r apital Vol. 22, No. Education Needed to Halt Spread of AIDS By Jan Travers "The safety of the herterosexual community is largely an illusion." This was one of the conclusions of a report on AIDS recently released by Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. Long thought to be a drug addict or homosexual disease, AIDS, which is spread by the exchange of body fluids, is beginning to appear in heterosexuals. The report projects that within five years as many heterosexuals as homosexuals could carry the virus. Presently there are 36,058 reported known cases of AIDS in the United States, with an estimate that 1.5 million people carry the virus. Of these, 20,849 have died as of June 1, 1987. There is no cure at this time and according to the National Academy of Science, there is not a cure in the immediate future. Clearing Up the Misconceptions There are many misconceptions about AIDS. In an attempt to make information available to you, we are reprinting the following taken from a pamphlet of the American Social Health Association. .AIDS? A art equlre f the bod dimhluaeN rwielleY Syndrom e , body defenseless in is a coaditi°a that breaks d°wa P o y.s immune system eaving thet fi g hti ng off infection The first AIDS cases in the nation were reported in 1981. Since then, AIDS cases have doubled roughly avert.year• AIDS has been fatal in more than 50 percent of reported cases and oiler time the fatality rate is exPeeted to reach 100 Peltent So far, no one diagnosed with AIDS has recovered. ~ovv~`pieo~l~~e~' IBS appearsll;it exposure• ,infectedsemen c an AIDS No? AIDS is not sPread through se •tw • • eating in restaurants , ilit's such as working in a or..hugion,b There has swimming in public group setting, • • * never been a pools, shaking hands acq u i re d f rom casual contacts CaSe rePorted mwhich AIDS .s. r (neap ow bow et pike.S. tor. more hi Mu 4 Pennsylvania has 984 cases of AIDS. Experts predict that by 1991, 16,000 Pennsylvanians could have the disease. The danger lies in the situation that most of those infected with AIDS have no symptoms and therefore may unknowingly be infecting others. In an August speech given locally by Dr. Steven Bowen, deputy director of the Centers for Disease Control's Center for AIDS Prevention Services, he said the best tool against the spread of the deadly virus is education. According to Jerry South, assistant provost for student affairs, Penn State is planning programs to heighten people's awareness of the disease. "College students do not appear to be taking it [AIDS) seriously. For this reason, Jean Kresge (coordinator of nursing services) is in the process of choosing speakers to make our students better informed," said South. Prim iiarnsimr!, Graduates Finding Tight Job Market By Jan Travers On the average, most college graduates across the nation are not landing jobs in their major within the first five months after graduation, according to a study released in August by the College Placement Council (CPC). Peg O'Hara, coordinator of career services at Penn State Harrisburg agrees with this assessment. "A few years ago I never thought I'd see the day when engineers would find it hard to get jobs," she said. O'Hara saids that while civil and structural engineering graduates are finding jobs relatively easily, electrical and mechanical engineers are not. Snap Your Mac at Cap During this past summer an Automatic Teller Machine (ATM) was installed in the Bookstore. Anyone with a MAC card will be able to draw funds from his or her account. With the addition of the ATM, the check cashing services previously available in the Finance Office have been discontinued. Students are being advised by Don Plourde, financial officer, to consider establishing an account with a local bank which provides MAC card service because typically area banks have not cashed personal checks unless the individ ual has established an account. Arrangements have been made with the Jamesway Plaza Branch of the Homestead Bank to cash student payroll checks. The Finance Office will validate student payroll checks for this purpose. Other ATM locations are: Commonwealth National Bank, Brown & Union Streets, Cash Stream; Hamilton Bank, Giant Plaza, MAC; Homestead Savings, Jamesway Plaza, Cash Stream. 10f... - '',.. ''' ;;.. ' .'7-,-,: 1 :- . * .„ ._ .„ ~. In addition, business majors are having a more difficult time finding jobs within their field of expertise. However, business majors are able to overcome this because they have more options than other majors, said O'Hara. O'Hara offered some advice to overcome the tight market. "Prepare yourself in the best way you can by getting experience while still in school. Try to get a job in the area you are headed while still a student," she said. The importance of getting a job in your field while still in school is demonstrated by looking at the internship program. "Interns fare better in the job search almost eveiy time," summarized O'Hara.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers