Hot Topics in Design
By
Selena Richardson
· Thursday, Dec. 24, 2015
![According to the Census Bureau, one census block's population in Ithaca increased from 110 people to 5,882 people between 1990 and 2000. Another block decreased in population from 1,459 residents to 61 residents during that same time span. The amount of fluctuation in population numbers concerned the County Information Technology Department and the City and County Planning Departments enough that they decided to investigate. The reason: apparently the Bureau accurately calculated the population of students at Cornell University, but instead of proportionally distributing the numbers, they placed all the students in one census block. As a result, the drawing of district lines for the next decade's worth of municipal elections might be delayed. "The Census decided to put the students in one block on Kelvin Place. A nice, residential area now has an approximately 6,000 extra people," said Alderwoman Patricia Cartwright Vaughan '61 (D-3rd Ward). According to the Census Bureau, college students were counted in the area wherever they lived in April 2000, regardless of not being in their home state. "They [students] live here nine months out of the year. The Census was very clear about it," Vaughan said. Discrepancies with the residence halls on North and West Campuses are the central concern for the officials. City and county committees are working together to repair the problem. "The problem is that the Cornell numbers are in the northeast corner of the city," said Tompkins County Rep. Michael Lane (D-Dryden), the chair of the charter review committee. The borders of the Town and City of Ithaca, along with the village of Cayuga Heights mix in that corner of the city. The Bureau misplaced students out of their prospective census blocks, or moved them out of the right districts. "As far as the census is concerned, when they do the county population, it's divided into census tracks, and then into block groups, and then into blocks," Tom Mank, planning analyst for the County Planning Department explained. "The dormitories were counted; they were just put in the same block." The West Campus results were inaccurate, for example, counting 1,958 residents in the 1990 census, but only 165 in 2000. The difficulties with the census slow down the redrawing of district lines that officials are trying to accomplish by June. Due to a population decrease, Ithaca may lose a seat on the Tompkins County Board of Representatives. Candidates for next fall's elections have to complete nominating petitions in June, thus officials are trying to set preliminary borders so that the candidates have a general understanding of their possible districts. "I think that we've gone over the hurdle. It has set us back two weeks, but we're moving along," Vaughan said. The Census Bureau has also made the same mistakes in other states. "We contacted the Bureau in Boston and it's a nation-wide problem in group residencies. If we fix it and petition [for the changes to be accepted by the Bureau, [the changes] will most likely be accepted," Lane said. The petition will most likely be sent to the Census Bureau in June or July. The county and city planning boards are working to make the numbers accurate for each census block using the Geographic Information Systems (GIS), a mapping system, which enables the officials to analyze the data more carefully. "We downloaded the raw data [from the Census Bureau] and we're comparing the data using the system," Mank said. "We're trying to fix it." Some officials believe that the GIS helps to fix the population numbers without an excess of time or speed. "[The GIS] is making it easier to stay with the time table we set for ourselves," Lane said. "We couldn't have done this before since we didn't have the computers to do it. Now with microcomputers and software, we can do more than we could ten years ago," Vaughan said. The same problem with population numbers affected Ithaca College, but not to the same degree as it did Cornell. "[The Bureau] made the same mistake with Ithaca College, but only in one district. It doesn't really affect it at all," Vaughan said. So far, the preliminary results are that approximately 405 residents will be moved from the City into towns on the redistricting map. About 355 of these residents will be placed in the Village of Cayuga Heights and about 50 will be shifted into the Town of Ithaca. The remaining numbers will be accurately proportioned to the other districts. "It probably worked out logically," Lane commented. Officials are looking at other factors that may affect the apportionment differences. "To reiterate, it's in the process. It's looking like the dorms, but there may be other things involved, maybe frats and sororities as well," Mank said. Archived article by Kelly Samuels](https://snworksceo.imgix.net/cds/a9e44858-8145-403f-870a-8865f4acb984.sized-1000x1000.?w=1500&ar=16%3A9&fit=crop&crop=faces&facepad=3&auto=format)
![By JEFFREY BREUER
Inspiration can be a powerful driving force, leading us to take risks we thought we couldn’t deliver on. When we walk down Ho Plaza on a brisk Monday morning or watch television shows and films, we see people who “pull off” outfits, haircuts or even attitudes that we ourselves wish we could replicate. However, we rarely have the opportunity to do anything about it. In the realm of men’s fashion, plenty of movies and television series have tremendous wardrobes for their characters, which we can dissect and look to for fresh ideas. Here are just a few examples of such productions:
[caption id="attachment_2995" align="alignnone" width="638"] Photo Courtesy of FilmDistrictBold FilmsDrive (2011)[/caption]
This film serves as a great place to start for a few reasons, but is particularly strong in its ability to demonstrate the importance of the essentials. Throughout the movie, Ryan Gosling’s character, part auto mechanic and part getaway car driver, is a walking advertisement for American work wear. As a very underappreciated subgenre in men’s fashion and a personal favorite of mine, work wear shines through in Drive from the consistent use of denim to many scenes that simply show how to wear the hell out of a plain white t-shirt. Beyond the basics, this film also shows the power of building an outfit around a specific item. Gosling’s iconic scorpion jacket, while bold and flashy, works great on screen in part due to a very simple and subdued cast of supporting articles of clothing. Look to Drive for a foray into the nuts and bolts of what makes even the simplest outfit look developed.
[caption id="attachment_2996" align="alignnone" width="619"] Photo Courtesy of Netflix[/caption]
Master of None (2015)
Set in New York City, Aziz Ansari’s Netflix-driven series has been a breakout hit in 2015. In each episode of the series’ first season, characters are dressed perfectly to popular aesthetics, wearing exactly what you’d think twenty-somethings would be wearing in a major metropolitan city. Without a doubt, Ansari and supporting male cast members embody a style ripe with attitude while emphasizing the basics as well, whether it is classic beige chinos or a well-fitted oxford shirt. Nike’s Killshot 2 makes multiple appearances throughout this first season, always as a perfect compliment. The boys over at Reddit’s r/malefashionadvice would be proud. Look to Master of None for a schooling in the modern men’s fashion gold standard in casual wear.
[caption id="attachment_2997" align="alignnone" width="613"] Photo Courtesy of Warner Bros.[/caption]
Crazy, Stupid, Love (2011)
We return to Ryan Gosling for our third example in the romantic comedy Crazy, Stupid, Love. While essentially a film about the complexities of relationships, this movie also has a strong tilt toward men’s fashion in a dedicated storyline in which Steve Carrell’s character, an out-of-touch father, is brought back in touch with his masculinity by Gosling. The film includes many appeals to developing confidence socially as well as sartorially, which really ties the film together for our purposes. Unlike Drive and Master of None, this film focuses more on formal wear, so this example’s day-to-day application might be lacking, but really instills a sense of purpose with regard to what we wear and how we are perceived. Look to Crazy, Stupid, Love for a reason to make “looking good” a priority.
Have a favorite style icon? Take a look back at their outfits on screen and see what made each successful and how you can bring that energy into your own clothing decisions.
Jeffrey Breuer is a senior in the College of Arts & Sciences. When he isn’t worrying about what he’ll be wearing tomorrow, Jeffrey can be found cheering on the Big Red at Lynah Rink or digging through books about Cornell’s history for interesting facts to annoy his friends with. The Dapper Man appears on alternate Mondays this semester. Jeffrey can be reached at jmb753@cornell.edu.](https://snworksceo.imgix.net/cds/26df5519-4959-4bd3-8226-9f65465bfcde.sized-1000x1000.?w=1500&ar=16%3A9&fit=crop&crop=faces&facepad=3&auto=format)
