Daily Egyptian WEDNESDAY, APRIL 29, 2015
DAILYEGYPTIAN.COM
SINCE 1916
VOL. 99 ISSUE 54
Students Clouds rumble in as the banjo twangs start relief campaign for Nepal austin Miller | @AMiller_DE More than 5,000 people are already confirmed dead after Saturday’s earthquake in Nepal. To help send aid back home, members of the Nepalese Student Society of Carbondale have created a fundraising campaign on GoFundMe.com and are taking donations in the Student Center and Morris Library this week. Ramesh Neupane, a doctoral candidate in higher education, said the group is trying to raise $35,000, but once they reach $2,500, they can withdraw the money and disperse it. He said some of it will go to the Red Cross, but they are looking for agencies in Nepal to deliver aid swiftly. “If we give to the Red Cross, it will take some time to reach Nepal,” Neupane said. “We are trying to find a valued organization in Nepal where we can directly wire transfer our donation for them to use immediately.” Finding the right aid program to donate to was an important choice for the group. Diwash Gautam, a graduate student in plant, soil and agriculture systems, there has been recent political instability and several scam websites preventing money from reaching those who need it. He said the Red Cross is great way place to donate because some non-governmental organizations, or NGOs, may not use all the money they receive in Nepal. “A lot of NGOs can use the money to further their own interests,” he said. “We just want the money to be utilized for help and peace, not for war or to the fill the pocket of someone else.” Conditions in the mountainous country are expected to worsen as landslides have occurred from subsequent aftershocks. An estimated 200 people are missing after a landslide on Tuesday hit north of the capital city of Kathmandu. Basanta Dahal, president of the Nepalese Student Society, said small earthquakes were frequent in Nepal, but this was the largest to occur in more than 80 years. Please see NEPAL | 3
H oliday W agner | @HolidayWagnerDE Daniel Meeks, a traveling musician called “Foots” from Champaign, plays his banjo as the storm clouds rolled in on Saturday at the intersection of East Frontage Road and North Giant City Road. “I had a house up in Illinois but vandals flooded it, so my choices were to be homeless or to go to California, and that’s where I found her [his dog, Poodle].” Meeks said he has been traveling ever since, with his dog by his side. He plans to head to Baltimore where he wants to perform a different type of sound by mixing his folk punk music with his friends’ rapping.
Concrete Canoe Team paddles to nationals sHaWn BoWen | @ShawnBowen_DE Winning a race in a boat made of concrete would seem ridiculous to many, but one group of SIU students rowed such a boat past all other regional competitors. The Concrete Canoe Team, sponsored by the SIU chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers, won its regional competition last weekend at the University of Kansas, and will move on to the national competition for the first time in the 20-year history of the team. Sanjeev Kumar, chairman of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, said he is confident the team will do well at nationals because of its determination and hard work. “It’s more than a six-month process to go through — getting their design ready, their materials ready — and it’s a whole team effort the day they pour the concrete,” Kumar said. Team captain Michael Esker said the process of creating the canoe begins with deciding which type of concrete and shape would be best. This year’s team has 18 active members, but to create the boats, the team was divided into
It’s more than a six-month process to go through — getting their design ready, their materials ready — and it’s a whole team effort the day they pour the concrete.” - Sanjeev Kumar Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering Chairman
four sub-teams so everyone can participate. The canoe’s mold was made with help from the architecture department’s Computer Numerical Control machine. The machine can take a computer-aided design file and make precise cuts of the design out of plywood. The boat stretches 18 feet 9 inches long and is painted black with “007” in white on the side. To continue the James Bond theme, the boat also features “Carbondale Royale” painted on the outer wall.
Esker, a senior from Teutopolis studying civil engineering, said although this year’s team deserves enormous credit for bringing home the trophy, the concrete canoe tradition is passed down from year-to-year with contributions from past members. “Some of the guys that I had on the team last year came up with some excellent ideas that we re-used this year and were able to perfect,” he said. The national competition will be held at Clemson University June 20 to 22.
@dailyegyptian There will be a candlelight vigil to honor the lives lost in the Nepal earthquake at 7 p.m. Thursday in front of Faner Hall.