Monday, December 2, 2019

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD MONDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2019

VOLUME CLIV, ISSUE 57

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SPORTS

Men’s hockey slighted by Friars 4-2 in Mayor’s Cup contest Dodd ’20, Quisenberry ’23 score their first season goals against crosstown foes

BY ALEXANDRA RUSSELL SPORTS EDITOR Following a close loss to Bentley University on the road Tuesday, the men’s hockey team continued its non-conference slate with a visit to No. 13 Providence College this weekend.

Though Trey Dodd ’20 gave the Bears an early lead in the first period, the Friars responded with four consecutive goals, including three in the second frame, to secure a 4-2 victory over Bruno.

Cole Quisenberry ’23 notched Brown’s second tally — which marked his first career goal — as the team gained momentum in the third stanza, but Providence (8-4-3, 5-3-2 HEAM) fended off the attack to claim the win and take home the Mayor’s Cup, awarded annually to the winner of the matchup between the two crosstown rivals.

Dodd put the Bears (3-7-0, 3-5-0 ECAC) on the board just under three

UFB releases funding data

Results show board allocated $1.5 million last year to student groups

BY KAYLA GUO SENIOR STAFF WRITER

ed them to,” Quisenberry said. “Our attention to power play and penalty kill is extremely important, especially going forward this year and trying to turn around our recent performances with these better teams and especially in the next stretch.”

The Undergraduate Finance Board published the funding amounts of nearly 200 student groups Monday afternoon, revealing how much each group has received from the Board since the 201415 school year.

Last year, UFB allocated almost $1.5 million to the student groups listed in the release. Only Category III groups are eligible to request funding from the Board that goes beyond a $200 baseline. UFB’s budget comes from the $286

SEE HOCKEY PAGE 2

SEE UFB PAGE 4

COURTESY OF BROWN ATHLETICS

Trey Dodd ’20 scored the first goal of the game against Providence Saturday, giving the Bears an early lead over the Friars. Bruno resumes conference play with visits to Union College and RPI this weekend. minutes into the first period, scoring on a one-timer from the left circle.

After finding a loose puck in the offensive zone, Dodd launched a shot to the glove side of Friars netminder Michael Lackey, which popped off the crossbar and over the goal line.

The teams exchanged blows for the remainder of the period, pressuring

one another with multiple shots on net. Bruno killed off a pair of penalties before Friars forward Patrick Moynihan scored on the power play to equalize the contest in the last two minutes of the stanza.

“We’ve had games where our special teams have won for us and also haven’t performed as well as we need-

METRO

UNIVERSITY NEWS

Dem Women’s Caucus ends party affiliation Group’s change follows new bylaws that restrict fundraising, endorsements

Watson implements new IAPA concentration Introductory courses, advising now available, IAPA seminars to begin next year

BY LIVIA GIMENES STAFF WRITER The Rhode Island Democratic Party Women’s Caucus announced the establishment of a separate allied offshoot unaffiliated with the party called “the Rhode Island Democratic Women’s Caucus” at a press release Nov. 19.

The new group grew out of concerns about new State Committee bylaws, which prohibit the Democratic Party Women’s Caucus from endorsing and fundraising for their own candidates or making statements without approval from the chair of the party. The original women’s caucus has more than 600 members and is the most vocal out of the caucuses in the R.I. Democratic Party, according to State Senator Gayle Goldin, D-Providence, one of the original co-chairs of the caucus. Goldin said that the new bylaws would impact all other Democratic Party-affiliated caucuses, in-

UNIVERSITY NEWS

BY TYLER JACOBSON AND SAMANTHA MOLINA STAFF WRITER AND CONTRIBUTING WRITER

COURTESY OF R.I. DEMOCRATIC WOMEN’S CAUCUS

The offshoot of the R.I. Democratic Party Women’s Caucus was established a week before the bylaws were passed. cluding the LGBTQ+ Caucus and the Veteran’s Caucus.

Chair of the Rhode Island Democratic Party Joseph McNamara, who leads the State Committee, did not respond to The Herald’s questions by press time.

The Rhode Island Democratic Party Women’s Caucus established the new branch separate from the party a week before the official hearing in which the bylaws were passed, as soon as they realized the bylaws were likely to pass, according to Liz Gledhill, chair of both the old

and new caucuses. While the Rhode Island Democratic Party Women’s Caucus still exists, it is effectively replaced by the new caucus, which is taking over its fundraising and other activities.

“If the bylaws were applied immediately, we would be prohibited from functioning the way we always have,” Gledhill said. “We always had a (political action committee), we always endorsed, we always spoke for ourselves — and under the new

SEE CAUCUS PAGE 2

Commentary

Commentary

Sports

Aman ’20: Professors should facilitate, encourage group problem-solving Page 4

Klein ’20: Lakers should be favorites to win NBA championship this year Page 6

Men’s basketball loses 76-56 against the U.S. Naval Academy at home Saturday BACK

The Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs has begun developing its new concentration in International and Public Affairs.

The Watson Institute has designated existing courses as introductory classes for each of the three IAPA tracks — Policy & Governance, Development and Security — and established a new advising structure for the concentration, Director of the Watson Institute Edward Steinfeld P ’20 said. Watson is still in the process of finalizing the list of electives that will count toward each of the three IAPA tracks. In addition, the planned third- and fourth-year seminars for the concentration have not yet been created.

The new IAPA concentration, which

was announced last spring, will replace the three previous Watson concentrations: International Relations, Development Studies and Public Policy, The Herald previously reported. Students will be allowed to declare the previous concentrations alongside the new IAPA concentration until the Spring of 2021.

Currently, four second-year students have declared a concentration in IAPA: three in the Security track, and one in the Development track. Steinfeld expects this number to increase as the concentration declaration date approaches in the spring.

Over a dozen students have declared one of the three previous Watson concentrations so far this year, Steinfeld said. In past years, about 75 second-year students declared IR per year, 50 declared Public Policy and 15 declared Development Studies, he added.

One goal of the new concentration is to give IAPA concentrators more opportunities to interact with faculty, mainly through new third- and fourthyear seminars, Steinfeld said. However, because the concentration currently does not have any third-year students,

SEE IAPA PAGE 3

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MONDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2019

rebound to extend the lead. Shortly thereafter, Friars forward Shane Kavanagh scored a wraparound goal for the team’s fourth tally of the evening.

Bruno approached the third period with vigor and began to gain momentum early in the stanza. Quisenberry narrowed the deficit three minutes into the frame, sending a wrist shot from the right circle which rung off the post and traveled past Lackey. Bradley Cocca ’23 and Tony Stillwell ’21 both recorded assists on the play.

After killing off a pair of consecutive penalties later in the final period, the Bears pulled Nieto for an extra skater with less than two minutes remaining.

Though Bruno continued to apply pressure in the offensive zone, the Friars held off the attack to seal the victory.

The Bears’ recent performances

have demonstrated a need to sustain momentum throughout the full 60 minutes of play, Dodd said.

“A big part of carrying momentum throughout the game is carrying it in between periods too and having energy in the locker room,” Dodd said. “That’s something that we’ve not necessarily struggled with, but haven’t had on our side looking back. So looking forward, that’s something we hope to do.”

“Momentum is huge, especially when we’re going up against these really forward-heavy teams with a lot of speed,” Quisenberry added. “It’s something that we can really focus on more — not allowing momentum to get too much shifted on their side, and really us just rolling all four of our lines and making sure everyone’s doing their jobs.”

The team also cited the importance

of consistency between shifts and depth in its roster to its offensive production and success.

In “the Clarkson game (last weekend) especially I think we were very consistent, and we carried that into the PC game,” Dodd said. “It really shows what one or two slips of a shift can do and that’s when we gave them three goals in a row, so consistency will go a long way both offensively and defensively.”

“We have a lot of very good hockey players in that room, and any given night we can have different guys in our lineup,” Quisenberry said. “As our younger guys get more comfortable with the pace of play at the college (level), I think that depth is really going to show even more and become even more impactful for the team.”

With a pair of conference contests

against Union College and the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute coming up this weekend, the Bears view their ability to compete with elite teams as a source of confidence and optimism.

“At times we showed that we can play with the best teams in the nation, and really we’re right there with them,” Quisenberry said. “It’s just a couple of mistakes that are making a difference for us right now, and these good teams are going to capitalize on our mistakes. If we can just limit those and keep pressure on for the entire 60 minutes, there’s no reason that we can’t be a top 10 team.”

The Bears resume league play at Union and RPI this weekend, before returning to Meehan Auditorium to host No. 10 University of Massachusetts Amherst Dec. 10.

rules we are not allowed to.”

Gledhill said the foundation of this new group will maintain the caucus’ autonomy despite the new bylaws. Independent of the state Democratic Party, the new caucus will focus on continuing to fundraise for female candidates’ campaigns as well

influx of support since its establishment, according to Gledhill. She said that the caucus had more sign-ups last week than the old caucus ever had, and has raised $3,800 for their PAC in the last few weeks.

Gledhill highlighted that she was surprised that a large proportion of the donations and support came from men who endorse the cause. “It’s not

“It will help make the party more united. I think if we looked at the members who voted, 70 percent of the women (voting) who were state committee members supported the rule changes because they realize that if we have every caucus endorsing individuals on their own, it will be very difficult going forward into the election season,” McNamara told the

ing women to burn in eternal hell for having an abortion. That’s a Democrat that the party endorses and I don’t think women should be forced to endorse a senator like that,” Gledhill said. She added that if they felt it were possible, “it would be great to remain in our party and bring change from within.”

Gledhill highlighted that uni-

es, and being able to learn from them and learn how to draw strength from differences and not divide and push away.”

Brown Progressive Action Committee Chair Jenna Israel ’21 viewed the founding of the new caucus as an unsurprising but disappointing necessity in the context of more moderate and conservative tendencies

as offer trainings for candidates and volunteers about how to run better campaigns.

“Female candidates are always at a disadvantage to their male counterparts, and we want to make sure they are supported in every way that they can be,” Gledhill said.

The new caucus has received an

enough just to show up and say, ‘oh I am supportive,’ but also to donate to a cause that you are not necessarily going to benefit from … shows what a real ally is,” she said.

In a statement to the Providence Journal, McNamara said the bylaws are about having the party on the same page to win elections.

Providence Journal.

Gledhill said that the caucus had been frustrated by the discrepancy between candidates they felt were “real Democrats” and the ones the party chose to endorse. “Last year during the Reproductive Privacy Act hearings we had Democratic senators reading the Bible and condemn-

ty is extremely important especially with next year as a crucial election year, but she stressed that it should be achieved through active collaboration.

“I don’t believe unity is agreeing on everything,” she said. “Unity is having the similar principles, and being able to discuss your differenc-

of the Democratic Party in Rhode Island.

“It’s an institutional problem with the Rhode Island Democratic Party that is so conservative, so white, so male, that it just doesn’t allow room for groups like the women’s caucus to grow,” she said.

Providence claimed the lead three and a half minutes into the second period, as Parker Ford redirected the puck into the net from the crease after Greg Printz and Jack Dugan worked their way into the zone with a series of back-andforth passes.

The Bears continued to pepper the Friars’ net with shots, and threatened to tie the contest midway through the stanza when Dodd forced Lackey to make a diving save to preserve the score.

Later in the period, Providence widened its advantage with a pair of goals over a minute-and-a-half span. Brown goaltender Gavin Nieto ’20 made the initial sliding save on a bid from Ford, but Tyce Thompson finished off the

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IAPA FROM PAGE 1 seminars will be implemented next year.

While these new seminars will primarily be reserved for IAPA concentrators, Steinfeld expects there to be some availability for non-concentrators to enroll in the seminars as well. “We don’t have any desire to throw up barriers to entry for these courses,” he said.

IAPA also aims to give concentrators access to faculty advisors across disciplines through a new “multi-tier advising system,” Steinfeld said. Anita Nester, manager of academic programs in IAPA, said the new advising structure “makes it easier for the student to reach out to these faculty mentors” and “have that interaction that they didn’t have before.”

Some directors of the original Watson concentrations are now directors of the new IAPA tracks, Steinfeld added.

Ivan Arreguín-Toft, director of the security track of IAPA, said the concentration’s new track system “gives you more options — less of a sense of being trapped in one thing.” This increased flexibility will allow students to choose whether to pursue a language, which is required for IR but not for IAPA, and will make it easier for students to study abroad, Arreguín-Toft said. In IAPA, “it will be much more rare to have a student come back from studying abroad and find it hard to get courses to finish their concentration.”

Some students interviewed by The Herald still expressed reservations about the new IAPA concentration.

Vanessa Fajardo ’21, a public policy concentrator, says she does not agree with consolidating “three already broad concentrations into an even broader concentration. … I think it’s doing a big disservice to incoming freshmen because they’re not letting people get specific with their interests.”

Caroline Deitch ’20, an IR concentrator, also expressed concern about replacing three concentrations with one. “For me, the big problem is public policy, development studies (and) IR are all very different things,” she said.

HERALD FILE PHOTO

The Watson Institute announced the new IAPA concentration last spring to mixed student reactions. The three-track concentration is now available to current students in the 2019-20 academic year.

While Deitch recognizes that some subjects, such as sociology, are useful to all three fields, “You lose something when you take away the specificity of having multiple concentrations.”

But other students interviewed by The Herald see some benefits of IAPA. Michael LeClerc ’20.5, a public policy concentrator, disapproved of the new concentration when it was first

announced, but he now thinks that IAPA will “help break down some of the barriers that exist within Watson that make it harder to take different types of classes.”

Tzion Jones ’22, a double-concentrator in IAPA and computer science, said that he decided to declare the new concentration because it “encourages you to dip your toes into all three of

(the) areas” covered by the old Watson concentrations.

Andrew Steinberg ’22, a student in the process of declaring IAPA, was interested in both IR and public policy when he arrived at the University.

“When the opportunity came to combine those two, it was almost too good to pass up.”

“The new concentration reflects a

new commitment to twenty-first century leadership,” Steinberg said. “There’s a common conception when you have international relations, public olicy and development as three separate fields of study that they have three separate silos. … In the future, leaders must be able to traverse these disciplines because the world is becoming ever interconnected and complicated.”

4

UFB FROM PAGE 1 student activities fee included in the University’s yearly tuition.

Student groups interviewed by The Herald responded positively to the Board’s decision to release data, though some expressed concern about UFB’s funding policies and the discrepancy between top funded and lesser funded groups.

Funding allocation Brown Concert Agency, which organizes Spring Weekend, was the highest funded group in 2018-19 by a wide margin, receiving $303,262 from UFB. Brown Lecture Board and Class Coordinating Board followed BCA with $150,005 and $139,003, respectively, in UFB funding. All three groups have been the top funded groups since the 2014-15 academic year.

In a statement that accompanied the data release, UFB explained why certain groups receive more funding than others.

“Groups that receive far more money than others are those that would not be able to operate (fulfill their mission) without that degree of funding,” according to UFB’s statement. “Such groups often reach a large number of students,” require extensive travel, host conferences or require “capital-intensive” funding such as printing.

The most common amount of funding per group was between $0 and $1,000, with 94 groups falling in that range.

Groups UFB categorized as “campus service and events” received the most funding in 2018-19, with $543,460 allocated to 11 groups. Student governance received the next highest amount with $178,411 split among seven organizations.

Some other categories of groups received little or no funding above the Board’s baseline. The five a capella groups listed took an average of $138.58 each, for instance, and the two comedy and improv groups received no additional funding.

Steps toward transparency The data publication is part of UFB’s ongoing efforts to be more proactive, said UFB Vice Chair Fatoumata Kabba ’22.

“The goal (of releasing the data) is that … we’ll be able to gain a lot of insight into how the student body thinks about our funding — what are their primary concerns?” said UFB Chair Julian De Georgia ’20. “That will very tangibly drive future conversations and make policy changes.”

“Our hope is that more groups will be transparent as a result of this, that

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | COMMENTARY

MONDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2019

Student Groups With Highest Total UFB Funding For the 2018-2019 school year, the top ten most funded Category III student groups at Brown each received over $23,000. $303,262

Brown Concert Agency Brown Lecture Board

$150,005

Senior CCB Special Events Committee Mock Trial

$139,004 $59,997 $40,446

Production Workshop

$29,627

Brown Debating Union

$26,241

Brown Outing Club Brown Student and Community Radio Brown Band

$26,000 $25,539 $23,757

2018-2019 Total Annual Funds Source: Undergraduate Finance Board SARAH MARTINEZ / HERALD

this will push everyone to be transparent,” he added.

The statement UFB published alongside the report outlined why the Board released the data and provided insight into how it makes funding decisions.

UFB recognizes that “our current funding principles may be imperfect,” the statement reads.

As such, both UFB policies and funding principles may change upon student feedback on the data release, Kabba said. “I don’t think we’ve ever really asked anyone, ‘What do you think about how UFB even thinks?’”

In addition, every undergraduate student has the “right to know” how UFB allocates its funding, Kabba said.

“We acknowledge that this data should have been public in the past,” the statement reads.

The Board has published student group budget totals previously. For instance, in 2012, UFB made public the funding amounts for its top 30 groups over the previous six years.

Monday’s release comes one year after UFB released a budget report that gave an overview of how it allocated approximately $2.2 million, The Herald previously reported.

UFB was previously unable to release more detailed data about how much funding each student group receives because of data analysis difficulties posed by BearSync, the online

organization management software the University uses, De Georgia said.

BearSync is currently being phased out and UFB and the Student Activities Office are looking for a replacement platform, he added.

Student group leaders respond Representatives from student groups interviewed by The Herald supported UFB’s decision to release the data.

“Personally, I’m really happy that UFB is releasing all this information and … giving students a good chance to see where the student activities fee is going,” said BCA Co-Chair Michael Mills ’20.

“As a student, … I think it’s particularly important to be able to know exactly how our money is being allocated,” said Brown Outing Club Co-President Maxwell Kozlov ’20.

But some group representatives raised concerns in light of the data release, particularly regarding service groups and inclusivity.

Nathaniel Pettit ’20, chair of the student learning committee on the Swearer Center Student Advisory Committee, said that there is a discrepancy in funding between organizations that directly benefit the University community and organizations that “do work beyond the Brown community.”

According to UFB’s transparency

statement, the Board “does not allow groups to donate funds allocated by UFB or pay for services for non-Brown students.” UFB allocates funds “in such a way that directly benefits (undergraduate) students.”

But by not funding certain service groups fully, Pettit said, “we’re preventing student organizations from carrying out their mission and in turn, preventing students from reaping the benefits of participation in community-engaged work.”

In a resolution on the data release reviewed by The Herald, the members of the Swearer Center SAC urged the Board to revise their policies to “eliminate archaic, exclusionary policies” and “work alongside service-oriented student organizations to fully fund community-engaged organizations.”

“We definitely understand the nuance of service groups,” De Georgia said. He acknowledged that “there are situations where giving something away is actually core to the mission (of a student group) and actually does support individual Brown students.” He added that UFB would be open to having a “larger conversation” about how the Board’s imperative could be reshaped.

Junaid Malik ’20, executive board member of the Pakistani Students Association at Brown, raised concerns that some of the highest-funded groups have “historically excluded” certain groups

like first-generation and low-income students.

“Student groups that have more funding also have a greater obligation to think about questions of inclusivity,” Malik said. The data release “enables us to look at a broader picture” and “demand for UFB to think about questions of inclusivity.”

Elizabeth Rogan ’21, president of Brown University Band, the 10th most funded group in 2018-19, said “financial accessibility is really important to us.”

The group offers free music lessons and instrument rentals, for example, and does not require prospective members to audition.

De Georgia said that “UFB has never played an active role in determining how groups do their recruiting,” but that UFB allocates funding “equally within our policies” to all student groups based on the minimum amount of funding they need to operate.

UFB will host an open forum on Dec. 4 for the Board to engage with students, receive feedback and address any concerns based on the data, De Georgia said.

“We hope that full transparency today will set a precedent on UFB and a public expectation for continued transparency in the future,” UFB’s statement reads.

— With additional reporting by Melanie Pincus

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S U D O KU

“I don’t believe unity is agreeing on everything.”

—Liz Gledhill, Democratic Women’s Caucus chair SEE CAUCUS PAGE 1

CR O S SWO R D Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle

RELEASE DATE– Saturday, February 18, 2012

Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis

ACROSS 1 Black-and-white prowlers 10 Hit the hay, say 15 Summons 16 George Jetson’s boss __ G. Spacely 17 Southern Christian Leadership Conference president after King 18 Perry of fashion 19 Alcopop beverage 20 Pelt 21 Wind ensembles usually tune to them 22 Août’s season 23 1951 Cooperstown inductee 24 Refrain from singing 25 Literally, “may you have the body” 30 “Tortilla Flat” co-star 33 See to it 34 Delivery gp.

35 Head of Hollywood 37 1974 Asian Games host 38 Risks a courtmartial, perhaps 40 Brats’ opposites 42 Last man to walk on the moon 44 34-Across concerns 45 Va. summer hours 46 Energy Reorg.

Act of 1974 creation 49 Glide 52 Guff 53 Miss __: perfume brand 54 25-Down, for one 55 Like most web designers 57 Surgical tool 58 Past the point of no return 59 Helots 60 North Carolina locale

DOWN 1 Pollution portmanteau 2 Unit of quantum information 3 “I’m available” 4 Razor handle 5 Scout group 6 Subject of the 2004 documentary “American Beer” 7 Keen 8 River originating near Winterberg 9 Caleb, for one 10 Arctic sighting 11 Indication that money is involved 12 Ibiza, por ejemplo 13 Cut, perhaps 14 Matted growth 21 Evert specialty 23 Part of a crew 24 Bar aspirant’s hurdle, briefly 25 David with the autobiography “Making Waves” 26 Miss by __ 27 Immaculate 28 Orsk’s river 29 Hatch and others: Abbr.

30 Feet-first Olympic event

31 Not worth __ 32 Compressed video file format 36 HMO members 39 Brightest star in Scorpius 41 Highly hyped N.L. pitcher Stephen Strasburg, for one 43 Changes chemically 46 “100 years of skin care for life” brand 47 Drifts

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Thayer Street’s central location makes it the perfect destination for students and community members looking to show off their sweet rides such as this one, illuminated under the light of Santander’s sign.

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | COMMENTARY

MONDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2019

The value of group problem solving REBECCA AMAN ’20 OPINIONS EDITOR Every Tuesday from 12 to 12:50 p.m., I attend section for MATH 0180: Intermediate Calculus.

During these fifty minutes, we solve challenging problem sets in groups of two or three. Every Tuesday at 12:50 p.m., I leave class feeling more confident in my understanding of multivariable calculus.

I’ve only experienced this kind of section in one other class: MATH 100: Introductory Calculus, Part II, also taught by Professor Dan Katz. Group problem solving is an incredibly useful learning tool. More professors at Brown should encourage, and perhaps even require, students to solve problems in groups.

Group problem solving is beneficial to both students who are struggling and students who have a strong grasp of the material. When I do not understand a concept, sometimes I need to hear it explained a different way. During these sessions, my peers will explain concepts differently than the professor and teaching assistants do, which often leads to a new level of understanding.

When completing group work in subjects I am more knowledgeable about, I also benefit.

While I am not naturally talented at math, as an economics concentrator, I am quite comfortable using Stata software to solve problem sets for economics classes. Explaining my process of writing code helps me better understand the underlying concepts I am using the solve the problem.

Outside of my own positive personal expe-

riences, there is significant empirical evidence that group problem solving helps students learn. For example, one randomized controlled study conducted by researchers at Columbia found that students who completed a groupbased problem solving activity did better on an assessment at the end of class than students

“Group problem solving helps students gain a deeper understanding of course concepts and materials.”

who were told to complete a problem set individually during class. While both groups of students performed similarly on test questions that simply asked them to recall information, the students who worked in groups performed better on questions that required them to apply knowledge in a new context. Thus, this study shows that group problem solving can help students obtain a deeper understanding of the problem.

While most of my professors have allowed me to collaborate with other students on problem sets, other professors, particularly in the computer science department, have strict col-

laboration policies. Because these classes often do not have tests or quizzes, students are only evaluated on the quality of their homework and projects; the collaboration policy attempts to “ensure individual learning.” But there is significant evidence that this policy is hurting students. Last spring, The Herald reported that the collaboration policy contributed to feelings of stress and isolation for CS students.

Furthermore, the anti-collaboration policy means students must rely on TAs for help,

student, I have taken classes with papers — they tend to be discussion based — and others structured around problem sets. The problem set courses, typically in the economics department, frequently permit students to work together as long as they write the names of those they collaborate with on their homework. While this does allow for group work, economics professors should do more to facilitate group problem solving. Most economics courses have weekly sections taught by

leading to long wait times during TA hours. I personally haven’t taken a computer science class, and therefore do not have first-hand experience with these challenges. But hearing horror stories about all-nighters and four hour wait times is a large reason I have not attempted to take a computer science course. It seems that students would learn better — and be less stressed out — by discussing hard problems amongst each other more frequently than they do now.

Some professors have taken steps to encourage group work. For example, some projects for CSCI 0170: Computer Science: An Integrated Introduction are completed in pairs, and CSCI 0150: Introduction to Object-Oriented Programming and Computer Science allows students to work together under the supervision of a TA. While these are steps in the right direction, the bulk of students’ work must be completed individually. In order to allow students to fully reap the benefits of group work, CS professors should consider relaxing the collaboration policy.

Room for improvement in fostering collaborative work extends beyond computer science. As an economics and public policy

the TAs. During section, the TAs will typically answer questions and solve problems on the board that are similar to the weeks problem set. While this can be useful, allowing students to attempt the problems in small groups before solving it on the board would enhance the section experience significantly.

It is true that group problem solving can be stressful for some more introverted students, but professors can address this concern and still encourage more group work. For example, they could give students the option of working together during TA sections, rather than requiring collaboration. Group problem solving helps students gain a deeper understanding of course concepts and materials. Professors should facilitate collaboration— both by allowing students to work together on homework and by creating formal opportunities for students to solve problems together.

Rebecca Aman ’20 can be reached at rebecca_aman@brown.edu. Please send responses to this opinion to letters@browndailyherald.com and op-eds to opinions@browndailyherald.com.

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MONDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2019

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | COMMENTARY

7

Why the Lakers are the best team in the NBA Prior to the start of this NBA season, the Los Angeles Lakers were

passers in league history). He trusts his Los Angeles teammates more this season and the results speak for themselves, as James is averaging a career-high 10.9 assists per game.

And even if his athleticism has declined slightly — he is now 34 years

with Los Angeles this past offseason, a move that few thought would make a major impact. But Howard is noticeably quicker and more agile after significant weight loss. He has committed at last to simply rebounding, dunking and defending, no longer

is a perfect fit for a LeBron-led offense ­— he’s shooting 39.8 percent from three-point range and is defending well. Kyle Kuzma provides scoring with his usual array of turning and twisting moves. JaVale McGee throws down dunks and blocks

geles has a variety of solid players who all fill important roles.

Other teams have impressed so far in the NBA season, but no one can match the Lakers in both talent and results. The Milwaukee Bucks are currently 17-3 and on an 11-

widely expected to contend for a championship. With LeBron James and Anthony Davis on the floor, Los Angeles had the talent to compete against any team in the league.

Still, questions remained about the Lakers’ depth and playmaking, and they didn’t even appear to be the best team in their own building ­— not with the Clippers adding Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. But flash forward to a little over a month later, and Los Angeles has stormed out ahead of the rest of the NBA. With a 17-3 record and several dominant performances on their resume, the Lakers are now the league’s best team. How did this happen and what changed so quickly? There are several key reasons for the improvement.

First off, the team revolves around James, who has responded to offseason doubters with a tremendous start to his season. He has shown a renewed commitment on the defensive end, looking more active and mobile when guarding opposing players. James is also distributing the ball at even higher levels than he was before (and he was already known as one of the greatest

of age, playing in his 17th NBA season — James can still score at will, averaging 25.7 points per contest. A happier and more energetic James has set the tone for the rest of the Lakers.

Meanwhile, Anthony Davis has fit in seamlessly with the team. Davis can hit threes at a passable rate, which helps floor spacing when he is on the court at the same time as James. And Davis’ talents in the paint allow James to rest on offense; the 26-year-old is averaging 26.1 points, 9.3 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game, taking over in several wins. Los Angeles’ two stars work well together — James can feed Davis with alley-oops, or take advantage of all the attention that Davis draws and drive unimpeded to the basket. Davis, of course, is also imposing on defense, averaging 2.8 blocks per contest and ensuring that opposing players have trouble scoring at the rim against the Lakers. Los Angeles gives up only 104.1 points per game, the fifth-best mark in the NBA. Another major contributor to the Lakers’ stout defense has been Dwight Howard. The center signed

demanding touches in the post like

shots in the paint. Kentavious Cald-

game winning streak. Giannis Antetokounmpo has improved yet again.

But Milwaukee doesn’t boast a second superstar like the Lakers do. The Clippers, with Leonard and George, have two superstars, but have experienced some bumps over the first few weeks. Kawhi’s knee remains a concern, and he’s missed several games because of it. If the Clippers stay healthy, they are the greatest threat to the Lakers, but health remains a big issue.

The Lakers should be the favorites to win the championship this year. James is eager to win his fourth ring, and Los Angeles has assembled a terrific roster to support him in his quest. The offense runs smoothly, the defense battles — all the pieces are in place for a long playoff run and a lot of wins. This edition of the Lakers might go down as one of the all-time great teams.

BY GEORGE KLEIN ’20 SPORTS COLUMNIST

“All the pieces are in place for a long playoff run and a lot of wins. This edition of the Lakers might go down as one of the all-time great teams.”

we saw him do in past seasons. Howard has accepted his role in the NBA and is averaging 6.8 points (on 75.0 percent shooting) and 6.9 rebounds in 19.9 minutes per game. The 33-year-old has emerged as an important role player and continues to earn far more time on the court than anyone anticipated.

Los Angeles’ roster has plenty of other depth in addition to Howard to support the two stars. Danny Green

THE LUNGS OF THE EARTH

ISABEL INADOMI / HERALD

well-Pope has drawn plenty of criticism from Los Angeles fans, but he’s done a better job of avoiding bad shot attempts and is shooting 40.4 percent from behind the perimeter.

Alex Caruso battles on the defensive end and accordingly has received more and more playing time. When Avery Bradley returns from injury, he will also provide strong defensive efforts against opposing guards. In short, as this list indicates, Los An-

George Klein ’20 can be reached at george_klein@brown.edu.

Please send responses to this opinion to letters@browndailyherald.com and op-eds to opinions@ browndailyherald.com.

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8

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | NEWS

MONDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2019

SPORTS

Men’s basketball falls to U.S. Naval Academy after second-half collapse Following strong first half, Bears ultimately fall 76-56 to Navy Saturday at home

BY RYAN HANDEL SENIOR STAFF WRITER The men’s basketball team lost at home Saturday to the United States Naval Academy by a score of 76-56, dropping its second consecutive contest for the first time this season after falling to University of Massachusetts at Lowell Tuesday.

Brown and Navy battled for most of the game, with the Midshipmen going up by one point at the break before Bruno tied the matchup at 50-50 late in the second half. But Navy’s shooters got hot in the final eight minutes and closed out with a 26-6 run, leaving Bruno in the dust with a 20-point victory.

Navy (4-3) “plays so hard and so physical for 40 minutes,” said Head Coach Mike Martin ’04. “They finished the game with a lot more execution and playmaking than we did.”

Brown big men Matt DeWolf ’21 and Tamenang Choh ’21 opened scoring for the Bears (4-3), with each hitting a layup in the game’s first four minutes. The Bears’ leading scorer Brandon Anderson ’20 helped his squad build an early lead, sinking a three-pointer and converting a layup off of a Navy turnover to put Bruno up 9-5. Choh got involved from long range as well, connecting on a three-pointer and then consecutive jumpers to maintain Bruno’s hot start. But the Midshipmen slowly clawed their way back into the contest on the strength of accurate shooting by John Carter Jr. and the Navy offense. Despite nine points by Choh and eight by Anderson in the first half, Navy took a 27-26 advantage into the locker room.

Bruno started strong again in the second half, reclaiming the lead via a layup from Choh. Then, touted twostar recruit Dan Friday ’23 entered the game and made the most of his opportunity, sending a no-look bounce pass

COURTESY OF BROWN ATHLETICS

Brandon Anderson ’20 jumps for the basket in the packed Pizzitola Center Saturday night. Following a 75-63 loss to the University of Massachusetts at Lowell Tuesday, the Bears fell again by a tally of 76-56 against the United States Naval Academy. to DeWolf, who scored through traffic and earned an and-one chance. DeWolf missed the free throw, but redeemed himself on the following possession with a steal, which Anderson capitalized on with another three. Anderson’s bucket gave Brown a 35-29 lead, its largest of the game.

A Cam Davis jumper and a Carter Jr. three cut the Bears’ lead back to one, but Bruno responded when Anderson and DeWolf demonstrated their rapport once again. Anderson

found a wide-open DeWolf in the paint, and DeWolf took advantage with a massive dunk to get the Pizzitola Center crowd going. Then, with the game tied at 37, Anderson showed off his court awareness with a nolook, behind-the-back pass to Zach Hunsaker ’20, who connected on a three-pointer to complete the highlight-reel play. Brown was unable to pull away and remained locked with Navy at 50 points apiece with eight minutes left in the game.

Unfortunately for the Bears, the team ran out of highlight plays for the remainder of the contest. Navy’s dynamic duo of Davis and Carter Jr. completely took control of the game in the closing stretch, scoring 13 and nine points respectively in the final eight minutes while the entire Brown team scored just six. The Midshipmen’s dominant ending left Bruno with a disappointing blowout home loss, despite a game that was mostly a back-andforth affair.

“(Navy) made some tough shots, made some threes back-to-back … to get their momentum going,” said Joshua Howard ’20. “They were physical throughout the whole game.”

The men’s basketball team will look to return to its winning ways Wednesday at home against Merrimack College. After that contest, the Bears will enter a tough road stretch against Stony Brook University, St. John’s University and Duke University later in the month.