Wrestling with Book Prices Recess from a Thesis? No Rest Stop in Sight

Volume VI, Issue 24 April 22, 1997 Snap into it! WRESTLING RECESS FROM A THESIS? WITH BOOK by Hugh R. Brown tructural engineer, Paskosld noted that Like a bam raising of old, the colorful this project is "pretty darn technical." PRICES tructure of Heidi Paskoski 's thesis play Upon request, she opened a tome contain Part One ground comes into view from behind the ing early drawings of the play structure, by Rocky Swift trees beside College Hall. This new ar diagrams of the frame members, and a Every semester, students of every dis rival on the bay front is a play tructure multitude of equations and calculations. cipline grimace with pain as they buy for adults. All forces upon tbe structure were ac course books for their clas es. Chances Built to the scale of the (physically) counted for, which ties directly to her are these are the priciest books they will fully grown, the elements of this play physics background. The plan were ana ever read and the cost just keeps going structure range in heights from nine to lyzed at an engineer's office. With the aid up. With new textbooks ranging in price thirteen feet. Its features include a slide, of a computer (the calculations involved from $60 to $80, one has to ask: where elevated platforms, monkey bars, cargo hundreds of equations), the framework does all that money go? nets, and a crew's nesl. Still weeks to was determined to be structurally sound. Essentially there are three major par completion, two walls glazed with multi Paskoski is amenable to the idea of ties involved in the production of colored Plexiglas are already standing. creating grand, tangible works as a thesis academic texts: the authors, the publish Heidi Paskoski's area of concentration project, but she admits that it is not for ers and the college stores. They all want is of the Natural Sciences, although much everyone. On the rationale behind build your money. of her studies have included physics. One ing the playground, she said, "Basically, I For the academic authors, however, might wonder how building a playground wanted to do a thesis project that every royalties are u ually not the primary in relates to a Natural Sciences major. This one could understand, use, and have fun centive for writing texts. Statistics from project, said Pasko ki, integrates physics, the A sociation of Publishers and the art, and the fun of building. An aspiring SEE "PLAYGROUND" ON PAGE 7 National A ociation of College Stores show that authors get between 7.5 and 10% of the revenues their book earn. For NO REST STOP IN SIGHT many professors, authorship is more im by Charles Choi valved "in this cinder block of a school. portant for notoriety with their peers, or Three-and-a·half hours of hell is how This is not our lives," and with that with they believe that they can fill a niche in I'd de cribe the town meeting, mostly be drew his bid for a Student Court position. their field's lexicon. For chemistry pro cause I had to pee around halfway into it There was some is ue as to whether or fessor Paul Scudder, students were the but I couldn't leave because I had to not the petition could go to ballot. Since a primary motivation in his decision to cover the damn thing. town meeting can overrule anything, it write a textbook. The first item on the agenda con was struck down 51 to 3, with Jon Cooper cerned a petition for a fund-request protesting the fact that a town meeting SEE "TEXTBOOKS" ON PAGE 4 referendum for Tal Greenberg. The peti struck down a popular motion, no matter tion got 69 signatures, but was generally what the motion was. Afterwards, a public INSIDE regarded as a joke. Greenberg, who did apology to Greenberg was unanimously not write the referendum, opened up an proposed. Ivory Tower ................. .3 impassioned speech with a quote from Half of the town meeting on Monday Marcus Aurelius: "Existence is all van was devoted to meeting the student candi Food Project ...................3 ity." He stated though he didn't stand for date who were up for elections on Concert Review: Metallica ....... .5 the petition, he also didn't care about Thesday. The rest of it was spent dis what people did with it. cussing whether or not there should be Election Re ults ................7 Greenberg agreed with Colleen Butler, rules of order for future town meetings, Amnesty International ...........8 who said she found the petition morally and what those rules might be if we were Earth Day Observations ..........9 offensive, but that it was not hi problem. He said that we shouldn't get too in- SEE "TOWN MEETING" ON PAGE 2 2 The Catalyst News April 22, 1997 "TOWN MEETING" FROM PAGE 1 of holding the meetings, while Alisdair vehement flame wars on online news Lee noted that the students chose the sim groups as such an example. In fact, to have them. plified version of Robert's Rules that we Cooper hoped that newsgroups might Mediation was the main focus, as it is use now, and that nothing was wrong with allow students some premeditation, "to often hard to get people to talk and stay side conversations if they were not dis think out what you say... to see many dif on topic in the limited time available for ruptive. ferent points of view before stating your town meetings. Margaret Hughes felt that The presidents brought up the possible own." there should be some mediation, or other reuse of the microphone, which they The president(s) are mediators by tra wise "the loud will take over and usurp stopped bringing to meetings out of the dition, but the current presidents responsibility." genera] apathy toward it. Co-President suggested that could change, if the stu Warren "Trip" Linnerooth was con Martha Alter felt that this was due to the dents wanted it to. The task of the cerned that efforts to silence those talking delays that took place whenever the mi mediator is important, as the job decides out of turn amounted to censorship. crophone was passed around and to the who gets to talk. The general consensus "Some people may think that I was dis fact that many students didn't want to was that mediation could be flexible, in ruptive as hell, really annoying. But walk up to the microphone. that at times town meetings should be free someone mentioned respect, and taking Linnerooth was concerned over the form. freedom of speech an act of violence." possible dampening of emotion in town Hughes brought up the point that the Linnerooth was responding to Erin meetings due to technology. He and a mediator isn't supposed to participate in Skelly, who felt the rules were there "to number of others also felt that using ami any discussion, according to Robert's legislate respect for speakers and for get crophone as a focus for mediation brought Rules. There was a lot of disagreement as ting things done. Some are too timid to up unpleasant connotations about authori to where the mediator should be selected speak out of turn. Those that can't hold tarian rule, and Linnerooth cited the book from; students, faculty, administration, or their 'wonderful thoughts' in act ... as if Lord of the Flies. alums? what they say is so much more important Dave Heifetz pointed out that what Cooper was in favor of a non-student than anyone else." ever connotations others might project mediator to protect "the sanctity of medi All meetings are open to the public, onto an inanimate object were irrelevant ation," as some students might have but anyone can be excluded by a 2/3 vote, to the fact that the microphone allowed vested interests. Hughes suggested that according to section 8.6 of the NCSA those at the town meeting to hear a the mediators should be rotated from a constitution. Evan Greenlee suggested speaker over ambient noise. "We can hear pool of students, formally trained in ses that the position of parliamentarian or whatever a person is saying, as opposed sion every year. Jason Palmeri believed sergeant-at-arms be created, so that the to talking on top of each other." that it was "part of the student responsi constitutional rules could be enforced. Cooper suggested the possible use of bility to get a student mediator," in part to A unanimous sentiment was that the internet to aid in discussion of items prove to Tampa that New College could Robert's Rules Of Order were far too for on agenda before town meetings. He regulate itself. mal, which the constitution suggests using thought that Linnerooth was wrong about The town meeting ended with specula if no other rules are present. Ben Hodges the effect of technology on emotion due tion over how and when future town brought up a more conversational means to experiential proof to the contrary, citing meetings should end. The Catalyst is available on the World Wide Web at ,Cl:Jta lyst http :l!www.sar. usf edu/-catalyst/ ~I?J6.n..c~ All"'.....,~ Direct submissions and inquiries to: General Editor Michelle Wolper The Catalyst Managing Editor 5700 N. Tamiami Tr. Box #75 Heather Oliver Sarasota, FL 34243 ntertainment Editor [email protected] Aaron Gustafson Staff Writers Submissions may also be placed in the Catalyst box marked "Letters to the Editor/Contribu Hugh Brown, Charles Choi, Pat Griffin, tions" (in the student government boxes next to Barbara Berggren's office).

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