January 31,2011
2 news
Scammers utilize Facebook to entrap
unsuspecting prospective college students
BY MALIKA MARTIN
Reporter
Facebook has turned to
scamming teens with their fake
college welcome groups. Ac
cording to Switched.com and
CollegeNews.com, certain
Facebook pages advertise
themselves as online forums for
rising freshman classes in over
150 schools, including New
York University, Pepperdine
University, Middlebury Uni
versity, Wesleyan University
and the University of Texas.
Each page features the school
logo with descriptions, such as
"Welcome SUNY Oswego
Class of 2015" or "Welcome to
Tufts University Class of 2015,"
and there is no mention of re
ceiving any updates from the
sites via the group.
Such unofficial welcome
groups, according to "The New
York Times," are part of a clever
marketing campaign by a
company called Roomsurf.com,
whose site helps incoming
freshmen find potential room
mates for a fee, ranging from
$4.95 to $9.95; none of these
Facebook welcome groups
mention Roomsurf nor indi
cate that users joining the
pages receive promotions from
the company. Comprised as a
"deceptive marketing tactic,"
J.D. Ross, a media director at
Hamilton College, helped to
identify Roomsurf as the engine
behind the fraudulent welcome
groups. He also added that
welcome groups created by
colleges typically offer valuable
mentoring and guidance that
those of Roomsurf do not.
Founder and CEO of
Roomsurf, Justin Gaither, vehe
mently opposed Ross's claims,
and in response as to why the
company's name does not ap
pear anywhere on its pages,
Gaither claimed that users could
easily click on the name of the
group's creator, Justin Blackwell.
As it turns out, Justin Blackwell
is just a pseudonym he uses for
"business-related stuff" and
Blackwell is his middle name.
He later admitted to "The New
York Times" that the name does
not appear an5rwhere on his of
ficial documents.
Simon Axten, Facebook
spokesman, reminded "The New
York Times " that the site "pro
hibits the use of fake names and
false identities." Facebook is also
investigating Justin Gaither's
online activities.
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Roomsurf creates false Facebook pages like this one to
trick prospective college students. Some students lost
money when they thought they sent it to the college
but it really went to Roomsurf. Internet graphic
Flavorful Four Loko concoction taken
off market due to health hazards
BY LINDSEY STADLER
Sports Editor
Four Loko, the
caffeinated, alcoholic,
energy drink, was re
cently banned because of
health related issues
attributed to its consum
ers. The beverage takes
its name from the origi
nal ingredients: alcohol,
caffeine, taurine, and
guarana. High alcohol
content, fruity taste, and
an inexpensive price
(ranging from $2.50 to
$3.00) all lend to its
popularity among col
lege students because it
is affordable and pro
vides a quick buzz.
Three students from
The Ohio State Univer
sity, Chris Hunter, Jeff
Wright, and Jaisen Free
man, created the drink in
2005, which quickly
gained attention across
the nation and Europe.
Equivalent to five or six
beers. Four Loko boasts
a 12 % alcohol content.
As a result, it has earned
the nicknames "black
out in a can" and "liquid
cocaine" because of its
similar effects.
Lokos come in a vari
ety of flavors including
orange, grape, blue-
raspberry, lemonade,
lemon lime, cranberry
lemonade, watermelon,
and fruit punch. Al
though Four Loko is not
the only drink of its kind,
it is the most popular.
Drinks similar include
Joose, Sparks, and Tilt.
While Four Lokos pro
duce 23-ounce cans with
12% alcohol, drinks like
Sparks are packaged in
smaller cans with only
6-8% alcohol. Under
aged drinkers enjoy
these caffeinated, adult
beverages because they
experience the jolt of caf
feine while growing
drunk faster than they
would from other types
of alcohol.
After being on the
market for almost five
years. Four Loko faced
ridicule and was banned
in several states and on
college campuses. This
FourLoko’s colorful pakaging disguises a dan
gerous product when misused. The harmful
ingredients hospitalized several college stu
dents who mixed the drink with other dan
gerous substances. Internet graphic
past December, the
product was perma
nently banned every
where because of the
potential health risks.
A group of students
from Central Washing
ton University were
hospitalized after par
tying one night with
Four Loko. Doctors first
suspected a date-rape
drug to be the cause but
then reconsidered the
alcoholic caffeine drink.
Four Loko. Its mix of al
cohol, a depressant ,
and caffeine, a stimu
lant, can be very dan
gerous since the caf
feine masks the effects
of the alcohol, which
leads people to drink
more than they nor
mally would.
Phusion Projects, the
company behind Four
Loko, quickly began de
fending their product.
claiming that the drink
is not dangerous if con
sumers pay attention to
the warning labels. The
college students who
were hospitalized not
only consumed Four
Loko drinks, but they
also mixed them with a
variety of other forms of
alcohol. Four Loko has
been taken off shelves
and replaced with the
same drink without the
harmful ingredients.
Even so, the old and un-
safe version of Four
Loko is still being sold
illegally in some stores.
People have even de
signed ways to create
their own Four Loko
beverages. Some chose
to stock up when they
first heard it was com
ing off the market. Oth
ers began selling cans
and such on sites like
Ebay and Craigslist.
Second semester brings on new challenges
as EOC, AP/IB testing dates grow nearer
BYANNAKANODE
News Editor
After two snow days in
December, four snow days and
a delay in January, teachers and
students were forced to do a
great deal of juggling to accom
modate effective instruction
before semester exams
occurred. Schedules shifted
with midterms moving a week
later. Many teachers relied on
email to communicate with
their students and send review
sheets to them. Students also
depended upon emails to con
tact their teachers regarding
questions on course material
and makeup time required.
Students enrolled in Inter
national Baccalaureate courses
were grateful for the snow days
that allowed them extra time
to finish their extended essays,
but Advanced Placement and
IB teachers were not so pleased
since the end-of-year exam
dates are never postponed;
therefore, teachers must cover
a great deal of material by the
end of April. Instructors fear
that many students will not
attend school on the spring
break makeup days since they
have already paid deposits for
their beach rental houses and
parents have already reserved
plane tickets and hotel rooms
for family trips.
"For my IB Oral Commen
tary, I studied for four days
straight, but then with the
snow days, my exam was post
poned. After enjoying time off,
I felt like I had to start all over
again to refresh my memory,"
said senior Megan Goble.
AP and IB English teacher
Karyn Collie also made adjust
ments in her course plans.
"My IB 11 students were
supposed to begin their unit on
Pablo Neruda poetry two
weeks ago, and now they won't
begin until January 27. As for
my AP students, they had more
time to edit their 'Hamlet'
video projects, so they were
happy," said Collie.
Students generally look for
ward to seeing the message
"Guilford County: closed on..."
on days when meteorologists
predict snow precipitation
since it means they have more
time to study or do homework
they had procrastinated for
days before starting. However,
some have become nervous
about not having enough time
to learn all the material they
need to for the exams in May
and June. -
As the weeks fly by and test
ing dates approach, students
and teachers stress over pos
sible snow days and make-up
time. Unfortunately everyone
is at the weather's mercy,
which means no one's plans
will go forward exactly as
scheduled. The best everyone
can do is try to reajust and
cope with the extra stress.