Dateline Rice for Nov. 11, 2014

FEATURED ITEM

The importance of getting to ‘yes’ on a nuclear deal with Iran
Joe Barnes, the Bonner Means Baker Fellow at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, authored an op-ed about the Obama administration’s pursuit of an agreement with Tehran over Iran’s nuclear program.
The Hill
http://bit.ly/1wPg1tN

NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL

Mexico leader’s woes follow him to China
Mexico President Enrique Peña Nieto visited China despite high tension regarding Mexico’s cancelation of China’s contract to build a high-speed rail line. Tony Payan, the Baker Institute’s Françoise and Edward Djerejian Fellow for Mexico Studies and director of the institute’s Mexico Center, explains why Peña Nieto should have canceled his trip.
The Wall Street Journal (This article also appeared in WSWS.org.)
http://on.wsj.com/1swueW6

Hearst Foundations present fall grants
Rice’s Emerging Scholars Program received a grant from the Hearst Foundation.
Hearst
http://bit.ly/1szMtep

‘Friendship mode’ key in China relations
University Representative Y. Ping Sun and former President George H. W. Bush were honored with a Friendship Ambassador Award at the Houston chapter of the U.S. China Peoples Friendship Association’s annual gala.
CE.cn
http://bit.ly/1ExURTe

Veterans at elite colleges
Inside Higher Ed reports on the small number of veterans attending the top universities in the nation. Rice is mentioned.
Inside Higher Ed
http://bit.ly/1yu7uun

HOUSTON/TEXAS

Rice Design Alliance gala draws creative crowd
The Rice Design Alliance Gala raised nearly $575,000 for educational programs. Among the guests were Rice President David Leebron, University Representative Y. Ping Sun and Dean of Architecture Sarah Whiting.
Houston Chronicle
http://bit.ly/10VC6Kv

Possible state senate departure by Van de Putte opens the door for Rep. Trey Martinez-Fischer
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, comments on the consequences of state senator Leticia Van de Putte delaying her next career decision, Texas lawmakers’ topics of interest for the next 84th session and Texas’ election results.
Texas Public Radio
http://bit.ly/1xf8K7Z
Taxes, guns, money on legislature’s wish list
Austin American-Statesman (Subscription required.)
http://bit.ly/1qCwH1A
Straus, House leaders launch early PR offensive
San Antonio Express-News (Subscription required.)
http://bit.ly/1wPqNju
Dave McNeely: Election 2014: A bad day for Democrats
TheFacts.com
http://bit.ly/1uYLxG8
Presidente de la Cámara Baja de Texas se prepara para batalla con el Tea Party
La Voz (An English translation is not available.)
http://bit.ly/1uYM9M3

BROADCAST

Scrubs go high-tech
Alumnus Rick Ngo ’94 helped develop high-tech gear for medical professionals.
WWLP.com (This also appeared on WRCB-TV, KARD-TV and My High Plains.)
http://bit.ly/1xHQVuR

Music in the making: Nov. 9, 2014
Rice’s Shepherd School of Music’s performance of Georg Philipp Telemann’s Sonata in E minor is performed by Benjamin Kamins, professor of bassoon; Paul Ellison, Lynette S. Autrey Professor of Double Bass and chair of strings; and Thomas Jaber, professor of music and director of choral ensembles.
Houston Public Media
http://bit.ly/1u72Aob

TRADE/PROFESSIONAL

The $11 million plan to autocomplete your code
Computer scientists at Rice are leading an $11 million project called PLINY to develop software that makes it easier to write code. Vivek Sarkar, the E.D. Butcher Chair in Engineering, chair of the Department of Computer Science and the principal investigator for the PLINY project, and Swarat Chaudhuri, assistant professor of computer science, are quoted. The article includes a video produced by Rice’s Brandon Martin in the T3n article.
Fast Company
http://bit.ly/149mG7x
Projekt PLINY: Autocorrect und Autocomplete für Software-Entwickler
T3n.de (An English translation is not available. Similar articles also appeared in IT Security Guru, ZiareLive and Exame Informatica.)
http://bit.ly/1xtW7nY

ACA health insurance plans differ in cost, coverage and hospital access across Texas
Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and the Episcopal Health Foundation released a new report analysis of more than 100 health insurance plans across Texas. Elena Marks, scholar in health policy at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, and Vivian Ho, the James A. Baker III Institute Chair in Health Economics at the Baker Institute for Public Policy and professor of economics, are quoted about the report.
Medical Xpress (This article also appeared in Houston Style Magazine, Science Codex and ScienceNewsline.)
http://bit.ly/1uYpD67

Mind-controlled gene expression
Researchers created a device that uses a person’s brainwaves to trigger a light-inducible optogenetic implant in mice. Matthew Bennett, assistant professor of biochemistry and cell biology, is quoted.
The Scientist
http://bit.ly/1tYtUmW

A fine foam for extracting oil
Sibani Lisa Biswal, assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering, and graduate student Charles Conn are featured for their paper on foam maximizing enhanced oil recovery.
Hellenic Shipping News
http://bit.ly/10Vy7NX

OTHER NEWS OF INTEREST

The 2 Boston-area colleges with the happiest students might surprise you
Rice is No. 6 on the Daily Beast’s list of the happiest colleges in the country.
BostInno
http://bit.ly/1xuOwpa

Democrats should’ve run on economic populism. Instead they ran on ‘not really Obama’ and got creamed
A Democratic proposal, which includes raising the minimum wage, cites a Rice and University of Texas study about investing in prekindergarten education.
Daily KOS
http://bit.ly/1uZdpKm

Do Muslims and Christians worship the same god?
Alumnus Roger Olson ’82 authored a blog post analyzing whether Christians and Muslims worship the same god.
Patheos
http://bit.ly/1szqLam

Species of fossil named after professor
A new species of fossil was named after alumna Cynthia Domack ’85. It is called the “Holmiella domackae.”
CapeNews.net
http://bit.ly/1oGtylP

MCCC Gallery to host exhibit by noted artist Stephen Hendee Nov. 11-Dec. 4; Community invited to talk and reception Nov. 17
Mercer County Community College will host “The Ice Next Time: Textiles and Artifacts of Dark Age North America (2026-2280)”by artist Stephen Hendee, whose art has been featured in the Rice Gallery.
Central Jersey
http://bit.ly/14977g4

Military spouses tote ‘portable’ careers
John F. Kennedy’s speech given at Rice in 1962 is referenced.
Daily Republic
http://bit.ly/1ujd43F

SPORTS

The Owls win ugly, the Cougars lose ugly
Rice football beat University of Texas-San Antonio 17-7 at Rice Stadium.
Houston Press
http://bit.ly/1pNuh5s
KPRC-TV (Similar broadcasts appeared in more than 80 other media outlets.)
http://bit.ly/1zhwBBJ
http://bit.ly/1xq3Geo
http://bit.ly/1qCEPPK
KTRK-TV
http://bit.ly/1oH6H9H
KSAT-TV (San Antonio, Texas)
http://bit.ly/1GM3o71
YNN-TV (Austin)
http://bit.ly/1sxpOhF
http://bit.ly/10RwctD
Comcast SportsNet Bay Area
http://bit.ly/1uZa9P9

Men’s basketball exhibition ends in defeat
Rice men’s basketball will play against Oregon State University Nov. 14 in Gill Coliseum.
Daily Barometer
http://bit.ly/1oGGCrj

Column: This game matters
Rice football’s Conference USA game against Marshall University is mentioned.
The Parthenon
http://bit.ly/14967IC

Club rugby team continues to impress, rise
Rice’s rugby team is mentioned.
NTDaily.com
http://bit.ly/1tDcDMz

Gary Kubiak is steadying the Ravens offense
Alumnus Klein Kubiak ’14 is mentioned.
Pro Player Insiders
http://bit.ly/1v090Yl

Local sports roundup: LaSalle’s Willson injured against Giants
Alumnus Luke Willson ’12 is featured.
The Windsor Star (This article also appeared in Canada.com.)
http://bit.ly/1uYYOhZ

NEWS RELEASES

Expert Alert: The importance of getting to ‘yes’ on a nuclear deal with Iran
With a Nov. 24 negotiations deadline with Iran quickly approaching, the U.S. and the other P5-plus-1 countries (United Kingdom, France, Russia, China and Germany) need to reach an accord to prevent the Middle East from becoming an “even more uncertain and dangerous place,”according to Joe Barnes in a column posted online today in The Hill.
http://bit.ly/1xq1T9m

Expert Alert: Clean fossil fuels are no myth, but a requirement
A clear understanding of the facts drives the reality requiring global deployment of transformative technology for clean fossil fuels, according to Charles McConnell, executive director of Rice University’s Energy and Environment Initiative.
http://bit.ly/10RtmVv

Survey: Affordable Care Act health insurance plans differ in cost, coverage and hospital access across Texas
An analysis of more than 100 health insurance plans across Texas offered under the Affordable Care Act shows that plans can differ significantly in premium cost and the number of hospitals included in insurance networks. That’s just one of the findings of a report released today by the Episcopal Health Foundation and Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy.
http://bit.ly/1GM2CXu