Sunny with a 30% chance of Iso T-Storms HIGH LOW 89 71
International House to host Culture Night Series
UT center Josh McNeil undergoes knee surgery
Thursday, August 27, 2009
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Smartphones give students mobile access Maria Lund Staff Writer Students may be changing the way they prepare for class. Todayâs newest technology allows everyone to keep up-to-date with their schedule by using devices a small as a deck of playing cards. From checking course schedules and e-mail to writing papers, one small device â the smartphone â is making it possible to
study on the go. Students here at UT seem to be taking full advantage of the benefits this technology offers. Will Veale, student assistant at the UT Office of Information Technology, said iPhones are one of the most common things he sees people using. âThey have Internet access and are Wi-Fi capable, which is something that is available all over campus,â Veale said. âPlus theyâre a small device which you can take anywhere. People
George Richardson ⢠The Daily Beacon
David Heise, a sophomore in computer engineering, and Jeff Hatch, a senior in electrical engineering, use the wireless Internet between classes.
come in all the time to get Wi-Fi set up on their phones. Plus you donât have to pay for it through your monthly AT&T subscription.â Smartphone use is on the rise across the United States. The cell-phone news Web site http://www.cellular-news.com reported that, in a recent survey of 300 college students, 27 percent said they use a smartphone. Eric Lehman, senior in electrical engineering, is just one of many smartphone users on campus. âMy Palm Pre often takes the place of bringing my laptop to school,â Lehman said. âThe newest generation of smartphones let me have constant access to my e-mail, calendar and contacts, which is great because I donât have to wait to boot up my computer or find a Wi-Fi hotspot. I can also load class documents, which helps during study sessions or to forward notes to other people in my classes.â While Lehman prefers to rely mostly on his phone, some students still use a laptop as their main way to stay connected with whatâs going on around UT. âI use my iPhone sometimes,â David Roe, senior in business, said. âIf I forgot my laptop, I use it to log on to Blackboard and check to see if I forgot an assignment. I have used it to Google search occasionally if I donât know what my professor is talking about.â Roe does not feel that he can always trust his phone to give him the information he needs. âI have considered just using my iPhone instead of my laptop, but I tried that last fall when I had to look something up for finals last minute,â he said. âI think everyone else was doing the same thing because the connection was horrible. My laptop is a better choice because I feel like itâs more reliable.â For those who donât want to make the switch from a laptop to a smartphone, Veale said another popular option is the netbook. âTheyâre just small laptops, mainly just used for the Internet,â he said. âTheyâre limited in ability, but they are low in cost.â Lehman maintains that his smartphone will continue to be his go-to device. âItâs convenient,â he said. âIt can do everything I need it to do, and itâs the easiest way to stay connected.â One thing is for sure about smartphones: their ever-changing capabilities mean that phones are not just for texting friends in class anymore.
Cherokee campus developing Will Brewer Staff Writer Construction on the energy-efficient Join Institute for Advanced Materials, a sustainable research facility, will begin this fall on the Cherokee Farms campus. The Cherokee Farms campus is located along Alcoa Highway about five minutes from the Knoxville campus. It is used for multiple purposes. John Nolt, former Faculty Senate president for the 2008-2009 academic year, said that initially the campus had been used for public and private resources. However, in the past year, Interim President Jan Simek has decided to switch the campus and utilize it for UT facilities. The idea that the Cherokee campus should be used for UT purposes was initially championed by former Chancellor Loren Crabtree. Simek decided to follow Crabtreeâs plan for developing the Cherokee campus, and Chancellor Jimmy Cheek has strongly pursued the plan in his first year. While Crabtree wanted the control of the campus to be part of the chancellorâs job description, Cheek has decided to designate that control to other faculty members. The first significant addition to the Cherokee Farms campus will be the construction of energy-efficient research buildings. As part of Gov. Phil Bredesenâs energy efficiency plan, solar power and geothermal drilling will become part of the Cherokee Farms campus. The funding will come largely from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, commonly known as the stimulus package.
âThe solar power and energy from geothermal drilling will be used, both actively and passively, to power, heat and cool the buildings,â Nolt said. âThe energy that is procured will also be harnessed for future purposes.â The main building being constructed on the Cherokee Farms campus is the Joint Institute for Advanced Materials, which will conduct research on sustainability. The institute is expected to meet the LEED certification of energy efficiency and sustainability. âI am really looking forward to witnessing the progress of the Cherokee Farms campus. I believe it will be a source of pride for the UT campus,â Nolt said. There are many new ideas for the campus, including starting a childcare facility for the children of UT staff and faculty. âThe childcare facility idea came to the Faculty Senate a couple of years ago but was not approved by the administration,â Nolt said. âWhen Chancellor Cheek arrived on campus, he immediately picked up the idea and ran with it.â Students may not have heard much about the Cherokee developments, but Megan Wanee, senior in political science, is excited about the prospects of an energy-efficient campus that has the potential to harness solar and geothermal energy for research purposes. âIâm really excited that UT will finally be able to compete in the field of sustainability research,â Wanee said. âIâm also glad that the state of Tennessee is allocating stimulus money for this purpose. If Chancellor Crabtree were still here, he would be proud that his ideas were finally coming to fruition.â
Katie Hogin ⢠The Daily Beacon
Doctoral students Sumit Goswami and Ritin Sharma converse over coffee at Starbucks in the University Center Wednesday afternoon.
Internships provide workplace credibility Eva Posner Staff Writer Students planning their last few semesters at UT might be missing out on graduate school and job opportunities if they donât gain real-world experience before graduation. According to the universityâs Web site, there are 21,132 undergraduates at UT alone. With large graduating classes coming not only from UT but from all across the country, competition for positions, especially in this economy, is more brutal than ever, Mary Mahoney, assistant director of Career Services, said. The good news is there are a number of ways for students to
stand out among the crowd, and internships are one of the best. When applying for a job or graduate program, an internship on a resume greatly increases chances of acceptance, Mahoney said. âI canât put enough emphasis on the advantage of experience,â Mahoney said. âIt really gives the student a competitive edge.â Mahoney said an internship is simply experience that relates to the studentâs major or chosen career path. While most companies offer summer internships, there are also opportunities in the spring and fall semesters as well as six-month internships and year-round, parttime positions. Though it is possible that a student may have to relocate, there should be something to
fit most anyone motivated enough to try. There are many resources available through the university to help with the process of finding and applying for an internship. The Hire-A-Vol system offered by Career Services is one example. Students can register on the Web site, post their resumes on the database and receive information on internships and other career opportunities. Career Services also offers smaller, major-specific sessions throughout the year and campuswide job fairs twice a year. Popular options for UT students range from Knox County Schools to Disney and from Scripps Network to Oak Ridge National
Laboratory. Frannie Powell, senior in finance, interned for Bank of America in Charlotte, N.C., this summer. As an intern in their intercompany accounting department, Powell was given responsibility and treated like any other employee. âEveryone was very helpful,â Powell said. âI knew I could ask anyone if I had a question. I didnât make copies once.â Powell said the most useful thing she learned is networking. She said she feels her foot is in the door â not only at Bank of America but also in the corporate culture. Her best advice is to practice for interviews and to be proactive. Mahoney agrees. âSometimes the student needs to contact the
company and plant the idea,â she said. Just because something is not advertised does not mean there is no opportunity there, especially if the student agrees to work for free. Some majors, like hotel, restaurant and tourism management and education, require internships to graduate. Other colleges, such as the College of Social Work, require field placement. Some schools, such as the School of Journalism and Electronic Media, require a practicum, which is a shorter internship for class credit. Mahoney encourages any student in any major to somehow gain experience in the field before graduation.