the oredigger issue 1 - september 5, 2011

8/4/2019 The Oredigger Issue 1 - September 5, 2011

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T H E O R E D I G G E R Volume 92, Issue 1 Sepember 5, 2011

The student voice of the Colorado School of Mines

Lady

Orediggers start

season strong

Sports 6

w w w . O R E D I G G E R . n e t

Opinion 7

Features 5

News 3

Satire 7

2011 sees com-

pletion of new

residence hall

SWE barbeque

welcomes new

members

Minds @ Mines

Summer Fun

More to Brown

Building than

meets the eye

On August 3, 2011, the College

of Engineering and Computational

Science was created. The Divi-sion of Engineering

and the Mathemati-

cal and Computer

Science Department

recongured to form

the Departments of

Applied Mathematics

& Statistics (AMS),

Civil & Environmental

Engineering (CEE),

Electrical Engineering

& Computer Science

(EECS), and Mechan-

ical Engineering (ME),

within the College

of Engineering and

Computational Sci-

ences.

The goal of thisnew college is to have

“Degrees of Distinc-

tion,” in which high

school students will

see the majors as

more distinct rather

than a general broad

degree of engineering.

The formation of this new college

with new departments will also give

more executive roles.

New collegeformed out of big departmentsLucas Quintero

Staff Writer

The Engineering Division merged with

the Math and Computer Science Depart-

ment to create a new college at Mines.

Continued at COLLEGE on page 3.

Global climate change is a large

area of research interest and has been

for several years. On September 2, Dr.

Juan M. Restrepo of the University

of Arizona spoke on the patterns of

climate change in his lecture titled‚

“Climate, Assimilation of Data, andModels.”

Restrepo started by making a

distinction between climate and

weather with his lecture focusing on

the former, dening it as patterns in

large areas over long periods of time.

Problems of prediction fall into a

few categories. The rst is actually

nding the trend; the question of “Is

it warming,” according to Restrepo.

Being able to make predictions, as

in “How hot will it get,” is the next

question. Determining how

sensitive the system is, how

“human fault” might impact

it, plays another role. Lastly,

there is the question of wheth-

er the data is coincidental or

whether it there is an underly-ing cause-and-effect relation.

The purpose of Restrepo’s

work is to determine which

method is best for interpreting

the massive amount of data.

These methods might include

processes like Least-Square

Regression. Because of the

processes involved, each

method can produce radically differ-

ent results.

The challenge today is to calculate

the uncertainty when a ltered pattern

is created. This challenge is due to

trying to dene a pattern as simply

as possible without losing too much

information.

Restrepo’s work added to an

already favored method and gaveinput on ways to show stronger cor-

relation amongst the data. He did

this by making uncertainty as minimal

as possible and then maximizing

predictions.

Restrepo stated that one must

“keep an eye on the big picture”

and that the predicting problem will

depend upon methodology and

that the large number of variables

that must be included is a curse and

unavoidable.

Climatic data is often very noisy,

and requires powerful ltering

methods.

Lucas Quintero

Staff Writer

Noise promptsbetter ltering

Levi Leipheimer on this way to taking home the jersey on the rst ever USA Pro Cycling Challenge, passing through

Golden on August 28th.

BREE WALTMAN / OREDIGGER

COURTESY NASA

COURTESY APERTURISMO / FLICKR



n e w s september 5, 2011page 2


Oredigger Staff

Ryan Browne

Editor-in-Chief

Katie HuckfeldtManaging Editor

Robert GillBusiness Manager

Steven WooldridgeWebmaster

Barbara AndersonDesign Editor

Zach Boerner Copy Editor

Ian Littman Asst. Business Manager,

Web Content

Trevor Crane

Content Manager

Deborah GoodContent Manager

Stephen HejducekContent Manager

Headlines from around the worldLocal News

The Mines football team

kicked-off their season with a

33-0 win over William JewelCollege. Their rst home game

is next week, September 10th,

against South Dakota Mines.

The women’s soccer team

shut-out Upper Iowa Sunday

with a score of 3-0. They travel

to Minnesota-Duluth to take on

Bemidji State Friday, September

9th.

CSM volleyball hosted the

annual Oredigger Volleyball Clas-

sic. Jackie Stabell and Amanda

Massey qualied for the OVC All

Tournament Team.

Dr. Brian Murphy, co-founder

of PrimeStar Solar, a thin-lm

solar company recently sold to

General Electric, will present

the 2011 Division of Economics

and Business Executive-in-Res-

idence Seminar Series at Colo-

rado School of Mines. The serieswill continue on September 20th

with a presentation about Com-

munication - the Achilles Heel of

all Relationships.

Joshua Kleitsch, Staff Writer

Joshua Kleitsch, Staff Writer

Libyan rebels in Tripoli have un-

covered a collection of documents

that appear to link the Central In-

telligence Agency with Colonel

Qadda’s intelligence service.

These documents reveal informa-

tion about the ties between the

Bush administration and Libya’s

state intelligence agency and ap-

pears to shows that the two agen-

cies collaborated to a much great-

er extent than previously known.

The ties apparently extended even

to the US sending suspected ter-

rorists to the Libyans for interroga-

tion purposes. The authenticity of

these documents cannot be veri-

ed at this time.

Blue Origin LLC of West Tex-

as was forced to destroy their

newly developed unmanned

spacecraft during a test ight

last week. The craft experienced

an equipment malfunction that

had caused it to y off-course.

Jeff Bezos, Blue Origin founder,

millionaire, and founder of Ama-

zon.com Inc., issued a statement

indicating that while Blue Origin

had hoped for a better ight, they

intend to press on despite this

setback.

The European Union has

placed a ban on the import of

all Syrian oil in an effort to force

President Bashar al-Assad to ease

the oppression of his people. The

current unrest, which is approach-

ing six month’s duration, has been

made progressively worse by

Assad’s continual disregard for his

people. The most recent including

a bloody demonstration Friday in

which 11 people were killed, a

case where the police outnum-

bered the protesters.

Cracked roads, washed-out

bridges, and ooded homes are

all that remain from Hurricane

Irene. Cities and towns across

the east coast are now scrambling

to repair vital infrastructure before

winter sets in, whose snow and

ice could halt all construction and

repair work for months. With mere

weeks before the weather turns

cold, roads and bridges must be

repaired before the machines can

even begin to revive power plants,

homes, and ofces.

Facing a dismal job report for

this August, President Obama

requested that the Environmental

Protection Agency lift its pro-

posed ban on ozone. The ban

could have had a negative effect

on jobs. The ban may be enacted

in 2013.

Chinese dissidents and activ-

ists are increasingly being subject-

ed to what is being characterized

by the term “forced disappear-

ance.” This practice, the impris-

onment of individuals for months

or even years at a time, is current-

ly being opposed by various hu-

man rights groups. The Chinese

government maintains that the

practice is entirely legal, and con-

tinues to use it claiming that the

imprisoned are under house arrest

for suspicion of criminal activities.Protesters in Yemen have

vowed that, no matter the cost,

they will continue to stand and call

for the current government to step

down. The so-called peaceful

revolution has been going on for

seven months now, and demon-

strators are insistent that they will

protest even if it leads to civil war.

Costa de Caparica, Portugal - One

of the most common beliefs in the beer-

consuming world is that lager, the tradi-

tional and most wide-spread type of beer

in the world, originated from Bavaria,

Germany. But while the brewing process

of Lagering was developed in Germany,

the yeast that powers the fermentation

actually evolved from a yeast strain that is

native to Argentina. Saccharomyces carl-

bergensis, the yeast responsible for most

of the beers in the developed world, is a

descendant of the strain S. eubayanus,

which grows and thrives in the mountains

of Patagonia. This yeast strain probably

hitched a ride over to Germany on a trad-

ing vessel sometime in the distant past,

where its unique low-temperature char-

acteristics (ideal for beers that are meant

to be stored for long periods of time) pro-

pelled it into global dominance.

Cork, Ireland - Recent studies by neuroscientists at the Uni-

versity College Cork in Ireland have indicated that bacteria in the

human digestive system can inuence brain activity. John Cryan, one

of those neuroscientists, has found that even benign bugs that live in

the intestines can have a noticeable effect on the brain. In a recent

study, scientists fed mice a broth with a strain of benign Lactobacil-

lus rhamnosus JB-1 bacteria and monitored the response. Duringtesting, the mice infected with the bacteria showed a signicant de-

crease in sensitivity to environmental stress. According to research-

ers, further research could lead to a better understanding and treat-

ment of human emotional disorders, especially depression.

Mexico City, Mexico - The Aztecs, an-

cient inhabitants of modern Mexico, kept

surprisingly good records of the land and

farms in their possession. Clara Garza-

Hume, a mathematician at the National Au-tonomous University of Mexico in Mexico

City, has found old paper maps created by

the Acolhua-Aztecs, which contained de-

tailed measurements of the land throughout

their region, along with the area of each farm

accurate to within 10% in many cases. This

achievement is notable because this map

was produced in the 1500’s, long before

trigonometry and geometry were in use.

Manchester, United Kingdom - Egyptian society appears to have highly valued hair

styling and individuality, as evidenced by the considerable use of some fat-based styling

gels, according to the University of Manchester. Researchers believe that hair was indeed

styled intentionally due to the fact that the chemicals and fats found in the hair of the mum-

mies were unlike those found on other parts of the bodies. Additionally, tongs, whose usefor curling hair seems plausible, have been found in the tombs with the mummies. In keep-

ing with Egyptian religious beliefs, mummies were sometimes embalmed with elaborately

styled hair, as it was important to maintain a good appearance for the afterlife.



n e w sseptember 5, 2011 page 3


Develop your English language skills throughout

your academic career

Part-time English classes for undergraduates and graduates

Women's conversation program

Private tutoring available

Contact info: Mountain Language Institute, 1212 Arapahoe St., Golden, CO 80401,

www.mlienglish.com - [email protected]

Zachary Boerner and Lucas

Quintero

Copy Editor and Staff Writer

Maple Hall means luxuriousliving for dorm dwellers

Maple Hall, completed this summer, is the newest residence hall at Mines.

STEVEN WOOLDRIDGE / OREDIGGER

Along with the distinction eachdepartment will be receiving inthe new school, the departmentswill be able to show top nationalranking. According to Dr. JohnMcCray, Acting Department Head

of CEE, “Civil Engineering showspromise to be able to competewith the top 20 nationally.” Asthe increasing number of under-graduates as well as the increas-ing amount of graduate studentsallow for a larger research volumeto be completed, McCray be-lieves that the department couldbe bidding for a top 20, if not atop 10 position in national rank-ings.

Emphasized by the Interim De-

New college formed outof big departments

partment Heads of each depart-ment, whatever degree programstudents are currently enrolledin will not change. Interim De-partment Head of AMS Dr. WillyHereman stressed that “students

should keep doing what they aredoing” and “resume business asusual.”

The new degree programs willnot begin for at least a year, asthe process for submitting a newprogram is a lengthy method thatthat requires the approval of theUndergraduate and GraduateCouncils, the Faculty Senate, theColorado Department of HigherEducation, the Board of Trustees,and others. Thus for those of the

MCS department hoping to get adouble major in math and com-puter science, there will not be aprogram in place which separatesthe degrees for at least a year.

Dr. Tracy Camp, Interim De-

partment Head of EECS, addsthat according to McCray, thedegree programs will be ready asearly as Fall of 2012, but may notbe available until the Fall of 2013.

The current majors will resumeand exist alongside the new pro-grams, when they become avail-able. Current options availablewill remain available until all stu-dents in each program have ei-ther graduated or changed theirbulletin.

Maple Hall’s construction wascompleted over the summer, add-ing almost 300 beds to campushousing. The new building, whichis LEED Silver certied, helps tohouse the one of the largest fresh-men classes Mines has seen.

The building contains suitesthat each have two rooms con-nected by a shared bathroom.

The individual rooms can eitherhouse one or two students, de-termined by a lottery.

There are ve social spacesin Maple Hall, including a recre-ation room that has a pool tableand a shufeboard table. All vesocial spaces also have large TVsthat can be used for “practic[ing]

a presentation or they can hook up a video game system andplay some video games with theirfriends,” according to Nick Anton-icci, Residence Life Coordinatorfor Maple Hall and Weaver Tow-ers.

Each oor has two study

lounges with white boards andeach oor has one social loungewith multiple couches and anoth-er at screen TV.

There are two courtyards, onein front of the building facing thestreet and one in the middle of thebuilding in the shape of the Minesspherical triangle that houses oneof the gas grills available for thestudents to use at any point dur-ing the semester.

There is a bike storage areaand workshop that contains lock-ers that will be rafed out to stu-dents for yearly use.

There is a sound-proofed mu-sic room, “Just so that studentscould explore their creative abili-ties,” said Antonicci. There is apiano in the room, a whiteboardwith a music staff, and stands formusic. There is also a baby grand

piano in the lobby of the building. The building achieved LEED

Silver during its construction. “Allof the stone was [quarried] within70 miles of the construction site.50% of the waste was recycledand salvaged, including 75% of the cement from the sidewalk and

streets.” There is a kitchen and study

area that contains a documentcamera on a podium, a large pro-

jector two ranges, two ovens, alarge refrigerator, a sink, and twobar style seating areas.

There is also a large laundryroom that offers ten washers anddriers, as compared to the Tra-ditionals’ three washers and twodryers. As with all other laundryfacilities on campus, laundry isnow free for residents.

Maple Hall is priced competi-tively, at $5,334 a year for a dou-ble room and $6,134 a year for asingle room. Comparatively, the

Traditionals are $4,638 a year fora double and $5,486 a year for asingle while Mines Park is $4,972a year for a double.

On August 23, Maple Hall had

a grand opening where visitorswere treated to a tour of the build-ing as well as refreshments.

“We’re really excited [aboutMaple Hall],” said Katie Schmal-zel, Residence Life Coordinatorfor the Traditionals and MinesPark.

High Design All Oredigger publications are constructed with Adobe Creative Suite. Our unique organizationalstructure generates a team atmosphere on ev-ery project, empowering student designers to ex

their creativity in a fun and relaxing environment.

Impeccable Writing There is only one required, writing-intensive class

at CSM. At The Oredigger , we have designed amulti-tiered editing and feedback approach thatcan help you rene your craft and enter the work-force with premier writing skills. What’s more, weensure the exibility to write what you want andwhen you want. You can take a couple weeksoff or pick up an in-depth feature, whatever ts in your schedule.

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By the numbers 975

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a d v e r t i s e m e n t september 5, 2011page 4


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There’s strong. Then there’s Army Strong. Enroll in Army ROTC at

Colorado School of Mines to complement your education with the

training, experience and skills needed to make you a leader. Army ROTC

also offers full-tuition scholarships of up to 100% and a monthly

stipend to help pay for your education. And when you graduate, you will

have an edge in life as an Army Officer and a leader. All it takes is

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MAJ Donald Caughey

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f e a t u r e sseptember , 2011 page 5


Racers and spectators alikerejoiced last Sunday as the USA Pro Cycling Challenge came to arousing nish in downtown Denver,Colorado. The race, which involvedevery aspect of road racing, is thetoughest cycling challenge in theUnited States and has been com-pared with the infamous Tour deFrance.

With steep climbs, long ats,and high-speed drops, this raceencompassed the ultimate chal-

lenge for a cyclist; maintain a steadypace while refusing to succumb tothe unforgivable strain of the RockyMountains.

Levi Leipheimer of Team Ra-dioShack was crowned the winnerof the inaugural USA Pro CyclingChallenge after a monumental racethrough the heart of Colorado. Ac-cording to Leipheimer, this race

Joshua Kleitsch

Staff Writer

Cyclists tear through Goldenraises the bar for cycling in the Unit-ed States and gives the Americancycling community a taste of whatroad racing really can be.

The USA Pro Cycling Challengefeatured 16 worldwide teams, rep-resenting riders from countriesaround the world, each featuringtheir best and most talented rid-ers. The USA Pro Cycling Challengeeven garnered the support of sev-en-time Tour de France championLance Armstrong, who explainedone his majors goals was to bringthe great sport of competitive roadracing to the US.

Riders had to face some of themost challenging terrain in the worldin the USA Pro race, climbing to al-titudes of over 11,000 feet in somecases. These stages, covering 11cities across the Front Range andthe Rocky Mountains, are amongthe most difcult road races in theworld, comparing well to the Tourde France in terms of danger and

Whoever said there are nowomen in Engineering has clearlynever been to the Mines chapterof the Society of Women Engineers(SWE). SWE is a national non-prot

organization for both professionalfemale and male engineers. Andupon reaching 395 members, theColorado School of Mines studentsection of SWE is not only the larg-est professional organization oncampus, but the largest SWE sec-tion in the nation.

The popularity of the campusclub was clearly evident at the an-nual SWE kick-off BBQ in Stratton

SWE scales new heightsKatie Huckfeldt

Managing Editor Commons last week, where theline of returning and new membersreached across the entirety of Ka-fadar commons. The BBQ bash,hosted by Xcel Energy, let studentsmingle with Xcel employees, ll upon free food, and learn about thatSWE has to offer.

For undergraduate and graduatestudents alike, SWE offers scholar-ships, internships, networking op-portunities, and weekly meetingswith speakers from the industry.Listen to engineers from all areasof expertise and learn about mul-tiple industries from speakers whocover a variety of topics rangingfrom “Wind Power and the New En-ergy Economy” to “Stilettos to Steel

Toes.”Joining SWE is a great way to

connect with not only potential em-ployers, but fellow students as well.SWE participates in multiple out-reach programs for girls in gradesK-12 and hosts socials throughoutthe year for its members. Do not

miss out on the fall social for pump-kin decorating, the faculty ice creamsocial, or the holiday cookie party!

If you missed out on the BBQ,you can still join SWE or nd addi-tional information by simply visitingtheir website at http://organizations.mines.edu/swe/. Both men andwomen are encouraged to join socome have fun, network, and havea SWE-et time!

SWE engineers enjoy a kick-off barbeque and welcome new members.

Ian Littman, Tech Break Columnist

CenturyLink vs. Xfnity

People checking their mail latelyhave probably received some sortof promotional notice from the tele-phone company. The promo cardlikely mentioned $14.99 per monthInternet access (with purchase of aphone line) and has a green colorscheme, an aesthetic change repre-senting recent transitions.

What was Qwest is now Centu-ryLink, a telephone company thathas grown by acquisition from itsrural roots to be third-largest in theUS (behind AT&T and Verizon) in justa few years. These changes in pro-motion might lead you to think thatCenturyLink’s underlying productis in some way different from what

Qwest’s was six months ago. It isnot, or at least not yet.

Those who check their mail mayhave also received notices touting“xnity” Internet, TV, and telephoneservice, proving it does not take anacquisition for a company (in thiscase, Comcast) to change theirbranding. Comcast, thanks to arelatively advanced cable network,has upped speeds and prices forits line of communications products.Whether they offer good bang-for-the-buck is up for debate.

The real question, however, ishow these two ISPs match up; off-campus students will want to getInternet service from one or theother so they can check Facebook,

submit assignments to Blackboardand watch TV shows and movies viaHulu or Netix. Should they choosethe newly-repainted telephone com-pany or the cable guys? The answerdepends on location and how im-portant fast surng is to them.

CenturyLink is, in most cases,the least expensive option, and itis available in places that Comcastis not. CenturyLink advertises thatthey offer “Internet access as fast astheir network can provide” at a cus-tomer’s location for $30 per monthfor the rst six months that customeris with them; the service costs lessif bundled with a landline phone,though that will appeal to few.

The $30 price makes two as-

sumptions, however. First, custom-ers need to buy their own modemand router ($60-$80 online); if theywant to lease a modem from Cen-turyLink, it will be another $7 permonth. Second, customers need tolive with the speeds that CenturyLink provides to their location; in Golden,their top speed is advertised as 12Mbps (megabits per second) down,896 kbps (kilobits per second) up.Many areas are limited to 7, 5, 3,or even 1.5 Mbps for downloadspeeds, with no decrease in price(though after the rst six months areup, customers will be paying $40-$45 instead of $50 per month for In-ternet service). To add insult to injury,CenturyLink does not provision their

ATM (Asynchronous Transfer Mode)service high enough to deliver ad-vertised speeds. Network overheaddrops actual speeds by roughly15%. This means that downloadson the fastest DSL in Golden will topout at around 10 Mbps, and uploadson any tier will sit around 700 kbps,not 896.

Comcast angles for the otherside of the price-performance spec-trum. Their standard “Performance”

tier (12 Mbps down, 2 Mbps up)may be available for $20 per monthto start out, but that price requiresdigital cable TV. Internet-only serviceis available at that tier for $40 permonth for awhile, plus a $100 instal-lation charge and the requirementto either buy a modem and router($80-$140 depending on the tierpicked) or lease both from Comcastfor $8 per month, plus sales tax. Thenormal price for Performance is $60per month, plus modem lease feesif needed.

The big advantage of Comcastover CenturyLink is speed and, inmany cases, reliability. Comcastdoes sell a 1.5 Mbps down, 384

kbps up tier for $35 per month anda 6 Mbps down, 1 Mpbs up tierfor $50 (the same speed that it of-fered at that price point three yearsago). However, its focus is on muchhigher speeds (and prices). TheBlast tier, which is heavily promotedthese days, offers 20 Mbps downand 2 Mbps up for $70 per month,$10 over the cost of Performance.For those with money to burn, 50Mbps down, 10 Mbps up serviceis around $120 per month and 105Mbps down, 10 Mbps up is $200(plus a $250 installation fee), thoughboth tiers are signicantly less ex-pensive when bundled with TV.

All of the above speeds are actualspeeds seen on extended down-

loads; Comcast over-provisions theirtiers to make sure of this. Comcast’sPowerBoost system kicks speedsup further on the rst few secondsof a download or upload, makingphoto and video uploads a bit lesspainful.

The catch with Comcast’sresidential tiers is that they have a250GB cap. Going over once by afew dozen gigabytes will result in acall from Comcast. Another offensewill require nding another ISP forthe next twelve months. Comcastoffers Business Class service withno caps, but the service tends tocost more for a given speed thanits residential equivalent (the notableexception being the 12 Mbps down,

2 Mbps up service). Depending onthe contract term (a contract is re-quired), there may also be a heftyinstallation fee for business-classservice. But for those who wanthigh speeds with no caps, ComcastBusiness is the only choice (Cen-turyLink does not cap network us-age but Comcast’s speeds pick upwhere CenturyLink’s leave off).

In summary, Comcast Internetis fast and expensive, while Centu-ryLink is slower and cheaper. Thecalculation changes a bit if one buys

TV with Comcast or phone servicewith CenturyLink, but DSL withphone service is no faster than DSLwithout it. Performance seekers aredependent on the cable company at

this point. This may change as Cen-turyLink upgrades infrastructure, de-ploying services via two phone linesinstead of one, but these upgradesmay take awhile to implement. Inthe meanwhile, customers shouldpick whichever ISP ts their needsand price sensitivity now. Neitherprovider requires contracts for Inter-net-only service, and students canalways go on-campus for whiplash-inducing broadband speeds.

KATIE HUCKFELDT / OREDIGGER

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risk. The greatest challenge ridershad to face was the lack of oxygen.

At 12,000 feet above sea level, thehuman body is only getting two-thirds of the oxygen in each breathas it would at sea level.

Faced with these extreme odds,128 racers fought for the jersey overthe entirety of the 518-mile race,and even through the nal laps of aspectator-packed downtown Den-ver, the race was a close one, withthe victorious Leipheimer winningby a mere 11 seconds overall overfellow American Christian Vande-

Veld.

In all, this was a great race towatch, and a great event for thecommunity of Golden. Thousandsof fans crowded Washington and19th Street watching racers rocketpast inches from them at speedsexceeding 25 miles an hour. The ex-citement in watching these incred-ible athletes perform these greatfeats was almost tangible.



f e a t u r e s september 5, 2011page 6


The Arctic Monkeys, a popu-lar indie-rock band from Shefeld,England, who are known for theirup-tempo beats and witty remarksabout pop culture, released theirnewest album “Suck it and See”earlier this year. Unfortunately,this album and the accompanyingtour are underwhelming.

“Suck it and See” offers a dras-tically different style of music thanthe band’s previous work. Thoughstylistic changes can keep musicfresh and appealing, this changeis not like that.

The Arctic Monkeys’ new stylesounds like they have stopped try-ing. Lyrically, the album is focusedon a desire forwomen. Whilethe band be-gins manysongs from“Suck it andSee” as theywould havein their pastalbums, therhythmic com-plexity endswhen the vo-cals begin.

Alex Turner’svocals lack variation inpitch as well.

This leads tothe declara-tion that Arc-tic Monkeyshave, by rock d e f i n i t i o n ,

Stephen Hejducek

Content Manager

The “Boys in the State IndustrialSchool at Golden” learned furtherthat crime never pays in Septem-ber of 1900. As if having been sentto reform school was not enoughpunishment in itself, twelve stu-dents were affected by a mild out-break of smallpox, reported “TheColorado Transcript.” The schoolitself issued a letter that explainedtwo students were already cured,four more were expected to bereleased within the week, and therest were “up and about the hos-pital, dressed and in usual health,with the exception of the erup-tion.” As for the cause, “To the

best of [the administration’s] belief and information, this disease wasbrought here by a 12-year-old boyfrom the Arapahoe county jail.”

School physician Dr. W.W. Bran-son quarantined the outbreak tothe satisfaction of the state boardof health ofcial Dr. G.E. Tyler andlocal health ofcer Dr. J. P. Kelly.

The letter was published in orderto alert the friends and families of the students that correspondencefrom the school was currently pro-hibited, but that if any students be-came seriously ill their family would

This week inColorado historySmallpox and SubscriptionsDeborah Good

Content Manager

be notied.

Hopefully, the boy responsiblefor the smallpox outbreak couldavoid a life of further crime and thussave himself from the fate of Spen-cer Dicks. Dicks allegedly mur-dered Orville Miner in Castle Rock Saturday, September 1, 1900. Hewas so wracked with guilt, how-ever, that by the next Tuesday, hehad driven to Rocky Ford and senta telegram confessing to the mur-der. He then “registered at the St.James hotel under his own nameand went to bed,” according to“The Transcript.”

For those seeking to avoid alife of crime via education, The

Transcript offered a contest for theentire fall of 1900. The paper of-

fered “a scholarship in the ModernSchool of Business, Denver, to theperson sending the largest numberof new subscribers between thepresent time and December 31,1900.” Whatever reader was ableto recruit the most new subscrib-ers willing to pay for a full year of subscription above the minimumof twenty names would receivesix months of education in “pen-manship, commercial arithme-tic, stenography, book-keeping,etc.” Cash value of the prize was$36.00.

Arctic Monkeysdisappoint

‘sold out.’ Accusing a band of ‘selling

out’ is very serious and requiresevidence from a concert as wellas an album. The rather blandshow offered by the Arctic Mon-keys’ current American tour issuch evidence. The concert fea-tured no crowd interface and littlestage performance. Also, bandmembers began walking off stagebefore the nal song nished.

Tickets to the approximately nine-ty minute show were fty dollars;longer concerts have been playedfor less money. The opening band

Young Buffalo had more energyand enthusiasm than the head-lining Arctic Monkeys. The ArcticMonkeys’ new direction has lostthem at least one fan.

America’s rst avenger Building on the increasingly

popular comic-book-turned-hit-movie formula, “Captain America:

The First Avenger” is the kind of feel-good movie that leaves youwondering, “Where can I get a

shield like that?” While the com-mon superheroes contain inherenttalent and must learn to use theirpowers for good, Captain Americais the extreme opposite, featuringa scrawny kid with nothing but ahuge heart.

The stage is set in World War IIwith protagonist Steve Rogers, ayoung man who simply wants toget his shot in against the Nazis.

As you watch the story unfold, youcannot help but feel sorry for him;one so lled with all those qualitieswe value in our ghters, withoutthe one that will actually enablehim to ght - strength. Through aslightly sketchy process nobodycares to explain, the scrawny kid

with a big heart becomes the mostripped, rocking, real man you canimagine. He nally has the powerto ght.

The Nazis are not without theirown secret weapon, though, andit will take all of Captain America’sinhuman strength to overcome theevil. The ensuing battles do notfail to provide the pulse-pounding,white-knuckle ride that everyoneknows and loves. With Captain

America wielding his infamousvibranium shield, the lm devel-ops into one of the most action-packed and creative movies of thesummer.

In the end, Steve Rogers’transformation into Captain

Joshua Kleitsch

Staff Writer America depicts the value of per-severance while demonstratingwhat it means to become a realghter. And not only does Captain

America save the world multipletimes, but he sets the stage for

the grand nale of the superheromovies, “The Avengers.” If thereis one movie from this summerwhich you should see, it is “Cap-tain America: The First Avenger.”Careful, you might just fall in love.

COURTESY MARVEL STUDIOS

Captain America brings the classic ght of good and evil

back to the silver screen.

Arctic Monkeys take a simplistic view with

their new album “Suck It and See.”

COURTESY ARCTIC MONKEYS

Orediggers defeat Northwoodin rst match of season

Holly Hutchison (#7) and Amanda Massey (#10) block a

Northwood spike.

STEVEN WOOLDRIDGE / OREDIGGERSTEVEN WOOLDRIDGE / OREDIGGER


Hannah Margheim (#15) dives for the ball during Thursday

night’s match.

Amanda Massey (#10) sets

the ball in the second set

against Northwood. Mines

won 3-1 to open their sea-

son.



o p i n i o n / s a t i r eseptember 5, 2011 page 7


At the end of each summer, Mines students return from their far-ung

hideouts to campus. Their summer activities are often a mystery or a

hodgepodge. A typical Mines summer can be broken down into three

pursuits, working, playing and doing nothing. So in this rst issue, Minds

at Mines asks, “What did you do during your summer?”

The rst third of my summer consisted of

eld session. I didn’t have a job for the second

third of the summer, so I went rock climbing.

I also went on a road trip to Houston, and...

moved into my apartment here in Golden.

The nal third of my summer consisted of doing work for a professor here on campus.

Sarah Holmes

I took nine credits of classes over the sum-

mer... [including] my eld session and some

core classes. When I wasn’t doing work for

class, I was doing some training for a triathlon

in Denver. I also went on a couple weekend

trips around Colorado and Wisconsin.

Chuck Hartwig

I took Differential Equations, hung out

with friends a lot, and went down to the

creek often... Later in the summer I drove

back to California. I also stopped in Las

Vegas to hang with my mom. I nished

my summer with wake boarding and

boating in central California.

Taryn Mantta

I worked for El Paso Natural Gas in

Colorado Springs. I worked for their proj-

ect management department auditing

contractors and traveling to project sites

located in the western half of the United

States to learn about the industry.

Matt McGavin

Stephen Hejducek

Content Manager

First round of tests

Minds at Mines

Editorials Policy

The Oredigger is a designated public forum. Edi-

tors have the authority to make all content deci-sions without censorship or advance approval

and may edit submitted pieces for length so long

as the original meaning of the piece is unchanged.Opinions contained within the Opinion Section do

not necessarily reect those of Colorado School of

Mines or The Oredigger. The Oredigger does notaccept submissions without identication and will

consider all requests for anonymity in publication

on a case-by-case basis. Submissions less than300 words will receive preference.

ALL PHOTOS STEPHEN HEJDUCEK / OREDIGGER

Most Mines students witnessed

the construction of the Brown

Building addition and many have

even had classes inside this pris-

tine section of an otherwise an-

cient location. This apparent prog-

ress belies truth behind the Brown

building and its new addition. The

legend of the carnivorous structure

is a tale of gruesome deaths and

disappearances. The addition to

Brown was not an effort to expand

or improve facilities; it was, in fact,

a desperate and probably ill-fated

attempt to stie the building’s spiri-tual powers.

The rst complaints emerged

from the mining department shortly

after the original construction of the

Brown building. Mining engineering

students were getting lost and not

turning up for days. The students

claimed that they did not remem-

ber showing up to class nor did

they remember how they got lost

in the rst place. Janitors refused

to work at night or on the second

oor at any time. The school ad-

ministration began to worry when

the number of students disap-

pearing increased in recent years.

Unfortunately, no solid evidence

could be found that those people

were truly last seen entering Brownand that they had not just left the

school permanently and forgotten

to stop paying tuition.

A spiritual and paranormal ac-

tivity investigation team was called

Stephen Hejducek

Content Manager

in over the summer to research

the disappearances and monitor

the spiritual activity of the addition.

The team was never seen again

after they began investigating the

older section of Brown. It does

not appear that the new section

has any spiritual powers yet, but

once a student enters the old half

of Brown, the maze of corridors will

entangle him or her in an inescap-

able web of insanity.

The old Brown building is what

is known to experts as a vampire. It

draws on the life force of those who

occupy it and uses the drained en-

ergy to perform actions like closing

doors and rearranging the positionof rooms and corridors. Students

who have survived this long can

only hope the addition sties the

original Brown building as intend-

ed instead of succumbing to its

dangerous pull. Unfortunately, the

same legends that inform us of the

dangers also make this possibility

seem unlikely.

These legends report that a

powerful cult meets on the roof of

the Brown building. The cult had

been meeting at this location for

centuries before the Brown build-

ing even existed. Members are ru-

mored to hold deep resentment to-

wards Mines over building on their

favorite incantation location and

are also rumored to have threat-

ened supernatural action. Thus, it

seems unlikely the addition will re-

main safe for very long.

Students are advised to ap-preciate what safety there is in the

addition and make arrangements

in case of disappearance before

venturing into the older section of

the building.


Experts hope the new section will stave off disgruntled

spirits.

Evil building eats students



a d v e r t i s e m e n t september 5, 2011page 8


the oredigger issue 1 - september 5, 2011

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