Dateline Rice for March 17, 2020

COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Economic fallout from virus felt in gas lines in Venezuela

An article quotes Francisco J. Monaldi, fellow in Latin American energy policy at the Baker Institute for Public Policy’s Center for Energy Studies, Center for the United States and Mexico and Latin America Initiative and a lecturer in energy economics.
The Associated Press (This article also appeared in more than 300 other media outlets.)
http://dateline.rice/march-17-monaldi

Movies have perpetuated racist ideas about illness for more than a century
Kirsten Ostherr, the Gladys Louise Fox Professor of English and director of Rice’s Medical Futures Lab, authored an op-ed.
The Washington Post
http://dateline.rice/march-17-ostherr

How panic buying affects our personal finances
Utpal Dholakia, the George R. Brown Professor of Marketing at Rice’s Jones Graduate School of Business, authored an article.
Psychology Today
http://dateline.rice/march-17-dholakia

Infection rate is ‘only curve that matters’ for economy
Peter Rodriguez, dean of Rice’s Jones Graduate School of Business, is quoted.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article appeared on the front page of the March 17 print edition.)
http://dateline.rice/march-17-rodriguez

Bill to provide paid sick leave, other benefits during coronavirus pandemic moves to Senate
John Diamond, the Edward A. and Hermena Hancock Kelly Fellow in Public Finance at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and director of its Center for Public Finance, is quoted.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article also appeared in the March 17 print edition of the Chronicle, and it appeared in the print and online editions of the San Antonio Express-News.)
http://dateline.rice/march-17-diamond

‘I’ve never seen it like that’: Coronavirus cures city’s traffic by keeping Houston homebound
An article quotes Christof Spieler, senior lecturer of architecture.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required.) 
http://dateline.rice/march-17-spieler

Coronavirus could get US to vote by mail
Dan Wallach, professor of computer science and of electrical and computer engineering and a Rice Faculty Scholar at the Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted.
Forward Kentucky
http://dateline.rice/march-17-wallach

Student media advisers in new territory during campus shutdowns over the coronavirus
Kelley Callaway, student media director at Rice, is quoted.
Student Press Law Center
http://dateline.rice/march-17-callaway

Conference USA officially cancels spring sports
An article mentions that Conference USA has canceled all spring sports competitions and details how the following Rice sports have been impacted by the coronavirus: The women’s basketball team, which was the top-seeded team in the league tournament, was set to play in the quarterfinals March 12; the swimming team earned second place in the C-USA Championships and its season ended one day into the College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America National Invitational; the women’s track and field team won its first indoor conference title in a decade in February and was scheduled to compete in the NCAA Indoor Championships last week; Rice men’s golf and the men’s and women’s tennis teams’ seasons ended prior to their respective C-USA Championships. Head women’s basketball coach Tina Langley and head swimming coach Seth Huston are quoted. Track and field athletes Michelle Fokam and Grace Forbes are mentioned.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article also appeared in the Connecticut Post and the San Francisco Chronicle.)
http://dateline.rice/march-17-hc
Cougars’ seasons come to an early close
Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article appeared in the March 17 print edition.)
http://dateline.rice/march-17-hc

People are trying to make DIY ventilators to meet coronavirus demand
An article mentions that a do-it-yourself version of a device known by its brand name, Ambu bag, was based in part on Rice research.
Vice
http://dateline.rice/march-17-vice

Baylor to conduct classes online, postpones commencement
Articles mention that Rice will transition to online classes for the remainder of the spring semester.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article also appeared in the San Antonio Express-News and the San Francisco Chronicle.)
http://dateline.rice/march-17-hc
Degrees of anxiety: As college classrooms empty, students fear for educations, jobs
Texas Tribune (This article also appeared in KSAT Online, Sealy News, Click2Houston, KETK Online, The Eagle and PanArmenian.net.)
http://dateline.rice/march-17-textrib

Keep track of coronavirus updates from UTSA administration members
The Paisano
http://dateline.rice/march-17-tp
UT confirms its first case of COVID-19 — the president’s wife
Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle and more than 25 other media outlets. This story also appeared in a previous edition of Dateline when it was first posted online.)
http://dateline.rice/march-16-hc
http://dateline.rice/march-17-hc

AMD stock may take another big hit from coronavirus
An article mentions that Rice researchers were able to dramatically increase the speed of Intel’s Xeon chips
MSN Money (This InvestorPlace article also appeared in Markets Insider.)
http://dateline.rice/march-17-msn

NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL

Getting into the groove keeps nanotubes orderly
An article features Rice research into a method for making carbon nanotubes line up in thin films on a filter membrane. Co-authors Junichiro Kono, professor of electrical and computer engineering, of physics and astronomy and of materials science and nanoengineering, and graduate student Natsumi Komatsu are quoted.
Futurity
http://dateline.rice/march-17-kono

‘Punditry ahead of passion’: Sanders sinks as Dems punt on progressivism to topple Trump
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.
Washington Times (This article also appeared on the front page of the March 17 print edition.)
http://dateline.rice/march-17-jones

HOUSTON/TEXAS

Two North Texas MBA programs named among top in nation
An article mentions that Rice’s Jones Graduate School is No. 25 in the nation according to the 2021 Best Graduate Schools list by U.S. News & World Report.
Dallas Business Journal
http://dateline.rice/march-17-dbj

Former Dallas lawmaker launches think tank dedicated to studying Texas Latinos
An article mentions that the Texas Hispanic Policy Foundation, which aims to study the political patterns of Latino voters in Texas, has partnered with Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy.
The Dallas Morning News
http://dateline.rice/march-17-dallasmn

Constitutional law scholar analyzes First Amendment and economic inequality at UH Law Center’s Rosenberg Lecture
An article mentions that the Yale L. Rosenberg Memorial Lecture is named after the late Rice alumnus.
University of Houston Law Center
http://dateline.rice/march-17-uhlaw

BROADCAST

HPM local newscast for 7 a.m., Monday, March 16, 2020
A broadcast mentions Rice research that suggests natural bayous may be better for flood mitigation than modified bayous. Research scientist Andrew Juan is interviewed.
Houston Public Media (This segment also aired on KUHF-FM in Houston.)
http://dateline.rice/march-17-juan
HPM local newscast for 6 a.m., Monday, March 16, 2020
Houston Public Media (This segment also aired on KUHF-FM in Houston.)
http://dateline.rice/march-17-bayou-research

TRADE/PROFESSIONAL

The battle over autonomous killing machines
An article quotes Moshe Vardi, University Professor and Karen Ostrum George Distinguished Service Professor in Computational Engineering, a professor of computer science and director of the Ken Kennedy Institute for Information Technology at Rice.
Communications of the ACM
http://dateline.rice/march-17-vardi

Leveraging layers for enhanced tissue repair
An article features Rice research into the use of grooved plastic threads to seed sophisticated, tissue-engineered scaffolds with living cells to help heal injuries. Co-author Antonios Mikos, the Louis Calder Professor of Bioengineering and Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, and co-lead authors Maryam Elizondo, a research scientist at Rice, and alumnus Luis Diaz-Gomez are quoted.
Newswise (This article also appeared in Alert Articles.)
http://dateline.rice/march-17-mikos

Drained
A roundup features the abstract of the study “Hand to Mouth: Financial Stress and Food Insecurity” authored by Alexander Butler, professor of finance at Rice’s Jones Graduate School of Business.
National Affair
http://dateline.rice/march-17-butler

Nanosheets decimate superbugs during wastewater treatment
An article features Rice research developing nanosheets that absorb and degrade antibiotic-resistant genes, which will prevent them from persisting in sewage system wastewater, where they can invade and infect other bacteria. An image is attributed to graduate student Danning Zhang.
Engineering360
http://dateline.rice/march-17-eng360

Zealandia secrets brought to the surface by research voyage — upends previous theory
An article features the research of Gerald Dickens, professor of Earth, environment and planetary sciences, into Zealandia, a largely submerged continent that stretches across five million square kilometers beneath the southwest Pacific Ocean.
SciTech Daily
http://dateline.rice/march-17-dickens

Noble Corp. CFO steps down. Replacement named.
Alumnus Richard Barker is featured.
Offshore Engineer
http://dateline.rice/march-17-oeng

Daily update: Updates on AEW, WWE, Mexico and Japan schedules
A roundup mentions Rice’s exhibit “Friday Night at the Coliseum,” a show based on photographs from the 1971 book of the same name about Houston’s wrestling scene.
F4W Online
http://dateline.rice/march-17-f4w

Meet ‘The Bachelor Presents: Listen To Your Heart’ cast of singing singles
Former Rice football player Gabe Baker is featured.
Women’s Health
http://dateline.rice/march-17-wh

New study shows the Earth and moon are not so similar after all

An image is credited to Rice.
Universe Today
http://dateline.rice/march-17-ut

Graphene: A material with super powers
An article about the efficacy of the Guardian G-Volt face mask to repel viruses and bacteria mentions that some of the studies were conducted at Rice.
Vision Times
http://dateline.rice/march-17-vt

Benchmarking CPUs at Shell
An article features a presentation at Rice’s Oil & Gas High Performance Computing Conference March 3.
InsideHPC
http://dateline.rice/march-17-ihpc

Schizophrenia and ambitions
Rice is mentioned.
Psychology Today
http://dateline.rice/march-17-pt

OTHER NEWS OF INTEREST

Editorial: The collateral damage of oil wars
Jim Krane, the Wallace S. Wilson Fellow for Energy Studies at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted.
The Courier
http://dateline.rice/march-17-krane

Convergence: A powerful approach to cancer research
Former professor of bioengineering Herbert Levine is mentioned.
The Good Men Project
http://dateline.rice/march-17-good

Notre Dame elects Marie Lynn Miranda provost
Marie Lynn Miranda, former professor of statistics, is featured.
University of Notre Dame News (This article also appeared in Observer Online.)
http://dateline.rice/march-17-ndn

SPORTS

‘We are not quite ready’
Rice track and field athlete Zinedine Russell is mentioned.
Jamaica Observer (This article also appeared in the March 17 print edition.)
http://dateline.rice/march-17-russell

Luke Willson reaches agreement to re-sign with Seahawks
Former Rice football player Luke Willson is featured.
NBC Sports (This article also appeared in 10 other media outlets.)
http://dateline.rice/march-17-nbc

Top 10 performances from Mason Jones this season
An article mentions that Rice’s men’s basketball team was defeated by the University of Arkansas earlier this season.
247Sports.com
http://dateline.rice/march-17-mbb

8 XFL studs the Browns should try to sign
Former Rice football player Austin Walter is featured.
Browns Wire
http://dateline.rice/march-17-bw

Every FCS vs. FBS game in the 2020 college football season
An article mentions that Rice’s football team will play Lamar University Sept. 26.
Hero Sports
http://dateline.rice/march-17-cfs

UTEP’s Baechle leaving kicking game on solid footing
An article mentions that Rice’s football team played the University of Texas at El Paso last season.
El Paso Herald-Post
http://dateline.rice/march-17-ephp

About Stefan De La Garza

Stefan De La Garza is a news analyst in Rice University's Office of Public Affairs.