The Week in Brief

Despite the lack of major decisions, this weekend's Yale Corporation meeting featured promising reports about the University's growth, as detailed by University President Richard Levin, GRD '74, at a Tues., Apr. 18 press conference.

Key financial issues included the budget, where endowment growth and extensive donations are helping fund changes in the political science department and Undergraduate Career Services, as well as extensive construction projects. As money is allocated for the Saybrook renovations, projects such as Hillhouse Avenue improvements, Davies Mansion restoration, the new boat house and the new art building are reaching completion. The $500 million spent over this year and next are "a very substantial investment in the campus," Levin said. Joseph P. Mullinix, the vice president of finance and administration who oversees this development, is preparing to leave Yale, and Levin said a replacement should be found by the summer.

Levin also addressed Yale's environmental policies. He cited recycling, the power plant, and energy-efficient lighting as successes, but said there was still more to do. As positive as it would be to make specific commitments in time for Earth Day, Levin said, "It's just a little premature." He added that suggestions from the Yale Student Environmental Coalition (YSEC) have been helpful, although their desire to cut energy use to 1995 levels is unrealistic given the University's expansion. He emphasized that Yale "first and foremost" can help the environment through research and teaching.

Embattled Corporation member Diana Brooks, who recently resigned from a position at Sotheby's after accusations of price-fixing, did not attend this weekend's meeting. "I think she's been busy," Levin said. He expressed confidence that, as the situation developed, "[Brooks] would act in the best interests of the University."

—Kushal Dave

Metallica lawyer says Yale backed down

His statements contrast with those of University spokesperson Thomas Conroy, who said Yale unilaterally opted to block Napster while investigating the legal issues involved. "Yale said last week when the lawsuit was filed that it did not believe it was liable to Metallica as it is a service provider under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act [DMCA]," Conroy said. "That position has not changed."

King said the DMCA, which grants service providers immunity from liability unless proper notice forces them to block a given site, should not apply to universities, contrary to prevailing legal opinion. However, he declined to provide specifics, saying he had not yet read a prepared memo on the the topic.

Yale, the University of Southern California, and Indiana University were those named in the suit—the result of their public acknowledgement of broad Napster use. Metallica considered this hypocritical in light of these schools' prestigious reputations for the arts, whose graduates would presumably rely on royalties one day. King's attack on Napster, meanwhile, parallels a suit by the entire recording industry, but he wants to personalize a legal battle that had been "faceless."

Mark Kerr, LAW '00, who will speak at an Internet Law Society event next week on the topic, pointed out another dimension of the suit—spots are reserved for additional defendants, possibly individual users of the service. "Metallica can win short-term by legal blackmail, even if they can't beat the University [as a service provider]," Kerr said. "This is still a dangerous public relations ploy." He added that, in light of the wide availability of Napster clones, "The industry will most likely be forced to embrace alternate models of making money."

—Kushal Dave

PC salesmen get a different kind of boot

According to Daniel Updegrove, director of Information Technology Services (ITS), studies on computer purchasing habits of individuals and departments have suggested that the MCSC move to an online ordering system to simplify a "complex set of products, services and customers."

By closing the MCSC, Yale will be left without an official computer reseller. The office has already been phased out as a site for computer repair. There is, however, concern that, if the MCSC is shut down, a web-based purchasing system might not be completely up and running in time for the September arrival of the Class of 2004, according to an anonymous source in the department.

—Lola Ogunkoya

SAS campers begin long trek home

Organizer Ty Hudson, BK '01, said, "We felt we had done what we could with that monument." Pointing to a Yale College Council resolution and referendum recommending that Yale join the Workers' Rights Consortium, he said, "It was an effective way of educating the campus."

Hudson found the occupation "intense," in light of the energy needed for a possibly futile undertaking. "It was inspiring to see people out there, from the hardcore activists to sympathetic people who just dropped off food," he said.

A meeting has been scheduled for Mon., Apr. 24 with University President Richard Levin, GRD '74, but Hudson and others acknowledge that "the history of meetings with the Administration is that they haven't come to much. We hope this one will be different." He added, "We are by no means stepping down our efforts."

—Ewan MacDougall

DAVID GEST/YH Students got a chance to get messy at a Spring Fling pie-throwing booth sponsored by Sigma Chi.

Around The Globe

He who smelt it...
Recently, researchers at the University of Amsterdam have been delving into the hazards of flatulence. Apparently, prolonged exposure—even as little as four hours a day—to other humans "passing gas" can weaken one's immune system. The doctor supervising this vital piece of research, Dr. Hans Sholten, was quoted as saying, "It would behoove anyone who cares about his or her health to avoid people with chronic flatulence." Speaking at a recent Master's Tea, he strongly cautioned Yale students against frequent use of University dining halls or regular attendance of group IV courses.

The de-agentification of the id inhibits the cerebral cortex
In one of Germany's biggest medical scandals, authorities are scratching their heads trying to figure out how a Bonn post office messenger with no formal education could impersonate a psychiatrist for two years and commit 34 "patients" to mental hospitals across the country. The culprit, Gert Postel, got away with posing as a psychiatrist by using enough psycho babble to make his act convincing. In an unrelated development, "Joe" from the New Haven Post Office recieved tenure as Yale professor of psychology on Friday.

—Compiled by D. Satterthwaite Wertime from Bizarre News.

CR/D/F

YALE INDEX
1. Number of slices in a Domino's pizza	8
2. Approximate number of days between the beginning and end of the school year	195
3. Percentage of Yalies who find a slice of Domino's "enjoyable"	88
4. Percentage of Yalies who find a school day "enjoyable"	6
5. Percentage of Yalies who "love" finishing a Domino's pizza	67
6. Percentage of Yalies who "love" finishing school	100
7. Percentage of cheese in a Domino's pizza	0
8. Percentage of cheese in a Yale education	50
9. Cost of one Domino's pizza, in dollars	6.99
10. Cost of one Yale education, in dollars	140,000
11. Number of speakers visiting Yale this month	18
12. Number of speakers visiting the New Haven Domino's this month	0
13. Number of Domino's pizzas we each deserve for finishing this year	[[infinity]]

—Compiled by D. Satterthwaite Wertime

Sources: 1) Mine own eyes; 2) Math; 3, 4, 5, 6) Informal poll; 7) It's true, you know; 8) See previous; 9) Advertisement; 10) My mom and dad; 11) Blatant guesswork; 12, 13) Common sense

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