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Show The University o f Utah's I n d e p e n d e n t Student Voice Since 1890 Summer Edition DAILY UTAH CHRONICLE THE ©2006 Thursday. May 25. 2006 www.dallvutahchrQnicle Vol. 116 No. 4 Quote of the day Inside Sports A&E Opinion Page 4 Pages There goes the neighborhood | Unsure of your future? Cute, cuddly and thieving, the 'characters in 'Over the Hedge1 help us see the forest for the digital trees Libby Bailey touts the benefits of polygamy Fourth time around BYU comes back from a big deficit to beat Swingin' Utes...for the fourth time in a week 88/55 Sunny 'Utah Man' fight song rings false for some fans Students learn to teach blind children Jaime Winston The Daily Utah Chronicle Stephanie Rasmussen knows what it's like to teach blindly. She started working with children with vision impairments in 1983 at the Utah School for the Deaf and Blind, and this summer she will be teaching a course at the U called Orientation and Mobility for students who wish to follow in her footsteps. Rasmussen describes the class as a "hands-on, practical learning experience" where students will learn how to teach visually impaired children about travel. The Orientation and Mobility class will focus on concepts like sighted guide, which involves a visually impaired person holding onto the arm of a sighted person and walking around different obstacles. They will also learn to ask for things while blindfolded and learn about using senses other than sight to get around, such as using their sense of touch through using canes and tactile maps. Bobbi Lee Blood, a freshman music major who is blind, said that her teachers have taught her what it is to be an equal. "I had some hard times when I was treated badly, and I had some good times as well," Blood said. "Without both, I would never know just how lucky I am to be an equal." Rasmussen often works with children who are very young and co-dependent, and she said it makes her proud to see them grow into independent adults. "I feel rewarded everyday," she said. She feels most satisfied when she hears a child say, "No, I'm fine. I can do it myself," after offering them help. Janice Day, a professor in special education, said there are numerous opportunities for professional growth in the special education department. There is also high demand for teachers. She said that when many people become teachers, they don't consider working with sensory impairment. "More teachers should consider it," Day said. "Eighty percent of what we learn is through vision. To see others learn without it is...amazing." The class is a one-week, twocredit course, from June 26 to 30, and Rasmussen said it will be a high-intensity course. Orientation and Mobility is one of several courses offered in the sensory impairments specialization in the special education department at the U through which students can train to receive certification for teaching children with vision or hearing impairments. j.winston@ chronicle.utah.edu Page 6 Weather „ Th£ only change that has ever been (f iqftae to thefightsong was when the '."wtttits 'We drink our stein of lager, and we smoke a big cigar1 were replaced with 'Our coeds are the fairest and each one's a shining star.' Linsey Sine on the Ute Fight Song SEE full editorial on PAGE 6. Patrick Muir Chronicle News Editor Students, faculty, alumni and media have labeled the fight song "Utah Man" as sexist, old fashioned, difficult, offensive and dated. The song has been a sensitive issue—particularly with women—for some time, said John Ashton, executive director of alumni relations, because of lyrics such as "Utah man, sir," "Our coeds are the fairest," "No other gang of college men" and "a Utah man am I." As a result, John Poelman, last year's Associated Students of the University of Utah vice president, started exploring ways to change the song's lyrics—and possibly completely rewrite it—during Spring Semester, but ran out of time when his term ended in April. "The fact that to sing it you have to claim yourself as a man regardless of your sex makes me, and I think some others, feel uncomfortable participating in it," Poelman said. "I know a number of people who chose to sing it replacing 'man* with 'fan,' along with a few other word adjustments, so that they feel it represents them more." The decision is now in the.hands of the new student body presidency, and they have said they intend to gain feedback from students and alumni before taking action. "I don't see anything happening this summer," said Toby Collett, vice president of ASUU. "We will explore student opinion and go from there." He said if it is something students want, he'll push to make the necessary changes to the song. Ashton said that many alumni have been against changing the lyrics because of tradition, and that if a change were made, it would have to be initiated by a movement by the student body. The last attempt to change the lyrics was in 1984 when a vice president suggested changing the lyrics "Who am I, sir? A Utah man am I" to "Who SeeUTAH MAN Page3 The prongs on the array each communicate with separate fascicles' allowing the bionlc arm to operate and feel more like a real arm. U researchers to create bionic arm Morgan Ratcliffe Chronicle Asst. News Editor According to U research, the "Bionic Man," or at least parts of him, might not be as far away scientifically as people think. U researchers are currently involved in a sio.3 million dollar project developing a prosthetic arm designed to look, feel and move like a real arm. The research is part of a S55 million contract with the U.S. Department of Defense and of the Revolutionizing Prosthetics 2009 project sponsored by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. Greg Clark, who is leading the project at the U, said that researchers are focusing on a nerve interface, which will help communication between nerves in the upper arm and the artificial limb. The process, Clark said, is like wiretapping into nerves and brain waves. "When someone has a thought, the electrical impulses will go through the spinal cord to the limb," Clark said. "We are going to be picking up signals of non-existent nerves and sending them to the artificial arm." Clark said this process will help create a more natural movement for the artificial arm because current limb prosthetics make many separate movements instead of one connected reaction to move a finger or a muscle. The signals will be sent to the arm using a small device implanted into a remaining part of the limb or shoulder and a small computer worn around the waist. The device will use a modified Utah Electrode Array—developed by U professor Richard Normann—that contains 100 electrodes, which will help the limb communicate with the arm. Another big part of the project is the ability to restore sense of touch using artificial sensors for pressure that will send electrical signals back to the brain. "We want the arm to truly feel like their arm," Clark said. So when they perform tasks, they cannot only move naturally, but they will also be able to feel they are performing the task. "Arms are not just tools; they are important means of interacting, selfexpression and communicating with other people," said Clark, who hopes that the nerve interface will create an opportunity for people with artificial limbs to be able to function normally. Actual experiments have not yet Gary Clark holds a slanted electrode array, which is 4 millimeters in width and contains 100 hair-thin electrode prongs. When completed, the array will be part of a bionic arm, sending and receiving messages between the brain and the arm through fascicles In the nerves. begun, but according to Nick Brown, research assistant professor in orthopedics, they will begin soon. Researchers in departments of bio- See B I O N I C A R M Page 3 Balancing act Student juggles sports career with education Lindsey Sine Hie Daily Utah Chronicle Senior mass communication major Jaime Myers performs aerials during a training session. After finishing school this semester, she plans to move to Park City and train to become an Olympic athlete. IS! Juggling her roles as student, employee, sorority sister and professional athlete is all in a day's work for Jaime Myers, a senior in mass communication. Myers, a four-year aerialist for the U.S. Ski Team, said her life is currently something of a balancing act. "It's all prioritizing each thing... in the winter it's skiing; in the fall, my priority is school. Working comes on the side. When I have time off, I have two jobs," Myers said. "I have a social life that I fit in, too." Myers, who is graduating at the end of this summer, has had to keep an unusual school schedule to train for her sport. "I've done Summer and Fall (Semesters) for the past two years, and before that I'd do fall and spring. For spring, I'd Jaime Myers do online courses, but there's only so many online courses you can take." In addition to taking classes, Myers joined the Delta Delta Delta sorority in her second semester at the U. "Jaime is very modest," said Melissa Carey, Delta Delta Delta president. "There were a lot of times when we'd completely forget that she's a pro athlete." Her sorority sisters showed Meyers support by cheering her on at competitions. "Several times the house went up to World Cup at Deer Valley," Carey said "When events were in Salt Lake (City), it was easy to go and support her." Despite all her duties, Myers isn't given any special treatment on the ski team. "We require them to be at most practice and training sessions," said Brian Lake, aerialist coach for the U.S. Ski Team. "We give a little leeway. If they miss sessions, we expect them to make it up." Lake, who has coached Myers for five years, thinks she has done well with everything on her plate. With only one semester left in school, Myers is using this time to transition her life from being a student to becoming an Olympic hopeful. "I am making a leap and moving back to Park City," Myers said. "I'm downsizing everything in my life and focusing on going to the Olympics. Pretty much everything will be becoming the best at my sport." Lake is confident in Myers' ability to attain her goals. "It's just basically being determined to get it done and choosing her sacrifices," Lake said. Regardless of the restraints that skiing may have put on her life, Myers is happy about the direction in which she is headed. "I love my life. I wouldn't change it for the world. I don't think anyone else could do what I do, but I love it," Myers said. lsine@chronicle.utah.edu |