COLLEGIATETIMES
wednesday december 5, 2007 blacksburg, va.
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today’s ct Today’s CT will be the last of the semester, as we break for final exams. We will resume publication on Jan. 15, 2008. For information on news over the holidays, see page 2. The CT wishes everyone good luck on their finals and a safe holiday break.
news KAINE SUPPORTS CLOSING LOOP HOLE At an event yesterday promoting Barack Obama’s campaign, Gov. Tim Kaine announced that he hopes to rid of the “gun-show loophole.” The loophole permits unlicensed gun holders at shows to sell or trade their guns without background checking their customers beforehand. The General Assembly may be more likely to accept Kaine’s proposals as it will have support of victims’ families of last April’s shootings at Virginia Tech. Kaine will further discuss the issue after Dec. 5.
BUSH DEFENDS IRAN POLICY DESPITE DOUBTS WASHINGTON — President Bush worked the phones Tuesday to salvage his hard-line policy toward Iran, lobbying foreign leaders for tougher economic sanctions despite a new U.S. intelligence report that concluded that the Islamic republic halted its secret nuclear weapons program four years ago. Several U.S. officials and experts, however, said that the new National Intelligence Estimate has upended Bush’s policy and erased any justification for threatening military strikes. The president will now find it difficult to persuade Russia and China — and even America’s European allies — to impose new sanctions on Iran, even though it refuses to heed United Nations demands to stop enriching uranium, they said. “A new resolution is going to be very hard to get, if not impossible,” said a State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to speak publicly on the matter. Bush showed no sign of backing down.
coming up ON THE WEB Check out the CT’s new video featuring the Kendo Club, a club at Tech that practices the Japanese martial art of fencing. You can see the video at www.collegiatetimes.com.
weather RAIN & SNOW high 40, low 24
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An independent, student-run newspaper serving the Virginia Tech community since 1903 104th year • issue 177
Hokies top UNC-G 67-39 CHARLES R. BARRINEAU
ct associate sports editor The Virginia Tech men’s basketball team defeated the University of North CarolinaGreensboro 67-39 Tuesday evening in the second of a three-game home stand. The Hokies came out hot from the tip and went on an 11-0 run to begin the game. UNC-Greensboro didn’t get on the board until the 16:07 mark when Kyle Hines put back a Landon Clement miss. Points were at a premium for the Spartans during the first half, during which they did not reach double figures until the 4:32 mark. At that time the Spartans were shooting a mere 22.2 percent from the floor. In fact, Tech held UNCG’s two leading scorers, Hines and Mikko Kovisto, to 17 points—or more than 15 points below their combined season averages. “They’re a pretty good offensive team,” said Deron Washington, who recorded his 500th career rebound. “We had a game plan coming in to slow down their big man down low and we were trapping him every time. We were just getting the ball out of his hands.” During that time, the Hokies saw their lead balloon to as many as 16 points, but seven turnovers during that time kept the lead from growing larger. Greenberg said Thorns’ five second call and some rushed turnovers padded that figure, which would have otherwise been on-pace to hit the team’s targeted turnover range. The Spartans’ slow scoring pace continued throughout the remainder of the first half as the visitors scored only four more points as Tech took a 27-14 lead into the halftime intermission. But 27 in a half wasn’t all that Tech could have scored. “If A.D. is having a normal shooting night, we have 35 (or) 36, I think,” Greenberg said. The first half saw freshman point guard Hank Thorns dazzle those in attendance more than a few times. The Las Vegas native PAUL PLATZ/SPPS had several no-look passes that elicited oohs and ahs from the crowd. He finished the Freshman J.T. Thompson dunks over Davor Galic during the second half of last night’s win. period with five assists to only two turnovers. Atlantic Coast Conference official Jamie Luckie responded to a “I’m real comfortable; coach tells me to go ON PRESS ROW pair of fans criticizing the officiating crew for declaring it Spartan out there and play freed up so that’s what I ball when a UNC-G pass over the backboard was ruled deflected I have probably covered upwards of did—I played my game and got a lot of peo100 college basketball games over the by the Hokies. Luckie turned to the heckling fans in the front row ple involved early,” said Thorns who finished with a career-high six rebounds. “It took me with a smirk and said that number 10 (Hank Thorns) said that he past several seasons and have never a minute to get used to my teammates, but seen anything like what I witnessed on had tipped the ball on its way out of play. Luckie’s remark was the once I got used to my teammates—that’s most entertaining event of the night. I can’t ever recall an official, press row Tuesday evening. something I can do every night.” at any level of basketball, addressing those in the stands. I would -Charles R. Barrineau Scoring by both teams was augmented in certainly expect different of someone on the officiating payroll of the second half, as was the Tech lead. The
see BASKETBALL, page ten
FBI’s gun ban list doubles after April 16 KERRY O’CONNOR
ct news reporter The Department of Justice announced last Thursday that the list of people prohibited from purchasing guns on the grounds of mental deficiency has more than doubled since June. A direct response to the Virginia Tech shootings last April, the call to submit names to the FBI’s “Mental Defective File” in the National Instant Check System has been made to states nationwide. “As the Tech tragedy made clear, it is vital that NICS has accurate and complete information on persons prohibited from possessing firearms because of mental health history,” said Attorney General Michael Mukasey in a speech addressed to the National Assembly of Attorneys General. “This is a vital tool for enforcing federal and state firearms eligibility laws, allowing federal firearms licensees to do instant background checks on gun purchasers.”
“As the Tech tragedy made clear, it is vital that NICS has accurate and complete information on persons prohibited from possessing firearms because of mental health history.” -MICHAEL MUKASEY U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL The speech was Mukasey’s first policy speech since being sworn in as attorney general by President Bush on Nov. 14. In the speech he announced that names submitted to the “Mental Defective List” have jumped from 175,000 to 400,000 since June. The increase was due almost completely to the state of California, which provided records for 200,000 names. “Most of the states don’t provide any names at all, or just a handful,” said Daniel Vice, senior attorney at the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence. “Sadly, 80 percent of people who are dangerously mentally ill are not included (on the list) after more than six months after the Virginia Tech shootings.” In 1995, the Supreme Court ruled to prohibit the federal government from forcing states to submit the names of people deemed “mentally
see BAN, page two
America’s premiere basketball conference.
Digital catalogue puts information at users’ fingertips LAUREN MORRISON
ct staff writer
SALLY BULL/SPPS
Mark Brokaw, Jr. a senior in history and classical studies, uses a computer station on the first floor of Newman Library to access Addison, the library’s digital search engine.
New tree species named for chemistry professor
New advances in the digital library system at Virginia Tech are making strides in the availability of documents to the user. Edward Fox, a professor of computer science and head of the Digital Education and Research Laboratory at Tech, explained that consolidating important documents in one place, such as dissertations and research analyses, makes obtaining information much more user friendly. “I have no problem with books and paper,” Fox said. “But if it’s in digital form I can take it with me wherever I go.” Each of the digital libraries at Tech has a particular clientele. Some are more suitable for faculty and some for students. “We do whatever makes getting and receiving information the most beneficial,” Fox said. “People like me want the information at their fingertips. Just think of a physical library, but in digital form.” Having the information organized and in clusters makes for faster and easier finding.
While some may worry that the accessibility of digital libraries could eliminate the widespread use of traditional libraries, Gail McMillan, director of the digital library and archives library on campus, feels that the technology can only help what is already a booming enterprise. “Libraries have always been very multi-media oriented and they will continue to be that way,” McMillan said. “Much like how people were afraid that TV would replace radio, the digital library is just an addition to the accessibility of information. It won’t replace the old methods.” Cathy Skinner, an English professor at Tech, agrees. “Paper won’t ever entirely go away. But it’s nice to know that you can scan important documents and have them archived forever,” Skinner said. McMillan feels that this new wave of technology is suitable for Virginia Tech and its students because of the history of the university. “I think that because Virginia Tech is a land grant university; that’s why we do what we do,” she said. “We make our efforts available online to share with others.”
On the first night...
AFTER STUDYING THE TREE’S CANCER-TREATING PROPERTIES, DAVID KINGSTON IS HONORED AS THE NAMESAKE FOR A NEWLY-DISCOVERED SPECIES OF THE YEW TREE ASHLEY OLIVER
ct associate news editor Taxus Kingstonii is the new name for a particular species of tree that honors a Virginia Tech distinguished chemistry professor whose years of research has proved invaluable to the world of medicine. David Kingston had worked with close friend and botanist Richard Spjute on yew tree research several years ago. When Spjute discovered a new species of the yew tree that grows in Taiwan, India and China, he named it after his partner. “When you discover a new species of the plant, you can name it after whoever you want to; that’s a rule of botany,” said Kingston. One reason Kingston believes his friend named the species after him is because of his extensive studies with the compounds of the yew tree and the cancer-treating properties it contains. “His work in extracting a compound for cancer treatment (from the tree) is really more than significant; it’s pretty earth-shattering, I think,”
said friend of Kingston and associate professor of horticulture Robert McDuffie. “And the fact that they’ve named this tree after him is really significant, as well.” The Taxus Kingstonii is not the first tree to be named after Kingston. “We did some work in Suriname and another friend of mine named one down there for me,” said Kingston. The Cordia Kingstonia, discovered by Jim Miller of the Missouri Botanical Garden, is a species in South America that also honors the professor for his studies of the medicinal value of plant compounds. Kingston’s interest in this area of chemistry derived not just from his fascination with the topic, which he first studied at Cambridge University, but also from his religious beliefs. “As a Christian, I believe that by studying natural products, I am in a sense studying God’s creation,” said Kingston. “I see this world as being God’s creation, so studying nature is, for me, not necessarily a religious thing, but very consistent
see TREE, page two
PAUL PLATZ/SPPS
Between Squires Student Center and Newman Library, Hanukkah celebrations began with the lighting of a menorah. The seven-foot symbol for Hanukkah was put on display by the Chabad program at Virginia Tech, a Jewish organization focusing on religious traditions. Oil was intended to light the menorah, but due to the winds, replacement light bulbs lit the first candle. According to Hanukah practices, the candles are lit everyday from right to left on the menorah. Rabbi Elazar Bloom, the sponsor of Tech’s Chabad House, led the lighting with traditional Hebrew songs. The menorah is currently on display on the second floor of Squires.
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