Where You Mostly Sunny Read It First 40/34 THE TUFTS DAILY Est. 1980 VOLUME LXI, NUMBER 19 THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2011 TUFTSDAILY.COM Nuclear proliferation experts BY ELLEN KA N To me, an academic environment is Daily Editorial Board the ideal place for the candid, open exchange of ideas.” Speakers at last night’s “Religion, Teichman stressed the importance and Ethics,kick and offthe Bomb” EPIICpanel initi- relevancysymposium of this year’s symposium’s theme, ated the 25th Anniversary Norris and “Our Nuclear Age: Peril and Promise.” Margery Bendetson EPIIC International “We’re trying to subject this complex issue Symposium with a discussion of the to an interdisciplinary prism . ... What would intersection of nuclear weaponry and be distinctive about it is the salience and the the spheres of religion and ethics. importance of this theme, which has been The panel marked the start of the marginalized,” he said. “Our speakers have five-day-long annual symposium that articulated very forcefully why it is impera- brings together prominent speak- tive to deal with such a critical issue.” ers and experts as the culmination of Last night’s panelists discussed the rel- the Education for Public Inquiry and evance of religion on a personal and com- International Citizenship (EPIIC) collo- munity level in dealing with the issue of quium, sponsored by the Institute for nuclear weapons. Global Leadership (IGL). David Cortright, director of policy stud- “We’re looking for what we have called ies at the University of Notre Dame’s Kroc all these years passionate scholarship,” Institute for International Peace Studies, IGL Director Sherman Teichman said. discussed the idea of “Nuclear Zero,” or a “Sometimes people scorn the whole concept of academic as being moot. see EPIIC, page 2 competition, camaraderie BY DA P H NE KOLIOS “[There are] four different rounds, and EngineeringDaily Editorial Board Weeka girl from each brings grade … sits in the front with three guys behind her, and she can’t Tufts’ third annual Engineering Week see them,” Martin said. “She asks them MCT kicked off Tuesday with a series of activities engineering-related questions … and she Bill Cosby, longtime entertainer and visionary in children’s television, will tomorrow morning designed to encourage awareness of engi- then picks.” receive the Eliot-Pearson Award for Excellence in Children’s Media. neering in society and to foster camarade- The activities this week coincide with rie among the university’s various depart- the 60th annual national Engineers Week, Cosby, to accept Tufts award tomorrow, sees ments in the School of Engineering. whose sponsors aim to raise appreciation Groups and disciplines within the of engineers’ contributions to society and School of Engineering will sponsor activi- educate young people about the field. room for improvement in children’s media ties, contests and lectures through tomor- While in the past a Graduate School of BY AMSIE HEC H T Cosby spoke with the Daily before the row, according to sophomore Ashley Engineering student has been charged Daily Editorial Board award ceremony to discuss his career in Martin, who serves on the Engineering with organizing the weeklong event, children’s entertainment. Student Council. this year an undergraduate Engineering While legendary entertainer Bill As part of the week’s festivities, the Week chair, sophomore Kristen Ford, Cosby is best known for his work as a Amsie Hecht: What sparked your inter- engineering honor society, Tau Beta Pi, and the newly formed Engineering comedian and star of The Cosby Show est in children’s entertainment? today will hold a Jeopardy-style quiz Student Council also helped to manage (1984-1992), he has also devoted much Bill Cosby: Education and the chance competition among teams from the the week’s activities. This new approach of his adult life to serving as an advocate through the entertainment industry to school’s disciplines, and the Department made for a more widely publicized and for children’s education. give my point of view about education of Biomedical Engineering tomorrow will student-oriented event, according to Cosby will be honored for his work and what the television set can do to aid sponsor a relay race. Engineering Student Council President at tomorrow’s Eliot-Pearson Awards teachers and parents and children … The Society of Women Engineers (SWE) Maren Frisell, a junior. for Excellence in Children’s Media. The [and] the offer from the [former] Dean tomorrow will also present “Date an “I think that the students have been able event, to be held at 10 a.m. in Distler of the School of Education at the UMass Engineer,” which Martin, who is also an to reach out to the student community in Performance Hall, will also recognize Amherst, Dwight Allen, who offered me event coordinator for SWE, said will imitate Harvard Medical School Professor of an opportunity to earn a master’s degree 1950s dating-game shows. see ENGINEERING, page 2 Psychiatry Alvin Poussaint, who worked and an Ed.D [doctorate in education], at as a production consultant for “The Cosby Show.” see COSBY, page 2 Dong, Riche fill empty TCU Judiciary seats Junior Gregory Dong on Tuesday night Dong said he was eager to begin work- ran unopposed to fill the seventh seat ing as the body’s newest member. on the Tufts Community Union (TCU) “I’m excited to continue the work of Judiciary. the Judiciary, and I’m looking forward to Judiciary Vice Chair bringing a new perspective to the table,” Adam Sax, a sophomore, Dong said. said he supported the addi- Freshman David Riche earlier this tion to the body. month also ran unopposed to join the “I believe Greg is a great body. fit for the Judiciary, he has a Dong and Riche filled spots that were strong voice in our discus- left vacant when former Judiciary mem- sions ... and I think he will suit the Judiciary bers Danielle Cotter and Colin Smith, well,” Sax said. both juniors, resigned this semester The Judiciary is the arm of the TCU govern- before leaving to study abroad. ment that oversees on-campus student orga- nizations and the judicial advocates program. —by Martha Shanahan ASHLEY SEENAUTH/TUFTS DAILY Senior Michael Motola-Barnes competes in a Lego competition sponsored by the Center for Engineering Education and Outreach as part of Engineering Week, which concludes tomorrow. Inside this issue Today’s Sections Art hotbeds around the Will Tao (LA ’96) uses News 1 Op-Ed 7 world, like Versailles, the thriller genre in are now available vir- “Formosa Betrayed” Features 3 Weekender 9 tually through Google, (2009) to raise aware- Comics 5 Classifieds 15 but is it a good thing? ness about Taiwan Editorial | Letters 6 Sports Back see FEATURES, page 3 see WEEKENDER, page 9 2 THE TUF T S DAILY NEWS Thursday, February 24, 2011 EPIIC continued from page 1 world without nuclear weapons, about whichEPIIC he has symposium co-authored a book. panel speakers emphasize role of religion Jeopardy, dating This concept of Nuclear Zero has been promoted by the so-called “Four gameENGINEERING among slate Horsemen,” former U.S. Secretaries of continued from page 1 State George Shultz and Henry Kissinger, more effective ways,” Frisell said. former U.S. Defense Secretary William of The week’s Engineering eventsStudent Council, Perry and former U.S. Senate Armed established last year, brings together rep- Forces Committee Chairman Sam Nunn. resentatives from the various pre-profes- Cortright added that the religious com- sional associations within the School of munity has played a large role in advanc- Engineering, according to Engineering ing this agenda, which these statesmen Student Council Treasurer Victoria Sims, a have legitimized. sophomore. Ford strove this year to bring “I think because this is such a funda- a more unstructured feel to the week com- mentally central moral question ... we’ve pared with previous years. seen that the faith community has been “Last year, they kept track of how many more mobilized in this area than any people from each group came [and] who other security-related issue,” Cortright they were,” Ford said. “I wanted to focus a said. little bit more on the community side. … He added that there was room for the You come because you want to have fun.” further expansion of the religious com- Though the events primarily target munity’s role. engineering students in the School of “One of the issues that came up ... is Engineering, other members of the Tufts that there was the need to enhance that community are welcome to attend, Ford engagement by faith communities, to said. take the lead from these eminent states- “What I’m trying to do this year is get men, to realize from them that there is more people who aren’t in the engineering a realist argument, and to combine that school but do have an engineering major,” with a moral voice to provide guidance Ford said, citing engineering psychology as for our leaders ... to move nuclear levels one such example. hopefully down to zero,” Cortright said. A competitive twist to the activities Fellow panelist Chanikarn encourages friendly rivalries between teams Wongviriyawong, a Ph.D. candidate at the JUSTIN MCCALLUM/TUFTS DAILY composed of members of the school’s six Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Speakers last night discussed the relationship between religion and nuclear proliferation. disciplines, according to Frisell. a member of the Buddhist movement Soka Each team earns points based on its Gakkai International, emphasized instead do not have what others do,” he said. the EPIIC class, noted the unique nature attendance at the Engineering Week lec- the personal transformations that needed The panelists also engaged in a discus- of the opening panel, which he said set a tures and its success in the competitions.