James Surls, whose seven art pieces were installed on campus last month, enlightened the crowd about his art philosophy and the ideas behind his plant-like sculptures in a lecture Tuesday at Herring 100 . The seven pieces in the exhibit, which arrived Feb. 21, are entitled "Magnficent Seven: Houston Celebrates Surls" and reflect a connection with nature, featuring titles like "All Diamond," "Ten Big Standing Bronze Flowers" and "Standing Vase With Five Flowers." Before their appearance in Houston, five of the seven pieces on display were exhibited on Park Avenue in New York City.
The Master Plan Working Group presented the results of its survey on the Campus Master Plan, the university's 50-year plan for development, at the Student Association meeting Monday. The survey, which was open January and February, attempted to gauge students' reactions to the various ideas presented in a draft of University Architect David Rodd's master plan of campus Nov. 9. The Master Plan Working Group was chaired by SA President Patrick McAnaney and consisted of eleven other undergraduates and graduate students ranging from college presidents to new student representatives. McAnaney, a Brown College senior, said getting student input about the master plan was one of his big campaign issues last spring.
One of the few North African restaurants in Houston, Saffron opened in 2004 to generally positive reviews. The Moroccan restaurant is located off nearby Shepherd Drive and owned by the same company that runs the Italian eatery Mia Bella next door. However, Saffron proves to have little of the charm and memorability of its sister restaurant, and instead disappoints with bland, overpriced offerings.Located on the opposite end of the building from Mia Bella, Saffron boasts an ambiance that tries desperately to evoke the sights and smells of Morocco. The heavy wooden front door is imported from Morocco, and bright yellow walls and red seats add a festive flair. However, large stained-glass windows establish much of the natural light in the large front room, which results in a surprisingly gloomy atmosphere - even for a sunny Thursday afternoon. Most noticeably, however, diners are initially greeted by the smell of stale incense. While this smell may enhance the exotic atmosphere, it is neither appetizing nor particularly appealing; in fact, we noticed a slightly foul underlying odor, which made us wonder what exactly the incense was trying to mask.
Outdoor track has begun - sort of. The women's track team attended the Texas Southern University Relays last weekend in Houston. However, the two-day meet was shortened to one, as Saturday's downpours resulted in the cancellation of that day of competition.
Unlike the campus-wide Beer Bike coordinators, the university's architects seem to have nothing to do but plan. Last November, University Architect David Rodd presented the Campus Master Plan to the Rice community ("Master plan presented at SA meeting," Nov. 13, 2009). In the months since, the Student Association has been scrambling to ensure that the student body's opinion will be considered in these designs. The results of the SA's Master Plan Survey were presented Monday (see story, page 1).The 640 students who participated in the survey clearly had strong views on the aspects of campus that they valued. Students expressed support for green space, student center renovations, underground parking garages, traditional architecture and the retention of the current football stadium.
With the shock of last weekend's upsets wearing off, it's time to look forward to the remaining games in this year's NCAA Tournament. Throw out your brackets and enjoy the final weeks of college hoops. The Sweet 16 will have its own share of excitement. Enjoy these expected bests: Kentucky will come out on top as the best team of the Sweet 16. A mirror image of the 2008 runners-up, this team has better talent and athleticism than does any other team in the field. John Wall and Eric Bledsoe make up the most athletic backcourt in the country, while DeMarcus Cousins and Patrick Patterson can score inside better than any other duo. With Kansas out, I do not see a team in the field that matches up well against Kentucky. My preseason pick to win it all will be cutting down the nets in Indy in a few weeks.
The baseball team knows pressure. They know the feeling of impossible expectations, the weight of heady predecessors and a legendary legacy. They've been beaten and broken and embarrassed, and had to dealt with the ramifications in kind. But they've never known pressure like this.
Rice snagged a series sweep of the University of Houston this afternoon in exciting fashion. The Owls (17-12, 4-2 Conference USA), having already captured the Silver Glove Trophy last night for the 10th consecutive season, won 7-6 in 12 innings.Houston (12-14, 2-4 C-USA) got on the board in the first inning with a bloop double down the line, two singles and a sacrifice fly to total two runs. Rice responded by loading the bases in the first. Sophomore third baseman Anthony Rendon approached the plate and with one swing of the bat doubled Houston's run output. The grand slam was his 11th home run of the season.
Houston mayor Annise Parker (Jones '78) came to campus Thursday as part of a jack organized by Jones College. Parker spoke for about five minutes before announcing Jones was the best college. At that point, Jonesians in the crowd stood up and sprayed silly string on the rest of the audience amid chants of "JIBA" and "Jones wins again!" Parker then walked through the crowd, shaking students' hands and wishing them a happy Willy Week.Yesenia Montoya, Division Coordinator of the Office of the Dean of Undergraduates, captured this all on video, which you may find here on facebook.
Editor's note: The headline of this article has been changed from the original version and mention of the word "fraudulent" has been changed.Last month, parents and alumni received letters soliciting donations to the annual fund from college presidents and student representatives. However, one of the letters contained a misleading machine-generated signature.
We all envy people who can eat whatever they want without gaining weight. How do such people maintain their physiques? This week, we'll delve into some of the questions surrounding metabolism. What are some factors that influence our metabolisms, and how much control do we have over them? Several scientific-sounding myths claim to have all the answers regarding this process, but in how far should we trust them?
The night of March 12 in Fayetteville, Ark., was unfortunately the second leg in a tale of two cities for senior pole vaulter Jason Colwick. After being bested by Scott Roth of the University of Washington at the Reno Pole Vault Summit at the end of January, Colwick was once again topped by the owner of the highest vault by an American in 2010, this time at the NCAA National Indoor Championships. Colwick's top vault going into the meet was 5.67 meters, while Roth's was 5.72 meters, making Roth the clear favorite. Despite having five competitors in the field who had all previously cleared above 5.48 meters (18 feet), Head Coach Jon Warren (Jones '88) felt confident Roth and Colwick would be alone in their pursuit for first place.
Last week McMurtry College and Baker College each announced their new masters, set to take over next semester. The Thresher sat down with them to discuss traditions, expectations and their favorite types of rice.
Illuminated by the stage lights, the Sour Notes' Chris Page rocks out at Willy's Picnic in the Central Quad Monday.
We are pleased with Rice's selection of Rick Greenspan as athletic director, following Chris Del Conte's departure for Texas Christian University in October (see story, page 1). Greenspan has some large shoes to fill: Under Del Conte's tenure, Rice saw the opening of Tudor Fieldhouse, the renovation of Reckling Park, three consecutive Conference USA championships for the women's track and field team and back-to-back bowl appearances by the football team, just to touch on a few of Rice athletics' accomplishments in the past three years.However, we are confident that Greenspan will rise to the challenge and continue to take Rice athletics in the direction that Del Conte started. With experience at big conference schools that also do not put a main priority on football, such as Indiana University, Greenspan is the perfect fit for Rice athletics, especially when facing potential team conference reassignments. Also, we are happy to hear that Greenspan is planning to increase student involvement even more so than Del Conte did, and we are hoping that the recently established Varsity Sports Liaison program in the residential colleges has an opportunity to flourish under his purview, to encourage students to support teams other than their college's bike and chug teams.
Year in and year out, the men's tennis team makes a point of compiling one of the toughest schedules in the nation. This year held the same gauntlet for Rice, with 11 of the first 14 contests coming against ranked opponents. It is that strength of schedule that has saved the season for the Owls thus far, because if they compiled the same 6-8 record against lesser foes, there would be little hope that Rice - a perennially ranked team currently sitting at 48th - would still have a season to play for.
