Special Projects

Under construction: Braun brings no-excuse formula to rebuild men's basketball

Success has been no stranger to head basketball coach Ben Braun in his three decades of coaching college basketball, but his experience with success is not why he was chosen to take over the reigns of a failing Rice Owls basketball squad last spring. Rather, Braun's history of reviving struggling teams throughout the nation brought him to Houston. And for this singular reason, his arrival at Rice University is a welcome sight. Before ever picking up a clipboard, Braun spent time as a young athlete shaping his approach to the game of basketball, learning the importance of hard work and determination at a young age. The eldest of three brothers, he grew up in Chicago, Ill. and attended New Trier High School, where he led teams on both the basketball court and the baseball diamond.

Glass boats float in Fondren

With the installment of nine multicolored glass boats in the front lobby, Fondren Library is the first location to integrate art into the Rice campus in a campus wide project known as the "Endeavor Installation." The boats are a gift from donors Elizabeth and Albert Kidd (Hanszen '64) and is a project of the Arts Committee, chaired by Raymond Brochstein (Sid '55).The committee promotes President David Leebron's intent to create a more vibrant and dynamic campus as outlined in the Vision for the Second Century, Eleni Barzouka, Facilities, Engineering and Planning senior project manager, said.

Welcome, Bacchae

Featuring its horde of frenzied women, cross-dressing and a gruesome act of infanticide, Euripides's The Bacchae is a bizarre standout in the broad realm of Greek tragedy, but a perfectly-timed spectacle for NOD- or Halloween-crazed Rice students. While the Baker College production is entertaining and strives admirably to do justice to the classic text, it is hindered by several technical and performance issues and does not quite succeed in its pursuit of instilling in the audience the ferocious ecstasy presented by its Maenad women and suggested by its advertising, which alludes misleadingly to glam rock outfits and David Bowie.The Bacchae tells the story of Dionysus (Baker sophomore Jeremiah Bolinsky) as he punishes his half-cousin, cynical young Theban ruler Pentheus (Baker sophomore Tomas Lafferriere) for refusing to recognize the former's divinity. Dionysus sets the stage for his plan as the show opens: He has possessed all of the Theban women, driven them into orgiastic madness and sent them into the wild. In taking on one of Euripedes's final works, directors Cat Coombes and Guy Weissinger, Baker College seniors, have chosen a work of dizzying complexity that challenged ancient Greek societal ideas and continues to be relevant today.

Letters to the Editor

Bike policies fail to reflect situation

Minority lectures canceled because of low attendance

Noted theoretical physicist Sylvester James Gates, Jr.'s speech last Wednesday marked the end of the President's Lecture Series of Diverse Scholars. Computational and Applied Mathematics Professor Richard Tapia, who started the series five years ago, decided to discontinue the lectures due to poor attendance. The lecture series specifically invited African-American, Hispanic and Native American scholars born and raised in the United States to speak. Tapia said he started the series because, at the time of its founding, the original President's Lecture Series had never featured a historically underrepresented minority. In addition to Gates, over the past five years the series has attracted Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Sonia Nazario; Brown University President Ruth Simmons, the first black president of an ivy league university; and physicist Arlie Petters, a Belizean- American famous for his work in gravitational lensing.

Commentary: Cricket bores down-under sports editor

Before I came to Australia, I'd never wanted to chug vegemite, punt a joey or wrestle with a pool of hammerheads. Then again, before I came to Australia I'd never watched a cricket match either.

Be NODdy, just not stupid

Back in 2005, when the police blotter was still descriptive enough to be entertaining, the Thresher reported the following entry regarding an incident that occurred the night of that year's Night Of Decadence: "Subject jumped from Wiess' fourth floor to third floor and landed on cement. Intoxicated underage student fought with four officers and was detained. Subject found to have fake IDs in wallet. Student remanded to Harris County Jail" ("Police Blotter," Nov. 4, 2005). Did we laugh the first time we read this entry? Yes. Did we laugh at it again as we re-recorded it above? Absolutely. There is no doubt that it is an entertaining story. But on the other hand, it is also a chronicle of someone's downright stupid actions.

Women's XC to defend C-USA title next weekend

When classes and the Thresher took a break two weeks ago, the women's cross-country team did not slow down. Last weekend, the team traveled to Terre Haute, Ind., to compete in the Pre-National meet, so named because it is held on the same course as the national meet. There the Owls placed eighth overall, beating two ranked teams in Providence University and North Caroline State University, then ranked 21 and 18 respectively. The weekend before, the team won the Houston Baptist Invitational. The Owls now have a weekend off before traveling to Memphis, Tenn., to compete in the Conference USA Championship meet. The Owls will be running to defend last season's Conference USA championship. This season, the win will be more difficult to come by, as 26th-ranked Southern Methodist University has already defeated Rice twice this season.

Too much Max, not enough Payne

Last Friday Max Payne, the movie adaptation of the video game of the same name, hit theaters. Overall, the movie is solid, but when critiqued as an action flick, it is like ordering a hot juicy steak and receiving a chicken salad.Mark Wahlberg (The Happening) stars as the titular character, an NYPD detective still following leads on his wife and child's murders from three years ago. While at an informant's house party, he runs into Natasha Sax (upcoming Quantum of Solace Bond girl Olga Kurylenko), who later winds up hacked to pieces in an alley behind Max's apartment. When Max realizes that his wife's and Natasha's murders are somehow related, he teams up with Natasha's sister Mona (Forgetting Sarah Marshall's Mila Kunis) to find the murderer.

Comic: Cingle Cellularity

Poor advertising leads to poor lecture attendance

Who knew that an interesting lecture series was hosting ethnically diverse speakers on campus? Answer: Apparently, not enough people. Last Wednesday, renowned physicist Sylvester James Gates spoke at Rice as a part of the President's Lecture Series of Diverse Scholars. The Diverse Scholars lecture series, which started five years ago, differed from the regular President's Lecture Series in that it held a specific emphasis on inviting minority scholars to speak on campus. However, its short-lived life has come to an end (See story, page 1).

Maxed out: An open interview with actor Mark Wahlberg

While I did not have the pleasure of seeing Max Payne last weekend, I did manage to talk to actor Mark Wahlberg on the phone about it during a conference call with two other college journalists. Wahlberg was funny, down to earth and extremely easy to talk to. I only wish I'd remembered to ask if there would be a Marky-Mark/Ludacris rap album coming out for Christmas. Below are our questions and his answers.Q: Have you ever played the video game Max Payne, and if so, how did this inspire you in the role?

This week's Editorial Cartoon

RPC books band for Homecoming Concert

For students, this year's Homecoming festivities will mark a departure from the traditional, most notably with a free concert by indie rock band The National. The concert, funded with $50,000 from the Office of Development, will last from 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 7 at the west quad behind the Raymond and Susan R. Brochstein Pavilion. In previous years, the Office of Development, which funds most of the homecoming game festivities, invited a keynote speaker. This year, the all- Rice picnic and headliner concert have replaced the speaker.

Quarantine gives a good dose of undead

Ahh, can you smell that faint whiff of crisp burning in the evening air? No, it's not that fat kid who sits next to you in organic chemistry. You know what that refreshing scent is? It's the fragrance of changing seasons, falling leaves and autumnal splendor . and it's the smell of Halloween. Yes, the greatest holiday of all time!The reason I love Halloween so much is because it ushers in a full month of horror movies. While the horror genre may not be my absolute favorite, it sure as hell is the most entertaining. The adrenaline rush, the goosebumps, the little hairs that rise on the back of your neck, the boobies (you can't make a good horror flick without a proper set of gratuitous boobies). These are the amazing offerings of the genre - not to mention the subtle acting, twisting plots and audacious exploration of the dark corridors of our macabre psyches.

Spectactular Cyrano

The Alley Theatre's latest production of Edmond Rostand's 1897 comedy, Cyrano de Bergerac, is nothing short of spectacular.For anyone who did not read the play in a high school English class, here's a summary: It follows the dashing exploits of French Army cadet Cyrano de Bergerac. He is an expert swordsman who has a penchant for poetry and a gift for words, but he also has an exceptionally large nose that kills his confidence with the ladies, especially with his distant cousin Roxane. When Roxane falls in love with an inarticulate cadet named Christian, who can't string together a coherent sentence to save his life, Cyrano decides to help Christian out by telling him what to say to Roxane, and the play takes off from there.

Architecture dean Lerup to step down after 15 years

After 15 years at Rice, Dean of Architecture Lars Lerup announced he will be leaving his position June 30. He said he plans to primarily focus on his research at the Rice Building Institute, though he will continue to lecture occasionally at the architecture school. Associate Dean of Architecture John Casbarian said Lerup's decision to leave his position was not a surprise to the faculty.

Soccer on pace for bid in C-USA tournament

The soccer team will look to extend a two game winning streak this weekend as they take on Colorado College today and the University of Texas-El Paso on Sunday. Their last two road wins against the University of Central Florida and the University of Southern Mississippi marked the first time in history that the Owls have managed a win-out on a weekend road trip. With a 5-3 record in Conference USA, they are comfortably on pace to make the conference tournament on Nov. 5-9.

The Backpage Interview Series

The sun was bright and the humidity high when Backpage coeditor Timothy Faust climbed to the top of 180 one recent bright Tuesday afternoon. A few minutes later, he was joined by Advisor to the Dean of Undergraduates Dr. Matthew Taylor. The birds chirped overhead and more than one professor walking past looked quizzically at the two figures atop the crown of the Engineering Quad. The Backpage Interview Series had officially started.Taylor maintains a reputation as an administrator who understands student needs - which makes sense, when you consider his past. After attending Southern Methodist University with a stint at Oxford, Taylor earned his Ph.D. and taught history here at Rice, where he was a Resident Associate at Brown College. But it was not a straight shot from graduate school to Forman's right-hand guy. Taylor was dean of student life at Pomona University - with a few national tours with a rock band peppered in between.

Honor Council renews penalty structure

After a three-hour debate, the Honor Council approved this year's Consensus Penalty Structure Sunday by a 17-3 vote, with three members abstaining. The penalty structure, which is identical to last year's, drew concerns this year at the Council's open meeting due to the secrecy surrounding its approval, as well as the renewed efforts to repeal a loophole known as Article XII, which allows students to withdraw for two semesters instead of facing punishment for violating the Honor Code. The penalty structure, which is reviewed by the Honor Council each fall, sets the standard for how the council should treat violations of the Honor Code. This year, the penalty structure retains the same punishment guidelines as last year, with the starting punishment being an F in the course and a two-semester suspension. Penalties can be lessened if the Honor Council feels that the student in violation has cooperated fully with the investigation or based on the degree of the violation, and can be increased to an F and three semesters if the student appears to have premeditated the action or purposefully deceived the Honor Council. The final decision of the Honor Council requires a unanimous vote.