October 3, 2010 – The Oredigger

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Dr. Racicot debuts new demos

Every school year brings new classes and new teachers, including Dr. Robert Racicot, who was recently hired as a full time lecturer. His witty comments and frequent demos keep chemistry class exciting while still getting across all the required content. He received his bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering and also studied theatre arts at the University of Massachusetts which, as he put it, “Are the most bizarre extremes of majors, but I didn’t become an actor so now I can act in the lecture hall.” After that he received his master’s degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Florida followed by his doctorate in Chemistry from the University of Rhode Island.

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Pattern formation research has vast potential

Ever wanted to manipulate a certain material to exhibit some unique property that just makes people go, “That’s cool!”? Dr. Ning Wu, a new assistant professor in the Chemical Engineering department here at Mines sure does, and some of the things he’s researching will definitely make you go, “That’s cool!” Wu’s research, ‘Pattern Formation of Soft Materials,’ is essentially manipulating natural processes on a very small scale to make certain materials conform to a specific shape or structure. “Patterns are everywhere, in many scales,” he said. Using one example of a butterfly, whose wings are blue in color, Wu pointed out that the wings had no pigment; the visible blue color comes from tiny spires on the wings that are closely spaced together in such a way that the light passing through them produces a soft, iridescent blue color.

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Mines at Mines: Opinion on shirts

Currently, ASCSM is rolling forward with plans to produce class shirts. These shirts will be color coded for each class and given away at various campus events throughout the year. The hope of Student Government is that these shirts will help encourage participation in campus events, class comradely, and school spirit at Mines. Minds at Mines caught up with students to find their thoughts on the plan.

Geophysics of Mars is a hot topic at Mines

Professor Jeffrey Andrew-Hanna spoke on Thursday August 23 about the landscape of the Tharsis region of Mars where many different land masses have formed. There is a crevice that is larger than any canyon on the planet Earth and a large active volcano known as Olympus Mons in the same Tharsis region. Andrew-Hanna opens, “It is interesting to study the geophysics of a planet different from ours.” Mars, unlike Earth, is a single plate planet which is vastly different from Earth’s system of tectonic plates.

Rest, relaxation, and RTD

The towns around Mines and Golden are full of activities to boost your adrenaline, challenge your skills, and keep you having fun, no matter the season. So where do you go for relaxation after weeks of climbing, kayaking, and skiing? If you take the 17 line from 19th and Jackson until you get to the Cold Springs hub, then take the EV route in the ES Aspen Springs direction, you will get to the beautiful mountain town of Evergreen. This picturesque town has just about everything you will need for relaxation including a variety of restaurants, bars, art galleries, and of course, the beautiful Evergreen Lake.

Music Review: Invented by Jimmy Eat World

Jimmy Eat World, the creators of fan favorites such as “Sweetness” and “The Middle,” have come back again with another creation this past week. This Mesa, Arizona, born American alternative rock band, consisting of vocalist Jim Adkins, guitarist and backing vocalist Tom Linton, bassist Rick Burch, and drummer Zach Lind have returned with a new album, Invented. Collaborating with producer Mark Trombino, who had previously worked with them on 1999’s Clarity and 2001’s Bleed American, it appears that the quartet has decided to go back to their roots. The release of Invented is the band’s seventh full length studio album.

Music Review: The Red Hot Chili Peppers

The Red Hot Chili Peppers have rocked the music scene since the 1980’s selling more than 55 million records with 10 studio albums. The album I would suggest is Red Hot Chili Peppers Live at Slane Castle. This video album of their performance in Ireland shows one of the better concerts, and you can experience it from that La-Z-Boy in the dorm room. Lead singer Anthony Keitis is one of the best writers in today’s modern music as he writes about finding meaning in life, and looking below the surface for answers.

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Music Review: The Age of Adz by Sufjan Stevens

Sufjan Stevens is a musician on the move. For the last ten years he’s been in a constant state of re-invention and experimentation. While most people are familiar with a handful of his songs and, perhaps, his 2005 full-length Come On Feel The Illinoise!- a musical journey through the Land of Lincoln- Stevens’ newest work, The Age of Adz, is difficult to simply lump in to his previous catalog.

Morals for your story: 10-4-10

Dilemma
I am currently dating a sophomore who is a student at a university in Kansas. Recently, we got into a bit of a tiff in regards to whether or not we should inform people we have just met that we are currently in a relationship. I believe that if the topic comes up in conversation, or if the question is asked, then that would be the correct time to inform the new friend. It doesn’t seem necessary to share our relationship status right away. My girlfriend disagrees for two reasons. She feels that it is doing the new friend an injustice by not being completely honest about oneself. She also feels that we should respect each other enough to want to tell people about our significant other. What are your thoughts?
–Honest, but not Overly So

Mines to become android friendly

This month, Mines announced that it would begin implementing measures to make the campus android friendly by 2015. “People may be laughing at us now,” said Panel for the Integration of Non-Organic Students member Ada Galatea, “but AI is advancing faster than everyone thinks. Machines with the ability for simple insight and critical thought already exist. Given that some Mines students can’t pass tests without review sheets containing specific algorithmic problem-solving techniques, simple insight and critical thought would be enough to put them at the top of their class.”

Daily Archives: October 3, 2010