ureau to increase
ensus return rate
BY APRIL YOUNG
The Battalion
s of Wednesday, the return rate for the Census
questionnaire in Brazos County totaled 55 per-
, slightly above the state’s return rate of 52 percent
nearly matched the national average of 57 percent,
he College Station Census Bureau staff is urging
[dents to complete and return their Census 2000
tionnaire before the April 14 deadline, in order to
[id the need for a personal interview.
Our non-response operation will begin on April 24
rivacy issue affecting
ong-form return rate
WASHINGTON (AP). — Americans who re
ived census long forms are returning ques-
nnaires at a slower rate than those who got
less-detailed short forms, an indication that
ncerns over privacy may be affecting this
ar’s count, the Census Bureau’s director said
tednesday.
RYLAscuu r : || As of Tuesday, 60 percent of the short
day afternoon. TexasA; forms, which went to 100 million households,
Wendy Roberts andKvyere returned, compared with 48 percent of
'.Bie 20 million long forms sent out, Kenneth
■rewitt told the House Government Reform
; fubcommittee on the census.
Some congressional Republicans last
eek reported hearing from constituents who
Complained that census questions were too
trusive.
I The short form is eight questions long and
takes roughly 10 minutes to fill out. The long
„ fcrm has 53 questions which asks for more de-
qgyygjgg* tailed information and takes about 35 minutes
to complete.
I Some critics have questioned why people are
asked on the long form, for example, about their
am rnmmittpp ha<;hf4 home’s plumbing. That information, Census Bu
reau officials said, is used in part to determine
areas in danger of ground water contamination.
| A question found on both forms that some
consider intrusive asks for a person’s race.
Responses are used as a basis for federal vot
ing rights and civil rights regulations.
| Long forms usually come back slower than
hort forms, Prewitt said. While it is too soon
know how privacy concerns will affect the fi-
ial count, Prewitt told lawmakers that “the wide
spread attack on the long form could have se-
ous consequences.”
wan’s hog herds three)tj
which surrounds Soiit r
own its 11 livestock®!
er provinces farther
ordered or plannedto
06 livestock markets 1 .
85 percent of all lives!'
ie prime minister’soS
)read of the disease fiat
ry said in a statement
for all residents who have not returned their form,” said
Danny Stone, office manager for the College Station
Census Bureau. “Workers will go into the community
to track down and fill out forms for all of the housing
units who did not send in their form.”
Stone said students living on campus will be ac
counted for when the forms are delivered to campus on
April 10.
“The dorm supervisors will help us by handing out
the forms and seeing that all students who live on cam
pus receive their forms and place them in the confiden
tial envelope for return,” Stone said.
Stone said the bureau expects a good turn-out in ac
counting for students living on campus, but students liv
ing off-campus are being targeted to return their ques
tionnaires before going home after finals.
“Students who live off-campus should have already
received a form in the house or apartment where they
live, and they must turn them in before they leave [af
ter] finals for sure,” Stone said. “It’s going to be dif
ficult to get a solid count on students if they get out of
town before we get the head count on them.”
Kristi Haverstick, a senior psychology major living
off-campus, said she and her roommate have already
filled out the census form and mailed it in.
“My roommate and I filled out the census about
three days ago and sent it back,” Haverstick said. “It
didn’t take too long. It just asked for general informa
tion like your birthday, how many people live in your
house, your address and stuff like that.”
Stone said residents who haven’t received their cen
sus questionnaire should call the College Station Cen
sus Bureau at 595-1021 to get information on how to
receive one.
Initial
Target
rate
(%)
response
___ rate (%)
National r 57 *70 j
-Texas "52*66
—Brazos c-c (za
Countyi ■ |
GABRIEL RUENES/The Battalion
And the band played on
SALLIE TURNERAhk Baitauon
Todd Darby, a junior biomedical science major, directs the Corps band Wednesday afternoon. Bottom: (L)
Philip Sterling is inspected by the current drum majors who are part of the drum major selection committee.
They inspect technique, form and uniform. (R) Todd Darby leads the band. Results for the try-outs are as fol
lows: Band Commander, Ernest Hunter, a sophomore engineering technology major; Head Drum Major, Jesse
Clayburn, a junior construction science major; Infantry Drum Major, Jason Griffin, a junior industrial distribu
tion major, and Artillery Drum Major, Mike Waun, a sophomore business administration major.
tudent Senate recommends 2 KINE credits
•f.
ms
BY JEANETTE SIMPSON
The Battalion
The Student Senate approved an item
[emergency legislation Wednesday dis-
Iproving the proposal to cut the core
Irriculum requirements in kinesiology
[one credit hour.
The current core curriculum re
tires four credit hours of kinesiology,
lie proposal presented by the Core
[irriculum Committee of Faculty Sen-
: would require only one credit hour
[kinesiology.
The bill approved by the Student
Senate asks the Faculty Senate to con
sider making the core curriculum re
quirement for kinesiology two credit
hours. The Student Senate wrote this bill
after reviewing surveys completed by
students currently enrolled in Kinesiol
ogy 199 classes.
A majority of the students surveyed
feel that the four credit hours required
should be maintained, said student sen
ator Christine Adamson, a sophomore
accounting major.
Not all senators felt it was in the Uni-
“By passing this resolu
tion, the Student Senate
is saying that we ... will
not tolerate these acts of
hate, intolerance and
bigotry/'
— Trent Collier
student senator
versity’s best interest to ask
the Faculty Senate to con
sider changing the core re
quirement to one credit
hour of kinesiology.
“As an engineering ma
jor whose college could
have potentially gained
technical hours in, the ki
nesiology requirement had
been lowered,” said student
senator Shannon Davis, a
sophomore biomedical en
gineering major. “I cannot
advocate maintaining the present four ki
nesiology classes if it means I might not
take an engineering class that may enable
me to more successfully complete and
perfonn in the technical work force.”
The proposal will be addressed at the
April 10 Faculty Senate meeting.
The Student Senate also approved
a resolution expressing support of a
campaign to curtail acts of intolerance
and to eradicate such incidents at
Texas A&M.
The weeklong Not On Our Campus
campaign begins Monday.
“By passing this resolution, the Stu
dent Senate is saying that we are open to
change on the A&M campus and will not
tolerate these acts of hate, intolerance,
and bigotry,” said Trent Collier, student
senator and a sophomore biomedical sci
ence major.
The Student Senate also introduced a
bill that — if approved — will create an
individual committee in the Student
Government Association for the Lupe
Medina Program.
See Senate on Page 2.
enetically altered
bods under debate
WASHINGTON (AP) — Foods
de from genetically engineered
ips are safe, but the government
|eds to tighten its monitoring of
tech plants to ensure they will not
se allergies or harm the environ-
nt, a panel of scientists said
dnesday.
Better methods are needed to
ntify potential allergens, including
g-tenn studies of feeding the crops
iee related article on page 7
[animals, according to a study spon-
ed by the National Research
uncil, an arm of the National
ademy of Sciences.
The 261-page study, which fo-
ed on plants that have been genet-
lly engineered for protection
[ainst insects and viruses, said none
the varieties developed so far pos-
allergy problems.
Overall, the federal regulatory
cess for approving pest-protect-
crops “is working well,” said
try Adkisson, a former Texas
M University chancellor who
aired the panel.
“We found no distinction between
health and environmental risks
sed by plants modified through
modem genetic engineering tech
niques and those produced by con
ventional breeding practices. ... Just
because a plant is transgenic doesn’t
make it dangerous,” Adkisson said.
Genetic engineering involves
transferring one or more genes from
one organism into another to give it
specific traits.
A variety of biotech corn, known
as Bt corn for a bacteria gene that
makes it toxic to a pest, became espe
cially controversial last year after a
university study suggested its pollen
could be killing Monarch butterflies.
A soybean that proved allergenic af
ter scientists inserted a gene from the
Brazil nut was withdrawn before it
reached the market.
The council’s study said that
more research is needed to prevent
hiotech crops from killing harmless
insects, including the Monarch, and
to stop pest-resistant genes from
spreading into weeds.
Biotech crops caught on quickly
with U.S. fanners in the late ’90s and
were planted on at least 70 million
acres nationwide last year
Biotech food has met consumer re
sistance in Europe — in Britain it’s de
rided as “Frankenfood” — and in
Asia.
Genetically Engineered Crops
•Caught on in late 90s
•Planted on 70 million
acres
•Pose no allergy problems
•Controversial Bt corn
-may kill monarch
butterflies
Research funds increase
1999fiscal year sees largest collection ever
INSIDE
GABRIEL RUENES/The Battalion
Critics of genetic engineering said
the panel was biased because many of
its members have received funding
from the industry and that the report
could undermine efforts to increase
regulation of biotech foods. “A panel
that leans overwhelmingly toward a
pro-biotech position ... cannot be ex
pected to produce an independent re
port with an objective conclusion,”
said Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio.
The 12-member panel included 11
scientists, most of them university re
searchers, and one attorney, an expert
in government regulation who has
represented the industry. Officials
with the National Academy of Sci
ences acknowledged that some mem
bers of the committee had conflicts of
interest but said they were needed be
cause of their expertise.
BY STUART HUTSON
The Battalion
Along with fiber-optic sensors, maroon
carrots and pig-flu vaccines, Texas A&M
University research has produced something
else — a lot of dough.
According to figures reported by the Of
fice of Research and Graduate Studies, fund
ing for research conducted by A&M and af
filiated agencies, such as the Texas
Engineering Experiment Station, totaled
$402,203 million for the 1999 fiscal year, the
largest amount for research ever collected by
the University.
“This is really a significant step for the
University over a
quite remarkable
threshold,” said
Robert A. Kennedy,
vice president for re
search and associate
provost for graduate
studies. “It speaks to
the success and quali
ty of research by
A&M faculty and stu
dents, and of A&M’s
contributions to the
state and nation.”
The University re
ceived $149,151 mil
lion in federal funds,
$94.66 million in state
fr " ■
$1 15,069 \, $149,151
:Federal
funds
i Institutional
funds
and local government funds, $115,069 mil
lion in institution funds from sources such as
endowments and $8,601 million from other
sources such as non-profit organizations.
In 1998, Texas A&M research funding
ranked 1st in Texas and 10th in the nation
with $393 million. Nationwide, the John
Hopkins University came in first with $853
million, the University of Texas-Austin was
ranked 30th with $244 million and the Bay
lor College of Medicine was ranked 36th
with $216.
Kennedy attributes the large amount col
lected by the University, in part, to the ben
efits A&M’s research programs offer to the
state and nation.
“There has been a
lot of talk lately that a
major factor in the
success of the econo
my is the continuing
contributions from re
search programs at
universities,”
Kennedy said.
“Among those uni
versities, A&M is def
initely a major force.”
Terry Young, the
executive director of
lo^ernm^nMunds the Texas A&M Li ’
Funding Received
(in millions)
$8,601
;,;VV : G
fllllillj
Other
See Research
GABRIEL RUENES/The Battalion
• Not the com
Benefits of hemp show
possibilities of
environmental
alternatives
Page
• Aggie track names
2000 recruiting class
Page 11
U P itySmoke
^ ~ pretye Court deci
sion raisds questions
:oncernipCj FDA regula-
n of tbbacco industry
Page 15
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1:57 p.m. for details on the
upcoming tax deadline.
•Check out The Battalion
online at
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f