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SUMMER EDITION
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August 3, 2011 ®
Issue 155, Volume 76
Read. Recycle. Repeat daily.
ADMINISTRATION
NATION
Staff council addresses UH
The University was recently named one of the best colleges in the nation to work for by The Chronicle of Higher Education.
Administrators, faculty, staff discuss the University’s future amidst state financial worries
Got news? E-mail news@thedailycougar.com or call 713-743-5314
Magazine recognizes UH as premiere school to work for
UH was awarded the distinction along with 84 four-year and 26 two-year universities for its quality in diversity, collaborative governance, teaching environment, respect and appreciation. Recognition was based on a survey administered to faculty, administrators and professional support staff, along with an institutional audit of demographics, policies and practices of the workplace. “This recognition is very satisfying and affirms that the University of Houston is a quality workplace made up of Tier One faculty and staff,” UH President Renu Khator said in a press release. “We appreciate all of our employees for everything they do – not just to make UH a great place for an education, but also a great place to work.”
CITY
UHCL remembers NASA shuttle program with photo exhibition University of Houston Clear Lake will be hosting the opening reception for a photography exhibit titled “Celebrating Shuttle: An American Icon” from 5 to 7 p.m. Aug. 23 in the UHCL Bayou Building, Atrium 2. The reception will feature live music and guest speakers discussing NASA’s Endeavor program. The exhibit will have shuttle artifacts, portraits of astronauts and photographs detailing all 135 missions of the shuttle program. The exhibit will be on display until Sept. 28. More information is available at http://prtl.uhcl.edu/portal/page/portal /ALR/ celebratingshuttle or call (281) 283-2021.
RESEARCH
Report concludes student loan delinquency rates remain high A report from Moody’s Investors Service concerning the stability of the student loan market stated that the delinquency rate on student loans has not improved. In contrast to other types of borrowing, such as mortgages, the student loan market has continued to expand in recent years. But whereas the delinquency rates on other types of loans have improved, student loans have flattened, highlighting how large numbers of students may be unable to repay their student loans in the future. “Unless students limit their debt burdens, choose fields of study that are in demand, and successfully complete their degrees on time, they will find themselves in worse financial positions and unable to earn the projected income that justified taking out their loans in the first place,” said Cristian Dertis, a writer for Moody’s.
CORRECTIONS !!
In last week’s issue, our headline about the UHCL addition read “Congress approves addition to UHCL.” Congress did not approve the addition; the Texas Legislature did.
Xiaowen Chen
THE DAILY COUGAR The annual “Conversation With Staff Council” meeting was held Tuesday to address how the Texas financial crisis would affect the University, The meeting focused on figuring out how to soothe the University’s financial troubles, as well as ways to raise staff morale, address faculty concerns, and improve communications without impacting the budget.
The 82nd Texas Legislature passed bills finalizing decisions on funding higher education. According to the legislative update for June 2011, in the next two years many programs would no longer have funds appropriated to them from the state. “The council conversation held this year would be a turnaround from previous years’ regular council conversations, during which staff would mainly pose specific questions,” UH Staff Council President Carol Barr said. “As the advisory body, the staff council would be devoted to providing potential administration solutions on how to go through budget cut this year.” Under Senate Bill 1, the UH system’s revenue appropriation would be reduced by $81 million for the biennium.
“The impact of the proposed cuts on the UH System can be equated to 9,300 students lost or 1,220 courses eliminated or 300 faculty lost,” UH President Renu Khator said. Proposed cuts to the higher education budget have caused many students, educators and state leaders to wonder if public institutions, which benefit more from state funding than private institutions, will suffer from a reduced quality of education as a result. The staff in attendance was concerned about layoffs brought on by the new budget. UH Health Center Director Floyd Robinson said that his department had to fire one staff member for financial reasons COUNCIL continues on page 3
ALUMNI
Grads struggle with job pursuits New graduates face high unemployment rates Ryan Rockett
THE DAILY COUGAR Courtney Kindall, a UH graduate with a master’s in counseling psychology, spends at least four hours a day filling out job applications and combing through internet job search results in an attempt to find a fulltime job. Three months removed from school and with previous work experience the 26-year-old has repeated this routine for about three days a week in what she calls a grueling job hunt. “It’s definitely an employer’s market,” Kindall said. “I knew it would be tough getting in, but I wasn’t prepared to not have a job at all.” She is one of many students who have been hit with reality as they’ve begun searching for jobs in a nation with a 9.2 percent unemployment rate. A survey from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics reveals a 12.1 percent unemployment rate for college graduates between the ages of 20-24 for July, a five percentage point increase from June. UH Career Services counselor Becky Reiter said that the anxiety is reflected in the students who come GRADUATES continues on page 3
Research vessels like the Nathaniel B. Palmer is designed to move through the sea of ice to drill for ancient atmospheric samples. The ice layers can help shed light on climate change today. | Eli Duke/Wikimedia Commons
RESEARCH
Study published on the rocks Professor, student research ice sheets of Antarctic peninsula to understand climate change Darlene Campos
THE DAILY COUGAR A study written by a UH professor and her colleagues has been published in the most recent edition of the scientific journal, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. It concerns the history of the Antarctic peninsula’s ice sheets. Julia Wellner, research assistant professor of UH’s Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences and UH Biology student Reham Rafe Al Hussien investigated the history of the Antarctic peninsula’s icesheets. “Temperatures in the Antarctic peninsula are rising faster than anywhere else on the planet right now,” Wellner said. “Ice shelves, like the Larsen, are collapsing and
glaciers are retreating at what may be an unprecedented rate compared to the last several thousand years. “The amount of ice in the peninsula is relatively small and, even though it is melting, it will not cause global sea levels to rise significantly. The Antarctic peninsula, however, provides a natural laboratory to examine how ice responds to warming conditions and thus can help us understand how the larger Antarctic ice sheets will respond as warming progresses farther south.” The Antarctic peninsula was the last portion of the area to develop ice layers. Over the past 35 million years, ancient plants have disappeared under the ice, leaving fossilized pollen in glaciers that can help provide answers to questions about climate change. “The PNAS paper that came out last week is part of a large project called ANTARCTIC continues on page 3
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Wednesday, August 3, 2011
ONLINE
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online TOP READS
1. US media coverage of Oslo terror attacks reveals anti-Muslim bias 2. Status lures in students 3. UH finds new VP for Student Affairs 4. New VP for student affairs should listen to students 5. NASA funds better spent on Earth
FEATURED COMMENTS 1.
Volkswagon is only having trouble with one of there new models.
2.
The grand marshal gave his councel to whoever sought it.
3.
Only one of the people who work in the lab is a vetinarian.
4.
He claimed he knows a star athalete who will sign with the school.
5.
He felt bad due to the unhygenic accomodations.
6.
He looks like he can pitch real good.
7.
Travelling acrost the U.S., it’s vastness effected her.
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Like I said, he should be like I and do like I do.
9.
He wanted to know if the criteria is valid
10. Joe told his wife Alice he likes his mistress better than her. 11. The hero was presented with an historic award by the Congressman. 12. This is different than and hopefully more preferrable over that.
Re: Cowboys lasso another Cougar, sign Cleveland, release Tonga
People need to quit being so naive. UH isn’t anywhere near Tier 1. Sure, I attend UH and would like it, but I hate it when people are lied to. UH isn’t what it makes it out to be.” — user “Sven” Re: New VP for student affairs should listen to students
“I thought the VP for Student “He became over confident in Affairs is the person who’s responsible for finding new his role and lost focus. Really didn’t see him as a team player ways to screw students? I guess that was kind of naive; last year. Has the ability to every employee of U of H make a contribution if he can should take screwing students get his head on straight.” — user “FlaCoog” as their top responsibility. Anyone who’s logged into Re: Cowboys lasso another Cougar, peoplesoft knows this. I’m just sign Cleveland, release Tonga thankful there are so many “He lost production not bc of – particularly among staff – the loss of Keenum last year. who defy the administration’s He was a total douche and he instructions in this area.” did it to himself. Please dont — user “Mike Wazowski” place this on Case.” — user “MGL_COOG”
Re: NASA funds better spent on Earth
“That is now used in the field of civil engineering. Building “The “tier 1” status does not materials for starters, that you mean much. It’s not the same would need to understand as the Tier 1 people thing of how they affect the structure when they hear it such as U.S. and the cost benefit analysis of news rankings etc. This Tier 1 using the materials compared just means UH got a certain to the traditional. amount of money. That’s all. As Oh and it made me break it up a matter of fact, UH has been into three posts.” falling in the actual rankings — user “Mac” for years. Re: Status lures in students
13. Its easy to see the difference between she and I. 14. We must try and keep up with the Jones. 15. What kind of a woman could like those kind of men.
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ABOUT THE COUGAR The Daily Cougar is published Monday through Friday during the fall and spring semesters, and Tuesday and Thursday during the summer, at the University of Houston Printing Plant and online at http://www. thedailycougar.com. The University seeks to provide equal educational opportunities without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, disability or veteran status, or sexual orientation. The Daily Cougar is supported in part by Student Service Fees. The first copy of the Cougar is free; each additional copy is 25 cents. SUBSCRIPTIONS Rates are $70 per year or $40 per semester. Mail subscription requests to: Mail Subscriptions, The Daily Cougar, University of Houston, Houston, TX, 77204-4015. NEWS TIPS Direct news tips and story ideas to the News Desk. Call (713) 743-5314, e-mail news@thedailycougar. com or fax (713) 743-5384. A “Submit news item” form is also available online at thedailycougar.com. COPYRIGHT No part of the newspaper in print or online may be reproduced without the written consent of the director of the Student Publications Department.
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NEWS
The Daily Cougar
ANTARCTIC continued from page 1
SHALDRIL addressing the history of the Antarctic Ice Sheet and how it has waxed and waned over time,” Wellner said. “SHALDRIL was to bring a drill rig to the Antarctic to sample rocks that are not otherwise accessible. Because the Antarctic continent is almost entirely covered by ice, it is hard to study the geology and past environmental conditions of the
GRADUATES continued from page 1
to visit her daily. “Everybody’s worried,” Reiter said. “Students that don’t have a job are worried about getting one, and students that have a job are worried about keeping it. It’s a really challenging job market right now, and I definitely feel for students.” While searching, Kindall has worked part time with the UH Alumni Association and has another part time job lined up. She said a lack of work experience and certifications as well as insufficient preparation by the school as reasons why she is unable to find work. “It’s just one hurdle after the next,” Kindall said. “I wish the school would have prepared me more. They just kind of said, ‘Hey, here’s your master’s, good luck finding a job.’” Post-college employment isn’t as dismal as it may seem, though. According to The National Association of Colleges and Employers, employers are hiring more than 19
COUNCIL continued from page 1
last year. Khator said that UH will continue to move forward as a Tier One University and to guide students to success. “We are prepared to address any financial hardships that our current economic circumstances demand,” Khator said. UH management is making efforts to create efficient financial strategies
continent. In order to study certain time periods, the only way to get the right samples is to drill on the sea floor.” SHALDRIL, which stands for Shallow Drilling, is a project funded by the National Science Foundation and includes Rice University marine geologist John Anderson, Louisiana State geologist Sophie Warny and University of Southampton micropaleontologist Steven Bohaty. Mo re t h a n a d oze n o t h e r researchers helped out with analysis and collecting data.
“As a sedimentologist, I look at sand, mud, and pebbles as a way to determine where and how rocks were formed,” Wellner said. “Pebbles are a key way to understand the relative role of ice in forming sedimentary rocks as rivers and the like don’t usually carry large pebbles or gravel — only ice can do that. “We X-rayed the sediment cores collected during SHALDRIL and then used the X-rays to count the pebbles contained in each part of the core. My student, Reham Rafe
percent more graduates for 2011and 2012 than last year. According to a survey on the UHCS website, UH students are offered $10,000-$15,000 more than the average salary. Reiter said that the most important thing students can do to find a job is to prepare early. “The biggest thing I would recommend is to do an internship,” Reiter said. “We always recommend that (students) start looking for internships the semester before they actually do it.” Amanda Jolivet, another 2011 UH graduate, has felt undaunted by the bleak job statistics and unemployment that has affected her peers. After receiving her bachelor’s degree in media studies in May, Jolivet found work on the community relations team at Fort Bend Family Health Center. Jolivet said it wasn’t her degree that secured her a job at the nonprofit organization, but who she knew and met during her college tenure. “I found a job quickly due to networking and good relationships with
professors. I ended up knowing so many people that building a network in itself helped me get a job,” Jolivet said. Although their career paths are different, Kindall and Reiter agree with Jolivet’s sentiment. While at Texas State University, Reiter did a one-year, unpaid internship in the bereavement department at a hospice while working 40 hours a week. Jolivet participated in an unofficial, unpaid internship for Christian radio station 92.1 for four years, where she increased her personal network. She was also a former employee at the UHCS and saw many students come for help in their senior year. Jolivet said students often regret procrastinating. “The biggest mistake they make is waiting until the last minute,” Jolivet said. “They want immediate help with immediate results. It doesn’t work that way. You need to get experience, even if it’s unpaid.”
to cope with the hardships. “UH is gradually transferring to privately financed public institution due to more fundraising from sources other than governmental grant funding,” Executive Vice President of Administration and Finance Carl Carlucci said. Strategies also included allocating funds based on adjusting faculty workload, class size and class scheduling. news@thedailycougar.com
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Al Hussien, made most of these counts. “Her work formed the basis for our interpretation of when the ice sheet first started to grow, about 35 million years ago.” In addition to this study, Wellner will start Project LARISSA in 2012, an intiative aimed at understanding the region from the perspective of a different time period. “LARISSA is a project studying the collapse of the Larsen Ice Shelf in 2002 and the ongoing changes of the ice. This project is focused on
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a completely different time scale than SHALDRIL. It’s decades rather than millions of years, but uses the same principles of studying the sediments to determine how ice has behaved. LARISSA includes two cruises to the Weddell Sea,” Wellner said. “The first was in 2010 and a UH undergrad, Yuribia Muñoz, was able to participate. Next year, I will be taking a graduate student to help with the research.” news@thedailycougar.com
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Wednesday, August 3, 2011
The Daily Cougar
opinion THE DAILY COUGAR EDITORIAL BOARD EDITOR IN CHIEF MANAGING EDITOR NEWS EDITORS SPORTS EDITOR LIFE
& ARTS EDITOR
OPINION EDITOR
Jack Wehman John Brannen Taylor McGilvray, Julian Jimenez Joshua Siegel Mary Baak Daniel Renfrow
STAFF EDITORIAL
End of summer ushers in a semester of new issues
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ith journalism being a public service, The Daily Cougar’s most important priority is informing our readers about the happenings of the UH community. However, that is not strictly limited to campus events, football games or updates about Tier One. With the summer semester coming to a close, there will soon be more problems to concern students, faculty and staff. We want to know how these issues directly affect you as a member of the UH community. The reach of current and former UH students extends much further than just Houston or Texas. It extends across the world. There are plenty of stories to be told, and we admit we are not aware of all of them. If a UH student or professor is involved in a unique activity, it is our responsibility to let you know. To keep our publication relevant, we need to report about the impact students and alumni are making in their respective fields. The contributions of architects, entrepreneurs, lawyers and musicians among the many subjects that warrant coverage in The Daily Cougar. Unfortunately, all newsworthy events do not always receive a story. This is where you, the reader, can assist us. Tips, which can be submitted in email, over social networks or directly though The Daily Cougar’s website, are invaluable in getting us fresh ideas. If at first you do not succeed in gaining our attention, be persistent. A consistent effort to receive coverage is more noticeable than a single email or voice message. We know that we are not perfect, and we do not try to say otherwise. However, we are always looking for new angles on campus issues and new stories to cover. Working for a student newspaper is a constant education process for all those involved, and we learn the most when the public chimes in. Hearing feedback from our readers guarantees our improvement. We welcome yours.
E D I TO R I A L P O L I C I E S 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 7, University Center Satellite; 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 7, University Center Satellite; e-mail them to letters@thedailycougar.com; or fax them to (713) 743-5384. All submissions are subject to editing.
EDITOR Daniel Renfrow E-MAIL opinion@thedailycougar.com ONLINE www.thedailycougar.com/opinion
TECHNOLOGY
More female techies needed I
t’s Christmas morning, and little Timmy and Kate are anxiously opening their presents, eager to find out what Santa has brought them. Timmy opens his package to find a new model car. It can be programmed to run certain tracks and do tricks when it’s built. Kate opens hers to find another doll. Can you guess which of these children will be more Emily likely to pursue science Brooks and technology? According to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, women currently hold 29 percent of information technology jobs and earn 81 percent as much as similarly qualified men. The statistics at the upper levels are even more disturbing. According to Forbes, only 2.4 percent of Fortune 500 CEOs are women, and only 12.5 percent of FTSE 100 board directors are women. As for the major tech companies, Facebook, Twitter, Groupon, Foursquare and Paypal have no female board members. Apple has one woman boardmember out of seven men; Amazon has one out of eight; and Google has two out of nine. This dearth of women does not seem to be the result of discrimination, but of far fewer women applying for these jobs. Senior editor of Tech Crunch, Mike Arrington, echoes the views of many men in technology. “The problem isn’t that Silicon Valley is keeping women down, or not doing enough to encourage female entrepreneurs,” Arrington said on techcrunch.com. “The problem is that not enough women want to become (technology) entrepreneurs.” This lack of interest is reflected in college admissions as well. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, despite that 58 percent of college enrollees are female, only 22 percent of computer science degrees and only 19 percent of
Sheryl Sandberg is the current COO of Facebook. There are only a handful of high-position women like Sandberg in the technology world. This is possibly due to the fact that many young women are pushed away from technology-focused activities and towards gender-typical activities during their formative years. | Photo Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons engineering degrees were awarded to women in 2005. At UH, women make up 22 percent of engineering students, and 27 percent of technology students — slightly above the national average. So, when do girls lose interest in science and technology? The exceptions to the rule, women like Marissa Meyer, vice-president of Google, are leading the vanguard of ‘girl geeks’ in Silicon Valley. Meyer believes that more women do not enter the technology field because of limited role models in the industry. “They don’t want to become the stereotype of all-night coders, hackers with pasty skin,” Meyer said in the New Yorker. This bias seems to begin early during childhood, when girls like Kate get dolls for Christmas, and boys like Timmy get mechanical toys. Research has found that young girls generally do not have confidence in their abilities in math and science, despite performing similarly to boys in the classroom because they are told that
girls are bad at math and science. Students tend to focus after-school activities and career ambitions on subjects in which they are confident in their abilities. For girls, this leads to fields such as education and psychology. Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook, gave this year’s commencement address to Barnard College graduates. She advised them to “lean in” and to “let the barriers you face – and there will be barriers – be external, not internal.” But many of these graduates have chosen their path. The road to more women in technology does not begin in Silicon Valley, but rather in our public schools. It is time for parents and educators to stop telling children what is or isn’t gender-appropriate, and teach them to be the best that they can be at whatever career they choose. Emily Brooks is an economics senior and may be reached at opinion@thedailycougar.com.
Online retailer sales tax raises constitutional questions
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ith high budget deficits, states like California are trying to squeeze revenues out of online retailers by attempting to collect some sales taxes on goods purchased online. California’s curent rate is 8.25 percent, which can total 9.75 percent based on jurisdictional additions (Texas’ statewide is 6.25 percent Rachel with a maximum of 8.25 Farhi percent). Online retailers cherish this built-in discount. It is one of many advantages causing their profits and stock values to soar. Amazon.com’s lawyers are predictably pushing for a referendum to decide the fate of California’s push for the taxes. Lawyers on both sides are debating this referendum’s consistency with California’s constitution. North Dakota decided a similar issue that still stands in Quill Corp v. North Dakota. In this case, the Supreme Court used the Commerce Clause and a 1967 ruling, Bellas Hess, to conclude that North Dakota’s use tax interfered with interstate commerce. North Dakota had imposed an unconstitutional burden and had no right to declare the 1967 ruling “obsolete,” no matter how times had changed.
The Court in Quill struck down North Dakota’s levy of a sales tax on goods imported from Quill, an office supplies retailer incorporated in Delaware. That regulation would have been the responsibility of Congress, not North Dakota courts. Quill v. ND was decided in 1992. Who knows how the case might have been ruled in the last few months, almost twenty years later, with six justices swapped of the nine — along with such an evolved, booming online retail market, and states hurting for cash. Levying taxes on goods delivered between states could be considered unconstitutional if defined as “duties” laid on each other without the consent of Congress. As for Congressional consent, the amount of money in dispute might not seem significant enough to act upon, and discussing taxes is politically risky. Though, with politicians aiming for small compromises, this could be one of them. Another thing to consider is whether or not allowing states to collect taxes on goods imported from each other constitutes “duties” or violates other tax limitations in the Constitution. The framers of the Constitution regarded interstate import/export duty collection as dangerous – it could risk unhealthy competition, hurt cooperation,
and damage the union. But charging a fair sales tax – one equal to whatever a resident would pay if he drove to a Borders or a Target – would not create an unfair disadvantage, especially considering the money online retailers already save by not running physical stores. Another option is charging a low, flat tax. Plus, this battle concerns competition between online and standing retailers, not state industries and governments. The convenience, rewards and enabled research of online shopping still has so much appeal. Personally, my Amazon.com purchases would not drop if I had to suddenly pay a bit more; after doing the math I would still save. I have a Prime account, and they already have my cards on file – one click to gratification, and the selection of the online market is unbeatable. Devising a constitutional legislation modifying sales taxes on goods purchased out of state and online would be tough. And, paying more sales taxes would be annoying. However, considering all that our states do for us, we could get over it. Democrats that yearn for tax increases should consider it an option. Rachel Farhi is an English literature and political science senior and may be reached at opinion@ thedailycougar.com.
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
The Daily Cougar
sports overtime
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EDITORS Joshua Siegel E-MAIL sports@thedailycougar.com ONLINE www.thedailycougar.com/sports
FOOTBALL
Sumlin teaches gridiron basics Program continues to be popular with female Cougars fans in its fourth year Ricardo Rivera
THE DAILY COUGAR
Before coming to UH, Cleveland also played for Iowa and Trinity Valley Community College. Cleveland was named to the Freshman All-Big Ten Team at Iowa.
Head coach Kevin Sumlin and his staff welcomed over 100 Cougar fans to the Athletics/Alumni Center on Thursday for the Fourth Annual Football 101 for Women. Described by Sumlin as the “Oprah of football,” the ladies-only seminar sought to enliven Cougar support for the upcoming season and provide female fans with an opportunity to learn the basics of the game through interactive lectures and demonstrations from players and coaches. The seminar has received great feedback from the UH fan base and this year’s meeting was no exception. “This has been a great event for us every year,” Sumlin said. “It’s educational, and more importantly, a chance for the ladies to have a good time.” Natalie Dupre, a first-time attendee and 2006 graduate, said that she enjoyed the event. “I really just wanted to learn more about the game,” Dupre said. “All I really know is that it’s a fall start. My husband knows everything about football though. I’m definitely a die-hard Cougar fan, but I can’t say I know much of anything about the game.” The tutorial opened with presentations from defensive coordinator Brian Stewart, and co-offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury. Stewart and Kingsbury laid out the basics of the Cougars’ defensive and offensive philosophies through several demonstrations and question and
Another former UH receiver, L.J. Castile was picked up by the Cleveland Browns on Saturday.
VIDEO GAMES
FILE PHOTO/THE DAILY COUGAR
NFL
Cowboys lasso another Cougar, sign Cleveland, release Tonga; Browns sign Castille The Dallas Cowboys let one former Cougar go and brought another one on. The Cowboys released defensive lineman Matangi Tonga and picked up receiver James Cleveland. Tonga’s release stems from a failed physical. He had surgery in November to repair a torn meniscus, but appeared to have recovered by the University’s Annual Pro Day in late March. The 6’2, 290 pound Tonga was impressive at the pro day, running a 4.79 in the 40-yard dash. Several other teams, including the San Francisco 49ers, Green Bay Packers and Seattle Seahawks, have previously expressed interest in Tonga. The 49ers brought Tonga in for a workout a week before the draft to try him out at fullback and the Packers had him running routes at Pro Day. With his versatility and speed for his size, he should catch on with another team soon. Cleveland becomes the 87th player in Cowboys camp and the 13th receiver. As a junior, he led the Cougars in receptions (104), receiving yards (1,214) and touchdowns (14), but his production slipped last season (57 rec, 800 yds, 6 TD) after losing quarterback Case Keenum for the year.
Castile played three seasons for the Cougars, catching eight touchdowns as a sophomore and seven as a junior before transferring to Delta State for his senior year, where he caught a team-high 67 balls for 900 yards and 13 touchdowns. — Cougar Sports Services
FOOTBALL
Keenum, four others earn preseason C-USA selections Senior quarterback Case Keenum was selected by the coaches of Conference USA as its Preseason Offensive Player of the Year for a third straight season and also a spot on the C-USA First Team Offense. Running back Bryce Beall, receiver Patrick Edwards and center Chris Thompson were also picked for the First Team Offense, while linebacker Marcus McGraw earned this second straight selection to the First Team Defense. Edwards was also selected as the top punt returner in the conference. Each of the players is also on watchlists for national awards. Keenum was selected for the Davey O’Brien and Walter Camp awards. Beall is on the Doak Walker watchlist and Edwards has been added for the Biletnikoff. Thompson, who is moving from guard to center, is a member of the Outland Trophy and the Rotary Lombardi Award watchlists. McGraw joins him on the Lombardi list. — Cougar Sports Services
Fan Heather Sheffield was one of several attendees who walked in the shoes of a Cougar player during a tour of the locker room. Fans also participated in on-field and weight room demonstrations with head coach Kevin Sumlin’s staff. | Jack Wehman/The Daily Cougar answer opportunities. Special teams coordinator Tony Levine stole the show though. Levine’s explained the purpose of special teams with a video presentation backed by music from Lady Gaga, and garnered the most laughs of the evening. Levine also kept the ladies on their toes with a short trivia session at the end of his presentation to make sure all of the nuts and bolts of kickoff coverage and field position sunk in. Following the presentations by the coaching staff, participants were treated to a tour of the training facilities, engaged in interactive on-field demonstrations and even put on the pads during a tour of
the locker room. “I want the women to remember they had fun” said Sumlin. “Hopefully we’ve conveyed a bit of knowledge. With knowledge comes respect [for the game]. A knowledgeable fan is a more interested fan.” Sumlin has succeeded at that and is starting to see repeat customers. “This is my second year in a row coming here,” senior Gladys Hernandez said. “I already know what’s going on. I just come to get pumped up for the season. I’m so excited about Keenum coming back and I can’t wait for it to start.” sports@thedailycougar.com
Bragging rights settled on the couch to be the best, but he’ll still talk like he is. Joshua Siegel
Q: Do you guys use other teams or is it always UH versus UH? A: I use UH most of the time, but I get tired of using the same team all the time. We’ll play with a team with somebody else who we know that’s in college. They usually play with the top-rated teams if they don’t play with UH.
THE DAILY COUGAR Two-a-days don’t start until Thursday, but the Cougars have been hitting in pads for a while now — digitally at least. Wide receiver Ronnie Williams talked with us about this year’s edition of EA Sports’ college football game NCAA12. Q: When the ratings come out, does that become a competition to see who’s better? A: Yeah sometimes, but sometimes they screw it up. They have our long-snapper with a 93 for speed. Man, anybody could be putting those numbers in. Q: There were a few omissions and errors with the roster in the game. What’s up with some of your haircuts? A: They had EJ Smith with dreads. They try to get it as close as possible, but they still have mistakes. Q: Does the team play a lot on roadtrips? A: We don’t get to take consoles on the road. That’s more like a business trip, but around here everybody plays — pretty much the whole team.
Virtual Sammy Brown closes in on Rice quarterback Nick Fanuzzi | Joshua Siegel/The Daily Cougar Q: So everyone has played it a lot since it came out? A: We’ll either be in Cullen Oaks on somebody’s game system or various apartments around Houston. The weekend is when we play it the most before we go out. Q: Who is the best gamer on the team? A: Of course I would say that I’m the best, but I really don’t know. I can’t say because it just came out, but we’ll find out over the course of the next few months who actually is the best. Q: Who thinks they’re the best? A: Sammy Brown. He doesn’t even have
Q: Is it weird to see youself in video game form? Do guys sub themselves in and try to the star of the team? A: Yeah, I do. I’m not sure if I’m starting or not, so I just plug myself in. It gets kind of repetitive because you’ll see yourself throwing the ball to you over and over or if you’re on defense you’ll be rushing with yourself most of the time. Q: Do you get into the game and play the franchise mode or just against each other? A: It’s more head-to-head. And if we’re not actually together, we’ll play online. But Road to Glory and that stuff, it doesn’t interest me that much. I just play head-tohead to say I beat the person. sports@thedailycougar.com
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Wednesday, August 3, 2011
LIFE&ARTS
LIVING
The Daily Cougar
STYLE
Make the best of the Get real: Event encourages natural beauty pandemic last weeks of summer Hair provides tips on As summer draws to a close, we can’t help but feel sympathetic toward those Cougars who have been knocking out classes for the last two months in summer school. Of course, that’s certainly a Mary productive way Baak to spend the summer months, but it’s also nice to have a little fun in between the fall and spring semesters. The living is supposed to be easy during the summer, but if you’ve spent it with your nose in a book, stressing about tests and writing papers, it’s likely been anything but. With that being said, here’s how to make the best of what’s left of your summer. Catch some waves The beach is most commonly associated with summer, especially because we live so close to both Surfside and Galveston beaches. Of the two, it would be better
to go to Surfside because the atmosphere is a lot more conducive to an enjoyable day on the beach. Pack a few sandwiches, sunscreen, a Frisbee and a good mix CD and make your way down to the coast.
making untreated hair the best it can be Amanda Starghill
THE DAILY COUGAR
Get your Shakespeare fix UH students and directors are performing “Othello� and “Taming of the Shrew� at Miller Outdoor Theatre as part of the 37th annual Houston Shakespeare Festival. Since 1975, the UH School of Theatre & Dance has worked on HSF, which has become one of the biggest summer entertainment events in Houston — best of all, it’s free. Performances start at 8:30 p.m., alternating each night between “Othello� and “Taming of the Shrew� from now until Aug. 7. Turn up the tunes Even though Kings of Leon SUMMER continues on page 8
Afros, twists and braids appear to be the new trend among black women across the nation, especially in Houston. Women embracing their natural beauty have taken society by storm, and UH is no exception. UH hosted the inaugural Natural Hair Pandemic in the UCHouston room on July 30. The showcase presented an array of natural hair product companies and services that support the natural hair community. NHP provided styling classes and a chic fashion show on how to rock your locks. Natural hair care specialists Jane Carter Solutions and Karen’s Body Beauty were in attendance along with jewelry and graphic
This weekend marked the first-ever Natural Hair Pandemic, which was hosted in the UCHouston room. Natural hair has recently gotten more popular. | Jack Wehman/The Daily Cougar T-shirt vendors. During an interview with founders Toliver & Muhammad, they shared their passion behind transforming this idea to a reality. “We created Natural Hair Pandemic to help other naturals rock
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BEAUTY continues on page 8
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Sunday Worship 9:00 a.m., 5:00 p.m. Bible Class 10:30 a.m. Wednesday 7:00 p.m.
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comics Robbie + Bobby by Jason Poland
That Monkey Tune by Michael A. Kandalaft
sudoku 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
COMICS & MORE
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
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7
crossword ACROSS 1 Wrapping paper 6 Execs 10 LeMond or Norman 14 Sun, in combos 15 Huron neighbor 16 Pumice source 17 Mindful 18 Kind of pickle 19 Put a lid - -! 20 Iditarod terminus 21 Phony respect (2 wds.) 23 Early veggie (2 wds.) 25 Company 26 Neighbor of CTRL 27 Made public 29 Like John Wayne 32 Istanbul moolah 33 The lady 36 Indigo plant 37 Polite address 38 Like some steaks 39 Talk to a beat 40 Eggs purchase 41 Clan leader 42 Pauley and Austen 43 Ka-pow! 44 Start to grow 47 Drops the ball 51 Minstrel 54 Gaunt 55 Sternum bones 56 Cat burglar’s quest 57 Far-reaching view 58 Skip 59 Luau strummers 60 Dormant 61 Reviews harshly 62 Counting-rhyme start 63 Say yes DOWN 1 Mongol rulers 2 Defended one’s title 3 Texas historical site 4 Building safety feature
©
5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 21 22 24 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 37
Sock filler Radio and TV Handhold Wire measures E-mail predecessor Like a boxer Sari sporters Force out Microsoft mogul Endorse Paris streets Work at Candy-stripers Cyrus’ realm, today Deface Santa - winds Tweak Loaf Osaka yes Make a mistake Cheerful color Romeo’s last name
38 Kind of rose 40 Apply a mudpack 41 Flee 42 Knights’ combats 43 Prickle 44 Leather for honing 45 - donna 46 Legendary Hood 47 Too exacting 48 Surgeon’s beam 49 - nous 50 Circle the rink 52 Hockey fake 53 Good or bad sign 57 By way of
2010 UNITED FEATURE SYNDICATE INC.
Previous puzzle solved
You’re not the only one pulling an all-nighter. Get news, opinion, arts, sports and comics 24/7. www.thedailycougar.com
BEAUTY continued from page 8
catching the interest of CNN and the New York Times. Black women rocking their natural hair is being mistakenly understood as trying to revamp the 1960s and channeling a Jackson 5 afro. It is really about making a healthier choice in regard to the maintenance and styling of a woman’s hair. Some black women even reject the idea of accepting their natural hair for internal or societal
SUMMER continued from page 8
canceled their show in Houston a few days ago, August is still going to be a great month for music. For starters, Arctic Monkeys is playing tonight at House of Blues — a band that will always be easy on the ears and on the eyes. If that’s not really your style, you’ve got Chicago, Ted Nugent, Blue October and so many others to choose from this month.
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
LIFE&ARTS
The Daily Cougar
reasons. Natural hair has also been commonly misconstrued as being unprofessional, but Muhammad and Toliver disagree. “I don’t entertain that,” Toliver said. “It’s all about how you wear it — I have actually worn an afro on two interviews and landed both jobs, so I don’t think natural hair is unprofessional at all.” Muhammed stressed the dangers of relaxers,“One of our presenters shared that a medical examiner discovered traces of relaxers on the scalp of a woman.” However, the lengths that all women will go for beauty is
Boost your ‘spirits’ If you’re looking to spend a little time on the wild side, a little bar hopping will help you in those efforts. If the club scene is what catches your fancy, Avenue on Washington and Boondocks are both great places to go dance the night away. With good drink specials, littleto-no cover charges and fantastic DJs, you can’t go wrong. If you’re looking for something more quaint, Kelvin Arms pub in
nothing new in American society. The documentary “Good Hair” by comedian Chris Rock has proven to be an educational, yet humorous, presentation about the dangers of relaxers. Whether you are relaxed, natural, color-treated or weaved-up, everyone woman should take the opportunity to become educated on proper maintenance and styling her hair. Making the effort to do so will enable you to become the most beautiful and healthy woman you can be. arts@thedailycougar.com
Rice Village is certain to please. Once a bank, the vault has been turned into a sitting room with a fireplace, books and comfortable chairs for its guests — it is a perfect place to have a drink with close friends. No matter how you spend the remaining weeks of the summer, there’s always something to do in Houston. Do what makes you happy before the fall semester and your studies eats away your leisure time. arts@thedailycougar.com
playlist »
The best songs for summer
E
ven though summer is almost over, it’s just beginning for all the Coogs who have been in summer school since June. In anticipation of all the good times the brief two weeks of summer will bring, it only makes sense to put together a playlist for the occasion. Even though your summer hasn’t been as eventful as you may have liked, we salute you for going the extra mile and knocking out extra classes while everyone else stayed up all night and slept all day. — Mary Baak Australia The Shins
School’s Out Alice Cooper
So Long Sweet Summer Dashboard Confessional
Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.) Katy Perry
Summer Skin Death Cab for Cutie
Holiday From Real Jack’s Mannequin
Summer Girls LFO
California Girls The Beach Boys
Summer of ‘69 Bryan Adams
Our Last Summer Abba
Y O U C A N D O I T A L L O N T H E D A I L Y C O U G A R . C O M . T R Y I T T O D A Y.
You’re not the only one pulling an all-nighter. Get news, opinion, arts, sports and comics 24/7. www.thedailycougar.com
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