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Patriotic toll Listen to Albritton Bell Tower play “The Star Spangled Banner” and more as Bells Across America celebrates Constitution Day.
thebattalion ● tuesday,
september 18, 2012
● serving
texas a&m since 1893
● first paper free – additional copies $1 ● © 2012 student media
Stand and deliver Actor, activist addresses students, Hispanic community Barrett House The Battalion Academy Award-nominated actor and social activist Edward James Olmos was warmly welcomed to Aggieland as he came to engage students and discuss important issues with his own touch of drama and comedy. Olmos was invited to the University by the Committee for the Awareness of MexicanAmerican Culture to be the keynote speaker for the opening ceremony Monday for Hispanic Heritage Month. Olmos is known for his roles in “Stand and Deliver,” “Battlestar Galactica,” and “Selena.” Outside of acting, Olmos is involved in social activism for the betterment of the Latin community. Prior to Olmos’s speech, President R. Bowen Loftin shared some historical facts with the audience about Hispanic history at A&M. Loftin said Hispanics have been involved with the school since its beginning. “The history of Tejanos and Hispanics in Texas is the history of Texas A&M,” Loftin said. “They came from all kinds of backgrounds, came here to become part of this great Aggie family.” Loftin sais the influence of the Hispanic community is felt today as their presence on campus continues to grow.
inside science | 3 Human submarine Texas A&M ocean engineering students are bringing imagination to reality as they build a racing human-powered submarine. After a year of production, the team has their sights set on taking the top prize in the International Submarine Race.
lifestyles | 4 Living partners As the semester begins to take off with assignments, quizzes and exams, the honeymoon phase with your roommates begins to run its course. Despite the growing tension, there are ways to keep the relationship from reaching the boiling point.
“Now there are 8,160 Latinos here at Texas A&M — almost 20 percent of the student body,” Loftin said. “This month recognizes the extraordinary contributions of Latinos for this state and this school, and certainly this nation.” After Olmos was welcomed by the crowd with cheers and “whoops,” he responded with a “whoop” of his own. Olmos expressed his appreciation for A&M and Aggie football before settling into his speech, which covered topics ranging from the Latino community in the country, race relations across the globe and the importance of education. Olmos shared his experiences he’s had with issues — such as the Dream Act — directly impacting the Hispanic community, but said the difficulties associated with them have made individuals stronger. “I’ve been with a lot of the Dream Act kids. I told them, ‘You’re so lucky to have been able to understand your life in the way you understand it,’” Olmos said. “It has been so difficult that it’s made you even stronger now.” Olmos said he made those individuals a promise — a promise he applied to everyone See Olmos on page 6
Roger Zhang — THE BATTALION
Actor, director and Latino activist Edward James Olmos speaks at the Hispanic Heritage Month Opening Ceremony Monday evening at the MSC Ballroom. He said there is not one U.S. holiday where a Latino is honored.
campus
U.S. representative shares political insight Annabelle Hutchison Special to The Battalion Bill Flores, U.S. Representative for Texas’ 17th Congressional District, led a town hall meeting Monday to address national issues such as the economy, energy and health care. The Annenberg Presidential Conference Center at the Bush School was the last of three town hall meetings held by Flores across Texas. In the meetings, Flores updated constituents on the work he is doing in Washington and listened to their concerns about various national issues. “This is what I have been trying to do in Congress,” Flores said. “I have been trying to follow the constitution, put Americans back in control of their government, develop mainstream solutions, not Washington solutions, to build a strong economy,
to help our job creators, to help balance the budget.” Flores spoke directly to college students and gave statistics about the economy and unemployment and said college graduates have been particularly hurt by the economy. “In terms of jobs and the economy, we still have the worst unemployment crisis since the great depression,” Flores said. “Half of recent college graduates are jobless.” Flores spoke about his party’s proposed solutions for the problems facing our country at the meeting and said he wanted to try to fix the fiscal debt. “As with any business that is in trouble, there are two things you need to fix,” Flores said. “You need to stop spending. You also need to grow your income.” See Flores on page 6
David Cohen — THE BATTALION
Congressman Bill Flores addresses his constituents during a Town Hall meeting Monday night at the Annenberg Presidential Conference Center.
campus
sports
Borlaug legacy helping relieve world hunger
Meet and greet athletes at social
Kate Harrell
column | 4 Types of roomies Do you live with a “Hot Mess” of a roommate? What about a “Vampire?” Check out the top five problem roommates to help diagnose your lessthan-perfect living environment. Elyse Wudeck — THE BATTALION
Special to The Battalion He cared care about students at Texas H fed more starving peoA&M. He ple than he fed himself. Father of the green g revolution and Nobel Peace Peac Prize winner, Norman Borlaug was wa also said to have been a hands-on, ppractical researcher. N Named after the accompplished scholar, The Norm man Borlaug Institute ca carries on the efforts of Mr. Borlaug. “The goal [of the institute] is to help the world become free fre of poverty and hunger,” said Julie Borlaug, Mr. Borlaug’s granddaug granddaughter and the associate director for f external relations for the institu institute. Born in Cresco, Iowa, Mr. Borllaug completed his undergraduate, masters and doctoral degrees
at the University of Minnesota. He then went on to lead wheat production improvement efforts in Mexico, and develop grain varieties for feeding starving peoples around the globe. During his 20 years in Mexico, and he and his colleagues perfected a dwarf wheat variety that was resistant to diseases, produced a wheat strain with stalks that wouldn’t bend or break. Mr. Borlaug was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970 for his humanitarian efforts in improving cereal crops, such as wheat. He is known as the Father of the green revolution, which was a series of initiatives to spark an increase in agricultural production to feed the worlds’ growing population. He influenced public policy, advised leaders, was a source of inspiration for countless individuals, and is credited with saving more than a billion people from starvation.
Kevin Andrews Special to The Battalion Football season in Aggieland is well underway, but athletes from other varsity sports are working hard to build championships — and fan support. The 12th Man Student Foundation is hosting a series of free events where students can interact with varsity athletes from a variety of sports. The first social will take place at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday in the Cox-McFerrin Center at Reed Arena, and will feature players from the men’s and women’s basketball teams and a catered barbeque dinner. Daniel Alexander, a redshirt sophomore forward, is one of several Aggie basketball players planning to attend the event. “We’re excited to bring fellow students into our facilities to hang out and give them an inside look into what it means to play basketball for
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See Meet & Greet on page 5
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