num_6_Layout 1

October 31, 2013
Volume 20
Number 6
bilnews.bilkent.edu.tr
BİLKENT NEWS
Thursday: Foggy
5°C / 22°C
Friday: Par tly Cloudy
4°C / 21°C
Saturday: Par tly Cloudy
4°C / 21°C
Sunday: Par tly Cloudy
5°C / 21°C
Weekly Newspaper of Bilkent University
COMD Brings International Audio
90th Anniversary Technologies Conference to Bilkent
of the Turkish
Republic
Happy Republic
Day!
O
n October 31 and
November 1, the
Department of
Communication and
Design (COMD) is hosting ATMM
2013. ATMM (Audio Technologies
for Music and Media) is an
interdisciplinary international
conference that focuses on the
various aspects of audio, audiovisual
and music technologies for music
and media, and also on the
relationship between sound, music
and image in both traditional and
new media.
ATMM was, in a sense, born at
Bilkent, with COMD faculty
members Ufuk Önen and Ahmet
Gürata being among its founders.
ATMM 2012, held at Bilkent, was the
first international conference in
Turkey uniting the fields of audio,
music and media technologies.
Following upon the success of last
year’s event, ATMM has returned to
Bilkent University this week.
ATMM 2013 features a tightlypacked program with an even wider
range of topics than last year’s
event. (Please see the insert for the
detailed schedule.)
The opening session and keynote
address take place on Thursday,
October 31, at 12:30 p.m. The
keynote is being delivered by Lennie
Moore, a composer, orchestrator and
arranger of music for video games,
(Continued on Page 2)
ew graduates of the
Department of Industrial
Engineering Nazlı Akar,
Başak Kepir, Çağıl Koçyiğit,
Işıl Koyuncu, Melis Beren Özer and
Tunca Türkoğlu have been awarded the
2013 INFORMS Undergraduate
Operations Research Prize for their IE
477-478 System Design project entitled
“Flight Scheduling Optimization and
Automation for AnadoluJet” conducted
under the supervision of Assoc. Prof.
Bahar Yetiş Kara. The Institute for
Operations Research and the
Management Sciences (INFORMS) is
the largest professional society in the
world for individuals in the field of
operations research, management
science and analytics.
The Undergraduate Operations
Research Prize Competition is held
each year to honor a student or group of
students who conducted a significant
applied project in operations research
or management science and/or original,
important theoretical or applied
(Continued on Page 3)
ilkent graduate
Özgür Şahin
(EE/’01), an
associate professor
in the Columbia University
Department of Biological
Sciences and Physics, has
recently received two awards: a
Packard Fellowship in Science
and Engineering and an NIH
Director’s New Innovator
Award from the US National Institutes of
Health.
The David and Lucile Packard
Foundation established its fellowships
program in 1988 to provide young
scientists with flexible funding and the
freedom to take risks and explore new
frontiers in their fields of
study. Each year, the
foundation invites 50
universities to nominate two
faculty members for
consideration. Dr. Şahin was
among the 16 individuals
chosen to receive the 2013
Packard Fellowships for
Science and Engineering.
The NIH award was given
for his project entitled “Novel SubCellular Chemical and Mechanical
Nanoimaging.” The NIH Director's New
Innovator Award addresses two
important goals: stimulating highly
innovative research and supporting
(Continued on Page 3)
N
IE Graduates Awarded INFORMS Research Prize
B
K
Bilkent Mourns the
Loss of Mehmet
Serhat Azgur
B
ilkent University lost
Mehmet Serhat Azgur,
instructor in the Department
of Computer and
Instructional Technology Teacher
Education and the Department of
Computer Technology and
Programming in the Faculty of
Education, on
Monday,
October 21.
A respected
academician in
his field, Mr.
Azgur graduated
from the Middle
East Technical
University
Department of Management in 1979.
He received his master's degree from
the same university’s Department of
Computer Engineering. Mr. Azgur
was also one of the first students to
graduate from the MA Program in
Curriculum and Instruction in the
Graduate School of Education of
Bilkent University, in 2011.
He worked at a number of leading
companies, including Savunma
Teknolojileri Mühendislik A.Ş.,
Ortadoğu Rulman Sanayi ve Tic. A.Ş.,
ALCATEL Austria Gesellschaft
M.b.H. and ITT Telecom Products
Corporation, and as a part-time
instructor for eight years before
joining Bilkent University as a fulltime instructor in 2006.
In addition to his professional
accomplishments and abilities, his
personal qualities made him a beloved
colleague and mentor. His courteous,
kind-hearted and modest manner, along
with his reliability and perseverance,
drew a response from students, staff
and fellow academics alike. He was
devoted to his family, which includes his
wife Aynur Azgur and two children.
(Continued on Page 3)
Packard Fellowship, NIH “New
Bilkent Innovators Take Step to Combat
Innovator” Award Go to Bilkent Graduate Global Warming
emal Apaydın (IE/’13) and
Ömer Can Gökdere
(CS/IV) have established a
solar power system that
produces its own energy from
sunlight by using solar panels
installed on campus. They have been
working on the project for six
months. The system, constructed on
the rooftop of the mescid in the
corner of the Spring Fest area, has
been producing energy during the
last few months.
The panels were manufactured in
South Korea. According to energy
production data, the project should
cover its cost in 6 years. Since the
(Continued on Page 3)
Bilkent News
T
2
NEWS
Nâzım Hikmet Symposium Held Ready to Study Abroad?
The application deadline is
he Student Exchange
at Bilkent
November 28, 2013.
Program gives students the
T
he Bilkent University
Nâzım Hikmet
Symposium, organized by
the Center for Turkish
Literature, took place on October 24
and 25 at Mithat Çoruh Auditorium
and C-Block Auditorium. Planned as
an academic tribute to Turkey’s
internationally famed poet in
observance of the 50th anniversary of
his death, the symposium was the
largest Nâzım conference ever held
at a Turkish university.
Keynote speeches were delivered
by novelist Nedim Gürsel, Prof.
Murat Belge and eminent literary
translator Prof. Aron Aji. Renowned
writers Refik Erduran and Orhan
Karaveli spoke about their
reminiscences of Nâzım Hikmet,
and Bilkent faculty members Prof.
Semih Tezcan, Hilmi Yavuz and
Prof. Talat Halman delivered papers.
The symposium also featured
stimulating presentations with new
insights by younger academics,
including Murat Cankara, Nilay
Özer, Öykü Terzioğlu Özer, Emrah
Pelvanoğlu, Fatih Altuğ, Bahriye
Çeri, Göksel Aymaz, Erkan Irmak
opportunity to study abroad.
The application process for
student exchanges during the next
academic year (2014-2015) has now
started. Here is your chance to experience
a different culture. Students currently in
their third or fourth semester of
registration who have a minimum CGPA
of 3.00 and a TOEFL score are eligible to
apply for the program.
Applicants must submit a CV, a
statement of purpose and a TOEFL
score sheet along with the application
form to the Office of International
Students and Exchange Programs.
Qualifying students will be
selected for initial interviews, which
will take place on December 10, 11,
12 and 13. Successful candidates will
be announced on December 20.
All students who plan to apply for
the Student Exchange Program
should visit
http://www.bilkent.edu.tr
/outgoing_exchange_aroundthew
orld or contact the Office of
International Students and Exchange
Programs in the Registrar's Office at
exchange@bilkent.edu.tr for more
information.
eam INVISO from Bilkent
took third place in the Bu
Gençlikte İş Var '13
competition held by
TÜSİAD (Turkish Industrialists’ and
Businessmen’s Association), with
their project Robandroid. In the
competition, teams from all over
Turkey presented their ideas and
prepared business plans with the
help of TÜSİAD members.
Robandroid is an intelligent
security robot that was developed
as a part of the GE401-402
Innovative Product Design and
Development course by Team
INVISO members Mustafa Akın
(CS), Buket Koyuncu (EE), Çağlar
Tunç (EE), Öykü Arkan (IE) and
Esra Aşçıgil (IE).
T
Bilkent Team Takes Third at TUSİAD
Competition
and Yalçın Armağan.
The presenter for the entire
symposium was Dr. Nermin Yazıcı.
Dr. Oktay Özel, Prof. Onur Bilge
Kula, Dr. Ahmet Gürata and Dr. İlker
Aytürk served as session chairmen.
Interspersed in the program were
Nâzım Hikmet documentary films.
One of the speakers was M. Melih
Güneş, who has discovered several
Nâzım Hikmet poems hitherto
unpublished in his complete poems
or any other source in Turkey. Mr.
Güneş is the curator of a photo
exhibition entitled “Nâzım at Age
111 – My Country in the Furrows of
My Brow,” which opened at the
Bilkent University Library Art
Gallery on October 23 and will run
through November 6.
Another symposium event was a
recital of Nâzım Hikmet poems.
Produced by Eren Aysan, this special
program featured stage personalities
İpek Çeken and Murat Atak.
The Nâzım Hikmet Symposium,
conceived and organized by Prof.
Tezcan, was praised by attendees as
“extremely effective” and
“memorable.”
COMD Brings International Audio
Technologies Conference to Bilkent
(Continued from Page 1)
film and television for 25 years. His
credits include “Star Wars: The Old
Republic,” “Kinect Disneyland
Adventures,” “The Walking Dead
Motion Comic,” “Watchmen Motion
Comic” (2008 G.A.N.G. award winner)
and “Dirty Harry” among many others.
Conference sessions include a panel
on “Game Audio Theory and Practice”
by Mr. Moore and Stephen Harwood
Jr.; a presentation on contemporary
opera production techniques by
mastering engineer, producer and
composer Pieter Snapper; a mixing
clinic by audio engineer Mehmet Uğur
Memiş; a panel on audio education
moderated by Assoc. Prof. Liz Teutsch
of the Berklee College of Music; a
seminar by bass guitarist Cem Tuncer;
and a session in connection with the
collective project “Remote: Relocating
Sound,” featuring artists from Turkey,
the Netherlands, Germany, Greece and
Bulgaria.
ATMM welcomes not only
academics, professionals and students,
but all those who have an interest in
music, sound and media technologies.
For more details, please see the
conference website:
http://atmm-conference.org
Bilkent News
3
NEWS
Bilkent Innovators Take Step to Combat Global Warming
(Continued from Page 1)
solar panels are guaranteed to
produce energy for 25 years, this means
19 years of free electricity will come
from sunlight, making the project not
only environmentally friendly, but also
very profitable as an investment.
Kemal explained the story behind
the project: “Due to technological
developments over the last three years,
the cost of solar energy systems has
decreased very quickly. Many
companies have entered this segment
of the energy sector, and many
European countries have enacted laws
and policies to increase solar energy
usage.
“At the same time, global warming is
getting very to be a more serious
problem every day. The tremendous
increase in CO2 emissions is a result
of the huge growth in population and
in energy usage at the same time.
The outcome will be very destructive
for life on earth.
“So we all have to try in some way
to be the solution to this problem. We
should start with energy usage, since
it is both the basis of the problem
and the solution. At this point, solar
panels can make a key contribution,
because the yearly energy potential of
sun is larger than the total of all the
energy resources in the world. So I
believe this will be the technology of
the future. We thank Rector Abdullah
Atalar and Yeşim Erdoğan (USİM)
for their support of our project.''
After establishing their solar panel
system on campus, Kemal and Ömer
created a website to show the results
of the project, which can be found at
bilkentsolar.bilkent.edu.tr. They
have also founded a company, ARTI
Innovation, with offices at Bilkent
Cyberpark. They are continuing to
develop additional projects in the
energy sector as well as to work on
their innovative solar power system at
Bilkent.
BIM Students Attend International
Conference on Reputation Management
Le Piment Rouge
Restaurant
Menu
October 30 - November 8
S
Mexican Menu
Appetizers
Sopa de Papas con Chile Verde
Gusto
tudents in the Department of
Business Information
Management have attended
the International Reputation
Management Conference held in
İstanbul by the Reputation Institute
in conjunction with their public
relations and strategic brand
management courses. Seminars at
the event were given by professionals
from various sectors and academics
from Turkish and foreign
universities. BIM students gained
new insights by participating in
discussions and workshops during
the conference.
adyo
Bilkent’s
“Drive
Time”
program can be
heard each weekday
from 6 to 8 p.m. Broadcast to
accompany commuters on their way
home, Drive Time is now in its fourth
year. Each day of the week, a different
host plays musical selections that
usually include pop hits. Drive Time
also offers a chance every evening for
listeners to connect with the program
and answer questions (with the help of
hints from the host!) in order to win
prizes.
The station’s “Hits
and News” program is
presented by a different
host each weekday
from noon to 1 p.m.
This program offers the hottest news
and hits, enlivened by conversation
between the newscaster and the DJ.
The news items, which are gathered
from newspapers and online portals,
concern politics at home and abroad,
as well as education, health, science
and sports. Information on social and
cultural activities is also presented for
the listeners.
(Continued from Page 1)
research in operations research or
management science while enrolled as
an undergraduate. The submissions
vary from single-authored theoretical
research papers to applied projects
conducted by student teams. The
overwhelming majority of submitted
papers have been of exceptional quality,
with a few being published in highlyregarded academic journals.
A prize of $500 and travel support to
attend the INFORMS annual meeting
are awarded each year to the
coauthor(s) of the winning paper, who
share the prize and travel support. The
R
Drive Time
Hits and News
Potato soup with green chile peppers
and cheese
Spicy Meat Empanadas
Chile Salad with Red Beans
Served with vinaigrette dressing
Main Courses
Beef Quesadillas
Served with guacamole, sour cream and
tomato salsa
Cheesy Chicken Burritos
Served with mashed red beans and
jalapeños
Desserts
Wet Coconut Cake
Served with grilled pineapple
Chocolate Mousse
Chef de Cuisine: Elif Denizci
Maître de Table: Ali Ünal
Set Menu Price is 20.00 TL
For reservations: ext. 5029
IE Graduates Awarded INFORMS Research Prize
Bilkent students, who traveled to
Minneapolis in the US for this year’s
meeting, received additional travel
support from the university and
Turkish Airlines with the help of
University-Industry Collaboration,
Practice and Research Center (USİM)
Coordinator Yeşim Erdoğan.
Bilkent Mourns the
Loss of Mehmet
Serhat Azgur
(Continued from Page 1)
When Mr. Azgur applied to enter
the MA program at Bilkent, he wrote a
personal statement. His statement
encapsulates his philosophy of
teaching, his eagerness to advance his
professional skills, and his own
modest and quiet approach. He wrote:
“I am neither an experienced
teacher nor have I received a formal
education in this field. But I started
giving ICT-related [courses] in 1998 at
Bilkent University. And I loved the
profession, and have been continuously
searching for different and better
methods of teaching since then.
“I started as a part-time instructor;
after 25 years of professional
experience, I quickly become addicted
to teaching and could not leave the
University. Eventually, I understood
that the important point is not
‘teaching’ but ‘learning.’
“Thus, instead of re-inventing the
wheel, I applied to the Faculty of
Education for the MA program to
learn education. And to discuss new
methods and ways to make my
students ‘learn’ better and faster,
which would also let me accomplish
my job better.”
He ended his statement: “Above all,
I am searching for answers to two
questions:
“How can I increase motivation in
the classroom and maximize student
learning outcomes? Secondly, how can
I increase the quality and use of time
to become a better role model for my
students?”
Mehmet Serhat Azgur will be
greatly missed by everyone at Bilkent.
We would like to express our profound
condolences to his family, friends,
students and the Bilkent community.
You may offer your condolences at
http://www.taziye.bilkent.edu.tr/
MehmetSerhatAzgur
Packard Fellowship,
NIH “New
Innovator” Award
Go to Bilkent
Graduate
(Continued from Page 1)
promising new investigators. The award
supports exceptionally creative
investigators who propose innovative
projects that have the potential for
unusually high impact.
Dr. Şahin is developing specialized
microscopes to investigate biological
molecules and cells that function under
physically extreme conditions, like
confinement to very small spaces and
subjection to high pressures. The
resulting observations reveal significant
phenomena, to which Dr. Sahin applies
engineering insights to address
medical, environmental and energyrelated problems in novel ways.
Bilkent News
A
BY SENA KAYASÜ (ARCH/II)
sena.kayasu@ug.bilkent.edu.tr
usten 101
The “Austen” I’m referring
to is, of course, Jane: the
influential 19th-century writer. She is
not influential in the traditional sense;
what she wrote did not invoke an
immediate reaction -- it did not
stimulate a social movement or
singlehandedly begin a new literary
genre. She is subtle, but effective. Her
masterpiece, “Pride and Prejudice,” is
possibly the most widely read romantic
novel in the English language. She
published a total of six novels, and left
behind the unfinished manuscript of a
seventh. There have been countless
variations on and adaptations of her
works, which is the reason I am writing
this piece for you.
Strangely, all through the past week, I
have been coming across Jane Austen
references. The first one was quite
surprising: I was watching the latest
episode of “The Big Bang Theory”
(spoiler alert), and suddenly Sheldon
said that he could not use “Pride and
Prejudice” to retaliate against his
girlfriend Amy. Supposedly, he was
trying to get back at her for ruining a
movie for him, so he read Austen’s
novel to ruin something she loved for
OPINIONS
her. But he couldn’t, because “it’s
perfect. He’s proud, she’s prejudiced.”
It made me laugh, coming out of
Sheldon’s mouth, but it is actually very
true. Which brings me to the point that
Jane Austen, contrary to popular belief,
did not write the literary equivalent of
“chick flicks.” In fact, her first fans were
male scholars of the time, who were the
only ones who knew about her books.
They even called themselves “Janeites,”
a term still used today by fans who
declare themselves admirers of her work
(including me).
It just so happened that a new movie
and a novel based on her books also
came out this week. On top of the
feeling of shock I experienced halflistening to “The Big Bang Theory,”
when I saw that “Austenland” had finally
come out, it felt as if the universe itself
wanted me to reread one of her books.
“Austenland” is about Janeites of the
21st century visiting a kind of Jane
Austen fantasy house, where they can
live under the conditions of those times:
the clothes, the rooms, even the social
environment. And then, I saw that a new
novel called “Longbourn” has been
published, in which the author, Jo Baker,
explores the lives of the servants in the
house of Elizabeth Bennet, Austen’s
most famous heroine. So what choice
did I have but to return to my Austen
novels? I started with “Pride and
Prejudice”: “It is a truth universally
acknowledged, that a single man in
posession of a good fortune must be in
want of a wife.”
Despite being a girl, I am not
particularly impressed by the romance
genre, generally speaking. I’m not into
romantic comedies, or unrealistic novels
twice the number of people going to the
theater than there were ten years ago.
The reason why I focused on theater in
Turkey instead of any other country -apart from the fact that I’m currently
living there -- is because unlike in many
other countries, theater here exists
against the wishes of the current
BY CEREN TURAN (CS/IV)
government. Taking that into account,
c_turan@ug.bilkent.edu.tr
the numbers are extremely surprising.
The discussion regarding the
privatization of state theaters has been
tate of the Theaters, going on for years, and in 2012 the
Theater of the State government (AKP - Justice and
Development Party) announced that
Turkey, a nation that is still “Giving government funding to events
in the development stage, is also
related to arts has become expensive
improving in the area of theater.
and inefficient due to the following
Anyone who has been following recent facts: employing more artists than the
updates in the field would think that
required number, lack of efficiency of
this is a sarcastic remark; but according the artists, not being open to
to research done by the Turkish
competition and not following the latest
Statistical Institute (TÜİK), there has
developments in arts.” It should be
not only been an increase in the
noted that the budget set apart for state
number of theaters, but also in the
theaters is 0.04 percent of Turkey’s
number of productions per season, and entire budget. Even leaving aside how
the number of people who attend the
small this amount is compared to the
performances. The research focuses on whole, and simply looking at the AKP’s
the period from 2001 to 2011, and the
statement, it must come as a shock that
exact numbers are given in the figure
the country’s theaters are improving
below. They show that there are five
instead of closing down.
times more theaters in Turkey, six
Even if one accepts that governments
times more plays being staged and
never fully reflect the opinions of the
people they govern, it’s still quite
impressive to have a public exactly
at the opposite pole from the
governing body. But what keeps the
theaters going? I mean, what is so
special about them that we don’t
S
that talk about so-called true love and a
Prince Charming. Austen’s books have a
different feeling to them. They are
about women. She doesn’t just create
the ideal female character that everyone
can relate to, who has minor
idiosyncrasies that make her appear
distinctive. She constructs women who
have character flaws and are faced with
challenges that are remedied or resolved
during the course of the story.
One aspect of her works that does
remind me of the traditional romantic
comedy story plot is, apart from the
guaranteed happy ending, that the girl
resolves her issue. The guy then realizes
how amazing she really is, and they can
get married. Despite what I mentioned
about them featuring real characters,
and real women, the novels do seem to
be focused around marriage, and the
need for marrying above yourself.
However, many critics think she did this
on purpose. It seems to me also that
she presents girls with mothers and/or
friends who can think of nothing but an
“advantageous marriage” to criticize
women’s place in society. She is one of
the most subtle feminists: she mocks
the societal situation and expectations
regarding women in 19th-century
Britain through exaggeration. A woman
was not respected unless she got
married, and poorer ones could find
themselves out on the street because
very few had money/land to their names.
Property would be transferred to the
son. Even in the absence of a son, it did
not go to the wife or daughters, which is
why Elizabeth Bennet’s mother in
“Pride and Prejudice” is so worried
about her daughters getting married.
Jane Austen’s subtlety is significant
seem to be able to let them go no
matter how much we are being forced
to do so? This question makes me think
of the path followed by theater over
time, a path that is full of ups and
downs: from the highly exaggerated
Greek theater concerned mostly with
the gods and people’s interactions with
them, to Shakespeare’s heartbreaking
tragedies, to Victorian plays that one
needs to struggle to understand, to
finally today.
Where does theater stand today?
Setting aside the restaging of earlier
plays, I think that theater today is a
mirror not only to one’s own personality
but to reality itself. There are no longer
huge stages with elaborate decorations.
The actors no longer speak in theatrical
voices; they sound like the audience.
They don’t wear clothes that make
them look like French courtiers; they
look like us. Often, they don’t even
stand on a separate and elevated place
called the stage; they stand among us.
So attending a play is nothing more
than listening to a friend who talks a bit
too much and doesn’t give you much
time to answer back. And this is
precisely why we, as Turkish people, are
holding onto theater more strongly than
ever, because it is the only connection
we have to reality at the moment.
The feeling of living in a play first
occurred to me a few months ago
during a series of protests against the
demolition of Gezi Park in Istanbul to
build something more profitable
instead. While we, in the role of
4
because of its take on feminism in
general. At the time, there were
emerging female authors who preached
extreme measures and the
transformation of the entire social
structure. Mary Wollstonecraft was one
of the most prominent writers,
publishing “A Vindication of the Rights
of Woman,” a manifesto urging women
to free themselves. This kind of
propaganda usually led to the
understanding of “victim feminism,”
which I don’t much agree with. This
concept basically presents women as
being victimized by society, making
them out to be superior to men in how
they put up with the situation. In my
opinion, this is exactly the kind of
distinction we need to avoid; women
should not be put on a pedestal, just as
they should not be treated as if they
were subhuman. Even through her male
characters, Austen points out the lunacy
of these extreme perceptions and
implies that the sexes are equal in terms
of their vices and virtues. She especially
does this through her first male hero,
Henry Tilney of “Northanger Abbey.” It
is as if he is her ally on the inside,
helping Austen explain the situation.
To anyone who wants to understand
how women think and what they want, I
recommend reading Austen. To the
other Janeites already out there, good on
you! In fact, let’s get together and talk
about it. As this piece was a sort of
“Intro to Jane Austen,” I have to make a
little note: if you want to get to know
about the stories without reading all the
books, “The Jane Austen Book Club” is
a wonderful movie to acquaint yourself
with the Austen world (beware of
spoilers, though). Enjoy!
protesters, were trying to walk to one of
the main streets of Ankara, I saw other
actors playing their parts as members of
the security forces. They tried to
disperse the protesters with pepper
spray, and though it wasn’t really pepper
spray they were using, people coughed
and some fainted because our scripts
told us to do so. Some people didn't
make it, because the lines telling them
to exit were replaced with ones telling
them that they die. Then some went
home, backstage, and some stayed. It
was such an amazing performance.
There was even a little play within a
play: a couple of people who didn’t
belong to the protesting party were
there in disguise and did all that was in
their power to provoke the crowd. And it
went on; it’s still going on. Apparently
it’s quite a long play we are a part of.
As fun as acting is, it makes one
miss the effortlessness of reality. So
when we yearn for reality, we go to
theaters. That is why no matter how
much the budget gets cut, or what the
government says about it or how small
the community is, theater in its
present form allows the audience to
have an experience that is more real
than their lives outside the theater. “Is
it possible to say that theater as it is
today is in a better state compared to
what it was a few centuries ago?” No, it
no longer takes you to new amazing
places you’ll probably never get the
chance to visit; yes, it takes you to the
most amazing place you can ever find:
your own life.
Bilkent News
H
Ege Özgün (PHYS/PhD)
ozgun@fen.bilkent.edu.tr
AIL TO NORWAY
This week I have
three Norwegian bands
on the menu for you, all
of them quite
extraordinary dishes – sorry, I mean
bands.
MUSIC
months ago in Ankara when they
performed at Voodoo Blues. It was a
great gig, and I had nearly two hours
to chat with them. Along with being
great musicians, they are also very
modest. Interestingly, they have really
different tastes in music, but when
they are on the stage as SJ5, they are
in perfect harmony.
“Michael Collins Autograph” and
“So Many Cowboys, So Few Indians”
(again a sign of their sarcastic nature,
combined with criticism) are nice
songs for getting acquainted with SJ5.
SOLEFALD
THE SAMUEL JACKSON FIVE
The Samuel Jackson Five (SJ5) is a
post-rock band. They have the mellow
guitar sound typical of post-rock, and
their songs are mostly instrumental,
which is again a post-rock signature.
They sometimes use violins, cellos
and even the theremin, generally
played by guest musicians on their
albums.
As you can guess from their name,
they have a sarcastic nature. I was
really lucky to see them live about five
5
The Norwegian avant-garde duo
Solefald (an Old Norse world for
sunset) is considered to be one of the
most innovative bands to mix black
metal elements with many different
styles, opening new horizons for their
successors. Actually, in most of their
songs one cannot really find
traditional black metal sound, and that
is why they are generally referred as a
post-black metal/avant-garde band.
Their debut “The Linear Scaffold”
started a new trend within the
extreme metal scene. They introduced
avant-garde elements to the genre
with their never-ending
experimentation. The band members,
Cornelius Jakhelln and Lars Are
Nedland (Lazare), have played with
many other bands. For example,
Cornelius has a solo project called
G.U.T., while Lazare has been playing
with Borknagar since 2000.
“The Linear Scaffold” would be a
good choice for new listeners.
ARCTURUS
Arcturus
has a style
similar to
Solefald's at
first glance.
However, I
would say that
Arcturus is
less
experimental
but more
progressive
compared to
the avantgarde duo. Their original line-up
features band members from Ulver
together with the drummer
Hellhammer (Jan Axel Blomberg),
whose name can be encountered quite
often in the black metal scene.
Kristoffer Rygg (aka Garm,
Trickster G. and many more
pseudonyms), who sang on the band’s
first three albums -- “Aspera Hiems
Symfonia,” “La Masquerade
Infernale” and “The Sham Mirrors”
-- has been replaced by Simen
Hestnæs (ICS Vortex) in their latest
one, “Sideshow Symphonies.”
Interestingly, Garm was also replaced
by Vortex after his appearance in
Borknagar’s first two albums.
Arcturus offers very energetic
music, with strange yet melodic
keyboard patterns combined with
rapid drumming, well-written guitar
structures and, of course, Garm's
magical voice.
If you ask me, their best work is
their second, “La Masquerade
Infernale.” But specifically for new
listeners, I recommend “Alone” (the
lyrics of this song are a poem by Edgar
Allan Poe) from that album and
“Nightmare Heaven” from “The
Sham Mirrors” -- both Arcturus
classics.
Now, as a dessert, I ought to make
some concluding remarks. One thing I
want to emphasize is that so many
genre-bending bands have come up
from Norway, like Solefald and
Arcturus. The list can be continued
with Ulver and many others. Also, I
consider SJ5 an underrated band; I
think they would be more famous if
they were American. But of course
being famous or popular does not
have any importance in terms of
musical quality, and in fact these
things usually have a negative effect
on the music itself. So I want to say
“hail to Norway” once more. I hope
you’ve enjoyed the meal.
In the following weeks, I plan to
talk about the jazz/fusion movement
in the early 70s.
Faces on Campus
By Hazal Koptagel (CS/IV) & Ömer Karaduman (ECON/IV)
Name: Mustafa Umut Dulun (HART/IV)
What's your favorite triple?
a) Movie: “The Big Lebowski”
b) Book: “The Fall” by Albert Camus
c) Song: “Starless” by King Crimson
Can you describe yourself in three words?
"Aloof, funny, calm"
If you could be anyone from the past, who
would that be?
"Jesus Christ"
Who is your favorite cartoon character?
"Mad Jack in ‘Mad Jack the Pirate’"
If you were a superhero, what super power(s)
would you have? "The ability to persuade"
The place on campus where I feel happiest
is... “the lawn in front of A building”
I have never... "had enough"
What would be your last message on earth?
"Don’t sit on a rock, or you won’t have kids"
Name: Ufuk Alparslan (ECON/PhD)
What's your favorite triple?
a) Movie: “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest”
b) Book: “Atomised” by Michel Houellebecq
c) Song: “Frozen Rainbow” by Saxon
Can you describe yourself in three words?
“Unconventional, intuitive, blunt”
If you could be anyone from the past, who
would that be? “The guy who invented beer”
Who is your favorite cartoon character?
“Genzo Wakabayashi in ‘Captain Tsubasa’”
If you were a superhero, what super power(s)
would you have? “Utility maximizing”
The place on campus where I feel happiest
is... “the newspaper reading room in the library”
I have never... “been able to understand my
superego”
What would be your last message on earth?
“You are doing it wrong”
Name: Sezin Sayar (PHIL/IV)
What's your favorite triple?
a) Movie: “Music and Lyrics”
b) Book: "The Little Prince" by Antoine de
Saint-Exupéry
c) Song: “Know How” by Kings of Convenience
Can you describe yourself in three words?
“Cheerful, warm, excited”
If you could be anyone from the past, who
would that be? “Audrey Hepburn”
Who is your favorite cartoon character?
“Alice in ‘Alice in Wonderland’”
If you were a superhero, what super
power(s) would you have? “Mind reading”
The place on campus where I feel happiest
is... “the benches in front of B building”
I have never... “used a gun”
What would be your last message on earth?
"Get pretty, boy; for now, you are standing until
your death"
Bilkent News
A
Get Ready for the
Fitness Challenge
SPORTS
Why Don’t You Dance?
D
able to attend the classes. When the
exam period starts, participation
Bilkent News
re you ready to compete in
decreases, but there are still students
Bilkent's annual "Sports as a
id you know that there is a
who never miss a class. Students from
Way of Life" Fitness
Ballroom and Latin Dance
many faculties and departments take the
Challenge? The challenge
course at Bilkent? Did you
course.
begins on Nov. 4 and runs through Dec.
ever think of attending? Yes, Sorry, but I’ve never taken a dance
1. It will be held at the Dormitories
you did. At least once! Then you found
course before.
Sports Hall and is open to all students.
some reason not to. Like, you can’t
SS: No dance history is needed. If you
(Students taking GE250-251 will receive dance, right?
haven’t taken ballet lessons, it’s not a
75 points.)
When we’re afraid of trying something problem.
Fitness events will include: cycling (30 new, we all know what to do: we find
I don’t have dancing clothes and shoes.
minutes); rowing (30 minutes); stepper reasons not to! If we have a “reason,”
SS: You don’t have to buy dance clothes,
(15 minutes) and cycling (15 minutes);
then it’s not just fear or bias that
shoes or any other accessories for the
rowing (15 minutes) and cycling (15
prevents us. Or so we believe…
course. You just need comfortable
minutes); cross training (30 minutes);
That’s why Sanem Subaygil,
clothing and shoes to be able to dance.
treadmill running (30 minutes); one set professional ballerina and instructor of
I need to lose weight before I start
of strength training station exercises.
the dance course at the Bilkent
dancing.
The rules are as follows:
University Sports Center, has taken the
SS: If you’re dancing as a hobby, you
Participants can do, at most, two
time to answer some questions. What
don’t need to be fit. I’ve had overweight
different activities in one day.
she says may help you see that the things students before. They come to my
A participant will get 5 points for each
that have been stopping you all this time classes to learn to dance and lose weight.
might not be such big obstacles after all. This is about feeling comfortable while
activity, each day that it is done.
Participants are to work out at least two I don’t have a partner, so I can’t dance!
dancing. If a student is thinking of
times and at most five times per week. Sanem Subaygil: You don’t have to have a becoming a professional, of course
partner. You can find a dance partner
she/he should be fit, just as I need to stay
At the end of the challenge, the
during the course. All you need to do is
fit. This is true for all professional
three male and three female
ask another student to dance with you.
athletes.
participants with the most points will
He or she is just a dance partner, after
I’m too clumsy; I trip and fall even when
receive medals. All participants who
all.
I'm just walking!
have accumulated 120 points or more
I’m really busy, I’m a Bilkent student. No SS: Dancing requires visual memory,
will receive special T-shirts.
way! I can’t dance!
coordination, a musical ear and
Registration continues until Nov 3.
SS: Class sessions are once a week on
concentration. These things are
For more information, please call the
Tuesday evenings. They last 50 minutes. important, but you don’t know what will
Sports Center at ext. 1993 or 1325, or
The course runs for 10 weeks of the
happen if you don’t try. Maybe you’re just
e-mail Ahsen Küçükdurmaz,
semester.
Most
of
the
time,
students
are
clumsy in everyday life, not in dancing.
ahsen@bilkent.edu.tr.
BY NAZLI HİLAL KAYA (LAW/II)
Ready for the ''Sports as a Way of Life''
2013 Republic Run?
A
ll students, faculty,
administrative staff, and
family members are
invited to participate in
the 2013 Republic Run on Saturday,
November 9. You can register and
get a race number at any of the
Sports Halls.
6
Age groups: 11-15; 16-24; 25-34; 3544; 45-54; 55-59; 60 and over
Route: From East Campus to the Sports
Center (Dormitories Sports Hall)
Call ext. 1993, 1325, 3186 or 5350 for
more information on this fun and
fantastic event for the whole family!
spor@bilkent.edu.tr
Which dances do you teach in the
courses?
SS: Salsa and Argentine tango. In
previous semesters, I have taught rumba,
cha-cha, swing and Viennese waltz. It
depends on the students’ interests.
Am too I late to start the course?
SS: Courses start again each semester.
It’s too late for the fall semester, but you
can start in the spring semester after the
mid-year break.
I’m not sure, but I might try dancing.
Where is the course held?
SS: The course is held at the
Dormitories Sports Hall.
And the course hours?
Every Tuesday:
7:40-8:30 p.m. Salsa
8:40-9:30 p.m. Argentine Tango
9:40-10:30 p.m. Argentine Tango
If I do change my mind and want to learn
to dance, where can I find more
information?
Sports Center: ext. 1993
Bilkent Students Dance Their Way to
Fitness at Zumba Master Class
O
rganized by the Physical
Education and Sports
Center as part of the Sports
as a Way of Life program, a
Zumba master class took place on
Tuesday, Oct. 22 at the Dormitories
Sports Hall.
The class featured choreography by
Ahsen Küçükdurmaz and Fatma
Sports Ad...Sports Ad...Sports Ad...
Öztürk Ceylan, and attracted about 380
participants, who enjoyed exercising to
the accompaniment of a special soundand-light display featuring Latin music.
Students who took part in the event
earned points for their Sports as a Way
of Life “mountain groups.” In addition,
students taking GE250-251 received
100 points for that course.
Looking For: Friends to play tennis and squash. sandra.velemirovic@googlemail.com
Sports Ad is an ad column for all Bilkenters who play sports. If you play
tennis, squash, badminton, table tennis or any kind of sport needing two or more players and can’t find a partner whose
schedule fits yours, then Sports Ad will help you find a sports partner. All you need to do is send an e-mail containing your
schedule and contact information to bilnews@bilkent.edu.tr. We look forward to hearing from you.
7
Bilkent News
W
Work for Bilkent News!
e need eager, energetic,
dedicated student
reporters, writers and
photographers to cover
your campus! Report on events,
news, arts and culture, music,
concerts, sports, campus life, what’s
cool, what’s not, what’s happening,
what’s being said and what’s being
done. Learn to pitch stories, write
articles, take photos and edit your
work. If it’s going on at Bilkent, we
want everyone to be in on it, and we
need people like you to write about
Connect with
Bilkent via:
Facebook: BilkentUniversitesi
Twitter:
@BilkentUniv
YouTube: BilkentUniversitesi
Google+: Gplus.to/BilkentUniv
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it!
Available positions:
Arts & culture reporter
Sports reporter
Diplomacy reporter
Photographer, general
assignment
Make Bilkent News YOUR
newspaper.
Contact us at: the
Communications Unit in the
Engineering Building, Room G-22 /
Ext. 1487 or 2421 /
seckin@bilkent.edu.tr
Bilkent IEEE Weekly Puzzle
#5 – Two Balls
Two balls, each either black or red, are placed in a bag. You draw a ball
from the bag, which contains at least one red
ball. If the ball you draw is red, what is the
probability that the ball remaining in the bag
is red too?
The Prize for This Question: Rubik's Race
The Winner of Puzzle #3: Umar Raza
Send your answer to ieee@bilkent.edu.tr by 5:30 p.m. on November 5,
or visit ieee.bilkent.edu.tr/zeka to submit your answer online, and get a
chance to win the prize!
This question was prepared by Emrehan Halıcı, president of the Turkey
Intelligence Foundation, for Bilkent IEEE.
PUZZLE... PUZZLE... PUZZLE...
SUDOKU
Games Editor: Nesrin Dönmez (IE/IV)
Here are five Sudoku puzzles. Fill in the numbers so that each row, column and 3x3 grid contains all of the digits 1 to 9.
Submit the contents of the diagonal going from the top left to bottom right of each puzzle to win a prize. Good luck!
Last Week's Answers: 1) 269 791 764 2) 237 238 754 3) 672 413 915 4) 157 764 273 5) 457 374 918
n
us o
Findocial
S dia
Me
BİLKENT NEWS
Bilkent Üniversitesi
Adýna Sahibi:
Prof. Dr. Kürþat Aydoðan
Sorumlu Yazý Ýþleri Müdürü:
Hande Seçkin Onat
Yayýnýn Türü: Yerel Süreli Yayýn
Yayýn Kurulu: Kürþat Aydoðan,
Reyyan Ayfer, Mehmet Baray, Hande
Seçkin Onat, Kamer Rodoplu
Editör: Diane Ewart Grabowski
Yönetim Yeri: Bilkent Üniversitesi
Rektörlük, Ýletiþim Birimi, 06800
Bilkent, Ankara
Basýldýðý Yer: Meteksan Matbaacýlýk
ve Teknik Sanayi Tic. A.Þ.
1606. Cad. No:3 06800
Bilkent, Ankara
Bilkent News (ext. 1487) welcomes
feedback from readers. Please
submit your letters to
bilnews@bilkent.edu.tr. The
Editorial Board will review the
letters and print them as space
permits.
100% Post Consumer
Send in your e-mail with the right answer to
puzzle@bilkent.edu.tr and get a chance to win!
Prizes will be: dessert and coffee from Mozart Cafe (one each
for three winners); coffee from Coffee Break (two each for two
winners); hot chocolate from Cafe Fiero (one each for five
winners); and chocolates from Bind Chocolate (two winners).
8
Bilkent News
Bilkent CALENDAR
FEASS Doctoral Workshops:
“Why Do a PhD?
(Expectations from PhD
Students, Difficulties on the
Way),” by Asst. Prof. Nedim
Karakayalı (POLS) and Asst.
Prof. Clemens Hoffmann
(IR), at FEASS, A-130,
12:30 p.m. Organized by
FEASS.
CONFERENCES
Thursday, October 31
“Cumhuriyetin Dünü,
Bugünü, Yarını,” by Ömer
Faruk Eminağaoğlu (former
President of YARSAV) and
Fatih Yaşlı (Writer, Yurt
newspaper), at FEASS, CBlock Auditorium, 12:30
p.m. Organized by Sosyalist
Düşünce Topluluğu.
Wednesday, November 6
“Deleuze and Cinematic
Tragedy,” by Corry Shores, at
FADA, FFZ-21, 3:40 p.m.
Organized by COMD.
Wednesday, November 6
“Dynamics and Spectroscopy
of Optically Trapped
Microparticles,” by Prof.
Antonio Sasso (Universita
degli Studi di Napoli
Federico II), at EE-01, 4 p.m.
Organized by PHYS.
Wednesday, November 13
“Enhanced Light-Matter
Interactions in
Microstructured Glass
Fibres,” by Philip Russell
(Max Planck Institute for the
Science of Light), at EE-01,
4 p.m. Organized by PHYS.
WORKSHOPS
Thursday, October 31
Wednesday,November 13
"Effective University Teaching
Workshop," by Dr. Iþýk
Denizman, in the Orientation
Room in the Library, ground
floor, A Block, 2 - 4:30 p.m.
Organized by the Office of the
Provost.
Thursday, November 14
"Effective University Teaching
Workshop," by Dr. Iþýk
Denizman, in the Orientation
Room in the Library , ground
floor, A Block, 2 - 4:30 p.m.
Organized by the Office of the
Provost.
SPORTS
Saturday, November 9
“Sports as a Way of Life
Republic Run,” at 11 a.m.
Organized by the Sports
Center. See page 6.
EXHIBITIONS
November 4-14
“Modern ve Bellek Silinen
Classifieds
İzler,” by Mimarlar Odası
İzmir Şubesi, at FADA, Art
Gallery. Opening: Monday,
November 4, 12:30 p.m.
Organized by ARCH.
Until November 6
“Nazım Hikmet’in Yolculuk
Fotoğrafları,” at the Library
Art Gallery. Every day (except
Sundays) from 10:30 a.m. to
6 p.m. Organized by the
Department of Turkish
Literature.
FILMS
Friday, November 1
“Ratatouille,” “Otel
Transilvanya,” “Persepolis,”
“Despicable Me,” at FADA,
FFB-22, 10 p.m. – 8 a.m.
Organized by Medya
Topluluğu.
Tuesday, November 12
Architecture and Cinema
Film Series: “Sketches of
Frank Gehry” (Sydney
Pollack, 2005), at FADA,
FFB-22, 5:30 p.m.
Organized by ARCH and
COMD.
SEMINARS
Friday, November 1
“Identifying the Discount
Factor of Forward-Looking
Consumers Based on
Consumption From
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Ads are limited to 20 words, including phone, fax and e-mail.
Deadline is at noon Wednesday, one week prior to the edition in which the ad is to be run.
Classified ads should be e-mailed to bilnews@bilkent.edu.tr.
Photograph by M.
Furkan Akýncý (LAW/IV)
Inventory,” by Selin Akça
(Goethe University), at the
Ümit Berkman Seminar Room,
1:40 p.m. Organized by FBA.
Friday, November 1
“Two Item Lot Sizing
Problems,” by Assoc. Prof.
Hande Yaman Paternotte
(Bilkent University), at EA-409,
1:40 p.m. Organized by IE.
Friday, November 1
UNAM Seminar, by Assoc.
Prof. İhsan Gürsel (Bilkent
University), at FS, SA-240,
3:40 p.m. Organized by
UNAM.
Friday, November 1
“Inventories and the Role of
Goods-Market Frictions for
Business Cycles,” by Wouter
J. Den Haan (LSE), at
FEASS, A-228, 3:40 p.m.
Organized by ECON.
Thursday, November 7
"How Can the Library Help
Your Doctoral Research:
Resources and Techniques",
by Dr. David E. Thornton,
at the Main Campus Library
Art Gallery, 2 - 3:30 p.m.
Organized by the Office of
the Provost.
Tuesday, November 12
"Basics of Effective
University Teaching," by Dr.
Iþýk Denizman, at Mithat
Çoruh Auditorium, 11 a.m. 12:15 p.m. Organized by the
Office of the Provost.
Wednesday, November 13
"Being a Teaching Assistant
in Universities," by Dr. Iþýk
Denizman, at Mithat Çoruh
Auditorium, 11 a.m. - 12:15
p.m. Organized by the Office
of the Provost.
CONCERTS
Saturday, November 9
Bilkent Symphony Orchestra
Commemoration of Atatürk
Concert, Conductor: Işın
Metin, Piano: Nikolai
Lugansky, at the Bilkent
Concert Hall, 8 p.m.
S. Prokofiev | Piano Concerto
No. 3 in C major, Op. 26
L. v. Beethoven | Symphony
No. 3 "Eroica" in E flat major,
Op. 55
Saturday, November 16
Bilkent Symphony Orchestra
Conductor: José Serebrier
Violin: Mirjam Tschopp
at the Bilkent Concert Hall,
8 p.m.
P. I. Tchaikovsky-J. Serebrier
| Andante Cantabile
F. Mendelssohn | Concerto for
Violin in E minor, Op. 64
A. Dvorak | Symphony No. 8
in G major, Op. 88
Dear Bilkent News Readers,
Due to its late publication following the Republic Day holiday,
this issue of Bilkent News is a combined issue for the weeks
of October 28 and November 4. The next issue will be
published on Tuesday, November 12.
Bilkent News Editorial Board