Issue 63, Volume 121
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Task force reviews Greek culture on campus David Cobb Assistant News Editor A September incident at the now vacant Pi Kappa Alpha (Pike) fraternity house that left a student hospitalized and brought national media attention to the UT campus brought action from administrators. Pike was dismissed from campus. Additionally, Vice Chancellor for Student Life Timothy Rogers called for the formation of a task force to examine Greek life. A September press release stated that the purpose of the task force would be “to review Greek life on campus and to make recommendations for improving a personal sense of responsibility among members and enhancing the chapters’ contributions to campus life.” Two months later, as the primary campus controversy has shifted gears from alleged methods of alcohol consumption to the search for a new football coach, the Greek task force is still in full swing. Student Government Association vice president and Delta Tau Delta member Terry Nowell is among the five student representatives on the task force. He told The Daily Beacon that Chancellor Jimmy Cheek wants the findings of the committee as soon as possible, but also that he and his colleagues serving on the force have no intentions of rushing to conclusions. “We’re hoping to finalize some ideas by the end of the semester, and if not by then it’ll be early in next semester,” Nowell said. “We’ll
probably have a preliminary report around the end of this semester, if not the full report.” Although the recommendations of the task force will be disclosed to Rogers and Cheek within the coming weeks, Katie Arnold, the 2012 homecoming queen and president of Alpha Chi Omega, doesn’t think that the full effect of the force will be seen until a few years down the road. Arnold is the student representative on the Finances and Facility Operations sub-committee, which is one of five groups within the larger task force. Her sorority was the first to move into a house in the new Sorority Village. “I’m working with a bunch of fraternity alums and they really do listen to me ... a lot,” Arnold said. “There are actually a lot of issues that I didn’t realize. It’s more than just what we hear all the time with alcohol and stuff like that. So that’s an interesting thing. “They have a lot of questions for the students. They have a lot of interest in what we think will or won’t work because we’re students and we go to school with these people and we know what they’re going to adhere to and not.” The members of the task force could not discuss the specifics of the meetings. But Associate Dean of Students Jeff Cathey said that he thinks the discussions have gone well so far. “I think it’s a really good energy,” Cathey said. “It’s a really good group of people and a real good energy. People are committed to moving the Greek community in a positive
Emily DeLanzo • The Daily Beacon
Members of PIKE stand behind Alexander Broughton and attorney Daniel McGehee as they address the media after the PIKE scandal on Oct. 2. Since this incident, Chancellor Cheek has started a Greek task force. direction and trying to identify the best ways to do that.” Both Nowell and Arnold agreed that the input of the student representatives has been valued by the alumni, faculty and staff comprising the task force.
“The people that are part of this task force aren’t people that have time to waste and sit around and talk about this kind of stuff,” Arnold said. “The point of it is to get something done, and we will see changes from this task force for sure.”
UT research finds Old Health Center to become lab counter to nitrous oxide dangers Staff Reports
Many learn by doing. This is especially true for nursing students. UT is renovating an existing building to improve simulated instruction and research for the College of Nursing. The Health and Information Technology Simulation (HITS) Laboratory will be housed in the former Student Health Center at 1818 Andy Holt Way. A joint endeavor of the colleges of nursing and engineering, the HITS lab will feature simulated learning experiences and opportunities to explore research scenarios. The building will add more than 7,000 square feet to the nursing college’s current space and open the door to use more cutting-edge technology such as human simulation manikins.
Staff Reports The environment has a more formidable opponent than carbon dioxide. Another greenhouse gas, nitrous oxide, is 300 times more potent and also destroys the ozone layer each time it is released into the atmosphere through agricultural practices, sewage treatment and fossil fuel combustion. Luckily, nature has a larger army than previously thought combating this greenhouse gas — according to a study by Frank Loeffler, University of Tennessee, Knoxville–Oak Ridge National Laboratory Governor’s Chair for Microbiology, and his colleagues. The findings are published in the Nov. 12 edition of the “Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.” Scientists have long known about naturally occurring microorganisms called denitrifiers, which fight nitrous oxide by transforming it into harmless nitrogen gas. Loeffler and his team have now discovered that this ability also exists in many other groups of microorganisms, all of which consume nitrous oxide and potentially mitigate emissions. The research team
• Photo courtesy of UTK •
that functions as an intensive care unit, medical surgical room, and birthing room; faculty offices; storage space; and lockers. It will also contain a debriefing room with an observation and control laboratory where students and professors can observe how other students are handling simulated scenarios live. The experiences can be taped so that students can review how they responded to situations. Construction is slated to begin this fall and be completed in January. Student Health Services moved from its former Andy Holt Avenue building last December. The new Student Health Building, on the corner of Pat Head Summitt Street and Andy Holt Avenue, opened to students in January 2012. See NURSING LAB on Page 3
Around Rocky Top
screened available microbial genomes encoding the enzyme systems that catalyze the reduction of the nitrous oxide to harmless nitrogen gas. They discovered an unexpected broad distribution of this class of enzymes across different groups of microbes with the power to transform nitrous oxide to innocuous nitrogen gas. Within these groups, the enzymes were related yet evolutionarily distinct from those of the known denitrifiers. Microbes with this capability can be found in most, if not all, soils and sediments, indicating that a much larger microbial army contributes to nitrous oxide consumption.
Chris Elizer • The Daily Beacon
Members of Alpha Chi Omega perform during “Battle of the Bands” on Nov. 14. Alpha Chi won first place in the competition.
See BACTERIA on Page 3
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“Gaining first-hand knowledge of the impact that health technology has on improving patient care, quality, and safety is critical for nursing students,” said Dean Victoria Niederhauser. “Research has shown that when students engage in simulated scenarios in a safe learning environment, they are better prepared to enter into the work force upon graduation.” The $1.5 million project involves renovating the three-story building; the HITS Lab will take two floors and one floor will house a rare plant herbarium for the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology in the College of Arts and Sciences. The second floor will include four patient exam rooms; a pediatric inpatient room; an operating room; a room
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Vols cruise passed Grizzles, 77-50 page 6