The Oklahoma Daily

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WEDNESDAY JANUARY 27, 2010

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See what students are saying the president should focus on in his first State of the Union address tonight, see page 5.

The OU women hitt the road to face Iowa State tonight,t, see page 6.

Dr. Drew is coming to OU, get the details on page 8.

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WINTER WEATHER EXPECTED TO HIT NORMAN Strong winds, ice accumulations could cause power outages, health risks RICKY MARANON Assignment Editor

A severe winter storm is approaching the area. Substantial accumulations of freezing rain, ice and snow are expected throughout the state. “When people wake up Thursday morning, it will be mostly a rain event,” said Jenifer Bowen,

meteorologist at the Norman National Weather Center. “That afternoon, it should quickly switch over to freezing rain. Later, that should turn into snow and sleet.” Bowen said Norman should expect at least a quarter inch of ice and two to six inches of snow. Wind speeds are expected to be 25 to 30 miles per hour, with winds gusting up to 40 miles per hour, she said. “Power outages are more or less a possibility,” Bowen said. “If there are any heavy ice accumulations on power lines when these winds are blowing, power outages are likely.”

Bowen said different systems are coming together in the region that have caused the winter weather. “We have an upper-level system coming off the coast of southern California, along with arctic air dropping down from Canada,” Bowen said. She said in addition to those two weather events, moisture from the Gulf of Mexico will also enter the state. Bowen said the ground is a little warm, but the rain before the winter weather will help cool down area roads.

“The freezing precipitation will accumulate on any wet surfaces especially ground surfaces like roads,” Bowen said. “If you are going to travel, be sure you are prepared and have the necessary supplies in your vehicle.” Dianne Clay, OU Health Sciences Center spokeswoman, issued a warning about the dangers of cold weather Wednesday. “When temperatures dip below 40 degrees, Oklahomans should pay attention to more than snow forecasts and slippery streets to stay safe,” Clay stated in a press release. Clay stated ongoing research at the Health WEATHER CONTINUES ON PAGE 2

MARCIN RUTKOWSKI/THE DAILY

Dancers rehearse for the Young Choreographers Showcase on Tuesday evening in the Donald W. Reynolds Performing Arts Center. The performance starts Thursday evening. For a full preview of the event, check Thursday's edition of The Daily and also OUDaily.com.

VOLUNTEERS GEAR UP FOR Norman Music Festival LOCAL EXTREME MAKEOVER announces headliner Thousands apply to help tear down and rebuild a house in the metro area CAROLINE PERRYMAN Daily Staff Writer

“Extreme Makeover! Extreme Makeover!” Those words were shouted by an auditorium full of volunteers at the Extreme Makeover: Home Edition’s pep rally at 8 a.m. Tuesday at Journey Church in Norman. A B C ’s T V s h ow “ E x t re m e Makeover: Home Edition” will begin filming the rennovation of their 178th house Feb. 1. Volunteers will help tear down and rebuild a house in the Norman-Oklahoma City community in 106 hours. Ideal Homes was the company chosen to build the new house. “This is a community effort,” stated Todd Booze, Ideal Homes president of construction, in a press release. “In addition to the home we build for a deserving family, the entire metro area will benefit through the food and blood drives we are planning as part of this extraordinary week ... We hope that people from across the area will answer our call for support.”

And people did answer the call. In the first 24 hours, online volunteer sign-ups had more than 1,000 applications. Booze stated the Ideal Homes Web site was so overwhelmed they had to temporarily shut it down. When they reopened the Web site, 1,200 more applications were received within 48 hours. Conrad Ricketts, E xtreme Makeover executive producer, spoke at the pep rally. Ricketts said he not only wants as many volunteers as possible, but also wants people to show up with cans of food and their sleeves rolled up to donate blood. “You can watch this show and see the heart and soul of America,” Ricketts said. “Oklahoma is a great place to be. We couldn’t do what we do without all the people who stand up and make a difference.” Hundreds of people attended the rally. Among them were Oklahoma City Thunder cheerleaders and mascot, athletes, OU ROTC members and many other people from the community. Andre Hechinger, criminology sophomore, said there was a lot of energy in the room. Hechinger said he doesn’t regularly watch the TV show, but was EXTREME CONTINUES ON PAGE 2

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Quick response on Facebook prompts event organizers to reveal band JOSHUA BOYDSTON Daily Staff Writer

The 2010 Norman Music Festival will be headlined by the indie band Dirty Projectors. Festival organizers announced Monday on Oklahoma City radio station 105.3 The Spy that once the Norman Music Festival Facebook page reached 3,000 fans, they would announce the main stage headliner.

CONGRESS RUSHES RULING

The goal was reached in 18 hours and the announcement was made just before noon Tuesday. Dirty Projectors are a Brooklynbased band led by Dave Longstreth. The band has released several critically-acclaimed albums, but this year’s “Bitte Orca,” boosted by its single “Stillness Is The Move,” has the band seeing its first bit of commercial success. Norman Music Festival is free to the public and will be held April 24 and 25 in downtown Norman. For more information, visit normanmusicfestival.com.

LILLY CHAPA/THE DAILY

The Absolute's lead singer Phil Ross and bassist Winthrop Ellsworth perform on the Main Stage at the Norman Music Festival April 25, 2009. This was the first out-of-state show the Los Angeles-based band had performed. © 2009 OU PUBLICATIONS BOARD

Congress appoints new committee chairs TROY WEATHERFORD Day Staff Writer

T h e U O S A Undergraduate Student Congress voted in favor of putting two disputed constitutional amendments on the UOSA Spring 2010 General Election ballot instead of holding a special election. The Congress approved the last-minute agenda item concerning the UOSA Superior Court’s hearing on Monday, requiring an election date on ballot the amendments offered by Oklahoma Students for a Democratic Society to be set. Three members abstained from voting, while another two members voted “no.” thirty-one members voted in favor of the resolution to move the amendments to the upcoming general election. “We couldn’t work out scheduling with [the UOSA Graduate Student Senate]... UOSA CONTINUES ON PAGE 2

VOL. 95, NO. 86


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