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NEWS 10/1/09 7:00pm

Former biology professor Meffert dies

By Casey Michel

Lisa Meffert, a former biology professor at Rice, died suddenly on Tuesday at the age of 49, Howard R. Hughes Provost Gene Levy announced Friday in an e-mail. After graduating from the University of Houston with a degree in biological sciences in 1982, Meffert earned her Ph.D. from Houston in 1988. She then served on the biology staff at Houston until 2000 before moving to Rice's Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, where she served until 2008.

NEWS 10/1/09 7:00pm

Moore returns with sensationalist take on loving Capitalism

By Erika Kwee

In no way is Capitalism: A Love Story your average love story. Nor is it a love story that anyone should be prepared to take too seriously.Michael Moore, one of the film world's most notorious creators of blatantly biased commentaries, "uncovers the secrets of capitalism" in a highly affected 127-minute film altogether too ludicrous to be seen as the message Moore intends. Capitalism follows Moore around the country as he explores the exploited masses of America - the hardworking middle-class whose houses are being foreclosed, the unpaid factory workers and the thousands of people who have had their jobs cut due to capitalism.

NEWS 10/1/09 7:00pm

Volleyball opens C-USA slate with wins

By Paul Fitzgerald

The volleyball team entered the season with the self-proclaimed goal of winning Conference USA. With two victories in their first two conference matches last weekend, the Owls (10-3, 2-0 C-USA) may very well be on their way to the C-USA crown, something the program has never accomplished. Rice continues conference play tonight when it hosts the University of Texas-El Paso at Tudor Fieldhouse at 7 p.m. UTEP currently sports a 9-7 record and swept their first two conference games last weekend, beating the University of Tulsa (10-5, 0-2 C-USA) and Southern Methodist University (10-6, 0-2 C-USA). The Owls will then take on Tulane University on Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m., also at Tudor. Rice has not had much success in recent years against Tulane (7-4, 3-0 C-USA), as it has not defeated the Green Wave since 2005.

NEWS 10/1/09 7:00pm

Four BB shooters arrested, two await trial

By Josh Rutenberg

Last week, four suspects involved in the Labor Day weekend BB shootings on the Rice campus and surrounding area were identified by Rice University Police Department. Arrests have been made for three of the suspects, and the fourth, a Rice student, turned herself in to authorities late last week.RUPD identified the suspects as Caitlin Barnett, 19; John Michael Chargois, 22; Paul Helton, 18; and Bonnie Mugg, 21. All four are charged with aggravated assault, a felony, Police Captain Dianna Marshall said. Harris County Jail set bond at $30,000 for each individual. Only Barnett and Chargois are accused of being involved in every reported BB incident.

NEWS 10/1/09 7:00pm

Losing by inches, soccer ends weekend with two tough losses

By Teddy Grodek

In the sports world, inches define everything. A putt can miss the hole, a football can fall short of the goal line or a soccer ball can nail the crossbar and miss moving the game into overtime, all by inches. The soccer team played two of their best games this weekend, but the score told a different story, a story of inches and of the minuteness with which games can be lost. The Owls (2-6-2, 0-2 C-USA) fell first to East Carolina University Friday night by a score of 1-0. They then traveled to Marshall University and, in a nauseating sense of déj? vu, lost 1-0.

NEWS 10/1/09 7:00pm

Faculty seek federal research funds

By Jocelyn Wright

The endowment may be down, but funding for sponsored projects keeps going up. The proposal activity for sponsored research projects over the past two months is up 60 percent from two years ago, and a little under 200 more research proposals were submitted in Fiscal Year 2009 than in FY 2008, Research Provost James Coleman said. In total, Rice received $93.5 million for sponsored projects in FY 2009. Federal stimulus money accounted for a large proportion of the new funding, particularly under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, Coleman said.

NEWS 10/1/09 7:00pm

Photo: A meeting of the minds on the gridiron

 

Former Owls football stars, James Casey (86) and Jarett Dillard (87) catch up after Sunday's matchup between the Houston Texans and Jacksonville Jaguars. Dillard's Jags were victorious by a score of 31-24.

NEWS 10/1/09 7:00pm

Beer in Hell distilled down to movie form

By Kait Chura

"My name is Tucker Max, and I am an asshole."So begins the now-infamous blog of Tucker Max, a former law student who decided to chronicle his sexual exploits and soon found himself an Internet icon as a result. In the film I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell, Max has taken his blog - which he started in 2002 on a bet with his friends and made into a book in 2006 - and tried his hand at screenwriting. What he develops may not hold true to the original blog, but the film's entertainment value is as apparent as Max's bluntness.

NEWS 10/1/09 7:00pm

IT encourages cyber security

By Lawanda Turner

Phishers beware: This October marks the sixth-annual National Cyber Security Awareness Month, an initiative started by the Department of Homeland Security's National Cyber Security Division. This is the fourth year Rice has participated in this event, which includes weekly discussions led by guest speakers at the residential colleges.

NEWS 10/1/09 7:00pm

Archi student dies

By Jocelyn Wright

Lovett College senior Jay Townsend died Monday of health problems stemming from a weakened heart caused by a childhood battle with cancer. He was 26 years old. Townsend was scheduled to receive his B.A. in Architecture next January and was working on his professional Bachelor of Architecture degree, Dean of Undergraduates Robin Forman said in an e-mail Wednesday afternoon.

NEWS 10/1/09 7:00pm

Another 'dore closes

 

Freshman running back Charles Ross streaks down the field on his way to scoring Rice's first touchdown of the game against Vanderbilt last Saturday. The Owls held the Commodores to a 10-10 tie at halftime, but couldn't keep their ground during the second half. For the full story on Rice's first home game of the season, turn to page 13 or read the article online.

NEWS 10/1/09 7:00pm

Listen to Rice Sports Roundtable Discussion

 

Here's Week Two of our series of discussions about Rice sports. This week we talk about the football team's chances against Tulsa, projections for the rest of the women's cross country season, and thoughts on the volleyball and soccer seasons so far. Thanks for listening!

NEWS 10/1/09 7:00pm

Boys Noize's Power fizzles and sputters on turntable

By Kyle Barnhart

When Alexander Ridha, better known by his stage name, Boys Noize, announced that his heavily-anticipated sophomore release would be entitled Power, people got excited. And for good reason.After all, 2007's Oi Oi Oi was a stellar debut by the German DJ and a masterpiece of the contemporary electro house movement. Power's audacious title conjured up images of melting speaker stacks, lasers moving over sweaty, dancing twenty-somethings at 160 beats per minute and brownouts in European rave districts. There was certainly no reason to expect anything less: Boys Noize has been known to deliver the goods.

NEWS 10/1/09 7:00pm

Faculty concerns for merger must be addressed

By Staff Editorial

Within the last six weeks, Rice has undergone its greatest expansion in decades. Two new residential colleges ushered in their first classes. The off-campus BioScience Research Collaborative expanded Rice's borders. The Barbara and David Gibbs Recreation and Wellness Center dropped jaws from students and faculty alike. The campus is opening up and stretching out, and Rice is finally able to reap the rewards of years of work.But if the memorandum of operation between Rice and the Baylor College of Medicine grows into something more, as Leebron's e-mail Friday about Rice and Baylor's "memorandum of understanding" would suggest, all these recent projects will become distant memories (see story, page 1).

NEWS 10/1/09 7:00pm

Rice families flock to campus

By Hallie Jordan

The campus buzzed with activity and new faces last week as more than 2,300 guests participated in this year's Families Weekend. This number is an increase from last year, when 1,975 guests visited campus for the weekend.The two most highly-attended events were filled to capacity: all 700 tickets were distributed for Friday evening's reception at the Museum of Fine Arts and all 1,300 tickets were sold for Saturday's pre-game barbecue. The events were capped because of limited space.

NEWS 10/1/09 7:00pm

Dear Denver: Denver advises readers on men, Windows

 

For the past few weeks, the Thresher has run a covert advice column online at www.ricethresher.org. After advising on everything from Screw dates to screwing roommates, it's time for "Dear Denver" to come to print.Dear Denver,

NEWS 10/1/09 7:00pm

Jones stands undefeated after powderpuff romp

By Ryan Glassman

The past weekend was the time of the year when Rice flexed its muscles, primping the school and putting itself on display for the annual Families Weekend. While the new Barbara and David Gibbs Recreation and Wellness Center's opening was spectacular, and the football team's home opener drew some excitement, Week Three of powderpuff football may have stolen the show. With an extended slate of Saturday games on tap, parents watched their daughters battle in the heat during a day of big crowds and big plays. And on Sunday, fans saw a new league power, Jones College, on display. In our Game of the Week, Jones took on the tandem of Will Rice College and McMurtry College in a Sunday night primetime showdown for the finale of Week Three action.

NEWS 10/1/09 7:00pm

Sunday's Sports Update : Football falls to Tulsa for fifth-straight loss

By Meghan Hall

Last night's game against the University of Tulsa bore too many resemblances to last week's with Vanderbilt University and the end result was the same with a 27-10 loss. Although the Owls had the spark of playing against former coach Todd Graham, they fought the driving rain and came up short against the Golden Hurricane.Tulsa quarterback G.J. Kinne led his team down the field decisively on their first possession, and handed the ball off to running back Jamad Williams for a six-yard touchdown run. Then at the beginning of the second quarter, Rice (0-5, 0-2 Conference USA) was able to take advantage of good field position. The drive started at Tulsa's 48-yard line, and after a personal foul penalty on Tulsa (4-1, 2-0 C-USA), redshirt freshman Ryan Lewis tossed a 29-yard touchdown to senior tight end Taylor Wardlow.

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