4A - Thursday, October 22, 2009
The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
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GARY GRACA
EDITOR IN CHIEF
ROBERT SOAVE
EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR
COURTNEY RATKOWIAK
MANAGING EDITOR
Unsigned editorials reflect the official position of the Daily's editorial board. All other signed articles
and illustrations represent solely the views of their authors.
Science sells
Venture Center a good way to bring 'U' innovation to world
T he University has already established itself as a hub of
research and innovation. On Oct. 13, the University is
already among the top 10 colleges in the country for cre-
ating startup companies based on university-licensed inventions
and technologies. And with the creation of the new Michigan
Venture Center, the University will be able to do an even bet-
ter job of bridging the gap between innovation and enterprise.
Researchers and professors interesting in marketing their inno-
vations should take full advantage of the Michigan Venture Cen-
ter and give the state economy a much-needed edge in the field
of new technology.
The Michigan venture Center will,
according to a University press release,
"help faculty inventors create business
plans, assess a technology's commercial-
ization potential, deal with intellectual
property issues, attract investors and
acquire gap funding to enhance the mar-
ket appeal of a new technology." Jim
O'Connell, the associate director for busi-
ness formation at the University's Office of
Technology Transfer, will lead the venture
Center. He hopes to increase the number
of average science-based startups per year
at the University from nine to 12 by giving
professors new incentives and opportuni-
ties for research.
The launching of the Venture Cen-
ter comes just two weeks after President
Mary Sue Coleman announced in her State
of the University address that the Univer-
sity would put more money into research
than ever before. The Venture Center is a
great opportunity to turn the innovations
that grow out of this research money into
benefits for the University, and by exten-
sion the state economy and consumers.
Researchers who want to bring their prod-
ucts to the market will now have a better
resource to connect them with businesses
that can sell the product. More start-
ups will bring enormous benefits to the
University's reputation as a place of new
developments, as well as offering real tech-
nological improvements for the world.
After all, science-based startups are just
what Michigan needs to carve out a niche
for itself in a modernizing U.S. economy.
Bringing the best and brightest minds to
the state and then offering them resources
to market their innovations will contribute
to the transformation of the state economy
into one that favors science and research.
Michigan's economy could certainly use
the boost that the Venture Center will pro-
vide.
And when scientists are given the
resources to make their developments
widely available, everyone wins. New
technologies are constantly revolutioniz-
ing the world and improving the quality of
life. Scientific leaders - like the University
- can always use more programs like the
Venture Center to close the gap between
the development and marketing stages of
innovation.
Professors and researchers who are
interested in patenting their work should
take full advantage of what ;he Venture
Center has to offer. Some of the country's
most interesting and important research is
being done here at the University, and the
Venture Center will help these exciting
innovations make the leap from prototype
to reality.
I don't want to be a Roman Catholic,
there was a Reformation, you remember."
- Bishop Martyn Minns, commenting on his lack of confidence in the Roman Catholic Church's plan to accept
conservative Anglicans back into the faith, as reported yesterday by The New York Times.
CHRIS KOSLOWSKI I E-MAIL CHRIS AT CSKOSLOW@UMICH.EDU
Did you see Paranormal Yeah And so few resources Im nottryingany arder
Actviv? You it would be an
6 Yeah, don't u wish you ero heir work
could make somethin so Typica.
The weighty woes ofcollege
students, we ask ourselves ily servesvegan andvegetarian meals, cult to resist the urge to speed up to
lots of difficult questions like, something I didn't know before sign- show them who's boss, which usually
"What do I want to major in?" ing up to live there for eight months results in embarrassment and lung
and, "Will I be able of my life. Veganism/vegetarianism failure. Not to mention it's going to be
to get a job in this isn't the worst invention of human- winter awfully soon, so you'd have to
economy?" But as ity when it comes to eating (there's start going to the gym to run.
always, the most always cannibalism), but because I'm The gym. It's always been an awk-
pressing inquiry set in my ways as a carnivore I spend ward place for me and, I imagine,
remains, "Since far too much time eating cheap, many others. I think it's because I
when did I get two unhealthy food options: Wendy's, can't grunt impressively. If you can't
chins?" Panda Express, Jimmy John's. It's grunt while lifting weights you'll feel
weight gain: the terrible. They're all so good, I never really wimpy and probably end up
questions abound. WILL know which one to choose. leaving. You can try to jog there, too,
What can we do So, if you're like me, or if you spend
about it? Is it more GRUNDLER way too much time studying while
prevalent in col- eating Snickers, or if you live in a
lege males or col- dorm and enjoy fourth helpings, or Face it, gaining
lege females? How unhealthy is dorm yada yada yada, who's to blame? Well,
food? Maybe my extra weight is just yourself, I guess, and maybe the fed- w elght at college is
muscle mass? (Fat chance.) When eral government a bit, but not really
ordering off the Wendy's dollar menu I don't think. I'm just an English unavoidable.
in the Union, is it 99 cents for a Junior major.
Bacon Cheeseburger or is it $1.06? But what's to be done? Depress-
(It's $1.06.) Isn't that annoying when ingly little.
you just want to pay a dollar? (Heck For instance, you could join Intra- but it's so boring going around in cir-
yeah it is!) mural Sports, which is what I decided cles, lapping old people. It's depress-
Of course, maybe you're abnor- to do this year, but you don't get much ing, really, especially because they
mal and don't eat cheeseburgers, but exercise. I played soccer only once a beam at you in that old person way
it's a rare student who doesn't get a week and late at night, and the other every time you pass them.
bit heavier from something - lack team and my own teammates laughed. Look, let's just forget about this
of exercise, energy drinks during , at me throughout each game because whole weightthing and losing weight,
study sessions, journeys to vending I usually put the ball in the wrong net ok? It's too much of a hassle. Just keep
mahines late at night, alcohol fp, ro ggcident. This caused me to just askingyomirselfAbout your majoraso
breakfast, etc. I'll admit that I am eat more after each game. the economy and easy stuff like that.
not that student. Even I'm getting If you're not the best athlete you After all, if you concentrate on that
heavier, dear readers, and when I could consider a more solitary exer- and end up financially successful,
get heavier I can safely assume that cise, like jogging around campus. you can hire a personal trainer and...
many of you are, too, so that I can feel Well, peoplestilljudge you, especially you know? I'm hungry. Does anyone
better about myself. if you insist on wearing spandex, and have six cents? Because I only have a
Now, I don't want to point any fin- every now and again you see REALLY dollar.
gers, but it's not really my fault. You nerdy joggers who weargoggles. And,
see, my student housing (like I'm just of course, when a faster person (every - Will Grundler can be
going to tell you where I live) primar- other jogger) passes ypu it's diffi- reached at wgru@umich.edu.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR:
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include the writer's full name and University affiliation. Letters are edited for style, length, clarity
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Send letters to tothedaily@umich.edu.
Ignoring balloon boy
40
a
EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS:
Nina Amilineni, Emad Ansari, Emily Barton, Ben Caleca, Michelle DeWitt, Brian Flaherty,
Emma Jeszke, Raghu Kainkaryam, Sutha K Kanagasingam, Erika Mayer, Edward McPhee,
Harsha Panduranga, Alex Schiff, Asa Smith, Brittany Smith, Radhika Upadhyaya,
Rachel Van Gilder, Laura Veith
SEND LETTERS TO: TOTHEDAILY@UMICH.EDU
a
U Housing deserves more
credit than Caleca gave it
TO THE DAILY:
In his column, Ben Caleca offered some
thoughtful ideas (Going green, the slow way,
10/13/2009). He understated, however, the
investment in locally grown foods by Univer-
sity Housing. Offering more than an occasional
sustainable meal, Residential Dining Services
has been expanding its efforts to regularly
include local produce and food products - first
in East Quad and now in nearly all dining hall
menus.
Despite the challenge of Michigan's growing
season - shorter than the local season for UNC
HARUN BULJINA
Chapel Hill, which Caleca held out as an example
- local produce and products account for nearly
20 percent of the RDS food budget. We hope to
increase our selection of local foods as we devel-
op additional contracts with local farmers and
producers.
We think it is supportive of Caleca's perspec-
tive to mention that University Housing has been
seriously engaged in promoting recycling and
sustainable activities in the residence halls and
Northwood Community for many, many years.
With the support of the students, we can, and
shall, continue to do more. For more information,
visit http://www.housing.umich.edu/dining/
freshmi.html.
Peter Logan
University Housing Communications Director
E-MAIL HARUN AT BULJINAH@UMICH.EDU
f you were away from TV dur-
ing Fall Break, you might have
missed the ridiculous drama of
The Colorado Bal-
loon Incident. The
Heene family of
Fort Collins, Colo.,
ignited a media
firestorm after the
family's father,
Richard Heene,
told authorities in
a desperate 911 call
that his six-year- CHRIS
old son, FalconK
was floating away KOSLOWSKI
aboard a home-
made flying saucer-
shaped balloon that came loose from
its mooring in the Heenes' backyard.
After a 50-mile journey, the balloon
crash-landed, but little Falcon was
nowhere to be found.
Thinking the boy might have fallen
out during the flight, law enforce-
ment launched a search and soon
discovered Falcon had been hiding in
the Heenes' garage the entire time.
Richard Heene claimed he sincerely
thought his son had climbed aboard
the saucer, but in a Wolf Blitzer inter-
view, Falcon let slipthatthe family had
put on the whole event "for the show."
The next morning, in a live interview
with NBC's Today Show, Falcon vom-
ited when his father tried to justify
his son's comments. Now the Larimer
County sheriff's office is certain that
the Heenes, who previously appeared
on ABC's reality show "Wife Swap,"
faked the whole incident asa publicity
stunt to market themselves for their
own reality TV series.
The Colorado Balloon Incident is
just the latest media frenzy seemingly
motivated by a desire for reality fame.
You might recall Nadya Suleman, the
"Octo-mom," who signed a deal with
a European production company ear-
lier this year to star her own real-
ity show. She gave birth to octuplets
conceived through in-vitro fertiliza-
tion paid for in government disability
money.
I'm sure many of us see the atten-
tion Balloon Boy and Octo-mom
receive and lament how reality tele-
vision has tainted a medium we once
couldtrust. Television, includinglocal
and cable news, has transformed into
its own brand of yellow journalism,
where sensation trumps substance
every time. I'm baffled how Suleman
and the Heene family so easily hood-
winked us all into giving them atten-
tion. Some might blame the public
for lapping up celebrity gossip, shock
news and soap opera programming.
Others might impugn the networks
for shoving this garbage down our
throats. Almost universally, though,
people think this phenomenon of
sensationalism is a bad influence. I
disagree.
I despise Octo-mom. And as much
guilty pleasure I take from watch-
ing the Heene family train wreck,
I'm quickly tiring of them, too. In a
less perfect world, I would be forced
to endure this drivel until the next
ridiculous story broke, but thank-
fully I hold in my hands the ultimate
power in the universe - the remote
control. Over-hyped stories like these
remind me and millions of others that
we have the power to decide what we
watch and the responsibility to ques-
tion what is being presented to us as
news or truth.
The "trusted newsmen" era of
Walter Cronkite, Dan Rather and
others lulled Americans into compla-
cency. People trusted Uncle Walter
to be a one-stop shop for news. Now
with radio, television, the Internet
and hundreds of news sources within.
those different channels all compet-
ing for the public's attention, people
are better able to decide what they
consider newsworthy. Overtly sen-
sationalist reporting is easier to pick
out and avoid, and most importantly,
it exposes the hidden motivation
behind many news organizations: to
make a profit.
The more people who realize news
sources, just like anything else in our
great capitalist nation, are primar-
ily out to make a buck, the better,
smarter and more discriminating
we become as consumers of news.
You don't need me to tell you that a
smarter audience, willing to seek out
truth for themselves, is better than
the apathetic alternative. Viewers
are finally realizing that reality TV
is often anything but. Rather than
Viewers need to sift
through garbage to
get to smart news.
watching what's fed to them, smart-
er viewers decide to sift through
the trash to find programming they
appreciate. It might be annoying, but
the wisdom and experience that the
sifting helps create far outweighs the
negative effects of exposure to sensa-
tionalism.
We shouldn't forget that many'
people are actually entertained by
the real life drama of a kid-in-a-fly-
ing-saucer hoax, and that's fine. If
after a long day someone is looking
for something to make them laugh or
pique their curiosity, I have no prob-
lem with Octo-mom filling that need.
As terrible as they seem, these sensa-
tional scandals have the potential to
help everybody - as long as we keep
fresh batteries in our remotes.
- Chris Koslowski can be
reached at cskoslow@umich.edu.