NEWS
The Michigan Daily - Tuesday, December 14, 2004 - 5
Tying up
loose ends
before
break
By Sarah Sprague
Daily Staff Reporter
As students head home for winter
break, they are being reminded by
University Housing officials to take
measures to keep campus housing safe
while they are away.
Students are required to move out of
all residence halls by Dec. 23 at 9 p.m.
and will not be able to move back in
until 8 a.m. on Jan. 3. Housing security
officials will patrol rooms during the
break.
Last week, University Housing pro-
vided a checklist of tasks that students
living in residence halls must com-
plete before they are allowed to leave.
To conserve energy and lower the risk
of fire hazards, students are required
to unplug all appliances, turn off all
lights, defrost and clean out the refrig-
erator and take out the garbage, among
other tasks. They are also encouraged
to take all valuables home and close
and lock their windows.
"The preparations are important and
there are fines for policies not being fol-
lowed. People need to follow the precau-
tions for the well being of the building
over break, and not doing so can be
costly," said Melissa McElhiney, an LSA
senior and Resident Advisor.
RC freshman Natalie Stafford said
she was worried about the effect the
University's housing policies would
have on her fish.
"It is going to be difficult to figure
out what to do with the fish tank. The
fish probably won't survive without
the heater and filter that have to be
unplugged, but the stress from moving
them back home would be even more
of a death sentence," Stafford said.
The checklist also requires students
to return any silverware taken from the
dining halls.
But some students said they have
built up too much of a cutlery collec-
tion to bring everything back in one
day without being noticed.
"My roommate didn't want the cafe-
teria people to know that she took (din-
ing ware), so she left it in the hallway
a few doors down, under the drinking
fountain actually, and there was still
food on it," Stafford said.
LSA sophomore Inhoon Choi was
quick to dole out some advice for stu-
dents who hoard dining ware in their
rooms.
"I would smuggle it in my backpack
and then put it on the rack with my
other dishes. But I only have a fork, so
I think my pocket will be fine," Choi
said.
Though the checklist is designed
to protect students' belongings and
ensure the security of their rooms
while they are away, many don't seem
too concerned.
"I'm not worried about the security
of my room over break, I don't know
who would want to take my stuff any-
ways," Stoltz said.
Some just don't plan on having any-
thing in the room to worry about.
But McElhiney warned of the dan-
gers of not following residence hall
regulations.
"There was an incident of mold once
when a heater had been left on and the
room became extremely warm. The
mold was growing out of everywhere,
and professionals had to come in to
fix it. The room was blocked off and
everything," she said.
For more information on residence hall
closures, students can visit www.housing.
umich.edu/info/winterbreak.html.
Salurlay Science
'U' students tutor sixth-graders in everyday physics
watching him and participating in
the Society of Physics Students In-
reach Program.
In-reach has been running for
19 years and is designed to expose
and instruct middle school students
about physics. Bill Richards, who
is one of the founders of In-reach,
explained that the concept for In-
reach began when he spoke with
Jean Krisch, a University physics
professor, who suggested to "bring
some kids down" to the campus.
Richards has continued to bring
sixth-graders down, and this year
they arrived at the University on
Saturday at 10 a.m., participating in
ourtesy of Google several demonstration stations. Each
station covered a different topic
related to the properties of matter,
including physical properties, chemical physics,
electricity, magnetism and modern physics.
Since the beginning of the program, the SPS
has been staffing the event with its members.
The organizer of the event, Katherine Alatalo, an
LSA senior majoring in physics and president of
the University chapter of the SPS, said "these In-
reaches benefit SPS (members) as much as they
benefit the sixth graders."
One demonstrator, LSA senior Jacob Bour-
jaily, brought a homemade contraption that he
used to explain the importance of providing oxy-
gen to combustions. To demonstrate his point, he
tried to light a small bowl of corn starch that, as
expected, did not burn. But when he blew on the
corn starch, providing oxygen, huge flames rose
into the air. The result was the undivided atten-
tion of the students.
The students rotated from station to station,
where they saw floating magnets suspended by
superconductors, radiation detection with a Geiger
counter, flaming metallic spheres floating on water,
static charges causing hair to raise on end and
shattering liquid nitrogen-frozen ping pong balls.
Susan Viglianco, a parent volunteer whose l-year-
old daughter participated in the event, said, "She
has had a constant .
smile." Her daugh-
ter, Jamie, added,
"It was cool:'
In addition to . .
Ovid and a University alum, said through the
program, "they see that physics is fun."
The event also motivates some students to
major in physics. Alatalo explained that "(Get-
ting) kids enthusiastic enough about physics to
major in it - that's the ultimate goal."
This goal is being achieved, Palen said. "One
student a year says they are going into physics,"
Palen said. Alatalo's sentiment was shared by
Mark Kennedy of the Physics Demonstration
Lab. "Even if you inspire one kid to physics, it's
worth it," he said.
A Tesla coil releases a high-voltage charge.
By Brandon H. McNaughton
For the Daily
Energy filled the room, literally and figura-
tively, when Warren Smith, the supervisor of the
University's Physics Demonstration Lab, powered
up a 500,000-volt Tesla coil. The coil spewed
electrical arcs more than three feet into the air.
Then, reminiscent of a Star Wars character
armed with a light saber, Smith waved around
an eight-foot fluorescent light bulb that was
remotely powered by a coil from more than 20
feet away. "It's great to see that spark kindle,"
Smith said about the 30 sixth-grade students
Saturday's pro-
gram, the SPS
In-reach meets
five more times
a year, with the
last meeting tak-
ing place in Ohio
at Cedar Point.
At Cedar Point,
the students ride
roller coasters and
fill out worksheets
about the physics
of what they just
experienced. Sue
Palen, a sixth-
grade teacher in
Courtesy of Katherine Alatalo
LSA senior Jacob Bourjaily lights corn starch to grab the attention of
his sixth-grade spectators in the Dennison Building Saturday.
MIKE HULSEBUS/
Daily
Google has
offered to
archive 00
million books
from the
University
library free
of charge.
Google will
also archive
other librar-
ies includ-
ing Harvard
University.
Amid debate, Tasers
garner nationwide use
By Abby Stassen
Daily Staff Reporter
Would you rather be hit with a nightstick,
sprayed in the face with pepper spray or get
zapped with electricity?
Ann Arbor Police Department Chief Dan
Oates said that compared to other methods,
Taser can be a favorable option. "I've been hit
with the Taser, mace and a nightstick, and I'll
take the Taser any day."
More police departments nationwide are
choosing to use Taser guns to subdue unruly sus-
pects. The Ann Arbor Police Department was
one of the first agencies in Michigan to supply
all of its patrol officers with Tasers. But deaths
related to Tasers have some people questioning
whether they are safe enough to use.
Tasers are small guns that can be used to stop
threats up to 15 feet away using a 50,000-volt
electric shock. They can also be used in less seri-
ous situations in a dry-stun mode, which is a less
severe, localized shock. The AAPD usually uses
the dry stun mode;Oates said.
The AAPD bought 10 Taser guns from Taser
International, the lone producer of Taser guns for
police departments in the United States, in July
2003. After training the special tactics unit to use
the guns in a pilot program, the department pur-
chased guns for all of its officers. "We think it's
been a very reasonable, less-lethal force option,
and we've had success with it," Oates said.
Oates added that Tasers are used in situations
in which the use of force is a reasonable and nec-
essary option and other choices, such as hand-
to-hand combat with a suspect or using other
weapons, could result in injury.
However, the adoption of Tasers into police
departments hasn't been completely smooth
sailing. As of November 2004, more than 70
people in the United States and Canada have
died after being subdued with Tasers, according
to Amnesty International. On Nov. 25, a 47-year-
old Michigan man died after being shocked with
a Taser by state police officers.
Some doctors said the shock emitted from
stun guns can increase the risk of complica-
tions for suspects who are severely agitated
or on drugs when they are shocked, as well as
increase the risk of heart failure. However, no
extensive studies have been done to determine if
the deaths were directly related to the Tasers or
if they resulted from other factors.
Amnesty International has asked all local,
state and federal authorities to stop'tising Tas-
ers and electroshock weapons until a more
detailed study about their use and effects can
be completed, but no authorities have stopped
using Tasers yet. In the meantime,' Amnesty
International is asking them to only use Tasers
in situations where the only other alternative
is deadly force and to enforce strict guidelines
on the use of the Tasers.
Taser International's website assures that
its stun guns are safe to use and have no last-
ing effects. "The problem we're wrestling
with nationally is when to use it," Oates said.
"We've had a couple usages where we refined
our policy, and it's an ongoing evaluation by
the police industry."
GOOGLE
Continued from page 1
The University library is one of the few research
libraries that invites people to walk off the street and
come in, Wilkin said.
"Now it becomes as easy as searching in Google,"
he said. "Many more people around the world will
have access to the collection, and our own people will
have more convenient access."
Wilkin said he finds it hard to imagine any draw-
backs, especially because the University will not be
responsible for funding. Also, the scanning will be
completed in University facilities so the materials will
be missing from the shelves for a minimum amount of
time. The University will maintain ownership of all the
digitized files.
In a news release, University President Mary
Sue Coleman said that the partnership will
advance the school's mission as a great public
university that shares knowledge within the aca-
demic community and beyond. "It is an initia-
tive with tremendous impact today and endless
future possibilities," she said.
Courant said the University has been wondering for
years how they were going to eventually convert all of
their material into a digital form.
"Now we have this partner who can do it for us in
half a dozen years," he said. "It's wonderful for the
University and for the world of ideas."
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