ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-FIVE YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM Friday, December 11, 2015
Ann Arbor, Michigan
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RUBE GOLDBERG’S DEVICE
STUDENT GOVERNMENT
Commission on inclusion inactive after resignations Eleven members step down from their positions after chair’s termination By EMMA KERR DELANEY RYAN/Daily
Art & Design freshman Laura Desimine works on a Rube Goldberg project for her first-year 3D class at the Art & Architecture building on Thursday.
POLITICS
At his alma mater, mixed impressions of Ben Carson ‘U’, campaign not actively highlighting candidate’s time on Ann Arbor campus
an unknown name for most Americans. The now-presidential hopeful first made his mark as the first neurosurgeon to separate conjoined twins in 1987 — a feat rooted in the medical training he received at the University’s Medical School. But while he’s known to many Americans, his alum status at the University isn’t as well known — and little has been done to connect the presidential-hopeful
By EMMA KINERY Daily Staff Reporter
With a third-place position in the Republican presidential primary, Ben Carson is not
to his alma mater, by both the campaign and the University. Until Wednesday, Carson had yet to visit Ann Arbor while on the campaign trail, and when he did, the visit was brief — a closedpress meeting with Medical School leaders and students before a campaign stop in Ypsilanti and a fundraiser in Ann Arbor. The meeting on campus was closed per the University’s request, according to the Carson campaign.
TMD
By KATIE PENROD Daily Staff Reporter
With 2016 around the corner, The Michigan Daily staff has selected its new editor in chief, managing editors and section leaders for the 2016 calendar year. The editor in chief and editorial page editors were chosen during a staff-wide election, while other positions were elected within each section. LSA junior Shoham Geva, a senior news editor in 2015, will serve as editor in chief. Generally, her goal for the upcoming year is to move the Daily in a more digitally focused direction. “Specifically, I’d like to focus a lot on our online presence,” she said. “Two of the initiatives I’m planning on pursuing right away are really defining what our social media presence
WEATHER TOMORROW
looks like — so sitting down and creating a strategic plan about how we brand ourselves and how we promote ourselves. I’m also hoping to create a new position entirely focused on multimedia in recognition of the fact that it seems like a lot of newspapers have seemed to fold that more and more into their coverage.” LSA junior Laura Schinagle will serve as managing editor, and echoed Geva’s thoughts about creating an online presence that caters to readers. She added that she wants to make every staff member feel welcome in the newsroom. “One of our main initiatives is ramping up social media, something we’ve already started doing through Shoham’s strategic plan,” she said. “Also implementing more online packaging and working with web team to create more interactive things online.” LSA junior Emma Kerr, the incoming managing news editor, said she hopes to foster more long-form investigative work with her reporters while continuing to engage See EDITORS, Page 3
HI: 59 LO: 50
The Central Student Government’s Campus Inclusion Commission, which aimed to address campus issues related to race, gender and the LGBTQ community, has effectively disbanded, following the resignation of 11 of the group’s members. At last week’s CSG meeting, CSG President Cooper Charlton, an LSA senior, told the assembly that the commission’s chair, Matthew Fleisher, a School of Music, Theatre & Dance sophomore, had been terminated from his position. According to members of the commission, the 11 other members resigned shortly afterward in response. During an interview Tuesday, CSG executives declined to answer questions related to the commission, and at this time, there is no active CSG commission related to diversity and inclusion. Charlton did address the matter at the Dec. 1 CSG meeting,
SCIENCE
& RUBIK’S CUBE
Daily staffers elects 2016 leadership, section editors LSA junior Shoham Geva to serve as paper’s editor in chief
Later in the day, Carson introduced his health care reform plans not on campus but 30 minutes away, at Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti. During previous visits to the state, Carson hasn’t visited Ann Arbor, and the University hasn’t made much mention of the candidate since he launched his campaign in May. The University declined requests for comment about See CARSON, Page 2
Daily News Editor
saying he and the body’s other executives stand by Fleisher’s termination, citing “deceptive behavior, the misrepresentation of facts, and racially charged statements to members of CSG staff and colleagues.” Charlton addressed the situation after a Michigan in Color article, published in The Michigan Daily, criticized how the body’s executive leadership interacted with the commission and its members. The article was temporarily retracted, but an edited version has since been republished following additional review. Fleisher provided a written statement on behalf of the Campus Inclusion Commission, but declined to further discuss the circumstances surrounding the resignations and termination or the commission’s future. “The former Campus Inclusion Commission advocated for the inclusion of minority voices and perspectives in the common campus narrative, as well as the narrative within student government,” he wrote. “We are handling this situation with as much care for the community and ourselves with principles of truth, reconciliation, and justice. Going forward, we will continue our inclusionary work through other See INCLUSION, Page 3
‘U’ profs. create new software to detect lies Research uses clips from trials to identify deceptive gestures, words By ALYSSA BRANDON Daily Staff Reporter
RYAN MCLOUGHLIN/Daily
Engineering graduate student Martin Harris demonstrates how his team’s Rubik’s cube works in the GG Brown Building on Thursday. The cube could possibly be named the world’s largest Rubik’s cube that is solvable under human power.
GOVERNMENT
State reps. face challenges in majority GOP legislature
Warren, Irwin, Zemke focus on diverse range of policy goals in 2015 By LYDIA MURRAY Daily Staff Reporter
With the 2015 legislative session coming to a close, Ann Arbor’s representatives in the State House and Senate
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discussed the year’s successes and challenges as they played out in a Republican-controlled legislature. State House In January, Rep. Jeff Irwin (D–Ann Arbor) and Rep. Adam Zemke (D–Ann Arbor) spoketo The Michigan Daily about what they hoped to accomplish during the year. Both emphasized goals related to higher education funding, which has been in flux over the past five years. In 2011, Gov. Rick Snyder (R) cut state
NEW ON MICHIGANDAILY.COM SAM member sentenced for vandalism MICHIGANDAILY.COM/SECTION/NEWS
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funding for higher education by almost 15 percent. Since then, he has proposed modest increases each year, though overall funding has not reached pre2011 levels. With this year’s budget, higher education funding for the University increased by 1.9 percent. “We really have to work to preserve funding at the current levels,” Zemke said in January. “And really it should be See LEGISLATURE, Page 3
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What does lying look like? Two University researchers believe they have found the answer. Using video footage of highprofile court trials and hearings, Rada Mihalcea, professor of computer science and electrical engineering, and Mihai Burzo, assistant professor of mechanical engineering at UM-Flint, are leading a project to build liedetecting software that can gauge deception through a speaker’s words and gestures. Mihalcea said the research team first began developing the software by studying 120 video clips from media coverage of court trials. She said the team chose to analyze videos as part of building the software to add a real-life element to the software. “I think that one of the challenges in doing the research on deception is that usually you get your data in lab, which is fine, but I think that people who come See LIES, Page 3
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2 — Friday, December 11, 2015
MONDAY: This Week in History
TUESDAY: Campus Voices
WEDNESDAY: In Other Ivory Towers
THURSDAY: Twitter Talk
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Rabbi Aharon Goldstein, director of the Chabad House of Ann Arbor, lights a giant menorah on the Diag for the second day of Hanukkah on Monday. (HALEY MCLAUGHLIN / Daily)
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RIGHT: Team Sharknado engineering freshmen Matthew Novak, Tyler Pangerl, Jimmy Ruan and Zhi Ming Lin, present the blimp designed in their Engineering 100-700 class during Aerospace Day in the FXB Atrium on Saturday. (ANDREW COHEN /Daily)
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CAMPUS EVENTS & NOTES
Drug discovery lecuture
Bagel Bonanza
Philosophy lecture
WHAT: Pharmacology professor discusses the use of patient-derived neurons to study severe genetic epilepsies. WHO: Center for the Discovery of New Medicines WHEN: Today from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. WHERE: Palmer Commons, Forum Hall
WHAT: The Dean of Students Office will provide bagels, fruit, drinks and stress-relieving activites for students. WHO: Dean of Students Office WHEN: Today from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. WHERE: Arbor Blu-Lobby
WHAT: Erin Frykholm parses the debate over whether human motivation is self-interested. WHO: Department of Philosophy WHEN: Today from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. WHERE: 3222 Angel Hall
Attica Prison Uprising talk
Gift Your Culture
Beads and bracelets
WHAT: Heather Ann Thompson will talk about the challenge of writing the first comprehensive history of Attica leading up to a 1971 uprising. WHO: Residential College WHEN: Today from 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. WHERE: 1405 East Quadrangle
WHAT: Students can share artifacts that represent their culture. The event will feature a multicultural food buffet, games and prizes. WHO: Office of Academic Multicultural Initiatives WHEN: Today from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m WHERE: 3009 Student Activities Building
WHAT: Make your very own glass and wooden bead bracelet with the help of a professional instructor. WHO: Center for Campus Involvement WHEN: Today from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. WHERE: Michigan League, Kalamazoo Room
CARSON From Page 1 Carson’s time at the University for this story. Mary Masson, a spokesperson for the University of Michigan Health system, also declined multiple interview requests to UMHS and Medical School faculty and administrators on their behalf. Public Policy senior Cody Giddings, vice chair of the University’s chapter of the College Republicans, said the organization has not been in contact with the Carson campaign, and he does not foresee the candidate making an official visit to the University. “I do not think Ann Arbor will be one of his future campaign stops, but anything is possible,” he said. The majority of students approached for this article were not aware Carson had graduated from the University, though a large-scale survey was not conducted. “I knew, but then again I wouldn’t expect most people to know that he graduated here,” said LSA senior Stephen Culbertson,
communications director for the University’s chapter of College Democrats. “Most people do not associate him with the University of Michigan as far as I know,” he said. Political Science Prof. Michael Traugott agreed with that sentiment, noting that individuals in the University community are more familiar with his presidential campaign than his University roots. “I don’t think he is well known as an alumnus because he graduated from the Medical School and that was about a generation ago,” Traugott said. “He’s much better known as a candidate than he is as an alum.” Even those who do know him as a graduate said they do not associate him with the University — or believe he fully represents what the University stands for. Medical School student Brian Desmond said though he knew Carson was a graduate of the University and his accomplishments as a doctor have made him a figure to be celebrated in the Medical School, he said Carson’s political beliefs are disheartening. “The thing that I find kind of
Smith lecture WHAT: Shawn DomagalGoldman, research scientist at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, discusses the possiblity of other lifeforms in the universe. WHO: Earth and Environmental Sciences WHEN: Today from 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. WHERE: 1528 Clarence Cook Little Building
Cookies & ‘Elf’ WHAT: A free screening of the popular Christmas movie “Elf” along with free cookies from Insomnia Cookies WHO: Dean of Students Office WHEN: Today from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. WHERE: The Courtyards, South Building Theatre
surprising, or that makes me a little bit sad, is that one of the things that brought me to U of M was the emphasis on kind of celebrating diversity,” Desmond said. “And I don’t think that those are things that Dr. Carson — at least in his political campaign — has represented well.” Desmond also noted that while Carson’s medical career might align with the education emphases of the Medical School — such as evidence-based methodology — his political career has not. “I think, unfortunately, and it might be because of the political climate he’s in, but I think unfortunately he kind of has a mixed record of actually doing that,” he said. “Some of his statements about climate change kind of go against what is the scientific consensus so I think his practices may be a little more mixed than what he said about using evidence.” However, Medical School student Ben Long said he knew Carson was a graduate and felt the
THREE THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW TODAY
1
Connecticut Gov. Daniel Malloy (D) plans to issue an executive order blocking access to guns for anybody on the no-fly list, the New York Times reported. The measure would be the first to block access to that group.
2
The Michigan hockey team will play host to Minnesota this weekend for a two-game series. The Wolverines will look to sweep their second Big Ten series of the season. >>SEE SPORTS, PAGE 7
3
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un suggested the country had a hydrogen bomb during a tour of a historical site Thursday, Reuters reported. The White House and U.S. State Department both expressed skepticism about the veracity of the claim.
fact was well regarded. Ever since reading Carson’s autobiography, “Gifted Hands,” the doctor has been highly influential on Long’s life. Long said Carson’s story is the “main reason” he decided to go into medicine, and he has now attended the same undergraduate and medical school as Carson. “I’d say he’s one of our bestknown graduates,” Long said. “He is obviously really successful in the field of neurosurgery, he’s running for president and I think that reflects highly on the Medical School because the sort of motto is ‘the leaders and the best’ and he’s one of our probably most prominent graduates but also one of our most prominent minority graduates.” One of Carson’s draws to many Republican voters are his strong religious ties, which a number of news outlets have contrasted with his scientific background. However, many students interviewed said they didn’t think those contrasts — for example, Carson has expressed a belief in creationism — have had much of
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Hussein Hakim Finance and Operations Manager Claire Ulak Production Manager Jordan Yob Marketing Manager Matt Pfenning Accounts Manager Asja Kepes Local Accounts Colin Cheesman National Accounts Anna He Special Guides and Online Manager Claire Butz Layout Manager The Michigan Daily (ISSN 0745-967) is published Monday through Friday during the fall and winter terms by students at the University of Michigan. One copy is available free of charge to all readers. Additional copies may be picked up at the Daily’s office for $2. Subscriptions for fall term, starting in September, via U.S. mail are $110. Winter term (January through April) is $115, yearlong (September through April) is $195. University affiliates are subject to a reduced subscription rate. On-campus subscriptions for fall term are $35. Subscriptions must be prepaid. The Michigan Daily is a member of The Associated Press and The Associated Collegiate Press.
an impact on people’s perceptions of the candidate. “His life story and how he rose from poverty, and he worked really hard to go to school, I think it’s really inspiring,” Long said. “I don’t entirely agree with his creationist views, but it is his religion though so I can sort of understand why that is ... I don’t think it reflects badly on him.” Traugott said he didn’t think being both a doctor and strongly religious individual would necessarily present issues with regard to public opinion. “There must be a wide range of religious beliefs among doctors, and he has a particular one which he apparently has had throughout his career,” he said. “We won’t know until they start voting in the primaries and caucuses how attractive they are to Republicans.” Traugott also noted the fact that being a Michigan alum wasn’t necessarily something that would be a draw or a negative for voters. Culbertson said he believes
most Republican candidates don’t appeal to University students, and Carson isn’t an exception. “As far as the student body is concerned, I don’t really believe that Ben Carson appeals to Michigan students, despite what people say about students not being involved or engaged in politics,” he said. “He’s kind of an appeal gap here and I don’t think the University association is going to be able to overcome that.” Students who support the Republican Party said Carson’s alum status is also not a draw, though they noted there were many other reasons they could have for supporting him. “Carson’s accomplishments in the medical field as a University of Michigan Medical School graduate certainly serve as a source of pride for those that support him within the University of Michigan College Republicans but I believe his political policies are the primary reason some in UMCR support him.”
AMANDA ALLEN/Daily
Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson speaks to supporters at a campaign rally at Spring Arbor University Fieldhouse in Spring Arbor on September 23, 2015.
News
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Senate votes in favor of education overhaul bill The Every Student Succeeds Act passed in the United States Senate Wednesday, after passing in the House of Representatives last week. The act is an overhaul of No Child Left Behind and is the first major education bill to be passed since President George W. Bush signed the expired education policy reform program into law in 2002. According to The Huffington Post, the Every Student Suceeds Act maintains many of the policies No Child Left Behind establsihed, but the new act gives more power to the states as opposed to the federal government. Like they were in No Child Left Behind, the act still requires annual math and reading exams for students in third through eighth grade and in one year during high school. Unlike the expired education program, however, the act allows states to decide for themselves how to evaluate their teachers and how they hold schools accountable for their students’ performance.
MSU student facing terrorism charges for threats Michigan State University student Sydney Gort currently faces charges for two counts of “making a terrorist threat,” both of which she reported to police. According to the Detroit Free Press, Gort’s first terror threat was a bomb threat against MSU in the Douglas J Aveda Institute in August 2012. In her threat she wrote, “I have had enough of this school and the associated peoples … ” The student made the second threat inside a bathroom stall in MSU’s School of Packaging building on Nov. 24, writing she would “be administering the first act of terrorism on this campus … striking every third girl seen.” Gort reported her threat to the police at 5 p.m. that day. The student was arrested last month and faces charges for both of her threats. She faces up to 20 years for each count. An Ingham County District Court judge has Gort’s bond set at $100,000. Her next hearing is Dec. 18.
Third former SAM member given community service, probation University alum Daniel Orleans is the third former brother of the now-disbanded University fraternity Sigma Alpha Mu to be sentenced for malicious destruction of property at Treetops Resort, which was vandalized by the fraternity last January, the Petoskey News reported. Orleans pled guilty to the charges on Monday, and was sentenced Thursday. Orleans faces two years of probation, $5,000 in restitution charges, 100 community service hours and court fines worth around $860. Orleans’ sentencing follows that of University alumni Matthew Vlasic and Jesse Krumholz, the two other members of SAM who were charged with the destruction of Treetops. The three members were handed down nearly identical sentences. The restitution cost Orleans paid was instituted to cover a portion of the $25,000 insurance deductible paid by Treetops Resort to cover damages inflicted by SAM. The resort estimated that more than $200,000 in property damages were perpetrated during SAM’s January stay. The University’s chapter of the Sigma Delta Tau sorority, which is currently suspended, also attended the ski trip.
—LEA GIOTTO and TANYA MADHANI
EDITORS From Page 1 the community and produce quality work with thorough editing. “I believe the quality and ethical standards we hold ourselves to in the news section are impressive, and as managing news editor, I plan to continue that tradition,” Kerr said. “Our goal in the news section, in my opinion, is to inform the public, creating a more engaged student community on campus. “This year, I’ll be focusing on moving toward an online-first model so we can best reach our audience while maintaining a consistent print paper — the only daily print paper in Ann Arbor,” she added. “I’ll also be working to better train the next generation of Daily reporters and journalists, encourage strengthened relationships with sources, and facilitate a challenging and inclusive community of student journalists.” Incorporating a broad array of voices will be a priority for LSA sophomore Regan Detwiler and LSA junior Claire Bryan, incoming editorial page editors. They both said more active recruitment for the section will play an essential role in reaching this goal. “Claire and I really want to be leaders in innovation and in increasing diversity on the Daily, especially within the Opinion section. We want as many voices to be heard as possible,” Detwiler said. “We also see ourselves as part of student newspaper that needs to be on the cutting edge of journalism, doing new things with web and increasing the variety of content we have to appeal to more readers.” LSA junior Jake Lourim and Public Policy junior Max Bultman hope to create a welcoming environment for their writers as co-managing sports editors. This is Lourim’s second year in this position and Bultman’s first. Bultman said he feels he owes it to the section to step up to this role. “I think it’s important to continue to grow our staff and keep good opportunities for people so that we have a
foundation for the future,” Lourim said. “I think it’s also important to create a good atmosphere within the section so that everyone feels welcome and everyone feels like they’re contributing. Doing this again, I loved doing it the first time, had a great co-editor, (Business senior) Max Cohen, and I really liked the responsibility, liked being involved at the Daily, liked covering football — which I got to do this year. I’m excited to give it another go.” For LSA juniors Emily Campbell and Alexis Nowicki, their collective passion for the Daily combined with their love of grammar will help them lead their section as co-copy chiefs, and create an open, collaborative section, they said. “I ran because I love the Daily and I love the Copy Desk — I’ve been a part of it since my freshman year,” Campbell said. “It’s a really great community and I think that ties into my goals because what I’d really love is for the Copy Desk to be a community in and of itself and part of The Michigan Daily community. A goal would be to try and foster that community for everyone.” Incoming managing photo editors, LSA junior Amanda Allen and LSA sophomore Grant Hardy, hope to produce strong visual narratives for the stories the Daily runs. “My goals for next year are to continue to put out quality content,” Allen said. “I think that Photo is a great opportunity for photographers to get a lot of experience and learn from other people so I want to keep that tradition going.” LSA juniors Adam Theisen and Kathleen Davis hope that their love for the Daily will be reflected in their new roles as co-managing arts editors — which Davis said is representative of the duo’s overall commitment to journalism. “Adam and I have a very similar trajectory because we both started very soon during our freshman year,” Davis said. “We both became senior arts editors last year and we both love the Daily. This is what I want to do in my life, and Adam I think is the same.” LSA sophomore Anjali Alangaden was selected for the
LEGISLATURE From Page 1 increased, but especially given a budget deficit of $460 million, you’re talking about a lot of items that we have to watch.” Irwin said in an interview Thursday that he deemed expanding financial aid a priority, but he was disappointed that this priority wasn’t largely reflected in the final budget. “Michigan is currently 41st in the nation by most estimates in terms of providing financial aid,” Irwin said. “Efforts to move Michigan up the ladder, to try to get Michigan out of the basement in funding for financial aid were rebuffed.” Irwin also identified several other priorities in January, including bolstering clean energy production and improving energy efficiency in the state, as well as several social justice measures. Speaking about those priorities Thursday, Irwin said he believed one of the most important pieces of legislature passed this year was a bill relating to criminal justice, which he co-sponsored. The bill, passed by the Michigan House, would prevent prisons from holding prisoners past their sentences. The bill is currently being considered in the Senate. “Michigan is one of the toughest states for parole,” he said. “What we are basically saying to the parole board is if you want to keep somebody past their release date then you have to justify it, and in the future that could save the state hundreds of millions of dollars.” Irwin has also introduced several bills relating to the environment, including House Bill 4512, which imposes regulations on the construction of oil and natural gas pipelines, and House Bill 5116, which
position of managing design editor, and will be joined by Art & Design senior Mariah Gardziola for Winter 2016 and Art & Design junior Francesca Kielb for Fall 2016. “In the coming year, there are a lot of things that the design section would like to focus on,” Alangaden said. “Of course, we want to continue producing innovative and interesting layouts and for the feature sections like B-side and SportsMonday, but we are also working to update the overall design of the paper, especially the front page. The layout and design of the paper plays a huge role in attracting interest and we want to make sure we are staying up to date.” The current semester’s editors for Michigan in Color — Engineering graduate student Ryan Moody and LSA seniors Sarah Khan, De’Mario Longmire and Gabby Vasquez — will continue to hold their positions until their section selects new leadership in February. LSA junior Nivedita Karki will serve as next year’s online editor, and said she hopes to create a teaching community within the web team through new innovative ideas. “We’re working on two apps right now,” Karki said. “We’re working on a concept app for The Michigan Daily and the other app we’re working on is a ‘marketplace.’ It’s definitely been a learning process for everybody. More than anything, I think the team needs to be a productive learning experience.” The Daily video section will be led by LSA sophomore Levin Kim. The Statement Magazine will be led by LSA junior Karl Williams. “I want the Statement to be an intellectual forum that will foster critical inquiry in the Ann Arbor and University community,” Williams said. “I hope to give a voice to underrepresented racial, social and economic groups in both print and, hopefully, in video. Specifically, I want to work with the homeless community, which I think lacks a voice, and I would love to make a short documentary on the issues they not only face, but live with every day.”
promotes home-based renewable energy production. Zemke — who was unavailable for comment this week — identified several priorities in January along with higher education funding, including supporting students and educators. He introduced legislation this year addressing the standards for the kinds of support services offered to students and parents by schools. Zemke also introduced several other bills over the session, including proposals allowing same-sex couples married in another state to have their marriages recognized in Michigan, changing how veterans relief funds are distributed and making election days a state holiday. Overall, Irwin said, many of
Friday, December 11, 2015 — 3
LIES From Page 1 to the lab to contribute data do not have those high stakes settings that you would have in a court setting, like if you were defending your life,” she said. “So that’s the reason why we wanted real data when people are truly lying.” The videos include testimony from both defendants and witnesses. By comparing the testimony to the court’s verdict, the researchers deemed which subjects were being deceptive. Through the comparison, researchers found half of the clips featured deceptive subjects. Mihalcea said the team also used some clips from The Innocence Project, a national organization that works to reexamine cases where individuals were tried without the benefit of DNA testing with the aim of exonerating wrongfully convicted individuals. “The Innocence Project is all about people being exonerated, so they have people who eventually tell the truth though they were believed to tell a lie,” Mihalcea said. “So in our data, there would be data points with that truth label. That data would show people who were actually saying the truth.” After the team gauged deception by comparing the court’s verdict with the testimony, the researchers analyzed body language in the clips, specifically looking for common behaviors in subjects deemed deceptive. Mihalcea said the team referred to common deceptive gestures identified in prior research when analyzing the subjects. According to a press release, the researchers found that 70 percent of the deceptive subjects looked directly at the questioner when answering questions. They also found that 40 percent of the deceptive subjects often gestured with both hands. Mihalcea said after identifying
INCLUSION From Page 1 avenues with the embodiment of these principals.” This semester, the CSG Executive Committee chose to consolidate commissions related to diversity, equity and inclusion into a single Campus Inclusion
his legislative priorities weren’t realized to the extent he would have hoped due to the current GOP majority in Lansing. The Michigan House is currently Republican-controlled by a margin of 16; the Michigan Senate stands at 27 Republicans, 11 Democrats. “I don’t want to be too negative,” he said. “But the reality is with Republicans having overwhelming control of the legislature, and particularly very conservative Republicans, it is hard to imagine that we would actually do the things I spent a lot of my time advocating for.” State Senate In the Senate, state Sen. Rebekah Warren’s (D–Ann Arbor) priorities had some similarities to her colleagues in the House — she identified the environment as a particular
focus — but featured some unique policy areas as well, including mental health. Warren said one of her biggest accomplishments in the legislature this year was aiding in the passage of the bipartisan Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, which requests more funding from the federal government for proper preservation of the Great Lakes. “It would work on the cleanup of pollution sites and do habitat reconstruction to make sure we are doing everything we can to protect the Great Lakes, so I was really thrilled that we could pass that,” she said. Warren also noted the success of a bill she sponsored that allows for citizens with family members with mental illnesses to set up savings accounts for them. Prior to the passage of this bill, many
common gestures, researchers then transcribed the audio from the video clips of trials and analyzed how often subjects labeled deceptive used various words and phrases. “We extracted individual words and groups of words,” she said. “For instance, there is a group of words that reflect positive feelings, or there is a group of words that would reflect certainty. We looked for the presence of words that would belong to these categories.” By analyzing the speaker’s common gestures and words together, the researchers then determined which overall behaviors were typical for deceptive subjects. After feeding the results of the study into the software system, Mihalcea said the rubric of deceptive behaviors was 75-percent accurate in identifying which subjects were deceptive among the 120 videos originally studied. Though Mihalcea said the research team considered the software successful in the prototype stage, she noted there were still improvements to be made — in particular, enhancing the formula to consider cultural and demographic differences. Burzo wrote in a press release that examining cultural and demographic differences adds a different perspective in deception research. “Deception detection is a very difficult problem,” he said. “We are getting at it from several different angles.” Beyond the courtroom, Mihalcea said, there might also be other applications to which the software can be adapted, such as job interviews. “It could be helpful in situations where there is an interaction with people and it is important to know when the other side is telling the truth,” she said. “I think a system like this would give clues, or at least give an indication that there is a chance that this person is lying, which, whatever the context would be, humans could make use of.”
Committee. The decision was part of a larger strategy to pare down the number of commissions from 19 to eight. Charlton told the CSG assembly Dec. 1 that the decision was made because there were too many committees to function effectively, and grouping similar initiatives and issues under an umbrella commission would increase its efficiency.
in that situation would lose access to federal support if they had any money in savings. “What we know is for those folks to have as much independence as they can ever have, they need to have some funds saved up to help them with that, so I was really excited to see that get passed into law,” she said. Despite the Republican control, she said, she was still able to find some successes during the year. “I would say for myself, the fact that I am in a superminority — I am the only woman Democrat in the Senate — and I can still say that I have bills that were signed into laws, that is to me a positive sign that I am still able to get things done in this climate,” she said.
Opinion
4 — Friday, December 11, 2015
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
There’s enough time for everything Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan since 1890. 420 Maynard St. Ann Arbor, MI 48109 tothedaily@michigandaily.com JENNIFER CALFAS EDITOR IN CHIEF
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LEV FACHER MANAGING EDITOR
Unsigned editorials reflect the official position of the Daily’s editorial board. All other signed articles and illustrations represent solely the views of their authors.
FROM THE DAILY
A correction, qualified
Course evaluations must be released by the University
I
n an editorial last month titled “Release course evaluation data,” the Editorial Board stated that “course evaluations were created as a method of improving professor performance rather than a tool for scheduling classes.” This statement is incorrect. Course evaluations were created in 1969 by students, for students, as an effort toward a more informed course selection process. Despite this error, our original argument — that course evaluation data must be available to students — still stands because over time, course evaluations turned to focusing on improving teacher performance. The reality is that today, students wish to use course evaluation data to become more knowledgeable when registering for classes. The University has a responsibility to release the course evaluation data. It’s true the data is publicly available through a Freedom of Information Act request, but again, obtaining this data is a challenging and timeconsuming task. That said, the data’s release should be prefaced by the acknowledgement that the evaluations are currently used as a teaching improvement tool.
If faculty are concerned that the survey in its current form cannot or should not be used to aid students in registering for courses, then the University should invest resources in developing a survey that meets the needs of students and the wishes of faculty. Measures that increase course evaluation completion should also be highly considered in order to reduce the response bias that can result when few students in a large course complete the evaluation. As we wrote previously, if done correctly, releasing course evaluation data should not be a contentious issue. Ultimately, this is a matter of transparency, and being open with course evaluation data works to the benefit of the University, faculty and students.
EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS
Claire Bryan, Regan Detwiler, Caitlin Heenan, Ben Keller, Minsoo Kim, Payton Luokkala, Aarica Marsh, Anna Polumbo-Levy, Jason Rowland, Lauren Schandevel, Melissa Scholke, Rebecca Tarnopol, Ashley Tjhung, Stephanie Trierweiler, Mary Kate Winn, Derek Wolfe
My first college tour
I
have a confession: I never took a guided college tour of the University. Or really of any other school. There just weren’t really any other colleges I had much interest in going to. With two University alumni parents and living close enough to campus to visit Ann Arbor often, it never occurred to me that I’d ever need a tour. I was lucky enough to be accepted here and just showed up — no DAVID Campus Day or anything. HARRIS It’s not that I haven’t visited campuses elsewhere. I think college campuses are wonderful places, each with not only its own unique layout and architecture, but also with its own culture. When I was out in the San Francisco Bay Area for a prospective job a few months ago, I went out for a little over a day just to walk around Stanford to observe something different than my own campus experience in Ann Arbor. My other memories of roaming around other college campuses as I traveled to watch Michigan football games are much better than the scoreboard, as I’ve yet to actually see a road win. I just never had a guided tour and left it up to myself to explore and discover. Therefore, it’s only natural that I’m slightly intrigued when I see the packs of high school students and their families roaming the campus, looking as out of place as they do. I was never one of them; it was an experience I simply skipped. So to compensate for not having gone on a campus tour myself in high school, I decided to stop and listen with the tour groups at a couple spots around campus because I am a senior and allowed to do whatever the heck I want to waste time. I learned things on the tour that I didn’t know despite all of my time at this campus. Friday tea at Betsy Barbour Residence Hall is actually a thing. Apparently there’s an urban legend that the Law Quadrangle was a backup filming location for Hogwarts. And people erroneously believe there’s a University of Michigan flag on the moon. I wanted to ask a tour guide if I’m allowed to step on the block ‘M’ if I’ve never taken a single blue book exam in my entire college career here, but decided there has to be some other stipulation in the curse for engineers. More intriguing than touring the buildings I live, work and play in every day were
the people on the tour. There were the high school students, some clearly from somewhere down south and dressed way too warm for 35-degree weather. There were completely uninterested, younger siblings being dragged along. And then there were the loudest members of the tour: the parents. There was the overzealous parent overly concerned with whether her most beloved and precious possession (their child) was going to get into this school, pestering people with questions, having memorized GPAs, SAT scores and whatnot. There was another who saw a red cup left over from a football Saturday tailgate and became instantly concerned about her kid partying. There was the parent who asked a question about every single building. And then there were the alumni parents. They remarked on how the UGLi was actually ugly when they went here before its remodeling, how they lived in the Law Library, how lucky the freshmen are to live in dorm rooms upgraded from glorified walk-in closets to air-conditioned glorified walk-in closets. They were walking “back in my day” machines, proudly adorned with Michigan hats and shirts. The campus has changed, but the memories remained. In a few short months, I’ll be an alum of this university, too. I’m fortunate enough to have a job, no doubt due to the prestige of this school. That reputation is directly tied to those alumni who one day bring their children on these tours, where they walk through and remember the hours toiled in libraries, the club meetings in the Michigan Union and the fun all over the rest of campus. The value of my degree and every diploma issued by this institution is directly tied to the value contributed by them here, and so too does the standing and character of this school rely on all those who don a cap and gown in the Big House. It comes full circle. The tours will always keep coming, the applications pouring in, the prospective students walking into our libraries as we study and roaming our campus among us. I might never have been one of them, but perhaps the very people on that tour, the kids and parents alike who will and have attended, are the ones on whom I am dependent to uphold the reputation of the University. What has been built through the years before us must continue after, and I feel lucky to be a part of that. — David Harris can be reached at daharr@umich.edu.
GOOD LUCK ON FINALS!
W
hether it’s the end of the current semester or the beginning of a new one, it seems there’s no end to the list of things we find to stress ourselves out about. From underclassmen who are still learning the ropes to upperSUSAN classmen who LAMOREAUX are eagerly trying to get their last remaining distribution requirements out of the way, there’s a lot to get done and seemingly never enough time to squeeze it all in. At the start of this semester, when I found myself showered in more syllabi and pending deadlines than I knew what to do with, I just told myself there would be enough time over the next couple of months to get everything done. Most of my pending deadlines were still far away, anywhere from weeks (for the first essays I would need to write) to months (for my midterm and final exams). Some matters were a little more pressing, needing to be taken care of ASAP — namely, getting my hands on the coursepacks and textbooks that contained readings for class sessions less than a week away. With regard to the rest, I took a deep breath, took another look at the syllabi I’d been given and decided, at least for the time being, to let everything slide. I would let things play out as they wanted and see where that took me. Now, with finals weeks almost here, I find myself in this same mentality, and, oddly enough, utterly lacking in stress. Perhaps that will pick up over the next couple of days when I’m studying for and taking my finals, but somehow I don’t really think so. It has been my experience that things balance one another out. If I read a little
bit or hammer out an essay draft on Saturday and save other assignments for Sunday so I can shop for groceries instead of studying, I’m left at no disadvantage come Monday morning. Similarly, leaving my reading untouched at the end of a long Friday has no lasting repercussions. That has been the case across numerous semesters, not just this one. Saturday is not for homework — it’s for down time, though there have been some exceptions. Again and again, I keep coming back to a memory from last fall, when the due date for a draft of my next paper for my First Year Writing Requirement course was approaching. That weekend, I spent almost my entire Saturday in my room, wearing a fleece blanket and standing at my dresser, the surface in my house that’s closest in height to a standing desk. There, I wrote my way through page after page of raw concepts and unrefined ideas. After long hours, I’d drafted almost 1,000 more words than I needed, and over the next couple of weeks, I sanded that excess down bit by bit. In the end, I arrived at an essay that I still look back on as one of the strongest samples of my academic writing. For that long Saturday in October, it didn’t matter that I had a collage due for my art class or a case study for my class on sustainable agriculture. I did them the day after, and came into the week in much the same standing I would have been in had I chosen to get those tasks out of the way on Saturday morning instead of Sunday afternoon. In my handouts from a CAPS workshop on managing stress, there’s a list of suggestions for activities that can help to balance out a load of academic tasks. These other options include tidying your room or your corner of the apartment; taking the time to prepare a meal for yourself; or generally cleaning your house. I’ve found that it can also be beneficial to take a little break
from your immediate environment by going to do something fun with friends. And here’s something else that’s never a bad idea: reading for fun. Or going for a walk, or, oh yeah, getting to the gym. For me, I still don’t always manage to practice these fun and very necessary tasks with quite as much regularity as I’d like, but I keep them in the back of my head. Throughout each day and over the course of weeks and months, I work to keep academic work in check by balancing it with everything else. By doing so, I think I also help those around me to practice a healthy balancing act of their own. Whether it’s because I am able to help cook dinner one night or because I need quiet for my homework and we all work on academic things at the same time, the way I choose to best use my time can have an impact on others. By keeping track of when my school work is due, I’m able to communicate clearly about it, and talking about assignments can help to reduce my own stress around them. Yes, I have reading, but also, yes, I’ll help with dishes and come with you to the farmers market this morning. No, I can’t come over today, but how about tomorrow? Sorry, I can’t walk the dog now — I’m working on a paper — but don’t worry, I took her half an hour ago and we had a great time. More and more, I’m coming to believe in the idea of making time for the things I need in my life, not taking time. Time for necessary chores, but also for family and friends, for gym dates, for video games, for scribbling one quick page of the novel I’m writing. And while there may be a piece of reading or an essay draft or a final somewhere in my future, I can be confident I’ll make the time for studying tomorrow. Sometimes, other things are just a little more important. — Susan LaMoreaux can be reached at susanpl@umich.edu.
DIVEST AND INVEST | VIEWPOINT
Campus united for divestment Last Friday, University President Mark Schlissel wrote a letter from the Office of the President titled “Addressing Climate Change as a Powerful Community.” We thank Schlissel for taking an important step to open a public dialogue around divestment. This is the first public response during our fouryear campaign explaining why our university is not joining the nearly 500 other institutions worldwide that have committed to divesting from fossil fuel industries. Schlissel’s arguments are unsound. Regarding the two previous instances of divestment in University history — the tobacco industry and apartheid — he stated, “In the previous two instances where we eventually divested, the investments … were inextricably linked to immoral and unethical actions and ideologies” and that fossil fuels are different because they “...enable us to operate the university, to conduct research and to provide patient care.” He is correct regarding our reliance on fossil fuels, but he fails to address the issue of whether the fossil fuel industry is morally suspect. Fossil fuel combustion is causing climate change that will have adverse, disproportionate and irreversible effects on billions of people — mostly on women, people of color and others who have contributed little to the problem. Despite having known about these threats for decades, fossil fuel companies have contributed to climate denialism by funding lobbying groups that, for instance, spread disinformation about climate science. Disinformation campaigns are antithetical to the values of institutions like the University, and these companies must be held accountable for their unethical and immoral practices (see the New York attorney general’s recent investigation into Exxon Mobil). As to the inevitableness of relying on fossil fuels, recall that the past few years have bolstered the competitiveness of renewables; the
actions of various financial decision makers are foreshadowing a major energy transition. For example, Allianz, the world’s largest insurance company, divested from coal last month. The fact that we all are still reliant on fossil fuels underlines the urgency of shifting our energy vision and infrastructure. Divestment catalyzes this shift. The University currently lacks autonomy over energy infrastructure, but we do have autonomy over financial decisions. These decisions matter to the world beyond Ann Arbor. The main argument for divestment is that “if it’s wrong to cause climate change, it’s wrong to profit from causing climate change.” So far, nearly 500 institutions have acted on this clarion call by pledging to divest more than $3.4 trillion from fossil fuels. This is just the beginning. The choice of divesting declares that — along with other positive initiatives that President Schlissel has championed — we are committed to building and ethically financing a more sustainable world. President Schlissel’s second point is that divestment isn’t an effective tool for transitioning to a clean energy future. It is unlikely that actions taken by a leading public university in the country would go unnoticed. When the University acts, many in the world listen. To say that divesting would have no influence on other institutions and no impact in speeding the transition to cleaner energy ignores the University’s influence and obligation. Aligned with our country’s democratic process, divestment is a vote for a cleaner energy future — it serves as an opportunity for universities to engage in a public dialogue about a just energy transition and to stand in solidarity with those most hurt by climate change. Lastly, President Schlissel said, “... the endowment should not be used to further other causes, however noble.” First, it is difficult to reconcile this statement with
Schlissel’s acknowledgement of the precedent set by the University’s two past divestment actions. These actions paved the way for considering divestment when “...a particular issue involves serious moral or ethical questions which are of concern to many members of the University community.” Our campaign has exposed the moral implications of supporting fossil fuel industries. Resolutions passed by the Central Student Government and the Senate Assembly in support of our position urge the Board of Regents to form a committee to examine divestment. Clearly, this issue is “of concern to many members of the University community.” Moreover, to see any of the University’s divestment campaigns as attempts to use the endowment to further other causes misrepresents the argument that the University should divest in order to respect the moral constraints inherent in the pursuit of its mission, not in order to further other causes that are extrinsic to this mission. President Schlissel’s article expresses his personal view on the issue of fossil fuel divestment. The University, though, has clearly defined an objective, three-pronged standard that when met, warrants the formation of an ad hoc committee to examine any divestment issue of interest to University students and faculty. We have met this standard. Because of organized support for fossil fuel divestment on campus and the University’s unmistakable role in a globally conscious society, we request that President Schlissel and the Board of Regents hold a public meeting to continue discussions on this critical issue in an open manner. The formation of an ad hoc committee is clearly warranted. This article is written on behalf of Divest and Invest, the University’s fossil fuel divestment campaign, by University students Nicholas Jansen, Valeriya Epshteyn, Leonard Kapiloff, Knute Nadelhoffer, George Kling and Maria Aarnio.
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The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Arts
Friday, December 11, 2015 — 5
MUSIC NOTEBOOK
STYLE RECAP
Songs of 2015 you should be listening to By CHRISTIAN KENNEDY Daily Arts Writer
CBS
The Weeknd is having the best day of his life.
VS Fashion show: The good and bad Glitz, gold and tans for this year’s Angels By Daily Style Writers
At the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, there was music, bras, Kris Jenner being a “cool” mom and the sensual sounds of the Weeknd, what more could you ask for? BEST: Kendall Jenner Kendall Jenner seems to absorb a crowd’s attention whenever she’s on the runway. Maybe it’s her stunning beauty, the mass amount of attention placed on the Kardashian/Jenner clan or a mix of both. Either way, as Jenner made her debut as an angel she was the highlight of the show’s first catwalk routine. Donning underwear, bra and corset that were brought to life by their rich primary color pattern, Jenner took it to the next level with a flowing skirt, an aggressively large gold necklace and custom-made Brian Atwood platform sandals. As she posed at the end of the runway Kris Jenner snapped pics and Caitlyn Jenner teared up. —Christian Kennedy WORST: Ellie Goulding Ellie Goulding was clearly the weak link in Tuesday night’s runway show. The Weeknd brought sensuality and his singular look with “Into The Night” and “Can’t Feel My Face” while Selena Gomez stunned the crowd during her performance of “Me & My Girls.” And while Goulding vocally succeeded, her dress failed to emulate the glitz of the show. Loaded with metal embezzlements and twotoo-many straps, her black, red and white dress failed to flatter the pop-singer. Nonetheless, her song choices of “Army” and “Love Me Like You Do” brought just the right sound. — Christian Kennedy BEST: Elsa Hosk
The wonderful part of the VS show is the delicate balance between amazing underwear and lavish ensembles. Sadly, this year only a few lingerie pieces looked beautifully crafted as is typical of VS. One exception would be Elsa Hosk’s Winter Wonderland look that featured a delicately embroidered white bodysuit with an elegant cutout and striking neckline. The enormous white furry earmuffs and mittens were a major plus, as were the glistening jewels around her neck. The true Queen Elsa, Hosk glided down the runway like an ice princess with snowflakes sprouting from her tanned body, putting us all into the holiday spirit with every step of her kneehigh fur boots. — Mara Maclean BEST: Selena Gomez In my book, Selena Gomez stole the show on Tuesday night. Wearing a deep plunging Jolibe Atelier gown with a high-slit and cut outs, Selena outshined every model that walked by her. Don’t get me wrong, I think the Victoria’s Secret Models are beautiful women. But there is something to be said for women who know how to show the curves they’ve got. Selena was absolutely the real “Angel” that night. —Julia Doyle WORST: Gigi Hadid (as a firefighter) Being in the VS Fashion Show is obviously a huge honor for all models. For Gigi Hadid, I’m sure that was no different. After months of training and dieting in preparation for the show, I’d be ecstatic to flaunt my unbelievable body in some million-dollar bra and tiny panties. Unfortunately for Gigi, she got the honor of wearing a sports bra and weirdly wide firefighter pants. Not only was that a let down for Gigi, but it didn’t seem to fit the typical look of the VS show. It’s safe to say that I am slightly disappointed. — Julia Doyle BEST: Maria Borges
Maria Borges made history at this year’s Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show. She is the first model to wear her hair completely natural for the fashion show (except for some hairspray). Borges looked absolutely stunning in her pink, yellow and blue feather peacockinspired “wings.” Walking the arguably biggest fashion show sans extensions shows that Borges has confidence in herself — something even more beautiful than the lingerie and wings she was wearing. — Carly Colonnese WORST: Gigi Hadid (as a tragic butterfly) While Gigi Hadid, arguably the it-girl of the moment, is pretty much perfect in every way ... but at VS, not so much. This tragedy that made its way down the runway was just a huge let-down. This being the first year she was accepted into the high-profile fashion show, I was expecting big things from her runway looks, but was met with utter disappointment. In a half-assed butterfly ensemble that reminded me more of a sad green plant, the makers of the show did not let Hadid shine like she could have. — Mariam Sheikh BEST: Cindy Burna Flawless, dripping in gold and looking completely immaculate, Burna stunned in each and every look she wore this year. My personal favorite? While it may not have highlighted the classic VS bra, the sheer nude bodysuit dripping with rainbow embellishments stole the show. What was most amazing was how the body-form jumpsuit even morphed over her sky-high heels, making her look effervescent from head to toe. Donning feathers in an unconventional way in many shapes and colors, of course to resemble angel wings, Burna managed to look angelic and was perhaps the best angel on the runway. — Mariam Sheikh
2015 was a big deal for music and me. I went to my first music festival, expanded my musical tastes tenfold and finally listened to the entirety of Channel Orange (I was embarrassingly late to that party). More important than my own musical year, though, there was simply a ridiculous amount of good music released, with hopefully more to come (@BadGalRiri, @FrankOcean & @KanyeWest). Nonetheless, between Adele, Justin Bieber, The Weeknd, Kendrick Lamar and many other major releases, some time-worthy tracks got lost in the shuffle. “Lady” - Noé I first heard Noé’s strongwilled pleasure anthem on Not Mad as part of a Q&A with the Berkeley School of Music. Extremely polished for an artist as unestablished as Noé, the song should be raking in Spotify listens and climbing iTunes charts.
The song should be raking in Spotify listens. “Kamikaze” - MØ Danish singer MØ is best known for her feature on Major Lazer’s “Lean On,” which was this year’s number one streamed song on Spotify. Currently awaiting the release of her second LP, MØ graced fans with its lead single, “Kamikaze.” Produced by Diplo, “Kamikaze” follows the same formula of post-chorus instrumentals and MØ’s singular voice is unlike any other in popular music’s landscape. That, coupled with
By CHRISTIAN KENNEDY Daily Arts Writer
There are many ways to tackle Ugly Sweater Season. After three years’ worth of Christmas Parties hosted at my parents’ house, I consider myself well-seasoned in the new millennium’s trend that often ends in a once-worn sweater covered in a variety of festive drinks and food. The first (and most obvious) factor in festivities is the sweater itself, and it would be naive to assume all sweaters are created equally. There’s the classic, genuinely ugly sweater — it’s more than likely very bright, its material all but filled with embroidering and it (naturally) itches like hell. The Sweater Store will be one of
the first links discovered for those on the hunt for the sweater that will perfectly represent “you” this winter. While its collection appears extremely ugly, yet somewhat endearing, the true ugliness rests in vintage stores and poorly designed e-stores further down. The second type of “ugly” sweater is just the opposite — cute. Often, while still brightly colored and overwhelming in design, the cuter sweaters seen under the mistletoe stem from more mainstream roots — Urban Outfitters, Forever 21, Amazon to name a few. Cuteness aside, mass-produced “ugly” sweaters are problematic on their own — if cute is what you aim for and you would like to stay in the tonguein-cheek spirit, then Ebay, with
its seemingly endless pages of vintage sweaters, is just the place to find the perfect paradoxical cute ugly sweater for you. Funny sweaters are, truly, the end-all-be-all of holiday parties. You can buy them from the pros at Tipsy Elves or the masterminds of Etsy, where I purchased a white crew neck with a screenprinted Miley Cyrus’s face (tongue and all), complete with tinsel and blinking lights (10/10 would recommend). But ultimately, the largest feat of Sweater SZN is the ideation and implementation of bomb sweater ideas. (Pinterest is always fair game.) Screwing Reindeers and pissing Santa Clauses are hilarious and always welcome, but more than often it’s the three-dimensional
A ridiculous amount of good music released this year. “Let It Happen” - Tame Impala “Let It Happen” opens the Australian psychedelic rock band Tame Impala’s third album Currents. Written, recorded, performed and produced by Kevin Parker, “Let It Happen” is, in my opinion, the best song on one of 2015’s best albums. “Let It Happen” is a tour de force of one man’s musical landscape. The intricacy present in the multitude of instruments manages to keep listeners interested, especially at each sonic transformation throughout its almost 8-minute runtime. “Yoga” - Janelle Monae “Yoga,” in short, was the summer banger of 2015 (for me and a few others). Immediately from Jidenna’s deep “Let your booty do that yoga,” followed by a bass drop and Monae’s debut “Party at the beach down in Copacabana,” the song comes to life in its first verse and carries its energy through the remaining 3 minutes. “In Time” - FKA Twigs Off her third EP M3LL155X (her best work yet), “In Time” might be her most mainstream track to date. Twigs employs all her tricks — brilliant lyrics, beats that take on a life of their own without overpowering the vocals, voice distortion (in just the right amount) and finally her raw, emotional delivery
brings her music to another level. “Levels” - Nick Jonas Despite Nick Jonas being fucking everywhere this year, the single from his self-titled release didn’t receive nearly as much love as it deserved. Arguably better than “Jealous” or “Chains,” “Levels” gains all of its hook through Jonas’s on-point delivery. His high-notes maintain traces of raspiness and the often subtle trail-off of those notes make the song extremely fun to sing along to. (@ Tailgate DJs of The University, play this next year, please.) “Instigators” Grace Potter “Instigators,” off Grace Potter’s debut solo album Midnight, is one of the LP’s many highlights. Immediately from the electro-pop synths and contrasting guitar riffs, Potter’s newly found sound is The Nocturnals without the “alternative” qualifier allowing her vocals and personality to fulfill a void in pop music’s current offerings. Unafraid to commit, the vocals on “Instigators” flirt with the line between singing and screaming, but in the end Potter’s ability to deliver high-notes with power and control. “Who I Want You To Love” - Bleachers & Natalie Maines Originally on Bleachers’s Strange Desire, the albumcloser makes a reprise in 2015 featured on the release Terrible Thrills Vol. 2 with guest vocals by Dixie Chicks member Natalie Maines. Maines’s breadth of talent ranges from her southern humor on commonly known throwback “Goodbye Earl” to her rock chops on solo track “Trained.” Her vocals combined with Jack Antonoff’s lyricism on “Who I Want You To Love” is revolutionary. Without the eccentricity on Antonoff’s delivery on the original, the song takes on a new aura in Maines’s seasoned hands.
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STYLE NOTEBOOK
Ugly sweater season prompts style choices
expert production and the (literally) unforgettable lyrics gives the track more and more intrigue with each listen.
DIY sweaters that will always be remembered best. For example, my mom (whose name happens to be Joy) made a simple sweater with two gloves glued to the chest above the phrase “Feel The Joy” last year, winning the best female sweater. Other clothing is simply there to support the aura created by your sweater. Sweaters nearly across the board can be paired with dealer’s choice of jeans or leggings (or no pants at all, if your sweater is longer). Reindeer antlers, santa hats, festive socks and shoes are all extra credit. There’s no shame in building a flattering, cohesive outfit around your sweater. And similarly, there’s no shame in dressing to the north pole and back in holiday-themed accessories — someone’s got to do it, right? Ultimately, it doesn’t matter what style sweater-outfit suits you. Look online, craft away, borrow from friends, but no matter what your choices are, just wear a damn sweater. If you don’t, it’s been confirmed — we are more fun than you.
Arts
6 — Friday, December 11, 2015
STYLE COLUMN
Being your own style icon Despite my various off-putting qualities — forgetfulness, a trash attention span and the tragic inheritance of the weird gene that makes me think cilantro tastes like dish soap — I give great advice. Despite my title as a style columnist, I’m incapable of giving style advice, at least the CAROLINE kind most FILIPS people crave. When friends and family consult me for the general principles of style, I have nothing to say. Sure, I’d love to outline the rules, but to me, there aren’t any. Fashion first and foremost is an extension of self-expression; so who am I to tell you how to present yourself to the world? That’s not to say I encourage you to rock your tattered jean jacket at a black tie event (looking at you, Adam DePollo), but I do support you in your search of cultivating an individual sense of style. I’ll let you in on a little secret, dear readers. Trends are not, in any way, shape, or form, a part of the elusive concept of personal style. And I get it, it’s hard not to buy into the trend-centric culture of our world where three out of every five headlines are dominated by which fashion label the Kardashian family is currently lusting over, but please, by all means, resist.
Though I concede that I’m quite young and probably more naïve than I’d like to think I am, I too, albeit guiltily, indulge in the latest celebrity style endorsements and collaborations just as much as the next internet-poisoned youth. Even as I write this, I glance down at my Olivia Palermo for BaubleBar ring and scoff at my past self for attempting to justify the purchase. I convinced myself that the small piece of jewelry aligned with my personal style … but as I scan the various fits and washes of denim strewn about my floor, and the blouses haphazardly cluttering my closet, I can’t even commit to a stark definition of my personal style. So alas, here I am, in my quarter-life personal style crisis. Frankly, I believe it to be a generational crisis. We’ve given up on the notion of personal style. We’re lazy. We just follow the celebrity, the trend, the tragedy! We salivate over fast fashion collaborations (*cough, cough* Balmain for H&M), we buy out Kylie’s entire stock of lip kits in 30 seconds and some of us even contribute to the skyrocketing sales of Drake’s Moncler Maya coat from the “Hotline Bling” music video. It’s likely that just as I added an Olivia Palermo-designed ring to my shopping cart a month ago, someone somewhere was probably gyrating in their candy apple red puffer under technicolor lights. So Kylie, Drake and this shiny gold circle around my ring finger leave me perplexed. At the risk of sounding like Carrie Bradshaw, “I (can’t) help but wonder,” has our
generation discarded the concept of personal style? Though it nauseates me, the horrific trend cycle — wear it, abuse it, forget about it for a few decades, refresh it, return to it — of fashion invariably reigns. Take bell-bottoms, for example. They dominated the ’70s, resurfaced in the early 2000s in a less-voluminous boot-cut style, returned in 2014 in the flared varieties and everyone forgot about them in between. Trends dominate the times, but I can’t understand why we sit back, let it happen and buy into them. We’re the Gatsbys of our own sartorial stories. Why are we hopelessly infatuated with things that only turn up when they demand our attention? @Everyone, stop playing Gatsby and stop letting the dominant fads play Daisy! At the very least give your selves some character weight — be Nick — be a mere observer of the trendy chaos. At the very least be a Jordan Baker — respect yourself despite the missteps and, above all, have character. I’m not saying life’s always going to be a party on West Egg at some rich dude’s house, but each day is a chance to ignore the not-so-trendy trendiness and find your personal style. And despite my title as a style columnist, I don’t believe in style advice. That’s my advice. the not-sotrendy trendiness and find your personal style. And despite my title as a style columnist, I don’t believe in style advice. That’s my advice.
Classifieds
RELEASE DATE– Friday, December 11, 2015
Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis
ACROSS 1 Two of its members wrote the music for “Chess” 5 Angling trophy 9 Not sour 14 Chillax 15 Horn accessory 16 Kitchen feature 17 Headgear not for amateurs? 19 Qualifying words 20 Bunk 21 License-issuing org. 22 They’re not optional 23 Weak 25 Career grand slam leader 27 Headgear for a certain batting champ? 33 Princess friend of Dorothy 37 Gibbon, for one 38 Dr. Howser of ’80s-’90s TV 39 Done __ 40 Sierra follower, in the NATO alphabet 42 Stiff 43 Facilitate 45 Torque symbol, in mechanics 46 Utah state flower 47 Headgear for some skaters? 50 Bologna bone 51 Work together 56 Spy plane acronym 59 Tolkien race member 62 Poor treatment 63 Breadcrumbs used in Asian cuisine 64 Headgear for contract negotiations? 66 A lot 67 Camera that uses 70mm film 68 Junk, say 69 Shows signs of life 70 A mullet covers it 71 Xperia manufacturer DOWN 1 __-Bits
2 Element between beryllium and carbon on the periodic table 3 Chap 4 “Help!” is one 5 German import 6 Word sung in early January 7 Watch part 8 Spotted wildcat 9 River under the Angostura Bridge 10 Tries to impress, in a way 11 Dummy’s place 12 “Good heavens!” 13 Hankerings 18 Insult in an Oscar acceptance speech, perhaps 24 Significant depressions 26 Defensive fortification 28 Bar brew, briefly 29 Board game using stones 30 Fiend 31 “SNL” alum with Hader and Samberg 32 Fictional captain 33 River through Frankfurt
34 Philosopher known for his “Achilles and the Tortoise” paradox 35 Ground grain 36 Pop-up prevention 41 Sharp-toothed fish 44 Course components 48 Rubs out 49 Oenophile’s concern
52 Deep space 53 Oodles of, in slang 54 Bolt like lightning? 55 Raring to go 56 Mil. mail drops 57 Drift, as smoke 58 Fighting 60 Dharma teacher 61 Door in the woods 65 Tin Man’s tool
ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
ALBUM REVIEW
REPUBLIC
This is the best ice cream cone ever!
Cudi loses charm on ‘Speedin’ Bullet’ By MATT GALLATIN Daily Arts Writer
What is a genre? A collection of similar sounding music? A name for a specific artistic movement? The exact definition can be tricky, and D often the term boxes artists Speedin’ and confuses Bullet 2 listeners. The “Pop” genre Heaven on iTunes, Kid Cudi for example, Republic encompasses Frank Ocean, Fall Out Boy and John Lennon, all of whom have a markedly different sound. Because of the strange confinements the concept of genres lead to, the phrase “genre
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blurring” has gained a largely positive connotation. It’s seen as a validation of an artist’s skill if they can be effective beyond the formula they’re usually known for. Radiohead did this to a hugely successful effect, shifting from guitar driven rock to experimental electronic to their dark and seductive release In Rainbows. Each change highlighted a diverse skillset and rebelled against the idea of what typical “rock” should be. Sometimes the result is much less successful. Kid Cudi is a prime example of this. His debut release Man on the Moon: The End of Day blended R&B, hip hop and rock to a moderately interesting effect. It was far from perfect, but there was enough catchy production to counteract Cudi’s lack of lyrical prowess. He skyrocketed to popularly on the sheer listenability of his music and the hordes of faux-philosophical “nice guys” who hailed him as their leader, relating to his irksome “nice guy” complaints (“maybe if I was a jerk to girls, instead of being nice and speaking kind words”). His most popular tracks, like “Soundtrack 2 My Life” and “Day n’ Night,” are simply enjoyable songs, no more and no less. This would explain why Cudi found his greatest success in the high school party scene, becoming practically synonymous with it after the teen film “Project X” propelled “Pursuit of Happiness” to anthem status. But the constant mix of self-aggrandizing, screams of “I’m different!” and adolescent confessionals could only go so far. After his second album Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager, which was mostly an extension on the first, Cudi began to move in different directions. He tried his hand at an alternative rock/ psychedelic band called WZRD with producer Dot da Genius, but the debut was met with largely negative reviews. His next solo album Indicud saw Cudi return to the hip-hop world, and the new production was unique but forgettable. The album was panned because it proved that Cudi truly had nothing left to say after the Man on the Moon series — he actually got worse. Take his lyrics from “Just What I Am”: “Let me tell you ‘bout my month y’all, endless shopping, I had a ball, I had to ball for therapy, my shrink don’t think that helps at all, whatever, that man ain’t wearing these leather pants.” It’s the ultimate sad brag, alternating between “I’m so sensitive” and “I’m so cool and wealthy.” Still, Cudi’s last album Satellite Flight: The Journey to Mother Moon showed more promise. It’s his shortest album to date and was billed as a bridge between Indicud and a possible Man on the Moon III. The album had some of the most interesting production since his debut, and it seemed that there was something different coming. So what, you ask, happened after leaving us on that cautiously hopeful note? Cudi’s worst release to date: Speedin’ Bullet 2 Heaven. If we are to believe Cudi’s claim that this is “100% the purest form of my artistic self,” then Cudi’s true artistic self is a mediocre Nirvana revivalist band. Cudi has always cited ’90s punk rock as having a strong influence on his music. But where Cudi once claimed some
originality by stepping around typical genre boxes and adding his own personality, Speedin’ Bullet 2 Heaven removes everything that once made Cudi unique and popular – ease of listening, productive strength, etc. – and replaces it with his best attempt at replicating the ’90s grunge movement. And it’s a poor attempt at that. Cudi plays bass and guitar throughout the album, and while the effort is commendable, the instrumentation is clearly weak. This is only exacerbated by Cudi’s insistence on refraining from the usual electronic production, trying to remain as true to Nirvana as possible. References to the band, and Cobain specifically, are plentiful. Cudi moans and yells, the guitar is distorted and the lyricism is dark. These are all superficial aspects. The artistry which set Nirvana apart — beautifully cryptic poetry, perfected instrument arrangements and a strong pop sensibility — is blatantly disrespected. Where Cobain used phrases like “heart-shaped box” or “meat-eating orchid,” Cudi blurts out “her vagina is moist and warm.” Cobain is rolling in his grave. Clocking in at over an hourand-a-half, Speedin’ Bullet 2 Heaven is a chore to get through. There are few songs which warrant more than a single listen, and the ones that do (the title track) are still far below Cudi’s previous successes. The claim of a “double album” doesn’t produce any kind of measurable effect, and it seems like a half-hearted justification for sprawling over 26 tracks without any substantive reason to do so. But most confusing are the Beavis and Butthead skits. Narration has been a recurrent element in Cudi’s music, and it’s nearly always ineffectual. He uses it to repeat points that need no repetition and to offer as much self-praise as possible. The Beavis and Butthead skits are especially strange because their irreverent and self-aware comedy directly conflicts with the self-riotousness Cudi stands for. At times it seems as if they’re mocking him without his realization. At the end of “Man in the Night” Butthead states “Hello ladies, we bring you the greatest album that has ever been made in the history of man.” For a second Beavis can be heard laughing in the background. It’s hard to believe the irony was purposeful, especially when referring to Cudi’s Twitter account — “The Chosen One.” The last few months have filled his feed with discussion on the album, and none of it has been humble or modest. Between tweets like “the complexity of scott mescudi” and “Im (sic) strange” Cudi quotes statements by his fans hailing the work as “genius” or “completely revolutionary.” Sure, plenty of artists call themselves the best. Some even compare themselves to god (Kanye). But many of those artists have the skill to at least make an argument, something that has been lacking from Cudi’s work. We can only hope that Cudi once again changes direction. Perhaps he still has some talent left.
Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
ICE HOCKEY
Wolverines seek revenge vs. weakened Minnesota team By JUSTIN MEYER Daily Sports Writer
When two of college hockey’s most storied programs meet, there’s always a little extra buzz around the rink. But when Minnesota and Minnesota No. 9 Michigan at Michigan drop the Matchup: puck at Yost Minnesota Ice Arena on 6-7; Michigan Friday night, 8-2-3 it won’t be When: Friday just a matchup 7:05 P.M.; of star talent Saturday and Big Ten 8:35 P.M. Where: Yost contenders. Ice Arena It’s personal. “We know TV/Radio: Friday BTN; Minnesota knocked us out Saturday of the Big Ten ESPNEWS championship last year,” said senior forward Justin Selman. “They took away our chance to go the (NCAA) Tournament. There’s a little vengeance there.” A lot has been said about the Wolverines’ tournament drought in the past three years, but now, Michigan (1-0-1 Big Ten, 8-2-3 overall) sees another chance to end that conversation. The opportunity is even more important because the Gophers aren’t the same as they were last season. Frankly, Minnesota looks to be a mediocre hockey team — maybe middle of the pack in the Big Ten, but not a NCAA title contender. The Gophers have no marquee wins on the season — a victory over No. 18 Notre Dame comes closest. With all of the talent the program attracts, the situation
is certainly a rarity, but one ripe for the taking by Michigan. The Big Ten is wide open this season, and it’s the best chance for the Wolverines to take the league title outright since the conference adopted hockey four seasons ago. The Gophers took care of business in their opening series against Ohio State last weekend with two wins. Michigan, on the other hand, got a win in its first game against Wisconsin but needed a shootout to beat the Badgers last Saturday. “Last weekend, I think a lot of guys got a good feel for what Big Ten hockey is like,” said sophomore defender Cutler Martin. “Wisconsin is picked to be last in the Big Ten, and we had a shootout win and a 6-4 victory.” That left Minnesota (2-0, 6-7) sitting atop the division with Penn State, while the Wolverines were relegated to second place. It’s a difference of only one point, but Michigan needs to take every inch it can against an underwhelming conference. “We really feel like Minnesota is a team we need to buckle down on,” Martin said. “The coaches don’t necessarily have to say it, but every player knows that this is a big week for us.” The series will be a matchup of two very different playing styles. The Wolverines’ runand-gun offense will match up against a team that ranks near the bottom of the Big Ten
in goals per game (2.77) and dead last in shots per game, averaging seven fewer than Michigan. The Gophers are making up for the lack of shot production, at least in part, by shooting efficiently. Their mark of .095 goals per shot is near the top third of teams nationally and second in the Big Ten. Swedish import Leon Bristedt is also making nice contributions on offense. The sophomore forward has 14 points despite posting just 19 all of last season. If Minnesota takes advantage this weekend, though, it will start on the defensive end. Eric Schierhorn has been strong in net for Minnesota, playing nearly every minute and keeping a respectable .915 save percentage in spite of the troubled season. Michigan has struggled to bring energy in a few home games this year, but Selman doesn’t figure that will be an issue Friday. “If you can’t find a heartbeat in that game,” he said, “you’ve got to check your pulse.” Instead, the challenge for the Wolverines will be to reign in opponent scoring. A lot of blame has fallen on the goaltenders so far this season, but the entire team will have to be held accountable on the defensive end. Redemption chances don’t come around too often, and Michigan wants this one badly.
“There’s a little vengeance there.”
‘M’ needs bounceback By CHRIS CROWDER Daily Sports Writer
The Michigan women’s basketball team is focused on the bounceback. After a lackluster performance in a loss to Princeton on Sunday, the Wolverines’ hot start in their first seven games doesn’t look as impressive anymore. But this Sunday, Michigan (7-1) will have another opportunity to UCLA at put itself back Michigan in the top-25 Matchup: conversation UCLA 4-2; with a win Michigan 7-1 against No. 20 UCLA. In When: Sunday 2 P.M. a crowded Big Ten Where: Crisler conference, the Center Wolverines are TV/Radio: determined to BTN prove they’re contenders. It’s their third consecutive shot to reclaim victory against an opponent they lost to last season, but this test is even tougher than the rest. “(Since the Princeton game) people say, ‘Now Michigan played a real team and they’re not as good as they thought or as we thought,’ ” said sophomore guard Katelynn Flaherty. “We still think we’re great, we still believe in ourselves. So I think now, going forward, we have something to prove to teams.” A statement win against the Bruins will surely turn heads and catch opponents’ attention. UCLA is 4-2, but its losses have come against premiere opponents in No. 2 South Carolina and No. 3 Notre Dame — both Final Four teams last season. The Bruins lost to the Gamecocks by just three and took the Irish to overtime before falling by four. UCLA is led by Jordin Canada, a shifty point guard who averages 19.2 points a contest. Michigan
Michigan starts Big Ten play strong By ORION SANG Daily Sports Writer
When the season began, the No. 10 Michigan wrestling team hoped it would be in the national title picture by this point in the year. But after a loss to then-No. 14 Oklahoma and a seventhplace finish at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas 6 MSU Invitational, MICHIGAN 39 the Wolverines were looking to get back into the win column Thursday night against Michigan State. The Wolverines (1-0 Big Ten, 4-1 overall) won the match handily, winning at eight out of the 10 lineup spots for a 39-6 victory at Cliff Keen Arena. Michigan coach Joe McFarland was pleased with his team’s performance, but he was also focused on his team’s learning process. “We always want to try to do better, but tonight was pretty good,” McFarland said. “I like how the guys are thinking right now. All these experiences are going to help us down the road.” The Wolverines found themselves down 6-5 after the first three rounds, with redshirt junior Conor Youtsey and redshirt sophomore George Fisher both dropping long, hard-fought matches. Though Youtsey and Fisher weren’t able to win their matches, McFarland thought the two losses had the potential to help the team. “It’s not just about going out and getting your hand raised,” McFarland said. “It’s about going out and extending yourself, learning how to execute and score points when you’re exhausted, because that’s where those championship matches are won.” For a motivated Michigan
Friday, December 11, 2015 — 7
coach Kim Barnes Arico called her one of the most dynamic and athletic point guards in the country. Along with skilled inside players who use their length and athleticism to rebound efficiently, the Bruins can also light it up from behind the arc. Kari Korver, the cousin of NBA sharpshooter Kyle Korver, shoots the 3-pointer well, and hurt the Wolverines in the 2015 WNIT Semifinal last season. In the waning seconds of the semifinal, Michigan was down by two with UCLA at the freethrow line. The Bruins missed their first free throw, and they grabbed the offensive rebound, drew a foul and knocked down two free throws to make it a twopossession lead. The Wolverines couldn’t recover from there. While assistant coach Megan Duffy has spent time looking at the film from last season’s down-to-the-wire game, which Michigan lost by four, Barnes Arico is analyzing film from this season. The Wolverines are a completely different team compared to the last time they played UCLA. The Bruins are returning most of their team from last year, whereas Michigan’s young squad was exposed in its last
performance and will be tested against an older team once again. The Wolverines may have actually have benefited from losing to Princeton, and Flaherty described the loss as a wake-up call. According to her, it showed the team what it needs to work on in order to beat higher-caliber teams. Michigan is working on its transition game as well as taking care of the ball, two facets of the game it struggled with against the Tigers. At the beginning of the season, those two attributes were variables the team was very confident in excelling at. The Wolverines’ first loss of the season has lit a fire in them, but they’ll need everyone at their best in order to win. They can’t just rely on a 33-point performance from Flaherty like they did in their last contest. A victory this Sunday would be much more than a bounceback. A win would prove that they are truly competitive. “Our team is really disappointed, they’re bummed out,” Barnes Arico said. “But they know UCLA is one of the top teams in the country, so they’re excited to challenge themselves against the best.”
DELANEY RYAN/Daily
Danielle Williams and her team will look to avenge last year’s loss to UCLA.
WRESTLING
Murphy, Coon provide boost By LELAND MITCHINSON Daily Sports Writer
After going without juniors Brian Murphy and Adam Coon at last weekend’s Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational, the Michigan wrestling team got a boost from having the two veterans back in the lineup for the Big Ten season opener Thursday against Michigan State. Murphy, who was previously held out due to a minor injury concern, wrestled in the 157pound weight class, taking on Michigan State’s Joe Johnson. At the start of the night, Michigan coach Joe McFarland was unsure if Murphy would even compete. “We knew we were going to weigh him in, and we had two guys weigh in at that weight class,” McFarland said. “We were going to leave it up to him, and he still had some soreness in his hip earlier this week, but he said he felt ready to go. He’s a pretty tough kid, so he made the call, and of course he had the green light from our medical staff. So we sent him out there, and he did a great job and got a major win for us.” Ranked No. 5 nationally in his weight class, Murphy came out strong against Johnson, scoring four points in the first period and a near-fall in the third, while conceding just two escapes on his way to a 14-2 match win. “I wanted to see where I’m at before I can start really training again,” Murphy said. “We have a long break. It’s like
a test to see where I’m at and things I can work on, because live competitions are a lot different.” Prior to the match against the Spartans, Coon, the No. 3 heavyweight in the country, had been given time off to work on his Greco-Roman wrestling for the US Open — an Olympic qualifying event — but he did not miss a beat stepping back into folkstyle to take on Michigan State’s Dimitrus Renfroe. “I would say it’s a better transition at heavyweight than it is in any other weight,” Coon said. “There is a lot more upper body wrestling at heavyweight. Just traditionally, a lot more hand fighting, but it is pretty much two different sports. There are a lot of different techniques and a lot of things that will work in Greco that won’t work in folkstyle and vice versa.” Coon dominated his match, allowing only one point on an escape by Renfroe, while scoring a near-fall and four takedowns, including one at the end of the match to conclude the bout as a technical fall. The 17-1 win by Coon capped a 39-6 victory for the Wolverines in their last match before their winter break. “It gives your team that confidence when you get two guys like Brian and Adam back in your lineup,” McFarland said. “It makes us that much stronger. We were excited to get Brian going again, and he looked like he pushed pretty hard. Both those guys pushed the pace pretty hard in those matches.”
“He did a great job and got a major win for us.”
RYAN MCLOUGHLIN/Daily
Domenic Abounader registered Michigan’s only pin in its blowout victory against Michigan State on Thursday.
team, the deficit didn’t last long. In the next round, sophomore Alec Pantaleo continued to build upon his hot start to the season, winning his match by technical fall, 19-4, with multiple takedowns. Pantaleo’s victory gave Michigan a lead it did not relinquish. Murphy, in his return from an injury, won his match quickly, 14-2, with two near-falls and three
“It’s not just about going out and getting your hand raised.”
takedowns. “To be honest with you, we weren’t sure if he was going to wrestle tonight,” McFarland said. “We were going to leave it up to him. He still had some soreness in his hip earlier this week, but he said he felt ready to go.” In the next round, Michigan’s victory became all but guaranteed when sophomore Garrett Sutton’s opponent defaulted due to injury, giving the Wolverines a 20-6 lead. Two rounds later, junior Domenic Abounader registered the only pin of the match, before both Coon and fifth-year senior Max Huntley won by technical falls to end the match for the Wolverines’ first win in
conference play. As Michigan begins a stretch of conference matches, Coon offered his thoughts on his team’s performance up to this point. “The team’s doing all right,” Coon said. “We’re not as competitive as we thought we would be. We thought we would be national championship contenders at this point. Now that this first semester is behind us, we’ve got to keep grinding and be that national championship team.” Added McFarland: “We’ve gotta continue to work on our toughness and our grit, and you do that in these matches like we did tonight.”
Sports
8 — Friday, December 11, 2015
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
2015 Season Review: RBs 2015 Season Review: Wide FOOTBALL
By MAX COHEN
Managing Sports Editor
Editor’s Note: With the Michigan football team’s 2015 regular season in the books, the Daily looks back at the performance of each unit this year and looks ahead to the future in 2016. In this edition: running backs. Heading into the season, Michigan returned a trio of experienced running backs in redshirt junior Drake Johnson and juniors De’Veon Smith and Derrick Green. With the addition of redshirt sophomore Ty Isaac, the group was expected to progress and perhaps be a strong point of the Wolverines’ offense with question marks at quarterback and wide receiver. After an underwhelming start to the season against Utah, the running backs came into their own during the next stretch of the season. Michigan surpassed 200 rushing yards in four of its next five games, failing to reach the mark only against Maryland, when the Wolverines ran for 198 yards. Smith put together two games of at least 125 yards in that stretch, and Isaac rushed for 115 in another. However, things were never quite the same after Michigan rushed for 201 yards in a 38-0 win against Northwestern. Isaac and Green appeared to fall out of favor as the season progressed. Green received just five carries in the second half of the season, while Isaac received none after the seventh game. Smith and Johnson picked up some of the slack, but neither surpassed 75 yards on the ground in a single game during the second half of the season. Redshirt freshman safety Jabrill Peppers found some success running the ball late in the year and served as a decoy out of the backfield on other occasions. HIGH POINT: Michigan’s five-game stretch from Sept.
12 against Oregon State to Oct. 10 against Northwestern was unmatched this season in terms of production in the running game. The Wolverines rushed for 1,132 yards in those games on 224 carries, good for an average of 5.05 yards per carry. Michigan, excluding a shootout against Indiana in which it averaged five yards per carry, never averaged more than 3.7 yards per carry in the second half of the season. LOW POINT: The Wolverines’ running game struggled immensely against some of its toughest Big Ten opponents: Michigan State, Penn State and Ohio State. Michigan failed to surpass 100 rushing yards in any of those contests. Against the Buckeyes, it ran for a season-low 57 yards on the ground. Making matters worse for the running backs against Ohio State was that Peppers, who ran the ball just 18 times this season, was the team’s leading rusher with 29 yards on seven carries. Of course, some of the blame for the low statistics in the run game as the season progressed falls on the development of the passing game, which became a focal point of Michigan’s offense as fifth-
year senior quarterback Jake Rudock improved drastically. However, Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh frequently speaks about striking a balance between the running game and passing attack, and the Wolverines were unable to do that in the latter half of the season. THE FUTURE: All of Michigan’s running backs should be back next season, and most of the Wolverines’ offensive line should return as well. The running game will have the opportunity to make major strides in the offseason because of the continuity. Freshman Karan Higdon, who carried the ball 11 times in three games, could also factor more heavily into the equation. One option that could spice up the rushing attack would be if Peppers moved to the position on a full-time basis. Harbaugh mentioned this possibility late in the season but was far from committal. Peppers was an offensive star in high school but spent much of this season, his first full one at the collegiate level, focusing on the defensive side of the ball. If he were to move to running back permanently, it could give Michigan’s offense quite the spark.
RUBY WALLAU/Daily
De’Veon Smith surpassed 100 rushing yards in a game twice this season.
Receivers and Tight Ends Three main pass catchers starred for Wolverines By JAKE LOURIM Managing Sports Editor
Editor’s Note: With the Michigan football team’s 2015 regular season in the books, the Daily looks back at the performance of each unit this year and looks ahead to the future in 2016. In this edition: wide receivers and tight ends. When Devin Funchess forewent his senior season and declared for the NFL Draft last spring, he left a gaping hole in the Michigan football team’s receiving corps. Funchess caught 62 passes for 733 yards and four touchdowns in 2014. The Wolverines’ top returning receiver, redshirt junior Amara Darboh, caught 36 passes for 473 yards and two touchdowns. Going into 2015, Michigan had talent, albeit unproven talent. The wide receivers faced a tough task this summer forming chemistry with fifthyear senior quarterback Jake Rudock, a graduate transfer from Iowa. Rudock and the receivers shared criticism in the early part of the season for struggling to connect on long passes downfield. But both improved as the season went on, and three consistent passcatching threats emerged by the end of the year. Darboh led the team in receptions and yards, and Chesson was first with eight receiving touchdowns. Each had breakout games, and each made highlight-reel plays. Like Rudock, they were average in the beginning but slowly
improved, thanks in part to passing game coordinator Jedd Fisch, who came over from the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars in the offseason. Perhaps a bigger storyline was Michigan’s emphasis on tight ends this season under first-year coach Jim Harbaugh. Harbaugh made the position a staple of his offense at Stanford and with the NFL’s San Francisco 49ers, and even without time to mold the roster to his liking, he made tight ends useful in his first season. Junior tight end Jake Butt became the third receiving threat. He had one of his best games in the season opener at Utah, catching eight passes for 93 yards and a touchdown. He then tailed off before later becoming Rudock’s safety valve down the stretch. The Wolverines’ weakness at wide receiver, though, was depth. The third-best wideout by yardage was freshman Grant Perry with 77. Outside the three top receivers, only junior running back De’Veon Smith and senior tight end A.J. Williams surpassed 100 yards on the season, though Michigan did have 19 players in total catch a pass. HIGH POINT: Of the receivers’ five 100-yard performances, two came at Indiana on Nov. 14. While the Hoosiers racked up points with their no-huddle spread offense, the Wolverines matched them with a newfound, high-powered passing attack. Chesson caught 10 passes for 207 yards and four touchdowns — the latter tying a school record. Darboh added eight receptions for 109 yards and the game-winning 25-yard score in the second overtime. The unit also started off the
season strong at Utah, where Darboh and Butt each pulled in eight receptions. LOW POINT: The unit never truly struggled, but the second and third games of the season against Oregon State and UNLV provided a lull. In both wins, Chesson, Darboh and Butt combined for fewer than 100 yards — 89 against the Beavers and 60 against the Rebels — and did not find the end zone while the rushing attack carried the offense. The trio rebounded with a combined 115 yards and a touchdown against Brigham Young the following week and later scored 13 times in the last five games of the season. THE FUTURE: If Michigan can avoid attrition at receiver, the Wolverines should be in great shape for next season. Almost all of their contributors have eligibility remaining. Butt announced this week that he will return for his senior season, and Chesson and Darboh, both redshirt juniors, should be back for fifth years, though Chesson may decide to test the NFL waters. After that, there’s room for development. Redshirt freshman Ian Bunting and redshirt sophomores Henry Poggi and Khalid Hill will each have another year of experience under their belts at tight end. Williams is the only notable departure. Perry and redshirt freshman Maurice Ways can also continue to grow, and four-star recruits Brad Hawkins and Ahmir Mitchell will be on campus as well. Harbaugh didn’t make wide receivers a focal point this season, but he will have the opportunity to do so if the development continues.
Five Things We Learned: SMU By JACOB GASE Daily Sports Editor
Michigan men’s basketball coach John Beilein has repeatedly said his team is a “long way from being good,” and the Wolverines showed what he meant Tuesday. In an 82-58 drubbing at the hands of No. 19 Southern Methodist — Michigan’s third non-conference loss of the young season — the Wolverines’ glaring weaknesses were on full display. There’s still time for Michigan to grow — it has four straight home games against low-tier opponents with losing records — but it could be in for a rude awakening at the start of Big Ten play if these questions aren’t answered soon. Here are five things we learned from Tuesday’s loss. 1. The bigs still have a long way to go. After a month of tinkering, Beilein has finally settled on sophomore Ricky Doyle at the ‘5’ position, with freshman Moritz Wagner as the first man off the bench. But stability in the rotation still hasn’t translated to stability on the floor, and the SMU loss was a prime example. Mustang big man Jordan Tolbert scored 23 points on 11-for-12 shooting, including an astounding nine dunks. The Wolverines had no answer for him in the paint, allowing numerous alley-oops and wideopen lanes. SMU also dominated Michigan on the glass, grabbing 45 rebounds to the Wolverines’ 20. Wagner and Doyle are clearly still Michigan’s best options in the post, but that lack of defense simply won’t cut it in the Big Ten. 2. Caris LeVert can’t do it all every night. There’s no question that senior guard Caris LeVert is the
RUBY WALLAU/Daily
Senior guard Caris LeVert leads Michigan in scoring, but he managed just 1-for-13 shooting and five points against Southern Methodist on Tuesday night.
focal point of the Wolverines’ offense. He leads Michigan in scoring with 17.7 points per game, and he has excelled as the lead guard in Beilein’s offense since junior guard Derrick Walton Jr. injured his ankle a week ago. But for the second straight year, the Mustangs shut down LeVert, limiting him to 1-for13 shooting and just five points — his first single-digit scoring performance of the season. LeVert’s offense has been able to carry the team to victories against Texas and North Carolina State and kept Michigan within striking distance for most of a lopsided loss to No. 12 Xavier. But it’s unrealistic to expect even a player of his caliber to be “on”
every night. The Wolverines received a few meaningful contributions from the rest of the lineup, but they need to take more of the pressure off LeVert. 3. The Wolverines miss Walton... In the first game and a half since Walton injured his ankle against N.C. State, Michigan looked like it might be fine without him. The Wolverines held off a late charge to beat the Wolfpack in Raleigh and rolled over Houston Baptist with LeVert playing point guard a week later. But Tuesday was a different story, as Walton’s presence was sorely missed on both sides of the ball. The Wolverines’ offense suffered from spacing
issues all night without its floor general, and Michigan could certainly have used his 4.6 rebounds per game. His absence likely wouldn’t have accounted for the 24-point difference in the game, but it’s safe to say the Wolverines would love to have him back soon. 4. ...But other players are starting to step up. Michigan’s offense struggled to stay in the game Tuesday, but it did receive contributions from a few players who have been largely quiet in the early-season box scores. Sophomore guard Muhammad-Ali AbdurRahkman, who was playing in Walton’s spot in the lineup
and hasn’t been a prolific scorer in his career, scored the Wolverines’ first six points and finished the game with 15. On an even more encouraging note, junior forward Zak Irvin made his biggest stride yet in his recovery from September back surgery. Irvin had struggled to get his shot going early in the season, but he flirted with a double-double against SMU with nine points and nine assists. If he can keep up the improvements, Irvin could be Michigan’s X-factor going forward. 5. BOLD PREDICTION: This won’t be Michigan’s only 20-point loss this season. It’s important to note that the Wolverines haven’t had
more than one 20-point loss in a season since the 2007-08 season, Beilein’s first year at the helm. But Michigan has a tendency to let at least one road Big Ten game get out of hand — the Wolverines lost by 19 at Ohio State in 2015, by 18 at Iowa in 2014 and by 23 at Michigan State in 2013. Unless the defense and post play drastically improve over the next few months, this year will be no exception. Even if the Wolverines can get back to full health, they have to face tough, physical Big Ten teams with huge size advantages on the road, including No. 6 Maryland and No. 11 Purdue. A home game against No. 1 Michigan State will also be a difficult test for the Wolverines.