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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (June 28, 2004)
Monday, June 28, 2004 THE BATTAl by Will Uoy<A Sea Camp Continued from page 1 Jaclyn Wright, a 15-year-old from Katy attended her fourth Sea Camp this summer. When she grad uates high school, she wants to major in marine biology at A&M- Galveston and eventually open a research facility. Tidwell said she also wants to major in marine biology at A&M- Galveston after graduating from high school. “It was not our intent to do recruiting for the University, but we find we’re accidentally a recruiter,” Wern said. Sea Camp was founds Sammy Ray, a biologisi researcher, in 1986. “I didn’t want to (stai myself, because I wasadet a researcher,” he said, (school administrators) saii did a survey and found il would be a losing propos Well, I didn't believe it.” Since 1986, 10,000 cki have attended the camp. Ra : takes 40 to 50 campers outi oyster boat every Wednesi June and July. c c Research Continued from page 1 Initiative. A&M submitted the winning bid on a proposal from the United States Air Force. Bowersox said that each member of the team has complemen tary expertise. “My role is setting up the infrastructure and exper imental techniques for the new wind tunnel research facility.” The new facility will explore the effect of high-temperature gas dynamics on aerodynamics, Bowersox said. “In addition to the new facility, this program will provide funding for graduate studies and new avenues of research,” Bowersox said. “This program is very basic in the sense that it can be applied to many different areas.” Bowersox said that about $3 million of the grant would stay at A&M in the form of new facilities and student salaries. While primarily initiated for military purposes, the project may have some benefits for private citizens as well. “This project absolutely benefits consumers,” Bowersox said. “Putting things like communication satellites into orbit is very expensive. We can develop less expensive and more efficient ways of getting things into space.” At first glance, North seems like the odd man out as the only member of the team outside of the engineering department. However, as he explains, “In order to describe this phenomenon we have to start at the molecular level. It all boils down to chemistry.” North said A&M’s benefits from this project will be more than just funding and a new research facility. “This research will require high-level calculations and we will develop the computer resources to do them,” North said. “That will also develop long-term research that will put us at the forefront of these new technologies.” North said that diverse backgrounds are vital in order to research thoroughly and effectively. “Increasingly, we as scientists encounter problems that need an interdisciplinary approach,” North said. “This project will exhibit the advantages of having a broad group of collaborators. We all learn from each other. This is a great opportunity to expand our horizons.” Center Continued from page 1 Although many professors from the biolo gy department may occupy the building, the facility will not house a department, the administration has said. Due to recent grievances that were noted by the advisory group, an additional draft of the project was made that increases the scope and capabilities of the facility, with a dramatic increase in price. Draft D, the most current draft, has the square footage increased from 175,000 to 230,000, making the building more compa rable to the new Brown Chemical Engineering building that contains a little less than 205,000 total square feet. The new draft has a vivarium, or “mouse house” for animal testing, a partially duplicative NMR and imaging facility, more office and desk space and more sophisticated lab space. The cost of the newest draft is approximately $131 million. Various interdisciplinary science centers across the country were visited for ideas, but administrative officials at the forum said that the facility at A&M will be one of a kind and will not be modeled after any of the centers. Some faculty dissented on the idea of the building’s occupancy being merit- based. Although it is still unclear as to whom exactly will occupy the facility, some faculty feel that due to the nonspecif ic layout of the center no one will wish to occupy it at all. “We‘re going to end up with this gener ic building that’s not going to be a life sci ences center; it’s going to be a life sciences mausoleum,” said Dr. Mike Manson at the forum on Wednesday. Considering the large population of fac ulty on campus, the attendance at both open forums was relatively low. Manson attrib uted the lack of attendance to be a direct result of a general division being expressed by members of the Department of Biology. “People that you would consider being the major stakeholders are extremely disaf fected,” Manson said. Other faculty members had qualms with the minimal amount of faculty input that the project has amassed throughout the planning process. Dr. Jim Hu of Biochemistry and Biophysics said that the plan for the building itself is not connected to the academic needs of the University. “It’s not just the students that don’t get listened to, the faculty feel the exact same way,” Hu said at Friday’s open forum. Vice President for Research Richard E. Ewing was adamant that the administration is trying to build a dialogue with faculty, but there are certain obstacles that remain between the two groups. “How do you get faculty input with a room of 15 people that each have their own agenda?” Ewing asked faculty members at the Friday forum. Dr. Joseph Newton, Dean and Professor of Statistics, called the facility a “placeholder” for future campus develop ment that will enable the University to start somewhere. “We’re competing with our sister system schools that are growing much faster than we are,” Newton said at the Friday forum. The process of defining, planning and ultimately designing and building the life science center facility was described at the meeting as peeling the layers of an onion. Now that the few faculty who attended the meeting have voiced their opinions, the administration can choose to modify the existing plans, continue on only moderate ly affected or go back to the drawing board. Dr. Jim Grau of Psychology and mem ber of the advisory group stated that the program underway now is not an architec tural design, and is still malleable by the opinions of concerned stakeholders. “This is an evolutionary process,” Grau said. Currently, the project is slated to start construction in August 2006 and reach post commissioning completion December 2008. Militants threaten to behead two hostages, one a U.S. Marine By Chris Tomlinson THE ASSOCIATED PRESS BAGHDAD, Iraq — Arab television broadcast videotape Sunday of two men taken hostage by militants, one described as a U.S. Marine lured from his base and the other a Pakistani driver for an American contractor. Insurgents threat ened to behead them both. Also, militants hit a coalition transport plane with small arms fire after takeoff from Baghdad’s airport, killing an American passenger and forcing the aircraft to return. Turkey rejected demands by militants threatening to behead thrpe Turkish hostages unless Turkish companies cease business with U.S. forces in Iraq. Death threats against hostages as well as insurgent attacks on U.S. and Iraqi security forces have accelerated as Iraq’s interim government prepares to assume sovereignty Wednesday. The U.S. military confirmed that a Marine named Wassef Ali Hassoun had been missing from his unit for nearly a week. It said it was unclear if he had been taken hostage, but Hassoun’s name was on a Marine “active duty” identification card shown by militants in the videotape aired by the Al-Jazeera network. In the video, the hostage had a white blindfold covering his eyes. He wore military fatigues, and his mustache was trimmed. The U.S. military said Hassoun was of Lebanese descent, though the Al-Jazerra report said the hostage’s ori gins were Pakistani. The kidnappers claimed to have infiltrated a Marine out post, lured Hassoun outside and abducted him. Al-Jazeera said the militants demanded the release of all Iraqis “in occupa tion jails” or the hostage would be killed. They identified themselves as part of “Islamic Response,” the security wing of the “National Islamic Resistance — 1920 Revolution Brigades.” The name refers to the uprising against the British after World War I. The group, which has claimed responsibility for previ ous anti-American attacks, first surfaced in an Aug. 12 statement claiming the United States was hiding its casualty tolls in Iraq to help President Bush’s elec tion chances. Tape shows U.S. Marine held hostage broadcast a videotape Sunday showing a *** mBitary fatigues and broadcast by an Arab Turkey rojoctod Dio demands of Islamic milHenfe who are threatening to behead U.S. officials believe the insurgency consists of several groups with different ideologies, among them Arab nationalists, former Baath Party members and Islamic extremists. Earlier Sunday, the Pakistani driver was shown on a tape broadcast by a different Arab television station, Al-Arabiya. Theft Continued from page 1 Matt Friemel, senior finance major. “I don’t have one of those automatic lock things and it can be a pain trying to fish out my keys.” BPD is promoting the pro gram to inform citizens that theft is a reality in the communi ty. BPD hopes to educate people about dangers and teach preven tion strategies by sending infor mation to news stations and appearing on local radio stations such as 101.9, Manry said. “My truck got broken into at (The Ptannigan, a local shot bar),” said Kyle Cramer, a senior industrial distribution major. “They took my CDs and my backpack that had all my notes and a $100 calculator in it. It was bad because I lost all my notes right before finals.” Car stereos rank the highest among items taken from automo biles. The problem arises when people blare their stereos so loud that they can be heard from out side of their cars. In addition to violating a city ordinance, it is an advertisement to burglars that the vehicle has a valuable stereo sys tem, according to BPD. “People leave valuables sitting on the seat in plain sight,” Manry said. "Items such as purses and items that can be traded for cash become primary targets.” Another risk factor common in the Bryan-College Station area is a large congregation of vehicles. High volumes of vehi cles in a small area, suet parties, apartment comply at the mall creates a environment, Manry said BPD is reminding peo: always lock their hoi® vehicles, to take pictur- valuable jewelry and to the serial numbers of val items such as CD players, cles, televisions and {k case they are stolen. V Si They are also askingd to be watchful of theirsuirj ings and to report cious activity immediate!)[ “We would rather resp? a suspicious activity c£ burglary,” Manry said recently had a situation »i person watched someone j ing and hiding stolen p; They didn’t call us andt track the property ownetst a result the suspect isnont Unfortunately, the imr theft problem in the College Station area is old: the Crime Prevention pro Fatter said a friend, Mitchell. Class of 2001 victim of burglary on tv rate occasions while pad; front of A-Plus Tutoring in Crime prevention teclii are not infallible, but hopes this program will lit educate citizens to become aware and lessen their cli of being victims. “People get very and feel like, ‘Oh, it won; pen to me,’ and they their stuff up,” Mann “(This effort) is a pait®; and we need hjelp.’’ , ,, &y to a Parking Continued from page 1 access for emergency vehicles and other vehicles. Lightseysaii Philip Shackelford, a junior political science major andAi Student Senate speaker, is one of the five task force members' resenting the student population. He agreed that parkings! be limited to one side of the street if it’s what the residents*! Bubela, who has a fire hydrant in his front yard and there would need to park on the opposite side, said there are tool cars on his street to limit parking. “What about the people on the other side? Where would park?” Bubela said. “There wouldn’t be enough room.” Bubela said the neighbor who lives across the street from complains when cars are parked in front of her house. Bubela said he didn’t think 60 percent of his neighbors* agree to parking on one side because they are mostly studett The 28 members of the task force could not reach aconse; on parking problem solutions, so a mediator instructed thff assign points to their preferences, Brown said. Limiting parking to one side of the street received 58 pc Another option, requiring single-family homes to have one street parking space per bedroom, received 44 points. Lint on-street parking hours received 29 points and implemenliit on-street parking pennit system received three points. Brown said the city council could decide to approve anyc bination of the recommendations. The code would mainly affect homes that were built fora gle family but were turned into rental property. Duplexes already required to have one off-street parking space per room, Lightsey said. “New developments should have off-street parking fore' 1 bedroom that they build,” Shackelford said. “For existing! ing that’s a very tricky situation.” Lightsey said the feasibility of adding parking space homes would depend on the lot size and lot layout. Lightsey said limiting on-street parking hours would bed cult and take lots of manpower to enforce it. The city council received the recommendations May liar- expected to vote on them no earlier than July 22, Brown sa! Shackelford said the recommendations are for the go entire College Station community, including students. “They’re just geared to be productive changes in acityli running to catch up with its population,” he said. inmn Pneastatuut Getite/ti. » * *OF BRAZOS VALLEY FREE PREGNANCY TEST ♦ Pregnancy, Adoption & Abortion Education ♦ Post Abortion Peer Counseling ♦ Adoption, Medical & Community Service Referrals ♦ All Services Free & Confidential ♦ Open M-F 9-5 and some evenings & Saturdays ♦ www.hopepregnancy.org WE WANT YOU! 695-9193 846-1097 One month FREE when you sign a 1 year lease or 2 weeks FREE when you sign a 9 month lease ( on a I or 2 bedroom unit • Shuttle Bus Route • Free Cable • Sand Volleyball Court Eastmark Apartments 2400 Central Park Lane 693-8066 • Basketball Court • Swimming Pool • Fitness Center 205 Brentwood College Station 4001 E. 29th St. #108 Bryan The Battalio Joshua Hobson, Editor in Chief ipTi The Battalion (ISSN #1055-4726) is published daily, Monday through Friday during the fall aod spriij* ters and Monday through Thursday during the summer session (except University holidays and exa Texas A&M University. 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