THURSDAY April 11, 2019
THE DAILY ILLINI The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871
WWW.DAILYILLINI.COM
Download our app!
Vol. 148 Issue 55
UI professor shines light on physics mystery State raises tobacco age to 21 BY ROHAN RAMANI CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Legislation that will raise the legal age for buying tobacco from 18 to 21 was signed by Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker on April 7. The law will go into effect at the beginning of July and would make Illinois the eighth state to raise its tobacco age. However, in the past few years, while the legal tobacco age is still 18, college campuses across the United States have seen an increase in smoking and vaping. According to a study, which surveyed and recorded responses from 2,389 students, about 32% of students reported that they own some form of an e-cigarette, and 50 to 55% reported seeing their peers vaping during class or in the library. The University is considered a smoke-free campus, which means it also prohibits e-cigarettes usage. However, students still continue to use these devices, despite the numerous signs around campus. According to smoke-free campus, the efforts to ban tobacco was successfully implemented in 2014, “banning the use of all smoke-producing tobacco products on campus.” Additionally, as these efforts continue, the goal for the University is to be a 100% tobacco-free campus by August.All campusowned property, indoor and outdoor, as well as private vehicles parked on campus property are all part of the banned locations.In spite of this, Jerry Zhang, author of the study, does not think e-cigarette use is harmful to the surrounding communit y.“Students are fairly OK with them as long as they’re not disruptive,” Zhang said in an email. “Many are OK with others using it because it doesn’t quite affect them, in the same way, the noxious smoke that normal cigarettes produce and invade their space.”Zhang said that smoking and vaping are choices made by the users that others around them have to live with and understand. “The attitude towards e-cigarettes are similar to combustible cigarettes,” he said. “They’re the smoker’s choice to
PHOTO COURTESY OF ETH
The first ever image of a black hole was revealed by the Event Horizon Telescope on Wednesday. Charles Gammie, University professor in LAS, co-led the theoretical working group of the EHT collaboration. The black hole is located at the center of the M87 galaxy and is 55 million light years away.
Study questions drinking behaviors BY YOOJIN SON ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR
Questioning the behavior of ordering another drink, taking another sip and repeating it the next week, a research study has worked its way back to answer these questions to create smarter interventions down the road. With a team of researchers, Catharine Fairbairn, assistant professor in LAS, is conducting a series of studies to help contribute to a culture of awareness and responsibility surrounding alcohol consumption. Unlike others, this ongoing research administers alcohol to healthy participants of legal drinking age. Some participants are given vodka sprite, a drink without a distinctive flavor, and then asked to participate in a series of activities throughout a laboratory session of over six hours. W h i le Fa i r b a i r n ’s research in the Alcohol Research Lab is not the first alcohol administration study at the University, it is a critical method that can demonstrate the causal effects of alcohol. Separating causation to correlation, the laboratory design can ultimately help researchers understand how some people could develop problems with drinking, Fairbairn said. “There’s some risks and some real responsibility that goes along with doing alcohol administration studies and a lot of protections we try to put in place for our participants, but then there’s some really valuable knowledge that can be gained from it,” Fairbairn said. Advertisements recruiting research participants state $100 will be given to those who participate in the study without appointment alterations. Focusing on adults ages 21-30, Fairbairn said over 50% of participants are students at the University. Roughly 25% of applicants are turned away because of ethical, safety and other reasons after conducting phone interviews that rely heavily on truthfulness. Due to sensitivity of the
ongoing research, Fairbairn could not disclose any details of the study. A lexa ndra Escoba r, senior in LAS, recently became a participant of the study after hearing about the research from a friend and saw it as a unique opportunity to be a part of before graduating. “As somebody whose family members have gotten sick or killed from people using alcohol, it’s very, very interesting to me to see the science and see how people can learn how to understand how the body reacts to (alcohol),” Escobar said. Working with young adults every day, the University’s Counseling Center has been operating the Alcohol and Other Drugs Program to conduct clinical assessments and prevention work with students engaging in alcohol and other substances. With students exposed to a variety of substances from alcohol to marijuana, the program aims to educate students to make informed choices and reduce potential harm brought onto themselves or others, said Tekita Bankhead, education specialist and co-chair of the Alcohol and Other Drugs Program. While the University has a very visible drinking culture, Bankhead said the program staff is aware it does not apply to every student. By ensuring students there are not as many people consuming alcohol as they think, the pressure to engage in similar behavior as their peers is lessened. “For students who are coming in, we recognize again every student is different, every approach needs to be different, but they all need to kind of have an understanding of choices and what some of their choices could look like,” Bankhead said. Justin Rhodes, associate professor in LAS, said while some people do not become addicted to alcohol, those vulnerable to addiction can develop patterns of addictive behavior from a young age. For young adults in college, being surrounded by a strong drinking culture can validate and increase
DAILYILLINI, DAILYILLINISPORTS
INSIDE
Police
2A
Prevalence of alcohol use amongst college students in 2015 Prevalence of drinking in ages 18-22
Life
&
Culture
4A
|
48.2% drank alcohol in the past month
College students
Other persons of same age
Prevalence of binge drinking in ages 18-22
37.9% reported binge drinking in the past month
32.5% reported binge drinking in the past month
College students
Other persons of same age
SEE JUUL | 3A
INSIDE
Prevalence of heavy alcohol use in ages 18-22
12.5% reported heavy alcohol use in the past month
8.5% reported heavy alcohol use in the past month
College students
Raising tobacco purchasing age beneficial?
Other persons of same age
PAGE 6A Source: National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
CHANTAL VACA THE DAILY ILLINI
the amount of alcohol consumption an individual might take. “It starts at this age. So it’s not to be a small fraction of the people out there but making it part of the culture and allowing it, considering it perfectly acceptable and mak-
@THEDAILYILLINI, @DI_OPINION, @DI_SPORTS |
58.0% drank alcohol in the past month
Crossword
5A
ing the community at large, drinking can increase risk for addictions to start,” Rhodes said. Fairbairn said even if the culture does not affect you, it is important and essential to think about the culture you are playing into and how it influ-
THEDAILYILLINI |
Opinions
6A
ences others. Differentiating from other drugs, severe alcohol addiction can produce significant brain damage. While some harm is reversible, psychological associations with alcohol are dif-
@THEDAILYILLINI |
Letters
6A
|
Sports
Local drag show encourages self expression
SEE DRINKING | 3A
PAGE 2B
THEDAILYILLINI
THEDAILYILLINI
1B
4B
|
Classifieds
|
Sudoku
THEDAILYILLINI 4B
|
buzz
6B