Tuesday, December 6, 2005 News 3 Coke Coalition Campaign protests outside Fleming THIRD SEASON OF 'FAMILT GUY' AS OVER ON D-VL.. PAGE 8 Opinion 4 Sports 9 Chris Zbrozek: executing an innocent Three Icers to don red, white and blue One-/undred-ifteen years ofedtormlfreedom 11,111 OHIO ------------------------ -- - ------- - ---- www. michigandaiy. com Ann Arbor, Michigan Vol. CXVI, No. 43 02005 The Michigan Daily Daily responds to critics A. t about the same time I started writing for the Daily more than three years ago, a number of student groups launched a boycott of the paper. They criticized our coverage of minorities and said the Daily was not a comfortable place for minority students to work. More than three years later, members of the campus chapter of the NAACP have made similar charges, specifi- JASON cally chastising PESICK me and other edi- tors for allowing a Editor in Chief provocative cartoon critical of affirmative action to run on the editorial page. The editorial page, which runs on page four every day, serves as a forum for campus debate. The columns, cartoons, viewpoints and letters that run on the right side of the page do not represent the views of the Daily's editors or its editorial board. The staff editorials on the left side of the page, however, represent the views of the editorial board. For years on the left side of the page, that editorial board has consis- tently supported affirmative action. But the editorial board's support of affir- mative action does not mean that we force all of our cartoonists and writers to agree with that position. In fact, if the editorial page is to remain credible to our readers and to its mission to serve as a forum for debate, we must allow a variety of view- points to appear on the page. One of the reasons the editorial page supports the use of affirmative action - indeed the argument the University's legal team used before the U.S. Supreme Court - is that a racially and ethnically diverse campus facilitates an important part of the educational experience students receive on campus. We are more likely to have our own beliefs challenged and to be exposed to a wide variety of views if not everyone looks alike and if not everyone grew up in the same neighborhood. The theory is that we can learn from each other, not just our textbooks. But for that theory to hold true, it requires constructive interaction between members of a diverse student body. That is why I am so concerned about the harsh reaction to the cartoon. College campuses should host a free exchange of competing ideas, not gardens of * groupthink. As part of an opinion that has become a cornerstone of any interpretation of the First Amendment, Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes wrote that "the best test of truth is the power of the thought to get itself accepted in the com- petition of the market." Anyone with an idea cannot maintain the superiority of that idea if he shields it from competing ideas. Censorship does not strengthen arguments. Rather, it damages their credibility. Instead of saying the cartoon should not See PESICK, page 7 Hopkins chosen as fire4 Former Lansing fire chief is Ann Arbor's fourth fire chief in the last five years By Jeremy Davidson Daily Staff Reporter Ann Arbor has a new fire chief again. Ann Arbor's City Council unanimously approved Samuel Hopkins as Ann Arbor's fire chief last night. Hopkins will be Ann Arbor's fourth fire chief in the past five years. Representatives from the city and the Ann Arbor Fire Depart- ment said Hopkins is a well-quali- fied candidate and a good match for the city. "Mr. Hopkins was, from the day he put his name in, one of the top candidates for the job," Mayor John Hieftje said. "Everyone has spoken very highly of him," he added. Hopkins served as chief of the Lansing Fire Department from 1987 to 1994, starting out as a firefighter in 1965 and moving up the ranks. Hopkins said he is excited to work with the AAFD, which he cited as one of the most important reasons he chose to take the position. c!hief He said he worked well with the AAFD while consulting for the department. "It seemed like a good fit," Hopkins said. City Council members and the AAFD echoed Hopkins's senti- ment. "He is an outstanding candi- date," said Councilman Leigh Greden (D-Ward 3). "Sam was the top choice of both senior city managers and the fire union leadership." Councilman Stephen Rapunda- lo (D-Ward 2) agreed, "I think he's very well quali- fied to be the next leader of the fire department," he said. Hopkins said he is not bring- ing an agenda to Ann Arbor but is excited to start working with firefighters in the city. Andy Box, president of the International Association of Fire Fighters, Local 693, said Hop- kins is an experienced leader who will do great things for the community. "(Hopkins) will accomplish goals for the organization and pro- vide exceptional services to the City of Ann Arbor and its citizens and maintain a positive working environment for his employees," Box said. "We are very, very happy to have Sam Hopkins coming in as fire chief," Hieftje said. ALEX DZIADOSZ/ Daily Samuel Hopkins, Ann Arbor's new fire chief, poses In front of a fire truck in an Ann Arbor Fire Department station yesterday. Hopkins was approved as the city's new fire chief at last night's City Council meeting. U' takes on tech tra University now seventh among schools receiving most patents By Bo He Daily Staff Reporter Traditional technology powerhouses will be facing serious competition in the near future for supremacy in the realm of technology transfer from the University. Technology transfer is the sale and licensing of technologies developed by a school. The University posted record profit growth for fiscal year 2005 in technology transfer revenue. Profits jumped by 18 percent, or $5 million, bringing total licensing revenues for the year to $16.7 million. The University's Technology Transfer Office reported 287 inventions, 86 license agreements and seven startup firms this fiscal year. During the past five years, the University's tech transfer efforts have resulted in more than 40 startups. The importance of such endeavors lies in their ability to help the Ann Arbor area soften the blow of Michigan's eco- nomic slump during the past five years. "For 2005, ... (tech transfer) went as well, if not better, overall than the last two years," said Ken- neth Nisbet, executive director of the Tech Transfer Office. "We have made terrific progress with such a large increase." But the University still has some catching up to do before it can join the ranks of tech transfer giants. Traditionally, schools such as Stanford and the California Institute of Technology on the West Coast and Columbia University and MIT on the East Coast have dominated tech transfer. Even though the University has stepped up its efforts, its revenue is still dwarfed by the earnings of programs such as MIT's, which recorded a FY 2005 profit of $46 million. MIT's tech transfer pro- nsfer powerhouses gram also reported 20 startup firms for this fiscal most recent period for which data are available, th year, compared to the University's seven. Department of Commerce's Patent and Trademar "Beyond the initial difficulty associated with Office reported that the University received the se) licensing technology to such early-stage compa- enth most patents among U.S. universities, at 67. nies, it's hard to compare with other top universities The California Institute of Technology led th because resources are such a major problem in the national rankings with more than double the Un Midwest region," Nisbet said. versity's number of patents, at 135, and showe Another difficulty confronting the University no signs of slowing down. Caltech's tech transf is how to identify quality partner companies program benefits from a large patent budget th that may become excellent prospects for licens- allows the institution to be less selective in appt ing in the future. Despite limited resources and ing for patents and aggressive in what technol the risk involved in licensing technologies, the gies it protects. University has become a major technological But even the best universities are concerne hub in the Midwest. about the price tag and viability of patents. Universities like Stanford and MIT have main- "We still have to be extremely consciou tained their edge in part because of their location, about the cost of protection and wheth with Stanford located near Silicon Valley and MIT the technology we are pursuing is a legit next door to Boston. mate candidate to be useful in the marke Even with such obstacles, the University man- place farther down the road," said Micha aged to make steady and significant progress in Slessor, licensing associate at Caltech's tech transfer during the past three years. For the See TECH TRANSFER, page he rk ;v- :he ni- ed er at y- o- ed us ter il- t- el 3 I RC profs * debate racial * preferences, Carl Cohen, RC Director Tom Weisskopf argue merits, pitfalls of affirmative action at the 'U' By Deepa Pondse Daily Staff Reporter The campus debate on affirmative action continued last night when two University professors faced off on the issue in the Chemistry Building. The Latino fraternity Lambda Theta Phi presented a debate between RC Prof. Carl Cohen, an outspoken proponent of the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative, and affirmative action supporter Tom Weisskopf, the director of the Residential College. The Michigan Civil Rights Initiative is a ballot COKE CAMPAIGN TO U': CAN THE CONTRACT What's in a name? A lot, transgender student says By Laura Frank Daily Staff Reporter For Sebastian Colon, the first day of class is always terrifying. Col6n, a first year graduate student in the School of Social Work, is a transgender student who prefers to go by his male name, Sebastin, instead of his legal female name - but he never knows by which name he will be called on the first day of class, or whether his profes- sors and classmates will understand. Even if all goes well on the first day, Col6n said he is constantly afraid his classmates will discover his female name and use it, a situ- ation that makes him both uncomfortable and sometimes fearful for his safety. I