4 Monday, July 23, 2012 4 u N The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Monday, July 23,2012 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com The creative brain Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan since 1890. 420 Maynard St. Ann Arbor, MI 48109 tothedaily@umich.edu JACOB AXELRAD EDITOR IN CHIEF GIACOMO BOLOGNA MANAGING EDITOR ADRIENNE ROBERTS EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR Unsigned editorials reflect the official position of the Daily's editorialboard. All other signed articles and illustrations represent solely the views ofttheir authors. F RO0M THE D AILY Save the pres Academic presses aren't just business investments The backbone of any distinguished university is its strong aca- demics and gifted professors. Research journals and literature published by a university not only strengthen its reputation as a leading research institution, but also allow professors and graduate stu- dents to display their work to the scholarly world. These published works help professors gain tenure and worldwide recognition for their research and teachings. Academic presses shouldn't be viewed as short-term busi- ness investments by universities; instead, they should be seen as long- term investments in the future of education and academic achievement. wIn the mid-1970s, 20-somethings were still applying to work for the Big Three in droves. They had good jobs, with the promise of workman's security as well as a retire- ment check with benefits at the end of 30 years. Though Michigan no VANESSA longer has an R abundance of RYCHLINSKI industrial jobs, the automo- tive industry is still providing the younger generation with options, albeit more specialized. A group of talented young peo- ple is entering the automotive industry in new ways. News and media publications aren't the only domains turning to technology for newer ways of doing things. Desk- top publishing was developed 30 years ago, and since the early '90s, Adobe programs have been used for everything from web layout to billboard advertisements. The College for Creative Stud- ies - located in downtown Detroit - trains students in the field of graphic designowith great success. Luke Mack is a 20-year-old student who's in the school's automotive design program. Michaela Allen, in her third year at the college, studies graphic design. Both of these stu- dents are talented artists who chose to enter the field of design due to, its practicality. Both are currently working at design internships. Luke works on both personal and freelance projects and is also an intern for General Motors this sum- mer. "(Graphic design) is practical. I'm making a product for people to consume eventually, and it's kind of about status and culture," he admit- ted. "Cars are cultural icons. So it's good because I like to fuse the artis- tic side with the logical side. It's a good mix." Both Michaela and Luke have created paintings that people want to buy - Luke has a 15-foot-high piece that J. Dilla's camp wanted to buy for a party celebrating the rapper's posthumously released album. But such sales are few and far between. "It's hard to make it as an art- ist," Michaela said. "Graphic design is a much more specific skill, and' it's more practical to learn. I didn't realize that it would be so technical when I first started out."- Graphic design is a field that is steadily gaining velocity. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor, the median pay in 2010 for a design- er just out of college was around $43,500 a year. That number is higher than the average humanities degree recipient just gettingttheir start. It also doesn't account for those professionals with specializa- tions in product or car design, who often have substantially higher pay- checks. The BLS also reports that the demand for graphics in com- puter system interfaces and the like will hit a 61 percent hike by 2020, while the demand for specialized graphics services'demand will rise by a significantl27 percent. Creative minds can benefit the auto industry. That being said, the race for jobs among young designers is still fairly competitive. There are a limited number in metro Detroit, even though the needs for automo- tive-related graphic services are varied, running from body design to interior coloration. Certainly, it's a boon to Detroit - and Michigan overall - that cre- ative young people like Michaela and Luke are working here. How- ever, despite the fact that around 80 percent of students who intern in an area end up in that same area, it remains that around 50 percent of students leave Michigan after graduation. One young automotive designer, who wished to remain anony- mous, wants to get out of the area. The young professional discov- ered his knack for the field while still in high school and finds that though Detroit has been essential to his startrfor practical reasons, he does wish to head west. "(Cali- fornia) is where a lot of the auto- motive trends happen that we see here in the Midwest," he said. When asked what Michigan could offer him if he stayed, he pointed out that if he ever wanted to start his own business, Detroit has the infrastructure to do so, and cheaply. Indeed, a friend of Luke's is currently working on a project painting around 50 buildings, while a well-known street artist from Cal- ifornia named Revok recently com- pleted a mural in Eastern Market. "From listening to the talk of the area, it seems that Detroit is coming back," Luke said. In the absence of traditional options, the city and the rest of Michigan need the power of the creative brain to combat the drain. Vanessa Rychlinski can be reached at vanrych@umich.edu. LONDON From Page 1A Between the two roommates, they have racked up a lengthy'list of accolades to their names. Caesar was a member of the 2010 Michigan men's gymnastics NCAA Champi- ons squad and won the 2011 Big Ten title on parallel bars, while Mikulak snagged the 2011 NCAA All-Around Champion title. And in 2012, just points away from a repeat, a slight slip on the pommel horse cost him the win. High-profile competition isn't a stranger for the two Wolverines, but that isn't to say the Olympics isn't out of their mind - it is only when they're in the gym. "As of late, I've been trying to keep gymnastics-wise in the gym," Caesar said. "The Olymipcs are very stressful to think about, and even talking about it doesn't relieve much tension." His roommate agrees. "If we do talk about (the Olym- pics), it's about ppsitive stuff," Mikulak said. "We're trying to stay away from any scares we could have. Right now I feel like we both don't even feel like it's not happen- ing." Both of their journeys to Lon- don have prepared them for the toughest, most mentally challeng- ing competition of their lives, as the opening ceremonies of the Olym- pics commence on Friday. Syque was ready to be a Gator. He had accepted a full academic scholarship to Florida and was plan- ning to compete for a local club gym in his spare time in college after an ACL tear ended all chances of being recruited for athletic scholarships. Syque's junior year gymnastics season was cut short by his injury, and he couldn't quite recover to 100 percent during his senior year. He struggled, and was finally accept- ing that his competitive gymnas- tics career would be over after high school. But the summer after his senior year changed everything. "(Michigan 'gymnastics coach) Kurt (Golder) contacted me the summer after my senior year," Syque said. "We said some words, exchanged some e-mails ... (and) he asked for videos." Since Syque wasn't recruited, he had no recruiting r videos made, so he sent Golder some old YouTube videos from his early high school days, not sure of how well Golder would take them. Sam inher- ited the genes to be a gym- . nast. His parents, Stephen and Tina, were both gymnasts at the Univer- sity of California, Berkeley, and Sam began gymnastics at the age of two. But as a child, the Corona del Mar, Calif. native played baseball, soccer, hockey and basketball in addition to gymnastics. As he got older and grew (as much as he could), hockey and bas- ketball were out of the question. And soccer was too much of a time commitment. "My dad really wanted me to do baseball, but I have so much more fun competing for myself and mak- ing sure everything's on my shoul- ders," Sam said. "I liked controlling all the factors, and that was the dif- ference between gymnastics and baseball for me." "I can honestly say if I hadn't come to Michigan, I wouldn't be doing gymnastics still," Syque said. "Looking back, I don't think (doing club gymnastics in Florida) would've worked out." But it didn't have to come to that. the risk," he said. "Best choice I ever made." Since age 2, Sam has dreamed of competing at the Olympics, and his parents were his support system, no matter what sport he chose. But since he chose gymnastics, Sam could look to his parents for words of wisdom. "They were always just encour- aging," he said. "They never really gave me advice - they knew gym- nastics is a mental sport, (and) I had the right head for it. I'm just really com- petitive." He knew his parents would want him to fol- low in their footsteps at Berkeley as another Mikulak gymnast. But that wasn't what Sam envi- sioned when he visited PATRICK BARRON/Daily the Berkeley campus. "Once I went there, I wanted to get away from that," Sam said. So why choose Michigan? "The team, the coach, academics, campus. Everything was so perfect when I came here. It was so easy to picture myself here for four years." In December, Syque stood on top of the world, or at least atop the podium at the South Central Asian Artistic Gymnastic Championships.c He had just won the first gold medal in international competition for Bangladesh, taking first place on parallel bars - what he considers his strongest event. And even before bearing the international gold medal, Syque t was a Big Ten champion in that same event. But he doesn't think any medal or Big Ten title can prepare him for. the biggest meet of his life, espe- cially after he sustained an injury in January. Syque has had only a few months to recover from a right bicep tendon tear, but his training has already brought him up to speed, and he's not concerned about his physical shape in London. "It's more mental than it is physi- cal," he said. "If I just stick to the plan I've been training on ... work until I'm tired, that's when I know I'm ready. I'm basically at that point right now. "(But) it's all focusingonthe little details now." Syque reads the list posted on the wall, made by former Olympian Paul Hamm. He's focusing on the little details: "Do transition elements on floor, go in front of the mirror and do all your routines in the mirror - move your body around mentally and envision yourself." To read the full story, visit MichiganDaily.com Syque had been in contact with Wolverines head coach Kurt Golder for the summer before his freshman year in college, and that was enough time for Syque to change his mind. He was giving up a full academic scholarship at Florida to come to Ann Arbor - out-of-state tuition and all - to compete for Michi- gan. Golder didn't need any official recruiting videos to have faith in the Florida native's natural talent. And it didn't take much for Syque to change his mind, either. "That opportunity (was) worth News that the University of Missouri will be shutting down its printing press in 2013 has out- raged professors and students alike. The $400,000 subsidy that funds the press every school year has been pulled by the university's administration. Ten employees will lose their jobs as a result of this decision, and university pro- fessors will have a more difficult time publishing their work in print. The switch to digital pub- lishing will likely diminish public access to certain books, as it may be more difficult to read online books without a subscription. Sadly, this is a growing trend in America - half a dozen presses have shut their doors in the past three years, according to a recent New York Times article. Academic presses play an essential role at any university. They allow professors to publish their work and share their knowl- edge with the academic world. Without these presses, professors won't have the same opportunity to publish their research, and they may have greater difficulty get- ting tenure as a result. In addition, the switch to digital publishing will not only affect the profes- sors, but also the students. Many graduate students need to publish their research to earn a doctorate, and by shutting down presses and cuttingstaff, this processbecomes much more challenging. This changes the course of academics and discourages many potential graduate students from attending universities without presses. Another challenge associated with the switch to digital publish- ing is diminished public access to academic research and literature. If published works aren't being printed in hard copy, it becomes more difficult for outside uni- versities and scholars to get a hold of this research without a subscription. Not all universities have access to scholarly journals online, so ordering a hard copy from popular websites like Ama- zon.com may be the only way to obtain published literature. The growing trend of shutting down academic presses is a seri- ous problem that colleges across the nation are facing. University leaders need to realize that these presses are not solely a business investment, but rather an invest- ment in scholarly research and the future of higher education. At the core of prestigious uni- versities lies the scholarly work and research that professors publish to share with the world. These articles connect universi- ties and help us to move forward as an educated society. We need academic presses on college cam- puses so professors and students can display their works and help strengthen the reputation of their university. Presses are necessary to create hard copies of literature that the public can more easily access. We need university leaders and administrators to step up to the plate and accept that academic presses are essential to a thriving academic community. I 3 free bagels no purchase necessary I e'i Liit One offer per customer with coupon. Cannot be combined with any other offer I ~Valid at Barry Bage/s Ann Arbor /ocation ONLY BAG Barry Bagels Westgate Shopping Cotter 255 Jackson Ave, Ann Arbor. MI 48103 (734) 662-2435 www.barrybagels.com L Expires: July 29, 2012 Affordable Student Co-op Housing 2. 4 and 8 Month Contracts on North and Central Campus All utilities, High-speed Internet Homemade Meals Shared Work, Shared Fun -4Leadership opportunities Single/Double rooms Parking available WWW.iCC.COOP () INFO@ICC.COOP The Inter-Cooperative Council 337 E. William St., Ann Arbor, MI 48104 Phone: (734) 662-4414 (ext.1OO)