Issue 1211 Wednesday 27th June 2001 Imperial? Geafi & REPORTS THE X-FILES BYE FROM US M free drink of a from Ipm-Spm It .one 1 from 7pm-Som • 9 5106 DCT5 iCU BACARDI &AflflKfififi TI SWiiB IMPERIAL COLLEGE UN^^ ofter ?pffl; free uiith snts cord S.00 icu S.50 other flip IK'S Contents EWS nmer Ball rotfcs & any !ote news we might Felix funds abducted Bankrupt company burns hole in newspaper's pocket Insurance and genetic testing HAM FOSTER lishing company in order to further his beliefs. It was the start of a downhill spiral for Jelix narrowly avoided a financial crisis last Marchfirst, whose European arm finally went bust week when a major advertiser filed for bank- last month, and employees in several cities broke itcy- in a stock market crash being directly into the company's offices in order to reclaim pos- buted to aliens. sessions and obtain severance pay. At the begin- [inting of last weeks issue was suspended by ning of this year, Marchfirst took out a series of Union's Executive Committee on Monday 11th full colour, full-page advertisements in Felix, but j>r Deputy President (Finance & Services) later claimed that they would be unable to pay until nne Pollard expressed concern over Editor Mr Clifford explained why the adverts were about .qnd goodbye ffom him In Clifford's handling of the finances. Mr Pollard two shades out (although most people could notice I Exec that Felix could lose up to £40,000 this any difference). Unable to do so, and aware of ;r unless something was done. This figure was Mi's problems, he sought the Union's advice, who I disputed by anyone present, recommended he offer them a "sub- Mr Clifford had not been told I stantial discount". Despite this, M1 Does imperial hove a geeky, ;h a discussion was being| are still believed to owe Felix around :..;. I I £3,000 for October's advertising, and Mr Pollard's main concern Finance Office are pessimistic about jfie from Felix's invoicing of the chances of any money from the lertisers, with approximately receivers. ,000 of invoicing still to do at Mr Clifford denied that he was at • time of Exec. The figure of fault over Marchfirst, but did admit 0,000, which he spoke of that he had got behind on invoicing ma Mr Clifford for, was • this term, which he attributed to "Felix jarently based on no further HH|Editor in Summer Syndrome"; too Dicing, no advertising in the ™much to do, too many people doing King Adofa, Soulwax & Turin two issues, and Finance — exams. The £8,000 backlog of invoic- ew fee failing to collect any of HBBHmg was cleared during the eight days money Felix is owed from Joe Firmage: Alien conspiracies Felix was suspended, he added, and Jertising. Although the job of invoicing is down he expected that Felix would receive all the money he Felix Editor, with advertising in student pub- it was owed, assuming no more companies went tions invariably carried out on credit, credit bankrupt. Exec ordered that Mr Clifford cleared It's weird, it's quirky, it ain't Men trol is handled by the Union's own finance the entire backlog of the invoices before Felix be Iartment. In a meeting which took place later allowed to go to press this week. Mr Clifford told Felix staff, "This bizarre figure Felix staff were described as feeling "frustrated" ased on obscene incompetence from all parties at having a weeks' worth of work go to waste, and olved... it's a shame no-one asked me about it." all felt that if Exec or Mr Pollard had a problem flfailerped signs off for (no year fe added, "The main problem isn't sending out with their editor's conduct, they should be able to with o record-breaking 3-page Dices for this term- most issues have been paid talk to him face-to-face rather than making deci- with profit from earlier terms, which was all sions behind closed doors. loiced and should have been paid by now. Our Following the re-instatement late last week, liest problem stems from Marchfirst." shortly before Etienne left for his holidays, Mr Barchfirst was a multinational strategy consul- Clifford told staff, "It's a shame that Felix, which Guru CingagaS got followed icy company, which essentially provided man- has always looked for transparency and fairness in $§^k::k't§0 §WAT tetfe; on ment advice for Internet start-up businesses, the Union, should be treated like this. If you have a Thursday, so this week's are o rough it survived the "bursting" of the "Internet problem with someone, you should be able to talk range... ible" fairly intact, the company later ran into to them about it rather than making allegations and jlems when its CEO, Joe Firmage, announced decisions behind peoples' backs. As well as making belief that all human technology was derived us miss an issue, it reflects pretty badly on the ..and that's it for now Nighty mj aliens. He later left in order to set up a pub- whole Union." Felix 121 1 Cover image: Tom Bailess • Felix 27th June 2001 News •n Saturday 30th June, The Royal Albert Hall is hosting" trial tours for the "London Open House" season. The Hall would like to invite all Imperial College students, staff and friends to take a tour between 9am and 11 am and learn a little about it's history and architecture. j There also will be free tea, coffee and croissant for all par ticipants. If you would like to take part in this unique event, please contact Sally Howgego at [email protected] or telephone 020 7589 3203 Ext 2202. Recreational Clubs Committee Colours Awards Announcement Tuesday night we paid homage to the individuals within the recreational clubs committee who have gone above and beyond in the name of their club. Whilst we, the executive, have tried our best to encourage, sup- port and represent you over the course of this academic year, we wouldn't be anywhere without the skill and manpower that each individual member invests in it's club or society. We have been impressed with each and every one of you and, whilst everyone has made different contribu- tions to the running of their club, only a handful are awarded colours each year. Inevitably, there are people who may have been overlooked and, no doubt, some of you will disagree with our choices. But, the important thing to remember is that you don't need a certificate to prove your value to a club. On the other hand, sincere thanks to the following for their amazing effort this year: Daniel Carrivick Half Commitment Colours Maxim Steinberg Half Achievement Colours Andrew Jurd Half Commitment Colours Helen Jones Half Achievement Colours John Richardson Half Commitment Colours Matthew Dawson Half Social Colours Luke Rebbeck Half Achievement Colours Katie Sykes Half Commitment Colours Mithi Shafiq Half Commitment Colours Hemraj Nithianandarajah Full Commitment Colours Ellis Williams Half Achievement Colours Ben Ogborne Full Achievement Colours Indika Gunaratne Full Achievement Colours Barry Gale Full Commitment Colours Enrique Wing Half Achievement Colours Rajiv Chakradaran Full Commitment Colours Paris Deligiannakis Half Commitment Colours • 27th June 2001 Felix Ball makes a profit \great night was had by most... IK EDWARDS rarly indications suggest that last L Saturday's Summer Ball broke with tra- jition and made money- as well as providing .igreat night's entertainment As planned, the attractions ranged from (le James Taylor Quartet live on the (ueen's Lawn to last minute stand-ins Dope imugglaz in the Great Hall. A miniature fair- round offered Dodgems and a coconut shy, thile indoors had a casino, free ice-cream nd a cheesy disco, to name but a few of the Itractions. Following the release of an additional 150 ckets two days beforehand, Chair Idris larding estimates that some 1350 tickets iere sold, with at least an estimated £2,500 i go to the Union, although whether this pes into central funds or to next year's ball iunclear. Mr Harding paid tribute to the volunteers to worked "tirelessly" for up to a week to '<t up the venue, as well as stewards and Inion staff who "went the extra mile to lake the evening a success." ...and it's in to Beit Quad for a, ahem, quick pit stop Friday 1st June saw students and staff taking part in the Pit Stop Challenge in Beit Quad. With a large crowd present and fierce compe- tition, all that was lacking from the Formula One atmosphere was the petrol. Special congratulations are deserved by the team in charge of the car, who managed to get it through the Beit Quad arch despite half the passageway being closed off for paving- with- out putting a scratch on it. Although the teams varied in their levels of expertise and co-ordination, organisers said that they were impressed by the level of tech- nical skills on display. • Felix 27th June 2001 News STAFF NEWSPAPER OF IMPERIAL COLLEGE OF SCIENCE. TECHNOLOGY, MEDICINE & MANAGEMENT Issue 109 27th June 2004 Distorter Rector's new office unveiled A VISION for the future- an impression of the Rector's state of the art new The building was designed by M'lud Foster & Partners, who also designed management suite, made possible by his donation to the College from That Wobbly Bridge Across The Thames, That Stadium We Can't Afford and Glaxosmithkline. The new office oversees the main entrance to College, the BMS.