10 | FRIDAY, AUGUST 26, 2011
HURRICANE from page 3 local response efforts to Irene’s expected damage. “Pray for the best, prepare for the worst,” Perdue said at a press briefing Thursday. “That’s what we do in North Carolina.” The storm, which hit the Bahamas on Thursday as a Category 3, may strengthen to a Category 4 or 5 over warm waters in the Atlantic, Ellis said. It will most likely be Category 3 or 4 when it reaches the Carolina coast, with winds between 111 and 155 miles per hour. On campus, upperclassmen were permitted to move in one day early—Thursday as opposed to Friday—to avoid traveling in poor weather, Vice President for Student Affairs Larry Moneta wrote in an email to students Tuesday. In an email to The Chronicle Wednesday, Moneta added that administrators made the decision not long before sending out the message to the student body. “I’m not in a position to comment on either weather predictions nor how safe folks will be traveling,” Moneta said. “I do encourage everyone who is traveling over the weekend to keep a close eye on conditions and take every prediction to be safe.” Sophomore Amanda Griffis wrote in an email Thursday that she plans to move in early as an extra precaution. She originally planned to travel with her family by car from Florida but has now decided to take the train. “We know better than to fully trust hurricane path predictions,” Griffis said. “Hurricane Jeanne was supposed to veer away from Florida.... Instead, it did a full loop and came directly at us, taking our roof off while we were inside.”
THE CHRONICLE
Durham County Emergency Management is primarily preparing for heavy rain and strong winds from Irene, said Mark Shell, an emergency management coordinator for the group. Though the topography of the Triangle area makes flooding a minimal concern, fallen trees and power lines could be a potential hazard for residents. “We have very scripted plans as to how we prioritize handling damage to essential infrastructure,” Shell said. “Loss of power in facilities like hospitals will get attention first.” In particular, the state or county may declare a state of emergency and implement a curfew to keep residents from traveling outside, Shell noted. The most recent state of emergency declaration came during a snow storm in 2000, he added. Hurricane Irene will be the second natural phenomenon to leave its mark this week. A magnitude 5.8 earthquake struck Virginia Tuesday and caused tremors along the east coast, including the Triangle area. Despite reports of sporadic tremors shortly before 2 p.m. Tuesday, there were no reported injuries or property damage on or near campus, said Kyle Cavanaugh, vice president for human resources and emergency coordinator for the University. Caroline Rourk, administrative director of the occupational medicine toxicology program at the Duke University Medical Center, said she felt her fourth floor office on Erwin Road shake for about one minute at 1:55 p.m. Tuesday. “Everything just started moving. You could feel the building swaying side to side,” Rourk said. “I have never been in an earthquake, so everything was crazy for a second. Luckily, it didn’t last that long though.”
Global Semester Abroad:
RAJAGOPALAN from page 7 forced to pray wherever they could meet and find space on campus. [My] appointment shows a conscious commitment on the part of Duke to build bridges, learn about and validate the small community of Hindu students. I thank Dean [of the Chapel] Sam Wells and Associate Dean [for Religious Life] Christy Sapp for their vision. I hope the prayer room and Hindu chaplain position—two historical steps in promoting and honoring interfaith presence and dialogue at Duke—will open doors for other non-Abrahamic traditions like Sikhism and Jainism to also find expression in due course. TC: Can you share your thoughts on religious diversity and interfaith dialogue? UR: An institution that fairly represents the real world is a wonderful place to learn and grow. By recognizing and offering the space for the Hindus and Buddhists Duke has created a platform for expression of other non-Abrahamic traditions. When students of both faiths decided to share the prayer room, opportunities for inter-faith dialogue were created right away. Extending this experience through dialogue with the other faith traditions and attending holiday celebrations creates new avenues to learn about each other’s culture, traditions and find common threads to connect us all as one people many traditions. People of faith are significantly shaped by it. When ample opportunities for interfaith dialogue are offered, as students leave this institution to join the work force they are well prepared to trust, work and collaborate in serving the larger whole. TC: Can you tell us about the Hindu community at Duke? UR: There are over 300 Hindu students
at Duke and over 150 faculty members— a significant number for an academic institution. Kishore Trivediji, [Hudson Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering] has volunteered for over a decade as a faculty advisor for the Hindu Student Association and Leela Prasad, [associate professor of religion and faculty director of the Duke Center for Civic Engagement,] serves as mentor through the department of religion. This position would not have been possible without the support of some generous contributions from the Hindu faculty. I thank them all. TC: What challenges does it face? UR: HSA students feel that Hinduism is misunderstood, misrepresented and a few who take interest in learning about it, intellectualize it. There are many myths about our practice and the only way for the other students to appreciate and learn about our faith is to see Hindus come together and collectively make their presence felt. TC: What can students who don’t identify with Hinduism learn from Hinduism? UR: Complete freedom and choice in their practice. [Hindu] openness, universal principle of sisterhood and love and respect for life as a whole is a practice [Hindus] have embraced for over 4,000 years. As the oldest organized faith tradition and third largest in the world, it is truly beneficial for non-Hindus to know about this faith. [Hinduism’s] transformative quality is very evident in the way Americans have adapted yoga and transcendental meditation into their daily life. Yoga is no longer a Hindu Sanskrit word but part of the mainstream American vocabulary and practice .... I invite all Hindu students, faculty and members of other faith traditions to use this platform that Duke has provided us to learn from each other.
DUKE CRU
China / India—Spring 2012
Connect with Christ Meet New Friends Serve the Campus
Program highlights: x x
x x x x
One semester, two countries with program bases in Udaipur, India and Beijing, China Four Duke courses in development, environment, and global health (see website for codes and cross listings) Duke faculty directors in each country Homestays in India, dorm living in China Excursions in both countries Community-focused research projects
APPLICATION DEADLINE: September 16. Global Education Office for Undergraduates
global.duke.edu/geo
Freshman Kickoff Meeting, Thurs, 8/25 at 4pm in Carr 103. Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream Social: Thurs, 8/25 at 9:30pm next to Marketplace. Cru Freshman Picnic: Sat, 8/27, 12-2pm. East Campus Volleyball Court. First Cru Large Group: Wed, 8/31, 7:30pm. East Duke Building (East Campus). Questions? Email Cole at cem32@duke.edu