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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 25, 2003)
Large hall and classrooms with commercial kitchen available. Perfect for dances, parties, receptions and corporate training or meetings. Pricing starts at $250/day Call Robert Norris at (979) 822-1600 Tues.-Fri. 8am-5pm Up Late? Improve Concentration High Caffeine Coffee nealys.com BUYS GET 1 FREE tnOfOOAAttii $600 CASH Specialties Photography 1st annual photo contest. Come by one of our studios or visit us on-line @ www.specialphoto.com Bryan 260-9016 3514 East 29th College Station 696-9898 2551-GS. Tx Ave. SENIORS. Last Chance. Graduation portraits for the 2004 Aggieland Yearbook will be taken today. Nov. 24, and tomorrow. Nov. 25, in Room 027 of the MSC. There is no sitting fee required to be photographed for the yearbook. To make an appointment, call Thornton Studio at 1-800-883-9449. OFFER GOOD THRU 12-31-03 NOT VALID WITH ANY OTHER SALES OR COUPONS NOT A BOOKSTORE MENTALITY THE T-SHIRT CAPITAL OF AGGIELAND POST OAK MALL WESTERN ★BEVERAGES GIG 'EM AGS! SAW 'EM OFF WESTERN * BEVERAGES 701 University Dr. East (979) 846-1257 2205 Longmire (979) 764-9577 Major Credit Cards Accepted Hours: Monday - Saturday 10 am to 9 pm Prices Good 1 f/24/03 to 11/29/03 m case of printing m'ui; ■.lin e price prevails Buy 2 Dozen Original Glazed Doughnuts for $8.99 Offer valid thru 1/1/04 at any College Station or Bryan Kroger location. The Battalion Sci|Tech Pane 4 • Tuesday, November 25,2003 The Science Guy speak Bill Nye educates and entertains fans at Reed Aren |P Beato • THE 8ATW Bill Nye, The Science Guy speaks animatedly in front of a crowd of entist and comedian, gained popularity with his television series: several hundred at Reed Arena Friday. Nye, who is an engineer, sci- Nye The Science Guy." By Kyle Ross THE BATTALION Restless in their seats, hundreds of stu dents from across Texas waited in eager anticipation. Some had arrived an hour early just to get the right spot to see their hero. The crowd clapped in unison, chant ing “We want Bill!" Eventually, the wave broke out. And when “Bill Nye The Science Guy” stepped up to the podium in the middle of the floor, one would have thought he was at a Beatles reunion con cert. Girls shrieked, boys pumped their fists and parents nodded their heads. “We’re here tonight to celebrate tech nology,” Nye said. The words of an icon echoed off the walls of Reed Arena Friday. Boasting his signature bowtie and unkempt hair, this part-comedian, part-scientist addressed the crowd gathered for the weekend’s Texas BEST (Boosting Engineering, Science and Technology) competition. The competition, in its 11th year, gives teams of students a chance to battle each other using robots they build themselves. Each year, the robots are required to do different tasks under certain time con straints, but there is no given blueprint and no predetermined architecture for the robot. Each team uses its own design, spurring the imaginations of Texas stu dents to new heights. Steve Marum created the Texas BEST robot competition 1 1 years ago in his hometown of Sherman, Texas. “We just wanted to create excitement among the students toward science, and what better way to do that than by build ing and competing with your own robot?” Marum said. “For the first one we held, the students were just given various junk to work with. There were 12 teams and about 200 students total. Now we give them specific parts in kits we make for them. There are now 500 teams with over 3,000 students involved. Maybe some of these kids will invent something special someday.” This is the type of event that Nye says he lives for. Nye has spent the better part of his life trying to get young students excited about building robots or just sci ence in general. Determined to raise a gen eration of TV-watching young people to become responsible voters, Nye says the future will have a bevy of critical deci sions to make, ranging from cloning to vacations on Mars. He said it is important to ensure that students understand the world in which they live. “What will be discovered in your life time?” asked Nye from within the spot lights of Reed Arena. “Your society will have a lot of serious questions to answer. You will have a lot of decisions to make. It will soon be time to find your place in the future.” Are we alone? If we were able to go to Mars and find evidence of life or evidence of past life y it would change the world. — Bill Nye scientist, engineer, entertainer For the first time, the crowd became quiet, taking in his words like that of a congregation to its preacher. But perhaps sensing the sudden seriousness, Nye per formed his best impersonation of William Shatner (otherwise known as Captain Kirk of the Starship Enterprise of the TV series “Star Trek”) sending the crowd into laugh ter again. It is what Nye has done his entire career: make people laugh and allow them to learn. Using power point slides and a side splitting, often rambling commentary, Nyes’ lecture covered various subjtfi such as the history of the Mars mis* how sundials work and tectonic pi© But the most passionate moments oil speech were focused on how robots i be used in the future of scientificd® cry. specifically on exploration of I galaxy. “Are we alone?” Nye said, “Ifwe able to go to Mars and find evidenctii life or evidence of past life, it'd change the world. The whole planet^ have to hold a meeting and talkabouii The way we will be able to explorefi away places is with robots. And you® the ones who will bring that kindoffi* to mankind. ” As if on cue, the crowd erupted« applause and standing ovations. Nye«* able to reach his people and atthes®! time entertain them. “1 was really pleased with the job® Nye did tonight,” said Marum, founderf the Texas BEST program. “He wasabH keep the interest of the kids and tbat- what this whole thing is about.” Nye said he agrees with Marum. “It’s a cool competition —a greatco® petition,” said Nye. “It’s very import® because our future lives in robots. W robots are going to change the world/ the people participating in this compfr tion are going to be a huge part of that f quite an honor to be here.” Hours after his speech, the line that® I formed for Nye’s book signing'was| starting to dwindle. Everyone wante® l ; handshake or at least a picture taken.® ; sort of underground society of intellect | had come out of hiding for a nigh:T r most said they went home satisfied. “1 thought he did a good job. But I/ ‘Bill Nye The Science Guy’scl’ni/ f biased,” said Robert Candalino, a s» | nuclear engineering major at A&M | was actually pretty inspiring to hear ah’ his view of the future. I’m about top ate and it’s good to hear the future of s' ence is healthy.” Peace Corps needs Americans with skills in Environment education Agriculture Health Peace Corps needs 5,500 graduates with skills in agriculture, business, education, environment, health and information technology. All majors are welcome. Benefits include medical, dental and housing, as well as a monthly stipend and 24 vacation days a year. Graduates can defer student loans while serving. 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