The Wolverines bring in their biggest freshman class in a quarter century FACEOFF 2007 Scary That you might not have seen The B-side 131119n BaI Thursday, October 25, 2007 CHEMISTRY WEEK michigandaily.com aph ris at 'U'not as high MRSA causing worries across country By MARA GAY Daily Staff Reporter Adrug-resistanttypeofstaphinfection-known by the acronym MRSA - caused alarm across the country after a Virginia high school student died from the infection earlier this month. But Uni- versity of Michigan health officials say the staph infection is nothing new and should not be cause for panic on campus. A staph infection is a strain of bacteriathat can live on the skin without harm but can become a problem if it enters the body through a cut or scrape. Although they are contagious and staph infec- tions can pass through any break in the skin, even a microscopic cut, covering up the infection is usu- ally enough to prevent other people from getting a staph infection from casual contact, said Dr. Rob- ert Ernst, medical director of University Health Service. Ernst said that while the infection can be more difficult to treat than other strains of staph, it is rarely fatal. "There is no question that the student in Virgin- ia has raised awareness of the infection, but this is not anew bug," Ernst said. Dr. Robert Winfield, the health services direc- tor, said UHS has been aware of MRSA for years. In 2005, UHS carried out its own study of staph infections at the University and found 24 cases of MRSA, all of which were treated successfully.. Since then, UHS looks for MRSA as part of every staph infection treatment. "Now every staph infection is tested for the MRSA strain," Winfield said. Although UHS does send out mass e-mails about flu vaccinations and immediate health concerns, Winfield said UHS has no plans to use e-mail to address MRSA because the infections still remain relatively infrequent at the University. "At this point, it would raise alarm in the pub- lic," Winfield said. "If we had a cluster of them, it'd be different, but I always worry about wearing out the welcome mat with e-mails. It's a balance." Fears were heightened after this month's Jour- nal of the American Medical Association reported an increase in the number of deadly MRSA infec- See STAPH, Page 9A ANTI-ZIONIST CONTROVERSY Press keeps Pluto contract Distribution deal was in question because of controversy over British publisher's anti-Israel book By ANDY KROLL Daily StaffReporter The University of Michigan Press executive committee announced yesterday that it will con- tinue its distribution contract with left-wing Brit- ish publisher Pluto Press. A statement released by University spokeswom- an Kelly Cunningham said the board unanimously agreed to maintain its contract with the London- based publisher under existing contract terms. The board plans to develop guidelines for its distribution contracts, keeping in mind "the principle. of freedom of expression," the state- ment said. Sales of Pluto Press books represented 16 per- cent -$918,000 - of-the University Press's total revenue in the fiscal year that ended June 30, Cun- ningham said. Anne Beech, managing director of Pluto Press, praised the University Press for continuing its contract with Pluto, describing the decision as "brave." "The University itself was quite resolute, and we admire, them for that," Beech said. "They really stuck to their guns in this debate." The debate surrounding the press's contract with Pluto involves its distribution of the book "Overcoming Zionism," written by Bard College Prof. Joel Kovel. "Overcoming Zionism" argues that Zionism has created an apartheid-like racist state in Israel and that a single, secular, democratic state is the only See PRESS, Page 7A BENJI DELL/-Daily LSA sophomore Stephen Martin watches the reaction after dropping an M&M into a tube of potassium chlorate on the Diag yes- terday. Martin, a liaison to the American Chemistry Society, was promoting Chemistry Week with fellow society members. LSA CONCENTRATIONS Long effort results in new minors ROLLING GREEN New minors available in chem, Peace and Social Justice By JESSICA VOSGERCHIAN Daily StaffReporter After years of lobbying by a Residen- tial College alum, LSA Student Gov- ernment and Chemistry Department professors, LSA has begun offering six new academic minors. Five of the majors are in chemistry-related fields. The other is the University's first peace stud- ies concentration. Peace and Social Justice, offered through the Residential College and open to all LSA students .except RC Social Science concentrators, incorpo- rates courses from several fields, includ- ing environmental studies and political science, that deal with social inequality and resolving conflicts. The minors created in the Chemistry Department - chemistry, biochemistry, chemical physics, chemical measure- ment science and polymel chemistry - are the first minors offered in the field. The minors are not open to students already concentrating in chemistry and biochemistry concentrations. The Peace and Social Justice minor is the result of two years of campaigning by Residential College alum Will Trav- ers and members of LSA Student Gov- ernment. Travers began pushing for the cre- ation of the minor in 2005. His goal was to establish the minor at the University as part of the senior project he devel- oped fof his Individualized Concen- See MINORS, Page 9A INTERNATIONAL SCHOLARSHIPS 'U' leads nation in Fulbright awards cHANEL VON HABSBURG-LoTHRINGEN/Daily The Ann Arbor Transportation Authority introduced a new fleet of hybrid electric buses yesterday. Each bus runs on a mixture of soybean oil and diesel gasoline to help cut down on carbon emissions. The AATA plans to implement 1S hybrid electric buses by Oct. 31. Alleged MSA hackers arraigned 37 Yale University. Of the 119 University of of 119 applicants Michigan applicants last year, 31 percent win grants received the prestigious grant. The Fulbright Program, sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, is the By SARA LYNNE THELEN largest international exchange program Daily StaffReporter in the United States. It offers awardees fully-funded professional and research The University of Michigan had more experience in 150 countries. Fulbright winners than any other uni- Amy Kehoe, the Fulbright coordina- versity this year. tor for the University of Michigan, said The University had a school-record competition for the award is intense and 37 grant winners, 10 ahead of runner-up the application process is complicated. Students must apply to a specific coun- try and be proficient in the language of their desired destination. They also have to write two pages about the purpose of their work there and a two-page person- al statement. All applicants used to go through an interview process to help them in craft- ing their applications, but this option was eliminated for undergraduate students at the University of Michigan this year because there aren't enough faculty nd See FULBRIGHT, Page 3A By DAVE MEKELBURG Daily News Editor Michigan Student Assembly Rep. Anton Vuljaj and Engineering senior Joel Alan Sch- weitzer were arraigned yesterday in Washt- enaw County Trial Court in connection with a web attack during the 2006 MSA elections. They each face charges of use of a comput- er to commit a crime - a felony that carries penalties of up to four years in prison and a $5,000 fine - and interference with an elec- tronic communication device, a high court misdemeanor that carries penalties of up to two years in jail and a $1,000 fine. Both students were released on personal recognizance, which means they didn't have to pay a fine to stay out of jail but could face steeper penalties if they fail to show up at their preliminary hearing, DPS spokeswom- an Diane Brown said. The charges stem from a March 2006 mci- dent in which someone attacked the website of See MSA, Page 9A TODAY'S HI 59 WEATHER LO:48 GOT A NEWS TIP? Calf 734-763-2459 or e-mail news@michigandaily.com and letus know. 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