Indiana Daily Student (2025)

19 dogs, cats found living alone in home

(09/06/11 2:41am)

____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Bloomington police found nine dogs, seven puppies and three cats living in a one-story house without water or electricity Sunday. An anonymous call alerted officers to several animals being kept inside a house in the 2600 block of South Kimble Drive, Sgt. Shane Rasche of the Bloomington Police Department said.When officers arrived at the house they were greeted only by barking dogs. Contact was later made with the renters of the house, who told officers they were not currently living at the address, Rasche said.Four adults and two children had lived in the residence, but they were unable to afford the utility bills at the time. The renters told officers they were living somewhere else but would frequently check on the animals until they had the means to get the utilities turned back on.The 19 animals were in good health and did not appear to be abused or neglected, Rasche said. The condition of the house, which contained feces and urine, however, led Animal Control to take the animals.Criminal charges are not currently being sought against the renters, Rasche said, as the cats and dogs did not seem to be abandoned.“It does not appear to be a criminal issue,” he said. “They may have just got in a little over their heads.”— Jake New

U.S. Senate

(10/18/10 3:24am)

Dan Coats (R), Brad Ellsworth (D) and Rebecca Sink-Burris (L)

Head-on crash kills Yellow Cab driver

(07/22/10 12:16am)

____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Police are continuing to investigate an accident that left a Yellow Cab Co. driver dead and a Bloomington man hospitalized.The cab driver, Gwendolyn Marie Sanders, 31, of Bedford, was struck head-on by a silver Grand Prix just before 7 a.m. Tuesday on the 2700 block of South Leonard Springs Road. Sanders died after sustaining head and chest injuries in the accident.The driver of the Grand Prix, Bryce Michael Leighton, 21, of Bloomington, received head injuries and was transported to Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis. He remained hospitalized Wednesday.No passengers were in either car.Lt. David Drake of the Bloomington Police Department said witnesses told police that Leighton had been at a party in the 2600 block of Leonard Springs in the early hours of the morning. The residents of the home said Leighton had been drinking and was told to leave after causing a disturbance.They said Leighton then returned to their residence after they had fallen asleep and stole their car. The residents did not realize that the vehicle was missing until the police arrived, they said.According to the probable cause affidavit, a witness stated that the silver vehicle passed her on a double yellow line at speeds estimated at 50 to 60 mph.The car then struck Sanders’ cab. Sanders was wearing her seat belt, and both airbags in the vehicle deployed, Drake said. Leighton, however, was not wearing his seat belt and was ejected out of the rear passenger window of the car.“Officers on the scene noticed the odor of an alcoholic beverage about Leighton’s person,” Drake said, and according to the probable cause affidavit, a preliminary reading of Leighton’s blood alcohol was .23.Yellow Cab Co. manager Les Gyger described Sanders as both a good driver and overall nice person.“She was a sweet girl — a single mom getting up every day doing what she had to do,” Gyger said. “Everybody liked her, and then some idiot hit her head-on.”— Jake New

Games of skill

(01/21/10 12:33am)

____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>In the world of gaming, life’s not just about how people navigate through realms unknown, but how they create their own experience. At least, that’s where the gaming industry is headed. Some even get there from Hollywood, like Lee Sheldon, an assistant professor who teaches classes on the subject in the telecommunications department. He spent his formative years writing TV pilots until landing a job by happenstance in British Columbia at a now-defunct game design company called Sanctuary. The first game he ever played, “Space Invaders” on the Atari 2600 console, inspired him to think of new ways to tell stories. The game design program at IU enables undergraduate students in telecommunications to invent alternative realities through a selection of classes that focus on application, Sheldon said. Students also have the option to craft multi-player or niche games through IU’s Individualized Major Program. Sheldon’s approach to teaching actually works more like a game. “I tell students in the beginning that they all have F’s,” he said. “Then they can ‘level-up’ if they do all the things gamers do. The class is a like a game in which everyone competes, complete with gaming terminology.”In response to the explosion of new media being integrated with gaming, such as Facebook games like “FarmVille,” student teams in Sheldon’s class have come up with game themes that range from Japanese mythology to a football tailgating-friendly board game on the underside of a cooler lid. “It’s good to demonstrate to them that games aren’t just about guys in big metal suits carrying guns,” Sheldon said of his students’ ability to think outside the box. But another type of gaming that people tend to think less about with the explosion of video games involves sitting around another type of box. IU alumnus Tim Ebert works as a store clerk at the Game Preserve downtown on the square. The store specializes in non-electronic games and still pulls in large crowds for weekly “Pokemon” nights and “Risk” tournaments. Ebert said whether one is playing a family-oriented game such as “Scrabble,” or a strategy game such as “The Settlers of Catan,” it’s important to know that a proactive decision-making process is always involved. “Something like ‘Halo’ may just involve shooting things properly,” Ebert said. “Other games make you apply the creativity and adaptitivity you learn in the world when you play them.”Alternate forms of gaming are not just about what people do when it’s time for them to roll the dice. “The purpose of games is to tell a story,” Ebert said. “In chess, there is a narrative at work. Essentially, you’re setting up traps for a checkmate to your opponent.”For Ebert, the ability to think critically while gaming has even influenced his performance on standardized tests. He thinks playing certain games are a fun way to “teach kids arithmetic when they otherwise wouldn’t want to bother learning it.”“I took a test in sixth grade,” he said. “There were words that appeared on the test that I wouldn’t have even known if it weren’t for me seeing them on a deck of ‘Magic: The Gathering’ cards.”

Man arrested after threats

(03/21/08 3:34am)

A Gosport man was arrested Wednesday after he threatened a teenager and kicked an officer in the legs.\nMartin Mills, 35, faces preliminary charges of intimidation, resisting arrest and battery on a police officer, Sgt. Jeff Canada said, reading from a police report.\nAccording to reports, police were initially called to the 2600 block of South Southern Pines Court at around 4:40 p.m., where a 19-year-old man reported Mills was harassing him by phone.\nWhen officers arrived, they took the phone and heard Mills threaten to “put a hit” out on the young man. Mills identified himself as Jerry Springer to the officers.\nAt that time, the young man was not sure if he was going to press charges.\nAt 7:30 p.m., officers were called back to the residence, where they found Mills again threatening the young man, Canada said.\nThe victim then decided to press charges against Mills.\nWhen officers tried to pin Mills against the police car, he kicked his feet backwards, striking one of the officers, Canada said.\nReports also indicate that Mills was yelling racial slurs at the young man.\nCanada said this was a continuation of an incident earlier that day when Mills’ 17-year-old son struck the victim.\nThe victim’s friends struck him in defense of their friend, Canada said, and Mills was angry that the victims’ friends hurt his son.\nThe younger Mills was referred to probation on preliminary charges of battery and possession.

April ‘showers’ in late-night hours

(04/10/07 4:00am)

Look to the sky after all the races and parties of Little 500 weekend. Beginning around midnight April 21, stargazers will be able to see hundreds of meteors falling from the cosmos.\nThe stream of meteors originates from the comet Thatcher C/1861 G1, according to NASA’s Web site. \nMeteor showers are commonly visible in Bloomington, said Caty Pilachowski of the IU Astronomy Department. In fact, they were first accurately explained by Daniel Kirkwood, a professor of mathematics at IU, in the 19th century. Kirkwood discovered that meteor showers were the result of an aged comet that had been heated by the sun and broken apart, Pilachowski said.\n“Meteor showers occur at a time in which Earth crosses the orbit of a broken comet,” Pilachowski said. “When it passes through the orbit, many particles will fall into Earth’s atmosphere. They are burnt up from the heat, and most are very, very small particles, only a few millimeters in diameter.”\nMeteor showers can be compared to other, larger celestial bodies.\n“It’s like a weird asteroid belt,” Pilachowski said. “Comets are fairly fragile bodies. Mostly the bodies that become comets hang out on orbits that keep them way outside of the solar system. Occasionally these bodies will be pulled, causing them to come into the solar system.”\nBut they don’t last forever.\n“A comet will survive for a couple of orbits but will eventually break up,” Pilachowski said. “The outer surface will be heated by sun and will evaporate away. This produces the tail that comets are famous for.”\nThe term “meteor” refers to the streak of light that flashes in the sky, Pilachowski said. A meteorite is an object that produces the streak of light and falls to the ground. A meteoroid is the original object that produces the streak of light when it falls into the atmosphere. \n“A meteoroid is pulled in by Earth’s gravity,” Pilachowski said. “You see the flash of a meteor, and we find meteorites on the ground.”\nAccording to NASA, the visibility of the meteors in the meteor shower is comparable to the brightness of the stars in the Big Dipper. Viewers can expect to see a few meteors every minute or so, but there have been past accounts of almost 90 meteors per hour. The upcoming meteor shower is the oldest recorded meteor shower, dating back 2600 years to ancient Chinese accounts, according to NASA.\nThe meteor shower of April 21-22 is referred to by astronomers as the Lyrid meteor shower. \nLyra is a constellation in the northern hemisphere of the sky, according to NASA. The name refers to the origin of the trail of cosmic debris, but that’s not to say that stargazers should look north in the direction of the constellation to see the shower, Pilachowski said. The falling pieces of space rock can be seen almost anywhere in the sky a few hours before dawn.\nNo binoculars or telescopes are needed to watch this galactic presentation, Pilachowski said, but blankets and some snacks are probably a good idea. The farther away from city lights you are, the more impressive the cosmic fanfare will be.\nThe meteor shower is expected to last five to six hours between midnight and dawn April 21.

Co-founder of Oliver Winery dies at age 78

(02/20/07 5:00am)

Mary Morgan Oliver, who started Oliver Winery in 1972 with her husband, William, died Wednesdasy. She was 78.\nHer son, Bill Oliver, said the family’s Bloomington business began as an outgrowth of his father’s wine-making hobby.\n“There’s the old cliche that behind every man is an even stronger woman,” he said of his mother. “For many years, she kept the books and held the place together.”\nShe had also traveled to more than 40 countries and every continent but Africa, daughter-in-law Kathleen Oliver said.\nOliver was instrumental in founding Bloomington Hospice, Planned Parenthood and Meals on Wheels. She also served on the board of directors of Bloomington Hospital and the hospital foundation.\n“It’s not just a loss for our family – it’s a loss for the whole community,” Kathleen Oliver said.\nOliver Winery, which runs 35 acres of vineyards, has grown over the past few years with the recent completion of a new production facility, allowing the company to triple its production, according to its Web site. Since the early 1990s, production has grown from 38,000 gallons to more than 500,000 gallons per year of more than 30 different varieties, the Web site said. The wines can be purchased in 10 different states.\nBesides her son, Oliver is survived by her husband of 55 years, William; a daughter, Barbara Oliver of Clearwater, Fla; and four grandchildren.\nServices will be private, but memorial contributions may be made to the Mary Morgan Oliver Foundation, 2600 W. Delap Road, Bloomington, IN 47404.\nOliver Winery is located at 8024 N. State Road 37. They offer complimentary taste testing Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 6 p.m. They also give complimentary tours of the facilities every half hour Friday through Saturday from noon to 4:30 p.m. and Sunday from 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.\nFor more information call 876-5800 or visit http://www.oliverwinery.com/main.html.

Two local businesses robbed; police find missing cash drawer in woods

(10/20/06 2:17am)

Police are searching for suspects in the break-in and robbery of two east-side businesses. \nEarly Wednesday morning, Bloomington police responded to an alarm at Midas Auto Service Experts in the 2600 block of East Third Street, said Capt. Joe Qualters. \nA metal pane on the garage door had been pried out. Officers found the lights of the vehicles inside turned on and drawers opened in the office, Qualter said, reading from a police report. The cash drawer was also missing. \nWhile searching the area, officers found a cash drawer in the woods behind the business, but it was not the drawer missing from Midas. Officers then checked the adjacent Jiffy Lube Oilube Center and found the rear garage panels kicked in. The business was "ransacked," Qualters said, reading from a police report. The cash drawer found in the woods was the one missing from the Jiffy Lube. There are no suspects at this time.

Woman says ex-boyfriend threatened to kill her

(10/17/06 2:50am)

A 23-year-old woman told police her ex-boyfriend climbed into the window of her apartment while she was sleeping early Friday morning and threatened to kill her.\nTimothy E. Miller, 26, of Chicago, now faces preliminary charges of criminal confinement, battery, residential entry and interfering with the reporting of a crime.\nThe woman was asleep in her bed in the 2600 block of East Second Street when she woke up to find Miller, sitting straddled across her, holding a knife to her throat, according to a police report. Miller and the woman had broken up several months before, the woman said. She estimated that this happened at about 2:30 a.m., Bloomington Police Department Detective Sgt. David Drake said, reading from the report.\nThe victim reported that she reached over to try to grab her cell phone, and he grabbed it and threw it across the room. \nDrake said he threatened to kill her and himself, and he took various objects and shoved them into her mouth to keep her quiet. At one point, the report said, he covered her face with a pillow, and she nearly lost consciousness because she could not breathe.\nThe victim reported that he told her that he'd only leave if she "laid down with him and went to sleep," Drake said.\nThe victim said Miller fell asleep and then left at about 6 a.m., saying he would kill her if she called the police, according to the report.\nPolice believe Miller climbed in through a sliding window in her apartment that does not lock properly. According to the report, the woman said Miller knew about the broken lock.\nDrake said Miller called the Bloomington Police Station at about 8 a.m. saying he wanted to report a battery. He told police he was assaulted, and they told him to come into the station.\nShortly before 10 a.m., the woman called the station to report the incident.\nAccording to the report, Miller had cuts on his chest when he came into the station. Miller told police the woman attacked him, but the woman told police he had made those cuts himself during the night.

East Side's Key Bank robbed Saturday morning

(10/03/06 3:45am)

Police tried to track down a bank robber this the weekend, but their search turned up nothing other than a baseball cap, a jacket and a $20 bill.\nOfficers from the Bloomington Police Department received a call at about 11:30 a.m. Saturday reporting that a dark-skinned male with a "round face" had just robbed a female teller at Key Bank, 418 S. College Mall Road. Police say the suspect, who was wearing a black hooded jacket, blue jeans and a baseball cap, presented the teller a note demanding money.\nThe teller gave him an undisclosed amount of cash, and the suspect left, said BPD Detective Sgt. David Drake, reading from a police report.\nDrake said officers later found a black hooded jacket and a Colts baseball cap, as well as a $20 bill, lying outside an apartment building in the 2600 block of East Second Street, which is directly behind the bank.\nAs of press time, officers still had not located the suspect, Drake said.

The year's best hits DVD

(04/13/06 4:00am)

One of the most controversial and society testing films has come to the movie store with a two-disc director's cut DVD. 2005's Best Picture Oscar Winner, "Crash," is back in the spotlight shining on shelves at movie stores across the nation. Despite the heat this film gives off it is a movie with a very dark and powerful story.\n"Crash" is a sensational drama about the real life prejudices that society goes through every time we step out the front door. This movie focuses on the lives of many strangers trying to overcome their fears of one another as each story weaves in and out of the other. Very diverse characters battle a war with themselves and others trying to find what is wrong with this world and how to change it.\nDon Cheadle heads this remarkable cast of underrated second tier actors in an effort to teach society a thing or two. \nIt is very rare that a movie of "Crash's" magnitude matches it with a sensational DVD, but this two-disc set is not like other DVDs. Disc one is, for the most part, pretty basic as it only has the director's cut feature presentation and the regular commentary done by the producers, director, writers and actor/producer Don Cheadle.\nThe second disc, however, is no ordinary DVD because it takes audiences to another world of this stunning movie. It welcomes the viewer inside not only the film, but also the minds and hearts of the people who worked on "Crash." This starts with a 28-minute-long featurette on the making of the film. In addition to this are other featurettes on the creator Paul Haggis and the city of Los Angeles.\nThe best featurette, however, is about how "Crash" broke through by being so incredibly true to society. It talks about the racial prejudices that are in all of our lives and how even though we might not think we discriminate we all do it whether we want to or not. There might not be as much of this today, but people have flaws and unfortunately still make judgments. On top of what is already a masterpiece you also get a collection of deleted scenes, a peek at the film's storyboard, a look at the script, one music video and some music montages that take you through many of the major parts of the movie.\nThere hasn't been a movie in years, if ever, that has challenged people to look at their lives as deep as "Crash," just ask its audience. If you are looking for a sensational movie with an equally good DVD then "Crash" is your movie. The quality of the disc is simply unprecedented and there hasn't been a better DVD put out in stores in the past couple years.

Shots fired at Legends Bar

(12/08/05 3:26am)

Bloomington Police arrested a man Tuesday night after he allegedly fired a shotgun at a man he got into an argument with in the 2900 block of South Walnut Street. \nNo one was injured from the shots, but Bloomington resident Marlon Caulton, 46, was preliminarily charged with attempted aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon and pointing a firearm. Bloomington resident Mark Derico, the man police believe Caulton was firing at, was arrested for public intoxication.\nWitnesses told police problems started when they heard Caulton and Derico arguing in the stairwell of a nearby apartment building. According to the police report, both men went outside and Caulton began firing a shotgun at Derico as he fled. Police recovered spent shotgun shells at the scene and believe four shots were fired.\nOfficers arrived at the scene at 7:45 p.m. and spoke with Derico, who told police a different story from any of the witnesses. According to the report, Derico said he did not know Caulton but intervened when he saw him shoving a woman. At that point, Derico said Caulton pulled a shotgun out and shot at him as he ran away.\nPolice arrested Caulton at a hotel on the 2600 block of South Walnut Street and recovered a shotgun from a dumpster in a nearby apartment complex.\nCaulton told police he did not know anything about the incident.

St. Louis: More than just an arch

(06/30/03 2:10am)

St. Louis, a beautiful city situated along the Mississippi River, is an eclectic blend of big-city expansion and Southern charm. The people are generous hosts, and its peaceful surroundings are a bed of relaxation. St. Louis is home to the popular rapper Nelly, three professional sports teams and some of the best shopping malls in the Midwest. \nThe quaint city also is home to the St. Louis Gateway Arch, a 630-foot monument you can see from 20 miles outside the city. The structure greets out-of-towners as it shimmers over downtown. The Arch sits on the river, providing a cool hideout in the city. At any given moment, you can find people hanging out on the steps and riding the tram to the top. \nSeth Berkowitz, a resident of St. Louis, said the Arch is a great spot to visit.\n"I would definitely say people should hit up the landmarks and visit the Arch and the arch museums during the day," he said.\nDowntown St. Louis is a playground for all ages. Located right across from the Arch is the Casino Queen, a four-story riverboat modeled after a 19th-century side-wheel riverboat. The Casino gives tourists a chance to gamble, eat and sleep, all while floating down the Mississippi. \nIf you are more of a sports fan, finding a game won't be a problem. The St. Louis Cardinals, St. Louis Blues and the St. Louis Rams can be found here. The tickets are a steal, and the arenas are as good as new. \nThe Historic Soulard Market on Seventh Street is an example of the Southern charm the city has to offer. This market is four corridors long with a snack bar in the middle. It is jam packed on Saturday afternoons with people buying fruit, meats and flowers at an unbelievably cheap price. Aaron Berkowitz, a resident of St. Louis and junior at IU, works at the market and said many people hang out there. \n"It is so packed between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m.; there are a lot of people here," he said. "It is the cheapest place to buy fruit in St. Louis."\nYou can even get a live chicken, sunglasses, hats, jewelry, art and Cardinal memorabilia.\nIf a person is looking for something a little more serene, Forest Park is the place to go. Forest Park is the biggest park in the United States. The park is 500 acres bigger than Central Park in New York City and holds some of the more popular visiting sites. It contains the St. Louis Zoo, the St. Louis Science Center, the art museum, history museum and The Muny Opera. \nSeth Berkowitz said the park is a great place for tourists to spend time. \n"I would tell someone visiting to go to Forest Park and hit up the museums," he said. \nIf you are looking for something a little more hip and entertaining, the Loop is the place for you. The Loop is a historic part of downtown where trolleys would loop around in order to go in the same direction. There are no longer trolleys on the Loop; instead it is a strip of hip and trendy boutiques, clubs and restaurants. The Loop is located on Delmar Street, where you can find the St. Louis Walk of Fame. \n"Everyone from eight-year-olds to 68-year-olds hang out on the Loop," Aaron Berkowitz said. "I would say it is the most eclectic place in the city." \nThere is something for everyone at the Loop. You can find people with green mohawks, people doing Capoeira (a Brazilian martial art) and freestyle battles on the street.\nA particular store, Rag O' Rama, is a brightly painted retro used clothing store. Patrons walk in and out as a live DJ spins popular 80's music like Michael Jackson, INXS and The Beverly Hills Cop theme. Right next door is Good Luck, a hip/chic shoe boutique that has all the latest shoe fashions with the décor to match. \nThe Loop is also where the night comes to life. There is Pageant -- a concert night club -- The Delmar Restaurant and Lounge and Blueberry Hill. \nDJ Mike Davis, aka "Mike The 2600 King," said he would recommend Blueberry Hill for its live radio broadcast, "The Science" -- a classic hip-hop show. One of the more famous clubs is the Monastery, where people from Illinois and Missouri go to dance to the latest hip-hop. The Monastery is also where the latest dance "The Chicken Head" originated. If hip-hop isn't your scene, Davis suggested college kids party at Lo on Wednesday nights. \n"The Lo is a lot of 80's pop/dance music. About 100 to 150 college students party there along with a lot of art kids," Davis said \nAtomic Cowboy, an offbeat coffee shop/art gallery is another night spot Davis suggests. \nIt is an art gallery by day, but then DJs start spinning at night. The lounge caters to a 21-and-up venue. Davis said the crowd is a little more laid-back than other clubs. \n"It is a lounge and has a little more of a sophisticated crowd," Davis said. "They play a lot of electronic/hip-hop, but it is more electronic."\nTo get a slice of urban culture, visit The Wall or "Mural Mile." The Wall, originally a flood wall, is a mile-long display of graffiti. Mural Mile features artists from all over the country and the world. The colorful graffiti was a part of a Festival called Paint St. Louis and is now a haven for the best graffiti masterpieces in "The Lou."\nWhen you get hungry, there are plenty of places to eat. The Hill is a popular Italian neighborhood that is home to some of the best Italian restaurants in St. Louis. Ira Berkowitz, a resident of St. Louis, said if you like Italian, the Hill is the place to eat. \n"There have to be at least 30 Italian restaurants there. I would go to Cunetto's House of Pasta or Favazza's -- they are really good Italian restaurants," Ira Berkowitz said.\nThe restaurants serve authentic Italian food, and you can also find toasted ravioli, a popular dish among St. Louis residents. The dish is deep-fried ravioli served with a side of marinara sauce.\nThe Hill restaurants serve a variety of Italian food and desserts. The 30-plus restaurants also make it easy to find a place within your price range. \nYou can find other restaurants on Delmar Street. St. Louis Bubble Tea, a spot on the Loop, is a tea bar where you can find "bubble tea," a fruity drink and tea popular in urban areas. You can also find the drink in Chinatown where it was originally discovered.\nAfter dinner, there's only one place to go -- Ted Drew's frozen custard shop. This thick and creamy custard is unique to St. Louis and is an excellent treat on a hot summer night. It is very popular, and you can find a crowd of 70 or more people waiting in line to get their hands on a world-famous Concrete, the equivalent to a blizzard.\n"It is the best ice cream you have ever tasted, and they are fast," Aaron Berkowitz said.\nMany of the locals hang out there and eat ice cream. One of the best things about it is that it doesn't close until 2 a.m.\nSt. Louis in a nutshell: It is a great city with a lot of ways to keep busy and beautiful places to see. It is educational, historic, cultural and has a way of changing with the times. There is plenty to do, and anyone visiting won't have any trouble keeping busy. \nA word of advice for those planning a visit to St. Louis: don't do "The Chicken Head," many locals feel it is an embarrassment.

Looters steal ancient artifacts

(04/14/03 4:17am)

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- The copper head of an Akkadian king, four millennia old. Gone. Golden bowls and colossal statues. Gone. Ancient manuscripts and bejeweled lyres. All gone.\nArt experts around the world joined the custodians of Baghdad's Iraq National Museum in expressing anguish and indignation at the two-day pillage that emptied one of the world's great treasure troves -- and at the American military officers who stood by and watched it happen.\n"These are the foundational cornerstones of Western civilization," said John Russell, a professor of art history and archaeology at the Massachusetts College of Art.\nIn a frenzied rampage that began Thursday, the thieves took everything: Babylonian, Sumerian and Assyrian collections that chronicled and celebrated the Cradle of Civilization. Despite pleas for help, museum employees say American troops nearby did virtually nothing to disperse the pillagers.\nHis voice shaking in anger, museum employee Ali Mahmoud tried to characterize the magnitude of the loss: "This is the property of this nation and the treasure of 7,000 years of civilization." \n"What does this country think it is doing?"\nOthers blamed the troops that refused to step in.\n"It is all the fault of the Americans. This is Iraq's civilization. And it's all gone now," said one museum employee, who was reduced to tears by the looting. She refused to give her name.\nGordon Newby, a historian and professor of Middle Eastern studies at Emory University in Atlanta, said the museum's most famous holding may have been tablets with Hammurabi's Code -- one of mankind's earliest codes of law. It could not be determined whether the tablets were at the museum when the war broke out.\nOther treasures believed to be housed at the museum -- such as the Ram in the Thicket from Ur, a statue representing a deity from 2600 BC -- are no doubt gone, perhaps forever, he said.\n"This is just one of the most tragic things that could happen for our being able to understand the past," Newby said.\nLeft behind were row upon row of empty glass cases -- some smashed up, others left intact -- heaps of crumbled pottery and hunks of broken statues.\nSensing its treasures could be in peril, museum curators secretly removed antiquities from their display cases before the war and placed them into storage vaults -- but to no avail. The doors of the vaults were opened or smashed, museum workers said.\nMcGuire Gibson, a University of Chicago professor and president of the American Association for Research in Baghdad, was infuriated.\nHe said he had been in frequent and frantic touch with U.S. military officials since Wednesday, imploring them to send troops "in there and protect that building."\nThe Americans could have prevented the looting, agreed Patty Gerstenblith, a professor at DePaul School of Law in Chicago who helped circulate a petition before the war, urging that care be taken to protect Iraqi antiquities.\n"It was completely inexcusable and avoidable," she said.\nU.S. military leaders have said they are doing their best to preserve Iraq's cultural heritage. They announced Saturday they will launch joint patrols with Iraqi police forces to stem the wave of looting.\nBrig. Gen. Vincent Brooks, speaking at U.S. Central Command in Qatar, said order will be restored when the rampage burns out.\n"We believe that it is tapering off," Brooks said. "I think we all just need to be patient and recognize that this is not something that happens overnight."\nAmong the museum's treasures was the copper head of an Akkadian king, at least 4,300 years old. Its eyes were gouged out, nose flattened, ears and beard cut off, apparently by subjects who took their revenge on his image -- much the same way as other Iraqis mutilated statues of Saddam.\nSome of the gold artifacts may be melted down, but most pieces will find their way into the hands of private collectors, said Russell.\nThe chances of recovery are slim; regional museums were looted after the 1991 Gulf War, and 4,000 pieces were lost.\n"I understand three or four have been recovered," he said.\nSamuel Paley, a professor of classics at the State University of New York, Buffalo, predicted whatever treasures aren't sold will be trashed.\nThe looters are "people trying to feed themselves," said Paley, who has spent years tracking Assyrian reliefs previously looted from Nimrud in northern Iraq. "When they find there's no market, they'll throw them away. If there is a market, they'll go into the market."\nKoichiro Matsuura, head of the U.N.'s cultural agency, UNESCO, on Saturday urged American officials to send troops to protect what was left of the museum's collection, and said the military should step in to stop looting and destruction at other key archaeological sites and museums.

(03/13/03 4:00am)

IU-South Bend President Una Mar Reck, left, talks with Indiana Sen. Vi Simpson, D-Ellettsville, Wednesday in South Bend. Simpson visited the University as part of a statewide tour to announce her bid for governor.

Time to Vote

(11/05/02 5:57am)

Bloomington voters will notice only minor changes to the voting process today as registered voters head to the polls.\nThe polling sites in Bloomington will be open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. today at various locations across campus and Monroe County.\nStudents who have registered to vote may do so at the polling place which corresponds with their district. \nVoting will take place at Foster, Willkie, Teter and Briscoe Quads, Read Center, Assembly Hall South Lobby, University School gym lobby and other sites.\nPolling places will function in the same way they have in the past, Monroe County Elections Supervisor Tara Stogsdill said. \n"The only thing that is going to be new is that clerks will ask for a driver's license number or the last four digits of the social security number," Stogsdill said.\nPolitical Science Clinical Assistant Professor Christine Barbour said she encourages students to make it to the polls today.\n"If you don't vote, your interests don't get heard. If your interests don't get heard you can't complain if your interests don't get attended to," Barbour said.\nShe said she hopes that efforts by INPIRG and Democratic get-out-the-vote drives will help bring people to the polls.\nVoters will have several selections to make on this year's ballot.\nBloomington's Mayor John Fernandez (Dem.) is running a highly contested race for Secretary of State against Todd Rokita (Rep.) and Rebecca Sink-Burris (Lib.), who is also from Bloomington.\nVoters may cast their ballot for Connie K. Nass (Rep.), Barbara Huston (Dem.) or Bruce Parisi (Lib.) as Auditor of State, and Day Smith (Dem.), Sam Goldstein (Lib.) or Tim Berry, (Rep.) as Treasurer of State.\nThere are two U.S. Representative districts within Monroe County. Voters in the 9th District will choose between Baron P. Hill (Dem.), Jeff Melton (Green), Al Cox (Lib.) and Mike Sodrel (Rep.). 4th District voters can select Bill Abbott (Dem.), Jerry L. Susong (Lib.) or Steve Buyer (Rep.). \nState representative positions are up for election as well, in both District 60 and 61. District 60 voters can select Peggy Welch (Dem.), Jim Billingsley (Lib.) or L. David Sabbagh (Rep.). District 61 candidates are Matt Pierce (Dem.) and Clark Brittain (Lib.).\nVoters can also choose Patrick M. Schrems (Dem.) or Carl A. Salzmann (Rep.) as Monroe County Prosecuting Attorney.\nCounty council positions and other county offices will be on the ballot as well.\nVoting in Bloomington will be a new experience for many underclassmen this fall, and some said they are not planning to vote at all.\n"I just never went and registered," freshman Andrea Holbrook said. "My voting wouldn't be right, it wouldn't be very fair, because I don't know which side to vote for."\nFreshman Becky Brown said she won't be voting tomorrow because she voted in her hometown election in Jennings County.\n"I actually registered to vote in my hometown and voted by absentee ballot," Brown said. "I figured it would be better to vote where I knew the views and the issues rather than choosing randomly." \nYoung voter rates are low because those voters don't feel the issues apply to them, Barbour said. Because the turnout rates are low, politicians don't direct their issues to young voters, so it creates a complicated circle, she said.\nFor voting questions, call the Monroe County Clerk's Office at 349-2600.

Copyright act not right

(09/16/02 5:34am)

In an effort to transcribe copyright law to cyberspace, Congress passed the Digital Millenium Copyright Act in October of 1998. The law includes provisions for copyrighted materials on the Internet and limits the liability of online service providers.\n One particularly controversial section of the DMCA makes it illegal to circumvent copyright protection systems. These "anti-circumvention" provisions have come under fire from experts in the legal and digital communities for the threats they pose to our freedom of speech and fair use exemptions from copyright law. \nUnder the DMCA, for example, it is illegal to create or distribute software that circumvents copyright protection devices. In 2000, eight major motion picture companies filed suit against online magazine "2600" for posting the source code for the DeCSS software program that bypasses DVD encryption. The suit was successful, and "2600" was forced to remove the source code from their Web site. From their prospective, though, that source code is the intellectual expression of its author; isn't such a ruling in violation of our freedom of speech? \nThe DMCA also compromises fair use -- the right to make copies of copyrighted materials for certain protected purposes, such as research, criticism and nonprofit, personal uses. When you quote a passage from a novel without the author's permission, you are exercising your right to fair use. Many record companies have begun using "copy-protection" on their latest music CDs. Making a copy of a CD for personal use is protected under fair use. In order to make a copy of a copy-protected CD, though, one would have to use software that bypassed the copy-protection system, and thus risk a lawsuit under the anti-circumvention clause of the DMCA. While the DMCA does include some fair use provisions, legal experts claim they are excessively narrow, and the vague terms in which the anti-circumvention clause is written could give rise to such a lawsuit.\nAn example of these vague terms is the DMCA's provision for the illegality of the manufacturing or distribution of software that "has only limited commercially significant purpose or use other than to circumvent protection afforded by a technological measure that effectively protects a right of a copyright owner." (Sec. 1201 of the DMCA) What is considered "limited commercially significant purpose?"\n In July of 2001, Russian programmer Dimitry Sklyarov was arrested when he came to the U.S. to speak at a Las Vegas conference for having worked on a software program used to convert Adobe's e-Book format into Adobe's Portable Document File format. Sklyarov was in violation of the anti-circumvention provisions of the DMCA simply because it was possible to abuse the software. Keep in mind that the program had obvious legitimate uses, such as extracting the text of an electronic book so that it could be read by an audio reader for the blind, something Adobe's software does not do.\nCopyright law must be adapted for the digital age, but not in heavy-handed manner of the DMCA. Our freedom of speech and right to fair use are being disputed. Scientists are afraid to publish encryption research for fear of prosecution. \nThe DMCA must be repealed and rewritten. To support the movement against the DMCA, donate to the American Civil Liberties Union and the Electronic Frontier Foundation, both of which are filing lawsuits challenging the digital copyright law. We need to place the liability with the perpetrators, and not with legitimate software writers, scientists and citizens exercising their freedom of speech and right to fair use.

So many choices...so little time

(07/25/02 8:23pm)

GameCube:\n• "Resident Evil" -- The Playstation standard is revisited in correlation with the release of the upcoming "Resident Evil" flick directed by Paul Anderson ("Mortal Kombat"). This game, along with an onslaught of other "Resident Evil" titles, will be released solely on the GameCube in an exclusive licensing contract with Capcom throughout 2002.\n• "Metroid Prime" -- Samus returns in this GameCube update of the 8-bit Nintendo classic. The game will incorporate aspects of the much beloved first-person shooter genre a la "GoldenEye" or "Halo" and will contain all of the old school gats and gizmos. "Metroid Prime" is scheduled for release this November.\n• "Star Fox Adventures: Dinosaur Planet" -- Fox McCloud returns for the first time since "Star Fox 64" with "Star Fox Adventures: Dinosaur Planet." The game is being designed by Rare, the folks that brought gamers "GoldenEye" and "Perfect Dark," and as such, it's a real departure from the other titles in the series. This game removes McCloud from his trusty Arwing ship and places him in a barrage of hand to hand combat. The gameplay is supposed to be very similar to that of "Zelda: Ocarina of Time." Currently, the game is scheduled for release in April.\n• "Mario Kart" for GameCube (title pending) -- The classic cartoony racer which made its presence widely known on both the Super Nintendo and Nintendo 64 will be hitting the GameCube sometime during 2002, presumably late in the year. The game will support four players and will return all of the classic Nintendo characters we've grown to know and love. With more detailed tracks and a greater number of polygons, "Mario Kart" will be a title well worth including in your collection.\nPLAYSTATION 2:\n•"State of Emergency" -- Rockstar Games provides us with another nugget of socially irresponsible video gaming in the vein of their break-out hit "Grand Theft Auto 3." The game play echoes coin-ops of the late '80s, i.e. "Double Dragon" in its side-scroller style. Looting, killing and maiming are handsomely rewarded as gamers inhabit gang members fighting against Americorp, a monopolistic regime. Players are armed with an assortment of weapons including Molotov cocktails, uzis, grenade launchers, shotguns, tazers, pepper spray and tear gas, among many other tools of destruction. The game hits streets Tuesday.\n• "Virtua Fighter 4" -- Developed by AM2 under the supervision of esteemed game designer Yu Suzuki, "Virtua Fighter 4" promises to be a royal kick in the pants to the somewhat lacking fighting genre. Characters and levels are designed in far more detail, and gameplay will be enhanced through more offensive weapons and a beefed-up defense. "Virtua Fighter 4" should serve as another shining example of the way in which Sega (now defunct as far as hardware goes) is developing inspired titles for other consoles. \n• "Britney's Dance Beat" -- That's right folks, everybody's favorite little Lolita is hitting the PS2 with her very own video game! The only way this game could be cool is if you had an old school Power Pad a la 8-bit Nintendo to bust some phat moves on. As far as musically themed video games go you're better off sticking to "Parappa the Rapper." Dope!\n• "Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2" -- The latest installment of EA's popular speed and flee racing series will hit the PS2 later this spring. Unlike a majority of the series' predecessors, cops are incorporated into the game to spice things up a little bit. Thus, gamers are given yet another opportunity to wantonly break the law in a pixilated world. A vast assortment of cars including the Aston Martin Vanquish, BMW Z8, Ferrari 360 Spider, Ferrari F50, Jaguar XKR, Lamborghini Diablo, Lamborghini Murcielago, McClaren F1, Mercedes CLK GTR, Opel Speedster and a vast assortment of Porsches make breaking the law a whole lotta fun.\nX-BOX:\n• "Wreckless: The Yakuza Missions" -- As developed by Bunkasha, "Wreckless" should be a change of pace for the design house, as well as a whole lot of sleazy fun. Drawing inspiration from such far-flung sources as Sega's "Crazy Taxi" and John Woo's Hong Kong bullet ballets, "Wreckless" promises to be one helluva ride. The game hits the streets Feb. 15.\n• "Hunter: The Reckoning" -- In Interplay's spinoff to "Vampire: The Gathering," you must battle an assortment of monsters including zombies, werewolves and vampires. Players can choose one of four different characters including Deuce (a shotgun and axe toting biker bad boy), Father Esteban (a priest armed with cross-bow and sword), Samantha (a tattooed lady cop sporting a kitana and revolver) or Cassandra (a 20-year-old raver chick adorned with throwing knives and Woo-esque double guns). "Hunter: The Reckoning" will be released Mar. 15.\n• "UFC: Tapout" -- The translation from the highly controversial and widely criticized underground fighting tournament to video game seems to have been a fruitful one as designer Crave preps a sequel to their bone-crunching Dreamcast hit. "UFC: Tapout" seems to have upped the stakes of its predecessor with incredibly detailed texture mapping and supposedly improved gameplay. The exclusion of such "UFC" luminaries as Royce Gracie and Tank Abbot is almost inexcusable, but the game still looks pretty rocking. "UFC" will be released in March.\n• "Outlaw Golf" -- Simon and Schuster are prepping this delinquent golf title for release sometime this spring, and to say the least, it's certainly inspired. If your caddie acts like a moron you can crush his head in with a 9-iron. Gamers can choose to play with "respectable" characters ranging from Killer Miller -- a depraved, escaped death-row inmate, to Doc Diggler -- a third-rate pimp complete with stripper girlfriends. Practice modes include a driving range in which you're rewarded for breaking the windows of parked cars. Who ever said golf was boring?\nPC:\n• "Hitman 2: Silent Assassin" -- Here's yet another game furthering the development of society as a whole: this time the culprits are Eidos Interactive. In this sequel to last year's popular but somewhat problematic shoot-'em-up hitman is contracted to snuff out a wealthy Japanese businessman as well as a member of the KGB. This family fun will be "hitting" PC's sometime this Spring. \n• "Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Outcast" -- It's "Star Wars," you possess both blasters and light sabers and it's coming this spring. Need I say more?\n• "Soldier of Fortune II: Double Helix" -- This sequel to last year's popular first-person shooter promises to improve upon its predecessor's gory antics with the incredibly fluid "Quake 3: Team Arena" engine. Levels are bigger, guns more accessible and violence more realistic. Fans of the similarly titled war -- mongering mag should be pleased with the combat depicted in "Soldier of Fortune II." The game should be available during the first quarter of 2002.\n• "Command & Conquer Renegade" -- This spin-off to the popular "Command & Conquer" series will be hitting shelves sometime in February. Westwood Studios alongside chief game designer Brett Sperry expand "C & C" implementing a more first-person shooter style of play as opposed to strategy. Although, the game will differ from many of the first-person shooters according to Executive Producer Dan Cermack. He told IGN.com, "It's about being on the ground in the middle of a C&C universe -- it's not about trying to compete with first-person shooters."\nFrom Pong to Gamecube:a brief history\n1972\n• "Pong" is released by the Atari Company. Chubby kids nationwide can now enjoy tennis indoors without breaking a sweat.\n1977\n• Atari 2600 is released. The government starts training for an alien invasion by having pilots play "Space Invaders" and "Asteroids."\n1981\n• Nintendo Entertainment System released. Plumbers rejoice to finally have a spokesmodel that can save princesses and keep his butt-crack hidden.\n1989\n• The Nintendo Game Boy debuts. Now kids can ignore their parents not only in the living room, but also at the dinner table and on vacations.\n• Sega Genesis released. Phil Collins tries to get spokesperson job, but a blue hedgehog beats him to it.\n• Power Glove is released for the NES. The evil kid from "The Wizard," Lucas, is quoted saying, "The Power Glove is so bad."\n1991\n• Super Nintendo is released in United States. The 16-bit console wars begin and lunch table arguments increase causing detentions to also rise. Common comments like "Mario sucks" and "No, you suck" are heard throughout elementary school cafeterias nationwide.\n• The "Time Traveler Hologram" video arcade game is released showing off new technology, but it's a dollar to play. Many kids are seen just watching the demo over and over again.\n• Sega CD is released along with the first creation of Full Motion Video in games. Games like "Night Trap" show the full potential of how bad of an idea this really was -- girls in lingerie prance around a house avoiding kidnappers.\n1992\n• Sega releases the 32x add-on for the Genesis system. Weeks later the add-on can be bought cheaply at nationwide garage sales.\n1995\n• Sega Saturn is released with full potential to prosper until…\n• Sony releases the Playstation. College kids finally get a CD-Rom machine worth skipping class for. Almost every "Final Fantasy" Game in the upcoming years is reportedly bought with textbook money.\n1996\n• Nintendo 64 released with a magical and colorful 3-D look at Mario World. The new four-player port lets gamers wait less for their next game of "Goldeneye," and also sets new standards for double dates. Well, it would if the 64 owners could get dates.\n1999\n• Sega Dreamcast debuts. A great and impressive machine, but could not compete with the other amazing competition, sort of like the IU football team.\n2000\n• Playstation 2 debuts in United States. The new machine comes with a built in DVD player and allows the owner to never have to leave the couch again, unless they need to switch the game or movie.\n2001\n• Billionaire Bill Gates sets his sights on addicting children in the console market with the launch of Microsoft's X-Box. Gates is quoted as saying, "Man, Satan really gives you a lot for a soul."\n• Nintendo releases Gamecube. A new video game war begins with online play and new name calling like "Cube-face" and "Box-head." Gamers still are not praised for their originality.

So many choices...so little time

(01/30/02 5:00am)

GameCube:\n• "Resident Evil" -- The Playstation standard is revisited in correlation with the release of the upcoming "Resident Evil" flick directed by Paul Anderson ("Mortal Kombat"). This game, along with an onslaught of other "Resident Evil" titles, will be released solely on the GameCube in an exclusive licensing contract with Capcom throughout 2002.\n• "Metroid Prime" -- Samus returns in this GameCube update of the 8-bit Nintendo classic. The game will incorporate aspects of the much beloved first-person shooter genre a la "GoldenEye" or "Halo" and will contain all of the old school gats and gizmos. "Metroid Prime" is scheduled for release this November.\n• "Star Fox Adventures: Dinosaur Planet" -- Fox McCloud returns for the first time since "Star Fox 64" with "Star Fox Adventures: Dinosaur Planet." The game is being designed by Rare, the folks that brought gamers "GoldenEye" and "Perfect Dark," and as such, it's a real departure from the other titles in the series. This game removes McCloud from his trusty Arwing ship and places him in a barrage of hand to hand combat. The gameplay is supposed to be very similar to that of "Zelda: Ocarina of Time." Currently, the game is scheduled for release in April.\n• "Mario Kart" for GameCube (title pending) -- The classic cartoony racer which made its presence widely known on both the Super Nintendo and Nintendo 64 will be hitting the GameCube sometime during 2002, presumably late in the year. The game will support four players and will return all of the classic Nintendo characters we've grown to know and love. With more detailed tracks and a greater number of polygons, "Mario Kart" will be a title well worth including in your collection.\nPLAYSTATION 2:\n•"State of Emergency" -- Rockstar Games provides us with another nugget of socially irresponsible video gaming in the vein of their break-out hit "Grand Theft Auto 3." The game play echoes coin-ops of the late '80s, i.e. "Double Dragon" in its side-scroller style. Looting, killing and maiming are handsomely rewarded as gamers inhabit gang members fighting against Americorp, a monopolistic regime. Players are armed with an assortment of weapons including Molotov cocktails, uzis, grenade launchers, shotguns, tazers, pepper spray and tear gas, among many other tools of destruction. The game hits streets Tuesday.\n• "Virtua Fighter 4" -- Developed by AM2 under the supervision of esteemed game designer Yu Suzuki, "Virtua Fighter 4" promises to be a royal kick in the pants to the somewhat lacking fighting genre. Characters and levels are designed in far more detail, and gameplay will be enhanced through more offensive weapons and a beefed-up defense. "Virtua Fighter 4" should serve as another shining example of the way in which Sega (now defunct as far as hardware goes) is developing inspired titles for other consoles. \n• "Britney's Dance Beat" -- That's right folks, everybody's favorite little Lolita is hitting the PS2 with her very own video game! The only way this game could be cool is if you had an old school Power Pad a la 8-bit Nintendo to bust some phat moves on. As far as musically themed video games go you're better off sticking to "Parappa the Rapper." Dope!\n• "Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit 2" -- The latest installment of EA's popular speed and flee racing series will hit the PS2 later this spring. Unlike a majority of the series' predecessors, cops are incorporated into the game to spice things up a little bit. Thus, gamers are given yet another opportunity to wantonly break the law in a pixilated world. A vast assortment of cars including the Aston Martin Vanquish, BMW Z8, Ferrari 360 Spider, Ferrari F50, Jaguar XKR, Lamborghini Diablo, Lamborghini Murcielago, McClaren F1, Mercedes CLK GTR, Opel Speedster and a vast assortment of Porsches make breaking the law a whole lotta fun.\nX-BOX:\n• "Wreckless: The Yakuza Missions" -- As developed by Bunkasha, "Wreckless" should be a change of pace for the design house, as well as a whole lot of sleazy fun. Drawing inspiration from such far-flung sources as Sega's "Crazy Taxi" and John Woo's Hong Kong bullet ballets, "Wreckless" promises to be one helluva ride. The game hits the streets Feb. 15.\n• "Hunter: The Reckoning" -- In Interplay's spinoff to "Vampire: The Gathering," you must battle an assortment of monsters including zombies, werewolves and vampires. Players can choose one of four different characters including Deuce (a shotgun and axe toting biker bad boy), Father Esteban (a priest armed with cross-bow and sword), Samantha (a tattooed lady cop sporting a kitana and revolver) or Cassandra (a 20-year-old raver chick adorned with throwing knives and Woo-esque double guns). "Hunter: The Reckoning" will be released Mar. 15.\n• "UFC: Tapout" -- The translation from the highly controversial and widely criticized underground fighting tournament to video game seems to have been a fruitful one as designer Crave preps a sequel to their bone-crunching Dreamcast hit. "UFC: Tapout" seems to have upped the stakes of its predecessor with incredibly detailed texture mapping and supposedly improved gameplay. The exclusion of such "UFC" luminaries as Royce Gracie and Tank Abbot is almost inexcusable, but the game still looks pretty rocking. "UFC" will be released in March.\n• "Outlaw Golf" -- Simon and Schuster are prepping this delinquent golf title for release sometime this spring, and to say the least, it's certainly inspired. If your caddie acts like a moron you can crush his head in with a 9-iron. Gamers can choose to play with "respectable" characters ranging from Killer Miller -- a depraved, escaped death-row inmate, to Doc Diggler -- a third-rate pimp complete with stripper girlfriends. Practice modes include a driving range in which you're rewarded for breaking the windows of parked cars. Who ever said golf was boring?\nPC:\n• "Hitman 2: Silent Assassin" -- Here's yet another game furthering the development of society as a whole: this time the culprits are Eidos Interactive. In this sequel to last year's popular but somewhat problematic shoot-'em-up hitman is contracted to snuff out a wealthy Japanese businessman as well as a member of the KGB. This family fun will be "hitting" PC's sometime this Spring. \n• "Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Outcast" -- It's "Star Wars," you possess both blasters and light sabers and it's coming this spring. Need I say more?\n• "Soldier of Fortune II: Double Helix" -- This sequel to last year's popular first-person shooter promises to improve upon its predecessor's gory antics with the incredibly fluid "Quake 3: Team Arena" engine. Levels are bigger, guns more accessible and violence more realistic. Fans of the similarly titled war -- mongering mag should be pleased with the combat depicted in "Soldier of Fortune II." The game should be available during the first quarter of 2002.\n• "Command & Conquer Renegade" -- This spin-off to the popular "Command & Conquer" series will be hitting shelves sometime in February. Westwood Studios alongside chief game designer Brett Sperry expand "C & C" implementing a more first-person shooter style of play as opposed to strategy. Although, the game will differ from many of the first-person shooters according to Executive Producer Dan Cermack. He told IGN.com, "It's about being on the ground in the middle of a C&C universe -- it's not about trying to compete with first-person shooters."\nFrom Pong to Gamecube:a brief history\n1972\n• "Pong" is released by the Atari Company. Chubby kids nationwide can now enjoy tennis indoors without breaking a sweat.\n1977\n• Atari 2600 is released. The government starts training for an alien invasion by having pilots play "Space Invaders" and "Asteroids."\n1981\n• Nintendo Entertainment System released. Plumbers rejoice to finally have a spokesmodel that can save princesses and keep his butt-crack hidden.\n1989\n• The Nintendo Game Boy debuts. Now kids can ignore their parents not only in the living room, but also at the dinner table and on vacations.\n• Sega Genesis released. Phil Collins tries to get spokesperson job, but a blue hedgehog beats him to it.\n• Power Glove is released for the NES. The evil kid from "The Wizard," Lucas, is quoted saying, "The Power Glove is so bad."\n1991\n• Super Nintendo is released in United States. The 16-bit console wars begin and lunch table arguments increase causing detentions to also rise. Common comments like "Mario sucks" and "No, you suck" are heard throughout elementary school cafeterias nationwide.\n• The "Time Traveler Hologram" video arcade game is released showing off new technology, but it's a dollar to play. Many kids are seen just watching the demo over and over again.\n• Sega CD is released along with the first creation of Full Motion Video in games. Games like "Night Trap" show the full potential of how bad of an idea this really was -- girls in lingerie prance around a house avoiding kidnappers.\n1992\n• Sega releases the 32x add-on for the Genesis system. Weeks later the add-on can be bought cheaply at nationwide garage sales.\n1995\n• Sega Saturn is released with full potential to prosper until…\n• Sony releases the Playstation. College kids finally get a CD-Rom machine worth skipping class for. Almost every "Final Fantasy" Game in the upcoming years is reportedly bought with textbook money.\n1996\n• Nintendo 64 released with a magical and colorful 3-D look at Mario World. The new four-player port lets gamers wait less for their next game of "Goldeneye," and also sets new standards for double dates. Well, it would if the 64 owners could get dates.\n1999\n• Sega Dreamcast debuts. A great and impressive machine, but could not compete with the other amazing competition, sort of like the IU football team.\n2000\n• Playstation 2 debuts in United States. The new machine comes with a built in DVD player and allows the owner to never have to leave the couch again, unless they need to switch the game or movie.\n2001\n• Billionaire Bill Gates sets his sights on addicting children in the console market with the launch of Microsoft's X-Box. Gates is quoted as saying, "Man, Satan really gives you a lot for a soul."\n• Nintendo releases Gamecube. A new video game war begins with online play and new name calling like "Cube-face" and "Box-head." Gamers still are not praised for their originality.

Team seeks redemption

(03/22/01 5:09am)

The Hoosier softball squad will face Indiana State at 3 p.m. this afternoon with much to prove. After dropping both games in their home-opening doubleheader Tuesday, the Hoosiers will be looking for some redemption against the Sycamores (8-15).\nToday's game will be the third match in a five-game homestand that followed a rigorous 24-game road trip to open the season. The Sycamores are also coming off a doubleheader. In game one, Missouri pummeled the Sycamores 9-1 and allowed only one hit. \nISU is led by second-team all-Missouri Valley Conference center fielder Sarah Lemond. Lemond is hitting .268 in the 2001 campaign. First baseman Kim Schuette leads Indiana State with a .286 batting average and 18 hits. In his third year, Sycamore coach Tom Rupert has a balanced rotation of Kim McGinley, Keri Przygocki and Cassie Reeser. McGinley is 4-5 on the season with 14 appearances to lead the Sycamores.\nSome associated with the Indiana State program will recognize a familiar face wearing the cream and crimson. Hoosier assistant coach Donna Bonebrake was the Sycamores' coach from 1991-1995, compiling an overall record of 90-118-1.\nIU starting pitcher Alison Cooke is looking for her eighth victory of the season, which would match a season high for the Fishers, Ind., native. She has been the winning pitcher in seven of the Hoosiers' nine victories this season.\nIU and ISU met last year, with ISU winning 5-2.