The Daily Free Press
Year xlii. Volume lxxxiii. Issue X
ON THE TRAIL Students in campaigns for Dem., Rep. parties, page 3.
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Tuesday, September 18, 2012 The Independent Student Newspaper at Boston University
WEIGHING IT OUT
Why some low-cal diets do not promote long lifespans, page 5.
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CROSSING BORDERS Men’s soccer to face Holy Cross Tuesday, page 8.
WEATHER
Today: Showers/High 72 Tonight: Rain/Low 66 Tomorrow: 69/52 Data Courtesy of weather.com
SG moves toward gender-neutral housing at meeting BUPD, SHS fight alcohol violations, advocate for saftey By Chris Lisinski Daily Free Press Staff
Student Government passed amendments to its constitution and reviewed gender-neutral housing at its first General Assembly meeting of the 2012–13 academic year Monday night. SG officials said progress has been made with gender-neutral housing and that it could be available as a specialty housing option at Boston University for the 2013–14 academic year. “Administration sees, after trustees and faculty approval, [gender-neutral housing] as happening and as an option for spring semester housing forms and actually happening fall semester,” said Aditya Rudra, SG executive vice president. SG checked up on 24-hour study spaces at the meeting and how Shelton Hall’s former dining hall was converted to a 24-hour lounge at the start of the fall semester. “For those of you living off campus, during the semester, you will have access to Shelton’s dining hall 24/7 as a place to study,” Rudra, a School of Management junior, said during the meeting. However, Rudra said, Shelton will not be open permanently, and other spaces would replace it. The former Myles Standish Hall dining hall will be converted to 24-hour study space in the fall semester. “Unfortunately, [Shelton] cannot continue
By Nicole Leonard Daily Free Press Staff
KENSHIN OKUBO/DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
College of Communication junior and Student Union president Dexter McCoy listens to students feedback on campus issues at the Student Union meeting Monday night.
to stay open,” he said. “By the end of the semester, you should see Myles [Standish Hall’s] dining hall as a 24/7 study space.” SG announced changes it had begun implementing over the summer, such as its name change from Student Union and the formation
of a group of student leaders called the president’s council. These changes were compiled into a list of amendments to the SG constitution. Mem-
SG, see page 2
Mass. prepares for underage, problem gamblers in possible casinos By Amelia Pak-Harvey Daily Free Press Staff
Although research suggests gambling problems await college students at casinos, any possible casino in Boston will have safeguards to look out for both underage and problem gamblers, officials said. If East Boston and Revere approve a casino, college students aged 21 and older might be able to take the T or a taxi to get the area, a short trip for a gambling excursion. The law forbids anyone under 21 in a casino unless an employee who is at least 18 years old works there. Research and literature on the impact of casinos on college students has shown that gambling, while it may not negatively affect the majority of college students, can still have adverse consequences for a number of them. “Today, gambling is seen by many as
a bona fide recreational activity — a relatively fun, sexy one at that,” said William Hanson, assistant educational psychology professor at the University of Alberta whose co-authored article “Problem Gambling on College Campuses” appeared in the National Association of Student Personnel Adminstrators journal in 2009. College students are “a particularly vulnerable population” to gambling, he said. Hanson said college students should actively maintain non-gambling hobbies and interests, set strict limits to disposable gambling money and avoid tendency to try to “win back” lost money. As a graduate student at Mississippi State University in 1997, Jean Dabit, currently a licensed professional counselor, worked on a study explaining the attraction of casinos to college students in Mississippi. “One of the things that I remember [from doing the study] was the attraction of it, the
lights and the sounds,” Dabit said, “and it looks so easy and it gets people excited, and people think that they can win.” The research found that gambling might affect students’ financial management, academics, alcohol consumption and behavior. Suffolk Downs, partnered with Caesar’s Entertainment, has been a main license competitor trying to open a casino near the old racetrack where Seabiscuit once competed. If the Massachusetts Gaming Commission licenses The Resort at Suffolk Downs and the neighboring communities approve it, Boston University students would be able to take the Blue Line there, about an hourlong trip. Suffolk Downs Chief Operating Officer Chip Tuttle said in an emailed statement that the company was the first track in Massachusetts to partner with the Massachusetts
Casino, see page 2
The number of liquor law violations and medical transfers reported in the first two weeks of class at Boston University has dropped 50 percent compared to 2011, university officials said. For the second year, BU is monitoring students’ alcohol use and weekend activities by publishing statistics on underage alcohol, noise, university and state violations every week. “Our approach is one of harm reduction,” said Dr. David McBride, director of Student Health Services, in an email interview. “Our desire is to limit the negative consequences associated with the unhealthy use of alcohol — not, necessarily, to eliminate alcohol use by college students altogether.” Based on techniques used in a multicampus study done by the University of California on alcohol-risk management, McBride said BU worked with the BU Police Department, Boston Police Department and Brookline Police Department to limit the sales of alcohol to underage students. BU has also established “party patrols” in effort to establish an atmosphere of responsible behavior in the neighborhoods around campus. McBride said he hopes these patrols will deter students from behaving irresponsibly. College of Arts and Sciences freshman Maxim Bazik said the expanded police presence will not deter underage students from drinking and might have negative consequences for BU. “I think more police will just mean more people getting arrested and a bad reputation for BU,” Bazik said. “I don’t think just putting more police out is really going to solve the problem.” Bazik, who lives in Claflin Hall in West Campus, said he has not heard of any problems pertaining to alcohol in his dorm yet, but students should figure out for themselves what they can personally handle
BUPD, see page 2
Nearly $9M MBTA training facility receives 1st subway car, phase 2 of center’s construction By Jasper Craven Daily Free Press Staff
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority received its first Blue Line subway car for its training center on Monday, marking a major step in opening the underground tunnel to employees training for emergencies. The MBTA is constructing an emergency training center in an abandoned streetcar tunnel for an estimated $8.8 million in hopes of improving access to training for first responders, said MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo in an emailed media advisory. More subway cars, as well as a trolley and a bus, will eventually occupy the tunnel.
PP Express (BU) Ad.indd 1
“What we are attempting to do here is develop a state of the art training facility for all of the first responders so that they can hold different types of exercises in here,” said Jonathan Davis, general manager of the MBTA. The goal of the center, Davis said, is to offer emergency responders a realistic environment “so they can be proficient and efficient if there were to be an event on our system.” “This is going to be available all hours of the day for training without interrupting service at all,” Davis said. First responders wishing to train at the new facility will not be charged, he said. “I would expect that there would be a
significant amount of training that goes on here,” Davis said. “We serve 175 cities and towns and I would think they would want their first responders to have access to this facility too.” The center is being built in three phases and is currently in stage two, Pesaturo said. “Phase one consisted of water mitigation and structural repairs that addressed infrastructure issues at the site,” he said. “Phase two includes the delivery of two retired Blue Line cars and one retired Green Line trolley to the training center.” The third phase, he said, will involve further construction work to complete the center and bring the facility up to safety and fire codes.
The center received funding exclusively from the Department of Homeland Security, Davis said, and consequently will not add to the estimated $5.2 billion debt that the MBTA has amassed over previous years. The center, which is located in a snaking tunnel adjacent to Broadway Station in South Boston, will include light rail, heavy rail, Silver Line and evacuation training areas, according to MBTA plans. “I would suggest that there is actually no other facility like this in the United States,” said Randy Clarke, the senior director of security and emergency manage-
MBTA, see page 2
9/14/12 10:59 AM