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Equestrian clears the bar, excels in early season

August 31

The equestrian team set the bar high this year after a disappointing end to last season when the team missed out on a trip to Nationals. And so far, the squad has met, and exceeded, the high mark, earning the number one spot in the region after two of the four Fall horse shows. Part of the team's strength is the insurgence of new faces. Of its 28 members, 11 are new to the team and are making significant contributions. "We're 100 percent stronger," senior and Vice President Erica Amster said. "The new members are all very strong riders, they're going to make a nice new foundation for the team in the upcoming years. "After last year, a lot of old members came in with a new attitude. We want to redeem ourselves and we'll definitely be able to do it." The first test of the season came at the horse show hosted by Stonehill College, Tufts' arch rivals, on Oct. 27. Within the Zone 1 Region 4 portion of the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA) are nine other area schools that Tufts squares off against - Boston University, Endicott College, Framingham State, Harvard University, MIT, Stonehill, UMass Dartmouth, Wellesley College, and Wheaton College. Tufts had a strong showing, placing second overall and only five points behind the acclaimed Stonehill team. Senior co-captain Hally Phillips was named the Reserve High Point Rider, an individual award given to the rider who receives the second-highest point total. At the event, Phillips captured a first place finish in the Open Flat and a second place in the Open Fences. Among the other first place finishes were senior Kate Johnstone in the Intermediate Flat, freshman Stuart Mueller in the Novice Flat, freshman Katherine Brumberger in the Novice Fences, and sophomore Rachel Perlman in the Walk-Trot. Last weekend, the equestrian team competed against the same ten schools in its region at a show hosted by BU. It was a banner weekend for the Jumbos, as they took home first place and gained the leader's position within the region. The move into number one is important because only the top team in the region goes to zone finals with a shot at Nationals. Although Nationals are not until the Spring semester, the standings at the end of the Fall season hold until Spring, so gaining the early lead is prudent. "We're major contenders," senior Hally Phillips said. "We'd like to increase our lead." The win at BU was a solid team effort, with first place finishes garnered by junior Toby Pinsky in the Novice Fences, freshman Ralph Bassett in the Intermediate Flat, Perlman in the Walk-Trot, freshman Emily Breazeale in the Advanced Walk-Trot-Canter, Mueller in the Novice Flat, and Phillips in the Open Fences. With the exception of Pinsky and Phillips, all of the riders are new this year. "They're all strong riders and when you come in as a new rider," Phillips said, "you're at the lowest level, so it is common for new people to do well." Heading into the final two shows of the season with a ten-point lead in the region, Tufts is looking to build upon its cushion. After placing fifth in the region last Fall, the team's standings show a drastic improvement in what has been termed a "rebuilding year." The two shows will be hosted by Tufts at Apple Knoll Farm in Millis, MA this Saturday and by Endicott on Sunday. "We plan on winning both the Tufts and Endicott shows," Amster said. "Our arch-rival is Stonehill, so we're going to try to open the gap between them." The team is excited for the Tufts-hosted show because it will provide a slight home-team advantage as well as an opportunity for Tufts horse lovers to come to the show. Buses will run throughout the day and members of the equestrian team can be contacted for more information on transportation.

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News

WMFO DJ Drugless Douglas brings his own mix to the airwaves

August 31

Wednesday afternoon, 5 p.m. - what are your ears up to? They should be tuned into "Old Fart at Play." From 5 to 6:30 p.m., Drugless Douglas, a member of WMFO's community staff, takes control of the studios and celebrates the independence of freeform radio. Douglas, whose calm manner is vaguely reminiscent of a middle school music teacher, relishes the freedom of working at a noncommercial station. "Radio is my creative outlet," he said. "I have the freedom to come in and play whatever I want...I would find myself very frustrated in a formatted show." Indeed, Douglas plays music from many genres. Although his show has no set layout or theme, he says he starts off with mellow jazz, folk, and world music, eventually working his way into rock and local music. He typically arrives at the studio an hour prior to the show and scurries about the shelves, pulling CDs and vinyl records. He also explores new major and local releases. Sometimes he'll bring materials from home and other times he'll play whatever catches his eye. Douglas develops his playlist throughout the show. Song selection is spontaneous, but record keeping is most methodological. Six notebooks live in his radio bag, documenting the playlists of the 675 shows Drugless Douglas has deejayed over the past fourteen years. They are available on his website (http://druglessdouglas.com/ofap/index.html), and checking them out is a great way to get a sense of the style and variety of music on the show. Last week's playlist included Buckwheat Zydeco, Afro-Celt Soundsystem, Stereolab, and Pete Townshend. The site also features a calendar of upcoming local concerts. Douglas serves as Local Music Director at WMFO and his musical selections reflect his passion. Drugless Douglas estimates that his show roughly consists of 30 percent of new local music such as indie, rock, and folk, 30 percent rock from larger indie labels, 60s psychedelic, and "dinosaur rock," and the remaining 40 percent a mix of "folk, soul, jazz, some techno and some comedy." Overall, the show has a relaxed feel to it. Despite the show's range of music, there are still limits to what Drugless Douglas will play. No classical music - " I don't know enough about it." No Bruce Springsteen - "You can hear him anywhere else." No Michael Jackson - "He's such a dork". Although he always back-announces tracks played, hour-long sets are not uncommon, and DJ banter is minimal. While music is clearly the focus of the show, there are also regular features. Around 6 p.m. is a "Flashback" segment in which Douglas reads his playlist from that date ten years ago and plays a few songs from that play list. "Old Fart at Play" features a StarDate report of upcoming astrological events and the date's celestial alignment. Douglas brings to each show a list of historical events or birthdays and will play a few songs either relating to the event or by the celebrated artist. A connection to the listeners is important to Douglas, which is why he provides listeners several ways of interacting with him. He welcomes emails, phone calls and instant messages. "I try to keep it at a personal level," Douglas said. Still, he does not frequently allow live callers on the air. It is a deeply-rooted passion for music and Boston's rich music scene that have kept Douglas in the WMFO studios for the past 14 years. "If I take a week off, I'm dying to get back," he said. Douglas cites the creativity, people he meets, continuous exposure to new music, sense of purpose in the community, and visibility in the local music scene as his favorite parts of being a DJ at WMFO. "Being a DJ has put me in touch with a whole drove of people I never would've known about," added. " Boston has a great music scene and to be a part - that is fun. Not every moment of radio is fun, but in the long haul it is so rewarding." If you are looking for a high energy, dance around your room kind of radio show, this is probably not it. However, should your ears be craving a laid back listening experience likely to introduce you to new and different artists, give "Old Fart at Play" a try.

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News

A Hall of Fame Career

August 31

Provost Sol Gittleman's resignation signifies a great loss and leaves a tremendous void in the Tufts administration. As a longtime leader, Gittleman represents not only a wealth of knowledge, but is an icon of the University on which he has left an indelible mark. Gittleman began his Tufts career as a German professor in 1964, and in 1981 became provost, the second-highest University position, overseeing the academic operations of Tufts' seven schools. Though he intends to continue teaching after his replacement is found, humbly ending his career where it started, Gittleman's transition is clearly the beginning of the inevitable end of his legendary tenure. From his incredibly popular Yiddish Literature class to his well-known obsession with baseball, Gittleman is a symbol for students past and present. Alumni and parents flock back, year after year, to hear him speak, and students of all ages turn to him for letters of recommendation and Tufts history lessons. He is a living Tufts figurehead, sent to all corners of the globe to represent the University. Celebrity alumni reference his class when they speak of their undergraduate experience. But most irreplaceable of his attributes is his intimate knowledge of Tufts. Through four decades of dramatic change, Gittleman has been an indispensable fixture at this university, serving three presidents, and helping turn Tufts from a locally attended New England college into an internationally renowned University. Though the Provost's office sits next to the Office of the University President in Ballou Hall, the two positions could not differ more. Unlike the president, who focuses on fundraising, Gittleman is in day to day contact with all aspects of the University, alternately teaching a freshman English section and holding high-level administrative meetings with Tufts deans. While reading freshman essays and assisting President Bacow in restructuring the top-heavy administration, Gittleman has consistently made time to interact with students. From participating in dorm discussions to hosting annual Friday afternoon gatherings where graduating seniors are invited to his home, Gittleman has been in the middle of life on campus. Even at night, when he leaves Ballou, he does not leave campus, but rather returns to his home, located on the corner of Professors Row and Latin Way, a stone's throw away from the campus center. Though Gittleman's shoes are impossible to fill, he has done more than his share to bring the University to the strongest position in its 150-year history. Students will surely benefit from his limited role as a faculty member and mentor next year, but as he gradually leaves the University altogether, Tufts will miss his never-ending knowledge, baseball trivia, and general spirit.

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News

US support for Palestinian state has waned

August 31

There seems to be something terribly amiss in Adrienne Yeganeh's condemnation of the US's aborted decision to support a Palestinian state ("Switching Sides," 10/4). Her argument rests on the fact that the US is ready to switch sides as it pleases, based on where its interests lie. She pleads that the US not give up its support of democracy in the Middle East simply because the Sept. 11th attacks spawned a new need for allies on the Arab side. I am confused. I thought that the US was ready to back a Palestinian state before the bombings, and is now reconsidering in light of the Sept. 11th actions. How is this reversal back to our original policy self-serving? Aren't we once again alienating powers in the Middle East that perhaps have the ability to help us? Isn't the US now standing strong by its original policy of supporting Israel when a change of sides could seriously help sway opinions of those who are aligned against us? Ms. Yeganeh speaks as though in its desire to protect itself, the post-attack US is ready to sign a treaty with the Palestinians that calls for the abolishment of Israel, when clearly this isn't the case. I would also like to say that if Ms. Yeganeh can't find "one individual who wasn't horrified by the idea of our support being swayed," maybe she should be looking harder for opinions different than her own.- Jonathan Lieber, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences

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News

Three fundamental economic fallacies

August 31

Times of crisis are when we must guard our liberties most. The State invariably uses these times to bloat its scope of power, and in the heat of crisis those who dissent are often labeled unpatriotic and even treasonous. Along with the State's calls for more power and market intervention comes a host of economic fallacies that are perpetuated in an attempt to show the people how granting bureaucrats more power over their lives will actually be beneficial to them. Lately, three fallacies have arisen, fallacies that have surfaced again and again in past decades. All three have roots in Keynesian theory that, although long since discredited, manage to live on through institutionalized statism in universities and in the press. The first of these fallacies is that destruction is good for the economy. This destruction can take place in two forms: destruction of infrastructure or war. For the former, the argument is that buildings and bridges that are destroyed will have to be replaced. Therefore, new jobs will be created that will help everyone. The construction workers, contractors, and engineers who receive the new jobs will have money that they would not have otherwise had, and they will help other industries when they purchase goods and services from them. In this manner the benefits are spread to everyone participating in the division of labor. However, as Frederic Bastiat and Henry Hazlitt have both famously illustrated with the broken window analogy, this line of reasoning only takes into account the visible effects of the destruction. Just as important, though, is how resources would have been used had the destruction not occurred. Somebody, either the property owner or the general public through taxation, is going to have to pay for the projects, which means that individuals must divert resources away from activities that they anticipated would satisfy their wants to activities that bestow no further satisfaction to them. While it is true that the arrival of new jobs benefits one group of people, it comes only at the expense of others, and overall, resources are not as efficiently utilized as they would have been. The argument that war helps the economy is the same argument as above but presented over a much larger scale. The arrival of war, it is said, brings with it miracles of production and heightened demand. However, wars divert capital from lines of production that would have been used to satisfy individual's wants to lines of military production. The physical damage that war entails results in the destruction of capital, and the only "good" that results from war is if the government obtains whatever goal it set forth in making it. If indeed, the destruction of infrastructure and war were beneficial to the economy, why not just go around and randomly blow up buildings and set missiles to explode over the oceans daily? It should be clear, both from common sense and economics, that such a practice would be a colossal waste of resources and human energy. The next economic fallacy that is often espoused in bad times is that the government can help the economy by industry bailouts and general intervention into the market. Politicians claim that a certain industry must be saved because we all need it. If the airline and vacation industries are not making profits though, that means that the resources that are used by them would be better spent elsewhere. The beauty of the price system and profits is that they serve to measure where producers are efficiently using capital and where capital should not be used at all. By artificially supporting industries that would have otherwise liquidated a portion of their capital, the government supports the inefficient use of resources, which would have otherwise been used to better satisfy the demands of the people. Again, we must look not only at the visible effects of government intervention but at the secondary effects: where the money must come from and what it would have otherwise been used for. The last economic fallacy is repeated not only in times of immediate crisis but at any time the economy slows down. This is that economic busts are caused by a lack of consumer confidence, or by a decrease in aggregate demand. According to Keynesian theory, the trade cycle (also known as the business cycle, boom/bust cycle, etc.) is caused by the fleeting animal spirits of the general public. Mainstream economists are often quoted as saying such silly things as "We do not want to predict an economic slowdown because that might help bring it about." Such reasoning recalls Neil Young's efforts to stop a thunderstorm during a concert on the album Live Rust: "Maybe if we all think really hard, we can make this rain go away!" Keynesians turn to central banks to try to spur on consumer spending, while they are at a loss of words to explain in real terms why the economic slowdown has occurred. However, the origins of the trade cycle have been thoroughly explained by Ludwig von Mises and the Austrian school of economics. Although there is not enough room to go into detail of the theory here, the general principle is that central banks cause the trade cycle through their practice of dictating interest rates and inflation. The combination of these controls results in a distortion of the planning schedules of individuals, and this leads to two things. One, resources that would have been saved to satisfy the wants of others in the future are instead transferred to present spending, and two, marginal borrowers who would not have otherwise borrowed money are impelled to enter the market under the assumption that there exists more capital than there really does. The result is a boom, but eventually the economy must adjust for the malinvestment of capital and the fact that saving has been sacrificed in favor of spending, and the result is the bust. All three of the above fallacies are particularly pursued in times of hardship. War, when it cannot be given a moral rationalization, is given an economic rationalization. Politicians and bureaucrats decide for everyone what lines of production are most wanted and needed. The economic bust is blamed on the fickle public, and calls are made for the Fed to encourage spending. In defending our lives from the ever-expanding reach of the government, we must also attack the fallacious economics by which statists operate. Otherwise people might start thanking the government when their house burns down, food is rationed to support the war effort, airlines are paid to fly empty planes, and credit expansion prolongs the recession. Jacob Halbrooks is a senior majoring in electrical engineering.

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News

@headine:Dan Zandman and Michele Shelton, Homecoming King and Queen

August 31

Their Royal Highnesses' MixThe King's Half"King of Rock" - Run DMC"'I'm the King of Rock, ain't none higher, sucker MC's should call me Sire...'""It's Good to be King" - Tom Petty "It's damn true. What can I say?""King for a Day" - Green Day "Because hey - that's what I was.""In the Hall of the Mountain King" - Edvard Grieg "A busy, chaotic piece that captures my hectic life as king.""Little Wing" - Jimi Hendrix "Ok, so this has no 'king' gimmick working for it, but in reality it is my favorite song, and no royal list would be complete without it."The Queen's Half"Michelle" - The Beatles "Someone should've told them that they spelled it wrong.""Dancing Queen" - ABBA "Because you need a queen that knows how to party...""Queen of the Night" - Whitney Houston "...and a queen that likes to stay up late!""Queen of Hearts" - The Allman Brothers "Cuz I break a lot of 'em!""Queen of the 21st Century" - Bad Religion "'nuf said!!"

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News

A Tufts athletics Renaissance Man

August 31

From a star soccer player and member of the Tufts Beelzebubs to his current post as Athletic Director - with an assortment of stops in between - Bill Gehling has done it all at Tufts. Though he'd be the first to tell you that's not true, it seems Gehling was destined to devote his life to the Tufts community. Both his parents attended the University, as did a number of other relatives. And his daughter, Jennifer, is currently a freshman at Tufts. "Tufts was not drummed into me as a kid," Gehling said. "It had what I was looking for. It was in the Boston area. I had no divine plan that I was going to go to Tufts and then work here. It surprised me and my college friends." With so many connections to Tufts, one might think Gehling is a Medford or Somerville local. But that's not the case - he lived just outside of Cleveland until he was ten, before moving to Long Island. Gehling graduated in 1974 with a degree in Child Studies and a legacy as one of Tufts' most decorated athletes. During his soccer career, he was named a New England All-Star twice and a Greater Boston League All-Star four times. In addition, Gehling held the school's all-time soccer scoring records of 39 goals and 101 points until Matt Adler surpassed him in 1999. Upon graduation, Gehling was undecided about his future. "I had a folk band after I graduated and I had a lot of interests and things just developed here at Tufts," he said. Despite being hired as a teacher at an alternative school in Somerville, Gehling could not get soccer out of his blood. A year after graduating, he began volunteering with Tufts men's soccer.In 1979, Gehling was hired as a part-time women's soccer coach at the University and balanced his work as coach and teacher until 1981, when the women's head coaching job became a full-time position. At that time, he also became the head coach of the golf team.Though he stopped teaching, he still did not view coaching as his final stop in the professional world. In 1979, he picked up a master's degree in education from Tufts."For the first four or five years that I was coaching, I assumed that it was a temporary decision," Gehling said. "At the same time I was taking graduate courses in computer science."Slowly, however, coaching grew on Gehling and, in his words, he "caught the coaching bug" and decided to make it his life's work."The computer work interested me intellectually but I wasn't passionate about it," Gehling said. "I was passionate about coaching and I felt I was making a difference in some lives. [Coaching is about] a lot more than winning and losing. I decided to stick with it."And stick with it he did. For 20 years, from 1979 until 1998, Gehling served as the women's soccer coach, compiling a 165-90-36 record for a .629 career winning percentage. In his final season as head coach, Gehling led the team to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament.Midway through the 1980s, Gehling stopped coaching golf and began doing administrative work. In retrospect, this was the move that laid the groundwork for his ascension to his present position of athletic director. "I slowly started to take on some administrative duties without a title," Gehling said. "After about ten years I was named Assistant Athletic Director."Gehling held the assistant post for ten years, while still coaching the women's soccer team. Eventually, he was named the associate athletic director."[Former Athletic Director] Rocky Carzo gave me a great amount of responsibility which helped me when I applied for the job [of Athletic Director]," Gehling said.On July 1, 1999 Gehling succeeded the retiring Carzo to become the fifth athletic director in the history of the University.In his 30-plus year involvement in Tufts' athletics, Gehling said the biggest changes he has seen in Tufts sports have come as a result of Title IX. "In the early 1970's women's sports were under Jackson College and had little support and weren't taken seriously. Title IX was why Tufts started the [women's] soccer team. Tufts started complying with title IX in the late 1970's and I was a beneficiary and that's how I got my job."Gehling became so involved with women's sports that two times during his tenure as the women's soccer coach, he turned down the opportunity to become head coach of the men's team on which he once starred."Several years into my tenure with the women, the men's job opened up," Gehling said. "And the athletic director assumed I would prefer the men's job. I considered it, but I was more interested in building the [women's program] from scratch. I was able to play an integral role in women's soccer evolution from [a team] with very little skill to almost national champions."Interestingly, the team did make the national championship game - but in 2000, the year after Gehling stopped coaching. The coach of that team was Martha Whiting, who played for Gehling as an undergraduate before serving as his assistant coach for seven seasons.After spending years on the upward climb, Gehling now sits at the top of the athletic department - and though it would seem the next step is moving on to a bigger school that puts more of an emphasis on athletics, Gehling insists this is not the case."I don't see myself leaving Tufts," Gehling said. "I've got a lot to do [here]. There is no place I'd rather be."

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News

Paterno ties Bear for all-time victories

August 31

The Penn State Nittany Lions beat 20th-ranked Northwestern Wildcats in a thriller for their first victory of the season. The win gave legendary coach Joe Paterno his 323rd all-time Division I-A win, tying him for the lead with another coaching legend, Bear Bryant. Paterno had been waiting for this victory since last year and had not anticipated waiting this long for the mark. Paterno knows his football career was already defined as great with or without this win. He also knows that Bobby Bowden of Florida State is only four wins behind him, has a better program these days, and will probably coach longer than Paterno. Paterno's humble style did not let his record get in the way of the true significance of this game; his team finally won its first game. After the game he sited that the win may be able to ignite his team and turn the season around since his players know knew the feeling of victory. Even without the record-tying by their win, Penn State's victory was notable for the way in which they achieved it. Each team scored four touchdowns in the first three quarters. Both offenses played spectacularly, with Northwestern losing one fumble for the game's only turnover. In the fourth quarter Penn State took their first lead with a 24-yard field goal and only three minutes left in the game. This field goal looked to be the game winner, but Northwestern and quarterback Zak Kustok thought differently. The Wildcats drove down the field in six plays within close to a minute to score on a one yard touchdown run. Paterno's victory appeared to be stripped from him, especially when quarterback Matt Seneca, who was having a career day, was knocked out of the game on Penn State's final possession. But redshirt freshman Zack Mills stepped into his first collegiate game, and the Lions offense did not miss a beat. Mills lead the team on a game winning 69-yard drive with a touchdown pass to top to secure the Lions win. While Northwestern (4-2, 2-2 Big Ten) needed this win to stay competitive in the conference, Penn State needed the win to earn self-respect. In the end the Lions' desire proved stronger than Wildcats'. When people look back at the record-tying win, they will remember a great game to go along with the great coach's achievement. In the Pacific 10 Conference, the Stanford Cardinal surprised the number five Oregon Ducks 49-42. This game again featured a backup quarterback leading his team to victory as Stanford quarterback Chris Lewis replaced injured Randy Fasani in the second quarter. Lewis and the Stanford special teams guided the Cardinal back from a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit. After blocking a punt and scoring on the ensuing drive, the Cardinals were down 42-35 with nine minutes left to play. They then surprised the Ducks by attempting and converting an onside kick. They scored on this possession as well, but failed the tying extra point and were left one point behind Oregon. On their ensuing drive, Oregon quarterback Joey Harrington threw an interception on third and one on his own 30-yard line. Stanford converted this turnover into a touchdown with a two-point conversion to go up by seven. Harrington, nicknamed Captain Comeback, could not create a miracle for Oregon, as four straight incompletions at the Stanford 39 ended the game. This win brought Stanford into a tie with Oregon and Washington for second in the Pac-10 with a 3-1 conference record. Only two teams remain undefeated in the conference, Washington State and UCLA, leaving a tight race for the second half of the year. Today the first Bowl Championship Series ranking comes out. The BCS consists of five categories used to measure a team's performance. These categories are an average of the AP and ESPN/USA Today polls, an average of six other polls, strength of schedule, total loses, and "quality wins" against top-15 teams. The BCS was created to pit the number one and two teams in the country against each other and determine an outright National Champion.Though Miami is ranked first in both major polls, either number three Nebraska or number two and reigning National Champion Oklahoma is expected to be ranked first in the BCS. Ironically next week Oklahoma and Nebraska face off in what could determine who will the number-one team for the remainder of the year.

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News

Jazz, Spurs will vie for Midwest crown

August 31

While the Midwest is probably not the league's strongest conference, it may be one of the most competitive, as several teams could vie for the division title this year. With John Stockton and Karl Malone at the helm, the Utah Jazz have been the strongest team in the division for much of the past decade. Depending on the tandem's health, the Jazz may come away with another division title this season. For the similarly successful Houston Rockets, the recent departure of centerpiece Hakeem Olajuwon will undoubtedly have a significant impact. And as the Jazz and the Rockets begin their downhill slide, the San Antonio Spurs may be presented with their last chance for another title. David Robinson is rumored to be near retirement, meaning next year might be a rebuilding one at the Alamo Dome. The sleeper team this year in the Midwest is the Dallas Mavericks. whose main obstacle will be finding a center to guard against the league's best big men. Still, with Juwan Howard leading the way, this team will cause problems for its opponents.Fantasy Stars: While the teams in the Midwest don't have the well-rounded talent necessary to win an NBA title, many teams boast stars on their rosters. Tim Duncan of the Spurs is already established not only as one of the league's most dominant centers, but also as one of its best players. And while Robinson may be a fan favorite in this city, the Spurs did not become a contender until Duncan joined their family. Ranking fourth in the NBA with 13 rebounds per game, Duncan represents the team's best hope at winning a championship. Meanwhile, without Hakeem in Houston, this may be the year the Steve Francis actually plays to his potential. As one of only 18 players in NBA history to lead a team in points, rebounds, and assists, the search for a star in Houston could end with Francis. Lastly, Kevin Garnett of the Minnesota Timberwolves is, as always, a player to watch. Averaging 12 points per game and five assists last season, Garnett is Minnesota's most steady and exciting player.Moving Around: There hasn't been too much change in this division over the off-season, with the most notable departure being Olajuwon's having left for the Toronto Raptors. And though Houston hasn't replaced Olajuwon with a quality center, three-point specialist Glen Rice did come over in a trade from the New Your Knicks...Despite losing Shareef Abdur-Rahim and Mike Bibby, the Memphis Grizzlies landed Shane Battier in the draft and also acquired Jason Williams and Nick Anderson from the Sacramento Kings...Tim Hardaway will be donning a Mavs uniform this season, the first time in recent memory that a quality point guard will run the floor in Big "D."Questions: The major question facing this conference is which superstar will step up to lead his team to the division title. Stockton and Malone have done it before and can do it again, but that depends on how much youth remains in their legs. Meanwhile, if Juwan Howard can finally put together a consistent season, the Mavericks may prove not only the surprise of the division, but also the surprise of the league. And the Award goes to...MVP: Tim Duncan, Spurs. If San Antonio can put together another season like it did in Duncan's rookie year, the Spurs will be the team to beat. For this to happen, though, Duncan needs to have an MVP year, a feat not out of his reach. Coach of the Year: Gregg Popovich, Spurs. Hat's off to a guy who deserves the long awaited recognition. Rookie of the Year: Shane Battier, Memphis. Surprise, surprise, another quality player who not only played at Duke, but also got a degree there before arriving in the NBA. This 6'10' defensive wizard will make his presence felt very quickly.

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News

Men's swimming and diving could finish first semester undefeated

August 31

The men's swimming and diving season is little under two weeks old, with the Jumbos having won their first two meets handily. Tufts opened the year with a 188-110 victory over Clark and a 151-85 win against Bridgewater State. The team now takes on tougher competition, with matches against Babson and NESCAC rival Bowdoin later this week. These early matches, all non-conference meets, were use primarily for training. "We will actually be seeing some real opponents when we go against Babson and Bowdoin this week," he said. In the victory over Clark, the Jumbos placed several swimmers atop the leaderboard. Junior Ed Edson, freshmen Alex Turner, and Rich Halpert finished in the top three spots in the 200-yard freestyle with times of 1:47.66, 1:48.38, and 1:53.13, respectively. Junior Jimmy Heagle took first place in the 100 backstroke with a time of 58.79. Highlights from the win against Bridgewater State included a number of first-place finishes. Sophomore Aeric Solow, finishing with a time of 2:06.71, won the 200 backstroke. Sophomore Kaili Mauricio won both the 100 and 200-yard freestyle events, finishing in 50.97 and 1:52.43. Turner was once again victorious as he picked up the win in the 1000 freestyle with a time of 10:26.36, and was part of the 400 free relay squad of Michael Burr, Greg Schmidt, and Sam Burlingame that placed first with a time of 3:47.60. Though the victories were decisive, the Jumbos still feel they have a lot to prove - especially since neither Clark nor Bridgewater is an exceptionally talented team. Tufts' first real test will come against Babson tomorrow, followed by Saturday's date with Bowdoin. With only one day in between both races, Tufts will need to maintain its focus in order to have a chance at remaining undefeated. "I am very optimistic about this year's squad," coach Don Megerle said. "The team is looking very well, and it is nice to win from some great swimming. And even if we lose some, I would be proud of the kids giving their all." Last year the team posted an 8-1 record and placed fifth in the NESCAC behind Williams, Hamilton, Middlebury and Amherst. In addition, Megerle's squad posted a winning record for the 26th season in a row. During the NESCAC championship, then-freshman Duckworth produced a record-breaking performance in the 200 Breaststroke. Duckworth completed the race in a time of 2:08.74, good for fifth place, and broke Paul Kraaijvanger's school record of 2:09.12, which had stood since 1989. Senior captain Tim Bouley and Duckworth will lead this year's squad. Behind them are a plethora of sophomores and juniors, who compromise the majority of the team. Returning players from the junior class include top NESCAC freestylers Edson, Ryan Lahey, and Brendan Smyth. Sprint butterflyer Heagle and diver David Liebenstein will also be prime contributors. The sophomores include backstroker Burlingame, distance freestyler Jacob Gamerman, sprint freestylers Nick Ghoussaini, Jamie Meyers, breaststrokers Jeff Held and Schmidt, backstroker and distance freestyler Mauricio, and backstroker and freestyler Solow. "This year's team has a great attitude," Megerle, who has been with the team for 30 years, said. "They are showing great initiative. No nuances are getting in our way." Megerle and the team feels confident about the talent stemming from last year's freshman squad. "We already have such a deep junior and sophomore class," Bouley said. "Adding freshmen to the mix will only add to our talent pool". After meeting Babson and Bowdoin, the Jumbos will take a small rest. Over winter break, they will attend their annual Fort Lauderdale, FL retreat for mid-season training before facing more league competition next semester.

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Women's cross country places fourth at Jumbo Invitational

August 31

The women's cross country team finished fourth out of six teams at last Saturday's Jumbo Invitational, doubling the nearest team's point total. Tufts scored 135 points, well behind third place Amherst, which totaled 64. The young Jumbos continued to struggle against strong NESCAC competition - Middlebury won the meet with 35 points, and Williams finished second (54). Coach Kristin Morwick thought the team fared well in light of its competition. "The meet went pretty well," Morwick said. "Considering the teams we faced, we finished where we expected." Senior co-captain Heather Ballantyne (19:28.70) placed 15th overall and was the team's top finisher. Ballantyne improved sharply from last year, when she completed the same race in 19:45.10. "Heather had a great race," Morwick said. "She had a real good time for Grafton, it's a tough course...She had a breakthrough." Sophomores Lauren Dunn and Lauren Caputo have joined forces during the last two meets, finishing one behind the other two weeks ago at the Codfish Bowl and then again on Saturday at Grafton. Dunn crossed the finish line 24th (19:57.40) and Caputo 28th (20:02.30). Dunn and Caputo, who run better on flat courses, did not race as a pair last year. "It's good to see them run together this year," Morwick said. Rounding out the top five were junior Heidi Tyson, who finished 31st with a time of 20:11.50, and sophomore Katie Mason, who ended up in 36th (20:22.40). "Our 1-5 runners were 54 seconds apart and our 1-7 runners were separated by 1:08 because our top runner (Ballantyne) did so well, we had very good spacing," Morwick said. Morwick encourages her team to work together and run as a group. "As many that can run with you the better," Morwick said. "It is intimidating to other teams and it is mentally good to run with teammates." Of the 28 Jumbos who competed in the race, the top 20 finished the course in under 22 minutes. "We demonstrated that our strength lies in how we pack together, and everyone on the team was elated to have run personal records on the home course," said senior Monika Navarro, who finished in 44th place with a time of 20:36. "We still have a lot of work to do, but we intend to be competitive with teams like Connecticut College, Wesleyan, and Trinity in the championship races." For that to happen, a couple of the Jumbos' key runners will need to rebound from injuries. Junior Mary Nodine is sitting out with a stress fracture, but has begun working out in the pool, weight room, and biking. "We get her back and we are in a lot better shape," Morwick said. Junior Kristen Munson also did not participate in last weekend's invitational because of an injury. Although freshman Rachel Brandenburg did run and has improved of late, she too is coming off a stress fracture sustained during the summer. "Rachel is only going to get better," Morwick said. Brandenburg finished 45th in a time of 20:37.30. "We beat some very strong runners we would not have beat two weeks ago," Morwick stated. "It was a pretty solid day." The Jumbos will try to maintain their momentum going into this Friday's Fall Foliage Frolic at Williams - a dual meet pitting the Jumbos directly against the Ephmen. The race is a 4k, as opposed to the normal 5k, and will serve as a prelude to the Oct. 12 New England Championships. The team does not expect to pose a challenge for Williams. "I think it is nice to race in a dual meet every once in a while," Morwick said of this Friday's meet. "There is no pressure, short course, and we are racing a team we are not supposed to beat."

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Cutting VP post will save University money

August 31

University officials took steps two weeks ago to streamline the administration and loosen the strains on the Arts and Sciences budget when they eliminated the vice presidential post, formerly held by Mel Bernstein. Calling the new structure "more economical," Provost Sol Gittleman said the changes allow Tufts to spend less money on administration and "more money on things that are more useful, such as faculty salaries." Improving faculty compensation is one of the University's top three priorities, along with financial aid and technology, according to Executive Administrative Dean Wayne Bouchard, who oversees the Arts and Sciences budget. Attracting top-notch faculty is crucial to improving Tufts' quality of education, Bouchard said. Increasing salaries, Bouchard said, could also improve the University's standing in US News and World Report's annual rankings, which gauge the quality of education at US colleges and universities. Administrators love to hate the list, but nevertheless purchase a copy each September concerned about its possible effect on an institution's national reputation. "One of the measurements used in the rankings is the level of educational investment," Bouchard said. "Anything we can do to bolster the amount of budget spent on academic activities will improve our numbers." Tufts ranks 28th in US News' list of universities that award doctoral degrees, tied with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The University placed 25th in the category of "faculty resources," one of the criteria incorporated in the overall ranking. Faculty compensation amounts for 35 percent of a school's final score. "We want to be attractive and retain the best faculty," Bouchard said. "The president believes that the two most important things for the University are the quality of the faculty and the quality of the students." But improving salaries is no easy task for a school whose $600 million endowment is significantly smaller than most of the schools it competes with for faculty. No administrator would say what Tufts paid former Vice President Bernstein, but he was not among the top five paid people at the University. According to The Chronicle of Education, the fifth highest-paid Tufts employee in 1999-2000 was Naushirwan Mehta, professor and chair of general dentistry, who earned $279,793 that year, including benefits. The average salary for a full professor at Tufts, excluding medial instructors, was $89,300 in 1999-2000, according the Chronicle data. An estimated 201 full professors were employed on the Medford campus in 1999-2000, according to official statistics. To raise the average faculty salary to $95,000 - still below what Boston College, Harvard, MIT, Georgetown, and other benchmark schools pay - would cost an estimated $1,145, 700 a year. To raise the salaries of Tufts' 144 associate professors from $66,300 to $70,000 would cost $532,800. The combined cost of the raises would be $1,678,500, excluding assistant professors, instructors, and part-time professors. Tufts' 1999-2000 budget totaled $389 million. Along with improving faculty compensation, Ballou officials say they would like to increase the financial aid Tufts offers. Unlike many of its peer institutions, Tufts admissions is not need-blind. And while Tufts says it meets student need, allocating more resources to financial aid could help attract a more diverse student body, Bouchard said. Eliminating the vice president's post is part of a trend of cost-cutting at Tufts to increase the University's academic resources. In 1994, for example, Tufts outsourced its janitorial work, and has since saved almost $1 million. "Those opportunities have been pursued so that resources can be redirected towards academic priorities," Bouchard said. But some at the University downplay the impact of eliminating the vice president's office. "It will be helpful, but it is not very much money," said biology professor Benjamin Dane, who co-chairs the administrative-faculty committee on Budget and University Priorities. Bouchard, however, says the restructuring improved more than just the University's bottom line. "By empowering the school deans, they will be in a better position to lead their institution in all ways that reflect our position in US News in strategies that reflect their academic vision," he said. Under the new administrative structure, which is similar to the structure used in the 1960s, the deans of the two arts and sciences schools - Dean of Arts and Sciences Susan Ernst and Dean of Engineering Ioannis Miaoulis - will "be at the table" with deans of the seven graduate schools, according to University President Larry Bacow. These deans previously did not control all the tools necessary to manage their schools, such as financial resources, space, and faculty slots. "The new structure strengthens their hands and has each reporting directly to the provost like the deans of the other schools," Bacow said. "I hope this new structure will be more agile and responsive to both student and faculty needs." Eliminating the vice president's post is part of a trend over the past five years to centralize power in the administration. Much like the philosophy behind Dowling Hall, which was built two years ago to centralize student services, the streamlining of the administration is intended to bring together personnel from various schools to work toward common goals. The changes will help students and faculty determine who is responsible for certain issues. "There's no one else to pass the buck to," Gittleman said. "The deans pretty much run their schools now, so if the faculty is going to look to find fault, they will know who look for now." Faculty members say it is too early to predict how the new structure will work, but some say that streamlining will be beneficial. "The University has been top-heavy on administrators for a long time," Dane said. "I do not think that it will hurt the University not to have a vice president." "I think perhaps an advantage is that the deans [who report to the provost] are a member of the faculty and are perhaps closer to the operational side of things than Mel Bernstein was," History Department Chair Howard Malchow said. "But I really think it's too early to say." According to Bouchard, the people in the structure, not the structure itself, will determine its effectiveness. "Any model can work, it depends on the quality of direction in positions," he said. "By making good hires in deans, the model is less important."

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SCOPE operating without director

August 31

The Student of Color Outreach Program (SCOPE) will host its fall admissions recruitment weekend next month - without an associate director in charge of the program. The former associate director of the program, Joy St. John, left the admissions office this summer in an exodus that included five other officers. Susan Mantilla, assistant director of admissions, has worked with SCOPE for three years and said that despite an ongoing search to replace to St. John, the need is not urgent at the moment. The office "just [doesn't] want anybody to fill in the vacancy," she said. Mantilla added that she has not noticed any negative effects because of the vacancy, although she said it was still to early to tell. She explained that since St. John left, students and staff have become more involved with SCOPE to fill her former duties. "That's how we want it to be," Mantilla said. "We want [the students] involved. Everyone knows they're in charge." SCOPE activities have continued without a director, and admissions is preparing for a recruitment weekend starting Oct. 25. Over 125 African-American, Latino, and Asian-American high school students have signed up to participate in this fall's program. SCOPE also hosts a visiting weekend in April. The three student coordinators of SCOPE and the admissions officers involved have shared responsibility for planning next month's event, according to student coordinator Shaina Wysche. The admissions office has sponsored SCOPE for more than a decade to attract and encourage students of color to apply to Tufts. Mantilla said that "all universities of [Tufts] caliber" host similar programs, including Harvard, Wellesley, and Amherst.The program buses participants from New York City and Hartford, CT to the campus. Last year, the plan partially subsidized flights for the first time, bringing 17 prospective students to Tufts from states as far as California and Texas during the April SCOPE weekend. The Admissions Office invites attendees based on their transcripts, recommendations, and essays to the Admissions Office. Eighty percent of the participants at last April's SCOPE weekend decided to enroll at Tufts. Mantilla considers this a success, saying that the program should continue to be developed to keep attracting the same number of "high quality kids and make them fall in love with Tufts." Mantilla said that this year, SCOPE has developed momentum; more than half of this years' hosts attended the SCOPE weekends when they were prospective students, and they want to "give back." An estimated 100 students are involved in various aspects of SCOPE by hosting high school students, participating in the Super Show - an entertainment show held during the weekend - and through discussions and seminars. Mantilla hopes that in the future, SCOPE can increase the number of prospective students that it flies in from other states. The other five admissions officers who resigned were replaced before the school year began. In an anonymous interview with the Daily, one former admissions officer cited an uneven division of work at the office was one cause the departure, and said that the new officers may not be as experienced as their predecessors. Dean of Undergraduate Admissions David Cuttino has expressed his full confidence in the new members of the admissions team, and said that the exodus has not had any negative reprecussions.

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Today's new releases - Nov. 20, 2001

August 31

Aerosmith, Young Lust: The Anthology, ChroniclesChet Atkins, The RCA Country Legends, BuddhaBee Gees, The Record - Their Greatest Hits, ChroniclesNoam Chomsky, An American Addiction: Drugs, Guerillas, and Counterinsurgency - US Intervention in Colombia, Alternative TentaclesClassical Jazz Quartet, Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker, Vertical JazzThe Get Up Kids, Eudora, VagrantGhostface Killah, Cuban Linx 2: Bulletproof Wallets, EpicGrateful Dead, Workingman's Dead, RhinoBuddy Guy, 20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection, ChroniclesMick Jagger, Goddess in the Hallway, VirginJewel, This Way, AtlanticKing Crimson, VroomVroom, Discipline Global MobileKittie, Oracle, ArtemisShelby Lynne, Love, Shelby, IslandBarry Manilow, Here at the Mayflower, ConcordPaul McCartney, Driving Rain, CapitolNatalie Merchant, Motherland, ElektraP!NK, M!sundaztood, AristaRadiohead, I Might Be Wrong, CapitolSevendust, Animosity, TVTSmashing Pumpkins, Rotten Apples: Greatest Hits, VirginVarious Artists, Black Knight, Varese SarabandeRob Zombie, The Sinister Urge, Interscope

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Imagine a campus free to express itself

August 31

As a Tufts student abroad I have been loosely following the turmoil surrounding the Source. Until today I have not felt it necessary to add my comments to the maelstrom that already exists. However, after reading the uninformed comments of Iris Halpern I feel compelled to respond. Free Speech is not a blanket statement that protects all actions and words, especially when a person's actions prevent to impede another person from expressing their right to Free Speech. Whether you agree with the source or not it was exercising freedom of speech when it printed its drawings. It is a quasi-private organization that was expressing its views. Students have the option and right to: agree with them, disagree with them, or ignore them completely. Students DO NOT, however; have the right to silence the Source by altering its appearance or contents unless they are members of the magazine. The students who vandalized the Source were not exercising their First amendment rights,! they are in fact prohibiting the Source and everyone on Campus from exercising theirs. You should be outraged at this abridgment of your rights. So how about this for a sticker:"Imagine a Campus Free to Express Itself."Eric KrauseLA '02

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Defensive problems plague women's basketball

August 31

While a loss is always difficult to swallow, it becomes even more bothersome when the opposition forces a change in game plan. Such was the case on Tuesday night when the women's basketball team had to alter its defense to combat the Babson Beavers' offense in Tufts' 85-71 loss. "You can always think what if," coach Janice Savitz said. "We wanted to establish a man-to-man defense and be aggressive. We wanted to dictate the tempo." Unfortunately for the Jumbos, the initial man-to-man setup was unsuccessful, as the Beavers burst out to a 19-10 lead to begin the game. "They shot the ball unbelievably," Savitz said. "Every shot they took, they made." With the Jumbos down by nine, Savitz called a timeout. When the team returned to the court, Tufts had switched to a matchup zone defense. The defense was fairly successful, as Tufts was able to force numerous turnovers in this set. The Jumbos utilized the zone and were able to go into the lockerroom at halftime down by seven. Though the change in point differential was only two following the timeout, the new defense successfully slowed down the Babson attack. Savitz said the matchup zone was successful because "our slides are a little different then in the conventional zone. Different people rotating took them out of their set." The zone helped slow down the tempo of the game, which played to Tufts' advantage. As a halfcourt team, the Jumbos are more successful when they are able to run a set offense and keep the opposition from running on offense. Eventually, Babson began to hit some outside shots instead of just driving to the basket, and this reduced the effectiveness of the zone as, did a lack of rebounding. "There were a couple times when we gave up too many second shots," Savitz said. Overall, however, the Jumbos were fairly proficient in utilizing the match up zone defense, especially considering it's not something that they frequently practice. "Our defensive set is contingent on who we play," Savitz said. "Their primary offense was to get it inside. They didn't take too many threes. That match up zone we only practiced for 20 minutes." Junior co-captain Hillary Dunn echoed her coach's sentiments. "I think we did really well with the zone defense even though we only started practicing it a few days ago," she said. In addition to being forced to alter their set defensive style, the Jumbos had problems with transition defense. Although Tufts was able to slow down the pace somewhat after switching into the zone defense, transition defense was a problem that plagued the team throughout the contest. Babson was a much quicker team than the Jumbos and featured an assortment of guards who looked to run the ball at every opportunity. On the other hand, Tufts has only a few players with outstanding foot speed. To deal with the disadvantage in speed, Savitz encouraged her guards to hustle back following each Babson rebound. "We just tried to rotate our guards back," she said. "They did a good job of getting the ball out quickly." Despite the loss and the defensive problems, Savitz was pleased with her team's effort and believes that as the Jumbos play a few more games, they will improve. "The effort was there," Savitz said. "It was their game four and our game two. We have to be a lot more physical and aggressive."

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Remade 'Observer' marks new era in campus media

August 31

The history of campus media at Tufts turned a new page last week when the Observer's staff announced that "Tufts' Newspaper of Record" will be re-launched as a news commentary magazine. Although students and alumni have lamented the loss of Tufts' 106-year-old weekly newspaper, the transformation is just another step in the ongoing evolution of Tufts' media. The Observer's decision to reformat in the style of Time or Newsweek, which coincides with Tufts' sesquicentennial anniversary, eliminates competition between two newspapers on a small campus. And in providing in-depth commentary on important campus issues, the new Observer represents the University's changing needs. "We could use an in-depth vehicle to do some more magazine-like surveys," said Provost Sol Gittleman, who has worked at Tufts since 1980. "The Observer has the chance to do some investigative pieces on the nature of subjects in higher education... The Daily doesn't have the time for investigation." Assistant Director of the Communications and Media Studies program, Susan Eisenhauer (LA '71), said the revamped Observer will reach a new market by targeting students who want to work on broader journalistic projects. "I think having a magazine format is a great idea and would serve a different purpose on campus," Eisenhauer said. "It can serve as a great training ground for students on campus who want to do more in-depth analysis." Gittleman described the Daily as the "journal of choice" on campus, but criticized the publication for its traditional focus on reporting, rather than editorial advocacy. He said that the Observer has run "some of the best editorials to ever come across campus." The origins of the Tufts media are almost as old as the University itself. The first student publication was a yearly magazine, the Tuftonian, which published its first issue in the fall of 1864. The magazine, created by "secret societies," who were actually representatives from fraternities, published mostly creative writing pieces during its early years. The Tuftonian began publishing weekly in the late 1880s and added a news section. By 1895, with the news section gaining a life of its own, the editors split the publication in two: the Tuftonian remained a monthly literary magazine and the Tufts Weekly - the Observer's predecessor - was launched. "With this number we begin the work of Tufts' first weekly," read the editorial in the Weekly. "We realize the uncertainty of our position, the importance of the work, and the many difficulties attending it; but believing that such a sheet is needed in our college we step forth boldly asking the attention of the Tufts community." The Weekly's first 15 years were relatively uneventful until funding constraints during the 1911-1912 school year prevented publication. The Tufts News, a short-lived journalistic venture of the junior class, temporarily replaced the Weekly, publishing only four issues. According to the News's first editorial, the paper was "a temporary substitute that will disappear as soon as the Weekly is able to resume publication." The News carried news briefs rather than full-length articles and offered general observations about life at Tufts. When the Weekly resumed publication, its staff and content grew at a steady pace over the next 50 years. Eisenhauer, who wrote for the Weekly as a Tufts student, said the publication used its status as the only student news source to influence the University community. "During the Vietnam War era, it served a different function - it was a much more activist newspaper," Eisenhauer said. "It had a lot of in-depth writing while I was a student, both worldwide and on campus." As the paper grew, its staff shifted its focus during the 1968-1969 academic year and created the Observer, a semiweekly newspaper to serve as a "more viable communications medium for the campus." The first Observer was published on Jan. 29, 1969. But the staff soon found that it had neither the time nor the news content to fill the paper twice a week. When editors became disappointed with the paper's compromised quality, the Observer returned to its weekly format after only two months of publication. "With the headaches of clerkship unremitting after one month of twice-a-week publication, it became self-evident that our goal of creating an improved newspaper would not be served by the slightly enhanced urgency of a twice-a-week publication schedule," the staff wrote in an editorial on March 7, 1969. "Things just don't happen that fast at Tufts." But in 1979, a group of students found a way to relay news on a more regular basis and printed the first issue of The Tufts Daily on Feb. 25, 1980. By including classified ads, Viewpoints, letters to the editor, and a calendar of Tufts events, the paper carried enough content to publish four pages each weekday, providing "the most complete information possible about campus life," according to the paper's first editorial. With the student government providing the majority of its funding, budgeting constraints limited the staff to print only 2,000 copies in its early days. Students were encouraged to "share the paper with a friend." The paper soon gained a wide readership, but could not find the money to print more copies or increase its size. Then-Senate President Kevin Thurm suggested a "media merger" in the fall of 1981. If the Daily and Observer merged, he promised that the Senate would provide funding for additional typesetting equipment and renovate the papers' offices. Thurm said that merging the papers would be the first step in creating a financially independent student newspaper that could protect itself from administration censorship. "I think it's in the best interest of the student body to have one newspaper that would possibly double the quality of either of the two existing papers," he said in an Observer article on Nov. 6, 1981. But the editorial staffs of both papers rejected the proposal, saying each paper had a unique vision for disseminating news. "People have grown used to the Daily and expect it, and to take it away now there'd be a void," the paper's then-Editor-in-Chief Art Charlton told the Observer. The Observer questioned the Daily's quality when it chose not to merge, saying the Daily "falls short of what the Observer would want out of a merged paper." The paper's editors said the merger would end the Observer's tradition of being Tufts' weekly newspaper of record. "Although both papers are plagued with problems of inexperience, staff shortages, and not always complete coverage of Tufts events, we will continue to work as hard as we can to produce the best newspaper that the resources around here make possible," the Observer staff wrote in an editorial on Nov. 13, 1981. Ultimately, the Daily gave up its Senate funding, choosing to rely on ads for revenue. The Observer, for its part, continues to receive University money to this day. New funding sources enabled the Daily to improve its quality, and many readers gradually switched their loyalties throughout the '90s. The publications covered many of the same issues, and the Observer frequently printed stories after they appeared in the Daily. To salvage a dwindling readership, the Observer's switched publication from Thursdays to Fridays last fall, becoming "Tufts' Weekend Newspaper." Modeled after the Sunday editions of newspapers such as The New York Times and The Washington Post, last year's Observer advertised increased arts and entertainment coverage and more analytical news stories. "When the new staff looked at our position in the Tufts community, it realized it had to take a different stance," McCormack told the Daily last fall. With the Observer switching to a magazine format, McCormack says he looks forward to improving the quality of Tufts' oldest publication. Although Tufts can no longer claim to be the smallest school in the country with two newspapers, media watchers are enthusiastic about the Observer's proposal to approach news from creative angles. "I think from time to time the papers have been in competition with one another," Eisenhauer said. But not anymore: "This will be a fun, new educational endeavor and can draw a whole new group of journalists," she said. "I hope it's successful." - Mary Anne Anderson and Amy Spindel contributed to this article.

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Praise and criticism from 'Princeton Review'

August 31

In applying to college, most high school seniors don't rely on glossy brochures to get an idea of what a school's about. Rather, many turn to the Princeton Review, an annual review of US schools that rates colleges based on everything from professor quality to social life. More than 500,000 students visit the Princeton Review's website, www.review.com, each month to find schools, submit applications, and research career and financial aid options. One of the magazine's most frequently used Web features is its list of The Best 331 College Rankings. The rankings are composed from the feedback of current students at each of the ranked schools, and are compiled into several categories including academics, campus life, demographics, and politics. One prospective Jumbo visiting campus recently said the magazine's website helped her explore academic options. "I actually use the Princeton Review site to look for the schools that would fit my criteria," she said. "I think it's pretty helpful because it provides the rankings for different categories and it also has little descriptions explaining things like why the school's academics is rigorous and how the professors are accessible." And just how does Tufts stack up against other national schools? In its latest edition, Princeton Review ranked Tufts seventh among the schools for "happy students," and students described the active campus as one packed with both class-related activities and extra-curricular options. "I actually was attracted to the University's diversity in activities," the prospective student said. "Tufts is far from my home in New York, and when I came to visit, I wanted to make sure that I will keep myself busy so that I wouldn't be homesick." Many students agree that Tufts' school spirit lies primarily in the 150 student groups, which include everything from film series and musical theater to culture groups and tutoring. Tufts is ranked third in the "more to do on campus" category. Students also realize, however, that the social lives of most Tufts students involve going into Boston. Despite the favorable reviews, Tufts failed to make the grade in some Princeton Review categories. Tufts squeaked into the list of top 20 schools where the campus is "tiny, unsightly, or both," at number 18. And though it received recognition for having impressive libraries, Tufts barely made it into the top 20 at number 18. The University was behind University of Virginia in the top spot, John Hopkins in the third, and Harvard in the sixth. Another of Tufts' weaknesses is in the "Little race/class interaction" category, where the University ranked fifth. But overall, the Review holds Tufts in a distinguished light, describing the University as a school known for "stealing the Ivy wait-list population and offering rigorous academics that keep the school's hard-working, career-driven students on their toes." Tufts is praised for its small class size, ample funding, noteworthy professors, and a wide variety of solid departments. The school is considered very politically active, ranking seventh on the list. Professors at Tufts are highly regarded as well. Tufts ranks fourth out of the top twenty schools for having the most accessible professors and eighth on the list for having professors who "bring material to life." Smith College received the top ranking in the category.

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News

Midnight music right behind Miller

August 31

Oxfam Caf?© is easy to miss. Tucked away behind Miller Hall, the location of this vegetarian eatery is less than prominent. Locale notwithstanding, the caf?© has succeeded in carving a niche for itself as both a serene study spot and the place to go for healthy munchies. But in recent years, Oxfam has come to be recognized for more than its unique menu of vegetarian fare and its efforts against hunger. The Midnight Caf?©, a live music show hosted by Oxfam on Friday nights from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m., has helped Oxfam to build a reputation as one of the most inviting and laid back performance venues on campus. "The objective of the Midnight Caf?© is to provide an alternative on Friday nights to the frat scene and alcohol scene," Midnight Caf?© coordinator Doug Hansen said. While frat parties and bar scenes are "definitely competition" for the Midnight Caf?©, Hansen said that people continue to show up on Friday nights to check out the show's eclectic mix of talented musicians. The show features a wide variety of musical styles ranging from hip-hop to folk to jazz-funk fusion. Even though the size of the crowd varies from show to show, the enthusiasm of musicians to perform in Oxfam Caf?© does not. "Performers really like it better than playing at Hotung and the Campus Center," Hansen said. Despite this, it's not always easy finding people to play the Midnight Caf?©, and the lineup is contingent on "who's available and who we can get," Hansen said. In past years, performers have included current undergraduates, alumni, and professional musicians. The show has also featured a series of open mic nights. Past shows have been produced in collaboration with WMFO and broadcast live, such as the one featuring rap artist Mr. Lif last spring. The Midnight Caf?© has also hosted joint concerts with groups such as Amnesty International. Coordinators hope that this year's Midnight Caf?© will be even more successful than past years. Thanks to the efforts of Hansen and Tufts Lighting and Sound Video (TLSV) office manager Sean McDermott, Oxfam has acquired new equipment that will make it easier for the Midnight Caf?© to put on a show. The money for the new system came from the TCU Senate and was purchased through TLSV. "Past semesters have been difficult because the equipment was old," Hansen said. "Sometimes we had to rent equipment...But this year we plan to be a lot more active. Hopefully we're going to start 'rockin' the casbah'." The Midnight Caf?© is tentatively scheduled to do just that beginning Sept. 21, when Hansen hopes to collaborate with Oxfam Caf?© for "a grand opening kind of thing." Music fans should arrive there hungry, as Oxfam Caf?©'s menu is unlike any other on campus. Despite the fact that the eatery serves only vegetarian food, the menu is well rounded enough to appeal to those who aren't vegetarians. There are five different kinds of veggie burgers ranging from the aptly-named Basic Burger to the Oxfam Burger with veggies and hummus or cheese. The menu also features more basic munchies like pizza bagels and pita with hummus as well as more exotic offerings such as Alu Paratha and Samosa, two vegan Indian dishes made from a potato and pea mixture served with tamarind chutney. A wide variety of beverages is available to quench your thirst. The caf?©, which is staffed entirely by volunteers, is an affiliate of Oxfam America, a non-profit organization committed to eradicating worldwide hunger. In the past 30 years, the organization has been responsible for over $100 million in funding and technical support. Oxfam Caf?© has contributed to the organization's endeavors by donating its profits and thus aiding in Oxfam America's mission to create "lasting solutions to hunger, poverty and social injustice through long term partnerships with poor communities around the world."

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News

Performance groups embroiled in scheduling conflict

August 31

Several campus performance groups are vying for space in Cohen Auditorium for their traditional end-of-semester performances. One casualty of the scheduling conflict is the Spirit of Color dance troupe, which until yesterday did not have a performance date for this semester because its traditional slot was taken by the Tufts Dance Collective (TDC). For TDC, the move from its traditional performance space in Jackson Dance Lab to Cohen was a welcome change. Jackson was a low-capacity venue, according to TDC Co-Director Kelly Dutton, and it did not accommodate the crowds. But TDC's move conflicted with Spirit of Color, another dance troupe that traditionally performs in Cohen. Scheduling for the space is done through a lottery system and TDC put in a request for the weekend before reading period, the nights that Spirit of Color usually performs to capacity crowds. TDC won the dates and Spirit of Color does not have a date slated for its semester performance. The group has negotiated performance time with the Beelzebubs, who also had a performance scheduled in Cohen. "We are working it out with [Spirit of Color]," said Marty Keiser, the Beelzebubs' president. "We were planning on giving it up because we don't need that date." The Bubs usually perform in Goddard Chapel, but wanted to move to Cohen this year. But since the Department of Music booked every Friday and Saturday in December, the group moved its concert back to the chapel. Spirit of Color members were taken aback by the TDC move, which they say they never heard about until this semester. Kim Wong, former director of Spirit of Color, said she wishes the groups had communicated in advance. "We could have probably figured the whole thing out on our own," she said yesterday. Wong stressed the high demand on the Cohen space, saying it is unfortunate that her group was forced out after selling out both of its performances last semester. According to Wong, Spirit of Color cannot find an alternate space to perform. The scheduling conflicts arose after TDC grew in size. The dance department expressed concern over the large size of Tufts Dance Collective (TDC) last spring. The department said the Jackson Dance Lab cannot accommodate the group and gave TDC two options - it either had to move their performance out of the lab or reduce the number of members to 20. TDC has over 150 members, so the group's directors chose to relocate their end-of-semester performances to Cohen auditorium. The dance department placed other restrictions on the group, as well, capping the dancers in each dance to 25 to avoid going over the room capacity of the Jackson rehearsal rooms. TDC took measures to restrict its membership to comply with the new rules. Traditionally, TDC does not hold auditions, but members can no longer participate in more than four dances, or five if they choreographed a dance.

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