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(01/21/10 4:08am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>What would normally be a once-in-20-years heat wave could occur every other year – just one of the affects global climate change will have on the future environment, said Brian J. Soden, a climate expert and professor, in his talk Wednesday night.Soden gave his speech “The Reality of Global Warming: Cold Facts on a Hot Topic” in the Maurer School of Law, on the science behind the controversial topic of climate change.Soden said he wanted to stay away from talking about government policies to fix climate change, but instead focused on the science to back up climate change, and the science to determine whether or not it is caused by human activity.He was one of the more than 600 lead authors on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in 2007. Soden said he considers this publication as the best source for information on pure scientific facts on global warming. However much like his talk, there is no talk of possible policies to solve the problem, just the facts.“It’s easier for people who are not scientists in the field to get confused,” Soden said, “because if you look at the media coverage of something like global warming there is always seemingly contradictory information coming out.”Jesse Kharbanda, executive director of the Hoosier Environmental Council, the main sponsor of the talk stressed the importance of Indiana’s youth to help combat climate change in the state.“The best thing that college students can do is to write a letter to the district offices of Senators Lugar and Bayh and ask them to support stronger legislation,” Kharbanda said.Some of the crowd did not think the talk went far enough. Exchange student Elizabeth Belz wished there was more mention on the policy of climate change, not just graphs and statistics.“I can’t see the point of addressing the problem without a solution,” Belz said.Soden presented all the evidence, and also stated that what we do now does not affect our climate. Climate change will be a “trans-generational” issue, he said.He added that it is not fair to our children, to poorer countries, to other species; and the damage done is irreversible.
(01/15/10 3:30am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The state of Indiana is home to what will be one of the largest wind farms in the world, and there are plenty more being constructed.The Fowler Ridge Wind Farmin Benton County, when finished, will have a generating capacity of 750 megawatts of energy.Bennet Brabson, Professor of Environmental Physics at IU, said wind energy is one of the few renewable energy sources that can replace expensive fossil fuels.And while renewable energy is popular, it is still not producing as much as traditional forms like the burning of fossil fuels, Brabson said.“Wind at the moment is generating a few 10s of megawatts of power in the U.S.,” Brabson said. “It is not generating at the level of coal, oil or natural gas. Less than 1 percent of our electricity is coming from wind.” Brabson said that while this is a large amount of power, it does not seem large in comparison to other forms of energy production. However, the wind power industry has been consistently growing in the U.S. at a rate of 30 percent a year for the past decade.Another factor contributing to the rise in wind power, especially in Midwestern states like Indiana, is economic compensation. According to Brabson, a landowner who leases his land to a wind power company will earn $2000-3000 per wind turbine every year, depending on the company they lease the land to. On the consumer level, energy companies are investing heavily in renewable energy. Duke Energy Indiana has a GoGreen Indiana program, and the Indianapolis Power & Light Co. is increasing the amount of people who want to use cleaner energy. “We are taking a diverse approach to our power sources,” said Angeline Protogere, a representative from Duke Energy’s Indiana office. “We don’t think there is just one answer. We believe you need a variety of different sources, like cleaner coal technology. We think you need a multifaceted approach to come up with power in the supply your customers need and have as little impact as possible.” “The most environmentally benign power plant is the one you never have to regulate because you conserve power,” she added. Here at IU, the energy debate is changing, but the University is not completely green.“I can see several years down the line the possibility of wind power here at IU,” said Elizabeth Danielson, co-director of Collins E-Force, a student environmental group. “Right now there is a movement to trying to get rid of the coal plant and replace it with natural fuel.”In a Stanford University study in the Journal of Geophysical Research in 2005, scientists found that the wind power capacity for the entire world was around 72 terawatts, over five times the current energy used in any form. The researchers also conceded that there are many “practical barriers to overcome” in wind energy production.“I’m worried that the farms in Indiana may have to struggle to compete with the others because they are not in high wind areas,” Brabson said.As useful as wind energy may seem, Brabson warns that there are limits to every energy source.“It has not only caught on,” Brabson said, “but it may have exceeded the logic of the process: it’s catching on almost too quickly.”
(10/30/09 3:59am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Every year brings change for the Union Board.This year, though, the Board is celebrating its centennial with a revamped focus. The organization has been making an effort to bring in new and diverse opportunities to students and be more of an advocate for students.John Whittenberger founded the Union Board as a men’s union in 1909 as a way to bring the community together, and later it expanded to represent all of the students on campus.Current Union Board president Andrew Dahlen considers this level of ingenuity something the Union Board strives for every year.“I see us fulfilling our mission to the campus,” Dahlen said. “I do also think this year has been different. We have seen a lot of success in terms of diversity of programs and attendance at the programs.”Union Board has also been more aggressive on campus issues. Dahlen has been pushing student organizations to back a proposal that would allow students to use meal points in the Union.Dahlen believes that the centennial year is an important milestone for the organization. He added that there will be a private reunion celebration. Dahlen said he expects more than 300 alumni and guests to attend.“This campus has 40,000 students and we have to program for every single one of them,” said Justine Carlotta, director of Canvas, the Union Board’s student art magazine. “A lot of our mission is to provide students with different ways to express themselves while creating an atmosphere to come together.”This past year, Carlotta hosted Canvas’ first lecture with graphic novelist Scott McCloud, she said. She added that they filled up the entire Whittenberger Auditorium and had some people standing.“I wanted to give more students an educational and expressive experience,” Carlotta said, adding that Canvas can only publish so many students with two issues a year. This upcoming issue will publish more students than any other before, Carlotta said.Next week the board is sponsoring programs that relate to the GBLT community.“It’s important to give the campus diverse programs,” said outreach director Faz Mahmud.
(10/29/09 1:05am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Last week, a local Buddhist monastery received a unique gift. The Tibetan Mongolian Buddhist Cultural Center received a package from “The Private Office of His Holiness The Dalai Lama, Dharmasala India,” which contained more than 250 sacred texts of the Buddhist canon. The texts, or pechas, donated are called the kangyur and tengyur, which talk about different teachings about the Buddha. The teachings are called the Three Jewels – three things Buddhists can take refuge in: the Buddha himself; the Dharma, the Buddha’s teachings; and the Sangha, the community of Buddhists. “The Buddhist canon is massive,” said Heather Blair, assistant professor of East Asian Buddhism. “To have a copy is a really big deal.”Blair talked about how a copy of canon, while expensive, also carries symbolic importance. “The texts represent legitimacy and authority for the temple. This is a very significant gesture,” Blair said. TMBCC coordinator Lisa Morrison agreed with Blair. “It’s a very special gift because no other monastery in the West has these,” Morrison said. “There are layers and layers of information and teachings.”The pechas are open to the public, but monks must assist onlookers because they are very important. “These pechas are sacred teachings of the Buddha,” Morrison said. “Some of them were developed by different Dalai Lamas over the years.”The Dalai Lama promised to donate sacred texts during a visit to Bloomington in 2007. “He said he was going to donate two very important books with teachings and commentaries,” said the current abbot, the Venerable Arjia Rinpoche. “We are honored to have them in the temple.”Rinpoche is pleased to have the texts and welcomes others to visit the temple. He said the temple is a nonsecretarian temple and that they welcome everyone. “In our temple we have an interfaith alter where other religions are honored,” Rinpoche said. “We are always open for prayers and talks.”Rinpoche plans to host the Dalai Lama when he comes to Bloomington in May to give talks and teachings at the center. “We always invite him to give talks,” Rinpoche said. “Because he has become more popular, his schedule is busy and we have to work around it.”
(10/01/09 2:51am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>With the leaves changing and the air beginning to cool, outdoor enthusiasts and others can enjoy the rich natural resources Indiana has to offer. And starting today, in addition to camping and boating, outdoorsmen can take part in the sport of hunting. Today the Indiana Department of Natural Resources marks the beginning of both Indiana’s 2009 fall turkey season and early archery deer season. From Oct. 1 to 25, wild turkey can be hunted legally. Deer can only be hunted with bow weapons until Nov. 14. State DNRs often regulate the time a particular animal can be hunted after the animal’s breeding period when its numbers are vulnerable to change. Indiana hunters are required to apply for separate hunting licenses depending on what animal they choose to hunt. The turkey season is split into two parts, according to the state’s 2009-10 Hunting and Trapping Guide. For the first 20 days of October, hunters may only use archery equipment to hunt game. For the remaining five days, hunters can lawfully use firearms to hunt, but there is a bag limit of one bird.For deer, hunters are limited to archery weapons until Nov. 14, when the firearms season starts. Until Nov. 29, deer can be hunted with permitted bow weapons and firearms. The late archery season runs from Dec. 5 to Jan. 3, which runs concurrently with the muzzle-loader weapon season from Dec. 5 to 20. Hunters should expect a good deer season this year, DNR wildlife research specialist Mitch Marcus said.“In general our statewide deer population has been doing very well,” Marcus said.It is important to note that crossbows are only permitted in the late archery deer season but are allowed for the entirety of the turkey season. But not everyone views hunting from the hunters’ point-of-view. IU-based animal protection group Revitalizing Animal Welfare said it believes hunting is a complex issue that has to be looked at on all sides. “We believe that hunters have a moral obligation to use sportsmanlike methods and minimize animal suffering,” RAW President Courtney Wennerstrom said in a statement. “We also welcome hunters who care about animal well-being to join RAW because we believe there is a lot that responsible hunters and animal protection advocates can agree on.”
(09/28/09 3:49am)
This Friday, the Kinsey Institute held an opening reception for its current exhibition for the semester entitled “Shape of Us,” a collection of vintage and contemporary images that display the diversity of the human body. All Kinsey exhibits are free to the public.
(09/25/09 3:33am)
New York-based rapper and political activist Immortal Technique will perform a show with three other rap artists as part of the band’s 2009 Recession Tour Saturday at the Bluebird Nightclub.
(09/15/09 2:45am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>An annual survey released by the Indiana Prevention Resource Center at IU found that overall drug use is down in Indiana adolescents, but marijuana use is on the rise.The 19th Annual Survey of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drug Use by Indiana Children and Adolescents was published in August and shows the yearly trends in drug abuse by sixth to 12th graders in 557 schools across the state.The Indiana Family and Social Services Administration’s Division of Mental Health and Addiction also funded the survey.The survey asked adolescents about 22 different drugs and methods of use ranging from tobacco to crack cocaine, to inhalants and prescription medications.One addition to the survey this year was a section on the use of different drugs teens administer with syringes, a very dangerous method because it can easily result in an overdose, according to the survey.Also, users rarely clean needles, spreading diseases like HIV and Hepatitis.Mi Kyung Jun, a research associate who worked on the survey, said the survey is done yearly so the individual school corporations can use the information. There have been many changes since the survey started in 1991.“When we started we also surveyed fifth graders, but as time grew on their drug use fell significantly,” Jun said. “Also, we’ve had to add more drugs to list. We are constantly changing the survey to match trends."The school corporations administer the survey to their students, and they also receive findings tailored to their results, in addition to how they compare with the rest of the state in terms of drug use.If their schools have favorable results, they are eligible for the Safe and Drug Free School Grant, which provides extra funding for schools.Notable in this survey is the apparent rise in marijuana use.The reason for the fall in all other drugs and the rise in marijuana use is unknown.“We do not ask why,” Jun said. “We just monitor the use. We can say that this is very odd. They may think it is less harmful alternative to other drugs.”Some students are glad that the use of hard drugs is dropping, even if the use of marijuana is up.“I think it’s better that harder drugs with worse effects are used less than other less harmful drugs,” said IU senior Branden Moore, adding that he still does not approve of the increase in drug use.Jun said that while there was a rise this year in marijuana use, the results should be watched for a couple more years in order to establish an actual trend in drug use.“If drug use is high for a school, we strongly recommend they do something,” Jun said.
(08/05/09 10:44pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Many Boy Scouts are running around campus this week. Yet their presence has sparked one group on campus to reopen a debate on perceived discriminatory practices from the largest youth organization in the country.It chose to do so with a movie screening.On Tuesday, the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Student Support Services Office was screened the award-winning documentary “Scout’s Honor,” a film telling the story of one Scout, 13-year-old Steven Cozza and his fight for equal treatment for all who wish to participate in the Boy Scouts of America.Cozza helped bring the tolerance organization Scouting For All to national prominence.After the screening, there was a brief discussion on the matter of the Boy Scouts of America’s discrimination against the GLBT community. GLBT Coordinator Doug Bauder said he wanted to clarify that the screening was not an “us-versus-them confrontation.” He said he hoped instead to have a dialogue with the Boy Scouts of America about the issue.The organization’s official position, according to the Scouts’ legal issues Web site, www.bsalegal.org, is that all scouts must accept the Declaration of Religious Principle, the Scout Oath and Scout Law.“The Boy Scouts of America will not employ atheists, agnostics, known or avowed homosexuals or others as professional scouters or in other capacities in which such employment would tend to interfere with the mission of reinforcing the values of the Scout Oath and the Scout Law in young people,” according to the legal issues Web site.When gay rights in regard to the Scouts was made a legal issue, the U.S. Supreme Court decided in Boy Scouts of America v. Dale in 2000 that the Boy Scouts of America is a private organization that does have the right to exclude people because of freedom of association given to it and all private organizations by the First Amendment.The GLBT hosts also wanted to use the screening as an opportunity to highlight the resources at the GLBT Student Support Services, such as the GLBT Library, where numerous other movies and books can be borrowed by the public, IU students and nonstudents, for free.“I think the reason this is such a big issue is because the Boy Scouts are such a great organization for youth,” said Rene Henry, the library coordinator for the GLBT Support Office. “If they were a terrible organization, no one would care what they do.” Among the spectators was a gay man and former Scout Michael Moore, who explained that he sees two sides to scouting: the business, policymaking side and the grassroots community side.“The closer you get to the front lines, the more being gay may become a nonissue,” Moore said.Beliefs aside, the conversation still centered on a respect for Cozza and his struggle.“Here’s this straight 13-year-old who really took the Scout Oath seriously,” Henry said. “He had a passion for what he thought was right and fair.”
(08/02/09 9:58pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Sometimes justice takes time. In the case of The City of Bloomington Utilities v. Walter, Day and Cadavid, it has taken two years of trials and appeals all the way to the Indiana Supreme Court just to settle if the plaintiffs have a case. It turns out they do.On July 24, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled that the City of Bloomington Utilities is liable for damages that occurred in November 2005 from a blocked public sewer line that caused 300 gallons of sewage to seep into an apartment, causing extensive damage – about $30,000 worth. Now the case can finally go to trial. “Just shows you what people have to go through sometimes just to get their damages paid for,” said John Shean, one of the attorneys representing the homeowners. According to the appellate court decision, the apartment’s renters Misty Day and Micky Walter alerted the property owners, Leslie and Hernan Cadavid, who in turn notified the city utilities department to fix the apparent blockage that caused the flooding, which is believed to have been caused by overgrown tree roots. After filing an insurance claim on the damage, the Cadavids’ insurance company refused to pay for damages because it was a city sewer pipe on city property. The Cadavids and Walter and Day sent separate damage claims, both of which were denied by the utilities department and the City of Bloomington. In March 2007, the Cadavids, Walter and Day filed a single complaint alleging negligence. The defendants claimed that they were immune from all liability under certain provisions set in the Indiana Tort Claims Act, mainly that the pipe maintenance was a discretionary function that could not be sued for, Shean said. In May 2008, both the city and utilities department made settlement offers to the plaintiffs. The city’s offer was accepted and then removed from the lawsuit, according to the appellate court decision. The utilities department then made a motion for summary judgment, essentially trying to end the case before it started, on the grounds that it was not liable for the damages. The trial court decided that the utilities department was indeed liable and denied the motion. The utilities department appealed the ruling to the Court of Appeals of Indiana. “They claimed that they had discretion regarding keeping their sewer lines clean,” Shean said. “And we said, ‘No, you have established a policy of keeping the tree roots out of the sewer line, and you didn’t follow your own policy.’”The appellate court made its decision in April 2008, affirming the trial court’s decision that the utilities department is not immune to paying for the damages. They then appealed to the Indiana Supreme Court, which also affirmed the trial court’s ruling. Now that the state Supreme Court established that the utilities department is liable for the damages, the homeowners can finally have their day in court, because up until now, the issue was not about who was at fault, but if the utilities department was even liable for the charges claimed. “Procedurally, the next legal step is a trial,” Shean said.
(07/29/09 10:59pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Some students just can’t wait to get to college.Starting Monday, a group of freshmen, having moved about a month before fall classes begin, will take classes as part of the Intensive Freshman Seminars program.The three-week program runs Aug. 3-20 and consists of a three-credit hour course and the chance to get a jump-start on the college experience. All incoming freshmen were eligible for the program, according to the program’s Web site.Twenty-four courses are offered, with topics ranging from biology, psychology and the environment to Shakespeare, law and politics.One seminar, The Psychology of College Life, taught by Lisa Thomassen of the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, combines the study of psychology with practical applications for new life in college, such as dealing with roommates, alcohol and the freshman 15.“I hope students enjoy the class and learn to appreciate psychology and that some of the findings from psychology will help them with their college career,” Thomassen said. “We will be looking at studying effectively, group living, wellness, as well as a couple of other topic areas.”Mike Beam, director of the Intensive Freshman Seminars, said he feels the program is unique among the other orientation programs.“The Intensive Freshman Seminar, unlike orientation, IUBeginings and Welcome Week, is primarily an academic introduction to IU,” Beam said. “There are myriad of other, outside-of-class activities during IFS for participants, but each of the days during the program centers first around the courses.”IU professors and student-interns teach the courses, and the freshmen will have resident assistants living with them in the residence halls.One teaching intern, junior Justine Carlotta, said she was drawn to the fresh energy that is packaged with the incoming freshmen when she decided to sign up to help teach the seminar Violence, Sport and the Spectator: An Exploration of Violence in Modern Society. “I never took public speaking,” Carlotta said. “Nor have I ever been on the other side of the classroom. So it shall be an interesting experience. This is going to be the first experience in an IU classroom for these students. I’ll be sure to make a good impression. I don’t want to be a bore.”Aside from the classes and early residence hall experience, students meet each other and become further acquainted with Bloomington through the program by taking trips to the opera, dances and group basketball games.Though Intensive Freshman Seminars is an academic experience, it also provide students the tools they’ll need outside the classroom.“Most importantly, IFS creates a community for students where they can interact with a diverse mixture of individuals both inside and outside of the classroom,” Carlotta said. “They’ll walk away with good friends and good memories.”
(07/20/09 12:22am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>One small step began with a childhood dream, at least for Bernard Harris.About 90 fifth, sixth and seventh graders from across the state came to IU this week to take part in the 2009 ExxonMobil Bernard Harris Summer Science Camp, named in honor of the first black man to perform a spacewalk.Harris was a guest speaker Thursday in the Frangipani Room of the Indiana Memorial Union and spoke to the campers about the importance of math and science, as well as about why and how he became an astronaut.Harris said he had wanted to be an astronaut since he watched the moon landing in 1969.He said the camp is meaningful to him because he believes education is very important to the future and said he wants to foster a spirit in which students value their intelligence.“What you’re doing is OK,” Harris said. “Your love of math and science is critical for the future. It’s cool to be a geek.” The camp is free and helps facilitate learning for those interested in sciences, technology, engineering and mathematics for middle school students in underrepresented areas. This particular camp’s main theme is sustainability with a focus on water as an important resource.The camp is for middle school students, organizers said, because they believe the time before high school is a critical period for keeping students interested in learning.“We were very interested because science does not get as much attention as it should,” said Marva Coleman, one of the instructors and a science lab teacher from Glen Park Academy Elementary School in Gary. “This should be a boost for both students and teachers.”In addition to the classes, the students get to live in a dorm and get some insight into the college experience for the time they are here.“I got a little taste of the college experience,” said Osiris Morales, a 13-year-old camper from Hammond who said he wants to be an engineer. “There’s a lot of walking.”Harris concluded his speech by relating how small and then large he felt during his first spacewalk, and he said he hopes to inspire all the campers to follow their dreams so they, too, can feel that pride.“The moral of the story is you are powerful when you realize who you really are,” Harris said. “Realizing who you really are and your abilities and your willingness to work hard will lead you to do things that other people consider to be impossible.”
(07/12/09 11:38pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The IU Art Museum was swinging on Friday with the smooth sounds of jazz.More chairs had to be brought in to accommodate everyone who made it to the first installment of the 19th annual Jazz in July concert series. At 6:30 p.m. every Friday in July, the Art Museum will present a different jazz ensemble to perform for free. The festival kicked off with a performance by the Bloomington-based OffRamp Quartet, which played both classic and original songs. While all the members of OffRamp have played Jazz in July in different ensembles, this was the quartet’s Jazz in July debut. As they prepped their set list before the show, the band was concerned about the weather. “I’m worried about the humidity,” said Nate Johnson, OffRamp saxophone player and Jacobs School of Music alumnus. But the humidity did not stop the band from performing a full show of acoustic jazz on the museum’s terrace. OffRamp featured a vibraphone, tenor and soprano sax, bass and drums that filled the hot summer day with jazz melodies for two sets. The rest of the series will feature jazz ensembles from the Midwest. On Friday, blues, jazz and swing band Craig and the Crawdads will play, and harpist Jan Aldridge Clark will perform July 24. Bloomington musicians Monika Herzig, Carolyn Dutton and Tom Roznowski will wrap up the series July 31 with songs by Cole Porter and Bloomington native Hoagy Carmichael. The concerts themselves are emceed by WFIU radio hosts Joe Bourne of “Just You and Me” and David Brent Johnson, the host of “Night Lights,” both jazz music programs.Johnson calls Bloomington a “hip jazz town.” “This program is a venerable Bloomington jazz tradition,” Johnson said. “The Art Museum always does a great job of picking diverse and forward jazz groups.”In addition to the concerts, the Art Museum is exhibiting a special display in Art of the Western World gallery called “Modernist Soundscapes,” a collection of visual art that was inspired by the rise of popular music in the early 20th century. The exhibit is open from 5 to 8:30 p.m. during Jazz in July Fridays. “It’s just a great time,” Johnson said. “It’s free, out on the terrace, and, sure, it was hot, but really laid back. Really, a beautiful thing.”
(06/29/09 2:34am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>“You feeling all right tonight?” asked Eric Love, the master of ceremonies.“Yeah,” replied an audience member, “we’re free!” On Friday, several organizations gathered at the Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center to celebrate the 11th Annual Juneteenth Freedom Festival, which celebrates freedom for all people. The event began with different cultural organizations along with fraternities and sororities displaying information in the lobby. Audrey T. McCluskey, director of the Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center, opened the event by explaining why Juneteenth is being celebrated on the 26th this year instead of the traditional 19th. “The calendar may not say it,” McCluskey said, “but it’s always Juneteenth because we celebrate freedom every day.” Juneteenth is celebrated as “Emancipation Day” instead of the day the Emancipation Proclamation was issued in 1863 because the news took the entire war to get to the black slaves in the farthest parts of the divided country. “They didn’t have the Internet, so they didn’t get the news until 2 1/2 years later,” McCluskey said. The event continued with a formal proclamation of Juneteenth as a city holiday from Bloomington Mayor Mark Kruzan. He was not there himself, but Beverly Calender-Anderson, the director of Bloomington’s “Safe and Civil City Program,” read the proclamation in his stead.Calender-Anderson also gave out four “Unsung Heroes” awards, which honor those in Bloomington who dedicated themselves to service. The winners for the 2009 awards were Anthony Scott of the Hudson-Holland Scholars Program; Debra Vance, director of diversity and outreach for Ivy Tech Community College; local philanthropist T. Michael Ford; and school coach Joe Boddy. All four had donations made to charities of their choice. Following more performances by musical and dance groups and a reflection speech came the main event: the 2009 Juneteenth King and Queen Pageant. It was hosted by last year’s winners. The nine contestants had to all write an essay and answer questions on topics important to the black community like AIDS, education and community service, among others. They also had to perform a talent portion that included spoken word, musical, and dance performances, including one tribute to the late Michael Jackson, a pop-culture as well as a black-culture icon.The 2009 winners were students Derrin Slack and Leslie Nobles. They both won a $500 grand prize in addition to the title.Appeals were made by all the speakers to remember the long struggle that African Americans, as well as all people, have had to make for freedom. Ghangis Carter, director of the Office of Recruitment and Retention, reminded the crowd that as long as one loves freedom, Juneteenth is “not a celebration for one people, but for all.”
(06/25/09 12:51am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Many groups will join Friday to celebrate the 144th Juneteenth Freedom Day, an important holiday celebrating the abolition of slavery in the United States.Starting at 5 p.m. June 26, the Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center, along with the City of Bloomington and Ivy Tech Community College, will sponsor the 11th Annual Juneteenth Freedom Celebration at the culture center.Juneteenth, also known as Emancipation Day, takes place every June 19 and commemorates June 19, 1865, when all the slaves of Galveston, Texas, became aware of their freedom after a Union general took control of the town. Ever since, Juneteenth has been a day to remember the struggle of slavery and also to celebrate black history.Juneteenth is a state holiday in 31 states. Indiana does not officially recognize it as a holiday, but every year during his tenure, Mayor Mark Kruzan has proclaimed Juneteenth Freedom Day in Bloomington.The event was previously scheduled as a two-day affair but has since been changed into a one-evening gala with food, music and other entertainment that welcomes the entire family, including special youth activities.“I think it will be fun,” said Sachiko Higgins-Kante, a Neal-Marshall staff member and one of the event’s coordinators. “And I think it will bring a lot of young people out, which is good, because we want young people to carry on what we’re starting.”The evening will include a reception in Bridgewater Lounge and the Juneteenth King and Queen Pageant in the Wells-Metz Theatre at 6:30 p.m. The nine participants had to fill out an application and write an essay on the “Legacy of Juneteenth” and why it is important to younger generations. During the pageant, the contestants will answer questions and present a three- to five-minute talent routine. There is a $500 grand prize.Finishing off the evening’s festivities will be the presentation of the Unsung Heroes awards. These are awarded to Bloomington residents who dedicate themselves to serving the good of the community. The award also offers a monetary donation to any charity of the recipients’ choosing.The importance of the younger generations and the future is the main theme of this year’s pageant.“The youth are our future,” Higgins-Kante said. “And in order to carry this celebration on, we have to educate them.”
(06/17/09 11:46pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>IU announced earlier this week it would launch a program this fall that provides study and real-world experience to teach students valuable skills in politics and civic careers.The Political and Civic Engagement program will be a 25-credit certificate program open to undergraduate students with an interest in public responsibility. The program calls for core and elective classes in addition to practical experiences outside classes such as exercises, an internship, a seminar and other activities such as lectures, retreats and discussions.Current IU professor of history and law Michael Grossberg will direct the program.Edward L. Hutton funded the program, according to a press release. Hutton also supported numerous other IU programs such as the Hutton Honors College, the International Experiences Program and the Wells Scholars Program. Hutton died this past March.The program pledges to deepen understanding of the American political system locally, statewide and nationally. Its goal is to “hone your communication, organization, decision-making and critical-thinking skills,” according to the Pace Program Web site. The program aims to help in any career path in government, political group and law.“There is a strong sense that colleges have a role to play in giving students opportunity to develop not only academically but politically,” Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education Sonya Stephens said, “and giving them the tools they need to participate in political and civic life.”The program will also merge with the Leadership, Ethics and Social Action minor program in the College of Arts and Sciences.The program will be administered through the College of Arts and Sciences, and the certificate may be combined with any major in the college, along with other undergraduate degrees in other schools.It is recommended students apply during the second semester of their freshman year or the first semester of their sophomore year, according to the program’s Web site.One of the justifications for the program for its founders was the magnitude of college student participation on all sides during the 2008 presidential election.“We had been looking at how students have become engaged since the last election and thinking of ways to capitalize on that to bring out those kinds of dimensions of political and civic responsibility,” Stephens said.Stephens said the program is important because there are not many practical civic engagement programs at other institutions.“It’s very rare to find a program like this at other universities,” Stephens said. “I think it’s going to be a great program.”
(06/14/09 10:28pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>In the current economy, everyone is looking for a job that combines job security and a high growth rate with the job that pays well. The School of Informatics’ new master’s program might provide the skills needed to land a job in the field of cybersecurity.Starting in the fall, the new security informatics master’s program will teach its students the tools to provide security to all of the information used in today’s increasingly digital society.Professors Steve Meyers and L. Jean Camp created the program.Cybersecurity-related jobs can be found all throughout the private and public sectors in fields such as commerce, government, business, law enforcement, homeland security, forensics and national defense. Any field where sensitive information is exchanged can benefit from added security, the professors said.The program allows students to focus on a concentration in a specific field of cybersecurity and tailors studies to the individual career path they choose.“Security has become more nuanced and contextual,” said Camp, who is also the director of the security informatics program. “Of course, security fundamentals such as cryptography remain at the core of security. Yet across the country, the need for understanding security as an element of an organizational and competitive context has increasingly been recognized.”Security informatics is a major part of information technology because more people and organizations are using more information as an integral part of their daily business. The more valuable the information becomes means more people might try to exploit it for financial gain.The new master’s program comes at a time when President Obama’s new policies call for a new office of cyber czar to “strengthen our cyber defenses in the 21st century.” In terms of resources for students, Bloomington offers organizations to help during study and after graduation – some being the Center for Applied Cybersecurity Research, the University Information Technology Services, the Research and Education Information Sharing and Analysis Center and the University Information Security Office, among many other offices and centers that specialize in cybersecurity.Students with bachelor’s degrees can enter the program provided they complete certain informatics prerequisites. Cybersecurity is a field that favors diversity among its professionals.“Any organization that depends on its network access and intellectual capital could hire a master’s of science in security informatics graduate,” Camp said.
(06/14/09 10:25pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Freshmen in the fall of 2011 will have to do a little more of everything. The Bloomington Faculty Council decided to raise admissions standards Feb. 21, 2006, for the incoming class of 2011 at IU-Bloomington in most of the key fields, such as mathematics and the physical sciences. The changes will go into effect this fall.Both IU and Purdue University have raised admissions standards for the incoming class of 2011, giving current high school students a chance to fulfill these new requirements before they run out of time.Transfer students should also be made aware of the changes because they can affect their admissions status.Previously, applicants needed eight semesters of English, six semesters of math, four semesters of social science and two semesters of natural science. Applicants now need 3 1/2 years of math, three years of physical science, a now-mandatory two years of a foreign language and now-minimum of 34 high school class credits to be admitted to the college.Most other Big Ten schools have not changed from three years of high school math needed for admission.IU mathematics chairman and professor James Davis said he applauds the changes and the effects they will have on the students and the faculty.“Having better-prepared students is a win-win situation,” Davis said. “The students will inspire the faculty, and the faculty will inspire the students. The increased mathematics requirements will be particularly helpful for students and faculty in math and the sciences.”Mathematics professor Bill Wheeler, chairman of the Educational Policy Committee of the Bloomington Faculty Council at the time the changes were decided, was one of the architects of this rare change in admissions standards.Though the changes in standards do not mean a change in classes, it might mean a shift in the enrollment of certain lower-level math and science courses. Students might have to take their precalculus and algebra classes in high school to be admitted to IU. And adding a foreign language requirement will most likely decrease the number of enrollments in introductory-level foreign language courses.While the changes were planned well before the economic downfall of the past year, the educators of the University said they see the better-prepared students as one way to boost the quality of the workforce when they graduate.Also, the 2011 start date for the new standards coincide with new general-education requirements for IU students.“The students starting in the fall of 2011 will be well prepared to meet these new requirements,” Davis said.
(06/10/09 11:54pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>This week in our nation’s capital, a group of diverse energy specialists will develop new ideas on how we can form and use the energy we require every day.The IU School of Public and Environmental Affairs will be host to a national conference of experts to discuss changing energy policy in the Obama administration Thursday.“The Search for Wise Energy Policy” will occur 8:30 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. at the Renaissance Mayflower Hotel in Washington, D.C.The forum will feature four separate panel discussions: energy policy drivers, changing patterns in energy supply, changing patterns in energy demand and use, and climate policy. The panelists and moderators were chosen from experts from leading energy and environmental businesses, research institutes and academia, including three SPEA faculty members and dean.The school is having the event to give authorities in the energy field an opportunity to publicly analyze the policies of the past and form fresh ideas to use while the new administration forms its plans on newer and better methods of energy production, distribution and use.“At this early stage of a new administration, the window is open for helping shape the direction, tenor and substance of energy policy,” said John Graham, SPEA dean, in his welcoming address to the conference. “Although energy policy development is inherently complex and risky, opportunities exist for identifying the key issues, for discussing alternative solutions and their measurable impacts.”The Obama administration has stressed the importance of changing the energy policies of the past and how energy policy ties in with economic policy. Part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act stimulus package included more than $60 billion in clean energy investments to improve the development of renewable energy, create environmentally conscious jobs and pay for research grants to develop better forms of energy storage.President Obama has publicly spoken about his desire for the United States to end its economic dependency on foreign energy sources and also about the environmental importance of renewable energy – both topics on the agenda for the conference.“We can remain one of the world’s leading importers of foreign oil,” Obama said in a March 19 speech, “or we can make the investments that would allow us to become the world’s leading exporter of renewable energy.”
(06/07/09 9:34pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Last month, assistant research scientist Heather Rupp of the Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender and Reproduction received a $423,500 grant to study the poorly understood biological mechanisms behind postpartum depression. The National Institute of Mental Health awarded the grant money to fund research on the still-unknown cause of postpartum depression. Rupp and her co-investigators will be using functional magnetic resonance imaging scans to observe how a hormone called oxytocin, an important chemical during the period following birth, works in a woman suffering from postpartum depression. “Women’s sexual and emotional health are important for themselves and those around them,” said Kinsey Institute Director Julia Heiman. “Childbirth requires major physiological and social adjustments that are taken for granted and understudied.”The hormonal changes of pregnancy and childbirth are known to cause changes in mood, but postpartum depression is serious condition that causes severe anxiety and physiological symptoms that interfere with a mother’s ability to take care of her child. The main cause is still unknown. “It hurts their relationships with their partners and kids,” Rupp said. “It makes them feel like terrible people and hurts their careers, creating a snowball effect in these women’s lives.” Thomas James, a professor in the IU Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, will use the functional magnetic resonance imaging scans to measure and compare the brain activity of participants, enabling the research team to apply previous animal models to humans.The other researchers involved with the study are Dale Sengelaub of the department of psychological and brain sciences, who has worked with hormones in rats, and Ellen Ketterson, a biology professor whose work with hormones in relation to human behavior complements Rupp’s past research on the subject. They will be working with Beate Ditzen of the University of Zurich, who has researched oxytocin. All of the research backgrounds combined with Heiman’s clinical psychology experience and James’ scans yield a comprehensive picture of postpartum depression and its potential causes. “If you understand the mechanisms, treatments and prevention may become a little more successful,” Rupp said. “Together we can address this very complicated problem that individually we couldn’t.”In addition, the group of diverse researchers will also work with local doctors and support groups, such as the Bloomington Area Birth Service and Bloomington Hospital’s postpartum depression task force. “We are all still really basic researchers,” James said, “so to have some practitioners be so forthcoming with us and their ideas has been very helpful.”Rupp said it was really exciting to see the community get involved. The results of this two-year study will provide other researchers with knowledge on possible safe treatments for postpartum depression. “We’re not a clinical trial,” Rupp said, “but if it works, it could have implications for those who would want to see if it’s actually a good treatment.”