(10/30/07 4:00am)
Hands down, the United States provides some of the most expensive and state of the art medical technology to successfully treat hundreds of thousands of patients every year. We pride ourselves on the ability to expand cutting edge research, to develop new medicines and to attract highly qualified physicians from all over the world. But although many lives have been improved by these successes, the cost of such privileges is becoming a little more than we can bear.The United States currently pays more than any other industrialized nation for health care benefits. It spends an average of roughly $7,000 per person every year-nearly 16 percent of the GDP-solely for health care. Statistics have shown that the cost of providing quality care continues to rise at an alarming rate every year.But should we be concerned? For the most part, we are young and healthy students. Even though we may occasionally have some some health issues, we will always have health insurance to pay for the excellent medical services the United States provides, right? Wrong. The truth of the matter is that there are currently 45.8 million Americans today without health insurance, and an estimated 10 percent of this population is college students.In Massachusetts alone, there are nearly 75,000 uninsured adults between the ages of 19 and 24, and young adults have had significantly lower insurance rates than any other group of individuals in the United States, including the elderly. In addition, insurance premiums are continuing to rise, and it is expected that the number of uninsured college students in America will grow another 1.1 million in the next decade.In an effort to control the rising costs of care, health insurance companies have begun to limit certain access to health care, particularly for young adults. Many previously existing insurance plans designed to attract college students placed stringent limitations and high fees on health services, making these policies practically useless. Over the past several years many plans have begun to charge exorbitant surgeons' fees, put caps on outpatient care or limit treatment to very specific conditions.Additionally, although nearly 75 percent of Massachusetts residents have employmentbased health insurance, many of these health insurance contracts have designated age-based health cutoffs for members aged 19 to 23. With such a large population of college-level students living in Massachusetts, commonwealth officials knew something had to be done at the university level.In 2006, Brandeis was directly affected by the Commonwealth Care Act passed by then Gov. Mitt Romney, which requires that all full-time college students-students who spend more than three-quarters of their time at school-must have some form of health insurance. The policy has made significant advances in providing reliable and affordable access to care. Here at Brandeis, approximately 2,400 undergraduates claimed private insurance, and another 600 students claimed a health insurance policy offered by the University, according to Dianna Baccari, insurance coordinator at the Brandeis health center. The University's plan, Qualifying Student Health Insurance Plan, offers 100 percent coverage for health services listed under the preferred provider physician listing and will cover any student willing to pay approximately $1,500 a semester for these services.For more complex cases, students can be placed under the care of special physicians listed under the non-preferred provider list. This option requires that students pay 20 percent and Brandeis pay the remaining 80 percent of hospital and service fees for the treatment. Since last year, Brandeis has increased the amount of allowable money for health services from $2,000 to $3,000, offers $1,500 for prescription costs and an additional $2,000 for specific high-cost procedures, according to Kathleen Maloney, nursing director at the health center.Maloney admitted that "the Commonwealth Care Act will take some getting used to," but for the most part, the legislation is ultimately forcing colleges to provide a majority of their students will some form of health care.It seems that as HMO insurance premiums continue to rise, more and more students may choose to sign up for Q-SHIP in the years to come. Our health center may be forced to develop a plan to accommodate the increases in student enrollment very soon. Additional full-time physicians and nurses may be necessary to maintain a level of quality and efficient care to students. New medical equipment may also be required to supply students who have a variety of potentially serious illnesses with accurate imaging and lab studies. But our health center is still a university health center, and will never be at the medical proficiency of a hospital. Perhaps the most practical consideration for Brandeis, then, would be one that provides efficient transportation to and from Beth Israel, and despite the increases in student attendance, still sustains a well-organized administrative process. Perhaps an even better plan would be to just lower those insurance premiums, but that one might take a little longer.The writer is a member of the Class of 2010.
(10/23/07 4:00am)
It was a sense of déjOe vu for the swimming and diving teams at their first meet of the season against Boston College Wednesday. Last year's rookie standouts shone in individual races, but the Judges didn't get enough help from the rest of their lineup to win.James Liu '10 won three races, while Hollis Viray '10 and Rachel Sawicki '10 won two and one events, respectively, but that wasn't enough against Division I Boston College. The men's team fell 140-109, while the women lost 146-108. Both teams also won Saturday's Michael Zarrill Memorial Relays, an event players described as an exhibition.Despite the loss against BC, players said they were happy with their performance"Some people are feeling a bit run-down, but overall, we had some really good swims, and I think, with more training coming up, we're going to do a lot better," women's team captain Keara Dekay '08 said. On the men's side, Liu picked up where he left off after a rookie season in which he qualified for the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference championships in both the 50-meter and 100-meter freestyle races. Liu's three victories Wednesday came in the 200-meter freestyle and the 100 and 200-meter butterfly event."Compared to last year, I've been training really hard, and my practice times are faster," Liu said. "[My practicing] really reflected during my meets [this week]."Liu won those three events in blowout fashion. He took the 200-meter butterfly with a time of two minutes and 3.79 seconds, nearly four seconds faster than Boston College senior Joseph Maloy, the second-place finisher. Liu also won the 200-meter freestyle by a full second over Boston College senior Michael Hogan with a time of 1:51:97, and won the 100-meter butterfly by 0.79 seconds over teammate Joshua Klitenick '11 with a time of 55:14.Liu admitted that while he remains one of the team's youngest members, he is more of a leader now in his second season."People on the team definitely look up to me," Liu said. "They know I always give 100-percent effort, and they definitely rely on me, so that's different [this year]." No other Judges swimmer was able to win an individual event. Klitenick, in his first college meet, finished second in the 100-meter butterfly and third in the 200-meter individual medley, while Nick Rice '08, Bobby Morse '08, and Zach Rubenstein '11 had second-place finishes in the 100-meter backstroke, 500-meter freestyle and 200-yard backstroke events, respectively. On the women's side, the Judges combined to win four individual races in their loss. Viray picked up two of them, winning the 100-meter breastroke with a time of 1:13:00 and the 200-meter breastroke in 2:37:45. Sawicki won the 200-meter butterfly event, surging ahead in the last 50 meters to edge Boston College sophomore Kellen McKnight-Slottee by six-hundredths of a second with a time of 2:17:41. Sawicki also finished second in the 100-meter butterfly with a time of 1:03:16.Rookie Nora Bradshaw '11 won the Judges' other event, finishing the 500-meter freestyle with a time of 6:01:19.Dekay said she was most impressed with swimmers who sacrificed themselves to race in multiple events."We had some kids volunteer for some longer events, so I think we're really ambitious, and that's going to help with our future," she said.The teams next race at home against Keene State College Saturday at 4 p.m.
(10/09/07 4:00am)
Brandeis students often wonder how anyone could watch something as boring as presidential politics. If they knew that Barack Obama's new campaign slogan was "It's time for a different B.O. in the White House!" they wouldn't think politics was so monotonous.Fine, I admit it-this isn't his new campaign slogan. Even in jokes thrown around by late-night comedians, however, one can learn a great deal about presidential candidates and campaigns."John Edwards is on the campaign trail. He's now doing something called his 'Poverty Tour' where he's visiting people who have no money and no hope. In fact, his first stop today: John McCain's headquarters," Jay Leno astutely stated last July. Believe it or not, you can learn about politics even before 11 p.m. rolls around and Jay Leno, David Letterman and Jon Stewart are telling you the news with their own bias. You can turn on your television and cycle through channels until you find a candidate speaking on one of the major networks, and by listening to just a few sentences, you're going to realize something interesting. The candidate you are watching is repeating the same words over and over, and he is doing it for a reason. Admittedly, it's confusing at first. Why does this candidate say the word "change" in every sentence? Why have I heard the word "leadership" four times in the last 30 seconds?When running a political campaign, candidates strive to make themselves stand out above the rest in the field. Candidates are predictable in how they accomplish this task: They pick one single topic and declare that on this most important of American values, they are the "experts." Clinton is the "experienced one," Obama is the "one who will bring change," McCain is the "straight-talker," Romney is the "outsider," Giuliani is the "leader" and Edwards "fights for the working and the impoverished." Just by listening to a candidate speak once, in practically any environment or situation, you can easily understand what their entire candidacy is based upon.For those of you who just want to get the gist of what has happened in the last week of politics, I'll give you the scoop. First, the polls:There are four major Republican battlegrounds for the 2008 election-Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Michigan. As it stands right now, Romney is maintaining his impressive lead in the first two primary states, Iowa and New Hampshire. However, a poll taken by the American Research Group put Romney ahead of Rudy Giuliani by only one percent -and gave new life to the Giuliani campaign in Iowa. The South Carolina race is perpetually locked in a four-way tie between all the first tier candidates, and recent polling data suggest that Michigan is stuck in a similar situation. No candidate has truly broken through and made major headway.In the Democratic field, the only state that is being closely contested is Iowa. Clinton has maintained a lead of over 10 percent in every other state. It is important to recognize, however, that Iowa is the first state to hold its caucus, and therefore it has a disproportionate amount of sway in the primary process. The lead that Edwards once held in Iowa has slowly deteriorated, and now polling in Iowa constantly swings back and forth among the three Democratic candidates.What was expected to be the most exciting news of this week, the fundraising results for every campaign for the last quarter, came with very few surprises. The three minor pieces of information: Republican candidate Fred Thompson only garnered $9 million in support, a paltry number compared to the $20.5 million that Romney reported in his first quarter. Clinton edged over Obama, beating him for the first time in both primary and general election funding. Clinton's primary campaign overall has been out fundraised by the Obama campaign, $75 million to $62 million. The next time someone accuses you of being a college student who is trapped in your own little community and oblivious to the outside world, ask him if he thinks that Romney's lead in early primary states will grow due to his aggressive television advertising or if the recent American Research Group poll performed in late September was just a fluke. That'll show him.The writer is a member of the Class of 2009.
(10/02/07 4:00am)
With a two-game lead and a 21-12 point advantage in the third game of its match against host New York University Sunday, it seemed like the volleyball team was well on its way to a winning record at last weekend's University Athletic Association round-robin tournament. But once the Judges gave the Violets new life, the entire match slipped from their grasp.NYU mounted a furious comeback, winning 21 of the next 31 points in the game and then seizing the next two frames to complete a shocking 3-2 victory over the Judges in Brandeis' third match of the round-robin. The Judges had rebounded from a 3-0 loss Saturday to No. 4 Emory College by defeating the University of Rochester 3-1 earlier Sunday, but the loss to NYU dropped their record to 11-4 on the season. Some players were at a loss for words when trying to describe what went wrong against NYU."I honestly don't know what happened," outside hitter Katie Wrynn '08 said. "We played really well as a team for the first few games," outside hitter Lorraine Wingenbach '09 said. "Then, things started falling apart, and we couldn't pick it up."Brandeis held a comfortable 23-16 lead in the third game before the Violets rallied, winning nine of the next 10 points. After the Violets closed the gap to 24-20, Wingenbach had a crucial serving error and NYU regained serve. The Violets then won four consecutive points on freshman Erin Noonan's serve, but the Judges hung around and finally had a match point at 31-30. Noonan, however, ended that threat with a key kill, and senior Samantha Bivens served consecutive aces to give the Violets a 33-31 victory in the game.Coach Michelle Kim explained how NYU's rally demoralized the Judges."I think NYU stepped up their play, [but] just mentally, when we lost the third game we sort of lost the edge," she said. The Violets won the fourth game easily, jumping ahead 14-8 and winning 30-26. They also got off to a fast start in the final game, going up 4-0 on Bivens' serve. The lead eventually grew to five points, and a kill by Noonan clinched a 15-11 game victory and the match."In the fifth game we started out with some errors," Kim said. "[When you need] 15 points to win, starting out with errors is a tough thing to overcome." Rookie setter Abby Blasco '11 had match-highs in assists (46) and digs (19) in the defeat. Wingenbach added 21 kills, but only seven of those came in the final two games.In their win against the University of Rochester earlier Sunday, the Judges lost the first game 30-11, but rallied to win the next game 30-14 and the final two by 30-20 apiece."We had some trouble passing [in the first game against Rochester]," Kim said. "But I think we woke up after that first game and did much better."The Judges fought hard in their match against highly ranked Emory Saturday, but lost in three games by 30-20, 30-10, and 30-18. "I think we had the wrong mindset coming in the game," captain and libero Shannon Trees '08 said. "I think a lot of people came out with the mindset that we were going to lose the game."Prior to the UAA round-robin, the Judges picked up a 3-2 victory over Endicott College Tuesday. The team fell behind 2-1 after losing the third game 30-23, but rallied to win the fourth game 30-18 and the fifth game 15-8. Wingenbach led the team with 17 kills to go along with five aces and five digs. Blasco chipped in 49 assists and libero Violette Ruggiero '09 added 15 digs.Kim said she doesn't think the Judges always play to their full potential."When we do play well, we are a very good team and we have a lot of talent on our team," Kim said. "But consistency is one of the things that we need to work on, especially with our passing. When we have our passing we play really well."The Judges play next in the Midcoast Classic tournament in Brunswick, Maine Friday at 6 p.m.
(09/25/07 4:00am)
Can the University's new Schusterman Center for Israel Studies function in other than an advocacy role? Last week's Justice described concerns of several faculty, with it-ain't-necessarily-so's from the Center's respected director, Prof. Ilan Troen (NEJS), and others. To understand this challenge, recognize that the Schusterman Center sits on a fault line between "service to the Jewish community" and the nonsectarian mission of the University. President Carter's seismic visit demonstrates how volatile that fault line is.In 2003, University President Jehuda Reinharz addressed the United Jewish Appeal-Federation. An edited version of this speech is in a publication of Brandeis' Cohen Center for Modern Jewish Studies titled, "Israel in the Eyes of Americans: A Call To Action." Talia Bloch, editor of the Jewish newspaper Aufbau, summarized it as, "An 'Al Jew-zeera' to Educate the Public: Jehuda Reinharz Puts Forth a Plan for Securing Israel." His coinage came during his suggestion to create such a Jewish television network, which Bloch wrote "drew the most applause."Said New York UJA Vice President John Ruskay, questioning whether Reinharz's advocacy implied blanket support for Israel, "We are going to have to come to the view that sees education as helping young people develop their own views." President Reinharz responded, wrote Bloch: "There is a difference between being critical and not caring. You can be anywhere and be supportive of Israel."But Brandeis University is a nonsectarian institution with an official mission statement proclaiming "a center of open inquiry and teaching, cherishing its independence from any doctrine or government," without exception for caring about or supporting Israel, Zionism or Palestinian nationalism. Brandeis "strives to reflect the heterogeneity of the United States and of the world community whose ideas and concerns it shares," including opinions that may set people's teeth on edge-Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinedjad spoke at Columbia University yesterday, introduced by university President Lee Bollinger.The Schusterman Foundation, which founded the Israel Studies Center, has another mandate. "We are committed exclusively to bringing greater vitality and joy to Jewish life," its Web site reads. "We will help forge a shared destiny in which Jewish life flourishes," and that "the notion of k'lal Yisrael-Jewish peoplehood-is central to our mission."Despite the de jure mismatch expressed in these two well-intentioned, laudable missions, there is considerable de facto concurrency. In other words, do we believe our mission statement?A recurrent phrase from the Office of Development is "service to the Jewish community," inverting the last of President Reinharz's "four pillars," which interpret our mission statement. "Brandeis," he said in 1995, "has a clear and unambiguous identity that rests on four solid pillars: dedication to academic excellence, non sectarianism, a commitment to social action and continuous sponsorship by the Jewish community." (When awarded an honorary degree by Ben-Gurion University in 2006, these became "outstanding research, social justice, pluralization and service to the Jewish people.")After President Carter's appearance, the Brandeis Faculty Senate council addressed the Board of Trustees. Speaking for the Board, its chairman, Stephen Kay, said "We support Israel." That's well and good, but is not what we do here.Brandeis trustee Myra Kraft told the Boston Globe last spring about her interests in philanthropy to Israel."It's not religion," she said, "it's peoplehood." Trustee Michael Steinhardt told the UJA in 2003 of his "vision of a common Judaism," beginning with "the pre-eminence of Jewish peoplehood as a unifying ideal; the centrality of the State of Israel to the Jewish soul." Brandeis' Steinhardt Social Research Institute, devoted to Jewish demography, facilitates his vision.In a 2002 Ha'aretz interview with President Reinharz, journalist Benny Landau wrote that Reinharz "was being granted a rare opportunity not only to head an excellent academic institution, but also to be the president of a university whose mission in the life of the Jewish people is unique.""Perhaps it sounds bombastic, but that is how I think about it," President Reinharz said. Part of the responsibility of the university-and since I am the president, I am the one who determines such things-is to promote the Jewish agenda in the world. When I agreed to the offer, I decided to establish good centers and institutes of research, and to fill with them a certain void which, as I perceived it, was created within the Jewish People." The Schusterman Center is another such institute.These words of University leaders-genuine, well-meaning and parochial-are at cross purposes with the mission statement. The Faculty Senate council told the Board: "A university is a special place for scholarship, teaching people to think for themselves and to be responsible citizens in our democratic society. Those intellectual commitments characterize the University's service-service to the greater community.""The whole point," Justice Brandeis said of his court opinions, "is to educate the country." The same can be said of the nation's great universities. Can we be one of them?The writer is a computer science professor. He served two terms as chair of the Faculty Senate.
(09/18/07 4:00am)
Melodic Death Metal (Melo-Death for short) is a drug. When the stuff began hemorrhaging out of Scandinavia in the mid-90s, it seemed like Metalheads worldwide couldn't get enough of the stuff. Bands like The Gates, Dark Tranquility and (uuuuugh) In Flames adorned awkwardly oversized black T-shirts everywhere. The marriage of brutal, American Death Metal and sophisticated, serene European melodies was a match made in heaven, one that continues to give birth to countless acts well into the new millennium.It would be poor form for me to deny my own very passionate love affair with this beast. I became acquainted with Melo-Death around 2002, just as everyone else was growing weary of her charms. But for me, there was nothing else. It had the infectious melody and rhythmic accessibility necessary to remain memorable, but maintained enough of a harsh, metallic edge to make me feel like a total badass. Like all trends, Melo-Death had its fair share of detractors. People called it derivative, boring and overplayed, but that never stopped me from exploring the genre even unto its innermost parts. I always took its far-reaching influence as a sign of just how much the style spoke to Metalheads everywhere.These days, traditional Melodic Death Metal is almost nonexistent, though its fingerprints can be found on many of Metal's more prevalent trends. Acts like Unearth took the template and glued it to a frame of traditional Hardcore, spawning yet another overly popular genre, modern Metalcore. Still, every now and then, a band will emerge from the masses still carrying the genre's flag with pride, skill and confidence.In this particular case, that band in question is The Absence. From its Tampa stomping grounds, The Absence has made a very respectable name for itself delivering slightly Americanized, but fundamentally traditional, late '90s Melodic Death Metal. In an arena currently dominated by deliberately spastic and technical Metalcore, a release like Riders of The Plague is refreshing both in its content and Metal-with-a-capital-M attitude.Wisely eschewing the traditional introductory track, vocalist Jamie Stewart (a dead ringer for At The Gates' Tomas Lindberg, both in voice and appearance-sorry, dude) and his merry men kick off the album's title track in fine style with a vein-popping scream and a torrential downpour of thrashy riffs. The perfect opening number, "Riders of The Plague," immediately settles into a bouncy riff, evoking a big grin and fervent head-banging. Less than 15 seconds go by before the incendiary guitar duo of Peter Joseph and Patrick Pintavalle unleashes some of its consistently stellar lead play, underpinned by drummer Jeremy Kling's tastefully restrained thunder.From there on out, the band rarely takes its foot off the gas, storming through the album's 11 tracks in a fit of Metallic ecstasy.The band's aforementioned Americanized elements come in the form of a more noticeable Bay Area Thrash influence, especially in the opening riffs of tracks like "Dead and Gone" and "World Divides." Heck, they even threw a righteously raucous cover of Testament's live anthem, "Into The Pit," onto the album.As far a production goes, the band couldn't have asked for a better sound: clear and well- blended, but with enough grit and gusto to give it a live feel. The drums sound particularly lovely, with a natural sound that draws your attention to Kling's imaginative cymbal work.Yet for all its quality, the album is somewhat lacking in fundamental creativity. Don't get me wrong: The riffs and arrangements here are anything but boring. It's just that at the end of the day, these boys are playing an arguably restrictive genre that's entering its second decade as a staple of the Metal community. You've probably heard a lot of this stuff before, just not with this level of ability. Stewart's consistently mid range scream doesn't help matters either.Still, anyone looking for high-caliber Melodic Death Metal, or any Metal for that matter, can't go wrong with Riders of The Plague. People can whine all they want, but this is a style that's here to stay. Stop complaining, and start giving quality acts the credit they deserve.
(09/18/07 4:00am)
CORRECTION APPENDED SEE BOTTOM
(09/17/07 4:00am)
If their performance at the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth Invitational Saturday is any indication, the men's and women's cross country teams are both forces in the New England region.The squads each posted top-five finishes at the meet, as the men's team came in third place out of 31 teams with a score of 123 and the women's team ended up fifth out of 29 teams with a score of 206. "Time-wise, everybody ran out of their minds," men's captain Dan Suher '08 said. "We definitely beat some teams that we wanted to beat, and I think everyone was happy with their performance." The only two teams that finished ahead of the men's team were Trinity College, the top-ranked team in the New England region, and the University of Southern Maine, which edged out the Judges by a mere two points. Jon Guilinger '08 led the way for Brandeis, finishing 11th overall with a time of 25 minutes, 35 seconds in the five-mile run.Three other Judges finished in the top 30 to aid Guilinger. Rookie Paul Norton '11 continued his impressive season, finishing 22nd with a time of 25:53. Matt Jennings '09 and Michael Stone '09 also ran well in their season debuts. Jennings finished 28th with a time of 25:58, while Stone was one spot behind him with a time of 26:00."The race definitely sets the bar for the rest of the season," Suher said. "Individually, our times are already a lot faster than some people expected." The men's team's performance was particularly impressive considering that it raced without Tim Condon '08, who suffered from muscle soreness, and Suher, who was sidelined with strained quadriceps. Condon, an all-University Athletic Association performer last season, led the team to its best conference finish since 1998 last year with a 14th-place finish, while Suher has been an important factor in the team's success in recent seasons. Suher said that the team's performance speaks to the squad's increased talent throughout the lineup."In the past we've been unlucky with little things happening to us, [but] this year it looks like we will have enough depth to be able to cover those little things," he said.On the women's side, captain Katy Agule '09 led the team with a 28th-place finish, recording a time of 19:14, while Marie Lemay '11 followed with a 33rd-place finish in 19:21."We all ran pretty well," Agule said. "We all came in under 21 minutes, which was great."After losing three key seniors last season, the women's team will race a young squad, more than half of which is of underclassmen. Despite the team's youth, Agule sees this factor as a positive contribution to the Judges' progress. "We're still young, and we're still growing," Agule said. "But our youth helps us. We are looking really good, and we are showing a lot of potential." Both teams will look to continue improving as they head to the Connecticut College Invitational Saturday at 10 a.m.
(09/17/07 4:00am)
Melodic Death Metal (Melo-Death for short) is a drug. When the stuff began hemorrhaging out of Scandinavia in the mid-90s, it seemed like Metalheads worldwide couldn't get enough of the stuff. Bands like The Gates, Dark Tranquility and (uuuuugh) In Flames adorned awkwardly oversized black T-shirts everywhere. The marriage of brutal, American Death Metal and sophisticated, serene European melodies was a match made in heaven, one that continues to give birth to countless acts well into the new millennium.It would be poor form for me to deny my own very passionate love affair with this beast. I became acquainted with Melo-Death around 2002, just as everyone else was growing weary of her charms. But for me, there was nothing else. It had the infectious melody and rhythmic accessibility necessary to remain memorable, but maintained enough of a harsh, metallic edge to make me feel like a total badass. Like all trends, Melo-Death had its fair share of detractors. People called it derivative, boring and overplayed, but that never stopped me from exploring the genre even unto its innermost parts. I always took its far-reaching influence as a sign of just how much the style spoke to Metalheads everywhere.These days, traditional Melodic Death Metal is almost nonexistent, though its fingerprints can be found on many of Metal's more prevalent trends. Acts like Unearth took the template and glued it to a frame of traditional Hardcore, spawning yet another overly popular genre, modern Metalcore. Still, every now and then, a band will emerge from the masses still carrying the genre's flag with pride, skill and confidence.In this particular case, that band in question is The Absence. From its Tampa stomping grounds, The Absence has made a very respectable name for itself delivering slightly Americanized, but fundamentally traditional, late '90s Melodic Death Metal. In an arena currently dominated by deliberately spastic and technical Metalcore, a release like Riders of The Plague is refreshing both in its content and Metal-with-a-capital-M attitude.Wisely eschewing the traditional introductory track, vocalist Jamie Stewart (a dead ringer for At The Gates' Tomas Lindberg, both in voice and appearance-sorry, dude) and his merry men kick off the album's title track in fine style with a vein-popping scream and a torrential downpour of thrashy riffs. The perfect opening number, "Riders of The Plague," immediately settles into a bouncy riff, evoking a big grin and fervent head-banging. Less than 15 seconds go by before the incendiary guitar duo of Peter Joseph and Patrick Pintavalle unleashes some of its consistently stellar lead play, underpinned by drummer Jeremy Kling's tastefully restrained thunder.From there on out, the band rarely takes its foot off the gas, storming through the album's 11 tracks in a fit of Metallic ecstasy.The band's aforementioned Americanized elements come in the form of a more noticeable Bay Area Thrash influence, especially in the opening riffs of tracks like "Dead and Gone" and "World Divides." Heck, they even threw a righteously raucous cover of Testament's live anthem, "Into The Pit," onto the album.As far a production goes, the band couldn't have asked for a better sound: clear and well- blended, but with enough grit and gusto to give it a live feel. The drums sound particularly lovely, with a natural sound that draws your attention to Kling's imaginative cymbal work.Yet for all its quality, the album is somewhat lacking in fundamental creativity. Don't get me wrong: The riffs and arrangements here are anything but boring. It's just that at the end of the day, these boys are playing an arguably restrictive genre that's entering its second decade as a staple of the Metal community. You've probably heard a lot of this stuff before, just not with this level of ability. Stewart's consistently mid range scream doesn't help matters either.Still, anyone looking for high-caliber Melodic Death Metal, or any Metal for that matter, can't go wrong with Riders of The Plague. People can whine all they want, but this is a style that's here to stay. Stop complaining, and start giving quality acts the credit they deserve.
(08/28/07 4:00am)
Before federal conspiracy charges of gambling on National Basketball Association games surfaced against former league referee Tim Donaghy-who plead guilty to the allegations this month-Steve Bamford monitored referees in anonymity. But in the wake of this scandal, even the Division III referees he supervises may be under the microscope as they've never been before."[Donaghy's] actions and behavior has tainted officials in all sports," Bamford said, choosing his words carefully. "He has tainted the way spectators, fans and administrators look at officials."Bamford served as an associate officiating commissioner of the East Coast Athletic Conference for the past six years before being promoted to Associated Commissioner this summer. He is in charge of assigning, evaluating, training and hiring officials for games involving the 319 ECAC member schools. Brandeis participates in the University Athletic Association conference, but because the UAA is not geographically configured, the league seeks out local bodies to handle its officiating. The ECAC supervises referees for east coast UAA schools like Brandeis.Division III is a significant step down from the NBA, but the ECAC and the NCAA have several measures in place to protect the integrity of their referees. Bamford and UAA Executive Secretary Dick Rasmussen admit that the process by which Division III evaluates its officials pales in comparison to the NBA's process, which administers random background checks and features a security network that includes a representative for every team. Still, the NCAA provides pamphlets and instructional videos on the perils of gambling to all of its officials, who are primarily part-time employees. Background checks are only administered to Division I referees. "I'm not too concerned [about gambling]," Rasmussen said. "This is something the NCAA has been very proactive about."Bamford's training process for his officials is extensive. Every one of an estimated 225 New England basketball officials must have a minimum of three to four years of high school referee experience before they can be considered for jobs, and they all must have completed a certification course for basketball referees run by Excel Sports Officiating. Prospective ECAC officials also need to complete a membership application, and, with a few exceptions, wait at least a year before being accepted. Those who are accepted try out in groups of 25 referees where they are evaluated and ranked. Bamford said only three or four are usually hired from those groups. Bamford's main method for preventing gambling scandals is eradicating all potential conflicts of interests among officials. ECAC referees are required to sign an affiliation statement detailing relationships they have with any ECAC school. They aren't allowed to officiate one team's games more than three times in the same season, and Rasmussen has requested a provision prohibiting UAA officials from being sent to the same location two years in a row. "[The Donaghy situation] shows why you absolutely have to eliminate all those possible conflicts of interest," Rasmussen said. "If you're the visiting coach and I'm the official, and you see me in the home coach's office before the game with my feet up, you're going to say to yourself, 'Oh my god, they've got the game in the bag tonight.'"Once they are hired, ECAC officials undergo evaluations by supervisors, coaches and even fellow officials. The ECAC also employs trained auditors who regularly observe and meet with officials after games to discuss their performance. Officials whose accuracy is identified as being in the bottom 20 percent of the group occasionally receive visits from supervisors that report directly to Bamford. Bamford also distributes an online coach evaluation form to coaches, encourages them to send him game tapes and allows fellow referees to rate each other. He then uses all these measures to rank his officials. Those who are highly ranked are assigned to games more frequently and receive higher-profile assignments, while the bottom ones are often demoted and replaced by new recruits, Bamford said. Even with this review process, Rasmussen and Bamford both admit the system isn't perfect. Like most sports, basketball falls prey to human judgment in officiating. Contact naturally occurs on every possession, and the crowd can affect the officials' performance as much as it does the players'. In a 68-64 loss at Washington University in St. Louis last season, the men's basketball team attempted 27 fewer free throws than the opposition. When the teams played again in Waltham, the Judges had a 21-18 edge in free throw attempts in an 81-75 triple-overtime victory. Those inherent flaws in basketball officiating were amplified by the Donaghy scandal, which has made the public more suspicious of corruption in the sport. Rasmussen, however, said he isn't worried about such problems in the UAA next season."At our level, I don't think [Donaghy] is going to affect much, other than some yahoo in the stands that gets upset and yells something," he said.
(08/28/07 4:00am)
Those new to the Brandeis campus should make themselves keenly aware of the Brandeis Theater Company (BTC). The performance ensemble-comprised of students, faculty and a variety of guest artists-gives those who are still beginning their theater careers the opportunity to work with professionals on the stage. The company explores a wide range of culturally and historically diverse works, ranging from morose comedies, such as last year's "The Waiting Room," to the honor dramas of the Spanish golden age ("The Physician of His Honor.") This coming year promises to be no less diverse. Kicking off the season on Oct. 11th will be "The Threepenny Opera," which was first debuted on this very campus 55 years ago. The play, originally by German writer Bertolt Brecht, explores the adventures of the working-class underbelly, set in Victorian London. A prototypical scoundrel and womanizer, Macheath, secretly marries the daughter of London's Beggar Lord, and pays dearly for his trespass with all manner of trouble. Directed by Company Head Eric Hill, the show will feature the work of famed set designer and faculty member, Karl Eigsti. Following that, Double Edge Theatre, an innovative and eclectic group based in Ashfield, Mass., will be bringing their own unique interpretation of Alexandre Dumas' classic, "The Three Musketeers" to the Brandeis campus. The unforgettable portrayal of swordplay, politics and deceit will be directed by company members Stacy Klein and Matthew Glassman, in coordination with the BTC. In the spring, faculty member professor Adrianne Krstansky (THA) will direct Shakespeare's "As You Like It," a tale of entangled romance and vengeful royalty. The show will open on Feb. 17th.Finally, BTC will present an adaptation of the traditional Chinese folktale, "The Orphan of Zhao." Directed by Hill and Naya Chang (GRAD), the play tells the story of the lone survivor of the Massacre of Jin as he seeks retribution and the restoration of compassionate order in feudal China. With an original musical score composed by Yu-Hui Chang (MUS) and performed by Jiebing Chen on the erhu and Yangqin Zhao on the hammered dulcimer, along with the Lydian String Quartet, "The Orphan of Zhao" promises to be an fittingly intense end to the 2007-2008 theater season.
(08/28/07 4:00am)
I don't think I'll ever forget the moment my life changed forever. Alwina Bennett, assistant provost for graduate student affairs pulled me aside at the first event of Senior Week. She touched my shoulder lightly. "It's about Bernard." I knew right then what she would say but I still fell to the floor of Levin Ballroom in shock.Bernard Herman, a former member of the class of 2008, committed suicide on May 12, 2007. He was one of my best friends. He was unlike anyone I've ever known. This column, however, is not a eulogy for Bernard. Each person who knew him can and will remember him in his or her own way, and, anyway, he was probably the only one who possessed the sufficient vocabulary to do his character justice.It's what followed Bernard's death that I will talk about. Death itself is strange, puzzling and sad, but suicide compounds all that. Being in the midst of such a tragedy, I was able to learn a lot about love, grief, friendship, myself, and most of all, people in general. I was asked a lot of questions following his death. An incredulous acquaintance of mine approached me and said, "Cindy, I never knew Bernard, but I was looking at his Facebook profile, and we have 'X' in common, and, well, what do you think that means?" Quite honestly, I don't know, but probably nothing. What should I have said? I thought that it was beautiful that she was moved and affected by someone so close to my heart, but at the same time I was frustrated that she, and many others, thought I would have all the answers. I'm struggling with questions of my own. For instance, how is possible that Bernard will never find the perfect woman I'd helped him search for? How will his book get published if he never finishes writing it?The most common question was, "How did he do it?" That was easy to answer and I developed a little speech that I must have given 50 times this summer until the point when it stopped seeming real. This was inevitably followed by the question, "Did you know?" to which I responded, "Yes." Many of his close friends knew, but that doesn't mean we didn't try to stop it. I feel that we kept him going for at least three months when he didn't want to be alive anymore."How do you feel?" was another popular one. I would answer, "It's different for everyone, but for me, it feels really weird". A friend of mine told me to say "weird" whenever I was asked that question. It's hard to describe the sinking stomach, racing thoughts and paranoia that one feels after a loved one dies. Equally difficult to put into words is the gratitude I feel for getting to know someone so wonderful, as well as the distress I feel for picking a friend who would later kill himself. All the while I feel an indescribable sense of loneliness because it doesn't feel like anyone else is feeling all of this at once and the constant voice of Bernard is in my head telling me to listen to old advice he gave me. It's hard to describe all of that and keep the listener's attention, so it simply feels "weird."Before Bernard committed suicide, I know I would have asked someone in my position all of those questions. I would have been the person thinking "Oh god, can you imagine?" I was that person. When Bernard's father killed himself in May 2006, that's what I thought about Bernard. The "how must he feels" and the "how did it happens" were running through my head then. I think all of these questions are just a byproduct of suicide, because the unnaturalness of the act is too hard to grasp. What people forget is that suicide, when you get down to it, is just another form of death. You wouldn't ask someone who lost a relative or close friend to cancer, "Since we have something in common, will I get cancer, too?" People wouldn't talk about it in hushed voices, and look towards the bereaved for answers. They'd accept that there are no answers.There's something about suicide that's almost sickly entertaining because of its absurdity. I understand that completely. As a writer of fiction, I've thrown suicide into stories to give characters more depth. I've discovered the captivating nature of it. But now, suicide doesn't really mean more to me than "You won't ever see your best friend again." I don't wonder if I pushed him over the edge, and don't feel like I wasn't good enough to stick around for. I don't feel unloved and I don't think Bernard felt unloved. Bernard died and that means I'm more sad and empty, and more aware of how important it is that I live. After the heat of the issue fades, Bernard's friends still don't have him. I am grieving for a dead friend, and that is the only answer I can give.The writer is a member of the Class of 2008
(08/28/07 4:00am)
The University is implementing new security measures due to heightened concerns over campus safety following last April's shootings at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, administrators said.Colleges across the country have announced plans to unveil new emergency communications procedures in response to the shootings, where Virginia Tech student Seung Hung-Choi shot and killed 33 and injured 25 on his campus.In an Aug. 7 campuswide e-mail, Executive Vice President for Campus Operations Peter French announced that Brandeis "recently purchased and installed a campus-wide siren-alert system and upgraded our existing email, telephone and Web communications capabilities."Though he couldn't provide individual figures, Mark Collins, vice president of campus operations, said the added technology in total costs "well over $100,000." Director of Public Safety Ed Callahan said he, other administrators and Waltham officials convened "in earnest" over the summer to discuss how Brandeis' technology could be upgraded to improve security. These talks resulted in the development of new systems "on the cutting edge of communicating.to the community," Callahan said. Sirens, which have been placed at the Volen Center, the Rabb Graduate Center and by the Spingold Theater parking lot (one more will be affixed near the Gosman Sports and Convocation Center), will be activated to alert students, faculty and staff to check their cell phone text messages for security instructions, Callahan said. "The vendor did a topographical study," Callahan said, "so the tones could be emitted to the campus on a consistent fashion."Students, faculty and staff can voluntarily submit their cell phone numbers and any other e-mail addresses and emergency contact numbers on SAGE at http://crisis.brandeis.edu/index.html.Vice-President and Vice-Provost of Library and Technology Services Perry Hanson said the University signed with Connect-Ed, an academically based emergency notification company, to send out text messages to cell phones in emergency situations. The messages will contain safety instructions, Hanson said. "I would hopefully feel that the community is welcome to this alert notification system and I would urge them to participate because it's an enhancement of the security and safety of the campus, and it's beneficial to the community," Callahan said.Harvard University, Princeton University, the University of New Mexico, the Georgia Institute of Technology and the University of Cincinnati are just a few of the universities that have recently implemented a text messaging notification system as well. Princeton also works with Connect-Ed.Administrators will also now be able to reach students more effectively through the campus phones, Hanson said. The University signed with InformaCast, a company that allows administrators to send text and voice announcements to the campus phones, which are part of the University's network and located in dormitory rooms, classrooms, offices and hallways. Hanson said the new phone software essentially turns the Cisco phones into broadcast systems. Because the phones have speakers, Hanson said, "We realized we could use the phone system as a public address system. "It would be like you have a bullhorn, but it would be like you have 6,000 of them," he said. "It was something we knew we could do and I just presented it as a possibility and everyone liked the idea."It takes around 30 seconds for a voice announcement to reach and broadcast over a phone, Hanson said. Text messages will take slightly longer to appear; a couple of minutes, he estimated. Administrators will continue to send out campuswide e-mails with instructions in emergency situations."I feel good about what we can do now," Callahan said. "I'll feel better after we do some testing. A lot of the success will be in how responsive people are to letting us know whether or not they want to get a message on their cell phones." Hanson is also confident in the new technology. "We've got the best stuff possible," he said. "I don't know if there's any other thing we can do right now. Will it make a difference? I don't know. But if it does make a difference, it's worth doing." Virginia Tech's police response was accused of being too slow and its communications procedures as being a failure. Police sent out a campuswide e-mail message about what was going on two hours after the first of the two shootings at Virginia Tech, but many students said they didn't receive the information and left for class anyway. Callahan has also spent the summer once again training Quad directors and other staff in the emergency and evacuation protocols. He said periodic tests of the new technology will occur throughout the year."Once the student body comes back we're going to incorporate students and the whole community to do this as a continual learning process," he said. "We look at this as an educational expansion of the emergency response plan.
(07/12/07 4:00am)
Like most things of the season, television aired during the summer is generally of a lighter nature; it is meant to captivate and allow us sit motionless, so as not to sweat any more than we already have. While summer shows don't necessarily have to tug on our heartstrings to grab your attention, that does not mean that they should be crappy. Unfortunately, most of what was on this summer was pretty bad. The great returning shows have painfully come undone, and some shows were aired that no person should have been forced to watch. (Rock of Love!? Are you serious?) Yet, at the same time, there was promise. A couple of shows had rookie seasons that, while not spectacular, showed excellent promise. Below are the summer highlights; those that delivered and those that should have, but didn't.Entourage: (HBO) - For the last three years, Entourage had been my favorite show on television. It has great characters, great drama and great laughs. The show is lifted by it'sits frequent and clever use of cameos and references to the movie industry. As Entourage goes into it's its fourth season, it seems like the show has lost its edge. Though the show broke the bank with last summer's mid-season finale, it's slow to rebound. Until very recently, the storyline has avoided addressing the issues that needed addressing, in favor of putting together marginal episodic stories. Basically it seems like the writing staff is playing it safe in order to avoid doing anything that could change the show. Unfortunately, that type of strategy rarely leads to good television. Yet n the last two weeks, the show has snapped back into the main storyline, giving us hope that the show will finally get back toregain it'sits former glory.Psych: (USA, 35)- Originally meant to be a knock-off of the Emmy winning detective show, Monk, aimed at younger audiences, Psych has surpassed it's predecessor with nerd-chic humor and lovable characters. Yet, while Psych continues to develop in its sophomore season, the show has begun to fall into a pattern and is walking the very fine line between relying on a tried and true formula and growing stale. The writing staff has clearly recognized that show's primary source of humor comes from the principal character Shawn (James Roday) and his sidekick Gus (Dul Hill); there has definitely been a push to make the two of them a pair instead of a protagonist/sidekick relationship. The problem is that Gus, my favorite character, is much more amusing as a sidekick: In most episodes of season one, Gus somehow has a geek-fetish for whatever culture or scene that the duo have to investigate; Gus knows everything there is to know about comic, the civil war, the national spelling bee and safes, to name a few. However, in season two, Gus is less awkward and more involved in the cases; he has gone from a know-it-all tag-along with his cool, gifted friend to an inferior partner who occasionally has something to say. Also, focusing most of the screen time on Shawn and Gus has taken away from the rest of the supporting cast, making the humor somewhat monotonous. In short; USA should have remembered the age-old saying; "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."Last Comic Standing: (NBC, 7)- I will preface this with a warning; I hate reality shows. I hate American Idol. I hate Survivor. But I love(d) Last Comic Standing. I loved the show, not because it was any different from any other reality show, but because I like stand-up; in the past, LCS has taken relatively unknown stand-up comics and given them national exposure. This year the show has "gone international" taking comics from Australia and England in an attempt to widen the scope of the show. All this has done is increase the number of "blooper" episodes, twenty-minute montages of the worst comics who tried out. Worse still is the fact that, even after enduring the extra-long series of humorless jerks, the show time and time again failed to choose the best comics, instead opting for those who seem like they might make for good reality fodder. Yet over time, with this season being worse than everwith the season rapidly deteriorating, LCS has become what I always feared it would, a comedy-themed reality show.So You Think You Can Dance: (Fox, 13)- So You Think You Can Dance is the epitome of summer television; it's light, yet dramatic. You laugh a lot and cry a little, but most importantly, you watch it religiously. The differences between Dance and Idol are very subtle; so subtle in fact that I'm not entirely positive I understand them myself. Somehow, Dance manages to keep people invested in the show, without attaching them to individual contestants. If I had to guess, and mine is as good as yours, I would say that the reason there is less drama regarding who is voted off of Dance is because, as a whole, the contestants are much more talented than those on Idol. People get attached to specific singers on Idol because some of them are clearly better than others; it can be gauged by the tone and power of their voice. On Dance, because every contestant is excellent, at least in their specialty; if one of them performs badly, we simply assume they had a bad night. Subtleties aside, every week, there are enough amazing moves to keep to people interested. Regardless, one thing is clear; So you think you can Dance will definitely advance to next summer.John from Cincinnati: (HBO) John from Cincinnati has big cement shoes to fill, possibly made of cement because it's , sitting in the Sopranos' old time slot. The show follows the trials and tribulations of a very dysfunctional family of pro-surfers in California who meet a mysteriously ignorant man named John who is hinted to be the messiah himself. The show is very cryptic; you have to watch very closely to figure out what's going on. It also moves very slowly, giving you just enough to remain somewhat intrigued. This is most definitely not for those with a weak attention span. If you can stay focused, though, the show is an example great storytelling and features a large and emotionally diverse cast. Personally, I think that John is a good show, but shouldn't have been released in summer, when people are generally looking for lighter fare.Burn Notice (USA, 35) Continuing its trend of quirky, upbeat version classic TV sub-genres (Monk and Psych are funny detective shows while other newcomer The Starter Wife is plays as a "down to earth" version of The O.C.) Burn Notice takes the business of being spy and breaks it down into easy to digest pieces. The show follows Michael Weston (Jeffrey Donovan), a government spy who is "burned" (forcibly retired) and placed in Miami on a kind of international house arrest. He is forced to re-unite with an ex-girlfriend (Gabrielle Anwar), a retired spy (Bruce Campbell), and, of course, his mother (Sharon Gless). While in Miami, Weston spends his time doing odd jobs that require his type of expertise, while trying to find out why he was burned. The show has flaws, but if you can look past them it is a gem. First of all, the acting is terrible. Donovan is stiff as a board, and everyone is clearly reciting written dialogue, and poory written dialogue at that. What saves this show, it's greatness, is it's accessibility. The characters may not be deep, but they are easy to understand and they are very likable. Most notable is Fiona (Gabrielle Anwar); a trigger happy ex-IRA agent whose love for Weston is made all the more sweet by the fact that she's a complete psychopath. If you like predictable, entertaining television, then Burn Notice is right up your alley.Not having great shows wasn't that bad, though. Even if you didn't take it as a sign that you should go outside, there were other things on to hold your interest. Watching Barry Bonds break the Home Run record, Michael Vick's dog-fighting scandal are prime examples of how real life is often better than anything we can up with in our heads. Plus, even as we speak better shows (Like Showtime's Weeds and Californication) have already started running. After long summer of barbeques and fun in the sun, the world of television is ready to help you get reacquainted with the great indoors.
(05/22/07 4:00am)
After serving as the face of game show television for half a century, Bob Barker is finally getting out of the business. At 83, Barker has stopped taping episodes of The Price is Right, after being the show's host for 35 years. His last taping, a primetime "Million Dollar Spectacular" edition of the show, aired Wednesday. Barker announced last October that he would be ending his tenure on the show, with his final episode airing in mid-June. The Million Dollar episode wasn't anything special; it simply featured vast and extravagant prizes including, if you couldn't have guessed, a one-million dollar bonus prize. Putting a daytime show in primetime could serve as massive fanfare, but it seems that in 2007, a time change isn't as exciting a trick as it used to be. Ultimately, the idea for the show, like Barker, was just ``a little too old-school for primetime. There have actually been other Million Dollar Spectaculars, making the whole event seem a little kitschy. Plus, the excitement of the amplified version of the show was diminished by the fact that newer game shows like Deal or No Deal or 1 Vs. 100 regularly boast six- and seven-figure prizes.In addition to the special edition of the show, a giant tribute to Barker's life and achievements, "Bob Barker-A Celebration of 50 Years on Television," was aired the following night. A more fitting last hurrah for Barker, this show featured anyone they could find who had something to say about him, from the members of his crew, to contestants whose lives were affected by the show to miscellaneous celebrities with whom he's worked over the years. The show's highlight was definitely Adam Sandler's "Ode to Bob," which reminded me of the days when Sandler was funny. In reality, it was just a chance for us to get one last look at Barker lounging around, being a goofy old man. But that's fine by me, because that's the reason why I-and I assume most younger people-watch The Price is Right in the first place.Before we dismiss Barker as simply an old-man game show host who, needless to say, is not exactly the voice of our generation, we should take time to note his achievements: His career was truly extraordinary and it's doubtful that anyone will ever have one quite like his ever again. Barker has been on television for 50 years straight. From 1956 through 1975, he hosted Truth or Consequences; a kind of '50s precursor to Nickelodeon's Double Dare. Before ending his tenure on T or C, he became the host of The Price is Right in 1972, and revived the show that had originally run in the late '50s and early '60s. Between the two shows, Baerker has been on air five days a week, every week. During that run, he has won 17 Emmy awards, including 12 for best game show host, and the lifetime achievement award. Barker has held a job longer than any man in television. The Price is Right is the second-longest running show in television history, second only to the Mexican Sabado Gigante.But it's not over yet: The Price is Right will live on after Barker's retirement because the show is still quite popular. After 35 years, it remains the number one daytime show. Its closest competitor, The View, averages about half as many viewers. CBS has yet to announce who the new host will be, though they said they have been searching for a replacement for the last two years, when Barker first talked about retiring. Bob Barker is significant because of his stability. In the last 50 years, the world has changed radically; it's easy to lose track of the past once it's gone. Having a constant in one's life acts both as a unit by which to measure time and as a reminder that things haven't always been the way they are now. Television especially is a constantly changing medium; there are very few shows on TV right now that have been on for more than a couple of years, never mind 35. It's important to be able to look at a show like The Price is Right and see that a show does not have to be on the cutting-edge to be successful. People simply appreciate the show's consistency in their lives.As silly as it sounds, there are generations , our own included, who don't know what a world without Bob Barker will be like. He is a staple, a man who securely captivated our attentions for 50 years. TV will go on without him, but it won't be the same.
(05/01/07 4:00am)
Last Monday, after a six-week break, the new superhit Heroes finally returned, ready to keep us on the edge of our seats. It's a character-driven, science-fiction drama in which certain people realize that they have unique abilities and become entangled in a plot to detonate-or prevent-a nuclear bomb in Manhattan. The heroes are varied and well-developed: Claire Bennet, the Texan cheerleader who doesn't know her past and somehow automatically and immediately heals any wound; Hiro Nakamura, a Japanese cubicle bug who can travel through time and space ;Isaac Mendez, a Manhattan-based heroin junkie who paints the future and others. The show manages to attract fans o f both the science fiction and mainstream drama by having a diverse cast of attractive characters who, despite having super powers, lead normal lives with real problems. Meanwhile, the intricate entanglement of multiple storylines keeps the suspense high for every character. For the geeky fanboys who notice every detail, the possibility that each story could have some kind of profound effect on all of the others is enough to keep them enthralled. To the more casual viewer, if one story gets boring, you know that something refreshing is coming in like, five minutes-but I don't know how you could possibly be bored. New heroes and familiar-faced cameos keep the show fresh. Every time a new character is introduced, we're always wondering, "What can they do and how do they fit the puzzle?" And of course, the writers will be happy to oblige you-eventually. The show reels you in with a one-two punch of surprise and inevitability that creates an unbelievable suspense, leaving your mind and your heart racing.But as the season nears its end -four episodes are left including the finale-it looks like its closing the door on its biggest draw: anticipation. Not to worry, though; If last week's episode is any indication, there will be plenty of wild conspiracies for us to conjure up. The return episode showed us that, now that it's back, Heroes is going to be bigger. (Spoiler alert: If you haven't started watching the show, you won't understand a thing I'm saying, and if you watch the show, but haven't seen last week's episode, skip down 'cause the show will be boring if you already know what's happening.)Right off the bat we're hit with a big change: Linderman replaces Monhinder as the show's narrator. The change is an ominous signal that the connections between all of the characters are shifting and growing. The episode is action-packed: Each character progresses dramaticall-except Hiro, for reasons people who have seen the previous episode know. Yet, even as all of the players move around, the situation concerning the bomb changes very little. We still have no idea what's going to happen and when it will actually occur. That the story will be expanding into the past as well as the future is particularly interesting. Even the episode's title, ".07 Percent" implies that the writers have only scratched the surface of what's to come.Heroes has been almost universally labeled as the best new show of 2006. In the ratings game, it has been going toe-to-toe with the king of serial dramas, 24. Monday night is the new "night to watch," a sort of "drama night" to match the traditional Thursday "comedy night" lineup. At a time where very little is certain in the TV world, Heroes is a new staple to set your watch by.
(04/17/07 4:00am)
The student activist group Positive Foundations will conclude its week-long campaign to promote awareness about poverty, disease and education in third-world nations today with a community dinner and a request to legislators. The club has raised over $600 during the campaign-and over $3,000 this academic year-to promote the Millennium Promise, a non-governmental organization that finances United Nations efforts to eliminate extreme poverty-the term used for people who subsist on less than one dollar per day-through the establishment of Millennium Villages.The club at Brandeis raises money primarily to sponsor a Millennium Village in sub-Saharan Africa.The group will also host a "Call to Action" today, during which students will call their Congressional representatives and ask them to step up efforts to combat extreme poverty."Brandeis is at the cutting edge of the movement to fight extreme poverty," said Seth Werfel '10, one of the club's directors.Sam Vaghar '08, another director, described the campaign as only the beginning of the fight against poverty and "proof that this campus cares about the Millennium Development Goals." The campaign began Wednesday with a lecture on theories of development delivered by the director of the United Nations Hunger Project and a coffeehouse to raise money for the Millennium Development Goals. A lecture on the history of African nations with members of the Brandeis anthropology department followed on Thursday, and Eric Kashambuzi, Ph.D., a policy adviser for the Millennium Project, and two Heller School professors delivered a lecture Friday on improving the overall quality of life in developing nations. The group also hosted a video conference with Jeffrey Sachs, director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University and a former director of the United Nations Millennium Project, which oversees pursuit of the Millennium Development Goals. A community dinner at 5 p.m. Tuesday in the Shaprio Campus Center Multipurpose Room will mark the end of the campaign.In his lecture Friday, Kashambuzi discussed the importance of integrating all the different elements of improving life in regions of extreme poverty, which was the basis of the passage of the U.N. Millennium Declaration in 2000. "Every country must have a comprehensive poverty reduction strategy," said Kashambuzi. He mentioned that both developed and developing countries should be involved in reducing extreme poverty.Kashambuzi cited specific examples of positive changes instituted in Millennium Villages, such as clinics, anti-malaria drugs, assistance to pregnant women and safe drinking water.During the videoconference Monday, Sachs emphasized that the United States needs to be much more involved in combating extreme poverty in sub-Saharan Africa, noting what he considered to be excessive military spending. He also emphasized the importance of student activism."We need students to be engaged across the country," he said.
(04/17/07 4:00am)
The first time I heard "Japan"-one of the better cuts from CocoRosie's latest, The Adventures of Ghosthorse and Stillborn-the Casady sisters were opening for Antony and the Johnsons at Boston's Paradise Rock Club. The then-unreleased "Japan" recalled a number of their most experimental songs: whispered, Appalachian vocals over a tropical beat and topical lyrics put to an antiquated sound, not unlike the baroque-pop luminary Van Dyke Park's Discover America album, which in 1972 embraced the sound of 1940s Trinidad. Except that after about three-and-a-half minutes, the classically trained Sierra Casady wrapped a Kabuki mask around her face and sang a haunting minute-long aria. Sierra paused. The audience-mostly seated, largely older than the typical Paradise set and profoundly confused-was silent. Faintly, a steel drum returned. Her shoulders hunched as though remembering a particularly naughty secret, Bianca Casady peered out at the audience: "Everybody wants to go to Japan," she cackled with an assumed Caribbean inflection. "Everybody, just hold hands!"Unsurprisingly, a very Bohemian quality is at work on CocoRosie's albums, perhaps more so than with the freak-folk bands to which CocoRosie is often linked. Sometimes, the sisters' invocations of found sounds, back-country spirituals, hip hop and music of the tropics work, and in spades. But their less-successful experiments often seem like poorly wrought appropriations by self-indulging hipsters. To some ears, "Japan" could fall into the latter category.That dichotomy was confounded by the ill-advised use of a racial epithet on CocoRosie's debut, La Maison de Mon Rave, as well as Bianca's once-regular attendance of Brooklyn's "Kill Whitey" parties, purportedly ironic dance nights in which white hipsters imitate-or parody-hip-hop culture. A Washington Post reporter interviewed Bianca outside one of these parties in 2005. Her take? "It's a safe environment to be freaky."The Casadys' debut was-at its best moments-charming and warm, like it had been recorded in a womb (though, in fact, they used a Parisian bathroom). But that was always the problem: On their first two albums and the subsequent tours, the Casadys' insular na'vet-they seem so well-fed sometimes, you'd barely believe their tumultuous childhood-was getting them into trouble. They aspired to be worldly, it seemed, but when the songs couldn't deliver, the sisters just sounded ignorant. With The Adventures of Ghosthorse and Stillborn, they largely avoid that trap by smoothing over the edges. It's a typical pop-music transaction: exchanging idiosyncrasy for consistency, eccentricity for polish. The finest songs-"Japan," the shimmering and sublime "Rainbowarriors" and the celestial "Miracle," in which Antony cameos-rank among the highlights of La Maison and its follow-up, Noah's Ark. And the lesser numbers avoid the grating, half-thought quality of those early albums' failures; here they're just bland, by-the-numbers trip-hop. The real highlight is "Werewolf," in which Bianca casually raps and Sierra intones sorrowfully over a bare piano loop. It's an ominous tale of voodoo, cowboys and a father's lessons immemorial. Mostly, it's a blueprint for the type of song that CocoRosie-having grown up significantly-ought to be making more of.-Jonathan Fischer
(04/17/07 4:00am)
Last issue, I wrote about dessert pie, so now, pizza pie! College without pizza is like life without oxygen (if you're not a plant). That analogy may go too far, but not by much. Pizza can be eaten for breakfast, lunch, dinner or a midnight snack; it's pretty cheap, especially when shared; you can get between three and five food groups at once (six, if you're creative); and, as programs on both Food Network and the History Channel will tell you, it's one of the most-if not the most-popular foods in the United States. According to Google Maps, Waltham is home to 28 restaurants that either serve or specialize in pizza. Because reviewing all of them would take too long-and be too scrumptious, if there is such a thing-I instead chose from a random selection of four. And because I'm not from New York, I'd like to think that I can be objective. I ordered a small or medium cheese pie from each and all prices include tax and delivery, unless otherwise noted. Tip, of course, is optional, but recommended-no need to be a meanie.Domino's ($8.74)The problem with fast food pizzas is that they're the same everywhere, but that also means they're cheaper, especially with all the deals and coupons. Nonetheless, it's hard to be bad and be a highly successful international chain. I always think they use too much sauce, however. Still, the crust under the sauce and cheese was nice and doughy, and around the edges was somewhere between soft and crunchy. And the cheese was hot, but not gooey. All in all, Domino's is standard-not bad, not amazing, but good.Prospect Caf ($7.34-no delivery)If my nose could cheer, it would have when I opened the box. The crust was lined with corn meal; the box was slightly stained by cheese grease (a sure sign of quality); there were few areas of uncovered sauce. The cheese on this pizza wasn't stringy, but I'm ambivalent about that: It makes for less fun, but at the same time, the top of my throat doesn't get burned. The sauce was relatively plain. It's the crust, though, that's Prospect's strong suit. The middle is thin, but not crispy, and that means that the edges are bulbous, chewy and delicious.Anna's ($7.60)This pizza was relatively plain: no special-tasting sauce, no unique cheese blend, basic crust. The cheese on this pizza was stringy, stretchy and gooey, and I could make out little pools of grease dotting the pie. It wasn't overly saucy; there was actually a fantastic balance between cheese and sauce. The crust was on the thinner side-not crispy, but there wasn't as much as on the previously reviewed pies.Cappy's ($10.40 for a large-the restaurant won't deliver for the price of a small)If I had to describe this pizza in one word, it would be "greasy." But once I patted it down with a napkin-well, napkins-it was as if the grease hadn't been there at all. The cheese was a little stringy, and even though it looked very melted, it kept together quite nicely. There was nothing stand-out about the sauce. The crust along the circumference was thinner and crispier, much like the pizza at Anna's, but harder. Although I disagree, I can see why some call the place "Crappy's."These are only one-seventh of the pizza places in town, but they are probably the most-frequented among Brandeis students. Of these four, Prospect has the best cheese pizza (I can't speak for any toppings these restaurants have to offer.) As a side note, their fro-yo is heavenly-all the more reason to eat there.
(04/17/07 4:00am)
College is a time for intellectual and experiential growth. It is a time to learn from both our classmates and those with more knowledge and understanding. It is important to remember, however, that our young University grows along with us. With our personal gains in knowledge and wisdom comes the strengthening of our community and the institution itself. The key to such collegiate growth is the presence of leaders and mentors, teachers and inspiration. To spur this growth in students and faculty alike, we must entertain more speakers and visiting professors who bring with them insight and cutting-edge ideas; we must continue to invite and attend speakers who can rally the students, excite professors and enhance our University's ability to teach. This is an important time for our community, as there is a palpable influx in both activism and experiential learning here at Brandeis. We must continue to build upon our pool of honored guests to ensure that this continues . Over the last year, Brandeis students have been privileged to have Governor Deval Patrick teach us about the politics of hope, a vision for participatory democracy and the public policies that will carry the commonwealth of Massachusetts forward. We have had the distinction of speaking with Jill Stein and John Bonifaz, two candidates for secretary of state, about the importance of fair elections and political ethics. We soaked up every word of Scott Harshbarger, former Massachusetts Attorney General and president of Common Cause, as he passionately explained the importance of young people in politics and a vision for a direct democracy. Members of our campus shared in the experience when former President Jimmy Carter showed us the other side of a historically one-sided campus debate as well as the retort by Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz.Writers Howard Zinn, Anthony Lewis and Floyd Abrams also graced us with their passionate insight. The tide of valuable and important speakers continues. Just last weekend, Massachusetts Congressman Ed Markey spoke at the International Business School about global warming. On Sunday, Ben Brandzel, former Brandeis Student Union President '03 and current national political activist involved with both moveon.org and the John Edwards campaign showed us the great potential Brandeis gives every one of us and the steps we must take to ensure social, economic and political justice for our country. The coming week brings a video conference with Jeffery Sachs, a leader in the effort to establish the Millennium Development Goals, who will talk about how to help us save millions of people from extreme poverty, and writer Marianne Williams, who will attempt to unify our community in solidarity around the need to establish a Department of Peace. These influential leaders are the living, breathing philosophical dreams of our great university.All of these speakers come from different aspects of the political and activist arena to represent diverse but equally important issues. All have come to Brandeis with messages that parallel the purpose of our distinguished University: to educate students and seek the truth even unto its innermost parts. I'd say that the majority of the students who attend these speakers will tell you they are better, both intelectually and spiritually, for it. To have professors share ideas, graduate students debate policy and undergrads discuss vision and participation with these people of great distinction is a victory for them, as well as for us. It is time for the students of Brandeis to venture out of their rooms, the library and the dining halls and into the function rooms of Rappaporte, Pearlman, Sherman and Shapiro. All of us should listen, learn and become active in our community. It is time for the Student Union, the administration and students to work in solidarity to usher in a new generation of intellectual activity on campus. It is time to put our growing prestige to use and quench our thirst for knowledge. Now is the time for students to step into activism and for Brandeis to step into the national spotlight. Now is an opportunity to join together, invite these leaders to campus, ask the important questions and better our college, our country and ourselves.Jamie Ansorge is a member of the Class of 2009 and a member of Democracy for America.
