VOLUME CVIII, NUMBER 4 PASADENA, CALIFORNIA OCTOBER 16, 2006 Alumni and Biology Professors Meet President of Iceland Photo courtesy of Andrew Shaindlin Photo courtesy of BY: ANNA HISZPANSKI Reykjavík, the Caltech group was welcomed to the country at a re- A few weeks before under- ception hosted by the President grads returned to Tech for a year of Iceland and the former prime of classes, exams, and field trips, minister of Iceland at the Presi- undergrads of years past came dentʼs residence. The Alumni As- together this past August to take sociation was able to arrange the a kind of field trip of their own. special welcoming because the However, unlike most typical former prime minister of Iceland, field trips, this one took alums Steingrimur Hermannsson, is a across the Atlantic to Iceland and Caltech alum from the Class of began with a welcoming by the 1952. President of the country. “I contacted [Hermannsson] to “The Alumni Association does see if he was willing to welcome what we consider ʻeducational the group at a reception, and he toursʼ for alumni. We typically emailed me back saying he would have two or three trips a year, try to do even better than that,” usually overseas,” said Andrew said Shaindlin. “He said the cur- Alumni sailed an Icelandic glacial lagoon in this amphibious “duck”. Shaindlin, Executive Director rent President would be glad to of the Alumni Association. “We host our group at a reception at company does not offer tours, but said sophomore and biology ma- established by an anonymous do- look for faculty who can lead the his residence, and that was our because two Caltech alums hold jor Angela Zah, the only under- nor specifically for the purpose of trip and whose expertise is related official welcome.” high management positions in the graduate on the trip. “Iceland is sponsoring undergrads to travel to the itinerary. Then [the profes- Keeping in-line with their goal company, special arrangements a really isolated country. Itʼs a on the alumni trips. sors] can give firsthand informa- of “doing things that you couldnʼt were made. closed community and pretty ho- “This is not something that tion to the alums so it makes it a do if you werenʼt with Caltech According to Shaindlin, many mogeneous. So what they can do students apply for,” said Shaind- unique Caltech experience.” [on the trip],” the Alumni Asso- Icelandic families have records is take two individuals from one lin. “When we identify a trip that Biology Professors Scott Fraser ciation was also able to arrange of their family trees that trace a family, one with a genetic disease we want to do, we ask the fac- and Marianne Bronner-Fraser led a private tour of the headquar- familyʼs roots to Icelandʼs found- and one without, and compare ulty leader or leaders to identify the Icelandic trip, whose focus ters of deCODE Genetics, a bio- ing in the 9th century. The com- their genomes to gene-target for a small number of students who was the unique genetics research pharmaceutical company in the bination of genealogy, detailed diseases.” could potentially participate and taking place in Iceland. Both capital Reykjavík that conducts medical histories, and Icelandʼs The Alumni Association typi- who alumni would enjoy travel- professors previously led alumni research in genetics and applies isolation allows deCODE to bet- cally invites one or two students ing with. Based on those criteria, expeditions to the Galápagos Is- its advancements towards de- ter study and understand genetic to join the trip. Zah was selected the faculty and alumni staff select lands and Costa Rica, as well. veloping drugs to treat various diseases. for the Icelandic trip, and her ex- one or two students to go.” Upon arriving in the capital, “deCODE is really amazing,” penses were covered by a fund genetic diseases. Typically the Continued on page 2 Volleyball Loses in Doubleheader DVD Library Reopens tween Lloyd and Page. The delay BY: MATTHEW GLASSMAN BY: DANIEL ROWLANDS was caused by the need to prepare the new check-out computer for After spending last year in Techers donned body paint last use. storage, the ASCIT DVD lending While the library was in stor- Friday night as the volleyball library will be available for use team suited up for their second age last year, ASCIT Frosh Direc- any day now. The DVDs will be tor at Large Chris Watson spear- double header of the season and available for check-out by under- ASCIT hosted the first athletic headed an effort to get it back grads and grad students at Cof- into service as soon as possible. barbecue of the season. The eve- feehouse in the Red Door each ning began with a tough loss to The BoC donated a laptop that evening and can be checked out it was no longer using to run the the West Coast Baptist Eagles for a period of three days. (24-30, 15-30, 25-30) and ended check-out system and Evan Mur- The library contains several phy wrote the software to run the with another defeat by the Uni- hundred DVDs, including clas- versity of Dallas Crusaders (16- system. sics, sci-fi films, and a number The library will be stored on 30, 15-30, 14-30). of Russian and Korean language “We played really hard, and the second floor of Winnett dur- films. A complete listing can be ing the day and will be brought weʼre pretty exhausted,” said co- found on the Donut website. captain and setter Sarah Stidham into the Red Door for use during Several years ago, ASCIT de- Coffeehouse. The only remaining on the teamʼs effort. “This was voted some of its excess money probably one of the better nights delay is obtaining a cart to store to building the DVD library and and transport the DVDs. of our season.” improving the acoustics in the The women played both games Watson said that ASCIT is try- ASCIT Screening Room. The li- ing to get a cart from the Caltech in a gymnasium packed with fans. brary was kept in the SAC until Hopes were high that Caltech (0- libraries, but if they canʼt they it was closed for the South House have funds on hand to purchase 9) might have pulled off a win Restoration. against West Coast Baptist (9-9) one. DVDs were checked out by While there are currently no to mark the first intercollegiate swiping oneʼs ID and scanning victory in two seasons. plans to purchase new DVDs, IHC the DVDʼs barcode. A computer Chair Craig Montuori said that it “If we didnʼt have so much system designed by Ryan and stress from work, weʼd be able is “somewhat likely” next yearʼs Graham Yoakum kept track of BoD will be interested in replac- to beat these [teams],” exclaimed which DVDs were available and topless fan Constantine Sideris ing DVDs that have been lost. At who had the checked-out ones. the moment there is no procedure with a huge exclamation-point After the SAC closed, the li- painted across his chest. in place for students to request brary went into a state of limbo. additions to the library—a sug- After the first match, fans The DVDs themselves were kept strolled out to the track to grab a gestion box is likely to be placed by a series of students while the in Coffeehouse along with the li- bite to eat at the athletic barbecue, DVD cases have gone missing run by the Meat Club. Two grills brary, but ASCIT hasnʼt decided and are thought to be in storage how many requests they will fill cooked everything from burgers somewhere in St. Lukeʼs Medical to steaks to vegetable skewers. or the timescale for additions to Center. the library. The volleyball players could be There were rumors that the li- seen getting a quick snack before Caltechʼs volleyball team fought hard in two back-to-back games. The GSC recently contributed brary might become available at a significant amount of money to heading back to the gym for the The last time volleyball won While the women have won a few some point last year, but the only the library, and will presumably second match. a match was in the 2004 season, games, they have never won a visible sign of the libraryʼs exis- “It was better than CDS on a against the same West Coast have some say in how that money Continued on page 2 tence was the DVD return box is used. Friday night,” one student said. Baptist they played last Friday. near the student mailboxes be- In This Issue Career Fair Special Medieval Club Battles it Up Page 6 New Season of Numb3rs Sizzling Sensations at Mannionʼs Page 8 Page 4 Mathematica Adds Up Page 8 Page 6 Dr. Quark Rescues Techers Again Page 12 2 THE CALIFORNIA TECH NEWS OCTOBER 16, 2006 The Outside World Announcement leading to his arrest. BY: HAROLD MARTIN Bangladeshi Economist Russian Reporter Killed, Wins Nobel Peace Prize New Space Contest World Responds to North Final Report Published Muhammad Yunus won the NASAʼs Aeronautics Research Monetary awards ranging from Koreaʼs Nuclear Test Two weeks ago, outspoken 2006 Nobel Peace Prize for his Mission Directorate announced a $1,000 to $5,000 may be avail- Since it reported its first nucle- Russian journalist Anna Polit- creation of the concept of “micro- new aeronautics competition for able for first place winners in each ar test last Monday, North Korea kovskaya was slain, apparently credit”, small loans to those too high school and college students.