Special Projects

Men's Cross Country 2009: Largest freshmen class in recent history promises to augment squad, but untried legs make season's outcome unsure

With a heady influx of young legs, no one really knows what to expect from this year's men's cross country squad. The Owls enter the 2009 season without three of the five runners that paced them to a fifth-place finish at the NCAA South Central Regional last November. However, the roster boasts eight true freshmen, all of whom are capable of cracking the top seven runners but whose talent, for the time being, remain unknown. Leading the Owls this year are seniors Scott Zivick and Simon Bucknell and sophomore Michael Trejo, all of whom were among the top six runners last year, and the first two of whom now have three years' experience under their belts.

Rice Football 2009: James Casey takes time to speak with the Thresher about blocking, bonding and his long-awaited television debut

Ex-Rice football superhero James Casey was drafted in this past year's NFL draft and is currently competing for a spot on the Houston Texans. Sports Editor Yan Digilov spoke with Casey about his NFL experiences. The Rice Thresher: James, now that you have been through OTAs (organized team activities), minicamp and a few preseason matchups, what are some of the biggest adjustments you have noticed that you will have to make in order to be successful in the NFL?

Shanty towns laudable

At some point next Friday, around dinner time, a truck full of deodorant will stop by Rice, unload and make a heavy profit. Why? Because that is when Rice's shanty town will shutter its doors and leave its inhabitants, as it were, homeless, letting loose a week's worth of un-showered masses to roam the campus (see story, page 1).Ok, the part of the truck may be wishful thinking. But the shanty town is real. If all goes according to plan, those in the shanty town will be able to relax after spending a week admirably raising both awareness and funds in the hopes of ameliorating the lives of those who have to actually live under such conditions. They will have gone four days without showering, eating nothing more than rice and beans and forgoing all the modern comforts we take for granted.

New recreation center fees add financial constraints

In recent conversations with fellow gym enthusiasts about our excitement surrounding the Sept. 25 opening of the Barbara and David Gibbs Recreation and Wellness Center, the topic of the proposed membership fees inevitably arises. I almost always receive two reactions from students, the first being, "Huh? What fees?" and the second usually being a mixture of outrage and despair. I find these reactions to be somewhat ironic given that Rice just received Princeton Review's No. 1 ranking for "best quality of life." Although this membership fee will affect all members of the Rice community, I feel it is one that is not resonating well with students, returning students especially.

Parking survey finds Rice students in local residential area

Some West University residents may be complaining that their streets are overflowing with Rice-affiliated cars, but a recent survey concluded that Rice vehicles only account for 4 percent of the parking traffic on residential streets surrounding campus.The survey, which was conducted by the Office of Public Affairs with Facilities, Engineering and Planning, the Texas Medical Center, the Rice Village and Desman Associates, a consulting firm, monitored approximately 1,700 vehicles from April 15 to May 5 in 2008, and again Feb. 19 to March 2 this year, by logging license plates.

Online only: Denver advises on infuriating music and college incest

Dear Denver,

Behind the green fences

McMurtry College and Duncan College may be completed, but that doesn't mean that construction on campus is over. From Olympic-sized swimming pools at the new Rec Center, to hummingbird gardens at the newly-named Huff House, to reconstructing the torn-down wings at Will Rice College and Baker College, the projects run far and wide. To get your bearings, here is a map to find your way through the cranes and sawdust and all the way to the new badminton courts.See the full spread here.

New director set to take over Leadership Rice

As the new school year begins, Leadership Rice will have a new head. David Niño is taking the helm this month as the new director of the club. He replaces previous director Brad Smith who will pursue a doctorate degree in sociology at Princeton University.Niño will be administering two programs under Leadership Rice: the Summer Mentorship Experience, which places Rice students with internships and mentors over the summer, and the Envision Grant, which awards up to $2,500 to fund a student project that impacts Rice or the community.

H1N1 virus is preventable

Hurricane Ike ravaged Rice's campus last September, cancelling and disrupting our livelihoods. This year, the weather has remained calm, but another storm seems to be brewing: H1N1. As such, we are prodding each of you to get a flu shot this year (see "Online only: Health services advises for flu shot," ricethresher.org). The process is simple, cheap and quick, and while the virus may not uproot any trees, there's no promise it won't cause more harm than Ike.

Online only: Health services advises for flu shot

This article has been changed from the printed edition.In anticipation of this fall's likely flu surge, Student Health Services is encouraging students, faculty and staff to obtain a flu vaccine. Staff Physician Jessica McKelvey said Student Health will be offering vaccinations during the upcoming flu season free of charge for faculty and $13 for students.However, students with medical conditions that put them at increased risk of the flu can receive a vaccination for free.

Alumna donation set to bring acclaimed artist to campus

While most Rice students may not currently know what a skyspace is, they soon will. Preliminary designs were finalized this month for an on-campus skyspace, a roofless building through which the sky can be observed. James Turrell, a renowned contemporary artist, will design the project.The permanent installation, which is scheduled to be completed by 2011 and will be located on the Shepherd School of Music's quad, is funded by a multimillion dollar donation from alumna Suzanne Deal Booth (Hanszen '77), University Art Director Molly Hubbard said.

New colleges experiencing 'growing pains'

Spotty cell phone reception, flooding bathrooms and issues with lighting are some of the problems the new residents of McMurtry College and Duncan College have had to contend with since the colleges opened up for Orientation Week. The Student Maintenance Representatives at the two colleges have been working with Housing and Dining and Facilities, Engineering and Planning to resolve these problems as quickly as possible, Susann Glenn, Manager of Communications for FE&P, said.

Women draw with Baylor after thunderstorm delay

As the rain poured down and the lightning illuminated the darkened sky last Friday, the women's soccer team sat, unsure as to whether or not they would be taking the field that night against Baylor University. Two hours later, the teams finally headed onto the pitch, and after a pair of goals and overtime periods, the contest ended in a 1-1 tie. According to senior Erin Scott, the waiting game was almost as difficult as the actual competition.

Rice Volleyball 2009

With their season abruptly snuffed out by Wichita State University last year, the volleyball squad may have hung its head, dragged its feet and kept a frown as the offseason began. Instead, the team saw its loss, which came in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament, as the end to an unabashed success. Not only did the team finish third in Conference USA, but they also made it to the Big Dance, their first appearance in four years.

Sports Staff Soundboard: What are your thoughts on Michael Vick's return to the NFL

Tarantino leaves his mark with Basterds

Quentin Tarantino's name carries a certain vicious connotation. His films are often gruesomely sharp, full of blood-splattered baddies and two-times-too-witty good guys. With his latest effort, Inglourious Basterds, a long, sprawling war-based epic, Tarantino rounds into form. Basterds is Tarantino at his best, and it's awesome.The film takes place "Once upon a time ... in Nazi-occupied France." After escaping a Nazi raid on the house hiding her family, Shosanna Dreyfus (Paris's Mélanie Laurent) establishes herself in Paris, taking on a new identity and becoming the owner of a cinema, where she reluctantly agrees to host a premiere screening of a new propaganda film for the upper echelons of Nazi leadership.

Slideshow: The faces of Rice construction

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Plot, characters earn Post Grad an "F

The theme of Post Grad was timed perfectly. Students are just returning to school, and like the film's main character, many recent college graduates are struggling to find jobs during these hard economic times.So, good for the filmmakers for releasing the film at the right moment. Because that was about all they got right in this comatose, dithering attempt at cinema.

Personal interaction with professors vital to learning

This summer provided me with a new experience. My wife and I walked El Camino de Santiago de Compostela, the Way of St. James, a millenary pilgrimage to the tomb of St. James the Apostle beginning in the Pyrenees in Southern France and ending in Santiago de Compostela, near Spain's Atlantic coast. While one of the many reasons my wife and I walked El Camino was to honor Spain's patron saint, revered as the great teacher of the Gospel to the Iberian peninsula, I'm not here to discuss the saint's particular merits. Rather, I would like to first offer tribute to another James, James Castañeda, the former Rice professor and beloved friend of the Rice community who passed away last fall. Secondly, I would like to bring to light all those other professors who were, or could be, someone's James - great life teachers who we come to love and respect.

New BRC opens OC

Following eight years of planning and months of construction at the corner of University Boulevard and Main Street, the BioScience Research Collaborative opened its doors on Monday to Rice students and faculty. The new center, designed with the intent to facilitate interdisciplinary interactions between Rice researchers and the Texas Medical Center, will focus on improving human welfare through scientific research. "There is an extraordinary frontier in biomedical science," Provost Eugene Levy said. "Fortunately, [Rice] is situated across from one of the world's best medical centers," he said of the Texas Medical Center.