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IVolume 109 • Issue 89 • pages 12
Texas A&M University
www.thebatt.eom
Wednesday, February 5, 2003
Bush pays tribute to Columbia crew
By Ron Fournier
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
SPACE CENTER, Houston —Under sapphire
|)lue skies that once held Columbia and her crew,
esident Bush paid tribute Tuesday to the shut
tle’s seven astronauts and rededicated the nation
space travel. “They go in peace for all
nankind. And all mankind is in their debt,"
: said.
The president joined at least 10,000 teary-eyed
[n’ASA workers, aging astronauts, political leaders
nd families of the fallen crew for a memorial
ervice in a plaza outside Mission Control usually
eserved for celebrations of space triumphs.
The shuttle broke up Saturday as it was return-
ng to earth. In Bush’s words: "Their mission was
nost complete, and we lost them so close
ihome.”
The president met with family members after
service, which ended with the ringing of a
Navy bell — seven times, one for each of the
ceased astronauts — and a “missing man" for-
nation flyover: four T-38 NASA jets roared above
crowd, with one peeling away and soaring
ligh and out of sight.
Bush bowed his head and first lady Laura Bush
viped tears from her eyes as the United States
Navy Band Sea Chanters led the crowd in song.
Alyssa Varsos, left, and Julie Martin look at a memorial set of the space shuttle Columbia on Tuesday, February 4,
up at the entrance to the Johnson Space Center for the crew 2003, in Houston, Texas.
He promised to find out why Columbia broke
apart, correct the problem and make sure it never
happens again. To the families of those lost, he
The words to one hymn, “God of Our Fathers,
Whose Almighty Hand,” were printed on the back
of the service’s programs, allowing the NASA
family to raise its voice in tribute to “shining
worlds in splendor through the skies.”
Leading the crowd in prayer, Harold Robinson,
a captain in the Navy’s Chaplain Corps, said the
astronauts found true humility while viewing “our
little planet from outer space.”
Fighting back tears, NASA Administrator Sean
O’Keefe then declared, “Today, our grief is over
whelming.”
said: “We will keep this solemn pledge.”
Bush recalled that Navy Capt. David Brown, a
medical doctor aboard Columbia, was asked sev
eral weeks ago by his brother what would happen
if something went wrong with the mission. “This
program will go on,” the 46-year-old Navy flight
surgeon replied.
“Capt. Brown was correct,” Bush said.
“America’s space program will go on.”
Earlier, aides said the presi
dent supports continuing the
shuttle program, despite criti
cism by some.
At the Johnson Space Center,
crew members were remem
bered in separate eulogies that
shared with the world their nick
names, habits, likes and dislikes
and, in many cases, their near
last words.
O’Keefe recalled that mis
sion specialist Kalpana Chawla,
41, told Mission Control how
beautiful the Earth looked from
miles above as she summoned
her fellow crew members to the
shuttle window, where the world
was reflected in her eye.
“It is this image, the image of Columbia’s crew
joyfully joining Kalpana to see our beautiful plan
et reflected in their friend’s eye, that we will
remember and treasure forever,” O’Keefe said, his
voice cracking.
The president spoke briefly about each astro
naut as their smiling faces looked down from a
picture of the crew placed on stage.
See Memorial on page 2
Solemn ceremony
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Members of the Squadron 16 Flag Detail Eric Bruton (left), a
freshman general studies major, Ian Coccozza (middle), a
freshman general studies major and Omar Pastrana (right),
JP BEATO III • THE BATTALION
a sophomore education major, fold the flag flown at half-
staff in front of the Academic building Tuesday afternoon for
Silver Taps.
Budget cuts to affect
summer classes, staff
By Rolando Garcia
THE BATTALION
Texas A&M President Robert
M. Gates has compiled a list of
spending cuts that will slash $10
million from the University’s
budget this year and force aca
demic programs to shoulder a
substantial portion of the burden.
The final figure, which meets
A&M’s obligation to cut 7 per
cent from its state funds, is less
than the $16 million amount
administrators initially thought
would have to be cut. About half
of the cuts will come from the
operating budgets of academic
departments. A major source of
savings will be from vacant facul
ty positions, said Dr. Jerry
Strawser, dean of the Mays
College of Business and chair of
the committee tasked with rec
ommending cuts to Gates. It
takes up to a year to hire faculty,
and funds that would have been
used to pay graduate assistants
and offer summer courses may be
cut, Strawser said.
“It’s going to be a real chal
lenge to try not to cut back on our
summer course offerings,”
Strawser said.
Departments may also post
pone the purchase of equipment
such as computers. Each college
dean will be responsible for a
specific amount of cuts, Gates
said, and will have leeway to
determine where the savings will
come from. A simple across-the-
board cut was ruled out. Gates
said, because academic programs
that are nationally ranked must be
protected to uphold the
University’s academic standing.
“We need to keep our strong
programs strong,” Gates said.
The staff hiring and travel
freeze Gates imposed this past
week is expected to net less than
$3 million. The rest of the cuts
will come from administrative
spending, Gates said.
In a memo sent Tuesday to
A&M System Chancellor
Howard Graves outlining the
University’s budget cuts, Gates
warned that further state fund
reductions for next year would
cause a “major disruption in serv
ices.” He added that the hiring
freeze, could last until the end of
the fiscal year in August, would
deteriorate student services.
Bob Wright, Graves’
spokesman, said early estimates
from state budget officials call for
a 12 percent cut in state funds for
next year’s budget.
Gov. Rick Perry requested on
Jan. 23 that all state agencies cut
spending 7 percent to help bal
ance the state budget this year.
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February 17, 2003
A&M student wins $8,000 on
‘Who Wants to be a Millionaire’
By Kendra Kingsley
THE BATTALION
More than a 12 students crammed into a tiny
dorm room on Tuesday to watch one of their best
friends compete for $1 million. Scott Smith, a
sophomore chemical engineering major at Texas
A&M, appeared on the college edition of “Who
Wants to be a Millionaire” and took
home $8,000.
Smith said he and friends from his Edmund,
Okla. high school academic team auditioned for
“Who Wants to be a Millionaire” last summer at
the Oklahoma City Zoo.
“At about 5:30 in the morning, there were
already 9,000 people (at the audition),” Smith
said. “All of us took a test, and the top 300 scores
got interviews.”
Smith said he credits his own top score to past
participation in academic tournaments.
“I participated in 12 years of ‘nerd bowls,”’
Smith said. “That was my only preparation for
the audition, but I guess it worked.”
In addition to his broad knowledge of trivia,
Smith had one other asset.
John C. Livas • THE BATTALION
Tuesday afternoon Scott Smith, a sophomore chem
ical engineering major, and fellow dorm mates
watch an episode of ‘‘Millionaire College Week.”
“I was wearing my ‘Louisiana Girls State’ T-
shirt, which is my luckiest shirt,” he said. “It got
a lot of attention at the interview.”
Selected as the sole contestant from the
Oklahoma City audition, Smith joined nine other
college students in New York City to film “Who
Wants to be a Millionaire’s” college week.
“The 10 of us hung out and went to clubs,”
See Money on page 2
Cargo vessel found underwater
30 miles off the Louisiana coast
By Lauren Smith
THE BATTALION
A team of researchers led by
Texas A&M graduate student
Brett Phaneuf is trying to
uncover the mystery behind a
65-foot-long boat lying 2,700
feet beneath the surface in the
Gulf of Mexico.
Federal Minerals
Management Service officials
overseeing the A&M
researchers say this project is
the deepest nautical exploration
in the Gulf of Mexico.
Divers initially thought the
200-year-old vessel found 30
miles off the Southeast Coast of
Louisiana was a whaling boat.,
but none have ever entered the
Gulf of Mexico.
After further investigation
and reviewing video images of
the wreck to confirm initial con
clusions, researchers found the
vessel actually transported
cargo and immigrants in the
1800s as part of a ship company
called Garins Line.
“The ship is named the
Western Empire, built in 1862 in
Canada,” Phaneuf said. “It was
primarily used to ferry immi
grants from London and
Liverpool to the U.S..”
On the ship’s first trip in
1878 to New Orleans, the
Western Empire, carrying a load
of lumber,
sank in 1,300
feet of water,
Phaneuf said.
Top-of-the-
line underwa
ter technology
allowed
researchers to
explore the
ship at its loca
tion on the
ocean floor.
“Using a
robotic vehicle,
the team
dropped down
to the vessel
where we found the ship to be
incredibly well preserved; 50
percent of the ship is still there,”
Phaneuf said.
Phaneuf said the sinking was
odd because the ship was only 16
years old. He said he believes
the ship was either poorly
See Ship on page 2
The Western Empire
- Found 30 miles - Sank after first
off the Southeast voyage in 1878
Coast of Lousiana
- Transported
■ Built in 1862 immigrants
in Canada and cargo
Source: Brett Phaneuf
Travis Swenson • THE BATTALION