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Thursday, February 9, 2012

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Issue 21 I N D E P E N D E N T

PUBLISHED SINCE 1906 http://utdailybeacon.com

Vol. 119 S T U D E N T

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Darwin Day held at UT

U N I V E R S I T Y

Staff Writer

• Image courtesy of Charles Darwin

Despite controversy, annual event still observed to promote understanding Christopher Elizer Staff Writer Darwin Day is a three-day volunteer run event that promotes the concept of evolution and its teaching in classrooms across Tennessee. There will be an information booth set up on the Pedestrian Mall from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Tuesday through Thursday, as well as movie screenings about evolution at 11 a.m. and noon in Hodges Library, Room 213. There are also keynote speakers Wednesday and Thursday nights at

the UC Auditorium from 7 to 9 p.m. Darwin Day has been happening around Tennessee for the last 14 years. Darwin was a self-taught English naturalist who developed the theory of evolution and natural selection. During a five-year voyage that began in 1831, Darwin took detailed accounts of plants and animals as he spent most of his time on land. These accounts are the basis of his theories of evolution and natural selection. After returning to England, he published these theories and the evidence collected from that voyage in the 1859 book “On the Origin of Species.” Sara Kuebbing is a graduate research assistant in ecology and evolutionary biology and the co-coordinator for Darwin Day. Kuebbing said she believes Darwin Day is important because it is such an essential concept in science these

days. “Evolution is a central concept in biology,” Kuebbing said. “Darwin Day is meant to teach people about why it is an important concept and why it needs to be taught in science classes.” Kuebbing said the purpose of Darwin Day is not only to inform the public about evolution, but also to incorporate the theory into Tennessee’s science curriculums. One showcase of Darwin Day is a teacher workshop held on Tuesday night. Teachers are provided extra textbooks on science education, which include evolution, and curriculums that meet state standards for teaching evolution. The workshop is intended to assist teachers in the classroom while teaching evolution as a part of their science curriculum. See DARWIN DAY on Page 3

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Paralympic athlete speaks about positivity Caroline Snapp

Finches from the Galápagos Islands are depicted in the well-known drawings from Charles Darwin’s journals on evolution. The UT Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology is hosting its annual Darwin Day through Thursday, Feb. 9, which aims to inform the public about evolution and how it is seated as a major foundation to all studies in biology.

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Josh Sundquist, paralympic athlete and internationally known motivational speaker, spoke to students Tuesday night in the UC Auditorium. Sundquist has brought his message of being positive to places such as Fortune 500 companies, inner-city public schools and the White House. Sundquist lost his left leg at the age of nine due to a rare bone cancer and was given a 50-50 chance of survival. He was cured of the disease and eventually took up snow skiing. In 2006 he joined the USA Ski Team and competed in the 2006 Paralympics in Turino, Italy. He went on to write a memoir titled “Just Don’t Fall” and has gone on to become a YouTube sensation, gaining over 12 million views. His most famous video, “The Amputee Rap,” has over 800,000 views. Sundquist has also developed a large fan base on Twitter with over 18,000 followers. Sundquist speaks about remaining positive and hopeful against opposition. His speeches aim to encourage listeners to focus on the positive aspects of their lives instead of dwelling on the negative ones. Sundquist’s speeches are told through a series of stories about his life, each relating to his message of being positive. “It’s because of my disability that I was able to go to the Paralympics as a ski racer,” Sundquist said. “It’s because of my disability that I’m able to do this, to give speeches all

over the country and sometimes all over the world.” The event was hosted by the Issues Committee, a student run organization and part of the Central Program Council. Eric Dixon, a senior in economics and Issues Committee member, explained the reason for bringing Sundquist to speak with students. “We bring issues to campus that students might be interested in and we do that by bringing speakers to campus,” Dixon said. “He was proposed by Maggie Hanna on our committee, and she basically thought that some sort of motivational speaker — something that we don’t really do often — could bring a lot of interest. He’s a big YouTube sensation and we thought that UT students would enjoy to come see him.” Although mostly UT students attended the event, Sundquist did draw some out of state fans to the event. Sara Kennedy and Alexis Rivers both made the two-hour drive from Asheville, N.C. to attend the event. Both are students at the University of North Carolina at Asheville and are fans of his YouTube videos. “I really like him on YouTube,” Kennedy said. “I really like his speeches online.” Kennedy stated that she decided at the last minute to come to Knoxville to listen to Sundquist speak. “I found out about it when I watched his new video today,” Kennedy said. “I realized Knoxville was only about two hours away so I decided to come. I didn’t know I was coming until about an hour before I left.”

Russia at odds with Syrian opposition The Associated Press BEIRUT — The European Union will impose harsher sanctions on Syria, a senior EU official said Wednesday, as Russia tried to broker talks between the vice president and the opposition to calm violence. Activists reported at least 50 killed in military assaults targeting government opponents. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who held emergency talks in Damascus with Syrian President Bashar Assad on Tuesday, is trying to end Syria’s 11-month-old bloody uprising, which has left more than 5,400 dead, according to the U.N. Moscow launched the initiative on Tuesday, just days after it infuriated the U.S. by blocking a Western — and Arab-backed U.N. Security Council resolution supporting calls for Assad to hand over some powers to his vice president. Russia’s approach does not call for Assad to step down, the opposition’s chief demand, and Moscow is increasingly at odds with the Western efforts to end Assad’s crackdown. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said outside forces should let Syrians settle their conflict “independently.” “We should not act like a bull in a china shop,” Putin was quoted by the Itar Tass news agency as saying. “We have to give people a chance to make decisions about their destiny independently, to help, to give advice, to put limits somewhere so that the opposing sides would not have a chance to use arms, but not to interfere.” Lavrov told reporters in Moscow that Assad has “delegated the responsibility of holding such a dialogue to Vice President (Farouk) al-Sharaa.” He blamed both

Assad's regime and opposition forces for instigating the violence that has killed thousands of people since March. “On both sides, there are people that aim at an armed confrontation, not a dialogue,” Lavrov said. Military defectors are playing a bigger role in Syria’s Arab-Spring inspired uprising, turning it into a more militarized conflict and hurtling the country ever more quickly toward a civil war. The regime’s crackdown on dissent has left it almost completely isolated internationally and facing growing sanctions. The U.S. closed its embassy in Damascus on Monday and five European countries and six Arab Gulf nations have pulled their ambassadors out of Damascus over the past two days. Germany, whose envoy left Syria this month, said he would not be replaced. Nevertheless, Assad was bolstered by Tuesday’s visit from Lavrov and Russia's intelligence chief, Mikhail Fradkov. During the talks, the Russians pushed for a solution that would include reforms by the regime as well as the dialogue with the opposition. Assad said Syria was determined to hold a national dialogue with the opposition and independent figures, and that his government was “ready to cooperate with any effort that boosts stability in Syria,” according to state news agency SANA. The Syrian opposition rejects any talks with the regime and says they accept nothing less than Assad’s departure. In Brussels, a senior EU official said the bloc will soon impose harsher sanctions against Syria as it seeks to weaken Assad’s regime. The official said the new measures may include bans on the import of Syrian phosphates, on commercial flights between Syria and Europe, and on financial transactions with the country’s central bank.

Tara Sripunvoraskul • The Daily Beacon

Natalie Williams, senior in therapeutic recreation, rearranges words along the main hall of the UC as part of the Poetry Stick exhibit on Tuesday, Feb. 7.


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