A Higher Glyphic

CARBONDALE - The blaring of tornado sirens and rush of rain and hail brought the fourth annual Research Town Meeting to a halt on Tuesday.

The meeting, which was to celebrate and highlight research at SIUC, was called off during Vice Chancellor for Research John Koropchak's keynote address. As he spoke on research achievements and funding at SIUC, the sky turned a greenish black and threatened to produce tornados.

"Does anyone know what we're supposed to do now?" Koropchak, who is also the dean of the graduate school, asked the crowd.

Those attending the Town Meeting, along with everyone else in the Student Center were quickly evacuated to the basement as the National Weather Service placed Carbondale under severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings at about 4:30 p.m.

After thirty minutes, the severe weather subsided, and the remainder of the meeting was cancelled. However, the bulk of the speeches, presentations, and display of research had already taken place before the storms hit.

President Glen Poshard had spoken on the importance of research at SIUC and commended researchers on their dedication and accomplishments. Poshard also challenged the faculty to get students involved in research.

"I am asking you to do more. Engage more students in research, interact with more undergrads, and lend a helping hand, because we can build up students and the university," Poshard said. "We must keep opportunities open to more students."

In conjunction with the main forum, attendees were able to roam around a research fair held in Ballroom D. Faculty from each department at the university showcased their current work. Studies ranged from "Why Do College Students Procrastinate" to "Water Resources Sustainability" and robotics demonstrations.

Diane Davis, Ph.D. and Karen Having's presented their research in medical record keeping technology and privacy for the College of Applied Arts and Sciences. "Our research is really fun because it involves so many different disciplines like law, medicine, and information systems," Davis said. "It's also very practical because we're creating a database that hospitals can access and evaluate their performance and security of records."

Although the storms cut the meeting short, Davis said that the meeting was still successful. "I think it went well and everyone still got to display their work," Davis said. "I'm just glad that my kids and granddaughter are safe."

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