Wednesday, October 1, 2014

THE

BROWN DAILY HERALD vol. cxlix, no. 79

since 1891

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

Financial problems, Cianci’s history frame mayoral debate Deficit rises Harrop ’76 MD’79 willing 58 percent, to consider bankruptcy, doubles 2014 Elorza touts plans for waterfront development projection

By MARIYA BASHKATOVA METRO EDITOR

A heated mayoral debate between Independent Vincent “Buddy” Cianci, Democrat Jorge Elorza and Republican Daniel Harrop ’76 MD’79 at Rhode Island College featured a series of pointed personal attacks in front of a packed crowd of fervent supporters Tuesday evening.

Elorza, a former housing court judge, said he would create jobs and improve the city’s education system, while Harrop, a psychiatrist who has lost two previous bids for mayor,

METRO

emphasized his fiscally conservative policies and plans for balancing the city’s budget and pension system.

Cianci, who served as mayor of Providence from 1975 to 1984 and from 1991 to 2002, said he revitalized the city in his past terms and “raised the self-esteem” of its residents, adding that he would continue to rejuvenate the city if elected again.

WPRI reporters Ted Nesi and Tim White and Providence Journal reporter Ed Fitzpatrick co-moderated the debate, with White introducing the candidates.

Cianci’s first stint as mayor ended when he was forced to resign after pleading guilty to felony assault charges, while his second period at City Hall ended in 2002 when he was convicted of racketeering. He subsequently served five years in federal prison. » See DEBATE, page 6

Rising financial aid budget, decreasing federal funds linked to $8.7 million deficit

By LINDSAY GANTZ SENIOR STAFF WRITER

COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Independent mayoral candidate Vincent “Buddy” Cianci addressed his tumultuous past in a debate Tuesday that featured attacks on his record.

Nobel-winning author discusses terror threat Boko Haram Wole Soyinka, 1986 winner of Nobel Prize in Literature, speaks of conflict in homeland of Nigeria

By EMMAJEAN HOLLEY ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR

“Take a cue from battered humanity of Nigeria: Do not concede a thing to the enemy of humanity,” said Wole Soyinka, Nigerian writer, political activist and winner of the 1986 Nobel Prize in Literature, during a lecture on campus Monday evening.

The talk, entitled “Hatched From the Egg of Impunity: A Fowl Called Boko Haram,” was an installment in both the Watson Distinguished Speaker Series and the Africa Initiative Speaker Series.

ARTS & CULTURE

Though tickets for the talk sold out, not everyone who reserved a ticket showed up, allowing attendees in the overflow room to take seats in the Martinos Auditorium in the Perry and Marty Granoff Center for the Creative Arts.

Soyinka spoke extensively of the history and trajectory of Boko Haram, a militant Islamic group that enforces its extremist religious doctrine through brutal force.

“Boko Haram may have begun as local movement, but over the past three or four years, no one can say it’s not internationalized,” he said.

Soyinka commenced by tracing the group’s origins. Founded as an

anti-government sect by Mohammed Yusuf, it eventually gained power and developed into a “universal menace of virulent, fanatic disposition that hides under the cloak of religious propagation,” he said, adding that Yusuf became “more and more ruthless and systematic” as his followers increased.

He went on to describe some of the atrocities committed under this regime, often drawing upon external documents such as news reports to illustrate his narrative, which included arson against Christian chapels, death sentences to journalists and threats at knifepoint to convert to Islam.

“Statistics of organized death simply addle the mind until it seizes up,” he said.

Soyinka attributed the rise of

Boko Haram largely to “economic disparities” and a “lack of social opportunities,” citing the experiences of the “marginalized and impoverished, for whom existence becomes meaningless.” For some, he added, it may seem as though the only way to dignify their conditions is through “destructive gestures.”

A major obstacle to justice lies in the corruption and hypocrisy of government officials, whose immunity to the threat of Boko Haram allows them “to partake in the status of secret power” of the organization, Soyinka said.

At one point, Soyinka read an excerpt from a letter sent to the U.S. State Department arguing for the exclusion of Boko Haram from its list of » See SOYINKA, page 2

The University faces a $8.7 million operating budget deficit for the current academic year, according to Beppie Huidekoper, executive vice president for finance and administration. This marks a roughly 58 percent increase from the $5.5 million deficit in the 2013-14 academic year.

The deficit is more than double the $4.4 million operating budget deficit projected by the Corporation in the beginning of fiscal year 2014, President Christina Paxson wrote in an email to faculty and staff on Aug. 15. Fiscal year 2014 ran from July 1, 2013 to June 30 of this year.

A budget deficit is the result of campus expenses exceeding campus revenue, Huidekoper said.

The budget deficit is a “structural problem,” said Provost Vicki Colvin.

“A structural deficit is one you don’t see changing over time. It’s something deep in how the University is structured, and the decisions it has made up until this point.”

The deficit is significantly higher than expected due to an increased financial aid budget and cuts in federal research funding to the University, Huidekoper said.

In fiscal year 2014, the University » See, DEFICIT, page 2

Pre-vet, pre-dental students frustrated by lack of U. support

By RILEY DAVIS SENIOR STAFF WRITER

A year of physics, a year of organic chemistry, a year of inorganic chemistry, May Siu ’15 said as she ticked off her requirements. A year of humanities, a year of biochemistry, a year of math. Molecular biology, genetics and as many animal studies courses as possible.

While many of the courses Siu needs to take can also fulfill the requirements of her biology concentration, she must tailor her course schedule to be able to pursue a very specific line of work after

inside

SCIENCE & RESEARCH

her undergraduate years — not medical school, though the requirements seem similar. After immersing herself in handson experience for a year after graduation, Siu plans to apply to veterinary school.

But unlike the support system in place for the larger faction of undergraduates applying to med schools, there is no equivalent for pre-vet students, Siu said.

“I felt very much on my own,” she said. “I felt like there were all these resources for pre-med kids. Everyone knew exactly what they needed to do, and they had all these resources and fairs.”

Alan Vazquez ’15 knew he wanted to become a dentist early in his undergraduate career, but like Siu, he has found resources and advising for pre-dental students to be less readily available than those for pre-meds.

“Definitely you have be a ‘go-getter’ type of person,” Vazquez said. “The » See MEDICINE, page 5

SOYOON KIM / HERALD

University News

Commentary

At research colloquium, postdoctoral fellow presents findings on ancient Egyptian life

Computing and Information Services begins information and technology lecture series

Feldman ’15: Health Services falls short of effective “gatekeeper model”

Miller ’70 P’02: Academic freedom and open discussion stunted after Ray Kelly incident

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Pre-health advising not tailored for students pursuing tracks outside pre-med route

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2 arts & culture

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

SHARING WISDOM

ORLANDO LUIS PARDO LAZO / HERALD

Seth Magaziner ’06 spoke about unemployment rates in Rhode Island, issues of equality and the importance of helping Rhode Island recover from the recession during a Brown Democrats meeting Tuesday.

JOSE ROCHA / HERALD

According to Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka, the rising power of the Islamic militant group Boko Haram is largely due to “economic disparities.”

»SOYINKA, from page 1

Questions from the audience dealt with how to prevent atrocities such terrorist organizations. Though the as those inflicted by Boko Haram, letter included a cogent argument, it on levels both political and personal. was a “study in speciousness,” Soyinka In response to an inquiry about said — the letter effectively denied the role of U.S. foreign policy in rethe organization’s terrorist founda- solving these conflicts, Soyinka drew tions. laughter from the audience when he The misconception that Boko quipped: “Collaborate. And don’t Haram is a “ragtag bunch of casual recolonize.” incendiaries and suicide bombers” He added that the United States dangerously unis “just another counderestimates what try,” and the extent to “Statistics of its members’ “sowhich it can effectiveorganized death phisticated minds” ly intervene is limited. are capable of, he Instead, he stressed simply addle the said, adding that importance of mind until it seizes the the members’ excollaboration between up.” periences with neighboring countries analyzing foreign during times of conpolicy allows them Wole Soyinka flict, as they are the to manipulate the RECIPIENT OF THE1986 NOBEL “primary stakeholdgroup’s internaPRIZE IN LITERATURE ers” in bringing about tional image. resolution.

U l t i m a t e l y, Despite the gravity Boko Haram serves “as a reminder of his subject matter, Soyinka ended that social justice remains incom- on a note of hope. “It’s never too late plete without penetration through to return to the path of truth,” he said. some very lamentable beginnings,” “Of course, that opens up another Soyinka said. debate altogether: What is the truth?”

university news 3

Resources Committee predicted a $95 million budget for financial aid. But actual spending on financial aid for that year was $99 million, Huidekoper said.

The University instituted a needblind admission policy for domestic applicants beginning with the class of 2007, a decision that continues to impact the budgetary process. “There’s more needy students than there have been in previous years,” Huidekoper said. “When you’re need-blind, it’s really hard to budget.”

Last year’s admission cycle marked the fourth consecutive one in which approximately 68 percent of first-year applicants applied for financial aid, The Herald reported at the time.

Raising revenue is something that the University has a degree of control over, said David Savitz, vice president for research.

Savitz said he is “optimistic” about the future. From fiscal year 2013 to fiscal year 2014, requests for funding increased by $178 million, or about 28 percent. More awards were approved in fiscal year 2014 than fiscal year 2013, which may lead to increased revenue in the future.

“If you ask for more (research money), there’s a very good chance you’ll get more,” he said.

There was a 9 percent decrease in federal funding available from fiscal year 2013 to fiscal year 2014, said Huidekoper.

Due to a “lag” in the distribution of funds, federal funding decreased

this current year despite new awards having increased, Savitz said.

“There is an awareness and a cultural change going on where, as a university and faculty, we recognize that we’re in challenging times and we have to pick it up,” Savitz said.

“We have to write more proposals.

We have to look at a broader way of funding resources, be more strategic and more resourceful about it.”

The University has also raised tuition, which accounts for a majority of revenues. For the 2014-15 academic year, total undergraduate tuition and fees was raised to $57,232, according to the URC report.

“Our budget deficit in some ways involves moral questions about what we think the University’s responsiblities are for financial aid,” said Kevin McLaughlin, dean of the faculty.

McLaughlin cited the University’s current inability to provide loan-free financial aid to students with expected family contributions over $60,000.

Colvin said she hopes to announce a Deficit Reduction Committee early next week. The committee’s goal will be to identify “how we can change some of the cultural ways we deal with the budget” and combine organizations with similar functions to increase efficiency, she said.

“It’s not abnormal to run a deficit when you have an almost $1 billion budget,” Colvin said, adding that “the challenge is that we’ve been consistently overspending. Our reserves are becoming depleted.”

In three to five years, the University will run out of reserve funds,

2013, but only overspent its budget by $5.5 million. In fiscal year 2014 $4.4 million but seeing one of $8.7 million.

ACTUAL

» DEFICIT, from page 1

Education and General

Public Health

Division of Biology and Medicine

Auxiliaries

2013

ACTUAL | PREDICTED

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

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$5.5 million

2014

4.4 8.7 2

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Source: Department of Finance and Administration AVERY CRITS-CHRISTOPH / HERALD

Colvin said. “If that happens, it’s not a tragedy,” she said. “We will probably have a couple of options.”

Running out of reserve funds means that administrators “would have to take drastic and specific efforts that would not feel consistent with the plan of growth we’re setting forward for the campaign,” Colvin said.

In her August email sent to faculty and staff, Paxson discussed progress made in implementing the strategic plan, Building on Distinction, and efforts to correct the “short-term structural deficit.”

“In the coming months, we will develop a sustainable financial plan that eliminates the deficit while supporting our highest priorities,” Paxson

wrote.

In the early 2000s, the Corporation gave then-President Ruth Simmons permission to run small deficits, said Gregory Chatzinoff ’15, a representative from the URC. “Before that period, they rarely had deficits.

Often they had a surplus,” he said, adding that universities in general face a “tough time” for finances.

4 science & research

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

Tax receipts show Egyptians kept traditions under Roman rule Postdoctoral research fellow Andreas Winkler examines ancient papyri at Tuesday talk

By EMILY BONEY CONTRIBUTING WRITER

“Tax receipts are boring,” said postdoctoral research fellow Andreas Winkler.

“Historians usually don’t make much use of them.”

But at a research colloquium Tuesday in the Department of Egyptology and Ancient Western Asian Studies, Winkler explained how his analysis of ancient tax receipts dispells previously held beliefs about the economic and religious lives of Egyptians under Roman rule in the first and second centuries.

About 25 students and faculty members attended his talk.

Winkler, a native of Sweden who received his doctorate in Egyptology at the University of California at Berkeley, said he focused his research on Tebtunis, an ancient city in the southwest corner of the Fayum Basin. The city is home to the temple of the crocodile god Soknebtunis or Sobek, lord of Tebtunis.

“The temple library was one of the best preserved in ancient Egypt,” Winkler said, adding that it contained all kinds of papyri, including the receipts he analyzed.

The receipts showed that ancient Egyptians paid state taxes to the Romans, as was previously thought. But the documents also revealed that Egyptians were paying a second tax to the priests of the city.

Winkler’s slides showed images of numerous papyri containing property transfer information. They included the amount of money that went to both the Roman government and the city priests.

It was widely thought that under Roman rule, ancient Egyptian taxes to city priests were obsolete, Winkler said.

But the papyri show that “Egyptians continued to keep priestly traditions under Roman rule,” Winkler said.

The ancient receipts also suggest that priests were paid for their service in parcels of land. A high priest, or Lesonis, who acted as a sort of economic bookkeeper for a council of higher priests, distributed the parcels.

Winkler said his research is evidence for “greater continuity between the Ptolemic period and Roman period” of Egypt than was previously thought.

Pinar Durgun GS, a doctoral student in archaeology, said she attended the colloquium to gain a greater understanding of the work of other departments. Durgun said she tries to attend as many Tuesday presentations as possible, as they help her see the possible directions she could take her own research in the future.

ORLANDO LUIS PARDO LAZO / HERALD

Postdoctoral research fellow Andreas Winkler presents his study of ancient tax receipts Tuesday. His work suggests that Egyptians under Roman rule continued to pay local taxes to priests.

www.browndailyherald.com

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

science & research 5

COURTESY OF MIRANDA NORLIN

Pre-vet and pre-dental students complain that events such as career fairs and information sessions are geared toward pre-med students, who outnumber other pre-health students.

» MEDICINE, from page 1 advising isn’t always geared toward dental school. It’s mostly geared toward medical school.”

A fraction of the larger faction During any given year, between 600 and 800 current and recently-graduated Brown students pursue tracks leading to health careers, Director of Pre-Professional Advising and Assistant Dean of the College George Vassilev said. Roughly 150 seniors and alums apply to medical schools each year, a number the University monitors very closely, Vassilev added. Every year, a much smaller, less closely-tracked faction of students pursue other health careers. Dental schools and veterinary schools consistently attract a large part of this group.

Health Careers Advising keeps tabs on students who apply to health schools other than medical schools ­— such as dental schools, vet schools, nurse practitioner schools, podiatry programs and more — but most data is anecdotal at best, Vassilev said. Normally between six and 10 students apply to dental schools every year, and one to three students submit applications to veterinary schools, Vassilev said.

Close to 70 percent of students submit applications to health schools after they have graduated, Vassilev added, which makes tracking the total number of applicants difficult. “We’re here for students and alumni over the span of many years,” he said.

Overworked and underrepresented Compared to the resources allocated to pre-med students, undergrads pursuing careers in veterinary and dental medicine said the University does not provide them with enough structured advising and support.

When Siu arrived at Brown, she was already considering being pre-vet, but she spent her first semester exploring other options. By the time she started the pre-vet track her second semester, she was already behind, she said.

“Every semester, I found out something new that I wasn’t doing that I had to be doing,” she said, adding that she did not have the advising she needed to help her plan her course load effectively.

“I definitely found that I was

struggling a lot these four years just trying to figure out what I needed to do,” she said. “I just wanted someone to talk to about that and to tell me ‘this is what you need to do; go do it.’”

The requirements for vet schools differ — sometimes significantly — between the individual programs, Siu said, adding that having someone very familiar with both the array of vet school requirements and Brown’s curriculum would have made the process much easier.

Monica Pechanec ’15 knew she wanted to be a vet coming in to Brown, but said the process of figuring out coursework and seeking hands-on experience has been an isolating one. Opportunities to shadow vets are not abundant in Providence, Pechanec said, adding that she does not attend CareerLab events or resource fairs geared towards health careers because they are “useless” for students considering tracks other than med school.

The number of animal-related classes and upper-level nutrition and anatomy classes offered are minimal, and many do not count towards veterinary prerequisites, Pechanec added.

“I got through without any problems, but I’m definitely still always frustrated,” she said.

A music concentrator working to simultaneously complete her pre-dental requirements, Samantha SaVaun ’17 is struggling to find an advisor who understands balancing two very different academic pursuits. “I think it’s difficult.

I’ve been trying to find an adviser who doesn’t favor either side of my education,” she said. SaVaun said no one has been able to suggest the best way to structure her schedule each year, for example “how to balance the orgo of music with the orgo of orgo.”

For students navigating pre-health tracks, peers often serve as the greatest resources.

Catherine Dang ’15, president of the current Brown Pre-Dental Society, said while she understands Brown’s focus on pre-med students because of their sheer number, the lack of resources available to those interested in other health careers can be discouraging. “I am kind of more sympathetic about it because the majority of people are pre-med,” she said. “So we’re doing the best we can with the resources we have.”

But it “took years to develop the

(Pre-Dental Society), years of passing down information on what dental resources are available.”

Currently, no pre-vet society exists at Brown. Miranda Norlin ’17 said she wished she had other pre-vet students to go through the process with her. “It would be nice just to be able to talk to other people about what they’re doing,” she said.

‘Instruments and info sessions’ Though there are no official advisers specifically for the veterinary or dental tracks, pre-vet students often seek advice from Director of Animal Care James Harper. Harper said students’ innovative

takes on how to approach the pre-vet track have impressed him over the years and exemplify how “Brown students do things so many unique ways.”

But his advice is not always pretty.

“For all the effort that you’re going to put into going through vet school, you’ve got to like it because you’re not going to make the same amount of money,” Harper said, comparing vets to doctors.

These lower income rates also make paying off loans more difficult, Harper said. “That affects what kind of car you have, what kind of house you have. I answer all the academic questions, but then I try to make them aware of the (field) they’re going to work in.”

But despite student complaints and potential disparities, Vassilev said he rarely encounters much discontent with the advising available for students pursuing careers outside of the med school track.

“It’s incumbent upon students to come and find us, and our website, events and programs,” Vassilev said. “All of these instruments and info sessions and programs and events are intended to provide robust support to students and alumni.”

He added that students considering any sort of health profession are encouraged to come in for advising.

“I welcome any suggestions about ways in which students might have other ways to be informed about these,” he said.

COURTESY OF MONICA PECHANEC

Monica Pechanec ’15 said she has gotten through her pre-vet requirements, but added that she has been “always frustrated” with how difficult class scheduling and portfolio building are.

6 metro

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

» DEBATE, from page 1 The debate centered on the city’s financial future, public safety and waterfront development, but White opened the floor by addressing the elephant in the room — Cianci’s criminal record and unexpected entry into the race in June. In a contest where the former Providence mayor’s

I’ve made mistakes in my life. I’m sorry for them. I’m humbled by them.”

Buddy Cianci

INDEPENDENT MAYORAL CANDIDATE record is front-and-center, “why are more than one in three voters supporting Cianci?” White asked.

A Sept. 23 poll released by WPRI showed Cianci with a 6 point lead over his nearest rival — the former mayor captured 38 percent of votes, while Elorza came in at 32 percent and Harrop at 6 percent. But the poll also found that 21 percent of city voters are undecided in the contest.

“I’ve made mistakes in my life.

I’m sorry for them. I’m humbled by them,” Cianci said. He acknowledged his criminal record but stressed his experience and legacy as mayor, citing the revitalization of the downtown area, the creation of Waterfire and the construction of Providence Place Mall as positive developments under his leadership.

ORLANDO LUIS PARDO LAZO / HERALD

Democratic mayoral candidate Jorge Elorza highlighted the criminal record of Independent Vincent “Buddy” CIanci in a debate Tuesday. Elorza said he plans to handle financial difficulties through increased exports and an expanded tax base.

“I’m not apologizing for my last administration,” Cianci added.

But Elorza and Harrop said they were not convinced that Cianci would serve a term free from ethical missteps. “Let’s leave behind all the corruption,” Elorza said.

Cianci has a “half-century history of recurrent, thuggish criminal behavior,” Harrop said. Cianci also failed to fully fund the pension

system in six of his last seven years as mayor in the 1990s, putting a “yoke around the city’s neck and driving us down,” Harrop added.

Elorza joined in attacking the Independent candidate, claiming that the decisions Cianci made as mayor led to an unsustainable rise in cost-of-living adjustments for city pensions, an issue that contributed to the Providence budget crisis in

recent years.

But Cianci said he took the Providence Retirement Board to court during his term and came up with a plan to fully fund the city pension system, noting that Providence contributed 80 percent of its annual required contributions in 2002.

When Nesi asked if he would have the city file for bankruptcy if elected mayor, Harrop responded that he

would put the city in receivership and possibly file for bankruptcy as a next step. Such an approach is necessary because “we are essentially insolvent,” he said.

But Elorza and Cianci both said they would not file for bankruptcy if elected mayor.

Instead, Elorza said he would move forward with an “aggressive » See DEBATE, page 7

metro 7

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

COURTESY OF HARROP.ORG

Daniel Harrop ‘76 MD ’79, Republican candidate for mayor, stated Tuesday that he would be willing to declare bankruptcy for Providence.

» DEBATE, from page 6 job creation program,” a return of heavy industry to the Providence waterfront and a broadening of the tax base to ease the city’s financial woes.

Harrop “wants us to look like Detroit,” Cianci said, referring to Harrop’s willingness to declare bankruptcy.

Providence should take advantage of having one of only two deep-water ports in New England to double

exports over the next five years and bring back more heavy industry to the area, creating 1,500 “workingclass” jobs, Elorza said.

“He speaks very eloquently, but he doesn’t say anything,” Cianci said of Elorza, questioning Providence’s exporting capacities.

Instead of using the entire area as a working zone, the waterfront should be utilized as a mixed-use area with a working zone, businesses and accessible recreation areas,

Cianci said. the streets and to increase commuResponding to a question from nity-based policing to ensure police Fitzpatrick on how he would reduce officers stayed in touch with their crime in Providence, Elorza said he neighborhoods. would raise the number of police ofHarrop said he would also like ficers in the city to 490 and increase to add more officers to the city’s poincentives for police officers to live lice force but acknowledged that he in Providence and get to know their would stabilize the city’s budget first communities. by putting it in receivership, slowing Elorza said he down the process would also aim for of hiring new of“more diversity ficers. within the police All three can“Let’s leave behind all forc e ,” a d d i ng didates agreed the corruption.” that the city needs that they would more officers who work to change Jorge Elorza are women and zoning laws to reDEMOCRATIC MAYORAL CANDIDATE racial minorities. move nightclubs Providence needs from the Federal the “police force to Hill neighborrepresent the community,” he added. hood.

Fitzpatrick noted that Providence Cianci and Harrop both said they has averaged 14 homicides per year oppose the Taveras administration’s during the Taveras administration, plan to construct a streetcar route versus 25 per year during the Cianci in Providence, calling the plan imadministration, asking Cianci how he practical and wasteful, while Elorza plans to keep the city safe if elected. said he supports the streetcar plan.

Cianci said it is difficult to comThe debate at RIC was the first to pare the two time periods, but he be televised for the general election, would work to put more officers on which will be held Nov. 4.

8 university news CEO shares EMC’s ‘Inside Perspective’ Lecture series explores advances in information technology, highlights importance of big data

By CLARISSA CLEMM CONTRIBUTING WRITER

CEOs of information technology companies from around the country are set to descend on campus as part of a new lecture series hosted by Computing and Information Services entitled “Leadership in Technology.” Chairman and CEO of EMC Corporation Joseph Tucci kicked off the series Thursday, and two more lectures will likely be held this semester, said Ravi Pendse, vice president and chief information officer for CIS. CIS hopes the industry forerunners who speak in the series will “engage us in a dialogue” and share their “visions of the future,” Pendse said.

Expected future speakers include a senior leader from Cisco and representatives from Qualcomm, General

Electric and Ubiquiti, he added.

Around 150 students, faculty members and community members attended Tucci’s event Thursday, which involved a 45-minute lecture followed by a question-and-answer session. The event was live-streamed to the rest of the campus community on the University’s website.

In his talk, which was entitled “Cloud Meets Big Data: An Insider’s Look at the Information Technology Industry,” Tucci focused on the emergence of big data, the importance of the cloud — Internet-based computing that allows storage and access of data — and other developments in the technological world.

“I challenge you to think of any area, anything in life, where you can get significant productivity gains and significant innovation without using information technology,” Tucci said.

Pendse said he hopes the speakers are able to provide “great opportunities for students” such as internship offers.

Mason DiMarco ’16, who attended

Tucci’s talk, may have landed himself such an offer. After asking a question during the event, DiMarco spoke with Tucci, got his business card and emailed him about the possibility of an internship at EMC, he said.

“It seemed that (Tucci) was interested in finding something for me that would align with something like artificial intelligence,” DiMarco said.

“I felt pretty good that I was able to find something that would align with my interests just by talking to someone in the professional world.”

Kassie Wang ’17 called Tucci’s lecture an “eye-opening experience,” noting that “It was really interesting to see how much data increased since you don’t really realize this until someone points it out to you.”

“There really aren’t a lot of opportunities to hear the heads of companies and other distinguished people speak, and we tend to live in a bubble at Brown where we see students and professors and not much else,” said Isaac Davis ’18. “I think this breaks that (bubble) a little bit.”

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

Science & Research Roundup

BY SARAH PERELMAN, SCIENCE & RESEARCH EDITOR

Chronic pain medication can cause doctor-patient conflict As the American health care system faces public scrutiny for alleged over-prescription of opioids and other drugs for chronic pain, a recent study conducted by University researchers examined the impact of chronic opioid use on patients and their relationships with their physicians.

Chronic pain — which the researchers defined as pain lasting for three months or longer — costs the United States as much as $635 billion annually “in medical treatment and lost productivity,” the authors wrote in the study.

While patients describe pain in general physiological terms, doctors see pain as the result of biological, social and psychological factors. Doctors expressed frustration at the “subjective” explanations that made it hard to separate real pain from less legitimate complaints.

Many of the 21 patients interviewed in the study said they felt reliant on their doctors to prescribe medication that curbs physical pain, and they feel they have a right to take opioids or other pain killers. But doctors said pain medications could lead to addiction and do not cure health problems. They recounted difficulties in canceling opioid prescriptions, as the patients would often resist.

The study shows the importance of balanced relationships between patients and physicians, and examines the ways in which chronic opioid use can strain them.

The study, conducted by Jeffrey Borkan, professor and chair of family medicine at the Alpert Medical School, and Angela Esquibel GS, was published online this week in the journal Pain.

Chemical research sheds light on drugresistant bacteria Though University researchers discovered a new class of molecules called ADEPs that can destroy many drug-resistant bacteria earlier this year, the molecules were less effective in destroying the species of bacteria that causes tuberculosis. New information about the structure of essential proteins in tuberculosiscausing bacteria has provided insights into why these molecules have not been as potent.

Drug-resistant bacteria are more prevalent than ever and pose a health risk because traditional antibiotics are not toxic to these species and fail to cure infections. A team of University researchers, led by Associate Professor of Chemistry Jason Sello, previously showed that ADEPs can kill bacteria that cause pneumonia, food poisoning and respiratory problems.

ADEPs attack bacteria by targeting a bacterial protein that normally disposes of cellular waste. The ADEPs induce this protein to indiscriminately degrade other proteins, including those essential for the bacteria to live, The Herald previously reported.

The new research, published in the journal Proceedings of the Natural Academy of Sciences, showed that half of the “garbage disposal” protein in tuberculosis-causing bacteria has a different structure than it does in other bacterial species. Only half of the ADEP-binding domains are present, which could be why the molecule is less effective against the species.

“We have already generated many new ideas about how the ADEP structure can be rationally modified to improve … binding and thus killing of M. tuberculosis,” Sello said in a University press release.

“We are very optimistic that some of our designs could ultimately be a new class of drugs for the treatment of tuberculosis.”

Professor recognized for atmospheric research The American Meteorological Society included Director of the University’s Institute for the Study of Environment and Society Amanda Lynch in the ranks of their fellows this year, recognizing her work in atmospheric and planetary research, according to a University press release.

“It is an honor indeed to be recognized by my fellow atmospheric and oceanic scientists in the American Meteorological Society,” Lynch said in the release. Less than 1 percent of AMS members reach the level of fellow, according to the release.

Lynch, who has published more than 100 peer-reviewed journal articles, is interested in climate change and meteorology in polar regions, according to her biography page on the University’s website.

In addition to writing papers and book chapters, she serves as chief editor of the journal Weather, Climate and Society.

The AMS will formally recognize Lynch’s appointment at its annual meeting in January.

today 9

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

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SATELLITE DINING JOSIAH’S Steamed Dumplings with Dipping Sauces BLUE ROOM Mediterranean Pockets ANDREWS COMMONS Po-Boy Sandwiches

DINING HALLS SHARPE REFECTORY LUNCH

DINNER

Grilled Vegetable Calzone, TriColored Pasta Salad, GingeredTurkey Salad, Fried Scallop Roll LUNCH

Pasta E Fagioli, Zesty Lemon Chicken Thighs, Pork Chops in a Tarragon Mustard Sauce

VERNEY-WOOLLEY

Sloppy Joes, Falafel, Vegan Spanish Lentils, Make Your Own Mac and Cheese Bar

DINNER

Grilled Chicken Cilantro, Mexican Cornbread Casserole, Herb Rice, Corn Mexicane

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crossword ZEIN KHLEIF / HERALD

Seth Magaziner ’06, the Democratic Party’s nominee for Rhode Island General Treasurer and the former president of the Brown Democrats, stopped by the Brown Democrats’ meeting Tuesday to discussion his agenda.

comic Mind Grapes | Willa Tracy ’17

calendar TODAY

TOMORROW

3 P.M. PEOPLE OF COLOR SUPPORT GROUP

12P.M. MASTER SEMINAR WITH RAEF ZREIK

For the first time, Counseling and Psychological Services will host a support group for students of color. All participants are welcome to share personal thoughts and emotions in this environment. J. Walter Wilson, 5th Floor

The seminar, entitled “The Dynamics of Israel Palestine” will investigate the conflict and the effects of setttlements in the region. The talk will be followed by a discussion.

Location TBD

7 P.M. PUBLIC SCREENING OF ‘THE JUDGE’

Registration is required for this free film screening, featuring critically acclaimed actors Robert Downey Jr. and Robert Duvall. Granoff Center, Martinos Auditorium

7:30 P.M. JAZZ FUSION CONCERT

Mehmet Ali Sanlikol is a 12-piece jazz band with Turkish music-influenced compositions. The group, whose album is on the Grammy ballot, will be featured as part of this series. RISD Auditorium

8 P.M. NUDITY IN THE UPSPACE: ‘BODIES IN CONTEXT’ MINI-LECTURE SERIES

No nudity is necessary for these three lectures exploring different perspectives on the body, which will be followed by a short conversation with audience members. TF Green, Upspace

9 P.M. ‘DO THE RIGHT THING’

Brown University Film Forum will host a screening of this 1989 American comedy-drama written and directed

by Spike Lee. Professor of English Deak Nabers will lead a discussion following the film. Smith-Buonanno 106

10 commentary

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

EDITORIAL

A model to be replicated Donations to the University are critical in ensuring continuity in both the success and progressive development of the institution. The Sidney E. Frank Endowed Scholarship fund — created through a $100 million gift given 10 years ago by Sidney Frank ’42 — serves as an unparalleled paradigm for giving, as it effectively fuses financial support with an embedded sense of community. It was Frank’s donation that made Brown admission need-blind for domestic applicants, independent of a student’s financial status. With the rising cost of tuition, housing and associated academic materials, donations to the University, particularly with respect to financial aid, are necessary to maintain a heightened level of accessibility for students of varied financial backgrounds. We commend the long-standing work of the Sidney E. Frank Scholarship Fund in facilitating the education of approximately 130 undergraduate scholars, yet we hope that the program can be bolstered and complemented by broader conversations of both ethnic and socioeconomic diversity on campus.

The $100 million donation bequeathed by Frank in 2004 represented a landmark moment in the development of Brown’s underlying scholarship capacity. As reported in The Herald (“Ten years in, Sidney Frank legacy endures in scholarship,” Sept. 30), the dedicated fund “provides scholarships to students from low-income families, allowing them to graduate without student loan debt” — ultimately crafting a heightened degree of accessibility for those in need of additional financial aid. In addition to providing a tight-knit community and network for these Sidney Frank Scholars, the fund directly addresses the burgeoning question of Brown’s limited aid capacity and allows for students to navigate their college experience with lessened pressure from underlying financial concerns. The fund is unique in its framework and ultimately embodies an effective mode of giving, one that should be mirrored in the coming years.

Despite its overwhelming efficacy, the Sidney E. Frank Scholarship Fund, in its operational form, is in no way a perfect system. According to a 2012 Herald poll, 42 percent of students said they did not get enough financial aid from Brown. Given the University’s relatively limited financial resources — Brown still has the smallest endowment of the Ivy League schools — a robust financial aid pool is critical in attracting and retaining the most qualified applicants. Moreover, the program would do well to expand in order to advise students, many of whom are in their families’ first generation to attend college, on postgraduate opportunities, particularly regarding careers. Increased discussion about class and socioeconomic status, still largely absent on campus, could shine more light on the importance of financial aid.

Donating to financial aid and scholarship funds is perhaps not as exciting as contributing expensive libraries and athletic centers, but alums and the University should continue to recognize how Frank’s contribution has a profound effect on the campus for the students it brings in.

Editorials are written by The Herald’s editorial page board: Natasha Bluth ’15, Alexander Kaplan ’15 and James Rattner ’15. Send comments to editorials@browndailyherald.com.

I VA N A L C A N TA R A

Q U O T E O F T H E D AY

“We tend to live in a bubble at Brown where we see students and professors and not much else.”

— Isaac Davis ’18

See emc on page 8.

CORRECTION A column in Friday’s Herald, (“Katzevich ’16: The Islamic state conceived by American hubris,” Sept. 19) misstated the change in Iraq’s per-capita GDP during the Gulf War. The country’s per-capita GDP fell to about a fifth of pre-war size, not an eighth. The Herald regrets the error.

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

The gatekeepers of health ANDREW FELDMAN opinions columnist

Certain parts of life are often taken for granted. People do not think about their ability to breathe unless they are having difficulty doing so. One doesn’t consider the difficulty of walking up a flight of steps until he or she sprains an ankle and it hurts too much to support any weight. It is difficult to fully appreciate a completely healthy body. Thus, when a person suffers an illness or injury, he or she doesn’t really know how to treat it. Especially for some of the more rare injuries, such as managing to get a finger caught in a door at a job interview like I did, new patients often don’t know where to seek medical treatment — or if it is even necessary. Health Services, with its gatekeeper model derived from the Affordable Care Act, exemplifies aspects of the coordination that already exists in some current treatment plans. But it also showcases the need to further streamline the medical treatment process.

Health Services offers a wide variety of services ranging from emergency care and walk-in appointments to immunizations and pharmacy services. These services constitute the brunt of medical treatment one can find in a primary care facility or emergency room. Health Services uses these resources in accordance with principles underlying the ACA: The ACA aims to make health care more accessible to every citizen, decrease the cost of the health care system and improve overall

quality of patient care.

Health Services unquestionably meets the standard of accessibility. Its location in Andrews Hall allows students to receive medical care just a short walk away from the Sharpe Refectory, so students in need of medical assistance can simply stop on the way to lunch. If an individual has a more pressing medical condition, he or she can often be seen the same day. One does not have to take a bus off campus to one of the several hospitals in the area for an x-ray either — Health Services has a machine adjacent to its

elsewhere if necessary, instead of deciding for themselves whether to seek an orthopedist, the emergency room or just ice for an injury. How else is one supposed to know where to seek treatment without prior experience? A gatekeeper streamlines the process by eliminating wasteful visits, which makes physicians more accessible to those in need while limiting the frequency with which insurers unnecessarily pay providers.

A gatekeeper model aims in part to coordinate the medical system. As the theory goes, the system would be

insurer and sending over the receipt after the procedure without a guarantee it is covered under the plan.

Neither option follows the guidelines for an effective gatekeeper model. While Health Services might save money by refusing to accept insurance because it does not expend resources or time contacting insurers, it adds undue stress on the patient. Students also pay Health Services for a reason.

Even if students opt out of the university health coverage to use private insurance instead, there was still a $356 fee added to the tuition bill for this se-

Not only does discontinuity in treatment place a burden on the student, but it can also harm communications, which can lead to substandard care. waiting room. While this ease of accessibility is uncommon for many student patients trying to schedule an appointment, it is exactly the patient access the ACA intended.

Health Services also decreases the cost of overall health care system by pursuing the ACA’s emphasis on prophylactic measures. The facility offers education about certain diseases and free vaccinations against diseases like influenza, tetanus and human papillomavirus that are more expensive to manage than the initial cost of the vaccine.

Health Services’ gatekeeper model increases efficiency, allowing improved access and affordability for the health care system. Students can simply go to Health Services and allow a nurse practitioner to direct them to a specialist

more efficient if a single entity — the gatekeeper — managed an individual’s affairs, instead of having each medical provider maintain individual records.

But this is one area in which I found Health Services to be extremely lacking.

Without a system yet in place to properly coordinate medical treatment with insurance providers, Health Services’ current structure remains insufficient.

I sought treatment for a potentially injured finger and was recommended an X-ray. But although I have my own private health insurance plan that has covered X-rays in the past, Health Services does not accept any insurance — University or private — to cover X-rays. Instead, if patients want to be reimbursed for the services, they have to either contact their insurance provider prior to the procedure or risk contacting the

mester.

Most students have never called their insurer before and know little about their coverage. Unless a student has a medical condition that requires frequent visits, it’s just not something they need to know. Why should the person who doesn’t fully understand what is happening and has never been involved with a similar situation be responsible for doing that research? Not only does discontinuity in treatment place a burden on the student, but it can also harm communication, which may lead to substandard care.

The patient may also be in no physical or psychological condition to do the legwork. When I injured my finger, my sole concern was how crooked my finger looked, not the benefits and detriments of paying out-of-pocket for

medical treatment. All this process did was slow down the actual treatment, which helps no one.

Requiring a student to coordinate with two distinct parties who are not in communication with each other places an obstacle in front of the gatekeeper model. The idea of the gatekeeper model is to keep the gate open and then have the gatekeeper direct the patients down the correct path. In this current system, patients are unreasonably expected to have a map of these pathways and be responsible for their insurance plans themselves. Health Services needs to work towards coordinating this care for its students. It should expand its role to work directly with both patients and insurers, even if that means expanding its staff to accommodate the additional workload.

In the grand scheme of things, my finger swelling up for an extra hour isn’t the worst thing in the world, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t worse consequences for other patients if their care is just as uncoordinated. Coordination of care and the gatekeeper model are essential for sustainable health care services in America. But until these two entities truly become the same, medical treatment will continue to lack total efficiency and patients will continue to suffer because of it.

It took Andrew much longer than normal to write this article with only nine functioning fingers so it may take him a while to respond to emails sent to Andrew_feldman@brown.edu or tweets to @Amfeldz.

Two cheers for academic freedom at Brown KEN MILLER guest columnist

Brown is talking about Ray Kelly again, but let’s be honest. The conversation isn’t about Kelly. It’s about Brown and academic freedom. Those last two words refer to many things, but at Brown, they include the right of any group, faculty or student, to invite a speaker of its choice to campus.

That right was trampled on last year, when former New York City Police Commissioner Ray Kelly was shouted down by a small but determined group of students and community members. Unfortunately, some saw Kelly’s silencing as a victory.

One of those was Jenny Li ’14, who proudly said the Taubman Center for Public Policy and American Institutions “didn’t respond to our demand to cancel the lecture, so today we canceled it for them.” In statements after the disruption, Li and her friends informed the University community that they would now determine who would and would not be allowed to speak at Brown, frivolous notions of academic freedom notwithstanding.

But Li’s elation at running Kelly off campus was not shared by others. One of them captured the dismay, I would suggest, of the vast majority of students when he told a reporter, “Personally, I applied to Brown thinking it was a forum for good discussion where everyone’s voices would be heard and where there wouldn’t be any silencing.

But what I saw today is that a lot of people silenced Ray Kelly before he could even speak.”

Exactly right. President Christina Paxson declared it “a sad day for the Brown community,” and so it was. Protest, she noted, “has a long and proud history at Brown.” But this wasn’t pro-

test. This was mob action designed to shut Kelly up and was a direct violation of Brown’s Code of Conduct, which states that “Halting a lecture, a debate or any public forum is an unacceptable form of protest.” Brown’s student body agreed. A poll published a week after the incident in The Herald (“Poll shows mixed opinions on Ray Kelly, coal divestment,” Nov. 6, 2013) showed that students disapproved of the actions of those who shut down the lecture by a margin of more than five to one.

Last week, Paxson responded to the reports of a committee charged to look into the Kelly affair.

In a letter to the University community, Paxson offered a ringing endorsement of academic freedom and of the need for a campus open to even the most challenging and painful points of view.

She cited the words of former President Ruth Simmons, who once took actions to ensure that Brown “permit a speaker whose every assertion was dangerous and deeply offensive to me (Simmons) on a personal level.” Why would Simmons have wanted Brown to provide a forum even for someone who “maintained that blacks were better off having been enslaved?” Because, as she so eloquently explained, to have canceled that lecture “would have been to choose personal comfort over a freedom whose value is so great to my own freedoms that hearing his unwelcome message could hardly be assessed as too great a cost.”

Right again. One hearty cheer for Simmons’ and Paxson’s defense of academic freedom!

Next, Paxson rejected the committee’s suggestion that Brown needs a mechanism to inject opposing points of view when a speaker is regarded as controversial. She did not echo the committee’s inflammatory wording that “we” must “challenge expression with which we profoundly disagree and which may be harmful to members of

our community.” Rather, she wrote, “The best response to controversial speech is more, and better, speech.” Bravo again! The committee’s insidious notion that speech can be equated with “harm” and therefore must be regulated was perhaps the most dangerous aspect of its report, and it was gratifying to see that Paxson did not accept it. One more hearty cheer for Brown’s president.

Why not three cheers? Because I worry about next time. The day after Kelly was shouted down, Margaret Klawunn, vice president for campus life and student services, told a Herald reporter that “the University does not plan to pursue disciplinary action against the students who disrupted the lecture,” (“Ray Kelly lecture canceled amidst student, community protest,” Oct. 30, 2013) despite the fact that their actions were a clear violation of University rules. Fine words in defense of academic freedom mean little if the University is not willing to back them up, and Klawunn made it clear there would be no consequences for those who “canceled” an invited lecture.

In apparent contradiction to Klawunn’s hapless response last year, Paxson’s most recent letter said the University will “sanction students found responsible for violations,” and that Brown “followed this process after the Kelly incident.” Really? If that is true, then what was the process, and why is it being hidden from the University community?

This was a public event, and those who appointed themselves as censors to shut down the lecture acted publicly beforehand and afterwards.

Why, then, should the “sanctioning” of any students be carried out in secret? In one of Brown’s most famous protests, 13 students briefly interrupted a 1981 lecture by the then-director of the Central Intelligence Agency by standing to recite Lewis Carroll’s poem “Jabberwocky.” Brown then

publicly found all 13 “guilty of infringement on the rights of others to participate in a University function.” That finding came exactly 22 days after the incident, making it clear that Brown would support free and open discourse on campus, and that disciplinary proceedings would swiftly follow any attempt to stifle or silence free speech.

Not so with the Kelly incident. Instead of a swift affirmation of academic freedom, we had the appointment of a committee, a full year of delay and now the announcement that an unspecified process took place behind closed doors. Will that serve to deter future disruptions when a determined group decides to “cancel” another lecture? I wonder.

The real issue is determining what kind of university we want. Those who silenced Kelly say they did so for the best of reasons — ­ to ensure that voices of the oppressed and disadvantaged would be heard loud and clear against the tyranny of authority that Kelly represented. But the reality, as Simmons pointed out, is that their own freedom to bring those voices to the University is inextricably bound to the freedom of everyone else to do likewise. Once they have asserted a right to “cancel” the Taubman Center’s lecture, others may then assert a right to cancel the very voices they support so fervently. A truly open campus can exist only when we do not suppress the voices with which we disagree, however painful or disturbing we may find their messages.

Sadly, this is a lesson that has clearly been lost on those who silenced Kelly. But I hope that it has not been lost on the Brown community as a whole. In the years ahead, we’ll see.

Ken Miller ’70 P’02 is a professor of biology.

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014

THE

BROWN DAILY HERALD arts & culture IN CONVERSATION

Wole Soyinka: ‘I have not merely reflected but anticipated’

Nobel laureate examines rise of terrorist organization Boko Haram in war-torn Nigeria

By EMMAJEAN HOLLEY

and stability.

ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR

Akinwande Oluwole “Wole” Soyinka — Nigerian playwright, professor and cultural critic — has been as prolific politically as he has been creatively. In 1986, the Swedish Academy awarded him the Nobel Prize in Literature for his work, which “in a wide cultural perspective and with poetic overtones fashions the drama of existence,” according to a Nobel Media press release. He was the first African to receive this accolade.

In his lecture Monday, entitled “Hatched From the Egg of Impunity: A Fowl Called Boko Haram,” Soyinka discussed the rise of Boko Haram, a terrorist organization whose acts of violence have ravaged Nigeria in recent years. He recently spoke with The Herald about the distinctions between progress and tradition, change

Herald: Looking back on the body of work you’ve produced over the decades, to what extent would you say your writing has evolved to reflect the changing political landscape you witnessed in Nigeria?

Soyinka: Not much. Fortunately, I have not merely reflected but anticipated. The “increasing acerbity” — that’s a quote from someone, and probably justified — observable in such writings is perhaps a response to the worsening of one’s political environment. The language with which one deals with Boko Haram cannot but be vastly different from that of, shall we say, electoral manipulation.

In many of your plays, you’ve used satire as a means to air your grievances

against the government and society. Is there a reason you attacked these issues with that particular literary weapon?

I have no grievances against any government. The government betrays the governed, and I merely respond as appropriate. Satire is suitable for some acts of misgovernance. Other times, the pen of satire gets blunted and other forms from the polemical to the excommunicating.

Indeed, one longs for those comparative misdemeanors for which satire is a relief.

Elements of mythology — most notably Greek and Yoruba — also appear in your work. I was wondering if you could tell me about the dialogue you perceive between these traditions and the contemporary problems of progress you write about.

Greek mythology and the Yoruba descended from some ancient but profound contact, I often suggest. The affinities are

startling. But then, all mythologies sprang from one impulse: the human need for explication of the mysterious in palpable terms. Contemplation of any aspect of the universe is the only provocation required to trigger a new mythology. If I deploy mythology in relation to contemporary problems of progress, it is only because progress itself is embedded in archetypes, and those provide you a preset template by which even novelty can be captured.

There have been times when your political agenda has placed you in great personal peril. You’ve spent time in solitary confinement and in exile. You’ve been sentenced to death in absentia. How did you respond to this punitive backlash?

You’ve heard the expression, I’m sure, that goes: “If you sentence me in absentia, then execute me in absentia.” My responsibility is then to oblige by keeping in absentia. My writing, however, was never placed on trial or sentenced to death, so

that continues with normal existence. No changes I’m aware of.

It could be argued that you and the late Chinua Achebe, who was a professor of Africana studies here at Brown, have been two of Nigeria’s most dominant literary figures. Recent years have also seen the rise of younger writers like Chimimanda Ngozi Adichie, Ben Okri and Uwen Akpam. In what ways do you see these emerging voices as a continuation of — or departure from — your conception of Nigerian literary tradition?

Continuation of, departure from, even critique of the differences are not really generational. Society evolves. New themes are provoked into being. Experimentations take different forms, but most of the time it has nothing to do with generational differences. Regarding Nigerian literary tradition — that remains a contentious theme.