The student newspaper of Imperial College Issue 1043 FELIX December 1st 1995 Charity Losers Rag Week in the Red BY MARK BRIDGE than its organisers and potential The Royal College of Science slaves as being present in the Union's Beer Festival failed to UCH last thursday. Although make a profit this year leaving some of the regular events of the Rag Week in the red. The week, including the flannings Festival normally returns a performed by the Hit Squad, healthy amount for Rag's chari- have been popular, the Mines ties, but has fallen victim to the Dirty Disco was under-patron- dearth in interest that has blight- ised. ed Rag's efforts this year. Although Rag actually The Beer Festival itself played very little part in the caused irritation for College and actual organisation of either of Union alike as neither College the events beyond providing the Catering, Estates, nor any of the float for the Disco, and the capi- college licensees said they were tal for the Beer Festival, Rag offi- consulted about the event. cers are angry- at the Royal Further, a senior Rag source said School of Mines Union because that Simon Cooper, the organis- they will not hand over they the er, was warned that a loss was proceeds of the Miners' Dirty very likely this year, as the event Disco event. had been running into difficul- In a letter to Rag the day ties. The RCSU have agreed to after the Disco, the RSMU have run several events to try and said that they will donate the make up for the very significant proceeds of their Disco directly losses, with astonishing reports to the charity they chose. Carpet Baggers! that over half the beer was not However, after further commu- touched. nication with Rag, the RSMU Before and after: a still-unnamed Royal Holloway student can be The other events of Rag said they might supply them a seen entering the Union on the night of Wednesday 11th of Week have also been hit by low receipt from the beneficiaries of November. The security video clearly shows the students leaving attendances. The Guilds Slave the donation to allay fears that Beit Quad just minutes later, bundling the ICU doormat out of the Auction could barely count more Continued on page 2 front gate while President Sarah White and Ents DJ Luke stand by. RCSU Homeless Hawking Lecture Proves Popular The RCSU has a new Vice The Royal Albert Hall was he had changed his mind about President, Ken Pritchard who packed last week when 5000 the possibility of time travel. He replaces Ruth Child. people came to hear a lecture by said that while subatomic parti- Completely unconnected Professor Stephen Hawking. cles may be able to travel back in with this are the problems they In the most well-attended time, quantum theory dictates have with their new temporary science lecture at the RAH since that large objects such as human offices in Biology. page 3 1933, Hawking explained why beings certainly could not. TWO . FELIX FRIDAY DECEMBER 1 ST 1995 NEWS continued from page one the RSMU executive taking an the miners have just walked off increasing dislike over the past with the money. few years to Rag's methods for News in brief The RSMU organisers have raising money, believing they complained bitterly that Rag did lacked any ethos. BY MARK BRIDGE ...and Last Week's not clear the customers out of Rob Park, speaking for the The man who was arrested and Da Vinci's before the event or Royal College of Science Union, Another Hall Burglary charged with attempted burglary provide a cloakroom; both of felt that more publicity would Olave Hall, one of the college in Weeks Hall last week is still in which had customarily been part not have gone amiss. "You need halls on Knightsbridge, was vis- custody. He is refusing to of Rag's responsibilities. But the publicity all the time," he said. ited by a burglar last Monday, answer any questions. acrimony between Rag and the "When I told some people about probably entering via a door that He was apprehended when RSMU goes back further, with the event [after it had hap- was left propped open. The thief a student contacted Security pened] they were interested like broke into two rooms and stole after she became suspicious of anything". over a hundred pounds of cash. his intent. He had barged into On a happier note, Austin her room and claimed he was Jones of the City and Guilds ...and Another looking for a toilet. Union said that they raised at Linstead - A man was seen leav- It is believed that the man least £200 (the figure excludes ing a room carrying a jar of tea. may be a part of a trio of thieves sums collected by Rag members He asked for some milk and left. targeting IC this year. at the event). He added, though, A small sum of cash and a watch that a greater sum may have were later reported missing by Discipline Problems been collected if the sabbaticals the occupant. This follows the A fourth year RSM student who took part in the Slave Auction. arrest of another intruder in kicked a hole in a plasterboard That is not to say, however, that Weeks Hall on the 21st. wall in the Concert Hall faced a the Sabbaticals have not been Police sources advise people Union Disciplinary earlier this getting involved, as proved by who see someone suspicious week. The Committee accepted Sarah White, who was flanned should try. and record their facial his story that he thought it was a twice during the week by the Hit features and actions and call solid brick wall and levied a £20 PHOTO: DIANA HARRISON Squad. security. fine. The door's open, but nobody's Rag officials were unable to coming in. Interest in Rag has comment on the total sum raised been fading. so far this year. Welfare Snubbed by Prof BY ANDY SINHARAY House thought that "it was an A union official was told her insensitive reply... they [the war- Calculator Ban in Exams request for information on IC dens] are there for student wel- disciplinary proceedures 'caused fare.. I wish the warden would BY ALEX FEAKES Now, the Board of a great deal of amusement' this re-examine his views, they College Examiners have decreed Examiners have said that it is week. Whilst researching for shouldn't be put forward in such that students will no longer be unfeasible for invigilators to be Welfare Week, Julia Knight, a blunt manner." allowed to bring their own calcu- expected to check that every cal- RCSU Welfare Rep, circulated a Although Prof New was lators in to external examina- culator has been wiped, and hav- letter to Wardens for informa- unable for comment, there was tions, starting in the summer of ing every student with the same tion concerning disciplinary pro- little sympathy for Julia's letter 1996. Instead, they will be calculator will 'level the field'. cedure for offences in halls. from other quarters. College issued with a standard depart- Departments around the college Professor Geoff New of tutor Dr Gareth Jones, who ment-approved model incorpo- were consulted on their prefer- Falmouth Keogh Hall gave the deals with welfare said that Miss rating the basic scientific opera- ence for the standard machine, only reply. He said that he Knight "seems quite unaware of tions. and three calculators have been assumed her request was not the student disciplinary hand- The move to exclude stu- shortlisted for further investiga- meant to be taken seriously, but continued on next page dents own calculators was taken tion. These are the Casio fx82 that if it was she was under 'a earlier this month at a meeting of super, Casio fx85s and the Sharp total misapprehension about dis- the College Board of Examiners, EL 532gh. cipline in IC in general.' where concern over the increas- Vernon McClure, the Professor New's response ing sophistication of the Academic Registrar, stressed was considered by many stu- machines was discussed. In the that there was no need for stu- dents to be sarcastic and dismis- past, the instructions to candi- dents to purchase any of these sive, though questions have been dates sent to each student listed machines, as some will be avail- raised over whether or not Julia's a group of forbidden calculators, able for familiarisation purposes approach was justified. Miss considered too powerful for the next term. He said that the Knight said she "was very disap- exams to be fair. Other calcula- examiners decision would lead pointed" by his reply, "consider- tors with memories or programs to "parity of treatment" and ing the serious nature of my ini- had to have them wiped before maintain the "integrity of the tial request." The House entering the examination room. examination." Chairman at Bernard Sunley NEWS FELIX FRIDAY DECEMBER 1ST 1995 . THREE RCSU Homeless BY ANDY SINHARAY card access that the Biology The Royal College of Science department operates. There are, Union will be homeless when Stuart added, "no possibilities they leave their current site this for people wanting to buy weekend. As reported in Felix regalia, tickets, etc." Rob Park, 1042, the RCSU is soon to move their Publicity Officer, added temporarily to the Biology "We'll have to store our non- department, due to the immi- essentials in the Queen's nent demolition of their current Tower," which includes the premises in the Old Chemistry Gestetner printer used for Building.