The Vista Oct. 13, 2011

Zombies!

Bowling

A national hardware chain is inviting its customers to stock up for zombie defense and zombie proofing.

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Out of the 13 public universities in the state, UCO is the only one with a bowling team.

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OCT. 13, 2011 uco360.com twitter.com/uco360

THE VISTA

UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL OKLAHOMA’S student voice since 1903.

LBGTQ

CLUB HONORS LOST FRIENDS AND LOVED ONES WITH VIGIL

Amber Richardson and foster son Hayden, 8, stand in the circle during GATE’s annual Candlelight Vigil, Oct. 12 at Hafer Park. Photo by Garett Fisbeck, The Vista

By Christie Southern / Managing Editor Candles shone bright last night at Hafer Park during the annual Candlelight Vigil, held by the Gay Alliance for Tolerance and Equality (GATE), where members and visitors shared their coming out stories during the national commemoration of the day.

Though last year’s event was marked by the death of Norman’s Zach Harrington, it did not take a tragedy for people to come out this year and support the gay community.

“I’m not concerned with how many people show up, I just want it to be a moving event,”

GATE President Brandon White said prior to the start of the vigil.

Freshman Catherine Carte, graphic design major and member of Leaders of Tomorrow at UCO, experienced her first UCO vigil last night as a straight ally.

“I had never really been to anything like this, and being a part of the circle, sharing my story, and listening to others was really inspiration and heartwarming,” she said.

Her history with gay rights groups began in high school at Putnam City North as the co-president of the Gay Student Alliance.

ETHICS CONFERENCE

Though she described the group’s beginning as rough, she says that the struggles helped them grow.

Carte sought out GATE during Stampede Week, eager to get started at the college level.

“I feel so fortunate to be part of this group,” Carte said.

New to the ceremony this year was the addition of signs, held by different representatives, featuring LBGTQ youth who lost their lives through hate crimes and suicide. Some of the pictures included youth killed because they were perceived as gay, when in fact, they

STUDENT LOAN DEBT RISING IN RECESSION

9:30 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.

• Ethics and Public Relations (NUC Ballrooms) 10:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.

• We’re on deadline (NUC Ballrooms)

Student loan debt has risen 25 percent since the beginning of the recession.

In contrast, all other forms of debt have fallen up to 20 percent.

According to the report for the second quarter of this year by the Federal Reserve Bank, unpaid student loans now total $550 billion, compared to $440 billion at the beginning of the recession in the third quarter of 2008.

“The general trend is unleveraging, getting rid of debt, paying it off,” Joseph Johnson, professor of economics, said.

The report also stated that total outstand-

WEATHER

Thursday Conference Schedule

Continued on page 5

Student Loans

By Chris Howell / Staff Writer

Kelly Ogle, Dr. Terry Clark, and Dave Espo speak at an Ethics Conference, hosted at UCO, Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2011. The conference continues with additional panels and workshops on Thursday, Oct. 13. Photo by Garett Fisbeck, The Vista

weren’t, White said.

The group took two steps back as White announced the empty spaces represented the lost lives of the victims.

“This is how big the circle could have been,” he said to the crowd.

Members then split into three smaller circles and discussed their personal coming out stories, whether their own, a friend’s or family member’s, and how it affected them.

“Once you come out, you sometimes forget

TODAY H 82° L 54°

ing debt has fallen approximately one trillion dollars, to 11.4 trillion, since the beginning of the recession.

Unpaid student loan debt surpassed the total credit card debt at $826.5 billion for the first time in June 2010, according to the Federal Reserve. Consumers tend to pay off credit card debt before student loans because credit cards have higher interest rates.

“I have been upset by the amount of debt that’s necessary to fund an undergraduate education. That’s a lot of money to make up,” Johnson stated.

TOMORROW H 82° L 55°

Continued on page 4

DID YOU KNOW? The average American 3-year-old can recognize about 100 brand logos.

More weather at www.uco360.com

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OPINION

OCT. 13, 2011

THE VISTA 100 North University Drive Edmond, OK 73034 (405)974-5549 vistauco@gmail.com The Vista is published as a newspaper and public forum by UCO students, semi-weekly during the academic year except exam and holiday periods, and only on Wednesdays during the summer, at the University of Central Oklahoma. The issue price is free for the first copy and $1 for each additional copy obtained.

EDITORIALS Opinion columns, editorial cartoons, reviews and commentaries represent the views of the writer or artist and not necessarily the views of The Vista Editorial Board, the Department of Mass Communication, UCO or the Board of Regents of Oklahoma Colleges. The Vista is not an official medium of expression for the Regents or UCO.

What do you think about Occupy OKC? JONATHAN ZOLLO

KELSEY STICE

COOPER JOHNSON

Freshman – Mechanical Engineering

Junior- Elementary Education

Sophomore – Electrical Engineering

LETTERS The Vista encourages letters to the editor. Letters should address issues and ideas, not personalities. Letters must be typed, double-spaced, with a maximum of 150 words, and must include the author’s printed name, title, major, classification and phone number. Letters are subject to editing for libel, clarity and space, or to eliminate statements of questionable taste. The Vista reserves the right not to publish submitted letters.

Address letters to: Editor, The Vista, 100 N. University Dr., Edmond, OK 73034-5209, or deliver in person to the editor in the Communications Building, Room 131. Letters can be e-mailed to vistauco@gmail.com.

STAFF

Management

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Cody Bromley, Editor-In-Chief Christie Southern, Managing Editor Brittany Dalton, Copy Editor Trey Hunter, Sports Editor

Ben Luschen, Staff Writer Chris Howell, Staff Writer Josh Hutton, Staff Writer Trevor Hultner, Staff Writer Bryan Trude, Staff Writer

Graphic Design Anthony Murray

Advertising

Photography

Kylee Turner

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Circulation

Editorial Comic

Troy Fisbeck

Evan Oldham

“If they are going to protest they need to know what about.”

“I think somethings need to be fixed but it’s good that they are speaking up.”

“I haven’t heard anything about it.”

CAMERON FITZGERALD

JAIMIE GEORGE

JORDAN HENDERSON

Senior-Advertising

Junior-Forensic Science, Psychology

Freshman-Undecided

Adviser Mr. Teddy Burch

Opinion

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

By Mamdouh Shouman / Graduate Student Knowledge, a main pillar to everyone’s success, is the essence on which universities were established. “Knowledge is virtue” as Socrates said, illustrates the fact that knowledge has been praised for more than 2,400 years. Thus, the driving force behind any progressive society is the ability to make knowledge the vehicle and departure point for successful ends. Many countries strive to educate their people. Through knowledge, people can contribute significantly to the well-being of their society.

Based on this premise, countries around the world have sought to adopt the best educational system. Tellingly, the United States of America is still the realm of knowledge. As an international student on a mission to obtain this knowledge, I have many observations I want to share.

I am a graduate international student from Saudi Arabia majoring in political science at UCO. In 2009, I was taking English courses at the University of Maryland. Like any international student, my main obstacle was learning a new language. I had to put far more effort into mastering the English language because the discipline of political science requires advanced English.

Nevertheless, I have successfully reached the point where I am capable of listening, speaking and writing English almost like a native speaker. You might think I advanced in English because I studied it at the University of Maryland. This is not the truth.

My English courses at the University of Maryland were the foundation of comprehension, but the fear of practicing English was the major problem. Here my experience at UCO steps in.

The academic environment of UCO is the driving force that gave me the confidence to overcome my fear. Specifically, the humility and caring of the professors in the political science department broke the barrier of fear in me. Since they are intellectuals in the field, I have noticed they know how to interact with international students to an extent that they make the students feel as though they are in their home country. What makes a university exceptional is the quality and humility of their faculty members.

Comparing Northeast culture with Midwestern, I have noticed a sharp distinction. It is believed that the Northeast states are more diverse than Midwest states. What I noticed, however, is not the diverse culture that is more adaptive to international students; rather, the acceptance and sociableness of the people.

Oklahomans have proven to me they have a sense of hospitality to international students. Having said that, I am confident in predicting that Oklahoma could be the leading state in polarizing international scholars at its universities. I say this because of the undeniable kindness and hospitality I have experienced here.

Going back to UCO’s inspiration to me, I must say that with all the obstacles I dealt with, UCO has given me a helping hand.

By constantly working hard to earn great grades in my studies, I have become a teaching assistant in the department of political science. This is a great achievement for an international student.

Had it not been for the encouragement and exceptional teaching of my professors, I would not have been confident to apply for this position.

I implore UCO’s President, Dr. Don Betz, to continue his predecessor Dr. Roger Webb’s ambition to make UCO the number one option for international students. With its wonderful academic environment, I believe in the near future that UCO will be the best university for international students.

“I haven’t heard a distinct reason why everyone is down there.”

“I think it’s interesting.

This is the first time that I’m hearing about it.”

“It’s affecting us even though we didn’t have a choice about how the bailout was handled.”

By Evan Oldham / Cartoonist

NEWS

OCT. 13, 2011 Braaiinsss....

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Opinion

HARDWARE CHAIN AIMING TO BOOST SALES WITH HUMOR

OFF THE RECORD By Brittany Dalton Effort Isn’t Enough

A sign promoting zombie preparadness is seen in a hardware store in Omaha, Neb., Monday, Oct. 10, 2011. The Westlake Ace Hardware stores are promoting tools and household items as “zombie defense” for the living and “zombie repairs” for the half-deceased. The regional company has launched a website in preparation for Halloween. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)

By Grant Schulte / Associated Press LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Hardware store manager Mike Dowling wants to be clear: His shovels might slow an attacking zombie, but you’ll to need something else to put the final nail in the creature’s coffin.

“I wouldn’t say it’s for killing zombies,” the veteran Omaha store manager said. “But it’s helpful for cleaning up if you ever have to.”

In a pop-culture world of zombie marches, video games and television shows, one regional hardware chain has taken the novel approach of actively marketing power tools and garden implements as protection against the undead.

And not to leave out the walking dead, Westlake Ace Hardware’s online “Zombie Preparedness Center” has a “Me zombie” section touting bolts and fasteners for broken bones, glue and caulk for peeling skin, and deodorizers to freshen up decaying flesh. Lose a limb? Try duct tape!

Marketing experts say such out-ofthe-box campaigns can give smaller

companies a competitive foothold.

“It’s a great way to create brand awareness,” said University of Nebraska Lincoln marketing professor Rob Simon.

“But there is a risk. Say you have a jewelry store that was going to do something like that. In that case, it would really diminish what you’re selling.”

Westlake executives say they initially were reluctant to associate products with horror film imagery, and the campaign shies away from serious blood-and-gore.

One blurb in the pre-Halloween campaign advertises chain saws “for clearing away hedges blocking your view of oncoming zombies.” Nail guns are for “zombie intimidation.”

“I was a little worried that we might be a little too out there, that people might take offense,” said Liz Benditt, Westlake’s director of customer relationship development. “But if anything, (the effect) has been the opposite.”

The campaign launched last week originated with Bozell, an Omaha public relations and advertising firm. Scott Bishop, the company’s director of social

influence, said members of the firm’s creative staff wandered the hardware store aisles and jotted notes on how items could help or halt the undead.

“We found that zombies have a very, very huge following,” Bishop said. “It’s very much a part of our pop culture right now.”

Benditt said the risk has paid off well so far for Lenexa, Kan.-based chain, which has 88 stores scattered through Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas and New Mexico. She said web traffic has increased, and store managers said they’ve seen more potential customers coming into stores. It’s not yet clear if that’s led to increased sales.

The campaign is so popular that some stores that haven’t yet received the zombie displays are clamoring to get them.

Alan Kulhanek, general manager for a Lincoln, Neb., store, said he’s waiting for his zombie display, but several customers have already come in asking to see it.

“It’s off the wall. It’s odd,” he said. “But it’s fun. You never know how well something’s going to work until you try it.”

HOW TO SURVIVE A ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE While many people might not think zombies attacking our fair city is anywhere near reality, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention claims to be ready and has tips for how everyday folks can prepare.

First, an emergency kit can help in the short term. Spare water, food, medications (prescription and non-prescription), tools, clothing, bedding and first aid. Though the CDC admits first aid might not stop the zombie virus, it can help for bandaging up after fighting some.

Second, have an emergency plan for when you run out of

supplies, where you would go or who you would call if the zombies started beating down your door.

The CDC is being tongue-in-cheek, and these tips are useful when preparing for any disaster, not just zombies.

But if they do come knocking, the CDC is not going to leave you hanging.

“If zombies did start roaming the streets, CDC would conduct an investigation much like any other disease outbreak,” Ali S. Khan wrote last May on the CDC’s Public Health Matters blog.

Student Organizations

SCREENING HIGHLIGHTS KOREAN PLIGHT

By Josh Hutton / Staff Writer On Tuesday, Oct. 18, the Global Impact Volunteer Effort (GIVE) will be partnering with Liberty in North Korea (LiNK) to host a documentary illuminating the plight of refugees fleeing the country of North Korea.

The documentary, “Hiding: The Final Cut,” tracks a group of refugees road to freedom. LiNK is currently on their Reliance tour, visiting cities across the nation. The tour purposes to bolster awareness of the conditions in North Korea and the difficulty of refugees to escape given North Korea’s agreement with China.

The Chinese do not define fleeing North Korean citizens as refugees, which they would have to protect under the 1951 Convention on the Status of Refugees, but instead define them as illegal economic migrants. LiNK provides a shelter to house these underground runaways, provides food, and then aids them with resettlement in the US or South Korea.

“It’s great that LiNK is coming to our campus to share their passion with us and to help open our eyes to some of the tragic things happening in North Korea,” GIVE president Heidi McKee said. “I am looking forward to becoming more aware of what is going on in our world.”

The “Hiding: The Final Cut” screening will be the second time GIVE has partnered with LiNK. Last spring, LiNK

presented to the campus and asked students to write their congressional members to issue legislation helping the impoverished people of North Korea. The presentation was an eye-opening experience for many students on campus.

“Educating yourself about global issues with organizations like Liberty in North Korea are vital to opening that globalmindedness,” GIVE member and senior Zach Hurley said. “Especially at UCO, it’s easy to fall into a narrow view, if you do not seek out events outside of the United States.”

College students established liNK in 2004. This is the major reason LiNK actively seeks out college campuses to host events. With GIVE’s three-year history of partnerships with international organizations, they have become the vehicle for awareness.

“There are a lot of opportunities to learn about international issues at UCO, but because GIVE is dedicated to longstanding relationships with organizations like LiNK and Invisible Children, they create a way for stuents to not just learn about the issues, but help participate and aid international causes,” Hurley said.

The documentary event will take place at 8 p.m. The video will be shown in the Will Rogers Room, room 421 in the Nigh University Center. Food and drink will be provided at the event.

Sometimes, just putting in the effort isn’t enough.

I had a seatmate in Biology, let’s call him Charlie, who subscribed to the maxim that his “minimum was enough.” Every day, he would slump into his seat against the wall, bemoaning his pitiful grades.

The day after an exam he believed would put the brakes on graduation, he would gesture indignantly, brandishing the test at me to punctuate his points.

“I took notes in class,” he grumbled.

I turned to him and queried, “Yes, but did you study?”

Set on the defensive, he responded, “No, but isn’t an effort enough?”

In response to his question, in response to the thought pattern pervading the minds of my peers: just an effort doesn’t sure-shot success.

For example, holiday gatherings. Every Thanksgiving, I trek down to the bayou to spend the holiday with my extended family. Bless them all, the effort to follow in conversation on the local church’s program often isn’t enough. My grandmother is more likely to lose me somewhere between “fruit cake” and “Sunday best.” In sequence, the Thanksgiving turkey goes in the oven, and my iPod earphones go in. As dear ol’ grammy switches topics to the seafood warehouse down the road, tinkling pianos resound in each bud.

Effort is nothing to scorn. Classrooms across campus would sit empty and this paper would go unread if not for a fair amount of care. I probably wouldn’t have my current job if not for the effort I put forth at this point last year.

So it’s not mere effort that should be applauded.

It’s your best effort that should be praised.

I’ve never been the kind of person who cares about grades. My grades were always effortlessly exceptional. The lack of necessity spawned a devil-maycare mindset that has followed me for fifteen years.

The only relevant information I gained my freshman year at UCO was an answer to my flabbergasted, “Studying, what’s that?”

Charlie, on the other hand, didn’t have an aboveaverage IQ. Nor did he have the ambition to give a greater effort than showing up. Offered a position at a prestigious publication out-of-state, he refused.

Charlie took the road less traveled, and now has a not-quite prestigious job as a cashier at a Pink Swirls across town.

Charlie could be any one of us all, floundering aimlessly through life. When we glorify a minimal effort, we exalt mediocrity.

Now we come to a fork in the road: the choice between the mediocrity mindset and exceptionalism.

If you choose the first, take those earphones out and listen to great-aunt June tell you stories about when she met John F. Kennedy. Help your mom with the dishes, or study your government notes before the final.

On the other hand, will the path of mediocrity lead you far? Will you wake up in five years still proud of yourself for where you are?

I can’t say for sure, but if you took that second road, I predict you might have a promising future as a fry cook.

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NEWS

OCT. 13, 2011

WAS EINSTEIN WRONG?

By Trevor Hultner / Staff Writer Nobel Prize-winning physicist Albert Einstein’s theories of relativity, popularized by his mass-energy equivalence equation, “E=mc^2,” have been tested and proven consistently for decades. They are considered to be among the bedrock of physics theory.

However, researchers involved with the Gran Sasso, Italy-based OPERA (Oscillation Project with Emulsion-tRacking Apparatus) project, in conjunction with researchers from the Switzerlandbased European Center for Nuclear Research (CERN), may have potentially found a new area of physics that Einstein’s theories do not cover.

The group has discovered particles that hold mass which might possibly move faster than the speed of light (“c” in Einstein’s equation; roughly 186,000 miles per second), something that was previously thought to be extremely hard to do.

Unexpected Results In early September, over 170 researchers from OPERA published a

report titled “Measurement of the neutrino velocity with the OPERA detector in the CNGS beam,” which detailed an experiment spanning from 2009 to 2011.

Neutrinos are vz particles with no electrical charge and an extremely small mass. The OPERA experiment had initially been designed to view the change of muon neutrinos, into tau neutrinos (a process called neutrino oscillation), but had the added function of accurately measuring neutrino velocity from “the source of the CNGS neutrino beam at CERN and the OPERA detector at LNGS,” 730 kilometers away.

Once the experiment was completed, the test results were sent off for blind analysis. What the analysts reported they found after checking, double-checking and triple-checking the data, as well as accounting for systematic errors, was that the muon neutrinos arrived at the Gran Sasso neutrino collider a full 60 nanoseconds faster than the speed of light.

They concluded, “We cannot explain the observed effect in terms of presently known systematic un-

certainties. Therefore, the measurement indicates an early arrival time of CNGS muon neutrinos with respect to the one computed assuming the speed of light in vacuum.”

OPERA scientists ended their report on a cautious note, saying “Despite the large significance of the measurement reported here and the stability of the analysis, the potentially great impact of the result motivates the continuation of our studies in order to investigate possible still unknown systematic effects that could explain the observed anomaly. We deliberately do not attempt any theoretical or phenomenological interpretation of the results.”

Science Community Skeptical When OPERA’s discoveries were made public late last month, the possibility of a particle with a definite mass moving faster than light sent the public atwitter, but other scientists maintain some skepticism.

Astrophysicist and television presenter Neil Degrasse Tyson tweeted to his followers days after the news came out: “Misbehaved neutrinos?

Three options: 1) Mistake; 2) They live backwards in time -- okay w/ Einstein; 3) Extend Relativity.”

“Most physicists suspect that there is some systematic error they’re not accounting for,” UCO physics professor Weldon J. Wilson said.

According to his page on the Engineering and Physics department website, Wilson’s research has worked towards addressing “problems in quantum and classical field theory, general relativity, gauge interaction, geophysics, statistical physics, fluid dynamics, and biology.”

He said that astronomical studies have not born out the same results that OPERA scientists obtained, specifically citing SN1987A, a supernova event in 1987 that was visible to the naked eye in the Southern Hemisphere.

In that event, neutrino bursts were detected by three separate neutrino detectors only a matter of hours before astronomers were able to view the light from the supernova.

“SN1987A neutrinos should have gotten here days before,” he said.

“They got here at around the same time that we saw the explosion.”

New Regimes?

Experiments designed to test OPERA’s research are scheduled to begin soon at Fermilab in Illinois and J-PARC (Japan Proton Accelerator Research Complex) in Japan.

Wilson maintained his skepticism, but said that the kind of unexpected results OPERA had were desired.

“If you’re in the business of physics, that’s what you look for,” he said.

Wilson also urged caution on the part of the popular press when it comes to proclaiming Einstein’s Theories of Relativity bunk, making the point that in the event of new physical regimes, new theories would have to be created.

“Maybe we’ll find a regime where Einstein’s Theory of Relativity breaks down,” he said. “We never abandoned Newton’s theory of gravity.”

Photo: Large Hadron Collider.

Photo by Frank Hommes, used under Creative Commons

Continued from page 1

STUDENT DEBT Tuition increases average to about 8 percent a year, nearly twice the rate of inflation, according to the website Finaid.org.

For instance, the average cost of tuition at a four-year public institution in 2010 was $7,605, rising 8 percent higher than the year before. The rate of inflation at the consumer level increased only 1.2 percent during the previous two college semesters, from July 2009 to July 2010, according to a report by College Board.

That level of disparity between tuition increases and inflation is abnormally high but is consistent with the general trend of increases.

“There are all kinds of reasons to take out business loans. I don’t see the students having those kinds of choices [in loans]. I think they get loans because they have to,” Johnson said.

College enrollment tends to increase during recessions, according to a report by Mark Kantrowitz, the publisher of Fastweb.com and Finaid.org. According to the report, unemployment drives people to enroll to make themselves more marketable to employers.

Fall enrollment for all colleges increased 17 percent from 2006 to 2009. Compare that to the 5 percent increase in a similar interval from 2003 to 2006, according to statistics provided by the National Center for Education Statistics.

“It’s appalling. It’s not the way it should be.

Students are getting over their head,” Johnson said.

According to the Project on Student Debt

website, the average 2009 graduate in Oklahoma had 20,469 dollars in student debt, with 56 percent of them in debt. The national average for the amount graduates owed was 24,000 dollars.

According to the U.S. News and World Report ranking report, the average member of the UCO’s graduating class of 2010 had $19,820 in debt.

Since the recession started, the starting salary for college graduates has dropped significantly, according to a report by the John J. Heldrich Center for Workforce Development. The median starting salary for recent college graduates was $27,000 in 2008 and 2009, compared to a median starting salary of $30,000 from 2006 to 2008.

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Continued from page 1

CANDLELIGHT VIGIL there are others still struggling out there,” White said.

The vigil serves as a reminder to keep moving forward.

Mackesha Hogg, community adviser to GATE and 2008 UCO graduate, read a poem she wrote titled “My Big Fat Gay Dream” to her group, which resembled Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech.

“I have a dream that one day, no one has to die because of a lack of respect,” she read.

A variety of faces and community members were among the different candlelit circle, including two deployed National Guard 45th members currently on leave.

Some related humorous coming out stories, others talked about their family struggling to accept who they are. A few, told stories of the violence ignited because of their coming out process.

“It took me almost getting killed to stand up for myself,” freshman Harley Smith, museum history major said.

“I was pushed and shoved…called every name imaginable,” he went on to say.

As the only openly gay student in his high school he faced the very violence GATE tries to stifle on campus.

“Coming to UCO was like beginning anew,” Smith said. Many of the members of his circle echoed his sentiments, calling UCO campus a progressive environment for the gay community.

“Edmond gets a bad rep for being conservative but the town has really opened up to the gay community,” White said. “Oklahoma has come a long ways and it still has a ways to go.”

White and GATE adviser Dr. David Macey emphasized during the vigil that coming out is not just saying you are gay once. It is an everyday effort.

“I find myself coming out to someone new everyday,” White said. “I’m fortunate to be comfortable with myself and my sexuality but I know others are not.”

White finished off by saying that he hoped everyone in the audience one day felt comfortable being who they are.

“I thought the Vigil went extremely well,”

White said later. “It was very moving, and I hope that other attendees walked away feeling as empowered and hopeful as I did.”

White said the Vigil was exactly what he had hoped it would be. “[It was] a group of people coming together to rekindle the flame in the hearts of the community, and to empower LGBTQ youth whom are struggling with coming out.”

To continue their efforts GATE is tentatively planning to partner with the Student Counseling Services.

“We want to set up a mentor program in which our officers undergo one-on-one training with the Student Counseling Services,” White said.

The SCS would also undergo training from GATE, through a workshop outlining GATE’s SafeZone initiative on campus.

Additionally, White will be traveling to New York City in November as part of the Youth Advisory Council for The Trevor Project. There, he will receive training and brainstorming ideas on how to better reach LGBTQ youth.

The Trevor Project is the leading national organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay, transgender, and questioning youth.

“GATE is about acceptance and creating a learning environment that is open to everyone,” White said.

GATE aims to create community-building opportunities and help build bridges between the UCO campus and the wider gay community of Oklahoma. GATE meets every other week on Tuesday nights in the Liberal Arts building.

For more photos and an audio slideshow, scan this barcode:

Skyler Spencer, a chemistry freshman, during GATE’s “Coming Out” candle light vigil, Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2011. Photo by Garett Fisbeck, The Vista

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CLASSIFIED

OCT. 13, 2011 CROSSWORDS

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Email resume to Contact@BroadwayTagAgency.com

Research Volunteers Needed Researchers at OU Health Sciences Center need healthy volunteers ages 18 to 30 who have a parentwith or without a history of an alcohol or drug problem. Qualified participants will be compensated for their time.

Call (405) 456-4303 to learn more about the study and to see if you qualify. The University of Oklahoma is an equal opportunity institution.

Help Wanted PT TECHS. OPT NORTH AND OPT SOUTH ARE HIRING PT TECHS. PLEASE FAX YOUR RESUME TO 936-6493 OR SEND IT BY MAIL TO 3705 WEST MEMORIAL ROAD, SUITE 310, OKC, OK 73134 IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO DISCUSS THE OPT OPPORTUNITIES.

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FUN FACT Washington state’s Mt. Rainier is the tallest volcano in the contiguous United States, measuring nearly 14,500 feet in height. It last erupted in 1854.

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Up until the early 1970s, funeral homes often offered their hearses Experience in Photoshop, indesign, for use as ambulances to Illustrator and examples of work transport patients to hospitals. required

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Despite its 6.5 million square feet of floor space, the Pentagon in Washington was constructed in such a way that no point in the building is more than seven minutes’ walk from any other point in the building.

Down 1. Blemish 2. “... happily ___ after” 3. Bulgarian units of money 4. Lively 5. ___ grass 6. Land on Lake Victoria 7. Popularity of TV program based on audience poll 8. Bridget Fonda, to Jane 9. Lifting to heaven with praise 10. Measure of explosive power 11. Tropical constrictors 12. Street urchin 13. Short composition for a solo instrument 14. Adjusts, as a clock 23. Anger 24. Computer picture 25. “No ifs, ___ ...”

26. Wyle of “ER” 27. “What’s gotten ___ you?”

31. Crowning achievements 32. Black gold 33. Boat in “Jaws” 34. Accomplishment 35. Charge 37. Baltic capital 38. Religious recluses 41. Dark red gemstones 42. “___ moment” 44. Kind of seat 45. Heavy overcoat 47. Certain berth 48. Bing, bang or boom 49. 1962 and 1990 Tony winner Robert 50. Sentences 51. Breed 54. Western blue flag, e.g.

55. Ancestry 56. Declines 59. Athletic supporter? (golf)

OCT 11 CROSSWORD ANSWERS

SUDOKU

SUDOKU

Puzzle 1 (Easy, difficulty rating 0.35)

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SPORTS

OCT. 13, 2011

7

Central Hockey

BRONCHOS AND SOONERS RENEW RIVALRY

UCO’s Patrick Higgins drives the puck during a game between UCO and Niagra University at Arctic Edge arena in Edmond, Friday, Sept. 23, 2011. Photo by Garett Fisbeck, The Vista

By Bryan Trude / Sports Writer The UCO hockey team is looking to rebound from their first two losses of the season as they take on

the Oklahoma Sooners, beginning 7:30 p.m. tonight at the Blazers Ice Center, Oklahoma City.

The Bronchos (5-2) will follow up Friday night at Artic Edge Ice Arena

in Edmond, hosting the Sooners (6-2) in the first of three home-andhome series between the two teams this season. The puck drops at Artic Edge at 7:30 p.m.

Central is coming off of the ACHA Division I Showcase in Springfield, Ill. that saw the Bronchos upset the fifth-ranked Adrian Bulldogs, but fall to the Stony Brook Seawolves and the Kent State Golden Flashes.

The Sooners are led by junior forward Shane Vorndran and freshman defender Kevin Zehnder. Vorndran, OU’s leading goalscorer, has five goals and five assists on the season, while Zehnder has four goals and seven assists to lead the team with 11 points. Also contributing is Blake Martin, who has contributed seven assists in only five games of action.

In goal for the Sooners, the majority of minutes have gone to Colin Fernandes, who boasts a 2.00 goals against average (GAA) and a .92 save percentage. Also seeing significant minutes in goal is Matt Pombo, who offers a 1.38 GAA. For the Bronchos, this young team is lead by leading scorers Donald “Showtime” Geary and Patrick “Patty” Biron, who both have six goals on the season.

Spreading out production across the full spectrum of Central’s lines, 20 UCO players have contributed points to the team.

UCO does have several questions

going into the game, however.

Sophomore Josh Harris suffered an injury against Adrian when he crashed into the boards headfirst, knocking him out of the game. Initial x-rays were negative. However, he has been held out as he battles pain and soreness. Reservists Michael Wall and Patrick Higgins have covered Harris’ shifts in the meantime.

“Both have played hard,” Craig McAlister, UCO head coach, said.

“In the case of [Wall], he is still learning our systems and is a little uncertain at times, but showed promise.”

In goal for the Bronchos, it has been a contest all season as freshman netminders Tory Caldwell and Brett Patchett compete for the regular starting spot.

Although Caldwell has an advantage in GAA (1.75 to Patchett’s 3.00,) the two alternate starts.

Though no change in this arrangement has been announced, Patchett is the projected starter tonight.

Admission to the Thursday home game is $7, $5 for students and faculty with UCO ID. Children under five and youth hockey members wearing their jerseys get in free.

Central Football

CENTRAL FACES FIFTH-RANKED WASHBURN

By Bryan Trude / Sports Writer The 1-5 Bronchos’ road woes look to continue Saturday, Oct. 15 as UCO travels to Topeka, Kan. to take on #5 Washburn University at 1 p.m.

The game against the Ichabods (6-0) will wrap up what has been a brutal road schedule for Central, whose losing streak on the road now stands at 12. UCO’s lone win this season came at home two weeks ago against East Central.

Anyone who has looked at the Washburn stat line would believe that losing streak will be extended to 13 on Saturday.

A 155.2 quarterback efficiency

rating by senior starter Dane Simoneau and a 106.7 yards per game average for leading rusher Justin Cooper have helped contribute to Washburn’s 40 point per game average. A defensive front led by interception leader Marty Pfannenstiel also helps the Ichabod defense hold opponents to an average of 18 points a game.

The rush defense is particularly noteworthy for Washburn, holding their opponents to 691 cumulative yards. By comparison, in six games UCO has allowed their opponents to combine for 1,138 yards on the ground.

For the Bronchos to even make this a game, they will have to have

the kind of ground game they had against ECU at Wantland, not the one that has come up for Central in every other match.

This season the Bronchos’ run game, anchored around superstar halfback Joshua Birmingham, has been virtually nonexistent. They managed just one rushing first down against the Cal Poly State Mustangs, who held Birmingham to one of his worst rushing yardage totals of the season, just a week after turning in the best of his UCO career.

Birmingham has the tools and the talent to explode, as he put on a rushing clinic in front of the home crowd against ECU, so the success of the Broncho ground attack will

rest heavily on a banged up offensive line.

Four out of five starters have been out of commission with injuries for a majority of the season, limiting ground production and forcing UCO into a one-dimensional offense.

While Central’s starting QB, junior Ethan Sharp, has shown he can throw it for 300-plus yards a game and has a serviceable stable of receivers to throw to, the ability to neutralize the Broncho ground threat both closes down the receivers and pressures Sharp into making bad throws. Attesting to that are his nine interceptions on the season.

If this young O-line can gel and

allow Birmingham to bust loose, it will force the Ichabods to protect against the run, allowing Sharp’s passing game some room to loosen up in.

In the end, a career performance from Central’s patchwork offensive line would help the Bronchos keep things close. However, I don’t see how Central can overcome an explosive Washburn offense and stifling defense. Especially considering that to this point, UCO seems to have left their ground game in the Hamilton locker rooms.

My prediction: Washburn 41, UCO 20

Sports Opinion

VISTA SPORTS PREDICTIONS: NFL WEEK 6 As Detroit extends their streak to 5-0 for the first time since 1956, our panel is picking at a season average of 62.9%, down 1.1% from last week. Also, “The Huddle” outpicked The Vista for the fourth week in a row.

NFL Week 6

Trey Hunter Vista Sports Editor

Bryan Trude Vista Sports Writer

Garett Fisbeck Vista Photo Editor

Amber Pyle Vista Sports Writer

Terry Fox UCentral’s “The Huddle”

Kyle Renfrow UCentral Weather

Courtney Landsberger UCentral’s “The Huddle”

Panthers @ Falcons

Falcons

Falcons

Falcons

Falcons

Falcons

Falcons

Falcons

Eagles @ Redskins

Eagles

Redskins

Redskins

Eagles

Eagles

Redskins

Redskins

Rams @ Packers

Packers

Packers

Packers

Packers

Packers

Packers

Packers

Colts @ Bengals

Bengals

Bengals

Colts

Colts

Bengals

Bengals

Bengals

Bills @ Giants

Bills

Bills

Bills

Giants

Bills

Bills

Bills

Jaguars @ Steelers

Steelers

Steelers

Steelers

Steelers

Steelers

Steelers

Jaguars

49ers @ Lions

Lions

Lions

49ers

Lions

Lions

Lions

Lions

Browns @ Raiders

Raiders

Raiders

Raiders

Raiders

Raiders

Browns

Raiders

Texans @ Ravens

Ravens

Texans

Ravens

Texans

Ravens

Ravens

Ravens

Saints @ Buccaneers

Saints

Saints

Buccaneers

Buccaneers

Saints

Saints

Buccaneers

Cowboys @ Patriots

Patriots

Patriots

Patriots

Patriots

Patriots

Patriots

Patriots

Vikings @ Bears

Bears

Bears

Bears

Vikings

Bears

Bears

Bears

Dolphins @ Jets

Jets

Dolphins

Dolphins

Dolphins

Jets

Jets

Jets

Last Week’s Picks (W-L)

8-5

6-7

6-7

8-5

8-5

7-6

9-4

Season Picks (W-L)

53-24

45-32

46-31

49-28

50-27

47-30

49-28

SPORTS

8

OCT. 13, 2011 Central Bowling

Opinion

VIEW FROM THE CHEAP SEATS

By Trey Hunter

Vista Sports Editor

Hockey Town No More Don’t look now- the lonely Detroit Lions are 5-0 for the first time since 1956, and they are for real.

After their win over the NFC Central rival Chicago Bears on Monday Night Football, the Lions and their young stud quarterback, Matthew Stafford, have people changing their minds about the silver and blue, and with good reason.

The Lions are not only undefeated in 2011, they are also 9-0 since week 14 of 2010. In fact, in week 14 of last season, they beat the Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers and held the most powerful offense in the league to just three points.

Yes, Aaron Rogers only attempted 11 passes, but don’t forget that Detroit started Drew Stanton behind center because Stafford was on the injured list.

So for anybody who thinks that the Lions are flukes, think again. Their offense is the real deal.

All of the talk surrounding Stanford’s freak signal caller, Andrew Luck, has made him out to be the next great quarterback since Peyton Manning. Lest we forget, Stafford is slowly turning the NFL’s worst franchise into not only a winner, but a future Super Bowl contender. The former Georgia Bulldog is currently seventh in the league in passing yards with 1,436.

He’s also second in the league behind Rogers and Tom Brady with 13 touchdowns.

Stafford is also absorbing the role of clutch-quarterback.

When the Lions are playing from behind so far this season, he has a 62.5 completion percentage with six touchdowns and one interception. In the fourth quarter, he has four touchdowns compared to zero interceptions. Those are Tom Bradylike numbers.

The offense isn’t hurting for playmakers, either. They have arguably the best wide receiver in all of football. Calvin Johnson is tearing opposing cornerbacks to shreds. He is fifth in the league with 451 yards, eighth with 90.2 yards per game and leads the NFL with 9 touchdown receptions. He has four more touchdowns then the next best receiver, Denver’s Eric Decker.

Before their Monday Night victory over the Bears, Johnson had two touchdowns in each of the first four games, the first time that has happened in league history.

The Lion’s defense has played a major role in their success as well. They are 12th in the league in total defense, allowing a total of 339.2 yards per game. They are 15th in the league at stopping the run and 21st in the league at stopping the pass.

Last season, Detroit’s defense was 21st in the league in total defense proving that they are much improved on both sides of the ball.

Before the season, most experts picked the Packers to win the NFC North division going away. Some even picked the Bears to finish second. However, the Lions have stepped up and made the race for the North much more competitive.

Yes, Green Bay is still the class of not only the division and conference, but they are still the class of the NFL until somebody takes their “championship belt” away. Nobody has gone away from that conclusion and until the two teams meet on Thanksgiving Day, they won’t.

The city of Detroit is falling in love with this team.

There is no doubt that their beloved Red Wings still rule over all, hence the name “Hockey Town.” There is also no doubt that they are still on the backs of the Detroit Tigers, who are fighting the Texas Rangers for a chance to play for in the World Series.

However, the fact that there aren’t any more paper bag masks in the crowd at Ford Field has brought well deserved hope that their football team has finally made the transition from cellar-dwellers to conference powers.

Now if they could just bring Barry Sanders out of retirement, the package would be complete.

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STRIKES FOR CHANGE

By Bryan Trude / Sports Writer It is an idea and an entity so unique, that out of the 13 public universities in the state of Oklahoma, UCO is the only one with a team. But this is a figure the 11 members of UCO’s Bowling team, one of the newest club sports on campus, aims to change.

Founded several years as a club, this semester is the team’s first in intercollegiate competition, playing many matches out of state under the direction of coach James Hayes.

As a club sport, the team receives no funding from the UCO Athletics Department. As a result, the team pays for their travel and expenses through sponsorships and fundraisers, such as a bake sale the team held in the Nigh University Center in the week leading up to Homecoming.

“It’s really difficult because we have to constantly fundraise to fund all of the tournaments we go to, and to pay for travel, hotels and food and such,” Dustin Borjes, a senior majoring in music, said.

“We constantly have to work on getting money for us.”

Fellow team member Levi Dobrinski also sounded off on the team’s situation.

“UCO is a really transformative campus,” Dobrinski, a junior majoring in instrumental music education, said. “Just looking around at the buildings and the people and everything, we have so much to offer as a campus. How cool is it to offer such a unique sport?”

Bowling as a sport has traces in some form dating back to ancient Egypt, circa 3,200 B.C. The modern version most associated with the term bowling, 10-pin bowling, emerged in the late 1800s. It was formed as a method to skirt around a ban in Connecticut on the then-prevalent nine-pin variant, due to connections with gambling and organized crime.

The goal in bowling is to knock down as many pins as possible in ten sets of ten, each set referred to as a frame. Each frame gives a bowler two chances to knock down pins.

The highest score a bowler can get is

300, from throwing twelve “strikes” in a row; a strike is when a bowler knocks over all 10 pins with a single roll in a frame.

“When I heard about the competitive team at UCO, I thought it was a great idea because it had been a while since I had bowled competitively,” Borjes said. “I thought it was a great idea to go and get into.”

Both Dobrinski and Borjes were competitive bowlers in high school before coming to UCO. Borjes has been bowling with his family since he was four years old. “[Bowling] is a sport of finesse and precision. If you don’t hit your mark, something bad could totally hap-

pen,” Borjes said. “It’s really complex, and with the oil patterns and different bowling balls we have, it’s just really interesting to me. I love it.”

The team’s next tournament will be this weekend, when the Bronchos will compete in the 2011 MidStates Bowling Tournament

in Wichita, Kan. Those interested in joining the UCO Bowling team can attend the team practices, held 7:30 p.m. every Friday and Sunday night. The practices take place at Boulevard Lanes, 3501 S. Boulevard in Edmond, just north of Oklahoma Christian University.

Bowling Team Captain, Levi Dobrinski Photo by Garett Fisbeck, The Vista

Central Volleyball

UCO GROUNDS THE JETS

UCO’s Tate Hardaker digs a ball against Newman University during their match Tuesday at Hamilton Field House in Edmond. Haraker wore pink shorts in the first set to support Breast Cancer Awarness. Photo by Liz Boyer, The Vista

By Trey Hunter / Sports Editor The UCO volleyball team finished their four-game home stand with their third victory of the season over Newman University on Tuesday at Hamilton Field House.

The Bronchos polished off their three-set victory with a dominating performance by Juliette Smith, who nearly broke a school record with a .750 attack percentage. The UCO record, .800 percent, was almost knocked off as Smith finished 10 kills in 12 attacks with only one error.

Alex Richardson scored on 13 kills, Jordan Jacobs had eight and Morgan Roy finished with five. The Bronchos outserved the Jets 7-1. Bella Romero scored on three aces, Roy scored on two and Ginger Gowen and Tate Hardaker each had one.

Romero had 33 of the team’s 36 assists, and the team finished with a total of nine blocks.

During Central’s four-game home stand the team did not drop a set. The streak included wins over Oklahoma Panhandle State, Harding, Texas Permian-Basin and Newman. The

Bronchos came into the home stand having lost three of their four matches at the Lady Blues Fall Classic in Topeka, Kan. “It’s hard to play a good team three times and win all three,” head coach Jeff Boyland said after the match. “Juliette put up some huge numbers. Ten kills and one error on 12 swings is just big time. We don’t play until next Monday, but we are going to be ready to go into a touch environment in Durant and hopefully pull out another win.”

UCO put on a raffle and gave away prizes in between the second and third sets of the match, to support Breast Cancer Awareness Week.

Hardaker, the team’s libero, supported the cause in her own way by wearing pink shorts during the first set. When asked why she changed back to the blue shorts in the second set, she responded, “Let’s just say they were a little uncomfortable.”

The Bronchos will begin a four-game road trip against Southeastern Oklahoma State in Durant on Monday, Oct. 17.

The team returns home on Oct. 26 to take on rival Southwestern Oklahoma State at 7 p.m. in Hamilton Field House.