Community Gains and Losses An Off Center victory and Gatehouse repairs keep Stevens strong as we lose members of our community.
STUTE THE
The Stute The official campus newspaper of Stevens Institute of Technology since 1904, and creator of the Stevens mascot, Atilla the Duck.
We write Stevens history.
Volume CXIII • Issue 15
TheStute.com
Friday, January 29, 2015
Off Center wins regional college improv tournament, nationals set for April 23
Photo Courtesey of Twitter User @citregionals
by LISA MENGOTTO Managing Editor
A team of eight Off Center members was awarded first place in the Big Apple Regional of the 9th College Improv Tournament (CIT9) sponsored by Chicago Improv Productions. Held at the well-known improv venue The Magnet Theater in New York City, 11 teams competed by performing their own 20-minute sets based on an audience suggestion of their choice. Off Center was invited to compete at the national level on April 23 at the Vittum Theater in Chicago, Illinois. The competing team included Off Center Improv Captain Philippe Donaus, Off Center
President Chris Fitzgerald, Zach Kastner, Ethan Crump, Andy Wiggins, David Orshan, Kevin Quigley, and David Estrada. While some of its opponents were award-winning, auditiononly, coached, and touring improv teams, Off Center invited any of their long-form performers who could make it on January 16. The team ran through an improvised set to prepare for the competition. Off Center performed long form improv following a Harold structure based one-word suggestions. The preliminary match suggestion was “guacamole” and the final match suggestion was “peanut butter.” “A Harold is a way to perform long form with three repeating scenes and two group games,”
said President Fitzgerald. Three industry personnel from The Magnet Theater judged the three preliminary matches. Off Center placed first in their preliminary match, which was against Mission Improv-able of American University, Quipfire Improv Comedy of Princeton University, and Improv Technicians of New Jersey Institute of Technology. “This was our third year competing in the tournament. The first year we lost to Quipfire in the prelims – they were amazing – and last year we got dead-last,” said former Off Center President Kastner. “But we worked hard to improve and we got first. The judges gave us a lot of notes that
see IMPROV • Page 6
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Established 1904
Multiple administrators leave in past months by TYLER ROMEO Staff Writer
From last June to as recent as this week, multiple administrators at Stevens Institute of Technology have retired or left the University for another position. Last year on June 30, Lisa Dolling, Dean of the College of Arts and Letters, left for another university, where she took a position as a tenured professor, Provost, and Vice President for Academic Affairs. Dean Dolling taught at Stevens for 11 years, and served as dean for six years. During her tenure, she was responsible for the creation of the Writing and Communications Center (WCC), the introduction of the CAL-103 / CAL-105 “Freshman Experience” program, and the creation of the new Science and Technology Studies program. Later on November 2, University Vice-President and Provost George P. Korfiatis announced
his plans to step down and return to his faculty duties. Provost Korfiatis will leave his position September of this year, and the university has already formed a search committee for a new Provost. Coming to Stevens in 1986, and becoming Provost in 2006, Provost Korfiatis helped with the creation of new curricula in Biomedical, Systems, Naval and Information Systems engineering. Soon thereafter, Michael Bruno, Dean of the Schaefer School of Engineering and Science, stepped down for a position of Vice Chancellor of Research at the University of HawaiiManoa. Dean Bruno came to Stevens in 1989 and oversaw the merging of engineering and science faculty into a single school. He also co-authored the 2012-22 Strategic Plan. The next administrator to step down was Dr. Christos Christodoulatos, the Vice Provost of Innovation and Entrepreneur-
see LEAVE • Page 6
Two Stevens community members pass away over break by OLIVIA SCHREIBER Outreach Chair
This past month, Stevens Institute of Technology lost two members of its community. Scott Theiler, a Stevens freshman, passed away on December 25 at his Albuquerque, New Mexico home. He was a naval engineering student and a member of the Stevens’ swim team. Mark Samolewicz, Vice President for Human Resources, passed away on December 31
following a 25-year tenure as a leader in both the Division of Finance and the Division of Human Resources. Any member of the Stevens community in need of assistance in coping with this sad news may contact the Stevens Counseling Center of the 7th Floor of the Howe Center. The Center is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For additional information, students may email the Stevens Counseling Center at stevenscounseling@stevens. edu or call 201-874-5177.
Gatehouse to undergo repairs after accumulated damage by RAMI KAMMOURH Staff Writer
About nine months after a hole formed in the facade of the Gatehouse, Stevens has begun making repairs to the oldest structure on campus. Crucial steps are being taken in order to preserve the home of the Stevens Police Department and the only remaining building from a time when the Stevens campus was a private estate known as Castle Point. During a rain storm last April, several stones fell out of a wall on the right tower of the Gatehouse. Scaffolding was quickly put up around the perimeter of the building in order to avoid further damage. The hole in the facade is likely the result of several years
of water damage to the mortar holding together the stones of the Gatehouse, a building that was originally constructed in 1835. The Gatehouse will undergo careful refurbishing so that the building may remain intact and structurally sound when the scaffolding is removed. Although the mortar used on some parts of the building will be replaced and the cracks between some of stones will be filled, those in charge of the repairs are making the effort to minimize the amount of modifications to the Gatehouse. Not only was the situation assessed by engineers, but also by professionals familiar with the refurbishment of historical monuments. “They’re doing [repairs] in such a way that they preserve the historic value of the building,” said
Chief of Campus Police Tim Griffin. Given that the Gatehouse serves as a symbol for the institution, it makes sense that Stevens would try to preserve its historical value. For the entirety of its existence, the Gatehouse has served as a grand entrance to the campus that lies ahead, as well as an emblem of Stevens. Official yearbook photos of the graduating class were once taken in front of the Gatehouse, and guests to campus used to climb atop the building to view New York City. “They’ll be finished [making repairs] by the end of the spring semester,” says Chief Griffin. Once the refurbishing process is complete, the scaffolding will be removed and the main gateway will be reopened to pedestrian traffic.
David Ovsiew
INSIDE THIS ISSUE: The beginning of the end Review: House of ‘Que Another new beginning
Roving Reporter What did you do during the snow day?
Off Center’s victory at Big Apple Regional Improv Tournament
Mobilizing virtual reality
Polling Pierce Are you pledging this semester?
Students engineer snow structures
OPINION 2-3
PULSE 4-5
NEWS 6
NEW
Always Right
Letter to the Editor Remembering Bowie WCPR ReWrite
Raba Nassif named second team All-American Ravi Sun named E8 Swimmer of the Week
Not With Those Shoes
Stevens leads E8 in allacademic for fall semester
OPINION CONT’D 8-9
SPORTS 10
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Friday, January 29, 2016 • Page 2
Opinion Stute Editorial
I’m forgetting something... In the hubbub of classwork, part-time work, thesis preparation, club meetings, eating, and occasionally sometimes sleeping, valuing family and friends is one of many things that gets neglected. A message asking how you feel from a parent or a guardian seems routine, and a weekend of hanging out with your friends seems like the norm. Of course, when something goes down — when something bad happens — what matters most becomes painfully apparent in the most literal sense, in that it hurts to see that you’ve been missing the obvious for so long. “Augh, how have I not done this before?” Let me use a personal example to illustrate. A friend of mine went through a tough time recently involving a significant other. You can fill in the deliberate blanks, but the result of this tough time brought us, both personally and as a group, closer together. Tangibly, a drafted but unpublished letter was written by yours truly, resting in my Google Drive, never delivered. While I hit on several points about this difficult time in that letter, there was one line that stood out that I wrote, even to me: “You’re probably wondering at this point why I’m writing this. It’s actually super simple. This is a friend doing something that friends don’t do nearly enough: tell each other how awesome they are, and how thankful they are
for having met the other person.” The sentiment is simple enough, but it elicited a more complicated reaction from me: Why does the cycle repeat? By cycle, I am referring to the one where we all love each other, life gets busy, and then we repeat the first step onward when tragedy strikes. I understand that there is a mutually implied understanding of love among loved ones, even when no words are said or gestures are made. If I don’t text my mom, I know she knows I still love her, and vice versa. I also understand that films and shows, inspirational stories, and pithy sayings reiterate what has become cliché repeatedly: live today like there’s no tomorrow, say it now before it’s too late, etc. Heck, if you go to The Stute’s website and sift through anything I’ve written, you’ll probably find upwards of four or even five pieces echoing the exact themes of this piece. In a way, maybe I’m subconsciously reiterating these ideas for myself. As a senior who’s shipping off to the so-called “real world,” there is a heightened sense of urgency for me to get this blatantly vital concept drilled into my head. I’m running out of time to see my friends on a whim, and if all goes well with the job and subsequent apartment search, my family, too. The successes I may have will bring new challenges. Duh. However, they will also test areas of my life
that either haven’t been tested in years or at all. Reminding someone what they mean to you seems like an easy no-brainer, but is actually difficult to do. Other than overcoming the obstacle of remembering it, taking the time to deliver that underrated reminder can allow for unnecessary overthinking that may prohibit the reminder altogether. Will this make things awkward? How will they respond? Everything’s fine; is there really a point to doing this now? I get those concerns wholeheartedly because they mirror my own daily thought processes. But with a new semester that may be your last, take heed of this piece’s ideas, not because I am a wise sage (gosh, no), but because in the blink of an eye, this can all vanish into darkness, or whatever lies beyond our states of consciousness. Even if this isn’t your last, at least start thinking about expressing your gratitude for those in your life to them. As someone I follow on Twitter’s profile says, “Saying something nice costs nothing.” To that, I’ll add, “But losing that chance to say anything can bring a lifetime of regret.”
Frankie Guarini Editor-in-Chief
Letters to the Editor Policies The opinions in letters sent to The Stute with the request to be published are the sole opinions of their author(s) and do not reflect the views and opinions of any member or person involved in the making of The Stute. These opinions are not endorsed by The Stute and the content of all letters are left in their original, unedited form. A disclaimer will accompany any letter that is published in The Stute stating this information. Letters may not exceed 500 words in length and must be fully attributed with name and title (non-attributed letters will be considered on a case-by-case basis, but the author’s identity must be made known to a member of the Executive Board). They must be emailed to eboard@thestute.com. The Stute reserves the right to not publish any letter submitted for publication.
Mind of a Freshman
Another new beginning
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by GABRIELLE McCORMACK Freshman Software Engineering Major
Being able to say that I have officially completed my first semester of college is surreal to me. Even though I knew this would happen, up until these past few weeks I was in disbelief of how
far I had come. Surviving my first few months on campus, I’ve learned a great deal of information that will serve me both academically, and in the real world. There were times, like those that all students experience here, when I wondered how much pressure I would be able to handle. Between classes, projects, and extracurricular activities, my weeks became quite a bit hectic at times. I loved every minute of feeling the pressure, at the same time knowing that I was involving myself in activities on campus while
also keeping up with my school work, and having a great time along the way. Before I knew it, the semester was over, finals had come and gone, and I was on my way back home. My first few days at home were quite boring, not knowing what to do with myself. After all, I had no projects, homework, or meetings to attend. When I finally realized that I could relax, I spent my time catching up with old high school friends, working on personal projects, and baking to my heart’s content.
Though at first winter break seemed endless, soon enough it was the weekend before the first day of classes and I was packing my things to move back to school. With this in mind, I was definitely excited to return and see my friends who I hadn’t seen in almost a month. With this excitement came anticipation to begin a new semester with new classes and a clean slate. I know that with this new semester, I will be starting fresh and doing everything that I love to do at a school that I am still in awe of.
Senioritis
The beginning of the end
by JOSEPH BROSNAN
5/5 Civil Engineering Major
You know that feeling when you’re reading a book and you finally arrive at the last chapter? Yeah, that’s about how I feel right now. I mean, the “climax”
of my story is yet to come - I’m still hunting for a job, but I’ve passed the FE, and my Senior Design Project is chugging along as well as it can. Even so, I can feel the end of the book in my fingertips, and I can practically count the amount of pages left. Even though I am 100% eager to finish this book, I find myself wishing for just another chapter. Just one. There are still a few pieces of unfinished business plot points that haven’t been covered, arcs that aren’t wholly closed. But I guess that’s life.
In the mean time, I can’t just close the book and be like “yup, close enough, I’m done!” (even though I totally stopped paying attention to the words last chapter) but I still have to go through the motion of reading, just to say I’ve read it. Ugh. This is Senioritis. This is the beginning of the end. I can’t wait, and I can’t stop. I would love to continue this journey of college, but I also can’t wait to just get on with my life and start doing something real. I’d love to be totally happy with everything right now, but, if you’ve
read my columns at all last year, you’ll know that if I were, I’d be lying my teeth off. There’s so much screwy with this school that even in the two weeks I’ve been in Hoboken, the bureaucracy of the Howe Center has already pissed me off twice. It really makes me wonder who is behind it all, what person or group of people - everyone I meet seems to roll their eyes at the nonsense of budgets not being completed and repairs not happening. But you know what? In a few months it won’t be my problem.
Once I get a job, once I finish Senior Design, and once CPAC runs to completion: I will be free.
This impending liberation is exciting and anxiety inducing. Hopefully all goes according to plan.
COUNTDOWN TO FREEDOM
124 Days until Commencement, May 25th, 2016
Friday, January 29, 2016 • Page 3
Technically Speaking
Mobilizing the world of virtual reality
by TARIK KDIRY
Freshman Software Engineering Major
Virtual reality is making headlines from being integrated into modern entertainment, news, and more. The concept of VR has finally made its way into the public mind share. Though virtual reality is now becoming more prominent in entertainment, the history of VR begins in the 1960s. Following World War II, millions of dollars were invested in communication and computing, which resulted in a push for more user-friendly gadgets. VR began to gain momentum in the world of aviation. Aircraft designers began experimenting with simulations and models that could train pilots
for commercial airlines and the military. This technological movement flourished in the 1990s and slowly made way for entertainment devices such as the View-Master and now the more popular Oculus Rift. The Oculus Rift, as well as many similar devices, has the ability to make users feel as though they are in a different world. I first experienced the Rift when my physics teacher decided it would be the best way to spend the last week of classes. I was a bit skeptical at first, but upon playing with the device I have experienced engagement in many different worlds. Whether those worlds were underwater fantasies or rollercoasters, I felt like I was experiencing these events in real life. As if video games weren’t already addicting, VR devices have proven to be hard to put down altogether. With the ever increasing focus on virtual reality development comes an impressive increase in
demand for more accessible devices. As developers and gamers alike are quickly rushing headfirst into the virtual reality market, it is becoming easier to gain access to this breakthrough in modern entertainment. Virtual reality has particularly made its way into the public eye in the last year or so by being compatible with mobile devices. There are cardboard VR devices such as the
Google Cardboard that are easy on the wallet, as well as on the user in terms of usability. The cardboard device is a very cheap and highly accessible way to experience the world of VR. In the last couple months, companies have begun to offer free VR devices. The New York Times includes a free Google Cardboard viewer with subscription purchases, for the purpose of exposing their new app, NYT VR.
NYT VR allows users to experience news like never before — to be in the middle of it. I subscribed to The New York Times and received a Google Cardboard that fit my iPhone 6s. With a push of a button and a few app downloads, I was able to see anything from the Bataclan memorial covered by Times, to the Eiffel Tower via Google Earth. The detail is vivid, and can only be beat by the more expensive Oculus
Rift. I was astonished that all I needed was a couple minutes and a recent smartphone. Users can experience museums, games, maps, and even their own photos and videos with the current phone-compatible VR devices. This new shift in entertainment has affected gaming to news and everything in between. What else is there to do but sit back and watch this revolution of modern technology unfold?
Wikimedia Commons
Scientific Curmudgeon
News flash: We’re still human
by JOHN HORGAN
Director, Center for Science Writings
At the end of every year for almost two decades, science-book agent John Brockman poses a provocative question to a bunch of smarty-pants, including scientists, philosophers and journalists.
He then publishes the responses on his website, edge.org, and in a book. Here’s this year’s question: “What do you consider the most interesting recent [scientific] news?” Brockman just posted responses from almost 200 Edgeheads. Many, as you might guess, claim that science is going to alter us in some dramatic way. CRISPR “will transform our species and life itself, fast.” Optogenetics will “allow our minds to encompass the world of computers.” Bayesian algorithms will make machines so smart
that humans become “obsolete.” And so on. I can’t help responding to these responses. First of all, these sorts of predictions are old hat. In his 1929 work The World, the Flesh and the Devil, the British chemist J.D. Bernal predicted that science would soon allow us to radically re-design our bodies and minds, making us something other than human. “Finally, consciousness itself may end or vanish in a humanity that has become completely etherealized,” Bernal wrote, “losing
Cuisine Corner
House of ‘Que (340 Sinatra)
by KATRINA GUIDO
Sophomore Computer Science and Physics Major
In an attempt to extend my winter break trip to Texas by the tiniest bit, for my first review I went down to Sinatra Dr. for some “Authentic Austin Barbeque” from the new House of ‘Que. Eager to compare my newly acquired taste for barbeque and armed with a partner who spent the first 18 or so years of his life in Texas, I was ready. The décor seems spot
on, perhaps a bit more trendy with all of the TVs and neon lighting than the backwoods mom and pop places at which I’ve eaten, but all in all with their fake old/weathered ambience I was no longer in Hoboken or anywhere close really. With $35 to spend, I left the ordering up to my partner and Lone Star State native who chose a sliced brisket sandwich, ¼ lb. of sausage, half of a smoked chicken, a small mac n’ cheese, and a small cup of brisket chili. If I thought I was in Texas before, the prices certainly kept me grounded in Hoboken. Guests can choose to either order at the counter cafeteria-style or opt for table service. Wanting to keep things authentic, we of course opted for cafeteria-style.
The sandwich was tasty – the brisket was tender, juicy, and fatty but not grizzly, the bread was nothing special really, but I’m not kidding myself into thinking that the sandwich was not all about the mouth-wateringly smoky meat. Decently priced for Hoboken, the same sandwich would cost about half the price at a backwoods joint in Texas. For those of you who don’t know (you’ve probably been spending too much time in yoga studios and eating rabbit food), brisket is a cut of meat taken from the breast or lower chest of a cow. Talk to just about anyone from the South, and they will be thoroughly sore about all of the Northern misnamed “barbeques” which in reality are just cook-outs
the close-knit organism, becoming masses of atoms communicating by radiation, and ultimately perhaps resolving itself entirely into light.” Got that? We’re going to turn into optical supercomputers. These once-startling visions have become clichés, endlessly recycled by the modern scientific hype machine. With each new genuine or spurious advance in artificial intelligence, neuroscience and genetics, pundits promise or warn that we are barreling toward a future in which we are irrevocably trans-
formed. The Singularity, a technological heaven or hell, is coming. The real news is how resistant we’ve turned out to be to self-engineering, in spite of all that has happened since Bernal’s prophesy. Yes, science has spawned countless advances, material and intellectual, from smart phones to smart bombs, and yet our lives remain in fundamental ways unchanged. We keep muddling along with all our frailties of mind and body, vulnerable to loneliness and heartbreak, fear and rage, pity and melan-
HOURS of OPERATION Sun.-Wed.: 11 a.m.–12 a.m. Thurs.: 11 a.m.–1 a.m. Fri.-Sat.: 11 a.m.–2 a.m. due to the lack of brisket and the like. The sausage was by far my favorite. Having been raised on spicy Italian sausage, with time I’ve come to appreciate the idea of a smoky spice and House of ‘Que certainly has that correct. The chicken was dry, not much else to say about that. The sauces were good, both sweet and smoky with one a little bit spicier, though neither my partner nor I could pinpoint why they tasted slightly different than to what we were accustomed. The mac and cheese was smooth but nothing special, and the brisket in the chili was incredibly tender with the perfect hint of heat but was a little too saucy for my and my partner’s tastes. Overall, House of
choly. We love, grieve, age, die. I suspect we will never escape these essential components of the human condition, in spite of our fantasies and fears of techno-transcendence. Here’s a question for Edgeheads and others: Should we be glad or sad that we remain so stubbornly human? John Horgan directs the Center for Science Writings, which is part of the College of Arts & Letters. This column is adapted from one originally published on his ScientificAmerican.com blog, “Cross-check.”
CONTACT (201) 706-8755 www.houseofque.com
‘Que is the closest thing to Southern barbeque Hoboken has and isn’t even a bad attempt. I would be more inclined to go back between 11 am and 3 p.m. weekdays for the lunch specials which are priced more college-friendly. However, after the meal my Lone Star friend and I did agree that the flavor of the meat was
different, though as with the sauces we could not figure out why. Perhaps like the rest of the states just can’t capture the taste of a New York/ Jersey pizza or loaf of seeded semolina, the North can’t exactly replicate the taste of Southern barbeque because it’s all about the water, or something along those lines.
Katrina Guido
Campus Pulse
Friday, January 29, 2016 • Page 4
Roving Reporter
What did you do during winter storm Jonas?
“I built a snowman with my friends.”
“Slept in.”
“Built a snow fort with the men’s volleyball team.”
Chelsea Aure
Liam McMurty
Josh Minton
“I made a snow fort.”
“Went home for a different reason and ended up shoveling snow.”
“Played a lot of Fallout 4.”
Kayleigh Lassende
Andrew Guthrie
Emma Murphy
Polling Pierce Are you pledging a sorority or fraternity? (Based on 100 responses)
Yes, a sorority
17
Yes, a fraternity
21
No
62
Where the duck?
Pearls of
Wisdom Happy happy, joy joy — my ducklings and mighty ducks are back from winter break, and I’m thrilled to my core. I hope everyone had the greatest time with family and friends, but now that you’re back, it’s time to really get serious about your studies. Time has gone by so fast, and you all have made it this far. I know it couldn’t have been easy, but you’re already halfway through so expect things to get harder. The good news is that you only have four more months to go, and I know you can do it. You didn’t make it here to one of the most difficult colleges in this country because they needed to fill the space. You made it here because you’ve got skills. You’ve got what it takes to succeed and make it as far as you want to go. Just keep on pushing, no matter what may come you can do this! Remember: May is only a hop, skip, and a jump away. Hang in there, ducks. Hang in there! Love from your girl,
StevensTHON is a year-long philanthropy that raises funds for the patients at the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals. The best part: all the money we raise will stay right here in New Jersey and is donated to local hospitals. We get to see where the money goes and hang out with the kids it directly affects. Whether you’re one person, a small group, or a huge organization, everyone and anyone can make a difference for the kids. Go to stevensTHON.kintera.org and join a Miracle Child team today! There will be various food discounts throughout Hoboken until the day of the event. Once you join a team, we will keep you in the loop on these. Keep up to date with us by checking the Student Life Newsletter, The Stute, and posted flyers around campus!
Know where this is? Let us know at eboard@thestute.com!
Strips
Friday, January 29, 2016 • Page 5
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News
Friday, January 29, 2016 • Page 6
Improv
Continued from front page
were helpful last year to improve.” The final match was decided by three professional judges from Chicago. The three first-place preliminary teams and one second-place wild card team competed in the final round. This included Danger Box of New York University, Combo Za of Williams College, Off Center of Stevens, and The Exit Players of Yale. “Going up
against such good teams, we were not expecting to win. It was a total surprise,” said Fitzgerald. “I think we were all really surprised. They announced second place was Danger Box, and that felt bad because we didn’t think we were going to place. Then, we came in first and we were really surprised,” said member Quigley. “Overall, I’m really proud and grateful to have been a part of such a rewarding experience and am very excited for nationals.” This semester, Off Cen-
Leave
Continued from front page
Lisa Mengotto
ter will perform two sketch shows and two improv shows. “We’re going to practice our improv
skills and make sure we’re up to the challenge of nationals,” said President Fitzgerald.
ship. Simultaneously, the Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship was merged with the Office of Research under Vice Provost Mo Dehghani. ViceProvost Christodoulatos served in his position since 2008, and will continue to remain on faculty as the director of the Center for Environmental Systems, and as a senior Innovation and Entrepreneurship advisor.
Ceila Llano, the manager of the Student Service Center, retired this month, after being a member of the Stevens community for 15 years. Finally, this week University Registrar Thomas Castiglione left his position that he has held since mid-2014. The University is in the process of forming a search committee to find a new registrar. In the meantime, Associate University Registrar Maria Di Stefano will be working to ensure the Office of the Registrar remains operational.
Winterstorm Jonas: the foundation for snowy innovation
David Ovsiew
Photos courtesy of Hart Welles
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Opinion
Friday, January 29, 2016 • Page 8
Always Right
Letter to the Editor
Back doors in the spotlight
by DENNIS STEWART Senior Cybersecurity Major
I was pleasantly surprised to see recent Stevens graduate Marques Brownlee on the Democratic debate on January 17th. He, along with other prominent YouTube video produces, recorded questions for the debate. I hate to drop a long quotes on readers, but I feel it’s important to include Brownlee’s question and the candidates’ answers. “I think America’s future success is tied to getting all kinds of tech right. Tech companies are responsible for the encryption technology to protect personal data, but the government wants a back door into that information.
So do you think it’s possible to find common ground? And where do you stand on privacy versus security?” Unfortunately, Martin O’Malley was the only candidate to answer the question. His argument boils down to that “our federal government should have to get a warrant, whether they want to come through the back door or your front door.” O’Malley added that “there are certain immutable principles that will not become antique things in our country so long as we defend our country and its values and its freedoms. And one of those things is our right to be secure in our homes, and our right to expect that our federal government should have to get a warrant.” I was pleased that O’Malley supports requiring warrants for surveillance. Unfortunately, he did not make any statements about the implementation of cryptographic back-
doors. Recently, many public officials have demanded that tech companies include back doors into products using cryptography. These back doors would allow a third party (ideally an intelligence agency) to access otherwise encrypted information. The public perceives encryption as a tool used by terrorists and criminals to hide from the law. This belief is shaped in part by misleading statements from the likes of FBI Director James Comey and UK Prime Minister David Cameron. In reality, you likely use encryption on a daily basis. Unless something is wrong, every time you use your credit card, log into a website, or even just connect to a wifi network, you are using encryption . The supposed need for surveillance and access to encrypted systems is a topic for another day. I’m just going to explain how back doors undermine these systems. There is
no way to prevent “bad guys” from using these back doors to steal data or commit fraud or other crimes. Similar approaches taken by the United States in the past have failed. Until 1996, encryption software in the United States was legally classified as ‘Auxilliary Military Equipment. As computers grew cheaper and more powerful, anyone could crack these systems with brute force. In the past year alone, attacks such as FREAK and Logjam have taken advantage of weak crypto still used on modern systems for backwards compatibility. O’Malley talked about immutable principles in his response to Brownlee’s question. I’ll print one here: it is mathematically impossible to create a cryptosystem that is secure against “bad guys,” but also includes holes for “good guys” can use. I hope that our public officials come to realize this in the coming months.
+MarquesBrownlee on GooglePlus
Move towards transparency by JOSEPH BROSNAN Guest Contributor
I will preface this with the following: This is a vent. I am very frustrated with the lack of communication from the Board and the rest of authority at Stevens with the students. I know I am not alone in this matter. Recently there have been a myriad of issues with campus: pipes bursting in the Howe Center and the Rocco Building, panels falling off the Babbio Center, blocks falling out of the Gatehouse Building, sections of roadway falling off a cliff near Babbio, and a whole heck of other things that never really get talked about. Why, for instance, was the Babbio Center Parking Lot never completed? I mean, I’ve heard dozens of rumors that all seem to be true, but why can’t I hear exactly what’s going on from the administration at Stevens? I get it that it is semi-confidential, and that plans that haven’t met approval shouldn’t be announced, but I’d really love it if someone from above just came out with a monthly statement announcing present and past issues on campus and how they plan to go about resolving them or have already
resolved them. That would make me so much more content with Stevens. I’d think that the administration actually had a handle on things, and wasn’t as incompetent as I presently believe them to be. And if that is too much, why not just give a little email when a serious issue comes up? Like, for instance, when the sinkhole appeared near Babbio. Rather than just silently putting up barriers, why not send an email to all students like this: “Please be aware that a sinkhole has appeared by the northern patio of the Babbio Center. This issue may have been caused by the incomplete nature of the Parking Garage and the areas being exposed to excessive runoff. Please avoid the area and stay behind the police tape for your own safety while we work towards resolving the issue”? It’s really that simple. State the issue, explain a possible cause, give an instruction, and explain your goals moving forwards. It is short, simple, and reassures everyone on campus that you have a plan, and aren’t just trying to cover up mistakes. All I am asking is for a little more communication from the authorities. I don’t think this should be too difficult.
“Who Can I Be Now?”: A Stevens appreciation of David Bowie by ANDY WALDRON Staff Writer
In the aftermath of Monday, January 11, we were witnesses to a peculiar flood of diverse imagery through various media. We heard science fiction lullabies, anthems of lovers defying all odds, and calls to express our true selves. We saw flashes of striking fashion, live reports from a Soho apartment building adorned with flowers, and an outpouring of grief by current trendsetters. As relative outsiders to a cultural phenomenon who had been a dormant figure in our lifetimes, we, young adults of a generation cast as “millennials” attending a technology-focused university, can justly ask in an effort to understand this seemingly-removed icon and his impact: What does David Bowie mean to us? The answer to this may lie in the technology we’re engaging with; Bowie can be rightfully attributed as the first major artist to both release a downloadable single, 1997’s lovably dated drum-and-bass dabbling “Telling Lies,” and start an internet service provider. The equally-asdated “BowieNet” gave musicians a chance to get ahead of the technological curve and users 20 megabytes to start their own site. For majors living in
the Babbio Center, a quick Google search for “Bowie Bonds” will bring up a lesson in utilizing intellectual property (the rights to his earlier work) as collateral. In the CAL department, people can see his past walking around the Morton-Peirce-Kidde complex. Director of the Sound Synthesis Research Center Carlos Alomar is the individual responsible for Bowie’s meaningful engagement with American soul music on 1974’s “Young Americans,” a close collaborator from then on, bringing his character to several tours and culminating in “Fly,” an energetic cut off 2003’s “Reality.” Alomar now continues to provide guitar instruction for students and runs the Sound Synthesis Research Center, a lab featuring the latest in music technology alongside art rock icon Brian Eno’s “Oblique Strategy” inspiration cards, providing the same inspiration to current students that drove Bowie’s work from 1977 to 1979. Technical advancements like those in the Sound Synthesis Research Center show the mark of an individual who worked tirelessly to push against the boundaries of what an artist can do, something that’s further substantiated in finding what David Bowie meant to others. For some, he represented a disruption of gender: his proclama-
tion of being gay in a 1972 NME interview and his continued manipulation of sexuality through his identity was decades before our current societal and cultural recognition of gender expression. To others, a pioneer in genre subversion: it would be hard to imagine acts like Kanye West and David Byrne shifting styles between projects without Bowie first blurring the lines between pop, funk, krautrock, electronica, folk, and soul, engaging each in a deferential fashion free of uninformed appropriation. But to most, his output acted as a refuge for those living outside the norm, lyrics like “These children that you spit on, as they try to change their worlds, are immune to your consultations, they’re quite aware of what they’re going through” and “Oh no, love, you’re not alone” became sources of comfort for fans in his wake. In the weeks leading up to his passing, Bowie carefully prevented his sickness—an eighteen month battle with cancer only known to immediate family and close collaborators—from marring his otherworldly image and career at a time that other artists refer to as their “twilight years” with such human decay. His last public offerings became retrospectives of this state: Lazarus, a theatrical continuation
of his 1976 film, “The Man Who Fell To Earth,” starring Michael C. Hall as an immortal being attempting to find a way back to his home planet. Blackstar, his last album released on his sixty-ninth birthday two days before his passing, is a jazz-rock epic enveloping telling statements like “I can’t give everything away” and “Look up here, I’m in heaven / I’ve got scars that can’t be seen.” The only way he could earnestly convey his condition
to a world that couldn’t possibly fathom it was through his art. So no matter what he means to us, whether it’s as small as watching Emma Watson embodying the euphoric nature of “Heroes” as it plays in “The Perks of Being a Wallflower,” or as impactful as a welcoming escape from normativity, we cannot deny him as having an influence in our relationship with culture. After all the symbolism of flight, from visions
of a future in space to his last single, “Lazarus,” with its imagery of being “free, just like that bluebird,” an ideal can be drawn for extraordinary, cross-disciplinary inspiration. We can surely find David Bowie as an advocate for freedom of identity, collaboration, and, yes, freedom for innovation. Listen to a curated playlist of Bowie classics and deep cuts via WCPR’s Spotify Account: play.spotify. com/user/wcpr.
1947 - 2016
Jonathan Barnbrook
Friday, January 29, 2016 • Page 9
WCPR ReWrite
THE LIST: Winter again? Snow problem! by WCPR REWRITE STAFF
You have every right to cringe at that headline. But that’s the kind of cabin fever you get when you’re snowed in after a week of “back to normalcy.” Or maybe you don’t get that bug and enjoy a day free of outside contact, content to binge on Netflix and all the bread and milk. Or maybe you endure the weather to craft a snow fort, like the Stevens Engineer you are. Or maybe you’re like Andy and you make awful, chillingly bad puns to
yourself to pass the time. However you spend your snow day, here are some tracks to bundle up with. “Disintegration Anxiety” - Explosions in the Sky Explosions In the Sky are an instrumental post-rock group that are well known for their (err) explosions in music form (just listen to “The Only Moment We Were Alone”). For their latest track, “Disintegration Anxiety,” the band lightens the gun powder for a more secluded and anxious mood. The drums have sharp tones and reflect a lot of what anxiety feels like - hopelessness and fear - repeating the same motifs to symbolize the fact that the condition
feels like it never ends. How does this have to do with winter? For me, the cold weather certainly makes me feel secluded and anxious. I don’t know anything else better to listen to while walking in the tundra than a song that shows I’m not alone in the need for warmth. Ryan Klem “Winter Now” - Broadcast One telling motif of an Under the Radar feature, written by Mark Redfern around the time of “Haha Sound,” is living life inside your head; much like the introverted, bundled up nature of her band’s music, lead singer/ songwriter, Trish Keenan (R.I.P.) devolves several
instances of this, picking apart bouts of astral projection and a nightmare of being shot. There’s also talk of Joseph Byrd, leader of the experimental collective, United States of America, in a mental asylum – not to mention an anecdote about a chance sighting of Phil Spector, whose psychotic traversal ended up with abusive ends. There’s reason to believe, then, that these heady subjects influenced the words of “Winter Now,” with the subject keeping “sane when all is wrong” while the “deepest snow” lies all around. Though the heart “waits in winter,” the brain reminds it that “it’s just a dream.” - Andy Waldron
“Pictures of You” - The Cure The first snowfall of the year came when I was in the passenger seat of a deep impact blue muscle car. Playing the part of DJ, I chose “Pictures of You.” When I first explored The Cure, I was in middle school and I never ventured outside of “4:13 Dream.” But over the last couple years I’ve found a deeper appreciation---the band holds a nook in my head next to Tears For Fears and New Order. They all have this bare emotional feeling that seems to come off as really hot or, in the case of this night, very cold. Something about having all that warm weather in
the middle of December suddenly breaking with this snow perfectly depicted the versatility of the emotions in their music. “Pictures of You” hones in on this feeling as a telling of a distant time: I see it as a winter recollection of summer’s events, but not last summer’s. It’s a summer long ago that seems to clutch at December and all you have to really remember the best of it are the pictures. - Emma Murphy Be sure to check out these and other member picks via our “50 Songs for Snow” playlist, only on WCPR’s official Spotify: https://play.spotify. com/user/wcpr.
Wikipedia
Not With Those Shoes
Dressing confidently
by HOPE BRANDES
Sophomore Visual Arts & Technology Major
New year, new wardrobe! That’s how the saying goes right? It’s January, which means cozy sweaters, thick socks and a few style resolutions to get the year going. This week I want to talk a little less about clothes and a little more about the people wearing them. It’s hard to discuss fashion without addressing the body image and confidence issues surrounding it. That’s why my new year’s resolution for all of you is not to dress better, but to dress confidently. What does it mean to dress confidently you ask? It’s more than just feeling comfortable in the clothing you wear, but also the skin you’re in. Fashion is more than a price tag or trend, it’s about expression and acceptance. If I’ve learned anything from Stacy London and Clinton Kelly from What Not To Wear, it’s that most people who struggle in front of a mirror are not having a hard time choosing between floral or striped, but really are searching for the right way to express themselves. Fashion is best used as a creative outlet, just like painting, theater or piano, and if you’re not hav-
ing fun, you’re not doing it right. The first step to dressing confidently is to love what you wear. Yes, you can follow every issue of Vogue religiously and by every couture knock-off you can find, but I’ll let you in on a secret: fashion is not just about trends. Who was ever remembered for repeating the same thing? I love writing about what’s currently in, but real inspiration comes from breaking the mold and you don’t have to dress like everyone else to have style. Wear what you like, even if it isn’t typical. Similarly, stay positive. Once that seed of doubt is in your mind it’s hard to ignore. If you’re spending a day in the city or just walking around campus, forget what other people think. There are times when a first impression counts, like an interview or other special occasions. But on a regular basis, you should be dressing for you before anyone else. Let go of your fears of fitting in, and embrace the parts of you that stand out. Keeping a sunny attitude will help give you the confidence boost you need to look your best. What if you’re too worried about how others might perceive you? Fashion often overlaps with the insecurities we have about our appearances and ourselves. Want a way out? Fake it ‘til you make it. It’s not tough love, it’s the truth. You don’t need anyone else’s approval but your own, and if you can’t yet say with perfect confidence that you love yourself, pretend. So much of our own judg-
ments stem from what we say in our thoughts, so even if you don’t believe it, make those thoughts positive. When you lift yourself up, you start to feel better and then other people will notice your confidence too. All right, let’s get back to some fashion tips before this gets too ooey-gooey. This next step might put me in for fashion heresy, but here it goes: Don’t sacrifice comfort for the sake of being trendy. What? I know, but hear me out. You’re not going to be at your best when you can’t even move in what you’re wearing. Of course, we all have a few coveted pieces we’d walk through the fires of hell in just because we look bomb, but man at what cost?! The good news is, it’s actually not that hard to stay stylish and comfy at the same time. Especially in winter when a good sweater is all you need to accomplish both. Don’t fill your wardrobe with 5-inch heels or expensive ties if you actually hate them. Lastly, let yourself experiment. Don’t be afraid to mix patterns, bold colors and interesting cuts. No one’s going to judge you when you’re standing in the front of the mirror getting dressed. If you don’t like what you’ve picked, try something else. It’s okay to make mistakes, and you shouldn’t wear anything outside of the house that you don’t feel confident in. I hope this little pep talk has rallied your fashion spirits for the coming semester. If you take away anything, remember style should be about expressing yourself. Have fun and stay confident.
Varsity Sports
Friday, January 29, 2016 • Page 10
Raba Nassif named second team All-American SSI – Stevens Institute of Technology junior women’s soccer player Raba Nassif was named a Second Team All-American Monday by d3soccer.com. The honor adds to a long list of accolades racked-up by the Stevens forward this season which includes First Team All-Empire 8 Conference, E8 Offensive Player of the Year, First Team AllUpstate ECAC, ECAC Offensive Player of the Year, NSCAA All-Region, and NSCAA Second Team AllAmerican. The Jersey native is the first player in program history to be named to the second team of the website’s All-American list, joining
Stevens Sports Information
Heather Dean and Siena York-Carr who were each named to the third team in 2006.
Nassif led the team, and the nation, with 18 assists this season to go along with 19 goals off a team-leading
Ravi Sun named E8 Swimmer of the Week
59 shots on goal. Of the 19 scores, four of them were of the game-winning variety. Nassif’s team-leading
57 points this season were more than her previous two seasons combined, and she’ll enter the 2016 season second of the program’s alltime points list. Nassif became just the second player in program history to amass 100 career points in the Ducks final regular season match this fall. Due in large part to Nassif’s efforts this season, the Ducks captured their first E8 title since 2011 before falling in the third round of the NCAA Tournament to eventual national champion, Williams College. The Ducks also earned their highest postseason ranking of all time, coming-in at No. 13 in the final NSCAA poll.
Stevens leads E8 in allacademic teams for fall semester
ON DECK IN SPORTS
Friday WOMEN’S TRACK & FIELD at BU TERRIER CLASSIC 2 p.m. Boston, MA
MEN’S BASKETBALL vs ST. JOHN FISHER COLLEGE 4 p.m. Hoboken, N.J.
MEN’S VOLLEYBALL vs NEW YORK UNIVERSITY, 5 p.m., New York, NY
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL vs ST. JOHN FISHER COLLEGE 6 p.m. Hoboken, N.J.
Saturday
Stevens Sports Information
SSI – For the third time this year, senior Ravi Sun of the Stevens Institute of Technology men’s swimming team was named Empire 8 Conference Swimmer of the Week Monday. Sun had a strong showing in a dual-meet setback to No. 5 The College of New Jersey, collecting four first place finishes (three individual, one relay). The 200-yard medley relay team, which Sun led
off on, recorded a Schaefer Center Pool record time of 1:33.51. The Arkadelphia, AR native also picked up first place in the 100-yard backstroke (51.74), the 200yard backstroke (1:54.41), and ended the afternoon with first in the 200-yard IM (1:56.14). Sun and the Ducks are back home Saturday, taking on Hartwick College for Senior Day.
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MEN’S FENCING Stevens Sports Information
SSI – The Stevens Institute of Technology Department of Athletics saw 23 teams named Empire 8 Conference AllAcademic Teams for the 2015 fall semester, marking the most by any institution in the conference. Additionally, 115 student-athletes were named to the conference’s President’s List for earning a grade point average of 3.75 or higher while participating in a conference-sponsored sport, and displaying positive contact on and off campus. The team distinction is
earned by squads who’ve achieved a GPA of 3.2 or higher. Academic and athletic success went hand-inhand for the Ducks this fall as field hockey, men’s soccer, and women’s soccer each captured E8 titles to earn automatic bids to the NCAA Tournament. Women’s tennis and women’s volleyball each reached their respective conference finals, while freshman women’s cross country runner Mary Visca and men’s sophomore Greg Arabagian each qualified for the NCAA
National Championship. The men’s golf team set several individual and team records as well this fall, in addition to a top25 national fall ranking for men’s tennis. An all-time high of 806 student-athletes from the conference’s nine fulltime members, and nine affiliate institutions were awarded the distinction, while 109 teams were given the academic honor. The 4,433 studentathletes from the nine full-time members combined for a GPA of 3.186, setting another new-high for the conference.
THIS WEEK’S
SCORE BOARD
vs MIT 8 a.m. Boston, Mass.
MEN’S FENCING vs DUKE UNIVERSITY 8 a.m. Boston, Mass.
MEN’S FENCING vs BRANDEIS UNIVERSITY 8 a.m. Boston, Mass.
MEN’S FENCING vs BOSTON COLLEGE 8 a.m. Boston, Mass.
MEN’S FENCING vs BROWN UNIVERSITY 8 a.m. Boston, Mass.
MEN’S FENCING
01.22.15
Women’s Basketball
vs
Nazareth Univ. W 66-61
01.22.15
Men’s Basketball
vs
Nazareth Univ. L 74-84
01.22.15
Men’s Track & Field
at
Gotham Cup
Complete
01.22.15
Women’s Track & Field
at
Gotham Cup
Complete
01.20.15 Women’s Swimming vs TCNJ W 146-116 01.20.15 Men’s Swimming vs TCNJ L 158.5-102.5 01.18.15 Women’s Basketball vs Muhlenberg L 54-74
For more information, visit StevensRec.com
vs UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA 8 a.m. Boston, Mass.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, HEAD TO STEVENSDUCKS.COM