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Indianapolis mayor to speak tonight

In an effort to educate business and political science students on marketing a city, Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson will speak at the Whittenberger Auditorium tonight. The event, which is co-sponsored by the Union Board and Delta Sigma Pi business fraternity, will begin at 7 p.m.

'Batman' producer returns to campus

He is Batman. Well, not literally. But IU alumnus Michael Uslan is the driving force behind the entire Batman movie series. Tuesday afternoon, Uslan came to the Godfrey Graduate and Executive Education Center in the Kelley School of Business to speak as a distinguished entrepreneur-in-residence to more than 50 students, faculty and staff about "The Business of Hollywood."

Online Only: I'm CONCERNED!

The other day I was walking down Kirkwood Avenue when a bum hailed me with the familiar, "Hey brother, can you spare some change?" I stopped and pondered, then very deliberately drew out my wallet and removed a $50 bill; dangling the "Ulysses" in front of him, I declared to all within earshot, "If 50 people give me high-fives, I'll give this bum $50."

Using pepper spray

I live in an apartment complex where the aroma of marijuana gently wafts through the corridors as if it were the hottest new flavor of Glade PlugIns. Streams of beer cascade from the balconies on football game Saturdays. The repeated thump of bass is so persistent I often find myself instructing my roommate to rip up the floorboards as I scream, "It is the beating of his hideous heart!"

A house divided

It's one of life's great ironies, like freezer burn or the House Ethics Committee: For whatever reason, there has always been a rivalry between the business school and SPEA, which share a conjoined building on 10th Street. As a SPEA student, I've noticed it has become popular for members of each school to deal low blows to each other, so I'd like to clear up some common misconceptions:

Curing old age

Yesterday, the New York Times ran a story on a process called "calorie restriction," which has been found to significantly slow the aging process in a number of species and might be able to do the same for humans. Calorie restriction "involves eating about 30 percent fewer calories than normal while still getting adequate amounts of vitamins, minerals and other nutrients," according to the article. And while the underlying process is still uncertain, calorie restriction has been "shown in various animals to affect molecular pathways likely to be involved in the progression of Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, heart disease, Parkinson's disease and cancer."

Around the Arts

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Bob Barker retiring after 35 years on 'Price is Right'

LOS ANGELES -- Bob Barker is heading toward his last showcase, his final "Come on down." The silver-haired daytime-TV icon is retiring in June, he told The Associated Press on Tuesday. "I will be 83 years old on December 12," he said, "and I've decided to retire while I'm still young." He'll hang up his microphone after 35 years as the host of "The Price Is Right" and 50 years overall in television.

Annual Octubafest features misunderstood' instrument

A long-standing Jacobs School of Music tradition, Octubafest -- a worldwide event for tuba and euphonium -- is celebrating its 22nd anniversary this year. Perantoni, who is currently in charge of the event, said retired IU tuba professor Harvey Phillips started Octubafest.

Drummers of Burundi come to IU Auditorium

While the Beach Boys' "Good Vibrations" filled the IU Auditorium Saturday evening, a different set of vibrations will be heard Thursday as the Drummers of Burundi take the stage. Proclaimed as "one of the greatest percussion ensembles in the world," the Drummers of Burundi will begin their performance at 7:30 p.m.

Around the World

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PM orders lifting of U.S.-Iraqi checkpoints

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki on Tuesday ordered the lifting of joint U.S.-Iraqi military checkpoints around the Shiite militant stronghold of Sadr City and other parts of Baghdad -- another apparent move to assert his authority with the Americans and appeal to his Shiite support base.

North Korea agrees to 6-party nuclear talks

BEIJING -- The U.S. and Chinese governments announced Tuesday that North Korea agreed to rejoin six-nation nuclear disarmament talks, a surprise diplomatic breakthrough that comes only three weeks after the communist regime conducted its first known atomic test.

FBI raids Ph.D. student's apartment, investigates Web site

Chris Soghoian, a doctoral student, is being investigated by the FBI and Transportation Security Administration.

A glorious weekend

My weekend plans were brilliant. The weekend after the first week of classes I planned on going hard, relentless and without abandon. Coach Hep would say I was living with "dispatch." I was going to squeeze in as many IU athletic events into two and a half days that time and space would allow. And I did.

Sampson silent on Gordon

Ask Kelvin Sampson how IU's first few weeks of practice have gone, and he'll talk at length about his team still adjusting to him and his coaching style. The first-year coach will expound upon how even though point guard Earl Calloway is a senior, he's really just a freshman in Sampson's new system.But mention the words "recruiting," "Bruce Weber," "Illinois" or (gulp) "Eric Gordon," and Sampson's demeanor changes. His answers are short and cold. He'll ask you to ask the question again, though he likely understood you and your intentions the first time. Then he'll say he can't comment about it.

MYERS GUILTY

MARTINSVILLE -- It took a jury of his peers 50 minutes to find John R. Myers II guilty of the 2000 murder of IU sophomore Jill Behrman. Myers remained stoic, as he had throughout most of the 11-day trial, as Judge Christopher Burnham read the verdict. Myers, 31, hugged defense attorney Patrick Baker and, as police led him out of the courtroom in handcuffs, winked at his family, clicked his tongue and said simply, "Love ya." Jill's parents, Eric and Marilyn Behrman, told reporters afterward they were relieved the trial was over. "We're pleased with the jury's decision," Eric Behrman said. "We know it was hard for them to make." Jill Behrman vanished during a morning bike ride May 31, 2000. Her bicycle was found two days later in a cornfield outside Ellettsville, less than a mile from the trailer Myers was living in at the time. Hunters found her skeletal remains in March 2003 near Paragon, Ind. Forensic evidence suggested Behrman was shot in the back of the head at close range with a shotgun. Prosecutors had no direct evidence to make their case. Myers and Jill Behrman had no known relationship, no murder weapon has been found and there were no witnesses to the crime.

Behrman family finds some solace in court's ruling

MARTINSVILLE -- The tension in the Morgan County courtroom was thick Monday evening, the small, uncomfortable seats packed with a silent audience of friends, family and the media, all there to hear the ruling in the murder trial of John R. Myers II.

Professors 'shocked' by quick verdict

IU legal experts said they were surprised that a Morgan County jury found John R. Myers II guilty of the 2000 murder of IU sophomore Jill Behrman after less than an hour of deliberation Monday.

Project might be linked to graduate research at IU