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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (May 4, 1990)
le Battalion STATE & LOCAL 3 5-3L Friday, May 4,1990 s A&M senior plans year overseas By LIBBY KURTZ ^ ©f The Battalion Staff - s Uii While many Texas A&M students lan to return home for the summer r attend summer school, one A&M udent will travel to West Germany participate in a work-study pro- W* m - Janna Derkits, 22, a senior geog raphy major, has been selected to at- ni * tend The Congress-Bundestag c <ir(H Youth Exchange for Young Profes- onals. CDS International Inc. adminis- rs the program in the United tales through a grant agreement ith the United States Information gency. The program, now in its seventh ear, provides young American and rman professionals the opportu- ity to work abroad and learn about different culture. Derkits, who leaves for West Ger- any in August, said she is very ex- Icited to be able to participate in the Exchange program. Student travels to participate in German work-study program 'nni “Three years ago, I spent six weeks in West Germany while I was studying abroad,” Derkits said. “I really enjoyed myself. I’ve always wanted to return and feel more in volved. I want to be more than a tourist. The exchange program will give me that chance.” Derkits will spend one year in West Germany studying and work ing. “I’m not sure what city I’ll be liv ing in, but I do know that I’ll be put in some difficult situations,” she said. Derkits said she will have an ex tensive two-month course in Ger man and study environmental sci ence for four months at a local university. During the last months of the pro gram, she will work for a German company. Derkits said she probably will be working for a non-profit or ganization or a business that is re lated to her major. Charles Grant, a coordinator of the exchange program, said Derkits is the second student from A&M to participate in the program. “We have more Germans partici pating in the program than Ameri cans,” he said. “The Germans push the program more than us. It’s a novelty for the Germans to visit and work in the United States.” Eighty German students were se lected to join the program this year. And of the 350 American applicants, 55 were selected. The individuals selected must be between the ages of 18 to 24. Besides that qualification, Grant said they look for outgoing young profession als. “Those selected must be able to adapt to different situations,” Grant said. “Everything is different in West Germany from their food to their culture. We want individuals that will be able to adjust to the changes that they will face.” Grant said the individuals they look for don’t have to be college stu dents, but they should have a strong vocational background. “It’s much easier to place a person who is vocationally oriented, op posed to someone who is a history major, in a German company,” he said. Grant said the exchange program pays for everything except the par ticipant’s spending money. “It’s a wonderful opportunity for a student to see and study another culture,” he said. Derkits said she thinks of the pro gram as post-graduate work. “I’ll graduate in May,” she said. “The exchange program will let me become more internationally awa re.” EPA finds high level of toxin in seafood HOUSTON (AP) —Disturbing levels of highly toxic dioxin have been found in fish, oysters and crabs in the Morgan’s Point region, the Houston Post reported Thursday, In a copyright story, the Post said state health officials plan additional testing before deciding whether to restrict seafood catches in that area. Peak dioxin levels were found in blue crabs from the Houston Ship Channel at the San Jacinto Mon ument by the Environmental Protec tion Agency, which did the original testing. The crabs contained 54.8 parts per trillion of dioxin — the highest level found in the marine life at 39 sites in a three-state test area. Twenty-five parts per trillion of di oxin has been designated as the “level of concern” in fish by the fed eral Food and Drug Administration. Despite the .findings, Texas De partment of Health spokesman Kirk Wiles said he didn’t think there was “any reason for great panic or con cern.” “I’m not sure anybody consumes enough crabs to make it an immedi ate health crisis,” Wiles said. “How ever, we do need to collect more data and define the problem and make a decision on what to do.” The EPA also found 14.8 ppt of dioxin in sea catfish and 6.1 parts per trillion in oysters at Morgan’s Point, where the ship channel enters Galveston Bay. In reporting its findings to the state about a month ago, the EPA recommended that the health de partment consider issuing a fishing consumption advisory. But Wiles said the agency wants to do additional testing before deciding on an advisory. Quayle visits flooded neighborhood, Campaigns for Republican candidates DALLAS (AP) — Vice President Dan Quayle’s whis- kle-stop tour on behalf of Texas GOP candidates was briefly sidetracked by storms Thursday, as he made an mpromptu inspection of a flooded neighborhood where hundreds were evacuated. “It’s scary any time that the floods hit," Quayle said, ■ , noting that last year his parents’ home was flooded in J Roanoke, Ind. “It took them months to clean up,” he said, calling > wiifel the incident “a very sad predicament.” lain; “That’s why I wanted to stop by to at least offer my . InJ assistance.” Earlier Thursday during a press conference to pro mote the state’s Republican candidates, Quayle an- ounced President Bush had signed a federal disaster relief measure for four Texas counties battered by vio lent storms last week: Brown, Comanche, Erath and Parker. Standing inches from a flooded intersection, Quayle said if Gov. Bill Clements applies for federal aid for other areas he will find “a very cooperative president.” The vice president toured Rochester Park in South Dallas, flooded by the Trinity River. •OVKSti fthis lalim, Quayle urged residents to move their belongings to higher ground, warning them the water was expected to keep rising. “Let us know if we can help,” he said while shaking hands with several residents. Earlier, Quayle stumped for Texas GOP gubernato rial nominee Clayton Williams and other Republican office-seekers at a downtown hotel. He called the Midland oilman-rancher’s election “a key priority for President Bush.” “The White House will be involved energetically,” Quayle said, promising return campaign appearances. “Texas is very important to the president.” Quayle said he is impressed by Williams’ energy “and his understanding of what leadership is all about.” Quayle sidestepped questions about whether Wil liams’ admission that he frequented prostitutes in his youth would hurt the candidate. He also refused to dis cuss a remark Williams made in March, comparing bad weather to rape. Williams faces Democratic state Treasurer Ann Rich ards in the November election. Lab animals exchanged for computer simulators By JOE FERGUSON Of The Battalion Staff The computer age has claimed another victim at Texas A&M. Laboratory animals that have played a central role in the educa tion of generations of biology stu dents are being replaced with com puter simulators. “When computers are appropri ate they are a very effective way to teach the concepts of the (physiol ogy) course,” William Perry, assis tant dean of the College of Science, said. ‘When appropriate’ is determined by which students are taking the class. Health education, physical educa tion, pre-nursing and pre-nutrition majors are a few of the possible users of the computer simulators. Dr. Vin cent Cassone, an assistant biology professor, said. Cassone said the move came be cause of the simulators’ potential to promote financial and academic effi ciency. With the cost of laboratory ani mals at $2,000 per year, Cassone said the mistakes of non-science ma jors can get expensive. Computer simulation also is a more efficient way of teaching a non-science major class, Cassone said. Non-science majors, for the most part, only need the data gained from the experiment, whereas science ma jors also need to know how to get the data. The three Hewlett-Packard com- E uters used for simulations have een on-line in the biology depart ment since Fall 1989. The three computers total $18,000. But with enrollment around 300 for the physiology course, more computers are needed. “The class needs three times as many (computers) to accommodate the number of students,” Cassone said. Perry said, however, he is waiting to see how things work out initially before getting more computers. The computers were financed by a grant from the computer science department. ited e Soi reflei fund isidei saiisfi mdet pswii is >esfai emin Uttlti med d wtn nt ttit ala®' uses! nd a i.Ani FINAL DAYS OF GOING OUT OF BUSINESS WE HAVE REDUCED PRICES EVEN LOWER THAN BEFORE. 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