Monday, September 27, 1999
The University Daily Kansan
Section A · Page 7
Nation/World
7
Kansas students are using hot line to fight violence
The Associated Press
TOPEKA—Posters that appeared in Kansas classrooms this year advertising a hot line for anonymous reports of potential school violence apparently are getting children's attention.
So far this academic year, 150 to 200 toll-free calls have been received at the Kansas Highway Patrol's central dispatch center in Salina, according to Sgt. John Eckhorn, the patrol's spokesman.
Of those calls, 38 have been referred to local law enforcement agencies and the school districts involved for follow-up. Elkhorn said.
"All the calls are anonymous," he said. "It's a way for them to come forward with information without fearing retaliation or without triggering a lot of beer pressure from other kids."
Most of the calls have come from children — precisely the group the hot line, created at the suggestion of several state legislators, was intended to help.
"I would characterize most of the calls as identification of weapons or reports about some kind of threats." Eickhorn said.
Dale Dennis, the deputy state commissioner of education, helped get the hot line program up and going.
"We've had a few reports that some kids have called the hot line about things they were afraid of that weren't necessarily connected to schools," he said. "But I feel pretty good about the way the hot line appears to be working, and the patrol has been super in the way they run it."
During the summer, the state Department of Education distributed 30,000 posters, enough to put one in each classroom in Kansas' 304 school districts. The message: "Stay Safe. Speak Up. Stop School Violence."
In large red numbers is the hot line number: 1-877-629-8203.
"We've received a few crank calls, unfortunately," Eichkorn said. "But it's worth if it this program provides the information that'll stop just one act of school violence."
Russia warns militants of ground attack
The Associated Press
GROZNY, Russia—The Russian military on Sunday warned it may launch ground operations against Islamic militants in Chechnya while warplanes bombed the Chechen capital for a fourth day, pounding industrial and communications facilities.
and commerci
Four Russian jets flew repeatedly over the city's southern Oktyabrsky district Sunday morning, firing rockets and dropping bombs, the Interfax news agency said. The district is the site of Chechnya's now-destroyed television broadcasting center as well as oil wells.
Russian Defense Minister Igor
Sergeyev said he could not rule
out the possibility of launching ground operations in the breakaway republic. Until now, the military has favored an air war that would keep Russian casualties to a minimum.
"There are several variants of a plan for ground operations, which will be implemented depending on the situation that develops." Interfax quoted Sergeyev as saying. He spoke while visiting soldiers recovering from Dagestan battle wounds in a Moscow military hospital.
tary hosp he said that the main aim of all the plans is to eliminate the bandits and to create a considerably deep security zone around Chechnya.
the militants are separatists
Rachel Kesselmar/KANSAN
who want to form an independent Islamic nation in what is now southern Russia. The Russian military said the air raids are aimed at preventing militant
incursions from Chechnya into the Russian republic of Dagestan, where they fought Russian forces in August and September.
increasingly, however, Russian leaders have vowed to eradicate the militants altogether.
Eyewitnesses said that during the past four days, Russian air raids have destroyed more than 100 oil pumps, reservoirs and small refineries in and around Grozny that are believed to be controlled by Chechen rebel field commanders. The oil was the basis of a profitable business providing low-grade gasoline to other Russian regions.
Russian planes also struck suspected rebel camps near Chechnya's border with Dagestan
on Saturday, the ITAR-Tass news agency said, citing the provisional federal press center in Dagenstan.
Col. Gen. Anatoly Kornukov, commander of Russia's Air Force, said in a television interview Sunday that the air campaign against Chechnya could last another month.
Russian military commanders appeared to be considering a major raid into Chechnya to put the militants on the defensive and stop their incursions into surrounding Russian territory. While Russian has massed armored forces on the Chechen borders, military analysts say the force is too small to mount a full-scale invasion of Chechnya.
Stanford study shows sleep apnea makes driving as difficult as DUI
The Associated Press
NEW ORLEANS - Too little sleep can slow you down as much as too many drinks.
That's the conclusion of a Stanford University study of people with mild to moderate sleep apnea: people whose breathing stops several or even dozens of times an hour, interrupting their sleep without their knowledge.
About 12 million Americans have the problem, but fewer than 2 million of them have been diagnosed, according to the American Sleep Apnea Association's Web Site. The undiagnosed figure may be as high as 25 million, according to Stanford's Sleep Disorders Clinic and Research Center.
Chief told Researcher people known to have apnea did as poorly on a test of reaction time as people who were too drunk to drive a bus or truck in California, said Dr. Nelson B. Powell of the Stanford center. Powell said he wanted to underscore the dangers of driving while sleepy, whether or not it's because of apnea.
Powell presented his study Sunday at the annual convention of the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck
Surgery Foundation, Inc.
"This is a wonderful study," said Dr. Regina Walker, an associate professor of otolaryngology at Loyola University in Chicago. "It is an extremely well-thought-out, well-controlled, prospective study that is looking at something I think is of great significance."
The study looked at 80 volunteers and 113 people with apnea. The volunteers' average age was 29; 56 percent were women. In contrast, 81 percent of the apnea patients were men, and their average age was 47.
men, and their behavior. However, statistical analysis ruled out age and gender as reasons for the difference. Powell said.
All of the people took a 10-minute test of reaction speed, pushing a button to turn off a randomly set light. After four tests to get their baseline reaction time, the comparison group started drinking 90-proof alcohol.
group said their breath stopped about 29 times an hour while they were asleep, did worse on all seven measurements than the drinkers did on their first retest, and worse on three of them than those who were legally drunk
Scientific statement insults Kansas Catholic Conference
The Associated Press
KANSAS CITY, Kan—The Kansas Catholic Conference has no problem with the teaching of evolution.
But it does object to a statement in Kansas' new science standards, which created a furor last month with their de-emphasis of evolution.
emphasis on events.
In a recent report, the conference said a statement in the standards insulted religion by equating it with myth and superstition, said Mary Kay Culp, associate director of education for the conference.
The conference speaks for the state's four Catholic bishops on public affairs and lobbies the Kansas Legislature and other state bodies, including the Kansas Board of Education.
The report also claimed the scientists who wrote the National Science Standards have an anti-religion agenda. The national standards influenced parts of the Kansas standards.
influenced parts of the statement in question is: "Explanations based on myths, personal beliefs, religious values, mystical inspiration, superstition or
authority may be personally useful and socially relevant, but they are not scientific."
"Evolution," Culp said, "should be taught in a way that doesn't undermine religion."
may that it makes a mistake. Eugenie Scott, a member of the group of scientists criticized in the report, said the complaint was off base.
philanthropy was on base. The religion paragraph, taken from national standards written by the National Academy of Sciences, doesn't equate religious beliefs with myth but lists the two as belief systems that are not scientific, said Scott, director of the National Center for Science Education in Berkeley, Calif.
Berkeley, CA Students in Catholic schools learn about evolution, and Pope John Paul II has said the theory does not conflict with the church's doctrine. Catholic doctrine states that human souls were specially created by God. Whether humans physically evolved isn't an issue, said Kathy O'Hara, associate schools superintendent of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas.
"It doesn't matter to us how it happens, just that it did." O'Hara said.
Culp said the Kansas Catholic Conference report has been sent to the U.S. Catholic Conference and would be presented to the four Kansas Catholic bishops.
*****
If you want to get ahead, put the right people beside you.
We're searching for people who want to move forward. Faster. Care to join us?
Consultants At Ernst & Young, we've created an environment where talented people work together to bring out the best in each other - and in our clients. Individually and as part of a team, Ernst & Young consultants are influencing industries, envisioning strategies, incorporating new technologies, and designing the solutions that deliver value. These achievements have made us a leading worldwide professional services firm, serving Fortune 500 clients.
Consultants
Meet with Ernst & Young on Campus
University of Kansas
10/8 - On-Campus Interviews, 8:00 am - 5:00 pm
9/28 - Engineering School Career Fair, Kansas Union, 1:00-6:00 pm
9/28 - Information Session, Lied Center, 6:30 - 8:30 pm
9/30 - Pre Screen Deadline
10/8 - On Campus Intensive 8:00 am - 5:00 pm
Ernst & Young was named one of the 100 Best Companies To Work For in a survey published by FORTUNE* magazine, and offers a dynamic work environment, a competitive salary and a comprehensive benefits package. For immediate consideration, please forward your resume and salary requirements to: Ernst & Young LLP, Dept. 16798, 113 Terrace Hall Avenue, Burlington, MA 01803; Fax Toll Free to: 1-877-4EYJOBS; or e-mail: dept16798@eycareers.com. Visit our Web site at www.ey.com. Ernst & Young equal opportunity employer, values the diversity of our work force and the knowledge of our people.
ERNST&YOUNG
FROM THOUGHT TO FINISH.™
Savannah fine lingerte 735 MASS ST
843-6500
SCHOOL OF BUSINESS APPLICATIONS FOR SPRING 2000 ARE DUE:
ATTENTION:
PRE-BUSINESS
STUDENTS
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 1
IN 206 SUMMERFIELD
APPLICATIONS ARE AVAILABLE IN 206 SUMMERFIELD
So, it's been a semester-long dream of yours to skip those Wednesday classes,but there's always been that one thing that makes you drag yourself up the hill.
Seth Jones is online.
You can read all of his clever musings from the comfort of your own computer.
Remember kansan.com?
---