Recent Posts

• Mason hosts Health and Fitness Expo: Students challenged to get fit and stay healthy

  News1 April 5, 2010 at 12:37 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Matthew Harrison, Broadside Correspondent Just in time for spring and summer, University Life hosted its 14th annual Health and Fitness Expo in Dewberry Hall on Thursday, April 1. The expo provided a large amount of information pertaining to nutrition, exercise, stress management and more. The event also featured demonstrations, healthy exercise activities, student health challenges and screenings for things such as bone density and blood pressure for students, staff and faculty. “There are so many indications that we are trying to be healthy,” said Carol Filak, an administrative director at Student Health Services. The event involved more departments than any other campus event this year, and students were happy to help. “We have about 70 vendors, and 50 student volunteers [who] helped organize this event,” said Filak. “We are trying to give as much information about healthy life styles [as we can].” With spring in full swing, and summer just around the bend, getting in shape for the beach and pool is a top priority for some students. “Mason has three fitness facilities that help create a healthier campus,” said Masooma Munir, a junior health, fitness and recreation resources major and volunteer at the expo. Students these days are […]

   

• Students hold food drive to help Food for Others: Nonprofit organization helps feed the hungry

  News1 April 5, 2010 at 12:36 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Sonya Hudson, Managing Editor To help feed the hungry of Northern Virginia, George Mason University students collect donations of food Saturday outside the Giant Supermarket in Loehmann’s Plaza in Falls Church, Va. for Food for Others, a nonprofit organization dedicated to distributing free food directly to people in need in Northern Virginia. Food for Others highlights the poverty problems in Northern Virginia. According to its website, “Even though Northern Virginia is considered one of the wealthiest jurisdictions in the country, we still face a poverty rate of about 5%. This means, based on U.S. Census figures, that more than 90,000 people are living in poverty and 30 percent are children.” Food for Others takes donations of food, money and time. Food for Others also helps support food programs of other community-based agencies. According to its website, “We make bulk distributions of food to more than 30 other charitable organizations that support soup kitchens, homeless shelters, and deliveries to the elderly, as well as church and community center pantries.” The nonprofit organization’s upcoming special events include “Empty Bowls,” an April 9 event in which individuals who contribute a small donation receive a meal of soup and bread in handcrafted bowls […]

   

• Earthlings learn to speak out of this world language: Klingon inventor speaks to students

  News1 April 5, 2010 at 12:34 pm 3 comments

  By Pearson Jones, Asst. Style Editor Star Trek is not just for geeks anymore. J.J. Abrams recent resurrection of the Star Trek franchise proved that. Capturing the attention of a whole new generation of trekkies, Abram’s installment beamed up younger fans to the Enterprise who were just being introduced to Captain James T. Kirk for the first time. This new fan base, combined with the diehard fans that have been rocking the Vulcan salute for over 40 years now, can be attributed to the large turnout alien language designer Marc Okrand received from George Mason University last Friday. Okrand is the designer behind the alien language Klingon used in many of the Star Trek films. The veteran linguist is also responsible for developing the language used in the Disney animated film Atlantis. A god to those familiar with the franchise, Okrand unveiled the secrets of Klingon to a waving room of Vulcan salutes and anxious fans. James Doohan, the actor who played Scotty in the television series, came up with the idea of Klingon orginally. Okrand took it one step further though in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock. Actually, make that two Klingon Dictionaries, several Shakspeare plays translated […]

   

• Patriot Web revamped: System undergoes major overhaul

  News1 April 5, 2010 at 12:32 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Rashad Mulla, Broadside Correspondent Patriot Web is undergoing a massive database and software upgrade that will keep the system down until Wednesday, April 7. Thomas Shifflett, director of ITU database application services, said the upgrade, which began Friday, April 2, is aimed at improving system performance and providing thorough maintenance. Notices will be sent on Wednesday afternoon when the system is available for use, according to Shifflett. During the outage, Patriot Web will be unavailable, and a host of other related systems, such as Blackboard, will have accessibility restrictions. Blackboard itself will be available for student and faculty use, Shifflett said, but course and enrollment data was frozen on Friday afternoon. The upgrades are expected to be completed a week before class registration begins. Graduate students, the first group eligible for class registration, may begin signing up on April 13. Summer class registration, which began on March 15, will be frozen during the upgrade. Beginning at 8 a.m. today, a copy of the new PatriotWeb will be up for viewing only, allowing students to look at the class schedule, but no account actions within the system, such as registering for or dropping classes, will be saved. Any information entered […]

   

• Mason Day headliner announced: Students express disappointment about choice of Cobra Starship

  News1 April 5, 2010 at 12:29 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Emily Sharrer, Editor-in-Chief Following Program Board’s announcement March 27 that the neon-colored skinny jeans wearing fivesome Cobra Starship would be headlining this year’s Mason Day, close to 20 disillusioned members of the “Bring ____ to Mason Day 2010” Facebook group posted comments on the group’s wall, calling into question the process used to pick the synth-pop group. Other possible Mason Day acts included on a student survey were Trey Songz, Passion Pit, Wale, Phoenix, Billy Currington, Kid Cudi with Ratatat, Girl Talk and Flogging Molly. “Personally I’d like to see the results of the survey,” said Genevieve McKenna, a communication major, on the wall of the group, which recently changed its name to “Mason Day 2010 Feat. Cobra Starship.” “I mean if it was a majority that’s great… but [there’s no] proof that they even looked [at] our votes or, you know, went with what they could afford. A straight answer is all I ask,” said McKenna. Mason Day will be held outdoors on April 22 in Lot L. The free event, which is scheduled for 2-10 p.m., will feature rides, concerts by local bands and Mason organizations hosting games and passing out free food, culminating in an 8 […]

   

• Barnett and Yoo win election: Pair elected student body president and vice president

  News1 April 5, 2010 at 12:27 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Rachael Dickson, Mason Nation Four Years Later Editor-in-Chief D’Leon Barnett and Jacky Yoo D’Leon Barnett and Jacky Yoo were named the next George Mason University student body president and vice president this week, marking the end of a competitive election that featured significant campaigning from all parties and higher voter turnout than ever before. According to Chairperson Dale Warfield of the Elections and Disputes Commission, who announced the results today in the Johnson Center Atrium, the 3,961 votes in this election were the most ever cast. Barnett and Yoo garnered over 1,200 votes, about 31 percent of the total. Barnett spoke briefly to the large lunchtime crowd. “We’d like to thank everybody at George Mason for answering the call to action,” Barnett said. He later commented, “We’re ready to bridge the gap between students, faculty and administrators,” citing a commitment to diversity. Barnett and Yoo’s closest competitors among the four other pairs running for the executive offices were Lynn Gold and Dominic Pody, who had 971 votes (about 25 percent). Sean Hobaugh and Evan Massengill came in third with 653 votes, with Shane Smith and Rich Everett only two votes behind. Jill Ferron and Mark Murphy received 275 votes. […]

   

• Circus protesters claim GMU police injustice: Participants inhibited by barricades and police tape

  News1 April 5, 2010 at 12:23 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Yasmin Tadjdeh, News Editor Over the last two weeks, protesters have gathered around the Patriot Center to rally against the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus for alleged animal cruelty of their circus animals. However, according to some protesters, George Mason University police have been unfairly targeting them and inhibiting their protests. Through police barricades and caution tape, protesters claim that the Mason police force has been infringing on their right to protest by keeping them away from the public. “This year when we arrived on campus, there were metal barricades put in place at the top of the steps that lead down from the corner of Roanoke Road and Po River Lane,” said Lisa Qualls, a protester at the event and a volunteer with the local Washington, D.C. based animal’s rights group, Compassion 4 Animals. “Last year, that had been our main protest spot.” “We were told that the barricades were placed there because, in the past, children were looking over [their] shoulders at us and could have fallen down the steps,” said Qualls. “The next time we came back, we were told we had to stay outside of the barricades,” said Qualls.“This made it very difficult […]

   

• Mason student hit by vehicle: Currently in the hospital, condition unknown

  News1 April 5, 2010 at 12:21 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Ethan Vaughan, Asst. News Editor A George Mason University student was left in critical condition after being struck by a car on campus last Monday. Michelle Dawson, 21, was taken to Inova Fairfax Hospital after she was hit at approximately 9:35 p.m. on the night of March 29. The driver, Jeffrey Jenkins, a 23-year-old non-Mason student, was charged with failure to yield to a pedestrian. Mason police gave no indication that Jenkins had been speeding at the time of the accident, which occurred just in front of the campus police station. “The vehicle remained on the scene,” Deputy Police Chief George Ginovsky said Friday. “[The driver] was cooperative and described what happened. The investigation is for all intensive purposes over.” An unidentified individual made a cell phone call to the Fairfax County Public Safety Communications Center, which notified campus police. Officer Eric Aman responded to the accident. Ginovsky said he was not aware of student complaints concerning the intersection, which some have said is dangerous and ought to be made safer with the installation of a stop sign or stoplight. “I’m not prepared to make that recommendation,” Ginovsky said. “I don’t think it’s necessary.” He nonetheless urged students to […]

   

• Budget cuts may affect CUE Bus: Students, faculty lobby city council for full continuation of service

  News1 April 5, 2010 at 12:18 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Matt Loffman, C2M Contributer At a community forum and special meeting of the Fairfax City Council on Tuesday, Mayor Robert F. Lederer said that the budget for fiscal year 2011 is the “most difficult budget” he has ever seen. Fairfax, he said, is facing an $11 million deficit. Despite his assertion that “no decisions have been made” concerning where to make budget cuts, Fairfax residents and George Mason University students came to the meeting to support the continuation of CUE bus service. Many had heard about possible cutbacks or eliminations of service from notices posted in city buses, which the mayor later dismissed as “misguided fear[s].” The city is only in the initial stages of budget negotiations and has not made any final decisions. The final vote to authorize the 2011 budget is scheduled for April 29 after two more public input sessions. Last week, City Manager Robert Sisson proposed his budget, which called for a CUE bus fare increase from $1.45 to $1.60. This hike would bring CUE prices more in line with Metro bus rates and would be on top of the previously announced rate increase, effective April 1, that raises the rate from $1.35 to $1.45. […]

   

• Star Trek

  Lifestyle April 5, 2010 at 3:44 am Comments are Disabled

  Star Trek is not just for geeks anymore. JJ Abrams recent resurrection of the Star Trek franchise proved it. Capturing the attention of a whole new generation of trekkies, the Abram’s installment beamed up younger fans to the Enterprise who were just being introduced to Captain James T. Kirk for the first time. This new fan base, combined with the diehard fans that have been rocking the Vulcan salute for over 40 years now, can be attributed to the large turnout alien language designer Marc Okrand received from George Mason University last Friday. Okrand is the designer behind the alien language Klingon used in many of the Star Trek films. The veteran linguist is also responsible for developing the language used in the Disney animated film Atlantis.  A god to those familiar with the franchise, Okrand unveiled the secrets of Klingon to a waving room of Vulcan salutes and anxious fans. James Doohan, the actor who played Scotty in the television series, came up with the idea of Klingon orginally. Okrand took it one step further though in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock. Actually, make that two Klingon Dictionaries, several Shakspeare plays translated into the alien language and […]