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(02/10/11 5:00am)
Having trouble deciding on a playlist for your sweetheart on this Valentine's Day? Planning on spending some time watching a movie but just don't know what to choose? Already asked Chuck Norris and all you got was a roundhouse kick to the face? I'm here to help. While not all the choices I've made are for everyone, these should help you get started. I present 10 good movies and songs for your Valentine's Day, in no particular order. Movies 1. "Princess Bride" Perhaps the best love story ever told? A love story, with friendship and a bit of fantasy makes this an interesting watch for all. This is one of those movies that will one day be a classic. 2. "No Strings Attached" I recently reviewed this, and I must say that it was different from many of the cookie cutter rom-coms that have come out lately. But Beware: this movie is only for couples who have no issue with heavy topics. 3. "Forrest Gump" Every time I watch "Forrest Gump", I get something new from it. Add that in with the Forrest/Jenny love story and you've got one of the greatest movies of the last 30 years. But beware, if you haven't seen this before it's not the most upbeat of movies throughout. But really, the truth is, "I luhhve yu Jennay." 4. "Little Manhattan" I saw this with an ex-girlfriend a few years back. It's a cute movie about young love. It's an easy movie to watch for newer couples. I'm predicting that Josh Hutchinson will be a star one day. 5. "Grease" Olivia Newton-John's hotness breaks the scale. `Nuff said. 6. "Love and Basketball" "Love and Basketball" features a young and fit Omar Epps. Let the fawning begin. Not to mention that this is one of those movies that totally twists on you at the end. This movie says it all about your hopes and dreams getting in the way of love. 7. "Scott Pilgrim vs. The World" 7) Are you a gamer couple? Do you like over the top effects and outlandish stories? Choose this video game movie and you'll be entertained. You'll definitely recognize Michel Cera from "Superbad" and "Juno", but the up and coming Mary Elizabeth Winstead is sure to please. 8. "Dirty Dancing" Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze. The hotness scale is now officially off the charts. See Song #3. 9. "Beauty and the Beast" A cute Disney movie for the newer couples, but then again, who doesn't love Disney movies? Pretty much any Disney classic could be a substitute here, like "Cinderella", "Aladdin", or "Lady and the Tramp". 10. "Casablanca" "Casablanca" is just a classic. There are just so many great lines. Try out "Here's looking at you, kid" on your significant other and see how that goes. Songs 1. "I Will Always Love You" by Whitney Huston Whitney Huston had the voice of a generation. That was before she met Bobby Brown and we started hearing things like, "Whitney Houston is set to auction hundreds of her famous stage outfits and accessories. The most valuable part of the outfits is the cocaine residue." 2. "I Melt for You" by Modern English This is just one of those songs that screams of bonding. Also performed in the 2005 movie "Sky High" by Bowling for Soup if you like a little harder edge. This early `80s song can set the mood for the whole day. 3. "Sweat" by Inner Circle Sometimes, nothing says love like a little bit of physical interaction. Not to mention that Inner Circle is the same band that performed the theme song to the hit TV show "Cops." Plus, a little bit of reggae in your life makes the world a better place. 4. "Amanda" by Boston Performed by a group of guys dedicated to better treatment of animals, "Amanda" is just a classic rocker's love song. This song holds one of my favorite lyrics, "I'm gonna say it like a man, and make you understand, Amanda. I love you." 5. "Home" by Jorge and Alexa Narvaez This is a cute song performed by father and daughter who recently have received some fame through their YouTube channel. Their story, as well as their songs, is full of love and hope. 6. "Shape of My Heart" by The Backstreet Boys. Let the middle school reminiscing begin. 7. "How Sweet it is (To Be Loved By You)" Various Artists Having been originally performed by Marvin Gaye, one of the greatest voices of Motown, it's been covered by many artists since then. My personal favorite version is by 4:2:Five, but you may fancy Michael Bublé's version or James Taylors' a little bit more. 8. "Heaven" by Bryan Adams, Rod Stewart and Sting Having three great artists, especially Adams, Stewart and Sing, makes this song vocally just so full of win. It's like putting Jason Statham, Silvester Stillone, Steve Austin, Randy Coulture, Terry Crews, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgrin, Bruce Willis and Arnold Schwarzenegger all in the same movie. 9. "I want to know what Love is" by Foreigner Having experienced the effect first-hand what this song does to people live in concert, there is just no way it couldn't make the list. While the live versions of the 1980s hit are great, and potentially not in your collection, the studio version might also be better. 10. "Never Gonna Give You Up" by Rick Astley Congrats. You just got Rick-Rolled. t&c;
(01/27/11 5:00am)
Is it possible for friends with benefits to be just that, and nothing more? That's the question posed in the new romantic comedy "No Strings Attached," which debuted last Friday. Having met 15 years ago at summer camp and only briefly seeing each other three times between then and now, a drunken Adam (Ashton Kutcher) texts Emma (Natalie Portman) to see if she wants to hang out. After waking up the next morning hungover and without recollection of the night before, Emma gives Adam his clothes. Before the exchange is over, they have sex. Emma and Adam both share glances and decide to use each other for casual sex. Thus, comedy ensures. I was pleasantly surprised at how the film didn't seem to lag on. What most romantic comedies do with 10 minutes of dialogue, "No Strings Attached" did with a two-minute sequence of cuts. It adequately showed that time had been passing, but without getting too far away from the characters. I found the realism of the movie a bit refreshing. No cookie-cutter storylines like most of the other twelve billion rom-coms out there. Both Kutcher and Portman played their roles well, especially Portman, who played an emotionally distant woman. Kutcher does get quite a few laughs with his off-the-path comedy, but he really played the dramatic parts well also. I really liked Chris "Ludacris" Bridges as Wallace, local bar owner and friend to Adam. He really brought a few great lines to the flick and helped improve some scenes that could have been boring but were needed for the plot. This role can totally make the movie bearable for your guy, ladies. The theater wasn't too full, but it was more crowded that I expected for a Sunday dinnertime movie. Mostly the audience was composed of couples who looked to be of at least college age, with a few groups of women mixed in. Overall this was a good movie, perhaps great if you're in the right mood. However, due to the extreme situations and topics, I wouldn't choose this movie for the freshest of couples or those who are uncomfortable with loads of extreme sexual nature. At the end of the movie, I was surprised to find that the audience actually applauded. t&c;
(01/20/11 5:00am)
The Westboro Baptist Church (WBC) of Topeka, Kan., believes its view of morality is the right one. I will argue the contrary. America is the best country in the world. While we have our issues and problems, there is one thing that you can't argue: we're fair. You will find proof of that in the First Amendment. Everyone is entitled to their opinions and beliefs, and even members of the WBC are entitled to this basic right. Who is the WBC? You might remember them for the 44,930 pickets of funerals they have conducted, including the funeral of Coretta Scott King, the wife of Martin Luther King Jr. Many of the other picketed funerals were for soldiers. They were going to add one more picketed funeral to that list this past week, with the funeral of 9-year-old Christina Green, the youngest victim of the shooting in Tucson, Ariz., on Jan. 8, just because she was born on Sept. 11, 2001. In a press release the day after the shooting, the WBC stated why they believed Green should be picketed. "That child was not innocent. This is a nation of depraved perverts who pass their children through the fire of their rage against God and all-consuming lust. From the womb, she was taught to hate God and mock His servants. That child is better off dead, so the cup of her iniquity will not overflow!" Why did they end up not doing the protest? Not for morals or decency — not even for respect. They did it in exchange for an interview on an Arizona radio station and broadcast time on another in Toronto. As bad as it all seems, we do have a reason to feel better about the situation. In 2006 after the WBC picketed the funeral of Matthew A. Snyder, a soldier who died while serving his country in Iraq, Snyder's father sued the WBC's leaders, including founder Fred Phelps in Snyder v. Phelps, a case that has been presented to the Supreme Court. However, a verdict is not expected until the spring of 2011. It is not really that hard for me to understand these people. They target the brave who are no longer alive to defend themselves, they target the grieving who only want support and love and they target those that are different because there aren't many. Instead of trying to get their message across with love, they do it with vindictive hate and without compassion. The only thing that stopped them from picketing a 9-year-old girl's funeral was the free advertising. The fact that they would contemplate picketing anyone's funeral, especially that of a soldier or a little girl, just sickens me beyond belief. As revolting as the entire process seems, until we get the final verdict of Snyder v. Phelps, picketing funerals is legal and protected by the First Amendment, no matter how much the rest of us seem to dislike it. t&c;
(01/13/11 5:00am)
"The Green Hornet" stings audiences with clever humor and electrifying action sequences as Hollywood brings the TV series to the big screen. The superhero action comedy stars Seth Rogen ("Knocked Up," "Funny People") as Britt Reid/Green Hornet, a hardcore partier and ladies' man, and Jay Chou, who makes his American debut as Kato, Reid's executive assistant and Green Hornet's sidekick. Reid's first attempt at heroism occurs when he sees a couple being attacked and tries to intervene. After not really putting up much of a fight, Kato jumps in and immediately dispatches the rowdy group using his expertise in martial arts. After waking up from his stupor and seeing the news portraying both himself and Kato as bad guys, Reid decides that he wants to change the city by becoming a superhero with a twist. He will be a good guy posing as a bad guy. That way the criminals won't use innocent civilians to lure the superhero into a trap. Christoph Waltz (Col. Hans Landa, "Inglourious Basterds") plays an exceptional bad guy who has major self-esteem issues due to the fact that nobody really fears him; they only fear his double-barreled handgun. I must say that with the exception of Kato, this was my favorite character. I loved the gun and the acting. Waltz's character's Napoleon complex made him sort of a lovable, non-scary bad guy reminiscent of Jean Girard from "Talladega Nights." Going into the movie I thought that Rogen would be the downfall by being too over-the-top. However, that is just not the case. Rogen manages to get all the laughs while playing a serious role, much in the same way he did in "Pineapple Express." Chou as Kato was probably the best pick for the role. His youth and athleticism really shined and added a bit of realism to the movie that I couldn't have expected. Should he choose to continue acting in America, I think that he will have a lot of success. By far the coolest thing in the entire movie was Black Beauty, the Green Hornet's car equipped with bulletproof glass used to make shark tanks, fully automatic guns installed in the doors, rockets below the headlights, a grill-mounted flamethrower and two .30-caliber machine guns on the hood. The Black Beauty really upped the action. While there weren't too many huge laughs, there was a near constant string of good chuckles throughout. When the final twist came, there was a whole lot of cheering. Overall, I would say that "The Green Hornet" was one of the better movies I've seen in a while, and it is infinitely better than the original TV show. If you like action comedies, then this movie is a must-see for you. "The Green Hornet" will be released Friday, Jan. 14. t&c;
(11/11/10 5:00am)
After months of anticipation and several sleepless nights, I was ready for "Call of Duty: Black Ops" to be released. Having already pre-ordered the game last summer, all that was left for me to do was pack my survival kit, go to dinner and wait. It may have been the energy drinks talking (see pages six and seven), but waiting in line at GameStop for an hour and a half made for one strange experience. I met some interesting people and heard some even more interesting conversations. But being able to play the brand new — and wicked awesome — "Call of Duty: Black Ops" before the majority of my countrymen made it all worth it.
(10/28/10 4:00am)
Chris Thayer may seem like a quiet person, but when she does talk, she sounds like a grammatically correct Yoda. The chocolate lover from Austin, Texas is currently a junior English and business double major with focuses on creative writing and marketing, respectively. She chose each major to fulfill a part of her upbringing and her creativity. "I always thought that I would be a business major because there was always an emphasis to study something that would definitely lead me to getting employed after graduation," Thayer said. Thayer chose to also major in English because people she has admired have been English majors. "I wasn't sure that it would really work out until I figured out how to stack classes and overload my schedule," she said. On the recommendation of her senior adviser in high school, Thayer did some research on Otterbein. "That sense of an overwhelmingly open and loving community was exactly what I was looking for, and I knew I'd found a place where I would fit in and do well." While Thayer values the people in her life highly, there is one thing that she can't be without: her laptop. "It has all my music, photos and documents. I'd be lost without it." Thayer is the treasurer and secretary of the Gamers' Guild. She sometimes goes beyond her duties because both the president and vice president live off campus and have full-time jobs. She sends e-mail updates to the members each week highlighting the club's upcoming activities, meetings and other game-related occurrences on campus. She has also organized and promoted numerous events, including maintaining the Guild's bulletin board in the Campus Center, designing its homecoming banner and organizing a gaming bazaar coming in November. Along with her 22-credit-hour double major workload, Thayer has a job at the writing center, participates in the Honors Program and has just started research for her senior honors thesis. She also tries to maintain a social life by assisting friends with projects and presenting at anime conventions, where she co-presents several panels on horror, a genre connected to her thesis. Thayer's passion for gaming goes beyond the basics of the game. She enjoys what each type of game can do for her personally and creatively. "What I get from gaming depends on the game in question. From some video games, like ‘Oblivion,' I get a chance to explore an alternate world, learn more about it, exercise my creativity and interact with it in a meaningful way … When (playing role-playing games) I get to spend time with my friends engaged in collaborative storytelling, which satisfies my innate desire to create." t&c;
(10/14/10 4:00am)
The old playground song that begins, "First comes love," doesn't ring true for the lead characters in the new romantic comedy "Life as We Know It." It tells the story of sports director Eric Messer (Josh Duhamel) and baker/caterer Holly Berenson (Katherine Heigl). The two, who have nothing in common and once went on a horrible date that didn't even make it to the restaurant, decide to live together after their respective best friends, who are married to each other, die in a car accident, leaving their infant Sophie an orphan. After a few minutes of awkward and over-the-top first date clichés, the movie moves along fairly slowly as the director tries to show the love Eric and Holly have for Sophie and the bond they have with their friends. Then they hit you with the bombshell of the deaths of Sophie's parents. At its core, "Life as We Know It" is really about two people setting aside their lives, careers and personal happiness for the good of a little girl. It's a story about finding love when you least expect it in a way you probably wouldn't even believe. The casting was done very well as both Duhamel and Heigl have great onscreen chemistry. But the best casting decision was probably Josh Lucas as Sam, Sophie's doctor and the other man in Holly's life. As a Lucas fan, I was really happy when I saw him in the list of characters. Lucas grounds the movie with his southern accent and charm that also help to place the movie in Atlanta. The neighbors were typecast, and while they were somewhat funny, not one performance was over-the-top. I thought a more interesting and SNL-style cast would have been a better choice. This movie is a good date movie. However, it's definitely not a good first date movie. Some of the themes are pretty heavy and could really put a damper on the mood with someone you've just met. If you want to go see this with a significant other, I suggest you only do so if you've been dating awhile. While "Life as We Know It" is a good date movie, that doesn't mean it isn't also highly predictable. Without giving away too much of the plot, my first guess was right with only a slight variance in the details. This is a plot that moviegoers have seen time and time again, with only a few added wrinkles in the story. I could go to my DVD shelf and pick out a handful of better romantic comedies. A better-than-average movie for me is one that I can't predict and that I find realistic. As awful as the 2006 movie "The Break-Up" was, the twist at the end is a good example of being unpredictable. For anyone being dragged to the theater by his or her significant other, no worries: There are plenty of corny jokes to get you through the two-hour film. Overall, while "Life as We Know It" is predictable, it's also a rather touching movie that anyone looking for a good love story should thoroughly enjoy. t&c;
(10/07/10 4:00am)
The Otterbein Cardinal men's soccer team lost 1-0 to the Heidelberg Student Princes Oct. 6. In the 21st minute of the game, Heidelberg goalie sophomore Ryan Smith tripped Otterbein senior defenseman Mike Townsend, receiving a red card from the official and an immediate ejection from the game. Townsend said, "I feel like the ref' had to give him the red. It's just unfortunate because it would have been a clear goal if not for that foul." After the foul, freshman forward Jordan Ricks missed his kick wide, keeping the score knotted up at zero. Due to Smith's red card, Heidelberg played the remainder of the game with only 10 players on the field to Otterbein's 11, yet the Cards couldn't cash in. Although players were slipping all over the field, Townsend believes that the recent rainy weather didn't have much of an influence on the outcome of the game. He said, "It was hard to get your footing because of it being slippery due to the last few days of rain. I thought we played well with the field conditions, and it really had no effect on the game itself." Going into the half, the score was tied at zero, but that changed when Heidelberg scored on a cross in the 50th minute of the game. While Otterbein outshot Heidelberg 9-8, the Cardinals also outfouled 18-14. Otterbein defenseman Adam Brown was given a yellow card in the 33rd minute and defenseman Kurt Gallant in the 85th minute. In response to his yellow card, Gallant said, "I felt like God has a plan for us all." Otterbein suffered their eighth straight loss and their fifth straight shutout as they fell to 1-10 for the season and 0-2 in the OAC. t&c;
(09/30/10 4:00am)
Every Wednesday night, the Roush Hall lobby will come alive with the sound of swing music from a laptop and twin bookcase speakers. Junior education major Devin Fraze founded the Swing Dance Club at Otterbein after thoroughly enjoying a swing dance class offered last spring quarter. A typical practice consists of students dancing to swing music, a style of jazz that was popular from the '20s to the '40s, as well as some similar music from today. Fraze, who is also president of the club, based it on Swing Columbus, a community of dancers within Columbus that organizes dances, workshops and lessons. "After attending that dance," he said, "I fell more in love with swing dance, and I said to myself, ‘I wish Otterbein had something like this.' So I stopped wishing and decided to do something about it." Fraze believes that doing something one is passionate about can help ease the mental burden that classes can have on the brain. "I am very passionate about swing dance," he said. "I have many passions, but none involve moving my body like this. It's a great way to relax after a hard day and socialize with a lot of people. Dancing can shift your focus off whatever is upsetting or bad for you and make you focus on the steps. Sometimes dancing can give you what is essentially a much-needed break from life." STORY CONTINUES BELOW
video courtesy of WOCC and Kahla Johnson Students do not need to bring a partner, as the dancers rotate around the room with a new partner every few minutes. "A lot of students are apprehensive to dancing, especially a lot of guys who think they maybe can't dance," Fraze said. "This is true for girls, too. I feel like everyone should at least give this a shot." "I had a blast," sophomore international studies major Bryn Sowash said. "It was really fun, and I learned a lot more than I expected. I think I did very well. I have some background in swing dancing so a lot of it was just refreshing my memory." "I've never been involved in this kind of a club before, but I have been in dance class situations similar to this," she added. After the lesson is a period of free-form dance, in which students can practice new moves or try old ones, The 45-minute lesson gives instruction on some of the more basic moves of swing dance. As the night progresses into the open dance period, students can use the moves learned in that lesson or what they've already learned in previous experiences. "We have the beginner lesson for those who aren't experienced, and the open dance for those who are more experienced," Fraze said. While the club is teaching beginner lessons, some experienced dancers still come to the meetings. "This is an opportunity for anyone to learn or get better at dancing," Fraze said. t&c;
(09/08/10 4:00am)
After starting this year's soccer season with two victories at a tournament in Nazareth, N.Y., the nationally ranked Otterbein women's soccer team looks to continue their winning ways against St. Mary's (Ind.) on Friday and Kalamazoo (Mich.) on Saturday in a tournament that is hosted by the Cardinals. "It feels amazing to start the year 2 and 0. It's just what we needed to start the year off. Get a couple of games under our belt to build confidence, and continue to progress. I have high hopes for this group of girls this year," senior forward Lindsey Rudibaugh said. Otterbein returns nine of their 11 starters including Rudibaugh and senior midfielder Rachel Degen, who are two of Otterbein's top scorers from a year ago. Rudibaugh is also the active leading scorer for Otterbein. She scored two goals over the weekend and was named Otterbein's Athlete of the Week. She said, "There is some sort of a comfort level [with returning nine starters]. Knowing that we have most of our group back that has had a large contribution the last few years makes a difference, but the underclassmen that have stepped up and the new freshmen that we got have made a world of a difference too, already." Rudibaugh continued, "Everyone is on the same playing field, and that's what makes our team so strong." Last year, the Lady Cardinals finished 20-2-1 and made it all the way to the NCAA sectionals where they lost to Messiah 1-0 after two overtime finishes. Messiah is currently atop the Division III preseason polls. "We want to take one game at a time and see where that takes us. We hope to make it further than previous years, but we don't want to look too far down the line," Rudibaugh said. The Lady Cardinals play several out-of-conference games before they kick off their OAC schedule against John Carroll University on Oct. 2. t&c;
(06/02/10 4:00am)
After taking office when Otterbein was going through a computer system changeover, a curriculum changeover from quarters to semesters and a nationwide financial crisis, President Kathy Krendl has begun to leave her mark on the 153-year-old college. As Krendl reflects on her past year at the college, she said that dealing with the economy has been her biggest struggle. "There were a few surprises when I got here. I knew the economy was bad but I thought we would be in a better financial situation than we were. We've had some challenges in trying to decide our budget needs. I'm learning about some of the ways that we can respond to our shortfalls," Krendl said. Krendl also said that she feels the campus has pulled together well in the tough economy. As far as accomplishments go, President Krendl said that her personal accomplishment has been learning about the Otterbein community and building relationships with alumni. "Founder's Day taught me about the love students, staff and faculty have for this place (and I learned a bit about how to have fun on a cold Spring day)," said Krendl.While there have been some struggles many faculty members are glad that Krendl got the job as president. Vice President for Institutional Advancement Heidi Tracy said, "Having an institutional president that's willing to be the face of the college is invaluable. She's a visionary and courageous. Finding that kind of leader at the collegiate level is special.""For the campus as a whole, she's a positive figure," said Susan Millsap, chair of the department of communication. Student opinion of President Krendl seems varied. "She seems nice, but I haven't really met her yet," said Connie Snider, senior middle childhood education major. "It's hard to decide what she's done because it's really hard to evaluate what a person has done in just a year," said Alyssa Cook-Alexander, freshman public relations and creative writing major. As far as the future goes, Krendl is optimistic. She said, "I'm happy to be here. If we can work our way through these budget challenges and get Otterbein much more visible in the community, the region, the state and the nation — If we can get the strategic plan in place, much of that will lead to a new identity for Otterbein without sacrificing our tradition or core values. If we do that, I think we're making good progress." t&c;t&c;
(05/06/10 4:00am)
Melissa Etheridge got back to her rock roots on her new album. "Fearless Love," her 10th album, features 12 tracks, with the namesake song "Fearless Love" leading off the new release from Island Records. If you're not a fan of Etheridge or her music, go ahead and skip tracks two, three, five and six because these songs are probably not for you. While the lyrics are very thoughtful and inspiring, the music that backs each track leaves something to be desired. Many of the elements that made her 2007 album "The Awakening" great are missing from "Fearless Love." The harmonies present in songs like "California" from "The Awakening" and the upbeat songs that are riddled throughout 1993's "Yes I Am" seem to be missing. When listening to "Fearless Love" for the first time, you feel as though you are listening to dirges in the dark on the way to a funeral. "Miss California" gives the album a hard rock edge. When I took my second listen through the album, I heard some interesting sounds that are very reminiscent of early Led Zeppelin, especially the song "Whole Lotta Love." "Nervous" offers a much-needed break with an edgy rock song that can really speak to the listener. Immediately following "Nervous" is the hopeful "Heaven on Earth," a soft rock song about a relationship that the speaker of the story seems to generally like. However, immediately following this break from the dancing-in-the-dark songs of tracks two through five, tracks nine through 12 are relatively unimpressive. While "We Are the Ones" is very reminiscent of "Come to My Window" from "Yes I Am," the rest of the album fades into the sunset like John Wayne, with only a quarter the grace. The iTunes version of the album includes two bonus tracks, "The Heart of a Woman" and "Away." "The Heart of a Woman" is refreshingly different from the rest of the album. Featuring what sounds like a slide guitar, this song has a bit of a blues theme going for it. "Away" sounds very folk rock with an almost Mary Chapin Carpenter-like influence. Although parts of the album do come off a little forced, overall the album is one of the better ones I've heard in recent years. "Fearless Love" should leave Etheridge fans very pleased. t&c;
(02/18/10 5:00am)
"It's true, when something exceeds your ability how it works, it somehow becomes magical. That's how the iPad works," senior vice president of Apple, Jony Ive, said in a video introducing the iPad, computer heavyweight Apple's newest product. The iPad is essentially a giant iPod Touch. Some of the features include a touch screen, Wi-Fi capability, new applications or apps designed specifically for the iPad. There is unconfirmed talk of a camera being inserted in later models. "We redesigned and rebuilt every app from the ground up specifically for the iPad," senior vice president of iPhone software, Scott Forstall said. "With this display, you get apps that aren't just a little bit better than their smaller counterparts, you get apps that are order of magnitude more powerful." The question on everyone's mind is what you do with the iPad. With its 10-hour battery it's a device for business meetings. It was designed for businesses that hold many meetings in close quarters. According to Apple's Web site, "One of the first things you'll notice about iPad is how thin and light it is." The screen is 9.7 inches measured diagonally. So overall, it's slightly smaller than a magazine. At just 1.5 pounds and 0.5 inches thin, you can take it anywhere. And a slight curve to the back makes it easy to pick up and comfortable to hold. The basic iPad Wi-Fi models will be shipping in late March, and 3G models will be available a few weeks later. There will be six versions of the iPad. The basic Wi-Fi models will be priced at $499, $599 and $699 for the 16, 32 and 64 GB versions respectively. While the Wi-Fi and 3G models will cost $629, $729 and $829 for the same hard drive space. One of the main problems some people have with the iPad is that they charge a lot more for it than the actual components cost. According to Yahoo finance, the 16 GB Wi-Fi only model that is $499 only costs about $219.35 and the 64 GB 3G and Wi-Fi models that retail for $829 will cost about $335 to make. Many people are unimpressed with the new iPad and see no use for it, which might explain Apple's shares falling 3.5 percent after the announcing of the iPad. Many are claiming it's a bulky Blackberry or a more expensive Kindle. However many of the people who have worked on the iPad believe that it is the way of the future. "The iPad is the most advanced piece of technology I've worked on at Apple," senior vice president of hardware, Bob Mansfield, said on Apple's Web site. With all the negative criticism that the iPad has faced so far, it's up to the buyers and maybe more importantly the users to decide whether or not the iPad will survive. t&c;
(01/14/10 5:00am)
In 1958, the United States, trying to compete with the Soviets, began a program that would lead to the initial developments and breakthroughs that lead to the beginnings of the Internet. And in 1971, "Spacewar!," the first widespread videogame, was invented. Back in the ancient time of technology, neither product nor inventors would see how each would create a new form of entertainment. To save you many long and boring paragraphs about the history of early video games and video game consoles, let's flash forward to 2002. The launch of Xbox Live® changed the online gaming community for good. Up until this point in history, online gaming was much more of a niche activity. To play online you needed a computer with enough power to play games and know people who were playing online and willing to host games. Most of it was single player games on Web sites or command-style games that are very similar to the famous World of Warcraft videogame today. However, with the advent of Xbox Live® on the original Xbox® console and the popularity of the shooter SOCOM on the Sony PlayStation® 2, console online play really took off, and with the new generation of consoles, online play has become a major focus of nearly every game that is released. Due to the shift toward going online, developers have spent less time on story elements and added to the online elements of multiplayer. In fact, some games don't even have a single player element and are only available online multiplayer. World of Warcraft is an online role-playing game that has recently become very popular. It has no single-player mode, and your character is dumped in the realm with the rest of the gaming community. People get so involved with this game that there are couples getting marriage licenses and getting married during an in-game ceremony. Players create families, gangs and other groups to patrol the fantasy world. Older games like "Crash Bandicoot" and "Twisted Metal," both for the original PlayStation®, took the average player about 20 hours to complete with no Internet capability. Yet, on the other hand, newer games like "Call of Duty® 4: Modern Warfare" and its sequel "Modern Warfare 2" each had a single player story or campaign mode that lasted 6-10 hours while the online play time for most players was as long as you could play without getting bored. Despite the popularity of online gaming, not everyone is as receptive to online play. Nintendo has been resistant to fully embrace the online trend. While they have included online components to games on the Wii and DS, they are very limited and don't fully utilize the community building that is so critical to creating a thriving online gaming community. Nintendo still focuses very much on single player, or getting people around one TV playing together. As gamers' tastes change, so will video games and their respective modes and capabilities. Gaming has come a long way in its nearly 40 years, and don't be surprised where it might go. The Internet has left its fingerprint on gaming, and it has now been changed forever. t&c;
(05/13/09 4:00am)
After a loss to eventual champion Heidelberg in game three, Otterbein was knocked out of the OAC tournament by the Marietta College Pioneers (29-15) by a score of 8-7. In the top of the first, the Cardinals gained a 2-0 advantage after RBI singles from juniors Brandon Gessner and John Quimby. Otterbein added to their lead with two more runs in the top of the second after junior Brian Hiscox hit his second home run of the tournament that also scored junior A.J. Barnes. Otterbein's lead was reduced by Marietta, who scored three runs in the bottom of the third to cut the lead to 4-3. The resilient Cardinals countered with two more runs in their very next at bat to stretch the lead to 6-3. Marietta bounced back with three more runs in the bottom of the fourth, tying the game at 6-6, after pitcher John LaCorte allowed a two-run home run to Marietta third baseman Cameron Cimino. Otterbein grabbed the lead when senior Dan Lassak hit a grounder to the shortstop that allowed for Quimby to score after he reached base on a HBP, stole second and advanced to third on a wild pitch. After being behind 7-6, Marietta scored twice in the bottom of the eighth inning after a home run and two singles to take the 8-7 lead. In the top of the ninth, Cardinals began to show signs of life when Gessner doubled to right to lead off the inning. Senior John Sansbury walked, and sophomore Kyle Stoughton bunted, which allowed the runners to move up to second and third. Then Barnes singled, bringing in both runs, catapulting Otterbein to the lead 9-8. After a Marietta player singled to open the top of the ninth. Later, on what would be the final play, and after a Marietta player singled to open the top of the ninth, pitcher Matt Hopkins recalls what happens. "I had two outs and a three-two count on Beatty," he said. "I thought I had him, but that outside curveball he hit with the end of his bat looked like it was going to be a fly ball to Gessner, but it just kept tailing over to the right field side and before I knew it, it was right over the fence and the game is over." In the end, this loss cost the Cardinals a chance to play for the NCAA tournament as both Heidelberg, who earned an automatic bid, and Marietta who received an at-large bid, were given entry. Otterbein has outscored Marietta 46-23 in their three victories over the pioneers. The Cardinals were passed over by a selection committee who can choose up to 54 teams for the tournament. Junior Kyle Arend is upset about not being selected for the NCAA tournament. Arend said, "You think that after you beat a team three out of four times they would put you in the tournament before that other team, but no." On a positive note, in the second inning Hiscox hit his eighteenth home run this season, his thirty-third of his career, making him Otterbein's single-season and all-time home run leader. During his record-breaking season, he also set an NCAA Division III record and tied the All-Divisions record by hitting a home run in eight consecutive games. "It's cool to break a record. I'm now a part of Otterbein College baseball history. I just wish that we could have pulled out that win," Hiscox said. "It just makes it bittersweet that we couldn't win, especially since it was to Marietta. Although I am glad to have gotten it done so I can now just focus on baseball." The Cardinals finished their season 23-17 overall and 12-6 in the OAC, tied with Marietta for second in the standings. t&c;
(05/07/09 4:00am)
Otterbein's equine science department has to make room for a few new trophies after the dressage (dress-ahhzh) team took home two individual championships, a reserve championship for region E and a fifth place finish at the United States Dressage Federation (USDF)'s National Championship Horse Show on April 18 and 19. According to the USDF.'s Web site, Dressage is French for "training." It develops the horses athletic ability and its purpose is to keep the horse calm and attentive while performing. Nationals, which were hosted by the University of Findlay, featured the top 12 schools from all across the country and the top 12 riders. Team riders for the Cardinals were senior Greg Schmid, senior Jocelyn Pierce, sophomore Catelyn Gleason and sophomore Macy Drinkhouse. Of all the riders that day, Schmid was the leading high-point rider. The dressage team, coached by Kari Briggs, has tasted success in the past few years and was looking forward to a new challenge. "We have been at nationals and have been reserve champion for the last two years," Briggs said, "I obviously expected to be able to maintain that kind of position. We had a very strong first rider, [Schmid]...and the other riders contributed equally and that helped to finish in fifth place as a team." On April 19, three Otterbein riders participated in the individual competition. Schmid competed at first level and finished as the individual champion. Freshman Colleen Grant and Drinkhouse competed at the introductory level where Drinkhouse finished fifth and Grant as an individual champion. Schmid believes there is a little bit of luck involved with his dressage victory. He said, "I definitely knew I was capable of riding as well as I did but there are many other uncontrollable variables involved in dressage that can prevent a good score. My performance involved concentration and skill that I can practice, but there's always a bit of luck involved that you can never count on." One of those uncontrollable variables can be the horse that you ride. Horses are drawn at random and riders are given 10 minutes with them before they must compete. Schmid said, "Both horses that I competed with are very talented. "Dickie," who I drew on the team competition day, had been ridden twice before my ride and was very tired, but he's such an agreeable and well-trained horse that he did his best. "Duel," who I drew on the individual competition day, is a much "trickier" horse who requires a lot of work from his rider, but when ridden properly, he can be a very fluid and expressive horse and catches the judge's attention." In the end, Schmid gives his coach the thanks for his first-place finish. He said, "With [Briggs'] guidance, I've refined my riding enough to be a national champion. Freshman year, I was no where close to winning. She deserves a thank you." t&c;
(05/07/09 4:00am)
I drink a lot of Gatorade®; perhaps I drink too much Gatorade®. I once tried to consume nothing but Gatorade® for a whole week. Sadly, I only lasted three days; mainly because I was in the middle of baseball season. After I rehashed this story for my friends in class, I asked myself, what happens to the left-over beverages in the cooler after the games? How are Otterbein Athletics going "green?" Naturally, athletics are somewhat eco-friendly. I choose the word athletics because I don't think driving 500 miles in a souped-up Ford Taurus for NASCAR is eco-friendly or decreasing the effect that people have on the planet, but I digress. While the left-over water or Gatorade® from the coolers is thrown out following the game, many things have already been implemented to help conserve resources. The Clements Center has lights on either end of the building that help alleviate electricity costs by letting natural light into the building. There are also recycling bins in the Clements Center and the Rike. Along with that, the Rike Center offices have false ceilings, and the lights are dimmed where the practice courts are located when they are not in use. All this helps to save on electricity. However, there is a little -known fact about how the fields are treated that has a big effect on the environment. Otterbein athletic director and head basketball coach, Dick Reynolds said, "We are trying to conserve the Earth by limiting the chemicals that we put on our fields." Some of the coaches believe that their sports are already fairly green. Lacrosse head coach Colin Harnett said, "We have reusable equipment and we play on a grass field. We are about as environment friendly as a sport can be." The Otterbein Athletic Department has definite plans for future facilities. "When we get to redoing the Rike Center," Reynolds said, "we will look at showers and plumbing to conserve water. We don't use air conditioning in the main part of the building, and...I'd like to start to use artificial turf on the main fields instead of grass because of the durability and it doesn't need to be watered." When it comes to busing, Reynolds has already planned a way to conserve gas and money. "We are trying to work with a bus company to facilitate smaller busses, even vans for our smaller teams," he said. "We are going to try to avoid the waste caused by using a large bus for a team of 10." When you really think about it, Otterbein's athletics don't have a lot of flashy, anti-eco-friendly things. I think that if the college were to say they were going to install a 75-foot JumboTron on the football field, I would first laugh, and then I would point out how overkill and unnecessary that would be. t&c;
(05/07/09 4:00am)
The Otterbein men's golf team won the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) tournament on Thursday and Friday at the New Albany Country Club and have earned an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament later in the month. Senior broadcasting major Heath Trabue said, "We won the OAC because of how Taylor, Brock and Alex played. Most teams have one or two guys in the top tier and then they have someone finish further down. We were pretty steady at the top and that's why we won." Finishing in the top five for the Cardinal's team was senior Heath Trabue who finished fourth overall. Senior Mike Ruffing finished tied for seventh overall, sophomore Alex Stansell tied for ninth overall, freshman Brock Neighbors finished eleventh overall and freshman Taylor Ford finished twenty-second overall. For Trabue, it was a tale of two days during the OAC tournament. He said, "I didn't play very well on day one. On the second day I putted well, and putting is always the great equalizer." This is the first time in the history of Otterbein College athletics that both the men and women's golf teams have won the OAC tournament in the same year and eventually went on to the NCAA tournament. The team was unsure of what to expect at the beginning of the season. "I had no idea knowing who was going to be on the team," Trabue said. "We only had four returning guys and the rest were freshman." Trabue feels that practice is important for winning. He said, "I don't think that any other team works as hard as we do. I personally try to not be outworked by anyone anywhere including my teammates." Trabue, who was born in Florida, doesn't feel that the different weather will have much effect on his play. "I've spent a great amount of time there [Florida]. With the weather, it's a different kind of wind. It is a very steady wind coming off the ocean. However, Florida is wonderful this time of year, and I don't think that we are going to see a trainwreck weather day like the first day of the OAC tournament." The NCAA tournament will be held on May 13-16 in Port St. Lucie, Fla. t&c;
(04/30/09 4:00am)
Steven Collins: What originally got you into lacrosse?Head Coach Colin Harnett: I'm from upstate New York, a town called Canandaigua. It's a hot bed for lacrosse and it has been a tradition for a long time. I grew up playing the sport all through middle school and high school.SC: What made you decide to go into coaching?CH: I played four years of lacrosse in college at Wooster, and it was during that time that I decided I wanted to test the waters of coaching. When I got out, I was fortunate enough to get my shot as a volunteer assistant at St. John Fisher College (SJFC) which later became a head of assistant position.SC: What interested you in the Otterbein coaching job?CH: After five seasons at SJFC, I felt that I was really ready to move on. I really wanted a head coaching job, and I wanted to work in a full capacity as a coach. Most of the time, as an assistant you're forced to hold down a second and maybe third job to make ends meet. That was the immediate interest. The similarities between Otterbein and SJFC are remarkable. Smaller school in a suburb with strong athletic tradition, both schools you would describe with a great upside. I grew up in New York, but I have a lot of friends here in Ohio, and I did go to college here. The idea of getting back to Ohio and getting close to Columbus was an idea I've loved since college.SC: What's the status of your team?CH: Right now, we are at the very beginning state. I would say there is no team right now. When schools decide to start a program, they will take different approaches to it. Some will start up a team, create a club team and then use that to build a varsity team. For the sake of the lacrosse program, I think the school took the best approach to start it as an NCAA program with all the funding and allowing me to have all the time to go through a full recruiting season and to develop a roster without inexperienced players. The recruiting season is almost over, and I think that the foundation and the quality of players that are coming in will be a crucial part of the program.SC: What kind of players do you want on your team?CH: First and foremost, I want good teammates. This first group of guys are going to be the ones that pave the way. The recruits that come on campus and meet these guys as the face of the program, they are going to be our first alumni. I want guys that can come on and set a strong example for incoming players, recruits and the campus community and college outsiders. I certainly want good qualified students who are going to leave Otterbein and move on to bigger and better things. I want just all around good guys.SC: What do you expect for this season?CH: Progress is the biggest thing. Improvement. I'm pretty goal-oriented in most things that I do. You need to have long- and short-term goals. When we get the roster put together, we will sit down as a group and lay out short- and long-term goals. I won't say wins and losses but I do expect to win some games next year.SC: What do you think of the athletic facilities here?CH: I think our facilities are fantastic. From our locker room to our weight room to the Clements Center, they are all great. When I was in college, I wasn't fortunate enough to have a place like this in college. If there was inclement weather outside, we had to practice in a gym.SC: What can someone who has never seen a lacrosse game before expect from a game next year?CH: The high intensity and pace. I always liked lacrosse because it was taking elements from football, soccer and hockey. Going along with that, athletes that excel in those sports, traditionally make great lacrosse players. People can come out and appreciate the sport, it's one with a lot of momentum, excitement and hard hitting. It's a sport that requires a lot of skill. For anyone that hasn't seen a lacrosse game before, they should come out. I think that they will be pleasantly surprised.SC: Do you think that lacrosse will catch on with students and the faculty?CH: College lacrosse is a booming thing in the Midwest. It will soon be very popular. t&c;
(04/16/09 4:00am)
I've been doing some spring cleaning around my desk, and while I was recently reviewing tapes from this year, I stumbled upon my first interview with Otterbein softball coach Christine Steines. I find this significant because during our short five- minute interview she talks about team chemistry and team work for three minutes and 22 seconds of it. Interesting. Allen Iverson, current point guard for the Detroit Pistons, once said, "How the hell am I going to make my teammates better by practicing?" Well Allen, the answer to your hilarious interview in which you said the word "practice" 14 and a half times is that you can develop a sense of team chemistry and know where everyone is on the court at any given time. Maybe if you practiced a little bit you wouldn't have changed teams three times in the last four years. I've finally found the one thing that can make or break a team's chances of success. I have figured out how a team can improve from one season to another without a major upheaval. I've found the explanation to the turnaround the softball team is having this season. They already have one more win than last season with fourteen games to go. What is teamwork? To truly understand something, it's best to know the definition. As defined by Webster, teamwork is a cooperated or combined effort on the part of a group of persons acting together as a team or in the interests of a common cause. The football team returned nine starters on offense and 10 on defense. The nine wins they achieved were the most since the early sixties. What amazes me about this team is that they allowed only 16 sacks in 10 games. For comparison's sake, with 16 sacks, the Cards would have been second in the Big Ten behind only Penn State with 13 sacks. In the 1966 NCAA men's basketball tournament championship, the underdogs, Texas Western University Miners (now known as University of Texas at El Paso or UTEP), played the '66 Kentucky team that consisted of two-time All-American Louie Dampier and future hall of fame NBA head coach Pat Riely. Those Texas Western players, who had all started together for four years by the time they were to play Kentucky, had developed that sense of team and chemistry. I guess the essence of teamwork is best summed up by Herb Brooks, coach of the 1980 USA Hockey miracle team, who said, "All-star teams fail because they rely solely on the individual's talent. The Soviets win because they take that talent and use it inside a system that's designed for the betterment of the team." You may have the top players in the world, but in team sports, communication and trust are key. Those all-star players with different roles from different teams from different parts of the country and the world can't build trust over a matter of days. Trust is something that teams take months, even years to build. t&c;