Friday, February 08, 2019

SINCE 1891

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2019

VOLUME CLIII, ISSUE 12

WWW.BROWNDAILYHERALD.COM

Econ department ranks eighth in nation Former World Bank Pres.

Department credits recent discusses climate change hires for success, ranking determined by number of citations

By SABRINA CHEN STAFF WRITER

The Department of Economics was ranked eighth in the country last month by the Research Papers in Economics, which bases its rankings on the number of times a department’s work is cited in research papers.

The department’s ranking has fluctuated over the years but has recently trended upward. Professor of Economics and former Department Chair David Weil ’82 attributed the department’s success largely to its recent hires, which include Professors of Economics Rafael La Porta, Jesse Shapiro, Emily Oster, John Friedman and Bobby Pakzad-Hurson.

“Researchers at Brown are publishing articles and engaging in research debates that are central to the

progress of the field,” he said. “We’re happy with how we are able to hire faculty who are publishing works that are very visible and advancing the research mission.”

“Every person you hire changes the department,” he added. “They bring new areas of expertise, new subjects they can teach and new research tools.”

The ranking enhances the department’s reputation and visibility, allowing it to recruit better professors and doctoral students, said Oded Galor, professor of economics. This also improves training and future prospects for undergraduate students, he added.

The department has seen improvement in areas not reflected in the RePEc ranking.

Senior Lecturer in Economics Rachel Friedberg, who has been at the University since 1992, noted that the department has recently hired more women. “There were several years when I was the only female professor in the department, which was discouraging,” Friedberg wrote

in an email to The Herald. “Now, 10 of the 35 faculty members are women, and we have a woman Chair for the first time.”

Additionally, the number of courses offered in the department increased from 85 in the 2010-11 academic year to 97 in the 201718 academic year, according to the University’s institutional research website.

Catelyn Huang ’21, an applied mathematics-economics concentrator, enjoys the breadth of courses that the department offers. “I feel like Brown does a good job at having a diverse range of economics professors and classes that focus on different topics within the field of economics,” Huang said.

The number of undergraduate students studying economics has also increased over the past few years, said Anna Aizer, chair of the Department of Economics.

Jonathan Gomez ’20, an economics concentrator, noted that he wished Brown had more finance » See ECON, BACK

HENRY DAWSON / HERALD

Watson senior fellow and former World Bank President Jim Yong Kim discussed his concerns for the developing world at a talk Thursday.

Watson senior fellow Jim Yong Kim ’82 P’22 talked internet access, family roots

By HENRY DAWSON SENIOR STAFF WRITER

What can Brown prepare you for? If you use Jim Yong Kim ’82 P’22 as a

model, it could prepare you for a spot on Forbes’ list of the most powerful people in the world, a teaching position at Harvard, a presidency at Dartmouth, an opportunity to drive the World Health Organization’s work on HIV/AIDS and a tenure leading the World Bank.

A Brown degree might even prepare you to be a senior fellow in International and Public Affairs, just » See YONG KIM, BACK

Haffenreffer museum planned Uche ’21 breaks U. long jump record to move to Providence Ijeoma Uche exceeds 20Grant funds cataloging, organization of University anthropology museum’s collection

By DANIEL GOLDBERG SENIOR STAFF WRITER

The University plans to relocate the Haffenreffer Museum of Anthropology from Mount Hope in Bristol, Rhode Island — the site of a 2017 protest en-

campment by the Pokanoket Nation — to an unknown location in Providence, according to a Jan. 7 University press release. A timeline for the move does not yet exist.

The cataloguing and relocation of the Haffenreffer’s holdings, which include a large number of artifacts from indigenous peoples and various societies across the globe, will be funded by a $5 million grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The grant should » See MUSEUM, BACK

HERALD FILE PHOTO

The University announced plans to move the Haffenreffer Museum of Anthropology from Bristol, Rhode Island to Providence.

INSIDE

foot mark, boosts Bears to fourth in New England Championship

By KSHITIJ SACHAN STAFF WRITER

Last weekend’s New England Championship in Boston saw impressive performances from several athletes on the track and field, but the highlight of the meet was provided by Ijeoma Uche ’21, who broke a school record in the long jump.

With a leap of 20-3.00, she is the first long jumper in program history to break the 20-foot mark, and her award-winning performance helped the women’s team place fourth out of 27 teams. For her outstanding outing, Uche has been named The Herald’s Athlete of the Week.

NICOLE KIM / HERALD

Uche is the first in program history to break the 20-foot mark. She broke the record at last weekend’s New England Championship in Boston.

Herald: Congratulations on breaking the record! How did it feel to contribute so much to the team’s success?

Uche: It felt great. I actually broke the school record last year and then a senior broke it right after me, so to get it back and actually hold it this time made it better. My teammates are really supportive, so they made the experience even better. … I’m enjoying the season right now, and I can’t wait to see what the future has.

and perform at higher ranking schools and actually be competitive with them.

What are your goals for the rest of the season?

To go far this season, to win the Ivy Championships and to definitely go

How long have you been involved in track and field?

Since freshman year of high school. I was always doing long jump. I think I picked

Who is your favorite professional athlete?

I don’t think I really have one. … I just admire all the long jumpers. I take little things out of every one person professionally, so I don’t think I have a favorite. … I have a love for the sport itself and not for just an individual.

long jump because I couldn’t do the triple jump, and I fell in love with (it). I hated sprinting, and I enjoyed jumping more and was good at it, so I kept going with it.

If you could pick any other sport, what would you play?

My coach is going to hate me for saying this, but it’d have to be volleyball. I actually played! I played since sixth grade, so I really enjoy volleyball.

What goes through your mind before you go for a jump?

I put my mind where I want to be. In my » See AOTW, BACK

WEATHER

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2019

NEWS William Thirsk first newly created position of chief digital information officer

COMMENTARY Schapiro ’19: New MLB rule changes are unnecessary, detract from game of baseball

COMMENTARY Klein ’20: Chiefs, among others, should contend for 2020 Super Bowl title

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NEWS

PAGE 2 • FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2019

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

Thirsk named University’s inaugural chief digital, information officer New position created to help advance digital presence of U., ease work through technology BECKY WOLFSON STAFF WRITER

William Thirsk began his tenure as the University’s inaugural chief digital and information officer Feb. 1, tasked with advancing an efficient digital system for the University.

Each day, Thirsk is responsible for ensuring that technology systems are available, reliable and secure, and that the systems provide appropriate services to the people who use them — namely, students, faculty, staff, alumni and the greater community.

Prior to Thirsk’s appointment, many

people performed “different parts of the CDO’s function,” he said.

Part of his responsibilities include developing the Digital Transformation Project, which launched in 2016.

The project aims to improve the accessibility of the University’s digital presence by allowing students to access “everything they need information-wise about their progress, their classes, events on campus (and) student government” digitally, Thirsk said. It would also allow faculty and staff to “do the work they need to do easily, electronically,” such as grading and looking up rosters, he added.

“The overarching mission is to make sure we remain excellent in operations … (by) constantly enhancing communication digitally with our community and making sure we are using our data to find

insights to make a better (University),” Thirsk said.

Thirsk discussed plans to create new applications and to redesign the University website. He also hopes to facilitate technologies that are specific to various disciplines and clubs.

Thirsk will work directly with Provost Richard Locke P’18 and Executive Vice President for Finance and Administration Barbara Chernow ’79.

“Bill Thirsk joins Brown at a critical juncture, with technology central to nearly every aspect of our campus community,” Locke wrote in an email to The Herald. “We will look to him …to ensure that our systems are safe and secure, support rigorous scholarship and collaboration across geographic and disciplinary boundaries and promote an engaged

community,” Locke added.

Before becoming the University’s CDO, Thirsk served as the chief information officer at Marist College for over a decade. He also worked at SunGard Higher Education, where he explored the intersection of technology and academia.

“Bill’s strong technology background and experience coupled with demonstrated strategic understanding of the University’s needs make him an ideal leader for Brown,” Chernow wrote in an email to The Herald. “Throughout his career, he’s been effective in driving long-term projects to successful completion and building strong relationships within the organizations he has led.”

“I’m very excited about being here, everyone has been very helpful,” Thirsk said. “Students say hello

COURTESY OF BROWN UNIVERSITY

Thirsk is the University’s inaugural chief digital and information officer. and it’s just a really nice place to be,” he added. “I look forward to working very hard and making sure that Brown has the best digital platform out there.”

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Issue

In This

Sarah Lettes

2

20GAYTEEN

post- sweethearts 6

Dating Misadventures the skeptical romantic 6

Subtle Asian Traits Griffin Plaag 7

Nothing Feels Good Pia Mileaf-Patel 8

The Least Romantic Date in Providence

postCover by Connor Gewirtz

FEB 8

VOL 23 —

ISSUE 14

FEATURE

20GAYTEEN

Reflections on LGBTQ Visibility this Valentine's Day

By Sarah Lettes Illustrated by Molly Young

F

or many years, I unknowingly suffered from a gay music deficiency. The gayest song I knew for most of high school was “Same Love,” a same-sex marriage anthem rapped by a straight guy.

I first heard “Same Love” in tenth grade. I was standing in the kitchen, lazily scrubbing a pot from dinner, when a friend turned it on. I was so shocked to hear the word “gay” in a song that I had to listen to it later to confirm I had heard it correctly.

For the next few years, these five minutes and 18 seconds of music served as a portal that transported me into the future I imagined. Sitting on the back steps of my school, doing homework in my room, or hitting the pavement for a run, I would pull up “Same Love”

by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis ft. Mary Lambert, plug in my headphones, and listen to it over and over again.

The song carried me through a lot, sticking with me as I moved from iTunes to Spotify, from high school to college, and from Atlanta to Providence. It wasn’t until I was in Vietnam for a study abroad program that my friend Lucy helped me see the gaping hole in my music collection. “Same Love” was fine, she said, but there was a whole world of LGBTQ artists making amazing music that I was missing out on. She diagnosed me with a lack of queer artists and prescribed various treatments: Watch the “Girls Like Girls” music video

by Hayley Kiyoko (known to fans as “Lesbian Jesus”), listen to “Honey” by queer singer-songwriter Kehlani, and report back each day with thoughts on each new artist she introduced me to. Song by song, I slowly got a healthy level of gay music into my system and explored this new world of music that broke boundaries

at every turn.

This music went way beyond what Macklemore had given me. His lyrics envisioned a future where people could love who they loved; this new wave of artists was already living in it. Kehlani casually sang about the girls she loved; gay pop singer Troye Sivan crooned about breakups with guys. Every time I played these artists, I was struck not only by the messages of queer love flowing through my headphones but also by how nonchalantly these artists expressed them.

In many of these songs, the point wasn’t “I’m gay,” it was “why won’t this girl text me back?” or “when will this guy notice me?” or “I can’t wait to see this person again”—the same messages heard on Top 40 radio, just with different pronouns. Through these songs, I entered a world where queer love wasn’t a big deal, but

Letter from the Editor Dear Readers, Listen, we need to talk. Yes, I know we’ve never talked before; as a collection of newspaper pages, I am functionally unable to hear. So perhaps what I’m saying is that I need you to read carefully. In fact, you should probably let go of my sides and set me down on this table/desk/pillow right now. You’re not going to like what I have to say.

In short, I think it’s time for you to start looking at other magazines, and for me to find new readers.

I know…I know…it’s hard to hear, but please believe me when I say it has nothing to do with you. You’re a complex, multifaceted human being, whereas I am an editor’s note consisting of 407 English words (many just simple conjunctions); our romance is a semantic and metaphysical impossibility. And like, don’t take this the wrong way, but…there’s an age difference. It’s true. Though my paper comes from a ripe old birch tree, my ink is only hours off the presses, and you’re at least 20, probably. What’s that? You knew, and you didn’t care? You still wanted me “because true love has no age difference?”

Okay. Fine. In extreme bluntness, I’ve run out of

2!post–

things to say to you. Frankly, I’m unsure how you’re not bored of me as well. The extent of my knowledge on culture is limited to late ‘90s emo music and a single taco restaurant in the back of a West Providence supermarket.

If you look back, I even dropped hints that you should move on; half of the Narrative section is about how dating is an absurd human construct, inevitably ending in grievous emotional body blows. Literally half of the section. And if you missed those cues, my article about 2018’s increased LGBTQ visibility should have been blunt in communicating that I’m...interested in new experiences. You just don’t fit the bill.

Perhaps it was callous of me to tell you this right before Valentine’s Day, but I think my timing is expressive of the fact that I’m a jerk, and maybe remembering that will help you get over me.

For what it’s worth, I’ll be back in print next week, and if you can’t wait, there’s always The Brown Dail— Hmm, on second thought…

Maybe I do love you.

Julian

managing editor of arts & culture

Places To Tell Someone, “It’s Not You. It’s Me.” 1. In the Ratty, after you’ve used their swipe 2. During the weekend night rush at Jo’s, in between bites of mozz sticks

3. In your freshman dorm hallway 4. At Durk’s BBQ, while holding hands solemnly across the table

5. During your acoustic set at The Underground 6. In the eight-person seminar you both decided to take

7. At Shiru, followed by an offer to buy them a drink 8. In line at Andrews for pasta night 9. the whole exchange

10. In Blueno's hollow interior

FEATURE was just as difficult, joyful, and confusing as any other romance. It just maybe lent itself to music that was slightly more fun to dance to. I eagerly listened to these LGBTQ artists, and by the end of 2017, I had compiled my own small-but-mighty “Gaylist” on Spotify. I was proud of this playlist and would have been perfectly content listening to this same rotation of songs for the foreseeable future.

But Hayley Kiyoko had other plans for me in 2018. Before I had even eaten breakfast on New Year's Day, Lesbian Jesus had taken to Twitter with a prophetic message for her gay disciples: “It’s our year, it’s our time. To thrive and let our souls feel alive,” followed by a hashtag that would soon become iconic: “#20GAYTEEN.” Kiyoko was signaling that it was time for the gays to take over the world—or at least that 2018 could be an important year for LGBTQ visibility and acceptance.

Lesbian Jesus had spoken, and, as if she had sprinkled a cloud of rainbow glitter onto my Spotify account, songs to add to my Gaylist popped up at an astonishing rate. In February, genderqueer and gay singer-songwriter King Princess gifted the world with her debut single, “1950.” Hayley Kiyoko released her debut studio album Expectations in March. In April, Janelle Monáe came out as pansexual in Rolling Stone and released Dirty Computer, an album full of queer messages—from subtle references to bisexuality in “Make Me Feel” to bold and direct imagery in “PYNK.” Throughout 2018, new music flowed from every direction into my Spotify playlist; Rina Sawayama, Kim Petras, Christine and the Queens, Troye Sivan, and many other artists who identify as LGBTQ all released new music throughout the year.

Some of these artists, such as Troye Sivan or Janelle Monáe, made their way up charts and across the world. These artists redefined what it means to be pop stars, reaching global audiences with their own perspectives on love, gender, and sexuality, weaving LGBTQ love stories into mainstream pop culture.

In 2018, I watched Troye Sivan strut across a stage within eyeshot of the White House. I turned on pop radio and listened to bisexual artist Halsey sing about love. I talked to friends who were surprised to find that half of their favorite new artists identified as LGBTQ. Other queer artists have stayed out of the mainstream, pushing boundaries even further and thinking imaginatively about what queer love can look like.

This music set the soundtrack for a year full of important moments for LGBTQ visibility. I turned on the Olympics and watched figure skater Adam Rippon skate and spin his way into our hearts as the first openly gay U.S. athlete to qualify for the Winter Olympics. Love, Simon hit the theaters, the first romantic comedy centered on gay characters that I could watch at Providence Place Mall. Each time I walked into my living room at home, I saw my siblings watching shows with LGBTQ characters; a record 8.8 percent of broadcast scripted prime time characters identified as LGBTQ in 2018, according to GLAAD. And 50 percent of those LGBTQ characters were played

by People of Color, another record high. A “rainbow wave” also swept through the political world this year.

Over 400 LGBTQ candidates ran in the November elections. Jared Polis became the first openly gay man to be elected governor in the United States. And a record 10 representatives in Congress openly identify as LGBTQ. At times, it felt like I couldn’t pick up my phone without reading about important moments for LGBTQ visibility.

By giving 2018 a name, Hayley Kiyoko helped make the year one to celebrate each moment of LGBTQ visibility. 20GAYTEEN helped us recognize the enormous strides the LGBTQ community has made, both in that year and the ones before it. Moreover, 20GAYTEEN wasn’t simply a burst of rainbow fireworks and glitter that came out of nowhere; each step forward represented an accumulation of decades of efforts. Each time an organization pushed for a policy, an activist organized a rally, or people came out and shared their identity with the world, they added a multicolored drop to a big gay ocean that formed the rainbow wave of 2018.

However, underneath the layer of glitter that coated 20GAYTEEN, there’s still a long way to go. Even as mainstream LGBTQ acceptance seems to hit a new high, many queer people at Brown, throughout the United States, and across the world continue to suffer discrimination and silencing. For my friends who don’t feel safe coming out to their families, or for kids growing up in communities where being gay simply isn’t an option, no amount of LGBTQ characters on Netflix or songs with queer themes will be enough. Coming from accepting communities, it is easy for me to listen to this music that represents me, watch these movies that tell my story, vote for politicians who reflect who I am,

“It’s a scary time to have a uterus in America."

Halley McCarn, “Body Tell-All” 2.16.17

“Every New Year’s Eve, I have trouble sleeping. I knew I would probably stay up all night. I would probably stay up all year.”

Laruen Sukin, “the house” 2.18.16

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Anita Sheih a FEATURE Managing Editor Sydney Lo Section Editors Kathy Luo Sara Shapiro Staff Writers Sarah Lettes Caroline Ribet ARTS & CULTURE Managing Editor Julian Towers Section Editors Griffin Plaag Emily Teng Staff Writers Rob Capron Kaela Hines Pia Mileaf-Patel

and feel validated and excited to be living in this time period. I no longer need to listen to “Same Love” with my headphones in; I’ll blast Kehlani on my speakers for everyone to hear. I don’t need to watch Glee just to see a gay character; I can find non-token LGBTQ characters all over TV. On Valentine’s Day, I won’t feel like it’s a holiday just for celebrating straight couples; this year, it will feel more like a day to celebrate all kinds of love.

But for people who aren’t accepted and supported, this wave of media and political representation feels like baby steps toward equality. The world continues to tell LGBTQ people they don’t belong. The Trump administration has actively worked to roll back protections for transgender people—banning openly trans people from serving in the military, for instance.

“Homosexual activity” is still illegal in 70 countries, according to Equaldex. Thirty-five states have no laws preventing conversion therapy. Just last week, two people attacked actor Jussie Smollett while “yelling out racial and homophobic slurs,” according to Chicago police.

And that’s why the work that these artists, politicians, and activists do is so important. It’s especially clear on Valentine’s Day, which—whether you see it as a capitalist scheme, a day of romance, or an excuse to eat chocolate—is a day when love is incredibly visible. You can’t turn the corner without seeing advertisements for roses and dinner specials (okay, maybe it is a capitalist scheme). But, especially throughout the past few years, the picture of love in the United States has begun to change. Each time we’ve woken up on February 14, the idea of love that’s projected over the radio or broadcasted on TV looks a little bit different. This Valentine’s Day, we can be thankful for the artists and politicians who have bravely and boldly shared themselves with the world. We can celebrate the visibility that the LGBTQ community has gained in the past year. We can commit to doing more to spread this visibility—by being more open with our own identities, by using correct pronouns whenever possible, and by supporting organizations and representatives who are pushing for LGBTQ rights.

And we can enjoy all of the amazing music that artists gave us in 20GAYTEEN. So this Valentine’s Day, blast your own Gaylist, scroll through Netflix, and think about all of the queer TV romances you can bingewatch that didn’t even exist last Valentine’s Day. And get excited about this year, because it’s #20BITEEN. NARRATIVE Managing Editor Celina Sun Section Editors Liza Edwards-Levin Jasmine Ngai Staff Writers Danielle Emerson Abbie Hui Naomi Kim Anneliese Mair Kahini Mehta

SOCIAL MEDIA Caleigh Aviv Camila Pavon HEAD ILLUSTRATOR Rémy Poisson BUSINESS LIAISON Saanya Jain

CO-LAYOUT CHIEFS Jacob Lee Nina Yuchi COPY CHIEF Layout Designers Amanda Ngo Amy Choi Assistant Copy Editors Steve Ju Sonya Bui Nicole Fegan WEB MASTER Mohima Sattar Jeff Demanche

Want to be involved?

Email: post@browndailyherald.com!

“I’m just trying to figure out purple as a color.”

“I feel like I’m vaping, but it’s just cold.”

Febryary 8, 2018&3

NEWS

PAGE 6 • FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2019

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Subtle Asian Traits

Bubble Tea and Barnes & Noble

By The Skeptical Romantic Illustrated by Stephanie Wu

Dating Misadventures The Funny, Bad, and Unfortunate

By post- sweethearts Illustrated by Gaby trevino I went on a couple of dates with this girl I met on Tinder. She was cool, but she was intense in every single way that I wasn't—like talk-about-hardcorepornography-over-breakfast intense. I have not been able to look at yogurt the same way since. Anyway, I figured we weren't really compatible. But when she got up to leave after one of our dates, she noted that it was raining and looked at me in that way that expects something more than a shrug. Being the spineless fool that I am, I offered her my umbrella. No more than 15 minutes after she left, she texted me that she could come by later that night to return it. I did not invite her over that night. In fact, I did not contact her about the umbrella for a solid month before Providence's rainy disposition got to me. But I was so terrified of directly asking for it back that I almost threw myself in what could have been an awkward hookup scenario just to retrieve it. Luckily my roommate talked some sense into me. I got my umbrella back, but not without one last attempt from her to see my dorm. I'm happy to say it didn't get that far. ~~ It was fine—I just wish he had told me it was a date beforehand. ~~ I was bored, and somewhat lonely, while back home in Minnesota, so I finally gave in and created a Tinder profile. I destroyed it after approximately three hours of flipping through at least 87 profiles of shirtless men on boats holding the fish they'd caught. Classic. ~~ I was in Florida with my friends, and we were staying in my friend's grandmother's condo in a 65+ development. We thought it would be interesting to see if people of that age go on Tinder, so I raised my age maximum. Suddenly there was a multitude of 70-yearold men popping up. When I left the room for a few minutes, I mistakenly left my phone with my friends, and I came back to find that "I" had matched with a 75-year-old man less than a mile away who had superliked my profile. ~~ My experience with Tinder involves briefly activating it during periods of emotional distress only to quickly grow disillusioned with the vast superficiality

6!post–

of the world. But I did once spend three weeks chatting with a person only for her to turn down a date with me because she’d started dating my younger brother while I wasn't paying attention. C'est la vie. ~~ We've been messaging for weeks despite the distance, you ask if I have Spring Break plans, I say I don't, you say I should come to New York, I do, I take a bus from Rhode Island just to meet you, you text me when I arrive, we eat dinner together, you show me your room, we hang out with your friends, I laugh at all your jokes, you ask me about my life, we're sharing, we're smiling, we have so much in common, and then you send me off as if it never crossed your mind that I could like you.

ARE YOU THE DENSEST MAN ALIVE? ~~ My Tinder date waited for me at a local restaurant dressed in business casual, five minutes early, and with two BYOB beers uncapped. He was a senior prepping to work at Goldman Sachs next year; I (a freshman) was still wrapping my head around the difference between meal credits and points.

He invited me back to his place after dinner, but I made an excuse and returned to my dorm to share comfort snacks with my girlfriends.

"What was wrong with him?" they asked. He was definitely cute—he boasted a rigorous workout routine and even flexed at the dinner table—and was suave enough to brush snow off my jacket, but...

"He was too much of a grown-up," I said. ~~ We were a pair of star-crossed lovers. He was departing to Australia in a week; I was only in town for the summer, perhaps never to return—a truly classic tale of one right swipe meeting another. Messages met with emojis; jokes met with laugh reacts. Soon, we had plans for a night of bar-hopping and club-dancing. A couple of drinks in, arms were around shoulders, cheeks were flushed, smiles were shy. A couple more drinks in, we ran into a few of his high-school friends at the club. The next few hours were full of dancing, advancing, uncertainty, missed signals, and inaction. By 4 a.m., it was time to call it a night. He had an early afternoon flight the next day, after all. When we left, arms were still around shoulders, cheeks were still flushed, and smiles were still shy. But his arms were around her shoulders, his cheeks were flushed for her, and it was her smiles that were shy. As it turns out, she was his high-school ex-girlfriend.

There’s always the slight concern before meeting someone you started talking to online that the person is secretly an axe murderer and you’re going to meet an unfortunate end very soon.

This thought crossed my mind on the subway ride to meet said person in the city, but I had taken some precautions: I’d agreed to meet the guy in a public place, my friend knew where I was going and, most importantly, one of her high school friends was friends with him on Facebook, so I had some confirmation that he was not, in fact, an axe murderer.

Although I would like to say that I don’t make a habit of meeting virtual strangers for bubble tea, lately I have thrown caution to the wind and met a handful of guys from Tinder for this exact purpose—possibly because I’m recently single and possibly because I’ve read too many books and am thus always on the lookout for my next meet-cute.

I did not, however, meet this particular guy on Tinder. I first became aware of his existence last semester after my friend tagged me in a Subtle Asian Traits post about how boba actually means breasts, to which I commented something like “I hate the west coast” (a sentiment that stems from both the post and, possibly, lingering resentment over my ex. but eh).

To my astonishment, this guy liked my comment, friend requested me, and then sent me a message that went something like, “I know this is a super random add, but I laughed when I read your comment. It’s something I would say hahahaha.”

By this point, I was internally screaming, because like, this isn’t even the Subtle Asian Dating page??

But curiosity moved me to check out his profile. His picture was pretty standard—and, okay, his smile was cute. His wall seemed normal enough, and his message was at least somewhat self-aware. However, he hailed from Singapore and was going to school in Cali. My confusion increased. If this guy was trying to slide into DMs, he could have picked someone closer by. Also, my comment wasn’t even that funny.

Perhaps against better judgement, I responded to his message, and we had a sporadic, surprisinglyexpansive-but-not-in-depth conversation about the Subtle Asian Traits meme page, music, our respective majors (he’s computer engineering—yikes, do I attract a type?—and I’m English), and our parents.

Flashforward to winter break: I was scrolling through my Facebook feed when I saw that Subtle Asian Traits boy was visiting a friend in NYC. “Angry reacts only,” his post said. In a rare moment of city pride, I sadreacted instead. A few hours later, he messaged me and asked if I wanted to hang out in the city.

Cue more internal screaming. But, because I’m trying to do this new throw-caution-to-the-wind thing, I hazarded a yes, and we arranged to get bubble tea in K-Town.

My parents definitely think that meeting someone from online will end badly, so I scheduled the meetup for a day I was already going into the city for lunch with someone I had worked with during a previous internship. (Networking, wow. I can make good decisions too.) I told my parents that I was going to a nearby Barnes & Noble after the meal to read a graphic novel that I was very eager to finish but too cheap to buy—not technically a lie because I’d hoped to do so anyway after I’d hopefully survived this bubble tea experience—so I had the whole afternoon before me.

ARTS&CULTURE The Gong Cha where we agreed to meet was standing room only, with a capacity that maxed out after we entered. It was too warm and too crowded, and I could feel myself start to sweat as I tried to decide which of the many drink options I wanted, but conversation flowed surprisingly well as we waited for our orders. We talked about break and school, NYC and Singapore. He gallantly paid for my drink, and by then, I had decided that he was just a guy with slightly dubious social networking practices.

Our small talk continued as we left the confines of the tea shop to walk aimlessly around the neighborhood.

I learned that he’d only recently started college because he’d served two years of mandatory military service, and he was both concerned for as well as somewhat appalled by the freshmen. I supposedly impressed him by correctly guessing what his dad did as a hydrographer (#BrownClassof2020), and he made me laugh with the line “I left my axe at home, actually.”

He had mentioned over Messenger in an earlier conversation that he enjoyed reading and was down to go to a bookstore—which may have (definitely) influenced my final decision to meet him. A boy who likes books? What a concept. So when he asked if we should head somewhere in particular, I divulged my initial plan of going to Barnes & Noble and reading my graphic novel. (The day was going well, but I had my priorities.)

We ended up sitting in a corner on the second floor of the Barnes & Noble in Union Square, each reading our respective books. On our way there, we talked about our favorite genres and recent reads. He had picked up a lot of nonfiction lately (you can’t win ‘em all I guess) and preferred sci-fi over fantasy.

“The only fantasy series I really liked was Lord of the Rings,” he said, which, of course, prompted me to give him my hot take that LOTR really isn’t that great— it’s even, dare I say, quite boring.

“I laughed maybe once while reading the whole thing.” (I know the world building is extremely complex, but like, does anything interesting actually happen?

Debatable.)

The whole experience was surreal. We read for maybe an hour—the graphic novel was great by the way, 10/10 would recommend—and then we just started talking about random topics: food, family, summer plans. “I know this sounds fake,” he said, “but I’m going to my cousin Colin’s wedding this summer” in an accent exactly like Henry Golding’s from Crazy Rich Asians.

My laughter was probably too loud considering our surroundings.

If anyone had told my younger self that one day she’d be sitting on the floor of a bookstore laughing with a cute boy, she would’ve been downright giddy that her life was turning out like the stories she’d always read.

Now, I’m a bit more realistic and a bit more skeptical.

Though this experience may sound like an elaborate meet-cute, I didn’t and still don’t expect it to amount to much. We’ve returned to our respective coasts and may never see each other again. We message or snap only occasionally, and even then it’s mostly just exchanging memes.

Rather than entertain swooping romantic notions, I’ve come away with the unexpected realization that some risks—granted, somewhat-well-thought-out ones that minimize the likelihood of axe murder—may result in bizarrely positive experiences. I don’t consider myself a very daring person, but I think I can count this day as a thrilling and memorable adventure: I got to meet someone from another corner of the world, learn about a different set of life experiences, and gain a new friend.

Also, he claimed he would mail me one of his favorite books, and that’s definitely a plus, too. I’ll let you know if I ever get it.

Nothing Feels Good

Make '90s Emo Music a Quick Cure for Valentine's Day Loneliness

By Griffin PLaag Illustrated by Ashley Hernandez

Oxford English Dictionary to understand what they’re singing about (sample 2014 emo lyric: “I searched for a way out, don’t we all? / An existentialist recall: turn in all dichotomies and truths”).

What stalwart defenders of the genre and pretentious jerks like myself might call “real” emo grew out of the post-hardcore scene—bands whose innovations married instrumental complexity to punkish intensity. Likewise, early emo was more interested in depth of sound than it was with clever wordplay or straightforward radio-stable chord

It’s Valentine’s Day—that unique yearly moment

progressions. The introspective lyrics were there, of

when we gather together, buy each other cheap

course, and distinguished the genre. Some of you have

Hallmark cards (or maybe a heart-shaped box of those

probably heard “Never Meant” by American Football,

plastic-tasting Russell Stover chocolates), and declare

the most obvious single to bandy about as evidence of

our undying love for whomever we happen to be

the wistful beauty of early emo, and it’s hard to deny that

dating/hooking up with/crushing on at this particular

“I just think it’s best / because you can’t miss what you

run through the calendar. But, for a moment, let’s

forget / so let’s just pretend / everything and anything

forget that Valentine’s Day is an expertly conceived

/ between you and me / was never meant” hits like a

corporate racket designed to sell teddy bears and roses.

kick in the teeth. But often the lyrics weren’t the focus

Let’s pretend the date February 14 signifies anything

at all—bands were more interested in exploring topics

at all. And let’s remember (if you haven’t already been

like How To Make Our Guitars Sound Really Loud and

forced to by the numbing recognition that “we’re all

How To Do That Thing Where My Strat Sounds Like A

alone,” or however you’ve decided to justify this year’s

Streak Of Iridium Light Across A Darkening Violet Sky.

romantic malaise) that for a lot of people, Valentine’s

The other thing that people who once saw a picture

Day isn’t about cute-if-overpriced love grams—it’s the

of All Time Low and thought “ew” are missing about

reminder that they’ve failed to conform to an age-old

early emo is that it’s actually an incredibly multifaceted

(inexplicably privileged) social standard: that everyone

genre of music despite adhering to similar lyrical

should have a love life.

premises. The difference in sound between two genre-

It is for this dilemma—spending Valentine’s Day

defining classics, Sunny Day Real Estate’s Diary (1994)

alone—that I’d like to propose a musical solution: emo.

and Mineral’s EndSerenading (1998), is drastic—the

And no, I don’t mean that you should tune into your

former much hookier and post-hardcore-influenced

local alt radio station and try to catch “The Middle” and

and the latter more slowcore-adjacent and melancholy,

“I Write Sins Not Tragedies” as many times as possible.

with drawn-out vocal performances abound. And both

I’m talking about a deep dive: a well-researched foray

bands are distinctly opposed to the sweeter sounds of

into the weird and wonderful world of white guys

contemporaries like American Football and The Get

singing about how sad they are over twinkly waterfalls

Up Kids, who were more liable to, say, toss in a trumpet

of electric guitar and the occasional trumpet.

melody from time to time. Hell, talk about sonic

Emo gets a bad rap, and there are good reasons for

diversity—SDRE’s How It Feels to Be Something On has

that. I mean, it’s hard to name your band The World

got to be one of the weirdest albums I’ve ever heard,

Is a Beautiful Place and I Am No Longer Afraid to Die

combining their emo roots with eastern influences

without coming off like a bit of an asshole. And with

to create music evoking a six-week spiritual march

blink-182 dominating the genre’s radio representation,

through the desert into the mouth of a flaming sun (no,

despite blurring the line between emo and the oft-

that’s not gratuitous—it’s just true).

dreaded pop punk (as well as what words have “o”

The artists involved in this early scene were

sounds vs. “oi” sounds), it’s not hard to see why people

brimming with creativity and musicality. I’d hazard

today dismiss emo music wholesale: It appears kind

to guess that if 20 years ago you’d told the dudes from

of puerile and, well, morbidly embarrassing. But emo

The Promise Ring that their musical legacy was going

music wasn’t always humiliatingly prolix or produced

to be influencing Sleeping With Sirens, they’d have

by the same people who wrote “I Wanna F*** a Dog in

been pretty pissed off. And the kicker is that not all

the ss.” There’s an entire era of alternative music—what

emo is even sad! The Appleseed Cast’s Mare Vitalis,

we’ll call “emo proper”—from the late ’90s and very early

which I’m pretty sure means something approximating

’00s that has faded from popular memory. These bands

“sea of life,” features some of the most vital music I’ve

were created for and by lonely people everywhere, and

ever come across, rife with rollicking guitar riffs and

unlike their modern successors, you don’t need your

wistful references to the mysteries of the ocean. Buried

Febryary 8, 2018&7

ARTS&CULTURE beneath the loneliness of good emo is a kind of joie de vivre (for interested parties, there’s an early 2010s emo band that’s actually called Joie de Vivre—how apt!), an unquenchable vivacity that only the sorts of people who look at the sun setting on the cold hairline of the trees and think “I’m gonna write a song about this” could musically communicate.

Is emo self-indulgent? Yep. Is it ultimately a genre dominated by a bunch of white dudes singing about mostly invented problems? Most definitely. But on a holiday that’s all about indulgence and is, by all accounts, concerned with mostly invented traditions, I’d recommend letting go and checking out music from any of the artists mentioned here, especially if you’re in need of an upper while your friends are out buying those chalky heart candies for their S.O.’s. Emo’s full of artistry and complexity, but it’s also all about catharsis—mostly romantic—the kind needed by the lonely hearts of the world. If you’re a solo Casanova tonight, don’t despair—sad white dudes from the ’90s have your back. And besides, this holiday is pretty students by eating a banana weirdly (his prefered damn stupid anyway.

The Least Romantic Date in Providence

La Poblanita, a Taco Restaurant in the Back of a Supermarket

By Pia Mileaf-Patel illustrated by Owen Rival Photograph by Jasper Davies On the one hand, we in Generation Z are often thought of as activists—the outspoken salvation for millennials, who ruined the planet with avocado toast and Instagram “hog dogs or legs” photos. Yet our elders still pity us for our supposed ineptitude when it comes to relationships, platonic or otherwise; apparently, we’re too busy scrolling through Twitter to converse with one another.

I recently partook in a survey about dating among Generation Z. One question gave me pause: “What is dating?” That’s a big question, one I’m still not sure how to answer. However, I can offer you places to go on a date, whatever you think a date is.

Me, I’ve gone on some dates. Recently, I’ve been made a bagel sandwich by someone I was dating.

I’ve had a platonic dinner with a friend to celebrate the end of finals. I’ve been asked several times on Tinder to go on a date at a dining hall. I’ve never followed through. Instead, I deleted my Tinder account. As one of my friends said, the Ratty is for sitting alone in a corner and freaking out other

8!post–

method is to peel the whole thing and then chomp a bite right out of the side; other times, he’ll split it into segments by shoving his finger into the core until it unfurls like some sort of flower. Fruit Satan).

So it’s only natural that, given the chance to recommend restaurants for dating around Valentine’s Day, I would seek out the least romantic date in Rhode Island. I can offer a lot of suggestions— our state is lovably weird. Consider walking around an abandoned fairy-tale-themed amusement park in the cold. But despite my winding preambles, postambles, and general tangents, my role at this magazine is to write about dining, so I went on a date at a restaurant.

La Poblanita, an inconspicuous taco stand in the back of a Mexican grocery shop and bakery, was as good as my date and I could do for “least romantic” while still eating great food. Also, my roommate loves and raves about this place; he generally provides fun and trustworthy eating recommendations, despite being encumbered by his hatred of all fish.

In the back of La Poblanita, past a refrigerator of produce, a few aisles of dry goods, an entire, wonderful aisle of hot sauce, several stacked boxes of cowboy boots, and beside a meat counter displaying packages of chorizo and flank steak to marinate, there are three tables: a four-top and a couple of two-tops. Rounding out the room, there is a door with a bell that’s been marked in red Sharpie with a huge arrow and a big, orange photo menu on the wall with a tiny cartoon girl pointing at each of the dishes. She pops up in the border of every photo, suggesting each dish with a mischievous glance, and her shirt always blends into the background in a different way. Sometimes, she’s lost in the

dark orange color of the menu. In others, her shirt becomes the white of the plate, and once, the red of some refried beans as she smiles and points to a plate of carne asada. The restaurant features at least twenty of her cartoons, popping up in different sizes all over the menu poster.

When we arrived, the four-top was fully occupied by a family; the little kids played computer games while their parents finished eating. After we sat down at one of the two-top tables, an older couple sat at the other, ordered immediately, and were finished in ten minutes. That was a date.

There is a lot to consume at La Poblanita; a wall-sized drinks refrigerator contains every flavor of Jarritos and a handful of vintage or unusual sodas, along with all of the usual stuff. We drank kids bottles of Sunny D—which, if you forgot, come with blue nipple caps that you actually have to kind of suck on to get the drink out. The menu includes tacos, tortas (including a Torta Hawaiana, outfitted with pork chops, pineapples, pickles, and cheese, which, though we did not order it, I found… intriguing), taquitos, guacamole, green pozole, and almost as many types of meat as soda flavors to choose from. The eating area is tiny, smells amazing, and has a casual warmth to it.

Most things we ate tasted amazing. Chorizo tacos topped with shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes, crema, and crumbly cheese were piled with meat. The guacamole and the tamales were especially scrumptious. Spice in the guacamole came mostly from the crunchy bites of onion that made it uniquely delicious. The taquitos were mostly a vehicle for consuming as much salsa as possible, which squeezed out in red and green varieties from ketchup and mustard squirt bottles.

Eating as much salsa as possible is never really a bad thing, especially at La Poblanita, though I suppose you should refrain from simply drinking it. The red one was hot, smoky, and complete with an afterthe-fact nose sting. The green was garlicky, herby— perfect to drench the chicken inside of the rolled up and fried tortilla.

Since this is a Valentine’s Day publication, I suppose I must suggest you bring a date. But you can also go here on not a date, because the food will still be fantastic. I can highly recommend at least four things from the menu, and am willing to gamble that everything else is great as well. I want to go back.

You could also go somewhere else on a date.

Ask someone out: a friend-crush date, a real-crush date, a mom-and-daughter date, a two-dudes-broing-out-over-breakfast-sandwiches date. Or, take yourself on one—but maybe that misses the point.

COMMENTARY FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2019 • PAGE 11

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

Don’t change extra-innings ball JAMES SCHAPIRO

SPORTS COLUMNIST Well, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred is at it again. Here’s Ken Rosenthal, reporting Tuesday in The Athletic: “As part of a Jan. 14 proposal to the players’ union on pace of play, baseball suggested a rule requiring pitchers to face a minimum of three batters, sources told The Athletic. …

If no agreement is reached, the collective bargaining agreement empowers Manfred to unilaterally implement three elements he formally proposed last year, according to sources — a 20-second pitch clock, a reduction of mound visits from six to five and a rule placing a base runner on second base in spring training games and the All-Star Game when the score is tied after the 10th inning.”

For some strange reason, Manfred keeps returning to this idea: That placing runners on second base every inning after the 10th will somehow improve baseball. It’s difficult to express fully how illogical this is, but I’ll give it a shot: 1: The proposal only comes into effect in the 11th inning. Anyone who has stayed through the first ten can’t possibly care that much about the game moving slowly. If anything, you’d think that to make the game more exciting for casual fans, rule

changes would target the early innings, when most spectators are still in the stadium. As a hardcore baseball fan myself, I am likely to stay for extras, and also likely to dislike this proposal. It’s a little bit like a movie theater holding an Oscar-winning movie marathon, but adding a mandatory screening of Adam Sandler’s

3: The proposal will turn innings after the tenth into soporific repetitions of a formula: sacrifice bunt, intentional walk, intentional walk, try for a sacrifice fly. Each extra inning will become an exercise in game theory. The visitors will play it safe and aim to score just one run: They won’t want to go for a big inning and come

are exciting! They’re suspenseful!

How could it possibly be a good idea to impose a rule that would make them less so? Imagine if during college football overtime, where teams take turns on offense, each drive started inside the red zone. Again: Both teams will score more, but the runs won’t matter as much.

Mathematically speaking, the proposal literally accomplishes nothing.

“Jack and Jill” afterwards.

2: Mathematically speaking, the proposal literally accomplishes nothing. Each team gains the same advantage, so the advantages cancel each other out. It achieves the same thing as adding twelve runs to each team’s score every inning, and it adds as much excitement to the game: none.

More runs will score, but they’ll mean a lot less.

away with nothing, effectively handing the game to the home team. Once the away team scores one run, the home team will likewise play it safe, knowing that it only has to score one run to tie, and that if it goes all-out for a big inning, it might not score at all. One boring run every inning, one after another. What’s the point of this rule again?

4: On a related note: Extra innings

5: People hate it! A March 2018 Marist University poll asked selfidentified baseball fans what they thought of the proposal. 67 percent responded that it was a “bad idea,” and every demographic agreed. In the northeast, 64 percent thought it was a bad idea, and in the South, 65 percent said the same. 65 percent of fans aged 18-29 opposed the rule, as did 67 percent of fans aged 60 and

older. Howard Schultz could take a page from Rob Manfred’s book: It’s exceedingly rare to see Americans from such varied walks of life so overwhelmingly united.

I genuinely cannot fathom why Manfred has pushed this proposal so strongly. He has advocated for it for several years now, and it seems like an enormous waste of whatever political capital he may have. Even if Manfred views speeding up extra innings as an accomplishment, the dislike for his proposal is overwhelming. Rob Manfred is enthusiastically supporting a proposal that the vast majority of baseball fans oppose.

Why? The only answer I can think of is that Rob Manfred really believes in what he is proposing. It is his sincere, genuine conviction that extra innings lasting too long is an urgent problem, and that he should take drastic action to fix it. Fortunately, an overwhelming majority of American baseball fans disagree with him. Unfortunately, he seems to believe in his inane proposal so staunchly that he may be willing to push it ahead anyway.

James Schapiro ’19 can be reached at james_schapiro@ brown.edu. Please send responses to this opinion to letters@browndailyherald.com and op-eds to opinions@browndailyherald.com.

NFL favorites for next year GEORGE KLEIN

SPORTS COLUMNIST After a Super Bowl that was entertaining only to Patriots fans and punting enthusiasts, the NFL season has come to an abrupt and anticlimactic end. While teams like the Kansas City Chiefs brought offensive fireworks to the forefront of the league for most of the year, in the end, defensive gameplanning won another Super Bowl for New England. It goes to show that the old adage “defense wins championships” still holds some validity.

Even in a time when quarterbacks can throw for 5,000 yards in a season without breaking a sweat, big games have been decided in the trenches — a balanced team is necessary to contend for a championship. Considering the league landscape for the upcoming season, the following teams are the biggest contenders to win a Super Bowl in 2020.

1. Kansas City Chiefs The Chiefs were a coin toss away from defeating the Patriots in the AFC Championship Game and reaching Super Bowl LIII. New England couldn’t stop Kansas City in the second half, and holding them out of the end zone in overtime would have been a lot to ask. Ultimately, the Chiefs’ defense let their explosive offense down. Kansas City is look-

ing to make the necessary changes though, firing Defensive Coordinator Bob Sutton after a disastrous season in which the Chiefs surrendered the second-most yards in the entire league. The Chiefs need only an average defense to allow their offense to dominate and win, and a new scheme seems like the best way to quickly adjust while their championship window is open. Patrick Mahomes had an incredible campaign in his first season starting, throwing for 5,097

Miracle in 2017 and the no-call in favor of the Rams a few weeks ago, no team has more motivation to win than the Saints do. Next year has to be the year; Drew Brees is 40 now and showing slight signs of slippage. It’s harder for him to dial up long balls, though he still played fantastically throughout this past season. New Orleans needs to upgrade its receiving core around Michael Thomas. They got caught relying on one wide receiver in the playoffs, when Los Angeles sold

3. New England Patriots Surprise, surprise. The Patriots continued their unprecedented stretch of greatness, winning the sixth Super Bowl of the Tom Brady and Bill Belichick era. Many will question the team’s merit again over the next year, but, in the end, New England always seems to find the way to victory. The major offseason storyline? The possible retirement of Rob Gronkowski. The tight end has absorbed a lot

But if you’re counting on this New England run coming to an end in 2020, you’re sure to be disappointed.

yards and 50 touchdowns. With more experience under his belt, he should be able to rein in some of his poorer throws and decisions, which will only further elevate him above any other quarterback in the game. Add in Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce, and the Chiefs are formidable favorites.

2. New Orleans Saints The Saints have now suffered back-to-back heartbreaking losses in the playoffs. After the Minneapolis

out and covered Thomas at all costs.

Ted Ginn and company couldn’t produce when necessary. Giving Brees some more options is the first priority for the Saints, but beyond that, I can’t see any real weaknesses. Mark Ingram and Alvin Kamara form a fearsome combination at running back, and Cam Jordan and Marshon Lattimore dominate defensively. The Saints will return to the playoffs next year. But can they finally break through in the biggest moments?

of major hits and injuries over the course of his career and looked like a shell of his former self for much of this season. It seems like a good time for Gronk to move on. Brady, meanwhile, did not perform at his best all year long and struggled for most of the Super Bowl. He will turn 42 before next season starts, and you have to think that he’ll continue to slow down. But if you’re counting on this New England run coming to an end in 2020, you’re sure to be disappointed. Belichick is too masterful at game

planning. We’ll see the Pats in another AFC Championship game next January.

4. Cleveland Browns I didn’t want to go completely chalk, so let’s talk about a potential surprise contender. The Browns will hear a lot of hype over this offseason thanks to all of their young talent, and there is a case to be made that Cleveland could secure the AFC third seed in the playoffs next year. The Browns went 5-3 after the firing of Head Coach Hue Jackson and should only improve with a stable coaching structure in place as their core gains more experience. Baker Mayfield, Nick Chubb and Jarvis Landry form the foundation of a potent offense.

Add in Myles Garrett, Denzel Ward and Jabrill Peppers on the defensive side, and you have a complete team ready to take that next step. Cleveland feels a lot like the Los Angeles Chargers — after a 9-7 record in 2017 that went under the radar, the Chargers broke out, going 12-4 and reaching the playoffs this season. Watch out for the Browns. They could contend for a long while.

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.

NEWS THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

» ECON, from page 1 classes for students who want to “go into the corporate world” instead of studying economics theoretically.

In the past, the Department of Economics had significant strengths in only some fields, such as economic growth and development, Galor said. But with the recent hiring of new researchers and faculty members, the department has broadened its strengths to fields such as applied microeconomics, short-run macroeconomics and finance, Galor added. Increased donations have also funded more undergraduate teaching assistants and undergraduate research assistants, Weil said.

The department is working with the University on an expansion plan, which may include hiring around eight additional faculty members, Aizer said. “The University has been

» YONG KIM, from page 1

an incredible partner,” she added.

“They want to see the quality of the department rise and make sure they serve their students well.”

The department plans to focus on hiring in “certain areas where we think we need more faculty,” Aizer said. “For example, monetary policy is an incredibly relevant topic given the ongoing policy discussions these days, and we hope to expand in that area.” Additionally, both Weil and Aizer noted the need for more econometricians given the increase in demand of that field.

Aizer is hopeful that the department will continue to rise in national rankings. “All of the top programs have much larger faculty than we do,” Aizer said. “If we really want to move up in the rankings, we need to expand our faculty, and the University has been very supportive.”

1.

like Kim, who gave a talk Thursday to commemorate his senior fellow acceptance at the Watson Institute of International and Public Affairs.

Watson Institute Director Edward Steinfeld — who moderated the Watson Distinguished Speakers Series talk — introduced Kim and thanked him “for continuously giving back to the community here,” referencing Kim’s work as a trustee on the Brown Corporation.

Kim spoke about his vision for tackling climate change, his time at the World Bank and strategies for developing impoverished countries.

Kim has taken a position as Vice Chairman and Partner at Global Infrastructure Partners, an international group that invests in global infrastructure, after stepping down as president of the World Bank Feb.

» AOTW, from page 1

» MUSEUM, from page 1

mind, I’m thinking “attack this jump as if it’s your last.” Every single time, attack this jump.

allow the museum to more easily consolidate its operations, which are currently divided between Bristol and Providence, the announcement stated.

The University is “currently exploring potential spaces near the Brown campus” to serve as the new, singular location for the museum, according to the press release.

The Mellon Foundation’s grant will also allow scholars and the public to increase their access to the museum’s holdings, according to the announcement. The Haffenreffer has been almost entirely closed to the public since 2008 because the museum does not meet fire code requirements for large numbers of people, said Russell Carey, executive vice president for planning and policy.

Members of the Pokanoket Nation began their encampment in Aug. 2017 in protest of the University’s ownership of the Mount Hope property where the museum is located, The Herald previously reported. The encampment ended Sept. 25, 2017, as the University agreed to transfer a portion of the Bristol property into a preservation trust.

Robert Preucel, director of the Haffenreffer Museum, hopes that the relocation of the Haffenreffer to Providence will help facilitate the “study of indigenous culture” in New England, according to the press release.

How do you feel like sports have influenced the rest of your life?

It definitely sets up a structure for my day. Especially here at Brown it’s very rigorous academically, and (sports) serves as a place of relief. Maybe (if) I’m not doing as well in a class, I can go to the sport I love and do my best and know that I feel good again. I feel like myself.

Being at Brown definitely challenges you in multiple ways and having that outlet that you just enjoy and have a passion for really takes the experience a long way.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Ranking of Brown’s Economics Department

In the last ten years, Brown’s Economic Department has consistently been ranked among the top fifteen in the country.

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Kim is looking to address prevailing issues in developing countries — particularly, climate change.

“The reason I stepped down now … is if you take all the money that’s coming through foreign assistance, and you then add to it all the money that’s coming through multi level development banks, it doesn’t begin to touch the need in developing countries,” Kim said. “Almost every day I read something new about climate change that really worries me,” he added. “There’s not a single African leader who can’t tell you story after story about how climate change is affecting their lives. The Syrian crisis followed three years of drought in a row.”

To Kim, climate change and global economics are inherently intertwined: “What are the forces in the world powerful enough to drive a

What are some of your favorite memories with the team?

Definitely last year at my first (Ivy Heptagonal Track and Field Championships).

The energy and the support you get from the team is amazing. … You feed off other people’s performances, which makes your performance better. We have some enthusiastic and supportive teammates, which makes the experience even better.

Everyone gets into it, even our coaches.

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2019

complete change in the way we think about energy? … There’s no force I can see other than market forces,” Kim said. “We have to find ways of aligning market forces so that, literally out of greed, people are running to make investments that will protect us from the most devastating impacts of climate change.”

Kim thinks that some vital steps to combat climate change will require drastic provocation. “I’m waiting for that moment where something so devastating happens that people are looking around saying ‘Oh my God, this is terrible, what do we do?’ And the first answer is a price on carbon,” he said.

Kim also advocated for investment in developing countries to improve quality of life by increasing internet access, explaining that this will increase desire for economic prosperity.

For Kim, improving the quality of life in developing countries has personal roots. His parents met and married in the United States, and “by coming to the United States, their aspirations were lifted, and when they went back to Korea they thought, ... ‘We’re not going to able to provide the things the United States can provide to our kids. And so, we’re going to move to the United States,’” he said.

“Now, everyone on Earth is going to be able to have the experience my parents had directly, and they’re going to see it right on their smartphones,” Kim said.

“Developing human capital” to prepare for the future economy was another idea Kim discussed. When asked about the role Brown and other institutions of higher learning can play in this process, Kim said that the University, with President

Christina Paxson P ’19 “leading this charge,” will try to develop ideas to promote higher quality higher education around the world.

Eve Formisano, director of Strategic Initiatives at the School of Professional Studies, came to the event because she was “excited to learn about what (Kim is) doing next,” she said.

“It’s exciting for him to bring … his global perspective and thoughts on how his Brown experience impacted his life beyond Brown.”

Kimberly Duru GS attended Thursday’s talk and had seen Kim speak at the Watson Institute previously. “It was amazing,” Duru said.

One of her takeaways from the talk was that “leaders and countries and everybody in leadership positions need to be very innovative about challenges we have now. Things are changing rapidly, and the old methods may not honestly work.”

CORRECTIONS An earlier version of the Feb. 6 articled titled “University sees 20 percent drop in language enrollment” stated that Dean of the Faculty Kevin McLaughlin proposed a potential language requirement. In fact, McLaughlin suggested that faculty encourage students to take language courses regardless of their requirements. The Herald regrets the error.

An earlier version of Feb. 7 article titled “Recent alum testifies on criminal justice reform” stated that Rachel Black ’16 testified in support of House Bill 196. In fact, she testified in support of House Bill 5196. The Herald regrets the error.

An earlier version of the Feb. 7 article titled “UCS elects new VP, chair of academic affairs” stated that UCS Vice President William Zhou ’20 cited his work with Christians at Brown. In fact, he referred to his work with FirstGens@Brown. The Herald regrets the error.

An earlier version of the Feb. 7 articled titled “Grad Student Council unveils plan for new Strategic Initiative” stated that Chair of Technology Majesta Kitts GS said an executive board report addressed vacancies in University committees such as “student observers to faculty meetings and members of the university resources committee.”

In fact, Chair of Nominations Rebecca Thorsness GS said this. The Herald regrets the error.