Mount Hood

National March for Science takes Corvallis

By: Justin Oehler
Staff Writer

On April 22, scientists, science enthusiasts and self-proclaimed nerds gathered all over the world to raise awareness of the attack on science. Though this was early spring with rain clouds in the sky, more people turned out than the organizers expected. According to Kelby Hahn, one of the event organizers for the march in Corvallis, 500 to 1,000 people were expected which is what the event’s permit was for. However, well over 2,000 adults, children and dogs turned out, surpassing even the wildest estimations of the organizers.

Speakers such as Corvallis Mayor Biff Traber and Benton County Commissioner Anne Schuster, called for the crowd to continue the support of science and real facts, not the “alternative facts” that have recently plagued national news.

Mayor Traber said, “beliefs do not equal fact.” This sentiment was echoed throughout the march. He also called out deniers of science, saying that, “you cannot question scientific facts. They are facts for a reason.”

Commissioner Schuster took a more personal route, telling the story of how she first fell in love with science in her father’s greenhouse. She went on to say, “science has informed all that I do.”

Attendees’ ages were fairly mixed: from young children who could barely walk to older folks who used canes. However, there was a small number of college-aged students in attendance.

Jocelyn Chavez, an anthropology major from Western attended. When asked why she chose to come to the event, she explained that, “normally, this would be a fun social event to mingle with other members of the science community; however, with the actions of the current administration push against science and facts this has turned it to an important event to gain attention for the cause.”

When push comes to shove, scientists and science lovers, alike, come up with many interesting signs and slogans. A chant that elicited giggles of joy from marchers every time it was said was, “What do we want? Science! When do we want it? After peer review!” This helped to enforce the lightheartedness of the march.

Another sign displayed a more comic side of one the marchers describing his idea for the next presidential candidate: “Darwin 2020: Gradual change we can believe in.”

Others were more pointed towards President Donald Trump. One artist made a painting of a large Trump-head breathing fire onto a sad, lone polar bear atop a small floating iceberg. Another attendee even called to, “make America think again.”

The March for Science was coordinated with the help of the City of Corvallis and the Corvallis Police Department. The event was entirely peaceful; no arrests and no property damage occurred.

Contact the author at joehler12@wou.edu

Zika virus threatens the Americas

By: Jenna Beresheim
News Editor

In May 2015, the first Zika virus infection in Brazil was confirmed, and since has spread to most of South America and Mexico.

Before this confirmation, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) reported that the Zika virus was commonly found in Africa, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific Islands.

The Zika virus is spread through mosquito bites and leads to symptoms such as fevers, joint pains, rashes, and red eyes.

Due to the transmissible nature of this virus the CDC has issued a Level 2 travel alert for individuals traveling to countries that may contain the virus. A Level 2 travel alert encourages travelers to practice enhanced precautions and understand the risks of traveling to certain countries for various reasons.

The virus will typically pass from an individual’s blood within a few days and rarely results in death or hospitalization. There is currently no vaccine for the Zika virus and those infected are urged to prevent further mosquito bites to spread the virus, as well as to rest and remain hydrated until it passes. The virus remains contagious in the bloodstream for up to a week.

Pregnant mothers that become infected with the virus risk their infant being born with a severe birth defect known as microcephaly. This defect results in a much smaller head than an average infant’s, often affecting the brain as a result.

Women who are currently pregnant or hoping to become pregnant soon are encouraged to stay out of areas with known cases of the Zika virus.

National Public Radio (NPR) reports that Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, and Jamaica have advised that women hold off on getting pregnant. El Salvador went as far as to urge women to hold back on having children until 2018.

Salvadoran law currently prohibits and criminalizes all abortion, on any grounds. However, the stance may be shifting in light of the Zika virus affecting newborns.

This may lead to more mothers finding their own methods of abortion, with the risk of serving time if caught.
“[The result would be] more clandestine abortions and a higher number of women being sent to jail,” predicts Angela Rivas, a Salvadoran abortion rights activist as reported by NPR.

Individuals are encouraged to wear long sleeves and pants as well as to stay in places that are air-conditioned and prepared to keep mosquitoes out with screened windows and doors. Apply sunscreen before applying insect repellent and never spray repellent directly onto the skin beneath clothing.

If travelling to countries with known cases of Zika virus, invest in mosquito netting for sleeping areas.

The World Health Organization (WHO) held an emergency meeting on Monday, Feb. 1 to discuss what needs to be done to combat the virus that is rapidly spreading through the Americas.

“The people in these countries deserve the protection of the international community and the World Health Organization,” stated Lawrence Gostin, director of Georgetown’s O’Neill Institute, in a JAMA editorial.

According to Sylvain Aldighieri of the Pan American Health Organization with USA Today, the Americas could see three to four million infections a year.

“WHO officials want to make sure that nations don’t take inappropriate steps to limit travel or trade because of the virus,” stated Bruce Aylward, assistant director-general of the WHO. “During the Ebola outbreak, many countries closed their borders, which harmed the fragile economies of West Africa.”

Buckle up and keep your eyes ahead

By: Zoe Strickland
Managing Editor

April is the fourth annual Distracted Driving Awareness Month. Distracted driving in Oregon has been declared an “epidemic” by the Oregon Department of Transportation.

Distracted driving involves driving while your attention is diverted elsewhere, and includes but is not limited to: eating or drinking, talking or texting and using navigation devices.

As society makes strides in advancing technology and things like navigation devices become more of a driving staple, the temptation to drive while otherwise engaged can become more enticing. When a person takes their eyes off of the road for a mere five seconds while driving 55 miles per hour, they travel the length of a football field without looking at the road.

Though a distracted driver may only take their eyes off of the road for a short five seconds, a study done by the American Automobile Association Foundation suggests that “distraction ‘latency’ lasts an average of 27 seconds, meaning that, even after drivers put down the phone or stop fiddling with the navigation system, drivers aren’t fully engaged with the driving task.”

“During daylight hours, approximately 660,000 drivers are using cellphones while driving,” reported the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The regular use of cellphones has drastically increased the number of accident-related deaths. End Distracted Driving reported that since 2014, there has been a 14 percent increase in car accident fatalities, which is the largest increase in the past 53 years.

Despite laws against it, “at least every 3 hours someone in Oregon is injured by distracted driving behavior,” reports the ODOT website.

As a state law, Oregon prohibits the use of cellphones while operating a vehicle; except in cases of an emergency. The fine for breaking this law is $142.

Though April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month, practicing safe driving habits year-round is essential to the safety of everyone on the road. To learn more about distracted driving and how to help prevent it, visit distracteddriving.gov.

Contact the author at journalmanaging@wou.edu

Respect the pack

By: Jade Rayner
News Editor

In the month of April 2017, two crimes involving racism occurred on campus and off, both towards Western students.

One incident, revealed in an all-campus email from President Rex Fuller, “involved a student being subjected to racist language while walking on campus.”

The second incident occurred at one of the Wolfpack Village apartment complexes, where sophomore Dwightaye Spears’ apartment door was vandalized with a racist slur on April 10, according to Fox 12.

“It was just a really uncomfortable experience,” Spears said in an interview with Fox 12.

Crimes involving discrimination at Western aren’t common. Western’s “2016 Annual Security and Fire Safety Report” crime-statistics show that the last reported hate crimes for campus and the surrounding community within a one-block radius, were two in 2013; the report has statistics for 2013, 2014 and 2015.

When asked in an interview what a student should do if they feel they have been discriminated against, Campus Public Safety director Rebecca Chiles explained that, ​“students can report incidents to Campus Public Safety, Office of Student Conduct, Monmouth Police Department, or local police department where the incident has taken place, Human Resources, Office of the Vice President of Student Affairs, and University Housing are just a few of the resources on campus that can take a report.”

Chiles offered Western’s Student Health and Counseling Center, Abby’s House, Veteran’s Services, Multicultural Services and Programs and the Stonewall Center/Safe Zone are resources available to students if they feel they feel unsafe or discriminated against.

“For students who are concerned for their safety or want to get support when making their way around campus or off campus, Campus Public Safety provides an on campus escort program where an officer can walk students to and from campus buildings; the Wolf Ride is another great resource for students to utilize for getting to off-campus locations,” added Chiles.

In the April 11 email sent by Fuller, he reminded everyone on campus that, “(WOU’s) practices are guided by…equity and inclusion; a fundamental basis in human diversity; appreciation for the complexity of the world; and strength drawn from our variety of backgrounds, abilities, cultural experiences, identities, knowledge domains and means of expression.”

Anyone with useful information regarding the above incidents are encouraged to contact the Monmouth police at 503-838-1109.

Students that would like to contact Campus Public Safety, for an escort or otherwise, can call their non-emergency number 503-838-8481.

Contact the author at journalnews@wou.edu

One day for one Earth

By: Jade Rayner
News Editor

The 47th annual Earth Day will be observed on April 22, 2017. Earth Day was founded in 1970 by Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson; the idea to dedicate a day to focus on the environment was triggered by a massive oil spill in Santa Barbara, California in 1969, according to earthday.org.

The creation of the Environmental Protection Agency, the Clean Air, Clean Water and Endangered Species Acts all resulted from the many rallies and protests that occurred on Earth Day 1970.

As explained on the EPA’s website, their mission is to protect human health and the environment. In order to accomplish their broad goal, the EPA works with Congress by writing regulations for any environmental laws they create. They will also assist states in making sure they meet national environmental standards when needed.

This year, there are many ways that people can be active in the environment on April 22 if they choose to.

A common Earth Day activity is planting trees. “Planting trees is one of the simplest and most effective ways of tackling climate change caused by greenhouse gas. As trees grow they absorb carbon dioxide (CO2), a major greenhouse gas in the atmosphere. When communities plant trees they can help to reduce the impacts of climate change in their local area and around the world,” states www.worldvision.com.

The Luckiamute Watershed Council is hosting a free event to plant trees and shrubs at the Luckiamute State Natural Area in Albany alongside the Central Lions Club of Independence and Boy Scout Troupe #38.

By planting native vegetation, the LWC is hoping to restore the natural area’s wetlands, which is explained in further detail on their website, http://www.luckiamutelwc.org/earthday.

The Oregon Gardens in Silverton will be hosting special activities, along with free admission from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Earth Day; however, parking for the event will be $5.

Locally, the Monmouth Public Library will be doing free Earth Day themed crafts from 2-3 p.m.

In addition to these events, many cities around the country will be holding a March for Science.

“What began as a Reddit conversation has grown into a movement of scientists and science lovers standing up for evidenced-based policy making and inclusivity in the science community,” states www.scientificamerican.com.

Corvallis will be holding its March for Science from 1-3 p.m. at the Benton County Courthouse on April 22. More details can be found on the event’s facebook page.

For those looking for more ideas on how to help the environment, information can be found on www.earthday.org.

Contact the author at journalnews@wou.edu

The cost of your browsing data

By:Darien Campo
Designer

Tuesday, March 29th, Congress met to pass legislation that has sent the internet into an uproar.

In one of the last moves made under the Obama administration, the Federal Communications Commission issued a rule which gave internet users a greater amount of control over how Internet Service Providers share their information. Data, like browsing history, app usage and shopping trends could not be given away until the ISP asked users for permission to do so.

The House cast the final vote of 215-205 to reject the rule.

This rule, which had not yet actually gone into effect, only affected ISPs and not internet companies like Google, Facebook and Amazon – who are given permission to collect your information when you use their services and agree to their terms and conditions.

Rep. Michael Burgess, R-TX, argued that this gave an unfair advantage to unregulated internet companies and that rejecting the rule would, “… level the playing field for an increasingly anti-competitive market.”
Many users are outraged at the prospect of a company purchasing their private browsing information; when in reality it’s not individual’s browsing data they want, but the data trends of a large group of people – for marketing purposes.

As the Washington Post explains it, a marketer will ask a company like Facebook to advertise to a specific demographic, not individuals.

“The two companies will settle on a deal, and the marketer’s advertisements will be displayed on Facebook to that group, but the marketing company will never see specific information about those people,” explained Brian Fung of the Washington Post.

But many users and Democrat congress members fear that this gives ISPs too much power over private information.

Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-CA, argued, “I don’t want anyone to take my information and sell it to someone and make a ton of money off of it just because they can get their mitts on it.”

Democrats argue that while companies like Google and Facebook are not regulated, users have a choice to not use those services, while most users have little or no choice over which ISP they get to use.

Some have taken it a step further. Max Temkin, creator of the popular game “Cards Against Humanity” has promised to, “… buy the browser history of every congressman and congressional aide and publish it,” if the repeal of the FCC rule is passed by President Trump.

But it may not actually work that way.

“It’s highly unlikely that you’re going to see [ISPs] actually parsing out individual’s data and selling it person by person,” said Gabriel Debenedetti, Politico reporter, before adding on, “… not that they couldn’t.”

However, not much has changed now for everyday users; the FCC’s rule never actually went into effect, so ISPs are still allowed to sell data just as they were before. If a user feels uncomfortable with their data being used this way, most sources recommend using a virtual private network.

As PCMag explains, “… a VPN creates a virtual encrypted ‘tunnel’ between you and a remote server operated by a VPN service.” This helps mask a user’s identity and keeps an ISP from seeing their data.

The bill now awaits a signature from President Trump, who is expected to pass it, though many groups are urging him to veto.

“President Trump now has the opportunity to veto this resolution and show he is not just a president for CEOs but for all Americans,” said Neema Singh Guliani, legislative counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union.

Contact the author at journaldesigner@wou.edu

Students could pay the price for low enrollment

By: Jade Rayner
News Editor

In an email sent to Western faculty and staff on April 4, President Rex Fuller laid out upcoming changes and work going into the 2017-2019 biennial budget.

According to the message, Oregon’s seven public universities sent the Higher Education Coordinating Commission multiple scenarios regarding possible budgets.

The HECC is a 14 member volunteer commission responsible for advising the governor, Oregon legislation and the chief education office on higher education policy, as stated on oregon.gov. Some of the HECC’s duties include, “… the development of biennial budget recommendations for public postsecondary education in Oregon,” as well as, “… making funding allocations to Oregon’s public community colleges and public universities.”

President Fuller’s email relayed that the most optimistic budget scenario presented to the HECC, “… provided about $940 million for the four-year campuses -an increase of about $275 million over the 2015-17 budget. This budget represented the true increase in cost and increase of 20% for universities.” The scenario was then sent to the governor as part of the HECC request.

Fuller stated that, “The universities decided to convey this aspirational budget scenario to the HECC, in part, because of the possibility that the corporate gross receipts—Measure 97—would pass in November 2016. As we know, Measure 97 failed in the 2016 election.”

Had Measure 97 been passed, it would have increased the corporate minimum tax for corporations with at least $25 million in Oregon sales, as explained on ballotpedia.org. The goal of the measure was to use the increased revenue to fund education, healthcare and senior services.

Fuller’s email goes on to say that, “… the Governor’s recommended budget (GRB) set $667 million for the Public University Support Fund (PUSF), which is about $115 million below the amount needed to cover increased costs … the GRB also did not fund the Sports Lottery that is used by Western to support graduate student scholarships and student athletes.”

Because of this, Fuller explained, “It is likely that Western, like all public universities, will be facing a shortfall in PUSF funds. This will require each campus to consider a combination of tuition increases, use of reserves, and budget cuts.”

In January 2017, the Board of Trustees was presented a budget that assumed a 10 percent increase in tuition and enrollment; Western now has a clearer idea of what the admissions and expected enrollment for fall 2017 will be.

On March 1, Western’s first-time first-year student enrollment was 20 percent lower compared to last year at the same time. Overall, it’s estimated that the number of new first-year students from Oregon will be lower. Because of this, the modeled budget will reflect a 10 percent increase to tuition and a five percent decrease in enrollment, leading to an assumed deficit of around $3 million per year, as laid out in Fuller’s email.

Though work will continue to be done in an attempt to increase higher education PUSF funding, budget cuts are being planned out.

“The cuts will need to be conceived in light of the newly approved Strategic Plan and will not reduce our ability to enroll students in classes they need to graduate,” wrote Fuller. “However, greater care in matching our course scheduling to account for fewer students and changing student demand will, in all likelihood, lead to fewer sections of some courses and some reductions in the number and/or variety of some course electives.”

Currently, budget plans are not set, and need to be reviewed. Once plans are reviewed, the budget proposals will be shared with the University Budget Committee. The recommendations from the committee will then be considered in the development of the final 2017-2019 budget which will be presented to the Board of Trustees for approval.

Fuller concluded his message to Western staff and faculty stating that, “In this environment of decreasing resources, we must begin planning for these expected budget shortfalls … by utilizing our Strategic Plan and the process I have outlined, I am confident that Western will make budget decisions that support our effort to achieve our mission and strategic initiatives that are described in our Strategic Plan.”

Contact the author at journalnews@wou.edu