Oklahoma State U. Professor Researches Afghan Caves
By Melissa Smith Daily O’Collegian
(U-WIRE) STILLWATER, Okla. – For one Oklahoma State University professor, working with the unusual is not unusual at all.
Dale Lightfoot, head of the geography department, has been studying networks of irrigation tunnels concentrated in the Middle East – called karezes – for about 10 years.
Before Sept. 11, few knew what a karez was. Following the attacks on America and the subsequent naming of Osama bin Laden and the Taliban regime as the chief culprits, many government officials maintain that the terrorists could be using these dried-up pockets as secret tunnels.
Having traveled to karez sites in Morocco, Iran and Oman, Lightfoot is one of few people in the world to have extensively studied these mysterious tunnels.
Karezes are designed to deliver water from a source to villages or fields that are far away from a water source. From the source, the tunnels gradually slope downhill. In addition, vertical shafts are constructed into the top of the tunnels to provide air in them.
In Afghanistan, many of the karezes are dry because of drought, Lightfoot said. This could make them more useful for the Taliban.
Although he has no proof the Taliban is using the karezes for secret tunnels, Lightfoot said they have been utilized in that manner in Afghanistan before.
When the Afghans fought the Soviets in the late 1970s, they used the tunnels in their battlefield strategy as a place to store weapons or to secretly move troops, Lightfoot said.
The Afghans’ clever use of the karezes cost the Soviet invaders extra time and money to investigate the cave network.
Raymond Habiby, professor emeritus of political science, said learning how the karezes operate would benefit American troops in Afghanistan.
“If they can hide people inside, they can communicate underground,” Habiby said.
“They can arrive somewhere without being detected.”
Lightfoot said U.S. troops should know how to recognize karezes from above ground.
He explained that karezes have a distinct look to them from the ground because of the vertical shafts. Karezes can be recognized by a series of depressions near the openings of the shafts.
Reuel Hanks, assistant professor of geography, said Lightfoot’s research on the karezes is “extremely important and unique work.”
“It’s different because the Afghans use them for battle, not just for irrigation,” Lightfoot said. “My questions might be very suspect to them.”
Lightfoot agrees that the United States should investigate the karezes.
“You never want to overlook a possible hiding place or communication depot,” Lightfoot said.
UNC Tuition May Keep Rising Even As Economy Falls
By Jason Rollins The Seahawk
(U-WIRE) WILMINGTON, N.C. – University of North Carolina-Wilmington tuition will see a steady rise if state appropriations continue to fall.
State aid to the university has declined from approximately 70 percent in the 1980s, to 58 percent 10 years ago, arriving at 42 percent last year, said Mark Lanier, special assistant to the chancellor. The state’s inability to provide money is forcing universities to make up the differences themselves.
But, while tuition may continue to go up in the years to come, “there is not a recommendation or decision yet for future increases,” Lanier said.
“[However] if the trend of declining state appropriations as a percentage of university budgets continues, then the probability of continued, significant tuition increases is much greater.”
The Board of Governors and the General Assembly considers fall tuition increases for all 16 UNC campuses during the spring. This past spring, the General Assembly decided to increase UNCW’S fall 2001 tuition by five percent, in addition to the Board of Governors’ four percent increase and a campus-based increase. Overall, resulting increases amounted to $658.50 for full-time in-state tuition and $4,706 out-of-state tuition.
While the entire state is experiencing the budget crunch, UNCW is still receiving the lowest in state support within the UNC system, said Tim Jordan, vice chancellor of business affairs.
“This is a trend that is present at other state universities as well, as resources are redirected to other uses such as Medicaid and correctional facilities,” Lanier said.
“The five universities (Appalachian State University, East Carolina University, UNC-Charlotte, UNC-Greensboro and UNCW) that had the lowest per student funding from state appropriations did receive a legislative `fix’ called `equity funding’ in the mid-1990s,” Lanier said.
With regard to the money from students used to fill the gaps of the state, “roughly one-third of the revenue generated was dedicated to financial aid, and the remainder was allocated to academic and student support functions, technology, and many other needs of the university,” Lanier said.
Some students are disappointed that the tuition increase funds were not used to create expanded facilities, an issue they think needs to be addressed immediately.
Money received from the state for the university is divided up into several funding pools, among them operating costs and capital costs.
Legislative mandates require that the two pools not be mixed, Jordan said. However, such requirements, while maintaining financial accountability, can prevent the university from putting extra money into areas it is not allocated to.
UC-Berkeley Sees Dramatic Increase in Cheating on Campus
By Helen Hwang Daily Californian
(U-WIRE) BERKELEY, Calif. – Cheating, plagiarism and all categories of academic dishonesty have experienced dramatic spikes in recent years at University of California-Berkeley. Earlier this year, an entire midterm was tossed out because of widespread cheating.
Reported cases of cheating alone have more than doubled at the university, from 61 in 1998 to 148 last year.
The increasing numbers reflect a corresponding rise in cheating at universities across the nation, said a UC Berkeley official responsible for upholding the code of student conduct.
The accessibility of the Internet has been a significant factor in the rise, making it easier for students to download, purchase or plagiarize term papers, said Neal Rajmaira, UC Berkeley student judicial affairs director. The national trend is troubling, in particular after considering that a great deal more cheating goes on than is caught or pursued, he said.
“Academic dishonesty is anathema to the idea of higher education,” Rajmaira said. “It cheapens and diminishes the degree of everyone who has graduated from this university and threatens the integrity of the name Berkeley.”
Even the computer science department, which is consistently ranked as one of the top three in the nation, is not immune to cheating. A midterm was dropped from grading as a result of widespread cheating in Computer Science 61A, a core prerequisite for the highly competitive computer science major.
“I’m not interested with protecting the academic reputation of the university,” said Brian Harvey, the course’s computer science professor. “Who cares? I’m more concerned about the effect on students.”
Cheating can affect how students get into the highly competitive computer science major, which requires students to apply. Cheating can inflate students’ grades and make it more difficult to get into the major.
“Admission to the major is based on lower division grades, and students are essentially competing against each other for places,” Harvey said. “Cheating is significant because it raises the bar for getting in the CS major.”
Usually, students do not make a premeditated decision to cheat – it arises as a student panics on the spur of the moment, he said.
“My own feeling is that when people cheat they only hurt themselves,” Harvey said. “In the long run it’s true, especially in a course like mine, which is a core class for the major. If you can’t get through the first course, you can’t make it in upper division. It’s just postponing the crisis for cheaters.”
85,000 Baby Teeth Found at Washington U.
By Mayya Kawar The Student Life
(U-WIRE) ST. LOUIS – If the tooth fairy had flown into the dark, musty Washington University storage facility in May where 85,000 baby teeth were discovered in an ammunition bunker at WU’s Tyson Research Center.
But had the tooth fairy known what was in store for the teeth, Andrew Johnstone, the biology department business manager, said her response should have been, “Whoa, this is going to cost me.”
For Johnstone, one of the people who discovered the teeth, it was an eerie portal to the past. The teeth are the forgotten remains of the world-famous St. Louis Baby Tooth Survey, which took place from 1958 to 1970.
At the height of the Cold War, the United States set off over 200 atmospheric nuclear tests at their Nevada Test Site. The Baby Tooth Survey was developed in order to determine the effect of nuclear fallout on humans, specifically children.
The project’s purpose was to measure the amount of radioactive material absorbed by humans, most specifically investigating Strontium 90. Created by bomb blasts, Strontium 90 is readily absorbed by the growing teeth of fetuses and infants.
The Radiation and Public Health Project hopes to rectify that. The project plans to conduct a follow-up study. They hope to contact the owners of the teeth to determine whether there is a high correlation between the amount of Strontium 90 in the tooth and the owner’s health.
Fashion Magnate Donates $150 Million to Johns Hopkins Cancer Center
By Melissa Huang The Johns Hopkins News-Letter
(U-WIRE) BALTIMORE – Johns Hopkins University’s cancer center, one of the world’s best cancer centers, received $150 million from a generous billionaire. Sidney Kimmel, the 73-year-old philanthropist, turned Jones Apparel Group Inc. to a fashion empire that produces brands such as Polo Jeans, Ralph Lauren and Nine West.
Jones Apparel is projecting sales of about $4 billion for this year.
The 28-year-old cancer center treats about 6,000 new patients each year, and it is already one of the nation’s largest cancer centers. Doctors at the center work on research of vaccines, gene therapy and molecular genetics of cancer. Innovative surgery and treatments such as bone marrow transplantation all are offered at the center.
At a recent news conference, Ronald R. Peterson, president of the Johns Hopkins Hospital and Health System, said part of the money will be used to build comfortable housing for the families of cancer patients. The location of the lodgings has not been declared.
“There are homes in East Baltimore, but too few to meet the demand,” said Dr. Martin Abeloff, director of the cancer center.
Abeloff also said the fund will provide the center the ability to expand its staff of 400 physicians and scientists by recruiting new talented young scientists. Plus, the center can make the decisions on which areas of research merit additional grants.
Kimmel, the son of a Philadelphia cabbie, owns a hotel, a movie production firm, part of the Miami Heat and restaurants. When his best friend’s 25-year-old daughter died of cancer in the early 1990s, Kimmel launched his career as a philanthropist.
“Here’s a man who has everything he wants in life, but knows he can’t spend it. He wants to have an impact,” said Dr. Gary Cohen, director of the cancer center at Greater Baltimore Medical Center who treated Annie Butera, the daughter of Kimmel’s best friend.
Immediately after Butera’s death, Kimmel gave $5 million to a San Diego researcher who was involved in her case. For the past eight years Kimmel’s nonprofit organization has handed out millions of dollars and financially supported three other cancer centers named after him in Philadelphia, San Diego and New York.
In addition, Kimmel sponsored a performing arts center in Philadelphia and an exhibit gallery at the Holocaust Memorial useum in Washington, D.C.
Although Kimmel never has been diagnosed for cancer and has no private connection to Baltimore, he was impressed by the Hopkins cancer center when he visited two years ago. Kimmel attended meetings in the medical school dean’s board room, where he heard many cancer researchers explain their pioneering experiments and the fact that research could move faster and further with more funding.
Kimmel showed great interest in the topics discussed and asked keen questions. Two years later Kimmel decided his largest gift should be given to Hopkins, after discussing it with his own panel of scientific advisors.
Boston U. Aids Alumni Families of Sept. 11 Victims
By Joey Mattson The Daily Free Press
(U-WIRE) BOSTON – Children of Boston University alumni killed in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks are eligible for full tuition under a new legacy scholarship, the Board of Trustees decided at their October meeting.
The scholarships would cover tuition costs for four years at BU, according to University Spokesman Colin Riley. Students would first have to be admitted to the University under regular qualifications.
“We wanted to show support for the victims of this terrible tragedy,” Riley said. “We hope this will be an appropriate response for this situation.”
President Jon Westling proposed the scholarships at the October meeting of the BU Trustees, according to Susan Paris, vice president of University Relations.
“It was President Westling’s idea,” Paris said. “He presented it to the board and they enthusiastically and immediately accepted it.”
Simmons College, an all-female institution located in Boston, has started a similar program, according to Paris. It will award 12 scholarships to daughters of victims of the attacks. The program differed from BU’s in that the recipients do not have to be the daughters of Simmons alumnae, Paris said.
BU Spokesman Kevin Carleton said the legacy scholarships are similar to scholarships given to the children of any Boston or Brookline firefighter who is killed in the line of duty.
Paris said she was uncertain of how many students would use the scholarships.
Among current BU students, reaction was mixed.
“I agree with their act of generosity; but it is tragic that the events of Sept. 11 prompted this action,” said Peter Pohl, a College of General Studies freshman.
“It’s a nice gesture by BU,” said Joe Cardinale, a freshman in the College of the Arts and Sciences. “It shows BU supports students while they’re enrolled here and as alumni.”
CAS sophomore Mimi Perez said she sympathized with families’ losses, but did not agree with the scholarships.
“A lot of people die at work; that’s a risk you have to take,” she said. “My dad is a doctor, and if some activist that does not like abortion comes and kills him, [BU] is not going to help me. The way [BU] should help the families is grieving, funerals, things like that.”
NCSU To Pay Women, Minorities Equal Salary
By Lauren Deere The Technician
(U-WIRE) RALEIGH, N.C. – North Carolina State University is setting the precedent. It is not uncommon for universities to annually study faculty salaries, but NCSU is the first UNC system school to put aside specific dollars to nip salary inequities in the bud.
Study findings indicate that out of 1,581 faculty members at NCSU, on average, female faculty members earn about $1,000 less than white males in the same position. In addition, minority, male faculty members earn about $2,000 less than white males, on average.
NCSU officials estimate that 237 out of 371 women and 134 out of 161 minority men will be eligible for pay increases to compensate for gender and race salary gaps. The salary increases will be retroactive from July 1, 2001, and were enacted this fall semester.
The university’s first step in correcting gender- and race-related salary discrepancies is allotting $600,000 plus benefits, to increase the salary of 371 faculty members. The money will come from the tuition increase.
NCSU has been performing gender-equity studies for about 20 years, according to Provost Stuart Cooper. He attributed NCSU’s action to a more professional study and a combination of both the consultant’s and the university’s methodology.
The consultant, Lois Haignere of Albany, N.Y., was hired by NCSU to complete the study of faculty salaries for fall 2000.
The study also found inequities in higher-ranking faculty positions on campus. At NCSU, women hold a disproportionately large share of visiting professor positions, which pay less, and men hold more research positions, which pay more. Women are less likely to have been named distinguished professors, and minorities are less likely to have departmental administrative positions than white men are.
News of the salary increases for the 371 faculty members boosted the spirits of many.
“Overall, this was a wonderful development,” said Davis-Gardner. “It certainly did a lot for my morale.”
Nebraska Man Seeks Body Piercing Record
By Sarah Meedel The Gateway
(U-WIRE) OMAHA, Neb.- On Friday, 21-year-old Matt Brown of Omaha, Neb., received a few sharp sticks – 171, to be exact. This was not his first piercing experience; previously, he has had as many as 31 holes and jewelry in his body. By the time of the event, he was down to a mere five piercings. Brown has decided to achieve a new world record for the most piercings in a single sitting. A relatively new tattoo and piercing shop in the Old arket, Big Brain Productions, is the parlor that handled the honor of fulfilling Brown’s task.
Apparently, the news of countless needles puncturing flesh spread quickly. Before Friday, Brown’s quest had been mentioned in Alternative Press magazine, the Omaha World-Herald and on CNN. Due to the coverage, dozens flocked to Big Brain Productions to witness the action.
Brown’s puncture jewelry probably is not what first comes to mind when one thinks about piercings. For the world record, he had 10 placed along his collarbone and the rest in both of his arms. His collarbone and arms were red, very puffy and swollen with what looked like welt marks.
Currently, the Guinness World Record for body piercings is held by a Scottish woman with a total of 462, including 192 on her head; Brown does not hold a candle to her with only 176 piercings to date. He just wants to compete for the current single sitting entry. His only competition is Greg Thompson, who on Sept. 27 reportedly received 227 piercings during the Pledge of Allegiance Tour at the World Arena in Colorado Springs, Colo. Before either record attempt, the bar was previously set at 100.
Guinness has yet to assess Brown’s bid for the book, so we will have to wait and see where they place him.
Even though his parents do not like his piercings, his girlfriend is very proud of him. Her response? She will have to remember to not touch his arms for a while.