The Los Angeles Loyolan, Volume 78, Issue 10 - November 3, 1999

W 1 Features Л&Б ЙЬ:' ft- Two professors read for Hilt 1||й| Steal time with the Г i i & U 4 *4.4 ♦ • the Los Angeles Poetry Festival. PAGE 9 m Pilfers. Page 10 g§§ рщ Sports Rugby torpedoes Marines in pre-season opener. Page 16 November 3, 1999 M arymoujnjt University Volume 78, No. 10 Learning in the Biosphere Bubble ■ Research: lmu stu¬ dents have opportuni¬ ty to be part of Biosphere 2 enviro- mental science pro¬ gram. by Mara Slade Staff Writer LMU upperclassmen in good academic standing are now eli¬ gible to spend a semester study¬ ing environmental science and other subjects at the Biosphere 2 Center in Oracle, Arizona. In October of this year, LMU became the 26th university to sign a partnership agreement with Columbia University’s Biosphere 2 Center, enabling students to spend four and a PHOTO COURTESY OF BIOCENTER 2 ADMISSIONS half months earning'Te under- ^0SP^iere % at Oracle, Arizona is the second-generation of the Biosphere program. Although revolutionary, the first graduate credits studying earth comP^ex was по* as successful as designers had hoped, resulting in the construction of Biosphere 2. systems outside of the class- • room At the Biosphere 2 campus, LMU stu¬ dents will have the opportunity to study in a 3.15-acre glass-enclosed structure con¬ taining six miniature earth ecosystems including a desert, a rainforest, a savannah, and a 900,000-gallon ocean. According to Kendra Crook, assistant director of student admissions for Columbia University’s Biosphere 2 Program, “At the Biosphere 2 campus, students are able to experience and learn about the earth’s envi¬ ronment in a way that can’t be taught in a classroom or by reading any textbook. This program allows students to get their hands dirty in the field while observing the outside environment.” LMU students participating in “Earth Semester” will be able to work alongside the Biosphere 2 Center research staff, monitor¬ ing and adjusting the internal environment of the system to investigate questions relat¬ ing to our planet’s future. Each semester, 100 students participate in the program while living on the 750-acre campus. They attend classes ranging from Conservation Biology to Law, Politics, and Economics of Global Change. Students live either in two- person apartments or in a building which houses 10 students per unit in a family-like living atmosphere. Field trips which focus on the region’s geologic j biologic and cultural diversity are also part of the learning experience at the Biosphere 2 Center. Some of the past Earth Semester field trips have included the RESEARCH: page 4 McCarthy Suffers Break-ins ■ Security: Residents worried about stolen goods find them under their noses. by Sean Chavel Asst. News Editor Several forced-entry bur¬ glaries in McCarthy Hall on Friday night, Oct. 29 came to a puzzling conclusion when stolen property was recovered in one of the hall’s study lounges. The property was moved out of three east- side dorm rooms facing Rains Hall and into the east study lounge on the first floor of McCarthy. Video cassette recorders, stereo systems and other pieces of electronic equipment were found in the study lounge. All of the victims were at parties before returning to their respective rooms between 1:30 and 2 a.m. that night. “They busted the screen and crawled through the window, but Robbery: page 4 Oh Give Me A Home NATHAN JIM /LOYOLAN The new apartment site on the Leavey Campus has been developing quick¬ ly since construction began this summer. The project is slated for comple¬ tion by the time classes begin in the fall of 2000. Cafe Employees Undergo Racial Awareness Training ■ Training: The Zebra Cart incident last Spring finds its possible resolution this fall. by Leigh Woosley Staff Writer After the Zebra Coffee Cart was forced off EMU’s campus last April due to a racial harassment incident, the newly-dubbed “Lion’s Cafe” reappeared on campus this fall after changing more than just its name. The off-campus man¬ aged coffee cart now hires stu¬ dents to work behind its coun¬ ters and requires them to attend intercultural awareness workshops, one of which was held on Friday, Oct. 29, from 3 to 7 p.m. The outdoor coffee cart began to make changes after Danielle Starks, a senior African-American studies major, reported that an employee of the Zebra Coffee Cart had verbally attacked her on April 13. Starks was unhap¬ py with a drink she was served and a Zebra Cart employee, after refusing to give her a refund or to remake the drink, directed a series of racial slurs at Starks. Due to this incident, Brian Freeman, owner of the Lion’s Cafe, has made the intercultur¬ al awareness workshop a requirement for his 14 LMU employees. The goal of the workshop, as stated in its guidelines, is to create “a learning environment that encourages understand¬ ing, awareness, and interac¬ tion among cultures.” The training is focused on “appreciating different identi¬ ties,” said Marshall Sauceda, assistant dean of student development services. “We are trying to help people appreci¬ ate each other.” Sauceda and Be t h Stoddard, dean of student ser¬ vices, who led Friday’s training workshop, perform other inter¬ cultural awareness workshops for LMU faculty and staff. With the exception of two managers, the entire staff of the Lion’s Cafe consists of LMU students. These student workers are the only ones on campus who are required to go through the intercultural awareness training. “It is more important to think about [stu¬ dents working at the Lion’s Cart] as employees of a compa¬ ny,” Sauceda said. “The owner СМИ page 3 INDEX News 1 Campus News 5 Perspectives 6 Features 9 Arts & Entertainment 1 0 Classified 14 Sports 20 On the We b : wwwitmu.edu/stuaff/loyolan