EDITORNOTE The Battalion’s final issue for the fall semester will be Monday. Publication will resume for the spring semester Jan. 19.
thebattalion ● tuesday,
Travis Lawson The Battalion An ongoing feud between the Texas A&M University student-run Carpool and taxi cab companies in College Station has been alleviated after a meeting Dec. 3 between the two sides and College Station Police Department. Taxicab companies and Carpool have operated concurrently without problems since the organization was founded in 1999. However, companies have been complaining Carpool is stealing business by offering free rides to the community. Multiple incidents on Northgate between Carpool drivers and taxicab drivers caused the College Station Police Department to intervene and settle the matter. The Director of Public Relations for Carpool Rebecca Orth, a senior health major, said the two sides are beginning to see eye-to-eye. “I kind of felt like the taxi companies felt like we were out to get them, but that is not the case at all,” Orth said. “Our goal is to get the drunk drivers off the road so if they end up in their car or our car then our mission is accomplished.” See Taxi on page 7a
Code maroon fails to alert all
See Code Maroon on page 6a
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texas a&m since 1893
● first paper free – additional copies $1 ● © 2009 student media
cool Student carries Aggie Spirit in an unusual way Anne Littmann The Battalion To the outside observer, “Cooler Guy” may appear to be just a man on a motorized cooler, but to those who know him best, he is so much more. The man behind the cooler, sophomore mechanical engineering major Michael Riemer, never expected to become a sensation. “I feel like it’s crazy; I didn’t expect it at all. More people know me as Cooler Guy than my actual name,” Riemer said. “Today I was riding around campus and some guy came up to me and said ‘Hey I’m a fan of your’s on Facebook.’” Riemer, whose fan base totals 1,492 on Facebook, has decided to use his newfound fame to encourage Aggies to show their support, especially for Aggie Athletics. “I mostly use my fanpage to encourage Aggies to go to games and especially out to soccer games because not a lot of people follow soccer but our women’s soccer team is awesome,” Riemer said. See Cooler Guy on page 6a
We are the Aggies Ben Williamson — THE BATTALION
Michael Riemer rides his motorized cooler to class. Mich
Aggies are We will be a series of stories published every other Thursday highlighting Aggies.
Stress from finals approaches
Ann Littmann The Battalion Code Maroon experienced nced a system malfunction that caused some subscribers to not receive notification when thee service issued an alert on Dec. 1 that an escaped prisoner was spotted in College Station, nearr the Texas A&M campus. “There was a technical chnical malfunction,” said Charley Clark, k associate vice president for University risk and compliance. “We are always trying to improve our system.” It was later concluded the threat to the campus and the College Station area was unfounded, Clark said. Although the situation proved to be non-threatening, the Critical Incident Response Team is concerned some Code Maroon alerts circulated even though many students received the information from other sources, including, the Texas A&M University Web site, emergency alert radios, e-mail and Twitter messages. “This was the first alert sent out using the new system,” Clark said. “However, the system was tested on Sept. 17, and it performed well.” Universities around the country rely on automated alert systems in order to send out vital information in case of an emergency. Texas A&M University installed the Code Maroon Emergency Notification System, which informs students via text message, Texas A&M e-mail, KAMU-FM radio, campus cable television, Emergency Alert System radios, Twitter and RSS feeds.
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Laura Sanchez The Battalion You cann learn how not to falter fal under the stress of finals with a few simple techniques. The first method for stress management includes studying ahead of time. Experts agree finals should be a time for review and not cramming. The Student Counseling Services advises to begin studying in advance for finals. “I advise freshman to study at least two weeks before finals to have enough time to review all necessary materials,” said senior biology major Mayra Martinez. “It can be stressful, but at the end it will be worth it. Your grade will reflect your hard work,” she said. The counseling services offers various tips
and techniques to manage stress not only during finals time, but all year. “If you have good time management, especially with your studies, then that will really help with reducing your stress and anxiety,” said Student Counseling Services Counselor Sarah Ou-Young. Counselors advise not to study all night for exams since students can be left with fatigue the next day or the rest of the week. Ou-Young recommends students keep a general schedule as much as possible in terms of sleep and study patterns. “As a grad student, I have found that setting a specific day or time in my weekly routine to do things have allowed me to manage stress a lot better,” said Tereso Herrera, a human resource management graduate student. “I try not to schedule anything on Saturdays and leave that time to relax.” Counselors said eating fruits and drinking juices during long nights of studying are much more
effective than eating fatty and sugary foods that may cause sleepiness and loss of concentration. “Refrain from excessive use of caffeine or alcohol because those things will make you more jittery and will actually contribute to your stress level,” Ou-Young said. Exercise to relax during finals is also recommended as it can give your mind a boost of energy to refocus. “During finals, I would either go for a jog, workout at the Rec or play basketball,” Herrera said. “One time I put together a flag football game with a few of my friends during dead week. This enabled us to get away from the books and have a little fun together.” Studying in a quiet environment instead of an apartment with noisy roommates also will help minimize test anxiety. Keeping your calm and not being around too much chaos will allow for an environment that is both stress free and beneficial to learning, Martinez said. See Finals on page 7a
More tips on avoiding H1N1 Robert Carpenter Special to The Battalion While the number of H1N1 cases has fallen, students should remain proactive, said U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan in a media conference Thursday addressing the issue of the H1N1 virus on university campuses. “Our basic message is that we are simply not out of the woods yet with regards to H1N1,” Duncan said. “While we’ve seen a dip in the reported H1N1 cases nationwide, we know that could change at any time.” A common theme of Duncan’s address was the importance of being vaccinated. “College-aged students are among the most at-risk populations for contracting H1N1, and so it is very
important for as many college students as possible to get the vaccine,” Duncan said. The vaccinations have been met with mixed reactions. Some have abstained from receiving a vaccination because of the lack of clinical trials completed before its release. However, Edward Sherwood, interim dean of Texas A&M’s College of Medicine, dismissed these worries. “The vaccine was produced using the same technology that has been used for years,” said Sherwood, an infectious disease specialist. “There is no reason to believe the safety profile will be any different than that of the seasonal vaccine produced each year.” Duncan also encouraged students to take common sense measures toward preventing the spread of the flu. Marshall Bowen, a sophomore political science
major, said he has noticed students around campus already being proactive in this regard. “People are just being a little more conscientious in washing their hands and in [their] sanitary duties as they go about their lives as students,” Bowen said. The University also appears to be doing its part to encourage a healthy learning environment, Bowen said. “I’ve seen more hand sanitizing stations, as well as frequently stocked soaps in the restrooms,” Bowen said. While the measures taken by both the University and students are in-line with recommendations made by Duncan, he emphasized flu prevention extends throughout all parts of students’ lifestyles. See H1N1 on page 6a
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