The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Monday, April 13, 2009 - 7A Protestors clash with Thai troops Forty-nine people reported injured in ongoing protests BANGKOK (AP) - Thai soldiers unleashed hundreds of rounds of automatic weapons fire to clear rock-throwing anti-government protesters from a major intersec- tion in the capital in the pre-dawn darkness Monday. Forty-nine people were report- ed hurt in the first serious clash between the two sides in ongo- ing protests that have roiled this southeast Asian nation and came a day after the country's ousted prime minister called for a revo- lution. While the government has declared a state of emergency, pro- testers controlled many streets in the capital Bangkok. They had ear- lier commandeered public buses and swarmed triumphantly over military vehicles in defiance. In the starkest example of the chaos, a mob of the red-shirted protesters smashed cars carrying Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva and his aides. The clash began between 4 a.m. and 5 a.m. Monday, as troops in full combat gear lined up and advanced to disperse the protesters, according to witnesses and television footage. The soldiers fired hundreds of rounds from their M-16 automatic rifles as they advanced, though it was unclear whether they were firing at or over the protesters. Some witness- es said tear gas was also fired. The official Erawan emergency TICKETS From Page 1A ments to address the issue. "That is why our (Athletic Direc- tor) Bill Martin made sure single- game ticket prices are lower this season," he wrote. In February, Martin announced the price of student season foot- ball tickets would be $200 for the 2009 season, a decrease of an average of $1.43 per game. Regu- lar season football tickets also decreased an average of $3.57 per game, and the eight-game pack- the michigan daily WWW.800FULLER.COM (734) 769-7520 I & 2 bdrm., modern, clean, quiet 5 min. walk, MED, DENT, and Campus coordination center said 49 people were injured on both sides and taken to hospitals. Protesters set fires that were still burning 1-1/2 hours later and retreated into side streets near the Din Daeng intersection, where there is an on-ramp to the main express- way leadingnorth from the capital. The clash appeared to be an iso- lated one, taking place several miles away from the main encampment of thousands of protesters outside the prime minister's offices. Police Gen. Vichai Sangparpai said up to 30,000 demonstrators were scattered around the city. Police vans at some intersections were abandoned and looted. Pro- testers used buses to barricade sev- eral major roads. Ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, regarded by most of the protesters as their leader, called for a revolution and said he might return from exile to lead it. Thaksin fled the country last year, before a court convicted him in absentia of violating a conflict of interest law. "Now that they have tanks on the streets, it is time for the people to come out in revolution. And when it is necessary, I will come back to the country," he said in a tele- phoned message to followers out- side Abhisit's office. The message was broadcast over a video link projected on giant screens and relayed on supporters' Internet sites. Political tensions have simmered since Thaksin was ousted by a mili- tary coup in 2006 for alleged cor- ruption and abuse of power. age now costs $400. "It's a tough economic time and there's no need to increase ticket prices," Madej told the Daily in February. "We're fortunate enough that we can hold the line, and even decrease them. Tuesday's deadline is only for student season tickets, Madej said. The deadline for regular season tickets is still about a month away. "We wanted to make sure all U-M students know they still can get their tickets," Madej wrote in the e-mail. "And we also did think the spring game would help remind people too about the deadline." WIND ENERGY From Page 1A Gov. Jennifer Granholm high- lighted the Scandinavian country's experience with wind power in her weekly radio address. "Denmark leads the world in wind power technology, an indus- try employing 20,000 people in a nation with half Michigan's popu- lation," she said. "In fact, Denmark has a 2.2 percent unemployment rate." Denmarkwas completely depen- dent on imported fuel until after the 1973 oil crisis, when Danish officials resolved to find alterna- tive energy sources. "So, in a week where we saw our state's January unemployment rate rise to 11.6 percent, driven in large part by continued job losses in the automotive manufacturing sector," Granholm said in the radio address, "Denmark's story is noth- ing short of inspirational." Now at 12 percent and steadily rising, Michigan has the highest unemployment rate in the country. The state has been crippled by the decline of the auto industry, some- thing that has sped up as the coun- try falls deeper into recession. Call it lofty, or even impossible, but Granholm is hoping that the synergy oftwocrises -one aunique economic struggle for the state of Michigan and one a profoundly existential test for humanity - will create the "perfect storm" to spark much-needed economic growth and restore Michigan's place as the world's innovative manufacturing nerve center. If wind power were made more viable and, consequently, in higher demand, Michigan could build the equipmentrand infrastructure that not only Michigan - which has so much wind capture potential and currently imports 80 percent of its energy - but the whole world would have its sights on. And thanks to the near-collapse of the American auto industry, the state has more excess manufacturing capacity than any other. University alum Pete Tchoryk is just one of the innovators in Ann Arbor who has been working to improve wind energy technolo- gies. "It's a perfect scenario for (wind power in) Michigan," he said. Tchoryk's company, WindSight, is a spin-off from the Michigan Aerospace Corporation that was formed in 1996 to help commer- cialize developments of the Uni- versity's Space Physics Research Laboratory. The company has developed ultraviolet lasers that provide long-range 3D mapping of wind and atmospheric conditions for potential wind farm sites. "One of the things that I see as really critical, and this is some- thing that Michigan can really take the lead on, is in really doing a more thorough job than anyone else of doing pre-assessments of where the best locations are to do wind farms, both onshore and off- shore," Tchoryk said. WindSight's lasers and accom- panying software can simulta- neously measure wind speed, direction, temperature, den- sity and water vapor. Better site assessment translates to more reliable and efficient wind cap- ture, Tchoryk said, which makes wind power a much more attrac- tive investment. Since the lasers can take mea- surements from over 10 kilome- ters away, they can assess both on and offshore sites. "You can have our system sit- ting on land, and then map out the winds over the water," Tchoryk said. "That in particular is really useful. "Right now, it's just extremely expensive to put a tower with anemometers and weather vanes out in the middle of the water," he said. "And you have to drop a con- crete pylon. It's really outrageous- ly expensive." The funding for WindSight's technology, which was mostly developed under Michigan Aero- space, "has been quite extensive," Tchoryk said, coming primar- ily from National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the U.S. Department of Defense. Though WindSight is rela- tively new and still seeking capi- tal, Tchoryk announced in early March that the company would create about 60 jobs in Ann Arbor and elsewhere in Michigan over the next few years to start manu- facturing the systems. In hopes of funneling more money into the wind energy sec- tor, Jerry Lynch, an assistant professor in the Civil and Envi- ronmental Engineering and Elec- trical Engineering and Computer Science departments, has devel- oped a remote monitoring system for turbines that could cut costs for wind farm operators and make turbines more profitable. "Wind turbines are somewhat of a damage-prone engineered sys- tem," Lynch said. "Turbine blades may break, the turbine towers may experience some local damage and even the equipment inside the turbine is prone to damage such as the gears and the power genera- tion unit." Lynch's structural health monitoring system, whose devel- opment is funded mostly by the National Science Foundation and the University's Office of the Vice President for Research, uses wire- less micro-sensors to collect data about the structural well-being of wind turbines using "automated damage detection algorithms." "The hope is that the data we can collect will allow us to iden- tify damage before it becomes a serious concern, and we can fix that da large at said. "I term u cost eff Lync in the t. Lync los Ces Engine Univers and Str tory, be last ye Hanove sensors there. He p dia Nat Depart by the ny, to t in the future. "I S (V in T Lync sors ca "delicat able an wind et "It's power) ogy to into it," could r petitive source. Butd only wa Met Sridhar nology the wi wind tu Kota sys, In in 200 express to sha With f ment o fully d - inclu morphi accordi necessa drag, w fuel sav Kota concep like a n "Tha sitione he said The 25-30 f attache image before it becomes these are typically around 100 feet nd expensive to repair," he long - adjusts its shape continu- t actually will make long- ously as wind conditions change. se of wind turbines more The result is 15 percent more icient." energy captured by the turbine, h's technology is currently certified by Sandia National Labs. esting stages. Kota said that while the blades are h and his collaborator Car- somewhat more expensive, they nik, professor of Aerospace pay for themselves quite quickly ering and director of the from the extra energy they pro- ity's Active Aeroelasticity duce. 'uctures Research Labora- "You design a wind turbine to gan a working partnership last 25 years," he said. "You get ar with the University of your money back in two and a half 'r in Germany to test the years, and then you continue to get on running turbines 15 percent more energy." He noted that two and a half lans on working with San- years could be an overestimate, ional Laboratories, a U.S. as "additional gains from reduced ment of Energy facility run stress" on the blades resulting Lockheed Martin Compa- from his technology are difficult est the sensors on turbines to quantify. United States in the near Kota said that a number of venture capital firms are "seri- ously interested" in the Adaptive Blades, but he's put them on hold while Flexsys prepares for more ts a perfect testing, including a test on a full- scale turbine. cenario for Additionally, a handful of Uni- versity students came up with an wind power idea that combines wind capture with another revenue source - M ichigan), advertisement. Mechanical Engineering grad- choryk said. uate student Joe Belter, Business sophomore Don Tappan, Energy Systems Engineering graduate student Dave Clark and Prateek h said he hopes these sen- Chourdia, an Engineering alum n help "tip the scale" on the who graduated last fall, started e balance between profit- UrbanWind Solutions lastNovem- d not-so-profitable" in the ber as an entry for the Michigan nergy industry. Business Challenge and the Clean beneficial to make (wind Energy Prize. a more profitable technol- From their three-minute pitch entice more investment on YouTube: 'he said. "This technology "I'm sure you've seen the toys eally enhance the costcom- that are sold in amusement parks ness of wind as an energy that little kids spin in their hands. These have small strips of LEDS Iriving down costs isn't the in the outermost point that flicker iy to increase profitability. to produce some text ... imagine hanical Engineering Prof. combining this technology with rKota has developed a tech- the three blades of a helical ver- that significantly increases tical axis wind turbine. As the nd capture capability of wind rotates the blades, renew- rbines. able clean energy is not only being is the president of Flex- fed directly into nearby buildings c., a company he started and the grid, but it's also used to 0 after the U.S. Air Force power the LEDS that create kinet- ed interest in his approach it advertising space." pe-morphing technology. Although they were eliminated unding from the Depart- in the second round of the Clean f Defense, Flexsys success- Energy Prize, it ultimately led to esigned, built and tested their selection for a spring break ding a flight test - a shape- trip to San Francisco with the Col- ng aircraft wing flap that, lege of Engineering's Center for ng to Kota, provides the Entrepreneurship with about 30 try lift while also reducing other students to meet with ven- hich "directly amounts to ture capitalists and alumni. 'ings." The group was also awarded said applying the same a $1,500 "Dare to Dream" grant ts to wind turbines seemed from the Zell Lurie Institute at the atural progression. Ross School of Business fora "fea- it technology readily tran- sibility study of the possible mar- d to wind turbine blades," ket for Urban Wind Solutions," Tappan said. Flexsys Adaptive Blade, a Tappan said they plan on using oot trailing edge flap that the grant to build a table-top size 's to the turbine blade - prototype. AMAZING SUBLET AVAIL for Spring/Summer. 904 Church St. prkg, lndry, big lawn, price neg 810-772-9691 FREE SUBLET FINDER. studio-3 bedrooms; 19 locations to choose from. (734) 741-9300 www.annarborapartments.net MAY - AUG Sublet. 726 5. State. 2 bdrm 2-3 ppl. heat/H20/direc t v intl. fully furn. $350/person or best offer. Right near bus stop. 513-315-6273. estesb@umich.edu ser v ices 080 HOME MADE SWEETS delivered Six days a week- To order visit home.comcast.net/-sweetswithlove/site THESIS EDITING- LANGUAGE, organization, format. 25 yrs. U-H exp. 996-9566 or writeon@iserv.net WRITE YOUR LIFE STORY! 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Students, apply @ telefund.umich.edu or 763.4400. SCOREKEEPER'S SPORTS GRILL & Pub now hiring talented, hardworking individuals for our wait and kitchen staff, and floorman. No exp. necessary. Apply in person at 310 Maynard, Ann Arbor. 734-995-0100. !!!BARTENDING!!! $300 /day poten- tial, Age 18+ ok. No exp. necessary, training provided. 800-965-6520 x 125. LAB INTERNSHIP FULL-time in- ternships in rheumatology research available for spring/summer semesters. Duties may include: signal transduc- tion, gene therapy studies, cell culture, proliferation, chemotaxis, ELISA, IHC, western blotting, protein purification, in vivo studies, lab org & maint, reagent prep, data entry/analysis. Prefer some lab experience. Contact axilla@umich.edu with resume (pdf). summer "p~ye 093 CANCER RESEARCH SUMMER INTERNSHIP PROGRAM (CaRSIP) As part of its Cancer Biology Training Program, the University of Micbigan Comprehensive Cancer Center, in part with funding from the National Insti- tutes of Health (NIH) is providing expo- sure to cancer research for highly moti- vated and talented college undergradu- ates. This program will give the suc- cessful applicants an opportunity to ex- plore potential careers in the field of cancer. Interns are paid a stipend of $4,500 for ten weeks during the sum- mer and are aimed at students who are completing their sophomore or junior undergraduate year this spring. In keeping with the terms of the NIH grant, we especially encourage applica- tions from individuals from minority groups that are currentlyunderrepre- sented in biomedical and behavioral research. The deadline for application is 17 April 2009. Your application must be up- loaded at the following site: http://www.cancer.med.umich.edu/pro- fessionals/summer internship.shtml Questions about the program? Please email La Cheryl Wicker at lwicker@umich.edu WORK ON MACKINAC Island this Summer - Make life long friends. The Island House Hotel and Ryba's Fudge Shops are looking for seasonal help in all areas: Front Desk, Bell Staff; Wait Staff, Sales Clerks, and Baristas. Hous- ing, bonus, and discounted meals avail- able. Call Ryan 1 (800)626 - 6304. www.theislandhouse.com START-UP From Page 1A The website, MyBandstock. com, enables users to buy $1 "shares" in a band. Investors are rewarded with various perks, like early CD releases, backstage pass- es and band T-shirts. The company's founders like to think of it as more of a movement than a business. As the digital world has changed the way people acquire and experience music, the Recording Industry Association of America and thetraditional record labels it represents have come under fire for clinging to a business model many see as obsolete. MyBandstock, like many other companies, hopes to fill the void with a new vision for the music industry - an industry that School of Music, Theatre & Dance junior Drew Leahy, the company's presi- dent, called "an entrepreneurial playground." "Everyone is kind of scrambling around trying to figure out how to monetize the music industry,"Leahy said. "We feel that selling stock in a band is the best way for an artist to raise money from their fan base." The idea for MyBandstock was borntwosummersago,whenthen- Michigan State University student Kevin Pritchard wondered aloud to Leahy what it would be like to buy stock in a band and speculate on its future. Leahy said the two of them soon realized that, due to regulations, issuingactual securities with equi- ty would be out of the question. He mentioned the idea to Evan Frankfort, a California producer with whom Leahy was interningat Would Work Sound in Los Angeles, and it made a distinct impression. "He was like 'I can't stop think- ing about the idea,' " Leahy said. "He got his entertainment lawyer involved, and we just started writ- ing up proposals and going after it." Pritchard, Leahy and Frank- fort rounded up some others for graphic design, Web development, finance and marketing roles. They got their initial funding the same way many bands do. "We bootstrapped," he said. "There were 15 of us and we raised money for the website to basically get a living, working platform." The site, which Leahy estimates took over 2,000 hours of coding, designing and tinkering before it was ready, officially launched Jan. 15 of this year. Along with Leahy, most of MyBandstock's operations are overseen by Business juniorBobby Matson and Engineering senior John-Michael Fischer. Leahy said the three of them make up "the vision, the busi- ness brain and the tech brain," respectively. For Matson, who began work- ing with MyBandstock in January of last year, the experience has changed the context of his busi- ness school education. He said a lot of people in the undergraduate business program "just take the classes to get the 'A,' and they focus on the GPA." "I think about how these con- cepts can help MyBandstock liter- ally every day," he said. Matson was admitted to the Marcel Gani Internship, a program through the Zell Lurie Institute at the Business School that pays stu- dents to execute their own busi- ness plans during the summer. Leahy and Matson said they plan on using this summer to expand the reach of the busi- ness. Primarily, they will focus on securing more band partnerships. Right now, there are only eight bands using the service, and not all of them have attracted invest- ment in their shares. The business is nowhere near profitable yet, but in time, the young entrepreneurs believe it will grow. They would like to attract seed investment by the time they gradu- ate next year, so that they can hire four to six full-time developers. They said they're confident that they can attract the capital they're seeking if they can achieve the right amount of growth and sta- bility. That means working long hours, Leahy said, "adding artists, marketing, getting out there." PROFESSOR From Page 1A ment, wrote in an e-mail interview that he could not comment on Eli- av's return to the classroom. Though University Spokes- woman Kelly Cunningham said she was also unable to comment on Eliav's case specifically, she explained the University's policy pertaining to staff members with criminal records. "There is no policy that lays out a blanket prohibition of hiring people who have criminal records because that would be illegal," Cunningham said. Cunningham further explained that the decision made by the Uni- versity is then based on the crime committed and the professor's responsibilities as a teacher. "We have to look at the connec- tion between the person's employ- ment responsibilities and the crime they committed," she said. Cunningham explained that whether or not the person in ques- tion is applying for a faculty posi- tion or is already a professor, it is the actual criminal record that is taken into question. Based on this policy, Eliav's charge of a misdemeanor, using a computer to commit a felony, was the only thing reviewed by the University, not the initial felony charge of prostitution/accosting and solicitation that was eventu- ally dropped. A number of Eliav's former stu- dents said they believe his person- al past should not interfere with his teaching responsibilities. LSA freshman Reed McNa- mara, who took a class taught by Eliav in fall 2008, said as long as the scandal did not affect him in the classroom, there would be no reason he would not be able to teach effectively again in the new semester. "He was a good teacher dur- ing the semester," McNamara said. "Unless (the case) affected his teaching, I don't see why he couldn't continue." LSA freshman Cassie Hazelip, also a former student of Eliav's, said she believed that the separa- tion between professional and pri- vate life should keep the case from interferingwith Eliav's teaching. "I think teaching and what you do outside of teaching should be kept separate," Hazelip said. "If the University can separate those two, then the students should be able to as well." Many students, however, admitted they knew very little about the controversy that was made public in December. Both McNamara and Hazelip said they knew some of the details about the case concerning Eliav and the female law student. LSA sophomore Andrew Dick- son, who also took a class taught by Eliav in the fall, said he didn't know much about the case, though he said he felt Eliav was an adequate teacher and doubted the case would affect his teaching abilities. "I'm not too familiar with the case, but I thought he was a good teacher," Dickson said. "But from a moral standpoint I can't really say if I think he should return, because I don't really know the details." HANDY WITH A CAMERA? JOIN DAILY MULTIMEDIA. E-mail davazad@umich.edu