The Red and Black

Florida State University professor brings Doppler radar to University

2012-01-31T22:44:02Z

The 8-foot radar dish attached to the truck in the University intramural fields this afternoon was not a prop for another apocalyptic climate change movie – it is a recent invention by a professor.

Peter Ray, a professor of meteorology from Florida State University, brought his ”Seminole Hurricane Hunter,” a mobile Doppler radar, to the University on Monday afternoon.

“It’s a rare opportunity for students at any university to see a real mobile Doppler radar used for chasing tornados and hurricanes,” said Marshall Shepherd, of the University department of geography.

Florida State University professor, Peter Ray, brought his "Hurricane Hunter" to the University. EVAN STICHLER/Staff

The recently built Hurricane Hunter is a different kind of weather research tool because of its 360-degree rotating radar, its longer wavelengths and its ability to stand winds blowing 250 mph.

Ray explained how the radar’s longer wavelengths are an improvement over existing technology.

“Sonar radars have a shorter wavelength,” he said. “The signal gets absorbed and lost when they go through rain. Having a longer wavelength lets the signal penetrate the rain.”

The Hurricane Hunter is built to survive Category 5 hurricanes and will allow researchers to understand where storms form, even before they occur.

According to Ray, the two transmitters can be used separately or at the same time.

“The advantage is that one transmits the signal in which the electric field is vertical and the other one is horizontal,” he said.

Shepherd invited Ray to the University to show the radar to his mesoscale and radar meteorology class because they’re covering radar meteorology.

Dean Pryles, a second year geography and math major from Duluth, would have gone to see the radar even if Sheperd had not required it.

“This is the only one in the country that can be driven around on a truck,” Pryles said. “It’s definitely something special.”

Ray allowed students to climb inside the truck to look at the computers and generators, which are in the sleeping department.

“The only hazard is having the antenna up while going under a bridge,” he said.

Shepherd, Ray’s former student, earned his undergraduate and graduate degrees in physical meteorology at FSU and is trying to develop research collaboration between FSU and the University.

SGA to vote on legislation that would keep undocumented students from higher education

2012-01-31T20:20:53Z

Students have the opportunity to voice their opinions on a proposed resolution about undocumented students at tonight’s Student Government Association Senate meeting.

The SGA resolution opposes a proposed bill in the Georgia House of Representatives, House Bill 59, that would restrict undocumented immigrants from attending any public college or university in Georgia, including the University.

The SGA resolution would not have any legal influence over the state legislature, but represents the “voice of 35,000” students at the University, said Logan Krusac, at-large Student Life representative for SGA and the senator who is sponsoring the resolution.

“I think this will help in terms of convincing the legislature that this is an issue,” he said. “They think that we support the ban.”

HB 59 addresses concerns that illegal immigrants may be taking away space at colleges and universities from students who are legal residents, said Rep. Tom Rice (R-Norcross), who wrote the bill, according to an article in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

SGA’s resolution opposes HB 59 for several reasons. The claim that undocumented students are taking away seats from Georgia residents is hard to prove, Krusac said, because the undocumented student could have taken a seat that would have otherwise gone to an out-of-state or international student. And undocumented students who are accepted for admission are presumably more qualified than students who were denied admission.

“We are inherently a merit-based society,” Krusac said. “Most of these students were brought here at extremely young ages by no fault of their own.”

HB 59 was written without the input of students or faculty – those who are most affected by it, Krusac said. At a December 2011 meeting of the University of Georgia’s University Council, more than three-quarters of the Council voted to condemn a similar rule. They opposed the Board of Regents ban that keeps undocumented students from attending the flagship universities in the University System of Georgia, including UGA.

The senators supporting the SGA resolution deny arguments that say undocumented students put an economic burden on the state by taking advantage of taxpayer-subsidized education.

“There is a lot of misinformation circulating about HB 59, especially with regard to its economic impacts,” said Eva Berlin, an SGA senator for fine arts who plans to vote in favor of the SGA resolution. “These claims are simply not true as these students would pay out-of-state tuition.”

In fact, allowing undocumented students access to higher education could benefit the economy, Krusac said.

“This bill is bad business for the state of Georgia,” he said. “The alternative to higher education is higher crime, prolonged poverty, poorer health. An educated society is beneficial.”

Educated students will likely have higher salaries and consume more. On the other hand, if undocumented immigrants are unable to get an education in Georgia, families of illegal immigrants may leave that state, leaving agricultural jobs without workers, he said.

Sarah Beck, an SGA senator for the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, said though she supports the DREAM Act, which provides permanent residency to illegal residents who graduate from U.S. high schools, and thinks there should be opportunities for undocumented immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children, she plans to vote against the SGA resolution.

“I feel that people are split about this issue and I do not feel comfortable saying that SGA supports this resolution on behalf of 35,000 when that isn’t the case,” she said. “I also question the venue of this resolution in SGA. If our state and federal government cannot fix this complicated issue, I have serious doubts that SGA will.”

Beck said she would have preferred to form a joint committee in SGA to talk to legislatures and other students about the issue and to table the resolution for now.

Krusac questions the attitude that SGA shouldn’t voice an opinion about state laws, since SGA passed a resolution about changes to the HOPE scholarship.

“I think the majority of senators think the [HB 59] ban is a bad thing, but there are some senators who think it’s not our place, we shouldn’t get involved,” he said. But, “SGA’s responsibility should be to advocate for students and potential students. I think it’s a double standard to say, ‘This doesn’t affect us,’ and then fight for changes in HOPE.”

Any student is welcome to share their opinion at the SGA Senate meeting, the senators said.

“I want people to realize that this issue is definitely pertinent to our student body,” Berlin said. “The bill pertains to our state, our school system, our university, and therefore, us as a student body. This resolution is our way of getting our voices heard.”

What: SGA Formal Senate Meeting

When: 7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 31

Where: MLC

Relay for Life kickoff raises cancer awareness

2012-01-31T19:06:53Z

When the lump in her stomach grew to the size of a football, Melissa Baxter knew something was wrong.

“I came home from the pool one day and my mom finally noticed it,” she said. “It looked like I was about three months pregnant.”

After going to the doctor, Baxter learned she had cancer at age 15. She was told she had a 15 percent chance of survival, that she was unlikely to reach the end of the year, let alone the end of high school. But she did.

“I get to share hope with people who are going through exactly what I went through,” Baxter, the assistant director for UGA Relay for Life, said yesterday at Relay Rally.

The event is a way to get people excited about Relay for Life, said marketing director Courtney Witt, and remind them what the cause is for — fighting cancer.

“It’s our kickoff to second semester, to get people back in the swing of things after break,” Witt said. “We want to get back into reminding people why we do this, instead of just raising money.”

At Relay Rally, students had a chance to get their pictures taken with a sign reading “I relay for…” — a way to honor someone they know who has cancer who has motivated them to raise money for cancer research.

The event included giveaways of free chips and salsa from Barberitos and Willy’s and a raffle for a flat-screen TV. Volunteers came on stage to play spirit games, such as flip cup and a game where participants had to eat a powdered donut while blindfolded with their hands tied behind their backs.

Crossword, Jan. 31

2012-01-31T18:53:29Z

ACROSS
1 Wildcat
5 Approximately
10 Bullets
14 Musical work
15 Find a new purpose for
16 Actor James
17 Defeat
18 Slightly more than a yard
19 Small mountain
20 Tempts
22 In a weak way
24 Layer of turf
25 Debonair
26 Like a stew with lots of beef
29 Buddy
30 Newton or Hayes
34 Misfortunes
35 JFK’s youngest brother
36 __ officer; cop with a beat
37 Father
38 Tehran resident
40 Woman’s undergarment
41 Unwavering
43 Goof
44 Plenty
45 Rudely brief
46 Inquire
47 Alaska’s Palin

48 Book leaves
50 Bro or sis
51 Alike
54 Rejects
58 All __; finished
59 Unimportant
61 Genuine
62 Roy Rogers and __ Evans
63 Northeastern U. S. state
64 Wasp nest site
65 Household pests
66 Steve or Woody
67 Sketched

DOWN
1 Vaulter’s need
2 Perched atop
3 Has to
4 Aids
5 Carrying a gun
6 Buzzing insects
7 Not at home
8 Advantageous
9 __ firma; dry land
10 Most sore
11 USPS delivery
12 Shopping area
13 Exclusively
21 Playfully shy

23 Of birds
25 Melancholy
26 In the __ of; among
27 Thrill
28 Tooth-leaved birch tree
29 Tiny vegetable
31 __ Day; tree-planting time
32 Major blood vessel
33 Butt heads
35 Attempt
36 __ for the course; normal
38 Perfect
39 Irritate
42 Has high hopes
44 Worked
46 Roof antenna
47 Malia, to Sasha
49 Sorority letter
50 Ambulance’s blaring device
51 Fountain order
52 __ the Terrible
53 Dissolve
54 “Been there, __ that”
55 Have on
56 Main part of a cathedral
57 Killed
60 Nothing

Want the answers? Click here.

Click here to download a pdf of today’s puzzle.

EDITORIAL CARTOON: Jan. 31

2012-01-31T14:45:25Z

Univ. org’s outreach ‘strvies for … educating people’

2012-01-31T07:17:28Z

There’s a Greek community on campus with no international board and only one identifying letter.

Lambda Alliance, an organization that arrived in 1992 and gained University recognition in 1998, is a Greek-lettered group with a fairly short legacy.

Back for a new semester, Lambda is again holding the “Q&A with Queers,” to enlighten University students about their stories, struggles and aspirations.

Lambda Alliance was recognized as an official organization at the University more than 10 years ago. Since, it has focused on reaching out to as many different people with as many different identities as possible. KRISTY DENSMORE/Staff

“We usually start off, of course, introducing ourselves and what we do in the University as far as our majors and any organizations we’re a part of,” said Matthew Willis, Lambda’s executive director. “And then we’ll go into telling a brief overview of our coming out stories and our experiences, and talking about our identities. Then we usually open it up to questions. It’s so funny because every coming out story is so different, that [the stories] can generally be half of the program — people listening to the peoples’ coming out stories and formulating their questions based off of that.”

Once the University officially recognized Lambda, the organization was able to plan events like the “Q&A” with more ease and direction.

“[Being officially recognized] opens up a lot of opportunities as far as spaces you can reserve for events and making it easier to kind of get the word out and keep communication with the general student body,” Willis said. “It adds more of an official status, and it does make it easier for us to claim the University — to claim being a part of the UGA community — and fighting for, advocating for, all those on our campus who may not have an opportunity to express certain aspects of their identity without our organization.”

One Lambda goal as an official student organization is expanding the University’s non-discrimination policy.

“The policy doesn’t protect our trans-brothers and sisters,” Willis said, “as well as anybody who has a different gender identity or expression than ‘normative’ society.’”

A valuable asset for the group is getting the word that they have a place at the University out to prospective members.

Awareness is especially key for events like the “Q&A,” because most of the content is driven by audience questions for the Lambda panel.

“[Attendance] is up in the air, it changes every year,” said Macy Aviles, Lambda’s director of education. “I know that we’ve had at least over 50, or around that, every semester. Some Q&A’s we’ll have a full house, and sometimes we’ll have the first two rows, and it’s a little more intimate — so it just depends on everyone else.”

Awareness is a major cornerstone in Lambda’s mission, because many issues breached at the “Q&A” sessions are those with which University students have less experience and understanding.

“One of the biggest things that we strive for is educating people,” Aviles said. “I don’t like to push my issues. I don’t like to push my beliefs on anyone. We think, because Q&A is comprised of peers and other students, people feel more laid-back and it’s more open. Instead of us saying, ‘These are our issues, you need to believe in them,’ we’re walking them through it going, ‘This is my experience.’ We’re putting it on a more personal level so people can see, ‘Wow, this is an actual person who goes to my school and these are their issues.’”

Lambda works to ensure no student’s gender identity is left without a group.

“We’re catering to really anybody on the campus, because we don’t want to have an event that’s not applicable to anybody or really providing an outlet for them to learn more about themselves and about the world in general,” Willis said. “We want to make sure that we’re inclusive of as many people as possible and as many identities as possible.”

Where: MLC Room 147

When: 6-8 p.m.

Price: Free

Contact: uga.lambda@gmail.com

Bulldogs improve to 3-0, clinch spot in ITA National Indoor Championships with victory over Virginia Tech

2012-01-31T01:15:29Z

Senior Ignacio Taboada had six opportunities to clinch the match point for the No. 3 Bulldogs (3-0), in a victory which would assure them a place in the ITA National Indoors Championships on Feb. 17.

However, it wasn’t until he was given a seventh chance that Taboada finally made the match-clinching shot, to defeat Mauricio Antun 6-7, 6-2, 7-5.

Campbell Johnson won his first singles match of the dual season, helping the Bulldogs defeat Virginia Tech on Monday. FILE/The Red & Black

“I had like eight match points, I don’t know. Sometimes you’re going to have those days where you are just having trouble putting the match away,” Taboada said. “One match point gets away, and then another, and you start getting nervous, start asking yourself why you’re not finishing the match. When you come out on top after all of that — I’m happy about that.”

The Georgia Bulldogs 7-0 victory over the No. 34 Virginia Tech Hokies (1-1) continued a streak of three straight sweeps and left every Georgia player undefeated this season.

However, this one seemed to come at a much higher price, with three Georgia players reaching three-set matches for the first time this season.

“Really at the beginning we were down a service break at all four courts,” Georgia head coach Manuel Diaz said, “so we had to claw our way back into this match and gather some momentum and it took a while to really get it, but our guys did a tremendous job of staying composed.”

One of those three-set matches came at court one, where senior Wil Spencer struggled for the second time in two days to put away an opponent early.

After battling back from a tough first set, Spencer was in the third set when he chased after a stray ball and suddenly tripped, completing a half-barrel roll on the tennis court floor before ending up flat on his back.

For a moment, there was concern he might not get up.

But Spencer breathed in, flipped his arms back and pushed himself up before proceeding to retake the lead and outpace his opponent in the three-set marathon, 4-6, 7-6, 6-4.

“It’s great because I feel like this is the closest competition we’ve had so far,” Diaz said. “We were under pressure here, they really took it to us and they have some great players and are well-coached.”

The Georgia victory was aided by the continued strong play of No. 10 Sadio Doumbia, who finished first with a 6-2, 6-1 defeat of No. 71 Lucas Oliviera.

KU Singh put the Bulldogs in range for Taboada’s game-winner by giving them their third point after disposing of Virginia Tech’s Patrick Daciek 7-6, 5-6.

No. 64 Hernus Pieters defeated Corrado D. Toccia 6-1, 7-6(7-5) and No. 101 Campbell Johnson won in his first singles action of the dual season, 6-4, 7-5 over Trpimir Kujundzic.

The team was once again paced by strong play on the doubles courts, where they tied up victories at court two and three before their first team was retired for the day.

No. 9 Sadio Doumbia and Ignacio Taboada defeated Hunter Koontz and Lucas Oliviera 8-3, while the combination of Pieters and freshman Nathan Pasha won 8-4 in their first chance at being paired together.

Even with the success the team has had at doubles, Diaz said he will continue to alter the lineup.

“We still are looking at different options,” Diaz said. “Nathan has played some great doubles this year so we wanted to get him back there — the experiment continues.”

Diamond Dogs hold First Pitch Gala, readying for 2012 campaign

2012-01-31T00:27:27Z

With 22 returning lettermen, including eight returning position players, the Georgia baseball team has launched headlong into practice for another season, which begins in just two weeks.

And Georgia head coach David Perno “feel[s] pretty good” about this year’s baseball team, he said Friday night.

Speaking at the Diamond Dogs’ First Pitch Gala, Perno credited the courage and inspiration of Chance Veazey and Johnathan Taylor, whose injuries in the last two seasons took them off the field for good.

“There’s only… two things that I would change through the years, and it’s the two injuries,” he said. “Anything we get this year is gonna be a direct result of them.”

Perno also mentioned that the team’s academic average remained about 3.0, right in the sweet spot for the coach.

“I don’t want to get too good academically,” Perno said, as the crowd laughed. “Sometimes you get too many smart people and they’re too smart for their own good.”

The night’s featured speaker was Mitchell Boggs, who departed Georgia in 2005 for the major leagues.

Last season, he was a relief pitcher for the world champion St. Louis Cardinals, posting a 3.56 ERA in 51 appearances.

Boggs remembered the value of returning to Georgia after departing to play football at the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga.

“[Tennessee] wasn’t the experience I wanted it to be, but it certainly was the experience I needed it to be,” Boggs said. “For Coach Perno to keep that door open for me and to make sure that I knew he still cared about me and wanted me to be a part of this team, I’ll be thankful for that forever.”

Boggs credited the Cardinals’ postseason success at least partially to the Atlanta Braves, who entered last September with an 8 ½ game lead in the wildcard race but were edged out for the spot by the Cardinals on the last game of the season.

“We had a team meeting, and basically it was… be a professional, show up every day, play hard,” he said. “What an incredible experience it was for me.”

Like his former coach, Boggs singled out Veazey and Taylor as teaching important life lessons to their teammates.

“They understand there are bigger things in life, and we all should,” Boggs said. “But at the same time they get the opportunity to go out and to play baseball every single day.”

Georgia athletic director Greg McGarity also spoke at the gala, discussing potential renovations to Georgia’s Foley Field.

The athletic board will discuss a plan for renovations in May, and McGarity will put Foley Field “probably at the top of the list” of facility improvements.

“I don’t think there’s a better setting in all of college baseball, but old Foley Field needs some work,” McGarity said.

Gym Dogs improve ranking by three spots, up to No. 4 in Division I

2012-01-31T00:07:34Z

The Georgia gymnastics team moved up to No. 4 after posting its highest score of the season against LSU last week.

Previously No. 7, the Gym Dogs went up three positions in the GymInfo poll with their average score of 196.519.

NOEL COUCH

Georgia is also tied for seventh on vault (49.206), No. 4 on bars (49.194), and stayed at No. 11 on the floor exercise even after pulling up their average to 48.975.

Utah — who the Gym Dogs will face this week — is the only team ahead of the Georgia on beam, where the Gym Dogs still hold the No. 2 spot (49.144).

Individually, junior Noel Couch is ranked No. 25 in the all around with an average of 39.131.

Senior Kat Ding is No. 8 on vault after earning a 9.925 for her effort against LSU.

Fellow senior Gina Nuccio is No. 7 on bars after posting a solid 9.9 in the competition Saturday.

Junior Shayla Worley improved her rankings on beam by moving up to No. 4 with an average of 9.875 and freshman Chelsea Davis dropped down to No. 7 (.863).

Although the team hit all six routines on floor for the first time all season, it wasn’t enough to move up in the rankings.

The highest ranked Gym Dog on the event sits at No. 47.

The Gym Dogs will travel to Utah to compete against the No. 1 Utes on Feb. 3 at 9 p.m.

University names VP for public service and outreach

2012-01-30T23:53:29Z

The University named Jennifer Frum, formerly the deputy director of the Carl Vinson Institute at the University, as the new vice president for public service and outreach.

Frum has been serving as interim in this position since July 2011, according to a University press release.

She will start the job on Wednesday.

“As Georgia’s land-grant and sea-grant institution, UGA has a long tradition and strong commitment to serving this state and beyond,” University President Michael Adams said in the release. “I am extremely pleased to have Dr. Frum in this critical role. She will provide the vision and leadership to continue to advance the university’s important public service mission.”

The position was appointed by Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost Jere Morehead. The committee, which concluded the national search, was headed by David Lee, vice president for research.

Frum started working for the University in 1995 and for the Vinson Institute in 2006, where she served several administrative positions.

The Institute is one of eight units that report to the vice president of public service and outreach, according to the release. The others include Archway Partnership, Fanning Institute, Georgia Center and Marine Extension Service, among others.

Frum has a bachelor’s degree in political science from West Virginia, a master’s in international relations from George Washington University and a doctorate from the University’s Institute of Higher Education.