Page 4 The Compass/Feb. 2005
Hazardous waste?
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Photo by Toby Tate
A Hazardous materials/demolition truck from Eastern Environmental, Inc.
of Jacksonville, Tenn. sits outside Johnson Hall. Whan asked whether
there were any hazardous materials such as asbestos inside the build
ing, workers for the company said, “We’re just doing regular demolition.
We do this kind of stuff all the time.”
Substantial Risks Involved in Exposure to Asbestos
Compiled By Kimberly Werderman
Most people do not become sick due to exposure to asbestos;
however, people who run the highest risk are those who work with
it or around it on a regular basis. The illnesses that are caused by
asbestos are as follows:
> Asbestosis - a chronic lung disease that can cause shortness
of breath, coughing and permanent lung damage
> Lung cancer
> Mesothelioma - a rare cancer that affects the membranes in
the chest and abdomen
> Cancer of the: Larynx, Oropharynx (includes the soft
palate, base of the tongue and tonsils). Gastrointestinal tract
and Kidneys
It can take up to forty years for symptoms to appear. Asbestos that
is used in finished materials such as walls and tiles pose no health
risk as long as it is not damaged.
Symptoms of an asbestos-related illness are as follows:
> Shortness of breath
> Cough or change in cough pattern
> Blood in fluid coughed up from the lungs
> Pain in the chest or abdomen
> Difficulty swallowing or prolonged hoarseness
> Significant weight loss
For more information please visit:
www.cis.nci.gov/fact/321.htm
Opinion:
Throwing the dog a bone
It’s all just history
By Corey Freeman
Staff Writer
Every year we celebrate Black
History Month in February, but
shouldn’t Black history be
considered the same as
America’s history?
African Americans are the
cement that holds together
America’s Foundation. For this
reason we should be considered
equal in all aspects of American
society and culture, and black
history should be taught as in
depth as regular American
history.
America was built on the
backs of my African ancestors.
Their blood paved the streets and
their way of living cultured this
society in many aspects. Blacks
contributed many inventions that
society could not function
without.
Why is there not a White
history month? Why is there not
a Native American history
month? They have the deepest
roots in American history. They
were here first and they don’t
even get a month of celebration.
Why does the African American
get singled out and awarded a
month? My guess is that Black
history month is just the master
throwing his dog a bone.
Carter G.'Woodson, a black
man, started this tradition on
Feb. 12,1926. It began as “Negro
History Week.” The second
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Woodson
was a
great man
for
starting
the
tradition,
but it is up
to us as a
Black race
to see that
what was
started as
“Negro
History
Week”
becomes
part and
parcel of
the very
fabric of
American
History
and is
taught
each day
of the year.
week of February was chosen to
coincide with the birthdays of
Frederick Douglass and
Abraham Lincoln because of the
impact these men had on black
history. During the mid to late
1920’s that was considered an
advancement for colored people,
based on the lack of power we
had in society.
“Negro History Week” was
expanded to “Black History
Month” during the 1976 U.S
Bicentennial Celebration, and is
now celebrated once a year by all
Americans. Dr. Woodson died
April 3, 1950.
I appreciate what Dr. Woodson
did by creating a time of year
that blacks are acknowledged for
their contributions to society.
However, I feel as though Dr.
Woodson was just giving credit
where credit was due. African
Americans have always been
relegated to an inferior role
compared to other races in our
country.
Carter G Woodson started a
revolution that will not be
complete until Black history is
no longer “Black Histor^.”'It will
be complete when it’s all just
“history.”
Computer lab sees rise in
extracurricular activities
By Shanna Williams
Staff Writer
Many Elizabeth City State
University students are using the
GR. Little Library computer lab
for extracurricular activities such
as chatting on the Internet,
printing extra information for a
friend, or printing out
unnecessary pictures that do not
pertain to academic research.
The computer lab was
designed for academic research
and to provide students with a
large workspace, which
accommodates several
computers with access to
Microsoft Word and other
expensive programs.
Mr. Cornelius Goodwin, who
serves as the Library media/
Goodwin
computer
network
administrator
and has
been an
E C S U
employee
for 23 years,
said, “The
computer
lab has
excellent space for 12 computers
for academic research. Most
schools only have 3 computers
to do academic research on.”
Sonie students are unaware the
library is also on a budget
because of insufficient funds.
Printing information that is
academically useful can help
prevent problems for the staff,
and will also help prevent
printers from breaking down.
About two months ago, many
of the computers in the library
and elsewhere on campus were
infected with viruses, and
technicians were forced to
update the computers in the lab.
The lack of library assistants is
also an issue. Most people who
work in the library are not
qualified to assist in the library
computer lab. If Mr. Goodwin is
not present at the time, there is a
technician who assists in the
computer lab.
There are some guidelines and
rules on Internet Policy in the
lab: “Only print what is
necessary for academic
purposes. The library reserves
the right to limit the number of
pages printed.” However, the lab
is usually left unattended to
avoid the appearance of mistrust.
“I try to assist as much as
possible,” Goodwin said. “The
library assistants already have
too many responsibilities.”
The best planetarium you’ve never heard of
Space is the place
By Toby Tate
Editor-in-Chief
Walking into the Elizabeth City
State University Planetarium is
literally like walking into
another universe, and from Oct.
2003 to Dec. 2004, nearly
10,000 people from all over the
country did exactly that.
Despite budget constraints and
a decrease in weekend and
evening shows, the planetarium
has seen an increase in daytime
shows and overall growth in the
past two years. They have been
publicized in Our State
magazine, the North Carolina
Tourist Guide and The Daily
Advance, yet there is still more
Khati
work to
do in
order to
get the
message
out to
everybody.
Jennifer
Thoms,
E C S U
graduate
student.
Planetarium Assistant and
designer of its web site, said,
“We want to promote through
PTA’s and any way we can. We
still have people calling up and
saying, ‘We’ve never heard of
you.’”
The planetarium, a community
outreach program for ECSU
serving northeastern North
Carolina and southeastern
Virginia, is not only free, but
educational and entertaining.
The public can witness laser
light shows with themes such as
‘The Great Space Chase” and “A
Brief Mystery of Time,” star
shows like “In My Back Yard,”
“Moon Witch” and “Life
Beyond Earth,” and videos titled
“The Best Mind Since Einstein,”
' “The Astronomer’s Universe”
and “The Search for
Extraterrestrial Life,” as well as
“Thurgood Marshall,” “W.E.B.
Du Bois” and “Leonardo
Da Vinci.” They can even show
you what the night sky looked
like on the day you were bom
from any point on the Earth.
The most striking thing about
the planetarium is the amount of
preparation that goes into just
one show. Each slide for each
projector must be painstakingly
painted by hand and then each
projector, of which there are over
40 slide projectors, a star
projector, panorama projectors
and special effects projectors,
must be programmed. The
programs are written like
computer programs, and involve
not only the projectors, but
multi-track digital tape machines
to play the program back and to
play the music, some of which
is performed by an acapella
group composed of several
NASA engineers known as the
“Chromatics.”
Besides the yearly equipment
maintenance done by a
contractor, the staff performs
maintenance, repairs and
programming on the equipment
and consists of two people:
Thoms and Dr. Sultana Khan,
Planetarium Director and
Professor of Physics at ECSU,
who came to the university in
1978 after earning a doctorate in
physics while studying in
Grenoble, France.
“Programming is not as easy as
you think,” said Khan. “First of
all, you have to write what you
want to say in the program.
That’s the story. When you write
it, then you have to make a tape
of it. Then you read it, put it to
music, whatever you would like
to do. Then you want to know
which slide will go where, and
you have to look for them (the
slides).”
After that, said Khan, it’s a
matter of which image goes on
which projector and the speed
with which it will be animated.
such as the sun rising or setting,
and panoramic views versus “all
sky.” It’s quite a complicated
process, but one at which Thoms
and Khan are adept.
Khan’s involvement in the
planetarium began when the
building was constructed in
1990, and the administration
realized they had no one
qualified to run a planetarium.
“I didn’t know anything about
the planetarium,” Khan said. “In
fact, I have visited one only one
time in my life before I started
working here. They said ‘We
have a planetarium, there is no
on else, can you take it over?’ I
said, ‘I don’t know anything.’
They said, ‘Well, you’ll learn,’
and that’s how I learned.”
See Planetarium on page 8