Region

Murder By Death to play hometown show

By Kelsey McArdle · Wednesday, Jan. 21,2009 11:47 p.m.

Bloomington’s beloved export, Murder By Death, will perform to a hometown crowd as the band rolls into the Bluebird on Jan. 27, touting a special 21-song set.

Noble effort

By Danielle Fleischman · Wednesday, Jan. 21,2009 11:47 p.m.

Andrew Bird’s instrumentation is a harmony of the obscure, ranging from violin and guitar to whistling and fiddles. It’s the kind of music that is hard to define, but more often than not, his songs leave the listener with an impression of intelligence. Bird’s lyrics might as well be another instrument altogether, touching on historical and literary matters with the kind of lexicon pulled straight from a graduate thesis.

Falling stars

By Kristy Brannon · Wednesday, Jan. 21,2009 11:45 p.m.

Starflyer 59’s latest release, “Dial M,” is the 11th in a long list of studio albums, and it might need to be the last. They claimed that with each album their sound has changed, but for all of the changes taking place, they certainly show a lack of inspiration.

Milk and Politics

By Jordan Greenberg · Wednesday, Jan. 21,2009 11:43 p.m.

Sean Penn has proven to possess a wide range amongst actors. His major roles consist of a stoner in “Fast Times at Ridgemont High,” a criminal on death row in “Dead Man Walking” and an ex-con running a store in “Mystic River.”

Powter Sugar

By Tyler James Perry · Wednesday, Jan. 21,2009 11:41 p.m.

After giving the world “Bad Day,” Canadian musician Daniel Powter has moved on with an album of similarly catchy, brooding piano ballads. ”Under the Radar” is his first release since spawning the aforementioned international hit on the eponymous 2006 CD.

Same old tale

By Brent Williamson · Wednesday, Jan. 21,2009 11:41 p.m.

In the fairy tale land far, far away, where animals talk, knights rescue princesses and everything is adapted from a children’s book, some films find it hard to stand out in a genre that is growing more crowded every year. Unfortunately, “The Tale of Despereaux” fails to rise above the rest.

Mac ‘n’ cheese: An old dish that learns new tricks

By Megan Clayton · Wednesday, Jan. 21,2009 11:39 p.m.

During the last week of winter break, the average daily temperature hovered around freezing before dropping below 20 degrees Thursday. This was quite a shock to my immune system, since I’d been baking in the 80-degree Florida heat just a few days before. While I dined on fresh seafood and sipped fruit and rum cocktails, I didn’t give much thought to warm, fat-filled “comfort foods.”

The ancient practice of dating

By Rachel Skybetter · Wednesday, Jan. 21,2009 11:38 p.m.

Around this time last year, I penned my first column of 2008: a humorous rant about my quest to lose some weight. The pounds have since gone and returned, I’m still clueless as to where my life will take me post-graduation, and I’m starting to think that there are better resolutions to be made, at least while I’m still in college.

Losing that Spark

By Alex Benson · Wednesday, Jan. 21,2009 11:37 p.m.

MillerCoors’ Sparks energy drink is no longer in production due to pressure from state attorney generals. Thirteen states and San Francisco comprised the coalition against MillerCoors, saying the alcoholic energy drinks target young people and are unsafe.

Sports influence social change

By Bryan Payton · Wednesday, Jan. 21,2009 11:37 p.m.

It’s a new day in America.Stereotypes have now been smashed; things once thought to be impossible have been given new life. American citizens have caused a big change in our country’s history, and President Barack Obama personifies everything that many Americans have dreamed of: a land of true equality and social change.There are many important factors that led America to this point in history, but without question, one of the biggest has been sports.If you take a look at some of the most historic moments in sports over the years, you’ll notice that progress has been constant. From USC crushing “Bear” Bryant’s Alabama team in 1970, after which Bryant began recruiting black players, to Tony Dungy becoming the first black head coach to win a Super Bowl, we’ve come a long way. But according to Gary Sailes, an associate professor in the Kinesiology Department, we’ve still got a little ways to go.

Exiled Bangladeshi author speaks Friday on struggle for equality

By Sarah Bloom · Wednesday, Jan. 21,2009 11:36 p.m.

Author Taslima Nasrin will give a speech Friday to speak on her experiences as an author, doctor, human rights activist and symbol of free speech. Her lecture entitle, "My Life: A Struggle for Equality," will include reaction from her novel "Lajja," meaning "Shame."

Booze edition

By Deanna Krinn · Wednesday, Jan. 21,2009 11:36 p.m.

Booze money. Slush fund. Liquor cache. There are lots of different names for it, but many college students have one: a portion of their weekly budget squirreled away for alcohol.

Senior Forward Whitney Thomas and Senior Guard/Forward Kim Roberson successfully prevent a Purdue offensive player from making a basket. After a very close first half, the Hoosiers won 71-57 against the Boilermakers Monday evening at Assembly Hall.

Hoosiers’ goal: Stay present

By Jeremy Rosenthal · Wednesday, Jan. 21,2009 11:35 p.m.

The IU women’s basketball team captured its first victory against Purdue in Assembly Hall in nearly a decade on Monday. With the win, the Hoosiers are now atop the Big Ten and off to their best start in 25 years, but they have much more they want to accomplish this season. The next step comes Thursday when IU (13-3, 6-1) travels to Ann Arbor, Mich., to take on the Wolverines (9-9, 2-5).

Fire alarm leaves students in negative-degree temperature

By Alyssa Goldman · Wednesday, Jan. 21,2009 11:34 p.m.

Around 11 p.m. Jan. 15, the pajama-clad residents of Eigenmann Residence Center had to evacuate the building in negative-degree temperatures. The fire alarm went off after a sprinkler head was completely removed from the 11th-floor men’s restroom, causing areas of the building to flood.

Hundreds of students filtered into the annual Internship Fair Wednesday afternoon at Alumni Hall. Thirty companies interviewed students throughout the day

Internship Fair allows students to explore careers

By Bailey Loosemore · Wednesday, Jan. 21,2009 11:33 p.m.

Students gathered in the Indiana Memorial Union Wednesday to visit booths of 30 companies to look for internships. Stores including Macy’s and Finish Line as well as groups like INPIRG attended.

IU hopes for piece of proposed stimulus

By Kristi Oloffson · Wednesday, Jan. 21,2009 11:28 p.m.

Two days after President Barack Obama was sworn into office, some hope an $850 billion stimulus will follow his inauguration. But Indiana lawmakers and IU experts say they are not banking on his proposed federal stimulus package to help the state’s struggling budget.

Cody Milestone prepares a pizza Wednesday evening at the Pizza Express on 10th Street. By the end of the semester, the popular pizza chain will be known as Pizza X, which can be federally trademarked so that the company can prevent future legal issues.

Pizza Express to change its name

Wednesday, Jan. 21,2009 11:27 p.m.

Pizza Express, as it has been known since its founding in 1982, will change its name to Pizza X near the end of the spring semester.

Intensive language class wants to bring back dying language, culture of Arikara to IU

By MaryJane Slaby · Wednesday, Jan. 21,2009 11:25 p.m.

Graduate student Brad Kroupa can almost dream in a language that no one speaks fluently – not even him.

38 years down, 1 semester to go

By Ben Phelps · Wednesday, Jan. 21,2009 11:24 p.m.

Dean of Students Dick McKaig could teach a class on getting pied in the face. The self-proclaimed “expert” could lecture for hours on how the first three or four pies taste good, or how the Cool Whip eventually gets rancid, or how your clothes get stiff. “I’ve had many a T-shirt or hat that came out rather starched from having done a pie-in-the-face routine,” McKaig said.

Something of a cease-fire

Wednesday, Jan. 21,2009 10:23 p.m.

Now that the dust has settled in Gaza, perhaps only temporarily, what is left? Well, there are currently 372,948 monthly active users of the Facebook application QassamCount, meant to display the number of rockets set off by Hamas in your status. Then there is the “STOP Israel’s War Crimes in Gaza” application, which was developed “to reply to some Zionist developers who developed Facebook applications that update subscribers’ status periodically with the number of missiles launched by Palestinian resistance.” That application currently has 692,610 monthly active users. The Arab-Israeli conflict has never exactly brought out the best in people. Israel’s recent Gaza offensive was ridiculously declared by its critics to be genocide. Michele Malkin’s blog was riddled with comments about a religiously “motivated pogrom against all non-Muslims.” Even here in Bloomington, tension was high as Indiana Students Against War protested the vote of our house representative, Baron Hill, to reaffirm American support for the Israeli government.