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Features

FEATURES 10/25/22 10:18pm

‘An investment in our future’: Meet Ruth López Turley

By Felicity Phelan

Ruth López Turley, director of the Kinder Institute for Urban Research, doesn’t have it easy. She oversees all of the organization’s research operations, raises the money to fund its work and describes herself as constantly in meetings. On top of that, she’s still teaching in her role as a Rice sociology professor. When López Turley thinks about hard work, however, she doesn’t think of jobs like hers.

FEATURES 10/25/22 10:15pm

Trans students at Rice talk difficulties, community

By Morgan Gage

What is community? For Marina Klein, it’s little queer people in your phone, chatting and exchanging compliments and advice in a GroupMe. “[People in the group chat are] so supportive … they’re always there for you when you need them to be,” Klein, a McMurtry College sophomore, said. “You can be there for them when you have the time as well, because that’s how community works.”

FEATURES 10/18/22 11:31pm

Student vendors and artists talk first Archi Market

By Riya Misra

From enamel bunny pins to possum t-shirts to glass earrings, Archi Market has it all. Created by students from the Rice Architecture Society, Archi Market is a monthly marketplace in Anderson Hall featuring pop-up shops where students can sell their artistic creations. On Oct. 17th, the first-ever Archi Market was hosted in Anderson Hall.

FEATURES 10/18/22 11:28pm

Laymon’s terms: Writer, Rice professor named MacArthur Fellow

By Riya Misra

Last week, celebrated author and Rice English professor Kiese Laymon was announced as one of the 2022 winners of the MacArthur Foundation Fellowship. According to the MacArthur Foundation’s website, the fellowship provides a five-year grant and a no-strings-attached stipend to a selection of exceptionally creative individuals. A self-described Black Southern writer, Laymon has authored works such as “Heavy: An American Memoir” and “Long Division.”

FEATURES 10/18/22 11:26pm

In the booth with KTRU student DJs

By Felicity Phelan

Whether a 24/7 listener or just a fan of the stickers, you’re probably familiar with KTRU, Rice’s student-run radio station. In addition to general broadcasts that play a mix of music, KTRU hosts a wide array of specialty shows devoted to specific genres and musical themes. The Thresher talked to the Rice student DJs behind some of the KTRU shows — both decades-old and brand new — that you can tune into this semester.

FEATURES 10/18/22 10:47pm

Ben Rhodes knew he wanted to write; he ended up in the White House

By Ben Baker-Katz

As a member of former President Barack Obama’s senior staff during his eight years in the White House, Ben Rhodes had a hand in crafting many historic foreign policy achievements, from normalizing the United States’ relationship with Cuba to signing the Iran nuclear deal. But according to Rhodes, who spoke on campus Oct. 13 as part of his book tour, one of the administration’s most important foreign policy achievements is rarely discussed: cleaning up unexploded munitions — known as “bombies” — leftover from the Vietnam War in Southeast Asia.

FEATURES 10/5/22 12:02am

Flying off shelves: Read these banned books

By Riya Misra

On Oct. 6, Fondren Library is collaborating with Rice’s Center for the Study of Women, Gender, and Sexuality to present a Banned Books Read Out, where Rice members will read excerpts from their favorite banned or challenged books. In honor of this event, the Thresher has rounded up a list of banned books. The titles are accessible on campus or through Fondren Library’s database, in case you find yourself looking for some new reads during midterm recess.

FEATURES 10/5/22 12:01am

Going behind the counter with the GMs of Rice’s SRBs

By Allison He

Whether getting a caffeine fix, late-night dinner or their bike repaired, Rice students are no doubt familiar with many of the campus’ student-run businesses. What students often don’t see, though, is behind the scenes of SRBs — a general manager fixing the credit card machine or ensuring the oat milk supply returns. 

FEATURES 10/4/22 11:58pm

Midterm recess activities worth driving for

By Sarah Bartos

After a long first few weeks of classes, students get the upcoming fall break to relax and rewind before getting back into the swing of things. If you want to go beyond the hedges this fall break after crushing your papers and exams, here are a few spots within driving distance from Rice to explore during fall break. 

FEATURES 10/4/22 11:52pm

‘Best Golden Corral you’ve ever been to’: Students talk fanfiction

By Morgan Gage

You can check out some of the earliest fanfictions at Fondren Library — “Paradise Lost” and “Dante’s Inferno” have long been hailed as examples of literary craftsmanship, and it is no secret that they found their roots in what we would commonly call fanfiction today, stories written by a fan of another work of art featuring characters from those works. Some students at Rice may know “50 Shades of Grey,” a “Twilight” fanfiction that found its way to a publishing house. Other students, though, have found community and opportunities for artistic expression within fanfiction and fan communities.

FEATURES 9/27/22 11:02pm

Diving into the DEEP with Rice’s Data Science Club

By Danika Li

Data Education and Exploration Program is an annual data science showcase competition put on by Rice’s Data Science Club, open to all levels of coding experience. According to Vinay Tummarakota, president of the Data Science Club, the program consists of a semester-long workshop series that alternates between lessons where senior Data Science Club students teach curriculum, and application-style workshops where mentors help students apply skills learned the week before. Over the course of the fall semester, student teams develop projects on their chosen data set, and eventually present in a final showcase.

FEATURES 9/27/22 11:01pm

Explore these Houston attractions from new heights

By Nishanka Kuthuru

Check out Houston from a new perspective by visiting some of the city’s best rooftops scenes. These venues offer varieties of activities to keep their visitors entertained throughout the day, with sunrise yoga at Skylawn, midday swimming at Marriott Marquis or night-time dancing at one of the many rooftop bars. Browse through some of the following recommendations to explore Houston from above.

FEATURES 9/27/22 10:59pm

ROPEing Rice into the outdoors

By Madison Barendse

Rice’s location in Houston is beneficial in a variety of ways. After all, we have access to entertainment, culture and research in a world-class city. However, we don’t have as much access to nature — a problem Rice Outdoor Programs and Education is trying to solve.

FEATURES 9/20/22 11:53pm

Inside the lives of Rice’s newest RAs

By Felicity Phelan

When Bianca Lopez arrived on the Rice campus in 2019, she received a warning about the resident associate program: “Only crazy people do that.” RAs, a unique feature of Rice’s residential college system, are adult members of the community who live alongside and support students in residential colleges, often with their partners and children. Despite the warning, Lopez, who works in asset management for Rice Management Company, was excited to get involved.

FEATURES 9/20/22 11:51pm

Explore culture and coffee in Houston’s Third Ward

By Sara Davidson

Across State Highway 288 from Rice, the Third Ward neighborhood of Houston is an area teeming with rich history, great restaurants and fun activities. Our recommendations below are great starting points to get a better feel of Third Ward’s thriving culture and history. 

FEATURES 9/20/22 11:50pm

Rice pursues a NEWT solution for water treatment

By Madison Barendse

For some, it is all too easy to take fresh water for granted. However, in many parts of the United States and the world, clean water is a commodity. Dozens of labs and organizations are working to solve this problem, including the Nanotechnology Enabled Water Treatment Center on Rice’s campus. The NEWT Center is an engineering research center that aims to advance global water-treatment technologies. Other universities — Arizona State University, University of Texas at El Paso and Yale University — are also involved with NEWT. Dr. Rafael Verduzco, a Rice professor and researcher at NEWT, said that the connections between these universities are an important part of the center.

FEATURES 9/20/22 11:48pm

Forgotten health professions: Checking in with Rice’s pre-health students

By Allison He

Rice has scores of undergraduates interested in pursuing a health profession. Roughly 40% of advising cases at the Office of Academic Advising are for health professions, according to Director of Academic Advising Christine Martinez. But many pre-health students — such as those looking to pursue dentistry, physical therapy or physician assistant — said they experience a lack of advising and resources compared to those offered to pre-meds. 

FEATURES 9/13/22 11:46pm

Space City: The Rice-NASA relationship through the years

By Madison Barendse

Anyone who has been on campus is bound to have heard the name “John F. Kennedy” repeated tens of times recently. Indeed, Rice hosted a number of events this past weekend to commemorate the 60th anniversary of JFK’s “We choose to go to the Moon” speech at Rice stadium. Many of these events featured collaborations with NASA astronauts and administrators, marking just another result of the decades-long partnership between Rice and NASA.

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