Special Projects

Online only: Violent behavior blows professional opportunity for Blount

I don't know LeGarrette Blount. I don't know if he were a Gold Glove champ at 15, or if he slept as a child under posters of Ali, or if his favorite movie consists of the words "Rocky" or "Balboa." (If they have both in the name, shame on him.)I don't know much about him. But I know that I'd want him on my side if I were ever in a brawl. And I also know that I shouldn't know that. If Blount had kept his wits, if he hadn't ransacked Boise State defender Byron Hout's head with his right fist, then I would only know the former University of Oregon running back as a beefy ball-carrier who could potentially bring the Ducks back to a BCS berth.

Friday's Sports Update: Oklahoma State defeats soccer 1-0

The Owls (1-4-1) knew what they were up against with Oklahoma State University (5-2-0) coming into town Friday night. Though the home squad was able to put up quite the battle, the 19th ranked team in the nation narrowly escaped with a 1-0 victory.OSU came out swinging with several scoring chances in the first ten minutes of the game, putting Rice in a defensive role. In the 27th minute, the Owls evaded perhaps the closest near miss of the half when freshman Megan Aultman got beat on the left side of the goalie box. OSU put a strong low cross in for a waiting striker and the ball went sailing into the upper post.

Honor Council changes call for deliberation

Editor's note: This article has been changed from its original version:Along with Willy's Statue and Wayne Graham's stare, the Honor Code is an integral member of Rice's identity. Long a member of the Rice culture, the Honor Code's merits have been ingrained into Rice's bones, holding students to the highest ethical standards that a university of our stature can.

Honor Council working group presents findings

After nearly a year of research, the Working Group on the Honor Council presented its findings on efficiency within the organization this week.The 11-member group - comprised of an assortment of professors, students and a representative from the Office of the President - was charged last October with evaluating the functionality of the Honor Council.

Williams brings sober performance in World's Greatest Dad

Robin Williams has a serious actor's talent trapped in a comedian's brain. Even in his funny movies, he is best when acting with restraint: Witness his subtle performance in the flamboyant romp The Birdcage, or the way his character in Good Morning Vietnam changes as he realizes that war is not a joke.World's Greatest Dad is another comedy in which Williams keeps a straight face. He plays Lance Clayton, an unpopular high school teacher whose poetry class is filled with empty desks, whose novels are rejected by every publisher who reads them and whose son from a long-ago fling is the school's requisite friendless loser.

Choosing majors a personal journey

By now, it has become devastatingly clear that the summer is no more - stacks of books, unending problem sets and dozens of exams and papers remind us that we are in for a long, grueling semester of nonstop academia.For those students still working their way through their first or second years (or a select few in their third, fourth or even fifth), the daunting task of choosing majors must be addressed. Although it seems fairly obvious that students should choose their majors based on their interests, some people, for several reasons, just don't get the message.

Women's Cross Country 2009: Although team's leadership is depleted, women hope strength will lie in record numbers

Typically, a coach jumps for joy at a surplus of talent. Jim Bevan, the women's cross country coach, does not share this sentiment. This year, Rice's women's cross country squad is 22 members strong - the largest in university history - with half the squad new to the team, coming in as either freshmen or first-time runners. With so many runners to choose among, Bevan is still trying to figure things out.

Transition to online journalism inevitable

The world of print journalism is evaporating. The paper versions of The Rocky Mountain News and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer are gone forever; my hometown newspaper in San Antonio, the Express-News, now has a staff roughly the same size as that of The Rice Thresher. Time reports that the Boston Globe is losing $1 million dollars a week, and rumor has it that even the The New York Times is burdened by enormous debts.Many news outlets, like the Post-Intelligencer, are switching to online-only formats. Those print media sources lucky enough to survive write columns about the inferiority of Internet news sites. An April article by Atlantic Monthly reported, "In a poll of prominent members of the national news media, nearly two-thirds say the Internet is hurting journalism more than it is helping." One anonymous respondent told Atlantic that the Internet "has blurred the line between opinion and fact and created a dynamic in which extreme thought flourishes while balanced judgment is imperiled."

Sports Staff Soundboard: Do you think Brett Favre will make it through the full 16-game NFL season

Online only: Denver dishes out Screw Date ideas and parent problems

Dear Denver, I love my roommate, but she always brings her boyfriend to our dorm and that bothers me because I'm trying to study. I know that the best way is to communicate with her, but I am afraid that she would be unhappy about it and I would be uneasy whenever I am around her boyfriend. Please help me.

Erratum

In the Aug. 28 article, "New BRC opens OC," the Thresher reported that architect Michael Graves designed the BioScience Research Center. The BRC was designed by Skidmore Owings & Merrill LP and FKP Architects, Inc. The Thresher regrets the error.

Volleyball picks up early wins at Mizuno

If the first weekend of the volleyball team's season is an indication of the rest of the season, the Owls can mark their calendars for the NCAA tournament. Rice (4-1) opened its season with a bang, winning three of its first four matches in its own Mizuno Invitational, with the lone defeat coming at the hands of the University of Oklahoma. The Owls tacked on a victory against Sam Houston State on Tuesday. Rice played stellar defense throughout the matches, notching 32 blocks and 340 digs in the five matches. Furthermore, their hitting efficiency was on target with what they expected. Nonetheless, the Mizuno Invitational gave the team some areas they need to work on. In addition to their communication and movement, the Owls will look to improve their service game and blocking in practice before they head to San Francisco to continue their season this weekend.

More weekly news photos

Sports Staff Soundboard: What is your prediction for the Rice football team's 2009 season

KTRU Corner: Isis' Wavering Radiant

In the words of Isis frontman Aaron Turner, heavy metal has "long been unjustly maligned as solely the province of knuckle-dragging meatheads." Although Isis keeps intact the dark lyrical themes, heavy guitar riffs, aggressive percussion lines and high levels of feedback that have made metal a somewhat disreputable genre, the band has managed to craft a distinctive sound that demonstrates metal's extraordinary versatility and artistic strength.Though the band is rooted in the sludge and hardcore styles of bands such as Neurosis, Godflesh and the Melvins, Isis' 2002 release Oceanic has been called a progenitor of the art metal, post-metal and metalgaze subgenres. Turner himself has been resistant to categorizing Isis in interviews, and once dubbed their sound "thinking man's metal."

A Closer Look: Scouting the schedule

Road trip leaves soccer still scrounging for victory

Two games, zero goals. Not exactly how the soccer team was expecting to complete its first road trip. It was a scoreless weekend for Rice's offense over the weekend as the team dropped a pair of 1-0 games, first to Marquette University and then to the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. But Head Coach Chris Huston believes there was plenty of good that came out of the tough roadtrip.

Houston Summer Fest a hot, sweaty success

Houston has a lot going for it: late-night dining options, world-class museums and, of course, Rice University. But let's face it - Houston ain't exactly hip. So when over 20,000 Houstonians came out of the air conditioning to dance under the blazing sun in a weekend jam-packed with both big-name and local bands, the city had a reason or two to celebrate.

Letters to the Editor

Online Comment of the Week

Rice Football 2009: After best season in a generation, Owls bring plethora of questions in search of postseason repeat

Last season, Rice's football team reached its highest high since the days of Eisenhower and leather helmets. Everyone knows the list of accomplishments: the second bowl game in three years; the first bowl victory in over 50 years, coming only three miles from campus; a pair of talents drafted into the NFL, one to Jacksonville and one to Houston. It was a magical season. No one is debating that. But that was then. As the 2009 season beckons, the questions swirling around the team are too numerous to count. Graduation wreaked havoc on the team, and the Owls are more untested as it has been in the last four years, especially on offense. The defenses' eight returning starters are comforting, but Rice has had more than its fair share of struggles on that side of the ball. Nonetheless, Conference USA, without a clearcut favorite, looks to be open to whoever wants the title the most. Here, in a position-by-position breakdown, are the reasons Rice might just make it back to the postseason.