__-_-_ _ _ LSTA TErThe Michigan Daily-- Wednesday, March 7, 2001 --3 *-HGHiER ED UC-Berkeley group threatens to slow ~minority enrollment The University of California at Berkeley's recruitment and reten- tion center recently announced a plan to discourage underrepresent- ued minority students from attend- ing the university pending the UC Board of Regents repeal of the ban on affirmative action. The number of black, Latino, American Indian and Filipino freshman admitted to the university dramatically dropped from 1995 to 2000, when the practice of using affirmative action in California *admissions was banned. UC Regent Ward Connerly criti- cized the student group's proposal, saying the center should instead focus their efforts on working with underrepresented minorities in order to help them be prepared to compete alongside others students for admission to the university. A center representative said the center wants discussion on the reversal of the ban on affirmative action during the regents' March meeting or they will implement their plan. However, Connerly said that it was doubtful that the issue would be addressed at the March meeting because it is not on the agenda. NYU, UAW start *negotiations for first GSI union at private school In a first for a private U.S. universi- ty, New York University has agreed to begin collective bargaining sessions with a union of graduate student instructors. NYU officials announced their decision to bargain with United Auto Workers Local Union 2110 -Thursday afternoon. This decision came only hours before union members were to begin a strike authorization vote that if passed, would cripple many of the univer- sity programs that use graduate assistants. Union organizers and members believe that this agreement could 0cause momentous changes at other private universities, where gradu- ate assistants with similar concerns have fought for as long as 10 years to unionize. Wellesley College outraged at sex maniacs portrayal All-female Wellesley College is fuming after its portrayal in Rolling Stone Magazine as a cam- pus of sex maniacs. Wellesley President Diana Chapman expressed outrage in a letter posted online to the editor of the maga- zine. Chapman criticized Jay Dixit, the author of the article, as writing an "immature and offensive piece of reckless journalism" and accused Dixit of misleading his . sources regarding the intent of his article. Wellesley's Director of Public Information Mary Ann Hill, who was quoted in the Rolling Stone -piece, said Dixit told her he was doing a piece about the sexual dynamics of all-female colleges and not focusing just on Wellesley. The piece includes statements from faculty and employees of the K-college detailing their sexual .involvement with Wellesley stu- dents. Dixit wrote that at the all-female school there is a "climate of sexual experimentation where no woman, or man - including professors, kitchen staff and campus police officers - is off-limits." Dixit defended his article, saying hat the college should not be uashamed that their students have sexual lives. -Compiedfiom U-WIRE reports hy Daily Staff Reporter Jane Krzdll. Deadlines near for By Stephanie Schonholz Daily Staff Reporter It's that time of year again - when events and deadlines for graduating seniors are quickly fill- ing academic calendars. Today through Friday, Michigan Union Arts and Programming is hold- ing a Senior Fair in the basement of the Union. "The object of the fair is to pro- vide information to graduating seniors regarding the commence- _ 9 sold at Michigan Book and Supply and Ulrich's Bookstore. Fourteen displays, each pertaining to a differ- ent aspect of graduation will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily. Among the tables that will be displayed in the Union will be an alumni table, a University Infor- mation and Technology Division table offering free Internet service off-campus for one year for new graduates, as well as an area for any general announcements. "We try to do (the fair) at least once a semester, it usually happens in October and the fair is for folks who are planning on walking down the aisle and receiving a diplo- ma," said Thibault. While seniors attempt to enjoy their last days at the University, some who plan on graduating April 28 still have paperwork to fill out. 2 SI 1 i 1 1 i 1 Z graduating seniors Each school in the University has a specific back to see if introductory writing was taken," deadline for when its graduates must turn in an said Marsden. application to receive diplomas. If a student discovers a fault with their records "If they miss the deadline, they must get they can "come and talk to the auditors about the paperwork in as soon as possible. We had their file, where auditors might learn they are to set a date in order to get the students wrong or that this was a misunderstanding on the names in the commencement program for student's part," said Marsden. April," said Marguerite Mayville of LSA Approximately 2,500 students will be graduat- Academic Affairs. ing from LSA this spring. Numbers for the Busi- "It's roughly the same deadline each year, we ness and Engineering schools are far less. usually find out sometime in February," said Application deadlines for ILSA are March 9 William Harry Marsden, associate director of for the April and August ceremonies, which LSA Student Academic Affairs. would include having that students name An academic service staff for each school printed in the commencement program. April audits the students' applications, which 17, the last day of classes, allows a student to includes any grades and classes taken at the participate in the ceremonies but not to have University. their name in the commencement. All other "Once the applications are in we pull records, I colleges have individual due dates for diplo- mean we look at every requirement, we even look ma application deadlines. NPR to broadcast live ment ceremony, caps and gowns, class rings and other traditional stuff," said Program Coordinator Robb Thibault. Caps and gowns are also being from campus Mar. 29 By Anna Clark Daily Staff Reporter Continuing its 18-month series titled "The Changing Face of America," National Public Radio will tackle affirmative action and higher education issues when it arrives at the University for a live broadcast March 29. Juan Williams, the host of NPR's "Talk of the Nation," will host the two-hour show, which will take place between 2 and 4 p.m. in Rackham Amphitheater. Guests from higher education insti- tutions across the country will take questions from callers and audience members. The event is open to the public. "Talk of the Nation" producer John Ogulnik said the guests scheduled for the higher education panel include University President Lee Bollinger, Central Washington University President Gerilyn McIntyre and MacAllister College President Michael McPherson. A community college president will also be invited. "As we talk about these issues, we wanted to reflect all levels of higher education," Ogulnik said, "We feel we have all sides represented here." For the affirmative action panel, the only con- firmed guest is John McWharter, an assistant lin- guistics professor and affirmative action opponent form the University of California at Berkeley. The program is coming to Ann Arbor because of an invitation from the University campus station WUOM and because of the "loyal listenership" in the city, Ogulinik said. lie added that the University is ideal for the issues scheduled for discussion. "We try to find topics that are hot in the market of the location but also have a national trend," Ogulnik said. "At one of the finest institutions in the country, we thought we'd like to talk about higher education. And, obviously, affirmative action is a major issue here." The broadcast is part of the University's Dia- logues on Diversity, an effort to initiate discussion on current diversity issues. Pat McCune, program coordinator for the Dialogues, said she's been try- ing for some time to bring NPR to the University by emphasizing the University's role in the issues. "These are very important issues," she said. "With a new president who seems to be emphasiz- ing education, there's a renewed focus on higher education throughout the country." She added that the affirmative action lawsuits challenging the University make affirmative action a timely topic for the radio show. McCune said that while the time of the show may make it inconvenient for students to attend the broadcast, the effort will be worthwhile. "This is another venue, another opportunity, another forum for students to not just speak, but also to listen," McCune said, "That's why they're here. If they didn't want to listen to the University community, they wouldn't be here." Rackham Dean Earl Lewis also emphasized what the potential discussion could offer students. "Students have the opportunity to exchange views and perspectives nationally, with the live call-in'Lewis said. Lewis said the show was here a couple of years ago. By highlighting the success of the previous trip as well as the quality of the issues discussed, Lewis said the University was able to persuade NPR to make another trip. JEFF HURVITZ/Daily University Health Service allergy nurse Grace Ball demonstrates the procedure for performing a flu vaccination on clerical nurse Rose Tucker yesterday afternoon. After mil w1nter flu raes rise in e By Ahmed Hamid I16ly StafflReporter While cases of the flu normally peak in Janu- ary, Michigan flu cases registered a delayed increase in February. "It arrived a bit later than last year" said Gera- lyn Lasher, spokeswoman for the Michigan Department of Community Health. She added that the trend has been for the majority of flu cases to hit around January, but the late arrival should not be a cause for alarm. "The influenza reports are within a completely normal range and this is not an outbreak situa- tion," Lasher said. "February is just when we started to see influenza activity." Louise Herlocher, a School of Public Health assistant research scientist, said the timing of intense influenza activity cannot be determined. "Last year influenza hit in December, though it usually increases in January. We cannot predict when it is going to really take hold," she said. Even with increases in flu cases across the state, incidents of influenza among University stu- dents have remained stable. Interim Director of University Health Services Robert Winfield said since December only 15 patients with severe influenza symptoms tested positive and 12 tested negative. Winfield encouraged those who had not yet received a flu vaccination to get one. "A typical picture of influenza is fever, severe muscle ache, severe cough, and headache, all usu- ally starting within 24 hours," Winfield said. "If someone comes down with a flu there are medicines that can treat it within 48 hours and that will shorten the duration of the illness,"he said. Valerie GIiem, spokeswoman for the University Health System, said approximately 11,433 flu vaccinations had been administered to the Ann Arbor community by the Michigan Visiting Nurs- es, a clinic which administers free vaccinations. This number is only 137 less than last year's total of I1,570 vaccinations. Gliem also said despite the increase, reported flu cases for the year were relatively less. "Flu cases are lighter than had been projected and lighter than in past years," she said. Lasher said students should take the necessary precautions to avoid the virus. Students should get adequate rest, have a good diet and exercise fre- quently. Up, up and away BRENDAN O'DONNELL/Dal Lane gets high during spring break in Jackson Hole, Wyo. last week. Ann Arbor resident CharlieI Statue to memorialize 'U' alum, Internet pioneer By Kara Wenzel Daily Staff Reporter Claude Shannon left the University in 1936, but his theories about computers and their influence on communication are still in use. Shannon, 84, died Feb. 24 at his home near the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he earned his master's and doctoral degrees and taught computer science and mathematics from 1957 until 1978. Several bronze busts of Shannon, sponsored by the Information Theory Society of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, are being cast to commemorate Shannon's life and work. Electrical engineering and computer science Prof. David Neuhoff said there are plans for one of the statues to be placed near the EECS building on North Campus this spring. The first statue was dedicat- ed in October near Gaylord. Shannon's childhood home. "There are two statues of him in New Jersey. One is at the Lucent Technologies headquarters and the other is at AT&T. Eventually there Shannon will be one at MIT," said his wife, Betty Shannon. Raised in a family of innovators - his grandfa- ther helped invent the washing machine -- Shan- non learned to test the limits of conventional knowledge and baffle computer scientists. For fun, he "taught" computers how to play chess, developed a mathematical theory of jug- gling and invented a motorized pogo stick. By inventing an electrical mouse that can find its way through a maze, Shannon demonstrated that computers could learn. Previously, scientists were simply using computers as counting tools. Shannon pioneered the field of "information the- ory" which determines the theoretical limit of a channel's information-carrying capacity. Digital systems that configure information, such as the Internet, would not be possible without Shannon's theory. "Few other works of this century have had a greater impact on science and engineering," sai~d University of Southern California Prof. Irving Reed of Shannon's paper, "A Mathematical Theory of Communication." This paper revolutionized the way information is sent through telephone lines. Shannon proposed the use of a binary code, also known as bits, to make telephone communication quicker and less noisy. The fields of investment theory, cryptology, probability, biology and even English use this theo- ry to make sense of information. That impact was one of Shannon's laments. He feared the overuse of his theory, telling the New York Times that it had "perhaps ballooned to An importance beyond its actual accomplishments." SCorrection: RC senior Peter Romer-Friedman is a member of Students Organizing for Labor and Economic Equality. His title was incorrect on Page 1 of yesterday's Daily. THE CALENDAR Researchers find correlation between disease and cancers What's happening in Ann Arbor today By John Polley Daily StiafReporter In a recently published study, University researchers revealed a molecular link between the Epstein-Barr virus - cancer, researchers hope the findings will lead to new forms of cancer treatment. "Understanding this mechanism is potentially useful for developing a rational treatment for~EBV-associated cancers," said Murray Cotter, a University graduate student involved EVENTS 7:00 p.m., MSA Cham- bers (3909 Union) ®Ann Arhknr S. n nnr* Union Ballroom, 764- 6453 SERVICES Campus Information I I I