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Arts

Science

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Drug Safety Resources

Laughing a Night Away

Endangered Whales

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Cornell Health resources can help students reduce the risk of alcohol or other drug emergencies. | Page 4

Comedian Trevor Wallace performs for a crowd in Bailey Hall’s first in-person event of the semester. | Page 5

Researchers at Cornell investigate the clmatechange-driven causes of right whale deaths. | Page 8

HIGH: 86º LOW: 70º

Student Assembly Representatives Discuss Cayuga Governance, Reproductive Rights S.A. weighs in on policy from new Texas abortion law to Cayuga leadership disagreement

By TAMARA KAMIS Sun News Editor

At Thursday’s Student Assembly meeting, student representatives passed resolutions making statements in response to a recent Texas law which severely reduces abortion access, as well as urging Cornell to advocate to the United States federal government in support of the demands of Cayuga Nation Council of Chiefs and

“[The new law] is an affront to our democracy and bodily autonomy. It’s also just so cruel.”

Samantha Heller ’22 clanmothers.

On Sept. 1, Texas passed a law banning abortion after 6 weeks of pregnancy, which renders over 85 percent of abortions previously preformed in the state illegal. The new law shocked student advocates on campus, including leadership of the Planned Parenthood Generation Action at Cornell. “[The new law] is an affront to our democracy and bodily

JULIA NAGEL / SUN ASSISTANT PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR

Back in Memorial Room | S.A. representatives discuss a broad range of policy issues at Thursday’s meeting. autonomy,” Samantha Heller ‘23, PPGA co-president, said in an interview with the Sun. “It’s also just so cruel. It doesn’t have exceptions for people who have become pregnant through rape or incest, and that to us was kind of shocking.”

The Student Assembly passed

All creatures masked | At its Monday evening meeting, the GPSA, among other issues, discussed COVID policy. Here, the Touchdown bear mascot sculpture outside Teagle Hall wears protection against the virus.

HANNAH ROSENBERG / SUN PHOTOGRAPY EDITOR

a resolution in support of reproductive rights which stated that the legislation was “a threat to the bodily autonomy and personal health of Texans and a severe violation of democratic principles and judicial procedure.” The resolution now awaits submission to the pres-

ident.

The assembly called for increased investment from Cornell to fund student education about pregnancy termination and birth control services available to them at Cornell, as well as for the University to stand in solidarity with Cornell

peers from Texas who may be impacted by this legislation.

Heller and other student advocates are especially concerned about the disproportionate impact of the policy on low-income communities of color, where people may be less likely to have the resources to travel out-of-state to seek an abortion. Heller appreciates the support of the Student Assembly in advocating for reproductive rights.

“I was really grateful. It also made me somewhat optimistic,” Heller said. “It’s good to know, especially among young people, that these kinds of bills that completely fly in the face of Roe vs. Wade, are not acceptable.”

The Student Assembly also passed a resolution titled Calling on Cornell University To Publicly Support the Ganedago’ (Cayuga Nation) Council of Chiefs and Clan Mothers Demands, sponsored by representatives including College of Agriculture & Life Sciences Representatives Adele Williams ’24 and Yanenowi Logan ‘24, as well as Arts and Sciences Representative Claudia Irene Leon ’23.

See ASSEMBLY page 4

GPSA Picks New President, Counsel, Exec.Vice President

By ANGELA BUNAY Sun Assistant News Editor

In the second meeting of the semester, the Graduate and Professional Student Assembly elected a new president, executive vice president and counsel, which resulted in one leadership position vacancy.

Monday evening, with 20 voting members in-person and others joining over Zoom, Preston Hanley grad was elected to fill the role of GPSA president. Hanley was elected with 38 members voting in favor and 13 abstentions.

“I have a passion

for government and shared governance,” Hanley said during his speech following his nomination for president. “I can be a mega-

“I have a passion for government and shared governance.”

Preston Hanley grad

phone to move on anything that you guys might want to see change.”

At the first meeting of the

semester, the previous president of the GPSA, James Rowe grad resigned from the leadership position. Hanley described Rowe’s resignation as a “mutual parting of ways” that occurred because Rowe did not want to serve as president this year.

Hanley said that with his new position, he hopes the GPSA can begin with a clean slate. His biggest concern is making sure graduate students are represented in conversations surrounding the response to COVID-19.

“It’s definitely been someSee GPSA page 3

2 The Cornell Daily Sun | Tuesday, September 14, 2021

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A LISTING OF FREE CAMPUS EVENTS

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GET SET Workshop: The TA Role in Cultivating an Inclusive Classroom 11 a.m., Virtual Event

Best! Letters from Asian Americans in the Arts Noon, Virtual Event Leadership, Governance and Strategies for Advancing the Policies and Actions for Equitable Development 12:25 p.m., Emerson Hall, 135

Behavioral Workshop: Hunt Allcott 11:15 a.m., Sage Hall, 141 CUeLINKS and Networking Overview: Connect with your Cornell Community Noon, Virtual Event

Midday Music for Organ 9/15: C.U. Music 12:30 p.m., Sage Chapel

Getting Started with Hypothesis 2:00 p.m., Virtual Event

LEPP Theory Seminar: John Terning (UC Davis) 2 p.m., Physical Sciences Building, 401

Tie Dye on 626 Lawn 3 p.m., 626 Thurston

Berry Production Workshop, Using Insect Exclusion Netting to Manage SWD 4 p.m., The Berry Patch in Stephentown or Abers Acres in Kennedy

Cornell in Washington Information Session 4:30 p.m., Klarman Hall, KG80 Turkish Conversation Hour 4:30 p.m., Stimson Hall, G25

American Sign Language Conversation Hour 4:45 p.m., Virtual Event

Visual Culture Colloquium: Min Ma Naing 4:45 p.m., Goldwin Smith Hall, G22 Foundations of Community-Engaged Learning: 3-Week Intensive 6 p.m., Virtual Event Nomadland 7:15 p.m., Willard Straight Theatre

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Women’s soccer | Coming off a 1-0 loss against Iona

College on Sunday, Cornell Women’s Soccer will return hone to Berman Field to face off against Binghamton University, where they hope to secure their second win of the season.

Cornell Women’s Soccer vs Binghamton University 7 p.m., Berman Field Cornell Concert Series Presents Asmir ElSaffar 7 p.m., Virtual Event

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News

The Cornell Daily Sun | Tuesday, September 14, 2021 3

U.S. Rep. Melanie Stansbury M.S.’07 GPSA Elects New To Discuss Equitable Development Leadership During Stansbury will speak at The Perspectives in Global Development Seminar

By ANGELA BUNAY

Space and Technology. “[Stansbury] is a champion of efforts to address hunger, food, and water insecurity, conservation Rep. Melanie Stansbury (NM-01) M.S. ’07 and climate change, and economic development will be the next guest speaker for The Perspectives and recovery,” Stansbury’s biography for the event in Global Development Seminar hosted by the says.

The congressperson has been an advocate for College of Agriculture and Life Sciences’s Global Development department this Wednesday after- many progressive issues, including the Green New Deal, reducing noon. economic inequaliThe series of sem“I was always interested in community ty, Medicare for All, a inars showcase global development through development and policy, but through that class federal assault weapons ban and the cancelation the point of view of experts from various I got to see how accessible policy makers are.” of student loan debt.

Stansbury began parts of the world, with Melanie Stansbury M.S. ’07 her run for the spesome presenters speakcial election following ing on campus and othPresident Joe Biden’s ers over Zoom. This is the third semester the series will be taking place, appointment of Debra Haaland as United States beginning in the fall of last year with a 10-part Secretary of the Interior, who is in charge of the management and conservation of most federal series.

This semester, the series has planned 11 semi- lands and natural resources.

The Albuquerque native won the special elecnars with guests ranging from Prof. Mario Herrero, global development, who will discuss sustainable tion in a landslide, defeating her opponents with global food systems, to Sudha Narayanan Ph.D. 60.4 percent of the vote.

The former Development Sociology Ph.D. ’11, a senior research fellow in the International Food Policy Research Institute’s South Asia candidate has discussed in the past how her Regional Office, who will talk about farmer pro- Cornell experience –– particularly her Cornell in Washington experience — has informed her tests in India. political career .

“I was always interested in community develThe series of seminars showcase global opment and policy, but through that [Cornell in development through the point of view Washington] class I got to see how accessible policy makers are and how academic knowledge and of experts from various parts of the community work can be put to use in the public world. policy space,” Stansbury said in a University press release. “That was really transformative for me.”

The Perspectives in Global Development semOn Wednesday, Stansbury will discuss, over Zoom, strategies she uses as a congressperson in inars will be held Wednesdays from 12:25 p.m.

New Mexico to create policies and programs that to 1:15 p.m. ET during the semester. Those who aim to reduce social and economic disparities by wish to view the event in-person may attend at meeting the needs of underserved communities. 135 Emerson Hall.

Her talk will center around how she tackles economic development, food and water security and Angela Bunay can be reached at abunay@cornellsun.com. climate change legislation in New Mexico.

Stansbury has previously served C0URTESY OF WIKIMEDIA COMMONS as a staffer in the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources while she was also an aide to Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.). The New Mexico congressperson also served in the White House Office of Management and Budget under President Barack Obama.

Stansbury made headlines after she unseated seven-term Republican incumbent Jimmie C. Hall for the New Mexico state representative seat.

Throughout her time in the House of Representatives, Stansbury has held committee assignments in the Committee of Natural Resources and Seminar series | The Perspectives in Global Development Seminar is hosted by the Committee CALS’s Global Development department and will consist of an 11-part seminar on Science, series, the first of which will host Rep. Melanie Stansbury this Wednesday.

Sun Assistant News Editor

Monday Meeting The GPSA is left with one leadership vacancy

the same consideration they would have gotten at a regular Continued from page 1 meeting due to the online votthing that the University is ing format. continuing to deal with and “We had the opportunity students are continuing to to kind of start from scratch, have to adjust to,” Hanley and with a clean slate. It was said. “I think that making sure important after a lot of peostudents have ample represen- ple had been voted-in last tation at that table with those week,” Hanley said. “It was conversations is probably one important to get the approvof my most important issue al of these new members, areas.” resolutions, especially since Damien Sharp grad was President Pollak hasn’t signed elected as executive vice presi- off on them yet so it was a dent with 40 members voting good opportunity to go back in favor and six abstaining. and revisit those and see how Nikola Danev grad was elect- this current assembly feels ed for the counsel position about those.” with 41 votes in favor and one Following the meeting, abstention. the roles of appropriations Genesis Li grad, the new committee chair and chair of vice president of communi- diversity and international cations, says her priorities in students committee are both her new role will be to foster vacant. inclusivity in communicating Hanely said the role of with all graduate and pro- appropriation commitfessional students and main- tee chair is one of the most taining transparency in her important communicavacancies tion.

“We had the opportunity b e c a u s e “I am this is a to kind of start from hopeful to fee-setting scratch, and with a be more year, and transparent he wants to clean slate.” and better at make fundcommuniPreston Hanley grad ing for stucating with dents a prithe broader ority for the student community, graduate GPSA. student community and fac“I’m making sure that we’re ulty members about relevant getting more funding, whethissues,” Li said. er that be different scholarThe meeting also saw the ships help offset the cost of rescinding of two previous- tuition, funding for different ly-passed resolutions — one research programs and internregarded the approval of a ships and just kind of let stupre-internal budget expense dents have a better experience for a GPSA website and the here, more hands-on practisecond established a vice cal experience,” said Hanley president for strategy and a during his nomination speech. vice president for administraThe assembly will continue tion on the executive com- to look for someone to fill mittee. the vacancy and will hold an Hanley explained that the election for the diversity and decision to put the two reso- international students comlutions to a vote came about mittee at the next meeting on following concerns over the Sept. 27. resolutions being rushed and because some members felt Angela Bunay can be reached at the resolutions did not get abunay@cornellsun.com.

GPSA

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4 The Cornell Daily Sun | Tuesday, September 14, 2021

News

Guide to Resources for Alcohol-Related Emergencies

By TAMARA KAMIS

“Many are underage. Some aren’t interested. Some take a medication like an antidepressant that doesn’t mix well with alcohol. Some have a family history of addiction or are in recovery themselves,” Santacrose wrote. “Some just don’t like it, or it’s against their religion. There are also lots of reasons a student may choose not to drink on any given night including being overtired, training for an athletic event or having a test the next day.”

Santacrose says because COVID-19 risks remain significant, there are even more reasons to limit drinking. If students are going to drink socially, Santacrose recommends that people “socialize smarter,” by keeping in-person gatherings outdoors and small, and asking attendees to wear masks and wash their hands because precautions can be harder to maintain under the influence.

“Drinking alcohol can impair judgement and lead people to take more risks, including those related to COVID,” Santacrose wrote. “Avoiding alcohol or reducing how much you drink can further reduce your risk of infection.”

Many students have used alcohol and other drugs less in the last year, as they avoided groups, stayed home more, wore masks and partied less which made the pandemic easier to manage locally, according to Santacrose.

“The corresponding decline in AOD-related transports to the hospital has also been helpful in preserving medical resources at the local hospital as it works to care for COVID patients,” Santacrose wrote.

According to Krainin, students who want to reassess their relationship with alcohol and drugs have access to resources including BASICS, Cornell CAPS counseling and peer support through groups including Cornell Minds Matter and Sober@Cornell.

Sun News Editor

As many students blow off steam after years of COVID-19 related restrictions by partying on the weekends once again, they face the health risks of both alcohol and drug emergencies. However, there are resources available to students as they navigate how to manage these scenarios.

Often, these health risks are not accompanied by legal risks if students call for help because New York State Good Samaritan protocols protect both the caller and ill person from judicial and legal consequences if they call for assistance for themselves or others due to an alcohol- or drug-related emergency.

According to Laura Santacrose, assistant director of the Skorton Center for Health Initiatives, “Drinking alcohol can impair if a student is experiencing an alcohol or other judgement and lead people drug-related emergency or if they see someone to take more risks, including experiencing an overdose of any kind, they should call 911. those related to COVID” Calling Cornell CUEMS is also an option in case of a medical emergency. According to Laura Santacrose Salaiha Mughal ’22, Community Education Officer for CUEMS, emergency medical technicians for CUEMS coordinate with other medical units if further care is needed after they respond to a call and assess the patient.

Signs that a student should call for help include if someone has passed out and can’t Tamara Kamis can be reached at tkamis@cornellsun.com. be kept awake or roused, if their skin looks abnormal and if their breathing is slow, according to Santacrose.

Caution is especially important if someone has mixed drugs and alcohol or has hit their head. The 24/7 Cornell Health helpline, at 607-2555155, can help students assess if what they are seeing is in fact a medical emergency.

After an alcohol or drug-related emergency, students go through Brief Alcohol Screening & Intervention for College Students and get personalized feedback in two free BASICS sessions to help reflect on their alcohol and/or drug use and to think about how it is affecting their life, according to Penny Krainin, assistant director for counseling & psychological services clinical programs. While some students participate in BASICS voluntarily, others are required to participate if they have broken House roles or Cornell’s student code of conduct.

“BASICS is an important evidence-based strategy that’s been part of Cornell’s comprehensive approach to the prevention of AOD misuse for nearly two decades,” Kranin wrote to The Sun. While alcohol and drug use cause health risks for some students, a third of Cornell undergraduates at BEN PARKER / SENIOR SUN PHOTOGRAPHER Cornell do not drink, according to Santacrose.

Alcohol | Cornell Health staff encourages students returning to campus to “socialize smarter” to reduce the risk of COVID spread.

Student Assembly Weighs In Far Beyond Campus While assessing its own organizational structure, it makes solidarity statements beyond campus STUDENT ASSEMBLY Continued from page 1

Halftown was first designated the leader of the Cayuga Nation by the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs in 2003, according to WSKG. He remains the federally recognized representative of the Cayuga nation, despite controversies in recent years including land claim disputes.

The resolution cited an open letter released by the Cayuga Nation Council of Chiefs, clan mothers and other Cayuga citizens, which alleged that Clint Halftown ordered the demolition of homes, businesses and a traditional schoolhouse on February 22, 2020, and issued eviction notices amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

A spokesperson for the federally recognized Cayuga Nation government led by Clint Halftown, Maria Stagliano, accused the Cayuga Nation Council of Chiefs and their allies of aligning themselves with people guilty of criminal activities.

Stagliano defended the demolition of buildings, which the resolution referenced due to alleged illegal activities previously conducted in these buildings.

Stagliano claimed that the current efforts to evict

some Cayuga Nation members was in fact an effort to recoup years of missing rent. Leon and Williams were skeptical of these justifications.

The spokesperson disagreed with what she characterized as the decision to seek outside influence on native governance.

“The ‘Council of Chiefs’ is undermining Native American nations’ abilities to self-govern without interference from non-native members,” the spokesperson wrote. “This abrogation of the Cayuga Nation’s sovereignty in the pursuit of power is wrong.”

According to Williams and Leon, the focus of their effort is to amplify the voices of Cayuga people rather than speak for them.

“We are not the authority on the internal struggles of their government at the moment,” Williams said in an interview with The Sun. “We are just trying to support the people who have gone through a lot.”

In addition to the above resolutions, the Student Assembly discussed its internal bylaws, standing rules and charter. Changes to the bylaws include the possibility of adding more ex-officio members, including the suggestion of three ex-officio members to represent each segment of the Greek

tri-council instead of just one for the whole council and a new ex-officio seat for a student athlete representative.

While the changes to the charter and bylaws were tabled until the next meeting in accordance with the bylaws, the standing rules were approved. To replace the former research and accountability committee, the Student Assembly passed a resolution creating an external Office of Ethics.

According to Vice President for Finance Morgan Baker ‘23, one of the co-sponsors of the resolution to dissolve the Research and Accountability Committee and create the Office of Ethics, she and other representatives thought that an independent body would be best suited to hold accountable S.A. and directly elect undergraduate representatives to the University Assembly.

Baker characterized the research and accountability committee as “plagued by historic dysfunction and systematic shortcomings,” and is hopeful that this new structure will help make the Student Assembly more accountable.

Tamara Kamis can be reached at tkamis@cornellsun.com.

A&C

Tuesday, September 14, 2021 | The Corne¬ Daily Sun | 5

&

A Spirited Comeback: Trevor Wallace Visits Bailey Hall JOHN COLIE ASSISTANT ARTS EDITOR

The first thing I noticed when walking toward the front of Bailey Hall were the immense throngs of people standing outside the steps, loudly milling about and talking to each other as they tried to enter. They came for the first in-person event at Bailey Hall since the beginning of the pandemic: a standup comedy show by comedian and YouTuber Trevor Wallace, hosted by the Cornell University Program Board on Aug. 28.

Described on his website as “a 27 year old stand up comedian, writer & actor,” Wallace first came to fame on YouTube, posting short comedic videos, collaborating with friends and other YouTubers and later starting a podcast titled Stiff Socks.

More recently, he has collaborated with brands such as Chipotle and Snickers. His appearance at Cornell comes amidst more of his performances nationwide, including at other colleges and universities.

Before the beginning of his set, the atmosphere in Bailey was rife with anticipation.

After a spirited introduction, Wallace took to the stage with a rapturous “wassup dawg?!” and began his routine with enthusiasm and aplomb.

During his set, Wallace explored various BEN PARKER / SUN SENIOR EDITOR topics, including his confusion about the meaning of Level B’s name, humorous commentary about a drive-in strip club in Texas eventually having a near full-blown conversation together, and his own college experiences at a self-described “state to the delight of the audience. school,” where he majored in film and joined a fraternity.

Then, without missing a beat, he transitioned to his next He imbued all of these topics with his laidback self-assured- bit by bringing the conversation audience-wide, asking: ness and caustic wit.

“You guys do drugs?” No matter the portion of the set, the One of the most engaging parts of the show was Wallace’s audience remained a part of it. clever banter with the audience. Out of all the aspects of live Near the end of the show, Wallace switched gears to shows that were lost during the pandemic, one of the most an informal Q&A, answering questions, such as who important is the performer’s ability to interact with an audi- his favorite YouTubers were (his friends) and where ence — to use a crowd’s reactions to enhance their material, a first-year student should go for a first date (Home transforming it from a simple routine to something more Depot, and more seriously, a “day thing”). It was the unique and immediate. “Don’t lie!” a random person up culmination of that exhilarating back-and-forth from front shouted as Wallace spoke about his day spent in the rest of the night; everyone seemed to be enjoying Ithaca; Wallace turned this interjection into a well-received themselves. exchange, throwing this person’s demand back at him and Eventually, the show ended and Wallace disappeared

BEN PARKER / SUN SENIOR EDITOR

BEN PARKER / SUN SENIOR EDITOR

backstage. The lights in Bailey Hall went back up; the audience almost immediately rose from their seats, crowding out of the entrance together in the same way in which they had entered.

Standing in the middle of that crowd, I could not help but feel that all of this was a return to something — not simply to an in-person event, but to a way of being together and experiencing something collectively as an audience.

For the first time in a long time, all of us were feeding off of each other’s reactions in this shared space rather than staying in solitude behind a screen. Coming together in this fashion, whether by going to class or attending a comedy event, may take some getting used to for everyone, but events like these show that it comes to us more readily than we may think.

And what a fitting first event to return to.

John Colie is a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences. He can be reached at jcolie@cornellsun.com

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Tom the Dancing Bug

by Ruben Bolling

Faking It Until You Don’t Want to Make It Anymore

I

was transported. Tagged as a second-semester sophomore and released, some Thursday, back into campus as a senior.

In the weeks leading up to it, I fielded questions about the school year mostly with that I felt hopeful. I think I meant to say awake. Alive. At least more so than the past year and a half. Excited to be returning to a place that looked awake and alive as well. I was so concerned with escaping the drawl of the past three semesters I forgot the goal was to make a life afterward, outside of this. There’s only so much time until I am uncaged again, set off into an even less tame environment, and I don’t envision the hopefulness I created for this year lasting long enough to come crawling out with me.

Seniors are fast-approaching a confrontation twenty one years in the making, and while everyone else has been preparing, I’ve been forever masquerading through the motions.

I was inducted into the National Junior Honor Society in seventh grade. Our mentors were eighth-graders seasoned by nothing more than hours of community service that most either forged or substituted for familial favors. Following their footsteps, we were to stand in the middle school gymnasium and be introduced to the families of spectators in the bleachers, ending with our career aspirations. I was freshly thirteen and my future plans were far from concrete.

I knew I was inspired by Salvador Dali’s paintings, Rick Riordan’s books, my binges of YouTube videos, my misunderstandings of Socrates, my father. I coveted a future that was steeped in possibility, one that looked like a million different ways to find fulfillment and bring ease to whatever piece of the world that offered me. But, if I had a penny for all the inspirations I never let linger long enough to be defeated by career searches, I wouldn’t be writing this column. So, I curated an image. One I thought was palatable, professional and predictable, to match the skirt I let sway above the scabbed front of my legs. I went with a toss up between aerospace engineer and neurosurgeon, bullshit so steamy it caught the attention of every head seated in those bleachers. Those types of ceremonies still felt meaningful then. I was still under the impression they reflected something about me personally, my aspirations and potential to breathe life into them. I didn’t consider the tens of thousands of other gymnasiums doing the same thing, maybe even at the same time, and how many lives and lies lined up exactly with mine.

The fact that I sit now with the likes of future neurosurgeons and aerospace engineers is somehow unsavory. I know my future is supposedly bright as well, but without the opportunity to make up for lost time, it all feels beyond me and out of my control. I have simply been

transported.

Multiple times during junior year I found myself aimless and alone in the hours before sunrise reciting facts to myself. I was twenty. I am a college student at Cornell University. I lived in an apartment with two roommates and it is probably still my turn to do the dishes. I tried to compare it with what I thought these facts would look like before I was within them, or before I was close enough to have a realistic idea, and suddenly I was seeing a former me. One who was more idealistic. I imagine she’d look at me with something like combined confusion and pity, trying to come to terms with a scene that was nothing like she dreamed and exactly as much as she could expect. When I remember what I used to be, or what I think she was, I get a pit in my stomach.

A pain to throw her up, wash her off and salvage her. My brain doesn’t run wild with academic anxieties the way it did in grade school. But it doesn’t run wild with excitements or possibilities either. It’s gone quiet with the complacency that comes from the fear of getting anything wrong while not completely believing in what’s right.

As tumultuous as the journey has become, pandemic considered, my destination was always simple: degree. The details don’t matter, the distance has always been too much, and will be until the finish line is at my feet. But even with fall not yet here, I feel a cold growing in them starting at my toes. A wondering is awakening in me, about why to cross and what waits for me. I figured over four years, a path might present itself. Uncover from a mess of ivy and weed and wood to let me know my quest is through with, the next installment is promising and ready to be stepped into.

Now I worry the serialized certificate will only prove to me how incomplete this chapter has rendered me.

I have been made into a student. And for all the silly things I sacrificed in the process, I’ll soon lose this cast too. College has been a marathon for all of us and to finish it should be bliss. But the brutal beating of my heart to keep up with the crowd and sideline watchers to bear witness to my pain feels worth more to me than the directionlessness that awaits once there’s time to catch my breath again.

Since my acceptance here, any suffering I’ve claimed to endure has been scholarly.

Soon it will just be stress. A symptom of our economy, a shitty commute, standing through a slow supermarket checkout line without friends by my side.

I know nostalgia isn’t much more than the trick of convenient forgetfulness, but I miss when the world felt more like something to inherit than hide from. I’m cowering now, in anticipation that when the clock strikes May and the student in me meets its maker, that I and the real world will greet each other with nothing to offer one another.

Comics and Puzzles

Sundoku Fill in the empty cells, one number in each, so that each column, row, and region contains the numbers 1-9 exactly once. Each number in the solution therefore occurs only once in each of the three “directions,” hence the “single numbers” implied by the puzzle’s name.

(Rules from wikipedia.org/wiki/ Sudoku)

The Cornell Daily Sun | Tuesday, September 14, 2021 7

Puzzle 1845

CIRCLE

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I Am Going To Be Small

26 A PARTMENT FOR R ENT Architects Loft / Studio,

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Mr. Gnu

by Travis Dandro

Mr. Gnu

by Travis Dandro

Strings Attached

by Ali Solomon ‘01

“Fat, drunk and stupid is no way to go through life, son.”

Pick up a copy of

The Sun

8 The Cornell Daily Sun | Tuesday, September 14, 2021

Science

SCIENCE

Cornellians Monitor Endangered Right Whales

By JESSICA DAI Sun Staff Writer

The North Atlantic right whale population — with fewer than 400 individuals — is at risk of further decline as rising sea levels force them northward toward fishing grounds where they run the risk of potentially deadly ship strikes and entanglement.

To monitor this phenomenon, Cornell researchers are studying the soundscapes of right whales as a method of tracking and assessing changes in their migration patterns.

With hopes to better conserve the environment by conveying results to the public and policy makers, the group recently discovered a major cause of the declining whale population — rising sea levels are forcing whales into harm’s way, near the fishing grounds of eastern Canada.

Over the course of a decade, the Gulf of Maine has warmed faster than 99 percent of the global ocean. The increased temperatures are influenced by a northward shift in the path of the Gulf Stream, a warm current from the Gulf of Mexico to the Atlantic Ocean — which is likely caused by anthropogenic climate change.

According to Prof. Erin Meyer-Gutbrod, Ph.D. ’16, ocean and environment, the University of South Carolina — the lead author of a recent study published in Oceanography investigating the phenomenon —, increasing temperatures in the Gulf of Maine are influencing this shift in the Gulf Stream, driving a drastic change in how and where humans interact with the ocean.

The new regime, Harrington said, is less favorable for zooplankton — small aquatic microorganisms — which right whales consume, forcing the whales to abandon their traditional summertime feeding grounds in the Gulf of Maine and follow their food north to the Gulf of Saint Lawrence in Canada around 2010.

Due to the unexpected migration, fishing policies and vessel speed restrictions that had protected the right whales in their previous habitat were not in place in their new one.

This is connected to an “unusual mortality event” where 17 right whales died in 2017. Since then, the total has risen to 34 confirmed right whale deaths — almost 10 percent of the dwindling right whale population.

“Because the population is already so small, the right whale population is super genetically vulnerable which further compounds [the decline],” said Marissa Garcia grad, a first-year Ph.D. student working at the K. Lisa Yang Center for Conservation Bioacoustics. Because there are fewer whales, and less genetic diversity, the population may be more vulnerable to disease and other threats.

One pathway to safeguard right whales as they forage into habitats in search of food is to expand protective policies, like

limiting the use AVA FASCIANO / SUN GRAPHIC DESIGNER of certain fishing equipment dangerous for the whales, such as vertical lines.

On Aug. 31, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced a new fishery regulation that will go into effect May 1, 2022, including modifications to fishing gear that would reduce entanglements, and increase the Whale tales | The endangered North Atlantic right whales face new threats due to rising sea levels. likelihood that a whale may free itself from a trap by breaking through weaker is that it’s passively recording the environment the whole ropes. entire time.”

Still, researchers believe that entirely eliminating ropes Passive acoustic monitoring also provides a more durable in fishing is the key to mitigating whales’ entanglement. and convenient way to observe whales since it can survey Ropeless fishing works by using acoustic communication during bad weather and far from shore, Meyer-Gutbrod to allow fishermen to retrieve their trap by playing a sound, explained. signaling their gear to float to the surface, according to According to Rice, the right whales are not the only ones Aaron Rice, principal ecologist at the K. Lisa Yang Center that are affected by rising ocean temperatures. for Conservation Bioacoustics.

The southern Sei whales, which are the third largest Most importantly, according to Meyer-Gutbrod, research- whales in the western north Atlantic, typically go north and ers must be able to predict where right whales will travel next then swim down to the New York Bight, an offshore area and prepare for the whales’ arrival by setting up protective that extends from Cape May to Montauk Point on the eastregulations beforehand. ern tip of Long Island. As ocean temperatures continue to Old whaling records, zooplankton data and knowledge rise, a northward shift of the southern Sei whale population of the shape and depth of the seafloor allow researchers to can be expected as well. predict what areas may attract right whales, Meyer-Gutbrod As waters become warmer, tracking migration pattern explained. changes like these will become increasingly vital. MeyerThe best way to improve these predictions is through Gutbrod called on students to support the effort by making increased monitoring — a difficult feat to accomplish across small changes, like voting for progressive climate policies the incredibly vast ocean, Meyer-Gutbrod said. Right whales — such as New York’s newly signed legislation to aim for all can be spotted through boat and airplane surveillance, new passenger cars and trucks to be zero-emissions by 2035. although these methods are contingent on good weather “Vote. Voting for politicians that want to support broadsightings being close to the shore. scale climate mitigation strategies and support science [that] Another tool, Garcia added, is through a method called can make a big impact,” Meyer-Gutbrod said. passive acoustic monitoring.

“Basically we drop off underwater microphones or hydrophones in the water to listen for right whale calls and they Jessica Dai can be reached at just stay there, for a very long time,” Garcia said. “The idea jdai@cornellsun.com.

Entomologist Debugs Mosquito Bite Preference Myths

By KOBI RASSNICK Sun Staff Writer

While Cornell students enjoy the last nights of summer relaxing under the glow of the setting sun on Libe Slope, some find themselves ravaged by mosquito bites while others find themselves walking away unscathed.

Although mosquitoes do prefer to feast on some people more than others, this preference has more to do with the chemistry taking place on one’s skin rather than commonly misconceived reasons such as blood type.

So-called “mosquito season” begins when temperatures consistently surpass 50 degrees Fahrenheit, typically ranging from late spring to early fall in Ithaca.

The most mosquitoes die when low temperatures freeze standing water, the typical mosquito breeding ground. During the fall and winter, however, some female mosquitoes take cover in warm areas like animal burrows, attics or basements.

According to Prof. Laura

Harrington, entomology, these mechanisms to finally hone in on female mosquitoes are the ones their victim.” that bite humans as they require Those who are easier for moscertain amino acids — the build- quitoes to spot — particularly ing blocks of proteins — and people who have just finished nutrients like iron from blood to exercising — are prime targets for the insects. This, in produce their eggs. part, is due to the Harrington said production of that mosquitoes lactic acid, a rely on severproduct that al sensory accumusignals to locate lates in humans, muscle as including a result carbon of exerdioxide cise and emission, the scent heat and of which is vision. particularly VICTOR J. BLUE / THE NEW YORK TIMES “We do attractive to know that some mosquitoes. The odors are used for additional increase longer range Mosquito mystery | Mosquitoes in body temattraction to perature and people, like car- choose their dinner based on the carbon dioxbon dioxide,” chemical compounds, like odors, ide exhalation Harrington said. that are present on one’s skin. make conve“Then, once the nient victims mosquito is closer they can use out of those who exercise. heat, vision and other sensory Harrington said that a com-

bination of over 300 compounds on human skin can create a concoction that attracts mosquitoes.

Some research has even shown that the microorganisms living on people’s skin can impact their body odor, serving to attract mosquitoes to certain fragrant individuals.

“In recent years, skin bacteria have been identified that might play a role in producing odors that are attractive to mosquitoes and there is variation in this microbiota from one person to the next,” Harrington said.

Human body odor is produced when skin bacteria break down proteins in sweat. Some secretions are metabolized into fatty acids, and bacterial waste products from this process contribute to odor.

Although blood type is commonly expected to be a factor involved in mosquitos’ preferences — and some studies provide evidence mosquitoes prefer type O — Harrington holds that this claim is largely a myth.

Blood type is characterized by the presence of certain antigens, substances that trigger immune respons-

es to foreign substances in the body, and proteins on red blood cells.

Blood type seems to have no relationship with body odor, let alone other sensory mechanisms on which mosquitoes rely. The presence or absence of antigens and surface proteins makes no changes to the amino acid and nutrient content of human blood, so mosquitoes have no need to desire one blood type over another. Accordingly, Harrington insists that blood type is not at all a factor in mosquito-host attraction, and thus that the idea of mosquitoes preferring a certain blood type is simply a myth.

Harrington acknowledged that sources hold differing opinions on whether there is currently credible research that definitively proves whether mosquitoes prefer a certain blood type. For now, all we can do is wait for the inevitable, harsh Ithaca winter to rid our lives of the bothersome bugs for a few short months.

Kobi Rassnick can be reached at krassnick@cornellsun.com.