OLD GOLD&BLACK W A K E
F O R E S T
U N I V E R S I T Y
T H U R S D AY, O C TO B E R 8 , 2 0 0 9
VOL. 93, NO. 8
“Covers the campus like the magnolias”
Outside the Bubble...
Whatchu gonna do?
By Samantha Hoback| Staff writer
U.S. Capitol Building to unveil Helen Keller statue On Oct. 7 a statue commemorating Helen Keller’s breakthrough in understanding meaning in the words being spelled on her hand was unveiled in the U.S. Capitol’s National Statuary Hall. This will be the first statue in the Capitol of a child as well as the first statue of a person with a disability. The statue is a gift from the state of Alabama. Each of the 50 states is allowed two statues in the Capitol.
Parties are inevitable on a college campus. With a little over a quarter of the student body of legal drinking age, weekends are the time to close the books, let loose and have fun. Campus parties occur both on and off campus — at fraternity lounges, off-campus houses, and local restaurants and bars. As the student population continues to expand on campus, so does the number of students who flock to parties around the university each weekend. Over the past few years, the overflow of students at off-campus parties has alarmed many residents living in the neighborhoods surrounding the university. There has been an increase in police presence in neighborhoods where parties frequently occur, as well as increased policy enforcement on campus. Many events take place at off-campus residents, where groups of students share rental homes in the neighborhoods surrounding the campus. Recently, many homes in the area have become rental properties, and landlords are profiting from students who are eager to move off campus and enjoy the freedom of living in a home. With homeownership comes great responsibility, and many students who choose to live off campus are not holding up their end of the bargain when it comes to maintenance and neighborhood standards. “Students assume the role of adults when they choose to live off campus,” Dr. Tom Phillips said. “Adulthood means responsibility, for one’s own actions and those of one’s guests.” Phillips is the second vice president of the University Area Neighborhood Association (UANA), a collaborative organization established in 1998 that works to recognize concerns and problems in the neighborhoods that surround the university. The association is made up of members of the Wake Forest Police Department, staff from Residence Life and Housing, members of the Winston-Salem Police Department, representatives from Winston-Salem city services,
Off-campus parties create friction between students and community
Phones carrying Microsoft Windows released On Oct. 6 Microsoft announced that the first batch of phones carrying Windows Mobile 6.5 is ready to be released to the market. Microsoft expects over 30 phones to be running the operating system by the end of the year. Microsoft will offer Windows Marketplace, which will rival the iPhone’s App Store.
H1N1 vaccine arrives in two states Health care workers in Indiana and Tennessee are the first recipients of the H1N1 influenza vaccine distributed on Oct. 5. Ten million to 20 million doses will be shipped out per week for the next couple of months. Twenty-seven states have been reporting widespread flu activity with nearly all the identified viruses being H1N1.
Nobel Prize for Physics shared by three Americans
See Party, Page A3
Students “Hit the Bricks” for charity By Elizabeth Forrest| Asst. news editor
The 1960s research of three Americans that laid the foundation for today’s computerized images and lighting-fast communication led to the three sharing the 2009 Nobel Prize for Physics. Charles K. Kao, Willard S. Boyle, and George E. Smith were the recipients. Three Americans also shared this year’s Novel Prize in medicine.
Wake alumna linked to David Letterman sex scandal Stephanie Birkitt (‘97) has been swept up in an extortion scandal between her former boyfriend, producer Joe Halderman, and the famous television personality, David Letterman. Birkitt has been accused of having sexual relations with Letterman while working for him.
University students and faculty participated in Hit the Bricks, an annual event in which teams compete to raise the most money for the Brian Piccolo Cancer Fund, on Oct. 1. The winning team must outpace the others by running laps while wearing a backpack filled with sand around Hearn Plaza. The event began at 11 a.m. with a speech by Frank Torti, executive director of Wake Forest University’s Comprehensive Cancer Center. The race began following words of encouragement by members of the football team. Throughout the day there were additional competitions for the teams, such as a balloon relay race and a wacky costume lap, in which contestants could win gift cards to places such as Ishi and Midtown Café. Bonus laps were awarded
to the teams that raised the most money between certain hours. There were performances throughout the day by the dance team, Dirty Crew, and a cappella groups Innuendo and Plead the Fifth. Jen Averill, the women's field hockey coach, spoke to the runners. Members of the women's basketball team also made an inspirational appearance. President Nathan O. Hatch walked a lap while Provost Jill Tiefenthaler, the event’s Grand Marshal, ran a lap. Hit the Bricks ended at 7 p.m. when all the teams walked a final silent lap in memory of those who have lost to or are fighting against cancer. The lap ended in front of Wait Chapel where a closing luminary ceremony was officiated by Chaplain Tim Auman before the winners were declared.
See Bricks, Page A3
DeNoia Woods/Old Gold & Black
Teams competed in Hit the Bricks on Oct. 1 to raise money for the Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Fund.
Graham Allison speaks on nuclear weapons policy Lecture opens “Voices of Our Time” series By Devon Goodall | Contributing writer Graham Allison, expert on nuclear weapons and special adviser to former U.S. President Ronald Reagan, spoke about his experience with nuclear weapons and proliferation as part of the Voices of Our Time lecture series at 7 p.m. Oct. 1 in Brendle Hall. Allison is a professor at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, which he helped make one of the leading schools on public policy and government. University President Nathan O. Hatch said that Allison is “the world’s leading authority on the whole issue of nuclear proliferation and particularly what to do about all the nuclear weapons in the former Soviet Union,” as well as “a very distinguished leader.”
In his speech, Allison warned the audience that he believed a nuclear attack will be launched on a major city before 2014. The chances of a nuclear attack decrease with immediate action but an attack is inevitable, according to Allison. According to Allison, the biggest national security issue that Barack Obama’s administration faces is nuclear terrorism. The issue of nuclear weapons is a “real and pressing issue,” Allison said, and it “should be treated as the most Allison important issue.” “There exists a feasible, affordable set of actions that would reduce the likelihood of an attack,” Allison said. He calls this set of actions a Doctrine of Three No’s.
Allison said that atomic weapons need to be secured so that they are kept out of the hands of terrorists. According to Allison, any country that provides terrorists with weapons would face a nuclear attack itself, because the theory of mutually assured destruction is still relevant today. Allison reiterated that a nuclear attack is avoidable and would be a “preventable catastrophe.” Yet he believes that we are at risk for an attack in the next five years. He insists that this is the most pressing issue that the Obama administration faces and steps need to be taken to prevent this from happening. Hatch said students can learn about “the complexity of the issue and steps that you take to reduce the threat” from Allison’s speech. Al-Qaeda remains the group most likely to launch a nuclear attack on the U.S. Allison said that the “challenge to
Life | B7
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Roll out the gold carpet
Brieflies
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Police Beat
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Spotlight
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As the New York Film Festival ends, we turn our attention to other festivals all over the world
The Hot List
B8
In Other News
Sudoku
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• Building on schedule for South Residence Hall | A2 • Symposium links art and science | A3
do something is out there (within Al- Hatch said. It’s something that he says Qaeda)” and that “Al-Qaeda is facing we have to take very seriously and it’s pressure to launch another attack,” so if something we have to make sure doesn’t they gained possession of a bomb they happen.” would launch it immediately. Hatch established the Voices of Our The topic of nuclear weapons and Time lecture series in 2006 to expose proliferation may the university comnot seem applicable munity to some of to an average univerthe premier world “There exists a feasible, affordsity student. thinkers and to disable set of actions that would However, the issue cuss international of nuclear weapons topics that are relreduce the likelihood of an is the most imporevant in today’s attack.” tant topic in the society. Graham Allison international com“It’s a natural part Nuclear Weapons Expert munity right now, of a university to according to Alliwant to be a crossson. roads of discussion “It’s one of the on the most impormost pressing issues of our time, it’s tant issues of our time,” Hatch said about a hidden issue, but as he suggested, it the series. would be catastrophic if one of these The next speaker in the Voices of Our weapons, which can be as small as a Time series is author Tom Friedman, suitcase, went off in the United States,” who will be speaking in February.
Sports | B1 That’s Ghee Fifth year senior cornerback Brandon Ghee has stepped up to lead the Deacon defense that lost numerous players to the NFL last season
Opinion | A4 Party blues Students express anger about recent surge in ALE party infiltration