2008 Woodie Awards
Sophomore Allison Mansmann has pink fingernails. She is talkative and energetic and she has pink fingernails. This might not seem like such a grand epiphany to most, but to her, this is huge. It means that for the first time in 23 years, she can take a breath deep enough to reach her fingers without the help of an oxygen tank and walk from her house to the car without feeling like she is going to pass out.
Mike Sager has lived with crack addicts in Los Angeles, in a ghetto of North Philadelphia with kids from Puerto Rico, in Mexico with a 600-pound man and in a Palestinian refugee camp in the Gaza strip, but the most inspiring places he's lived are the not-so-exotic ones.
In 1971, Joel Glazier found himself in London on one of the university's early study abroad trips. Every day after classes he and his friends would take a walk down to Abbey Road and the Apple building in the hopes of catching a glimpse of their favorite band, The Beatles.
The source for the sickness is yet to be determined. How the madness occurs, nobody can be sure, but an epidemic craze has spread up and down Main Street, infecting Newark nightlife. Symptoms to be on the look-out for include : sweat dripping, drink spilling, fist pumping, crowd jumping and Journey singing by a massive crowd of students who have succumbed to the "cover band fever.
While it may seem like some professors at the university are in their "own worlds," others are helping to discover planets in this one. Harry Shipman, Annie Jump Cannon professor of astronomy at the university, along with other scientists at the university and around the world, contibuted to the discovery of a unique planet 1,000 light-years away using a new technique.
The Newark Symphony Orchestra hosted its first chamber concert of the season on Saturday at the United Methodist Church on Main Street. Two-thirds of the 250 seats were vacant. The vast majority of those who did attend were over the age of 65 - relics of a time in which the fine arts were an integral part of general education.
A physical expression can change the meaning behind a person's words. It can change a rude comment to a funny one or add seriousness to an otherwise casual conversation. On Wednesday, Scott Fahlman, a research professor at Carnegie Mellon University, celebrated the 25th anniversary of his simple discovery that changed the way emotions are communicated through computers today.
It's not hard to see why a movie like "Across The Universe," a musical based on songs made popular by The Beatles, has received all the hype in the world. It was directed by Julie Taymore, who has won numerous awards including a Tony for her Broadway hit "The Lion King." In addition, the political atmosphere in this country is perfect for marketing a film set in the Vietnam War era and most of the dialogue in the film was originally written by one of the most revolutionary bands in history.
As a stand-up comedian, Dane Cook knows how to work a crowd. His film career, however, is another story, and recent roles in "Employee of the Month" and "Mr. Brooks" haven't promised him a steady acting career.
Over the years, the Foo Fighters, led by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl, have earned its place as one of our generation's most relevant rock bands. While the band's last two albums may have been a far cry from the well-composed hard rock sounds of its first three albums, its newest release, "Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace," reaffirms the band's ability to cry, caterwaul and croon behind an immense wall of sound.
"And for once in my life / I saw what I wanted / And took a bite / I picked the fruit from the tree / And it was ripe." This lyric, which appears on both the inside cover of Ben Lee's new record and in the title track "Ripe," encompasses the overall theme of readiness and maturity that runs throughout Lee's seventh album.
Chamillionaire, known for his trunk-bumping southern anthems, brings a familiar subject matter to an entirely new forum with his sophomore disc "Ultimate Victory." Coming off the chart topper "Ridin," he criticizes today's rappers and the culture that elevates them to stardom.
There are many black and white issues when it comes to relationships and dating, but cheating always seems to fall into a gray area. Many couples choose to discuss the parameters of cheating early in their relationship to avoid a painful conversation in the future.
Recycling is a major hobby of mine. Nothing makes me happier than separating plastic and glass bottles from my usual trash and sending them to a better, more useful place. Depositing my recyclable tokens of love into their appropriate bins gives me an irreplaceable, warm fuzzy feeling deep inside.
Just when you thought O.J. Simpson learned his lesson and would stay out of the media spotlight, he's back in the news faster than a white Ford Bronco speeding down the highway. While in Las Vegas on Sept. 14, Simpson and a few of his buddies decided to gather some sports memorabilia, which Simpson says belonged to him, from some collectors in a casino hotel.
