Nation & World News
Leonid meteors peak tonight
Although clouds and rain
may block viewing of the
meteor shower, the climax
is expected this evening
By Caron Alarab
News Reporter
A heavenly display of meteors is
predicted to streak across the sky this
evening during the second peak of
the annual Leonid meteor shower.
Eugene observers may miss their
only chance to catch a naked-eye
glimpse of the shower's climax
because of local weather forecasts
of clouds and rain all this week,
however.
Popularly called a "shooting star"
or a "falling star," a meteor is an ob
ject ranging from the size of a dust
particle to a large rock that enters
Earth's atmosphere and is heated by
the friction of air resistance, accord
ing to the American Meteor Society.
Tonight's meteors are named after
the lion-shaped constellation Leo,
and the Leonids have already been
spotted on the opposite side of the
globe and are expected to peak be
tween midnight and dawn, accord
ing to www.space.com.
Astronomy Professor Jim Schom
bert said Eugene sky watchers willing
to suffer frigid temperatures and fore
casted rain should head for the hills
and try to perch somewhere above the
clouds for this year's shower.
"It also helps to get away from
light pollution,* he said.
If.the weather clears, observers
should look toward the east for a
small flare of light shooting across
the sky every couple of minutes, a
rate not as stunning as recent years.
Schombert said people should also
keep an eye out for less brilliant dis
plays that will occur all week long.
"Hopefully, the weather will clear
up enough this weekend," he said.
In addition to tonight's shower,
Jupiter and Saturn will also be visible
sky watching targets through to the
end of December.
According to NASA, the comet
Tempel-Tuttle creates the Leonids as
it swings through the inner solar sys
tem every 33 years. With each trip it
leaves a trail of dust particles — or
meteoroids — and debris, which cre
ate the meteor showers.
The Leonid meteor shower first
peaked for viewers in western Asia,
Indonesia and Australia before dawn
on Nov. 14. For western Africa, west
ern Europe, North America and west
ern portions of South America, the
display peaks tonight
The last Leonid meteor shower
was actually a storm, meaning it was
significantly more dense, and took
place in 2001 when millions of peo
ple across the United States wit
nessed a spectacular display, accord
ing to the American Meteor Society.
During a Leonid shower in 1998, ob
servers all over the world were greet
ed by numerous fireballs, which are
significantly brighter than most me
teors, and persistent trains of light.
For more information about the
Leonid meteor shower and its origin,
visit www.space.com.
Contact the
business/science/technology reporter
at caronalarab@dailyemerald.com.
CAMPUS
Wednesday
Campus Planning Committee meeting
9:30 a.m.-ll a.m., EMU Rogue Room. The agenda
includes consideration of the committee's role in
the arena design process as well as presentations,
as time permits, of conceptual designs for the Col
lege of Education and School of Music projects. Re
freshments will be served.
Advertise in the
ODE classifieds
_Cali 346-4343 or place your ad online
www.dailyemerald.com
$95 billion energy bill
disputed in House
The Republican-authored
bill includes $72 billion
in spending, along with
$23 billion in tax cuts
By Seth Borenstein
and Sumana Chatterjee
Knight Ridder Newspapers (KRT)
WASHINGTON — The House of
Representatives is expected to vote
Tuesday on a $95 billion comprehen
sive energy-policy bill crafted by Re
publican leaders that contains tens of
billions of dollars of tax cuts and oth
er benefits for the oil, gas, coal,
ethanol and nuclear industries.
Independent watchdogs say the leg
islation includes $72 billion in spend
ing and $23 billion in tax cuts. The
Republican energy plan would try to
boost domestic oil, gas, coal and nu
clear production with a boadoad of fi
nancial incentives to energy compa
nies, but independent experts say it
lacks meaningful conservation meas
ures. A House-Senate conference
committee was headed toward pas
sage of the bill Monday evening on a
party-line vote, as Democrats failed to
win changes.
Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., co-au
thor of the bill, called it "a bargain for
the American public." Others said the
price tag was high.
"It reads very much like the world's
largest Christmas (list)," said I Ienry
Lee, a Harvard University professor of
energy and environment.
The bill includes technical require
ments that could help prevent future
electricity blackouts, said Robert
Burns, senior researcher at the Na
tional Regulatory Research Insdtute at
Ohio State University, but he added:
"As soon as you get outside the elec
tricity provision, the thing is loaded
with pork."
President Bush told Congress in
August that he wanted the measure to
include no more than $8 billion in
tax breaks, but the Mouse-Senate
compromise has $23 billion of them.
Oil and gas companies would get
more titan half the tax breaks, accord
ing to Aileen Roder, program manager
at Taxpayers for Common Sense.
The bill would also order the feder
al government to spend more than
$ 10 billion in several programs to aid
the oil and gas industry.
"As soon as you get
outside the electrcity
provision, the thing is
loaded with pork."
Robert Bums
Senior researcher, National Regulatory
Research Institute
The energy bill also would cut by
$400 million the amount of money
companies have to pay Uncle Sam
for oil and gas taken from federal
property.
In addition, the oil-additive indus
try would get retroactive liability pro
tection from tainted-water lawsuits
filed by cities, school boards and even
a small convent and parochial school
in Connecticut.
(c) 2003, Knight Ridder/Tribune
Information Services. White House
correspondent Ron Hutcheson
contributed to this report.
O Winter Tui ion Increases:
WIhAT you NEEd TO klNIOW bEfoRE REGISTERING
UO Winter Tuition Increases
The Facts:
^ The Oregon State Board of Higher Education decided to raise
tuition this past summer.
^ The Associated Students of the University of Oregon (ASUO) and
the Oregon Student Association (OSA) lobbied to delay the
increases until winter term so that students could be informed
about the changes.
v The following changes will take effect for Winter 2004:
ATE RESIDENTS (In-State Students)
14 credit hours
15 credit hours
16 credit hours
17 credit hours
18 credit hours
FALL 2003
$1,196
$1,196
$1,196
$1,288
$1,380
WINTER 2004
$1,216
$1,236
$1,256
$1,306
$1,386
-/- INCREASE
+ $20
+ $40
+ $60
+ $18
+ $6
UNDERGRADUATE NON-RESIDENTS (Out-of-State Students)
14 credit hours
15 credit hours
16 credit hours
17 credit hours
18 credit hours
FALL 2003
$5,109
$5,109
$5,109
$5,502
$5,895
WINTER 2004 +/- INCREASE
$5,169
$5,229
$5,289
$5,489
$5,869
+ $60
+ $120
+ $180
- $13
- $26
Reduced-Tuition Courses:
7 Classes offered before 9:00 a.m. and after 3:00 p.m. may be
eligible for a 15% tuition discount.
^ In fhe Schedule of Classes, discounted courses will have a "v" in
the notes section.
v Discounted courses are also listed in DuckHunt under 'Reduced
Tuition Courses" (http://duckhunt.uoreoon.edu).
asuo
executive
■
The Associated Students of the University of Oregon Executive
is an incidental fee-funded program and is the recognized voice
of University of Oregon Students. The ASUO Executive
administers more than 120 fee-funded ASUO programs and is a
founding member of the Oregon Student Association.
http://qlriilstone.uoreaon.edu/-asuo
Ways to Cut Down Your Costs
Okay, so tuition is going up, again. Where should you go from here, and how
are you going to offset the cost?
Tuition and Course Refunds: _
v Remember to plan ahead and pay attention to add/drop deadlines.
y Meet with an academic advisor to map out your academic career so that
you'll know how many credits you’ll have to take each quarter—and
how much you’ll have to pay.
v IMPORTANT: Refunds are calculated from the day you drop the
course, NOT the day you stopped attending the class.
^ If you drop a course
o BEFORE the first day of classes, you'll get an 100% refund,
o Within the first two weeks of classes, you'll get an 85% refund,
o In the third week of classes, you'll get a 50% refund,
o In the fourth week of classes, you'll get a 25% refund,
o After the fourth week of classes, you are not eligible for a
refund.
Financial Aid:_
s Look at your financial aid award and the classes you plan to take for the
rest of the year. Do they match up? Will you need more financial help?
^ The Office of Student Financial Aid and Scholarships may be able to
help you
o Adjust your award amount OR
o Find additional sources of income,
o The number is (541) 346-3221.
Career Center:__
v UO students can find jobs on and off-campus for both work study and
non-work study students at the Career Center. Drop by the office at
220 Hendricks Hall or go online at http://uocareer.uore9nn.eriu
ASUO Internship Program:
Get involved and make sure your voice is heard by UO
Administration and the Oregon State Legislature.
Get academic credit while doing it.
Contact Erika Brakken, the ASUO Internship Coordinator, at
(541) 346-0619 or come to the ASUO office in EMU (suite 4) for
more information.
✓
Don't like the tuition increase? Vote! The Oregon State legislature
decides how much money each public university in Oregon gets, and you
determine who gets elected. Don’t let the decision be made without
you—vote.