02/25/2010

Bohemia Bust-Up released on DVD

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The

Life as a non-technical student at a tech school

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Catch up on some Broomball!

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Michigan Tech Lode

February 25, 2010

Serving the Michigan Tech Community Since 1921

Huskies take over Marquette for the UP 200

UP 200: Michael Bestgen of St. Cloud, Minn, comes into downtown Marquette enjoying the weather as he finishes the race.

JEREMIAH BAUMANN Online Editor

M

arquette, MI – On a bright and sunny Sunday morning at 10:37 a.m., Ryan Anderson from Roy, Minn., came across the finish line to get the win for the UP 200. Anderson has been handling dogs since he was only five years old and started racing when he turned 12. Anderson, a previous competitor of the UP 200, took home his first win with a total time of 39 hours and

27 minutes.

This annual dog sledding event invaded Marquette this past weekend as 33 mushers competed for this year’s title.

This approximately 240-mile race from Marquette to Grand Marais and back always throws its twists and turns into the competition and is a qualifier for the famous Alaska Iditarod.

This year, the sun was the main enemy. Clear skies with mid 30s during the day and single digits at night changed how the mushers played out the course. To keep the dogs from overheat-

ing, most switched to running at night and resting during the day.

With the sunny days and cold nights, the trail continually changed from a very fast course to a slushy and difficult one.

However, with most mushers using the fast track at night, they averaged 10 MPH overall on the course. Of the original 33 mushers who began, 23 completed the journey coming in as late as 8 p.m.

Most mushers made it past the finish line before they were predicted to due to the fast

morning track as Sunday morning’s sun and 37 degree weather changed the course once again.

The original track used when the UP 200 began in 1988 was actually a lot shorter then the current 240-mile course. The roughly 89-mile course from Gwinn to Munising, is still completed during the UP 200, known as the Midnight Run. This year’s winner was Joann Fortier from Gaylord, Mich., who just happened to also draw bib #1 for the competition.

The event closed out this year with a breakfast awards

Photo by: Jeremiah Baumann

banquette Monday morning at the Marquette Holiday Inn, the headquarters for the UP 200 event.

With breakfast off their mind, these mushers can now look forward to the first annual CopperDog 150, which will be held in Calumet, Mich., on March 12.

This inaugural event brings a fun challenge, as the teams will start in downtown Calumet, head over to Gay, then up to Copper Harbor and back to Calumet.

For more information visit www.copperdog150.com

Omicron Delta Kappa African Night 2010 host Leadership Week The Story from Within TARA SOTIRIN Lode Writer

Omicron Delta Kappa (ODK) is an honor society that has been present on MTU campus for several years.

However, the leadership of ODK, including its’ president and members of the executive board, are all new and looking for fresh and innovative ways to inspire leadership on-campus. While Leadership Week isn’t new, it has been an ODK tradition for many years; the ideas and motivation for the events included a fresh take on what kind of activities will spark leadership in students.

“Last year Leadership Week was a couple of lectures,” says Tim Hammond, ODK’s new president. “We’re trying to incorporate new ideas and increase [Leadership Week’s]

presence on-campus where it’s a yearly event that people know about. We want it to be like events such as Standa-thon where people know about it every year.” One way the ODK members planned on doing that was by making the events interactive and increasing the diversity of the events themselves.

“ODK has five main areas,” says Hammond, “Creative and Performing Arts, Service, Scholarship, Athletics, and Speech and Media so we catered the events to these five things.” Each of the days had a theme and the events reflected one of the five areas.

Students enjoyed an interactive workshop on Monday, reflecting the importance of Creative and Performing Arts, from Dr. Held, Chair of Creative and Performing Arts.

Continued on 2A

Online exclusives Check it all out at: www.mtulode.com PDF Archives of all issues this year

CRYSTAL HIGGINBOTHAM News Editor

African Night 2010: The Story from Within will be held Sunday, Feb. 28, 2010. Dinner will start at 5:00 p.m. in the Memorial Union Ballroom (MUB), with performance starting at 7:00 p.m. in the Rozsa Center for Performing Arts. One ticket will cover the dinner and the performance . The prices are $10 for students and $15 for faculty and the general public. Tickets will be available for sell at the Rozsa box office from Monday-Friday, 11:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Plus two hours before the performance. Tickets will also be available Thrusday Feb. 25 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. in the MUB and Friday Feb. 26 from Continued on 2A

A Story from Within: Elmina castle from Cape Cost - Africa race.

Photo courtesy of flickr.com

Sports Broomball coverage on page 6A All game recaps posted at mtulode.com/sports

Husky Hodgepodge Check out the thoughts of one international student in the “Culture Shock Report” - 8A

Michigan Tech Lode Thursday, February 25, 2010

News

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Student exchange host family shares experiences ZACHARY PAGE Lode Writer Genny Gierke and her family had begun a program a few years ago that is dedicated towards hosting students from abroad.

The program, known as the Labo International Exchange (LIE), is a student exchange course that gives incoming Japanese students the opportunity to learn more about American culture, language, and customs. The program is run through the Michigan State University (MSU) Extension.

Courses are conducted right in the family household in Chassell where students are provided with both food and shelter. The first Japanese student was given the chance to experience a onemonth course in American culture and, according to the Gierke family, the experience worked out very well. Students from ages three to 18 are allowed to be ad-

mitted into the program to gain their knowledge and understanding of America.

The first student enjoyed her experiences with the family and the community. “It’s always really fun. The cultural differences are always neat to see,” she commented.

Hosting foreign exchange students has also given the family the opportunity to establish a long lasting friendship and travel to Japan at discounted rates. Gierke recently visited the country to see one of her previous students and said she really enjoyed having the chance to experience cultural differences in Japan. “It was really neat to see how our culture fit into Japanese life there.”

Students from Japan who were previous hosts of the Gierke family also came to visit. “I always really enjoyed it,” explains Gierke of her experiences. “It’s just like having a friend come visit for a while because you get to know the per-

son so well, and you get to come see them and see them grow.”

Gierke’s family began the program when she was still in high school. Now a second year student at Michigan Tech, Gierke still enjoys aiding and tutoring foreign students who come to her home.

LIE hosts over 1,000 Japanese students in America every summer. Students are assigned to families with children of the same sex and age. Any family is eligible to sign up and become a host family. During stay, students are secured with full accident and health insurance. Students are to come with their own spending money while their hosts provide them with a three-day meal, a bed and room, and transportation.

Student exchange hosting programs are also held throughout the country by the Center for Cultural Interchange (CCI). Similar to LIE, CCI offers over 1000 exchange students to families with

“[Student exchange is] always really fun. The cultural differences are always neat to see.” programs that range from a few weeks to 10 months. The major difference between the two would account for the broad range of foreign exchange students covered in CCI whereas LIE is limited to Japanese students. CCI does not compensate for families who take part in such a program.

However, deductions of $50 per month are made on their tax returns for charitable work.

The state of Michigan is currently attempting to host 53 stu-

dents according to 4-H Program Associate Carol Kreher. “In the past, we have one or two families.

We like to have families with at least one youth around ages 12 to 18,” says Kreher.

For more information, email Carol Kreher at kreher@msu.edu or call the MSU Extension office at 482-5830. To learn more about the Labo International Exchange and/or the Center for Cultural Interchange, visit labo-exchange. com or cci-exchange.com.

African Night 2010: The Leadership week (cont.)

Story from Within (cont.)

9:00 a.m to 5:00 p.m. in Fisher Hall. During this event, students from various African countries provide the audience with an exhilarating display of some of the dance routines from their countries. The food prepared before the performance will showcase the culinary masterpieces from certain African countries, which include Nigeria, Ghana, Keyna, Zimbabwe, and more. Apart from food and dancing, other performances such as African dramas, poems and presentations portraying the lifestyles and cultural aspects native to the beautiful continent of Africa will also be showcased. This year’s special guest performers are the

Hayor Bibimma Dance Company and the Michigan Tech African Students. This event has grown consistently over the years, and attracts an audience of over 300 people every year. This event is brought to you by the African Student Organization (ASO).

ASO is a student organization on Michigan Tech campus comprised mainly of students from various African countries as well as students from other parts of the world. One of the aims of this organization is to promote awareness and share African cultures with the Michigan Tech community as well as with the surrounding Houghton County communities.

On Tuesday, attendees of the “Campus Connections to Leadership!” Head from Jess Turuc, Assistant Director of Student Activities for Greek Life and Leadership, who highlighted many groups and organizations on-campus that students

can join to become more active. On Wednesday, the cats and dogs at the Copper Country Humane Society enjoyed a visit and a walk or a pet from the ODK future-leaders to explore the Service aspect of leadership.

Also on Wednesday, speaker

Terry Beam, a professional from “Motor City Connect” detailed the importance of networking to students looking for a fulfilling career in “Networking to Your Next Job Now!” The final day, Thursday, is devoted to the area of Athletics and ODK collaborated with OAP (another aspect of leadership!) to bring a challenge course to DHH for students looking to take a break from studies and challenge their leadership abilities.

ODK members are contacted based on high GPA marks through letter sent out when they reach Junior/Senior status.

The Honor Society then works to promote leadership on-campus and help their members network for jobs after college.

Sometimes, admits Hammond, students join “because it looks good on a resume” but “just joining isn’t enough to make you a leader,” reminds Hammond. “We are working on building an internal structure for our members to work on their leadership skills.”

One of the ways to do that: collaborate with other leadership opportunities on-campus.

One of the hallmarks of the organization that sets ODK apart is their collaborative approach to building events like Leadership Week. Many of the events were sponsored or organized with another campus organization such as Career Services, Creative and Performing Arts Department, and the Outdoor Adventure Program.

The next step for ODK involves setting up a forum for discussing student issues oncampus. “If there’s something you want to see change or a voice that you think needs to be heard—Join in!” says Hammond. “We can talk about it and try to find a solution together.” Look for more on this later, since right now ODK is ready to enjoy the after-glow of their Leadership Week If you are interested in ODK or Leadership Week events please contact Tim Hammond at tghammon@mtu.edu

Check our

CLASSIFIEDs

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Michigan Tech Lode Thursday, February 28th, 2010

Pulse

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Artist Dieppa Ortiz’ Work on Display free and open to the public ROZSA CENTER Press Release

T

he Rozsa Center is proud to present Boston artist Chandra Dieppa Ortiz, in a solo art exhibit; “The Record Player Project: Fragment/Appropriate/Remix”.

Dieppa’s work is powerful and colorful – contemporary in subject matter, but timeless in its honest and unflinching observation of the human condition.

Curator Michael G Bennett, Ph. D. of Vassar College, writes of Dieppa’s work: “The works of the artist known as Dieppa reveal and render problematic any number of societal issues, but always through a visual vernacular that stresses the beauty intrinsic to even the most inhumane conditions. Like the works of the great appropriationists/collagists of the 20th century, bracketed by Braque, Picasso and other cubists at its opening, and near its close by Romare Bearden, Dieppa’s art visualizes fragmented spaces, multi-dimensional collapses and detonated yet immediately almost-recognizable figures, all reconstituted by her polarizing thought and deft technique into a coherent form, like iron filings in a strong magnetic field.”

Ms. Ortiz, known as Dieppa, works in an inter-related series of paintings, mixed media collage, assemblage, and works on paper that explore the historical and contemporary use of storytelling. Dieppa uses musical forms such as Jazz, Blues, and Hip Hop to create complex rhythmic compositions that create emotional environments where fragments, symbols, and images play against

Gem of the Ocean: Artist Dieppa Ortiz will have her work on display at the Rozsa Center through March

Distributed by Rozsa Center

textured surfaces.

Her work explores issues of race, class, gender, and culture in the hopes of creating a dialogue between communities and generations by visualizing cultural armor. Dieppa believes that “cultural armor” protects by using

love, humor, faith, music, stories, and the telling of home truths to empower and inspire each generation.

Currently, Dieppa is interpreting the works of the late playwright August Wilson through collages that juxtapose the

Yo-Gabba Gabba returns for another season Third season premiers Mar. 8th at 10:30 a.m.

RAEANNE MADISON Lode Writer Nick Jr.’s Emmy nominated show Yo Gabba Gabba! will be returning for its third season on Mar. 8th at 10:30 am. The show, which has a following of toddlers, teens, and adults alike, has been a huge success for Nick Jr. Yo Gabba Gabba! is rich in the arts and makes the imagination work. The show takes place in a fictional world called Gabbaland, following the daily adventures of characters Muno, Foofa, Brobee, Toodee, and Plex. Hosted

by a character named DJ Lance Rock, the show features retro style graphics and costumes, and catchy tunes that teach kids life lessons about sharing, sleeping, eating healthfully, and being nice to everyone.

The show’s appeal to families is apparent: it gets kids off the couch and involved in the show, dancing and imagining. A regular segment on the show, called Dancey Dance Time, teaches kids how to do silly dances like the Jumpin’ Jellyfish and the Peanut Butter Stomp. Yo Gabba Gabba! introduces kids to different dancing styles and musical instru-

ments.

Another segment, called The Super Music Friends Show, features well known artists playing a concert for their Gabbaland friends. Yo Gabba Gabba! also has a drawing segment, where artist Mark Mothersbaugh teaches kids how to draw.

Guest stars on Yo Gabba Gabba! have included Mya, The Roots, Of Montreal, Elijah Wood, Biz Markie, The Saltines, MGMT, and many more. The third season promises to entertain – look for stars like Weird Al, Anthony Bourdain, Weezer, Devo, Flaming Lips, and Mos Def.

rhythm, dialect, and “beautiful struggle” of the black experience in the 20th century.

The exhibit is free and open to the public during Rozsa Box Office hours – 11:30am – 5:00pm, M-F., and during scheduled weekend performances at the

Rozsa. For more information on the exhibit, call the Rozsa Box Office at 487-3200 or visit www. rozsa.mtu.edu.

For more information on Chandra Dieppa Ortiz, please visit www.dieppastudio.com or http:// mbennett.org/artifact_g/?p=195.

KSO Performs at Rozsa Center NICHOLAS BLECHA Lode Writer

O

n Saturday, February 20, The Keweenaw Symphony Orchestra performed their third concert of the season, titled “A Night at the Opera.” In addition to the KSO, the performance also featured Lara Neves as mezzo-soprano.

The performance began with the overture from Franz von Suppé’s Poet and Peasant. Although von Suppé wrote several works in the course of his career, only this and one other piece– the overture from Light Cavalry–are still commonly performed. Poet and Peasant Overture is notable for the contrast created by its sudden shifts in style and tone.

After introducing himself, KSO conductor Joel Neves then moved on the next piece, Otello, Act IV

by Giuseppe Verdi, with Ms. Neves singing the aria, and supertitles in the back of the stage as well as notes in the program providing an English translation for the lyrics.

Dr. Neves remarked on the irony of conducting his wife in this work: based on William Shakespeare’s Othello, Act IV concerns Othello’s wife Desdemona, who knows that her husband (incorrectly) suspects her of infidelity and plans to kill her. Otello is notable because, while most great works are written be-

fore the composer turn 53, Verdi wrote Otello at the age of 74, an age which it was considered impressive simply to live to at the time. It is now often considered Verdi’s greatest masterpiece.

After a short intermission, the KSO returned to play Georges Bizet’s Carmen Suite No. 1 and 2. The suites contain the most popular pieces from the opera of the same name, including the very well known Les Toréadors and Habañera. The suites are often considered to be a sort of “greatest hits” collection for Bizet. Since most sets of composers’ greatest works are drawn from several different greater works, that all of Bizet’s greatest masterpieces are from the same opera shows the greatness of that opera. Indeed, Carmen has long been one of the most performed operas. Ms. Neves again sang the original French arias for two of the works: Habañera and Gypsy Song, again with program notes and supertitles providing English translations.

The KSO will return for one more performance this season. The Bernstein Beat, featuring the works of Leonard Bernstein, and will feature his daughter Jamie as narrator. It will also feature some of the most technically difficult music the KSO has worked on all season, and as such it has already begun preparing for the concert. It will be performed on April 17.

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Michigan Tech Lode Thursday, February 25, 2010

Feature

Ask Sassy Changing Michigan Tech

Dear Sassy, Spring Break is right around the corner and I don’t know how to spend it. My friends invited me on a trip to Jamaica, which would be so much fun. However, I feel like I should go home and start looking for a job for the summer and get caught up on studying. Should I take the trip or buckle down?

Sincerely,

Somber spring-breaker Dear Somber, I normally would encourage someone to go on the vacation. De-stressing is extremely important, I’m sure there are other times to work on finding a job. However, I have the feeling that this trip to Jamaica will involve an obscene amount of drinking and partying (forgive me for reinforcing the stereotype of college spring vacations) that is a complete waste of money.

If you do plan on getting roaring drunk every night, I suggest you do that where you are. In the end, all you’re left with will be a drunken blur. It would be better to stay home instead of not remembering a very expensive place.

Stay home and with un-blurred vision and un-dulled senses, go find a summer job.

Dear Sassy, Lately it seems as if everyone I know is getting engaged.

I’m started getting wedding invitations and even a few baby shower invitations! I feel very left out; I don’t even have a boyfriend yet. I don’t want to be the last of my friends to get married. What can I do to get out there and meet people?

Sincerely,

Single Sally Dear Single, Why in the world would be anxious to get married? Don’t get me wrong, romance is all very well. However, when you’re spending the rest of your life with someone, it is not a decision to be made lightly (although it often is). Enjoy life, you don’t need another person to make yourself complete.

Your single life will be even better as you can be amused by the dull, predictable domestic arguments occurring among your friends’ marriages. Consider yourself lucky if you are the last in your social circle to be burdened with the ultimate of societal imprisonments: marriage.

Dear Sassy, With warm weather coming up, I am looking for some ways to get outside and stay fit. Do you have suggestions for outdoor activities that are easy to learn and can give a good workout? I don’t want to spend all summer playing video games!

Sincerely,

Eager for a hobby

one picture at a time

A new student organization is trying to bring art to engineers MICHAEL FRIESEN Lode Writer

I

n the Wadsworth Hall lounge, several students were eagerly discussing plans and possibilities while behind them, other students were drawing. Muffins had been baked as snacks. It was a meeting for the fledgling student organization A.R.T., which stands for Art Revolutionizing Tech.

A.R.T. is a student organization dedicated to increasing the level of culture presented and available at Michigan Tech, as well as the creativity and appreciation of art within the student population. In the words of President and co-founder Sarah Piccard, the purpose is to counter the stereotype of boring engineers and “show more of the artistic sides.” Through this, they also hope to create a more friendly and more open campus as well as a greater feeling of community in the halls and academic buildings.

The organization started last Fall semester when five students in the Pavlis Institute came together. One of their assignments in the course of their work in Pavlis was to design

a sustainable project, and the desire for more art was a common calling to all of them. They created plans for the creation of the organization, and when they were finished they found that they felt strongly enough about the cause to execute the plan.

They created a constitution and procured the proper funds, and created A.R.T. The organization is very new, and as such its current projects are relatively small.

Currently, they are in the process of obtaining postalthemed artwork to display near the mailboxes and placing a display case in the Wadsworth Hall lobby and cafeteria.

However, these projects are not without challenges; much more planning is needed, as well as art contributions from students.

“We’re looking for people with art that they want to display around campus,” said Public Relations officer and CoFounder Joe East. A.R.T. States that they have the means to display artwork and are willing to order prints and display artwork with or without name at the wishes of the sender. In return, willing students would be able to have their art displayed and receive visibility and publicity on campus when they otherwise

might not be able to.

The criteria for art that is to be displayed is that it is appropriate; the hall or building manager must approve of any artwork. Within those conditions, however, Joe said that the organization is “looking for any art.”

So far, A.R.T. has had some success and some plans that could not be executed. One of the ideas that A.R.T. had was to set up bulletin boards in the cafeteria that anyone could post artwork to.

However, that was dismissed due to difficulties obtaining permission in addition to problems protecting students’ artwork and maintaining the board. However, A.R.T. has also gained some influence; Housing asked the organization to help provide artwork and input for the new residence suites that are in construction behind McNair Hall.

Joe encourages students to join A.R.T. He says that work is on a volunteer basis, and students can expect to get out what they put in. “If dedicated, [students] can do incredible things.” He extends an invitation to everyone to come to a meeting, which are regularly held every other Wednesday in the Wadsworth Cafe at 6:00 PM..

The purpose is to counter the stereotype of boring engineers and “show more of the artistic sides.”

-Co-founder Sarah Piccard

Eager

Dear Really? I’m not even going to sugarcoat this response.

Outdoor activities are usually learned at a very early age.

Apparently you missed out on learning the basic skills of running, jumping, and walking. If you really can’t think of an outdoor activity, I suggest you keep to your video games: know your strengths.

However, I will indulge your request with a suggestion of my favorite vigorous outdoor activity. Bird watching is a very popular sport for summer time. All you need is a bird book, binoculars, and a lawn chair. Straining your neck to get a good look at a yellow-bellied sapsucker will really work your sternocleidomastoid muscle. You’ll know you’re getting a good cardio workout when you spot the rare red-headed woodpecker, your heart will be pounding with excitement!

is looking for writers.

Are you the one E-mail: krherrer@mtu.edu

CLASSIFIED MTU Keweenaw Research Center student engineer openings.

Year-round, P.T. during school year / F.T. during summer, working with KRC engineers on hardware design & analysis projects. Must be U.S. citizen working toward ME or MET degree. Solid modeling / technical drawing experience a plus. Information about KRC at www.mtukrc.org.

Submit resume to Christian Fitzgerald (cdfitzge@mtu.)edu).

Part time market researcher.

Must have excellent computer skills (Word, Publisher, Frontpage), strong research and organizational skills in a demanding, fast-paced office environment. Email resume to om@sigmacapital.net.

Bookkeeper, onsite, part time.

Excellent bookkeeping/GL, Quickbooks and organizational skills required in a fast paced environment.

Email resume: om@sigmacapital.net.

Michigan Tech Lode Thursday, February 25, 2010

opinion

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Misuse of energy f.y.i energy is not free LENA WILSON Opinion Writer

E

nergy is free and is produced magically. We are so lucky to have these magic machines and gadgets at our convenience like an Xbox 360, LCD HDTV, laptop, cell phone, refrigerator, microwave, toaster, Ipod and hair dryer.

Let’s watch a movie. Let’s play a video game. Let’s leave the TV on while we do something else.

Let’s leave the light on in the room we aren’t using. Let’s run a TV all day to display a Power Point.

What would you do in a day without any plug-ins or light switches? Watch a play? Start whistling and slamming pots in an attempt to make music? Fall asleep because you don’t know what to do?

I’m not on a campaign to

make you pity those who don’t have your same quality of life, rather I want people to make mindful decisions and consider why we tend to be so wasteful.

Why do people act like energy is cheap and comes without a large cost? There are other costs besides money (environmental, quality of silence, etc.) Why are restaurants starting to use TVs as displays for menus? Why are there TVs all over campus continually cycling through news and information?

The TV chilling in the showcase on the first floor of Walker is especially displeasing to me. First of all, that is an area where things are supposed to be showcased like some artwork or monthly posters and information. Aren’t the faculty excited to get out of their offices to put up a presentation or something once a month? Let’s get our scissors out and cut up

some shapes!

Secondly, that TV has its own Mac constantly running with it.

What a waste.

I found myself in the middle of a conversation about that showcase not existing anymore and the TV they recently invested in may not have a home in the near future. The slides are boring anyway.

I sat in on a meeting of the Green Campus Enterprise and found myself listening to a project presentation. One of the first things that they mentioned is their idea of having three TVs on for the duration of their project so the students can be constantly updated.

I inquired that they should consider making a material/ paper sort of presentation or update the information on a web page. Answer: they don’t want information to get stolen because that would be bad if

people did some hacking, plus they wanted constant updates.

Well, if a web site is made correctly people cannot access secure information. Also, what is wrong with a little suspense?

Why is it necessary to have constant stimulus? Why are we so needy? Stimulus! I can has it?! (That’s a whole topic onto its own.)

I am going to urge that they simply have a person travel to the three locations and update a handmade presentation once a day. People can then wait for the ice-cream truck of updates and TVs won’t needlessly be on.

I’ll personally volunteer to make the manual updates!

I think this community can step it up a notch. Maybe we can all ‘inconvenience’ ourselves by working with our hands and non-electronic tools. I’d like people to ask themselves if they are inconvenienced when they

stay up late and avoid the sun, sit around watching TV, play video games for hours, stare at a computer screen all day, nuke meals instead of preparing them or leaving a TV on. Isn’t it an inconvenience to degrade ecosystems, forget how it feels to be completely full of energy, ignore life skills and hobbies or never have the excitement of receiving long awaited news?

What are we all trying to make time for and what are we trying to achieve? Do we even consider why it is we are motivated to act as we do?

Certainly we could all use a break from automation and electronic stimulus. Certainly there are things that are relatively easy to give up or find replacements for. Certainly we can rethink priorities. What else do we have to do with our time besides trying to boost levels of happiness and health?

Michigan Tech Lode

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Editor in Chief .................................Kayla Herrera Visuals Manager ....................................... Alex Cotton Business Manager................................Richard Goodell Online Editor..................................Jeremiah Baumann News Editor...............................Crystal Higginbotham Opinion Editor..........................................Elijah Haines Sports Editor ..................................Stephen Anderson Pulse Editor................................................Luke Gublo Winter Carnival Pictorial Editor ........................... TBD Advisor ........................................................Kara Sokol

Staff Writers - Sara Goodell, Jasween Jagjit, Daver Karnosky, Danny Messinger, Chris Morgan, Sally Sanderson, Anna Stasek, Lena Wilson, Lauren Wiza Circulation - Elliot Heinrich Visuals Staff - Becky Boeve, Emily

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Copy Editors - Craig Kalinowski, Amanda Gardiner

Unless otherwise noted, unsigned editorials represent the consensus of opinion of the senior editorial staff of the Michigan Tech Lode.

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Michigan Tech Lode Thursday, February 25, 2009

Sports

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Senior weekend against Badgers a challenge for Huskies By

the

r e b m nu

DREW DOBSON

RYAN BUNGER

MALCOLM GWILLIAM

JOHN KIVISTO

MIKE VANWAGNER

DAVER KARNOSKY Lode Writer As the 2009-10 WCHA Regular Season comes to a close for the Huskies, they have one last home series against the No. 3Wisconsin Badgers before finishing on the road at No. 8 North Dakota. This means there’s one last chance for fans to see Ryan Bunger, Drew Dobson, captain Malcolm Gwilliam, John Kivisto, Mike VanWagner, and Eli Vlaisavljevich before graduation.

For Gwilliam and VanWagner, this weekend has been a long time coming as both have lost seasons to injuries have played more than their share of college hockey.

Combined, this group of seniors has helped the Huskies earn 58 victories, 39 of which have come in WCHA matches.

When Bunger, Dobson, Kivisto, and Vlaisavljevich were freshmen, they helped the Huskies to 18 wins, the most in head coach Jamie Russell’s tenure.

Before this season, this group wasn’t known for its offensive contributions so much as its ability to keep opposing forwards off the board. The top scorer is Gwilliam, who has racked up 29 goals and 66 points in 146 games over

parts of six seasons. He is followed closely by Dobson and his 12 goals and 55 points in 129 games.

Dobson’s best season came last year, when he posted five goals and 19 points after transitioning from defense to forward after injuries ravaged the Huskies.

Bunger, who posted five goals and 10 points as a freshman, has struggled to find his scoring touch after an extremely promising rookie campaign, as he has only posted 21 career points. However, this season he has remade himself into a penalty-killing specialist.

Forcing his way onto the team as a freshman walk-on, Kivisto has emerged this season as the team’s more consistent offensive

threat from the blue line, netting four goals and 12 points. He had just eight career points before this season.

Another promising prospect, Vlaisavljevich posted four points in his first season in the Black and Gold. However, he struggled to stay in the lineup before this season. Playing most of this season at center instead of his more natural defensive position, Vlaisavljevich has posted a game-winning goal among the two goals he’s notched.

Even more impressive are Vlaisavljevich’s off-ice exploits as he has excelled in the classroom, earning himself a finalist spot for the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award

ELI VLAISAVLJEVICH

this season among his several academic accolades (see feature on 7A).

VanWagner is lucky to still be playing. In fact, he’s blessed to still be able to lace up his skates every weekend. Having missed only five games so far this season, VanWagner has been a steadying influence on young defensive corps.

This weekend, the seniors put their skills on the line one last time at home against the Badgers, who are battling for third in the WCHA with 31 points, two better than the No. 10 MinnesotaDuluth Bulldogs.

Senior forward Michael Davies (14-26=40) leads the Badgers offensively. Captain Blake Geoffrion (21-15=36) leads the Badgers in goals and power play goals (12), which is also tied for tops in the nation.

Junior Brendan Smith (1425=39) continues to put up impressive offensive numbers while frustrating head coach Mike Eaves in his own end.

Between the pipes, junior Scott Gudmandson (11-3-4 overall, 2.47 goals against average, .907 saves percentage) has taken ahold of the reigns for the stretch run.

Both games this weekend will start at 7:07 p.m.

Basketball teams to host LSSU, SVSU in final regular season games; seniors to be honored STEPHEN ANDERSON Sports Editor

TARA FERRIS

DANAE DANEN

SARAH STREAM

KATIE WYSOCKY

MARIA KASZA

KATIE ZIMMERMAN

For just the second time this year, both Husky teams lost on the same day. The Hillsdale Chargers handed the women’s team a 68-65 loss, while the Charger men all be eliminated the Husky men from GLIAC tournament contention with a 79-55 win.

It’s hard to believe, but this week’s two doubleheaders will be the final regular season games for the teams, as Lake Superior State and Saginaw Valley State come to town.

The Michigan Tech women now sit at No. 5 in the country and will likely need to win this week’s games and win the GLIAC Tournament to have a shot at hosting the Midwest Regional.

The young men’s team will look to finish the season on a high note, sending seniors Chris Baugh and Georgio Holt off on the right foot.

All eight basketball seniors will be honored at Saturday’s games. For full game previews, visit mtulode.com/sports/basketball.

0

Saturday wins by the Michigan Tech hockey team. All five victories have come on a Friday. The Huskies face the Wisconsin Badgers in the final home series of the year.

.666

free throw percentage for the men’s basketball team, second worst in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

3

overtime victories by the Michigan Tech women’s basketball team this season, two of them coming in double overtime. They have not lost in OT yet.

14

seniors will be

honored at this

Saturday’s games.

Six hockey and six women’s basketball seniors will play their final home regular season games, while two men’s basketball players will play their last ever game.

93

points away from the all-time scoring record in Michigan Tech women’s basketball history for Katie Wysocky.

She only trails Jenny Postlewaite, who has 1,856 career points.

Schedules/Results

Hockey (5-24-1, 4-20-0 WCHA) Denver 5-2 MTU Denver 5-3 Fri. vs. Wisconsin, 7:07 p.m.

Sat. vs. Wisconsin, 7:07 p.m.

Visit uscho.com for full standings

W. Basketball (23-2, 18-2 GLIAC) MTU 73-69 Findlay (2OT) Hillsdale 68-65 MTU Thurs. vs. Lake Superior St., 5:30 p.m.

Sat. vs. Saginaw Valley St., 1 p.m.

CHRIS BAUGH

M. Basketball (4-15, 3-11 GLIAC) Grand Valley State 59-42 MTU Ferris State 67-63 MTU Thurs. vs. Lake Superior St., 7:30 p.m.

Sat. vs. Saginaw Valley St., 3 p.m.

Visit gliac.org for full standings

Nordic Skiing NCAA Reg. - M: 2 of 8, W: 3 of 9 Sat. @ American Birkebeiner

Tennis GEORGIO HOLT

Women - Fri. @ Southern Indiana Women - Sat. @ Bellarmine

Editor’s Shootout

The Editor’s Shootout is a competition of knowledge, luck and wits between sports editor Stephen Anderson, business manager Richard Goodell, pulse editor Luke Gublo and online editor Jeremiah Baumann. Stephen won two years ago with former opinion editor Rob Devaun winning last year. This will be a weekly feature where each editor picks his winners of the three biggest games/series of the week and backs up his decisions with a short rant. THIS WEEK: Cleveland Cavaliers at Boston Celtics, Phoenix Suns at San Antonio Spurs, Michigan State Spartans at Purdue Boilermakers (Men’s College Basketball)

LUKE GUBLO Pulse Editor 1-2 Last Week, 34-23 Overall

STEPHEN ANDERSON Sports Editor 1-2 Last Week, 32-25 Overall

JACOB VEHRING Business Manager 2-1 Last Week, 30-27 Overall

JEREMIAH BAUMANN Online Editor 1-2 Last Week, 27-30 Overall

Cleveland and Boston face up in a match-up of two strong Eastern conference teams. Unfortunately for Boston, they are headed in the wrong direction, while Cleveland has been hot of late. Cavs over the Celtics. I would expect Phoenix to beat San Antonio on the road. The Big Ten provides a heavyweight matchup on Sunday, between two of the top teams in the Conference. Going with bias here, Sparty all the way!

Cavaliers 96-91 Suns 110-102 Spartans 71-64

Boston has won four of five since the All-Star break, while Cleveland has lost three of four. Expect the trend to continue in Beantown. I have little confidence in San Antonio, but with the Suns under .500 on the road, I’ll take the Spurs this time. Finally, Purdue will use its home-court advantage to take down Tom Izzo’s squad in what is being accurately touted as one of the best Big Ten games of the year. By the way, everyone welcome Jacob Vehring in, taking over Ric’s spot, and unfortunately his record. It’s time for me to finally overtake Luke one of these weeks!

Celtics 101-99

I would like to start by thanking my predecessor for allowing me to start in third place in the Editor’s Shootout.

Great job picking this year Ric, guess your sub par fantasy sports skills carries over into your game by game predictions. I think Cleveland will win a close game against Boston thanks to a great game by newly acquired Antawn Jamison. The Spurs will be sad that Amare Stoudemire did not get traded from Phoenix. State will beat Purdue this time around.

Cavaliers 101-100

What no hockey? Well I might as well just give up now. Cleveland is on a losing streak which they need to break, so I think they’ll pick the day that matters, when they are playing the number 3 Boston in their conference. Phoenix is just starting their winning streak which I think should continue as they plow through the Spurs. For college basketball, I just have to go with any school but State.

Cavaliers 93-87

Spurs 99-95 B’makers 70-62

Suns 105-98 Spartans 71-68

Suns 89-84 B’makers 88-82

Michigan Tech Lode Thursday, February 25, 2009

Husky skiers head to Wisconsin for second largest ski race in North America MARC SANKO Lode Writer The Michigan Tech Ski teams will head to the American Birkebeiner race in Cable, Wisconsin this coming weekend, in what should be an exciting weekend for the skiers. The race is hailed as the second largest ski race in North America. Over 10,000 skiers, 2,000 volunteers and 15,000 spectators are expected to descend this weekend for a 50K Skate, a 54K Classic, 23K Kortelopet, and a Prince Haakon 12K. Over 20 countries will be represented as well as 47 American states. The US, Canada, Norway and Finland make up the top three countries with people racing and the states sending the most racers are skiers from the Midwest (Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan and Illinois) plus Colorado.

The American Birkebeiner is styled after the Norwegian race started in 1932 to honor a historic Norwegian event in 1206. During the Norwegian Civil War, ski soldiers called “Birkebeiners” raced the infant Prince Haakon away from danger.

The infant Prince eventually became King of Norway and the skiing soldiers became a national symbol of the Norwegian spirit and character.

The Skiers should enjoy the weekend and then have two ski races left in the season. The US National Junior Championships in Maine over Spring Break and then the NCAA National Championships in the same week.

MARC SANKO Lode Writer With the hiring of the Michigan Tech Women’s Soccer coach, Michelle Jacob, we at the Lode wanted to have a chat with her to see what the plans are for next year’s team, and how things are progressing.

The first question, and most important, was what drew her to the coaching job here at Michigan Tech? Being a brand new program and a DII instead of the DIII she has coached at, this is a big step.

Coach Jacob was excited to say the least about it. She mentioned that simply hearing about how the team was started, with the donation of Pat Nelson who paid for the whole club’s first year expenses, made a huge impact. “Knowing that MTU had such an impact on a person’s life that they were willing to support an entire sport really made me think that this had to be a very special place.” She mentions that working in Division II will be an exciting new challenge, but one she is ready for.

Next of course had to be the question of recruiting, how has it been going on such short notice and what advantages is there to recruiting to Tech?

Obviously the location of Tech has been a selling point for programs over the years, as it truly is a beautiful place, and the academics here are incredible. “It’s very easy to ‘sell’ a school when there are so many great things to talk about.”

Jacob said. Of course it helps when the University is very well known, as many recruits Jacob has talked with have already heard about the great things that Michigan Tech is known for. She mentioned that everyone here is so welcoming, friendly and willing to help, which many of us know as the Yooper attitude.

Then the questions turn to the team itself. First, I wanted to know what type of team Coach Jacob was looking to build. What is the long term idea for the team?

Coach Jacob said, “We must have players with a team focus and

Sports

7A

Broomball HQ It’s hard to believe that only two days remain in the broomball playoffs. At press time, results for Wednesday night’s games have not been released, so we will have to turn our broomball coverage online to mtulode.com/sports/ broomball. All six of tonight’s games will be covered, along with the Championship and third-place games tomorrow night. Also, daily reviews and previews, along with daily power rankings will be featured. Winners of our exclusive bracket challenge will also be announced late Friday night.

Photo by Stephen Anderson

Photo by Matt McGuire

Photo by Stephen Anderson

Top: INit2WINit’s Chase Stevens fires a shot on net in Sunday’s first round 3-0 loss to the Baby Sheep.

Above Left: Joe Gallo from Cotton’s Candy lines up a shot in Tuesday’s 1-0 second round win over the Ninja Penguins.

Above Right: Katherine Zimmerman from Sisu Girls fires on net in Tuesday’s 2-1 loss to Team ver 5.0.

Women’s tennis team heads south to face S. Indiana, Bellarmine DAVER KARNOSKY Lode Writer As they continue to search for their second trip to the NCAA Tournament in three years, the women’s tennis Huskies travel this weekend to face a pair of regional opponents in the Southern Indiana Screaming Eagles and the Bellarmine Knights.

On Friday, the Huskies (11-3 overall) will face the Screaming Eagles (4-1 overall), who are fresh off a 5-4 win over the Knights. Junior Michelle Girgenti is seated at the top of lineup. Seniors Gretchen Cantwell and Katie Jo Clagg have the numbers two and three slots.

None of the three have won more than one match in their positions. continued at mtulode.com

Vote for Vlaisavljevich

Husky hockey senior defender named finalist in Lowe’s senior CLASS award, “the nation’s premier award for NCAA student-athletes” Eli Vlaisavljevich has been named as one of 10 finalists for the Lowe’s senior CLASS (Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School) Award in the 2009-10 hockey division.

The award considers excellence in four areas: classroom, character,

Meet Michelle Jacob

community and competition. Fan voting is one third of the overall voting. The winner will be announced at the NCAA Frozen Four in Detroit.

To vote for Eli, fill out the ballot at http://www.seniorCLASSaward. com or text HOCKEY to 74567.

Lode SportS Talk Radio

91.9 FM Sat. 10-Noon Check out the “Michigan Tech Lode” Facebook page on Friday night to see this weekend’s special guests!

This week on www.mtulode.com:

an incredi b l e individual drive to be successful in order to set the direction for our program.”

Of course the recruits have to be a right fit for the school, and they must realize they are playing for an NCAA program, which requires hard work and passion for the sport. Coach Jacob wants to find players whose passion runs deep so that can be seen on the field of play. Success can be dictated by having great players here at Tech who will outwork the opponents.

What about the expectations for next year? What would be a dream season?

The team will have a tough schedule next year, with a competitive conference schedule and a high level of competition in their non-conference games.

This doesn’t phase the new coach though. “We have high expectations for our first season and I believe we will surprise any school that takes us lightly.” But that is not, the expectations are sky high for the program, “Our season goal will be the same this year and every year-win the national championship! We plan to train and play every day like that is where we are going.”

Michigan Tech has had a good

Women’s Club Soccer program for years now, I asked Jacob about any contact she has had with the club and what the partnership might be.

Jacob said not only is she excited to work with the Club team on campus but that the addition of a Varsity program gives these players an opportunity to play at a much higher level. The team is in the planning stages of a Spring Campus Showcase to allow girls from all over campus to try out for the team (Keep an eye on the Lode for the details when they are released).

Finally, I had to ask how Michigan Tech and Houghton have treated their new resident since her arrival, and in tune with the entire interview, she was very excited to be here and loves the community of students and staff that she has met so far.

Anyone interested in more information on how to join the Women’s Soccer team for next year, feel free to contact Coach Michelle Jacob at mmjacob@mtu. edu. The Michigan Tech Lode wishes the best of luck to the Women’s Soccer team and Coach Jacob next year!

Today (Feb. 25): Basketball game recaps, broomball game recaps Friday: Hockey live blog, Hockey game recap, Broomball Championship and third-place game recaps, women’s tennis recap Saturday: Basketball game recaps, Hockey live blog, Hockey game recap, Broomball season in review Sunday: Blog posts, Nordic skiing recaps Monday: Start of senior student-athlete spotlight Tuesday: Senior student-athlete spotlight, indoor soccer preview Wednesday: Senior student-athlete spotlight Every week on www.mtulode.com:

• • • • • •

Article continuations All game recaps posted online the same day Interactive reader/fan polls (see below) Regular blog posts by sports staff Digital PDF archive of print editions Become a Facebook fan of the “Michigan Tech Lode”

Look for our special “Reader Interaction” section at www.mtulode.com/sports Vote online in this week’s polls: How many of the final six home regular season games this week will Tech win?

How far will the Michigan Tech women’s basketball team go this year?

Now who do you think will win the IRHC Broomball Championship?

We want to better serve you. Answer our short sports readership survey online now!

8A Husky Hodgepodge

Culture

Shock

4 1 # t r Repo

s i t a h W y t l i u g r you re? pleasu

Event reminders Boukman Eksperyans Where: Rozsa Center When: Feb. 27 and 27 7:30 - 11:30 p.m.

That’s what...

JUN (MILES) NI Lode Writer

Follow the thoughts of one international student as he discovers the ins and outs of life in America Welcome to week seven! Are you still fighting for your exams or papers? Throw your books away for a couple of minutes and enjoy another culture shock!

I hope you guys liked the Traditional Chinese Medicine articles I wrote the past two weeks.

There is still lots stuff to talk about, but due to my knowledge limitation I have to stop there for now. Traditional Chinese Medicine is still a developing technology and it is borrowing knowledge from Western medicine. We do have some medicines that combine Chinese and western medicines together. They work efficiently on your body and don’t have many side effects to other organs.

Before starting this week’s topic, we need take a quiz first. Have you guys ever noticed that there are two words very similar to each other?

China and china. Do you know how this came to be? In ancient China, China was famous for china and silk. They were exported by enormous amounts every year.

Because of they are so popular and the way to make them is so unique, mid-eastern merchants named china from the country that made it. However, the Chinese meaning for my country is not just a kind of porcelain. In Chinese, it means the “the center of the world”. Maybe it sounds arrogant, but it does tell something about China 600 hundreds year ago.

During the 14th and 15th century, when North America was still a mysterious land, China was the most powerful country in the world. It was the economic center of East Asia and its products were shipped to the entire world. After a couple hundred golden years, the leaders of the Chinese empire were too self-confident to learn new technology from other countries.

When western countries were having an industrial revolution, China was still making handmade silk and china.

The efficiency of machines made a huge challenge for Chinese traditional manufacturing.

Compared to western advanced technology, our own technology seems to be falling behind and the production speed is much slower than machines. Many of the manufacturing business went bankrupt and lots of traditional manufacturing skills were lost. My grandma was a tailor, but she lost her job after companies imported machines. When she lost her job, her fantastic sewing skill was also lost and didn’t get a chance to be passed to others.

As China becomes more and more involved in worldwide business, the Chinese culture is changing slowly year by year. At the beginning of 21st century, China began to worry about losing her traditional culture. Nobody wanted to learn old-school stuff anymore.

The Life style has changed and the culture is becoming more and more westernized.

Culture shock is everywhere and it is somehow changing the world.

People from different cultural backgrounds respect each other and make their life better by taking benefits from other living styles. I think the diversity of culture is the key to making the world colorful.

Do you agree with me?

Michigan Tech Lode Thursday February 25th, 2010

she said

African Night Where: Rozsa Center When: Feb. 28 5:00 - 8:00 p.m.

Women in IT Panel Where: MUB Alumni Lounge When: Mar. 1 12:00-1:00 p.m.

Student poll

Sam Kerlin

Did you go to the Career Fair?

Yes! And I have an interview-19%

Ice Cream Clinical Laboratory Science Second year

Rachel Morrison This week , [it] is giving myself a spa treatment.

You know pedicure and all that.

Biomedical Engineering First year

Marisa Hoerauf Watching cheesy sci-fi movies.

Biology Second year

he said Matt Gage Text messaging during class.

Exercise Science First year

No, there is no point for me to go.

- 61% Yes, but there wasn’t much-19% Student responses are based on our weekly online poll. Please vote on next week’s question: Do you have Spring Break plans?

Vote at: www.mtulode.com

On this day

1793

President George Washington held the first Cabinet meeting.

1913

The Sixteenth Amendment of the Constitution of the United States of America, authorizing the income tax, went into effect.

1919

Oregon became the first state to tax gasoline.

2005

Dennis Rader was arrested near his home for the BTK serial killings that terrorized Wichita, Kansas between 1974 and 1991.

February 25th: Kuwait National Day Courtesy of www.reference.com and www.statesymbolsusa.org

Weather Outlook

Nathan Manderfield Watching Hallmark movies and listening to Lady Gaga.

Friday: Partly Cloudy

270F / 130F Accounting First year

Patrick Grodecki Watching Oprah Winfrey on weekdays

Civil Engineering Third year

Visit www.mtulode.com for these and more student video responses

Saturday: Partly Cloudy

290F / 160F

Sunday: Partly Cloudy

280F / 160F Weather Courtesy of www.wunderground.com