Region

Teacher uses online ‘Second Life’ for classes

By Ab D. Phillip and Gail Koch · Monday, March 19,2007 12 a.m.

If a student is late to Ball State University instructor Sarah Robbins’ class, chances are he or she didn’t fly there fast enough. Yes, fly. Over the past eight months, Robbins has been teaching her freshman composition course in Second Life, a virtual-reality world that technology enthusiasts are heralding as the future of Internet communication.

Alumnus donates Florida island to business school

By Chelsea Merta · Monday, March 19,2007 12 a.m.

What would you do if someone gave you the deed to an island off the coast of Florida? Kelley School of Business students now have the opportunity to play real-estate brokers, with the help of a $1.95 million gift of beachfront property from former IU student Stanley Benecki.

IU shows who it is against Bruins

By Ryan Corazza · Monday, March 19,2007 12 a.m.

Earl Calloway on a breakaway layup, clang. Rod Wilmont on a 3-point attempt, clang. Clang. Clang. Clang all game. Until, suddenly and finally, IU arose from its slumber. This is a team that succeeds, when and only when it’s knocking down shots from the outside. That didn’t happen in the first half of the Hoosiers’ 54-49 loss to UCLA on Saturday.

Outsourcing plan for Indiana’s welfare system begins with state workers’ switch

By Alexandra R. Moses and Ken Kusmer · Monday, March 19,2007 12 a.m.

INDIANAPOLIS – The outsourcing of much of Indiana’s welfare safety net reaches a key milestone Monday when more than 1,500 workers leave their state jobs to join a group of private vendors with a 10-year contract designed to streamline the way people receive benefits.

2 Indiana counties to try out voting centers this May

By Alexandra R. Moses · Monday, March 19,2007 12 a.m.

RICHMOND, Ind. – Wayne County officials have identified four sites from which voters in the May municipal primary may choose to cast ballots.

End of the road

By Eamonn Brennan · Monday, March 19,2007 12 a.m.

On a night that united two of college basketball’s historically dominant programs, the IU men’s basketball team made history of its own, but of a dubious kind . In a first half in which they had more fouls than converted field goals, the Hoosiers scored just 13 points, the fewest in any NCAA tournament game in the post-shot clock era.

The greatest utility

By Alyson Brodsy · Monday, March 19,2007 12 a.m.

As IU begins its road down a new presidency and expands its desire to transform IU into a research oriented university that will assist students, it has made the decision to demolish Margrave Apartments.

7 U.S. soldiers die in Iraq, including 4 in single roadside bomb attack

By Abdullah AlShihri and Lauren Frayer · Monday, March 19,2007 12 a.m.

BAGHDAD, Iraq – The U.S. military on Sunday announced the deaths of seven more troops in Iraq, including four killed by a roadside bomb while patrolling western Baghdad – the latest American casualties in a monthlong security crackdown in the capital.

Hoeppner to miss spring practices for health reasons

By Jake Brown and Jacob Brown · Monday, March 19,2007 12 a.m.

IU football coach Terry Hoeppner will miss all of the spring practice session to attend to “personal health matters,” according to a statement released late Sunday night by the IU Athletics Department.

Yes!Yes!Yes!

By Grace Low · Monday, March 19,2007 12 a.m.

There’s always a lot of talk in stylish circles in academia about sexual rights. These conversations generally center around individuals having a right to choose their sexual partners, the right to sexual autonomy and freedom from fear and abuse. Essentially, we as a generation and social group are very fluent in the language of “No.” No means no and that’s incredibly important; I don’t intend to diminish the vital importance of that sexual right. However, such emphasis on “No” leaves me wondering, what about “Yes”?

Around the world

By Abdullah AlShihri · Monday, March 19,2007 12 a.m.

Search teams combed North Carolina’s rugged mountain terrain Sunday to look for a 12-year-old Boy Scout who went missing Saturday during a group hike.

Hoosiers go .500 during break

By Aaron Beard · Monday, March 19,2007 12 a.m.

You win some, you lose some. The IU baseball team took that old adage to heart for its annual spring trip, losing its first four games before rebounding and running off four straight victories to wrap up its Florida visit. The Hoosiers wrapped up their eight-game road trip Saturday with a doubleheader sweep at Florida A&M in Tallahassee, Fla.

IU swims to 11th-place national finish

By Brian Buckey · Monday, March 19,2007 12 a.m.

As the IU women’s swimming and diving team traveled to Minneapolis for the NCAA championships, its sights were set on a top-10 finish. Although an 11th-place finish was just short of the goal, it was still plenty of cause for excitement.

Architect approaches decision on Democratic bid for ’08 governor

By Alexandra R. Moses and Mike Smith · Monday, March 19,2007 12 a.m.

INDIANAPOLIS – Indianapolis architect James Schellinger said Friday that he expects to decide next week whether he will seek the Democratic nomination for governor in 2008.

Hoosiers find consistency in Florida

By DeAntae Prince · Monday, March 19,2007 12 a.m.

IU coach Stacey Phillips’ softball team found just what it was looking for all season when it went on a nine-game winning streak during the course of 15 games. The team had been struggling with consistency but dispelled all its troubles during a successful spring break. The Hoosiers won the Bronze Bracket in Clearwater, Fla., defeating Fordham 7-2 and competed hard in Tampa, Fla., where they won seven of nine contests.

Gunfire erupts during Indianapolis bank robbery; no injuries reported

By Alexandra R. Moses · Monday, March 19,2007 12 a.m.

INDIANAPOLIS – A gunman fired into the ceiling of a bank branch during a robbery Friday afternoon with about 20 people inside the building, police said.

Envoys to North Korean nuclear talks upbeat on resolving funds dispute

By Abdullah AlShihri and Mari Yamaguchi · Monday, March 19,2007 12 a.m.

BEIJING – The top American nuclear envoy said Sunday that he believed North Korea and the U.S. had “gotten past” a dispute over $25 million in frozen North Korean funds, and the communist nation was moving toward nuclear disarmament.

Geoffrey Miller • IDS
Junior D.J. White addresses the media following the season-ending defeat. The IU Hoosiers played the UCLA Bruins Saturday, March 17, during the second round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament in Sacramento, falling 54-49.

Feeling blue

By Matt Mattucci · Monday, March 19,2007 12 a.m.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The IU players didn’t have to say a word after their game Saturday night. Their faces said it all. Senior guard Rod Wilmont slumped in a chair, tears welling up in his eyes. Junior forward Lance Stemler paced along the back of the locker room, his eyes swollen and red from crying. And not a single word was spoken among the players.

Fraternity goes to New Orleans for spring break trip

By Shannon McEnerney · Monday, March 19,2007 12 a.m.

After spending less than a week in New Orleans, sophomore Alex Alderson already knows he will be returning in the near future and hopes to return annually.

DePauw severs ties with Delta Zeta

By Ab D. Phillip and Keith Robinson · Monday, March 19,2007 12 a.m.

DePauw University’s president ordered the Delta Zeta sorority March 12 to leave its campus by September in response to a mass eviction of members that sparked allegations that only attractive, popular students were asked to remain.