Anyone interested in more information about this effort should contact Jenn Struble (sacits@psu.edu).

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The top post from this week was 10 Questions With Russ Rose. Take a look at the interview to find out about Coach Rose’s ‘look’.

One of the more popular Questions of the Day was this week’s question on themed parties. There are some pretty cool parties mentioned in the comments, it’s worth taking a look.

We’ve had some great new writers come on board recently and one of them by the name of Dan McCool has made a big splash with his post about why NCAA basketball is better than the NBA.

The extended hours of the White Loop have certainly improved the lives of those that would have been stuck walking all the way up to East Halls from Downtown. Nick, one of our writers stepped up to brave the early morning cold and possible interaction with the inebriated. Read about what happened here.

All of us at Onward State were elated to find out that we won the U.S. News & World Report award for Best Alternative Media Outlet of the Year. Even better, we were featured in the Chronicle of Higher Education with a great write-up and video feature.

Old Main from Pollock

The obligatory tunnel shot at Beaver Stadium

]]> http://js-kit.com/rss/onwardstate.com/p=18834 2 http://onwardstate.com/2010/01/22/hershey-gets-simulated/ http://onwardstate.com/2010/01/22/hershey-gets-simulated/#comments Fri, 22 Jan 2010 14:00:39 +0000 Steve S. http://onwardstate.com/?p=18860 has opened at Hershey Medical Center that more than doubles the existing facilities at a staggering 8,000 sq. feet. Reportedly costing around $6.6 million and taking over 20 years to develop, the new lab is the cutting edge in healthcare education.
The lab features mannequins that healthcare professionals can use to hone their skills in performing a variety of procedures, a practice that pays off in real situations, according to lab director Elizabeth Sinz. It also has a sweet virtual reality room. Surgery-by-wire, here we come!]]> A new simulation lab has opened at Hershey Medical Center that more than doubles the existing facilities at a staggering 8,000 sq. feet. Reportedly costing around $6.6 million and taking over 20 years to develop, the new lab is the cutting edge in healthcare education.

The lab features mannequins that healthcare professionals can use to hone their skills in performing a variety of procedures, a practice that pays off in real situations, according to lab director Elizabeth Sinz.

The lab also features a really awesome virtual reality lab:

In the virtual reality room, a face belonging to a virtual person who was having trouble swallowing was hooked to a computer while surgery resident Eric Pauli demonstrated an endoscopy, snaking an endoscope down the patient’s throat while watching her esophagus on the computer screen and taking a biopsy of a fungal infection. The patient gave a groan of discomfort and coughed when the endoscope bothered her.

Staff held an open house on January 20, 2010 to familiarize people with the capabilities and technology of the lab. You can check out a video about the lab here.

Be able to lead a team of 50 professors and a school of 1,350 students.
Have an intense understanding of the concepts that are taught and researched at the College of IST.
Have the credentials to be a tenured professor.
Be able to stick to a budget.
Be able to fundraise like crazy.

The committee in charge of choosing a new Dean is led by Honors College Dean Christian Brady. The committee will be accepting applications starting February 15 and will accept applications/nominations until the position is filled.

As a student of the College of IST, I’m looking for a few things from the new Dean:

1. Update the IST and SRA degrees to be current with today’s technology and issues.
2. Create an Emergency and Disaster Management degree with focuses on prevention, response, and collaboration during crises.
3. Invest in more collaborative space in the IST Building.
4. Reduce class sizes across the board, even if they have to move IST/SRA classes outside of the IST Building.
5. Hire more faculty to teach new and improved courses.

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It turns out that Harvard has teamed up with the company to create a index of ratings and reviews of local businesses as well as to promote collaboration between the different people living in and around the University.

I’ve seen a handful of people get into Foursquare, especially via Twitter. It seems like a pretty cool service and looks like it could take off, particularly in a college setting. It would definitely help spread the word about State College gems like Herwig’s, Margarita’s Pizzeria and the State Theatre, among others.

With enough users in State College, the service could create a veritable listing of awesome places to hang out, eat and drink study. Of course, this listing would be limited to the citizens of State College that are more technologically-minded at first. But if Foursquare grows to include many demographics like Facebook and Twitter have, the service would become infinitely more useful.

You can get signed up here. Let us know what you think of the service with a comment below.

Yes, the PSU Computer Store wants you to party with 'This Squirrel'

Penn State’s Computer Store has been around for a lot longer than you might think. Its twentieth birthday will be celebrated on January 20th in the HUB Showroom from 10 AM to 2 PM.

It looks like there will be some pretty sweet prizes to be won, and you can even meet This Squirrel. I have also received information stating there will be cupcakes to be had at the joyful celebration.

1990 was a awkward year for computers. Microsoft had yet to create Windows 95, but it released the first versions of  Microsoft and Excel that we all know and hate love. A computer with a 250 MB hard drive, a 3.5″ floppy drive and 1 MB of RAM sold for $1,260. In today’s money, this system would have cost $2,085.51. Also in 1990, the basis for the internet we enjoy today was laid when a researcher came up with the hypertext system. This hypertext system led to fantastic internet gems.

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The committee investigating this situation is made up of three people including  Henry Foley (Vice President for Research), William Brune (Mann’s boss in the Meteorology Department) and Candice Yekel (Director of the Office of Research Protections).

If Mann is found to have violated Penn State policy, he will have a 14 day window to respond. Additionally, a committee made up of 5 tenured professors who have no conflict of interest with the controversy will be called upon to examine the situation.

A Penn State spokeswoman explains that this case is nothing like they have ever encountered at the university:

This is quite a different case than we’ve had in the past. We take any claims of misconduct very seriously… in some cases the people have been separated from the university. Sometimes allegations are brought forward that have no validity.

What makes the investigation more interesting is that, according to University Policy the outcome of the committee’s deliberations may be kept confidential. Like many Universities around the country, probes into faculty misconduct are protected, “to the maximum extent possible.” Additionally, many people are outraged that no one from outside Penn State is being asked to review the situation. Since this is the case, is it conceivable that Penn State is trying to save face to ensure that research dollars keep rolling in?

In the end, it may be good for University research funding if the findings of the committee are not released. However, it does not bode well for Penn State’s reputation in the scientific community if Penn State does not allow for transparency in the findings. And given the public outcry that this incident has already sparked, Mann’s professional career may be headed down the tubes even if he is found to not have provided misleading information.

What do you think? Should Penn State release the findings of the review committee? Should Penn State actively protect Mann’s reputation?

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Here are some other cool TV statistics for Penn State Football:

1. The 2010 Capital One Bowl was tied for fifth place with the Orange Bowl out of 34 bowl games this season.
2. The 2005 match-up between Penn State and Ohio State was seen by more than 4.435 million households.
3. Every Penn State game has been televised for the past six seasons.
4. Of the last 192 games Penn State has played, only two have not been televised.

As a quick aside, what does LSU taunt, “Tiger Bait!” really mean?

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Turns out we can’t.

Of the around 25 participating Barnes and Noble University bookstores, Penn State is not on the list. Our rivals to the west, Ohio State, offering Barnes and Noble textbook rentals, as are those Gamecocks from down at South Carolina.

I’d imagine that Barnes and Noble will be looking to expand their textbook rental program to other schools. Given the fact that we’re such a big school, it is likely our official B&N bookstore will be participating in the near future.

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• The screening is in high-def.
• Theatre staff is going to start letting people in around noon.
• The game starts at 1:00 pm.
• Seats are first come, first serve.
• Admittance is free.

.As another heads up, the State Theatre is also showing ‘The Big Lebowski’ in mid-January as well.

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Below you’ll find a couple gems I found during my virtual trips down College and Beaver Avenues and Atherton Street. Most people in the photos have their faces blurred out to protect their privacy and most don’t even pay attention to the camera-laden automobile driving past them.

Let's Just Say He Got The Boot...

Remember all the lovely construction that started in May and ended in October?

Please feel free to post links and pictures if you find anything funny/cool/interesting on Streetview in State College.

How much snow do you have at home?

.Also, tell us what town/zip code you are in.

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Top winners of the international competition receive a $1000 check, while the runner up and “People’s Choice” winners receive $500. The local Penn State contest winners have the following lined up for them according to the contest website:

• A special showing at a catered event at University Park in Spring 2010
• Special prizes such as gift certificates to the Computer Store
• Being featured on WPSU’s On-Demand channel which can be viewed via Comcast Cable’s On-Demand service across a 5-state region
• A chance to be featured at the Penn State Student Film Festival

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A submission to the contest by a English 202C group is below:

If you have a few minutes, check out the videos from the English 202C class. Let us know which is your favorite!

Students harnessed the technology inside the diminutive device, such as the microphone, speaker, accelerometer, GPS, compass, and touchscreen, to make virtual instruments that are only limited by the designer’s creativity.

Don’t expect to see the next catchy hit by Lady Gaga or Owl City to be played with virtual instruments, but the interest in this niche of music is slowly growing. You can see a video on the project here.

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