Rice University’s Student Newspaper — Since 1916

Saturday, November 30, 2024 — Houston, TX

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New schedule planner assists students with rigors of registration

(11/02/11 12:00am)

A new schedule planning aid has been created in an effort to make the registration process a bit easier for students (see story pg. 1). The tool creates a calendar of potential courses in a Google Calendar format. The most significant addition is the feature which allows courses to be sorted by both professors and time slots. It also allows students to select multiple classes of interest, even those in the same time slot, and then narrow them down. Students will definitely benefit from being able to see a schedule overview laid out on a calendar.


Rice professor shows great integrity amid censorship scandal

(11/02/11 12:00am)

Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Professor John Anderson has become a local media focus since his censorship spat with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (see story pg. 1). The commission removed many facts that pointed toward human-caused global warming. However, Anderson refused to have his data presented in this manner. By revoking his publication from the state agency, Anderson exemplified the highest standard of integrity in his decision to withdraw his publication. In the cut throat world of academia, a professor's stature is determined in large part on his or her publications. Anderson, in his decision to choose no publication over a censored publication, represents exactly the kind of integrity Rice stands for. The decision was one which placed principles over prestige and the truth over fanfare, and this choice should be respected.


Errata

(10/27/11 12:00am)

In the Oct. 21 issue, "What's their secret" incorrectly stated that the professor's hometown had a population of one million; however, the population is actually approximately 100,000. Furthermore, the number of COMP 140 students has grown from 20 to 113, and the number of Computer Science majors has increased from 21 to 75.


New traditions could increase value of class ring

(10/27/11 12:00am)

Rice's class rings have been a tradition since 1916; however, there is now a student push to create more of a tradition and culture around the ring itself. The committee involved with this initiative would like to increase student participation in ring purchases and would like to help make the ring more special by planning events around it.






WikiRice has potential

(10/06/11 12:00am)

The WIkiRice page has been live for several months now and is slowly expanding (see story, pg. 5). The concept is a brilliant one; essentially, anyone can update the Rice-related pages. As the website expands, there will be pages to represent Rice's most famous (and infamous) moments. Ultimately, WikiRice may serve as the archive for campus happenings. Unfortunately, this ultimate vision is hampered by the constant possibility of illegitimite posts. Without proper monitoring, the site could quickly degenerate into a medley of inside jokes and college rivalry.


RUPD new officer training will improve student-officer relations

(10/06/11 12:00am)

The Rice University Police Department took great strides to improve its relationship with the student body by instituting a new college-centric training program for newly-hired RUPD officers (see story, pg. 7). RUPD has hired quite a number of new officers over the past year, and Rice's culture makes it necessary for the new officers to be specifically trained to understand how the college system operates.


National honor reflects Rice professors' commitment to education

(09/29/11 12:00am)

Rice's own Richard Tapia was honored with the U.S. National Medal of Science this past week (see story, pg. 1). Tapia's work in the field of mathematics, paired with his contributions outside the class room, make him extremely deserving of the award. Tapia has been a member of the Rice community for over 40 years, and his long-term association with the university is a testament to Rice's ability to draw and retain the best faculty in the country.


Greater leadership and initiative needed at Rice University

(09/29/11 12:00am)

Apathy is quite the buzzword at Rice; for every comment about rigorous majors and extreme coursework, a reference is made to Rice students' failure to get involved and effect change. Whether discussing voting, college cabinets, environmental consciousness or entrepreneurship, it seems that too many students simply decide to stay out of the fray and not participate. Of course, there are widespread exemptions to all of the claims, but on the whole, Rice students could certainly benefit from less apathy. It is precisely this lack of initiative and leadership that the leadership committee has been established to address (see story, pg. 1).


Centenni-Ale a huge hit

(09/29/11 12:00am)

St. Arnold's Centenni-Ale was released at Valhalla this past Friday and the volume of sales was extremely impressive. The Thresher would like to extend a sincere thanks to Brock Wagner, Rice aulmnus and St. Arnold's founder, for celebrating his alma mater's centenial anniversary in such a distinct way. It is these sorts of small but unique happenings around Rice that make us who we are.




Erratum

(09/22/11 12:00am)

In the Sep. 16 issue of the Thresher ("Limelight: The Rice Players' season"), the directors of the listed productions were incorrectly attributed. Joseph Lockett is directing Dead Man's Cellphone, opening this week, and T.J. Burleson is directing The Baltimore Waltz, opening next spring. The Thresher regrets this error.


Bicycle Awareness Week antagonistic to cyclists

(09/15/11 12:00am)

The recent Bicycle Awareness Week seemed to antagonize campus cyclists more than promote them (see story pg. 7). The influx of signs around campus offer pointed, patronizing directions to bikers; furthermore, these signs address only bikers, not pedestrains. Campus biking safety is not a simple one-way street. Pedestrians, cars, scooters and bikes all have equal responsibility to pay attention to the road, and the recent attempts to only focus on the bikers' responsibilities is absurd. The Bicycle Awareness Week also coincided with the negative news that bikers will soon be susceptible to moving violation tickets. Frankly, biking safety around campus is reasonable, and bikers seems to be quite responsible on the whole. RUPD's decision to begin ticketing bikers will only dissuade students from using bikes on campus. If Bicycle Awarness Week is to occur again at Rice it should be completely overhauled, and the vastly negative tone of the week needs be reversed. Perhaps in the future, we can take a look at promoting the environmentally-conscious act of biking, offer biking opportunites around Houston and emphasize campus cycling facilities such as the bike shop.


Rice's football team gives hope for 100th season

(09/15/11 12:00am)

The Rice Owls football team found itself on SportsCenter's Top 10 plays this past Saturday for its unbelievable last-second, game-saving field goal block (see story pg. 1). The Owls looked great all afternoon and were rewarded with a marquee win against a Big Ten opponent. In fact, the win against Purdue marked the first win Rice has posted against a BCS league opponent since 2001. The victory has the potential to spark the team to a great season and to rejuvenate student interest in the football team. The home opener was very well-attended, and those students who left early were plagued with the guilt of missing the greatest Rice athletics moment of the past few years. Rice looked good against a stronger University of Texas opponent during the first half and came away with a huge win in their second game of the season against Purdue. The team deserves the students' support, as this may just be the breakout year we've all been dreaming about. As the hero on the last play, Justin Allen said, "The last couple years we're just a play away or one step short. But today we weren't. Today we took that last step, and we believed in ourselves."