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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (April 30, 2002)
KR\ i: IE BAH Sri Tech THE BATTALION 7A Tuesday, April 30, 2002 evastating tornado facts /ASHINGTON (AP) Secretap, •hat he J ■ I,, ouldendsj ^ W ‘, t t - • n ,, Tonuidoes concentrate vicious winds, up to 300 mph, focusing their twisting forces on small itnSB s where the y can destr °y , ri el s ::: evlrything in their path. orsusimB 1 ™ 1 P ower was evident Sunday when a series of storms struck from Missouri to half- rch ofitie exile or link it he near latest lira . tanks ari Maryland, claiming a dozen lives and ruining homes and businesses. ■As many as 1,000 tornadoes occur each year in the United States, yet each is uniquely dan gerous and frightening when it arrives, moving quickly and often accompanied by rain, hail, ih. the Jthunder and lightning, luaners J!i Unllke hurricanes, usually .jou . ■arted days before they threaten, , re the stonns that spawn tornadoes iks an; can eru P t rapidly. triers a ^ ew decades a £°' tor - nado warnings did not go out until a twister was on the ground, but thanks to radar and satellites, the conditions that create these storms now can be better monitored. Last year the National Weather Service deliv ered warnings, on average, 11.5 minutes before a tornado struck. ■In the storm that claimed three lives in Maryland, for [ example, warning of a severe storm with possible tornado was an, the so issued at 6:45 p.m. It was o the We upgraded to a tornado warning .saidPaleJ | Minister 'he miniiie: six wotilc 8 hour'. : Arafat' sealed t veral hi i. the Pale unday to restores ! ovement. t wanted npound» i Palestioi at 7:02 p.m. Approximately eight minutes later the tornado hit La Plata and 39 minutes later it reached Calvert County. The Maryland tornado was listed at F5 on the Fujita scale for twisters, with winds of more than 260 mph, making it the strongest tornado on record in the state. It was at first rated an F4 but was upgraded after meteorologists surveyed dam age on the ground, according to Susan Weaver of the National Weather Service. The scale goes from F0 to F5. No state is exempt from tor nadoes; Missouri and Illinois each average 26 twisters annu ally. In a normal year, Kentucky faces nine tornadoes, and there are four in Maryland. Little seemed normal to those experiencing the storms, which formed along a massive front moving from west to east across the country, mixing warm and cool, wet and dry air and stirring up a witches' brew of winds. “They appear to have been fair ly prolific producers of tornadoes,” said Harold Brooks, a research meteorologist at the government's National Severe Storms Laboratory in Norman, Oklahoma. See Tornado on page 8A Spring storm leaves widespread damage Lines of tornado bearing thunderstorms swept across the Midwest and East on Sunday, causing at least six deaths. The storms were created by pockets of warm air rising through cooler air. On Sunday, the jet stream pushed cold air over warm humid air. How a tornado forms In a tornado producing storm, wind direction changes with altitude while speeds increase, causing the entire system Tornado to rotate in a mesocyclone. The more buoyant warm air causes instability when it rises through cool air. The warm air then cools, releasing moisture as clouds and thunderstorms. 1 J States with heavy damage At the back end of the storm, falling precipitation forms a downdraft adjacent to the updraft. The downdraft retains the circular momentum of the mesocyclone but is molded into a tight spiral as it brushes against the updraft, creating a tornado. Mesocyclone Warm, SOURCES: Associated Press; AccuWeather; University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Dan DeLorenzo, Hassan Hodges/AP Prescription drugs easier to buy sing pr< stholic Cfi: ; took ian cities..' ;erfax repos iderliredrsr the doi« idox Ctirfj the Vaticr its tradW ft WASHINGTON (AP) — Ask a doctor for a prescription drug you saw advertised on TV, and 69 percent of the time you will go home with it. I That is what the Food and Drug Administration discovered in a survey that illustrates how big a role advertising plays in the doctor’s office. I Is that necessarily bad? Critics bemoan the findings, while proponents say drug ads help more sick people find treatment — but e FDA still is struggling to uncover the true public health impact of the nation’s arrage of drug commercials. The question is: Are people getting drugs that actually aren't appropriate?” Says FDA drug chief Dr. Janet Woodcock. I She does not yet know. But the FDA now is studying why doctors prescribe the way they do, a first step toward answering |hat question. And the agency is consider ing if some of the rules that govern how powerful medications are advertised need changing to ensure consumers better understand a drug's pros and cons. It is a complex issue. Doctors have to decide more than yes or no when a patient demands a drug by name. Does the patient expect a miracle because the ad over promised a pill's benefits? Is there an alter native that works better, more safely or is cheaper? Cheaper drugs typically do not rate a commercial, while the hottest-selling newer drugs — like arthritis treatments Vioxx and Celebrex or heartburn medicine Prilosec — are among the most heavily advertised. Then there is the trickier question of who an ad targets. The National Medical Association, which represents black doc tors, says direct-to-consumer drug ads can prod people reluctant to visit a doctor to do so — especially black Americans, who are less likely to get appropriate care for a host of diseases. But today's ads are not living up to that potential, the NMA said this month as it issued what is for a health group a startling call for more drug ads — in media outlets that target minorities and with more cultur ally diverse commercials. How important is advertising to a patient's perception of disease? Consider the middle-aged black woman who looked shocked when NMA member Dr. Sharon Allison-Ottey ordered a test for bone-thin ning osteoporosis. “I can't get that — white women get that,” the patient said, citing TV commercials and ads in Allison-Ottey's own Baltimore waiting room that featured only white women swallowing pills for the ailment. e Ortto" espec Vatican's*- ) upgrade inistrations' oceses. leaded ackdc-' ed gr« iesia r on ickdown s', luslim M ivolvemf i| lings of-I Texas A&M Chapter of the Texas Trophy Hunters Assoc. Come to our meeting! Tuesday, April 30 6:30 p.m. Fuddruckers (2206 Texas Ave.) A Ar >y questions or need a ride? Contact Rusty Baker at 680-8899 The Battalion Classified Advertising • Easy • Affordable • Effective For information, call 345-0569 ious the arTroCv' I .' S attack 3ti village of Malek m STRESSED? Take a break from studying and... Beat The Hell Outta Finals tm rW - f /f! 1 May 3 rd , 6 th , and 7 th 10-00am-3*00pm Student Counseling Service Henderson Hall {behind All Faiths Chapel) ~ Sponsored by the - Academic S Career Educator (ACE) Program For more info, visit our website: http://scs.tamu.edu/academic/ace.htm . .e l of Af&w* Soccer for adults in the Brazos Valley!! Team Registration Deadline — May 17th More information: Todd @ (979) 492-0143 or www.bcssoccer.com Brvan/College Station Soccer League Summer 2002 Season Starting Now!! Attention Seniors Graduating in August or December 2002 English 210 & 301 (Technical Writing) Force Dates Summer I, II and Fall Wed.. May 1 . Thurs.. May 2, and Thurs., May 31 9:00 am - 11:00 a.m. Summer I, II and Fall Mon. lune 3 9:00 am - 11:00 a.m. Summer II and Fall Tues.. Tuly 9 9:00 am - 11:00 a.m. Fall only Mon.. September 2 9:00 am - 11:00 a.m. 1. Make sure you have the correct prerequisite (English 104 or equivalent). 2. Come to Blocker 224 during the force dates and times listed above. 3. Bring a letter on departmental stationary from your academic advisor stating that you are graduating in the semester for which you are registering. • No forces will be done during pre-registration or after Sept 2. • You must come in during these dates. • Although forcing will occur on the first morning of each Summer and Fall session, no forces will be given for a distance course beginning that day. • You may incur a late registration fee if you register on the first day of classes. If you can't make these dates, send a representative with your letter and a list of preferred times. Forcing Information Line: 862-7724 Web site: www-english.tamu.edu/wprograms/forcing.html Prince Eye Care R. Michael Prince, O.D. TAMU Class of ‘94 • Eye Exams • Consultations • Glasses • Contact Lenses Now accepting TAMU Cigna and Blue Cross/Blue Shield Vision Plans Walk-ins welcome or call for an appointment 201 N. Main Bryan 822-2020 fax: 822-2021 THE SECRET TO FEELING GOOD ABOUT RETIREMENT... ...is being certain you’ll have enough money for as long as you live. An ANNUITY is a tax deferred tool that can guarantee you an income even if you live to be 140. It’s a great way to help fill the gap between what you currently have coming to you - through pensions, Social Security, savings - and what you’ll actually need to live. Call us to find out how to feel good about retirement. Ryan Holland Mike Southerland Insurance Agency 979.823.3759 - Office 979.82 1.2409 - Fax www.mrsagency.com stx37004@allstate.com The Perfect Gifts for Your Aggie Graduation. (actual size) 14K Gold Aggie Pendant $24 95 Watches with Official A&M Seal Gold-Tone Two-Tone Quartz Movement. 3 yr. Warranty. Water Resistant. *Call for Quantity Prices Available in Mens and Ladies Sizes Sorry no mail orders John D. Huntley ‘79 313B S College Ave. 846-8916 An official authorized dealer for Tag-Heuer and Breitling. B REITLI N 188-4 0 The Following Locations will be Open to Students for Finals Study: t ibrarY & West Campus Library 8:00 pm - 2 ' 00 an « Poor Yorick’s .^oon^xinight * May 2,6 and 7 4:00 pm May 3 ami ^ n . ^-.OO midnight May 5 from 4:00 pm > sen-ice locations open ^^V,MaV ay , M ay5 , h I o„ g hT««4ay,^n dsbisa 1 stival iy. May 5 Sbisa Dining Centers 0:00 pm - 2-.00 am is C-Store and round C-Store ■, c Vjv during tmals at 12:00 midnight for :>1 suppW needs. Onen 8-.00 pm - Dnntan IHnins 1- c " u ' r to the Corps of Cadets tor sturiy Complimentary ixwrages im! be -available Poor Yorick’s Coffee House Open Unut Midnight Rumours Open until 2 00 am CompUmentarv Coffee will be available 8:00 am to Uoso Stone ’Willy's Open until 1:00 am for late nigh* \ )m ' A Our mission is to provide outstanding customer service by being committed to excellence and quality in Food and services. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★