FRIDAY NOVEMBER 20, 2009
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Catch a preview of this weekend’s football game between Texas Tech and OU. PAGE 3
Find a review of the anticipated sequel to the first “Twilight” movie. PAGE 6
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STREET CLOSES AFTER GAS LEAK Residents unclear on implication, given option to evacuate RICKY MARANON Daily Staff Writer
A section of Robinson Street closed due to a gas leak Thursday leaving some Norman residents concerned for their safety. The natural gas line running along Fay Avenue and crossing under Robinson Street broke Thursday evening when a contractor punctured the line, said Jim Bailey, Norman deputy fire chief. The contractor and his company were rerouting underground
utilities in preparation for a new overpass to be constructed on Robinson Street, he said. “We’re going to cinch each side of the pipe to make sure the leak stops, and once we get the leak under control, we will then put a patch on the hole,” Bailey said. Norman residents said no one had told them a leak had taken place until they saw coverage of it on local television stations. “I heard there might be a gas leak, but no one has told me anything that they are sure of,” said Larry Bartell, who lives on Dale Street. The area of Dale Street between Peters Avenue GAS LEAK CONTINUES ON PAGE 2
STAFF MEMBER FIRED AFTER BEING CHARGED WITH ARSON Susan Lauterbach was terminated from her position as coordinator of instructional labs and facility safety for the chemistry and biochemistry departments, OU spokesman Jay Doyle said. Lauterbach is charged with three counts of first-degree arson in relation to three fires she allegedly set in September. Doyle said Lauterbach was on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of an investigation into her actions, but was fired when charges were actually filed Tuesday. Lauterbach is free after posting $5,000 bond, according to Cleveland County District Court documents. She is scheduled to have
a pre-hearing conference with members of the Cleveland County District Attorney’s office Dec. 1 at 1 p.m., according to court documents. Attorneys David Autry and Mike Scheitzach will represent Lauterbach. Lauterbach has been under a psychiatrist’s care since April 2008, Lauterbach’s attorneys stated in a filing with the Cleveland County District Court. She has been taking the antidepressant medication Celexa as well as Clonazepam, a drug used to treat panic and seizure disorders, according to the filing. -Daily staff reports -Information from the Food and Drug Administration was used in this report.
TWILIGHT HITS FEVER PITCH ‘Twilight’ course offered for December intersession
TRI-DELTS TEAM UP FOR TWILIGHT MOVIE PREMIERE
Class will examine context of phenomenon, effects on identity NATASHA GOODELL Daily Staff Writer
MARCIN RUTKOWSKI/THE DAILY
Members of the Delta Delta Delta sorority, including one Daily multimedia reporter, gather Thursday evening before going to a screening of “The Twilight Saga: New Moon” at the Warren Theatre in Moore.
“Twilight,” the vampire phenomenon that has been sweeping the nation, is now a topic for a December intersession course called “Twilight and Youth Culture.” English instructor Ieva Zumbake-Larchey, who is teaching this intersession course, said the class will be examining this phenomenon to teach them about the preoccupations and aspirations of a certain segment of the generation. “Obviously ‘Twilight’ is too big to ignore,” Larchey said. “‘Twilight’ seems to be taking the obsession of the fans to a new level.” Larchey said she plans to structure this class to have secondary readings written by critics of popular culture and youth culture.
“We will examine “Twilight” as a product and a producer,” she said. Larchey said the class will read these outside sources and examine “Twilight” in the context and dialogue with other cultural phenomena to see how it compares and what it can teach people. “Hopefully they will go away realizing that ‘Twilight’ isn’t just a romantic story, but it’s a powerful influence that can affect the way people see themselves,” she said. Larchey said she hopes the students will realize the kinds of things they see in the media impact all of our perceptions of ourselves. “For example, part of the class will talk about the way gender is portrayed in ‘Twilight.’ Bella’s perception of herself and the happiness of her life is really dependent on her romantic relationship and her love for Edward,” she said. “If you internalize this, you may start thinking a romantic relationship is the No. 1 priority that determines the quality of your life.” TWILIGHT CONTINUES ON PAGE 2
New OU architecture building reaches milestone Sports bridge cultural Gould Hall project stays safe, sucdivide between students cessful halfway through construction Differences go beyond simply names, rules MATTHEW MOZEK Daily Staff Writer
Foreign exchange student Lorris Miglioretti is blown away by what he calls “the show” of OU football. “It’s quite a show. It’s pretty impressive. It’s, for me, the American way,” said Miglioretti, a first-year student from France. Miglioretti, a student at the OU College of Law, moved to the U.S. three months ago. Soccer’s never been of great interest to him, but Miglioretti said it is the most popular sport in France and quite possibly all of Europe. Rugby has gained a lot of popularity in France within the last year, he said. Tennis is very popular as well, he said. Miglioretti said he started playing tennis at a young age and grew up idolizing tennis star Roger Federer. Miglioretti also said he was surprised by the lack of enthusiasm for tennis in the U.S. Although tennis is a big part of the sports scene in France, he said he believes sports in general are a bigger part of the culture
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in America. Sports are not a part of the college experience in France, he added. Athletics and education are entirely separate entities. Juan Pablo Valdiva Pizarro, a first-year foreign exchange student from Peru, also came to the U.S. three months ago. Pizarro said soccer is unquestionably the most popular sport in Peru. Pizarro said he has played soccer his entire life and was not surprised by its unpopularity in America. However, he did say the feeling is a lot like a baseball player having to move to Peru because baseball is nonexistent in his country, he said. Pizarro also said he shares the same affinity for the college football atmosphere. “I’ve been to a couple of the [football] games,” Pablo said. “It’s crazy. It’s a huge show with the band and the cheerleaders and all the people there. I love it.” Ivan Calderoni moved to the U.S. a couple of years ago, spent most of his life in Mexico and said he was first introduced to American football when he came to America. Soccer used to be his favorite sport growing
MEREDITH MORIAK Managing Editor
SPORTS CONTINUES ON PAGE 2
MILESTONE CONTINUES ON PAGE 2
Construction workers and project team members joined faculty, staff and students from the College of Architecture on the South Oval Thursday afternoon to celebrate hitting the halfway point of construction on Gould Hall. During a topping-out ceremony, which signifies the final beam being placed on a building, an American flag, an evergreen tree and a broom accompanied the final beam. The flag means the building was made by Americans with American materials, said Kirk Mammen, manager of the project for FlintCo, Inc., the general contractor for the Gould Hall. The tree signifies growth and the broom stand for a clean sweep of construction, with no injuries. “Topping out is an important milestone in the life of a project,” said Charles Graham, dean of the College of Architecture. Mammen said construction on the project has gone smoothly and the building is expected to be completed Jan. 6, 2011. “Construction has gone well despite an unusually wet late summer and early fall,” Mammen said. Due to the rain, workers lost about a month of building time but are only a week behind schedule, Mammen said. The Gould Hall renovation began in January and presented interesting challenges like most older buildings do, Mammen said. Approximately 25,000 additional square feet were added to the existing building, bringing the total square footage to approximately 135,000, Mammen said. The building was originally constructed in 1950 MEREDITH MORIAK/THE DAILY and began housing the OU College of Architecture Bystanders watch as an American flag, a beam and an evergreen in 1989, Graham said.
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are raised into the air by crane Thursday afternoon as part of the topping-out ceremony that occurred at Gould Hall. VOL. 95, NO. 66