SDSU TIES AGAIN
ANIMAL TESTING
FACEBOOK WOES
The Aztecs faced another tough opponent this weekend on the road. page 2
Find out whether cosmetic brands conduct experiments on animals. page 3
Worried about questionable News Feed content? Someone else is too. page 4
dailyaztec the
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Vol. 96, Issue 14
w w w. T h e D a i l y A z t e c . c o m
San Diego State University’s Independent Student Newspaper since 1913
INDEX:
Tw i t t e r : T h e D a i l y A z t e c
sports ... 2
opinion ... 3
TODAY @ STATE Phoenix, 8 p.m. to 11 p.m., Open Air Theater “she: in her teens and twenties,” noon to 4 p.m., PSFA art gallery
backpage ... 4
Mortar Board wins awards in Chicago ASHLEY MORGAN S TA F F W R I T E R
San Diego State’s Jane K. Smith Cap and Gown Chapter of Mortar Board received one of 22 Golden Torch Awards, in addition to eight Project Excellence Awards at the Mortar Board National Conference in Chicago this summer. The Jane K. Smith chapter tied with Hope College in receiving the most Project Excellence Awards. “The Golden Torch Award is an esteemed mark of distinction presented to chapters who have, without a doubt, gone above and beyond to exemplify Mortar Board’s ideals of scholarship, leadership and service during the academic year,” Communications Manager for the Mortar Board National Office, Alicia Notestone, said. “The Jane K. Smith chapter at San Diego State University was selected because the group has continually made a remarkable impact on the campus by hosting leadership projects and providing valuable service to the university.”
“To have students who are very active on campus already and maintain a high GPA in their senior year of college ... it’s very impressive.” — Patti Scott, SDSU Mortar Board chapter faculty adviser The Jane K. Smith chapter and 21 other chapters received the Golden Torch Award out of 228 chapters in the country. The SDSU chapter was also selected as a finalist for Mortar Board’s top honor, the Ruth Weimer Mount Chapter Excellence Award, last received by the group in 2003. “It’s a great opportunity to showcase the high activity level that the SDSU Mortar Board chapter has. It’s really an active chapter and we’re very fortunate that the students who participate prioritize Mortar Board, along with their million other activities,” SDSU’s Mortar Board chapter’s faculty adviser, Patti Scott, said.
Courtesy of Kayleigh Neel
Kayleigh Neel, Mortar Board president with Dr. Jane K. Smith and Mo Hill, the Mortar Board section 25 coordinator, received the Golden Torch Award in Chicago.
“I think it’s going to motivate us to do those events again this year, and try to excel and do even more and I think it just shows how dedicated our members are,” Chapter President, math and liberal studies senior Kayleigh Neel, said. The chapter received the Project Excellence Awards for events it both organized and participated in, including activities from last year such as the Emeritus Faculty and Staff Outstanding Service Awards Ceremony and Brunch, the Faculty and Staff Appreciation Dinner, the Dr. Henry L. Janssen Last Lecture Series, Honors Council and Alumni Relations. It also received awards for members’ participation in philanthropies including the Reading is Leading Backpack Stuffing, a combined effort with SDSU alumni and the University of San Diego Mortar Board chap-
ter and the Students Supporting Special Education Walk, which raised more than $2,000 for special education classrooms in the San Diego Unified School District. Another project the group organizes on campus is the Mortar Board Planner and calendar of events, which is sold at the SDSU Bookstore. “Whether the chapter is participating in a local initiative, or making great efforts to recognize faculty and staff with numerous awards, this outstanding group of students makes efforts large and small to support the campus and community,” Notestone said. The organization is one of six multidiscipline honors societies, which also include Golden Key, Phi Beta Kappa, Phi Eta Sigma, Phi Kappa Phi and Scholars without Borders. The chapter was recently renamed after its longtime adviser of 24 years, Dr. Jane K.
Smith. Membership in the organization is restricted to 40 students per year who must be seniors with 3.2 GPAs or higher. “There is an application that goes out in the spring, 150 seniors or so apply every year,” Neel said. “They must be really involved on and off campus; a membership committee chooses 60 finalists and then the whole group chooses 40 best.” “To have students who are very active on campus already and maintain a high GPA in their senior year of college, the pressures that are already on all of these students, along with preparing for graduate school and preparing for future employment, it’s very impressive,” Scott said. “I’m always amazed and very proud to be associated with Mortar Board and to have the association with these students and see what they do when they go on from SDSU.”
WORLD NEWS BP oil update
Recession ends
Plea from hiker
Japan calms China
After many failed attempts by BP throughout the past five months to seal the oil well that created the worst oil spill in history, officials have declared the well plugged. Several previous attempts to plug the well were unsuccessful. However, the most recent worked, using cement to plug the leaking well. According to President Barack Obama, efforts will continue to focus on fixing the damage done to the Gulf Coast by the oil spill.
According to the National Bureau of Economic Research, the recession ended in June 2009. Starting in December 2007, this marks the longest recession the country has undergone since World War II ended. However, Obama said that although the recession is officially through, “it’s still very real for us.” After a record four straight quarters of declines, the economy started growing again in the July-to-September quarter of 2009.
Sarah Shourd, an American hiker who was released last week after 410 days of being detained in an Iranian prison, is calling for the release of her two fellow hikers, stating she felt only “one-third free.” She was released on $500,000 bail facilitated by Omani officials. Shourd stated she and her companions, one of whom is her fiancé, had committed no crime and were not spies. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad stated he would not be involved in the situation and would let the issue be resolved through the Iranian court system.
China decided to suspend top-level contacts after Japan detained a captain of a Chinese trawler for a longer period of time than originally expected. The captain is accused of hitting two Japanese vessels in waters claimed by both countries. Japan has 10 days to either charge or release the captain. Meanwhile, Japan is urging China to act prudently while the decision is made.
—Compiled by Assistant News Editor Sarah Kovash