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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 8, 1985)
Friday, February 8, 1985/The Battalion/Page 3 student designs flying eye hospital for needy nations 9 outweijjl lulti-pasi die and By BRIAN PEARSON Reporter What started as a senior class pro- ect may turn into a very beneficial xperience for a Texas A&M envi- onmental design student. For his final project in a design :lass, Richard LaSalle designed a “f- ying eye hospital” which could help nany underdeveloped countries around the world. LaSalle’s designs equipped a DC- 10 jet plane with a teaching facility nd eve hospital aboard. The original plans for the flying ion-profit hospital, project ORB IS, /as originated by Dr. David Baton, a Houston eye surgeon. The concept of ORBIS involves [lying an airplane around the world nd teaching the doctors of under developed countries the latest tech nologies and tricks of the trade of ophthalmology, LaSalle said. I ORBIS must receive an invitation prom the country’s government be- Tfore that country can participate in Bhe program. I Patients are selected by the doc- Bors of underdeveloped countries Based on techniques that are applica- ^ ble to the needs of the host country, lie said. I Specifically, the ORBIS doctors lise the latest laser and microsurgical ? of heat. -5208. equipment for treating their pa tients. The project was able to get off the ground in 1982 after United Air lines donated a DC-8 jet plane to the cause. All the equipment used by ORBIS is donated and all the doc tors involved are volunteers. For his project, LaSalle said he was interested in developing a spe cial facility for ophthalmology. For background material, LaSalle said he called a spokesman at ORBIS to get some general information about ophthalmology. The spokesman en couraged LaSalle to work on a de sign for a possible ORBIS II project for the future, LaSalle said. LaSalle said he used the idea for his class project. He designed the eye hospital to fit inside a DC-10 because the Federal Aviation Administration had banned the use of the DC-8 jet plane in the United States. LaSalle’s model can be adapted to fit almost any large plane, he said. LaSalle said he gave the design to ORBIS officials as a gift and expects no compensation if the plan is used. Like the original design for the DC-8, LaSalle’s design includes op erating rooms, recovery rooms, classrooms, audiovisual centers, a scrub area and a library. Mobility was one of the main problems with the original ORBIS ORBIS zt Photo by FRANK IRWIN Richard LaSalle with designs for the flying eye hospital. model, LaSalle said. People on the plane could not move from the nose to tail without passing through a sterilized area, he said. LaSalle said he designed his model with two levels. He put the operating rooms and other sterilized areas on the upper level so people could move around inside the plane without contaminating these areas, he said. “We’re all very excited with the design,” said Gina Demetruis, an as sistant in the planning department at the ORBIS headquarters in New York City. LaSalle’s design could be used in the ORBIS II project, she said. She said the ORBIS project is enough for now, but the program is growing so rapidly that a need for a new plan might exist in the future. The ORBIS jet plane is currently in Turkey and is scheduled to be in China by the end of the summer, Demetruis said. Black lawmakers fear racing bill is for rich 3$ ages Associated Press AUSTIN — Legalized horse race ■vagering could generate millions of Hollars for Texas farmers, agricul ture officials said Thursday, but ack lawmakers complained that acing legislation as now written about BlBvQuid just create “a pastime for the e’s fingeri windows r;i l; \s fvealthy.” With racing bills before the House ivav to oil van d Senate, the Texas Department he f ies and ill /here it f le theesi your nose do that i bad. git up, if of Agriculture unveiled a study esti mating horse racing could bring farmers up to $230 million directly within 15 years. Agriculture Commissioner Jim Hightower said the TDA study con cluded that development of a Texas racing industry would generate $138 million for agriculture directly when it hits full stride by 1990, with a total economic impact of $427 million. Hightower said the study indi cates that two areas—a stretch from Brenham to San Antonio, and an area from south of Dallas to the Ok lahoma border—would become ma jor centers for horse farms. While Hightower was releasing his numbers, black lawmakers met on the other end of the Capitol to announce their opposition to the leading horse race bill, and Gov. Mark White again insisted that any racing bill meet tough conditions or face his veto. The Legislative Black Caucus, led by Rep. Paul Ragsdale, D-Dallas, criticized the horse racing bill intro duced by Rep. Hugo Berlanga, D- Corpus Christi. Ragsdale complained that, unlike past horse racing legislation, the 1985 bill fails to dedicate part of the state’s proceeds to financial aid for families with dependent children. The governor said any racing bill must include three key elements—a statewide vote on whether to allow racing at all, a county vote before a track could be built and protections against the influence of organized crime. The same goes for dog racing or a state lottery, White said. Budget cuts disconnect phone lines By GIGI SHAMSY Reporter Alexander Graham Bell would laugh at the new communication sys tem in the educational psychology department—two coffee cans con nected by a string. The doctoral students on the third and seventh floor of Harring ton Tower lost their telephones Feb. 1 because of University budget cuts. “Stringing the coffee cans along four stairwell walls was our humor ous reaction to the situation,” Jay So lomon, a graduate student, said. Students and faculty taking the stairs will find taped string leading to two large coffee cans hanging from the third and seventh floor. Michael Ash, head of the educa tional psychology department, said two wall phones on the third and seventh floor have replaced the of fice phones. “Since we can’t pinpoint the per petrator of this prank,” Ash said, “we’ve decided to have a lottery to choose which graduate student will be thrown out of the seventh floor window.” Doris Gutcher, departmental sec retary, said students and faculty have been good-humored about the prank. She said two graduate students, Solomon and Pitchie Smith, dressed as workmen and came into the de partment claiming they had direct orders from the Board of Regents to disconnect the new intercom system. “They handed me a memo from the Board of Regents apologizing for the inconveniences that may have resulted from the removal of the intercoms due to budget cuts,” Gutcher said. Dr. Arthur Blair, assistant to Pres ident Vandiver, said each depart ment president was asked to exam ine the year’s remaining college funds and reserve two percent as protection against budget cuts that will be legislated in Austin. ard editor itor Editor da Snide , Willian« Hen Clad mdersom , Bullaro f Cornett, ten Dielt. Koranek •ah Oates, ia Parker, tae Pt |vet ay Malle 11 eii Bl° f ^ -la Mart" 1 ren Steffi (ike Lane aleSntitf V Bennett rineHurt yCaspef' nk Inf' lean Sa" 0 imxr M TEXAS STYLE ROCK & ROLL Friday & Saturday Night OPEN BAR 6-9pm 50C BEER 9-10pm $1.00 BAR DRINKS lu.lt 813 WELLBORN 693-4045 C.S. TEXAS Wednesday night: Fashion show by Hidden Personalities Lingerie Printer Month at Yes Computers! Buy a printer during February and get a free printer starter pack (includes package of paper and one printer ribbon). Join our new ribbon club. Just pick up a card each time you purchase a ribbon, we’ll mark your card. For each 5 ribbons you purchase, get one free. 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