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Soccer plays tough match against ranked BYU

Trejo understands the team's mentality going into this important benchmark race. "Jon and the team recognize the OSU meet as our first real test," Trejo said. "The course is eight kilometers and it is run over a more real cross country terrain than we're used to in Houston. I think our team has gotten a feel for where we stand fitness-wise and I'm confident going into this meet that we can compete with some of these teams."

RMC kiosk encourages recycling with incentives

Going green at Rice is about to get bigger. A recycling kiosk about the size of three vending machines was installed over the Labor Day weekend in the Rice Memorial Center near the entrances of the Rice University Bookstore and 13th Street. The recycling kiosk is part of a pilot project by the Greenopolis Group at Waste Management, a national company that handles Rice's solid waste. The Greenopolis Group is the division of Waste Management focused on developing technologies to increase recycling levels. The kiosk is on a one-year trial at Rice University, according to Director of Sustainability Richard Johnson. It is capable of storing up to 9,000 aluminum cans and 1,700 bottles, roughly corresponding to 300 pounds of aluminum and 170 pounds of plastic.

KTRU Top 35: Week of 09.12.2010

Device with personal information stolen off campus

A file containing the personal information of 7,250 students, faculty and staff, including names, birth dates, salaries, emergency contacts and Social Security numbers, was stolen from an off-campus location at the end of August. Rice announced the theft in an e-mail to the campus community Sept. 10. The Rice University Police Department is conducting the investigation of the theft in conjunction with the Houston Police Department. The device contained two files copied from a computer which contained the personal data of the 7,250 employees on Rice payroll as of January 2010. The data on the device was not encrypted. Senior Director of News and Media Relations B.J. Almond said the police requested he refrain from giving any additional details about the device or the information contained on it to prevent the thief from gaining any potentially useful information. As of Sept. 15, Almond said none of the information on the device had been used maliciously.

This week's Editorial Cartoon

Nature-themed works put on display in Brochstein

The white walls of Brochstein Pavilion are bare no more - "paraMuseum: Environmental Exigencies," a new photographic project by artist Charles Mary Kubricht, moved into its permanent home at Brochstein on Tuesday evening. Visitors to the Pavilion can see the four striking four foot by eight foot photographs on the wall opposite the food and beverage kiosk.The black and white photographs depict four leaves, each from a different indigenous oak tree on campus. Kubricht gathered the leaves herself and then photographed each leaf using a high-resolution camera.

Owls bring home hard-fought win at North Texas

Playing special teams for a football team is no easy task. There is little glory for successes, and any failure is costly. However, last weekend, special teams made the difference for the football team in Rice's 32-31 win over the University of North Texas last Saturday. Head Coach David Bailiff took note of special teams' contribution.

Soccer splits hard-fought weekend contests

In a sport where player creativity often manifests itself through injuries, it can often be hard to tell which contact is real and which is for the referee's benefit. During the Owls' home victory last Friday against the University of Texas San- Antonio, the crowd had little trouble separating the two; the crunch every time an Owl hit the ground gave it away. Perhaps the loudest crunch of all came in the games' first few minutes, when senior midfielder Kate Edwards received a vicious kick to the shin that forced her to exit the game.

Easy A makes grade with solid plot

With blockbuster comedies like The Hangover and Mean Girls to top, many new comedies simply fall short of audiences' expectations. In spite of this challenge, Easy A manages to be an original and humorous movie that will undoubtedly entertain a wide variety of people. Olive Penderghast (Emma Stone, Superbad) narrates this high school tale, opening with her typecast role as the invisible girl at her school. Everything gets thrown into chaos after she lies to her best friend Rhiannon (Aly Michalka, Bandslam) about losing her "V-Card." Rumors spread thanks to the nosy, Bible-thumping Marianne (Amanda Bynes, Hairspray), and eventually Olive's reputation changes from a nobody to super-slut.

New coordinator has long road ahead

This week, the campus-wide Beer Bike coordinator was selected after weeks of concern over a dearth of applicants (see story, page 1). The Thresher wishes Sid Richardson College junior Matt Sawyer success in his role. It was encouraging to hear that Sawyer has been so involved in the culture of Beer Bike for so long.Sawyer must hit the ground running, as this year's Beer Bike planning process is already behind schedule, with Beer Bike occurring two weeks earlier than usual. Jones College senior Nazish Malik, one of last year's campus-wide coordinators, was correct in suggesting that discussion surrounding proposed changes should come earlier in the process this time around. For example, potential changes to water balloon trucks have been discussed among student leadership for years with no clear solution, so it is time that the student body enter the conversation to bring some creativity and a fresh point of view on the subject.

Owls drop three straight matches in the bayou

While many college students return from the Pelican State still giddy from a weekend on Bourbon Street, the volleyball team had no cause for revelry, as they returned 0-3 from the Louisiana State University Tiger Classic in Baton Rouge, La., last weekend. Rice fell to New Mexico State University, the University of North Carolina and LSU. On Friday, Rice faced New Mexico State. Rice did not come up with the start they wanted, as they lost the first set 25-19, with the Aggies winning seven of the first eight points.

BB coordinator set

With Beer Bike six months away, the Rice Program Council selected Sid Richardson College junior Matt Sawyer last week as campus-wide Beer Bike coordinator. At this point, RPC has set the definite date for Beer Bike at March 12. Despite acknowledging that he faces key challenges in preparing for the events, Sawyer stated his goals for this year. "Overall, expectations are that, while maintaining the traditions of the event, we can produce a safe event that will be a lot of fun for all those involved and more importantly, if any changes need to be made, then they will be made," Sawyer said.

Personal data theft surprising

We at the Thresher became nervous after the discovery that a device containing sensitive information about all students employed by Rice was stolen (see story, page 1).The administration has made it clear to the student body that they take this threat very seriously and have taken measures to ensure students' information is as safe as possible. But the fact still stands that mistakes were made. Sensitive files, such as payroll information, should be encrypted; this a basic security measure that should have been enacted long ago.

Distance comes up short

I like Drew Barrymore (Whip It). I mostly like Justin Long (Dodgeªball). But their newest collaboration, Going the Distance, felt more like a forced union than an emotionally gratifying rom-com. Their respectable talent was squandered on a lackluster storyline and awkward script. I'm down for a good romantic comedy as much as the next guy. Hell, I'll admit that I actually like romantic comedies, but director Nanette Burstein's (American Teen) first foray into major motion pictures leaves much to be desired. Going the Distance follows the struggles of Erin and Garrett (played by Barrymore and Long, respectively) as their relationship is tested by the distance between them. Their circumstances are really not all that exceptional, and the premise hardly lends itself to a successful romantic comedy. The whole idea behind the movie is that, from opposite coasts, Erin and Garrett try desperately to keep their romance alive. Thus, most scenes rotate through a grab-bag of strange situations: phone calls, text messages, complaining sessions with friends and emotionªally charged reunions.

U.S. engame hindered by impatience and insolence

While you are most likely stressing about your first round of exams coming up, there is something more crucial to worry about: Afghanistan.Talk of "reconciliation" with the Taliban has been steadily gaining support in the West in the last few months, and it seems likely that sometime soon a power-sharing deal of some sort will be proposed. Meanwhile, some experts are predicting that Afghanistan is heading for civil war after the withdrawal of American forces, and interested parties in the region seem to be moving ahead as if that will be the case.

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H&D offers energy-efficient MicroFridges in rooms

Tired of worrying about Housing and Dining fining you for having a contraband microwave in your room? This year, H&D is pioneering a solution to this problem by offering MicroFridges, a freezer/microwave combination available for rental for $247 for the school year or for purchase for $489.Rice has not allowed microwaves in student rooms since 2007 because of risks associated with vermin infestation due to waste generated from microwaveable items as well as the risk of electrical surges. The microwave oven included in the MicroFridge unit is the first and only one approved for use in the Rice residential colleges.

Saturday's Sports Update: Football falls to Northwestern

The football team learned Saturday they just are not a good enough football team to make big mistakes and still win football games.The Owls (1-2) hosted Northwestern University (3-0) in their first game at Rice Stadium of the year. It was the first time the Owls had played a Big Ten team since 2002.