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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (June 1, 1995)
Study: Drought ruined Mayans NATIONAL NEW YORK (At*) — Th«* most sovnre (trough! in I ho past 7.000 yours might ha\»> contributed to the mysterious collapse of the thriving Mayan civilization Scholars are trying to under stand why the Mayan civili/.i tion in the southern Yucatan Peninsula collapsed around the it) to 'em, when it nas r.learly thriving as late as the year 700. Now scientists have found evidence that around the time, major Mayan cities were aban doned and left in ruins, because the area around a Irx a I lake was suffering through its worst drought in (tie last 7,200 years That may have been one rea son for the collapse, re seen her Jason Curtis said Wednesday A geology student at the Uni versify of Florida in Gainesville, Gurtis dev ribas signs of drought in ancient nuui from the bottom of the lake in an article with oth er scientists in Thursday's issue of tlm journal X’aturv Jerenty Sabloff, director of tlm University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology in Philadelphia, called the finding an important step toward understanding the Mayan downfall Other research shows that no single factor can he Mamed, but rather, the picture we re build ing up is a whole series of strains," he said. The strains include a growing population, warfare between cities, military threats on the Mayan borders and envirunmen tal degradation. su< h as the cut ting down of vast areas of the jungle that led to increasing ero sion. "Drought in and of itself would not have caused a thru ing civilization to almndun some of its major cities, he said "But if it's added tu these other major burdens, if you're already hav ing difficulties feeding the gen eral population, increased dry ing of the climate would have a much more severe impa< t than usual." Nations are still struggling with problems such as popula tion growth, local warfare and growing populations, raising the question of how much a nation can handle before natural events cause it to collapse, he said Flooding, earthquakes or cli matic shifts brought on by glob al warming might "tie enough to push civilizations over the edge, where the governments could not maintain food distribution, protection of their people and trade," he said Jet crashes into apartment, 2 die WICHITA FALLS, Texas (AP) An Air Fort e (raining )«>t billowing bloc k smoke crashed inlo an apartment complex Wednesday, engulfing one building and several cars in flames At Ittast two people were killed and lt> injured The T-'tH's two pilots ejected just before it went down and parachuted onto the athletic field at a high school. They were not seriously injured The plane, which had just taken off from Shep pard Air Force Base, experienced some sort of met hanlcal problem, the tniliUrj said It was trailing smoke and piocos were falling off just before it crashed, said Renee Stephens, a wit ness. "It sounded just like a bomb," she said. “There was a big mushroom < loud and the whole building was consumed by flames. " Witnesses said the plane just missed two schools and a day-care center fxsfore smashing into the 120-unit Amber Falls Crossing apartment com plex four miles from the base. One of the 11 budd ings in the complex was hit; four apartments in that building wore destroyed. "It took out about six cars," said Eric Struve, who works at a restaurant nearby. "It hit about 50 feet away from the (apartment) office. A lady that works fiere was blown out of the office, but she's OK Two bodies were found in a parking lot outside the apartment complex, said Lt. Col. Mike Laugh lin, a base spokesman. Sixteen people were hospi talized, he said, lt was not immediately known if any were seriously injured Air Pon v (Jol Bill (hi utt did not rule out the possibility of other victims being found m the apartment complex, since not ell tenants wort immediately an minted fur The pilots, who were not identified, were assigned to the 80th Flying Training Wing, based at Sheppard "The pilots are extremely distressed nivout what happened," Ori utt said "But from what we know it was a nits harm al problem There was nothing they could do." Mary Hayes, a secretary at an elementary st hotil, said the plane went right over the campus. whose students are already home for the summer Parts of the plane were scattered across the school grounds, some near the front door A piece of the jet's canopy ended up in the park tug lot of Wichita Falls Hirsvhi High School, two blocks away. At least two children were on a playground directly behind the crash site, Jerry! Byrd and his cousin. "I ran out and all I saw was fire and smoke." said Jerryl's aunt. Norma Byrd "It was so black you couldn't even see the building I was looking for the hoys 1 was very scared, but they came •round the side of the building I was very relieved.” The T-38. a twin-engine two-seater, is rnauufai hired by Northrop Bob Dole: Hollywood lacks decency I.OS ANGblJKS (AP) — GOP presidential hopeful Hob Dole accused Hollywood on Wednesday of promoting vio tome, rape and casual sex in music and movies, and said for the good of America's children "the mainstreaming of deviancy must come to an end " The Senate majority leader, in the entertainment industry's backyard, said his reaction to today’s popular culture was more than a “codgv old attempt of one generation to steal the fun of another A line has been crossed — not just of taste but of human dignity and decency " In remarks prepared for deliv ery (it an evening 1 ,os Angeles fund-raiser, the early GOP front runner repeated a challenge to Hollywood executives first voit ed during In* campaign announcement tour in April, urging them to focus on familv oriented programming and products Specifically, Dole criticized the R-rated action movies Natural Ham killers and True Hamanre as "films that revel in mindless violence and loveless sex" Dole also specifically t iled throe recording groups, Cannibal Corpse, Celo Boys and 2 Live Crew "I'm talking about a culture business that makes money front 'music* extolling the plea sures of raping, torturing and mutilating women, from songs' about killing polit emen and rejecting law," Dole said, "The mainstreaming of deviancy must come to an end, but it will only stop when the leaders of the entertainment industry rec ognize and shoulder their responsibility.” *10 OFF first month's rent Not good with any other offer. Central a Self-Storage 'm 1601 Highway 99N, Eugene. ( >R ■ 688 IvunnktAK On Campus Desktop Publishing and 6tt6r A erffiCt Ilfsptlics Darkroom Services -»346-4381 Applications due Tomorrow June 2,1995 Applications should be submitted to the ASUO office . For any questions, please call 346 4447. ooking for work? Look for our ad in classifieds for newspaper distributors. Vail 346 5511 Emerald Need Cash? Be a CPR/First Aid instructor for the Student Health Center during the summer term and earn an extra buck. Must be certified as a CPR/First Aid instructor by the Red Cross. Interested? Call JoAnne Frank (346-2728) for more information. S* 1 <) Siuik-m Health t enter Hfuhh Munition Program The Oregon daily Emerald IS NOW AVAILABLE WORLDWIDE http://darkwing.uoregon.edu/~ode
