Special Projects

Endowment under new management

With the creation of the Rice Management Company at the beginning of this month, the endowment received a new organization to oversee its investments. The new organization will be headed by President of the Rice Management Company Scott Wise, formerly the vice president for investments, and a 10-member board of directors. Of the 10 members, seven currently serve on the Rice Board of Trustees and comprise part of a finance committee within the board, while the other three were recruited from outside the university, based on their background in financing, Wise said.

Panel speaks about law

Last Monday, Rice hosted a seven-member panel of lawyers who spoke to an audience of approximately 60 students in the Humanities Building on a variety of topics, including their daily work and the process of entering into and succeeding in law school. The speakers represented a wide variety of legal professions and were invited to speak by alumnus Rudy Ramirez (Lovett '01), who teaches LOVE 237: Introduction to Law each fall and works as an assistant to the Fort Bend district attorney. This is the fourth such panel Ramirez has organized.

Slideshow: This week in photos

CDC promotes HIV awareness

Changing health behaviors may require more than scary statistics to motivate people to act. In an effort to stave off the spread of HIV and AIDS, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention is teaming up with local media to get its message across. As part of Act Against AIDS, a five-year communication campaign to reduce HIV incidence in the United States, the CDC is hosting round-table discussions across the country.

Furniture thrown from fifth floor McMurtry

After a table and wooden chair were thrown from the fifth floor of McMurtry College, Housing and Dining levied several thousand dollars' worth of fines at McMurtry and Will Rice College. The incident took place sometime between 3-8:30 a.m. on Oct. 12. Though the wooden chair survived the fall, the table sank several feet into the mud in the McMurtry quad.

Commentary: Nationals uncover silver lining amidst losses

It was another bad year for baseball in Washington, D.C. The Washington Nationals were again the worst team in the major leagues, again lost over 100 games and again found newer, more creative ways to achieve futility. Much of the national media enjoyed making the "Gnats" a punchline this year. But the lonely souls who actually followed the Nats weren't laughing.

Willy's dry after alcohol violation

Willy's Pub was dry this week in response to an incident Oct. 8 when a student brought outside alcohol into the room, became overly intoxicated and was later found outside Pub by Rice University Police, Associate Director of the Student Center Pamelyn Shefman said. The decision to make Pub dry was made by V&W Permits, the outside organization that owns Pub, whose voting members include Shefman, Assistant Dean of the Student Center and Campus-Wide Programs Boyd Beckwith, Pub Manager Trey O'Neill, Valhalla Manager Sean Walsh, Wellness Center Director Emily Page and economics graduate student alumnus Purvez Captain. Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission was not involved in the decision.

Week 6 NFL Power Rankings

1. New Orleans Saints. Embarrassed the New York Giants last week, ravaging the dreams of both Eli Manning and Fred Carbone. It was a great weekend for Cowboy fans.2. Minnesota Vikings. The Ravens had not lost three games in a row for years. Too bad. Classic Brett Favre and soon to be classic Adrian Peterson. However, the defense has got to play the whole game.

Peace Prize promotes promising initiative

on Oct. 9, the five veritable guardians of world peace set off a bomb that continues to reverberate in every corner of the world. (Irony, it seems, is not lost on the Norwegians.)The magnitude of the surprise - nay, shock - surrounding President Barack Obama being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize is perhaps only comparable to the aftermath of Chicago's recent Olympic faux pas. But as the rubble cleared, and the cries of "Does he deserve it?" began to flood the airways, it quickly became apparent that this time around, things would get a lot uglier. Indeed, before day's end, President Obama, unwittingly caught in the crossfire, and his resume were ripped apart by Talking Head and Average Joe alike.

Commentary: Del Conte departure to hamper athletics' future

I thought it was just a rumor, floated to generate some much-needed publicity. I thought Texas Christian University was tripping over Chris Del Conte's coattails, trying to uncover some of the magic our athletic director had used to turn Rice athletics from a graying, disheveled mess into a gleaming summit of college athletics in the Space City. Del Conte simply had too much left to accomplish within Rice: seeing through the revamping of Rice Stadium, constructing a bigger and better soccer stadium, returning men's basketball back to the Big Dance. Too many goals left, I thought.

Video: Sports Roundtable

For the last few weeks, the Sports Roundtable has been audio only. But with this week's video, you can now put a face to the name of those behind the Thresher sports desk. This week members of the Thresher sports staff will discuss the departure of Chris Del Conte, the football team's troubles and the talent behind the men's cross country team.

Photo: And all that jazz

The Rice Jazz Ensemble serenaded the audience at last Wednesday's fall concert in Sammy's. The group was led by Director Larry Slezak, a jazz instructor at the Shepherd School of Music, whose most recent album was nominated for four Grammys.

Esperanza planning proves problematic

We acknowledge it would be tough to follow up on the grandeur of last fall's Esperanza, which was held on campus in a Centennial Campaign kickoff tent. Rice Program Council scored the venue free of charge, and students enjoyed a focus on both student DJs and a classy atmosphere complete with a fountain and upscale finger foods. The 1,000 tickets quickly sold out, leaving a large number of students disappointed they couldn't attend the revamped dance.RPC hit a high note with last year's formal, and it's hard not to compare it to this year's (see story, page 4).

Coens get Serious in latest flick

After the somewhat inconsequential Burn After Reading, the Coen brothers have taken a step away from the fast-paced, Hollywood-saturated comedy to create a film that, while incredibly entertaining, carries a weighty burden. Although the complex film encompasses a multitude of issues, the primary question the Coen brothers ask is one most of us have considered at some point in our lives: Why do bad things happen to good people? And why do bad things happen at all?In A Serious Man, the protagonist is Larry Gopnik (Michael Stuhlbarg, Body of Lies), a short and unassuming physics professor who lives in a small suburb somewhere in the Midwest. Larry quickly wins our sympathy through his guileless and simplistic personality; his only desire is to live a normal life, and he tries his best to be a good father, brother, husband and professor. He treats people well, and when faced with moral dilemmas, he tries to do the right thing.

Relish: Lining up for the Breakfast Klub

Do you feel that your breakfast is getting to be too predictable, too boring? Has the monotonous routine of servery eggs, limp bacon and tepid toast turned into a tasteless and mindless waste of your time? If so, don't give up faith just yet: The cure for your breakfast blues is just down the street.The Breakfast Klub, located on the corner of Travis and Alabama streets, is one of Houston's best breakfast experiences and will undoubtedly rejuvenate your spirits. When you arrive, you cannot help but notice a massive line of people in front of the yellow building's front door, all of whom know exactly what we're about to tell you: Breakfast Klub is really, truly, undeniably that good.

Photo: Disco inferno

Wiess College junior Danny Shanaberger, a member of Slow Burn, impersonates Michael Jackson last Friday.

A Word With Your Wardrobe: Chloe Dao's Fall 2009 Fashion Show

You may not know her, but Chloe Dao is kind of a big deal around here. Ever since winning the second season of "Project Runway," the petite designer has singlehandedly boosted Houston's fashion credibility and steered its image away from oil rigs and cowboy hats. Seeing as Houston is not exactly esteemed for its design prowess, it's only natural that a local such as myself would fall so easily into fandom.My first Chloe Dao fashion show was a few years ago, fresh off the post-"Project" buzz when she was still using the Lot 8 label for her clothes. The venue was free of charge, at her very own store, crowded with friends and fans. The lineup was small, with 20 or so pieces displayed. Though some of those featured her signature back cutouts and color blocking, the collection overall was mediocre. It was pretty and commercial, but nothing too covetable, and it lacked a connective theme.

Health Museum to host Esperanza

Students will have the opportunity to dust off their prom attire and put their dancing shoes to work at Rice's fall formal, Esperanza, slated to be held Friday, Nov. 13, from 10 p.m.-2 a.m. The dance, put on by the Rice Program Council, will be held at the Health Museum on Hermann Drive, RPC Socials co-Chair Radhika Chhabra said. The location represents a shift from last year's dance, which was held on campus. But the locale is not the only difference this year. Chhabra, who is in charge of formals, said RPC sold 1,000 tickets last year, but will sell just 600 tickets to this year's formal due to the size of the venue. The 600 tickets, costing $15 each, will be distributed to the RPC college representatives Nov. 3.

ZEROW House storms national scene, finishes eighth overall

Earlier this month, 25 students from Rice's Solar Decathlon team traveled to the National Mall in Washington, D.C. to participate in the Solar Decathlon competition, where they finished eighth in the world. Hosted every two years by the U.S. Department of Energy, the competition challenges 20 teams of college students from across the globe to design and build energy-efficient, solar-powered houses.

Athletic director Del Conte leaves Rice for TCU

Chris Del Conte, who has served as Rice's athletic director since June 2006, was introduced as the new athletic director of Texas Christian University Wednesday. President David Leebron has asked David Sayler, fourth year senior executive athletics director, to serve as Interim Director while the university undergoes a nationwide search for Del Conte's replacement.