Editor’s note: This article was initially published in The Daily Gazette, Swarthmore’s online, daily newspaper founded in Fall 1996. As of Fall 2018, the DG has merged with The Phoenix. See the about page to read more about the DG.
The Daily Gazette
Swarthmore College
Thursday, February 17, 2000
Volume 4, Number 78
NEWS IN BRIEF
1) Special effects lecture series begins today
2) Cygnet goes online
3) College Bowl team places second in Northeast
4) World news roundup
5) Campus events
SPORTS IN BRIEF
1) Men’s and women’s basketball fall to Muhlenberg
2) Intramural results
3) World sports roundup
4) Today’s and tomorrow’s contests
WEATHER FORECAST
Today: Mostly sunny. High near 40.
Yesterday I wore a spring jacket.
Tonight: Cloudy. Low in the low 20s.
Tomorrow I shall have to wear a winter coat.
Tomorrow: Snow, sleet, and freezing rain. High around 40.
It makes me weep.
NEWS REPORT
1) Special effects lecture series begins today
First the Cooper foundation brought us the Flying Karamazov Brothers. Now,
we’re getting a lecture series on the what arguably made “Star Wars” as
cool as it was.
Terrence Masson, a visual effects artist who was a Senior Technical
Director at George Lucas’ special effects studio Industrial Light + Magic
before joining Ronin Entertainment in January, has 18 film credits
including ‘Star Wars Episode I : The
Phantom Menance’ and two other Star Wars Special Edition episodes. In
addition, Masson has designed and directed an award-winning animated short
film “Bunkie & Booboo”, which will be shown in 35 mm format in LPAC during
his lecture on Feb 18.
According to Jane Ng ’01, one of the organizers of the series, Masson is
an expert in his field. She had originally contacted him to ask if he
could recommend someone to speak on special effects, and “he said,
‘actually, I’d like to come myself,'” she said. “We were lucky to get him
when we did–now, he’s a pretty hot speaker. He said he’d like to talk to
students. There’s no point in bringing George Lucas here if he’s not going
to talk to students.”
Ng and Jordan Wales ’01, the series’ other organizer, expect that Masson
will be talking to many students. “His field is one that combines aspects
of the sciences, the arts, and the humanities,” Wales said. “I think it’ll
appeal to anybody, and that’s what makes it so exciting.” The series is
sponsored by a long list of varied organizations, including the Art
Department, the Computer Science Department, the Engineering Department,
the Student Art Association, SCCS, TIEEE, ASME, SWIL, the bookstore, and
the Movie Committee. Wales thinks the series’ interdisciplinary nature
supports the general liberal arts philosophy, but that on a less
philosophical level, it’s also “really cool to see how everything in ‘Star
Wars’ and other big effects movies is done.”
In addition to being an experienced visual effects artist and an expert on
the history of his industry, Masson is also a fun person. “He’s
a hilarious, really fascinating guy,” Wales said, and according to Ng,
he’ll be at Pub Night with her tomorrow.
Masson’s three lectures are “Digital Canvas: The Computer as an Artistic
Medium” today at 4 p.m. in the Scheuer Room, “Visual Effects: Magic with
the Digital Wand” tomorrow at 8 p.m. in LPAC, and “Cornerstones of Digital
Reality: The Technology of Computer Graphics and Effects” Feb. 19 at 4
p.m. in the LPAC Cinema.
– m.h.
*****
2) Cygnet goes online
Smile! You’re on the internet.
Thanks to the efforts of an intrepid student, cyberspace now
has a face–370 faces, to be exact. As of last Saturday, an online version of
the Cygnet, has been up and running at
http://www.sccs.swarthmore.edu/cygnet.html, providing the Swat community
(and only the Swat community)
with access to the shining visages of the class of 2003.
This achievement was the result of several months of hard work on the part
of Al Bui ’02. Bui conceived the idea last semester, and it took a
modification of the existing student directory code, with help from
computing center guru Adam Preset and support from both the SCCS
and the Deans Office to bring the cyber-Cygnet to fruition.
However, Bui’s work is not done–there are still three classes
not in the online Cygnet. “Most likely it will be a very slow
process which will happen over the course of the year and through the
summer,” Bui said. “Since there are approximately 1000 pictures for me to
scan, crop, and name, it will take a while to do it with all of my other
commitments.” Furthermore, he must maintain the page, removing pictures
for those who request it and adding pictures for those who regret their
absence in their class’ original Cygnet. Bui added that students wishing
to have pictures put on-line should email him a digital copy, which can
be made from scanners at Beardsley or Cornell. All requests should be
addressed to bui@sccs.swarthmore.edu .
Meanwhile, student reaction to the online Cygnet has been mixed. Sanford
DeVoe ’00, worried that “Swarthmore will become a meat market, like a
perpetual Sunday brunch.” Ursula Lang ’00 replied that “Swat already is
a meat market,” by virtue of having a Cygnet at all. However, as a
self-described “paper person,” she still prefers the traditional
version.
There are, however, several advantages to the online Cygnet. It is
searchable by name and browsable by year, and all students will
have be able to look through all classes. Then there are the
practical uses–Sara Tufano ’03 expressed acclaim for the innovation,
citing its great utility in helping her Screw her hallmates.
-j.s.
*****
3) College Bowl team places second in Northeast
The Swarthmore College Bowl Team of Josh Miller ’00, Peter Austin ’02,
Ben Schak ’03, and Jonah Volk ’03) placed as the second best undergraduate
team in attendance at the National Academic Quiz Tournaments Northeast
Sectionals, played at Harvard. With an overall record of 8-7,
Swarthmore beat teams from Cornell, Harvard, and many other
schools. Austin was the fourth place undergraduate scorer and the 11th
place scorer overall, and Miller was seventh place undergraduate and 17th
overall. The team’s next tournament will be the Academic Competition
Federation regional tournament on February 26.
*****
4) World news roundup
With his energy chief predicting still higher gasoline prices, President
Clinton is releasing new federal aid for Americans caught between low
winter temperatures and high heating costs–in part because of
production cuts by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries
(OPEC). Clinton said he would release roughly $120 million in emergency
heating assistance to help states with the highest usage of home heating
oil, which are mostly in the Northeast. …Crisis talks aimed at patching
the tattered Northern Ireland peace process ended Wednesday with the
parties apparently no closer to a solution than they had been. The parties
had no immediate plans for another meeting. …Attorney General Janet
Reno, testifying before a Senate subcommittee Wednesday, said the
responsibility of combating cybercrime was “one of the most critical
issues that law enforcement has ever faced.” …In a sign of his desire to
cultivate closer ties with the West, Russia’s acting president Vladimir
Putin agreed yesterday to end an 11-month estrangement between Russia and
NATO and rebuild what the Kremlin called an alliance aimed at “a stable
and indivisible Europe.” …John McCain picked up the endorsement
yesterday of former rival Gary Bauer, who called him the Republican
Party’s “best shot” at winning the White House. … Shifting their stance
toward immigrants, AFL-CIO leaders are calling for the repeal of a 1986
law they say has made it hard to unionize or improve conditions for
undocumented workers. The stand also commits unions to press for amnesty
for the estimated five to six million workers and their families who are
here illegally or have only temporary legal status.
*****
5) Campus events
“Digital Canvas: the Computer as an Artistic Medium” by Terrence Masson
Scheuer Room, 4:00 p.m.
“The Lady of the Races: the Role of Gender in the Perception of Racial
Classification in the US Census in 1880″ by Mary Lynn Washington
Kirby Lecture Hall, 4:15 p.m.
Chemistry Colloquium
Kohlberg 115, 4:30 p.m.
English Country Dance Class
Troy Dance Studio, 6:05 p.m.
Dialogues
Sharples Upstairs Room, 6:15 p.m.
New York City Parks and Recreation Department Information Session
Kohlberg 116, 7:00 p.m.
“Great Gardens of Worcestershire, Dorset, and Wiltshire: Highlights of the
Gardens of Southern England Tour” by John Swan
LPAC Cinema, 7:30 p.m.
Dialogues
Mertz Lounge, 8:00 p.m.
Dialogues
Mary Lyons Lounge, 9:00 p.m.
Swing Practice
Upper Tarble, 9:30 p.m.
*****
SPORTS UPDATE
1) Men’s and women’s basketball fall to Muhlenberg
Both the men’s and women’s basketball teams lost to Muhlenberg yesterday,
and both after strong first halves. The women quickly took a 7-0 lead and
led 22-16 at the half, but fell 46-43. Heather Marandola ’01 brought in 12
points and 5 rebounds, Allison Furman ’03 scored 9, Sarah Tufano ’03 had 8
points and 7 rebounds, and Heather Kile ’02 had six points. The team is
now 13-10, 8-4 in the Centennial Conference. On the men’s side, the Garnet
fell 71-55 after a 30-26 lead at the end of the first half. David Pearce
’03 scored 17 points, Charlie Brubaker ’02 had 13, and Dave Gammill ’02
brought in 10. Their record is now 3-20 overall, 2-10 in the conference.
*****
2) Intramural results
SOCCER
FC Crac 3
Urubus 8
Toothpaste 1
Faculty 5
Women 3
I20 8
NON-COMPETITIVE BASKETBALL
Dr. PhatTony 39
Bonobos 47
Hawaii 5 – 0 46
Ball Lightenings 28
GuillaumeSansVincent 28
Faculty 36
Mothership 36
Big Bad Ballers 32
*****
3) World sports roundup
Former Dallas Cowboys coach Tom Landry was laid to rest yesterday in a
private funeral. Landry died Saturday at age 75 after suffering from
leukemia for nine months. …Baltimore Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis will
make his first public statement since being released from jail on murder
charges in a news conference today. …Free-agent tight end Shannon Sharpe
announced on his Web site Wednesday that he has signed a four-year deal
with the Baltimore Ravens. The Tennessee Titans signed
linebacker Randall Godfrey to a five-year contract and inked tackle
Fred Miller to a six-year deal. …Dennis Rodman was suspended for one
game and fined $10,000 Wednesday, the day after being ejected from a game
and later saying he wanted to duke it out with David Stern. NBA spokesman
Chris Brienza said Rodman’s comments about the commissioner had nothing to
do with his punishment.
*****
4) Today’s and tomorrow’s contests
TODAY
Badminton hosts Albright, 7:30 p.m.
TOMORROW
No contests scheduled for tomorrow.
*****
Quote of the day:
“A narcissist is someone better looking than you are.” — Gore Vidal
*****
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Editorial Board
Jeff Heckelman
Melanie Hirsch
Claire Phillips-Thoryn
Staff Writers
Karla Gilbride
Alma Ortiz
Jeremy Schifeling
Kai Xu
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This concludes today’s report.