NYU’s Daily Student Newspaper
washington square news Vol. 40, No. 17
FRIDAY, february 17, 2012
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Parenting and obesity linked in NYU study
Tisch students reinvent ‘World’
By Eric Benson
By Nicola Pring
A talented group of Tisch students are bringing a new twist to Jason Robert Brown’s popular musical “Songs for a New World.” Brown’s show is a song-cycle production about people handling indecisive moments in their lives. The score takes the audience to times and places in both history and fantasy — from Columbus’s ship in 1492 to the North Pole to a ledge on the 57th floor of a New York City apartment building. Each actor in the small cast plays a range of characters. Personalities include a woman trapped in an unsatisfying marriage, a young man struggling to find his way out of the slums and a mother anxiously awaiting her son’s return from the Revolutionary War. The song cycle is usually staged simply, with little blocking or
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Eric Hsieh/WSN
Energy and passion highlight the student-led recreation of Brown’s “Songs for a New World.”
Gary Carter, Mets legend, dies at 57 By Daniel Hinton
After undergoing months of chemotherapy for brain cancer, Major League Baseball Hall of Famer Gary Carter passed away Thursday afternoon. He was 57 years old. Carter, known as “The Kid,” was one of the greatest catchers in MLB history. Over the course of 19 seasons, Carter hit for a .292 batting average with 324 home runs and 1225 RBIs. He also made 11 All-Star game appearances and was inducted in Cooperstown in 2003. Carter played his first 11 seasons with the Montreal Expos and led them to the franchise’s only playoff berth in 1981. His most famous years, however, were with the Mets. Peter Sherman, a Brooklyn native and Mets fan for over 45 years, described
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via Wikipedia
Carter managed the Orange County Flyers in 2008.
A new study has found a direct relationship between parenting and obesity prevention. “Early Childhood Family Intervention and Long-term Obesity Prevention Among High-risk Minority Youth,” a study by NYU Langone Medical Center, has found evidence linking the effects of better parenting for children at a young age to their overall health. “For young children and families living under stressful circumstances associated with urban poverty, behavioral family intervention that supports effective parenting and promotes child self-regulation appears to alter pathways to unhealthy outcomes,” said child psychiatrist Laurie Brotman, who spearheaded the report. Brotman and her team further focused their research on 186
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New website makes NYC apartment hunting fast, easy By Esha Ray
For many students in the city, a search for the perfect apartment does not begin until a month before school starts. This usually results in an extremely stressful experience. But creating guarantor agreements, checking credit scores and fighting rent division are hardly tasks to be completed last-minute. RentJolt.com is a new website that allows prospective tenants to search for available apartments up to eight months in advance and aims to ease the tensions for apartment hunters. Founded and launched by Avi Dofrman and Samuel Sheinin this year, the website is currently in testing. Dorfman, who used to work for McKinsey & Company, said he was inspired by similar websites like AirBnb.com, a hotel listing site that uses crowd sourcing to bring people together and get information out early. “I just saw the pain that students were going through with very high fees and all the complications around guarantors,” Dorfman said. “I realized that I really wanted to do something to automate the rental process.” If you are trying to rent out your place, posting the apartment is free.
Dorfman said the key is posting accurate pictures and information. Once the space is rented, RentJolt.com will pay rentees between $500 to $1000 depending on the price of their place. RentJolt helps close the deal quickly, and prospective tenants pay a reduced brokerage fee of about 5.75 percent. It is an appealing deal to students including Melanie Navre, a Steinhardt senior who remembers having trouble finding her current apartment and meeting fast deadlines. “When I was looking last summer there was a lot of, ‘Our deadline’s coming up in three days,’” Navre said. “People were moving out of apartments, so we couldn’t look at them yet, but theoretically they would be open when we wanted to move in. So it would be nice to have to information in front of me ahead of time.” Navre said the significantly reduced broker fee attracted her to the website. “If you lose [an apartment], there are hundreds of other options especially in a saturated city like NYC,” CAS junior Sidrah Syed said. “It usually takes people a few months to make a final
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Washington Square news | FRIDAY, february 17, 2012 | nyunews.com
on the side
Compiled by the
WSN staff
this day in History 1801: The electoral battle between Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr ends with Jefferson’s victory less than a month before his inauguration.
Washington Square News Editor-in-Chief amanda randone Managing Editor
jaewon kang Deputy Managing Editor
1867: The first ship passes through the Suez Canal.
Amy zhang Assistant Managing Editor
james lanning 1904: The famous opera “Madama Butterfly” premieres in Milan, Italy.
Creative Director
selena chen senior staff
university Julie devito city/state emily yang investigative hanqing chen arts jonathon dornbush features jessica littman sports daniel hinton multimedia david lin copy maximilíano durón senior editor jack brooks,
BRIDGETTE DORAN
deputy staff
university eric benson, eliza-
beth maguire city/state tony chau, kristine
itliong, jessica schultz investigative feiye wang music josh johnson film stefan Melnyk entertainment jeremy grossman books/theater clio Mcconnell dining hannah borenstein beauty & style shannon
1966: Brian Wilson begins recording “Good Vibrations” for the Beach Boys album “Pet Sounds.”
loughran sports John axelrod, cole
riley special issues kristina bogos multimedia james kelleher copy jordan melendrez social media agent nicole gartside
1979: China invades Vietnam in response to the Vietnamese invasion of Cambodia.
opinion page
opinion editor olivia gonzalez deputy opinion editor ATTICUS
BRIGHAM, SANCHAY JAIN
2011: The revolution in Libya begins.
advertising business manager
REBECCA RIBEIRO all photos via flickr
circulation manager
chloe coffman
university sales coordinator
Emilia Mironovici
SNAPSHOT
ON THE WIRE
Honduras prison fire kills more than 350 inmates
An intense conflagration engulfed a Honduran prison, ending lives of some felons while providing other inmates a new chance at freedom. The blaze killed 359 prisoners, while 493 managed to escape. The prison was roughly 45 miles north of the capital Tegucigalpa. Honduran authorities said the source was caused by a prisoner who had set the mattress in his cell on fire. Authorities say the 800-plus number of inmates that the prison housed was well above its capacity. — Reuters
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
PHOTO BY James Kelleher
Kaitlyn O’Brien, MICHAEL RYAN, Melissa Ynegas
advising editorial adviser
keith leighty EDITORS-AT-LARGE
jaywon choe kelsey desiderio russell steinberg KIRSTEN CHANG francis poon terka cicelOVa
Housing confirms bedbugs in 20 more rooms, addresses concerns about suite-style dorms
About WSN: Washington Square News (ISSN 15499389) is the student newspaper of New York University. WSN is published Monday through Thursday during NYU’s academic year, except for university holidays, vacations and exam periods.
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Comedian Demetri Martin performed a sold out show at Skirball on Wednesday. He continues performing at NYU through Feb. 18.
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nyunews.com | FRIDAY, february 17, 2012 | Washington Square news
Whole Foods co-CEO shares vision for his company
James Kelleher/WSN
Wagner hosted a conversation between Whole Foods co-CEO and a Steinhardt professor. By Tony Chau Whole Foods Market co-CEO Walter Robb shared his experience of leading the company last night in front of a packed crowd at the Wagner School of Public Service. In a conversation with Steinhardt professor Carolyn Dimitri, Robb also spoke of how food policy should be dealt with in the U.S. He said the company’s ideas include ensuring sustainable, organic food is obtainable to everyone in the country, regardless of their income or education level. In an effort to make these ideas reach fruition, he told the audience Whole Foods is launching a store in Detroit. The city has recently suffered from high unemployment problems. The company also plans to open an innovative store in Brooklyn that will primarily use solar energy. It will also be made of a
compilation of recycled bricks and feature a garden nourished with recycled rainwater. Throughout the conversation, Robb also took a number of jabs at Trader Joe’s, one of Whole Foods’ competitors. According to Robb, the rival company lacks transparency and does not abide by a set of standards that were created to ensure quality gourmet, organic groceries. He said these are differences that make Whole Foods a more trustworthy brand. Robb said his company’s goal is not to make a profit, but to make the world better: “We get up to fulfill our mission.” Eric Bielsky, an attendee who works at a grocery store, came to the event with a colleague because they were eager to hear Robb’s opinion about food policy within the U.S. “We just want to see what his message is because he’s in exactly
the same business that we are, and Whole Foods is obviously the industry leader. So we just kind of want to see how he couches his ideas,” Bielsky said. First-year graduate Food Studies student Layla Azimi believes agricultural policies should aim to create biodiversity. “In the last, probably 50 years, I’d say about 90 to 92 percent of the types of seeds that we use to grow apples, to grow tomatoes or grow potatoes have diminished, and it’s left us with a very small, finite number of varieties of plants and fruit for us to work with,” she said. “It’s about creating a system that’s going to conserve our natural resources and also put us in a situation to go back and rethink about the way we distribute food in this country.”
OBESITY continued from PG. 1
NYU study links parenting and childhood obesity children and parents who had participated in intervention programs including NYU Parentcorps and Incredible Years. These programs guide parents through the process of helping their children regulate their emotions and cope with stress and how to promote positive behavior and enforce discipline. Research found that families who received training have healthier kids while parents who did not were 54 percent more likely to have kids who became obese by the second grade. Of the kids who received intervention, 24 percent became obese. These children also tended to exhibit lower blood pressure rates and lower consumption of carbohydrates. Nancy Sherwood and Simon French at the Minnesota Obesity Center are beginning to study about the influences of parenting on childhood obesity. Their study will include community parenting classes and home visits. During home visits researchers will advise parents on some parenting behaviors within their homes. “Literature shows associations between more positive parenting styles and healthy eating patterns in their kids,” Sherwood said. “When your kids are really little and parents are spending the most time with them [and] if you’re teaching them the general problems [the
Tony Chau is a deputy city/state editor. Email him at tchau@nyunews.com.
children] would then apply them.” According to Spring DawsonMcClure Ph.D., a professor at the Center for Early Childhood Health and Development, the role of parents in early childhood are monumental in their future development. “Equipping parents with foundational strategies to help children succeed can in part offset the tremendous challenges faced by parents living in lowincome, urban communities [including] lack of access to healthy food and safe places to play, poor housing, impossible choices of how to allocate limited resources [and] discrimination,” Dawson-McClure said. Jessica Anderson, a mother whose own child is battling obesity, said she agrees with the results of the study. “It really is important to monitor your kids from the start,” Anderson said. “One of my boys actually struggled with his weight when he was younger, and it not only took a toll on him, but the rest of the family as well. “ “I can’t stress enough how far small steps in a healthy direction can go when it comes to managing your kid’s weight,” she said. Eric Benson is a deputy university editor. Email him at university@nyunews.com.
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Five universities nationwide receive e-textbooks
By Jacqueline Widmann
College students across the country are changing the way they read and purchase textbooks. Internet2, a technology networking organization, recently started a pilot program that implements electronic textbooks at five universities in the nation: University of Wisconsin, Cornell University, University of Virginia, University of Minnesota and University of California, Berkeley. McGraw-Hill and Courseload, other participants in the program, provide free electronic textbooks using eText software. Mickey Levitan, co-founder and CEO of Courseload, said electronic textbooks are an attractive option because of their lower cost. “Given the economy and the pressure on schools and universities to lower costs and improve educational outcomes, every school that we’ve spoken to is looking for the best way to make this transition,” Levitan said. “Ten years ago we even wondered if this was a possibility.” Courseload worked with Indiana University to create the eText software before the idea was presented to Internet2. Stu-
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dents can make notes, virtually highlight the text and access the text on any platform. Though NYU does not use the eText software, NYU Bookstore has been working with three different providers of electronic textbooks. Senior director of the NYU bookstore, Phil Christopher, said the use of e-books at the university is growing. “Since this past September we have provided 7513 [electronic textbooks], which is a little under 6 percent of the total number of textbooks,” Christopher said. “Most industry projections see this going to about 15 to 20 percent in the next five years or so.” NYU spokesman James Devitt said the bookstore offers nearly 500 e-book titles and allows students the opportunity to rent books through a provider called CourseSmart. “These options have saved students anywhere from 50 to 70 percent on the cost of books,” he said. But Naomi Baron, executive director at the Center for Teaching, Research and Learning at American University, thinks e-books may negatively affect learning even though they are cheaper and useful for gathering or reviewing information.
“It is not clear that eTexts are the best way to read for reflection, conceptual development or creativity,” Baron said. “Numerous studies have concluded that multitasking makes for poorer performance on cognitive tasks than doing tasks individually.” LSP freshman Cidney Ehya said she loves that students can keep their notes and electronic textbooks online. “I think NYU should start using this program,” Ehya said. “It’s great for the environment, and we will have less books to carry.” However, Tisch School of the Arts freshman Andrew George is more cautious about this shift in technology. “It’s inevitable that everything will become electronic, but in certain areas of education it is helpful to have a hard copy of a textbook,” George said. “I think that, ideally, there would be some sort of balance between both online and hard cover textbooks.” Jacqueline Widmann is a contributing writer. Email her at cstate@nyunews.com.
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Washington Square news | FRIDAY, february 17, 2012 | nyunews.com
features
edited by jessIca littman features@nyunews.com
SONGS continued from PG. 1
‘Songs for a New World’ speaks to themes of doubt and indecision
RENT continued from PG. 1
New website helps locate apartments for less
decision and confirm a place, so when you go on other real estate websites you pretty much get the same experience.” At the moment, the website has eight listings available, including one in Brooklyn. But Dorfman said he hopes to add more listings, new open house features and a more automated paperwork
collection system. In a crowded city like New York, the website is not bound to be modest for long. Esha Ray is a contributing writer. Email her at features@nyunews.com.
Maji water bottles charitable, profitable
By Sally Kim Eric Hsieh/WSN
Student actors sing and dance in a rendition of a musical by Jason Brown. movement. But the students choreographed a dance or movement for each song. “This is a completely new take,” Rachel Geisler, a Tisch sophomore and cast member, said. “Adding dance and movement has kind of made sense of a show that’s normally just a song cycle. It’s been like adding a whole new dimension and a whole new plot.” Geisler and her three co-stars perform their roles with enthusiasm and emotional intensity. Tisch junior and director Danny Baird said the emotionality is an important part of the show. “What we’re emphasizing in this production is really trying to get at the emotional turmoil of existing in the moment of indecision,” Baird said.
All four actors have powerful voices and passionately sing through Brown’s complex score. This production of “Songs For a New World” is entirely student-run. Each semester, Tisch students put on GAP productions between other shows, where the director, choreographers, creative team and cast all worked together to create a new take on the show. “Working on this production with this team has been an amazing collaborative process,” said Zachary Infante, a Tisch junior and cast member. “We’re trying new things with theater,” he said. “We’re really lucky at Tisch to have students from all different studios coming together to work on this production,” The cast and crew of “Songs For a New World”
are excited to share their work with audiences. “[The production] really does showcase the multiplicity of talents here at Tisch, and at NYU in general,” Baird said. Geisler said the show has been fun. “I think it’s going to be one of those experiences where you get to see a piece of work that a lot of people are familiar with done in a completely new way.” Geisler said. “I think it’s going to be refreshing for people to see a new take on it.” “Songs For a New World” will run from Feb. 17 to 25 at the Shop Theatre on the 2nd floor of the Tisch Building at 721 Broadway. Nicola Pring is a contributing writer. Email her at features@nyunews.com.
Stacy sahagian for wsn
Missed fashion week? WSN style experts have compiled the top trends into a booklet, just for you. Learn how to translate runway couture to your personal look and pick up a copy this Tuesday, Feb. 21. For more fashion week coverage, visit: wsnfashionweek.tumblr.com. #nyfw
A new organization called Maji Bottles is killing two birds with one stone as a forprofit company that serves a charitable cause. Founded in 2011, the organization’s goal is to decrease the pollution caused by excess plastic bottles in the nation’s landfills and improve the water crisis in third world countries. Stern freshman Grace Reed is bringing the organization to NYU with the hope that others will share her ambition. The mission of the organization, founded by Boston College senior Max Ade, is to provide clean water for people in Africa and reduce the waterborne illnesses that kill African children every 20 seconds. The company sells sleek, matte black water canteens for $20 each. “It’s a model where everyone wins,” Ade said. “The consumer is able to give to a cause by purchasing a great product. The business is able to grow faster and reach more customers than a traditional charity ever could.” In late 2011, Maji partnered with an organization called Charity: Water, which uses their funds to build wells in developing nations. The I.R.S.recognized Maji Bottles are contribute 25 percent of its proceeds to Charity: Water. “Most importantly, the cause receives significantly more funding from millions of customer-philanthropists than would ever be possible through the private donations of a few,” he said. Ade, who heard a lot about the water crisis, said he wanted to apply the forprofit charity organization model to water. “Water bottles seemed like the perfect product,” he said. “When I learned the name for water in Swahili was Maji, it just stuck. I knew we had something.”
Courtesy of Maji
Maji Bottles sells sleek, mattee canteens for $20 each. Reed, the social entrepreneur for Maji Bottles at NYU, loves her canteen. “I love that when I’m taking a sip from my Maji water bottle someone out there is drinking clean water because of me,” she said. Reed hopes the organization can gain powerful momentum on campus, and that the NYU community can see how easy it can be to support the cause. She also hopes to improve the style and function of the bottles in the future. “We love how simple the design is right now,” she said. “With more demand, however, we hope to make a version 2.0, a version 3.0 and so on. Ones with filters, ones with different colors, logos and more.” Based on the rising popularity of these bottles at BC,
Ade hopes to raise $20000 by the end of May. The purchase of these 1000 bottles ensures that an entire village will be provided a well and safe water for the rest of the villagers’ lives. “We envision a future in which all companies build giving into their business model,” Ade said. “For example, imagine if every time you bought a T-shirt, someone else got a T-shirt too. In all of my classes I look around and see tons of Kleen Kanteen, Camelback, SIGG and Nalgene water bottles. Imagine if every one of those was a Maji bottle. We’d be able to give a whole lot of people clean drinking water.” Sally Kim is a contributing writer. Email her at features@nyunews.com.
nyunews.com | FRIDAY, february 17, 2012 | Washington Square news
SPORTs
edited by daniel hinton
sports@nyunews.com CARTER continued from PG. 1
Mets fans, young and old, remember Carter his favorite memory of Carter’s career playing at Shea Stadium. “It was Opening Day [1985] and I remember sitting in the snow,” Sherman said. “[Carter] hit the game-winning home run in the 10th inning. I’ll always remember that.” During the legendary 1986 season, Carter had 105 RBIs, received his fifth and final Silver Slugger award and placed third in National League MVP voting. Carter elevated his game in the ‘86 postseason and secured his legendary status among baseball fans. During the World Series he drove in nine runs, hit a single during the Mets’ amazing comeback in the 10th inning of Game 6 and tied the score in the 6th inning of Game 7. Carter’s contributions led the Mets to their second and most recent World Series championship in team history. CAS freshman and Bronx native, John Valiplackal,
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has been a Mets fan since second grade and watched countless highlights from the 1986 World Series. “He’s one of the big names that I know from 1986,” Valiplackal said. “I know those guys are before my time, but that was such a big year for the Mets, and it defined New York sports.” After short stints with the San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers, Carter returned to Montreal and retired in 1992. He became the first player inducted into the Hall of Fame to dawn an Expos baseball cap. Carter continued his baseball career as a manager for several teams, including the single-A St. Lucie Mets, the Long Island Ducks and the Palm Beach Atlantic University Sailfish. Off the field, Carter was the founder and president of the Gary Carter Foundation, which helps impoverished students in Palm Beach County, Florida. In
1989, Carter received the Roberto Clemente Award, given annually to MLB players involved in charities and community organizations. Last May, Carter was diagnosed with grade IV glioblastoma. The cancer did not subside despite chemotherapy treatments. Although the news concerning his illness never improved, Carter attended Opening Day on Feb. 8 for the Sailfish. Kimmy Bloemers, his daughter, announced his death on Thursday and was instantly met with reactions from former players, coaches and fans. “It’s always sad when somebody his age dies, under any circumstance,” Sherman said. “You look at these guys growing up watching sports, and you never think that they’ll get sick at such a young age.”
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Daniel Hinton is sports editor. Email him at dhinton@nyunews.com.
Reyes, Darvish, Santana lead baseball story lines 1. Santana Will Not Overcome Injuries Since 2008, Santana, the Mets’ number one starter, has dealt with a string of injuries. Four seasons ago, Santana tore cartilage in his left knee, which required seasonending surgery. In 2009, his season was cut short to allow arthroscopic surgery on his pitching elbow to remove bone chips. In 2010, he was
sidelined once again to undergo rotator cuff surgery. The latter was the most serious incident and forced Santana, who is 133 - 69 overall with a 3.10 earned run average and two Cy Young Awards, to miss the first half of the 2011 season. The 32-year-old is now cleared to return this season, but the
prospect of Santana returning to consistency — let alone stardom — is not promising. Add his monster contract to the Mets’ long list of financial woes. Santana is guaranteed more than $55 million dollars over the next three years, with a 2014 club-option at $25 million.
2. Reyes’ Arrival in Miami Will Hurt Team Chemistry Apart from sluggers Albert Pujols and Prince Fielder, Reyes was considered the best hitter available on the free-agent market. Though plagued with injuries in the last few seasons, Reyes has still tallied an impressive .341 on-base percentage with 370 stolen bases, 735 runs and 1300 hits through nine seasons in Flushing, Queens. Determined to make a splash this via Wikipedia
Yu Darvish’s success in Japan will carry over in the U.S. By Cole Riley With pitchers and catchers reporting for spring training on Feb. 19, three players are dominating headlines. Questions, doubts and high expectations surround Johan Santan, New York Mets starting pitcher, former teammate and current Miami Marlins shortstop, Jose Reyes, and new Texas Rangers staff ace Yu Darvish. While answers can only come from the baseball diamond, WSN offers predictions for the biggest storylines heading toward Opening Day.
offseason, Miami nabbed the 28year-old speedster for six years and $106 million dollars. However, the Marlins already had Hanley Ramirez, an All-Star shortstop on their roster who is now set to transition to third base. Franchise owner Jeffrey Loria’s gamble will result in disaster. Ramirez, despite his MVP-worthy statistics, has been toxic in the clubhouse. His immaturity
and inability to accept his position as the face of the franchise has led to team conflict and trade rumors over the past few years. Miami’s management is now asking Ramirez to move to a position he has never played to accommodate a seemingly better fellow Dominican shortstop. With the potential clash of egos, the new situation in Miami will quickly become a mess.
Cubs and Toronto Blue Jays to sign Yu to a contract worth $60 million over six years. Yu faces the daunting task of replacing C.J. Wilson at the top of the rotation. Last season, Wilson went 16 - 7 with a 2.94 earned runs average and 206 strikeouts while leading the Rangers to the World Series for the second year in a row. Yu certainly has the tools to match those stats and possibly surpass them as
well. Standing at 6’5” he can top 100 miles per hour with his fastball and has a set of pitches including a cutter, splitter, curve ball and an 80 m.p.h. slurve ball. Yu is powerful and consistent enough on the mound to live up to his potential in the MLB. Unlike his Japanese counterpart Daisuke Matsuzaka, who has disappointed as a starter in Boston, Yu has a very bright future as the Rangers ace.
3. Yu Will Succeed in MLB Only 25 years old, starting pitcher Yu Darvish has already recorded a careers-worth of accomplishments. The Japanese hurler has gone 93-38 with a 1.99 earned runs average and 1259 strikeouts as a member of the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters. He was also a member of the Japanese national team that won the gold medal in the 2009 World Baseball Classic. The Texas Rangers outbid the New York Yankees, Chicago
Cole Riley is a deputy sports editor. Email him at criley@nyunews.com.
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