Technician
thursday september
16 2010
Raleigh, North Carolina
technicianonline.com
Annual SparkCon begins Thursday SparkCon, called a ‘creative potluck’ by organizers, will be held in downtown Raleigh Sept. 16 through Sept. 19. Brooke Wallig Correspondent
SparkCon, an annual event called “a grassroots explosion of creativity” by James Pettus, the visual arts director for the N.C. Arts Council, lasts until Monday morning. Since its beginning in 2006, SparkCon has been an annual four-day event, and this year it is from Sept. 16-19 on Fayetteville Street in downtown Raleigh. The festival is comprised of several smaller festivals called “sparks,” which showcase local talent in 16 areas, among them being music, food, and even graffiti. There are 175 events total that will display the talent of approximately 1,700 performers, many of which are N.C. State students, according to the SparkCon website. Aly Khalifa, the co-founder of SparkCon, said last year the event attracted over 15,000 people, and this year he hopes the number will double. “If you look at the web traffic that we’ve received, it’s double that of last year,” Khalifa said. “Hopefully, that will mean 30,000 people will attend. But you never know how many people will show up to a party.” Along with the increase in the number of performers and attendees, SparkCon has seen an increase in the number of volunteers. Khalifa said he expects hundreds of volunteers, with at least 50 of them being N.C. State students. Carlee Mallard, organizer of ideaSpark, said she is hoping for increased attendance because of new types of events. According to Mallard, ideaSpark, the original spark, brings in speakers to discuss topics that pertain to the artistic community.
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Alex Clontz, a junior in business administration and a Delta Zeta sister, waits to be reunited with her one of her sisters that was part of the Sigma Rho Chi recruitment. Each year, during Rush, a few sisters from each chapter become unaffiliated from their chapter to help with recruitment, and call themselves Sigma Rho Chi. christin hardy/Technician archive photo
Saul Flores, a junior in graphic design, creates a colorful ocean of graffiti at the SparkCon Graffiti Showcase. Flores has been submitting designs to the festival for two years. “I wanted to make something beautiful and something that was not traditional,” Flores said of his design.
These topics, which range from creativity to the sharing of knowledge, are meant to be in line with the mission of SparkCon as a whole. Last year, ideaSpark centered around a series of short presentations that together made up an entire event called PechaKucha. Each of the 13 presentations will be 6 minutes and 40 seconds in length and the audience will have an opportunity to meet the presenters after the event. Mallard said these seminars are highly informative and beneficial. “These seminars are a great resource for the public and for the performers,” Mallard said. “The main idea is really about using knowledge in the community to help each other and help the city grow.” The seminars will be held at Neptune’s
on Martin Street, and the 250 tickets available are already sold out. However, Mallard encourages non-ticket holders to still attend since the doors will be open at 7:15 p.m. in case there are noshows. She also said there will be another PechaKucha on Dec. 2. for those who wish to attend but are unable to do so this weekend. Other events that will be hosted include concerts by local bands like Son of Sam, The Knockout Roses, and The Maniacs, as well as design and fashion shows. Events last from about 9 a.m. Thursday morning to 2 a.m. Monday morning. According to the site, some of the events are free, while others require a
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Sororities’ Bid Day overtakes Harris Field After a weeklong sorority Rush process, new members were welcomed into their respective sorority Wednesday afternoon on Harris Field. Chelsey Francis Deputy News Editor
Hannah Carroll, a sophomore in engineering and a member of Zeta Tau Alpha, said the sorority is where she feels she belongs. “From my experience in this sorority, I love it,” Car-
roll said. “I didn’t enjoy my freshman year. I didn’t have good experiences.” Bid Day is when new members of the sororities get to meet whoever else is in the sorority and the Rho Chis. Rho Chis are the members of sororities who recruit new members. “The new members don’t know which Rho Chi belongs to which sorority,” Carroll said. “The Rho Chis do a dance, [and] then they take off their Rho Chi T-shirt and have their sorority T-shirt on and re-join their sorority.” After the celebration on Har-
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EB III gives engineering Seminar series starts with conservation departments new digs The dedication of EB III Wednesday marked the College of Engineering’s long-term move to Centennial Campus.
ing costs. Lawrence Davenport, chair of the Board of Trustees, said it had been two-and-a-half years since the EB III groundbreaking. “I would like to thank the Board of Trustees for their vision. This event Nithya Kote is a celebration of the legacy of N.C. Staff writer State. The College of Engineering is The Engineering Building III dedi- one of the keys to get our economy in cation was held on Wednesday on line,” Davenport said. Chancellor Randy Woodson said he Centennial Campus. EB III houses the Department of Mechanical and was proud to be a part of N.C. State. “People are so passionate about N.C. Aerospace Engineering and the Joint N.C State-UNC Department of Bio- State,” Woodson said. “The people who will be working in EB III can medical Engineering. The welcome note during the dedi- help solve some of the world’s probcation event was delivered by Louis lems like energy, [and] better health Martin-Vega, dean of engineering at services. They have the ‘can do’ attiN.C. State. Martin-Vega said that the tude,” Woodson said. Woodson said the faculty was exaim was to move the entire college of engineering to the Centennial Cam- cited about moving to EB III. “The new pus. building should “It has been br i ng jobs to 100 years since North Carolina the f irst engiin the future. It neering departshould deliver ment was started on the promise at Weston Hall of what a future [at N.C. State]. economy should So today we are be like,” Woodalso celebrating son said. t he centena r y Sean Webb, graduate student in According to of engineering aerospace engineering Woodson, t he presence on camUniversity’s enpus,” Martin-Vegineering program has left a mark. ga said. ”The manifestation of what engiMartin-Vega said the students and faculty have moved into the new neering can do for N.C. State can be seen in the Wall Street Journal. Rebuilding. “About 1,400 students, faculty and cruiters rank us over Harvard. N.C. staff are working in EB III,” Martin- State is ranked 19th among all uniVega said. “It contains state-of-the-art versities for recruiter picks. People who hire the graduate students know labs.” EB III is a 248,291-square foot build- that they are the best and can hit the ing containing around 80 labs, a wind ground running,” Woodson said. Joe Hackney, speaker at the North tunnel facility, classrooms and offices for faculty and graduate students. The Carolina House of Representatives, cost of the building is $103.7 million said “this is a celebration of the choice and the funding was an appropria- the legislators have made in the investtion from the state legislature. It also ment of the future. In EB III, the right has the first green roof on Centennial investment has been made.” Campus, which is estimated to save 25 to 50 percent on heating and coolebIII continued page 3
“I also like the landscaping outside. There is enough shelf space for the lab equipment.”
The University began a monthly seminar series that focuses on global energy usage Tuesday night in Withers Hall. Shivalik Daga Staff Writer
The Office of International Affairs presented the first in a series of monthly seminars concerning global energy usage and climate change Tuesday night in Withers Hall. “The Global Thirst for Energy” included speakers from various University programs including the forestry and environmental resources, the University’s Office of Sustainability and various engineering departments. Each speaker gave 10-minute presentations, and the seminar concluded with an interactive session with the audience. The speakers answered a variety of questions ranging from the lack of energy conservation in the U.S. to the political and agricultural impacts of using ethanol as biofuel. The next seminar in the series, “Natural Disasters and Global Climate Change,” will be held on Oct. 19. David Dean, outreach coordinator for the Office of Sustainability, unveiled the University sustainability plan, which will be released by November. “The University plans to achieve
insidetechnician
Kayu Ho/Technician
“The Global Thirst for Energy” seminar was held in Withers Hall auditorium Tuesday night. John G. Gilligan, professor of nuclear engineering, spoke about the use of nuclear energy and energy conservation.
climate neutrality by 2050 and is drawing out a climate action plan for this purpose. The plan is being drawn with a five-year and 40-year overview,” Dean said, reinforcing the University’s commitment to a 5 percent reduction in energy consumption for this year, and for reducing water use levels by 20 percent in compliance with North Carolina law. He also shared new data on the University’s energy source distribution. The latest information for 2009-10 shows that natural gas meets over half (52.3 percent) of the University’s energy needs, followed by electricity at 43.4 percent and oil accounting for 4.3 percent.
John Gilligan, professor of nuclear engineering, said five faculty members are currently working in national laboratories. Gilligan also spoke about the growing opportunities for students in nuclear engineering, as well as shaping nuclear-related policy issues globally. The University’s nuclear engineering program is routinely ranked among the top in the nation, and it is a vital part of the U.S. nuclear engineering industry, Gilligan said. Joseph DeCarolis, assistant professor of water resources and environmental engineering, started his presentation by focusing on the “positives rather than negatives.”
Men’s soccer team blanks VMI, 4-0 See page 7.
Students study archeology in Caribbean Islands See page 5.
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