NEWS
2/22/12 6:00pm
President's Office Hours, Feb. 21
The following were noted at President David Leebron's Office Hours on Tuesday, Feb. 21.
The following were noted at President David Leebron's Office Hours on Tuesday, Feb. 21.
Ever since the beginning of the spring season, freshman Natalie Beazant has exceeded expectations. Beazant has proven that when she plays is 1-on-1, she cannot lose. Going into last Friday's match against 21st-ranked University of Alabama, Beazant had amassed a singles record of 7-0. But in this matchup she was going to be tested, as she was playing the 15th-best singles player in America, Alabama sophomore Mary Anne MacFarlane.
If you had the choice, would you want to wake up an hour earlier? I'm guessing that for most of us, the answer to that question is "no" and wouldn't be any different on Beer Bike. Regardless, Beer Bike coordinators are proposing a 9 a.m. start time to the water balloon fight in an effort to allow sufficient time for the two stops of the water balloon fight before the start of the alumni race. As an added incentive for increased race attendance, they are suggesting the colleges bring kegs to the track to increase participation and involvement. While increased focus on the "bike" aspect of our legendary event is a positive ambition, moving the schedule up is not the solution. This proposal fundamentally changes Beer Bike for participants and detracts from the greatness of this grand tradition.
Got a beef with servery food? A formalization of the college food representative job description aims to make students' requests, comments and complaints regarding the serveries more easily heard, as well as help new students deal with their personal dietary restrictions.
Michael Sucsy's (Grey Gardens) romantic drama The Vow is intended to lure couples wrapped up in the Valentine's Day season and looking for an excuse to hold hands. Unfortunately, not even Bridget Jones would willingly watch this movie on a lonely Saturday night. The hand-holding, heart-clutching, sigh-inducing kind of romance that The Vow aspires to be depends on one thing above all: scenes of dialogue brimming with chemistry. However, that chemistry is lacking in The Vow, and unfortunately, the only sighs the film prompts are those of frustration and boredom.
You probably remember The Fray. It is the band that sings "How to Save a Life," that song that was always on the radio in middle school. It has been over three years since the last time singer-songwriter Isaac Slade crooned at us with his sore throat and heartbroken wail of a voice, so maybe The Fray has adapted. After all, the band spent the last year touring the world and writing music about its experiences. Surely that would inspire some truly artistic commentary, right? The problem is that Slade can rewrite any experience into a romance ballad emphasizing the cruelty of the world, and on Scars & Stories, he delivers 12 of them.
Throughout Conference USA play, the men's basketball team has garnered attention for its inconsistent, up-and-down style of play, as Rice (16-12, 7-6 C-USA) has not had a winning streak of more than two games or a losing streak of more than three since conference play started in early January. This past week showed that that brand of play was still alive, for better or worse.
After a season filled with exciting finishes, impressive performances, and promising contributions from the entire team, the women's swim team headed to the University of Houston Recreation Center Natatorium in order to defend its Conference USA title. On the first day of competition, not only did the Rice swimmers set new school records in the 200-yard medley relay and the 800-yard freestyle relay, but the Owls also posted a pair of marks that qualified for next month's NCAA Championships in those events. Rice's 200-yard medley relay team of sophomore Michelle Gean, sophomore Lilly Marrow, sophomore Karina Wlostowska and senior Shelby Bottoms finished in second, tying a new school record time of 1:41.31. The foursome broke the previous school mark set three years ago by more than six-tenths of a second and reached the "B" cut for a possible trip to the NCAA meet in March.
O'Yeah Cafe offers food at cheap prices for students stuck at the Rice Memorial Center or without a meal plan – if they know how to ?order it.
Last week, Americans were exposed to the horrible fact that college students engage in illegal activities while on campus. Even worse, football players commit the same sorts of crimes that the general student population does. Who knew?
With the collegiate athletics conference landscape possessing about as much stability as the San Andreas Fault in the past year, it was only natural that Rice would eventually feel the tremors that were set off by the University of Colorado and the University of Nebraska departing the Big 12 for the Pac-12 and Big 10 conferences, respectively. More recently and closer to home, Texas A&M University left the Big 12 for the Southeastern Conference and the University of Houston, Southern Methodist University, the University of Central Florida and the University of Memphis said goodbye to Conference USA in favor of the Big East conference. As a result, on Feb. 12, C-USA and the Mountain West Conference (which has lost Brigham Young University to the ranks of Division I independents, the University of Utah to the Pac-12 conference, Boise State University to the Big East, Texas Christian University to the Big 12, and San Diego State University to the Big East for football and Big West Conference for all other sports) will align in all sports starting in the 2013-2014 school year. The new affiliation has no name as of yet.
Justice will soon be served differently in the student body. Two University Court constitutional amendments passed by an overwhelming majority after the first round of Student Association General Elections ended last week.
The following items were reported to the Rice University Police Department for the period Feb.15-22.
A new Saturday evening dining option has recently emerged: Rice students selling Chipotle burritos for $7 by the south colleges grove and by West Servery.
The Thresher commends the implementation of a standardized process for establishing food representatives in each college. Currently, the colleges have varying numbers of food reps who often have different jobs. Now, each college will have one food rep who is an elected cabinet member (see story, pg. 1).
With the college conference landscape changing more than it ever has, the Owls were wondering when the effect of realignment would finally reach them. Conference powers the University of Memphis, Southern Methodist University, University of Central Florida and archrival University of Houston accepted invitations to join the Big East starting in 2013, leaving Conference USA and Rice in a gigantic hole.
"May the best man win." This truism is the idea behind This Means War, a film that features one girl dating two guys – two guys who are not just best friends, but also partners in the CIA. Directed by McG (Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle), This Means War features a solid cast, well-written script and some good ?old-fashioned romance.