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Sigma Tau Delta hosts their annual birthday bash for the legendary writer.
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APRIL 30, 2015
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VOLUME 89 • ISSUE 19
Louisiana schools brace for budget cuts JOHN SADLER Editor-in-Chief
Students hold vigil for Nepal
Students gathered in solidarity with the people of Nepal after an earthquake struck the country, leaving over 4,000 dead. Photos by Devin Dronett
RACHEL MAXWELL Staff Reporter When many Tech students think of home, they think of somewhere in Louisiana. For many, home is less than an hour away. If something bad happens, they can get in their car and drive to their loved ones. However, for Tech’s Nepali students, it is not that easy. When a 7.9 magnitude earthquake struck Nepal Saturday, the whole world was alerted of the tragedy. When students like Sanskar Dhungana heard the news, it changed his world completely. “It was 2:30 in the morning, my roommate was in a panic, and I kept thinking about my grandfather, how scared he must be,” said Dhungana, a sophomore biomedical engineering student from Nepal. “He was always so scared of earthquakes, and I could not get a hold of him that night.” Fortunately, all of Tech’s Nepali students received word by Monday that their immediate families had survived the disaster. However, Dilip Basnet, a junior chemical engineering major, said that their minds are far from at peace. “We have exams coming up; we can’t focus on anything but this,” he said. “It would be one thing if the disaster was over, but with aftershocks and landslides, things are still happening right now all over our country. The communication is still not good, so even though we know they are okay, we still have not talked to our families on the phone.” Ashmit Pykarel, a senior biomedical engineering major, said that worries are far from over. “We have some students that have lost homes, several whose homes are damaged,” he said. “In Haiti, more people died of the epidemic after the disaster than from the earthquake itself, so we are very worried about what is going to happen to our families.”
> see NEPAL page 10
ABOVE: Katie Rose (left), a junior chemistry major, and Katie Lee (right), a sophomore biology major, attended the candlelight vigil. LEFT: More than $4,500 was raised in donations at the event.
Higher education in Louisiana is bracing for massive budget cuts, with the worst-case scenario being a more than 80 percent cut in funding. The current session of the Louisiana State Legislature adjourns on June 11, just in time for the beginning of the new fiscal year in July. Legislators are looking at a $1.6 billion dollar shortfall, and in order to make it up, large chunks of both education and healthcare could be on the chopping block. In fact, if lawmakers do not take action to curb the cuts, the money paid out to higher education during the next fiscal year will be around $391 million, down from $924 million. That much of a cut could be disastrous, higher education officials warn. In an interview with The New Orleans Advocate, Ronald Mason, president of the Southern University System, said, “We’ve been bare bones for several years; we really can’t manage any level of cut.” The looming threat is so large, Louisiana State University has begun planning to file for financial exigency, or academic bankruptcy. “We need to have every tool at our disposal to survive,” said F. King Alexander, president of LSU, in an interview with NBC. “We’re optimistic that we can get through this, but, as managers of the institution, we’ve got to play out every scenario.” Tech President Les Guice shares similar optimistic views. “Everybody realizes that higher education needs to avoid cuts,” he said. “Keeping higher education as a whole is broadly supported by the house and the senate.” Guice said should it come to widespread cases of academic bankruptcy, there are plans in place. “Policies already exist with the UL System for how to handle such cases,” he said. “Should there be financial exigency concerns, the board has plans.”
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2 • The Tech Talk • April 30, 2015
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Sigma Tau Delta hosts a birthday for The Bard CALEB DANIEL Staff Reporter Swords clashed and viewers cheered as Louisiana Tech theater students reenacted a fight from “Macbeth” as part of the all-day Shakespeare Festival on April 23. This ninth annual Shakespeare birthday celebration, titled “Are you Shakespearienced?” threatened to be rained out, but the Shakespeare Garden managed to stay dry throughout the festivities. As president of Sigma Tau Delta, the English honor society, Alana Crump played a part in the preparation and execution of the event. Crump, a graduate student in English, said the festival sported a then-and-now theme. “We’re integrating Shakespeare with some of the themes from the ‘60s and ‘70s,” Crump said. “That’s something we try to do each year with Shakespeare, finding contemporary connections to the medieval period.” The proceedings included stage combat, a hippie puppet version of “Taming of the Shrew,” and a Shakespeare trivia battle between English and theater students. “One of my favorite parts is the trivia,” Crump said. “It’s interesting to see it play out between the students who act out Shakespeare’s plays and the students who read and discuss them. It’s always a fun
Photo by Colin Fontenot
Members of the Tech theatre department demonstrate fast-paced sword fighting.
little rivalry.” The festival also included a performance of an original play written by Kenneth Robbins, a theater professor.
Parker Carwile, a junior English major, was in the audience during the performance. She said while she enjoyed many of the events at the festival, the play’s the
thing. “It was a play written by a professor about Shakespeare,” Carwile said. “They usually just act out a Shakespeare play, and I really enjoyed this new take on it.” Carwile said she loves Shakespeare for his relatable writing. “Shakespeare is special to me because his characters really reflect real life,” she said. Scott Levin, an English professor and Sigma Tau Delta’s faculty adviser, said the festival is a celebration of Shakespeare’s all-encompassing influence. “Shakespeare is pervasive throughout Western culture,” Levin said. “Whether it is TV, movies or writing, you just can’t escape Shakespeare’s influence.” Students from West Ouachita High School took a field trip to mix in with Tech students in the crowd. Levin said he wanted to encourage audience participation. “We try to encourage student involvement by asking for volunteers to read Shakespeare’s sonnets,” Levin said. “It’s fun to have them take part in the festivities.” Crump said the message of the festival is about Shakespeare’s universalness. “Experiencing Shakespeare is not just boring lectures,” she said. “His words and themes are all around. I hope students can see that Shakespeare is everywhere, and he’s fun.”
Email comments to csd020@latech.edu
Fitness Fair helps students get in shape BRENNEN LEGE Staff Reporter Students looking to get their beach bodies ready for the summer increased their chances of success and overall health smarts by visiting the 21st annual Spring Wellness and Fitness Fair. Booths of different health groups and organizations were set up and organized at the Lambright Center on April 22 by Alisa Washam, a resident nurse at Louisiana Tech’s Student Health Center. Washam said moving the fair from the Student Center, where it was held previously, into the Lambright, was to help increase student turnout. “I tried to get mostly health-related places, like welfare and fitness places, to set up here,” she said. “My goal each
year is to promote health and wellness with students, and give students healthy lifestyle and nutrition tips.” The Center for Disease Control and Prevention conducted a study on young college students between 2007 and 2010, to understand how healthy and knowledgeable they were in life. The study showed 23 percent of young adults ages 18 to 24 were obese. On its webpage, the center displayed tips about a wide variety of topics, such as food intake, sexual assault, sexually transmitted diseases, drinking, smoking and managing stress. “The amount of food you need to eat from each food group depends on your age, sex and level of physical activity,” one of the messages read. “Follow an eating plan with correct portions of the basic food groups. Also be aware beverages may be adding extra calories.”
People still lack the proper knowledge when choosing what to eat, said Chris Clary, a senior nutrition and dietetics major. Clary manned the “Dietetics and Nutrition” booth at the fitness fair and said his goal was spread awareness about his major. Clary said dietitians, in part, help people add the depth of knowledge and professional wisdom necessary to become healthy eaters. “I think there is huge problem in today’s society with nutrition intake,” he said. “I think there is a lot of opportunity, as far as education, to prevent disease. Instead of healing people and treatment, after they’re already sick, the focus needs to be on disease prevention, and nutrition is a huge portion of it.”
> see FITNESS page 10
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UPCOMING EVENTS FRIDAY
SATURDAY
• The Bulldogs will face the University of Texas at San Antonio at 6 p.m. at J.C. Love Field.
• The Bulldogs will face the University of Texas at San Antonio at 3 p.m. at J.C. Love Field.
•The theater department will put on a production of Brighton Beach memoirs at 7:30 p.m. in Stone Theatre.
•The theater department will put on a production of Brighton Beach memoirs at 7:30 p.m. in Stone Theatre.
SUNDAY • The Bulldogs will face the University of Texas at San Antonio at 1 p.m. at J.C. Love Field.
MONDAY • TheUTeachTech launch celebration will be held in University Hall from 11-11:40 a.m.
TUESDAY • No calendar events
WEDNESDAY • No calendar events
THURSDAY • No calendar events
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April 30, 2015 • The Tech Talk • 3
Participants in the Out of the Darkness walk, hosted by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, made their way down Alabama Avenue.
Photo by Ashley Kober
Rustonians walk out of the dark MICHAEL HOGE Staff Reporter Suicide remains a big issue for many people, and for those working to stopping it. Out of the Darkness, a two-mile walk with Louisiana Tech students and local residents , was held on campus to help raise awareness about preventing suicide. “You can help break the mental illness stigma that a lot of people throw it (suicide) with and struggle with in secrecy and darkness when they think about suicide,” said Damion Cummins, the assistant professor of counseling at the University of Louisiana at Monroe. Cummins, assistant professor of counseling at the University of Louisiana at Monroe, said those in pain do not have to struggle in silence if people help in any way. He said this involved being active with community organizations and getting the word out to those who need help. The walk was held by one of those organizations, the
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, with participation of Tech’s student chapter of the National Association of Mental Illness. “My hope for today is come to know losing a loved one is not the end for you; the pain of losing them never really goes away, but you can learn to live again with the memories you shared with them,” said Gayle Newman, a junior secondary math education major. Newman lost her roommate and friend, Skye McFarland, whose sudden death came as a shock to those who knew them. “I came up here to memorialize my best friend, and I think that’s what it’s all about — is memorializing the ones you love and it helps us heal,” she said. Newman said a student group from KLPI, Tech’s radio station, formed a group for McFarland called “Reach for the Skye.” McFarland worked at KLPI, and trained under Newman.
Josh Chovanec, assistant registrar at Tech, said about 200 people showed up for the walk. “It’s for suicide prevention and awareness, and we have all these tables lined up from different organizations in the area,” he said. “That way people come in and see what this community has to offer in case someone does need help.” Donations have varied, but Chovanec said he expected they will receive more compared to last year, when $2,000 was raised. Rather than counsel people, the function of AFSP and NAMI direct those in need of help to it, he said. Chovanec said aside from awareness, it is about bringing together those who have been affected by suicide. “My hope for everyone here today is that we will all stay strong on our walk and encourage each other to overcome the pain,” Newman said.
Email comments to mph027@latech.edu.
High school students come out to Tech MICHAEL HOGE Staff Reporter
Photo by Ashley Kober
Potential students and their families were taken on a campus tour at Louisiana Tech’s spring Time Out for Tech.
Students enroll and attend classes at Louisiana Tech for a variety of personal reasons, but many students currently attending had help making a final decision by touring campus. Tech held its spring event “Time Out For Tech” across campus to introduce prospective students to campus life April 25, as student recruiters brought groups of high school students and their parents on a one-day tour of campus. “My entire family graduated from Tech, which makes it not my first choice,” said Rachel Lautigar, a junior from Bastrop High School. She said her father told her to take the Saturday to visit as she already visited other universities beforehand, and he was insistent she come tour the campus. Parker Begale, a sophomore marketing major and president of the student recruiters, said unlike other universities, Tech uses student recruiters in order to have a bigger impact on prospective students. “I’m from Ruston and my mom wanted me to stay close to home,” he said. “I was a little bit hesitant at first, but then I visited the campus and what brought me in the most was that sense of community.” Lautigar said she was there to see it for herself and get the whole experience before she made a final decision. “If you had asked me about three months ago, I
would have said, ‘heck no, Tech no,’ but now I don’t know where I want to go really,” she said. Lautigar said the campus was much prettier than she expected was very impressed by the Lambright Sports and Wellness Center. “I love the students here honestly because everyone I know here is really nice and seem to enjoy it a lot, so that helps me definitely,” she said. Lautigar said she wanted to study linguistics because she loves studying languages and how they work. “The only thing I’m sure about is what I want to study and that I want to go to law school, and who will give the best scholarships,” she said. Courtney Wright, a junior from Neville High School in Monroe, said she chose the College of Business at Tech because of her goal of a business marketing degree and working toward an MBA. “I like the connections and how you can get a job after you get out of college,” she said. Wright said what she personally liked the most was the renovations that have gone on campus to update it. For her, Tech is in one of her top five universities she is thinking about going to. Parker said Tech has the advantage being a smaller university, but also the aspects of a bigger one, and for him that is perfect. “To me that is the perfect middle, that’s what pushes me to be here,” he said.
Email comments to mph027@latech.edu.
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4 • The Tech Talk • April 30, 2015
Insight The
TechTalk
FROM THE EDITOR Baltimore shows how we change narratives
MANAGEMENT EDITOR-IN-CHIEF John Sadler
MANAGING AND ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR Cody Sexton
SPORTS EDITOR Jared King
FEATURE EDITOR
Kelsy Kershaw
MULTIMEDIA EDITOR
Wynnifred Sanders
NEWS EDITOR
Ellie Moslander
PHOTO EDITOR
Brian Blakely
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Colin Fontenot Devin Dronett Ashley Kober Avery Bryan
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ADVERTISING REPRESENTATIVES Rachel Maxwell Brooke Frasier
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Dr. Judith Roberts T. Scott Boatright
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PRODUCTION MANAGER Michael LeBlanc
ADVERTISING PRODUCTION Michael LeBlanc
DEPARTMENT HEAD
Dr. Reginald Owens
JOHN SADLER Editor-in-Chief
B
altimore was burning Monday night. Riots, caused by the mysterious, unexplained death of Freddie Gray, lasted long into the night. Gray was arrested on April 19. Put in the back of a police van with what bystanders described as a broken leg, he later died of unexplained spinal injuries. The family’s attorney, Billy Murphy Jr., said Gray’s spine was “80 percent severed at his neck.” Gray was arrested because he ran after making eye contact with the police. The police have said they think there was no warrant out for his arrest, and the only thing on him that could be described as incriminating is a switchblade. Gray did have a lengthy criminal record, including charges for manufacturing narcotics and burglary, but the police have only said they thought he was immediately involved in criminal activity. The details of the arrest are very vague.
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The Tech Talk welcomes letters to the editor. However, we reserve the right not to print anonymous letters. We also ask that each letter be accompanied by a telephone number, address and classification or title. We will not print the telephone number. Viewpoints should be mailed or brought to The Tech Talk office, 139 Keeny Hall, by 4 p.m. the Friday prior to a Thursday publi cation. Letters should be mailed to The Tech Talk, P.O. Box 10258, Ruston, LA 71272. Emails should be sent to techtalk@latech.edu. You can also submit letters online at www.thetechtalk.org/home/ lettertotheeditor/. Louisiana Tech University is committed to the principle of providing the opportunity for learning and development of all qualified citizens without regard to race, sex, religion, color, national origin, age, disability, marital status, or veteran status for admission to, participation in, or employment in the programs and activities which the University sponsors or operates. For Title IX information, see University Policy #1445 at http:// www.latech.edu/administration/ policies-and-procedures/1445. shtml.
The media sometimes has a propensity to swap up narratives, to change the focus to whatever will sell. “Black man loses life to police” one day, “Black rioters burn down Baltimore” the next. By all means, the news should report what is happening. The citizenry should form opinions on what is happening. But you cannot consider what is going on in Baltimore and think “Those looters are destroying people’s property, how sick” without thinking about what caused this violence. Sure, people’s businesses are being destroyed, and that is legitimately terrible. Those were people’s livelihoods. But a man lost his life, in a way that is being kept secret. A spine does not just shatter. A voice box does not just collapse. What is more important, a building, or the life? John Sadler is a junior journalism and English major from Extension who serves as editor for The Tech Talk. Email comments to jts040@latech.edu.
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The van Gray was in stopped twice before it reached the station. The first time it stopped he was put in leg irons. And, somehow, somewhere along the way, his spine was almost completely severed, and his larynx was crushed. Arresting officers say they used no force. Similar to the situation in Ferguson, protests over his death were soon taken over by opportunists, thieves who saw an important protest on the relationship between race and authority in this country as a means to steal and burn. But we cannot — I repeat, we cannot — allow them to change the conversation. The rioting and arson perpetrated by these people cannot become the focal point. Is it disgusting? Yes. Is it opportunistic? Yes. Is it helping the situation? No, never. It distracts media and law enforcement attention away from dealing with the original problem. At the end of the day, we have to remember what started all of this.
Swollen lips ELLIE MOSLANDER News Editor
T
his week the Internet has exploded with videos of people, guys and girls alike, placing a bottle over their lips and holding it there for thirty to sixty seconds or more. Once the bottle is released, the person’s lips appear massive and have doubled in size. This is known as the Kylie Jenner lip challenge, as she is known for having luscious lips (due to make up and not a shot glass challenge). Many “lip fail” videos can be found on the Internet as people video themselves and their friends going through this experience. I thought these videos are pretty funny, wondering why anyone would want to do this to himself or herself. It looks like these people got shot up with way too much Botox or got punched in the face, resulting in extremely swollen lips. Most of them just wanted to try it and see what would happen, or per-
haps see if it really even worked. While big, luscious lips are something which has become increasingly popular, this new fad is not as funny as one would think. And most people have done this after seeing other people on the Internet do this, laughing and then crying. It is honestly one the weirdest things I have ever seen. Some people’s lips remain like this for a very long time, not just an hour or so. Dr. Dendy Engelman, director of dermatologic surgery at New York, has told many media outlets this fad is more dangerous than it would seem. By putting this shot glass or bottle on their lips and sucking, the person causes their blood vessels to fill up with blood, known as vessel engorgement, and this results in the swollen lips. There are not just funny videos of people laughing at their new appearance, but there are also some pretty disturbing ones of people crying and images of burst lips. Most of the people doing this are young teenag-
ers who see these videos and figure everyone else is doing this, so this must be the new thing to do. They most likely think it will be funny when they do not realize the results. Fads are a common thing our society likes to try and document, such as the ice bucket challenge, which did go to a good cause. The Kylie Jenner Lip challenge on the other hand is one of the lesser thought out ideas people are trying out. This really is not a huge deal and hopefully it will pass pretty soon before every teenager is walking around school resembling a puffer fish. So unless you really want to cause yourself avoidable pain, or just get stuck looking like you busted you lip for a little bit, let’s stop shedding light on this and put this ridiculous fad in the past, where it should stay. Ellie Moslander is a junior journalism major from Albuquerque, New Mexico who serves as News and associate multimedia editor for the Tech Talk. Email comments to emo012@latech.edu.
COLUMN AS I SEE ‘EM
Mayweather is a loser JARED KING Sports Editor
S
aturday night’s fight between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao is a monumental matchup between two of boxing’s biggest superstars. Both fighters have impressive records — Mayweather is 47-0 in professional fights while Pacquiao is 57-5-2. Many fans want to see Mayweather finish his professional career undefeated and cement himself among boxing’s elite. And yet I want to see Mayweather get beat. I do not want Pacquiao to just beat Mayweather, I want him to make him crawl back to his corner crying. You see, Mayweather may be a winner in the ring but he is one of the biggest losers of alltime. Mayweather is a misogynist, a batterer and a serial batterer at that. Mayweather does not discriminate
against gender when he fights; he is good at beating up men, and women. Mayweather’s history of domestic abuse dates back more than 14 years and includes at least seven separate physical assaults. Mayweather first showed his tendency for battering women when he and Melissa Brim got into an argument over child support in 2002. According to police reports, Mayweather struck Brim in the face with a car door, pushed her into the car, and then proceeded to repeatedly punch her. In 2003, Mayweather was accused of battering the mother of three of his children, Josie Harris, punching her and kicking her before dragging her out of his Bentley by her hair. Mayweather was arrested and charged with felony battery, but by the time of his trial, Harris had changed her story and said she lied to police about the assault. The most violent and scariest incident of all occurred in 2010 when
Mayweather was charged with attacking Harris inside her home. He punched her repeatedly in the back of the head, pulled her off of her couch by her hair and twisted her arm. Mayweather threatened to kill Harris in front their three children who witnessed the entire event. A doctor’s report found bruises, contusions and a concussion from the blows she sustained from Mayweather’s prize fighting hands. Mayweather faced enough charges to land him 34 years in prison yet he was able to cop a plea and received a 90-day jail sentence. I am not asking you to boycott the fight — you wouldn’t anyway — but I am asking you to see Mayweather for who he really is: a misogynist and a bigot who fights men in the ring and women in the streets. Jared King is a senior journalism major from Jena who serves as sports editor for the Tech Talk. Email comments to jki008@latech.edu.
Human life is too high a price
D
ue to extreme controversy and criticism back in 2014, the Obama Administration agreed to scale back usage of drones in warfare. Drones, formally known as unmanned aerial vehicles (UVAs) or remotely piloted aerial systems (RPAS), are used in dangerous situations that are too risky or difficult to send pilots. In January, the CIA ordered a drone strike on an al-Qaeda compound in Pakistan near the Afghan border. This strike, although killing an alQaeda operative (who was American, ironic, yes) also killed two hostages who had been held captive for over two years at the compound. One of the hostages was an American who had been held captive since 2011 and the other was an Italian man who had been captured in 2012. The deaths of these two innocent men has been deemed a setback for the US’s drone strike program by media outlets. They have also re-sparked a controversial debate about whether drones should or should not be used in war situations. Some think drones are like any other kind of high-capacity weapon used during war and to have a problem with one weapon is to have a problem with another. Drones take the risk of killing our military men out of the equation and they are situational in use, meaning they are typically only used when a specific target is in mind not just for any general attack. With the case of the Pakistan al-Qaeda strike, the government knew there were operatives there, but they were unaware of the hostages. Had they known about the hostages, it is doubtful the drone strike would have been ordered. It is safe for us to believe that the government would not purposefully endanger the lives of civilians or prisoners of war. Most people are for drone usage, some more so than others. The aforementioned are the passionate believers. Then we have those who agree with drone usage but in moderation. These people do not like the power that comes with drones, but they do like how it removes our military men from harm’s way. These people understand the objective of drones but they do not like the risk involved, meaning the potential threat to civilian lives. But then the question becomes which life is more important, civilians’ or those of our military personnel? It is not a fair question. No one life should weigh more important than the other. However, we cannot condemn the government in tragic and unfortunate circumstances, like the recent drone strike. The government had no knowledge of the hostages being held at the compound and there is no proof that they did. The bottom line kind of comes down to this — drones are useful in war ,so not using them could be detrimental to all lives, both civilian and military.
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April 30, 2015 • The Tech Talk • 5 Photos by Brian Blakely
The University of Louisiana at Monroe Golden Steppers celebrated after they won the grand prize at Alphageddon.
Alpha Phi Alpha hosts Alphageddon RACHEL MAXWELL Staff Reporter It is not often that the Thomas Assembly Center sees performances quite like that presented in this year’s Alphageddon step show. From police brutality to a performance that included steppers as young as 9 years old, the step show had a bit of everything. Alphageddon, an annual step show hosted by Tech’s Eta Kappa chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, brings step teams from other universities, including Northwestern State University, University of Louisiana at Monroe and Grambling, to Tech to compete. This year, the $1,500 grand prize went to ULM’s chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha and the Golden Steppers, the elementary school team the fraternity teamed up with. Gary Jackson, a teacher at Bardull Faulk Elementary and coach of the Golden Steppers, said the team’s victory reinforced his belief that the Steppers is a good thing for the elementary students. “I stepped for Alpha while I was at ULM, and it was an inspiration for me,” he said. “It keeps the students focused. I saw a need for that at Bardull Faulk, so I started a team.” Jackson said that he wanted to instill in his team, which ranges from third to sixth grade students, the same values he saw in his Alpha brotherhood during college. “We teach them the values of brotherhood, and they have to keep their grades up to compete,” he said. “I think it shows. Every stepper up there tonight has kept his focus in school, and they really are a family.” Jordan Johnson, age 9, said vic-
tory was nothing new for the Golden Steppers. “All of the performances I’ve been in, we’ve won,” he said. “It’s normal.” The other half of the victorious team, ULM’s Alpha Phi Alphas, share more than values with their young counterparts. Devonte Grinstead, a graduate student at ULM and stepper, said they all share a love for performing. “I was nervous at first, but once you get onstage, all the nerves leave you,” he said. “I love to perform, so it’s always fun.” Between performances, there were audience chants, amateur performances and stroll-offs between Greek organizations. However, the evening did not begin lightheartedly. The brothers of Tech’s Kappa Kappa Psi opened the show with a serious message. The steppers portrayed controversial scenes including the Michal Brown shooting and Eric Garner’s chokehold case. The steppers also shed light on the shootings of police officers, and the violence that erupted during protests in Ferguson. LeDarious Jones, a junior mechanical engineering major, said the performance, which ended with police and protesters holding hands peacefully, was a way for the fraternity to put important issues in the spotlight. “We wanted to do something more meaningful,” he said. “Even though we don’t face those issues as much here, they are important, and we need to understand that if it does come our way, we need to handle it right.”
Email comments to ram049@latech.edu.
Members of Grambling State University’s Iota Phi Theta fraternity performed a helicopter formation during the step show.
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6 • The Tech Talk • April 30, 2015
Arts Entertainment
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Photos by Colin Fontenot
Memoirs of a great production BLAKE BRANCH Staff Reporter
Her character dealt with the emotional issues of moving on following her husband’s death and raisThe Louisiana Tech School of ing two young daughters. the Performing Arts held the first Kate Jerome, Eugene’s mother, leg of performances for its spring played by Stephanie Hart, was the main stage production, “Brighton most annoying character of the Beach Memoirs” bunch. by Neil Simon, This is not an insult, but rather over April 22-25. a complement for how well she Directed by portrayed the Jewish mother professor of play- in charge of policing the home writing, Kenneth while her husband Jack is always Robbins, the play at work. is driven forward Trey Clark, a second year by Eugene Morris graduate student of theater at Jerome, a young teen in Brooklyn Tech, played a convincing Jack who dreams of inappropriately Jerome. caressing his cousin Emilia Meinert, and playing for the a first year theater Brighton Beach New York Yankees. major, was adequate Memoirs will run The play follows in her theatre debut from April 30 until the Jerome family, Euas Laurie Morton, May 2. gene’s Aunt Blanche Eugene’s youngest and her two daughcousin. ters, as they struggle Contact the Stone Courtney Vato cope with each nEaton played the Theatre box office, other’s problems. part of Nora Morlocated in the Playing the lead ton, Blanche’s oldest lobby of Howard role of Eugene was daughter and the apAuditorium, at (318) freshman theater maple of Eugene’s bud257-3942 for ticket jor Collin Cagle. ding sexual eye. information. Cagle was the VanEaton, a junior play’s unquestionable theater major, was exhighlight, delivering cellent as Nora. hilarity all night. She was outspoken, intriguing The exchange between him and emotional with each stage and his brother Stanley, played by sequence, matching the brilliance junior theater major Johnny Mar- brought by Cagle. ley, where Stanley helps Eugene All things considered, the play through his first wet dream and was exceptional. The jokes were the process of “whacking off ” never forced, but kept coming in was hysterical. waves and everything from the He may have stumbled over a 1930s costume design to the stage couple lines, but Marley’s perfor- lighting accentuated the acting. mance was admirable. Take a bow for a job well done, The role of Blanche Morton, cast and crew. Eugene’s aunt, was played by theater major Olivia Louise Wilcox. Email comments to Wilcox was solid throughout. mbb029@latech.edu.
The actors of Louisiana Tech’s Stone Theatre brought 1930s Brooklyn to Howard Auditorium in their version of Neil Simon’s play. The New York Daily News regarded Brighton Beach Memoirs as the “funniest, richest and consequently the most affecting of his plays.”
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April 30, 2015 • The Tech Talk • 7
RADAR Courtesy of billboard.com
JEKYLL + HYDE ZAC BROWN BAND
With an album title alluding to the most extreme case of multiple personality disorder, it is appropriately named. “Jekyll + Hyde” offers a variety of sounds from their mainstream country, chart-topper “Homegrown” to their “Heavy is the Head,” which features Soundgarden’s Chris Cornell and has a heavy rock sound.
Photo courtesy of mtv.com
Alabama Shakes deliver with Sound and Color BLAKE BRANCH Staff Reporter
Courtesy of movies.com
AVENGERS:AGE OF ULTRON IN THEATERS APRIL 30
Joss Whedon’s highly-anticipated latest installment in the Marvel Universe is already receiving rave reviews ... and it’s not even in theaters yet. When a peacekeeping program goes awry, the Avengers assemble with the help of some unlikely allies to stop the artificial intelligence Ultron from destroying mankind.
Courtesy of utsandiego.com
After a three-year hiatus, Alabama Shakes is back with their second album “Sound and Color,” and with this release the band has given us a beautiful insight into who they are becoming. This album is not the Southern rock infused “Boys and Girls” the band debuted with in 2012. If that is what you wanted, then you’ll be disappointed. “Sound and Color” is equal parts blues, funk and rock, with small traces of hip hop thrown in. The album is a clear indicator of how far the Shakes have come, expanding their sound while maintaining the emotions and energy that earned them three Grammy nominations in 2013. The album’s title track, “Sound and Color,” serves as a melodic introduction before the band busts into “Don’t Wanna Fight,” the album’s soulful first single, channeling that ‘70s James Brown sound. “Dunes,” stays true to the band’s Alabama influence with Southern guitar licks throughout. The fourth track on the album, “Future
Rough Trade
Sound & Color Alabama Shakes HHHHI People,” has already emerged as my early favorite. This track starts with frontwoman Brittany Howard singing falsetto before breaking into a futuristic blend of synths and bass. I could definitely see this song tearing up a festival stage, like Bonnaroo, where the Alabama Shakes are slated to perform this summer. Things get day-dreamy on “Gimme All Your Love,” as the band shows their soft side, but only for a moment, before Howard begins howling and things get heavy. Don’t
CAIN BUDDS GIVES A CLASSIC PERFORMANCE
HAS ANYONE SEEN MY PANTS? SARAH COLONNA Stand-up comedian and “Chelsea Lately” alumna Sarah Colonna brings riotous laughter in her new book. Regaling readers with stories about crying in nail salons, motherdaughter road trips and single-shaming resorts while on vacationing in Mexico, Colonna offers an honest and pantsless look at life in her 30s.
Courtesy of hollywoodreporter.com
PENNY DREADFUL SHOWTIME
Season two of Showtime’s period piece featuring literature’s most horrific characters (like Frankenstein’s monster and Dorian Grey) can now add witches to their lineup. As Vanessa Ives (Eva Green) and Ethan Chandler (Josh Hartnett) battle demons, they face a greater threat from the underworld than before.
Photo by Brennen Lege
On April 23, in the Recital Hall of Howard Center, Cain Budds took to the stage to perform a classical guitar concert. The associate professor of music played songs from classical and modern composers such as Johann Mertz, Gaspar Sanz, Johann Bach, Santiago de Murcia, Emilio Pujol, Agustin Barrios and Leo Brouwer.
skip the last two minutes of this one. “This Feeling” and “Guess Who” are the two most forgettable tracks on the album. The album could have done without them i. “The Greatest” is punk garage-rock all the way, with the band picking up the pace and racing to the finish line in a drum driven frenzy. “Sound and Color” finishes just as strong as it starts. “Shoegaze” grooves along nicely and “Gemini” is a ridiculously powerful and sexy. Rounding out the album is “Over My Head,” a love song drawing from jazz and hip-hop, featuring some hypnotizing vocals by Howard. Some would say the Alabama Shakes sold out with this album, but I choose to believe they tapped into who they really are: a group comprised of old souls working to bring the past into modern music. The vocals of Brittany Howard continue to amaze and the band has cleaned up their act to match her, something they did not always do on “Boys and Girls.” The Alabama Shakes made us wait three years, and on “Sound and Color,” you can hear the growth.
Email comments to mbb029@latech.edu.
8 • The Tech Talk • April 30, 2015
World
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Nation
W&NBRIEFS WORLDNEWS Saudi king names counterterrorism czar as new prince RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Saudi Arabia’s King Salman on Wednesday removed his half-brother from the post of crown prince and named his nephew, the country’s Interior Minister, in his place. He is widely known internationally as Saudi Arabia’s counterterrorism czar and was previously deputy crown prince.
Sweden has allowed Assange’s appeal for detention order ELSINKI (AP) — Sweden’s highest court decided Tuesday to allow Julian Assange to appeal a detention order against the WikiLeaks founder over allegations of sex crimes. The Swedish Supreme Court said it has “granted leave to appeal the issue of detention.” It gave no reason for the decision.
Ukraine: rebels started firing rocket launchers again KIEV, Ukraine (AP) — Separatist rebels in the east of Ukraine have resumed the use of rocket launchers that should have been withdrawn under a February peace deal, Ukrainian military officials said Tuesday.
STATENEWS Vitter remains top fundraiser in 2015 governor’s race BATON ROUGE, (AP) — The four major candidates to be Louisiana’s next governor have turned in their latest campaign finance reports, and no one has been able to outpace U.S. Sen. David Vitter.
One arrested, 10 wanted in identity theft scheme SHREVEPORT (AP) — Ten employees of a Texas cable contractor and a former Comcast worker are accused of using at least 1,200 Comcast customers’ personal information to open 3,600 fraudulent cable accounts in northwest Louisiana, Caddo Parish Sheriff Steve Prator said.
Williams remains confident about Pelicans contract METAIRIE (AP) — Monty Williams expressed little concern about his contract after a season in which the New Orleans Pelicans improved by 11 victories, despite lousy luck with injuries. and made it to the playoffs.
AP Photo/Patrick Semansky
A woman runs for safety as police throw tear gas canisters while enforcing curfew Tuesday, in Baltimore, a day after unrest that occurred following Freddie Gray’s funeral.
Baltimore protests continue ASSOCIATED PRESS BALTIMORE (AP) — A line of police behind riot shields hurled tear gas canisters and fired pepper balls at as many as 200 protesters Tuesday night to enforce a citywide curfew, imposed after the worst outbreak of rioting in Baltimore since 1968. Demonstrators threw bottles at police and picked up the canisters and hurled them back at officers. But the crowd rapidly dispersed and was down to just a few dozen people within minutes. The clash came after a day of high tension but relative peace in Baltimore, as thousands of police officers and National Guardsmen poured in to try to prevent another round of looting and arson like the one that rocked the city on Monday. It was the first time since the assassination of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968 that the National Guard was called out in Baltimore to quell unrest. The racially charged violence on
Monday was set off by the case of Freddie Gray, a 25-year-old black man who died of a spinal-cord injury under mysterious circumstances while in police custody. Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said 2,000 Guardsmen and 1,000 law officers would be in place overnight. “This combined force will not tolerate violence or looting,” he warned. In a measure of how tense things were on Tuesday, Baltimore was under a 10 p.m.-to-5 a.m. curfew. All public schools were closed. The Baltimore Orioles postponed Tuesday night’s game at Camden Yards and — in what may be a first in baseball’s 145-year history — announced that Wednesday’s game was closed to the public. The streets were largely calm all day and into the evening, with only a few scattered arrests. About 15 minutes after the 10 p.m. curfew took effect, police moved against protesters who remained in the street in the city’s Penn North section, near where a
CVS pharmacy was looted the day before. Shortly before the curfew and in a different neighborhood, police arrested three to four juveniles in South Baltimore after people started attacking officers with rocks and bricks, authorities said. At least one officer was reported injured. Monday’s outbreak of looting, arson and rock- and bottle-throwing by mostly black rioters erupted just hours after Gray’s funeral. It was the worst such violence in the U.S. since the unrest last year over the death of Michael Brown, the unarmed black 18-year-old shot by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri. At the White House, President Barack Obama called the deaths of several black men around the country at the hands of police “a slow-rolling crisis.” But he added that there was “no excuse” for the violence in Baltimore, and said the rioters should be treated as criminals. “They aren’t protesting. They aren’t making a statement. They’re
stealing,” Obama said. Political leaders and residents called the violence a tragedy for the city and lamented the damage done by the rioters to their own neighborhoods. “I had officers come up to me and say, ‘I was born and raised in this city. This makes me cry,’” Baltimore Police Commissioner Anthony Batts said. Haywood McMorris, manager of the wrecked CVS store, said the destruction didn’t make sense: “We work here, man. This is where we stand, and this is where people actually make a living.” At least 20 officers were hurt, one person was critically injured in a fire, more than 200 adults and 34 juveniles were arrested, and nearly 150 cars were burned, police said. The governor had no immediate estimate of the damage. With the city bracing for more trouble, several colleges closed early Tuesday, including Loyola University Maryland, Johns Hopkins University and Towson University. Six officers have been suspended with pay in the meantime.
U.S. Supreme Court considers Nigerian army rescues 300 women and girls, challenge for execution drug but none from Chibok ASSOCIATED PRESS
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Exactly one year after a botched lethal injection, attorneys for other Oklahoma death row inmates were set to ask the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday to outlaw a sedative used in the procedure — a ruling that could force several states to either find new execution drugs or change the way they put prisoners to death. The lawyer for one of the inmates said midazolam has been a “spectacu-
lar failure” as the first of a three-drug combination for lethal injections, even beyond the 43-minute execution of Clayton Lockett that sparked the lawsuit. Lockett writhed on the gurney, moaned and clenched his teeth for several minutes on April 29, 2014, before Oklahoma prison officials belatedly tried to halt the process. Lockett’s execution was the first time Oklahoma had used midazolam. Executions are on hold in the state while the high court considers the challenge.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki, File
The sedative midazolam at a hospital pharmacy.
MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (AP) — Nigerian troops rescued nearly 300 girls and women during an offensive Tuesday against Boko Haram militants in the northeastern Sambisa Forest, the military said, but they did not include any of the schoolgirls kidnapped from Chibok a year ago. The army announced the rescue on Twitter and
said it was screening and interviewing the abducted girls and women. Troops destroyed and cleared four militant camps and rescued 200 abducted girls and 93 women “but they are not the Chibok girls,” army spokesman Col. Sani Usman. Nearly 300 schoolgirls were kidnapped from the northeastern town of Chibok by the Islamic extremist group Boko Haram in April 2014.
W&N
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April 30, 2015 • The Tech Talk • 9
Nepal quake toll tops 5,000 ASSOCIATED PRESS
mar Thapa’s home, where his pregnant wife pushed their 5-year-old daughter to safety PASLANG, Nepal (AP) — Aid reached a in a last, desperate act before it collapsed hilly district near the epicenter of Nepal’s and killed her during Saturday’s earthquake. earthquake for the first time Wednesday, Thapa and others in Paslang were still four days after the quake struck and as the waiting Tuesday for the government to dedeath toll from the disaster passed the 5,000 liver food, tents — any kind of aid — to this mark. poor mountain village near the epicenter But it will still take time for the food and of the quake that killed more than 4,700 other supplies to reach survivors in remote people, injured over 8,000 and left tens of communities who have been cut off by thousands homeless. landslides, warned said Geoff Pinnock, a “When I got home, there was nothing,” World Food Program emergencies officer. said Thapa, an army soldier. “Everything “It doesn’t happen overnight,” said Pin- was broken. My wife — she was dead.” nock from the village of Majuwa, 16 miles He was put on leave from his army unit downhill from Gorkha town, a staging area to mourn, one of the few Nepalese soldiers for relief efforts to areas worst-hit by Satur- not deployed in the country’s massive resday’s magnitude-7.8 earthquake. cue and recovery operation. But instead of Nearby, five cargo trucks filled with rice, sadness, there is anger. cooking oil and sugar stood on a grassy “Only the other villagers who have also field fringed with banana and acacia trees lost their homes are helping me. But we get beneath the soaring Himalayas, waiting for nothing from the government,” Thapa said. a helicopter carry the supplies to remote, An official came, took some pictures and quake-hit villages. left — without delivering anything to the vilSoon, the U.N. food agency was ex- lage of about 300 people northwest of the pected to deliver shipments of high-energy capital of Kathmandu, he said. food biscuits to be sent out to areas with“I get angry, but what can I do? I am out enough water for cooking, Pinnock said. also working for the government,” Thapa The first aid shipments had reached Dhad- said. “I went to ask the police if they could ing district, just east of Gorhka, he said. at least send some men to help us salvage Nepalese police said Wednesday the our things, but they said they have no one death toll from the quake had to send.” reached 4,989. Another 18 were The villagers have no idea killed on the slopes of Mount “WHEN I GOT when they might get help and Everest, while 61 died in neigh- HOME, THERE are still sleeping together in boring India, and China’s official WAS NOTHING. the mud and sharing whatever Xinhua News Agency reported scraps of food they can pull EVERYTHING 25 dead in Tibet. from beneath their ruined buildThe disaster also injured WAS BROKEN. ings. Three people in the hamlet more than 10,000, police said, MY WIFE – SHE have died. and rendered thousands more WAS DEAD. ” Officials and foreign aid homeless. The U.N. says the diworkers who have rushed to saster has affected 8.1 million BHOJ KUMAR Nepal following the are strugpeople — more than a fourth THAPA gling against stormy weather, of Nepal’s population of 27.8 Army soldier poor roads and a shortage of million — and that 1.4 million manpower and funds to get asneeded food assistance. sistance to the needy. “Under normal circumstances, a governOn Tuesday, the district managed to coment would have the capacity to respond to ordinate 26 helicopter trips to remote vilmaybe 10, or 20, or 30,000 people in need. lages to evacuate 30 injured people before a But if you’re looking at 8 million as we are major downpour halted the effort. here, you need a bit of time to scale every“We need 15,000 plastic tarps alone. thing up,” he said. We cannot buy that number,” said Mohan In the village of Paslang, three kilometers Pokhran, a district disaster management (1.8 miles) above Gorkha, there was almost committee member. Only 50 volunteer nothing left but enormous piles of broken army and police officers are distributing red bricks and heaps of mud and dust. food and aid for thousands in the immediOne of those piles was once Bhoj Ku- ate vicinity, he said.
AP Photo/Niranjan Shrestha
Nepalese people line up to board buses go to their villages in Kathmandu, Nepal. Thousands of people are lining up at bus stations in Kathmandu where the government is providing free transportation for people hoping to travel to their hometowns and villages. “We don’t have nearly enough of anything,” Pokhran said. In Kathmandu Wednesday, thousands of people were lining up at bus stations, hoping to reach their hometowns in rural areas. Some have had little news of family and loved ones since Saturday’s quake. Others are scared of staying close to the epicenter, northwest of Kathmandu. “I am hoping to get on a bus, any bus heading out of Kathmandu. I am too scared to be staying in Kathmandu,” said Raja Gurung, who wanted to get to his home in western Nepal. “The house near my rented apartment collapsed. It was horrible. I have not gone indoors in many days. I would rather leave than a live a life of fear in Kathmandu.” More tragedy stuck Tuesday: A mudslide and avalanche struck near the village of Ghodatabela and 250 people were feared missing, district official Gautam Rimal said. Heavy snow had been falling, and the ground may have been loosened by the quake. But there also was also some heartening news: French rescuers freed a man
from the ruins of a three-story Kathmandu hotel, near the main bus station. The man, identified as Rishi Khanal, was conscious and taken to a hospital; no other information about him was released. While many across Nepal are opting to sleep outdoors for fear of the constant aftershocks, those in Paslang have no choice because almost no buildings are left standing. At night, survivors huddle together against the cold, rain and mosquitoes, and wait until dawn. Tilak Bahadur Rana, a farmer, still has a tin roof over his head but the cold rain leaks through. “In any case, I can’t sleep. I am too stressed. I worry about how I will feed my family,” he said. Sitting in the mud and sharing tea made over an open fire with his wife and children, Rana confessed he was losing heart. “Because of this earthquake, the whole village is destroyed. We need food,” he said. “We need a place to sleep, or compensation for all we have lost.”
UN: More than 300,000 driven from homes in Yemen’s conflict
Contest in Portland finds new use for sewage; tells brewers to make into suds
ASSOCIATED PRESS
ASSOCIATED PRESS
SANAA, Yemen (AP) — More than 300,000 Yemenis have been driven from their homes by a month of violence in the impoverished Arab nation, double the number only two weeks ago, amid escalating fighting with Shiite rebels and the continued Saudi-led air campaign, a United Nations agency said Tuesday. The report by the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs came as warplanes from the Saudiled coalition throughout the day Tuesday pounded positions of the Shiite rebels, known as Houthis, and allied troops loyal to ousted leader Ali Abdullah Saleh in the capital, Sanaa, and in the south. The three cities of Dhale, Aden and Taiz — the third largest city in Yemen — have been declared “disaster zones” by the internationally-recognized government in exile, which said the humanitarian situation is on verge of collapse.
AP Photo/Hani Mohammed
Shiite fighters, known as Houthis, hold up their weapons as they chant slogans at the residence of a military commander of the Houthi militant group, destroyed by a Saudiled airstrike in Sanaa, Yemen. Since March 26, a U.S.backed alliance of Saudi Arabia and Arab countries has been carrying out airstrikes against the Houthis and Saleh’s forces, trying to stop their advance south after they captured Sanaa and much of the country’s north last year. The Saudi- and Western-backed president, Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, was forced to flee abroad
by the Houthi advance and is currently in the Saudi capital, Riyadh. But so far, the air campaign has been unable to halt the Iranianallied rebels. In the early morning hours, multiple explosions shook Sanaa as warplanes struck several rebel-held army camps, trucks carrying weapons and houses turned into weapons’ de-
pots for the Houthis, according to residents and officials. Around midday, airstrikes hit the Sanaa airport to prevent an Iranian plane from landing, security officials in Sanaa said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the press. Iranian state TV said the plane was carrying medical supplies and made its way back to Iran after being unable to land. The U.S. and Saudi Arabia and their allies accuse Iran of arming the Houthis, a claim that Tehran and the rebels deny, though the Iranian government says it gives the rebels humanitarian and political backing. Heavy smoke blanketed Sanaa, said the residents, speaking on condition of anonymity because they feared for their own safety. In Sanaa’s northern district of al-Nahda, several strikes hit large caches of weapons stored inside the villas of two top Shiite rebel leaders, officials said.
by its history,” said Mark Jockers, a spokesman for PORTLAND, Ore. Clean Water Services, (AP) — Some companies which runs four wastewaboast of making beer with ter treatment plants in the spring water from majestic Portland suburbs. “The mountains. water we’re producing is They won’t be compet- significantly cleaner than ing in the upcoming Pure what the safe drinking Water Brew Challenge, in standards are for water which an Oregon waste- that comes out of taps water treatment operator across the United States.” has asked home brewers The utility plans to reto make greatlease 300 galtasting beer lons of highly from hops, barpurified water ley, yeast and in early June the key, not-soto roughly 20 secret ingrehome brewdient: treated ers from the sewer water. Oregon Brew The point Crew, the state’s of the contest oldest homeis not to find brewing club. Portland’s next The victor wins trendy craft $100, five others beer. Rather, it’s will get $50, and JOCKERS an effort to get their kegs will people talking be taken to an about how a vital resource international water confercan be reused thanks to ence in Chicago. Though advanced water-filtration state regulators have apsystems. proved the safety of the “We need to be judging water, the beer won’t be water by its quality, and not sold at stores or bars.
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10 • The Tech Talk • April 30, 2015
Distractions WEEKLYHOROSCOPE www.horoscopes.com.net
Aries March 21 – April 19 A new or long-term romantic relationship could be advanced to the next level of commitment, Aries. The chemistry between you is strong and you’re compatible on several levels. Today you will experience passion like never before! Some intense but honest and very positive discussion about the relationship’s future is likely to take place, followed by an intimate encounter. Taurus Apr 20 - May 20 Today you should feel especially sensual, Taurus. You will want to bask in the pleasure of being in love. A passionate encounter could occur at your home, probably after a wonderful meal you’ve prepared. You could have a frank discussion about the future of the relationship. You might decide to try living together if you don’t already. Think carefully about it and do what feels right. Gemini May 21 - Jun 20 A warm, interesting phone call from a current or potential love partner could have you longing for this person’s company, Gemini. You should have a lot to say to each other and so spend a lot of time on the phone. A meeting could be arranged, probably somewhere in your neighborhood. Your chemistry is intense, so don’t be surprised by the direction of this involvement. Cancer Jun 21 - Jul 22 An unexpected but welcome financial windfall could lead to some long-desired changes in your living situation, Cancer. You may decide to move, or you could opt for a less drastic course of action, such as redecorating or remodeling. A household member could move out or someone new could move in. These are all very positive changes that will make a big difference in your life. Leo Jul 23 - Aug 22 You’re looking great today, Leo! A current or potential love partner who lives nearby is likely to be all too aware of this. Your heightened sensuality should be very apparent! A long walk with your friend could involve conversation that brings you closer together. You might spend most of the evening together. Expect a lot of kissing and handholding - maybe more! Virgo Aug 23 - Sep 22 Your aesthetic sense may increase, Virgo, leading to the discovery of an artistic talent you may not have known you had. You could decide to develop this talent, possibly by enrolling in a class. A current or potential love partner might decide to come with you,
creating a new venue for bringing you closer together. This should prove very exciting. Libra Sep 23 - Oct 22 A social event, possibly involving a group you’re affiliated with, could put you in touch with a lot of friendly, intriguing people who share your interests, Libra. Among them could be a potential romantic partner, or a current partner could accompany you to this event. Whichever it is, both of you are likely to feel good about the event and will probably want to see your new friends again. Scorpio Oct 23 - Nov 21 You could be introduced to a celebrity you admire, probably a woman, perhaps at a lecture or book signing, Scorpio. This could make a profound difference in your life, as this person may inspire you. A romantic partner could meet her as well, and the two of you should have a lot to discuss over dinner. Relax and enjoy your evening. It could change your life in a very subtle way. Sagittarius Nov 22 - Dec 21 A social event that involves the discussion of intellectual topics could occur today, Sagittarius. You could decide to go with a love partner. You’re likely to enjoy the gathering so much that you may stay late into the night and then spend another hour or so discussing it with your partner. Afterward, anything could happen! In the future you will remember tonight as magical. Make the most of it! Capricorn Dec 22 - Jan 19 Some intense communication could take place today between you and a love partner, possibly about your future together, Capricorn. It’s likely to lead to some positive developments in your life, possibly including a move to the next level of commitment. If you aren’t involved now, a friend could introduce you to someone new, perhaps at a social gathering. Look your best throughout the day! Aquarius Jan 20 - Feb 18 Today you may feel especially sensual and passionate, Aquarius. This is the perfect evening to schedule quality time with a current or potential love partner. You’re probably looking and feeling attractive, and this fact isn’t likely to be lost on your friend. Scatter some pillows, add some flowers, put out some cheese, fruit, and white wine, and be prepared for anything!
CROSSWORDPUZZLE Across 1. Peripheries 6. Disney mermaid 11. Sugar amt. 14. Claw 15. ___ Dame 16. Letter after pi 17. Rice-___ 18. Actress Verdugo 19. Cask wood 20. Sacred song 22. Flow controlling device 24. Fur hunter 28. Bank employee 29. Night flight 30. Brewer’s need 32. Prolific author, briefly 33. Massage 35. Narrow inlets 39. Atlantic mackerel 40. CIA forerunner 41. Word on a coin 42. Ship stabilizer 43. Songs for two 45. Villainous character in Shakespeare’s “Othello” 46. Portents 48. Reply 50. Sayings 53. Loose sleeveless upper robe 54. Nymph chaser 55. Climb 57. Charlemagne’s realm: Abbr. 58. The Younger and The Elder 60. Gives up 65. Some MIT grads 66. Movie critic Roger
www.bestcrosswords.com 67. Muse of love poetry 68. Fast flier 69. Monetary unit of India 70. Impudent Down 1. LAX info 2. ___ es Salaam 3. Day-___ 4. Ages 5. Scrappy 6. Lend ___ 7. Drum sound 8. Bit of gossip 9. East ender? 10. Departs 11. Cave-dwelling dwarf 12. Remove hair 13. Popular card game 21. Go after 23. Unselfish concern 24. Trail 25. Actress Taylor 26. Worship 27. Study of the punishment of crime 28. Bit 30. Affirmatives 31. Compass direction 34. Person, place, or thing 36. Thunderstruck 37. Boring tool 38. Campfire treat 43. ___ Moines 44. Satirist Mort 47. Dealer in textiles 49. Sisters’ daughters 50. Barbecue leftovers? 51. Ventures 52. Bikini blast
DAILY U
53. Class of Indian society 55. Dance move 56. Central part 59. Aladdin’s monkey 61. Period 62. ___ Kapital 63. UFO pilots 64. Non-dairy milk
LAST ISSUE’S SOLUTION
Have any ideas for future comics or feedback? Email dwyer@latech.edu
Pisces Feb 19 - Mar 20 A social event or gathering that involves work could put you in touch with interesting people, Pisces, including a sexy potential love partner! Someone new on the scene could stir your blood like it hasn’t been stirred in a long time. Whether or not you choose to pursue this attraction depends on your situation, but at least you will have some fun today.
WEEKLYWEATHER
www.accuweather.com
TODAY
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
HIGH 79 LOW 49
HIGH 79 LOW 52
HIGH 80 LOW 55
HIGH 82 LOW 56
HIGH 83 LOW 58
HIGH 86 LOW 63
HIGH 84 LOW 65
NEPAL from pg. 1
www.sudoku-puzzles.net
Difficulty VERY EASY Fill in the grid so that every row, every column and every 3x3 grid contains the digits 1 through 9.
LAST ISSUE’S SOLUTION
Sudoku Puzzle - Easy
Sudoku Solution - Easy
www.sudoku-puzzles.net
www.sudoku-puzzles.net
FITNESS from pg. 2
>
To help get aid to their home country, the Namaste Nepal Association set up donation booths around campus and Ruston, and held a candlelight vigil in the Student Center Monday night. Dawa Sherpa, a junior accounting major, said collecting donations has helped her through the crisis. “It gives us strength,” she said. “It feels like we’re doing something, like we are not as helpless.” Dan Erickson, the director of the International Student Office, pointed out how the students’ lives had been altered. “The worry for our Nepal students has always been directed from their families over here, with them worrying about their child’s grades, how they’re doing,” he said. “Now, to wake up Saturday and worry for Nepal, that just completely turns these students’ worlds around.”
SUDOKUPUZZLE
> Nepali students took the podium and told their stories to over 250 attendees. James Davison, a freshman finance major, said he was struck by the severity of the situation. “I don’t know a whole lot about Nepal, but I know that those are people,” he said. “So I know it’s not just physical, it’s emotional hurt, it’s spiritual. As a Christian, I believe we are called to do what we can to help.” Something all of the Nepali students expressed in their speeches was the urgency for donations and appreciation for their classmates’ support. Pyakurel explained that just buying a $5 candle at the vigil could make a big impact for those in Nepal. “Even though it does not seem like much here, $5 is enough to buy a day’s worth of meals for 10
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people in Nepal,” he said. Dhungana also said a donation’s impact is greater than one would think. “I think of all the disasters that have happened during my lifetime,” he said. “And all of the times I was asked to donate and did not. I thought, ‘What can the 16 rupees in my pocket do to help anybody?’ But now I understand, even 25 cents can save a life.” In two days of fundraising through the vigil and at booths on campus and around Ruston, the NNA raised more than $4,500. Ryakurel said the support from classmates means a lot to the students dealing with the tragedy at Tech. “We do not have a family here,” he said. “You are all our family.”
Armed with an instrument called a Tanita scale, Clary said dietitians use bioelectrical impedance from the scale to measure people’s fat-free mass and body fat percentage. He said the scale also gives a reading of people’s Basal Metabolic Rate, which shows the amount of calories one’s body needs to receive to maintain body weight at rest. Factoring everything in, Clary said dietitians use this information in order to fine-tune people’s diets based on how active they are.
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April 30, 2015 • The Tech Talk • 11
DESIGN BY KELSY KERSHAW
Photo by Devin Dronett
An Louisiana Tech is home to some 500 students from more than 50 countries who come together as one on campus’s annual International Day CATHERINE BURKE Staff Reporter
Photo by Avery Bryan
I
Photo by Devin Dronett
TOP: Mohammed Alshehhi, a junior human resources major from the United Arab Emirates, took a break from dancing with his daughters. MIDDLE LEFT: A Louisiana Tech student got a Henna tattoo at International Day. MIDDLE RIGHT: Sonoko Shibuya, a sophomore architecture major, folded origami swans at the Japanese table. RIGHT: Brazilian food was one of the many international offerings for attendees at International Day.
Photo by Devin Dronett
t’s no secret that Louisiana Tech has a diverse enrollment with students from all around the world. The different cultures and customs of students at Tech were on display in the TONK for the annual International Day on April 21. Dolliann Hurtig, an associate professor of French, said International Day is a festival of food and culture. “The atmosphere is upbeat and carefree,” she said. “It has become a huge and positive day for campus.” Hurtig said the French This day allows all booth includes a few of the main aspects of the international stuFrench culture. dents and countries “We have French cuisine, such as ‘quatre-quato cometogether for tre’ cake, various cheeses a day of union ... we and mini croissants, artall really unite as one work done by students, a mini Eiffel Tower, French big Tech family. magazines and scholarly journal,” she said. “It reDolliann Hurtig Associate professor ally is a sight to see.” of French Hurtig said International Day is highly-anticipated and celebrated by those from other countries. “This day allows all international students and countries to come together for a day of union,” she said. “We all really unite as one big Tech family.” Hannah Johnson, a sophomore theatre major, said all the different booths intrigued her. “It was really interesting to see the different cultures,” she said. “There was a man and a child that danced and one booth gave out henna tattoos. It was quite fascinating.” Johnson said she would encourage anyone who has not been to attend next year. “This was my first year attending and I loved it,” she said. “Make sure to bring money and an open mind.” Maria Coelho, a senior interior design major, said she was thrilled to share her Brazilian culture. “My Brazilian friend and I made a few classic Brazilian desserts,” she said. “All our desserts incorporated Brigadeiro, which is like a fudge.” Coelho said International Day is overall a fun, informational day not just for international students, but local students as well. “Everyone is welcome to this festival,” she said. “It’s an amazing opportunity to experience a little bit of other cultures and to meet some great people.”
Email comments to cjb066@latech.edu.
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12 • The Tech Talk • April 30, 2015
Sports Talk Lady Techsters fall to in-state foes
FROM THE SPORTS DESK with Jared King
Post-spring depth chart released
T
Photo by Colin Fontenot
The Lady Techsters fell to in-state foes Northwestern State, ULM and McNeese State last week in consecituve games by a combined score of 10-4.
CATHERINE BURKE Staff Reporter
teams taught the Lady Techsters they need to “The best part about Conference USA softscore more runs early. ball is that everyone is good,” she said. “Yes “The main things that went wrong were that makes it tough, but there is just so much The Lady Techsters softball team has fought that we didn’t score soon enough,” she said. “I competition that makes it exciting and you reall season to be the best the program has seen believe if we would have set the tone early in ally don’t know what’s going to happen.” in years, but not every game has gone their way. those games we would have won.” Smith said this team has grown and learned The team lost to three in-state teams Although these nonwhat it is going to take to be success— Northwestern State University, conference losses were ful. McNeese State University and the tough, the Lady Techsters “All season long this team has University of Louisiana at Monroe. officially secured their grown,” she said. “We have taken Katie Smith, a freshman infielder, spot in the conference leaps of progress from last season to said the losses were tough, but great tournament last weekend this season and I believe this team preparation for the games to come. by sweeping North Texas. now knows what it takes to be suc“Each of us obviously wishes we Janine Godwin, a secessful.” would have won,” she said. “What nior outfielder, said she The Lady Techster softball team these midweek games do most, could not be more excited will finish the regular season with a though, is prepare us for our conferfor the tournament. series at the University of Texas at ence games on the weekends.” “It’s an incredible feelSan Antonio. The team will compete Pauline Tufi, a sophomore pitcher ing knowing that we have in the Conference USA tournament SMITH GODWIN and infielder, said the three losses punched our ticket into in Miami May 7, 8 and 9. were not that bad. the conference tourna“We played hard and gave it our all; we just ment,” she said. “We have been waiting all seaFor more on Tech athletics, follow the Tech Talk ran out of innings,” she said. “Yes we were dis- son to show Conference USA what we’re made Sports Desk’s Twitter page at twitter.com/techtalkappointed, but overall we knew that we gave it of.” sports. our all.” Godwin said the conference tournament Tufi said the three games against the in-state will not be easy. Email comments to cjb066@latech.edu.
Louisiana Tech to host TECHSPY awards ALEX HEARD Staff Reporter Typical awards ceremonies include the Academy Awards, the daytime and primetime Emmys, and the ESPYs; however, a new award ceremony is set to hit Louisiana Tech — the Techspys. On Monday, Tech will roll out the blue carpet for the first-ever TECHSPYs. The TECHSPYs is an awards ceremony honoring the student athletes for their various achievements throughout the year. The guest list of the award ceremony is in no way exclusive as the TECHSPYs is free and open to the student body. It is a formal event, though, so organizers advise students to dress in their spiffiest of attire. The pre-event festivities will be extravagant, said Malcolm Butler, associate athletics director in charge of communications at Tech. “There will be a blue carpet outside of Howard Auditorium where the event will be held,” Butler said. “The wife of Teddy Allen (of the University Communications Department) will interview the athletes on the steps out in front while Teddy himself will be hosting the event.” Allen’s wife, Lienna Fayard Allen served as a sports anchor for KSLA, Shreveport’s CBS affiliate, from 2002 until 2005. She was the first female sports anchor in North Louisiana. She now serves as the cultural communications officer and social media
director at Community Trust Bank. A total of 14 awards will be presented at the event. Those awards include: the team of the year, male and female athlete of the year, male and female freshman of the year, male and female performance of the year, male and female play of the year, comeback of the year, and more. Butler said the winners will take home some fancy awards. “The prize for the winners are crystal trophies we have ordered,” Butler said. “They are very nice.” Butler said he did not come up with the idea for the TECHSPYs. “Our athletics director Tommy McClelland came up with the idea for the award ceremony,” Butler said. “He came to our senior staff a few months ago with the idea and we just rolled with it. The TECHSPYs, of course, are a spoof of the ESPYs held by ESPN. Many other schools have done a similar ceremony.” Butler said the goal of the TECHSPYs is to let Tech’s student athletes know their school appreciates the hard work they put in. “We want to provide experience for our student athletes,” Butler said. “The Techspys is a way to honor them. Even those who do not win will get to experience something a little bit different and at least
realize how much we appreciate the work they do for Tech.” Butler said the TECHSPYs are here to stay. “We plan on this being something we do every year,” Butler said. “It takes a lot of planning and help from athletics and theater department professors. It is something we want to be an annual event.” Butler said the award ceremony could go not go on without the help of his and McClelland’s staff, as well as faculty for the event. That staff includes: Marco Born — senior associate athletic director in charge of external operations, Adam McGuirt — associate athletic director in charge of internal operations, Jay Luksis — assistant athletic director for marketing, David Pillen — director of video operations/ creative services, and Mark Guinn, director of the School of Performing Arts. The inaugural TECHSPYs will begin with a “Blue Carpet” ceremony at 5:30 p.m. with the awards ceremony beginning at 6:30 p.m. For more on Tech athletics, follow the Tech Talk Sports Desk’s Twitter page at twitter.com/ techtalksports.
Email comments to amh072@latech.edu.
here are not many things that do not make news in sports today. With networks like ESPN and social media sites like Twitter, sports news has become something of a constant and almost anything — no matter how minute — can make a ripple. And that is why I am analyzing the post-spring depth chart of the Louisiana Tech football team. Many fans want to see what impact spring practices and the spring game have on the depth chart of their favorite teams. Though most of whom know the postspring depth chart will have little bearing on the starting lineup when August arrives. Regardless, the Bulldogs have released their postspring depth chart and there are a few surprises. Similar to last spring when Cody Sokol transferred to Tech and was listed as an “or” at the first-string quarterback position with junior Ryan Higgins, this season’s depth chart lists Higgins again as an “or,” this time with transfer quarterback Jeff Driskel. Another position to take notice of is left tackle. Often regarded as the most important position along the offensive line, many thought LSU transfer Derek Edinburgh Jr. would win the job, but Edinburgh has not supplanted senior Jens Danielsen for the starting position yet. Redshirt junior wide receiver Conner Smith saw the field sparingly last season before injuries resulted in his receiving quite a bit of playing time as the season came to a close. Smith’s play at the end of last season coupled with his play in spring practices has earned him a starting position in a loaded wide receiver corps that includes star wide receiver Trent Taylor, LSU transfer Paul Turner and speedster Carlos Henderson. On the defensive side of the football there will be an insurgence of youth that will include sophomore defensive end Deldrick Canty and freshman linebacker Russell Farris. On special teams, there is an “or” listed at both starting kicker and punter positions as neither position group has played well of late. The play of Tech’s special teams has been atrocious and it is becoming evident Tech may have to make a change. Unfortunately, that means choosing between the lesser of two evils. Jared King is a senior journalism major from Jena who serves as sports editor for The Tech Talk. Email comments to jki008@latech.edu.