The Sun StarVolume XXX Number 20

March 1, 2011

StaffEDITOR IN CHIEF

Andrew Sheelereditor@uafsunstar.com

(907) 474-5078

LAYOUT EDITORHeather Bryant

layout@uafsunstar.com(907) 474-6039

COPY EDITORRebecca Coleman

MULTIMEDIA EDITORJeremy Smith

web@uafsunstar.com

AD MANAGERAlex Kinn

fyads@uaf.edu(907) 474-7540

DISTRIBUTION MANAGERDaniel Thoman

distribution@uafsunstar.com

ASSISTANT DISTRIBUTION MANAGER

Ben Deering

REPORTERSKelsey Gobroski

Elika RoohiAmber Sandlin

Jeremia Schrock

COLUMNISTSJR Ancheta

Jamie HazlettJeremia Schrock

PHOTOGRAPHERSJR AnchetaDillon Ball

ADVISORLynne Snifka

2 In This IssueMarch 1, 2011 The Sun Star

The Sun Star’s mission is to provide a voice for the UAF

campus and be a written record where news, people’s

opinions, and events (whether extraordinary or

ordinary) are expressed honestly and fairly.

The UAF Nanook Hockey Team poses with the Gover-nor’s Cup trophy after defeating the UAA Seawolves in shootout to take the title. Feb. 25, 2011. Dillon Ball/Sun Star.

Sports

Perspectives

West Ridge

This Week

EDITORIAL OFFICES101G Wood Center

P.O. Box 756640Fairbanks, AK 99775Tel: (907) 474-6039

Ads Dept: (907) 474-7540Fax: (907) 474-5508

www.uafsunstar.com

Weekend Wanderlust concludes the Memorabilia Mishmash series and Random Errors brings you

another column dedicated to technology and modern life.

3

14

5

A busy week in national and world news and three new entries in to the blotter.

An Ice Age child challenges much of what we know about ancient Alaska history plus a week

full of other major scientific news.

UAF brings the Governor’s Cup home for another year and a recap of game results.

Politics 4Nookraker explores majors that should and

shouldn’t be and we recap this week’s ASUAF senate session.

Campus Life11The Community and Technical College gets downright “Cosmo”politan.

Search KG KATE

University-friendly Clothing & accessories

Visit us on

A & EUAF graduate Chinonye Chukwu comes back to make a movie and the week of

entertainment that was.

6

98

NewsAn app for UAF, journalism students embed with the Strykers down in Cali., and why UAF’s

power plant is starting to fail.7

Editorial 15Leaky roofs. Nasty water. Asbestos. It’s time for the

Legislature pay for maintenance.

3This Week www.uafsunstar.com March 1, 2011

Amber SandlinSun Star Reporter

Towing services end badly

One truck was trying to tow another to the Water Wagon to get it out of traffic since it wouldn’t run. During contact with the par-ties involved, an officer smelled marijuana. During questioning of one of passengers, a 24-year-old woman admitted to having marijuana and gave it to the officer. She was issued a summons to appear in court for MICS 6. The driver of the vehicle, a 25-year-old woman, was on parole for a felony and part of her conditions included no drugs and no association with persons who have drugs. She admitted to knowing about the marijuana and was arrested for violating her release conditions.

News BriefsCompiled by Amber SandlinSun Star Reporter

American hostages murdered by pirates

Pirates off the coast of East Africa

shot and killed four American hostages on

Tuesday Feb. 22, after negotiations for the

hostages’ release fell apart. Navy SEALs took

control of the ship, killed two of the pirates

and captured 15 more. After taking control of

the ship, SEALs found two more dead pirates,

evidence that the hostage-takers had turned

on one another.- yourdailynewsfix.com

Gaddafi’s last stand Col. Muammar al-Gaddafi’s roughly

40-year hold on the north African nation of

Libya is rapidly dissolving. Protesters seized

control of the city of Kufra in the southeast

of the country, and the turmoil has spread

to the capital of Tripoli. On Monday, Feb. 21,

Ali El-Assawi, the Libyan ambassador to the

U.S. resigned in protest of Gaddafi’s actions,

including ordering fighter pilots to target the

protesters.-New York Times

All persons referred to in the blotter are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

- Washington Post

Domestic violence

A boyfriend and girlfriend got into a physical altercation on Saturday, Feb. 19. Although Alaska state law says if a domestic violence is called, one person must be taken to jail, the district attorney directed that no one be arrested. Both people had minor physical injuries that required photos to be taken and were removed from each other’s presence for the night.

Drunken WickershamA man was found shivering and shaking

with his pants unzipped in the main en-trance of Wickersham Hall on Sunday, Feb. 20. The man was barred from Wickersham previously due to other alcohol related events. He was transported to FCC to the drunk tank and arrested for criminal tres-pass.

Obama will no longer defend DOMAAttorney General Eric Holder an-

nounced on Wednesday, Feb. 23, that the

Obama Administration will no longer defend

the Defense of Marriage Act, a law passed in

1996 that defines marriage as the union of a

man and a woman, against challenges to its

constitutionality. “I have been to this point

unwilling to sign on to same-sex marriage pri-

marily because of my understandings of the

traditional definitions of marriage,” Obama

said, “Attitudes evolve, including mine.”

- MSNBC

New Zealand earthquake “Mommy, I got buried” was the first of

many texts sent by a young woman trapped

in the rubble of her college building on

Tuesday Feb. 22, when a 6.3 magnitude

quake hit Christchurch, New Zealand. With

hundreds of people missing within the first

few hours, more than 2,500 were injured. The

current death toll has risen to 113.

- MinnPost

Toyota recallOn Thursday, Feb. 24, Toyota recalled

more than 2 million vehicles due to a

sudden-acceleration problem where the gas

pedal became trapped in the floor mat. The

problem has sparked around 3,000 com-

plaints and dozens of lawsuits.

Long nights No weekends off Stressful deadlines Angry letters

One day, this could all be yours…

Apply online at www.uakjobs.com to be the next Sun Star Editor-in-Chief.

Posting #0061414

4 The Sun StarMarch 1, 2011 Politics

Nookraker

Jeremia SchrockSun Star Reporter

Getting something changed at the

university level can be a grind. It took the

better part of three years for UAF to insti-

tute a film major and now there’s a good

chance the program won’t begin accepting

students until Fall 2012. Just in time for the

apocalypse as foretold by the Mayan cal-

endar.

The new program (approved by the

Board of Regents on Feb. 18) still needs to

be developed, then reviewed and approved

the Northwest Commission on Colleges

and Universities (NWCCU), the body re-

sponsible for accrediting the colleges in

the UA system. For Chancellor Rogers,

the major “is an example of how we can

respond to a specific workforce need and

focus an existing program to better serve

our students.” The state and the univer-

sity are making a concerted effort to help

diversify Alaska’s economy by investing

in cinema. Just look at SB 23, which, if it

passes the State Legislature, will extend the

state’s current film tax credit program for

an additional 10 years, to 2023.

Before the regents’ decision to move

forward with the new major, no infrastruc-

ture existed to help Alaskans develop their

cinematic muscles. With that in mind, I

asked around campus to see what other

programs and classes students would like

to see added – or cut. The list was intriguing

and, at times, brilliant, funny and sur-

prising.

In the perfect world of those polled,

UAF would expand its foreign languages

department to allow undergraduate de-

grees in Chinese and Arabic. Currently,

UAF offers two elementary and two inter-

mediate classes in Chinese and two intro-

ductory Arabic classes taught “as demand

warrants.” In addition to languages, liberal

arts students would like to see expansions

in justice (to a doctorate), sociology (to a

master’s) and women and gender studies

(to a bachelor’s).

In the sciences, students would like

web development classes become a part

of the computer sciences program. They’d

also like to declare themselves majors in

botany and paleontology. Speaking of pa-

leontology, UAF already has the world’s

foremost collection of polar dinosaurs and

some excellent faculty members (Patrick

Druckenmiller and Sarah Fowell among

them) at its disposal. If there is one thing

almost everybody living in a post “Jurassic

Park” America loves to read about and see,

it’s dinosaurs. If there was ever a way to at-

tract people to the sciences at UAF (and to

inspire charitable contributions to the uni-

versity) it’s to make everything UAF does

just a little more about dinosaurs.

While there are plenty of courses and

programs people want to see added, there

are several that students wish to see axed.

As far as programs go, the first that would

be given over to the guillotine is communi-

cations. Several people who answered the

survey felt that while communications is

important, it doesn’t warrant its own pro-

gram. Another program that inspired sim-

ilar feelings was (and it hurts me to write

because it’s my own minor) philosophy.

Respondents felt that philosophy lacks

practical value.

Two classes that were met with equal

disdain were Library Science 100X and

Art/Mus/Theater 200X. On the flip side,

two students were more then ready to

begin taking Underwater Basket Weaving

100X and the Art of Maiming 201. I have

a pretty good feeling that those classes

would be both lucrative for the university,

as well as totally awesome.

The apocalypse, SB 23 and the Art of Maiming

ASUAF Weekly UpdateJeremia SchrockSun Star Reporter

Jeremia gives his opinion on university, state and national issues in the Nookraker: a weekly political column which tackles issues relevant to Nanooks both at home and abroad.

PresentJesse Cervin, Robert Kinnard III, Sophia

Grzeskowiak-Amezquita, Arthur Martin,

Jennifer Chambers, John Netardus, Chelsea

Holt, Ean Pfeiffer, Josh Cooper, Tachit

Chairat, Ryan Duffy, Mary Strehl and Hollie

Seiler.

Senator confirmedHollie Seiler, a journalism student, was

confirmed to the senate. She stated that

although she is graduating this May, she

intends to enroll in a class next year so she

can continue to serve. When asked by Sen.

Jennifer Chambers on what she wanted to

do as a senator, Seiler responded that she

intended to reach out to students in order to

better understand their needs.

Smoking outside HessYuzhun Evanoff addressed the senate

about a lack of smoking stands outside of

Hess Village. Evanoff’s primary concern

was over the cigarette butts that he feels

are carelessly flicked around the area. Sen.

Sophia Grzeskowiak-Amezquita stated that

she believed such stands did exist and that

it was possible they had been removed for

maintenance.

Masquerade BallIn her Executive Committee report,

Sen. Chambers stated that they were having

difficulty finding a venue for this year’s Mas-

querade Ball.

Senate meeting cancelledNext Sunday’s (Mar. 6) senate meeting

has been cancelled. The Chancellor invited

the senate over to his house for a pizza

party during the senates regularly sched-

uled meeting time. A special session may be

called.

Sun Star funding The senate read SB 176-010: Sun Star

Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2011, which

would provide the Sun Star with an ad-

ditional $15,000 from the ASUAF rollover

account. One projection has the Sun Star

running $20,000 in debt by the end of the

semester. Sen. Arthur Martin moved to

dismiss the legislation. By a vote of 7-4, the

legislation was not dismissed. A two-thirds

majority vote was needed. The bill has been

sent to the Executive Committee.

Alternative Spring BreakSB 176-007: 2011 Alternative Spring

Break was passed by a vote of 9-3. The bill al-

lotted $1,750 to the Alternative Spring Break

program in order to help defray the cost. The

funding will come from Senate Projects.

Each week, the Sun Star does its best to bring you the highest quality stories, photos and commentary. We are able to provide this service primarily through funding from the ASUAF Student Government Fee. We receive approximately $32,000 a year from ASUAF, and we put that toward putting out the best-looking paper that we can week in and week out. Although we are a student paper, we strive for professional quality.

Unfortunately, that level of quality is not cheap. We project that we will end this year facing a several thousand dollar def-icit and may be forced to suspend printing unless ASUAF pro-vides us with an emergency allocation of funding for $15,000. We’ve done everything we can to contain costs yet still pro-vide you with a quality paper.

Now we need your help. If you like what you read in the Sun Star, if the stories we’ve told have touched you, then we need your voice now more than ever. A bill is in the senate to provide the funds that the Sun Star needs. Please email the ASUAF senators and tell them to support it. Tell them what the Sun Star means to you. Tell them that it’s YOUR paper, and without funding it will go away. You can find a copy of the bill at uafsunstar.com and the email addresses for the ASUAF senators.

5West Ridge Report www.uafsunstar.com March 1, 2011

Science BriefsCompiled by Kelsey GobroskiSun Star Reporter

Permafrost heats upIn 20 years, permafrost that’s stuck

around since the Ice Age will begin to melt. In

210 years, 60 percent of the Northern Hemi-

sphere’s permafrost will have melted. Scien-

tists in Boulder, CO stamped these numbers

onto a phenomenon that once again brings

the Arctic to the forefront of climate change

concerns. As permafrost melts, frozen roots

begin to decay and release carbon. This will

release amounts equivalent to a fifth of the

carbon that is in the atmosphere today. The

process will add to the world’s warming

trend, and is irreversible.

- Discovery News

Bears hibernate cozilyBlack bears drop their metabolism

instead of their temperatures when they hi-

bernate. The Alaska Department of Fish and

Game captured nuisance black bears and

brought them to artificial dens to be studied.

While metabolism dropped to 25 percent the

normal rate, the bears’ temperature barely

dipped, the study found. A reduced metabo-

lism normally brings temperature down with

it. If science can unlock how bears can lower

their body temperature so minutely, the find-

ings could solve the mystery of how to induce

short-term body temperature decreases in

stroke patients.- New York Times

- Popular Science

Camera changes focus after shotA cell phone camera in development by

Pelican Imaging will rescue image quality by

holding to the adage of safety in numbers.

The new camera splits up the work by taking

25 overlapping fragment photographs of a

larger picture. This method makes it possible

to adjust a photo’s focus after taking the shot.

- BBC

Reefs bleach under pressure Thirteen years of fishing noticeably

destroyed polyp communities responsible

for the health of coral reefs. Researchers re-

cently revisited coral reef sites from the 1998

Reefs at Risk project. Warming temperatures

and ocean acidification will play a part in

the death toll soon. Both the temperature

and ocean pH changes are side effects of

high atmospheric carbon dioxide. Only five

percent of the world’s coral reefs will remain

unbleached 40 years from now.

Kelsey GobroskiSun Star Reporter

(L-R) Justin Rains, Kevin Bartley, Rob Bowman, Katie Blood, Danielle Ellis, Jill Baxter-McIntosh and Lisa Smith work on excavation at the Upward Sun River site in Alaska. Summer 2010. Photo courtesy of Ben Potter/UAF.

Unearthed tot declared oldest Alaskan

Last summer, archaeologists uncov-

ered the 11,500-year-old skeleton

of a cremated Ice Age toddler, the oldest

subarctic North American to date. UAF ar-

chaeologists discovered the remains inside

a structure built 10,000 years before the

region’s earliest known house. Older arti-

facts also rest on the site. Scientists worked

closely with Alaska Native groups to pre-

serve the scientific and cultural implica-

tions of the discovery.

“People have been doing work up here

for 80 years, and we’ve never found any-

thing like this,” Potter said.

The findings appeared in the Feb. 25

edition of Science. Authors Ben Potter and

Joel Irish, along with Alaska Native commu-

nity representatives Joann Polston and Jerry

Isaac, announced the find in the Brooks

Building Gathering Room last Thursday,

Feb. 24.

Over time, ancient Alaskan camps

sprung up south of the Tanana

River at a place known as Xaasaa Na’ [haw-

saw naw], or Upward Sun River, beginning

during a warm period about 13,000 years

ago. Another temporary camp popped up

during a cold snap 11,800 years ago. Three

hundred years later, a family constructed

a house and lived there until their toddler

died.

People here probably didn’t build vil-

lages in the Ice Age. The fact that this family

even built a house challenges notions about

the mobility of early Alaskans, Potter said.

The family probably didn’t live in the house

more than a couple months, but the usual

shelters of the time didn’t last longer than a

few days.

Life back then probably centered

around the hearth, Potter said. When the

family’s 3-year-old died, they placed their

child’s body in the pit, knees drawn up and

back against the earth, Isaac said. They had

transformed their hearth into a funeral

pyre. Immediately after the cremation, they

abandoned the house. The family may have

moved elsewhere on the dunes, Potter said.

The archaeologists found one other site,

a fourth and final camp that was abandoned

10,000 years ago.

Researchers credit Alaska’s most

ancient human to a railroad

survey. Xaasaa Na’ rested near a proposed

route from Fairbanks to Delta Junction. In

2006, archaeologists flagged the area when

they found traces of artifacts. They returned

in 2007 and found three settlements.

In 2010, the National Science Founda-

tion’s stimulus funds provided $106,000

for further excavation, with an additional

$13,000 for helicopter transportation, ac-

cording to Potter’s website. They had three

weeks. They discovered the house, and on

the last day, a student stumbled upon the

child, Potter said.

The human remains changed every-

thing. The scientists stopped working and

applied for permission to continue digging

in the area. When the archaeologists re-

turned, they uncovered a skeleton mangled

by fire. They used teeth to determine the

child’s age and surrounding ash to date the

cremation, Irish said.

well, but this site was full of them.

The archaeologists would sometimes

dig as long as light allowed. “We were trying

to get in all the work that we could,” Blood

said.

Joann Polston is Healy Lake Tradi-

tional Council’s first chief. The Salka-

chet Band eventually settled Xaasaa Na’.

Many of the band’s living descendants are

members of Polston’s council, according to

press materials.

The scientific findings solidify Polston’s

oral history. Her grandmother told her that

people would cremate their dead when the

weather was too harsh for a burial. This Ice

Age family “used what they had available,”

and transformed their home into a burial

site, Polston said.

Polston serves on the Tanana Chiefs

“This individual represents the second

youngest individual found for this time

frame in the western hemisphere,” Potter

said.

Katie Blood, an anthropology senior,

traveled with about a dozen people to Delta

Junction to attend a field course near Gerstle

River last summer. The experience prepared

her for Xaasaa Na’, Blood said. Blood worked

for Northern Land Use Research Inc., which

sent her to help Potter’s team when he re-

turned to excavate the child.

The mood there was different than Ger-

stle River, she said. There was an underlying

tone of awe. “It took a while for it to sink in,

exactly how significant this find was,” Blood

said.

Each student excavated a square meter,

she said. Later, she worked with a doctoral

student to identify animal remains. Bird and

fish bones are fragile and rarely preserve

Conference (TCC), a consortium of Inte-

rior Alaska Natives. “I am truly impressed

with the level of respect and honor that the

remains have been given to date,” Polston

said.

No one knows whether the child’s

family has any living descendents.

Scientists are waiting to see whether DNA

extraction is possible.

The actual skeleton could be dated,

instead of just the surrounding ashes. They

could find out the toddler’s sex. Scientists

could track the diet of the mother if the

child was weaned, Potter said. Ecosystem

dynamics could be recreated.

Potter plans to return this summer for

another three weeks. Only 42 square meters

have been excavated on one dune. “This

is the beginning of the story,” Potter said.

“We’ve got a lot of good information, but

stay tuned.”

6 Arts & EntertainmentMarch 1, 2011 The Sun Star

Mominees tweet the OscarsThe Academy Awards are going for a

more family friendly approach this year. As

a part of that approach, the mothers of Oscar

nominees have been asked to tweet about

it. These Moms, dubbed “Mominees” will

include host James Franco’s grandmother as

well.

It was her bacon firstA bacon enthusiast is seeking a lawsuit

against her former agent for stealing her

cookbook idea. Lisa Skye, author of “I Love

Corn,” came up with the idea to write an “I

Love Bacon” cookbook. She and her agent,

Jayne Rockmill, worked to come up with the

book. Over the course of the negotiations,

Skye became disenchanted with Rockmill’s

aggressive style and fired her. A year and a

half later, Skye found a copy of “I Love Bacon”

authored by Rockmill on the shelf of a San

Fransico bookstore. Skye is seeking legal ac-

tion forcing Rockmill to withdraw the book.

There are gnomes in NYCGnome Life sounds like your typical

Tumblr. A guy in plaid posts a lot of pictures

of himself staring meaningfully into the dis-

tance. But there’s a twist: he’s a 108 year old

gnome in Brooklyn. Every entry features a

dramatic entry with a cryptic caption about

the struggle of fitting into to New York while

being a gnome.

-NPR

-New York Post

-CNN

A & E BriefsCompiled by Elika RoohiSun Star Reporter

Northern Alaska Tour Company is a Fairbanks-based tour operator specializing in excursions featuring the natural history and cultural heritage of Alaska's Arctic. Our one-day and multi-day excursions combine Dalton Highway ground touring with air and river experiences. Destinations visited include the Yukon River, the Arctic Circle, Coldfoot, Wiseman, Anaktuvuk Pass, Deadhorse, the Arctic Ocean and Barrow.

We are now recruiting guides, guest services, reservationists, bookkeepers and cleaners for the upcoming summer visitor season. Ideal positions available for high-energy, people-oriented, hard-working individuals eager to share love of Alaska with visitors. Guide candidates must be 21 years old and have a good driving record. Guest Service candidates must be 19 years old.

Stop by to meet us at our booth - UAF Wood Center: Wednesday, Mar 2th - Career Expo 2011

APPLY ONLINE: www.northernalaskajobs.com

J.D. Salinger liked Burger KingNearly a year after the reclusive author’s

death, letters between Salinger and a friend

shed some light on what J. D. Salinger might

have been like. Salinger liked Burger King

better than other fast food chains. He also en-

joyed being a tourist, taking bus trips to Nan-

tucket, Niagara Falls, and the Grand Canyon.

Salinger was a tennis fan, with strong political

feelings. Did Salinger dupe the media and

his fans into believing he was a recluse so he

could enjoy fast food and watch tennis?

-The Week

Feature film coming to Fairbanks, seeks actorsJeremy SmithSun Star Reporter

Former Fairbanksan and UAF student

Chinonye Chukwu is returning for two

weeks to film her first full-length feature,

“alaskaLand.” Approximately six speaking

roles and 200 extras will also be cast in the

film.

Chukwu is Nigerian-born and Alaska-

raised. Previously she had taken a film class

at UAF, and decided to build upon that in-

troduction and venture out into the world

of film-making. She enrolled at Temple Uni-

versity and earned her masters in film and

media arts.

Chukwu’s early work included 2009 Di-

amond Screen Festival winner Igbo Kweno!,

a comedic drama about what it can mean to

be a part of a second generation in America.

Her most recent film, The Dance Lesson, was

a Regional Finalist for the 2010 Academy of

Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Student

Academy Awards and received an Honorary

Mention at the Los Angeles International

Film Festival. The Dance Lesson concerns a

13-year-old black girl who wants to be a bal-

lerina in her gentrified community of North

Philadelphia.

According to Chukwu, artistically she is

most concerned with, “images that are rich

with cultural nuances.” Her themes often

deal with the complex and contradictory

issues of ethnic identity, dual identity, and

cross-cultural interaction.

Her first feature-length film, “alas-

kaLand,” is a story of a young Nigerian-

American man attempting to find his place

between cultures in Fairbanks, Alaska.

According to a recent announcement,

the film will be casting for the following

speaking roles:

• Anthony - male of color between the ages

of 18 and 22

• Anthony’s Little Sister - 14-year-old girl of

color

• Assistant Dean - white female in her 30s

• Dean - black female in her 40s

• Stranger - white male in his 50s - 70s, an

“Alaskan Man”

• Emily – Alaskan Native female that is

between the ages of 20 - 22

You can learn more about the film, the

casting announcement and the director by

searching Facebook for AlaskaLand: the

Movie or visiting www.uaf.edu/film/news-

1/.

Approximately 200 extras from Alaska

will also be cast in the film. Auditions are

open to the public and will be held at the

University of Alaska Fairbanks campus in

the Fine Arts Complex, Regent’s Great Hall

on Saturday, March 5 from 12 – 6 p.m.

“alaskaLand” will be shooting between

March 27 and April 10 in and around Fair-

banks.

Chinonye Chukwu

7News www.uafsunstar.com March 1, 2011

Women’s basketball ends with loss to rivals

The Nanooks women’s basketball

season is officially over, ending with a 70-40

loss to the UAA Seawolves on Feb. 24. Alaska

kept the game close throughout the first half

by playing extraordinary defense. They held

the lead until 7:12 in the half, but lost mo-

mentum after that. What kept the Nanooks

down was their shooting. As a team, they

shot 20.4 percent for the game. Senior Nicole

Bozek led the team with 10 points and 10

rebounds. Alaska ended the season with just

one win: a 76-71 victory over Central Wash-

ington on Jan. 6.-Alaskananooks.com

National rifle team chosenTo determine the final member of

the five-member rifle team for Nationals,

coach Dan Jordan held a match on Feb. 19.

The match was essentially between Scott

Franz and Aaron Holsopple, but other team

members also shot for the fun of it. At the

end of the day, Holsopple out shot Franz

576-574 in air rifle and 582-573 in smallbore.

He will join teammates Cody Rutter, Cole

Bures, Anna Hjelmevoll and Mike Liuzza

in Georgia, March 11 and 12. Ida Peterson

used the match as her key to qualifying as

an individual All-American in the smallbore

competition. Before this match, she had

been one meet shy of qualifying. Being an

All-American means that she is one of the

top four shooters in the nation for smallbore.

-Alaskananooks.com

-Alaskananooks.com

Men’s basketball gives seniors a sad farewell

The Nanooks men’s basketball team lost

to the UAA Seawolves in the rivalry games

Feb. 22 and 23. Feb. 22 was Senior Night for

the Nanooks. Alaska kept the game even with

the Seawolves throughout the first half, but

UAA was able to take over the second half

and win the game 74-65. The following night,

the Seawolves, fueled by the energy of their

721-member crowd and home-court ad-

vantage, dominated the perimeter and took

a 118-82 win against the Nanooks. This loss

knocked the Nanooks out of playoff conten-

tion, so their season is now over.

Sports BriefsCompiled by Rebecca ColemanSun Star Reporter

There’s an app for UAFElika RoohiSun Star Reporter

There is an app for everything. In-

cluding UAF.

UAF Mobile is an application that has

been around since the beginning of this

semester. It allows students to access the

UAF directory, look up courses, view a map

of campus, watch videos, browse the news,

call the shuttle and more.

The first college campus app was origi-

nally developed by students at Stanford,

according to Karl Kowalski, the Executive

Director of User Services at OIT.

From there Blackboard, the UAF online

class supplement, started working with the

students at Stanford to develop a standard

interface for college apps.

The UAF app is far from being finished.

OIT has some big plans on what will happen

next.

“We’re currently working with the li-

brary and incorporating the catalog,” said

Kowalski. OIT is also working with on-

campus dining services to get menus to be

a part of the app.

best UAF-related app.

“There was a lot of feedback on it,” Kow-

alski said. “But there ended up only being

two submissions.”

The first was Pender’s app, which pres-

ents a searchable course catalog that allows

students to save the schedule of potential

classes to their phone. The other app was

submitted by the drama department, and

gave a virtual tour of the department.

Pender’s app should be a part of UAF

Mobile soon. “It’s not ready to go against

live data yet,” Kowalski said.

For students that want to check Black-

board from their smartphones, there’s a

Blackboard mobile app. The app only works

with certain platforms at the moment, but

it should work with everything by spring

break.

Anyone with good app ideas should get

in touch with OIT.

“By all means, bring it forward,” Kow-

alski said.

A screenshot of the mobile app available in the iTunes app store.

Another future addition to the UAF

mobile app will be an app designed by John

Pender, a junior computer science major.

OIT held a contest in the fall to design the

Governor’s Cup8 The Sun StarMarch 1, 2011

Helping others can be meaningful work. Flexible hours are available—full-time or part-time—while you’re in school.

Job opportunities are available all over Alaska. Jobs where you will make a positive difference for people of all ages who have developmental disabilities, mental illness, chronic alcoholism, or Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.

Earn money, help others and learn about a growing industry—all from a part-time position.

Find Meaningful Work.

Tina Woods, Anchorage and Saint Paul Island. UAA graduate, Ph.D. student in UAF-UAA Joint Ph.D. Program in Clinical-Community Psychology.

www.mhtrust.org

The Alaska Mental HealthTrust Authority

Curious? Find out more at aadsc.orgJoin us on Facebook

Sea Wolf Run, Sea Wolf Lose

Rebecca ColemanSun Star Reporter

Governor’s Cup stays home ‘where it belongs’

Once upon a time, 143 games ago back

in 1979, the University of Alaska Anchorage

and University of Alaska Fairbanks hockey

rivalry began. At the time, neither UAA nor

UAF was a part of an NCAA conference,

so they played each other as often as eight

times per season due to a lack of opponents.

In 1993, UAA became a member of the

Western Collegiate Hockey Association, and

UAF joined the Central Collegiate Hockey

Association. Being members of different

leagues posed a problem for the rivalry:

both teams had very full schedules and were

allowed few non-conference games. But it

would be unheard of for Alaska’s only col-

lege hockey teams to not face off throughout

the year; thus, the Governor’s Cup was born.

The inaugural series took place during

the 1993-94 season, with one game played

at the Carlson Center in Fairbanks and the

other at the Sullivan Arena in Anchorage.

The UAA Seawolves won game one in Fair-

banks, but the Nanooks would take game

two, led by the opening goal of then-sopho-

sophomore Dallas Ferguson, UAF’s current

head coach. The series would be deter-

mined by a shootout, which UAF won.

“The Governor’s Cup games are some

of the greatest memories I have had in col-

lege hockey,” Ferguson said. “The competi-

tion it brings and being part of a game that

means so much to our university and com-

munity is very special.

Fast forward to 1999. The coaches of

UAA and UAF determined that there was

room in both of their schedules to play each

other four times instead of just two. The

1999-2000 season’s Governor’s Cup would

be determined by a weekend played in Fair-

banks in October, followed by a weekend

played in Anchorage in March. UAA would

take the cup the first year of this change, but

UAF would soon outshine their domestic

enemies, earning a five-year winning streak.

Two years ago, the series went back to being

the best out of two games instead of four.

This brings us to today. Throughout the

17-year course of Governor’s Cup history,

UAA has won the cup eight times to UAF’s

nine. The weekend of Feb. 25 and 26, both

teams were determined to take the cup. UAF

was the current owner, having won the cup

last season, but the Seawolves had owned

it for three years prior to last and wanted it

back on their campus.

“It’s exciting because it is a big event

for both communities,” said captain senior

Kevin Petovello. “It’s such a rivalry, and the

fans show a lot of passion.”

“Everyone knows how important it is,”

said assistant captain senior Derek Klassen.

“It’s a weekend of pride, so we want to put

our best foot forward.”

“This is our biggest rivalry,” said UAA

head coach Dave Shyiak. “We’re playing for

bragging rights.”

“Let’s beat the Seawolves!” said assis-

tant captain senior Bryant Molle.

Friday night was Senior Night for the

Nanooks, so the night began with senior in-

troductions and a starting lineup comprised

of mostly seniors. UAA made a quick effort

to thwart the positivity of the Nanooks by

scoring a goal only 25 seconds into the first

period. It took the Nanooks a little while to

get into the groove of the game, but they

UAA’s #13 Quinn Sproule demonstrates proper stick usage to Nanook #14 Adam Henderson in Friday night’s Governor’s Cup game in Fairbanks. Feb. 25, 2011. Dillon Ball/Sun Star.

UAF’s #27 Derek Klassen and UAA’s #11 Mitch Bruijsten duke it out for the puck in the Sullivan Arena during the second game of the Governor’s Cup Saturday Night. Feb. 25, 2011. Dillon Ball/Sun Star.

www.uafsunstar.com March 1, 2011Governor’s Cup 9

came back in the second period with lots of

scoring opportunities. Just when it seemed

that all of Alaska’s efforts were for not, “Cap-

tain Kevin” saved the day by putting the Na-

nooks on the board after a pass from junior

Carlo Finucci.

In the third period, Alaska faced a

5-on-3 penalty kill for two minutes, but

successfully held the Seawolves at bay.

Petovello said this was the “turning point”

of the game. Not long after the penalty kill,

freshman Colton Beck put the puck behind

UAA goalie Rob Gunderson. Seconds later,

sophomore Andy Taranto picked up another

goal. With more than six minutes left on

the clock, the Seawolves pulled Gunderson

to have a six-man advantage, but the only

advantage was to the Nanooks. Taranto

and freshman Cody Kunyk wrangled the

puck away from the Seawolves and gave

it to Beck, who easily skated to the empty

Seawolf net, flipping the puck in with gusto

for his second goal of the game. To close out

the night, after receiving a pass from sopho-

more Jarret Granberg, Petovello fired the

puck into the net for his second goal of the

game, giving Alaska a 5-1 victory.

Hundreds of Fairbanks students made

the pilgrimage to Anchorage for Saturday’s

game and were given many warnings from

building security not to pound on the glass.

This didn’t affect the mood or cheers of the

loyal Nanook crowd, even when the game

opened with a three-goal first period for the

Seawolves.

“It was a lot of little mistakes on our

part,” said junior Joe Sova. “They were capi-

talizing on every shot.”

UAA picked up another goal in the

second period, giving them a 4-0 lead.

Kunyk took advantage of a power-play op-

portunity in the third period to put the Na-

nooks on the board, preventing a shutout

for UAA goalie Chris Kamal. At the end of

the night, the Seawolves claimed a 4-1 win.

“The 4-1 loss was a downer,” said goalie

junior Scott Greenham. “But we knew we

still had a chance to win [the Governor’s

Cup] with the shootout.” The shootout is the

standard tie-breaker of the Governor’s Cup

in the event that each team wins a game.

Each team picked three shooters. Beck

was up first of the Nanooks, and he made

his shot with ease. Jordan Kwas made an

attempt for UAA, but was shut down by

Greenham. Petovello’s shot was turned

away by Kamal, but Greenham blocked

UAA’s Tommy Grant’s shot, keeping the

Nanooks ahead. Taranto took the final shot

for Alaska and bested Kamal, giving the

Nanooks the shootout win and continued

ownership of the Governor’s Cup.

“It was a great feeling to get that

shootout and having our name on the cup

for the second year in a row,” Molle said.

“Now we’ll bring it back to Fairbanks

where it belongs, and we’ll celebrate,” Sova

said.

Next up for the Nanooks is the first

round of the CCHA playoffs against Mich-

igan State on March 4 and 5 at the Carlson

Center.

UAA’s #13 Quinn Sproule demonstrates proper stick usage to Nanook #14 Adam Henderson in Friday night’s Governor’s Cup game in Fairbanks. Feb. 25, 2011. Dillon Ball/Sun Star.

UAF’s #27 Derek Klassen and UAA’s #11 Mitch Bruijsten duke it out for the puck in the Sullivan Arena during the second game of the Governor’s Cup Saturday Night. Feb. 25, 2011. Dillon Ball/Sun Star.

Nanook #17 Jarret Granberg and Seawolf #19 Nick Haddad square off in the second period of the final game of Gov. Cup. Feb. 25, 2011. Dillon Ball/Sun Star.

10 NewsMarch 1, 2011 The Sun Star

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Power struggle with UAF plantDaniel ThomanSun Star Reporter

A new and horrible screeching noise

pierced the afternoon. An email was sent out

with a cursory explanation and a request to

conserve power. These were the only clues

that most at UAF had that something had

gone wrong at the university power plant.

According to Charles Ward, Director

of Utilities at UAF, the power plant’s issues

started on Monday afternoon. One of the

circuit boards that monitors the voltage reg-

ulation of the main turbine failed outright.

This led to the turbine having to be shut

down; thus, no electricity or heat could be

generated. Ward said that while this was the

biggest problem the power plant has faced,

he also cautioned that the power plant was

going to have more issues as it is in the

47th year of its original projected 50-year

lifespan. “Life-extending” procedures have

been done in some areas and are underway

in others, but the ultimate determining

factor for the plant’s life is the state of the

pipes. It is unknown exactly when they will

fail.

While no one off-campus receives

power from the UAF plant, the campus re-

ceives almost 97 percent of its heat and 85

percent of its electricity from the plant. The

rest of the power is bought from Golden

Valley Electric Association. As the plant

was down, all of the power and heat had to

be bought, resulting in a bill of more than

$130,000 to the University.

Ward also said that the university

has been looking into various alternative

sources of power for some time. Options

include not only solid fuel, but also natural

gas, which would be significantly cheaper if

the proposed gas pipeline becomes a reality.

UAF isn’t the only group interested in

changing how the power plant functions.

The Northern Alaska Environmental Center

is also looking at the impact that a coal-fired

plant has on the environment especially in

a location that is “the epicenter of climate

research,” according to Jessie Petersen, the

Renewable Energy Program Director at

the Center. Petersen pointed out the large

amounts of sulfur and other pollutants that

the power plant puts out daily. She hoped

that UAF would pursue a green energy pro-

gram, but admits that finding a workable

energy source was a “billion-dollar ques-

tion.” She also said that biomass, solar

during the summer, wind, and even tidal

energy could be looked at as possibilities.

Petersen expressed hope that this would be

one more step that UAF takes on its road to

being a greener university.

One thing everyone agrees on is that

any of the changes that will take place

cannot and will not happen overnight. Ei-

ther a major renovation or a completely new

building would be required, which would be

expensive. Petersen said that the university

should look at the overhaul as an invest-

ment rather than anything else because they

are protecting themselves from the environ-

mental hazards of the plant and the cost of

future repairs.

11News www.uafsunstar.com March 1, 2011

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The ‘Cosmo girls’ of FairbanksAmber SandlinSun Star Reporter

UAF Community and Technical College

is currently conducting a review of the pilot

program for cosmetology. Seven months

into their third year, the new class of 18 stu-

dents is driven by a passion for the art and

community of hairdressing. Due to it being

a pilot program, the university is looking at

cosmetology to determine whether they are

going to continue it in the future.

The program, directed by Tina Christo-

pher, began three years ago. Members of the

Fairbanks community asked UAF to start the

program due to the lack of training facilities

for future cosmetologists. Before, aspiring

cosmetologists had to ask licensed beauti-

cians and barbers to accept them as an

apprentice for a minimum of two years.

Only one apprentice per licensed cosme-

tologist is allowed.

In order to become a cosmetologist,

one must take the State of Alaska Board of

Barbers and Hairdressing Exam. Not just

anyone can take this exam. One must first

complete 1,650 hours of practical and theo-

retical training. That is approximately 218

days, seven and a half hours a day.

“It’s been a challenge [because] this

is not an easy program,” Christopher said,

standing in a room filled with busy women

affectionately nicknamed “Cosmo girls.”

In the program, the women learn as

much about the human body, such as mus-

cles and bones, as nurses in the nursing pro-

gram; they must learn anatomy before

they are allowed to work in the beauty

world. In the classroom, every student is

performing some task. Nobody is sitting, all

are in uniform.

“This is my community and I love [the

community],” said Louise Morris, an in-

structor at the cosmetology program. “That

is why I do it.”

This 13-month program starts in July

and ends in August the following year.

They hope to change start the program to

September, and end in July or August, com-

pleting exactly 11 months.

Community is a main drive and pas-

sion of these students and instructors. In

previous years, they have traveled to Ne-

nana for a day and provided perms and

cuts for the local community. The students

discovered a girls’ boarding school and pro-

claimed, “We want to go there!” Tina Chris-

topher said. “So they went, and had a blast!”

Helping small cities and towns with no sa-

lons has been just a small amount of what

the students have done for the community.

They have helped in the “Connect homeless

connect” program in Pioneer Park, and did

a half-time show for the Roller Derby girls,

among other things.

“[Cosmetology] isn’t an easy thing, you

know,” Christopher said, “You’ve got to be

tough as nails.” She told a story of a woman

from the Dominican Republic, a janitor

and mother of six children. The woman

had started off speaking broken English,

and by the end of the 13 months, she was

determined to take the State of Alaska test

in English “She said ‘I’ve already learned

this in English, I’m not going to re-learn it

in Spanish!’ Now that woman was tough as

nails.” Her husband and children had moved

their schedules to support their mother in

her dream of becoming a “Cosmo girl”.

Mothers who pursue their dreams are

common in the beauty industry. Susan Mer-

rill, a 37-year-old wife and mother of four,

had dreamed of becoming a cosmetologist

since she was in high school. Originally

from Colorado, she married young to a man

rooted in Alaska. The timing wasn’t right to

return to school until now. “It was a family

decision,” she said. “It wasn’t just my hus-

band and I, the whole family agreed.” She

hopes to turn her rental home in Salcha into

a salon, naming it “Salcha Cuts.”

Most cosmetology students are looking

for the freedom to break away from the tra-

ditional nine to five standard jobs, to take

control of their schedule and work when

they want. “Every student that wants a job,

gets a job,” Christopher said. Of this pro-

gram’s alumni, three are now managers of

salons around Fairbanks. Last year, every

student graduated from the program. Chris-

topher has full confidence that every stu-

dent this year will graduate as well.

The cosmetology program is difficult to

get in to. Out of the 200 prospective students

Christopher sees in a year, only 50 will be

interviewed and only 18 will be admitted.

12 NewsMarch 1, 2011 The Sun Star

From snow to sand, UAF students embed in Stryker training in Mojave DesertSpecial to the Sun Star

Bright and early Friday morning, our

first day “in the box,” we met with Col. Todd

Wood, commander of the 1-25th Stryker

Brigade, in the Tactical Operating Center, a

series of connected tents, in Forward Oper-

ating Base Denver in the Mojave Desert. He

welcomed us, answered questions and as-

sured us we would have unfettered access to

the soldiers and their training.

The students walked out of the tent and

into the sunshine. Inspired by their access

to the colonel, they were excited to get to

work. The colonel rolled away in a Stryker

convoy for a meeting with provincial Afghan

leaders.

And we spent the rest of the morning

and well into the afternoon waiting for our

rides, waiting to embed. Over the next few

hours, we had several test runs at embed-

ding. We’d run and gather our gear for an

imminent departure, only to learn plans had

changed. We rearranged our two-person re-

porting teams several times. At one point,

we had Options A, B, C and D.

By early afternoon, Matt Anderson and

Jeric Quiliza embedded with the 3-21 In-

fantry Battalion, “The Gimlets.” They piled

into a Stryker, the ramp closed and the

convoy headed southeast toward the sce-

nario’s Pakistani border.

JR and I eventually embedded with the

1-5 Infantry Battalion, “The Bobcats.” We

met LTC. Brian Payne, the commander, late

Friday afternoon when he and his soldiers

returned from a successful mission after

recovering a missing United States State

Department official. A mission we’d missed

because we were sitting in an office, waiting.

We were upset we’d missed the story.

He was upset, too. We learned that LTC.

Payne had sent a convoy through a “kill

zone” earlier in the day to pick us up, only

to be told we had left with another unit. We

assured him we’d been waiting for them and

had been told they’d left without us. Due to a

series of miscommunications, he’d uninten-

tionally put his soldiers at risk and stranded

a reporting team.

A lesson learned, LTC. Payne said.

Learning from mistakes is an essential

part of training, for the soldiers at the Na-

tional Training Center and the students em-

bedded with them.

The military has its own culture: its lan-

guage, its customs and its terrain are just as

foreign to the student journalists as Afghan-

istan’s culture is to the soldiers.

Over the four nights and three days

on the “embed,” the students and soldiers

learned they share common ground. As

the soldiers seek to conduct an effective

counterinsurgency campaign, they need to

establish rapport with local Afghans. They

learn to establish trust and build relation-

ships. All the while, they maintain situa-

tional awareness and adapt to any changes.

The students had to do the exact same

things—build rapport, created relationships

and adapt to changing circumstances—to

bring home stories for their readers.

Cheryl HatchSnedden Chair

UAF students Jeric Quiliza, from left, John Robert Ancheta and Matt Anderson pose on the rocks outside Fort Irwin, California. They stand over the marker for the 1-25th Stryker Brigade from Fort Wainwright, AK. The students spent four nights and three days on an embed with the 1-25th, covering the soldiers during exercises at the National Training Center in the Mojave Desert. Cheryl Hatch.

Sam Harshbarger (left) and Donavin Smith (right) enter a stryker at a Combat Operating Base in Fort Irwin. JR Ancheta/Sun Star

On Feb. 17, Cheryl Hatch, this year’s journalism department Snedden chair, took three students, JR Ancheta, Matt Anderson and Jeric Quiliza, on an embed exercise with the 1-25 Stryker Brigade in Fort Irwin, Calif.

13News www.uafsunstar.com March 1, 2011

JR AnchetaSun Star Reporter

Before leaving I wanted to know how photographers create intimate photographs. I

was curious on how to establish rapport with people in a small amount of time. In most

situations, I am always reserved when I am uncomfortable. The beginning of the trip was

no different. In our first night, it didn’t help that a sergeant confronted me while trying to

build rapport with a private at the dinner table.

“No. You need to ask permission first before photographing a soldier’s personal equip-

ment,” he said while I was shooting at the table. He sounded irritated and his demeanor

was very intimidating. My professor attempted to resolve the situation by explaining the

total access we were given, but the sergeant wasn’t convinced. I apologized to the private

for putting him in that situation. I was photographing his hat.

The following days were easier once we embedded with the 1st Battalion, 5th Infantry

Regiment, “Bobcats.” In Bravo Company, I first met Pvt. Josh Knight and Pvt. Edward

Crocker on a guard post and started talking. It was a start to building that relationship and

trust while helping me become confident of my objective. Establishing rapport wasn’t that

difficult; they were the same age as my 18-year-old brother. I could relate to them easily. I

learned their names and I remembered them. Identifying them with or without their uni-

forms was challenging, but it was manageable. They shared their stories and I will share

my photographs in return. This exchange between photographer and subject is essential in

making these intimate photographs.

During full-spectrum training excercises, Pvt. Edward Crocker (left) and Pvt. Josh Knight (right) keep watch at a guard post overlooking a mock Afghani village located inside the National Training Center in the Mojave Desert. JR Ancheta/Sun Star

After singing Garth Brook’s Friends in Low Places, Private Chris Whatley, poses in a stryker vehicle during a role-played mission. JR Ancheta/Sun Star

Perspectives14 The Sun StarMarch 1, 2011

This isn’t to say that you won’t get

pleasure or use out of photo books, funny

t-shirts, or other dime-a-dozen items you

can pick up on your travels. Sometimes

those things do have sentimental value.

The idea is to shift your focus towards

buying mostly or only those items that re-

ally move you, the things that you know

you will regret not getting for the rest of

your life. There are natural limits to this

procedure – namely your budget, since no

matter how much owning the original Bat-

mobile might make you grin, you’ll prob-

ably never be able to afford it – but prac-

ticing it on vacation is a great way to begin

using it in everyday life. Yes, vacation is

a time to let go and do what makes you

happy, but that’s why it’s such a powerful

time to hone skills like smart shopping. If

you can manage to do it on holiday, you

can do it anywhere.

If the idea of having things of great

sentimental and, in some cases, monetary

value around you isn’t enough to get you to

give intelligent consumerism a chance, try

thinking of it this way: the more money you

save by not buying worthless or meaning-

less garbage at home and abroad, the more

money you can put towards planning your

next trip. Besides, who wants to fork over

a hundred bucks to ship home a suitcase

full of pewter statues of every semi-famous

building you saw on your Grand Tour? The

baggage handlers will loathe you eternally,

and so will your back after you finish lug-

ging that thing up the stairs. Don’t be

tempted by trash on your next trip – only

bring home the things that inspire you.

Jamie HazlettSun Star Columnist

Weekend WanderlustMemorabilia MishmashPart II: The Intelligent Consumer

Whether you begin your trip with $50

or $50,000, the one thing you are more

or less condemned to find plenty of on

your vacation is spending opportuni-

ties. Traveling guarantees that you will be

confronted with schlock-filled storefronts

or street-side souvenir sellers aiming to

drain your wallet and leave you holding a

handful of garbage that you will probably

never look upon fondly. You don’t need a

snow globe from Tahiti; not only will you

have no place to put it when you get home,

it also makes no sense. Unless you’re

buying it specifically for the anachronism,

put it back.

Many people make the mistake of

thinking they have to bring back some-

thing from every place they stop to go to

the bathroom on their trip. Each item

should preferably be emblazoned with the

locale’s name in an annoyingly bright color

or unreadable font, and must be either ex-

orbitantly overpriced so the buyer thinks

they’re purchasing quality or so cheap that

we crafty tourists won’t be able to wait to

brag about the deal we got. But what are

you going to do with what you’re preparing

to pay the equivalent of several hours of

labor at your boring/annoying/stressful

job for? If you can’t think of a legitimate

use or reason why that particular item will

bring a smile and good memories to you

or the person you’re intending to give it to,

walk away. You can do better.

A big part of intelligent consumerism

while on vacation is tailoring your wants

to fit your needs. Are there things that you

could use or have wanted for a long time

now that your destination is known for

producing? Do you have an interest, skill

or talent that is important to you? Look for

things that speak to that need or character-

istic. If you find something that has a his-

tory of being made locally in a traditional

style, that’s even better. A musician might

plan on buying a Glockenspiel xylophone

in Munich; a tea aficionado might search

for a unique service set in Tokyo or Beijing.

The possibilities are as endless as your in-

terests.

Jeremy SmithSun Star Columnist

This year’s Oscar information goes to…

It’s Oscar night as I write this column

and I felt a little reflective on the whole

nature of the internet. Not that the Oscars

make me reflective. It’s more how I am able

to learn about the Oscars, and how quickly

I learn that information, that best illus-

trates just how much the online world has

changed our expectations regarding news.

Back in 2002, an interview with a cur-

rent president of the Society for Professional

Journalists was asked how the internet

has changed reporting. At that time, few

newspapers were online, but this president

worked at a newspaper that was. One of the

big changes she saw was the speed at which

news was being reported and posted online.

It was no longer a matter of days before a

story was available online, but hours, if not

minutes.

After looking at my Facebook feed, I saw

that Trent Reznor won the Oscar for Best

Score for “The Social Network.” They haven’t

even begun broadcasting the awards show

in Alaska.

As I was growing up in Fairbanks

watching the Oscars, I would often have to

wait a few days until the information was

disseminated in the newspaper. Of course I

can watch it and see who won what, but the

Oscars is not a quick affair. You have to sit

through hours of poorly ad-libbed jokes just

to find out which film takes home the Best

Picture. This doesn’t include all of those

awards that are announced as an aside and

aren’t even televised. The full list of winners

was never available instantaneously and

definitely not on-demand.

A tweet just came in that said, “Toy

Story 3, best animated feature, official.”

The internet has changed not only how

we access information, but how quickly we

expect to receive it. How many websites

have you stopped visiting when you learned

that they updated only once a week? What

about a breaking news site that only offers

updates daily? We go somewhere that is up-

dated regularly, if not obsessively, with all

of the information we want, exactly when

we want it. Without IMDB.com, how would

I know that Annette Benning has no Oscar

but has been nominated four times… and

continues her losing streak this year, thanks

to the gritty ballerina film featuring newly

dubbed Best Actress Natalie Portman.

There were newspapers and magazines

live blogging the Oscars, posting every scrap

of award-soaked information as it was an-

nounced. Looking at my Facebook feed

after the event reminds me of a Variety-

fueled minefield filled with explosions of

“UPSET!” and “BREAKING OSCAR NEWS”

and “WHO IS MELISSA LEO?” For those

who don’t know, People.com informed me

that Melissa Leo, from the TV show Treme,

is the winner of the Best Supporting Actress

Oscar for her work in The Fighter, not for her

role as Sally Jansen in 2007’s Mr. Woodcock.

It’s amazing how much information we

can summon with just a few keystrokes or

swipes across a screen. Less than an hour

after the event ended, all of the winners (and

losers) were posted on the Oscar website at

oscar.go.com and message boards at En-

tertainment Weekly were already howling

with a mix of naysayers and well-wishers.

For good or bad, the internet has forever

changed our expectations regarding infor-

mation dissemination… and made all of us

Oscar and movie trivia experts.

Jeremy talks and takes on technology at gpfault.org.

Letters to the EditorHave something to say? Say it here. The Sun Star welcomes reader commentary.

Letters to the editor should be no more than 250 words in length. Please include the author’s full name and contact information (phone number, e-mail or address). E-mail your letters (preferred) to editor@uafsunstar.com, fax them to 474-5508, or mail them to to PO Box 756640, Fairbanks, AK, 99775. Letters must be received by Friday at 5 p.m. in order to run in the next issue. All letters are subject to editing for brevity and grammar.

Deferred maintenance15Editorial www.uafsunstar.com March 1, 2011

Deferred maintenance: just the words make my eyes

glaze. How can a term be so dry yet so critically impor-

tant for the university and the people who make it their

home?

According to the University of Alaska, there are

more than $750 million worth of unfunded, necessary

and overdue repair projects throughout the university

system. That is deferred maintenance. In practical terms,

it is the leaks in the Wood Center roof as snow seeps

through cracks in the concrete and rains down on the

heads of students, staff and faculty trying to eat lunch.Deferred maintenance includes repair or replacement of boilers, pipes, sprinkler

systems, labs and ceiling and floor tiles. In reality, it’s the reason our water tastes so bad,

why many of our ceilings and floor tiles are full of asbestos and why the university was

forced to spend more than $100,000 to provide campus electricity when the power plant

broke down.

It’s clear the university has an infrastructure that could be described as “decaying.”

There’s work that really needs to be done. Less clear is why money for these overdue proj-

ects has yet to appear.

Every year, the Board of Regents goes to the State Legislature requesting money to pay

for these long-needed projects. Since asking for just shy of a billion dollars is considered

something of a faux pas in Juneau, the regents ask for a substantially smaller amount. For

the fiscal year 2012, which begins this July, the regents requested $37.5 million. That’s not

nearly enough. At that rate, it would take 20 years to get all the existing deferred mainte-

nance taken care of. By that time, we’ll have accumulated 20 years worth of additional de-

ferred maintenance. This is unsustainable. A university with leaky roofs, water that tastes

like it has been sitting in a rusty pot and asbestos in the floor and ceiling is a university

that will repel the potential students and faculty we should be striving to attract.

So what is to be done? It clearly isn’t so simple as asking for more money. The State

Legislature, or at least certain powerful elements of it, has made it clear they are not in-

terested in expanding government largesse toward the university. If anything, they seem

focused on weaning the university off the government teat. The university is told to find

more private donors, more federal grants, make do with less. This is unacceptable.

When the Alaska Constitution was signed, the University of Alaska was enshrined

within it. We are one of the few state universities in the country to be protected by a con-

stitutional mandate. The framers considered the university to be critical as the home of

Alaska’s only true renewable resource: our young women and men. It is the responsibility,

the imperative, of our Legislature to protect that resource and that means cultivating and

maintaining the best possible state university. It means lawmakers stop hemming and

hawing and open up that $20 billion “rainy day” bank account we have and start spending

it on the thing that will not only keep young people here but attract new ones as well: the

university.

It’s time we dropped this stupid regional feud and remembered we’re all in the same

(leaky) boat. It’s time for student governments on all three campuses to speak up. A visit

to Juneau is a great start, now let’s see some protests. Let’s see some action. I call on the

Northern Light student paper at UAA and the Whalesong at UAS to join the Sun Star in

holding our state government accountable. Let’s spend less time asking “What’s a Sea-

Wolf?” and more time asking why people in power seem to think it is acceptable for stu-

dents to have to drink putrid water or for people to work in leaky classrooms and offices.

This rare issue bridges faculty, student and staff. It affects every single one of us. We must

speak with one voice, or else how can we expect anybody to understand us?

Sudoku

xkcd

Coffee Break

Andrew SheelerEditor-in-ChiefUAF Sun Star

The slippery slope fallacyDear Editor,

I would like to point something out

in defense of the two Regents who voted

against the LGBT legislation, and their

stated reasoning (at least, their reasoning

as I understand it from your editorial). You

dismissed the argument presented by Fac-

ulty President Dehn as a “slippery slope

fallacy.” I felt the need to get up on my little

electronic soapbox and address the idea of

the slippery slope argument as a fallacy, so

here goes!

You outlined a few excellent reasons

that transgender students should be consid-

ered among this legislation as well, such as

disproportionate instances of violence,

rape, and suicide. The slippery slope argu-

ment comes in right here. I don’t know what

the University’s specific qualifications are

for inclusion in the NDP, so I will use yours.

You argued that the documented evidence

of transgender victimization “means that

they deserve to be protected.” With this as

our qualification for inclusion in the Univer-

sity’s NDP (and I suspect this is very close

to their own reasoning), it is not at all great

leap to conclude that this will indeed open

the door for future amendment.

Whether or not that is a bad thing re-

mains to be seen, it’s entirely possible that

there will be future amendments that bring

about positive change. My point here is that

Faculty President Dehn’s argument was not

a fallacy, and that a slippery slope argument

(like any argument) is only a fallacy if it isn’t

founded on sound reasoning or evidence.

Thanks for your time!

Forrest Andresen