I N D I A N A D A I LY S T U D E N T | M O N D AY, M A R C H 9 , 2 0 1 5 | I D S N E W S . C O M
Freshman dies in car crash From IDS reports
Amanda Ludwig, an 18-year-old IU freshman from Hebron, Ky., and her mother Elaine Ludwig, 59, died in a car accident at about 11:40 a.m. Saturday, according to the Boone County Sheriff ’s Department. Amanda and Elaine were traveling westbound in a Pontiac Grand Prix on I-275, just outside of Cincinnati, according to a BCSD press release. The Pontiac came to a complete stop in the right lane. A semi driver behind them swerved to his left and
avoided a collision, but another semi behind him was unable to avoid the car and ran into the rear of the Pontiac, according to the release. The impact caused the vehicle to burst into flames. Amanda and Elaine died as a result of the impact and fire, but Boone County Deputy Coroner Missy Rittinger said she could not confirm the cause of death, and it is still under investigation. The driver of the semi, Ronnie York, 63, of Greenwood, Ind., was reportedly uninjured. His tractor trailer was hauling general freight, according to the release.
Amanda and Elaine are survived by Jay Ludwig, Amanda’s father, Rittinger said. Because of damage from the impact and fire, a bridge inspector was called in to examine the structure, according to the release. The Boone County Sheriff ’s Office Accident Reconstruction Unit is investigating the collision. If you knew Amanda and would like to talk to us for a memorial piece, send an email to campus@idsnews.com. Suzanne Grossman
Music professor dies in Bloomington From IDS reports
Professor of Music and director of the IU Singing Hoosiers Steve Zegree died Saturday in Bloomington. Zegree was 61 years old, according to a press release from the Jacobs School of Music. Zegree was born May 5, 1953 in Vancouver, Wash., according to the press release. He joined IU’s music program as a faculty member in August 2012, which
is the same year he was inducted into the Downbeat Jazz Education Hall of Fame. He directed the Singing Hoosiers Zegree and the Vocal Jazz Ensemble at the music school, according to the press release. “It’s a huge loss for the Jacobs SEE ZEGREE, PAGE 8
IDS
To save a species By Matt Bloom | aambloom@indiana.edu | @matthew_bloom
In his hands, he cradles a mold of an orangutan skull. The animals he worked with every day at the zoo, the animals he dreamed about as a child, are disappearing. Dr. Robert Shumaker remembers the trip to Borneo. There were more than 200 baby orangutans crammed into cages by the dozen. Watching the doctor with their brown eyes, their long fingers clung to the metal bars. As he stepped between the cages, he realized he was looking at what could be the last generation of orangutans on Earth. He brushed his finger against their tiny hands. That was 15 years ago. Now, through a thin opening in the exhibit window, another orangutan reaches toward him. This one has never seen a rainforest, never climbed a tree outside of the United States. Dr. Robert Shumaker — almost everyone calls him Dr. Rob — places a paper cup full of banana chunks in the open palm. The orangutan tilts the cup into his mouth. “All right, Azy. Ready?” When he walks around the Indianapolis Zoo, he carries himself with a sense of focused urgency. At 51, Dr. Rob is known for his research on the cognitive abilities of orangutans. He’s more than 6 feet tall and wears plaid shirts tucked into khakis. He nevers calls his demonstrations shows. People think less of apes, he believes, when they’re made into a spectacle. Dr. Rob has worked with Azy for more than 30 years. He calls Azy his colleague and his friend. Through his daily demonstrations, he pins his hopes for the future against the threat of extinction by showing people how similar we are to orangutans. The 250-pound orangutan slouches against the wall of glass. Behind him, fire hoses dangle like vines above the concrete floor. His orange-brown fur is thick and long, covering his back and legs, with
matted tassels hanging from his arms. Wide cheek pads frame his dark brown eyes, which scan the room of people. Dr. Rob turns to Azy while attaching a body mic to his collar. “Check, check.” He looks out at the crowd. “Let’s get started.”
MATT BLOOM | IDS
Top Dr. Robert Shumaker-Dr. Rob, 51, looks at Azy, his colleague and friend of more than 30 years, through the window of the learning studio at the Indianapolis Zoo. When it opened last May, the Simon Skjodt International Orangutan Center became the largest research and conservation exhibit of its kind.
* * * His most vivid childhood memory is standing in his sneakers, lunchbox in hand, watching an orangutan at the National Zoo. He was only 5 years old, but he still remembers the large, round face and the small, intense eyes staring back. He saw a humanness there. He wondered what the orangutan was thinking. Ever since that day, he’s wanted to work in a zoo. Dr. Rob first met Azy in 1981, as a high school volunteer in the National Zoo’s Ape House. He made sure the animals were safe and the exhibit was clean. Whenever he got the chance, he held informational classes for zoo visitors. Azy was already a juvenile. His impressive cheek pads hadn’t formed yet. Rambunctious and
COURTESY PHOTOS
Middle Azy points to a flash card of the symbol for apple as a part of Dr. Rob’s research at the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. During the past three decades Dr. Rob has taught several orangutans the symbols for more than a dozen objects, including other orangutans. Bottom Dr. Rob visits Azy at the Great Ape Trust of Des Moines, Iowa. Dr. Rob lived and worked with Azy in Des Moines, Iowa for several years before transferring to the Indianapolis Zoo in 2009.
SEE ORANGUTAN, PAGE 6
Fuller Projects opens interactive 2-part art installation By Sanya Ali siali@indiana.edu | @siali13
Upon entry, the stark white room is divided into two spaces. The left has music and activity; a wall of white balloons obscures view of what happens inside. A dark curtain hides the right side, and no activity is apparent besides the footsteps of other patrons. The latest installation at the Fuller Projects, “Why Ask Y,” opened Friday night. The show by Nelson
Kaufman and Ben Jaggers had two parts: a more traditional gallerytype display on the right and an interactive activity with the artists themselves on the left. Vincent Edwards, coordinator of the Fine Arts workshop down the hall, said he attended the show to get a better idea of what the students he works with do in their studio time. This exhibit, Edwards said, created an entertaining experience for all attending.
“That was a really fun and engaging environment they had created in there,” Edwards said. “It seemed like they had a lot of people’s attention riveted and caught up in the moment nicely.” Senior Anna Goldfarb said she had no experience with the Fuller Projects before but, upon suggestion from a friend in the BFA program, she attended this show. “We went to another art opening tonight and wanted to check out this one out,” Goldfarb said. “I’ve
always wanted to come see inside the school, I always walk by it.” According to Goldfarb, the experience resonated with her because of a memory of the sort of game they played on the interactive side. The challenge the artists posed was for patrons to join in to keep a piece of light plastic in the air by blowing underneath, never touching the piece with their hands. “I always used to play that game SEE FULLER, PAGE 8
“That was a really fun and engaging environment they had created in there. It seemed like they had a lot of people’s attention riveted and caught up in the moment nicely.” Vincent Edwards, coordinator of the Fine Arts workshop down the hall from the Fuller Projects