Issue 97, Volume 74

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THE DAILY COUGAR Straight from Sarajevo: Café Pita Plus offers cheap eats /LIFE & ARTS Issue 97, Volume 74

Final Countdown: With five games left, Cougars break streak /sports Friday, February 20, 2009

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TODAY’S WEATHER

3-day forecast, Page 2

Hi 100 Lo 32 www.thedailycougar.com

Students network online

Putting private information on internet has pros, cons By Shruti Purohit The Daily Cougar

Students are using social networking Web sites such as Facebook and Myspace, and video sharing sites such as Youtube to satisfy their diverse technological needs. UH alumnus Pat Lam is a member of SoReal Cru, a Houston dance group that competed in MTV’s second season of America’s Best Dance Crew. Lam said he used Youtube to build the dance crew’s career. “Publicity definitely helped us. The way we marketed ourselves helped our public image a whole lot,” Lam said. “There are millions of people on Youtube everyday, so we have a huge potential to gain more and more fans.” The dance crew uses Youtube to keep fans updated. Video clips of the group practicing, traveling, or just having a good time with each other are shown. “Having SoRealCruTV on Youtube helped us stay relevant and it also keeps all the fans and others involved and updated with our crew,” Lam said. Besides using Youtube to keep in touch with fans, SoReal Cru also uses Youtube as a form of free advertising. “We advertise our booking e-mail on all our Web sites,” Lam said.

David Shih The Daily Cougar

Students put their meal plan where their mouth is by completing surveys to critique Dining Services on Thursday outside of Science and Research Building 1.

Dining to be made over Service needs input to improve output; RecycleMania discourages wasting food By Jonathan Harris The Daily Cougar

see FACEBOOK, page 3

Electronic resources rule research Librarians say students lose out by not using print literature By Sara Ali and Hafsah Hashrmi The Daily CougaR In 2001, World Wide Web users witnessed the launch of Wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia that allows any user to contribute by writing and editing articles. The rise of electronic resources was marked in 2007 when Wikipedia became the largest encyclopedia ever assembled, with more than 2 million articles. For students such as industrial engineering senior Affaf Bokhetache, Wikipedia is a primary search engine. “Usually anything or topics of research I don’t find on Wikipedia, I Google it and with citations I’m not restricted to anything,” Bokhetache said. However, with this surge of availability for online resources, students often do not make the effort to explore reference hard copies, said Mildred Joseph, assistant librarian at the M.D. Anderson Memorial Library. see WIKIPEDIA, page 3

After nearly a year of negotiations, UH System Board of Regents approved a plan Monday to renovate the Moody Towers dining hall. During the next eight weeks, UH Dining Services will be conducting different forms of research to get student opinions of dining services to better assess changes for the future. Student Government Association Vice President Jonas Chin said the approval means a total overhaul of the sub-par Moody Towers cafeteria. “It’s going to totally redesign the Moody Towers, and it would be complete by fall 2009,” Chin said. “It’s going to change the entire experience. Different g g Chin dining options, more open seating areas and then a private eating setup.” This is but one of the dining projects SGA is working on. They also plan to nullify mandatory meal plans and allow the campus-wide use of Cougar Cash including restaurants such as Sonic and McCallister’s. “In April 2008, we set goals to change the food services here on campus. We met with University Services and discussed a revamp. Now we’re getting ready to bring a whole new concept to UH,” Chin said. “The surveys that will be going on will help us know what students are thinking and what we need to make sure that they are happy. We plan to have some sort of kickoff within the first week of March.”

Sevelia Johnson, marketing program manager of UH Dining Services, will help conduct intercept surveys around campus next week. She said surveys are one of the many methods UH will use to gather research and information about the UH community. “We are conducting intercept surveys next week also. It’s all part of the MarketMATCH process. It’s an exclusive master planning process that lasts for 16 weeks,” Johnson said. “The process consists of chat room discussions, focus groups, online surveys and intercept surveys. Everyday we’ll be in different parts of the campus community.” Earlier this month, Dining Services gathered research using chat room conversations with UH students. Participants were rewarded with $25 Chili’s Too gift cards. The same will occur with coming focus groups. “What we’re doing is ensuring we’re meeting the needs of the students to ensure the right services on campus because dining solutions should mirror the lifestyles of the students,” Johnson said. “We’ll be advertising the focus groups in each academic neighborhood and those who participate will receive a Chili’s Too gift card.” Another incentive to update dining is UH’s plan to add 2,000 freshman beds to campus by 2011. Director of Business Services Esmeralda Valdez said the renovations are greatly needed because the Moody Towers is outof-date. “We’re currently looking at a proposal to renovate the Moody Towers to accommodate freshman increase in population because of the new housing project,” Valdez said.

“Besides the fact that it’s over 50 years old, a lot of the cooking equipment and infrastructure haven’t changed since it was constructed.” Along with the renovations, there will be additions to the menu. Dining Services is considering a Mediterranean grill to serve wraps and pitas, a Mongolian grill to serve wok and stir-fry and a fresh bakery. “There would still be one set price, but there would be eight mini-restaurants like a food court where they would prepare the food right in front of you,” Valdez said. “Also with the replacement of the kitchen equipment, the kitchen would go from taking up 50 percent of the space to only 30 percent, leaving room for additional spaces. It will add 1,000 square feet for private dining which would be good for organizations to hold meetings.” This week, University Services has also been making changes of a different color in the UH dining experience. Through the Clean Plate Club and Garbage to Garden programs, that color is green. The Clean Plate Club is an event officially going on this week that encourages students to think about what they put on their plate at dining services and to be sure they will eat it rather than let it go to waste. “We have been giving out information on the amount of food that we waste each year and to tie into that we also have the Garbage to Garden event,” said Emily Messa, assistant vice president of University Services. “Any fruit rinds and food scraps that are non-meat and non-dairy can be placed into a container located where students place their trays and those scraps are recycled as compost. see DINING, page 3


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The Daily Cougar

CAMPUS BEAT

F L A S H B AC K

» This week in UH history. More at thedailycougar.com/campus_beat

1987: Rebirth of Robertson Stadium

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CALENDAR

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Today Yearbook photo week: 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Claudette Room, UC Satellite. Last chance to get your photo in the yearbook. Seniors can also get cap and gown photographs. Visit www.uh.edu/sp.

Meet and greet: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at University Center Arbor. Meet gospel singer Israel and get a sneak preview of his coming album. Sponsored by the Student Program Board. Women’s Softball vs. Cathedral City Kickoff: 5 p.m. at Cougar Softball Stadium. Admission is free for students with Cougar 1Card. Call (713) GO-COOGS or (713) 4626647. Men’s Baseball vs. Kansas State: 6:30 p.m. at Cougar Field. Admission is free for students with Cougar 1Card. Call (713) GO-COOGS or (713) 462-6647. Women’s Basketball vs. SMU: 7 p.m. at Hofheinz Pavilion. Admission is free for students with Cougar 1Card. Call (713) GO-COOGS or (713) 462-6647.

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Today in history in 1987, The Daily Cougar’s Marilyn Swanson reported Environmental Capstone Design students were given the chance to develop building plans for the renovation of Robertston Stadium as part of a semester-long class project. “Given the athletic department’s deficit, and the University’s tight budget, there’s not much money available for improvement,” civil engineering professor Jack Matson said. “It’s an ideal undertaking for us.” The 15 students in the class were divided into three groups, which received $100 each from the Board of Regents to design and build a model of its renovation plan. Bill Wilson, then-manager of facilities

CO R R E C T I O N S

and operations for the athletic department, said renovation plans must include the addition of 15,500 seats to increase capacity to 37,500 and an expanded storm drainage system for Robertson Stadium to meet Southwest Conference requirements. According to the UH athletic department’s Web site, the current capacity of Robertson Stadium is 32,000. The stadium was built in 1941 in partnership with the Houston Independent school District. Houston played all its home games there until 1951, when the team moved its home games to Rice Stadium. In 1965, the Cougars became the first college team to call a domed stadium — the Astrodome — its home before returning to playing at Robertson in 1998.

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NEWS

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FACEBOOK

DINING

continued from page 1

continued from page 1

Facebook has also been a way for students to connect with other students and keep in touch with family and friends who live far away. “I grew up in Bahrain, and have tons of family and friends still there,” architecture freshman Caroline Sam said. “I keep in touch with my friends through Facebook by leaving them a message to say ‘hi’ or see how they are doing.” Since its creation in 2004, Facebook has added new features and applications that Sam said she has found useful for staying in touch. “Facebook chat made it so much easier to contact people — you can reach anyone at anytime.” Sam said. “Also, you can be discreet by setting it so that it tells people whether you are online or offline.” On top of the socialization that Facebook facilitates, it has added utilitarian applications such as Marketplace, where students can buy and sell anything and advertise about available apartments or cars. “One of my friends sold their iPod on Facebook, and got a profit for it,” Sam said. Myspace is a way for students to keep tabs on each other, but it also is a way for musicians to promote their music. “It has been a prominent and proficient way to display our music,” psychology freshman Eric Habibi, who is vocalist for the band Valea, said. “It not only shows off music, it shows what the band is doing, where they will be going. It’s a good way to communicate with fans.” Myspace is one of the more popular sites that bands use to get the word out. “Purevolume is another site for musicians to tell people about their music, but it doesn’t have as much of a big online community that Myspace does,” Habibi said. Myspace has been helpful for the band to promote itself. “Myspace is helping us blow up and the only other way would be word-of-mouth, and that is hard to do,” Habibi said. Millions of people share photographs and updates with other online social networkers they “friend,” but with the increase in popularity of Facebook and Myspace, the sites are becoming the go-to sources learn a person’s private information. According to the survey conducted by Careerbuilder.com, one in five companies look at job applicants’ social networking sites during the hiring process. Of the companies surveyed that do not check the sites, 10 percent said they plan to start. “My friends have had their Facebook hacked into when they had pictures and videos where everyone could see it,” Sam said. “Facebook is too invasive; I put all my pictures on private. I have 400 friends; I don’t want all 400 to see them.”

“The compost is then placed in the garden over never the Moody Towers and those same vegetables that are grown there are served at Moody Towers.” Messa said these are only a few of the events that UH will be having because of RecycleMania. “RecycleMania is a 10 week competition between colleges across the nation. Each week we weigh the amount of recycled materials we have in comparison to our waste materials and that information is sent to the

news@thedailycougar.com

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WIKIPEDIA continued from page 1

“Back in the old days what (people) would do is go to the library, or if you were lucky and your parents had a set of encyclopedias. You’d have to look that information up in the encyclopedia and read about it,” Joseph said. “These days the tendency is (students) go and read about it in Wiki. There’s nothing wrong with that except they don’t do all the research that is involved with it.” Because of the high demand for electronic resources, Joseph said libraries are ordering fewer books but more online subscriptions. “Most information, especially academic research information, is published in journals and that costs money,” Joseph said. “Libraries subscribe to those journals. We take your student fees and we literally pay millions of dollars to access these online databases that give you accurate information.” Contrary to popular belief, Joseph said, librarians are pro-technology, but valuable information is still found in printed literature that is hard to access just by browsing the Net. “Everything is not online,” he said. “That’s the key.” Kinesiology junior Juwairia Siddiqi said a world without Google is hard to imagine. “I pretty much use Google for everything, maps, Gmail, or if I don’t

RecycleMania headquarters. We’re currently ranked in 38th place out of 195.” Messa said. Next week, University Services will be highlighting the events they have had so far on campus and educating people on how to be better recyclers. “RecycleMania and all that we’re doing is right in line with the same concept that the dining renovations are going toward. That same concept of custom-made and that concept of fresh food is present here,” Messa said. For more information on RecycleMania visit the Web site at www.uh.edu/RecycleMania. news@thedailycougar.com

know anything about something I just Google it,” Siddiqi said. But there was such a time. It wasn’t until 1995, when Larry Page and Sergey Brin engineered a search engine called BackRub at Stanford University that the concept of Google took root. BackRub used too much bandwidth and was not used for more than a year on Stanford Web servers, according to Google’s corporate information. In 1997, Page and Brin decided to rename a revamped BackRub after a play on the mathematical term “googol,” the name for the number represented by a one followed by 100 zeros. Older generations are still adjusting to the widespread and rapid use of the Net. Biology sophomore Marcella Orella said her parents, who are originally from El Savador, Mexico, did not know how to use the Net. “It was frustrating because I’d have to show them where to type the address and how to do it,” Orella said. Business senior Sana Kara said teaching her dad to use the Internet paid off in the long run, because the technology allowed him to start his own retail business. “My dad would ask about everything and if I was studying or in the middle of something, I’d have to stop what I was doing and show it to him every time,” Kara said. news@thedailycougar.com

Friday, February 20, 2009  n  3

Because your words matter. Have you been misquoted? Though The Daily Cougar strives for accuracy and fairness in its reporting, mistakes happen. Please report any errors you see in the paper to the editorial staff. Corrections will run on Page 2 as needed to amend the record. To report a correction, e-mail editor@thedailycougar.com or call (713) 743-5362.

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4  n  Friday, February 20, 2009

OPINION

The Daily Cougar

COMING MONDAY: Black History Month ONLINE POLL: Blogging Joe Tall

EDITOR Shaista Mohammed  E-MAIL opinion@thedailycougar.com  ONLINE www.thedailycougar.com/opinion

THE DAILY COUGAR

P O I N T / CO U N T E R P O I N T

e d it o rial B o ar d Zaneta Loh, editor in chief Signe Cluiss, managing editor James Rincon, News editor Matt Miller, Sports editor Sarah Tucker, Life & Arts editor Shaista Mohammed, Opinion editor Sarah Krusleski, Features editor

STAFF EDITORIAL

Report card: Environmental issues need to be addressed Obama’s first foreign failure: F

Rami Schindler THE DAILY COUGAR

Campus security Does the University feel safe enough? How safe is too safe? Security on campus has become tight since death of Tall

More security may lead to less freedom, unnecessary policing

Tall was shot to death two weeks ago at the Metro bus stop outside Hofheinz Pavilion on the 3400 block of Cullen Blvd. Executive Vice President and Vice Chancellor for Administration and Finance Carl Carlucci said in a statement that crime on this campus is unacceptable. In his continuing efforts to prevent crime, he has reminded students of the 490 video cameras in parking lots and other selecte d areas, ongoing safety Matthew assessments and escorts for students on Keever campus at night. Students’ responses have been mixed. Bioengineering junior Max Lingamfelter wonders where the police were before the incident. “(The police) don’t seem overly invasive, just more visible. Either they have been doing a good job behind the scenes or they haven’t been doing enough,” he said. This is my second semester at UH, so I’m still relatively new to the campus. I haven’t seen the police too much, except when driving by their station. I’m not much of a worrier, so safety is never on the forefront of my mind. Instead, I just try to keep myself out of bad situations. For all the negative feedback The Daily Cougar received for the picture on the cover the Feb. 9 issue, I found something else disturbing. Someone was able to take a picture of Tall’s uncovered body. I’m not a crime-scene investigator, but shouldn’t the body be covered relatively quickly — before a student is able to snap a photo? Safety on this campus is a real issue. I don’t worry much about petty theft because if someone steals my stuff, I’m OK. Stuff can be replaced; however, lives cannot. I’m pleased that security on campus is getting tighter. I will admit to speeding less when I’m late to class, but my daily routine hasn’t changed otherwise. And it won’t. If anything, there will be more pep in my step knowing I’m being watched over more carefully. On bicycles, in cars and through cameras with lights — bring on the safety. The safer the campus is, the better. And I’m willing to get a few more speeding tickets to ensure my and fellow Cougars’ safety.

I know a guy who has been pulled over a few times this week. He was never ticketed for anything, just routine checks. No beat downs, no violations of civil rights. Just observe and release. This is the tip of the iceberg. This is what I see happening in the future. These calls for cops on every corner will be heeded. Let’s hope you have not recently used mouthwash, or you might fail a breathalyzer test. Abdul Let’s hope one of your friends did not Khan drop a prescription pill anywhere in your car. It could be considered possession. Houston Independent School District has tried this kind of thing. They seriously beefed up security, and there are teachers who are fairly upset about drug policy. As a result, more than a dozen HISD employees await court hearings for having been caught with marijuana or prescription drugs in their cars, according to The Houston Chronicle. Gayle Fallon, president of the Houston Federation of Teachers, said teachers should consider detailing their cars if they have been driven by a teenager and to keep a copy of any prescription on hand, and that “by law, having such substances on or near school grounds is a heightened violation.” That means “felony” in Texas talk. Because of unnecessary security, a few teachers will probably lose their licenses, careers and maybe freedoms. The U.S. does and should consider mitigating circumstances unlike Muslim nations. Consider that in Saudi Arabia a thief’s hands can be cut off for theft. In the U.S., the act alone is the only needed evidence. Good or bad, mitigating evil, who cares; all I know is things happen. I’m not sure our laws are well set up to be strongly and stringently enforced — there is no humanity in them. Careful Cougars, if you demand this beefed up security you may find yourself pleading to a judge to not destroy your future with a felony charge because your frat brother, friend or roommate dropped an Adderall on your floorboard that you don’t have a prescription for.

Matthew Keever is a communication junior and may be reached at opinon@thedailycougar.com

Abdul Khan is a political science senior and may be reached at opinion@thedailycougar.com.

In his first foreign trip as president, Obama blew his chance to address concerns about the U.S. being the leading nation in global pollution, and the environment lost out again. Instead, Canadians were greeted with smiles, diplomacy and mere allusions to change from the popular U.S. president. In a news conference with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Obama acknowledged that he has said North American Free Trade Agreement does too little to protect U.S. workers and the environment, Associated Press writer Ben Feller reported. Obama’s sidestepping of the pollution issue is especially troublesome considering his campaign promises of making real changes to U.S. policy. Without securing a healthy planet for generations to come, discussing or debating any other serious political issue proves a null exercise. BP settlement not enough: D British Petroleum agreed to pay $180 million Thursday to settle a federal lawsuit over pollution at its Texas City refinery, The Houston Chronicle’s Matthew Tresaugue reported. BP has already pleaded guilty to violating the Clean Air Act and agreed to pay a separate fine of $50 million for a March 2005 explosion and fire that killed 15 people and injured more than 170 others. While the agreement includes the stipulation that BP will make efforts to reduce pollution and clean the air of the surrounding community, we at The Daily Cougar won’t hold our breath — and the citizens of Texas City literally cannot. The timeliness of its supposed cleanup is up for debate as the explosion occurred more than four years ago. Let’s hope BP gives this issue the immediacy it gave its $1 billion effort in January to resume full operations at its refinery.

E D I TO R I A L p o lic y STAFF EDITORIAL  The Staff Editorial reflects the opinions of The Daily Cougar Editorial Board (the members of which are listed above the editorial). All other opinions, commentaries and cartoons reflect only the opinion of the author. Opinions expressed in The Daily Cougar do not necessarily reflect those of the University of Houston or the students as a whole. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR  The Daily Cougar welcomes letters to the editor from any member of the UH community. Letters should be no more than 250 words and signed, including the author’s full name, phone number or e-mail address and affiliation with the University, including classification and major. Anonymous letters will not be published. Deliver letters to Room 151, Communication Building; e-mail them to letters@thedailycougar.com; send them via campus mail to STP 4015; or fax them to (713) 743-5384. Letters are subject to editing. ADVERTISEMENTS  Advertisements published in The Daily Cougar do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the University or the students as a whole. GUEST COMMENTARY  Submissions are accepted from any member of the UH community and must be signed with the author’s name, phone number or e-mail address and affiliation with the University, including classification and major. Commentary should be kept to less than 500 words. Guest commentaries should not be written as replies to material already printed in the Cougar, but rather should present independent points of view. Rebuttals should be sent as letters. Deliver submissions to Room 151, Communication Building; e-mail them to letters@thedailycougar.com; or fax them to (713) 743-5384. All submissions are subject to editing.

Issue credits n n

Copy editing Trae Browne, Newton Liu Production Halima Salami, Mario Trinidad


SPORTS | LIFE & ARTS

The Daily Cougar

Friday, February 20, 2009  n  5

Cougars look to sweep UCF Cougar Sports Services

DAVID SHIH THE DAILY COUGAR

Junior guard Aubrey Coleman, pictured against Tulane, scored 30 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in the Cougars 97-69 win over UCF on Feb. 4.

When the Cougars were picked to finish seventh in the Conference USA Preseason Poll, they started the 200809 season with a mission. The players took it as a slap in the face and wanted to prove that they were indeed one of the top teams in the conference despite being relatively inexperienced. There are only five games remaining on Houston’s schedule and it finds itself sitting at 16-8 overall with a third place record of 7-4 in Conference USA, but this team is not satisfied. Losing in an 88-83 nail biter to the Marshall on Wednesday dealt a serious blow to a team that was on the outside looking in on the big dance. The Cougars were riding a fourgame winning streak going into Marshall, but an off night defensively squandered its chances of winning out the month of February and sending a statement to C-USA and the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee.

The Cougars will attempt to bounce back when they host Central Florida at 7 p.m. Saturday at Hofheinz Pavilion. UCF will enter Hofheinz in a situation parallel to the Cougars. The 16-9 Golden Knights have a 6-5 conference record, trailing Houston, Tulsa and Texas-El Paso, teams that sport a 7-4 record. Each is shooting for the No. 2 and 3 seeds in the Conference USA Tournament — seeds on the opposite side of the bracket from conference leader and Associated Press No. 5 Memphis. Houston’s 16-8 record and RPI ranking of 95, according to CBSsports.com, tells the story of the team. Despite its obvious talent, it is a team struggling to find its identity. Injuries, a suspension and — on some nights — foul trouble have forced Houston head coach Tom Penders to fluctuate his rotation. Teams have figured out how to slow down junior guard Kelvin Lewis, assigning players to hound, face guard and deny the pure shooter

By Wilson Chang THE DAILY COUGAR Tucked in a small Westheimer strip center, behind a Church’s Chicken and a General Joe’s Chopstix, hides one of, if not the best, Bosnian restaurants in Houston. The only problem is you may not even notice it’s there. Café Pita Plus opened in 2006, bringing with it authentic Bosnian cuisine and incorporating many Mediterranean flavors. With its small dining room and exposed kitchen, it really feels like you’re at a little cafe in Bosnia. The owner is constantly moving around, bussing tables and talking to guests, heightening the relaxed atmosphere within the restaurant. He even stops by tables to take orders and provide suggestions. Atmosphere can make or break a restaurant, but the most important thing is always going to be what’s on your plate, and Café Pita Plus does not disappoint. The signature dish, cevap (pronounced ‘cheh-vap’), is the one reason you should try this place. Cevap resembles a breakfast sandwich with grilled meat sausages between lepinja, a spongy version of pita bread. It’s not to be eaten like a pita though, which should be pointed out before you pick it up and have the meat fall out. Break off some bread, cut a piece of cevap, combine and enjoy this spicy and aromatic delicacy. Entrees include chicken and beef kebabs, slow-roasted lamb shank and stuffed peppers. The stuffed peppers are beasts, each one the size of a fist and stuffed with beef and rice. Also on the menu are pizzas, freshly made on a thin crust. At 10 inches, two people could dine on one pizza. Saturdays are a real treat though, as spit-roasted lamb is served. It is brought in on a huge plate, with sizable portions of rice and bread. Like the pizza, you may want to bring a friend along as well. If anything should be said about the food, it should be that it’s cheap. The cevap is a bargain at $7, and the burek sandwich, puff pastry wrapped around your choice of filling, is a steal at $5. With

The late Heath Ledger should without a doubt win the Oscar for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. ­— Ronnie Turner, Sports writer

sports@thedailycougar.com

Last chance to see Lyric

Café Pita Plus a hidden delicacy

Staff picks

from getting the ball for the entirety of games. This has left junior guard Aubrey Coleman with more opportunities to take the scoring load into his own hands. Houston’s slasher has proven to be an offensive menace for opposing defenses, putting up 20 points per game for the Cougars. Coleman lit up the Thundering Herd for 38 points in Wednesday’s losing effort, but his teammates struggled to get off their own shots. This is a team that still believes it has NCAA Tournament caliber talent and would like to have the opportunity to showcase it as part of the field of 65. Houston, however, cannot afford hiccups like it had against Marshall on Wednesday night. The Cougars need to have their guard up against a UCF squad that will definitely be looking to avenge a 97-69 beat down it suffered by the hands of Houston on Feb. 4.

By Sarah Krusleski THE DAILY COUGAR

IN REVIEW the generous portions, you could probably feed four Café Pita Plus people comfortably for less Flavor: Cuisine straight from Bosnia than $30. Where: 10890 Westheimer Road, There are desserts too, Houston, TX 77042 but after eating, it’ll be quite Verdict: A hidden gem you need to find. the task to find room for sweets. If you do muster up the stomach, get the tufahija, a poached apple stuffed with walnuts and whipped cream. Since you might overlook the sign, know this — Café Pita Plus offers great food at a low price with an atmosphere as close to the streets of Sarajevo as you can get without leaving Houston.

Seasons of Love, Lyric Players’ third annual musical mishmash of popular love songs performed by students amuses and amazes despite a few bumps in the road. Lyric Players allows students of all talent levels a shot at auditioning and performing in group songs, an invaluable experience to those wondering what would happen if they decided to sing outside of the shower. This year, music education junior Jennifer Agbu plucked beloved tunes from the musical Rent, the movie Enchanted and the television series Scrubs for the themed show. The audience may long for a real storyline instead of an excuse to belt out favorites, but it’s still rewarding to see UH students perform together. Despite the slow moments when the show awkwardly bridges the gap between tunes, some songs of the show are simply breathtaking. Theater sophomore Andy Ingalls brought the audience to laughter as the pompous male-half of the Spamalot love duet The Song That Goes Like This, performed with golden-voiced pre-pharmacy sophomore Sarah Stout. Agbu stopped the show with her provocative performance of Ahrens and Flaherty’s Speaking French. Lyric Players will perform a final show at 7 p.m. Saturday in the Oberholtzer Ballroom. Donations are encouraged.

arts@thedailycougar.com

arts@thedailycougar.com

Wilson Chang the Daily Cougar

Café Pita Plus is a hidden restaurant serving the best and most affordable Bosnian food in Houston.

Oscar Predictions

Bolt tugged my heartstrings, but I hope Best Animated Feature goes to Wall-E. ­— Sarah Krusleski, Features editor

The Academy is a sucker for a true story. Sean Penn’s portrayal of Harvey Milk is sure to win. ­— James Rincon, News editor

Coraline should win an Oscar. I might even say it’s better than The Nightmare Before Christmas. ­— Matthew Keever, Staff writer

Viola Davis’ snot dripped from nostril to lip in Doubt and she acted right through it. ­— Signe Cluiss, Managing editor

Either Oktopodi or Presto should win Best Animated Short Film. The rabbit in Presto is adorable! ­— Sarah Tucker, Life & Arts editor


6  n  Friday, February 20, 2009

The Daily Cougar

CLASSIFIEDS E-MAIL classifieds@thedailycougar.com

CLASSIFED RATES & INFORMATION DISPLAY ADS $12.77 For 1 insertion, per inch 2 or more $9.62 For insertions, per inch per day

LINE ADS $1.60 $1.43

PLACE AN AD TODAY

(713) 743-5356

ONLINE www.thedailycougar.com/classifieds

HELP WANTED

HELP WANTED

HELP WANTED

HELP WANTED

HELP WANTED

Looking for a great summer job? St. Luke’s United Methodist Church has just what you need! We’re looking for people that love to work with children for our summer camp. The camp runs from June 1st through August 7th. We offer many great activities such as swimming, tennis, outdoor sports, arts and crafts, and weekly field trips.

I n te r e s te d ? Per line (3 lines minimum) Per line per day for 20 or more consecutive insertions

DEADLINE Ad material and payment is due two business days prior to publication.

ERRORS The Daily Cougar will be responsible only for the first incorrect insertion.

BULLETIN BOARD !BARTENDING! up to $300 a day, no exp necessary, training provided. 18+ ok. 800-965-6520 ext.145

HELP WANTED MONTESSORI school near Museum dist. Looking for PT/FT. Infant to EC teacher assistants. Call Tara (713) 520-0738 TUTOR/PROOF READER for graduate level thesis project. Familiar with APA citation and referencing. call Stephen @ (832) 771-4813. Stephenhoutx@ gmail.com MAKE UP TO 75 DOLLARS per online survey, www.cashtospend.com

Contact Laura or Kelly at 713-402-5075 lschmit@stlukes-hou.org St. Luke’s UMC is conveniently located at Edloe and Westheimer intersection.

Long Hair Models sought for a visual study of long hair. Hip length & longer only please. No exp. ness. No cutting, earn $80-300.

713-823-8330 www.longhair.org

Summer jobS available

Direct sales. Very good pay. Call Nick 281-498-3232 WE ARE SEEKING a full-time or part-time International Assistant Buyer in the 610 Loop & Richmond area, with strong organization, verbal, and written communication skills, and proficiency in Microsoft Office. This is a good opportunity for those majoring in International Business. Please contact 713-527-9912

YOUR AD HERE

Target 35,000 UH readers with a Classified ad. Call 713-743-5356.

WE ARE SEEKING:

a full-time or part-time Web Designer in the 610 Loop & Richmond area, with knowledge of PHP and e-commerce, and experience in Dream Weaver. Please contact

713-527-9912 OFFICE COORDINATOR Coordinate work w/ office, outside vendors & agents for a Real Estate Mgmt. Co.

RENTALS

PART-TIME CLERICAL POSITION Greenway Plaza Area CPA Firm: 20 hrs per week, flexible schedule. Basic Knowledge of Outlook, Excel & MSWord required: general clerical, data entry, filing & phones. Send resume to Diane Kennedy via fax 713-621-0046 or email diane@bowleswomack.com

STUDENT/STAFF SPECIAL: U of H AREA-$99. 1st mo rent. Minutes from campus. 1bdrm $429. & 2bdrm $529. with a 1 YEAR LEASE. 3629 MacGregor Way-Office 713-523-0225 FEW BLOCKS FROM UH, Nice area. 1-1 = $360; 3 new 1 1/2 $800, cent. A/H, fenced. No pets. Call 713-834-4209.

Monday - Thursday 8-12 pm. $10/hr.

CARS

Clark McDowell and Kic Realtors

(713) 528-5311

R.E. DEVELOPER seeks mature student to hold open houses on new construction, Sat-Sun 12-6p,. Good hourly pay. Fax resume/ letter to 713-869-5074

RENTALS 1-BDRM APT for rent at 3925 Woodleigh, $550/month. All Bills paid. Call-713224-7211.

HIRING!!!

*STUDENTPAYOUTS.COM* PAID survey takers needed in Houston. 100 percent FREE to join! Click on Surveys.

swim instructors and water aerobics/fitness instructors. Great pay & flexible hours! Call 713-662-5892 or 713-662-5387 for information.

P/T SALES JOB. Training and marketing tools provided. Flexible schedules. Great pay. Email yqiao2@mail.uh.edu

Certified lifeguards, desk staff,

HOUSTON HEIGHTS. 30 minutes from the UH campus. 1 bedroom and 1 bath - $750; 2 bedroom and 1 bath - $950. CALL 713-682-7142. PRIVATE STUDIO ROOM in house one block south of campus. In quiet neighborhood. Furnished. $350 a month plus deposit. Shared utilities. 713-208-2530

CARS FROM $500! Hondas/Chevys/ Jeeps etc! Police Impounds! For listings 1-800-544-1092 ext. 3551 READ THE DAILY COUGAR ONLINE!

TURN YOUR TRASH INTO CASH Sell anything — used cars, furniture, computers, books — with a Cougar Classified ad. 713-743-5356

Find a new job. And a new place.

 Download Classifieds daily at thedailycougar.com/classifieds

In the time it takes you to update your

Facebook you could get in the yearbook.

Here’s how:

HOUSTONIAN YEARBOOK PHOTO WEEK • 9 a.m.–7 p.m. February 16–19 • 9 a.m.–3 p.m. February 20 Claudette Room, UC Satellite Shoots available by appointment. Walk-ins welcome. No sitting fees!

Visit uh.edu/sp/houstonian or call (713) 743-5350 for registration info.


COMICS & MORE

The Daily Cougar

COUGAR COMICS

Online at thedailycougar.com/comics

The Waves by Bissan Rafe

today’s crossword ACROSS 1 Mae West role 4 Grandson of Genghis 9 Shore up 13 Keogh relative 14 “En garde” weapons 15 Freak out (2 wds.) 16 Some house pets 18 Modify 19 Organic compound 20 Able to feel 22 Oater hero 25 Play the trumpet 26 Become acclimated 28 Kind of wreath 32 La —, Bolivia 35 Tall flowers 37 Narrow squeak 38 Rolling — — (rich) 40 Fibbing 42 Mex. miss 43 Whale finder 45 Get underway 47 Mind-reader’s letters 48 Network news VIP 50 Boxes a bit 52 Little rascals 54 Blurred 58 Niacin, e.g. (2 wds.) 62 Ski run 63 Gymnast’s stickum 64 Horses and sheep 67 Sahara mountains 68 Rogue 69 Bunion site 70 Campus figure 71 Jades 72 Ave. crossers

Dim Sum by Ho Yi Lau

Man Law by Chris Jacobs

DOWN

At the Hot Dog Stand by Mishele Lamshing

Friday, February 20, 2009  n  7

1 2 3 4

Enjoys South Bend team Starbucks order Pocket jingler (2 wds.) 5 Mdse. bars 6 Fergie’s daughter 7 Leases

1

2

Answers online at thedailycougar.com/puzzles 3

4

13

5

6

9

17

22

23

24

26 34

38

29

30

31

56

57

21

27

39

28 36

37

40 44

48

41 45

49 52 59

12

25

35

43

11

18 20

33

10

15

19

58

8

14

16

32

7

42 46

50 53

60

47 51

54

55

61

62

63

64

65

66

67

68

69

70

71

72 ©

8 Money in the bank 9 Government 10 Tempo 11 Without guile 12 Sassy 15 Croc cousins 17 Garr or Hatcher 21 San Francisco hill 23 Out of room 24 Unravels 27 Revises 29 Have the nerve 30 Bonsai and ikebana 31 Spring up 32 Leaning Tower site 33 By and by 34 Metallic element 36 Purse closers 39 Papeete native

today’s sudoku (Difficulty: 5/5)

4 1 44 46 49 51 53 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 65 66

Metric unit Games spectators Poet’s hair Engine stat Pepper companion Luxury fabrics Tooth parts Disney site Fakes out Headless nail Cast a ballot “La — Bonita” Tijuana tot Cistern Festive night

2009 United Feature Syndicate INC.

Previous puzzle solved S U P T

V E R S A

C A N T S

O L A F

N I N O

S I P S

T O R O

I N N O V A T O R

R N S

O N S MA S E L P I E ON K V E I A N A R Y B I L A S S E E S

K I N G S B A T T I D E S

A K I N

Y E T I F J T WO O A R L I D L L S H GU Z E R U E L L S E U E D

A G G I E S

B R A C E

L A T E R A E L B L A B Y I E MD R S U I N D E S S

E D E N

R E S T

I B I S

L A P S

O F T E N

P O O R

Answers online at thedailycougar.com/puzzles

How to play

Each row must contain the numbers 1 to 9; each column must contain the numbers 1 to 9; and each set of 3-by-3 boxes must also contain the numbers 1 to 9.

Previous puzzle solved

Limbo by Paulo Aninag

PAPPADEAUX SEAFOOD KITCHEN

Opening soon at 12109 Westheimer! Now Interviewing for: SERVERS, DOOR HOSTS, COOKS, KITCHEN PREP, BUSSERS & DISHWASHERS

Enjoy flexible schedules, great money

com* becau mas se mat ter

& a fun work environment! Apply in person at:

12109 Westheimer Tues-Friday 10am-6pm & Saturday 10am-4pm EOE M/F/D/V/A

Become a Daily Cougar copy editor today. Applications available in Room 151, Communication Building Contact copychief@thedailycougar.com for more information.


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8  n  Friday, February 20, 2009

The Daily Cougar

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75370-University of Houston-Houston-10.25x16 4C 2.20


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