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Show Tuesday, March 5, 2013 DAILY UTAH CHRONICLE www.daily •nicle.com The University of Utah's Independent Student Voice Since 1890 Vol. 122 No. 117 ©2013 ALSO INSIDE: Athletics Department opts not to allow swim and diving coach Greg Winslow to return » 6 Columnist explains why everyone loses with sequestration, and Democrats might have it a bit easier than Republicans » 5 HOUSE, Peak parties face penalties Topher Webb ASST. NEWS EDITOR The ASUU Elections Committee issued rulings on campaign grievances, barring the HOUSE Party from campaigning for two hours on Monday and requiring the Peak Party to move some of its posters. The Elections Committee heard grievances at a weekly meeting on Thursday and posted rulings on ASUU's website on Friday. The committee ruled the HOUSE Party was banned from campaigning on Monday from noon to 2 p.m. The written ruling defined campaigning as distributing materials, posting on social media, making announcements in class and having impromptu or other conversa- tions promoting candidates. The ruling is less than the half day requested by ASUU. The punishment resulted from a grievance brought by ASUU, charging the HOUSE Party with campaigning in the Marriott Library before active campaigning had started, which is prohibited by elections rules. According to the ruling, there was not evidence that the HOUSE Party had distributed campaign materials to students not affiliated with the campaign, but unaffiliated students might have seen the distribution of materials as campaigning. HOUSE Party presidential candidate Nick Ferre, a graduate student in education leadership and policy, said KIMBERLY ROACH The Daily Utah Chronicle Janean Ford and Lindsay Johnson of the Peak Party bring testimony against the HOUSE Party at the ASUU Election Grievance Hearing on Feb. 28. See ELECTIONS page 3 Ballroom competition Bionic eye becomes available to US public Carolyn Webber STAFF WRITER MICHAEL SYGNATOWICZ/The Daily Utah Chronicle Competitors warm up prior to the start of the "So You Think You Can Ballroom?" competition, held in the Union on Monday. STRUTTING THEIR STUFF All kinds of dancers gather in the Union for an open ballroom competition inspiring social and physical activity Carolyn Webber The dance was a public event anyone could join, and attendance was twice what it was last year. Students Dancing has always been a social and community members — no matter and cultural means of meeting others their level — could take to the stage and expressing one's self. Clubs might and freestyle with different styles of be the current social dancing spot, but dance, Derington said. the Union was filled with energy with The freedom of movement is what a mix of salsa, waltz, swing and other Sophia Jackson, a senior in speech dance styles Monday night. Ballroom communication, liked most about the dancers of all levels competed and per- event. She is in an intermediate Amerformed in the annual "So You Think ican ballroom course at the U and You Can Ballroom?" competition. liked the new competition experience. "It's a healthy social event," said Her nerves were not too high — she Krista Derington, a graduate student was just excited to dance. in modern dance who is in charge of Joe and Rosie Voks are taking classthe red team of ballroom dancers and es at the local BallroomUtah studio helps run the company as a whole. "It from Martin Skupinski, the emcee for is clean, safe, fun and you get to know See DANCE page 4 other people." STAFF WRITER MICHAEL SYGNATOWICZ/The Daily Utah Chronicle Judges score competitors during the "So You Think You Can Ballroom?" competition. ASUU receives award for involvement in MLK rally 4At rati 1 41 1Ni Marjorie Clark Molock, assistant vice presi- support and help with the andent of the Office for Equity nual event. NEWS EDITOR and Diversity. "There's no way to calculate ASUU was presented with an "We wanted to say thank you the [community service] hours award of appreciation from the for all of your hard work," Wil- ... but in the last five years, Martin Luther King Jr. Planning liams Molock said. "You have ASUU has been immeasurable," Committee on Monday. been tremendous in terms of Molock said. Recognized for their help in the Martin Luther King Jr. Rally The U's Martin Luther King Jr. Planning Committee will organizing the annual Martin and Marade." Luther King Jr. Rally and MaJay Molock, co-chair for award 35 other organizations rade, DJ Payton, ASUU vice the U's Martin Luther King Jr. and offices on campus and in president and senior in history Rally and Marade, also pre- the community for their conand international studies, and sented an award to Brian Bur- tinued support and help in orJeff Van Hulten, Chief of Staff ton, programming manager and ganizing the annual rally and and law student, accepted the graduate student in educational Marade. award from Jennifer Williams leadership and policy, for his m.clark@chronicle.utah.edu KIMBERLY ROACH/The Daily Utah Chronicle Jay Molock presents an award at the MLK Award ceremony to Brian Burton, programming advisor for ASUU. The Food and Drug Administration approved a bionic eye device last week to be distributed in the United States. The device, named Argus II Retinal Prosthesis System, or Argus II for short, will help those with retinal damage regain some measure of sight. Gianluca Lazzi, Utah Science Technology & Research (USTAR) initiative professor and department chair of electrical engineering, has been on the team to develop the eye since its beginning in 1999. The Department of Energy assembled a team of researchers from three universities and five national labs to develop this technology and prepare it for use. A cornpany called Second Sight is now in charge of getting the product, which has been available in Europe since 2011, to the public. Mark Humayun of the University of Southern California was also instrumental in the research and development of the Argus II. He said it has taken about 5o engineers, researchers, professors and 200 students to collaborate and get to this point. Vision is possible when light passes through the eye and hits the retina, where photoreceptors translate the light to electrical pulses. With retinal degenerative diseases like retinitis pigmentosa, these photoreceptors don't work. The bionic eye provides electrical pulses to the neural cells that are still there and working but not receiving input, Lazzi said. "It's like a computer in the eye," he said. Because the device is partly outside the eye and partly internal, surgery is required to implant the eye. Those with the bionic eye wear glasses with a camera and a unit that radiates power to the eye. The implant receives detail from the camera, and the patient is able to see a blurry, black and white image. Even though Humayun recognizes this as a significant step, he said there is more to do, such as adding a zoom or perception of color. Lazzi hopes to continue technological advancements and work toward creating a total implant with no outside component, which would require smaller technology. He recently received a grant to study what happens at the neural level so the device can use higher resolution and be more effective. The information from this bionic eye might expand to other brain implants, such as one for the hippocampus, our center for memory, Lazzi said. Patients with these retinal degenerative diseases had sight in the past but lost it, so they can use the dotted images they see with their new eye to construct a new visual reality. "The brain is extremely adaptive," Lazzi said. "It learns to use whatever it has been given." See BIONIC page 3 |
