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Column: Moment of science

Opinion

Opinion

May 29, 2012

One of the biggest paradoxes in research is the perception of workload: I’m simultaneously always busy and always have free time. At any given moment I undoubtedly have work to do, but it can usually be put off until later. While a lot of this depends on your advisor and your research subject, it is indeed possible to have a very flexible schedule as a graduate student. You don’t need to work 9 to 5 or work weekends … but you probably will want to.

Science doesn’t sleep. Research doesn’t take a vacation. Even if I can’t do any more lab work for whatever reason (out of materials, study subjects died, beancounters say I can’t afford any more Taq polymerase), I can always apply to new grants or read more scientific literature.

Much of that type of work – reading journals, designing protocols, e-mailing collaborators, running statistical analysis and writing up results – is stuff you could do at home in your pajamas … which I do regularly, with an energy drink at the ready and Anamanaguchi blasting in my headphones for motivation.

This type of work is usually the bulk of research, too: Every hour one spends in the field collecting insects or plants or archaeological treasures corresponds to 100 hours indoors sorting, identifying and labeling everything. If you were hoping to go into archaeology and live the life of Indiana Jones, you will be greatly disappointed. I hope you like pottery shards!

This system of study, to me, is the ideal way to structure a life. You are never bored because you always have a task available, but your schedule is flexible enough that you can hop among your various projects and your extracurricular and social obligations freely. As long as you are productive and show your advisor signs of life or progress periodically, you are still on track.

Admittedly, not every graduate student has this luxury, but the proportion is certainly higher than among most cubicle drones. I probably work far more than 40 hours a week, but it’s work I enjoy at hours I can set myself. I don’t notice how much I’m working because the labor doesn’t interfere with my social life and I’m having too much fun doing it anyway.

I know what some of you are thinking: Work can be fun? And not just work, but school-work? The kind of stuff you spend the first 18-21 years of your life waiting for the graduation ceremony that marks you never having to do any of it again? How could that possibly be fun? If you’re one of the people thinking this, I have one word for you: Science! With a capitol “S” and an exclamation point, because that’s how it sounds when I read it. If you still don’t get it, enjoy your future at Dunder Mifflin, with your TPS reports and your stock options and six-figure salary, because that’s where you’re headed.

The reason grad students put up with, well, everything is because science is such a great motivator. It’s not just the results. The very act of sciencing all the science for science is pleasurable. Science is about gaining knowledge where once sat ignorance. You have a question. You find the answer. Simple, yet deeply satisfying, like scratching an itch. The nature of the questions differs among scientists, however. Part of graduate school is learning what types of questions drive you.

Some scientists seek to progress humanity: curing disease, solving the energy crisis and all that clichéd crap that infests every college application ever. For others, it’s the quest for Truth. “Does the world work like I hypothesized? Let’s find out.” These big picture scientists have an overarching question that justifies their work, which fills in pieces of the puzzle.

Then there are the scientists like myself who aren’t searching for answers, but for the questions themselves. “What do we not know? What have we not discovered yet?” It’s not about “Why,” it’s about “Why not!” To find something brand new, be the first to publish about it and have it named after me: That’s what gets me to work every day, or at least to my laptop.

MATAN SHELOMI is throwing Science! at the walls to see what sticks. Offer him a postdoc at mshelomi@ucdavis.edu.

Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs to leave UC Davis

Campus Editor

May 29, 2012

Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs to leave UC Davis

Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Fred Wood is putting on a heavy jacket and heading to the University of Minnesota, Crookston after over 33 years of being a part of the UC Davis community.

After obtaining his Ph.D. in Chemistry at UC Davis in the early ‘80s, Wood briefly taught at a small school in Northern Idaho. The University eventually asked him to come back and he started to teach introductory-level chemistry.

Wood then found a calling for advising, and through the years held the positions of associate dean of Undergraduate Advising in the College of Letters and Sciences, vice provost of Undergraduate Studies and finally his most recent position of nearly four years, vice chancellor of Student Affairs. In total Wood has spent six years as a student and 26 years as a faculty member of UC Davis.

“I arrived on campus as a community college transfer student in 1978,” Wood said. “My intention was to get my doctorate and leave and then go and teach at a small school.”

During his years here Wood has helped countless students with problems inside and outside of the classroom.

“I have many memories of helping students who were struggling get through,” Wood said, referring to some of his intro-level chemistry students. “They are all wonderfully intelligent students.”

On the advising side of student affairs, Wood aided students with problems that occur beyond the textbook.

“I understood that student’s lives are impacted by financial situations, family situations and work,” Wood said. “I was worried about students’ debt, and I was worried about getting them through quickly. It’s fine if students want to take longer, but I don’t want them to have to take longer.”

Wood also has fond memories of the staff that worked closely alongside him over the years.

The staff that has worked alongside Wood has had the same feelings about the Vice Chancellor.

“I first met Fred sometime during the 1990s when he joined the Sexual Harassment Advisors group as a volunteer advisor for his college,” said Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Emily Galindo. “To be honest, he stuck out because we had very few male advisors. In looking back, that was probably the beginning of my respect and admiration for him because he has always been the type of person to reach out to others to the campus community, students, faculty and staff to make their experience as positive as possible. During the last five years since he has been my direct supervisor, I have valued his guidance, support, sense of humor and most of all his friendship. He’s a wonderful person and will be truly missed.”

Wood’s family ties to Crookston, Minnesota, his mother being born in Crookston and both of his daughters attending Minnesota universities, along with his lifelong goal of being part of a small school community, made his decision easy.

In a press release, Robert Jones, University of Minnesota’s senior vice president for academic administration, said that Wood brings “outstanding administrative and academic credentials, a passion for ensuring innovative and supportive educational experiences, and a strong understanding of a multi-campus system with a land-grant mission.”

Wood is determined to make an impact on the campus and surrounding community.

“You really have a chance to impact the students, and even the region,” Wood said.

MAX GARRITY RUSSER can be reached at campus@theaggie.org.

UC Davis and City of Davis receive Urban Greening Grant

Campus News

Campus Editor

May 29, 2012

The east end of the UC Davis Arboretum is scheduled to be remodeled in the early summer of 2013. The California Strategic Grant Growth Council recently donated $891,000 for the addition of a California Native Collection to the empty field that currently sits behind the parking lot of Davis Commons.

The garden will be centered around species native to the Central Valley and will include thematic elements that encourage sustainability and appreciation of local flora.

The project was also funded $40,000 by the Municipal Art Fund to create a symbolic “gateway” between downtown and UC Davis that will include a sculpture by artist Christopher Fennel, who was selected from a pool of 63 applicants for his work with recycled material. In addition, the parking lot of Davis Commons will be reconstructed to create a new pedestrian pathway that will run directly from the Commons into the Arboretum.

UC Davis Assistant Director of Horticulture Emily Griswold hopes that the new installments will transform the empty lot into a flourishing point of interest.

“This is kind of our prime opportunity for this space which has been neglected and [to] make it into a destination place, or a kind major entry into the Arboretum,” she said. “Because the site is connected to the city greenbelt system and bikeways, and is the closest place the Arboretum gets to downtown, we have this unique opportunity to connect the campus to the city.”

The new garden is designed to celebrate the wildlife native to the region. Large trees will define the perimeter of the field, which will be filled with small meadows to form the center space. A central swale will drain the site into the Arboretum waterway.

“A lot of people come to Davis and have no idea what was here before,” Griswold said. “Personally, I think it’s really important to have a demonstration of our local native plants. They’re so underappreciated and not even known about.”

The plot of land will also be regraded into a shallower slope which will allow easier wheelchair and pedestrian access from the walkway into the Arboretum.

Another key issue planned to be addressed is the storm water management. The waterway used to be a former channel of Putah Creek, but has since become an elongated pond having been disconnected from the larger water system. The lack of current, coupled with the nutrients from runoff and soil erosion, allows large algal blooms to float to the surface of the water in large, green mats.

“We’re going to be working with water experts on how to deal with this problem,” Griswold said. “Because it’s disconnected from the live Putah Creek, any flow must be done with pumping. Ideally we’re going to have a scenario with pumps connected to a solar array. This has been one of the most difficult issues to manage and we’re going to have to take into account various engineering criteria, maintaining the health of the collections, as well as a significant amount of money.”

Jennifer McKenzie, a junior majoring in Wildlife Fish and Conservation Biology who works almost daily in the Arboretum, is excited for the new development.

“I think any attempt to get the Arboretum getting back to a native plant community is a good thing, especially for the organisms,” she said. “It will be a more informative and more valuable teaching tool if it’s a healthier ecosystem.”

The Arboretum expansion will also tie into a larger, citywide effort at urban beautification.

John Natsoulas, owner of the John Natsoulas Gallery located on the corner of First and E Street, works closely with the Davis Transmedia Artwalk, which was recently expanded to 16 sculptures and two murals and will feature tours guided by smartphone technology.

“The gateway is going to link the town, just like the Artwalk. That will be the predecessor,” he said.

Holistically, the Gateway and California Native Garden projects are only a few in a number of initiatives to make the Arboretum more accessible and capable of facilitating academic pursuit. Other future initiatives include additions to the Cole facility and a new parking lot located at the West End entrance.

“We want to make more meaningful landscapes around the academic departments that make more public the work of UC Davis,” Griswold said.

ADAM KHAN can be reached at campus@theaggie.org.

Police brief: Police altercation ends in Tasering of student

City News

City Editor

May 29, 2012

The Davis Police Department is investigating the Tasering of a male UC Davis student that occurred on May 23 at 2225 Glacier Drive.

Police said the Tasering was in response to the student resisting arrest after being involved in a physical altercation with a female student around 10 p.m. that night, a police press release stated.

Officers said that after the male student was handcuffed, he managed to get the handcuffs off in the back seat of the patrol vehicle. He then allegedly kicked open the rear door and pushed and punched an officer in the face. The police proceeded to subdue the student with a Taser. He was subsequently transported to the Yolo County Jail.

Police said despite numerous requests for the female student to keep her distance and not interfere with the male student, she placed herself in close proximity to the struggle. She was arrested, then released with a citation for interfering with police officers.

According to the press release, a review of the force used and an internal investigation into policy compliance are underway. The police said they have an audio and partial video recordings of the incident.

Internal investigators will analyze all available evidence and information to provide as complete a picture as possible of this incident, the release stated. The police urge witnesses to provide additional information and/or video recordings to the Professional Standards Unit of the police department at (530) 747-5400 to enhance the fact-gathering process.

— Angela Swartz

Column: Rosenblum Awards Part I

Sports

Sports Editor

May 29, 2012

It’s practically all over.

Sunday’s baseball game against UC Irvine was the last sporting event on the UC Davis campus for the 2011-12 school year, and with the exception of those athletes making their way to the track and field national championships (congratulations to Sarah Sumpter and Ashley Hearn), Aggie athletics are over until August.

So with a full year of sports in the books, it is time to hand out some post-season awards, which I will call the Rosenblum Awards, in honor of the sports editor in charge when I first started working for The Aggie.

Of course you can still look out for The Aggie’s traditional Athlete of the Quarter and Athlete of the Year awards next week, but here are some categories not covered in our traditional awards issue.

Best dressed — Jim Les, head coach, men’s basketball

While Les’ team struggled this season on the floor, the Aggies were constantly guided by a well-put-together head coach off it.

With the stylish suits and the slicked back hair, Les often looked more like a character in “Mad Men” than the head coach of a basketball team. His stylish looks may not have helped the team during its 20+ game losing streak, but at least Les was better dressed than his predecessor, Gary Stewart.

Honorable Mention: Mike Kurtz for the liberal use of bow ties.

Best comedy routine(s) — UC Davis baseball team

If you haven’t seen the videos of UC Davis baseball yet, put down this newspaper and head straight to YouTube.

The team notorious for getting along well, in a sport that often encourages a certain level of goofiness, the Aggies (in conjunction with Assistant Athletics Communications Director Amanda Piechowski) produced two videos that have caused fans to laugh out loud.

“Look at all our hits” satires UC Davis record season in recording hit-by-pitches with Comcast Sports Net-style quality, while their dance to the LMFAO hit “Sexy and I Know It” gives the fans an idea of just how relaxed the team is.

Best game face — Blair Shinoda, guard/center, women’s basketball

If you know women’s basketball, then you understand why Shinoda deserves this award.

The look of sheer determination displayed on the junior’s face as she makes her way down the floor is something that only hours of practicing in a mirror could yield.

The look is a perfect combination of focus, ferocity and poise that strikes fear into the hearts of opponents. Shinoda’s game face helped her to an impressive season in 2011-12, and Aggie fans can only expect the face and the player to improve next season.

Best senior day — Volleyball

The perfect senior day is a combination of several ingredients: great seniors, a rousing speech and the outpouring of emotion.

The UC Davis volleyball team had just that when it said goodbye to Betsy Sedlak and Katie Denny this season.

The duo will go down in UC Davis history as two of the program’s greats, and they were lauded by fellow players and coaches as not only great players but great people as well.

The crucial element in the volleyball senior day was that the ceremony was held after the game, when the players and coaches were free to express their emotions without having one eye on the upcoming match.

Biggest disappointment — UC Davis football vs. Humboldt State

Say what you will about Humboldt State’s impressive 2011 season — there was no excuse for UC Davis’ loss to a Division II program.

At a time when the Aggies were looking to build momentum after major losses to Arizona State and Hawaii, UC Davis fans were counting on a win over the Lumberjacks to help turn the season around. Instead, the Aggies were handed a 23-17 defeat that will go down as one of the worst moments of the year.

Look for more Rosenblum Awards next week.

TREVOR CRAMER would like to wish senior first baseman Eric Johnson a speedy recovery. He would also like to congratulate Matt “The Man” Yuen on being named next year’s sports editor. If you want to comment on this column or any sports story, please e-mail sports@theaggie.org.

Emotional ending

Sports Editor

May 29, 2012

It was an up-and-down last weekend for the UC Davis baseball team, as it saw the careers of some key seniors come to an end.

While the Aggies were able to take the series from UC Irvine by winning on Friday and Saturday, Sunday’s disappointing defeat on senior day was one the Aggies would like to forget.

UC Davis finishes 27-30 overall, fifth in the Big West Conference at 12-12. The 27 wins are the highest win total for the Aggies since 2008 when they advanced to an NCAA Div. I regional.

Friday — UC Davis 4, UC Irvine 0

In his final collegiate start, senior Anthony Kupbens threw a complete game shutout, giving up just five hits, all singles. No Anteater runner ever passed second base during the game.

“It’s incredibly rewarding while incredibly sad, because that’s the last time we’re going to see him out there,” said head coach Matt Vaughn. “UC Irvine is one of the best teams in our conference and they didn’t have a chance against him.”

UC Davis got out on top of UC Irvine’s starter Andrew Thurman early, putting up four runs in the first three innings.

Freshman Tino Lipson lead off the first with a single, moved to second on David Popkins’ groundout, and then came around to score after a double from sophomore Nick Lynch. Junior Paul Politi followed with a double of his own to score Lynch and give the Aggies a 2-0 lead.

With one out in the third, Popkins was hit by a pitch, Lynch singled to left, and then Politi singled to right for an RBI that scored Popkins. With two outs, freshman Kevin Barker singled to right to score Lynch and give UC Davis a 4-0 advantage.

“There’s no one hotter coming in as a pitcher right now than Andrew Thurman,” Vaughn said. “I think it speaks to what we’ve done as a team all month. We’ve never stopped playing hard. We were able to get enough early and Kupbens made it stand up. It was a great effort offensively.”

Kupbens gave up a leadoff single in the ninth, got the next batter to fly out, and then induced a six-four-three double play to end the game.

“I don’t really know how to put it in to words,” Kubpens said of his last start as an Aggie. “Just a lot of pride; we’ve put it in a lot of hard work. These guys behind me are fantastic. They played a great game for me today, just a lot of pride in this team.”

Saturday — UC Davis 3, UC Irvine 1

For the third consecutive weekend, senior starter Tom Briner went the distance for UC Davis, throwing his fifth complete game of the year to lead the Aggies and claim the series against the Anteaters.

Briner struck out just one batter, did not allow a walk and surrendered just five hits in his final outing as an Aggie.

“I’m running out of superlatives for this pitching staff,” said Vaughn. “These guys are special. They’re setting the benchmark for what our guys have to be and what you have to do to be successful in this conference. All I’ve had to do is give them the ball. They’ve been incredible Aggies in this program from when they got here until their very last outing. It’s special. It’s very special.”

Offensively, UC Davis jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the second. Senior Eric Johnson singled to short, advanced to second on an errant pickoff attempt and later scored on senior Brett Morgan’s single up the middle. Senior Ryan Allgrove followed with a walk and Lipson singled to right to score Morgan.

In the fourth, Allgrove singled with one out and scored on Popkins’ double down the right field line to increase the lead to 3-0.

Popkins, Lynch and Barker were all hit by pitches to bring UC Davis’ record-breaking total to 100 on the season.

Sunday — UC Irvine 10, UC Davis 1

A very emotional Senior Day took a drastic turn when Johnson was injured when a UC Irvine runner collided with him in the first inning.

After a delay of nearly 30 minutes, Johnson was taken off the field on a stretcher, and the game resumed.

Senior catcher Scott Kalush capped his Aggie career with a solo home run in the third, but UC Irvine avoided the sweep to spoil the home finale.

The final game capped off the careers of Allgrove, Briner, Johnson, Kalush, Kupbens, Morgan, Popkins, Ryan Lucas and Dayne Quist, who were honored in a pregame ceremony.

“I love this team,” Vaughn said. “We finished with our second-highest win total since we’ve gone to Div. I. We set a goal at the end of April to win 26 games and we ended up winning 27, so we exceeded our internal goals for the last month. We won our last four series against very good opponents. This group of seniors took it upon themselves to make sure everyone else did the work and it’s special when you have a group of guys like that.”

Quist was given the loss in his final game as an Aggie to finish the season at 6-3 and fourth in the Big West in strikeouts with 85.

After the game, the seniors took pictures and received an ovation from the fans, including Johnson, who returned with a cast on his arm.

RUSSELL EISENMAN can be reached at sports@theaggie.org.

Aggies light up Saint Mary’s

Sports Editor

May 24, 2012

UC Davis took its seventh win in nine games with its 7-2 win over Saint Mary’s on Tuesday.

Freshman Kevin Barker went four-for-five with three RBIs, sophomore Evan Wolf pitched five innings while surrendering only one run as UC Davis took a victory in its final away game of the season.

UC Davis improves to 25-29 overall (10-11 Big West Conference), winning seven of its last nine, averaging over six runs a game during that span.

Junior Paul Politi hit a solo shot in the first inning, his third of the season, and senior Brett Morgan scored a career-high four runs to support an offense that is tearing it up.

The UC Davis offense was complimented by a strong performance from the pitching staff that limited the Gaels to just five hits. Wolf picked up the win to move to 3-4 on the year and freshman Spencer Koopmans struck out a career-high six batters in three innings of relief.

With the score 2-1 in the sixth, Morgan and senior Ryan Allgrove hit back-to-back singles, then freshman Evan Heptig drew a walk, and Barker delivered with an RBI single. That was then followed by a Politi infield single to put the Aggies up 4-1.

UC Davis opened the game in the eighth, scoring three runs on three hits. Barker knocked in Morgan for the third time and junior Austin Logan doubled to score Heptig and Barker.

Morgan and Politi were both hit by pitches in the game, raising the Aggies’ season total to 95. Patrick Wisdom hit two solo home runs to account for both of Saint Mary’s runs.

Sophomore Harry Stanwyck entered in the ninth and retired the side in order to secure the 7-2 victory.

“This team had a goal all along,” said head coach Matt Vaughn. “To get this thing turned around and we’re playing our best ball here at the end of the season.”

UC Davis will close out the 2012 season with a weekend matchup versus Big West foe UC Irvine. The Aggies will hope to continue finishing the season dialed in on offense, first pitch at Dobbins Stadium on Friday at 2:30 p.m.

RUSSELL EISENMAN can be reached at sports@theaggie.org.

Downtown Davis Karaoke

Arts & Culture

Arts Editor

May 24, 2012

“Who sings this song?”

“Journey.”

“Keep it that way.”

Well, some may not have the option. Since the concept of karaoke (a rough translation of the Japanese phrase meaning “empty orchestra”) hit the bars and nightclubs worldwide, anyone and everyone can claim their rights to a microphone and perform a rendition of a song of their choosing … and nobody can stop them.

And so it has become, when there are designated nights at bars during which people are actually expected to make fools of themselves. Karaoke nights have opened up the performance stage to amateurs and although the Davis bar scene is no Mondavi, performers can still command an audience.

Even if the audience members are just waiting in pain for their own turns, karaoke nights can help turn singles into anthems and drag forgotten classics back from the depths. Karaoke nights hosted exclusively by bars insinuates that a generous flow of alcohol is usually involved; encouraging this participatory experience that will either create memories or just as easily be forgotten the morning after.

For those who enjoy partaking in activities that provide such bountiful opportunities for embarrassment, here is, in time for summer, an updated roundup of each Downtown Davis venue that hosts a karaoke night. Because even though you aren’t Celine Dion or Elton John, with enough alcohol, you can pretend to be.

Mondays: Little Prague Restaurant and Bar, 330 G St.
The weekend is over, but the bars are no less packed. Take the stage to a reasonably sized crowd at Little Prague on Mondays and get your Backstreet Boys on.

“We have the second biggest environment in Davis,” said Vaclav Burger, owner of Little Prague. “And we are international — we have a lot of international people coming in, which makes the difference.”

Here, like at other venues, performers can request any song out of an extensive selection, present it to Wes, the karaoke jockey, and even request for it to be transposed up or down a key to accommodate an individual’s vocal range.

“Karaoke night is awesome. [But] it’ll usually take a little drunkenness to do it,” said Kylie Harris, bartender. “We have drink specials — not just on Mondays, but every night. They change frequently, but we always try to have a shooter and a mixed drink available for $4-5.”

Little-known fact: if you sing a song, you get half-off a drink at the bar, which is probably intended to fuel your courage to sing another one.

“We have almost 260 bottles of alcohol,” Burger said. “You can’t find that anywhere else. We can make you a drink that will blow your mind.”

Tuesdays: G Street Wunderbar, 228 G St.
Here, every Tuesday from 9:30 p.m. to closing, the stage is home to regulars, making it out way before the weekend to enjoy “the best night of the week.”

“This one’s different because it’s a bar night plus karaoke,” said Drew DelReal, UC Davis alumnus longtime bartender at Wunderbar. “The DJ plays music between every song, so that it’s not just people doing karaoke.”

So, “real” artists layered between performances from Davis’ finest. But of course, like everywhere else, alcohol is a major player.

“Usually, when people go up, it’s because it’s the fun thing to do because you’re drunk enough to do it,” DelReal said.

On that note, drink specials are always available during karaoke night, something affordable for under $5 that, as DelReal said, “shouldn’t be under $5.” It’ll change constantly, from an Apple Ginger ($5) to a Woodford Reserve (also $5).

The song selection, drink specials and atmosphere attract a crowd of people who generally don’t go out too much on the weekend, according to DelReal.

“We’ll get groups of girls who come out early in the week to avoid the creeps of the weekend,” he said. “Many come because they feel safe here. If a guy is making you feel uncomfortable, let us know and we’ll actually take care of it.”

So, ladies, no need to feel smothered with any inappropriate affection after a brilliant performance. Feel free to go up alone or in groups of two, three, eight, with birthday parties, to show the entire bar the pipes you’ve got. Some may wonder … at what point does this get annoying?

“It doesn’t, because you’re drunk,” DelReal said.

Woodstock’s Pizza, 219 G St.
Across the street from Wunderbar is Woodstock’s, home of Wednesday-night karaoke. In case Monday and Tuesday weren’t enough, karaoke lovers can nosh on some hump-day pizza while waiting their turn for the third karaoke event of the week. Starting at 10 p.m. and continuing until last call around 1 a.m., the bar serves drink specials such as $5-Jaeger shots and $5 shots of Dragon’s Breath (Fireball whiskey and cinnamon schnapps). With the recent upgrade to a full bar, Woodstocks can likely expect to see an increase in over-enthused individuals wanting to belt out their personal jams.

Take advantage of the rare opportunity to have your voice heard whilst inebriated. Monday through Wednesday downtown, the stage is yours.

LANI CHAN can be reached at arts@theaggie.org.

Column: Unless you want hotspacho

Opinion

Opinion

May 24, 2012

I find it crazy how Apple can come out with two commercials promoting the same service in pretty much the same way and knock it out of the park with one and make me throw my remote at the TV with the other.

If you haven’t seen the commercials for Siri on the iPhone 4S, go check it out and also watch some TV, what are you doing? Samuel L. Jackson is hilarious, while Zooey Deschanel seems like a third-grader.

The inflection in her voice in the opening of the commercial sets the stage for Zooey. “Is it raining?” she asks, sounding more like an eight-year-old asking her mother what to wear outside than an actual adult woman.

I get the whole “manic pixie dream girl” aesthetic that Zooey has built her career on, but it seems way too contrived in this 30 second spot. After Siri answers, “Yes, it appears to be raining,” as she looks out her window towards the pouring rain, Zooey asks, “Can we get tomato soup delivered, because I don’t want to put on real shoes.” Because, you know, the layers of makeup and eyeliner are fine, but real shoes — that’s just asking too much.

But what I find most interesting and horrible about this commercial is the way in which Zooey D. has allowed herself to be branded as this sort of helpless, immature, sex-pot meets trendster. I’ve followed her career trajectory because I always thought she was really relatable and authentic. She wrote a letter to Vogue at 17 telling the magazine to “expand their idea of beauty” for adolescent American girls.

But now, Zooey has become the very definition of the cover girls she once criticized. She’s not exactly preaching second-wave feminism on the cover of Marie Claire.

Apple tries to brand her as the alternative-it-girl by putting Zooey in a room with instruments and having her listen to classic rock n’ roll, but it’s to no avail. Caked in makeup and asking dumb questions to her phone, Zooey seems more like a modern-day Rapunzel, trapped in her mansion longing for delivery tomato soup, than she does a strong, witty female.

Quite conversely, the other commercial, which features Siri helping out a celebrity, utilizes Samuel L. Jackson in a way that is endearing and comical.

In this spot, Siri helps Samuel L. make some of his famous gazpacho because “It’s date night!” Samuel L., a real renaissance man we learn, cooks a meal for his date. Siri helps him find the nearest store that sells organic mushrooms and tells him how many ounces are in a cup.

Unlike Zooey who seems to use the product for simple tasks, therefore coming off as indolent, Samuel L. uses Siri as an assistant. He talks to her (the iPhone) like he would a friend. It may be because he has such a great voice or because it’s funny to watch the man who played Mace Windu speak to a telephone about organic mushrooms, but when he talks to the phone you can’t help but smile. When Siri asks to confirm the reminder to put the gazpacho on ice, Samuel L. comes back with his best line since Snakes on a Plane. “Unless you want hotspacho,” he yells back at Siri.

Let’s acknowledge first that literally no other actor could pull off this line without sounding so incredibly ridiculous that you would never see a movie of theirs again. Hotspacho is such a dumb thing to say, and yet, Samuel L. makes it work. Perhaps it’s because of all the ridiculous things he’s said in movies throughout the years, or maybe it’s because he seems so proud of his joke in the ad. Either way, for the past two months I’ve been responding “unless you want hotspacho” to the majority of questions I’m asked outside of class.

Apple was probably right to use celebrities in these ads to show different ways that Siri could work and they tried to tailor each commercial to fit the stereotypes of both actors. There’s a lot to say about using celebrities in commercials and Apple has typically done a great job knowing when to do so.

With Zooey, they are going after the 20-something, too lazy to get out of bed and over-uses technology market, which is very real market, especially for Apple. But just because those kinds of people buy Apple products doesn’t necessarily mean portraying them through Zooey Deschanel or even on TV at all is a good idea. I hope we all don’t sound like that. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go tell Siri to remind me to put the gazpacho on ice.

Sadly, ANDY VERDEROSA has never had gazpacho or hotspacho but if you’d like to be a part of his next date night contact him at asverderosa@ucdavis.edu.

The Dead Arts Society presents: Spring Theatre plays

Arts & Culture

Arts Editor

May 24, 2012

This will be the first quarter that The Dead Arts Society (DAS) will perform at Wyatt Pavilion instead of their previous smaller location that only held up to approximately 60 people.

Jenny Adler, a senior double major in theatre and music and president of The Dead Arts Society, is more than happy that The Dead Arts Society will be performing in a large theater this quarter.

“We started small and this will be our first time at a big theater,” Adler said.

When Adler first came to UC Davis she felt frustrated because she wasn’t cast into any shows and wanted to get experience. She created The Dead Arts Society in 2010 which, she says, “is an all-inclusive club and often is able to cast everyone that auditions.”

Nehorai Gold, a senior chemistry major and drama minor and treasurer of The Dead Arts Society, said that he had never written any plays before DAS. “I have written three different scenes and it’s amazing to see something I wrote come to life,” Gold said.

Even though DAS may be relatively new, the Spring Theatre plays are very sophisticated and appear to be very entertaining. The plays, which will be performed are entitled Dinner, The Blood Law and All Dried Up!

“Dinner is an over-the-top situational comedy,” Adler said. This full-length comedy was written by John Malin and directed by Jenny Adler. Dinner is a comedy about a nice family dinner that goes wrong.

The one-act play The Blood Law was written by Rachel Pevsner and directed by Abbygail Williams. The Blood Law is about three young adults who set out to change the world and the troubles they encounter along the way.

“I was inspired by my friends and co-workers, who use colloquialisms that I’d never heard before,” Pevsner said. “I’m a bit bookish, in-my-own world type of person, so sometimes I miss out on these things. It made me think, ‘Wow, I’d really like to use these in a story,’ so the characters began to form around these colloquialisms.”

All Dried Up! is written by Adler and directed by Thavy Duong and Allyn Pintal.

“It’s an over-the-top comedy and musical where a woman, who tries to have kids by herself, realizes she can’t have children,” Adler said. “There is a nightmare sequence which consists of a sperm ballet.”

The Dead Arts Society is an undergraduate student organization that has expanded since its start in 2010.

“We started off with 20 people, but now there are 50 new people coming in each quarter,” Adler said. Due to high number of play attendees in the past, this year DAS raised over $1000. This meant that they could rent out Wyatt Pavilion in order to not turn anyone away — as was previously done in the past.

Adler is proud that the Wyatt Pavilion will be the home of DAS Spring Theatre and wants everyone to come out and watch the four free plays from May 31 to June 2 and June 6 and 8 at 8 p.m. at Wyatt Pavilion.

“The Dead Arts Society is a new, safe place where those who come in won’t be judged,” Adler said. “We are a tight-knit community and are like family.” DAS wants everyone to come out and enjoy a night of free fun.

KARINA CONTRERAS can be contacted at arts@theaggie.org.

Judo team throws down the competition

Features Editor

May 24, 2012

As this progressively warm spring weather seeps into a baking summer, students are finding many new outings and hobbies to keep themselves cool and entertained. While many lounge at the Rec Pool, some frequent the Activities and Recreation Center (ARC) instead — but not in preparation for a shirtless Houseboats. The UC Davis Club Judo Team grapples with achieving other aims, practicing during these hot months to constantly build their stamina, coordination and strength in preparation for local tournaments and, ideally, win National Collegiate Judo Championships.

Judo is a form of Japanese martial art. Opponents start by standing up and the goal is for one person to throw the other to the floor — getting them on their back which signals a win. If an opponent is on the ground and not on their back, one must grapple, choke, arm bar or pin them for more than 20 seconds in order to get the opponent on his or her back.

During competitions, if there is mere grappling and nothing else, referees will determine when it is time to pull both opponents back.

“It’s not for the weak at heart,” said Victoria Marcus, first-year international relations and economics double major. “It’s a sport where you have to keep trying in order to get good.”

Marcus saw the judo class one day while visiting the ARC, tried it out, and has been attending ever since. She has been doing martial arts since she was 9 years old, and is now a second-degree black belt, having earned a double degree in Shotokan karate. Marcus became involved with judo because she wanted to polish her skills like she has done with karate and jujitsu.

“I knew the basic throws and hold downs, but the actual competitive part, I hadn’t been doing,” Marcus said. “Attending the ARC sessions and eventually becoming a part of the team has helped a lot with that.”

No prior experience with judo is required when joining the UC Davis Judo Team. There’s also no trying out. Like Marcus, interested individuals first attend the judo classes offered at the ARC. If they like it, then they buy a gi (a uniform) and a white belt. Individuals must continue to practice before participating in tournaments.

New members practice with more advanced members, which expedites the learning process, according to the team’s philosophy. However, this causes obvious challenges for new members. Tatiana Gegan, sophomore communication major, said she couldn’t hang.

“I attended one of the judo classes at the ARC having learned about and gained interest in the art in a Japanese studies class I took last winter,” Gegan said. “While it was fun, I learned it was much harder than expected. I didn’t expect to be in action against people who had been practicing the art for years. It just wasn’t for me, but don’t make me mad, because I did learn a few moves.”

Judo competitions are categorized by weight, measured in kilograms, and gender. In mid-March, the team attended collegiate nationals in San Jose. There are two divisions in the competition, Novist and Champion. The women’s Novist division landed second place in the tournament.

Marcus said this could only have been achieved through their hard work and dedication.

It is such loyalty that Anthony Batarse, junior neurobiology, physiology and behavior major, believes has awarded him the position of judo team president this quarter. Batarse’s experience with judo dates back to junior college where he first learned the art in San Francisco. He has been affiliated with the UC Davis judo team since his first winter quarter.

“I bumped into an old friend who invited  me to practice judo with him and the UC Davis judo team,” Batarse said. “During this practice my passion for judo was revived.”

As president, Batarse focuses on structure.

“I feel that it is my responsibility to maintain the structure which is responsible for the collegiate and national standing of the UC Davis judo team in both men’s and women’s divisions,” Batarse said. “With the inspiration from our sensei and the determination of the judo team, I intend to continue our success through hard work.”

The judo team practices at the ARC from 8 to 10 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and from 8 to 10 a.m on Saturdays.

ISAIAH SHELTON can be reached at features@theaggie.org.

Safeboats keeps on sailing

Campus Editor

May 24, 2012

This Memorial Day weekend, the Safeboats program will once again return to Lake Shasta to protect Houseboats attendees from themselves.

The program, which was initiated in 2005 following the death of a UC Davis student at Houseboats, educates students on how to take safety precautions for the weekend and provides essentials throughout the event such as water, sunscreen, bandages and condoms.

As many of the students in attendance partake in the consumption of alcohol, student injuries are more or less an annual occurrence at Houseboats. However, since the beginning of Safeboats, there have been no UC Davis student casualties.

For this reason, many argue that Safeboats is an essential accompaniment to the excess of Houseboats.

“[Houseboats] is different from other off-campus partying done by Davis students in that students are isolated on the lake,” said sophomore Senator Anni Kimball, an international relations and psychology double major. “With no cell phone reception and over an hour of transportation to the nearest hospital, Safeboats becomes a vital link between students and medical attention.”

By mooring a boatful of EMTs on the lake right alongside the rest of the houseboats, Safeboats ensures that there will be medical service available to any partygoer in the event of their injury.

Within a relatively short period of time, Safeboats has already proven itself to be very effective in preventing injuries and death, according to various sources.

Several personal accounts written by Davis Wiki users on the Houseboats page describe the experiences of past attendees who have injured themselves, with the severity of these injuries ranging from bumps, bruises and alcohol poisoning to severed arteries.

Many of these personal accounts credit Safeboats with preventing such injuries from turning deadly.

However, while few would morally question Safeboats’ efforts to protect students’ lives, many — including members of the ASUCD Senate — remain divided over the program’s sources of funding.

The ASUCD subsidy for the Safeboats program was one of the most hotly debated issues at this year’s budget hearings. Members of the Senate were largely divided over whether or not to cut the size of the subsidy contributed to the over $5,155 cost of the event.

Although Safeboats receives funding from organizations such as the Water Safety Council, in previous years about $1,000 of its annual funding has come from ASUCD subsidies. In next year’s budget, Safeboats will only receive $370 for Safeboats and $130 for Safeboat education. ASUCD’s budget, of course, is largely funded by student fees, which is where the contention begins.

Because funding Safeboats is an inherent acknowledgment of the unsafe activities which occur at Houseboats, many view ASUCD providing money to the program as an endorsement of Houseboats itself.

Furthermore, certain students have expressed disagreement with the notion that their student fees are paying for part of an event which is only open to a fraction of students.

Some students, including ASUCD Senator Justin Goss, a senior political science and philosophy double major, believe the answer is the gradual transition to private funding.

“Houseboats is an inherently, empirically dangerous student event,” Goss said. “My main problem with it is that when you engage in a dangerous activity knowingly, you do so knowing the consequences. These individuals are fully aware of what they are doing and they want to protect their own lives, therefore they should insure themselves.”

On the other hand, many students see this subsidy merely as an extension of ASUCD’s efforts to cater to a diverse array of students.

“The reason there are so many different grant programs is because they are trying to reach out to as many different groups of people as possible,” said Senator Don Gilbert, a junior English major. “If everyone is going to pay student fees, everyone should be benefiting in their own way.”

Regardless of their varying opinions on how it should be funded, many Senate members seem to agree that the program itself should stay intact because of the safety it provides.

“I would have liked to have seen [the cuts] done in a better way, but as long as Safeboats is out there and doing its job that’s what really matters,” Gilbert said. “I don’t want it to take someone losing a life for us to wake up and realize we could have done something.”

DYLAN GALLAGHER can be reached at campus@theaggie.org.

Column: Dances suck

Arts & Culture

Arts Editor

May 24, 2012

This past weekend I returned to my hometown to take part in the festivities that lead up to one of the most anticipated nights of high school captivity: senior ball.

No, I was not some innocent young 18-year-old boy’s date. I was used in other ways: for my hair and makeup skills. And while I’m usually compensated with smiles, hugs and kind words, this year my sister decided to reward me with sass, complaining and boredom.

I spent seven hours that day pinning pins, spraying hairspray, applying fake eyelashes and taking over the role of mom: submitting to every wish of the 18-year-old princess, following her around to take her picture and squatting with the rest of the suburban soccer moms in the backyard of an eight million dollar mansion to get the perfect shot of the couples.

Yeah, sure, the people actually attending the dance technically had to endure similar situations, but did I get chocolate covered strawberries and get to dance on the patio of The Metreon in San Francisco?

Even though this was the second year in a row where I’ve returned home to help out my sister in preparation for big events, it hit me that this year would be my last. And while I was briefly reminiscing about my captivity in high school, I came to a conclusion that I’ve come to multiple times over the years: I hate organized dances.

Fun fact about my high school: a year or two before I began my reign on that campus, it was on the national news. Not for anything awesome, but for being the “horniest school in America.” That title was bestowed upon my school after angry parents lashed out at administration for not banning grinding and sexual dance moves at school dances.

Not that any of this bothered me. I gained press passes to all of the dances, providing me hours of entertainment watching my classmates get pregnant on the dance floor, embarrass themselves as I flashed my $3,000 camera at them and realizing how I never want to move my body.

Of course, being the giver that I am, I approached specific groups at group photos and taught them my secrets: stay on the outer circle of the mob for easy exit, eat as much as you can (you paid $150 for a ticket) and have no expectations.

If you’re going to spend that much on a night of entertainment, you shouldn’t have to create it yourself. Am I right? I’m right. I could pay that much to treat myself to a Broadway show ticket in S.F. and watch actually talented people instead of scream my way through crowds of grinding teenagers.

Now, I’m not saying that these dances completely suck. You get some things out of them: new profile pictures, tons of likes on Facebook (if you’re remotely popular) and the ability to say you experienced something as a high-school student that you honestly can achieve at a dance club in Las Vegas a couple of years later.

My senior class did a respectable job for my senior ball. We had professional ballroom dancers perform, caricature artists, buffets on every one of the 8+ floors we had access to and a large dance floor for those planning on starting a family.

I guess I’ll just leave it at this. I have mixed feelings about organized dances, but I lean towards hating them. Because that’s what I do best: hate things.

Tell ELIZABETH ORPINA at arts@theaggie.org how expensive your prom dress was and why she should feel bad about herself for not wanting to grind on her respectful date and instead did the Hoedown Throwdown to every song instead.

City of Davis releases annual Water Quality Report

City Editor

May 24, 2012

If, when skimming through your mail, you regularly throw out the letters that seem impertinent to you, you may have already thrown out a very pertinent pamphlet that may have innocuously been disguised as spam. The city of Davis recently distributed its Water Quality report for the year of 2011 — statistics abound.

Upon unraveling the neatly-folded pamphlet, a wealth of information is catalogued before your eyes. On one side, a thorough background on the report gives the reader some exposition before they dive into the Excel spreadsheet of water statistics on the flip side.

The report was prepared in accordance with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the California Department of Public Health regulations that require water providers to report annual water quality information to their customers.

It outlines all of the components found in our water, where said water comes from, how the water compares to state and federal standards and other related information.

Davis’s water is pumped from 20 municipal wells which draw water from aquifers deep below the surface level. The newest addition to these wells is located on 3608 Chiles Road and taps into water at depths ranging from 735 feet to 1560 feet below the surface.

The pamphlet goes on to mention that, “The water is filtered naturally by sands and clays as it passes through geologic formations.”

In addition to the natural filtering, each well has an assigned chlorine tank designated with the duty of injecting a 12.5 percent solution of sodium hypochlorite into the well site.

Turning it over, one is confronted with a detailed chart delineating the amount of a certain substance found in our water, showing whether it meets or exceeds Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs), or Public Health Goal (PHG) standards. Most constituents of our water managed to stay below the Public Health Goal Level — which is the level of a contaminant in drinking water below which there is not an expected or known detriment to health from consuming it.

“The City of Davis met all of state-required mandates,” said Marie Graham, the city’s utility program coordinator. “Public Health Goal is set with no risk involved in terms of health. It’s not uncommon. If MCLs were exceeded, we would have to take action. We’re very pleased we met all the standards.”

Nevertheless, levels of arsenic, gross alpha, radium-228, and uranium were all at levels that exceeded the PHG level. The potential source for all of these is listed as erosion from natural deposits.

Jason Clegg, a senior civil engineering major, sheds a little light on the matter of the contaminants. Clegg is currently enrolled in an Ecology 155 Water Resources course.

“Oftentimes placing pipes into aquifers to pump water for use is a risky venture. Aquifers are surrounded by a relatively impermeable layer of clay. This clay resists seepage and basically acts like a giant storage tank underground,” Clegg said. “As pipes are pierced through the clay layer, contaminants can leak into the aquifer, decreasing the quality of the water. Proper engineering needs to be done to make sure that there are no dangerous contaminants that can seep into the aquifer when placing piping into the aquifer.”

Other constituents mentioned prominently in the report were nitrate, boron and radon. Three of the wells in Davis have boron concentration levels that exceed the notification level of 1,000 parts per billion.

In a statement issued to The Davis Enterprise last year, Bob Clarke, the interim director of Davis Public Works, noted that the constituents found in the water were “well below limits that would be considered harmful under state and federal standards.”

Further information can be found by contacting the Davis Public Works Department at 757-5686 and asking to speak to Marie Graham, Rick Thompson or Diana Jensen. Past water quality reports can be found at cityofdavis.org/pw/water/WaterQuality.cfm.

ANGELA SWARTZ contributed to this article.

ANDREW POH can be reached city@theaggie.org.

The 12th Annual UC Davis Film Festival:

Arts & Culture

Arts Editor

May 24, 2012

The UC Davis Film Festival began Wednesday night and will run again tonight at the Davis Varsity Theater. This will mark the festival’s 12th Annual showing in Davis. Produced by the Department of Theatre & Dance, presented in association with UC Davis Cinema and Technocultural Studies and co-sponsored by Art Studio, the show will run from 8:30 to 10:30 both nights for $7.

“It’s an awesome showcase of student work and a chance to see films that otherwise are only viewed in a small classroom,” said Todd Kaiser, a student Technical Director for the festival. “We have a lot of experimental films in this year’s program. Submissions of comedy, drama, documentary and animation have led to a well-rounded show.”

The Irrelevant and Shallow Life of Birdie Peacock, a student-produced mockumentary about a washed-up child star, is one of several experimental films submitted in this year’s lineup. Put together by last year’s winners Anna Hossnieh (best documentary for Standing Compassion) and Meredith Sward (best experimental film for Oh Dear), the film revolves around a has-been child star struggling to make a movie of her life.

Ngoc Le, Lead Student Producer of the festival, will also contribute to this year’s lineup. Her documentary submission centers on Janet Liang, a UCLA student suffering from leukemia looking to find a perfect bone marrow match.

According to the festival’s press release, the film was inspired by Le’s own recent struggle.

“When I was diagnosed with a lifelong autoimmune disease last fall, I was told that I might eventually need a bone marrow transplant,” Le said. “During my treatment, I became inspired upon reading media accounts of Janet’s story. Her YouTube cry for help brought me to tears because she only had a few months to live and that made me think, ‘that could have been me or that will be me one day.’”

“Nothing is more encouraging than an audience’s response,” Le said in an email interview with The Aggie. “Every student has been working hard to showcase their talent and interest in cinema. It would be a great encouragement and accomplishment for them to see their hard work on the screen viewed by an audience in a theatre setting.”

If you couldn’t make it to Cannes this year, the UC Davis Film Festival is a prime alternative. Dozens of filmmakers will be displaying their work.

JAMES O’HARA can be contacted at arts@theaggie.org.

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