The Rice Thresher | Wednesday, January 29, 2025

VOLUME 109, ISSUE NO. 16 | STUDENT-RUN SINCE 1916 | RICETHRESHER.ORG | WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2025

In the shadow of NOD: New Wiess public met with mixed reviews ABIGAIL CHIU

THRESHER STAFF Wiess College hosted Masks After Dark on Jan. 25, its inaugural new public, which debuted months after administration permanently canceled the Night of Decadence. NOD, Wiess’ themed underwear party, had run for five decades — and was so risqué, it allegedly garnered Playboy attention — before excessive drinking and hospitalizations drove the party to its early death in October 2023.

Isabelle Shen and Rocio Gras, Wiess’ socials vice presidents, said they learned of NOD’s cancellation along with the rest of the student body on June 5. After brainstorming new public themes and soliciting student input, “Masks After Dark” was announced in October as the college’s new party. “[We were] a little surprised since we

hadn’t been told beforehand, but also a little worried, honestly,” Shen wrote in an email to the Thresher. “There was so much for us to put together now [that] we had to start from scratch.”

Wiess students voted on several possible themes, including options like Roaring ’20s, Aprés Ski-yee and Night at the Museum. After settling on a masquerade theme, Wiess socials opted to create the MAD acronym, loosely based on NOD’s tradition, Shen said.

MAD marks a change from other publics with a semi-formal dress code encouraged.

Shen said that students did wear the suggested attire.

“We advertised MAD as a semiformal public … and [administration] specifically asked for us to emphasize that clothes are required, as they initially feared students would continue treating the public like NOD,” Shen wrote.

BRYAN MENDOZA / THRESHER

Even when we pushed hard for some aspects, such as it being inside, to remain the same, they were very firm and would not allow us to take charge of that.

Isabelle Shen WIESS SOCIAL VICE PRESIDENT

SEE MAD DEBUTS PAGE 2

SA announces election timeline Feb. 6 Jan. 31

7:30 p.m.

Optional information session for prospective candidates

JAN

Feb. 26

11:59 p.m.

Deadline to submit campaign statements and pictures

Noon Campaigning period ends; voting period begins

Feb. 12

March 6

Noon Election results announced

7 a.m.

Campaigning begins

FEB

MAR Feb. 24

Feb. 5

11:59 p.m.

Deadline to submit hard copy of candidate petitions

9 p.m.

Senate votes to confirm the ballot

Jan. 27

9 p.m. Kyle Morrow Room Election timeline introduced at Senate

Feb. 10

2:15 p.m.

Mandatory candidate meeting with Director of Elections

March 5

Noon Voting period ends; Deadline to submit campaign finance form

SEE ELECTIONS TIMELINE PAGE 4 ALICE SUN / THRESHER DATA FROM SA DIRECTOR OF ELECTIONS

‘Breath(e)’ brings climate conversations from California to the Gulf Coast SHREYA CHALLA

SENIOR WRITER

A 3D-printed sculpture of the Houston skyline is slowly being eaten away by plastic-consuming enzymes at the Moody Center for the Arts. The piece is part of the center’s newest exhibition, “Breathe(e): Toward Climate and Social Justice,” which opened Friday, Jan. 24.

“Breath(e)” is an interdisciplinary exploration of the climate crisis and environmental justice and features works by 14 artists globally.

The gradually disintegrating Houston skyline piece was created by artist Xin Lu, artist-in-residence ​​ at Rice’s Houston Asian American Archive, in collaboration with the George N. Phillips, Jr. lab at the BioScience Research Collaborative.

It stands alongside other works, including painting, sculpture and video, according to Erin Rolfs, marketing and communications director at the Moody.

“This exhibition … extends the academic conversation about sustainability, which is a focus for so many disciplines at Rice, to include artists who explore the climate crisis and environmental justice,” Rolfs wrote in an email to the Thresher.

According to Rolfs, “Breath(e)” is a traveling exhibition that originated at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles and has been reimagined to respond to the Gulf Coast region and the unique architecture of the Moody Center. The exhibit was organized

by Alison Weaver, executive director at the Moody, and will be on view through May 10.

SEE MOODY PAGE 8

2 • WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2025

THE RICE THRESHER

Future of Rice research uncertain amid possible federal funding freeze ABIGAIL CHIU

THRESHER STAFF The White House announced a pause on all federal grants and loans Jan. 27.

The freeze was slated to go into effect Jan. 28 at 5 p.m. EST — just minutes before the clock hit, a federal judge temporarily blocked the freeze, effective until Feb. 3.

The Office of Management and Budget issued a memorandum requiring that federal agencies must identify and review all federal financial assistance programs and halt those that do not align with the Trump administration’s stated agenda.

“Federal agencies must temporarily pause all activities related to obligation or disbursement of all Federal financial assistance, and other relevant agency activities that may be implicated by the executive orders, including, but not limited to, financial assistance for foreign aid, nongovernmental organizations,

DEI, woke gender ideology and the green new deal,” the memo reads.

Rice University has received $1.9 billion in total federal awards, including $1.6 billion in federal grants, since 2002.

The university saw a record-high grant award total in 2023, receiving $121.8 million in federal grant funding. Rice also received $167 million and $155 million in 2024 and 2023 respectively from federal grants and contracts, according to their financial statements.

The National Science Foundation, which awarded the Rice-based Nanotechnology Enabled Water Treatment Center $16.5 million and Rice’s OpenStax $90 million, canceled all of its grant review panels this week and froze its grant review process in response to the executive orders.

The impact on future funding is unclear as federal agencies pause

activities related to disbursing financial assistance, with over 2,000 agencies under review.

Pell Grants and federal direct student loans are not impacted by the executive order, a spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Education later told the New York Times. Rice disbursed $152 million in grant and scholarship money to undergraduate students last year, said Paul Negrete, executive director of university financial aid services, in a Jan. 27 Senate meeting. Negrete was in attendance to deliver a presentation on Rice’s financial aid policies.

In a statement to the Thresher, Negrete later said “the Office of Management and Budget and U.S. Department of Education clarified Title IV federal student aid is not included in the temporary pause of federal financial assistance programs.

“In addition, the U.S. Department

of Veterans Affairs confirmed GI Bill payments are not included in the federal pause.”

The majority of Rice’s aid funding is raised internally, and only 5% comes from federal or state sources, Negrete said at the Jan. 27 Senate. Negrete also said Rice has a zero-loan policy, where any aid received from Rice will be made up of grant aid and institutional aid based on income level, not federal loans.

“Rice University is closely monitoring the temporary pause on federal financial assistance programs and assessing its potential impact on areas like research and student financial aid,” university spokesperson Chris Stipes wrote in a statement to the Thresher. “We are committed to providing our students, faculty and staff with the information and support they need as we better understand the impact of the pause.”

Nicole Waligora-Davis wants to ‘reach students where they are’ as new associate dean of humanities HONGTAO HU

email to the Thresher. “Associate Dean Waligora-Davis has served as associate chair and director of graduate studies The School of Humanities announced in the English department and has also Nicole Waligora-Davis as the new served on university-level dean search associate dean of humanities Jan. 21. committees and advisory committees. brings exceptionally strong Waligora-Davis will replace Natasha She Bowdoin as one of the associate deans, experience to the dean’s office.”

For Landry Wood, an English with the other being Fay Yarbrough. major who took WaligoraWa l i g o r a - D av i s ’ Davis said one Morrison and of her goals was Faulkner seminar, to increase the the quality of her prominence of I think having someone classes displayed the humanities at in the Dean’s office that her dedication to Rice. is really good [not only] the topic.

“We are a at bridging the gaps “She’s so premier site for passionate about research and between faculty members the things that i n n o v a t i o n , and departments, but she sets out to do, for curricular also with community and just how well innovation, for prepared [she is],” experiential and partners is really ideal Wood, a Hanszen engaged learning. because you get deeper College junior, I see my job is one and richer resources and said. “These were of heightening and opportunities when you’re once a week, threeunderscoring the hour classes, and visibility of that able to think outside pretty much down active work that’s of more mainstream to the minute she already happening channels. was prepared, and providing and filled the pathways to Margarita Castromán Soto continue to ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF ENGLISH whole time with interesting, expand that work and make it ever more accessible to more pertinent, well thought-out stuff, which and more students on our campus,” is really impressive.”

Waligora-Davis also served as a Waligora-Davis said.

After coming to Rice in 2008 as a faculty mentor to assistant professor professor of English, Waligora-Davis Margarita Castromán Soto when she helped to found the Center for African joined Rice as a junior faculty member and African American Studies. She sits in 2020. During this time, Castromán on the advisory board for the Center for said that her time under Waligora-Davis’ Civic Leadership and teaches English wing was encouraging.

“She would go out of her way to make classes with a focus on 19th and 20thsure that I felt seen,” Castromán said. century African American literature.

According to Dean of Humanities “I was on maternity leave in the spring, Kathleen Canning, the process of and she came over with not just food, choosing the new associate dean took but with a present for the baby and a present for my six-year-old, so that my months to complete.

“The associate dean position six-year-old wouldn’t feel awkward that is one for which the dean reviews the baby was getting all the attention. tenured colleagues in the school and She’s just someone who really goes the assesses the leadership experience of extra mile.”

Castromán said Waligora-Davis’ any faculty members who are under consideration,” Canning wrote in an ability to build connections with others THRESHER STAFF

KATHERINE HUI / THRESHER

makes h e r a good fit for the associate dean role.

“She connects on a personal level Waligorawith so many people. She Davis emphasized does the same with community the importance of making partnerships, and she’s worked with the humanities the Center for accessible to Civic Leadership, students. for example,” “I’m only two or Castromán said. three weeks in, and “I think having I’m trying to use this I’m trying to use someone in the time in these early weeks this time in these Dean’s office that early weeks to get a is really good [not to get a sense of the sense of the range only] at bridging range of activity that’s of activity that’s the gaps between already occurring within already occurring faculty members the school, and how to within the school, and departments, and how to leverage but also with leverage that activity that activity that’s c o m m u n i t y that’s already occurring already occurring partners is really into ways that can into ways that can ideal because you increase its visibility and increase its visibility get deeper and and accessibility richer resources accessibility to students. to students,” and opportunities Nicole Waligora-Davis Wa l igo r a - D av i s when you’re able ASSOCIATE DEAN OF HUMANITIES said. “I’m invested to think outside of in figuring out ways more mainstream to reach students where they are.” channels.”

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2025 • 3

NEWS

Rice climate scientists say more freezes to come HOPE YANG

THRESHER STAFF

Winter Storm Enzo, which brought snow to Houston and halted operations at Rice Tuesday Jan. 21, may suggest similar weather events to come in the future. As a result of climate change, students can expect warmer Decembers and sudden frigid weather, Office of Sustainability executive director Richard Johnson said.

“You get the prospect that Rice KONSTANTIN SAVVON / THRESHER students will wear shorts and t-shirts more frequently in the winter, and, yet, have opportunities for a snowball Dining] didn’t salt, but they sanded the fight on Founders Court,” Johnson, an staircases around campus so people environmental studies professor, wrote in didn’t slip in that.”

The Incident Management Team an email to the Thresher.

Like Winter Storm Uri, which struck also wrapped pipes and helped gather Houston in 2021, Winter Storm Enzo food and supplies according to Beth resulted from an arctic air mass traveling Leaver, executive director of Housing southward and interacting with low- and Dining.

“Our on-site first responder pressure systems in the Gulf of Mexico.

Increasing temperatures in the Arctic maintenance teams play a crucial role regions may worsen this phenomenon by in mitigating immediate concerns and weakening the polar jet stream, a band of collaborating with the facilities team fast-moving winds acting as a barrier to to ensure all buildings remain fully contain the air in the North Pole known operational,” Leaver wrote in an email to as the polar vortex. With the jet stream the Thresher.

Johnson said Rice has been investing in weakened, frigid air could surge to lower improving energy infrastructure to reduce latitudes, Johnson said. the likelihood of S t u d e n t power outages, Association and that social E nv i r o n m e n t a l Commission co- How do we help each other infrastructure is also important chair Audrey to weather such events? when facing Arroyave said climate change. that the storm Richard Johnson “How do we was unexpected OFFICE OF SUSTAINABILITY help each other for students.

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR to weather such “I’m from the Houston area, so I grew up seeing events?” Johnson wrote. “Especially … severe weather, and this was nothing those without a lot of resources … [who] like anything I’ve ever seen,” Arroyave, a suddenly have gone without power for an Lovett College senior, said. “I think a lot extended period and had to throw away of students kind of resonated with that their perishable food or had to live in a because school was canceled so far ahead motel for a week, or worse still, if they of time compared to previous years … don’t have a home to begin with?”

Mendoza said that the Rice campus Everyone was shocked by how serious this and surrounding areas are relatively seems and how much snowfall we got.”

Houston’s infrastructure is not designed shielded from the effects of storms to support extreme weather events due to compared to underprivileged areas.

“In general, Rice and surrounding climate change, Johnson said.

“For many, Winter Storm Enzo was neighborhoods shouldn’t worry too simply a fun snow day,” Johnson wrote. much,” Mendoza said. “It’s more so lower“Had we received several inches of ice income communities that should worry.”

Arroyave said Rice should take an instead of snow, the negative impacts would likely have been far greater, assertive role in impacting energy policies and we’d be thinking about what just that can influence climate change.

“I think Rice definitely has a big role happened in a different way.”

Rice Climate Association president in being a leading institution in Houston, Bryan Mendoza said there have been and especially Houston being the energy improvements since Winter Storm Uri in capital and energy being a cause for 2021, which caused power outages for 1.4 [climate change],” Arroyave said. “There just needs to be more of a combined effort million people in the Houston area.

“I think [the storms] will get worse, but and with the support of [administration] we are getting more resilient,” Mendoza, as far as policies, as far as clean energy, as a Lovett senior, said. “I think Rice had a far as encouraging that and making that pretty good response … [Housing and more public.”

MAD DEBUTS

“The big changes to the public that most students didn’t like (completely different theme with completely different attire, date, outdoor public) were entirely [administration] and our magister’s decision, and we had no say in it. Even when we pushed hard for some aspects, such as it being inside, to remain the same, they were very firm and would not allow us to take charge of that.”

Bridget Gorman, dean of undergraduates, and Flavio Cunha, Wiess magister, did not provide comment in time for publication.

Students in attendance said they had mixed opinions on MAD, particularly about the newly-outdoors location change. Wiess sophomore Sergio Karam

understanding of where I’m at,” Sundararajan, a Sid Richardson College junior, said. “It showed I had less fat The Rice Recreation Center than I expected, especially around my recently introduced Dual-Energy X-ray organs. That information is invaluable.”

The Rec also provides informational Absorptiometry scans, which Anatolia Vick-Kregel, senior associate director documents to help users interpret of health and well-being at Rice, their results, a necessary shift described as a cutting-edge method for after high demand made one-onbody composition analysis. DEXA scans one consultations unsustainable, provide a detailed breakdown of muscle according to Vick-Kregel.

KamRen Walls, a personal trainer at mass, body fat percentage and bone the Rec who used mineral density. the scan, said he According appreciated the to Vick-Kregel, actionable nature these metrics Anyone serious about of the results. can help fitness should do this.

“It’s an eightindividuals page report, but b e t t e r Pranav Sundararajan everything is easy understand their SID RICHARDSON COLLEGE JUNIOR to follow,” Walls, bodies and tailor a Wiess College senior, said. “It breaks fitness and nutrition strategies.

The initiative, launched Nov. 4, 2024, down body composition in a way that’s aims to make advanced health metrics practical for setting health goals.”

Sundararajan said he would like to widely accessible. Vick-Kregel said affordability was a driving force behind see room for further integration with other wellness initiatives. the program.

“It would be great to see more “We wanted to eliminate price as a barrier to this gold-standard tool,” Vick- structured packages that combine scans Kregel said. “Students, faculty and staff with personal training or nutrition can access the scan for $30, which is counseling to create a more guided significantly less than the $90 to $150 experience,” Sundararajan said.

Vick-Kregel noted that two of the seen at other facilities.”

DEXA scans use low-dose X-rays Rec’s personal trainers are certified to analyze an individual’s body to administer DEXA scans and often composition. The scan provides discuss results with participants.

“The ultimate goal is to create new measurements such as bone density, fat around organs and muscle mass packages that tie DEXA results to services and can guide users in creating like personal training or nutrition personalized fitness and nutrition consultations,” Vick-Kregel said. “This plans based on their unique metrics, way, people aren’t left wondering, ‘I got a DEXA scan — now what?’”

Vick-Kregel said.

Vick-Kregel recommends scheduling For fitness enthusiasts like Pranav scans early in the morning on an Sundararajan, the scan offers clarity.

“I’m into bodybuilding, and this gave empty stomach for optimal results. She me a also said the service is not limited to d e e p e r students: faculty, staff and even nonmembers of the Rice community can COURTESY KAMREN WALLS book scans, albeit at higher prices.

With over 200 scans conducted since the program’s launch, Vick-Kregel believes the DEXA scan initiative is only the beginning.

“This is part of a larger effort to integrate advanced health technology into Rice’s wellness ecosystem,” VickKregel said.

“Anyone serious about fitness should do this,” Sundararajan said.

“It’s a checkpoint, a baseline. It shows where you are and where you can go.”

CHARLIE CRUZ

THRESHER STAFF

FROM FRONT PAGE

DEXA body composition scans available at Rec

“I think it’s hard to throw an outdoor said MAD was enjoyable, but couldn’t live public because the space is so big, and it’s up to NOD’s standards.

“It’s not as good as NOD, but I think hard to make it as hype,” Lee said. “So it’s given the circumstances, the social vice not Wiess’s fault, but it’s a little difficult to make the party presidents did a fun. But they did a great job. It couldn’t good job with the be as hyped up as decorations, and I NOD was, frankly,” It’s not as good as NOD, enjoyed the video of Karam said. “The but I think given the the Costco guys.” [vice presidents] Karlianna put in a lot of work. circumstances, the social Kapche, a This is a great party vice presidents did a great College with what they job. It couldn’t be as hyped Duncan freshman, said she were given.” appreciated the Alexus Lee, a up as NOD was, frankly. semi-formal theme Will Rice College Sergio Karam but not the location. freshman, also said WIESS COLLEGE SOPHOMORE “It was nice to that the outdoor location made it difficult for MAD to keep have a more formal event, but maybe not outdoors,” Kapche said. the energy high.

Other attendees like Matthew Edelstein, a Wiess senior, said that the party had a good turnout.

“I’m having such a good time. I think [attendance] is really good,” Edelstein said.

“We voted for the theme. Even the people that don’t come out that often, they’re out tonight, and we are having fun.”

MAD drew negative comparisons to Martel’s Texas Party from Ava Yoder, a Duncan freshman.

“It’s giving Martel [Texas Party] in all the bad ways, unfortunately. But we’ve heard so much NOD lore and stories,” Yoder said. “In theory, [the theme] is good, but the masks are uncomfortable and inconvenient. I feel like it makes sense after the downfall of NOD for the first attempt to be not that great, but hopefully, it’ll be better in the future.”

4 • WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2025 FROM FRONT PAGE

NEWS

ELECTIONS TIMELINE

HONGTAO HU

THRESHER STAFF The Student Association’s director of elections Natalie Wang announced the election timeline in a senate meeting this Monday. Campaigning begins on Feb. 12 and ends on Feb. 26, with the voting period open for a week afterwards. Election results will be announced March 6 around noon.

Interested candidates can attend an

informational session Jan. 31 about petitions, which are due Feb. 5 at midnight.

Last year’s election received a voter turnout of 42.09%, nearly triple 2023’s turnout of 15.02%. Jae Kim was elected over Trevor Tobey for president, receiving 64% of first-place votes compared to Tobey’s 34.2%.

The ballot for this year contains races for the executive positions of president, internal vice president, external vice president, secretary and treasurer. In addition, four Honor Council positions from the sophomore to senior class, a total of 12, are up for election. Lastly, executive

Proposed amendments revamp constitution JAMES CANCELARICH

ASST. NEWS EDITOR

The Student Association Constitutional Revisions Committee announced four potential constitutional amendments at a Jan. 27 Senate meeting.

The amendments include correcting typos, restructuring the blanket tax allocations process, clarifying election rules and potentially reshaping the power structure of the Senate.

In total, the current proposals encompass over 100 changes. These amendments will be presented on the spring ballot after discussion and editing by the Senate.

Also under consideration is an amendment to increase the blanket tax from $85 to $90 to account for inflation and a bylaw amendment to establish an academics commission. These amendments are not part of the CRC’s proposed changes.

Currently, Senate resolutions and amendments to bylaws require a twothirds majority of voting members of the Senate. The constitutional amendment reduces this to a simple majority but gives the SA president veto power, which can be overridden by a two-thirds Senate majority vote.

While the president does not vote on Senate legislation, the executive committee — consisting of four elected members — does vote. The amendments revoke this power but give the executive committee the power to set Senate agendas, a power previously reserved solely for the president. Under the amendments, the president would be able to break a tie within the Senate.

Some of the amendments check the power of the president, while others give new powers. SA Parliamentarian Trevor Tobey said that the amendments give more power to Senate voting members, while also allowing for greater collaboration between the executive committee and the legislature.

“We want there to be equitable representation from every residential college in the Senate, and that can’t happen when the executive committee is also voting,” Tobey said during the Senate meeting. “But we also empower the executive committee with the check on legislature with the veto power.”

Amendment number 2 also revises the impeachment process. The outcome of the initial process was bound by the decision of the University Court, while the proposed amendments require an additional two-thirds majority of Senate voting members to remove the accused if found to have committed an impeachable offense by the UCourt. Under the bylaws, blanket tax organizations’s leaders could be impeached. The amendment proposes that they be subject to the same impeachment process a member of the executive committee would undergo.

The proposed amendments also overhaul the blanket tax system. The proposed blanket tax committee removes two officers of blanket tax organizations

from the committee, replacing them with three student association senators, alongside the unchanged three student association members not holding leadership roles in blanket tax organizations. Instead of reviewing blanket tax proposals biennially, the amendment changes the review to an annual basis.

The changes, according to Tobey, eliminate any potential for a conflict of interest in the allocation of blanket tax funds.

“The idea behind getting rid of the blanket tax leaders on the committee is that it creates a clear conflict of interest when blanket tax leaders are making decisions on the committee, and obviously they don’t vote on their individual budgets, they recuse themselves, however, there’s a clear incentive for someone with whatever organization is, or at least the appearance of self interest there,” Tobey said.

The SA is funded by the blanket tax, but Tobey said that since Senate members are elected to their positions, and are part of a deliberative body, they would not have the same conflict of interest that blanket tax organization leaders could potentially have. The proposed amendment gives the Senate “ultimate authority” over the SA budget, the blanket tax and blanket tax organizations.

“The idea there is that the Student Association Senate has the final say on the finances and the budgets of allocating the blanket tax that we collect and give to blanket tax organizations,” Tobey said.

Another change in the proposed amendments would only allow elected senators to propose legislation to the SA, rather than any student association members, which currently include all undergraduate students. Tobey said the idea behind that change was not to disenfranchise members of the SA, but rather to limit potential legislation to items that at least one voting Senate member approves of.

One of the reasons for proposing the amendments, Tobey said, was to prevent UCourt investigations into the actions of the SA. “After the UCourt case that overturned the newer constitution, there’s a lot of internal contradictions within not only the Constitution, but with the bylaws in the Constitution, and that makes it nearly impossible to govern other rules,” Tobey said. “We want clarity.”

Last year, a proposed amendment on the spring ballot was overturned after UCourt ruled that it was improperly represented on the ballot. Before that, UCourt ruled that a similar constitutional amendment was not ratified properly, not having achieved a 20% voter turnout, already after the SA had declared the amendment ratification successful.

“We want to be able to equitably apply the rules and procedures in the Constitution,” Tobey said. “That’s not possible when there’s in turn contradictions and problems with our processes and systems.”

positions of blanket tax organizations are on the ballot, including but not limited to the Rice Thresher’s Editor in Chief, Rice Program Council president and the University Court chair.

Also on the ballot will be a number of constitutional amendments, proposing, among other things, an increase in the blanket tax, a formation of an academics committee and sweeping revisions to the SA constitution.

Petitions to declare election candidacy are due to the RMC info desk Feb. 5, and campaign statements and pictures are due to Wang through the SA elections email.

On Feb. 10, Wang will be holding a candidate meeting for those who are running, to explain election regulations such as campaign financing.

Campaigns are expected to adhere to the same rules as last year’s special election, with the campaign season lasting two weeks from Feb. 12 at 7 a.m. to Feb. 26 at noon.

Students can find candidates’ statements and photos on the SA website when campaigning begins, and the Thresher will be hosting a Student Associate debate at Willy’s Pub during the two weeks of campaigning.

Rice Marriage Pact returns for third year VIOLA HSIA

ASST. NEWS EDITOR This year’s iteration of the Rice Marriage Pact opened Wednesday, Jan. 22 via email.

Matches will be released later this week, according to Allison He, Marriage Pact coordinator. The questionnaire closed at 5 p.m. on Tuesday after a one-day extension due to a “lopsided” respondent pool that would leave 52 heterosexual men unmatched.

According to He, 2217 students filled out the survey total.

JENNIFER LIU / THRESHER He, a Hanszen College senior, said although the Marriage Pact coordinators were concerned the snow day and subsequent class cancellations would were like, ‘Oh, is [the Marriage Pact] an affect the number of participants, there extension?’” He said. “That’s why we pushed it earlier this year. We just wanted more were no issues with participation.

“I think if anything, people were people to have the opportunity to take it.”

Raven Shamoo, a Hanszen junior, said participating in it, because it’s like, ‘What else are we gonna do?’” He said. “We’re they appreciate the Marriage Pact giving always getting at least 50 percent of the them the ability to connect with others on campus. student population, which is really good.”

“A lot of the reason I do the Marriage According to Katie Lee, a Marriage Pact launch product manager, the two previous Pact is just to meet new people, just to meet years of Rice Marriage Pact have increased someone you might not get a chance to familiarity with the survey and thus also otherwise, either because they’re in a different major or a different increased turnout. residential college,” Lee’s role is to help Shamoo said. “You introduce Marriage We’re always getting at might not cross Pact to universities. each other’s paths “This is just least 50 percent of the you have this our third annual student population, which unless compatible person Marriage Pact so generator that’s like, far,” Lee, McMurtry is really good.

‘Hey, you two might College senior, said. Allison He get along.’”

“We definitely have MARRIAGE PACT COORDINATOR Taylor Rosen, the advantage of people hearing about it from the previous Hanszen ’24, said she met her current boyfriend through the Marriage Pact in 2023. two years that we’ve launched at Rice.”

Both He and Lee mentioned that this year She advises students to be honest when was the first time the Marriage Pact did not filling out the survey.

“It’s really easy when you fill [the survey] launch simultaneously with Rice Program Council’s Crush Party — where students fill out, to fill it out how you wish you saw out a Google Form and are matched based on yourself,” Rosen said. “You should fill it out similarities in their answers – which typically as you really are. You’re going to have a better chance of meeting someone who’s similar to happens around Valentine’s Day. “Last year, we did it around the time of you if you’re just honest about what you view the RPC Crush Party, and [some] people yourself as.”

Open to students from any major and year!

Want to learn more about environment-related careers?

Join us for 2 panels and one-on-one networking!

Special thanks to:

Rice University Ley Student Center 6100 Main Street, Houston TX 77005

Snacks & Drinks will be provided.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2025 • 5

THE RICE THRESHER

EDITORIAL

Proposed constitutional changes — or power grab?

Four months ago, the Student Association formed a special committee to review its constitution. Two days ago, members of the committee presented their findings, suggesting four major changes to functionally, they say, streamline the SA’s efficiency — granting them “ultimate authority” over Blanket Tax Organizations like student media and Rice Program Council, and eliminating BTO perspectives from the committee that disburses some $300,000 every year.

We read each proposed amendment, so you don’t have to. We’ll say what this looks like: a power grab.

We wonder what “ultimate authority” entails — at the Jan. 27 Senate, the committee (CRC, we guess — because nothing streamlines efficiency like another acronym) representatives said this means that the Senate would get final approval over the budgets for any and all BTOs. But there is something more insidious here, too. At Senate, the CRC representatives discussed budgets, but didn’t clarify what “ultimate authority” over BTOs could look like. Will SA members have final say over the music played at ktru’s radio shows? Over the brand of condoms distributed at the Rice Women’s Resource Center? Over Beer Bike races, which demand endless months of extensive planning? Will we be impeached for writing this editorial?

We don’t know. That worries us. BTO leaders are elected by the student body to lead their respective groups — to keep the radio broadcasting, the newspaper

printing, the health resources available, the traditions alive. Frankly, we don’t trust the SA to wield “ultimate authority” over these jobs.

Will SA members have final say over the music played at ktru’s radio shows? Over the brand of condoms distributed at the Rice Women’s Resource Center? ... Will we be impeached for writing this editorial?

Another constitutional change would remove the two BTO leaders from the committee that oversees the spending of Blanket Tax’s some $300,000.

The Thresher has traditionally been represented on that committee.

At Senate, the CRC representatives called BTO presence a “conflict of interest.” Leaders are not permitted to vote on the budget of their own organizations, and any increased budget requests are thoroughly scrutinized, but we’re not surprised that the amendment didn’t seem to reflect this knowledge.

According to minutes from every Blanket Tax Committee meeting since September, one of the CRC representatives — also the current parliamentarian, a non-voting member — has only attended once.

The new Blanket Tax Committee would only reflect the Student Association’s interests, without input from any other organization. We believe the federal government has a term for what this structure lacks: checks and balances.

We recognize the proposed addition of non-BTO students might mitigate this one-sidedness — though these members would be appointed by the SA president, we should add — but it’s not enough.

The SA and non-BTO members don’t know, for example, how much it costs to print a weekly newspaper or to secure the necessary food, drink, tents and supplies for Beer Bike.

The Thresher reports on the actions of the Senate and the Editorial Board endorses candidates in elections. If no one from the Thresher, or from any BTO, serves on the committee, who stops SA members from hypothetically slashing newspaper funds if we published a critical story? What if the committee is overseen by a treasurer — or president — we didn’t endorse in the election?

There’s more, too, that concerns us. Our first draft of this editorial was 900 words. We believe requiring SA voting members to sponsor any new legislation would discourage students from presenting new policies, and we don’t see the purpose in revoking the executive committee’s voting rights.

But we’ll circle back to the start, and pose a question to our readers. If the SA had “ultimate authority” over the Thresher, would you trust us?

We wouldn’t.

EDITORIAL CARTOON

EDITORIAL STAFF * Indicates Editorial Board member Riya Misra* Editor-in-Chief Maria Morkas* Managing Editor Spring Chenjp* Managing Editor NEWS Sarah Knowlton* Editor James Cancelarich Asst. Editor Viola Hsia Asst. Editor Belinda Zhu Asst. Editor OPINION Sammy Baek* Editor Jenna Perrone Asst. Editor FEATURES Shruti Patankar* Editor ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Juliana Lightsey* Editor Arman Saxena* Editor SPORTS Kathleen Ortiz* Editor Diego Palos Rodriguez Asst. Editor Andersen Pickard Asst. Editor BACKPAGE Andrew Kim Editor Charlie Maxson Senior Writer Max Scholl Senior Writer Will Howley Senior Writer COPY Annika Bhananker Editor Jaden Kolenbrander Editor PHOTO, VIDEO, & WEB Cali Liu Photo Editor Francesca Nemati Photo Editor Steven Burgess Video Editor Ayaan Riaz Web Editor DESIGN Alice Sun Art & Design Director Chloe Chan News Siddhi Narayan Opinion Jessica Xu Features Alexa Bu Arts & Entertainment Kirstie Qian Sports Lauren Yu Backpage BUSINESS Emma McLean Business Manager Alina Zhong Advertisement Rahul Santhanam Advertisement Audrey Witherspoon Distribution

ABOUT The Rice Thresher, the official student newspaper of Rice University since 1916, is published each Wednesday during the school year, except during examination periods and holidays, by the students of Rice University.

Letters to the Editor must be received by 5 p.m. on the Friday prior to publication and must be signed, including college and year if the writer is a Rice student. The Thresher reserves the right to edit letters for content and length and to place letters on its website.

Editorial and business offices are located on the second floor of the Ley Student Center: 6100 Main St., MS-524 Houston, TX 77005-1892 NDIDI NWOSU / THRESHER

Phone: (713) 348 - 4801 Email: thresher@rice.edu Website: www.ricethresher.org The Thresher is a member of the ACP, TIPA, CMA and CMBAM. © Copyright 2024

ricethresher.org

6 • WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2025

THE RICE THRESHER

Food for thought: Introducing college Food Ambassadors passion and motivation.

During the Winter Storm Enzo, when Chef Hardwick put out a call for help, several ambassadors showed up to lend a hand in the serveries.

There are two food ambassadors from each college, in addition to representatives from the graduate student and off-campus populations.

Supplemental ambassadors who speak for other groups, such as studentathletes, are also a part of the team.

Though Olivia Seo, a Brown College food ambassador, has been involved since the beginning, she said the ambassadors are only getting started. The biggest issue

HAI-VAN HOANG / THRESHER

AMELIA DAVIS

THRESHER STAFF

If you have ever seen — and then promptly ignored — the QR codes posted around the Rice serveries that invite students to leave feedback, the purpose of the Food Ambassador program should be clear to you. While the QR code signs may fade to the back of one’s subconscious, a familiar face might have more success.

Kyle Hardwick, senior executive chef and Beth Leaver, executive director of housing and dining, launched the food ambassadors program.

“In the fall of 2022, I was a guest speaker for HEAL 498: Special Topics

in Health Sciences (Public Health Nutrition), taught by Cassandra Diep, PhD,” Hardwick wrote in an email to the Thresher. “One group presentation discussed ways to engage the student population more through a food [representatives] program to better understand the student population and their food choices and preferences. This made me wonder how we could help build a stronger food rep-type program, and if that group of students could work with Housing & Dining directly.”

The ambassadors are overseen by Faith Richards, the assistant director of communications and marketing for H&D, and Clare Rezentes, the team’s registered dietitian. They, along with

executive dining staff, meet with the Food Ambassadors bi-weekly. During the meetings, they hear student feedback, discuss concerns and propose additions to the food offerings at Rice.

Richards said that this work is close to her heart due to her personal connection to dietary needs.

“As someone with celiac disease, I understand firsthand the challenges that come with navigating dining options with allergies or dietary needs,” Richards wrote in an email to the Thresher. “This work gives me the opportunity to connect with students who face similar challenges to me and ensure they have the best dining experience possible at Rice.”

Others in the program share Richards’

This work gives me the opportunity to connect with students who face similar challenges to me and ensure they have the best dining experience possible at Rice.

Faith Richards

ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS AND MARKETING FOR H&D on the table currently is evaluating the new pilot dining schedule, according to Seo, a sophomore, but anticipating the future of a program based on flexibly responding to student preference and feedback is difficult.

“Moving forward, our goals are always going to be evolving to fit the needs of the student population. So I can’t really say what it’s gonna look like in the future,” Seo said. “We really just want students to have their best experience meal-wise, and I think we’re gonna do a lot of things just to go towards that goal.”

Cracking the hack: Rice alum wins RP2350 Hacking Challenge CHARLIE CRUZ

THRESHER STAFF

Identify vulnerabilities, test strategies and defeat the enemy: to the right minds, hacking is much like winning a battle. Duncan College alumnus Aedan Cullen recently made waves in the cybersecurity and hardware engineering communities by hacking one of Raspberry Pi’s most secure microcontrollers, earning a $20,000 prize in the process. Cullen’s achievement was unveiled at the RP2350 Hacking Challenge hosted by Raspberry Pi and Hextree.

The challenge tasked participants with uncovering a hidden secret embedded within the RP2350 chip, a microcontroller boasting Raspberry Pi’s most advanced security features. Cullen’s process began with combing through the RP2350’s technical documentation in search of overlooked vulnerabilities.

He identified the chip’s one-time programmable memory as a weak point and hypothesized that a power supply fault could force the chip to boot in an insecure state. After meticulous testing, he successfully exploited the vulnerability, bypassing the chip’s defenses to unlock its secret.

“The RP2350 was designed with cutting-edge safeguards, but this challenge proved there’s always room to learn from creative approaches,” Cullen said. “I saw this as a fun opportunity to test unconventional ideas.”

Reflecting on the foundation of his skills, Cullen pointed to his time at Rice.

“Classes like [COMP 526]: High Performance Computer Architecture and [ELEC 522]: Advanced VLSI Design taught me to understand digital systems deeply, and I applied that knowledge here,” Cullen said. “The collaborative and exploratory culture at Rice gave me the tools to tackle challenges like this.”

Joseph Cavallaro, professor of electrical and computer engineering, taught Cullen in the computer architecture courses. Cavallaro praised Cullen’s creativity and technical skills, calling him a standout student.

“I’m not surprised he was able to identify and exploit such a complex vulnerability,” Cavallaro said.

Cullen said his undergraduate experience was shaped by his participation in capture-the-flag cybersecurity competitions and handson projects at the Oshman Engineering Design Kitchen.

COURTESY AEDAN CULLEN Alumnus Aedan Cullen recently earned $20,000 for hacking a Raspberry Pi microcontroller.

“I still miss working on projects late at night in the [OEDK],” Cullen said. “That environment fostered the curiosity and problem-solving skills I needed to succeed in this challenge.”

While praising Rice’s project-based learning opportunities, Walsh said there was a need for more resources dedicated to security-specific challenges.

“Programs like [Vertically Integrated Projects] are great for hands-on

exploration, but there’s room to expand resources for hardware security,” Cullen said.

Cullen, now an engineer at Apple, hopes his accomplishment inspires current Rice students to take risks and pursue challenges that excite them.

“You don’t have to know everything to succeed — you just need curiosity and the drive to try new ideas,” Cullen said. “Focus on what excites you, and the rest will follow.”

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2025 • 7

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1 Fruit Ninja or Instagram, for example 4 Nightstand light 8 Expression of disgust 11 Riverbed sediment 13 “Build it somewhere else!” acronym 14 Rookie, slangily 16 Fortune-teller 17 “...and a partridge in _ ____ tree!”

18 Cease 19 Hiking playlist featuring Eminem, The Cranberries, and the Peanuts soundtrack, perhaps 21 Garlicky sauces 23 Deadlocked 24 “__ __ expert, but it seems to me...”

25 Reprimand 27 “You’re not you when you’re hungry” candy 31 “It’s a yes __ __ question.”

32 Bamboo lover 33 Doja Cat hit “Get Into It (___)” 34 Slushy brand 35 Richard?

36 Clean with a cloth 37 Not trans or enby 38 Largest Greek island 39 Fan publication 40 Pepsi competitor 42 Get rid of 43 King prawn Muppet 44 Not real 45 Decipher 48 Sports drink invented at a Florida university 52 Ellipse 53 Attain 55 Chemical suffixes 56 Viscount’s superior 57 Uses a keyboard 58 ____ Lisa 59 Hero in “The Matrix” 60 Throw with enthusiastic force 61 Institution that awarded Taylor Swift an honorary doctorate

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1 Aide, for short 2 Dock 3 Desperate request 4 Fat, wax, or steroid, for example 5 Visa competitor, abbr.

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7 Egyptian monuments 8 Release, as a fish 9 Objective 10 Hindu festival of colors 12 The devil’s interval 13 Called 15 “Butter” K-pop band 20 Stitch’s counterpart 22 Ancient Peruvian 24 Concave navel 25 Prefix for -economic and -path 26 Gradual increase in volume, abbr.

27 Christmas Eve visitor 28 Peering surreptitiously 29 Indian currency 30 (___/her) 32 Key’s counterpart 34 Worldwide league for a ball-and-bat sport popular in the U.K. 35 Real estate 36 Type of thin eyeglass frame 38 Copied on an email 39 Crown prince of the Fire Nation 41 Artemis’ twin 42 Walkways 44 Gem surface 45 A deer, a female deer 46 Musical “Dear ____ Hansen” 47 Show concern 48 Open-mouthed stare 49 Unknown author, abbr.

50 Refute 51 Jacob’s twin 54 Center of a hurricane

Floods, fires, famous figures: a pint-sized history of Pub SOPHIE GARLICK

THRESHER STAFF

If the Rice Memorial Center walls could talk, they’d probably ask for a drink. Because let’s face it, since its construction, The Pub at Rice has seen some wild nights.

Wayne Hale ’76 told the Thresher that Steve Golvatch, the student behind the idea, began plans for Pub after receiving permission from Rice’s former president Norman Hackerman.

“I think that Steve Golvach gets most of the credit for actually getting the pub in operation. He was elected SA president in ’7475 largely because of his efforts for the pub,” Hale said. “Remember, in those days the legal drinking age was 18, so almost all Rice students could participate.”

Preparations for what was then called Willy’s Pub’s opening included a capital outlay exceeding $22,000, a search for those interested in bartending or managing and a public request for name suggestions.

An April 1975 edition of the Thresher describes Pub’s opening night – complete with wine, wine coolers and five kinds of beer.

“Willy’s Pub, the new undergraduate bar/ lounge in the basement of the RMC, will open this Friday, April 11 at 7 p.m. Beer is $1.75 by the pitcher and 40 cents by the mug,” the article reads.

However, Willy’s Pub wasn’t immune to the woes of Houston weather. A July 1976 edition of the Thresher describes how torrential rain brought flooding. Students at the time began to call the bar “Willy’s Sub.” “[The waters] backed up in a basement room to at least six and a half feet before bursting through the plaster wall located in [Pub] beside the trophy case,” the article reads.

Phillip Walters ’76 recounted the festivities that followed in comments on a recent Facebook post.

“There was the First Unbelievable Celebration of Knee-deep Water and Disaster Spectacular party after The Pub reopened after the June 1976 flood,” Walters, a former bartender, said.

Not only chance weather, but chance encounters took place at Pub. Pete Cramer ’80 described his meet-cute in a comment.

“I met my wife in Willy’s. She was the blind

date from [the University of Texas at Austin] my friends tried to fix me up with. I said no, but we all ended up going out to dinner at Birraporetti’s,” Cramer said. “The two of us closed down the pub, and I learned later she asked one of her friends to ‘disappear’ everyone else. That was 45 years ago.”

Walters recounted his own surprise guest experience.

“There was the time Tina and I opened the pub as a place for Garrick Utley, Carol Simpson, Irving R. Levine (all national NBC News) and Ray Miller (Local Channel 2 news director) to hang out and have beer and some snacks between a couple of on-campus gigs,” Walters said. “The ‘not suitable for prime time TV’ jokes were flowing as readily as the beer.”

Walter Underwood ’81 even shared in a comment that he met the former United States Secretary of State.

“Henry Kissinger came to speak at Rice and came down to the Pub. I was working at the Thresher, so I went down and took photos while he was there,” Underwood said. “When I went back up to the Thresher office, I discovered that I had not loaded any film into the camera. I think that was the only time I did that.”

Willy’s Pub opens to a packed crowd who mills about, complaining, ‘Pub isn’t good tonight,’ but never actually leaves.

Alex Weinheimer RICE UNIVERSITY ‘13

In 1983, the impact of raising the drinking age was a hot topic. According to a January 1983 edition of the Thresher, Michael Trachtenburg ’83 submitted a resolution to the Senate, arguing against raising the drinking age.

“The resolution cites the effect on campus institutions such as Willy’s Pub and oncampus social life in general as reasons why the legal age should not be raised to 21,” Trachtenburg wrote.

COURTESY JOHN GLADU A 1975 blueprint shows the then-RMC’s layout. Since its opening night, the Pub has welcomed students and strangers alike in the basement of the the Rice Memorial Center.

Pub suffered reduced profit due to the eventual legal changes as well as a decline in beer sales, according to Kevin Gass ’89.

“I worked with Dr. Akers, then VP of Administration, to lower the pub’s ‘shared costs’ from the university, which covered about 45% of the total deficit. We also closed the pub on the least attended/ most money-losing night,” Gass, former Student Association president and a member of the Pub Executive Board, wrote in an email to the Thresher. “That erased the remainder of the deficit and got the pub to break even.”

A decade later, not having seen the last of Houston weather, a fire (literally) roasted Pub in 1995. Bob Sanborn, the former associate dean for student affairs, said the fire caused more than $2 million in damage in an April 1995 edition of the Thresher.

“Everything in the Pub was gone. The only things we were able to save were the taps and the Pub sign,” Sanborn said.

Charles Klein ’97 commented that the fire investigation was unexpected and limited the time they had to work on the first issue of the Thresher after the annual change in leadership.

“It was a Thresher production night, and we had to let the [campus police] into the building to respond,” Klein said. “It was rough (we all were arson suspects) but a triumphant first issue of our editorship.”

In 2001, the pub experimented with different events like an alcohol-free night according to Corey Devine, in a February 2001 edition of the Thresher.

“It’s really a mix between the casual atmosphere of the Pub on a Thursday and the fun of dancing at a club on a Friday,” Devine wrote.

The ripple of enthusiasm for Pub amongst students was felt even into the 21st century as pub-goers’ palpable energy. Alex Weinheimer ’13, an editor for the Thresher, described the crowd in an October 2011 edition.

“Willy’s Pub opened to a packed crowd who milled about, complaining, ‘Pub isn’t good tonight,’ but never actually leaves,” Weinheimer wrote.

Nick Shannin ’91, noted the thread of consistency weaving Pub’s years together.

“To this day, some 34 years post Rice, Thursday Night is Pub Night. TGs were on Fridays, yes, but the party always starts on Thursday!”

8 • WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2025

FROM FRONT PAGE

MOODY

Kirra Phillips, head gallery guide at the Moody, said that the exhibition’s opening reception Friday, Jan. 24, had over 800 visitors, an increase from the last gallery opening with 500 visitors.

The Moody Student Collaborative also hosted a student opening reception Saturday, Jan. 25, featuring live music by student band Igneous Bliss and hands-on activities including succulent planting and pot decorating.

“We’ve been getting more people

THE RICE THRESHER

coming into the Moody ever since we’ve been doing more social media outreach,” Phillips, a Martel College junior, said.

Phillips said she enjoyed seeing many different artistic styles and topics come together with a common theme in “Breath(e)”.

“The idea behind the exhibit and the name was … breath as an act of both resistance and sustenance,” Phillips said. “The exhibit was made with the events of 2020 in mind, thinking about … face masks [during the pandemic] and

also the murder of George Floyd, where breathing is a critical act of social change and reform.”

The works on display present diverse perspectives on the climate crisis, exploring alternative futures, marginalized voices and creative approaches to sustainability, wrote Rolfs. “Breath(e)” offers students the chance to engage with these topics in ways that transcend traditional academic disciplines.

“While [many students] realize the urgency around this topic, some may not know that there is value in experiencing how artists present alternative futures,

alternate perspectives or different modes of learning,” Rolfs wrote. “These experiences can help shape how students approach this challenge as they pursue an education in STEM or the humanities.”

According to Rolfs, the enzymes developed for Xin Lu’s work exemplify such an intersection between science and the arts.

“This research has real-world applications, but the artistic presentation allows all of us to work it into our imaginations of … a more sustainable future,” Rolfs wrote.

Review: Han Kang’s ‘We Do Not Part’ won’t leave you

COURTESY PENGUIN PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE RANDOM HOUSE

HUGO GERBICH-PAIS

SENIOR WRITER

Kyungha has nothing left to live for, until she is tasked with saving the life of her friend’s bird. What follows is a haunting exploration of the burden of remembrance

and historical violence.

Originally published in Korean in 2021, “We Do Not Part,” translated into English by e. yaewon and Paige Aniyah Morris, was released Jan. 21. It left me breathless; Kang’s latest novel still sits heavy on my chest and haunts my thoughts. In “We Do Not Part,” Han Kang proves why she was the worthy recipient of the 2024 Nobel Prize in Literature.

“We Do Not Part” has a deceptively simple beginning. Kyungha, the novel’s narrator, receives a call from a friend, Inseon, summoning her to a Seoul-area hospital.

A recovering documentary filmmaker who lives on Jeju Island, Inseon now dedicates herself to carpentry after a severe accident.

She was transported off the island to Seoul, and after summoning Kyungsha to the hospital with a cryptic text, Inseon asks her to travel to Jeju, some 450 kilometers away, to look after her pet bird. What follows is as indescribable as it is inexplicable.

The novel highlights various massacres that took place during and after the Jeju uprising, specifically the Bodo League Massacres and the Gyeongsan Cobalt Mine Massacre. By placing her readers amongst characters struggling with the responsibility

of remembering the massacred, Kang’s writing exemplifies why it is so important to investigate our past.

Kyungha, the main protagonist, wrote a book some years ago on massacres during the Korean War, and the images of the dead she uncovered still haunt her dreams, while Inseon’s deceased mother survived the massacres. Both protagonists are haunted by what they have learned and struggle to live in a world they can only see as tainted by the blood spilled years ago.

Violence permeates these communities and every page of this novel. Not only does Kang bring to the surface the historical violence experienced by Koreans during this time, but also the violence that is created when these histories are obfuscated and ignored.

The novel is divided into three parts.

In Part I: “The Bird,” Kyungha travels to Jeju, arriving in a snowstorm and almost losing her life as she journeys to Inseon’s remote village. This section is also the most easily understood. That is not to say that it is boring or straightforward, but we are orientated, and trust Kyungha’s experience of reality. This feeling of clarity does not

last, however, because Part II and Part III will have you doubting everything you previously read.

In Part II and Part III, titled “Night” and “Flame” respectively, Kyungsha enters a dream-like state, where the gap between reality, memory and the past disappears.

Insheon appears, healed – or was she never sick? Or maybe Kyungha is still delirious, stuck in the snow?

Kang effortlessly transitions between m mory, delusion and reality as Kyungha and Inseon struggle with the responsibility of carrying these memories. As they spend time together in Inseon’s cottage, they are confronted by memories — of daring escapes, blood-filled beaches and the bones of thousands — immortalized in victim testimony, government documents and photographs.

However, these images are not presented for shock value, nor do they feel voyeuristic.

By offering us the perspective of someone researching and remembering them, the victims themselves are not erased or exploited through fictionalization.

This article has been cut off for print.

Read more at ricethresher.org

Review: ‘Eusexua’ is a pulsing, supernatural rave EMELIA GAUCH

SENIOR WRITER

“Eusexua” isn’t just an album title; it’s a state of being.

More specifically, according to FKA twigs in an interview with The Standard, “Eusexua” is “that moment of nothingness just before a big surge of inspiration or creativity or passion. I describe it as a moment before an orgasm.”

Listening to the project, the verb “surge” feels apt. On “Eusexua,” FKA twigs incorporates crescendos and kickbeats, drum kits and bass guitar, all alongside her distinctive dreamy and haunting soprano. Her vocals push forward and pull back, are spliced and modulated, as she explores a new musical direction within songs and throughout the entire album.

“Eusexua” begins with the title track.

Quick circling beats facilitate a feeling of anxiety, which is at tension with twigs’ slow singing, “King-sized, I’m vertical sunrised / Like flying capsized / Free, I see you are Eusexua.” The song seems to hurtle towards the alien unknown, as twigs says, “Do you feel alone? You’re not alone.” The bass thumping, you can imagine cool bright lights flashing in time with the beat.

“Girl Feels Good” is reminiscent of pop songs from the 1990s or early 2000s, with a warbly bounce, light laser noises and Madonna vocals gone digital, while “Perfect Stranger” fast forwards in tempo and time, more rooted in 2020s recession

pop or hyperpop. In “Perfect Stranger,” more specifically beat, mid-way through twigs reflects on the emotional safety of and becomes a high-tempo dance track. being with someone unknown; we are This sonic switch works well, a testament to the production and twigs’ artistic vision. protected from disappointment.

“Childlike Things” stands out on Lyrically minimal, “Drums of Death” features scratchy snares and voices that “Eusexua” as different from the rest with cut in and out, chopped into bits. The song its glittery, bubblegummy, high-energy feels like it’s in glitch, as twigs tells us to sound and North West feature. In some ways, the song acts as a palette cleanser. In “crash the system.”

Synthy and made for the dance others, it feels almost out of place between floor, twigs shows off the versatility “Keep It, Hold It” and the following song of her singing in “Room of Fools.” She “Striptease.” Almost.

Voices spliced together become the almost growls in the chorus, only to melodic instrumentals transition into yodels in “Striptease.” Twigs reminiscent of Kate is in control (“Watch Bush as the song me flow”), but lost winds down to bring Top Track: ‘Striptease’ in movement. The the listener into the Kate Bush-style runs next song “Sticky,” make a return over as well as the slower a percolating beat. Chaos and control second half of the album.

“Sticky” features gentle piano notes meet flawlessly.

If “Sticky” wrestles with desire, and crying buzzes. Twigs pulls back the curtain. In the lyrics, she confesses vulnerability, and how much to reveal, her challenges with opening up and FKA twigs asks to hide from it all in “24hr her simultaneous desire to be known. dog.” With the lyrics “Please don’t call my In the latter half of the song, voices name / When I submit to you this way,” in overlay and the sound breaks down into “24hr dog,” submission is liberation and a way to forget oneself. electronic noise.

In the final song, the bittersweet ballad “Keep It, Hold It” starts choir-like and orchestral, with plucked strings, harp “Wanderlust,” identity and the self are strokes and chiming bells. The breathy centered again. Twigs lets us know, “I’ll refrain of “What do I got to do? / And be in my head if you need me / Right there what have I got to say?” acts as a mantra, if you need me.” With electric guitar and convincing twigs and the listener to “Keep fluttery modulated vocals, the song feels on walking, just keep it and hold it.” The like the conclusion of a movie that ended song, like with “Sticky,” changes tune, or too soon.

ATLANTIC RECORDS

Musically and emotionally dense, each song on “Eusexua” takes on a life of its own, jumping between tempos, sounds and beats, remixes and vocal styles. The album paints an image of a sweaty dance floor, where you can be whoever you want with whoever you want, losing yourself in the whirl of a trembling dance floor, DJ sets and a sweaty crowd for worse or for better.

“Album’s way too long though,” twigs says on the closing track “Wanderlust,” as if she knows that the only thing that could make this album better is more.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2025 • 9

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Lavina Kalwani entwines sustainability, fashion

COURTESY AVA BERGEN

JULIANA LIGHTSEY

A&E EDITOR

In May 2023, a Berkeley Law School sticker adorned Lavina Kalwani’s laptop; she had been accepted and was set to attend in the fall. Four months later, Kalwani found herself on a completely different path: weaving together entrepreneurship and sustainable fashion while pursuing her Master of Business Administration at Rice.

Kalwani said her primary concern is the aount of fabric that ends up in landfills, as a result of a fast-paced clothing industry.

Reema Textiles, her small-scale business initiative, aims to take fabric that would have gone to waste and repurpose it for designers to purchase and use.

Kalwani developed Reema at the Liu Idea Lab for Innovation & Entrepreneurship, but she is no stranger to Rice — she completed her undergraduate education in neuroscience and sociology

in 2021.

“Advocacy was a big part of my undergrad experience,” Kalwani said.

“Post-grad, I worked for a couple different public defenders’ offices, [I was] full-on ready to go to law school. But the closer I got to law school, the more this idea of being an attorney just didn’t feel right … Within a couple of weeks, I withdrew my admission, I found out about the Rice MBA program and decided to apply.”

After Kalwani’s undergraduate studies, she worked part-time at a small apparel business. That job, she said, opened her eyes to other career possibilities she might find more fulfilling than law.

“I was gaining this new realization,” Kalwani said. “The fact that you can have a career, something apparel-related in business … Which had always felt so out of reach for me.”

Following her enrollment at the Jones Graduate School of Business, Kalwani began to develop her vision of her own

business — to reduce fabric waste at the forefront of her mind. She did her research, going to markets and asking shop owners questions: What does their waste stream look like? How is donated clothing sorted into ‘recyclable’ and ‘landfill-bound’?

What textiles can’t be reused?

“I was really obsessed with this problem,” Kalwani said. “That was my mission.”

Alongside fellow MBA student Ahmad Tipu, Kalwina piloted Reema, and began taking on paying customers.

“We realized the way we could do it was to take larger pieces of clothing that are easier to upcycle … or fabrics, things like bedsheets, and then re-sort them so it’s easier for designers and creatives to find what they’re looking for,” Kalwani said. “In that way [it] served as a ‘used fabric store’.”

However, a year into her MBA, an opportunity to gain experience working in the venture capital field led Kalwani to put Reema on pause. Although she was momentarily unable to continue leading a small business, Kalwani still felt the urge to keep the project alive.

“This was the first time that I had a moment where I was able to blend fashion and art and business, and I never even thought that was possible for me before so I really wanted to continue that,” Kalwani said. “How can I continue to be more creative in my everyday [and] continue to engage with the textile and design world?”

Kalwani’s solution was to prompt community engagement with Reema, through artistic expression. She tried her hand at design alongside co-designer Poppy Han, creating clothing from her upcycled fabrics, which she then debuted at Austin’s Slow Fashion Festival in October 2024.

“Debuting that was super cool … having models that were wearing my

designs down the runway,” Kalwani said.

“That was something I never would have imagined two years ago.”

Following the show, Kalwani continued to search for other ways to continue her engagement with fashion and business while balancing her other responsibilities.

She decided to launch a magazine associated with Reema – dubbed “Liquid Lace” – and solicit a broad range of creative submissions, from poetry to textile art.

“I have this habit where whenever I want to do something I bring other people along with me,” Kalwani said. “The response that I got was amazing … It’s a collection of really diverse types of art … that all have this thread of fashion and textiles underlying it.”

Liquid Lace has completed its first round of submissions, Kalwani said, and she is beginning to sort through them now, with a tentative first issue slated for March. Seeing the diversity and quantity of the submissions has been very fulfilling, according to Kalwani.

“I’ve had teachers submit, I’ve had people in their fifties, I’ve had people doing MFA programs,” Kalwani said.

“That was really special to me … It makes me feel like there’s only going to be more momentum moving forward.”

When it comes to the future of Reema, Kalwani said she would be interested in picking up the textile company again, after developing her career more. Her biggest takeaways from the project, however, are the values and objectives at Reema’s core.

“I can’t say that I’m going to pursue this exact idea in the exact same way,” Kalwani said. “But do I think that we need people in that space to address overconsumption and waste from the fashion world? Absolutely, and I want to be one of those people.”

Review: Mangold’s Bob Dylan remains ‘A Complete Unknown’

SEARCHLIGHT PICTURES COURTESY SEARCHLIGHT PICTURES

ARMAN SAXENA

A&E EDITOR

The Academy Awards revealed their nominations Jan. 23, and to the surprise of many, James Mangold’s Bob Dylan biopic walked away with eight. Titled “A Complete Unknown,” the film follows Dylan’s meteoric rise in the 1960s folk scene, culminating in his now-famous transition to electric guitars. Despite the nods from the Academy, Mangold’s film delivers a story that is more style than substance, never fully illuminating the genius behind the shades.

From its opening moments, “A Complete Unknown” hastily checks off major milestones in Dylan’s early career.

Dylan (Timothée Chalamet) arrives in New York with little more than a guitar, soon visiting an ailing Woody Guthrie (Scoot McNairy) in the Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital. Virtually the next scene, he’s taken under the wing of Pete Seeger (Edward Norton) and introduced onstage at the Gaslight, where he meets

Joan Baez (Monica Barbaro) and manager Albert Grossman (Dan Fogler).

By the time we meet Sylvie Russo (Elle Fanning) — the film’s fictional stand-in for Dylan’s girlfriend Suze Rotolo — “A Complete Unknown” has covered so much ground that it’s already leaping forward to the mid-’60s with Dylan bursting into his apartment, “Like a Rolling Stone” inexplicably rolling off his tongue.

These legendary moments would feel momentous if they weren’t so rushed, crammed into 140 minutes that play like a greatest hits montage and gloss over Dylan’s inner life and motivations.

There was ample opportunity in the first third of the film to provide more insight into who this “complete unknown” really was, but instead, we’re given Wikipedia paragraphs.

While the film never attempts to sanitize Dylan’s infamous prickliness — he’s curt, cryptic and often just an outright jerk — it also doesn’t delve deeper than those traits. Where Todd Haynes’s “I’m Not There” circled Dylan’s elusiveness with six different portrayals, Mangold’s approach keeps Dylan as a static, enigmatic figure orbiting around an ever-spinning carousel of notable events.

Timothée Chalamet’s performance is sure to spark debate: when he’s in performance mode, singing Dylan’s classics live on set, he’s thoroughly engaging — even electrifying. But in dialogue scenes, he leans heavily into Dylan’s idiosyncratic cadence, a choice that vacillates between oddly compelling and distractingly caricatured. He’s incredibly effective at Dylan’s aloof cruelty, yet the film never expands his Dylan beyond the “complete unknown” mystique.

Monica Barbaro’s Joan Baez, meanwhile, receives the film’s most disappointing treatment. Her radical folk artistry and outspoken civil rights activism are minimized, leaving us with a one-note depiction of jealousy and artistic inferiority. A withering insult from Dylan about her songs being “like an oil painting in the dentist’s office” sums up how the film frames Baez: second-best and forever overshadowed.

In reality, Baez was a major figure in the civil rights movement, yet “A Complete Unknown” sanitizes the turbulent politics of the era into a single image of Dylan singing at a protest march. The snub is glaring, especially considering Baez’s far deeper involvement in those struggles.

However, Barbaro is fantastic as Baez, imbuing her with fiery defiance in the face of Dylan’s arrogance. Still, a character as remarkable as Baez deserves the same treatment for her artistry and activism and not just her interactions with a male peer.

On a technical level, however, there’s much to admire. Phedon Papamichael’s cinematography vividly recreates the Greenwich Village folk scene, employing deep-focus lenses and dusty color palettes that make every street corner and coffee house feel lived-in.

Rather than resembling a polished, high-budget re-creation of the 1960s, the sets look as if they’ve been pulled straight from the era, capturing the scrappy energy and cramped intimacy of a burgeoning music revolution.

Still, this aura of authenticity can be undermined by the film’s more contrived moments — none more so than the scene where Dylan spontaneously conjures “Like a Rolling Stone,” seemingly in one lightning-strike burst of divine inspiration. This scene feels like a cinematic contrivance, sapping away the

raw wonder and reducing a legendary moment in music history to a mere Hollywood flourish.

Despite these issues, there is power in the film’s culminating performance at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival. The chaos of Dylan’s electric set — booing fans, a tense Seeger looking on nervously and a loaded Johnny Cash (Boyd Holbrook) egging Dylan into full rock-star rebellion — showcases Mangold’s knack for frenetic, immersive storytelling.

In this sequence, the film captures something vital: the cultural divide that sprang up the moment Dylan plugged in, fracturing the folk scene and sparking a conversation about evolving artistry. It’s a flash of what “A Complete Unknown” could have been with more focus and less box-checking. Ultimately, what Mangold’s biopic does best is evoke a moody, immersive atmosphere. For fans of Bob Dylan’s music, this writer counted among them, the performance scenes provide genuine thrills — each chord a reminder of why Dylan’s work still resonates today.

But beyond the showstopping visuals and the committed cast, the film struggles to illuminate Dylan’s soul, or even fully reckon with the collective spirit of the 1960s that shaped him.

Like the title suggests, “A Complete Unknown” is content to leave Dylan’s interiority unexplored. That’s not inherently a flaw — Dylan, after all, has spent a lifetime cultivating enigma.

Yet in sidelining the contributions of women like Joan Baez and brushing aside the era’s radical politics, the film robs its story of the depth that made Dylan’s artistry so provocative in the first place. Instead, we get a swirling collage of iconic moments, set to a timeless soundtrack, that never quite converges into a satisfying portrait.

10 • WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2025

THE RICE THRESHER

Basketball game marks first-ever Rice Athletics Spanish broadcast HONG LIN TSAI / THRESHER

“Coach Kreider was the driving force behind this initiative, and his vision and THRESHER STAFF support were key to making it happen,” Rice took a historic step by launching Romero said.

Romero led the broadcast doing playits first-ever Spanish-language broadcast for the men’s basketball game against by-play, bringing over two decades of Tulane University Jan. 25. This milestone industry experience to the booth. For event, held as part of ‘Latin Day,’ marked him, the opportunity to broadcast in an effort to engage Houston’s Spanish- Spanish was deeply personal.

“As a bilingual and bicultural speaking community and make Rice broadcaster, it’s an honor to see Rice Athletics more accessible.

The idea for the broadcast emerged University recognize and celebrate the from a conversation between associate Hispanic community,” Romero said. head coach Chris Kreider and Larissa “This initiative is about making sports Romero Valenzuela, who works at Rice’s more accessible and embracing the Office of International Students and cultural diversity of our city.”

Romero’s passion for both Scholars, Kreider said.

Kreider lived in Colombia between the broadcasting and cultural representation ages of 8 to 13, where he said he fell in fueled his commitment to the project. love with the food, language and culture. He said that he hopes this broadcast He even majored in Spanish, and was a catalyzes future initiatives aimed at reaching a wider Spanish teacher audience. prior to becoming “My hope is that a collegiate this initiative paves basketball coach.

As a bilingual and the way for more After learning bicultural broadcaster, Spanish-language about Kreider’s broadcasts, b a c k g r o u n d , it’s an honor to see Rice stronger social Romero Valenzuela University recognize and media engagement introduced Kreider celebrate the Hispanic and increased to her husband community. outreach to Francisco Romero, Houston’s Spanishwho hosts the Francisco Romero speaking residents Spanish-language SPANISH-LANGUAGE BROADCASTER and Rice students,” broadcast for the Houston Astros and had contributed to he said.

As the first Spanish-language the Spanish-language broadcast for the University of Arizona basketball program. broadcaster for Rice Athletics, Romero “I knew he had experience, and he embraced the historical significance of was passionate about it, and I thought the occasion.

“This is more than just a game; it was a really good idea, so the three of us over lunch just talked about what it’s a statement about inclusivity and we could do for Latin night,” Kreider expanding the reach of collegiate said. “And [Romero] volunteered his sports,” Romero said.

Joining Romero in the broadcast booth services there to do that, and it just kind of sprung from that. I’m so grateful that was color analyst Juan Alaniz, doing he volunteered his time to do it because I the commentary and analysis. With his extensive basketball knowledge, Alaniz think it’s really cool.”

Recognizing an opportunity to provided in-depth perspectives that enhance inclusivity, Kreider and Romero Romero said enriched the broadcast.

“Having Juan alongside me was Valenzuela helped lay the foundation for the initiative. With the support invaluable,” Romero said. “His expertise of Jennifer Greene, Rice Athletics elevated the discussion and provided marketing director, the project quickly insightful perspectives for our audience.”

Romero said that the reaction to the gained momentum and became a reality, broadcast was overwhelmingly positive Francisco Romero said.

ANA RIVERA

and Kreider said it was an event he was proud to be a part of.

“I sent the link to my parents and friends in Colombia, basketball coaches in Colombia that I’ve gotten to know and I think it’s really cool being a part of the first time ever,” Kreider said. “It’s really awesome.”

Additionally, the event featured a performance by the Folklorico Dancers from Eastwood Academy High School and a giveaway of loteria card keepsakes as a part of the theme.

Romero extended his gratitude to everyone involved in making the broadcast possible.

“This was a collaborative effort that wouldn’t have been successful without the dedication of Rice Athletics, the marketing and communications teams and OISS,” he said.

Looking ahead, he said that Spanishlanguage coverage should extend beyond basketball.

“Football and baseball, in particular, hold strong appeal within the Hispanic community, making them prime candidates for expanded Spanishlanguage coverage,” Romero said.

When asked which sport he would most like to broadcast next, Romero had an immediate answer: baseball.

As the Spanish-language broadcaster for the Houston Astros, he sees a clear connection between Rice Baseball and Houston’s baseball culture.

“With José Cruz Jr. leading Rice Baseball and his father, José Cruz Sr., being an icon in the sport, broadcasting baseball in Spanish would be incredibly meaningful,” Romero said.

He said he envisions a future where Spanish-language broadcasting becomes a staple at Rice, strengthening the university’s commitment to diversity and cultural outreach.

“Every step we take brings us closer to a more inclusive sports culture,” Romero said. “And I believe Rice is moving in the right direction.”

Sports Mini #10 1

2

3

EVIE VU

THRESHER STAFF

4

5

6

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8

ACROSS

1 Football under-jersey need 5 Boswell of the Owls and

Steelers

6 ___ __ base (be stranded, in

baseball)

7 Former Russian leaders 8 Dreaded tire sound during Beer

Bike

DOWN

1 Scam online 2 Regions 3 Christian and Iann 4 What people shouldn’t give

out to people who 1-Down, Abbr.

5 Summer hours in H-Town

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2025 • 11

SPORTS

Meeting Petro Kuzmenok KATHLEEN ORTIZ

SPORTS EDITOR

Petro Kuzmenok, a Sid Richardson College sophomore, competes for the tennis team. He is majoring in mathematical economic analysis.

Rice Thresher: When did you start playing tennis, and how did you get into it?

Petro Kuzmenok: I started playing tennis when I was 5 years old. My mom played tennis as a kid, and she thought I would enjoy tennis like she did, so she signed me up for lessons to try it. I’ve loved tennis ever since.

RT: Describe one of your earliest tennis memories.

PK: One of my earliest memories of tennis is back when I lived in Ukraine.

I was practicing against a wall when I was 5 or 6 with a coach, and I hit the ball too high, accidentally hitting it over the entire wall. I was told there was a zoo somewhere behind the wall, so I thought I hit some animal with the ball and would be in trouble.

RT: Did tennis always come naturally to you?

PK: The physical elements of the sport came pretty naturally to me. I had good hand-eye coordination and was pretty fast, which helped a lot. Also, I was very competitive, so I would work hard to improve and stay super focused in practice and matches. However, mentally, it was quite difficult for me to stay relaxed when playing tournaments, and I would often get really upset with myself or nervous, which would make me play a lot worse at certain key moments.

I’ve gotten a lot better at managing my nerves and being more positive on the court, but I can always get better.

COURTESY PETRO KUZMENOK Sophomore tennis player Petro Kuzmenok competes in a tennis match at Rice University.

PK: Balancing classes and sports can be a challenge, as we miss class quite often when we travel for matches, especially in the spring season. For this reason, I try to take most of my harder classes in the fall, when we travel less and miss school less and have a bit of a lighter schedule in the spring.

RT: Who has been most supportive of you while chasing your goals in your sport here? In what ways have they helped you?

PK: I think my teammates and friends have been the most supportive of my tennis during my time at Rice. Our teammates always push each other to be better and to work hard, which helps to create a community in which hard work and discipline are essential. I am motivated by their commitment to our team and also work harder as a result.

Also, my friends here at Rice have been very supportive of my tennis, they always ask how our team is doing and show a lot of interest in our success which means a lot to me. I feel really grateful to have them in my life.

RT: What has been your favorite memory of playing tennis at Rice?

PK: My favorite memory of playing tennis at Rice is last spring when we were playing the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Half of our team was sick, and we were trying to grind through and still try to win. It was tied 3-3, and I was the last match still playing. Despite being sick, I was still able to clinch the match to win 4-3 and the whole team swarmed me when I won. It was a moment I’ll never forget.

RT: What are your goals for this season?

PK: My goals for this season are primarily to improve my game as best as I can. Also to work on positive body language when things aren’t going my way so that I can reset during a match.

I don’t want to set goals for stats or for winning because if I start to focus on my record and the numbers, then I will inevitably start to get nervous in matches since I’m not focused on having fun and improving, and instead focused only on winning.

RT: When did you know you wanted to continue playing in college?

PK: I think I always knew that I wanted to play in college, as I loved playing tennis and competing, and I wanted to keep improving my game. College tennis is an ideal environment for this since you’re practicing so often, you’re surrounded by knowledgeable coaches who I chose Rice for a variety can help you of reasons, the main and you have ones being that Rice is your teammates amazing academically, to practice with every day. It’s a and I felt like I would great opportunity really fit in with the team to improve, dynamic that was in but it is also an opportunity to place. Our coaches are be in an electric, very understanding and c o m p e t i t i v e supportive of the players, environment, and which is extremely this is a lot of fun.

RT: What do you do when you aren’t playing your sport?

PK: When I’m not playing my sport, I like to hang out with my teammates and friends from Sid Richardson. Our team is very close, so we spend a lot of time together outside of tennis, important. doing things like playing video RT: Why did Petro Kuzmenok games or just you choose Rice SOPHOMORE TENNIS PLAYER hanging out and University?

PK: I chose Rice for a variety of talking. I’m not much of a party guy, reasons, the main ones being that Rice so I don’t necessarily go out as much is amazing academically, and I felt like I as other people would, but I still like would really fit in with the team dynamic to spend time with friends in a more that was in place. Our coaches are very relaxed setting. understanding and supportive of the RT: What is something that most players, which is extremely important.

They truly care for us, which makes the people don’t know about you?

PK: I think most people don’t know college tennis experience a thousand times more enjoyable and, in my opinion, that I can get pretty nervous on the court productive. Many schools kind of just use or in general. People tell me I always the players until they’re injured and run look very relaxed when I’m playing and down, as they don’t really care for their just in general, and look like nothing well-being in the long run. They often really bothers me. That’s just kind of also try to micromanage the players’ my personality, I feel like I always look game which can be difficult to deal with. super calm, but I tend to get nervous This is not the case at Rice, and I am or anxious quite a bit whether it be in a match, if I have a test coming up or enjoying my time here a lot. something like that. I guess I’m good at RT: How do you balance your classes hiding it. with tennis?

Scores & what’s next ANDERSEN PICKARD

ASST. SPORTS EDITOR

Scores from Jan. 22 to 28

Women’s Basketball at University of Alabama Birmingham Jan. 22 - Rice 56, UAB 63 (OT)

Women’s Tennis vs. Lamar University Jan. 23 - Rice 7, Lamar 0

Men’s Tennis at #1 University of Texas Jan. 25 - Rice 0, Texas 4

Men’s Basketball vs. Tulane University Jan. 25 - Rice 71, Tulane 82

Women’s Basketball at University of North Carolina at Charlotte Jan. 25 - Rice 84, Charlotte 60

Women’s Tennis vs. University of the Incarnate Word Jan. 25 - Rice 7, Incarnate Word 0

Men’s Tennis at University of Arkansas Jan. 26 - Rice 2, Arkansas 4

What’s next from Jan. 29 to Feb. 4 Women’s Basketball vs. University of Tulsa Jan. 29, 7 p.m. - Home on ESPN+

Women’s Tennis vs. University of Arizona Jan. 31, 12 p.m. - Home

Women’s Swimming & Diving at University of Houston Jan. 31, 2 p.m. - Away at Houston

Men’s Track & Field at Robert Platt Invitational Jan. 31-Feb. 1 - Away at Houston

Women’s Track & Field at Robert Platt Invitational Jan. 31-Feb. 1 - Away at Houston

Women’s Swimming & Diving at Sterkel Classic Feb. 1 - Away in Austin, Texas

Women’s Basketball at Florida Atlantic University Feb. 1, noon - Away on ESPN+

Women’s Tennis vs. Texas Christian University Feb. 1, noon - Home

Men’s Basketball vs. #19 University of Memphis Feb. 2, 2 p.m. - Home on ESPN+

Men’s Tennis at Baylor University Feb. 2, 5 p.m. - Away in Waco, Texas

12 • WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2025

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The Backpage is the satire section of the Thresher, written this week by Andrew Kim, Will Howley, Charlie Maxson, and Max Scholl and designed by Lauren Yu. For questions or comments, please email pookiebear@rice.edu.