May 1, 2002

CAMPUS

Princeton was ranked 18th among engineering schools in U.S. News & World Report’s annual "Best Graduate Schools" issue. MIT, Stanford, and UC-Berkeley took the top three spots, respectively. Harvard placed 17th.

The Jerusalem Post reported that Israeli celebrity journalist Yael Sternhell, who hosts a nightly newsmagazine on Israel TV, will leave her job to study for a doctorate in American history at Princeton.

A new theory of the universe suggests that space and time may not have begun in a big bang, but may have always existed in an endless cycle of expansion and rebirth. Princeton physicist Paul Steinhardt and Neil Turok of Cambridge University described their proposed theory in an article published April 25 in an online edition of Science.

An exhibition making the centennial of Wilson’s presidency of Princeton will open May 5 in Firestone Library. "Woodrow Wilson at Princeton: Path to the Presidency" will chronicle Wilson’s student days, his return to the faculty and the achievements and controversies during his presidency of the university. The display will run through October 27. James Axtell, the William Kenan Jr. Professor of Humanities at the College of William and Mary, will inaugurate the display with a public lecture May 5, at 3:30 p.m., in Betts Auditorium, in the School of Architecture.

The United States government not only let Osama bin Laden slip through its fingers but later came dangerously close to accidentally killing one of its royal allies while pursuing the terrorist, according to Pulitzer Prize-winning Washington Post correspondent Barton Gellman ’82, who spoke April 23 at the Woodrow Wilson School. In a speech titled "The War on Terror Before September 11," Gellman offered an inside view of the deliberations on terror conducted by the Clinton and Bush administrations. "There was an enormous amount going on under President Clinton that we did not know about at the time," explained Gellman, one of a team of eight Washington Post journalists who won the 2002 Pulitzer Prize for coverage of September 11 and the subsequent war on terrorism. The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) didn't begin devoting much attention to bin Laden until 1996, said Gellman, who is serving this semester as a Ferris Professor of Journalism in the Council for the Humanities.

On April 24, some students celebrated Newman’s Day, an annual celebration at Princeton at which students "tried to drink 24 beers within 24 hours without napping, missing class, or absenting themselves from other scheduled events," reported the Daily Princetonian. This year’s event was reportedly quiet, with no students requiring transportation to the health center or the hospital as of 7:30 that night.

Poet Paul Muldoon will step down as director of Princeton’s creative writing program and plans on spending more time teaching and writing. Edmund White, a professor of the Council of the Humanities and creative writing, will succeed Muldoon.

Editors of the Nassau Weekly can’t seem to get their stories straight. Last week they told the Daily Princetonian that most of their staff had resigned, leaving the future of the publication in doubt, after a meeting in which the editors discussed an article some members thought offensive. "There is no Nassau Weekly," Alex Rosenfeld ’03 told the Prince after the meeting. "Basically everyone resigned," business manager Clay Bavor ’05 said. "There’s no paper." But then they told the Prince that no editors had resigned, although the publisher, Kristina Witt ’03, maintains that she was asked to leave. The article that sparked the uproar and confusion is about the 10 most beautiful female undergraduates, scheduled to run in the magazine’s May 9 issue. Apparently Witt sent an e-mail to friends protesting the article.

Robert Geddes, former dean of Princeton’s School of Architecture, was awarded the Margen Penick Award for community service at the Garden Theatre on Communiversity, April 27. Since returning to Princeton two years ago, Geddes has been involved in the development of Princeton Borough.

Seven students have been selected to receive 2002 Spirit of Princeton Awards. They are: Robert Accordino ’03; Sarah Apgar ’02; Jamie Bartholomew ’02; Becca Jones ’02; Laura Kaplan ’02; Maisha Robinson ’02; and Nuriya Robinson ’02. Presented since 1995 by the Office of the Dean of Undergraduate Students, the awards recognize undergraduates for their outstanding contributions to campus life during their years at Princeton.

Peter and Rosemary Grant, of the ecology and evolutionary biology department, who have studied finches on the Galapagos Island for almost 30 years have discovered that finches respond quickly to changes in food supply by evolving new beaks and body sizes, reported the Associated Press. "In a study appearing April 26 in the journal Science, the Grants report that climate and weather have a dramatic effect on the evolutionary path the finches follow," wrote AP.

Due to complaints against eating clubs for noise from outdoor events, Princeton Borough is asking clubs "to plant shrubbery along their perimeters," reported the Prince.

Palestinian and Israeli rally held By Melissa Harvis Renny ‘03
On Thursday, April 18, the Princeton Divestment Campaign and the Princeton Committee on Palestine cosponsored a rally to demand university divestment from companies doing business in Israel, where they presented a petition signed by more than 300 students and 34 faculty members. According to the Princeton Divestment Campaign, Princeton currently has $104.3 million invested in Israel.

Calling self-defense a euphemism for human rights abuses, Mark Buchan, professor of classics said to the group of about 100 people, "We’ve spent two weeks seeing what Israel calls self-defense. It involves bulldozing people’s houses, and not allowing the Red Cross or journalists to enter occupied areas."

But just a few feet away, the Princeton Israel Public Affairs Committee held a counter-rally that also drew close to 100 protesters, holding up signs that read, "Suicide bombing is not a human right."

Daniel Mark ’03, president of the Center for Jewish Life, spoke passionately, stating that his feelings on the subject overpowered his desire to stay politically neutral as the leader of a Jewish organization on campus.

"The Israeli army is the most moral army in the world!" he shouted, emphasizing that Israel places her own soldiers at risk rather than bombing suspected terrorist hideouts like the United States did in Afghanistan.

The rally highlighted the heightened sense of campus awareness on both sides of the conflict, and the passions that the Middle Eastern conflict is stirring in Princeton students and community members.

The Princeton Divestment Campaign maintains that peace cannot be achieved until what they call the "oppression and accompanying human rights abuses" of Israel to the Palestinians end.

"The human rights violations affecting three million people living in the West Bank and Gaza Strip must stop now, and we as the Princeton community ought to work to make that happen, just like we did in the case of South Africa," said Vincent Lloyd ’03, organizer of the Princeton Divestment Campaign, likening the Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands to South African apartheid.

Although the rally consisted largely of the two groups trying to drown each other out with clapping and cheering, Karen Bauer GS, president of the Princeton Committee on Palestine, believes that the raised awareness of these issues can lead to a greater chance for campus dialogue and understanding.

"I see hope in being able to talk and listen to one another," she said.

Harvard professor discusses living-wage issues By Melissa Harvis Renny ’03
One year ago, a group of Harvard University students staged a 21-day sit-in to demand that the university pay a minimum wage of $10.25 per hour to all its employees. They attracted the attention of the media and the administration as they rallied around Harvard’s lowest paid employees.
Because of these students, the Harvard Committee of Employment and Contracting was formed, headed by Professor of Economics Lawrence Katz. Under Katz, the committee examined Harvard’s labor practices and determined many of them should be changed. Today, the minimum wage for Harvard employees is $11.35 per hour.
"I think that this case study will clearly show an example that while market forces are quite important in setting wages, things like management policy, union strength and negotiating tactics and political pressure, especially on a non-profit organization will have a big impact on the labor structure," Katz said in a lecture at the Woodrow Wilson School on Monday, April 8.
Katz spoke of the custodians, security guards, and dining services workers as the lowest paid members of the Harvard University community. He explained that in the past, Harvard had only hired in-house employees – employees contracted by the university and paid a certain flat rate – to fill these positions, but as the university realized they could cut costs by outsourcing – hiring employees from outside the university for less – they began to practice outsourcing more frequently.
Due to this outsourcing, he said, Harvard’s standard wages dropped, and there was a demographic shift in employees from non-immigrant high school graduates to largely immigrant non-educated employees. Katz spoke of museum security guards guarding $8-$10 billion of art who were paid only $8-$10 per hour. He claimed that before outsourcing, these guards were people who loved art and took an interest in the museum, while after outsourcing the turnover rate for these guards was so high that they weren’t considered trustworthy enough to be given a library card.
"Why in the case of janitors and security guards is playing hardball so important?" He asked, noting that at prestigious universities faculty is paid much higher than average wages, while janitors and security guards are often paid less than average.
Katz’s discussed that an in-house monopoly with no outsourcing was not the answer to the university’s problems, because often employers were dissatisfied with the quality of work if there was no competition. However, he said, unrestricted outsourcing brought down wages. As a compromise, the Committee suggested that Harvard use parity wages – a set wage paid to both outsourced employees and in-house employees.
Katz’s committee also recommended that Harvard make immediate initial wage increases, improve the quality of work life, and increase the transparency of employment and contracting practices.
Although implementing these changes will by costly, Katz claimed that in the case of non-profit institutions like Harvard, it is beneficial to keep employees satisfied with their jobs.
Katz also encouraged student activists to be media savvy and learn all they can about the university’s wage policies. He emphasized that students with the right information can effect change.
"I have little doubt that without the students there wouldn’t have been any great change in wages," he said.

PAW seeks editor
Jane Chapman Martin '89, who has edited PAW since February 2000, announced that she will step down after the publication of the July 2002 issue because of family concerns. Martin and her husband, James K. Martin '89, have two young children. The position will be formally advertised in the April 10 issue. Applicants may see the complete job description at http://jobs.princeton.edu/openjobs/.

An Alternative to Alcohol Abuse: Housing Reform in the Residential Colleges by Brian Muegge ’05

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UPCOMING LECTURES/EVENTS:
(Updated daily, Monday through Friday)

Princeton Art Museum
Princeton area events
New York metropolitan area events
Washington DC events
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Princeton area events

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Joseph S. Nye, Jr. ’58, dean of the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard: "The Paradox of American Power"
May 8, 4:30 p.m., 46 McCosh

Charles Falco, University of Arizona, "The Art and Science of the Motorcycle"
May 8, 8:00 p.m. For more information email publect@princeton.edu.

Charles Elachi, director of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory: "Space and Earth Exploration 2010: Opportunities and Challenges"
May 8, 8 p.m., Reynolds Auditorium, McDonnell Hall

Stefan Collini, professor of intellectual history and English literature at the University of Cambridge: "Paradoxes of Denial: Intellectuals in Twentieth-Century Britain."
May 9, "Other People," 4:30 McCormick 101

The symposium "How Confident Can We Be In Consumer Confidence?" will address the measurement and use of consumer confidence indices. Participants: Princeton economists Alan krueger, Alan Blinder, and Jonathan Parker; Ken Goldstein, economist at the Conference Board; Noam Scheiber, assistant editor at The New Republic; Brent Mouton, economist at the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis; and Richard Curtin, economist at the University of Michigan.
May 10, 1:30 p.m. to 5 p.m., Dodds Auditorium, Robertson Hall

Stefan Collini, professor of intellectual history and English literature at the University of Cambridge: "Paradoxes of Denial: Intellectuals in Twentieth-Century Britain."
May 14, "Cretan Liars," 4:30 McCormick 101

Princeton Art Museum
Public tours, Saturdays, 2 p.m.

• “Contemporary Views: Photographs by Paul Berger, Sarah Charlesworth, Barbara Ess, and Ray K. Metzker,” April 20-May 26
• "Anthony Van Dyck: 'Ecce Homo' and 'The Mocking of Christ.'" March 9 through June 9.
• "Guardians of the Tomb: Spirit Beasts in Tang Dynasty China." Through Aug. 31.
• "Klinger to Kollwitz: German Art in the Age of Expressionism." Through June 9.
• "In the Mirror of Christ's Passion: Prints, Drawings and Illustrated Books by European Masters." Through June 9.
• "New German Photography." Through March 24.
• "Anxious Omniscience: Surveillance in Contemporary Cultural Practice." Through March 31.

Firestone LIbrary exhibits
"Seamus Heaney: Irish Poet in Greece" through April 20

Reunions 2002, May 30 - June 2, 2002

Reunions 2003, May 29 - June 1, 2003

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New York area events

"Lilies/Pale Yellow" (2001) by Anne-Marie Belli ’84

Watercolors by Anne-Marie Belli ’84 are on view at the New Jersey State Museum at 205 West State Street in Trenton, New Jersey, through May 12, 2002.

IN SHORT ORDER
evenings of abbreviated art
Size does matter.
Wip Productions' festival lets audiences avoid three-hour maudlin melodramas, stoic ramblings, and interpretive dance and blesses them with a variety of brief performances from some of the best young talent New York has to offer. Rosario Vaina '96 is producing and appearing in the show.
Performers include comics Demitri Martin (from Letterman and Late Night with Conan O'Brien) and Laurie Kilmartin (from Comedy Central's Premium Blend); Muscians Kate Schutt and Sam Bisbee; author Kip Conlin (Hey, God : Adult Letters to God and the upcoming I'm Okay, I'm Okay) and many others.
Wip Productions is dedicated to providing emerging artists with an opportunity to share their work in relaxed settings. This will be the fifth production from this exciting new production company. The group's mission is to produce fun and lighthearted shows that examine wit and irony in our everyday experiences.
In Short Order will be performed May 2, 9, 16, and 23rd at RM (Rubber Monkey, located at 279 Church Street @ White St. All performances are at 8:00 pm, the bar opens at 7:30 pm. Admission is $12. For reservations, call 212-592-3291.

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Washington DC area events

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Other regions

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ALUMNI

Oz Bengur ’71, of Baltimore, Maryland, is running against C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Congress. According to the Bulletin’s Frontrunner, Bengur is "an investment banker who wears Ferragamo ties and has a tendency to quote from the New Yorker."

Sam Pickering *70 *85, an author and model for the teacher in the movie Dead Poets Society, will deliver the commencement address at Atlanta’s Oglethorpe University on May 11. He will also receive an honorary Doctor of Letters degree.

In a keynote address he delivered in April at a conference at Assumption College, David Lamb *92, a hip-hop culture critic and novelist, told students that "blacks, Asians, and Latinos do not relate to each other because of a historical pattern rooted in racism," reported Telegram & Gazette. Lamb said, "We see each other from the lens of white supremacy, slavery, and colonialism."

UCLA law professor Khaled Abou El Fadl *92 was featured in U.S. News & World Report on April 15 for his "advocacy of a broad-minded, critical approach [to Islamic law] that has earned the wrath of so many of his less tolerant co-religionists." The Kuwait-born scholar is a devout Muslim. He is the Omar and Azmeralda Alfi Distinguished Fellow in Islamic Law at UCLA.

Hugh Hardy ’54 *56’s architectural firm, Hardy Holzman Pfeiffer Associates was recently hired by Barnard College to prepare its first master plan in 98 years, reported the New York Times. "Our purpose is not to wipe out the past in favor of a brilliant future," Hardy told the Times. "This is not an excuse to transform Barnard into something new." Hardy designed the expansion to McCarter Theatre, which is expected to be completed next year.

Jean Edward Smith ’54, a professor of political science at Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia, was one of three finalists for this year’s Pulitzer Prize in biography. He was nominated for Grant, a biography of Ulysses S. Grant, reported the Charleston Gazette.

This from a press release: In Roberta Isleib ’75’s new mystery novel, Six Strokes Under, Cassandra Burdette battles her way through the LPGA Qualifying School in pursuit of her life’s dream — a position on the Ladies’ Professional Golf Association Tour. Along the way, a fellow competitor is disqualified for carrying illegal equipment and another files suit against her father after recovering repressed childhood memories. Then the bodies start to fall, and Cassie realizes that professional competition can be ... murder. Six Strokes Under is being published by Penguin Putnam on June 4.

Anthony Lewis, former columnist for the New York Times, called Robert Caro ’57’s book on Lyndon Johnson, Master of the Senate, an "amazing book" in a review on April 28 in the Times. Master of the Senate is the third volume of Caro’s biography of Johnson.

Jeffrey Krames describes Donald Rumsfeld ’54’s leadership qualities in a new book, The Rumsfeld Way, published by McGraw-Hill. According to USAToday.com, the author "writes about the leadership ways of this prickly, gruff guy who has spent four decades in public and private life trying to make a difference. ‘The strength that matters most is not the strength of arms, but the strength of character; character expressed in service to something larger than ourselves,’ Rumsfeld is quoted as saying."

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SPORTS

Tigers shine at Penn Relays; Heps on horizon
Tora Harris ’02 tied the Penn Relays record and broke his own Princeton record when he cleared 2.3 meters in the high jump championship at the 107th running of the premier track event last weekend in Philadelphia. Harris’s effort earned him the Relays’ Men's Individual Athlete of the Meet award.
Josh McCaughey ’04 also broke his own Princeton record with a distance of 62.09 meters in the hammer throw championship, which was good enough for fourth place.
Tristan Colangelo ’04 set a new Princeton record in the 5,000 meters with a time of 14:06.25, which was more than four seconds better than the old record held by Chris Banks ’00. Colangelo finished third.
Chelo Canino ’04 finished fourth in the pole vault (3.69 meters).
Both teams are gearing up for the Heptagonal Games Outdoor Track & Field Championships, which will take place at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis on May 11-12.

Women’s lax defeats defending national champs and Brown
Princeton’s wins last week against defending national champion Maryland and Brown closed out the season with a 15-game win streak, a new record for the program, and an undefeated Ivy League mark. The Tigers finished the year ranked #1 nationally with a 15-1 overall record and 7-0 in the Ivies.
The Tigers came back from a five goal deficit to beat Maryland 13-9 on April 24. Seniors Lauren Simone and Charlotte Kenworthy each scored three goals to lead the attack. The Tigers used a balanced scoring attack, including two goals from Lindsey Biles ’05, to defeat Brown 10-6 on April 27 in Rhode Island.
Princeton's undefeated Ivy season is its third ever. In each of its first two perfect Ivy seasons, Princeton has advanced to the NCAA Championships game, winning it all in 1994 and losing to Maryland in 1996.
Princeton makes its fifth straight NCAA tournament appearance and 12th as a program. The 2002 NCAA bracket and seedings will be announced on Sunday, May 5. Princeton, which currently holds the longest winning streak in the nation, looks for its first-ever No. 1 seeding.

Men’s lax streaks past Dartmouth
Brad Dumont ’03 had a career-high five points, including a key assist on a Ryan Boyle goal as time ran out in the first quarter, to lead Princeton to a 13-7 win over Dartmouth on the road. The fourth-ranked Tigers improved to 7-4 with its fifth straight win.
The defending national champions play at Brown this Saturday, May 4, in what essentially is now an Ivy League championship game after the Bears defeated Cornell 9-8 in overtime. Princeton and Brown are both 4-1 in the league, which means the winner of the game Saturday in Providence will win the outright Ivy title and the automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.

Women’s water polo falls short in Easterns; All-league performers
The home pool advantage was not enough for the Tigers as the women’s water polo team lost 11-9 to Hartwick in the semifinals of the Eastern Tournament held at Princeton last weekend. Michigan beat Hartwick in the final to advance to the NCAA championships.
Cassie Nichols ’02 was named MVP of the Southern Division and juniors Adele McCarthy-Beauvais and Jenny Edwards joined her on the division’s first team. Nichols, a two-time All-American, and McCarthy-Beauvais were also named to the CWPA’s Eastern team.

Women’s golf capture Northeast championship; Redman ’03 stars
The Tigers led Brown by 11 strokes when the Northeast Championship was cut short by winds and frigid temperatures to take the title. Princeton finished with a 317 and placed four golfers in the top four to close out the spring.
Vanessa Redman ’03 finished with a three-over par 77 to take first place. Freshman Avery Kiser (78) tied for second and fellow frosh Meg Nakamura (80) finished fourth.

Baseball sweeps Pace
The Tigers pushed their record over .500 for the first time this season with two wins at home against Pace on Saturday, April 27. Princeton improved to 19-18 with the win.
Princeton will play two more non-conference games before it returns to Ivy League action against Cornell. The Tigers head to Pace on Sunday for a single game scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. Princeton will play at St. John's at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, April 30. The Tigers head to Cornell for an Ivy League Gehrig Division doubleheader on May 3 before returning home to host two games against Cornell on Sunday, May 5.

Softball handles Manhattan and Seton Hall in Princeton Invitational
Rainy weather cut the softball teams’ Princeton Invitational short last weekend but not before the Tigers handed Manhattan a 9-2 loss and edged Seton Hall 3-2 at home on Saturday. Day two was cancelled before the Tigers could face St. Peter’s.
The Tigers improved to 31-15 (13-1 Ivy) with the victories and will host St. Josephs University on Wednesday, May 1, as they prepare for the NCAA regional tournament, which will be played May 16-19.

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