Friday
March 18,1994 Vol. CXXII, No. 45
Weather
Expect another pleasant and sunny day. The afternoon should be warm with the high in the 70s. It will be a mostly clear night for Springfest, with the low in the 50s.
Inside
Women of Troy face Colonials
We cannot tell a lie.
George Washington — its women's basketball team, at least — comes to the Sports Arena to play USC in a second-round NCAA game on Saturday night.
Sports, page 8
It’s Springfest time again for Trojans
The annual musical extravaganza makes its way to Tommy Trojan at 4 p.m. today. Bands featured include Suicidal Tendencies, Dramarama and Infectious Grooves.
Diversions, page 4
Chaos diabolical? Find out today
There will be an interactive performance called "Meaning out of Chaos — Dialogical or Diabolical?" on March 18 and 19 in Taper Hall from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day, The morning sessions are primarily for participants to construct narratives; the afternoon sessions begin at 2 p.m. and include performances and discussions.
Make reservations with Marcella Greening in the English department or at (310) 399-4787. Observers must pay $2. COGPS, Humanities Division, English, Classics, ELAC, French and Comp Lit departments are sponsoring this event.
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A gentleman on Jefferson ponders the meaning of life — or maybe he just wonders if he really trusts the dental students with his pesky wisdom teeth.
A preview of USC can lead to future Trojans
By Melanie Asp
Stall Writer
Preview USC offers high school students admitted to the university an opportunity to catch their first glimpse of Trojan life.
The Preview programs involve the entire university. Current students, professors and administrators are working to recruit a high-quality incoming freshman class for the 1994-95 academic year.
Over the past two months, an estimated 620 high school students, commonly referred to as "Previews," have visited the university, said Margot Jenson, assistant director of undergraduate admission. The last Preview USC program will be held on April 14 and 15.
Program coordinators are anticipating
nearly 100 students.
Various administrators and coordinators agreed that the programs have proved to benefit university admissions in its recruitment statistics.
"Preview students are twice as likely to come to the university as entering freshmen than those who have not visited.'' Jenson said.
Duncan Murdoch, director of undergraduate admissions, said the typical yield is 30 percent. However, 60 percent of admitted students who come to Preview USC decide to enroll the following fall semester.
"Time after time, I've heard students say, 'You don't know how close I've been to writing USC off because of what I had (See Preview, page 2)
Vomit vapors vex hospital ER workers
By Victoria Manley
Staff Writer
Vapors from the vomit of a child who ingested a toxic chemical caused County-USC Medical Center's emergency room to be evacuated Wednesday afternoon, after medical workers complained of lightheadedness.
The chemical, ethylene glycol monbutal ether, is a solvent that is frequently used in industry. It was brought home by a family member in a soda can. The 16-month-old boy mistook the chemical for soda, and drank the can's entire contents.
Local news stations and the Los Angeles Times compared Wednesday's emergency to other recent incidents in which toxic fumes have emanated from medical patients. In the other incidents, however, medical staff members were seriously injured as a result of breathing the strong fumes emanating from the patients' bodies. One of the patients, who was suffering from cancer, died.
Harvey Kern, director of public affairs confirmed that this situation was not the same, and medical staff suffered no harm.
"The child didn't emanate fumes at all," he said. "The incident was blown way out of proportion."
"At about seven o'clock the child began vomiting, and vapors emitted from the vomit," said Kern.
The child was in the intensive care unit Wednesday night, and was in stable condition as of Thursday afternoon.
The child was taken to the pediatric emergency room of the Women's Hospital, said Jim Wells, a Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman.
Upon helping the boy, fumes from the consumed solvent drifted in the air and caused medical staff to complain of dizziness and weakness.
A staff member dialed 911 and the emergency room was evacuated for a short time, Kern said.
No on£ in the room felt sick enough to stop working and continued to help the boy.
"At eight o'clock, workers complained of dizziness and small headaches," Kern said, "but no one needed medical assistance."
"It appears that the child ingested some type of chemical, and the chemical was brought into the emergency room with the child," said Wells in a Los Angeles Times article Thursday.
Professor Guthman tapped on Tuesday
Mortar Board honors chair for his commitment to students, profession
By Nik Trendowski
Staff Writer
Professor Edwin Guthman stood in the doorway of his class on Tuesday with a smile on his face as the black-robed Mortar Board members marched in to name him their faculty member of the month.
With candles lit and the Trojan Marching Band playing on tape, members of the senior honor society honored the chair of print journalism for his concern for students as well as a distinguished career in journalism.
A surprised Guthman surveyed the audience, which included many of his colleagues from the journalism school, as his achievements were read.
"I wish my teachers from
Seward Elementary and Broadway High could see this — they would never believe it," Guthman said.
Guthman's career has included positions as editor of the Philadelphia Inquirer and national editor of the Los Angeles Times. Guthman was also Robert F. Kennedy's press secretary when Kennedy was attorney general.
In 1950, he received a Pulitzer Prize for national reporting for uncovering information proving that the Washington state Un-American Activities Committee had subverted evidence exonerating a university professor.
Guthman, who joined the USC faculty in 1987, is well known in the journalism department and among the university (See Guthman, page 3)
March against birth defects on April 23
Students asked to participate in walk-a-thon to raise money
By Summer Price
Staff Writer
"Every three-and-a-half minutes a baby is born with birth defects. They are dying. A hundred every day. A higher percentage of babies die in the United States than in 23 other nations," according to the March of Dimes.
In their quest to prevent and treat birth defects, the March of Dimes will hold their annual fund-raising walk-a-thon called Walk America on Saturday, April 23.
Participants are allowed to walk, run, jog or skate and are asked to get sponsors either on a flat donation or per-mile basis.
Out of every dollar raised, 77 cents goes toward research for the treatment and prevention of birth defects.
Jesus Mora, a March of Dimes representative, says, that this year's focus is on prevention.
"Most recently, an inexpensive screening test for PKU was developed by a researcher funded by us," said Mora.
The March of Dimes hopes to make progress in infant gene therapy and in the causes of pre-term labor. They are also starting a public health education program to teach women how to take care (See Walk, page 2)