AN EYE ON CAMPUS
Looking for evidence that intelligent beings might exist
By Steve Clow
The sages of society say that reading scores and efficiency are on the decline nationwide. They blame it on our increasing dependence on television for entertainment and even a lack of parental discipline.
One thing they can’t blame it on is a lack of speed-reading signup booths located in the vicinity of the Student Union.
Two such booths, both run by the same company, have been stationed near the building for some time, one near Tommv Trojan and one near the sidewalk cafe.
One of the fellows manning the booths claims that his company’s service, which costs $128 for seven weeks of training, is geared especially for college students.
How’s business?
He responds by opening his black bind-
er and	flashing	a	wad of	bills	that
might	qualify him	as	at	least	a	medium-
roller. were he is Las Vegas.
Business appears to be all right.
★	★	★
Writing scores don’t seem to be very high either, at least in the lobby area of the Commons. One sign announcing need for part-time help reads: “Student help wanted. Please enquire at managers office.” Nice spelling. Nice punctuation.
★	★	★
Two signs on the Alumni Park fountain: “In keeping with USC’s water conservation policy, this fountain is not in use.”
Across both signs, someone has tactfully inscribed the word “bullshit.” The prankster may be more profound than profane, however, because it seems there’s a better reason than water con-
servation for the fountain not working. It was all but demolished by a fallen tree two years ago.
★	★ ★
A sign on the wheelchair ramp railing leading into the Commons area near the Smokeshop: “No bicycles, please.”
Apparently some irate cyclist was so lost in rage when he saw this sign that he tried to tear it down, because one corner is missing. A few bike riders were a little more subtle. At lunchtime Thursday they had just parked their bikes on and around the ramp.
You wonder who the real handicapped are around here.
In the Subliminal Advertising Department: flyers are posted in the Ticket Office and elsewhere showing a sketch of a big apple. Inside there is an ad trumpeting a new low winter vacation
fare to the Big Apple.
A big bite has been taken out of the sketched apple. Trouble is, it tends to remind one of what a big bite all these low fares are taking out of the pocket-book.
★	★ ★
That large superstructure located in the center divider of University Avenue isn’t the U.S.S. anything. It's a Hobie Cat 16, a 26-foot tall, high-quality catamaran being raffled off as a fundraiser by the Sailing Club.
The boat, worth $2,500, was donated to the club for that purpose.
“We’re only selling 3,000 tickets (at $2 each), so if you buy, say, two, then your chances are one in 1,500,” said one of the rafflers.
Well, at least math scores are up.
Daily Q§ Troian
Volume LXXII, Number 29
University of Southern California
Los Angeles, California
Friday, October 28, 1977
AUTUMN DAYS — Students were surrounded by signs of fall as they strolled through Alumni Park on a brisk October morning. Cooler days ahead are foretold by bare trees and a blanket of fallen leaves
spread over the ground. Turtleneck sweaters and jackets will soon take the place of summer garb. DT photo by Doug Gray.
$3.5-million budget deficit can be expected next year, forecast says
By David Hall
Staff Writer
A budget deficit of $3.5 million can be expected next year, according to a five-year budget forecast released by the offices of the executive vice-president and the vice-president for finance.
The deficit could grow to just less than $5 million for 1981-82, according to the forecast. The study was used as the basis for the preliminary budget, which proposes a 9.4% tuition increase and a cut in the faculty’s salary increase.
“The forecast is designed to project university expenditures forward to try to determine the impact on the cost rise,” said John Curry, an assistant to Zohrab Kaprielian, executive vice-president.
The Consumer Price Index, an annual government report on the change in the cost of goods and services, is the report’s starting point.
“We try to find out, in certain amounts, what it will cost us for the same package in each of the five years,” Curry said. “Then
we try to determine the revenues and whether they will cover our expenditures.”
Assuming that there will be no new programs, no technological advances or in short, no improvements, the university’s operating budget would be at a $l-million deficit next year moving to a $1.9 million surplus by 1981-82.
This would rise from a forecasted increase trend of 8% in total revenues and a 7.6% trend in total expenditures. This means that revenues would rise .4% faster than expenditures.
The shift takes place with the addition of two other items: quality enhancement and deferred maintenance.
"Some improvements of old buildings and facilities have been added for the first time,” Curry said. “In the past, these buildings weren’t of high enough priority to need additional monies, so we’ve added deferred maintenance.
And the surplus is further used up by quality enhancement. In the past, we have al-
ways added money to improve the quality of the education here. Money is always requested by the deans for new people or equipment.”
To take care of these two areas, a quality enhancement of 1% of the total expenditures of (continued on page 2)
Senate votes to retain 2 members
By Wendy Zimmerman
Staff Writer
The Student Senate voted Wednesday to let two student senators retain their seats, despite the fact they no longer live among the constituencies from which they were elected.
Last spring. Lisa Boyd and Fay Van Blake were elected as student community and commuter representatives, respectively. Both women are now Resident Advisers in Marks Tower.
The bylaws do not state that a student must live in the constituency which they are representing while in office, nor do they say who has the authority to decide whether a senator will be dismissed in cases such as this one.
The senate decided the Joint Elections Committee would not be the appropriate group to handle the matter. A motion made by Scott Thornton to have the Parliamentary Committee consider whether the elections committee should make the decision was voted down.
The senate passed Glen Strauss’ motion that stated, “For this particular case only, we (the Senate) allow people who have moved out of their constituency to remain senators, subject to recall,” by a 13-1 margin with one abstention.
Both Boyd and Van Blake voted on the motion.
To recall a senator requires V* of the constituents to sign a petition asking for the senator’s removal from office.
The senate will have the Parliamentary Committee look into the matter and attempt to revise the bylaws so the procedures for handling such cases will be clearly outlined in the future.
At the beginning of the meeting, Bill Dauster, senate chairman, said the Joint Elections Committee would be the appropriate body to decide the matter.
However, Michael L. Williams, a third-year law student, said the elections committee only has power to deal with infractions at the time of elections.
Williams stressed the senate's only major concern in the past has been a senator’s fulfilling his obligations of nonabsenteeism.
The bylaws state if a senator has missed three meetings in a row the senator’s absenteeism should be discussed by the senate.
Williams pointed out that the executive members of the senate knew of the women’s change in residential status. Boyd and Van Blake had not worked for the senate on a “contingency basis” but worked as though they would remain part of the senate.
(continued on page 2)
Small fire damages housing complex
An explosion and small fire in the kitchen of a fifth-story apartment in the Married Student Housing Complex injured a painter and caused an estimated $2,000 in damages Thursday.
A flammable cleaning compound that was used on all the cupboards in the 150-unit building apparently was ignited by a stove pilot light. Philip Elery, an independent contractor who was working in the kitchen, suffered minor injuries from smoke inhalation and fire flash.
Flames were snuffed out by Elery' and Earl Nevill, a university janitor, with a fire extinguisher before firemen arrived. The only occupant in the apartment was the resident’s visiting mother-in-law, who fled unharmed when the explosion occurred.
A spokesman for the complex declined to release the names of the residents, but mentioned they were a foriegn student and his family.
Firemen cleared out smoke and cleaned up de-
bris. Damages to the stove, cabinets and cupboards were caused mostly by smoke, said Capt. Ron Patterson.
Both Patterson and Alex Ratka, director of risk management at the university, blamed the explosion on an overlooked pilot light that remained lit during the cleaning. The apartment was one of the last in the building to be cleaned.
Many small household fires are caused by overlooked pilot lights because they are often difficult to detect.
The Married Student Housing Complex located at the south end of campus, has six floors with access from two elevators and three stairways.
Every unit is occupied, and most of the families have small children, said Chris Haymond, complex manager. In the event of a larger fire, exit routes are easily accessible and fire extinguishers are available, Haymond said.