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Thursday, August 18, 2011 Issue 2 I N D E P E N D E N T

Vol. 118 S T U D E N T

Isolated T-Storms 30% chance of rain HIGH LOW 88 70

PUBLISHED SINCE 1906

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Freshman courses introduce UT experience First Year Studies’ diverse topics initiate discussion, encourage class community Jessica Vinge Staff Writer As freshmen students arrive on campus and begin classes, UT strives to make them as comfortable and familiar with campus as possible. UT has created several courses designed just for first-year students. Each freshman has the opportunity to take any of the courses offered to enhance the first year at UT. Each student is automatically enrolled into First-Year Studies 100: The Volunteer Connection, a required course for all first-year students. This is an online-based course that contains academic success and engagement activities to help students transition successfully into college.

The Life of the Mind program is the main component of this course, requiring students to read a book (this year’s selection was “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks” by Rebecca Skloot), submit a creative response, attend a presentation by the author of the selected book and participate in a small-group discussion during Welcome Week on campus.

The second course that is offered to first-year students is First-Year Studies 101: The UT Experience. This is a onecredit course specifically designed to assist students with personal and academic adjustments during the transition into college. The course offers opportunities for students to meet other freshmen and establish support groups with fellow peers, staff and faculty.

In addition to transition tips and support groups, The UT Experience course also offers lessons to help develop college success skills, including study skills, to use throughout the students’ academic careers.

The third and final course first-year students can take is First-Year Studies 129: Freshman Seminar. This course offers many small, discussion-based classes where students can get to know other freshmen and a professor on a more personal level while studying topics that apply to the students’ interests and goals.

First-Year Studies 129 has over 50 different course selections to choose from, ranging from French culture to Harry Potter to dorm room decorating. All of the courses are only worth one credit hour, but they are billed as a great opportunity to get comfortable with being on campus and starting a new chapter in one’s life.

Some of the courses are a full semester long, while others are only a first- or second-session course. First-Year Studies 129 is a pass/no-credit course that allows students to take a class on something they are truly interested in rather than only taking required general education courses. These courses have a maximum enrollment of 18 students, allowing students to have plenty of one-on-one interaction with their professor and the other students in the class.

Students can even suggest a new First-Year Studies 129 course by going to http://web.utk.edu/~froshsem/.

Gillian Gaskins, senior in psychology, took a course on healthy eating and organic practices in farming.

“I think having the classes are a good idea for new students,” Gaskins said. “The courses serve as a good way to get to know other freshman.”

Though the course was interesting, Gaskins feels students should seek a class tailored to their specific interests.

“I would encourage students to take one of the courses only if there is a subject that is of particular interest to them,” she said.

Another First-Year Studies course offered is How to Argue (without yelling or punching) taught by Mark Harmon. Martin Leamon, a sophomore in accounting, took this course during his freshman year at UT. Leamon had many options to choose from and was asked why he chose How to Argue.

“How to Argue looked like the best course to help me develop skills for business. I wanted to learn how to get points across more effectively and develop skills that will help me sell myself in future interviews,” Leamon said.

Many students have questioned whether or not these courses are worth taking and if they would actually learn valuable skills that they will be able to use in the future.

“In How to Argue, I learned what it means to be truly prepared, how to critique a debate and how to hold my own in one,” Leamon said. “It changed my perspective on what a debate is.”

With such a wide variety of courses to choose from, there is hoped to be something that each student would be interested in. All three of the First-Year Studies courses were designed to help first-year students adjust to their new life on a large campus. UT staff and faculty highly recommend that each freshman student enroll in at least one of the courses.

George Richardson • The Daily Beacon

Freshmen enter Neyland Stadium after attending Torch Night on Monday, Aug. 15. The First-Year Studies courses are set to introduce freshmen to the academic and personal challenges that college presents and give them the tools needed to succeed while also enjoying their time at UT.

Vatican shares files on accused priest The Associated Press VATICAN CITY (AP) — The Vatican, reeling from unprecedented criticism over its handling of sexual abuse cases in Ireland, took a pre-emptive strike Wednesday and published some internal files about a priest accused of molesting youngsters in Ireland and the U.S. The files published on the website of Vatican Radio represent a small, selective part of the documentation the Holy See must turn over to U.S. lawyers representing a man who says he was abused by the late Rev. Andrew Ronan. The man, known in court papers as John V. Doe, is seeking to hold the Vatican liable for the abuse.

A federal judge in Portland, Ore., ordered the Vatican to respond to certain requests for information from Doe’s lawyers by Friday, the first time the Holy See has been forced to turn over documentation in a sex abuse case.

The partial documentation released Wednesday includes the 1966 case file with Ronan’s request to be laicized, or removed from the clerical state, after his superiors learned of accusations that he had molested minors in Ireland.

The Vatican said the files, a few dozen pages, some handwritten and culled from its internal books, represented the full, known documentation held in the Vatican about Ronan. Assuming it’s complete, the relatively small amount of documentation appears to bolster the Vatican’s contention that Ronan’s crimes were unknown to the Vatican until 1966, when it learned of the accusations and after the abuse against Doe occurred.

The Vatican’s decision to publish some of the discovery documentation on its website marked an unusual attempt at some transparency, particularly given the sensitivity surrounding internal personnel files of accused priests. Victims groups have long denounced the secrecy with which the Vatican handles abuse cases and demanded the files of known abusers be released.

But it comes amid unprecedented criticism of the Vatican’s handling of sex abuse cases in Ireland, and as it still seeks to recover from the fallout over the abuse scandal that erupted last year. Thousands of people in Europe and elsewhere reported they were raped and molested by priests as children while bishops covered up the crimes and the Vatican turned a blind George Richardson • The Daily Beacon eye.

Last month, an independent report into the Arthur Leago, senior in mechanical engineering and business, and John Engel, senior in physics and astronomy, take a break on the first day of classes outside of Ayres Irish diocese of Cloyne accused the Vatican of Hall on Wednesday, Aug. 17.

sabotaging efforts by Irish Catholic bishops to report clerical sex abuse cases to police. The accusations prompted Irish lawmakers to make an unprecedented denunciation of the Holy See’s influence in the predominantly Catholic country, with heated words in particular from Prime Minister Enda Kenny.

In a statement accompanying the document release Wednesday, Vatican attorney Jeffrey Lena said the Vatican’s documentation should help “calm down those people who are too quick to make sensational and unfair comments without taking the time to get an adequate understanding of the facts” — an apparent reference to Kenny’s denunciation.

The Vatican recalled its ambassador to Ireland over the ruckus to help prepare an official response, which is expected in the coming weeks.

According to the Holy See, the documentation released Wednesday includes the 1966 case file held by the Vatican’s office for members of religious orders, known at the time as the Sacred Congregation for Religious, containing documents in English, Italian and Latin related to Ronan’s request to be laicized.

The file contains a letter written by the Chicago-based provincial of the Order of Servants of Mary detailing accusations that Ronan had abused students while he was a teacher at the Servites’ Our Lady of Benburb Priory in Ireland.

The provincial wrote that he had “removed” Ronan immediately from Ireland after discovering the abuse accusations in 1959. Ronan began working in Chicago and was later transferred to Portland. He died in 1992.

Lena said in a statement that the files show that the Holy See didn’t learn of the accusations against Ronan until 1966, after the abuse against Doe occurred in Portland and after the laicization request was sent to Rome.

He said the Vatican was releasing “all known documents relating to Ronan held by the Roman Curia” to help the Oregon court determine the remaining jurisdictional question in the case: whether Ronan was an employee of the Holy See, which is critical to determining whether the Vatican can be held liable for the abuse Doe endured.

None of the documents released Wednesday relate directly to that core employment question. Rather, they seek to support the Vatican’s contention that it had no prior knowledge of Ronan’s crimes before 1966, that it wasn’t responsible for transferring him to the U.S. or to Portland, and isn’t liable for the abuse Doe suffered.

2 • The Daily Beacon

1590 — Roanoke Colony deserted John White, the governor of the Roanoke Island colony in present-day North Carolina, returns from a supply-trip to England to find the settlement deserted. White and his men found no trace of the 100 or so colonists he left behind, and there was no sign of violence. Among the missing were Ellinor Dare, White’s daughter; and Virginia Dare, White’s granddaughter and the first English child born in America. August 18 was to have been Virginia’s third birthday. The only clue to their mysterious disappearance was the word “CROATOAN” carved into the palisade that had been built a round the settlement. White took the letters to mean that the colonists had moved to Croatoan Island, some 50 miles away, but a later search of the island found none of the settlers.

The Roanoke Island colony, the first English settlement in the New World, was founded by English explorer Sir Walter Raleigh in August 1585. The first Roanoke colonists did not fare well, suffering from dwindling food supplies and Indian attacks, and in 1586 they returned to England aboard a ship captained by Sir Francis Drake. In 1587, Raleigh sent out another group of 100 colonists under John White. White returned to England to procure more supplies, but the war with Spain delayed his return to Roanoke. By the time he finally returned in August 1590, everyone had vanished.

In 1998, archaeologists studying tree-ring data from Virginia found that extreme drought conditions persisted between 1587 and 1589. These conditions undoubtedly contributed to the demise of the so-called Lost Colony, but where the settlers went after they left Roanoke remains a mystery.

One theory has them being absorbed into an Indian tribe known as the Croatans.

1991 — Soviet hard-liners launch coup against Gorbachev On this day in 1991, Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev is placed under house arrest during a coup by high-ranking members of his own government, military and police forces.

InSHORT

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Since becoming secretary of the Communist Party in 1985 and president of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) in 1988, Gorbachev had pursued comprehensive reforms of the Soviet system. Combining perestroika (”restructuring”) of the economy--including a greater emphasis on free-market policies--and glasnost (”openness”) in diplomacy, he greatly improved Soviet relations with Western democracies, particularly the United States. Meanwhile, though, within the USSR, Gorbachev faced powerful critics, including conservative, hard-line politicians and military officials who thought he was driving the Soviet Union toward its downfall and making it a second-rate power. On the other side were even more radical reformers — particularly Boris Yeltsin, president of the most powerful socialist republic, Russia — who complained that Gorbachev was just not working fast enough.

The August 1991 coup was carried out by the hard-line elements within Gorbachev’s own administration, as well as the heads of the Soviet army and the KGB, or secret police. Detained at his vacation villa in the Crimea, he was placed under house arrest and pressured to give his resignation, which he refused to do. Claiming Gorbachev was ill, the coup leaders, headed by former vice president Gennady Yanayev, declared a state of emergency and attempted to take control of the government.

Yeltsin and his backers from the Russian parliament then stepped in, calling on the Russian people to strike and protest the coup. When soldiers tried to arrest Yeltsin, they found the way to the parliamentary building blocked by armed and unarmed civilians. Yeltsin himself climbed aboard a tank and spoke through a megaphone, urging the troops not to turn against the people and condemning the coup as a “new reign of terror.” The soldiers backed off, some of them choosing to join the resistance. After thousands took the streets to demonstrate, the coup collapsed after only three days.

—This Day In History is courtesy of History.com

George Richardson• The Daily Beacon

Tim Paton, sophomore in geology and biology, works on Spanish before a class in Ayres Hall on Wednesday, Aug. 17.

Thursday, August 18, 2011

NEWS

Changes to the UT drop policy UT has strengthened its drop policy to improve course availability for students and make more efficient use of faculty time.

The new policy limits students to dropping only four classes during the course of their undergraduate program. This fall, everyone starts with a clean slate; past dropped classes won’t count against the new limit.

Under the new policy, students may drop full-term courses until the tenth calendar day of classes without penalty. From the eleventh day until the eighty-fourth calendar day, students who drop fullterm courses will receive the notation of W (Withdrawn).

Following are additional regulations related to dropping classes after the tenth day: Students holding a bachelor’s degree who return to pursue a second bachelor’s degree are allowed four additional drops. Students pursuing more than one major or degree simultaneously are not allowed additional drops beyond the four available drops. Withdrawing from the university (dropping all courses) does not impact a student’s four allotted drops. More information on withdrawals is provided in the undergraduate catalog here. The W grade is not computed in the grade point average. After the eightyfourth day, no drops are permitted. Courses may be dropped on the web through MyUTK. Failure to attend a course is not an official withdrawal and will result in the assignment of an F grade.

The idea for tweaking the drop policy came out of the Academic Efficiency and Effectiveness Task Force, which determined that our drop policy has been more permissive than most of our peer institutions and may have contributed to a lack of course availability and a waste of faculty time.

Members of the Academic Efficiency and Effectiveness Task Force include Monique Anderson, associate dean and registrar; Tammi Brown, associate director, College of Business Administration; Don Cox, executive associate dean and professor, College of Arts and Sciences; Ruth Darling, assistant provost; Susan Martin, provost and senior vice chancellor for academic affairs; Sally McMillan, vice provost for academic affairs; Laura Nishida, past president of the Student Government Association; Dixie Thompson, professor, College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences; and Drew Webb, provost’s student advisory council.

The new policy was approved by both the Undergraduate Council and the Faculty Senate in April.

Department of Chemistry acquires new leadership Charles Feigerle, professor of physical chemistry, has been named the new head of UT’s Department of Chemistry, effective July 1.

Feigerle has been in the department for twenty-six years and has served as the associate head for four and a half years. As department head, Feigerle will provide leadership in academic programs; planning, developing, integrating, and implementing departmental teaching, research, and outreach

The Daily Beacon • 3

efforts; recruiting and retaining outstanding faculty, staff, and students; and the pursuit of competitive grants, research contracts, gifts, and other special funding to provide support for scholarships, fellowships and professorships.

With 30 faculty members and 125 graduate students as of fall 2011, the Department of Chemistry is one of the largest academic departments at UT. Recent reductions in state and university budgets, combined with UT’s goal to become a top 25 state university, bring tremendous challenges for the new department head.

With the incoming graduate class this fall, the department will witness the highest graduate student enrollment ever. Also, during the year 2010, the faculty of the chemistry department submitted more proposals (in total dollars) than any other department in the College of Arts and Sciences.

Feigerle earned his Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry from the University of Illinois in 1977 and obtained his doctorate from the University of Colorado in 1983. His research interests lie within the broad umbrella of experimental physical chemistry, with emphasis on development and characterization of advanced and emerging materials. He has authored and co-authored 89 publications.

UT professors share science knowledge with Knox County teachers Six high school science teachers will return to school with summer tales of their own after spending a week inside UT’s molecular biology labs. The Knox County teachers learned recent developments in science and new experimental protocols from Jae Park, associate professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology, in a summer workshop sponsored by his department.

In the workshop, the teachers cloned and performed bioinformatic analysis of the insulin gene from the fruit fly. VolsTeach faculty and staff were also on hand to introduce the materials.

The teachers left with both new experience as well as course materials, which they said would help them greatly in making new concepts more tangible for their students.

The workshop was made possible by Cynthia Peterson, head of the Department of Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology; Lynn Champion, director of communication and public engagement for UT’s College of Arts and Sciences; and Theresa Nixon, science supervisor for Knox County Schools.

4 • The Daily Beacon

Thursday, August 18, 2011

OPINIONS

Going

Somewhere

...

Hopefully

Coping tactics ease fall transition Preston Peeden Managing Editor As the new school year slowly begins to start, many students are left wondering where their precious summer break has gone.

For some, including myself, it seems like only yesterday we were finishing up our exams, packing up our rooms and heading home for a much deserved break. When I left school last May, I had visions of an idealized summer. Similar to a teen comedy, my visions of what my summer deserved where centered on a key idea: laziness.

In my perfect summer, the word “morning” would take on a relative meaning, and my waking hours would be divided evenly between several stimulating activities, such as watching movies, lounging by the pool, laying out by the lake and sleeping. (I realize I said “waking hours,” but I really do enjoy being asleep.) Unfortunately, like so many things in life, what I expected did not translate into what I actually experienced.

Instead of spending a summer in pure bliss, I was forced into reality by the evils of bills. I had bills for my phone, car, apartment and education. These mounting debts forced me to leave the dream of my hedonistic summer behind and join the workforce.

To put a long, and boring, story short, I spent this past summer working six days a week at a restaurant in town. And while the hours were neither difficult, nor all encompassing, they certainly lead me to forsake the beauties of the East Tennessee summer that surrounded me.

So now, here I am: sitting in front of a computer screen in mid-August, and illuminated by the white light of the screen I see myself as I have become. I am slightly pale, a little tired and a tad bit restless. In short, I am in need of a summer vacation.

My goal today is not to complain about how unfair my summer was, because it was not. I chose to work, and on days I had off, I made a conscious choice to stay inside some days to recharge. Rather, I hope to use my space today as a way to help everyone like me.

I write now to the lost boys of summer, the people

who walked into their first class dreading not the idea of their soon-to-be mounting schoolwork, but instead the loss of the freedom and joy summer provides. I want to help all of these people — and I include myself in this — try to use these three simple ways to keep some parts of summer going, despite the changing of seasons.

The first advice I have is to manage your time. I realize classes are starting, and the idea of syllabuses and homework is already piling up in all of our minds, but by properly budgeting and managing your time through these first few weeks of school, you can find numerous free hours that were once lost in a pile of confusion. By designating certain parts of your day for studying and reading, especially early on, you can allow yourself several hours to just sit on your couch and relax.

Another acquired skill that I feel necessary to the survival of summer feelings is to enjoy the little things.

If your class lets out five minutes early, instead of rushing to your next lesson, backpack swinging behind you as you weave your way through the packed crowds in the hopes of navigating UT’s campus, take a minute to walk around and enjoy the scenery. If you are on top of the Hill, sit on one of the benches and watch parts of your day go by. For every minute you spend doing nothing and letting the world catch up to you, that is another minute you can use to drown out unimportant minutes of classes. Having a distraction can keep you sane.

And finally, the best way to catch up on that missing summer mentality is just to stay positive. People say that college is “the best four years of your life.” So why not treat them like that? We’re all lucky to be where we are right now. We have an opportunity to better ourselves through classes that we choose. Also, school saves us from trying to brave today’s unforgiving job market for just a little longer.

So in short, if you are already missing summer and dreading the fall, don’t fret. We all have jitters at the start of school, and we all want more free time. But that does not mean that those worries need to overwhelm us. You might want it to be the summer again, but there is no way to go back to those missing June days. We cannot stop the seasons from changing, but we can stop our mentalities from doing so. If we can keep our summer state of mind, then maybe we can all manage the coming fall.

— Preston Peeden is a junior in history. He can be reached at ppeeden@utk.edu.

SCRAMBLED EGGS • Alex Cline

THE GREAT MASH-UP • Liz Newnam

Columns of The Daily Beacon are reflections of the individual columnist, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Beacon or its editorial staff.

Sports fan faces identity crisis C ommit tee o f I n f ra ct i o n s by

Greg Bearringer I have something to admit to the readers of this paper that will, by the very nature of this paper and its implied audience, be unpopular. I am not really a real UT fan.

Now for a brief defense: I do not hate UT athletics.

In fact, I root for the Vols and watch many of their games on TV. I really like the cash that the athletic department gives to the university every year. I hate Alabama. I was raised, however, in northwestern Ohio in the 90s and therefore quite naturally am a Michigan fan. I root for the Vols to win; I need the Wolverines to win. I know that getting to watch Tyler Bray will be a lot of fun, but I can’t miss the Denard Robinson experience.

How do I justify this? Well, for one thing, I am a graduate student. I didn’t go to an undergraduate school that had a football team and so my innate fandom was preserved. I plan on pursuing a higher degree, so becoming a diehard Vols fan without any guarantee of furthering my education here would merely make me a flip-flopper. Of all the things that fandom has done to me and for me — a surprising amount of them not all that beneficial — I will not casually toss it aside just to blend in. I don’t want to be that guy, and UT fans don’t want that guy. That guy is not cool.

But there is a slight problem.

For, you see, I do plan on continuing my education, getting my doctorate and using that degree to become employed, rich and famous. Actually, just employment would be fantastic, but I always like to aim high.

Anyway, I plan on having one of those oversized doctorates hanging ominously on my office wall to intimidate my students. And on this certificate will be two very important names. (There will also be a few other names scrawled illegibly near the bottom that are just as important technically speaking but will certainly be less prominent geographically.) One will be mine, unless I go insane and steal someone else’s identity — or, I suppose, if I am already insane and have assumed someone else’s identity. In that case, the

real “I” has bad taste. Anyway, the other will be the name of the university upon whose prestige my future employment will at least partially depend. It could very well say Tennessee. It might say Michigan, or Notre Dame, or Jumbo’s Backyard Barbeque and Ph.D. Emporium. But it will say something.

If this university is Michigan, then I will happily continue my slightly insane fandom and never think on this problem again. But if it doesn’t…

That’s the debate I am having with myself. Do I toss aside my fandom, my childhood and what has become a part of my identity simply to assume another?

Do I gladly accept my new colors knowing that rooting for them will carry an extra air of privilege? Do readers enjoy successive questions they know will remain unanswered based on the number of words remaining in a column?

I am not sure. There is no handbook out there for obsessed sports fans who need guidance on an issue that most in my position shouldn’t think about. If somebody wrote one it would be a cheap piece of writing and make people angry.

But that’s the thing about sports, I suppose. They are important. They have an enormous effect on our actions, thought processes and productivity.

Sometimes, it can get us down and make us overly depressed (this is called “fantasy football”). But other times, like after the Colts won the Super Bowl in 2006, they bring happiness, joy, jubilation and even a kind of peace. They offer a vicarious miniature of the surrounding world and allow us to feel happy when we couldn’t and mad when we shouldn’t. And, it should be pointed out, it feels good to be happy and to be mad.

In that sense, my fandom will not be changed by which colors I wear on my hat.

I know that time is also a dimension of identity — and of fandom. Enduring your favorite teams and the stupidity and bad luck that withholds victory is what makes sports human. And I also know that, whatever flag I fly annoyingly over my front yard, a small part of who I am will be happy when Michigan beats Ohio State. Perhaps that’s all that really matters. Until I decide it doesn’t.

— Gregory Bearringer is a master’s student in medieval history. He can be reached at gbearrin@utk.edu.

Introductions carry greater meaning F r ac tur ed Co n sc i o u s n e s s by

BrittanyVasquez

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Blair Kuykendall MANAGING EDITOR Presten Peeden CHIEF COPY EDITOR Robbie Hargett COPY EDITOR Will Abrams DESIGN EDITORS Emily DeLanzo Abbie Gordon PHOTO EDITORS Tia Patron George Richardson NEWS EDITOR Kyle Turner STUDENT LIFE EDITOR Luaren Kittrell ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR Jake Lane SPORTS EDITOR Matt Dixon ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR Clay Seal RECRUITMENT EDITOR Robby O’Daniel

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LETTERS POLICY: The Daily Beacon welcomes all letters to the editor and guest columns from students, faculty and staff. Each submission is considered for publication by the editor on the basis of space, timeliness and clarity. Contributions must include the author’s name and phone number for verification. Students must include their year in school and major. Letters to the editor and guest columns may be e-mailed to letters@utdailybeacon.com or sent to Blair Kuykendall, 1340 Circle Park Dr., 5 Communications Building, Knoxville, TN 37996-0314. The Beacon reserves the right to reject any submissions or edit all copy in compliance with available space, editorial policy and style. Any and all submissions to the above recipients are subject to publication.

Since it is the beginning of the year, I feel obligated to begin this semester’s worth of columns with a new introduction. For much of my life, I thought introductions were awkward. This summer has changed my stance on this position. I spent my entire summer giving tours to prospective students and their families. Tours have taught me all about how I should present myself to different people. I have fallen in love with introducing myself.

First off, my name is Brittany Vasquez. I am a senior in anthropology with a pre-med concentration. Hopefully, in a year I will be going to a fantastic medical school, but for right now I spend my time in Knoxville going to UT. I research and volunteer at the Forensic Anthropology Center.

I also volunteer with Big Brother/Big Sister. Besides that, I am a new member of ME4UT, and I am pretty passionate about our cause of diversity recruiting.

In reality, I am not the most interesting person in the world. I really spend my time studying, playing video games and hanging out with my friends. Last year, during welcome week, my friends and I won a television and a Wii. The addition of the two to our entertainment system didn’t really help my dedication to school. I love playing “Super Smash Brothers,” and I like to think that my boyfriend and I are one of the best SSB teams ever.

I recently turned 21. This was a big occasion for me. Not because I am 21, but because my birthday was on the release of the final Harry Potter movie.

I am a dedicated lover of Harry Potter. I have read every single book more than once, watched every movie more than once, and have joined Pottermore.

I also love Rolling Stone (the magazine), the Who, Jon Stewart and Top Gear (British version, of course).

Obviously, writing about me is easy, but I hope that this entire column isn’t saturated with “me” stuff. I hope to entertain my two avid readers

throughout the year, and hopefully gain some more avid readers during the semester. I enjoy writing about culture, world politics and whatever tickles my fancy. I am always up for suggestions. Feel free to e-mail me and suggest a topic or just tell me your feelings about my column. I am always ready to answer questions as well. Like I said, I spent my entire summer giving tours, so I spent each day answering at least 10 different questions.

One of the major questions I have been asked throughout this summer is whether I am happy with the way my past three years have turned out here at UT. Truth be told, I am. As we all begin this semester filled with dreams of 4.0s, great memories and new friends, don’t ever forget where you came from. I have spent quite a few paragraphs telling you some of my favorite people, books and music and telling you the activities I am involved in. Those things have made all the difference when the going gets tough.

Sometimes, going back to the basics is where to begin. This is where I began this column. It is where I plan on beginning my arduous journey to graduation this year. To the new freshmen on campus, four years fly by. Don’t forget those things you love because when you become more stressed than you have ever been in your life, starting at the beginning can bring you the internal calm that you need. Sophomores, don’t forget all those people you met last year while living on campus. It is so easy to lose touch with people when you move away. Keep in contact. My two avid readers are people I met my freshman year here at UT. We don’t live near each other anymore, but they are still prevalent in my life and help to keep me grounded.

Juniors, don’t give up. You are almost there. You have gone through what it takes to make it through the first two years of college. Don’t become jaded or forget where you are and why you are doing what you are doing.

To my friends and graduating class, remember what brought you to this place. We are beginning our final year to reach our ultimate goal. When everything gets crazy and hectic, go back to the basics. It is the easiest and most natural place to start.

— Brittany Vazquez is a senior in Anthropology and she can be reached at bvasque1@utk.edu.

Thursday, August 18, 2011

The Daily Beacon • 5

ARTS&CULTURE

Bridges releases self-reflective album The Associated Press NASHVILLE — When you get right down to it, Jeff Bridges’ new self-titled album got its start more than 30 years ago on the set of “Heaven’s Gate.”

The now legendary six-month shoot threw the actor, whose hobby was guitar-slinging, together with a bunch of musicians, including Kris Kristofferson and one of Kristofferson’s players — a young T Bone Burnett.

“That was it, that was when we became friends,” Bridges said of Burnett. “We stayed friends over the years. We haven’t spent that much time together. We’re both busy guys. But you know how it is with people that you click with. You just pick up where you left off.”

And when the two got back together on the 2009 film “Crazy Heart,” the click was audible. The collaboration led to Academy Awards for each and some of the best work of their respective careers.

“Jeffrey’s exactly the same as he was then, only more so,” Burnett said. “His spirit has not wavered in all these years. He's remained very true to whichever muse he's following. Maybe all of them.

Maybe he follows all the muses. Maybe that’s one of the keys to Jeffrey.”

The time they spent together working on the music on that film reignited something in Bridges that had been pushed aside by his acting successes.

He took up music at a young age, and toyed with focusing on it as a career before acting finally took over. Still, there had been occasional jam sessions over the decades, and Bridges put out an independent album, “Be Here Soon” in 2000 with Michael McDonald on their own label, Ramp Records.

“Flowers bloom at different times,” Bridges said in a phone interview last month from Scottsdale, Ariz., where he had a gig that evening. “Music has been a part of my life going back to my early teens, and it just comes out, it just pops out in different ways, whether it’s playing jazz piano in ‘Baker Boys’ or being a country artist in ‘Crazy Heart.’ It’s in me and it’s just something that comes out every once in a while.”

There was something special, though, about his time with the “Crazy Heart” crew, which included the late Stephen Bruton and the members of Burnett’s cadre of top-notch players that led him to renew the focus on his music career. And who better, he thought, to help with a new album than “my old buddy, Bone?”

TUTORING TESTPREP EXPERTS GRE/ GMAT/ LSAT For over 30 years, Michael K. Smith, Ph.D., and his teachers have helped UT students prepare for the GRE/ GMAT/ LSAT. Our programs offer individual tutoring, practice tests, and computer- adaptive strategies at a reasonable price. Programs can be designed around your schedule, weekdays, weeknights, or weekends.

Conveniently located at 308 South Peters Rd. Call (865)694-4108 for more information.

EMPLOYMENT Auto Sales Customer Service Rep needed. Good people skills and knowledge of cars.

Flexible schedules.

Near campus. E-mail resume to dougjustus07@me.com or call 755-7663.

Bearden Early Enrichment Program now hiring classroom floaters and substitutes for morning or afternoon shifts. Send resume to beep@beardenumc.org.

Caregiver/ companion for adult female with Parkinsons disease in West Knoxville.

Flexible hours. (865)588-1010, leave message.

EMPLOYMENT

Do you need extra cash?

Want to have fun at work? Need to work flexible hours?

-F&B Manager -Reservationsi Manager -Front Desk Clerks -Housekeepers -Servers (Rest, Cocktail, Banquets) -Bartenders -Cooks Please apply in person between 9:00am-4:00pm Tuesday-Friday at: Knoxville Marriott 500 Hill Avenue S.E. Knoxville, TN 37915 EARLY EDUCATION MAJOR OR REVALANT EXPERIENCE Part-Time or Full-Time hours needed for West Knoxville family. Flexible hrs, some travel. Respond to Lucy (865)567-1428 or lucyschaad@gmail.com.

First Baptist Concord/ West Lake FT/PT positions avail.

Teacher asst./Floater. Professional Christian working environment.

Call (865)288-1629 or email westlakewee@fbconcord.org.

CHILD CARE. 3 kids: 3, 9 and 12. Near Northshore & Pellisippi Pkwy. Mon, Thu, & Fri 2:30 – 6:30. $10 / hour. Driving and very active play incl sports. Non-smoker, good driver, swimmer. Must have a car. Resume and refs reqd.

Leave msg at 406-2690.

G. Carlton Salon is looking for two part-time, energetic, people loving salon coordinators to answer phones, book appointments, and help with other duties to keep the salon running smoothly. Call Mary Alice at 865-584-3432 or apply in person at 6718 Albunda Dr.

Customer service at local financial services provider.

Very flexible hours. 20–30 hrs/week. $9/hr with no experience. Call Kevin at 865-679-6286 for more info.

Landscaping company looking for FT and PT help. Must be able to drive pick-up truck. Leave name and number at (865)584-9985.

The two first met on Michael Cimino’s shoot for “Heaven’s Gate,” a notorious film that deserves its reputation for excess, but not its tag as a critical flop, both Bridges and Burnett agree.

It was 1979 and the shoot took place at Glacier National Park in Montana. Bridges played a leader in a settlement besieged by cattle barrons and Burnett was a member of a band with a memorable scene at the local dance hall.

“That experience was an amazing time,” Burnett said. “We went up for three weeks to do a little bit of music and ended up being there for six months stuck in a hotel. And there was nothing to do. ... It was tough at the time. It was a movie about the Johnson County war and it felt like a war, and a lot of people got hurt. It was a very tough shoot and Cimino was on another planet at the time.”

It was both stunningly boring and a raucous good time, full of jam sessions, strange adventures and curiously little actual shooting. Stars of the day like Kristofferson mixed with characters like Bridges, Mickey Rourke and John Hurt.

“We ended up renting a prop plane just to get out of there,” Burnett said. “But in the meantime it was one of the most adventurous times of my life.”

When he got back together with Bridges, it felt like those old times again. For the new album, Burnett brought in his old standbys, players like guitarist Marc Ribot, and guests like Rosanne Cash, Sam Phillips and Ryan Bingham, who cowrote the Oscar-winning “The Weary Kind (Theme from ‘Crazy Heart’)” with Burnett.

Bridges and Burnett sorted through more than 60 songs and recorded 17 over 12 days. Some of the 10 tracks that made the album were leftovers from “Crazy Heart.” Bridges wrote two of the songs on the album and co-wrote a third with Burnett and “Crazy Heart” author Thomas Cobb.

Burnett, one of today’s most influential producers with a distinctive sound, says he was careful to keep the focus on how Bridges wanted the music.

And while Bridges says recording music is a lot playing a part, a picture of the actor emerges through the songs he chose.

It’s an introspective album, subtly psychedelic with shades of rock and country. It is not an album of acid-tinged lounge music by The Dude, Bridges’ iconic character from “The Big Lebowski” — though Bridges says, “I think the Dude would dig Taylor Gautier • The Daily Beacon this album.” And it’s not a slab of outlaw country a Herds of students work their way to and from classes while others enjoy relaxing la his “Crazy Heart” alter ego Bad Blake. under trees along the Pedestrian Walkway on Wednesday, Aug. 17.

This is pure Bridges.

EMPLOYMENT

EMPLOYMENT

HOUSE FOR RENT

HOUSE FOR RENT

HOMES FOR SALE

MERCH. FOR SALE

Global Research Consultants, LLC. is a boutique information brokerage serving a select group of multinational corporations with information to help drive their strategic business decisions through a targeted “crowdsourcing” methodology.

GRC will hire students on a contract basis, and is prepared to pay up to $1000.00 per contract assignment.

More about this opportunity: www.grcknows.com

Want to get paid to play?

Looking for PT job with a flexible schedule? Try Sitters on Demand. Start immediately. Experience with children required. Contact Kendyll at (423)650-9056 or sittersondemand@gmail.com.

2 Available Now!! Same Area NW -650/Western. Close to UT. 1) 4BR, 2BA, L/R Kitchen has stove, refrig, and D/W. Downstairs has 2nd kitchen, den, and laundry room 2,000 square feet! Four-car garage! $1,195 2) 2BR, 2BA “treehouse” studio apt. 1,200 Sq. Ft. $795 all Appliances plus W/D discounts available on both places! Lease, D/D and C/R owner/agent 207-2452.

ROCKY TOP HOME FOR RENT. 3BR/2BA HOME ON 7 ACRES. 10 MIN FROM CAMPUS. NEED ROOMMATES. COST TO EACH $275/MO PLUS UTILITIES SHARING. CALL JAY AFTER 7PM 865-235-9817 OR JOHN (703)938-5215 ANYTIME. HOME IS AT 1029 BROWN ROAD, KNOXVILLE.

Great North HIlls investment property for family with student. Only 12 minutes to UT. 3BR/1BA, h/w floors, new roof, large backyard. $84,900. Realty Executives Associates, 688-3232; Mike, 789-3902.

2BR 2BA house. Includes living room, kitchen, CH/A, W/D, dishwasher, private parking, fenced yard. Walking distance to UT. 2018 Forest Ave. $800/mo. Available now. Also, 3BR house 1533 Forest Ave. Available August 1. $1500/mo. 865-522-3325.

For Sale or Lease 2BR, 1.5BA, all brick townhouse in West Hills. Swimming pool, bonus storage area. Leave name and number at (865)584-9985.

THE BIGGEST POSTER SALE. Biggest and best selection.

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Gynecology office seeks student for PT clerical work Preferred Biology, English Chemistry or Pre-med Major. Monday through Saturday. 8am - 12noon. Email to knoxville_gyn@yahoo.com or fax to 637-7195.

Hiring Nursery Workers.

St. John’s Episcopal Church--Downtown for Sunday mornings and Wednesday evening. References required. Contact: Paul Ruff 934-4820 or Patty Dunlap 525-7347.

Now hiring for after school childcare center in West Knoxville. A super fun job!

Call Robert 454-1091.

Now hiring PT counter help.

Crown Dry Cleaners. Must be able to work every afternoon. Contact Don at (865)584-7464.

PT positions for North Knoxville apartment complex. Ground/ maintenance .

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Starting $8.50 hour. Call (865)688-5547 for information. Interviews by appointment only.

THE TOMATO HEAD MARYVILLE Hiring all positions Full and part-time. No experience necessary. Apply in person.

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865-588-3232 or 865-705-0969

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This space could be yours. Call 974-4931

LUXURY 1 BR CONDOS Security/ Elevator/ Pool 3 min. walk to Law School. $500R. $300SD. No app. fee.

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HOUSE FOR RENT 3BR 1BA house, hardwood floors, W/D connection, deck.

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BEAUTIFUL ISLAND HOME PARK 6 min. UT. 4/5BR 3BA furnished LR, DR, den, sunporch, deck, grill. All appliances, W/D, hardwood, security. No pets. $1425/mo.

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FURNITURE BEDS FOR LESS Student discounts, lay-away available. Twin size starting at $99.99, Full $129.99, Queen $159.99. Also carry Futons. Call (865)560-0242.

CONDOS FOR SALE

AUTOS FOR SALE

MERCH. FOR SALE

West off Gallaher View Rd. Private, quiet, sophisticated condo. One level, open, large, light rooms. 2BR/2BA, large closets, separate laundry room. 2 car garage. $149,900. Alfred A. Robinson Co. Call Sandy Robinson 865-414-9698.

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WANTED TO BUY

This could be YOUR ad.

974-4931

Read the Beacon Classifieds!

Wanted to buy student undergraduate catalog year 2008-2009. Also, graduate catalog including M.A. and Ph.d degrees for 2008-2009.

Call 423-562-4732.

NEW YORK TIMES CROSSWORD • Will Shortz ACROSS 1 Crew and others 7 Surface, as anger 13 Support, as a weak wrist 14 Completely cut off 16 County of Utica, N.Y. 17 Where to find a date 19 Good behavior 21 Cool 22 Oil amts.

23 Berry used as a dietary supplement 24 Sound on a trail 26 Wise words?

27 It’s snapped on a gridiron 30 “Who?,” e.g.

31 Stevie Wonder’s “I Was Made to Love ___” 32 Blood’s counterpart 33 “ ” 34 Top hat, cane or monocle 35 Thigh muscle, informally 36 It might result in a wrongful lockup

39 Classic Nestlé brand 40 Neat freak’s condition, e.g., for short 43 Madison Ave. figure 44 “Oh, that’s definite” 46 Betty ___ 47 Topic for debate: Abbr.

48 It has boys aged 13 to 18 49 He said “Art is a fruit that grows in man, like a fruit on a plant” 50 Who, in France 51 Good behavior … or a hint to two lines of letters in this puzzle 54 Some Carnegie Hall performances 57 “Certainly, Monsieur!”

58 Crossword editors, some say 59 PC communications link 60 One not with the Church of England

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61 Like some bad driving conditions DOWN 1 Stand 2 Flamboyance 3 Like a classical Greek theater 4 Control 5 Cheekiness, slangily 6 Lightly box 7 Marcel Marceau character 8 How some ground balls may be fielded 9 Town on the south shore of Long Island 10 Group (together) 11 Last: Abbr.

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12 Decorative floor 15 Call it a day 18 Awards show for athletes 20 Money substitute 25 What cats do … or sit on 26 Q.E.D. part 28 Treat for Spot 29 St. Pete ball field, with “the” 30 California worry 33 Call it a day 34 Test ___ 35 Cereal with a propeller-headed mascot 36 “Histoire de ___,” first in a popular series of children’s books 37 Digs

38 Enlarged letter at the start of a chapter 39 Canadian prov.

40 Bested 41 Low-stakes game?

42 Mass divided by volume 44 Winter layers 45 Doting 47 Prefix with judicial 50 Wax remover 52 Ones often calling the shots?

53 Jean who wrote “The Shelters of Stone” 55 The Gem State: Abbr.

56 Display at the Intrepid Sea-AirSpace Museum, for short

6 • The Daily Beacon

ARTS&CULTURE

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Thursday, August 18 What: Joseph and His Brothers Where: The Pilot Light When: 10 p.m.

Price: $5 Our take: Songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Joseph Gillenwater brings his revolving door collective to the stage with Jamie Cook & Blue South. Recommended for fans of Phil Elverum, slow-building tour de force tracks and those who aren’t afraid to be taken on an emotional journey with a band.

What: Corey Smith Where: The Valarium When: 8 p.m.

Price: $18 advance, $20 door Our take: If you are familiar with Corey Smith, he’s probably your bro, and his blend of rootsrawk country balladry has probably accompanied more than one special moment in your life.

Therefore you already have tickets and aren’t reading this. Otherwise you will be standing in line for three hours with half-drunk minors and juice-heads of unparalleled rancor. Beware.

Friday, August 19 What: Metro Pulse 20th Anniversary Festival Where: the Square Room, Latitude 35, Preservation Pub, Morelock Music, the Crown & Goose, 90 Proof, Pilot Light, Barley’s Taproom & Pizzeria When: First show at 6 p.m. with others running into the wee hours

• Photo courtesy of Corey Smith

Price: $10 for all-access wristband at any venue Our take: Knoxville’s foremost alternative paper celebrates two decades of biting commentary and community voice with a 10-venue crawl, featuring acts from all areas of Knoxville music history. A legendary spectacle is promised.

What: Summer Movie Magic: “West Side Story” Where: Tennessee Theatre When: 8 p.m.

Price: $6 child/senior, $8 adult Our take: Classic Spanish Harlem take on “Romeo and Juliet” offers memorable songs, ruminations on human fragilty and choreographed knife fights. You could do worse on a Friday.

What: The Breakfast Club Where: The Valarium When: 9 p.m.

Price: $8 advance, $10 door Our take: Tribute circuit staple mixes sets from the hits of the Reagan era, from Depeche Mode to Rick Springfield. While they lack the following of, say, ZOSO, they nonetheless rock like it’s 1989.

What: Midnight Voyage LIVE: DNAE Beats | New Planet | Sunday Morning Where: The Ciderhouse When: 9 p.m.

Our take: 90.3 electronica specialty show goes live with all the altered consciousness-inflected beat rocking that its name implies. Go support you student radio station and watch out for anyone offering $20 bottles of water.

Sunday, August 21 What: Summer Movie Magic: “West Side Story” Where: Tennessee Theatre When: 2 p.m.

Price: $6 child/senior, $8 adult Our take: If you missed it Friday or just can’t get the cries of “Sharks” and “Jets” out of your head, make this matinee re-showing. Chase with some “Twin Peaks” for more Russ Tamblyn and Richard Beymer for both comedic genius and hipster points.

Thursday, August 18, 2011

The Daily Beacon • 7

8 • The Daily Beacon

THESPORTSPAGE

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Rogers and Nance a duo on and off field Nance said. “And I said, ‘I really want you to come with me. We can do all the things we did in high school and take it to the next level.’”

Due to Nance’s insistence, Rogers began to waver on his pledge to Georgia.

“At first, he decommitted and I went on a visit with him,” Rogers said. “I ended up loving it. And I decommitted too.”

In their first year on campus together, the two friends decided to be roommates.

“I was more of the clean one and he was more of the rowdy one,” Nash said with a sly smile thinking about their old living situation.

“We played well off each other, and we both rubbed off each other.

We helped one another out.”

Due to Nash redshirting his freshman year, the two have yet to be on the field for a game in college together. But that does not stop them from dreaming about the chance of rekindling the magic they shared on Fridays in Calhoun, Ga., just two years ago. Even if all that fails, the two might find their way into a “Rob and Big”-esque MTV reality show.

George Richardson • The Daily Beacon “A nice little reality show on MTV ... that would be hilarious,” Ben Martin and Da’Rick Rogers enjoy themselves while Rogers said. “It would be the ‘Nash and Da’Rick Show.’ I’d take the talking with the press at Media Day on Sunday, Aug. 14. end because that will be the last thing they say and the last thing Rogers hopes to pair with high school teammate, and cur- in people’s minds.”

Regardless of their futures in football or possible MTV fame, rent Vol quarterback, Nash Nance and continue the sucNance sees his friendship with Rogers as an integral component of cess that lead the two to combine for over 1,600 yards in his life . the air.

“I know that I’ll know Da’Rick for the rest of my life and he’ll routes, we knew what was really going to happen. He knew how I was going to react to a certain defensive back. So he just always put the ball where he knew I wanted it.”

Preston Peeden Managing Editor Joe Montana and Jerry Rice. Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison. Peyton Manning and Reggie Wayne. Peyton Manning and whomever the Colts pick up out of the parking lot.

These great passing connections all have one thing in common: chemistry. The quarterback and the receiver knew each other very well. They knew how they moved. They knew what they could do.

And they knew how they could do it. This chemistry is what allows these names to stand out in football history, while others fall to the wayside. The importance of this connection is what has Volunteer fans and coaches alike excited for the possibilities of wide receiver Da’Rick Rogers and quarterback Nash Nance.

While Rogers and Nance may lack the name recognition of other duos in college football, they have one thing that many others do not. Unlike other tandems, these two have not been friends since they first stepped on campus, but instead since their sophomore year of high school.

“We were both in a training camp at Darling High School,” Nance said, reminiscing on the first time he saw Rogers. “Da’Rick switched receiver lines to get in the one with me. After that we just hit it off and we became best friends.”

For Nance, the benefit of a receiver with the skill set of Rogers was immediately apparent.

“The first three catches he had in that practice he scored on,” Nance said. “I was just like, ‘Who is this kid? And where did he come from?’”

While Nance was first struck by Rogers’ immense talent, Rogers’ first impression off Nance was based more on him as a person.

“He was the goofiest guy ever,” Rogers said. “He made me laugh about everything. He made everything so funny. And it just so happened that we all played football and all hung out together.”

In their senior year of high school, Nance threw for 3,000 yards, with over 1,600 of them going to Rogers. It was the pair’s immediate connection that allowed them to succeed on the field.

“It made everything so much easier,” Rogers said. “When I ran

know me. We will always wish the best for each other.”

Their success in turn lead to numerous scholarship offers for both, with Rogers verbally committing to Georgia and Nance to Vanderbilt. But it was ultimately their friendship that drew the two back together again on National Signing Day. “I came to him and I told him that I was going to go to UT,”

Serrano named USA collegiate coach Staff Reports USA Baseball announced Tuesday the naming of Dave Serrano as manager of the 2012 Collegiate National Team. The new Tennessee Volunteer head coach will be making his managerial debut for Team USA. Serrano was named the 24th head coach of the University Tennessee baseball program on June 15, on the heels of his fourth season at the helm of Cal State Fullerton. The former Titans skipper earned Big West Coach of the Year honors in 2011 for the second season in a row and led Fullerton to its 20th consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance.

“We could not be more pleased with Dave Serrano accepting our invitation to serve as manager of the 2012 Collegiate National Team,” said Eric Campbell, general manager of USA Baseball National Teams. “The energy and passion he brought to the Collegiate program in 2010 was key to the success of that club, and we’re confident those qualities will carry over to the 2012 team as

well.”

Serrano’s first experience in the red, white and blue came as pitching coach of the 2010 Collegiate team. He helped guide a staff headlined by several 2011 MLB First-Year Player Draft first round picks, including Gerrit Cole (No. 1 overall, Pittsburgh Pirates), Sonny Gray (No. 18 overall, Oakland Athletics), Matt Barnes (No. 19 overall, Boston Red Sox), Tyler Anderson (No. 20 overall, Colorado Rockies), and Sean Gilmartin (No. 28 overall, Atlanta Braves). The 2010 club finished 163 overall, and Serrano’s staff compiled a 1.22 ERA for the summer.

“It is a tremendous honor to be given the opportunity to lead the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team,” said Serrano. “My experience on Bill Kinneberg’s staff in 2010 was nothing but first class, and I am both excited and humbled to have the chance to put on the USA Baseball uniform once again. I look forward to putting together a talented staff and representing this great country next year.”