The Miscellany News March 11, 2021
miscellanynews.org
Vassar College’s student newspaper of record since 1866 Volume 155 | Issue 3
Poughkeepsie collaborates with county on YMCA project Lucille Brewster News Editor
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ince its doors closed amid the recession in 2009, the absence of the Montgomery Street YMCA has left a gaping void in the Poughkeepsie community. The recreation center had served 2,000 people by the time of its closure, with recreational amenities as well as a location to foster community. After nearly 12 years of vacancy, legislators are optimistic that the center will be revitalized at long last. Plans to construct the newly named Youth Opportunity Center are underway even as questions about funding persist. The construction project will cost an estimated $40 to $45 million according to Dutchess County Legislator and Vassar College Professor Rebecca Edwards. Professor Edwards represents the
Courtesy of Simon via WRRVCrook.
town of Poughkeepsie. Dutchess County and the city of Poughkeepsie recently struck a deal to partially fund the Youth Opportunity Center. Under local finance law, the property must be an asset of Dutchess County in order to use an expected $25 million in municipal bonds to finance the project. Poughkeepsie Mayor Rob Rolison and Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro announced on Feb. 24 that ownership of the property would be transferred from the City to the County through a transaction of $10. Rolison and Molinaro are seeking approval for this transaction from the City of Poughkeepsie Common Council and Dutchess County legislature. An emergency Common Council meeting was held on March 3 to See YMCA on page 3
Podding provides students Professor studies coral via anemones needed social connection Sofia Baah
Tabby Hannan
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Guest reporter
ollege during COVID-19 has been an isolating experience for students as they crave social interaction. To address their struggling mental health and loneliness the College has expanded its podding program this semester. Pods have enabled students to connect with their friends on campus—and in some cases, even make new ones. In an email to the student body on Feb. 24, President Bradley announced that the College would be moving forward with student podding. Due to the initial uptick in COVID-19 cases during movein, the planned start date had been postponed from Feb. 17. Though with no documented community spread, the college decided to begin podding. In the email, President Bradley stressed the importance of social interactions in promoting student mental health and welfare, citing the podding system as the College’s approach to a COVID-secure form of socializing. Pods can be made of up to six students from three different houses to gather without a mask in private rooms, reserved spaces on campus and when eating meals in Gordon Commons or outdoors. Due to the inter-house nature of podding this semester and the high frequency usage of common spaces without full sanitation between each use, dining in common spaces is not yet permitted. As of now, there are 242 authorized pods on campus, inclusive of more than 1100 students. This is a significant increase from last semester, when 162 pods were apInside this issue
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proved by House Advisor for Jewett and South Commons and Assistant Director of Residential Education Christina Winnett. These numbers do not include TAs, THs, or Ferry House residences and on-campus apartments because they are automatically considered pods. To register a pod with the College, one member of the pod has to fill out the names, 999 numbers and housing assignments of the other members and submit the Pod Registration Spring 2021 application (accessible on the Residence housing portal to the right at residentiallife.vassar.edu.) The pod is only permitted to gather after an email of approval has been received. Winnett is in charge of approving all pods, a lengthy task that involves cross-referencing multiple Google Sheets and emails at the end of every weekday as applications come in. “It’s been really cool to see where friend groups cross over, and which houses pod together the most,” commented Winnett. “It has been a joy to hear a bit more of a buzz in my building and around campus, knowing that people are excited to be connected to each other and have some moments of normalcy sans masks.” Lucy Gammon ’22 concurred with Winnett. “The quality of life on this campus has drastically improved after being able to pod,” Gammon explains. “The first day that podding was allowed, my friends and I got our approval email and immediately ran to hug each other in the hallway. We all See PODS on page 3
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Guest Columnist
he basement of Olmsted Hall is a mysterious location for non-Biology students at Vassar. Without a reason to descend into the exclusive underground floor, it remains off-limits to those without card access. It’s where many science professors conduct their research—including Jodi Schwarz, an Associate Professor of Biology. With an original undergraduate degree in history, Schwarz has first-hand knowledge of deviating from a predetermined course. Searching for a break from her landlocked schooling, Schwarz decided to partake in a semester at sea. Unknowingly, she committed to a science-focused program. During her time at sea, the Arizona native realized her love for oceanography and marine biology and eventually decided to go back to school to pursue coral reef research. Coral reefs are imperative for tourism, fisheries and biodiversity. Despite the importance of coral ecosystems, little is known about coral propagation and symbiosis. Schwarz centered her research around these two variables, using a species of sea anemone that is closely related to corals called Aiptasia pallida. “We can work with those animals to try to address some really fundamental questions about corals,” Schwarz told me. “And then once we know more, then we can go test those ideas in corals once we have a better sense of what’s going on.” In particular, sea anemone research provides clues regarding conservation strategies that may protect endangered coral species.
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Environmental activists have historically used charismatic megafauna, such as elephants and polar bears, to captivate the attention of the public and initiate conversations about conservation. For example, climate change sympathizers utilize photos of polar bears carefully treading on melting ice to appeal to the public’s heartstrings in an attempt to push an agenda of climate change awareness and action. While individually much smaller than their charismatic comrades, “before” and “after” images of colorful corals being reduced to lonely bleached masses have also encouraged similar responses from the public. In 2020, the Great Barrier Reef suffered a mass bleaching event that affected large portions of the reef. Bleaching events in 1998, 2002, 2016 and 2017 were all the product of rising ocean temperatures, which are a direct result of greenhouse gas emissions. Readily available images of bustling coral ecosystems complete with colorful fish alongside images of starkwhite bleached corals are compelling to say the least, but what is really happening inside of the corals and how do we know? Schwarz has dedicated her research to discovering more specific details regarding the behavior of these important and alluring animals. Schwarz uses A. pallida because corals are difficult to grow in the lab. Aside from slight differences, sea anemones offer the ideal opportunity to obtain information regarding propagation and bleaching tendencies of coral-like animals. Sea anemones reproduce sexually in a process called “spawning,” in which they release a cloud
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of gametes (eggs and sperm) into the water column in a synchronized fashion. Spawning events only happen once a year for corals, but sea anemones may spawn up to once a month according to the lunar cycle. The scarce nature of spawning events necessitates a highly coordinated cycle, in which the male and female anemones release their gametes in close succession to one another. Like corals, sea anemones engage in a symbiotic relationship with microorganisms. The bright colors that coral reefs are known for are actually the result of a symbiotic interaction between microorganisms and coral reefs. The organisms integrate themselves into the cells of corals, and make use of the nitrogenous waste secreted by the corals. The corals benefit by then using the sugar that is photosynthesized by their symbionts. Schwarz compared the fluctuating density of coral symbiodinium to deciduous trees during autumn, which both follow an annual cycle. The process of symbiodinium fluctuation in coral reefs is not well understood, but we do know that if it is interrupted by an environmental stressor it can be disastrous for the health of coral reefs. When corals lose their color, they are actually losing their symbiodinium. While this in itself is not fatal, coral growth and reproduction is hindered without what Schwarz called the “microscopic partners that live inside of them.” Coral bleaching events are often caused by a warming in ocean temperature. Even a few degrees’ change can be catastrophic for coral reef symbionts. Schwarz explained: “When corals are exposed See CORAL on page 8
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