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THE DAILY ILLINI
MONDAY October 10, 2016
The independent student newspaper at the University of Illinois since 1871
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Vol. 146 Issue 15
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Community rehabilitates gun violence offenders BY LILY MASHAYEK STAFF WRITER
There have been 84 shooting incidents in Champaign-Urbana since Jan. 1. Community leaders say they’ve had enough of the gun violence and are now taking a targeted approach to eliminate it. Nine offenders identified as being at risk of either partaking in or perpetrating gun violence were offered another chance on Thursday as part of a new program called CU Fresh Start. “Our community is facing an epidemic of gun violence,” said Urbana Chief of Police Patrick Connolly. “The goal of the initiative is relatively simple – stop the shooting.” Representatives from Champaign and Urbana brought in the offenders for a call-in where they spoke to them and encouraged them to put down their guns. “The cycle of gun violence has to stop now,” said Champaign Mayor Deborah Feinen, who was the second speaker at the call-in. “You are shooting at the community and we won’t tolerate it any longer.” Feinen said that it is not uncommon in this community to know not only those who were shot, but also the shooters. If the offenders choose to take part in the program, they will be offered help and resources from the community. “We recognize that we can’t arrest our way out of this problem,” said Champaign County Sheriff Dan Walsh. However, if they decline the offer and continue to engage in gun violence, they will face consequences such as possible incarceration. Tracy Parsons, community coalition facilitator, said the program is based on a similar one in Peoria. He said this is the first time Champaign-Urbana has had a program like this, but that “it’s important and critical.” In order to partake in the program, the offenders must be at least
PREDICTING THE ELECTION LILY KATZ THE DAILY ILLINI
Students congregate at Illini Union to watch the second Presidential Debate between Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton and Republican nominee Donald Trump. Oct. 9, 2016.
University project forecasts presidential election results BY MICHAEL SEMACA STAFF WRITER
New political polls are popping up daily to predict whether Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton will win the presidency as election day approaches. With the sheer number of polls, it’s hard to keep track of all the competing data. But a group of University computer science students have a solution. The project, “Election Analytics @ Illinois,” attempts to analyze all available polls to provide an overall sense of who is likely to win on Nov. 8. RealClearPolitics and FiveThirtyEight are similar websites but the University’s group believes it can actually predict the election better than these giants. The site’s goal is to provide a clear idea of which candidate is statistically ahead, said Sheldon Jacobson, a computer science professor who created the website before the 2008 election. “We’re nonpartisan; we don’t have any
biases,” Jacobson said. “We don’t blog about it; we simply give you the facts.” Jacobson believes their algorithms are better than FiveThirtyEight. “The algorithms that we’re using are based on fairly sophisticated methodologies that, unless you have done doctoral work, you may not understand how to use them,” Jacobson said. Their methods were published in peerreviewed journals on their website. Most websites do not let visitors see their techniques for determining polling numbers, he said. “We’re very transparent, and we let people see exactly what we do,” Jacobson said. “We’re not trying to promote one candidate or another, that’s not our job. We don’t care.” Unlike other websites, Election Analytics takes the raw data each poll gives and uses their rigorous algorithms to present the odds each candidate has of winning if the election were held that day.
If the U.S. voted today ...
SEE FRESH START | 3A In favor of Trump >75%
LAS offers new global markets minor this fall
Chance of winning (270+ electoral votes) 0.00%
In favor of Clinton >75%
Chance of winning (270+ electoral votes) 100.00%
Toss up
SOURCE: ELECTION ANALYTICS @ ILLINOIS AS OF OCTOBER 9, 5:00 P.M.
As of Sunday evening, the group determined Hillary Clinton a 100 percent chance of being the next president, with Donald Trump having a zero percent chance. This is significantly more extreme than other websites; for example, FiveThirtyEight says Clinton has a 81.3 percent chance of victory, with Trump having an 18.7 percent chance. Jacobson acknowledged this discrepancy, but believes in the system he and his students have designed. But some people remain skeptical, he said. “They say, ‘Wow, how could this be possible?’’ Jacobson said. “But once again, I always say, ‘Look at our record,’ and when you look at the deeper analysis we’ve done, it’s like, ‘This is pretty interesting.’” The group does have a successful record; in 2008, their model correctly predicted the outcome of every state with the exception of Indiana. In 2012, their model again accurately predicted every state except one: Florida. Sophomore in Engineering, Niraj Pant, who works on Election Analytics as a web developer, said there are a few possible reasons for the discrepancy between their website and others. Unlike other poll aggregators, he said, Election Analytics doesn’t do anything to mess with the data. “Not many people report about this, but a lot of sites skew their results to look more favorable and to increase pageviews,” Pant said. He said they are not looking for pageviews, but instead want people to see results. Pant decided to do research at the University in order to work on a project like Election Analytics. He is pleased with their ability to compete with such big websites. “We’ve seen other research groups take pieces of our model, so it’s incredibly validating to see it being proven in the real world,” Pant said. semaca2@dailyillini.com
ALYSSA VOGT THE DAILY ILLINI
Students gather to celebrate Mahatma Gandhi
BY SABRINA YAN CONTRIBUTING WRITER
The College of LAS is offering a new minor in Global Markets and Society this fall. The application period began on Sep. 15 and is open until Oct. 15. The minor is offered through the Global Studies department and focuses on topics such as corporate social responsibility, fair trade, global supply chains and sustainable business practices. “The curriculum focuses on how markets interact with institutions such as the governments or intergovernmental organizations, and people, individuals like you and me, in a global sphere,” said Dr. Tanu Kohli, acting associate director of LAS Global Studies and instructor of GLBL 270, one of the required courses. In order to complete the degree, students are required to take GLBL 270: Global Markets
BY ASHNI GANDHI STAFF WRITER
On Thursday, retired University professor Rajmohan Gandhi spoke to a crowd about a birthday observed around the world: his grandfather’s birthday. Why was it so special? His grandfather was Mahatma Gandhi. “Why don’t we celebrate the birthday of Franklin D. Roosevelt, Winston Churchill? These are two great contemporaries of Gandhi,” Rajmohan Gandhi said. “We know that in some ways, Gandhi was seen as a miracle worker because he mobilized millions in India from a very large and diverse population.” Rajmohan Gandhi’s speech was the keynote of the Indian Student Association’s Gandhi week, commemorating Mahatma Gandhi’s birthday on Oct. 2. Mahatma Gan-
SEE GLOBAL | 3A
dhi was the leader of the Indian independence movement in British-ruled India. The fundraiser spanned the whole week and included handing out fl owers with Gandhi quotes, selling samosas, collecting change from passers-by and holding a Fast-a-thon. All of the money raised was donated to the Wesley Food Pantry and Heifer International. Rajmohan Gandhi spoke about his grandfather and the change he spurred, as well as that ideology applies to students. Discussing prejudice, he encouraged fi nding mutual understanding to resolve confl ict. “There has to be a desire to tackle and confront prejudice,”Rajmohan Gandhi said. “In other situations, you have to befriend and win their
confidence.” Priya Vaikuntapathi, a freshman in LAS, appreciated Rajmohan Gandhi’s responses to audiences looking for guidance on
one’s life path. “It makes me think about what I do, and I have to do it for a cer-
SEE GANDHI | 3A
Crouch almost the hero hero against Purdue
Editorial: The problems with locker room talk
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