2000 — it was
“what students really wanted to
take,” especially those without
prior experience in dance, she
had found.
FEATURE
Sheehan, who had run a sum-
mer dance program, brought her
knowledge to the classes she
began teaching at Brown. Her
hip-hop classes were extremely
popular, she said, drawing multiple
sections with 40 people each.
Now she only teaches one
section of about 20 people on
the weekends, she said. Sheehan
thinks the class is so popular be-
cause it’s a fun workout with direct
results: Students learn moves in
class, then show them off later
that evening, she said.
“People surprise themselves,”
she said, with how much they im-
prove.
It’s good for students to “chal-
lenge themselves outside of their
comfort zone,” Sheehan said, es-
pecially when they are so focused
on their work.
“Grad students especially don’t
do a lot of extracurricular activi-
ties,” she said. Dance classes give
them the chance to “exercise an-
other part of themselves — the
mind in relationship to body and
emotion.”
Learning Latin rhythms
A typical Zumba class, as taught
by Sadie Kurzban ’12, is also all
THE BROWN DAILY HERALD
“You’re having a blast, but you walk out burning 600 calories.”
— Sadie Kurzban ’12, who teaches Zumba classes on campus
about body and emotion — it’s
more like a full-on dance party
than the average aerobics class.
Kurzban keeps the room lively and
lighthearted, cracking jokes and
making the 50-minute class “fly
by,” said Sam Karshenboym ’12,
a Zumba devotee.
Kurzban grew up in Miami, sur-
rounded by Latin dance, and has
been going to the gym regularly
since the age of 10. Zumba, with
its dual emphasis on fitness and
Latin-inspired moves, fit naturally
into her interests.
Kurzban first discovered Zum-
ba in 10th grade and was imme-
diately hooked, she said. By her
senior year of high school, she was
substitute-teaching her class, and
earned her certifications as a per-
sonal trainer and Zumba instructor
the summer before college.
When Kurzban came to college,
she also brought Zumba to Brown
— and when she taught the class
her freshman year, it was immedi-
ately over-enrolled, she said.
Zumba “should feel like danc-
ing with friends,” she said. “You’re
having a blast, but you walk out
burning 600 calories.”
“It helps your heart and mus-
cles,” Kurzban said, adding that
she thinks that “not enough kids at
Brown get enough exercise.”
Students started approaching
Kurzban for advice on how to best
tone different muscle groups, and
in response, she created a second
class to help students build their
muscle strength. The class, “Bra-
zilian Sculpt,” Kurzban said, works
on students’ “muscular endurance
and flexibility” to Brazilian music
— with a focus on the “stereotypi-
cally Brazilian areas: sexy abs and
super strong legs and glutes.”
As Brown’s only Zumba instruc-
tor, Kurzban teaches four sessions
of the dance class and two sections
of Brazilian sculpt. “For one hour
each day, I don’t have to worr y
about anything else,” she said. “I
leave whatever else is going on and
go in with super high energy.”
Kurzban said she plans to
expand Zumba beyond Brown’s
campus by combining her “love for
working out” with her “passion for
helping people who don’t have a
lot.” Next semester, she will begin
teaching Zumba to students in lo-
cal public high schools.
“Rising obesity strongly corre-
lates with lower incomes,” Kurzban
said, and by encouraging kids to
work out, she hopes to help them
with weight loss and with develop-
ing “motivation and confidence in
general.”
Start your day out right
with Herald Mail
browndailyherald.com/register
Two ‘ultimate’ Bears earn
trip to world championship
By Zung Nguyen Vu
Contributing Writer
Two players with Brown ties have
earned an invitation to ultimate
frisbee’s biggest stage — the 2010
World Ultimate Club Champion-
ships.
Hana Kawai’s ’10.5 and Josh
Ziperstein’s ’05 teams both earned
spots in the tournament after suc-
cess at this year’s Ultimate Players
Association Club Championship,
where Ziperstein’s team won the
tournament’s open division and
Kawai’s finished second in the
women’s division.
Kawai’s Boston-based club
Brute Squad lost to a team from
San Francisco in the finals of the
tournament, which took place from
Oct. 29 to Nov. 1. Chain Lightning,
Ziperstein’s Atlanta-based team,
beat a team from the San Francisco
Bay Area to win its first national
championship.
“It’s a pretty huge deal to win
the national championship,” Ziper-
stein said.
The world championships will
be held in Prague, Czech Republic,
in July.
Ultimate frisbee, a limited-con-
tact team sport invented in the late
1960s by a high school student
from Maplewood, N.J., has grown
in popularity in recent years, espe-
cially on college campuses. The
sport, played seven-a-side at the
club level, combines features of
frisbee, football and soccer.
Kawai’s interest in ultimate
frisbee star ted in high school,
and she played for the U.S. junior
national team before coming to
Brown. Kawai, who is also a mem-
ber of Brown’s women’s club fris-
bee team, “Disco Inferno,” played
for Brute Squad this fall and will
compete for Brown in the spring,
she said.
Ziperstein, who played soccer
in high school, decided to switch
to frisbee after he was admitted
to Brown and heard it had a good
ultimate team.
“Most people chose colleges
based on the sport,” he said, “but I
ended up choosing the sport based
on the college.”
Besides playing for the Brown
team, Ziperstein star ted play-
ing with a club team in Boston
his sophomore year. Now living
in Atlanta, he has played with
Chain Lightning for the last three
years.
Because there is no profession-
al ultimate frisbee league, the club
championship is where the best
Friday, November 20, 2009
players meet each year.
“It’s the best frisbee there is —
much more competitive and fast
than college frisbee,” Kawai said.
Ziperstein, who plays as a down-
field cutter, said on-field positions
are much more specialized in club
ultimate.
“Socially, it’s ver y different,”
Ziperstein said. “With the Brown
team you’re playing with your best
friends. You play, then go to the
Ratty together — it’s the best thing
imaginable.”
At the club level, “most players
are people with real jobs with time
commitments, and this is their way
of having fun,” Kawai said. “Peo-
ple always recognize each other
at tournaments, and the fact that
many people don’t consider it a
real sport adds on to its cult-ish
image.”
Since graduating from Brown in
2005, Ziperstein has kept in close
touch with many friends from the
Brown team, he said. Playing club
frisbee even brought him his first
post-college job at Massachusetts
General Hospital — a doctor with
whom Ziperstein played offered
him a position.
Because club teams do not usu-
ally have a coach, team members
have to take care of the logistics on
their own, including fundraising,
publicity, practices and transpor-
tation.
Practices take place every week-
end, and Brown students playing
for Boston teams must learn to
work out their academic and social
responsibilities accordingly.
Kawai travels to Boston ever y
Friday, staying at a friend’s for the
night, and then returns to Brown,
where she is double-concentrating
in education and ethnic studies and
currently working on a thesis.
Ziperstein graduated from
Brown with a degree in bio-engi-
neering and now attends medical
school at Emor y University.
“Sports is a microcosm of life,”
he said. “All the skills you need to
play at this level are useful time
and again for life, medical school
and friends.”
Though Kawai and Ziperstein
are excited about qualifying for the
world championship, both are un-
sure whether they will attend. The
time of the tournament may clash
with medical research Ziperstein
will be performing abroad, while
Kawai’s team will need to raise a
substantial amount of money and
take care of other logistics in order
to travel to the tournament.
Arts & Culture
The Brown Daily Herald
The cast of Brown University Gilbert and Sullivan’s “The Gondoliers,” which is playing this weekend.
In ‘Gondoliers,’ a Venice in vibrant color
By Amy Chen
Contributing Writer
For its fall production this week-
end, Brown University Gilbert and
Sullivan is offering up a dynamic
array of dancing and singing in
“The Gondoliers.”
A two-act comic operetta,
“The Gondoliers” is set in Ven-
ice and revolves around the stor y
of two gondoliers who believe
themselves to be brothers. It is
revealed that one of the pair is the
sur viving heir to the fantastical
kingdom of Barataria, lost during
infancy, and has been engaged
since birth to a beautiful Spanish
lady — but no one knows which
gondolier is the prince and which
is the pauper.
The production benefits from
a carefully constructed and won-
derfully painted stage. Character-
ized by a tranquil combination
of light-hearted periwinkle blue
and sand color in Act I, it recalls
the beauty of Venice. The set is
appropriately transformed to a
royal look in Act II as the two
gondoliers move to Barataria to
reign.
The chorus — portraying flirty
farm-girls, twirling in a profusion
of colors from the flutters of their
skirts, and jubilant gondoliers —
is featured throughout the show.
Also entertaining are the beauti-
ful lady of Spain and her family,
characters who produce gushes
of laughter from the audience.
According to musical director
Matthew Jaroszewicz ’12, com-
poser Ar thur Sullivan tried to
write music that would evoke the
sounds of the countries in which
his operettas were set. The score
imitates characteristically Italian
music, and Jaroszewicz described
it as “exuberant, well-composed,
ver y beautiful and happy and up-
lifting all the time.”
“I’ve been studying Italian
for seven or eight years and this
show caught my attention,” said
director Michael Hogan ’11, who
described the music as “exuber-
ant and shining.”
“I never thought I would be
doing this before,” said Hogan,
who is directing a musical for the
first time. “It taught me more than
any class I’ve (taken) at Brown,
with all the acting, building the
Nick Sinnott-Armstrong / Herald
sets, ever ything.”
“It’s a challenge for whoever
directs,” said stage manager Pe-
ter Hatch ’11. “It’s great material
but was written a hundred years
ago. To bring out the humor is a
great challenge.”
Another challenge, Hatch said,
was the dif ficulty of removing
and putting the set back up in
Alumnae Hall when other events
were being held there.
“If we had our own space, it
would’ve been easier,” he said.
The cast includes both new-
comers and BUGS veterans in
an environment that is “ver y wel-
coming,” Hogan said.
“We’ve had a lot of fun,” Hogan
added. With ever y rehearsal of
the show, “we find it more fun-
ny,” he said. “We get big laughs,
watching each other on stage.”
Hogan said he hopes that the
audience will find the play “hilari-
ous” as well.
“The Gondoliers” runs this
weekend in Alumnae Hall with
per formances tonight at 8 p.m.,
tomorrow at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. and
Sun. at 3 p.m. Admission is free.
Friday, November 20, 2009 | Page 5
Lyricist Yeston explores
the chemistry of song
By Sarah Mancone
Contributing Writer
Musical theater writing and per-
formance were combined in a talk
by American composer and lyricist
Maur y Yeston in Leeds Theater
Thursday evening.
In a discussion that wove back
and forth from speech to sing-
ing, with Yeston at the piano, the
composer stressed that the music
and lyrics of a song have to lead to
something that moves the audience.
Yeston performed multiple musi-
cal pieces, primarily his own. Some
songs provoked laughter, while oth-
ers clearly moved some members of
the audience nearly to tears.
Yeston is known for writing the
music and lyrics to Broadway mu-
sicals such as “Nine” in 1982 and
“Titanic” in 1997, both of which won
the Tony Awards for best musical
and best score. Yeston’s current
projects include the film adaptation
of “Nine” with a cast that includes
Daniel Day-Lewis, Penelope Cruz,
Judi Dench, Nicole Kidman and
Sophia Loren.
Yeston began the talk with an
analysis of what song is. “You have
to forget every theoretical construct
you may have in your head about
song,” Yeston said. “Song is not a
chemical mixture, it is a compound.
It is its own category.”
“What is the first question you
have to ask when you hear a song?”
Yeston asked the audience. “What is
it for? What is its function?”
Of all the different parts that
make up a piece of music, it’s the
“premise,” according to Yeston —
the narrative context of the song
— that is most important.
The most moving premise comes
when a character faces adversity
with confidence, he said.
“Since the character won’t feel
his own self-pity, it is thrown into our
laps and we feel it for him.”
Fur thermore, according to
Yeston, music and lyrics should
work together so that the story can
be visualized without needing to be
physically seen.
“Musical theater has to work
as a radio play,” Yeston said. “If it
doesn’t work with nothing, it’ll never
work.”
As he played a few lines from the
opening of “Titanic,” he verbalized
what the music was telling listeners
— “And once there was a ship ... that
sank ... but not yet,” he said — as
the music began, grew graver and
then became lighter again.
Yeston hailed the moments in
theater when the audience feels it
knows a secret not shared with the
characters on stage. The fact that
the audience already knew the story
of the Titanic added to the emotional
impact of the musical, he said.
Most of those present at the
event were Brown students. When
Yeston asked the audience members
if they had a strong interest in pur-
suing vocal performance, composi-
tion or lyrics writing, a majority of
students raised their hands.
During the question-and-answer
section of the talk, Yeston was asked
about the frequently pronounced
death of the musical. Yeston re-
sponded, “The musical is more alive
than ever.”
“More people are learning to cre-
ate it and learning the craft of it than
ever before,” said Yeston. “I have
very good feelings about it.”
Editorial & Letters
The Brown Daily Herald

Page 6 | Friday, November 20, 2009

J ulia streuli

Apply to join the e d i to r i a l

editorial page board Fighting words

E-mail editorials@browndailyherald.com Dear Columbia, your finance job because he painted his office
teal or that friend of yours who wasted his pri-
for more information.
We’re better than you. Yup, we said it — better. vate school education because he now wants to
Better at sports, better at academics, better at play the banjo.” Gosh, Kwame, the banjo? That’s
life. We square off in football this weekend and, HILARIOUS! You sure got us good.
to be 100 percent honest, nobody really thinks Your plaintive begging for a rivalry is really
t h e b r o w n d a i ly h e r a l d
you have a chance. moving, Kwame. But quite frankly, Columbia’s
Editor-in-Chief Managing Editors Deputy Managing Editors Senior Editors
Let’s take a look at your record: 2 and 4 Ivy on not worth it. Columbians have dreamed up some
Steve DeLucia Michael Bechek Nandini Jayakrishna Rachel Arndt
Chaz Firestone Franklin Kanin Isabel Gottlieb the season with awe-inspiring wins over Cornell parallel-universe Brown full of useless hipsters
Michael Skocpol Scott Lowenstein and Princeton (last and third-to-last place, respec- but have been looking in the mirror the whole
editorial Business tively). And since Head Coach Norries Wilson time.
Ben Hyman Arts & Culture Editor General Managers Office Manager
Sophia Li Features Editor Alexander Hughes Shawn Reilly took over your program three years ago, you’ve After graduation, you’ll move on to unemploy-
George Miller Metro Editor Jonathan Spector managed to win a whopping eight games. Wow. ment and the renovated tenement building your
Joanna Wohlmuth Metro Editor
Seth Motel News Editor
Brown, on the other hand, has won three Ivy grandma owns on the Lower East Side. You study
Directors
Jenna Stark News Editor Ellen DaSilva Sales titles in the last 10 years and currently boasts the the core curriculum to sound interesting at the
Andrew Braca Sports Editor Claire Kiely Sales number one rated offense in the league. (Not to cocktail parties you probably won’t get invited to.
Han Cui Asst. Sports Editor Katie Koh Finance
Alex Mazerov Asst. Sports Editor Jilyn Chao Asst. Finance mention defensive lineman Mike Lemmons ’10, You live in the greatest city in the world but are
Katie Wood Asst. Sports Editor Christiana Stephenson Alumni Relations who eats Manhattan pseudo-socialites like you for afraid to go south of 110th or north of 125th. You
Graphics & Photos Managers
breakfast). So yeah, you might want to tell mom have one bar for every point you got on the SAT
Chris Jesu Lee Graphics Editor Kelly Wess Local Sales
Stephen Lichenstein Graphics Editor Kathy Bui National Sales to leave the camcorder at home for this one. but refuse to go anywhere other than 1020. Your
Kim Perley Photo Editor Alex Carrere University Sales But Brown’s quarrel with you goes beyond idea of diversity is tacking a “Wu” onto “Nuss-
Max Monn Asst. Photo Editor Matt Burrows Credit and Collections
Jesse Morgan Sports Photo Editor the field. It started a year ago, when one of your baum’s bakery.” Your idea of a hate crime is being
production Opinions former senior class presidents, Kwame Spearman, mistaken for a Barnard student.
Ayelet Brinn Copy Desk Chief Alyssa Ratledge Opinions Editor wrote a charming little article outlining the ways But all those things aside, you’re just kind of
Rachel Isaacs Copy Desk Chief Sarah Rosenthal Opinions Editor
in which Columbians trump Brunonians. The tacky. Good luck out there this weekend.
Marlee Bruning Design Editor
Jessica Calihan Design Editor Editorial Page Board article is supremely witty and chock-full of taste-
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Arthur Matuszewski Editor-in-Chief
William Martin Board member
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Opinions
The Brown Daily Herald
Killing the boredom-killing business
JONATHAN
TOPAZ
Opinions Columnist
In the satirical movie “Network,” Howard
Beale, an established and respected nightly
news anchor, is fired for his newscast’s poor
ratings. In his farewell address, Beale goes
on a shocking tirade and consequently earns
the name “mad prophet.” Beale starts a new
show, which quickly becomes the most popular
show on television. During one of his telecasts,
which merely consists of Beale’s ranting and
proselytizing, he states, “Television is not the
truth. Television is a goddamn amusement
park.” Newscasters, Beale says, are “in the
boredom-killing business.”
It is not just Beale, but this entire movie
that seems almost downright prophetic about
the trajectory of news media. Glenn Beck, who
at times has likened himself to a modern-day
Howard Beale (the irony is apparently lost
on Beck), has achieved a massive viewership
and garnered much attention from the media.
Beck, who is prone to on-air diatribes and emo-
tional meltdowns, and has repeatedly called
President Obama a “racist” and a “Marxist,”
has on many occasions achieved nearly three
million nightly viewers.
The White House appears to be on the
losing side of an absurd feud with Fox News.
Keith Olbermann and Bill O’Reilly, who appear
in primetime on the nation’s top news stations,
represent ideological polarities and often at-
tack each other directly. And comedian Jon
Stewart, whose show airs on Comedy Central
and appears directly after cartoons such as
JULIANNE FENN
Guest Columnist
My name is Julianne Fenn ’11. I have to start
with that because next year, when I am apply-
ing for jobs, that is what will be Googled. And
I would hate for The Herald’s article (“Taking
dance to the next level,” Nov. 16) to stand as
the sole representation of my college career
in The Brown Daily Herald online.
So my name is Julianne Fenn, and as the
article said, yes, I am president of the Poler
Bears, the Ivy League’s first pole dancing
group. And yes, “it is a great conversation
starter.” Unfortunately, it isn’t so great when
it is the fourth item that comes up when you
search me on Google. It is great here at Brown,
but it isn’t so great in the real world.
Part of the reason that Brown students
are the number-one happiest according to
the Princeton Review is because here in
Providence, on College Hill, we live in the
Brown bubble. We pride ourselves on our
lack of requirements, lax rules and, above all,
our freedom of expression. The Poler Bears’
Herald debut focused on the sexual aspect
of what we do. Yes, we can be sexy, but what
the article fails to highlight is that we are
multi-dimensional.
Pole dancing, at least for us, is not about
sexy, racy stereotypes. Despite quotes to the
South Park and Futurama, was recently voted
“America’s Most Trustworthy Newscaster” in
a Time Magazine Poll.
It is a disturbing political climate in which
established op-ed columnists such as Frank
Rich feud with entertainers like Beck, and
MSNBC and Fox News precipitously move
to the poles of political opinion for ratings’
sake. So it was surprising when Lou Dobbs,
who appeared nightly on CNN at 7 p.m., quit
his show after growing animosity between
him and the network. Dobbs, who openly
expressed his passionate anti-immigration
opinions and gave credibility to the conspiracy
In an astonishing and refreshing decision, CNN
went with the decidedly unsexy John King to fill
Lou Dobbs’ shoes.
“birther” movement that questioned Obama’s
citizenship, may possibly join the Fox Busi-
ness network.
So, with the unexpected loss of Dobbs,
one of the network’s most controversial and
recognizable personalities, how would CNN
respond? Would it replace him with some-
one with a similarly bold anti-immigration
platform? Perhaps a left-wing ideologue to
attract a new audience to the 7 p.m. hour?
Would it use this opportunity to elevate one
of its political commentators — possibly the
conservative Bill Bennett or the liberal Paul
Begala — to his own nightly show?
In an astonishing and refreshing decision,
CNN went with the decidedly unsexy John
King to fill Dobbs’ shoes. King developed
A story with a spin
contrary, we have never seriously considered
going to a strip club, and while some costumes
come from Victoria’s Secret, the majority are
spandex shorts and tank tops. We do gymnas-
tics and, more than anything else, acrobatics.
Pole dancing has become the latest workout
craze for a reason. We have fun and we joke
about dollar bills, but there are no lap dances.
This is exercise and skill, and it’s fun. Most,
if apparently not all, of the Brown campus
understands that.
Google doesn’t forget, and unfortunately,
there is nothing to protect the freedom of
expression that Brown espouses.
Unfortunately, though I’m really proud of
what the Poler Bears have accomplished dur-
ing my time here at Brown — breaking a lot
of negative stereotypes associated with pole
dancing, getting a workout and having a lot of
fun — this is one club that can’t have a place
on my resume. It doesn’t translate well outside
of the Brown bubble. It is hard to explain how
it’s different here. Yet, the sad truth of the
matter is, as much as we want to idealize the
minimal celebrity status during the 2008 presi-
dential and congressional elections, during
which he travelled the country covering the
races from a non-partisan perspective. Dur-
ing his years with the Associated Press and
then CNN, King established himself the old-
fashioned way — reporting from campaign
trails and war zones.
In other words, King is the ultimate straight
man. Routinely delivering political commen-
tary during the 2008 election for hours at a
time, King intimated barely any ideological
stance. He called it “troubling” that evening
newscasters often “start the conversation with
a bias,” and instead of preaching from his
perch at CNN headquarters in Washington
D.C., he plans to travel the country to take the
pulse of ordinary American citizens.
Cynics may attempt to attribute this move
to business considerations. Dobbs’ ratings
were not particularly impressive, and with
MSNBC and Fox News extremely popular
with their respective ideological bases, CNN
might find it economically sensible to brand
itself as the non-ideological network.
But this argument does not quite hold up.
With an evening lineup of John King, Campbell
Brown (whose show is entitled “No Bias, No
Bull”) and Anderson Cooper, CNN has taken
an audacious and praiseworthy step away from
primetime opinion. Journalist Sam Donaldson
Brown bubble, even here, things get twisted
around, misunderstood and misconstrued.
And that’s okay sometimes — I laugh when
my friends ask if I got those one dollar bills
pole dancing. But the joke doesn’t translate
in print, and especially not online.
When real life and professional and per-
sonal relations outside of College Hill come
into play, the joke gets lost. It is a shame that
I have to hide something from the real world
that has been so much fun here at Brown.
But Google doesn’t forget, and, unfortunately,
there is nothing to protect the freedom of
expression that Brown espouses.
As a Brown student, I certainly appreciate
The Herald’s freedom of the press and aspira-
tions of journalistic integrity. But I had hoped
that good taste would be shown in reporting
sensitive subjects, and privacy rights would
be taken into account when reporting infor-
mation, particularly when this is in no way
Friday, November 20, 2009 | Page 7
asserts a commonly held notion that Network
taught the public over 30 years ago: “The trend
— and is it going to reverse, I don’t know — is
toward opinion.” Evening news — beginning
at 5 p.m. with ideologues such as Beck and
Chris Matthews, and ending at midnight with
O’Reilly and the liberal Rachel Maddow — has
solidified itself as entertainment. And high
ratings ensure that increasingly partisan cov-
erage is here to stay. CNN must understand
that this migration back to straight news is a
death wish ratings-wise, and its decision to do
so is downright admirable and heartening for
the sake of journalism.
On the other hand, maybe CNN can thrive.
Perhaps it is the idealist in this columnist that
prays that legitimate coverage can reemerge,
that CNN can make a strong stance for re-
sponsible, intelligent and nuanced scrutiny of
important issues and policy. Olbermann, in a
statement that identifies a man astoundingly
out-of-touch with his craft, asserts that “People
now watch news on TV for elucidation and
context and analysis. They have brought the
facts with them.” As debates about health care
and Afghanistan progress, and myths about
socialism and nation-building and death panels
pervade mainstream discourses, it is apparent
that ideological fringes are deeply affecting
individuals’ ability to bring “the facts with
them.” Perhaps CNN can finally prove to the
Howard Beales and the Keith Olbermanns of
the world that news reporting can exist outside
the boredom-killing business.
Jonathan Topaz ’12 thinks that Bill
O’Reilly needs to go back to covering
our nation’s most pressing issues, like
SexPowerGod.
investigative, hard-hitting journalism.
In this age of technology, we should con-
sider more than ever the implications of re-
porting with a spin, without the easy opportu-
nity for correction or rebuttal. The Internet,
relatively speaking, retains news forever in an
unsecured, easily retrievable repository, and
in fact, offers information that is not neces-
sarily being sought. This changes the game
of journalism, and perhaps it should change
the rules as well.
So I understand, or at least accept, that
Julianne Fenn, pole dancer, will be there to
read on Google when my name is searched.
But while to The Herald this is just another
article, to me this is far more than that. I have
much more to show for my time at Brown. I’m
also a Meiklejohn Peer Adviser. I work for
Brown Dining Services. I file applications at
the Brown Admissions Office. I am an under-
graduate teaching assistant for an Intermedi-
ate French class.
But potential employers might not ever get
the chance to find that out, because Julianne
Fenn, pole dancer, is what comes up first, and
that could be enough to end the search. And
so, as long as I’m given the chance, I’d like to
say that there’s more to the story than that.
Julianne Fenn ’11 is a literary arts
concentrator from Connecticut. She can
be reached at julianne_fenn@brown.edu.
 Today
The Brown Daily Herald
t h e n e w s i n i m ag e s
5
c a l e n da r
Today, november 20 saturday, november 21
5:30 pm — Explaining Disease Through
Witchcraft: The Example of HIV/AIDS
In Zimbabwe, Haffenreffer Museum at
Manning Hall
8 pm — Gilbert and Sullivan Presents:
“The Gondoliers,” Alumnae Hall
menu
Sharpe Refectory
Lunch — BLT Sandwich, Rosemary
Portobello Sub Sandwich, Herb
Roasted Potatoes
Dinner — Teriyaki Salmon, Vegetable
Stuffed Peppers, Basmati Rice Pilaf
crossword
4
to day to m o r r o w
Two ultimate Bears head to championship
‘Titanic’ composer talks song
5
Friday, November 20, 2009
58 / 39 58 / 38
Page 8
d i a m o n d s a n d c oa l
A diamond to Teach for America founder Wendy Kopp, who received a “Leadership for Change
through Education Award” from Brown on Wednesday. It’s a pretty sweet deal, apparently — the
award comes with a lovely plaque, an honorarium and the resumes of 500 Brown seniors who got
turned down for consulting jobs.
Coal to the suspects in this week’s crime log who stole two of those fancy chairs from the Rock.
But an even bigger coal to the snoozing library guard who was probably too busy telling us we can’t
bring our coffee inside to notice the thieves rolling out the exit.
A diamond for effort to the D’Abate elementary schooler enrolled in a Brown-sponsored after-
school program who identified her favorite grain as “pizza.” This lesson was brought to you the letter
6 and the number potato.
A “low-hanging fruit” coal to those lovable parliamentarians on UCS, which this week didn’t pass
a motion to let motions pass by a simple majority because the motion received only a simple majority.
We can’t make this stuff up.
A cubic zirconium to the 38.1 percent of students who told The Herald they were concerned
8 PM — The Brown Jabberwocks about their ability to fund their education. We’d really love to give you all diamonds, but print journal-
Present The BAM! Benefit Concert, ism ain’t exactly lucrative right now either.
List 120
Last but not least, a diamond to the men’s soccer team, which stormed into the second round of
8 pm — Body and Sole’s Fall Dance the NCAA tournament with a 103rd-minute goal that gave the Bears a 1-0, double-overtime victory
Concert, Ashamu Dance Studio against Stony Brook last night. You may have barely eked out the victory, but that’s the great thing
about the playoffs — postseason games are always S/NC. Good luck in the next round!
Verney-Woolley Dining Hall
comics
Lunch — Chicken Fingers,
Vegetarian Grinder, Enchilada Bar
Fruitopia | Andy Kim
Dinner — Salmon Quiche, Cheese
Raviolis with Sauce, Grilled Chicken
Cabernet Voltaire | Abe Pressman
Dot Comic | Eshan Mitra and Brendan Hainline
Hippomaniac | Mat Becker