Thursday, December 18, 2025

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MICHIGAN

Deficit reduction might call for sacrifices

Whether the federal government is forced to default or a deficit-reducing plan allows for the raising of the nation’s debt ceiling, citizens ­— from students to the retired — could be forced to make sacrifices because of the federal government’s financial woes.

MSU

Study abroad continues to operate

University officials said today MSU’s study abroad program in Japan continues to operate smoothly despite a 7.0-magnitude earthquake that hit off the country’s northeast shore last week.

MICHIGAN

Former MSU instructor held hostage

For about four hours, former MSU instructor Steve Helderman was held hostage Thursday by a Grand Rapids man who shot and killed seven people the same day. The whole time, Rodrick Dantzler never took his finger off the .40-caliber handgun he used to kill his wife, child and eventually himself, Helderman’s brother Tom Helderman said.

MSU

Asian carp pose threat to Great Lakes

A study led by an MSU professor asserts that Asian carp could pose serious damage to the Great Lakes ecosystem if they spread across the region’s waterways. University distinguished professor in fisheries and wildlife Bill Taylor’s research indicates the voracious species of fish could threaten existing fish populations in the state’s lakes and harm water systems and various commercial and recreational fisheries. “You know it’s big when academics and the management community say we don’t need five more years of study,” Taylor said in a statement. Taylor worked with three other researchers from institutions across the country to study the effects of potential Asian carp proliferation, examining key assertions from policymakers along the way. Taylor and his research team disputed claims by policymakers who say electrical barriers are an effective means of preventing the fish from entering lake waters, among other things. The most notable of those electrical barriers operates in rivers near Chicago.

MICHIGAN

Food cart provides fast food alternative

Last week, Brennan Woods had a meal unlike anything he ever has had before — hand-squeezed sage lemonade, a burger made with tall grass beef, caramelized red onions, balsamic vinegar, organic greens, fontina cheese on foccacia bread — and he got it from a trailer. Woods, an MSU alumnus, first heard about Trailer Park’d “Slow” Fast Food, a nomadic local food trailer based in Lansing, from friends and was encouraged to try it. “It was pretty packed when I went there — there was a long line,” he said.

MSU

Colleagues remember late professor

Dave Closs still remembers when he first met Don Bowersox. Closs was an MSU undergraduate student when he started working with Bowersox on computer simulation games for conferences decades ago. Closs and many others in the academic community were struck by the death of the 79-year-old Bowersox at his Traverse City, Mich., summer home on Monday.

MICHIGAN

(SCENE) Metrospace to open social media exhibit

On Friday, an exhibit chronicling the effects of social networking in today’s society will begin its run at (SCENE) Metrospace, 110 Charles St. The exhibition, titled “Unfriended,” will be open through August 21 and features ten artists from both local and national scenes.

MSU

MSU Extension, southeast Michigan airports pursue clean fuels

MSU Extension is partnering with the Wayne County Airport Authority, or WCAA, to grow bioenergy crops to promote alternative fuels in aviation. Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport and Willow Run Airport have begun growing, harvesting and processing biofuels to explore greener options for aviation fuel.

Birtteny Dee ·
MICHIGAN

Bailey Community Association hosts 37th ice cream social

Children, ukulele players and a clown came together in East Lansing Wednesday evening to participate in the 37th annual Bailey Neighborhood Ice Cream Social Wednesday at the Orchard Street Pump House, 368 Orchard St. The event is sponsored by the Bailey Community Association and the Orchard Street Pump House board.

MICHIGAN

Lansing doctors plan new cancer center

A group of Lansing area doctors are planning to build a facility geared to offer new options for cancer patients in the area. The affiliated physicians and businesses — collectively named Compass Health Care — are amid securing approval to open an outpatient cancer treatment center and will be ready to serve patients by late 2012 or early 2013, said Joe Wald, a spokesman for the physicians and an instructor in the MSU College of Communication Arts and Sciences.

MSU

University researchers create all-in-one microwavable pie à la mode

For Hunter Gartner and his teammates, creating Minute Escape, a pie à la mode dish, was not as easy as pie. Minute Escape is an all-in-one apple pie and custard ice cream dessert prepared in one minute by microwaving it. Gartner, a recent graduate, used patent-pending technology he designed to heat the pie up while keeping the ice cream portion of the product frozen. “It’s an interesting, intriguing concept to think that you can throw ice cream into the microwave and that it will be kept frozen,” alumna and team member Rebecca Watts said. The product was created to compete in the Institute of Food Technologists’, or IFT, National Product Development competition. IFT is a nonprofit scientific society whose members are professionals engaged in food science and technology. One of the main purposes of the competition is to afford food industry representatives the opportunity to spot talented students for potential employment, IFT’s director of media relations Mindy Weinstein said in an email. Minute Escape took first place out of six finalists in the competition, which took place in New Orleans June 11-14. “Finding out that we won, there was a huge sense of pride,” Watts said.

MSU

MSU smartphone app set for release

Students interested in learning more about the environment surrounding them have something to look forward to in coming weeks when a smartphone application that turns MSU into a virtual museum will be released. The application, titled msu.seum, was developed for both Android and iPhone operating systems and will allow users to explore the history and archeology of areas on campus.