ASCSM on plus/minus

grading: A message from

the Student Body
President page 10
Volume 89, Issue 15 February 2, 2009

Beer review: A world of beer

page 8
Must See Movies PASES Lunar New Year
pages 6&7
page 8

Owens’s optimistic oration

Tim Weilert on to cite several reports and books “The U.S. death rate is at a record
Content Manager from the 1970’s and 80’s which all low, yet most Americans are not
predicted a desolate planet by the aware of this data.”
“In 24 years of elected office I year 2000. “These are all widely Education, literacy, environmen-
learned at least one important fact: read, widely commented upon, and tal issues, food and water supplies,
when it comes to public policy, there wildly wrong,” said Owens, “Oddly, and energy usage were all topics
is a huge gap between perception many of the very areas where we’re of conversation. In each category
and reality.” Addressing a full room, the most pessimistic are the very Owens compared current statistics
former Colorado governor Bill Ow- areas where we’re improving the to historical data, highlighting where
ens came to speak at CSM last most.” improvements have been made.
week. Owens, who had been invited Owens went on to share stories “Why aren’t these facts better
to speak as part of the William H. about bets he had made when chal- known?” asked Owens, “I think
Erickson Distinguished Lecture lenged on environmental issues. The there are two primary reasons why
Series, continually focused on the bets concerned the historical state we seem so predisposed to the
achievements of democracy over of American forest coverage and negative.” The press was the first
the last century while also expand- Colorado’s air quality. According to reason Owens claimed the gap
ing on his ideas about perception Owens, he won both bets by using between perception and reality has
and reality. statistical data to show improve- grown. “Reporters want space, they
“I’m an optimist, though I’m ments in both areas. want the front page, and they’re
certainly still feeling many of the As he moved into the main sec- directly competing with each other
same economic challenges you tion of his speech, Owens said, “I to make a story,” said Owens, “It
are,” said Owens as he explained will share with you a few numbers shows in the pervasive conflict,
how his personal investments and in some widely diverse fields to negativity, and problems we see on
projects had felt the current eco- make my point that things are in the front page and on television.”
patrick beseda / oredigger nomic downturn. “It is amazing how fact getting better.” First, the topics
Former Colorado governor Bill Owens spoke at Mines much attention we pay to those who of child mortality rates and health see hard on page 3
Thursday as part of the William H. Erickson Disinguished predict doomsday is just around the were covered. Quoting the Center
Lecture Series. corner,” continued Owens. He went for Disease Control, Owens said,

NREL and Li-ion battery control Ultra-cold

Tim Weilert
Content Manager
focused on energy storage, and,
according to Smith, “Our primary
focus is thermal characterization and
molecules
David Underwood
Lithium ion batteries are every- modeling of batteries. Temperature Staff Writer
where today. From cell phones, really kills the life of batteries, so
iPods, and laptops to hybrid au- you need to eliminate any hot spots Robin Côté, professor of phys-
tomobiles, Li-ion batteries have and design thermal management ics at the University of Connecticut,
changed how modern energy needs systems that keep the temperature works with ultra-cold atomic and
are met. However, do not let their between 20 to 35 degrees Celsius.” molecular gases. Ultra-cold mol-
popularity mislead you; Li-ion bat- NREL’s battery group works for the ecules and atoms are those whose
teries are still being researched and Department of Energy and has inter- temperatures have been reduced to
developed by the National Renew- actions with automakers and battery around 1 µK.
able Energy Laboratory (NREL). Dr. manufacturers. Once the atoms reach this point,
Kandler Smith came to Mines last The rest of Smith’s presentation, they can be very valuable for usage
week to discuss the intricacies of which depended heavily on his PhD in “super chemistry,” Bose-Einstein
Li-ion chemistry and control with the dissertation, covered the technical Condensate, high precision spec-
engineering department. specifics of electrochemical control. troscopy, and possibly quantum
Smith spoke on three main top- Specifically he talked about the computing in the future. Getting
ics: the need for expanded hybrid electrochemical modeling of batter- the molecules or atoms to this
vehicle research, NREL’s current ies, model reduction procedure, and point takes a good deal of effort
research and development, and his examples applications of estimation and lots of high tech tools. Côté
dissertation on Li-ion battery control. and control via Kalman filters and discussed three major methods of
“Our main focus at the Department controllers. “Basically what we’re cooling; processes called Buffer
of Energy is light-duty vehicles,” doing is taking current, voltage, and Gas Cooling, Stark Deceleration,
said Smith, “they account for about temperature measurements, which and Evaporative Cooling.
62% of all transportation. If you can are on board the system,” said Buffer Gas Cooling, according
improve the fuel Smith, “Then turn- to Côté, “Is almost like a room
economy of light- “The one downfall of ing those into mini- full of people that are very close
duty vehicles it will mum or maximum together and moving very slowly,
make huge strides present day hybrids instantaneous lim- helium in this case. Someone else,
in terms of our its which the su- a fast particle, runs into the group of
use of foreign oil.” is that they only use pervisory controller people and slows down. Eventually
Smith continued the fast particle slows down to the
to describe several
petroleum to drive needs to observe.” rest of the group.” This process is
However, Smith
hybrid and battery allowed for im- used to cool larger molecules down
the car.” to the temperature of helium, which
operated vehicles provement in the
currently on the market. “The one Li-ion battery control field for com- was cooled using various series of
downfall of present day hybrids is mercial applications. “Some next vacuum pumps and other tools.
that they only use petroleum to drive steps, which I haven’t worked on A Stark Decelerator uses a series
the car.” yet, would be identifying the model of “electric rods” that slow down the
NREL has played a part in the directly from experiments,” said christopher fehn / oredigger particle each time it crosses a new
hybrid world, creating standards, Smith, “In the future the algorithms Dr. Smith explains a graph in his presentation on lithium- set of rods.
power, and energy requirements for should be adaptive, and the models ion batteries. see applying on page 3
batteries. Furthermore, NREL has should be lower-order.”

News - 2 Features - 4 sports - 9 opinion - 10 satire - 11

~world headlines ~tech break ~csm ski team ~minds at mines ~acronyms
~scientific discoveries ~into the streets ~men’s ultimate frisbee ~ascsm +/- ~cysta?
Page 2 N e w s February 2, 2009

Patrick Beseda, Staff Writer

New York, NY: A biotech company

will begin a study on stem cell treatments
of recent spinal cord injuries. The compa-
ny will inject up to ten patients with stem Karlsruhe, Germany: Developed by scientists at the Karl-
cell based treatments. This study will be sruhe Institute of Technology in Germany, a new technology
the first in the U.S. of embryonic stem could produce a liquid fuel for just $2.49 per gallon. The fuel,
cells on humans. made from synthesized plant material, would be an entirely re-
newable source of energy. The researchers report that if the
process were set up in the right way, the technology could only
get cheaper. The innovative process comes from the efficient
treatment and transportation of the biomass needed to create
the fuel. While still more expensive than gasoline, and equally
as polluting, a renewable liquid fuel holds an advantage over
fossil fuels.

Dallas, TX: A new study shows that single brain

cells can hold memories. It was previously thought
that memories were held by the interaction between Manchester, UK: Scientists at the University of Manchester
brain cells and electrical pulses in nerves. The study, have produced ground-breaking research on a relatively new
by Texas Southwestern Medical Center, has shown material called Graphane. Discovered 5 years ago, Graphane is
that individual nerve cells, called neurons, can, by a single-atom thick material developed from Graphene, a highly
themselves, hold memories for up to a minute. “It’s conductive material used in electronics. Unlike its counterpart,
more like temporary storage, like RAM memory in a Graphane has interesting insulating properties. This research
computer,” said Don Cooper, professor of Psychiatry. clears the way for developing more Graphene-derived materials
The discovery will lead to a better understanding of which can be used both for increasingly smaller transistors and
addiction, attention disorders, and memory loss. quantum computing.

Oredigger Staff
Sara Post
Editor-in-Chief
Headlines from around the world
Lily Giddings Emily Trudell, Staff Writer
Managing Editor

Zach Boerner Redoubt Volcano, located week while the star was vacation- Pirates have hijacked another Cuban President Raul Castro
Copy Editor roughly 100 miles from Anchorage, ing in the Caribbean. Reportedly, ship in the Gulf of Aden, one of visited Russian President Dmitri
Alaska, is set to blow in the near a flat screen TV, recording equip- the most dangerous places in the Medvedev to boost foreign rela-
Abdullah Ahmed
Business Manager future. People living in the area ment, and guitars were some of world for piracy. The ship is a Ger- tions between the two nations.
have been encouraged to buy dust the items stolen. man-owned tanker carrying a crew This is the first time since the Cold
Amanda Graninger masks and goggles. A bus overturned roughly 27 of thirteen. War that leaders from Cuba have
Design Editor A mother of six gave birth to oc- miles south of the Hoover Dam, The United States Justice De- visited the Russian capital.
tuplets in California, ranging from killing at least seven and injuring at partment is currently investigating Uzbekistan officials claim to
Ryan Browne one pound, eight ounces, to three least ten. The bus was carrying a former CIA officer to Algeria An- have found the world’s oldest
Webmaster pounds, four ounces. The mother group of Chinese tourists from Las drew Warren, who is accused of woman. Tuti Yusupowa was born
Cericia Martinez had undergone fertility treatments Vegas to Arizona. drugging and raping two Algerian on July 1, 1880, making her 128
Asst. Design Editor for Layout before the pregnancy. The number of cases of chol- women while he held the position. years old.
The Republican National era in Zimbabwe, Africa, has
Tiffany Turner Committee elected its first African risen past 60,000. Experts report
Asst. Design Editor for Style American leader, Michael Steele. that the spread of the disease
The U.S. government decided is not under control nor is

B E M B E M
Robert Gill not to renew a security contract it slowing, with poor
Asst. Business Manager for
Sales and Marketing with Blackwater Worldwide, a sanitation in the
security firm that has been working affected ar-
Ian Littman with the United States in Iraq. The eas.
Asst. Business Manager for government noted a 2007 incident
Web Content wherein 17 Iraqis were killed in a

A D Z A D Z
shootout with Blackwater security
Mike Stone guards.
Fool’s Gold Content Manager
Joseph Moser, 87, a World War
Tim Weilert II veteran who was shot down over
Content Manager Nazi territory and spent time in the
infamous Buchenwald Concentra-

M C Q M C Q
Jake Rezac tion camp, was honored with the
Content Manager Distinguished Flying Cross,
meant to honor those displaying
Spencer Nelson “heroism or extraordinary achieve-
Content Manager
ment while participating in an aerial
Neelha Mudigonda flight.”
Content Manager The Food and Drug Admin-

P U Y P U Y
istration announced that a crimi-
David Frossard nal investigation is underway in a
Faculty Advisor Georgia plant where the salmo-
nella outbreak in peanut but-
ter products is thought to have
originated. Nationally, over 500

B E M T N O
salmonella cases have recently
been linked to peanut butter con-
sumption.
The London home of singer
Amy Winehouse was robbed this

w w w . O R E D I G G E R . n e t
February 2, 2009
n e w s Page 3

Catalysts speed things up Hard Times

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 such democracy is not a partisan
plained Pillar. “In some cases they platinum with 3D transition metals
Erik Lord The second reason for Ameri- issue. The speech ended with a
sinter…in other cases they ag- such as nickel and cobalt has led
Staff Writer glomerate…causing them to lose to elevated reactivity nearly three can negativity Owens gave was quote from 18th century British
“In nature, no perfect three- [their] favorable reactivity.” So she times that of pure platinum. Even interest groups such as the AARP politician Edmund Burke, “All that
dimensional bulk material exists,” turned her attention to improving more promising, the alloying ele- and the Sierra Club. “They have is necessary for the triumph of evil
explained Devina Pillay, a re- the reactivity of these catalytic ments suppressed the contami- to exaggerate the negative in or- is that good men do nothing.”
searcher from the Naval Research surfaces. nation by impurity molecules. der to get members and publicity Following the presentation
Laboratory (NRL) in Washington, Using density functional theo- “The addition of [the 3D tran- which then drives congressional Owens fielded a few questions
D.C. “Every material known to ry, Pillay was able to use relative sition metals] caused platinum to action.” Almost every category from the audience. Owens an-
man has a surface and in certain atomic positions to character- more weakly bind O2 and OH, im- was covered, from unions to col- swered questions concerning
fields, such as in the field of catal- ize the electronic structure of the proving its activity,” she explained. lege presidents. “Everyone has a state pension funds, Colorado’s
ysis, some of the most interesting material surfaces. Working in the These results immediately offered complaint, and it’s repeated and natural resources, and specifics
and vital chemistry occurs at the NRL’s Center for Computational the potential for much higher ef- exaggerated by a press which of his views. An air of respect per-
surface.” Pillay, who studies the Materials Science, Pillay and her ficiencies. Pillay wanted to char- is ready to be vocal about those vaded every question, even when
behavior of material surfaces and colleagues have determined that acterize this effect, “We wanted to complaints,” said Owens, “There one member of the audience dis-
interfaces, spoke Thursday as the interaction between adsorbed know if this was primarily an elec- is a cacophony of negative news agreed with the former governor’s
part of the Department of Chemi- species and the metal surfaces tronic or geometric effect.” and views we are continually be- democracy-centered worldview.
cal Engineering’s Shell Seminar was governed by the energy level Through computational mod- ing bombarded with.” Overall, the presentation was
Series. She discussed her current of the d-band electrons in the eling and experimentation, Pil- Owens ended on an optimistic an interesting look at a former
work to create more efficient fuel metal. “The closer the d-band is to lay found that geometry was the note by trying to answer the ques- politician’s views. Although he
cells and catalytic devices. the Fermi energy,” she explained, dominant effect. “Alloying in- tion “If things have been getting offered very little advice for the
Pillay focused her presenta- “The stronger the adsorption.” creased the strain of the platinum better, why?” Owens believes that future, Owens visit represented
tion on applications in fuel cells This rate of oxidation reac- metal collector, lowering the d- a rise in freedom and democracy an important part of progress:
and catalytic converters like those tions has remained one of the band, and increasing adsorption,” has lead to an increase in markets the ability to hear differing views
found in automobiles, where cata- limiting reactions in fuel cell de- Pillay said. “We found that clus- which have driven progress. “De- and collaborate respectfully.
lytic reactions are generated. She sign. Oxygen reduction reactions tering effects [were] also reduced mocracies do not fight one anoth- Whether perception has really
explained that catalysis is simply (ORR) occur on the cathode side [on the surfaces of] Pt3M alloys.” er, there has never been a case been skewed as much as Owens
a chemical process where reac- of polymer electrolyte fuel cells, The increased oxidation rates, where two actual democracies claims it has is a debatable topic,
tion rates are accelerated by the which is typically constructed therefore, were due primarily to have gone to war with one anoth- and one that will hopefully con-
presence of a catalyst—in these of platinum. The problem is that the restructuring of the atomic er.” However, Owens claimed that tinue to be discussed.
cases, specific metals and metal these reactions have been lim- surface.
oxides chosen for their abilities to ited to relatively slow rates on Surfaces have long been one

Applying ultra-
adsorb gaseous molecules such pure platinum surfaces. Addition- of the most interesting aspects
as carbon monoxide, hydroxide, ally, these platinum nanoparticles to study in materials research.
and diatomic oxygen. have been easily poisoned by Through her studies of surface
Many of these catalytic ma- common contaminants in the in- chemistry, Devina Pillay has
terials have been proven highly coming air stream, such as sulfur, opened doors for further research

cold molecules
successful. For instance, gold that block the relevant reactants in the field of surface chemistry.
nanoparticles grown on rutile from adsorbing to the surface. Her work has progressed science
(TiO2) have been shown to oxi- “The cost and efficiency need to closer to more efficient catalytic
dize carbon monoxide gas at very be increased in order for fuel cells processes and proven that the
low temperatures. “Unfortunately to become an everyday reality,” most profound discoveries can CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
said Pillay. occur on the very surface of ma- requires two of the ultra-cold gas
there have been problems in sta-
Côté compares it to running particles coming together to form
bilizing these gold particles,” ex- Pillay explained that alloying terials.
up stairs: “Each time you go up a a molecule in an excited state. As
step you loose energy. As the mol- Professor Côté explained, “they

Public Safety Committee

ecule goes, you continually raise must be very close to make this
the floor up. Once the molecule is transition [into the excited state].
at the top, it is virtually stopped; They don’t spend very much time
it has very little energy and is together when they collide, so
a motorist would not see a person Gymnasium and Coolbaugh Hall, is very cold.” The Stark Decelerator there is a very low probability of
Benjamin Johnson makes the molecule climb a vir- this occurring.”
Staff Writer because there is nothing to indicate poorly lit at night and people have
that people can cross the street. The complained that they feel unsafe in tual staircase made of energy. This Feshbach Resonance is when
The Public Safety Committee lack of people who do need to cross the area when it gets dark. Anant process, two ul-
is a vital part of the welfare of CSM the street and the proximity to 6th Ave. Pradhan, vice president of the Pub- however, “Each time you go up a step you tra cold
students. Their projects range from might lead to a large traffic buildup are lic Safety Committee, agrees that the works m o l -
crosswalks on campus to new park- problems that have stalled the project area is “fairly dark and can be un- only with loose energy. As the molecule goes, e c u l e s
ing initiatives. The committee consid- and perhaps ended it all together. comfortable, and worrisome to travel m o l - t e m -
ers issues students rarely consider Another problem spot is at the there.” The committee wants to add ecules you continually raise the floor up. p o r a r i l y
and topics that are discussed and intersection of 6th Ave. and 19th St. streetlights or lampposts in the area that have change
a dipole Once the molecule is at the top, t h e i r
complained about nearly every day. where many students cross to get to solve the problem.
moment.
With limited funding, the committee to Mines Park. Currently, there is only The lack of parking places for
Evap-
it is virtually stopped; it has very “ans p i nin- ,”
has been deliberating over their focus sidewalk on parts of both sides of the students is another issue that has
for this semester’s projects. road which has resulted in students existed for years. New emphasis was orative little energy and is very cold.” herent
Future projects include additional crossing the street without any safe placed on adding another parking lot Cooling, quantum
crosswalks designed to improve way to do so. This project will be when a student was killed on cam- just as when water evaporates, mechanical property of particles,
pedestrian flow. One place that has started in the near future and is one pus partly due to the blind spots that removes the ‘hottest’ molecules, and spend an especially long time
been about a topic of discussion is of the top priorities of the committee. occur because of on-street parking; those with the most kinetic energy, next to each other, making it pos-
at intersection of Elm St. and 19th St. However, because of budget cuts a new parking structure is another leaving behind a much colder rem- sible to put them into an excited
Currently there is no stoplight, cross- on campus and around Golden, the priority of the committee to help with nant. state. Through this process of
walk, or even a stop sign at that loca- project does not look like it will be this problem. Once at the “ultra-cold” level, bringing molecule into and out of
tion. This means that students who started this semester. There have been complaints that these gases display very interest- an excited state, one can actively,
want to access the old Ford building Other safety concerns that the Public Safety is not tremendously ing behavior. Gases show a lay- as Côté put it, “Switch on and off
and its parking lot have to wait until committee wants to improve upon re- effective in improving the safety on ering effect, with areas of large the dipoles.” This allows the mol-
a break in traffic to cross the street. late to lighting and parking. The north campus. Pradhan said about Pub- concentrations of atoms, ecules to act similar to
This poses the potential danger that part of campus, specifically near Volk lic Safety, “My personal experiences and areas with rela- the ones and ze-
have not overall been positive. I don’t tively few. When ros in a com-
know if in the past they have effective- stirred, they puter.
ly worked on various jobs like parking create mini If com-
but this year there have been far few- vortices puters are
er complaints.” He also said that they whose cen- to follow
have “been doing better than in the ters actually their past
past but I can’t justify why.” The com- have a den- trends, as
mittee has many projects to improve sity of zero. described
campus safety but because of a lim- Bose-Einstein in Moore’s
ited budget and the need for approval Condensates, law, it will
from different agencies in Golden and an extremely cold LILY GIDDINGS / OREDIGGER
soon be neces-
Denver there is often a lack of support group of particles begin sary for them to work
and resources to start new projects. to lose their individuality. Côté ex- on a quantum scale, making the
This was evident when the Golden plained this idea by saying, “they science of ultra-cold molecules at
City Council turned down plans to begin to act as one unit. Although the forefront of necessary technol-
put a crosswalk heading from the the particles are not near each ogies. Many researchers, includ-
Weaver Towers to the Student Recre- other, they behave as if they were ing professor Côté will continue to
ation Center. “You can’t get complete somehow in contact.” push forward the science and will
campus change all at once; start with One of the current theories for undoubtedly see many new break-
BENJAMIN JOHNSON / OREDIGGER little projects,” said Pradhan designing a quantum computer throughs.

w w w . O R E D I G G E R . n e t
Page 4 f e a t u r e s February 2, 2009

Don’t immobilize, virtualize!

Ian Littman, Tech Break Columnist

Wanted to try your hand at Parallels developed programs virtual machine is the real thing. its features. Enter Sun, with their platforms. As will the virtual ma-
Linux? Needed to run SolidWorks that could run Windows within It takes innovative programming free VirtualBox suite. It’s rough chines. Copy over your disk im-
on a Mac? Or Word on Linux, if OS X with the greatest of ease to emulate hardware in software around the edges in places. age file (in all likelihood, smaller
you’re into that sort of and downright brilliant Copying files from the host op- than an equivalent install on a
thing? Thanks to the mod- work to make said soft- erating system to a guest is like real machine) and your settings
ern marvel of virtualization, In short, the virtualization soft- ware go at a respectable copying files over a network ver- file, then start the system up on
you don’t even have to re-
boot your computer to ex-
ware sets up a “virtual machine” clip. However, the job isn’t sus drag-and-drop ability in Fu- your new “host.” That’s it; all your
too terrible, since all ma- sion and Parallels. However, the files and settings are transferred
perience two or more op- with hardware mirroring a “real” jor operating systems can software runs a good bit faster over. Future of computing? Pos-
erating systems at once. run on the same proces- than its for-pay competitors, and sibly.
Before the more tech- computer. sor type (x86), which also you can even get an open-source The bottom line is that if
nical people rant and rail happens to be standard version to pick apart as you will. you’re having problems running
about the long life of vir- fare for the vast majority of VirtualBox also exemplifies the XYZGrapher in Windows Vista or
tualization software, back in the and with only a 15 to 20 percent desktops, laptops, and if you like Office 2007 better
days of what is now Microsoft’s performance hit versus running servers. than Office 2008, grab some
Virtual PC, let this be taken into Windows alone. One problem. VM- VirtualBox also exemplifies the virtualization software (Virtu-
account. Virtualization took off The process? In short, the Ware Fusion and Par-
when Apple turned Intel. At that virtualization software sets up a allels cost a good bit
features that make virtualization alBox is a good choice) and
a copy of Windows XP from
point, people could switch be- “virtual machine” with hardware of money, and they’re so cool. AC&N, and you’ll be good to
tween Windows (or Linux) and OS mirroring a “real” computer, on Mac-only products so, go. Speed-wise, you won’t
X with a simple reboot, but a few which Windows XP Professional, if you want to run Linux be playing 3D games in a vir-
companies figured they could do Windows Vista Business, Ulti- within Windows or the other way features that make virtualization tual machine, but for everything
better. Soon, they did so by har- mate (according to Microsoft’s li- around, you’re out of luck. On so cool. You can install the client else, you are golden, no format-
nessing the power of Intel’s new- cense terms), or pick-your-Linux- the other hand, Microsoft’s Virtu- on Windows, Linux, or Mac, and ting, rebooting, or hair-pulling re-
est processors, VMWare, and flavor can run, pretending the al PC software is rather anemic in it’ll work very similarly on all three quired.

New recycling receptacles

Tim Weilert
to each office, classroom, and dormi-
tory room. Office and classroom con-
Domino’s Mines
Specials
Content Manager tainers are being regularly emptied

5
As a campus that is devoted to by the buildings’ custodial staff and
“earth, energy, and environment,” the transported to a central location for
Colorado School of Mines has slowly, pickup. In Weaver Towers, there are

$ .55EACH!
but persistently, become greener. recycle bins next to the regular trash
With the new semester came new bins. Residents are responsible for
options for waste management as taking recyclables from their rooms
Environmental Health and Safety to the “Single Stream” containers on
(EHS) introduced single stream recy- the main floor. EHS student workers
cling receptacles to the Mines cam- transport materials from the central
9116
pus. locations in buildings to the campus
“We continually try to facilitate recycling facility. The results from the

3 or more Medium
recycling around campus to make pilot program will guide us in further
it easier for the students, staff, and reducing landfill use and maximizing
faculty to participate,” said Gayle El- resource recovery.”

1-topping Pizzas
liott of EHS. The receptacles, which Elliott stressed the need for cam-
have blue lids and feature the recog- pus-wide participation when she
nizable recycling symbol, can handle said, “We will continue to support

9
“single stream” recyclable items and programs which are environmentally
are one part of EHS’s continuing ef- and fiscally responsible. We see that

$ .99*EACH!
forts to promote sustainability. “Single the greatest improvements in recy-
stream recycling,” according to Elliott, cling could be achieved by universal
“includes such a wide variety of items participation by students, staff and
that if used properly, it should reduce faculty.”
the volume of trash which is hauled Acceptable items for single-
to the landfill.” However, some items stream:
should not be placed in the recep- Paper 8303
tacles. These include items contami- Plastics 1-7
nated with food, any type of fabric, Cardboard

One Large Pizza w/

and plastic bags (which are easily Magazines
caught in sorting machines). Phone books
When asked about EHS’s next Newspapers

your choice of toppings

step, Elliot said, “The campus is plan- Brown paper bags
ning to eventually change over to Glass bottles and jars
“Single Stream” recycling only. Pres- Aluminum cans, tins
ently, there is a pilot program being Steel Cans and empty aerosol *Not Valid w/ Domino’s American Legends Pizzas
evaluated in Guggenheim, Alderson cans
clean plastic pubs (i.e. yogurt, de-
CALL US TODAY!
Hall and Weaver Towers. We have
provided a Single Stream container tergents, etc)

(303) 278-7241
2600 East St
Store Hours:
Monday – Thursday 11am – Midnight
Friday & Saturday 11am – 1am
Sunday 11am – 11pm
©2007 Domino’s Pizza, LLC. Limited Time Offer. Delivery charge may apply. Additional Toppings,
Specialty Pizzas & Deep Dish Extra. Not Valid with any other offer. Valid at participating stores only. Prices
may vary. Limited Delivery Area. Our drivers carry less than $20.
TIM WEILERT / OREDIGGER

w w w . O R E D I G G E R . n e t
February 2, 2009
f e a t u r e s Page 5

Into the Streets

Geek Week
of
Alec Westerman have been to Ronald McDonald
the
House to prepare food and have
Staff Writer
“We’re trying to make an impact,”
been downtown on Washington
Avenue to distribute hot chocolate.
Andrew Ferguson
Staff Writer
...James Morton, Senior: Electrical Engineering
said Zach Aman, organizer of Into the Also, in an event postponed until
Streets, a group that gives students April, students will throw an exhibi- [Oredigger] Do you consider dio license in fifth grade didn’t help Get my master’s degree at
an opportunity to participate in com- tion on science and engineering as yourself a geek, a nerd, or nei- that either. Mines. And then some black box
munity service. The group, which has an outreach program. ther, or both? Who are your geek heroes, project at Lockheed Martin; may-
been around for a number of years, Aman commented that, “The [James] Probably both. I was and why? be be a Missile Mother.
has always had that mission. How- exhibition in April will be absolutely told though once [that] to be geek, Gotta say, of course, Bill Nye If you weren’t an engineer,
ever, this year, some aspects of the phenomenal.” The exhibition is in- you had to be paid. The Science Guy... goes without what would you do?
program have changed. tended to be fun, but also help chil- What is one of the geekiest saying I think. Data, from Star Trek, Airplane pilot would be cool.
In the past, Into the Streets was dren explore the areas of science thing you have done in college? because he struggles with human- Maybe railroad engineer.
held in April. An unfortunate side ef- and engineering. Aman continued, I wrote a whole bunch of MAT- ity. Do you have a favorite mot-
fect was that it conflicted with exams saying, “Activities like this embody LAB scripts to complete repetitive So you like Star Trek better to?
and hectic end-of-semester sched- the essence of engineering, in that homework I had in this one class. than Star Wars? I embrace Murphy’s Law.
ules. On account of these problems, we serve as a bridge between the What’s the geekiest nick- Oh yea. Star Trek’s way more How many plaid shirts do
Into the Streets was rescheduled to depths of science and the rest of the name you’ve ever had? scientifically structured. There’s you own?
an earlier date. This year, it started in world.” Electrobrain would definitely be method and reason to what they At least ten. I hate solid color
January. Aman emphasized the impor- that. do instead of just making up stuff. shirts. If it’s going to be a stripped
Whether due to this reschedul- tance of engineers getting out into And how did you get that What sound or noise do you shirt, vertical lines only... no hori-
ing or due to more information about the community and serving, “We title? love? zontal.
the event being available throughout come to this institution to develop In middle school, I turned every V8 engine with [a] turbo char- Computer languages. Are
campus, more people signed up our scientific skill set but we can only school project into an electronics ger. you multilingual?
to participate in this year’s Into the be effective when we understand our project. And What sound or noise do you C++, Assembly, VHDL, and
Streets than in years past. Accord- purpose in a broader context.” getting a hate? MATLAB script... even though it’s
ing to Aman, “We had almost 100 The exhibition remains ahead. ham ra- The Red Alert Star Trek just watered down C.
people sign up during MLK Day.” According to Hogy, it is not too late sound on my alarm clock go- Do you own any 20 sided
This year, another thing has to get involved. “If groups still want to ing off in the morning. die?
changed - the type of service done. do an exhibit, they still can, or if they Do you have any hob- No.
According to Sarah Hogy, “We want- want to volunteer they still can, too.” bies? What class is your favorite
ed to do something more personal.” In the words of Hogy, “It’s a blast” Amateur radio, of and why?
In the past, Into the Streets consisted In order to participate in the ex- course. Analyzing the cal- Microcomputer Architecture
of labor that distanced volunteers hibition, contact any one of the or- orific content of non-dairy Class [EGGN 482] was pretty
from those who reaped its benefits. ganizers: Amy Dubetz at adubetz@ coffee creamers by pro- sweet. We got to work with the
This year, the interactions were face mines.edu, Sarah Hogy at shogy@ cess of fireballs; my friends hardware. Advanced Engineering
to face. mines.edu, or Zach Aman at za- and I do that frequently. I do Math was totally cool. And why?
Students involved in the group man@mines.edu. IT administration for a small We studied the math the behind

Sorority recruitment
private school for no breaking signals down into every
pay, so I guess that’s electrical engineer’s favorite wave,
a hobby. the sine wave.
What are Make up a new variable
Play-Doh With Plato award.”
LB Williams your plans symbol.
CSM girls say sorority life has de-
Staff Writer for after In the spirit of Scott Strong
veloped them into more well-round-
gradu- math, it should be something fast,
Informal sorority recruitment ed young women. Instead of being
ation? strong, agile. Something simple
commenced and concluded last a specific, single-purposed club, a
like a smiley face, or pumpkin.
month with house tours, coffee, ice sorority allows for a variety of inter-
Or any seasonal vegetable. Or
cream socials, and lots of laughter. ests to flourish. Individuals are wel-
only when appropriate, a Starfleet
Events were designed for potential comed. Joining a sorority is about
badge.
new members to become better forming bonds, sisterhood, and life-
What about the ratio?
acquainted with the sororities. Colo- long friendships.
ANDREW FERGUSON / OREDIGGER *Rolls eyes*
rado School of Mines (CSM) girls CSM has three sororities with
had the opportunity to consider an brand new houses on campus. Each
all-female community environment house has its own unique vibe and
while the sorority chapters looked to traditions. Are they equally attractive
embrace new friends. to sorority-inclined students? Yes.
Most CSM students would not All three sororities had to decline
think of joining a sorority or frater- interested girls during this spring’s
nity as a priority. Combined with the recruitment cycle. Disappointed girls
Mines schoolwork load and extra were all encouraged to continue vis-
social obligations, such as Home- iting their favorite houses over the
coming float building and charitable semester and to return in the fall for
fundraising, a busy schedule is a potential bid.
bound to occur. Sigma Kappa mem- It is understood that the decline
ber Roxanna Meza says the base is not personal; it is a matter of ruled
commitments are totally manage- capacity. Each sorority is allowed a
able. “Because you’re doing them chapter maximum of 45 members.
with your best friends, the activities This includes all current, undergrad-
actually feel special and effortless.” uate-enrolled sisters living inside and
Academics are the priority for outside the sorority house.
the CSM sororities. They each have More ‘spots’ are available in the
study nights and amazing class notes fall because more graduations occur
at the end of spring semester. Fall
from prior years for their members. A
subtle rivalry does exist between the rush is the official recruitment period
TECHNICAL AND COMMERCIAL CAREERS
houses, including the fraternities, but for the academic year for all Greek The tougher the challenge, the better it feels when you finally overcome
it is all in fun and in everyone’s best societies on campus. There are it. Most people wouldn’t have thought it was possible to run a gas rig on
interests. They compete annually for more events, free food, and friend- less power than it takes to boil a kettle of water. But that didn’t stop us
honors such as “Best Pan-Hellenic making opportunities during that for- from finding a way. If you get a kick out of being challenged, talk to
GPA” and even a “Greek Weekend mal period. All undergraduates are Shell. We’ll team you up with some of our most accomplished problem
welcomed to check it out.
solvers, and give you the training and support you need to develop
your career. Together, we can help build a responsible
energy future. Think further. I/O:
Clie
Med
For more information, stop by our booth at the Spring 2009 Colo
Career Day, February 10, or apply online at Size
www.shell.com/careers/uscampus.
Date
Shell is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Artis
V: 3

PA:
AC,
AC,
LB WILLIAMS / OREDIGGER

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Page 6 f e a t u r e s February 2, 2009 f e a t u r e s Page 7

PASES Lunar New Year

The Professional Asian Soci- a traditional lion dance and per-
ety of Engineers and Scientists formed a modern Wushu exhibi-
(PASES) 2009 Lunar New Year tion. The Christiana Yeh Dance
festival drew a vast, diverse crowd. Studio performed a selection of
Attendance was so great, event traditional dances performed by a
holders had to bring in extra food, varied group of dancers, including
selling out twice. This was good the Tai-Ping drum dance, the fan
news for the group, since the fes- dance, the silver-plate dance, the
tival was held to raise money for a umbrella dance, the ribbon fan
national PASES conference. They dance, and the peacock dance.
are the only professional group on The CSM judo and taekwondo
campus that does not have a na- groups gave exhibitions for each
tional conference already in place. style of martial arts, as did the CSM
Lisa Truong and Ricky Nguyen karate club. The CSM breakdance
emceed the entertainment portion club also performed. One of the
of the evening. Attendees were most energetic performances of
entertained by a variety of tradi- the evening was given by Mirai
tional Asian activities. The National Daiko, an all-girl taiko drumming
Martial Arts Academy performed group.

ALL PHOTOS AND ARTICLE LILY GIDDINGS / OREDIGGER

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Page 8 l i f e s t y l e February 2, 2009

Music Review: Mine, Matt York

Matthew’s Band will thoroughly generations and to push through that might be ignored or seem Starting with “Death Came a
Ben Johnson enjoy listening to this album and until better days. A children’s choir slightly out of place on the album. Knockin’,” a captivating a cap-
Staff Writer will remember a style that has heard in the background aids York The track starts off with an up- pella tune, the album’s tone was
Background nearly been forgotten in modern in capturing a feeling of desire for beat, funk-style intro which is only set. Full of catchy tunes and sty-
January 20, 2009, saw the music. a better life which almost sounds found on one other song. The rest listic changes, Mine is a great al-
release of a refreshing album by Memorable Song like a mournful, but passionate, of the song strays from the style of bum for those who enjoy anything
a relatively new Canadian artist, Reflecting on times of the intro which turns out to from acoustic to jazz to pop. This
Matt York. Under the Street- difficulty and trial. “Hard
lights was released in 2006 as Days” shines even though it
Full of catchy tunes and stylistic help the song but leads to
more questions of why that
album is a collection of pleasing
tunes from an under-recognized
York’s first album, Wedding Day is one of the slower songs changes, Mine is a great album for intro was there in the first artist who has great musical abil-
with Grace (2008) was a fair on the album. The lyrics place. Most of the album ity and a love for grooving. Many
sophomore effort accentuating transport the listener to a those who enjoy anything from is a slower tempo which appearances on a variety of tours
his busy tour schedule, but Mine time when jobs were not makes the whole song around the country give fans the
should attract even more attention guaranteed, when one had acoustic to jazz to pop. seem somewhat distant ability to see him live and York can
to this very talented artist. With to struggle to make a living, from the rest of the record. also still be found playing in those
his acoustic/funk/jazz style and a when perseverance was York’s singing saves the clubs up in the northeast where he
voice reminiscent of John Mayer, lauded. He likens that time to the African spiritual. odd start and the song winds up resides. Although Canada was the
widespread popularity should not current economic hardships and Forgettable Song not being a terrible tune, but sim- first to acknowledge the talent of
be far off. Fans of Stevie Wonder, implores the current generation “Give Me Love” is not neces- ply unmemorable. Matt York, look for the America to
Bob Dylan, John Mayer, and Dave to remember the trials of previous sarily a forgettable song, but one In Closing catch on soon.

Beer Review: A world of beer

of adult beverages. The bottle pours a thin head of pale,
Akira Rattenbury Prideful American posturing aside, corn-yellow, translucent fuzz. Minimal
Staff Writer Tsingtao is remarkably unremarkable. It lacing and a distinct lack of carbonation
Digressing from my usual desire for is more along the lines of ubiquitous Chi- make it less poundable than a Bud, but
American brews, I am kicking off a series nese plastic goods than a standout feat more enjoyable and crisp for its singularly
of foreign reviews. The new Obama ad- of craftsmanship like the Three Gorges distinct flavor: Skunkiness.
ministration, sans foreign relations black Dam or the “Bird’s Nest” stadium from That sounds bad, but that’s its fla-
hole, has me curious about the outside the Olympics this summer. After finish- vor. The aging process and storage life
world again. Suggestions would be ap- ing my first beer, I was reminded that the of lagers in general make the style ideal
preciated: go to www.oredigger.net. most populous nation in the world ought for skunking up a bit and Tsingtao deliv-
Tsingtao Lager: 3/5 to have a generic and ecumenical beer ers. This is not bad. The bitterness and
Thanks to America’s unhindered lust just like the US. aromatics remind me more of the beach
for cheap products, China enjoys a hefty, Tsingtao does hold its ground even than the snowy environs of Colorado.
near monumental, trade surplus over the though it is essentially just another pale The zip (aka skunkiness) lends a grassy
greatest economy in the world. Every- lager generated for mass consumption. taste, making this an ideal bovine beer if
thing from the freebies at Career Day to It stands up against its flavorless breth- cows drank.
your iPod is mass-produced for hungry ren Budweiser and Miller and roughly Tsingtao is touted as the “finest beer
Americans. matches Rolling Rock. Compared to in China.” While possibly true as my ex-
Tsingtao, a Chinese import lager, rep- its Asian roots, Tsingtao falls short of perience in Oriental suds is limited, I will
resents only a small portion of China’s the slightly more unique dryness of an grab a rack of Extra Gold instead if I’m
overall manufacturing offense. This is Ashahi or Sapporo and lacks the zesty keen for a lager fix. Tsingtao is still worth
unequivocally surpassed by the U.S.’s infusion of rice you might crave, like Tai- a try at least as a refined rendition of the

Must See Movies

dominant strength in variety and quantity wanese beer. most common beer style in the world.

STUDENTS Foreign Films Benjamin M. Weilert, Staff Writer

Far too often, foreign films don’t do well in America because of the mono-lingual tastes of the American
consumer. No one wants to sit through 2 or more hours of subtitles. However, these people are missing out on
some fantastic films. There is much to gain when watching foreign films, as they are a window to other cultures
Your student body different from our own. In the spirit of diversity, which Mines has often endorsed, this week’s Must See Movies
president, Kevin Duffy, looks at a few foreign films that everyone should watch.

invites you to the eighth 1. Shichinin no samurai [The Seven Samurai] (1954)
Many consider The Seven Samurai one of the greatest pieces of work in all of film. This Japanese movie
ASCSM meeting of the year. has been imported through an adaptation of the basic plot in the film, The Magnificent Seven (1960). However,
nothing can quite compare to Akira Kurosawa’s original masterpiece. Set in Japan in the 1600’s, the plot revolves
around a small village that has been frequently attacked by a group of guerrilla thieves. In order to save their vil-
The next ASCSM meeting is lage, the village elders hire seven unemployed samurai to protect their town. Receiving nothing in payment but
food and shelter, these seven misfits manage to repel the thieves and protect the village. Despite its three and
February 5 at 7 PM in Student Cen- a half hour length, The Seven Samurai deserves a watch due to the quality of the emotion, drama, and action.

ter Ballrooms A and B. 2. La Vita é bella [Life is Beautiful] (1997)

Perhaps the most memorable aspect of this film came during the 1999 Oscars, when Roberto Benigni
walked across the tops of the chairs to receive his Best Actor Oscar. One of the other Oscars that Life is Beauti-
We want to hear from you! Come ful won that year was Best Foreign Language Film. This Italian film showed the power of positive thinking, even
during the tragedies of World War II. The main character, Guido (Benigni, who also directed the film) takes an
speak up at your next student approach to his life that at times feels derivative of Charlie Chaplin. In the Italian town of Arrezzo, Guido searches
for love as the powers of Fascism and anti-Semitism gain influence in his government. Eventually, he falls in love
government meeting. and continues on his romantic journey, gaining a son in the process. As the war progresses, he uses games
and imagination to keep his child from being killed. In the end, Life is Beautiful demonstrated that life can be

$25 gift card

beautiful, even in the darkest times.

3. Persepolis (2007)
It has been many years since the classical, 2-D animation style has been used for a feature length film in

raffled for the America, which is why one must go to the foreign market to find animated fare of this quality. Spoken in French
and based off of the graphic novel of the same name, Persepolis is an autobiographical tale of Marjane Satrapi.
Set in 1980’s Iran, we follow Marjane as she grows up through multiple revolutions. From a Czar to an Islamic

audience at
state to war with Iraq, the instability of Iran causes Marjane’s parents to send her to Europe for safety. However,
the fact that she is from Iran causes some tension at first, due to racial profiling and stereotypes. Eventually, her
homesickness gets the better of her, and Marjane heads back to Iran. Persepolis was animated in the black

each meeting.
and white style reminiscent of the original graphic novel, which ends up being a strong vehicle for the beauty
and violence of this film.

For Homework – See Wo hu cang long [Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon] (2000)

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February 2, 2009 s p o r t s Page 9

Ski team CSM Men’s Ultimate Frisbee

Conditioning, practice and “Trouble in Vegas”
season goals Kristin Chuchwa
Staff Writer
tions for the men’s Ultimate to qualify for the event, the CSM
team are based on tournament men’s team was selected to be
Are you down with entropy? play. Tournaments with multiple one of 80 men’s teams partici-
The Men’s Ultimate Frisbee team teams usually take place over a pating this year. “It’s the biggest
Jake Rezac good spread.” Overall, the team is! The team, which is named weekend and the team with the tournament of the year for us! It
Content Manager placed fourth in their first race at Entropy, has been active at Col- most wins is ranked highest. lasts three days and is the high-
Telluride, which was a grand sla- orado School of Mines (CSM) for The CSM team normally plays light of our season. We are defi-
“It’s just something unique… lom race, and third at their sec- about 10 years. Currently, the three or four tournaments dur- nitely excited!” said team trea-
you get to spend four or five ond race at Beaver Creek, which team has 20 active members ing the spring semester. At the surer and captain Troy Wojick.
weekends of the year at a re- was a slalom race. who participate in practices end of the season, the highest Entropy has a dedicated
sort. Who else gets to say that?” In order to do so well, the three days a week, in addition ranked teams attend sectionals, membership, but they also have
Ski Team Vice President Lucas team trains hard both during the to one or two conditioning an event that is equivalent six to eight seniors graduating
Moore said about competing season and in the off-season. In workouts. Practices to a championship. this year. Any potential new play-
for the team. Moore, along with the fall, according to team mem-
“It’s
are held on the Gedvilas noted, ers are welcomed. Wojick de-
the fourteen members of the Ski ber Dan Bulfer, “We weight lift, intramural fields the biggest “This year, one scribes the team as “A good mix
Team, race four weeks of the do cardio exercises – the stan- and condition of our goals of guys, from competitive play-
year, competing in the Rocky dard exercises for any sport.” In in the recre- tournament of the is to take top ers to more laid-back members.
Mountain Division of the US Ski the spring, they do significantly ation center. three in sec- They are a fun group.” Gedvilas
and Snowboard Association. more work. “We spend about 72 This may year for us! It lasts three tionals.” noted that “most people don’t
Usually, around 80 girls (4 from hours a week on the Ski Team seem like a The team start playing Ultimate until col-
the Mines team) and 110 guys during the season,” according to large time days and is the highlight of will be at- lege. The Ultimate community is
(10 from the Mines team) com- Moore. This includes the races, c o m m i t - tending the really receptive to new players;
pete in separate men’s and wom- weight lifting, and training at ment, but as
our season. We are defi- “Trouble in sometimes our alumni help to
en’s divisions. These participants Echo Mountain every Thursday according to Vegas Tourna- coach and teach new players.”
come from ten or fifteen schools. for about four hours. nitely excited!”
club president ment” from Feb- Wojick added, “We are always
Nine of the schools are col- The team hopes that all their Todd Gedvilas, ruary 6-8. Teams willing to take more players. If
leges in the area, and h a r d work will pay off, and “The team is a com- from all over the coun- anyone one wants to come out,
occasion- help them go to the mitted group, we definitely try try vied for a spot to compete we can never have too many
ally high regional competi- to put out a strong team.” This and the event is known to have players. It’s a great place to
schools in tion. The top six commitment appears to pay a waitlist. After submitting a bid have fun and play Frisbee.”
the area teams from off, as Entropy plays competi-
compete. their tively and successfully against
A c -
cording
divi-
s i o n
teams from other local univer-
sities, most of which are larger
Colorado School of 3
$ off haircut
Mines Student Discount
Not valid with any other offers. Limit one coupon

to the Ski go to the

per customer. Good only at Golden Square.
than CSM. Some of these in-
Team’s web- regional stitutions include CU-Boulder,
site, both the OURTE
C
competition. (Just show current school ID)
S Air Force Academy, Colorado
men’s team and the Y WIK This will take State University, Colorado Col- GOLDEN
IM
women’s teams can have ED place Febru- Golden Square • 601 16th St.
IA
CO lege, and Denver University. (Behind Burger King)
up to seven members, five of MM
ON ary 18-21 at The Men’s Ultimate team at
S 303-277-0817
which score points for the team. Steamboat Mines is part of the Ultimate Hours:
The other members still race, Springs. If they Players Association (UPA), M-F 8-9; Sat. 8-6; Sun. 10-4
though their points do not help can make it to the regional a national organization de-
greatclips.com
We carry Great Clips, American Crew,
the team. Despite this, according c o m p e t i t i o n and do well voted to the sport. Competi- Nioxin, and Matrix haircare products.
to Moore, “Pretty much everyone enough, they will go to the na-
competes.” Of the five members tional competition. Though the
whose scores count, the scores team members weren’t optimis-
of the top three count for the tic about making it to the national
overall team score, with the team competition, they said that indi-
who has the lowest overall time vidual team members (including
winning. one current team member who
In this year’s races, the Mines placed third in the regional com-
team has fared fairly well. In gen- petition recently) had been to the
eral, according to Moore, “We’ve national competition before.
got one [team member] in the As of writing, the team was
top twenty, another two consis- competing in a grand slalom
tently in the top forty, and others competition at Winter Park, and
all throughout the middle of the will be competing next weekend
pack… we’ve consistently got a at Loveland.

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Page 10 o p i n i o n February 2, 2009

ASCSM on plus/minus grading

the system, a vocal majority has the opportunity to be rewarded
K. James Duffy spoken in opposition. for a high A. And since an indi-
Student Body President Even though we, the students, vidual professor may curve their
may come to the conclusion that grading scale, this nuance would

Minds at Mines
Over one hundred students this policy should not be enact- affect a number of students.
gathered for the Faculty Senate ed, we are still faced with a dis- To remedy the situation, ASC-
meeting last November to ex- concerting situation. The faculty SM is optimistic that the faculty
press their concern over the pro- is within will add
posed plus/minus grading policy t h e i r I am confident that the students an A+
A hypothetical universe: snow days for undergraduates. Together, we
stood up and conveyed to the
l e g a l
right to and faculty of this committee will associat-
with an

faculty, in no uncertain terms, change ed GPA

Roby Brost that students must be consid- the grad- be willing to engage in honest weight
Staff Writer ered. Critical campus issues can ing poli- of 4.3 to
and should be decided in concert cy imme- dialogue and advance the issue on the poli-
Children greet many a snowy night with excited anticipation. As soon with the individuals whom they diately cy. How-
as the first fluffy flakes begin to fall, the plotting begins. Fingers cross, little affect. and in sound and reasoned arguments. ever, no
eyes watch the news intently, and perhaps even a snow dance or two That November afternoon, isolation cumula-
(Calvin and Hobbes style) is performed. As we get older, those snowy, both students and faculty alike from dissent. So, do we therefore tive GPA could exceed 4.0, such
sleep-in days, full of sledding and snowman building decrease in regular- exhibited the utmost respect for march out of class in protest? Do that performance would be cal-
ity until at last fingers are crossed in a last futile hope that there will be just one another and as a result, the we demand and disrupt until the culated with a smaller baseline.
one more day to finish that project. Here on this beautiful campus, those campus community avoided a faculty relent? Of final concern to many is the
idyllic snow days are a thing of the past. However, the idea of a hypotheti- hasty decision and further ben- No. We must live up to higher notion that a plus/minus system
cal universe is still very much alive. This past week, students around cam- efited through the acknowledge- standards, demonstrating our would significantly lower average
pus were asked the following question: ”In a hypothetical universe, there ment of the perspective of CSM character, integrity, and academ- GPA’s. Anecdotally, this appears
are still such things as snow days for college students. What would you students. Specifically, the reso- ic responsibility. We must be a to be the case. How many times
do with your snow day?” The overwhelming first choice was to catch up lution to implement the plus/mi- model of civility in debate, con- have you just slipped by with an
with homework. This is however, a hypothetical universe, and the snow nus system was deferred until a science in reason, and reflection A, B, or C? Unfortunately, statis-
day could not be used to finish homework. newly formed ad-hoc committee, in action. tics and case studies do not con-
consisting of both students and Receiving no fewer than one cur with this notion.
faculty, delivers a recommenda- hundred fifty emails since Studies conducted by educa-
tion. news of the plus/minus tional institutions and major uni-
As principle members system broke, ASCSM is versities alike have concluded in
of the ad-hoc com- armed with the intent of large number that the plus/minus
“I would go out and make a ton of snowmen mittee, ASCSM, the student body and system has a negligible affect
for a snowman army. There could even be little your student ready to negotiate in on the average GPA. Addition-
mini snowmen if they stood around outside g o v - good faith. ally, seven out of thirteen “peer
for long enough… Then I would position the ern- Many students institutions,” as denoted by the
army strategically around the President’s are particularly faculty, are currently utilizing this
house, or the man who makes the snow ment, concerned with system. I encourage the entire
day decisions, so that they wouldn’t melt is com- the immediate campus community to research
till summer, and the snow day would go mitted implementa- these findings and their implica-
on and on,” to repre- tion of the tions for our school.
Valerie Hickman senting the system The ad-hoc committee of stu-
students of and sug- dents and faculty established at
Mines in an ac- gest a the November 25 Senate meeting
curate, account- is set to meet in the coming days
able, and trans- to bring these compromises to
parent manner. the negotiating table. I am confi-
Central to this com- dent that the students and facul-
mitment is a dedica- ty of this committee will be willing
“I would go out and play in the snow! I tion to delivering facts. ER to engage in honest dialogue and
G G
would build a snow fort and have snowball A plus/minus grad- R ED
I
grand- advance the issue on sound and
O
fights. Then I might build a saucer track S/
ing system is an academic D ING f a t h e r reasoned arguments.
and go saucering with my saucer down performance metric used YG
ID
clause to the Whatever may come of these
LIL
the track (which would of course have to rate student achievement policy. The registrar discussions, ASCSM will com-
jumps and other amazing things). I’ve with finer gradations than a h a s few tools to accommodate municate the outcome to stu-
never really been into snow angels, standard letter scale. This is ac- this compromise. Armed with dents. This will be done as a
but yeah, there would definitely be complished by adding a “+” or “-” only a proverbial “on/off switch,” continuing conversation with the
some snowball fights.” to a given letter grade, affecting they cannot logistically respond community in which feedback is
Taylor Embury the weight of the grade by an in- to a complicated set of param- solicited and accepted.
crement or decrement of 0.3, re- eters that relates students to The school depends on com-
spectively. Given the typical 10% policy applicability. mitted students; both to aca-
range of a single letter grade, the Therefore, ASCSM is propos- demics and to the community.
top 3% would be designated a ing that the grandfathering be Keep the issue alive, keep your
plus grade, while the bottom 3% executed through course num- voice alive. Use the tools at your
would be reserved for the minus bering. The first year of imple- disposal to influence our com-
grade. Just as in the standard mentation, only 100 level classes mon outcome. Talk to your fellow
“I would go outside and have a snow cone, letter scale, a professor could would use the system; the sec- students, express your opinions
made with real snow.” choose to curve a class however ond year, only 200 level classes, to your professors and always
Chelsea Newgord they see fit and thus the percent- and so forth until the system is keep your elected student lead-
ages could change. completely integrated with all ers accountable.
The faculty of our school is class levels. Consequently, the Do not hesitate to contact me
largely in favor of such a system. onus would then be on the pro- at kduffy@mines.edu. I want to
They argue that it would provide fessors to report grades accord- hear from you. If you feel ASC-
a higher degree of resolution in ing to appropriate grading policy, SM’s handling of this issue is un-
the grading scale; necessitated not the registrar. satisfactory, let us know how we
on the premise that CSM is in This is not a perfect solution. should proceed. Together, we will
need of a more accurate way to Some students may find them- work towards a common solution
measure student achievement. selves in two or three years being that is beneficial for the entire
This need, they claim, is in part affected by the policy in a lower community.
“I can’t even imagine it. It would be because of grade inflation; a division course. In spite of this
amazing. A day off from school? Wow. theory supported by one faculty and given the alternatives, this Best Regards,
I would probably wake up around 11, member based off of the fact that compromise would ensure that a
crawl out of bed have some hot choco- 16 students graduated in May, relatively minimal amount of stu-
late at the Slate, then check to see what 2008 with a GPA of 4.0. The dents currently enrolled would be
the group is doing… Probably get some faculty also desires this to finally graded in this fashion.
good runs of sledding in. Snowball realize a uniform grading policy Students have also expressed
fights, they are practically manda- for undergraduates and graduate concern that the current policy
tory for a snow day… Then I would students alike. allows for an A- and A, but no
go back to my room and watch The faculty is sincere in their A+. And while few of us have re-
Futurama or something. That efforts and wants what is best for ceived high A’s, the argument for
would be my snow day.” the institution. As students, we, including the A+ is that it equal- Kevin Duffy
Daniel Morrison too, have a responsibility to the izes the A-. Thus, if you are be-
institution and to its future. While ing penalized for earning a low A, Student Body President
ALL PHOTOS ROBY BROST / OREDIGGER not all students are opposed to professors should give students Colorado School of Mines

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February 2, 2009 s a t i r e Page 11

Gmail: Mixed mailbag Where

Mines Acronyms (MA)
TLC meets EIT
mess!” that this is a good time to write Mike Stone
Janeen Neri
A similar concern centers a nice, personal letter instead of BAAACGWEWTB
Coolheaded Postal Worker
around Gmail’s autocomplete sending their honking great files
Academic Computing and function for email contacts. In straight across cyberspace.” Colorado School of Mines (CSM) celebrates itself on its diversity (D).
Networking is still unsure wheth- Gmail, users can begin typing the The student response can be As a result, we have many professional organizations (PO’s) and national
er Mines webmail should be name of anyone in their contact summed up in the words of fresh- chapters (NC’s) available to students on campus. Do you know who they
switched to a Gmail-based ser- list into the “To:” box and Gmail man Gary Mallard: “No wonder are and what they are here for? Check out inside.mines.edu for club de-
vice. “[The contracting issue is] will automatically fill in the corre- my professors take so long to re- tails, but for now, just try to figure out what all the acronyms mean (JTT-
only the minor problem,” said sponding email address. In Mines spond to my emails! Maybe if they FOWATAM).
AC&N’s Travis Key, “the main is- webmail, as Garow put it, “they forwarded it to Gmail like freaking
sue is what, exactly, the students can take the two minutes out of everyone else on campus does, 1) AIChE: _________ _________ for _________ _________
want in a webmail service.” their life to look in their electronic they might actually be able to get 2) ASCE: _________ _________ of _________ _________
The greatest concern of AC&N Rolodex; really, how hard is that?” stuff done.” 3) ASME: _________ _________ of _________ _________
is whether Mines students would Gmail also supports “groups”, For more information visit 4) ACM: _________ of _________ _________
be willing to switch from the fa- which allow the user to specify http://gmail.google.com/mail/ 5) AEG: _________ of _________ _________
miliar Mines webmail service to a set of email addresses, such help/about.html 6) IEEE: _________ of _________ and _________ _________
a completely new interface. “You as those of 7) ISEE: _________ _________ of _________ _________
know how people are with tech- their team 8) NSBE: _________ _________ of _________ _________
nology,” said Key, “they learn one members in 9) SHPE: _________ of _________ _________ _________
system, and when they have to a group proj- 10) SME: _________ of _________, _________, and _________
switch, they take a major hit to ect, that can 11) SPE: _________ of _________ _________
productivity. This is especially true also be auto- 12) SPS: _________ of _________ _________
for Mines students.” Also brought matically filled 13) SSG: _________of _________ _________
up was Gmail’s close to unlimited in at a key- 14) SWE: _________ of _________ _________
storage space. When combined word. 15) WISEM: _________ in _________, _________, and _________
with Gmail’s almost legendary School
spam filtering, the user does not officials also When you’re done, check your answers with those at the bottom of
need to perform a checklist of fear that stu- the page. How many did you get right? (Every word must be right down
maintenance at each logon. dents will to the letter) Write that number here: ____ Now, compare!
“Our worry,” said EPICS pro- b e c o m e
fessor Obadiah Garow, “Is that complacent 15-14: Einstein. Congrats! You know all the acronyms for the societ-
those whippersnappers will not when “they ies on campus! Now, if you could only remember to write your name at
learn to decide what is important can send at- the top of your homework, you might get an A in Physics every now and
to keep and what they have to tachments then…
throw out, like we did in the good without their
old days. Not when they can just webmail cli- 13-12: Nerd. Hey there- not bad! You’ve got a Lambda Lambda
MIKE STONE / OREDIGGER
use that newfangled ‘search’ ent twitching Lambda personality, but not as much of the brain power to support it.
thingy to find a particular corre- on the floor,” Gmail Login. Though user names will be the same, a Better go ask your homemade robot to help you on the next one.
spondence without lifting a finger said Garow, non-traditional 18 character string of numbers and letters
to shuffle through their unsorted “Telling them will be users’ new passwords.” 11-9: Wise Guy. Ok, you didn’t do so hot, but don’t worry! I’m sure
there are many mid-level managerial positions at folding engineering com-
panies for you to work at when you graduate!

8-6: Wimp. Now, either you’ve been living under a rock or you think
“American” begins with a silent “P.” Don’t blame the fact that you can’t
spell on being an engineer - blame it on all that paint you sniffed in junior-
high.

5 and below: Simple Jack. There’s a school just about 20 miles

north of here called CU-Boulder. Oh, sorry - CU stands for Colorado Uni-
versity. I think you belong there for the good of the Mines Community as
a whole. Also, please don’t ever have kids.

sudoku 15) Women in Science, Engineering, and Mathematics

4 5 6 1
14) Society of Women Engineers
13) Society of Student Geophysicists

2 5 9 8
12) Society of Physics Students
11) Society of Petroleum Engineers

3 6 2
10) Society of Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration
9) Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers

1 3 5
8) National Society of Black Engineers
7) International Society of Explosives Engineers

9 7 5 8 4 6
6) Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
5) Association of Engineering Geologists

3 4 1
4) Association of Computing Machinery
3) American Society of Mechanical Engineers

5 2 1
2) American Society of Civil Engineers
1) American Institute for Chemical Engineers

7 3 6 9
FOOL’S GOLD-MINES ACRONYM ANSWERS:

1 9 4 5
Puzzle by websudoku.com

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Page 12 a d v e r t i s e m e n t s fbruary 2, 2009

• Hormone-free Milk
• Do you work on Campus on Satur-
days? You can now get your AFPP • Proudly Serving
(afternoon face plant prevention)
at the Book & Brew from noon -
Allegro Coffee & Tea
4:00PM
• Also open Sundays 1:00-9:00PM
• Organic Espresso Drinks

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