The Rice Thresher, Vol. 89, No. 7, Ed. 1 Friday, September 28, 2001 Page: 6 of 28
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THE RICE THRESHER NEWS FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2001
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Media Center begins improvements
by Lisa Danner Gillum
THRliSHER STAFF
The Rice Media Center is pur-
chasing new equipment — includ-
ing a specially designed silver screen
— thanks to $60,000 from the
President's Programming Fund.
Other additions include a 70-mm
projector and new speakers for Dolby
Digital surround sound. Rice hired a
special consultant, Glenn Berggren,
to help design the new screen, which
will make the media center the only
3-D venue in Houston.
According to Rice Cinema Coor-
dinator Kristian Salinas, Berggren
said the new screen should enable
the media center to present films in
the best possible way.
Salinas said he hopes the im-
provements will make Rice cinema a
vital force in the Houston commu-
nity at large.
Dean of Humanities Gale Stokes
helped obtain the money after see-
ing the disrepair at the media cen-.
ter, Lovett College junior TariqTapa
said.
" [ Stoke s i s ] one of the few people
in the university who genuinely cares
about the arts," Tapa, the lead pro-
jectionist at the media center, said.
Tapa said the old equipment is
constantly breaking down.
"It was obvious they needed to do
something about it," Stokes said.
The issue of purchasing a new
screen was raised last year when
tickets for a showing of Dial M for
Murder had to be refunded due to
technical difficulties.
"Ever since the Dial M for Mur-
der fiasco, we've been wanting to
purchase a silver screen to project
polarized 3-D," Salinas said.
He said the current projectors
are about 25 years old and Salinas
said they operate "reel-to-reel,"
which qualifies the center to project
archive prints. Newer movie houses
work on a platter system, but archive
films are only released for reel-to-
reel projectors that are generally
only at more prestigious arts insti-
tutions.
The media center's current
screen, like most screens, is white.
Silver will make for richer color saiu
ration and enhanced contrasts.
Silver screens bring difficulties
along with benefits. One of these is
called a hot spot, a bright image
that appears in an unusual place
over a dark image. To solve this
problem, Berggren designed the
screen as an arch to be mounted on
a curved frame, which keeps the
light projecting outward. The screen
will also be tilted slightly downward
to ensure the light reflects onto the
seats.
The old screen measures ap-
proximately 12 feet by 24 feet, and
the new screen will be 13 feet by 27
feet. The screen is designed to ac-
commodate all scopes, allowing the
media center to accurately project
the aspect, or height-to-width, ratio
of various films from all over the
world.
The media center also had a new
video projector installed on the ceil-
ing, which will be used mostly for
classes, and new speakers with
Dolby Digital sound.
The Dolby Digital system cre-
ates a richer sound, and the 70-mm
format of the projector has the finest
grain available, generating a clean,
sharp image. 'Ilie 70-mm format is
uncommon because it's expensive
to ship.
"It's a costly format, but it's also
the most beautiful." Salinas said.
The media center is keeping its
16-mm and 35-mm projectors.
Another expected change is Sali-
nas said he plans to have new seats
by summer 2002. The media center
is also expanding its show times and
will have shows Wednesday through
Sunday. He hppes the expanded
times will increase student atten-
dance. He will also focus on titles for
a longer period to help build an audi-
ence within and outside of Rice.
The program is not completely
set, due in part to a machine dam-
aged in September and delays
caused by the terrorist attack in New
York.
Students can check out the Rice
Media Center's Web site at
www.rufrice.edu/~cinema or call the
info line at (713) 3484852 for the dates
and times of film showings this year.
> Y<
ADVANCE
&
Muslim Students
Association
*iKi i
Present:
"Holy War? Perceptions of Jihad in Islam"
Wednesday. October 3rd
7:30 — 9:00 p.m.
McMurtry Auditorium (dh 1055), Duncan hall
Featuring:
Dr. David Cook, Religious Studies
Dr. Mahmoud El-Gamal. Economics
Dr. Paula Sanders, History
Dr. Ussama Makdisi, History
Also invited:
Dr. Allen Matusow. History
Make the news. (Really.)
thresher-news@rice.edu
Man and stepson
arrested for bike theft
by Stephanie Dornschneider
FOR THE THKI.SHKK
' University Police arrested two
men trying to steal bicycles at
Jones College shortly after 9 p.m.
Friday.
One of the suspects was given
a criminal trespass warning and
the other was taken to the Harris
County Jail.
Prader Brown entered the
Jones Commons by following a
Rice student who had just swiped
his card at the entrance. Mean-
while, his 42-year-old stepfather,
Tyrone Fields, approached the
bike racks at Jones South.
An anonymous student ob-
served the two men and called
the police to give them a descrip-
tion of the suspects.
Within two minutes Univer-
sity Police Officers Sandra
Clemente and Veliz Rodriguez
and Sgts. Les Hulsey and Steve
Reiter arrived and stopped the
two men.
The police officers asked one
suspect to show them the con-
tents of his backpack.
"He opened it hesitatingly and
we saw humongous bolt cutters."
Reiter said.
The suspects confessed they
had attempted to steal bikes, but
said they never actually took any.
Assistant District Attorney
Maria McAnulty gave Fields a
criminal trespass warning, but
will not press charges against
him.
Sgt. Phil Hassell said Fields
has a "long criminal history."
Still. McAnulty released the
suspect because Fields had not
been caught while he was com-
mitting a crime.
'He opened [his
backpack]
hesitatingly and we
saw humongous holt
cutters.'
— Sgt. Steve Reiter
Brown, 25, was charged with
criminal trespass for entering the
Jones Commons and verbally
threatening a photographer at the
scene.
Brown's possible punishment
depends on whether the charges
are Class A or Class B misde-
meanors. According to the dis-
trict attorney's office. Brown
could receive a punishment of up
to 180 days in jail and/or a $2,000
fine for a Class B misdemeanor,
and up to one year and/or a $4,(XX)
fine for a Class A misdemeanor.
The attempted theft at Jones
is not an isolated incident. Al-
though in this case neither sus-
pect had been seen on campus
before, bike thefts are not un-
common at Rice.
At press time, ten bikes have
been reported stolen since the
beginning of September, accord-
ing to an online crime blotter pro-
duced by the University Police.
People unaffiliated with Rice
have entered Jones without per-
mission before. Jones junior Nils
Bagge said he remembers non-
students coming into Jones to
sell magazines.
'If students prefer
using cable locks
instead of U-locks, I
would welcome it if
they donated their
bikes to the police.'
— Sgt. Steve Reiter
University Police
"They came in last spring and
were escorted off campus," Bagge
said.
"Campuses are easy targets
for thieves," Hassell said. "People
at Rice are so diverse that anyone
fits in here."
However, Bagge said he feels
"pretty safe" in his college, even
though he knows non-students
can get into Jones.
Jones junior Chris Donica said
her bike was stolen last year.
"Last year 1 forgot to lock my
mountain bike," she said. "It was
immediately stolen."
However, five other unlocked
bikes were standing next to her
bike and none of them was stolen.
Since she lost her mountain
bike, Donica said she has been
locking her new bike with a U-
bolt whenever she leaves it at a
rack. Bagge also said he locks
his bike with a U-bolt.
Reiter said using cable locks
to lock a bike is like giving the
bike away.
"If students prefer using cable
locks instead of U-locks, I would
welcome it if they donated their
bikes to the police," Reiter said.
"Bike thefts worry me," he
said. "I would be very upset if
someone stole my bike."
Hassell recommends students
register their bikes online on the'
police Web site, http://
rupd. rice, edu /bicycle/.
If a stolen bike is registered,
"The chances are much better to
get the bike back," Hassell said,
referring to a nationwide data-
base that keeps information about
registered bikes.
"Five years ago, a bike that
had been stolen at Rice Univer-
sity was even returned from
Michigan."
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Liu, Leslie & Reichle, Robert. The Rice Thresher, Vol. 89, No. 7, Ed. 1 Friday, September 28, 2001, newspaper, September 28, 2001; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth443118/m1/6/: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Rice University Woodson Research Center.