Former UConn star Daniels signs with Australian pro team

By:Mike Corasaniti

Former UConn men’s basketball player DeAndre Daniels will be playing basketball in Australia this season after failing to make the Toronto Raptors’ roster.

Toronto took Daniels with the No. 37 overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft this summer but has reportedly signed a one-year contact with the Perth Wildcats of Australia’s National Basketball League (NBL). The eight-team league plays a 28-game schedule with the top four teams making the playoffs.

The Raptors still retain Daniels’ rights for one year despite sending him overseas. Daniels declared himself eligible for the draft following his strong performance during UConn’s national championship run last April.

The 22-year-old had a breakout 2013-14 season with the Huskies averaging 13.1 points and six rebounds per game. Daniels performed even better in the NCAA tournament, earning a spot on the All-Final Four Team. The 22-year-old forwent his senior season to follow his NBA aspirations.

The Wildcats introduced Daniels with a press conference on August 20.

Daniels is now the second NBA draft pick in two years to sign with the Perth club following former Long Beach State standout James Ennis. Ennis, who was signed by the Miami Heat in mid-July, went to the NBL after being drafted by the Atlanta Hawks in the 2013 draft.

Ebola Commentary

By:Sumia Hussain

Ebola. Oh wait, I forgot to give a trigger warning first. The media’s portrayal of the threat of the Ebola outbreak is one that is alarming, confusing and leading to widespread hysteria around the world. Despite efforts made domestically and internationally to educate and inform populations about the Ebola virus, there are persistent rumors and superstitions spreading about viral transmission, treatment options and risk management.

 

As an unaware citizen myself, I became interested in the discussions surrounding the Ebola outbreak.  Following the trending hashtag of #Ebola, I saw many informative articles from World Health Organization (WHO), Center for Disease Control (CDC), National Public Radio (NPR) Health, and Harvard School of Public Health as well as many ignorant or paranoid comments by tweens about the disease.

 

I was hoping to help explain some key concepts about Ebola in laymans terms.

 

According to the WHO the Ebola virus disease – previously known as Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever – is a virulent, particularly nasty viral illness that historically has fatality rate of 90 percent. This disease is still relatively new, and the first few cases were pinpointed back to two outbreaks in 1976 in Nzara, Sudan and in Yambuku, Democratic Republic of Congo. From what researchers have gathered, the disease is believed to be originated from wild bats in the rainforest which may have passed the disease to human hosts.

 

Despite misconceptions, this fatal virus is not an airborne disease nor is it transmitted through contact with bodily fluids of infected people who are symptomatic. According to the CDC, a person is not contagious from the moment that they are exposed to the virus. These people who have come into contact with the virus and are asymptomatic will not transmit the disease through coughing, sneezing or even crying on you. Throughout the world, people are worried that they may have come in contact with the disease while at an airport or on a plane. However, this is unlikely since most of the victims of this illness are too weak to travel and no evidence has proven this virus to be airborne.

 

The WHO’s factsheet on Ebola describes it as “a severe acute viral illness often characterized by the sudden onset of fever, intense weakness, muscle pain, headache and sore throat.  This is followed by vomiting, diarrhea, rash, impaired kidney and liver function, and in some cases, both internal and external bleeding.”  It is difficult to diagnose Ebola because these symptoms are similar to many diseases that are sadly common in the Western and Eastern African regions, like malaria, cholera, typhoid fever, meningitis, hepatitis and more. The incubation period (the time before the symptoms can begin to manifest themselves) can be anywhere from two days to three weeks.

 

In terms of reducing human-to-human infection, WHO states, “in the absence of effective treatment and a human vaccine, raising awareness of the risk factors for Ebola infection and the protective measures individuals can take is the only way to reduce human infection and death.”

 

Prior to the experimental use of a drug treatment (zMAPP) on the two American mission workers in Liberia who were infected this summer with Ebola, there was said to be no cure or vaccine for Ebola. There are many drugs that are being tested in pharmaceutical facilities that were in their early stages of development and would otherwise not be allowed for human trials. However, due to the severity of the disease and accelerated incidence rates a panel of bioethical experts at WHO have allowed for the use of experimental treatment procedures on infected persons.

 

An interesting  question that many people are asking is: why is it that there is suddenly “new, experimental treatment” available for two American missionaries, even though there have been an estimated 1,800 infected persons in Africa and 1,200 deaths for months prior to this July?  While I may not have an answer to this question, it does raise an important point about the idea of privilege and access to healthcare for Westerners. There are many parallels between the reactions of people to the outbreak of Ebola and the first outbreak of HIV/AIDS. It will be interesting to see how healthcare systems and the world react to this epidemic as well. Being informed, doing your due diligence to check your facts and keeping an open mind is important to make sure we do not make the same mistakes that we did with HIV/AIDS by treating those infected like pariahs and discriminating in healthcare.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/goatsandsoda/2014/08/15/340686634/ebola-quiz-how-much-do-you-know-about-the-outbreak

http://www.npr.org/blogs/goatsandsoda/2014/08/15/340686634/ebola-quiz-how-much-do-you-know-about-the-outbreak

 

http://www.npr.org/2014/08/17/341083551/why-this-ebola-outbreak-is-different-than-earlier-versions

 

http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/health/experts-unsure-drug-cured-americans-ebola-article-1.1912271

 

Seismic Activity

By:Trevor Phillips

The University of Connecticut seismic station picked up an earthquake that shook the town of Deep River near East Haddam earlier this month. The station monitors seismic activity across the country, even picking up an earthquake in San Francisco last Sunday.

“Many are not aware that UConn has an active seismic station capturing earthquake events,” Christin Donnelly, the Program Assistant at the Center for Integrative Geosciences at UConn, said.

Despite the Deep River earthquake, UConn students are unlikely to experience a serious seismic event any time soon.

Dr. Vernon Cormier, a Professor of Physics and member of the Center for Integrative Geosciences, indicated that small earthquakes with magnitudes of just 2 or 3 could be felt around UConn every decade or so. However, more serious earthquakes like those of magnitude 5 are only likely to occur in New England once every few hundred years.

As a result, it’s unlikely that UConn would ever have to deal with a particularly dangerous earthquake, but sometimes they can take you by surprise.

“I worked in Washington, D.C. at the National Science Foundation when the Virginia earthquake of 2011 hit, just about the same time as the Napa earthquake this year. This was such an unsuspected event that it shut down the government in Washington for next day. Even more alarming was the fact that it damaged the Washington Monument so badly that it had to be closed for three years of repairs,” Lisa Park Boush, Director of the Center for Integrative Geosciences, said.

She also offered advice in case a large earthquake does erupt in our area.

“The most important thing is to try to get out of a building and in lieu of that, get to an interior wall.  Stay away from things that can topple down, like bookcases and other types of shelving,” Boush said.

Cormier stressed the seismic station’s significance as part of a much larger network that allows universities and organizations to locate and understand earthquakes as they happen all over the world and with a high degree of sensitivity.

The seismic station detects earthquakes by measuring the displacements they cause in units as small as the millimicron – a billionth of a meter. The primary instrument in the station is similar in operation to a pendulum. It contains a box with three sensors, two of which measure horizontal motion and a third that measures vertical motion. The devices digitize the record of earthquakes and sends it by radio.

“We’ve come a long way since drum, pen and ink recordings,” Cormier said.

He also pointed out that while the station offers a great deal in terms of research data, its true value to the university had perhaps more to do with educating students in the fields of physics and geoscience.

When it comes to class, Cormier uses information from the station’s readings to guide and teach.

“Students learn to interpret the data,” Cormier said.

 

Local Businesses

By: Sylvia Cunningham

It’s nearing 10 a.m. and Dog Lane Café employee Lizzy Hayes is polishing off her second cup of coffee. She started her shift three hours prior and takes sips from the largest size they offer at Dog Lane – aptly named the “Ridiculous” – between taking orders and making drinks for customers.

Not far from the cash register sits a group of six older men who meet at the café every Wednesday.

As they chat over their morning beverages, Hayes smiles. She says the regulars are her favorite part of the job.

“I love knowing what they’re going to order before they order it,” Hayes says. Moments later, one such regular walks through the door and Hayes greets her with a grin.

“Hey – where’s your latte partner in crime?” Hayes calls out as she gets to work on the professor’s usual drink order.

Just down the road, owners of other local business are beginning their days: Holly Upton sits outside Head Husky Barber Styling Shop. She has worked in Storrs since she was an 18-year-old fresh out of hairdressing school.

The Flower Pot owner, Jessie Shea, graduated from E.O. Smith High School and attended UConn and says it is fulfilling to be doing what she loves in the town where she grew up.

Mike Young recently purchased Sweet Emotions from former owner Barry Schreier. Young says he loves coming to work every day.

“I see this place as an opportunity to bring happiness to people and that’s one of the reasons I love owning the store,” he said. On top of that, he said, the neighboring business owners want to see one another succeed, so they promote one another.

Young offers a free piece of candy to the customers who get their hair cut by Holly Upton, while Shea says she lucked out being so close to a candy store.

Shea explains that because candy and flowers go hand in hand, many flower shops will keep an inventory of boxed chocolates.

“We have the luxury of having a gourmet candy store right next door,” Shea says.

Customers in any of the four businesses might spot traces of the others. A bouquet of flowers from The Flower Pot adorns the display case when customers walk into Dog Lane Café.

“That’s how local businesses survive,” Dog Lane Café manager Tiffany Siefert says. “They support each other.”

Farmer’s Market 20th Anniversary

Lovers of everything organic can satisfy their natural cravings this Saturday, Aug. 30, at the Storrs Farmers’ Market 20th Anniversary. Farmers and vendors will congregate on the front lawn of Mansfield Town Hall from 3:00 – 6:00 p.m. with their “vast array of locally grown and produced foods,” said Kathleen M. Paterson, an organizer for the event.

“Visitors are invited to enjoy food from our sponsors at Dog Lane Café, The H.A. Café and Jean & Milo’s Kettle Corn,” Paterson said.

Additionally, the celebration will include music by Zach Silk. Silk describes his music as “back-porch, old-time music to get your heart beatin’ and feet stompin’.”

“Weaving together American roots music, the sounds of early blues, ragtime, and early bluegrass, Zack creates a sound both unique and familiar. Pick up your groceries and enjoy,” Paterson said.

Guest vendors will include NakedMamas, who self-describe their products as “handcrafted with bare naked ingredients,” and Woodstock Hill Preserves, who according to their website have been “hand making natural jams and preserves in the quiet corner of Connecticut for over 30 years.”

The organization Buy CT Grown will attend to encourage customers to pledge 10 percent of their food dollars to locally grown goods, Paterson said.

The Market is open every Saturday from May through November, rain or shine. It is located next to Windham Region Transit District and UConn bus stops. It’s within walking distance of Storrs Center, Paterson said. “Don’t forget your picnic blanket!” she added.

Puppet Arts Program

Located inside the isolated depot campus, is one of the University of Connecticut’s most unique and renowned program.  Here in this remote area is the UConn Puppet Arts program. Despite its location, the UConn Puppet arts program is widely acclaimed and has a nearly 50-year history.

In 1965, Professor Frank Ballard established UConn’s Puppet Arts program. He went on to found the National Institute and Museum of Puppetry. This was later renamed the Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry (BIMP) in his honor.  Now, almost 50 years later, the UConn Puppet Arts program has flourished, and has grown to be one of the greatest programs of it’s kind in not only the nation, but in the entire world.

UConn is the only university in the country that offers puppetry in both the Undergraduate and Graduate levels, and is also the only university that offers a masters degree in puppetry.

“West Virginia is the only other University which offers a degree in Puppetry and only a BFA (Bachelor of Fine Arts). We offer a BFA, MA (Master of Arts) and MFA (Master of Fine Arts) degree,” said Director of the Puppet Arts Program Professor Bart Roccoberton.

UConn alumni from the Puppetry Arts program have gone on to work in all types of artistic venues from theatre to television and cinema.

“UConn Puppet grads are essential members of shows like Sesame Street Avenue Q… They also work for the Jim Henson foundation, Avant Garde Theater, and the related area of costume design,” said Dr. John Bell, Director of the Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry.

UConn Puppetry graduates are also play an important part in the film industry, and have worked in notable Hollywood films such as the original Spiderman 2 film.

“We also have people that go on tours, and one of our recent grads helped build costumes for Disney on Ice’s Frozen. Another alum is on Disney Channel, on the show Crash and Bernstein, one of the channels most popular shows,” said Roccoberton.

In the past few years the University has taken steps highlight the Ballard Institute of Puppetry- its location was moved recently to a brand new facility in the Storrs Center, in stark contrast to it’s previous location in the depot campus. “The University is finally catching up to it’s renown, what UConn has with Puppetry is unique, no other university [has] what we have with puppetry,” said Bell.

Next year, the UConn Puppet Arts program will celebrate its 50th year anniversary.

Exploring Your Summer Options

By: Reid DiRenzo

The University of Connecticut provides its students with many resources to help them find something to do over the summer. There is no right or wrong way to spend your summer, but UConn provides its students with many options for exploration and growth.

HuskyCareerLink and career fairs help students find jobs and network. Clubs and organizations provide students with summer trips or volunteer opportunities to work with people in need. Programs directed through UConn such as the Study Abroad program or summer courses allow students to continue taking classes.

Senior Lauren Almonte, 21, a Molecular and Cell Biology major went on a trip with 35 students on a 10-day-trip to the central coast region of Ghana during May. The trip was with the Global Brigades UConn division and was primarily a medical brigade. Almonte said they had spent “a day of meeting the community and finding out their health care needs and worries” and find out what they wanted in order to aid, not change the community. Aside from treating the community, Almonte said that the team spent a day traveling and sightseeing in the bigger cities and overall she had a “great time”.

“I think it completely changes your perspective about the world in general. It is so different even like the first few days it’s like a completely different world. It really opens your eyes to you know there’s different things outside the bubble of UConn that you could really help with and make a difference with,” said Almonte.

Phillys Yang, 21, a 7th-semester Finance major, worked as a financial optimization analyst for IBM at their operations headquarters in Somers, New York. Yang said she went to the School of Business Career Fair Expo, connected with the recruiter and eventually scored the co-op. Yang will be working in New York until December.

“Working at IBM has given me great insights to how a large corporation functions. Being part of a global company has really been teaching me how to improve my communication skills,” said Yang.

Besides working with Excel “checking emails throughout the day” and “joining conference calls” Yang said she made a lot of new friends. They frequently got together for happy hour, went to Yankee’s games or spent the day hanging-out in the city.

“I think I made a great choice choosing to take this semester to intern at IBM. I get to live in New York for 6 months, get great experience from a great company and enjoy having fun with the people I’m meeting. It’s like a semester working and being abroad,” said Yang.

Senior Catherine Goff, 21, an Economics major took a different route and spent most of her summer on Storrs campus taking summer classes in order to be able to graduate on time.

Goff said that it was better than staying home during the summer and “kept me productive.” There wasn’t much to do besides hang out with her roommate and go bowling occasionally, according to Goff. UConn did host summer events, but there weren’t many fliers to promote student interest, said Goff.

“The only thing I learned was not to take summer courses at UConn. There’s a lot of of important information that you miss when you take classes over the summer because they’re a lot shorter,” said Goff.

Whether you spend the summer soaking up the sun, studying or traveling to places you’ve never been before there is always something to learn and take with you.

 

Tailgating

Friday marks an important point in the new semester. Labs are pushed back, discussions get cancelled and lectures end early. However, when one door closes another one opens. This Friday also marks the beginning of the 2014-2015 UConn football season. Our Huskies are taking on the Brigham Young University Cougars at Rentschler Field in East Hartford. With the return of football and enjoyable weather comes great tailgating.

A tailgate can go wrong very easily, but given the right factors, your pre-game festivities can be ones to remember. One of the essential things for a successful tailgate is food. With a few hours to kill before a game, you’re going to need to stay fueled for the cheering to come. Just like at any party, the food is always held in the highest regard because for some, it is loved more than actual people. Food can set the mood of the tailgate party as well, and make it particularly festive. No one wants to go to a tailgate party to eat a cucumber salad – bring on the burgers, hot dogs and steaks. Veggie burgers are a crowd favorite also.

The only thing that should drown out the Husky chants before the game is the second thing necessary for a well-rounded tailgate. Music easily affects the states of mind of most people, and what better to accompany your sizzling grill than some great tunes your friends can sing along to. A Spotify playlist may be the way to go – mixing genres to please your entire friend group and subsequently bringing everyone together.

The next two factors go hand-in-hand – placement and shade. The August heat is brutal this year, and it will be just as hot when you are scarfing down a warm juicy burger. No one wants to celebrate the opening game with sunburn. Any type of shade will do – an umbrella, a canopy, the opened trunk of a car or even some personal shade in the form of a hat. When you are setting up shop, try to get there early and get as close to the field as possible. Getting close to the stadium allows you for longer party times, and also meeting some great people on their way into the arena.

There are bound to be other tailgaters, so make sure to stand out so your friends can find you. A large balloon or flag make this easier. This brings me to the final thing to complete this tailgate. You have the food, the tunes and the comfortable shade—all you need now is people to share it with. Load up the foldable chairs with your best friends- people who can turn sitting around into a great time. The memories you make will be shared with all of them. There are also a lot of other people cheering on our Huskies from behind their grills so make sure to go around and try to add them to your group.

Your tailgate will be one to remember; until the next game that is.

 

Dining Hall

By Paulina Rowe

 

As students venture to UConn for the first time or return to a familiar campus, one of the biggest adjustments they make is the transition from home-cooked meals to dining hall food. UConn students have a plethora of options when it comes to dining halls.  With eight different dining halls ranging from South’s comfort food to Whitney’s vegetarian and vegan alternatives, UConn offers choices that are bound to satisfy all preferences and appetites.

 

Despite the many options, dining hall food eventually loses its appeal. However, a solution to this inevitable rut may be available. Students can turn to a variety of tricks to help spice up their plates.

 

An easy way to tackle a culinary crisis is perhaps one of the most obvious—try something new. Dining halls often provide food that seems questionable or unfamiliar, but branching out and tasting that dish from McMahon that you can’t pronounce might prove to be delicious.

 

If unusual doesn’t suit you, you still have other choices. Taking the simple step to toast your sandwich can make a big difference in taste.  Or, better yet, you can experiment to come up with your own concoctions.

 

“One time last semester in Buckley I got tired of making grilled cheese,” said Casey Healey, a 3rd-semester Women’s Studies and Spanish double major. “So I made myself a grilled PB and J…it’s warm and delicious.”

 

UConn dining halls have all the basic ingredients that you can use to please your taste buds.  For example, one can add flavor to a plain soup by tossing in some cooked vegetables and chicken, or combine toast, tomatoes and olive oil to create bruschetta.  Additionally, panini makers always come in handy, converting a wrap into a yummy quesadilla.

 

It’s easy to underestimate the resources the dining hall provides, but keeping an eye out for small additions to your meal can have a big impact.

 

“I love the sandwich bar options, especially the marinated red peppers,” said Claire Boers, a fifth semester Journalism major. “It makes a panini so much more flavorful and ends up tasting better than one you can get at any restaurant!”

 

When it comes to dessert, UConn certainly doesn’t fall flat.  Various types of cookies and ice cream are almost always available.  If one wants to get creative, a scoop of ice cream and a glass of root beer can unite to form a root beer float.

 

“I load my ice cream with toppings like almonds and chocolate chips at home,” said Holly Chase, a third semester student, “so while at school I have to improvise with what’s available, like peanuts, granola, crushed sugar cone and peanut butter.”

 

Whether you can’t stand the thought of another dining hall meal or are just looking for ways to add some flavor to your food, UConn definitely has the resources you need. If all else fails, you can always look forward to Thanksgiving break.

World’s Wildest Commercials

By: Zarrin Ahmed

Chris Cornell from ABC’s “Purgatory” hosted “The World’s Wildest Commercials,” which ranged from awkward to entertaining, at 10 p.m. Thursday night.

The countdown began at 20 with a Heineken commercial from the Netherlands. Basically, it was guys drinking Heineken while watching other guys show their talent with Heineken bottles. What made it great was how in love all of them were with the beer — very inspiring.

Have you heard about the commercial where a guy eats hot sauce and runs from the restaurant, taking his clothes off on the way, and streaks during a football game? But backwards. That was number 19.

I repeatedly asked myself, “What the heck am I watching?” several times in the first five minutes.

At one point, I was scared to death while watching this commercial of a couple enjoying a picnic, when all of a sudden, a mudslide hits and the guy is falling off a cliff. His girlfriend is trying to save him, and I know he’s gonna die, he has to! But how? His toupee falls off, she’s blinded by his bald head, and down he goes. Moral of the story: Tragedies like that would never happen if men bought the hair growth treatment.

I also had the pleasure of watching two people play table tennis – with their farts. Thankfully a spokesman clarified for me, “What you just witnessed was borderline talent, not actual talent.”

The second half of the countdown started off with a commercial for diapers. If you thought there was only a No. 1 and a No. 2 when it came to using the bathroom, let me be the first to tell you: there’s a No. 3, and it’s explosive.

Everyone seems to be falling in love with the first person they see in an ad titled “Chaos,” a commercial for Axe Anarchy where the whole city falls to ruins while couples are hooking up.

They showed a number of commercials featuring animals, including one with a bear in a bear costume, and another about gangs of cats with thumbs and a vengeance for milk.

You know the Geico commercials about saving money? There’s a commercial that shows people going insane when they don’t save money on train rides — they go insane.

There’s also a commercial with this strangely adorable monster, but the commercial is actually about a car and how much the owner loves the car more than the cute monster. I loved watching a nerdy marketing rep show up some hoodlums when they ragged on his tie – he completely fried them with his rap. Soon after, a sea monster eat a runner.

This was the first time I’ve ever heard about “The World’s Weirdest Commercials,” and it was wildly entertaining.