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Arts & Culture

Cornell's nuclear research reactor, the last of its kind in New York and one of only 26 left in the country, will soon hit the graveyard, further endangering a rare technology in an era when nuclear engineering is on the rise. The Board of Trustees voted unanimously last summer to decommission the reactor and close the Ward Center for Nuclear Studies, according to Henrik N. Dullea '61, vice president for University relations. Heated controversy met the decision, which had been requested by President Hunter R. Rawlings III and recommended by a special faculty oversight committee. The decision to decommission the reactor had been rejected by the full Faculty Senate under the grounds that the center provides "a diverse array of service to the Cornell community and beyond." Alumni and industry users had also addressed inflammatory responses to the administration. And about 20 undergraduates were gathered outside Day Hall to present a petition with 200 signatures opposing the closure. Despite these efforts and the announcement of a $250,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to help save the reactor and make it financially independent from the University, the reactor is scheduled to shut down on June 30, 2002. Money cannot be the main reason for closing the reactor because the phase-out is going to be very expensive, said Kenan

COLLINS | Terror in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction

By Arts & Culture Department · Friday, Nov. 20, 2015

Three major rule changes are in effect for the upcoming Ivy League volleyball season. First, and to the chagrin of some of the Ivy coaches, there will be a whole new way that the teams will play out their fall schedules. Last season the Red faced each of its Ancient Eight foes once during the conference season. The postseason conference tournament followed, sending the eventual champion to the NCAA tournament. Instead of only having one opportunity to stuff Princeton this year, the Red will have two opportunites during the in-conference regular season. This double round robin format, in conjunction with the axing of the season-ending tournament, will intensify the in-conference matches and leave less room for error. In past seasons, a team could drop a match to an opponent and then have the opportunity to exact revenge in the tournament. Nevermore, says the majority vote amongst the Ivy League Athletic Directors, who voted this all into effect this year. "This season will present a whole new set of challenges," said coach Christie Jackson. Remember the number two right? The second change has to do with rally scoring. Fifteen points used to determine the victor of a set and now... you guessed it, thirty points is the new mark. Jackson speculated, "All of these rule changes might be in effort to make the matches more television friendly." The third rule change makes the net serve kosher for play. In the past, if a serve coming over the net touched any part of the net cord and still managed to fall on the other side, the point was replayed. Now those instances are good for live play. As a result of these changes, Jackson said that, "There will be a challenge to keep the team motivated through the whole season."Archived article by Donald Lee

F is for Fake: Welles Explores Truth in Deception

By Arts & Culture Department · Friday, Nov. 20, 2015

The Cornell Forensics Society has a long-standing tradition of excellence, and this year's team is no exception. After a long year full of daily practices and weekend (sometimes week-long) competitions, the team finally closed out the year with their last events and is now reflecting on their accomplishments. The Cornell Forensics Society, consisting of roughly 40 members, is subdivided into speech and debate teams and is an opportunity for students with all levels of skill and experience to compete in intercollegiate speech and debate tournaments across the nation, according to the team's website. This year alone, the students collectively attended over 40 conferences around the nation. According to Parichay Rudina '00, the team's Director of Rhetoric Scholarship Laboratory, "Traveling was one of the best parts of the forensics experience. We've been to numerous schools all around the nation this year." After spending four years as a member on Cornell's team, Rudina decided to stick around and coach for the speech side of the team. "This year has been ridiculously fun,' Rudina said. "A lot of our more experienced members graduated last year, so we were left with a very new, young team. They all really stepped up and brought new energy to the team. It's been a great challenge for all of us and a wonderful learning experience." The changeover did not seem to affect the team's legacy of excellent competition, though. The debate team ranked ninth in the nation in the CEDA division and eighth in the National Debate Tournament division. The speech team ranked 17th in the nation in the American Forensics Association division and seventh in the National Forensics Association in their division. In addition, Steve Zammit '01, who recently won first place at the American Forensics Association National Individual Events Tournament, took home first place again, this time at the National Forensics Association Individual Events Tournament. He is the fifth person ever to win both national events in the same year and the second from Cornell. "The level of experience in our group is very diverse this year," said Jethro Hayman, director of forensics. "We have people from all different backgrounds competing in all different levels. After a year together, both teams have grown significantly in maturity and skill and are much more seasoned." Students on the Cornell Forensics Society teams spend countless hours throughout the year preparing for their events. "It really is a daily involvement," said Tzvetana Tochkov '03, a member of the debate team. "But I find that after the work we do with debate, classwork is actually much more enjoyable. Taking notes in lectures becomes a nice break from the intense reading, writing and quick-thinking in debate." With the end of yet another successful year, the team is anxious for the future. "Speech and debate is really becoming a global phenomenon," said Hayman. "The one thing the public fears more than death is public speaking. For this reason, we really are a secret society. Things like being able to break down the quality of an argument and the ability to think and respond quickly are such advantageous skills. These are skills you will use for the rest of your life." Archived article by Aylin Tanyeri

The Bad Dads of Indie Pop: A Chat with Guster's Ryan Miller

By Arts & Culture Department · Thursday, Nov. 19, 2015

The Cornell Daily Sun

ALUR | Finding Solace In Sound

By Arts & Culture Department · Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2015

The Cornell Daily Sun

Spinning Singles: Pusha T, "Untouchable"

By Arts & Culture Department · Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2015

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STANTON | Aziz, Louie and New York City

By Chris Stanton · Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2015

The Cornell Daily Sun

Master of None: On Aziz Ansari's Smart New Sitcom

By Shay Collins · Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2015

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Bombay Comes Alive in Court

By Hadiyah Chowdhury · Monday, Nov. 16, 2015

The Cornell Daily Sun

next to normal at Risley Theatre

By Arts & Culture Department · Sunday, Nov. 15, 2015

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DOOLITTLE | History Has Its Eyes on You: Revisionism on Stage

By Arts & Culture Department · Sunday, Nov. 15, 2015

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MEISEL | White Supremacy, Poetry and You

By Stephen Meisel · Friday, Nov. 13, 2015

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TEST SPIN: Foxing — Dealer

By Arts & Culture Department · Friday, Nov. 13, 2015

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A Chat with Local Punkers, why+the+wires

By Arts & Culture Department · Friday, Nov. 13, 2015

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BROMER | Distraction's a Good Thing? You Must Be on Krac(auer)

By Arts & Culture Department · Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2015

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Blue Burdens and Hipster Horatio in Hamlet

By Arts & Culture Department · Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2015

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The Life of the Party at Cornell Cinema: Portrait of Jason

By Arts & Culture Department · Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2015

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Fresh-Squeezed Fierceness: Tangerine at Cornell Cinema

By Arts & Culture Department · Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2015

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Bond 24: Quite the Spectre-cal

By Mark DiStefano · Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2015

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Please Not Seventeen Again: I and You at the Kitchen Theatre

By Arts & Culture Department · Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2015

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Art and Craft: Emmanuel Ax at Bailey Hall

By Arts & Culture Department · Monday, Nov. 9, 2015

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