Dateline Rice for Jan. 19, 2018

NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL

Hurricane Harvey makes Houston reassess growth-friendly policies
Jim Blackburn, a professor in the practice of environmental law and the co-director of Rice’s Severe Storm Prediction, Education and Evacuation from Disasters Center, is quoted in a story on Houston’s efforts to protect itself from future floods. Blackburn also is quoted in a National Public Radio story on hurricane evacuation zones.
New York Times (This Reuters article appeared in more than 25 other media outlets.)
http://nyti.ms/2rpMOLX
WAMU-FM (Washington)
http://bit.ly/2DlRHXI (Click the audio button to listen to the broadcast, which aired on more than 700 stations.)

Crisis-hit Venezuela’s oil output plummets in 2017 to decades low
Francisco Monaldi, a fellow in Latin American energy policy at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted in articles on Venezuela’s oil industry and in a National Public Radio story on the issue.
New York Times (This Reuters article appeared in more than 25 other media outlets.)
http://nyti.ms/2rmdfC7
Venezuela has some bad news and some really bad news
Bloomberg (This article also appeared in the Washington Post and Wired Journal.)
https://bloom.bg/2rlLMQS
WGBH-FM (Boston)
http://bit.ly/2DTFOcV (Click the audio button to listen to the broadcast, which aired on more than 700 stations.)

Saudi Arabia closes the world’s ritziest prison
Jim Krane, the Wallace S. Wilson Fellow for Energy Studies at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted in an article on the Ritz-Carlton in Riyadh reopening as a hotel  after serving as a prison following an anti-corrpution sweep.
Bloomberg (This article also appeared in NewsDog.)
https://bloom.bg/2rlPR7V

Government to auction off $50 million in Bitcoins
Peter Rodriguez, dean of Rice’s Jones Graduate School of Business, is quoted.
Washington Times
http://bit.ly/2FXhWpo

HOUSTON/TEXAS

Houston misses Amazon’s cut; ‘Work to do,’ say local leaders
Ed Egan, fellow of the Baker Institute for Public Policy and director of the institute’s McNair Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, is quoted in articles on Amazon leaving Houston off its list of 20 finalists to land the company’s second headquarters, and research by the McNair Center is cited. Egan also appeared on “Houston Matters” and is quoted in a KPRC story on the issue.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article also appeared on the front page of the Jan. 19 print edition with a different headline, “City fails to make Amazon shortlist.”)
http://bit.ly/2rnBcsF
Houston really hates being left out of the Amazon HQ2 sweepstakes
Dallas Morning News (Subscription is required.)
http://bit.ly/2FTNXhM
Why didn’t Houston make the cut for Amazon’s new HQ?
Houston Public Media
http://bit.ly/2roOqFx
Why Houston lost its bid for Amazon’s 2nd headquarters
Houston Public Media
http://bit.ly/2riNoLa
Houston left in cold, Dallas, Austin among Amazon’s narrowed list of potential HQ2 cities
KPRC.com
http://bit.ly/2FTQsRc
KPRC-TV (Houston)
http://bit.ly/2DtbM1B (Click the video button to watch the broadcast.)

Tresaugue: Air pollution is still harming Houstonians
An article on air pollution in Houston mentions Rice is working with other local groups on an awareness campaign.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article also appeared in the San Antonio Express-News, and it appeared in the Jan. 19 print edition.)
http://bit.ly/2rlb2H7

Texas sets new records for winter power usage, avoids blackouts as cold snap grips state
Peter Hartley, the George and Cynthia Mitchell Chair in Sustainable Development, comments on electricity demand.
San Antonio Express-News (Subscription is required.)
http://bit.ly/2rpUYUB

The Texas House’s sexual harassment training video is short, legalistic and will likely be ineffective
Associate Professor of Psychology Eden King’s research on sexual harassment training programs is mentioned.
Texas Observer
http://bit.ly/2riuNPs

Texas State University becomes a recipient of Wells Fargo’s IN2 Technology Incubator Awards
The Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship is part of a group of researchers receiving an IN2 Channel Partner Award to collaborate on clean energy technology programs.
San Marcos Corridor News
http://bit.ly/2rl73u9

Timbergrove resident embraces challenge as PWE director
Alumna Carol Ellinger Haddock ’91, recently named director of the Houston Public Works and Engineering Department, is featured.
The Leader
http://bit.ly/2rnrMxq

BROADCAST

‘CNN Newsroom With John Berman and Poppy Harlow’
Professor of History Douglas Brinkley discusses President Donald Trump’s first year in office. Brinkley’s comments are featured in Breitbart and Raw Story articles.
CNN
http://bit.ly/2rrcmsa (Click the video button to watch the broadcast.)
Douglas Brinkley: Trump is an ‘asterisk president — ‘nobody really’ believes he is president
Breitbart
http://bit.ly/2rqK54U
‘Nobody really believes he’s president’: Historian Douglas Brinkley says Trump’s first year deserves ‘an asterisk’
Raw Story
http://bit.ly/2FW6FFy

‘Americas Now’
A Rice study that found up to 85 percent of environmental projects around the world fail because of a lack of exposure to potential partners who could help them thrive is mentioned.
WOUC-TV (Zanesville, Ohio)
http://bit.ly/2rq1SsZ (Click the video button to watch the broadcast.)

TRADE/PROFESSIONAL

Best architecture schools for a world-class education
The Rice School of Architecture is mentioned as a top U.S. program.
Homedit
http://bit.ly/2rlZcfI

Researchers find 1st evidence of sub-Saharan Africa glassmaking
Scholars from Rice, University College London and the Field Museum have found the first direct evidence that glass was produced in sub-Saharan Africa centuries before the arrival of Europeans, a finding that the researchers said represents a “new chapter in the history of glass technology.” Alumnus Abidemi Babatunde Babalola ’14, lead author of the study, is quoted.
Scienmag (Similar articles appeared in more than 10 other media outlets.)
http://bit.ly/2roPBVp

Is Israel’s international isolation diminishing?
Analysis by Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy on Israel and Arab Gulf states is mentioned.
Council on Foreign Relations
http://on.cfr.org/2rnJMrw

Survey: ‘Very dissatisfied’ public school parents more than twice as likely to choose charters
Traditional public-school parents who are “very dissatisfied” with their child’s school are 2.5 times more likely to switch to a charter school than parents who are “very satisfied,” according to a study by scholars at Rice’s Jones Graduate School of Business.
Education Dive (A similar story appeared in eSchool News.)
http://bit.ly/2FW6b2l

Planet and people: New books for Anthropocene times
Timothy Morton, the Rita Shea Guffey Chair in English, is mentioned.
New Scientist (Subscription is required.)
http://bit.ly/2rsC0gb

300 MW Tahoka wind power project closes financing
Daniel Cohan, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering, authored an op-ed. Cohan also is quoted in an article on a wind power project in Linn County, Texas.
Planetsave
http://bit.ly/2rsq7qz

Current oil prices offer lesson in supply and demand, Rice business prof breaks it down
An op-ed by Bill Arnold, professor in the practice of management at Rice’s Jones Graduate School of Business, is featured.
Clear Admit
http://bit.ly/2rr5YB6

Other materials stories that may be of interest
A roundup of materials stories mentions Rice researchers found that nitrogen-doped carbon nanotubes or modified graphene nanoribbons may be suitable replacements for platinum for fast oxygen reduction, the key reaction in fuel cells that transform chemical energy into electricity.
American Ceramic Society
http://bit.ly/2ro7Vhy

Texas cities, businesses and schools know the economic upside of clean energy
An article on clean energy mentions Rice has worked with MP2 Energy to curb energy use and costs and has integrated solar power.
Environmental Defense Fund (This article also appeared in Energy Central.)
http://bit.ly/2rmu5Rh

Program aims to slash cost of methane sensor systems
An article on the U.S. Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy’s Methane Observation Networks with Innovative Technology To Obtain Reductions program mentions Aeris Technologies partnered with Rice and Los Alamos National Laboratory on an autonomous natural gas leak detection system.
Oil and Gas Facilities
http://bit.ly/2rmwk7n

Vanguard Natural Resources, Inc. announces senior leadership changes and initial 2018 guidance, and provides 2018 general corporate update
Alumnus Ryan Midgett ’07 was promoted to chief financial officer of Vanguard Natural Resources.
BOE Report (This article also appeared in RBC Capital Markets.)
http://bit.ly/2rq6r6o

Nucleus Vision adds blockchain and technology experts
Alumnus Jaron Lukasiewicz ’08 joined Nucleus Vision as an adviser.
ValueWalk
http://bit.ly/2rllj6f

New perovskite solar cell breakthrough funded by Texas oilman’s legacy
An article on solar energy mentions the Welch Foundation, which has funded research in the field, has backed past Rice scientific on carbon nanotubes and “black silicon” photovoltaic cells.
Clean Technica
http://bit.ly/2ripqzM

Houston Grand Opera announces Concert of Arias 2018 semifinalists
The 30th annual Eleanor McCollum Competition for Young Singers Concert of Arias will be held Feb. 1 at Rice’s Stude Concert Hall.
Broadway World
http://bit.ly/2roS3v5

OTHER NEWS OF INTEREST

The 20 best colleges for a return on your investment
Rice is No. 17 on Princeton Review’s “Colleges That Pay You Back” ranking.
Money Talks News
http://bit.ly/2roVMZB

Stanford to stay strong on financial aid despite tax bill
An article on the impact of a new tax on university endowments mentions Rice.
Stanford Daily
http://bit.ly/2rpnN3o

Tillerson’s backtrack on Syrian border is the result of ‘fragmented’ Washington
An article on Syria mentions comments Secretary of State Rex Tillerson made at Rice.
Sputnik News
http://bit.ly/2rnC6pa

Screen Asia: ‘Window Horses: The Poetic Persian Epiphany of Rosie Ming’
An article on a film being screened in collaboration with the Houston Iranian Film Festival mentions Rice Cinema will host screenings during the event.
Asia Society
http://bit.ly/2rq74wZ

Verbum Ultimum: Raise the bar
An editorial calling for an on-campus bar or social program at Dartmouth College mentions Rice.
The Dartmouth
http://bit.ly/2FWBJ84

Concert extraordinar avându-l la pupitru pe Cristian Măcelaru
Alumnus Cristian Măcelaru ’06 is conducting the George Enescu Philharmonic Orchestra in Bucharest, Romania.
Cotidianul (An English translation is not available.)
http://bit.ly/2rqSmG0

SPORTS

Southern Miss beats Rice 86-75 behind Magee’s 22
The Rice men’s basketball team lost to the University of Southern Mississippi 86-75 Jan. 18 in Hattiesburg, Miss. Rice players Najja Hunter, Ako Adams, Malik Osborne and Austin Meyer are mentioned.
Fox Sports (This Associated Press article appeared in more than 50 other media outlets, and it appeared in the Jan. 19 print edition of the Houston Chronicle with a different headline, “Southern Miss wards off Rice.”)
http://foxs.pt/2rlLTMz
KIAH-TV (Houston)
http://bit.ly/2rm9H2C (Click the video button to watch the broadcast.)
Balanced offense paves way for Southern Miss basketball’s 10th win of the season
Hattiesburg American
http://hatne.ws/2rp5kUr
USM stays perfect at home, holds off Rice 86-75
WDAM.com (This article also appeared at WTVM.com, WSFA.com, WAFB.com and KPLC.com.)
http://bit.ly/2rpRwJD
4 Golden Eagles in double figures as USM beats Rice 86-75
MSNewsNow.com
http://bit.ly/2rn5NXw
Golden Eagles extend home winning streak to 8 games with win over Rice
Student Printz
http://bit.ly/2rn6u34

Freshman duo come up big in 1-point victory
An article about Louisiana Tech University men’s basketball mentions the Bulldogs face Rice Jan. 20 in Ruston, La.
Purcell Register
http://bit.ly/2roSnKj

Rice’s Sam McGuffie aims to medal at the Winter Olympics
Former Rice football and track and field athlete Sam McGuffie was named to the U.S. men’s bobsled team that will compete in the Winter Olympics in South Korea.
Houston Press
http://bit.ly/2FUP3Kj

Prospect profile: Glenn Otto
Former Rice baseball player Glenn Otto is featured.
River Avenue Blues
http://bit.ly/2rpESKF

More thoughts on Emory Jones and other Florida newcomers who could help shape 2018 season
Former Rice men’s basketball player Egor Koulechov ’17, who now plays at the University of Florida, is mentioned.
Dayton Daily News (This article also appeared in SEC Country.)
http://bit.ly/2rmq2o7

NEWS RELEASES

Future of transportation is topic at Rice’s Baker Institute Jan. 23
Leading experts will gather at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy Jan. 23 for a discussion focusing on the future of transportation in the 21st century. The forum will highlight topics such as technological innovation, regulation, consumer preference, supply-chain challenges and demographic transitions and their role in the future of the transportation sector. Hosted by the Baker Institute’s Center for Energy Studies and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Center for Energy and Environmental Policy Research, the event is free and open to the public but registration is required.
http://bit.ly/2rmJ9P0

Rice U. expert available to discuss Trump’s first year in office
As the anniversary of President Donald Trump’s inauguration approaches and a federal government shutdown looms, Rice political scientist Paul Brace is available to discuss the divided public feelings about the president’s first year in office.
http://bit.ly/2rn7vrU