TECHNICIAN
wednesday september
1
2010
Raleigh, North Carolina
technicianonline.com
Atrium renovations aim to ease students’ service Brickyard bubble and Talley Student Center share burden during Atrium renovations Janell Miller Staff Writer
KEVIN COOK/TECHNICIAN
Due to stripping over the summer, the pavement on Avent Ferry Road is rough. According to the Department of Transportation, the top layer of pavement must be scrapped off, or milled, before a road can be repaved. But, sometimes crews find problems with the underlying road once milling has taken place that causes delays.
Avent Ferry Road repaving begins Plans for wider right lanes make sharing the road easier for cars and cyclists Chris Boucher Senior Staff Writer
A resurfacing project making Avent Ferry Road bumpier than normal will improve traffic flow for cars, bikes and pedestrians, according to city and state officials. Road crews are working to resurface Avent Ferry Road from Western
Boulevard to Athens Drive. The N.C. Department of Transportation resurfacing project is ongoing, according to Cadmus Capehart, NCDOT resident engineer and overseer of the resurfacing project. Rea Contracting can work to resurface the road any time except 6 to 9 a.m. and 4 to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday. “Work should be expected during daytime and nighttime hours except during those times. We ask that motorists pay attention to the work zone signs and slow down while passing by
the work area,” Capehart said. Haley Arnold, a freshman in biological sciences, wasn’t expecting the road in front of Avent Ferry Complex to be torn up when she arrived at the dorm for her first semester. Arnold said crossing at the Avent Ferry-Western intersection has been a little tricky. Kevin Qian, a junior in electrical engineering who lives in the College Inn, said he hoped the project would be completed soon. “They’ve been at it a while; it looks
DOT continued page 3
The last time the Atrium was renovated was in 1985 and the student population was 24,023. After 25 years and 10,000 additional students, the Atrium is getting a facelift. Due to renovations, this semester the Atrium is partially open to students, but there is no room for seating. There is a 50 by 80 foot tent in the Brickyard, known as the “Brickyard bubble,” which students can eat in temporarily. “It is much better than the alternative of no food or having hotdog carts in the Brickyard,” Jennifer Gilmore, communications manager for University Dining, said. Alan Hayes, a senior in creative writing, said he doesn’t think the bubble is not a big problem. “It’s not bad, it will work while they’re fixing the Atrium. In the set up now, it gets everyone in and out,” Hayes said. The tent is heated and air-conditioned and gives students an alternative to sitting outside “It’s a lot easier to build from scratch then go into an old space,” Gilmore said. Ryan Jones, a junior in aerospace engineering, said he does not like the bubble in the Brickyard. “What Atrium? It’s a lunch line. The bubble was a dumb idea. Look
at it, it’s a circus tent blocking the Brickyard,” Jones said. “When the requirements came back, we realized there was no way the project could be done and done right in three months,” Gilmore said. “The next option was to come up with a phased approach at getting the project done right, that’s how it ended up taking a year. We could have done it shorter but that would have meant no food service.” The new design will relieve overcrowding and introduce new food concepts to the Atrium. The serving area is redesigned to improve flow and circulation, with twice the space as the before. According to Gilmore the idea for the bubble came about after brainstorming a seating alternative so that students wouldn’t have to take food back to their rooms. “It’s not optimal but it was the best scenario given all the options,” Gilmore said. Gilmore said she has not heard of any complaints with the bubble. “Personally I haven’t had any complaints about the bubble other than wanting a clock or music in it. We’ve done with it what we can. It’s a small price to pay for the benefit coming that students will be able to enjoy new food service options as early as January,” Gilmore said. Due to the Atrium renovations, Freshens has moved to Talley Student Center, and is set to open on September 7, and includes a new closing time —10 p.m. According to Gilmore, a lot of
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Local gamers unite for Raleigh MLG tournament Professional gamers and enthusiasts alike gathered in downtown Raleigh to compete in Halo 3 and Starcraft II, among others Rich Lepore Arts & Entertainment Editor
Major League Gaming, America’s premier professional gaming league, held their 50th tournament on August 27-29 at the Raleigh Convention Center. The event, one of only five to be held this year, drew gamers and fans from all over the country, as well as many students from NC State. Participants competed on both professional and amateur levels in Halo 3, Tekken 6, Super Smash Brothers Brawl, World of Warcraft and Starcraft II. This marked the first time that Starcraft II was played professionally in an MLG tournament, giving Raleigh fans a first glimpse of the future of e-sports. E-sports is growing quickly according to the event’s MC who told the fans in attendance that just 5 years ago, there were only fifty people in the crowd. At this event, there were over
500 mostly teenaged and young adult and final matches throughout the day. fans in the bleachers before the first Each of the event’s sponsors also held event, not to mention thousands of their own walk-in tournaments unothers walking around the show floor. der large floor tents that were open to “I love my e-sports,” said Will Gantt, anyone in attendance. Each sponsor who came all the way from Baltimore had additional booths setup where tto attend the event. “It’s just like any shirts and other assorted merchandise was given away and sold throughout other sport.” Looking around the Raleigh Con- the event. Sony was also on hand to demonvention Center, it was clear that professional gaming has achieved main- strate Killzone 3, PS3’s new flagship 3D stream status. Every square foot of shooter. The game won’t be released the floor was overtaken by gaming until February of 2011, but attendees enthusiasts with huge smiles on their were given access to a hands-on demo in full 3D. This is faces and bags of the first time the gaming-related game was playable swag around their on the east coast, arms. TECHNICIANONLINE.COM The MLG setup Check out our extended coverage of the as well as the first included a main 50th Major League Gaming tournament. time anywhere in America that gamstage on which the featured Halo 3 action took place, with ers could experience the game in 3D. The focus of the event, however, was two banks of four game systems and TVs set up on the stage, one for each on the competitive gaming, and the team. Overhead, and throughout the nation’s best e-athletes fought for suconvention center, giant video screens premacy in bracketed matches. Some displayed the events currently in prog- events such as Starcraft II and Super Smash Brothers Brawl were played ress. Scattered around the rest of the one-on-one, with match-ups chosen floor were various roped-off islands at random, while others were played wherein competitors in the other as teams in scheduled elimination events competed in their qualifying matches.
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In the last academic year, there have been two confirmed bedbug infestations at N.C. State
See page 5.
Allen Coin Correspondent
Saddle up and ride See page 8.
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Halo 3, MLG’s main event, is played in teams of four, with each member given a different role on the team according to his particular strengths. On Team Instinct, the favorites to win going into the competition, Scott Holste (Cloud) acts as the go-to sniper, while founding members (and twin
brothers) Jason Brown (Lunchbox) and Justin Brown (Roy) are the core of the team. Team Instinct’s current configuration, rounded out by
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Bedbugs ‘not a concern’ for campus residents
MLG comes to Raleigh
viewpoint features classifieds sports
SARAH TUDOR/TECHNICIAN
On Friday, Raleigh kicked off the 50th Major League Gaming event in history. Competitors and spectators alike held up their controllers for the count down to the start.
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Entomology professor Mike Waldvogel said there‚ is an easy way to fight bedbugs. A growing national concern over the insects, with nearly one in 15 people reporting infestations in some areas such as New York City, has prompted widespread efforts to help control the problem. On campus, there have been two confirmed
infestations in the past year. But Waldvogel said fighting bedbugs is about using common sense. “We want people to be smart, not paranoid,” Waldvogel said. Both documented cases on campus occurred in Western Manor Apartments, which is on South Campus near the Avent Ferry Complex, and both resulted from residents bringing in used mattresses. There have been no confirmed cases in any residence halls on main campus. “Bedbugs should not be a big concern for students, but we need to be careful to understand how outbreaks occur, and how to prevent them,” said Tim Blair, university housing associate director.
There are some basic steps everybody can take to help reduce the risk of an infestation. “You really shouldn’t buy used mattresses,” said John Ashley, university housing pest technician. “And be sure to thoroughly inspect any used furniture.” Bedbugs can be picked up while traveling, especially from hotel rooms. “They are very efficient hitchhikers, even more so than most college students,” said Waldvogel. He said the best thing to do is to be careful. When traveling, check your hotel bed for tell-tale signs like black spots around seams in the mattress and keep your luggage up off the floor.
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BEDBUG continued page 2
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