4A NEWS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2007
》 BIODIESEL
Researchers, students work to develop cleaner fuel
BY DYLAN SANDS dsands@kansan.com
It sounds like something straight out of "Back to the Future": motor vehicles being powered by food waste. But today, that is exactly what a group of researchers and students at the University of Kansas is aiming to achieve.
The University Biodiesel Initiative is working to produce a practical biodiesel fuel that would consist of food wastes such as vegetable oil to reduce air pollutants. The
group aims to one day fuel buses on campus with leftovers from The Underground and other eateries.
Susan Williams, associate professor of chemical and petroleum engineering, said the group would start out small before testing the new fuels on campus buses. The buses currently run on B5, which consists of 5 percent biodiesel and 95 percent conventional, petroleum-based diesel.
She said the group would begin by using the fuel in University lawn equipment.
"The buses will be awhile because we have to get approval to use higher than B5 in the buses and not risk voiding the warranty from the manufacturer," Williams said.
The group works with two reactors in Burt Hall that can make 40 gallons of biodiesel every five days. The reactors were partially paid for by a $15,000 grant from the Student Senate. Ilya Tabakh, a Shawnee Mission doctoral student involved in the project, asked the Senate for the funds.
"I thought it was a good way to
get the ball rolling on this type of research." Tabakh said. "We need to be responsible stewards of the waste we produce on campus."
Williams said the group would work on the entire process, from cultivating plants that could produce the fuel to studying how its emissions would affect the environment.
"KU can be a leader in biofuel process improvement and at approaching bio-based fuels from a 'feedstock to tailpipe approach'," she said.
Dennis Lane, distinguished professor of civil, environmental and architectural engineering, said he hope the project would spread beyond the University campus. He said the University's location could make the program influential in the region.
Kansas Secretary of Agriculture Adrian Polansky visited the University on Tuesday to meet with researchers involved in the project to examine the reactors. He said many of the technologies being pursued at the University were promising for the future.
"We have strengths in Kansas in these particular areas," Polansky said. "It makes sense to bring in additional funding and research to build on these strengths."
Polansky cited reasons other than sustainability for continuing research on biofuels.
"Every time we can replace a barrel of oil from the Middle East, national security benefits," he said. "I think it's absolutely the direction we need to go."
—Edited by Rachel Bock
》 CRIME
Simpson charged with 10 felonies
ASSOCIATED PRESS
LAS VEGAS — Prosecutors filed formal charges Tuesday against O.J. Simpson, alleging the former football star committed 10 felonies, including kidnapping, in the armed robbery of sports memorabilia collectors in a casino-hotel room.
Simpson was arrested Sunday after a collector reported a group of armed men charged into his hotel room and took several items Simpson claimed belonged to him. Police reports obtained Tuesday by The Associated Press offered details on the scene.
Simpson, 60, was booked on five felony counts, including suspicion of assault and robbery with a deadly weapon. District Attorney David Roger filed those charges and added five other felonies, including kidnapping and conspiracy to commit kidnapping, according to court documents.
Simpson, accused along with three other men, faces the possibility of life in prison if convicted in the robbery at the Palace Station casino. He was being held without bail and was scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday.
According to the charges,
Simpson and the others went to
the hotel room under the pretext of brokering a deal with Alfred Beardsley and Bruce Fromong, two longtime collectors of Simpson memorabilia.
According to police reports, Simpson and the other men entered the room and at gunpoint ordered the collectors to hand over several items once owned by the Heisman Trophy winner. Beardsley told police that one of the men with Simpson brandished a semiautomatic pistol, impersonated a police officer and frisked him.
"I'm a cop and you're lucky this ain't LA or you'd be dead," the man said, according to the report.
The man who arranged the meeting for Simpson and the collectors, Tom Riccio, also told police a Simpson associate was "acting like a cop," the report said.
As his associates tried to seize cell phones, Simpson yelled and cursed the collectors, who Simpson has said were trying to sell items that had been stolen from him.
The kidnapping charges filed Tuesday accuse Simpson and three other men of detaining each of the collectors "against his will, and without his consent, for the purpose of committing a robbery."
signed by Simpson, Joe Montana lithographs, baseballs autographed by Pete Rose and Duke Snider and framed awards and plaques, together valued at as much as $100.000.
The memorabilia taken from the room included football game balls
Some of the loot was stuffed into pillow cases stripped off the bed, according to the police report.
Fromong, a crucial witness, was in critical condition Tuesday after suffering a heart attack the day before, according to a spokeswoman at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.
Simpson's lawyer, Yale Galanter, said he planned to ask for Simpson's release on his own recognizance.
"We intend to vigorously represent Mr. Simpson on all charges," Galanter said. "We believe ultimately he will be found not guilty."
He refused to comment further on the additional charges.
Two others named in the complaint, Walter Alexander and Clarence Stewart, have been arrested and released. A fourth suspect, Michael McClinton, 49, of Las Vegas, surrendered to police Tuesday. Police said McClinton was "a key player" in the suspected theft.
Police were also seeking two other suspects, whom they had not identified.
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Business students graduating this fall and next spring have new opportunities when searching for careers with the help of 120 companies featured at the School of Business Career Fair. Kim Rosen, Lawrence senior, is one of approximately 1,200 students who will attend the career fair today.
Job-hunting students seek opportunities School of Business features 120 company representatives
CAREER FAIR
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"I went to the fair last year, which helped direct me to what jobs were out there," Rosen said. "Now, since I'm graduating in December, I'm going to the fair with a good idea of who I want pursue for a job."
Jennifer Jordan, director of business career services, said companies looked at more than just an impressive resume, clothes and a degree when considering employment. She said companies that attended the fair looked at factors such as compelling experience and internships. Other opportunities, such as the School of Business' new major, supply chain management (which will see its first graduates in spring 2009), will give students more options when looking for the right employer.
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"We take input from business students every year to determine a target list of employers," Jordan said. "We want to represent a good cross-section of employers for almost all of our business graduates."
BY MATT HIRSCHFELD editor@kansan.com
Ruth Marstall, recruiter for Westar Energy, said that some of the first aspects she looked for were the student's major, internships and programs they participated in.
One program in particular that Marstall said was a good indicator for future employment was the Jayhawks on Wall Street program, a group of selected business students that visit Wall Street in New York during the course of the program. The students have a high interest in
"We get a lot of interest from marketing-related students," Yang said. "We feel, though, that the company can market itself if the product is good enough to have customers talking."
Yang said some fields in business were not as needed but very popular to encounter for the Panda Restaurant Group.
proactive, responsible, able to multi-task and stress management," Yang said. "I mean, we are talking about a million-dollar business."
"That program incorporates exactly what we are looking for in employees here at the company," Marstall said.
investment banking and the opportunity to meet contacts on Wall Street.
Marstall said Westar Energy was in growth mode, which was caused by more and more baby boomers retiring and causing more positions in almost all departments of the company to become available.
Marshall said the company was planning the construction of a new power plant in Emporia, which presented a wider
sented a wider range of jobs.
"We take input from business students every year to determine a target list of employers."
"At the moment, with the new plant, engineering majors are going to be in high demand for Westar this year," Marstall said.
Jordan said graduating business students were still not giving
Mimi Yang, field human resources manager for the Panda Restaurant Group, said that attending university career fairs was vital to seeking out qualified employees for the company. Yang's company plans to open 150 to 170 new restaurants in the next year, including two more in the Kansas City area.
JENNIFER JORDAN Director of business career services
"As important as a degree is, it is more important to possess skills and characteristics such as being highly
Yang said more employees were needed to fill the jobs being created as the company grew. Jobs in real estate, legal services and the position of restaurant general manager were becoming vital for her company. She said it was difficult to find individuals qualified for the general manager position even if he or she had a degree.
"There seems to be preconceived notions about these kinds of jobs," Jordan said. "They may not be as attractive as some other employers, but many students are missing out on one solid career path."
enough attention to some career paths, even though the companies offered employment opportunities on par, if not better, than the other companies at the career fair. Most of these companies were not
The School of Business Career Fair is from noon to 5 p.m. today in the Kansas Union.
Jordan said that these companies were very selective and that their benefits and compensation packages sometimes rivaled most other companies.
ernment- and nonprofit-related.
Edited by Meghan Murphy
ALPHA DELTA PI Old School Gaming Tournament Benefiting the Ali Kemp Foundation
DATE: SEPTEMBER 23RD
TIME: 4PM-9PM
LOCATION: BUFFALO WILD WINGS
FOR ANYONE NOT IN THE TOURNAMENT: Free play on systems at the event and tee-shirts for sale for $10. BUFFALO WILD WINGS will donate 10% of their profits.
Registration for Tournament:
$20 at the door, includes tee-shirt and bracket entry
Contact ncarroll@ku.edu for more info.
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