Multimedia: This Week in Sports talks about the United States’ chances in the World Cup Online
Student named in the top 10 contestants in the Miss Alabama Pageant Page 3
Men’s tennis lands at No.13 in the continuing State of the Program power ranking series Page 6
The Auburn Plainsman A Spirit That Is Not Afraid
Thursday, June 12, 2014 • Vol. 121, Issue 4, 8 Pages
campus
Toomer’s Corner turns high tech
Food
Silva Cells structural system installed at construction site Nicole Fulkerson News Writer
Construction crews have finished installing the high-tech foundation of the soon-to-be renovated Samford Park to ensure the longest possible life for the new Toomer’s Oaks. Silva Cells, an underground structural system, have been placed below where the future trees will be transplanted to reduce soil compaction for optimal root growth. “Anytime you are putting in roads or sidewalks, you always have to compact, and using the Silva Cells is like a replacement for compaction,” said Brenda Guglielmina, southern regional manager at DeepRoot. Beneath the bricks of the plaza and the pavement of the sidewalks, several layers, including sand and bedding material, are placed on top of the Silva Cells plastic frame. The crate-like cells are filled with soil and allow water to reach the roots. Some of the cells are used as a bridging technique to connect the sidewalks
to more open soil, but most of the cells will be used to benefit the trees. “Soil volume is directly connected to how large and how vibrant the trees will be,” Guglielmina said. “It allows the soil within the Silva Cells to do what you would want soil to do in a prairie or forest – let water infiltrate through it freely and let roots grow freely.” Silva Cells have been used in urban construction projects in the United States, Canada, Asia, Europe and Australia. Samford Park is the first location in Alabama to use this technology. “It allows the roots to grow up under the sidewalk to the other side,” said Jeffery Dumars, assistant director of campus planning and space management. “We cannot build a better urban growing condition for trees,” Dumars said. Construction crews were able to dig up nearly all of the contaminated soil, but could not reach under the gates or
sidewalks. An impervious tarp-like lining will be installed around these areas to ensure no poison will reach the new trees. The goal of this summer’s construction is the removal of all contaminated soil and the preparing for the new trees to be transplanted in early 2015. All aspects of the project will benefit the life of the future trees, even the planting date. “It’s best to transplant trees in the winter when they are dormant,” said project manager Ben Burmester. “Anything we can control, we want to control.” The new plaza will include a circular seating area and the total size will remain approximately the same size as it was before. The transplation of trees of the project is planned to be completed by August, and be functional for football season. Project managers are still working with the city to decide on a course of action for the rolling wires.
Luke PopwelL/ photographer
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The billboard reads:“He alone, who owns the youth, gains the future”-Adolf Hitler.“Train up a child the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.”- Proverbs 22:6.
raye may / photo and design editor
The billboard was covered with a black sheet the day after it was put up.
Hitler billboard hits nerves on the highway Ben Ruffin
News Reporter
An Opelika youth ministry has been under fierce scrutiny the past week after a billboard featuring an Adolf Hitler quote was erected. The billboard was put up in the Village Mall in Auburn, then covered with a black sheet a few days later. The billboard fea-
tured five children, a quote from Adolf Hitler and a Bible verse. The Hitler quote read: “He alone, who owns the youth, gains the future.” The quote was taken from a 1935 speech in which Hitler tried to raise interest in Nazi movement. Below the Hitler quote was a Bible verse from Proverbs 22:6 which read:
“Train up a child the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” According to Lamar Advertising Company’s Montgomery office, the billboard was rented out by Life Savers Ministries based in Opelika.
» See Billboard, 2
charlotte kelly
Eating like a caveman Students and alumni share opinions of the Paleo Diet
Rachel Davis Intrigue Writer
The premise behind the Paleo Diet: If a caveman didn’t eat it, neither should you. The Paleo Diet is named after the Paleolithic era. The foods allowed on the diet are intended to mimic what cavemen ate during this period. The foods allowed on the diet are grass-fed and pastureraised meats, eggs, vegetables, fruits and nuts. Excluded foods include anything thought to be an agricultural product: grains, legumes, dairy, potatoes, refined sugar, salt and processed oil. The diet was first popularized in the 1970s, but has lost much of its acclaim. Recently, the diet has gained the attention of alternative health professionals and dieters alike, and has even found its way to the Plains. “I did the Paleo Diet for about a month,” said Darby Stanton, recent Auburn graduate. “Alcohol was my one exception.” Kelly Tsaltas, Auburn alumna, and Matt Villarrubia, senior in software engineering, are both abiding by the diet for 30 days. “(Matt and I) needed the structure and rigidity of a strict healthy diet to get ourselves started [on the diet],” Tsaltas said. The diet is restrictive, as Stanton and Tsaltas have attested, but for Villarrubia, this aspect was appealing. “The diet made me focus and deal with less food,” Villarrubia said. However, when asked about the most difficult part of the diet, Villarrubia listed the lack of dairy, beans, rice and bread as a major issue. Stanton said she finds the lack of Paleo choices at restaurants difficult to find. “I found Paleo to be extremely limiting in today’s society,” Stanton said. “If you go
out to eat, what are you going to order? Spinach leaves in olive oil?” Stanton also points out being on the Paleo diet can be expensive when someone is on a college budget. Although there are people who praise the benefits of Paleo dieting, some do not find the diet logical. “The underlying premise behind the Paleo diet is that the ills of modern human health can be traced back to the Agriculture Revolution,” said Alexander Roberson, Auburn agriculture alumnus. “But man existed for millennia after the Agriculture Revolution with grains and dairy in their diet just fine.” Roberson said the real problem with modern society’s health is the increased consumption of sugar and the decrease in physical activity. “It’s a health-food fad that is quick to demonize,” Roberson said. “While it is tempting to trace back our eating habits to a time before obesity, it is important to remember we left the Paleolithic age for a reason.” Despite the drawbacks, Villarrubia said there were definite advantages to the Paleo Diet. “I lost about 15 pounds and was more energetic for sure,” Villarrubia said. Tsaltas said she is going to continue to carry on some of her lessons from the experience. “I added in [to my Paleo Diet] dairy, bread, that doesn’t have preservatives that I get from the farmers market, and macaroni and cheese,” Tsaltas said. “That’s it.” Stanton does not agree with this sentiment. “I just really love eating and some of the things I couldn’t eat were pretty outrageous,” Stanton said. “I stick to about an 80 percent Paleo diet now, so I don’t absolutely loathe myself if I eat the mac and cheese at The Hound.”