Wednesday, December 4, 2019

SINCE 1891

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2019

VOLUME CLIV, ISSUE 59

BROWNDAILYHERALD.COM

SCIENCE & RESEARCH

UNIVERSITY NEWS

Answers to cuffing season’s biggest questions: The science of looking for love

Students criticize meal plan offerings

Over half of students want exclusive relationship, Herald poll shows

Concerns include required sophomore meal plan, lack of accommodations

BY EMILIJA SAGAITYTE SENIOR STAFF WRITER Students have begun to indulge in scrumptious meals, bright decorations and festive jingles in the early days of this holiday season. But another period — cuffing season — is already in full swing as the snow finally flurries in and the temperature drops, ushering people into their classrooms, dorms and, perhaps, each other’s arms.

Earlier this semester, The Herald’s fall undergraduate poll found that 54.6 percent of undergraduates are not in any kind of relationship, though nearly the same number — 56.1 percent — desire an exclusive relationship with one person. Of the students who are not currently in a relationship, about half want an exclusive relationship with one other person, according to

BY LI GOLDSTEIN SENIOR STAFF WRITER A majority of University students surveyed in The Herald’s fall poll said they are dissatisfied with current meal plan offerings.

First-years demonstrated the least dissatisfaction, but for every other class, 69 to 75 percent of students said they were either somewhat or very dissatisfied. Just under 40 percent of first-years reported less than satisfaction with meal plan offerings.

The disappointing feedback for Brown Dining Services comes months after the University announced that

SEE RELATIONSHIPS PAGE 4

SEE PLAN PAGE 2

SARAH MARTINEZ / HERALD

UNIVERSITY NEWS

Students from Hong Kong, mainland China reflect on safety amid protests Students express frustration with muted campus discourse over Hong Kong protests

“huge difficulties” finding a buyer for

BY BENJAMIN POLLARD STAFF WRITER Over the past several months, protests in Hong Kong have escalated, and violent interactions between protesters and police have become more frequent. The protests originated against a bill proposed earlier this year that would allow people accused of crimes in Hong Kong to be extradited to China. The Herald spoke with four students from Hong Kong and three students from mainland China, who recounted safety concerns and frustration with campus discourse.

Protests spark safety concerns The Hong Kong protests have had a direct impact on the lives of many of the students with whom the The Herald spoke. A graduate student from Hong Kong, who wishes to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals and whom The Herald will refer to as Chris, has a fiancee living in Hong Kong.

COURTESY OF VOICE OF AMERICA

Protests in Hong Kong that originated about a bill that has since been withdrawn continue to escalate.

University students express concern and frustration over the current environment on campus.

The couple has considered getting married earlier or having Chris’s fiancee leave Hong Kong before the situation becomes even more dangerous. “Every day I check to see that my fiancee is safe,”

Chris said. “Sometimes it can get quite distracting seeing those live broadcasts.

Those are the areas we live in or used to walk past everyday. ... That constant anxious and worrying feeling is the biggest

effect ... especially for overseas people.”

Chris’s parents also live in Hong Kong. “I’m worried about their safety,” Chris said. His parents are trying to move out of Hong Kong but are having

their home.

An undergraduate student from Hong Kong, who wishes to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals and whom The Herald will refer to as Peter, said his family is also thinking of migrating.

“They don’t know where Hong Kong is going. They are very worried for their future,” he said.

Peter recounted a time over the summer when police officers tear-gassed his bus stop. No longer able to wait there for his usual bus, he “had to call (his) dad to drive out” and bring him home.

Another day that “really affected” Peter was when about “75 percent of the Metro was shut down.” On his way to work, he said, “the trains couldn’t move for three hours, and there were no buses (and) no other forms of transportation, so I just went home. ... There were fifty or so protesters in the Metro station sitting inside the train, on the platform, in between the gaps, preventing the train from moving.”

Another undergraduate student from Hong Kong, who wishes to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals and whom The Herald will refer to as Liz, shared this sense of uncertainty and pessimism

SEE HK PAGE 3

Science & Research News

Commentary

Commentary

Chemistry lab celebrates successes with synthetic polymer, sustainability Page 2

J. Street U: Deomocratic Party must take strong stance against Israeli settlement Page 7

Reed ’21: Criticism of Warren Kanders should be re-evaluated for accuracy Page 7

Faculty meeting yields budgeting changes, discussion of tenure processes Page 3

TODAY

TOMORROW

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | NEWS

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2019

SCIENCE AND RESEARCH

Chemical research made cleaner, more sustainable in U. lab U. research team designs process to reduce degradation in synthetic polymer

BY CHRIS SCHUTTE SCIENCE AND RESEARCH EDITOR A chemistry lab is typically a busy place; ingredients and materials line the space as the beeps of machines and squeals of steam fill the air. Projects can take years to come to fruition in even the busiest of labs, but one such lab at the University has recently reached not one but two major research milestones.

First, the team of researchers produced a commonly used synthetic polymer known as Zylon, which can be found in batteries, body armor, motorsports equipment and vehicles and even at SpaceX. Typically, the way this polymer is made can cause it to degrade in important products like body armor, but the research team managed to produce the polymer without the process that can cause it to degrade. The team also advanced the effort to make chemical sciences more sustainable — they incorporated new methods of “green chemistry” that they hope can drastically reduce chemical waste in future chemical research.

Zylon, also known as PBO, is rigid organic polymer with high tensile strength and thermal resistance. Typically, the use of polyphosphoric acid

PLAN FROM PAGE 1 all sophomores would be required to remain on meal plan, a decision which drew criticism from students who argued that the offerings were too restrictive to be mandatory, The Herald previously reported.

Brown Dining Services offers a variety of meal plans, which vary in price, number of credits and eligibility requirements. First-years must enroll in one of the two highest-priced meal plans: 20 meals per week or Flex 460, each priced at $5,912. Sophomores can choose from the 20 meals per week plan, Flex 460 or two other, lower-priced plans: Flex 330 or 14 meals per week, each for $5,566. Juniors and seniors who choose to stay on meal plan have more options available to them: Flex 240 or 10 meals per week for $5,048, 7 meals per week for $4,576 or an off-campus plan for $1,886.

Eleven students approached by The Herald cited changes to dining halls in recent months and lack of food variety as their primary concerns with respect to the current meal plan options. Many also said that the value of each meal credit often does not justify its price.

Zahid Hasan ’21 expressed discontent with recent changes to Josiah’s, which recently replaced its mini-market with vending machines and swapped “three burners” — a station that used to offer foods such as chicken wings and dumplings — with soup.

The change, meant to make the dining hall healthier for students, similarly upset William Brakewood ’22.

“Jo’s has gotten worse,” Hasan said.

Hasan also said he has found it

as the catalyst to create the polymer leaves traces of the acid inside the fibers, which can lead to degradation at rapid rates. To resolve this problem, the researchers used composite nanoparticles — nanomaterials composed of two or more components with special chemical properties — as catalysts and decreased the number of steps in the polymerization process, said Professor of Chemistry and Professor of Engineering Shouheng Sun. The team consisted of many faculty members, including Sun, Chao Yu, a postdoctoral fellow in the chemistry department and first author of the study and Assistant Professor of Chemistry Jerome Robinson, alongside several others to create an interdisciplinary approach across varying departments. The project required the knowledge and expertise of organic chemistry, polymer characterization, nanoparticle synthesis, material properties and more, Robinson said. “I thought it was a really nice collaborative project between different faculty at Brown. … We can leverage all these expertises to come together into this area that’s pretty interdisciplinary,” he added.

The team made the polymer in a more compact “one-pot” process — not unlike “one-pot” cooking — and incorporated nanoparticles as the catalyst, which greatly decreased the chemical waste created by this process. In lieu of pure hydrogen, the team used formic acid, a biocompatible and non-toxic substance, to produce hydrogen in the polymerization, Sun said. Using hydrogen gas requires a pressurized tank

particularly difficult to locate halal food on campus.

Many students expressed frustration with the value of each meal credit, which they say is too expensive when considering the total cost of a meal plan and the number of credits they receive per semester. Twenty meals per week and Flex 460 end up costing about $8.89 and $10.65 per meal, respectively, according to a February 2019 Herald column. As the price of a meal plan decreases, the cost of each meal increases.

Dana Lee ’23 said that the 20 per week plan is expensive and inflexible.

Lee and her friends enjoy cooking, but she finds that she “can’t justify it” given the cost of the meal plan.

“Other schools have better value per swipe,” she added.

Vivian Van ’21 said though she believes the 14 per week plan offers poor value per credit, she enjoys the flexibility of maximizing lower-priced plans through buffet-style eating at the Sharpe Refectory and dining off-campus. Overall, she believes that being on meal plan “alleviates the pressure of having to plan your meals when you go out.”

In an email to The Herald, Assistant Director of Wellness and Nutrition Jessie Curran wrote that Dining Services has no plans to retract the sophomore meal plan requirement next year, but that they will continue to take student feedback into account.

“The menus at Brown are something that change continuously as Dining works to provide fresh, healthy food choices to the campus community and to meet the evolving tastes and preferences of the student body,” Curran wrote. “This feedback will be

and specialized equipment, Robinson said, but using a liquid such as formic acid can eliminate some of the inherent challenges associated with transporting and using gas. Once the polymer is synthesized, some of the materials can be collected and reused, leading to greater sustainability and a “greener” chemical lab. Formic acid can actually be regenerated from cellulose or CO2 reduction, allowing for greater reusability, Sun said. And because of the nanoparticles, the polymer resists degradation from heat and acid, Sun said.

The use of a “one-pot” multiple reaction method has applications in a wide range of chemical research, ranging from the creation of antibiotic compounds to the production of seatbelts in racecars, Sun said. Though Sun hopes to continue his research, he does not plan to expand into a commercial field.

“We’re in academia … We’re not in a position to commercialize something … We educate students and get students involved. Hopefully one of our students, your friends, can take it over and commercialize it. We would like to see that,” Sun added.

The University research team hopes to continue to use more green methods to further promote sustainability and reusability in the field of chemical research.

“We want to make sure the process can proceed under green chemistry conditions for future environmentally friendly reactions,” Sun said.

“The idea of using renewable sources of hydrogen in the lab … is definitely getting a lot of traction. …

SUMMER ZHANG / HERALD

I think the idea of using nanoparticles to control polymer properties is a totally unexplored region of space … (It’s something) we’re quite excited about,” Robinson said.

The project was initially funded in part by the U.S. Army Research Laboratory and U.S. Army Research Office.

The ARO is an element of the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command’s Army Research Laboratory and conducts research with more than 250 universities. Twenty-four previously funded researchers have become Nobel laureates, wrote Lisa Bistreich-Wolfe, public affairs specialist for the ARO in an email to The Herald.

When the grant was initially re-

warded to University researchers by the ARO, the main research topic was electrocatalysts, said Robert Mantz, program manager of electrochemistry and chemical division chief for the ARO. “Basic research has a way of going in unexpected directions … When I initially funded it, I was not thinking of PBO. … You can’t always predict the future, but if you fund good ideas and you have people that are doing really good science, those opportunities open up,” he added.

“I am trying to fund science that is army relevant but hopefully leads to breakthroughs that change the way the army does business in the future,” he added.

SARAH MARTINEZ / HERALD

considered the same way all feedback is considered. It is reviewed with the appropriate team members, making them aware of the response.”

Curran noted that a dining working group, convened to address student feedback, includes three undergraduate students, in addition to a PhD student, a medical student and a Masters student, as well as “several staff members who represent different departments that work with the entire student population,” she wrote. The working group meets monthly, but she added that “there is work that is done between each meeting.”

In response to concerns regarding dietary restrictions — religious and otherwise — Curran wrote that Dining Services has made recent efforts to expand halal options, as well as increase student awareness of them.

Looking to the future, Curran hopes to enhance “involvement in orientation and ADOCH to make incoming students aware of what is available to them, developing a student-based community, led by our Nutrition Intern, who will regularly report to Dining,” she wrote.

Some students told The Herald that their meal plans meet their needs.

First-years Mandi Biglari ’23, Sam Kolitch ’23 and Abigail Lyss ’23 each said that they were overall satisfied with current dining options. But Biglari emphasized that she would have appreciated more transparency about the points system prior to coming to the University.

“We aren’t really informed of the points system before (coming to Brown),” she said. “It wasn’t really explained to us.”

— With additional reporting from Sarah Wang

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2019

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | NEWS

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UNIVERSITY NEWS

Faculty discuss new budget process to increase transparency, efficiency Faculty debate basebudgeting, changes to tenure process during Tuesday’s meeting

BY SPENCER SCHULTZ SENIOR STAFF WRITER The University will implement a new budgeting process during the 2021 fiscal year, Provost Richard Locke P’18 said at Tuesday’s faculty meeting.

Starting in 2021, the University’s budget will be determined by a base-budgeting approach, in which academic and administrative units will “rebuild budgets from scratch based on actual departmental needs,” Locke said. Previously, departments developed budget proposals by requesting incremental funds based on existing budgets.

The new base-budgeting model is aimed at increasing transparency and efficiency in the use of resources, Locke

HK FROM PAGE 1 about the future. Hong Kong is “still my home, … but in the long-term, I don’t see myself returning to work there (because) I don’t see a future prospect,” she said. Her family tells her “to emigrate to America or another country,” she added.

Liz said the protests make her feel powerless and isolated, and it is hard for her to focus on her work. “I don’t know how to help, and no one really talks about (the protests) on campus. ... There is no emotional support,” she said. “I hope the campus sets up some support group for students affected by the protests.”

Elke Breker, director of International Student and Scholar Services, did not respond to request for comment.

The Brown/RISD Hong Kong Student Association declined to comment.

The students from mainland China with whom The Herald spoke were also affected by the protests. James Li ’21 said that, when purchasing an airplane ticket to travel home to Shanghai for the winter, he did not select a route with a layover in Hong Kong. “My parents wouldn’t allow me to” because they were concerned for his safety, he said.

Li will not apply to any internships in Hong Kong this coming winter and next summer because of the protests.

He added that the protests are emotionally affecting him “more than I expected initially.”

Yuanhao Wang ’23, another student from mainland China, feels “sad and angry” about the protests.

The Chinese Student Association did not respond to a request for comment.

Campus discourse Many of the students The Herald interviewed, from both Hong Kong and mainland China, were frustrated by the discourse surrounding the protests on campus.

“Most of the people here (at the University) are not concerned with what’s going on with Hong Kong,” Li said.

Three students specifically described the current campus discourse surrounding the protests as “quiet.” When Peter arrived on campus, he “was surprised (that) no one was really talking about” the protests.

said. The model also “promotes (not only) fiscal discipline but also operational effectiveness,” he added.

Currently, all University departments are completing questionnaires outlining their fiscal needs. The University will use data from these questionnaires to work with each department on its future budget, Locke said.

Locke hopes that the base-budgeting model will help the University “get off the cycle of having to raise tuition and fees every year.” Most recently, the Corporation approved a 5 percent increase in undergraduate student tuition for the 2020 fiscal year, The Herald previously reported. The tuition increases “are ... not sustainable for middle-class families,” Locke said. “It’s not sustainable for the University we want to be, which is truly accessible.”

Dean of the Faculty Kevin McLaughlin also discussed efforts to ensure that the University’s tenure process is “rigorous, fair and clear,” he said. At the faculty meeting on Nov. 5, faculty members

“The interest level is not what we would hope to see, but it is expected considering (many students) lack connection to the issue,” Peter said. There are many materials about the protests that could help inform students; they “just have to be willing to look at it,” he said.

Chris echoed this sentiment, explaining that “people who are not related get less exposure” to news about the protests.

Despite the lack of discourse on campus, Ruodan Xu ’23, a student from Beijing, said that he doesn’t currently “see an overwhelmingly one-sided opinion at Brown, which is good.”

Four students approached by The Herald declined to comment because they stated they were uninformed about the protests.

The University has hosted two academic forums on campus about the protests. The first, a lecture on the origins and motivations behind the protests presented by Director of the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs Edward Steinfeld, drew criticism during Family Weekend. Steinfeld declined to comment for this story. The second was a discussion forum organized by the Watson Institute in which professors spoke on the context of the protests, and students — many wearing masks — discussed their personal experiences with the protests.

Some of the students interviewed by The Herald said that they appreciated the effort the University has made to discuss the issues surrounding Hong Kong, while others thought both discussions offered a limited academic viewpoint that did not adequately encompass the experiences of the protesters and other Hong Kong residents.“I was slightly disappointed (with the forums). ... A lot of information was missing,” Chris said.

One student from Hong Kong, who wishes to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals and whom The Herald will refer to as Jack, wrote in an email to The Herald that he avoided attending events about the protests “to avoid extra stress and conflict.”

—With additional reporting by Daniel Goldberg

discussed a proposal that would require additional recommendation letters for a tenure candidate’s dossier, The Herald previously reported. Based on feedback from faculty, McLaughlin said that the University decided not to move forward with this proposal.

McLaughlin said departmental chairs and directors suggested several alternative ways to improve the tenure process. These suggestions included more rigorously assessing recommendation letters for conflict of interest and encouraging deans to review a tenure candidate’s dossier for both completion and clarity before the dossier is sent to the Tenure, Promotions and Appointments Committee, McLaughlin said.

McLaughlin hopes that these efforts will mitigate the concerns about the University’s tenure promotions process brought up during the University’s most recent re-accreditation. In Oct. 2018, an external review committee criticized the University’s high cohort tenure rate, The Herald previously reported.

That same year, the University’s cohort tenure rate was 67 percent, according to Locke.

The faculty also approved three motions to amend the Faculty Rules and Regulations, including the removal of the Information-Technology Advisory Board and changes to the Academic Priorities Committee. The faculty voted to grant the APC authority to approve new centers or rename existing ones when the center “wholly resides within a single existing academic unit,” according to the motion. They also voted to require the APC to evaluate “written standards and criteria” to aid in the external review of academic departments.

Michael Guglielmo, vice president for facilities management and executive vice president of finance and administration, also provided an update on the University’s capital projects. Between the 2015 and 2025 fiscal years, the University will spend around $1 billion on projects such as renovations to existing infrastructure and the construction of

new buildings, he said. More specifically, several ongoing projects include a new performing arts center, a wellness center and residence hall, a lacrosse and soccer facility and renovations to Lincoln Field Building. Of the $1 billion budget, $600 million will be spent on the renewal of existing buildings.

James Morgan, Faculty Executive Committee chair and professor of cognitive, linguistic and psychological sciences, provided an update on the transition between the Advisory Committee on Corporate Responsibility in Investment Policies and its successor committee. Following a community meeting in October to solicit feedback on revisions to the duties of ACCRIP, the FEC formed a working group to develop a committee that will replace ACCRIP. This group, which includes faculty members, staff, graduate students and undergraduate students, plans to meet once more before finalizing the new committee’s responsibilities and structure.

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | NEWS

RELATIONSHIPS FROM PAGE 1 the data. The data suggests that there are about 3,600 single undergraduates on campus right now and more than 1,700 of them desire a monogamous relationship.

The Herald investigated the emotions, thoughts and hormones bubbling underneath these statistics through interviews with University researchers, professors and students.

What is romantic chemistry in college?

A decades-old research study involving college students revealed that they reported higher levels of attraction to their dormmates than other students, said Nick Perry, a post-doctoral fellow at the Alpert Medical School who teaches “The Psychology of Love,” a pre-college course at the University. People “kind of grow on you, and that does seem to be a real phenomenon,” Perry added.

Psychology can explain some aspects of attraction. The initial stage of falling in love, marked by extreme infatuation and worry about whether someone’s feelings are reciprocated, is referred to as “limerence,” Perry said. To find that extreme infatuation, a person will likely be drawn to those with shared interests, political beliefs and cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds. Physical proximity and repeated contact can heighten those emotions, Perry said.

On a biological level, seeing a crush leads to hyperactivity in the brain’s reward center. This reaction accompanies the state of “limerence” and triggers the flood of hormones that culminates in the excitement that people experience around others they like, Perry said.

The desire for those feelings may help explain why the majority of students polled reported wanting relationships.

College is a common time for these serious relationships to begin, Perry added. Students acquire a newfound autonomy from their parents, and it is

like a “playground and … a laboratory for learning all these really important skills,” including skills related to relationships, he said.

Independence in decision-making may indeed explain the increased engagement in relationships in college, said Professor of Sociology Gregory Elliott, a social psychologist. In social psychology, the three aspects of love are satisfying one’s needs, caring for another and being exclusive, though exclusivity may not always be necessary in the presence of the other two, Elliott added.

Since people spend a lot of time changing and finding themselves as young adults, serious relationships tend to come about in college, Elliott said.

They often arise between people from the same school because maintaining similarities and connections with people is harder when they continue to evolve independently. For this reason, some students may choose not to engage in a long-term relationship if they have intentions of continuing on to graduate school, Elliott added.

Hearts, health, hopes and ... hookups?

The Herald’s fall undergraduate poll found that 15.8 percent of undergraduates reported engaging in casual or consistent hookups, while 14.6 percent reported wanting hookups on some level.

Differences in sexual health are evident in different types of relationships, said Associate Professor of Behavioral and Social Sciences Cynthia Rosengard.

Discussions about safe sex are less common in hookups than in monogamous relationships, said Kelsey Collins ’13, a psychiatry resident at New York University who conducted undergraduate thesis research on college relationships at Brown with Rosengard’s guidance.

Monogamous relationships “seemed to be more about mutual communication, emotional attachment and in-

timacy, whereas the casual hookups were ... more just about sex, pleasure, more carnal desires,” Collins said about her research on Brown undergraduates.

In contrast, Rosengard’s research on adolescents has found that “once (people) identified themselves as being in a main relationship, they were less likely to be practicing safer sex,” she said. This outcome may be related to the trust that develops in a relationship and the common fear that discussions about safe sex imply infidelity, Rosengard added.

“On a more cultural level, I think having a greater ability for everybody to talk about sex and not having it be something that’s taboo from childhood on would really be the best intervention,” Rosengard said.

The fall poll data is relatively consistent with data collected when the same questions about relationships were asked in The Herald’s Fall 2012 poll. Nearly half of those polled in 2012 reported not being in a relationship, and a little over half wanted an exclusive relationship with one person.

Around the same time as the 2012 poll, Collins gathered data in surveys of 451 University undergraduates over the age of 18 and graduates from the five years prior. Thirty-nine percent of those surveyed reported not being in a relationship, 40 percent were in some type of monogamous relationship, around 14 percent had casual hookups and only about 3 percent were friends with benefits, she said.

Despite the fact that only 14 percent of students at the time reported they were casually hooking up, the majority of students believed that casual hook ups were the most prevalent type of relationship on campus. At the same time, most students personally longed for long-term, monogamous relationships.

The concept of pluralistic ignorance — the idea that people follow what they incorrectly assume to be the actions of the majority — may explain the rise of

hookups in college compared to high school, she said.

Lusting for love on campus Collins found that students struggled to initiate exclusive relationships, a problem seen in the more than 1,700 hopeless romantics on campus this fall.

To alleviate some of the burden that comes with making the first steps in starting any kind of relationship, the Blognonian created the Three-Day Relationship match this November, said Blognonian co-Editor-in-Chief Emma Weiss ’21.

The team sent out a survey that, among other questions, asked students about the kind of relationship they wanted, whether it be a romantic, long-term relationship, a fling, or just a friend, study buddy or distraction from finals. Based on their answers, students were paired with another person, and the couples were then given the location of their dates and possible questions to ask, she added.

About 35 percent of the total 1,020 relationship requests asked for a fling, while 31 percent sought a long-term relationship, said Blognonian co-Editor-in-Chief Elliott Lehrer ’21.

The “student body seems to have responded really well to it … we’re just providing a service that lots of people are really appreciating,” Lehrer said.

“It’s kind of an unspoken need,” Weiss added.

Challenges in the contemporary relationship The ongoing cultural shift toward social disengagement facilitated by today’s technology may increase the difficulty of finding a relationship and the likelihood that students may be satisfied with their single status. The Herald poll found that about 12.2 percent of students are not looking for any sort of relationship.

Emma Watson ’14 recently coined the term “self-partnered” when talking

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2019

about her own relationship status. Watson’s words reflect the modern capacity for solitude, wrote Assistant Professor of the Practice in Literary Arts Andrew Colarusso, who teaches LITR 1230: “Why Don’t We Fall in Love?” in an email to The Herald. “(We’re) living through the first half of what is likely to be a self-partnered century,” he added. “I myself am in a committed relationship with my Nintendo switch. … It’s comfortable and safe and sometimes fun. But I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t waiting for some sweet human to come along and change my mind.”

Nowadays, people’s constant attachment to technology enables them to disengage from social interactions and avoid the “messiness” of human relationships, Colarusso wrote. “I think, more often than not, we are choosing to be alone — hesitant to recapitulate the violence of our antecedents, all the while committing (to) new forms of social violence,” like cyber bullying.

The tendency to use texting for deep conversations and the rise of ghosting are also factors that undermine healthy relationships, Rosengard said. There is a lack of clear, in-person communication that is needed for partners to understand each other and the state of their relationship, she added.

“It would be terrific to actually have some real specific training at a young age. How do you manage relationships?

How do you initiate them? How do you navigate them? And then, really, how do you end them in a way that is healthy?”

Rosengard said.

“Romantic relationships are really important ... and ... we put a lot of pressure on ourselves I think to get it right, but college is a really good time to start to figure it out what works and doesn’t work,” Perry said. “I would try to enjoy that learning process as much as you can, as hard as it is.”

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WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2019

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | TODAY

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S U D O KU

OMAS Cookies & Cocoa 11:30 A.M. Vartan Gregorian

Conducting an Effective Scholarship Search 12:00 P.M. South Street Landing

Public Health Wellness: BURP Massages 12:00 P.M. 121 South Main Street

Growth Lab LunchIdeen Raihi 12:00 P.M. Robinson Hall

TOMORROW ‘Aloha Hawaii’ Community Buffet Luncheon 11:30 A.M. Faculty Club

Epidemiology Seminar Series: Marc Weisskopf 12:00 P.M. 121 South Main Street

2019 Royce Fellows’ Final Presentations 12:00 P.M. Swearer Center

Chamber Music and AMP Strings Concert 5:00 P.M. Alumnae Hall

Q U OTE OF TH E DAY

“I myself am in a committed relationship with my Nintendo switch. … It’s comfortable and safe and sometimes fun.”

—Assistant Professor of the Practice in Literary Arts Andrew Colarusso SEE RELATIONSHIPS PAGE 1

WI NT E R WO NDE R L AND

REBECCA HO / HERALD

A snowstorm blanketed College Hill in white, quickly transforming campus into a winter wonderland as the end of the fall semester approaches. Although some students may have been disappointed by the snow’s failure to cancel classes, the freshly fallen options to build snowmen and go sledding provide pleasant distractions from impending finals.

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THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | COMMENTARY

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2019

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Editor ’s Note

Herald announces 130th Editorial Board

The ACCRIP: Hypocrisy lives To the Editor:

VICTORIA YIN / HERALD

From left to right, Alex Smolar ’21, Allie Reed ’21, Sophie Culpepper ’21 and Elise Ryan ’21 will join Colleen Cronin ’21 (not pictured, studying abroad) in assuming leadership over the newspaper’s production in 2020.

The Herald is proud to announce the members of its 130th Editorial Board, who will oversee the paper through its 129th year.

The 130th Editorial Board will be led by Editor-in-Chief and President Colleen Cronin ’21, an English concentrator from Harwich, Massachusetts. Allie Reed ’21, an English concentrator from Dover, Massachusetts, will serve as managing editor and vice president.

Joining them on the editorial board are Managing Editor Sophie Culpepper ’21, a history concentrator who lives in Oxford, England, and Senior Editors Elise Ryan ’21, an English concentrator from Mill Valley, California and Alex Smolar ’21, a history concentrator from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

The 129th Editorial Board is excited to see The Herald and its content develop next year under the leadership of the incoming board. We are so proud of you all.

The Herald also announced a new slate of section editors, business leaders and department heads: Section Editors Arts & Culture: Emily Teng ’22, Kate Ok ’22 Metro: Henry Dawson ’22, Isabel Inadomi ’22, Maia Rosenfeld ’20, Olivia George ’22 Opinions: Krista Stapleford ’21, James Flynn ’20.5, Jordan Allums ’21 Science & Research: Emilija Sagaityte ’22 Senior Science & Research Editor: Cate Ryan ’21 Sports: Ryan Handel ’22 University News: Daniel Goldberg ’21, Kayla Guo ’22, Kamran King ’22, Li Goldstein ’22, Olivia Burdette ’22, Spencer Schultz ’22 Social Media: Isabel Inadomi ’22 Newsletter: Daniel Goldberg ’21 Copy Chief: Vicky Phan ’22 Special Projects Coordinators: Jacob Lockwood ’21 and Melanie Pincus ’21 Business General Managers: Mariel Jackson ’21, Nicholas Fabrizio ’21.5 Directors: Arman Lateef ’21, Michael Wang ’22, Rey Blandon ’21, Shreya Das ’21, postEditor-in-Chief: Amanda Ngo ’21 Managing Editors: Caitlin McCartney ’22, Griffin Plaag ’20, Liza Edwards-Levin ’21, Nicole Fegan ’20 Multimedia Editors Design: Bilal Ismail Ahmed, Dylan Tian ’21, Keelin Lyons ’22 Photo: Rebecca Ho ’21, Victoria Yin ’22 Illustrations: Summer Zhang ’22 Graphics: Usha Bhalla ’22 Immersive: Michael Bass ’20 —Editor’s Notes are written by The Herald’s 129th Editorial Board: Emily Davies ’19.5, Priyanka Podugu ’20, Anna Kramer ’20, Anita Sheih ’20, Sarah Wang ’20

I was disappointed, saddened and, yes, outraged to read in the Dec. 3 Herald that the Advisory Committee on Corporate Responsibility in Investment Practices voted to recommend that the University divest from “companies identified as facilitating human rights abuses in Palestine.”

What about companies identified as facilitating human rights abuses in, for example, China (one million Muslim Uighurs held for forcible indoctrination in internment prisons, and then there is Tibet), Myanmar (one million Rohingya forced to flee the country), India (actions against its Muslims), Pakistan (actions against its Hindus), Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq?

Silence.

The intellectual dishonesty and hypocrisy are appalling.

The only honest word to describe singling out Israel is: anti-Semitism.

The vote mirrors the dramatic, ugly rise in anti-Jewish sentiment and actions throughout Europe.

For Brown University to go along with that? For shame.

Jeffrey Liss ’65

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2019

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD | COMMENTARY

7

Please, Mr. Kanders, stay

BY ANDREW REED ’21 STAFF COLUMNIST

Last July, Brown alum Warren Kanders ’79 P ’23 stepped down as vice chairman of the Whitney Museum of American Art amid a storm of protests by the activist group Decolonize This Place. The protests were sparked by reports that tear gas sold by Kanders’ law enforcement supply company The Safariland Group had been used against migrants attempting to cross the U.S.-Mexico border. For weeks, demonstrators stood outside the Whitney protesting Kanders and the sale of Safariland products to organizations like the New York Police Department, the Israel Defense Forces and the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees the U.S. Border Patrol.

Today, these same attacks are being leveled against Kanders, but from a different source. A group of Brown students and alums have spearheaded a campaign called Warren Kanders Must Go, which demands the University sever all ties with Kanders, a member of the advisory council for the Institute at Brown for Environment and Society and a generous University donor. They say Safariland’s sale of tear gas makes Kanders a “war merchant” with a “violent legacy,” a CEO whose company sells products that “strip migrants, refugees and marginalized peoples of their dignity and safety.” By accepting his donations, they argue, the University is legitimizing these kinds of business practices. For this reason, they argue that the University should dissociate itself from him: The University should remove Kanders from his advisory board position and should no longer accept his donations.

These calls for Kanders’ ostracism are unwarranted; the personal attacks, gross and defamatory. Not only is it unclear Safariland tear gas was used in several of the cases to which Kanders’ critics point, it’s even less clear that, in the instances where Safariland tear gas was used, it was used unjustly. But supposing you

concede these points, you’re still a long way from saying Kanders is in any way morally responsible for the actions of the organizations to whom he sells. The bar for excluding gifts ought to be a tall one. The criteria should be: “Was the money obtained through unjust means?” and “Does the donor have a record of statements or actions antithetical to the tenets of human rights?” It is clear that Kanders and his Safariland business dealings do not meet this standard for exclusion.

Does Safariland sell tear gas? Yes, one of its subsidiaries, Defense Technology, manufactures and sells tear gas. Have they sold tear gas to domestic and foreign law enforcement agencies?

Yes, but here’s where the critics’ argument begins to fall apart. In a 2018 op-ed in The Herald, Kanders’ critics point to four instances in which they say Safariland tear gas was used unjustly against protesters. Their first case is the 2011 Egyptian Revolution. The problem? Warren Kanders was not part of Safariland from 2007 to 2012. He left after the company was sold to British defense conglomerate BAE Systems, and he would not return until Kanders and Co. acquired Safariland in July 2012, more than a year after the revolution ended.

The op-ed also points to the 2016-2017 protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline near the Standing Rock Indian Reservation. To quash the protest, police used crowd control weapons like water hoses and tear gas, which resulted in the injury of 300 protesters. The anti-Kanders op-ed attempts to tie Safariland to this event by citing the “alternative news” source Unicorn Riot, which claimed Safariland crowd control weapons were among those that had been used against the protesters, a claim which the authors themselves concede no other news outlet has been willing to make.

There is solid evidence, however, that the U.S. Border Patrol, the Israel Defense Forces and police departments in Ferguson, Missouri, and Puerto Rico have used Safariland tear gas.

But since the Kanders critics have most recently keyed in on the Border Patrol incident,

that is the case I will focus on here. The undisputed facts are this: In late 2018, U.S. border patrol officers used Safariland tear gas on migrants, including children, who were attempting to cross the U.S.-Mexico border.

But beyond that, the reports are extremely murky. Some have described the event as a “peaceful march at the border,” while other reports have said migrants “rushed the border area” and “overwhelmed police blockades” before tear gas was deployed.

From these varied and conflicting reports, there is far from any consensus about whether officers were unjustified when they used tear gas at the border. The entire anti-Kanders argument hinges on that premise, yet, in their most recent op-ed, the writers make no effort to justify it.

They simply take it as given and then attempt to transfer the supposed guilt of the user onto the seller. But their op-ed has given no consideration to the possibility that using tear gas was justified in these instances. It is certainly possible that the authors’ premise is correct. But I reject that they know this for a fact.

Some people may defend this line of reasoning by saying that, in fact, it is never okay to use tear gas. But there is such a thing as a violent protest. There is such a thing as a riot. Think back to Charlottesville. Imagine if instead of marching around Confederate statues, the mob of white supremacists was marching toward a synagogue with the intent to commit violence. I, for one, want the police to have every tool necessary to defuse such a situation. Would the same people who criticize Kanders be against the use of his tear gas in this scenario? While there’s clearly a difference between migrants at the border and a mob attacking a synagogue, the point is that it is easy to foresee a scenario in which using tear gas is clearly not unjust and may even be necessary.

Weapons and tear gas are necessary to the mission of the Border Patrol and law enforcement agencies more broadly. And in some circumstances, these agencies may be justified in using tear gas. It may even be preferable to oth-

er crowd control weapons when attempting to disperse crowds that pose a threat to public safety. For this reason, it is not true that selling to these groups necessarily means you are selling to someone you know will misuse your product.

So the question becomes, “Do we forsake tear gas altogether because it has the potential to be used for evil as well as good?” I suspect if this becomes the new standard, we’ll have to ban far more than tear gas and dissociate ourselves from more individuals than just Warren Kanders.

Every weapon has the potential to be misused. But blaming the seller for the crimes of the buyer requires proving that the seller had a reasonable obligation not to sell to that individual.

But it is rarely that clear. There are inevitably cases in which a just sale of weapons results in an unjust use. In these situations, the blame for unjustly using tear gas lies with those actually deploying it.

Supplying law enforcement naturally leads to these types of ethical dilemmas. But the right to associate with Brown should not be a tool to be wielded against people with whom many, or even a majority of students take issue — particularly on an unsettled controversy such as this where there are people of good faith on opposing sides.

The Kanders case provided a perfect opportunity for constructive dialogue about ethical donations. Unfortunately, most of that conversation has been drowned out by the personal and toxic attacks on Kanders.

I don’t know Mr. Kanders. But given his long history as a Brown University benefactor and philanthropic supporter of the arts, I will give him the benefit of the doubt. And so long as he continues to support Brown, I thank him for doing so.

For months, protesters have chanted, “Warren Kanders Must Go.” Please, Mr. Kanders, stay.

Andrew Reed ’21 can be reached andrew_ reed@brown.edu. Please send responses to this opinion to letters@browndailyherald. com and op-eds to opinions@browndailyherald.com.

The Democratic party must concretely oppose Israel’s annexationist policies

BY ZACHARY HARRIS-GROSKY ’22, ISAAC KIANOVSKY ’23, JESSE EDELSTEIN ’23, ELANA NUSSBAUM COHEN ’23 AND ZACHARY FEDERMAN ’23 OP-ED CONTRIBUTORS

For decades, the long-standing consensus in American politics has been support for the two-state solution as the only viable resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Despite this, the situation on the ground in recent years has deteriorated to the point that the dream of two states appears bleak. President Trump’s backing of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s annexationist policies further entrenches the occupation of the Palestinian West Bank. In response, J Street U is engaged in a campaign to push the Democratic Party to take a more aggressive stance against settlements and the threat of annexation.

To fully appreciate the significance of this moment, it’s important to understand the history of this conflict. In 1967, Israel wrested control of the territory known as the West Bank from Jordan. Since then, Israel has carried out an illegal, systematic military occupation of this land. Israeli checkpoints limit basic Palestinian movement throughout the territory, settlements infringe upon Palestinian property rights and Israeli soldiers often engage in cruel and excessive violence against Palestinian civilians.

The occupation is not isolated from American politics. For decades, American leadership has maintained its opposition to the occupation, instead favoring a two-state solution. But American foreign policy has continuously failed

to take concrete steps to actualize this goal.

For example, the United States is the largest provider of military aid to Israel with $38 billion committed for 2019 to 2028. Military aid continues to flow despite settlement expansion and repressive actions against Palestinians in the West Bank that obstruct pathways toward the two-state solution. In recent years, Trump’s political maneuvering has further endangered prospects for a two-state solution.

Trump’s dangerous encouragement of Netanyahu’s right-wing administration has emboldened the Prime Minister, who proposed annexation of the Jordan Valley, an area which comprises approximately one third of the West Bank. In recent weeks, Trump reversed a long-standing U.S. policy that categorized Israeli settlements in the West Bank as illegal under international law. These policy shifts have thrown the already shaky viability of a two-state solution into unprecedented jeopardy.

Although American politicians have enabled Israel’s annexationist policies, progressive Americans have the power to challenge these dynamics. One way to do this would be to lobby the Democratic Party to adopt an explicitly anti-occupation platform. The current platform only vaguely supports a two-state solution without condemning the expansion of illegal settlements and threat of annexation: “We will continue to work toward a two-state solution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict negotiated directly by the parties that guarantees Israel’s future as a secure and democratic Jewish state with recognized borders and provides the Palestinians with independence, sovereignty and dignity.”

Without explicit stipulation of the measures

required to achieve a peaceful solution, this platform is rendered meaningless. In addition, its ambiguity allows Democratic politicians to express support for a two-state solution without any accountability for direct action against settlements and annexation.

In response to this insufficient position, J Street U is spearheading a campaign to pressure the Democratic Party to adopt a platform that categorically opposes the occupation. J Street U is the student organizing arm of J Street, a progressive national organization devoted to promoting a two-state solution in Israel and Palestine. We have proposed a platform that directly condemns settlement expansion and the threat of annexation: “The Democratic Party recognizes that the Israeli government’s current policy of settlement expansion, occupation and creeping annexation is an obstacle to any peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians, including the two-state solution. We believe that the U.S. government should hold the Israeli government accountable and use whatever means necessary in order to ensure that annexation does not occur. It is in the U.S. interest to preserve the possibility of a two-state solution by firmly opposing settlements, occupation and annexation.”

If the Democratic National Committee were to adopt this proposal, constituents would be able to point to a platform that holds party leaders to a standard of explicitly opposing further annexation and settlement expansion by any means necessary. This movement is gaining widespread acceptance: Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Pete Buttigieg, mayor of South Bend, Indiana, have proposed withholding aid if Netanyahu annex-

es the West Bank. In addition, Democratic and progressive student groups around the country have endorsed J Street U’s proposal. College Democrats chapters at Harvard and the University of Washington have unanimously endorsed this proposal.

Of course, this proposal alone will not solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The most critical work lies in the hands of grassroots activists organizing on the ground in Israel and Palestine. But a more progressive platform will reflect a new Democratic consensus that rejects American complicity in the Israeli occupation.

By pressuring the DNC to take an assertive stance against annexation and settlement expansion, Americans can ensure ensuing Democratic support for progressive policy.

As members of J Street U at Brown, we believe it is time to bring this campaign to Brown’s campus. We hope you will join us in this effort. We are looking to build coalitions on campus to build power and show our party what its voters want. It’s time for the Democratic Party to stand up for peace and justice in Israel and Palestine.

Zachary Harris-Grosky ’22 can be reached at zachary_harris-grosky@brown.edu. Isaac Kianovsky ’23 can be reached at isaac_kianovsky@brown.edu. Jesse Edelstein ’23 can be reached at jesse_edelstein@brown. edu. Elana Nussbaum Cohen ’23 can be reached at elana_nussbaum_cohen@brown. edu. Zachary Federman ’23 can be reached at zachary_federman@brown.edu. Please send responses to this opinion to letters@ browndailyherald.com and op-eds to opinions@browndailyherald.com.

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