Computer of future remains on display today
By CHERI O'NEIL
Of the Emerald
During the wee hours of the
morning when most people are
restoring brain cells by the pro
cess we call sleeping, two large
computers in the University com
puting center are hard at work on
administrative matters.
No, it’s not a gruesome
graveyard shift. In fact, these
7-and 11-year-old geniuses work
24 hours a day and they are worth
nearly a million dollars each.
But that doesn’t mean they are
exempt from maintenance or
eventual destruction. Frederic
Beisse, managing director of the
computing center, said he won
ders if the University will be able to
teach a search
class this
summer or
next fail
contact
alternative
education
suite I emu
686-4377
deadline
may 30
meet future computer aemanas.
He claims some of the faculty feel
threatened that the computers are
unnecessary luxury expenditures
not known about or used years
ago.
Beisse believes it is vital to edu
cate both students and professors
with today’s computers so that
they will realize the services pro
vided by the machines.
One way for persons to learn
about the new era in computers is
to stop in anytime today in Room
205 of the computing center, lo
cated across from the Bookstore
on Kincaid Street, for a demonst
ration of the Plato system de
veloped at the University of Il
linois.
This computer is a learning de
vice with thousands of hours of
lessons flashed on a television
screen. Students can respond to
the computer and immediately re
ceive feedback from the terminal.
The center may apply for a
grant to rent a similar terminal,
Beisse said. National Science
Foundation grants made possible
the purchases of the two large
computers. The Plato system
rents for about $1,000 a month and
“a lot of people must clamor to use
it before such a computer can be
installed,” Boisse noted.
An estimated 15 per cent of the
University students have contact
with the large computers at some
point during college. The center is
not a tool used only by computer
science students. Beisse asses
sed them to make up only 12 per
cent of total users.
The computers are used in re
search in all departments and for
administrative tasks, such as
grades, transcripts, registration
packets, time schedules and other
materials directly related to stu
dents. Financial matters of the
University are handled in Corval
lis.
The next movement on the
computer scene, according to
Beisse, is the impact of the
micro-computer similar to the
pocket calculator market. Prices
of calculators have decreased
from $1,000 ten years ago to $100
three years ago. Today, one can
be purchased for $8.99.
Computers may never sell for
$8.99 but Beisse foresees that
five years from now they may be
purchased as learning devices for
$500 to instruct students without
books or professors. He predicted
that many people will want to own
computers because of their con
venience and low cost.
The wave of the future in com
puters is building up now for an
inevitable breakthrough of some
sort. The future computer may
eventually put computing centers
like the University's out of busi
ness, but the computing facilities
now seem worthy of providing in
struction, research and numerous
other services.
Go over and check out the
computing center in your spare
time. Free tutorials, tours and
consulting services are offered
from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in
Room 153 of the center.
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Dogs
his original misconceptions about sledding. ‘The first time I came
across a dog sled I was cross-country skiing and I thought “that looks
easy compared to this’,” he recalls. “But actualy dog sledding is more of
a work out. You want to get out of your sled and help your dogs
whenever possible. You want them to enjoy sledding."
Schluter says he spends 50 to 60 per cent of Ns time running
behind the sled. His longest trip so far has been 50 miles.
Schluter communicates romantic enthusiasm for sledding. “On
one trip we were sledding to the green lakes near the South Sister and
Brokentop,” he recalls. “We came into the lakes at 2 a.m. There was a
three-quarters moon so we could just barely see the trees. We slept
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right in the sleds ... It was a great feeling.”
Schluter says the excitement is so great on these trips he seldom
eats more than an apple or some jerky over a weekend.
Other sledding enthusiasts often go sledding with Schluter and he
borrows some of their dogs to fill out a nine-dog team. Teams of other
sledders range up to 12 dogs. “You're out there where nobody's been
before with 35 dogs staked out and four people," says Schluter. “It’s
amazing to see that many animals under control."
But ScNuter’s dogs are not always so subdued. He rec^ls one of
Ns first trips with a friend. “Peter got out of the sled to check the dogs,
leaving me inside, and the dogs bolted," says Schluter. “The sled
capsized and they dragged me 60 yards in the snow before stopping.
That’s the first time I realized how much power those dogs really have.”
Because he uses no whip, the only control Schluter has over Ns -
dogs once they start running is what sledders call the “Gee, Haw”
method of direction. You yell “Gee!” to turn the dogs right and “Haw!” to
turn them left.
Although Schluter says Ns dogs have been bred for enthusiasm
and strength, he emphasizes that control comes only with familiarity
and friendship with their owner. Schluter spends anywhere from two to
four hours with his dogs each day. His bedroom window looks out on
where the dogs sleep. Although he spends some time with his dogs in
friendly play, the experiences in the harness must be treated seriously
“You have to like dogs, and have the patience to put up with them,” he
says. “A failure of the dogs to respond to a voice command could cost
you or your dog’s life.”
Using a wheel cart, ScNuter is able to harness up and ride with his
dogs on cement, dirt or sand — without snow. This must be done in the
cool hours of the morning or evening, preferably during the dark, to
prevent the cold-accustomed huskies from becoming overheated.
The dogs are harnessed in pairs to a lead line, which is connected
to the sled. The lead dog, Bell, is harnessed alone and leads the pack
“We had to shine a flashlight so Bell could see,” West adds.
Schluter realizes he will not be able to keep his dogs in a kennel
indefinitely. “I’m willing to sacrifice my $1,600 a month job at the wood
processing plant for my dogs,” he says. “Right now I’m thinking about
moving to a place where they will be more at home. Probably Bend or
Lake Tahoe and, of course, I’d really like to go to Alaska.”
Schluter’s home, built onto the side of a hill, from the inside looks
like something out of Alaska. Not only is light limited on the uphill side,
but the decor includes a poster of three old miners, a cactus planted in a
gold pan and a sleeping bag on the bed.
“Yes, ” says Schluter about his home, “I like the wilderness style of
living. Of course I’m into other things, too, but right now my dogs are my
pnmary concern. Dog sledding is more than a hobby,” he concludes
“It’s a commitment.”