The Stanford Daily T: Barghouti Calls For Non-Violence
The Stanford Daily T: Barghouti Calls For Non-Violence
The Stanford Daily T: Barghouti Calls For Non-Violence
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Former Palestinian presidential candidate Mustafa Barghouti advocated in a Monday night speech for non-violent protests and boycotts to oppose violence in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
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views OAPE as a resource that allows students who choose to drink to do so safely, in addition to becoming educated on other issues in the big picture of the alcohol scene. Smith described the OAPE as a valuable new resource on campus for health and wellness, even if it takes some time to get rolling within the student body. The OAPEs initiative to promote alternatives to alcohol-centric social events has taken shape with Cardinal Nights, which, as stated on the OAPEs website,
NEWS BRIEFS
Sleep and Dreams professor finds caffeine disrupts sleep of morning people
By THE DAILY NEWS STAFF Getting a midday jolt of caffeine at the CoHo or an energy drink at the Axe and Palm could leave you tossing and turning at night, unless you are already a night owl, said a recent Stanford study. The study showed that morning people are more likely than night owls to awaken during the night after consuming caffeine. Jamie Zeitzer, an assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, led the research, which was published in Sleep Medicine and further covered by Scientific American. Zeitzer is also the assistant lecturer for the popular course Sleep and Dreams. According to the researchers, this was the first study to examine the effects of caffeine consumption while categorizing people by the time of day when they are most alert. Fifty college students were asked to record their daily intake of caffeine as well as their wake and sleep times over the course of a week. Zeitzer noted that most of the collegeaged participants were so sleep deprived that they slept well after going to bed regardless; however, the more caffeine that the early risers had in their body, the
MATT BETTONVILLE/The Stanford Daily
Executives from General Motors, Tesla Motors, RelayRides, Streetline and the California Energy Commission discussed the future of transportation in California in a panel Monday.
With the automotive industry on the verge of major changes due to rising oil prices and increasing emissions restrictions, the Stanford Energy Clubs Energy 360 program brought together experts and executives Monday evening for a holistic discussion about the industrys future. We do a deep dive into energy topics, said Karim Farhat, president of the Stanford Energy Club. Energy 360 is a quarterly interdisciplinary program that tries to address all aspects of predominant energy issues, including the
technology, policy and business perspectives. The panel featured representatives from longstanding automakers, new entries in the market, new software service providers and legislators. Panelist Jim McKinney from the California Energy Commission set the scene for the discussions importance with statistics about California transportation. According to McKinney, California boasts 26.2 million cars and just fewer than one million trucks on the road. In a single year, the state uses 18.8 billion gallons of gasoline and diesel fuel. The main topic of discussion at the panel
Graduates of Stanfords Graduate School of Business (GSB) are pursuing a more diverse array of careers of late, according to the GSBs Career Management Center. Many of these graduates are looking to the education industry rather than business or finance. The most significant trend we have seen in recent years has been an extraordinary diversification in what GSB students choose to pursue, said Pulin Sanghvi MBA 97, director and assistant dean of the GSB Career Management Center. We have approximately 780 MBA students and more than 300 firms that hire them, which means that, any given year, 80 percent of employers will hire only one student. Sanghvi also noted that a significant number of MBA students are pursuing joint degrees with other schools at Stanford. Nereyda Salinas, managing director of career resources for the School of Education, has seen an increase in students applying to the joint MBA-Masters of Education program. A good portion of these joint-degree students are definitely pursuing long-term careers in education, Salinas said. These students are looking to pursue education-management careers . . . They are trying to impact the field of education in a scalable manner. Students who are interested in education who get an MBA will look for opportunities where they can drive change, Sanghvi echoed. Education Pioneers, a nonprofit that places graduate student fellows into education organizations to gain experience in the industry, has been a starting point for many GSB students. I think the opportunity to do well by kids, particularly low-income kids, makes an education
Recycle Me
GSB
want to create conversations with multiple perspectives represented. Stanford graduates have entered a diverse array of education-related opportunities. Some, like Eduardo Briceo, graduate of the joint MBA-Masters of Education program and an 06 Education Pioneers fellow, are pursuing careers in nonprofits. Briceo co-founded Brainology, an education and entrepreneurial nonprofit. Theres a trend where alumni gain a few years of private sector experience after their fellowship with Education Pioneers and then come back to education after that, Garland said. Others are entering charter management and government organizations. Ash Solar, another graduate of the joint MBA-Masters of Education program and an 07 Education Pioneers Fellow, is now the chief talent and strategy officer for the Tennessee State Department of Education. When youve got somebody in business school, and they are looking at career paths, theres an opportunity oftentimes to gain really substantial experience quickly in education, Garland said. This is another thing that attracts MBA students to the industry. Contact Taylor Grossman at [email protected].
BARGHOUTI
Continued from front page
Barghouti reminded the audience that students, not just adult workers, also face a daily border crossing into Israel for school. To make it through the gates on time, Palestinians are forced to arrive at 4 a.m. on an average day. The separation itself, according to Barghouti, is oppressive for many Palestinians. I am forbidden from entering
the city I was born in, he said, referring to Jerusalem. Barghouti showed the audience several videos depicting graphic scenes. One showed Israeli soldiers using bullets to clear out a building in order to send in a military police dog that attacked an unarmed woman, while another showed soldiers beating a young man at an Israeli-Palestinian checkpoint. We are not respected by Israel, Barghouti said, while continuing to advocate for a non-violent approach to solving the conflict.
Barghouti also referenced Hana al-Shalabi, a Palestinian woman placed in an Israeli prison, who is currently approaching day 19 of her hunger strike. In addition, Barghouti called for boycotts to stimulate change in global opinion toward Israel. He referred to the Arab Spring revolutions as a model for inciting change in the oppression of Palestinians through nonviolent protest. Contact Antonio Ramirez at [email protected].
BRIEFS
campus in Mountain View, is moving to Stanford under the direction of dance instructor Richard Powers. The lab creates videos to share new waltz steps and ideas, expanding Googles culture of innovation to dance. The videos are publically available, and have generated an online discussion with commenters from all over the world. Waltz Lab encourages viewers to riff on the dance steps they see and submit videos in response, generating a conversation in dance steps. The lab is playtime, and its the ultimate designers challenge be creative on demand, said Acata Felton 12, a dancer in Waltz Lab. The Waltz Lab will officially move to Stanford in April.
Matt Bettonville
FEATURES
SPARKS OF
By CHRIS FREDERICK
n a crowded garage at the Hasso Plattner Institute of Design at Stanford (d.school), a group of students lounge on red couches, fiddle with Legos and rethink education. The students plan is straightforward: Buy a red truck, fill it with tools and drive it to schools. The team Jason Chua 11 M.S. 12, Prat Ganapathy M.S. 12, Kathayoon Khalil Ph.D. 14, Eugene Korsunskiy M.F.A. 12, Diane Lee 12 and Aaron Peck 12 calls itself SparkLab and hopes to deliver hands-on learning to Bay Area students. SparkLab was developed as part of a mechanical engineering class known informally as Design Garage. Other teams in the class are tackling projects rethinking journalism and redesigning the wheelchair. The teams are advised by prominent figures, such as IDEO founder David Kelly. Our whole point is that manipulating matter with your hands is how you get a sense of empowerment that you can change the world around you, Korsunskiy said of his teams vision. Korsunskiy said he realized, reflecting on his own experience in school, that tinkering opportunities tended to diminish as he advanced through the grade levels. The team saw a problem with hands-on work in the current education system. Theres a lot of high-level education policymakers who in theory claim to agree that the future of the country depends on a workforce thats creative . . . but no ones doing anything about it, Korsunskiy said. As [they]re talking about how creativity needs to be expanded, shop classes are being cut . . . so we decided: We are going to do something about this. When the SparkLab team talked to working teachers, they learned that many lacked the time and space to emphasize creativity in the classroom. We came up with the idea that maybe we can be this mobile-tinkering field trip that comes to you, Korsunskiy said. SparkLab plans to target middle school students initially. Inside the truck, the team will guide students through the process of creating their own product. Take the example of middle school students building a homemade lamp. First, they would choose their favorite lamp de-
CREATIVITY I
Courtesy of SparkLab
signs. Then, they would create a rough version using materials such as Popsicle sticks and twist ties before building a clay prototype. At that point, the SparkLab team would use software called Autodesk 123D to photograph the clay prototype from multiple angles, generating a three-dimensional model of the lamp. Finally, a 3D printer would spit out layers of hot glue to produce a physical copy of the lamp. While the technology itself is impressive, the most important part is for kids to have an artifact that they can take home and show their parents, Peck said. The SparkLab team also aims to balance the expensive tools with plenty of low-tech items of the sort that might be found in a shop class. The trucks physical location outside of schools is key to the projects effectiveness. Khalil described the classroom as a psychological barrier for some kids. Its not just a physical, outside space, its psychological space, Chua said. Once students step out of the classroom, it frees them to be more creative. Unlike a conventional startup, SparkLab does not expect to generate any revenue. Instead, the project will rely on funding from an online Kickstarter campaign thus far, SparkLab has raised over $7,500 toward a target of $25,000. Team members hope to persuade tool companies to donate expensive items such as laser cutters or 3D printers. Despite its promise, SparkLab faces
some obstacles. With $25,000, the team would only be able to afford a single truck, limiting the number of students who could benefit from the project. However, as Chua emphasized, right now, were concentrating on focused impact, rather than superscaled impact. In this stage of their project, the SparkLab team has also been busy holding workshops and attending interviews, and theyve found it hard to find time for introspection, according to Korsunskiy. Nevertheless, the SparkLab team has been able to meet important Bay Area contacts at events such as Maker Faire, a two-day festival celebrating creativity and hands-on making. It seems like weve struck a nerve somewhere, where this idea resonates with a lot of people, Chua said. Among other local figures, the group met the founder of Make, a magazine focused on do-it-yourself (DIY) projects, as well as officials from the San Francisco Exploratorium, design software company Autodesk and San Jose-based nonprofit Resource Area For Teaching (RAFT). Responses to the project have been positive. This is an incredibly cool idea getting these tools into the hands of kids! wrote Carl Bass, CEO of Autodesk, on SparkLabs Kickstarter page. I love the truck. This is a great way to bring the tools and materials for making to more young makers, wrote Dale Dougherty, founding editor of MAKE magazine, on the same page.
The SparkLab team tested out their idea on campus last year by running design workshops at Splash!, a program that brings middle school, high school and underserved students to Stanfords campus for two days. Working with sixth graders and Yahoo! executives, the team was surprised to find that the younger students were more creative. Its really sad to see what happens between those ages that really squashes any semblance of fearless, creative endeavors, Korsunskiy said. With a hectic schedule, the team members say that it is important to beat stress and maintain their enthusiasm. Their team dynamic reflects this ethos. We believe that the team that has the most fun together comes up with the best ideas, Korsunskiy said. We basically spend our waking lives together, so wed better have fun, or our lives will suck, Chua added. Some of us are to the point where we communicate in blinks and grunts. Despite all the support, developing a unique education project has not been easy. Every person has an opinion on education . . . We have trouble figuring out whats new, Khalil said. But we decided, it doesnt matter if the solution is new the problems are still here, and they dont go away. Contact Chris Frederick at cfred@stanford. edu.
By AMRITA RAO
ts difficult to walk when you cant see your feet, but misstep and you will still fall. Authentic as the stomach-eliminating weightless feeling was, the lack of impact at the bottom reminded me that I was standing firmly on carpeted floor. It was more disorienting to look up at the lab manager speaking to me and to see no one. I was participating in a virtual reality demo called the pit world at Stanfords Virtual Human Interaction Lab on the fourth floor of McClatchy Hall in the Main Quad. Recently renovated, the lab is full of cutting-edge Virtual Reality (VR) technology, including an elevated haptic floor and an ambisonic sound oralizer to create touch and sound feedback in virtual worlds. Lab researchers study how everyday interactions are carried over into the virtual world and how virtual experiences can change physical behavior. We try to stay three to four years ahead of what other [researchers] are doing, said Jeremy Bailenson, director of the lab and an associate professor of communication.
Bailenson developed the lab from a four-person project in 2003 and nurtured it into the sophisticated facility it is today. Virtual Human Interaction Lab researchers collaborate on interdisciplinary projects with various departments at Stanford and other universities, as well as with tech companies. Current research topics include environmental conservation behavior, gesturing in teaching and social identity in virtual networks. As part of my tour of the lab, I experienced a conservation behavior demonstration firsthand. When I put on the head-mounted display a hefty piece of headgear with goggles I was transported into a woodland scene and grasped a chainsaw firmly with large, manly arms that appeared to come out of my sides. Donning the avatar of a lumberjack for 30 seconds, I cut down a tree and watched it fall. Subjects of the actual experiment were told that using recycled toilet paper could save the tree. After it fell, the forest sounds died out. Its what we call pro-social behavior encouragement, said Cody Karutz, the lab manager. Speeding up time in VR al-
Stanfords Virtual Human Interaction Lab is full of cutting-edge virtual reality technology that lab researchers use to study how everyday interactions work in the virtual world.
lows the participant to virtually compress his or her impact on the environment over 30 or 40 years into a couple of minutes. Right now, the idea of climate change is very abstract, and VR can put you in places that you never could be to make these connections more visceral, Bailenson said. In order to run the lab, Bailenson and his team employ 15 undergraduate programmers recruited through a summer training program. Programming each virtual world takes 200 to 300 hours. We have a lot of really fantastic equipment, said undergraduate programmer Tina Roh 14. Were trying to figure out how we can use all that technology together, said Pamela Martinez 13.Its really exciting to work with a new technology in a way that no one has ever done before. Martinez was part of a team that hacked the Microsoft Kinect system to use it as an alternative to the labs tracking devices. Virtual reality involves tracking motions and rendering feedback, and with the Kinect emerging as the fastestselling gadget in consumer history, millions of homes now have half of what they need for VR. In fact, Microsoft representatives visited the lab recently to study its use of the Kinect. Karutz said he believes it is only a matter of time before the VR technology the lab uses becomes sophisticated enough to make distinguishing between real and virtual spaces difficult. Entering the lab, one first sees a lenticular display on the opposite wall that renders 3D images without requiring the viewer to wear glasses. With increased development of haptic, or tactile, feedback, touch will no longer serve as a test of reality. Technically, the viewer could become immersed in a VR scene without being sure if the world is real or virtual. This may raise ethical questions, especially in terms of advertising and marketing research, in addition to the manipulation of participant behavior in the sustainability experiment. The lab asserts, however, that all of its experiments are run through the Institutional Review Board and have zero ethical concerns. Our job as a lab is to think about how technology is changing and stay ahead of that, Bailenson said. We want to understand the ethics of people spending time in virtual spaces. Contact Amrita Rao at arao15@stanford .edu.
Writer Amrita Rao participated in a conservation behavior demo used to encourage pro-social behavior. She chopped down a tree and observed its environmental impact.
OPINIONS
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n elementary school, I may not have understood the full social and economic ramifications of my familys decision to participate in community-supported agriculture (CSA), but I certainly understood the excitement and childhood delight that came from opening a box filled with a weekly surprise. Each Wednesday, my sister and I would marvel at the wonderful new assortment of fruits and veggies to be touched, named, nibbled, cooked and noshed. In the process, my parents not only taught their daughters about food, but also brought them to the forefront of the local foods movement. Community-supported agriculture represents a growing model for connecting consumers with farmers to provide support for local food systems. Membership in a CSA typically involves pledging financial support for a local farm or farms, such that CSA members cover the anticipated costs of farm operation and, in return, receive shares of the farms products. My childhood CSA operated by having shareholders pay a monthly or quarterly fee, for which they received a weekly box of vegetables, fruit, herbs, flowers and even eggs. CSAs are on the rise in the United States, having grown from a grand total of two in 1986 to over 4,500 as of this January. There are several CSAs in our area, some with drop-off points right on campus. This past fall, Earth Systems alumni Briana Swette and Simon Neely began a successful CSA and delivered weekly boxes of kale, heirloom tomatoes, eggplant and other treats from their farm in Morgan Hill. Im in favor of almost any activity that increases food literacy and connects individuals with their farmers, and the Stanford community now has an opportunity to go beyond this typical CSA model and support a more creative framework for strengthening local food systems.A team of undergraduates has spent the quarter devoting their Senior Seminar project in Earth Systems to sustaining the East Palo Alto Farmers Market by initiating a new CSA at Stanford. The East Palo Alto (EPA) Farmers Market began in June 2008 to provide a local, easily accessible alternative food source to residents who now travel distances outside the city to find stores with quality, fresh produce, according to Collective Roots, an EPA nonprofit organization that sponsors the market. Unfortunately, the EPA Farmers Market is perhaps facing its last season, as it does not provide market vendors with enough revenue to make their continued presence profitable. There are many reasons why farmers markets in low-income communities struggle to stay afloat, and some would argue that we should focus on the consumer side, perhaps via educational out-
Jenny Rempel
reach or broader efforts to restructure food access in EPA. However, the Stanford team working to sustain the market has focused on the supply chain. Their goal is to guarantee market vendors a minimum income level. To sustain two to five farmers at the market, they are aiming to establish a CSA with 50 to 75 members, comprised primarily of Stanford faculty, staff and graduate students. Should this new CSA actually succeed, it will be an impressive opportunity for the Stanford community to strengthen local food systems on several fronts. First, CSA members will be supporting local farmers from the Agriculture & Land-Based Training Association (ALBA) in Salinas, Calif. Stanford Dining already sources much of its produce from ALBA, an organization operating on the triple bottom line of economic viability, social equity and ecological land management. ALBA educates and empowers limited-resource farmworkers, helping them develop their own sustainable farms. Second, CSA members will promote food security in EPA by ensuring that these ALBA farmers will become dedicated farmers market vendors. However, theres a distinct risk to this CSA. Its possible that the Earth Systems students have found a business model (the CSA) that is better for the farmers than sustaining the market. If that happens, the farmers and CSA members will benefit, but the initial goal of supporting the EPA farmers market itself will not be met. Theres a simple solution: Farmers participating in the CSA should sign a contract guaranteeing they will stay at the market in order to participate in the CSA. Once this contract is secured, the novel EPA-Stanford-ALBA community-supported agriculture project will be an excellent opportunity for local food systems engagement. Ideally, the CSA will grow to perhaps even subsidize a differential price range whereby EPA residents can participate in the CSA at a reduced price. Because its hard for financially strapped EPA residents to shoulder the upfront costs of membership in a CSA, this type of differential price model, already in place at locations such as the Phat Beets Produce in Oakland, is an obvious next step once the initial CSA is economically viable. Jenny would love to give you more information about the EPA CSA. For your own weekly box of fruit and veggie joy, email Jenny at jrempel @stanford.edu.
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HALF INVENTED
started teaching math to kindergarteners and first graders after school twice a week. For two major reasons, I feel obligated to share that I get paid for this. First, I want to give an honest depiction: I am a starving college student looking for a relatively easy minimum wage job, not Mother Teresa. Second, by stating that I get paid, it implies it is through a professional organization and that Im not just randomly showing up to elementary schools, giving out snacks and teaching tiny kids how to add of my own accord. That would be kind of creepy. Some days, I take my group of students outside to do math on the playground, partially because they are kindergarteners and dont have the attention span to be inside a classroom for two hours, and partially because Im in college but still dont have the attention span to be inside a classroom for two hours. On this particular day, we were doing subtraction by jumping backwards on a number line near the kickball court. (Best teacher ever!) The children were laughing and excited to be outside, and everything was great. But then one girl started crying a soft, slow cry. At first, it was just sniffles and heavy breathing, but the other children began to notice, and her panic began to grow. I had no idea why she was upset. I started walking over to assess the situation, but the moment she saw me coming, she screamed and ran across the blacktop to the jungle gym on the other side of the playground. I began to run after her, leaving the rest of the class of kindergarteners standing there with no instruction other than to do math with each other. (Worst teacher ever.)
She was hiding in the winding tunnel slide. But she didnt come out when I called her name. I stuck my head inside and called her again, and when she saw me, her face grew terrified, and she began to scamper backwards up the slide out of fear. It was the most scared Id ever seen a child. She eventually came down, or rather was forced down by the other kids using the slide. And once she had taken many slow, deep breaths, she was able to tell me what was going on. She had seen her mother and younger sister walk by across the parking lot, but her mother had promised her on that day that she would be picked up before her sister. She felt forgotten. Abandoned. She felt like nothing. I know many of us deal with feelings of shame and inadequacy on a very real level, but there was something about seeing the response of a seven-year-old, so vulnerable and uninhibited, that made the pain seem that much more visceral. Shame, for something weve done or that has been done to us, often rears its ugly head through unhealthy addictions, resentment toward others or complete bitterness and hatred toward oneself. And its not like a skinned knee on a playground, where we can just slap a band-aid on it and call it a day. These wounds run so deeply to the core of our emotional health and conception of identity that we deem them too dangerous or painful to expose to others. We get really good at climbing backwards up the slide. At least from my experience, hiding shame or sorrow doesnt make the pain go away or alleviate it. In fact, refusing to identify or acknowledge it just compounds the problem; it breeds the loneli-
Chase Ishii
ENERGY
cells as the technology develops. Other panelists commented on new transportation models and software services. Shelby Clark, founder of RelayRides, discussed his companys philosophy. RelayRides allows car owners to rent their cars to others for personal profit. Clark said that much of the environmental impact from cars comes from the manufacturing and resources needed to make the vehicle. Car sharing programs such as RelayRides promote the possibility of having less cars on the road by allowing people to use cars that would otherwise be sitting idly in parking lots. The challenge we face is this American love of our cars, Clark said. Maybe we can all start thinking about the fact that you dont have to own your car. You dont get upset about not owning your train, he added. Kurt Buecheler, vice president and general manager of Streetline, a company developing sensor-based systems to optimize parking for cities, offered a different perspective on the panel. Streetline presents data in a mobile phone application that points users to available parking spots. The panelists were generally in agreement that legislation and regulation will need to evolve along with the automotive industry to address future problems. Regulating parking in the face of massive overpopulation and dealing with increased load on the electric grid from the charging of electric vehicle batteries may pose major obstacles in the near future.
Shaw noted, however, the difficulties that governmental actions pose for automakers. It takes us about seven years to design a vehicle from conception to seeing that car on the street, he said, referring to changes over the last decade in Environmental Protection Agency and Corporate Average Fuel Economy regulations.
Tarpenning recognized Japans success with setting a price floor on gasoline after the oil scare of the 1970s. The price floor forced Japanese automakers such as Toyota and Honda to engineer more efficient cars to meet consumer demand. In the start-up realm, Buecheler encouraged entrepreneurs to focus on reinventing industries, We didnt want it to be like a typical party. Even this event wasnt entirely immune to pre-gaming. Though he did not enter the event, one student was transported after arriving heavily intoxicated. One of the biggest challenges that the OAPE faces is student misconception about alcohol use on campus. With hospitalizations rising, students may take this as an indication of a strong alcohol presence on campus. People think that a lot more people drink on campus than actually do, Smith said. The OAPE recently distributed its Core Survey on Alcohol and Drug Use to collect more exact statistics on student alcohol and drug habits. Results from the survey, which concluded in late February, have not yet been released. The survey sought to quantify and challenge assumptions about the drinking culture at Stanford. The OAPEs goal is to keep drinking safe and social, not to eliminate it from campus culture, according to Castro. The alcohol policy was clarified last year, and emphasis was placed on discouraging high-risk drinking practices, Castro said.
calling for medicine for major problems in the world instead of vitamins to slightly enhance life. Is something transformational? Did it really make a difference? he asked. Contact Matt Bettonville at [email protected].
OAPE
Other dorm staff members are also taking steps to cultivate safe drinking environments. You have to look out for one another, and that message needs to begin in the dorm, Bennett said. One of the things I liked during RA training is that they stressed to us being open about drinking and our experiences, said Annika Graangard, resident assistant in Serra. Graangard said she believes that this openness contributes to increased awareness about alcohol and the issues associated with it. The OAPE also seeks to promote an appropriate attitude toward drinking for students turning 21. Castro said that the office sends out 21st birthday cards with safety messages to all students the day before their birthdays. Additionally, the OAPE launched a social media campaign that pushes out pro-social alcohol messages via Twitter, Facebook and YouTube, Castro said. As a new entity on campus, the OAPE is not engrained in the Stanford culture yet, but it will be, Smith said. Contact Danielle Lussier at dlussier @stanford.edu.
SPORTS
By GEORGE CHEN
DESK EDITOR
For the fourth-straight year, senior Chad La Tourette (above) took first place in the 1650 freestyle at the Pac-12 Championships as the Stanford mens swimming and diving team overcame a stacked field to win its 31st-straight conference title. La Tourette added another win in the 500 freestyle.
Tom Taylor
Republican Stanford baseball passes first true test candidates fit for office?
By JACK MOSBACHER
MOSBACHER MINUTE
Jack Mosbacher was a member of the Stanford baseball team from 2008 to 2011. Each week, hell take a look at the Cardinals ups and downs on its road to the College World Series.
ts Super Tuesday. The day when 10 states, accounting for 410 delegates, will hold their primaries and caucuses to decide the Republican nomination for this years presidential election in November. Huh? You might be wondering: Why has politics managed to spill out of the News section and leak into the Sports section? And why should I care? I myself am not even a citizen of this country, why should it even be important who gets to sit in the Oval Office? As much as I might not want to admit it, the identity of the U.S. president does actually have a big impact on my life; the president is able to make a huge impact, for good or bad, on my world both inside and outside of this countrys borders. And the health of the president is perhaps just as important as all the other issues that have been endlessly debated over this drawn-out campaign. A candidates health is important primarily because it would not be a good thing if the President were unable to do his or her job due to health problems. But being healthy has other advantages too: Being physically fit aids cognitive abilities and being able to blow off steam by going for a run or hitting the gym reduces stress. There is a third reason as well. Ahead of the last Gulf War, a senior Iraqi made the suggestion that Presidents George W. Bush and Saddam Hussein could square up against each other mano-a-mano to settle their differences. It might have been a joke, but if it werent, maybe it would have been worth seriously considering. Almost 5,000 Allied soldiers died as a direct result of the invasion and its aftermath, and the number of Iraqi lives lost could number anything from between 100,000 to 1,000,000. So, assuming one of them can defeat incumbent President Barack Obama, the athletic abilities of the four remaining Republican candidates might just turn out to be pretty important over the next four years. But how could we analyze this important facet of the candidates? Last week, the professional football
When you looked at the No. 1 Stanford baseball teams schedule prior to the start of the year, this past weekends series against Fresno State would not have stood out one bit. Because it was sandwiched between series with No. 12 Vanderbilt, No. 5 Texas and No. 7 Rice, you probably wouldnt have guessed that this would be the series when wed really learn about the character and resilience of this highly touted baseball team. But it was. In fact, we learned far more
about the Cardinal this weekend than in any other week because the Cardinal was on the road for the first time, and because the Cardinal actually lost. Rolling into Fresno touting an unblemished 8-0 record, the Cardinal had plenty to be confident about. Following back-to-back sweeps of Vanderbilt and Texas, the Cardinal wore a No. 1 national ranking on its back for the first time in a decade. And on a cold, windy Friday night, the Cardinal (and stud pitcher Mark Appel) was beaten. Frankly, you dont learn much about the character of a team in an early-season sweep. After all, you have no way of knowing how good or bad the losing team actually was until it is tested in the crucible of later competition. So despite the early-season excitement surrounding Stanfords two early sweeps, you
werent going to see me too excited. The sample size available for judgment was just too small, and the sample quality of these traditional powerhouses was misleading at best (See: Vanderbilt being swept by Oregon and Texas limping out of the gates at 4-7, including a loss to lowly UT-Arlington). After this weekend, however, Im truly excited. Why? Because the Cardinal lost and then responded like a champion should. Trust me when I say that the Stanford baseball players like being good. They enjoy the pressure of being called the best team in the nation. And they knew how disastrous a series loss to an unranked opponent would be for their national standings. So, when the Cardinal dropped its first game of the year on Fri-
Sophomore middle blocker Eric Mochalski (13, above) helped the Stanford mens volleyball team beat UC-San Diego in four sets on Friday. The Cardinal could not duplicate the victory against UC-Irvine on Saturday, though, falling in four sets.
Of the many emotions sport induces, disappointment is unfortunately often at the top of the list. The No. 3 Stanford mens volleyball team was once again confronted with this uncomfortable feeling following a split at home this weekend against UC-San Diego and No. 2 UC-Irvine, one that set the team back in its quest for a Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) title. The Cardinal (13-4, 10-3 MPSF) now sits in a tie for second place with UCI, one and a half games back of first-place UCLA, following a 25-21, 2515, 22-25, 25-19 win over UCSD on Friday and a 25-21, 17-25, 25-17, 25-15 loss to UCI on Saturday. Fridays win over UCSD (3-15, 1-12) was a step in the right direction for the Cardinal following the loss to No. 4 USC the previous weekend. Consistent as ever, All-American outside hitter Brad Lawson continued his remarkable senior campaign, finishing with a match-high 18 kills and a pair of rocket aces that emphatically closed out the match for Stanford. He was joined in double-figure kills by
sophomores Steven Irvin and Eric Mochalski, who finished with 15 and 12, respectively.
STRUGGLES CONTINUE
STANFORD BLOWS HALFTIME LEAD
By SARAH MAISEL
CONTRIBUTING WRITER
MINUTE
Despite building an early lead against No. 11 Vanderbilt on Saturday, the No. 16 Stanford womens lacrosse team (1-4) could not hold its early momentum and fell 15-9 to continue its early season struggles. The team had hoped to carry its momentum off its thrilling first win of the season, but the strength and speed of the Commodore offense eventually overpowered the Cardinal. The first half opened with a strong and balanced showing by Stanford on both sides of the field. Seniors Catherine Swanson and Emilie Boeri both scored within the first 10 minutes, setting the tone for a period of offensive dominance. Boeri then assisted the Cards next two goals, one by freshmen Emily Newstrom and another by her sister, senior Anna Boeri.
weekend series. We knew the team was loaded with talent and that, on paper, it could play with any team in the country. What we didnt know was how it would respond to eventual adversity. Would Stanford be like the elementary school bully who pushes kids around until somebody actually hits back? Or would the Cardinal be the type of team that relishes the challenge of playing the underdog every once in a while, much like the last Stanford team to make it to the College World Series in 2008? Three weeks into the season, Im ready to admit that Im excited about this Stanford baseball team, because it is exactly the type of team that people like to watch. The players have confidence and swagger they know theyre good but they also arent afraid to play like they have a chip on their shoulder. They believe that anything short of a trip to the World Series in Omaha would be a disappointment. The Cardinals reaction to Fridays loss speaks volumes about the character of this team. One thing is for sure: Stanford wont be going down without a fight. Contact Jack Mosbacher at [email protected].
TAYLOR
ALISA ROYER/The Stanford Daily
Freshman midfielder Hannah Farr (above) and the No. 16 Stanford womens lacrosse team jumped out to a 6-3 lead at halftime over No. 11 Vanderbilt, but the Cardinal could not hold the lead in a 15-9 loss.
I think our biggest struggle right now is the transition, Muoz said. This is where most of our turnovers are coming from, and this causes unsettled play for our defense. In the second half, the turnovers in transition are what led to Vanderbilts goals and shifted momentum for the game. While another loss in the early season was a frustrating result, perhaps part of the problem was that the Cardinal was without one of its leading scorers, sophomore Anna Kim, who dislocated her shoulder last weekend when she scored the game-winning goal in the final seconds against James Madison. The offense did receive a boost from freshmen Frasier and Newstrom, who combined for four goals, a good sign that the youthful team has potential for future development. Although the team eventually lost its lead, this was the first game in which Stanford did not trail at the break. of the season. The only man for Stanford who seemed to be finding any success was Lawson, who bashed his way through the UCI defense despite minimal offensive help from his teammates. The Cardinal will look to regain its footing today and tomorWhile the 1-4 record against top-20 teams is not where the Cardinal would like to be, it now heads into its first contest against an unranked team with a chance to regain its feet. When we work as hard as we possibly can, the wins will come, Muoz said. Yes, unfortunately were 1-4 right now but I know if we keep working hard well start to win. I also think its good that were starting our season with such tough competition, and it will prepare us not only for conference play, but for the NCAA tournament as well. Sundays game against New Hampshire is the last at Cagan Stadium until April 13. The team will then travel east to face Brown, Harvard and Albany before conference play begins April 3 at Fresno State. Contact Sarah Maisel at sgmaisel@ stanford.edu. row night against No. 14 Hawaii. Tonights match will be in Burnham Pavilion, and Wednesdays will be in Maples Pavilion, both starting at 7 p.m. Contact Daniel E. Lupin at delupin @stanford.edu.
VOLLEY
sidered normal.) Gingrich, Paul, Romney and Santorum measure up as 34.4, 19.4, 25.3 and 20.7 on this statistic, respectively, and Rival-inChief Obama is 23.7. While Paul, Santorum and Obama are classified within the normal range, Romney is marginally overweight, and Gingrich is obese. This analysis, though, has its limitations. Simply being heavier doesnt imply that someone necessarily has greater body fat though Gingrich is probably not all muscle and lighter bodies can still be unfit ones. However, probably the best clue to their athletic fitness is to look at what they do to stay healthy. Gingrichs exercise of choice is apparently golf, and it shows. He is clearly not among the fittest of the candidates. Santorum supposedly does 50 push-ups a day, but doesnt seem to have a publicized health routine apart from that. The other three, though, all at least represented high school teams, Romney and Paul as runners. In fact, Paul was even Pennsylvanias 220-yard dash state champion in 1952, and Obama was on his high schools basketball team. Romney still runs; Paul, though holding the honor of being the oldest, regularly walks and rides his bike, even challenging others to a bike ride in the Houston heat; and Obama still plays basketball and hits the gym. Obama is going to be a tough competitor to beat, but if health does play a part in this election, perhaps Romney or Paul might be best suited to keep pace with him. Tom Taylor just wrote a sports column with more references to Newt Gingrichs obesity than to college or professional sports. Remind him why politics have no place in sports columns at tom.taylor@stanford. edu.
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