Issue 4

Page 1

Violinist performs at environment conference See page 18

UD receives $9.1 mil for solar research See page 5

Hens win Route 1 Rivalry See page 28

The University of Delaware’s Independent Newspaper Since 1882

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Tuesday, September 20, 2011 Volume 138, Issue 4

VP Biden visits UD Univ. alum donates senatorial papers BY DARREN ANKROM Managing News Editor

Vice President Joe Biden returned to his alma mater Friday to donate his Senatorial papers to the university library and give the inaugural James R. Soles lecture. Biden was more professor than politician, drawing on more than 20 years of experience t e a c h i n g constitutional law. One day before the 224th anniversary of Constitution Day, Biden referenced pivotal events and political f i g u r e s Biden throughout the nation’s history, and staunchly defended American politics. “I stand before you today […] ready and willing to defend politics […] because politics is what those 50 gentlemen, who met 224 years ago, participated in and vindicated,” Biden said. “Politics. And it’s what, in the end, will continue to make us secure and strong.”

See BIDEN page 11

THE REVIEW/Marina Koren

Protesters chant, “Stop the pipeline, help us Joe!” on The Green Friday to get the attention of Vice President Joe Biden, who spoke in Mitchell Hall.

Group protests oil pipeline before speech BY BRITTANY LENNON Staff Reporter

Protestors planted outside of Mitchell Hall last week chanted “Stop the pipeline, help us Joe!” minutes before Vice President Joe Biden gave a speech inside. Nearly 20 demonstrators, holding various cardboard and cloth signs, protested the proposed Keystone XL Pipeline System during the vice president’s visit to

the university Friday. The pipeline, which would extend a crude oil pipeline that transports synthetic crude oil from Alberta, Canada to American refineries in the Gulf Coast, has drawn criticism from many environmentalists. Graduate student Amy Roe, who was arrested four weeks ago during a similar demonstration in front of the White House, said she was excited to

get a chance to reach Biden. “Nothing feels better than being in front of a beautiful building, holding a sign and standing up for what you believe in,” Roe said. As Biden arrived at Mitchell Hall to donate his Senatorial documents to his alma mater, demonstrators stood on The Green holding signs that read “Listen up, Joe” and “A climate change is not the change we are looking for.”

Graduate student Chad Wasileski said he hoped the protest would persuade the vice president to consider advising President Barack Obama to reject the proposed pipeline. “We’re here to put a bug in Joe Biden’s ear,” he said. The Keystone Pipeline would be powered through a process called

See PROTEST page 12

Techno bus loses lights, music for safety regulations BY TOM LEHMAN Managing News Editor

File photo

Nader Assawah, the driver of the famed techno bus, must downsize his vehicle’s club-like atmosphere due to safety concerns.

1 News

14 Editorial

15 Opinion

The techno bus may have dropped its final beat. University Transportation Services prohibited the adornment of party lights and speakers to the interior and dashboards of its buses, when they realized such devices violated federal safety regulations, university officials said. Transportation Services employee Nader Assawah, known by students as the “techno bus

17 Mosaic

driver,” said he was informed that party lights and iPod speakers he brought onto his bus to create a club-like atmosphere during latenight shifts, are no longer allowed because of the potential for injuring riders. “They told me I could play music on the radio, but it doesn’t have the same character,” Assawah said. Assawah, who has operated the techno bus for more than four years, said he has not regularly covered the Hen After Ten route in months, but

21 Day Trippin’

had planned to pick up a portion of a late-night shift. He was told he could not attach his lights to the cabin of the bus or place his speakers on the dashboard of the vehicle. Transit Supervisor Tim Conrad said department officials realized the university could be held liable if one of Assawah’s devices fell from its post and struck a student. He said the department feared a lawsuit if a student was injured during an accident or within the course of

27 Classifieds

See TECHNO page 13

28 Sports


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