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Nutritional Nuggets

Cornell Close-Ups profiles Prof. Levitsky, who went from “hating” college to teaching nutrition. | Page 3

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U.A.Aims to Centralize‘Disjointed’Campus Code

Students say overlap and policy ambiguities inhibit campus awareness of rights By SOFIA HU Sun Senior Writer

tionalizing the Rights of Cornell Community Members” given to the U.A. Tuesday, Minikus said University policy is “located all over the place in a disjointed fashion.” She proposed centralization as a means of raising awareness about what a person’s rights are on campus and which administrators are in charge of handling, implementing and revising codes.

Codes, Codes, Codes

is authorized by the Board of Trustees and subject to recommendations from the Codes and Judicial Committee, according to the code. The “responsible office[s]” for Policy 6.4 — which address sexual assault and violence issues — includes the Office of Workforce Policy and Labor Relations, the Office of the Judicial Administrator and the athletics department. The Academic Integrity Code is established by the Faculty Senate. The Residential House Rules — which all residents of University residence halls and program houses must follow — can be found on the Living at Cornell website. Residents are also subject to the terms and conditions of their housing contract. In addition, policies regarding Greek Life are overseen by the Office of Fraternities, Sororities and Independent Living. However, these codes often overlap, according to Minikus. A student living in a residence hall must follow both the campus code ALEJANDRO HERNANDEZ / SUN STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER and the house rules, though dif-

These codes deal with many aspects of life on campus, including academic integrity, dorm living and Greek life. Not only are students subject to a number of codes, different administrators handle each one. The Campus Code of Conduct — which sets forth “basic principles and important policies” regarding “conduct” —

If you are a student leaving Uris Library at 3 a.m. and a Cornell University police officer approaches you and asks for your identification, what are your rights? If you are a professor and a CUPD officer asks to search your office, what are your rights? If you are an employee and a CUPD officer asks to search your gym bag, what are your rights? Members of the Cornell community are subject to a number of University policies and codes that often overlap, which is contributing to a lack of awareness of the rights Cornellians have on campus. Ambiguities and overlap in these codes has led to cases in which Cornellians are unsure or ignorant of how to assert their rights, according to Amanda Minikus grad, a judicial codes councilor. Minikus and Student Assembly members are trying to address this issue by centralizing these codes and making them widely available to all Taking a stand | Amanda Minikus grad, Sarah Balik ’15 and Juliana Batista ’16 propose centralizing campus Cornellians. In a presentation titled “Institu- codes at a University Assembly meeting Tuesday.

See CODES page 4

C.U. Police Find U.A.: No Advance Notice for Free Speech Events 250 Bags of Heroin At Parking Lot By SOFIA HU

Sun Senior Writer

By GABRIELLA LEE Sun Staff Writer

Cornell Police charged a 24-year-old man Tuesday afternoon for the possession of 250 bags, or $4,000 worth, of heroin, according to police. An officer on routine patrol checked on an occupied vehicle in a parking lot owned by the University in the 400 block of Stewart Ave., where they found a hypodermic needle on the floor of the vehicle, according to police. Henry D. Roshane — a Jamaican citizen — was charged with third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance and arraigned in Ithaca City Court, according to a press release.

Roshane is currently held in the Tompkins County Jail on $3,000 bail. Cornell Police and U.S. Customs and Border Protection were able to determine upon further investigation that Roshane entered the United States in 2004, but has since “remained illegally,” according to police. Two other occupants of the vehicle were released at the scene. Roshane and the other occupants of the car are not affiliated with Cornell, according to the release. Police said one of the occupants was also wanted “out of Florida for non-extraditable drug warrants.” Roshane is due to appear in Ithaca City Court Friday. Gabriella Lee can be reached at glee@cornellsun.com.

The University Assembly declined President David Skorton’s request to include a provision in the Campus Code of Conduct that would recommend event planners to submit advance notice for free speech events Tuesday. In an 8-1 vote approving Resolution 3 — titled “Response to the President’s Request for ‘Limited, Voluntary Advance Notice’ — the U.A. decided not to amend the Campus Code of Conduct. Skorton first asked that the U.A.’s Codes and Judicial Committee introduce “a limited advance-notice procedure to allow staff to adequately prepare and safeguard participants” on June 26, in response to a resolution the U.A. passed March 11. That resolution proposed several amendments to the campus code to clarify freedom of speech. A draft of the resolution included a suggestion that protesters provide advance notice for on-campus demonstrations, but this was removed following lengthy discussion and protest from community members. With the vote yesterday, the U.A. again affirmed the decision not to include recommendations for advance notices.

CJC decided against the President’s However, according to Prof. request, because such notifications are Randy Wayne, plant science, the “potentially restrictive to spontaneous campus code does not provide recomexpression and contrary to the spirit mendations. and purposes” of the campus code, “It’s not in the code to give recomaccording to the resolution. mendations,” said Wayne, who is also “It’s important that we add no addi- a member of CJC. “It’s principles.” tional restrictions that would make The U.A. has considered issues on expressions of free speech limited on freedom of speech in the campus code this campus,” said Joseph Fridman ’17, since 2013, following an Nov. 2012 a CJC member and undesignated at- incident where both Students for large representative for the Student Assembly. “We “It’s important that we add no decided to preserve the fideliadditional restrictions that would ty of the code and we decidmake expressions of free speech ed not to act on President Skorton’s suggestion after limited on this campus.” discussion with the CJC, Joseph Fridman ’17 which included members of the Employee Assembly and S.A. [as well as CJC member] Kathy Justice in Palestine and Cornell Israel Public Affairs Committee protested on Zoner.” Prof. Ronald Booker, neurobiolo- Ho Plaza at the same time. gy and behavior, a member of the A Faculty Senate investigation of the U.A., said he believed President protest — during which a Cornell Skorton’s requested addition on an University police officer allegedly advance notification would have been pushed faculty members supporting SJP a “recommendation” to the campus and threatened them with arrest — reccode and not a set principle. ommended clarifying the campus code. “It might give someone pause on the The Senate also concluded that the right benefits and costs of having a permit,” to protest without having to file a form Booker said. “You don’t recognize a dif- called the UUP should be preserved. ference between a recommendation and a principle. We want thoughtful consid- Sofia Hu can be reached at shu@corenllsun.com. erate actions [from protesters].”

2 THE CORNELL DAILY SUN | Wednesday, February 25, 2015

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George Dimopoulos: Novel Roles of Insect Housekeeping Proteins As Immune Factors 12:15 - 1:15 p.m., 2123 Comstock Hall

Tomorrow 2015 Cornell Greenhouse Update 8:30 a.m. - Noon, Boyce Thompson Institute, Auditorium Wikipedia Editing Workshop 1 - 2 p.m., 106G Olin Library Nonprofit and Government Career Fair 1 - 5 p.m., Statler Ballroom

Rare Watch Bought for $5.99, Sold for $35K PHOENIX (AP) — A watch collector spotted a rare Swiss timepiece in a Phoenix secondhand store, bought it on sale for $5.99 and then sold it for $35,000. Zach Norris said he went to a Goodwill store in January to look for a golf cart but took some time to peruse the watch section. It proved to be time well-spent. Norris said he was excited when he recognized the 1959 Jaeger-LeCoultre diving watch, he told KTVKTV. “I’ve found some stuff in the past that I have been really excited about and stoked, but this is one of those things you’re like, ‘One day, one day it will happen,’ and it happened for me,’ Norris told the TV station. Norris took his purchase to a dealer for the brand, Oliver Smith Jeweler in the Phoenix suburb of Scottsdale. The business’ watchmaker authenticated the timepiece, Vice President Paul White said.

Tree Obama Planted In India Actually Alive NEW DELHI (AP) — Officials in India want to

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Umpteen speedy televisions perused two sheep, then umpteen tickets towed Jupiter, and Dan untangles five progressive orifices. Umpteen quixotic aardvarks annoyingly bought two Macintoshes. Umpteen bureaux tickled two extremely putrid botulisms. Paul sacrificed one lampstand, then Jupiter marries the very quixotic pawnbroker. Five purple poisons laughed, yet umpteen chrysanthemums kisses five aardvarks. Batman noisily untangles one Jabberwocky. Two Macintoshes laughed, then one extremely schizophrenic Jabberwocky drunkenly untangles two sheep, however Quark telephoned umpteen obese Jabberwockies. Five irascible botulisms slightly lamely auctioned off the subway, and five chrysanthemums easily untangles one mostly speedy Klingon. Five dogs drunkenly perused

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make one thing clear: The tree that President Barack Obama planted in New Delhi three weeks ago is not dead. It just looks dead. The peepal tree was awash in leaves when Obama planted it at the New Delhi memorial to Indian independence leader Mohandas K. Gandhi. By Thursday, though, it was just a single lonely stem. Its lack of leaves has been giving Indian officials sleepless nights, with the media here blasting them for allowing the tree to die less than a month after the presidential visit. But the reality: Peepal trees often lose their leaves this time of year.

Rescue Turtle Travels to California NEWPORT, Ore. (AP) — A sea turtle that was rescued from frigid Northwest waters and treated at the Oregon Coast Aquarium in Newport is catching a ride back to California on a Coast Guard training flight. The aquarium says the endangered olive ridley turtle named Solstice is being airlifted Tuesday on a Coast Guard C-130 and will complete her rehabilitation at SeaWorld in San Diego.

THE CORNELL DAILY SUN | Wednesday, February 25, 2015 3

NEWS

Prof.David Levitsky speaks about journey to nutrition By MOLLY KARR Sun Staff Writer

Prof. David Levitsky, nutritional sciences, is famous among his students for his interactive teaching style, which includes cooking in class and creating rhymes and songs to help them remember content. “It is hard to guess how long it takes for me to prepare for a class,“ said Levitsky. “I can tell you that songs take a week on average.” Levitsky said he first arrived at Cornell in the fall of 1968 as a postdoctoral fellow, after receiving four degrees from Rutgers University. Once Levitsky completed his postdoctoral work, he said he chose to stay at the University in order to conduct research on feeding behaviors and malnutrition, he said. For the past 25 years, he has taught courses in obesity, the regulation of body weight, nutritional science, nutrition in society and overal health in the College of Human Ecology. “I get up about 5 [a.m.] every morning, work from five o’clock until 8:30 [a.m.], and then I come in and use the rest of the morning preparing, digging into the most recent literature and current events to keep my students interested,” Levitsky said. “My downfall is that I always want to put stuff into lecture, but I never want to take any information out.” In addition to teaching, Levisky said he conducts studies on the effects of self-weighing, co-wrote the book Fed-up! about how obesity is treated in today’s society, is an avid cyclist and loves to cook up a good stir fry. Levitsky said he never planned for a career in academia, and did not enjoy his freshman year at Rutgers University. “I actually hated college — I didn’t want to be there,”

PHOTOS BY MICHELLE FELDMAN / SUN SENIOR EDITOR

Levitsky said. “I came from a little farm town in southern New Jersey so when got to Rutgers I just felt very out of place.” Originally, Levitsky said his life goals did not even include a degree. “My major ambition in life was to be a TV repair man in high school,” Levitsky said. “It was fascinating that you could take this big, huge piece of equipment and logically go from one end of that TV to the other

and find that part that didn’t work and can change it to work.” Levitsky, whose research centers around the psychology processes that guide nutritional choices, said he found his passion for nutritional psychology through what he called “pure chance.” During his second year at Rutgers, Levitsky said he took a job wiring up equipment for a new professor. That professor turned out to have worked with psychologist B.F. Skinner, and Levitsky said he found himself introduced to the field of behavioral psychology. “I was offered the chance to conduct [psychological] research because of the [connections I made through my job] wiring up the Skinner boxes,” he said. “I was the

only one who knew how to fix the equipment if it broke, so that’s why the researchers offered me a research job.” According to Levitsky, his experiences with these professors helped him learn to work through complex problem solving processes. “What intrigued me was that, every morning, I would go get coffee with these [professors] and hear them argue,” Levitsky said. “They would break down difficult subjects and find out what was wrong and fix it. It reminded me of how someone would repair a television set — isolate the problem and figure out how to make things work again.” After Levitsky finished his Ph.D. at Rutgers, he said Richard Barnes, dean of Cornell’s graduate Department of Nutrition, invited him to give a talk on campus, which led him to a career at the University. “One of the most wonderful things about [Cornell] is that you can find experts in any area — I can find programmers, economists and physiologists all working on the same program,” Levitsky said. “It stimulates me.” Levitsky said one of his favorite experiences at Cornell came during his first year in Ithaca, when he became involved with a South African justice movement going on at the University. “The best time I had at Cornell was during the apartheid demonstration,” Levitsky said. “I got very involved [in the African apartheid issue]. It was inspiring to see both the students and faculty working together in trying to get Cornell to divest from corporations in South Africa.” According to Levitsky, being a teacher has not only been a rewarding experience for him, but has also been pivitol to his research. “No matter how many times I’ve taught nutrition, I learn new stuff by seeing it through my students eyes,” Levitsky said. “The most exciting part of science is when you challenge an idea and you might be right. I want to show my students that this is an exciting place to be.” Molly Karr can be reached at mkarr@cornellsun.com.

Ithacans React toTipped-Worker MinimumWage Increase By JEANETTE SI Sun Staff Writer

Service workers in Tompkins County stand to gain from a new policy announced by the New York State Department of Labor Wednesday regarding a new $7.50-an-hour minimum wage

for all tipped workers — service employees who derive at least some of their wages from tips — statewide. This change, effective Dec. 31, 2015, is projected to affect over 200,000 New York employees, according to the NYSDOL website. Pete Meyers, Tompkins County

K.K. YU / SUN STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Taking orders | Danielle Sims ’16 gives a check to patrons of the Statler Hotel's Regent Lounge Tuesday.

Workers’ Center director, said workers in according to Meyers. He said that restauTompkins County will have more rant wait-staff earn a baseline of $5 per “money in their pockets” because of the hour, while delivery drivers earn $5.65 and minimum wage increase. resort workers earn $4.90. The regulation “I can’t help but think that this new would standardize these baselines to a uniregulation will act as an economic stimu- form $7.50. lus for a fair amount of workers,” Meyers While Meyers said he is happy to hear said. about the new DOL regulation, he still At an October 2014 State Wage Board said this new minimum wage is far from hearing, Meyers said he and his TCWC sufficient for the average service worker. colleagues testified before a panel of state “Being [part of] an organization that labor officials about the benefits of raising has, as one of its primary purposes, ensurthe minimum ing that everywage, in which “It will put more dollars in the hands of one is able to he highlighted be self-suffithe fact that these employees who, in turn, will spend cient as a result it in their communities to purchase the of their work, I establishments often pocket would say that, goods and services they need.” service workno, $7.50 is ers’ tips. He not enough,” Stephanie Thomas cited a 2009 Meyers said. DOL investi“One of gation of Ithaca restaurants as evidence. [TCWC’s] workers … a delivery driver for “The DOL found a range of [compen- a pizzeria, [still] talks about how he and his sation] violations, totaling close to wife have to apply every winter for [heat$90,000, in 14 of the restaurants that … ing energy assistance] because his wages [were] investigated in Ithaca,” Meyers said. weren't high enough.” “Perhaps the restaurant industry has been Prof. Stephanie Thomas, economics, getting an unfair subsidy all along with who is a research associate for the Institute this unfair sub-minimum wage.” of Compensation Studies, said she believes As of right now, service workers’ wages vary greatly across different industries, See WAGES page 5

4 THE CORNELL DAILY SUN | Wednesday, February 25, 2015

NEWS

Balik ’15:‘Definite Need’to Address Complexity of Codes CODES

fall of 2013 when CUPD officers entered and searched students’ dorm rooms when students were not in the room and in -ferent administrative units handle each class. Residence advisors opened the doors code. If a student is found in violation of to those rooms, and the stumultiple codes, he dents were unaware of and or she may have to did not consent to the “It’s confusing for face the consesearch. quences set by sever- students and for parents. “I went to residence hall al administrators, directors and asked … ‘Are … There is a definite including judicial R.A.s authorized to open a need for a group to administrators and door and consent on behalf residence hall direcof a student that is not address this issue.” tors. there?’ And they did not Sarah Balik ’15 “When students know,” Minikus said. “I end up in these asked the judicial adminisprocesses, they don’t trator, and she also did not necessarily know what it’s supposed to know.” look like,” said Sarah Balik ’15, S.A. presNot all of these searches led to students ident and U.A. member. “It’s confusing being found in violation of campus code, for students and for parents. … There is a Minikus said. However, for all students definite need for a group to address this who were cited for a violation, Judicial issue.” Administrator Mary Beth Grant J.D. ’88 did not pursue their cases. Privacy “She threw out the cases because it didWhile the codes overlap in several n’t seem like the evidence was obtained in places, they also fail to collectively address a fair manner, so the process worked,” other issues, including the right to privacy, Minikus said. “But the problem is, you Minikus said. Neither the house rules nor can’t depend on the right person in that the Campus Code of Conduct enumerate position every time to do the right thing.” or clarify a student’s right to privacy in Cornell Police Chief Kathy Zoner said their residence hall or anywhere else on that without having time to review campus. CUPD and Judicial Administrator The only mention of privacy in the records, she could not recall any such case. Campus Code of Conduct states that it is “We’ve never taken that liberty,” Zoner a violation of the code to “intentionally said. “If one of my officers did take that invade privacy or misappropriate property liberty, we would have a strong conversarights.” tion with them and retrain them, because According to Minikus, this has led to we train to respect a person’s privacy. … interactions between students and CUPD We don’t search rooms without consent or officers during which “individual rights a warrant.” may have been violated.” Minikus said she has never observed an Minikus said that as a judicial code incident involving any CUPD officer durcounselor, she saw several cases during the ing which the officer was “being maliContinued from page 1

stand their rights. cious.” “It’s important for students to educate “Have I seen what I believe to be individual rights violated on this campus? Yes, themselves on what their rights are and to especially in the context of expectation of know their housing contract,” Zoner said. privacy in your residence hall, but that is “People need to understand where the not because the officer is a malicious lines are.” actor,” Minikus said. “It’s because those rights are unclear.” Tackling the Issue According to Zoner, if the judicial Minikus said she believes centralizing administrator notices a case in which a the various codes which govern University CUPD officer oversteps the limits of life would enable members of the Cornell appropriate conduct, the judicial adminis- community to understand their rights. trator notifies the police chief ’s office. “This is to make sure that students, “Usually what happens in those cases is staff and everyone in the Cornell commuthat the J.A. would tell me that the officer nity understand that there are things that pushed the limits,” Zoner said. “We make they’re allowed to do and there are things sure to hold the officer accountable and that they aren’t allowed to do,” Balik said. retrain them.” Whether a new group would be The issue is further complicated by the formed to undertake the proposed cenfact that, while CUPD officers are depu- tralization of the codes or whether such a tized in the county and are state actors, duty would be incorporated into the they are also Cornell employees operating Codes and Judicial Committee remains on private property. undecided. “There is an argument “We’re looking to that they should be held [the U.A.] to figure “It’s important for to the standard of any regout a good place or a ular police officer, unless good group of people students to educate it’s clear that you have that could potentially consented away some of themselves on what their take on this task,” rights are.” your rights,” Minikus Balik said. said. “It’s unclear in interJuliana Batista ’16, Kathy Zoner actions with CUPD, executive vice presidepending on where you dent for the S.A. and a are and what you’re doing, U.A. member, said what your rights are.” she believes addressing this issue will However, Zoner said that the CUPD “empower the shared governance system.” officers are “very well trained on bound“This is a way to start and to put it aries and lines.” under the responsibilities of the shared “While we are private employees, we governance system,” Batista said. tend to treat people following constituRubin Biggs and Gabriella Lee contional rights,” she said. tributed reporting to this story. Though she said CUPD officers are “trained to respect privacy,” Zoner also Sofia Hu can be reached at said students should also work to under- shu@cornellsun.com.

THE CORNELL DAILY SUN | Wednesday, February 25, 2015 5

NEWS

Ithacans Discuss Potential Be smart. Benefits of Wage Increase Read the comics WAGES

Continued from page 3

this decision will be economically beneficial in the short term because the increase in wages will spur an increase in consumer spending. “In the short term, tipped workers will most likely feel better off as a result of the increase,” Thomas said. “Most likely, it will put more dollars in the hands of these employees who, in turn, will spend it in their communities to purchase the goods and services they need.” However, the probable effects of this change is less clear in the long term, according to Thomas. “The net benefit of the increase to tipped workers depends on how the prices of the goods and services they purchase adjust over time.” Thomas said that in theory, all tipped workers should be earning total wages which,

including tips and baseline salaries, equal the minimum wage. However, “in practice, some tipped workers may be earning below the minimum wage,” she said. Despite being optimistic about the DOL’s new regulation, Thomas said she believes that Ithaca’s economy would not be as affected by this change as other parts of New York, whose economies are more reliant on hospitality. “The economic engine of the community is higher education; Cornell University and Ithaca College are the top two employers in the county, drawing experienced and skilled workers to the area for specialized employment opportunities,” Thomas said. “That being said, Ithaca — and Tompkins County — do have a tipped workforce. I think that workforce will benefit from the new legislation, and the economy of the area may benefit as well.” Jeanette Si can be reached at jsi@cornellsun.com.

‘Courageous’ Seattle Missionary Abducted in Violence-Torn Nigeria SEATTLE (AP) — A Seattle missionary described by friends as courageous, tenacious and passionate about helping the people of Nigeria has been abducted from a school in the violence-torn African nation, her church says. The Free Methodist Church said in a statement on its website that it received a report Monday morning that the Rev. Phyllis Sortor was kidnapped from the Hope Academy compound in Emiworo, Kogi state. The message from Bishop David Kendall says the U.S. Embassy has been notified, and the State Department and the FBI are working with local authorities to find and rescue her. Kendall didn’t immediately return a call and email from The Associated Press. Nigeria is a country marred by violence, from militants and bandits in the oil-rich south, to intra-tribal and religious violence

across the center of the country to a five-year-old northeastern Islamic uprising, the last of which alone has killed 10,000 people in the past year, according to the U.S. Council on Foreign Relations. The State Department said it is aware that a U.S. citizen has been reported missing in Nigeria, where kidnappings for ransom are common. An FBI spokeswoman in Seattle, Ayn Dietrich, said the agency is trying to confirm the reports. Friends and colleagues say Sortor is a visionary who gets things done and doesn’t back off. “She is my inspiration of courage,” Mike Henry, staff pastor of the Wenatchee Free Methodist Church in Washington state, told the AP. Henry has taken several trips to Nigeria to work with Sortor on projects, including bringing wheelchairs to polio victims, building schools and introducing

a cattle-grazing program to herdsmen. Sortor is scheduled to come to the central-Washington city next week to talk about her missionary work and to help raise money to build secondary schools, Henry said. If she learned about a village with kids, Henry said, “she would get in a canoe and travel over there, meet the kids, set up sponsorships and build a school.” Sorto’s parents were missionaries in Mozambique, and she grew up there, Henry said. She graduated in 1964 from Seattle Pacific University, which is affiliated with the Free Methodist Church, said Tracy Norlen, a university spokeswoman. “We are proud of her untiring service to God and the people of Nigeria, and are earnestly praying for her safety and immediate release,” Norlen said in a statement.

Referendum Submitted by Trade Group Suspends Calif. Plastic Bag Ban SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — A trade group has turned in enough signatures to put a referendum on California’s plastic bag ban on the November 2016 ballot, suspending implementation of the nation’s first statewide ban until voters can weigh in, state elections officials said Tuesday. The plastic bag manufacturing trade group American Progressive Bag Alliance had 555,000 of the roughly 505,000 valid signatures needed to qualify the referendum after a random sample of the signatures, said Bill Mabie, chief deputy for Secretary of State Alex Padilla. The group had submitted more than 800,000 at the end of last year. After one of the fiercest legislative battles of 2014, pitting bag-makers against environmen-

talists, Gov. Jerry Brown signed the bill last fall. It was scheduled to be phased in starting in July at large grocery stores and supermarkets as a way to cut down on litter and protect marine life. But the American Progressive Bag Alliance said the ban amounts to a cash giveaway to grocers that would lead to job losses. “California voters will now have the chance to vote down a terrible law that, if implemented, would kill 2,000 local manufacturing jobs and funnel obscene profits to big grocers without any money going to a public purpose or environmental initiative,” the group’s executive director, Lee Califf, said in a news release. Supporters of the statewide ban criticized manufacturers for

spending millions on the referendum campaign in order to continue selling single-use plastic bags. “This is a cynical ploy by out-of-state interests desperate to delay a ban already adopted in more than 100 communities across California,” Brown’s spokesman Evan Westrup said. Mark Murray, a spokesman for Californians vs. Big Plastic, said the coalition of environmental, labor, and business groups is confident that California voters will uphold the existing statewide ban. “It’s not surprising that after spending more than $3.2 million, 98 percent of which is from out of state, the plastic bag industry has bought its way onto the California ballot to protect its profits,” Murray said.

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Alex Rehberg ’16 Annie Bui ’16 Anushka Mehrotra ’16 Jayne Zurek ’16 Noah Rankin ’16 Jael Goldfine ’17 Maddie Cohen ’18 Rebecca Blair ’17 Anna Fasman ’16 Joanne Lee ’18

Editorial

Improving the Arts At Cornell (and in Ithaca) FIVE YEARS AGO, THE UNIVERSITY CUT $1 million from the Department of Theatre, Film and Dance, creating the new Department of Performance and Media Arts. To this day, the negative cultural and financial effects of these cuts are still costing the Ithaca community, The Sun reported Thursday. Such losses include 22 faculty and staff members in the department, a decrease in the number and scale of Schwartz Center productions and a loss of Collegetown patronage. We at The Sun urge administrators to help restore the relationship between the arts at Cornell with the greater Ithaca community. The University has made some strides this year to increase productions around campus through PMA’s #150Events, which brought Theatre In A Day and visiting filmmakers as well as master classes to the Schwartz Center in Collegetown to commemorate Cornell’s sesquicentennial. Additionally, the department is interviewing candidates for a new assistant professor of performance, according to an email from the performing and media arts department, which will add to the roster of performance-based classes available to undergraduates. However, in recent memory we have seen the amount of mainstage performances cut in half from six to three performances a year. And despite the efforts of the University and the #150Events programmers, it is unclear whether Cornell will maintain a comparable number of performances and events after the sesquicentennial. While we understand PMA is not a conservatory program, students should have access to the resources needed for performances year-round. By reducing the number of productions, Collegetown businesses also experienced a decline in patronage, The Sun previously reported. We recognize that Student Assembly Resolution 48, which calls for the creation of a task force to strengthen the relationship between the performing and media arts department and the Ithaca community, is a step in the right direction. However, we still urge the University to do more to increase the arts and cultural relationships between the Ithaca community and Cornell. The state of the arts at Cornell is not only important for student expression and those majoring in the performing and media arts, but also to the cultural proliferation to the student body and Ithaca at large. To offset the negative impacts of past budget cuts and the lackluster state of PMA, the University must increase the quality of the department by raising the number of productions and quality of resources for student artists.

The Education of An Athlete

ast week, ESPN published a fraudulent courses, while opportunistic lengthy feature on Yankee third ex-athletes are suing the school for baseman, Alex Rodriguez (“The depriving them of a “meaningful educaEducation of Alex Rodriguez”), detail- tion.” Eye-opening numbers reflect the ing his personal growth over the course extent of the academic deficiency of of an unprecedented season-long sus- some student athletes. A CNN report pension from Major League Baseball. indicated that nearly 10 percent of athFilled with all the introspective letes who play revenue-generating moments afforded to a man who could sports for schools read at an elementary very well use $10 bills as a substitute for school level. Kleenex in his psychiatrist’s office, this The root of this problem, though, article victimizes Rodriguez, making can be traced to how athletes are treated reference to his fatherless childhood on a daily basis. The manner in which and lack of formal education. His we are treated by others influences the enrollment in marketing classes and way in which we view the world. So, if family values — spending New Years friends, family, clubhouse attendants Eve in a Batman suit with his daughters and reporters suggest that succeeding — surely humanizes A-Rod. In this tan- within the sports arena trumps all other talizingly human depiction of a player societal obligations, players will reflect conventionally deemed duplicitous and these attitudes through their actions. child-like, it’s hard The patholonot to want to root gy of the marfor him in a twistginalized athed underdog fashlete — the So, do athletes have an ion. Wouldn’t it alcoholic, the obligation to be academic make for a great PED user, baseball movie? etc. — can be masterminds, uttering Bradley Cooper linked to this playing Alex profound thought-provoking treatment. An Rodriguez, whose October New tragic career, filled monologues during their post- York Times with performance ditorial game conferences? No, that edescribing enhancing drugs, the scandals and petty p a m p e r i ng would be absurd. locker room drama and insularity is recovered by a associated single, clean seawith professon. Barring a miracle, though, this sional locker rooms reflects the onemovie will never get the green light. dimensionality of these players. Until Like it or not, his career is unsalvage- faced with scandal, they are excused able, spoiled by immaturity, deception from all adult responsibilities (condiand flat out lies. tional on their continued athletic sucAlex Rodriguez is a prime case of the cess, that is). implications of a sports system that So do athletes have an obligation to pampers players throughout their be academic masterminds, uttering procareers and puts academics on the back- found thought-provoking monologues burner until all physical ability has been during their post-game conferences? fully extracted. His feelings of academic No, that would be absurd and unreaand personal inadequacy are indicative sonable. Rather, they should be given of a broader problem: Athletes who perspective every once and a while. become so ingratiated into their sport Programs such as the NBA Rookie that they lose sight of both the implica- Transition Program are great opportutions of their outside actions and the nities to inform players of some of the obligations of being on the public stage. responsibilities and challenges they will Part of this problem is clearly related face as professional athletes. Navigating to academics. Recent scandals have put through social media, learning how to the spotlight on the questionable rela- deal with finances and resist other tionship that college athletes have with temptations — see, Alex Rodriguez — their respective academic institutions. are just as important for these players The University of North Carolina at careers and lives as hitting that crucial Chapel Hill is currently dealing with jumper. the fallout of creating bogus African American studies courses that received Susser is a junior in the College of Human practically zero academic oversight. Philip Ecology. He can be reached at Outside investigators such as Kenneth pss226@cornell.edu. An Ithaca State of Mind Wainstein are now prying into these appears on alternate Wednesdays this semester.

Guest submissions may be sent to opinion@cornellsun.com. Letters to the editor must be in response to a piece in The Sun, while guest columns can be on any topic chosen.

THE CORNELL DAILY SUN | Wednesday, February 25, 2015 7

OPINION

Sarah Byrne | Let It Byrne

Causation, Correlation And Culture N

o matter what field you are studying, you have undoubtedly often heard the phrase, “correlation does not imply causation.” I would even go so far as to suggest that most of us here at Cornell hear this phrase too often, second only to “[insert concept here] is a social construct.” In one of my classes, correlation and causation came up once again, and it made me think about the causational and correlational effects of pop culture and the media — movies, books, television, whatever it may be. More specifically, I was wondering how much these media products influence the ways we view our relationships with others, and our expectations of the people around us. To take a classic example, let’s look at The Notebook. This is probably one of the most commonly cited examples of something that gives women unrealistic ideas of what a guy will do for them (i.e. build them a house and live there alone for many years awaiting her arrival) — not to mention the old man who reads their love story to his wife every day. However, is that really an unrealistic idea? And is The Notebook really the first place women got that idea? As someone who once interacted with the elderly on a near-daily basis when my grandparents were all alive, I would like to point out that there are many really, really cute things that old couples do. There are some husbands and wives who wake up every morning and literally just go sit on a bench in Central Park together all day.

What makes some types of relationships seem so unattainable today? Why do we constantly criticize the film industry for making us believe every boy will fall in love with [us]? That is a much more unrealistic idea to me than someone lying down in the middle of traffic with me; who could ever stand to be with me all day every day? If I had any choice in the matter, I wouldn’t even spend all day with myself. But there they are, day after day, feeding birds, finding new stories to tell each other even after all these years together. My grandparents were married for over 50 years. That is pretty unbelievable. And they did a lot of cute things. So, does the media create these fantastic love stories, or do we? After all, every plot line, every page of dialogue, every kiss is written by a real live person who sees the real live world we all inhabit. There must be a grain of truth buried somewhere inside of them. Another example: Ross and Rachel. Their relationship is one of the most famous of the will-they-won’t-they variety. They constantly flipflop between friendship and dating until they finally realize what everyone else has known all along: They were made for each other. I somewhat understand the criticism of this paradigm. Ross is the shining beacon of hope for every guy in the “friend zone,” and Rachel for the girls waiting for their best friend to fall for them. Obviously, these things doesn’t always happen to us normal people, and it’s foolish to wait around for them when they won’t. But even so! There still are cases, in real life, where people who have been friends for years suddenly start dating, get married even, and are unbelievably happy together. Ross and Rachel did not just spontaneously emerge from the ridiculous imagination of David Crane and Marta Kauffman; they are rooted in something genuine. What makes some types of relationships seem so unattainable today? Why do we constantly criticize the film industry for making us believe every boy will fall in love with us, and then spending Friday night sitting on the couch watching 27 Dresses instead of going out and meeting some boys to give them the chance to fall in love with us? Whatever this nebulous “media” is that everyone always blames for our misconceptions about love, we are the ones who make that media. Our love serves as the example for fictional love, our relationships for fictional ones. Does the media’s portrayal of relationships parallel the way our relationships play out? Absolutely. However, correlation does not imply causation. And there have been unrealistic, idealized relationships since practically the dawn of mankind. Romeo and Juliet? Montagues and Capulets? Pshhhht, like that was ever going to work out. If Shakespeare had known anything about how real relationships work, Juliet would have just gotten back together with Paris once Romeo kicked the bucket. Sarah Byrne is a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences. She be reached at sbyrne@cornellsun.com. Let It Byrne appears alternate Wednesdays this semester.

Web

Comment of the day “Sexual assault should not be handled at the university level. It is a criminal matter and should be treated as such. I don't see any advocates for the University handling murder charges, this shouldn't be different.” Sixth Amendment Re:“TRUSTEE VIEWPOINT: Sexual Assault: What Has Cornell Done and What Can We Do Now?” Opinion published February 24, 2015

Teresa Kim | Her Meneutics

Take It Like It Is:Takeaways From the Chapel Hill Shootings

or a university that was the news of the shootings of established upon the cel- three Muslim students at the ebration of diversity, we University of North Carolina do little to actually celebrate it. at Chapel Hill. What was And when I mean celebrate, clearly an atrocious crime I do not mean that we should against Muslims has been porostentatiously display our trayed otherwise in statements appreciation of different cul- released by the wife of Craig tures through attending cultur- Stephen Hicks, the murderer. Islamophobia is not merely al junctions or being a connoisseur of ethnic cuisine and an unfounded hostility that foreign arts. No. To celebrate shapes the attitudes and diversity means to understand actions of the Western world. your own phobias, fears and It also extends itself to the ways misconstrued perspectives of American news media outlets other ethnic groups to come to distribute news. And in the peace with the diversity we live case of the Chapel Hill shootaround. However, we often let ings, the story has been unjustthat fear dictate the passivity ly marginalized and still with which we approach topics remains on the fringes of pubof race and religion, namely lic awareness. Like Nicholas Asker in his that of Islamophobia. As one of the many who live column in the Brown Daily in this post-9/11 world, I have Herald, I hesitate to denounce always had an interest in Islam the murders as a hate crime. To and its relationship to today’s tumul- Islamophobia ... extends itself to the tuous political climate (albeit ways American news media outlets a distant inter- distribute news. And in the case of est, as I never the Chapel Hill shootings, the story engaged with a Muslim has been unjustly marginalized. community in my life). My interests became more tangible do so would promote a culture as I began to academically pur- of premature labeling, even sue the arts of the Middle East when the murderer in question and more personal to my own has verbalized his violent averfaith as news reports of the per- sion towards religion (on his secution of Christians in Facebook and in person to his regions overrun by ISIS insur- Muslim neighbors before the gents became much more fre- shootings). What we need quent — the most recent being instead is a culture of conversathe abduction of 90 Christians tion when it comes to heinous crimes related to race and reliin Syria. I reached out to Omar gion — to not avoid the subKhurshid ’15, a Muslim stu- ject, but pursue it. In our conversation today, dent who had replied to one of my columns last semester. I we also both shared our grievasked my questions in the ances towards the way that both hopes that I would shed any The Sun and Cornell have not ignorant strands of thought I fully addressed the shootings, might carry and discard the especially the lack of coverage ways I can make irrational and for the vigil on our campus to generalized deductions about honor the victims of the shootIslam and its ties to extremism. ing. From the inability to find Khurshid patiently painted funding for a Muslim chaplain me a picture of his upbringing on campus to having an indefiin both America and Saudi nite place of worship for other Arabia, his theology and phi- fellowships, the University and losophy and how he its office of jurisdiction, Cornell approached questions related United Religious Work, has not to Islamic extremist groups. I made a definitive stance to crewas especially shocked to hear ate a space of comfort and soli-

darity for the many students in need of it. The murders of the students, Deah Barakat, 23, Yusor Abu-Salha, 21 and Razan AbuSalha, 19, attest to the breeding of ignorance that goes unnoticed most days of the year. We focus our attention on the products of ignorance and crime, not on how it breeds through our daily avoidance of the discussion of these matters. This statement was found on Hicks’ Facebook page, “When it comes to insults, your religion started this, not me. If your religion kept its big mouth shut, so would I.” And such is the nature of how we approach belief systems that we know little to nothing about. Our intellectual egos like to think otherwise, but who are we kidding? We celebrate diversity, but we denounce discussing it. After we leave our time on The Hill, the opportunities for civil discussions will only reasonably decrease in whatever career path we find ourselves. The space of the University is where we can come to wrestle with these issues of global pertinence through level-headed conversations. The shootings in Ferguson and Paris should not be the only events that direct our attention towards these matters. The clock is ticking, and I regret not extending the invitation to have these conversations earlier. There is no syllabus that requires us to discuss these matters outside the classroom. But for us, now in this time, it is a matter of principle that we do so. Celebrate diversity through conversations with others — it is silence that we should be most afraid of. Teresa Kim is a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences. She can be reached at tkim@cornellsun.com. Her Meneutics appears alternate Wednesdays this semester.

8 THE CORNELL DAILY SUN | Wednesday, February 25, 2015

SCIENCE

PHYSICS

NEUROBIOLOGY

PLANT SCIENCE

Prof. Jane Wang Demystifies The Physics of Fruit Flies By YIFAN ZHU Sun Contributor

For Prof. Jane Wang, physics, nothing is more fascinating than the rapid and coordinated movements of living organisms — or more specifically, fruit flies. “Physics is about finding truth and beauty in a confusing world,” she said. “It starts with mystery, but once different pieces fall together, then you see beauty.” Wang, a Shanghai native who began working at Cornell in 1999, is currently researching the physical and biological reasoning behind the flight of

flies’ flight, Wang is currently researching the fundamental biology of the mechanism. “Now the real question is, how would an insect make such a computation while flying?” Wang said. “Thinking about this led us to conjecture about a connection between the stability of flight with a neural circuitry at the base of the wing.” Wang said she is currently trying to locate said neurons by using genetic tools to disable various neural circuitries and observe its effects on flying performance of fruit flies. If successfully located, this partic-

“Physics is about finding truth and beauty in a confusing world. It starts with mystery, but once different pieces fall together, then you see beauty.” Prof. Jane Wang

COURTESY OF PROF. JANE WANG

Physics of flying | Top: Charts and figures depict velocitiies, pitching instability of fruit flies. Bottom: A model shows the orientation of a fruit fly’s body and wing-stroke pattern.

What’s the buzz | Drosophila melanogaster, the common fruit fly, is also commonly used in experiments in genetics and brain science.

fruit flies. Though the flies can flap their wings as fast as 200 times per second, Wang said the biggest quandary is how they can stay stable at that speed. “We start by asking the question, how would an insect balance itself? If it doesn’t have any sensory feedback, it would be unstable and stall,” she said. According to Wang, by calculating the forces and the torques on the wings she discovered that the flies exert force with a periodic input. That is, insects need to constantly make tiny adjustments in their stances and wing-flapping angles to maintain balance in the air. “To find exactly how they make the subtle change is the next question,” she said. According to Wang, among the 17 muscles that have been so far discovered in fruit flies to be in control of steering, one particular muscle based at the hinge of the wings is solely evolved toward the end of maintaining balance. Part of her research is to develop an algorithm to simulate and stabilize flapping flights, which “is applicable to studies of both natural and man-made fliers,” according to a paper Wang co-wrote in 2014. Beyond the mechanical aspect of the ZACH WISE / THE NEW YORK TIMES

ular neuron might shed new light on the evolutions of fruit flies or insects in general, according to Wang. ‘Feeling of Adventure’ According to Wang, her life-long passion for physics can be traced back to an early stage of her life, especially after being first introduced to the subject in eighth grade. “I always loved physics from the first semester,” Wang said. “I just wanted to figure out what it is.” Though her school’s library had a relatively limited collection of physics books, she began to study from one called “An Adventure in Physics,” a collection of short stories that incorporate ideas of physics in non-technical sentences. A translation of the Mr. Tompkins series by George Gomow, it is a collection of short stories that incorporate ideas of physics in nontechnical sentences. “What really draws me is actually these pictures that [Gomow] drew. There was this picture of a fireplace with a car coming out of it — that’s quantum tunneling,” Wang said. “And another picture shows a man on a bike surrounded by buildings that look skinny. Well, that’s special relativity. I found these pictures absolutely fascinating. That was one of the many instances [that drew me to physics]. They open our mind.” When it comes to teaching, Wang — who currently teaches a junior course on analytical mechanics and a graduate-level course on physics of living organisms — said she enjoys communicating to students and admiring the frequent “light bulbs” coming from them. “In research you tend to be out there, in the dark, exploring new things,” Wang said. “In teaching, you have all these materials that others have discovered and you get to see the evolution of science. But ultimately, teaching is about human interactions. We communicate what we are excited about to our students.” Despite their differences, Wang says she has no preference between research and teaching, saying they both complement her personality. “For me I am more of a spontaneous person,” Wang said. “In teaching and in research I enjoy the feeling of adventure.” Yifan Zhu can be reached at yz542@cornell.edu.

SCIENCE

THE CORNELL DAILY SUN | Wednesday, February 25, 2015 9

Hampton ’15 Explores Potential Alzheimer’s Treatment in Plants By REEM KHONDAKAR Sun Staff Writer

A treatment for Alzheimer’s Disease may be closer to home than you think. For the past two years, biological sciences major Rollie Hampton ’15 has studied how the local plant Melissa officinalis — also known as lemon balm — may counteract some of the symptoms of Alzheimer’s Disease. The neurodegenerative disease is characterized by memory loss and difficulty performing everyday activities, has no current cure and affects over five million people in the United States, according to the international Alzheimer’s Association. Hampton began working in the laboratory of Prof. Manuel Aregullin, plant biology, molecular biology and genetics, by spending a summer with Aregullin conducting fieldwork on alternative medicine practices in the Dominican Republic. “That summer experience got me very interested in naturopathic medicine and plant biology,” Hampton said. He began his research on plant-based treatments for Alzheimer’s by investigating various databases and indigenous records for plants that could mitigate symptoms of the disease. “It was kind of a leap of faith, because there was research that supported [the plants’] effectiveness, but I wanted to find something novel about them,” Hampton said. According to Hampton, Alzheimer’s Disease deteriorates mental processing by attacking the brain’s neurotransmitters, the small signalling molecules that allow neurons to communicate.” “A problem Alzheimer’s patients have is that they are experiencing a deficit of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine,” Hampton said. Many Alzheimer’s drugs work by blocking acetyl-

cholinesterase, an enzyme that destroys acetylcholine. Hampton hypothesized that the local plants he chose to investigate also worked by the same mechanism. Using a variety of chemical analysis techniques — including thin layer chromatography, which is used to separate chemical mixtures — he set out to discover what specific chemical in the plants made them effective against Alzheimer’s. Based on these experiments, he hypothesized that the plants contained a compound well-known to block acetylcholinesterase: rosmarinic acid. “[Rosmarinic acid] was most distinct in one plant that I chose to go forward with: Melissa officinalis,” Hampton said. The plant naturally grows in the Ithaca

very similar time as the pure sample,” Hampton said. Given the number of other compounds in lemon balm and the number of chemical interactions likely to occur during the process, Hampton called the identification of Rosemarinic acid in lemon balm, “a major finding.” Now in his last semester at Cornell, Hampton said he hopes to conclude his project by finding what part of Rosmarinic acid makes it pharmacologically active against Alzheimer’s. Hampton, who is also pre-med, is finishing his honors thesis and submitting it for publication. Apart from finding a new plant-based remedy for Alzheimer’s, he also is a biology student advisor, an Arts and Sciences

“It was kind of a leap of faith, because there was research that supported [the plants’] effectiveness but I wanted to find something novel about them.” Rollie Hampton ’15 area, according to Hampton. In order to verify that the compound contained in lemon balm was in fact Rosmarinic acid, he used a device called high-pressure liquid chromatography, which separates mixtures based on the fact that chemicals will travel through a solvent at different speeds. HPLC detects chemical ‘fingerprints’ at specific times, allowing one to compare the ‘fingerprints’ of one compound to another. “I knew the time when Rosmarinic acid should be detected, and my compound of interest showed up at a

Ambassador and a manager at Willard Straight Hall Resource Center. “Before this, I did not realize the potential that plants had [to treat disease]. I realized that many plantbased drugs are adapted to become more potent or to target a specific mechanism,” Hampton said. “That was really cool.” Reem Khondakar can be reached at rkhondakar@cornellsun.com.

A&E

10 | The Corne¬ Daily Sun | Wednesday, February 25, 2015

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT S S O O O Sufjan Stevens “No Shade in the Shadow of the Cross”

Sufjan’s last full-length release (not counting his various indulgent Christmas spectacles) came five years ago in the form of the resoundingly okay The Age of Adz. In a little over a month, we’ll be treated to its follow-up, Carrie & Lowell, the first single off of which is the beautifully insignificant “No Shade in the Shadow of the Cross.” If this song is any indication of what the upcoming LP has in store for us, any physical copies of the record should probably be packaged with a complementary Sufjan Stevens pillow case. But that’s not to say that Stevens is dishing out anything that’s necessarily bad, just somnolent. The track sneaks in with some mellow sleep-folk guitar strumming, over which Sufjan whispers a jumbled ode to lost loves, Christianity and drugs (he’s “chasing the dragon too far,” man). As per usual, his arrangement is lush (although nostalgically subdued and reserved), his voice sweet and his lyrics touching in that “I don’t know just what it means but it sure is beautiful” kind of way. It’s a clear regression to his Seven Swans, pure indie-folk era; It’s no Illinoise, but damn if it isn’t just about as pretty as a song can be. The best line comes in the last verse, when Sufjan oozes, “There’s blood on that blade / Fuck me I’m falling apart.” Maybe it’s just me, but there’s something tantalizing about a completely innocuous, out of place curse word in a calm folk track. If anything, though, “No Shade” foreshadows a record that’ll probably be worth buying, if only for its recumbent indie make-out soundtrack possibilities.

PINNING

INGLES

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

OOnew and notable music in review O O O

Troy Sherman is a freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences. He can be reached at tsherman@cornellsu.com.

Heems ft. Dev Hynes “Home” Heems, of Das Racist fame, has a tender side. His irreverent bars for the Wesleyan-spawned group might suggest otherwise, but Himanshu Suri has been getting in touch with both his emotions and his delicately beautiful vocal chops in his newfound solo fame. The world was first cued into his haunting falsetto with his surprising cover of Kevin Lyttle’s “Turn Me On,” which transformed the dancehall hit into a sexy electro-R&B groove. Heems’s disaffected yet distinctly gorgeous voice again takes center stage on “Home,” a track from his debut L.P., Eat, Pray, Thug, to be released March 10. It is complemented by that of the enormously talented Dev Hynes, better known as Blood Orange, and wistfully sparse production. Sad coos and yearning echos resonate while the break-up track never reaches a true sonic head, leaving a constantly melancholy air. Heems’ clever lyrics are far from absent though, and he even manages to weave in an R. Kelly reference without breaking the mood. With its smarts and its desolation, “Home” is definitely the break-up song of the week. Mike Sosnick is a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences. He can be reached at msosnick@cornellsun.com.

Little Women at Ithaca College’s Dillingham Center BY EMILY FOURNIER Sun Staff Writer

The Department of Theatre Arts at Ithaca College’s production of Little Women, running until Feb. 28 at the Dillingham Center’s Main Stage Theatre, retells the tale of the four March sisters through opera. Composed by Mark Adamo and based on the original story by Louisa May Alcott, it was an intense and surprising choice for a production but the cast was very much up for the challenge. I managed not to realize that the show was an opera rather than a play until the morning of the Feb. 22 show that I attended and thus went into the building rather skeptical. However, I left extremely impressed with the students’ use and interpretation of an art form that is by no means popular among our generation. The opera centers on the life of Josephine “Jo” March (senior Rachel Ozols, also played by junior Ariana Warren at other performances), her sisters Meg (senior Annie Barrett), Beth (junior Laura McCauley) and Amy (senior Kate Clemons), and her bashful best friend Theodore “Laurie” Laurence (senior Torrance Gricks). Its story focuses on the Marchs’ changing family dynamic through the years and on Jo’s desire for everything to stay the same, often to the point of conflict with the people she loves. She disapproves of Meg’s marriage to John Brooke (senior Nathan Haltiwanger) for fear that it will break up the family and leave Meg subordinate to a man, and also of Laurie’s love for her for similar reasons. The theme of change manifests itself through songs repeating “we’re perfect as we are” and through her voice, the importance of recognizing that “things change.” Eventually, Jo’s love for her

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

family and for Professor Friedrich Bhaer clear that although the Marchs’ story was the (senior Fred Diengott), a man in whom she main focus, they were not the only performfinds an equal, helps her to accept that the ers in the production worth noticing. past is the past. All of the singers were excellent, as every While the plot is based on an existing member of the cast was a vocal performance story, Adamo decided to create additional major. It was clear that they had received characters not found in the novel. Because extensive training, as their voices all fit the Alcott based this story and its characters on style perfectly. Each singer, especially Ozols herself and her three sisters, the four Alcott and Gricks, had strong vocal control and girls are represented onstage avoided the common probby singers who interlem of too much act with those vibrato. Many COURTESY OF ITHACA COLLEGE playing the of the March roles sis-

ters. Pu t t i n g Alcott into her own story was a unique choice that allowed Adamo to acknowledge the writer’s life, which seems prudent for a semiautobiographical piece. To accommodate the Alcott sisters and keep them present but out of the scene, a set with a balcony and two staircases stood behind the floor of the stage. This set stood in front of the orchestra, whose members were technically onstage but behind a semi-transparent screen so as not to distract from the action. This staging made it

we re built for higher vocal ranges or at least made sure the singers used their upper registers, but there was no one who sounded shrill or strained on the high notes. At times, the orchestra began to drown out the singers, which made it harder to understand their words. However, all the lead roles maintained great diction throughout, which was crucial to the audience’s understanding, as there is no dialogue and minimal physical action to help explain the plot. Through impressive vocal talent and

solid acting, the cast was able to make this somewhat drawn out production quite entertaining. Little Women is made a classic by its characters, not by its plot, so it might seem that opera is not the right medium through which to retell the story. However, while opera does not have to be incredibly dramatic, it felt that this was Adamo’s goal. The vibrato and soaring soprano notes felt a little excessive in some of the production’s mundane scenes, such as a montage of all members of the March family writing to one another. Though these techniques were appropriate for Beth’s fits of fever and perhaps for Jo’s confrontations with her sisters, they were used too frequently throughout. By exaggerating the importance of simple conversations and by harping so much on the role of change in the Marchs’ lives, Adamo made his production trite. However, the performers all managed to capture the emotions of their characters without quite all the drama that Adamo attempted to create, which helped the opera to stay meaningful rather than terribly corny. Although Adamo’s composition itself had a few flaws, Ithaca College’s cast played their roles wonderfully and made the songs enchanting. The performers did not lose the original story’s charm and helped the relationships between Alcott’s characters to seem genuine and sweet, despite Adamo’s attempts at an exaggerated sense of tragedy. It seems that these singers have gotten a lot out of their vocal performance education, as their performances exceptional and certainly worthy of praise. Emily Fournier is a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences. She Can be reached at efournier@cornellsun.com.

A&E

Wednesday, February 25, 2015 | The Corne¬ Daily Sun | 11

Arts Around Ithaca The Glass Menagerie

Rivergazer, Small Wonder, Field Guides, why+the+wires

7:30 p.m. Feb. 26-28 and March 6-7 at the Schwartz Center

9 p.m. Saturday at Cayuga Lodge

Come out to see the first PMA theatre production of the semester. Set in St. Louis in 1937, The Glass Menagerie is a play about nostalgia and memory drawn from the memories of narrator, Tom Wingfield, an aspiring poet who works in a shoe warehouse to support his mother and sister. The play debuted in Chicago in 1944, won the New York Drama Critics Circle Award in 1945 and subsequently launched Tennessee Williams’ career as one of America’s leading playwrights. Tickets can be purchased at the door, $13 general admission; $11 for students and seniors.

Fanclub Collective presents currently touring, Rivergazer — NYC-based melancholy psychedelia indie pop project of Porches’ Kevin Farran, and Brooklyn solo act, Small Wonder, this Saturday at West Campus co-op, Cayuga Lodge. Joining them will be Brooklyn-based folk pop ensemble, Field Guides and punk rock Ithaca locals, why+the+wires. There will be a $5 cover charge at the door.

—Jael Goldfine

COURTESY OF DAN SMALLS PRESENTS

The McLovins 9 p.m. Friday at The Haunt

Connecticut-based progressive rock jam-band, The McLovins, will perform at The Haunt this Friday. The group’s versatile, eclectic style is influenced by each of its members unique musical backgrounds and inspirations, and their intricate four-part harmony to compliment their original and dynamic jam rock sound. In the short time The McLovins have played together, they’ve appeared at established venues and music festivals, and their fanbase continues to grow. Tickets are available at the door and online for $10. —Jael Goldfine

Ten Columns I Could Write, But Why Bother?

have been writing this column in the Arts & Entertainment section of The Sun every other week since January 2012, and most of the time when I sit down to write them, I am angry. Whether they’re about annoying people on the Internet or about annoying people in real life, or about the lack of appreciation for Amanda Bynes’ talent, I have a lot of feelings. But this week, I am finding it incredibly difficult to muster up any sort of emotion strong enough to get me to 800 words about any one topic. I guess I’m just having an apathetic kind of week. I didn’t even watch the Oscars (no one else did either though, they had their lowest ratings in six years, so I don’t feel so bad.) Anyway so here are the column ideas I came up with. I could easily blather on about any of these (blathering is a skill in which I am quite proficient), but I am instead choosing to spare you those five minutes of your life you will never get back while I bloviate on the topic of something in which I am only halfheartedly interested in or about which I have nothing new to say.

1. Harris Wittels Something about how he was so wonderful and hilarious. I am incredibly sad that he died. He was clearly loved by everyone who knew him. Parks and Recreation is over and that is also sad. #Knope2016. Podcasts, Comedy Bang Bang, Doug Loves Movies. The people behind the scenes on shows we love. 2. The Excitement of Live Television Award shows, SNL40, Why I appreciate Kanye West: the ultimate wildcard at any live television event. 3. Girls

Did An Episode With An Abortion And Talked About It Like The Straightforward Medical Procedure That It Is Obvious Child was my favorite movie of 2014. Why couldn’t that have been nominated? 4. The Red Carpet I don’t think it’s sexist to ask a woman who designed her dress when the designer paid a lot of money for her to wear it. Reporters should absolutely ask more questions than just that, but it’s naïve to pretend that award shows aren’t also about fashion in

Julia Moser Carrot Top Confessions addition to the work of the people being honored. An interest in fashion and an interest in gender equality are not mutually exclusive. Lupita Nyong’o won this and every red carpet. I mean, she wore a dress made of pearls! I miss Joan Rivers. 5. Patricia Arquette Can everyone please stop yelling at her for flubbing one sentence in an overall extremely well crafted plea to Hollywood for wage equality? I think what she said would have had slightly less gravitas if it had been followed by an in-depth explanation of intersectionality that no one could hear because the play-off orchestra music was drowning her out. She didn’t have to say anything, so can’t we just be happy that she said something?

She used this platform to advocate for an issue that affects 50 percent of the world. That is kind of big deal, especially to the people in the Dolby Theater Sunday night — lest we forget the Sony hack revelation that Amy Adams and Jennifer Lawrence were paid significantly less money than Bradley Cooper and Jeremy Renner for American Hustle. Thanks for cluing us in on that fun tidbit, North Korea! Did anybody watch American Hustle for Jeremy Renner? No. Remember when the studios were trying to make Jeremy Renner the next Tom Cruise? Hah, good times. I’m sure he’s a lovely fellow. Moral of the story is that Patricia Arquette is a boss, and Meryl and JLo know it too. 6. Togetherness Is A New Show On HBO That I Like Mark Duplass seems like a very busy man. 7. I Finally Finished Breaking Bad Over February Break And I Was Underwhelmed Maybe my expectations were just too high. Marie is the best character, calling it like it is 100 percent of the time. I also like Saul because Bob Odenkirk makes me laugh in ways very few people can. I was sad that Friday Night Light’s lovable nerd Landry will be forever ruined in my eyes by playing a creepy child-murdering Neo-Nazi. When does Mad Men come back again?

COURTESY OF THE L.A. TIMES

8. Racially Diverse Emojis Will Be Here Soon Apple has just released a new, more diverse array of emojis to developers and they will be available to the iPhone-using public in about a month. Now everyone will be able to give thumbs up in whatever color they feel represents their thumb best. Except for those of us with very pale, freckled thumbs. There is still no redheaded emoji. Gingerism is real. (It’s not). 9. Who Is Amber Rose? Why do I know this woman’s name? Why am I now talking about her too? Is there really a feud about if Amber Rose or Kim Kardashian is more promiscuous? What? Why? What? Who is Tyga? Why? WHY? 10. Is America Ready To Stop Talking About 50 Shades of Grey Yet? I sure hope so. I’m getting pretty bored. So, new topic? Julia Mosers a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences. She can be reached at jmoser@cornellsun.com. Carrot Top Confessions runs alternate Wednesdays this semester.

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

12 THE CORNELL DAILY SUN | Wednesday, February 25, 2015

COMICS AND PUZZLES

Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle

Sun Sudoku

Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis

ACROSS 1 Mutinous Kubrick computer 4 High-end violin 9 Sextet for Henry VIII 14 British verb suffix 15 “Some glory in __ birth ...”: Shak. 16 Ginsburg associate 17 Sprightly dance 18 Shepherdess’ movie role? 20 Sharp-wittedness 22 Gore, once 23 Jeweler’s movie role? 29 Met previously 30 “I’m listening ...” 31 Delta deposit 32 False flattery 34 Robbins’ ice cream partner 36 ER personnel 39 Horse trainer’s movie role? 41 Org. concerned with the AQI 42 Crankcase component 44 Sends out 46 Boyfriend 47 Bearing 48 Meat pkg. letters 52 Weightlifter’s movie role? 56 Chamber group often including a piano 57 Under control 58 What 18-, 23-, 39and 52-Across exemplify? 63 Loafer front 64 Madison Square Garden, e.g. 65 Cookbook verb 66 Decorative vase 67 H.S. hurdles 68 Heavy metal cover 69 Del. clock setting DOWN 1 Take by force 2 “... based on my abilities” 3 Peanut, for one 4 Fifth cen. pope called “The Great”

5 “Come to think of 38 Response to 51 Zealous freshness? 53 Black-and-white it ...” 40 “You got that sea predators 6 Stephen of right!” 54 Narrow inlet “Breakfast on 43 Campsite sight 55 __ management Pluto” 45 Very 58 Bug on the line 7 Succor 47 Peak near 59 Timeline parts: 8 Hungry for Olympus Abbr. success, say 60 Shooter 9 Track transaction 49 Lincoln Memorial lead-in 10 “No thanks” feature 61 Sealing goo 11 Google Maps 50 Bloodmobile 62 Periodic table directions word visitors suffix 12 Sea-Tac approx. 13 Protein-rich bean 19 Org. that funds ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE: cultural exhibitions 21 Litter peeps 24 Cruise stop 25 Italian archaeological attraction 26 Puma competitor 27 Paper holder 28 Italian tourist attraction 33 CFO’s degree 34 Invite as a member of 35 Verizon competitor 36 Unruly groups 37 The Lord, in Lourdes 02/25/15 xwordeditor@aol.com

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THE CORNELL DAILY SUN | Wednesday, February 25, 2015 13

SPORTS

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Wrestling Heads to Lehigh to Compete in EIWA Championships WRESTLING

Continued from page 11

there were many standout moments in which he felt especially proud of his men. “One particularly exceptional performance was when [sophomore] Brian Realbuto dominated No. 1 Dylan Ness of Minnesota.” Throughout the season, seniors, freshmen and coaches alike change and improve in many ways. Koll noted that as a whole, the Red’s performance has evolved and developed since the first match in November. “I don’t believe there is one specific area where we have improved more than another, although our performance has dramatically improved. It took

longer than normal for this team to hit it stride because we didn’t have our entire starting lineup on the mat until mid January,” Koll said. With a season record of only two losses, it is important to note that the team did not boast a full lineup until the second semester. The squad’s success despite this handicap is a testament to the strong work ethic, athleticism and coaching skills of the Cornell wrestlers. The men have one week off before they travel to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, to face off against Lehigh University (14-6) for the EIWA Championships. Hannah Noyes can be reached at hnoyes@cornellsun.com.

THE CORNELL DAILY SUN | Wednesday, February 25, 2015 14

SPORTS

Lynch,Westbrook Don’t Engage in Media Coverage DUBNOV

Continued from page 16

JASON BEN NATHAN / SUN STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Flying Red | Junior Alicia Bair was the Red’s top finisher in the vault event on Sunday, when Cornell competed against four other Ivies in the Ivy Classic.

GYMNASTICS

Red Falls to Last Place at Ivy Classic Meet, Places Fourth By ELANI COHEN Sun Staff Writer

Over the past few weeks, the Cornell women’s gymnastics team has seen mixed results coming out of its meets. Starting with its meet against the University of Pennsylvania, Ursinus College and West Chester University, the team came in third out of the four teams. However, the Red improved the following week. The team came in first place at the Big Red Invitational, but feel back to third in its meet against Rutgers University, Ursinus College and Maryland. With varying results, Cornell was uncertain coming into the Ivy Classic, which took place this past weekend. The Ivy Classic was a meet between four of the Ivy teams from Brown University, Yale University, the University of Pennsylvania and Cornell. Though the Red ended up finishing in last place, the team posted its second highest score of the year, finishing with a total score of 191.175. It also had three Top-Five individual finishers, including freshmen Courtney Spitzer and Joy Gage, who both placed third in different events. Gage earned her third place title on the beam when she finished with a score of 9.675, while Spitzer earned the third place title on bars when she finished with a score of 9.800. Like Spitzer and Gage, various other Red gymnastics also had successful meets. Junior Alicia Bair was the team’s top finisher on the vault, where she placed sixth with a score of 9.675. Sophomore Alexandria Bourgeois and

Junior Sara Schupp followed closely behind Bair tied for ninth place on the vault. Both women earned a score of 9.650. Some of the other Top-10 finishers included junior Kaylee Cronin and sophomore Elana Molotsky. Molotsky finished with a 9.725 on floor, earning the eighth place title, while Cronin placed 10th on the beam with a final score of 9.600. Though the Red took last place, the meet was close when it came to overall scores. The Red finished closely behind Yale, who ended the meet in third place with a final score of 192.225. Brown placed second, finishing the day with a final score of 193.425 and the Penn finished in first place with a final score of 193.725. The Red was just within three points of the winning team. “While [Sunday] was not our best performance, we had some amazing individuals routines. As a team this was a solid performance and puts us in a much better position for nationals,” said junior captain Hannah Clark. “A loss is always disappointing, but we are still on the hunt and watch out for later in the season. This season’s motto is, ‘Be better, be red(er)’ and that's exactly what we plan to do.” Putting its loss behind them, the Red is looking forward to its upcoming season. Its next meet will be against Bridgeport and William & Mary at Teagle Hall in Ithaca, New York. Elani Cohen can be reached at ecohen@cornellsun.com.

me respect him more. So much of the sports world these days is dictated by business and press coverage. Lynch, who generally likes to promote his own “Beast Mode” brand more than any other major sports brand, does not play along with these games. In the modern era of sports, star athletes are quick to try to sign to the biggest commercial brand or to build up an image for fans. Lynch doesn’t care about all of that. He just seems to care about his own status as one of the best running backs in the league. In an interview with football royalty Deion Sanders, Lynch actually answered questions about his media image while sporting a hoodie and sunglasses. Sanders asked is Lynch was “a little shy,” and Lynch answered with, “I’m just about that action, boss.” You have to respect that, especially when that action leads to results. Much of Marshawn Lynch’s behavior is rooted in his history. The star back grew up in a broken home in Oakland, California. Being great at sports was his way to escape poverty and have a brighter future than the streets of the neighborhood he grew up in. This is a common history for many star athletes, but Lynch did not conform as many others did. He does not display the vanity that can come with stardom; he just cares about being “about the action.” Marshawn Lynch is not the sole example of an athlete whose media presence is less than friendly. In fact, many great players in various professional sports leagues have developed reputations as thugs or “bad boys” as a result of their interactions with media during their playing careers. Some classic examples include tirades from well-known players like Dennis Rodman of the Chicago Bulls and Kenny Rogers of the Texas Rangers. Both had lows in their careers after attacking cameramen when they pried into the players’ business too much. Those incidents were sparked more by

impulsive anger, but still show the nature of some athletes’ view on overexposing media coverage. A better example is Russell Westbrook, who has recently started having Marshawn Lynch-like post game interactions with the media. After a career night of 17 points, 17 assists and 15 rebounds, Westbrook seemed annoyed when speaking to media in the locker

In the modern era of sports, star athletes are quick to try to sign to the biggest commercial brand. room and followed up each question directed at him with, “We did good job executing.” a Additionally, Westbrook had another interaction where he was so upset with a question he was asked that he just turned around, said a racial slur and walked away. The face of disgust that the star point guard made at that moment has now become a popular internet meme. The actions of Marshawn Lynch and Russell Westbrook may seem childlike and arrogant, but they say something about the role of media in modern sports. It may be ironic coming from me as I write this in a popular collegiate media source, but I would side with the players that stand against extreme media presence. Players like Lynch and Westbrook just want to show up and do their jobs well, which they always do. They do not care for the publicity as much as other stars. They don’t have time to answer stock questions from rookie reporters asking about how they feel about X, Y and Z. I do not blame them for their actions. The sports world is becoming more and more consumed by paparazzi culture and I would love to see players all across various sports league play because it’s their passions and not for the fame. Nikita Dubnov can be reached at ndubnov@cornellsun.com.

Goalie Gniewek Only Gives Up Four Goals in Net toTemple LACROSSE

Continued from page 16

netted the first goal for the Red just 21 seconds into the start of the game. Sophomore midfielder Amie Dickson had a strong game, earning a total of five points for the Red. “[Dickson] is playing at a whole new level this spring which is super exciting. [She] has always had a terrific eye for finding her teammates in the attacking end and creating scoring opportunities,” said Graap. “The big difference

against Temple was her confidence attacking the net. She was composed inside the eight and finished really well on her shots.” Senior goalie Carly Gniewek, along with fellow goaltender, sophomore Renee Poullott, saw playing time. Each allowed four goals. Staying true to its impressive reputation in the world of college sports, the team’s 300th all-time victory is a feat to be proud of. “The Cornell lacrosse tradition is so strong and we are proud to carry on the

efforts of so many athletes and coaches who came before us,” said Graap. “Our current players and coaching staff are grateful to those lacrosse players who wore the ‘C’ in the 1970’s and early ‘80’s, when women’s athletics was just beginning to take a foothold on college campuses.” Since the passage of Title IX in the summer of 1972, the Cornell women’s lacrosse team has fostered a program dedicated to “hard work, dedication and respect.” The first Ivy League women’s lacrosse team, Cornell’s cur-

n .com • www.cornellsun.com • www w ww.c ornel lsu

rent team looks to make more history this season. “We have a very strong freshman class who has added great depth to the midfield and to an extremely solid defense and attack line. We are very excited for the upcoming season and believe we have a great chance of reaching our goals of an Ivy title and competing with some of the top teams in the country,” said Dickson. Ben Denson can be reached at bdenson@cornellsun.com.

. c or n e l ls un .co m • w ww . c o r n el ls u n . c o m

THE CORNELL DAILY SUN | Wednesday, February 25, 2015 15

SPORTS

MEN’S BASKETBALL

Men Drop Two Games in Weekend Ivy Series Red struggles against Brown Bears and Yale Bulldogs on the road By AMIR PATEL

how we practice,” Courtney said. The Red did just that and came out strong against the Bears, taking an 11-point lead into halftime. That lead got The Cornell men’s basketball team had a tough trip to as big as 17 points before the Bears began a comeback. Early New England over the weekend. The Red dropped games on, the Red was able to control the game’s pace and get into to both Yale and Brown, leaving the squad a solid offensive flow, hitting 46 percent standing with a 4-6 record in Ivy play and of its shots in the first half. That went CORNELL @ YALE putting the Red in fifth place with just down to 31 percent in the second half, four more league games remaining. while Brown had the opposite happen to 51 62 them. The Bears shot 34 percent in the The Red took on Yale in a primetime 2ND FINAL 1ST matchup Friday evening. The game fea- Game: first half and 46 percent in the second. 33 51 18 tured two strong forwards and candidates Cornell The game came down to the wire in 37 62 25 for the All-Ivy team in Cornell’s senior Yale the final few minutes, with Miller comShonn Miller and Yale’s Justin Sears. ing up big for the Red. He hit a huge 3Miller scored nine points on 4/10 shootpointer with under four minutes to play, CORNELL @ BROWN ing while Sears racked up 12 points on and followed that up by drawing a charge 4/8 shooting. The star front court players 56 57 with just under a minute to go. The Red fought hard, but ultimately left both was up, 56-55, when Brown forward 2ND FINAL 1ST teams at an offensive draw, giving way for Game: Cedric Kuakumensah hit a runner to Cornell 22 56 34 the guards to dominate the offensive side Cornell 23 give the Bears the lead with 1.8 seconds 34 57 of the ball. Cornell had two players in remaining. Shonn Miller’s last chance double figures with seniors guard Devin shot fell short. Cherry’s 17 points and senior guard Galal Cancer’s 19, and “It was a disappointing loss. We played well for a lot of Yale saw guard Javier Duren lead the scoring with 13 the time, but they came up when they had to,” Courtney points. The Bulldogs took a seven-point lead going into said. halftime and ultimately pushed that lead to 11, winning, The loss was heartbreaking. Not just from the short62-51. term perspective, but as a result of this loss, the Red haw “We weren’t able to score from many angles. They did a been eliminated from competing for the Ivy League title good job of shutting down our game plan. We didn’t exe- and the NCAA tournament spot that comes with it. cute,” said head coach Bill Courtney. However, the squad still has a chance of making a separate The Red was unable to establish much of a rhythm in post-season tournament. The Red will play host to Harvard the game, something that the squad had been doing well and Dartmouth this weekend in its final two home games with in recent weeks. Going into Saturday’s game against of the regular season. Brown, it was evident that the coaching staff wanted to make a point of controlling the pace of the game. Amir Patel can be reached at “We wanted to keep playing our game. We want to play apatel@cornellsun.com.

Sun Staff Writer

CONNOR ARCHARD / SUN SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR

Double digits | Senior guard Galal Cancer, pictured above, scored 19 points in the Red’s game against Yale.

TENNIS

Men Struggle Against Northwestern,Women Beat Army By JESSIE BROFSKY Sun Contributor

The Cornell men’s and women’s tennis teams both saw success in their matches this past weekend. The men’s squad clinched a victory against Penn State while the women beat Army, 7-0. However, the men fell in their second match of the weekend against Northwestern, 4-2. The women’s second game against University of Maryland was cancelled due to poor weather conditions. The men of the Red played against and beat Penn State on Saturday and lost to Northwestern on Sunday. Head coach

Silviu Tanasoiu said that he felt that the team was fortunate to be playing against Big-10 caliber schools and that he believes the Red can be very competitive with them, as they have been improving tremendously. Penn State had just qualified, along with 15 other teams in the country, for the National Indoor Championships. “We were able to pull a great win against Penn state and although they are a very good team, I can’t say we are surprised to beat them. we are getting better as well,” Tanasoiu said. Meanwhile, the women’s team defeated Army at West Point on Saturday, making

this its second win of the season. The squad now has a record of 2-5. “Our team has been working extremely hard all year, and it was a great feeling to see all of that hard work pay off this past weekend when we won all of our matches against Army,” said sophomore Kristin Quill. “This past weekend, our team did a great job of competing hard and fighting for every point while also enjoying ourselves on the court.” The men’s team had a very close match against Northwestern, but fell short by two points against the Wildcats. Northwestern won four out of the five singles matches and Cornell won two out of the three dou-

CONNOR ARCHARD / SUN SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR

Bonded brothers | After a car accident in November left four of the men on the tennis team injured, the team has been closer than ever. Two of the injured players were able to participate in this weekend’s set of matches.

bles matches. “It came down [to] the wire and it was a matter of a few points. It doesn’t take anything away from how well we are playing and I still think we are far away from where we can be. There is still a lot of progress that can be made,” Tanasoiu said. While the women’s match scheduled for Sunday against Maryland was cancelled due to the bad weather conditions, their match on Saturday was strong all around. The team won all of its matches, which consisted of six single matches and three double matches. “As the season progresses we’ve been coming together more and more and against Army we just went out there with confidence,” said freshman Allegra Hanlon. “We knew what we wanted and how to get it and I’m proud of our team for just killing it. I know we’re going to keep improving and hopefully continue to accumulate wins.” The men’s squad had four of its players suffer an unfortunate car accident on Nov. 28, 2014. Two of these players participated in the matches this weekend and one has been training. Despite the difficulties the team has experienced as a result of the accident, its still has a great dynamic and is grateful to be able to represent Cornell. “We are the closest team you’ll meet in college tennis and all of my teammates helped me give everything I could this past weekend. You can’t ask for anything better than hearing your best friends battling with and cheering for you,” said sophomore Dylan Brown. Being about halfway through their respective seasons, both the men’s and women’s squads face exciting prospects in the coming weeks. The men will next play Old Dominion University and the women will play East Tennessee State University this coming weekend. Jessie Brofsky can be reached at jrb479@cornell.edu.

Sports

The Corne¬ Daily Sun

WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 25, 2015

WRESTLING

Men Fall to Iowa, Finish Third at National Duals By HANNAH NOYES Sun Staff Writer

This weekend marked a pivotal point in the season for the Cornell wrestling team. The Red faced off against some of the most successful teams in the country in National Duals. Athletes representing the University of

Iowa, the University of Missouri, Ohio State University, the University of Minnesota, Lehigh University, the University of Illinois, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and, of course, Cornell University traveled to the University of Iowa in Iowa City to compete in preparation for the NCAA Finals. The team had a successful weekend, but sadly could

BRIAN STERN / SUN STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Pinning the win | Sophomore Brian Realbuto, pictured above, was able to take down his opponent from the University of Minnesota, No. 1 ranked Dylan Ness.

Pressing the Professionals

f you randomly browse sports clips on the Internet with frequency, it is very likely that you have watched at least one of Marshawn Lynch’s signature post-game interviews. If you have not, let me fill you in.

thankful.” He continued to do so until his interview was over. Another time, the star player gave answers like “yes” or “I’m just here so I don’t get fined.” These antics have led to a lot of fines from the NFL

Nikita Dubnov Nik’s Knacks During his tenure as the star running back of the Seattle Seahawks, Marshawn Lynch developed his reputation as a hater of the media. He did not enjoy the press conferences required by the Seahawks and did not care to give his opinion about how he or his team performed in a game. Most recently, Lynch started answering interview questions with the same set of answers, each brief and nondescript. For example, Lynch would respond to a question about the team’s performance with “I’m

commissioner’s office. Along with a loss in salary, Lynch has developed a thug image around the NFL. However, as much as the league office and the media want to put Lynch down, he continues to maintain an image as one of the most dominant forces in professional football and one of the most interesting players from the fans’ perspectives. For me, Lynch’s story and his “disrespect” towards media personnel only make See DUBNOV page 14

not claim the first place title. Finishing third, the team ended the dual meet season with a total of 17 wins and only two losses, one of which came this weekend against the University of Iowa (17-1). While the men were hoping to leave the season with only one loss on their record, Head Coach Rob Koll said that the performance was overall extremely strong. “We didn’t get the results we desired but it wasn’t for a lack of effort. We faced a tough team in an incredibly hostile environment. The match was excellent preparation for the NCAA tournament,” Koll said. Consistency is something to be valued for a team with a winning record such as Cornell’s. “We didn’t get the results From week to we desired but it wasn’t week, Koll insists that each oppofor a lack of effort. We nent, regardless of faced a tough team.” rank or record, is not to be belittled Robert Koll and every man must go into the meet with an attitude and motivation for excellence. “Both our prospective opponents, Minnesota, then Iowa if we won, are extremely big and physical teams. We tried our best to ready our guys for a fight,” Koll said. On top of keeping an aggressive mentality, it is vastly important to stay uninjured at this point in the season. With the championship meet coming up in only a few short weeks, Koll said that he is happy to see no injuries from the weekend. “I am thankful that the squad made it through the weekend without any serious injuries.” Despite knowing that it was a going to be a difficult weekend, Koll said that he understands that the final results were not what the team had hoped for. However, See WRESTLING page 11

WOMEN’S LACROSSE

Red Wins Season Opener Against Temple, Earns 300th All-Time Win By BEN DENSON Sun Staff Writer

With five goals and one assist, senior co-captain and attacker Lindsay Toppe helped the Cornell women’s lacrosse team win its season opener against Temple University (3-1), 17-8. Cornell (1-0) notched the program’s 300th all-time victory. The game was called with 7:17 left on the clock due to unplayable field conditions. Despite a mound of heavy snow, the Red’s defense was impeccable in the premature CORNELL @ TEMPLE victory. “Collectively, 17 8 we played hard Game: 2 ND F INAL 1 ST for 53 minutes 6 17 11 and were ready Cornell 2 8 to play seven Cornell 6 more,” said senior midfielder Sarah Hefner. “When one of our defenders fell hard battling for a ground ball, the referees decided that the conditions weren’t playable.” Head coach Jenny Graap explained that her squad is prepared to play in these sorts of conditions, and did well as a result. “Typically the slippery [weather] conditions favor the offense and Cornell was fortunate to dominate the draw control which gave us more offensive possessions throughout the contest,” she said. With control on a wet field, the Red cruised to an easy victory over Temple. Cornell was particularly strong on draw control, highlighted by Hefner’s dominance in face offs. “Not only is she a skilled draw taker, she is also one of our most creative attackers and most disciplined defenders,” said Graap. “When ‘Hef’ is involved in a play, whether it’s a double team in the midfield or a

pick and roll play in the offensive end, good things are going to happen.” With 18 goals on 32 shots, Cornell’s offensive production overwhelmed the Owls, leading to Temple’s first loss of the season. Senior attacker Lindsay Toppe See LACROSSE page 14

SHAILEE SHAH / SUN SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER

Win one | Sophomore midfielder Amie Dickson scored five goals for the Red in its game against Temple.