Iie llidjigan0aitj Ann Arbor, Michigan Thursday, February 20, 2014 michigandaily.com ENVIRONMENT Lakes see highest ice levels after cold winter Eighty-five percent of Great Lakes currently frozen By IAN DILLINGHAM Daily News Editor As students return home for spring break, those who live in coastal regions surrounding the Great-Lakes could witness some ofsthe highest ice levels in decades. As of Wednesday, ice coverage acrosstheGreatLakeswashover- ing just above 85 percent, mean- ing only a small fraction of the surface areas of the lakes remain unfrozen, according to George A. Leshkevich, a researcher at the National Oceanic and Atmo- spheric Administration's Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory. The Ann Arbor-based NOAA lab, one of seven similar national labs, conducts the majority of the administration's Great Lakes research. The lab partners with the University's Cooperative Institute for Limnology and Ecosystems Research, which is overseen by the School of Natural Resources and Environment. CILER was founded with the goal of "fostering University and NOAA partnerships in the Great Lakes region," according to the CILER webpage. NOAA uses satellite imagery, shipping reports and aircraft observations,inconjunctionwith. computer models, to estimate the ice coverage throughout the winter months. Leshkevich said the southern lakes typically see ice levels peak around the middle to end of February, where the northern lakes see their peak around the beginning of March. . The high ice levels are likely due to the early onset of winter weather this season, combined with last month's polar vortex, which caused below-average temperatures across many of the lakes. The ice levels contrast See ICE, Page 3A Bangladeshi garrnent worker Reba Sikder, 18, and her translator and fellow survivor Kalpona Akter discuss their tragedies and new hopes and goals for better rights in Bangladeshi sweat shops. "We need these jobs but we want these jobs with dignity," said Sikder. Workers engage students Bangladeshilaborers share traumatic factory experiences By STEPHANIE SHENOUDA Daily News Editor The University's chapter of United Students Against Sweatshops, a student-led organization, hosted two Ban- gladeshi garment workers who shared their experiences about working in a clothing factory at a meeting on Wednesday. To prepare for the event, students turned an East Quad Residence Hall classroom into standing-room-only to show their solidarity with the work- ers. The move was part of a longstanding goal of encourag- ing the University to pressure their licensees to sign a legally bonding and one-of-a-kind doc- ument allowing their workers the right to refuse unsafe work- ing conditions. The group met with the President's Advisory Committee on Labor Standards and Human Rights on Wednes- day afternoon to request they require all University apparel licensees to adhere to ethical practices. The event began with a demonstration where USAS members constructed a "power map" exposing the discrepancy between the companies that produce collegiate apparel, the factory owners and the workers. They said students' voices are impactful because of the stake they have with universities, as they're the target audience for their apparel. Translated by labor orga- nizer Kalpona Akter, former worker Reba Sikder described the working conditions she and her co-workers faced on a daily basis, working 110-hour See WORKERS, Page 3A ACADEMIC$ Grant expands Islamic studies $3 million donation to create virtual curriculum for Fall 2015 By AMIA DAVIS DailyNewsEditor Next year, instructors will use projector screens and laptops for more than just presenting Power- Points and documentaries. Starting in the Fall 2015 term, the University will expand its Islamic Studies program through a $3 million grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation by creating the Islamic Studies Virtual Curriculum program. The University's Department of Islamic Studies and the Committee on International Cooperation will govern the program, which includes all universities in the Big Ten Con- ference and the University of Chi- See STUDIES, Page 3A Professor discusses issues surrounding Obamacare's launch The History of Race exhibit is displayed at Hatcher Graduate Library Wednesday. Hatcher diSplays exhibit on the 'U's h istory of race Culture of Medicine Club hosts ACA expert By TOM MCBRIEN Daily StaffReporter As the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, continues to take effect, the reasonwhyit wasimplemented in the first place is often lost among the political rhetoric. However, Public Health Prof. Scott Greer explained some of the answers in a lecture Wednesday night to about 15 members of the Culture of Medicine Club. Greer, who has done research in Australia, Cana- da, Spain, Belgium, Germany, France, the U.S., the U.K. and the European Union, said the facts surrounding health care are often difficult to discern. "I've learned that practi- cally nobody actually under- stands how public health is organized in most of the world," he said. When asked why the ACA is such a big transition in the first place, Greer placed most of the emphasis on the United States' employer-backed systembefore the ACA. "The U.S., unlike other sys- tems, did not manage to break past the point at which health care was essentially an employ- er-provided benefit," he said. According to Greer, Obamacare produced two strange effects: employee stiffing and job lock. "Job lock" is a term referring to when an employee will refuse to leave their current job because they cannot afford to lose their benefits. This impedes entrepreneurialism and an unhealthier work force. Greer added that this emphasis on employer- financed health care created a strange system in the U.S. "It's weird in the sense that something that is, by design, evanescent in a functioning capitalist system - namely, a big company - is made into part of the welfare state." Another difficulty with the previous system was the dras- tic transition from being unin- sured to being on Medicare. "There's a significant num- See OBAMACARE, Page 3A To celebrate Black History Month, library presentation poses questions By EMILIE PLESSET Daily StaffReporter In commemoration of Black History Month, the University Library system decided to do something a little more than usual this year. The University Library- sponsored MLK Day Com- mittee, along with the School of Information and the Office of Academic Multicultural Initiatives, among others, cre- ated the History of Race at U-M display in the Hatcher Library. The exhibit opened to the public on Jan. 20 and will be on display through the end of February. While the committee holds a yearly commemorative pro- gram for MLK day, this is the first year the group created an exhibit to examine diversity and acceptance throughout the University's history. In prior years, the committee has hosted speakers to dis- cuss racial issues. Last year, political activist Angela Davis spoke at the University. Darlene Nichols, librarian for diversity and inclusion at the University, said the exhib- it aims to contribute to the conversation about race on campus by "providing an edu- cation experience that could draw people in differently." The committee worked with staff from the See HATCHER, Page 3A WEATHER HI 36 TOMORROW LO 22 GOT A NEWS TIP? Call 734-418-4115or e-mail news@michigandaily.com and let us know. 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