TECHNICIAN
thursday september
25 2014
Raleigh, North Carolina
technicianonline.com
Correction regarding flu shot Technician article
ABHILASHA JAIN/TECHNICIAN
Thomas LaBean, associate professor at NC State and Alexandria Marchi, a postdoctoral researcher, have devised a solution to create DNA structures larger in size than what could be achieved using conventional DNA synthesis techniques. DNA origami allows researchers to link DNA scaffolds with smaller bits of nucleic acid to create desired shapes.
Researchers shape and fold DNA into origami Jess Thomas Staff Writer
Researchers from NC State, Duke and the University of Copenhagen have discovered a way to synthesize larger pieces of DNA origami than previously done in a lab setting. DNA origami is the science of folding DNA into shapes at a nanoscale size. Thomas LaBean, an associate professor in material sciences en-
insidetechnician
gineering and principal investigator of the research, said DNA origami is created by folding a single strand of DNA using a set of shorter synthetic strands. “What we do is take a long single strand of DNA that is prepared from a biological source and fold up the strand of DNA using a set of short synthetic strands,” LaBean said. LaBean said, in order to increase the size of the origami, the research-
You have the right to remain silent See page 4.
NEWS Bluegrass Festival to bring folk music back to Hillsborough Street See page 5.
SPORTS Pack ready for giant challenge See page 8.
DNA continued page 3
CAIDE WOOTEN/TECHNICIAN
As flu season approaches, the Student Health Center is gearing up to keep students protected against the annual virus.
Blue Cross, Aetna, Humana, SummaCare and Coventry Health Care of the Carolinas, Inc (formally Wellpath). Students with other insurance providers can pay $25 for the vaccination at the time of service by cash or check, or they can bill the full cost to their student accounts. Students who cannot make one of the scheduled clinics can visit the Student Health Center between 9 a.m. and noon each Saturday between October 18 and November 15 and also on January 10 and 24. Flu shots are available by appointment on weekdays through the Health Center, and walk-in flu shots are available at the Student Health Pharmacy, both for $25. Nasal vaccines, which are administered through the nose without a needle, are available at the Pharmacy without an appointment for $35. Student Blue, NC State’s university approved health plan, covers 100 percent of the cost of a flu shot.
Student Senate holds town hall meeting to discuss 2015-2016 student fee increases Harrison Allen
OPINION
ers incorporated separate components of two different viruses. “We took parts of two different viruses,” LaBean said. “The large virus is called lambda phage, which is 49 kilobases and double-stranded. The smaller one is called M13, which is seven kilobases, but it only packs single strand genome.” By incorporating the different components of each virus, the re-
In Wednesday’s issue of the Technician, in the article titled “Health center offers free flu shots for students, employees,” we incorrectly reported that flu shots are free for all students, employees and employee’s family members. We apologize for the error. All students will be able to receive a flu shot at one of several clinics hosted by Student Health this fall and winter. Student Health will file insurance for each student receiving a shot, which will generally cover the full cost of the vaccination, according to Leah Arnett, the director of Student Health Services. Employees will be able to receive a f lu shot at one of the Human Resources Department events on campus, but the vaccines will not be provided through the Student Health Center. In collaboration with Maxim Health Systems, Student Health Services will host several flu vaccination clinics between October 14 and January 21 at various locations across campus. No appointment is required at these clinics. However, students will need to present a photo ID and a copy of their insurance card before being seen, according to Arnett. Students with the following insurance carriers will receive the shot for free as part of their health insurance coverage: Medicare Part B, PFFS Medicare Advantage Plans, Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina, BCMS of MA, Premera
Correspondent
Editor’s note: NC State Student Media is requesting an increase for the 2015-2016 school year. The Technician is a member of Student Media. About 16 students met to voice their opinions about proposed student fee increases for the 2015-2016 school year at a public hearing open for all students in the Talley Governance Chamber on Thursday. The students in attendance discussed the breakdown of student fees as well as the areas in which they would like to cut funding. “Our common goal out of [this meeting] is to get student input,” said Arianna Nasser, the Chair of the Tuition and Fees Committee of the NC State Student Senate and senior in biomedical engineering. Student Government will use the concerns voiced at the
meeting to guide how it votes on the proposed student fee increases. Student Senate will vote on its recommendations Wednesday. Those recommendations will be considered by the NC State Tuition Review Advisory Committee when it votes a few days after the Student Senate’s meeting. After the commitee votes to approve the increases, they will go through a few more levels of approval before they ultimatly have to be approved by the UNC-System’s Board of Governors. The current proposed student fee increase stands at 4.77 percent, but it needs to be lowered to around 3 percent, Nasser said. Many university departments that receive money from student fees each year have asked for an increases for the upcoming year to fund additional projects, positions and operating requirements. However, some of these requests for increased funds are to solely cover the cost of
living increase from year to year. “Some of [the fee increases] are just to cover inflation,” said Nasser. Some departments are requesting increases to cover mandatory salary increases. Student Health Services requested the highest budget increase, mostly to cover the cost of new counselors for the Counseling Center. In addition to the new counselors, Student Health would also like to open a facility on Centennial Campus that will add counselors and include dental services that would be open to the public. A part of the revenue generated from these dental services would go back to the university, helping negate the funding cost. University Recreation requested an increase in part to get a new athletic trainer to serve students. Some students present at the hearing were apprehen-
FEES continued page 3
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KASEY CINGEL/TECHNICIAN
David Fiala, president of the university graduate student association, helped lead the town hall meeting to discuss student fee increases on Wednesday.