THE OREDIGGER

The student voice of the Colorado School of Mines

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Volume 94, Issue 10 November 11, 2013
JESSICA DETERS / OREDIGGER

News

Humanitarian engineering works for good.

Features 4

COURTESY ANDRE-PIERRE DU PLESSIS

Book of Mormon delights Denver.

Colorado School of Mines enjoys the last weeks of fall as winter approaches. However, students have little time to appreciate the season as only four weeks remain until finals.

Geophysics of permafrost & lakes

John Bristow Staff Writer
ing around 100 kilometers over the course of an hour. Of ground work, Minsley stated, [it is] great While most Van Tuyl lecturers information, but it doesnt show come with some amount of praise the whole picture. Minsley got into the meat of for what they have done, when the lecture started with Mines airborne geophysics by starting professor Dr. Kamini Singha stat- out simple. A brief outline of the ing that the upcoming presenter two main methods: frequency single handedly changed the and time domain. Between the way we think about characteriz- two methods a section extending ing watersheds with geophysical down around 100 meters into the methods, she was understating subsurface can be obtained with the developments that would be the intent of discerning structures discussed throughout the lec- of differing resistivity. After the ture. The speaker Where the ground survey surveys were obtained, in question was Dr. Burke Minsley from would have taken all day data processing gives secUSGS in Denver. Minsley is crucial and wound up being about tions that are generally porin overlapping the worlds of geophys- a kilometer of data, the trayed as red and blue beds ics and hydrology and the result has airborne data was much a n d s t r u c tures. Beyond been increased acbroader, covering around that, it is the curacy and modelof the data ing in both disci100 kilometers over the job interpreter to plines. take a stab Minsley began course of an hour. at determinwith what might have appeared as a simple ques- ing what the differing resistivities tion that would be the guiding mean. Though Minsley has been part mentality of the whole hour. Why do we do airborne geophysics? of countless studies, for this he asked. To drive home the basic particular presentation, the focus answer, he put up a bit of geophys- would fall on work done in Neical results that had been mapped braska, Alaska, and in the San Luis on the ground, then compared it Valley in Colorado. In the Nebraska to an airborne survey. Where the case study, the intent was to better ground survey would have taken characterize the known aquifers all day and wound up being about and groundwater paths, Minsley a kilometer of data, the airborne also added, we used it to better data was much broader, cover- understand how the system was connected. Where normally a lot of time would have to be spent on associating resistivities with different rock layers in the target area, many boreholes had been drilled prior that helped to add a lot of control to the models. As the model evolved, the data seen in the boreholes was similar to what was in the geophysical surveys; for the most part the correlation works out pretty well, said Minsley. The results of the surveys allowed for new, highly accurate models to come around, as well as the identification of 3.7 million acre feet of aquifer that had not been seen prior. Where the Nebraska study was fairly easy due to the abundance of data in the area before the survey was conducted, the second case study was on entirely uncharacterized terrain. In Nebraska, we had thousands of boreholes to confine the geophysics; in Alaska, we had one, said Minsley. The primary objective of the Alaska studies was to better understand how groundwater behaves in a system where there are variable amounts of permafrost. Permafrost can serve as a barrier to flow to groundwater and as the climate changes. The degree of continuous permafrost is changing, so by understanding how the groundwater interacts with it, questions regarding flow patterns can be answered. The main goal Minsleys team was to turn the ~500,000 data points into something that could be understood by geologists and hydrologists and could mean something beyond a few red and blue lines. This meant that the team would have to establish an interpretive resistivity scale so that there could be meaning drawn directly from the geophysical data. In cases where two units looked the same in terms of the resistivity profiles, it would take a bit of multidisciplinary knowledge to determine where a unit would exist. Along with helping to establish a thermal profile of the subsurface, one of the more profound results that Minsley observed focused around the river in the region. The Yukon River has been known to migrate, a fact that was not originally considered with the survey. When Minsley began looking into the data, the thermal profile in the subsurface displayed a strange tilt which could not have been explained by local geology. As it turned out, the tilt in the data represented the permafrost re-establishing in the subsurface since the river had moved. By checking the gradients as well as the timescale of the shift in the river, the team was able to confirm the rate at which permafrost occurs during a cold period. From a single geophysical snapshot, you see a preserved permafrost legacy, proudly stated Minsley. The data from this survey is expected to help establish how groundwater migrates in the frozen subsurface. Continued on page 3 at Permafrost and ancient lakes.

Sports 7

Fall sports in playoffs.

Opinion 8

Student tells nspire-ational tale.

COURTESY DER MESSER

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n e w s

november 11, 2013

Jessica Deters, Staff Writer

Trustworthy People Appear Similar to Selves, London, England Recent studies prove that when people have a similar facial structure to ourselves, we automatically deem them trustworthy. However, a new study published by researchers in the Department of Psychology at the Royal Holloway University in London validates the opposite. When a person is shown to be more trustworthy, it can lead us to perceive that person as looking more similar to ourselves, researcher Harry Farmer of Royal Holloway University said.

New DNA Sequencing Technique May Revolutionize Medicine, San Diego, CA - Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine recently released their discovery of a cutting edge DNA sequencing technique known as HaploSeq, which allows for DNA to be differentiated between maternal and paternal contributions. The technique will enable clinicians to better assess a persons individual risk for disease. It is potentially transformative for personalized medicine, Bing Ren, scientist at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and lead researcher on the new sequencing technique.

Rare Lava Flow Spotted, Chile - Researchers from the Lancaster Environment Centre at Lancaster University discovered that an obsidian lava flow, a rare and thick type of lava rich in silica, was still inching between 1 and 3 meters a day after volcanic eruptions in April of 2012. Although it moves slowly, it could speed up or collapse if it were to reach a steep hill, Dr. Hugh Tuffen, who led the research team along with Dr. Mike James, said.

Ancient Ice Core May Reveal Earths Climate History, Antarctica - Newly identified regions in Antarctica contain ice cores that may store up to 1.5 million years worth of information about the Earths climate and greenhouse gas levels. Currently, the oldest ice core only dates back about 750,000 years. The research team, led by lead author and experimental climate physics professor at the University of Bern in Switzerland Hubertus Fischer, believes that the 1.5 million year old slice of ice should reside at the bottom of East Antarctica.

Oredigger Staff
Deborah Good Editor-in-Chief Emily McNair Managing Editor Taylor Polodna Design Editor Connor McDonald Webmaster Lucy Orsi Business Manager Arnaud Filliat Copy Editor Katerina Gonzales Content Manager Jared Riemer Content Manager Karen Gilbert Faculty Advisor

Headlines from around the world

James Davis, Staff Writer
Last Tuesday, Indias Mars Orbiter Mission (coined MOM) took off with no foreseen complications. The primary goal of this mission is to prove to the international community that India has the capability to reach space and perform experiments, as told by representatives of Indias space agency. If the 300 day mission is successful, India will become the 4th country to have successfully sent a probe to the Red Planet. A Soyuz rocket was launched earlier this week, carrying the Sochi Olympic torch for the Winter Olympic season. Russia, being next years host, wished to display the torch in a new way, attempting to resemble a strong, modern nation. Two Russian cosmonauts will take the torch on its first-ever space-walk, exiting the space station and televised live for all to see. Significant decreases in inflation have forced European Central Bank (ECB) board members to reduce interest rates to 2.5% from the regular 5%. Inflation rates have reflected a weak European economy; prices have frozen in Greece, the EUs most financially unstable member. ECB president Mario Draghi believes that the lower interest rates will help promote business in the EU, bringing the area back to the desired 2% inflation. The value of the Euro dropped over 1% shortly after the announcement. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have made an official statement that partially hydrogenated oils, a major source of trans fat, are no longer considered reasonably safe. The FDA will begin a 2 month consultation period to discuss ways of removing trans fats from the food industry. Although it will be a slow adjustment, the FDA believes that US industries have the means to remove all partially hydrogenated oils from their products. Initial speculations indicate that this will save over 7,000 lives as well as over 20,000 heart attack victims every year. Recent data collected by NASAs Kepler spacecraft indicates that there could be approximately 40 billion Earth-size planets that are habitable. Erik Petigura, a graduate student at the University of California, Berkeley, completed his three-year calculation of information collected by the Kepler spacecraft. Accordingly, one out of every five stars similar to our sun contains an Earth-sized planet orbiting in its sweet spot, also known as the Goldilocks zone. These planets have very similar properties to our Earth, leading scientists to reimagine the possibilities of life similar to that on our planet. The Islamic organization Hamas has replaced textbooks approved by current Palestinian Authority with those of their own creation. These textbooks are a way of spreading the militant beliefs of Hamas through a younger generation. The text includes over exaggerated war statistics and does not recognize the state of Israel to any extent. The text also rejects Jewish biblical claim to the land, claiming that they are a nation which had been annihilated. Israeli authorities expressed outrage at the news.

Local News
Two maned wolves went on exhibit at the Denver Zoo this weekend. The male came from the Abilene Zoo in Texas and the female came from Dickerson Park Zoo in Springfield, Missouri. These wolves stand three feet tall at the shoulder and are the largest wild dogs of South America. A driver hit a police officer at the Pepsi Center on Saturday night. Police chased the driver to I-25, where he was caught and arrested a few minutes later. The officer only had minor injuries and was not on duty at the time. A wildfire in Monument destroyed a barn and some cars on Friday morning. The fire started just west of I-25 and Baptist Road. High wind gusts pushed the flames into nearby grass, but a nearby subdivision was unscathed. The cause of the fire is unknown at this time. Federal officials are considering changing train horn regulations. Currently, train engineers must sound their horns for 15 seconds on approaching a road crossing. This disturbs many residents across the Front Range. New rules will allow communities to create quiet zones. To do this, communities need to rebuild intersections to make them safer. These improvements can cost millions of dollars.

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Permafrost and Paths for humanitarianism ancient lakes in engineering careers

John Bristow Staff Writer
Continued from page 1. Another part of Minsleys talk focused on a different area of Alaska, and the results were much more important to the geophysics side of the presentation. With the help of equations established by Mines professor Andre Revil, Minsley began to look at how the constraints of a permafrost system could better define geophysical parameters. In the second Alaska field area, a lake was present which presented the team with some nice constraints. Usually in cases where water is on the surface, permafrost doesnt exist in the subsurface. This allows for areas of confined permafrost to exist on islands in the middle of rivers or lakes, and these islands can in turn be used to constrain models. A member of Minsleys team used an island to model several different situations. By picking the model that best fits the actual field data, a model can be used as a standard for the area. The talk of models in the Alaska area lead to the finale of the talk, which consisted of an overview of new approaches to modeling the San Luis Valley case study. Ive spent this whole time talking about red and blue images and how great they are, began Minsley, but they may not be the right answers. The correct answers, as Minsley assumes, are ones that involve useful data, such as rock types and flow patterns as opposed to raw geophysical data. One of the first steps then was to find a way to make the models more reliable. To do this Minsley began running thousands of models, and instead of picking the best, he opted to use them all. We shouldnt get too bogged down about one of the models, revealed Minsley. For his research he used over 100,000 models and overlaid them to create a histogram. From this histogram, features such as rock interfaces could be extrapolated with a higher degree of certainty. The modeling method also allows for the modeler to see where the data begins to lose certainty, which is highly important in disciplines such as hydrology. The final case study emphasized the use of this modeling technique using an example which is close to home for some Mines faculty. The San Luis Valley in southern Colorado is currently a fairly dry valley, but at some point in the past, the valley hosted a large lake. This ancient lake has been established through geological work, but much about the morphology is hidden under the sand. By taking several thousand models and combining them, the layers in the valley became fairly apparent, then by tying in a lithology probability to the resistivities, the clay of the ancient lake began to stand out in the stratigraphy.

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Dana Steiner Staff Writer

The majority of the worlds designers focus all their efforts on developing products and services exclusively for the richest 10 percent of the worlds consumers. Nothing less than a revolution in design is needed to reach the other 90 percent, summarized Dr. Paul Polak of International Development Enterprises. This concept is used by the humanitarian engineering community to explain why there is need for the profession. Engineers without Borders - Bridges to Prosperity: Mines (EWB-B2P), and other humanitarian engineering programs and organizations are striving to create this revolution. Kaitlin Litchfield, a Ph.D. candidate at CU-Boulder presented a lecture on pathways for humanitarian engineers as a part of the ongoing lecture series sponsored by the humanitarian engineering department and EWB-B2P. Through her research, Litchfield has investigated the differences between engineers involved in EWB-B2P and professionals who have never been involved in the humanitarian organization. Her research focuses on the idea that there must be specific reasons for an individual to choose humanitarian engineering as a supplement or replacement to corporate engineering. While

studying at the Mortensen Center for Engineering in Developing Communities in Boulder, Litchfield has used interviews and surveys to gather qualitative data in the first nationwide study of its kind. While there is little quantitative data on her study yet, she did portray striking differences in the motivations for becoming an engineer between the two study groups. Interviews with female professional engineers have shown that while many nonEWB-B2P members chose engineering because of their interest in math and science, their love for problem solving, and other inherent qualities, the EWB-B2P members had a much lower response rate as to their reasons for becoming an engineer. This data leads to the conclusion that many humanitarian engineers chose engineering because of the applications in worldwide relief and aid - an aspect not seen by the public. Many philanthropically inclined engineers face a struggle to find where they belong in the workforce after graduation. While most graduates with a degree in engineering go on to work in a corporate environment for a large company doing what they love, for some graduates, that type of work place is not enough to feel fulfilled. A career paired with EWB-B2P can help those who

want to help the previously mentioned 90% of humanity. Working to help people outside the normal structure of engineering can give an individual confidence that engineering was the right choice; it can help one feel creative again by working on projects that are ever-changing with unconventional challenges. It can also give an engineer a larger motivation for their work-- a reason to be the best engineer he can possibly be. All of these benefits are weighed against the job security, high paying salaries, and good benefits of a corporate job. As the engineering industry grows more accepting of humanitarian engineering and the redesign Dr. Polak calls for, more options become available for those stuck at a crossroads. The decision could become easier if large companies adapt to the growing field. Litchfield concluded by asking the audience, What is most important to you in a future engineering job?. While humanitarian engineering is not for everyone, certainly an individuals answer to that question can help to direct his career path. She suggests researching the many options the engineering profession has to offer and reevaluating individual motivations to help make the right decision, whether that be humanitarian or corporate for a fulfilling career.

How to calculate Orthopedics revolutionized density equality by personalization efforts

Chris Robbins Staff Writer
This Friday saw Texas A&Ms own Dr. Jeffrey Hart present to a packed room at the AMS department colloquium. Hart presented on research conducted by himself and a student of his at Texas A&M, titled Testing equality of a large number of densities. What Dr. Hart was interested in was how to handle situations when the number of sources of data are far greater than the amount of data each source provides (mathematically, p data sets of size n when p>>n). To study this, he structured a non-parametric hypothesis test with the null hypothesis being that the means of several small samples of densities would be roughly equivalent to the overall mean of the total densities, very similar to the idea behind the central limit theorem. Hart chose a non-parametric test as opposed to a parameterized model for the sake of limiting the number of assumptions needing to be made. In particular, he chose to design this test based upon kernel density estimators rather than more classically used empirical distribution functions. Hart claimed that the kernel density estimators, which tend to parallel the sum of squares in a oneway ANOVA test, are simply more powerful and provide more useful results than EDFs, and thus were chosen for use in this research. In this situation, the kernel refers to a unimodal density symmetric about zero, most often a standard normal distribution. This, coupled with the use of a parameter called the bandwidth (a data-driven parameter used to control the smoothness of the estimate), produced a model that delivered rather accurate results when numerically tested. The kernel estimates did tend to slightly undershoot the true distribution functions peaks and slightly overshoot its valleys, but it was well within the generally accepted bias range for an estimator (non-parametric model) and did an excellent job of mapping out the general trend of the datas distribution. However, one pressing issue Hart explained that still needs to be worked out with this estimator is that when working with a data pool from several differing distributions (differing in terms of normal distributions with differing degrees, central points, etc.), it is often difficult to correctly pinpoint the location of a data point and determine which distribution in particular it came from. As part of planned future research, Dr. Hart is considering trying techniques such as the use of wavelets and other non-analytic/numeric methods of resolving this issue. plant can be correctly fitted to the patient, individual surgeons are not consistent in their implementation of the implants. In many areas of healthcare, Years after knee replacement, personalized medicine is becomoverhang of the implant often ing increasingly more ubiquitous. becomes a main problem which From gene therapies developed leads to instability, dislocation, lyfrom an individuals DNA to madesis/loosening, or implant fractures. to-fit orthopedic replacements, For total knee replacements, a personalized care is transformWith a soon to be retiring surgeon must make sure there ing the healthcare industry. Jeff is less than 1 mm of overhang Bishop from Zimmer Personalized Joint Replacement Tech- baby boomer population and of the implant. However, If the implant is placed too deeply nologies gave the Mines coman osteoporosis and joint within the body tissue, there munity an interesting insight as be rotational constraints, to how more advanced fabrireplacement industry already can which creates a tough line for cation techniques, improved medical scanning technologies, worth over $51 billion, ortho- surgeons wanting to give their patients higher mobility in the and big data are converging to provide more effective joint re- pedic companies such as Zim- short term while at the same time preventing failures in the placements. With a more accurate understanding of the ana- mer have spent a great deal on future. With three of the largest tomical structure of the knee, research... players in the industry located tibia, and other joints, orthopein Warsaw, Indiana, orthopedic companies can provide paBishops personal stance on dic companies are no strangers tients with increased mobility and higher durability of their replaced the research is that size variances to their competition. The orthoin the joint implants play a much pedic capital of the world, much joints after orthopedic surgery. With a soon to be retiring larger role in the personal fit than like Silicon Valley for technology baby boomer population and an any deviation in the actual shape companies, creates an intense osteoporosis and joint replace- of the implant. Shape incongrui- environment of competition. In ment industry already worth over ties from person to person could many ways the evolution of joint $51 billion, orthopedic compa- actually play a more important replacement technologies has nies such as Zimmer have spent factor in the mobility of joint re- been a collaborative effort to ima great deal of resources on re- placements than they are sug- prove the field. There has been an search and development to le- gesting from the research. Even abundance of feedback between verage their improved products after acknowledging that the sta- surgeons, university researchers, over the competitions in regards tistical anatomical data supports and engineering teams with the to surgeons preference for joint the theory that size does indeed ultimate goal of creating faster, replacement surgeries. This has dominate morphological variability cheaper, and better implants for given rise to increasingly greater between patients and that an im- an aging population.

Kylen McClintock Staff Writer

personalization of implants. Large studies have shown very significant differences in shape and size of knee joints due to gender and, to a lesser degree, ethnicity differences. Tibia length composition varies significantly as well due to height discrepancies in those surveyed.

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Geek Week
of the
is. Theres just different levels of insane. What are the levels of insane? More or less insane? What has been your favorite class? Or least favorite class? Ill go with favorite class because if I say least favorite class, Ill get in trouble. Maybe. But my favorite class was either Intermediate Mechanics because it built the most relationships or Calc III because I really like calc. What are your future plans? Go to grad schoolsomewhere, and try to get a masters in education and go teach high school physics and possibly college. Physics, and then get over to math. What do you do in your free time? Homework, study, hang out with friends, InterVarsity stuff, band, and play sports if I canultimate, volleyball, and soccer. Do you consider yourself a geek or a nerd? Nerd, because more people call me a nerd than a geek. Do you think theres a difference? The word is different? Thats about it. Whats the nerdiest thing youve ever done? Well, most recentlyhomework on a Saturday. Thats how I spend my weekends. Are you into any other nerdy things besides physics? Math [laughs]. Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. Thats pretty common around here. Mostly just school stuff. Who is your favorite superhero and why? If I could pick a group, I would just go with The Avengers. Why not? You get a little bit of everything in that group. Also how they get along initially is great. Do you have any advice to younger Mines students? Dont die. And probably build as many close relationships as you can throughout your major. Those friends will be friends for life and theyll help you through everything that youre going throughschool and out of school.

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november 11, 2013

...Tim Christley, Senior: Physics

KATERINA GONZALES / OREDIGGER

Katerina Gonzales Content Manager

The Mines campus is full of incredible students. These students often dont have the time to interview with The Oredigger due to their busy schedules. This week, Tim Christley found time to chat with The Oredigger about his life. [Oredigger]: Why did you decide to come to Mines? [Christley]: Probably because there was no essay in the application and it was free. So I applied and was accepted, and my other choice was a big school, but I like small schools, so I decided to come here. Whats your favorite thing about Mines? Physics. But not really. Probably the people. Why Physics? Mostly because I just love physics and I got too far in it to back out. But its been fun. Good relationships with the people. Are you sure youre not insane? I am insane, but everyone here

Magic: The Gathering club The Book of Mormon

James Davis Staff Writer
Once a week, strategic masters clash in the club Magic: The Gathering. It is here that students can express their joy of the popular card game. This game pisses me off more than you can imagine, shared current president Everett. Despite his obvious sarcasm, the general atmosphere of the room surrenders their true opinion: that this is their hobby, and this is what they like to do. Established approximately eight years ago, the club has been around longer than any of the individual members. Over the course of Everetts one year presidency, things have remained fairly constant. A small group of players cycle in and out now and then, usually never reaching over ten people in one night. Despite this, the club itself remains strong. The key to its success is its fluid style, and having minimum regulations and rules for its members. Rather than being a structured group with a list of requirements, it is more of a stomping ground of sorts, where players meet for the convenience of playing the game. Anyone, seasoned or fresh, that is interested can come and go whenever they please. This is why I show up only once a year, muttered a less frequent member, followed by a round of hearty laughter. One constant factor that remains in the group is the general friendliness of the regular members. Many are more than willing to explain the rules and to share their cards, which gives everyone an opportunity to try Magic: The Gathering. They give veteran advice to deck construction, often having club-wide discussions as to the effectiveness of a certain strategy. Normal club hours start Thursday at 7:00 PM, and usually last long into the night, as long as people are awake and willing to continue. Aside from these events, the president and seasoned members try to schedule tournaments as well. These are a great way to meet the entire club and to win some cool prizes. Entry fees are usually little to nothing, at most covering the prize expenses for larger events. Magic: The Gathering is one of many fun games to play to escape from the stress of Mines life. The Gathering club creates a conducive environment for all to pull up a table and play the night away.
JAMES DAVIS / OREDIGGER

Tim Christley encourages younger students to build as many close relationships as possible through their major.

An all-American musical
The Broadway musical that caught the world by storm in 2011 returned to Denver this October for its second U.S. tour. The Book of Mormon, written by Robert Lopez and South Park co-creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, won nine Tony Awards in 2011 including Best Musical. The musical follows two Mormon missionaries as they travel to Uganda in hopes of changing the world and bringing all of the Ugandans to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The missionaries face a stark reality as they land in the African countryside and discover the severe problems that plague the countrys citizens. Stories of AIDS, rape, warlords and poverty prevail, and the missionaries must find a way to overcome the challenges and bring people to the church. The storyline, however, is simply a mode by which the musical lampoons everything within reach. The Book of Mormon shamelessly satirizes both the credibility of the LDS Church and organized religion in general. The musical implies that religious books contain nothing but made up stories, but those stories metaphorically lead to something bigger. We discovered that we all had the same feelings about religion and Godthat God doesnt exist and yet somehow he does, Robert Lopez said of him and his co-creators Parker and Stone in an interview with Applause magazine. And that even though

Jessica Deters Staff Writer

Students gather weekly to duel to have fun and escape from the stress of Mines life.

the stories are made up, the leap of faith that people make makes them better people. The LDS Church responded somewhat well to the musical initially, highlighting the distortion that the musicals parody of the religion provides. In an April 2011 statement, the church said the danger of the show was in people leaving the production and believing the depiction of Mormons on stage to be completely accurate. The Church even took out advertisements in the playbills for many of the musicals venues with quip phrases like youve seen the play, now read the book and the book is always better. During the past two years, criticism of the musical subsided. Sold out venues across the country speak to the widespread popularity of the show. So, what makes this musical so incredibly amazing? Perhaps its the tantalizing music, which lampoons contemporary Broadway musicals. Maybe its the literary themes that reside behind the script. But most likely its the fact that the show shamelessly tackles religion, homosexuality and racial stereotypes despite the U.S.s seeming obsession with being politically correct. Though listening to the entire album on repeat can satisfy any Book of Mormon craving, nothing compares with seeing the live production. Do not wait around in hopes that The Book of Mormon will return for a third Denver tour. Call the box office, snag those few remaining tickets and see the show before it leaves Denver on Nov. 24.

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Tacky Prom fun

Jessica Deters Staff Writer
What could be more fun than dressing up in the tackiest apparel Goodwill has to offer and dancing the stresses of school and thoughts of looming exams away with over 200 fellow Mines students? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Tacky Prom, put on by the Maple and Aspen Halls Residence Life staff in the Maple Hall community room, gave residents the chance to shuffle, twerk and practice their mad dance skills all while winning incredible prizes. The prizes, like the dance itself, were incredibly tacky and even included snuggle animals for those struggling with the notorious Mines ratio to snuggle. The dance also served as a fundraiser for Socktober, a program devised by Kid President in which people get together and donate clothing and basic necessities to the homeless in their communities. Attendees were asked to make a donation in exchange for admission to the dance. Residents turned up with handfuls of donations and turned up dressed in everything from brown corduroy overalls to Christmas sweaters and 50 shades of plaid. A handful of Mines men embraced their manhood and donned the

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The Stars Above Mines

The great cosmic dance

tackiest dresses they could borrow. My favorite part was feeling like I was in middle school again, Emma Elefante, freshman, said. The cheesy nobody caring and crazy dance moves and jumping around was awesome. Maple Halls resident assistants served as DJs and bartenders, mixing songs and drinks for residents. Songs ranged from Gangnam Style to What Does the Fox Say with the occasional appearance of the traditional (and tacky) line dance songs that pervaded middle school dances. As for the mocktails, well, nobody really knows what were in those. I had a few interesting combinations, Amber Brusak, freshman, said. I was a little scared when I saw them being poured, but the ended up being okay. And what prom would be complete without crowning the two luckiest and tackiest attendees queen and king? Tacky Prom King Nick Pampe and Tacky Prom Queen Matt Groce shared a dance after being crowned with the classiest of craft project crowns. So many people showed up wearing dorky clothes. It was fun to see people cut loose, Brusak said. It was more of a community feel for Maple, which was really cool.
ALL PHOTOS COURTESY JAMES DAVIS

COURTESY SITE07

John Bristow Staff Writer

By far the greatest misconception about space spread by movies does not involve sounds or laser beams; it lies in the actual act of traveling through space. Improbable ideas such as light speed and warp travel aside, zooming around in space is unlike any sort of travel that occurs under the confines of gravity. Here on the surface of Earth, most movement is done by brute effort; there is very little grace to moving around, even in the beautiful act of flying. In space, motion involves understanding a few physics equations and exploiting them to get from point A to point B without using much fuel. In movies such as Star Wars and Star Trek, space travel is a mix of old fashioned naval travel and atmospheric flying. Vessels

swoop around and do easy turns without any sort of problems involving momentum. In the confines of an atmosphere, momentum is fought off as the surface of a craft drags against rogue atoms of nitrogen and oxygen. In space these atoms are much farther apart. This means that a lot of energy has to be expended to reverse motion in any way. One movie that can be used as a much more correct example is that of the recent release: Gravity. There are definite flaws in the orbital dynamics, but the idea of short bursts of fuel to control long term trends is what is followed by modern space programs as it is both efficient and sound by the rules of physics. Where this idea comes deeply into play is in some of the current plans to defend the planet from incoming asteroid threats. Blowing up an asteroid moments

before it destroys the planet is costly and it is unlikely that even the most dedicated scrappy, but good intentioned, team of drillers could make the deadline. If an asteroid is spotted well before it ends life on the Earth, it is much easier send out a small craft to slightly alter an orbit. A small course change years before doomsday will trickle down over time, and instead of a big collision, the asteroid in question will just cruise on by. To get an idea of how orbital dynamics work, a great example is the game Kerbal Space Program. Behind the slightly absurdist facade exists a fairly decent orbital simulator that highlights the pure frustration that real space programs face daily. Add in the realities of drag and relativity, and suddenly movies such as Star Wars begin to make a little less sense. Of course, there is significantly less show to reality.

Colorado Symphony Orchestra

James Davis Staff Writer
Located in the heart of Denver, the capital boasts a thriving art community. Amongst the skyscrapers of the business world, people can take refuge here to express their appreciation of fine culture. Coffee shop aromas grace the senses as one makes his way to his preferred venue. The most notable of these reputable vices is located in the Boettcher Concert Hall, its grand exterior hinting to the wonders that can be found inside. It is here that the worldrenowned Colorado Symphony Orchestra calls home. Boasting a seat capacity of 2,362, the musicians have the potential to reach hundreds of thousands every year with their work. To some dismay, however, one observing the audience during these concerts can note mediocre attendance and more than half of the seats available. Investigations have shown that despite its timeless elegance, classical music is lost upon the latest generation of man. This lack of appreciation is not necessarily derived from distaste; rather it is born of under exposure. Modern culture promotes pop music of the three minute variety, giving people the impression that the orchestra is not meant for them. This idea cannot be farther from the truth; in fact, the Colorado Symphony Orchestra can hold a place in everyones hearts. A common misconception that the public has is that a visit to the Colorado Symphony requires an archaic fashion sense, mostly unachievable if not undesired by a younger generation. It is common for those attending to dress up, but this is more to signify the actual action of going out. It is just as common to see a college student in jeans a polo as it is to see one in their finest. It is only suggested that one does not waste such an evening in everyday outfits. Celebrate the opportunity to escape the everyday grind-of-the-mill work and express this through apparel. The Colorado Symphony Orchestra also specializes in the classical genre. It is expected that this is not everyones cup of tea. However, it is wrong to assume that this is all that goes on behind the doors of the concert hall. Frequently, the orchestra puts on specialty concerts, each with a unique twist or flavor. Tributes to video games bring to life 16-bit sound tracks, achieving a level of depth that your speakers can only dream of. One can experience the binding of modern and classic as the Colorado Symphony infuses guitar riffs with violin bows, as such with their upcoming event There will be... Beethoven. The Colorado Symphony Orchestra can accommodate for many tastes and preferences. The realm of music is wide and varying; to not at least experience each of its facets is a great loss. The Colorado Symphony Orchestra promises an evening of fantastic music by world class musicians, each trained for years to bring you the best possible performance. So grab a friend, take a look, and enjoy the experience of a lifetime!
COURTESY DENVER.ORG

Tacky Prom - Goodwill-ed fun had by all who attended.

Students embraced their manhood and donned dresses.

Students embraced the moment to brush up on twerking.

The Colorado Symphony Orchestra promises an evening of fantastic music and fun.

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f e a t u r e s

november 11, 2013

Oredigger Fiction Column Modernico

Benjamin Elliott Staff Writer
Old people are like forwardmoving time travelers. They are the only ones with strong memories of those old things, which they think of as modern. Modernico, the car mall, spanned the entire sea board. Hundreds of miles of open air terminals and split steel archways covered Modernico, which was mostly there to sell cars, but other things too. The floors went from tile to linoleum to concrete to asphalt, in a patchwork, and shops, hallways, streets all lost their coherency. The place was grotesque, a palace for the curio, an abattoir for the directionless. It has been said that someone could get away with anything in Modernico, and that everything worth getting away with had been done. Fleecers were as common as customers. The sun filtered through nests of girders, shadows forming patterns at once solid and fragmentary. For many people, Modernico was home. A porter lived in the headlamp district, on the second floor of a shop at the bottom of a hill. His job was to cart bags from peoples trunks to the rooms in which they would be staying, which gave him a great deal of satisfaction. He could name thirty different species of local bird, and emulate all of their calls. He was the kind of person who had weird sex dreams in the night, and told nobody. He was not a nervous person, but people assumed him to be, because he rarely spoke (as a matter of circumstance, not as one of choice). The typical resident of Modernico would have seen him as a brother of theirs. As a teenager, the porter had once entered an abandoned house in the nut/bolt district. He had been among friends. They had told him it was haunted. It was a disappointing experience. The house had not been haunted (to the best of his knowledge). I hear cars passing by my window, just outside my room, every day, he once complained to a friend. I dont know how long I can stand it. In his spare time, the porter sometimes drove around the district. He had always been advised by parents, friends to do what he loved. The problem was, the porter didnt know whether or not what he loved was actually a terrible thing. A thing that could damage the world, instead of improve it. Nonetheless, he took drives when he could. It wasnt as if there were much else to do, anyways. At least, not in Modernico. Unless you knew where to look. But driving got old, even in Modernico. The porter remembered taking acting classes one September. During one of many phases, he had considered becoming an actor. The instructor had been insistent on the fundamentals, the framing, the expressions. All of the technicalities. The porter wouldnt have minded it, except that the instructor had been extremely critical of the porters angry face. He had said it never looked angry enough. The porter had tried contorting his face, twisting it every little way, but had had no success. When he finally did conjure anger, it was anger at the instructor for expecting so much. The instructor had been pleased, but then the porter quit. Eventually the instructor got him to come back, but only the stage crew, putting together sets, pyrotechnics, and curtains. Like every Modernican, the porter had learned how to work on cars. Cars littered Modernico. When somebodys car needed replacement, they would swing it by Modernicos outer perimeter to buy a new model. When somebodys car only needed repair, they brought it into one of the specialized districts in the center of the city. Sometimes a car in need of repair was unsalvageable, and remained in the center. Most worn down jalopies were simply placed at the perimeter, traded out for their updated model. That was how Modernico grew- the ring of broken cars was the citys border. Old cars were broken down for scrap, and reforged into the buildings, streets, and other trappings of the city. The porter had specialized in headlamps, but had never been much good at it. That was why he had turned to carting bags. He was no more skillful at carting bags than he was positioning filaments, but it was a lot harder to break a bag than a new lamp. That was the way of things- the path of least resistance was the easiest, but never changed anything. The porter had given up on change. It was a lazy Tuesday at the shop. Three hotels nearby required the porters services, yet the man hadnt received a single call that day. He was sitting back in a wicker chair, watching cars go by, left and right, across the road like fish in a stream. It was relaxing. It was then that an older man, maybe in his fifties, walked into the shop. Hello. Im with the Cortex. The Cortex was an organization that acted as Modernicos government. The governing bodies outside the metropolis had a hard time inserting themselves into the city- a better labyrinth one could never devise- so the citizenry of Modernico had a some point put together the Cortex. Nobody really knew what they did these days, except put up a facade of sovereignty to keep other legal bodies from porting their own brand of justice to Modernico. Sometimes, in the rare cases where a murder was reported or a theft filed, the Cortex would come in and sort things out. So this was unusual, to see a Cortex agent on the doorstep of Freds Filaments. As a rule, nothing happened at Freds Filaments. Hello, sir. What can I help you with? the owner (Fred) said, leaning on the counter of an extremely wide front desk. Ive been working on a case that perhaps you could help me with. Could I ask you a few questions? Yes sir. We have reason to believe that one of your customers is a terrorist. A what? A terrorist. Somebody who has come to town under the alibi of buying new headlamps has purportedly been stocking up on filaments. Specifically, ones that may be useful not only for headlamp illumination, but in building a bomb. Im not sure what to think, Fred said. Its all a little much. Are you sure they didnt just want filaments for peaceful purposes? Absolutely. Seriously though, a terrorist, here? Dont worry, weve got things under control. Otherwise, we wouldnt be here. I will have to request that we access your customer records and security footage. Certainly. Fred took the agent into his back office. A few minutes later they walked back out. The porter glanced over from the wicker chair. If you dont mind me asking, may I see your filaments? the agent asked. Sure. I have a sample tray in a drawer. Here, Fred said. He lifted a tray from a wide desk drawer, carefully not to disturb it much. Thats the kind, the agent said. He picked up one of the filaments, examining it under a microscope. It seems we have a 32B tungsten filament, typically sealed in quartz, according to this label. Meant to be used with a halogen. Do you know why its usually enclosed in quartz? Of course I do, Fred said, puffing up his chest. Its my business. That was a rhetorical question. Quartz, you see, allows the gas to be at a higher pressure, which in turn allows filament to work at a higher temperature, and a hotter filament is brighter. Thats what you know. The terrorist just wanted the tungsten though. To make a bomb, the porter spoke. Thats right. The Cortex agent stared at the porter. Wolfram is fairly hard, and fairly dense. Wolfram is another name for tungsten- interesting, huh? The terrorist could be using it for an electrode, or shrapnel. Can I take this for the lab? Why dont I get you one from the regular stock. I like to keep my sample tray full, Fred said. Fred went to grab another spiraling filament. Tungsten would be a bad choice for a bomb, the porter said. What? The agent said, turning in surprise. There are just better electrodes, is all. And you couldnt make a whole lot of shrapnel with a filaments worth of tungsten. Its almost nothing. How... the agent stammered. I mean, youre right. Then after a moment: To tell the truth, we dont quite know why the enemy combatant in question wanted a tungsten filament, but we know hes building a weapon of some kind. And wed like to stop him. I see, the porter said, without another word. Fred came back, a handful of filaments in hand. Here you are, sir. Should be enough to run all the tests you need. Thank you. The Cortex will be in touch if we need anything else. I must be going. Do you need me to take your bags? the porter asked. No, thank you. The agent took his leave. Perhaps a week later, the agent returned. We now have proof positive that the tungsten filaments sold by this shop are, indeed, a complete match with the filaments found on a raid. Not only that, but these filaments continue to turn up. Which means that the terrorist buying filaments at this shop is a current customer. Thats some progress, alright, Fred said. What we have on this individual as it stands is a set of biological markers. Weve got immunology and DNA, but not much else. Hair color is brown. What wed like to have is this guys appearance. How do you know its a guy if you dont even have appearance? Fred asked We can tell that from DNA, the agent said, frowning. Constructing appearance from that is considerably more difficult, and DNA analysis is costly enough as is. So, what can we do to help? Ill need one of you to wear this, the agent said. He fished a small watch out of his pocket. A modern device for a modern age. It can do quick and dirty DNA scans and immunology of anybody nearby. The agent proudly pressed a button. It will transmit customer information back to HQ. When we find a match, well try to correspond it to your security footage, and well have our man. So does the watch go on the wrist of every customer? Fred said. No, it works remotely. Most of what it picks up will likely be the wearer, but it will find everyone else nearby too. We made sure that we can use the device in unexpected circumstances, no matter where we are are what we are doing. You say we a lot, the porter mumbled. Neither of the others really seemed to hear him. My porter spends the most time with any customers, so Ill have him wear it, Fred said. The porter didnt know if that was strictly true, but did not refute his boss. Thatll do, the agent said, handing the porter the watch. It looked like a normal watch. The porter slid it on. So, porter, erwhat did you say your name was? Wallace, Wallace the porter said. Ok, Wallace. Keep this on you day and night. Well be in communication with you with these earbuds. The agent pinched Wallaces ears with two small capsules, placed as so to be hidden. When we find this terrorist, the agent said with disgust, Modenico will owe you a debt of gratitude. The day passed by with a few customers eager to see things while night driving again. That was the whole thing, wasnt it? To illuminate peoples darkness? Acting had been like that, sometimes. It was just the porters luck that he would do something that required getting to the bottom of things. A few hours past lunch, Wallace heard a noise from the earbuds. Testing, testing. I didnt mention before, but we can speak to each other across it, using the button on the bottom. Just press it and talk. Like this? Wallace said, after pressing the button. Just like that. Wallace went to a bar after work. Not really a healthy thing to do, at his age, but there wasnt much else to do in the car mall. And besides, Liz was working tonight. He sat on a barstool by the wall, on the far left of the building. It took about a minute for Liz to appear. Hey, Wally, Liz said. Wallace the porter used to hate being called Wally. He didnt mind Liz calling him that though. Hey Liz, he said. Whats on the menu tonight? Same as always. Beer and chicken legs. Whats your poison tonight? Liz never seemed to remember that Wally hated beer, or at least, pretended not to. Ill just have a scotch, thanks. Coming right up. She went to fill the order. Wallaces earbuds rang. Ah, unrequited love. When your best isnt enough. Wallace pressed the button on the watch. Who is this? Just the Cortex, speaking words only you can hear. Im relaxing. We can chat sometime else, Wallace whispered. He made sure nobody in the room was listening, but it was loud enough and crowded enough that nobody noticed. Actually, no. We got a 94% match between the DNA we have and that of somebody in this room, or who has been here in the last thirty minutes. So your perp is somewhere here? Exactly. Where are you? A dive bar down in the tire district. Name of Bar None. Wait, you overheard my conversation? Well, yes. An appearance alone is nice, but a voice is incredibly useful for identification purposes. So we never stop recording. Then why have me push this button? Just a little joke. I see why people dont like cops. Hey, hey, dont get all wrung out. Do you see anybody suspicious? Its a dive bar. Everyone looks suspicious. Everyone tries to look suspicious. Fine, fine. Well send some people to follow exciting exiting patrons. In the meantime, dont do anything that would make you stand out in a crowd. Sure, Wallace said. Liz was coming back. Heres your scotch. Hey, is that a new watch? Oh, this? Yeah. Cool. Guess carting bags for people pays pretty well. I do alright. The truth was, he usually didnt, but that was the way of things. Liz nodded and walked back to the storefront, new customers filing in. Continued at oredigger.net

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november 11, 2013

Revisiting genres with Symphonicities

John Bristow Staff Writer
One of the hidden joys of music lies in the sheer volume of contrasting styles by which a musician can spread their talent to the world. Whether it is the homely twang of country music or the grand majesty of a symphony orchestra, music comes in many forms. What can be more enriching than all else is when a prolific artist with good intentions revisits their catalogue and revamps their sounds to fit within a different genre. While sometimes this can go horrendously wrong, the album Symphonicities by Sting does it right with flare and gusto. Sting has not necessarily been known for a unifying sound since the days of The Police, but with Symphonicities some of his past hits are done up with a full orchestra, losing pretty much any semblance of their original rock instrumentation. It is one thing to take a song and play the same music just with a violin instead of a guitar; thankfully this is not what Sting does for this album. A majority of the very popular songs, such as Roxanne and Every Little Thing She Does is Magic would be unrecognizable if not for the lyrics, while some of the lesser known songs are right on the mark, just done on a grander scale. The best example of the latter is with the song We Work The Black Seam originally from The Dream of Blue Turtles. The original song is frankly not very inspiring; despite the message it tries to tell, it is just too up tempo. When brought behind the power of a full orchestra, the song transforms to a meaningful plea for awareness that captures the listener. In a manner that is rare for such albums, Sting also went to lengths to add in new material to Symphonicities. The flourishingly gorgeous The End of The Game and the hauntingly powerful You Will Be My Ain True Love are reason enough to spend money buying a genre transforming album. When it comes down to it, Symphonicities is one of those albums that serves as a bar for others to aim. Beyond just changing instruments, a new style should add meaning to music and should inspire an artist to explore new pastures. For those that are weary of this type of album, it is worth at least a listen. Along with Symphonicites, Sting also has a Live in Berlin album that does the same makeover for a few other songs in a live concert setting. While there is some overlap between the two, they both stand on their own.

f e a t u r e s / s p o r t s

page 7

COURTESY CHERRY TREE RECORDS

XC races nationals Mens b-ball opens with a rout

Jared Riemer Content Manager
The Colorado School of Mines mens and womens cross country teams headed down to Canyon, Texas for the South Central Regional Championships and turned in spectacular results. The fifth ranked mens team finished third out of 21 teams, losing only to No. 2 Adams State and No. 1 Western State. The womens team finished seventh out of 22 teams. Junior Derek Alcorn and Senior Andrew Epperson finished fifth and sixth overall respectively with times of 30:24 and 30:26 at the 10k distance. Rounding out the top seven finishers for Mines were Phil Schneider in twenty-first with a time of 31:11, Drew Kerschieter in twenty-sixth with a time of 31:27, Seth Topper thirty-first in a time of 31:34, and Marty Andrie (36) and Frank Socha (51) in times of 31:59 and 32:33 respectively. Adams State finished with a total of 31 points, besting Western State with 38 points, and Mines with 89 points. For the women, junior Chloe Gustafson finished tenth overall with a 6k time of 21:44. Rounding out the top five for the Orediggers are: Nicole deMontigny in thirtyeight with a time of 22:38, Kirsten Farquhar in forty-second with a time of 22:44, Ann Miller in fiftyseventh with a time of 23:02, and Hanna Barringer in eighty-second with a time of 23:46. For finishing in the 25, Alcorn, Epperson, Schneider, and Gustafson were all awarded All Region for the South Central Regional. The No. 5 mens team qualified for the national championships in two weeks in Spokane, Washington (Alcorns hometown), and for her efforts, Gustafson also qualified for the national championships.

Jared Riemer Content Manager

On Friday, the Colorado School of Mines opened their season with six players in double figures as they walloped Carroll College 9658. Leading the way in scoring for the Orediggers was No. 20 Trevor Ritchie with 16 points. Ritchie also added 4 assists going 8-for-8 from the charity stripe. The game started with Mines falling behind 6-2 before tying it up at 8-8. From then on, Mines started to take control of the game and led by 12 points (4634) at the half. Mines scored the first 11 points of the second half to take full control of the game and

let the blow-out commence as the closest Carroll College was in the second half was when the second half started. Defensively, Mines held their opponent to a 48.9% field goal percentage while shooting 54.5% themselves, but the key to the game was turnovers and the ability of the Orediggers to get to the free-throw line. Mines took 33 free throws compared to only eight for Carroll College, and they made 28 of these 33 for a 84.8% free-throw percentage. Mines outrebounded their opponent 27-14 and had seven steals and five blocks in the contest as a team. All five starters for Mines were in double figures on the night for

the Orediggers. Joining Ritchie in the starting lineup were No. 32 Trevor wages with 13 points, No. 44 Luke Meisch with 14, No. 11 Brett Green with 14, No. 22 Brian Muller with 15, and coming off the bench to score 10 was No. 31 Gokul Natseen. Wages added 10 rebounds and a block to his points total, and Meisch tallied three rebounds, two assists, and a steal. No. 40 Clay Boatwright had two blocks to lead the team and No. 23 Caleb Waitsman added five rebounds and four points off the bench. The Orediggers play this Saturday at 7:00pm in Lockridge Arena, so come support your Orediggers in their home-opener.

Swim and Dive defeats CC

Chris Robbins Staff Writer
This Saturday, the Mines swim and dive team hosted the Colorado College Tigers and ended the day with convincing wins. The womens team defeated the Tigers 179-109 and the men emerged victorious by a score of 215.5-61.5.When all 32 swimming and diving events had been concluded, Mines had emerged victorious in 25 of them. In the first event of the evening, CSMs womens teams finished first (Claire Collier, Katrin Gallup, Alanna Erickson, and Tasha Pfeiffer) and third (Shannon Pollmiller, Ali McCall, Jenna Parker, and Anna Corman) in the 200-yard Medley Relay. The mens 200-yard Medley Relay also featured Mines teams finishing first (Zach Nahman, Kalen Rasmussen, Daniel Peter, and Ethan Pfeiffer) and third (Justin Dearden, Todd Brannon, Jack Schlenker, and Gabe Muir). Mines swimmers took the top two places in the womens 1000yard Freestyle (Cayla Wood and Madalyn Gort, respectively) and the top four places in the mens event (Josh Graber, Cole Kuzawa, Cole Rosenbaum, and Cole Henry in order). Lady Orediggers finished first (Hillary Knaebel), third (Brittany Holloway), fifth (Chanel Charbonneau) in the 200-yard Freestyle while the mens team had swimmers finish first through third (Kyle Burt, Josh Schecter, Jack McElhannon respectively) and fifth (Kevin Lannen) in the same event. CSM took first (Collier), second (Monica Mick), and fifth (Pollmiller) in the womens 100yard Backstroke, while the men took the top four spots (Nahman, Brannon, Mack King, and Schlenker) in the same event. The 100-yard Breaststroke saw Mines women finish first (Gallup), third (McCall), and fifth (Corman), while Mines men finish first (Zack Gertig), tied for second (Rasmussen), fourth (Thomas McWhirter), and fifth (Justin Wahler). CSM men took second through fifth in the 200-yard Butterfly (Reed Sanchez, Dylan Woldt, Kuzawa, Ryan France) and the ladies took second through fourth (Carrie Kralovec, Melanie Buckles, Nicole Kennedy). Mines swimmers finished second (Erickson), third (Parker), and fifth (Knaebel) in the 50-yard Freestyle while the men finished first (Gertig), second (William Porter), and fifth (Andrew Boissiere). Over the rest of the afternoon, CSM swimmers would go on to win many more events, including the womens one-meter dive (Melissa Ashwood), mens 100-yard Freestyle (Pfeiffer), mens and womens 200-yard Backstroke (Nahman and Collier), and both mens and womens 200-yard Breaststroke (Wood and Dearden). The Orediggers also came away victorious in both 500yard freestyle events (Kralovec and Porter), womens three-meter Dive (Ashwood), both 200-yard Individual Medleys (Gallup and Peter), and both 400-yard Freestyle Relay events. Both CSM swim and dive teams will look to keep up their momentum from this win when they both travel to Northern Colorado next weekend. That event kicks off at 5pm in Greeley on Friday, November 15th.

Diggers suffer defeat

Jared Riemer Content Manager
The No. 3 seed Colorado Mesa Mavericks (11-5-4) defeated the No. 2 seed Colorado School of Mines (11-6-1) mens soccer team in the semifinals of the RMAC Tournament Friday with two late goals to grab the 2-1 victory. It was a tough loss for the Orediggers who had the lead at 1-0 going into the eighty-sixth minute. The first half of the game was controlled by the Orediggers, as they outshot the Mavericks 6-2 in the opening frame and 12-5 overall. Mines also held an advantage in corner kicks on the day at 9-8, but even though the Orediggers paced the first stanza, they went into the half still scoreless, 0-0. In the second half, things became a little more exciting. In the fifty-ninth minute, No. 10 Tesho Akindele headed in the Tannor Randle (No. 5) pass to break the scoreless tie and give the Orediggers the one to nil advantage. With the minutes ticking down, it looked like Akindeles league leading nineteenth goal of the season would prove to be the game winner, but in the eighty-sixth minute Mesas Marco Escobar (No. 5) scored the game tying goal and just over three minutes later, Tim Hofer gave the Mavericks the 2-1 lead with just a minute to play. With the game seemingly in hand, the loss was a tough blow for the Orediggers who will learn their postseason fate on Monday November, 11 during the NCAA Division II selection show.

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Womens soccer advances to RMAC finals

Jared Riemer Content Manager
In Golden on a cold Friday night, the No. 2 ranked Colorado School of Mines womens soccer team kept their outstanding season going with a 1-0 semifinal win against Regis in the RMAC tournament. The women moved to 18-01 on the season and recorded their fourteenth shutout of the year advancing to the finals of the RMAC tourney as they look to claim their third consecutive RMAC tournament title on Sunday. The Rangers of Regis came out with an early vigor, as they controlled the ball early and placed a few shots on goal, one needing to be saved by senior Kelsey Neal, before Mines was able to shake off the cold and get their first shot of the game off. With her second shot of the game, senior Anna Evans (No. 10), received the pass from No. 3 Bree Archuleta and after a few dribbles sent the ball past the goalie into the far right corner of the box from about 20 yards out to give the lady Orediggers the early 1-0 lead in the seventeenth minute. That lead would prove to be decisive as the Orediggers relied on their sound defense and superb goalkeeping to keep Regis off the scoreboard and come out victorious. The lady Orediggers had a few second half chances to up their lead, but were never able to get that needed goal to provide them with some cushion, and had to fight hard for the last 45 to grab the victory. Goalie Jayln Yates again played outstanding in stopping six shots on the night as both teams recorded 16 shots. The goal was Evans thirteenth of the year, and it helped propel the team to their fifteenth straight win on the season.

s p o r t s / o p i n i o n

november 11, 2013

ALL PHOTOS COURTESY MICHAEL RODGERS

Mines battles rivals and keeps momentum

Chris Robbins Staff Writer
This weekend saw the Lady Oredigger Volleyball team take on two tough RMAC opponents in Regis and Metro State. Mines took care of business in straight sets against Regis on Friday night, but faced much more of a test against Metro on Saturday. Despite winning in straight games against Regis on Friday, each game was highly contested and close. The first game saw CSM take the early lead 8-5, but Regis came back and led most of the match, including as much as 19-15 at one point. However, Mines mounted their own comeback, and tied the game several times, including at 22, 23, and 24. A late kill by Melanie Wannamaker and a late block by Alanna Winfield gave the Orediggers the 26-24 game win and 1-0 match lead. Regis once again jumped out to a lead, this time to 9-6, causing Mines to have to try to come from behind. After fighting back to tie the game at 18 apiece, the Orediggers were able to pull away for the 25-20 win. The third and final game saw Regis once again take the early lead, 5-1 in this case, but CSM was once again able to respond, mounting another comeback to take the game 25-22 and the match 3-0. Saturdays match against Metro State was every bit as difficult, as the Orediggers were pushed to their limits in a five-set thriller. The first game saw things go really smoothly for Mines, as they won by a convincing 25-14 margin. The second game saw Metro State put up more of a fight, but Mines was still able to prevail 25-23. Needing only one more game to seal the match, Mines third win of the night was by far the most difficult to come by. Game number three seemed to be in CSMs control, until Metro State ended on fivepoint run and took the game 2521. Metro kept their momentum rolling into the fourth game, racing out to the early 9-5 lead, but Mines was able to fight back and tie the game up late at 25 apiece. Metro was able to force the decisive fifth game by winning two of the next three points, taking the game 2826. The match appeared in jeopardy early when Metro State raced out to a 3-0 lead, but the Orediggers didnt give in. Even after fighting back to a 9-9 tie and falling behind again 13-10, Mines kept on fighting and prevailed in the end 18-16, taking the match 3-2 and upping their conference record to 16-1 on the year. The Lady Orediggers only have two more matches left before postseason play begins, and those are on Tuesday, November 12th at Colorado Christian and here in Golden against UCCS on Friday, November 15th. Both of those games begin at 7pm, and Mines will look to win them both and potentially carry a 17-match winning streak into the RMAC tournament.

Mines shook off the cold on Friday night to grab an early 1-0 lead in the semifinal win.

Emotions were high and low this weekend as the Lady Orediggers battled two rivals.

The Lady Orediggers thank the fans on Friday night after a competitive 3-0 victory over Regis.

There and back again - An nspire-ational tale

Evan Ford Staff Writer
As a mines student, your calculator becomes one of your best friends over the years. Long nights of calculations, countless tests togetherthose white buttons and small colorless screens have been with you through the good times and the bad. Truth be told, familiarity has bonded you together in a relationship that can be taken for granted. The reliability and effectiveness of a calculator can be overlooked. That is, until tragedy strikes. I was unlucky enough to lose my calculator last week, and needless to say, I was distraught. I had to revert back to TI-30X, and as we all know from Physics Exams, that calculator is less than ideal. The display is limited, value retrieval is clunky, and the buttons are soft and lifeless. Ill admit it: I had been spoiled by my TI-nspire, and now that it was gone, my entire world had been flipped upside-down. I was lost, and I felt cold and lonely. The search began as I retraced my steps that week. When did I last have it? During the Econ Exam on Wednesday? Definitely. What about during Soil Mechanics Lab on Thursday? Im pretty sure I did. I couldnt have calculated the coefficient of consolidation without it. Did I have it whilst working on a project that night in the Berthoud computer lab? Thats where things got hazy. All I know is that a problem was left unsolved that Friday morning in class as I reached my backpacks calculator pouch and met empty despair. I tried not to panic. I checked my car, apartment, and classes multiple times to no avail. In a desperate attempt, I left a have you seen me? note on the blackboard in the Berthoud computer lab, along with an artists rendition of the TI-nspire. I figured it had no way of working, yet I continued my search and held on to hope. Time went on, and I began to cope in the world without my calculator. My productivity of doing homework decreased, and I considered moving on to another calculator. Yet I needed some time because what we had was special. I later returned to the Berthoud computer lab to check on my note. I would not have believed what I saw if it hadnt been with mine own eyes. There it was, my TI-nspire resting against the board. I had left the note nearly five days ago. In that time, a selfless individual had returned it, and everyone else who had walked by did not take it. That is truly impressive. This calculator is not cheap, yet my peers had chosen to honor the unwritten sanctity of calculator law. To whoever returned this calculator; I want to thank you. You may not read this, but know that the reunion between man and calculator legitimately made my day. Not only was I more capable to do my homework, I was instilled with pride to go to a school where honesty and integrity can prevail. Although classes and tests can get you down, remember that you are fortunate to go to a school comprised of some pretty exceptional and kind people.

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