Wednesday, may 2, 1979
daily nebraskan
p333 9
Eiiergy-minded NU teacher leads 2-wheel f iefdkxips
By Diane Andersen
Professor William J. Wayne, like most geologists, re
cognizes that the earth has a limited- amount of energy
resources. But unlike most of his colleagues, Wayne shows
his concern in a very visible way-he rides his bike all year
round.
Wayne, a youthful 57, takes students on bicycle field
trips each spring to explore the sediment formations of
Salt Creek and its tributary, Haines branch, as well as the
sandstone formations around the Yankee Hill Brick
Company of Lincoln.
The 10-mile cycle trips are part of the requirement for
a course called the 'Geology of Man's Environment. "
Wayne introduces the students to mineral resources, water
resources, waste disposal and landscape resources and
problems, such as flooding around Lincoln and the
structures man uses to rectify such problems.
The geology professor said the layers of sediment in
Salt Creek show such things as the conversion of Nebraska
land from grassland to row crops after World War II. He
said altering stream channels has many secondary effects,
such as the increasing and decreasing the speed of water
flow and erosion. The field trips enable the students to
observe these effects first -hand:
Foot trips
"I've argued all along that you can see more by going
out on foot," Wayne said, adding that most geologists
erroneously think Lincoln is not interesting because of its
flatness.
"When I proposed we'd go by bicycle, the students
thought it was wonderful," Wayne said.
He said the bike trips started around 1970 when stu
dents were concerned about pollution of the environment.
Wayne said he believes students now have more wasteful
attitudes toward fuel, but most still like the bike ride.
"Some hate it. Most like it, but some people probably
think it's a total bore."
He said he has had o make the bike trips a require
ment to get full participation from his classes .
Mud experience
Wayne said the students learn more by going out and
getting in the mud themselves than by sitting in the class
room, as long as someone goes with them to point out
what to observe.
"After all, geology is a field science," he said.
Riding bikes Is nothing new to Wayne, who said he has
been riding a bike since 1966, except for some cold,
slippery winter days when he must walk or take the bus.
Wayne said he even biked year-round In Wisconsin, except
when the temperature fell below minus 20.
"I just like" to ride a bicycle. Also, I grew up in the
1930s," Wayne said. He admitted he does use a car for
longer trips.
Energy waste
Wayne's son is manager of Lincoln's Freewheelin' Bike
Shop, and his daughter bikes to work as often as possible,
Wayne said.
Riding bikes is not the only way the professor practices
conservation.
"I've always had the philosophy of not throwing away
something if it's reparable," Wayne said.
He said he built a house in the 1950s that was up to to
day's insulation standards. The heating bill in his current
house just this year exceeded what it was about 10 years
ago with less insulation, Wayne said.
"Sure, Americans use too much energy," he said.
Wayne said geology students today have great job
opportunities to work for the big energy companies. They
need to work on alternative sources of energy, according
to Wayne, such as underground gasification of coal, use of
oil shale and generating biomass from organic wastes.
Wayne expressed concern over the future American
energy outlook.
Unsolved problems
"There are some environmental problems we haven't
solved," he said. "Pricewise we can't recover more than a
fraction of the oil that's in the ground."
Wayne said half of the U.S. oil reserves are undepleted,
but the costs of getting that oil out are above current
import prices.
Wayne said nuclear power is "just another way of heat
ing water to produce electricity." He said nuclear power
could produce a maximum of 25 percent of our total
electricity generation.
Wayne said people must cut down on energy use, so
Students organize to alter policies
Middlebury, VT, (Cty"StrainedM is a mild term to
describe recent relationships between Middlebury College
officials and students-particularly fraternity' residents.
But before those relationships reached the breaking point,
the students organized to present their gripes ... and the
administration apparently is listening.
An organization called the Middlebury Awareness
Development drew a capacity crowd of 700 students to a
campus chapel to vote on resolutions ranging from putting
students on the board of trustees to repealing a college
policy of holding fraternity presidents responsible for the
actions of their organizations. All of the requests passed
overwhelmingly.
The board of trustees has the final say, but the college
president has stated he is in favor of student trustees.
Administrators also agreed that fraternity presidents
should not be held accountable for actions of their organ
izations. Hie problems began last January when the Middlebury
board of trustees voted to end a rebate to fraternities for
members who eat at the house rather than in the dining
hall. The action means the end of meal service in the frat
ernities and a big increase in the number of students
eating in the campus dining facilities.
The trustee's action prompted a number of incidents
ma he
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during February's winter carnival. One house erected an
obscene snow sculpture that drew over 200 complaints
from 'local citizens. Other houses definitely extended
parties past closing hours.
Now, under the new peace, the trustees are expected to
give the on -campus fraternities $150,000 to renovate their
facilities. But, the trustees warn, they will set up a com
mittee to see that the houses are well maintained and that
the renovation money doesn't go down the drain.
Privacy invasion
Lawrence, Kansas (CH)-University of Kansas residence
halls officials didn't like what they found in the
dormitory rooms, and students didn't like the way the
officials found what they didn't like.
During spring break residence halls personnel checked
every room of one dorm, ostensibly for fire hazards, and
found numerous violations of dorm rules, such as the pre
sence of alcohol and marijuana.
The student rights committee of the student senate
called the search an invasion of student's privacy. The KU
student rights and responsibilities code gives authorities
the right to enter rooms without permission only in re
sponse to imminent danger to life or property, or if 24
hour notice is given.
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they eventually will, when prices go high enough. A
survey Wayne took in one of his classes indicated most
students would continue to use as much gasoline as they
are now, as long as the price stays under $1.50 a gallon.
"We've already realized there's a crunch" Wayne said.
"We just have to admit it."
Wayne, an expert in the field of gemophology, the
study of surface processes and forms of the earth, has
been a UNL professor since 1968. Before that, he did re
search for the Indiana Geological Survey in Bloomington.
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