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THE EDITOR'S NOTEBOOK with ANDREW GROSSMAN
A look at the big news events this week and how important they really are. Conveniently ranked from one to10.
3B THE JUNK DRAWER
Find out what you should be talking about
at the frat party this weekend. And what
you shouldn't.
4B TALK ABOUT A DOUBLE MAJOR
How students with children handle the
University and how the Universityhandles
students with children.
7B ARCHITECTURE WITH HEART
Why the obvious metaphor about the
new Cardiovascular Center is better left
unsaid.
8B SANTA DOESN'T FLY NORTHWEST
One student's brush with death 39,000
feet above the Pacific.
04
4
MIDEAST PEACE TALKS
condi Rice announces plansfor three-party
talks with the Israelis and the Palestinians.
Don't look for this to come up when a group of
radical anti-Israel protesters picket the Ameri- 0
can Movementfor Israel's firstmasswmeeting.
BARACKING OUT
Thejunior senatorlfrom Illinoisformed a com-
mittee to explorea 2008 presidential bid. Your
can bet that the residents ofla certain house
10 in chappequa, N.Y. area little more nervous 0
today.
COME ON BABY, TRUST ME
The University stopped considering race
in adwissions decisions, but an applicant's
race won't be hidden frow the counselors
10 conducting a "holistic" evaluation. 0
KEEP YOUR HEAD
The hanging of Saddam Hussien looked
humane compared with the execution ofthis
half-brother. The mistakes, as the Iraqi govern-
10 ment calls them, could have larger implications
5 for sectariarttensions in the region.
Iheart you
Id's OverYurHa rchitecture Column
2
0
ICED OUT
Lif e got a littlemore exciting this weekwhen
global warmingsubsided and the resulting ice
turned roads into obstacle courses. The storm
t0 has reportedly taken out powerin 200,000
homes andcaused more than 30 deaths.
SUPERHEROS DO EXIST
A man in England intervened on behalflof
police, using a samurai sword to disable the
suspect officers were trying to arrest. There's a
to iarrant outlfor the vigilante.
PERSON OF THE WEEK
EVO MORALES
rule 4: We lost the Rose
Bowl. Lose the com-
memorative shirt. rule
5: Weed dulls the senses
you need most when
you're drunk. rule 6: It
doesn't matter if you're
wearing matching gear,
jogging around campus is
not an acceptable group
activity. Do it alone.
- E-mail rule submissions to
TheStatement@umich.edu.
His modest sweaters became all the rage across Bolivia dur-
ing his 2005 presidential campaign, but President Evo
Morales's policies have been less chic. In a country
with deep ties to the coca leaf, the raw ingredient in
cocaine, Morales has made U.S. drug warriors bristle
by increasing legal production and encouraging new
coca-based products - everything from coca bread
to coca toothpaste to an "Eva Cola" soft drink. His
rhetoric may have earned him brownie points with
buddy and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, but it
won t do much to quell the violent protests in
the streets of Santa Cruz. With two dead,
more than 70 injured and critics predict-
ing that Bolivia could follow Zimbabwe's
road, Evo Cola couldn't make its market
debut soon enough.
n conversation, architects generally have
a hearty appetite for likening buildings to
human anatomy - even structures with-
out the conveniently evident symbolism that a
central cardiac clinic embodies. Buildings are
the organs of a city, and parks often act as its
lungs. Within the city, structures are routinely
and surgically transplanted from location to
location. Vibrant cities are healthy, but those
in decline are fibrous tumors. Corridors are
dubbed spines instead of hallways:Facades are
called skins or exterior membranes. And, of
course, buildings could notstand without their
structural skeletons.
One new campus building, the University
Cardiovascular Center, which is slated to open
this summer, refuses to acknowledge its obvi-
ous metaphor.
The symbolism is clearly not lost on those
involved with the project. In its press release
about the building, the University Health
System described the clinical care facility as
rising from the "heart" of the University's
medical campus and connected to other hos-
pital buildings "via artery-like passages." Dur-
ing construction, more beds were added to the
plan to meet the "surging" demand of patients
combating cardiovascular disease. The archi-
tects Shepley Bulfinch Richardson and Abbott
subtly fuel the metaphor by locating the clin-
ic's Healing Garden in the heart of the build-
ing. Yet these symbolic hints were found only
through careful searching. They're relatively
subtle compared to other Universitybbuildings,
which rush to proclaim their clever architec-
tural symbolism.
The Big House is hailed as a monument to
tradition. Weill Hall is a triumphant gateway
to campus. The new School of Public Health
STUDENT PARENTS outsidec
pace with
From page 6B won't to
Administrators are continuing to
look for ways to further subsidize FINIS
the cost of child care. Arme
For example, McAlpine said that the Con
over the coming year she plans to Issues ha
investigate the possibility of creat- cially cc
ing low-interest, interest-deferred bureauct
child care loans - similar to a normal potential
student loan - to help decrease out- sades for
of-pocket costs for student-parents. sentMay
This would allow parents to repay the Susan K
loans when they are further along in thather t
their careers and have a larger flow of of the Stt
income. Plus, their children would be recomm
older, possibly in elementary school Some
by this time, making child care costs ing mo
dramatically lower at the time they rooms i
would have to pay back the loans. been vir
Gray's subsidy of about $1,800 coy- Other
ers Andrew's child care for about two Effort
months each semester. She and her chase 1
husband have to come up with funds insurance
to cover the rest of it - all on a single dependet
salary - the lowest they've had in Kauft
almost sevenyears of marriage. HealthC
A higher subsidy could allevi- ing that1
ate their strained pocketbooks, but extendin
administrators and researchers say throught
A schematic drawing of the University Cardiovascular Center, situated in the heart of the medical campus.
building is a "crossroads" and a "tower." The
new Business School campus will be state-of-
the-art, equipped with the best in technology
and communication. North Quad Residence
Hall willbe on interactive learning experience.
When the Cardiovascular Center opens it may
be an outstanding clinic, but it will not have
an architectural identity as powerful as other
University buildings.
The facility will have neither a snappy tag-
line nor a catchy name. The clinic has decided
to pass on advertising and focus on quality. It
was a good move.
But how could they resist? Why is the Car-
diovascular Center not wholeheartedly adver-
tised as a heart? The cardiac analogy is just too
obvious and too distracting. It is the joke that
is too cheesy. It is the end of a horrible movie
where the main character explicitly tells the
audience the conspicuous subplot. Exploit-
ing the heart metaphor would have been an
in-your-face punch line. The architects and
University Health System are letting the Car-
diovascular Center speak for itself.
Placed at the awkward corner of Observa-
tory and Ann streets, the center appears short
and unassuming. This is because of the rapid,
topographic decline that surrounds the Hill
area and makes its way down to Fuller Road
throughout the Medical Campus. To put the
site in perspective: the Detroit Observatory,
currently adjacent to Alice Lloyd, was con-
structed in 1854 atop the highest point in the
immediate area and surrounded by low fields.
The portion of the Cardiovascular Center
facing the street is a valid attempt to reconcile
this plunge. Although certainly an improve-
ment over the rambling stairway that previously
negotiated the hill,the entrance to the new facil-
ity remains slightly uncomfortable with its top-
ographic constraints.A rather crazy fan-shaped
overhang projects over the pedestrian entrance
while a spiraling ramp directs cars to the park-
ing garage below ground. These elements of the
building's south side struggle to find an aesthet-
ic unity for their disparate functions. Sinking
below the views of the street, however, the rest
of the facilityiswonderfully designed.
Nestled at the foot of the hill,'the clinic is
quietly dignified. The western portion of the
building is covered with a long, curved glass
surface interrupted only by a cylindrical, glass
atrium. This elevation faces an elegantly land-
scaped exterior garden to provide solace for
both patients and visitors. This simple archi-
tecture is devoid of frivolous, symbolic lan-
guage, yet rich with straightforward solutions.
Most ofthe building's positive features areless
apparent because they are less concerned with
architecture and more related to providing
quality care.
Sometimes, the best architecture is silent to
the worldbecauseitspeaks directlytoourhearts.
The Cardiovascular Center does not dwell onits
appearance or its architectural image. Hum-
bly efficient, the facility is reaching completion
without the hype associated with many other
cutting-edge University buildings. The Univer-
sity Health System and the architects are allow-
ing the buildingto speak with its actions and not
its words. It's the perfect approach, considering
that those admitted to the clinic will care about
the building's abstract analogy only if the doc-
tors give them the chance to worry about some-
thing otherthan getting well.@0
srents in expired in May 2005. Lester Monts,
001. senior vice provost for academic
unfortu- affairs, commissioned yet another
1. committee to continue their work.
a neigh- But after May 2007, when that com-
program mittee is scheduled to disband, the
dividual University has no concrete plans to
tudents, implement the rest of the 2001 task
nmunity force's recommendations.
home to Thebureaucraticchurningshaveno
day care place in the daily interactions of most
ace their student-parents' families. Andrew is
ers and tooyoung,tooconcernedwithThomas
or longer the Tank Engine to fret about the oper-
st of cen- ating hours of his daycare center. Gray
is too busy reading textbooks, cooking
Universi- dinner and monitoring her son's asth-
ovide an matic symptoms to worry about the
forkids, installation of lactation rooms in Uni-
ent versity buildings. Their lives revolve
at at the around aworld ofcartoons,smallbicy-
rut Cou- cles and picture books.
ugh the When asked what her family does
private- for fun, Gray paused, puzzled. She
another asked Brian, who asked Andrew,
van and "What do we do for fun?" After con-
e money templating the question and sharing a
beyond burst of giggles with her son and hus-
uture of band, Gray answered.
"We can't afford fun," she said.
mandate "But we have fun somehow."*
CONT'd: Miles above the ocean, flames and prayers
AIRPLANE FIRE
From page 8B
The second announcement had
to do with our meal service. As the
pilot explained, Anchorage was
quite a bit closer to our current
location than Detroit, so to make
sure we received all the meals we
paid for, they were going to have
to serve breakfast several hours
ahead of schedule.
Northwest was sorry for any
minor inconvenience this might
have caused us.
The good news, from my per-
spective, was that the pilot had
some reason to believe the plane
would be landing after all. The
bad news was that we were still
well over an hour from dry land
- and judging by the precarious the stewardesses were probably
angle that we were flying at, I distracted by frightened guests
was not altogether convinced and preparing for a likely crash
that we were going to make it to landing, and I could probably get
a paved runway before touching away with disregarding the nor-
down. mal rules. So I decided to violate
After savoring every last bite
of my SkyChefs's French toast
breakfast, I began preparing the
myself for a crash landing in the It turns out
Pacific.
I diligently reviewed the emer- Boeing 747 is a
gency landing card to figure out1
the precise procedure for surviv- pretty durable
ing a water-based landing and
checked to make sure that there aircraft
was, in fact, a life preservation
device under my seat cushion.
There was.
It then occurred to me that the the "Fasten Seatbelt" sign and
north Pacific might be rather cold retrieve my coat and scarf from the
in late December. I reasoned that overhead compartment. I did not
want to catch a chill while wait-
ing for the rescuers to come. I also
took this opportunity to move to a
seat in an exit row. A careful read-
ing of the crash-landing-proce-
dure card had revealed that it was
likely to be quite crowded on the
inflatable rafts, and I reasoned it
would be a wise move to make sure
I was first in line for a seat. I did
not want to be too uncomfortable
waiting for the rescuers to come. It
was Christmas day, after all.
But the rescuers never had to
come. Somehow the pilot man-
aged to get the plane to Ted
Stevens International Airport,
where we were greeted by a fleet
of fire trucks and ambulances.
I think Northwest press-
ganged every available bus driv-
er in Anchorage into service
that morning to shuttle me and
150 other Northwest airlines
refugees to the hotel. We spent
Christmas day at the anchorage
Hilton waiting for a new plane
- one with engines that did not
explode into flame - to come
and take us the rest of the way to
Detroit.
The other passengers seemed
less than amused that they had
to spend Christmas in Alaska.
Because I was nearly prepared
to go down in flames to avoid a
few of my parents' guests, avoid-
ing Christmas without having to
die in the north pacific was pre-
haps the greatest gift I received
this holiday season. Thank you,
Northwest Airlines.
- Walter Nowinski
of annual increases to keep
h rising costs, award amounts
go up anytime soon.
HING THE JOB (MAYBE)
d with Courant's mandate,
nmittee on Student Parent
ad remarkable success, espe-
onsidering the University's
ratic quagmire that has
l to swallow earnest cru-
r improvement. In a memo
'31 lastyear, committeechair
aufmann proudly reported
team had tackled allbut nine
adent Parent Task Forces' 25
endations.
problems, like breast-feed-
thers' need for lactation
n campus buildings, had
tually solved.
s proved more difficult.
s to allow all students to pur-
University-sponsored health
e for themselves and their
ntshadhitaformidablebarrier.
mann's memo quoted Chief
Officer Robert Winfield say-
the University had explored
ig health insurance available
the MichiganStudentAssem-
bly - already an option students can
select - to students' dependents.
But the small number of students
who purchase it, coupled with the
phenomenon of adverse selection
(in which those who buy insurance
are often sick or expect to be sick),
squelched M-CARE's willingness
to bid on the extended contract. The
University is still considering options
to address this need.
There weresomevictories. Through
a new program, administrators dra-
matically reduced one of the most seri-
ous problems: alarge deficiency in child
care availability for younger children.
Outside of the child care center in
the hospital (which is rarely used by
student-parents because hospital staff
are given priority), there were only 12
part-time spots for toddlers in 2001.
There were no spots for infants in any
of the four child care programs run by
RackhamGraduateSchoolortheDivi-
sionofStudentAffairs. This deficitleft
many families - especially single-par-
ent families with infants - in a bind.
Using money from a U.S. Depart-
ment of Education grant, the Work/
Life Program and the Center for the
Education of Women launched the
Child Care Access Means Pa
School program in October 2
The program, despite its:
nate name, works pretty well
It's based on the model of
borhood babysitter. The1
equips, trains and licenses in
care providers. These are s
student spouses and cor
members who open their 1
six to 12 children as a mini-
center. It allows parents to pl
children (especially toddl
infants) in a smaller settingfc
hours for a fraction of the cos
ter-based care.
There are 12 homes in the I
ty network. Together they pr
additional108spaces available
increasing capacity by 25 perc
The grant money ran ou
end of September of 2005,1b
rant allocated funds throe
provost's office to carry the
home program through
two years. McAlpine. Sulli
others are working to secur
to continue the program
Fall 2007. As of now, the f
the program is uncertain.
COSPI's three-year i