March 15, 2016 Vol. 52 No. 23 by Pacer Times

University of South Carolina Aiken

Mar.15.2016

Vol. 52| No. 23

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MAR CH 17

INDEX. SRNS Endowment see pg. 2

Open Source Science Journal see pg. 3

Alternative Spring Break see pg. 4

SGA Presidential Candidates

see pg. 5

Pacer Scoreboard

HAPPY

ST.Pattyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s

DAY

see pg. 6

see pg. 4

see pg. 7

NUDE MODELING

REVEALS

beauty

IN UNEXPECTED

PLACES

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Editor-in-Chief Thomas Gardiner Copy Editor Caitlin Butler Creative Director Brooke Clark News Editor Lizzie Abshire Sports Editor Jordan Phillips Opinions Editor James Paisley Arts and Entertainment Editor Amanda Askins Staff Writers Kelsie Blocker Mikaela Ransom Meredith Hawcroft Contributing Writers Jessica Sandifer Business Manager Timothy Boerste Ad Manager Joshua Recor Events Coordinator Jamacia Jimerson Adviser Peggy Elliott

ABOUT PACER TIMES Pacer Times is a weekly publication of the University of South Carolina Aiken. The opinions stated in this paper are those of Pacer Times and in no way reflect those of USCA. To purchase an advertisement, parties must contact the advertising manager at (803) 641-3517 or by email to pacertimes@usca.edu. Advertisements are subject to rejection by the staff.

Pacer Times is a member of the Associated Collegiate Press and South Carolina Press associations.

About our cover Design for St. Patrick’s Day and nude modeling editorial by Brooke Clark

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Engineering chair gets endowment S

Pacer Times

news

2 | March 15, 2016

avannah River Nuclear Solutions has partnered with the University of South Carolina Aiken to install a newly announced faculty position within the industrial process engineering program. This newly announced position is an endowed chair, which is a position funded by an organization outside of the university. The funding came through an historic donation of $550,000 from SRNS and means that worldclass engineering talent can be brought to the university without raising tuition or changing other items in the university budget.

couldn’t be duplicative of another degree in South Carolina,” said Priest, “But most importantly they had to create a program that would build graduates who they would want to hire.” Although it was founded in the fall of 2015, “this is really the big announcement that we have a four-year degree here at USCA,” said Priest. There are currently about 200 students enrolled in preengineering and Priest expects that number to rise over the next few years, thanks in large part to this major endowment. Considering the regional

“Our partnership will strengthen

the program, develop future engineers and sustain the future workforce.”

-Carol Johnson

USCA Chancellor Dr. Sandra Jordan said, “this donation, I believe, is the largest of its kind from industry to USC Aiken.” According to Jordan, the endowment not only opens up a new position but also gives the university necessary tools to attract the best and brightest talent from anywhere in the nation. In 2012, Jordan commissioned a survey to determine the regional employment needs in order to better direct the university’s education efforts. According to that survey, conducted by the Carnegie Group, engineering is the most highly demanded degree throughout the Central Savannah River Area. Executive Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs Dr. Jeff Priest was then tasked with creating a four-year engineering program to answer that need. He built a coalition of scientists and engineers, many from the Savannah River Site, and they created the infrastructure for what is now the industrial process engineering program. “They sat around tables for over a year. The degree

need for engineering and USCA’s STEM population, which is about 40 percent of total student enrollment, the cooperation with SRNS seemed intuitive. “Hiring locally is important to us,” said Carol Johnson, President and CEO of SRNS. “Our partnership will strengthen the program, develop future engineers and sustain the future workforce at SRNS. We will have many, many job opportunities in the future,” she said. Johnson said that she attended college close to home and that distance was an important factor in her choosing a university. She said she knows that people grow up here, want to work and raise families here. “I know what it means to have the opportunity for a four-year engineering degree close to home,” said Johnson. The new endowment will allow the chosen professor to dig deeper into research than if it were an adjunct or other faculty position, according to Jordan. “We are an institution that places primacy on teaching. A major part of education here is undergrad research and the

Thomas Gardiner

SRNS President and CEO Carol Johnson is all smiles after the announcement of their corporate backing for a USCA endowed chair in engineering.

“A lot of the things we learn in

the classroom are theoretical and we don’t get a lot of hands-on experience.”

-Kevin O’Connor

students learn better being able to work side by side with professors,” said Jordan. Sophomore pre-engineering major Kevin O’Connor said, “This can bring experts in from the field and would give us the opportunity to research and see real-world application. A lot of the things we learn in the classroom are theoretical and we don’t get a lot of hands-on experience.”

Johnson said, “We asked what we could to do to help for the good of the community, the university and for the site. This kind of program is very tough to get started but with the corporate backing we can help make these things happen and make it a more viable and visible program.” -Thomas Gardiner

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News March 15, 2016 3 Open-access scientific journals cause copyright uproar R esearch is a critical part of every scientist’s life, with many devoting their whole lives to the pursuit of knowledge. It’s especially critical for developing scientists, who need access to previous work for their thesis and for conducting experiments. However, many scientific journals have paywalls that restrict information unless the reader pays a fee. This is a common practice for many publishers, such as one of the biggest Creative Commons scientific and medical journal publishers in the Scientific research often requires access to vast amounts of data and peer-reviewed material. world, Elsevier. editorships and publish their If a user needs an article Her belief is that They are responsible for articles elsewhere. not already available on Scicopyright laws impeding the publishing of prominent Negotiation between the Hub, the website has ways of the development of online journals like the American universities and Elsevier bypassing firewalls in order scientific libraries can only Journal of Human Genetics, are heated as their libraries to access the needed paper. hinder scientific progress for Annals of Emergency feel the strain of rising They gather two copies: one the world as a whole. Science Medicine and Current prices. Some researchers for the researcher’s use, and can only progress if everyone Biology. are arguing a case for open one to store in their database in the world is included. Paywall prices for access access scientific journals in case someone else should If exclusivity wins, to journals have skyrocketed worldwide, eliminating the need it. Elbakyan fears worldwide since the beginning of the need for subscription prices In layman’s terms, Scistagnation in progress. century, forcing even the or paywalls completely. Hub pirates scientific papers, “We fight inequality in wealthiest universities to On the forefront of this thanks to the collective work knowledge access across cancel their subscriptions. push is neuroscientist of researchers around the the world. The scientific In a budget report in Alexandra Elbakyan, a world that also believe in knowledge should be 2003, Cornell was forced researcher from Russia who open access information. available for every person to cancel almost all of has created a website called Elbakyan is just the owner regardless of their income, their subscriptions to the of the website, and her job social status, geographical publishing giant Elsevier due Sci-Hub.io that collects and distributes over 47 million is to gather and organize all location and etc.” to high-rising costs, thus Elsevier has sued Elbakyan only purchasing online access peer-reviewed papers for free. pirated content her associates The website allows the can dig up. and the Sci-Hub website, journals and articles on a user to type in any subject On her website, Elbakyan citing piracy laws and title-by-title basis. they may need information states that “[copyright] laws copyright infringement. Harvard and University of on, and then displays every effectively slow down the Near the end of 2015, California-Santa Cruz have single article or publication development of science in a New York district court also cut back, urging their they have available. human society.” ordered Elbakyan to take professors to give up their

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the website down, but Elbakyan refused. This brings into question many laws that are muddied, such as whether a New York judge can order a Russian citizen to take down an international, public website. Her backing for keeping the site online is the United Nation’s Declaration of Human Rights, specifically article 27. This article states that “everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the community, to enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advancement and its benefits.” Elbakyan claimed that scientific advancement should be accessible by everyone according to the UN’s own rules, and that Elsevier should be the one to step down. “I think Elsevier’s business model is itself illegal,” Elbakyan said in an interview when asked about the allegations. Scientists and researchers have heated opinions on both sides, which means the debate over who really owns or can have access to science is far from being settled. However, due to Sci-Hub and its contributors, this is now a conversation that is forced onto the table for everyone thinking of being published. -Amanda Askins

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travel and Leisure

4 | March 15, 2016

Alternative spring break provides irreplaceable memories

pring break was crammed with unforgettable experiences. I spent my vacation in Greenville with five other volunteers from the university, working with Habitat for Humanity as part of USCA’s Alternative Spring Break program. I am genuinely proud to say that we performed meaningful community service and helped improve the lives of deserving people in need; however, our trip wasn’t solely based on such altruistic and noble purposes. In between our volunteer efforts, our group also experienced plenty of adventures and hilarious moments. Our first day in Greenville was spent checking into our cabins at the Pleasant Ridge Camp and Retreat Center where we stayed for the week and exploring the natural beauty of the area.

Then we went hiking along local waterfalls and got the chance to enjoy the solitude of nature. After the fun, we got to work. Our group of volunteers spent a day helping at a Habitat Restore where donated items are sold to help fund the construction of houses. We assisted in cleaning out a storage area where items had piled up for years and had nearly been consumed by a thick layer of dust. This dirty job was worthwhile, though. As we were cleaning, we found many interesting items including a letter from Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes that was dated 1890. We also spent several days actually assisting with the construction of a new home. When we arrived at the home site, there was little more than a foundation present, but by the

last day working on the house, we were installing windows and adding a roof. In between all this work, we went shopping at a local outlet mall, thoroughly tested numerous local restaurants, and explored the sights of downtown Greenville, including Falls Park on the Reedy. This trip simultaneously allowed us to experience the vibrant, bustling side of Greenville and the relaxing, peaceful, rejuvenating side. Alternative Spring Break 2016 was one of the best trips I have ever been a part of. If you want to learn about yourself and your friends, I recommend piling into a car, heading on a road trip, and doing something worthwhile. You will make discoveries and memories that will last a lifetime. -Meredith Hawcroft

Meredith Hawcroft

Jessica Gomez, Meredith Hawcroft, Matt Torres, Kirsten Ceron, Joshua Capers and Daneshka Padro-Perez (front) help build a house during alternate spring break.

St. Patty’s tidbits for the classy consumer

t. Patrick’s Day is indisputably associated with the inordinate consumption of alcoholic beverages. It sometimes seems like the holiday honors Guinness more than St. Patrick, and Guiness isn’t even the bestselling beer in Ireland. St. Patrick’s Day, however, is more than an excuse to celebrate and get inebriated; the tradition of drinking on

St. Patty’s Day actually has religious origins. The holiday was originally a day of feasting held in honor of St. Patrick’s death. On the feast day, Christians were allowed to put aside their observance of Lent and ignore restrictions on food and drink, which often led to excessive drinking. This concept spread and ultimately became a core part of celebrations across the world. -Meredith Hawcroft

re you one of the many “extra green” around St. Patty’s Day because you are underage? If the envy is starting to get to you, don’t worry, since 1970 McDonald’s has had its signature drink, Shamrock Milkshakes, for us all. This green minty dessert has been a hit for years, even though a large shake is about 820 calories. That’s about one and half large size fries, two and half sundaes, or a big mac.

Although the shake may be bad for our hips, it has done some good work. In 1974, the first ever Ronald McDonald House was funded by Shamrock Shakes sales. This shake has been so impactful that every year since 2010, the Chicago St. Patrick’s Day celebration has a huge giant Shamrock Shake placed as if it spilled into the Chicago River.

glass with enough beverage to submerge the shot glass. The genre contains the Jagerbomb, the Skittle bomb and the Flaming Dr. Pepper. Another popular bomb shot often shows up in full-force around St. Patrick’s Day, the Irish Car Bomb. While Americans don’t drink them to support some kind of anti-Irish sentiments, which died out a number of years ago in the U.S., they need to be aware of what they are asking of their bartenders. Throughout the 20th Century and into the 21st, the Irish Republican Army (IRA) and its breakaway factions were entrenched in ongoing battles for their

mong popular cocktails in American culture is a specific genre called bomb shot cocktails. More about action than composition, they consist of a shot paired with a larger

-Jamacia Jimerson independence as an autonomous republic. In 1972, Bloody Friday changed the course of that struggle when the Provisional IRA detonated about 20 bombs in Belfast. Up till then, the British had been chastised for their brutality, but Bloody Friday gave the IRA a new reputation and would closely tie their name and tactics to car bombs and explosions. The bomb shot Irish Car Bomb is a shot of Bailey’s with a little Irish whiskey on top dropped into a half pint of Guinness. So, if you belly up to call the bartender, remember the victims of Bloody Friday and reconsider how you place your order before calling ‘bombs away.’ -Thomas Gardiner

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Politics

March 15, 2016

Students announce their candidacy for SGA

t is with great dignity that I have the opportunity to introduce myself, Shaquanda Ross-Simmons, as one of your candidates for 2016-2017 Student Government President. I am so excited and very humbled by the nomination. I am currently a member of Student Government and serve in the capacity as the Historian. I value student government and I am here to continue to honor the wishes of our many students.

I have also served and in many organizations such as Rotaract, African American Student Alliance, NAACP, SGA, Pacesetter, Pacer Spirit and MAP. I am also a worker in Student Life and keep active knowledge of what the students want and what is going on around campus. Last and importantly, I am a proud member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. With my participation in these many organizations, I

feel that I have well-rounded experience with students from Greek Life to general student life. My experience with the diverse groups on campus, including staff and faculty, has prepared me for leadership roles and will help contribute to the success of the next Student Government Association. I thank you all for reading this and I hope to see you vote on March 28 and 29.

y name is Jeremy Jones and I am running for President of the Student Government Association for the second time. Why, you may ask? As I have attended two other institutions of higher learning before USC Aiken, and this campus feels like home. I fell in love with the faculty within my department and the overall friendly environment. Even then, two years ago, I knew I was going to accomplish great things at this school. My first semester on campus, which was in spring of 2014, went swimmingly as I received an appointment to an open seat as a Senator in the new Student Advisory Committee on the Student Government by thenPresident Samuel LaMunion. I believe that any student who serves

econd chances… Comeback stories… we all love them, but why? Because we believe that even though people go through traumatic and life changing events that they are capable of emerging a better leader, and most importantly, a better person. Rerunning for Student Body President was one of both the most difficult and the easiest decisions that I’ve ever made. It was challenging knowing that I would be putting myself back out in the public eye, enduring countless amounts of criticism from both peers and faculty alike. But the easiest decision in that I know that there are a number of ways that I want to help our student body in achieving the most with their education and to enhance our school pride

by providing regular forms of entertainment to help engage our student body. It has been truly an honor to have served our student body back in 2014 and know that if elected, there is a lot to accomplish in the year following. I never thought I would be running for Student Body President again until I read a quote by one of the most inspirational people that I’ve had the pleasure of watching. Oprah said, “There is no greater gift you can give or receive than to honor your calling. This is why you were born and how you become most truly alive.” USC Aiken is my passion and serving our incredible student body is my calling. Together we can pace our way to a brighter and better USCA. God Bless!

on a governing body should know that they are the voice for the students and that they serve them as role models. I also vied for the position of Vice-President of the Student Government after my time was up as a Senator. Following that election, I was appointed to work with the minority and international students on campus for the 2014-2015 academic year. I helped with the International Fashion Show as the co-director during my time as the NSAC Senator before I became the Diversity Senator. I helped get donations for food and helped make the fashion show great from behind the scenes. During my two years, I also became a part of the University Judicial Board which is a student-

faculty board that deals with cases of students who break the student code of conduct in academic and criminal cases. I was on the Homecoming Court for the past two years and I have been on the planning committee for Fall Fest, which was a great experience. I may only have been here two years, but I do not see this election or the office of the President as a popularity game. It is a tough position that I hold in high regard, and if you give me the chance to attain the office, I will fight every single day for you, as evident in my experiences that I have laid out. Regardless the severity of the issue, you will always find an open ear and a tenacious attitude in finding solutions to your problems.

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Sports

March 15, 2016

Weekly scoreboard: Spring break edition 8

Flagler

Men’s Tennis 3/4

usca

Lenoir-Rhyne Softball 3/11

6 8

Flagler

usca

Women’s Tennis 3/4

usca

Carson-Newman Softball 3/5

0 7

Flagler

usca Softball 3/9

and trying to have events for them, and always keeping the student section lively. Yet this does not make up for the students we do not have there. Popular excuses we tend to use are that we have homework to do, have to study, work, etc., yet we will drop anything to go see the undefeated intramural basketball team. Even when our school teams are losing, they need our support. There’s nothing better than feeling like your school is behind you. Of course there’s always huge support for sporting events such as homecoming and when we play Augusta

9 3

Show some pride, show some love Intramurals sports have always been a huge part of USC Aiken and one of the activities students enjoy most at our school. It’s an opportunity for all students to get involved and have fun, even if they do not usually do any athletics for the school. A vast majority of the school participates or watches them, which is fantastic for our school and peers. However, the problem comes in when we have way more people going to the intramural games than we do our school games. Pacer Fanatics always does an awesome job by being at every home game we have

University, but the rest of the season is just as important to our athletes. We can always give more support to our teams. For example, our baseball and softball teams are undefeated right now and are killing the game; why not show them some more support? Our school teams deserve recognition and support just like our intramural teams, which are great. Intramurals are a tradition at our school and our intramurals are amazing with all the participation and supporting fans. But students shoul remember that our athletes need love too. -Mikaela Ransom

2 3

usca

Baseball 3/8

Chowan

usca

Baseball 3/9

Chowan

Baseball 3/11

usca

Baseball 3/12 Baseball 3/13

Upcoming games Softball

Baseball

usca

7 2

3 5

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Editorials

March 15, 2016

Nude modeling reveals beauty in unexpected places I had an emotional breakdown the first time I was partially nude in the view of anyone other than my mother. It was toward the end of my senior year of high school. I was preparing for prom, and the seamstress who was altering my dress, a no-nonsense, knucklecracking woman who looked to be around seventy, commanded me to strip to my undies so she could get accurate hip, waist and bust measurements for the alterations. I tried to convince her that my sweater was thin enough for her to get an accurate over-theclothes measurement. It wasn’t. I begged her to give me her tape measure and let me do it myself in the bathroom. She didn’t. I wept, removed my traitorous puffy sweater, and let her do her business. I vowed never to wear the accursed sweater again. That night, I buried it under a mountain of clothes and delivered it to Goodwill the next morning. Last semester, my boyfriend modeled nude for an art class. One day, he was sick and had to call out at the last minute. Not wanting to leave them sans model, he asked me if I would stand in as his replacement. It had been four years since the traumatizing incident at the seamstress’ shop, and life had sent far more embarrassing trials my way. Surely I’d weathered enough mortifying storms to stand nude in front of a group of my peers for a couple of hours.

I thought it might even be glamorous or elegant, the way it is in films, and it was guaranteed to be an adventure. With these brave thoughts in mind, I agreed. Shortly after agreeing to model, though, my imagination began wearing away at my self-confidence. I pondered and obsessed for hours. I’d neglected to shave that morning – what if the group I modeled for was some arty army of Victoria Secret model lookalikes who would judge my armpits? I didn’t even allow myself to consider what other hair-prone areas they’d judge. I’d also gained a few pounds and my thighs had taken on a whole new kind of thunder. I was sometimes uncomfortable with my body even when it was fully clothed. What if they could smell my lack of motivation regarding gyms? I imagined them disgusted by the harmlessly small, but unfamiliar layer of fluff that had taken up a comfortable residence on my tummy. And, hop on pop, what about the boobs? What if they weren’t right? What if they were too right? What if there was a creepy guy who just like, hung out near the room where the class took place and made comments? What if “Aunt Flo” decided to visit while I was in the middle of a pose? Worst of all were the leftover self-harm scars from years ago. What would they say about those? I envisioned fifty people, all scrutinizing my naked body, the stuff of nightmares. I thought about what would happen if there were only one or two artists in the

class, and the icky kind of forced intimacy that would engender. I considered calling it off, but felt guilty about not upholding my promise to my sick boyfriend. Hours passed and the time came for me to head to the classroom for my session. Hesitantly, I dragged myself to the room. Opening the door, I saw there were no haughty lingerie models and no boogeymen. There were only eight or so artists in the room, as well as the professor. None of them paid any special attention to me as I entered. They all appeared to be normal, unassuming college students, in rapt attention as their professor displayed brightly colored patterns on the overhead projector. Soft Afro-pop music was playing, the light was low and warm, and the atmosphere was calm and welcoming. After the slideshow finished, their attention turned to me. The professor introduced me as The Replacement Model, and I slunk to the bathroom to get changed into, well, nothing. In the bathroom, I recited

Psalms 23 (the only one I could remember in my mental state) and repeated the chorus to Beyonce’s Flawless at least twenty times. After a few minutes, I had psyched myself up into a fever, and returned to the classroom with a big, demented smile on my face. I dropped the robe in the center of the room, ready for the onslaught and critique.

I looked out at the artists, and none of them were paying me any attention. Most of them were studying their cellphones or checking their supplies, making sure they had enough to last the entire session. The professor explained that today’s session would not be focused on specific body parts

as previous ones had been. Their concentration that night would be centered on fringe areas, and the surroundings of the model. I relaxed. I concluded that all my strife had been for naught, and all the weight lifted off my shoulders. The students very rarely focused on any part of my body, and when they did, it was to capture some aspect more intricately – such as the bones of my ankles, or the corkscrew coil of my hair. No one noticed the scars or the dimples or the birthmarks. I was merely a part of the landscape, nothing more, nothing less. In many of the final renderings the students showed me after class, I was not even the focus. Some only drew the back of me, a couple only made use of my profile and shoulder, and one woman only used the bottom half of my legs. All my worrying had indeed been for no reason, and I was happy to know that to the average person, even when totally nude, my flaws were not as glaringly obvious as I’d thought, and there was beauty to be found in the places I had only seen faults. -Kelsie Blocker

FREE BURRITO WHEN YOU BUY A DRINK WITH CAROLINA CASH

We now accept Carolina Cash and to celebrate weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re giving away free burritos Tuesday, March 22- Sunday March 27. All you have to do is load up your Carolina Cash account and buy a drink.

Offer only valid with an active Carolina Card that is pre loaded with Carolina Cash. Only valid at the Aiken location. Offer valid from 3/22-3/27/16. Note that Carolina Cash & Declining Balance are different.