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A&M faculty member invited
to U.S.-U.S.S.R. symposium
By Holly Beeson
REPORTER
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One mark of a world-class university is the
presence of faculty members worthy of notice in
the international arena. A Texas A&M Univer
sity associate professor has achieved that status.
Dr. Ozden Ochoa, an associate professor in the
mechanical engineering department, has been
invited to attend the first Symposium on Me
chanics of Composite Materials between the So
viet Union and the United States.
Ochoa is one of 32 delegates chosen to rep
resent the United States at the conference in
Riga, Latvian, May 23-26. She was the only dele
gate invited from the southwestern United
States.
The purpose of the symposium is to increase
the sharing of information between the two
countries, Ochoa said.
She was selected to attend the conference on
the basis of a paper she submitted to the Ameri
can Society for Composites, a sponsor for the
symposium.
“The paper is the outcome of a research pro
ject,” she said. “It addresses the structural re
sponse of a composite component panel when it
is subjected to different environmental condi
tions.”
A panel, basically graphite fibers and poly
mers, is tremendously important because of its
light weight. Her paper explores environmental
contributions, such as moisture and temperature,
to the load-carrying capability of a panel.
Composite materials are used on space shut
tles, airplanes, helicopters and automobiles such
as the Corvette and Fiero.
Ochoa said the study of composites is an active
field with much to be uncovered.
The symposium will last two weeks. Partici
pants will present papers and talk with peers, as
well as visit Soviet technical institutions, and
learn about Soviet culture.
“My personal interpretation of the conference
is that this is another step in exchanging ideas
with the Soviet bloc,” Ochoa said.
Ochoa said the symposium will give A&M the
opportunity to be internationally recognized as a
major school that does outstanding research in
composites.
“I want to understand the state of the art in
terms of composites in the Eastern bloc,” she
said. “I would like for them to see what we’re
doing and see how good we are at it.”
Speaker Lewis
makes apology
to reporters
AUSTIN (AP) — House
Speaker Gib Lewis apologized
Wednesday to news reporters af
ter telling one to “shut up” when
he asked the speaker a question
aboutbass stocked on his ranch.
“I was a little rude . . . and I
apologize if I’ve offended any
body,” Lewis said in a gathering
with reporters during tire House
session.
But, he added, “When you see
stories in the newspaper that are
misleading, when you see mis
leading headlines, to mislead the
general public, you feel like your
integrity has been questioned. I
think that’s why I get upset.”
Lewis — who also has received
deer, elk and turkeys through the
state Parks and Wildlife Depart
ment — said all the stocking was
proper and “above board.”
“I don’t think my integrity
should be in question on these
matters,” said the Fort Worth
Democrat. “Every contact with
those people has been at arm’s
length, been in the same type of
transaction as any general citi
zen.”
He said Parks and Wildlife of
ficials “have not shown me any
preferential treatment and to my
knowledge, they have not shown
anyone any preferential treat
ment.”
Lewis on Tuesday criticized a
report in the Dallas Morning
News that said Parks and Wildlif e
employees caught and trans
ported more than 100 black bass
from an East Texas lake to Lewis’
ranch in Williamson County. Al
though the director of fisheries
defended the action, other
agency employees said ordinary
Texans probably would not have
received the same service.
After apologizing, L.ewis main
tained that the news story “was
completely, totally out of propor
tion.”
“Un fort u nately, somebody
raised the question that maybe
the speaker . . . was given prefer
ential treatment. I don’t believe
that. No one in Parks and Wild
life believes that.
“My relationswhip with the
Parks and Wildlife ... is a very
close relationship over 18 years.
Tin a sportsman and I’ve been
very supportive of their pro
grams and I know what their re
sponsibilities are.
“My association with them on
stocking on any property I own
has been under those conditions .
. 1 have made requests and in
some cases I have not made any
requests.”
Proposal to burn natural gas
could clean air, create jobs
AUSTIN (AP) — Bills promoting natural gas use
would help clean up Texas air and stimulate the econ
omy, Land Commissioner Garry Mauro told state law
makers Wednesday.
“Too often, we Texans have assumed that a growing
economy and a clean environment are at odds,” Mauro
said in testimony to the Senate State Affairs Committee.
“Our reserves of natural gas have given us a dramatic
opportunity to prove that assumption wrong.
“Texas is blessed with vast reserves of natural gas, the
cleanest-burning fossil fuel on earth,” he said: “If we
can link that demand for Texas natural gas to the na
tional imperative to clean up our air, it’s a no-lose situa
tion for everybody.”
Also testifying for the measures were representatives
of such groups as the Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra
Club, Texas Independent Producers and Royalty Own
ers Association and American Lung Association. The
Senate panel did not vote on the legislation.
It has been estimated the legislation would create
more than 8,000 jobs and increase the state gross prod
uct by almost $500 million by 1998.
One bill would require the use of compressed natural
gas or other alternative fuels in state-owned or -oper
ated fleets with more than 15 vehicles, school districts
with more than 50 buses, and local transit authorities. A
10-year schedule for conversion of existing fleets from
gasoline or diesel is set out.
Converting only 100 state vehicles to compressed
natural gas would save taxpayers $50,000 a year,
according to Mauro, who cited preliminary results of a
pilot project.
The other bill would affect the 21 counties that fail to
attain federal air quality standards. Those counties are
in the areas of Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth, El Paso and
See related stories/Page 11
Beaumont-Port Arthur, Mauro said.
The measure would empower the Texas Air Control
Board to require fleet vehicles in such areas to burn
compressed natural gas or alternative fuels to reduce
pollutant emissions.
It would allow the board to levy a surcharge to dis
courage the burning of fuel oil in utility and industry
boilers capable of using natural gas between April 15
and Oct. 15 each year. That is the period most prone to
ozone formation, Mauro said.
Private financing would be used under both bills for
vehicle conversions, and exemptions would be provided
if such financing is unavailable, Mauro said.
Executive Director Johnny Veselka of the Texas As
sociation of School Administrators expressed concern
about the availability of suitable technology and the cost
of implementation. He suggested that lawmakers con
sider a voluntary incentive program instead of a man
datory one for school districts.
There are no commercially available compressed nat
ural gas engines for installation in buses, said John Bar-
tosiewicz of the Texas Transit Association.
Deafstudent participates in regular classroom
BEAUMONT (AP) —Joel Thore-
son looks like any' other active 8-
year-old as he puzzles over math
problems or builds a paper pinwheel
with classmates.
With energy and assurance, the
bright-eyed second grader eagerly
chats with a friend or shyly flirts with
a little blonde-haired girl.
One can almost overlook the two
gray cables looping up from a black
receiver clipped to his belt to the
pair of hearing aids in his ears.
Although he is profoundly deaf,
Joel studies math and language arts
in the morning with students with
normal hearing at Pietzsch Elemen
tary School.
No other deaf children in the
Beaumont Independent School Dis
trict are “mainstreamed” at that
early age in those subjects.
Joel still studies science and social
studies in the afternoon with young
sters at the nearby Deaf Co-op, an
educational cooperative for deaf stu
dents that serves Southeast Texas
school districts.
Joel’s mother, Diana Thoreson,
said she hopes to her son can attend
a regular classroom for the entire
day in third grade.
In Beaumont, deaf elementary
school students generally run and
jump in physical education classes
with other hearing children. But
when it comes to reading and writ
ing, they often do not attend class
with children of normal hearing un
til middle school.
Thoreson said she hopes her son’s
example might encourage parents to
mix deaf children with regular stu
dents at a younger age.
“If you have a child with a disabil
ity and put them in a normal sur
rounding, it would help them to act
more normally,” Thoreson said.
“They can live a normal life and not
have to feel gloomy that they are
deaf.”
But Pietzsch principal Joe Judith
warned parents of deaf children
must take care not to push their chil
dren too far too fast.
If the district mainstreams too
early and the youngster fails, the
child could become deeply discour
aged with school and eventually
might drop out when they get older,
he said.
“Each child is an individual,” he
said. “A parent has to be aggressive,
but has to be realistic about it. It is
better to know that when you kick
them out of the nest, they will fiy.”
Thoreson said several teachers at
the Deaf Co-op said her son did so
well in the deaf education classes last
year that he might make it in a regu
lar classroom. Joel attended class
with other students in fine arts and
reading for the last few weeks of that
school year. -
Inspired by school districts in
Houston and Humble that mains
treamed deaf children in elementary
school, Thoreson pressed to have
her child go to regular classes part of
the day. She cited federal law requir
ing school districts to teach hand
icapped children with their non
handicapped peers to the greatest
extent possible.
Thoreson met with a committee
of the principal, teachers from the
Deaf Co-op and regular classroom
teacher Patty Calhoun. Judith said
the committee decided to mains
tream Joel because of his good
speech and language skills and his
good academic record. The commit
tee then worked out an individual
educational plan for him.
For much of the first semester, an
interpreter sat in on the class and
translated the teacher’s lectures into
sign language. But signing proved
distracting for other students in the
class and ultimately unneccessary for
Joel.
Calhoun still speaks into a small
microphone that hooks into a small
black transmitter strapped to her
waist. Joel’s receiver picks up the sig
nals from the transmitter, allowing
him to follow the teacher’s dis
cussion. When other students read
aloud, Calhoun lets them talk into
the microphone.
“He’s just like any other 8-year-
old, except he has a hearing loss,”
Calhoun said. “He’s never had a
grade average below a C.” To help
Joel, Calhoun learned some basic
sign language and taught some sign
ing to the other children.
TAIPEI EXPRESS
Grand Opening Thurs., March 23rd
ALL YOU CAN EAT
BUFFET
$3.99
110 College Main (across from Kinko’s)
' Make money while gaining
valuable work experience as a
Battalion
ADVERTISING REPRESENTATIVE
Must be a student enrolled in TAMU
Must have a car
Sale experience desired but not necessary
For more information call
845-2696 845-2697
A basketful of cash is better
than a garage full of 'stuff'
Have a garage or yard sale this week - Call 845-2611
^Contact Lenses^
Only Quality Name Brands
(Bausch & Lomb, Ciba, Barnes-Hinds-Hydrocurve)
prA-STD. DAILY WEAR SOFT
LENSES
prA-STD. FLEXIBLE WEAR
SOFT LENSES
$QQ00 prA-STD. TINTED SOFT LENSES
ZrZr Daily Wear or Extended Wear
Sale ends March 31, 1989 and applies to clear standard
Bausch & Lomb lenses of limited power
Call 696-3754 for Appointment
Charles C. Schroeppel, O.D., P.C.
Doctor of Optometry
707 South Texas Ave., Suite 101D
College Station, Texas 77840
1 block South of Texas & University
* Eye exam & care kit not included
■§■ AM/PM Clinics
CLINICS
Minor Emergencies
Weight Reduction Program
10% Discount With Student ID
Minimal Waiting Time
College Station
845-4756
693-0202
779-4756
Questions about the m
ever-changing M
to* laws?
H&R Block has the answers. What’s more, our professional pre
parers will help you get the maximum refund you’re entitled to.
New Location in College Station in Culpepper Plaza (behind Holiday Inn).
Open 7 days. 693-2739
Also, in Sears during regular store hours. 764-0395.
H&R BLOCK DON’TSETTLEFORLESS!
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Wholesale Diamonds
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TEXAS Cmm EXCHANGE
404 University Drive 846-8905
For Parents Weekend
MSC Variety Show
presents
Don t miss your chance to Catch a
Rising Star on tiprjl 7. 7:30 pm.
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MSC Box Office
845-1234