behrcolls@aol.com Question of the Week ■ assistant ncivs editor "Should NASA continue to send manned shuttles into space?'’ "Yes, because even though we had the explosion of the shuttle its not going to happen everytime a shuttle goes into space. We still need people to explore. " JoNette Sims Business Mangament, 02 COLUMBI On this day 390 years ago, the grea t explorer Sir fra nets Drake died aboard sing off the coast of Manama, In his life- time the great frontiers mere the oceans, and a historian inter said, "He Iwcd by the sea, died on if and urns buried in it ' Weil, today u : e can say of the i'hidlenqer new: -a Their dedication was, like Drake s , complete The crew of the space ' s k nil / e Ch all e nge r hon ored u< In/ the manner in which, liken lived their . Jives,. JV«? will never forge! them error the last lime we saw them , this morning, as they pre pared for the journey and waved goodbye and slipped the surly bonds of earth' to ‘touch the lace ot hod, - Ronald Reagan, January 28,1986 teaching and research. He also shared some ideas for increasing the income brought into Behrend through fundraising efforts. “I believe Behrend is a place where I can leave my imprint in the sand - or 1 should say the snow,” Hoffman said. Repeatedly, he stressed the importance of education and the need for faculty and administration to work together for the good of the college. In considering the changes that could be made at Behrend, he said that the future even a decade from now will be radically different from the present and that it was important to try to build toward that future. “The world is small and is really getting dangerous,” Hoffman said, noting that students face many difficult social issues that the college should help them work through. He has headed conferences on the problems of violence in schools and communities, and he discussed how violent crimes at college can be traced back to delinquent activity in elementary school. Hoffman concluded the forum with a quote by John Donne reflecting his philosophy as an academic administrator. ‘“No man is an island, entire of itself...any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind; and POWELI captured recordings because “it was ridiculous,” he said afterward. In his rebuttal, Douri said: “Programs for weapons of mass destruction are not like an aspirin pill, easily hidden. They require huge production facilities, starting from research and development facilities, to factories, to weaponization, then deployment. Such things cannot be concealed. Inspectors have crisscrossed all of Iraq and have found none of that." In Baghdad, Gen. Amir Saadi, a presidential adviser, said Powell’s presentation was “a typical American show, complete with stunts and special "Yes, even though we experienced a tragedy this is not something that will occur continuously. Wie can't panic because of one very sad occassion." Jose Vazquez Computer Engineering: 02 FROM FRONT PAGE money for the space program is used. “The shuttle program has siphoned off lots of money for years,” Walker said. “The money would be better spent doing more robotic missions.” “I think there has been an overemphasis on manned flights,” said Knacke. “Everything that can be done with unmanned flights should be done that way.” Unmanned missions are far less expensive, can travel further into space, and do not carry the risk of losing human lives. In addition, many of the robotic missions, such as those involving the Mars Rover and Hubble Telescope, have produced the most excitement because they were able to bring back unique images. “People like pictures,” said Walker. “They want to see things they’ve never seen before. Ultimately that is He noteo that an early goal of the space program was to develop reusable unmanned vessels inexpensive enough to send out weekly, and he hopes to see the space program move towards making that a reality. Nonetheless, all three agree that there is a place in the space program for manned missions and appreciate the bravery of those who died during these missions. “I’m not sure I’d do it myself, but I understand why they do it,” said Williams. “It’s the thrill of going therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee,”’ he said. The quote proved to be especially timely as the bells in the Smith Carillon chimed afterward. The second candidate, Dr. Mark McColloch, serves as Vice President for Academic Affairs at the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg, where he has spent a majority of his career moving up through the ranks, starting as an assistant professor of history. He expressed his opinion that going through the academic hierarchy is the best method of becoming the leader of a campus. Throughout the forum, he noted how similar Behrend is to his Greensburg campus. This sense of familiarity is one reason that the Behrend campus interests him so much. Beyond the similarities, he said that Behrend is further along than Greensburg in its development. He also said that the position demands a person of high energy, a description he would apply to himself, and he is strongly in favor of public and liberal arts colleges. “I believe the arts enrich our lives and enhance the quality of life for everyone,” he said. He praised the arts and science programs at Behrend and suggested the option of choosing a flagship program for each school. effects. The United States also did not appear to fully convince long-standing skeptics about the need for imminent military action. France, Russia and China, three of the five veto-wielding members of the Security Council, all called for weapons inspections to continue. The Security Council of the United Nations must do everything it can to support the inspection process,” Russian Foreign Minister Igor S. Ivanov said.. France suggested strengthening the inspections process by doubling or tripling the number of inspectors. But U.S. HBvys Friday, February 7, 2003 "Yes...the truth is out there." Victoria Anderson Communications, 06 somewhere,” he said, comparing the astronauts to the men who scale Mount Everest. “We should remember the astronauts and preserve the spirit of adventure they stood for.” Similarly, Walker likened the astronauts to adventurers like Marquette and Lewis and Clark.. “These people are putting their lives at risk to explore,” he said. “Sadly, it seems the only time people take close interest in the space program is when there’s a disaster.” “I think we all identified with the astronauts and the dangers they take,” said Knacke. “It’s a very dangerous thing to do. It’s pushing frontiers. We have to work with the risks and sometimes realize we’ll have unhappy results. From what I know of them, this crew was made of remarkable peopje who realized the risks and were williat detract from the madness of the event, but m&ybe it makes us admire them a little more.” “I would not like to see that it shuts down NASA’s initiative,” said Williams. “The space program excites young children. It motivates them to think about careers in science. I hope that, in the next one or two centuries, humans become spacefaring. We go into space because we can’t help ourselves. I hope this doesn’t dampen that spirit.” When asked about how he would deal with the difficult economic situation and the possibility of needing to cut programs, he said that there are three major criteria to consider in such discussions: comparative strengths of the programs, programs that cannot be cut, and specialized missions of the college. • He also discussed the importance of study abroad; the value of available child care and of environmental sustainability; the importance of research; the equality of responsibility between tenured and non-tenured faculty; his role in community involvement and in drug and alcohol prevention on campus; and the importance of recognizing the achievements of faculty. “There’s always sort of a sense that it’s like Lake Wobegon - all the faculty are strong,” he said. He said that faculty effectiveness should be measured and rewarded, and faculty abilities should be nurtured. He particularly emphasized the significance of peer recognition. Economics again was raised as an issue in relation to students, and McColloch noted that there should be great focus on financial aid and scholarships. He noted that at Greensburg, about 80 percent of the students are employed, and most of those work about 20 hours a week. officials showed little interest in the French proposal or other suggestions for more time for the inspections. “If you have mobile biolaboratories, if you have chemical weapons dispersed, to military units around the country, moved out of regular bunkers to God knows where, if you have missiles hiding under palm trees and being moved every one to three weeks, one has to consider whether any of these proposals would be able to find these things under the circumstances," a senior State Department official said. Yet with the key potential allies, there was a slight but noticeable shift in tone • "Of course! We shall never • give up!! Although lam really • sorry about the accident." • Alex Wu Electric Engineering, 04 In the skies today we saw destruction and tragedy. Yet farther than we can we there is com - fort and hope. In the words o f the prophet IJfi mmr cues tsawli > *■ * > hie ncii'vi. Old l Who created oil fhcs> }\r;f. 1 i V ifli / l f Hv loin starry hosts one by one and calls them each by name. Because of His great power and mighty strength : not one of them is missing ." Tin same Creator who h'nines the stars also knows the names of the seven semis we mourn today . The crew o f the shuttle Columbia did not return safely to Larth; yet we can pray that all are safely home. - George W. Bush, February 1,2003 Studies show that grades begin to suffer when a student works 10 to 15 hours per week. “Lots of students have been told it’s good to work,” he said. “We have to tell them too much is too much. The smartest thing is to get out of college as fast, and with as good of grades, as possible.” The open forum with the third candidate for CEO and Dean, Dr. Anthony G. Collins, will be held at 3 p.m. BEACON CEO candidate Dr. Mark McColloch speaks at an open forum Thursday. after Powell’s presentation. The foreign ministers of all three nations also demanded that Iraq finally and fully cooperate with U.N. inspections teams before the Valentine’s Day report. France, which has led the opposition, acknowledged Iraq’s possession of chemical and biological weapons and did not rule out the use of force. “The use of force can only be a final recourse. If this approach fails and leads us to an impasse, we will not rule out any option, including, as a last resort, the use of force, as we have said all along,” The Behrend Beacon • "I think they should con • time because we have a lot • more to learn about spaced' • jasott Kraus Electrical Engineering, 02 Behrend to replace student ID numbers by Kristen Schrum staff writer Want another number? Well, it’s com ing. A plan has been set to replace Social Security numbers as student identification with random nine-digit numbers by the fall of 2004. The onset of this decision was concern from students for identity theft. Students may wonder why such a per sonal number was used in the first place. Years ago, using Social Security numbers for student ID was not such an issue. They were easy to use because people already knew them. Now, virtually all transac tions are performed electronically. Credit card applications and banking, which ask for your Social Security number, can now be performed online. This can make So cial Security numbers more accessible for potential identity theft. The new student ID numbers will help protect confidenti ality and will replace Social Security num bers as the prime form of sti^l&ftt' ujentjifi cation. Many details must be taken into consideration to put this plan into action. “There is a planning committee at work, preparing implications [of the plan] for the President [of Penn State],” said Interim CEO and Dean Dr. Jack Burke. Those who pushed for this change in clude the Council of Commonwealth Stu dent Governments. The CCSG includes representatives from all 19 Penn State lo cations. This committee voiced their con cern for this issue to University Park. Other students would agree with the CCSG. “I’m glad that my private information will now truly be private,” said Adam Sweeney, senior. As with all changes, this one will cost money. This switch is obviously a lot more complicated than just changing some numbers. The main costs will come from hiring computer programmers to repro gram the system. Also, test procedures must be developed to make sure the new program works. Inevitably, all Student ID cards will have to be replaced. “The biggest cost is the massive con version,” said Dr. Burke. All programs that involve student identification must be converted to the new numbers. The total cost for this plan has not yet been deter mined. Social Security numbers will still be used for those who work for the Univer sity. The number is still needed for the tax system. ■ Some students don’t want this change to occur. Amy Wilczynski, a junior, does not feel threatened by possible identity theft. In fact, she likes using her social security number for her student ID. “I use it for everything and I don’t have to memorize another nine-digit number,” said Wilczynski. Penn State is not the only college that has made the decision to make the switch. Other colleges such as the City College of San Francisco are also concerned for their identities, and their bank accounts. French Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin said. The hall was hushed as Powell set the stage for an extraordinary unveiling of evidence—a multimedia show that revealed as much about U.S. intelligence capabilities as it did about Iraq’s attempts to hide its weapons programs. Ambassadors and ministers—including Iraqi diplomats who were specially invited to sit at the Security Council’s horseshoe table—listened in as an Iraqi general ordered an underling to conceal weapons materials. Page 3