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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 29, 2001)
Conference continued from page 1 everything from waste products to cars that don’t meet American smog standards. This pollution, Luna said, is the reason behind an epidemic of sick nesses in the country, such as chil dren being born with birth defects and girls beginning to menstruate at ages as young as seven years old. “The U.S. strip mines our mountains, and what makes it okay is that we’re a nameless bunch of people who they don’t have to have a relationship with,” she said. Because the Philippines does not have enough political clout to combat what Luna described as the environmental racism from the United States, she said there is lit tle chance the problem will be re solved soon. “It’s on and on as we move into the Information Age, and there’s never going to be a catch-up game for any of the developing coun tries,” she said. In a panel discussion Saturday afternoon, Mary O’Brien, a mem ber of the Eugene toxics board, ad dressed the seriousness of risk as sessment, a method to determine how much of a certain chemical or product can be used without harming the environment. O’Brien criticized the practice of risk assessment, saying it is not de pendable because there is no way to know all the potential dangers of certain substances, especially when they are combined with oth er chemicals. “Risk assessment is filled with assumptions and estimates, and they’re dressed up to look like ac curate numbers,” she said. Although LaDuke said she is fearful for the future of the envi ronment, she also said there are more solutions than problems. “We’re putting up our first wind generator on my reservation, and they could use a lot more genera tors in California,” she said. LaDuke, a mother of three, said the government could learn how to treat the environment from the rules her children live by. “You’ve gotta clean up your mess before you make a new one,” she said. “If you don’t know how to clean up your mess, you should n’t be able to make a new one.” Strength continued from page 1 Hess sold her chiropractor prac tice two years ago to earn her doc torate. While in practice, Hess treated a number of elderly pa tients injured because an impaired sense of balance resulted in falls, and she decided to focus her doc toral research on using muscle strength training to improve im paired balance. She said she began by examin ing other studies that used strength training to improve balance in ath letes. These studies found that by increasing ankle strength, balance improved. What makes her study unique, Hess said, is that it focus es on people who are currently having balance problems. Mullen said she believes that strength training will help her and other elderly people accomplish more. With improved balance, Mullen thinks she will be able to perform everyday activities such as shopping, cleaning house and even walking better. Hess said researchers in the study will use a hydraulic plat form that simulates slips and trips. The participant stands on a plat form in a harness and the platform is set to move forward or back ward. Four video cameras sur round the platform, monitoring the movement, while sensors in the platform analyze how long it takes the participant to regain equilibri um after a slip or trip. Despite having the equipment ready to go, Hess said the biggest obstacle will be recruiting people. “We are looking for people who are healthy, but balance impaired,” she said. Hess said the study needs six people to begin, and her team is using advertisements highlighting the possible benefits of the study in special-interest publications to attract participants. In preparation for the study, Hess and her colleagues designed a muscle strength training facility. Equipment that was previously used by Physical Activity and Recreation Services in Esslinger Hall was given to the department for the study. After this study, the room will be open to other re searchers interested in strength training. Paul van Donkelaar, associate professor in the department of ex ercise and movement science, said there is interest among other grad uate students in using the facility. “It opens up the possibility of re search for other students,” van Donkelaar said. Foot long Sub Expires 2/11/01 SUBSHOP 1225 ALDER 345-2434 Not valid with any other discounts or coupons MON-FRI 10AM-10PM • SAT 11AM-9PM • SUN 12Pl m LSATMGIV1AT-.GRE_IV1CAT-.bAT It’s not like we’ll give you the answers. Well...yes it is. Standardized tests are predictable. Understanding them is what Kaplan is all about. ■ GMAT and GRE classes start January 31. Call today to enroll! 1-IQ0-KAP-TEST 1 kaptest.com Test prep, admissions and guidance. For life. j the registered trademarks of their respective owners. Your University Health Center would like to announce new weekend hours! Saturday & Sunday, 10a.m. - 2p.m. yA 010835 UNIVERSITY HEALTH CENTER We’re a matter of degrees ^
