The Oklahoma Daily

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TUESDAY OCTOBER 13, 2009

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news How much caffeine is too much? Find out the answer inside. PAGE 5B

Re the first of Read our week-long preview for the OU-Texas game. PAGE 5A

Read what Daily staffers have to say about this week’s New Music Tuesday. PAGE 2B

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CAMPUS BRIEFS OU TO DEDICATE PHASE II OF GAYLORD HALL TODAY Phase II of Gaylord Hall in the Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication will be dedicated in a public ceremony at 1:30 p.m. today. Among other features, the addition has a space dedicated to a student-led advertising and public relations studio, a 185-seat auditorium with a sound stage and studio and a video production studio. OU President David Boren and Gaylord College Dean Joe Foote will speak.

JOURNALIST TO SPEAK AT ASSOCIATES DINNER Journalist, columnist, political blogger and author of “The Big Sort,” Bill Bishop will be the keynote speaker at a President’s Associates dinner Tuesday, Oct. 20, at 6:30 p.m. in the Oklahoma Memorial Union. Bishop made national news in 2004 with his series of articles in which he first described his idea of “the big sort.” Using original demographic data he showed how, despite the celebration of diversity in this country, Americans over the past three decades have been “sorting themselves” at the micro-level of cities and neighborhoods into likeminded communities. For reservations, more information and accommodations on the basis of disability, call the OU Office of Special Events at 325-3784.

PROFESSOR RECEIVES FELLOWSHIP TO STUDY NANOTECHNOLOGY Donna J. Nelson, associate professor of chemistry, received a faculty fellowship from the Chief Academic Officers of the Big 12 universities and will visit the Center for Nano and Molecular Science at the University of Texas at Austin next year to collaborate on nanotechnology research. “This is an excellent opportunity for me to participate in the research at this center, as well as the other multi-university nano centers which collaborate with the University of Texas,” Nelson said in a press release. “It is also an opportunity for the University of Oklahoma to be represented at the Center for Nano and Molecular Science and its activities.” The Faculty Fellowship Program was initiated in 1998 to offer faculty from different universities the opportunity to travel to member institutions and exchange ideas and research. The center in Austin is one of the largest nanotechnology facilities in the world. -Daily staff reports

OU CHANGES WI-FI NETWORK OU’s wireless Internet network is changing and will now require students to register prior to the beginning of each semester in order to use it, said Nick Key, OU IT spokesman. The new network, called “OU Wi-Fi,” will replace the current “ANY” network at the end of October, he said. Under the new network, students will have to register for Wi-Fi every semester, and it will be safer to use than the current network, Key said. “It is a more secure connection than what we have right now, and it has the potential to help us track stolen laptops if students register them with us,” he said. Key also said the new network will help prevent viruses from being able to attack student computers. Further details about the new wireless network are being released today. —Ricky Maranon/The Daily

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PASSION FOR SPORTS MAKES ULTIMATE FANS Three sophomores set tradition to attend every home sporting event NATASHA GOODELL Daily Staff Writer

Wednesday night, volleyball; Friday night, soccer; Saturday, football; and sometimes Sunday afternoon, soccer. This is currently the weekly schedule for three sophomores who decided their freshman year to attend every Sooner sporting event they could. Sophomores Kevin Burns, Luke McConnell and Trey Ingram met their freshman year, and discovered they all had a similar passion for Sooner sports. Since then, they have tried to attend as many on-campus sporting events together as possible. “When we met, we discovered that we each had a crazy passion for sports, and it’s great because I’ve always been beyond anyone’s comprehension with my love for sports,” said McConnell, journalism sophomore. “But to have guys with close to the same passion level for sports is great and makes for great conversation topics.” The three have found that going together encourages them to attend events they may not regularly attend. McConnell said he would probably still go to the main sports he enjoys without his friends coming along, but said he probably would not go to soccer, tennis nor gymnastics alone.

JEREMY DICKIE/THE DAILY

Trey Ingram, geography sophomore, and Kevin Burns, meteorology sophomore, cheer Monday night in McCasland Field House. Both Ingram and Burns have attended every home sporting event so far this year. Ingram, geography sophomore, said he probably wouldn’t go by himself to these events. “Kevin and Luke kind of push me and the other guys to go to all of these games,” Ingram said. Burns said he was home-schooled so he never attended any sporting events in high school and instead watched them on television. “I just grew up watching sports,” Burns said. “I’ve been going to most sporting events since

my freshman year.” Burns, meteorology sophomore, said he’s going to take advantage of these games that offer free admission to students with their student ID, with the exception of basketball and football, for which he purchased season tickets. McConnell said he attended eight sporting events in the span of 10 days last winter. “Basically, I’m just a sports nut and enjoy all sports,” McConnell said. “My life is just centered around sports.”

Student challenges loss of position in campus group Insufficient grade-point average led to removal CAITLIN HARRISON Daily Staff Writer

When Jay Cooper ’s grades caused his removal from an administrative student position last summer, with no opportunity for contest or reapplication even after he raised his grade-point average, he was stunned. A member of Housing Center Student Association administration removed Cooper, petroleum engineering junior, as HCSA vice president in June when they discovered his GPA fell below the minimum requirement of 2.5. Cooper said he believes the administration took an unfair action because he raised his GPA over the summer, and because

HCSA is not in full session until school starts in August. Although he brought this to the advisers’ attention, Cooper said they did not show concern. Cooper also attempted to reapply for the position during the summer once he remedied his grades, but HCSA’s president did not accept his application or give him an interview. “Being removed over a summer for something I’m not fully going to be participating in until the start of the school year, I found to be somewhat shady,” Cooper said. Cooper served last year as the organization’s vice president, and said he won last April’s election for a second term by about a 3-percent margin. Johnnie-Margaret McConnell, LOSS CONTINUES ON PAGE 2

TEEKO YANG/THE DAILY

Jay Cooper, petroleum engineering junior and former vice president of the Housing Center Student Association, stands in front of the HCSA office Monday night in Couch Center. Cooper was removed from office during the summer and had his position filled by another officer in the organization.

Theft on campus amounts Disability Resource Center gives students chances to succeed to thousands of dollars OUPD working to recover missing personal items RICKY MARANON Daily Staff Writer

More than $12,000 in electronics and personal items were stolen on campus between Sept. 3 and Oct. 3, according to OU Police reports. While most of the thefts involved unattended items taken in the Bizzell Memorial Library, some cases of theft have occurred in Michael F. Price Hall, the Armory, the dorms and Traditions Square apartments.

“I was just unpacking my stuff from my trip home,” said Brooke Riley, political science and international and area studies sophomore. “I had taken a few things up to my apartment from my car, and then when I came back to grab my backpack, I noticed it was lighter than it was before.” Riley said she put her laptop in her backpack at the beginning of the day, but when she picked it up that night to take it into her apartment, she noticed it was gone. “It was very upsetting,” she said. “I usually am pretty trusting when I

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LILLY CHAPA/THE DAILY

Students often leave their belongings unattended at the Bizzell library. Cases of stolen purses, backpacks and bags have increased this semester. © 2009 OU PUBLICATIONS BOARD

Improvements possible in updating older buildings MATTHEW MOZEK Daily Staff Writer

With over 500 students, faculty and staff registered, the OU Disability Resource Center offers Sooners an environment to fully participate in campus activities and a support system for those individuals who seek help with their course work, said director Suzette Dyer. Colin Bober, president of the Association of Disabled Students, said the university does a good job accommodating students with disabilities; however, there is always room for improvement. Bober, a business administration junior, said he believes the Disability Resource Center on campus is an asset for everyone with a disability, and professors often allow him extra time to take tests. Bober said he believes it is the responsibility of students with disabilities to take advantage of those accommodations. “The success of a disabled student depends on the actions we take, the decisions we make and the perception of ourselves,” Bober said. “The university makes a great effort to ensure that everyone can participate in all the university has to offer, but disabled students must

pursue those activities themselves and cannot wait for new friends and activities to find them.” Bober and Slaymaker said they believe there is very little that separates students with disabilities from the rest of the student population. “Some students feel as though they are different and that there is a division line between them and the rest of the student population, but when you put it in perspective, we are all on campus to achieve the same goals,” Bober said. “We all need friends [and] fun things to do, and sometimes [we] need some help. So in my opinion, if a disabled student feels as though there is in fact a division line, it is because they consciously view themselves as different, and drew the division line themselves.” Areas that need improvement for disabled students include oncampus elevators, the number of handicapped parking spaces and curb cutouts and bathroom accessibility, Bober said. Austin Slaymaker, former ADS president and current ADS treasurer, said he would like to see improvements made regarding the older structures on campus. “The newer buildings are easily accessible, but the older ones could use some updating,” said Slaymaker, political science junior. Slaymaker said he believes updating the older structures comes

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VOL. 95, NO. 39


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