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Geology dept. opens new 3-D imaging facility
One unseasonable season
By Amanda Hoffstrom THE DAILY CARDINAL
LORENZO ZEMELLA/THE DAILY CARDINAL
Students shiver on their way to class on University Avenue during a chilly spring rain that eventually turned to snow. Temperatures should reach the 60s later in the week, but more rain is expected.
Sixth chancellor might leave UW System By Charles Brace THE DAILY CARDINAL
The University of WisconsinOshkosh chancellor stated Monday he is a finalist for another position in Pennsylvania, making him the sixth possible UW System chancellor to leave his or her position in one year. Chancellor Richard Wells said in an e-mail to students and staff at UW-Oshkosh he is one of three candidates for a chancellor position at the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. “I regret any distractions that this news may cause,” Wells said. Two chancellors are retiring in the UW-System, but three have left or are leaving for other positions. Jeanette De Diemar, a UWOshkosh spokesperson, said she could not comment on the announcement and Wells would be unavailable due to traveling obligations. Kenn Marshall, spokesperson
for PASSHE, said the final choice could be announced as soon as next week. The hired candidate will take over the position in July. Wells, if chosen, would oversee 14 campuses and about 110,000 students. The previous PASSHE chancellor received a salary of $327,718, Marshall said. Wells’ current salary is closer to $200,000, though the Board of Regents voted to increase chancellor salary ranges in February, according to the Board’s website. UW System spokesperson David Giroux said he has not spoken to Wells or discussed his reasoning for considering the position. Giroux said it is not surprising rival schools recruit many administrators in the UW System. He said even when the UW System could offer competitive salaries, other schools could also often give lucrative retirement or benefit packages in contracts.
“It’s often difficult for people to think of higher education as a competitive industry,” Giroux said. “We are dealing with a finite pool of qualified people and a … very aggressive marketplace.” He said the UW System has not conducted five simultaneous chancellor searches in the past. Martha Saunders, current president of the University of Southern Mississippi and chancellor of University of WisconsinWhitewater until May 2007, said money is not necessarily the main factor in deciding to leave a school. She said she left UW-Whitewater because she graduated from USM and wanted to help the community after Hurricane Katrina. However, she said the international reputation of the UW System was one of the main reasons she worked at UW-Whitewater, even if it paid less than a comparable position elsewhere.
Poll says no clear favorite for presidential race in Wisconsin By Kate Krantz-Odendahl THE DAILY CARDINAL
A Monday poll shows the 2008 presidential race remains close in Wisconsin, though residents view the Democratic Party as better at handling important national issues. The UW-Madison Survey Center poll showed U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., leading with 48 percent compared to U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., at 41 percent. McCain at 47 percent would win over U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., at 44 percent, but both scenarios are within the poll’s 4 percent margin of error.
UW-Madison political science professor Katherine Walsh said the margin of error in these statistics shows there is no leading candidate in the state. The poll also indicated the differing favorability ratings of the candidates dating from June 2007 to the present. Clinton’s has remained fairly constant, currently at negative 7 percent, whereas McCain’s has more than tripled to 20 percent and Obama’s has been cut in half to 10 percent. There are several explanations for the decrease in Obama’s favorability rating, according to Walsh. “Because no one’s battling
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
[McCain] directly, maybe the gut reaction to him right now is generally positive compared to the Democratic candidates,” Walsh said. UW-Madison law and political science professor Charles Franklin said Obama’s drop in favorability had less to do with the ongoing primary contests between the Democratic candidates than it did with previous supporters finding out about his policies. The poll also indicates the public believes Democrats would do a better job with national issues such as the economy, foreign relations, Iraq and corruption in Washington D.C. poll page 3
New technology in Weeks Hall, home to UW-Madison’s geology and geophysics department, allows students to see 3-D images of the earth. “One of the things that geologists do as part of their research in understanding the earth is we have to be able to imagine what’s going on below the land’s surface in three dimensions,” Jean Bahr, geology and geophysics department chair, said. “We’re planning to use this both for research and educational purposes, and to train students to think about things in three dimensions.” Bahr said the Halliburton Geoscience Visualization Center was inaugurated last week and
will be used in courses at all levels. UW-Madison geology professor Harold Tobin said the images are viewed through special polarized glasses. “The planet has complicated three-dimensional structures and shapes within it that are harder to see by making a picture that looks like perspective 3-D,” Tobin said. “Making [the image] three-dimensional in the way your mind views it means that you get a much greater appreciation for all those complex relationships.” According to Tobin, the lab is not the first visualization system to display stereo graphics at the university. “Ours is really state-of-the-art geology page 3
Campaign finance reform advocates call for action Detractors cite first amendment, taxpayer issues in response By Britney Tripp THE DAILY CARDINAL
The Wisconsin system of elections is in need of major legislative changes, according to campaign finance reform advocates at a panel on campus Monday. The government watchdog group Common Cause in Wisconsin held a debate that included several lawmakers and activists on both sides of the issue. The panel discussed a campaign finance reform bill that stalled in the Legislature that would require private interest groups to disclose campaign financing. Jay Heck, executive director of CCW, said the 2006 gubernatorial race between former U.S. Rep. Mark Green, R-Wis., and Gov. Jim Doyle was the most costly election in Wisconsin history, with more than 33 percent of campaign dollars spent by private groups, which are not required to disclose campaign financing. Heck said there is still an opportunity to hold a special session for campaign finance reform, as Gov. Jim Doyle called for one last November, but he did not say if it is likely to be voted on. State Sen. Mike Ellis, R-
Neenah, a co-author of the bill, said the current system gives less power to individuals and more to special interest groups. “When you dump tens of millions of dollars into the election [to private interest groups], what you are really doing is suffocatreform page 3
ANNA STONEHOUSE/THE DAILY CARDINAL
State Sen. Mike Ellis, R-Neenah, said significant campaign finance reform is needed to protect the integrity of Wisconsin elections.
“…the great state University of Wisconsin should ever encourage that continual and fearless sifting and winnowing by which alone the truth can be found.”