LOCAL/STATE
The Michigan Daily - Monday, March 24, 1997 -3A
'U' students use
Internet to help
children
A team of University graduate stu-
dents is using the Internet to teach chil-
dren a life-saving lesson.
The students created a website that
warns about the dangers of poisons. The
site, which is open to the general public
on the University's Internet Public
Library, went online last Monday.
While students from the School of
.d ucation, College of Pharmacy and
chool of Information collaborated on
the site's creation, two Pharmacy stu-
dents originally came up with the idea.
Pharmacy graduate students Jill
Burkiewicz and Shamita Gupta, along
with several other Pharmacy graduate
students, had developed poison-related
educational activities and games for pre-
sentations at local elementary schools.
In order to interact with more chil-
n through the Internet, they turned to
Mffstructional technology experts in the
University's Information Technology
Division for help and direction.
Children who are between 4 and 7
years old can access the Poison
Prevention Website at
http://wwwipLorg/youth/poisonsafe/.
'U' offers awards
for research
* The Office of the Vice Provost for
Academic and Multicultural Affairs is
-sponsoring Faculty Awards for research
and creative projects. Any faculty
member with a regular appointment is
eligible.
Applications are reviewed twice a
year by a panel of faculty members
who make recommendations to the
vice provost. The deadline for winter
term is next Tuesday.
0 For more information, contact the
office at 763-8123, ovpama@umich.edu
or at http://www/umich.edu/~ovpama.
Smith to deliver
lecture on
working memory
In honor of his professorship in psy-
chology, Prof. Edward Smith will give
.special lecture next week.
Smith, who received an appointment
to. the Arthur W Melton Collegiate
Professorship in Psychology, will deliver
a lecture about the "working memory."
The lecture, which is titled
"Neuroimaging and Cognition: The
Case of the Working Memory," will
take place at 4:10 p.m. on April 2 in
'Rackham Amphitheatre.
He will describe his research, which
*es the neuroimaging method called
Positron Emission Tomography, to
study how brain activity shifts with
changing cognitive demands.
The cognitive system includes the
"working memory," which is the ability
to keep a limited amount of informa-
tion mentally active for a brief period
of time, according to Smith's research.
'U' prof. creates
opera on Onassis
A University professor helped create
art in the life of a 20th century icon -
First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.
Music Prof. Michael Daugherty and
Wayne Koestenbaum, who wrote the
-libretto for the opera, are considered
two of America's leading interpreters of
popular culture. They named their
quirky but insightful portrait of the for-
r first lady as "Jackie 0."
wThe opera opened March 14 at the
Houston Grand Opera and can be seen
in early August at the Banff Center for
the Arts in Alberta, Canada.
The two-act opera opens with the
actual voice of Jacqueline Kennedy
Onassis and explores her relationship
with Greek tycoon Aristotle Onassis.
The opera also features a 20-piece
.orchestra with traditionally rock instru-
'ents such as guitars and synthesizers.
- Compiled fom staff reports.
Students pass 3 out of 4 MSA ballot proposals
°,
By Katie Plona
Daily Staff Reporter
Students answered "yes" to three of the four bal-
lot questions posed by the Michigan Student
Assembly in last week's election.
As one proposal stated, a $1 per-student, per-
semester increase will be added to the current
MSA fee next fall, if the University's Board of
Regents approves. The fee will be used specifical-
ly for campus community service initiatives.
"I'm excited that were going to be helping out
community service," said LSA Rep. Dan Serota.
The question was placed on the MSA ballot
after UM.Serve submitted a petition with more
than 1,000 signatures.
Students narrowly passed a ballot question that
will allow student groups with more than 400
members to occupy one non-voting position on the
assembly. College and school governments are
ineligible to apply for this ex-officio status.
Sudhakar Cherukuri, president of the United
Asian American Organizations, said UAAO would
probably be interested in applying to have an MSA
ex-officio member.
"It allows for an opportunity to have a better rela-
tionship with MSA," said Cherukuri, an LSA junior.
Serota, an LSA junior, said he would like to see
student groups use this opportunity to speak out
and represent their organizations.
"I hope people will take advantage of it,"
Serota said.
Students also supported the removal of a rule
stating that graduate student instructors cannot
teach more than 10 LSA terms. Now, MSA can
lobby the LSA administration to remove the 10-
term rule with student backing.
Michelle Mueller, president of the Graduate
Employees Organization, said it is nice to know
that the student body - not just graduate students
- supports the removal of the 10-term GSI teach-
ing limit in LSA.
"We're happy," Mueller said. "The GEO has
been fighting against that rule since it existed."
Serota, who proposed the ballot question, said
this is an issue the new assembly should focus on
because it affects all students.
"I think it should be one of the top priorities of
the new government," Serota said.
But students rejected a proposal to raise MSA fees
by $5.50 per student for two semestersto ultimately
create a full-voting student regent to sit on the board.
The money would have gone to hiring a firm to
collect signatures on a statewide petition to put the
student regent question on the Michigan state ballot.
"Sure I'm disappointed, but I'm not really sur-
prised," said MSA Student Regent Task Force
Chair Andy Schor.
Schor, an LSA senior, said that if students had
looked past the $5.50 two-term fee increase, they
would have supported the ballot question for its
Ballot results:
r $5.50 fee increase for statewide student
regent ballot question: No
Rescind the GSI teaching term limit: Yes
Ex-officio membership on MSA: Yes
U $1 fee increase for community service: Yes
purpose.
"There are two things we can do," Schor said.
"We can try to find other ways to raise the funds to
get the question on the statewide ballot in '98 and
if we decide that we can't do that, then the other
option that we see is to change the goal from a vot-
ing member to an ex-officio member and then
lobby the regents.'
I
Interdisciplinary cou
with global trends, c
By Chris Metinko
Daily Staff Reporter
The University has always had the
reputation of using modern technology
in its courses and research procedures,
but one course is taking that reputation
to another level.
Introduction to Global Changes is a
two-semester, interdisciplinary course
that is funded by both the National
Aeronautics and Space Administration
(NASA) and the National Science
Foundation. The course is already five
years old but has recently changed
much of its curriculum to keep up with
global trends.
"We're as far along as any group I've
come in contact with," said Timothy
Killeen, professor of atmospheric,
oceanic, and space sciences, who helps
teach the course.
The course has no textbooks because
of the rapid pace at which the Earth
changes. Instead, it uses the Internet as
its text in order to get the latest changes
of the world.
"The reason we're looking at the Web
is because global change is always
changing' said Sean Cash, a graduate
student research assistant for the
course, "We need something that
changes everyday."
39 days until
graduation.
But who's
counting?
Read the Daily.
However, Killeen pointed out that the
Web is "not a substitute for lab or lec-
ture," but said he is pleased with what
the Internet has offered.
"I think the Web has been successful,
and the students feel the same way,"
Killeen said.
SNRE junior Liz Mancini agreed
with Killeen's assessment.
"The use of the Internet has been
extremely beneficial. We have learned
to efficiently surf the Net, make Web
pages and try to distinguish some of the
veritable information from the not-so-
accurate information that is presented
on the Web," Mancini said.
The use of the Web will not be the
last change in the course. Next semes-
ter, students will have 10 scientific
instruments that will measure global
changes ranging from the atmosphere
to the water. Students will be able to
-
rse shifts-
hanges
access the information by simply inter-
facing with a computer. Other changes
to the curriculum are likely.
"We're toying with many new
things'" said Bridget Fahey, a graduate
student instructor for the course.
Despite the high-level technology
used in the course and the fact that it is
crosslisted with other courses such as
Biology 110 and Sociology 11l, stus
dent reception to the course has been
lukewarm.
Only 55 students registered for the
class in the fall, and 64 studentsarb
involved in the program this semesite
"We'd like to see 300 to 400 ;stu-
dents," Killeen said.
Fahey said attendance should be
higher considering the importance of
the subject.
"Global change is very timely and
very important," Fahey said.
ROB GILMORE/Daily
U.S. Rep. Lynn Rivers (D-Ann Arbor) spoke to members of the Israel Michigan
Public Affairs Committee last night at Hillel.
Rep. Rivers coaches
students on lobbyi*ng
Are You Interested in Going
to Israel this Summer and
Earning Six Credits from the
University of Michigan?
Are You Interested in Participating in a
Fascinating Archeological Dig, Traveling
throughout Israel and Experiencing A
Remarkable Ancient and Modern Country??
And all of this for Only $1300.
If so, please call Hillel at 769-0550 or stop by our office
(1429 Hill Street) for an application. This special program
has limited room and we will be selecting from
applications soon.
By Jeffrey Kosseff
Daily Staff Reporter
A group of students who plan to
lobby U.S. legislators turned to a pro-
fessional last night for advice - Rep.
Lynn Rivers.
Rivers (D-Ann Arbor) spoke to
members of the Israel Michigan Public
Affairs Committee last night at Hillel
and coached them on efficient lobbying
tactics. The group will travel to
Washington next month to meet with
legislators about issues in the Middle
East.
"Be prepared to listen and not neces-
sarily argue," Rivers said. "It is impor-
tant that you be open to getting your
point across rather than arguing"
Before she became a target for lob-
byists, Rivers lobbied the federal legis-
lature as a member of the Ann Arbor
Board of Education before being elect-
ed to the state House in 1992.
Rivers said that lobbying is most
effective when at least one member of
the group is in the legislator's voting
district.
"You will have more effectiveness
with those that represent you," Rivers
said. "They are most interested with the
people who can affect their re-election."
While there are many professional
lobbyists on Capitol Hill, Rivers said
"constituents are usually first in line, as
opposed to people from Washington."
Rivers said that lobbyists should
often inform legislators if they aided
their election - with some excep-
tions.
"It's wise if you work on that per-
son's camp to say so," Rivers said.
"But it's probably not that wise to say
'my parents donated money to your
campaign."'
Another important part of lobbying,
Rivers said, is to have a prepared plat-
form.
"Don't make the member pull your
position out of you," Rivers said.
"Nobody is going to be unhappy that
it's rehearsed."
Rivers also said interaction with the
legislator's staff can be important.
"The staffer has a lot of influence
with the member" Rivers said. "Don't
send a message that you think they're
second class."
Some members of IMPAC were
pleased with Rivers' advice.
"It was really good information,"
said Liat Weingart, an LSA first-year
student who is part of the group that is
going to Washington.
Rivers also told the group what not
to do in Washington.
"Do not use this opportunity to raise
another topic," Rivers said. "It will
muddy the waters. They'll feel
ambushed because they weren't
expecting it."
Rivers also said that occasionally
people say there will be constituents
from her district in the meeting, but
once they meet, nobody from the 13th
district is present.
"It makes me very angry," Rivers
said. "There are people who come to see
me who are not particularly courteous."
WWMWN.i
Correction:
An SAT study cited in Fridays Daily was conducted by the Center for Women Policy Studies. This was incorrectly reported
in Friday's Daily.
GROUP MEETINGS
U Bible Stud, 741-1913, Angell Hall,
G-144, 7 p.m.
0 Biomedical Engineering Student
Association, H .H. Dow Building,
Room 1013, 7 p.m.
Art Lounge
U "Film: 'image Before My Eyes,'"
sponsored by Hillel, East Hall,
Room 1360, 7 p.m.
Q "The Randy Napoleon Quartet,"
Weekly performance, Pierpont
Commons Leonardo's
INFO, info@umich.edu, and
www.umich.edu/-info on the
World Wide Web
U English Composition Board Peer
Tutoring, Angell Hall, Room 444C,
7-11 pm.
U Northwalk, 763-WALK, Bursley
Inhhv Rnm - .0n am