OPINION
Coming Tuesday, November 13...
Editorial! Having students take a one-size-fits-all test before graduating doesn't measure true education.
Hudson: Class sizes are not necessarily an indicator of student success.
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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN WWW.KANSAN.COM MONDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2007 PAGE 9A
MOUNTAIN DEW AT MIDNIGHT
THE DURBIN DISPATCH
Parking during games a nightmare After donors and faculty have parked no spaces are left for anyone else
We've all gotten the pink slip of doom. You see it sitting there with your name on it, and your heart stops. Anger creeps up on you like a ninja in the night. You throw down the slip in frustration. There is no way in hell you are paying another $20 parking ticket.
A lot of times, students bring the tickets upon themselves. Students constantly park in a lot where their parking permit is not valid. Of course, in our defense, it's hard to keep track of all the colored lots. How am I supposed to remember that the Yellow Lots open at four instead of the usual five, and that the Chartreuse Lot is only open during the winter solstice?
After going to KU for the usual five to seven years, most students can figure out which lots their permits are valid for (about three for the 20,000 people who go to campus daily). However, no one has ever solved the mystery of parking during basketball games.
Basically, any lot within a 10-mile radius of Allen Fieldhouse is closed for Williams Athletics. Scholarship Fund members and paying visitors. These lots, according the KU Parking and Transit Web site, are #19, 54, 72, 90, 125 and 127, and are also this week's lottery number picks. Also, the Allen Fieldhouse parking garage is closed to students.
In addition, streets not
In addition, streets not even on campus, like Emerald Drive, have signs saying no parking during basketball season. Okay, so what's a student to do? Read Harry Potter and figure out how to fly a broomstick?
Luckily, the parking department has foreseen this problem. For faculty and staff with valid permits, lots #17, 33, 34, 35, 37, 41 and 61/62 (also the numbers you can call for a great time), are open. For students, lots #34 and 61/62, which are, are, yep, you guessed it, also the IQ scores of
the parking department, are open.
Now, I'm a writing major, but even I can do the math on this one. On campus, there are night classes, tests, SUA activities and other educational opportunities. Also, students are working at places like the library or the writing center. That is about, let's see, divide the dividend, carry over to the other column, multiply by pi, leave room for a margin of error, and you get, roughly, a lot of people.
And all these students are supposed to fit in two parking lots, yet the staff gets twice that many lots? For every one teacher teaching class or giving a test, there are anywhere from 20 to over 200 students. Plus, these lots are open only to students with permits. Some students might normally walk or bike, but feel uncomfortable doing so at night or can't when the weather gets too cold. Others might take a bus whose route does not run that late. These students also failed their apparition tests.
On the KU parking and transit Web site, they state the Park and Ride lots, way up by the Lied Center, are open. However, the buses from these lots only run on the half-hour. If your 7:00-9:50 p.m. class runs late or is so far from the bus stop that you miss the 10:00 bus, then you have to wait until 10:30 for the next bus. Plus, this means a student has to get to campus really early to get from the Park and Ride lot to their class on campus.
I definitely think students should have priority over visitors when it comes to parking on campus. We are paying the University for an education, and sports should not stop this, no matter how exciting they may be. KU Parking needs to figure out a way it can open more lots to students with or without permits. Also, parking should give all campus employees special parking passes, so they can park near where they work and not get ticketed. The SRFC already does this for their employees.
Well, I gotta go. It's only Monday, but I want to stake out my parking spot before the next game.
Hartz is a Stilwell senior in creative writing.
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10-0. I've been waiting 108 years for this!
Since the Kansas Jayhawks are having a Cinderella football season, does that make Brandon McAnderson KU'S Prince Charming?
Ice cream and action games are waiting for you!
font.
You know why I love the University Daily Kansan? Because every time there's big news regarding the football team, it's always in a short headline in huge
Fast food is only convenient in the short run It's easy to go on a burger, pizza or taco run, but you'll regret it later on
It's a Thursday night and hunger is calling. Like an earthquake, your stomach ruptures with the need for food.
At first you think about making something from your kitchen. Ramen noodles, PB&J, left-over spaghetti from a week ago. But none of these options sound appealing, so you do what a majority of college students do. You go for fast food.
ball game, and the effects are quickly catching up with us. The nation has become a culture of fast food eating and on-the-go living, ultimately creating "fat" America. However, as it turns out, fast food has some advantages in the short term. In all reality, people like the fact that it's "fast" and "convenient."
Fast food is everywhere. It's available from the main corners of a busy street to the luxury of your own home. Fast food has become as American as a base-
There is no other food that you can go out, pick up and have ready in a moment's notice. Ultimately, you don't have to cook, shop or even wash dishes. All you have to do is eat and throw away the trash. In the end, you are saving an immense amount of time. Nevertheless, there seems to be a direct link to obesity in America and fast food. A typical meal from a fast food restaurant, say a serving of fries and a cheeseburger, adds up to over 1,000 calories per serving. This is about half the recommended dietary allowance for an individual per day.
In 2006, obesity levels of the average American had risen 25 percent since 2004. About one-third of all Americans over the age of 20 are considered obese. The risks involved with developing obesity are the main concern when looking at this problem spreading through our nation. Premature death resulting from heart disease, stroke, diabetes, fatty liver disease or cancer are all risks involved with becoming obese. However, being consciously aware of this problem is the first step in conquering the link to obesity and fast food.
eating habits.
Being a college student, I know how easy it is to grab something on the go and to fulfill the hunger need. I have fallen victim countless times to the world of fast food, because time between work, school and a life doesn't always supply enough to cook a meal. Fortunately, fast food has begun to add new items to value meals or other side items to encourage healthy
Side salads, grilled chicken, fruit cups, yogurt and milk have all been added to menus as options for alternative eating. Consciously choosing healthier options at fast food restaurants only benefits your health in the long run, but just because these options exist does not make fast food a healthy diet. Loading on additional sides or adding lots of dressing to that salad only makes the calorie count go back up. Understanding that the decisions we make now will ultimately affect our future is something we must be aware of. If time is on your side, go home and make yourself dinner. If it's not, choose wisely when dining out. Your body will thank you in the future.
Durbin is a Hays junior in journalism and English.
DRAWING BOARD
MAXRINKF
SHARING STORIES AND FORGETTING TIME
I'm on my way to class, now leave me alone You can use a variety of tricks to avoid awkward social situations on campus
Saying hello is for losers. I find that I make my
I find that I make my time on campus as minimal as I possibly can these days. I go up for class and then get the heck out of Dodge as soon as my classes are over.
propriate to say, "Hi" or not?
Campus is just not a social scene for me. Walking to class isn't a time for me to catch up with old buds; it's simply a time to get from point A to point B. Seeing people you are acquainted with on the way to and from class is always so awkward. How do you know when it's ap-
I mean, what if I only had one class with this girl in high school, or I think I met that guy at Louise's last week? But then they say, "Hi" and use your name and you feel like such a horrible person for questioning even giving them a wave. And then you feel worse because you can't ven remember the first letter of eir name.
It a horrible conundrum that plagues my existence every single day. Luckily, I have found an easy way to remedy the situation by wearing my iPod very visibly any time I'm on campus. It's like an automatic "don't talk to me" symbol and even if someone says something to you, just point at your ear and mouth the words, "I can't hear you."
The results are amazing,
People walk right by and when
you pretend that you can't hear them they just smile and nod like, "Oh yeah, I understand" and walk on.
Then there are those times when you see someone you either don't really like or don't have the energy to be friendly with. It's times like these when fiddling with your iPod or pretending to be talking on the phone comes in handy. Or sometimes I'll see someone coming and I'll turn around and look pensively behind me like I forgot something or like I'm looking for someone. That trick's not so great though, because people can still yell out at you.
It's better to have something in your ear so the possibility of a conversation is completely out of the question. Of coarse, if I see a good friend I will stop and have a chat, but seriously I know so many people that go to this school, whether it's from
high school or sorority stuff or random introductions at bars and concerts.
It's impossible to get away from the network of people I know, and sometimes I just don't want to talk to people, especially when I'm sober and trying to get my life together.
I know I'm not the only one who feels this way, because I think I've caught some people doing the above things to me, and to that I say, "Mad props!" I respect a person's decision to not talk to me on campus. You can ignore me all you want, take some phone conversations and look at your iPod right when I walk by. Instead of taking offense, I'll admire your antisocial introverted attitude and walk on with a smile.
Simmermon is a Leawood senior in journalism.
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The Editorial Board
Erick R. Schmidt, Eric Jorgensen,
Darla Slipe, Kelsey Hayes, Bryan
Dykman, Brandon T. Minister, Angelique
McNaughton and Benjamin R. Smith