Page 3 The Lion’s Eye April 13, 2011 Campus News IST Club Back In Action By Rob Barbato - Lion's Eye Guest Writer Down but not out; the campus IST Club is back again. As of March 23 the IST Club has a new board of directors and has big plans for the future. With freshmen Scott Schmoyer as the new IST Club President, Penn State Brandywine can expect some new and big things to-arrive here on campus. One of the first things Schmoyer highlights about IST Club is that “you do not need to be an IST major to join the club. Students of all majors are invited to join and attend club meetings.” The club will be offering activities that will interest anyone who have interests in technology. “IT 1s beginning to be, if not already, integrated into every field,” says James Morgan, head of the campus ITS Department and advisor for IST Club. “IT skills sell.” IST Club plans to provide a different spin on learning about computers and technology by providing hands-on experience. Joe Lauletta, the IST Club Technol- ogy Officer, has been hard at work gathering materials to provide real examples for IST Club members. The hands- on experience will help students gain an idea of what cer- tain networking and technological components may do and look like. Providing physical examples of IT related entities is a goal the IST Club wants to accomplish in aid to students. Veteran IST Club board members Colton Phillips (Operating Officer) and Ken Wilson (Finance Officer) are ready and willing to get the new iteration of the club ready to go. While the end to this semester is coming quickly, IST Club is preparing its cannons for the upcoming fall semester. Renovations on campus this summer will pro- vide the club with their own lab room among other excit- ing new possibilities. If you are a student that is interested in comput- ers and technology, joining the IST Club would be a great benefit to yourself and even to your future career. The club will be meeting on Wednesday, April 13 in 203 Tomezko during common hour. Be sure to join the fun for some piz- za and refreshments. Brandywine Photography Club First University in the Country to take on GigaPan Technology By Nick Corrato - Lion's Eye Staff Writer - njc6098@psu.edu GigaPan is a robotic, pan- oramic imaging device designed for use on the surface of Mars, and has recently been used to create a high- resolution panorama of the protests in Egypt’s Tahrir Square. Soon, it will also be used by Penn State Brandy- wine’s new GigaPan Photography Club. “We are the only university that has a GigaPan club,” says Dr. Laura Guertin, the club’s faculty ad- visor, “there are no other universities in the United States that have one. We are the first one.” Short for gigapixel panora- ma, the GigaPan system was designed as part of the Global Connection Proj- ect, by researchers at Carnegie Mellon University and NASA’s Ames Intelli- gent Robotics Group. With additional funding by the Google Corporation, the Global Connection Project aims to develop software, tools, and technolo- gies to increase the power of images to connect, inform, and inspire people to become engaged and responsible global citizens. Through a combination of a robotic camera mount, and photo- stitching software, the GigaPan sys- tem is capable of producing highly detailed, magnifiable panoramas. The panoramas can then be uploaded to an interactive website, where they are open to exploration by millions of us- ers around the world. According to Dr. Guertin, GigaPan Technology has many sci- entific purposes. Its uses include, but are not limited to, the study of arche- ology, geography and changes in the environment over a period of time. Also, in tough economic situations, it can be used by teachers as a virtual field trip tool. : “As a geologist it’s great, because I can’t get my students to the Grand Canyon,” explains Dr. Guer- tin, “but there’s a GigaPan, more than one, at the Grand Canyon. So I can have my students look at the GigaPan, which gives them the broad view, but then I can zoom up to an individual rock layer, and actually have them look at the texture and the colors in there.” Sophomore Labanya Mook- erjee, who started the club, would like to see the technology used in another facet. “Right now, it’s mostly being used in the sciences. My intention is to broaden it to the humanities,” said Labanya, who attended a GigaPan conference with Dr. Guertin and fel- low student Sara Neville in Novem- ber. “It would be a great way to get in- volved on campus, and also to learn about local history,” suggests Laban- ya, “it will be a great way to work to- gether on something that is meaning- ful.” Dr. Guertin encourages stu- dents to get involved with the Giga- Pan club to learn the new technology, and then apply it to other courses and activities throughout the community. She also suggests that experience with cutting edge technologies could help students in another way. “That helps you guys when you’re looking for jobs,” suggests Dr. Guertin, “you can say ‘I know tech- nology and I’ve used things that are non-standard technology; I am some- one that can apply something to a new situation,” and that’s what GigaPan can give you.” For more information about the club and their upcoming trips, contact Labanya Mookerjee by e-mail at Labanya@psu.edu. For more infor- mation about GigaPan technology, or to explore panoramas from around the world, visit www.gigapan.org. What She Could Have Done as a Penn Staste Employee By Kenny Lankford - Lions Eye Staff Writer- kgl5040@psu.edu On thursday, March 24th, the dis- cussion “What Henrietta Lacks Could Have Done as a Penn State employee with Dr. Disney” took place. The discussion was held in Tomezsko room 103. Dr. Disney told the story of Henrietta Lack, a woman whose name may not be familiar, but has had an enormous effect on society. Researchers used Lacks’ cells to create an immortal cell line known as the HeLa cells. The cells were taken from her can- cerous tumor about 60 years ago and wound up benefiting society in countless ways. Researchers found it remarkable because the cells multiplied but would not die. This made research possible over an extended period of time, which had not been pos- sible before. Over 20 tonsof her immortal cells have been used for everything from Whose Line, Brandywine! By Dave Serpentine Lion's Eye World and Locak Editor dms5419@psu.edu cosmetic sensitivity to AIDS research. These cells have led to the discovery of a number of medicines, including a vac- cine for polio. Lacks never-even knew that she would be one of the most im- portant individuals in medicine. Her cells lived on long after she did, and not even her family knew of her contribution to researchers until years later. Companies have sold her cells for large amounts of money, but Lacks’ family has never seen any of that money. Nor have they any medical coverage or recognition for Henrietta’s Contribution. Yet her cells may have been one the most important contribu- tions in medical history. Dr. Disney went on to explain how her own medical situation was handled completely differently because she was a Penn State employee. Henri- etta never agreed to allow her cells to be researched. When Dr. Disney was diagnosed with Pompe’s disease, a rare inherited, metabolic disorder, the pro- cedures to access her medical data were handled completely differently. In Henrietta Lacks’ day and age, those who had medical condi- tions risked the denial of health insur- ance, denial for employment, and being shunned by ignorant people. This dis- crimination could come in the form of conditions of employment, health cov- erage, or life insurance. It could even occur just because one got tested for a disease. Genetic discrimination is something that Dr. Disney did not have to worry about. She released her medi- cal data to her alma mater, Duke Uni- versity. Her contribution to Pompe’s disease research is important because what she does matters to the longevity of researchers. Lacks’ story shows how easily people can be preyed upon. Although it is not as easy today due to certain laws that have since been passed, Dr. Disney said that “it took an awfully long time for government and medical organiza- tions to learn of the dangers.” The talk was very informative and had a nice sized audience. It is re- markable how so many lives have been affected because of Lacks’ cells yet not many people are aware of her story. Photo from www.educationalsynthesis.org Club. These students displayed their tal- Indeed all the world is a stage in ent with the help of the audience at their which we are all merely actors, and our res- ident thespians prove this notion. Recently, Students Lauren Rankin, Nick DiBello, Mike Edwards, Rebecca Hunter, Ashley Chan, Josh Shanner, Eric Teitsworth, and Yegor Muravyev along with their advisors Susan Currie and Michael Hoi Cheung created the brand new Random: Improv Open House last Wednesday, April 6 in the Lion’s Den. On that day during common hour, many students showed up for free food, re- freshments and laughs. In total, the actors played eight acting games: two rounds of stand, sit, bend, two rounds of two-line vo- cabulary, two rounds of foreign film dub, one round of team props, and one round of freeze tag. Just before the first game began, Club President Rankin gave a brief intro- duction of the club, then Chan announced herself as the MC. Every time a game would begin, she introduced and explained the rules and which actors would be in which scene. Overall, most of the games lasted anywhere from two to four minutes with the final game being the longest clocking in around eleven minutes. Some of the skits were short, however the audiences’ laughter and memory of that day were not. Club President Rankin ended by saying this club would return next semester, so be sure to check them out during their next Open House!
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers