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Friday, October 17, 2003
Since 1900 University of Oregon Eugene, Oregon
Volume 105, Issue 36
Greeks' ample
Student Senate
representation
causes concern
Non-greeks question the Student Senate’s
fairness because one-third of the senators
are affiliated with the University greek system
By Chuck Slothower
News Reporter
Greek students occupy more than one-third of the seats on
the ASUO Student Senate, despite making up less than 7 per
cent of the general student population, according to numbers
provided by the Greek Life office and interviews with individ
ual senators.
Seven of the senate's 18 members belong to a fraternity or a
sorority, senate Ombudsman Mike Sherman and Sen. Jesse
Harding confirmed.
"We are part of the greater good of the University," Sen.
James George said.
A greek spokeswoman said that greek students are just doing
their part for the University.
"The greek community is just as much a part of the University
community as any other organization," said Erin Muessle, vice
president of community service for the Panhellenic Council.
While many students agreed that campus involvement is
an admirable pursuit, the heavy involvement of greek stu
dents in the senate raised questions of fairness among some
non-greek students.
"A lot of their decisions may not be fair to the other 93 per
cent of the student population (who aren't in the greek sys
tem)," freshman Nick Maffe said.
But not everybody objects to the over-representation of greek
students on senate.
"It does seem kind of odd that it's unevenly balanced, but I
wouldn't say it's unfair," freshman Emily Scott said.
The greek senators cited various reasons for running for senate.
"I got involved through members of my fraternity," Day said.
He added that while his fraternity encourages involvement
in campus generally, no one pushed him to run for senate.
Turn to GREEK, page 4
HELPING HANDS
Lauren Wimer Photographer
Lauren Sowers, a 23-year-old biology major, and Brad Schallert, a 21-year-old international and environmental studies major, both helped
an injured hiker during a five-day Outdoor Program hike. Sowers will be depicted on Lifetime television tomorrow night.
Accident of a Lifetime
The Lifetime television network will air
a show on Saturday night about some
University students' hazardous hike
By Jared Paben
News Reporter
On Saturday night, University student Lauren Sowers
will be parked in front of the IV watching "What Should
You Do?" on the Lifetime channel. She's only seen the
show a couple of times in the past, but Saturday night
she'll be on the edge of her seat, and she'll definitely be
recording the show.
The story she's eagerly awaiting is her own — the story of a
badly injured hiker and the way Sowers helped her during a
five-day Outdoor Program trip more than two years ago.
It was on April 1 that Sowers first heard from Lifetime.
Turn to LIFETIME, page 4
New high-tech portable speakers have design appeal
Stereo speaker technology
is on the rise and designs
are more creative than ever
By Caron Alarab
News Reporter
Stereo speaker technology is
rapidly advancing to become
more portable and unique in
design. Whether it's a speaker that
can stick to a forehead or a pair
that can be rolled around the
pool, there are some interesting
new concepts hitting the market.
Junior Carl Boehm said he has
been fascinated by technology for
most of his life, though he admits it
can be difficult to stay up-to-date.
"It's hard to keep up with accelerat
ing technology because newer versions
are always being outdated," he said.
And although music quality is very
important to him, Boehm admits he
doesn't have a very "flashy" stereo
speaker system at home.
"I don't have a big budget for speak
ers right now," he said.
But Boehm said he still stays current
on new technology in electronics. A few
months ago, he heard about the
Olympia Soundbug, a single silver
speaker the size of a small computer
mouse, l he speaker attaches to most
surfaces through a suction cup and ere
ates a sounding-board out of the sur
face. Compatible with standard head
phone sockets, the speaker gadget
works best on glass surfaces and is great
for sharing music from a portable de
vice with other people. Amazon.com
currently offers the speaker for $20.
Boehm said he would have to try the
Soundbug before buying it.
Another technological leap — and
one thing Boehm said he never expect
ed to see invented in his lifetime — are
inflatable speakers.
"lhat just sounds cool," he said.
An international company called El
lula has created the 1 lotAir inflatable
speakers, which come in blue, green,
yellow and Budweiser patterns.
The speakers generate sound with a
component called an exciter, which
drives high-frequency sound into the
inflatable portion through a rigid panel
base. The inflatable part generates bass
and produces multidirectional sound
from the whole surface. Because they
are also deflatable, the speakers are
great for traveling, holidays and resi
dence hall rooms. The speakers cost
about $40 online, according to the El
lula Web site.
Thinking back to his freshman year,
Boehm said he could have used either
of the new gadgets in his residence hall
Turn to MUSIC, page 12
WEATHER
LOW
49
HIGH
72
INSIDE
Campus buzz.12
Classifieds.11
Commentary..2
Horoscope.11
Nation & World.2
Sports.7
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