Volume 124 Issue 121
kansan.com
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
CROWD PLEASERS
ASHLEIGH LEE/KANSAN
The Kansas men's basketball team speak to more than 8,000 fans gathered at Allen Fieldhouse to welcome the team back after defeating University of North Carolina Sunday afternoon in the Elite Eight of the NCAA tournament.
RYAN SCHLESENER
rschlesener@kansan.com
After nearly a two-hour wait inside Allen Fieldhouse, the moment the Jayhawk faithful had been waiting for finally arrived. At 12:45 a.m., the men's basketball team arrived and took its place on James Naismith Court in front of more than 8,000 screaming fans.
Senior guard Tyshawn Taylor took the microphone first and thanked the loyal fans. Taylor's speech sparked excitement in the crowd as he talked about the upcoming Final Four game.
"It's been a long season, but we're not done yet," Taylor said. "We're going to go try to get some more wins for y'all. We're going to try to have an even bigger celebration on Tuesday after we come back from New Orleans."
Senior guard Conner Teahan, the only current teammate to also be a part of the 2008 National Championship team, and junior forward Thomas Robinson echoed Taylor's sentiments on the larger celebrations possibly to come.
SEE FIELDHOUSE PAGE 3
CAMPUS
Japanese lectures focus on Samurai, male anatomy
KELSEY CIPOLA
kcipola@kansan.com
In Japan, that relationship has snowballed into a full-blown industry.
Condoms, Viagra and plastic surgery all have one thing in common: They cash in on penises and mens relationships to their genitalia.
Gregory Pflogfelder, an East Asian language and culture professor at Columbia University, will address the body part's history and business implications in his lecture, "Private Parts and Public Concerns: Erecting the Modern Japanese Penis." Wednesday, March 28 at 7:30 p.m. in the Malott Room of the Kansas Union.
"It's not just the body part but how it's perceived and understood by the Japanese people and how it's been studied, tested, understood and thought about," said Megan Greene, director of the Center for East Asian Studies.
The lecture offers a new look at the culture of a country that might be best known to students because of its contributions to pop culture.
"A lot of times we think of contemporary Japan as sort of 'Hello Kitty,' and I think you'll get a deeper understanding from this," said Leslie Von Holten, the center's program coordinator.
Another pop culture icon that hails from Japan is the focus of another lecture from the center in April—the samurai.
Hitomi Tonomura, a professor of history and women's studies at Stanford University, will discuss the often overlooked aspects of the familiar cultural figure in her lecture, "Samurai Beyond Tom Cruise: Letters of a Family Man in the Fourteenth-century War" in the Mallot Room in the Kansas Union at 7 on Thursday, April 12.
Greene hopes that the lectures attract both experts from the University and students who might not normally be interested in learning about Japan.
Ben Martin, a sophomore from Olathe, thinks that it's important for students, especially liberal arts majors, to take advantage of the opportunities to learn more about foreign languages
and cultures through both classes and lectures.
"I think they should definitely advertise those more because they're interesting to go to and they're free," Martin said. "You get to hear influential people speak, which would probably cost a lot anywhere else."
- Edited by Bre Roach
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
An illustration from the 14th Japanese historical epic Taiheiki shows the Samurai in action. On Thursday April 12, a Stanford University professor will give a lecture on how recently discovered letters from a Samurai in the 14th century paint a very different picture of Samurai life.
A Samurai greets people in Japan. On Thursday, April 12, a Stanford University professor will talk about the complex history of the Samurai not often accurately depicted by Western media.
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
RESEARCH
Megan Ketchum (left) senior in chemical engineering from Ottawa helps Ally Parfet (right) sophomore in chemical engineering choose classes for Parfet's next semester in Spahr Library Monday afternoon.
MARSHALL SCHMIDT/KANSAN
Study finds women successful in science overcome social obstacles
MARSHALL SCHMIDT
mschmidt@kansan.com
A recent study at the University found women who succeed in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM, overcome certain psychological obstacles. Distance from privilege, or factors such as social status and educational background, is more important than demographics when determining successes and achieving power in society, according to Barbara Kerr, professor of counseling psychology at the University and collaborator on the study.
Additionally, someone's perception of himself or herself in comparison to the rest of society can affect success and their continuation in the field.
"Research shows that how people feel about their level of privilege is more important than their actual state in understanding their well being, career development and other variables." Kerr
said.
Kerr also found that combining distance from privilege with the level of attention toward romantic relationships could predict persistence in STEM fields. The more one focuses on relationships during his or her undergraduate years, the less likely they
will advance in the field.
"Some things you can't change, such as race, gender or age, but you can change geography, education and level of attractiveness," said
achievement.
Ally Parfet, a sophomore from Olathe majoring in chemical engineering, feels like she has to work harder as a woman in her field.
"You feel like you have to earn people's respect more than if you were a male," Parfet said. "The
Karen Multon, department chair of psychology and research in education and co-collaborator on the study.
Multon pointed to findings suggesting that overcoming those obstacles will actually help increase persistence and
ALLY PARFET Sophomore from Olathe
difference is if you want to have a position, then you need to have a desire to go get it."
Parfet has held leadership positions in student organizations such as the Biomedical
Engineering Society, Theta Tau and the Engineering Student Council.
While Parfet comes from a family interested in science, she was inspired to go into engineering
Index
CLASSIFIEDS 7 CRYPTOQUIPS 4 SPORTS 8
CROSSWORD 4 OPINION 5 SUDUKU 4
SEE STEM PAGE 3
All contents, unless stated otherwise, © 2012 The University Daily Kansan
Don't forget
Keep your ears open at noon today to hear a Carillon performance ring from the Campanile
Partly cloudy, 20% chance of rain and thunderstorms. Southwest winds around 15 mph with gusts up to 25 mph