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(06/12/97 9:00am)
Eighteen days are left -- the last 18 days in a long and eventful 99 years. Then an apocalypse of sorts awaits the 600-square-mile island of Hong Kong. Hotel prices, already averaging $300 a night, will skyrocket into the quadruple digits. Flights in and out will be full. The extravagance that defines Hong Kong -- from the skyscrapers aglow with neon on the harbor at sunset to the posh hotels replete with marble and jade and caviar -- will reach its opulent apex. The economy, in other words, will have its heyday. And that is what Hong Kong really cares about, right? With its strategically located harbor in the center of East Asia and its gleaming 70-story bank skyscrapers, this last of the major British colonies is described by a U.S. travel guide as "a city geared not only to making money but feeling good about it." Because making money has in recent years become a major concern for China as well, many see little reason for the two not to prove happy bedfellows come July 1, when the mainland takes back control of its prosperous little satellite from the United Kingdom (which has governed Hong Kong since the Opium War ended in 1898). China, while officially a communist country, knows it would be incredibly foolish to enforce socialism upon the decidedly capitalist island, which is why its economic system will remain intact until 2047. But what of democracy and civil liberties and freedom of speech and say in the government? That is what the United States wants to know, and that is why Asia experts and investment bankers suddenly aren't the only ones keeping tabs on the island. Sure, Hong Kong has been preparing for the handover for about 14 years now -- but the United States never got any say, did it? Will it let a fellow democratic country fall through the cracks and become part of the bullying communist dictatorship of China? What kind of consequences could that have? Pessimists predict that the Chinese Communist Party will somehow screw up the glamorous former colony. Cynics, on the other hand, don't think "communism" (meaning a more authoritarian government and limited rights) will make much of a difference at all, because the citizens of Hong Kong are not exactly a politically active bunch. Their primary concern is making money, and if they don't have to worry about the economy changing for another 50 years, their loss of political freedoms is not going to keep them up at night. When I visited the "Fragrant Harbour" last summer, the island proved true to its money-obsessed reputation. Surrounded by the swarms of prospering citizens on the streets of Kowloon one morning (the population density in the area is, incidentally, 72,000 per square kilometer), I shared my awe with a rollerblading tourist. "I came because I was told it was an amazing place, and that I should see it before 1997, because it's going to waste away," he said. "But seeing it, I can't imagine that it could possibly just stop." The tourist (insightful for an American) was right. It would be as difficult to bring a halt to the lust for profit among Hong Kong's population as it would among Wharton's. And China has no plans for the next 50 years to change Hong Kong's economy. In many ways, because the age of imperialism is over and the island (which is 98 percent ethnically Chinese) will finally be ruled by its own people, the handover is eagerly awaited. "China is chic," The New York Times recently announced in a report on trends in the cosmopolitan city. Time and again, China has displayed its indignance to the United States's, to pleas for reform and to civil disobedience. It is paranoid authoritarianism of this sort that prompted the government to order soldiers with tanks to Tiananmen Square eight years ago this month. And the people of Hong Kong, 55,000 of whom showed up last week at the island's Victoria Park for a candlelight vigil honoring victims of the Tiananmen crackdown, have already demonstrated that they are not like their subservient mainland counterparts. When their interests are threatened, far more of them are likely to retaliate. Moreover, even purely economic interests can overlap with political ones -- the much disputed University City vending ordinance proves this much. Decisions seen as "administrative" or in the interests of the public can easily affect the economy. And when a small, one-sided contingent makes such decisions (whether in support of Jiang Zemin or Judith Rodin) without the say of the entire population, problems can arise. With any luck, the island's new Hong Kong-based (though mainland-supporting) legislature will respond to its citizens, perhaps teaching Beijing a thing or two about effective government in the process. With any luck, Hong Kong's designated leader Tung Chee-hwa will not fold to party pressure. The official plan for "one country, two systems" should not dissolve into "one country, one puppet government." Until then, the island has 18 days to partake in the party before the Communist Party takes control. The July 1 handover shouldn't involve tanks.
(04/23/97 9:00am)
Always renowned as a man of incredible energy and diverse interests, former Linguistics Professor Zellig Harris -- who died in 1992 -- had his last of many books published this month. "Anyone who knew Harris would recognize his style -- his approach," said Linguistics Professor Emeritus Henry Hoenigswald, who was a 40-year colleague of Harris'. "He did unexpected things -- he was very much alive [and] awake." Harris' penchant for doing the unexpected is evident in his newest work, The Transformation of Capitalist Society, soon to be available at The Book Store. Harris, who retired in 1985, is best-known as the founder of the University's Linguistics Department -- "the first of its kind in the U.S.," according to Management and Sociology Emeritus Professor William Evan. But his recently published book focuses on the strikingly different field of economics. "This is the first and only book he wrote on a nonlinguistic subject," noted Evan, a former student and colleague of Harris' who helped organize and publish the book. Evan explained that Harris showed him a draft of the book about a month before he died. After Harris' death, Evan collaborated with two "old friends" to prepare the book for publishing. In The Transformation of Capitalist Society, Harris examines and advocates increasing tendencies toward economic democracy and production that is "self-governed," as in the form of employee-ownership programs. Evan first became acquainted with Harris -- who also served as the president of the Linguistics Society of America -- as an undergraduate Linguistics major in the 1940s. "He was a stellar Linguistics professor," Evan recalled. "We developed a friendship over the years and that's why I was interested in developing the manuscript." Hoenigswald also noted that Harris' 244-page "political essay" is very distinct from his earlier linguistic works. "Harris was one of the most important thinkers in our field -- the center of his being was that of a thinker," Hoenigswald said. "But aside from his central track in life he found time for other things." Hoenigswald added that the book -- which he described as "very well-written" -- shows Harris' "politically active" side. He explained that even for less scholarly readers, the book provides interesting insights. Along with economics, the Benjamin Franklin Professor also relished studying anthropology and sociology, according to Evan. "There's no direct relation between linguistics and economics, [but] he had a deep knowledge of various social sciences," Evan noted. "He was a polymath -- which is a fancy word for someone with a profound knowledge of different fields."
(04/21/97 9:00am)
Rain and cold menaced all weekend, but the climate didn't ruin the 25th anniversary Fling. Perhaps Friday morning's pelting snow was not the ideal way to herald the "Mother of All Flings." This year's Spring Fling, the 25th anniversary of the annual festival, encountered adverse conditions all around. Not only did February-like weather and gusty winds usher in the weekend tradition, but predictions that the event would not live up to past years' Flings were common. Many complained that the bands for the annual Fling concert, despite headlining hip-hop crowd-charmers A Tribe Called Quest, did not live up to past lineups, which have included acts like the Violent Femmes, the Pharcyde, Parliament-Funkadelic and Sonic Youth. But in the end, it was hard to find students who didn't have fun over the highly publicized and anticipated weekend. If anything, the mishaps -- from the 40-degree weather Friday to Tribe member Q-Tip's open fly during the concert -- made the weekend laughable. The crowd in the Quadrangle Friday was much sparser than in previous years, as the rain and cold kept most of the vendors and rides from opening. Bands played on two stages as scheduled, though, and when it warmed up a bit Saturday, the usual Fling crowd made an appearance. But jackets and winter hats made a somewhat strange replacement for the more traditional shorts and sunglasses. After the blustery Friday, the Social Planning and Events Committee organizers moved the evening concert from Hill Field to Irvine Auditorium. "I don't think Irvine was up for it," noted College freshman Alison Watkins, the assistant chair for security at this year's Fling. Watkins pointed to "bad acoustics" and "echoing" for many of the show's problems. But some concertgoers thought A Tribe Called Quest "didn't seem happy to be there," College freshman Brook Martinez said. Q-Tip continually stopped his act due to microphone problems, and according to Watkins, seemed "temperamental." "He was taking a nap during sound check," Watkins said. "They weren't as into it as they might've been." Q-Tip's cousin, who joined the group to celebrate his 21st birthday, was confused about which university he was performing for. "He kept calling us Penn State, and that really didn't help," Watkins said. Tribe's other rapper, Phife, was able to work "Pennsylvania Quakers" into a rhyme at one point in the show, though, bringing cheers from those who caught the line. Some students said the Penn audience wasn't familiar enough with Tribe's music to excite the group. "I don't think they really enjoyed playing for us," College freshman Julie Kessler said. "They really like a lot of participation, and we couldn't give it to them." The Toasters, a ska outfit who opened the concert, won huge crowd approval, despite the many students who seemed even less familiar with the group than with Tribe. "They were awesome because they had so much energy, and the music was so danceable," Martinez said. As for the weekend's other events -- from the immensely overcrowded block parties to the two-day extravaganza in the Quadrangle -- few spirits were permanently dampened by the drizzle. "Everything was so hyped up that it was bound to leave me disappointed," Martinez said. "But I had fun. And the drunk people probably didn't mind [the weather] because they probably didn't notice."
(04/09/97 9:00am)
George Ware dispelled myths about his religion at Caribbean American Students Association forum. For many, the word "voodoo" -- a Haitian religion commonly associated with spellbinding and possession -- conveys a sense of eerie mystery. But in an effort to combat such perceptions, local voodoo priest George Ware explained his religion Thursday night at a forum sponsored by the Caribbean American Students Association. "It's not about biting the heads off chickens -- that is hearsay," said Ware, who also denied that the religion was based on casting spells. "People who come to our church looking for that get bored, even though we offer something quite spectacular -- a chance to speak to a force that you can trust," he added. Ware described voodoo -- and its more Latin-influenced counterpart, santeria -- as a monotheistic religion based on "helping poor oppressed people survive and get on with their lives." "The idea that we believe in many gods is a heinous misconception," he said. "It is a religion that believes in one god as creator of the universe -- there is no ambiguity there." Ware invited all in attendance to witness a Saturday "possession" -- a spiritual ceremony he claimed is "not as alien as you think it would be" -- at his church, the LePerstyle Haitian Church in Philadelphia. Possessions -- which include drums, singing and dancing -- are also broadcast on the radio station WPEB (88.1 FM) every Saturday at 7 a.m. Only about 15 people, however, attended Ware's presentation -- sponsored by CASA as part of its annual week-long Carifest for Caribbean Awareness -- in the High Rise East roof-top lounge. CASA President Anne Lalsingh, a Wharton junior, attributed the low attendance to people's "negative stereotypes" of voodoo. "People's general perceptions of voodoo [are such that] they'd just rather not know," Lalsingh said. "They'd rather remain ignorant." Lalsingh, herself a Christian, set up the forum to increase awareness, but admitted that she herself did not plan to investigate voodoo further. "While [Ware] was talking about the theoretical aspect of voodoo, he didn't talk about how it is practiced," Lalsingh said. "I think he made it sound a lot more like Christianity than it is." Lalsingh noted, however, that the forum's low turnout was in significant contrast with the attendance at the week's other events, which included an appearance by comedian Oliver Samuel in the Annenberg Center Wednesday -- which drew more than 250 people -- as well as an Easter Sunday Caribbean food lunch and a performance by the local four-piece band Steel Kings. CASA held a closing party Friday night. Samuel's "Oliver and Trini" performance, as well as one by a Trinidadian comedian known as Trini, highlighted what Lalsingh called "the best Carifest in years." The show -- which included a series of eight skits -- focused on the experience of migration from the Caribbean to the United States.
(04/07/97 9:00am)
The group picked up an annual award for the fourth straight time. For the fourth year in a row, the University's co-ed a cappella group Off the Beat won the annual Contemporary A Cappella Recording Award -- one of four annual awards given by the Contemporary A Cappella Society of America. "CASA is like the Grammys of a cappella," noted Off the Beat President Sid Khosla, a College junior. "It's really the only national organization to rate and review mixed collegiate a cappella groups." And Off the Beat's winning CD, When Mama's Not Around, swept three out of CASA's four awards, presented in March. The CD, recorded last May, is a 15-track compilation of the group's favorite songs from the 1995-96 season. "Every year we perform at least 20 new arrangements," Khosla said. "We need something we can hold onto in a tangible form -- otherwise certain songs would be forgotten." The large number of a cappella groups on campus often prevents individual groups from standing out, but Off the Beat has remained successful and unique, according to Khosla. In addition to repeatedly selling out campus performances -- like its series of tenth anniversary performances the weekend of March 21-22 -- the performers continue to gain national recognition. The group largely credits its success to its unorthodox style -- which is visible in both its song choice and its complex arrangements. "For one, we [usually do songs] within a week of becoming widely played on the radio -- and for the most part much before other groups are doing them," said Engineering freshman Jeffrey Marrazzo, a soloist in the group. "The second thing is that we pride ourselves on the complexity of our arrangements -- a regular listener might not notice, but there are so many different things going on," he added. To date, the group has recorded five CDs, which have included selections as varied as the Violent Femmes' "Add it Up," Coolio's "Gangsta's Paradise" and the B-52's "Love Shack." While Off the Beat has won the "Best CD" award three times before, the group was somewhat surprised to learn they had won it again. Five of the group's anchoring members -- including Music Director Gabe Rutman -- graduated in 1995, before this year's CD was recorded, but Khosla said it is the group's "cutting edge" quality that differentiates them from others. "The reason CASA's appreciated us year after year is that we're always one step ahead," he said. "We'll record something -- like 'Gangsta's Paradise' -- completely different that no one else expects." The group also captured CASA's "Best Arrangement" title, and junior soloist Alex Jarige won "Best Soloist," bringing Off the Beat one accolade short of its four-award showing in 1996. When Mama's Not Around has sold almost 1,000 copies, which the group sells at its University performances and during tours. "If we're really successful monetarily [on tour], that's one of the ways we measure how well we do," Marrazzo said. According to Khosla, the group has sold as many as 50 to 60 CDs at individual off-campus performances. The group -- which recently voted on their favorite15 selections from this year -- will begin recording for next year's CD in late May.
(03/27/97 10:00am)
The future of Hong Kong -- long the subject of mass speculation among Chinese, British and the business world -- drew people from around the world to the Law School last week for a two-day symposium. The symposium -- sponsored by the University's Journal of International and Economic Law -- was entitled "From British Colony to Chinese Special Administrative Region: Implications for Hong Kong's Economy and the Rule of Law." Because Hong Kong will end 99 years of colonization -- and indirect rule -- by the United Kingdom and revert to rule from mainland communist China in July, its situation is unique and complex. "There simply is no precedent," explained John Shinkle, a representative from the Hong Kong division of Salomon Brothers and one of the 13 speakers at the symposium. The speakers, who will submit papers on similar topics to the Journal, discussed the imminent changes in Hong Kong's government and economy, and its role as an economic center. And while few who attended the event were completely unfamiliar with the issue, speakers dispelled some of the rumors and common perceptions surrounding July 1. "Our ignorance of Hong Kong and Asia in general is so enormous it's mind-boggling," said William Dowell, former Hong Kong bureau chief for Time magazine. "When I've gone out and talked to people, they don't care? they want to do business and get on with it." Certain roadblocks to the transition remain, but the Chinese and British governments have been working in tandem since 1982 to make the process smooth and well-planned. Daniel Fung, Hong Kong's solicitor-general who spoke at the symposium's Thursday evening banquet, explained how the policy towards the hand-over -- dubbed "one country, two systems" -- assures that Hong Kong will remain fairly autonomous despite the power transaction. Hong Kong will be designated a Special Administration Region of the People's Republic of China, whose government has promised that little -- especially Hong Kong's economy -- will change. Other speakers -- such as Kerry Dumbaugh, a specialist in Asian affairs at the Congressional Research Service -- urged the United States to "reinforce Hong Kong's separateness from the PRC" and protect human rights. Dumbaugh added that the U.S. government needs to be especially attentive during the "divisive" month starting June 4 -- the eighth anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre -- when demonstrations are most likely to occur. But Benjamin Fishburne, a partner for for the law firm Winston and Strawn, said the transition should not change people's feelings. "You've got good investment bankers, good lawyers, good accountants, and they all want to stay despite the fact that it's more expensive [to live there] than just about anywhere," he said.
(03/20/97 10:00am)
Perhaps auto accidents and pre-nuptial agreements don't rank high on the average University student's list of pressing problems. But the Undergraduate Assembly and the Graduate and Professional Students Association offer a "Wednesday special" on professional legal services -- absolutely free. The services, available alternate weeks from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., are not a new convenience in the University community. According to Tyler Wren, a 15-year partner at the law firm Fineman and Bach -- whose attorneys rotate the advising duty for a $3,600 yearly stipend -- they have existed "since the early '80s." The UA has posted on many University newsgroups to advertise the legal services but few students are aware of them. The newsgroup message reads like a daytime television commercial: "Do you have legal problems? Need advice on starting a business? Marriage? Divorce?" But even College freshman Tommy Shi, a member of the Nominations and Elections Committee, was unaware that the services are so readily available. "I know [the UA] offers them, but I've heard you have to fill out a long application," he said. "I think it's really complicated." In reality, the application is short, unobtrusive and available on the Internet at http://www.dolphin.upenn. edu/~legalsrv, thanks to College junior Josh Rockoff, former UA chairperson of legal services. To receive an appointment over e-mail in only a few hours, all a student has to do is fill out the application and mail it in online. The registration process is coordinated by David Goldberger, the College freshman UA member in charge of the services since the beginning of the semester. He checks the Web site twice a day and makes scheduling arrangements. Appointments are limited to 30 minutes and students are allowed only one per semester. This is "quite sufficient," according to Wren, who noted that only once has he needed more time with a student -- in which case his firm scheduled a follow-up appointment. While Fineman and Bach can deal with many students' legal matters, the firm has to remain silent on anything involving the University as well as landlord-tenant disputes -- obvious conflicts of interest since much off-campus living is located on University-owned land. Wren said typical candidates for one-on-one advice are usually students who have been in automobile accidents or those with roommate disputes. Goldberger, who screens the cases to ensure nothing conflicts with the UA contract, noted that the issues lately have proven more diverse -- legal services this year has taken on both sexual assault and mail fraud. Graduate students, who utilize the services far more than undergraduates -- the ratio is currently estimated at five to three -- have always had access to the program. But GAPSA did not start assisting the UA financially until 1993. There has been talk of incorporating the Law School into the services to save money, but legal services has allocated funds to hiring professionals for many years. And Goldberger said the UA is currently content with Fineman and Bach, which has provided the service since the program originated. "We've never had a problem where they had to call us and tell us they couldn't send someone, and they're all professionals," Goldberger noted. "Basically when you have a legal issue, you want to go to someone who's been trained to deal with it," he added. "If you've been injured, you're going to go to a doctor -- not a med student."
(02/27/97 10:00am)
While the welfare reforms to be enacted in Pennsylvania next Monday may not directly affect many University students, not a seat was empty last night when the Castle hosted a panel discussion to educate the public about welfare. "You rarely get to see people directly involved in public policy and advocacy," said College junior Toni Roth, -- who coordinated the program with the Poverty Awareness Committee and the Program for Student Community Involvement. College sophomore Hilary Aisenstein, who attended last night's event, said the welfare issue is relevant to the University because of its diverse surroundings. "One of the things the safety concerns here have taught us is that Penn is not in a bubble," she added. Panelist Amy Hirsch -- a public benefits lawyer at West Philadelphia's Community Legal Services -- said the "clock begins ticking" starting Monday, when federal law will limit the amount of time in which citizens are allowed to collect welfare, allowing a lifetime maximum of five years. Aisenstein labeled the legislation "pretty frightening" because it will require about 75,000 current welfare recipients in Pennsylvania to find jobs within two years. History Professor Michael Katz traced the massive cuts in welfare to changes in individual principles and perceptions of the welfare state. "The cutbacks that we're seeing have a much deeper, more profound significance," Katz said. "[We] equate welfare with public assistance for people who can't take care of themselves." And panelist Ed Schwartz, director of the Institute for the Study of Civic Value, explained that class segregation and migration to suburbs has created exaggerated perceptions of welfare recipients. And he warned that the consequences of welfare cuts could affect many people in Philadelphia. "If nothing changes, the welfare crisis five years from now will make our homeless problem now look mild by comparison," Schwartz said. "The homeless shelters will be packed, the SEPTA terminals will be packed with people urinating -- there will be nowhere for former welfare recipients to go." But panelist Don Stovall, who directs the Philadelphia County Assistance Office, defended his organization. "Welfare will never be the same again," he said. The panelists, however, all agreed that the welfare reforms are flawed. "Pennsylvania has a budget surplus," said Hirsch, explaining that while state legislators' salaries have risen 23 percent in the past seven years, welfare grants have not increased at all. Following the panelists' individual speeches, the audience engaged in a heated question-and-answer session. One audience member said she was partaking in a protest Monday morning outside offices of the Department of Pennsylvania Welfare. Roth expressed her satisfaction with the turnout and her concern that people get involved.
(02/17/97 10:00am)
Perhaps the ambience of the Kelly Writers House -- the pervasive coffee scent that greets visitors upon entering, the mahogany 19th century furniture and the cozy lamplight -- cannot be transmitted over radio waves. But Saturday night, poetry and music from the Writers House was broadcast throughout Pennsylvania and three other states. From midnight to 1 a.m., WXPN-FM, the University-owned radio station at 88.5, featured a live poetry reading from the Locust Walk locale, marking the premiere episode of what is to be a monthly radio show. "It's definitely beneficial to both Writers House and 'XPN," Sarah Giulian, student-producer of "Live from Kelly Writers House," said. Through frequent broadcasts of a calendar of events, the show boosts publicity for the Writers House, which has been open to the public for less than a year. And the show signifies an effort on the part of WXPN to build "stronger ties with the University." "[Until now] 'XPN has been everything but Penn," said Joe Taylor, who produced the show for the station. "It's silly for us to be at such a great university and not take advantage of it." Volunteers for WQHS, the University's student-run station at 570 AM, assisted WXPN in coordinating the program -- a move that reflects WXPN's desire to increase interaction between the two stations. Giulian added that the show will spread literary awareness to a wide audience as part of an effort that has never before existed in the area. "[Live broadcast poetry] is not done often -- and it's certainly not done in Philly," said Giulian, a College senior and a Daily Pennsylvanian columnist. "We can get people hearing, listening [and] thinking about poetry." Writers House Faculty Director and English Professor Al Filreis began the show with a poem that reflected how poetry -- though new to radio -- is often best enjoyed aloud. The readers took advantage of being on radio by inflecting their voices, involving multiple readers in poems and even using music to accompany their poetry. Giulian's poem was a narrative set to Tchaikovsky's Fourth Symphony. "I thought everyone was going to be nervous and rush through their poems," Giulian commented afterwards. "But it turns out that poets are natural actors -- and everyone was a ham." The "house band" of the Writers House -- the Virgin Septet -- also received airtime during the show, although they were not able to perform live due to lack of space in the house. Instead, using WXPN equipment, the band recorded music onto a CD, which was played periodically throughout the program. Giulian cited this as an example of the "rubber flexibility" that working with WXPN affords the Writers House. The Writers House was instituted as part of Penn's 21st Century Project to "provide a different Penn experience for students graduating in the 21st century," said Giulian, who added that she was excited to see it becoming a popular spot on campus. The house is open to the public from noon to 11 p.m. every day except Friday, when it closes at 5 p.m. It features a variety of services and writing-centered activities for the University community -- including guest speakers, peer writing advisors and "show and tell" sessions for sharing original poetry. "It is all way beyond my imagination," said Giulian, who added that the house's incredible progress is due in great part to the efforts of Filreis. Many students have been equally enthusiastic and Saturday's event was no exception. After the broadcast, the event coordinators were already preparing for the next live session.
(02/04/97 10:00am)
A step into Bioengineering Professor Daniel Bogen's office is immediately captivating -- and not only because of the soft-spoken, tea-drinking engineer behind the desk. The room is filled with color -- lovingly created pictures, a purple stuffed octopus and fat markers that beg to be picked up and experimented with. "People like to handle physical objects," noted Bogen, who coordinates the Penn Toys project for senior Bioengineering majors. Penn Toys -- one of two options Bioengineering majors have to fulfill the Engineering School's design project requirement -- allows students to design toys for children with disabilities. As a former doctor and father of three, Bogen is familiar with the allure of "playing" with toys. But beyond the initial appeal, he knows toys hold a far greater significance than being instruments for amusement. "Toys are not just a modern diversion," said Bogen, who cited the importance of toys for learning concepts like control of the environment and cause-effect relationships. "Toys are the original learning tool." But for disabled children who are unable to manipulate toys in the ways typical children can, toys are often inaccessible -- and so are many of the skills that come with playing. Four years ago, the 15-year Penn professor was going through a period in which he "was trying to focus on what was really important," and what he really "liked to do." Bogen found he could fulfill both of his aspirations in the area of rehabilitation-engineering -- an area that focuses on adapting devices for the disabled. During a visit to the Children's Seashore House, a University rehabilitation center, Bogen found an area where he -- and ultimately his students -- could make a difference. Now the project is called Penn Toys -- and in its four years of existence, the program has made significant progress in the area of rehabilitation-engineering by making toys adaptable for children with disabilities. Bogen initially tested the idea in a summer course he taught in 1992. After touring the Seashore House with his students, they devised a toy for a 4-year-old boy who had been paralyzed from the neck down in a car accident. "The students picked the most severely disabled kid to work with," Bogen recalled. "It was really a trial -- we didn't know where this was going." The class successfully created an electrically-powered "go-cart" that the boy could control by moving his head, which Bogen said was not only fun but also the child's "ticket to independence." Unique for its reliance on a team effort, Bogen's year-long Senior Design Project class is "much more like a real world experience" than most classes, according to Engineering senior Mark Pennisi. Held most days in the Penn Toys "lab," the class is strikingly different from most engineering classes. The lab is a bright, high-ceilinged room on the top floor of Hayden Hall. Many students work in groups, while others are stationed at sewing machines, computers or some of the advanced machinery the program has acquired over the years. "Most of the students have never seen equipment like this," Bogen said. It is technology that not only sets the classroom apart from others but also distinguishes the program from others in its field. The class also has access to substantial funds and resources throughout the University-- allowing the students to produce customized, reproducible toys that toy manufacturers often cannot produce. Bogen ultimately hopes to devise a computer program that will allow disabled children and their families to create products to fit their needs -- much like current computer programs that enable users to customize their kitchens. Noting that the students' goals get more ambitious every year, Pennisi said he is confident in the success of Bogen's ventures. "Every year, the toys are getting more complex," Pennisi said. "The program has really come a long way."
(01/28/97 10:00am)
There are states -- such as Texas, Mississippi and Georgia -- that repeatedly dominate the annual Miss America contest. Pennsylvania is not one of them. The Miss Philadelphia pageant, a preliminary contest to the Miss Pennsylvania and Miss America pageants, did not even manage to attract its maximum number of fifteen participants last year -- not exactly offering stiff competition for the national level. The 14 women who expressed interest in the pageant were all given the chance to participate and all ultimately received monetary rewards for their efforts. This year's pageant will be held at Drexel University's Mandell Theater on March 22. Auditions for the event will be held throughout February. In an area beset with universities, the lack of interest may result from the pageant's relatively small amount of publicity, suggested Kevin McAleese, executive director of the Miss Philadelphia contest. "[It's interesting to note that] the Miss America Foundation is the number one resource for college scholarships," claimed McAleese, who holds his volunteer position for the second year. None of the contestants in last year's contest were Penn students. McAleese added that CoreStates Bank, the primary sponsor of the Miss Philadelphia pageant, has contributed "in excess of $10,000" to this year's contest. Regina Drummond -- a second-year Villanova law student who won the pageant last year with only one previous competition under her belt -- has collected about $7,000 in scholarships as a result of her victory and made numerous contacts around Philadelphia. At a school where students are accustomed to making contacts in internships and recruitment forums, beauty pageants are not a typical source of funds or connections. But McAleese explained that this is why contestants have little to lose by entering Miss Philadelphia. "The whole point is to reward the participants," he said. "There is no exchange of money between the participants and the contest -- no registration fee." The one expense prospective contestants do face is in preparing for the contest. And College freshman Kendrick Li said people might have negative perceptions of beauty pageants. "I think it's the stereotype of a pageant contestant that's bad," Li suggested. "People don't want to be associated with that." True to tradition, the Miss Philadelphia pageant includes both a swimsuit and an evening gown competition, which collectively account for 30 percent of a contestant's score. McAleese noted that the time commitment is fairly minimal. After registering over the phone, all contestants must audition and attend an orientation session before the contest. The only time requirements beyond that lie in preparing a two-minute speech outlining a "platform" and some sort of talent exhibition. The "platform," which McAleese describes as "something to speak to the community about in [a] year as Miss Philly," accounts for 30 percent of the score. Platform topics have ranged from "funding for the arts" to "teen violence." "Talents" -- which account for the greatest percentage of each score -- require the contestant to perform in some way, most often in a monologue, song or dance. The winner receives a $3,000 scholarship -- the highest pageant stipend in the state -- and the first runner-up receives a $1,000 scholarship. In the past, Miss Philadelphia winners have received even more money through speeches and publicity events. With such high incentives, McAleese hopes more local university students will get involved, especially since this year's competition will be held in University City. "[The pageant is] an incredible venue to help women build confidence," McAleese said. Interested candidates must be residents of Pennsylvania or be attending a Pennsylvania college and should call 232-3222 by February 1.
(12/09/96 10:00am)
Faced with the pressure of catering to mass crowds of eager party-goers, many Penn fraternities resign themselves to serving cheap beer at their events. But some fraternities -- like Alpha Phi Delta -- take matters into their own hands and explore the fine art of beer-brewing themselves. Houston Hall's Smith Penniman room became a virtual microbrewery yesterday afternoon when APD brothers invited George Hummel of Philadelphia's Home Sweet Homebrew to give a seminar on how to brew the perfect keg -- at home. APD brother Dan Slawe, who coordinated the event, has been home-brewing beer for about two years. "It's not as complicated as you might think," the College junior said. "I just follow the directions and out comes good beer." But most of the students who attended the event had not brewed before and said they hoped to learn the skills of "beer-brewing," or zymurgy. "Someday I might find myself on a desert island and need to know how to make it," 1996 College graduate Jon Klassen said. Hummel, who brewed a five-gallon cauldron of beer while giving his lecture, shed light on the simplicity of the brewing process. He assured his audience that basic zymurgy -- which is done over a stove -- is not overly complex. "Guys do it," he joked in reference to the procedure. "Well, with some of the frat guys, we have to explain that the stove is the thing underneath all the pizza boxes." Hummel explained that brewing beer is not especially costly. A basic zymurgy kit runs for about $60 and ingredients for brewing "about two cases of beer" cost approximately $15. Hummel also gave a detailed explanation of the history, evolution and scientific processes of beer during his lecture. "Primitive man gave up being hunters and gatherers and settled down on farms in order to have a steady supply of grains for brewing beer," he said. "Every great civilization had some sort of spirits they enjoyed." Hummel focused on beer's four essential ingredients -- malted barley, hops, yeast and water passing around samples which he encouraged students to examine, smell and even taste. During the demonstration, Hummel also dispelled some common "beer myths." "There is no 'heart of the hops.' Those marketing boys at Miller were the same folks who came up with 'cold filtered,' " Hummel said. "It sounds good but it doesn't mean anything." Yet Hummel admitted that he does not necessarily prefer microbrewed beer to commercial beer. He added that the best beer is always served "cellar temperature," and that the ice-cold beer popular in America numbs drinkers' tastebuds and disguises the beer's true taste. "A lot of people wonder if I drink any [mainstream] beer at all now," he said. "If anything, I drink more -- in the name of research. It's a dirty job, but someone has to do it." As for Hummel's favorite brand, he refused to name a winner. "There is no utopian beer," he claimed. "It's finding the right beer for the right mood."
(11/25/96 10:00am)
Culminating Poverty Awareness Week, a strip poker game collected a pile of clothing for local homeless people. Several students bared it all Saturday night -- donating used clothing to charity in a strip poker clothes drive. The drive, aimed at providing clothes for local homeless people, was the final event of Poverty Awareness Week. Clothes discarded in the game went to the Philadelphia and Delaware Valley Unit of the Homeless. About 20 students attended the strip poker game. Students came dressed in clothes they wanted to give away. The rules made sure no one was fully undressed. Although the event was advertised throughout the University and announced on KYW-AM radio, the crowd barely made a dent in the eight two-foot subs provided for participants' enjoyment. But the strippers refused to get discouraged, instead enjoying the nostalgia of trying on -- and taking off -- old clothes. "That was my frat party wear my freshman year -- back when Alpha Chi Rho had parties and Kriss Kross was popular," 1996 College graduate Linda Cherry recalled, as College freshman Jason Ackerman modeled a fitted red T-shirt. As the poker game progressed, College junior Yoneco Evans, who directed the event as Kite and Key's Community Projects coordinator, suggestively removed a few layers of her clothing and added them to the pile of donations. Despite the high spirits of the coordinators, some participants expressed concern that the poker game's poor turnout indicated students' indifference about poverty. "If the Penn community was concerned enough, there would be a lot more people here," Ackerman said, squeezing himself into a striped dress before the game. "This event has been highly publicized." Cherry attributed student apathy to the widespread poverty that surrounds the Penn campus. "The more poor people you see, the less you care," she said. But most of the coordinators said they had expected a relatively small turnout. "Granted, I had a feeling we were going to have problems getting people to come to this event," said College junior Liz Theoharis, adding that she preferred to focus instead on the larger success of Poverty Awareness Week as a whole program. Beginning November 15, the week was sponsored by 30 different student groups. "[We've seen] different people from different communities at Penn," Theoharis noted. "We've raised a good fifteen to sixteen hundred dollars to help local organizations." The Kite and Key Society and Community House organized Saturday night's stripping.
(11/18/96 10:00am)
In her work, she assigns stories. In her leisure, Washington Post Assistant Managing Editor Mary Hadar tells stories. And last Thursday night, the 1965 College for Women graduate told plenty of tales as keynote speaker for the annual Career Dinner for Junior Women. The three-and-a-half-hour reception was also an opportunity for the junior women to get advice from several other prominent elders. The single-sex environment provided a congenial forum for airing questions and uncertainties about the job market -- without the pressure of networking or contact-building. "If it was a bunch of men running around in business suits, it would be intimidating," College junior Amy Malerba said. "But this event was so incredible? It was just so easy to strike up a conversation." Hadar wove anecdotes from her 30-year journalism career with commentary on the changing roles of women in society. The first female managing editor of The Daily Pennsylvanian, Hadar attended journalism school at Columbia University after graduating from Penn. She then worked for The Baltimore Sun as a copy editor -- a job she called "not glamorous." She spent eight years editing foreign news at The Jerusalem Post before joining The Washington Post's "Style" section as a copy editor. "You are all under pressure to make a decision? to decide the rest of your lives," she joked to the women. The tone of the evening was relaxed. Tables were loosely organized around career fields, with prominent guests sprinkled at each one. Most students stressed that the evening was an eye-opening chance to inquire about several different fields. Hadar, in fact, said she had originally been a math major, switching to English only in her junior year. While Hadar conceded that her career has not been free of sexual discrimination, she stressed the advantages of being a woman in managing people. "[I am] not a threat to people," she explained. "I'm not ambitious -- I'm not out to get their jobs." And, true to her word, after her talk, Hadar made herself quite accessible. Foregoing the dessert buffet to talk with her privately, students formed lines by her table after the speech. Even fellow alumnae were eager to exchange words. Guest Karen Harrison, a reporter for The New York Post and former Penn graduate student, exchanged business cards with Hadar following the speech. Harrison emphasized the aid she received from Penn's "phenomenal" alumni network in finding jobs across the country. "Other schools hit you up for money? [Here there is] much more outreach, much more participation," she said. Many of the other guests agreed. "I feel very indebted to Penn," added Harrison's sister Joan, a 1981 College graduate who works for CBS's entertainment division. "It was really helpful to me in terms of the professional network." Thursday's reception was the ninth annual career dinner sponsored by the Trustees' Council of Penn Women. The Council also produces an on-line service available only to Penn women for networking purposes, but Council Chairperson and Trustee Elsie Sterling Howard stressed that Thursday's dinner was simply a "venue for interaction." "We provide feedback," Howard explained. "[After college], a hundred things can happen."
(10/29/96 10:00am)
Local Democrats turnedLocal Democrats turnedout at City Hall to markLocal Democrats turnedout at City Hall to markHillary Clinton's birthday. Students from Penn for Clinton/Gore '96 gathered at City Hall Saturday, hoping to celebrate First Lady Hillary Clinton's 49th birthday with many other supporters. But a relatively small crowd showed up for the program, which included speeches by prominent local Democrats and entertainment. Roughly 60 people gathered near an outdoor stage to hear Mayor Ed Rendell and local singer Christine Winchester. With President Clinton leading Republican nominee Bob Dole in the polls, the speakers were less concerned about the outcome of the November 5 election than they were about voter turnout, especially among women and students. Democrats nationwide have been hoping for high turnout among supporters to boost Democratic candidates in local and Congressional races. During the event, students from local universities addressed the "lack of enthusiasm [for politics] displayed on campus" and their peers' skeptical attitude about politicians. Michelle Wirzberger, a member of Temple University's College Democrats, commented that when she talks with fellow students about political issues, they either do not know anything about the subject or say they are specifically ignoring the "corrupt" political realm. State Rep. Kathy Manderino (D-Phila.) offered a reply to the widespread distrust of politicians. "[I am familiar with that] cynical excuse for non-involvement," she said. "If you think everyone in office is a bum, get out there and do something about it." Citing possible threats under the GOP's budget plan to federal financial aid that "affects two-thirds of Penn's student body," College sophomore Jana Kay, co-chairperson of Penn for Clinton/Gore '96, emphasized the importance of going to the polls next Tuesday. College junior Sarah Newman, who has been campaigning heavily for the Democratic Party, said she agreed. "It's one thing to be polled, but it's another thing to get out and vote," Newman said after the event. "I know people are busy, but it's really important, especially when issues are what they are." Other speakers targeted local women, stressing Hillary Clinton as a positive example. "In '94, women collectively did not go out and vote, and it showed in the polls," Manderino reminded audience members, encouraging each of them to take and distribute 50 pieces of campaign literature. In concluding, Rendell reminded the group that the election has not yet been won. "As we go into the final week, things look great," he said. "But many an election has turned around in the last nine days."
