Page 2
The Battalion
lliliilll
HEALTH
Frontiers
SCIENCE
Monday • September!]
Museum explores Brazos Valley AIDS hits minor?
Sepi
By Katherine Arnold
The Battalion
Children of all ages are the fo
cus of educational programs and
exhibits at the Brazos Valley
Museum of Natural History.
The museum, located at the
intersection of Briarcrest Drive
and East Bypass, provides com
munity members with the oppor
tunity to explore the history of
the Brazos Valley.
Exhibits in the museum in
clude the Discovery Room, which
is full of hands-on activities and
exhibits, fossils, and live ani
mals such as snakes, box turtles,
an observation bee hive, and
Madagascar hissing roaches.
The museum also features a
mural entitled “Brazos Spring,”
depicting a late spring afternoon
in the Brazos Valley approxi
mately 12,500 years ago.
The mural, which is 40-feet
long and 11-feet high, features
over 50 species of animals which
were known to live in this area.
Houston artist Emma Stark
painted the mural.
Karen Goodgame, interim di
rector of the museum, said it is
important for citizens interested
in history to visit the museum.
“The museum is an excellent
educational tool,” Goodgame
said. “It is the only facility of its
kind in this area, and is specific
to the Brazos Valley.”
The museum is set on 50
acres of wilderness. Nature
trails wander throughout the
backyard of the facility.
“The nature trails allow peo
ple to get a first hand look at the
environment and learn more
about it,” Goodgame said.
There are many educational
classes offered at the museum.
The summer program invites
children ages 3 to 12 for a week
of classes which cover animals,
insects, and natural sciences.
During the school year, the
museum holds morning classes
for children and adults.
These educational programs
are important to the museum.
Chuck Thornton, Class of ‘88
and curator of education, said.
“We have many different
types of classes,” Thornton said.
“They focus on teaching a re
spect and understanding of na
ture, and let kids know that sci
ence is not some big mystery.”
The former Museum Gift
Shop has changed its name to
the Museum Nature Store. The
store is now selling items geared
toward young scientists, such as
science kits, natural history
items and T-shirts.
Admission to the museum is
free, and there is a small
charge for classes.
population hardes?
Blacks, Hispanics
account for half
of all new cases
Chuck Thornton, curator of ed
ucation at the Brazos Valley Mu
seum of Natural History, holds
Amy Browning/The Battalion
Colonel, a red rat snake.
Colonel is a friendly exhibit on
display at the museum.
ATLANTA (AP) — Minorities
are being hit increasingly harder
by AIDS, accounting for more
than half of all new cases in the
United States in 1993.
Of the 106,949 AIDS cases re
ported last year in the U. S.,
Puerto Rico, Guam and the Vir
gin Islands, 58,538 — 55 percent
— were among minorities, the
Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention reported Thursday.
In 1992, minority cases ac
counted for 52 percent of new
cases, up from 51 percent the
year before.
As the epidemic develops, its
pace has slowed among homo
sexual white men while quicken
ing among minorities, particu
larly among blacks.
The AIDS rate last year
among whites was 30 cases per
100,000 people. The rate was
more than five times higher
among blacks (162 cases per
100,000 people) and three times
higher among Hispanics (90).
Among American IndiaM.** p ov
Eskimos, it was 24 pe*l(K TALION
and among Asians arf"
landers, 12 per 100,000. I
Black women, with ar|x^ lty
rate of 73 per lOO.OOjK
about 15 times more likdBf? , e . ? S<
white women to get thecBE
same
wnne women to gei mecKr,
Black males, with a rate® 111
per 100,000, were net , e ' 11 f^ a
times more likely tharfS 1 rus h>
males to get AIDS. bicL- He s
Geography also makeB'^ 8 -
ference in how thejthough tl
spreads, said Dr. Teresa!last fall,
the CDC’s National CerHie turno
Infectious Diseases. H are al\
“Although we aggn. but we fe
norities together, there a-Eing for th
geographic differences air Moon saic
nority groups,” she sai^t > new s
black and Hispanic menKimprovc
Northeast, it’s spread byB s y ear v
venous drug use,” while kB an an( j
ual contact is the greaterliH^Aation i
The Northeast has thl f jn f ormat
est rates of AIDS infect® and ea(
both blacks and Hispanic®" u cm
the South and Midwedrlr d f?'
erally lower. Cov
In some states, vast
Us ?d on si
ences between minorities®
In Florida, the rate for hi®
almost three times greateK
for Hispanics. B
ion the
Report targets drug company for suppression of Halcion dang
on
HOUSTON (AP) — A drug
company targeted in dozens of
lawsuits over the world’s most
widely prescribed sleeping pill
suppressed and misrepresented
the sometimes fatal dangers
Halcion posed, according to a
published report.
The Houston Chronicle, for a
copyright story Sunday, re
viewed memos of the Upjohn
Co., along with government
records and court transcripts.
The newspaper’s five-month
investigation found consumers
who experienced the drug’s ad
verse side effects and the doc
tors and researchers who ob
served them were targeted in
an Upjohn campaign to discred
it critics.
Halcion, which has generated
S2 billion in sales since 1977,
has been the subject of at least
100 lawsuits. They include indi
vidual and class-action product
liability claims, a class-action
case brought by Upjohn share
holders, and a racketeering and
conspiracy case that is pending
in Tyler federal court.
The drug, according to plain
tiffs and consumers, has caused
suicides, murders and episodes
of psychotic behavior.
The newspaper’s review of
records shows that Upjohn, to
win approval for Halcion and
keep it on the market:
—Paid millions of dollars to
Halcion victims in settlements
that required their silence and
then retained Shook, Hardy and
Bacon, the Kansas City law firm
used by the tobacco industry, to
fight damage claims;
—Omitted and misrepresent
ed unfavorable results from clin
ical studies;
—Orchestrated a campaign to
influence U.S. and foreign regu
latory agencies;
—Contracted with physicians
who produced favorable test re
sults, sometimes by fabricating
studies entirely, but whose work
was later discredited; and
—Promoted excessive dosage
and duration of use of the drug.
When a U.S. Food and Drug
Administration investigator rec
ommended that the Justice De
partment review Upjohn’s con
duct for possible criminal viola
tions, he was reassigned. The
case never was sent to the Jus
tice Department.
This spring, an FDA report
described Upjohn’s activities as
“an ongoing pattern of miscon
duct.” But the FDA has refused
to admit that its usual safe
guards were circumvented.
The FDA’s report examining
Upjohn’s handling of Halcion
contended that the company’s
misconduct involving the drug
lasted for almost 20 years.
The newspaper said it was
unknown outside Upjohns. 1
mazoo, Mich., headquarte
fore then that the company
Lisa Mes
l Ha ! I'AI .ION
Please see Halcion
Bush among victims of drug’s side effect
richnologi
dlmarket
liaising to
raiition les
its may fin<
HOUSTON
(AP) — For
mer President
George Bush
stopped tak
ing Halcion
after contro-
v e r s y
emerged over
its side ef
fects.
Bush s George Bush
Halcion use
came to light in January 1992
during his ill-fated trip to Japan,
in which he vomited and col
lapsed during a state dinner
with the Japanese prime minis
ter.
Then-presidential spokesman
Marlin Fitzwater said the only
drugs Bush had taken around
the time of his collapse were an
anti-nausea medication and a
half-tablet of Halcion.
Bush aide Jean Becker told
the Houston Chronicle that
Bush suffered no side effects
from Halcion.
“He never had any
Bd on ma
■® permissi
•ii. -x »< V 'J AA- Mrry high
with it, she said, adding:,. .,, ,,
Bush had taken Halcion ,
casionally when traveling jd businest
seas. But h itzwater annoiiL , • r
the next month
Three Off-Campus Stores To Serve You
Northgate - Culpepper - Village
“Your Educationally Priced Software Store”
CAD Programs
Currently in stock:
Microstation PC, MAC, or NT
Commercial Price $3695.00
Your Price $150.00
Comine approximately November 1st:
AUTOCAD 12 Package
Commercial Price $10,000.00+
Your Price $250.00
Autocad 12, Autovision, 3D Studio, & Designer (Come by
one of our stores for a complete breakdown on this pack
age. We are also offering a $45.00 discount for all con
firmed orders placed by 9-15-94.)
.)
OPPORTUNITIES
IN THE FOREIGN SERVICE
^ENTO
^TES ^
Isabel Flores
State Department Recruiter
Information on 1995 internships and
careers in the Foreign Service.
Room 292B MSC
September 12, 1994 7p.m.
An MSC LT. Jordan Institute prasantation.
For mors information cal B45-8770.
Parsons with disabilities plaaaa cal to inform us of any special needs.
stopped taking t he drug.
Other users have not k ,
fortunate in their expe::.: <( !
with the world’s
prescribed sleeping pi’ “L . u ‘
K . ad as it is gc
Please see Victims Cullcgc s* u
ecially cautii
J to their
I, he said.
"A lot of o
!es, are t
tidents am
ightfoot sak
’re the p
3thing for
ightfoot
feements
es to acc
such as
WHOOPING COUGH (Pertussis)
VACCINE STUDY
We Are Beginning a New Whooping Cough Vaccine Study
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday
September 12-14, 1994
(First Come, First Served Until Study Is Filled)
For further information or to determine eligibility for the study
Come To:
Beutel Health Center, Room 233, 2nd Floor
9:00 AM - 3:00 PM (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Sept. 12-14 ,1994)
Dr. John Quarles
845-3678
CarePlusQtrf Presents
Roc, The Good Doc
The Battalion
BELINDA BLANCARTE, Editor in chief
MARK EVANS, Managing editor
HEATHER WINCH, Night News editor
MARK SMITH, Night News editor
KIM McGUIRE, City editor
JAY ROBBINS, Opinion editor
STEWART MILNE, Photo editor
DAVID WINDER, Sports editor
ROB CLARK, Aggiclife editor
PHARMACY
693-2957
MEDICAL CENTER
696-0683
"CLASSIC CASE OF ORIENTATION DIS ORIENTATION"
CarePlus Medical Center can take the confusion out of
orientation for new Aggies. Our services include routine
checkups and physicals, minor emergency care,
immunizations, female exams, sports injuries, and colds and
flu treatment. We even have an on-site pharmacy for one-
stop medical care. Come to CarePlus Medical Center for all
your medical needs. We'll orient you to quality care, plus
value and convenience.
A&M Students receive
a 10 % discount.
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Open all week in College Station
Staff Members
City desk Jan Higginbotham, Katherine Arnold, Michele Brinkmann, Stephanie Dube,SI*
Fehlis, Eloise Flint, Amanda Fowle, Melissa Jacobs, Lisa Messer, Angela Neaves.
Owen, Constance Parten and Tracy Smith
News desk— Robin Greathouse, Sterling Dayman, Jody Holley, Shafi Islam, Jennifer MonW
Tiffany Moore and Stacy Stanton
Photographers— Stacey Cameron, David Birch, Blake Griggs, J.D. Jacoby, Tim Moog, Gina
Painton, Nick Rodnicki and Carrie Thompson
Aggielife— Anas Ben-Musa, Margaret Claughton, Christi Erwin, Jennifer Gressett
and Jeremy Keddie
Sports writers— Nick Georgandis, Drew Diener and Stewart Doreen
Opinion desk— Jenny Magee, Lynn Booher, Josef Elchanan, Laura Lrnka, Aja Henderson,&'
Hill, Jeremy Keddie, Michael Landauer, Melissa Megliola, George Nasr,'
Preston, Gerardo Quezada and Frank Stanford
Cartoonists- - Greg Argo, Brad Graeber, Alvaro Gutierrez and Quatro Oakley
Office Assistants— Heather Fitch, Adam Hill, Karen Hoffman and Michelle Oleson
Writing Coach— Timm Doolen
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