Dateline Rice for Nov. 2, 2017

NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL

James A. Baker III: What if Al Gore is right?
Former U.S. Secretary of State James A. Baker III, honorary chair of Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, spoke on climate change at the first Global Energy Transitions Summit. The conference was held at Rice and co-hosted by the Baker Institute’s Center for Energy Studies and Baker Botts LLP.
Forbes
http://bit.ly/2h54EiS

NASA nominee faces sharp criticism on past political positions
A confirmation hearing for Rep. Jim Bridenstine ’97, R-Okla., President Donald Trump’s choice to become NASA administrator, was held Nov. 1 in Washington.
Sheboygan Press (This article appeared in more than 100 other media outlets.)
http://shebpr.es/2zf61Cp
Trump nominates Cornell alumnus for NASA administrator
Cornell Daily Sun
http://bit.ly/2zejvhK

Texas politics after Joe Straus
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 in a story on Texas House Speaker Joe Straus, R-San Antonio, and the impact of his decision to not seek re-election. Jones also discussed politics on radio program “Houston Matters,” and he is quoted in a story on U.S. Rep. Jeb Hensarling, R-Texas, who announced he will not seek re-election.
The Economist
http://econ.st/2gWk4lI
Is the Texas Legislature about to get even crazier?
Vice
http://bit.ly/2Aau43r
‘Houston Matters’
Houston Public Media
http://bit.ly/2xPrtKt
Texas District 5 Congressional contest in play
Weatherford Democrat (This article also appeared in the Palestine Herald Press.)
http://bit.ly/2xRryNW
Hobby School launches long-term survey to measure Harvey’s impact
The Hobby School of Public Affairs at University of Houston will survey as many as 2,000 people in the Houston area over five years to record the human impact of Hurricane/Tropical Storm Harvey. Jones and Bob Stein, the Lena Gohlman Fox Professor of Political Science at Rice, are involved with the survey.
University of Houston
http://bit.ly/2z8v4qP

Saudi Arabia’s grand plan to move beyond oil: Big goals, bigger hurdles
Kristian Ulrichsen, fellow for the Middle East at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted in a story on changes in Saudi Arabia.
Irish Times
http://bit.ly/2z8pG73

How big data can support treatment of epilepsy
A story on developing new epilepsy treatment plans mentions a team of Rice engineering students recently took top honors and a $5,000 prize for its development of a potential digital cure.
Huffington Post
http://bit.ly/2lFjiil

Kevin Spacey and the Cult of Image
Wiess College junior Izzy Rodriguez authored an op-ed about media’s handling of celebrity sexual harassment and assault allegations.
Medium
http://bit.ly/2A1pvXZ

Shared space: Makers don’t need their own workshops
Rice’s Oshman Engineering Design Kitchen is mentioned in a Q&A on “makerspaces,” which create access to industrial tools and shared work spaces.
Nashville Ledger
http://bit.ly/2ypUNvi

HOUSTON/TEXAS

Developers show disregard for facts, community
A column on a proposal to build 800 homes in a West Houston neighborhood that sits in a flood plain mentions Rice’s Severe Storm Prediction, Education and Evacuation from Disasters (SSPEED) Center.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required.)
http://bit.ly/2hxgAHd

Harvey’s gone. But trauma lingers in our brains and bodies.
Claudia Kolker, associate director of intellectual capital, marketing and communications at Rice’s Jones Graduate School of Business, authored an article on Acute Stress Disorder, which occurs after exposure to a traumatic event. Matthew Wettergreen, lecturer for the Oshman Engineering Design Kitchen, and Otilia Obodaru, assistant professor of management at the Jones School, are quoted.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This appeared in the Chronicle’s “Gray Matters” online magazine.)
http://bit.ly/2gYanDm

Art Daybook: ‘Galveston and Texas City, Year 2517’ by Erik Hagen
Artist Erik Hagen’s “Galveston and Texas City, Year 2517” will be duplicated at Rice.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article also appeared in the San Antonio Express-News and Beaumont Enterprise.)
http://bit.ly/2gYRoJ7
http://bit.ly/2A0wh0d

Art gallery and museum listings: Nov. 2-8
Trenton Doyle Hancock’s “Texas: 1997-2017” at the former Rice University Gallery and “Mickalene Thomas: Waiting on a Prime-Time Star” at the Moody Center are mentioned.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article also appeared at MSN.com and the San Antonio Express-News.)
http://bit.ly/2z6JDLz
http://bit.ly/2zs1aP1
This month’s top exhibits
Local Houston Magazine
http://bit.ly/2inSfmQ

What movies are showing outside the megaplex?
“We Are in It,” the journey of five Houston residents and their attempt to find refuge in the city, is playing Nov. 3 at Rice Cinema.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required.)
http://bit.ly/2xOO0XV
http://bit.ly/2hxGk6j

President’s Perspective: ‘Collabatition’ at the Texas Medical Center
An article authored by Texas Medical Center President and CEO William McKeon mentions Rice’s involvement in the TMC Health Policy Institute.
TMC News
http://bit.ly/2h7GsfI

FHP picks of the week: Moving forward
“Trajectory of a Curve,” a site-specific musical theater performance at James Turrell’s “Twilight Epiphany” Skyspace on the Suzanne Deal Booth Centennial Pavilion at Rice, is mentioned.
Free Press Houston
http://bit.ly/2zZEH8g

Leaders from around the world assembled to discuss extreme weather, energy economics, global health, space and other critical issues
Rebecca Richards-Kortum, the Malcolm Gillis University Professor, professor of bioengineering and of electrical and computer engineering and director of the Rice 360° Institute for Global Health, spoke at the International Women’s Forum World Leadership Conference in Houston.
Houston Forward Times
http://bit.ly/2h4vK9O

Business in Fort Bend
Laura Martinez ’07 and Neel Srikishen ’07 joined Houston Methodist Urology Associates in Sugar Land.
Fort Bend Lifestyles & Homes
http://bit.ly/2ynL9JY

Charity saves leftover food
Second Servings
An article on Second Servings Houston, a charity that delivers leftover, prepared meals to organizations feeding the hungry, mentions that interns from Rice have participated in the program.
The Buzz Magazines
http://bit.ly/2hxvvkD

The Camino: Spain by foot
Lovett College junior Meghna Dara is mentioned in an article on her parents’ pilgrimage on Spain’s Camino de Santiago.
The Buzz Magazines
http://bit.ly/2zsopsr

BROADCAST

‘Last Week Tonight with John Oliver’
A recent study by Rice and Texas A&M University at Galveston that found Houston flood plain maps failed to predict roughly 75 percent of flood damage from five floods between 1999 and 2009 is mentioned.
HBO (The video includes adult language.)
http://bit.ly/2iWvpGV

WGBH-FM (Boston)
Moshe Vardi, director of Rice’s Ken Kennedy Institute for Information Technology, the Karen Ostrum George Distinguished Service Professor of Computational Engineering and professor of computer science, is quoted in a story on automation in the medical field.
http://bit.ly/2lHyHyD (Click the audio button to listen to the broadcast.)

‘Bob Show’
A study by Rice that showed nearly a quarter of Mexican immigrants who live near the California-Mexico border without legal authorization have a mental disorder, particularly depression or anxiety, is mentioned.
1063Word.com
http://bit.ly/2z7NK7X

TRADE/PROFESSIONAL

Dioxane-chomping microbe has helpful gene
Rice University researchers have discovered a bacteria-borne gene that helps degrade a form of dioxane, a groundwater contaminant and suspected carcinogen. The discovery could be the basis for a much-needed tool to decide how contaminated sites should be treated. Research by the Rice lab Pedro Alvarez, Pedro Alvarez, director of the NEWT Center at Rice University and the George R. Brown Professor in civil and environmental engineering and in materials science and nanoengineering, found a novel gene cluster in Mycobacterium dioxanotrophicus PH-06, a mold-like bacterium capable of using 1,4-dioxane as its sole source of carbon and energy.
ScienceBlog (This article also appeared at Phys.org.)
http://bit.ly/2zrziua

According to a recent report, Hurricane Harvey’s physical destruction won’t be Houston’s only long-term impact
A Rice study that showed Houston is becoming increasingly economically polarized is mentioned.
Gears of Biz
http://bit.ly/2A0wT6f

America’s top 20 colleges & universities, WalletHub ranking 2018; sorry Harvard, Stanford and Caltech
Rice is ranked No. 10 on WalletHub’s “Top 20 Colleges & Universities in America” list.
CEO World Magazine
http://bit.ly/2hxCwC3

Buying $19 avocado toast and $4 coffee doesn’t make you bad with money
Utpal Dholakia, the George R. Brown Professor of Marketing at Rice’s Jones Graduate School of Business and a marketing and consumer behavior expert, authored an article on spending habits.
Business Insider (This article also appeared at InBusiness.)
http://read.bi/2yoZi9K

How the English language has evolved like a living creature
Erez Lieberman Aiden, adjunct assistant professor in computational and applied mathematics and in computer science, is quoted in an article on changes in the English language.
Science Magazine
http://bit.ly/2iU4iw8

Robert Bruce Jr.
Robert Bruce Jr. has been named the new dean of Rice’s Glasscock School of Continuing Studies.
Diverse: Issues in Higher Education
http://bit.ly/2h5wOuj

Studies show minimal socialization boost for interracial dorm roomates
An article on interracial dormitory roommates mentions a 2009 paper that examined students at Rice.
Diverse: Issues in Higher Education
http://bit.ly/2xP00IW

OTHER NEWS OF INTEREST

Whatever happened to local polling?
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 in an article on approval-rating polls.
Governing
http://bit.ly/2zcBqFf

Business briefs
Alumnus Craig Schneider ’06 was named president of Firestone Industrial Products.
GCA News
http://bit.ly/2ioSI8i

Introducing a new educational concept
A story on open educational resources mentions Rice-based publisher OpenStax.
The Equinox (This article also appeared in UWire.)
http://bit.ly/2A9fglB

Playing what they teach
Alumna Ann Miller ’03 played violin with Trio 180, the University of the Pacific’s Conservator of Music in-residence group.
Recordnet.com
http://bit.ly/2h6vmrA

GSD Talks: Michelle Chang, ‘Songs You Know by Heart’
A Rice photo is featured.
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
http://bit.ly/2z8RvKh

Former EPA administrator Gina McCarthy, OFD, urges action on climate change
A panel discussion titled “Clean Energy is Today’s Moon Shot” in Boston opened with a screening of John F. Kennedy’s “Moon Speech,” delivered in 1962 at Rice.
Dorchester Reporter
http://bit.ly/2lJApiY

The Bigelow home is a light-filled architectural gem — and you can see it on a AIA tour
An article on the Menlo Park, Calif., home of Ellis and Ron Bigelow mentions Ron Bigelow took a course at Rice on building a “green” house.
InMenlo
http://bit.ly/2gX3v9e

Dome Theater coming to Harding Middle School
Harding Middle School in Steubenville, Ohio, will host the traveling dome offered by the Houston Museum of Natural Science. Rice is mentioned as a developer of the dome theater.
Herald Star
http://bit.ly/2z8CBWB

SPORTS

Houston Astros make history with city’s first baseball championship
An article about Houston’s sports champions mentions the Rice baseball team’s national title in 2003, and a photo features members of the team with the trophy.
New York Times (This article also appeared in Houston News.)
http://nyti.ms/2iqEXpo

ESPN Radio
A story on Houston Astros player Evan Gattis mentions that the Rice baseball team once recruited him.
http://bit.ly/2iX6hzv (Click the audio button to listen to the broadcast, which also aired on WEPM-AM in Clarksburg, W.Va., and WROC-AM in Rochester, N.Y.)

Breaking down Rice versus Alabama-Birmingham
The Rice football team faces the University of Alabama at Birmingham Nov. 4.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required.)
http://bit.ly/2A0gj6n

Charlotte shuts out Rice in the C-USA quarterfinals
The Rice women’s soccer team lost 1-0 to the University of North Carolina at Charlotte in the quarterfinals of the Conference USA tournament Nov. 1 in Boca Raton, Fla.
Niner Times
http://bit.ly/2ipcRLi

Darrell Kestner, David Leadbetter lead 11 PGA members honored at 2017 PGA of America National Awards Ceremony
Alumnus Mark Pfingston ’90 was among 11 PGA Professionals honored at the PGA of America’s awards ceremony Nov. 1 in Austin. Pfingston was named PGA Merchandiser of the Year-Public Facilities.
PGA.com
http://bit.ly/2zs0KYL

Gators basketball: Koulechov looking to make a big impact for the Gators
Former Rice basketball player Egor Koulechov ’17, who now plays at the University of Florida, is featured.
WRUF.com
http://bit.ly/2h7Hqsm
UGA basketball preview: Can Bulldogs make a mark in improving SEC?
DawgSports.com
http://bit.ly/2hxXWPe

UAFS basketball: Holland joins men’s basketball coaching staff
Former Rice basketball player A.J. Holland was hired as an assistant coach at the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith.
Times Record
http://bit.ly/2A0NzdK

Volleyball: Graham, Koele, Walls selected to Under Armour All-America teams
Carly Graham, who has committed to play volleyball at Rice, was named to the Under Armour Girls High School All-America Teams. A photo features Graham.
Houston Chronicle (This article also appeared in the Courier of Montgomery County.)
http://bit.ly/2zfgA8a

NEWS RELEASE

Dioxane-chomping microbe has helpful gene
Rice University researchers have discovered a bacteria-borne gene that helps degrade a form of dioxane, a groundwater contaminant and suspected carcinogen. The discovery could be the basis for a much-needed tool to decide how contaminated sites should be treated. Research by the Rice lab of civil and environmental engineer Pedro Alvarez found a novel gene cluster in Mycobacterium dioxanotrophicus PH-06, a mold-like bacterium capable of using 1,4-dioxane as its sole source of carbon and energy.
http://bit.ly/2zeFapO

China’s political reforms, economy in focus at Rice’s Baker Institute Nov. 6
A panel of experts will discuss the state of China’s political reforms and economy Nov. 6 at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy. The discussion comes just weeks after the Chinese Communist Party’s historic 19th Party Congress convened the week of Oct. 18 and announced the party’s leadership and agenda for the next five years. The event is free and open to the public but registration is required.
http://bit.ly/2iqBnf5