By Natalie Craig

October 23, 2019

NANJING, China — Nanjing University (NJU), a top institution in China that participates in a partnership with the Hopkins-Nanjing Center (HNC), has become one of many Chinese universities to introduce entry-exit facial recognition technology to its gates. 

For some students, this technology brings about an Orwellian feel. With each pass through the gate, students’ faces are scanned and recognized before entry. With faces and student ID information stored in the system, many HNC students feel that this is a violation of privacy, a greater restriction on their movement within China. For others, this new security measure is viewed primarily as a way to protect students. 

According to the Daily Mail, these efforts are a part of China’s latest five-year plan to modernize schools across the country through its “smart campus initiative.” In the last year alone, China has installed over 200 million security cameras throughout the country. By 2022, the total number of surveillance cameras throughout the country is projected to increase to 2.76 billion, according to the International Data Corporation (IDC). With heightened surveillance, the government can easily monitor students’ movements, adding to its centralized control over the people.

Although this plan was a public government initiative, the students affected remained unaware and without the agency to oppose the installation of these devices. Nanjing University students received no official notice about the implementation of the facial recognition technology preceding its installation. It was only a few days ago that the university finally released information on these facial recognition gates and how they will impact students. The report covered the plan for non-students entering campus and cited the purpose of these gates as a new effort with the Public Security Bureau to aggregate a “gray list” of those who should be denied access to the university, thus ensuring the safety of students. 

“I went up and saw that it recognized my face and my ID number and had a green arrow admitting me into campus, and I felt very uncomfortable and sort of violated,” Amy Bodner, a masters student at the HNC, remarked. 

While the HNC has its own center with separate security on the northeast corner of campus, students still have access to the facilities on NJU’s campus. For second year international students, their information has been entered into the NJU database, so their faces will scan successfully. Certificate students, on the other hand, must either walk around the scanner or ask the guard to let them through, which calls into question the legitimacy and the true purpose of the facial recognition technology.

“It’s not an effective measure of keeping campus safe because anyone can walk right through; the guards don’t seem to care, so I have to wonder what the actual purpose of this is…I think that it is ineffective at best and disturbing at worst,” Bodner said. 

As for Zhou Jie, a second-year Chinese HNC student, the scanners seem to be as effective as the locks that used to be on the gates at night on campus. “If you are a bad person looking to do harm, you will always be able to find a way to get in, but it may reduce the probability of some bad people from entering campus,” she stated.  

Besides the questionable efficacy of the device, the purpose that it serves is also ambiguous. “I think the purpose is data collection and eventually to restrict movement; I think that these things roll out so slowly that you become acclimated to it and then one day it is actually restrictive,” Brad Hebert, a certificate student, remarked. 

However, many Chinese students believe that this device serves two purposes: to protect students and to restrict the flow of outsiders into campus. A few years ago, at NJU’s Xianlin campus, reports circulated of a woman who had been sexually assaulted on campus. This attack outraged students, and led to widespread desire for a response from the university. According to Zhou Jie, “This probably was not the cause of the implementation of these devices, but is most likely one of the reasons the university installed them so quickly—because students were indignant this harm had taken place.” 

Meanwhile, other Chinese students believe that these facial recognition gates help to reduce the number of non-students on campus. According to Ruoyin, a certificate student, if universities are completely open, then the campus will be filled with too many outsiders. “This could influence students’ studies, so they restrict the flow of tourists,” she said. 

One key idea that both Chinese and international students could agree on with regard to these entry-exit face scanners is that they are restricting. Not only does it limit access, but also it is indicative of a future of control and targeted constraints on migration. 

“I think there is a wave to control migrations of people any way you look at it, whether it be foreigners, ethnic minorities, anyone; I think in different areas it is becoming increasingly strict,” Bodner said. 

While one can only speculate as to the true purpose and future implications of these devices, this pilot program is only a fraction as strict as new measures being taken elsewhere. Pinnacle universities in China, including Beijing University and Qinghua University, have set the trend in heightened security for university campuses throughout the country. This past year, both campuses introduced face scanners, identification card registration systems and the requirement that all visitors be accompanied by a student to enter campus. Although conditions in Nanjing are much more relaxed than in Beijing, it appears to be evidence of a small but definite step toward a more monitored and controlled China. 

Michael Hall 

October 14, 2019

BOLOGNA, Italy — It took no more than a week in Bologna to understand SAIS’s dedication to instilling the precious qualities of ambition and ability in its students. Similarly apparent was the unveiling of this elite academic institution’s seedy underbelly: seeking to convince students of the necessity of long hours of study, exploration, examination, analysis and droopy eyelids in a secluded two-story library. In moments like these — when AirPods playing “chill lo-fi study beats” are more prevalent than smiles — it is especially important to find sanctuary. What environment harbors a warmer sense of envelopment than a bakery and its perfume of yeast, sugar and vanilla extract?

When a friend first mentioned the existence of a late-night “secret bakery,” an hour of online research returned a morass of subreddits, travel blogs and fruitless ‘Yahoo Answers;’ fellow foreigners entranced by the idea of an Italian grandmother serving fresh baked goods at 3 a.m. were useless here. Instead, this bakery — a garage door replete with graffiti before 12 a.m., when its door opens — demanded immersive field research.

The bakery can be found tucked away on Via Borgonuovo, and although there are no official hours, the shop typically opens around midnight and serves its loyal late-night crowd until  traffic peters out around 3 a.m. — later on weekends. Anna, the Mother Mary who operates the bakery, has been running the shop for 65 years and serves anywhere between ten and 200 night owls per shift. In terms of price, the bakery is average if not affordable, with a delicious cornetto vuoto priced at one euro and ten cents. The following paragraphs recount my personal experience of discovery and indulgence at Anna’s bakery:

Following a Friday night dedicated to a cathartic session of dance, the time had arrived when nothing could prove more satiating in the early morning then a quintessential overfilled Italian cornetto. When leaving the clubs and strolling through the city center, it is impossible to ignore the increasing population of couples and individuals practicing their certain brand of self-care by burying their faces into fresh baked goods veiled by greased wax paper. Pitying my disheveled appearance — a shirt saturated with sweat and jeans stained with the spilled drink of another club-goer — a carefree couple kindly directed me to the bakery’s location in Via Borgonuovo for salvation via carbohydrates.

Despite the absence of any signage, the crescendo of the slurred sentences of late-night party-goers guide vagabonds like myself to a nondescript storefront adorned with graffiti. A written menu doesn’t exist, so don’t bother foolishly searching for one; instead, simply get in line.

The bakery offers two main items: pizza by the slice, which comes as a dough-centric square with the option to add prosciutto or salciccia; and cornetti filled to order with pistachio, crema, chocolate, Nutella or marmellata. In the name of thorough investigation, your loyal correspondent ordered three cornetti: one crema, one Nutella, and one with both pistachio and chocolate — the baker’s recommendation. Anna, overseer of this midnight oasis, scuttled back — her apron ends trailing freely behind her like Kate Winslet in the Titanic — and within minutes returned with the night’s bounty.

Having fed the camera first with a few quick snaps, a gentle separation of the Nutella-filled cornetto revealed two findings. First, the plentiful fragile flakes that fell in the process spoke to the proper lamination of the dough — Mary Berry would approve. Second, provided the cornetto was filled only minutes before, it made sense that the filling was more molten than your average 9 a.m. cornetto. The Nutella filling was the runniest of the three, presenting an exciting opportunity to mop up the drippings with the handy tools provided by the pastry’s empty ends. 

Alas, my eager anticipation was rewarded only with bleak disappointment. The filling’s hazelnut flavor matched that of a jar of sun-bleached Lavazza. This absence of nuttiness left an imbalanced sugar-to-cocoa ratio that, when combined with the dough’s innate sweetness and confectioners’ sugar, tasted of half-melted chocolate rediscovered a month after Halloween. 

Conversely, the pistachio cornetto’s intensity provided a nutty, fatty backbone that achieved a delightful balance with the rich, presumably milk chocolate filling. The crema filling was the firmest of three and was made using a different dough adorned with nonpareils, rather than confectioners’ sugar. Less flakey, more rigid and lacking the thick center vein of cakey, tooth-sinkable dough distinguishing a good cornetto from the bad, this was the least interesting of the three. Nonetheless, the exposed insides of all three cornetti released an intoxicating aroma of lemon and yeast that cuts through the sweetness and inspires customers to clean their plate — or in this instance, a stone doorstep.

By sunrise, the crowd had thinned considerably, and Anna had a moment to chat. Bolognese through and through, Anna has spent her whole life in the city. She feels that the bakery has had an unmistakable impact on the city, and believes that it is widely understood that fresh baked goods after midnight is a privilege — and almost all customers, despite their varying levels of inebriation, treat her with immense respect. Pointing to the gate that bars guests from entering and up at the nearby windows of the residences of families and working people, Anna said her biggest problem was noise complaints. Anna sells from the building’s door as a strategy to defend herself to city authorities when complaints are filed; all customers are on public grounds and thus, she contends, they should be fined instead of her. However, she lamented, this rarely works out as planned. Instead, she pays the occasional fine, though she is generally more concerned about  inadvertently disturbing the viccolo’s residents than the fines themselves.

As the clock neared 6 in the morning, Anna sent her fellow baker home and momentarily removed the bakery’s small gate to allow for a few photos. Italians don’t drink without food,even if it is a lowly potato chip, and you shouldn’t either. With that in mind, Anna’s bakery is a highly recommended pit stop during a night giro through the city.

Michael Hall

October 22, 2019

BOLOGNA, Italy — Pity the poor soul who comes to SAIS by the name of Giulio; that unlucky person is destined to be overshadowed by Giulio, the bar-owner, bracelet-connoisseur and musician that all SAIS Bologna students come to know and appreciate. His scarves iconic and Friday afternoon pours delightfully generous, Giulio is a character who contributes to the “Bologna experience” of many — maybe even too much. The SAIS Observer had the wonderful opportunity to interview our beloved barista. As one may expect, there wasn’t a dull moment.

Giulio, born and raised in Bologna but Calabrese at heart, has been slinging coffee at SAIS for well over a decade now since assuming the role of owner in 2005. Although Giulio had an academic passion for philosophy which he explored at the University of Bologna (UNIBO), he has always cherished the beauty of food services and the accompanying human interaction. Nonetheless, living outside the city walls while studying at UNIBO, Giulio found himself searching for a more geographically convenient job. Enter SAIS: a school attracting diverse, sociable students. It seemed the stars had aligned for our favorite barista-but-could-pass-for-magician Italian.

Giulio was quick to share that this was, and has remained overwhelmingly his favorite part of the job. Students have changed, he explained, but in a positive way, gravitating away from strictly business and finance toward harboring a broader set of interests. It is somewhat ironic that over the similar course of time, Giulio has perceived the construction of a thicker wall around the school. Prompted into discussion by a question regarding what it is like being many students’ first or primary foreigner-Italian interaction, his mustache-adorned smile slowly inverted into an unpleasant symbol of distaste.

Giulio began recounting years past with the glossy tinge of nostalgia, when the building’s mechanic blockade — relishing in the panic of students two-minutes late sans ID card in hand — instead was a revolving door through which both SAIS and UNIBO students passed. The café’s clientele was even more diverse and, perhaps for Giulio, lent a sense of legitimacy to his business. Now, as regulations have made entering the building increasingly difficult for anyone unaffiliated with SAIS, Giulio’s has increasingly come to resemble the cafeteria-style, contracted restaurants often found at universities in the United States. [Editor’s note: Wait until the Bolognesi see the Grab-n-Go that passes for food service at SAIS DC. Refrigerated, packaged hot dogs and hamburgers, anyone?] 

This isn’t to ignore the secluded market that evolves from such protection. Rather, the conversation steered more toward what it meant for students’ experiences. For the less extroverted, some now find their interaction with the outside world—Via Beniamino Andreatta, 4, and beyond — restricted to the ins-and-outs of the drab brick-and-mortar some students tragically have begun calling “home.” This isn’t to construe Giulio’s feelings as unappreciative or indignant; the transition Giulio has seen, and the ardent feelings it inspires in him, instead speak to the immense care all SAIS faculty and staff have for us fortunate students. Some may see our year as a cultural immersion — and others as a relocation of U.S.-based practices to Bologna. Offer a glass — or better yet a bottle — of wine to the man behind the perennial vest and you’ll leave more motivated than ever to muster up the courage to give more than the ambivalent ciao to that cute cashier.

September 26, 2019

By Dennis Murphy

WASHINGTON, D.C. — It has been about half a year since the news broke that Johns Hopkins SAIS had purchased the Newseum as a future location for the Washington, D.C. campus. The move has been the subject of much rumor and speculation since. On September 26, the SAIS Observer met with Dean Eliot Cohen to put to the record some useful facts about the move, and what it means for the student body here in Washington.

As it turns out, the idea to change the Washington campus is an old one, and is related to the broader issue of consolidating Johns Hopkins University’s programs in the Washington area. As such, the Carey Business School, the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences, and several others will also find a home in the new location. 

While the Newseum location will cast a big tent, SAIS will comprise about 70% of the new location. Other schools will contribute faculty and students, but only SAIS will make a complete transition to consolidate its Washington presence.

One of the potential benefits to SAIS of the new location at 555 Pennsylvania Ave NW to will be its closer proximity to Capitol Hill. SAIS and its graduates enjoy a close relationship with the executive branch’s departments and agencies, which employ hundreds of former SAISers across the Treasury, State, and Defense departments, among numerous others. At the Newseum, SAIS will be within walking distance of Capitol Hill as well, facilitating greater opportunities for SAISers to pursue internships and foster connections that might just be their big break. The first floor of the Newseum will be open to the public, and it is to be hoped that this space will help to foster career-shaping interactions between these students and the powerful institutions that have made their home on Pennsylvania Avenue. Such is the power of location.

SAIS has enlisted architects to ensure the Newseum can fit all of SAIS—which currently takes up three buildings on Massachusetts Avenue—as well as Johns Hopkins’ other Washington programs. Floors, walls, ceilings–anything that can be rearranged, may be rearranged, as SAIS appears to look to its Bologna campus as a guiding example.

Dean Cohen invoked the Bologna campus as he stressed the importance of commensality. He wants people from all over our school to constantly be stumbling across each other, in the process finding a good place to sit with each other, eat with each other, and build community. He expressed a strong desire for there to be an excellent cafeteria and an excellent coffee shop at the new location, so that students could have a great place to share meals together and bond.

This was one of the great secrets to academic life, Cohen continued, that Oxford and Cambridge discovered. It seems clear that Cohen envisions the same type of close camaraderie fostered at Bologna to play a powerful role at the new campus.

Dean Cohen underscored that this spirit of camaraderie should not be limited to students’ sense of community with each other. Rather, he hopes that faculty, administration and students will constantly be bumping into—and getting to know—each other. It is hoped that the close quarters will foster greater integration across social lines. One of the great things about being at SAIS, Cohen remarked, was that MIPP students and BA/MA students could sit together in the same class and learn and grow from each other. One should expect even more of these types of interactions at the Newseum.

As the move takes place, there will be a home for new degrees, joint degrees, and other types of affiliations with SAIS in the new Washington, D.C. Hopkins Center. The DIA—a practitioner’s Doctorate in International Affairs—is one of those new degrees, as is the MIEF—the Masters in International Economics and Finance. Dean Cohen mentioned that a dual degree program with the Carey Business School is likely to take shape, and hinted toward future discussions about other dual degree programs. Currently, MA students account for about 80% of the SAIS student body, but this may change in the future.

Most importantly for current students who will graduate long before they will be able to enjoy the new state-of-the-art classrooms in the Newseum location, the future of SAIS will be one where greater alumni interaction with the school will be encouraged. Discussions are taking place on how best to allow SAIS graduates to share in the future of SAIS—but the dean stressed the importance of having many different kinds of Hopkins alumni come back and spend a day to a few weeks at the new location. Dean Cohen wants this new school to be a home to us, even after we have graduated.

At its heart, the main reason for the move is this: It will provide for greater interaction and collaboration across all of the schools, and among all the students, faculty, and alumni, that form Johns Hopkins University in Washington, D.C.

2023 is a long way off for us current students, who will be long gone by then. Should the new school fulfill its promise, we will have the good fortune to have a home at SAIS in Washington, D.C. as we move forward into the unknowns of life.