Dateline Rice for Nov. 16, 2020 (Weekend Edition)

FEATURED ITEMS

SpaceX flying ex-football players, flight controller, Scout
An article features astronaut and alumna Shannon Walker ’87, who is a member of the first crew rotation flight to the International Space Station on the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft, which launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Nov. 15. Luis Duno-Gottberg, department chair and associate professor of Spanish, Portuguese and Latin American Studies, is interviewed by KRIV following a watch party at Rice. McMurtry College senior Ryan Udell, president of Rice’s chapter of Students for the Exploration and Development of Space, and graduate student Feni Pandya, vice president of SEDS Rice, are featured in a C-SPAN broadcast.
The Associated Press (This article also appeared in the more than 100 other media outlets.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-walker-ap
Highlights from SpaceX’s Crew Dragon astronaut launch for NASA
The New York Times (Subscription is required.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-walker-nyt
SpaceX sends first full team of astronauts to space
CNN
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-cnn
Astronauts prepare for historic NASA, SpaceX launch
Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-hc

Meet the astronauts set for SpaceX’s second crew launch

Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article also appeared in more than 25 other media outlets.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-hc
Successful SpaceX launch celebrated at local watch parties
KHOU Online
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-khou
‘New era’ begins with crewed launch of SpaceX and NASA Crew-1 mission
Discover (This article also appeared in Astronomy.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-discover
‘Wake Up! with SallyMac & Lina’
KRIV-TV (Houston)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-kriv 
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-kriv2-gottberg (This segment aired three times.)
C-SPAN
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-udell-pandya (This segment aired twice.)
‘KHOU 11 News at 4 p.m.’
KHOU-TV (Houston)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-khou
‘Good Day’
KDFW-TV (Dallas)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-kdfw (This segment aired five times.)
‘KHOU 11 News at 10 p.m.’
KHOU-TV (Houston)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-khou (This segment aired six times.)
‘KPRC Local 2 News Weekend’
KPRC-TV (Houston)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-kprc (This segment aired five times.)
KPRC-TV (Houston)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-kprc
KRLD-AM (Dallas)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-krld
KTRH-AM (Houston)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-ktrh 
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-ktrh2 (This segment aired six times.)
’13 Eyewitness News’    
KTRK-TV (Houston)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-ktrk (This segment aired twice.)
Houston astronaut heads for orbit aboard SpaceX Dragon
WOAI Online
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-woai
WOAI-AM (San Antonio)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-woai (This segment aired three times.)

COVID-19 PANDEMIC

COVID cancels spring break for many Texas colleges
Several articles mention Rice’s plans to prevent the spread of COVID-19, which have included conducting over 60,000 tests since August, requiring face masks and altering Thanksgiving and spring break schedules. Inside Higher Ed mentions that Rice has established the student-run COVID Community Court to adjudicate public health violations on campus. Provost Reginald DesRoches and Sid Richardson sophomore Emily Ellison are quoted in the Houston Chronicle, and Bridget Gorman, dean of undergraduates, is quoted in the Texas Tribune.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article also appeared in 10 other media outlets.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-desroches-gorman
As Texas universities prepare to send thousands of students home for the holidays, few are requiring COVID-19 safety precautions
The Texas Tribune (This article also appeared in 10 other media outlets.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-gorman
Coronavirus live updates: 2nd vaccine effective; A&M game postponed due to infections
Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article also appeared in 10 other media outlets.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-hc
Live updates: Latest news on coronavirus and higher education
Inside Higher Ed
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-ccc

The COVID-19 playbook for college football: How it works
An article mentions that Rice delayed the start of its football season due to the pandemic.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article also appeared in the Nov. 15 print edition, on the front of the Sports Nation Weekly section in the Nov. 15 print edition of the San Antonio Express-News and online in the Express-News, Connecticut Post, San Francisco Chronicle and 10 other media outlets.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-hc
Texas college football rankings: A&M doesn’t play but still No. 1
Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article also appeared in the San Antonio Express-News, Connecticut Post and 10 other media outlets.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-hc

NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL

Democrats debate how Minneapolis’ ‘defund the police’ movement played in elections
An article quotes Mark Jones, the Joseph D. Jamail Chair in Latin American Studies, professor of political science, fellow in political science at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and fellow at Rice’s Kinder Institute for Urban Research. Jones participates in a roundtable discussion on Texas Public Radio’s “The Source.”
Minneapolis Star Tribune (This article also appeared in MSN.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-jones
Boosted by Texas House wins, Gov. Abbott humors 2024 presidential speculation
Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article appeared on the front page of the Nov. 15 print edition of the Chronicle and the front page of the Nov. 16 print edition of the San Antonio Express-News. This article also appeared online in MSN and a previous edition of Dateline.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-jones
Shaping the Hispanic Republican American political identity
Texas Public Radio (This segment also aired on more than 20 affiliate stations across Texas.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-jones
Republicans kept their grip on Texas government in 2020. In 2021, they’ll be able to tighten it.
Longview News-Journal (This Texas Tribune article appeared in 10 other media outlets and a previous edition of Dateline.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-jones

The new Houston: Oil is no longer to reign as absolute monarch
An article from Forbes cites demographic research by Stephen Klineberg, founding director of Rice’s Kinder Institute for Urban Research and an emeritus professor of sociology. Klineberg is interviewed by Houston Public Media about his book “Prophetic City: Houston on the Cusp of a Changing America.”
Forbes
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-klineberg
Houston is a ‘Prophetic City’ for the rest of America
Houston Public Media (This segment also aired on KUHF-FM in Houston.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-klineberg

Trump signs executive order to bar US investments from Chinese firms tied to military
Tony Payan, the Françoise and Edward Djerejian Fellow for Mexico Studies and director of the Center for the United States and Mexico at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted.
The Washington Times (This article also appeared in the Nov. 16 print edition of The Washington Times Weekly issue, and it appeared in a previous edition of Dateline.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-payan

Here’s what ‘stations’ for Elon Musk’s The Boring Company look like

Christof Spieler, senior lecturer of architecture, is quoted.
CNN
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-spieler

Young job-seekers tap college alumni networks for leads
Alumni Simi Rahman ’20 and Ian Akash Morrison ’13 are featured.
The Washington Post (Subscription is required.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-rahman-morrison

How do you diversify a city’s economy? As Calgary tries, it looks south for inspiration
Rice is mentioned.
The Globe and Mail (This article also appeared on the front page of the Nov. 16 print editions of the Ottawa/Quebec, Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta and Prairie issues.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-globe

HOUSTON/TEXAS

Opinion: The W.A. Parish plant in Texas is burning your lungs and the planet. Why won’t NRG replace it?

BROADCAST

How the West came to dominate our brains
Rice is mentioned.
WGBH’s “Innovation Hub” (This segment aired on 200 affiliate stations.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-wgbh

C-SPAN 2
A broadcast featuring Shaun Casey mentions that he spoke at Rice in 2016.
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-cspan

‘News 8 at 6:00’
A broadcast mentions that Niche ranks Rice No. 3 in the nation among religious studies programs.
WGAL-TV (Harrisburg, Pennsylvania)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-wgal

‘Operation Avalanche’
President John F. Kennedy’s “moon speech” given at Rice Sept. 12, 1962, is mentioned.
BBC 1 London (This segment aired on more than 30 stations across the U.K.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-kennedy
One giant leap of faith: Meet the first African American to walk in space
Click2Houston
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-kennedy

TRADE/PROFESSIONAL

Bogus theory claims supercomputer switched votes in election
Dan Wallach, a Rice professor of computer science and of electrical and computer engineering, is quoted.
FactCheck.org
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-wallach

Former piece of Pacific Ocean floor imaged deep beneath China
An article features collaborative Rice research into tectonic subduction 400 miles beneath northeastern China, which may help answer fundamental questions about the processes that shaped Earth’s surface over billions of years. Co-author Fenglin Niu, professor of Earth, environmental and planetary science, is quoted.
Phys.org (This article also appeared in 10 other media outlets.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-niu

OTHER NEWS OF INTEREST

Kimberly Orr named publisher of The Upper Room
Alumna Kimberly Orr is featured.
The Star Democrat (This article also appeared in the Nov. 13 print edition.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-orr

SPORTS

UTSA overcomes array of unexpected hurdles to notch blowout victory against UTEP
Two articles mention that Rice’s Nov. 7 game against the University of Texas at San Antonio was postponed.
San Antonio Express-News (Subscription is required. This article also appeared on the front of the Sports section in the Nov. 15 print edition.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-rice-utsa
UTSA hoping to be refreshed for matchup against UTEP following last week’s postponement
San Antonio Express-News (Subscription is required. This article also appeared on the front of the Sports section in the Nov. 14 print edition.)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-rice-utsa

Faith’s Gus Henry to run track at Rice
An article mentions that Gus Henry has signed a letter of intent to join Rice’s track and field team.
DailyTrib.com
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-dt

College Power Poll Week 11: Beep! Beep! Here come the Roadrunners
Rice is mentioned.
Dave Campbell’s Texas Football
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-dctf
St. Peter’s Nick Chiaia, Matt Zguro to bolster Iona College’s pitching corps
SILive.com
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-sil

Live from WKEN sports broadcasting blog, Nov. 14
An article mentions that Rice’s Nov. 14 football game against Louisiana Tech University was postponed.
Record Online
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-rice-ltu
’13 Eyewitness News’
KTRK-TV (Houston)
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-ktrk (This segment aired twice.)

NEWS RELEASES

Former piece of Pacific Ocean floor imaged deep beneath China
In a study that gives new meaning to the term “rock bottom,” seismic researchers have discovered the underside of a rocky slab of Earth’s surface layer, or lithosphere, that has been pulled more than 400 miles beneath northeastern China by the process of tectonic subduction.
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-news-release-niu

Americans’ attitudes about guns influenced by owners’ race and gender
A new study from researchers at Rice found that Americans’ attitudes about gun ownership are impacted by the gender and race of firearms’ potential owners.
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-news-release-hayes

Houston companies awarded top honors at premier life science venture capital conference
Life science investors, leaders and innovators from around the world gathered virtually to discuss the pandemic, medical technology and the future of the industry at the Texas Life Science Forum, where Houston companies claimed top honors. The forum, co-hosted by BioHouston and the Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship, is one of the premier life science venture capital conferences in the U.S.
http://dateline.rice/nov-16-news-release-rice-alliance

About Stefan De La Garza

Stefan De La Garza is a news analyst in Rice University's Office of Public Affairs.