1-29-15

The Oracle THURSDAY, JANUARY 29, 2015 I VOL. 52 NO. 72

Inside this Issue

The Index

News.................................................................1 Lifestyle......................................................4 Opinion.......................................................6

www.usforacle.com

classifieds..............................................7 Crossword.........................................7 sports............................................................8

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA

<CyberU S F>

Education becomes more virtual in the digital age

LI F E STYLE

Super Bowl commercials are coming.

Page 4

Montage

S PORTS Perry-less Bulls fall to SMU. BACK

Online courses gain $300K grant offers real-world popularity on campus cybersecurity training

By Jeff Odom S T A F F

W R I T E R

Soon, a classroom with a professor who gestures and speaks to students may become a scene for the history films. With no end in sight, students are increasingly opting to take classes from behind a computer screen while in the comfort of their own homes.

USF is among the nation’s leaders in online education, with graduate engineering, business and education programs ranked among U.S. News & World Report’s list of the nation’s top 30 universities for online learning.

Stephanie Harff, the executive director of marketing and recruitment for USF’s Innovative Education program, said she thinks the high ranking is due to the university’s growing number of options for online coursework.

Last year, 135 new online courses were added to the USF system, bringing the total to 3,064 among USF’s Tampa,

St. Petersburg and Sarasota/ Manatee campuses. All of USF’s general education requirements can be completed online, as well as 17 percent of all degrees, according to Harff.

Cindy DeLuca, assistant vice provost for Innovative Education, said the substantial increase in options was done to meet the demands of students, 63 percent of whom have taken an online course during their enrollment.

“This is part of a broader national trend — one we expect to continue long into the future,” she said.

The added number of courses also serves as a cost-effective measure for the university, Harff said. Each student is charged $50 per credit hour as a long-distance fee that funds the “development and delivery” of all the courses.

The total amount of funding the university brings in depends on the semester. Since 2007, Harff said the fees have generated millions for the programs.

Many students have taken

n See ONLINE on PAGE 2

By Zach Leete S T A F F

W R I T E R

Though cyberattacks seem to be making headlines more than ever, steps are being taken at USF to help cyber defenders fight back.

A $300,000 grant from the National Science Foundation will allow USF students in the cybersecurity master’s program to develop the skills and knowledge needed to prevent high-profile hackings, such as the recent U.S. Central Command breach.

The grant was awarded to USF Information Systems Decision Sciences professor Grandon Gill and his team to research and develop cybersecurity case studies based on the realistic concerns and needs of various clients, which will soon be determined in a series of interviews.

“We are developing case studies by interviewing realworld companies and looking for the problems that lead to

major decisions in cybersecurity,” Gill said. “In many cases, this involves methods to making a system more secure or reacting to a breach in a system or choosing between cybersecurity vendors and products.”

For the next 18 months, faculty and student research assistants will be tasked with interviewing companies to develop a dozen or more cases that will test students’ decision-making skills in realistic circumstances.

This program develops a series of technical and social cases covering a broad range of issues for classroom and online instruction. Gill said these are essentially the types of cases that are integrated into the curriculum at Harvard.

“While this might not sound as exciting as fighting hackers, most of our graduates are going to encounter this type of decision-making in the professional field,” Gill

n See GRANT on PAGE 2

2

ONLINE

Continued from PAGE 1

notice of the spike in online courses.

Abbie Smith, a junior majoring in biomedical sciences, said she noticed the increase while registering for classes and chose to take several different online options.

She said they are convenient when balancing schoolwork with her part-time job as a pharmacy technician at a local grocery store.

“It can be much more convenient,” Smith said. “Students are able to work at their own pace and complete the assignments at their own leisure. They don’t have to wake up early to attend class.

Instead, they can watch lectures at any hour of the day.”

But some USF faculty members caution that convenience doesn’t always necessarily mean the best choice.

Christopher Metzger, a geography and environmental science instructor, who taught several hybrid and online courses, said he saw firsthand the struggles that some students go through with online classes.

“I think it’s better for some people, but not all people and

T H U R S DAY, J A N U A RY 2 9 , 2 0 1 5

that’s something everyone has to assess,” Metzger said. “I think if they take an online class and they don’t do well in it, then they need to think about whether they are the type of person that needs to have it in-person and needs to ask questions to a human being.

Some people are really good at it — some people shouldn’t do it. It all depends.”

Smith said she has found that the challenge is one reason online classes are more appealing to her.

“Online classes can also be much harder for some students,” she said. “It requires time management, dedication and responsibility.”

Metzger said while the online route provides a good option for students, he doesn’t necessarily believe it’s something that will be pushed enough to overtake the classroom completely because of older students that aren’t completely technologically savvy.

“I think it’s a matter of, is it good for them?” Metzger said. “I think that’s what students and professors should think about and the schools should think about.

If it’s good, then that’s fine. If it’s not, then (students) need to take classes in person or take a hybrid or blended course.”

GRANT

Continued from PAGE 1

said.

Following a recent string of cyberattacks on major companies such as Target, Snapchat and, most recently, Sony, the timeliness of the grant is ideal as major entities question whether their information is truly safe.

By the time a cyber catastrophe has taken place, it’s usually too late to address the issue, so Gill’s cases aim to teach students the most practical and common-day measures for everyday problems in cybersecurity.

“These are real-world cases,” Gill said. “Many cases are not incredibly exciting in terms of life-or-death situations or espionage, we’re dealing with routine decision-making utilized in cybersecurity.”

Which doesn’t imply that cybersecurity is boring; rather, the opposite is true. Equipping a system with preventative measures to halt cyberattacks before they dramatically damage a system and dealing with incoming threats by beefing

up security promises plenty of challenges.

The $300,000 will help fund USF research overheads, graduate students and Ph.D. students who are currently working to write cases, as well as a handful of workshops in which Gill and staff will train faculty from USF and other institutions on how to use these cases for their own benefit.

“We want this to be a sustainable activity,” Gill said. “Once we walk away, they’ll be able to incorporate these cases into their own courses and learn how to write their own cases.”

Gill proposed the grant, which is the first of its kind from the new Florida Center for Cybersecurity (FC2).

FC2 will contribute to the case study by connecting Gill and his team with organizations and companies to interview regarding cybersecurity.

By late summer 2016, the cases should be completed and compiled into a textbook for global use. Between 100 and 200 students are expected to benefit directly from the grant, but countless others are expected to benefit from the compiled case studies.

●

T H E O R AC L E

T H U R S DAY, J A N U A RY 2 9 , 2 0 1 5

●

T H E O R AC L E

3

Lifestyle

4

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA

●

T H U R S D AY, J A N U A RY 2 9 , 2 0 1 5

●

T H E O R AC L E

Commercials: Why you should watch Super Bowl XLIX

By Brandon Shaik L I F E S T Y L E

Keeping up with T-Mobile

E D I T O R

On Sunday evening, the New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks will battle it out on the field of the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.

While the Super Bowl is considered one of the most important sporting events of the year, for many, the only reason to tune in is to catch the iconic commercials that companies spend millions to air.

These 30-second spots sold for a record $4.5 million each this year, according to Forbes. Though they haven’t entirely been given away, here are some of the most talked-about Super Bowl XLIX commercials to keep an eye out for.

In the style of a Sarah McLachlan animal shelter commercial, T-Mobile is taking a stab at everyone in its Super Bowl ad this year. A somber-faced Kim Kardashian West, now the “author” of two books composed entirely of her selfies, urges onlookers to save their data plans.

“Each month, millions of gigs of unused data are taken back by wireless companies,” she says. “Tragic. Data you paid for that could be used to see my makeup, my backhand, my outfits, my vacations and my outfits. Sadly, all lost. Please, help save the data.”

While this commercial is certainly funny, and has already gained over 1 million views, it puts everyone on blast for eating up the celebrity lifestyle that Kardashian plasters all over social media. Kudos to T-Mobile for saying what’s on everyone else’s mind.

What is the Internet?

Stepping out of the stable

Promoting the new BMW i3, former “TODAY” show hosts Katie Couric and Bryant Gumbel revisit a now-comical moment from a 1994 segment where they attempted to understand the Internet. Now, 21 years later, the duo is seen driving down the street in the BMW i3 with the same quizzical behavior as when they asked “What is Internet anyway? Do you write to it?” The Internet is now a main connection to the world for many individuals; and it seems that BMW is attempting to let the world know what they can expect from the bubble-like i3.

The beloved Budweiser Clydesdale horses have returned to their position in the Super Bowl lineup this year with one message: “Don’t forget your buds.” With one of the heavy hoofed horses standing guard in the beer aisle of the grocery store, a customer who attempts to purchase the off-brand brew receives an angry snort from the steed.

Budweiser has once again used the lovable horses to win over beer drinkers.

The invisible woman

GoDaddy gets stopped

The hilarious Mindy Kaling once again steals the scene in the 30-second teaser for Nationwide auto insurance’s Super Bowl spot. Joking that Kaling has always been treated like she was invisible, she begins to believe that she is indeed invisible. After sitting naked in Central Park, stealing ice cream and croissants from strangers and putting herself through the automatic car wash, the teaser cuts off with “but Mindy was actually not invisible…” leaving viewers to wonder what comes next.

One commercial that you won’t see during the game comes from GoDaddy.com.

The popular web hosting company pulled its controversial ad following a change.org petition that racked up 42,000 signatures on its first day. The commercial featured a small puppy making its way back home after falling out of its owners’ truck. When the puppy finally arrives, his owner is happy to see him as she exclaims that she just sold him using GoDaddy. Though the publicity might be a good thing for GoDaddy, it just goes to show that puppies are no joking matter.

T H U R S DAY, J A N U A RY 2 9 , 2 0 1 5

BULLS

Continued from PAGE 8

at 34 total points than against the Huskies, who picked apart USF’s defensive scheme and came away with 35 points of their own.

“Communication is something we need to stay disciplined on,” Williams said.

“Sometimes we just lose track of our defensive assignments.

As long as we stay focused on the game plan then we’ll be tough to beat moving forward.”

Both Williams and Jenkins played the full 40 minutes last week against Tulane and are expected to continue that heavy presence for the rest of the season.

“I’m a role player, so if coach needs me to stay on the floor, I’ll do it, no question,” Jenkins said. “I don’t care how tired I am, I’ll play the full game if it’s necessary.”

Memphis junior guard Ariel Hearn is the only Memphis

●

5

T H E O R AC L E

player to average over 10 points a game, with 15.4 and 4.1 rebounds. The Tigers also rely heavily on the rebounding force of junior forward Brianna Wright, who averages just fewer than 10 rebounds a game.

The Bulls and Tigers share a similar playing scheme, each relying heavily on two members of their starting rotation to control the floor. Rebounding is Memphis’ strong suit, but USF will look to continue its dominance on the boards as well, as they have out-rebounded opponents by an average of 7.5 per game, compared to Memphis, who is about even with its competition.

USF is now in second place in the AAC with its win in the Sun Dome over Tulane this past weekend. Looking toward the final 10 games of the season, USF will only face three teams currently above .500 — with one of those being a rematch with UConn.

2015

Continued from PAGE 8

“I see coach Dugans as another father to me,” Barr said. “He’s just a cool guy and he’s going to tell you what’s real.”

Now that Barr is fully committed to USF and has no intentions to visit anywhere else, he has his sights set on his future as a Bull.

“First I want to get my degree, and me and coach Taggart said I can be a freshman All-American,” Barr said.

USF currently holds the best recruiting class in the AAC, according to 247Sports.com.

Barr said he and the incoming freshmen plan on bringing the winning back to Tampa.

“It’s going to be a great class,” Barr said. “And we’re trying to change USF around from the losing and we want to start winning.”

Opinion

6

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA

●

T H U R S D AY, J A N U A RY 2 9 , 2 0 1 5

Free speech is necessary, but frustrating be, as the L.A. Times suggested, a generic option for bakers who feel creating the product interferes with their religious convictions, as a baker could make a cake with no wording or outward sign of sexuality.

Still, this would then leave the gay couple’s right to express their legal marriage in the dark.

There is no simple answer until the country does some soul-searching to decide what is most important in regard to freedom of speech. Obviously, religion plays a large and meaningful role in U.S. politics and in many Americans’ lives, and freedom of religion, like freedom of speech, is a fundamental right.

However, when the two clash, the U.S. is confronted with the choice of having a more secular society or one that favors religious expression. There is no easy answer, but perhaps the best way would be to recognize as many different opinions as possible, even if they are not accepted and cause offense. After all, democracy is built on variety.

Freedom of speech is one of the United States’ fundamental rights, and in being a basic American value so important and inherent to the practice of democracy, it can also be extremely frustrating and inconvenient in daily practice.

For instance, the Los Angeles Times, Inside Higher Education and other news outlets have recently reported on controversy generated over anti-gay speech in everything from wedding cakes to fliers from on-campus student organizations.

Part of the confusion is what exactly constitutes hate speech, and the complicated nature of free speech makes it difficult for Americans to decide what they wish to tolerate. To many, denying a homosexual couple the right to purchase a good — a wedding cake in a recent L.A. Times column — is a blatant display of bigotry that harkens back to segregation, when African-Americans could only purchase or use certain goods and services.

At the same time, though intolerance is frustrating, there is an argument that any infringement upon freedom of speech can be a slippery slope toward full control over which ideas are correct and permissible.

In other words, if the U.S. wishes to have true freedom of speech, that implies a certain element of misunderstanding.

For example, the wedding cake controversy reported in the L.A. Times surrounds a Denver baker who refused to make what she deemed a homophobic cake, only to have the customer file a religiousdiscrimination complaint. As the columnist suggested, freedom of speech can go both ways, especially since it might be seen as discriminatory for a homophobic baker not to sell a designed cake to a gay couple.

Freedom of speech should, then, extend to what is law. If gay marriage is legal in a state, that means all the trappings of marriage — photography, cakes and the works — should also be equally available as goods for a homosexual couple as they are to a heterosexual couple.

Perhaps a decent middle ground in this situation would

the Oracle

the University of South Florida’s student newspaper since 1966

Chelsea Mulligan COLU M N I ST

Editor in Chief: Alex Rosenthal .............................. oracleeditor@gmail.com News Editor: Wesley Higgins .......................... oraclenewsteam@gmail.com Sports Editor: Vinnie Portell ........................ oraclesportseditor@gmail.com Lifestyle Editor: Brandon Shaik .............. oraclelifestyleeditor@gmail.com Opinion Editor: Isabelle Cavazos ....................... oracleopinion@gmail.com Copy Editors: Grace Hoyte, Caitlin Lochner Multimedia Editor: Adam Mathieu Assistant Editors: Sebastian Contento, Jacob Hoag, Polly Snover Graphic Arts Manager: Luke Blankenship Advertising Sales Manager: Ashley Pollio

●

T H E O R AC L E

What you said In light of a recent Los Angeles Times column questioning a baker’s use of freedom of speech to deny a same-sex couple a wedding cake based on religious beliefs, assistant editor Sebastian Contento asked students how they think free speech weighs with discrimination.

“I myself am a Christian, and I think that if that’s the person you want to love and be with, then you should still be given the cake, regardless.”

— Mackenzie Swager, a sophomore majoring in business management “I think it’s fair; you are allowed to pick your costumers, and cases like these shouldn’t be a legal matter.” ­— Christina Woody, a sophomore majoring in zoology

“Everybody should have cake!”

Chelsea Mulligan is a freshman majoring in international studies.

— Christian Figueroa, a freshman majoring in chemical engineering

The Oracle is published Monday through Thursday during the fall and spring semesters, and twice weekly, Monday and Thursday, during the summer.

The Oracle allocates one free issue to each student.

Additional copies are $.50 each and available at the Oracle office (SVC 0002).

BY PHONE Main . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sports ................

Lifestyle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Advertising . . . . . . . . . . . .

Classified . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Website: Facebook: Twitter:

974-6242 974-5190 974-1888 974-2842 974-2398 974-2620 974-6242

usforacle.com facebook.com/usforacle @USFOracle

CORRECTIONS The Oracle will correct or clarify factual errors.

Contact Editor in Chief Alex Rosenthal at 974-5190.

“I don’t think this is a terrible thing for a small business to do. Just go to another bake shop; why would you want to give them your money?”

— Sawney Lindsay, a junior majoring in public health

Classifieds UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA

To place a classified ad go to

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Gymnastics and/or Swim Instructors Needed Must Love Kids & Be Enthusiastic!

Call 813.264-5000

Walk-to-USF 2bedroom/2bath furnished condo. Two-students $425/ month each.

(727)787-8753 (727)729-0069

Email pedwards@udimri.com

Interested in working as a medical scribe in the Tampa Bay area? Go to www.msaflorida.com/job-opportunities to apply today!

T H U R S D AY, J A N U A RY 2 9 , 2 0 1 5

http://www.usforacle.com/classifieds

HELP WANTED

Radiology Operations Director Excellent planning and effective communication skills Requires managing staff including performances and establish improvement plans BS or BA required, RT (R) (MR) or RT (R) (CT) preferred Experience in an out-patient Radiology environment Marketing experience a plus Full-time w/benefits

●

FOR SALE/ MISCELLANEOUS Used Luggage Sale This Weekend Come to Big Top Flea Market booth E404 for a great selection of used luggage. We offer multi-piece sets and individual pieces.

Crossword ●

T H E O R AC L E

7

Sports

8

UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA

●

T H U R S D AY, J A N U A RY 2 9 , 2 0 1 5

●

T H E O R AC L E

Women’s Basketball Men’s Basketball

Bulls look SMU deals USF seventh AAC loss to stay hot at Memphis

By Zach Lowie S T A F F

W R I T E R

A crowd of green-and-gold clad fans and Rocky D. Bull rally hats won’t be anywhere near the FedEx Forum when the USF women’s basketball team travels to face Memphis (10-9, 4-4) on the road Saturday at 3 p.m.

USF (16-4, 7-1) is 8-3 away from home this season, traveling more than 7,000 miles to states all over the country and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Junior forward Alisia Jenkins said even though it can be exhausting at times, the jet lag and long trips never seem to affect the team during games.

“We practice and prepare for the travel so we’re able to stay nimble and alert on the court,” Jenkins said. “Traveling does get boring, even though you get to miss school, which is the fun part.”

Having won 10 of their last 11 games, the Bulls are getting tougher to beat as the season goes on. Jenkins’ aggressive play on the court is a big part of this success, as she averages a double-double, with 11.8 points and 11 rebounds per game.

Junior guard Courtney Williams has also had a stellar season, with 20 points and 8.5 rebounds per game. Even with this success, Williams knows there’s always something that can be improved upon.

Since USF’s loss to No. 2 UConn two weeks ago, the team has emphasized improvement in its transition defense.

Fast break buckets and points off allowed turnovers were less frequent in both the Houston and Tulane games combined

n See BULLS on PAGE 5

Freshman Bo Zeigler (35) started in place of the injured Chris Perry, scoring six points to go along with six rebounds before fouling out. ORACLE PHOTO/ADAM MATHIEU

By Jacob Hoag A S S T .

S P O R T S

E D I T O R

With just over 11 minutes remaining in the game, senior guard Corey Allen Jr. hit backto-back three-point shots to cut the lead to four, but USF couldn’t sustain the run, giving up eight consecutive points to SMU on the way to a 63-52 conference loss in front of a home crowd of 3,589.

The game went back and forth for most of the first half Wednesday night — USF starting on a 9-2 run — but with a late run and a last-second three, SMU (17-4, 8-1) took a 32-25 lead into the locker room at halftime.

USF (7-14, 1-6) played without its leading rebounder, sophomore forward Chris Perry, who USF announced is on an indefinite leave from the team after missing Sunday’s game at UConn.

Perry, who averages 7.1 rebounds and 10.8 points, was taken to a Connecticut hospital Saturday with chest pains following an evening practice.

Redshirt freshman Bo Zeigler replaced the 6-foot-8 forward, shooting 60 percent from the

floor, pulling down six rebounds and scoring six points before foul trouble limited his minutes.

“We would’ve liked Bo to be out there a little longer … but you can’t fault the effort,” coach Orlando Antigua said. “We need that fire out of him, it’s big for us.”

Turnovers played a key role in the game, as USF let opportunities slip out of their grasp.

After two key blocks by Jaleel Cousins, junior guard Nehemias Morillo pushed the ball up the court with the Bulls down by just four points, only to turn it over at the other end.

Hidden beneath the mistakes lied significant improvements across the court.

“Cousins had a coming out party tonight,” SMU coach Larry Brown said. “I don’t think Chris (Perry) could’ve played much better.”

Cousins finished the game with 10 rebounds and two blocks in just 13 minutes of play.

“He got us some huge rebounds, especially against a big lineup like SMU,” Antigua said. “He stuck his nose in there and got some big-time offensive rebounds for us, too. I just wish he could’ve finished a little bit

better from the free-throw line.”

USF also saw a slight emergence of three-point success, tying a team-high with seven threes.

Allen Jr. and Morillo accounted for all seven of those 3-pointers, each scoring 18 points.

“Corey is getting better,” Antigua said. “He’s worked at his craft and he’s starting to know what the players are looking for when he’s playing point, but when he’s at the two (position), he has to have a different mentality. He’s growing and he’s matured in that regard.”

Unlike its first meeting with the Mustangs, USF was able to hang in the contest until late — only being down seven with 4:49 left in the game.

“We were competing, we were men,” Antigua said. “We didn’t let errors compound or disrupt our focus. I kept reminding them: ‘Look, we’re going to make mistakes, just don’t let those mistakes compound and lead to three and four mistakes. “’If you want to sulk and you want to pout, wait till there’s a timeout and you get in the huddle. Then, you can sulk, but until then, get your tail back on defense.’”

Football

2015 WR speaks on committing to USF

By Tito Benach C O R R E S P O N D E N T

Prior to Jan. 16, Trinity Christian (Fla.) wide receiver Chris Barr was getting ready to pack his bags and head west to become a Utah Ute, but after visiting USF last weekend, staying close to home is the new plan.

“Basically, when I went to South Florida on the 16th, I kind of already knew after my official visit that I wanted to be a part of the program,” Barr said. “I was supposed to take an official this week to Utah, but I don’t want to waste the coaches’ time and I just wanted to get focused.”

The 5-foot-11, 175-pound receiver had been committed to the Utes for quite some time before flipping to the Bulls on Monday. While on his official visit, the Jacksonville playmaker was swayed to stay in Florida in large part due to the USF coaching staff.

“While I was on my visit, coach (Willie) Taggart and coach (Ron) Dugans told me that they would give me a chance to play and I feel as if they’re more than just coaches they are mentors,” Barr said.

One factor that helped the Bulls reel in Barr is Taggart’s plans to run a spread offense next season.

“That actually pushed me over in my recruitment,” Barr said. “That made me want to go there even more they’re going to have at least three receivers on the field or more and it gives me a chance to get on the field quick.”

Dugans has a tight bond with Barr. The Trinity Christian product said he looks up to him.

n See 2015 on PAGE 5