Special Projects

One-pitch-wonder: Linskey and his fastball are giving batters fits

Last season, then-freshman pitcher Matthew Linskey allowed nine runs across 11.1 innings and walked more batters than he struck out. But lost in the shuffle was the fact that opponents weren’t hitting his fastball – Linskey allowed a batting average of .135 to opposing hitters, pacing the team by .65. According to Linskey, he knew he was closer to being a top pitcher than his 7.15 ERA would suggest.

Women’s tennis trounces Houston on Senior Day

The Rice women’s tennis team returned home Saturday where they made quick work of the University of Houston, beating the Cougars 4-0 on the Owls’ Senior Day. According to head coach Elizabeth Schmidt, she was encouraged with how her team responded on Saturday following their 4-3 defeat a week prior to No. 42 Florida International University.

Baseball swept by LA Tech, extend C-USA losing streak to seven

The Rice baseball team was swept by Louisiana Tech University last weekend in Ruston, LA. Losing all of their games against the No. 2 ranked team in Conference USA, the Owls fell 5-3 on Friday, 9-3 on Saturday and 3-1 on Sunday. After this weekend’s matchup against the Bulldogs, the Owls overall record sits at 9-24. with a 3-9 record against conference opponents.

04-12-2022 Crossword: "Rice-a-Roni"

04-12-2022 Crossword Solutions

Weekly Scenes and Screens, Apr. 13

Review: ‘Everything Everywhere All At Once’ is an Absurd, yet Stirring Thrill Ride

In recent years, the concept of the multiverse has become a fascination in entertainment. From “Rick and Morty” following characters as they hop through and dispose of various alternate realities to the use of the multiverse in “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” where alternative worlds provide a fun twist for fans of the franchise, both TV ratings and box office results show clear approval for this previously fringe sci-fi topic.

LGBTQ+ Films to watch to keep PRIDE Week going

Last week’s Pride Week celebrations may be over, but the contributions of the LGBTQ+ community to art can still be spotlighted. Whether a connoisseur of queer film or just learning about the array of options available, a fan of comedy or drama, narrative or documentary, this film list has options for a variety of viewers, all featuring LGBTQ+ characters and storylines.

Rice Owls Dance Team celebrates 30th anniversary, new era through spring showcase

For the Rice Owls Dance Team, the show will go on while parts of their journey come to an end. Their upcoming showcase, which celebrates the team’s 30th anniversary, also marks the end of an era for head coach Lilibeth Patt while ushering in her replacement, current team captain Taylor Montgomery. The show will be held on Friday, April 15 and Saturday, April 16 in Tudor Fieldhouse. 

Budget Bites: 2022 Boba Superlatives

Let’s face the facts: good boba is hard to find for a self-proclaimed connoisseur. There is nothing worse than over-brewed tea, unchewy pearls or grainy drink consistency. The art of boba is quite difficult to master and thus requires considerable attention to every component of the beverage. No need to fret though, since the Thresher has selected the best in the business within a twenty minute drive of Rice campus.

‘Tied in Nots’ showcases VADA student art

The Mavis C. Pitman Exhibition Fellowship is annually awarded to three to four Visual and Dramatic Arts students with concentrations in visual arts studio or film. The cash grant of 1,500 dollars enables these artists to create an original body of work for display at the Moody Center for the Arts. 

Bring these art courses into the picture this fall

With the add/drop period for fall semester in full swing, many might be looking for a way to diversify or add some creativity into their schedule. Luckily, many classes throughout various divisions of fine arts ranging from theatre to art history are still available. Whether you’re looking to get out of your comfort level, find new appreciation for art or simply earn some D1 credit hours, consider bringing these art classes into the picture. 

Karole Armitage presents sunset performances at Skyspace

To commemorate the Moody Center for the Arts’ 10th anniversary, Karole Armitage, the artistic director of the New York based Armitage Gone! Dance Company, has choreographed an original dance that will be performed by Rice Dance Theatre. 

Almost a year in, students and faculty discuss new business major

Last fall, the Jones Graduate School of Business added to its offerings for undergraduates by launching a business major. Rice undergraduates in the Classes of 2024 and 2025 can declare a business major with either a finance or management concentration, and many students have shown interest in it, according to the Director of Undergraduate Business Programs Natalia Piqueira.

‘I felt like I live to work’: students talk burnout

​​Rice students are busy. Rice students are tired. Some Rice students are facing the mounting threat of burnout. Amid academic, extracurricular and social expectations, four students described their struggles with burnout at Rice. Agnes Ho, Director of the Student Wellbeing Office, defined burnout as “what happens when you are physically and emotionally stressed and exhausted to the point that your body and mind signal you to do something to either respond to it or to shut you down.” 

Black at Rice: Shannon LaBove coaches communication, community

Shannon LaBove wears many hats at Rice. On any given day, LaBove can be found in her apartment in the new Sid Richardson  College building, coaching Rice’s speech and debate team or lecturing a class on interpersonal communication. 

Rice must reconsider its partnership with Aramco

On March 21 in a recent press release, Rice University enthusiastically announced it had approved a five-year, $10 million bid for Saudi Arabian Oil Company’s (Aramco) involvement in Carbon Hub, a university-led research initiative committed to accelerating the energy transition toward sustainable hydrocarbons. In this same announcement, Rice’s Matteo Pasquali, a chemical engineer who directs Carbon Hub, construed the development in a positive manner, expressing his unequivocal excitement to “welcome the Aramco group” as “great partners” for facilitating a more sustainable future. 

COVID outbreak could have been mitigated with proactive testing

On Dec. 26 of last year, President David Leebron and future president Reginald DesRoches sent an email to the Rice community regarding plans for this spring semester. The email proclaimed that Rice had “entered a new and different phase of the pandemic.” Specifically, the email stated that the university would “begin to shift our policies to a posture that recognizes COVID-19 as endemic and facilitates our ability to deliver the best education and opportunity to our students, while still taking reasonable precautions.” 

Rice debate places fifth, speech places twelfth at national competitions

Rice University’s speech and debate teams won several awards for their 2021-2022 competition season. Debate team members Jacob Tate and Maximus Renteria won the team its second national championship in the National Parliamentary Debate Association 2022 Championship tournament, and the team placed No. 5 in the overall season sweepstakes, according to David Worth, the director of the George R. Brown Forensics Society. The speech team placed twelfth in the overall season sweepstakes category at the American Forensic Association National Speech tournament.

Rice adjusts policies in response to COVID surge

The recent rise in COVID cases on campus prompted the reinstatement of masks in classrooms, the reduction of indoor dining to half capacity and the closure of The Pub at Rice, according to an email sent by the Chair of Crisis Management Advisory Committee Kevin Kirby late last week.