THE INDEPENDENT DAILY AT DUKE UNIVERSITY
The Chronicle
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 23,
2009
ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTH YEAR, ISSUE 24
WWW.DUKECHRONICLE.COM
Duke student Krueger sheds light on Africa’s plight robbed on by
Matthew Chase THE CHRONICLE
Burundi, a small country located in the center of Africa, is among the poorest countries in the world. But the country’s economic woes are not the only issues it faces—about 300,000 people died there during a civil war that lingered for much of the 19905. Former Sen. Bob Krueger, D-Texas, who served as the ambassador to Burundi during this period, spoke at the fourth Super Tuesday event this year. Discussion centered around Krueger’s experience as ambassador to both Botswana and Burundi, where conflict between the Hutu and Tutsi tribes has contributed to a decades-long conflict that some have deemed a genocide. Super Tuesday is a speaker series hosted by the Duke Political Union. Krueger, who was a Duke professor for 12 years, a vice provost and the dean of Trinity College, told approximately 40 students Tuesday night that American involvement in the situation was minimal, even though the number of deaths was substantial. “Why didn’t they care?” Krueger said. “The United States and theworldknew that slaughter was going on, and they didn’t give a damn.” In addition to discussing U.S. policy in Africa, Krueger —who co-wrote the 2007 book “From Bloodshed to Hope in Burundi: Our Embassy Years During Genocide” with his wife—shared stories of witnessing the conflict. Krueger said he asked himself every day what he could do to save the remnants of democracy and to save human lives. He shared one example when he examined two dead bodies that had been left after an army raid of a town.
Campus Dr. by
Emmeline Zhao THE CHRONICLE
A student was robbed at gunpoint Tuesday night, according to the Duke University Police Department. The incident took place at approximately 9:45 p.m. when the student was walking on Campus Drive near the East Campus Steam Plant. According to Duke police, a dark, fourdoor vehicle pulled over and the passenger exposed a handgun, demanding the student’s backpack. The car took off on Campus Drive, driving away from East Campus. The student was not injured. The suspect was reported to be a bald, black man of large build in his 30s wearing dark pants and a loosely fitting dark sweatshirt. Duke University Police Department Chief John Dailey and Assistant Chief Gloria Graham could not immediately be reached for comment Tuesday night. DUPD officials on duty Tuesday night could not provide further details. A DukeAlert describing the incident was e-mailed to the Duke community Tuesday night at approximately IT. 16 p.m. in accordance with the Clery Act. The act mandates that universities notify their communities in a timely fashion about on-campus crimes that may pose an ongoing threat. SEE'ROBBERY ON PAGE
4
Former Sen.Bob Krueger, D-Texas, who served as the ambassador to Botswana and Burundi, shares his experiences from Africa to approximately 40 students during the fourth Super Tuesday event.
SEE KRUEGER ON PAGE 5
Study uses game theory to slow spread ofdiseases by
Sabrina Rubakovic THE CHRONICLE
Peng Sun,associate professor at the Fuqua School ofBusiness, researched the study thatused gametheory to contain outbreaks at their origins.
Students sick with the flu can take solace knowing that their coursework can be applied to minimizing the spread of their disease. A Fuqua School of Business study, published May 25, applies game theory to fighting the flu. At a time when numerous countries are preoccupied with developing and distributing a vaccine for the HINI virus to as many people as possible, the study shows that giving away a nation’s medicinal resources to another is the most effective way to curb the proliferation of disease. Researchers from Fuqua and the European School of Management and Technology determined policymakers’ optimal course ofaction when an epidemic breaks out in a neighboring country that has little access to vaccines and medication. Based on a game theory-like approach to this scenario, it would be in the best interests of developed countries to allocate their medicinal resources to the country in which the epidemic originated, referred to in the study as “country zero.” “This sounds like an altruistic action, but it is actually selfishly beneficial,” said Peng Sun, a researcher for the study and associate professor at Fuqua. He added that this strategy works to stop the disease at its point of origin, thereby significantly reducing the spread of disease into
ontheRECORD “The Football Fest is basically football meets state fair."
—DUU Special Projects Director Christie Falco, on Homecoming weekend. See story page 3.
the surrounding developed nations. The study also highlights the benefit of a centralized approach to the allocation of medicinal resources. Researchers found that more countries are likely to donate their resources if they make a collaborative decision to do so, rather than if countries are left to make individual decisions. Organizations such as the United Nations and the World Health Organization could carry out this centralized planning by facilitating the creation of contracts between nations, mandating that each country donate resources to a country experiencing the outbreak of a disease. The research, though hypothetical in nature, gives valuable insight to policymakers by displaying the value of collective decision-making over singular decision-making. The second phase of the study will explore what the best course of action is when a disease has spread to multiple countries, such as in the current case of HIN1 —commonly known as swine flu, said Liu Yang, a researcher and Fuqua graduate student. The Obama administration is fighting swine flu with an approach similar to the one proposed by the study. Last week, PresidentBarack Obama announced a plan to allocate 10 percent of the U.S. swine flu vaccine supply to Mexico. Ifreality follows themodel developed in the study, this action could greatly reduce the proliferation of swine flu in the United States.
Men's Soccer: Evening showers Blue Devils survive UNCW on rainy night at Koskinen, PAGE 6
Ik-on Sriyd :excem
farifllrotfafi
m\