Mirror - Vol. 29, No. 05 - October 02, 2003

              The
2, 2003 - Vol. 29, Iss.
LINE
BY CHRIS ZEITZ
Fairfield University's Student Newspaper
Hockey players find new lives
after team's cancellation
The dark grays of distant rain clouds
hover over a cool Long Island Sound just
above the horizon, signs of fall and the ap-proach
of winter.
Clouds and water blend like a palette of
greens, blues and grays displayed in the spa-cious
windows of a private beach property past
the usual student haunts of the so-called Third
Hump - far past the Grape and Lantern Point.
Several fishing poles are at rest on a table,
intermixed with a few hockey sticks and pads.
The residents of this finely appointed
beach house constitute the majority of the
former Fairfield hockey players who remain
enrolled at the university. In February, the
university abruptly announced the canceling
of the hockey and football programs at the
close of the 2002-2003 school year.
Now, the former hockey players have
adjusted to life without the routine or cama-raderie
of their sport. They fish three to four
times a week, sometimes more often if the
weather permits, and live on a private beach
right on the water.
The house has been, "one saving grace,"
said Craig Schnappinger, '04.
Craig Schnappinger/Contributed photo
Last stand: Members of the hockey team after their last game, left to right: seniors Aaron
Cardinal, Nick Stead, Hunter Greeley, Tom Palladino, John Wyson, and Craig Schnappinger.
With the difficulty of adjusting to life
without the hockey program and the transfer of
many of their comrades, this beach house pro-vided
them with "something to look forward
to," said Aaron Cardinal, '04, Schnappinger's
housemate.
SEE "HOCKEY" ON P. 4
Fairfield grad excels at NASA
BY STEVEN ANDREWS
A Fairfield University
graduate and Trumbull native
was promoted to deputy associ-ate
administrator for programs
at the National Aeronautics and
Space Administration's office of
biological and physical research
in Washington, D.C.
Bernard Seery, 49, gradu-ated
from Fairfield in 1975 with
a bachelor's degree in physics
and then went to the University
ofArizona where he obtained his
master's in optical sciences.
The new position places
Seery in a part of NASA that
could have incredible implica-tions
for life on Earth.
"Our research focuses on
the effects of a near term space
station, as well as missions to
Mars, to determine what the
human body can withstand,"
said Seery. "We know the body
can survive in space, but we are
looking to find out how long it
can stay there and still return to
Earth without side effects."
While it may seem intimi-dating
to work for such a large
company with a past full of great
accomplishments and a clear im-pact
on the future ofhumans both
on Earth and in space, Seery im-plores
students to look into it.
"Right now, NASA is
desperate for talented young
scientists," Seery said. "With
the Columbia tragedy, budget
constraints and all of the recent
retirements, there has come a
need for new people."
For Fairfield students, Seery
has set a precedent which he
hopes continues in the future.
"In addition to a focus on
math and science in general,
the biggest strength for get-ting
employed with NASA is
a strong understanding of the
interdisciplinary fields of phys-ics,
chemistry and biology," said
Seery. "Also, working closely
with your professors and forming
a relationship with them is very
advantageous."
SEE "NASA" ON P. 4
Taylor Clarke/The Mirror
Big sign: John Gallugi, '05, reads a recruitment poster.
Research safety questioned
BY CARLEIGH BROWER
You're walking through
Bannow, thinking about the
huge utility bill that just came
in the mail, when you see a flyer
advertising $450 for healthy re-search
subjects. The study is on
the brain c reaction to alcohol.
Do you jump at the opportunity
to make "easy money?"
Many students might answer
yes, unaware of what they're
actually getting themselves
into. The study, which is run by
the Center for the Translational
Neuroscience of Alcoholism,
part of the VA-Yale Alcohol
Research Center, examines the
biological and genetic basis of
alcoholism.
However, rather than using
alcohol, the study uses drugs
that mock the effects of alco-hol
on the brain: ketamine and
thiopental.
SEE "ALCOHOL" ON P. 8
New to
the block
School begins
townhouse party
tradition
BY ETHAN FRY
Saturday's Block Party in the
townhouses was well received by
those who turned out. The only
problem, they said, was the turn-out
itself.
"You could tell that they put
some great thought into it," said
Bill Armstrong '05, "But I was
disappointed with the turnout and
with the availability of food."
During the
four-hour event,
300-400 people
showed up in
the "Quad" of
the townhouses
between the 3,4,
5 and 6 blocks.
In addition to a
"Beer Garden"
for those of age, there was food,
drinks, games and prizes. The
event was limited to juniors and
seniors living on campus.
The event was planned mainly
by the University Townhouse
Experience and the Residential
Apartment Student Organization.
Officials said there were no
incidents of bad behavior.
"As far as I know, there were
no problems," said Laura Cantrell,
associate director of Residence
Life. "I have never been so im-pressed
with the planners and the
students attending as I was with
this event."
Fran Koerting, director of
Residence Life, concurred. "Dur-ing
the time I was there, [behavior]
was great," she said. "The atmo-sphere
at the party was wonderful.
Everyone seemed to be enjoying
themselves, and so many students
commented what a great idea it
was. They were all respectful of
the wrist banding and abiding by
state drinking laws."
SEE "MORE" ON P. 6
KOERTING
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