900Numbers:
Scourge of
OurSociety?
By Michael Ollie Clayton
■ Sagebrush
U. ot Nevada, Reno
In what ranks as thi* vilest, most
crass misuse of the information a^e,
we find ourselves overtaken by a
new math Currently, the difference
between H and 9 is $2.45, plus 45
cents for every minute thereafter
1-800 numbers art* fret*
1-900 numbers aren't
The 1-900 phenomenon is typi
cally American It is aimed at dup
ing dollars out of the young, the
ignorant and the millions of glazed
eyed groupies across the heartland
Innocent sheep art* being led to the
slaughterhouse by advertising
executives across the world
Of course we can't forget ahout the
telephone company, as they obvious
ly participate in this information
age phenomenon — all via some
interlocking board of directorate
(Paranoid'1 Perhaps, but at least 1
know the difference between a man
and a machine I
Many of the stars and idols in the
music, television and film industry
are now at ones fingertips (literal
ly' You can now call virtually any
star and have he. she or it talk to
you anytime, day or night And the
■stars’ do talk, though not “to’ you.
but ‘at’ you
After they get you hooked, they
add a little spice in order to keep
your fingers dialing The 1-900
menu is long and varied A few such
examples of what's being offered
are "STREET TALK" - you'd do
better going to the movies or w atch
mg the evening news; Jeanne
Dixon’s “STAR GAZING!" - the
same Jeanne I) who has an accoun
tant, tax lawyer and financial plan
ner predicting her (fortune) future;
and “SECRETS" — you can hear
the most intimate secrets: Jill is
pregnant. Jack is guy. Mary had a
little half-human lamb
I’d like to get in on this one. I’m
a greedy pig too! Imagine the glory,
the fame, the cash flow, if I were* to
start a number 1-900-CLAYTON'
What would my earth-shattering
message be’’ Well, I’d ramble on for
a "few' minutes about tin* environ
ment, getting an education, invest
ing in IRA-., wearing condoms, tin
golden rule, peace, etc Then. I'd
kindly turn the- floor over to you.
BOOK REVIEW
Transfer Tactics
Two students from Brown l\ co-authored .1 hook to help
students make an easy transition to a new school
Page 15
FINANCE
Market Madness
The AT&T Collegiate Investment Challenge gives stu
dents an opportunity to play the stock market without the
risk.
Page 23
Agonizing
About
Accounting
1-800-727-PAUL
Is first war calculus nr accounting
giv mg you trouble’’ Who ya gonna
call ’Curt DeBerg. an associate pro
fessor at California State 1' . Chico,
says he hopes students call to find
out about hi' two new study ta|**s
‘How to Pass Calculus" and 'How to
Pass Principles of Accounting I "
Developed by IV Berg and associate
Paul Kumgopal. the two audio topes
present the often difficult topics in a
conversational formal This is accom
plished hy the help of two fictional
characters. Anne Asset and iola
Liability, who lake a tour of the
financial accounting world and
encounter real-life situations "It '
something kind of cute and kind of
corny, hut enough to break up the
monotony." IVBerg said "We have
found a wav to make it fun si, that it
isn't distracting to the content of
what I ni trying to convey The study
tapes, which sell for s.i-1 ft">, come
with four 60-minute cassettes and a
comprehensive study Ivooklet
• Radley Kanda KaLeoOHau i
I of Hawaii, and .Andrew Fought.
StaU' I'nArizona State L
Computing
Made
Clear
141S8417376
lake many computer users. I of
California Berkeley, junior Helmut
Kohler w as put off by the complex
manuals that made computer opera
lion afsiut as clear as mud “Campus
Computing How to l 'so Computers
to Study Smartei Karn Cash, and
Fven Improve ’liiur Social Life." a
224-page Issik. is 21-year-old
Kohler s answer to the frustrations of
many students who attempt to work
w ith comput
Kohler.
.1 his
ton major, wrote, designed and pub
lished the txHik on his Apple
Macintosh computer within a year
The result of his work is a book that
sells for $s 95 and reveals the capa
bilities of computers, locations where
they can Is- purchased, listings of
iotas that require computer skills, fea
tures of different brands, and almost
anything else college students might
want to know
“There's more to computers than
spell-checking English papers,"
Kohler said, adding that he hopes his
Ismk will encourage students to
experiment with the various comput
er functions Most students probably
don't realize that they can send let
ters all over the country through
electronic mail or reply to the opin
ions of students in a selection of col
leges on a variety of controversial
subjects Kohler assures that the
book is not a technical manual for
computer science majors, but for
inexperienced or occasional users
■ Michelle 1.in /7i< I kill \
Californian 1 of California
Berkeley
Term
Paper
Blues
1SOO-THE SYS7
Michael Adams a junior at
Washington and las- l in lexmgton
Va . has written a program that could
be a IsHin to many college students
especially when term papers are due
The program Tllesys. sells for $29 95
and works m conjunction with
Wordpcrfect 5 0 on IBM personal
computers
“I hr program hastcalh lakes cart
tit all the term paper needs college
students hast- Adams saiti Among
other functions, it u-e- such st\ It
manuals as the Modern Language
Association to punctuate and alpha
Ix-ti/e bibliographies when provided
with pertinent facts
But perhaps the propram s most
appealing feature says its creator, is
its ability to expand or reduce .1 docu
ment In up to 2a |H-rvent A 10-page
paper. for example, can be made into
a 12-page paper with no noticeable
difference
The program also has keyboards
that accommodate French. German,
Spanish and Italian language char
acters. as well as keyboards with
math and science symbols
Adams >aid. "It takes the whole
headache out o( writing papers dur
ing that last-minute crunch "
• Eric Adams The Diamondback,
1 of Maryland. College Park
Participle
Problems
1205S44-5749
Comma confusion'.’ Participle prob
lems'* Auburn l' 's composition hot
line is just a phone cal! away for stu
dents with questions about their
writing The number, which has been
in operation for two years, handles
HU to 90 calls each quarter, said
director Peter Huggins "Many of our
questions concern the use of quota
tions. subject-verb agreement, docu
mentation. and even resume and let
ter formats." he said The hotline is
one in a network of related hotlines
coordinated by Tidew ater
Community College in Virginia
Beach. Ya Auburn receives calls
nationwide from troubled writers,
Huggins said “The hotline is helpful
In-cause of Its convenience." Huggins
said “People can get a quick, clear
answer immediately."
• Alison Appich, Thi Auhurn
Plainsman. Auburn l
Making
the
Grade
1-800-932-2323
!
Where there's a will, there s an A
The video tape by this name w as cre
ated !>\ Claude Olnev. an Arizona
State l' professor, w hen both of his
sons were not admitted to college
Itecause of poor grades and test
scores He then developed a study
program that eventually helped his
sons get into college, and turned it
into a video tape program available
to students nationw ide Topics cov
ered m the three-hour video include
suggestions for making top grades,
taking tests, learning better writing
skills, developing and using memory
skills, improv ing study habits and
taking notes
Some colleges have started using
the videos and have held special
v lew tngs of ()lnev s tapes close to test
dates At Tarrant County Junior
College in Texas, the response has
been favorable, said Robert Young,
director of special services "I thought
the video would Is- a good way to
reach a large population of students
who need to improve their test-tak
ing and study skills, but didn't have
time to go by the special services
office to get that help " Cost is $89.85
for the video and $59 .85 for a cas
sette
■ Lisa Warner, 77ie Collegian.
Tarrant County Junior College
Mil MMCUO • 4* • A. . ut,.