igs rebuild
efficient’ car
By GEORGE ROWE
; Battalion Reporter
( | 0St Texas A&M University stu-
its spend their Christmas vaca-
[ w jth relatives and wouldn’t
,k of spending any of it in Col
lation.
ome exceptions are a tew
..anical engineering students
3plan to spend part of their vaca-
I working on an energy-efficient
[ They are rebuilding a Honda
I a car only sold in Japan, to
L r a contest sponsored by Stu-
f t Competition on Relevant En
uring (SCORE).
tike Love, a senior mechanical
jeering student, is one of six
lents working on the car that the
as A&M team will enter in the
test next August. Love said that
)RE was organized in May of
He said in previous years
jORE held competitions in elec-
|car races, a clean-air car race
I an urban car race, intended to
[elop a car for city use.
he present competition is for
:rgy efficiency. Love said it
ted in September 1977, and
as A&M registered for it in
rch 1978.
j)\’e said the SCORE competi-
will be held on the General
Motors proving grounds near
Michigan. Love said that he and
other students who worked on the
car will drive it to the competition
next summer.
The Texas A&M team car is simi-
lar Honda Civic, Love said.
Mark Dewveall, a sophomore
mechanical engineering student
who is also involved in the project,
said the car was found last summer
in a San Antonio wrecking yard
Dewveall said the biggest prob
lem was finding parts for it because
it was a Japanese domestic car that
was not exported. He said he
doesn’t know how it got to the
United States. Unlike the Honda
Civic, the 360 has two cylinders in
its engine rather than four.
"I think we will get it operational
over the holidays,” Dewveall said.
He said they have to put the engine
in the car and get the electrical sys
tem working.
Love said the Texas A&M team
decided to modify an already-built
car because, “it wasn’t economically
feasible to build one from the
ground up, so we decided we would
try to make a choice of the best car
we could and modify it to achieve
efficiency.”
Love said they will modify the car
to run on methanol instead of
THE BATTALION Page 3
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 12, 197S
Colorado to host
U.S. sports meet
United Press International
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — The United States Olympic
Committee has awarded the 1979 National Sports Festival to the
same southern Colorado city which hosted it this year, USOC presi
dent Robert Kane said Monday.
“We are extremely pleased to be returning to Colorado Springs.
Last year s participants were very enthusiastic about the experience
they had here and many expressed the hope the festival would come
back to this area,” he said.
Colorado Springs hosted the inaugural event last year with 2,100
athletes from 26 sports participating. Kane said seven other cities
were interested in hosting the festival, but lacked adequate facilities.
He said the decision to return to Colorado Springs was made by the
USOC Executive Board during a weekend meeting which also ex
panded the competition from four days to six days, July 27-Aug. 1.
It will permit better use of some of the facilities, reduce the
intensity of scheduling in sports such as basketball, hockey and soc
cer, and give spectators an opportunity to see more of the sports on
the program,” he said.
He said the Colorado Springs city council has agreed to support the
festival to a maximum of 285,000 in food, housing, ground transporta
tion, security and other services.
Mike Love works on rebuilding old Honda
350, a car sold only on the Japanese domestic
market, for use in an energy-efficient auto
contest which Texas A&M University students
are planning to enter.
gasoline. He said that a car modified
to methanol will consume a large
volume of fuel when compared to
gasoline, hut not more energy.
Love explained that methanol
produces less energy per volume
than gasoline and that “the contest
is not a mile-per-gallon contest, but
an energy-efficiency contest.”
Love said that the one advantage
of using methanol is that higher
compression can be used.
lusbands offer aid in childbirth
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• Group Prices
NORTH GATE - Across from the Post Office
itor's Note: The author of this
icle coached his wife through the
maze method birth of their first
early in this semester. The
jy girl weighed seven pounds,
(rteen ounces.
By MIKE CARL
Special to the Battalion
!ven though the nursery is
Mled and the six labor rooms are
upied, the father’s waiting room
tas full as it would have been a
years ago.
with the rise in popularity of
ural childbirth methods, more
more fathers have quit pacing
pital corridors and are now tak-
an active role in the birth of
Jirchildren. Lamaze, Bradley and
ler prepared childbirth methods
now allowing expectant parents
hare the birth experience.
[lie Lamaze method is better
|wn in this area and is gaining in
mlarity, says Sharon Christ-
ler, who has taught prenatal
ses since 1974. “The Bradley
hod is more popular in Colorado
California,” she said.
The big difference between the
methods is that Lamaze em-
'sizes active participation,”
istopher explained, “and the
dley method is more passive,
ssing relaxation and controlled
athing.”
ihe says the goal of Lamaze is to
vide a positive birth experience
both parents. This is achieved by
ching couples techniques with
ich the mother’s pain can be sig-
cantly reduced during labor and
ivery.
The Lamaze method is based on
gate-control theory of pain,”
ristopher said. This theory states
twhen a certain level of negative
luli is reached in the body, pain
will be experienced. By adding posi
tive stimuli to the nervous system to
cancel out the negative, a person’s
threshold of pain can effectively be
raised.
A series of six, two-hour lessons
prepares couples for using Lamaze.
From the first class, which is usually
in the couple’s seventh month of
pregnancy, expectant parents begin
to learn how to become a labor and
delivery team. Physical exercises
and concentration-relaxation tech
niques are stressed in the first class
and throughout the course.
The exercises are designed to
stretch, strengthen and tone the
muscles which will be heavily used
in labor and delivery. If the mother
is in good physical condition, the
labor will be easier for her.
The father, or “coach,” does not
sit idly by while his partner does all
the work. In order to help his wife
practice at home, he also must learn
how to do the exercises properly.
Most coaches soon learn that the
exercises are not easy and their at
titude toward their own role in
Lamaze begins to change.
Before labor, the coach guides his
mate through a series of exercises
every day. He must count the repet
itions, offer advice and, probably
most important, he must offer the
understanding, concern and support
his spouse needs to continue them.
A coach soon learns the power of a
few words of praise and encourage
ment.
Seven basic exercises are used to
get the woman’s body conditioned
for childbirth. Each excercise be
gins and ends with a deep breath,
almost ritualistically. After weeks of
practice and repetition, this deep
cleansing breath” become an au
tomatic signal to the body to begin
working. When hard labor begins.
this deep breath precedes and fol
lows each contraction. The following
breath serves as a signal to relax
after the contraction is over.
Perhaps the hardest exercise to
master is called the universal toner.
While lying on the back with knees
bent, the knees, thighs, perineal
and buttocks are tightened and the
back is pressed to the floor while the
pelvis is rotated up and back. Each
muscle group is tightened individu
ally in order and then held while
succeeding groups are tightened.
After three breaths, the muscle
groups are relaxed one at a time in
reverse order. This exercise is an
important aid in learning how to
control closely related muscle
groups individually--a skill which
can make delivery much easier.
Concentration is really the key to
the Lamaze method. Focal points
and breathing techniques require
varying degrees of concentration
which provide a positive activity to
take the mother’s mind off the pain
of labor and delivery.
A focal point is nothing more than
a point of reference upon which the
woman fixes her eyes. A picture on
the wall or some fixture in the room
in easy view is used. No exercise or
labor simulation is ever performed
without first finding a good focal
point. With repetition, concentrat
ing on a focal point becomes hab
itual. Concentration can become so
intense that outside distractions go
unnoticed. In the labor and delivery
rooms a mother can concentrate on
a focal point to take her mind off the
contractions. If she does not dwell
on the pain, then the pain will not
be as intense.
There are three basic breathing
techniques used when labor pains
are severe enough to interrupt
speech. These techniques are
known as Gears I, II and III.
Gear I, or slow chest breathing, is
usually the first breathing technique
used during labor because the con
centration required is the least of
the three techniques. This brea
thing method uses six to nine slow,
controlled breaths per minute.
Gear II is a form of shallow chest
breathing. The speed of Gear II
breathing is based on the intensity
of the contraction. As a. contraction
increases in strength, the rate accel
erates to a maximum of one breath
per second. As the intensity of the
contraction subsides, the breathing
returns to a more normal rate.
Gear III is known as the pant-
blow technique. It is a combination
of four panting breaths and one
breath exhaled sharply. It is prac
ticed frequently during intense
labor. There are also various combi
nations of the three breathing tech
niques that require a maximum of
concentration.
The coach’s role during labor and
delivery is one of guidance and sup
port. He keeps his spouse posted on
her progress and helps her keep
control of the situation. Through the
classes, both have learned what to
expect in the labor and delivery
rooms and what they should do.
The coach is mainly concerned
with the comfort of his mate. He
reminds her to change positions of
ten, helps ease back labor, helps
work out cramps and helps her with
her breathing techniques.
And most important, the father is
there to give his support and con
cern when his wife needs it most.
Is Lamaze changing young
couples’ attitudes toward childbirth?
Sharon Christopher says, “It used to
be that everyone expected the
worst.” She added, “Now they ex
pect hard work — not pain.”
3!0^^jg | y | TGE | jBRYAN^£ i 778Ol^ | 713jj77^463^
Wood-Burning Stove for
Cold Feet
kUDIO
)fe>p
OLE SARGE
handcast in
Pewter exclusively
for the Curiosity
Shop.
The Aggie Bonfire
can now be
more than a
flickering memory.
The Bonfire Mug
exclusively for the
Curiosity Shop in
Wilton Armetale.
Open til 8 p.m. thru Christmas
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