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CD Review: Ultra Beatdown

Arts Editor
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DragonForce

Ultra Beatdown

Roadrunner Records

 

Rating: 3

 

Modern metal is known for its extremely opinionated fan base almost as much as it is for its music. Always ready to chastise you about how much your music sucks compared to theirs in a lengthy online forum post, these fans are arguably some of the most stubborn and critical people out of every angsty teen-dominated genre.

Interestingly, these arguments often turn into pissing contests about technicality, despite the common claim that they value musicality above all. And in every argument about speed, DragonForce is jumped to like nachos at an anime convention.

Whether it’s lead guitarist Herman Li’s incredibly fast and blurry guitar wankery or drummer Dave Mackintosh’s jackhammer-like pounding, DragonForce is renowned for sheer technical talent, establishing an unreachable dominion over fast-paced power metal.

Ultra Beatdown, DragonForce’s fourth album, is about as lyrically deep and musically artistic as the title suggests. With lyrics that could be lifted from World of Warcraft fan fiction and lead vocalist ZP Theart’s ’80s power-ballad wailing, the album is just as DragonForce as DragonForce ever was.

But even the band’s most hardcore fans recognize that it’s all the same. The fans love every bit of their optimistic and hopeful tales of quests and journeys, just as they love Li and Sam Totman’s ever-predictable twin guitar solos.

Even Totman stated that the album is “not going to be majorly different” from any previous DragonForce project, in an interview with Revolver magazine. Though its production quality and tone have surely evolved over time, in the end Ultra Beatdown is nearly indistinguishable from any other album they’ve put out, both lyrically and musically.

However, the album is especially cheerful, perhaps more than any of its previous albums. The synth intro to “The Warrior Inside” sounds almost like a DDR track (the whole album could be a soundtrack to an arcade, for that matter). There’s more synth in this album than even Van Halen would have added, often coupled with the guitar solos in the typical DragonForce manner. “Heroes Of Our Time” is about as dramatically glorious as it gets.

The whole so-corny-that-it’s-good mentality is perhaps their biggest asset. The band members know it just as much as everyone else, and they have a good time producing it. Just as long as nobody takes them too seriously, DragonForce will always be a respectable group.

 

Justin T. Ho

 

For Fans Of:

The Jonas Brothers

Depeche Mode

 

Give These Songs A Listen:

“The Warrior Inside“

“Inside The Winter Storm“

 

Lyrics sidebar:

Excerpt from “The Last Journey Home“

 

Shine glorious we ride, we stare into the blackened sky,

Save the last command, the virtue blinding,

So far beyond the sun, still blinded with the fire inside,

Once alone again, silence stands for our last journey home.

 

Our lives intensified, mutation, frustration,

Ever lasting lifetime in beyond the world,

We‘ll travel endlessly, they‘re moving, he‘s jointed,

One man can understand his sad misery.

 

Whoa, oh oh oh ohh,

Whoa, oh oh ohh,

Whoa, oh oh oh oh oh ohh

ARTSWEEK

Arts Editor
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MUSIC

Octavian, Beneath the Rapture, Human Filth, Doctor Zivago, Decollate

Today, 8 p.m., $10 in advance

The Boardwalk in Orangevale

According to their Myspace profile, Rancho Cordova/Davis band Octavian has worked to “break away from the typical ‘drunk metal‘ sound which has infected the Sacramento music scene.” I wasn‘t even aware of such a subgenre, let alone its negative effects!

 

Still Dead, Akuma

Today, 8 p.m., 21

Fire Escape in Citrus Heights

Kids of the ‘90s may recall that Akuma was the redheaded, red-eyed and incredibly burly character in “Super Street Fighter II Turbo.” Such a savage fighter is deserving of an equally fierce sound: The fast-paced pedals, guttural growls and sharp breakdowns of this Oregon metal band serve as the perfect accompaniment.

 

Sonny Smith and Sunsets, The Dry Spells, Jessica Pratt

Today, 10 p.m., $3-5, 21

Sophia‘s Thai Kitchen

It would be nice to think that if I ever delved into music-making, my creations would be as delicate and lovely as San Francisco folk singer Jessica Pratt‘s. But alas, I feel I am far too clumsy and crude for such an endeavor.

 

Canoe, Adam & Darcie, Drew Danburry

Friday, 7 p.m.

M Street and Colgate

Neutral Milk Hotel‘s “Holland, 1945“ is already a classic in terms of the indie pop set, but Portland band Canoe took the song and made it their own, stripping it down to a refreshingly new level.

 

Wreck and Reference, Aunt Analog, Yatagarasu, and 2or3 Guys

Friday, 8 p.m., $5

Javalounge in Sacramento

If you liked Search Party winner Unit Panic, then this show should be right up your alley – Wreck and Reference is another musical duo featuring UC Davis student Ignat Printsev. Their electronic-tinged tunes shouldn‘t disappoint.

 

Save and Continue, Silent Treatment, Split Self, Rise From Within, Ones & Zeroes

Friday, 8 p.m., $10 in advance

The Boardwalk in Orangevale

Trust me, after many a lost document, I am a big advocate of Command-S (that would be ctrl-S for all you PC-ers!). But with hard-hitting song titles like “My Fate” and “All or Nothing,“ perhaps Sacramento alt-rockers Save and Continue are referring to something a bit more profound than simple computer commands.

 

The Animations, Private Criminals

Friday, 8 p.m., $8, 21

Fire Escape in Citrus Heights

At first glance, NorCal trio Private Criminals kind of just look like three bros with instruments. But upon closer inspection, their music brings to mind a Maroon 5-meets-Matchbox 20 mix.

 

Carcrashlander, Drew Danburry, Alexis Gideon

Friday, 10 p.m., $3-5, 21

Sophia’s Thai Kitchen

Carcrashlander: Catchy piano-driven melodies or dark, atmospheric pop? I say it‘s a little bit of column A, a little bit of column B. And to any tardy backyardigan who missed out on Drew Danburry’s set at M Street, don‘t you worry – as the lineup indicates, he’ll have another set at Sophia‘s! Lucky you.

 

Fair Trade

Friday, 10 p.m., $3-5, 21

The G St. Pub

Sacto quartet Fair Trade makes the kind of pleasant, easy listening acoustic pop that brings to mind a more likeable (read: far less douche-y) Dave Matthews Band. Take that as you will, readers!

 

The Rubber Soulmates, Black Cat Bone, The UnDuLaTiOnS

Saturday, 7 p.m., $15

The Oddfellows Hall on 415 Second St.

Keeping music programs alive throughout Davis schools, this first annual concert is presented by the Davis Oddfellows Lodge. From Sproul Hall comes the bluesy acoustic sounds of Black Cat Bone, which includes UC Davis Spanish professors Travis Bradley and Charles Oriel and French professor Julia Simon.

 

Laura Gibson, Ricky Berger

Saturday, 8 p.m., $5-7

Old Firehouse

When it comes to music, bigger doesn‘t always mean better: Portland singer Laura Gibson delivers a elegant, understated form of back porch folk as she quietly plucks at her guitar. The bill also presents another talented lady to admire with the jazz-infused pop from Ricky Berger.

 

Consider the Source, Der Spazm, DEZU

Saturday, 8 p.m, $5

Javalounge in Sacramento

With a bit of jazz-like unpredictability, Middle Eastern influences and prog tendencies, New York trio Consider the Source make it significantly harder to do just that.

 

Goodness Gracious Me!, Robocop 3, Crimewave

Saturday, 9 p.m., $5, 21

The Stag in Woodland

In my humble opinion, the third had to be the absolute worst installment of the awesomely cheesy “Robocop“ films. But I shouldn‘t transfer these negative feelings to San Francisco punk outfit Robocop 3 – a sense of humor and a couple of pop culture references never hurt anyone, right?

 

Meg & Dia, Jonezetta, Danger Radio, Dropping Daylight, Bidwell

Sunday, 7:30 p.m., $12 in advance, $14 day of show

The Boardwalk in Orangevale

With Tegan and Sara leading the pack, sister acts are nothing new in the world of indie pop. Even so, the hapa siblings of Meg & Dia are too adorable not to like. Now if only I could convince my own sister to start up a band with me.

 

AT THE MOVIES

Tell No One

Friday until Thursday at Varsity Theatre on Second Street

Based on the international best-selling thriller by Harlan Coben, this film tells the story of a pediatrician grieving over his murdered wife.

 

Disaster Movie

Opens Friday at Regal Davis Holiday 6 on F Street

As yet another spoof, this film takes the best (or worst?) from movies such as The Dark Knight, Juno and An Inconvenient Truth.

 

Babylon A.D.

Opens Friday at Regal Davis Stadium 5 on G Street

The life of what could be the next Messiah is in the sturdy, burly hands of Vin Diesel.

 

ART / GALLERY

I want, I need … I need, I want

Ends Friday at the Design Museum

MFA Design student Rachel Stone tries to solve the problem of mass consumption and an “I want it now“ society with basics made from sustainable materials.

 

Digital Images by Julie Patterson

Opens Tuesday at the Tsao Gallery

Julie Patterson takes the art of photography a step further, creating texture and mood as she adds layers of anything from wax and polish to chalk and plaster to her images.

 

RACHEL FILIPINAS can be reached at arts@californiaaggie.com.

 

Editor‘s picks:

Canoe, Adam & Darcie, Drew Danburry

Friday, 7 p.m.

M Street and Colgate

 

Laura Gibson, Ricky Berger

Saturday, 8 p.m., $5-7

Old Firehouse

UC Davis centennial exhibit features recording of the KeckCAVES 3-D technology

Features Editor
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In one afternoon, you can dive into the Lake Tahoe basin, study earthquakes in New Zealand, and travel into the core of the earth – all from the safety of a single lab on campus.

This lab, established in 2005, is known as the W.M. Keck Center for Active Visualization in the Earth Sciences (KeckCAVES). Demonstrations of the lab’s technology are included as part of the UC Davis Centennial Exhibit at the California State Fair.

The KeckCAVES was a joint project by the geology and computer science departments, funded by a $1 million grant from the W.M. Keck Foundation. The lab uses a series of projections onto three walls and the floor of a room to create 3-D images, which allow geologists to analyze data in a 3-D immersive environment.

“KeckCAVES is a virtual reality environment,” said Magali Billen, an associate professor in the department of geology. “It’s really very much like a complex projection device, but the key is that you have to take various images together and combine them in order to make what you see actually appear to be three-dimensional.“

Specially-designed glasses are worn to transform the projected images in the KeckCAVES into 3-D images.

“As soon as you put [the glasses] on, [the image] all of a sudden pops away and it looks like it is just floating there,” Billen said.

The original purpose of the KeckCAVES was to meet the growing needs of geologists in conducting data analysis.

“We work with complex 3-D data, not just observations that we take from the earth but also output from simulations that we run trying to understand what is happening in the earth,” Billen said.

This data ranges from the study of the effects of earthquakes to analysis of microbialite rock structures.

“One of the things that motivated me to start thinking about the KeckCAVES is the idea of being able to virtually go into the earth’s interior and see the area that I’m studying and see the data that I’m working on,” said Louise Kellogg, a professor and chair in the department of geology. “Since I can’t do it in reality, we can use virtual reality to go there.“

Prior to the construction of the KeckCAVES, researchers were limited to looking at their data on single-plane surfaces.

“We’ve traditionally been restricted to looking at maps and plotting information on maps, or making slices of the interior and looking at them on a flat computer screen or on a flat piece of paper,” Kellogg said. “Using the KeckCAVES allows us to use what our eyes and our brains were built to do, which is live in a three-dimensional world and interpret information that’s coming at us with depth perception. [The KeckCAVES] enables us to use that depth perception to see the full picture of our data.“

By studying their data in the 3-D environment, researchers are able to extrapolate information from 3-D models that they were unable to access before.

“The way that we are using the system [at UC Davis] is very much like an analytical instrument,” said Oliver Kreylos, a staff researcher at the Institute for Data Analysis and Visualization in the department of computer science.

“It is not so much about making pictures and then the picture is the final result … but it is about using the pictures to get a result – what’s the distance between x and y, what’s the density of my material, what’s the structure of this particular feature we are looking at,” Kreylos said.

For the State Fair exhibit, the use of the KeckCAVES technology was recorded and is presented on a flat screen using 3-D technology.

“The idea for the State Fair was to use the software that we already have and use the data that we already have, but instead of using it in a scientific way, we just talk about the results we got from using the data,” Kreylos said.

While the 3-D immersive technology exists in other places in the world, the KeckCAVES at UC Davis is distinct because it is integrated into scientific research.

“Most of these [CAVES] … are used to do computer science research but then they never actually make it into applications in sciences,” Billen said.

Unlike other versions of the technology, the KeckCAVES also utilizes tracking devices to naturally move through data sets.

“There is this constant feedback between the computer system and these little trackers, constantly telling the software where the user is standing and where the user is looking,” Billen said. “If you want to grab the earth, you point at it and you grab it. You don’t go off to some other dialogue menu box and say, ‘I want to move the earth.‘”

UC Davis researchers involved in the KeckCAVES have many long-term goals for its use and development. One of these goals is to increase the accessibility of the technology.

“All of our software is free for people to download…. The same software that we run in this CAVE will run on my desktop,” Billen said. “One of the goals is to just make this more available so that people are able to get as much information out of their data as we are.“

“My goal is really to try to make it as cheap as possible … so that everybody can use it at some point,” Kreylos said.

Researchers are also trying to improve the techniques for moving through data, so that it more closely resembles realistic interaction.

“[In the current technology], you can’t walk, because you would run into walls, and so [we] have to start developing ways that would give somebody the sense of moving large distances through the data,” Billen said.

Another goal of the researchers is to create a method for analyzing data sets as they are being created.

“It would allow [researchers] to not just passively watch the model results come out, but actually then feed back onto the model and influence the way the model is evolving,” Billen said.

Since its construction, the purpose of the KeckCAVES has changed and expanded as the earth scientists and computer scientists continue to work together to improve the technology.

“Once you know how a tool works you get better at using it,” Billen said. “This really opened up avenues of understanding that we didn’t expect.“

 

SARA JOHNSON can be reached at features@californiaaggie.com.

CD Review: You and Me

Arts Editor
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The Walkmen

You and Me

Gigantic

 

Rating: 5

 

With lead vocalist Hamilton Leithauser‘s wailing rambles over chiming, shimmering guitars, the fourth album from New York group The Walkmen creates an atmosphere of faded glory and weary self-acceptance – of growing older over beers and spending empty, wistful nights in dimly lit bars.

Nothing here is as immediate as singles off past albums, such as Bows and Arrows. There are no pounding radio hits a la “The Rat,” no driving, angry anthems to bop your head to. These songs reveal their nostalgic, pensive beauty slowly, always taking their time to develop.

It hits home, chillingly – especially for someone like me, who is graduating soon and facing the next chapter of life. “Seven Years of Holidays (for Stretch)” captures the nagging hollowness we attach to the good times past with lyrics like “We ran around / banged our heads / never felt no pain.” This contrasts with a world in which, eventually, “We’ll wed our girls and move away.“

When Leithauser sings, “You keep replaying through the days / That have brought you to this place / What happened to you?“ in “The Blue Route,” I can’t help but cringe. The startling clarity with which it describes that feeling of going out with a whimper rather than a bang, of realizing that it is all over but trying to cling onto whatever is left, is stirring.

It’s not all bad though. The album is chock full of moments of subtle but invigorating hope. With its gleaming organs, “In The New Year“ presents a comforting, poignant message – although the party may be over, the prospect of enjoying love awaits:

“Well I know you’re with me / It’s a point of pride / And it’s louder than lightning / In this room of mine.“

A “Long Time Ahead of Us” reminds us to be patient in the seemingly elusive search for contentment: “Tomorrow we‘ll rise / And the sky will be bright.“ Until then, there‘s a “long time ahead of us.“

 

– Sonia Parecadan

 

Give these tracks a listen: “Red Moon,” “In the New Year”
For fans of: Yo La Tengo, The Unicorns, The Velvet Underground

 

 

‘On the Road’ to the first Jack Kerouac Poetry Contest

Arts Editor
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On the road to hosting the sixth annual Davis Jazz Artists Festival, the John Natsoulas Center for the Arts will be looking for the next generation of William Burroughs, Allen Ginsbergs and Jack Kerouacs.

The gallery will debut the first annual Jack Kerouac Poetry Contest at the conference to keep the spirits of the Beat Generation alive. The poetry contest seeks to find the next line of artists who embody the sense of counter-revolution and anti-establishment that captures the spirit of Burrough Burroughs‘ Naked Lunch, Ginsberg‘s “Howl“ and Kerouac‘s On the Road.

The brainchild of the poetry contest belongs to UC Davis English professor Andy Jones. Jones, who has taught courses about the Beat Generation, wanted to extend the conference to include more students from the university. He worked with event organizers to establish the poetry contest.

“Part of the thinking was to give more opportunity for students to participate in the conference,“ Jones said. “We want something that honors and respects the best of the generation.“

Participation is free to UCD students. Submission is limited to three poems, and entries must be submitted by Sept. 28. The winning poems will be published in the Blue Moon Literary and Art Review. The poets will also be invited to read their works at the two-day beat conference, which takes place Oct. 4 to 5.

The Natsoulas Center has been holding the conference in Davis since 2002, bringing beat fans together to rejoice in the values embodied by Kerouac and his generation of poets. The conference has been a bastion for works inspired by the Beat Generation. There will be jazz performances, improvisational paintings and a special visit by David Amram, a composer who worked with Kerouac.

“It‘s the best time to bring Amram to Davis to collaborate with the students and to have a seasoned veteran collaborate with the young guys,“ said John Natsoulas, who runs the conferences. “He is a national treasure.“

Kerouac is widely considered to be the father of the Beat Generation, a period marked by free-thinking artists who used anti-establishment prose and risky subjects to critique social conditions during the 1950s and 1960s. The movement began in New York before migrating to the West Coast to San Francisco. Besides On the Road, Kerouac also wrote Big Sur, Visions of Cody, and The Dharma Bums, the latter of which was influenced heavily by his adventure with poet and UCD English professor emeritus Gary Snyder.

Just as Snyder influenced Kerouac, the iconic poet has left an indelible mark on youth counter-culture and cultivated new writers to follow in his footsteps.

“For the conference, I am most excited to do the poetry reading,“ said first-year creative writing graduate student Brian Ang. “The works of the Beat Generation really influenced me. I read them in high school and college.“

The conference takes place on the weekend of Oct. 4 to 5. Submissions for the poetry contest can be sent to Andy Jones at the John Natsoulas Center for the Arts, which is located at 521 First St. For more information about the conference, visit natsoulas.com.

 

JACKSON YAN can be reached at arts@californiaaggie.com.

POLICE BRIEFS

City Editor
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THURSDAY

 

MacGyver’s in town

A transient was seen taking woodchips out of the playground area and using them as charcoal for a barbeque on C Street.

 

Assault with a deadly weapon

A male subject was threatening others with scissors on Galileo Court.

 

FRIDAY

 

Buying local

An individual on Third Street found a chicken and a rooster in the front yard.

 

Do-it-yourself fertilizer

A subject defecated on a property on G Street.

 

That’s my kind of party

A loud party with a “marijuana smell“ was reported on University Avenue.

 

SATURDAY

 

Leprechaun sighting

An elderly individual – dressed in a green jacket, green pants and untied shoes – was extremely intoxicated and kept falling over on G Street.

 

Easily amused

Two men were seen jumping gates into and out of a pool area for 40 minutes on Cowell Boulevard.

 

They were precious jewels

A pair of roommates was locked out of their apartment on J Street. When they finally forced their way inside, they discovered that their personal property had been “fondled.“

 

There’s only one way to clean a couch

Two subjects were seen throwing furniture into a pool on Drake Drive. Another individual then chased them off and contacted police.

 

POLICE BRIEFS are compiled by JEREMY OGUL from the public logs of the Davis Police Department and represent the official version of what happened. The crime blotter can be found online at cityofdavis.org/police/log. This segment appears on Mondays during the summer.

Rethinking consumer culture at the Design Museum

Arts Editor
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When it comes to consumer culture, the question of want versus need inevitably arises – is this item something you really need, or do you just want it?

“We need textiles, we need clothes,“ said UC Davis Master of Fine Arts design student Rachel Stone. “And we also want clothes – we often want to buy new things. Is that really the sustainable choice to buy new things all the time? Is it really justifiable right now, considering the state of our planet?”

Stone tries to solve the problem of an “I want it now“ society with the exhibition “I want, I need … I need, I want.“ The exhibition is currently on display at the Design Museum.

The exhibit features basic garments made from the “cleanest available” materials and using pre-industrial methods. Stone uses natural, low impact dyes instead of synthetic dyes and sustainable fabrics that were grown, processed and woven without the use of chemical additives.

“I’ve learned a lot about environmental challenges that our generation faces,” Stone said. “There’s a lot of chemicals used in growing crops, processing the fibers – and those things just really frighten me. They’re dangerous.“

Fabrics like organic cotton and hemp are most typically used in sustainable fashions, but UC Davis alumna Carol Shu said that it is also important to consider the process behind making these fabrics. Shu, who graduated in 2007 with a degree in design with an emphasis in fashion and textiles, now works for Stewart Brown, an environmentally conscious clothing company based in Ventura, Calif.

“Bamboo is the new ‘green‘ fabric, but it’s chemically intensive to spin into yarn,“ Shu said. “People are so into the title of being ‘green,‘ but in my opinion it‘s not that great if you have to use chemicals to process the fibers.“

Tim McNeil, director of the Design Museum, said that industrial practices in design are currently being questioned from the perspective of the environment. However, he said that it is possible for mainstream manufacturers to move away from the standard methods of production.

“I prefer to see green design as a movement,” McNeil said in an e-mail interview. “The potential for designers to take energy efficiency, non-toxic materials, ethical manufacturing and make them palatable to both business and consumers is huge.“

This way of thinking has also been integrated into the design program at UC Davis, McNeil said. The Design 127 course series focuses on environmental consciousness and sustainable design, addressing renewable resources, post-consumer products, endangered sources and alternative materials.

More than just trying to change the way manufacturers produce clothing, Stone wants to change the all-too predominant pattern of mass consumption.

“I do think there is such a thing as guilt-free shopping,” Stone said. “Obviously buying anything recycled is guilt-free. Buy few things that are well made, and keep them.“

“We really have to ask ourselves: Do we really need what we’re after?” McNeil said. “And if we do, demand products that take advantage of green practices.

“I want, I need … I need, I want” will be shown at the Design Museum until Aug. 29. For more information on the year of eco-exhibitions, visit designmuseum.ucdavis.edu.

 

RACHEL FILIPINAS can be reached at arts@californiaaggie.com.

County needle exchange gets one more year

City Editor
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Yolo County’s needle exchange program, active for one year, has generated some controversy this summer because of reports that used syringes were showing up in public parks.

Despite the concerns, the Yolo County Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 earlier this month to allow the needle exchange to continue into its second year at a cost of $100,000.

The needle exchange program is designed to give sterile needles to injection drug users in exchange for their old and used syringes. The goal of the program is to reduce the spread of blood- and bone-transmitted diseases such as Hepatitis C and HIV, said Hinton.

The program works on a “one-to-one plus 10” syringe exchange system, meaning that the program will give 10 syringes to a new participant in the program and then exchange one new, sterile syringe for every old, used one brought back.

“This program has only had a year’s worth of time to grow,” said supervisor Mariko Yamada, who represents part of Davis. “We need to give the program time to sort out the problems.“

Yamada said she thinks the program is worthy of the county’s money.

“This is a public health and public safety issue,” Yamada said. “Any time we can use funds to reduce the scourge of the different diseases that are a result of dirty needles … I think is an appropriate use of public health dollars.“

Others say the problems are too great for the program to continue.

“My primary concern … is that there are 11,253 unaccounted-for needles out there and 150 people in the program,” said supervisor Matt Rexroad to the board. “The average user is responsible for 75 needles that are unaccounted for rolling around out there.“

Rexroad, who represents Woodland, has suggested going to a one-to-one needle exchange or putting the $100,000 into another program that has already proven itself, such as prenatal care.

“I don’t consider it leadership at all to transfer the burden of people who are behaving irresponsibly and injecting themselves with poison onto the people who are behaving responsibly,” he said. “We’re prolonging the inevitable by a small amount and that’s it. We’re spending 50 cents for every person in Yolo County to facilitate people putting poison into their body.“

While community members have voiced concerns about the presence of used syringes in public spaces, no injury or dangerous contact has been reported.

The needle exchange program is operated by two groups, Harm Reduction and Safer Alternatives Through Networking and Education. While SANE is funded by the county health department, Harm Reduction is fueled by a state grant, said Bette Hinton, Yolo County director of health, in her report to the board about the program’s work.

The SANE and Harm Reduction programs do most of their work through an intermediary person, called a satellite, Hinton said. The satellite collects the used needles and syringes from peers, friends or contacts and then takes them all to a needle exchange program where the Satellite receives clean syringes to take back to the users.

Satellites may be users, recovering addicts or people who have never tried an injected drug, said SANE director Karen Anderson.

“Syringe exchange works,” Anderson said. “The public health theory behind it is that you have an intervention to remove the vector of infection. Syringes carry the virus; if you remove them from circulation, you remove the virus they carry.“

Anderson said stopping the spread of HIV is one of her primary concerns.

“The epidemic is not under control – look at the worldwide pandemic,” she said. “The numbers are still high and spreading. This is still critical. If we aren’t out there doing the work the virus will continue to spread. When drug injectors get [HIV or Hepititis C] they spread it to non-injectors.“

Anderson said if the program continues to be supported, trust will build between her volunteers and the community, results will be easier to track, and the bumps in the program will start to smooth out. But the problem with syringes still remains.

According to Hinton’s report, roughly 50,000 needles have been returned, out of the 60,000 that have been distributed.

“A lot of those syringes are still in circulation,” Anderson said. “And plenty have been confiscated by police officers.“

The needle exchange program will continue to run for another year.

 

ALI EDNEY can be reached at city@californiaaggie.com.

Governor signs Wolk bill to specify end-of-life care instructions

City Editor
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When terminally ill patients can no longer speak for themselves, decisions can get complicated in the health care system. A bill recently signed into law by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger attempts to ensure that those patients‘ wishes are honored.

The law, authored by state Representative Lois Wolk (D-Davis), provides terminally ill patients with a mechanism to clearly indicate specific end-of-life health care instructions.

It requires heath care providers to honor the wishes of patients with less than a year to live as outlined in a Physician‘s Order for Life Sustaining Treatment form. The POLST form, which is new to California but routinely used in 15 other states, allows patients to give specific instructions for end-of-life care such as resuscitation, pain management, artificially administered nutrition and relocation to the hospital from the patient‘s home.

“The POLST represents a conversation that has taken place between a doctor and a patient at the end of life so that the person‘s wishes can be followed,“ Wolk said.

The bright pink sheet stays with patient at all times and is intended to provide consistent care as the patient moves through skilled nursing facilities, hospitals and emergency rooms with different health care providers.

“Currently, end-of-life care is extremely fragmented,“ Wolk said. “There is fragmentation between emergency personnel, the doctors, hospitals and assisted living. What happens is the person who is dying suffers and their family suffers.“

It was Wolk‘s personal experience with end-of-life care during her mother-in-law‘s hospitalization that prompted her to write the legislation.

“I‘ve always been interested in senior issues but it took on new urgency after the death of my mother-in-law,“ she said. “I‘ve become much more aware of how many other people have experienced similar kinds of fragmentation.“

The POLST form – which can be changed by the patients or their designated surrogates at anytime – will not replace advanced health care directives or do-not-resuscitate orders, but is intended to supplement them in more detail. Most advanced health care directives only name a decision-maker for the patient and are usually stored in files or safe deposit boxes unavailable during emergency situations, according to the senate analysis of the bill.

“[POLST] has the effect of doctor‘s orders and neither the DNR nor advanced health care directive do,“ Wolk said. “It complements them, but has the effect of doctor‘s orders, which is what matters in hospitals.“

Woodland and Sacramento are among eight California communities currently working to implement POLST through a pilot project funded by the California HealthCare Foundation. The Woodland Healthcare Foundation received a $20,000 grant in November of 2007 to facilitate the use of the form in both hospitals and skilled nursing facilities.

“All these different groups are working to institute POLST in the community,“ said Joanne Hatchett, a nurse practitioner and palliative care coordinator who leads the Woodland project. “The goal with POLST is to define what you want and what you don‘t want so people can follow that.“

Implementing POLST in Yolo County has gone smoothly largely because nursing homes and hospitals have been using a form almost identical to POLST for several years, Hatchett said.

Hatchett estimates that over 100 patients have filled out a POLST during the pilot project.

“It‘s not an easy form for people to talk about because it‘s not an easy subject,“ she said. “ Sometimes people don‘t want to talk about this stuff but it‘s actually like a gift to your family because then they‘re sure about what you want.“

The bill passed both the Assembly and the Senate unanimously without any registered opposition.

 

ALYSOUN BONDE can be reached at city@californiaaggie.com.

UC Davis graduate student investigates ancient life forms in Canadian lake

Campus Editor
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Like many children, as a 10-year-old Rebekah Shepard wanted to be an astronaut. Her involvement in the Pavilion Lake Research Project is bringing her ever closer to that dream, as she joined researchers from NASA in their exploration of the development of ancient life forms.

Shepard, a doctoral candidate in the department of geology, participated in the 10-day expedition conducted by the Pavilion Lake Research Project (PLRP) held from June 23 through July 3 in British Columbia, Canada. This year, researchers involved in the PLRP included representatives from both American and Canadian universities.

“Our participants are made up of support staff and scientists. We have met most of our collaborators through conferences and word of mouth about the project,” said Darlene Lim, NASA’s Principal Investigator of the PLRP, in an e-mail interview.

Shepard first became involved in the PLRP in 2005. Lim, whom she met through her connections at UC Davis, invited Shepard to join the expedition.

“[I’m] ridiculously lucky,” Shepard said. “Make great friends in life, that is my advice.“

The PLRP is studying microbialite structures and microbial mats in British Columbia’s Pavilion Lake in order to understand microbialite development.

“Microbialites are microbial mats that are literally rock hard. The suffix ‘ite‘ means rock in this context,” said Dawn Sumner, a professor in the UC Davis geology department and Shepard‘s graduate adviser, in an e-mail interview. “The microbialites in Lake Pavilion are microbial mats that have had the mineral calcite form within the microbial mats, turning them into rocks.“

Researchers are investigating the relationship between microbial mats, which are living organisms, and the carbonate-based microbialite structures, Lim said.

“We know [microbes] live on the surfaces and inside of the microbialites, especially those at mid-to-deep depths in the lake, but how they contribute to the shape and fabric of the structures, and whether those contributions leave behind signatures that might be preserved in the rock record are key questions we‘re trying to answer,” said Sherry Cady, a geology professor at Portland State University and researcher involved in the PLRP, in an e-mail interview.

The research conducted by the PLRP contributes to Shepard’s graduate work at UC Davis.

“[Microbial] mats are an entire chapter of my thesis,” Shepard said. “People differ in [their] approach [to] Ph.D.s. I spend a lot of time working on projects.“

Researchers are also studying the development of microbialites in Pavilion Lake in terms of their similarities with structures on other planets.

“What is most relevant to our current exploration of Mars is our ability to detect biosignatures in the Pavilion Lake microbialites,” Lim said. “This is proving complicated to do, but our methods and findings are relevant to our ability to detect biosignatures on other planets such as Mars.“

“We want to know how to recognize signs of life in such structures should we find them in the ancient rock record here on Earth, or if we found similar structures on another rocky planet in our solar system,” Cady said.

“[It is] hard to define life,” Shepard said. “If we are looking for life on Mars, how do we know if we’ve found it if we can’t define it?”

Unlike previous expeditions, this year the researchers used DeepWorker submersibles, created by Nuytco Research Ltd., in order to expand upon the research conducted by scuba diving.

With the submersibles, researchers were able to remain underwater for longer periods of time, as well as capture video of their dives, Lim said. The submersibles also allowed researchers to explore the length and depth of the lake in its entirety.

Used in addition to scuba diving, the submersibles provided a broader perspective of the lake, which complemented the more localized study conducted by scuba diving.

“When we dive we are focused on discreet tasks and get very little time to ‘take it all in‘,” Lim said. “Context is so important in understanding an environment and with [DeepWorkers] we finally got that.“

The use of the one-person submersibles created a research environment distinctly different from that of scuba diving.

“We were able to go down to any depth, sit, and take it all in – all in the comfort of a one atmosphere environment too,” Lim said.

“Every time I had to come up I was sad,” Shepard said. “There is so much to look at…. I felt like an astronaut.“

This year’s expedition also partnered with NASA’s Spaceward Bound program to teach members of the academic community about the research conducted at Pavilion Lake.

“Spaceward Bound is an education and public outreach effort to bring teachers and students firsthand field science experience. This summer we also piloted a SB program at the lake that saw 20 local teachers and students come and participate in a science activity. We intend to roll this out again next year with more teachers embedded in our science program,” Lim said.

The PLRP, which organizes several expeditions per year, is scheduled to return to Pavilion Lake this fall.

“We are definitely going back,” Shepard said. “I’m so excited. It’s finally what I want to be doing.“

SARA JOHNSON can be reached at features@californiaaggie.com.

UCD study links war casualties to President’s approval rating

Campus Editor
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President Bush’s low approval ratings may be more the result of personal experiences than of political beliefs, a recent UC Davis study suggests.

UCD political science professor Scott Gartner found that individuals who have experienced a personal loss in a conflict – such as the Iraq War or the 9/11 terrorist attack – are more likely to disapprove of their leader than those who have not.

“9/11 and the Iraq War represent highly personal events for those connected to the victims,” Gartner said. “A social tie to a conflict’s casualty transforms abstract costs into a vivid personal experience that increases the likelihood an individual disapproves of the President.“

Gartner conducted his research by analyzing the results of two large public polls from 2001 and 2006 that surveyed whether an individual had ties to an Iraq War or 9/11 victim. The surveys also asked individuals about their party affiliation and whether they approved of the current administration.

In past studies, Gartner found a link between a nation’s number of wartime casualties and the approval rating of its leader. Almost always, when the number of casualties spiked, the president’s support level dropped accordingly.

“It is not just cumulative casualties that affect public opinion, but marginal casualties as well,” said Kimberley Bellows, a senior international relations major who assisted Gartner in his research. “The number of casualties that occur within a certain time frame can be a strong determinant of how the people will react towards their leader].“

Gartner’s latest study sheds light on the often-ignored issue of an individual’s personal wartime experience and the strong political effect it can have.

A Duke University study found that the likelihood of having social ties to a victim of international violence is surprisingly high. A 2005 Zogby International poll that found that “over a third of the nation’s adults were personally impacted by the events of 9/11.“

In light of these interconnections, personal losses and the emotional responses they elicit are not necessarily restricted to the individual level, but can operate on a much more widespread scale, according to Gartner’s study.

The study also found that personal connection to a conflict often overrides party loyalty.

“Though partisanship is especially strong in the Iraq War, Republicans generated similar results as those [of other political affiliation],” Gartner said.

The pattern was also consistent across economic, cultural and social lines as well.

In addition, Gartner found that disapproval of a leader due to a personal loss does not necessarily go hand-in-hand with disapproval of the event itself. For instance, those with connections to victims of 9/11 and the Iraq War can simultaneously disapprove of the president and support military action against al-Qaeda.

“The key is to recognize the difference between blame for the initiation of an event versus blame for failed protection,” Gartner said. “They don’t necessarily belong to the same party. Blaming the President for failing to protect someone does not restrict vengeful feelings toward the perpetrators.“

Gartner said it is still not known whether a personal connection to a wartime victim is strong enough to cause a change in one’s political opinion. For instance, he did not look at whether an individual who initially supported the president changed that sentiment after experiencing a personal loss as a result of the war. Gartner said that his future work will involve tracking individuals‘ opinions over time, and it is a question he hopes to soon answer.

In the meantime, his current finding may change the way researchers view the formulation of public opinion.

“The effects of ties to those harmed in 9/11 and the Iraq War imply that individuals‘ interactions, and not just their personal characteristics, influence wartime political attitudes,” Gartner said. “These results suggest that the distributions of opinions in the society are determined at least partially by the social structure in a society, not simply by the demographics of its members.“

 

ERICA LEE can be reached at campus@californiaaggie.com.

POLICE BRIEFS

City Editor
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SATURDAY

 

Say what?

An individual on G Street lost his hearing aid but was unsure of where it was lost.

 

Uninvited guest

An individual on L Street left home for three weeks and returned home to find that the house had been entered by an unknown person who slept on the couch, ate food and wore a shirt belonging to the individual and then left it there. There were no signs of forced entry.

 

Drunken Dracula

An intoxicated subject on East Eighth Street grabbed a female and bit her on the chest.

 

Attention whore

A subject on Second Street was walking around with a black trench coat and noose around his neck.

 

THURSDAY

 

Happy camper

An individual was “setting up camp“ behind a building on Drew Avenue.

 

Girls Gone Wild: Davis

A female was flipping up her shirt on Alvarado Avenue.

 

He‘s NBA material

An individual jumped over the fence from a backyard on Cape Cod Street.

 

TUESDAY

 

Long night?

An individual was passed out on a front lawn at West Eighth Street and Plum Lane.

 

Flour, cocaine, anthrax?

An individual found a baggie filled with a white, powdery substance on the ground on Lillard Drive.

 

POLICE BRIEFS are compiled by JEREMY OGUL from the public logs of the Davis Police Department and represent the official version of what happened. The police log can be viewed online at cityofdavis.org/police/log. This segment appears on Mondays during the summer.

Think before you cheat

Opinion
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Dear Mr. Edwards,

 

I cannot conceive of a way in which you could have failed this country more grandly than you just did. You said in your interview on ABC recently that “nobody can beat up on me more than I have already beat up on myself.” Allow me to sincerely try and prove you wrong.

You were the best candidate for president this year. Your policies and proposals were far superior to your opponents; both Mr. Obama and Mrs. Clinton only began discussing universal health care and other policies after you brought them up. You are one of the more photogenic political candidates in recent memory and had somehow found a way to get people to look past your failure to help John Kerry win the 2004 election.

All of this speaks to your skill as a politician, making one all the more incredulous when they consider your inept handling of the Rielle Hunter sex scandal.

What the hell were you thinking?

Had you learned nothing from the errors of Bill Clinton and Eliot Spitzer? Could you have been the one politician who came right out and admitted your errors to the public? You had, by your own account, already done so to your wife two years earlier, it’s not like she would have been in for a shock.

Doing so would not only have been a refreshing change of pace from usual American politics, it would have preserved the unwavering faith in you displayed by your supporters (as opposed to horribly betraying them like you did).

Prior to recent events, I had held out hope that you would run again in 2012, if for no other reason than to keep the other candidates honest. I didn’t think you’d really do very well, but I was hoping maybe you’d do it anyway since you (purportedly) care about the underprivileged and working class in America. But now I wouldn’t want you to; you’ve shown your true colors and they bring to mind revulsion and disgust.

Not because you cheated on your wife (JFK and others have shown that marital fidelity is no barometer for presidential success), but because you’ve shown a depressing unwillingness to trust your constituents with the truth. We’re grown-ups; we can handle it.

Your excuse that you had become narcissistic and ego-driven on the campaign trail raises a considerable amount of wonderment. To what extent does ego cloud the presumably sharp mind of a trial lawyer and politician? Apparently to the extent that a previously honorable individual becomes transformed into a weasely charlatan, pulling the rug out from under thousands of people at once.

Of course, that’s assuming that the honorable, caring, populist persona you cultivated wasn’t some kind of sham disguising your true character. I suppose it is only appropriate that the man who rekindled my faith in politics be the one to snuff it out again.

There is always the chance that you will learn from this and move on; that you will attempt to make amends. I sincerely hope that you do. Perhaps you will follow in the footsteps of your 2004 running mate John Kerry, who, though belatedly, is growing a spine.

Kerry recently launched truthfightsback.com, a website dedicated to clearing the name of Democratic political candidates who find themselves smeared by their Republican counterparts (e.g. the mudslinging regarding Kerry’s military record). You will, of course, find yourself unmentioned on this website, because the “tabloid trash”, as you called it, is apparently true.

It is a sad day, Mr. Edwards, when the National Enquirer is a more reliable source of information than yourself.

I can only hope you take this unforgivable breach in conduct as a learning experience and comport yourself with more maturity and intelligence in the future.

Especially if you plan a return to public service.

 

Sincerely,

Richard Procter

 

RICHARD PROCTER did not enjoy this column but thought it needed to be said anyway. Join the club by sending him comments about his column to rhprocter@ucdavis.edu.

Daily Calendar

Features Editor
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SATURDAY

CPR course

9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

120 Court St., Woodland

This course will offer information on CPR and AED use for adults, children and infants. Additionally, general information on emergency response will be covered. Register at www.yc-arc.org or by calling 662-4669. Cost is $47 per person.

 

SUNDAY

Babysitter training course

9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

120 Court St., Woodland

The babysitter training course will offer emergency reaction skills, children’s safety advice and guidance on basic childcare first aid. Register at www.yc-arc.org or by calling 662-4669. Cost is $47 per person.

 

TUESDAY

Business basics workshop

7:30 to 8:30 a.m.

266 W. Main Street, Woodland

Get free advice on starting your own business or growing your current small business! Woodland Community College-SBDC, Yolo Federal Credit Union and the Woodland Chamber of Commerce are the sponsors of this event. To reserve a space or get more information, contact Bethany Malcolm at bmalcolm@yolofcu.org or 669-6309.

 

WEDNESDAY

Davis Farmers Market

4:30 to 8:30 p.m.

Central Park

Buy local produce and more at the farmers market. For more information, visit www.davisfarmersmarket.org.

 

To receive placement in the AGGIE DAILY CALENDAR, e-mail dailycal@californiaaggie.com or stop by 25 Lower Freeborn by noon the day prior to your event. Due to space constraints, all event descriptions are subject to editing, and priority will be given to events that are free of charge and geared toward the campus community.

Guide dog helps UC Davis student see past obstacles

Features Editor
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Being blind doesn’t stop Claire Stanley from pursuing two majors at UC Davis.

Although her visual impairment may present many obstacles, Stanley is now better able to maneuver around them with a furry friend by her side.

Stanley, a sophomore double majoring in political science and communication, recently received a 21-month-old black labrador-golden retriever guide dog from the nonprofit organization Guide Dogs for the Blind.

Guide Dogs for the Blind, established in 1942, pairs visually impaired individuals with guide dogs and provides them with intensive training programs at no cost.

“I always wanted to get a guide dog,” Stanley said. She had been traveling with a white cane for over 10 years.

At 9 years old, Stanley suffered from optic nerve glioma, a brain tumor. After undergoing surgery and chemotherapy, she kept her life but lost her vision.

“Technically, I’m partially blind but I don’t have enough vision to do much so I’m a full-time braille reader,” she said.

Stanley was very excited at the prospect of having a guide dog. But because of the responsibilities, she was told to wait until she was out of high school. She filled out the applications for Guide Dogs for the Blind as soon as she started her first year at UC Davis.

“I went through the interview process and was accepted during winter quarter,” she said. The four-week training program took place in San Rafael and required Stanley to stay in a dormitory.

“You have to be there 24/7 to get all the training,” Stanley said. “You start with baby steps and work your way up.”

Before getting to meet their guide dogs on “Dog Day,” students must first go through a few days of training.

Training begins by learning the commands, gestures and footwork needed to direct a guide dog, said Sierra Fish, Marketing Specialist for Guide Dogs for the Blind. The dogs have already been trained to respond to these commands.

After being introduced to their guide dogs, students learn the routines of feeding, grooming, and relieving of their dogs.

“A typical day starts at 6:30 a.m. so that the dogs can be relieved and they end around 9 p.m. with a final relieving session,” said Fish in an e-mail interview.

The students also learn dog obedience exercises and participate in Guidework sessions.

During Guidework sessions, students learn to work their dog through obstacle courses, crowds of pedestrians, across busy streets, and on stairways, platforms and public transportation, Fish said.

“They took us out to San Francisco and to feel what it’s like to be in a busy community,” Stanley said.

According to the Americans with Disabilities Act, guide dogs are allowed anywhere a person can go.

At the end of the training program, each student meets with a veterinarian to discuss health and medical history of their guide dogs. They then participate in a graduation ceremony and are ready to go home.

Stanley graduated with her dog, Carola, from Guide Dogs for the Blind on July 26.

Guide Dogs for the Blind matches its students with dogs according to their compatibility in many areas such as communication styles, age and personality.

Stanley believes she and Carola are a perfect match.

“We’ve bonded and get along really well,” she said. “Whenever I leave the room and she doesn’t know where I am, she’ll come find me.”

She likes that Carola is sweet, fun and fast enough to keep up with her college lifestyle.

Since Stanley is not taking courses at UC Davis this summer, she has not yet been back to campus. She said she can’t wait to begin fall quarter with her new friend.

“I wish I could be on campus right now,” she said.

If you see Stanley on campus with her dog, feel free to ask her questions. However, don’t pet the dog because it’s on duty, she said.

Stanley, who grew up in Mission Viejo, Calif., chose UC Davis because she fell in love with the campus. As a political science major, she was excited about being in such close proximity to Sacramento.

“I love the political side of things,” she said. She hopes to go to law school after graduating from UC Davis.

The biggest obstacles to being a college student with visual impairments are communicating with the professors and TAs and trying to let them know the situation, she said.

But despite all the challenges, Stanley believes she and Carola will be able to maneuver through them together.

Guide Dogs for the Blind not only provides individuals with a dog to guide them, but also a companion for life.

The students and individuals have a connection that goes much deeper than what most people have experienced, even with another human being, Fish said, because this relationship requires not just companionship – but absolute trust and interdependence.

“Our graduates have described their guide dog partners as best friends, mind readers, even soul mates,” Fish said.

 

THUY TRAN can be reached at features@californiaaggie.com.

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