Dateline Rice for April 11, 2017

NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL

Russia could soon control a US oil company
Francisco Monaldi, a fellow in Latin American energy policy at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted about Venezuela’s state-run oil company, Petroleos de Venezuela.
CNN Money (This appeared in over 20 other media outlets.)
http://cnnmon.ie/2omxmLt

Trump’s military strikes in Syria complicated by Iran’s role
Edward Djerejian, director of Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and former U.S. ambassador to Syria and to Israel and a former assistant secretary of state for near eastern affairs, is quoted.
Washington Post (Similar articles appeared in over 20 other media outlets.)
http://wapo.st/2p3Dbgx
Houston Chronicle (Subscription required.)
http://bit.ly/2p3OWDU
http://bit.ly/2p3Ilcs
Observers left wondering who the real Donald Trump is in the wake of Syrian attacks
The Star
http://bit.ly/2p3LBEU
What will it take for Putin to dump Assad?
USA Today
http://usat.ly/2ovLkwo

Major college doing away with ‘master’ title. Because slavery.
Rice will replace the title “college master” with “college magister” at the beginning of academic year 2017-18. Dean of Undergraduates John Hutchinson is quoted. Brown College senior Conor Beck authored the College Fix article.
The Blaze
http://bit.ly/2o00MNu
Rice U. does away with ‘master’ term, cites ‘negative historical connotation’
College Fix
http://bit.ly/2ovDrap
Rice University won’t use the word ‘college master’ anymore, citing ‘negative historical connotation’
Independent Women’s Forum
http://bit.ly/2p3v5EG

HOUSTON/TEXAS

Pulitzer finalists
Alumnus Evan Mintz ’08 was a finalist for the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for editorial writing.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription required.)
http://bit.ly/2omqQEr

How school choice is creating less diversity
Leah Binkovitz, staff writer for Rice’s Kinder Institute for Urban Research, authored an op-ed about school choice.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription required. This appeared in the Chronicle’s “Gray Matters” online magazine.)
http://bit.ly/2oUQtiI

St. Thomas’ Miggins earns Phi Beta Kappa Scholarship
An article mentions a Phi Beta Kappa meeting was held at Rice in 1972.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription required.)
http://bit.ly/2o3pXiZ
http://bit.ly/2p3CR1t

STEAM programs unite art and science education
Carolyn Nichol, director of Rice’s Office of STEM Engagement and lecturer of chemistry, discusses STEM education.
Community Impact
http://bit.ly/2o3qmC1

Study: Texas voter education campaign failed to prevent ID confusion
Mark Jones, the Joseph D. Jamail Chair in Latin American Studies, professor of political science, fellow in political science at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and fellow at Rice’s Kinder Institute for Urban Research, is quoted about Texas’ voter ID rules and proposed temporary sales tax breaks in Texas. Jones also co-authored an op-ed about voter education.
Texas Tribune
http://bit.ly/2ooo9DR
Texas considers sales tax holiday for guns
CPA Practice Advisor
http://bit.ly/2nB4Yb6
Cross, Granato, Jones: State should focus on voter education
San Antonio Express-News (Subscription required.)
http://bit.ly/2pq5GUZ

Gut bacteria could control prescription dosing
Matthew Bennett, associate professor of biochemistry and cell biology, is quoted.
Daily Cougar
http://bit.ly/2o3l8Gy

Baytown PD: Suspect in shooting death of Harris County deputy committed suicide
The suspect who killed alumnus Clint Greenwood ’83 committed suicide.
KIAH
http://bit.ly/2pq0jVS

BROADCAST

Audio: Dr. Richard J. Stoll, Rice University prof of political science, on Syria and computer study of foreign policy
Richard Stoll, the Albert Thomas Chair in Political Science and scholar at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, discusses the U.S. airstrike on Syria.
KHOW
http://bit.ly/2pqbMVG
KPFT
http://bit.ly/2ovPLHF

TRADE/PROFESSIONAL

Proton-nuclei smashups yield clues about ‘quark gluon plasma’
Findings from Rice University physicists working at Europe’s Large Hadron Collider are providing new insight about an exotic state of matter called the “quark-gluon plasma” that occurs when protons and neutrons melt. Wei Li, assistant professor of physics and astronomy, graduate student Kong Tu and alumnus Don Lincoln ’90 are quoted.
Chem Europe (This also appeared in Science Daily and Phys Org.)
http://bit.ly/2p1E6Bf

$6.25M NIH grant supports 3-D bioprinting research at new Center for Engineering Complex Tissues
Bioengineers at Rice, the University of Maryland and Wake Forest University have received a $6.25 million National Institutes of Health grant to establish the Center for Engineering Complex Tissues (CECT). Antonios Mikos, the Louis Calder Professor of Bioengineering and Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, professor of materials science and nanoengineering and director of the CECT, is quoted.
3ders
http://bit.ly/2oomMVQ

Rice U. piques teens’ STEM interests with summer camps
Rice’s Tapia Center for Excellence and Equity will host a summer camp for teens at Rice June 4-July 29. Jaime Rodriguez, executive director of the Tapia Center, and Richard Tapia, founder and director of the Tapia Center, University Professor and the Maxfield-Oshman Professor of Computational and Applied Mathematics, are mentioned in the THE Journal article.
Education Dive
http://bit.ly/2nB7m1L
STEM camps for 8-12 graders offered at Rice University
THE Journal
http://bit.ly/2p3ATy6

The next generation of ceramic matrix composites
To stand up to the heat and pressure of next-generation rocket engines, the composite fibers used to make them should be fuzzy. A Rice laboratory, in collaboration with NASA, has developed “fuzzy fibers” of silicon carbide that act like Velcro and stand up to the punishment that materials experience in aerospace applications. Pulickel Ajayan, the Benjamin M. and Mary Greenwood Anderson Professor in Engineering and founding chair of the Department of Materials Science and NanoEngineering and graduate student Amelia Hart are mentioned.
Composites World
http://bit.ly/2oUVpnF

Bacterial sensor for gut inflammation changes color of poo
Synthetic biologists at Rice have engineered gut bacteria capable of sensing colitis, an inflammation of the colon, in mice. The research points the way to new experiments for studying how gut bacteria and human hosts interact at a molecular level and could eventually lead to orally ingestible bacteria for monitoring gut health and disease. Jeffrey Tabor, assistant professor of bioengineering, is mentioned.
Med Gadget
http://bit.ly/2omF3kw

OTHER NEWS OF INTEREST

Congress sinks into partisan morass as shutdown threat looms
Paul Brace, the Clarence L. Carter Professor of Political Science, is quoted about Congress.
The Spokesman-Review
http://bit.ly/2oUSnQx

Indian-American Student at Rice University awarded Watson Fellowship
McMurtry College seniors Madhuri Venkateswar and Allison Yu are among the 40 students who were named a 2017 Thomas J. Watson Fellow.
Indian Panorama
http://bit.ly/2nANDyV

2 Rice students, including an Indian-American, named Goldwater Scholars
Jones College junior Rohan Palanki and Wiess College senior Constantine Tzouanas have been awarded Goldwater Scholarships for the 2017-2018 academic year.
Indian Panorama
http://bit.ly/2ovLGmP

4 Pueblo East High School Eagles to fly into hall of fame
Alumnus Paul Marshall ’80 is mentioned.
Pueblo Chieftain
http://bit.ly/2oUR5ol

Faster and cheaper genome sequencing may stop the Zika virus from spreading
A team from Rice, Baylor College of Medicine, Texas Children’s Hospital and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard has developed a new way to sequence genomes, which can assemble the genome of an organism, entirely from scratch, dramatically cheaper and faster.
Town of Morningside Maryland
http://bit.ly/2nAYDg1

Rice University cello professor to visit Penn State
Desmond Hoebig, professor of cello, will present a masterclass for Penn State cello students April 14.
Penn State News
http://bit.ly/2ppX1SB

Survey: Consumers increasingly using credit cards for smaller purchases
Utpal Dholakia, the George R. Brown Professor of Marketing at Rice’s Jones Graduate School of Business and a marketing and consumer behavior expert, is quoted.
WTOP
http://bit.ly/2ppRawr

SPORTS

Bablak makes quick adjustment at Rice
Jones College sophomore Hannah Bablak is featured.
Trib Live
http://bit.ly/2nAVJrv

Texas Tech community remembers Dykes as loyal Red Raider with sense of humor
Rice is mentioned.
Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
http://bit.ly/2ppImH4

Bombers add familiar faces to the roster
Martel College junior Willy Amador is mentioned.
KBTX
http://bit.ly/2ovKsrI

La. Tech back on the right track after series victory over Rice
Rice baseball is mentioned.
ArkLaTex
http://bit.ly/2o3vlm5
Cougars sweep ECU with 17 runs in one game
Daily Cougar
http://bit.ly/2oUYLat
ULM to host La. Tech
The News Star
http://tnsne.ws/2nAWO2t
La. Tech’s Nate Harris earns C-USA honor
The News Star (This also appeared in the Shreveport Times.)
http://tnsne.ws/2p3VCll

5 alive: Texans in 5th round of NFL draft
Former Rice football player James Casey is mentioned.
Houston Texans News
http://bit.ly/2nB4bXL

NMSU Men 3rd at West Intercollegiate
Rice golf is mentioned.
El Paso Proud
http://bit.ly/2nB1SnF
ORU men’s golf team has strong 1st day in Austin
Tulsa World
http://bit.ly/2p3T06U
Local briefs: NMSU’s Kelsey Horton named WAC Hitter of the Week
Las Cruces Sun-News
http://bit.ly/2o0mZLq

Spring League’s roster shows variety of backgrounds for players trying to catch NFL’s eye
Former Rice football player Kyle Martens is mentioned.
AL.com
http://bit.ly/2ovKkbN

Herd volleyball announces 2017 schedule
Rice volleyball is mentioned.
Marshall Athletics
http://bit.ly/2p1Z178

Arizona State’s defense taking shape under new coordinator Phil Bennett
An article mentions that Todd Graham coached at Rice.
Arizona Republic
http://bit.ly/2ovM44H

NEWS RELEASES

Paper: Regulatory system governing Mexico’s oil and gas industry needs enhancement
One of the goals of Mexico’s energy reform was to create a regulatory system that would foster competition in a very complex political environment. That system is in place but needs enhancement, according to a new paper from the Mexico Center at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy.
http://bit.ly/2ovZiyk

Rice’s Shepherd School Chamber, Symphony orchestras to present final concerts of the season
Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music Chamber and Symphony orchestras will perform their final concerts of the spring semester April 20 and 21, respectively. Both performances will take place at 8 p.m. in Alice Pratt Brown Hall’s Stude Concert Hall on the Rice University campus. Larry Rachleff, the Walter Kris Hubert Professor of Orchestral Conducting, will direct both performances.
http://bit.ly/2p2537x

NIH grant funds Center for Engineering Complex Tissues at Rice
Bioengineers at Rice University, the University of Maryland and Wake Forest University have received a $6.25 million National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant to establish the Center for Engineering Complex Tissues. The center, which will start April 15, will help move tissue engineering from the lab to the clinic by both developing new technologies and serving as a collaborative hub for the fast-growing community of surgeons, biomaterials experts and engineers focused on regenerative medicine.
http://bit.ly/2ovXPIx

Rice U. scientists add to theory about Huntington’s mechanism
Rice University researchers are starting to understand how protein fragments influence the fiber aggregation suspected as a cause of Huntington’s disease.
http://bit.ly/2p1Xjm7