FDA plays God and denies Plan B access

By Andrew Moesel / May 15, 2004

As if it isn’t bad enough that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has been raining down its fire and brimstone morality on the American public, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) rejected a proposal earlier this week to allow over-the-counter sales of a morning-after abortion pill, in an unusual move that appears to be motivated...

Nurses association negotiates 13 percent salary increase

By Andrew Moesel / May 7, 2004

Using the threat of a strike as leverage, the Illinois Nurses Association (INA) reached a tentative agreement on contract negotiations with the University Hospitals on Monday. While the vote to officially ratify the contract will take place on Wednesday, May 12, officials on both sides believe the nurses will accept the University’s terms. The agreement...

Comedians take on peace in Mideast

By Andrew Moesel / March 9, 2004

“I don’t know what all my cousins are complaining about. You know they come from the Middle East, look how nice they treat us at the airport. They give us a job, they give us money, they give us a place to stay and they feed us,” said comedian Ray Hanania, a native Palestinian and...

Students petition for same-sex marriage in Chicago

By Andrew Moesel / March 2, 2004

In response to Mayor Richard Daley’s statement in support of same-sex marriages, advocates from Undergraduate Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union at the University of Chicago (ACLUofC) began circulating a petition last week asking the City of Chicago to issue marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples. The University petition will be added to...

Dorm gamblers hold their poker faces

By Andrew Moesel / February 20, 2004

Late last fall, second-year in the College Brian Ebling sat across the table from Steve Tang to decide the winner of the Wallace House poker tournament. It was early in the morning and the pair had been playing for almost five hours, withering down the field of almost 40 competitors until only the two remained....

Notes from the Board of Trustees

By Andrew Moesel / February 6, 2004

President Randel and the University administration met with the Board of Trustees over the past two days in a series of committee meetings, discussing various issues ranging from the state of facilities to student healthcare. After the final meeting of the full board, Randel and chairman Jim Crown met with members of the student government...

It pays to heckle our opponents

By Andrew Moesel / February 6, 2004

Many people believe that hecklers are loud, drunk, slovenly idiots who have nothing better to do than make fools of themselves in public. In reality, heckling is a delicate art that requires courage and practice, although a few beers don’t hurt. Any amateur can yell and curse at opposing players, making foul gestures that distract...

UCPD officers allegedly assault black SSA student

By Andrew Moesel / February 3, 2004

Two University Police Department (UCPD) officers allegedly assaulted a black student from the School for Social Service Administration (SSA) on January 23 as he walked near Regenstein Library, inciting numerous campus organizations to mobilize against police brutality. Clemmie Carthans, a first-year graduate student at the SSA, said he was walking back from a party to...

After closing for nearly six weeks, cleaner, renovated Pub turns on taps

By Andrew Moesel / January 27, 2004

The taps are flowing and the grill is sizzling this week at the Pub, which re-opened Friday after a nearly six-week hiatus taken to make physical improvements and bring the establishment up to code. In a sweep of inspections that closed many Hyde Park eateries during the late fall months, the Chicago Department of Public...

Asian student gain minority status

By Andrew Moesel / January 23, 2004

Members from the Provost’s Initiative on Minority Issues (PIMI) addressed a sea of multi-colored faces Wednesday night to announce that the Asian student community would fall under the purview of the year-old administrative committee. Cathy Cohen, professor in the political science department, moderated the panel discussion, which included Provost Richard Saller, Vice-president Steve Klass, and...

Activists protest FTAA in Miami

By Andrew Moesel / December 2, 2003

First-year Andy Kiersz stood in downtown Miami on a Thursday afternoon, surrounded by thousands of protestors and, according to him, nearly as many police. At every intersection, a human wall of officers, clad in riot gear and armed with rubber bullets and tear gas, funneled peaceful protestors through the streets. Kiersz drove to Miami to...

Voices sends news editor into the mosh pit of doom; Pulitzer to follow

By Andrew Moesel / November 25, 2003

A dark veil of anticipation hung over the thousands of fans that stirred restlessly within the general admission area at the Aragon Ballroom Tuesday night. After a lukewarm performance by Limp Bizkit, the crowd felt like a taut rubber band stretched to the breaking point, ready to snap at any moment. Then, without warning, the...

Ben Folds will headline concert in Mandel Hall, Ben Lee to open

By Andrew Moesel / October 23, 2003

Ben Folds will headline this year’s fall concert featuring an opening act from Ben Lee, a longtime collaborator of Folds, the Major Activities Board (MAB) announced on Wednesday night. The concert will be held Saturday, November 8 in Mandel Hall, with tickets going on sale in the Reynolds Club beginning Wednesday, October 29. The contracts...

Argonne scientist Alexei Abrikosov wins Physics Nobel

By Andrew Moesel / October 9, 2003

After multiple nominations, Alexei Abrikosov, a scientist at the Argonne National Laboratories, received the Nobel Prize this week for his work developing the concepts of superconductivity and superfluidity more than a half century ago. Abrikosov shares the honor—along with $1.3 million in prize money—with two colleagues, Anthony Legget and Vitay Ginzburg. Abrikosov received a letter...

Of Idolatry and international politics

By Andrew Moesel / September 11, 2003

It is a pop culture juggernaut that transcends nationality, race, gender, sexual orientation, and even good taste. A show called Pop Idol debuted in the United Kingdom on August 9, 2001 and enjoyed instant success—the winner, and even the runners up, were given multi-million dollar contracts and spent weeks topping the charts. Next, the concept...

Ratner, Quads are ready for the fall

By Andrew Moesel / September 11, 2003

As students left campus and warm weather moved in, construction workers labored over the summer months to complete a pair of large University projects—the Gerald Ratner Athletic Center and a new water piping system under the quads. Main construction on the Ratner Center will be completed by the start of fall quarter, at which time...

Fourth-years look toward future

By Andrew Moesel / June 5, 2003

After four years of theoretical study, many fourth-years at the University will soon be entering the real world, or at least going to graduate school. In the face of an economic slump, graduating seniors have been racing to find jobs and internships to earn a paycheck that will make their $100,000 education seem worthwhile. “It’s...

Graduation will continue traditions, old and new

By Andrew Moesel / June 5, 2003

All college students dream about the moment when they will amble down a long aisle and get handed a piece of paper proving their academic worth. Chicago’s College graduation is much more than a simple walk, however, as the University has planned several special events to make the experience more memorable for students and their...

Students in Hyde Park for summertime consider activities in Chicagoland

By Andrew Moesel / May 29, 2003

While University students traverse the globe and explore resume-boosting internships around the country this summer, some have decided to make Chicago their home for the hot months ahead. As finals week passes and the pressures of schoolwork melt away, students staying in Chicago say they look forward to using free time to explore the city–as...

CAPS distributes fourth-year survey

By Andrew Moesel / May 22, 2003

As fourth-years in the College approach graduation, Career and Placement Services (CAPS) conducted an online survey last week to better understand the immediate future of the outgoing class. The survey, created with help from several administrative offices and student groups, asked the class of 2003 about their plans for June and beyond, separating future plans...

Bar Louie opens doors

By Andrew Moesel / May 22, 2003

After months of delay, Bar Louie has finally opened its kitchen to the public, but its bar currently remains closed because of opposition from residents of adjacent retirement homes. Executives and residents at both the Promontory and Montgomery assisted living facilities have sent a petition to Fifth Ward Alderman Leslie Hairston asking the city to...

Harvard stands to profit considerably from war in Iraq

By Andrew Moesel / May 19, 2003

Harvard has come under fire in recent months over the military stocks that comprise a portion of its endowment, raising ethical questions about the university’s ability to prosper from the war with Iraq. Harvard faculty members discovered that roughly half a percent of its endowment is invested in stocks that stand to prosper from government...

Summer Breeze marked by weekend of festivities

By Andrew Moesel / May 15, 2003

The sunny skies and warm front that are expected this weekend will push out lingering clouds and cool temperatures, setting the atmosphere for Summer Breeze, the annual two-day outdoor festival sponsored by the Major Activities Board (MAB) and the Council on University Programming (COUP). This weekend’s concert caps several months of preparation by MAB and...

Famous blues lounge may move to Hyde Park

By Andrew Moesel / May 12, 2003

The depressing winter is over, but Hyde Park is about to get the blues. The legendary South Side Checkerboard Lounge is considering relocating to the neighborhood with help from the University, working to fill what many see as a sorely vacant role in the community: a large entertainment venue. Once the word had spread that...

Metamorphosis wins SG election: As voting moves online, participation jumps 28 percent from previous year

By Andrew Moesel / May 8, 2003

The slate members of metamorphosis stood nervously together on the second floor of the Reynolds Club Wednesday night, anxiously awaiting the results of the Student Government (SG) elections. They rushed to the computer every several minutes and checked the SG Web site to see if the votes were posted. After several false alarms, the results...

Justice Scalia speaks at Law School

By Andrew Moesel / May 8, 2003

Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia entertained a packed house of University students at the Law School Tuesday, explaining his originalist view of the Constitution while telling humorous anecdotes and wisecracking with audience members. Originalism is a philosophy that emphasizes a strict textual interpretation of the Constitution as a legal document, and consequently suggests that the...

SG voting commences

By Andrew Moesel / May 5, 2003

While weathering a few early glitches, voting for the Student Government (SG) executive slate commenced yesterday slightly after 8 a.m. on the SG Web site without major incident. The online polls will now be open continuously until 5 p.m. on Wednesday evening, at which time the Election and Rules committee will tally the votes and...

The Chicago Maroon Student Government Election Coverage

By Andrew Moesel / May 1, 2003

Springing to life with the annual regrowth of flora are the witticisms of SG, flyers blossoming across campus and pollinating the University with political ambition. Reported here are the six slates running for SG executive slate. Each team holds a different vision of next year’s student leadership at the University, with contrasting views of the...

Six slates begin campaigns for Student Government executive office positions

By Andrew Moesel / April 28, 2003

The University’s bulletin boards have recently been covered with a multitude of colorful flyers and its sidewalks scrawled with chalk, signaling the upcoming elections for the Student Government executive slate, which will be held on May 5, 6, and 7. Students interested in running were handed election petitions on April 11 and were given a...

Economy, poor management blamed for closing of Cafe Siena

By Andrew Moesel / April 21, 2003

As the troubled economy continues to affect businesses across the country, Cafe Siena recently closed its doors for business, adding another vacant property to the row of buildings located on the eastern portion of 55th Street. Cafe Siena, located between Cornell and South Hyde Park Avenues on 55th Street, was a popular draw among residents...

Oriental Institute compiling database to keep Iraqi treasures off black market

By Andrew Moesel / April 17, 2003

The second floor of the Oriental Institute has been buzzing with activity in the past several days as graduate students rush to compile a picture database of the invaluable artifacts that may have been looted from the national museum in Baghdad. In an effort to keep the ancient pieces of art off the black market,...

College admissions rise 12 percent for year, second only to Dartmouth College

By Andrew Moesel / April 14, 2003

Alan Leonard stood in line with a stuffed folder in hand yesterday, waiting to talk to one of several admissions counselors behind a desk covered with dozens of papers stacks. Leonard is one of over 350 prospective students on campus this week. ?I had some friends who had come here,? said Leonard, a native of...

Tuition will increase 5.1 percent

By Andrew Moesel / April 4, 2003

In an effort to stay competitive with other elite academic institutions, the University will raise tuition by 5.1 percent next year to increase revenue, which has been depleted due to the faltering economy. University officials have been openly discussing a tuition increase for months, but officially stated that the cost of attendance will rise from...

Study abroad trips continue despite war

By Andrew Moesel / April 4, 2003

As anti-American sentiments intensify abroad, the University remains confident but cautious about the safety of its students studying in foreign countries. To date, no study abroad programs have been cancelled or significantly altered because of the war in Iraq. Administrators have, however, taken the extra step to contact the international agents facilitating University programs and...

New Subway fills late-night niche with food and cricket passion

By Andrew Moesel / March 11, 2003

Marketing chiefly to University students, the new Subway franchise on 55th Street has attracted a notable swarm of business. The venue, the second Subway in Hyde Park, has established a separate identity by remaining open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and by providing customers with free Internet access–both invaluable assets to weary...

Obituary: James Koehn

By Andrew Moesel / March 7, 2003

James Koehn, a second-year in the College, died on Friday, Febuary 28 in an off-campus apartment in Hyde Park. He was 20 years old. Koehn, who grew up in Des Moines, Iowa, lived in Linn House in Burton-Judson Courts during the fall quarter of this year and moved to Dudley House in Shoreland Hall in...

Students protest war against Iraq

By Andrew Moesel / March 7, 2003

Hundreds of University students walked out of their classes on Wednesday to protest military action in Iraq, joining students and faculty at more than 300 schools across the country in opposing a possible war. A variety of activities kept class-free protesters busy throughout the day, including a teach-in at Rockefeller Chapel, an antiwar rally downtown,...

University stirs in wake of recent student death

By Andrew Moesel / March 4, 2003

The flag hung at half-mast outside the administration building yesterday in remembrance of second-year in the College James Koehn, who committed suicide. Koehn was discovered in an off-campus apartment at 3:30 on Friday afternoon, and later coroners confirmed that the apparent cause of death was suicide. Koehn’s death touches many people in the University community....

Fourth-year Baumgart wins Gates scholarship

By Andrew Moesel / February 28, 2003

Fourth-year physics concentrator Matt Baumgart was awarded the Gates Cambridge Foundation Scholarship last week, making him the third University student to earn the honor in the program’s three year history. Baumgart will join 41 other American students, chosen from over 500 applicants, at Cambridge next year to pursue his interests in physics and mathematics at...

Student reservists prepare for possible duty in Iraq

By Andrew Moesel / February 25, 2003

As military mobilization heightens in the Middle East, many Illinois college students in the Army Reserves and the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) are preparing to fight in an increasingly likely war with Iraq. The Illinois Army and National Guard Reserves–which officials estimate are composed of one-third to two-thirds full- or part-time students–have called up...

Lack of permits delays campus construction

By Andrew Moesel / February 18, 2003

As new construction in Chicago reaches almost unprecedented levels, the University is struggling to acquire the permits it needs to keep its master plan on schedule. “Due to the enormous amount of requests for building permits in the past several years, getting certain permits has been a challenge,” said Hank Webber, vice president of government...

StreetWise confronting illegitimate vendors

By Andrew Moesel / February 7, 2003

Administrators at StreetWise, a publication that distributes newspapers to Chicago’s homeless for resale to the public, have been collaborating with police officials to organize a plan that will rid the streets of con men and panhandlers posing as licensed StreetWise vendors. StreetWise is currently confronting unlicensed vendors in Hyde Park, forcing them to either become...

Bush’s uncomplicated rhetoric

By Andrew Moesel / February 4, 2003

The President’s oratory is direct, forceful, and pointed, but the last thing one can call it is shrewd. Often times it is passionate to the point of being inflammatory–as was the case when he dubbed Iraq, North Korea, and Iran the “axis of evil” in his last State of the Union Address. Perhaps these tough...

University looks into financial aid reforms

By Andrew Moesel / January 28, 2003

As college tuition rises and peer institutions like Harvard and Yale undergo large initiatives to increase financial aid, Chicago is struggling to find an appropriate strategy to stay competitive in the college market. College tuitions have been increasing at an average of eight percent each year for the past half-decade according to the College Board,...

Bar Louie delays opening

By Andrew Moesel / January 21, 2003

The Restaurant Development Group (RDG), the company that owns Bar Louie, missed a January deadline to apply for certain building permits it needed to complete the construction of its new Hyde Park location, delaying the process several more weeks. After facing permit and zoning problems for nearly six months, the Hyde Park venue of Bar...

City and local activists remain at impasse over Promontory Point renovation

By Andrew Moesel / January 14, 2003

The city’s motivation for remaining adamantly opposed to the renovation of existing limestone at Promontory Point, a plan that appears to have wide community support, remains unclear. City officials maintain that the latest report released by coastal engineer Cyril Galvin, favoring the use of limestone at the Point, is not as comprehensive as it appears....

Scientists call for witholding sensitive data

By Andrew Moesel / August 8, 2002

The American Society for Microbiology (ASM) has been asked by its contributing authors to withhold information potentially useful to bioterrorists from its journals. Ronald Atlas, president of the ASM, has sent a letter to the National Academy of Sciences requesting a conference of journal editors to discuss the possibility of censoring scientific findings that might...

FBI investigates Princeton U. admissions

By Andrew Moesel / August 1, 2002

Officials at both Princeton and Yale Universities verify reports that several admissions officers at Princeton have gained unauthorized access to a Yale website intended to disclose admissions decisions to Yale applicants. Those under investigation include Director of Admissions and Associate Dean Stephen Lemenager, who claims that he was conducting harmless security checks when he used...

Bush ties Argonne to Homeland Security

By Andrew Moesel / July 25, 2002

President George W. Bush spoke at Argonne National Laboratory on Monday in an effort to emphasize the role of technological development in the war against terrorism. After an extensive tour of the facilities, Bush delivered an address outlining his plans for the creation of the cabinet-level Department of Homeland Security. The version of the bill...

Tom Cruise does philosophy

By Andrew Moesel / July 18, 2002

Minority Report is an action packed movie based around a pair of interesting philosophical questions: can we predict human actions before they happen, and, with this knowledge, can these actions be controlled? The movie offers an accessible look at these timeless, complicated ethical and metaphysical issues concerning the freedom of man’s action. Audiences across the...

Exonerated Hyde Park man sues CPD, city

By Andrew Moesel / July 18, 2002

Corethian Bell, the former Hyde Park StreetWise vendor who was wrongfully imprisoned for the murder of his mother, has filed a lawsuit against six Chicago Police Department detectives and the City of Chicago for more than $50,000. The lawsuit alleges that Bell was coerced into confessing to the murder after a 50-hour interrogation session that...

University Hospitals ranked 15th in nation

By Andrew Moesel / July 18, 2002

U.S. News and World Report ranked the University of Chicago Hospitals 15th best in the nation and among the top twenty-five hospitals in nine other specialty areas. This selection, in the July 22 issue, will mark the sixth consecutive year the University’s Hospitals have appeared on the list. “We’re always extremely pleased to be ranked...

Don’t knock philosophy’s value

By Andrew Moesel / July 7, 2002

When I tell someone I am majoring in English and philosophy, they almost always get a sarcastic twinkle in their eye, a friendly curl to one side of their lips, and inevitably say, “That’s cool, I really like philosophy. But don’t you think it just goes around in circles?” Through their thinly veiled politeness, I...

University purchases former Meridian theater

By Andrew Moesel / July 7, 2002

The University has recently purchased the theater located on 53rd and Harper, former home of Loews Cineplex. Although possible alternatives for the venue are ambiguous at this point in the planning process, University administrators are considering using the space to bolster commercial interest in the area. “We are just at the beginning of an extensive...

High school students attend University’s summer programs

By Andrew Moesel / June 27, 2002

This summer the University hosts over 150 high school students enrolled in a variety of academic programs. The fifteen-, sixteen-, and seventeen-year-olds will be living in Max Palevsky Residential Commons Central and using University facilities such as Bartlett Dining Commons, Regenstein Library, and Cobb Hall. The students come from many different places and reflect an...