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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 2, 1998)
I _IftBTS___ _*41_ MONDAY Lg^ '-tz in low places What the duck? February 2,1998 Kansas rorwaras Raef LaFrentz and Paul Pierce 18th annual Avoca Quackoff was, as usual, a combined to score 30 second-half points as the hectic whirl of waterfowl, alcohol and general GlMNMNM _J Jayhawks put away NU 82-71 Sunday. PAGE 7 mayhem. BACK PAGE Cloudy, flurries, high 38 VOL. 97 COVERING THE UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA-LINCOLN SINCE 1901 NO. 92 ■ UNL offers deferments and job-finding assistance, but more may be needed. By Brad Davis Senior Reporter Help for Asian students swim ming in a sea of financial crisis may not be the life preserver some UNL administrators think. Merlin Lawson, dean of interna tional affairs, said the University of Nebraska-Lincoln would grant Asian students with financial prob lems two-month, penalty-free deferments of their campus bills. He said UNL would also assist students in finding on-campus work and pay for students’ applications for off-campus work permits. But Soongoo Hong, president of the Korean Students Association, said two-month deferments would not help most Korean undergradu ate students because Korean finan cial markets are not expected to rebound for four or five months. Cheryll Benois Marie, president of the Malaysian Students Association, agreed and said defer ring university bills until June would allow her to work during the summer to pay what she owed. Because immigration laws restrict international students from working more than 20 hours per week during the school year, stu dents make most of their money in the summer, when they can work 40 hours per week, she said. “We use the money we make from working the 20 hours for cost of-living expenses,” Benois Marie said, “and ourjiarents send us the rest for (tuition) fees.” Now, because of the devaluation of Asian currency, Benois Marie said, it’s as if her parents are putting two children through school. Lawson said UNL administra tors also would consider scholar ships and loans to assist Asian stu dents who qualify. The scholarship proposal, which Lawson said he was presenting to administrators today, could grant lower tuition rates to the 421 stu dents possibly affected by the crisis. The proposal calls for tuition rates that are more than Nebraska resident tuition and less than out-of state tuition. Although Hong said he appreci ated UNL’s efforts with the defer ment plan, he said loans would best help students with financial prob lems. Lawson said his scholarship proposal was an emergency action, and would not preclude any further help by the university. But Romin Lay, a freshman from Ujung Pandang, Indonesia, said many international students consider get ting scholarships nearly impossible. “A lot of times we see that only Americans can get scholarships,” Lay said. “But if they say that we can also get the scholarship, then we will study hard to keep our GPA ___ M up. Lay said a permit to work off campus, instead of a scholarship, would help him and other Asian stu dents. “But we don't know for sure if the government will give us the per mit,” Lay said, “It’s all up to the government. If (the university) can help to make sure we get a permit, that would be wonderful.” Lawson said his office would lobby U.S. Immigration offices on behalf of the students effected, along with instructing the students how to complete the permit request forms. “The university benefits consid erably by the presence of interna tional students on our campus,” Lawson said. “It’s a humanitarian gesture to step in and do what we can to insure they wouldn’t have to interrupt their educational program in Nebraska.” - ' •• -• .vv -\. -u. * .* • ****• . f A • v • - •*. \ \ Jonathan Hougitton/DN £ HUIHUA HUANG and flaming Zhang do a traditional Chinese dance to the song “In the Land ef Nope" during Saturdays Chinese New Years’ celebration. The event, held in the Nebraska Union, drew more than 500 people. r . - ... % c ,*s^» i 1 tililH i By Kim Sweet Staff Reporter Both the traditional, mallet driven rings of a dulcimer and the electronic beats of modern Chinese pop songs echoed from the Nebraska Union Saturday night. The mix of old and new sounds celebrated the end of the Year of the Buffalo and the incoming Year * of the Tiger during the 4,696th Chinese New Year celebration. Though it was only the fourth I' annual celebration held by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Chinese Scholars and Students Association, President Fuming Zheng said the event, conducted entirely in Chinese, was a success. “It went much, much better f than I expected,” he said. The outlook for the on-campus « ! 1 celebration seemed less positive during its planning stages, Zheng said. He said he knew putting on the event would be costly, but CSSA had no money. So Zheng asked the University Program Council to sponsor the event. When UPC refused, Zheng started writing letters asking for support from potential sponsors across Nebraska and the nation. When Zheng felt most con cerned a lack of funding could cancel the event, checks began to arrive. The Chancellor’s Office con tributed, and International Affairs donated two times more money than it usually provides. The Chinese Embassy in Washington, D.C., gave $700 so students from China could celebrate one of the biggest events of the Chinese year. Local Chinese restaurants helped too, by agreeing to reduce the cost of catering, and Pepsi pro vided beverages. Meanwhile, CSSA members began selling tickets at prices $1 higher than last year. They recruit ed prospective attendees from all over Nebraska, calling people they knew in other cities, including Omaha and Norfolk. The students asked contacts to come and to bring all of their friends, Zheng said. And they did just that. One group of Americans trekked in from Norfolk and per formed a Chinese song for the audience. “We have had several Chinese students in our home,” Becky Walters, one of the Norfolk enter tainers, said. “We decided to come down. The Chinese New Year has so much meaning for them.” The Chinese New Year, the first day of the lunar calendar, marks the first day of spring and is associated with starting anew. Because the celebration is known as a time for family and friends to reunite, cooking large amounts of food is part of the Please see NEW YEAR on 2 science day helps nurture student interest By Marissa Carstens Staff Reporter Chocolate-covered crispies, yummy hummers and spicy bug crunch tempted dozens of elementary-school children as they scrambled for the bug-filled treats this weekend in Morrill Hall. A few tiny noses crinkled at the thought of swallowing a honey bee or a mealworm laced snack bar. But a few bites later, some said, “Hey, this is good.” Edible bugs were just one of many pre sentations given during Science Saturday, an annual event designed to rouse children’s interest in science. Seventeen scientists representing the four University of Nebraska campuses conducted presentations that brought in a museum record crowd of more than 3,200, said Kathy French, a Nebraska State Museum program coordinator. Many of the children attending the event left with smiles on their faces and a willing ness to relive their favorite exhibits. Courtney Powers, a first-grader at Rousseau Elementary, said her favorite event featured a professor submerging objects in liquid nitrogen and shattering them. During the presentation, Diandra Leslie Pelecky, an assistant professor of physics at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, sub merged an elastic O-ring to demonstrate a contributing factor in the Challenger space shuttle explosion in 1986. One O-ring used as a seal on the Challenger failed after being exposed to cold temperatures overnight, she told her audi ence. Leslie-Pelecky then snapped the ring into a dozen pieces. Megan Scherling, a first-grader at Humann Elementary, also saw the nitrogen presentation. But her favorite was listening to her little 1 brother Jared’s heartbeat through a stetho scope, she said. Please see SCIENCE on 3 Chris Bendet/DN !M CARR, a UHL chemistry professor, demon* V* strates the colors heet (nice teres when exposed to comm os household chemlcalSa Read the Daily Nebraskan on the World Wide Web at http:/ Zwww.unl.edu/DailyNeb