News

News

IFC reforms punishment process

By Jenn Roberts | April 22, 2002

Because of the continual occurrence of policy violations, the Inter-Fraternity Council-Judiciary Council is attempting to revamp its regulatory system and tackle grievances head-on. Specifically, the IFC-JC hopes to enforce two new structural reforms: increased enforcement of chapter standards boards in every house and the addition of creative sanctions. Chapter standards boards will serve as mini-judiciary committees within each fraternity, comprised of house members with the purpose of decentralizing the IFC-JC's disciplinary power.

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M&A sector reports devastating first quarter

By Kadie Bye | April 22, 2002

As the U.S. economy begins to emerge from recession, the mergers and acquisitions sector has found itself as one of the hardest-hit financial industries.

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UJC mulls revision of statute of limitations

By Nick Chapin | April 22, 2002

The University Judiciary Committee continued to confront the flaws in its statute of limitations in a meeting yesterday, where new UJC judges sat down to discuss what has been accomplished over the past year and what still needs to be done. The statute of limitations currently allows complaints to be filed up to 45 days after an incident, but controversy has arisen over whether the filing period is too short.

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Harvard attempts to quash grade inflation

By Kevin Hechtkopf | April 22, 2002

The Educational Policy Committee at Harvard University wants to change Harvard's grading scale to deter grade inflation.

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Albemarle County eliminates gun law at Sheriff's request

By Ben Sellers | April 22, 2002

The Albemarle County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously Wednesday to remove a national background check from its concealed weapons ordinance. The board elected to repeal a 1997 county law that required a national record check for those applying for a concealed weapons permit. The decision to amend the law came at the behest of Albemarle County Sheriff Edgar Robb, who told the Board the system was ineffective, Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Sally Thomas said. "It doesn't sound like a dramatic change," said former sheriff Terry Hawkins, who served during the introduction of the second background check.

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Wal-Mart earns top spot on Fortune 500 list

By Adrienne So | April 22, 2002

Attending college as a first year means making certain adjustments. For many students, this is the first time they will be wrestling with the constraints of a budget.

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Protesters support Palestinians

By Chris Wilson | April 22, 2002

Protesters flocked to downtown Washington, D.C., by the thousands Saturday afternoon to bring national attention to several causes, including the plight of Palestinians in the Middle East. First-year College student Reema Hijazi, who was among a number of University students who attended the demonstration, stressed that the purpose of the protest was simply to support the Palestinian people and to bring attention to the injustices they have suffered. "I don't support suicide bombing at all," Hijazi said.

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U.Va. officials visit Arizona telescope site

By Nikki Rohrbaugh | April 19, 2002

The University came closer to resolving the continuing controversy over a proposed Arizona telescope this week, as several officials visited the Mount Graham site in question. Five University representatives visited the mountain where astronomers plan to house the Large Binocular Telescope project, on land that Apache Indians consider sacred. With a $10 million gift from University alumnus Frank Levinson, specifically earmarked for the astronomy department, the University hopes to achieve its priority of joining the LBT project.

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News in brief

April 19, 2002

A Monticello Association committee has recommended that descendants of Thomas Jefferson's slave Sally Hemings not be allowed full membership in their organization. According to the Richmond Times Dispatch, James T.

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Graduate students may face more duties

By Abby Fox | April 19, 2002

The administration and various faculty members are working to soften any added constraints graduate students may experience, including teaching more classes next year, as a result of University-wide budget cuts. "I'm trying to create new courses and sections for undergraduate students next year, as well as new opportunities for graduate students to teach," College Dean Edward L.

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Spring Fling hosts more prospectives

By Jenn Roberts | April 19, 2002

This year's Spring Fling - a weekend of social and informational events for prospective black students at the University - enjoyed a heightened turnout during its official kick-off last night in Webb Lounge, where guests were welcomed and registered. Of the approximately 600 black students offered admission to the University for next fall, approximately 130 students and their families are expected to participate in this weekend's events.

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General Assembly approves referendum

By Paul Quinlan | April 19, 2002

Gov. Mark R. Warner earned an important political victory when the General Assembly reconvened Wednesday and approved a Northern Virginia sales tax referendum that could alleviate traffic congestion in the region. The proposal to increase the region's sales tax by a half-cent, to a level of 5 percent, incited strong partisan conflict early in the legislative session, when House and Senate lawmakers insisted that a portion of the funding be earmarked for education.

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Board of Visitors to review plans for new arena

By Alexis Unkovic | April 19, 2002

While University students spend hours at the library studying for finals, the University will take another step forward on plans for the new basketball arena set to replace University Hall by April 2006. On May 9, "we are taking the schematic drawings to the Buildings and Grounds Committee of the Board of Visitors," University Architect Pete Anderson said.

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Black Voices relinquishes funds prior to audit

By Chris Wilson | April 18, 2002

The Black Voices vocal group withdrew its request for financial support from the Student Activities Fund at the Student Council meeting Tuesday evening after receiving notice that the appropriations committee had introduced a bill to audit the group's finances. Council is in charge of allotting the SAF to student groups based on their demonstrated financial needs.

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Why do I feel more awake after drinking coffee?

By Cavalier Daily Staff | April 18, 2002

The simple answer is coffee's high caffeine content. Whether you get your fix from sodas, coffee or tea, this natural compound is involved in two distinct mechanisms that get your heart racing. Caffeine blocks the body's natural tranquilizing ability by inhibiting the way brain cells interact with another chemical called adenosine. Caffeine also increases the amount of dopamine, the 'feel good chemical' in the body. Dopamine is a member of the class of chemical compounds known as neurotransmitters, which facilitate communication between nerve cells. "Adenosine acts as a sedative in the brain - it makes you sleepy," said Joel Linden, professor of cardiovascular medicine and biophysics and molecular physiology.

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University's affirmative action plan remains intact

By Josh Goodman | April 18, 2002

While legal challenges progress against affirmative action, the policy still remains a very real part of the University, affecting both student admissions and faculty recruitment. The University is legally obligated to use affirmative action in both hiring and admissions, said Karen Holt, director of the Office of Equal Opportunity Programs. The Office of Equal Opportunity Programs is the University's administrative branch that is largely responsible for developing and implementing affirmative action programs. The University's affirmative action policy in faculty recruitment is multi-faceted. Affirmative action in employment "is more than just opening the door to anyone who wishes to apply, but requires taking affirmative steps to review and alter policies, as well as undertaking recruiting targeted to groups who have not historically been represented," Holt said. Annually, the Office of Equal Opportunity Programs reevaluates the University's employment practices and analyzes employment data to see whether minority groups are underrepresented in comparison to their availability, Holt said. All of this information plus the University's plans to address any problems that the data reveals is laid out in a massive report known as the Equal Opportunity Plan. Though the University's policy on affirmative action in employment is complicated, University President John T.

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MGC selects executive board members

By Sharon Lynch | April 18, 2002

A new set of faces was selected Monday to fill the positions on the executive board of the Multicultural Greek Council Third-year Engineering student Emmanuel Smadja was elected president, while third-year College student Chieko Clarke became vice-president. Other important elections to head the council were second-year College student Melody Han as treasurer, third-year Nursing student Po Soo-Hoo as secretary and third-year College student Virginia Min as historian. This year, MGC plans to try to raise awareness of its presence by working to improve communication between fraternity and sorority councils within the University and the local community, Smadja said.

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Students attend Anti-Oppression Day rally

By Martin Olivier | April 18, 2002

The Big White Tent outside Newcomb Hall hosted speakers from around the country for Anti-Oppression Day yesterday. The event, in its second year, brought together spokespeople from different advocacy groups to give speeches about what they see as injustices against populations around the world. "We wanted to unite all the forces fighting oppression around the world," said Bokar Ture, vice president of the Griot Society.

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Broadband links University hospital to rural areas

By Rebecca Brooks | April 18, 2002

Doctors in earlier times traveled far and wide to treat patients. With cutting-edge telemedicine technology, however, doctors now can visit the same patients without ever leaving the clinic. Telemedicine takes advantage of modern video conferencing equipment and other technologies to conduct patient consultations and public health classes, giving even rural areas easy access to specialized medical care. This month, Congress approved a grant allocating $25,000 to a project linking Patrick County Community Hospital with the University, making the rural Virginia hospital the 14th of its kind. The grant is the first of six to be awarded to different rural communities nationwide, housing more telemedicine sites in southwest Virginia than anywhere else in the country. "We have a world class medical center right here, but there are many places in Virginia where one is hard to get to," Telemedicine Deputy Director Richard Settimo said. "If a patient out in southwest Virginia was told they needed to come all the way to Charlottesville to see a specialist, they just wouldn't come," Telemedicine Medical Director Karen Rheuban said.

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When music sounds like chocolate

By Andy Kinley | April 18, 2002

For one person, the taste of mint is described as the shape of "cool glass columns." For another, hearing music conjures up images of gold balls, flashing lines and oscillating waves. These individuals exhibit synesthesia, a strange and uncommon condition that scientists have yet to unravel. The word synesthesia is derived from Greek words meaning "joined sensation." The condition broadly is defined as the inability to differentiate between assorted sensory stimuli. "There are people who feel shapes when they taste.