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Two sport stars part deux

November 25

As a reminder, I've decided to make a top ten list of professional athletes, the sports they currently play, the sport I'd like to see them play, and the odds that they would succeed at their new sports. Last week I only made it through three athletes, so without further ado... Michael Jordan: Okay, "His Airness" (currently grounded in his old age) is clearly the best basketball player ever _ bar none. He's done the two sport thing before, after his first retirement from the NBA, when he played minor league baseball for the BirmingHamm Barons. If he had given himself another year or two, I'd bet my maroon 1996 Toyota Camary that he would have made it to the majors _ because of his talent and not simply because of his name. He's also a fairly decent golfer. I've heard that he's beaten Charles Barkley a few times _ but, I don't suppose that says much, as "Sir Charles" is more likely to be confused with a whale than with an athlete. He'd probably make a believable beef jerky salesman though. So what sport would I want to see the greatest athlete of all time try? Beirut. Odds: 3:1. In his younger days, when he could jump I'd probably say that Jordan would probably struggle at this sport. While his vertical was awe inspiring, his jump shot left much to be desired. But, like any diligent athlete, Jordan worked to make himself (and more specifically his J) better and, even as he approaches age 40, his jumper is still lethal. Though he has been known to smoke a cigar or two here and there, to be in the condition that he is in, Jordan probably doesn't have much experience with heavy drinking. Therefore, I'd predict that Jordan would be dominant at the beginning of a night of Beirut, but by the end of the evening he might be too Hammmered to play successfully, kind of like my friend Josh Gold at AEPi on any given Saturday night. Still I'll give Jordan, the greatest athlete of the century, the benefit of the doubt and predict that his Beirut career would be an unequivocal success. Mia Hamm: One thing is for sure, Hamm is not the soccer equivalent of Anna Kournikova. Yes, Hamm is nearly as hot, but the fact of the matter is that this stunner actually has game on the field. She may or may not spit some game off the field, as well, but spitting game is a topic more suitable for a features or sex column _ so I won't go there. As perhaps the best women's soccer player in American history and one of the greatest female athletes of all time, Hamm has nothing left to prove in the world of sports. But, which sport would I like to see her compete in? Tennis. Odds: 5:1. I'll admit straight up that my motives for wanting Hamm to play tennis are purely selfish and have a lot to do with Anna Kournikova. I'm sure that you are probably expecting something a little offbeat right now and maybe a little sexist _ I won't disappoint you. First let me say, however, that Hamm is a true athlete and would probably succeed in any sport. Having said that, I'd like to see Hamm and Kournikova compete in a tennis match _ on national television. Not only would it be one of the most highly anticipated sporting events of all time, but if Hamm could somehow defeat Kournikova (and this scenario is entirely possible given Kournikova's well documented struggles on the tennis court) it might encourage the goddess named Anna to find a new line of work. As I mentioned in my previous column, I'd like to see Ms. Kournikova serve as a cheerleader and perhaps, having a soccer player thrash her in tennis would encourage her to move into that line of work sooner rather than later. Barry Bonds: Bonds is undoubtedly the best baseball player of our generation and he is also one of the biggest jerks in Major League history. From what I've read, it's common practice for Bonds to report to the stadium on game day, blow off stretching with his teammates, flick off a few reporters, cuss a few fans, get in a fight with Jeff Kent, and then hit two home runs to lead the Giants to victory. (Okay, I exaggerated a tad.) So which sport would I like to see this half machine half jerk play? Mime. Odds: 55:1. Bonds definitely has the coordination and the discipline to excel in the world of mime as evidenced by his prowess in the field and his patience at the plate. Bonds also has a few good moves where he doesn't use his mouth such as the flicking of the bird and the grabbing of the crotch. Unfortunately, though I don't know any mime fans, I'd imagine there are some, and that they are probably fairly classy and wouldn't care much for Bonds' vulgar performance. Perhaps, Bonds would have more success as an x-rated mime. Lisa Leslie: This 6'5" Los Angeles Sparks center, the female answer to Shaquille O'Neal, averaged a whopping 21.8 ppg while guiding her team the WNBA CHammpionship in 2002. As much as this pains me _ I'm going to be honest _ I don't really know all that much about Leslie except that she is really, really tall and really, really good at hoops. And, one time I saw her appear as a contestant on Who Wants to be a Millionaire? So which sport would I like to see this monster of a woman play? NBA basketball. Odds: 25:1. At 6'5," with a skinny build, Leslie would probably be forced to play shooting guard in the NBA. As one of the bigger woman in professional basketball, Leslie has probably been able to rely on her inside game (though I can't say for sure because I have only seen her play once), but in the NBA she would have to operate more from the perimeter. Though I don't think that Leslie has the ball-handling skills or the jumper to make the transition, I would like nothing more than to see Leslie hit a fadeaway in the eye of Latrell Sprewell. I'd be willing to bet that Spree would attempt to choke her for showing him up or that he would throw an ill-advised punch at Leslie and end up breaking his hand _ again. I hate when this happens. Sadly, it's time for me to end this column, because my word count is already well over 1,000 words and anything else I say will probably be cut. So, I guess we'll just make it a top seven list. Deal with it. Daniel Fowler can be reached at fowler@tuftsdaily.com.

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News

The Big 12 is college football's premiere conference

November 25

The last two weekends were tough games for Ohio State, but it is finally official: the Buckeyes can buy plane tickets and book hotel rooms for a trip to Tempe, AZ because they will be playing in the National Championship game. I was a bit skeptical, but will finally admit the Buckeyes deserve to go to the big dance. Whether or not they can win all the marbles is a completely different discussion. Miami still controls its own destiny. Two wins and they play Ohio State, but a slip could make second place in the BCS a rat race. Inside college football brought you the BCS shakedown last week, but instead of hitting you with another elaborate scheme that will fall apart this weekend, this week's focus will be on the Big 12. Arguably the best football conference in the country, the teams in this Midwest conference beat each other up every week, denying their conference from producing any truly dominant squad. The structure of the conference breaks the twelve teams into two divisions and has the winners of each play one another in a championship game. This has both positive and negative aspects in that the winner gets an automatic bid to the BCS, but the loser of the bowl contest gets an extraneous loss tacked onto its record. In most cases this extra loss can be debilitating, in terms of nabbing a BCS bid, to a team that is the second best in an excellent conference, making this championship game wack. Occasionally a fluke takes place, like when Nebraska lost the championship game yet still earned a bid to go to the National Championship. But do not look for that to happen again. Just when you think you have a National Championship contender like Oklahoma, a fairytale team such as Texas A&M, which has no shot at the title, comes through and picks up a victory. This has been the story of the Big 12 all season: a juggernaut is on fire and some young upstart team gets big for one game and ruins a contender's season. Nine of the conference's 12 teams are bowl-eligible with over .500 records, but only six at most will get a bid. This competitive nature has last year's national runner-up Nebraska playing average ball. Oklahoma was supposed to be undefeated this season with Texas not far behind, but the Big 12 won't allow it. Oklahoma's loss to A&M and Texas' losses to Oklahoma and Texas Tech have the conference big guns fighting for a BCS bid and most likely losing the battle. Colorado and Kansas State lead the Big 12 north, with a 6-1 and 6-2 conference record respectively. Colorado beat Kansas State, so they have clinched the championship game, but the Jayhawks might be the best team that will not get a crack at the BCS. They have pummeled teams in recent games and deserve to be mentioned with the nation's elite. Colorado has bounced back from another slow start and behind running back Chris Brown, returns to its second consecutive Big 12 championship. While the Buffalo will not see Tempe, a victory against Okalahoma assures them a spot in a BCS game. Iowa State was a ferocious competitor at the beginning of the season, barely getting edged by Florida State in the first game of the season and beating Rose Bowl-bound Iowa. But since then, the Cyclones have struggled to a 4-4 conference record, culminating the lackluster season last week with a loss against U. Conn, a team that has only been in Division I for three years. Texas Tech has one of the country's best quarterbacks, Kliff Kingsbury, but lacks the championship punch on the defensive end. Kingsbury kills defenses, tossing for 42 touchdowns in 13 games; the defense has equally surrendered scores, making the Red Raiders a touch above average. It is a shame that only two of these teams at most will get a BCS bid because Oklahoma, Colorado, Kansas State, and Texas that have all played at a level worthy of greatness. From top to bottom, the Big 12 is the toughest conference of the year; if you have not checked out a conference battle, do so because the season is almost complete.

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News

Surprise: students choose 'family' as ideal Thanksgiving dinner companions

November 25

Catherine Zeta-Jones gossips with Brad Pitt on your right as George Bush discusses ideology with Martin Luther King Jr. on your left. From across the table, Mick Jagger _ or rather, Sir Mick Jagger _ pauses from eyeing an Olsen twin and asks you to please pass the cranberry relish. Students' Ultimate Turkey Day Companions Famous Actors6%Famous Musicians6%Famous Authors2%Historical Figures12%Friends4%Family54%Boyfriend/Girlfriend3%Other13% Celebrities and historical figures galore: the ideal Thanksgiving dinner company? Not according to the University undergraduate population. Given the opportunity to spend Thanksgiving dinner with any one person _ living, dead, famous, or infamous _ 54 percent of students, surveyed in an unscientific paper survey conducted in Dewick over the past week, would opt to dine with family. "Thanksgiving is such a family-oriented holiday," Priya Sharma said. "Thanksgiving is the ultimate family holiday," agreed senior Meagan Rock. The pair provided a glimpse of how most Tufts student feel. Many of them live hundreds of miles _ even oceans _ away from their families and so this sentiment may be even stronger for them. For these students, the appeal of sharing the traditional holiday meal with family members outshines the appeal of sharing it with celebrities or historical figures. Given the choice, freshman Sonam Hajela would spend Turkey Day dinner with "[her] family in India because [she] never sees them." Likewise, junior Shuhatra Allen would elect to spend the big meal with her "entire family, because we never see each other." 14 percent of surveyed students were more attracted to fame than family, electing to spend Turkey Day with a famous actor, musician, author, or sports figure. Sophomore Nina Soares would spend the holiday dinner with Michael Jordan, who she considers "an intense athlete and phenomenal sports figure." Freshman Craig Convissar would choose to dine with Lucille Ball because "she'd someone that [he] admire[s] a lot." And junior Alison Tedford chose Bob Dylan. Why? "Because he's Bob Dylan," Tedford said. Others would like to share the stuffing with famous individuals for more unusual reasons. Freshman Telly Kousakis chose actress Catherine Zeta-Jones, explaining that he'd "love to see her bite into a nice juicy thigh." Senior Robert Kim would like to share the meal with the Rolling Stones: "There'd be a fun after-dinner party," he said. And freshman Chris Lintz would spend the holiday with Gary Coleman. "He's cute, and he wouldn't eat much," Lintz said. 12 percent of surveyed students would like to spend Thanksgiving with a historical figure. Senior Emilio Comotti would choose "Leonardo da Vinci, because he is the man and he is Italian." Freshman Rob Spies said that he would like to mash the potatoes with Mother Teresa. "She embodies the ideals of Thanksgiving in her philosophy of self-sacrifice, generosity, and sense of community," he said. Other students cited Jesus Christ, Phillip II of Spain, and Einstein as individuals with whom they'd like to spend Thanksgiving. Seven percent of surveyed students would choose to spend the holiday dinner with either friends, girlfriends, or boyfriends. "There's no one else I'd rather be with," said freshman Cory Levitt, who would choose to spend Thanksgiving dinner with his girlfriend. Freshman Yen Jin would prefer to spend the meal with her friends from high school: "I miss them and wish we had good times like [in] the old days," Jin said. Nostalgia is also a factor in many students' desire to spend Thanksgiving with family members. One sophomore said that she would choose to spend the holiday with her late grandfather. "I would like to tell him about the things I've done since he's been gone... it would be nice to have one more Thanksgiving with him," she said. Junior Claire Johnson would also choose to spend Thanksgiving with a late family member. "I'd like to spend Thanksgiving with my great grandmother on my dad's side," Johnson said. "She was a young child during the time of slavery." Given the choice, freshman Adrienne Poon would opt to spend the big day with a grandfather she never met. "He passed away before I was born, so I never got a chance to meet him," Poon said. "I'd like to see what he's like in person, because I've heard so many stories about him." Freshman Anjuli Singh summed up the feelings of most University students: "I'd want to spend [Thanksgiving] with family," she said. "You appreciate them more when you're not with them day to day."

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News

Tufts cosponsors 11th annual Gore "Family Re-Union"

November 25

Tufts' Applied Developmental Science Institute recently cosponsored the 11th annual "Family Re-Union" held at Vanderbilt University to address major concerns affecting families and children. Professor Richard Lerner of the Eliot Pearson Department of Child Development gave a keynote address at the conference, which was held last month, gaining positive recognition for the University, administrators and faculty said. Tufts took an active part in preparing for the "Family Re-Union," participating in conference conceptualization and design, organizing the symposiums, and inviting participants, Lerner said. Both Tufts and the Gore family have a history of strong involvement in promoting positive development in youth and families, Lerner said. Lerner is currently co-teaching a course on positive youth development with former Vice President Al Gore, who along with his wife Tipper, has moderated the conference since its beginning in 1992. Lerner was active in bringing Gore to campus last semester to host a symposium of national child development experts. "This conference provided great visibility on a national stage for Tufts, as well as an opportunity to influence policy-making nationwide," Lerner said. Dean of the University College of Citizenship and Public Service (UCCPS) Rob Hollister said that the "extraordinary national visibility" Tufts gained as a result of conference participation has other benefits. "Tufts' leadership role in events like these calls attention to our excellence in the related areas of Child Development and of Citizenship and Public Service," he said. "This also helps to attract to Tufts the best faculty and students, and financial resources." A group of administrators, students, and faculty represented Tufts at the Re-Union. The delegation included Dean of Arts and Sciences Susan Ernst, members of the UCCPS National Advisory Committee Alan Solomont and Fran Rodgers, Child Development Professor Don Wertlieb, and Omidyar Scholars Zach Baker, Kimberly Boehler, Mary Smith, Corey Probst, and Randi Wiggins. All UCCPS Omidyar Scholars had the opportunity to attend, according to Hollister. "Tufts was strongly represented at this event and UCCPS was pleased to be part of that group," Hollister said. UCCPS was founded in 1999 to encourage civic engagement and community building among faculty and students. Omidyar Citizenship and Public Service Scholars, the largest student component of UCCPS, were invited to go as part of their scholarship program. Baker, an Omidyar Scholar and community health major, attended the event because his scholarship projects involve working with children. "The basic premise was that youth should be treated as assets within the community," Baker said. He described the event as a combination of speakers and workshops addressing young people as agents of change within their community. Despite the conference's political nature, Baker said, the event was beneficial. "Lerner was there to give the developmental perspective and Al Gore was there to show the political perspective," he said. "They wanted to mesh them together to show how policy and developmental psychology could work together." Lerner serves as Bergstrom Chair in Applied Developmental Science and director of the Applied Developmental Science Institute at the Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Development. His work with the conference is one example of the many accomplishments of Tufts faculty that deserve recognition, Ernst said.

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News

Student stuck on campus for Thanksgiving

November 25

Q: All of my friends are going home to their families for Thanksgiving. I live so far away that I can't go home. I'm stuck here at school over the break and it's going to suck. I miss my family. What can I do to feel better? _ Homesick for Turkey A: Awww... that's really no fun. You must know that Tufts students come from all over the globe (even places where Thanksgiving isn't a holiday!) so you're definitely not alone. There will be people around, parties most likely happening and most importantly: sleep to catch up on! We're only a few weeks away from the end of the semester, so for a lot of students it doesn't make sense to make the trek all the way home and back only to be returning home for winter break almost immediately after. You'll be back home soon. Take this time to catch up on some of your work, or get stuff done early so you're not stuck cramming for finals at the last second... not that we do that or anything, of course. Make some new friends around campus, since there will be others in the bored-and-lonely boat. Call your family, talk to them for a while and tell them how much you miss them. Call up friends you haven't spoken to in ages and catch up. Thanksgiving is a holiday of more than togetherness... it's also a holiday of (you guessed it) thanks. Take some time to think about what you're really thankful for! Maybe you've got a friend close by who wouldn't mind having an extra head at the Thanksgiving dinner table. Doesn't hurt you to ask... it usually only hurts the turkey. Q: Dear Angie, I'm in a fight with one of my best friends, sort of. She won't tell me what I did wrong, ignores every attempt I make to communicate with her and basically is giving me the "silent treatment." How am I supposed to make up with someone if she won't even acknowledge my existence? I value this friendship so much, I don't want it to end. How can I make things better? _ Shut out A: Well, it looks like you've got two options: confront her to her face (if possible) so she can't ignore you, or let her cool down a bit before you try and pressure her into talking. The "silent treatment" routine is a little too "high school," you know? Now that you're both legal adults, she needs to realize that a little maturity can help sort out this situation. It's hard to judge whether or not this will just blow over, since I'm not sure what you did (then again, you're not sure either). If your friendship is as rewarding as you say it is, it seems unlikely that she'll shut the door on you completely. She just seems pissed right now. The more you try to talk to her, the more annoyed she may become. Just let her know what you told me: that you care for her, her friendship means a lot to you and then hopefully she'll come around soon enough to work everything out. Be patient, if you can.

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News

Rob Lowe leaves NBC hit 'West Wing'

November 25

They say Washington, DC is always in transition, with Congress changing every two years, and a new administration coming into town at least every eight years. Yet two things have remained constant over the past few years: the Washington Redskins foundering and the main cast of The West Wing staying the same. That will change this week, however, as the Redskins will win on Thanksgiving (yeah, right!) and the cast of NBC's hit drama will change on Wednesday as Rob Lowe, who plays the character of Sam Seaborne, will leave the show. In the Hall of Fame of Worst Career Moves Ever, this one probably ranks near the top. The Magic Johnson Hour, Kevin Costner in Waterworld, Justin breaking up with Britney are a few other contenders for the spot. What possible career he thinks he might have outside of the show is unimaginable. This is a guy who was a modest movie star in the 1980s, and whose greatest acting achievement in the '90s was being Chris Farley's fake brother in Tommy Boy. Mix in some controversy when he was videotaped with underage girls at the 1988 Democratic National Convention, and you have a typical washout Hollywood nobody. Lowe made the announcement in mid-July that he would be departing from the show, supposedly because of his paltry salary of $75,000 an episode. While his salary has stayed the same for the first three years, his fellow cast members' salaries have increased threefold since the show's premiere to about $70,000. The show's star Martin Sheen surpasses them all with a $300,000 per episode stipend. West Wing was originally supposed to feature Lowe's character as the leading force, with President Bartlet, played by Sheen, making a guest appearance once an episode, if even that often. As the show quickly evolved, however, Sheen became a more integral part of the cast and, eventually, the star of the show. Lowe was never happy with this arrangement, which could also be a reason for his impending departure. Most likely, however, it is probably Lowe's titanic-sized ego that has caused his departure. Only a self-centered Hollywood pretty boy would find it necessary to earn more than his cast mates, in spite of the fact that he has the same amount of screen time and has been nominated for fewer awards than any of them. Regardless of the possible sour grapes, West Wing creator and writer Aaron Sorkin has given Lowe a gracious and praiseworthy send-off. Over the course of the past few episodes, the plot line evolved so that Sam would run for a seat of Congress. While campaigning for President Bartlett in California, Sam dropped in on a House of Representatives race featuring a dead Democratic candidate against a very much alive Republican candidate in the very much Republican Orange County. Headed by Will Bailey (Jeremy from Sorkin's other gem Sports Night) and Winnie from The Wonder Years, the campaign is dead set on victory, in spite of their candidate's lack of pulse. Sam promises the widow of the candidate that he would put his name on the ballot for the run-off election in the one to a million chance that the Democrats win the general election. As television magic would have it, the Democrats win, and with the blessing of his co-workers Sam is off to run for Congress. Tomorrow night's episode features Sam's exit from The West Wing, although don't be surprised if he comes back for a few guest appearances when Lowe realizes what an ass he's been. This sudden departure over a salary squabble will leave him where he left off, nowhere. His life and career was salvaged by The West Wing, and the politeness he is being shown on his way out will be nothing like the treatment he will receive in the real world _ outside of Washington, DC _ where some things never change.

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News

Benchmark schools difficult to define

November 25

Tufts prides itself on being a contradiction. A top-notch research university with a cozy liberal arts college atmosphere, a small school where you can meet someone new every day, and a city school with a quaint New England campus. But these exact qualities which make Tufts so unique also make it exceedingly difficult to compare the University to other institutions. But by encompassing a bit of both worlds, Tufts draws applicants from students looking for a variety of experiences, according to Dean of Students Bruce Reitman. "Students who find Tufts attractive are looking in particular for a school with all the attributes of a larger institution," he said. "While [Tufts] maintains the advantages of a school that size, you can know the name of half the people here." The chief method that the administration uses to identify how prospective students feel about Tufts _ and therefore the public identity of the University _ is by application overlap. In this process, Tufts charts its applicants' other prospective schools and looks to see where the greatest overlap occurs. Overlapping applications are to Tufts' "cohort schools," Dean of Students Bruce Reitman said. Once cohort schools are named, Tufts may self-evaluate based on what is known of these other schools' performances. "Application overlap is a significant piece of what makes a school compare itself to other schools," Reitman said. This application research is gathered not only for Tufts' freshman class, but also for the applicants who choose to go elsewhere. The University wants to know "if students do not accept an offer of retention, where are they going?" Dean of Admissions David Cuttino said. In this way, the University understands the competition _ both its shortcomings and successes. The universities which attract the most similar applicants to Tufts are Brown University, Harvard University, University of Pennsylvania, and Yale University, supporting the common claim that Tufts is a safety school for the Ivies. The list of other cohort schools includes Boston College, Boston University, Duke University, Washington University of St. Louis, Wesleyan University, New York University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Brandeis University. Tufts has greater overlap with universities than with colleges, according to this list. Cohort schools also "tend to be small, top-notch research universities, where research is done and Ph.D.s are given," Reitman said. College rankings printed by companies like Princeton Review and US News are typically used by the public to rank the reputation of a school, but Tufts students and administrators are hesitant to accept these evaluations. "The rankings sell books," Reitman said. "I think taking someone else's list of schools instead of thinking of what's important to [an individual] is a mistake." Many students were doubtful about the reliability of the rankings. "It counts things like alumni-giving percentage that aren't really important in college life," freshman Scott Burton said. "A survey would be a lot more reliable." Reitman cautions, however, that he is hesitant to discount them completely, especially since Tufts has been doing well in these rankings. Tufts was ranked 28 this year in US News & World Report's annual "America's Best Colleges" edition, and a few years before the University broke into the Top 25. But the environment of these cohort schools, as defined by the college application process, is not a match for the Tufts atmosphere, according to Burton. Many students characterize schools based on academic experience and athletic competition. Tufts, in Burton's opinion, is most similar to other New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) schools _ including Tufts, Amherst, Bates, Bowdoin, Colby, Connecticut College, Hamilton, Middlebury, Trinity, Wesleyan, and Williams. This comparison was made with the distinction that Tufts is larger and closer to Boston than these other schools. Reputation, size, and location in the Northeast are other means for comparison that students use when naming similarities between Tufts and other schools. "What separated [Tufts]...was being right next to Boston," Burton said. Research opportunities at the University also help to distinguish it from the smaller colleges of the NESCAC. "We've got some pretty top-notch research programs," freshman Adam Buckley said. Tufts' size helps to create a unique undergraduate experience, according to Buckley. With approximately 30 percent minorities of an undergraduate population of 4,677, Tufts has "diversity in the school population, but also in what you can do here," he said. There are many different ways to evaluate the Tufts experience, and it may be difficult to rely on any one method, students say. Some preferred to describe Tufts as a small college in a big city with the research opportunities usually found at larger universities. Administrators played up the school's balance between a larger research university and a small liberal arts college. Ultimately, it's just a matter of opinion.

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News

University approaches reaccreditation process

November 25

Tufts will have the opportunity to gather input from its benchmark schools when a group of administrators visit the Medford campus in March to evaluate the recently-drafted reaccreditation self-study. The visit, as well as the reaccreditation process, was explained to the few members of the Tufts community in attendance at yesterday's reaccreditation committee meeting. Faculty and administrators discussed the self-study, a compilation of the evaluations of 12 committees formed to assess the University's current state as part of the reaccreditation process. University Professor and former Provost Sol Gittleman, co-chair of the Self-Study Steering Committee, presented the nearly 200 page draft. The document is the first step toward reaccreditation by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC). All institutions of higher education must undergo the exercise of self-study in preparation for accreditation every ten years. The document "tells the story of Tufts and its vision," Terkla said. The committees have been working since June 2001 to assemble the draft, which will be presented to a visiting NEASC committee in March 2003. The reaccreditation process was both a formality and a critical opportunity for feedback, Gittleman said. "In some ways [accreditation] can be considered to be a rubber stamp approving Tufts," he said. But the process provides the University with important feedback from an outside committee on areas in need of improvement. Some of the most eclectic and highly regarded individuals in higher education will serve on Tufts' reaccreditation committee, said Steering Committee Co-Chair Dawn Terkla, Executive Director of Institutional Research. Current Dartmouth President James Wright will head the committee, accompanied by deans and vice-presidents from universities including the other Ivy Leagues, University of Chicago, and Wesleyan. The visit _ during which the committee will comment on the reaccreditation report and provide suggestions that must be followed up on _ will provide a comparison of where Tufts stands in the world of higher education. "We're being benchmarked by some of the best universities in the US," Gittleman said. The evaluation by the committee will provide more of a vision of where Tufts is going, which is not addressed by the self-study. In the past, critical suggestions have come out of this part of the reaccreditation process. In 1992, NEASC told the University that its library, athletic department, and technology "were in trouble," Gittleman said. "We certainly have made progress in these efforts since then." A vision of the future of Tufts will also be provided by the report by the Task Force on the Undergraduate Experience, Terkla said. Tufts' last accreditation occurred in 1992, but the 2002 process was pushed back a year due to the University's 150th anniversary celebration last year. Only a dozen people, mostly Steering Committee members, attended yesterday's forum. Although a mass email, ads in the Daily, and posters advertised the event, very few students showed up at the forum. Students were, however, involved in the 12 committees. In addition to clarifying the University's vision, the self-study will help the Task Force on the Undergraduate Experience, which seeks to gather opinion on the University's current state. "The Task Force will use this document as a resource for how students are looking at the current situation at Tufts and how we should be looking at ourselves," Task Force Chair Gilbert Metcalf said. "It gives us a reference for what to work on in the future."

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News

Reinventing the future

November 25

Ahh, the future. It's a great place where all of life's problems will be solved and replaced with newer, more complicated problems. And as critically disrespected as science fiction may be as a genre, it has a special place in American culture. We love looking forward and imagining newer and better things. And imagine we do. For Minority Report, Steven Spielberg assembled a team of "experts" to sketch out 2054 for him. Sure, it looks great (and it's nice to know that addictive street drugs will only become scarier and more addictive), but it's still not going to be right. It's hardly worth spending that much time and effort on something that's going to be wrong anyway. Writers in the '50s couldn't conceive of computers, and it's shortsighted to think we won't come up with a similarly unexpected revolution in the next 50 years. Sure, I can't ask moviemakers or writers to get everything _ or much of anything _ right. The future's a pretty intangible thing. I'd rather they didn't try so hard sometimes, really. Why pretend to be right if it's impossible? Think of The Jetsons. Sure, you've got some great quasi-futuristic devices: robot maids, food pills, flying cars, domes on everything, and the like. But to the show's credit, it doesn't even pretend to be a realistic possible future. It was a '60s sitcom like almost any other, complete with smart-aleck housewives and slapstick humor. It's kind of odd, though, that with all that slick technology the robot maid has a head like a miniature charcoal grill. Apparently we're doomed to give up on aesthetics by the time we get flying cars. More serious works, however, pretend to adopt realism but fall prey to their environments anyway. Alien may have a dark, gritty, practical view of the future, but it's still a future where people wear Reeboks and computers consist of nothing but flashing diodes. Apparently on-the-fly interstellar navigation is possible using computer systems from 1979, and no one's even bothered to upgrade to Microsoft Windows. Audiences should realize and appreciate how unlikely many aspects of our science fiction are. Visions of the future from any era always miss something important because they're colored by the present culture. We look ahead and we don't really imagine anything new; we imagine the present with a futuristic twist. Music, clothes, architecture, you name it _ it just looks cheesy once you look back on it. We seem to overestimate the progress of our space program pretty reliably, too. According to 2001: A Space Odyssey, shouldn't we be sending manned space missions to the outer planets so they can get ruined by insane artificial intelligences by now? At the very least, we should have some insane artificial intelligences floating around. Of course, maybe humanity has taken the cautionary messages of science fiction to heart: artificial intelligence is always a bad idea. You end up with rampant prejudice, an unemployed populace, or deadly mass destruction every time. It's just not worth it. Really, though, the year 2000 was a big disappointment. So many utopian and dystopian futures should have come to pass by now. I want robot servants! I want malaise and drug addiction! I want the moral dilemmas that come with space colonization! Interstellar war! Laser technology! And weren't lasers supposed to be the be-all and end-all of the future, too? And what do we use them for now? Laser pointers. Understand that I feel a little let down. You want slightly more over-the-top futures? How about Total Recall? Put aside the movie's great reality-bending aspects and focus on Sharon Stone in neon aerobic clothes with a knife (you know you want to). Amazing how much workout clothes of the future look like ones from 1990, eh? And amazing how much all the other clothes match up, too. A cutting-edge Martian club looks pretty flimsy and decrepit now _ I don't care if you're a mutant and you have to pay for your air, you don't go to a crappy place like that, even if there are three-breasted women there. Even better: Back To The Future Part II. Can you imagine a future more tainted by the '80s? Stupid expandable jackets, self-tying shoes, holographic waiters (honk if you remember Max Headroom). The flying cars are a nice touch _ no self-respecting future society would be without them _ and so is the miniature, dehydrated pizza. Sure, Robert Zemeckis was trying to be funny, but it's the sort of funny future that we'd never imagine today. Talking about Star Trek opens up a can of worms too big for this little pond, but Next Generation fans: explain the gravity thing to me. Think hard. No matter how much damage the Enterprise takes, the artificial gravity never fails. They shut off life support, but the gravity stays on. And every planet has normal Earth gravity? You're asking too much of me there. I can't take it. You want really bad science fiction? Let's talk Red Planet. There's too much to attack there to even do it justice, but for starters: why would you send a military robot with this emergency crew to Mars? Why would you equip this robot with a special "guerrilla warfare" mode designed only to murder the entire crew? Why would you build the robot so it would switch to that mode by default when damaged? Seriously. These people accept from the very start that their robot may go crazy and try to kill them. Who the hell designs these things? If you're building a robot to navigate your ship, don't teach it how to fight with knives just for the hell of it. It's just bad practice. So there are the hasty visions, the funny visions, the utterly implausible visions... all wrong, of course, but often pretty entertaining regardless. Good science fiction is tough to craft, and I don't want to fault anyone for trying. Just remember, though, that what seems slick and impressive now will undoubtedly seem ridiculous in a few years. Come 2054, will Minority Report look overreaching or just silly? My bet is large helpings of both.

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News

Men's hoops do not expect rebuilding season

November 25

After being hampered by injuries last season, the men's basketball team looks to turn things around in its season opener tonight at home against the non-conference Springfield College Pride at 7 p.m. at Cousens Gym. The Jumbos hope to improve upon last season's disappointing 12-13 overall record (3-6, NESCAC) against the Pride, who come in with a record of 1-1 after competing in the Rose City Classic in New Jersey this past weekend hosted by Drew University. Springfield handily defeated Ursinus College, 73-59 in the opener, but then lost to the Keene State Owls 69-57 in the championship game. After an abnormally long preseason _ 25 days instead of the usually 16-18 _ the Jumbos are excited to finally start their season. "We're all really excited and prepared to play somebody else besides ourselves," coach Bob Sheldon said. Sheldon has chosen to start five returning members of his team in tomorrow's game. Senior co-captains Jim Wilson and Brian Shapiro will anchor the team at the guards, senior Mike McGlynn, who led the team in scoring with 18 points per game last season. Sophomore Reggie Stovell will start at the forward spots, and 6'7 sophomore Craig Coupe, who lead the team with 8.4 rebounds per game and 2.2 blocks per game last season and received NESCAC rookie of the year honors, rounds out the starting five at center. The depth of the Jumbo squad will truly be tested for the first few weeks of the season, as it has already lost a few key players to injury. Most notably is starting junior point guard Eric Mack who suffered a severe foot sprain and is likely out until January. In addition, 6'8 freshman forward Dan Martin, who likely would have seen important playing time, suffered torn ligaments in his ankle, and like Mack, is likely out until January. Finally, 6'5 freshman forward Scott Armstrong will miss the first few weeks of the season due to injury as well. "Because of all our injuries, our reserves are going to play a key role in the success of the team," Sheldon said. "Andrew Kaklamanos transferred from a school in Florida, and is going to see considerable minutes. Also, freshman Blaine Lay will play a lot. We also have guys like Deyvehn East, Colin Wetherill, and Bisi Ezeolu who can come in and have an immediate impact on the game." Despite these injuries, and the loss of junior Phil Barlow and seniors Lee Neugebauer and Kyle Van Natta, both who quit for personal reasons, the Jumbos maintain a positive outlook for the season. After only losing three seniors to graduation last season, the Jumbos biggest asset this season is probably experience. Their new, bigger offense, anchored by their five seniors, features players most of whom saw substantial minutes last season. "This season is by no means a rebuilding year," Sheldon said. "A lot of people played valuable minutes last year, and every player who is starting this year started at least a few times last year. We have a ton of talent, and all of our starters have had a year to play together and get comfortable with each other. We're looking to have a very successful season." The Jumbos played the Pride once last season, losing a tough battle at Springfield, 80-74, but the Jumbos won the previous four meetings. "We match up well with them," Sheldon said. "We haven't played a game yet, while they have already played twice, but once we get ride of the opening game jitters, I think we should be okay."

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News

Brigham earns All-American status, finishes 11th in nation

November 25

Sophomore Nate Brigham exceeded all expectations when he finished 11th out of 215 runners at the NCAA Division III Cross Country National Championship Race in Northfield, MN on Saturday to earn Division III Coaches' All-American status. In what he called "the most ridiculous day of my life," Brigham ran the five-mile course in just 25:30.6, a mere four-tenths of a second out of a top ten. Brigham's performance not only marked him as an All-American but earned him special recognition from the NCAA. The top 35 finishers in the race were honored as All-Americans while the top 15 finishers also received NCAA plaques. In a highly strategic race of position battle, Brigham got good position about 1,000 meters into the race and made it through the tight opening two mile stretch, packed with runners in a contending spot. When the pack began to spread out in the middle of the race, Brigham found himself near the back of a pack of about fifteen runners following the leaders. Steadily surging ahead, Brigham refused to be passed over the last two miles, and peaked at the end, passing four runners over the last 150 miles to capture 11th place. It was the highest finish in Nationals by a Jumbo since Rod Hemingway captured sixth place in 1997. Brigham's finish was also the best by a Tufts underclassmen since Steve Swift captured 20th as a freshman in 1989. Although the men's team failed to make the NCAA race, finishing sixth place in the qualifiers. Brigham advanced by virtue of being one of the top New England runners whose team didn't qualify. "It was difficult to race without my teammates," Brigham said, "but they were there to greet me at the finish line." Sophomore Brian Mcnamara was one of five of Brigham's teammates who made the trek to the Midwest to support Brigham and came away exhilarated by their teammate's success. "We were expecting him to maybe finish top fifty if he ran well, top 35 if he ran great," Mcnamara said. "To finish 11th... that's amazing." "The race was a gritty, position battle and I made some smart decisions," Brigham said. "I just kept telling myself, 'You're in a good spot, if you don't screw up you're an All-American.'" Coach Putnam seemed more impressed than Brigham himself, citing the race as one of the best run by an underclassman in his 22 years at Tufts. "I think he realized from last year that if you allow this race to loom larger than it is, you're in trouble," Putnam said, "This time he had the calm, quiet confidence that he was good enough to race with those guys, and he went out and did it." Last season, the Jumbos qualified for the National Championship race but finished 23rd out of 24 teams, while Brigham finished sixth on the team and 188th overall with a time of 26:56. However, with experience and confidence on his side, this year was a whole different story. Brigham's performance left no doubt in the minds of the runner and his coach as to how the team would have fared had they run. "If we had qualified," Brigham said, "we could have finished top sixteen, for sure." Putnam also thought that Brigham's finish indicated that the team could have had success on the national level. This was also demonstrated by the overall success of NESCAC schools in the meet. From the league, Williams finished seventh overall, Bowdoin eighth, and Connecticut College 20th. A week after winning the NCAA New England Championships, senior Ryan Bak of Trinity College took home first place on the national level, while Wisconsin Oshkosh claimed the Division III title, placing runners in the second, third, 15th, 16th, and 30th spots. Despite that the team came up just short of qualifying this year, Brigham's performance left the team feeling optimistic about next year. "Hopefully next year I'll get back there with my team," Brigham said. "I think we can be a force to be reckoned with." "It will be easier next year having a leader who has already raced in two NCAA races and is an All-American," Putnam said.

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News

Sabur Restaurant and Lounge: a Tufts favorite

November 24

You've probably passed by Sabur a million times _ you can't miss the red, flashing "OPEN" sign _ and wondered about the restaurant and lounge near Teele Square. You may have even read in the Nutrition Matters weekly feature that Sabur is one of President Bacow's favorite restaurants. If you haven't actually been to Sabur, however, you are really missing out. Conveniently located near Tufts University, Sabur offers a fusion of flavors, combining cuisines from Italy, Greece, Southern France, and the Balkans to North Africa. During the week, there isn't much of a crowd, but on weekends when there is live music, you'd be lucky to get a table without a long wait in this cozy, trendy restaurant. The main dining room has about twenty ornate handcrafted Bosnian copper tables and an open-hearth grill. Despite the cold chill outside, the hanging light fixtures dressed in yellow fabric blend with the red d?©cor to diffuse yellow-orange light, adding a warm glow to the room. The service at Sabur was fabulous. The waiters are attentive yet unobtrusive. After you are seated, water and bread are immediately provided. Guests are allowed enough time to peruse the menu, and are offered expert recommendations when they ask for advice. Ordering the mezze is a great way to try a variety of exotic foods, and it is less expensive than ordering main entrees, which range from $13.75 to $19.75. Mezze means "to nibble or enjoy at leisure" and is the Middle Eastern/Mediterranean tradition of eating several small appetizers, including simple cold vegetable dishes and miniature versions of elaborate main dishes. It is typically served with wine. The chef's selection of mezze for two people ($10) consisted of "chicken skewers, zucchini fritters, hummus with pita, and barley salad." The large Greek salad ($9) and another appetizer _ the potato and celery root cakes with pear-spiced relish and sour cream ($7) completed the meal. The menu's description of the chef's selection of mezze did not do it justice; the food arrived at the table and was nothing less than art. The four fried zucchini fritters were carefully arranged and were surrounded by pita bread that formed two fans along opposite sides of the plate, bordering the two portions of hummus. The two skewers of chicken were crisscrossed over the cranberry chutney, which stood out next to the barley. Sprigs of herbs accented the dish. The Greek salad was equally impressive on its own plate, full of bright green romaine lettuce, tomatoes, olives, feta cheese, and red and green peppers. The potato and celery root cakes were also delicately layered and topped with sour cream, with the pears around the edges. And it was all overwhelmingly delicious. The zucchini fritters had a hint of dill, the chicken was spicy and perfectly paired with the cranberry chutney, and the Greek salad was refreshing. The blending of multiple cultures was seamless and the flavors complemented each other well. Anyone seeking bland food might be disappointed. The zucchini fritters and the potato celery root cakes were deep fried, which might mislead anyone seeking the typically more healthful "Mediterranean" diet. The desserts were exotic and rich. I recommend the dessert special: tea poached figs stuffed with walnuts and almonds served with honey chai cr??me fraishe ($4.75). We also tried the chocolate chip cannoli ($3), which had an unusual orange flavor, and the cheesecake with berry sauce ($5). Our waiter even brought us a complimentary taste of his favorite: glazed apricots filled with mascarpone and almonds ($5). Overall, the restaurant was a very pleasant experience _ a great place to take your parents when they're in town. The food was wonderful and the service was excellent. And if you can't wait for your parents, it was all 15% off with a coupon that you can print from Sabur's website at www.saburrestaurant.com. Bon Appetit! Diane Voyatzis can be reached at nutrition@tuftsdaily.com.

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News

Int'l Affairs expert says US should fight Iraq

November 24

Given the threat posed by Saddam Hussein's continuing reign in Iraq, it is correct for the United States to intervene in the region, according to Leslie Gelb (LA '59), the president of the Council on Foreign Relations and a University trustee. Gelb spoke about Iraq and also gave his opinions on issues ranging from North Korean missiles to the Pakistani president to a crowd of Tufts students during a lecture last Friday at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. US involvement in Iraq is important because Iraq definitively has weapons of mass destruction and a means to deliver them, Gelb said. Hussein has used chemical weapons in the past and Iraq also has the means to create biological weapons, such as spores of anthrax and small pox. "It's not a question of whether he has them, it's whether he can use them effectively on the battlefield," Gelb said. "Saddam Hussein isn't just another petty dictator. I think President Bush is right in wanting to get rid of him, because containment didn't and will not work." Iraq's capacity to build nuclear weapons is the most important threat to the US, and "at this point, Saddam's connection to al Qaeda is just the icing on the cake," he said. Gelb contested Bush's methodology, but insisted that his attention to the situation was an improvement. "Whatever happens will be talked about for many, many years to come. Things are never going to be the same," he said. Problems with US intervention include the fact that most countries don't want the US to go to war in Iraq, and a power vacuum in Iraq after Hussein's ouster could create further instability in the Middle East, especially if the populations of neighboring countries oppose his removal. The reaction of European Muslims is another unknown factor, Gelb said. The support of the UN Security Council was a critical signal of badly-needed international support. "It is extremely rare that all 15 members of the Security Council, with member countries like Syria, agree unanimously on anything," Gelb said. UN countries must now decide how to handle a post-Hussein Iraq because, "sometimes victory could be worse than the current situation," he said. The US government must also prepare its country at home, something Gelb thinks the Bush administration has failed to do. "The Bush administration is criminally and utterly irresponsible to assume that we're not going to be faced with a compromising situation," he said. "We're perilously at risk." Gelb discussed other conflict-prone areas of the world, calling North Korea a country that "bridges the time between the Cold War era and today." Deteriorating relations between the US and North Korea could result in America cutting off all economic support to the country and forcing Korea to sell weapons of mass destruction to Iraq, terrorist groups, and South Asian countries such as Pakistan. Gelb also talked about India and Pakistan, countries he said are "crazier than the USSR and the US were during the cold war." But, he said, "just because both countries possess nuclear weapons, doesn't mean they will do dumb things." Gelb said Pakistani President General Pervez Musharraf was a "really a good man" who had done good things for his country, and praised his assistance to the US in the fight against terrorism. Musharraf has used questionable methods to maintain internal peace, however, such as "turning a blind eye" to the Muslim extremists who commit violence against India and other nations. Students generally had very positive reactions to the speech. "Dr. Gelb is a brilliant man," US Navy Commander and Fletcher student Susan Fink said. "He is highly-respected in this field, as he heads one of the most prestigious organizations in the nation. His speech was timely and excellent, as it gave a comprehensive look at geopolitics." A number of Tufts undergraduates echoed Fink's assessment. "I felt the event was captivating and surpassed everything I expected out of it," freshman Amanivr Chahal said. "It is now obvious to me that Dr. Gelb is not only a great orator, but an extremely worldly and knowledgeable man." Gelb came to Tufts as part of the Charles Francis Adams lecture series, which began in the early 1980s. The lecture series is Fletcher's "most prestigious vehicle in bringing in experts on foreign policy," Fletcher spokeswoman Terry Ann Knopf said. In previous years, the lecture series has brought figures like George Bush, Henry Kissinger and Ted Turner to Tufts. Gelb delivered the lecture casually, starting with a few jokes. "I'm going to think out loud with you all," he said. Gelb, who currently serves as a University trustee, served as assistant to the US Secretary of State during the Carter administration. For the past nine years, Gelb has been president of the Council on Foreign Relations, one of the premier organizations that advises the federal government on dealing with global issues.

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News

Efficiency plus thorough planning = effective reform

November 24

Recent efforts to reform the TCU senate constitution reflect inherent flaws in the reform system and its approaches. Issues of concern and controversy must be dealt with and solved efficiently, and that means settling the debate once and for all through an organized, thorough process rather than a long drawn-out and convoluted series of small committee meetings and bickering constituencies. It is relatively safe to say that the debate on the validity and fairness of the culture rep system is an endless one. At the end of the day, it's simply reality that not everyone can be satisfied, and there never will be a situation in which every single constituency will be equally at peace with the system. A good piece of advice to constitution reformers should be to focus efforts on finding a just, efficient method to settle the debate instead of scrambling _ ineffectively _ to satisfy rival constituencies. If the senators leading the reform effort pushes forward with its proposed reform tactics with this mindset, the reform is bound to fail. In each of the past three years, there has been some sort of student-wide voting process held concerning the culture rep system, and it's not unreasonable to conclude that after each of those elections, the debate has only grown more heated and less settled. It's time to settle the issue in a truly democratic and efficient manner before the entire student body _ before those who should really form the crux of the opinion rather than a few vocal representatives of various constituencies lose complete interest in the entire issue because of the ridiculous lack of direction and the lack of any prospect of settlement in reform efforts. Reformists would also do well to manage planning more thoroughly when it comes to looking at possible changes to the constitution. It is laughable that there is talk to reform the constitution yet again given that the constitution has just been revised. Had these reforms been more insightful and more forward-looking in their planning, perhaps these baby steps of ineffective and unsettled reform could have been prevented. We are not supporting sweeping generalized reforms that would be equally ineffective, but rather more thorough planning and foresight to what sorts of issues will be of concern once the reforms are implemented _ and how to address those concerns in the initial reform effort or election. It's time for those in charge of reform to buckle down before they lose valuable respect for their abilities to lead and represent efficiently and effectively.

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News

HYPE Fall show caps off mime collaboration

November 24

The collaborative work of the five members of HYPE, Tufts' mime group, culminated in their performance in last night's annual CheapHYPE! show, which also featured Tufts' improv comedy troupe, Cheap Sox. The rehearsal process for HYPE involves a lot of collaboration. The idea for each skit is usually conceived by one or two mimes, and then one mime becomes the rehearsal director for that skit. Even though there is only one rehearsal director, the mimes help each other with technique for each skit. This emphasis on collaboration is unique to miming and separates it from both theatre and dance, in which the director basically imparts his/her vision to the actors. In miming, conversely, the rehearsal director sets the basic movements (entrances, exits, etc.), but the mimes develop their own characters and constantly make suggestions, mime Lily Ladewig explained HYPE provides its members, of which there are currently five (though they will have auditions in the spring), the opportunity to say a lot without actually speaking. A stylized crossover between theatre and dance, miming helps actors to work on using their body, and not just their voices, to communicate. "You have to learn how to be clear [in miming] with your physicality and to express yourself without speaking, while not becoming clich?©d," Miller commented. Bonewitz said being a mime has taught him that as an actor, "your reactions to other character's lines are as important as the lines themselves." Each semester, the mimes brainstorm ideas for skits, which include not only a storyline but also a song to go with it. Then, on the day they refer to as "long day," they hear out all of the ideas and choose five skits in the fall, and ten in the spring. The creative storytelling method demands the mime to communicate his/her actions and emotions only through body movements. A mime show is rather compelling to watch as an audience member and rather exhilarating to perform for the mime. "I've done a lot of theatre," Mime Sarah Kauderer said, "but the high you get when doing a HYPE show is better than any play I've ever been in." HYPE shows usually draw larger crowds than any drama or dance performances because of their singular style, according to mime Moira Murphy-Cairns _ the group's unofficial leader. She brings to the group her perspective as a dancer, and considers miming a "great combination of dance and acting because you get the emotions of acting with the simplicity of dance." While miming has the potential to blend the two art forms, it also has the potential to confuse its audience. Jenn Jarecki, HYPE's stage manager, also includes watching the skits to make sure they make sense.

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News

Jumbos flex swimming muscle at Clark

November 24

The women's swimming team began its 2002-2003 season with a trouncing of non-conference opponent Clark College on Saturday. A Jumbo squad boasting over forty swimmers and divers overwhelmed the smaller Clark Penguins team in the170-119 win. With a non-conference match-up against Wellesley after break, the meet against the Penguins provided an early opportunity to test the waters. Coach Nancy Bigelow held back many of her more experienced swimmers and mixed up events for the other competing athletes. "Each class is an important part of the team," Bigelow said. "They each fill needs that the team has [in order] to be successful." The Jumbos used the uneven match-up to rest their stronger swimmers. The event was a chance for Bigelow to rest her swimmers against a poor squad and also gave her the opportunity to veil the true skill of the Jumbo squad and leave Wellesley guessing as to what Tufts will throw at them when they meet after break. Many freshmen were put into events purely to see how they would handle competition at the collegiate level. Not all of the participants were given the opportunity to compete in their strongest events. Currently, there are 13 freshmen on the team's roster and, if the first match is any indication, this new Jumbo group is ready to make an immediate impact. Meghan Wallach led a trio of freshmen who came away with wins in their collegiate debuts, as she captured two first place finishes in the 100 meter breaststroke and the 200 breaststroke. Freshman Katie Minn also won in her first collegiate competition, placing first in the 100 butterfly and freshman Katherine Ferguson came away with the victory in the 50 meter freestyle. "The older members of the team readily accepted us," Wallach said. "They immediately made me feel like a part of the team." With so many experienced swimmers in the older classes, the freshmen have role models to look up to and learn from. Since swimming is much more individual in nature, there is less competition due to the fact that there are enough spots to keep everyone participating. There is still, however, that bit of competition that will allow the team to advance compete successfully against other teams, but it isn't divisive. "It was a really great start to the season," sophomore swimmer Erica Weitz said. "It was our first opportunity to show our talent. The team really came together and gelled. It was an awesome start." Weitz, one of three Tufts swimmers who qualified for the NCAA Championships last year, won two events for the Jumbos. She swam to victory in the 400 individual medley and the 200 butterfly. Fellow sophomore Kate Sweeney also had a good first meet, winning the 1000 meter freestyle. The squad will get a break during the Thanksgiving holiday, with no meets scheduled during the break. However, the following week the Jumbos will compete against Wellesley and then against NESCAC rival Bowdoin.

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News

Disappointing end to a successful season

November 24

It's starting to become a routine for the women's soccer team, if only every other year. Double-digit wins, a top-25 national ranking, an NCAA Tournament berth. This year was no exception, as the Jumbos posted a 13-4-1 record en route to their third NCAA appearance in five years. The season even ended in another heartbreaking loss, as the Jumbos fell 1-0 to Keene State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on a rainy, cold, and muddy day. The Owls scored on an own goal by Tufts, and the Jumbos failed to capitalize on a number of great opportunities in the last 25 minutes. "We'll never make excuses for ourselves. We didn't put the ball in the net, and we had opportunities. But it's difficult when you have those conditions on the field," coach Martha Whiting said. "It was a sad way to end. We were a good team, and it's hard to be the one sitting at home watching." But although it ended in an NCAA appearance, the year did not start off as well as the team had hoped. A large number of players trying out pushed the final cuts back, and the team had only been together for a few days when it traveled to Wenham, MA to face Gordon. Despite controlling much of the play, the Jumbos wound up losing 2-0 to a surprising Fighting Scot team that would go on to win its first ten and finish 18-3-1. "Preseason felt rushed. By the time we had our team together, we had five practices before our first game, and Gordon had been together for about three weeks," Whiting said. "Starting the season on a loss is hard, especially when you see the talent that you have and the potential that's there." But Tufts bounced back, picking up what would turn out to be a crucial road victory over Amherst, a team that entered the season ranked number two in the country after making it to the NCAA Finals in 2001. "We came out and dominated that game for 90 minutes," senior co-captain Cara Glassanos said. "It was amazing soccer, and it was just a sneak preview of the capabilities of our team." The team won its next game, against Babson, before dropping a 1-0 decision to Conn College on somewhat of a fluke goal. But the Jumbos again rebounded quickly, winning their next six games, including a comeback win on the road in overtime against the previously undefeated Bowdoin Polar Bears, then ranked number one in New England. The win against Bowdoin was pivotal. "We showed that we could come from behind and beat a really good team," sophomore Jen Baldwin said. It got us all excited and gave us the confidence we needed to compete with the best NESCAC teams." The last two wins in the streak were also big for the Jumbos, as they snapped out of a goal-scoring slump, posting 5-1 and 4-2 victories over Trinity and Wesleyan. "We scored more goals against Trinity than we had scored in NESCAC all season," Baldwin said. "So for a team struggling with offense it was a great self-esteem booster." But the trouble they had had putting the ball in the net was a trend that would come back to haunt them, as they scored just three goals in their last four regular season games. After beating Wesleyan, the team lost 2-0 to Williams, then tied Middlebury 0-0 on the road, missing out on a chance to take sole possession of first place in the NESCAC after Williams and Amherst also played to a scoreless tie. Following a mid-week 2-0 win over non-conference Simmons, the Jumbos beat Colby 1-0 to finish their regular season schedule. Then they waited for the results from around the league, as tiebreakers would determine their seed in the NESCAC Tournament. Tufts ended up with the top seed and a first-round bye. "That day was crazy," Whiting said. "Waiting for the results from the other teams was just so tense and exciting, and fortunately it ended up working out in our favor." When the tournament started, the team stepped up its play another notch, determined to prove that it deserved its number one seed. The Jumbos had even more motivation, as they got the opportunity to face the two NESCAC teams that had beaten them in the regular season. Tufts avenged both losses, taking down Conn 2-1 before becoming the first team since 1995 to score three goals in a game against Williams, winning 3-0 to take the conference title. "It's not often that you get a chance to play a team again, so it's great when you have that opportunity," Whiting said. "Sometimes it can be a little daunting to go into a game thinking 'they beat us already, they have our number', but this group is great. They saw it as a challenge, and as a chance for payback." The win over Williams was especially sweet, as the team played what Whiting described as the best game she had seen her team play since its run to the NCAA Finals in 2000. "I can't even describe how amazing that was," Whiting said. "It's not often that you beat Williams, but to go out there and just dominate them like that and score three goals was awesome. It says a lot about our team, and the ability that we have." The NESCAC championship gave Tufts an automatic bid to the NCAAs, where they were the conference's sole representative. The team beat Nichols 4-0 in the first round before losing to Keene State. With the season over, the Jumbos will lose a small but very talented group of seniors. "The seniors are such an awesome group, as players, as people, and as teammates." Whiting said. Co-captain Alle Sharlip rounds out her career with 20 points on six goals and eight assists, while midfielder EA Tooley finishes with 11 goals and three assists; Brenna O'Rourke had two goals and three assists. Co-captain Glassanos compiled six goals and two assists in three years, while anchoring one of the conference's best defenses. Glassanos, who missed her freshman year with an injury, has yet to completely rule out the possibility of returning for a fourth season, but has hinted that her soccer career has probably come to an end. Jeanne Kehrberger played for Tufts as a graduate student in 1999 after missing the '98 season with a torn ACL. That will leave the team in the hands of the four juniors, who all play important roles for the team both on and off the field. Jess Trombly and Becca Doigan provide two strong scoring threats, while Abby Herzberg and Jess Lovitz will be the cornerstones of Tufts' defense. Trombly, a former NESCAC Rookie of the Year, is the team's active leading scorer, with 44 points. "We have a great group of juniors," Whiting said. "It'll be a natural progression for them to step up next year and take over that role that this year's seniors have had." The sophomore class is perhaps the team's strongest, in part because of its size. The class makes up over a third of the team, and nearly every player has a crucial role. Included in that group is transfer Jen Baldwin. With the graduation last year of Lynn Cooper, the team's second all-time leading scorer (34G, 17A), the Jumbos were in need of another spark on offense. As luck would have it, Whiting had one fall into her lap, in the form of Baldwin, who transferred from Johns Hopkins. Baldwin led her team in scoring for the second straight season, racking up 22 points on nine goals and four assists a year after leading Hopkins with 12 goals and 11 assists. "We definitely lucked out with Jen," Whiting said. "We relied so heavily on Coop for so long, and then she's gone. We had Becca [Doigan] and [Jess] Trombly coming back, who are two great forwards, but it was huge to have Jen be able to come and step in." The sophomore class also includes goalkeeper Meg McCourt, who started regularly for the first time this year. She has posted nine career shutouts in 19 starts, and her current .76 GAA would rank second in Tufts history. Although this year's freshmen class did not get quite as much playing time as last year's did, they still made a significant impact. Defender Ariel Samuelson saw the most action, starting nine games after Alina Schmidt went down with a back injury. Sarah Callaghan, Lindsey Garmirian, and Lydia Claudio all contributed on offense, combining for five goals and three assists, although Claudio missed the second half of the season with a stress fracture in her foot. Although it ended earlier than players and fans would have liked, the Jumbos are still pleased with the way their season turned out. "Overall, the year was a huge success," Glassanos said. "The end was disappointing, but that doesn't take away from everything we've accomplished. I couldn't have asked for more. It was a great way to end my soccer career. It was a great team, and I look forward to seeing them come back next season. They have huge potential."

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News

Point. Click. Tufts.

November 24

When Brandy Chambers, a high school senior from New York, started her college search last year, the first thing she did was to go online. Using sites like princetonreview.com and collegeboard.com, she found colleges that fit her interests, then visited those schools for the first time on the Internet. Chambers is just one of a growing number of high school students whose first introduction to prospective schools takes place online, via the schools' websites. "It was pretty much your basic website," Chambers said of the Tufts website. "There were no real flaws. But for a school that prides itself on having anything but the "basic" undergraduate experience, a "basic" website may not be the impression Tufts wants to give prospective students. As more and more activities migrate online, the public image that a university projects over the Internet has become increasingly important. Many schools are making web development a higher priority and recognizing its importance in courting applicants. "This is no longer a nice additional asset. This is a medium that is being used frequently today," Dean of Admissions David Cuttino said. The increasing use of websites to gather information about schools means that students can get all the information they need without ever having to talk to a person in an admissions office _ which means that such offices are having an increasingly hard time estimating the number of prospective applicants. To cater to this trend, Tufts is about to undergo a massive redesign of a number of the main University websites, according to University officials. A new Arts, Sciences & Engineering website, unveiled last week, will eventually be followed with new versions of the main university homepage, the admissions website, the online directory, and the president's website, among others. These changes, as well as the implementation of a Google search engine for the University's webpages, have been welcomed by students _ some of whom say that the current webpages are not easy to navigate. "If I were a prospective student, and I looked at that page without looking for a specific piece of information... the site wouldn't jump out at me," Residential Computer Consultant Ed Schwehm said. The organization of the site is good for access, he said, but overall, is still "drab." "It needs to be aesthetically pleasing," said Liz Tulminen, a high school senior from Easton, MA. "But it's more the information that's important." Prospective students are looking for an "easy and quick" way to find out about colleges, and the Internet and college websites provide that ability, according to Frank Hartwell, a high school guidance counselor from Ardmore, PA. College websites "are the starting gate, the archway through which [students] pass." The main Tufts website receives over 20,000 hits a day, though traffic varies according the time of year. The Admissions Office is beginning its redesign with a new 'virtual tour' and is planning a comprehensive overhaul later on. "Part of the challenge is thinking about the communications process, understanding that this is an important tool," Cuttino said. "It's not the only tool, but it is an important vehicle, through which peoples' understanding of and impression of the University is influenced." A university's website is, in part, measured by the expectations that students have when they use any website, according to Casey Green, founder of The Campus Computing Project, the largest continuing study of the role of information technology in higher education. In addition to using a university's website, "they have all these other experiences as consumers; they shop at J.Crew, buy books from Amazon, and look at their checking accounts on the Internet," Green said. "A challenge for many institutions is that a large part of the campus is two to three years behind the consumer experience, in terms of what's on the web." This consumer experience includes frequent visits to sites that remember personal information about a user or save search and credit card information. Universities that have latched onto this trend of personalization have seen positive results. When the University of Dayton personalized its admissions website so that students who were interested in certain aspects of the school would receive more information about that component, they saw that traffic on their admissions site increased by 738 percent. On top of that, applications to the school increased 50.7 percent, and those students who personalized the website actually enrolled at a higher rate than normal. At other schools, slowness to adapt their websites to what prospective students are used to experiencing elsewhere on the web may be a direct result of budget challenges in their information technology departments. Many institutions "look at technology as a capital cost instead of an operating cost," Green said. The hiring of new personnel is one sign that Tufts is taking the impact of the web seriously. Associate Director of WebCentral Anne Bala came to Tufts in August because she was attracted by the University's strong Internet vision. "The University has very ambitious plans for the web and how it can be used to enhance and extend the learning experience," Bala said. Current web projects include overhauling the University's search engines, developing university-wide online calendars, streaming media services, live web-casting, and implementing new hardware and software to expand the types of services the University offers. "This kind of work is very important, as it will provide us with the necessary foundation to implement our long-term web initiatives," Bala said. Web developers must find a balance to the amount of information they include on their sites. A site must also market the school to prospective students, remind nostalgic alumni of their days on campus, and cater to the utilitarian needs of current students and faculty. According to Bala, the University has collected significant feedback on how to better make use of the web and is now committed to boosting Tufts' Internet presence. "Tufts has a good foundation and now we just need to build upon that as we go forward," she said.

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News

Is there room for diversity in democracy?

November 24

In light of the recent controversy surrounding culture representatives, we have lost sight of why they are important to have in the first place. Two decades have passed since the first culture representatives were added to our student senate and last year, these representatives got the right to vote. Yet people continue to question the right to this representation. This year, The Princeton Review ranked Tufts the seventh-worst university for race and class interaction in the United States. Although this ranking is controversial, it may have some truth to it. Past incidents come to mind, such as when the words "Kill all Chinks and Gooks" were found in a bathroom in South Hall, and when Capen House was broken into and defaced last year. Also, in just the past three months there have been six acts of bigotry towards the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community. Too often people look the other way, trying to believe that acts of intolerance are committed by a select few, but we plead you to confront the reality of bigotry on this campus. Anyone may be a target of discrimination; anyone may hold a prejudice; anyone may say they are oppressed. However, true oppression results when who you are and what you stand for are not recognized or validated in society. Although on-campus conservatives comprise a "minority" group, they still enjoy nationwide support and recognition, whereas the Asian American, Africana, Latino/a, and LGBT communities are constantly stifled because of their identities. These communities, which make up more than a quarter of our campus, need to be heard. This is why culture reps are so important to the empowerment of minority groups at Tufts. In the past, when culture reps were non-voting lobbyists, they were only able to lobby their cause if a senator agreed to speak on their behalf. Most of the time however, the senators either did not agree with the issues or did not find them important enough to address. Recently, culture reps were given the right to vote, which ensures that their specific needs will be addressed. Some students believe that minorities who are not satisfied with their representation in senate should run for positions. However, we can safely bet that not many people would vote for a student if his or her platform was primarily focused on advancing a minority community. It is obviously not true that members of the culture groups think the same way or have the same concerns as their culture representatives. However, the representatives are usually directly involved with their minority groups' organizations and activities, thus able to find out about the general atmosphere and concerns of their culture groups. Ask yourself: have you ever seen or known of a member on the student senate genuinely interested in learning about issues that are pertinent to the minority community through visiting different culture centers, or attending events held by clubs/organizations? Perhaps a few, but definitely not enough. The university should certainly strive to meet its students' needs through realistic and reasonable means. Having cultural representatives with voting powers enables the system to deal with common matters of culture groups who are underrepresented and underprivileged both inside and outside the school system. The majority of the student body is not able to understand these issues because they have not experienced them. If you read the Viewpoints written ten years ago, you would think they were from yesterday's Daily. The reoccurring debate over the need for culture reps is partly due to the fact that the political conduct on this campus does not reflect the politics of the nation. Of course, having culture reps in the US government would be undemocratic, but at Tufts they are a necessity. Rushi Nayak, Li Ouyang, Kavita Patel, and Sonali Paul contributed to this viewpoint. Sonya Jairaj is a senior majoring in Bio-Psychology and Biomedical Engineering. Karina Ku is a senior majoring in International Relations and Child Development.

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News

Students to embark on second annual trip to Cuba

November 24

We know about the cigars. We know about Castro. We know about the tariffs, the 1950s cars, and the large Latino population. And a group of Tufts students will discover over winter break what else Cuba has to offer besides this tempestuous history. From Jan. 4 to Jan. 13, Latino Center Director Rub?©n Salinas-Stern, and Professor Claudia Kaiser-Lenoir will travel to the island with 26 undergraduates and graduate students. The trip _ the second annual _ is sponsored by the Latino Center. This year, interest in the program soared, as over 100 students attended the information session. Forty-two students applied, and the 26 were accepted based on diversity in academic interests as well as race and socioeconomic status, familiarity with Cuba and Latin America, and genuine interest in the program. The program was able to grant scholarships to students with financial need thanks funds given by the Provost's Office. The goal of the trip is to educate students about Cuba. Last year, the 17 students on the trip spent the ten days in Havana learning firsthand about various aspects of Cuban society. They gained much of their knowledge by simply speaking with citizens spanning the range of socioeconomic status in the country, according to the trip organizers. The group ventured outside the capital city a number of times to visit museums and artists' homes, and to meet with experts who were implementing education and literacy workshops outside the city. Students on this year's trip will be given the opportunity to interact more closely with residents of Cuba, as they will be working directly with a youth organization performing community service. Unlike last year, they will be able to visit schools, hospitals, a day care center and a family clinic. The ability to gain direct exposure to the country's facilities will allow students the opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of Cuban life and society, according to Kaiser-Lenoir. "I want students to be challenged, to think about the world in broader terms, and to learn new ways of participating in charting a more humane course for society," she said. "We in this country are in a sense blockaded from becoming more aware of the real nature of that very exciting social experiment that Cuba is." Exposure to a society that is so different from the US provides a unique experience, Kaiser-Lenoir said, in which "both sides profit greatly because we share the same world and we confront same problems." Travel between the US and Cuba has been restricted since the US imposed the trade embargo forty years ago. To gain permission to organize the trip, the group had to apply for and obtain a license from the US Treasury Department. The license, which will expire in August, permits Tufts students and faculty two years to visit the country for educational purposes. "I think it's really important to study abroad in order to understand the effects we are having on our neighbors and on other cultures," said sophomore Adina Allen, one of the students accepted into the program. "I chose this program because we have a community to go with and we can discuss our experience." Salinas-Stern who was born in Cuba and founded the program, is worried that the program may not exist after this year if Tufts is unable to renew the license that allows students to go. This is unfortunate, he said, given the educational value of the trip. "Cuba offers a different system and a different way of life, and I think we can learn from that," Salinas-Stern said. "We in this country have a very black and white picture of Cuba, and I think it's important for students to gain a different perspective and see that there is more than one way to run a country. I'm not saying it's a wonderful system, but I think it's important to look at." Students will be responsible for sharing their knowledge and experience with the Tufts community when they return. It is up to students to determine the way in which they will present the information they have acquired. "My only direct involvement may be a public presentation to share an informal discussion with the Tufts community," Kaiser-Lenoir said. "The rest of what is being planned has to do with ideas generated by the students."

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