“What is a Hall of Famer?” said Lowery, who played college football at Dartmouth and went on to earn a graduate degree from Harvard. “There’s one on the field, and then there’s your contribution to your community. In the end, that’s your legacy.”
And . . .
Lowery is part of the #SportSpeaksUp campaign, led by Eric Rubin, CEO of Project Max, a movement dedicated to fighting racism, antisemitism and intolerance through sports.
Lowery said that standing up for Jewish people is in his “emotional DNA,” because his grandmother documented atrocities at the Dachau concentration camp in Germany. He is dedicated to bringing Jews and Christians together, and he and Rubin expressed how they are committed to continuing to meet with these families.
“I feel so honored to know these people. They’re in my heart now,” Lowery said. “Maybe football is a tough sport, but this is the most important work we’ve ever done…. We’re bonded for life.”
#
Kudos to writers at The Daily Pennsylvanian for their work pulling together a story under the headline, Ivy League set to opt out of House v. NCAA antitrust settlement. From the story, which includes this subhead, An email from Ivy League Executive Director Robin Harris stated that Ivy League student-athletes will continue to not receive shared revenue or direct name, image, and likeness payments from their universities (LINK):
The email, sent by Ivy League Executive Director Robin Harris, states that the conference will not participate in the $2.8 billion settlement and that its athletic programs “will continue to not provide student-athletes with revenue sharing allocations, athletics scholarships, or direct [name, image, and likeness] payments.” The decision was made by the Ivy League Council of Presidents under recommendation from the Ivy League Athletics Directors and Policy Committee.
And, uh oh . . .
“It’s honestly a let-down for us Ivy League athletes,” star junior wide receiver for Penn football Jared Richardson wrote in a statement to The Daily Pennsylvanian regarding Penn’s decision to avoid paying players directly. “I understand that the main focus is on academics, but when you see all these other schools looking out for their athletes, it sort of gets you thinking like ‘oh, maybe the transfer portal would be best for me and my family.’ It also doesn’t help that we don’t receive athletic scholarships … hopefully, this ruling will get changed in the near future because I am honestly not a fan of it, nor are my teammates.”
And . . .
Regarding whether the Ivy League’s decision to opt out would have impacted him if he was back in his first years in the program, star senior quarterback Aidan Sayin said in a written statement that he thinks “the degree still holds its value, but opportunities elsewhere will continue to take the top players in the league from each sport at an even higher rate than we saw over the past few years.”
And . . .
Olympian and former Penn track and field star Isabella Whittaker felt the news represented the reality of the conference’s programs: unsupportive to student-athletes.
“As a former student-athlete who has single-handedly helped to uplift the Penn program, I am extremely disappointed,” Whittaker, a 2024 College graduate, said in a written statement to the DP. “Ivy League schools are under the impression that they can take, use, and reuse their athletes and give them nothing in return.”
#
EXTRA POINT
With nothing coming to mind for today's PAT, I asked ChatGPT to "write a 12-line poem about the beauty and benefit of hiking a mountain trail in single-digit temperatures." In less than 30 seconds it spit this out:
Beneath the frost’s soft, icy veil,
I tread the mountain’s winding trail.
The single digits bite my skin,
But spark a fire that roars within.
The afternoon sun, low and bright,
Casts golden beams on snow so white.
The silence sings in tones so pure,
A symphony that winter ensures.
The frozen world feels sharp, alive,
Each step reminds me why I strive.
For at the peak, the view unveils,
A triumph carved in icy trails.
Wow. I then asked a different AI for a 150-word critique of the poem and it answered:
This poem beautifully captures the essence of a winter hike, evoking both the physical sensations and the emotional rewards of the experience. The imagery is vivid and precise, painting a clear picture of the landscape and the hiker's journey. The use of contrasts, such as the "frost's soft, icy veil" against the "fire that roars within," creates a dynamic tension that mirrors the struggle and triumph of the climb.
The poem's structure, with its consistent rhyme scheme and meter, lends a musical quality to the verses, enhancing the "symphony that winter ensures." The language is simple yet evocative, allowing readers to easily immerse themselves in the scene. However, some might argue that the poem leans heavily on familiar winter imagery and themes, potentially lacking a unique twist. Overall, it is a well-crafted and evocative piece that celebrates the beauty and challenge of nature.
The poem's vivid imagery and emotional depth suggest it could be the work of a talented human poet, but it's also possible that it was crafted by an advanced AI. With the sophistication of AI models today, distinguishing between human and AI-generated poetry can be quite challenging. Both have the ability to create evocative and well-structured verse. Ultimately, it's a testament to the capabilities of AI that it can produce work so closely resembling human creativity.
Green Alert Take: I'm glad I'm not a poet these days.
