June 26 & 27, 2003 Utah
State in the News
Friday, June 27, 2003
STUDY TO PROBE
IONOSPHERE
Gregory Earle has carefully watched the skies above Wallops
Island, Va., in recent days eagerly anticipating a cloudless
evening. On one such clear night, the Texas scientist and a
team of researchers from Utah and South Carolina plan to create
some clouds of their own. A series of rocket launches, slated
to take place between now and mid-July, will release a chemical
into the night sky to form puffy, white clouds. The researcher,
from the University of Texas at Dallas, hopes the NASA project
will shed light on how weather operates in the upper reaches
of the planet’s atmosphere, known as the ionosphere. Cameras
on the ground will track how fast and where the artificial clouds
move. “We don’t have a very good understanding of
those winds at all,” Earle said in an telephone interview
Monday from the NASA Wallops Flight Facility. Teams from Utah
State University, in Logan; and Clemson University, in Clemson,
S.C.; and Texas will launch four rockets from the Virginia site.
Clear skies with no moonlight are needed so the artificial clouds
can be tracked more easily. Various atmospheric conditions also
must be right. (Salt Lake Tribune, 06/26/03) click on: http://www.sltrib.com/2003/jun/06262003/thursday/69936.asp
WHETHER FOR FUN
OR HEALTH, HOT SPRINGS POPULAR
Since the days when Shoshone Indians formed the largest population
segment around the Great Salt Lake, local hot springs have been
a place of gathering and, many say, healing. ... All the untested
anecdotes in the world couldn’t convince Jim Davis, director
of Student Health and Wellness at Utah State University. “Instead
of anecdotes, we look for statistical evidence,” Davis
said. “And there is no evidence that it helps any specific
diseases.” (Standard Examiner, 06/26/03) click on: http://www.standard.net/standard/news/print_story.html?sid=00030624211016598100
Thursday, June 26, 2003
THICKET OF CRICKETS
MAKES A STICKY WICKET
Things are bad here. We’ve had five sunny days since
1997, we’re about to lose our public transit, the Pirates
are better off getting rained out than playing and Forbes.com
has put Pittsburgh at the bottom of its best cities for singles
list AGAIN. (Don’t get me started.) But there are Western
states where things are actually worse. I just visited Arizona,
which is on fire. And three other states are having a cricket
disaster. It sounds comical -- if it didn’t, I wouldn't
be writing about it -- but it is a serious problem. Also, it
is extremely gross. So I’m warning you now: I can’t
be responsible for what happens to your Egg McMuffin if you
read this while or after consuming it. If yucky insects give
you nausea, bad dreams or disabling heebie-jeebies, you may
not want to read any further. I hardly want to write any further,
frankly. Nevada, Utah and Idaho are being eaten out of farm
and field by enormous swarms of Mormon crickets. What are Mormon
crickets? They’re not really crickets. The 2 ½-inch-long
eating machines are technically katydids and, according to a
Utah State University Extension Web site, have “a lifestyle
of a grasshopper,” which unfortunately does not include
playing all summer and then asking an ant for a handout in the
fall. These critters aren’t playing. They’re chowing
down. (The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 06/25/03)
USU HOPING TO
EXPAND HOUSING
Utah State University housing officials will ask trustees Friday
to approve a $40 million bond to increase parking and student
housing at the campus core. “This is money that would
be used for the first phase in a master plan that will go beyond
our lifetime,” USU spokesman John DeVilbiss said. “This
will be the catalyst for a lot of change.” That first
phase would provide new housing for 502 students in a multistory
dormitory to be built near the campus center, just steps away
from the Taggart Student Center — the social and academic
hub of USU. The 30-year bond would be paid off from funds generated
by the dorm. (Deseret News, 06/25/03) click on: http://deseretnews.com/dn/print/1,1442,510035213,00.html
SOFTWARE HELPS
IMMIGRANTS LEARN ENGLISH
For the 30 Latino immigrants who meet two evenings a week to
learn English at Logan High School, class starts whenever they
can get there. Lessons progress as fast as they need them to.
Their teacher is always ready — after all, it is a computer.
... Soon Luis Rivera is joined by Hector Mendiola to go over
his homework. Mendiola, a former pediatrics teacher in Mexico
City and now a Latino community activist, is one of the architects
of Computer-Assisted Literacy for Non-English Speakers (CALFNES).
Mendiola has teamed up with Utah State University's extension
office to create a lesson plan on a simple word-processing program,
which uses other tools such as Web sites and a computer dictionary.
(Salt Lake Tribune, 06/25/03) click on: http://www.sltrib.com/2003/jun/06252003/utah/69724.asp
BEAN CUISINE:
THE 'WONDER FOOD' PACKS A NUTRITIONAL PUNCH
They come in all shapes and sizes. Some are dark red, others
are beige, white, pink or spotted. One has a black dot like
an eye (it's called a black-eye), while another is small, flat
and white (it’s a baby lima). They’re described
as “the wonder food” — well, that's what people
tell Pauline Williams after attending her cooking class, “Hill
of Beans.” Last week, about 20 people attended Williams'
class at Utah State University Extension at the Salt Lake County
complex. They learned “bean basics” — everything
from storing beans to disguising beans in dishes that children
will enjoy. Williams, home economist for Salt Lake County's
Extension and a registered dietitian, also shared nutritional
information — the information that prompted her former
students to designate beans as “the wonder food.”
(Deseret News, 06/25/03) click on: http://deseretnews.com/dn/print/1,1442,510034949,00.html
CHERRY CROP BRINGS
CHEER: HARVEST SHOULD BE SWEETEST IN 3 YEARS
The cherry crop should be sweeter this year than it has for
the past three years, one of the largest growers of the tiny
red fruit says. That should help Utah County keep its position
as Utah's top cherry-producing county, experts say. ... “We’re
happy with the crop,” grower Robert McMullen said. “We
were concerned about the thunderstorms and wind, but we got
through it all right. We've got past the brunt of it,”
he said of potential inclement weather that could damage and
even destroy the sweet cherry crop. Last year the crop froze,
but this year agricultural inspectors are keeping busy, said
Dean Miner, director of the Utah State University extension
office for Utah County. (Deseret News, 06/25/03) click on: http://deseretnews.com/dn/print/1,1442,510035256,00.html
TEAM ASSIGNED
TO TRAIL: BOX ELDER ASSESSES SHOSHONE TRAIL
The Box Elder County Commission Tuesday decided the county’s
existing Access Management Team can research how a proposed
trailhead to the James V. Hansen Shoshone Trail would affect
the county. The 33-member team was formed in 1996 to address
the issue of road use and access of off-road vehicles in the
county. Since then, the team has met annually to suggest any
changes to the county’s plan. Earlier this month, the
commission said it would form a committee to look at issues
relating to the proposed trail in Box Elder County. Disagreements
about the composition of that committee kept the commission
from making any decisions last week. Jerry Mason, a member of
the team, said private property planned for the trail route
was part of the team’s plan for recreational use long
before the Shoshone Trail was proposed. ... Mason said he plans
to use a program at Utah State University to help find out what
the economic impact will be. (Standard Examiner, 06/25/03) click
on: http://www.standard.net/standard/news/print_story.html?sid=00030624231504602346
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