Cross country runner Tyler Strothman hosted an official launch party for his shoe brand Veloci Running Thursday, Jan. 16. The party at Axelrad Beer Garden in Midtown was both a product debut and a celebration of the journey that brought the brand to life. With friends, runners and customers gathering from across Rice and the greater Houston running scene, Strothman said the night highlighted not just the success of the brand, but the people who made it possible.
Music and running were not always Filippo Aldrovandi’s passions. In fact, the now Division I runner and Shepherd School of Music violinist said that it took him until high school to decide he wanted to play music and run at the college level.
Andrew Trinidad, a Duncan College freshman, competes for Rice’s track and field team in sprints and hurdles. He is majoring in business with a concentration in finance.
Mac Miller’s “Balloonerism” is a delicate balancing act — a posthumous release that feels deeply personal yet walks the fine line between honoring an artist's legacy and commodifying it. Unlike other releases from late artists, which can feel like haphazard collections of half-finished demos (The Party Never Ends by Juice WRLD comes to mind), “Balloonerism” is a cohesive, almost ethereal work.
If there’s anything “The Brutalist” is, it’s ambitious. Following visionary architect László Toth (Adrien Brody) through some thirty years of his life — from his post-World War II immigration to the U.S. to his struggles with a wildly ambitious project — “The Brutalist” reflects its namesake architectural style: massive, angular and carved out of stone.
A new Italian-inspired coffee shop and grocery store hybrid has found its home on West University Boulevard. Mercato and Company, according to the cafe’s website, aims to provide customers with “a warm, inviting atmosphere that feels like home” and “a friendly and quaint experience.” When I visited, I was pleased to have these claims confirmed. The delicious food and charming ambiance combined to make Mercato a place I’d want to visit again soon.
Over a decade ago, Melissa McDonnell Luján ’10 was tasked with redesigning the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston as one of her Rice Architecture studio assignments. Now, after she was appointed the museum’s co-director earlier this month, she’s designing CAMH’s future.
Whether working on a piece for her senior studio class, putting together a zine or doodling with friends, Naomi Doron never stops being creative. For Doron, a Jones College senior studying visual art and cognitive sciences, art extends beyond the actual piece — it’s a way for her to connect with others, she said.
Outside Saba Feleke’s senior art studio, a large scroll painting hangs on the wall bearing the statement: “My 5-year plan is that a Bible-level miracle will happen.” The painting is a recreation of a screenshot of a post on Feleke’s Instagram, which itself is a screenshot of a Twitter post — only much larger, they said. It is part of a series of paintings created during Feleke’s summer residency at Project Row Houses through the Floyd Newsum Summer Studios Program.
From a little-known concept among researchers to generating summaries with every Google search, artificial intelligence’s accessibility has skyrocketed over the past decade. However, its innovation comes at a cost. Training ChatGPT-3 was estimated to generate 552 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, more than the emissions of 559 flights from London to New York. Artificial intelligence can also steal from artists and reproduce racist biases from its data sets.
Rice has been recognized by the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge as one of 2024’s most engaged campuses. Harris County precinct data indicates a record number of 1,399 ballots were cast from students and employees living on campus.
Dean of Undergraduates Bridget Gorman announced the magisters and one resident associate Jan. 4. for the upcoming College 12, set to open fall 2026. In the email, Gorman also announced the establishment of a college 12 website and founding committee.
Rice’s cancer research and sustainability goals are hypocritical to its use of a lobbying firm associated with fossil fuel interests, according to a recent report by environmental group F-Minus.
Housing and Dining unveiled a restructured dining schedule for the spring semester, introducing extended meal times and continuous weekday dining. Lunch and dinner times are staggered at different serveries — for example, Baker offers lunch from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., while Seibel offers lunch from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Under the new plan, at least one servery will be open at any given time between 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. on weekdays.
Rice accepted 13.2% of Early Decision applicants in its first round of admissions for the class of 2029, said Yvonne Romero, vice president for enrollment. With 2,970 total applicants, this year saw yet another record-high; a 3% increase from last year’s previous high of 2,886. An additional 100 students gained admission through the Questbridge National College Match program, an uptick from last year’s 77.
The proposed student ID swiping system will not be implemented at Will Rice College’s upcoming public party, Risky Business Saturday, Jan. 18. The proposal required swiping student IDs at scanners before entering publics to shorten attendee verification times and long lines.
Rice is joining the Scholars at Risk network as well as the Welcome Corps, planning to host threatened scholars and refugees seeking resettlement into the U.S.
The first Student Association meeting of the semester, held Jan. 13, introduced several action items for the upcoming semester, including increasing meal swipe donations and planning for the new student center set to replace the Rice Memorial Center. A report on the results of December’s special election regarding divestment and university spending was also on the agenda, however was tabled as student elections director Natalie Wang was unable to attend.
The construction of Sarofim Hall, the art department’s new building, remains on schedule for an expected opening in August 2025. The project is moving forward as planned while construction crews continue to work at the site, said John Sparagana, art department chair.
