PittLife

• Spring is in the air

  Melding new, old attractions

  At 4 p.m. Thursday, April 25, Gibson Dining Hall shut its doors and moved operations outside for an evening of food, games and fun: Spring Fling.
  Sponsored by the Student Activities Council (SAC) and co-sponsored by Residence Hall Assembly (RHA), Black Student Association (BSA) and Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC), Spring Fling is held annually.
  This year, organizers worked hard to bring several new attractions as well as old-time favorites to the event.
  “The caricature (artist) had a line of at least 10 people for over three hours,” said Kassandra Turner, SAC committee chair and junior in commercial graphics.
  As it is such a large scale and popular event, the work and organization for Spring Fling was divided up as much as possible between the sponsoring groups.
  ROTC supplied cadets to help employees of Maccaroo’s Gym run the multiple inflatable attractions.
  BSA organized music and sponsored the popular caricature artist.
  SAC brought an airbrush tattoo artist, and contacted multiple organizations, from clubs to Greek houses, to man a variety of booths.
  RHA worked with Gibson Dining Hall to plan the food.
  “My personal favorite activity was the sports bungee,” Turner said.
  Many months of hard work, planning and communication between organizing groups took place to bring another successful Spring Fling to the PSU campus.
  With a goal of giving students some time to relax and blow off steam before finals, the event is paid for by fundraising and student privilege fees.
  This allows all the activities at the event to be free, and give more students an opportunity to participate.
  Turner says that with some minor technical difficulties on a few of the inflatables, Spring Fling 2013 ran smoothly as planned.
  “Spring Fling was amazing,” said Richard Trezza, freshman in automotive technology.
  Students were able to trade one dining hall meal for a paper card, which could then be hole-punched at different booths in exchange for food.
  Students were treated to funnel cakes, shish kabobs and walking tacos in recycled Doritos bags, along with many other items.
  “Eating outside is fun and a good idea,” said Braxton Stout, freshman in automotive technology. “I wish they would give us more punches, though. I’m used to eating as much as I want at dinner and I can’t with only seven punches. Plus you can’t go back and get more like you can normally, not without using another meal from my meal plan.”

• 600 songs, one guy

  Joud Bayeh | reporter

  John Rush, or “The Human iPod,” is a personification of multiple talents.
  He plays guitar, harmonica and can sing more than 600 songs from more than 200 bands.
  “I’ve always just had a good memory,” Rush said. “The guitar parts are all pretty easy to remember, because I hear the melody in my head, but the lyrics are the hard part. So, I picture them as a story and if I can see the story, I can sing the song.”
  Held by Student Activities Council (SAC), at the U-club in the Overman Student Center on Tuesday, April 16, the Human iPod made an impression on the crowd of about 30 people.
  Zach Wagner, member of SAC and sophomore in construction management, says that he thinks everyone had a good time.
  “It seems like John has a big talent; (he’s) a human rolodex,” he said. “The audience was active, engaged, and enjoyed it all the time.”
  Jessica Leone, SAC entertainment chair and sophomore in business management, says Rush brought a lot of people out and put on a good show.
  “He’s covered over 37 states,” she said. “He’s been to Pittsburg five or six years before, and we wanted to do a variety of music.”
  But the Human iPod also has some limitations. During the show, the public could write down the songs they wish to listen to, but some of them he wasn’t able to play.
  These limits excluded country songs, Maroon 5, Johnny Cash, Celine Dion and also “Stairway to Heaven,” by Led Zeppelin.
  “That is the kind of song nobody should try to play,” Rush said of the song.
  Erica Gutierrez, junior in social work, was a little disappointed with the show.
  “I asked for Johnny Cash but he couldn’t perform any (of his songs),” she said. At the same time, overall, she says she enjoyed the show. “It was interesting, he did a really god job performing and he was a great singer.”
  Lindsay Lewis, sophomore in Spanish and business, says she liked the variety and the fact that the Human iPod took requests.
  “It was nice to just sit and listen to music for a while,” Lewis said. She highlighted Rush’s render of Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep.”
  “I really enjoy these events held by SAC,” she added. “Because they are free for students, it is a great way to hang out and spend time with friends.”
  Using the technology as an ally, Rush profits from the “looping” system.
  “I hit a button when I’m playing guitar and it starts recording, then I hit the button again and it starts playing it back over and over (so) it’s a continuous loop,” Rush said. “So, I’m able to play on top of it.”
  Marisa Ortiz, sophomore in elementary education, was inspired by the performance. “He has an awesome voice and his guitar tricks were awesome,” she said. She added that she now wants to take guitar classes. “Whoever didn’t come, missed out.”

• Showing-off science

  Students gather in Overman to present research findings

  Audrey Tucker | reporter

  The 2013 Research Colloquium was held Monday, April 15, in the Overman Student Center. Ten judges evaluated student oral presentations and projects outlined on posters.
  These students have been working on their projects for several months. Most of the students say they will be continuing research and plan to present their findings at other events in the future.
  The Graduate and Continuing Studies program sponsored the event.
  The winners will be announced on Wednesday, April 24, during the Graduate School and Research Awards Banquet.
  Will Dixon and Dustin Newman, both seniors in electronics engineering technology, presented a poster entitled, “Bluetooth Enabled Home Power Control.”
  The pair created Android cell phone software that controls electrical devices from your phone using Bluetooth technology. Dixon says that the app can control electrical outlets, locks and light switches.
  “We’ve been working on it since August and we are very excited about the outcome,” Newman said.
  The device will be set up on Friday, April 19, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. during the Design Symposium in the Kansas Technology Center.
  Kori Bower and Amanda Tompkins, who are both seniors in social work, created the project “Parenting a Child with a Developmental Disability.”
  Bower and Tompkins contacted Indian immigrant parents of disabled children throughout the country on Facebook. Participants were surveyed on their well-being.
  Out of the 32 participants, 75 percent of the parents were female and 72 percent of the developmentally disabled children were male.
  The most common disability recorded was autism. They found that these parents are under significant stress over planning for their children’s future in the long term and noted that religious practice seems to be their primary method of coping. Spousal relationships were their top support.
  “I was somewhat surprised by the findings,” Bower said, “I did not expect them to have such a high number of spousal support.”
  She added that they spent many hours finding enough participants of the right demographic. They will be taking their project to Seattle, Wash., for the Biannual Child Conference later in the week.
  Jessica Criser, senior in nursing, presented a project entitled, “Are Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions Effective in Reducing Injection Pain in Infants Six Months of Age and Younger?”
  Criser says she explored techniques that could reduce signs of pain for infants, such as crying and muscle tension, in infants during immunization shots.
  She concluded that breastfeeding, increasing the speed of injection and soaking a pacifier in sugar water all decreased pain in the infants.
  “It is important to me because I give injections to infants all the time,” Criser said.
  She also says that if these techniques were more common, development of fear of injection by infants would become less common.
  The 2013 Research Colloquium was held Monday, April 15, in the Overman Student Center. Ten judges evaluated student oral presentations and projects outlined on posters.
  These students have been working on their projects for several months. Most of the students say they will be continuing research and plan to present their findings at other events in the future.
  The Graduate and Continuing Studies program sponsored the event.
  The winners will be announced on Wednesday, April 24, during the Graduate School and Research Awards Banquet.
  Will Dixon and Dustin Newman, both seniors in electronics engineering technology, presented a poster entitled, “Bluetooth Enabled Home Power Control.”
  The pair created Android cell phone software that controls electrical devices from your phone using Bluetooth technology. Dixon says that the app can control electrical outlets, locks and light switches.
  “We’ve been working on it since August and we are very excited about the outcome,” Newman said.
  The device will be set up on Friday, April 19, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. during the Design Symposium in the Kansas Technology Center.
  Kori Bower and Amanda Tompkins, who are both seniors in social work, created the project “Parenting a Child with a Developmental Disability.”
  Bower and Tompkins contacted Indian immigrant parents of disabled children throughout the country on Facebook. Participants were surveyed on their well-being.
  Out of the 32 participants, 75 percent of the parents were female and 72 percent of the developmentally disabled children were male.
  The most common disability recorded was autism. They found that these parents are under significant stress over planning for their children’s future in the long term and noted that religious practice seems to be their primary method of coping. Spousal relationships were their top support.
  “I was somewhat surprised by the findings,” Bower said, “I did not expect them to have such a high number of spousal support.”
  She added that they spent many hours finding enough participants of the right demographic. They will be taking their project to Seattle, Wash., for the Biannual Child Conference later in the week.
  Jessica Criser, senior in nursing, presented a project entitled, “Are Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions Effective in Reducing Injection Pain in Infants Six Months of Age and Younger?”
  Criser says she explored techniques that could reduce signs of pain for infants, such as crying and muscle tension, in infants during immunization shots.
  She concluded that breastfeeding, increasing the speed of injection and soaking a pacifier in sugar water all decreased pain in the infants.
  “It is important to me because I give injections to infants all the time,” Criser said.
  She also says that if these techniques were more common, development of fear of injection by infants would become less common.

• Biking nowhere for a cause

  J.Fred Fox

  Members of Campus Christians spent all day riding bikes in the Oval on Wednesday, April 17, except they didn’t go anywhere.
  The riders, who each had a bike with a pedestal attached, lifting the driving back tire off the ground and holding the bike in place, were pedaling for a cause.
  That cause is the third annual Tour de Hope, sponsored by Campus Christians. The riders were in the Oval to hold a fundraiser for Jordanian and Syrian refugees.
  The contest prizes consist of a $200 prize for teams that pay a $50 entry fee, or a $50 prize for individual entrants who pay a $5 entry fee.
  Teams will bike for 55 minutes. Individuals will bike for 30 minutes. The winner of each division will have biked the longest distance in the allotted time.
  The cash prize, though, isn’t what’s driving these volunteers, says Anna Davied.
  “We’re trying to reach out to desperate refugees who are fleeing with only what’s on their back,” said Davied, member of Campus Christians and junior in English education. “They have nothing and have nowhere to go, no one to fall back on. We Americans are very privileged and should pitch in and help.”
  Some students stopped by the volunteers’ post in the Oval and hopped on the bikes themselves.
  “I’m just here for fun,” said Zack Minor, sophomore in graphic communication. “It’s a great cause. I’ve been following the Syrian revolution and people should really help out this great cause.”
  Refugees in Syria are fleeing from the violent rebellion against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The rebels already control large portions of Syria including the large city of Aleppo.
  However, according to the BBC, Assad is capable of using his air force and extensive artillery, which have resulted in more than 60,000 casualties, many of them civilians.
  The U.S. is hesitant to step in and help because Al-Qaeda is trying to hijack the revolution and use it to influence the new government, wanting Syria to become an Islamic state.
  Blake Weaver says that means Americans should independently do more.
  “I just think it’s great to be able to help out from here in America,” said Weaver, freshman in nursing.
  The Campus Christians are planning a humanitarian trip to Jordan this summer.
  They will be in the Oval until 8 p.m. Thursday, April 18.
  “One hundred percent of the proceeds we receive are going to the cause,” said Brian Powers, a staff minister of Campus Christians.

• Kanza, Collegio win top honors

  56 awards at state conference

  For the third year in a row, the Kanza, Pittsburg State University’s student yearbook, was given the All-Kansas and the Gold awards by the Kansas Collegiate Media, formerly the Kansas Associated Collegiate Press. The All-Kansas Award is the highest award given to a college publication in the state.
  The Collegio, PSU’s student newspaper, also for the third year in a row, won the Silver Medalist award. Kanza editor for 2012 was Kimber Lane and managing editor was Bethany Wolverton; Collegio editor for the contest period was Jay Benedict and managing editors were Val Vita in the fall 2012 semester and Getchen Burns in the spring 2013 semester.
  “Our goal this year was to win All-Kansas, but when you’re going up against the University of Kansas, which is a Division I institution with a daily paper and an entire journalism school, it’s tough competition,” Benedict, senior in communication, said. “We cleaned up individually, though. I’m really proud of our staff because we won awards for every aspect of the paper: writing, photography, and design. The staff members have worked their tails off and the recognition means a lot.”
  In addition to these Overall awards, Collegio staff members won seven first-place awards, three second-place awards, seven third-place awards, and 12 honorable mentions in the categories of writing, photography, design and headlines, for a total of 29 individual awards.
  The Kanza staff picked up 13 first-place awards, six second-place awards and seven third-place awards, for a total of 26 individual awards.
  “I was really proud of the staff for their hard work on last year’s book, and we were all rewarded for that in Wichita, both with an amazing turn out in individual awards and in the overall All-Kansas award,” said Lane, senior in English education. “After so much hard work that kind of recognition makes an editor proud.”
  Individual-award winners in the PSU Student Publications Department were Jay Benedict, Kimber Lane, Bethany Wolverton, Yuyang Xiao, Carl Bachus, Madison Dennis, Kenzi Jordan, Srikanth Korlapati, Garett McCullough, Ali Clark, Sara Liming, Jessica Sewing, Gretchen Burns, Alex Weatherbie, Will Ravenstein, Marcus Clem, Caitlin Weaver, Chris Medved, Bartholomew Klick, Zach Stoppel, Val Vita, Michael Bauer, Natalia Rex, Tim Spears and Amber Danielson.
  Ten staff members attended the KCM annual conference Sunday and Monday, April 14 and 15, in Wichita.