VOL. CLXXV NO.24
RAIN HIGH 57 LOW 37
THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2018
HANOVER, NEW HAMPSHIRE
Hillel celebrates Roth Center After membership for Jewish Life’s 20th year review, 19 Sig Ep
brothers remain
B y the dartmouth senior staff
OPINION
SHAH: CLOSER THAN YOU THINK PAGE 6
SAKLAD: GROWING GREEN2-GO PAGE 7
BASU: MISSED NOTIFICATIONS PAGE 7
ARTS
GALLERY WALK — ‘GARBÁGE: AN ARTISTIC WASTELAND’ PAGE 8
‘TEXT ME WHEN YOU GET HOME’ CELEBRATES FEMALE FRIENDSHIP PAGE 8 FOLLOW US ON
TWITTER @thedartmouth COPYRIGHT © 2018 THE DARTMOUTH, INC.
COURTESY OF JULIA FEINSTEIN
Holocaust survivors Thomas Buergenthal and Betty Lauer were present at Hillel’s celebrations.
B y claudia bernstein The Dartmouth
T h i s p a s t we e k e n d , Dartmouth College Hillel celebrated the 20th anniversary of the Roth Center for Jewish Life, which opened in 1998 following a donation by Steven Roth ’62 TU’63. The
weekend’s events included various services, meals and speeches by alumni, students and guests reflecting on how the Roth Center has fostered community at the College. Hillel vice president Jaclyn Eagle ’19 said that the existence of the Roth Center on campus has drastically improved
student membership and involvement in Jewish life. “For a very long time, Hillel at Dartmouth was nomadic,” Eagle said. “They would sort of move from room to room and didn’t really have a space. Because of that, the SEE HILLEL PAGE 5
Cheryl Bascomb ’82 to be VP for alumni relations B y eileen brady
The Dartmouth Staff
“Dartmouth to the core” is how vice president for alumni relations Martha Beattie ’76 describes her successor, Cheryl Bascomb ’82. On June 1, Beattie will step down after seven years in the position for Bascomb, a volunteer and leader in the Dartmouth alumni community, to assume the role. The vice president for alumni relations is responsible for fostering
Nineteen members of Dartmouth’s chapter of Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity were invited back to the fraternity following a member ship review instituted by their national organization, according to a member of Sig Ep who was not invited back after his review. Before the review, there were 102 active members. Of the 19, one is a member of the Class of 2018, three are members of the Class of 2019 and 15 are members of the Class of 2020, according to the former member. He said that to his knowledge, based off of conversations with other Dartmouth Sig Eps, at least 62 of the chapter’s members chose to pursue the membership review. College spokesperson Diana Lawrence confirmed t h at i nv i t at i o n s we re
extended to 19 members. She also added that the college recognizes Sig Ep’s ability to select their own members as a private, selfselecting organization. Those who were not invited back following the membership review or who chose not to participate will remain as suspended members as long as they “remain in good standing with SigEp New Hampshire Alpha until graduation,” according to an email sent to suspended members by chapter services director Paul Andersen. Suspended members are not permitted to identify as members of the fraternity, attend any house events or meetings or wear any clothing associated with Sig Ep, according to Andersen’s email. They may earn alumni status upon graduation, though members may also choose to resign. Members who were SEE SIG EP PAGE 3
GRAY SKIES, BRIGHT JACKETS
connections among Dartmouth’s roughly 81,000 alumni worldwide and engaging them with the College, directing alumni communications, engagement, programming and volunteering. Bascomb said she is excited to bring 30 years of marketing experience to the vice president for alumni relations position. “A great deal of what’s involved [in the position] is communication SEE VP PAGE 3
NAOMI LAM/THE DARTMOUTH STAFF
Spring is finally arriving at Dartmouth, and students have broken out their bikes.
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THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2018
THE DARTMOUTH NEWS
Q&A with music professor and Silkroad director Ted Levin B y charles chen The Dartmouth
Professor Ted Levin teaches courses about world music and interdisciplinary music topics at the College. His work focuses on ethnomusicology and the music of Central Asia and Siberia. Levin has traveled the world studying music and has published several books about his travels and studies. He throat sings and plays the banjo, bagpipes, celtic fiddle, durar, piano and tanbur. He also works with outreach programs to support music and musicians from other cultures and is currently the senior project consultant to the Aga Khan Music Initiative. Levin was the first executive director of the Silkroad, whose Silk Road Ensemble included founder Yo-Yo Ma in a recent performance at Hopkins Center for the Arts. What first got you interested in music? T.L.: I started playing piano when I was four years old, and until I was a teenager, I had only ever heard Western classical music. I’m probably the only person who lived through the sixties and missed The Beatles. But as a teenager, I went to a summer camp where I fell head over heels for the banjo, and I basically majored in banjo at Amherst College. When I graduated, I got a Thomas J. Watson fellowship that required me to leave the United States for a year. I pursued an independent project that involved studying music while traveling from Ireland to India. Forty-five years later, I still feel like I’m doing that fellowship. How did you end up teaching at Dartmouth? T.L.: Well, I wasn’t looking for an academic job. After I got my Ph.D., I dropped out of academia. I went to work in a cultural exchange during the waning years of the Soviet Union. I co-produced Billy Joel’s performances in Moscow and Leningrad in 1987, which were the first major American rock and roll performances in the country. But I always loved northern New England, and when my graduate school advisor suggested that I apply for a job at Dartmouth, I did, and I’ve been here ever since.
Tell me about your research and interests. T.L.: My area of specialization is Central Asia and Siberia. I have been a student of those musics since my fellowship in 1974, and I travel to these areas every year to revitalize my network of musical colleagues and research collaborators. I’m presently working on a book about the impact of international NGOs on culture and the future of music in Central Asia. However, these days, I’m much more active in cultural advocacy than in research. Outside of Dartmouth, I work as a consultant for the Aga Khan Music Initiative and am part of a small team that is allocating $500,000 in prize money to support music creation, performance and education in Muslim societies across the world. I see this as a huge opportunity to contribute to the future of music development.
that are intrinsically cosmopolitan and challenge musicians to reach beyond their own cultures to find common ground with musicians from other societies.
How did you end up working with Silkroad and Yo-Yo Ma? T.L.: In the mid-nineties, I published a book about music in Central Asia. It was musicology disguised as a travel log, and the title of the book was “The Hundred Thousand Fools of God: Musical Travels in Central Asia (and Queens, New York).” Yo-Yo Ma was intrigued by the title and ordered it, knowing nothing about the author. After he read it, he tracked me down and asked if I would be interested in working with him. I met with him and discussed starting Silkroad. My job was to synthesize the group’s ideas into documents that could be used to
raise money and to pitch our project to concert halls and presenters that could share the project with the world. One of my main tasks was to co-curate the Smithsonian Folklife Festival at the National Mall in Washington D.C., which was devoted to the Silk Road. We brought 400 artists, musicians and artisans to D.C. Since the festival took place just after 9/11, it was not easy to bring musicians from Central Asia and a lot of other Muslim-majority countries. What was your favorite show at the Hop that played recently? T.L.: The Hop does a fantastic job of bringing adventurous artists to Dartmouth. Their achievement is really bringing top people from many different categories. This year, I think my favorite show was put on by the vocal group “Room Full of Teeth.” But my
favorite thing that the Hop does is commission and premiere new work. In the past couple of months, I produced Qyrq Qyz’s premiere, and the Silk Road Project had its own premiere as well. This kind of access is remarkable for the college community to have. If you were giving out Pulitzer Prizes for music, who would you give one to? T.L.: I’d give one to my friends. My friends and colleagues are all very deserving. You can’t second guess the Pulitzer community; they always surprise, not the least this year. I’m delighted that they are expanding the purview of the prize and recognizing achievements in musical styles and genres outside of classical music. This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity and length.
What drew you to Siberia and Central Asian music? T.L.: It’s hard to explain. The first Central Asian country I went to was Afghanistan in 1974, and then later in graduate school I spent a year in Uzbekistan. It was the mid-seventies, during the Cold War, which meant that I was the only American there. Though that was hard, I loved it. There was something about the music, the people, the place, the physical geography, the food, the climate. Beneath the forbidding political atmosphere, there was a warmth — a welcome — that I had never experienced before. I felt like I was finally at home. M u c h o f yo u r o u t re a c h involves bringing together the music of different cultures. What are the roles that music and culture play in the spread of multiculturalism? T.L.: Music has connected people. That was one of the ideas at the root of the Silk Road Project. I think that the more people get connected and learn about other cultures, the more likely they are to develop a kind of cultural creativity that makes them cultural cosmopolitans. And this is very important in parts of the world where there is ongoing tension between ethnic nationalism and cultural pluralism. Music can serve as a force for either. I see my role as promoting musical activities
CORRECTIONS We welcome corrections. If you believe there is a factual error in a story, please email editor@thedartmouth.com. Correction Appended (April 24, 2018): The article “Alumni gather for second Dartmouth Explorers Symposium” has been updated to reflect that Xu was one of the primary organizers of the Symposium, that her Ledyard spring break trip was to North Carolina and that Bogart and Harris were referring to a winter break trip to Ecuador.
COURTESY OF TED LEVIN
Music professor Ted Levin was the first executive director of the artistic organization Silkroad.
THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2018
Sig Ep National invites 19 brothers to return FROM SIG EP PAGE 1
not invited were also given the right to appeal the decision by Apr. 24. The Dartmouth Sig Ep chapter, formally known as New Hampshire Alpha, was suspended on March 26 by Sig Ep National pending the membership review. The suspension came following risk concerns and worries that the house would not be able to comply with a substancefree policy from Sig Ep National. Brothers who wished to regain full standing were required to interview with a review board consisting
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THE DARTMOUTH NEWS
of Sig Ep alumni, volunteers and Headquarters staff and to supply their academic transcript, conduct record and financial information. “Knowing that this was a difficult decision, Sigma Phi Epsilon Headquarters and your alumni and volunteers ask that you continue to conduct yourself with the behavior that befits a SigEp and a student of Dartmouth College,” Andersen wrote. “Doing so will benefit all of those invested in the chapter, your friends, yourself, and provide for the future successes of Sigma Phi Epsilon at Dartmouth College.”
Bascomb brings marketing experience FROM VP PAGE 1
and marketing — delivering material and information in a way that people want to receive it,” Bascomb said. “Understanding and measuring how effective [these efforts are] is really in my wheelhouse, from a marketing standpoint.” Bascomb has also done volunteer work through participation in the Dartmouth Club of Maine, through which she has met with prospective Dartmouth students and Dartmouth alumni new to Portland, Maine, and in various other groups such as the Alumni Council, the Association of Alumni and Dartmouth alumni interviewers, according to Bascomb. “[Bascomb] is exactly the kind of person I was hoping I would be able to turn my team over to as I step down from this role after seven years,” Beattie said. “She understands the College inside and out through volunteer work and has really stayed engaged since her years at Dartmouth.”
Beattie noted that Bascomb’s marketing experience is an asset to the position, adding that she hopes to see the Office of Alumni Relations adopt an even stronger communications strategy in the future. “My general hopes for the future are taking some of these great programs that we have in place now and being really strategic about how we spread the word,” Beattie said. “That is [Bascomb’s] career. Her whole background is marketing and communications, so she will come in here and be exactly the experience and talent that’s needed right now to really push all of our programs to the next level.” Bascomb was appointed to the position after a roughly six-month search that began in fall 2017, according to Jennifer Avellino ’89, who chaired the Alumni Advisory Committee that assisted with the search. The committee, made up of 12 Dartmouth alumni ranging from the Class of 1964 to the Class of 2013, partnered with Sandler
Search, an executive search services firm run by Josie Sandler ’91, to fill the position. “We found what we were looking for in [Bascomb],” Avellino said. “We found someone with deep Dartmouth ties and experience, with professional expertise to bring to the position — in this case, marketing — and someone we felt would deliver a warm welcome to alumni, whether it’s when they come to Hanover, or a virtual way, or in the communications that go out to alumni.” Bascomb said she is excited to start executing her duties as vice president for alumni relations. “I see my charge to help us at this very unique point in time, when we’ve got the 250th anniversary for Dartmouth and a wonderful capital campaign that can help support the particular things that Dartmouth is and can become,” Bascomb said. “My role is to make sure that I’ve got the components in place for alumni to understand, support and connect.”
COURTESY OF CHERYL BASCOMB
Cheryl Bascomb ’82 has a background in marketing and has volunteered for the Dartmouth Club of Maine.
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DARTMOUTHEVENTS
THE DARTMOUTH EVENTS
SZN
TTHURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2018
RACHEL LINCOLN ’20
TODAY
8:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Exhibit: “Ledyard Canoe Club: A History of Exploration and Adventure,” curated by Jaime Eeg ‘18, Class of 1965 Galleries, Rauner Library
12:15 p.m. - 1:15 p.m.
Panel Discussion: “Energy, Disaster & Resilience,” with energy system experts Amro Farid, Anthony Giacomoni and Alexandra Klass, sponsored by Arthur L. Irving Institute for Energy and Society, Haldeman 41
2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Physics & Astronomy Seminar: “From Quarks to Nucleons in Dark Matter Direct Detection,” with University of Cinncinatti Professor Jure Zupan, Wilder 202
TOMORROW
8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.
Medicine Grand Rounds: “Role of IL-17A in the Development of Heart Failure”, with Daniela Čihakova, MD, PhD, D(ABMLI), Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, Auditorium E
4:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.
“Afro/Black Paris - Future/Past,” opening launch to symposium for Afro/Black Paris Foreign Study Program, Loew Auditorium, Black Family Visual Arts Center
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THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2018
THE DARTMOUTH NEWS
Alumni attend Hillel celebrations FROM HILLEL PAGE 1
organization itself wasn’t super strong and was made up of only those who were extremely dedicated and wasn’t able to attract other involvement as it does now.” Alumni in attendance ranged from those who graduated in the 1950s to recent alumni from the Class of 2017, according to Hillel president Talia Lorch ’20. She added that this event was likely the most well-attended one in the Roth Center’s history, with over 50 alumni in attendance. “The alumni commitment to the Roth Center and Dartmouth College Hillel was really beautiful to see,” Lorch said. Roth Center director and head rabbi Edward Boraz said that the presence of many generations of alumni and students sharing their experiences created a deep sense of intergenerational connection and gratitude. “There was a theme that ran throughout the weekend of the importance of continuity,” Boraz said. “Whether one was religious or not, rituals and tradition were important to their experiences at Dartmouth.” Boraz said that among the most moving moments of the weekend was before Friday dinner when 110 people lined the walls of the Roth Center with arms around one another singing a traditional song sung on the Sabbath. “You could just feel in the room a
sense of intergenerational connection that was moving,” Boraz said. “I think the people that were there will remember that for quite some time. On Apr. 21, Hillel held a ceremony for the dedication of its recentlyrestored 157 year-old scroll from Brno, Czech Republic, which was recovered after the Holocaust. The scroll was taken by the Nazis during their occupation of the country and was finally recovered in 2000, according to Eagle. She was among those who spoke at the ceremony about the importance of Judaism, not just as a religion, but also as a source of family, community and tradition. “It’s not just a religious object, it’s also a historical and personal object,” Eagle said. On Apr. 21, Thomas Buergenthal, who is a Holocaust survivor, former judge of the International Court of Justice and professor of comparative law and jurisprudence at George Washington University Law School, spoke at both the lunch and the dedication of the Holocaust scroll at the Roth Center. He was brought to Dartmouth through both the Dickey Center for International Understanding and the Tucker Center for the Rabbi Marshall Meyer Great Issues Lecture on Social Justice, and spoke to the public Dartmouth community on Apr. 19. According to Boraz, Buergenthal spoke of the importance of history and remembrance of the past in order
to participate in building a more just world. Lorch said that Buergenthal not only offered his wisdom to the community, but was also very interested in speaking to and learning about the students and alumni present at the events. “It was amazing when he spoke about how he came from the former Czechoslovakia and that’s where the Torah came from as well, and how it was special for him to be at an event where we were dedicating a Torah that could have so easily came from his own hometown,” Lorch said. Roth himself was also in attendance at the weekend’s events, speaking on Apr. 21. “It was really nice to see the man who was generous enough to donate the building where I spend most of my time on campus,” Lorch said. “I think all of us at Hillel are really grateful for the building itself … being able to meet the person responsible for it was really nice for all of us.” Boraz said that the weekend’s events made it clear that the Roth Center has made a meaningful difference in the community of Dartmouth College Hillel. “I dare say that without the Roth Center for Jewish life, we wouldn’t have the richness of community that we have today,” he said. Eagle is a member of The Dartmouth senior staff.
COURTESY OF JULIA FEINSTEIN
Head rabbi Edward Boraz speaks at Dartmouth College Hillel’s 20th anniversary celebrations.
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THE DARTMOUTH OPINION
THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2018
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
STAFF COLUMNIST RACHNA SHAH ’21
Undermatching Admissions
Closer Than You Think
If you are reading this, you are probably a Dartmouth student. You most likely view your education at Dartmouth as something you have worked especially hard for, and that you receive because you are a deserving, qualified individual. You were selected out of more than 20,000 Dartmouth applicants, and that is truly remarkable. Despite the fact that Dartmouth alone receives so many applicants each year, there are still nearly 86,000 young adults who are qualified to attend similarly selective schools who never enroll. These are the students who have fallen victim to “undermatching,” a phenomenon that occurs when highachieving but low-income students lack awareness of how to matriculate at schools that align with their abilities. A common measurement of this occurrence is through the number of Pell Grant recipients.
These federal grants are typically given to individuals with family incomes below $30,000. Approximately 14 percent of Dartmouth’s undergraduate population in 2015-2016 were Pell Grant recipients, according a study done by Georgetown University, while Pell recipients make up 32 percent of all U.S. undergraduates. A 2015 Dartmouth report found that 59 percent of the student body is drawn from households with incomes in the top 6 percent of the U.S., while only 11 percent of the student body comes from the bottom 40 percent. The administration needs to review where Dartmouth is drawing low-income students from and address how can reach out to communities that lack access to college resources. —–Alyson Young Young is a member of the Class of 2019.
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
New Challenges in New Times I am writing in response to the article “College purchases $66 million in oil and gas fund” by Ruben Gallardo. I have not written to The Dartmouth since the fall of 1963, when the paper published a number of my letters concer ning coeducation. In 1963, coeducation was far out of the comfort zone of the majority of undergraduates. Today, it appears that the challenges posed by climate disruption are far out of the comfort zone of many at the College. I would be very interested to learn what the current undergraduate feelings are with respect to the threat climate disruption poses to their futures. What does the Class of 2018 think Hanover will be like in 50 years? The classes of the mid-60s lived in a
period of great change: the VietnamWar, assassinations, Woodstock, civil rights and a good deal more. The classes of the early 21st century are now facing even more serious challenges. How will they respond? Is there any interest on campus in “thrivability” as an approach that goes beyond “sustainability?” Is there any interest in Holo and Holochain, as replacements for the current internet and block chain? Coeducation arrived in 1972, nine years after my letters –– not that they were more than a few straws on the camel’s back. Where will Dartmouth be in nine years regarding climate disruption? Change can happen very fast. Let’s hope it does. ––Jock Gill Gill is a member of the Class of 1967.
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Direct-to-patient advertising must improve significantly to be morally legitimate. Democrats and Republicans agree that because pharma ads can misinform patients by change is needed in the pharmaceutical promoting drugs before they are fully known. industry, whether it be via regulation or Drugs are most heavily promoted during the innovation. One of the areas often targetted early stages of the product’s FDA approval in reform efforts is in the advertising of drugs, cycle, before clinical trials can detect adverse known as “direct-to-consumer” ads. In 2011, events associated with the drug’s usage. For Pfizer spent 29 percent of its revenue on selling, instance, in 1999, Merck used over $100 information and administration expenses million to advertise Vioxx, a drug used to and only 13.5 percent on research and treat arthritis, making more than $1 billion in development. Despite the fact that television sales. Five years later, Vioxx was connected to ads are dwindling in favorability among a higher risk of stroke and heart attack. Vioxx younger generations, they are still a prominent is not alone; other drugs withdrawn from the force in our society, as indicated by the amount market after health concerns were linked with of money allocated to them by pharmaceutical them include Oraflex, prescribed for arthritis, companies. While prescription drug ads can and Propulsid, prescribed for gastric reflux. provide useful information to patients, their Such advertising incentivizes companies goal of promoting patient health is hindered promoting newly developed drugs before full by a lack of complete information. safety profiles are known. Forty-three percent In the late 1800s, vegetable compounds of consumers believe advertised medications were advertised as a panacea for a variety are “completely safe”: a false statement. of health complaints. Starting in 1905, Even when important information is such exaggerated drugs known about a drug, were differentiated from pharma ads may omit “ethical,” or regulated, “After further it. In one study of DTC ones. However, drug ads mishaps in the 1960s, ads, only 26 percent of were exempted from ads described the treated Congress passed product label regulation condition’s causes and risk until the drug Elixir amendments giving factors. As ads provide a Sulfanilamide caused regulatory authority thumbnail of a condition over 100 deaths in 15 and a drug, the viewer states, leading to mass to the Food and Drug may surmise that the drug outcry and congressional Administration. From is the only cure, omitting action. The 1938 Food, the importance of lifestyle that point onwards, Drug, and Cosmetic Act changes in ameliorating required new drugs to ads were required to a condition. Some ads be proven safe before include information even portrayed lifestyle marketing, wherein safety changes as insufficient for was decided by the drug’s regarding side effects controlling a condition. greater manufacturer. and effectiveness.” The words used in drug After further mishaps in ads are predominantly the 1960s, Congress passed qualifying terms such as amendments giving regulatory authority to “mild,” “usually” and “may,” which place the Food and Drug Administration. From usage of the drug as a benefit, rather than a that point onwards, ads were required to risk. include information regarding side effects A counterargument made in favor of DTC and effectiveness. ads is that the accurate information provided Today’s popular lifestyle drugs developed by drug ads may be more important than in the 1990s, followed by a shift toward any potential misinformation. For instance, consumer-focused marketing by companies. DTC ads for statins, medications that reduce After the American cardiovascular disease Medical Association “For instance, in 1999, risk, have been shown asserted that drug ads to have overall positive could empower patients Merck used over 100 effects on consumers by by providing sufficient million dollars to informing them about information regarding heart attack reduction advertise Vioxx, a drug personal health, DTC d r u g s, p o t e n t i a l l y p r e s c r i p t i o n d r u g used to treat arthritis, preventing costly advertising skyrocketed making more than $1 hospital admissions that from $12 million in 1989 would otherwise have to $340 million in 1995. billion in sales. Five occurred. Thus, rather By 2000, every one dollar years later, Vioxx was than banning DTC spent on advertising ads, the focus should connected to a higher resulted in a quadrupled be on upgrading their p h a r m a c e u t i c a l risk of stroke and heart educational quality, such retail sales increase. attack.” as through comparative Today, drugs with effectiveness research. DTC advertising are To f u r t h e r h e a l t h prescribed nine times as frequently as drugs literacy, empower patient decision-making without DTC advertising. Annual ad spending and improve healthcare delivery and is approximately $6.4 billion in 2016. outcomes, DTC ads must improve, sooner One reason why this rise is dangerous is rather than later.
THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2018
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THE DARTMOUTH OPINION
STAFF COLUMNIST AVERY SAKLAD ’21
GUEST COLUMNIST SOHAM BASU ’20
Growing Green-2-Go
Missed Notifications
Dartmouth has made progress in eliminating food waste, but must go further. There are a million and one factors in a landfill faster than alternative plasticthat play into deciding where to go to bottomed container, but the elements college, but for me one reigned above all necessary for them to turn into compost others: location. Like many Dartmouth are not present. Instead, the containers students, and particularly those involved release methane gas into the atmosphere in the Dartmouth Outing Club, I was while they decompose at approximately the drawn here by the White Mountains, the rate of biodegradable products. Instead of accessible rivers and the hiking trails that contributing even more waste to a landfill, run right through campus. Hanover’s Main DDS should either switch to a composting Street even makes up a small portion of program with the capacity to compost food the Appalachian Trail, and thru-hikers containers or eliminate disposable takeout regularly stop for some company and a containers altogether. place to rest in Robinson Hall. Dartmouth’s In addition to food containers, Dartmouth natural surroundings differentiate it from students throw out countless plastic utensils hundreds of other schools that prospective and drink containers daily. Some students students choose have continued a trend between. Members of bringing reusable “With such a of this community sporks and mugs to successful model to recognize Dartmouth’s dining spaces, but the e nv i r o n m e n t a s a n look to, the Greenmajority continue to use asset through g reen 2-Go container disposable products and initiatives scattered all have no incentive to make over campus. As always, program should be a change. Fortunately, though, there is so much implemented at there already exists an more that students incentivizing program other dining areas on could be doing to show on campus to get student t h e i r a p p r e c i a t i o n campus.” consumers to consider fo r th e C o l l eg e’s the environment when natural surroundings. making purchases. King Fortunately, the positive Arthur F lour, a café environmental change run independently from we need could spring easily from small DDS, offers students a 25-cent discount amendments to our on-campus dining on beverages when they bring in reusable spaces. mugs. DDS could potentially institute a Madison Sabol ’18’s Green-2-Go similar discount program, offering small container program, initiated at Class discounts for bringing reusable mugs, of 1953 Commons last year, brilliantly containers and utensils. Although this may decreased significant amounts of waste result in slight price inflation, the money generated by the dining hall’s disposable that DDS saves on disposable cups and takeout containers. Her idea not only utensils would help to nullify the cost of helped save the environment, but also instituting such an incentive. helped save Dartmouth Dining Services Alternatively, DDS could establish money that used to be spent on restocking a punch card rewards system for those disposable containers, allowing them to students who bring reusable containers. If reallocate funds to continue buying local small discounts on food products were not food products and paying their employees a enough of an incentive for some students living wage. With such a successful model to to practice sustainability, more tangible look to, the Green-2-Go container program rewards might be more effective motivation. should be implemented at other dining In exchange for bringing mugs and utensils, areas on campus. Although the kitchens students could present a card to be hole at the Collis and Courtyard Cafés may punched when they are checking out or not be large enough to handle an influx swiping in. After a predetermined number in washable material, by installing drop- of hole punches, students could redeem off centers around campus, Green-2-Go their rewards card for a free cookie or containers could be deposited by students drink. DDS could both save on disposable at convenient locations and then collected cups and cutlery and significantly shrink and washed in the ’53 Commons industrial Dartmouth’s environmental footprint by kitchen. allotting less expensive food items to the During the transition to campus-wide rewards program. use of Green-2-Go containers and for any Dartmouth already has models in place remaining use of disposable containers to successfully implement programs such after the program has been instituted, DDS as widespread Green-2-Go containers should start using legitimately compostable and sustainability incentive programs; the waste products. While the takeout College just needs to capitalize on them. containers DDS uses now are technically Using these established and successful compostable, the compost facility that systems along with a little innovation Dartmouth uses only has the capacity to and collaboration, Dartmouth could break down food waste. Since only the tops appreciably decrease its environmental of the takeout containers can be recycled, footprint and give back to the environment the “compostable” bottoms must be sent that constitutes one of this school’s greatest to a landfill. These containers break down attributes.
Congress’ failure to ask tough and competent questions is troubling. Things have gotten bad for Facebook in the wake of the Cambridge Analytica scandal, so much so that Mark Zuckerberg voluntarily subjected himself to almost ten of questioning from members of Congress. Zuckerberg traded in his iconic t-shirt and jeans for a polished suit and tie during the trip to the Capitol. During two Congressional hearings, there were many revelations for Facebook, the U.S. government and the American people. It felt momentous, that after a virtually regulation-free beginning to the tech industry’s dominance, the sector’s star boy was finally answering to a greater authority. Experienced politicians and trained lawyers, Congressmen and Congresswomen, could finally hold Zuckerberg accountable as the representative of an industry grown arrogant, overconfident and prone to overstepping bounds that no industry had dared cross before. However, to public dismay, Washington failed. Senators and Representatives were off point and uneducated, asking all the wrong questions. Mark Zuckerberg came to Washington, D.C. on his own, and like every other move he has made in his career, he made the decision to testify calculatedly. Zuckerberg came to Capitol Hill because he knew the federal government had not the slightest idea of the power of Facebook’s empire. It was a publicity stunt, an assuaging of hurt feelings and a recognition of the government — nothing more. In the history of the United States and the Western world, there has not been a force like the modern technological companies on the West Coast arguably since the Catholic Church. Amazon, Facebook and Google all have one thing that big business of yesteryear never really had or cared for: information. Bankers and oil barons have money, but at the end of the day, that is where their engagement with consumers end. These tech companies have products that are much more integral to the daily life of an average American. Their products — as essential to people’s daily lives as soap and milk — permeate their lives so much that they never really stop using them. These companies know their users’ friends, political leanings, favorite ice cream shop, where they went to school and more. As was evident from the hearings, Facebook even collects data on non-Facebook users. I shocked my friend the other day when I guided him through Facebook’s settings to show him what Facebook thought his political ideology was. He was left baffled when under “ad settings” it read “Political leaning (moderate).” Facebook knew him better than I did — I could have sworn he leaned a little right. These companies have something much more insidious than money: they have information. It is now apparent how this information can be used for nefarious purposes. It can be used by foreign countries to sway elections, sell alcohol to alcoholics or sell prescription drugs to opioid addicts. Zuckerberg knows this and has known about it. It was only due to bad media and press that he was forced to act. Throughout the hearings, he mentioned that users on average use eight different social media platforms a day, denying that Facebook was a monopoly. But he failed to mention that Facebook owns Instagram and WhatsApp: he came to Washington to solidify this monopoly further. By his own admission, government regulation would hurt startups and
potential competitors. It would, however, benefit behemoths like Facebook, the only ones who would be able to comply with any regulations. He was praised for coming; some Representatives even used the opportunity to pitch their districts, like Kevin Cramer (R-ND), who suggested that Zuckerberg should check out Bismarck, North Dakota for Facebook’s next office location. By virtue of coming to Congress, Zuckerberg now holds the mantle for tech companies in leading any regulation that might or might not be mandated. The creator and owner of the biggest social platform of the 21st century is now the guiding light for any regulation on the industry. Is America letting the fox guard the henhouse? And why was Alexa, Amazon’s digital home assistant, mentioned at a hearing with Mark Zuckerberg? Despite Zuckerberg rehearsing human emotions and gestures, it seems that members of Congress failed to read any memos on Facebook, data privacy or the issue at hand. The generational gap between Zuckerberg and his interviewers was shockingly evident. Some members devoted their time exclusively to diversity and civil rights or the opioid crisis. This is not to say that these issues are not critically important, but this was not the hearing to address them. Very few members approached Zuckerberg with scrutiny, while the majority seemed to approach him with awe and reverence. Only a handful of Democratic and Republican members grilled Zuckerberg on user agreements, data collection, Facebook’s Pixel code that tracks users once they leave Facebook or Russian-backed meddling. Congress had an opportunity to get real answers from the company’s founder but squandered it. Members referenced the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation, which goes into effect next month. Instead of promising legislation of its own, Zuckerberg satisfied members with a promise that U.S. citizens would be given the same protections. The E.U. shows that it is not an issue impossible to legislate; citizens and members have chosen to ignore Silicon Valley, with grave consequences. Leadership in Washington must do better than leaving the American people to the whims of these companies as they continue to grow. Congressional staff, committees and members should be better educated , informed and prepared to ask critical questions on a national stage. Generational gaps will always exist, but senators and representatives sworn to serve and protect this country have a duty to understand these complex platforms that are now ubiquitous in daily life. What is past is prologue. America has seen what happens when it leaves industries unchecked. It is always worthwhile to take a page from history and learn from the events of the past. In precolonial South Asia, the rich and powerful Mughal Empire that dominated an entire subcontinent fell not to a government, nation or army, but to a group of merchants known as the East India Company, a private firm that became much larger and more powerful than the British and South Asian governments of its time. After Zuckerberg’s sojourn to the Capitol, Facebook came out not only unscathed, but even stronger, as the new champion of its own regulation and with a stock that grew by 4.5 percent: its biggest gain in two years. Americans must demand better.
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gallery Walk
NAOMI LAM/THE DARTMOUTH STAFF
A piece by Ella Dobson ’21 featured jellyfish floating among muffin wrappers.
By HABIB SABET The Dartmouth
In celebration of Earth Week, the Hopkins Center for the Arts hosted an exhibition curated by the Dartmouth ECO Reps, a presentation of student art that blended artistic
THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2018
THE DARTMOUTH ARTS
design and environmental activism. “Garbáge: An Artistic Wasteland” featured works incorporating trash as a primary medium and theme, examining global struggles with pollution and waste management. The ECO Reps, a group of first-year students interning for
Garbáge: An Artistic Wasteland
the Sustainability Office, put the exhibition together in hopes of raising awareness about the problems of waste management. “We’ve been focusing on waste here at Dartmouth and how we can try to limit our waste and try to educate people on campus about waste generation and waste use,” ECO Rep Jason Liu ’21. “We hoped the show would drive that discussion by letting students come in and taking a look at what other students are able to do with garbage in their art.” The exhibition displayed a wide variety of pieces, including paintings, sculptures and collages, which were laid out on the otherwise bare walls amidst the dull silver and white of the Hop Garage surface. Fittingly, the conservation-conscious exhibit did away with everything but the art. The plain presentation spoke to the overall message of the works, which transformed the discarded and mundane into beauty. “Waste is one of the few environmental issues that everyone can plainly see, so it’s been really interesting being able to create awareness around it using these visuals and three-dimensional pieces
of art,” Abby Bresler ’21, another years. His pieces use the personalities and stories of objects to tell a story ECO Rep, said. Zakios Meghrouni-Brown ’18, of his own creation. One Meghrouni-Brown work whose work was featured in the gallery, relies almost entirely on featured at Garbáge resembled a scraps and discarded materials to cabinet with wax on it. “The cabinet was just a random create his art. “I was really interested in piece of wood I found in Pan[archy], the theme of abandonment,” and the wax was from a random Meghrouni-Brown said. “When candle I found in the basement,” he a place is abandoned, it’s kind of said. Other, more critical works left as it is, so you have all of these objects that are just sitting around denounced the problems of pollution. that have some meaning for someone A piece by Ella Dobson ’21 — a combination somewhere, or of prints, at least once “Waste is one of the watercolors did. I really like and collage — the personalities few environmental features jellyfish a n d s t o r i e s issues that everyone floating among embedded can plainly see.” several muffin in objects wrappers. like that and D o b s o n t r a n s f o r m i n g -ABBY BRESLER ’21 explained them into the that a friend embodiment of something else, or using them to tell had mistaken the trash for other organisms. my own story.” “The fact that plastic bags can be Meghrouni-Brown lives in Panarchy undergraduate society mistaken for jellyfish is a depressing and creates much of his work out of reality,” Dobson said. “Turtles are materials and waste that have been literally dying because of that. This discarded by its members over the is what we’ve done.”
‘Text Me When You Get Home’ celebrates female friendship By JORDAN MCDONALD The Dartmouth Staff
In Kayleen Schaefer’s “Text Me When You Get Home,” released Feb. 6, the infamous words of parting friends are made into the foundation for a broader dialogue about the nature of women’s friendships, on screen and off. Taking the American media and patriarchy to task, Schaefer challenges the ways in which the history of considering women physically, emotionally and mentally inferior to men undermines their relationships to themselves and each other. “Text Me When You Get Home” merges personal narrative with critical cultural analysis, offering a take on American women’s f r i e n d s h i p t h at i s i n fo r m e d by research and experience. Maintaining a casual tone and accessible language, Schaefer writes with the comfort of a friend and the tact of a seasoned journalist, drawing from her own
childhood hardships as well as the work of academics, artists and critics. Much of the book fights against the argument that women can’t sustain supportive, trustworthy relationships with one another. Schaefer says society just needs a shift in priorities — women must come to regard their relationships with each other with more care. If not, women run the risk of losing friendships entirely. “Text Me When You Get Home” is an exercise in the kind of work and dedication that friendship requires. What Schaefer calls “the evolution and triumph of modern female friendship” entails a shift from seeing friendship as an indulgence to viewing it as a necessity for women across various backgrounds. Schaefer attributes the attitude that friendship is frivolous to her own upbringing as a middle-class white woman. Reflecting on her childhood, Schaefer recalls her mother’s commitment to her identity as a wife and mother surpassing
her dedication to friendship. Why could this be? Pointing to the work of Judith Smith, a professor of American studies at the University of Massachusetts Boston who studies the white middle class, Schaefer finds answers in the cultural focus on heterosexual relationships. Marriage and motherhood are often thought to be the middle-class woman’s priorities — but this doesn’t have to be the case. As a result of poverty and racism, Schaefer says, women on the margins of societies — especially women of color — have always been more likely to rely on one another for support. We can learn from these survival networks, Schaefer says. In one of my favorite memoirs, “Negroland,” longtime theatre critic and professor Margo Jefferson speaks to the systemic, historical and personal relationships that shaped her life as a black woman. “The intensities of friendship” suited her more than monogamous romance, she writes, because “friendship’s choreography is for
multiple partners: for varied groups and surprisingly sustained duets.” Like Jefferson, I too have been infatuated with friendship. I’ve always loved the idea of friends but often struggled to negotiate the realities of establishing trust, support, accountability and care between myself and others. Ultimately though, the short-lived and long-lasting friendships of my life have made me a better a person and friend. So when I saw “Text Me When You Get Home” at the bookstore, I was immediately drawn to its premise. I have typed out and received “Text me when you get home” more times than I can count. Honoring the compassion embedded in this ritual message, Schaefer suggests that “Text me when you get home” is another way to say “Let’s keep talking.” It’s a wish for one’s safety and a call for the future. The words are emblematic of the relationships women foster with one another. Looking to books, television and film for representations of
these possibilities, Schaefer names authors like Judy Blume and Megan Abbot for their literary investments in teenage girls and their friendships. She also looks to television shows and movies like “Mean Girls,” “Golden Girls” and “Broad City” for their depictions of female friendship that are shaping our culture. My favorite of Schaefer’s references was to “Broad City.” Watching the show, which follows best friends Abbi and Ilana, often reminds me of the times I have spent with friends who have shaped me and made me laugh so hard that I cried. Tracking her own life and friendships throughout her analysis, Schaefer offers her personal stake in the future of women’s friendships. These parts of the book root her cultural criticism in something intimately familiar. “Text Me When You Get Home” is an ode to this sustained familiarity, a book that gives thanks for the friendships that have supported Schaefer and so many other women like her.