5-25-16

The Pitt News T h e in de p e n d e n t st ude nt ne w spap e r of t he University of Pittsburgh

May 25th, 2016 | Issue 153 | Volume 106

Pitt adds new engineering major Krithika Pennathur For The Pitt News

Nick Koroly and Bryann Morgan practice acroyoga on the Schenley Plaza lawn. Kate Koenig VISUAL EDITOR

Pitt students can now focus on tackling major environmental issues in their engineering studies.

Because of strong demand from students, Pitt’s Swanson School of Engineering has expanded its environmental engineering minor to a major. The new environmental engineering major will prepare students to come up with creative solutions to domestic and international environmental problems, according to Radisav Vidic, professor and chair of the department of civil engineering.

Rising senior Naomi Anderson switched from a civil engineering major to the new major as soon as she could.

“When the environmental major became available, I jumped at the chance to study what I was actually interested in,” An-

derson said.

Leonard Casson, an associate professor of engineering and the academic coordinator for the department of civil and environmental engineering, said that the major comes at a good time.

“There are environmental problems that need solutions,” Casson said. “With a rapidly evolving job market, we needed this major.”

After select members of the School of Engineering faculty deliberated with a committee of local industries and agencies as to whether they would hire environmental engineers, the committee went forward with developing the major.

Both local industries and students wanted an environmental engineer major at Pitt, Vidic said.

See Major on page 4

CONNER STRONGER: RUNNING BACK BEATS CANCER Steve Rotstein | Sports Editor

Six months ago, Stanley Marks received a call from the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Western Pennsylvania about inviting a star guest speaker to its annual Light the Night Walk kickoff breakfast.

The speaker the society wanted to bring in to speak at the Duquesne Club on May 24 was one of Marks’ patients — Pitt senior running back James Conner, who had just been diagnosed with Stage 2 Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Understandably, Marks was as cautious as possible.

“There’s no way I can predict how he’s going to be doing, how he’s going to be feeling, if he’s going to be in remission, so let’s just put it on hold and assume he’s not going to be there because the timeline is too tight,” Marks told the society.

If you know anything about Conner, you probably correctly assumed he showed up.

Almost six months to the day on Monday, May 23, at about 1:45 p.m., Conner went into the Hillman Cancer Center for a scan to see if he was cancer free. Marks said a text message appeared on his phone before he even had a chance to analyze the results.

“How’s my scan look?” the text from Conner said.

“Can you give me a few minutes?” Marks joked.

All the workers at the Hillman Cancer Center — including the nurses, the valet out front and the greeters inside — were holding their breath and asking Marks the same question.

Less than 20 minutes later, Conner’s phone rang.

“James, everything looks normal,” Marks told him.

Conner shared an embrace with his family, his friends and his mother, who he said is probably still crying tears of joy. But Marks didn’t let

him off the phone.

“Alright, now that I gave you good news, I need a favor,” Marks told Conner. “Tomorrow morning at 7:30, I need you at the Duquesne Club. Can you be there?”

“Anything for you, doc,” Conner replied.

Just one day after getting the news he was cleared of cancer, Conner spoke in front of roughly 200 guests at the kickoff event for the annual Light the Night walk at Heinz Field to raise money for cancer research.

“He had some very short but certainly emotional and inspirational comments for the audience,” Marks said. “It was great to have him here.”

Pitt head football coach Pat Narduzzi reiterated the tremendous impact Conner has had off the field since being diagnosed.

“Over the past six months, James Conner fought cancer the same way he plays football:

relentlessly and without surrender,” Pitt head football coach Pat Narduzzi said in a statement Monday. “Everyone at Pitt feels blessed to know him and we are tremendously thankful for the wonderful news he received today.”

Long before his Hodgkin’s lymphoma diagnosis, Conner volunteered at the National Kidney Foundation, the Mel Blount Youth Home and various children’s hospitals in Pittsburgh.

But when he received word that he had Hodgkin’s lymphoma, he chose not to step out of the public eye. Another no-brainer for anyone who knows the now-famous football player, Marks said.

“When he first started chemotherapy, I offered him the option of having some privacy and being in an area of the Lemieux [Center] that would keep him from having much contact with the other patients,” Marks said.

See Conner on page 11

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RESEARCHERS: COMPUTER-BASED THERAPY EFFECTIVE Erin Hare | Staff Writer

To increase access to therapy, researchers suggest patients turn to their computers.

In a recent study, Pitt researchers found that computerized cognitive behavioral therapy was more effective for treating anxiety and depression than the usual treatment provided by primary care physicians, with benefits persisting for six months after the study.

“The truth is that most people receive their treatment for mood and anxiety in primary [care] settings,” said lead author Bruce Rollman, professor of medicine and director of Pitt’s Center for Behavioral Health and Smart Technology.

According to Rollman, primary care physicians typically treat mental illness rather than trained therapists because patients first show symptoms of depression — such as fatigue, insomnia and trouble concentrating — to their physician.

Rollman also said accessing qualified therapists can be difficult, especially in rural areas, for those without adequate transportation or when appointments require taking time off work. Go-

May 25, 2016

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ing to therapy can also carry a social stigma.

The computerized CBT program in this study is called Beating the Blues. According to Stephen Doyle, senior director of strategic health management solutions at UPMC, Beating the Blues is intended to be an extension of treatment, used in concert with a health care provider.

Beating the Blues teaches participants to understand how events impact thoughts and feelings. Quizzes use hypothetical situations to test understanding, and worksheet fields help participants organize and shape their thoughts and feelings.

According to Doyle, a key facet of Beating the Blues is that it follows five real people with depression or anxiety on their own journeys through the program. Each person has a different situation that users may relate to, such as grief over the loss of a loved one, post-traumatic stress following a car accident or fear of failure at work.

See Therapy on page 5

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POLICE CHIEF: BEYONCE CONCERT COVERED Alexa Bakalarski |News Editor

cert, are different from working a normal shift, Swartzwelder said, because the officers stay at one venue, instead of being able to go where an incident occurs.

“If you force an officer to work a secondary labor shift, that’s unfair,” Swartzwelder said. “When I’m working for the public, there’s no exclusivity,” Heinz Field officials requested the police for the event, but since Heinz is hosting the concert it would have had to find other means of security on its own if not enough officers volunteered.

In his release, McLay said disgruntled FOP members are still free to pursue legal action, although the dispute has been resolved for now.

“This manner of scheduling is consistent with the collective bargaining agreement with the FOP,” McLay said in the release. “As always, differences in interpretation of the contract can be disputed through the existing legal channels.”

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The Pitt news crossword 5/25/16

Despite news there would be a police boycott, Chief of Police Cameron McLay said Sunday night there were enough officers to work Beyoncé’s upcoming concert.

According to Robert Swartzwelder, president of the local police union, some city police officers did not want to work the May 31 concert at Heinz Field because they objected to forced secondary employment shifts. He also said sentiments that Beyoncé is anti-police prompted some officers to object covering the concert.

“I think some people are sensationalizing the issue because some officers have said that,” Swartzwelder said regarding news that police were boycotting Beyoncé specifically. “It’s a mix of both.

Some officers don’t want to work second employment.”

In a statement released Sunday night, McLay said no on-duty officers will be assigned to work the Beyoncé concert, nor will any officers be forced to work the Beyoncé concert because the Pittsburgh Police Department has “secured sufficient volunteers” for the event.

Earlier this month, police officers said the department forced them to work secondary employment shifts — voluntary shifts where officers can earn extra money — for the Pittsburgh Marathon, which officers said was illegal.

The union — called the Pittsburgh Fraternal Order of Police — represents all of the approximately 850 officers in Pittsburgh’s police force.

According to the Swartzwelder, the police officers’ contract says working events like Beyoncé’s concert is voluntary, and officers shouldn’t be forced to pick up voluntary hours.

Private events, like the Beyoncé con-

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May 25, 2016

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The Pitt News SuDoku 5/25/16 courtesy of dailysudoku.com

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Major, pg. 1 “The industries expressed a need for environmental engineers,” Vidic said. “We had a lot of students interested in environmental issues. We had to meet those demands.”

According to a release, students are able to begin enrolling in the major now for the 2016-2017 academic year.

Rising senior Nicole Cimabue looks forward to how the major will prepare her for a future career in engineering.

“I hope to gain an understanding of how and why nature works like it does and also the skills to be able to solve real environmental problems in the world,” Cimabue said.

According to recent data, the Bureau of Labor Statistics expects the employment of environmental engineering to increase 12 percent from 2014 to 2024, faster than the average rate of all occupations. Pennsylvania is the second leading state in the employment of environmental engineers, with California being the first.

Currently, there are 67 other environmental engineering programs — including Columbia University, Drexel University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology — in the country that the Accreditation Board of Engineering and Technology has accredited. An ABET accreditation represents that a program meets the high standards of the profession, helping graduates find success in jobs related to their field.

The School of Engineering plans for the major to be ABET-accredited after the first students with the major graduate April 2017.

“The degree needs to be accredited,” Vidic said. “This shows that a student has an appropriate skill set.”

Students who plan to take the new major will have to take more chemistry and biology courses than civil engineering students do. Three new classes will provide the fundamentals for the major — a class on how elements move between states like air and water in environmental systems, a class on fundamental chemical principles and a laboratory-based class in which different faculty members will conduct environmental engineering experiments with students.

The School of Engineering already offers

May 25, 2016

several environmentally focused courses, such as Hydrology and Water Resources, Drinking Water Treatment and Distribution System Design and Engineering and Sustainable Development.

“There are a lot of classes based around water systems, the way natural systems function and how to treat and distribute drinking water and wastewater,” Cimabue said. “I’ve learned how to design things like green buildings, surface drinking water treatment plants and green infrastructure systems.”

Beside adding new core classes that enhance the existing curriculum, the major also includes a new, personalized lab, Anderson said.

“I’m also really excited for the environmental engineering laboratory, which is a hands-on course that cycles through experiments with various environmental engineering faculty in their area of expertise,” Anderson said.

According to Vidic, there is a “wide range of jobs and opportunities for these students,” with graduates able to eventually work in consulting firms, solid waste management and government agencies in Pennsylvania, to name a few.

Casson said graduating students will be the ones to solve future environmental problems.

“They’ll be solving these problems in an energy-conscious way, but keep from polluting the environment,” Casson said.

“They’re coming up with a new, sustainable way to do so.”

Anderson said she hopes what she learns in the major will give her confidence in her career.

“The main thing that I want is to develop a broad enough base of environmental engineering knowledge that I can go into any job with confidence — at least confidence that I can learn whatever I need to learn, and be competent,” Anderson said.

Cimabue encourages other students to study environmental engineering.

“People should study environmental engineering to learn about how the water, air and soil systems of the earth work, and to make an impact by being able to develop solutions to environmental problems,” Cimabue said “And because it’s fun.”

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Therapy, pg. 2 Beating the Blues was originally developed in the U.K., Doyle said. UPMC — in collaboration with the British company Ultrasis — updated it for an American audience by editing the language and using American patients for the video vignettes sprinkled throughout the program.

A collaborating psychiatrist on the study, Pitt professor Jordan Karp, said treatment of mental health disorders by primary care physicians is not always as comprehensive as psychotherapy with a trained specialist.

“Primary care physicians may not provide, at times, more than a prescription, supportive listening and referral to see a mental health specialist,” Karp said.

Although computerized CBT solves these problems, randomized trials are necessary to demonstrate clinical benefits beyond what a primary care physician can provide, Rollman said.

According to Rollman, there is evidence several computerized CBT programs are as effective as in-person CBT at treating mood and anxiety disorders. Thousands of patients outside the US use computerized CBT, yet it remains largely unknown and seldom used within the US. To evaluate the benefits of the U.S. version of

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Beating the Blues, Rollman and his team conducted a randomized clinical trial.

Rollman’s trial, funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, followed 704 UPMC physicianreferred patients ages 18 to 75 who were diagnosed with anxiety or depression.

The control group received standard care with a primary care physician, Rollman said. One experimental group accessed Beating the Blues, completing five out of eight total sessions, on average, which Rollman credits to the human care manager coaches who held subjects accountable. The third experimental group did Beating the Blues and participated in an online support group that allowed them to connect with others enrolled in the study.

Compared to the control group, both groups assigned to Beating the Blues improved significantly on ratings of anxiety and depression over six months of treatment and the six months following, Rollman said. There was no significant added benefit of the internet support group.

“My takeaway from this is that you can’t just give people the link and expect people to use the product,” Rollman said. “It would be like me giving you a book on tennis, and if you don’t really engage with it you’re not going to improve your game.”

The researchers shared their findings at the Society of General Internal Medicine conference May 12.

Ed Michaels, director of the University Counseling Center, said there is no immediate plans to incorporate this technology into the center’s mental health offerings.

“We know what we do works,” Michaels said.

“I’m not sure that [computerized CBT] would be additive or an adequate substitute for what we’re currently doing.”

Michaels stressed that in particular, the initial in-person evaluation is critical for making a diagnosis and pointing students in the direction of the resources they need.

“A hugely important thing that we do is on the front end,” Michaels said. “When a student calls us for help and we talk to them the first thing that we do is figure out what they need, which isn’t always apparent and obvious, and it isn’t always what they believe they need.”

After a diagnosis, Michaels said, therapists may consider steering students toward Beating the Blues.

Karp already refers some of his patients to Beating the Blues if he feels they would benefit from a self-paced and self-guided approach to controlling their mood and negative thoughts.

According to Doyle, in addition to treating depression and anxiety, Beating the Blues may also be helpful for teaching coping strategies to handle everyday stress.

May 25, 2016

“Subclinical daily stress is on the rise, and this is very much a tool you can use to change your outlook and reframe certain stresses in your life,” Doyle said. “CBT has been shown to be very effective at helping people to manage stress.”

Since 2011, anyone with UPMC insurance can access Beating the Blues at no cost through the online portal, Doyle said.

While Beating the Blues does increase access to computerized CBT, Doyle said, “The most glaring [limitation] is that it can’t replace a health care provider.”

If you or a friend is struggling with anxiety, depression or any form of mental illness: Call the University Counseling Center: 412-648-7930 to schedule an appointment. The center is open year-round and offers free therapy to all students who request it. The center also offers group therapy and in-person CBT workshops. If you need immediate help or counseling, call the center’s Mental Health Crisis Response hotline: 412-648-9004 or call the Pitt police: 412-624-2121

Off-campus Options:

Western Psychiatric Clinic: 412-624-1000 Re:solve Crisis Network: 1-888-796-8226

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Opinions from the editorial board

Beyoncé boycott draws unnecessary division From topping charts to breaking records, Beyoncé is under the spotlight for different reasons this week in Pittsburgh.

Beyoncé will perform May 31, at Heinz Field as part of The Formation World Tour.

The pop star announced the tour following her Super Bowl halftime performance, which came under scrutiny from law enforcement groups for using imagery inspired by the Black Panthers.

Her appearance in Pittsburgh has become especially controversial, combining accusations of promoting anti-police messaging and a preexisting labor conflict between the officers and the city. Tensions peaked May 19, when Robert Swartzwelder, president of the Fraternal Order of Police, made a post on the organization’s website encouraging officers not to cover the event.

Rather than appealing to the community and rallying support from the people they protect, the police leaders supporting the initiative decided to make safety a bargaining chip.

Whether Beyoncé’s music is “anti-police” is up for debate, but the duty officers have to the citizens of Pittsburgh is not. The conflict has widened an unnecessary divide between the public and law enforcement instead of being an opportunity to show that public safety is the true priority.

Since the event counts as secondary employment, officers voluntarily choose to work for the overtime shifts, paid for through private funds. In April, when there was initially not enough volunteers working for the Pittsburgh Marathon, officers claimed the police chief forced them to work against their will, saying the excess enforcement violated their labor contracts.

The lack of thorough planning for the

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marathon justifies the city police’s outrage. Police Chief Cameron McLay admitted the poor planning was his fault and made steps to address them accordingly.

No one should be forced to work more than they can manage, but using personal grievances to create a spectacle is not the way to attract the public’s support. Instead of placing the labor dispute before the safety of Beyoncé’s concert, the officers in question could have framed their service to the public as proof of their exemplary work in the face of unfair conditions.

Political resentment and in-fighting between the city and its police force — a frequent problem in Pittsburgh within the past few years — is not a reason for those who have sworn to serve and protect to suspend their responsibilities. If officers want to send the proper message that they are for the people, they would unite the community rather than embroiling it in drama.

Most importantly, if the opposition towards Beyoncé’s concert is partially fueled by clashes between law enforcement and communities of color, city police should not be reinforcing the idea that officers can pick and choose who is worthy of protection.

Members of the black community asking for respect are not “anti-police,” they are against a broken criminal-justice system that allows white lives to take precedence over their own.

While McLay has assured the public that the concert has enough off-duty volunteers to work the event — with no additional obligations for on-duty officers — the damage to community relations is done.

Choosing to battle your employer over forced overtime is understandable, but a leader in the law enforcement community throwing a fit on the Internet is not.

Kate Koenig VISUAL EDITOR

Government waste should matter more to students Jordan Drischler | For The Pitt News What do the Alabama Watermelon Queen, the history of Russian smokers and the science behind your beer koozie all have in common?

They’ve all received funding from a federal government that has grown to an uncontrollable size.

Amidst the 2015 holiday season, Kentucky senator and former GOP presidential candidate Rand Paul took to Twitter to celebrate Seinfeld’s fictitious holiday Festivus with a traditional airing of grievances. After taking shots at the other presidential hopefuls, Paul fired off a series of tweets listing a few of the ridiculous ways government spends people’s tax dollars.

One tweet read, “Grievance: Researched the effectiveness of golf equipment in space.

Cost: $15,000,000 #Festivus #AiringofGrievances.”

Although the golf equipment proposal was shot down by NASA, the list of grievances received much-needed attention

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in the media. While they were mildly humorous and probably elicited an occasional chuckle from Twitter users, Paul’s tweets highlighted a very serious problem: out-of-control government spending.

Unfortunately, the way the government handles money is not a laughing matter.

Examples of frivolous spending are in no short supply, and we all have an incentive to care.

For instance, the U.S. Department of Agriculture spent $25,000 in 2012 on a promotional tour for the Alabama Watermelon Queen to inform the general public on the health benefits of eating watermelon.

Other federal departments are just as extravagant. In 2015, the U.S. Department of State spent $350,000 to develop a televised five-team cricket league in Afghanistan — in an area where only .003 percent of the population has television — with the expressed goal to “provide an outlet for young men who may be susceptible to extremism.”

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Even roles of government expressly defined in the Constitution are not exempt from wasteful spending. While military research and development is bound to produce an occasional dead end, the number of impractical projects creates cause for concern. One case highlighting the excess expense is the Army’s mega-blimp: a $300 million project to develop a blimp for surveillance purposes over Afghanistan. It was never used and, in 2013, they decided to cut their losses and sold it back to the manufacturer for just $301,000.

All these instances of impractical spending draw to mind the words of economist Milton Friedman, “Nobody spends someone else’s money as wisely as he spends his own.”

Friedman’s sentiment has certainly been proven true at the federal level and can be discouraging for college students who are struggling to make ends meet. I felt dismayed when I spent semesters working full-time as a co-op student and saw how much of my paycheck was being withheld for taxes.

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Budgeting to pay for rent, food, tuition and then hopefully having a little left over can be a constant source of stress. It’s hard to imagine being able to dole out cash at will to any cause or program that piques our interest — yet politicians seem to do this without a second thought.

Furthermore, it’s difficult for a college student to imagine living free from the ever-looming cloud of debt. A main goal of new graduates is to pay off their student loans as soon as possible, and they make sacrifices in their budget to do so. It’s not fun or glamorous for a 25-year-old to pass over a trip abroad or a new car in order to pay back loans, but it has to be done.

I propose Washington adopt this same mindset.

It is irresponsible and downright unjust to fund wasteful endeavors while operating on a deficit year after year, leaving future generations with an ever-increasing burden of debt. According to the Department of the Treasury, the federal deficit for 2015 was $439

billion. This is money that will need reimbursement with interest as part of the national debt that is already at $19 trillion and counting.

As the massive number continues to climb with each passing secon d, we are the ones who end up paying for it. Eventually this number will grow too large to ignore and we will have to take drastic measures to fix it. These measures could come in the form of massive increases in taxes, large across-the-board cuts to government programs or both.

It’s a problem that most Americans like to think they have no control over, but the more action we take now to curb this massive debt, the less catastrophic the eventual collapse will be.

Before losing all hope, there are some measures we can take to change this exasperating trend. The first is similar to the efforts of Paul and former Sen. Tom Coburn, which is to draw attention to the problem. Politicians often rely on the complexity, length and wordiness of bills to pass expenses on to a misguided public. In order to

May 25, 2016

combat this, we must be aware of what our tax dollars are going towards rather than blindly adhering to the tax code.

Whether we care or not, it is imperative to make sure our money is being used responsibly and efficiently.

With this awareness as well as the annual Wastebooks — frequently published articles about waste-filled bills currently up for debate — you can hold your congressperson accountable by making calls to his or her office, and more importantly, appearing at the ballot box .

Be wary of politicians who believe they’re wiser arbiters of your money than you, or it will be inevitable that government spending will quickly devolve into wasteful gimmicks.

Year after year we continue to see the excessive fiscal recklessness that has become a trademark of Washington, D.C. with little to no accountability.

But never fear, for the National Science Foundation was granted $150,000 to study why politics stresses us out .

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Culture

SCREENWRITERS GATHER DOWNTOWN Ian Flanagan | Culture Editor

Speakers discuss screenwriting at first conference . Ian Flanagan CULTURE EDITOR

Local and national screenwriting talent collided in Downtown Pittsburgh this past weekend.

Spearheaded by director and founder Cathy Rescher, the three-day inaugural 3 Rivers Screenwriting Conference was held at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center Friday, May 20, through Sunday, May 22.

Rescher was inspired by the four-day screenwriting conference that takes place during the annual Austin Film Festival, the largest writers’ conference in the world. With 3 Rivers, she sought to put together a melting pot of Pittsburgh talent and insightful professionals involved in screenwriting and filmmaking in general.

Actually putting the pieces in place for the conference, though, was a challenge.

“I just thought to myself naïvely, ‘How hard can it be?’” said Rescher, who has experience in project management, marketing, design and related fields. She researched and booked various

sponsors to help fund the weekend event, including Row House Cinema, Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, Pittsburgh Filmmakers and Stage 32, to name a few.

But Rescher’s biggest break was securing sponsorship from New Sun Rising — an organization which provides fiscal backing and mentoring to enterprises in the Pittsburgh region. New Sun Rising’s leaders unanimously voted to support the project, essentially greenlighting the conference with substantial monetary backing from the group.

Tickets for the event started at $30, and the conference was host to over 30 speakers from around the country.

“Getting the caliber of industry professionals we had here was exactly what we set out to do and I remain hopeful we can continue doing it,” said Ramesh Santanam, who works in media and public relations and writes his own scripts.

See Screenwriters on page 9

B52: VEGAN CAFE BOASTS AMPLE OPTIONS

Megan Bray| Staff Writer

Around 8:30 a.m., B52 Cafe, Lawrenceville’s newest vegan cafe, was still relatively empty.

I began the excursion with a half pot of their green tea, brewed fresh and served in a stainless steel pot. The tea was quite bitter, so I asked for honey — forgetting that it is an animal byproduct — but they reminded me nicely that the cafe is entirely vegan.

Cleverly named as an abbreviation for its location at 5202 Butler St., B52 opened its doors just this past January. Owned by Omar Abuhe-

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jleh — who also owns Allegro Hearth Bakery in Squirrel Hill — the cafe offers vegan cuisine to the heart of Lawrenceville.

B52 is not the only cafe in Lawrenceville that provides vegan options: The Zenith is a vegetarian cafe that has some vegan choices, too. But while many other Pittsburgh restaurants and cafes offer both vegetarian and vegan options, B52 boasts a strictly vegan menu, joining the ranks of other vegan-conscious establishments like Red Oak Cafe in Oakland and Eden in Shadyside.

See B52 on page 9

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Buckwheat pancakes at B52. Courtesy of B52

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Screenwriters, pg. 8 Santanam assisted with 3 Rivers by contacting and recruiting some of the speakers, as well as helping plan the conference’s programming.

“It was exhausting at times but entirely worthwhile, thanks to the many people who volunteered their time and expertise,” said Santanam.

The preeminent speakers included Ashley Edward Miller, a screenwriter for “X-Men: First Class” and “Thor,” and Laura Harkcom, writer and producer for Syfy and Fox and a consultant for NBCUniversal. Joining them was Christopher Lockhart, story editor at the William Morris Agency in Hollywood.

Those three guests would be hosts of the Pitch Finale, the last event of the conference. Three amateur screenwriters delivered pitches of their original scripts to the three judges, Miller, Harkcom and Lockhart.

Though the audience heavily favored the pitch about a modern-day stoner Dracula in Seattle by Lucas Esteves, a Point Park MFA graduate for Screenwriting and Playwriting, the judges awarded first place to John Spare, who is currently working towards completing the same graduate program.

Spare, whose pitch was an original horrormystery story called “Black Eyed Kids,” was awarded a screenplay of “The Usual Suspects” as well as the opportunity to have his piece read in full

by Lockhart, who has read over 60,000 scripts and whose agency’s clientele includes Denzel Washington, Matt Damon and Robert Downey Jr. I attended just the final day of the weekend, drifting between the various panels, as there were always at least two occurring simultaneously.

Though I lament missing earlier discussions from the weekend such as “iPhone Filmmaking” and “Writing Dynamic Dialogue,” the lineup from Sunday was full of thought-provoking discussions.

Highlights included “Heroes and Villains” — hosted by Miller, author William C. Martell and

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Alvaro Rodriguez, cousin of Robert Rodriguez and writer of “Machete” — as well as “Comedy Sketch Writing,” led by Mike Betette of the “Epic Rap Battles of History” YouTube series.

“Writing Partners, Team and Groups” was also full of excellent conversation. Miller was especially witty and articulate. His advice was sound — “You can’t be a professional in this industry and not collaborate” might as well be the conference’s slogan — and his jokes hit. “If your experiments don’t work out, if you’re fast enough, you can always blame the other guy.”

Though it may be called a screenwriters conference, the scope of topics spread to nearly all facets of filmmaking and the industry.

Sarah O’Melia, a member of Pittsburgh’s chapter of the American Institute of Graphic Artists along with Rescher, assisted with the event’s marketing as well as helping with the website and brochure. She noted how much of the discussion that took place during the conference was applicable to many fields.

“I think a lot of what they’re saying is not just relevant to screenwriting or film or cinema, it can be relevant in any kind of art form,” said O’Melia.

Monique Helt-Morrison, a screenwriter and creative producer who just moved from Los Angeles, personified the independent screenwriter’s struggles and successes.

“I came from the hub to here really as a way to connect with local Pittsburghers who are likeminded in the TV, film and creative world — and of course to learn,” Morrison said.

During her senior year at Louisiana State University, she held a job doing social work for the school. As Morrison was about to leave for Los Angeles, her boss, Cecile Guin, handed her an unpublished, 500-page manuscript about the life of Feltus Taylor Jr. — who was charged with armed robbery and first-degree murder in 1991 and executed in 2000.

B52, pg. 8 The small cafe — fitting about 25 patrons — offers a fusion of American and Middle Eastern vegan food, including house-baked goods and a full service espresso bar.

The first thing I noticed in the cafe was the exposed brick and tin-tiled ceilings. The walls’ muted colors and dividers between tables give the space a relaxing breakfast diner atmosphere.

I ordered the buckwheat pancakes, made with fermented sifted wheat, rye and flaxseed, a seed cultivated from a blue-flowered herbaceous plant that often serves as a replacement for eggs. My meal came with the option to add bananas or apples — I selected the latter for a small fee. The pancakes were a different texture — and a stronger wheat flavor thanks to the sifted wheat and flaxseed — than the traditional pancakes most nonvegan patrons are used to, but you wouldn’t know it if you ate it blindfolded.

The pancakes came with margarine and syrup, which, combined with the apples, helped mask the pancakes’ unconventional taste.

By the time I was finished eating about half an hour later, the small restaurant was filled with other breakfast-goers. B52 serves breakfast and lunch during the week and brunch on weekends. It is open every day except Monday, 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. weekdays

and 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. weekends. Breakfast is served each day until 11 a.m., and brunch is served Sundays 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

For a vegan restaurant, the options are not as limited as one might think. From the tofu scramble to the seitan sausage, there are an abundance of choices for those living the vegan lifestyle. Lunch brings a few more options, including a variety of entrees, sandwiches, salads, soups and sides.

B52 also offers a number of different drinks, including a few I had never heard of before. If you’re looking for something different, try their Nitro cold brew, a nitrogenbrewed coffee, which I grabbed on the way out. The best way to describe this beverage is as a coffee-flavored carbonated beverage or soda. It has a very strong taste, but I toned it down with a bit of the natural sugar from the coffee bar and some almond milk.

The staff was friendly and attentive, the food was out in a timely fashion and I didn’t find myself excessively waiting at any point.

They were helpful when it came to my questions about some of the foods I didn’t recognize and seemed perfectly understanding when reminding me that B52 does not serve any animal byproducts.

B52 is not exclusively appealing to vegans and vegetarians — even without a few fauxmeat menu items like the seitan shawarma, the cafe would still be able to provide a tasty meal for any patron.

Find the full story online at

pittnews.com

May 25, 2016

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Sports

PITT DROPS SEASON FINALE VS DUKE

Steve Rotstein| Sports Editor

Although the Pitt baseball team didn’t achieve the goal it set at the beginning of the year, the 2016 season as a whole can be viewed as a successful one..

The Panthers (25-26 overall, 10-18 ACC) remained in ACC Baseball Tournament contention until the final weekend after being picked to finish last before the season. But their goal was to make the tournament, and they came up short after running into their toughest competition at the end of their schedule.

“I think that when you evaluate the season from a big picture, you have to look at what the expectation was going in,” Pitt head coach Joe Jordano said. “We did a lot of good things this year. We beat a lot of good teams, and we had a couple of head-scratching losses.”

After a disappointing 11-6 home loss against Penn State, Pitt put up a serious fight

in Coral Gables, Florida, against the No. 4 Miami Hurricanes. The Panthers had a chance at winning every game, but were unable to steal a win from one of the best teams in the country.

Pitt then came home with its sights set on sneaking into the ACC Tournament, but a couple of the nation’s hottest teams stood in its way.

The rival West Virginia Mountaineers came into town riding a nine-game winning streak, and made it 10 in a row with a 10-4 victory at Charles L. Cost Field.

Then, in their final series of the regular season, the Panthers hosted the Duke Blue Devils.

Duke came in after winning seven of its last eight games, including two out of three at the No. 6 Florida State Seminoles.

Pitt needed to win at least two out of three games against the Blue Devils in order to make the tournament, but its chances took a big hit after a heart-wrenching loss in game one

Thursday night.

Junior T.J. Zeuch took the mound as a Panther for the final time Thursday. Pitt’s ace has been projected by Baseball America as a potential first-round pick in next month’s MLB Draft.

“I told my coach when I was throwing my bullpen on Monday or Tuesday that I want to go out with a bang,” Zeuch said. “I think I accomplished that.”

Zeuch didn’t get the win, but his last start as a Panther was a memorable one.

After six scoreless innings in a heated pitchers’ duel, Pitt junior Nick Yarnall opened the scoring with his team-leading 11th home run of the season in the bottom of the seventh off Duke senior Kellen Urbon.

Find the full story online at

pittnews.com

Pitt wore Homestead Grays caps against Duke on Friday night.

Alex Nally STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

LEBLANC LEADS FOUR PANTHERS VOTED ALL-ACC Steve Rotstein | Sports Editor

As their season came to a close, four Panthers picked up All-ACC baseball honors Monday afternoon.

Sophomore shortstop Charles Leblanc — who hails from Quebec — highlighted the selections, becoming the first Pitt player to make the All-ACC first team since the Panthers joined the conference in 2013.

Leblanc’s batting average led the team for the second consecutive year, as his .405 mark earned him the 2016 ACC batting title. He also led the team in runs scored, hits, RBIs, on-base percentage and assists.

Star pitcher T.J. Zeuch, projected to be a first-round pick in next month’s MLB Draft, landed on the All-ACC second team.

After missing the first four weeks of the season due to injury, the junior righthander came back and went 6-1 with a 3.10 earned run average, 74 strikeouts

pittnews.com

and only 19 walks in 69 and 2/3 innings pitched.

Coaches voted junior Nick Yarnall to the All-ACC third team as a designated hitter and utility player.

Yarnall — who played in 48 games as a first baseman, left fielder or DH — tied for fifth in the ACC with a team-leading 11 home runs on the season. He finished second on the team with a .556 slugging percentage, third with 39 RBIs and fourth with a .309 batting average.

Versatile first-year pitcher and outfielder Yaya Chentouf made the ACC AllFreshman team in his first year of college ball.

Chentouf quickly assumed the role as Pitt’s closer and made 16 appearances out of the bullpen, registering a 1.12 ERA with 17 strikeouts and only three walks in 24 innings pitched. He also went 7-for-33 at the plate with six runs scored, six RBIs and four stolen bases on the season.

Charles LeBlanc was voted First Team All-Acc. Courtesy of Pitt Athletics

May 25, 2016

10

Conner, pg. 1

Conner and his doctor, Stanley Marks Steve Rotstein CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

pittnews.com

“No, no, no, no. I want to be with the other patients,” Conner insisted.

Conner went into the Lemieux Center twice a week for 12 weeks and took part in three- to four-hour treatment sessions in the same wing of the center as all the other patients.

“It was really beautiful to see what he had created there at the Lemieux.

The days that he came in there was just a lot more excitement and chatter,” Marks said. “He really served as an inspiration to a lot of patients, those that were doing well and those that weren’t.”

One of the most common side effects of chemotherapy treatment is fatigue, according to Marks.

But just over two months after his diagnosis, Pitt defensive lineman Khaynin Mosley-Smith tweeted a video of Conner sprinting on a treadmill while wearing a protective mask over his mouth. He was also seen at prac-

tice running through drills wearing the mask.

During an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, DeGeneres was as shocked as anyone at the intensity of Conner’s training while undergoing such draining chemotherapy treatments.

“It looks like you’re full on practicing … how are you doing that?” DeGeneres asked.

“We have a game September 3,” Conner said. “I owe it to my teammates and the whole city of Pittsburgh to be ready.”

Now, after months of promising that he would be back on the field, Conner is officially on track to meet his goal and return to Heinz for the season opener against the Villanova Wildcats.

It’s great news for Pitt fans, football fans and the entire Pittsburgh community. The same can’t be said for wouldbe tacklers across the ACC faced with bringing down an already talented player, now rejuvenated.

May 25, 2016

James Conner throws first pitch at PNC Park Courtesy of Pete Madia

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I Rentals & Sublet N D E X -NORTH OAKLAND -SOUTH OAKLAND -SHADYSIDE -SQUIRREL HILL -SOUTHSIDE -NORTHSIDE -BLOOMFIELD -ROOMMATES -OTHER

3 bedroom apartment. $1450 (utilities included). 704 Enfield St. Call 412-969-2790.

Craig Street. Safe, secure building. 1bedroom, furnished.

Newly remodeled, wall-to-wall carpeting, no pets. $785 and up. Heat included. Mature or Graduate students.

412-855-9925 or 724-940-0045. Email forpictures: kelly.m317@yahoo.com

House for rent. 5 BR 1.5 Bath. Newly renovated - Breckenridge St. For mature or graduate students.

Close to Peterson Events Center, Trees Hall & bus route.

Equipped w kitchen, hardwood floors, washer/dryer, full basement, fenced in backyard & deck.

Looking for 5 students to share. Available Aug. 1st. $450 per student + utilities. No Pets. For information, please call (412) 683-5120 or email bradley3145@comcast.net.

N OAKLAND house near Carlow and Pitt shuttle - $1375 (inc. water & landscaping) 2 BR brick house w/ attached garage, security system & large backyard. Contact Marco at (412) 760-4335 for more information.

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Employment

-CHILDCARE -FOOD SERVICES -UNIVERSITY -INTERNSHIPS -RESEARCH STUDIES -VOLUNTEERING -OTHER

Classifieds

For Sale

-AUTO -BIKES -BOOKS -MERCHANDISE -FURNITURE -REAL ESTATE -TICKETS

House for Rent. Beautiful 3-BR newly renovated-Allequippa Street. Close to Peterson Center & Pitt Dental School.

Equipped kitchen, new carpeting, washer/dryer, 2 bathrooms, full basement, fenced-in back yard, security system.

Looking for 3 students to share/or single family. Discount on first month’s rent.

Security deposit required. Students require adult co-sign.

Available August 1st, $1600+ all utilities.

No pets. For more information, please call 412-303-5043.

Email: dtm1003@comcast.net. +++5 bedroom, 2 full baths, huge house, nicely updated, shuttle across street, washer/dryer, $2295+, August 1, photos www.tinyurl.com/pittnewsad4 coolapartments@gmail.com 724-935-2663 2 bedroom available 8/1/16 at $900/month includes all utilities.

3 bedroom available 9/1/16 at $1,350/month includes all utilities. Located on Juliet Street. Security deposit required.

Call 412-608-8581.

Services

-EDUCATIONAL -TRAVEL -HEALTH -PARKING -INSURANCE

3444 WARD ST. -3 BR 1 Bath apartments available Aug. 1, 2016. Free parking, free heating.

Call 412-361-2695.

No evening calls please.

6 Large BR House.

3.5 BA, 3 Kitchens.

Appliances available + laundry. Available immediately. Great view. Small front yard. No pets. $2500+ all utilities.

Call Ingrid 412-537-0324.

Available 8/1, 1 BR/1 Bath, 5 min. walk to Cathedral, A/C, hardwood floors, newly renovated, starting at $995+, 412.441.1211 Available 8/1, 3 BR/1 Bath, less than 1 mile to campus, updated, Dishwasher and AC, starting at $1299+, 412.441.1211

Available August 1st.

3 bedrooms, 1 bath house. Great location.

Renovated. Central air. Equipped kitchen with dishwasher and microwave. Washer/ Dryer. Starting at $1575+/utilities.

Porch/yard. No pets.

Call 412-916-4777.

Large 1-2-3 BR apartments available Aug. 1st, 3450 Ward St. Free parking. Minutes to campus. Cat friendly. Call 412-977-0111.

Announcements -ADOPTION -EVENTS -LOST AND FOUND -STUDENT GROUPS -WANTED -OTHER

M.J. Kelly Realty Studio, 1, 2, & 3 Bedroom Apartments, Duplexes, Houses. $775-$1650. mjkellyrealty@gmail.com. 412-271-5550, mjkellyrealty.com Studios, 1, 2, & 3 Bedroom apartments available August 2016 & sooner. Oakland, Shadyside, Friendship, Squirrel Hill, Highland Park, Point Breeze. Photos & current availability online, check out www.forbesmanagement.net, or call 412.441.1211

4909 Center Ave. Updated 1 BR with new kitchen, dishwasher & hardwood floors.

Laundry, storage and parking available.

Close to Pitt & shopping district. Available now and for August. 412-720-4756.

Remodeled 5 BR house on Dunseith, a quiet residential street. 2 Bathrooms and laundry. $2200+ utilities. 3 to 5 minute walk to medical/dental school.

Call Andrea 412-537-0324.

Shadyside spacious 2 bedroom, 1 bath.

Hardwood floors.

New kitchen. August 1st move in. Call 412-361-2695.

R INSERTIONS 1X 2X 3X 4X 5X 6X ADDITIONAL A 1-15 WORDS $6.30 $11.90 $17.30 $22.00 $27.00 $30.20 $5.00 T 16-30 WORDS $7.50 $14.20 $20.00 $25.00 $29.10 $32.30 $5.40 E S DEADLINE: TWO BUSINESS DAYS PRIOR BY 3 PM | EMAIL: ADVERTISING@PITTNEWS.COM | PHONE: 412.648.7978 (EACH ADDITIONAL WORD: $0.10)

Shadyside: 2 bedroom. Quiet, clean, well-maintained apt house. Great location.

Fully equipped kitchenette, A/C, laundry, wall-to-wall carpeting. Near busline and shopping. No pets. $1190. Heat included in rent. Lease available for August 1 (If desired, also available to sublet for June/July at reduced rate). 412-628-1686.

Bloomfield 2 BD apartment. Avail.

Aug 1st. $1200 (+ gas & electric). Great location- 1 block from West Penn. Call 412-969-2790.

Before signing a lease, be aware that no more than 3 unrelated people can share a single unit.

Check property's compliance with codes. Call City's Permits, Licensing & Inspections.

412-255-2175.

East End/Point Breeze apt. 2 BR with small deck and equipped kitchen.

Close to Frick Park and busline. $485+gas/electric.

Available Sept. 1st.

Call 412-242-1519.

May 25, 2016

FULL TIME NANNY position for family in Squirrel Hill. Recent graduate in ECD preferred. Enquire at nataliepi@gmail.com

HELP WANTED Painting, yardwork, miscellaneous. Student preferred. Shadyside, Fox Chapel. $12/hour.

412-963-9889. georgebsg@cs.com.

Summer babysitter needed in Squirrel Hill. Must have Driver's License. Perfect for active person, tons of time at the pool & tennis. Flexible hours. Email hughesma@upmc.edu

Office and retail job in North Oakland Part time Mon-Sat 85 pm. $12/hr. Basic computer & retail skills are preferred.

313 North Craig St. Contact (412) 621-7215 for more information.

Sacred Heart Elementary School in Shadyside is looking for volunteer Volleyball Coaches and Basketball Coaches for the Varsity and JV Teams for the 201617 Seasons.

Must be at least 18 years of age and have transportation. If interested, please contact Amy Volpe at jaisvolpe@gmail.com or call 412.295.9260

Seasonal Work: Shadyside Management Company needs full-time dependable landscapers, painters, and assistant roofers for the summer.

Must be at least 18 years old. No experience necessary. $10/hour.

Mozart Management, 412-682-7003. Email: thane@mozartrents.com.

HOUSE FOR SALE, S. Aiken Ave. 5 blocks from Pitt. 3 BR, 2 BA, hardwood floors, kitchen with new appliances, fireplace in living room.

2 private parking spaces on site. Call 412-683-9300 or email arpprc@gmail.com for showing.

We buy textbooks, video games, & DVDs!! Atlas - 4753 Liberty Avenue (Bloomfield) (412)681-2092.

Caregivers and babysitters needed.

FT/PT. Earn $25/hour. No experience required. Will train. Call now.

888-366-3244 ext. 102.

Come work where it's Oktoberfest every day. Now hiring for all positions at Hofbrauhaus Pittsburgh.

Apply in person Monday through Friday.

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