The Future of Miller Fountain at Trinity University

Lifeless empty Miller Fountain at Trinity University due to water restrictions imposed by SAWS. Photo: Digital Subway

Trinity University has experienced a temporary albeit important loss in its essence and tradition ever since Miller Fountain stopped sprouting water. Dry and lifeless, it no longer adorns Trinity’s iconic Bell Tower or the Northrup Building, which houses the “Oval Office of Trinity”. Instead, it sits mournfully among the adjacent rubble from drilling and construction sites.

The Miller Fountain has remained shut for a long time in compliance with San Antonio Water System’s (SAWS) Phase Two Drought water restrictions. The last time it sprouted was during Senior’s graduation (see picture below) and that was only for a day. The fountain has remained shut before that due to Phase One water restrictions imposed by SAWS. The sprouts that gushed forth out of fountain’s nozzles had served to palliate souls that took refuge in its solace. Instead of offering a repose to humans (who visited it for occasional escapes), an empty fountain now further aggravates feelings of emptiness and failure.

 Paurakh and me during his graduation. Best of luck for his Ph.D program at Stanford University. 

Furthermore, Trinity students have not celebrated their birthdays in the old-fashioned way ever since the fountains went dry. An important tradition has been to throw the student in the fountain on the midnight of their birthday. This has been followed without any ordinance or mention in Student Handbook. A reason to rejoice though is that some Trinity students have not given up on this tradition despite this. On one occasion, my friends and I hand-carried water in our bottles and mugs to the fountain and poured it on the birthday boy as a symbolic gesture of celebrating birthday and also upholding the Trinity tradition. I have seen some others do the same.

Water level in Edwards Aquifer for the recent 12 months. Source: SAWS website.

It is natural to ask then, when will the drought restrictions be lifted? When will Trinity students start enjoying the beauty, serenity and the tradition offered by Miller Fountain they had hitherto taken for granted? The answer lies on SAWS website. Currently, San Antonio is in Phase Two water restrictions due to drought which has decreased the water level in Edwards Aquifer. Edwards Aquifer is the only source of clean drinking water from the underground in San Antonio. The water level has been receding due to lack of rainfall but continued usage by city dwellers. Phase I is enacted when the water level drops below 660 ft below sea level. And Phase II is enacted when it drops below 650 ft below sea level. Currently, the water level is around 643 ft. Following the water level trend in the last two months, SAWS might have to declare Phase III soon if, the water level drops below 640 ft. The water restrictions will be even stricter and seeing sprouts in Miller Fountain might be a distant dream.

So, is it all doom for Trinity students  and residents of San Antonio? Should we all start praying to the God for showering us with some love and rain? Of course, there is an option for us to reduce our water consumption by taking shorter showers and using electric razors among others. We are talking about a drastic change in water consumption habits here. And that is not easy.

Verdant grass despite SAWS restrictions because Trinity uses recycled/reclaimed water. Photo: Digital Subway

On the positive side, the grasses and lawns at Trinity have still remained verdant and green, thanks to sprinkling that has been performed duly. During phase II, use of non-handheld sprinklers are prohibited, but Trinity seems to have gotten around that because it uses recycled, treated water. 

Another note to SAWS and other city dwellers (who might be jealous) to justify Trinity's use of sprinklers. Photo: Digital Subway

A short term and a hell lot easier solution to get Miller Fountain operational is to get a waiver from SAWS. If Trinity can convince SAWS that fountain’s operation is essential for reasons other than aesthetics alone and that only secondary (treated) water is being used, an exception might be granted. If not, Trinity could always use the condensate from its cooling and heating units. Condensates in most air conditioning units go to waste by default. Harvesting rainwater and treating it for circulation in the fountains is also a possibility. If all fails, the talented students and professors in Chemistry department might devise an experiment to produce inexpensive water that does not come from SAWS and thus not subject to drought restrictions. The dry fountains should serve as the innovation bed for Trinity’s creative minds.

Trinity Engineering Science Program: A Mismatch

Spring Break has officially begun. I can't tell you how stressful this semester has been. I promised I would update this blog more frequently but Trinity's overly demanding Engineering professors are making it so much difficult for me to do anything besides coursework. I don't think this Trinity's Engineering degree will get me very far anyway. No company wants to hire Engineering Science students. They are always looking specifically Electrical/Mechanical/Computer/Chemical/Civil Engineering etc. Anyway, I'm stuck and I have to try get the best out of it.

I really want to take courses related to Energy and Environmental Engineering. The Engineering department offers only elective called "Fundamentals of Environmental Engineering" which I have already taken. And it's taught by Dr. Uddin who is amusing in class. I liked his teaching style but can't say I learnt a lot because he didn't push us hard enough. He has amazing lecture slideshows for the class and that was the best part. But the course covered a broad field in one semester and there was not much depth in any field. It was a general introduction course.

Currently I am taking Fluid Mechanics and Embedded Microcomputer Systems. I like latter one than the former. I absolutely dislike having to enroll in Fluid mechanics course. Unfortunately, it is mandatory. I sit in the class and none of the stuff excites me but instead enters my brain and exits at the same rate with zero retention rate. The professor is funny but cannot deliver the ideas properly. It is mandatory courses like these that make me feel I am in the wrong program. I have already completed seven semesters of Trinity Engineering. It would be immature to try to change major or transfer to another college. If I could do it all over again, I would probably try to be a Computer Science major. There is so much flexibility as a Comp Sci major. If course is not interesting, I could learn programming and take up projects on my own in my free time. Recently, I have developed this fetish for programming. I want to be a geek. Not that I was a Greek and want to take a U-turn. I was a semi-geek anyway, it's just I want to be a proper one now. Geeks have made it big and become famous. Take Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg, Linus Torvalds, Sergey Brin, Larry Page and numerous others for example.

Is it too late to become a geek now? I guess one cannot become a geek, one needs to be born as one. I am planning maybe I can get started with fundamentals of C-programming this Spring Break and take it from there. My inspiration arose from reading "Just for Fun" by Linus Torvalds, the guy who created the kernel for Linux Operating System. I stumbled upon this book quite randomly while perusing through book shelves at Trinity University. He is my icon from now, the one I can look up to in life besides others that I already adore and revere. Blame it on my laziness, I have not gotten started on learning programming yet. I have been still reading "Just for Fun", tweeting, watching TV and cricket among my other pastimes. Wish me good luck and send some encouragement my way.

I promise once I start learning programming and spend more time with my computer, I will update this blog more frequently.

Revolutions in Arabian World and Trinity

What a way to write my 200th post. There couldn't have been a better time. The Arab world has woken up and have led revolutions for democracy. This will certainly add new chapters in political science books in trying to define democracy and how a revolution is waged. It's no longer waged by elites or opposition parties. A new model has come into place where youths with little or no prior political experience are using social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, Youtube and Google to launch organized demonstrations. Who would have thought that the internet could have been used this way? I am very excited about what has happened in Tunisia and Egypt and is still happening in Bahrain, Yemen and Libya yet saddened to hear about Gaddafi's monstrous atrocities. How can anyone order its security forces to open fire on its own people? Did the world not already make it clear that we don't want any Hitlers no more?

If I were in Libya, Bahrain, Yemen, Egypt, China or Iran, I could have blogged about the mass protests and situation on ground. Fortunately, I am in the U.S. shielded from violence and influence of repressive regimes writing this in the cozy air conditioned "dorms like palaces" of Trinity University. What a contrast!

Talking about stories on campus, I am glad to see the improvement in the Trinitonian's quality of articles. Also, Dr. Ahlburg has set aside some time from his busy schedule to hold Open Door Hours to talk to students and faculty. What a positive gesture by the University President, will serve him good at a time when the Trinitonian published a story chronicling his criticism in a review by Leeds Business School of Colorado. Someone had sent me that review several months ago in comment section on my blog. I thought it still reflected positively on Dr. Ahlburg since he seemed to care more for undergraduates than graduates or faculty, according to the review. 

Another story in the Trinitonian was bashing the ASR for missing the deadline to send a proposal for student activity fee increase. ASR is finally getting a lot of attention on campus, not for good reasons this time though. ASR is facing a tough time in allocating resources properly. Maybe it can start by cutting back on funding for the Trinitonian. The Trinitonian probably receives the biggest chunk of the Student Activity Fee and the difference between what it asked for and what it received last year was the least for it compared to other organizations. It can certainly survive by increasing its advertisement and doing better marketing. Besides, there are always piles of unread Trinitonians in Coates, Mabee, Chapman, MMS and almost everywhere until Thursday. It can try to be wiser by printing only the amount that is demanded. Simple economics. Plus it will also add to our goal of trying to be green. Why print more than is read? 

Btw, I am planning to apply to work as a photographer for the Trinitonian. So, please Trinitonian staff, don't read this post. If you do, don't make it count against me because this is just an unbiased opinion of an anonymous author who does not want to be associated with his real name for anything expressed here.

Will write more about both external and internal revolutions in the coming days. Take lite!

Construction Begins at Trinity during Summer

Heavy Construction has begun at Trinity University. Between Moody Engineering, Cowles Life Science and Chapman, in that open area, the huge project for a big Science building has begun. The area has already been sealed off and bright orange markings with numbers and lines can be seen all around, even on grasses.

Construction at Trinity during Summer. Photographer: Digital Subway

Construction has also begun outside Mars McLean Building on the way towards Coates Library at Trinity. Several dozers are already in action and look like little monsters digging the earth furiously and diligently.

Numerous bulldozers aka "little monsters" at work. Photo: Digital Subway

What would you call it? Creative Destruction. Photo: Digital Subway

Holes everywhere. Can you dig it? Photo: Digital Subway

 Some path has been paved with stones. Are we going back to Stone Age? Even more perplexing is the covering of trees with a wooden ring like structure. See in the picture below. Make some sense of it if you can. I do not know what it is and what purpose it serves.

Stone paved path. Notice the trees. Photo: Digital Subway

Trinity University President Surprises us all: A Coincidence?

It has been rather surprising to see several Vice Presidents at Trinity leaving for schools in California or elsewhere one after another.  Magnetic polarity seems to have been reversed. But even more surprising and forgive me, if I forgot to mention coincidental, have been decisions of the new University President Dr. Dennis Ahlburg regarding appointment of two new Vice Presidents, VP for Fiscal Affairs and VP for University Advancement.

Both of these new Vice Presidents worked previously in similar capacities at Leeds Business School, University of Colorado at Boulder. Surprised? Well, there's another one. President Ahlburg was the Dean of Leeds Business School at Univ. of Colorado at Boulder too. What can anyone say about THIS magnetic polarity? Nothing at all. Who would want to ruffle feathers with the University President? At least not the Trinitonian, the most independent student run newspaper. The editorial which in prior issues has been pretty critical and rightly so, of various university issues hesitated to even mention a word or raise a finger at this decision. Well done. Your increment in budget is guaranteed next year.

However, the Cartoon Section in the Trinitonian dealt with this well and bravely pointed out that two decisions in a row cannot be a coincidence. Don't jump to conclusions. I am not suggesting that this is wrong. What I am suggesting is that students have a right to know if there was an application process to choose these applicants who will have a large impact on administrative conduct and course of Trinity in the coming several years. I admit my ignorance about how these decisions were made in the past by other presidents and so I cannot infer any conclusions. Maybe this is how things work so that the President can attain his vision smoothly without having to devote a significant time trying to overcome differences with other Vice Presidents. I don't know.

But the fact that two previous Vice Presidents left Trinity highlighting a difference in vision with the new president makes us curious to raise our concern. Here is the excerpt from the President's all-campus email sent to us:

To all Trinity Faculty, Staff, and Students:

I am pleased to announce the appointment of Tracy Christeson as vice president for University Advancement. ... Previously she was senior director of development for the Leeds School of Business, the University of Colorado at Boulder.

 

To all Trinity Faculty, Staff, and Students:

I am pleased to announce the appointment of Mark Detterick as vice president for Fiscal Affairs.... Previously he served as the director of finance and operations at the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado at Boulder. 

I like the new University President and have had numerous chances to meet him and talk about various issues as a Student Representative on behalf of Class of 2012. I subscribe to his vision and goals which is why I would not be hasty to see this decision as a "Red Alert" even though it does raise some alarms regarding transparency of application process.

Distinguished Lecturers Enlighten Trinity Community

In these past two weeks, Trinity students and staffs have heard from two distinguished personalities: Former State Secretary Condolezza Rice and a Middle East Historian Rashid Khalidi. I liked both of them and even though Khalidi is less popular compared to star-studded Rice, he impressed me more.

They talked about a lot of good stuff. But there was one topic that both of them touched upon and coincidentally, it is a hot political issue (a hot potato) these days for discussion, namely Iran Nuclear Enrichment Program. It was interesting to see both of them taking on same issue from two entirely different perspectives. Condolezza Rice came from a US centered perspective and saw Iran as an evil, a threat to US security and thus its nuclear program had to be contained/abandoned at the earliest possible through trade sanctions, international pressure and whatever is available.

Rashid Khalidi on the other hand, seemed to exude a deeper and clearer understanding of the situation. He pointed out the need for Iran to start this nuclear program after feeling insecure from two of its nuke possessing neighbors- Israel and Pakistan. He said that United States turns a blind eye to the fact that Israel and Pakistan possess nuclear weapons and did virtually nothing to prevent them from acquiring nuclear weapons. Iran, discernibly has some tensions with Israel, a Jewish state and Pakistan, a predominantly Sunni Muslim nation. These facts cannot be ignored while trying to find a solution.

After hearing about these two different perspectives, I gained a better understanding of this issue. In addition, my political science professor is from Iran and she opened another discussion in class today on this topic. The discussion provided yet another dimension to my understanding of Iran's nuclear program. After coming to a liberal arts institution you realize that reading what's on popular news media is simply not enough. They never tell you the inside story. You have to learn it from several other sources. And institutions like Trinity with diverse population are perfect places for that.


Note: I wrote this blog as part of Trinity's Official Student Blogger Program.

My Diploma, My Pride

The wording on Trinity's graduation diploma became an issue, more contentious than anyone ever imagined. We have all read and understood arguments from either sides and know what the outcome should be but why it can't be. So, let's cut the crap here and talk straight about the core issue (as my Engineering Professor Dr. Uddin likes to say it).

Students who voiced a complain against the statement, "In the year of our Lord" and recommended that it should be changed to "In the year of .." came under personal attack. This was really an idealism debate, a debate about values. But thanks to some newspapers and their nature of reporting, it turned into a religious debate. Some were unashamed to see this as a threat against Christianity since the leader of student group turned out to be a Muslim. A pure coincidence, I can assure you.

I would have had no problem with the wording as it was since I care little what it means by Lord- Jesus, Allah or whoever. But, I know that I work hard to deserve my diploma. If needed, I spend sleepless nights or work late into the night so that I can graduate on time with a diploma that reflects my hard work. What in the world would any Lord have to do with my diploma? No Lord has assisted me in achieving the grades that I have received and they have been good, thanks to my hard work. So, why would I give any credit or show my gratitude to someone who has done nothing to deserve it? In the U.S., there is no free lunch, as we like to say it. You have to earn what you deserve. Why should the Lord get a free ride? What has the Lord done for my diploma? Tell me.

I am sure you all must have figured out (assuming you all are intelligent) that I am voicing the opinions of an atheist. But even if I believed strongly in some religion, my choice would not be different. I mean, you study in a university and not in a Church. This country has long adopted a separation of the Church and the state. But we still are trying to hold dear the ties between the Church and the university. Universities are places for breeding liberal and secular beliefs, not prejudiced ones. An atheist should feel as welcomed as anyone else.

Now, I am aware that changing the wording could drive some faithful donors away. But what good is money that comes with strings attached? If we lose a donor, we may gain another. But can we regain our value once lost? This is a litmus test for the university. Facing so much press attacks and intense attention, it can not bow down to financial pressure at the cost of losing value. Students are watching and the decision will send a signal about what the university stands for. For those outsiders, who think we might head the wrong way by removing the phrase with mention of "Lord", here is what I have to say. Trinity, today is a much better institution than what it was then as a strictly Presbyterian university. And this is not my opinion alone, ask anyone who went to Trinity in 1970s and they will tell you this is true.

How Jared Diamond Chose to Collapse My Dreams

The privilege of being a Trinity student is that you get to hear lectures by global leaders in person, free of cost at Trinity's own Laurie Auditorium, that has a capacity to accommodate about 2500 people. Former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, former US President Bill Clinton, former Pakistani strongman and President Pervez Musharraf, French PM Dominique de Villepin and Nobel Laureates like Joseph Stiglitz have all paid a visit to Trinity University and enriched experience and understanding of Trinity students.

I had the honor of attending a lecture by Jared Diamond as part of DeCoursey Lecture Series. His book, Guns, Germs and Steel, has won the Pulitzer prize. His most recent book, Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed has won rave reviews. He is a man who commands knowledge of multi-disciplines, a modern Aristotle, so to speak. I had listened to one of his lectures on Ted.com where he gave examples of societies on the verge of collapse. He mentioned Nepal as one of examples which shocked me and came as an alarm since I am from Nepal and take considerable interest in development of my nation.

I had made up my mind that I would ask, "why he thought Nepal was on the verge of collapse", when he came to speak at Trinity ever since I listened to that lecture (few months ago). I was anxiously waiting for this day. After Jared Diamond's lecture in Laurie Auditorium on February 1, I stepped down to Q/A session to ask this question. I was mentally rehearsing,  rephrasing this question and coming up with the best way to put it. 

Since there were many other eager people to ask questions, I stood in a line. Just as my turn came nearer, he said he could only take a few more questions. Don't cut on me, please, I prayed. Sadly, the person right before me turned out to the last person to ask question. I thought of insisting, he could take one more question and I really needed to ask him since the question had been bugging me and depriving me of mental peace. But I decided against it since I thought such insistence might appear disrespectful. 

The Q/A session ended and I exited Laurie with a heavy heart, confident that Jared Diamond had chosen to collapse my dreams, just as he had chosen to quote Nepal as a society on the verge of collapse.

Dinner Reception with University President, Dr. Ahlburg

Do you want to know why I came to Trinity? The reason is simple. You might have heard it a million times and still ignored it since it sounded so much like a cliche. My admission officer at Trinity- Eric Maloof- had told me that the best way to learn in my undergraduate years would be to go to a small college/university where I would get personal attention from professors and mentors. Students learn from their mistakes and small institutions are adept at making that happen. I realized how right he was only after I came to Trinity.

Receiving personal attention from professors, residential and other university staffs at Trinity is what makes my learning worthwhile. Professors in my class know me personally which makes learning environment so much better.

(From left: Me, President Dr. Ahlburg, Pedro, Long, Chris). Photo by lady killer Paurakh.

In addition, even the University President takes time to meet us and hear about our experiences. On average, a college student shakes the University President's hand once (during graduation maybe). Getting to meet him personally is outside the domain. In contrast, today the new University President, Dr. Ahlburg held a Dinner Reception for International students and spent the whole evening talking to us. For a man of his stature to dedicate one evening makes us feel how much he cares for Trinity students. Trinity is exceptional when it comes to sense of community and relationship between students and staffs.

(From right: President Ahlburg, Me, Daniel, ...) Photo by LaDy-KiLleR Paurakh

And, even department chairs know you personally here. Below is me with chair of Engineering Department, Dr. Giolma.

(Me with Dr. Giomla, Chair of Engineering Department). Photo by lady-killer Paurakh.

Load Shedding

Check

1.  Cell-phone battery : Full
2.  Laptop battery: Full
3.  Flash-light within reach

Status: Good

At 10pm sharp (in less than two hours), there will be a power cut at Trinity University that will cut off power virtually to entire campus. According to Residential Life's email, this power outage is scheduled to allow "preventive maintenance to Trinity’s electric system". Power will be restored at 7am in the morning.

Power outage was an everyday activity when I was in Nepal. We used to experience power outage daily and in dry season, it would spike as high as 16 hours a day. When I came to America, I was surprised to see that a nation with power demands several times greater than Nepal did not have to execute power outages or "load shedding" (as popularly known). I found it hard to believe when one of my friends told me that the last power outage he knew of, had occurred some 17-18 years ago.

Power outage at Trinity will make me less worried than homesick. Since it is Winter and more than 99% of students are in their homes (away from Trinity), most of them will not even know about it. For a power-outage veteran like me, this experience will merely be a blip. Nonetheless, I look forward to an all-American style power outage :D

Trinity Flash Rave 2010

(Written as part of Official Student Blogger Program for Trinity University).         
       Newest addition to Trinity's Tradition, and by far also the coolest one is Trinity Flash Rave. It started in Spring 2009 and enjoyed popular support of Trinity students. I got to participate in Trinity Flash Rave 2009 (Fall Semester) for the first time in real time and space. At a time when Final Exams are already driving students crazy, this is one event where students voluntarily choose to go crazy over dance numbers in Holy Mecca during Finals- The Library- as library staffs watch with amusement.

                                                      

      Having to miss on sports due to severe cold weather (that San Antonio has been facing since weeks)  and exacerbated by busy Finals Week, there couldn't have been better time for some muscoskeletal movement. While I usually derive fun by watching others dancing, this time I unrestrained myself and simply melted into the crowd. It is one time where you get to see people, who would normally not dance, go absolutely wild. Geeks and party freaks alike, danced under the common banner of "Flash Rave" while live human bodies floated and translated five feet from the ground on strong shoulders of students. And, this was a great break from stressful Final Week. I'm glad Trinity introduced this coolest, newest tradition.

                                                       (Photos by David Leon)

Engineering Christmas Party

Written as part of Official Student Blogger Program for Trinity University.
I don't celebrate Christmas because I am a non-Christian and I don't usually publicize my religious affiliation but my parents are Hindu and I love my parents. But, at every chance I get, I join others to share happiness and eat good food. You got it, it's again about authentic off-campus food.

Contrary to what people like to believe, engineers do take off time solving differential equations to relax and enjoy. Evidence: Christmas Party organized by Engineering Department. And, most of the food was home-cooked, some by professors' wife (makes you realize how much professors care for you) That's unique about a close-knit community of Trinity University.

                                 (Moody Blues singing. From left, Tasha, Trey, Dr. Leifer)

I assisted in setting up the party since I work as an Electrician Shop Assistant for Engineering Department. The food was really good. My plates were full of rice (Basmati) and chicken curry cooked by Dr. Mahbub's wife (Please, accept my thanks). It was a good break from intense pressure that we students are feeling during this Final exam week. And, to add value to the party, Moody Blues (led by Dr. Leifer) recited Christmas songs and an original composition by Caroline that made fun of engineering and engineering professors, in a good way. Everyone laughed and enjoyed.

Winter Jubilee

I wrote this blog-post as part of Official Student Blogger Program for Trinity University.

I love cultural events at Trinity University. There's so much off-campus food, some authentic, others not quite authentic but, off-campus food nonetheless. My attendance and volume of audience at most of these events  depends on advertisement about authenticity of off-campus food. And, if it's Indian food, the crowd just swells.

Trinity Diversity Connection, the umbrella organization for all cultural clubs at Trinity University organized a Winter Jubilee cultural event, the grand cultural event to seal off Fall semester. And, it was great. Several cultural clubs were present and there was an extensive variety of delicacies and cuisines. It's events like these that make me realize how diverse really Trinity is. When I see Indian girls creating beautiful mehndis (heena) designs on other students' palms, it reminds me of large international student body that constitutes more than 10% of student body. 

I ate a lot of food, and ate marsh mellows for the first time, but can't say I would want to try it in future owing to its sticky nature.

Engineers in Action

(This blog was written as part of official student blogger program for Trinity University.)


Have you ever thought of who makes those bridges as you drive across one of them? They are not made in heaven, obviously. First year Engineers at Trinity get a decent exercise in Engineering field by designing a Truss structure, which is simply a fancy word for bridge-like structures.

Trinity Engineers use CAD and force analysis softwares to design and build trusses. The main objective is to build a structure with highest strength to weight ratio. To add a competitive edge, a truss design competition is held among first year Engineers where their structure's maximum strength is tested.

Truss competition is an annual event of Engineering Department that draws a fair number of spectators, who laugh and cheer as structures buckle and eventually break under heavy load. I participated last year (my Freshman year) and my group had won in the lightest structure category. Here are some pictures taken by a First-Year, Mohsin Rahim.

Trinity Students Don't need a reason to be Innovative

Trinity's students don't need a reason to be creative. Their creativity spills in whatever they do. See this artistic  arrangement of chairs in Murchison Computer Lounge by an anonymous artist who did not know what to do after completing his paper. Trinity students keep innovating.

Newspaper Readership Program by ASR

Ok, so here comes some confidential information. Potentially, this information could be used by behavioral marketers and advertisers to reach out to Trinity students' newspaper readership behavior.

I processed raw data using my "superior" spreadsheet skills and converted into graphical representations that are somewhat more appealing.

The above data is based on treasurer report as submitted by ASR Treasurer for Aug-Sep 2009.

Physical Plant Likes Flowers More Than We Do

Look at the picture above which is just outside Mabee, closer to McLean Residence Hall. The flowers look beautiful, don't they? We all love flowers. But look closely and you will see that branches of these bushes protrude out on the pavement. So, if you were to walk from Mabee to McLean (which I do several times a day), you would have to dodge them or risk contact which could be dangerous since they are in line with your eye level.

The problem becomes worse if there are people walking in opposite directions towards each other and there is a vehicle on the road which rules out the option of stepping off the pavement and using it. The movement is halted since space is simply not enough for both parties to walk and yet maintain a safe distance from these bushes. Physical Plant is doing great work with mowing lawns, keeping grasses good length, clearing pavements of any dry leaves and cleaning Northrup glass windows which look shine proudly under luminous lighting at night. I mean we all love these flowers but it would still look beautiful if Physical Plant were to trim it a little to make movement easier on these pavements.

More Bang For Your Dine

The easiest thing to do for us humans is: to criticize. We criticize about all kinds of things; Trinity students and staffs complain about false representation in the Trinitonian and international students complain of inadequate services among many. But nothing comes even close to the criticism that Aramark Dining Services draws from student body at Trinity University.

Students at every chance they get lament at exorbitant Aramark food prices and Trinitonian columnists go one step further to compare prices of pineapple cups in Mabee to that of a pineapple offered at HEB and term Aramark pricing as 'ridiculous'. Mabee Hours comes second in the list that students complain most about. But a recent development on part of Aramark to offer special combos at a price cheaper than earlier has left Trinity students baffled and amused. Aramark which had projected itself as a soul-less classic capitalist, driven towards maximizing profit did something that students would call 'out of the blue'.

We students always fear running out of dine money before the end of semester which is partly aggravated by upward adjustment of Aramark food prices in line with inflation. Never have we seen downward readjustment, if you will. Sandwiches that we used to get for $6.19 now comes for $5.99 with free drinks and home-made chips and similar special combos have been introduced for pizza, hamburgers, quesadilla and Pasta. If Aramark seeks to redeem its brand image then probably it will get much more than that. It will win more berth in students' hearts if it continues this offer for considerable time. But how long is this 'considerable length of time' is questionable since Aramark has a condition * for limited time only.

Unhealthy Publicity Culture

You call it Innovative  I call it- Unhealthy.

Trinity students have gotten innovative and the chalk marks all the way from Murchison Hall to Coates or Mabee Dining Hall testify to this claim. It is such an innovative form of publicity since anyone passing through that way(which every First year including several others do) cannot miss it.

But we need to ask ourselves one question, is that the kind of culture that we want to promote? I agree that publicity is important and when Trinity students are largely indifferent to several events and activities being hosted and organized, the organizers need to become innovative and market their event. But is this necessarily worth the increased attendance?

Personally, these colorful chalk marks do not disturb my mental balance or my introspective state severely as I am walking across these paths but come on, what about the aesthetic appeal of the university? What about the rules about publicity of the university? What values do we as an institution want to convey to the outsiders (parents, prospective students and possibly evaluators)? How much is too much?

Surprisingly, the publicity sites seem to be guided by viral multiplication if you see how the chalk marks have extended from merely stairs to outside Mabee Dining Hall, even ResLife entrance and its vicinity. And although these are somewhat easily erasable, we should not forget the chalk particles get stuck on our bottoms of shoes and slippers and are carried inside the Dining Hall and our Residence Halls.

Currently, I am unaware of the Trinity's policy even though I know Trinity maintains a pretty strict policy in sticking out flyers and posters on random public places for any event or activity. I honestly think that the concerned authorities have to step in at this moment before we send a wrong message and encourage cultivation of an unhealthy publicity culture.

Excitement builds for Pervez Musharraf Lecture at Trinity University

With its successful accomplishment of the massive 200 million dollar capital campaign, Trinity University is on a roll. Amid all popularity, raised eyebrows and focus it has received from its peers and competitors, it has created more buzz again by inviting Pervez Musharraf, the former President of Pakistan. He is ubiquitously described as the person who once held 'the most dangerous job in the world'- a title given by the TIME Magazine. Musharraf will certainly take away a chunk of Trinity's endowment but will give Trinity students more exposure and probably an unparalled experience and a unique perspective to look at issues in South East Asia.

The [speaking] fee for Musharraf would be in the 150,000-200,000 range for a day," says Embark President David B. Wheeler

Musharraf will  be lecturing at Trinity University on Sept 17, 2009, Thursday in Laurie Auditorium at 7:30 pm "as part of Distinguished Lecture Series, made possible by generous endowments from from Mr. and Mrs. Walter F. Brown of San Antonio. The Flora Cameron Lecture on Politics and Public Affairs is made possible by an endowment gift by Mrs. Flora C. Crichton of San Antonio" as reported in the Press Release by Trinity University. The former Pakistani president will be lecturing on "The World As I See It" at Trinity University. He has also lectured at Stanford University in the recent past (in January 2009) as part of the 'Big Speaker 2009' on the topic, "Terrorism and Extremism- The Need for a Holistic Approach."

Two tickets per Trinity Student ID can be accessed from September 8 to 11 at Laurie Auditorium's Box Office located on the third floor whose hours of operation begin from 10 am. Out of excitement, if you show up at 8 am (just like I did today), you might be disappointed and later angry for letting your sleep forgo. (The Official email sent out by Trinity University did not mention the hours of operation of the Box Office. And also, the Box Office is located in a very inconvenient location, finding it is much of a treasure hunt.) It is a matter to rejoice to students that Trinity students are getting first preference for these tickets to see his lecture. The tickets are absolutely free and assuming his fees are closer to $100,000(which is still lesser than predicted by David Wheeler), every ticket is still worth $40. I know you have started doing the Maths now, the official number of maximum occupants in Laurie is 2500 for this lecture (Yes, I asked them today). According to Indian Express, 

"Musharraf intends to raise funds for his future political activities from the lucrative lectures." 

Also, he is eagerly waiting to step into politics. Under current law, he has to wait for at least 2 years beginning his end of presidency before he can enter into politics.
 

There is no reason why Trinity students would not want to see it. Moreover, you could always make some extra cash if you are running low on cash by selling them later. Remember how few students made extra bucks by selling their tickets during the lecture by former US President Bill Clinton. The tickets were reserved (sold out) within few hours after it were distributed. Majority of Trinity students complained that they didn't even know.  It was primarily because former President Clinton had forbidden publicity in any form. But this time, Musharraf gave green signal to disseminating news to media or publicizing to students. 

Also, his lecture will be broadcast live on Trinity's website which should give a chance to others too to see his lecture.