I j
The Batta I ion
Serving the University community
Vol. 76 No. 32 USPS 045360 22 Pages In 2 Sections
College Station, Texas
lursday, October 14, 1982
Doctors doubt
A&M will see
measles cases
by Carol Smith
Battalion Staff
Although 63 cases of measles have
been confirmed at Baylor University,
the recent outbreak is declining and
local health officials don’t expect
Texas A&M students to he exposed
during the upcoming football game
with Baylor.
Ron Moellenberg, immunization
program manager for the Texas
Health Department, said Baylor also
has 21 probable cases and 22 suspect
cases. Probable cases are those in
which all symptoms are compatible,
but further investigation is needed.
Suspect cases are cases in which some
svmDtoms are visible.
Baylor has the largest number of
reported cases in the nation at this
time, Moellenberg said.
Dr. Claude Goswick, director of the
A.P Beutel Health Center, said the
chance of the epidemic spreading to
Texas A&M University is slim.
“As far as I know, there was one
[ suspected case on the (Baylor) foot
ball team and that was in the game
against Texas Tech,” he said. "They
have immunized the entire Tech foot
ball team and I’m sure they have im
munized the Baylor team.” 1
Goswick said no cases of measles
have been reported at T exas A&M,
but the women’s softball team was ex
posed while playing in a tournament
with the Baylor softball team a few
weeks ago. But the T exas A&M team
Study needed,
wasn’t immunized because health
officials didn’t feel it was necessary,
Goswick said.
Moellenberg said caution should
be exercised on any campus because
students mingle in dorms, classes,
cafeterias and social events.
“It (a measles epidemic) can hap
pen on any campus,” he said.
Measles, an airborne droplet virus
carried in the respiratory tract, is
highly communicable. One individual
can infect a large group of people,
Moellenberg said.
“The problem with the measles is
that before you know you have thetn,
you are already spreading them,” he
said.
Measles’ early symptoms are the
same as those of a common cold —
runny nose, burning eyes and
headache, Moellenberg said. Tem
peratures can reach 101 degrees or
higher. The rash lasts anywhere from
three to 10 days.
“When you’re dealing with 18-, 19-
and 20-year-olds, the disease can be
pretty serious,” he said.
Side effects of measles include
pneumonia, brain damage and deaf
ness. No such side effects have been
reported at Baylor, Moellenberg said.
“We’ve had some very sick indi
viduals come into the (Baylor) health
center though,” he said.
Shortly after the outbreak, Baylor
initiated a mass immunization prog
ram to combat the disease.
scientists say
staff photo by David Fisher
A fishy business
Colleen Caldwell displays a flathead catfish outside the
Civil Engineering Building Wednesday afternoon. The
display is meant to help sell tickets for the American
Fisheries Society’s fish fry Oct. 21; tickets will be
available through next week. Caldwell is a senior from
Houston studying fisheries.
Hydrogen fuel years away
by Jennifer Carr
Battalion Staff
Several years of detailed study are needed to
perfect the hydrogen production process before it
can be used on a large scale, the project’s resear
chers say.
Texas A&M researchers Dr. Marek Szklarczyk
of Poland and Dr. Aliasgar Q. Contractor of India
said they must do a detailed study of how and why
the process works. Contractor said that at this time,
he and Szklarczyk know the process works, but they
have only a general idea of why.
The hydrogen production process involves using
solar light to separate the hydrogen and oxygen in
water. So far, the'experiment only has been con
ducted using simulated solar light.
The light is projected onto a negatively charged
electrode — or cathode — immersed in water. A
positively charged electrode — or anode — also is
immersed in the water. The charges from the elec
trodes pull the water molecules apart. Positively
charged hydrogen ions attach themselves to the
cathode and the negatively charged oxygen ions are
attached to the anode.
The sun’s energy is used to excite electrons to a
state of high energy, where they become reactive.
Each electron then joins with a hydrogen ion to
produce hydrogen gas.
But a film soon form's around the electrodes and
greatly reduces their efficiency. Szklarczyk and
Contractor said they eliminated this problem by
electroplating a covering, or doping, of platinum
over the film which allows the film to conduct
charges.
Their next step, Szklarczyk said, is to “go up on
the roof.”
Using direct sunlight will allow the researchers to
experiment for longer periods of time. Contractor
said they have contructed a special cell for outside
use that should be ready in a few days.
The research team’s process, although not the
first to produce hydrogen gas from water, is consi
dered exceptional because of its 12 percent effi
ciency rate. Researchers at the University of Cali
fornia and Berkley and the University of Turin
have produced recovery rates of only 0.05 percent.
Contractor and Szklarczyk said they will try to
increase the 12 percent efficiency rate by studying
the nature of the film surface and trying to discover
exactly why the process works.
Contractor said he belives they have not yet
reached the optimum conditions tor the experi
ment.
He said he wants to experiment with other dop
ings that may increase the efficiency rates.
Szklarczyk said he wants to improve the condi
tion of the doping. These include the thickness, the
condition of the electroplating and stabiliztion of
the doping.
Once the efficiency rate is maximized, Contrac
tor said, engineering researchers will take over to
design a large-scale model to produce the hyd
rogen. But these processes will take several years,
he said.
Hydrogen can be stored for long periods of time,
unlike solar energy, which must be used almost
immediately. A major problem is determining the
best way to store the hydrogen, Szklarczyk said.
It can be stored as a gas under high pressure, as
liquid hydrogen or in the form of hydrogen hyd
rides. The hydrogen can be used directly in any of
these forms.
Hydrogen fuel’s greatest advantage is its lack of
pollution. After hydrogen fuel has been used, it
reverts back to water which could be collected and
used repeatedly. But Contractor said he doubts that
would be necessary because water is so inexpensive.
Is A&M bidding
for a Harvard
Nobel laureate?
From staff ahd wire reports
A Nobel Prize-winning physicist
from Harvard University has been
quoted as saying Texas A&M Univer
sity is trying to woo him here with a
salary package that rivals the one
given Texas A&M Athletic Director
and Head Football Coach Jackie
Sherrill.
Sheldon Glashow was quoted in
the Harvard Crimson as saying: “In
informal discussions (Texas A&M
officials) indicated they would prob
ably match those arrangements
(made with Sherrill).
“Apparently certain circles didn’t
see that there should be different
valuations of physicists and football
coaches.”
In January, Sherrill accepted an
offer from Texas A&M estimated to
total $1.6 million over six years.
Glashow also was quoted as saying
there is a “significant” chance he will
spend his upcoming sabbatical at
Texas A&M.
In an interview with T he Battalion,
however, Glashow' said this was. not
the case and that he had been mis
quoted.
“There have been all sorts of non
sensical statements made,” he said.
However, Glashow did not deny
that he has been in contact with Uni
versity officials.
“There have been discussions at a
very general level about a permanent
assignment,” Glashow said.
He said he would give “serious
consideration” to a permanent posi
tion if a firm offer was made, but that
no mention has been made of a sabba
tical.
Glashow is scheduled to teach a
seminar at Texas A&M later this
month.
The attempt to attract Glashow to
Texas A&M is part of an effort to lure
outstanding faculty members to the
University.
Board of Regents Chairman H.R.
“Bum” Bright has said Texas A&M is
looking for faculty “superstars” —
especially professors who have won
the Nobel Prize.
“We have no Nobel Prize wanners
now,” Bright said. “The University of
Texas has two and Harvard has eight.
We are trying to get one right now.”
Harvard has been outbid for sever
al other “star” professors in recent
years. Steven Weinberg, who shared
the Nobel Prize in physics with
Glashow, was hired by UT two years
ago for a reported six-figure salary.
At Harvard, the top faculty salaries
— $80,000 a year — go to professors
holding the title of “university profes
sor.” Glashow is not a university pro
fessor.
Five men killed
in Port Arthur
refinery accident
United Press International
PORT ARTHUR — Texaco USA
investigators probed refining equip
ment to discover what caused super
heated chemical powder to spew out
of a break and kill five men.
The accident Wednesday hospital
ized four others with burns and
caused shutdown of the refinery’s No.
1 fluid catalytic cracking unit that was
being restarted when the hot powder
(lew. The unit had just received
routine maintenance.
“We know the powder is alwavs
supposed to be contained. We do not
know what happened to cause the
equipment to lose containment,”
Texaco spokesman Charlie Rentz
said.
A team of Texaco investigators was
on site after the unit was shut down.
“I expect they will work through
the night. Typically, they will do a
thorough job and it will take some
time,” Rentz said.
The victims were identified as
Charles L. Choate, 33, of Nederland;
Vernon Cole, 56, of Groves, and Port
Arthur residents Herman C. Hope,
35; Jesse Dennis Jr., 34, and Freder
ick Ryan, 39.
Joseph N. Higginbotham of
Orange was flown by helicopter 90
miles to a burn ward in Galveston’s
John Sealy Hospital. He was reported
in guarded condition.
James Baxter Dement, Eugene H.
Foreman and James Werner were
hospitalized in Park Place Hospital
and treated for first-and second de
gree burns. Three other employees
were treated and released at Texaco’s
first-aid station.
Werner said there was no explo
sion, but he heard a roar in the mo
ments before the 1,300-degree pow
der sprayed in the air.
“There was a loud roar, the line
exploded and the catalyst escaped,”
he said.
Worker Daniel Dement, the
brother of the injured man, said it was
a “freak accident. I’ve been out there
15 years and I’ve never heard of any
thing like this happening.”
staff photo by Rob Johnston
Squeeze it in the trunk
Kimberly Massey, a senior from San
Antonio, had a problem — her
motorcycle broke down on campus
Wednesday. So she went home, got her
car, and loaded the motorcycle in to
take it for repairs. It was a tight fit.
Massey is a pre-vet student majoring in
animal science.
Shipyard
forced to
to jobs in
United Press International
GDANSK, Poland — Under threat
of courts-martial and possible death
sentences, workers called off plans
for a general strike Wednesday and
reported to the Lenin Shipyard,
“militarized” by the government after
two days of strikes.
“There were no workers at the
gate, no flowers or inscriptions on it,”
said one witness who stood by the
main gate of the shipyard, where an
August 1980 strike led to the birth of
Solidarity.
The strikes of the previous two
days were peaceful, but were followed
by street clashes in Gdansk between
police and gangs of youths throwing
rocks and Molotov cocktails late into
the night.
Polish television late Tuesday said
148 people had been arrested in
Gdansk in the two days of disturb
ances, but the toll was feared to be
higher following Tuesday night’s
clashes.
The shipyard workers had been
threatened with dismissals or army
conscription if they remained on
strike. Authorities “militarized”
Lenin Shipyard Tuesday, making a
strike equivalent to disobeying army
workers
return
Poland
orders and offenders liable to the
death penalty.
Witnesses stressed there still was a
possibility of demonstrations in
Gdansk or elsewhere later today to
mark 10-month anniversary of mar
tial law.
ZOMO riot police mounted a heavy
guard 20 yards from the shipyard
gate, checking identification cards.
About 200 yards away, one water
cannon and five heavy vans filled with
fatigue-clad riot police stood by.
“There were indications that the
resistance of the workers was sup
pressed after the shipyard was
militarized,” one witness said.
But with telephone and Telex com
munications with the outside world
cut off for the third straight day, it
was impossible to give more details.
Shipyard workers refused to work
the morning shifts Monday and Tues-
day to protest the Polish parliament’s
decision Friday to outlaw' Solidarity
and impose a tough new labor law
forbidding strikes and limiting the
size and power of unions.
They demanded the release of Soli
darity leader Lech Walesa and the
reinstatement of Solidarity.
Freshmen
elect officers
Despite the rain, over 700 fresh
men turned out to vote in Tues
day’s runoff elections. Billy Cassel
was chosen as freshman class presi
dent, Brad Winn was elected as
vice-president, Robert Shepard
won the secretary-treasurer spot
and Lori Zeigler was elected social
secretary. The results were verified
by the judicial board and are post
ed at the MSG Student Programs
office.
inside
Around towm. . 4
Classified 8
National 10
Opinions 2
Sports H
State 3
What’s up 9
forecast
Continued clear and dry
through the weekend. High 70,
low' tonight in mid 50s.