Wednesday, September 16, 2015 Volume CXXXVI, No. 3 • poly.news SPORTS Page 4FEATURES Page 11EDITORIAL Page 8 Justin On the many fall Etzine Jewish holidays Tyler Fond memories of Carney years of video gaming Staff RPI is already resilient, Men’s soccer continues win streak Rick and Morty draws big audience Editorial no theme necessary SUMMER ARCH Arch elicits strong response Members of the Senior Board The Rensselaer Polytechnic RENSSELAER ANNOUNCED THE Summer Arch program last Thursday, which will eventually re- quire rising juniors to live at RPI dur- ing the summer and have them go on a co-op or similar internship during their fall or spring semester. Students and alumni expressed their reactions across social media with mixed feel- ings. Some felt that this would be a great opportunity for students to have real world experience, while others questioned its implementation and effect on non-academic activities. The Polytechnic reached out to students to hear their thoughts and opinions on Summer Arch. A student from the Class of 2017 who wishes to remain anonymous said that Summer Arch “is a great business move for RPI [but] how will this affect clubs? Sports? Greek Life?” Junior year is an important time for the non-academic aspect of the Courtesy of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute student experience. Jeremy Feldman MANY STUDENTS HAVE VOICED their concerns and ideas about the new Summer Arch program. ’16 spoke to this, saying “the away semester separates juniors from the those vital leaders.” got through the National Science Arch would become detrimental to club at the time they need to learn Alumnus and former Student Foundation’s Research Experiences students’ personal development by about club operations to develop into Life Committee chair Lexi Rindone for Undergraduates. “Summer limiting their ability to expand their the senior leadership of the club. This ’15 explained that “summer intern- Arch would inhibit students from experiences beyond the Rensselaer robs the clubs of the skilled senior ships or research opportunities can opportunities like REUs since campus.” The Summer Arch would leaders that they need to succeed. be essential for defining students’ they are only offered in the sum- need to offer lucrative opportunities Club leadership also often comes career paths.” Rindone was able mer. Without providing students to compete with what students can from the junior class and the man- to get into a competitive PhD pro- equivalent or better opportunities find elsewhere. datory away semester robs clubs of gram because of experience she during the academic year, Summer See ARCH, Page 3 WEIRD OFF THE WIRE Serving the Crime on the rise across Bangkok Rensselaer community Woman swallows jewel; militants bomb shrine since 1885 was a brief twelve minutes and our “heis- tress” is on her way to recovery. While this seems like a scene from a 1960s Inside comedic detective series, organized crime is Comics . 6 a serious and rising issue in Thailand. Gangs operating at a high level of crime often con- Editorial/Opinion . 8 trol and corrupt the local government. These Events Calendar . 5 groups are called chao pho, which ironically Features . 11 translates to “godfather,” and act as a mafia. Sports . 4 According to the Thai authorities, 39 of Thailand’s 76 provinces are experiencing the tumult of the local chao pho. Whether or not this woman was a part of Connect such an organization remains to be seen and Visit us online at: speculated upon. The likelihood is low, how- poly.news ever, due to the regularity of pick-pocketing Like us on Facebook: and snatching in Thailand. On the other hand, Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons facebook.com/thepolytechnic TOURISTS FLOCK to shrine in Bangkok, Thailand for spiritual and cultural enrichment. beyond the statistical information, this far- Follow us on Twitter and Instagram: fetched scene makes for a good Bond film. @RPIPoly Elisabeth Ryan intestines. According to sources of the BBC, Crime is a rather broad subject with multiple Staff Reporter the woman was thought to have exchanged sub-groups: violence, theft, human-traffick- Scan the QR NOT EVEN INSPECTOR CLOUSEAU COULD HAVE this gem with a fake at a jewelry fair on ing, smuggling, prostitution, and terrorism. code on the left predicted the actions of this jewel thief. On Thursday. An airport arrest, hospital x-ray, However, the petty pilfering of jewelry pales with your phone to go to our Sunday, September 13, in Bangkok, Thailand, and an attempt with laxatives later, authorities in comparison to the abject destruction of website! a Chinese woman had a six-carat diamond, decided to have the woman undergo surgery. worth $300,000, surgically removed from her Not to alarm any sympathizers, the surgery See CRIME, Page 3 2 • News Wednesday, September 16, 2015 poly.news STUDENT SENATE New R&E chair appointed, Summer Arch discussed David Raab Marshall and President of the Rensselaer effectiveness of that course of action and power. The motion passed unanimously. Staff Reporter Union candidates in order to increase their Etzine’s amendment ultimately failed. Ilori The meeting concluded with a discussion THE MEETING STARTED OFF WITH THE campaign budgets above the officially allowed then motioned that the petition be referred to about how the Senate will respond to the an- appointment of Victoria Tong ’16 to chair limits for their individual campaigns. Ilori said the Student Life Committee of the Senate to be nouncement about RPI’s new Summer Arch the Senate Rules & Elections Committee. that the R&E would rather increase spending furthered examined. Several Senators brought program. The Summer Arch is a new initiative Following questions about the level of time limits for PU and GM as opposed to letting up concerns that such an action would be seen in which students would spend the summer commitment and her reasons for applying the former political party practices continue. as punting it to committee to die of old age. between sophomore and junior year taking 16 to be chair, the Senate voted unanimously to Some Senators also brought up concerns that Thomas Alappat ’17 brought up the fact that credits. Students then have to take off either approve the appointment. Former chair and any group of three members of the Union RPI is a private institution and that it relies the fall semester or spring semester of their current senator Paul Ilori ’17 will now be the can bring formal complaints before the R&E on tuition for a significant part of its budget. junior year. Options for what to do during the Co-Chair of the R&E Committee. and Ilori responded that the committee has Jessica Krajewski ’16 brought up concerns semester off include co-ops, internships, and Immediately after the appointment of Tong, discretion on which complaints it investigates. that the SLC already has several projects this community service. Flowers compared the the Senate discussed the Freshmen Elections According to Ilori, that freedom prevents semester and that talks about locked tuition Summer Arch program to the current programs Handbook for the Class of 2019. Grand frivolous or malicious complaints from wast- have come up in the past but have never been at Northeastern University and Dartmouth Marshall Marcus Flowers ’16 reminded the ing the time of the RnE. Ultimately, the Senate taken seriously by RPI. Eventually, a motion University. Flowers also told the Senate that Senate that the handbook needed to be ap- approved the elections handbook and it is to pass the Locked Tuition petition onto the he has been personally assured by several top proved in order for freshmen to be elected to available here: http://poly.news/s/94sdn. SLC passed by a slim margin (9-7-5). administrators that student input will be valued positions within the Senate and other student The Locked Tuition petition, which the Andrew Sudano ’17 then brought before in working out the exact details of this program. government bodies on campus. The handbook Senate tabled last week so they could conduct the Senate the idea of creating a joint commit- The role of the Senate, according to Flowers, is details the requirements and timeline of the background research, was discussed again. tee with the Union Executive Board to look to amalgamate all student voices on the issue fall freshmen elections this year. Starting Flowers mentioned that he found that most into the Student Activity Fee. The Student and bring forward to administration a cohesive September 22, there will be a series of infor- colleges don’t have a similar program and Activity Fee task force is meant to look into and polished opinion. He said “raging and yell- mation sessions run by R&E for all freshmen the ones who do are mostly public institutions the financial processes of the Union and look ing” will accomplish nothing and the Senate interested running for positions. It was em- who would not be peer institutes to Rensselaer. for fiscal efficiencies that could be introduced. has a responsibility to future students to make phasized that all political party members and Justin Etzine ’18 wanted to amend the original Sudano explained that he wanted to be joint sure this program is implemented in a way that campaign managers also have to be freshmen. motion from last week, which was to drop the between the Senate and the E-Board because makes sense. RPI administration will be form- It was also mentioned that starting with this petition because it falls outsides the jurisdic- the Senate is meant to represent the student ing four committees (Academics, Student Life, election, all political party funds have to go tion of the Senate, and to instead notify admin- voice on life at RPI.