KANSAN.COM / THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN / THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2011 / NEWS
7A
Singing: the bee's knees
Ashleigh Lee/KANSAN
William Woolston, a sophomore from Riverton, tries to guess the lyrics to his song Tuesday night while competing in the Singing Bee. "The Singing Bee was a past event that we wanted to revive," said Sushu Wang, Film and Media committee member.
Western civilization is not irrelevant
CAMPUS
BY SHAUNA BLACKMON
blackmon@kaqsan.com
sblackmon@kansan.com
It's too much work. The teachers don't realize that I have other classes. None of these authors are relevant. They are all just a bunch of dead white guys.
No matter the rumor or complaint, Sandra Zimdars-Swartz has heard it. As the Director of Humanities and Western Civilization, as well as a professor of western civilization, Zimdars-Swartz says she has heard all of the fears and gossip circling the heavy-reading course. For the most part, Zimdars-Swartz says these rumors aren't true, and usually, she can convince her students of that and show them the importance of these authors.
"Some people think these authors are irrelevant," Zimdars-Swartz said, "but that's not true,
western civilization works with prevalent themes that are applicable to other courses like politics, history and religion."
Like many others, Amanda Enneking, a Lawrence senior,
was told by advisors as a freshman to wait until her junior or senior year to take western civilization because of the workload. She didn't agree with the advisors' reasoning
erature, it's philosophy, it's politics, it's religion. The coursework that is chosen is all relevant," Enneking said.
If you want to hold off on taking the reading heavy course
"It's philosophy, it's politics, it's religion. The coursework that is choosen is all relevant."
and ended up taking the first section of western civilization her sophomore year.
"I think that having a basic understanding of what pieces of work are influential to our society is important. It's not just lit-
until the last possible second, Zimdars-Swartz recommends you reconsider.
AMANDA ENNEKING Lawrence senior
or senior year, but many of them at the end of the class say 'I wish I would have taken this earlier because it would have helped me with this or that class"Zimbars-Swartz said.
While reading approximately
100 pages a week can be daunting for students who already have three or four other classes to worry about and possibly a job, Zimdars-Swartz remains confident this class is worth it.
The University is looking at reevaluating how many general education credits students will have to take. This may change what majors require the class. For now though, almost every student will at some point have to read works such as The Communist Manifesto, the Koran, the Torah and many other historic selections.
Edited by Danielle Packer
HEALTH
City embraces heart awareness
BY LAURA NIGHTENGALE
Inightengale@kansan.com
As a heart attack survivor, Amyx personally recognizes the importance of heart health and habits of disease prevention such as not smoking, exercising and a healthy diet.
As a heart attack survivor, Mayor Mike Amyx takes personal interest in acknowledging the importance of heart health awareness. When the president named February American Heart Month, Amyx was soon to follow suit, encouraging awareness events in the city of Lawrence.
Cardiovascular disease is one of America's leading killers, claiming 2,300 American lives each day according to the American Heart Association. Causing on average one death every 38 seconds, cardiovascular disease kills more people than cancer, chronic lower respiratory diseases and accidents combined.
So far this month, events such as heart-healthy cooking classes at The Merc, the Annual Healthy Hearts Fair at Lawrence Memorial Hospital and a Go Red for Women luncheon at the Oread Hotel raise community awareness of heart health issues.
"I think it's extremely important to recognize that there are all kinds of programs today to help prevent [heart disease]," Amyx said. "For me I think it's just something important but there's also personal reasons to kind of push people along."
Coeli Baker, director of Lawrence Go Red for Women, stressed the importance of heart disease awareness in young people to prevent disease later in life.
"That's one of the things that a lot of people don't know about cardiovascular disease and stroke is that you really lay the groundwork when you're younger and having a healthy lifestyle." Bake said.
Establishments such as the Oread, the Eldridge, and Mariscos are offering Go Red martinis and donating a portion of proceeds to the Go Red for Women campaign to support the cause. Many community businesses
also participate in American Heart Month by wearing red on Fridays this month.
Edited by Corey Thibodeaux
More heart health awareness events will take place throughout the remainder of the month to promote the community's awareness of the disease.
NATIONAL HEART MONTH FACTS
- Cardiovascular diseases are America's No. 1 killer
- The goal is to reduce death and disability from cardiovascular disease by 20 percent by the year 2020
- Volunteers will put effort into education and raising funds to battle this disease
- Be "heart smart" by knowing blood pressure and body mass index, which determines heart health
- Best ways to manage heart health: don't smoke, manage stress and exercise regularly
- This campaign encourages awareness of the issues and calls for individuals to take action to aid in wiping out heart disease through education in improving overall health
-by Amanda Kistner
Source: the Mayor's proclamation and the American Heart Association
It's Our Annual Winter Sale! SUNFLOWER OUTDOOR & BIKE 904 MASSACHUSETTS 843-5000 LAWRENCE, KANSAS
Save Big On Great Fall & Winter Gear From:
patagonia
THE NORTH FACE
GRE $ ^{ \mathrm{TM}} $ LSAT $ ^{ \mathrm{TM}} $ GMAT
MOUNTAIN
HARD
WEAR
TEST PREPARATION That's Right on Target.
804 Massachusetts St. • Downtown Lawrence (785) 843-5000 • www.sunfloweroutdoorandbike.com
KEEN
Columbia
Sportswear Company.
KU CONTINUING EDUCATION The University of Kansas
Register early! Save $100! Test preparation classes now enrolling.
www.ContinuingEd.ku.edu (keyword: testprep) - 785-864-5823