Dateline Rice for June 20, 2014

FEATURED ITEMS

A look at the competitiveness of higher education
Rice President David Leebron authored an op-ed about higher education.
The Hill
http://bit.ly/1nSpdbj

Volunteers build community meditation space
Rice’s Boniuk Institute for the Study and Advancement of Religious Tolerance contributed to the renovation of the Historic Freedman’s Town Labyrinth. Mike Pardee, associate director for community engagement at the Boniuk Institute, is mentioned.
Jewish Herald-Voice (This article appeared on the front page.)
http://bit.ly/1jDj0f6

NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL

Solar cell ‘spikes’ let in 99% of sunlight
Rice scientists created a one-step process to etch nanoscale spikes into silicon to allow more than 99 percent of sunlight to reach cells’ active elements and produce electricity. Andrew Barron, the Charles W. Duncan Jr.-Welch Professor of Chemistry and professor of materials science, and graduate student Yen-Tien Lu are mentioned.
Futurity
http://bit.ly/1lRCmgp
Rice touts advancement in solar cell technique
Fuel Fix
http://bit.ly/1lb8NLf
One step to solar-cell efficiency: Researchers’ chemical process may improve manufacturing
Phys.org (This article also appeared in Science 2.0, Solar Daily, Science Newsline, the Rancher, Business Standard, Mizo News, Memorial Examiner, Bellaire Examiner, Greentech Lead and Science Codex.)
http://bit.ly/SWFyQO
Efficient solar cells are a step closer
Jagran Post (This article also appeared in Yahoo! India, EE Times Europe, World Industrial Reporter, Mangalorean.com, WebIndia123.com and NetIndia123.com.)
http://bit.ly/1lQr6Rg

Al Jazeera America
Edward Djerejian, founding director of Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and former U.S. ambassador to Syria and Israel, is interviewed about the Iraq conflict.
http://bit.ly/1psofUu

American studying sex assault in India experiences scourge firsthand
Alumna Jenny Wen ’13 was awarded a fellowship for a year of travel outside the U.S. to meet victims of sexual assault.
Al Jazeera America
http://alj.am/1lbdTY6

Scientists take a look deep beneath Mount St. Helens
Rice researchers will set off a series of underground explosions across southwest Washington to map the plumbing system beneath Mount St. Helens.
KUOW.org
http://bit.ly/1lLG2A3
http://bit.ly/1pQfNjC

Water from air? Scientists report successful water harvesting experiment
Rice researchers built a device that harvests water from the air like the Namib Desert beetle.
China Topix
http://bit.ly/1uK5o70

Once a humble refueling stop, Dubai is crossroads to the globe
Visitors to Dubai have increased dramatically over the past decade. Jim Krane, the Wallace S. Wilson Fellow for Energy Studies at the Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted.
Today Online (This article also appeared in Economic Times, Financial Review and NDTV India.)
http://bit.ly/Te6USM

Local volunteers attend League of Women Voters’ national meeting
Steve Murdock, the Allyn and Gladys Cline Professor of Sociology and director of Rice’s Hobby Center for the Study of Texas, presented “Demographic Trends for the Country” at the League of Women Voters of the United States’ 51st biennial convention in Dallas.
Chicago Tribune (This article also appeared in Glenview Patch, Wilmette-Kenilworth Patch, Lake Forest-Lake Bluff Patch and Skokie Patch.)
http://trib.in/1lQUyGI

HOUSTON/TEXAS

Former Obama adviser says Affordable Care Act is misunderstood
Anton Gunn, a former adviser to President Obama, claims that the U.S. health care system is inefficient, and most Americans do not understand health care. A Rice survey on the decrease of uninsured Texans is referenced.
Houston Business Journal
http://bit.ly/Te9MiH

Barnes and Coan: Failed energy-policy bills represent missed opportunity
Joe Barnes, the Bonner Means Baker Fellow at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, and James Coan, research associate for the Energy Forum at the Baker Institute, authored an op-ed about the recent failed bills in the U.S. Senate and the difficulty of passing U.S. energy legislation.
Beaumont Enterprise
http://bit.ly/1rg0cHM

Management of ankle sprains
Rice team physician Travis Hanson authored a blog post on ankle sprains.
Vype.com
http://bit.ly/1oP2nVz

16 spring season standouts
Experimental theater director Robert Wilson’s talk at Rice’s 2014 Campbell Lecture Series is highlighted.
Arts + Culture Texas
http://bit.ly/1noakul

Heart of Glass: Why Alamo Drafthouse decided to ban those nerdy Google spectacles
Alumnus Tim League ’92, owner of the Alamo Drafthouse, banned Google Glass to avoid piracy problems.
CultureMap
http://bit.ly/1prXWhg

Miraculous music: Scandalous masterpiece set in post-apocalyptic brothel shakes up classical world
Graduate student Rebecca Tobin is mentioned.
CultureMap
http://bit.ly/1qwC6ea

BROADCAST

Some Houston oil companies evacuating Iraq
Joe Barnes, the Bonner Means Baker Fellow at the Baker Institute, and James Coan, research associate for the Energy Forum at the Baker Institute, are interviewed about the crisis in Iraq and its effect on local oil companies.
KPRC-TV
http://bit.ly/1prt3JP

US ranks 101st in peace index
According to the 2014 Global Peace Index, this is the most peaceful century in human history. Richard Stoll, the Albert Thomas Chair in Political Science and scholar at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted about the United States’ poor rank on the list of 162 peaceful regions in the world.
KTRH-AM
http://bit.ly/1no2dxG

KUT 90.5 (Austin, Texas)
Mark Jones, the Joseph D. Jamail Chair in Latin American Studies, professor and chair of political science and fellow in political science at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted about the Texas border surge.
http://bit.ly/1jDd85w
WOAI-AM (San Antonio, Texas)
http://bit.ly/1stfAVE

TRADE/PROFESSIONAL

NSF awards Rice scientist CAREER grant to improve photocatalysis
Isabell Thomann, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering, will spend five years exploring ways of using sunlight to reduce the carbon footprint of power plants, thanks to a prestigious CAREER Award from the National Science Foundation.
AZoNano.com
http://bit.ly/1lQu8oz

Violence, corruption may threaten US gas exports to Mexico, analysts say
Tony Payan, the Françoise and Edward Djerejian Fellow for Mexico Studies at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and director of the Baker Institute’s Mexico Center, is quoted about the corruption in Mexico interfering with plans to make it a natural gas destination.
SNL.com
http://bit.ly/1nonDL3

OTHER NEWS OF INTEREST

The Chintimini Chamber Music Festival kicks off Friday
Karim Al-Zand, associate professor of composition and theory at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, will perform at the Chintimini Chamber Music Festival.
Gazette Times
http://bit.ly/1no7s0s

Value subtracted
Alumna Jossie Ivanov ’07 is included in an article about landscape architecture graduates.
Landscape Architecture Magazine
http://bit.ly/1ps21Ca

Music festival assembles Geneva natives
Doctoral student Geoffrey Herd is the director of the Geneva Music Festival.
Seneca Daily
http://bit.ly/1m3WSz5

Take it from Vonnegut: The graduation speeches
Author Kurt Vonnegut’s 1998 commencement speech at Rice is cited.
East Hampton Star
http://bit.ly/1lGHb06

SPORTS

CFB expectations highest for Baylor & LSU
An article discusses changes among university football teams. Rice football is mentioned.
CBS Houston
http://cbsloc.al/1irvRpx

3 Pitt student-athletes attend NCAA Career in Sports Forum
Rice Athletics Director Joe Karlgaard attended the 2014 NCAA Career in Sports Forum in Indianapolis.
PittsburghPanthers.com
http://bit.ly/1nocQRi

Dust Devils notes: Valle back in baseball with AquaSox
Rice baseball player Shane Hoelscher is mentioned.
Tri-City Herald
http://bit.ly/1m3Ff2c

Tulane’s Katye Magee receives postgraduate scholarship
Tulane University basketball player Katye Magee was awarded one of 15 Jim Castañeda Postgraduate Scholarships, named after the late former Rice faculty member.
Sports NOLA
http://bit.ly/Te4JPb

WCFT-TV (Birmingham, Ala.)
Rice’s track and field is mentioned as a volunteer and contributor to the Transplant Games.
http://bit.ly/Un7cb4 (This broadcast also appeared on WSKA-TV and WENY-TV.)

NEWS RELEASE

Rice U. experts comment on Texas border surge
Tony Payan, the Françoise and Edward Djerejian Fellow for Mexico Studies at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and director of the Baker Institute’s Mexico Center, and Mark Jones, the Joseph D. Jamail Chair in Latin American Studies, professor and chair of political science and fellow in political science at Rice’s Baker Institute, are available to discuss the enhancement of the U.S. Border Patrol in Texas.
http://bit.ly/1oOAMUA