October 22, 2020

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VOLUME 139, ISSUE 3 | THURSDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2020

GSA LETTER CHALLENGES UNIVERSITY TO SEEK EQUITABLE SOLUTIONS FOR REMOTE LEARNING The letter asks the administration to offer fully asynchronous courses and solutions for inconsistent internet access on and off campus

The Peter J. Shields Library on the UC Davis campus during Fall Quarter 2020. (Quinn Spooner / Aggie) BY KATHLEEN QUINN campus@theaggie.org The Grad Student Association (GSA) teamed up with the leadership from ASUCD to craft a letter aimed at addressing inequity intensified by remote learning during the pandemic. “I think at first we thought about it like, ‘How are grad students going to benefit from this?’” said Jonathan Minnick, the president of the GSA. “But, we all also had the idea that a rising tide lifts all boats.” The letter advocates for improving students’

access to the internet, citing a lack of reliable connection both on and off campus. Gwen Chodur, the external vice president of GSA, said the issue hits home to her because she too has experienced difficulties with her internet connection as a teaching assistant (TA). “I was in the middle of a meeting, it went off just after nine and didn’t come back until five,” Chodur said. “It was an entire day-long outage.” Minnick said that one way to address the lack of reliable internet off-campus is to provide personal hotspots following in the footsteps of a program offered by UC Berkeley. “There is always this underlying assumption

that everyone has internet access,” he said. “I think that we learned very quickly that that’s simply not true.” Renetta Tull, the vice chancellor of diversity, equity and inclusion, said in her experience, there were students who relied on on-campus internet as an effective student resource. “I’ve had the opportunity to speak with a couple of students that said that they’ve actually come from different areas where they didn’t have internet at home,” Tull said. “They came to campus because they knew the WiFi would be better.” Although some students may come to campus to utilize the WiFi, UC Davis has had connectivity issues in the past with the campus WiFi Eduroam, and students may be living far from campus without the ability to travel on the weekdays for stable internet. The major issue with providing access to hotspots is knowing who needs them, which the university has tried to resolve with multiple surveys about needs, said Maria Martinez, the external vice president of ASUCD and cosigner of the letter. “I think we definitely have the funding to do so, at least in the tech department of the university,” Martinez said. The letter requests fully asynchronous lectures and discussions for every course through Canvas. ASUCD President Kyle Krueger said connectivity has caused concerns for international students who are juggling different time zones. “There wasn’t time to put together a fully asynchronous program with all the faculty and all the classes, knowing that there are thousands of classes and professors covering many of those classes,” Tull said. “There wasn’t time to do that for the Fall Quarter, but my understanding is that the provost and the senate are looking into it and taking the concerns very seriously.”

Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor Mary Croughan said in an email that she was unavailable to be interviewed in time for publication. “I don’t usually like to jump straight to memos or resolutions, so I did email some members of the Academic Senate, just in a more conversational context originally,” Krueger said. “Overall, there needs to be a little more of a push to get the students’ voices heard in this particular area.” Some of the students who are coming to campus are having their first remote college class this quarter, Minnick said. “I think it would be quite unfair to expect them to try to thrive in this situation,” Minnick said. “We have to take a lot of grace for ourselves; we have to take a lot of grace for our students.” Universal closed captioning was requested by the ASUCD leadership and GSA intended to assist students with disabilities who are navigating fully remote courses without standardized procedures in place. The concerns detailed in the letter have existed long before the pandemic, but have been heightened due to the remote quarter, Chodur said. “This is the drum that I will beat about COVID,” she said. “All of these issues existed beforehand, they’ve just been magnified by what is happening now.” The extension of pass/no pass and drop deadlines are also highlighted in the letter, which Martinez said should be made available until all students return to campus after the pandemic is over. “I think that getting an ‘A’ last Fall Quarter and getting an ‘A’ now are completely different circumstances,” Martinez said. “If students don’t have the resources to get those letter grades, it becomes kind of an incomparable task.”

UC ALLEGEDLY ADMITTED 64 STUDENTS DUE TO CONNECTIONS WITH STAFF OF DONORS, AUDIT ASSERTS UC Regent Richard Blum, who was named in the audit, said he recalled sending letters of recommendation to the UC Davis Chancellor’s office BY REBECCA BIHN-WALLACE campus@theaggie.org An audit issued by California state auditor Elaine Howle on Sept. 22 concluded that four UC campuses—UC Berkeley, UCLA, UC San Diego and UC Santa Barbara—unfairly admitted 64 students due to their social connections to staff or donors. In an official statement, President of the UC Michael Drake promised a “zero-tolerance” approach to the concerns raised by the report. “I take the findings and recommendations very seriously and will do all I can to prevent inappropriate admissions at UC,” Drake said. Howle’s audit said that, among the 64 students who were unfairly admitted, there was an applicant who babysat for a colleague of a former director of undergraduate admissions; an applicant whose family was friends with a regent at the UC; the child of a high-level university staff member; the child of a notable alumnus; the child of a major donor; and an applicant whose family had promised a significant donation to the university. “The university has not made adequate

changes in response to the national college admissions scandal,” a heading in the audit said, referring to the 2019 FBI investigation, called Operation Varsity Blues, which found that numerous affluent individuals, celebrities among them, had bribed tutors and coaches to aid in their children’s acceptances to prestigious universities including UCLA and UC Berkeley. In the audit are excerpts of emails between development office officials, coaching staff and UC donors, who appear to have pushed for unskilled applicants rejected in the regular admissions process to be accepted from the waitlist or be considered under the student athlete admissions process, among other things. According to the L.A. Times, U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein’s husband, Richard Blum, was named in the audit as one of the individuals involved in these activities. Blum’s representative confirmed that Blum is the regent named in the audit, which accuses him of contributing an “inappropriate letter of support” for a UC Berkeley applicant. POTENTIALBRIBERY on 11

Mrak Hall at UC Davis. (Quinn Spooner / Aggie)

PETITION CALLING FOR A TRANSFORMED ENERGY SYSTEM GARNERS MORE THAN 3,700 SIGNATURES Two UC Davis professors endorse petition

A petition on actionetwork.org seeks signatures to demand the University of California system to adopt an energy plan that is not reliant on fossil fuels. (Justin Han / Aggie)

BY AARYA GUPTA campus@theaggie.org The Green New Deal climate action group at UC San Diego and the UC Green New Deal Coalition recently sponsored a petition through the Action Network to directly address the UC Office of the President and the chancellors of all 10 UC campuses. This petition is “demanding a revolution of the UC’s energy system” and requests that “UC develops a detailed plan for true decarbonization of its energy regime for 10 campuses, with appropriate backups for outages.” Three unions have endorsed this petition already: University Professional and Technical Employees (UPTE), United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 5810 and UAW Local 2865, according to the petition. Among other UC professors in fields related to earth and climate science, social science and energy systems, UC Davis Philosophy Professor Roberta Millstein and Human Ecology Professor Stephen Wheeler endorsed this petition, according to a document of endorsements linked to the petition. Millstein said that acting on the climate crisis is “an ethical imperative,” and called for decarbonization, according to the document. Drawing inspiration from the writings of Aldo

Leopold, the 20th century ecologist, Millstein emphasized the interdependence of humans, animals and plants and abiotic factors like soil, water and air, via email. “It’s important that we remember that we must take action to prevent global climate change from worsening,” Millstein said via email. “We must protect our land communities.” As of Oct. 16, 3,785 signatures have been collected, out of a target goal of 5,000. Specifically, approximately more than 350 affiliates of UC Davis have signed, according to data last updated on Oct. 12. “The University of California is a large contributor to the production of greenhouse gases that are causing global climate change,” Millstein said. “So, what we do matters for the planet and its inhabitants. We can also set an example for other universities and entities to follow suit.” Similarly, Wheeler, who is also the UC Davis representative on the UC-wide Faculty Education and Engagement Task Force of the Carbon Neutrality Initiative, said that the University of California “has an opportunity to lead this shift by getting rid of natural gas on its campuses in the next several years,” according to the document of endorsements. SUSTAINABILITYPETITION on 11

2 | THURSDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2020

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Meals on Wheels provides more hot meals to seniors in Yolo County Yolo County moves to Red Tier, more businesses reopen at limited capacity BY SHRADDHA JHINGAN city@theaggie.org On Sept. 30, Yolo County published a press release detailing the County’s movement “into the red or substantial tier in the State’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy.” As a result, certain businesses were allowed to reopen while following health and safety guidelines, such as wearing face coverings and maintaining social distancing by operating at a lower capacity while Yolo County remains in the Red Tier. Personal care services, restaurants, museums and fitness centers are among the businesses allowed to operate at a lower capacity. Details of the number of people allowed or the maximum capacity expressed as a percentage can be found in the press release. Meals on Wheels is one of many organizations that will resume increased operations, according to an article from the Davis Enterprise. Meals on Wheels is an organization that provides “a daily hot meal to seniors in our region for over 40 years,” its website reads. “It seems simple: Our central kitchen staff begins work each weekday at 4:00 am, while most of us are still asleep in our beds, preparing 350-400 hot lunches for Yolo County seniors.” In March, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Meals on Wheels had to reduce their operations from five days to two days a week, in order to limit any possibilities of exposure between clients, staff and volunteers. Executive Director of Meals on Wheels Christi Skibbins described in a statement that the organization had to rapidly change their model to one that could keep seniors fed and safe from the virus. “Since the beginning of March since the COVID-19 virus - we have had to move quickly and pivot seamlessly to not only to be able to continue the work we usually do, but also to adapt to a world with totally different rules and circumstances in order to care for Yolo County’s hungry and needy seniors,” Skibbins wrote. Despite the “mental fatigue and stress” caused by COVID-19, Skibbins

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noted that support from the community has increased. “Donations and volunteering have both increased, which we appreciate and very much need,” Skibbins wrote. Now that has moved to the Red Tier, Meals on Wheels will add a third delivery day, delivering five meals a week to seniors. “[...]We will move to three deliveries a week – Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays – beginning Monday, October 19th,” Skibbins wrote. “The one thing our clients have told us they miss the most these past months is hot meals. So, with our new schedule we will deliver 3 hot meals/week and 2 frozen.” The meals will also be delivered to the homes of clients who previously dined at the senior center

sites. Menus of the meals can be found on the organization’s website. “Our menus are now posted on our website and a paper copy distributed to clients for two weeks at a time, as we are still experiencing supply chain challenges and may have to make substitutions,” the website reads. Despite moving into the Red Tier, it’s still important to follow precautionary practices, according to Chair of the Yolo County Board of Supervisors Gary Sandy in the Yolo County press release. “As our community begins to re-open it’s important to remember that we all have a role in suppressing the spread of the virus,” Sandy said in the press release. “By taking common sense

measures to keep each other healthy and safe, we can set the stage to further reopen. Wear a mask, wash your hands, avoid large groups, and get a flu shot to help our economy get back on its feet.” Despite the current situation, Meals on Wheels will continue to adapt and provide its services, according to Skibbins. “We will continue to adapt to this everchanging situation as needed and continue to provide the vital services that help our community during very challenging times,” Skibbins wrote. “Thank you all for your ongoing support that means so much to all of us in the Meals on Wheels family and of course, to our seniors.”

Three interim senators confirmed, Senate President Pro Tempore elected at last week's Senate meeting The first female international student to serve on the table was confirmed as one of the interim senators BY HANNAH BLOME campus@theaggie.org The Oct. 8 ASUCD Senate meeting was called to order at 6:10 p.m. by Vice President Emily Barneond. Senator Fong and Commission Chair Alec Pitts were absent. The meeting moved into the Senate President Pro Tempore Election. Senator Boudaie nominated Senator Gandhoke, and Senator Ibarra-Rodriguez nominated himself. Senator Gandhoke was confirmed as Senate President Pro Tempore in a 4-3-2 roll call vote. Senator Fong was absent and Senator Malik abstained. “Senator Gandhoke has shown the table that he is articulate, passionate and ready to push past party politics in favor of the student body and our association,” Boudaie said. “I would like to nominate Senator Gandhoke.” During the Healthy UC Davis presentation, Hoda Soltani, the organization’s project manager, revealed the addition of a diversity and inclusion committee to its priority areas. President Kyle Krueger introduced three interim senator candidates for confirmation. The first candidate, Annoushqa Bobde, is a third-year applied mathematics major. Bobde is the second international student to serve on the ASUCD Senate table, and the first female international student. “I want to represent and advocate for the international student community because I believe there are certain steps that we can take to make the transition from in-person to virtual instruction,” Bobde said. “I myself have faced the problems posed by the different time zones, and I am currently in India with my family. I have had to wake up at 3 a.m. and 1 a.m. for classes and exams.” Bobde worked for the Picnic Day committee and wants to serve as a liaison between ASUCD and the STEM-major student community. Bobde was confirmed as an Interim Senator. The second candidate, Erika Valle, is a fourth-year political science major. As a transfer student from Sacramento City College, Valle wants to serve as a connection between ASUCD and the transfer student community.

AGGIE FILE Valle interned with the Yolo County Democratic Party and the UC Sacramento program. She addressed internet and technology accessibility issues as a goal for her term. Valle was confirmed as an Interim Senator. The third and final candidate, Michelle Lester, is a second-year communications major. Kreuger described Lester as “the best communicator out of all the applicants.” Lester was a marketing intern for the Aggie Reuse Store, an ASUCD unit. She wants to ignite more student outreach to get more students involved in ASUCD. Lester was confirmed as an Interim Senator. The meeting then moved into unit and committee adoptions, in which all the senators chose different ASUCD units and committees to adopt. Senator Elizalde adopted The Pantry and ASUCD Gardens, along with Senator Youedon, who also adopted Campus Center for the Environment/Project Composit, Reactive Media, Housing Advising for Undergraduate Students, The California Aggie and Unitrans. Senator Gandhoke adopted Coffee House, Picnic Day, The California Aggie and

the Pantry. Senator Rodriguez-Ibarra adopted Picnic Day, The Pantry and Unitrans, and Malik adopted Housing Advising for Undergraduate Students, Refrigerator Services and The Pantry. Senator Boudaie adopted Bike Barn, Coffee House, Housing Advising for Undergraduate Students, KDVS, Office of External Affairs Vice President, The California Aggie and Unitrans. Senator Carduny adopted the Bike Barn and the Coffee House and Senator Velasco adopted Coffee House, Office of External Affairs Vice President, Picnic Day and The Pantry. Senator Lester adopted the Campus Center for the Environment/Project Composit and Creative Media. Senator Valle adopted the Entertainment Council and Office of External Affairs Vice President. And Senator Bobde adopted Housing Advising for Undergraduate Students, KDVS and Picnic Day. The Gender and Sexuality commission leader, Elena DeNecochea, nominated Jane Casto to replace her on the committee. Casto addressed her efforts to maintain community despite virtual operations. Vice President Barneond moved the meeting

into Picnic Day confirmation. Caitlyn Liu, a fourth-year English and communications double major, applied to be the Picnic Day chair. She has been on the picnic day committee since freshman year. “Right now we are working with a plan A and a plan B. Plan A is a small on-campus livestream without guests.” Lui said. “Our plan B is how we can implement a virtual Picnic Day. The goal behind the virtual picnic day is to maintain the relationships that Picnic Day has made with on-campus partners, departments, off-campus partners, sponsors.” The meeting moved into Judicial Council confirmation for one available seat. The table confirmed Mikka Vapor, a fourth-year international relations and economics double major. Vapor was confirmed with a unanimous vote. Senator Youedon introduced Senate Bill #2, designed to create an Aggie mentors program. Senator Velasco introduced Senate Bill #3 to start a STEM committee within ASUCD. President Krueger passed Senate Bill #1. The meeting adjourned at 9:48 p.m.

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2020 | 3

COVID-19 LEAVES NEGATIVE IMPACT ON MENTAL HEALTH, INCREASED CALLS TO SUICIDE HOTLINES Maintaining good mental health difficult but important during COVID-19 BY JELENA LAPUZ city@theaggie.org Any student can schedule individual counselling sessions with the Student Health and Wellness Center by calling 1(530)752-0871. The phone number for the 24/7 National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1(800)273-8255 or text RELATE to 74174 to confidentially chat with a Crisis Counselor. Speak with a trained counselor, available 24/7, through The Trevor Project at 1(866)488-7386. Yolo County’s 24-hour crisis line is 1(530)756-5000. The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted daily life. Maintaining good mental health can be difficult when pandemic safety guidelines make it necessary to socially distance. UC Davis Mental Health Initiative “houses both the UC Davis Mental Health Conference and UC Davis Mental Health Awareness Month,” the official Facebook page states. “Two major events which aim to engage students in [de-stigmatization] and education efforts, prompt attendees to organize around mental health issues, and offer them the opportunity for self-reflection and healing through mental health discourse.” Resource and Research Coordinator for UC Davis Mental Health Initiative, Alexandra Damian, explained how COVID-19 has taken a toll on mental and emotional health over the past few months. “In general, mental health plays a role in everyone’s lives through every single lens that you look at life,” Damian said. “So to think that a global pandemic is being layered on top of every single choice you make—there’s no doubt in my mind that COVID-19 and mental health are intertwined.” The Yolo County Suicide Prevention and Crisis Services’ official website states that its mission is to give county residents constant access to mental health assistance. “The mission of Suicide Prevention and

Crisis Services of Yolo County is to provide crisis prevention and intervention, education and community outreach services to the residents of Yolo County [...]” its website reads. “Today, SPYC is among the oldest suicide prevention crisis lines in the nation and operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.” Executive Director of Suicide Prevention of Yolo County (SPYC) Diane Sommers explained that SPYC operates a 24-hour crisis line, provides education and prevention programs for schools and offers support groups for those who have lost a loved one to suicide. Sommers described how the COVID-19 pandemic brought out increased feelings of anxiety, fear and uncertainty in people. “No one could really imagine that this would have such a dramatic and life-changing [effect] upon our families, our neighbors, our friends, our community,” Sommers said. “COVID-19 impacts all of us, but some more than others.” Sommers further explained that since the pandemic began seven months ago, SPYC has responded to over 5,400 contacts, which is about 2,000 more contacts than the previous year. She stressed the importance of reaching out to others during this time, especially when people have much deeper feelings of depression, loneliness and anger. Macy Mehdioun, a third-year UC Davis neurobiology, physiology and behavior major and psychology minor, explained via email how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted her life as a student, as it has caused a negative shift in her mental health. “Spending all day cooped up inside of my house was not good for me and I miss those days where I could use walking to class as my main form of exercise,” Mehdioun said. “My social interactions dropped significantly and I had a hard time feeling like the interactions I was having online were with real people on the other side of the screen.” Damian further explained that the hardest

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part of taking care of one’s mental health is reaching out for help. “As soon as you are aware that you need help, you are moving towards the right direction, even if it does not seem like it,” Damian said. “Any little step towards the right direction is a huge step.” Mehdioun reflected on ways to better cope with the COVID-19 pandemic while still following social distancing guidelines. “I personally think that finding your personal coping strategy is the best thing you can do,” Mehdioun said. “Whether it be podcasts, mindfulness activities, yoga, going out for walks, scheduling Zoom games with friends, playing video games, journaling, socially distanced hang outs, family game nights, cooking or just venting out your feelings.”

Sommers encouraged anyone experiencing mental health concerns right now not to be afraid of calling the helpline. “It is really essential that people understand that the 24-hour crisis line is really available to anyone, and not only is it a way to support people, but it really helps them deal with the everchanging landscape of their lives,” Sommers said. “We will continue to be here, to act in the best interest and the wellbeing of our community. We hope that people will reach out and call.” Mehdioun gave a word of advice to other students like herself about finding inner peace during these troubling times.

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UC DAVIS RESEARCHERS STUDY VIABILITY OF DRUG USED TO TREAT PRESIDENT TRUMP Trump’s tweets show how media consumption affects our understanding of COVID-19 MARIO RODRIGUEZ / AGGIE

BY MICHELLE WONG science@theaggie.org After being treated at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center for COVID-19, President Donald Trump took to Twitter, claiming to have been “cured” by a cocktail drug created by Regeneron Pharmaceuticals. While some Americans may believe this drug can put an end to the pandemic, Timothy Albertson, a distinguished professor and chair of internal medicine at UC Davis Health, stated that it is not necessarily the case. “The reason you do clinical trials is because you can’t [produce statistically significant data] from one person,” Albertson said. Albertson has been examining multiple medications for a potential COVID-19 treatment since July, one of which is the same drug President Trump received. He explained that Regeneron’s drug is a cocktail of monoclonal antibodies, which are antibodies made by bacteria that are detected by the immune system to be human antibodies. When injected, these antibodies can be directed at specific sites, such

as the spike protein on the SARS-CoV-2 virus. If all spike proteins can be inhibited, this could prevent the virus from replicating. Although Trump’s condition has improved after treatment, Albertson explained this doesn’t say anything as to whether the drug worked or not. There are multiple other factors that may have helped his condition, one of which being the fact that in addition to Regeneron’s drug, Trump also received steroids and Remdesivir during his stay. According to Albertson, Remdesivir is a semi-approved antiviral drug for hospitalized patients that appears to be working to some extent for treating COVID-19. Since Trump took multiple medications, it is difficult to determine which one worked for him. In addition, Albertson explained there are many genetic factors to take into consideration which vary from person to person. This is why it is important to establish equipoise, he stated, where groups being studied and compared are made to be as equal as possible with only one variable—in this case, the drug. Such conditions can be created through clinical trials, but not through one person’s testimony. Albertson’s study is currently conducting randomized clinical trials

with Regeneron’s drug on COVID-19 patients. He will not know whether the drug works or not until the end of the trials since the experiment is blind and controlled. “I think people need to be thinking about clinical trials and how important they are for themselves and for humanity in terms of understanding whether a new treatment has potential or not,” Albertson said. Furthermore, Trump’s tweet telling people to not be afraid of COVID-19 and that he “feels better than [he] did 20 years ago” may cause more misunderstanding about the pandemic as a whole. Magdalena Wojcieszak, a professor in the department of communication at UC Davis, explained that Trump received the drug through compassionate use, which is where unapproved drugs can be used to treat patients in special cases. She stated that those who are less informed may not be aware that the drugs used to treat Trump are not easily accessible to the majority of Americans. The tweets by the President, “may create this false sense of security that COVID in fact doesn’t need to be taken seriously or that that kind of cutting edge treatment may be available

to everybody even though it’s absolutely not,” according to Wojcieszak. Wojcieszak explained that it is important to consider that a large majority of the American population do not read the news in depth, but rely more on social media, such as Facebook or Twitter, for information. Therefore, most people likely only know this basic sequence of facts: President Trump had COVID-19, was hospitalized, received a treatment and is now fully recovered. With the presidential election approaching and dominating most media, people are less likely to be fully informed of Trump’s exact treatment and may perceive the sequence of events leading to his complete recovery as normal for all people who contract COVID-19. “Even those who do tune in to more traditional media [or] go online [for news] engage in what communication scholars call ‘selective exposure,’” Wojcieszak said. “Which means that if you’re more liberal, you go to the New York Times or you go to CNN.com. If you’re more conservative, you go to Fox or to other [conservative] publications or directly to the president’s Twitter, which means that different groups within American society have very different realities of what’s happening politically in general and especially with COVID.” This difference in the type of media Americans consume is heavily reflected in people’s attitudes towards COVID-19. According to a poll by Pew Research Center, 83% of Republicans who only follow news outlets with right-leaning audiences thought the media was exaggerating the risks of COVID-19, whereas 53% of Democrats who only follow news outlets with left-leaning audiences shared the same opinion. In addition, Wojcieszak explained that because the President has repeatedly expressed skepticism in scientific experts, this may have contributed to the lack of compliance with CDC guidelines by a portion of the public. “If the most powerful man in one of the largest countries gives such messages, naturally his supporters will not take the situation as seriously as they could have or should have or as people in some other countries did,” Wojcieszak said. Wojcieszak stated that people should be aware that a lot of the information “circulating on social media is circulating there precisely because it is sensationalist or hyped in some ways.” In addition, all media consumers should know that the sources they rely on are not necessarily objective and may be consistent with people’s pre-existing biases. According to Wojcieszak, because the U.S. does not have a form of public broadcasting that is seen as neutral and the country is largely split into two political parties, it is difficult to prevent the creation of different realities. “No matter what happens, no matter what information the media puts out there, no matter what you write or what I study, we will have this very divided society in which different groups of people live in different realities, consume different media if they consume it at all and have very different responses to COVID and to what’s safe and acceptable,” Wojcieszak said.

4 | THURSDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2020

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Viticulture and Enology department begins quarter with remote instruction, new wine-selling abilities Instructors explain positive changes within the program

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BY NORA FARAHDEL features@theaggie.org The UC Davis Viticulture and Enology department usually functions in vineyards, surrounded by greenery and grapes, as students get hands-on learning experience from instructors who are quite literally in the field. Along with adjustments relating to the COVID-19 pandemic, the department is also adapting to a recent change in legislation which allows UC Davis to sell the wine produced onsite. Like many other courses at UC Davis, remote viticulture classes involve online lectures with powerpoints and discussions via Zoom, among other things. For classes involving labs, however, professors

have used alternative methods to allow students to virtually visualize the once outdoor experience. David Block, a professor and Marvin Sands department chair of Viticulture and Enology, described how instructors have worked to create a semblance of what students were provided in the past. “The instructors have videotaped all kinds of footage explaining stuff in the vineyard, and students are able to watch those videos and then sit in on discussions and ask questions with instructors in real time,” Block said. Hildegarde Heymann, a distinguished professor of enology, is teaching the Wine Production and Wine Production Lab courses this quarter. Heymann shared that, while important parts of the course such as safety, sanitation and wine styles are able to be taught through lectures, she wanted to give her students the closest

experience to a wine production lab. To accomplish this goal, Heymann gave old wine data to students to mimic a lab experience. “Each student was assigned a wine,” Heymann said. “They get the grape information, the grape parameters that the wine would have had, the permutation, what was added, why and when it was added, what the temperatures were [...] I mean the whole process. So they’re entering that data on a daily basis like you would normally.” Heymann explained her willingness to experiment and be flexible with techniques, potentially even finding long-term teaching methods along the way. “If something clearly doesn’t work this year, and I have to do it again next year, then I will find another solution to that problem,” Heymann said. WINEMAKING on 11

Cowtown Closet goes virtual with clothing swaps How UC Davis students are continuing to promote second-hand shopping in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis BY KATIE DEBENEDETTI features@theaggie.org The California Aggie spoke to Cowtown Closet, a clothing donation and upcycling store, as part of our Shop Sustainably series which highlights a green business local to Davis each month. Since the start of the pandemic, people have turned to online shopping more than ever for essentials, normal seasonal shopping and even quarantine boredom-induced splurges. Because of this uptick in online consumption, sustainability and upcycling initiative groups have had to find new ways to get people to look for more sustainable shopping practices. Inspired by the Aggie Trading Post, a club on campus that promotes sustainable fashion, a group of UC Davis students have created Cowtown Closet to continue the reselling, upcycling and swapping of clothes in a world where physical interaction has been diminished. Frankie Veverka, a third-year human development major and sustainability minor, and the financial chair of Cowtown Closet, explained that, when the pandemic hit, she wanted to continue what the Aggie Trading Post had been doing with its quarterly clothing swaps. “Cowtown Closet [is] an organization that some of us who were involved in Aggie Trading Post brought up so we can still promote sustainable fashion in the times of COVID without any physical interaction,” Veverka said. The club members came together when classes went online to brainstorm ideas so that they could continue to cycle clothes in and out of students’ closets.

Zoe Slipper, a third-year international relations major and the president of Cowtown Closet, said that the format of the organization was inspired by a trading post at UC Santa Barbara. “The Isla Vista trading post in Santa Barbara [...] actually started a trading post before us, and that was a huge influence on us for doing something virtually,” Slipper said. “Basically we just took their idea. It’s something that a couple different campuses are doing right now.” Cowtown Closet, which publicly launched this Fall Quarter, shares the same mission as the original Aggie Trading Post clothing swaps last year, Slipper explained. “Cowtown Closet [is designed for] upcycling clothing and giving people the opportunity to trade out clothing that they don’t use, in order to promote a healthier alternative to engaging in fast fashion,” Slipper said. The closet operates by selling clothing in incremental posts on Instagram. They post a handful of items bi-weekly at generally $2-5 a piece, and their products are sold on a first come, first serve basis. Followers of their Instagram account can directly message the account to request a piece. Once the transaction goes through, customers are given a pickup location and time, where their item will be sitting on a table outside, labeled, so that no face-to-face interaction occurs. According to Fran Neill, a thirdyear plant sciences major, the pandemic has forced them to adjust their practices in ways that have made it a more timeconsuming process. She also said that, because they are continuing their clothing swaps virtually, they have had to rely a lot more on social media to

A graphic by Ella Jackson, a fourth-year design major at UC Davis, promoting Cowtown Closet, a new organization that promotes selling and swapping second hand clothing. (Ella Jackson / Courtesy) get people involved, which has been difficult. “It’s a lot more work in certain ways,” Neill said. “Also, just because we are starting something new with the closet, we have very few followers. We had more people attending the in-person things and that’s going to come with time, but we can’t sell stuff if people aren’t following the page. That’s our biggest obstacle at this point which I’m sure everyone who’s starting [a business] faces.” Slipper agreed with Neill, sharing that it has been harder to get as many people involved with the virtual swaps. She said, however, that one way they have changed their practices—transitioning from a clothing trade to a clothing purchase—has actually been helpful to the community. “We changed it up a little bit so that we were able to make donations,” Slipper said. “Last year it was all free, which I totally

support because I like it when there’s no money involved and we can just do things to help our environment and community, but we realized it is going to help our community even more if we get contributions.” The closet is committed to donating 100% of proceeds from the clothing to a local charity, currently Empower Yolo, which “provides services for individuals and families affected by domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, human trafficking and child abuse.” They plan on changing their organizations throughout the year. Veverka said that, at the end of the day, they want to continue their clothing swaps to help the community and promote sustainable fashion in Davis, making the extra work worthwhile. “When we were first sorting clothes we had so many and I just wanted to donate these to Goodwill and get in new stuff but the whole point of this is that we want to give people on campus a place where they can get clothes

from other people on campus so it’s more of a college scene,” Veverka said. “Going into Goodwill there’s a huge array of clothes and it’s very overwhelming versus walking into Cowtown Closet. There’ll generally be clothes that are closer to your size and the trends.” Slipper reiterated this point, emphasizing that the goal of the closet is just to make sustainable shopping more accessible and appealing to college students. She shared that the mission of the closet, at its core, is to help teach people how to shop in more sustainable ways. “We try to fight fast fashion, and our mission is to be sustainable for the health of our environment, which is something that takes time,” Slipper said. “We aren’t just selling something to get money, we’re doing this to make a change. We want our community to understand that what they’re doing by buying from us and donating to us is making a bigger difference.”

THE CALIFORNIA AGGIE

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2020 | 5

OPINION THE

C ALIFORNIA A GGIE

ED ITOR IA L B OA R D

ANJINI VENUGOPAL Editor-in-Chief MARGO ROSENBAUM Managing Editor SABRINA HABCHI Campus News Editor

INSTRUCTORS AND STUDENTS NEED TO RESPECT EACH OTHER AND EACH OTHER’S TIME All involved must be flexible and communicative to optimize learning this quarter

EDEN WINNIFORD City News Editor CALVIN COFFEE Opinion Editor SOPHIE DEWEES Features Editor ALLIE BAILEY Arts & Culture Editor OMAR NAVARRO Sports Editor MADDIE PAYNE Science & Tech Editor

SIERRA JIMENEZ New Media Manager JUSTIN HAN Photo Director KATHERINE FRANKS Design Director JOELLE TAHTA Layout Director KAITLIN ARAGHI Copy Chief ALEX WEINSTEIN Copy Chief ANDREW LEE Website Manager BEN CHENG Social Media Manager JOSHUA GAZZANIGA Distribution Manager LAURIE PEDERSON Business Development Manager

It has been over 30 weeks (bar finals, that is the number of weeks in an academic year) since instruction became remote, and everyone should understand that calling this a “new normal” will not force any sense of normalcy to this quarter. Students and instructors may run into Wi-Fi issues or PG&E outages and may be in different time zones, to name just a few struggles this quarter, and these are crucial to consider and plan around. On top of that, a survey from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) identified that young people aged 18 to 24 are experiencing rising levels of anxiety and depression. Some professors have responded to the circumstances of this quarter by being communicative about relaxed deadlines, Zoom lecture recordings and 48-hour windows for exams, among other accommodations. Others, however, have not only foregone that added level of consideration but are making the quarter even more challenging for students through a failure to communicate and a reluctance to be flexible. Prior to COVID-19, avoiding Canvas was, at best, a quirky trait that set some professors apart from their counterparts, but now it is actively detrimental to students’ ability to stay organized and plan their work. Students can and should be organized, but instructors have a responsibility to provide a comprehensive syllabus that compiles all assignments in an accessible location. There is much more to be said about the cost of a college education, especially during a pandemic—the fact remains that it is not inexpensive to attend UC Davis. Students should not be paying tuition to watch lectures recorded in prior academic years. And although asynchronous courses are effective in that they are more readily accessible to all students than live lectures with required attendance, they can be isolating and it can be difficult to focus if there is no dedicated time for the course. When asynchronous lecture videos are longer than official instruction time, it becomes even more draining to get through a week of work. Instructors must respect their students’ time, provide lecture material and assign work that aligns with expectations for traditionally in-person classes. This includes setting intuitive deadlines and scheduling extended exam windows

that correspond with official class times. Being respectful is not, and should not be, a requirement just for instructors. Wi-Fi permitting, students should keep cameras on when professors request that they do. Students should not spam Zoom chats and can instead create groups on other platforms to facilitate communication and provide a less formal forum for questions. Everyone should be vigilant to prevent accidentally hitting the unmute button in the middle of a lecture. Taking breaks to prioritize mental and physical health is important, and professors must be flexible and understanding— always, but especially during a pandemic. Students have a responsibility to maintain their integrity, and it is unacceptable to inappropriately take advantage of accommodations provided by professors. In a letter to the academic senate, provost and chancellor on Sept. 28, leadership of ASUCD and the Graduate Student Association requested attendance from courses or discussions at specified times not be mandatory, that exam attendance not be mandatory, that all academic video learning contain closed captioning, computer labs be open on a rotating basis and that all content is available asynchronously. All of these requests are vital to foster a more equitable academic environment. Ideally, though, the Editorial Board feels that instructors RODRIGUEZ / AGGIE should try to offerMARIO optional meetings during the time scheduled for the course. Be it a synchronous lecture or even a small discussion section, it is easier to engage with instructors and peers at a designated time and can be less intimidating than oneon-one Zoom office hours. As the first round of midterms rolls around, we urge professors, lecturers, TAs and students to be thoughtful and respectful of the time and money that is going into this educational experience. We know firsthand that it is not easy to be a student right now and acknowledge that it is not easy to be an instructor right now either. There is clearly no one way to perfectly navigate university via Zoom, but being flexible and being proactively communicative are the bare minimum to

WEAR A MASK: THE DANGERS OF POLITICIZING HEALTHCARE AND SAFETY ARE TAKING LIVES Masks protect the health of you and those around you

MARIO RODRIGUEZ / AGGIE

BY KACEY CAIN klcain@ucdavis.edu The current political climate of our country has been one of the many contributing factors of this ongoing pandemic. Despite the obvious health benefits of wearing a mask, many have opted out of this precaution as a tribute to their political party. By not wearing a mask these individuals are taking a political stance—or so they think. In reality, they are harming their health and the health of those around them. Although many have tried, no one can deny that COVID-19 is a serious matter. Millions of people are getting sick, and sadly, hundreds of thousands of people are dying. Mandating masks is

our state’s best attempt to collectively prevent the spread of the virus. The onset of COVID-19 has disrupted the normal lives we used to live: attending sports games, throwing parties, eating out, etc. Masks, however, help restore some normalcy as we are able to engage in some of our regular activities once again. Without masks, we’d be right where we started, isolated in our houses for weeks on end—something no one wants to experience again. The power masks hold should not be allocated to a political stance. There are many other ways to state your political views. There aren’t, however, as many ways to protect yourself from this virus. Wearing a mask is simple and is something we can all do (unless you have a medical condition that says otherwise). It may not be comfortable, but for the sake of our health and the health of others, it’s worth the trouble.

Rather than a political stance, wearing a mask should be viewed as an act of kindness—something our world needs more of. Walking around with a mask shows that you care about those around you. Additionally, it demonstrates that you recognize the unprecedented times we are in and that you are committed to being a part of the solution.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by individual columnists belong to the columnists alone and do not necessarily indicate the views and opinions held by The California Aggie. MASKS on 11

6 | THURSDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2020

THE CALIFORNIA AGGIE

OPINION DRILLING IS BAD, ACTUALLY Gov. Newsom recently issued an executive order outlining a ban on the sale of fossil fuels by 2035, but is this enough? Newsom’s administration itself has issued nearly 1,700 oil and gas permits this year alone

An oil drilling rig. (Imahornfan / Creative Commons) BY JOE SWEENEY jmsweeney@ucdavis.edu Earlier this month, millions of Americans tuned in to the vice presidential debate to watch Mike Pence, Kamala Harris and a fly argue for the soul of America. After a fairly unsatisfying

exchange on climate change, both Harris and Pence vehemently opposed a ban on fracking. Fracking is often portrayed as a complicated issue, so let’s stick to the facts. Multiple studies have found that fracking can cause earthquakes. For example, Oklahoma has seen a significant increase in earthquakes, both in frequency and

magnitude. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has conclusively linked this to fracking and other oil extraction activities. Additionally, fracking fluid often contaminates groundwater. For instance, Chromium Hexavalent, a carcinogen found in fracking fluid, was found at roughly 21 times the national average in my hometown of Pleasanton from 2012-2017. Biden’s refusal to stand up to fossil fuel companies on fracking, as the current face of the Democratic Party, sends the wrong message to both public officials and citizens across the country. Fracking is bad for public health and the environment and oil drilling is even worse. California is often advertised as an environmental leader, setting the standard for the rest of the country. California, however, is also the seventh largest producer of oil in the nation. Recently, oil has been on the forefront of many Californians’ minds as climate change has contributed to the intense fire seasons over the past few years. The governor even signed an executive order in September proclaiming a ban on the sale of gas vehicles by 2035, but Newsom’s record with Big Oil has been spotty at best and this act of good faith means nothing without action. “Gov. Newsom is hurting our climate and health by supporting dirty oil extraction,” said Kassie Siegel, the director of the Center for Biological Diversity’s Climate Law Institute, via email”He has rubber-stamped permits to drill more than 1,700 new oil and gas wells this year alone. He is allowing Big Oil to spew dangerous pollution near where people live, work, and play, particularly in low-income areas and communities of color. That’s why more than 750 organizations are demanding that Newsom demonstrate real leadership by stopping the approval of new wells, ending neighborhood drilling, and committing to phase out dirty oil drilling through a just transition to clean energy.” Newsom’s executive order is not enough. Strict enforcement is also necessary to ensure compliance by corporations like Chevron. For instance, Chevron’s GS-5, an inland oil spill or “surface expression,” near Bakersfield has flowed since 2003, spilling between 50-84 million gallons

of oil. As a point of reference, that’s more than the Exxon Valdez Spill which is widely considered one of the worst crude oil spills in history. Last year, California passed a law which created a zero tolerance policy towards surface expressions, allowing the California Geologic Energy Management Division (CalGEM) to fine companies up to $25,000 per day for spills. Despite the threat of hefty fines, a small loophole exists that allows “low energy seeps” or slow spills that are mostly contained, whose qualifications are left up to the supervisor of the site. Since the regulations were implemented in April 2019, a multitude of spills have occurred but only one fine has been issued––which was never paid. The enforcement of these regulations have been spotty at best, with companies still profiting millions of dollars from inland spills and challenging any fines in court. Despite its environmental repercussions, the oil industry provides hundreds of thousands of jobs, especially in oil rich Kern County, the site of many of these inland spills. In fact, according to Aera Energy, in 2017 alone, oil and gas companies pumped $152 billion dollars into California’s economy and provided roughly 350,000 jobs. The question I pose to you is, at what cost? When the pandemic hit, many of those employees were laid off due to plummeting gas prices. California has been drilling oil since the Gold Rush and eventually it’s going to run dry. The momentum for shifting towards a greener economy has never been so important. It is time to reject fossil fuels using both your ballot and wallets. If you’d like to learn more about this issue, I’d recommend ProPublica and Desert Sun’s investigative pieces from last month which really go in depth on inland oil spills and the Newsom Administration. An organization you can get involved with is Last Chance Alliance, who have a campaign specifically focused on California’s Oil Crisis. Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by individual columnists belong to the columnists alone and do not necessarily indicate the views and opinions held by The California Aggie.

HUMOR

DNC, RNC PARTNER UP TO DEBUT NEW ‘FRACKING RULES!’ MERCHANDISE

CATHY TANG / AGGIE

Finding the middle ground, underground BY ISABELLA CHUECOS ifchuecos@ucdavis.edu We all know how divisive politics can be these days. From the economy, foreign policy and whether literal human beings deserve basic human rights, there always seems to be contentious arguments that break out from political discussions. In an astounding show of democratic compromise, however, the DNC and RNC have decided to forgo their ideological differences and unite on one of the most important issues of our time: fracking. “It is imperative that we dig down into our souls, that we tap into our humanity, and rig ourselves up for the future. That future is fracking,” Senator Kamala Harris announced after the vice presidential (VP) debate against Vice President Mike Pence. The VP candidates were linking pinkies to show solidarity.

Vice President Mike Pence did not comment, but instead began to molt his skin (as most reptilians do once a month), and revealed his very own “Fracking Rules!” T-shirt. Senator Kamala Harris was visibly disturbed, but “not surprised.” Former Vice President Joe Biden was also seen wearing a purple “Fracking Rules!” T-shirt, a fashion choice that was surprising to both him and his supporters: old white men who simply wouldn’t be caught dead in purple. The “Fracking Rules” campaign is run by some sort of amalgamation of people with names rhyming with “Brevron” and “Shmexxon Shmobil.” Who these people are or their experience with merchandising remains unclear at the moment. Meanwhile, in a galaxy far, far away, President Donald Trump weighed in on the new campaign, showing rare support for the opposing team. “The Democrats, I gotta hand it to ‘em, with their government handouts and welfare, and their Antifa… they’ve finally come to their senses about

something! Fracking does rule! I’ve been saying it for years! I even took an ad out in fake-news Times about it 10 years ago!” President Trump told a group of his supporters. Hope Hicks––who rose to fame in her role as coronavirus patient-zero in the White House–– emerged from quarantine after the remarks and handed the President a T-shirt cannon, which he then used to absolutely obliterate a bunch of “loser, mask-wearing, fake news people.” The president claimed that his “astonishingly good aim” was merely a coincidence. In addition to the T-shirts, the “Fracking Rules!” campaign has launched a variety of fracking-centric merchandise, including “Fracktastic” tote bags, “Frackophile” socks

and limited edition “Frack Juice,” a sort of DIY fracking liquid that comes complete with all 700 different toxins, sand and water. When asked about fracking and climate change during his town hall “debate,” Mr. Biden was quick to make his views clear to the public: “Let’s face the facts, folks: what’s a little fracking gonna do in the grand scheme of things? My plan doesn’t even have us reaching net-zero until 2345! It’s all a bunch of malarkey.”

Disclaimer: This article is humor and/or satire, and it’s content is purely fictional. The story and/or names of “sources” are fictionalized.

UC NEEDS TO CONSIDER THESE ALTERNATES FOR THE SAT, ACT They’re not much better, but hey, why not? BY EAN KIMURA etkimura@ucavis.edu Last month a judge ruled that UC must suspend SAT and ACT scores in admissions and scholarship decisions. Apparently, there is little data to show that standardized tests are an effective way to predict academic success in college. Yes, you heard that right; the ability to correctly complete odd analogies between words you never use doesn’t determine how smart you are. While the ruling has been stayed temporarily, colleges across the country, including the UC system, have been slowly moving toward making the SAT and ACT irrelevant to college admissions decisions. This has only been accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has caused cancellations of these tests. I am an opponent of the SAT and ACT for completely objective reasons that definitely don’t stem from the fact that my sister did better than

me on these tests. I do believe, however, that part of a holistic approach to college admissions should include a test that is a poor predictor of future success. Below are some of my suggestions for alternative tests for the UC to use for admissions. This One Buzzfeed Quiz: This quiz is titled “If You’ve Eaten 28/36 Of These Foods, You’re Potato’s Number One Fan.” I have met too many people at this school who claim to be potato’s number one fan and I know they aren’t. You may be wondering how in the world a preference for potatoes is related to academic success. In fact, there have been no studies done on this topic, so let’s just go with it. Rice Purity Test: If I was running an institution of higher education, would I like to know the sexual experience of my prospective students? Absolutely. I would like to know whether or not a prospective student has committed an act

A box of potatoes. (graibeard / Flickr) of bestiality. We don’t want that here. Lord knows what they’d do to the cows… or the turkeys… oh God. Emergency Broadcast System Test: If you are willing to sit through that god-awful noise that comes through on your radio without changing the station, your soul is dead and you’re ready for the college experience. Pregnancy Test: This, to me, might be the best alternative. What did you do in high school? Oh you were in the high school play? Oh, what instrument did you play? The flute, cool. Do you happen to create the miracle of life? We want

miracle workers at our institutions. Now at this point I know many readers are saying, “What on God’s green earth are you thinking? You can’t be serious.” To answer that question. I’m not. This is the humor section, however, and wouldn’t it be funny if you didn’t get into a college because of some arbitrary test?

Disclaimer: This article is humor and/or satire, and it’s content is purely fictional. The story and/or names of “sources” are fictionalized.

THE CALIFORNIA AGGIE

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2020 | 7

OPINION FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, STOP CALLING ME A ‘CONTENT CREATOR.’ I’M NOT AT ALL CONTENT! And don’t even get me started on heteronyms!

KATHERINE HUNG / AGGIE

BY BENJAMIN PORTER bbporter@ucdavis.edu When I sit down to write articles like this one, I do so under the impression that I am a “writer.” I was recently informed, however, that I am not in fact a “writer.” No, no, no, I don’t mean that I was fired. I mean that apparently, I should be called something else instead of a writer. Does this mean I still am a writer? Was I ever a writer before? Given the fact that I use my brain’s lifelong accumulation of linguistic and lexicographic understanding to weave words into meaningful prose, I always assumed that what I’ve been doing all this time is “writing.” But I was wrong. This is NOT writing and I am NOT a writer, a shocking revelation almost too abstract to abstract. What do I actually do and what it is that I should call myself? Perhaps just “writer” is too general of a term….. Am I in fact a humor writer? A satire writer? A humorist? A satirist? A columnist? No! Too specific! Too hyper-specialized! Too conventional! No, no, no, I am now aware that I have a far superior and much more modern and important sounding job title than any of those: I am a “content creator.” Alright, great. Now what on earth is a content creator? That could mean just about anything! Would I still be writing, or is content creation something else entirely? I first assumed that they wanted to give me a new title because they needed me to do something different. So I began an exhaustive and exhausting quest to determine exactly what this new title meant. I hoped it wouldn’t involve math—I couldn’t be any number to numbers. Best to leave that to people who really love math—the “numbers people.” But I had a good feeling that my new title as a “content creator” wouldn’t involve any math since numbers don’t have to be created, at least not if they’re real numbers. The only people who actually do create numbers are golfers who lie about their handicap, businessmen who lie about their income to cheat on their taxes and politicians who lie about the numbers relating to crowd sizes, the coronavirus and “fraudulent” mail-in ballots. In other words, number people, by which I mean people who are a bit more numb and indifferent to reality than the most. I’m neither a numbers person nor a number person and I don’t golf, so I’m never planning on putting putting ahead of trying to progress progress. So there’s no way “content creators” are numbers people—could they be “words people” like me, perhaps? Let’s see…. religion involves lots of words being used for the creation and fabrication of extremely large amounts of content. Luckily, I learned that my work as a learned content creator doesn’t have to involve religion. This is great because incense incense me and I object to having to subject myself to a project whose object

is to project certainty on subjects where science and reason offer only hypotheses and questions. Thus, it would not be appropriate to appropriate religion’s misleading strategies when it comes to creating content for my job. At this point, I was told that my job would not change and that I’d still be doing the same tasks. Yet, I was not any closer to figuring out what “content creation” actually means. If the job was different in name only, my first guess was that I was considered a “content creator” for creating a spirit of contentment amongst my supposed readership. Reading is supposed to make people content, right? Well, here we run into another problem. My readership is composed largely of left-leaning Americans and I often write about politics, meaning my content likely makes them even less content with the current political situation. Meanwhile, reading on religious subjects tends to make religious subjects highly content, but we’ve already determined that religious leaders are not content creators. But it sure sounds like they are…. The only other idea I can come up with is that cotent creators are expected to actually be content all the time. But why the hell would you name a job based on how the person doing it feels? Do I have to be content all the time? Or only some of the time? Are they assuming that I’m already content? Or are they attempting to forcibly impose contentment upon me? Because I

must say, I’m not at all content! Far from it! And having an employer that does the latter sounds pretty dystopian and totalitarian to me! (Wow, it looks like religion has this type of content creation covered too!) How many more of these mood-based job titles must we put up with? What’s next? A Blithesome Butcher? A Perturbed Proctologist? A Zany Zookeeper? A Distraught Dentist? A Pervy Priest? (Looks like religion has a third type of content creation covered too….) After all this worrying and speculating about my “new” job, I eventually learned that it was all for nought because the “content” refers to the writing that I’m creating. As Wikipedia puts it, “Content creation is the contribution of information to any media and most especially to digital media for an end-user/audience in specific contexts.” Well of course, that seems so obvious now. “Contributing information” to “specific contexts”…..DUH! But again, isn’t that what just about everyone does in some form or another? So then….. Why can’t I just be called a WRITER? It’s more specific despite having fewer words and syllables! But people really insist on calling me a “content creator.” I don’t get it. This gives me a headache. Whoever came up with this whole “content creation” thing sure was a top tier tier of knots in one’s brain. I can feel my intellectual muscles tearing and my eyes tearing up.

If it wasn’t clear, I think all of this is as absurd as a fever dream about having to consort with and bow down to a consort of bow tie-wearing, bass-playing bass just because they bravely managed to concert all of their energy to play a concert of fish music while holding their breaths above the water. Labeling anyone who does any meaningful work something as general, vague, empty and meaningless as a “content creator” is just a way to make people feel more important; meanwhile, the people who are really running the internet slowly dehumanize actual writing and and other truly thoughtful “creative content” to the point that it blends in and stops taking attention away from abundance of lifeless consumer productrelated “content” filling our ad banners. If all this fancy merchandise that Big Tech is trying to merchandise as it exploits our creative exploits deserves labels more specific than “content,” why doesn’t writing? But enough complaining from me. It is now close to “the close” of the article. “The close” confines my content thoughts and my thoughts on content to the close confines of my brain until I put pen to paper to “create content” again. Disclaimer: This article is humor and/or satire, and it’s content is purely fictional. The story and/or names of “sources” are fictionalized.

BREAKING NEWS: LOCAL FRESHMAN IS INVINCIBLE TO COVID-19 “I’ve just been doing all this stuff, and I haven’t gotten sick” BY MATTHEW SIMONS mrsimons@ucdavis.edu In this series of investigative pieces, The California Aggie investigates how the COVID-19 crisis has affected the lives of individuals in our community. “Tell it to me one more time,” I say, clicking my recorder on. “Alright. Now?” replies Chris Boyd, 18. “Now,” I nod. “Well, I used to be like you. I was in lockdown for basically all of quarantine. Then, I moved into the dorms. I saw no one and no one saw me. My life was a hermit’s existence until I figured it out.” He stops. “Do you mind if I take off my mask?” “Well, actually…” He slips off his mask from behind his ears. Boyd sits across the table from me in an empty Dos Coyotes for our interview. I sigh and then ask him what it is he’s figured out. “I,” he begins, “am invincible.” He sits, waiting for my response.“I know it’s a lot to take in, so let me know when you’re ready.” He resumes eating his burrito. “What do you mean by invincible?” I ask. “I’ve just been doing all this stuff, and I haven’t gotten sick. It’s the only explanation—I am invincible to COVID-19,” he claims. Since moving into the dorms in late September, Boyd has had no less than 18 visits to friends, 20 brunch plans, 16 dinners, three kickbacks, two ragers and a “tastefully sizable orgy.” “You’ve got to be tasteful about the size though,” he adds. “There are still people who aren’t invincible and I’d hate to rub it in.” Despite his behavior, Boyd has yet to contract COVID-19. “Are you afraid you’ll get sick?” I ask. “It hasn’t happened yet,” he says, “Ergo, I must be invincible. Ergo, I don’t worry about it.” “What else have you been doing?”

Photo titled “Pensive superhero” by Nick Dugan Pogue. (Nicki Dugan Pogue / Flickr) “I’ve been making travel plans. National parks, anywhere that’s not shut down. Last week, I went to a local gym just to breathe in the circulated air.” He takes a long swig of his horchata. “I’m immortal.” His phone rings. “Mind if I take this?” he asks. I nod. “Hey? Grandma? Yeah, I’m still coming by later. See you soon.” He hangs up. “I have to fix her oxygen tank,” he shrugs.

When I ask Boyd what he will do now that he is invincible, he responds “First, I’m going to mail these samples to the CDC.” He produces a cardboard box from under the table. He shakes it for effect and it makes an eerie sloshing noise. “Then, I’m going out to celebrate!” I thank Boyd for his interview. As I stand up to leave, he stops me, and reaches into his bag. “Here,” he says, and hands me an N95 mask. “Be

careful about the smoke from the wildfires. That stuff’ll kill you.” I reached out to Chris Boyd for a second interview, but he has not returned any of my calls. Disclaimer: This article is humor and/or satire, and it’s content is purely fictional. The story and/or names of “sources” are fictionalized.

8 | THURSDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2020

THE CALIFORNIA AGGIE

Why milk alternatives? Three students share their thoughts How environmental consciousness edges out the dairy industry

CATHY TANG / AGGIE

BY LIVVY MULLEN arts@theaggie.org When asked her thoughts on cow’s milk, Joelle Page, a second-year psychology major, said: “It’s disgusting. All I can think about is the pus and blood and dirt, God, I can’t believe I ever drank it. And I know how the process is, like all the steps it goes through to make it edible. But that doesn’t mean I avoid it. It’s hard to not eat cheese and yogurt and dairy products, but milk is disgusting.” It’s no secret that milk’s popularity has been on the decline for a while. With the public’s increasing emphasis on sustainability paired with growing diet consciousness, milk has been declared the enemy. More and more people remove it from their diets every day. Eager to fill

the hole milk has left, a booming new industry has popped up. Three students explain why they explore dairy alternatives. “I was always a little lactose intolerant,” said Sarah Gougeon, a third-year plant science major, as she ruefully recalled the moment she knew her diet had to change. “In junior year of high school, I went to Ecuador and got a parasite. Then I was really lactose intolerant.” Despite her unusual circumstance, she shared similar experiences with the other interviewees. Savannah Pluma, a second-year engineering and biological sciences major, cites a cocktail of lactose intolerance and budding veganism as the reason she dropped milk. “I experimented with alternatives for a while, but educating myself about veganism pushed me to really […] make the change,” Pluma said. While much of their reasoning for making

the switch was the physical (bolating, gas, nausea) aspect, all three said that ethical considerations were their driving force. “I watched this documentary that called milk ‘baby cow growth fluid,’” Page said. “If you think about it, it’s really not meant to be consumed by humans.” Gougeon, who is not vegan, shared similar thoughts. “It’s easy to forget, they forcibly impregnate the cows to steal their milk. It happens their whole lives.” Pluma looks at the dairy industry as a small part of the bigger picture. “Regular milk is delicious. It might be really good in coffee, but this is the future of our world. I’m trying to prioritize the earth.” One of the more difficult factors of adapting to milk alternatives is figuring where and how to incorporate them into one’s diet. Some, like Page, see it as a full on substitute. “You can use it in pretty much anything you

would use regular milk in,” Page said. “Like smoothies or cereal.” Simple dishes that don’t require baking are common places to try milk alternatives, helping new consumers adjust to the altered taste. Gougeon is more particular with how she uses the alternatives. She explained her detailed process: “Anyone who knows me knows this: almond milk for cereal, soy milk for cooking, oat milk for coffee,” Gougeon said. Pluma is more experimental with her decisions. “I go through phases, right now it’s been months since I had soy milk, but now I need that sweet taste, other times I want some yummy thick liquid (oat milk), sometimes I want that watery deliciousness of almond milk,” Pluma said. “I’m a layered woman.” With so many types of milk alternatives available, picking the drink you enjoy is critical. There is a process of trial and error in figuring out what works for you. Ethics plays a large role, but so does nutrition and price. “I used to pick based on nutritional values, so I drank a lot of soy milk because it has so much protein. Now, I just drink whatever’s around me. I like milk that tastes good, I don’t really care if it gives me nutrition or not,” Pluma said. For Page and Gougeon, the price tag is more of a deal breaker than the nutrition label. There are obvious struggles when you take milk out of your diet, but with non-dairy options increasing in popularity so rapidly, it’s easier to adjust. Pluma gave some encouraging advice for newcomers: “Sometimes it’s hard to find milk in public, in coffee stores and what not. Now, obviously, everyones drinking it—you know Dunkin just added oat milk to their menu,” Pluma said. “Big things!” Page shared that it “gets easier with time.” The transition from cow’s milk to a milk alternative may seem daunting, but these students agree the pros outweigh the cons. Invest in a more environmentally conscious way to eat and drink. Overall interviewees’ milk alternative rankings: SOY: 3½ stars ALMOND: 3 stars OAT: 4½ stars RICE: 1½ stars COCONUT: 1 star

Culture Corner The Arts Desk’s weekly picks for movies, books, music, television shows

BY MARIAH VIKTORIA CANDELARIA arts@theaggie.org Movie: “Coraline” dir. by Henry Selick (2009)

Book: “Her Body and Other Parties” by Carmen Maria Machado

This movie was released years ago, but this is a film that I never get tired of revisiting, especially around this time of the year. Based on the identically-named novella by Neil Gaiman, “Coraline” is a stop-motion animation film that follows a young girl’s venture into a parallel universe behind a small door in her new home. While this idealized world seems perfect at first, Coraline slowly discovers its malicious side. Not only is this movie beautifully animated, but its slightly spooky nature makes it an all-time favorite of mine.

Machado’s “The Husband Stitch” takes on a new spin to the classic short story, “The Green Ribbon,” while keeping the original chilliness of the tale. As a whole, this collection of short stories feature horror, comedy, science fiction and more, all through a queer, feminist lens. Her tales are haunting and employ elements from classic American Gothics to relay a woman’s experience in a fatally sexist world in both a refreshing and disturbing, abstract way.

Album: “American Idiot” by Green Day Although this album was released in 2004, its message on the effects of the U.S. government on lower middle-class adolescents serves as a call to action against the oppressive, patriarchal bureaucracy of the U.S.’ society that still persists today. Categorized as a “Punk-Rock Opera,” this album also served its time on Broadway in its prime. From start to finish, it depicts a story of the main character “Jesus of Suburbia” rising against the backdrop of a failing government.

Television Show: “The Haunting of Hill House” dir. by Mike Flanagan (2018) Based on the supernatural horror novel by Shirley Jackson, this Netflix series adaptation depicts the lives of a family that has been haunted by supernatural presences throughout their lives. It juxtaposes the narratives of each family member between the present and the past, leading up to the death of a family member in both timelines.

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2020 | 9

Sudoku Enter digits from 1 to 9 into the blank spaces. Every row, colum, and 3x3 square must contain each digit. Each Sudoku has a unique solution that can be reached logically without guessing.

Answer to previous puzzle 10/15/20

Crossword Answer to previous puzzle 10/15/20

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10 | THURSDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2020

Review: Emily In Paris Disappointed by the characters in the TV show, yet will watch season two MARIO RODRIGUEZ / AGGIE

CATHY TANG / AGGIE BY ITZELTH GAMBOA arts@theaggie.org There are TV shows that we watch that are immeasurably good. They’re entertaining, they’re funny, they check off all the boxes. Shows like “Never Have I Ever” and “Stranger Things” that are undeniably perfect. But then there are shows that you watch for the aesthetic, shows that you watch just to watch. “Emily in Paris” is one of those shows. “Emily in Paris” is a comedy-drama Netflix series that follows Emily (played by Lily Collins) as she makes her way through a new job at an unwelcoming marketing firm in Paris. There’s just a couple of holes in Emily’s plan to bring her American perspective to the firm: they don’t want her there and she doesn’t speak French. She doesn’t even know how to say the words “I don’t speak French” in French. She moves into a run-down apartment and works all season to get on her boss’ good side as she deals with multiple romance flings, finds new friends and makes Paris her home. As someone who’s never visited any country

other than Mexico, my only dream is to travel and see all of the beautiful wonders of the world. When shows like “Emily in Paris” come around that give me a glimpse of what Paris could possibly be like, how could I not want to watch it? And with Lily Collins as the protagonist, I was going to binge it. As every Instagram comment has reminded me, the Paris depicted in the show is completely unrealistic and that has led to much criticism. But I’m not watching a show about a social media strategist whose life gets uprooted in Paris for the reality of it. I’m watching it because I want to see the impressive outfits and cringeworthy drama. I’ve seen the show get a good amount of attention and I had a good time watching it. It had its moments. To cut it short, I will be watching season two if it gets renewed. Not because it was particularly good, but because they left off on the worst cliffhanger possible. Let’s start off with the show itself; any Netflix show has to make me feel like I watched something worthwhile, like I didn’t just sit on my bed all day for nothing. I like to feel that I completed something after binge watching a

ten-episode series. But I didn’t get that feeling after finishing “Emily In Paris.” I felt incomplete and not in a good way; the show simply didn’t feel finished. It was a grand mess of an ending. Along with any TV show I’ve ever reviewed, my main frustration is due to its characters. If a show has obnoxious characters that are completely unrelatable, I won’t continue watching it. Characters are what make something worth watching, so I’m going to start by ripping the main characters to shreds. When we first met Emily, I loved her. She was bubbly and determined to do well in her job. We are so often given the broody character to love that it was refreshing to have the main character be the most optimistic one, albeit naive as well. Optimists haven’t received much of a spotlight in recent years and with Gen Z being known for their nihilism, that’s understandable. But Emily had a can-do attitude that I’d love to see more often. She did make some questionable choices throughout the show, but there wouldn’t have been a show without them, so there isn’t too much of a fight there. A character trope that I’m tired of is the mean boss. I hate the idea that when women finally climb to the top of a business, they become cold and snotty to other women instead of uplifting them. I never understood this portrayal of women in the media when I was younger and it’s one that I’ve grown to hate. It’s exhausting for women in college to have to fear that this trope may be true. Sylvie (played by Philippine LeroyBeaulieu), Emily’s boss in Paris, is a powerful woman who isn’t welcome to new ideas and pushes Emily down at every opportunity she has, and it’s exhausting. It’s time to ditch this type of character and move on, because I would love to see more empathetic and helpful women bosses (See: “The Bold Type.”) Emily’s main love interest is the boy next door. Literally. He lives one flight down from her and he is the most bland character I’ve ever seen as a love interest. This is absolutely devastating because I watched this show solely to fall in love with characters, but instead I only fell in love with the scenery. He’s the type of character that you’re supposed to love, the one who you’re supposed to be rooting for the whole season. I’ll admit, I liked him for the first two episodes. Then it all went

downhill because he is one of the worst men on the show. I can’t fathom what was going through the director’s and writer’s heads when they were creating this character; did they really think that he was going to be likable to the public? For my final criticism: every single one of Emily’s love interests is white. There was one recurring Black character and he was the token side character without a backstory and that’s the biggest disappointment throughout the whole series. It’s boring to only see white men pictured as the romantic partner in a series. Now that you’ve read me bash all of the main characters, you might come to ask, so did you actually like anyone? Of course I did, three people to be exact: Camille, Pierre Cadeau and Mindy. Camille should have been the star of the show; she had more personality than every other main character. She was kind to a fault, an actual angel and helped out Emily when she didn’t deserve it. The only reason I’ll be watching this show for season two is in hopes that Camille gets the ending she deserves: a better friend than Emily and a better boyfriend than Gabriel. Pierre Cadeau was the dramatic fashion designer whose sanity held on by a thread and I loved it. They gave him a personality and that’s all I wanted in this show. This was the lowest bar as well—I was already invested in the idea of the show, I just needed the characters to have actual character traits and other than these three, everything fell flat. The last character that I liked was Mindy, Emily’s first best friend. We get to see Mindy’s character develop throughout the season as she grows out of her stage fright and pursues her dream of becoming a singer. I had a lot of critiques about “Emily in Paris,” but that doesn’t mean that I regret watching it, mostly because I’ll watch anything that Lily Collins is in. It was disappointing and although I enjoyed the views of Paris, we were robbed of something that could have been perfect. But instead, it’s being called out for its French stereotypes and boring characters. “Emily in Paris” is a form of romantic escapism and I’m always here for that, it just didn’t quite meet the bar that “Monte Carlo” set for me when I was 11. But as always, you can enjoy something and still be critical of it.

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POTENTIALBRIBERY CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 The applicant—who was on the waitlist— was later accepted at the university. Blum apparently wrote numerous letters of recommendation for friends and family members outside of the regular college admissions process. The Board of Regents prohibits such activities, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. Blum said that the recipients of his recommendation letters included chancellors at UC Berkeley, UC Irvine and UC Davis. Neither UC Irvine or UC Davis, however, were mentioned in the audit. “I saw Regent Blum’s comments, but I do not recall receiving a letter of recommendation from him during my tenure as Chancellor,” Chancellor Gary May said via email. “Either he was generalizing [...] or he sent such letters to previous chancellors.” Director of News and Media Relations at UC Davis Melissa Lutz Blouin said that the university does not use letters of recommendation as part of the admissions process since it is prohibited in policies previously outlined for the regents. Blouin did not comment on whether any UC Davis chancellor had ever received or used such a letter from Blum, when asked if the UC Regent’s

actions occurred under former Chancellor Katehi or current Chancellor May. UC Board of Regents Chair John Peréz said that an investigation of Blum’s alleged activities would be carried out over the course of 90 days, in accordance with Board policies. The allegations will first be investigated by a Complaint Resolution Officer (CRO) employed by the Board. The CRO will work independently to ascertain whether the allegations are substantiated and whether such allegations have violated Board policies. If they have, the CRO may hire another independent investigator to pursue the allegations. After the second investigation, the CRO will recommend whether sanctions or other measures should be applied. This is not the first time that the UC has come under fire for its admissions practices. The national college admissions scandal previously revealed unfair admittances at UCLA and UC Berkeley. The UC conducted an audit in response to the scandal. It also proposed phasing out the use of the SAT and ACT in admissions decisions after finding that standardized test scores were

often unfairly affected by race and income. An Alameda County Superior Court ruling last summer demanded that the requirements be halted at once, which the UC plans to challenge, requesting more time to implement these changes. Still, the audit stated that campuses accepted 22 of the 64 unfairly admitted students under the guise of being student athletes, even though the students actually lacked the athletic qualifications to participate in university sports. Thirteen of the unfairly admitted student athletes were accepted at UC Berkeley; four were accepted at UCLA; one was accepted at UC San Diego; and four were accepted at UC Santa Barbara. Only UC Berkeley and UCLA require that student athletes play on their designated team for at least a year. The audit surmised that there may be more students accepted under false terms, since it reviewed only a portion of accepted athletes on sports teams. “In some cases, the campus appeared to admit the applicants in exchange for donations to the athletic department,” the audit said. “A UC Berkeley coach facilitated the admission of an

applicant as a prospective student athlete, even though the applicant had played only a single year of the sport in high school and at a low level of competition. After admission, the applicant’s family donated several thousand dollars to the team.” Of the 64 students implicated in the audit, UC Berkeley admitted 42. According to the audit, these students lacked sufficient academic qualifications for admittance, thereby “[depriving] more qualified students of the opportunity for admission.” It also asserted that 17 of the 42 accepted students were accepted on the basis of connections to donors or potential donors to the university. These applicants had received “uncompetitive ratings” from admissions officials, making them unlikely to be accepted at the university. The audit further emphasized a lack of consistency in the application reading process, and said that the UC Office of the President (UCOP) “has not safeguarded the university’s admissions process.”

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“If something works spectacularly well, and we ever get back to teaching in a classroom, I may incorporate some of what I’ve learned now under these conditions into face-to-face teaching.” In addition to adjusting to teaching in a pandemic, the department has also faced a change regarding new legislation. In the past, it was forced to dispose of all the wine produced in classes and research, but with the help of State Senator Bill Dodd, a recent law was signed to change this. The legislation sets up a separate entity that can legally accept the wine from UC Davis’ winery and sell it. According to Block, the program will start functioning in approximately six months. Although the department will not depend on the revenue generated from wine sales, this new legislation offers opportunities for growth and success for students and faculty, Block explained. “If there is some kind of return on all that investment of growing the grapes and making the wine, that’s money that [can] go back into our programs to make our program stronger for students, for the industry and so forth,” Block said. “I think it’s something that’s really important to us for both environmental reasons and fiscal reasons.” Overall, Block is grateful for this change and looks forward to the potential benefits for the department. “It’s really great to see our local legislators really being interested in what’s happening at UC Davis,” Block said. “We’re very appreciative of everything Senator Dodd [has] done recently for us.”

“We will get through this together, and you are not alone when it comes to these feelings of lost motivation, isolation, fear, anxiousness and loneliness,” Mehdioun said. “Check in on your fellow friends, because they may be feeling the exact same things you are.” Damian left one final message for those experiencing mental health concerns right now. “Just know that you are not the only person struggling,” Damian said. “Be aware of what you need, don’t be afraid to reach out, and just find what makes you happy and hold on to it.”

Camille Kirk, the director of sustainability and campus sustainability at UC Davis, said that UC Davis continues “to find ways to lead on sustainability in [its] solutions and projects” via email. “We have invested in energy efficiency projects over the past dozen years, to reduce heating needs, and we have implemented electricity-powered systems (all-electric buildings) in many of our recent construction projects, including our West Village student housing,” Kirk said. “We have invested heavily in renewable electricity generation sources, such as the 16.3 MW solar power plant on campus to provide renewable energy to campus.” The circulating petition accentuates UC’s dependence on natural gas. According to the Annual Report on Sustainable Practices of 2019, one policy goal of UC overall is for “at least 40 percent of natural gas combusted on-site at each campus and health location [to] be biogas” by 2025. Wheeler said via email that a group of 15 faculty members and 10 student leaders had a meeting on Oct. 14, with Chancellor Gary May, Provost Mary Croughan and other university leaders “to deliver the petition and ask for this expanded leadership on climate and sustainability issues.” Both the Chancellor and Provost “were supportive of [their] ideas, and it is likely that a task force or steering committee will be established soon,” Wheeler said. UC Davis has been named the “No 1. ‘most sustainable’ university in the United States and No. 3 globally” by the GreenMetric ranking for the past three years, according to the UC Davis website. While Kirk said that UC Davis’ annual

greenhouse gas inventory for 2020 will be calculated next year, she said she believes that UC Davis is “really close” to meeting the university’s 2020 policy goal to reduce its emissions to 1990 levels. “UC Davis is one of the UC campuses that has developed a climate action planning model that does include major electrification efforts,” Kirk said. “We’re on track to meet the Carbon Neutrality Initiative by 2025, using a combination of mainly direct actions (like the Big Shift, the on-site and off-site solar green buildings, biogas, etc.), and some carbon offsets. UC Davis is also the first UC campus to measure its nitrogen footprint, according to the Report on Sustainable Practices of 2019. “I think it’s important that UC Davis take a leadership role, given our emphasis on environmental sustainability and our expertise in those areas across the curriculum,” Millstein said. “As a tenured faculty member who works on issues in environmental ethics, I think it’s important to stand up and say, this is something that we need to do now.” Wheeler said that while “UC Davis has done many good things already to address climate and sustainability issues,” the university “needs to do more to truly be a global leader on these topics.” Wheeler said he suggests that the university sets a deadline to eliminate the use of natural gas and establish a UC Daviswide task force on Climate and Sustainability Initiatives. “The whole UC has sustainability goals set by the UC Policy on Sustainability Practices,” Kirk said. “So, UC Davis is working towards those goals, such as carbon neutrality and zero waste.”

ANIMALS IN DAVIS

Not in Davis and missing the animals on and around campus? Enjoy this selection of pictures captured by The Aggie’s photo staff. If you are in Davis, take some time to go for a walk and maybe see some animals. Don’t forget to wear your mask!

Photo by Justin Han / Aggie

Photo by Anna Hjartoy / Aggie

Photo by Justin Han / Aggie

Photo by Justin Han / Aggie

12 | THURSDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2020

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NFL TREADS IN DANGEROUS WATERS With COVID cases going up in the NFL, the pressure is on BY OMAR NAVARRO sports@theaggie.org The 2020 NFL season has been anything but normal thus far. After starting out the season with three straight weeks of uninterrupted football, it seemed like even with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the league would be able to make it work. They were already ahead of their baseball counterparts, who encountered a rapid team spread less than a week after they began their season in late July. Aside from a couple players testing positive before Week 3, there had been a clean slate and no mass spread that had deterred the season. But, the end of the honeymoon phase led the NFL into a rude awakening, and they will now try to maneuver around the damage that continues to occur. Following their Week 3 matchup against the Minnesota Vikings on Sept. 26, the Tennessee Titans suffered a massive blow, as a total of 16 members of the organization tested positive for COVID-19. It is uncertain where the spread began, but none of the Vikings players or staff tested positive for the virus after their game with the Titans. As the list of positives grew to 19, and the NFL was forced to move the Titans’ scheduled game against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 4 to Week 7 (Oct. 25). This forced both teams into an unexpected bye week, with hopes to hold their Week 5 game as scheduled. With the team currently closing all facilities, they were forced to move everything remotely and over online video chats. The unexpected bye week and suspension of all activities however, brought some reckless actions by some players, as a group of 15 gathered at a nearby high school to workout, even after the spread. The team came under fire, as this irresponsible act came with the possibility of endangering even more individuals. “Guys just don’t work out for fun this is for their [livelihood], their family, their opportunity,” tweeted Titans’ offensive lineman Roger Saffold in response to the reports of the unauthorized workout. “Say what you want but I’m standing up for my team always.” While Saffold’s argument is understandable and players in the workout tests came back negative, the actions could be seen as dangerous given the circumstances surrounding the team. This coupled with an NFL investigation into the spread could lead the Titans into never before seen punishments by the league. “The Titans already faced a potentially

significant punishment for alleged protocol breaches that fueled an outbreak of COVID-19,” said Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio. “Given the news that the team apparently gathered to practice last week after expressly being told not to do so, the Titans could be facing a consequence the likes of which the NFL has never seen.” The NFL has been taking COVID protocols seriously and enforcing harsh penalties for infractions, so it would not come as a surprise if the punishment is bigger than many expect. After a 16 day absence, the Titans made their long awaited return to football on a rare Tuesday night matchup against the Buffalo Bills. After only three practices since their last game against the Vikings, the Titans came out motivated, dominating the Bills by a score of 42-16 and remained undefeated. Their long, controversial battle with COVID seems to have come to a close, at least for now. But, as the Titans move forward, other teams begin their battles. On the Saturday morning before Week 4, it was announced that New England Patriots starting quarterback Cam Newton had tested positive for the coronavirus. With their game against the Kansas City Chiefs being scheduled the next day at 4:25 p.m. ET, many believed that this would become the second game of the week that was moved. That changed however, as all other tests on both teams came back negative. Subsequently, the game was moved and became an impromptu Monday Night Football game the day after. The Patriots had hoped that they would be able to put everything behind them and start fresh, but more bad news came the next day. Reigning Defensive Player of the Year Stephon Gilmore tested positive for the virus following Monday Night’s game against the Chiefs. This led to their game against the Denver Broncos to be pushed back a week, putting both teams in a bye week. The Patriots facility shut down and luckily avoided a mass spread like what happened to the Titans. They returned to practice on Oct. 14 and welcomed back Newton and Gilmore to the team following back their absence. With all eyes looking toward Denver, it seemed like they would finally be able to focus strictly on football. But, after only practicing for two days, the Patriots facility was shut down once again, citing another positive test. The rapid increase of cases in the NFL has caused the league to make adjustments to its protocols. The closing of facilities and

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postponement of games will continue to be on a case by case basis. The enforcement of masks at all times will continue and limited contact is necessary even if all have tested negative. Leading up to Week 6, the league announced that any members of an organization who is experiencing any symptoms of illness will be sent home, even if they have not tested positive. When they are able to return will be a decision made by team doctors and NFL disease experts. Tests were being administered everyday except the day of a game, but part of the slew of changes was the addition of game-day testing. The constant testing could help with stopping a spread before it occurs. But, what has now been learned is that these tests can also be false. False positive results from rapid testing has brought this method into question. Both the New York Jets and Indianapolis Colts have experienced these false positives and were forced to close their facilities, only to find out that the tests were negative. This has not only been an issue in the NFL, but with others who use these rapid tests. As much as it is convenient and beneficial to have the results as soon as possible, these incorrect tests can end up costing some players, as they might have to miss a game when they didn’t need to. In what has already been a frustrating

NFL season due to injuries, it seems that positive tests will continue to rock the league. As teams now begin to go on their regular scheduled bye weeks, rescheduling will become a bigger issue for the NFL. The possibility of adding another week is still on the table and with the pace that these positive tests have come, it seems like it will have to be done. But as of now, the NFL believes that they will be able to finish off the season without it. Plans of an NBA-like bubble, even for the playoffs, are not in play as of right now, as the number of members in an organization makes it hard to go through with this plan. As we approach the midway point of the season, the NFL continues to be tested week in and week out. As of now, there is no major threat that would cause the league to halt their season, let alone cancel it. That, however, is dependent on how many positive tests appear weekly. Only time will tell if the NFL will be pushed to a breaking point, but regardless of how careful the league is in enforcing their rules, at the end of the day it is out of their control. For now, they can only hope that it does not push their season to the brink.

THE MENTAL HEALTH STIGMA IN SPORTS Vulnerability and sports rarely mixed in the past, but the outlook is positive

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BY OMAR NAVARRO sports@theaggie.org In sports, athletes are taught from a young age to have short-term memory. Forget a bad play or a bad game and move forward. Ignore the problem. Strictly from a sports perspective, it is a great mentality to have because the last thing someone would want to do is overthink a split second decision. It is something that should stop at sports—this method works for a game or a season, but not for the reality of life. Mental health is a crucial issue in the world, and for athletes it is no different. But, the sad truth is that when an athlete reaches a certain level in their profession, there are expectations: to lead a team, to be strong and not to let emotions get the better of them. Those same expectations lead some into greatness and lead some into their downfall. For Dallas Cowboys Quarterback Dak Prescott, the spotlight is always on him. As the star and leader of “America’s Team,” he is immensely popular and is closely watched by the media. For years, being the starting quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys has been a prized position. While it may not translate on the field at times, whoever is the starting quarterback of the Cowboys will have a large focus on them.

They are expected to lead, not just on the field, but off. That is where it gets tricky. While the perks of being “America’s QB” are great, one can only wonder about the pressure. Every move is watched, and any instance of what people see as “weak” will be unfairly criticized. This past spring, Prescott’s brother, Jace Prescott, took his own life. According to Prescott, this, coupled with prior family tragedy and the ongoing pandemic, led him to seek help for depression and anxiety. “All throughout this quarantine and this offseason, I started experiencing emotions I’ve never felt before,” Prescott said. “Anxiety for the main one. And then, honestly, a couple of days before my brother passed, I would say I started experiencing depression. And to the point of, I didn’t want to work out anymore. I didn’t know necessarily what I was going through, to say the least, and hadn’t been sleeping at all.” Many of Prescott’s peers admired his vulnerability and how he was willing to share something as personal as that. But, this praise was accompanied by discussions epitomizing the negative stigma that to this day still surrounds vulnerability in sports and professional sports in particular. “[Quarterback is] the ultimate leadership position in sports. You are commanding an entire

franchise and they’re all looking to you to be their CEO, to be in charge of the football team,” said Fox Sports’ Skip Bayless on an episode of his show “Skip and Shannon: Undisputed.” “Because of all that, I don’t have sympathy for him going public with ‘I got depressed’ and ‘I suffered depression early in COVID to the point that I couldn’t even go work out.’ Look, he’s the quarterback of America’s team.” Bayless was met with heavy criticism by colleagues and players alike. For how important mental health is, especially at this time, his comments were dangerous. He reinforced an ideology that has surrounded sports, and men, historically: have no feelings. “Shame on [Skip Bayless]. Are you kidding me? This is why we have a stigma against mental health, suicide, and depression,” tweeted San Francisco 49ers defensive tackle Soloman Thomas. “[Dak] being vulnerable is showing unbelievable strength and leadership. He’s impacting so many lives. Dak’s a true leader for speaking about his real emotions.” The support of his peers and many others was a great sign, but the comments made show that there is a long way to go regarding the mentality surrounding mental health—not just in the NFL, but in all sports and all over the world. The topic of mental health has been one that has rapidly made its way to the attention of

professional sports. After then-Toronto Raptors star DeMar DeRozan revealed he had depression and anxiety back in February of 2018, he hoped that his conversation would help others speak out as well. “It’s one of [those] things that no matter how indestructible we look like we are, we’re all human at the end of the day,” DeRozan told The Toronto Star. “We all got feelings. [Sometimes] it gets the best of you, where times everything in the whole world’s on top of you.” DeRozan’s comments made people reflect. He was an All-Star, successful NBA player and yet that did not make him immune to mental health issues. His comments were well-received and the following month, inspired by DeRozan, Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love released his own article on The Players Tribune titled “Everybody Is Going Through Something.” “If you’re suffering silently like I was, then you know how it can feel like nobody really gets it,” Love wrote. “Partly, I want to do it for me, but mostly, I want to do it because people don’t talk about mental health enough. And men and boys are probably the [furthest] behind.” Both DeRozan and Love continue to be outspoken about mental health and have inspired many. It even inspired the NBA, as the Player’s Association created the Mental Health and Wellness Program for players in May 2018. It allowed players to seek help and treatment as well as counseling outside of the team psychologists. In 2019 the NFL also launched its own mental health initiative and leagues across the world are beginning to do so as well. What was once a touchy subject has rightly become an issue that stays near the forefront of conversation. Athletes’ platforms will only continue to grow and it is a positive sign that a long overdue conversation on mental health has begun. It can help other athletes, and also other people across the world, speak out. “Before I can lead I’ve got to make sure that my mind is in the right place to do that,” Prescott said. “I think that’s important to be vulnerable, to be genuine [and] to be transparent. I think that goes a long way [when] your voice is being heard by so many and it can inspire.” Many in the media have made controversial statements over the years and will continue to do so. But, this is more than controversial. This involves life and a real issue in the world today. Mental health is not a debate topic. The stigma is dangerous and must be changed. The support Dak Prescott, Kevin Love and DeMar DeRozan have received for being outspoken is something that shows potential. Potential to possibly one day put an end to that dangerous belief that showing emotion is a type of weakness, on or off the field. Hopefully, this can show more people that there is no downside to speaking up. It’s huge to speak up, athlete or not, because you may just inspire someone who was feeling the same way.

This story was originally published online on Sept. 29, 2020.