Tuesday, January 19, 2010 Print Edition

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An independent, student-run newspaper serving the Virginia Tech community since 1903

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

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COLLEGIATETIMES 107th year, issue 01

News, page 2

Features, page 7

Opinions, page 5

Sports, page 10

Classifieds, page 8

Sudoku, page 8

Hokies for Haiti

COURTESY OF MICHAEL SHROYER

Mechanical engineering major Missy Hughes volunteers with the Blacksburg United Methodist Church in the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince, before a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck the country on Jan. 12.

Students return from Haiti in earthquake’s aftermath LIANA BAYNE news reporter Virginia Tech freshman Nadia Tuck and the rest of her ministry group went to Haiti expecting to aid a country riddled with violence. Instead, they found themselves rocked by a devastating earthquake.

The mission group from Blacksburg United Methodist Church spent the first portion of its trip in the capital city of Port-au-Prince, which would later become the epicenter for an earthquake that charted a 7.0 on the seismograph, one of the largest earthquakes to hit the Caribbean area in centuries.

The group volunteered in one of the poorer sections of the city in the days prior to the Jan. 12 earthquake.

“We were working in the slums,” Tuck said.

Tuck said that while she “was pretty aware of the level of poverty,” the area of Port-au-Prince where the group volunteered was still striking.

“We were repairing tin roofs on houses — shacks, really,” she said.

This was Tuck’s first trip to the country, but both of her parents have been multiple times.

Tuck’s father, pastor Reggie Tuck, leads the Blacksburg United Methodist Church. He said he had gone to Haiti several times to work on programs through the Haiti Outreach Ministry.

The group also helped in other construction projects in a portion of the town Tuck said had been recently afflicted by gang violence.

Graduate student Michael Shroyer was also part of the mission group.

He said that although the area was poor and that “there were no jobs,” the people were happy to connect with the mission group members over a game of soccer or a new roof.

“We were all amazed at how loving and kind and receptive everyone was toward us,” he said.

Although the area around Port-auPrince was poverty-stricken, Nadia Tuck said she thought both the country and the people living there were beautiful.

“The people were nicer than I thought they’d be,” she said. “Their faith was very strong and I was very

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A Hokies United meeting will be held Jan. 19 from 7:30 to 9 p.m. in Squires Colonial Ballroom.

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impressed by their love for one another.”

While in Port-au-Prince, the group stayed in an international missionary guesthouse, which later collapsed during the earthquake.

On Jan. 12, the morning of the earthquake, the group was not actually in Port-au-Prince. It had traveled to Cange, a town about three hours north of Port-au-Prince. Tuck said that his organization has worked with the group Partners in Health there to help build a school in the area.

The group had arrived in Cange about five hours before the earthquake struck. Although they were removed from the center of the damage, the group could still feel the effects of the earthquake.

“It felt like I was dizzy and I was going to fall,” Nadia Tuck said. “Then I realized everyone felt it.”

Shroyer said that at first the group was not sure of the severity of what just happened.

“We knew it was an earthquake,” he said, “but we had no idea of the magnitude.”

The group returned to where they were staying in Cange and ultimately used the Internet to learn the severity of the earthquake.

There was no immediate physical damage to structures in Cange, but the emotional damage of the natural disaster affected all parts of the country.

“We don’t know if the people we worked with are alive or not,” Reggie Tuck said.

Shroyer said that although the mission group was in Haiti at the time of the earthquake, they “had no idea what the Haitians were going through” as far as the deep effects of the disaster.

“There wasn’t a lot we could immediately do,” he said.

The Tucks and the rest of the missee HAITI / page four

Steger, mental health officials to face trial in April 16 suits ZACH CRIZER nrv news editor Virginia Tech President Charles Steger, former Vice President James Hyatt, and several university mental health professionals will have to face trial in suits brought in relation to the April 16, 2007 campus shootings.

Judge William Alexander, of Franklin County, sent out his rulings last Tuesday on several motions argued in a December hearing. He ruled that many university officials originally named in identical suits filed by two victims’ families were covered by the state’s sovereign immunity and had no stated duty to warn students of the first two shootings on campus.

The families of victims Julia Pryde and Erin Peterson brought the charges against many university officials on April 16, 2009, each seeking $10 million in damages after their daughters were killed in Norris Hall during Seung Hui Cho’s April 16, 2007 shootings on Tech’s campus.

Charges against Provost Mark McNamee, university spokesman Larry Hincker, Dean of Undergraduate Education David Ford, and Executive Director of Government Relations Ralph Byers have been dismissed. Alexander ruled that sufficient allegations of gross negligence had not been made against these officials, as they were simply named as members of the policy group.

Alexander ruled Steger and Hyatt were covered by Virginia’s sovereign immunity, but that they had a duty to warn the students of the shootings, and charges against them will move to trial.

Sovereign immunity makes government officials immune from suit if they are performing their prescribed duties. Alexander ruled the plaintiffs have presented enough evidence to pursue charges of gross negligence against Steger and Hyatt.

Charges against former Cook

Counseling Center director Robert Miller will also move to trial.

Alexander’s ruling said he and Cook employees Cathye Betzel and Sherry Lynch Conrad were not covered by sovereign immunity. He also said they had a duty to care for the mental health of shooter Seung-Hui Cho and protect other students on campus.

Miller located Cho’s mental health records in his home in July 2009.

They had previously been labeled as missing by the university.

Ed McNelis, Miller’s attorney, released a statement in response to the ruling.

“While we respectfully disagree with the court’s ruling, we remain confident that the facts will show that the therapists at the Cook Counseling Center were not negligent and were not the cause of the tragedy that occurred some 16 months after Mr. Cho was treated at the Cook Counseling Center,” McNelis said.

Charges against employees of the New River Valley Community Services Board were dismissed.

A trial date has yet to be set.

As legal battles proceed, many families who signed a settlement with the state are still searching for facts about the shootings.

More than a month after the original release of a revised Governor’s Panel report on the April 16 shootings on Tech’s campus, an addendum to the revision was published, but several families say their suggestions were not taken into account.

The new edition of the report says after initial publication of the original, “a few errors or unclear points were reported,” and the addendum attempts to correct those errors.

TriData, an independent information systems company, completed the revision and addendum.

Several families affected by the April 16 shootings created a separate addendum to the see APRIL 16 / page four

Policy Group membership dispute

— University officials Kim O’Rourke and Lisa Wilkes told family members about the shootings in West Ambler-Johnston Hall at 8:15 a.m. on the morning of April 16, 2007, about an hour and 10 minutes prior to students being warned.

— The latest revision to the Governor’s Panel Report was amended to say O’Rourke and Wilkes were not members of the decision-making Policy Group. The above document, found in the April 16 archives, appears to label them as members and not support staff.

2 news january 19, 2010

new river valley news editor: zach crizer university editor: philipp kotlaba newseditor@collegiatetimes.com/ 540.231.9865 COLLEGIATETIMES

Defining King’s legacy Cornel West spoke at Burruss Hall last night addressing race relations in his keynote speech for the “5th Annual Celebration Honoring the Impact of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.” West spoke about King’s legacy with the election of Barack Obama incorporating history, philosophy, pop culture, politics and faith throughout the lecture. The event was sponsored by the Office for Equity and Inclusion and Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. photo by daniel lin, spps

Beheading suspect Zhu pleaded guilty Montgomery County Circuit Court accepted the guilty plea of former Virginia Tech graduate student Haiyang Zhu, who was charged with the first-degree murder of fellow graduate student Xin Yang.

Sentencing is scheduled for April 19, 2010. Zhu could face life in prison.

A December hearing included grisly details of the Jan. 21, 2009 murder. Yang, 22, was decapitated at the Au Bon Pain cafe in the Graduate Life Center on Tech’s campus. Commonwealth Attorney Brad Finch provided the court a broad outline of the case against Zhu, including autopsy reports that showed the victim with multiple defensive injuries to her arms and hands, as well as the fatal “incised wounds of the neck.”

Finch also introduced two letters written by Zhu in which he professed his love for Yang. The first, written to Yang in January, said he had “fallen deeply in love” with her and said that she left him “happy and fulfilled.”

Zhu wrote in the letter that he “will treasure her forever” and then asked Yang to be his girlfriend, according to Finch.

The second letter, written from jail following Zhu’s arrest, was titled “A Will” and outlined his reasons for the murder. Finch, summarizing the letter, told the court, “He didn’t have any other choice but to kill her because he loved her so much.” Finch said Zhu wrote that Yang “broke his heart” when she said she had a boyfriend whom she had planned to marry.

Zhu’s attorney Stephanie Cox twice interrupted Finch’s description of the letters, but Montgomery County Circuit Judge Bobby Turk allowed the presentation of the evidence to continue.

In an attempt to prove premeditation, Finch said Zhu brought several knives and a hammer to the cafe on the night of the murder, and he said prosecutors had a receipt and video evidence that the weapons were bought that same day.

Zhu, 26, was clean-shaven and alert throughout the hearing, often nodding to his interpreter as she translated Finch’s evidence regarding the murder. He spoke little during the hearing. When asked by Turk for his plea, Zhu responded, “Your honor, I plead guilty.”

Turk then asked Zhu a litany of questions to ensure the validity of the plea. When asked whether he had entered into an agreement with the state regarding his sentencing, Zhu said he had not. by ct news staff

Tech makes Top Ten Best Value ranking Virginia Tech has been ranked No. 8 in the Princeton Review’s top ten best value public universities list.

The list for public universities is topped by the University of Virginia for the second time, with Tech edging out Texas A&M University and the University of Oklahoma.

One name not on the list is the College of William & Mary, which made the No. 3 public spot in 2009.

“Virginia Tech’s high-quality education and low tuition make this school an excellent investment,” according to the report.

The list of private universities contains several familiar names such as Harvard College (No. 2), Princeton University (No. 4), Yale University (No. 5), and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (No. 8), but is topped

by Swarthmore College.

The full report and rankings can be accessed at www.princetonreview.com/best-value-colleges.aspx. by ct news staff

Duck Pond closings announced for spring Sections of Duck Pond Road are closed between Jan. 11 and April 2010.

An ongoing steam line project is forcing the closure of the section north of the intersection at Washington Street, up to the Litton-Reaves Parking Lot entrance.

West Campus Drive and Washington Street will remain open with alternative routes for travelers.

A map of the closure can be found at www.facilities.vt.edu/ documents/DuckPondClosure. pdf. by ct news staff

january 19, 2010

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4 news

new river valley news editor: zach crizer university editor: philipp kotlaba newseditor@collegiatetimes.com/ 540.231.9865

january 19, 2010

COLLEGIATETIMES

Library copes with budget cuts, faces calls for change

Haiti: Volunteer group recalls kindness ‘in midst of tragedy’

SARAH WATSON news staff writer After receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars in stimulus funds, Newman Library faces a new year of diverse challenges.

In the spring of 2009, Newman received a $300,000 increase in its budget as part of Virginia Tech’s $17.3 million federal stimulus package. The extra funding spared Newman from the university-wide five percent decrease in spending last year.

Donald Kenney, associate dean of administrative services at the library, as well as other administrative staff have used a small portion of this increase in capital to build Newman’s cafe study lounge, which should be finished this semester.

The goal of the lounge is to “create an additional space for students,” Kenney said.

However, most of the stimulus money was allocated to improving collections at Newman. Library staff eliminated unnecessary and rarely utilized collections and put more money toward collections that undergraduates make use of frequently.

“We want to focus on undergraduates and research needs,” Kenney said.

Despite being widely utilized by the Tech community, demands for improvements from both students and administrators persist.

The most recent publication of rankings by the Association of Research Libraries ranked Newman 100 out of 107 for overall funding. To improve its ranking, Newman staff is spending money on improving collections, services and access to the library.

As a cost-cutting measure, library staff has considered dropping periodicals because of their expense.

“We recently cut back on subscriptions to the print collection because they overlapped with various electronic venues,” Kenney said.

Laura Nixon, a junior English major, goes to the library approximately four or five days each week because “it’s a lot better than studying at home and less depressing than the Math Empo.”

However, she has difficulty finding an open area for her homework and suggests Newman invest in more

MARK UMANSKY/SPPS

Students utilize the main floor of Newman Library. The facility has been coping with the effects of budget cuts on planned changes. computers. She rarely uses any library services, including copying because it is “too expensive.”

“I use (Newman) pretty often when I’m starting on a new research project and I use their online databases from home a lot to search for articles,” said Laura Agnich, sociology professor and graduate student.

Agnich utilizes the Interlibrary Loan service, but has had negative experiences in other areas of the library.

Many of the social science journal subscriptions that she used were recently canceled.

However, the library was fortunate in 2009 because of the stimulus package. For example, it maintained its 102 weekly operating hours and avoided any staffing alterations.

“We just hope that the budget does not cause us to have to reassess these areas,” Kenney said.

The library, however, does not currently have definitive backup plans in the event that it face further cuts, with administrators hoping to receive similar financial support — a number

dependent on future university and state funding.

This funding will determine to what extent Newman can address some of the complaints of its users such as Nixon and Agnich. For example, Nixon believes that more maps on the walls could help students navigate the library, while Agnich still gets lost after nine years at Tech.

“It serves its function, but it’s not a place that I like to go do work or have meetings,” Agnich said.

Sara McDonough, a graduate student in sociology, compares Newman to the College of William & Mary’s Earl Gregg Swem Library, where she completed her undergraduate work.

That facility includes a print center as well as a 24-hour coffee shop and cafe.

“It was a joy to be there — it was beautiful and everybody wanted to go there to sit and do work,” McDonough said. In contrast, she describes Newman: “It’s cold, there’s no carpet, it feels sterile and there’s no ambiance to do work there.”

COURTESY OF NADIA TUCKER

A volunteer interacts with a Haitian boy during the Blacksburg United Methodist Church’s trip. from page one

sion group were able to stay in Cange for a few days past their expected departure as they worked out travel arrangements. Their flight out of Port-au-Prince, originally scheduled for Jan. 14, had to be changed.

“It became clear that going to Port-au-Prince was not going to work,” Reggie Tuck said.

The group traveled across the border to the Dominican Republic, where they stayed overnight before flying out of Santo Domingo. Half of the group was able to leave on Sunday, while the rest returned to the United States Monday.

Shroyer said that the trip posi-

tively affected him, despite the surprise ending.

“It was a time of happiness and sharing of love,” he said, “even in the midst of tragedy.”

Both Nadia Tuck and her father were struck by the strength of the Haitian people around them after the disaster.

“We were able to return because of how the Haitians helped us,” Tuck said.

Nadia agreed.

“We were taken care of really well by the Haitians,” she said. “Most striking was how they took care of us like we were family, even though they were suffering and waiting to hear from their own families.”

The Tuck family and its church plans to continue working with Haiti to provide help in any way they can. The church plans to continue its relationship with Partners in Health. Reggie Tuck said that he would wait and take direction from the Haitians about what was needed most as the country deals with the aftermath of the earthquake.

Nadia Tuck said that she also is looking for ways to help.

“I would like to go back sometime soon,” she said.

Many Tech students share her sentiments. Hokies United is planning an effort to help victims of the earthquake in collaboration with Partners in Health.

April 16: Ruling fails to dampen controversy over new addendum from page one

Panel report on the shootings that alleges the university did not follow its own emergency response procedures.

The families’ addendum, which has been obtained by the Collegiate Times, was sent to Gov. Tim Kaine on Jan. 1 by the family of Norris Hall victim Michael Pohle Jr. a month after Kaine released a revised version of the original Governor’s Panel report on the shootings. The addendum also cited the efforts of family members Michael Bishop and Suzanne Grimes.

Some families were unhappy that the original panel was not reconvened to revise the report. Instead, TriData compiled the revisions.

According to e-mails obtained by the Collegiate Times, the TriData addendum was in the works prior to the families sending their addendum.

“We had also hoped that by providing factual input to this addendum to the original panel report we would take further important steps through the grieving process,” the introduction of the families’ addendum said.

“All along, we wanted to collaborate face to face with panel members and TriData personnel in creating the most thorough accounting of that day.

Unfortunately, that opportunity never came, in our opinion, as our requests were rejected.”

However, the Governor’s office had asked TriData to begin corrections for the original addendum before receiving the families’ proposed addendum.

Comments and corrections were taken in immediately and forwarded to TriData.

Gordon Hickey, Kaine’s press secretary, said in December that the newest addendum to the Governor’s Report began shortly after the original revision was released in late November.

Two university suggestions were changed in the newest revision. The university said Byers locked his own office, not Steger’s, contrary to the original report.

Another change involved two university officials that notified family members of the initial shootings in West Ambler-Johnston Hall. The newly revised report is changed to say that the two officials were not members of the decision-making Policy

“

The mechanics of the alert system precluded the police from sending an alert directly.

REVISED GOVERNOR’S REPORT

Group.

Kim O’Rourke, Steger’s chief of staff, called her son. Lisa Wilkes, an assistant vice president serving under then-Vice President Hyatt, informed her mother of the shootings. The original report named them as members of the Policy Group, but the university told TriData they were not.

However, a university document from March 2008 that can be found in the April 16 document database lists Policy Group members as well as support staff. It shows Wilkes and O’Rourke as official Policy Group members.

Input and research from family members of victims was also compiled for the families’ addendum, which only addressed the revised report’s Summary of Key Findings and Timeline of Events.

Hickey said the families’ addendum has been looked at by Kaine’s office and forwarded to TriData. He said he had not cross-referenced to check if the families’ concerns were addressed by the TriData addendum.

The families’ addendum said two emergency response plans were in effect on the day of the shootings.

A 2005 Tech plan entitled “Campus Safety a Shared Responsibility,” is quoted by the addendum as mandating the Tech Police to issue a timely warning in the event of a “potential dangerous situation.”

It continues to point out that Tech Police did not send a warning following the first two shootings in West AJ. The Governor’s Report indicates university administrators that had assembled in Burruss Hall sent out the warnings, but it said technical difficulties prevented them from sending a warning prior to the class change immediately before Cho’s shootings in Norris Hall.

A separate set of procedures, the

Emergency Response Plan, also published in 2005, is discussed more thoroughly in the panel report. The families’ addendum said the university did not plan out several key elements of the ERP. The ERP called for a vice president in charge, an emergency response coordinator and an emergency response resource group operating in addition to the Policy Group that convened in Burruss Hall.

The vice president in charge would have acted as a liaison between the groups, according to the ERP. However, no ERRG was convened.

According to the ERP, it was the responsibility of the ERRG to issue a campus-wide alert.

Neither the report nor the families’ addendum specifies whether the university ever appointed an ERRG. The families’ addendum said a representative from University Relations on the ERRG could have issued a warning. University spokesman Hincker sent out the initial warning, according to the Governor’s Report.

The latest version of the Governor’s Report says their actions “followed one of the policies but conflicted with the other regarding police authority to send out an alert. The mechanics of the alert system precluded the police from sending an alert directly.”

The families of Pryde and Peterson are now proceeding with civil suits against university officials and mental health professionals involved in the university response to the shootings and the treatment of Cho. All other victims’ families were invited to meet with Kaine in December in Richmond, the last of three meetings guaranteed by the settlement they signed following the shootings.

A PowerPoint presentation of police briefings originally shown to family members in the fall of 2008 has been added to the April 16 archive accessible in Newman Library and the Library of Virginia.

Hickey called it a social event, saying it marked the end of Kaine’s term as governor, but that he would still be available should the families wish to speak with him.

opınıons 5

editor: debra houchins opinionseditor@collegiatetimes.com/ 540.231.9865 COLLEGIATETIMES

january 19, 2010

Unity through tragedy: Haiti hits close to home S

o much has happened in the month since the fall semester ended. From the record snow fall in the NRV, the late night and early morning votes in the Senate on health care, the frigid temperatures that dominated the start of the new year, the underwear bomber and his failed attempt to blow up the Detroitbound plane, and just a few days ago, the tragic 7.0 earthquake in Haiti.

As I write this column, things are still unfolding in Haiti and we will never know the true extent of the loss of life. We will not know how long it will take to help the Haitian people move forward. The images of Haiti reinforce the fact of the privilege that we all have and that we are here in this university setting. While we are struggling in the midst of the economic uncertainty, there are others that have it much worse.

Events like this tragedy force you take a step back to reflect about things. Watching the images online and on TV really makes you wonder how we would respond under such circumstances. How would we handle being trapped in the rubble? How would we handle seeing dead bodies on the side of the road? Could we go for days without food or water?

In this age of instant news, the tragedy is unfolding right before us and we become a participant in the situation. Parts of the tragedy are eerily familiar to those seen more recently after Katrina, the Tsunami in the Pacific, or even the events that took place on our campus.

Other depictions from Haiti have a historic poignancy such as the bulldozing of bodies into mass graves.

While the circumstances are different, each of these events has fixated the public.

While watching all of these situations, there is a sense of hopelessness and helplessness that comes across. Sure one can contribute funds through donations, but what can one really do? As I watch the images, I wish that I could join in and help dig through the rubble, or provide water or food to help those in need.

It is an interesting coincidence that this past weekend, the United States marked the annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebrations. Dr. King fought against injustice and in so doing campaigned against segregation, and other issues impacting the civil rights of citizens. Dr. King’s message was not just confined to the United States as his message has proven to be powerful throughout the world.

If you were to attend a MLK celebration, you would notice that it is customary to conclude the activities with a song. This song, which is based on slave spirituals, is known as “We Shall Overcome.” I have always found this song to be both emotionally powerful and moving especially when you listen to the lyrics.

The song starts with the following lyrics, “We shall overcome, we shall overcome, we shall overcome someday,” and the chorus of “oh deep in my heart, I do believe, we shall overcome someday.”

This concept of overcoming is a powerful image. Regardless of what is thrown at us, there is the hope of overcoming the challenge. We each have faced situations that have rocked our core and have worked to overcome those events. Just like the community in Haiti and the Haitian Diaspora throughout the world will overcome this tragedy.

The song continues with the following lyrics, “We’ll walk hand in hand, we’ll walk hand in hand, we’ll walk hand in hand some day,” and then the chorus. These lyrics tell us that in order to move forward, we need to work together with others.

Sometimes it is that helping hand or that shoulder to lean on that can make the difference. Such will be especially critical for the Haitian people, and we can do our part in “walking hand in hand” with the citizens of Haiti. Through the collective efforts of Hokies United, we can join in providing the needed support in order to make a

Collegiate Times Editorial Staff Editor in Chief: Sara Mitchell Managing Editors: Peter Velz, Bethany Buchanan Production Manager: Thandiwe Ogbonna Public Editor: Justin Graves News Editors: Zach Crizer, Philipp Kotlaba News Reporters: Liana Bayne, Gordon Block News Staff Writers: Hope Miles, Katie Robidoux, Allison Sanders, Claire Sanderson, Priya Saxena Features Editor: Topher Forhecz Features Reporters: Ryan Arnold, Liz Norment, Dan Waidelich Opinions Editor: Debra Houchins Sports Editors: Joe Crandley, Alex Jackson Sports Reporters: Ed Lupien, Ray Nimmo, Ryan Trapp, Melanie Wadden, Thomas Emerick Sports Staff Writers: Garrett Busic, Hattie Francis Copy Editors: Kelsey Heiter, Dishu Maheshwari, Mika Rivera Layout Designers: Kelly Harrigan, Josh Son, Sara Spangler, Cecilia Lam Illustrators: Mina Noorbakhsh, Jamie Martyn Multimedia Editor: James Carty Online Director: Jamie Chung COURTESY OF NADIA TUCK

difference.

The final lyrics include the phrases, “We shall live in peace, we shall live in peace, we shall live in peace some day,” followed by the chorus. These lyrics point to the ultimate goal of living in an environment free from conflict and living in peace. Today, this concept of peace is elusive for our country, as we face the threat of terrorists and the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

There is also the hateful rhetoric that is clouding the opportunity to make a difference and change in government. It is in peace that things can move forward. For example,

Haiti has suffered through dictatorships and weak governments with peace being an elusive concept.

Can Haiti have peace during this tragic time so that it can move forward?

I use the lyrics of “We Shall Overcome” to help illustrate the promise of Dr. King’s message and also the hope for the future for the Haitian people, and for our own community.

As this semester gets underway and your schedules begin to fill up with class meetings, and other commitments, let us not forget about what is happening in Haiti and real-

ize that moving forward will be a long and arduous journey. I encourage you to not forget the news and to help out in whichever way you can. I go back to my initial question, how would we react if faced with the circumstances of what is happening in Haiti?

RAY PLAZA -faculty - Academic Support Services

Voice your opinion. Readers are encouraged to send letters to the Collegiate Times.

Bowl victory not satisfying

365 Squires Student Center Blacksburg, VA, 24061 Fax: (540) 231-9151 opinionseditor@collegiatetimes.com

A

lthough it’s always great to see Tech easily win a bowl game, I had mixed feelings about this win over Tennessee. Beating Tennessee, an unranked team, left me with a kind of empty feeling. It would have been much more meaningful if we had competed against another ranked team. I’m not sure why we had to settle for this match-up.

That said, way to go, Hokies!

Next year should be pretty exciting.

Jim Manville Class of 1969 alum

Nominate for Sporn Award

A

Sporn Award Web site: http://www.odk.org. vt.edu/spornap.html What: $2,000 cash prize and induction into Academy of Teaching Excellence Nominations due by February 1

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[letters to the editor]

Matthew Vollmer Instructor, English Department

Collegiate Times Business Staff Business Manager: David Harries

Two children embrace three days before the earthquake that struck the country on January 12, 2010.

Your Views

s last year’s winner of the University Sporn Award, I have the honor and privilege of asking Virginia Tech students to submit nominations for this year’s award. The Sporn offers a unique opportunity for students to raise their voices in support of a faculty member who excels at teaching an introductory subject. I’d also like to add that this is the university’s only teaching award whose candidates are nominated and selected solely by Tech students; the winner will receive a cash prize of $2,000 and be subsequently inducted into the Academy of Teaching Excellence.

So, if you are a faculty member, please spread the word. Email your students and make an announcement in class. If you’re a student, take a few minutes to nominate a teacher whose passion, talent, and innovation inspired and motivated you to explore a particular subject — with rewarding results. You can fill out an application by visiting the Omicron Delta Kappa Web site and follow the Scholarships and Awards link to the Sporn award, or you can enter the following URL into your browser window. Please don’t delay— nominations are due by February 1, 2010.

Thanks.

The Collegiate Times is an independent student-run newspaper serving the Virginia Tech community since 1903

MCT CAMPUS

Living in the age of misinformation I

t has been said that Austria’s greatest accomplishment has been to convince the world that Hitler was German. This is widely believed despite it being untrue. There are many lies and ignoramuses around us every day that we just don’t notice.

Historians like to call this current era the Information Age, but perhaps it would be more aptly named the Misinformation Age. There is a hilarious and embarrassing viral video of one Miss Teen South Carolina answering a question.

Her nonsensical Palin-esque reply, although worthy of our pity, is not the interesting point in this video. The judge asks her a question that states 20 percent of Americans are unable to identify the United States on a world map. (After watching, one can only assume Miss Teen South Carolina might be in their numbers.)

That means that one out of every five people you see driving down the road, eating in a restaurant, or sitting in class does not know where the U.S. is on a map. These people, totaling in tens of millions, are our neighbors, friends and family. However, the intellectual shortcomings of our fellow Americans do not end there.

A 2005 Gallup poll asked Americans what seemingly bizarre or unusual beliefs they held. A stunning 73 percent of us possess at least one belief in the paranormal or occult. These beliefs include ESP, psychics, astrology, ghosts and communicating with the dead. The majority of us believe in at least one of these phenomena (although no single category teetered more than 41 percent) when there

exists precisely zero credible evidence of their validity. Further, almost every major figure of the paranormal culture, including John Edward, Uri Geller, Peter Popoff and many others, is a proven charlatan.

We do not fare much better when it comes to a basic understanding of scientific concepts. It has been about 500 years since Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492. Pretty much everyone now knows that the Earth is round. It has been about equally the same time since Copernicus presented the heliocentric theory. This is the idea that the sun is in the middle and the Earth rotates about it. (In reality, both the sun and Earth rotate about a common center of mass that happens to be well beneath the sun’s surface.)

Sadly, the news has not yet reached the 21 percent of us who think the Earth is in the center of it all. Also, out of those who responded correctly, only 71 percent knew that it takes the Earth a year to complete its solar orbit.

More recently, Charles Darwin presented the theory of evolution 150 years ago. Although it is officially called a scientific theory, for all intents and purposes it is the fact of evolution (similar to the laws of gravity, atomic theory, etc.). However, only 40 percent of Americans were willing to tell a Gallup pollster that evolution has indeed taken place, either theistically or naturally. This ranks the United States behind Cyprus, but ahead of Turkey. Our counterparts in Western Europe poll in the 70 to 80 percent range.

Other than biology, several branches of science and countless experiments have independently shown the age of the Earth to be about 4.5 billion years old. Despite this fact, 45 percent of us believe that the Earth was created sometime in the past 10,000 years.

Aside from being a disappointment to the scientific community, the proliferation of misinformation has political consequences. In 2005, during Operation Iraqi Freedom, Harris Interactive conducted a poll about American attitudes toward the war.

Forty-seven percent of respondents believed that Saddam Hussein played a role in orchestrating the Sept. 11 attacks. No connection has ever been made between the two.

In addition, 44 percent thought that several of the hijackers were from Iraq. In truth, none were — almost all were from Saudi Arabia. No doubt that this fabrication gave unwarranted support for the war at the time.

Errors surrounding the Sept. 11 attacks get even more cynical. In 2007, six years from that infamous day, Zogby International ran a poll to investigate the falsely labeled “9/11 Truth Movement.” They found that a whopping 30 percent of U.S. citizens believed that the federal government either planned or allowed the terrorist attacks for political and economic reasons. That means almost 100 million of us believe our own government is guilty of mass-murdering its own people. How all these people manage to cope in our society while holding that contemptuous belief is beyond comprehension.

Political conspiracy theories can

hit closer to home as well. Back in August, Public Policy Polling asked Virginians about the political climate with respect to the upcoming gubernatorial race. A hot news item at the time was the President Barack Obama’s birth certificate conspiracy theory. It was assumed that only the small lunatic fringe of the right wing thought this was a legitimate issue.

However, just a measly 32 percent of Virginia Republicans were willing to answer in the affirmative that the president of the United States is also a citizen of the United States. It is likely that this fib helped sway the race in the Republican candidate’s favor.

With such large portions of the American public being gullible on a wide range of issues, one cannot help but wonder how policy is affected on the national level. If a third of the electorate is uneducated, uninformed or otherwise susceptible to lies, then politicians can easily disregard public opinion with a clear conscious.

If a democracy is to work properly, then the leadership needs to respect the wishes and desires of the people.

Right now our leadership is deciding policy on climate change, health care and Afghanistan. Challenge your own beliefs and stop the spread of misinformation, and politicians will respect us more.

ERIC WOOD - graduate student - mechanical engineering

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january 19, 2010

features 7

editor: topher forhecz featureseditor@collegiatetimes.com/ 540.231.9865

january 19, 2010

COLLEGIATETIMES

‘Age’ provides fresh look into history of quantum physics A

night at the bar can yield surprises to any college student. People can create new bonds, break old ones and in the morning wake up wondering exactly how it happened.

Apparently, these confused and random events are not too dissimilar from quantum physics, according to Louisa Gilder’s popular science book, “The Age of Entanglement.”

“The Age of Entanglement” explores the rich history of quantum physics, a cutting edge field that left some of the brightest scientific minds of the 20th century feeling befuddled and hung over.

For anyone who may not be a theoretical physicist, quantum physics studies the universe at the atomic and subatomic levels. The field gained attention thanks to the work of scientists such as Werner Heisenberg, Niels Bohr and Albert Einstein.

Gilder’s book focuses on a particular curiosity of the field called entanglement, or as Einstein described it, “spooky action at a distance.”

According to the theory, atoms or particles can form a lasting connection with another object that cannot be broken by distance or time.

“The Age of Entanglement” is a document of the battles fought over the

perplexing oddity of Einstein’s “spooky action.”

The book is concerned with a daunting topic and at first glance might turn off casual readers, but Gilder overcomes the problem by turning the scientists who studied the phenomenon into rich, detailed characters.

Gilder uses the papers and opinions to create conversations that explain the complex ideas in the simplest terms possible. Readers are invited into the minds of great scientists to explore entanglement and quantum theory.

John Bell, a researcher from Northern Ireland, is Gilder’s protagonist on the journey through the quantum world.

Bell began his work on entanglement in the ’60s after the theory had been largely forgotten partly because of World War II and turmoil between physicists. His research picked up where Einstein and company left off, and it serves as Gilder’s anchor as she recreates scenes from all throughout the 20th century.

As a main character, Bell is extremely likable. Gilder portrays the Irishman as an observant, witty intellectual who is fascinated by his research and the work of his colleagues.

Gilder makes the point that Bell was a visionary, but he still seems com-

pletely relatable and this grounds the story of entanglement, even at its most confusing.

“The Age of Entanglement” is an educational and interesting look at a field most people probably don’t understand, but the complexity of quantum physics holds the book back.

Despite Gilder’s excellent writing and characterization, the book still tackles topics that will require the attention and imagination of its readers.

Bell committed his life to understanding entanglement and still could not answer every question. Readers who can commit to the content will find an enriching experience that will definitely broaden horizons.

“The Age of Entanglement” is an excellent look into the men who shaped science in the past century. In looking at the past, Gilder provides insight into how quantum physics made a lasting impact and has gone on to influence science today.

DAN WAIDELICH -features staff writer -junior -communications major

Recommendations

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“The Age of Entanglement: When Quantum Physics was Reborn” Louisa Gilder, Vintage Books, $17.00

“It’s About Time: Understanding Einstein’s Relativity” N. David Mermin, Princeton University Press

“Project Orion: The True Story of the Atomic Spaceship” George Dyson, Henry Holt and Co.

“Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space” Carl Sagan, Ballantine Books

Synopsis:

Synopsis:

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“Albert Einstein’s complicated theories of special relativity are explained in plain English in this account of the great scientist’s famous work.”

“The men who helped make the atomic bomb had another dream: to use those bombs as propellant for a giant spaceship.

Project Orion is the story of the greatest space vehicle that never was.”

“Carl Sagan, known as a master of popular science writing, explores Earth, humanity and how it all fits into the universe in this reflective look at our world.”

“Louisa Gilder recreates the lives of the men who decided to challenge physics and begin looking at things on the atomic level. One of them in particular broke from his colleagues to study a little studied theory called entanglement.”

Synopsis:

Linux laptop orchestra reprograms musical conventions ANDREW REILLY features staff writer Virginia Tech’s newest musical ensemble has a problem with one of its songs.

A faint cough can be heard on the track “Citadel,” briefly interrupting soprano graduate student Chelsea Crane’s vocals. It seems only the most discerning listeners would take notice of the small blemish, but to composer Ivica Ico (pronounced Ee-zo) Bukvic, it is deafening.

“In a song so serene, a cough sounds like an explosion of nuclear proportions,” he announces to the students in the room. His playful tone belies what the perfectionist composer considers a serious problem.

In the past, he explains, the audible noise would remain on the recording.

Today, technology allows for different plans.

He gathers his students around his computer station and excitedly shows them a software feature that allows him to manually remove the audio track featuring the cough. When the blemish is excised, even a seasoned programmer like Bukvic is impressed.

“Pardon my French,” he asks, “but what the hell? How do they do that?”

On Dec. 4, those who attended the premiere event of the Linux Laptop Orchestra may have been asking the same questions if they didn’t know what they were getting themselves into.

The ensemble, abbreviated as “L2Ork,” forgoes the traditional approach to composing and performing music.

Instead, members use open-source music software called Pure Data on their computers to program a complex series of notes and chords. While computer-based music is often associated with electronic music, the orchestra’s sound is closer to its instrument-based brethren.

“The idea behind it is that you have traditional singing and traditional chords,” said junior music technology major Steven Querry, “but the chords are made by laptops instead of traditional instruments.”

“Citadel” demonstrates this fusion of traditional and avant-garde elements.

Crane’s voice, the centerpiece of the song, is covered with layers of softly rippling chords. The interconnected computer programs create an organicsounding ocean of noise around the vocals.

With the cough removed, Bukvic seems satisfied with the recording.

When he emits a relieved sigh, it is understandable. Few people have had as manic a semester as the L2Ork mastermind and assistant professor of music technology in the Department of Music’s Digital Interactive Sound and Intermedia Studio.

The maiden year of the L2Ork has been demanding, according to Bukvic.

“It’s been extremely exciting and exhausting, something I learned after the fact,” he said.

He laughs as he recalls receiving emails from fellow American laptop orchestra leaders congratulating him on starting the program — and offering condolences.

Despite the difficult road, Bukvic has no regrets about pursuing his dream.

A self-described geek, Bukvic has been fascinated by the possibilities provided by an open-source, community-driven operating system such as Linux. He has tried to study the artistic potential of such a system for years, but limited infrastructure and research opportunities prevented a full exploration.

The breakthrough in computerbased orchestras occurred at Princeton University in 2005. Bukvic’s friend and colleague Dan Truman, upon deciding that technology had finally reached the necessary capabilities, formed the Princeton Laptop Orchestra. It was the first of its kind in America and soon after another colleague, Ge Wang, established a similar ensemble

PHOTO COURTESY OF LINUX LAPTOP ORCHESTRA

When the orchestra practices, they use sounds generated from seperate computers to piece together their songs.

PHOTO COURTESY OF LINUX LAPTOP ORCHESTRA

Ivica Ico Bukvic acts as composer of the Linux Laptop Orchestra. He started the project after seeing the sucess of other institution’s orchestras. at Stanford.

With the technology in place and a national network forming, the biggest remaining hurdle for Bukvic was securing the necessary funding to launch such an ambitious project.

“I started looking for grants and sponsors and I was pleased to see our work resonate with people inside and outside the VT community,” he said.

Even with a $20,000 grant from the Virginia Tech Institute for Society, Culture and Environment, the overhead was still high enough that Bukvic and a group of students spent the spring and summer researching ways to reduce costs.

One of the first major decisions was eschewing the expensive Max/MSP software used at the other universities in favor of the cheaper, open-source Pure Data. Bukvic admits that the software comes with a steeper learning curve than Max/MSP. The upside is being able to contribute back into an open-source community, said junior political science major Adam Wirdzek.

This, he believes, is fundamental to the L2Ork mission.

“What’s nice about using Pure Data is that it’s all open-source,” he said, “and that means that we can give back and other people can enjoy it as well and add onto it.”

This drive to remain cost-efficient led to innovations that Wirdzek said have come to define the ensemble’s visual identity. To control the Pure Data programs, known as “patches,” an input controller is needed. Rather than spend upwards of $70 for each orchestra member, Bukvic found a visually appealing, cheaper alternative: the Wii remote.

“The patches Ico wrote are the score and instruments, while the ‘Wiimote’ is how you control,” Querry said.

To ensure even distribution of the orchestra’s different sounds, Bukvic insisted on using hemispheric speakers. Over the summer the L2Ork team purchased several IKEA salad bowls and spent weeks transforming them into omnidirectional sound projectors at a fraction of the cost of a retail version.

According to Bukvic, the speakers simulate the natural acoustics of an

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instrumental orchestra, allowing audiences to hear each member’s part of the composition.

With the infrastructure in place, L2Ork began operation at the beginning of the fall semester with eight members. Participants vary in majors.

Some are in the music technology program while others, such as Wirdzek, were recruited by Bukvic after expressing interest in the curriculum. The ensemble members all take a one-credit laptop orchestra course that doubles as practice. Progress, as Bukvic expected, was slow as students wrapped their heads around the Pure Data system.

“This semester — half of it, maybe more — was spent figuring out the software we have and turning it into music,” Wirdzek said.

Bukvic, the chief composer for the ensemble, said that the weeks leading up to the event were some of the most stressful of his college career. Members said they were still perfecting the compositions a week in advance of the show. Media coverage added to the pressure felt by Bukvic and the students to live up to expectations.

“He really was working his butt off to make sure these pieces were good because we were getting a lot of hype toward the end,” Wirdzek said. “I think

it was well-deserved because we pulled it off pretty well because of him.”

The early December show, the culmination of the semester’s work, was considered a major success by all involved. The orchestra played to a standing room-only audience in Squires Studio Theatre that Crane described as “enthusiastic.” Perhaps the ensemble’s greatest validation came after the show when many students in attendance came onto the stage to ask questions and watch demonstrations of the equipment.

Bukvic smiles broadly as he talks about the positive reaction.

“It was really exciting because it says there’s genuine interest,” he said. “I think (the show) went amazingly well.”

With that first crucial success under their belt, the orchestra members now

look forward to expanding the program. This semester, L2Ork is scheduled to play its first travel show at the University of Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. Developing the infrastructure to enable touring performances is one of Bukvic’s major goals for the laptop orchestra community. The ensemble is also expecting to compete in an international music competition that could provide an opportunity to perform in the Netherlands.

The group is optimistic that bigger things await the orchestra in 2010.

“I see it expanding,” said Crane. “With all the publicity its getting now and so many people enthusiastic about it, I feel like more people will get interested and more funding will hopefully come to the L2Ork project as well as the music department.”

january 19, 2010

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january 19, 2010

COLLEGIATETIMES

Conan O’Brien to make way for Jay Leno on ‘Tonight Show’ MEG JAMES & JOE FLINT mcclatchy newspapers After a week of caustic jokes, jawboning and behind-the-scenes negotiations, “Tonight Show” host Conan O’Brien is leaving NBC to make room for the return of Jay Leno to late-night TV. An announcement could come as early as Saturday and will settle, at least in public, the acrimonious maneuvering among the comedians, their respective camps and NBC in the wake of its decision to shuffle Leno from prime time and back to his late-night slot, which O’Brien has occupied for the last seven months.

In the past few days, representatives for O’Brien and NBC resolved key issues, including how long O’Brien would have to sit on the sidelines before appearing on a rival network and how large a check the network would have to write, according to a person close to the negotiations. A couple points were

look down.

pick up.

still to be hammered out, the person said, but were not expected to derail the deal.

O’Brien, the fifth host of “The Tonight Show,” is likely to have his final show next Friday.

Leno’s last show in prime time will be Feb. 11, the day before opening ceremonies of the Winter Olympics.

O’Brien and NBC have been at loggerheads since last week when the network decided to cancel Jay Leno’s low-rated 10 p.m. show after only four months and return him to 11:35 p.m.

That would have pushed O’Brien’s show to 12:05 a.m. But O’Brien refused to go along with NBC’s plan. He contended the move would violate his contract.

A final resolution will be costly to NBC. O’Brien, who earns about $12 million annually, has two and a half years remaining on his contract. How much NBC will have to pay O’Brien depends on several factors, including how long the comedian stays off the air. But O’Brien’s existing package is

Jay Leno (left) will take back his old role as host of NBC’s “Tonight Show.” Conan O’Brien will leave the network after his last show. expected to be about $25 million to $35 million, according to two people familiar with the matter who asked not to be identified because the negotiations were

supposed to be private.

O’Brien’s departure from NBC, where he started in 1988 as a writer on “Saturday Night Live” and five years

later won his own late-night talk show, caps a week of on-air barbs and lampooning aimed at the network and Leno by O’Brien and other talk show hosts. “Welcome to NBC. Where our new slogan is, ‘No longer just screwing up primetime,’” said O’Brien the other night.

NBC’s flip-flop on Leno and again relegating O’Brien to second-string status not only tarred the reputations of O’Brien and Leno but also tarnished the legacy of Jeff Zucker, the NBC Universal chief executive who championed Leno’s move to prime time.

Zucker handed Leno his own show in prime time as a way to keep the comedian at the network after he had promised O’Brien could inherit “The Tonight Show” by 2009.

The financial consequences of Zucker’s decision are severe, and likely to last a long time. Not only did the network spend more than $30 million to build new studio sets for both talk show hosts, but NBC will now have to

“

Welcome to NBC. Where our new slogan is, ‘No longer just screwing up primetime.’

CONAN O’BRIEN THE TONIGHT SHOW

spend tens of millions more to develop new show to fill the 10 p.m. time period vacated by Leno.

In addition, “The Tonight Show” has lost nearly half of its audience, and it’s unclear if Leno will be able to get his old viewers back. Local TV stations also suffered as their ratings plummeted.

This week, NBC announced a new prime-time schedule that will begin in March after the Winter Olympics. At 10 p.m., episodes of “Law & Order,” “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” “Dateline” and the new programs “Parenthood” and Jerry Seinfeld’s “The Marriage Ref” will replace the “Jay Leno Show.”

10 sports

editors: joe crandley, alex jackson sportseditor@collegiatetimes.com/ 540.231.9865 COLLEGIATETIMES

january 19, 2010

College coaches often get schooled transitioning to NFL DANNY O’NEIL mcclatchy newspapers

SEATTLE — Success became standard for Pete Carroll at USC — an expectation, even.

Seven straight conference titles and a couple of national championships have a way of hiking the bar so that anything less than unprecedented, overwhelming success is a disappointment.

But by taking the job as Seahawks coach, Carroll has put himself in a position where even marginal success would be unexpected given the recent history of coaches hopping from the NCAA to the NFL. In the previous 20 years, there have been 14 instances when a college head coach left his gig to become an NFL head coach. Eight times, the coach failed to make the playoffs with that NFL team. Just two guided their respective teams to a Super Bowl.

For every Jimmy Johnson in Dallas, there is a Nick Saban, a Rich Books— or worse, a Bobby Petrino, who didn’t

even make it through a season with Atlanta before he threw up his hands and bailed back to the NCAA. “Most college coaches find out it’s a lot harder to coach rich 25-year-olds than it is poor 19-year-olds,” said former Colts coach Tony Dungy during last week’s playoff coverage on NBC. Not since Steve Mariucci leapt to the 49ers in 1997 after a single season at California has a college coach gone to the NFL and lasted more than four seasons with a team.The difficulty of the college-to-pro transition is one most coaches would prefer not to revisit.

Arizona State’s Dennis Erickson turned down a request for an interview this week. His Sun Devils have a new offensive coordinator, Noel Mazzone, and he’d rather focus on installing a new scheme rather than recall all the reasons his two stints in the NFL didn’t pan out. And really, can you blame him for not wanting to remember that time Vinny Testaverde’s Jets helmet was mistaken for the ball by officials in a game

against the Seahawks? Or reciting just how salary-cap strapped the 49ers were in his two seasons there?

Mike Riley of Oregon State also made a sojourn to the NFL before returning to the Pac-10. He was asked about the different traits and tools that are required at the college and pro levels.

“College involves a whole lot more in what you do with your team off the field,” Riley said in a telephone interview this week. “That’s where your work comes in, the development of young men.”

In the NFL, coaches don’t change lives, they impact careers. There is one measure for that, and it’s not the number of speeches, the wattage of enthusiasm on the sideline or the pace of practice.

“Guys want to win, period,” said Seahawks defensive end Lawrence Jackson, who played for Carroll at USC. Recruiting counts in college. A lot.

The more talent a coach attracts, the more prohibitive his team’s advantage

is on the field.

The NFL legislates parity in everything from the salary cap, to the draft order, and even the schedule to a limited extent. An NFL coach must do more than identify the most talented players and go get ‘em. The challenge is to identify undervalued players and to get the most out of the players you do have with schematics and playcalling.

“Everything is just that much more competitive,” Chargers coach Norv Turner told the Los Angeles Times this week. “I guess I would say it’s if you’re at Florida, it’s like every week playing at Alabama.”

That won’t be news to Carroll, who has one trait that clearly distinguishes him from the previous 20 years of coaches that jumped from the NCAA to the NFL: He’s the only one who was an NFL head coach before he became a college head coach.

“He has probably self-evaluated himself from the years that he had at New York and New England,” said safety Lawyer Milloy, who played

for Carroll from 1997 to 1999 with the Patriots. “He wants to right his wrongs. I know he took his time and really feels like this is the time where he needs to go ahead and take this challenge on again.”

Will it be different this time? That remains to be seen. Will Carroll be different? That’s less likely because while he said his philosophy is more clearly defined, he did not reinvent himself He’s still an optimist who doesn’t just believe the glass is half full; he expects it to overflow any second.

His enthusiasm came bubbling out during his introductory news conference before he even reached the podium. Carroll shouted, “Yeah, baby,” from the side as CEOTod Leiweke mentioned the fan support at Qwest Field.

In a league where coaches approach news conferences as a challenge to say as little as possible, Carroll spoke for more than 11 minutes uninterrupted in his first appearance as Seahawks coach. “I’m so fired up to be here,” he

began. The next news conference Bill Belichick begins with those words will be the first.

It would be easy to describe that as the embodiment of collegiate enthusiasm, a relic that won’t serve Carroll well in the bottom-line business of the NFL. But it’s too soon to draw any conclusions. The Seahawks are eight months from their first game under Carroll and likely several years from having an accurate measurement of whether he can captain Seattle’s rebuilding process.

Maybe Carroll can be the exception to the trend. Perhaps he can be the college coach who jumps to the NFL and hits the ground running.

And given his 16 years of experience coaching in the NFL before he went to the college ranks, it’s possible the whole distinction is overblown. At least one player who knows Carroll fairly well thinks so.

“The man can coach, bottom line,” linebacker Lofa Tatupu said. “That’s pretty much what I’m going to leave it at.”

Basketball at UNC in an identity crisis RON GREEN JR. mcclatchy newspapers CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — These are strange days for North Carolina basketball.

The Tar Heels’ 73-71 loss to Georgia Tech on Saturday afternoon in the Smith Center came within an eyelash of being a great escape, but North Carolina isn’t in a place right now where it makes enough good things happen to offset the bad.

It was the Tar Heels’ third loss in four games, dating back to their surprising splat at the College of Charleston 13 days ago. That’s where coach Roy Williams senses his team’s confidence took an uppercut and hasn’t recovered.

With most of the national championship team’s players picking up paychecks for their hoops these days, this figured to be a young and impressionable North Carolinateam. It didn’t, necessarily, figure to be one that would stall or backslide as this one seems to have done.

With a solid dose of exasperation in his voice, Williams was talking about his team’s fragile confidence Saturday, saying he’s not accustomed to coaching teams that lack a little swagger. He’s getting a taste of it now, though.

“In the ACC, people don’t give you wins,” Williams said. “You have to play, you have to take things ...”

Right now, all the Tar Heels are taking are their lumps.

Georgia Tech figured to be a problem for the Tar Heels inside where the Yellow Jackets’ strong and aggressive big men, particularly Gani Lawal and Zach Peacock, could muscle North Carolina’s collection of tall, thin youngsters.

There was some of that, but the larger problem was in the backcourt where the Tar Heels’ point guards — Larry Drew II and Dexter Strickland — combined to make just 2 of 10 shots with nine assists and six turnovers.

On the other side, Georgia Tech’s Iman Shumpert gave a 30-point demonstration of why Williams recruited him aggressively three years ago.

Though there were reasons for encouragement — Will Graves shot the Tar Heels back into the game in the second half and for stretches North Carolina played with the sense of conviction Williams wants — but the reality remains a gray area.

Whenyouwatch NorthCarolina play, you’re not sure where to look or whom to look for. It’s clear the Tar Heels are still searching for their identity. If they have a guy who will grab a team by the waistband and pull them where they need to go, that guy hasn’t done it yet.

Maybe he will. But who?

And when?

The Tar Heels are 12-6 overall, 1-2 in the league and, for the moment, moving in the wrong direction. If there’s such a thing as an easier part of the schedule, North Carolina is in it. Starting with Georgia Tech, the Tar Heels play three of their next four at home (Wake Forest and Virginia) with a visit to N.C. State tucked inside.

The long-term view is more ominous. North Carolina has seven ACC road games remaining and considering the Tar Heels are 1-5 away from the Smith Center this year, the challenge increases. Granted, four of the Tar Heels’ road losses have been to ranked teams (Syracuse, Kentucky, Tex as and Clemson), but there aren’t any easy ones left.

Williams said the only thing he knows to do is to work his team through this.

There’s no magic formula. The Tar Heels aren’t going to instantly be world beaters.

In an ACC that lacks a great team but may have plenty of good teams, North Carolina remains an enigma.

“Anotherdayofsoulsearching,” North Carolina senior Marcus Ginyard said after the game.

That’s strange at North Carolina.

january 19, 2010

page 11

Disappointing defeat

KUMAR VEETRAG/SPPS

Tech junior guard Nikki Davis drives through the lane during the first half of play in Cassell Coliseum Monday night against No. 25 Virginia. Davis finished the game with four points, four assists and two rebounds.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL LOSES FOR SECOND TIME IN ACC PLAY TO RIVAL NO. 25 VIRGINIA CAVALIERS GARRETT RIPA sports reporter The No. 25 Virginia Cavaliers’ hot shooting overwhelmed a Virginia Tech women’s squad that spent the majority of the game trying to find a rhythm Monday night.

Virginia’s 70-56 victory marks the Cavaliers’ first Atlantic Coast Conference win of the season, halting the Hokies’ momentum after Tech’s significant win over then No. 10 North Carolina Thursday.

This was a much-needed win for UVa (12-5, 1-2 ACC) which suffered a one-point loss to Maryland in its previous game.

“We came down here with a lot of pressure on us,” said Virginia head coach Debbie Ryan. “The hardest part for me was diffusing the pressure, starting off 0-2 in the ACC and trying to shake off the loss to Maryland … which was compounded by the fact that the Hokies crushed North Carolina.”

The first half was a battle for both teams, but Virginia went into the locker room squeaking out a 2523 lead over the Hokies (11-6, 1-2 ACC).

Tech shot a mere 27.8 percent in the half, with starters Nikki Davis, Alyssa Fenyn, and Lindsay Biggs totaling five points.

The dismal shooting for Biggs came after being named ACC player of the week for her 19-point effort against North Carolina.

She is the first women’s basketball player for Tech to garner that award.

After the Hokies opened the second half on a 4-0 run, gaining a 27-25 lead, the Cavaliers’ offensive onslaught began. The Cavs scored on eight straight possessions and followed with a 15-4 run, sparking their lead to 14 points with 10 minutes remaining.

Ryan credits the Cavaliers’ scoring to their wise shot selection, which has been an issue in their previous losses.

“I think the right people took the right shots, our problems all year have stemmed from poor shot selection,” she said. “We watched a lot of film this week and we spent a good deal of time in practice making sure players know when they didn’t take good shots.”

National Player of the Year candidate Monica Wright took part in the Cavaliers’ party, dropping 27 points on the Hokies despite playing just 30 minutes because of foul trouble.

With the Cavaliers’ lead at 14, the Hokies made a push with two free throws by Utahya Drye, a Cavalier turnover forced by Abby Redick, and a layup by Fenyn.

However, their run was squandered by a pair of missed one-andone’s by Redick along with the early departure of Fenyn due to a bloody face.

Fenyn, in the midst of a very physical game, was elbowed in the face by Wright while going up for a rebound.

She returned to the game but only with 1:50 remaining and the game out of reach. “(We) couldn’t quite get in sync,” Tech head coach Beth Dunkenberger said. “I don’t think there was any lack of focus. This team knew what it needed to do. I do think that we struggled to execute, though.”

Drye was about the only hot-hand for Tech, finishing with 18 points, six assists and seven rebounds.

“I think Virginia shot the ball better from the three-point line than we did from the free-throw line, and that’s not a good sign,” Dunkenberger said.

That stat held true in the second half, as the Cavaliers shot 80 percent from three-point range compared to the Hokies’ 55.6 percent from the

KUMAR VEETRAG/SPPS

Freshman guard Alyssa Fenyn is helped off the court after cutting her face in the second half of play Monday night against Virginia.

KUMAR VEETRAG/SPPS

Tech sophomore guard Shanel Harrison pushes her way inside the lane Monday night during Tech’s 70-56 loss to the Cavaliers. charity stripe.

Despite the loss, some believe things are looking up for the Hokies this season, especially compared to their 2-12 finishes in the ACC each of the past two years.

“I think we can do a lot better than we did the past two years and the NCAA tournament is always one of our goals,” Biggs said.

“We’ve definitely grown as a team,”

Davis added. “If we play together, we can beat any team in our conference.”

The long conference season ahead will determine whether the Hokies’ victory over the Tar Heels was just a fluke.

Tech doesn’t have time to look ahead, though, as it travels to Durham on Thursday for a contest against the No. 7 Duke Blue Devils.

january 19, 2010

page 12

Comfortable conquest

KUMAR VEETRAG/SPPS

Tech forward Jeff Allen jumps for a rebound Monday night during the Hokies win over NC Central. Allen finished with seven points.

TECH MEN’S BASKETBALL CRUISES TO EASY VICTORY OVER NORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL EAGLES MELANIE WADDEN sports reporter Coming off of a close loss in Tallahassee to Atlantic Coast Conference rival No. 25 Florida State on Saturday, the Hokies (14-3, 1-2 ACC) quickly bounced back with a win over North Carolina Central (416) in their last non-conference game of the regular season Monday night.

Tech came out strong early in front of its home crowd Monday night and held a substantial lead throughout the contest, which ended in a 72-30 victory.

The Hokies began the game similarly to how the Seminoles did on Saturday, by pushing the ball early.

Led by junior guard Dorenzo Hudson and freshman guard Erick Green, who finished the game with nine and 11 points respectively, there was never a doubt as to who would win the game.

Virginia Tech’s four freshmen, Green, Cadarian Raines, Manny Atkins, and Ben Boggs finished the game with 32 total points, essentially defeating North Carolina Central on their own.

“All of the freshmen were excited to be out there and to help get this win,” Atkins said.

“It’s good to get in the freshmen and the guys that don’t get in a lot,” added junior Malcolm Delaney. “I think they played good.”

Tech opened the game with three long shots by Hudson and junior Terrell Bell, propelling it to an early

lead. The Eagles were only able to hit 4 of 27 shots from the floor in the first-half and had only eight points at the break.

The Hokies opened the second half with two impressive dunks by Bell and played their freshmen for a lot of minutes.

“I think it’s going to be really important for us to have gotten that extra playing time,” Green said. “I think it’s prepared me a little bit, but the ACC and the next 13 games are going to be a completely different story.”

Despite some sloppy passing and poor shot selection around the lane in the first-half, the Hokies showed signs of a team ready for the tough ACC schedule that remains in front of them.

“We just have to stay tough and stay consistent,” continued Delaney. “We were fine in the first-half, we just have to put the whole game together and get the total package together.”

The Hokies’ victory over NCCU pushed the Eagles back to a road-game record of 0-12 on the season.

With freshmen like Atkins and Raines stepping in with eight points apiece on the evening, the Hokies’ young talent looked to have a promising future with their performance Monday.

The Hokies continue their long conference stretch on Saturday in Blacksburg against another group of Eagles — this time from Boston College. Tipoff is set for 1:30 p.m. in Cassell Coliseum.

TRAVIS CHURCH/SPPS

Virginia Tech forward Victor Davila rises up to score during the Hokies’ win over NC Central on Monday night in Cassell Coliseum.