Niner Times- April 26th, 2012

CAMPUS CRIME COMPARISON

LIFESTYLE

NEWS

THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2012

Statistics on campus crime over five years show change in offenses over time.

See how sex offenses, aggravated assault, larceny and more have changed on campus.

p. 3

WEIRD FOOD IN CHARLOTTE

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What sort of meat could you be eating?

Discover interesting cuisines found in some Queen City kitchens. p. 8

NINERTIMES TIMES Thursday, April 26, 2012

Published twice weekly and online at www.nineronline.com

A product of Student Niner Media • The University of North Carolina at Charlotte • Partially funded by Student Fees • Breaking News? Email us at editor@nineronline.com or call 704.687.7148

New on NinerOnline.com: Catch the last several NinerTV episodes before exams start next week.

Working to vaccinate breast cancer

Elizabeth Bartholf

EBARTHOLF3@UNCC.EDU

For 15 years, Dr. Pinku Mukherjee has worked to develop a vaccine for patients with breast cancer. The vaccine works by targeting specific proteins in the cancerous tumors associated with breast cancer. The ultimate goal is to boost the patient’s immune system to destroy breast cancer cells using the body’s own defenses.

“I don’t see there is any other way to completely fight [cancer] other than programming your own body to fight it,” said Mukherjee.

Mukherjee, Irwin Belk Distinguished Scholar of Cancer Research and professor of cancer biology at UNC Charlotte, thinks the future of cancer treatments can be found in using vaccines

that boost the patient’s own immune system to fight cancerous tumors, just like vaccines are used to prevent viruses.

“The only thing that has really revolutionized our health care over the years is vaccine.

We have been able to eradicate many diseases because of good vaccines. In my mind, [vaccines] will be one of the biggest ways that we can [fight] cancer,” she said.

A recent clinical trial at the Mayo Clinic tested the effectiveness of the vaccine. About 40 breast cancer patients were given doses of the vaccine over several years. Patients had already fought primary tumors and were in the remission phase. The vaccine is designed to help patients in this stage to fight the recurrence of tumors.

Mukherjee hopes for further

Following the clues MCT Campus

Sarah Obeid SOBEID2@UNCC.EDU

Scientists in a lab work on various research projects. MCT Campus

CANCER p.3

The Avengers: Unite!

Niner Times names new Editor-in-Chief Ciera Choate NEWS@NINERONLINE.COM

Captain America, played by Chris Evans, and Hawkeye, played by Jeremy Renner, in Marvel Studio’s upcoming film “The Avengers.” The film will be in theaters May 4, 2012. Photo courtesy of Marvel Studios.

AVENGERS p.6-7

LIFESTYLE

A&E

Daily Tastings: Interested in

COUNTY ARTIST COMES TO CAMPUS

a wine tasting? Rocky Rover Vineyard holds daily tastings and tours Tuesdays through Sundays.

Grape flavors: Learn how dif-

ferent colored grapes make different flavored wines.

Spring Festival: Rocky River Vineyard’s annual Spring Festival is coming up. Food, music, wine and more! p. 9

The Niner Times has named their Editor-in-Chief for the coming school year, who will resume her position after May 1. Haley Twist has worked with the Niner Times for the past two years holdHaley Twist. ing the Assistant A&E Editor, A&E Editor, Lifestyle Editor and Managing Editor positions.

Twist is a communications major with a journalism and film minor. She hopes to pursue a career in newspaper or magazine focused journalism.

SPORTS

OPINION

RON PAUL Student speaks out against misconceptions concerning Ron Paul and his

Country performer Brantley Gilbert

policies.

comes to campus Monday, April

Whether you are for or against his campaign, this is a must free.

30, to perform in Halton Arena with Brian Davis.

Will you be in attendance?

p. 7

MEN’S BASEBALL LOSES 5-12

p. 11

p. 5

Hard crimes like murder don’t usually strike on campus. Until now.

Niners on the Weekend (NOW) is hosting a Murder Mystery Dinner event Saturday, April 28, 2012, at 7 p.m. in the Student Union. The show is free and open to all UNC Charlotte students.

“This event will be fun and exciting. Actors get up on stage and each plays a part in some sort of theme,” said James Contratto, assistant director for student activities of weekend programming.

During the show, a murder will take place and each actor will give his or EVENT her account of the incident and alibi.

What: Murder The audience Mystery Dinner determines who committed the When: Sunday, murder. They are April 28, 2012, at allowed to do in7 p.m. terviews with the Where: Student cast members and talk to them one Union on one. The entire show is an interactive experience for the audience.

“The actors are actually in the Charlotte area. [NOW] brings in actors from a company who specializes in murder mystery shows. These people are professionals,” said Contratto.

As far as the dinner meal goes, a lemon and garlic dish will be served along with salad, sweet corn, potatoes with parsley, a vegetable medley and cake.

“We are expecting a little over 100 students to attend the dinner. It should last one hour and a half to two hours,” said Contratto.

NOW hosts this event primarily because it is a part of the regular series for activities. Contratto believes students will always come out to a murder mystery dinner, especially a free one. Students will be wrapped up in the show; it is just that entertaining.

“UNC Charlotte has put on a murder mystery dinner night twice now. The last murder mystery night turned out to be pretty successful. Students have always been interested in an event like this,” said Contratto.

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THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2012

NINERTIMES

NINERONLINE.COM

A closer look at campus crime Ciera Choate

NEWS@NINERONLINE.COM

Recently it has been reported that crime at UNC Charlotte has declined by 30 percent. The Niner Times took a closer look at each type of crime and found that not all crime is down by 30 percent.

Since taking the position of Chief of Police in November of 2009, Jeff Baker has made changes in the department he feels were necessary to ensure the safety of students at the university.

“I wanted to assess what we did, how did we conduct the controlling efforts. I wanted to have a more direct drive to where officers have a specific direction throughout the day,” said Baker.

When Police and Public Safety sees crime rise in a certain area or at a certain time they will alter their routes to better suite the needs of the campus.

Also since taking office Baker has put in place accountability meetings where each officer has to account for all crime that takes place in their assigned area.

Violent offenses on campus from 2006-11 6

Number of incidents

5 4 Sex Offenses Aggravated Assault Robbery

3 2

THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2012

NEWS BRIEFS

SGA approves new student organization

EPIC gains $2 million in donations

UNC Charlotte’s Student Government Association (SGA) approved the new Airsoft organization during last week’s meeting. The group organizes games for students at the university, and any student can participate.

For more information students can check out their Facebook page – UNCC Airsoft. Ciera Choate

AREVA Inc. recently committed $2 million to UNC Charlotte’s Energy Production and Infrastructure Center (EPIC). The company also hired twice as many UNC Charlotte graduates than any other N.C. university in 2009-10. Ciera Choate

Recreational Services hosts “49 Days of Fitness” For the third year, the UNC Charlotte Recreational Services Department will host “49 Days of Fitness,” a summer day camp program. The camp is 10 weeks long and will begin Monday, June 11.

The camp is meant to teach campers leadership and team-building activities as well as traditional outdoor and fitness activities. Camp leaders will also test camper’s fitness each week to determine the camper’s progression. The program may also include off-campus field trips.

The program is open to third through eight grade children of UNC Charlotte faculty and staff, as well as in the surrounding community. Registration is open until the camp is full and registration is final after June 1. To register go online at the Recreational Services’ website or call Dan Johnson at 704-687-0437. Eden Creamer

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Niner Times now hiring 2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

Year

2011 Source: Police and Public Safety

Campus burglary and larceny from 2006-11 600

Number of incidents

Burglary Larceny

400 300 200 100 0

The student newspaper at UNC Charlotte is currently holding interviews for all editor positions. News Editor, Lifestyle Editor, A&E Editor, Opinion Editor, Sports Editor, Copy Editor and Layout Editor positions are all available. To schedule an interview email editor@nineronline.com.

Ciera Choate

Honors student receives prestigious award

500

2006

2007

2008 Year

2009

2010

2011

Source: Police and Public Safety

Walking to cure AIDS Malcolm Carter MCARTE72@UNCC.EDU

Saturday, May 5, 2012, UNC Charlotte will take part in the 16th annual Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) Walk Charlotte. According to their website, AIDS Walk Charlotte is the largest Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) awareness and fundraising event in the Carolinas and visually represents the community’s commitment to people HIV and AIDS. “Multicultural Resource Center [(MRC)] has had a team for the last three years,” said Ted Lewis, the team-captain of the MRC’s AIDS Walk Charlotte.

“Our team has won ‘Best Youth Team’ for the last two years, raising well over $2,000 each year.”

Although the event is free to participate in, a $15 donation is suggested. All proceeds from the event stay in Charlotte and benefit the Regional AIDS Interfaith Network (RAIN). RAIN promotes respect and

dignity for people who are affected by HIV through compassionate care, education and leadership development.

The MRC encourages students to participate in AIDS Walk Charlotte in two ways. They first ask student organizations and students to form their own teams or join the MRC’s team. The MRC also rallies students to contribute with monetary donations.

“HIV/AIDS is something that affects our community here at UNC Charlotte, and we believe students need to be educated on this subject and give back to the larger Charlotte community,” said Lewis.

Participants will walk three kilometers through the historic Fourth Ward in uptown Charlotte. It begins at the Gateway Village Atrium at 10 am.

To sign up students should visit http:// www.aidswalkcharlotte.org and register with the UNC Charlotte MRC team or start their own team.

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Undergraduate student of biology and psychology Casey Rimland has been announced the recipient of an eight-year scholarship. The scholarship is sponsored through the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Oxford Cambridge Scholars Program.

Rimland will attend medical school at UNC Chapel Hill for two years, NIH for two years, Oxford or Cambridge for her Ph.D. for two years and then spend her final two years at UNC Chapel Hill.

The scholarship provides not only full funding of her advanced studies tuition, but health insurance, a $25,000 annual stipend and a yearly $3,000 for travel. Eden Creamer.

Hunt for Norm begins UNC Charlotte is looking for next year’s Norm the Niner. Students interested in auditioning to become Norm should attend the informational meeting Tuesday, May 1, 2012, in the Student Activity Center room 221 at 5 p.m. The meeting is open to all UNC Charlotte students.

Those interested in the position but are unable to attend the meeting should contact Aimee Schmidt at aimee.schmidt@ uncc.edu. Eden Creamer

Forum hosted at Center City UNC Charlotte’s Center City campus will see the second annual N.C. Smart Grid Forum Tuesday and Wednesday, May 1-2, 2012.

The forum, “Forging the Future in Smart Grid Excellence,” will include speakers from the private sector, government and utilities. CEO of Duke Energy James Rogers will serve as this year’s keynote speaker.

Registration is required. Information on the conference and registration is available online. Eden Creamer

Belk College maintains accrediation Belk College of Business has been authorized to keep their business and accounting accreditation by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) International.

Confirmation of continued accreditation was received April 10, 2012.

To maintain accreditation from AACSB, a school must undergo internal review every five years which assesses the program’s standards of faculty qualifications, resource management and student/faculty interactions.

Less than 5 percent of business schools worldwide, or 649 schools, have earned this accreditation.

Only 178 of these schools have also earned the accreditation for their accounting programs.

The Belk College of Business was the first business school in the Charlotte region to earn accreditation when it first received the honor in 1984. Eden Creamer

Mukherjee found her opportunity at the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Ariz., where she worked for 11 years with fellow researchers development and testing of the vaccine developing the vaccine for breast cancer. and says many patients from the trial have Today she works on campus with her seen positive results. graduate and doctoral students improving “There were some promising results and the vaccine. Mukherjee anticipates further promising immune responses. More work clinical trials at the Mayo Clinic and is usneeds to be done and more patients need to ing a similar approach to develop a vaccine be enrolled for pa[in further tients with trials]. pancreatic It completey changed their lives. I [The vaccancer. wanted to do something about it cine] is still After very much four years if I ever got the chance. in the reteaching s e a r c h and re-Pinku Mukherjee phase,” she searching said. at UNC Even during childhood Mukherjee knew Charlotte, Mukherjee still hopes to see a she wanted to use her interest in science to need for expanded cancer research at UNC help fight cancer, especially breast cancer.

Charlotte.

“My aunt was diagnosed with breast “I envision having a center for cancer cancer, and I saw how it affected my cousins research [with] faculty from various disciwho I went to school with. They completely plines [including] environmental scientists, blocked themselves off [from everyone] toxicologists, chemists, bioengineers and and would not play or laugh. It completely biologists. You need all these [disciplines] changed their lives. I wanted to do some- to come together to make something really thing about it if I ever got a chance,” she big happen [in cancer research],” she said. said.

CANCER from p.1

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NINERTIMES

THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2012

Police Blotter

ACCIDENT April 13

• West Deck, two vehicles backing out of opposite parking spaces struck each other in the rear.

April 14

• Poplar Terrace Dr., victim’s vehicle was struck by another driver.

April 16

• Lot 19, driver was struck by another vehicle while backing out of a parking space.

ASSAULT April 16

• Holshouser Hall, subject was pushed to the ground by an acquaintance.

CALLS FOR SERVICE April 18

• McMillan Greenhouse, officers responded to a call in reference to a fire due to an electrical shortage.

April 19

removed property that was left unattended and unsecured.

• Rowe building, unknown suspect removed property that was left unattended and unsecured.

• Student Activity Center, suspect removed property without permission.

• Smith building, unknown suspect removed property without permission.

April 14

• Cameron Blvd., unknown suspect attempted to enter victim’s vehicle.

April 15

• Student Activity Center, unknown suspect removed property that was left unattended and unsecured.

• Student Union, unknown suspect removed property that was left unattended and unsecured.

April 18

• Student Activity Center, unknown suspect removed property that was left unattended and unsecured.

• Student Activity Center, unknown suspect removed property that was left unattended and unsecured.

• Rebecca Bailey Dr., officers assisted CMPD in an attempted robbery.

• Old Concord Rd., officers assisted CMPD with a larceny case.

April 19

• Avebury Dr., officers assisted CMPD with a domestic incident.

POSSESSION

April 20

CYBER BULLYING April 14

• Lynch Hall, victim is being harassed via email and text messages by an acquaintance.

LARCENY April 13

• Recreational Field #13, unknown suspect

• McEniry building, unknown suspect forcibly removed cell phone from victim’s hand.

April 15

• PVA Lot 6, suspect found in possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia.

VANDALISM April 19

• McCall House 2, officers responded to a call in reference to graffiti.

Man arrested on larceny charges Katrell Smith, 18, was arrested on campus by UNC Charlotte Police and Public Safety Friday, April 13, 2012, around 7:30 p.m.

Smith was arrested for removing property from the Student Activity Center without permission of the owner. He was found in possession of the stolen items, which were valued at over $200. These are misdemeanor charges.

Smith is not a UNC Charlotte student.

Eden Creamer

Man arrested for possession Korey Reynolds, 25, was arrested on campus by UNC Charlotte Police and Public Safety Sunday, April 15, 2012, around 11:30 p.m.

Reynolds was arrested in PVA Lot 6 for the possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia, both of which are misdemeanor charges.

Reynolds is not a UNC Charlotte student. Eden Creamer

NINERONLINE.COM

THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2012

OPINION NINERTIMES Volume 24, Number 51 A PRODUCT OF

Students misinformed about Ron Paul Margaret Daly M D A LY 1 2 @ U N C C . E D U

LOCATED IN THE LOWER LEVEL OF THE STUDENT UNION NINER TIMES • RADIO FREE CHARLOTTE SANSKRIT • MEDIA MARKETING • NINERONLINE

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Ciera Choate

Hannah Hillson

OPINION EDITOR

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LAYOUT EDITOR

Joshua Wood

Lee Pham

Ryan Pitkin

Christian Billings

ASSISTANT EDITORS Eden Creamer, Barry Falls Jr., Travis Durkee, Nathan Butler, ADDITIONAL STAFF Sarah Obied, Ashley Smith, Jordan McSwain, Maurii Davenport, Scarlett Newman, Malcolm Carter, Elizabeth Bartholf, Christina Mullen, Olivia Stott, Jordan Scheno, Anna Leatherman, Tricia Bangit, Gwen Shearman, Margaret Daly, Michael Brennan, Sequoia Dozier, Asha Roper, Samantha Glenn, Patrick Bogans, Caitlin Evanson, Tadd Haislop, Holli Garrido NEWSROOM: 704.687.7149

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PROMOTIONS COORDINATOR

Dalton Mitchell

With the presidential elections only months away the debates are heating up about which candidate is most eligible. Ron Paul is a very popular candidate among college students but there are many students who strongly dislike him.

A major problem I have with individuals who take a stance is that they are often uninformed or misinformed when it comes to Ron Paul and his policies.

Many misconceptions about Ron Paul include that he does not support things like minimum wage. Ron Paul simply does not support a federal government mandated minimum wage but if a specific state wants to set a lower limit, they can. However, what many people do not understand is that minimum wage does not necessarily need to be mandated by the government. If a company could pay workers less the could produce cheaper goods. If they pay too little workers will find jobs elsewhere but if they pay their workers too much

Erica Watts

they will suffer.

What people do not realize is that even with out government intervention, the economy will regulate itself. It is when regulations get put in to place that workers get paid less because the company is not doing well on its own.

At this point, another regulation must be added to protect

If you are a proponent of making your own decisions and leading your own life, Ron Paul is the only viable option.

the workers. This trend continues until you have a bureaucracy in place that resembles America’s. The only rational, unbiased fix to this problem is to remove the regulations and allow the people to make their own decisions, which Paul strongly supports. These maneuvers would protect our individual liberties, a central theme of Paul’s platform.

Another misconception the populous has is that he is rac-

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CIRCULATION STAFF Ryan Jenkins, Tyler Johnson, Cody Poarch

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government’s place to force it upon them to do so. Basically the big controversy comes down to whether or not you think the government should be able to control what you do.

For his own moral reasons, Ron Paul does not support gay marriage, like many other Americans. However, he states that it should be up to the states to decide whether they will allow gay marriage. To dislike him because of his personal views,

which in no way affects his running of the country, would be the same thing as anti-homosexuality: hatred of a personal viewpoint. People have different opinions and if states were able to make their own laws you could potentially move to the state whose views were most similar to yours. With millions of people living in this country it is impossible to expect everyone to abide by the same set of rules.

Paul realizes people are not all going to agree with him and that is perfectly okay. With Ron Paul, it is not about what he believes but what the people vote and agree upon that matter. He sticks with what he says although many people criticize him for it.

If you are a proponent of making your own decisions and leading your own life, Ron Paul is the only viable option.

Otherwise, you get a corrupt politician trying to strip more of our rights away. It is up to you, though, just do your research before formulating an erroneous conclusion.

Which is your priority: your job or school

Caitlin Evanson C E VA N S O N @ U N C C . E D U

SALES TEAM Vince Freeman, Kayla Jocobs, Emmanuel Loredo, Joe Pelosi

ist. As we all know, many things that politicians say can be twisted to sound either good or bad.

What Paul was stating when he said he did not support the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was that private businesses should not be forced by the government to do anything. Never does he state that businesses shouldn’t serve minorities, just that it’s not the

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CIRCULATION MANAGER

Karen Pierce

PAGE 5

It seems that in today’s society most college students have a job. Whether it be for extra cash, to pay bills, raise a family or any other reason, we all seem to be extremely busy.

I would know because that is the lifestyle I live. I am constantly busy but I still make time for friends and have a little downtime when I can. But college is important to me.

Someday I want to work at a job that pays more than minimum wage, lets me work 40 hours a week, maybe have the weekends off and offers me benefits. I want to have a job where I could make enough money to maybe raise a family or just settle down in general. It seems that these days going to college is a prime factor in getting that sort of satisfaction.

“It’s like having two full time jobs,” said sophomore Melanie Edwards, a UNC Charlotte student. “It seems that everybody here has a job and it’s exhausting.”

Edwards is right. Going to school is almost exactly like having a full time job but you bring it home with you.

With college classes comes homework, papers, exams and everything else. It gets so exhausting, especially when you have to work right along with it. So what do you do? Do you choose school or work?

Sophomore Chelsea Grace said, “I know that eventually my college degree will get me a well paying job that will help me in life but it’s hard to put the future over the present. As with every other college student I am in need of money for college books, tuition, gas, rent, phone bill and food.”

And she’s right. Eventually, if we stick with going to school and graduate we should be able to find a decent job that pertains to our majors. But it’s not always the case. Sometimes it takes a little longer to find a job you want.

When money is a big issue in your life it is definitely hard to say no to working. I’ve had times where I’ve been called into work when I know I should be studying for a test.

It’s hard to say no to that extra $30 though.

When you think about what you can buy with that extra money like gas, food or just necessities in general, sometimes choosing work over school seems to be the best decision to make. So what do we do when these situations happen?

I say go with the flow. If you feel that you should honestly be sitting at home, doing homework then do it. If you have a big exam coming up and you know about it ahead of time, which we always do, then maybe try to make your schedule so that you work three days in a row and then have two days off before the exam. This would help to squeeze in extra study time without the hassle of work.

So next time your boss calls you and asks you to come in two hours early or stay four hours late that night just remember what that college degree is going to get you.

Saying no isn’t going to hurt anyone. They can always find someone else who doesn’t have a ten page paper to write to work instead.

Letters to the Editor Do you want your voice to be heard?

TIME TO

STAND

OUT FROM THE CROWD Send your thoughts to editor@nineronline.com

PAGE 6

NINERTIMES

THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2012

A& V E NGERS: THE AVENGERS

BY THE NUMBERS

62 6 5 30 7 64

Thousand “likes” on a Facebook page of fans asking Fox to bring back Whedon’s television program “Firefly.”

Times Lou Ferrigno has voiced the Hulk.

That includes “The Avengers.”

Academy Award nominees in the cast alone. If that included the production crew, the number would be much higher.

Plus minutes cut from the original runtime, which was over three hours.

Number of seasons Whedon’s supernatural drama “Buffy” ran, not including the spin-off “Angel.”

Year Joss Whedon was born in New York City.

Director Joss Whedon talks process of creating the big Barry Falls Jr

B FA L L S 4 @ U N C C . E D U

On the writing process Half of writing a script is writing visually, figuring out how you need it to look and feel as much as what they’re going to say.

The process, therefore, was pretty organic, particularly because we had such a tight schedule.

They needed some things to be worked on, set pieces and action sequences, before I’d even written the script.

So I was writing visual cues, action and descriptions before I had finished structuring the story, since we knew where we were going.

So all of that was happening all at the same time.

So it was very difficult structurally to figure out how to make it work, but in terms of the process, very organic because it was all, everybody in the pool.

On childhood experiences that prepared him for “The Avengers” Well, the fact that “The Avengers” are all really, really messed up people, I think is a fine reflection of me.

With “The Avengers” itself, the thing I loved was that it was- one, the comic books; it was a little bit steeped in science fiction that.

Marvel was known for its gritty realism and Spider Man was sort the template for [the fact that] they could just be people in New York.

And even though the Avengers made their home in New York, they were so often out in that space and dealing with artificial intelligence and grand beings from another world, and gods and monsters.

And I love that element. That’s definitely a part of the film.

On mentally preparing to carry on the stories of the established super heroes with a fervent backing I am the fervent backing, so it wasn’t that hard to key in. I’ve done a lot of work for things that already exist.

I’ve worked on “X-Men,” I wrote an “Alien” movie, although

not necessarily the best one.

Even on a TV show, even if you’re the one who established them, every time you write a script you’re dealing with an established universe. So, it’s not hard for me to fall into the cadences of these people. In fact, it’s a lot easier when you’ve already seen them being acted in the other movies.

On maintaining a directing style of “The Avengers” prequels There’s no way you could make a movie that looked like a Jon Favreau, Kenneth Brown, Joe Johnston, Louie Lettieri movie.

You have to take from each of themthe thing that is useful and will jive with the rest of them.

I do think the DNA of the Marvel movie begins with “Iron Man,” and that’s very grounded in the reel.

I tend to be a tiny bit florid with my camera work and my dialog, but hopefully in a way that feels like a realistic version of a comic book universe.

So it is the way that I can reconcile the different styles.

My own style is actually kind of smack dab in the middle of what all those guys do.

On the shooting location of “The Avengers” Cleveland had some financial advantages rebate wise, and that’s always a big thing for Marvel.

And then, they also were very, very accommodating in terms of letting us blow up their city. Filming there was actually a joy.

Cleveland is a really cool place, and it has a lot of great culture, it has a lot of great restaurants, and I’d been in the desert for almost a year.

So by the time I got to Cleveland, it was like being in Versailles. It was so opulent and fun.

And it had so many locations that worked beautifully for so many different places without hardly any dressing.

Particularly Stuttgart and New York were the two main places that it was replicating.

We were able to shoot so much practi-

cally because of that. It was very, very gratifying for us, and the people were really, really welcoming.

On becoming like Nick Fury and handling creative differences on the set I felt very much like Nick Fury. He’s the director of S.H.I.E.L.D., literally, and that puts him at a remove from everybody even if he likes them.

He knows he’s putting them in harm’s way. Hopefully I’m not putting my actors in harm’s way.

Hopefully I’m not even making them uncomfortable, but I’m not nearly as intelligent or manipulative as Nick, and I didn’t have as many problems because my actors actually wanted to be together.

They enjoy each other.

But you do feel that responsibility that you have to get all of these people to give their best.

For him it’s in battle, and for me it’s when we’re rolling to really come up with their best stuff and play off each other as well as possible, and you have a great responsibility to service them with your camera at the same time.

So definitely felt some of the pressure, but I can see out of my left eye.

On the most interesting characters to watch interact The tragedy of the movie is that you don’t get to have scenes of everybody interacting, because everybody is so interesting up against each other.

I would say I love the Bruce Banner- Tony Stark relationship. Bruce Banner’s the first guy Tony Stark comes across who operates on his level intellectually and who isn’t a villain.

The way Tony nudges him, and Tony’s particular attitude about the Hulk is endearing and cool.

NINERONLINE.COM

ASSEMBLE!

THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2012

PAGE 7

Country artist stopping at Halton

s to Niner Times about the ggest summer blockbuster But I also love Tony and Steve and how much they can’t stand each other.

And I’m very invested in Natasha and Hawkeye and their deep, deep friendship, so… I love them all. But I also love Tony and Steve and how much they can’t stand each other.

And I’m very invested in Natasha and Hawkeye and their deep, deep friendship, so… I love them all. I hate this question.

Advice he would give students in college My advice would be to sit down, now you’re in the director’s chair.

We live in an age where anybody can make a movie. If you have a phone, you can make a movie.

Okay, maybe not a huge movie, maybe phone sized, but it’s there. When I came up, you wrote a script, and

you hoped and hoped.

Or you raised enough money to make a short film.

Things are different now and the best way to get your work out there, not just as an offering to somebody else to hope they’ll make it, but to show yourself as a filmmaker, and to learn as a filmmaker is just make movies. There’s no excuse not to now.

On how his screenwriter father and grandfather influenced his work They were both enormously funny men. They both worked extremely long hours for their jobs.

They are cold and distant and frightening like me. No, my dad’s actually a teddy bear. I learned a great deal about story from my dad.

Sometimes just inadvertently by listening to him or watching him or reading what he did.

Very often he’d just throw down a little piece of advice. I find that almost without exception, the things he said to me are the things I carry the most.

What power he’d like to have I would have the power of invisibility, and then I wouldn’t have to show up for as many shooting days.

On how he became attached to the project I’ve known Kevin for a while. I’ve known comics for a lot longer, and I think Marvel has a great nose for a director who has a passionate vision, who’s not famous for turning out bigbudget hits, but will bring something a little bit fresh to the concept of a hero movie.

It’s one of the things that I respect the most about them. And so it just seemed like a good fit.

The only other movie I’ve m a d e had a

“

We live in an age when anybody can make a movie. If you have a phone, you can make a movie.

“

-Joss Whedon

very similar problem.

How do you structure a story that some people know very well, other people don’t know at all?

You have eight main characters and they’re all friends already.

So it seemed like a fit. I think they regret it now, but too late, baa- haa.

On why students should see “The Avengers” this summer I think The Avengers is the kind of movie that I grew up wanting to make and thought they had stopped making.

When I grew up, the summer movie was literally created as a concept, and all my life I wanted to do something like that, something like the first “Indiana Jones,” something that was steeped in character, in love of the genre that it was portraying, had intelligence, had real acting, had a story that unfolded and wasn’t just a sort of big premise that you already knew going in or isn’t based on Parcheesi or something just because it has a name.

For the full interview, visit NinerOnline.com

Photo courtesy of The Valory Music Co.

Patrick Bogans

PBOGANS@UNCC.EDU

Good ol’ country music will be back in full force at UNC Charlotte Monday, April 30, with headliner Brantley Gilbert.

He will be performing at the Halton Arena with special guest Brian Davis.

Gilbert has made his stamp on the country music industry recently with his single from the album “Halfway to Heaven.”

The sophomore album was initially released in 201o, but it was re-released as a deluxe edition in September 2011 after Brantley moved from Average Joe’s Entertainment to Valory Music Group.

Its most popular single, “Country Must Be Country Wide” reached number one on the U.S. Billboard Country Songs Chart soon after its release in November.

The single has since shot Gilbert to fame as a solo country artist, and his album hit number two on the Billboard Country Albums Chart the same month as the release of the deluxe edition.

Both the single, and the album as of this past weekend, have been certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America.

Brantley Gilbert relcently announced that he was nominated for “Country Music’s Best New Live Act” by the Country Music Awards.

Established in late 2007, Gilbert’s current record label, Valory Music Co. also produces music from the likes of Reba, Justin Moore, Thomas Rhett and Jewel.

Gilbert had tons of success as a songwriter even before his popular solo recordings.

Gilbert co-wrote the song “Dirt Road Anthem” with Colt Ford and wrote the song “My Kinda Party” for Jason Aldean and his 2010 album “My Kinda Party.”

Gilbert also performed the songs on his first album, “Modern Day Prodigal Son” and revisited “Dirt Road Anthem” on his newest album.

Gilbert’s newest single, “You Don’t Know Her Like I Do” has also done well in the charts, peaking at number 13 on the Country Billboard Chart.

Supporting Gilbert is Brian Davis, a Carolina raised country singer with many different influences.

Loving music from Matchbox Twenty to the Counting Crows, Davis’ country style gives a little more twist.

Doors will open at 7 p.m. Music will start at 8 p.m. Student tickets start at $15.

PAGE 8

NINERTIMES

THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2012

Where a Niner’s spare moments go READ A GOOD BOOK?

PICKED UP A GOOD NOVEL LATELY? WE’D LOVE TO HEAR ABOUT IT. WRITE US A REVIEW.

EMAIL LIFESTYLE@NINERONLINE.COM

The weirdest food in Charlotte ‘Bossypants’ is a winner Scarlett Newman SNEWMAN6@UNCC.EDU

Ethiopian food is one of the more exotic cuisines found in the Queen City. Injera, a spongy flatbread, is used to pick up the food in place of conventional utensils. Photo/ MCT Campus Tricia Bangit TBANGIT@UNCC.EDU

Sure, Charlotte has its known sandwich spots and go-to places for your everyday food, but the Queen City also has its fair share of eccentric and downright strange dishes. These foods range from the supersweet to the barely cooked. Below is a list of where you can find some of this fare, but be warned that it is not for those who have sensitive or picky stomachs:

meat Ostrich meatloaf While Sir Edmond Halley’s on Park Road serves pretty standard fare including fish and chips and shepherd’s pie, it also has a very odd item on its dinner menu: ostrich meatloaf served with vegetables and mashed potatoes. Who knew that people eat ostrich?

Elk chop

sweets Gulab Jamun Passage to India on University City Boulevard is one of many Indian restaurants in Charlotte that serves this dessert. Gulab Jamun consists of cheese balls that are fried and soaked in sugary syrup. While the idea of having cheese for dessert sounds odd, these little balls of sweet goodness taste more like donuts. A plate of these little syrupy balls is $2.99.

Mochi ice cream Made up of little scoops of ice cream that are covered in sticky rice cake, mochi ice cream is a somewhat difficult dessert to eat. People tend to either hate it or love it. Either way, it can’t be denied that this is a unique way to eat ice cream. Simplee Sushi in Ballantyne offers mochi ice cream (strawberry, green tea, or red bean) for $2.50. The restaurant’s dessert menu offers several other types of mocha desserts as well.

Bubble tea

This dish is for the rich and eccentric.

Served at The Fig Tree Restaurant on East 7th Street, the $42 grilled New Zealand Elk chop comes with smoked bacon-braised cabbage, potato gratin and cream sauce. If anything, it will definitely leave your stomach heavier and your wallet a lot lighter.

Kitfo It can certainly be argued that Ethiopian cuisine as a whole is strange food, starting with the fact that its bread, called injera, serves multiple roles as the plate, utensil and dish.

Besides that startling revelation is kitfo, which is minced beef that is served either raw or rare and is specially prepared and seasoned. It’s definitely something that every meat eater should be open to trying at least once.

Meskerem on Kings Drive prepares this dish well and accompanies the beef with Ethiopian cheese and collard greens.

seafood At the moment there is only one place I know of in Charlotte that sells bubble tea.If anyone knows of other bubble tea vendors please email me. For now I’ll keep getting my tapioca ball-filled taro flavored milk tea at Saigon Palace on South Boulevard.

Simplee Sushi also serves takoyaki, a ball-shaped savory Japanese pancake filled with octopus and other fillings. Even though sushi is relatively easy to get a hold of in this city, finding a single place in Charlotte that serves takoyaki proved to be more of a challenge.

Photos/MCT Campus

As an avid reader, it saddens me that I’m not able to do a lot of leisurely reading throughout the school year. Fortunately I found the time this semester to read ‘Bossypants’ by accomplished comedian Tina Fey. ‘Bossypants,’ published in 2011, isn’t a memoir, but a retrospective recollection of thoughts and comedic encounters that spans Fey’s entire career from when she started in musical theatre to when she created the Emmy winning hit show, ‘30 Rock.’

This book reads like a string of short stories, rather than having chapters, but lucky for us at the end of each story there is usually a funny lesson or moral to take away. For example, there’s a section called ‘Things I Learned from Lorne Michaels’ It goes into a list of quirky, ecclectic yet useful advice about show business that she learned from the legendary creator of SNL, a show that Fey worked on for nine years.

Throughout the reading she often diverts from the flow of the story to explain in depth a point she made whether it be with a graphic, bullet points or even email threads.

Fey uses her imperfections as way to seem more relatable and real, often referring to her greek heritage, her weight struggles and making it in the industry without being blonde haired and blue eyed with a ‘barely there’ figure.

“What 19-year-old Virginia boy doesn’t want a wide-hipped, sarcastic Greek girl with short hair that’s permed on top?” she writes in the chapter titled ‘Growing up and liking it.’ “What’s that you say? None of them want that? You are correct. So I spent four years attempting to charm the uninterested.”

The part that interests most people, the heart of the book with true grit, is when she writes about her time on “Saturday Night

Live” and “30 Rock,” as well as her time impersonating Sarah Palin on a series of SNL specials during the 2008 presidential election. Moreover she gives SNL fans who aren’t familiar with the process of putting up a live sketch comedy show a bit of insight about the process and dives into her time as a cast member and head writer. We also learn about her relationships with costars and where the ideas for some of the most famous sketches came from.

“

What 19-year-old Virginia boy doesn’t want a wide-hipped sarcastic Greek girl with short hair that’s permed on top?

“

-Tina Fey

If you’re familiar with Tina Fey’s work, then you can draw the conclusion from reading “Bossypants” that she is much like her character Liz Lemon on 30 Rock, and it helps that the book is like reading an ongoing 30 Rock script, aside from the really personal things.

It does get to a point where you do ask yourself, “Is she going to stop humbling herself? Is she actually this down to earth?”

Liz Lemon lives! She’s Tina Fey. She’s untouchable; unstoppable even; the Queen of comedy. But she’s so darn real and after reading the book you’ll feel like you’ve known her for years. It may even inspire you to take up a career in comedy, writing or both. I know I contemplated it for a bit.

NINERONLINE.COM

ROCKY RIVER VINEYARD

THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2012

A WINE TASTING REVIEW

BY MICHELE KARR

Photo/MCT Campus

Michele Karr

MKARR1@UNCC.EDU

On my way back to the university area from an outing this weekend, I spotted a sign for a vineyard on the side of the road.

As I passed by the vineyard located 15 minutes from UNC Charlotte in Midland, N.C. I decided to turn around and check it out.

Pulling up it did not look like a vineyard.

A winding, rocky driveway leads to a small house that seems more like a home than a place that sells wine. However, it did not take long to feel the quaintness.

The little home is painted a bright yellow inside with stenciled vines around the doorways. The first room showcases bottles of wine along the walls in racks.

It was hard to miss the spinning slushies, which made for a nice afternoon treat.

The bar area is completely different than any bar you would find in the city. There are no liquor bottles used to decorate the walls and no beer taps.

In the back room of the house, the gift shop offers a wide variety of items for wine drinkers from wine coozies to novelty signs.

The owners of Rocky River Vineyard planted their first vine in 2003.

The name comes from the Rocky River Creek, which flows through the property.

The vineyard is family owned and operated, which translates through the service that they provide. A smiling woman immediately approached me making sure I had something to drink. She assured me by asking if I needed anything and letting me know about the wine tasting starting in ten minutes.

Rocky River holds tastings and tours Tuesday through Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and Sunday from 1:00 p.m. until 6:00 p.m. The tastings are $6 and offer nine varieties, including the two flavors of wine slushies.

The vineyard carries a number of wines featuring a few sweet muscadine wines,

chardonnay, a merlot blend, niagra, white zinfandel and cabernet sauvignon. The bottles are offered at affordable prices ranging from $9 to $13.

This is about the price of a bottle of cheap wine from your local super market, which is no competition to Rocky River’s fresh and tasty wines.

The vineyard grows muscadine grapes for production because they produce a variety of wines that are native to North Carolina. These grapes range from bronze to purple to black, and some even stay green through maturity.

The green colored grapes tend to have a sweeter taste, featured in Rocky River’s muscadine wines.

The darker grapes are used for the drier, red wines and the bronze ones for scuppernong.

Rob Clark, an N.C. State University engineering student visiting Charlotte accompanied me to the tasting.

“I was really surprised to see the beauty and quality of this vineyard,” said Clark.

“It’s a nice escape and shows a completely different side of Charlotte. I’m not an avid wine drinker, and really don’t like red wine at all, but I can’t say there was one wine out of the tastings that I didn’t enjoy.”

He also couldn’t get past the wine slushies.

“This was the first time I have ever seen wine slushies, but it was for sure my favorite part,” he said.

In addition to wine tastings, the vineyard holds festivals, concerts and special events for public and private parties.

Rocky River Vineyard will hold their annual Spring Festival this Saturday from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. with free admission. The festival will have live music, local artists, vendors, food, wine and more.

For directions, more information, and a schedule of upcoming events please visit www.RockyRiverVineyards.com or call 704-781-5035

PAGE 9

PAGE 10

NINERTIMES

THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2012

DOWNTIME 26

27

Thursday

Snails and the Hiding Hyena College of Education Room 10

Friday

Belly Dance & Circus Performance

Saturday

Opera Workshop

8 p.m.

1 p.m.- 5 p.m.

2:00 p.m.

General Admission-$6 Students & Seniors-$4

Student Union

8 p.m.-11:45 p.m.

West Quad

Murder Mystery Dinner Student Union Norm’s 7:00 p.m.

6:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m.

Dear Norm,

Got something to ask Norm or need some advise?

Send it to editor@nineronline.com

WEEK IN

Sunday

Summer Send Off

Student Union

Student Union Room 340

THIS

29

End of Year Party Union Takeover

6 p.m.-8 p.m.

28

April 23, 1564 William Shakespeare born

April 24, 1916 Easter Rebellion begins

April 25, 1983 Andropov writes to U.S. student

April 26, 1954 Polio vaccine trials begin

April 27, 4977 B.C. Universe is created, according to Kepler

April 28, 1945 Benito Mussolini executed

Robinson Hall

30

Monday

PMP Exam Preparation

UNC Charlotte Center City 6:00pm - 9:30pm

What’s on Your Plate?

Fretwell - Rm 310 6:30pm - 7:30pm

1

Tuesday

Introduction to Computer Forensics Online See Website Online 8:30am - 4:45pm

Late Night Breakfast: Student Union Student Union

10pm - Midnight Free for meal plan students $3.75 for others

NINERONLINE.COM

SPORTS Charlotte drops game against Duke, 12-5

Michael Brennan MBRENNA7@UNCC.EDU

April 24, 2012, the Charlotte 49ers men’s baseball (17-22) and the Duke Blue Devils (16-26) took the field against each other in an instate rivalry match. Both teams sport similar records; however, the show that unfolded under the lights on Tuesday night was all but indicative of that.

The Duke Blue Devils summoned Andrew Istler (3-3) to the mound in the hopes that he would be able to slow down the 49er offense that battered St. Josephs just three days earlier 7-2. After five innings, just two hits and not a single earned run; the righty had given the Blue Devils exactly the same thing.

Duke began to take charge of the instate contest early on. Posting two big runs in the top of the first allowed the Blue Devils to rattle 49ers pitcher Tyler Barnette (13). Duke’s two-run first is all thanks to first basemen Mike Rosenfeld. Rosenfeld began the day at Hayes field without a single home run to his name throughout his career; he left, however, with two home runs, four RBIs, and four more hits to bolster his average.

Rosenfeld sparked Duke’s offensive tutorial by blasting a two-run home run to deep left-center field in the first that put the Blue Devils up early. Charlotte would be plagued by the outstanding performance of Blue Devils starting pitcher, Andrew Istler, for five straight innings.

After just two innings, 49er starting pitcher Tyler Barnette was relieved by No. 21, Chad Rothlin.

As if Istler wasn’t a big enough problem for the 49ers, Mike Rosenfeld continued to

frustrate the outfield in the top of the fifth with his second home run of the night, a solo shot, to deep center field. His home run would instigate a three-run top of the fifth that set Charlotte back 5-0 against the Blue Devils.

Charlotte made their second pitching change of the day in the sixth inning when Micah Brayn took the mound for the 49ers.

A different face on the mound did not alleviate defensive miscues and infield errors

Charlotte catcher Patrick Raley slides home during the 12-5 loss to Duke Tuesday night. Chris Crews

that marred the top of the sixth for Charlotte. It was an inning that featured two wild pitches, two passed balls, one hit, one error, one walk and two runs for the Blue Devils.

With the 49ers down 7-0 in the bottom of the sixth, Charlotte finally answered and connected on a two-out RBI from No. 8, Shane Basen. Charlotte answered again the following inning when Duke catcher, Reed Anthes, allowed a passed ball that scored

one more 49er runner from third.

Charlotte seemed to continue to find the solution in the later innings as they built momentum only down by five, but Duke was all but done strutting their bats for the night. The Blue Devils singled in two more runs in the top of the eighth and widened the gap between them and the 49ers, 9-2.

Thanks to strategic pinch-hitting offered up by Charlotte’s J.J. Elseser and Justin Stager, Charlotte was able to put up two more runs in the bottom of the eighth, 9-4.

Duke however, was just too much to stop. The relentless Blue Devils posted three more runs in the top of the ninth to help seal their victory over the 49ers, 12-5.

The Blue Devil’s bats were red hot over the course of nine innings and stellar performances we carried out by starting pitcher Andrew Istler and first basemen Mike Rosenfeld.

Rosenfeld was 4-6 on the night and blistered the 49ers with two homeruns for three RBIs. Charlotte led the night with extra base hits and steals. Charlotte featured five different pitchers throughout nine innings and combined for 11 earned runs.

Although the night ended with an upsetting defeat for the 49ers, they’ll look to get back on their feet tomorrow against NC State in Raleigh. Charlotte will be a part of the Atlantic 10 conference tournament this year at Fordham University in New York.

Charlotte, who was No. 1 in the Atlantic 10 Preseason Coaches Poll, will look to make an impressive run in the conference tournament this year with that in mind.

Charlotte’s next home game will be on May 11, 2012, against St. Louis. Game time is set to begin at 6 p.m.

Women’s Tennis eliminated from A-10 Tourney Tadd Haislop THAISLOP@UNCC.EDU

The Richmond Spiders got revenge on the Charlotte women’s tennis team when they eliminated the 49ers from the Atlantic-10 Women’s Tennis Championships last Saturday at the Boars Head Sports Club.

Coach Michaela Gorman led her team to a 16-6 final record, tied for the best mark in her coaching career.

The good news is the women’s tennis team will only lose one senior next season.

The bad news is that senior is Andrea Rivera. Rivera will end her career as a 49er with 79 doubles wins. Only one player in school history has won more doubles matches.

Rivera and her partner, junior Alexandra Zinn, finished the season an impressive 18-5 as a pair after winning their match 9-8 on Saturday.

Andrea’s void can certainly be filled next season. Winning 8-2 on Saturday, Anna Ekelund and Lisa Grosselius finished the season with a remarkable 21-2 record as a doubles pair. Grosselius, as a freshman,

went 21-4 in doubles, the eleventh most all time. This mark places her in a tie for the second most doubles wins by a freshman in a season. Her partner, junior Anna Ekeland won 22 doubles matches herself, a number that ranks seventh in school history.

After the all the dust settled the 31 wins this season between the men’s and women’s tennis programs matches the fourth most wins in 49er tennis program history.

The season also resulted in the third best winning percentage ever for Charlotte.

THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2012

PAGE 11

SPORTS SCHEDULE

Friday Softball @ Rhode Island 3 p.m.

Baseball @ George Washington 4 p.m.

Golf Atlantic 10 Championship TBA

Saturday Softball @ Rhode Island 12 p.m.

SPORTS RESULTS Softball

WIN

vs. UNC Chapel Hill

10-6

Baseball

LOSS

vs. Duke

5-12 Women’s Tennis

LOSS

vs. Richmond

1-4

PAGE 12

THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2012

NINERTIMES