I n d e p e n d e nt
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September 2012
Volume 25
Boise, Idaho
Top Stories
Game On
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First issue free
Art students go international Natalie Cragin, senior graphic design/photography major “Their art is amazing. I was blown away by their artistic abilities. Their second year students are very far along. I was really amazed that these people are younger than I am and I would’ve bought their work if I could. It was beautiful. They know what they’re doing.”
New activities offer adults chance to play like kids.
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Robo Cop Karl LeClair, junior art education/ print making major
Photo courtesy John Francis
A new electronic license plate scanner is in the testing stage.
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Feel the heat
University uses technology now availabile for homes.
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Naohiko Wantanabe showcases his art for Boise State students visiting Japan.
Alx Stickel Staff Writer
When art professor John Francis first came to Boise State 12 years ago, he came with a goal to help students experience and appreciate cultures different from their own. This past summer, 11 students and assistant professor Jill Fitterer had the opportunity to visit Nagoya Zokei University of Art to display their own art and experience Japanese culture. This two-week cultural undertaking was part of an art and design program led by Francis. “I think it’s really important in today’s world that we understand that with people in other places in the world there are cultural differences, but we’re all human beings,” Francis said. “We share certain fundamental feelings or experienc-
es. I feel it’s important for students to be exposed to that.” Having had such a positive experience with his host family the first year he went to Japan, Francis said wanted his students to have a similar experience. “I think staying with a family in Japan is different from seeing people in the street,” he said. “They get to know these families that they stay with and in a very short time get close to them. That, to me, is the most important part of this trip being able to make that human connection with people in another country and realize that we do have a lot in common.” A few of the 11 students said they were initially nervous about staying with a host family, especially those who didn’t speak Japanese. Natalie Cragin, senior graphic design/photography major, was
particularly apprehensive. “They matched us by our interests and what the family liked to do,” she said. “The first night I was there, they were trying to describe how to shower and I had no idea what they were saying. I was so overwhelmed, I was like ‘What did I get myself into? This is the worst mistake I ever made.’ However, the next day, they took me shopping. (My host mom) was great. She kept saying ‘I just want to take you shopping alone … leave my husband and kids at home and just take you.’ It was really cute.” At Nagoya Zokei University, the students and Fitterer displayed their artwork in an exhibition for Nagoya students to view. Additionally, Boise State students had the opportunity to view and
See Art students I page 07
“It was very busy. It was very structured. I think that’s why the family time was so important. During the day it was constant ‘go go go!’ following John, following his schedule, him stressing about following his schedule. We saw a ton of amazing stuff that we otherwise wouldn’t see, especially if we were there as tourists.”
Jodi Newman, design Major
Today
“Culturally, living with a family is the best way to learn the language and how the Japanese people live. It’s an honor to be invited into their home. We had a lot of fun translating English and Japanese. I was talking about buying ice cream, as a treat and their favorite ice cream place was ‘Boskin Wobin’. I was like, ‘Boskin Wobin, what?’ It was actually Baskin Robin’s.” Bryan Talbot/THE ARBITER
Martin Sondermann Staff Writer
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For students who have been on University Drive recently, it’s apparent the bright orange cones and fencing signify the seemingly ongoing and never ending construction on campus. A closer look reveals the majority of the orange cones decorating the campus belong to the City of Boise and their geothermal project, not the university itself. The geothermal project is a pipeline that connects Boise State to the City of Boise’s geothermal heating system. Since 1983, Boise has utilized the system of natural geothermal water that comes out of the ground at over 170 degrees to heat various buildings in downtown Boise. The water travels through the pipeline to designated areas and then is injected back into the geothermal aquifer located near Julia Davis Park, according to the City of Boise website. According to their site, the new construction will attach the Administration Building, Center for Environmental Sciences and Economics and the Student Union Building to the environmentally-friendly system. The Morrison Center, Multipurpose Building, Interactive Learning Center, the Math and Geosciences Building and the new Micron Business and Economic Building were already connected last summer as part of the first phase of the project. When it is done, around
Jake Essman/THE ARBITER
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Construction crews work to install geothermal pipeline on University Drive.
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We have worked closely with Boise State officials to alert students about the project and to be mindful of the construction.
660,000 square feet of the campus building landscape will derive heat from the natural source. The project started July 23 and will be completed by mid-September according to the project traffic advisory. In other words, the project was scheduled right in the midst of the brand new school year. Why would the city plan a project that would rip up the main street of the university knowing thousands of stu-
—Vince Trimboli
dents and faculty would be returning in the middle of the mess? According to City of Boise Community Relations Supervisor Vince Trimboli, there were a couple of different factors that dictated the schedule. “Two things factored into the construction scheduling: budget and the contractor’s schedule.” “Boise State University and the City are providing the local share to match a
Department of Energy grant for the project,” said Trimboli. “The construction contract had to be scheduled in two phases.” The two phases Trimboli explained were, “so the City could budget our local share over two years.” Trimboli expressed it was the goal to get the work done before school started, however it didn’t work out that way. “Our goal was to complete
the Phase 1B work during the 2012 summer break. However, our contractor working on other contracts they had obtained between our Phase 1A and 1B, could not resume work until July. So unfortunately some of the work has spilled into the fall semester,” Trimboli added. “We have worked closely with Boise State officials to alert students about the project and to be mindful of the construction.” Although the timing is unfortunate, the benefits of the project seem to far outweigh the temporary inconvenience. Mr. Trimboli explained the huge upside to such an endeavor. “Geothermal heat is a clean, affordable and renewable source of energy. This source of heat also has essentially a zero carbon impact and will contribute significantly to the university reducing their carbon footprint. Boise is fortunate to have this great natural asset.” He also said, “Our Mayor and Council want to maximize it’s effectiveness as far as possible. It’s been in our master plan to extend it to the Boise State Campus for nearly 30-years. Thanks to the help of Representative Mike Simpson and Senator Mike Crapo we were able to secure Federal funding to finally make the project possible.” The plan seems to be a great thing for the university, the city and the environment. Considering such a plan was 30 years in the making, a couple of weeks of inconvenience seem to be very minor. arbiteronline.com