Dateline Rice for March 16, 2018

FEATURED ITEM

Rice University gets record number of applications for the fall 2018 semester
Rice received a record 20,900 applications for the fall 2018 semester, which represents nearly a 20 percent increase, the largest year-over-year growth in the history of the university.
Houston Chronicle
http://bit.ly/2FYWTFy

HOUSTON/TEXAS

Perry pledges to keep ARPA-E going, ‘if it’s the will of this committee’
Energy Secretary Rick Perry pledged to Congress he would keep the government’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy program going, despite the Trump administration’s proposal to end it. Rice energy research is mentioned.
Houston Chronicle (Subscription is required. This article also appeared in the Beaumont Enterprise, San Antonio Express-News and Energy Voice.)
http://bit.ly/2G1g6Xi

Houston faces shortage of affordable rental housing
Along with the nation’s 50 largest metropolitan areas, Houston has a shortage of affordable housing for renters. Kyle Shelton, director of strategic partnerships at Rice’s Kinder Institute for Urban Research, is quoted.
Houston Public Media
http://bit.ly/2HDRjFJ

What does the Toys R Us liquidation say about the future of local retail?
While many factors went into the bankruptcy of heritage retailer Toys R US, experts say this is not the beginning of the end for brick-and-mortar stores. Utpal Dholakia, the George R. Brown Professor of Marketing at Rice’s Jones Graduate School of Business, is quoted.
WOAI San Antonio
https://ihr.fm/2HHgsQ7

If characters from ‘The Office’ went to college in Texas
An article considers where characters from the television show “The Office” would have attended college in Texas.
Houston Chronicle (This article also appeared in the San Antonio Express-News.)
http://bit.ly/2HHfHXk

Business calendar
Ken Medlock, the James A. Baker III and Susan Baker Fellow in Energy and Resource Economics and senior director of the Center for Energy Studies at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy and lecturer of economics, will speak at the United States Association for Energy Economics’ monthly meeting.
Houston Chronicle
http://bit.ly/2HARl1d

TRADE/PROFESSIONAL

Lessons from Hurricane Harvey
An article examines the effects Hurricane/Tropical Storm Harvey had on Houston. Jim Blackburn, a professor in the practice of environmental law and the co-director of Rice’s Severe Storm Prediction, Education and Evacuation from Disasters Center (SSPEED); Antonia Sebastian, a research associate at the SSPEED Center; and Albert Pope, the Gus Sessions Wortham Professor of Architecture, are quoted.
Pulitzer Center
http://bit.ly/2IvuDcf

The shale boom is 100 million years in the making
Nutrient-rich ash from an enormous flare-up of volcanic eruptions toward the end of the dinosaurs’ reign kicked off a chain of events that led to the formation of shale gas and oil fields from Texas to Montana. Cin-Ty Lee, professor and chair of the Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences, is quoted. Graduate student Hehe Jiang and undergraduates Elli Ronay, Jackson Stiles and Matthew Neal are mentioned.
Business Insider (This also appeared in Latest Nigerian News.)
http://read.bi/2pednjK

US foreign policy turn could take 1.4 million b/d off global oil market: Analysts
An aggressive turn in U.S. foreign policy led by incoming Secretary of State Mike Pompeo could trigger a loss of up to 1.4 million barrels per day in global crude supply by the end of 2018 as the Trump administration ramps up sanctions on Venezuela and Iran, according to analysts. Francisco Monaldi, a fellow in Latin American energy policy at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted.
Platts
http://bit.ly/2Iue00r

Imaging technique pulls plasmon data together
Rice scientists have developed a novel technique to view a field of plasmonic nanoparticles simultaneously to learn how their differences change their reactivity.
Stephan Link and Christy Landes, both professors of chemistry and computer and electrical engineering, are mentioned.
Nanowerk (This article also appeared in Phys.org.)
http://bit.ly/2FYuBef

Move over graphene! Gallenene is the latest 2-D material on the block
The Rice lab of Pulickel Ajayan, chair of the Department of Materials Science and NanoEngineering, the Benjamin M. and Mary Greenwood Anderson Professor in Engineering and a professor of chemistry, and colleagues in India created two-dimensional gallenene, a thin film of conductive material that is to gallium what graphene is to carbon. Chandra Sekhar Tiwary, formerly of Rice, is mentioned.
Digital Trends (This article also appeared on Yahoo! Canada.)
http://bit.ly/2FNsfvH

A little anger in negotiation pays
Rice researchers found that the effects of anger expressions in negotiations depend on the intensity of the emotional display. Overall, moderate-intensity anger elicits larger concessions than no anger because moderate-intensity anger is perceived as tough. Hajo Adam, an assistant professor of management at Rice’s Jones Graduate School of Business, is mentioned.
Medical Express
http://bit.ly/2FZDkgd

Quantum dots display promise for polymers
Rice scientists plan to employ the power of the sun to build functional synthetic polymers using photosensitive quantum dots — microscopic semiconducting particles — as a catalyst. Eilaf Egap, an assistant professor of materials science and nanoengineering and chemical and biomolecular engineering, is quoted. Postdoctoral researcher and lead author Yiming Huang and graduate student Yifan Zhu are mentioned.
Paint & Coatings Industry Magazine
http://bit.ly/2HFtoWG

Silicone relieves stress of dendrite formation in lithium-metal batteries
Ming Tang is quoted in an article on a new method to mitigate dendrite formation in lithium-metal batteries, which could extend battery life and diminish safety risks. Tang is assistant professor of materials science and nanoengineering.
Materials Today
http://bit.ly/2GzMoX5

Quantum computing versus our ‘caveman Newtonian brain’: Why quantum is so hard
An article quotes remarks delivered at Rice’s Oil & Gas HPC Conference by Kevin Kissell, technical director in Google’s Office of the CTO.
HPC Wire
http://bit.ly/2ph3EsF

Active implantable medical devices market to surpass US $26,776.9 million threshold by 2025 globally
Rice’s development of a wireless, batteryless pacemaker is mentioned.
Industry Today
http://bit.ly/2GACYuH

OTHER NEWS OF INTEREST

Grace Wickerson works to kick violence before it starts
Brown College sophomore Grace Wickerson is featured about her work to start conversations about domestic and relationship violence.
Study Breaks
http://bit.ly/2DyEs5d

American PR firm defends its role in Saudi Arabia’s corruption crackdown
An American public relations firm hired by Saudi Arabia has defended its work briefing the media on the country’s anti-corruption crackdown after the New York Times reported claims that detainees were physically abused and coerced into handing over their assets. Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, fellow for the Middle East at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, is quoted.
Mint Press News
http://bit.ly/2FEznOF

This is the best surfing conference on Earth
Krista Comer, professor of English, will participate in a panel discussion at the 2018 Global Wave Conference.
The Inertia
http://bit.ly/2FEWokI

Women’s History Month: Meet Janet Emerson Bashen, 1st black woman to patent a computer software
An article mentions Janet Emerson Bashen attended Rice’s Jones Graduate School of Business.
Face2FaceAfrica.com
http://bit.ly/2FJeIFb

Interview with Margaret Batjer: Co-premiering Pierre Jalbert’s new violin concerto
Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra Concertmaster Margaret Batjer discusses Pierre Jalbert’s new violin concerto. Jalbert is a professor of composition and theory at Rice’s Shepherd School of Music.
Violinist.com
http://bit.ly/2phlcoM

SPORTS

Lobo women advance in 1st round of WNIT, Beynon scores 33
Rice women’s basketball is mentioned.
KRQE.com
http://bit.ly/2FLjgel
Former Nixa star Leavitt etches name in NCAA record book
CC Headliner
http://bit.ly/2GxcTfP

College Report: Longview’s Montoya sparks UT Tyler golf team
The Rice baseball team is mentioned.
ET News Journal
http://bit.ly/2tVB9FX

Local roundup: Panthers fall for 1st time at OHL Cup
Former Rice football player Luke Willson ’12 is mentioned.
Windsor Star
http://bit.ly/2IrFIuK

Pierce, former Horns recall Garrido’s passions, counsel and fiery rants
An article mentions that David Pierce coached at Rice.
Hook’Em
http://bit.ly/2piyBMw

VCU Rams locked out of NCAA by A-10 loss
Former basketball player Corey Douglas and former head coach Mike Rhoades are mentioned.
Richmond Free Press
http://bit.ly/2pfRUqi

NEWS RELEASE

Plasmons triggered in nanotube quantum wells
A novel quantum effect observed in a carbon nanotube film could lead to the development of unique lasers and other optoelectronic devices, according to scientists at Rice and Tokyo Metropolitan University.
http://bit.ly/2FNydg5