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Volume 97 | Issue 36
Stormy 87° / 59°
ntdaily.com
The Student Newspaper of the University of North Texas
UNT makes strong plastic BY K AYLAH BACA Intern
NEWS: Students sound off on NPR budget cuts Page 2
PHOTO BY JAMES COREAS/SENIOR STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Justin Daniel, a jazz studies sophomore, reads the USA Today at the Univeristy Union. Discussions are underway to pay for the Collegiate Readership program with both student service fees and the Academic Affairs budget.
Program faces changes BY ISAAC WRIGHT Senior Staff Writer
SPORTS: Softball team heads to Kentucky with positive vibes Page 4
ONLINE: Cozy lounge opens for Denton nightlife getaway
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The Collegiate Readership program, which brings newspapers to campus, may face changes in the coming weeks as the UNT administration compiles the budget for the coming year. The Collegiate Readership program started in 2008 and provides The New York Times, The Dallas Morning News and the USA Today to students at locations around campus. Although the initial budget for the program was $60,000, that amount was reduced to $48,000 last year. Half of the program’s costs are paid by Business Services and half are allocated from student service fees. “The concept we’re shooting for is we want teachers and professors to incorporate the content in these papers into their actual classroom material,” said Kevin Sanders, the Student Government Associate president and political science senior. The SGA president sits on and appoints members to the student service fees committee, the body that decides how to spend the money generated from the fees. The student service fee committee has recently undergone its annual evaluation of the program, and although its decisions have not been finalized yet, the committee is considering offsetting some of the program’s costs from Academic Affairs.
Sanders said a decision has been made concerning the direction the program will take for the next year but was unable to disclose the details of the changes. The decision will be finalized in the coming weeks. The committee looks at the program every year to judge how both students and faculty received it, Sanders said. Travis Richardson, a mathe-
programs for the Department of Student Development and the SGA adviser, said Josh Ness, the SGA president in 2008, started the readership program. Ness had heard about the program being used at other campuses and wanted to bring it to UNT, McGuire said. McGuire said previous SGA administrations had taken the role of promoting the program,
“I will be surprised if we got rid of the readership program because we sell out of papers every day.”
—Melissa McGuire Director of orientation and transition programs for the Department of Student Development and the SGA adviser
Plastic materia ls are making their way into vehicles and airplanes more and more, but the challenge is finding a way to create plastics that can be as strong as metal. Researchers at UNT have discovered the answer to this problem, which will lower the price of manufacturing plastics and make them more energy efficient. The research team found a new process for creating stronger, more efficient polymer-based materials, said Witold Brostow, the director of the Laboratory for Advanced Polymers and Optimized Materials. “UNT gets enhanced reputation as a place where this original work is being done,” he said. Students and faculty in the lab use computer technology to study different types of materials, including plastics. The center is one of the leading polymer science and engineering laboratories in the world, according to the UNT news release about the discovery. T h e p o l y m e r-b a s e d materials can be natural or synthetic plastics used in everyday items, such as clothing, non-stick cookware, disposable diapers, takeout containers, credit cards, and plastic bottles and bags. Brostow, a faculty member in the materials science and engineering department, said this material is used because it has a low density. Passenger airplanes and vehicles made with the materials can potentially travel farther, with the same amount of fuel, than planes made from other materials. This is because the polymerbased ones are lighter, said Brostow. The world’s largest manufacturer of commercial jetliners, Boeing Co., has already flight-tested its allcomposite passenger airplane called the 787 Dreamliner.
It uses 20 percent less fuel than any other airplane of its size because half of the Dreamliner is made out of polymer-based materials, according to the company’s website. Brostow said the polymerbased materials make the plane less noisy and make maintenance easier. Haley Hagg Lobland, a UNT alumna and a group leader in the lab, said replacing metal materials with plastics is beneficial for many daily applications, including transportation. “Using plastic instead of metal in an automobile makes a vehicle lighter, therefore requiring less fuel to power it down the road,” she said. Brostow said the disadvantage of the polymer-based materials is that they are more prone to wear, and until now, making them stronger meant the process was more expensive. The researchers at the lab overcame the challenges by improving the filler used to reinforce the plastic. The adhesion process for the filler created in the lab will make it less expensive to manufacture than polymers alone, Brostow said. He said less petroleum is used in this process, which is more energy efficient. Lobland said the research team chemically changed the filler material so that it could better stick to the plastic, an effect that makes it more wearresistant. Several undergraduates conducted experiments that led to the discovery, Lobland said. Harrison James Miller, a TAMS junior, said students in the lab prepared samples, performed tests, conducted experiments and interpreted the data with the help of advisers. Another project the lab is working on includes finding ways to extend the service life of electric coolers and heaters.
matics junior, said he regularly picks up a copy of the Dallas Morning News or USA Today from one of the many newspaper stands scattered around campus. Richardson said he likes the program because at the last college he attended, the only paper available was the campus newspaper. Richardson said he thought paying for the program partly with student money isn’t a bad deal. “I think it’s fair to pay a little bit of extra money just to have a newspaper around,” Richardson said. Melissa McGuire, the director of orientation and transition
but the current administration has primarily taken the role of influencing it through the student service fee committee. Although the program may see some changes, it is unlikely the university will choose to discontinue it, she said. “I will be surprised if we got rid of the readership program because we sell out of papers every day,” McGuire said. McGuire said she thought it was a good idea to bring Academic Affairs into the program because faculty who use newspapers in the classroom should have a voice in how the program is managed.
fee,” said J.P. Magee, the prepared food manager at Cupboard Natural Foods in Denton. “It generally ranges from $3 to $5 per trip, but it adds up when they deliver three times a week.” Forrest Gunderson, a radio, television and film junior, said he has recently been making decisions on what items are more necessary while grocery shopping. “I have been cutting out items that are more of a luxury,” Gunderson said. “On items where prices seem too high, I try and find a substitute item that is cheaper, like store-brand items.” Corn is being used more for ethanol than food, which raises the cost for corn-based products, said Rachel Grimes, the program coordinator for the Student Money Management Center at UNT. “Food manufacturers are also marking up processed foods or
the public that offer inexpensive produce from the sellers. Denton’s market opens in June and goes until September. Lewisville’s opens in May. Students can also call 211, Grimes said, which is an operator for social services. “If you can’t afford food or pay your electricity bill, or need a women’s shelter, they can assist you with getting help,” Grimes said. “They can help you find ways to afford food or PHOTO BY KALANI GORDON/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER get you in contact with local Marketing sophomore Amanda Parker shops for groceries Wednesday at Wal- food banks.” Grimes also said she recommart. Last month, the price of some foods rose to their highest rate in more mends Angel Food Ministries to than 35 years. students who need help paying for food. keeping the packages the same save money. “It’s really cheap and a really “The cost of vegetables has and putting less food in it,” Grimes said. “To know if you’re increased because of weather good deal,” Grimes said. According to their website, getting your money’s worth, and gas prices, but there are you have to look at the price per other places to get produce,” one box of Angel Food generally Grimes said. “Farmers’ markets helps a family of four for a week ounce of the food item.” or one single person for almost a Grimes suggests to students are one thing to consider.” Denton and Lewisville have month. The box’s value is close to start cooking and avoid prepackaged foods if they wish to farmers’ markets available to to $65 for about $30.
See PROF on page 2
Food costs rise to highest in 35 years BY K ALANI GORDON Staff Photographer
As the UNT community prepares for a tuition increase that will put a dent in bank accounts across ca mpus, students may soon notice a rise in food prices while shopping for groceries. In mid-March, the Department of Labor said food prices increased almost 4 percent in February, causing the steepest rise in food prices in more than 35 years. Several economists are blaming the rise in food prices on the recent increase in oil prices. Although some grocery stores are able to prevent passing most of the food costs on to customers, several stores said they are noticing additional fees being tacked on for transportation costs. “We have our organic produce delivered from Denver, and they have just started tacking on a fuel