January 13, 2015

JANUARY 13, 2014

FEATURES

THENORTHERNLIGHT.ORG

UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA ANCHORAGE

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‘Selma’ is a moving, relevant civil rights film

Snow machine incident endangers five friends

UAA suspends chemistry degree program enrollment

Fiscal difficulties halt major declaration

PHOTO BY JAMES R. EVANS

A section of Providence Drive closed over winter break to build a $6 million bridge between the Health Sciences Building and Engineering and Industry Building.

$6M pedestrian bridge built across Providence Drive

By Samantha Davenport arts2@thenorthernlight.org

Over winter break, Providence Drive was closed from Dec. 20 through Jan. 4 to make way for the new Health Campus Pedestrian Bridge. This bridge connects the second floor of the Health Sciences Building to the third floor of the Engineering and Industry Building.

Not only did the large-scale project shut down part of Providence Drive, it also minimized parking in the south parking lot. Now that the bridge is completed the rest of the south lot will reopen.

Amy Shumaker, an early childhood education major, is grateful to have the available parking back.

“I am thankful for all of the sky bridges we have on campus,” Shumaker said. “It’s really nice to not have to walk outside in the freezing cold. It’s also much safer. As a commuter, I am definitely glad it’s over. Parking permits are expensive; it’s extremely frustrating that we pay so much for them and still aren’t able to find a spot.”

Sam Adams, senior superintendent at Neeser Construction, said this project has been in the making since last summer.

“We’ve been planning this for over a year,” Adams said. “We’ve been doing building reviews to get the steel designed and fabricated in the shortest time frame so we didn’t close Providence Drive longer than we had to.”

Psychology major Danny Kontess believes the new addition will further connect the campus.

“It’s just like the sky bridge that connects the Student Union and the SSB,” Kontess said. “It’ll make a spine for faculty and students from that department.”

The $6 million project will open later this year.

“This bridge is like a trademark in a sense to the university,” Adams said.

GYMNASTICS

Simone Penker, junior, jumps onto the vault Jan. 10 during a meet against Winona State University at the Alaska Airlines Center.

PHOTO BY ADAM EBERHARDT

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PHOTO BY JAMES R. EVANS

By Kierra Hammons

copy1@thenorthernlight.org Last month, the College of Arts and Sciences announced it will suspend the admission of new students into the chemistry degree program at UAA based on fiscal challenges and a shortage of faculty. The program has approximately 90 students enrolled, and the university is taking steps to ensure those students will be given a fair chance to complete their degrees at UAA despite the suspension.

“The College of Arts and Sciences made a commitment to help students graduate — to offer the classes that they still need to get down the finish line,” said David House, an academic adviser for the CAS Division of Mathematics and Natural Sciences.

Despite a few classes that will be phased out over time, the program suspension will not affect the chemistry classes required for other degree programs.

“There’s no plan to suspend or quit those permanently at all, because those are all GERs or other programs require them,” said chemistry lab coordinator Adeline Schlabaugh. “So all of the 100-level classes plus the organic sequence plus the biochem sequence, all of that’s supposed to just go on as usual.”

The CAS Division of Mathematics and Natural Sciences emailed users subscribed to the chemistry student Listserv Dec. 16, announcing informational meetings that would “provide accurate information, discuss ways in which the college will assist (students) in mapping out a degree completion plan and answer any questions (they) may have” regarding the suspension.

The meetings were held last Monday and Tuesday. Those who were unable to attend had the option to call into each meeting session via phone.

Despite this option, few students participated.

“There was only about 20 or 30 people that showed up,” said Rachel Lee, CAS’s administrative assistant for social media and graduate affairs in math and natural sciences.

To bring absentees up to speed, video footage

twitter.com/tnl_updates

thenorthernlight.org

of each meeting is available online. Lee said technical difficulties prevented her from posting the videos last week, but they are now available on the UAA Chemistry Department webpage.

In addition to viewing the video, House advises chemistry students who are unable to make the meetings to visit an academic adviser in person, because each person’s academic situation may require a different approach for degree completion.

He said fellow academic adviser Deborah Duricka is organizing a project to create groups of students that have a similar sequence of classes remaining to complete their chemistry degrees.

This grouping will help keep course enrollment numbers consistent. Fred Rainey, associate dean of the CAS Division of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, said the department has a master spreadsheet logging which courses each student has yet to take. The department uses this information to decide when to offer which classes, and for advising purposes a well.

While this enrollment management gives each student a chance to attempt each required class, House cannot guarantee that all students will be able to repeat failed courses along the way.

“If you’re one of the last few students (finishing a chemistry degree) and you fail a class, you might not be able to graduate because they’re not going to run a class with two people,” House said. “You just can’t do it. No college will.”

Despite the suspension, Rainey said the chemistry program may reactivate in the future, depending on a few factors such as upcoming prioritization decisions.

“When economic times are better and maybe after the prioritization results are implemented, then the university might be in a situation that we (can) invest in some of those (suspended) programs,” Rainey said.

For more information about the chemistry program suspension, and to watch informational videos regarding the change, visit UAA’s Chemistry Department webpage at http://www.uaa.alaska. edu/chemistry/.

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THENORTHERNLIGHT TUESDAY, JANUARY 13, 2014

02

The Lake Louise swim team: Part 1 The misadventures between Lake Susitna and Lake Louise A well-meaning column rife with clunky metaphors and horrible advice, Orange Rhymes With is the go-to place to break the monotony of classes and laugh at someone else’s misfortune.

By Evan Dodd Contributor

This summer, a group of friends took an RV filled with 12 people up to Lake Louise, promptly sunk it in a gravel lot, named it “The Incident” and vowed to never again be bested by the notorious lake.

In this vow we have admittedly failed.

The plan was to head out to our friend’s cabin, located across Lake Louise through a channel and situated at the far side of Lake Susitna near the mouth of the Tyone River. We had five men on three snow machines hauling sleds packed with enough gear to survive a snowy apocalypse for at least a week — or so we thought.

The trip started flawlessly. As we headed out toward Glennallen the sky was clear, but not too cold, and we were ecstatic to start a trip that had been planned for months.

We arrived at the lodge, quickly unloaded our gear and began the long haul toward the cabin. Despite the distance, we had no issue navigating across to Lake Susitna.

It was here, however, that our problems began. As night had long since fallen, the weather had grown increasingly cold and the lake had become a whiteout, with visibility dropping to 10 feet in any direction. Because the cabin sat up upon a hill, we would have to be 10 feet off shore in those conditions in order to successfully locate it.

Adding to the dilemma, the official trail across the lakes was scheduled to be marked the morning after we arrived, meaning we had very little visible landmarks by which to navigate.

Realizing we were lost, we decided to return to the start of Lake Susitna to gain our

bearings and get back on course — which is where things went sideways.

As mentioned, a small channel connects the two lakes. Snow machiners generally avoid channels of this sort because the exchange of warm, shallow water results in soft, unstable ice. Recognizing this, we had given the channel a wide berth on the initial trek. However, with zero visibility we made the amateur mistake of staying too close to the shore as we looped back around the lake.

Suddenly there was a horrifying cracking noise, which remains vividly clear in my memory. Bringing up the rear, I saw the first machine pitch wildly as the ice beneath disintegrated immediately, and I made a last-ditch attempt to gun the engine and veer to the left before I, too, was sucked under. I instantly felt the bottom drop out of the world as the haul sled sunk, dragging the machine backward beneath the ice. I frantically slapped my passenger’s helmet to convey the futility of staying on the machine, and we both leapt towards the ice.

The ice I landed on instantly shattered, breaking way to even more water. Struggling to remove my helmet and get out of the freezing water, I was able to grab ahold of my passenger’s hand, who had already made it to relative safety, and I was pulled up from what I assumed to be an unpleasant death.

Luckily, all five of us made it onto thicker ice, but given the low visibility, all three machines appeared to be lost at the time. As shock set in, we were acutely aware that it was midnight, 20 below zero, and we were soaked up to our chests with all our gear at the bottom of a lake. It was so cold that my snow pants, which had slipped down to my knees in the chaos, froze in that position, instantly offering no protection from the frigid cold.

Knowing that we had to keep moving to avoid hypothermia and our eventual deaths, we took stock of the limited gear we had. We then tried to navigate far around the soft ice and back toward the channel where we hoped to find someone’s cabin to use as an emergency shelter.

On the way, someone in our group called the troopers, who hilariously instructed us to “stay by the wreck,” which would have achieved nothing but an easier job locating five frozen bodies the next morning.

Thirty minutes later, after our toes and fingers had long since lost all sensation, we stumbled across two men, to whom I vaguely remember giving a frantic summary of the situation to. Without hesitation the men unloaded their sleds, packed the five of us inside and sped off to find their own cabin which they, too, were having trouble locating. The ride over, while comforting, only served to suck the last bit of heat out of us.

While some might use the opportunity to appeal to a higher power or ponder their own mortality, the best my hypothermic brain could muster was to hum Bob Dylan’s “All Along the Watchtower” and hope for the best.

As they rushed us into the cabin and lit a fire, one thing was very clear to the five of us: Though we were out of immediate danger, our misadventure was only beginning.

Drifting off to sleep, the five of us pondered our predicament, wondering what new horror the next day might hold in store.

PHOTO BY PAT BONSER

The channel between Lake Louise and Lake Susitna had fragile ice. Whiteout conditions led a group of friends to come too close to the shore where the ice was thin, and their snow machines quickly met their demise in the frigid waters. The group, however, survived.

03 FEATURES

THENORTHERNLIGHT TUESDAY, JANUARY 13, 2014

Why was ‘The Interview’ so successful?

I may as well do the token introduction thing since this is a new semester. I am Klax, an alien brain slug. My Empire is several thousand light-years away from Earth, so you don’t need to worry about a global invasion just yet. My host, George, is a reporter at this newspaper, and a rather lazy one at that.

Since I burrowed my way into his subconscious, I’ve been writing a column in this paper just about every week. The general theme is current events from the perspective of me, the local space-born mind-sucker, with the occasional nerdy bit whenever George has a nerd kick.

Typically, my first column of the semester would be an introduction to college life with a few tips for adapting to it, but I think I’ve written plenty about that. You can head to The Northern Light’s website if you want to look them up.

So on the subject of current events. Let’s talk “The Interview.”

I have not seen “The Interview,” and neither has George; in my case due to having fun on vacation, in George’s case due to laziness. It’s a film about two wacky protagonists on a mission to kill Kim Jong-Un, the current leader of North Korea. I don’t know whether it reinvents the comedic wheel or not, but it’s a Seth Rogen comedy, so I’m sure it’s similar to a lot of Seth Rogen comedies. But given the recent hype surrounding it, it sounded like it was going to reinvent the comedic wheel.

George tells me that when he went to check it out at the Bear Tooth, he decided against seeing it when he saw the monstrously long line. That’s how wildly popular this film has become. But why?

It turns out “The Interview” is a perfect example of what people call the “Streisand Effect,” named after an unsuccessful suit by Barbra Streisand to suppress photos of her home. See, if someone tries to hide or censor information, people are going to be more and more interested in it. It’s the reason police videos are so popular on YouTube — police try to censor footage of them, and that, in turn, brings more attention to it. And that’s the reason “The Interview” exploded.

It all began when a group known as the “Guardians of Peace” hacked into Sony and leaked several movies ahead of schedule, all while threatening a 9/11-style

SEAWOLF

SLUG

In the year 2013, an alien brain slug from one of the galaxy’s most feared empires crash-landed on Earth and assumed control of a lowly reporter at this newspaper.

These are his stories.

By Klax Zlubzecon

Translated by George Hyde I’ve seen the world! I’ve been to the concrete jungles of Manhattan, the actual jungles of Brazil, the beauty of Europe, the wonders of Asia, the overblown hype of Area 51 — seriously, there’s nothing there, guys — and it’s been a fantastic trip. I returned to Alaska, though, to find my host sleeping in and doing nothing at all. Figures.

Your Alaskan Base Camp

alyeska ©simonEvans

girdwood, alaska

attack on the theaters that dared show “The Interview” on Christmas Day. Sony immediately pulled the film, the FBI pointed their finger at North Korea, North Korea denied it, then offered to help persecute the hackers, then called our president a monkey for allowing it to be released again ... it’s a long and convoluted story.

The point is that for a period of time before Christmas Day, it looked like “The Interview” would never see the light of day. Commenters and tweeters on the Internet promptly lost their minds, ripping Sony to shreds over the decision. Celebrities joined them, and even our president called for Sony to release the film. Almost everyone pushed for the film to be released somehow, even if it was just a limited release on iTunes or something. And eventually, Sony caved and did exactly that. And “The Interview” has topped the charts since.

The conspiracy theorist in me wants to say that the Guardians of Peace attack came from within Sony, but that’s probably too stupid to be true. You do have to admit, though, that if this was intentional, it would’ve been a brilliant marketing move. The consumer doesn’t know what they want until it’s been snatched away from them. An ethical marketing move? Of course not. But a brilliant one nonetheless.

Whoever the culprit, it turned out to be a massive success for those who made the film. And I’ll leave you with that food for thought. Oh, and also this: RESISTANCE IS SEAWOLF SLUG.

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THENORTHERNLIGHT TUESDAY, JANUARY 13, 2014

04

MOVIE REVIEW

‘Selma’ highlights the ongoing fight for equality

By Kierra Hammons

copy1@thenorthernlight.org

Film: “Selma” Director: Ava DuVernay Genre: Biographical drama Starring: David Oyelowo, Carmen Ejogo, Tom Wilkinson Release Date: Jan. 9, 2015

Recite the preamble to the United States Con- to assert power and influence over the other. stitution. Perhaps a few people still remember it Johnson’s resistance to King shows the politics from high school government class. But could involved with the civil rights movement. Wilkinyou say how many county judges are in the state son’s portrayal of Johnson reveals the character of Alabama? Then name them? That’s what to be self-conscious at times, adding a personal Oprah Winfrey’s character in the film ‘Selma’ element to the politics as well. is asked to recall on the fly before she can regisBut Johnson’s self-consciousness also shows a ter to vote. Like even the most informed citizen flaw in civil rights reasoning even through today. would, she fails.

Many are superficially concerned about being on “Selma” shows the struggle Rev. Martin Luther the “wrong side” of history and act only to egoistiKing Jr. (David Oyelowo, “Interstellar”) faced in cally avoid being judged for their character, rath1965 to achieve equal voting rights for African- er than fighting for causes because it is the right Americans Throughthing to do. Wilkinson out the film, Alashows this egoism in bama Gov. George Johnson — he seems to Wallace (Tim Roth, choose his causes and “I know you are asking “United Passions”) legislation based only pushes against King’s on what people would today, ‘How long will it proposals, which think of him decades take?’ Somebody’s asking, drives the reverend after his presidency. to bring the issue up Johnson is courte‘How long will prejudice with President Lynous toward King in blind the visions of men, don B. Johnson (Tom person but uses racial Wilkinson, “Good slurs behind his back. darken their understanding People”). Johnson has He asks questions and and drive bright-eyed his own agenda and entertains the revrefuses King help. erend’s requests in wisdom from her sacred King and a group of meetings, but the FBI throne?’ ... How long? Not civil rights activists has already bugged then try to organize a and surveilled every long, because the arc of the 54-mile march across aspect of King’s life.

Alabama, from Selma He supports King moral universe is long, but to Montgomery, to as the leader of civil it bends toward justice.” protest the obstructed rights, but only from voter registration of fear of militant leadAfrican-Americans. ership, such as that - REV. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. The story is based of early Malcolm X. SELMA TO MONTGOMERY MARCH, 1965 on real characters and Johnson, then, is an events from 50 years antagonist that relucago. But director Ava tantly supports the DuVernay keenly right things for the crafts the film in a way that makes the problems wrong reasons. characters face seem startlingly contemporary.

Other characters from other interest groups Free speech through peaceful protest clashes get into the mix, and the result is a realistic porwith violence from those in power. Harsh scenes trayal of the emotional and political struggles of police brutality and hate crimes cut between involved with creating change. Activists become the tense deliberations between King and John- burned out, tired and fearful. But King asks son, reminding viewers that equal rights often them in his triumphant final speech how long boil down to interest-based politics. they think bigotry could reign over the hearts of Oyelowo embodies the late King’s personali- the corrupt white men in power. ty with a stoic grace. His determined, sometimes “How long? Not long,” he assures them. distant visage communicates King’s nonverbal Yet “Selma” doesn’t leave those words back essence. But more impressively, the reverend’s in 1965, when they were first spoken. The end deliberate voice rings pure in Oyelowo, com- credits song, “Glory” by Common and John manding the scene of each speech and sermon.

Legend, challenges viewers to do away with the Wilkinson plays a compelling, complex assumption that “not long” means it’s over now. antagonist. Johnson boasts in pushing civil rights The lyrics relate civil rights movement concerns legislation but sticks to his own plans when King with contemporary issues and leaves viewers pushes for more. The power play between the with a lasting, relevant impact to remind them two characters is a vivid conflict, each trying that the fight for total equality is not yet over.

A&E

THENORTHERNLIGHT TUESDAY, JANUARY 13, 2014

05

GAME REVIEW

‘Akalabeth’ is a crude classic revived

By George Hyde

gchyde@thenorthernlight.org “Ultima.” “Baldur’s Gate.”

“Might and Magic.” “Dragon Age.” All of these are role-playing classics, and they all owe their existence to one game, “Akalabeth: World of Doom.”

Okay, perhaps that’s not fair.

Even “Akalabeth” owes its existence to the tabletop RPGs of old. It started as a school project developed on an old Apple II and was playtested by creator Richard Garriott’s fellow “Dungeon and Dragons” players. But it still shaped the future of many roleplaying video games to come.

The setup reflects its humble origins. The story feels like a very basic “Dungeons and Dragons” campaign. You can be either a fighter or a mage, and the differences between them aren’t nearly as deep as the many RPGs that followed it. Your goal is to travel to dungeons and defeat monsters and ... that’s about it, really.

The gameplay is also very simple. You travel an overworld map, you enter a dungeon, you run into a monster and you fight

it. There are a variety of different weapons, and the system has roots in its “Dungeons and Dragons” origins. But by RPG standards today, it feels very basic. It almost feels like a combination of “Ultima’s” role-playing with “The Oregon Trail’s” look and feel.

In fact, the visuals are as simple as simple gets. The overworld looks more like something out of “Tron” than any fantasy world, with basic lines and shapes representing things like dungeons and towns. A monster is lucky if it’s represented by a square and a few lines.

However, it’s important to remember the context in which it was released. This was the first time anyone had seen a roleplaying game on a computer. At the time, games like “Asteroids” and “Space Invaders” were considered cutting-edge. It was a time of arcade-level simplicity, and “Akalabeth” was about as complex as complex video games could be back then.

Plus, it was this game and its characters that helped kick

off the monstrously successful “Ultima” franchise, largely developed by the same guy.

Most of what followed in the role-playing video game space has either “Akalabeth” or “Ultima” to thank.

So, for that reason, it’s worth checking out. It was recently made available for free on GOG. com, so players who have a cou-

ple hours of free time and want to see how an entire video game genre began should definitely give it a look.

Title: “Akalabeth: World of Doom” Developer: Richard Garriott Platforms: PC, Mac, Linux Genre: RPG Release Date: Jan. 1, 1980, Dec. 24, 2014 (Re-release)

06 A&E

THENORTHERNLIGHT TUESDAY, JANUARY 13, 2014

‘The Intergalactic ‘Outrage’ is a muddled thrill ride Nemesis’: A comic brought to life FOREIGN FILM FANATIC

By Jacob Holley-Kline Contributor

When it comes to gangster epics, shifting alliances and betrayal are commonplace. Few achieve the near-perfect balance of “The Godfather,” but many try. “Outrage” tries valiantly, but it’s selfdefeating at so many turns that the dizzying number of plot twists cease to be compelling and just become confusing.

The world-weary yakuza boss Kannai (Soichiro Kitamura, “Reunion”) finds out his right-hand man has been making nice with a rival clan’s boss.

A series of backhand dealings leaves the clans at each other’s throats, and Otomo (Takeshi Kitano, “Dearest”) is hired to set things right.

In truth, the plot doesn’t matter here. “Outrage” is a yakuza epic stripped to its bare essentials: Warring gangs don’t like each other and blood is shed. The minimal exposition serves to make the carnage somewhat meaningful, and it succeeds like an action movie succeeds. The characters have names and barely discernible personalities that keep them from seeming stale.

Clocking overtime as the writer, director and star, Kitano moves that action along with a stonefaced conviction. Even when he’s sawing into throats with dental tools, he barely winces. The result is more than disquieting, but the violence is so visceral and exacting that the reactions may be the last thing viewers think about.

Sadly, aside from keeping names and timelines straight, there’s not much to think about at all. The set pieces begin as quickly as they end, and characters die as abruptly as they were introduced. It’s clear that characters and plot are not the point here ­— it’s the death. Kitano is a creative puppeteer when it comes to killing people off.

“Outrage” is thrillingly brutal, but as a return to the genre that made him famous, Kitano has made a hollow shell of his previous work. In a way, his direction is like his character: detached, stoic and entranced with violence.

Because of this, viewers will walk away remembering set pieces like the noodle house and the dentist’s office, but not the complex web of clan relations and betrayals. Because of this, “Outrage” loses the richness that keeps other gangster movies compelling. The quiet moments become just empty space between the bloodletting. As a piece of pulp fiction, “Outrage” succeeds with queasy thrills, but as anything more it falls short.

Title: “Outrage” Director: Takeshi Kitano Release date: June 12, 2010 Genre: Crime drama Country: Japan

By George Hyde

gchyde@thenorthernlight.org How exactly does one describe a graphic novel for the stage? Proposing a solution to this odd question is “The Intergalactic Nemesis,” a sci-fi adventure coming to the Performing Arts Center this month.

“The show bills itself as a live-action graphic novel,” said Joe Selmont, the communications specialist for the Anchorage Concert Association. “It’s really a one-of-a-kind experience.”

Essentially, it’s a radio drama with three actors and a foley artist performing live sound effects, and a live musical score on piano. It’s a sci-fi story true to the pulpy stories of many old comic books from the 1930s and ‘40s.

In addition to all that, there are comic panels projected onto a big screen as the story goes on, but according to the show’s creator, Jason Neulander, the panel projection was added after the show was first produced.

“It picked up a following here in Austin, Texas,” Neulander said.

“We got invited to bring it into the 2,400-seat performing arts center here in Austin. In a flash, I got the idea of adding a visual component — you know, comic book artwork projected on a screen. And by an amazing coincidence, the venue had just bought a really high-quality projection system, and they were looking for reasons to use it.”

Since then, the show’s been a runaway success. It’s been shown all across the country, and also featured on famous shows like “Late Show with Conan O’Brien” and “All Things Considered.”

Of all things, however, it wasn’t comics that inspired Neulander.

“I was never really a huge radio play or comic book fan growing up,” Neulander said. “But I’ve always loved adventure stories told in film and through fiction. So for me, those were my biggest storytelling inspirations.”

He stated that his biggest inspirations were works like “Star Wars” and “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” as well as the works of authors like Ray Bradbury.

The show has proved very popular, and according to Neulander, it has a very broad appeal. He has many plans for “The Intergalactic Nemesis” moving forward.

“I’ve been doing (a spinoff) as an audio podcast,” Neulander said.

“We currently have 11 episodes up online. That, ultimately, will take the form of a novel that I’m actually just about to start shopping out to agents. That’s definitely the next place I’m headed, is fiction writing. I’m keeping my future pretty open.”

He also has high hopes for a film adaptation somewhere down the line.

As it stands, though, “The Intergalactic Nemesis” is a show unlike just about anything else on the stage. Those who enjoy science fiction and the pulpy fiction of old could do a lot worse than checking it out.

“The Intergalactic Nemesis” will show at the Discovery Theater from Jan. 23-24. Tickets are on sale now at http://alaskapac.centertix. net/eventperformances.asp?evt=1304.

A&E

THENORTHERNLIGHT TUESDAY, JANUARY 13, 2014

07

ALBUM REVIEW

‘Bloomsday’ exemplifies the dangers of sampling

By Kierra Hammons

copy1@thenorthernlight.org Like fashion, musical trends fade in and out of the industry. Some enjoy longer stays than others — and even the short-lived trends can revive decades after falling out of style. In music, the art of sampling brings back the beloved hooks and motifs from days past, often to great success. When Los Angeles producer Esbe declares his “extensive use of jazz and soul samples” on his artist bio, there is hint of promise. But ultimately the derivation falls flat in his Jan. 9 release, “Bloomsday.”

The opening track invites listeners to drift into Esbe’s world of atmospheric

beats. It transitions into the sunlit amber nostalgia of the second track, “Fulfill/ The Dream.” Leisurely piano chords introduce the vocals of the late Labi Siffre: “This is my song.”

Hip-hop fans may recognize this snippet, and Esbe calls attention to the source of that familiarity. The Grammy Awards’ 2007 Best Rap Album, Kanye West’s “Graduation,” features the same Siffre sample in “I Wonder.” Esbe doesn’t shy from using the same parts of the song West chose, yet doesn’t develop it far beyond Siffre’s original. “Fulfill/ The Dream” shies away from adding to the song to make it something unique.

Instead, it plays stale underneath timid keyboard and a generic hip-hop beat.

Track five falls victim to a similar problem. Eumir Deodato’s 1970s track “San Juan Sunset” starts the track, and the sleazy elevator mood of the Rhodes piano continues throughout. Best Rap Album-nominated “The Cool” by Lupe Fiasco featured a single with the same sampling approach.

Not even halfway through, Esbe has established a pattern. Songs on “Bloomsday” don’t sound like samples of the originals, but instead sound like poor imitations of the hip-hop powerhouses of the last decade. The album sounds derivative, first-removed from the quoted original songs.

“In the pop and rap world, we’re going a little bit sample-crazy,” said Mark Ronson, 2008 Grammy Producer of the Year in a TED Talk about sampling. “We’re getting away from the obscure samples we’re doing ... You can’t just hijack nostalgia wholesale. It leaves the listener feeling sickly. You have to take an element of those things and bring something fresh and new to it.”

It is therefore an artist’s challenge to take the original song and make it into something new. Elements of Slick Rick and Doug E. Fresh’s 1984 hip-hop classic “La Di Da Di” have appeared in more than 500 recorded songs, from the Notorious B.I.G’s “Hypnotize” to Miley Cyrus’ “We Can’t Stop.” The song has also had its influence in Korean pop music as well, including the work of Psy, of “Gangnam Style” fame. These artists have pushed the original “La Di Da Di” to its limits to form a new mimetic motif in hip-hop that acts as a springboard for new ideas through today.

Successfully following Ronson’s advice, track 18, “Darling,” takes a risk.

Heavily distorted vocals psychedelically chant “la di da di” behind a conga and sitar. Bobby Caldwell’s 1980 song “Open Your Eyes” lends classic vocals for the unusually appealing song. Though the late hip-hop legend J-Dilla produced Common’s Grammy-nominated single

“The Light” with the same Caldwell sample, Esbe doesn’t rely on this source material to create a catchy, well-produced track.

Unfortunately no other track on “Bloomsday” achieves this. Some tracks on the album do offer fun, danceable beats, such as “Hello World” and “Wanderlust.”

Yet the distracting bareness of Esbe’s elementary songwriting outweigh the parts where his creativity shines. Each track is cleanly assembled, but the handling of the parts leaves much to be desired.

At 20 tracks, “Bloomsday” is a long listen with little payoff. It is available at bandcamp.com for a user-defined price.

But while the album won’t break the bank, its attempted sound is better developed in the award-winning hip-hop greats that sampled the same tracks before it.

Artist: Esbe Album: “Bloomsday” Genre: Hip-hop, trip-hop Label: Cult Classic Records Release Date: Jan. 7, 2015

NOT ALL ONLINE CLASSES ARE CREATED EQUAL! Choose the right online class.

KPC is known for offering the best online classes in the state of Alaska, and our students are letting us know!

At Kenai Peninsula College, quality is our top priority. Our students’ experiences speak for themselves...

KPC

“Wonderful class − wonderful teacher. Well organized. It was online but it rivaled in−person classes. It just goes to show that online can be just as good as in− person if it is thought out and well planned.”

“I didn’t even know an online experience could be that dynamic and interactive. The experience took learning from home to a “This online course has whole new level!” worked well for me because of my work schedule on the North Slope. I can work ahead when I’m at home and that’s a huge reason for my current success with these online classes.”

WWW.KPC.ALASKA.EDU 1 (877) 262-0330 The University of Alaska is an AA/EEO employer and educational institution

SPORTS

THENORTHERNLIGHT TUESDAY, JANUARY 13, 2014

Arctic Valley Ski Area patiently awaits snow

By Stryker McLane Contributor

As 2014 gradually came to a close, much attention had been brought to the flagrant lack of snow on the ground. Arctic Valley, Anchorage’s ski resort getaway, has felt the most detriment from the dry ground and mild weather that this slow winter has brought. While the mountain that hosts Arctic Valley flourishes with activity during hot summers and snow-covered winters, the middling months that see colder weather and a lack of powder bring Arctic Valley’s business to a screeching halt.

“It’s not uncommon for us to stay closed until after New Year’s,” said Danielle Simoni, who has worked at Arctic Valley’s lodge for two years.

Last year, Arctic Valley remained closed to the general public until February and faced some intermittent closures as the snow melted prematurely during the spring.

“Once the powder comes in, though, things can get a little crazy in the lodge,” Simoni said.

Although Arctic Valley is only open on Saturdays and Sundays for a short portion of the year, its well-maintained lifts and unrestricted mountain space bring in skiers and snowboarders from all over Alaska.

“We get a lot of families since we are less crowded and more affordable than Alyeska,” Simoni said.

The Anchorage Ski Club, a non-profit organization that was founded in 1937, runs Arctic Valley. President John Koltun and Vice President John Robinson-Wilson lead the club. Robinson-Wilson also works as the general manager of the lodge and organizes the volunteers, lift technicians and kitchen workers in the lodge.

“What makes Arctic Valley unique is how we let customers pay their lift ticket with volunteer work,” Robinson-Wilson said.

Volunteers are a central part of Arctic Valley, as the Ski Club is composed of volunteers who keep the resort in operation for others to use. In addition to this help, Arctic Valley also hires individuals who don’t mind spending their weekends keeping the mountain and lodge in working order.

UAA student Brett Krenzelok is one of the lift technicians at Arctic Valley, but he prefers the title “liftee.”

“Working the slopes at Arctic Valley is easily my favorite part-time job,” Krenzelok said.

While keeping an eye on the chairlifts and making sure skiers enter and exit the lifts safely, Krenzelok stays diligent to his duties and also takes time to appreciate the sweeping vista of the Chugach mountain range.

“Every year gets me excited to come back, so I’m really waiting for the snow to fall,” he said.

While Arctic Valley has much to offer for winter sports enthusiasts, the lodge is also available for rental in the summertime and hosts weddings and parties.

“The mountain is beautiful in the summer, so we get a lot of hikers who come to pick berries,” Simoni said. “We’ve had plenty of weddings up here, too, and the view is absolutely gorgeous.”

By the end of 2014 there had only been around 11 inches of snowfall since it began to snow in October. In years past the average snowfall in Anchorage by the end of the year has been about 38 inches. At the beginning of December, the temperatures along the ridge of Arctic Valley began to rise above freezing. Temperatures peaked Jan. 8 and have since fallen back to around freezing.

Despite the lowered temperatures, the opening of Arctic Valley still remains to be seen.

PHOTOS BY KELLY IRELAND

08

THE

NORTHERN LIGHT

Spring 2015

Scholarship & FAFSA Workshop Dates from Student Financial Assistance

Scholarship Workshops

New scholarship scoring rubric unveiled!

January 13 January 15 January 20 January 21 January 26 January 28 February 2 February 5 February 10 February 11

4-5pm 6-7pm 1-2pm 2:30-3:30pm 11:30-12:30pm 4-5pm 6-7pm 4-5pm 2:30-3:30pm 6-7pm

SU 103 UC 114 ESH 206 PSB 210 SSB 223 RH 106 UC 146 RH 106 SU 103 UC 114

FAFSA Workshops Get help filling out your FAFSA! January 30

3:30-4:30pm

LIB 306

February 3

5:30-6:30pm

UC 133

February 6

3-4pm

UC 113

February 11

4-5pm

RH 106

February 13

4-6pm

LIB 306

March 3

4-5pm

RH 106

March 20

2-3pm

LIB 306

April 10

10:30-11:30am

LIB 306

For more information www.uaa.alaska.edu/financialaid/workshops.cfm UAA Student Financial Assistance Office www.uaa.alaska.edu/financialaid

Payment Deadline Monday, Feb. 2nd 5PM

Payment Options One-time Payment: Uaonline.alaska.edu Payment Plan: UAAalaska.afford.com

SPORTS

THENORTHERNLIGHT TUESDAY, JANUARY 13, 2014

10

UAA gymnastics strong in first 2 home wins

Marie-Sophie Boggasch, junior, high-fives teammates after finishing her routine on the bars during a meet against Winona State University.

By Adam Eberhardt

aeberhardt@thenorthernlight.org The UAA gymnastics team started its first season in the Alaska Airlines Center with two strong victories against Winona State University. UAA beat Winona State 191.550-178.450 last Thursday and 192.250-185.275 last Saturday.

On Thursday night M’rcy Matsunami placed first in all events except the floor in which she scored second. Kallie Randolph won the floor with her 9.7 performance while teammates Simone Penker and Morgan Cook also contributed high scores on the bars and beam.

The meet on Saturday had strong performances from Penker, Matsunami, Cook and Marie-Sophie Boggasch.

Penker placed first on the floor, Cook won the beam and Matsunami performed the best on the vault.

Even though she only competed on the bars, a very strong performance came from Nicole Larkin, who tied the fifth-highest score on the bars in program history with a score of 9.825.

Despite coming off an injury from last season, Matsunami’s first meet back at full health resulted in her winning the all-around Thursday night. During the 2014 season she had only competed on the bars because of an ankle injury.

“Coming back and getting to do all around again is a really exciting thing for me,” Matsunami said after her strong performance Thursday.

She placed first on the vault, bars and beam and got second on the floor. With a combined score of 38.850, she made the sixth-highest all-around score in the history of the UAA gymnastics program.

After placing second in the all-around on Thursday night with a score of 38.475, Penker captured an allaround victory Saturday afternoon with a career-high score of 38.675. Penker also set another career high with her performance on the floor by scoring 9.725. Penker was very pleased with her performance overall but noted she has trouble on the beam during the meets.

Last October Penker represented her home country of Austria in the 2014 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Nanning, China. She said “the competition mood” from competing at the world championships has carried over into this season.

UAA Gymnastics Head Coach Paul Stoklos, who is entering his 31st season, was very pleased with the performance of the team both days. His goal for the team was to score a team total of 192 in the first meet, a goal that they only missed by 0.450. Stoklos called this first meet “probably the finest first meet of the season in the history of the program.” According to the coach the performances were perfect by the athletes up until the floor where there were two mistakes.

UAA’s gymnasts leave this Wednesday to compete in the Ozone Collegiate Classic in Knoxville, Tennessee.

The next home meets are Feb. 27 and March 1 at the Alaska Airlines Center against Centenary College.

PHOTOS BY ADAM EBERHARDT

M’rcy Matsunami, junior, reaches for the bar Jan. 8 in a meet against Winona State University at the Alaska Airlines Center.

GUT WORKSHOP 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 17 Artist Sonya Kelliher-Combs guides participants in creating luminaires made of hog gut using traditional Alaska Native techniques. Enroll online.

Discount for museum members.

Image: Artist Sonya Kelliher-Combs, photo by Chris Arend, courtesy of the artist

Museum members enjoy free general admission. Join today!

TODDLER TIME Treat your little one to creative learning 10:30 a.m. Fridays

ALASKA GALLERY PROJECT Learn about plans to re-envision the museum’s history gallery 7:30 p.m.

Thursday, Jan. 22

anchoragemuseum.org

CABIN FEVER Celebrate this wintery place we call home Now on view

PEOPLE

THENORTHERNLIGHT TUESDAY, JANUARY 13, 2014

11

HOT TOPIC

What are you most looking forward to this semester?

Chris Pilar

Accounting / Junior

Melissa Juetten

Pre-Nursing / Junior

Shintaro Sasaki

“Meeting new people!”

“Learning new things, being in a new career choice and doing things I have never done before.”

“I’m looking forward to making many friends. I’m Japanese, and I want to learn English.”

ESL / Freshman

HOT TOPIC QUESTIONS, PHOTOS AND COMMENTS COMPILED BY GEORGE HYDE

EDITORIAL

Welcome back from The Northern Light

By Kelly Ireland

editor@thenorthernlight.org Welcome, fellow UAA students, to the spring semester of 2015.

The Northern Light staff hopes everyone had a wonderful break.

As we move into the new semester, we want to wish everyone good luck in their endeavors. We hope everyone is able to maintain their New Years resolutions, but we also want to remind everyone it doesn’t have to be a new year to set goals or resolutions. It’s never too late.

The Northern Light staff has set a few goals for the organization that we hope to accomplish before summer.

On the list of our goals is launching our own app. The app is well on its way to being complete and will be unveiled soon. We hope everyone takes time to download this app once it’s released to stay up to date on UAA information and more.

Among our other goals, The Northern Light wants to hire new staff. We are currently looking for individuals interested in working in one in a number of openings for sports editor, assistant sports editor, news editor, assistant news editor, features editor, assistant features editor, staff reporters, graphic designer, layout editor, multimedia editor and marketing representatives. We also would be glad to work with volunteers.

We would also like to encourage our readers to send in letters to the editor and opinion pieces to be published. We love to see readers engage both with our work and with the UAA community about topics that matter.

PHOTO BY JAMES R. EVANS

The Northern Light is a proud member of the ASSOCIATED COLLEGIATE PRESS. The Northern Light is a weekly UAA publication funded by student fees and advertising sales.

The editors and writers of the Northern Light are solely responsible for its contents. Circulation is 2,000. The University of Alaska Anchorage provides equal education and employment opportunities for all, regardless of race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, Vietnam-era or disabled-veteran status, physical or mental disability, changes in marital status, pregnancy, or parenthood.

The views expressed in the opinion section do not necessarily reflect the views of UAA or the Northern Light.­­­

LETTERS AND CORRECTIONS POLICY Letters to the editor can be submitted to editor@thenorthernlight.org. The maximum length is 250 words.

Opinion pieces can be submitted to editor@thenorthernlight.org. The maximum word length is 450 words.

Letters and opinion pieces are subject to editing for grammar, accuracy, length and clarity.

Requests for corrections can be sent to editor@thenorthernlight.org. Print publication is subject to accuracy and available space. All corrections are posted online with the original story at www.thenorthernlight.org.

The Northern Light newsroom is located on the first floor of the Student Union, directly next to Subway.

THE NORTHERN LIGHT CONTACTS 3211 Providence Drive Student Union 113 Anchorage, AK 99508 Phone: 907-786-1513 Fax: 907-786-1331 info@thenorthernlight.org EXECUTIVE EDITOR 786-1434 editor@thenorthernlight.org Kelly Ireland MANAGING EDITOR 786-1313 content@thenorthernlight.org Vacant COPY EDITOR copy1@thenorthernlight.org Kierra Hammons

ASSISTANT FEATURES EDITOR features2@thenorthernlight.org Vacant

WEB EDITOR web@thenorthernlight.org Jaron Saturnino

A&E EDITOR 786-1512 arts@thenorthernlight.org Vacant

MULTIMEDIA EDITOR multimedia@thenorthernlight.org Vacant

ASSISTANT A&E EDITOR arts2@thenorthernlight.org Samantha Davenport SPORTS EDITOR 786-1512 sports@thenorthernlight.org Vacant ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR sports2@thenorthernlight.org Vacant

NEWS EDITOR 786-1576 news@thenorthernlight.org Vacant

PHOTO EDITOR photo@thenorthernlight.org James R. Evans

ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR news2@thenorthernlight.org Vacant

STAFF PHOTOGRAPHERS aeberhardt@thenorthernlight.org Adam Eberhardt

FEATURES EDITOR 786-1576 features@thenorthernlight.org Vacant

LAYOUT EDITOR layout@thenorthernlight.org Vacant GRAPHIC DESIGNER graphics@thenorthernlight.org Vacant

ADVERTISING MANAGER 786-6185 admanager@thenorthernlight.org Anthony Crouts III MARKETING REPRESENTATIVES 786-4690 ads@thenorthernlight.org Haley Cavitt STAFF REPORTERS gchyde@thenorthernlight.org George Hyde CONTRIBUTORS Evan Dodd Jacob Holley-Kline MEDIA ADVISER Paola Banchero ADMINISTRATIVE ADVISER Annie Route

w o H

I w o n k I o d

R E T AT

M AA? U t a

: Reason #6

“There are so many resources and people that are willing to help.” *

Share why you matter at UAA: saat@uaa.alaska.edu | *Response from the Fall 2013 MAP-Works survey. @ the

MATTER MATTER

UAA is an EEO/AA employer and educational institution.

MATTER