Thursday, March 11, 2010

Daily Herald the Brown

vol. cxlv, no. 30 | Thursday, March 11, 2010 | Serving the community daily since 1891

Community Health may split into four

Meik apps increase 38 percent

hot and steam y

By Ben Noble Contributing Writer

The Department of Community Health is planning to split into four new departments, according to Associate Dean of Medicine for Public Health and Public Policy Terrie Wetle. The change, if it happens, will be an important step toward the creation of a school of public health at Brown. The department is currently organized into four sections — behavioral and social sciences, biostatistics, epidemiology, and health services, policy and practice — that will become new academic departments within the Division of Biology and Medicine. “Structurally, the departments will be very similar to our current sections,” Wetle said. The Department of Community Health approved the split internally in January but will have to clear a number of hurdles before the move is formalized. Wetle said the department is planning to submit a formal proposal for the split by the end of the academic year. The depar tment has made a presentation of its intention to the Biomedical Faculty Council and the Academic Priorities Committee, which will be the first bodies to take a vote once formal documents are filed. If approved, the proposal will then move to the Faculty Executive Committee before being considered by the entire faculty. Finally, the Corporation will have to approve the split at one of its three yearly meetings. Assuming all proceedings run smoothly, the Department of Community Health will split into four departments by July 2011 at the earliest, according to Provost David Kertzer ’69 P’95 P’98. Wetle said there were a number of reasons for splitting the department, including growing logistical and recruiting concerns. The department, founded in 1971, has grown rapidly in recent years to encompass 27 tenure-track faculty and 140 affiliated faculty overall, she said. “We are a pretty substantial size,” Wetle said. “It is ver y difficult for a single chair to manage a 140-faculty-member department.” She also emphasized the importance of creating specialized departments to attract students and faculty to Brown. “It is actually a benefit to re-

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News.....1-5 Metro.....6-7 Spor ts...8-9 Editorial..10 Opinion...11 Today........12

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By Shanoor Seervai Contributing Writer

Loury drives to Brown because he is not “the kind of person who could bear the train.” He said that even though he loses 45 minutes of reading time, he prefers driving because he doesn’t have to operate on the train’s schedule or deal with taking a cab from the train station. The loss of time during the commute is one of the “biggest cons” for Kurt Teichert, environmental stewardship initiatives manager. “On the days I travel to and from Brown, it’s two hours that I get to listen to music and get a

The Meiklejohn Peer Advising Program had a 38 percent increase in the number of applicants, from 375 in 2009 to 517 this spring. The Meiklejohn leadership made a concerted effort to publicize the program, holding three information sessions and advertising at a table at J. Walter Wilson, said Ann Gaylin, associate dean of the College for first year and sophomore studies. Although there was also an increase in the number of rising juniors and seniors who applied, 213 rising sophomores applied to be Meiklejohns, Gaylin said. She speculated that a potential reason for the increase in applications is because rising sophomores are very happy with the program. Despite the increase in numbers, the application deadline was extended from Feb. 23 to 26. Noura Choudhury ’11, one of 12 Meiklejohn leaders, said the reason for the extension was that many people who might have wanted to apply were away for the long weekend. Gaylin said the extension brought in a few more applicants, but the program already had more than enough applications before extending the deadline. First-time applicant Rachel Zolno ’13 mentioned that although she completed her application before the deadline was extended, she had a few friends who applied after they

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Stephanie London / Herald

A $650,000 grant from the National Science Foundation will pay for renovations on the Plant Environmental Center on Waterman Street. See page 3.

From afar, profs make the commute By Sarah Julian Staff Writer

Ever y Wednesday and Friday morning at 8:30 a.m., Shankar Prasad, visiting lecturer in political science, boards his train at Pennsylvania Station in New York City. He works for three and a half hours as the train makes its way to Providence. Once he arrives, Prasad walks up College Hill in time to teach his 2 p.m. class, POLS1600: “Political Research Methods.” Although Prasad is one of the few professors to make the trek from New York, many faculty members travel significant dis-

tances to teach at Brown. Like Prasad, some take the train to work. Others drive or carpool, and several keep houses or apartments in Providence.

FEATURE Professor of Economics Glenn Loury lives an hour away in Brookline, Mass. with his wife and children. In order to cope with the commute, Loury has a house on Williams Street, and often stays Monday nights in Providence. “I leave at 5 a.m., get in at 6. I drink my coffee, eat some breakfast, get here in time to make office hours,” he said.

Bears come back and defeat Hartford in OT By Andrew Braca Assistant Spor ts Editor

It was fitting that the seesawing battle royale the No. 17 men’s lacrosse team staged with Hartford on Wednesday afternoon would come down to two possessions in overtime.

SPORTS After the Bears had twice rallied from multiple-goal deficits to tie the pesky Hawks, Hartford took the ball first in overtime but was stymied by the Brown defense. After a successful clear, An-

drew Feinberg ’11, positioned behind and to the right of the cage, rainbowed a pass that seemed to hang in the air for an eternity over the defense and across the field to David Hawley ’11, who fired a shot that found the back of the net. “It was awesome,” Hawley said. “I couldn’t ask for a better time and place. I had all the time in the world to shoot that ball. I just put it on cage and luckily it went in.” The crowd of 617 that packed Meister-Kavan Field exploded. For the Bears, the 13-12 victor y

Courtesy of David Silverman

David Hawley ’11 scored the game-winner for the Bears Wednesday.

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Metro, 6

Sports, 8

Opinions, 11

KNOW-IT-ALLS The Herald profiles m e m b e r s o f P V D ’s “Knowledge Economy”

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK Hockey tri-captain Aaron Volpatti ’10 isn’t ruling out the NHL

Econ 101 Hunter Fast ’12 offers alternatives to Israeli Apartheid Week’s ideas

195 Angell Street, Providence, Rhode Island

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

C ampus N EWS news in brief

UFB proposes changes to appointment process The Undergraduate Council of Students reviewed proposed amendments to the Undergraduate Finance Board’s constitution at its general body meeting Wednesday. Among UFB’s suggested amendments was a proposal that it appoint its own members, who would then be subject to approval by UCS. The amendment states that after publicizing any vacancies on UFB to the larger council, UCS would advertise the open position to the student body. The Board would then hear presentations from prospective members. These presentations would be followed by a closed vote which would be subject to approval by one-third of UCS. Members of UFB are currently selected and approved by UCS with no input from UFB. UCS will debate and vote on UFB’s proposals at their general body meeting next Wednesday. — Max Godnick

learned of the extension. Zolno said she applied for the program because she had a “good experience” with her own Meiklejohn. She said she believes that without a core curriculum, Brown can be overwhelming for freshmen. She also said that peer advisers can be more helpful and accessible than faculty advisers because Meiklejohns have been through the same experiences as incoming freshmen. About 350 Meiklejohns will be selected to advise the class of 2014, Choudhury said. Gaylin said some of the key qualities they are looking for in applicants are active listening, openness to intellectual and cultural differences and a willingness to help first-years make the transition from high school to college.

Choudhur y added that the “drive to advise” and the ability to relate to first-years are also important. She said that given the “really incredible set of applicants,” anyone who doesn’t get selected should reapply next year. Although no drastic changes have been made to the program, Gaylin said the leadership has been trying to develop a “tighter organizational structure,” including making the expectations and responsibilities of Meiklejohns clearer to applicants before they are selected. She said she is delighted to be working with the Meiklejohn program and views the increase in the number of applications as a “sign that people are noticing our energy and enthusiasm.” Applicants will be notified if they have been accepted to the program before spring break, Choudhury said.

Former Surgeon General calls for action on health By Mark Raymond Staf f Writer

“We have to aim high if we want to eliminate disparities and reform the health system in this country,” Former U.S. Surgeon General David Satcher told an audience of students and faculty in a half-full Sayles Hall Wednesday night. Satcher, who was appointed surgeon general by President Bill Clinton, told the audience about his experiences from 1998-2002 as surgeon general and his time as director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The talk, which was hosted by the Third World Center, was part of an ongoing Black Heritage Series on campus. “As surgeon general, I think the most important thing I was able to do was communicate directly

with the American people,” Satcher said. Satcher described the work he did when he held that office, which included the release of the Surgeon General’s Call to Action to Prevent and Decrease Overweight and Obesity, as well as the Surgeon General’s “prescription” for healthy living, which outlined the need for regular physical activity and healthy eating, among other suggestions. “Our children are becoming addicted to sedentar y lifestyles,” Satcher said. “Our responsibility is to make sure they become addicted to physical activity and healthy foods.” One way he suggested this change could happen is through the elimination of disparities in continued on page 5

For profs, commutes cut down on family time continued from page 1 few of my thoughts squared away, but that’s it. It’s relatively unproductive,” Teichert said. Teichert also occasionally participates in a carpool with two other colleagues. He said that as a passenger, he has “some great productive time,” but that his long hours make it difficult to carpool often. While Teichert lives about an hour away in Massachusetts with his family, he also keeps a room in

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Editorial Phone: 401.351.3372 | Business Phone: 401.351.3260 George Miller, President Claire Kiely, Vice President

“There are a lot of grumpy people who commute.” — Joseph Pucci, associate professor of classics

142 more apply to be Meiklejohn advisers continued from page 1

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Katie Koh, Treasurer Chaz Kelsh, Secretary

The Brown Daily Herald (USPS 067.740) is an independent newspaper serving the Brown University community daily since 1891. It is published Monday through Friday during the academic year, excluding vacations, once during Commencement, once during Orientation and once in July by The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. Single copy free for each member of the community. POSTMASTER please send corrections to P.O. Box 2538, Providence, RI 02906. Periodicals postage paid at Providence, R.I. Offices are located at 195 Angell St., Providence, R.I. E-mail herald@browndailyherald.com. World Wide Web: http://www.browndailyherald.com. Subscription prices: $319 one year daily, $139 one semester daily. Copyright 2010 by The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. All rights reserved.

Providence on Benefit Street for nights when he doesn’t make the drive home. “When I first started I took the bus pretty regularly,” he said. “But that’s a back-up option because the cost is high and it’s pretty inconvenient.” Prasad said he also avoids the bus. “I’ve tried the bus, the train, driving,” he said. “The bus is actually quicker, but I find it’s dirtier and there is the variability of traffic.” Prasad said traffic congestion also complicates driving, finding the train to be a “way better” option, although he said it is still “kind of a pain.” “It takes 16 hours of my life every week,” he said. “There’s no internet on the train, which is painful.” Associate Professor of Classics Joseph Pucci offered an alternate perspective. Pucci lives on Bowen Street, about a five-minute walk from campus. He said he thinks this proximity “affects every aspect” of his experience at Brown. “There are a

lot of grumpy people who commute,” he said. “What a way to start the day or end it.” Pucci likes living on College Hill because he doesn’t need to waste time commuting, can easily participate in extracurricular events, and likes “living in the community, not just during business hours, but being a full-time member of it.” For some of these professors, the main reason many make the commute is to avoid displacing their families. For Prasad — whose wife works at New York University — commuting provides a way to stay close to his family. Lour y’s wife works at Tufts University, and when he started at Brown, his sons were just beginning high school in Brookline. “When I talk about moving, (my wife) looks at me like ‘you must be crazy,’ ” he said. Though Teicher t “cer tainly would prefer to live in Providence all the time,” he said “the reality of family and property and community

involvement don’t allow that.” Professor of Economics Louis Putterman makes a 60-mile commute from his Massachusetts home, but chose not to live closer to his work because he has a handicapped child who requires care that is not available in Providence. Though Putterman said he does not mind the commute, he thinks “living in or near Providence is certainly better.” Most professors agreed that a main negative of commuting to Brown is the difficulty in participating in activities outside of the classroom as well as experiencing what Providence has to offer. Each professor experienced different inconveniences from commuting to Brown. For Teichert it was missing out on weekend activities, while Prasad said he often misses lectures he would like to attend. Prasad also said commuting prevents him from going to the restaurants and theaters that he loves in Providence. “I literally can’t do anything,” he said. “I’m in and out.”

Thursday, March 11, 2010

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

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Physicists discover new physical phase By Warren Jin Contributing Writer

A team of Brown physicists published the discovery of a new physical phase related to superconductivity two weeks ago in the scientific journal Physical Review Letters. The team’s research, conducted by Georgios Koutroulakis GS and Assistant Professor of Physics Vesna Mitrovic, lies in the realm of quantum mechanics, a field of physics, which describes the behavior of energy and matter at the subatomic scale. Specifically, the research group studies the relationship between superconductivity — a super-cooled state in which electrical resistance drops to zero — and magnetism. “We saw a phase where superconductivity and magnetism have a very strange relationship,” Koutroulakis said. “Ten years ago, we thought that if we have magnetism, we would kill superconductivity.” As a part of “unconventional”

superconductivity, the team’s research will help to create a new perspective in the field of quantum mechanics, Koutroulakis said, adding that Brown Professor of Physics Leon Cooper won a Nobel Prize in 1972 for his work on earlier superconductivity research. The discover y was par tly a stroke of luck for the researchers, Mitrovic said, adding that they did not expect to make this kind of discovery. The team was spurred on by a related discovery made earlier this year, she said. “It’s not like we were even looking for this,” Mitrovic said. “It was only this summer that some theory suggested this would exist.” Though advances in the field of quantum mechanics are primarily theoretical, superconductivity theory is already starting to be put into practice, she said. For example, superconductivity properties are already used in the magnets in magnetic resonance imaging as well as in power storage banks in Chicago’s electrical grid, Mitrovic

Courtesy of Vesna Mitrovic

A Brown research team studying superconductivity and magnetism discovered a new physical phase.

said. “It’s exciting to try to find new things and be lucky,” Koutroulakis said. “That’s one of the nice things about fundamental research — you see things that nobody has seen before.”

news in brief

NSF funds greenhouse renovation Brown has received a $650,000 stimulus grant from the National Science Foundation to renovate the research facilities and infrastructure of its Plant Environmental Center, according to Director Fred Jackson. Judith Bender, professor of biology and principal investigator for the grant, said she hopes this funding will generate major interest in the greenhouse and vastly increase the scope of research that professors and graduate students can perform in the 23,000-square-foot facility, which is located at 91 Waterman St. Jackson commented on the “timeliness” of the grant, explaining that the controls for the center have not been updated since he began work at Brown 18 years ago. This “next big step” is essential, he said. Fortuitously, according to Jackson, the greenhouse renovation proposal “fit the bill perfectly.” After winning Brown’s internal competition to select which proposal would be submitted, the proposal received funding from the NSF. The renovation, which will include the addition of a high-tech computer system to control the greenhouse’s environment, three shade covers to create control zones and act as energy curtains, and a new preparation area, will begin in summer 2010 and take three to six months to complete, according to Jackson and Bender. Both said they were optimistic and excited, as Jackson explains that “this grant will allow us to be a competitive, state-of-the-art facility that will open the doors to more NSF grants for research.” — Clare de Boer

GOP candidate assesses gov. race By Bradley Silverman Staf f Writer

Speaking with the Brown Republicans Tuesday night, John Robitaille, the presumptive Republican nominee for governor, offered his assessment of the state of the race and outlined the economic positions around which he intends to focus his campaign. During the meeting in Wilson 301, Robitaille shared his background with students, gave a rundown of the current state of the governor’s race and shared his views on issues ranging from samesex marriage to business taxes to social safety nets. Robitaille served as senior advisor for communications to Gov. Donald Carcieri ’65 beginning in 2008 until earlier this year, when he left the Carcieri administration to campaign for governor. The event was lightly attended,

often taking on an air of intimacy as the candidate sat behind a desk turned toward the students, leaning back as he spoke. During the hour-long meeting, Robitaille spoke conversationally and took questions from students, often engaging them directly in back-and-forth exchanges. “I’m not used to speaking to such a small group,” he said. “It would feel weird giving my normal stump speech.” Robitaille said that because he has little name recognition and cannot afford to self-finance his campaign, he will most likely accept public matching funds. At one point, Robitaille called President Barack Obama a “good man,” but said he has given too much control of his agenda to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, DCalif., and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. Robitaille also threw a barb at

General Treasurer Frank Caprio, who is seeking the Democratic gubernatorial nomination and is considered to be more conservative than his primar y rival, Attorney General Patrick L ynch ’87. Robitaille called Caprio a “wannabe Republican” who is too scared to run as a Republican in deep-blue Rhode Island. The Brown Republicans reached out to Robitaille around two weeks ago, said group President Keith DellaGrotta ’10, adding that the candidate responded the next day sounding enthusiastic about the idea. DellaGrotta said that the meeting gave club members an opportunity to learn more about their party’s candidate. “A lot of people didn’t know a whole lot about him,” DellaGrotta said. continued on page 4

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

C ampus N EWS

Thursday, March 11, 2010

“This is going to be the most unbelievable election I’ve ever seen.”— GOP gubernatorial candidate John Robitaille

Gov. candidate Robitaille: R.I. tax levels are ‘unsustainable’ continued from page 3 Should Robitaille win the Republican primar y, as is expected, DellaGrotta said that the Brown Republicans would strongly encourage members to campaign for him, though he was unsure how involved the group would get. Robitaille called himself a social and fiscal conser vative, but said that instead of on social issues, he would focus his campaign on the economy — what he called the most important issue on the minds of Rhode Island voters right now. Robitaille placed much of the blame for Rhode Island’s poor economy on the Democrat-dominated General Assembly, which for decades, he said, has kept taxes high to fund expensive social services.

“Legislators should be stewards of taxpayer money,” he said. “They shouldn’t spend like drunken sailors, like they do.” Because Rhode Island’s taxes are higher than other those of other New England states, Robitaille said, businesses are fleeing the state for neighbors such as New Hampshire and Massachusetts. “We are really suffering from an economic development engine that’s stalled,” he said. Robitaille said that as governor he would bring down business tax brackets so that entrepreneurs will stay in Rhode Island. He also placed blame for Rhode Island’s “unsustainable” tax levels on “lucrative benefits and pension plans” enjoyed by public employees.

Another priority as governor, he said, would be expanding job training and educational opportunities for workers to wean people off what he called a “culture of dependency.” “Don’t get me wrong, when people fall on hard times, the government needs to help them,” he said, but “we’re in this cycle that we have to break.” Robitaille said that he does not plan to emphasize social issues, admitting that his conservative beliefs would probably be unpopular in progressive Rhode Island. He is pro-life and opposes same-sex marriage, though he said he would be supportive of measures to give same-sex couples a form of legal recognition that does not use the word marriage.

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He also said that he might not veto a marriage equality bill if one were produced by the General Assembly, depending on how it was written. Robitaille said his opposition to abortion stems from personal experience. He said his wife, then five months pregnant, gave birth to two children who then lived for almost a day. Watching them struggle to sur vive, he said, convinced him that fetuses are human regardless of their stage of development. Robitaille predicted that voter frustration with the economy and the General Assembly, as well as disappointment with President Obama, will make for an explosive election this year. Throw into the mix an unusually large field of candidates — in addition to the Republican and Democratic candidates, Ken Block of the Moderate Party is running, as are independent candidates Lincoln Chafee, a former senator, and Todd Giroux — and anything seems possible. “This is going to be the most unbelievable election I’ve ever seen,” Robitaille said, adding that incumbents of all parties should feel ner vous about reelection. A recent public opinion survey by the Taubman Center for Public Policy found that only 12 percent of registered Rhode Island voters trust

public officials to make the right decision for the state’s future. “There’s a real ‘throw the bums out’ mentality,” he said, something that he hopes will work to his favor as a candidate who has never ser ved in elected office. Carcieri was elected in 2002 as a businessman without a background in government. Robitaille noted that because so many candidates are running, one could win with around 26 percent of the vote, calling such a scenario “unlikely,” but not impossible. Like Carcieri, Robitaille has a background in business, having spent about ten years as a labor relations specialist for companies such as Frito-Lay and Continental Can Company. Robitaille said that he learned about the art of negotiation by working with unions, a skill he said he believes would help him work with the General Assembly and others as governor. In 2006, Robitaille ran for a seat in the Rhode Island House of Representatives from the 72nd District, losing by just ten votes, according to the Rhode Island Board of Elections. This year, with polls showing Rhode Islanders frustrated with their elected leaders and a large, unstable field of candidates, Robitaille is hoping to do a little better.

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Thursday, March 11, 2010

C ampus N EWS

Former surgeon gen. U. considers costs of dept.’s growth discusses disparities continued from page 1

continued from page 2 the U.S. health system that favor some groups of people over others. Satcher’s organization, the Satcher Health Leadership Institute, has made it its mission “to develop a diverse group of public health leaders, foster and suppor t leadership strategies, and influence policies toward the reduction and ultimate elimination of disparities,” according to a slideshow Satcher presented to the audience. In addition to eliminating health disparities felt by minorities in America, Satcher also emphasized examining social determinants, such as poverty and education, when setting forth health policy. “The most ef fective way to impact health is through dealing with social determinants,” Satcher said. “When we evaluate policies in this countr y, we have to consider how they affect health.” He pointed out that something as simple as where an individual lives can have a significant impact on his or her health.

“People that live in areas that are less safe are less likely to be physically active, “Satcher said. “Also, the fact that 25 percent of children in Harlem are asthmatic has a lot to do with the environmental conditions there.” Satcher emphasized that while the science and health communities know what needs to be done to improve health in America, much of that knowledge hasn’t yet been translated into action. “The gap between what we know and what we do is far too wide in this countr y,” Satcher said. “We have to continue to support the sciences to learn what works, but we also have to be willing to take action.” During the question-and-answer session that followed the presentation, Satcher had the chance to explain the philosophy that he believes got him to where he is today. “I wanted to get into a position where I could affect health outcomes in this countr y,” Satcher said. “I have responded to opportunities and challenges that have been consistent with that mission.”

cruit someone into a department that they recognize as their area of discipline,” Wetle said. “If you are getting a Ph.D. in epidemiology, getting that in a department of epidemiology is more attractive than it is in a department of community health.” Chair of the Department and Professor of Medical Science Vincent Mor, who is also the head of the health services, policy and practice section, will step down as chair after this year in order to focus on teaching and research, Wetle said. The department is in the process of recruiting a replacement, and Wetle will ser ve as interim chair. The other three section heads will likely move into the role of department chairs, she said. Ker tzer, who called public health “an area of great pride for the University,” said he supports the department-splitting but recognizes the cost concerns as the University tries to cut its budget. “The finances will be one thing we will look at ver y carefully,” Kertzer said. “Brown does want to consolidate where we can, but we also want to continue to strengthen our academic enterprise.” Splitting large departments has occurred before at Brown. Mor said the plans within his department are

similar to the split and restructuring that the Department of Biology went through several years ago. Just two weeks ago, the Corporation approved the merger of the Department of Cognitive and Linguistic Sciences and the Department of Psychology, two departments that had separated in 1986. Wetle said she suspects the resource requirements for the new departments might be a concern and has been “tracking very closely” the Organizational Review Committee’s report on administrative structures for departments. “There are some costs to growth,” Wetle said. “But the modest additional cost of moving from sections to departments will be very small because we already have an organizational structure in place.” She said the split should also be put in the context of the growing Department of Community Health, which has more than tripled in size in the last five years and currently receives $38 million per year in

external funding. “We have been generating revenues to support the growth that we are undertaking,” she said. “We have worked ver y hard to make this very efficient.” Both Wetle and Kertzer said creating the new departments is an important step in establishing a school of public health at Brown. “As we are positioning ourselves to be a school of public health, we will want and need to have these departments, so it’s just steps along a progression,” Wetle said. The University had targeted 2010 as the new school’s creation date, according to a July 2006 article in The Herald. But Kertzer said the economic crisis has delayed the project indefinitely. “We are hoping that we can move ahead with the school in the fairly near future, but we really don’t know exactly when,” Kertzer said. “We are expecting Brown to end up with one of the strongest schools of public health in the country.”

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Metro The two words have become something of a magic catchphrase for Providence’s future. Say “knowledge economy” — with the perfect combination of hope and awe — around City officials, University administrators and local entrepreneurs, and watch the glimmer flicker across their eyes. Last spring, Brown partnered with local business and government leaders to open the Rhode Island Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship. Parallel to the University’s Technology Ventures Office, the center works with professors and students to transform lab-based research projects into real-world marketable products. The goal is to foster more private startup ventures born out of University and hospital research activity. Startup firms that may have previously migrated to larger intellectual centers like Boston or New York could instead remain in Providence, anchoring economic activity downtown and further integrating Brown into its surrounding city. The Jewelry District — with its 20th-century facades and narrow, quiet streets — is quickly becoming an epicenter for Providence’s intellectuallyfueled growth. Less than a mile from the Main Green, the area has the potential to become a second campus within the next 10 years — an urban sister to College Hill. Long-term University plans include lively street-front cafes, green promenades and easy transportation up and down the Hill. Administrators have expressed hope that the combination of the Alpert Medical School’s presence at 222 Richmond St. and the demolition of the old I-95 highway barrier will yield an economic renewal in the district. But private investment is a key element to these dreams. Today, The Herald profiles four members of Providence’s burgeoning “knowledge economy.” Two of the firms are headquartered within the Jewelry District itself and two have their offices nearby on the East Side.

— Brigitta Greene

Knowledge Economy in Profile

Courtesy of Mark Nickel

City officials and University planners hope to see renewed life in Jewelry District streets in the coming years. The growing presence of the Warren Alpert Medical School downtown combined with increased private and public investment in Providence’s knowledge economy. Artist renderings of Richmond Street, the site of Brown’s new Medical Education Building, depict sidewalk cafes, landscaped walkways and easy access to public transportation — all within a mile of the Main Green.

Optimization — with a click By Sofia Castello Contributing Writer

Professor of Computer Science Pascal van Hentenryck is putting “Comet,” an algorithm he developed at Brown, to commercial use at Dynadec. Dynadec consists of three rooms, hidden in the enormous unlabeled maze of One Richmond Square, an office building on Providence’s East Side. Two men sit at computers in opposite corners of the stark white room, busily clicking as the day slips away. A tour takes all of a minute and a half. The company is the product of a successful collaboration between Brown and van Hentenryck and specializes in “stochastic optimization,” or “optimization under uncertainty,” van Hentenryck said. Comet is the underlying platform behind improving efficiency in various fields, ranging from hurricane response systems to workforce organization and steel manufacturing. “Ever ything which moves, we optimize,” van Hen-

tenryck said. Van Hentenryck and Rob Williams, Dynadec’s vice-president, have spent the last year building the company. They have been hiring staff, looking for private equity funding — which they have found at companies such as IBM, Cisco and Intel — and engaging with clients, Williams said. As Williams’ phone buzzed, van Hentenryck joked, “after a year together, we know who is calling.” Brown was “very helpful” in making the process “extremely smooth and easy,” van Hentenryck said. Van Hentenryck and Williams have an easy camaraderie — the two spoke intently, interrupting each other periodically. “A technology that started at Brown is now being used in multibillion dollar companies,” said Williams. “That really speaks to what (van Hentenryck) has done.” Van Hentenryck opened up his laptop to show Comet at work, and colored squares filled the screen. Comet’s next-generation technology has reduced the time necessary to schedule workforces in hospitals from 10 minutes to 30 seconds and has cut costs of mobilizing repair technicians by about 65 percent, he said. “That’s huge,” Williams said. Creating science and using it

to help people is “the most satisfying thing that can happen to a researcher,” van Hentenryck said. “It can make a big difference in the life of people.” Dynadec is currently working with Los Alamos National Laboratory to maximize efficiency in emergency response to hurricanes. While Los Alamos provides possible scenarios and effects on infrastructure, Comet can help determine where to place resources such as water and medical supplies in order to respond as quickly as possible, said van Hentenryck. “Think about Haiti, Chile ...” Williams said. “Our technology is getting there.” Van Hentenr yck teaches CSCI0310: “Introduction to Computer Systems” and a graduate-level course in optimization. He laughed, recalling his experience at Dancing with the Profs as “horrific.” He practiced “Billie Jean” 86 times, he said. Perhaps Comet could optimize dance moves as well. Sofia Costello / Herald

An entrepreneur in optimization, Professor of Computer Science Pascal van Hentenryck demonstrates his “Comet” algorithm.

Vaccination equation: the search goes on By Brian Mastroianni Features Editor

Situated across from a parking lot, the two-story grayish-brown building at 146 Clifford Street is an unimposing site, nestled in the heart of Providence’s Jewelry District. The building is home to EpiVax Inc. — a company dedicated to the design of new vaccines and the engineering of therapeutic proteins. For Anne DeGroot, CEO of EpiVax as well as an adjunct associate professor of pediatrics at Brown, the search for an HIV vaccine is EpiVax’s most important project. She said she has long found HIV care to be “the biggest problem in the world.” “I wanted to take care of people who had the disease, and I also wanted to make a vaccine for HIV,” she said. “Originally, this company was founded in hopes of helping to design an HIV vaccine, which is a pretty tall order,” said Business Development Associate Jason Del Pozzo. The company has internallyfunded vaccine programs, and has also received government grants from the National Institutes of Health to support lab research, Del Pozzo said. EpiVax is currently doing work for the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston and Providence-based Lifespan, he said. It was the development of computer-based technology that made the study of HIV strains much easier, and made the reality of creating an effective vaccine

more tangible, DeGroot said. “There are probably 200,000 different strains of HIV — you need a computer program to analyze the huge number of gene sequences for that many strains,” she said. “I think of HIV as French and all the strains as dialect, which is something that could only be solved with a computer.” With a recent HIV vaccine developed in Thailand reported to be 32 percent effective, DeGroot said things are looking much “better than they did a few years ago.” DeGroot hopes EpiVax will be in the forefront of developing a similar vaccine in the United States. “There is good news in that we are heading in the right direction. We continue to work on it and are making forward progress in our laboratory,” she said. None of this would be possible without Mayor David Cicilline ’83, DeGroot said. “He is the one person who is really spearheading the knowledge district plan. If he gets into Congress we’ll see even more access to federal funds — if it wasn’t for his leadership, I wouldn’t be here,” she said. With economic growth in the Jewelry District, more companies will be able to make the headway that EpiVax is currently making, Del Pozzo said. “From our standpoint, we think there’s obviously an excellent core and foundation of research and science in the Jewelry District. There is lots of room to grow, lots of land, and it is cheaper to develop in Providence than continued on page 7

Page 7

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

M etro

Thursday, March 11, 2010

“Brown is like a village.” — Love Sarin MS ’05 PhD ’09

Answers in Moving forward and reversing wrinkles sequencing for HIV By Caitlin Trujillo Senior Staff Writer

continued from page 6 in Boston,” he said. As one of the earliest medical start-ups and research facilities to locate in the district, EpiVax only recently starting seeing peer companies move in, DeGroot said. The growth of the district “has been a little bit slow until last year,” DeGroot said. But now, she said the area is starting to come alive, creating a community of Providencebased researchers. “Every business is slightly different. What we are contributing to the scene is that we are there, collaborating with one another,” DeGroot said. “If you don’t have access to a certain piece of technology in your own facility, you automatically know who has it, and you can easily move on to someone else — we are all walking distance to other laboratories,” she said. EpiVax’s position as a leader in the Jewelry District had rather humble beginnings. DeGroot first came to Brown in 1992 directly from her Infectious Diseases Fellowship at Tufts University. She received a grant from the National Institutes of Health and moved to an empty lab in Brown’s BioMedical Center. Right away, DeGroot began working with Gabriel Meister ’93 on computerbased analysis of gene sequences. They focused on T-cell epitopes in order to identify triggers for immune responses against diseases. She worked from her lab at Brown, creating what she called a “service-based consulting lab” for groups outside the University. In order to get more funding for her work, DeGroot applied for a grant from the Slater Technology Fund, which provides startup funding for technology-based Rhode Island companies. “They didn’t give us money until we were actually incorporated,” DeGroot said. Once she had the funding secured, she relocated the base of her company to a less-traditional location — the third floor of her home. With only two employees — including her founding par tner and current Chief Information Officer, William Martin — DeGroot proceeded to obtain more funding and eventually moved the company to a location more suited to a biomedical start-up, she said. After receiving a sizable contract from a pharmaceutical company in 2003, EpiVax moved to its current home on Clifford Street. Today, the company’s scope is fairly wide. The company is currently working on protein therapeutics including research on Botox and is also developing vaccines for tuberculosis, tularemia, smallpox, H. Pylori, HPV and HIV. DeGroot envisions an exciting future for the district. “I expect rapid growth in the next few years,” she said.

Isis Biopolymer, Inc. moved into the severe, sandy-colored building at 233 Richmond St. this past November. The facility, previously home to a watch-making company, now ticks out about 6,500 transdermal drug delivery patches a day. Come this May, it will be both a bustling factory and full-fledged research lab with a staff of about 70, said Chief Commercial Officer Shawna Gvazdauskas. It is this — the ability to conduct research and development while simultaneously putting a product on the market — that makes Isis Biopolymer stand out, she said. “That’s what really makes us so unique.” Isis Biopolymer is the developer of the IsisIQ platform of drug delivery patches. The patches use three technologies: a selective barrier membrane, a single electrode and hydrogel. Patients can receive up to three different drugs from a single patch. Conventional products often have two electrodes and consequently can over-deliver the drug, Gvazdauskas said. The IsisIQ, instead, operates at a low current and can halt the drug delivery process. The platform’s patches work by “active delivery,” meaning patients can control how much of the drug they receive by pressing a button to increase the dosage. “By virtue of the materials and process of manufacturing, it’s an extremely flexible platform,” Gvaz-

dauskas said. Isis Biopolymer uses its Jewelry District location and proximity to medical institutions to its advantage. Brown’s Molecular Medicine building and Lifespan are within walking distance. The company leases its building from the University and works with Lifespan to conduct clinical testing of its products. Across the street sits 222 Richmond

St., which will become the home of Brown’s Alpert Medical School. Isis Biopolymer’s “Wrinkle Free Brow Patch” went on the market in January under the brand name of University Medical Pharmaceuticals. The company is developing a similar patch for the eye area that will be ready in June, Gvazdauskas said. Less than two weeks ago, the company appointed Brown Professor of Emergency Medicine Bruce Becker ’78 to the position of director of clinical research. He will supervise various research projects, including a new product to numb pain and work toward the elusive “pain-free hospital” experience, he said. Gvazdauskas said it was “an anomaly” that the company would

manufacture in the U.S., let alone in Providence. But the location is a “huge strategic advantage” and creates an opportunity to forge “really, really cool partnerships” with Courtesy of Shawna GvazBrown, the city and Lifespan, she dauskas Staff manufacture drug said. Isis Biopolymer began in War- deliver patches at Isis Biopolymer’s lab downtown. wick in 2006 but was recruited by the cities of Providence and Cran- headquarters several times and has ston in Rhode Island as well as An- been “very supportive,” Gvazdausnapolis, Md. kas said. Ultimately, the lure of workThough Annapolis offered “at- ing in Providence’s Jewelry District tractive” incentives, Gvazdauskas surpassed Annapolis’ appeal. “We’re really looking for this to said, Providence Mayor David Cicilline ’83 as well as Brown President be a microcosm of medical research Ruth Simmons launched the best and development and commercialcampaign. Cicilline has visited the ization,” Gvazdauskas said.

Absorbing toxic mercury, with Love By Hannah Moser Features Editor

Among all the fervor surrounding the possibilities of “green” living, one Brown alum is taking being green to a whole new level. A very tiny level. With the creation of Banyan Environmental Inc., Love Sarin MS ’05 PhD ’09 took a graduate research project in nanomaterials and turned it into an entrepreneurial opportunity. Sarin’s company manufactures an assortment of products made of a special absorbent material that collects the toxic mercury vapor that escapes from broken fluorescent lamps.

According to the company’s Web site, the vapor “has been linked to neurological, cardiovascular and reproductive problems, and is of special concern to pregnant women and children due to its potential effect on neurological development.” Lamps containing the vapor could be broken during use or during transportation. Banyan’s products reflect customers’ potential needs — individual cloths for single broken lamps, bags to transport burnt-out bulbs to recycling centers and box linings to protect large shipments. Sarin

says he sees his product being purchased by large manufacturers as well as by individuals for residential use. In 2007, President George W. Bush approved legislation to begin phasing out the use of incandescent light bulbs, a change that could mean increased business for Banyan, he said. The recent Brown graduate was in Washington, D.C., this week receiving a National Science Foundation grant for research and development to continue his work, and said he is looking to expand the number of people involved in the venture and also expand to new products, though there are currently no new projects in the works. Sarin, who studied chemical engineering, finished his doctorate in August and launched Banyan in October after working with Professor of Engineering Robert Hurt, who headed a team that included undergraduate and graduate students and focused on mostly experimental developments and their “applications for human health and the environment,” according to Hurt. “The company is based out of one of those projects,” Sarin said. Though the company is small — just Sarin for now — there is a Courtesy of Love Sarin

Love Sarin MS ’05 PhD ’09 has developed a material capable of absorbing toxic mercury vapor.

support system in place. Hurt serves as the chief scientific adviser, and the company has a subcontract with the University, Sarin said, which allows him to use University facilities and utilize science support. Hurt made reference to the oftcited proverbs that “it takes a village to raise a child.” “Brown is like a village,” he said. “It takes a few elements on campus” to bring a grad student like Sarin to the point of running a company. These elements, Hurt said, included a Brown Superfund Basic Research Program grant, which funded the project; support from Brown’s Institute for Molecular and Nanoscale Innovation, of which Hurt is the director; and University programs encouraging entrepreneurship. Even though Sarin was not part of the University’s Program in Innovation Management and Entrepreneurship — a one-year master’s program primarily geared toward engineers — he said the opportunity to interact with students who were in the program was valuable because it “helped me flesh out my ideas and work on them.” At Brown, Sarin said, “people want to do things differently and think for themselves.” He said the ease with which students can cross disciplines enabled him to consider opinions from all kinds of people. “It was a very great atmosphere,” he said.

SportsThursday The Brown Daily Herald

Thursday, March 11, 2010 | Page 8

Swim takes seventh at Ivy Championships By SAhar Shahamatdar Sports Staff Writer

Despite setting two new school records, the men’s swimming and diving team took seventh place out of eight teams for the second year in a row with 699 points at the Ivy Championships in Princeton last weekend. Conor Carlucci ’11 broke the record in the 200-yard breaststroke, with a time of 2:01.60, and tied his own record in the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 56.06. Ryan Kikuchi ’11 also had a record-breaking race with a time of 3:53.93 in the 400-yard individual medley. Head Coach Peter Brown noted that 23 performances from the meet were among the top 25 times in Brown history for their given event, but the team ultimately came up 200 points short of getting in the mix with Columbia, Cornell and Yale for third place. “We would have liked to place higher in the team standings, but I am not sure we have the depth to score the additional 200 or so points,” Brown said. “Could we have found another 100 points? Yes, but 200? That is a stretch.” Bruno started the first day of finals with a fifth-place finish in the 200-yard freestyle relay. Tucker Wetmore ’10, Trent Huxley ’10, Carlucci and Timothy Juhn ’12 edged out Harvard, Yale and Dartmouth with a time of 1:22.48. Wetmore followed with a close 11th in the 50-yard freestyle — just .01 seconds behind Princeton. The day ended on a high note,

as the team of Carlucci, Kikuchi, Wetmore and J. D. Pinto ’10 took third in the 400-yard medley relay after shedding seven seconds off the preliminary time. The Bears headed into the second night of finals in seventh place with 142 points. Kikuchi helped Brown gain momentum with a second-place finish in the 400-yard individual medley with a time of 3:53.93. With this race, he became the first Brown swimmer this season to get a NCAA “B” qualifying time. Pinto followed with another fast swim in the 100-yard butterfly, taking seventh in the closest event of the competition. The Bears totaled 505 points by the end of the second day, maintaining their seventh-place position heading into the final day. Kikuchi, Wetmore and Carlucci continued their impressive performances and combined for 58 points in the individual events on the last day of the meet. Diver C. J. Kambe ’10 wrapped up the individual events by taking seventh in the one-meter dive. The defending champion Princeton outscored second-place Harvard by more than 200 points to win the meet. Despite the disappointing finish, Brown said he was proud of the team and applauded the spirit and effort of all swimmers and divers. “We had many very good swims, a few disappointments, but overall a good meet,” Brown said. The coach added that he expects the team to get at least 900 points in the next conference meet.

Jonathan Bateman / Herald

Athlete of the week Aaron Volpatti ’10 clashes with an opponent on the ice.

Shooting the puck with Volpatti ’10 By Dan Alexander Spor ts Editor

With the men’s hockey team’s season on the line last weekend, tri-captain Aaron Volpatti ’10 led the Bears to an upset triumph over Rensselaer in the first round of the ECAC Hockey Playoffs. Volpatti scored a goal in each of Brown’s three games, bringing his season total to 10 goals, third-best on the team. For his combination of scoring and toughness — he leads the team in penalties and penalty minutes — Volpatti has gotten the attention of a number of NHL teams this season. Last weekend, his performance earned him ECAC Hockey

Player of the Week honors — and now, Herald Athlete of the Week honors too. Herald: There has been a lot of talk about you going to the NHL. Do you think that’s your next step? Volpatti: As a team, and personally, the ultimate goal is to win a championship, so that’s what we’re trying to do. And then the benefit of that is that everyone’s going to get recognized, and that will give me and the other guys on the team the best opportunity to (play professionally). So yeah, obviously, that’s my goal to do that. Which NHL teams have come to check you out?

I’ve met in person with a few teams — Vancouver, Nashville and Edmonton and Boston are all kind of in the mix now. There’s a few other teams that my advisor has talked to. You’re from British Columbia? Yeah. So are you favoring the Canadian teams? If I can sign a contract right out of college, I’m obviously going to do that. Ideally, there will be some sort of bidding war kind of thing. But I’m obviously probably going to favor Vancouver because I’m from British Columbia. But if another team offers a better deal or something continued on page 9

Parker Brown ’12: For the name on the front, and back, of my jersey An athlete’s perspective on Wednesday’s game The men’s lacrosse team beat Hartford, 13-12, in overtime Wednesday, and attackman Parker Brown ’12 helped to lead the Bears’ effort with three goals and two assists on the day. Here’s how it went down from his point of view. In his first career home game in Division I lacrosse, David Hawley ’11, who transferred from Williams College, stuck the game-winner, top shelf (where the cookie jar goes) to give the Brown men’s lacrosse team its first win of the season in overtime yesterday on Meister-Kavan Field. Off of a feed by Andrew Feinberg ’11, which was, in his own words, “a lob and a half,” Hawley found himself wide open with time and room above the goal. The Hartford goalie, who had previously told his defense to guard Hawley because “he shoots so fast” — and because he was scared of him — stood no chance against the Hawley Heat. Final score: Brown 13, Hartford 12. With the goal, his second of the

day, Hawley gave Coach Tiffany (Lars Tiffany ’90) his first career overtime win and put the Bears at 1-1 for the season after a loss to Hofstra last Saturday. Seven different players scored for Brown, with Feinberg leading the way with four goals. Brown EMO (Extra Man Offense), which was 4-of-6 against Hoftsra, was not so hot on Wednesday, going 0-of-2 (I am on EMO, so I can say this). Fortunately, we were able to capitalize on transition and loose-ball goals, which made up for our lackluster EMO. On the defensive side, Matt Chriss ’11 was solid in goal, especially when it counted in the fourth quarter and overtime. The entire defense, for that matter, played “Outstanding!” during the last minute of the fourth quarter, especially when the Bears went man-down with 44 seconds remaining in regulation. The fourth quarter and overtime defensive efforts were led by captain Jake “the Duck” Westermann ’10, who gave Brown possession of the ball after diving towards the endline

(that’s probably because Hartford doesn’t do “Divers” in practice. Yeah man). Peter “Big Bird” Fallon ’11 also stepped up in the fourth quarter and overtime, making outrageous pick-offs and dangling around the Hartford attackmen, while “the Rhino,” aka Brennan Bailey ’12, made clear that he is indeed, as Coach Tiffany put it, “all grown up,” and owned his attackmen all day. Between the lines, Rob “Jared Allen” Schlesinger ’12 made plays on both sides of the field while looking good with his newly-trimmed mullet. The “Schlesh-pup” finished with a goal and a handful of ground balls. Defenseman Roger Ferguson ’13 was all over the field, registering an assist for the second straight game while also making the Hartford attackmen wish they had stayed home. Captains Reade Seligmann ’10 and Thomas Muldoon ’10 quarterbacked the offense while making plays when it mattered most at the end of the game. Muldoon scooped continued on page 9

Page 9

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

S ports T HURSDAY

Thursday, March 11, 2010

“I get to keep chasing it.” — Aaron Volpatti ’10 on his pro hockey dream

M. lax scores victory over Hartford continued from page 1

Courtesy of David Silverman

The men’s lacrosse team earned a tough victory over Hartford Wednesday and faces St. Joseph’s on Saturday for the third game of the season.

An athlete weighs in on m. lacrosse’s win continued from page 8 up ground balls like a vacuum off the face-off wing, while Seligmann pulled the Bears within one in the fourth quarter. And then BANG!, Feinberg tied the score, 12-12, with his fourth goal late in the game, before the aforementioned Brown defense took over. In Hawley’s words, the win “was awesome,” so we will keep this momentum rolling into Saturday, when we play St. Joe’s in Philadelphia, the

home of Wills “Snickers” Curley ’13. Thanks to the fans for making our first win feel “Outstanding!” For the name on the front, and back, of my jersey, this is Parker Brown signing out.

— Parker Brown

Want to write about your sport and think you can make people laugh? Send The Herald sports department an e-mail at sports@ browndailyherald.com.

eased the sting of a season-opening 15-12 loss to No. 10 Hofstra and fulfilled Head Coach Lars Tiffany’s ’90 goal of improving with ever y game. “Coming off the Hofstra loss, playing at home today, we absolutely needed the win to start the season in the right direction,” Hawley said. “Hopefully we’ll take the next step this weekend.” The Bears star ted slowly against a tough Hartford team. The Hawks entered the game with a 1-2 record, but their two losses had come to then-No. 17 Massachusetts and No. 14 Delaware. Despite getting goals from quad-captain Thomas Muldoon ’10 and Feinberg, Brown faced a 5-2 deficit after one quar ter, as Hartford won six out of eight face-offs. “We came out pretty slow, and we knew we just had no tempo, we weren’t playing with heart,” Hawley said. “We got some good speeches from the captains. They really picked up the tempo and led the team to get those ground balls and those face-off wins for us.” The Bears turned the tables on the Hawks in the second, winning 6-of-7 face-offs and outracing the visitors to 11-of-16 ground balls en route to posting a 19-3 advantage in shots for the quarter. Rob Schlesinger ’12 and Parker Brown ’12 both scored to cut the deficit to 5-4 just 3:40 into the quarter, and Feinberg and Brown scored 29 seconds apart to give Bruno its first lead with 7:02 remaining in the half. After Hartford tied the game, Hawley answered to send the Bears to halftime with a 7-6 lead.

AOTW reflects, discusses dreams continued from page 8 like that, I’m probably going to go there — can’t really be too picky when it comes to a contract. Many guys who are goal-scorers like you change their roles when they move up to the next level. Do you think yours will change or remain the same? Don’t let my numbers deceive you. I’m still not a goal scorer, really. ... I started Junior Hockey and I started out as a fighter and didn’t see much ice time — scored like one goal in 60 games. And then, my last year, I improved, I started scoring. But I still didn’t lose that physical element. And that happened when I came to Brown. My first-ever game against Cornell, I got kicked out. I got like nine minutes of penalties my first shift and I didn’t play

for six games after that. (Former Head Coach Roger) Grillo sat me. So, it’s just something that’s always there. I think when I hit the next step, it’s probably going to be the same case. Do you like having that mix of goal-scoring ability and physical play? Yeah, that’s probably why I’m getting more attention because the game now — especially in the NHL — you can’t just have fighters. That used to be the case 10 years ago, where guys could be six-foot, six and 260 and just fight. But now, you’ve got to be able to play the game, too. You’re a human bio major? Yeah. So if you don’t do hockey longterm, what are you going to do? Hopefully it works out for a

while. But if not, then I mean I’ll cross that bridge when I get there. I might end up going back to school for a couple years. I’m not going to be a doctor by any means because I would be in school until I’m like 40. So that won’t happen, but I see myself staying in the sports field, like athletic trainer type of thing. Is playing pro hockey something that you have dreamed of since you were a little kid? Yeah, I think everyone dreams — especially up in Canada. Obviously, I know the faithful hockey players here dream about that, but every little kid dreams about that back home. You play street hockey and you pretend to be so-and-so, so yeah, it’s obviously been a dream. And eventually you give that dream up. And it’s nice that I haven’t had to give it up yet. I get to keep chasing it.

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Tiffany said it was especially crucial to secure ground balls and win face-of fs in this game “because both offenses were going to score goals.” The third quarter was backand-for th for most of the way. Har tford goalie Scott Bement never let Brown open up a multiple-goal lead, making 14 saves on the game. The Hawks struck twice in the third minute to retake the lead, but goals by Feinberg and Nicholas Laster ’12 gave the Bears a 9-8 lead with 5:24 left. Suddenly, Har tford scored three goals, including its second man-up goal of the game, in the final four minutes of the quarter. “There was a confidence building on our sideline with the way we played second quarter, third quarter and then bang — Hartford took it to us,” Tiffany said. “Knowing how good the Hartford goalie is, not everything was going to go in, so we were going to need a lot of good shot opportunities.” But the Bears were undaunted, despite heading into the final quarter down, 11-9. “I’ve been fortunate to have men who compete and have always had a quiet confidence on the sideline, stay positive with each other, and fortunately they did that again today,” Tif fany said. The lead remained two after the Hawks quickly answered Parker Brown’s third goal of the game in the first three minutes, but the Bears seemed to gain energy after killing off a one-minute penalty with just under 11 minutes left. Quad-captain Reade Seligmann ’10 cut the lead to 12-11 with 8:22 left, and then the waiting began.

After Matt Chriss ’11 had a pair of strong saves on Hartford’s ensuing possession, a subsequent long Brown possession ended fruitlessly. But Roger Ferguson ’13 secured a ground ball at midfield, and the Bears charged the other way and tied the game on a Feinberg goal with 3:04 left. When the Bears sur vived a 30-second man-down situation in the final minute of regulation, the game headed to overtime. “The man-down unit stepped up big when it really mattered most,” Tiffany said. In overtime, Hartford failed to get a shot off on before Peter Fallon ’11 scooped up a ground ball and Brown cleared its defensive zone. When Hawley scored the game-winner, the Bears earned a hard-fought victor y. “It just kind of sets the tone for the season,” Hawley said. “We really didn’t want to go 0-2 for the first two games, so getting the first win at home is a huge thing for taking the next step this weekend and hopefully going 2-1.” The Bears will travel to Philadelphia on Saturday to face 0-6 St. Joseph’s. “We’ve earned a good win over a good team, and — right on the field we’re standing on right now — we’re going to get to work in less than 24 hours and try to make it better because our team defense needs to get a lot better,” Tiffany said. “The offense has developed earlier than we expected, but it’s probably due to the fact that we’ve got such experience there with Reade Seligmann, Thomas Muldoon and Andrew Feinberg.” “Moving forward, it’s one win, and now,” Tiffany said, “it’s all about St. Joe’s.”

Editorial & Letters The Brown Daily Herald

Page 10 | Thursday, March 11, 2010

l e t t e r to t h e e d i to r

Pedestrian safety comes down to attitude To the Editor: Sunday afternoon, as I was driving on Angell, a one-way street, a student in the middle of the block darted in front of me to cross. If I hadn’t stopped quickly, I would have hit him. Fortunately for me (and especially for him) I kind of expected he wouldn’t wait for me to pass by, so I was prepared to brake. While it’s good to see an editorial (“Safe walking,” March 8) want to do something useful for pedestrian safety after a student was killed, it’s not so much a matter of location, additional or improved signage as it is of attitude. The issue is entitlement and students’ belief that someone else will take care of them. At night, of course, it’s worse, as a 4000-pound vehicle with lights on is a lot easier to see than a 150-pound student

sauntering across the street with the idea that they have the right of way. (Often they don’t.) If you fail to recognize it’s a matter chiefly of attitude, you will accomplish very little. Improved signage may only lead student pedestrians to become even more complacent about their personal fates than they demonstrate presently. Walking down Meeting Street a few months ago, a car drove through a stop sign at about 30 mph as I was about to step into the crosswalk. Had I been a student, I might have stepped out and been hit. I had the right of way, but sometimes it’s actually up to me to save myself. Students, don’t expect others to watch out for you. Watch out for yourselves. Dan Siegel ’57 March 8

Letters, please! you write ’em, we print ’em letters@browndailyherald.com

t h e b r o w n d a i ly h e r a l d Editor-in-Chief

Managing Editor Chaz Kelsh

George Miller

editorial Anne Speyer Suzannah Weiss Brian Mastroianni Hannah Moser Brigitta Greene Ben Schreckinger Sydney Ember Nicole Friedman Dan Alexander Andrew Braca Han Cui

Senior Editors Ellen Cushing Seth Motel Joanna Wohlmuth Business General Managers Office Manager Shawn Reilly Claire Kiely Katie Koh

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Graphics & Photos Graphics Editor Stephen Lichenstein Graphics Editor Alex Yuly Photo Editor Nick Sinnott-Armstrong Asst. Photo Editor Max Monn Sports Photo Editor Jonathan Bateman Production Copy Desk Chief Kelly Mallahan Asst. Copy Desk Chief Jordan Mainzer Design Editor Marlee Bruning Asst. Design Editor Anna Migliaccio Asst. Design Editor Julien Ouellet Web Editor Neal Poole Post- magazine Editor-in-Chief Marshall Katheder

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Anna Migliaccio, Designer

R ichard S tein and P aul T ran

e d i to r i a l

Lecturing the board When the Brown Lecture Board brought former Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf to campus last semester, we had high expectations. Recent speakers sponsored by Lecture Board — including outed CIA agent Valerie Plame Wilson and former Ark. Gov. Mike Huckabee — delivered engaging talks to packed audiences. Unfortunately, Musharraf’s speech turned out to be a flop. We weren’t thrilled to listen to the former president speak in generalities and dodge questions. We were even less thrilled to hear that Lecture Board spent a good chunk of its budget on Musharraf, depleting funding for spring semester speakers. Not every lecture is going to be phenomenal, and Lecture Board can only do so much to ensure that speakers will give substantive talks. Still, given the amount of money the board controls and the importance of lectures to student life on campus, we have a few suggestions for how to improve the speaker selection process. In the current process for picking speakers, board members compile a list of potential lecturers, look into their costs and availabilities and conduct a vote to make the final decisions. Those decisions — which this year determined the fate of $90,000 of student activities money — are made by just a handful of students. Though Lecture Board is open to everyone, only 25 students attend meetings regularly. Former co-president Alex Schwartz ’10 said Lecture Board tries to reach out to campus, adding that the board holds a big table at the activities fair. That’s not nearly enough of an effort to engage students and ensure that voting is representative of the student body. In the short term, we’d like to see Lecture Board better publicize its meetings and the fact that they are open to all students. It should also try to attract more members. For example, the board typically

listens to potential speakers’ past speeches before signing a contract. Why not host a speech screening night and invite students to eat pizza and watch clips of old speeches? We’re sure more than 25 people would show up, especially if Lecture Board allowed attendees to cast a vote afterwards. In the long-term, Lecture Board should consider opening the speaker selection process to the entire student body through formal surveys. The Brown Concert Agency conducts a MyCourses poll every fall about potential Spring Weekend performers. Indeed, the BCA told The Herald this week that the top choice in the student poll — MGMT — will be part of this year’s lineup. Surveying students would allow Lecture Board to gauge opinion on speakers who have less name recognition but promise to give provocative speeches. Moreover, it might diversify the list of potential speakers, which has been heavy on white male politicians in recent years. In addition to Huckabee, Lecture Board has sponsored speeches by Rick Santorum, John Edwards and Howard Dean. We’d also welcome some more transparency on behalf of Lecture Board. Schwartz told the editorial page board that picking speakers is a “pretty informal process.” Any group that controls so much student money should clearly set out its voting and budgeting processes. At least that way, we can all take responsibility for speakers who give softball talks. And who use their lectures to promote revisionist histories of their regimes. And who, while we’re at it, are just plain hard to understand.

Editorials are written by The Herald’s editorial page board. Send comments to editorials@browndailyherald.com.

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Opinions The Brown Daily Herald

Thursday, March 11, 2010 | Page 11

(Ab)using the Open Curriculum KSHITIJ LAURIA Opinions Columnist

When I met with my first-year advisor earlier this semester, he made an offhand remark I’ll never forget. We began our conversation with what is something of a tradition between us now: some healthy, agreeable complaining about the weather (“Where I come from this would be illegal.” “But it never snows in India! ... that’s how we’d know the law works.”) Getting to business, he asked me what my plan was for the second semester. This had been bothering me for a while: at the end of shopping period I found myself registered for a mix of five classes that seemed both insane and against the principles behind the New Curriculum. Unable to pick one to drop, I felt the apprehension of someone who has gorged on too much spicy food and fears what the morning may bring. Having heard my concerns, he leaned back, shrugged almost imperceptibly and said, “Fail a little.” We moved on to other topics and complained a little more about the cold, but I kept turning his words over in my head. He had pointed out what now seems to me a central feature of Brown’s New Curriculum: the chance (even the obligation) to fail a little.

The essential consequence of an open curriculum is the transfer of responsibility from institution to individual. A celebrated theorem from economics says that efficient outcomes result when property rights lie with those who have the most information, the most at stake or both. The corollary is that institutions that promote negotiation and information symmetry increase efficiency. The “property” in question here is a student’s time: both scarce and valuable, all uses of it have associated opportunity costs. The

typical high school, we find ourselves in the absurd situation of never having had control of our own time and lives. One of our oldest evolved responses, risk-aversion, then kicks in. Although this is in general a great thing, it may not always be the best way to conduct one’s academic career, especially given the fact that most of us don’t know our limits, don’t know our potential, and therefore don’t know what kind of behavior is risky! What my advisor was saying was this: It is far better to stretch yourself and expose

The Open Curriculum’s real power is derived from the fact that it puts power in the hands of the student to do as she sees fit.

student herself clearly has most at stake in the outcome; she also knows best what she excels at, but may lack the experience to pull disparate skills together into a coherent whole. This is precisely why the role of the advisor is so crucial in the New Curriculum. Most of us as students, however, have never had those rights and the associated responsibilities granted to us. Through a combination of the resource scarcities and general boneheadedness that are the hallmarks of your

yourself to a little risk, especially this early in your academic career, than to risk never finding out what you can and cannot do. Many incoming freshmen (I refuse to call myself a “first-year”) at Brown cite the Open Curriculum as one of the biggest factors in their decisions to come here. It certainly was for me. The prevailing opinion on campus seems to be that this is because it lets students broaden their education and take courses in areas they otherwise wouldn’t have been able

to. But by the line of reasoning outlined above, the Open Curriculum’s real power is derived from the fact that it puts power in the hands of the student to do as she sees fit (subject to advisor expertise), whether that happens to be doing a combined neuroscience and comparative literature concentration with a few courses at RISD thrown in, taking four 1000-level math classes first semester of sophomore year or anything in between. Professor Shriram Krishnamurthi, who studies programming languages, often likes to remark that “design should proceed not by accumulating features, but by removing the restrictions that made them seem necessary.” Ira Magaziner ’69 P’06 P’07 P’10 anticipated this design philosophy by several decades when he proposed the New Curriculum. Powerful programming languages are so because clever people use them in insane ways that just wouldn’t be possible in lesser languages. Powerful curricula are so because unique individuals (ab)use them in insane ways that administrators did not, could not, anticipate. Sometimes you shoot yourself in the foot when doing those insane things, but sometimes you do something great. You never know unless you allow yourself to fail a little.

Kshitij Lauria ’13 is rethinking his personal economic decisions now that midterms are coming up.

Divestment will not bring rapprochement HUNTER FAST Opinions Columnist

Last week, Brown students saw numerous posters and banners declaring that “we don’t want our education profiting from occupation.” To this end, activists observed Israeli Apartheid Week, advocating Brown’s divestment from companies that profit from Israeli policy in the West Bank and Gaza. This advocacy stems from a 2005 call issued by “Palestinian civil society” for boycotts, divestments and sanctions (BDS, not to be confused with Brown Dining Services) against Israel. Predictably, most of the controversy over IAW originates from the conflation of Israel with apartheid-era South Africa. This is a semantic debate that serves as a distraction from the implications of a large-scale implementation of the BDS strategy, which is likely to have disastrous economic consequences for Israelis and Palestinians alike. The primary economic impact of a consumer boycott against Israel would be a precipitous drop in Israeli economic output, which would in turn lower the income of many Israelis. Despite proponents’ claim that economic hardship would cause Israel to turn away from settlement construction, there is significant evidence that the reverse would occur. Consider the effect of a lower national income on the Israeli market for housing. A 2009 Slate article points out that while the average cost of a two-bedroom living space in Tel Aviv is approximately $400,000, the cost of the same space in Modi’in Illit, an urban settlement 25 miles away in the West Bank, is only $180,000.

Furthermore, in order to expropriate land in an Israeli outpost, one need only build a dwelling of some sort on that land. Acting under the general assumption that people need places to live, a lower national income would cause settlement expansion. Moreover, the Israeli government, averse to the idea of reducing West Bank settlements, would have an incentive to ameliorate this economic shift by further subsidizing settlement construction. The campaign for divestment from Israel, the second pillar of BDS, seeks to trigger

only compound their economic woes. Despite the BDS strategy’s flaws, action must be taken to ensure that Brown’s investments are structured to promote peace. Instead of single-mindedly punishing Israel, Brown should invest itself in a way that fosters economic interdependence between Israelis and Palestinians, thus making the opportunity cost of war too large to justify. IAW’s organizers demand Brown’s divestment from companies that sell arms to Israel. Instead, Brown should divest itself from all arms manufacturers — not only those that

Instead of singlemindedly punishing Israel, Brown should invest itself in a way that promotes genuine economic interdependence between Israelis and Palestinians.

capital flight from Israel similar to that of South Africa during the 1980s. In so doing, however, the negative effects of capital flight on postapartheid South Africa — effects that would impact Palestinians — are ignored. Under large-scale divestment, Israeli New Shekels would be sold for other currencies as investors leave Israel’s economy, thereby creating an oversupply and subsequent devaluation of the new shekel. Due to Israel’s nature as a highly trade-dependent economy, this would translate into soaring inflation. Because the new shekel is the main currency of exchange in the Occupied Territories, this inflation would affect Palestinians and would

sell to Israel — and preferentially reinvest its funds in firms that contribute to Palestinian economic activity. By facilitating Palestinian access to capital, export capacity will increase, such that Israel will face a choice between importing Palestinian goods and importing goods from further afield at greater cost. As Palestinian exports to Israel increase, the cost of substituting Palestinian trade will rise to the point that war will become too expensive for the Israeli economy. Additionally, Brown can make an effort to purchase more Israeli goods. The role of such an effort in the promotion of peace may

seem counter-intuitive, but by encouraging growth in the Israeli export sector, and thus its demand for labor, the economic cost of enforcing the West Bank separation barrier and the blockade of Gaza will increase. Palestinians are currently alienated from the labor market due to Israeli policies that began during a period of elevated immigration from the former Soviet Union. As prominent journalist Naomi Klein has stated, this wave of immigration largely supplanted the role of Palestinian labor in the Israeli economy, thereby rendering measures like the separation barrier economically feasible. However, immigration to Israel has largely dried up, leaving the country with the choice of allowing Palestinians into the labor market or attempting to draw more immigrants. A sharp increase in Israeli exports would cause labor demand to increase, such that drawing and resettling a corresponding number of immigrants would be prohibitively expensive, thus making the policies of separation too costly to maintain. Given the catastrophic situation that Palestinians face, we as students and as a community must act. However, many aspects of this situation are caused by artificial barriers to trade imposed by the Israeli government, the solution to which cannot be the imposition of even more trade barriers. Pragmatic analysis and debate, rather than divisive rhetoric, will allow us to contribute to the formation of an economic groundwork for peace.

Hunter Fast ’12 is an economics concentrator from Bloomington, Illinois. He can be reached at hunter_fast@ brown.edu.

Today The Brown Daily Herald

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Robitaille, Brown Republicans meet

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Disappointing finish for m. swimming

Thursday, March 11, 2010

t h e n e w s i n i m ag e s

inside

In today’s PostQuestioning the roommate questionaire, top ten things to do outside, Brown fashion from a fresh set of eyes, DosstheArtist and the PGA Tour’s Post- playlist, an interview with playwright Joe Waetcher GS, and springtime eatin.’ Plus, as always: Diamonds and Coal, Sexploration, Modest Proposals, and weekend five!

6 c a l e n da r Today, march 11

tomorrow, march 12

4:00 p.m. — Farzana Shaikh ­— “The Conundrum of Consensus: In Search of ‘The’ Pakistani Identity,” Watson Institute 6:00 p.m. — The Secrets of Tomb 10A: From Bersha to Boston, 1915 - 2010, Rhode Island Hall 108

3:00 P.M. — Distinguished Lecture Series: The Mathematics of Swarming and Aggregation, Foxboro Auditorium 6:00 P.M. — Ayiti Cheri Haitian Film Festival, Starr Auditorium

comics

menu Sharpe Refectory

Verney-Woolley Dining Hall

Lunch — Grilled Ham and Swiss Sandwich, Vegan Tofu Raviolis with Sauce, Crispy Oat Cookies

Lunch — Hot Roast Beef on French Bread, Risotto alla Parmigiana, Cream Cheese Brownies

Dinner — Roast Turkey with Sauce, Cheese and Corn Strata

Dinner — Lemon Broiled Chicken, Pasta Spinach Casserole

Cabernet Voltaire | Abe Pressman

crossword Dot Comic | Eshan Mitra and Brendan Hainline

Fruitopia | Andy Kim

Hippomaniac | Mat Becker

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