Crime in the Penn Patrol zone increased slightly in 2007 compared to last year, with the biggest jump occurring in thefts. Total crime increased year-to-date by six percent, according to the Division of Public Safety. Statistics for the month of November show a 20-percent increase in total crime compared to the same month last year.

Though officially part of the Centennial Conference, the Franklin & Marshall Diplomats (4-3) have been the unofficial doormat of the Ivy League this year. After opening the season with four wins over non-Ivy opponents, the Diplomats enter tonight's match at Penn (1-3, 1-2 Ivy) having lost their last three matches to Dartmouth, Yale and Princeton by a combined score of 25-2.

"I forget the author… but I was wondering if you had a book called The Game?" I asked the grandfatherly man behind the information desk at the Penn Bookstore. "Yes, of course," he said. Then, after a pause and a slight roll of the eyes, "We have plenty.

The Panhellenic Council has elected College junior Drew Tye as president for the upcoming year. Tye, who is currently the Panhellenic delegate for Sigma Delta Tau, ran against two current board members for the position. The Panhellenic president serves as the representative of the female Greek community for the University administration.

Philadelphia may be best known for its cheesesteaks, but Penn researchers have given chocolate a home here as well. No, not M&Ms; and hot cocoa. Their research has uncovered a much more primitive form of chocolate - one that has earned widespread acclaim as the earliest known use of the cacao plant.

No NBA team has ever graced the Palestra floor. But tonight, the ancient arena might be seeing the next best thing. No. 1 North Carolina has three likely NBA first-rounders in its starting lineup and one of the most legendary figures in college basketball history at the helm.

Seniors Brian Grandieri and Michael Kach turn free-throw shooting into a friendly competition. In their spare time, the two roommates use the hoop behind their house; at practice, whoever plays worse buys the other dinner. If game performance is any indication, Kach has been enjoying a lot of free meals this year.

Although the University improved computer security after a Penn student allegedly caused a server crash in February 2006, a similar type of attack could still cause problems for even the largest Web servers.

The holidays are upon us once again. I'm a big fan of Christmas - I love the hushed beauty of a bright, snowy night, Claymation TV specials and Harpoon's delicious Winter Warmer ale. Here at Penn, we celebrate the winter solstice with the stars on Locust Walk, finals and gift drives.

A Penn Law student was accosted by two would-be robbers on Sunday near the corner of 36th and Lancaster streets, Philadelphia Police Lt. John Walker said. Eugenia Birman, 22, was walking on the street at about 11:25 a.m. when she was approached by two women.

Alicia Puglionesi is a College junior from Havertown, Pa. Her e-mail address is puglionesi@dailypennsylvanian.com.

Some coaches use an embarrassing loss as a motivator for a downtrodden squad. Other coaches scrutinize every last detail of the debacle on videotape to help discourage a repeat performance. Then there's selective amnesia. Following a thumping 66-26 defeat at Villanova on Saturday, Penn women's basketball seems to be leaning toward the latter option: removing the blowout from its mental filing system altogether.

Wayne Ellington needs no introduction. In his second season, the North Carolina shooting guard has emerged as one of the best players in the country and will almost certainly suit up for an NBA team in the future. And while Ellington has started to become a household name, tonight will mark his return to the very stage on which he introduced himself to the nation: the Palestra.

Edward Anderton, a 2005 Penn alumnus, was arrested on Friday for allegedly stealing his neighbors' identities and establishing lines of credit in his neighbors' names, Division of Public Safety officials said. Anderton, 25, and Drexel University student Jocelyn Kirsch, 22, burglarized at least two of their neighbors' apartments and created fake Georgia driver's licenses in order to open credit card accounts, the Philadelphia Daily News, reported yesterday.

It's that time of the year again. As classes wrap up, thousands of students will once again fill out bubble-forms to give feedback for their professors. And although students provide a fair amount of information on these forms, key portions of this data don't make it onto Penn Course Review.

Bio prof. sheds light on Lyme disease Recent research by Penn biology professor Dustin Brisson suggests that chipmunks and two shrew species account for nearly three-quarters of carriers of ticks infected with Lyme disease. The widely held belief was that mice were the main animal carriers of the disease.

Alex Buder Shapiro is approaching graduation - but her days of playtime, recess and cafeteria food are far from over. The College senior is taking a job in human resources at Google. There, her playtime will be a game of pool with colleagues, recess will be climbing up an indoor rock wall and cafeteria food will be tapas at Cafe Pintxo.