UMD Block and Briddle hosts showings of swine, dairy cows and beef cows on Maryland Day

The University of Maryland's Block and Bridle hosted a series of events at Maryland Day on April 30, including showings of swine, dairy cows and beef cows.

The club hopes to facilitate learning and appreciation for animal science, and that's what happened on Maryland Day.

Divya Jain, a senior bioengineering major, expressed excitement at being able to see cows up close in person.

"I think the agricultural world is a whole world of its own," Jain said. "As a college student, I don't really know much about it."

President Wallace Loh says horses get nervous around people

President Wallace Loh also took in the festivities at Maryland Day, learning from the agricultural students firsthand.

Loh stopped to gaze at the pigs, cows and sheep rams on display. At one point, he raised his finger to the sheep rams' face to attract attention.

"I get to learn firsthand what the students in the agriculture [program] are working with everyday," Loh said.

Loh said he spoke to many university students, and some gave him a lesson about horses.

"I learned that horses don't like a lot of people," Loh said. "They get all nervous about it."

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There were several other events on the farm, including Sigma Alpha's Kiss-A-Pig Competition.

In addition, a class of agricultural university alumni presented a dairy cow showing to a horde of enthusiastic children and parents.

"It's very cool to be here on Maryland Day and take part in a whole different, unique culture," Jain said.

While many little kids enjoyed getting a look at the animals, Block and Bridle took pride in educating the university community, including Loh.

"They are very passionate about what they are doing," Loh said.

Divison I men's basketball coaches earn millions of dollars while players don't receive compensation

While university athletic departments haul in millions of dollars per year, student-athletes aren't paid for their services.

Mark Turgeon, the head coach of the Maryland men's basketball team, earned roughly $2.3 million the past year.

The disparity between athletic department income and player compensation is unjust, according to University of Maryland senior Ryan Baillargeon.

"If you take a guy like Kris Jenkins from Villanova, who hit that game-wining shot in the national championship, he brought so much revenue to Villanova with just that shot," Baillargeon said. "And he's seeing nothing for that."

University of Maryland's athletic department brings in $55.3 million in 2014

Athletic department revenue has increased substantially over the past decade, according to The Washington Post.

The University of Maryland earned $42 million in 2004, before hauling in $55.3 million in 2014.

Other Big Ten Schools have brought in much more money, though.

The top-six Big Ten schools earned an average of $123.35 million in 2014. Michigan hauled in $158 million.

Though progress has been made with the stipends, many believe student-athletes are deserving of more money, considering how wealthy athletic departments are becoming.

"We need to somehow find a mix where guys who are bringing in this much revenue for their schools are actually getting some in return," Baillargeon said.

NCAA answers critics by giving $5,000 stipends to basketball players

Starting with the 2015-2016 school year, Division I athletes earned additional stipends to their scholarships.

The stipends, usually worth around $5,000, are supposed to cover the "incidental costs" of college life — laundry money, student fees, movies, etc.

George Solomon, a former Washington Post sports editor, believes this was a fair compromise.

"I think it's much deserved," Solomon said.

The additional compensation came in the wake of former Northwestern quarterback Kain Colter making headlines for leading a union movement for his teammates.

Colter led a group of Northwestern students that appealed to the National Labor Relations Board.

In August 2015, the National Labor Relations Board rejected the bid.

"I also don't feel that under the terms of the a union worker, that that would stand," Solomon said. "And I don't think college athletes are union employees. I think they're still students."

George Solomon says free housing and tuition are enough compensation for student-athletes

Not everyone agrees with Baillargeon, though.

Solomon said student-athletes should receive some compensation, but not salaries akin to professional athletes.

"They should have enough money to subsist, and to do the normal things college students do." Solomon said. "Whether it's an additional $5,000 a year, or even more. I think it's much deserved. On the other hand, I don't believe in them being paid as professionals.

Division I men's basketball teams are afforded 13 scholarships each year.

In addition to receiving free tuition, players often receive free housing and generous meal plans.

That's why they don't need additional financial support, Solomon said.

"I think they should be compensated more than they were," Solomon said. "That being said, I still don't think they should be paid like professionals."

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You shouldn't confuse Antarctica's ice gain as evidence against global warming

Global warming has disrupted life in The Arctic, but the same has not held true in Antarctica.

Satellite records show that Antarctica is gaining more ice than it’s losing.

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“If you will, the ozone hole has shielded Antarctica from the wrath of global warming,” Salawitch said.

But this isn’t enough evidence to prove that climate change isn’t real, according to Dr. Ross J Salawitch, a member of the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science at University of Maryland.

“Antarctica is very complicated,” Salawitch said. “It’s clear from the private record that climate change is happening much more rapidly in the Arctic than the Antarctic. And there’s a lot of debate among scientists as to why that is.”

Wind changes are responsible for Antarctica's ice gain

Salawitch attributes the disparity to the “ozone hole.”

Every September and October, there’s a great amount of ozone in the stratosphere, Salawitch said.

But, he added, wind changes induced by the ozone hole shield the Antarctic peninsula from global warming.

“If you will, the ozone hole has shielded Antarctica from the wrath of global warming,” Salawitch said.

An NASA Study from Oct. 2015 reported the Antarctic ice sheet gained 112 billion tons of ice a year from 1992 to 2001 and 82 billions tons of ice per year from 2003 to 2008.

This causes some to believe that climate change isn’t real.

Salawitch maintains that the evidence suggesting global warming is “compelling” and overwhelming,” and that Antarctica isn’t a good barometer.

Austin Hope, a Ph.D candidate in the Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science at University of Maryland, said it’s importance for people to remember that different regions will be affected by climate change in different ways.

But he did agree that distinguishing between the two poles could be confusing.

“Antarctica isn’t really feeling climate change as much as other regions are,” Hope said. “Some people could latch on to that and say  ‘Oh, it’s not as important, because it’s not global.’”

“I think that does add some confusion or does add some fuel to people who say climate change is not as big of an issue as it actually is.”

Scientists express frustration with Antarctic misconception

Hope also said that people need to look at the bigger picture when considering the impact of climate change.

Antarctica isn’t the only region that isn’t experiencing more warming. In fact, some areas are seeing more precipitation and getting better crops, he said.

“People who argue against climate change also often like cherry-picking examples,” Hope said. “It is frustrating when people cherry pick examples that make it look like climate change isn’t as important or as wide-reaching as it is.”

People in the science community like Salawitch and Hope agree that it’s annoying some attribute Antarctica’s climate as evidence against global warming.

But they aren’t irritated with the public.

The problem goes deeper.

“My frustration lies with the U.S. political system,” Salawitch said. “Not the public. So my frustration lies with the money that’s being given to candidates.”

People with social anxiety more willing to demonstrate problematic Facebook use

People that are socially anxious and cognizant of their self-image are more likely to resort to excessive Facebook use, according to a study published by Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking.

The researchers, who conducted the study in 2015, attempted to measure the relationship between social anxiety and Facebook use.

The study, Hooked on Facebook: The Role of Social Anxiety and Need for Social Assurance in Problematic Use of Facebook, was conducted by Roselyn J. Lee-Won, PhD, Leo Herzog, BA and Sung Gwan Park, PhD.

They used students at a four-year college in the Midwestern United States.

All of the participants had a Facebook account.

They were measured on a social anxiety scale and for NSA - Need for social assurance.

Social skill model

The social skill model points toward one's need for self-presentation and it's role in one's life.

Since interactions online involve just text, the researchers hypothesized those with poor social skills would prefer to interact with people online.

For them, online interaction is easier than face-to-face conversations.

These people have social anxiety, which is apprehension surrounding one's self-image.

This arises from low self-esteem.

Therefore, those with low self-esteem would relish Facebook's ability to procure a custom image of oneself.

The role of need for social assurance 

It's human nature for people to feel a sense of belongingness.

On Facebook, social interaction, and in turn feelings of connectivity, are easy to come by.

Users can write on friends' walls, and engage in chats with those that are online.

The researchers hypothesized that those with high needs to sustain feelings of security would be more involved with Facebook.

Results

The researches found a positive correlation between social anxiety and Facebook use.

This correlation was found more often in those with high NSA, which was the degree to which one uses Facebook to interact with others.

NSA was found to be more prevalent among adolescents and young adults.

It's influence became less pressing with age.

University of Maryland junior is dependent on cell phone, doesn't think his use is healthy

According to a pew report, 46 percent of smartphones owners "couldn't live without their devices."
University of Maryland junior Karl Griner agrees with that sentiment.

Americans have taken advantage of the unlimited information at their fingertips.

Many Americans (30 percent) use their phones to take classes, and even more (44 percent) use their devices to look up real estate listings.

Griner has felt the pull himself.

"I would say its probably a bad thing to be so dependent on my phone," Griner said. "I don't really know why, but I feel like its unhealthy."

He added he checks his phone about every 15 minutes.

Griner isn't alone, though.

For many people, smartphone use has become a sort of addiction.

"Even if I don't think I have something — a message, or notification, I check to see if there is," Griner said. "I don't want to be missing out on something."

University of Maryland student believes mobile dependency is unhealthy

It's sometimes hard to believe that there was a time when cell phones didn't exist. Not smartphones — cellphones. Nowadays, smartphones — more intelligent versions of those wireless calling devices — are ubiquitous. With a vast plethora of apps for the consumer to scroll through, many people spend several hours per day staring into tiny digital screens.

Karl Griner, a University of Maryland junior, thinks the dependency has reached an "unhealthy" level for some, including himself. He said he constantly feels compelled to check his iPhone, never taking longer than 15-minute intervals between use.

It's an addiction of sorts, one that takes away from quality, intimate human interaction. Of course, having so much information at the tip of our fingers is very new, so it's understandable if we don't always use it in the most productive way.

In the future, humanity as a whole would be wise to ration its cell phone use, while still being mindful of the many benefits the devices provide.

Journalists need to adapt to the journalism industry going mobile

The journlism indusry is changing — that's no secret. The days of the newspaper being a daily staple for American families is in the past.

Now, information is available at our fingertips. Many people are constantly checking their cell phones, and in turn, checking the news.

This is a good thing, according to journalism students at the University of Maryland. Living in the past won't get you anywhere, except out of a job.

Yes, putting together compelling, informative stories is still important. But journalists need to learn to adapt to the changing times.

Even desktop homepages are losing steam; now, everything is done on cell phones. Journalists must produce content that is mobile-friendly. That should be the first priority.