LOCAL/STATE
The Michigan Daily - Monday, January 29, 2001- 3A
W CAMPU S
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International law
series to conclude
The University Center for Interna-
tional and Comparative Law will hold a
discussion titled "Topics in Internation-
al Law" today from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. in
118 Hutchins Hall.
Today's discussion is the second in a
two-part series that focuses on contro-
versial issues in international law. This
afternoon's lecture will be given by
Osgoode Hall Law School in Toronto
law Prof. Craig Scott. Scott will speak
on "Torture, Translation, and Transna-
tional Torts. The event is free and
refreshments will be served.
Japanese culture
in film celebrated
A two-day film symposium spon-
sored by the University International
Institute will be held Thursday and
=Friday. The symposium, entitled, "The
Latin Connection in Japanese Cine-
ma: A Symposium with Filmmaker
Masato Harada," will explore cultural
issues that face Japanese emigrants
returning from Latin America.
On Thursday at 7 p.m., the Michigan
Theater will show Harada's satirical
1994 movie, "Kamikaze Taxi." The
movie exposes corruption ailing mod-
ern Japanese society by depicting a
novice yakusa gangster sickened with
his organization's cruelty. The movie is
free.
On Friday, the film symposium con-
tinues with a panel discussion with
University and visiting scholars about
S the film shown Thursday and its cul-
tural context. The panel discussion
will be held from 4 to 6 p.m. in 1636
School of Social Work Building and is
free of charge and open to the public.
Series to discuss
Jewish culture
The University Centers for Judaic,
Latin and Caribbean Studies will begin
a three-part lecture series, entitled "The
Jewish Diaspora in Latin American and
the Caribbean." this Friday at noon.
Discussions this Friday and in the
next two weeks will be given by local
and visiting scholars.
This week, Emory University histo-
ry Prof. Jeffrey Lesser will discuss
"(Re)Creating Brazilian National
Identity: Jewish Ethnicity on the
Brazilian Frontier." Lesser's lecture
-will be held in 2609 School of Social
Work Building and is free.
Interpretations of
the Holocaust in
literature and .art
Liliane Weissberg " Universityof
Pennsylvania literature professor, will
speak on the interpretation of litera-
ture and art relating to the Holocaust
this Friday at 2 p.m.
. The University Center for Judaic
;Studies will host Weissberg as she
presents "In Plain Sight: Can One
Apply the Concept of 'Beauty' to
the Literature and Visual Arts That
Relate to the Holocaust?" in the
third-floor conference room on the
Modern Languages Building.This
event is free.
Fellowship given to
Social Work prof.
- School of Social Work professor
:Deborah Schild Wilkinson has been
4 named a 2001 Primary Care Policy
Fellow by the U.S. Public Health
Service.
The fellowship will provide
Wilkinson, along with several other
winners with intensive six-month
training, in which she will study
primary car policy, education and
research to further advocation for
the improvement of primary health
care in government and in the pri-
vate sector. The fellowship also
includes sessions on leadership and
media training.
Wilkinson's work will specifical-
ly focus on aspects of prevention
and on practice and policies that
support training in primary care
t policy. Her work in these areas will
relate to genetics and maternal-
child health.
Wilkinson holds a public hhealth
masters degree in maternal and child
health, in addition in doctoral and
master's degrees in social work.
-Compiled by Daily Staff Reporter
Students frustrated with waitlist glitches
By Kelly Trahan
For the Daily
After registering for classes on Wolverine
Access, LSA junior Jen Dakki said she didn't
expect to have a problem getting into Econom-
ics 323.
"I was pretty confident because I was first on
the waitlist," Dakki said. "But it turns out that
there was glitch in Wolverine Access that told
everyone on the waitlist they were first.
"There were 120 people on the waitlist, all of
whom assumed they would have a spot in the class.
I ended up having to CRISP into a random class
that doesn't count for any of my requirements
because I couldn't get into the class;" she added.
LSA freshman Julie Swistak said she was
equally frustrated registering for the term.
"There were more people on the waitlist for
my freshman seminar than were enrolled in the
class - it was ridiculous;' Swistak said.
Dakki and Swistak are not alone. LSA junior
Raphael Jackson is a communications major
but said he has not been able to get into Com-
munications 211 - a requirement for the con-
centration.
"The communications department says that
concentrators should complete Comm 211 by the
end of their sophomore year," Jackson said. "It is
the end of my junior year now and I have been
trying to get into the class since I was a sopho-
more. There are so many people who want to
take the classes and not enough spots."
In fact, the communications department has
more concentrators per faculty member than any
other LSA department.
But communications department Chairman
Mike Traugott said the department is doing every-
thing it can to accommodate students. "All of our
courses have very high enrollment and very long
wait lists. We reserve 50 percent of the spots in
our upper-level classes for concentrators and we
hold back spaces until later CRISP dates in our
intro classes so that freshmen and sophomores
"I was pretty confident because I was first on the
waitlist. There was a glitch in Wolverine Access
that told everyone on the waitlist they were first."
- Jen Dakki
LSA junior
can enroll," Traugott said.
Like the communications department, the psy-
chology department has had problems placing
students in the classes they need to complete
their degree.
Justine Altman, an LSA junior employed in the
psychology department, said she receives "lots of
complaints" from students who cannot get into
their classes.
"It is a problem for our 1,200 concentrators
and non-concentrators alike," Altman said. "We
never have enough spots. Rarely does a student
call who has no other options; we can usually
help them. But the only real way to fix the prob-
lem is to hire more faculty and GSIs. The faculty
just isn't there."
Traugott said he also recognizes the necessi-
ty to make additions to the 12-member com-
munications department faculty, but the
process of acquiring quality professors, he
said, is long and tedious. "No department can
hire many faculty at once," Traugott said, "It
is important to hire quality professors. We are
working on it."
The science of music
Area travel agencies pitch
discounts for Spring Break
By Ted Borden
For the Daily
With thoughts of sunglasses, tanning
oil and swimsuits in mind, many stu-
dents on campus have already arranged
plans for Spring Break.
"It's been very busy here;' said Carol
Seymour, a travel agent at STA Travel.
"I would say a fourth of the people com-
ing in here are University students inter-
ested in spring break."
STA Travel, like most agencies,
offers a number of packages geared
towards cash-strapped students
desiring a trip south for sun and
sand. While most of these packages
vary by destination and agency, most
include airfare and lodging at rates
much lower than those offered by
commercial airlines.
"If you're looking for airfare and
lodging at a good price, a package is the
best deal," Seymour said.
Among the most popular packages
are those for Cancun, Jamaica, Acapul-
co and the Bahamas. But Europe is also
a hot destination.
"We've booked a lot of Europe trips
here,' said Lindsay Adelsheim, a travel
agent at Council Travel. "London, Paris,
Italy, Spain and even Prague are very
popular. This is the off-season over
there, so prices are very good."
And many students are booking
packages that include upscale lodging
and are not necessarily all-inclusive.
"Students are doing this because
they don't want to go where they
know a lot of high school students
will be," said Connie Pierce, owner
of Travel Centre. "They do not want
to be in the same area."
Most packages start as low as $500
per person, without tax. Packages are
always purchased by a group of people,
usually starting with at least four. But
packages cost a great deal less than buy-
ing a ticket through a commercial air-
line and making lodging reservations
yourself
Travelocity.com, a website that claims
to offer the lowest fares available, showed
the cheapest ticket to Cancun during the
University's Spring Break to be $676.92.
In contrast, STA Travel offers a package
to Cancun including airfare and lodging
for $499 per person with four people to a
room, not including tax.
For students not interested in getting a
packaged deal, one alternative is the
purchase of the International Student
Identification card.
Available at most travel agencies for
$22, this card allows students to get
deep discounts, and not just during the
spring season.
A single round trip ticket from
Detroit Metropolitan Airport to
Munich, Germany, for a one-week
stay during the last week of July, via
Delta Airlines, currently costs
$1,462. Using the International Stu-
dent Identification card, the same
ticket would cost $841.
Despite the savings, many stu-
dents are not buying the card, nor
are they going to agencies to make
travel arrangements. "For Spring
Break, I'm going to Los Angeles,"
said RC sophomore Taylor Simpson.
"I found a very cheap ticket on the
Internet and I thought it was pretty
easy."
Seymour said most students interest-
ed in Spring Break packages began
coming to STA Travel right after
Thanksgiving. However, most agencies
still have many packages available, to
both Europe and the tropics.
"There's still time, but I would urge
students interested to come in as soon as
possible," Adelsheim said.
Pierce advises students to use caution
with spring break packages. "Before
leaving, I would call all the companies
involved and verify the information,"
Pierce said. "If it really sounds too good
to be true, it probably is."
KHANG TRAN/ Daily
Second-year University Hospitals pediatics resident Sarah Gelehrter and LSA
sophomore Rebecca Horsch play at the debut of the University's Life
Sciences Orchestra yesterday at the Michigan Theater.
Author clims'U'
eXpeml ents on
animals ineffective
1 1
By Ahmed Hamid
Daily Staff Reporter
Despite the large role animal experi-
mentation plays in medical research at
the University, C. Ray Greek, a scien-
tific advisor for the National Anti-vivi-
section Society, argues such research
is ineffective.
"Scientifically it is not valid. You
cannot extrapolate from one species to
another," Greek said.
Howard Rush, interim director of
the University's Unit for Laboratory
Animal Medicine, said the University
performs research on approximately
150,000 animals per year. "Ninety-five
percent of the animals are rats, mice,
fish and frogs," he added.
Greek cited various incidents in
medical history when the application
of animal data proved futile.
"There are far too many examples
of good medications like penicillin
that were delayed from release due to
harmful effects in animals," Greek
said.
Greek also blamed animal models
for delaying the release of the polio
vaccine as well as convincing early
medical researchers that smoking was
non-carcinogenic.
While Greek finds animal testing to
be ineffective, he has no ethical
qualms about using animals in
research..
"I am not opposed to it. What I am
saying is that when the medical com-
munity tells you that we use chimps
because they share 99 percent of our
genes, I say that is a fallacious argu-
ment," Greek said. "We share 58 per-
cent of our genes with bananas and no
one is testing heart disease drugs on
bananas. Very small differences in ani-
mal systems can be of profound signif-
icance."
At a lecture last Thursday sponsored
by the Michigan Animal Rights Soci-
ety, some audience members
expressed skepticism about Greek's
contentions.
In the question and answer session
following the lecture, one audience
member questioned whether Greek
had any statistical evidence to support
his claims, saying he had provided
only anecdotal evidence.
"Yes I do, but I changed my slides
and won't bother to look for them right
now," Greek said.
Greek mentioned his book "Sacred
Cows and Golden Geese - The Human
Cost of Experiments on Animals,"
which he co-authored with his wife, as
having "over a thousand references" to
support his point.
Greek further said that animal
right's activists should not only
"oppose animal experimentation on
ethical grounds."
Michigan Animal Rights Society,
Kristie Stoick, LSA senior, agreed. "I
think Dr. Greek is right in saying peo-
ple aren't going to be reached just by
saying animal experimentation is
unethical. It is important to educate
people about sound science as well,"
Stoick said.
Rush said he sees animal experi-
mentation as a viable research model
among a variety of models.
"Any investigator who is doing
research is looking for the best model.
You can use a cell culture, organ-cul-
ture, computer simulations, or animals.
Animals are just one form of models
used in studying disease," Rush said.
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