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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (July 16, 1996)
The Battalio ol. 102, No. 165 (6 pages) Serving Texas A&M University Since 1893 THE BATT ON-LINE: http://bat-web.tamu.edu Tuesday • July 16, 1996 eltsin’s health questioned after ancelled meeting MOSCOW (AP) — Boris feltsin abruptly postponed a neeting with Vice President A1 lore on Monday, raising new con- pms about his fragile health. Aides described the Russian president as exhausted, not ill, ut said he has been avoiding nedical checkups. Gore, in Moscow to orchestrate a series of Cabinet-level encounters Detween Russian and U.S. officials, would have been in a position to ob serve Yeltsin’s appearance and ap- iarent state of health. Yeltsin has Deen little seen in recent weeks. The Kremlin insists that long days campaigning simply tired the 65-year-old president. “He just needs a good, proper rest,” said Yeltsin’s chief spokesman, Sergei Medvedev. Aides said Yeltsin started a two-week vacation Sunday at the government resort outside Moscow where he recuperated from heart ailments last year. They said he probably would in Center. meet with Gore there Tuesday. Medvedev said Yeltsin has not had a real checkup since late last year and has refused in recent weeks even to allow his blood pressure to be measured. “It's very difficult for the doc tors,” Medvedev said. He said doctors might exam ine Yeltsin during his vacation at the resort in Barvikha, seven miles northwest of Moscow. The abrupt postponement fol lowed a string of no-shows that renewed worries in recent weeks about the president’s fitness. Yeltsin’s energetic re-election campaign clearly took a toll on his health. Medvedev said the president worked 16- and 17- hour days, and now faces pres- sures to form a new government. “I see no serious grounds for panicky assertions that some thing serious has occurred, that something is once again wrong with Yeltsin’s health,” Medvedev told reporters in the Kremlin. Shuttle program works to eliminate drunk driving DAB founders hope to start the bus service in the fall By Brandon Hausenfluck The Battalion Almost 42 percent of Texas A&M students admit to driving after drinking alcohol. DAB (Designate A Bus) Transit, a non profit venture, is working with The Brazos Valley Community Action Agency to allevi ate the problem. DAB will provide shuttle buses on Thurs day, Friday and Saturday nights in an effort to reduce the number of accidents involving drunk drivers. In 1993, the Harvard University School of Public Health surveyed 140 colleges across the country regarding alcohol consumption on campus. Texas A&M students did not fare well in the study. Aggies exceeded the national average in almost every category. Almost 42 percent of Aggies surveyed ad mitted to driving after consuming alcohol; the national average was 26.5 percent. When asked whether they drove after having five or more drinks, 20.9 percent answered yes; 9.2 percent was the national average. LT. Scott McCollum, College Station Po lice Department public information officer, said he is aware of the problem of drunk dri vers in the B-CS area and thinks DAB Tran sit will be good for the community. DAB WEB SITE http://www.dabtransit.com “There is a problem with drunk driving in College Station,” he said. “The founding fa thers of DAB have tried to pull together to solve a big problem. The program will defi nitely be beneficial, but the key element of it being a success is if the citizens it’s targeting actually use it.” McCollum said he hopes the program will help people to change the way they go out. “There will have to be a change of lifestyle for some people who Eire used to having their cars with them when they go out,” he said. “When people drive drunk, they take huge chances. And a good thing about DAB is it will benefit even those who don’t drink by keeping the drunk drivers off the road.” Matthew Kenyon, a senior biomedical sci ence major, came up with the idea of DAB Transit and developed it with the help of sev eral volunteers. He said Texas A&M and BryEm-College Station need some sort of pub lic trEinsportation to deal with drunk drivers. “DAB Transit will be helpful to the com munity because it will help reduce the num ber of alcohol accidents; it will reduce the risk of alcohol-related deaths; streets will be safer to travel at night; it will provide mass transportation at night; and it could create jobs for B-CS residents,” Kenyon said. He also said the committee is developing an operating schedule for the B-CS area. “The buses will run from 8:00 p.m. until 3:00 a.m,” Kenyon said. “We are hoping to have an off-duty police officer there (on the buses) to prevent any fighting or mischief that might occur on the buses. Up north and See DAB, Page 2 A&M student sets sights on city council seat By Melissa Nunnery The Battalion *7 he College Station City Council will hold a special election on Aug. 10 to fill Mayor Lynn Macllhaney’s seat — and a Texas A&M student has his eye on it. er expert; ’t comparf nvenience “It is dis- ng Bry® is just a iave been uon. 1 it is be- snce said wo years itand the location ;vho are ffective ing " evalu- - to let -profeS' here to mber of clasS) . needs Gwendolyn Struve, The Battalion Brad Martin, a senior horticulture major, is run ning for a College Station City Council seat. Brad Martin, a senior horticulture major, is running for the seat against five other candidates. Martin said he is running because he wants to make a difference and rep resent the community. “People like to see young people get involved in government,” Martin said. “I’ve had very positive reactions and a lot of support.” Only 26, Martin does not think his age or status as a part-time student will be problematic for him in the election. “It’s to my advantage to be young,” he said. “I’ll work very hard and be enthusiastic.” Martin said he has met a lot of peo ple in the community through active participation in community organiza tions. He is on the BoEird of Directors of Brazos Beautiful and the adminis trative board of A&M Methodist Church. He is also involved with Elder Aid and owns a landscaping business in College Station. Martin said his situation is unique because he is both a student and businessman. “I mainly want citizens to know even though I’m a student. I’m more permanent,” Martin said. He said student representation on the College Station City Council is importEmt to the city’s relationship with A&M. “It’s important (for College Station) to get involved with the University,” Martin said. “There is already a good relationship with the University; I’d like to see it get stronger.” Martin said there is no student representation on City Council be cause many students are not regis tered to vote in Brazos County. He said he would like to see students and permanent residents of College Station treated equally. Martin would like to see more stu dents involved in community service organizations. “I would like to set something up on a countywide basis that would be like the Big Event, only year-round,” Martin said. Michelle Olesen, who graduated See Martin, Page 2 Groups work to improve campus recycling Pat James, The Battalion By Amy Protas The Battalion Although Texas A&M was ranked number one by the Texas Natural Re source Conservation Commission for its recycling efforts, many students believe more can be done. The Texas A&M Recycling Center recy cles all paper products, aluminum cans and toner cartridges from over 200 build ings on campus. The sale of these materi als helps fund the center. Cassandra DeLarios, assistant recy cling coordinator at the Recycling Cen ter and a senior geography major, said improvements need to be made within the University. “In 1991, we received a governor’s award for having the best university-run recycling program,” DeLarios said. “But now we are at a stalemate. We’ve in creased our intake but haven’t increased our efficiency.” DeLarios said recycling is often neglect ed at A&M because it is not a top priority. “They (the University) have a budget, and it’s based on whatever is good for the year,” DeLarios said. “But they don’t con sider the long run. We’re breaking even, but we also have to deal with a volatile paper market.” Each month, the center calls paper buyers and sells to the highest bidder. Nicole Patschke, assistant recycling co ordinator at the Recycling Center and a senior agribusiness major, said the Uni versity benefits from recycling. “The University as a whole can save waste disposal costs by recycling,” Patschke said. “They also save landfill space because we’re running out of land fill space right now.” The landfill A&M currently uses is shared by 17 other counties and is almost full. “Recycling should be a top priority be cause our landfill will close in two years and we’ll have to get another one,” DeLar ios said. “Landfills are engineering feats; they’re not just a hole in the ground. It will cost nearly $1 billion.” Patschke said the center has an agree ment with the city of College Station. “We accept all of the white paper from College Station city offices and they ac cept all of our newspapers we collect on campus,” Patschke said. “They have a market for newspaper and we have a market for white paper. This agreement is the first of its kind in the state.” While the center collects recyclable materials from campus offices, the resi dence hall councils are responsible for their own recycling. Each hall is responsi ble for collecting and cleaning their bins and bringing them to a recycling center. The center they use does not have to be on campus. Chuck Crews, former environmental chair for Crocker Hall and a senior elec trical engineering major, said the resi dence halls need a more organized pro gram for recycling. “I Eilso see the dorms els having the po tential for recycling a lot of their waste if a good program is started,” Crews said. “Very FITNESS FANATIC Eric Moon, a senior environmental design major, instructs an aerobics class at the Student Recreation Center Monday. Nuclear Science Center plays key role in cancer treatment By James Fowler The Battalion Gwendolyn Struve, The Battalion Aluminum can recycling bins are located in residence halls. Each hall is responsible for its own recycling. few dorms have realized that potential.” Crews said the Physical Plant picks up the bins from University offices, and a similar arrangement should be organized for the residence halls. “I think the University has a positive attitude toward recycling, but it’s not their highest priority because of tight funding — especially in the custodial See Recycling, Page 2 Everything King Midas touched turned to gold. But for cancer patients at M.D. An derson Hospital in Houston, a little gold touched by Aggies goes a long way. In fact, this “Midas touch” could save their lives, thanks to a procedure using gold radioisotopes supplied by the Texas A&M Nuclear Science Center (NSC). The gold isotopes produced by neutron bombardment at the NSC provide specific radiation levels to kill cancer tumors. For over twenty years, the NSC has been on call to supply the radioactive gold pellets to doctors in Houston in or der to fight tumors from the inside out. Jane Chapman, M.D. Anderson cer tified medical dosimetrist, said the NSC has always been responsive to their quick-reaction needs in supplying See NSC, Page 2 Pat james, The Battalion Texas A&M’s Nuclear Science Center is located on West Cam pus by Easterwood Airport.