Volume 125 Issue 30
kansan.com
Monday, October 15, 2012
the student voice since 1904
Marvel to launch new 'Avenger' film PAGE 4
SPIDER INFESTATION
Haley Pest Control technician Vanja Mehmedovic applies a pesticide to small, dark spaces in the basement storage room of Barbara Haverty, a Lawrence resident, on Oct. 5. Mehmedovic discovers five brown recluse spiders, in the room.
RECLUSE NO MORE
VIKAAS SHANKER/KANSAN
PAGE 4A
Last year's mild winter means an influx of spiders in Lawrence homes
VIKAAS SHANKER
vshanker@kansan.com
She had been bitten.
Lauryn Reinhart was sitting on a couch in her living room on Sept. 30 when she felt a slight touch on her elbow. She didn't see anything on her, but when she glanced at the couch, she saw a spider larger than a quarter with very long legs.
Reinhart, a senior from Parkville, Mo., killed the spider with the conventional shoe method, but afterward she noticed a rash started to develop on her elbow, similar to a bee sting.
"It was grazed and it was red," Reinhart said. "It was kind of itchy, but it went away the day after."
From the description of the crawler and the symptoms of the bite, Reinhart most likely encountered a brown recluse spider. And she's not alone, as local pest management companies have seen a boost in brown recluse calls this summer and fall, primarily due to the mild winter.
"No winter means bugs survived," said Joanie Haley, office manager for Haley Pest Control located at 1035 E. 23rd St. "An abundance of bugs means spiders eat. We're really seeing a
lot of the brown recluse. If you get bitten, then they can cause serious damage to the skin."
While the venom is a brown recluse spider's tool for liquefying prey and eating, the Center of Disease Control and Prevention says it can cause severe lesions in humans, a condition called skin necrosis. On some people, it can be as benign as a bee sting. But for others, it may cause serious scarring and even nausea, vomiting and a fever.
APARTMENT INFESTATION
Bioengineering graduate student Vidyashankara lyer was also bitten by a spider while he was working on a project.
"Suddenly, I see a spider running across my hand," Iyer said. "It did bite me, but I don't think I developed anything. Maybe it wasn't a poisonous spider."
Iyer, a student from Bangalore, India, has noticed many spiders walking across his apartment this summer. He said he's never seen spiders in his living space in the six years he's been in Lawrence until this year.
"They're never active, but now they are," Iyer said. "We try to keep it clean, but we do have a lot of spiders. Probably because we live on the corner and near a forest."
Vanja Mehmedovic, a pest control technician for Haley Pest Control, said that in addition to the mild winter, a very hot summer is leading to more brown recluse sightings and calls.
"The hotter it is, the more active they get," Mehmedovic said. "People notice because they're crawling in the open
SEE SPIDERS PAGE 8A
How to identify a brown recluse spider
LONG AND SLOW
While brown recluses have a wide variety of sizes, all have longer legs than most spiders. Unless physically touched, they move slowly "like they own the place," said Vanja Mehmedovic, a pest control technician for Haley Pest Control.
LONGING FOR THE FOREST
UNIQUE MARKINGS
A brown recluse has a violin or bell-shaped marking on the front of its body. Also, unlike most spiders, it has three sets of two eyes, not one set of eight.
To a brown recluse, newspaper and cardboard are like the rough texture of tree bark. Dark crevices in attics and basements look like the home of prey. Quiet, undisturbed rooms of a house means no predators, so it's free to crawl. Brown recluses can be found here.
LOUSY WEBMAKERS
DANGERDUS BI
The bachelor pad of the arachnid world belongs to the brown recluse. It's web is cloudy and unorganized, and is often mistaken for an expired cobweb. If you find one of these, a brown recluse could be very close.
DANGEROUS BITE
If bitten you could see discoloration of your skin. Not only is a brown recluse bite venomous, it's very quick. If a brown recluse lands on you, don't try to swat it with your hand. "It will get you before you get it," Mehmedovic said. No matter what you do to shake the spider off, don't use your hands.
Source: Vanja Mehmedovic, Haley Pest Control
ELECTION
Voter registration deadline guide
The deadline to register to vote is Tuesday, but you can still get it done, even if Lawrence is not your hometown. Kay Curtis, public affairs director,
Curtis, public affairs director for the Kansas Secretary of State, said as long as students are U.S. citizens, they can register to vote at their current address, regardless of their home town or state. Curtis said Kansas does not have a time limit for residency. No photo ID is required with the mail-in registration form, but a Kansas driver's license or non-driver's ID number is required for the online registration. To vote, a photo ID is required. Curtis said these could include a driver's license from any state, in-state college ID or a passport.
HOW TO REGISTER TO VOTE:
Obtain a Kansas Voter Registration Application
Download a form at votes.org.
To register online, applicants must have a Kansas Driver's License or non-driver's ID.
Complete the application
—On paper. The form will be rejected if citizen, age, address and birth date information is omitted. Applicants must sign and date the application.
—Online: Applicants must verify eligibility, verify driver's license or non-driver's identification card, enter personal information, and then review and submit the information.
Turn in the application
On paper: Return the application to a county election office by mail, by fax, or in person. Mail-in applications must be postmarked by Oct 16. Online: Applicants submit the application after review.
Deadlines: The deadline to register for the general election is Oct. 16. Applicants may not change their party affiliation after that date. If the postmark is missing or illegible, the application will be accepted only if received in the election office by the ninth day before the election.
Applicants receive registration by mail and check that the information is correct.
TO BE ELIGIBLE TO VOTE IN KANSAS, VOTERS MUST BE:
A resident of Kansas
A resident of Kansas
At least 18 years old
A US citizen
INSTRUCTIONS FOR UPDATING REGISTRATION INFORMATION:
To update registration information, including name, address, or party affiliation:
On paper, complete a new Voter Registration Application and return it to the county election office or the Secretary of State's office.
Online, update information using Online Voter Registration.
Changing the information on your driver's license will automatically update your voter registration information, unless you decline.
MOVING ISSUES:
Within the county. If a voter moves after the registration deadline, they can still vote at the precinct assigned to their old address, but they will be required to complete a new voter registration application.
To a different Kansas county:
Voters can complete a new voter
registration application before the deadline orvote in their former precinct
To Kansas from a different state: If a voter moved to Kansas less than 45 days before an election but the deadline has passed, they can vote a president-only ballot.
- Luke Ranker
HOUSING
University submits request to demolish McCollum Hall
nwentling@kansan.com
NIKKI WENTLING
McCollum is a ten-story, three- reewing hall with the capacity to house 910 students. According to the Oct. 17 Kansas Board of Regents meeting agenda, the University plans to build two new residence halls, each five floors with the capacity to house 350 students. If approved, one will be built west of Hashinger Hall and the other west of Lewis
McCollum Hall, the 47-year-old residence hall that is known to some students as "McCompton" or "Big Mac", may soon meet its end.
The University submitted a request to the Kansas Board of Regents to demolish the building and build two new residence halls on Daisy Hill. The board will consider this request Wednesday.
TYLER ROSTE/KANSAN
"Even though McCollum has been well-maintained over the years, the space needs for the new housing model do not fit efficiently within the form of the building, so renovation is not an option," the University's memo to the board read.
After the two halls are completed, McCollum will be demolished and the space will be converted into a parking lot.
Though Addy Adewale, a sophomore from St. Louis, has experienced some problems living in McCollum, she hopes the University's request is denied. This is Adewale's second year living in the hall. She dealt with broken showers and air
Hall.
McCollum is the only hall on Daisy Hill that has not undergone a recent renovation.
conditioners, but she said she has "learned to deal with it."
"I'm a little upset," Adewale said.
"I know McCollum is not the greatest, but there are a lot of memories there. I wish they could come up with some other solution that doesn't involve tearing it down."
The memo said the estimated cost of the project is $47.8 million, which would be funded with revenue bonds issued by the Kansas Development Finance Authority. Revenue from the housing and parking systems would be used to fund the debt service, and housing would fund future maintenance and operating costs on the two new halls.
The project would be an amendment to the University's fiscal year 2014 Capital Improvements. This fiscal year begins in June 2013.
McCollum residence hall may be torn down by the University to build a parking lot. Two new residence halls will be built in its place, and there will also be more space for parking.
Alicia Croci, a freshman from Ottawa and a McCollum resident, said she thinks the project would be a misuse of funds.
"Demolishing it is really a waste of money," Croci said. "If they want to spend the money, they should renovate it. They could get a new paint job and update the tiles and furniture."
To Croci, McCollum has become a home. It is also the first building she sees on the drive back to Lawrence after visiting her hometown.
—Erited by Brittney Haynes
"Even before I was a KU student, that would be my favorite thing to see," Croci said. "I love entering the city limits with friends and pointing to it, saying, 'See that tall building in the distance? That's my home! It's a nice feeling. I would be very sad to see McCollum go."
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All applications can be found at www.employment.ku.edu.
Applications are due no later than 11:59 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 23. The Kansan will interview applicants in the first two weeks of November.
For any questions about the application process or the position, email editor@kansan.com.
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All contents, unless stated otherwise, © 2012 The University Daily Kansan
Don't forget
The deadline to register to vote for the presidential election is tomorrow.
Today's Weather
Sunny. Winds west at 8 mph.
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