T H E I N D E P E N D E N T D A I LY AT D U K E U N I V E R S I T Y
The Chronicle
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 20, 2012
ONE HUNDRED AND EIGHTH YEAR, ISSUE 62
WWW.DUKECHRONICLE.COM
Stress drives alcohol abuse Early decision apps fall slightly
CHRIS DIECKHAUS/THE CHRONICLE
According to a study by Duke researchers, the way students cope with stress may be linked to their alcohol habits. Undergraduates who seek high reward without regard for the consequences reported more likely to consume higher amounts of alcohol. by Raisa Chowdhury THE CHRONICLE
Alcohol abuse may be linked to how college students cope with stress, a recent study shows. Duke researchers at the laboratory of NeuroGenetics showed that alcohol abuse may be directly linked to an individual’s brain func-
tion. According to the study, a desire for reward and low regard for risk are two contributing factors to alcohol abuse. Undegraduates handle stressful situations by seeking high reward regardless of consequences were more likely to consume increased levels of alcohol than those who did not. The study
was published in the Nov. 14 issue of Biology of Mood and Anxiety Disorders. “We wanted to have the two systems [reward and risk] and life stress to predict behavior because it is actually quite common among college SEE ALCOHOL ON PAGE 3
The number of early decision applications for the Class of 2017 has dipped slightly from last year. The University received 2,586 applications compared to 2,656 received last year, said Dean of Admissions Christoph Guttentag. This decrease—less than 3 percent—comes after a 100 percent increase in early decision applications over the last five years, Guttentag said. “I’m not concerned—we have almost as many applicants as we had last year,” Guttentag said. “I think this is just a little bit of leveling.” Although the number of early applications decreased overall, the number of international applicants jumped more than 25 percent, from 210 to nearly 270, Guttentag noted. “When the change from one year to the next is so small, generally we don’t see anything in any subgroup that’s noticeable,” he said. Based on what he has seen of the applications so far, this year’s pool of applicants strongly resembles the Class of 2016’s early decision pool in terms of the caliber and
BYTHENUMBERS
2,586 applicants for the class of 2017 who applied early decision
3percent decrease in applicants from last year, but there has been a 100 percent overall increase in the past five years. distribution, apart from the international sub-group, Guttentag noted. The early decision deadline was extended to Nov. 4 after Hurricane Sandy hit the East Coast. Guttentag said he believes it is unlikely that the hurricane had an effect on application numbers. “We’ve seen a little decrease in applications from New York and New Jersey... but at the same time we’ve seen a decrease in Texas, so it’s hard to tie it to any one particular thing,” he said. —from Staff Reports
CROSS COUNTRY
The Blue Devils’ NC nonprofit wants to use own Nate Silver kudzu-like plant for biofuel by Sarah Elsakr THE CHRONICLE
In 2009, the Duke men’s cross country team placed fourth in the Southeast Regional meet, and for the first time in eight years, it seemed like an at-large bid to the NCAA Championship meet might be in the cards. Long before any running websites posted results or the NCAA made its anxiously-awaited announcement, one runner on the Duke team predicted the result. While the rest of his teammates waited, then-sophomore Bo Waggoner entered results from all the regions into a computer program he had written and revealed not only whether or not the Blue Devils would get the
chance to run on the championship course, but also the entire list of 31 teams that had made it, including predictions for all 13 of the at-large bids. He did not make a single mistake. “It first started… because we really wanted to know as soon as we could whether we would get in or not. I was learning computer science so it seemed like a good chance to try that out,” Waggoner said. “From there I just started collecting results of the meets over the course of the year and testing it to make sure it worked, and then the day of regionals I was able to use it to SEE WAGGONER ON PAGE 8
Duke prepares for the Battle 4 Atlantis, Page 4
by Lopa Rahman THE CHRONICLE
SPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE
A local nonprofit is considering using a species of giant cane to reduce reliance on oil, but some are concerned that the plant will be as invasive as kudzu.
An environmental nonprofit wants to reduce the amount of oil North Carolina imports by using giant cane-derived biofuel, but critics are concerned the foreign plant will turn into another kudzu. The Biofuels Center of North Carolina is working with farmers and manufacturers to replace 10 percent of imported petroleum with biofuels by 2017. Reaching that goal will require utilizing untapped resources, including Arundo donax, a biomassproducing species of giant cane, said Bo Harrison, a project manager at the center. “Of the different possible plants SEE BIOFUEL ON PAGE 3
ONTHERECORD
“What if I suggested, however, that the true cost of raising that turkey is, in fact, greater than the price you pay?... ” —Jennifer Imm in ‘Let’s talk turkey.’ See letter page 6
Maryland leaves ACC for Big 10, Page 4