Founded 1876 daily since 1892 online since 1998
Wednesday march 23, 2016 vol. cxl no. 32
{ www.dailyprincetonian.com } STUDENT LIFE
ACADEMICS
Ban on in-season tackling to have little effect on U. By Maya Wesby staff writer
Ivy League football coaches’ proposed ban on tackling during in-season practices will not markedly affect Princeton’s football team, according to Director of Athletics Mollie Marcoux. According to an article from the New York Times earlier this month, the proposal will become standard policy in the Ivy League if it gains approval from all eight schools’ athletic directors, university presidents and the policy committee dedicated to this issue. The University football team, as well as other teams in the League, have already been practicing this strategy of avoiding full-contact hitting, Marcoux noted. John Kolligian, director of university health services, deferred comment about the issue to University Media Re-
lations Specialist Min Pullan. Pullan explained that the University’s football team already has a policy in place that not allow tackling to the ground in practice. Marcoux said, “The League has been practicing this [strategy] for a while, and the level of play continues to increase… it’s making us more competitive because we want to keep players healthy and ready to play the game.” “This is not a far divergence from what we’ve already been doing, it would just formalize the policy in the actual season,” she added. When asked for a remark on the issue, Assistant Director of Athletic Communications Craig Sachson deferred comment to an interview with Bob Surace, University head coach of football, that aired on ivyleaguedigitalnetwork.com. See FOOTBALL page 3
LECTURE
David French discusses free speech on campuses By Zaynab Zaman senior writer
Free speech introduces dissent and disagreement, and can introduce critical thinking on college campuses, David French, a staff writer at National Review, said in a lecture Tuesday. French began by describing college as a place where one could explore “dangerous or contentious ideas in the classroom.” He said that during his college experience at a highly conservative college, he did not see any chastisement or rebuke of diverging thoughts on controversial issues. He added that at the time, he viewed free speech as a mechanism for having difficult and infuriating conversations, and as something that improved and sharpened the
mind. French explained that upon arriving at Harvard Law School, his perception of free speech changed. Shortly after arriving, he spoke out in dissent against a student who had expressed views on the opposing end of the political spectrum, albeit in a polite and conversational manner. He said he was taken aback to hear hissing and booing spreading throughout the classroom, having never encountered such a harsh reaction. Shortly after coming to school, French founded “The Society for Law, Life and Religion,” what he believed to be the first dedicated prolife student group on campus. The group was met with considerable push-back. According to French, the group received a collection of See LECTURE page 4
COURTESY OF OXFORD UNIVERSITY
Sir Andrew Wiles, James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor of Mathematics, Emeritus, was awarded the 2016 Abel Prize for solving Fermat’s Last Theorem in 1994.
U. professor emeritus Andrew Wiles awarded Abel Prize By Betty Liu staff writer
Andrew Wiles, professor of mathematics, emeritus has won the Abel Prize from the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters for his proof of Fermat’s Last Theorem. The Academy’s website explains that, “The [Abel] prize recognizes contributions of extraordinary depth and inf luence to the mathematical sciences.” Work considered for the prize may have resolved fundamental mathematical problems, created powerful new techniques, introduced unifying principles or opened up major new fields of research. “The intent is to award prizes over the course of time in a broad range of fields within the mathematical sciences,” it notes. Wiles is the third consecu-
NEW DEHLI VISIT
tive Abel Prize winner associated with the University. In 2015, the prize was shared by the late John Nash, a senior research mathematician at the University, and his colleague Louis Nirenberg, a professor emeritus at New York University’s Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences. In 2014, the prize was given to University Professor of Mathematics Yakov Sinai. Wiles did not respond to request for comment. Luigi Ambrosio, one of the committee members tasked with choosing a recipient for the prize, said that Wiles’ proof has led to important developments in Algebra and Number Theory. John Rognes, chair of the abel committee and professor of algebra, geometry and topology at Norway’s UiO university, did not respond to request for comment.
“The story of this problem [Fermet’s Last Theorem], covered also in some popularization books, is fascinating, and tells us a lot about the way ideas develop in mathematics,” Ambrosio noted. According to a press release on the Abel Prize’s website, Wiles has been intrigued by the problem since he was a child growing up in Cambridge, England, when he picked up a book about Fermat’s Last Theorem in his public library. Fermat’s Last Theorem states that there are no whole number solutions to the equation “an + bn = cn” when n is greater than 2. According to the press release, Wiles was fascinated that the problem was simple enough to be understood by a young boy, but that the proof behind it had remained See ABEL page 2
LECTURE
Whig-Clio debates on Latke and Hamentaschen contributor
COURTESY OF PRINCETON UNIVERSITY
University President Christopher Eisgruber ’83 and other U. administrators visited the U.S. embassy at New Dehli.
Professor of Politics Melissa Lane described the merits of Latkes during the Annual Latke vs. Hamentaschen Debate, which marked the 70th year the tradition has taken place, as well as the 250th anniversary of The American WhigCliosophic Society itself. “Now let me initiate you into the mysteries of the circle,” she said. The satirical debate centers around which of the two foods is superior and was moderated by Rachel Calhoun, vice president of student life, whom Center for Jewish Life Student Board President Josh Roberts ’17 pronounced as more than qualified to host this timeless debate.
In Opinion
Today on Campus
Guest contributor Marek Blazejak criticizes the research methodology of University Professor JanGross, and columnist Iris Samuels discusses the quid-pro-quo nature of enticements here on campus. PAGE 6
7 p.m.: U. S. Ambassador to UN Agencies for Food and Agriculture David Lane MPA ‘88 will speak about The U.S. and Global Food Security Progress and Perils. Robertson Hall, Bowl 016
Latkes are a deep fried potato pancake traditionally eaten during the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah or Festival of Lights. The triangular wheatflour pastries known as Hamentaschen contain a sweet filling and are traditionally eaten on the holiday of Purim, which, according to chabad. org, “commemorates the salvation of the Jewish people in ancient Persia from Haman’s plot ‘to destroy, kill and annihilate all the Jews, young and old, infants and women, in a single day,’ as recorded in the Megillah (book of Esther).” Allison Berger ’18, president of Whig-Clio, noted the debate’s profound importance to the University’s tradition and to the community. Calhoun also noted the See DEBATE page 4
WEATHER
By Amber Park
HIGH
68˚
LOW
42˚
Cloudy with showers. chance of rain:
3 percent