In the history of video games, few franchises have been around as long as the Super Mario series. Few have been as influential. For a series that not only saved the American video game industry from extinction, but codified its genre twice (Super Mario Bros. for side-scrolling and Super Mario 64 for 3D platformers), any new game in the series will have a lot to live up to. New Super Mario Bros. Wii (NSMBW), Nintendo’s latest entry in the series seems to succeed in just that… mostly.
First things first: NSMBW is a sequel of sorts to New Super Mario Bros. on the DS. The older game was praised when it was released as a return to the classic Mario side-scrolling that made the series famous. NSMBW contains much of the same feel, but adds quite a few new elements to the gameplay. For example, in addition to the venerable Fire Flower, which allows Mario to shoot fireballs to instantly defeat most of his enemies, Mario can now find and use the Ice Flower, which he can use to freeze enemies, the Penguin Suit, which allows better control on ice and in water, and the Propeller Suit, which enables the player to send Mario spinning upwards by shaking the Wii remote. NSMBW also adds some new stage elements, like large spinning platforms and view-obstructing clouds, that weren’t present in the DS game.
Another much-talked-about feature is the introduction of cooperative multiplayer. For the first time, multiple players can complete a stage at the same time. Player 2 takes control of Luigi, while Players 3 and 4 control blue and yellow Toads (little people wearing mushroom clothing). Although this can be fun for patient players, or for an experienced player to show another the ropes, the game is clearly designed as a single-player experience, and it shows.
Also, this game is hard. Even experienced players will likely have a tough time making it through a few of the stages, particularly the later ones. To help alleviate this, Nintendo included the controversial “Super Guide” feature. After failing to complete a stage eight times, a green block will appear at the beginning of the stage. Hitting the block will show a video of Luigi playing through the stage. If the video is watched to the end, the player will have the option to skip the stage. Although this has been controversial, it should be noted that the feature is completely optional, and that a level “skipped” can be visually distinguished from a level properly cleared.
So, is this game worth the $50 price tag? For the old Mario crowd, it is clearly a must-buy. For others, it depends. While the game is sheer platforming gold, a lot of it is recycled. Much of the music and almost all of the graphics are simply the cleaned-up DS New Super Mario Bros. music and graphics. The music that isn’t carried over from the DS is almost all remixes of older Mario tunes. While this isn’t necessarily a bad thing–hearing the old airship music from Super Mario Bros. 3 is just plain awesome–it does result in a bit of déja vu. A few other things could have been improved as well–the game allows the player to carry an inventory of power-ups to use on the world map, but the only mini-game to get those items gets old really fast. Mixing it up with a couple different mini-games would have been a big improvement. Ultimately, though the game is good enough that it’s worth a try from anyone, it has enough flaws that for anyone besides a Nintendo fanboy, there is no reason to feel bad about missing it.

Facebook has become one of the most popular and influential mediums for social networking in the world. It is no doubt a powerful and convenient social tool, giving you easy access to friends all over, but can it be used for business purposes just as efficiently? Creating an advertisement or event on Facebook is easy – anyone can do it. All it takes is a date, a place, and a description of the event. You can invite anyone if you’re friends on Facebook. People who are invited can respond online with a “Will be attending,” “May be attending,” or “Not attending.” Many organizations on campus have turned to Facebook to advertise events. The question: is this new wave of advertising efficient? And will student organizations continue to use it?
Marc Starnes says no. Marc is part of several groups on campus including Sigma Tau Gamma fraternity, USG, and Circle K International. He has found that Facebook has neither helped nor hindered the attendance of advertised events. “We’ve advertised rushes and meetings on Facebook, and I have found that there is no increase of people there.” For an annual fraternity charity event, the pancake breakfast and Grundy Run, Marc set up a Facebook event and advertisements.
Last year the event was not advertised via Facebook. The difference: none. “There was no difference in attendance between this year and last year. Part of the problem is that there is no personality involved, and a lot of people don’t have Facebook – and those who do might not even check it very often.”
Brittany Ondraka agrees with Marc. Brittany is a member of Mu Beta Psi music fraternity, pep band, and Superior Winds. “We’ve advertised events on Facebook, and I don’t feel like too many people actually look very closely at the events they get invited to. I know that sometimes I see one and just reply to it without really reading through it.” Brittany says that she still likes to have the events on Facebook as a reference for people regarding dates and times, but that face-to-face communication is the best recruitment tool. “You really just have to get out there and talk to people, and put up posters. People like it when you invite them personally.”
It seems that Facebook has the advantage of being a quick reference, but when it comes to increasing attendance, word of mouth is the best method.

Dear Sassy,
I care for my boyfriend very much, but he has some issues. He gets very upset over miniscule things. He’ll get ridiculously jealous one moment and then he’ll suddenly get depressed. Every time I call him out on his out-of-control mood changes and anger issues, he blames his depression that, he says, runs in his family. He’ll then get impatient with me for not understanding his “condition”. I care for him, but I’m getting tired of riding his emotional roller coaster. What do I do?
Sincerely,
Languished lover

Read the full story

Just about every student in the world awaits the end of classes on a Friday with anxious anticipation. After a long week full of work and stress most students look forward to a relaxing weekend.
Here at Michigan Tech, one of the best ways to relax is to get out and enjoy one of the many activities the Keweenaw Peninsula offers, such as skiing, camping, hiking, or my personal favorite, snowmobiling.
The Upper Peninsula is renowned for its extensive network of snowmobile trails and quality of riding. Avid snowmobilers come from all over the Midwest to ride across the UP. Local snowmobile clubs receive money from the state government to maintain and groom the trails in their areas, which keep them in excellent condition. As long as there is snow on the ground there will be numerous snowmobiles out and about across the UP and in the Keweenaw.
Last Saturday after a particularly stressful week I went out riding with some friends. We left around noon from Michigan Tech’s own snowmobile parking lot, which is located right next to Lot 10. We hit the trail through Houghton, went under the bridge, and began what was to be a wonderful ride. A few hours later we ended up in Copper Harbor and watched the Vintage Snowmobile Drag Races that were taking place. After we ate lunch we headed back to campus, arriving shortly after dark. Snowmobiling in the Keweenaw allows you to visit some spectacular places that otherwise you would not be able to reach in the winter. Roads that are not plowed are pretty much off limits to those with regular vehicles, whereas an unplowed road with two feet of snow is perfect for a snowmobile. For example Brockway Mountain, with its view of Copper Harbor and Lake Superior, is closed during the winter but you can reach the top with a snowmobile! As long as you dress warm Snowmobiling is a fun and entertaining way to relax.
Long rides clear your mind and allow you to see the Keweenaw in its winter state. Even if you are not up to a long ride, a quick twenty-mile loop can still be a good way to escape the college life for a while. The one thing about snowmobiling is that it can get to be an expensive sport. New sleds can cost up to $8,000 nowadays and a lot of college students cannot afford one! Luckily, sleds that are taken care of can last a long time, like the vintage sleds raced in Copper Harbor last weekend, and many students can buy used snowmobiles that are still in good condition.
If school is hitting you hard and you need one sure way to relax on a weekend, try to get out snowmobiling before the snow melts! It is a great way to relax and have fun with your friends. If you do not know anyone that owns a sled ask around, somebody will surely let you go with them. Who knows, you might even pass me on the trail!

Marquette, MI – On a bright and sunny Sunday morning at 10:37 a.m., Ryan Anderson from Roy, Minn., came across the finish line to get the win for the UP 200. Anderson has been handling dogs since he was only five years old and started racing when he turned 12. Anderson, a previous competitor of the UP 200, took home his first win with a total time of 39 hours and 27 minutes.
This annual dog sledding event invaded Marquette this past weekend as 33 mushers competed for this year’s title. This approximately 240-mile race from Marquette to Grand Marais and back always throws its twists and turns into the competition and is a qualifier for the famous Alaska Iditarod. This year, the sun was the main enemy. Clear skies with mid 30s during the day and single digits at night changed how the mushers played out the course. To keep the dogs from overheating, most switched to running at night and resting during the day.
With the sunny days and cold nights, the trail continually changed from a very fast course to a slushy and difficult one. However, with most mushers using the fast track at night, they averaged 10 MPH overall on the course. Of the original 33 mushers who began, 23 completed the journey coming in as late as 8 p.m.
Most mushers made it past the finish line before they were predicted to due to the fast morning track as Sunday morning’s sun and 37 degree weather changed the course once again.
The original track used when the UP 200 began in 1988 was actually a lot shorter then the current 240-mile course. The roughly 89-mile course from Gwinn to Munising, is still completed during the UP 200, known as the Midnight Run. This year’s winner was Joann Fortier from Gaylord, Mich., who just happened to also draw bib #1 for the competition.
The event closed out this year with a breakfast awards banquette Monday morning at the Marquette Holiday Inn, the headquarters for the UP 200 event.
With breakfast off their mind, these mushers can now look forward to the first annual CopperDog 150, which will be held in Calumet, Mich., on March 12. This inaugural event brings a fun challenge, as the teams will start in downtown Calumet, head over to Gay, then up to Copper Harbor and back to Calumet.

Read the full story

Omicron Delta Kappa (ODK) is an honor society that has been present on MTU campus for several years. However, the leadership of ODK, including its’ president and members of the executive board, are all new and looking for fresh and innovative ways to inspire leadership on-campus. While Leadership Week isn’t new, it has been an ODK tradition for many years; the ideas and motivation for the events included a fresh take on what kind of activities will spark leadership in students.
“Last year Leadership Week was a couple of lectures,” says Tim Hammond, ODK’s new president. “We’re trying to incorporate new ideas and increase [Leadership Week’s] presence on-campus where it’s a yearly event that people know about. We want it to be like events such as Stand-a-thon where people know about it every year.” One way the ODK members planned on doing that was by making the events interactive and increasing the diversity of the events themselves.
“ODK has five main areas,” says Hammond, “Creative and Performing Arts, Service, Scholarship, Athletics, and Speech and Media so we catered the events to these five things.” Each of the days had a theme and the events reflected one of the five areas.
Students enjoyed an interactive workshop on Monday, reflecting the importance of Creative and Performing Arts, from Dr. Held, Chair of Creative and Performing Arts.
On Tuesday, attendees of the “Campus Connections to Leadership!” Head from Jess Turuc, Assistant Director of Student Activities for Greek Life and Leadership, who highlighted many groups and organizations on-campus that students can join to become more active. On Wednesday, the cats and dogs at the Copper Country Humane Society enjoyed a visit and a walk or a pet from the ODK future-leaders to explore the Service aspect of leadership. Also on Wednesday, speaker Terry Beam, a professional from “Motor City Connect” detailed the importance of networking to students looking for a fulfilling career in “Networking to Your Next Job Now!” The final day, Thursday, is devoted to the area of Athletics and ODK collaborated with OAP (another aspect of leadership!) to bring a challenge course to DHH for students looking to take a break from studies and challenge their leadership abilities.
ODK members are contacted based on high GPA marks through letter sent out when they reach Junior/Senior status. The Honor Society then works to promote leadership on-campus and help their members network for jobs after college. Sometimes, admits Hammond, students join “because it looks good on a resume” but “just joining isn’t enough to make you a leader,” reminds Hammond. “We are working on building an internal structure for our members to work on their leadership skills.”
One of the ways to do that: collaborate with other leadership opportunities on-campus. One of the hallmarks of the organization that sets ODK apart is their collaborative approach to building events like Leadership Week. Many of the events were sponsored or organized with another campus organization such as Career Services, Creative and Performing Arts Department, and the Outdoor Adventure Program.
The next step for ODK involves setting up a forum for discussing student issues on-campus. “If there’s something you want to see change or a voice that you think needs to be heard—Join in!” says Hammond. “We can talk about it and try to find a solution together.” Look for more on this later, since right now ODK is ready to enjoy the after-glow of their Leadership Week
If you are interested in ODK or Leadership Week events please contact Tim Hammond at tghammon@mtu.edu

Genny Gierke and her family had begun a program a few years ago that is dedicated towards hosting students from abroad. The program, known as the Labo International Exchange (LIE), is a student exchange course that gives incoming Japanese students the opportunity to learn more about American culture, language, and customs. The program is run through the Michigan State University (MSU) Extension.
Courses are conducted right in the family household in Chassell where students are provided with both food and shelter. The first Japanese student was given the chance to experience a one-month course in American culture and, according to the Gierke family, the experience worked out very well. Students from ages three to 18 are allowed to be admitted into the program to gain their knowledge and understanding of America.
The first student enjoyed her experiences with the family and the community. “It’s always really fun. The cultural differences are always neat to see,” she commented.
Hosting foreign exchange students has also given the family the opportunity to establish a long lasting friendship and travel to Japan at discounted rates. Gierke recently visited the country to see one of her previous students and said she really enjoyed having the chance to experience cultural differences in Japan. “It was really neat to see how our culture fit into Japanese life there.”
Students from Japan who were previous hosts of the Gierke family also came to visit. “I always really enjoyed it,” explains Gierke of her experiences. “It’s just like having a friend come visit for a while because you get to know the person so well, and you get to come see them and see them grow.”
Gierke’s family began the program when she was still in high school. Now a second year student at Michigan Tech, Gierke still enjoys aiding and tutoring foreign students who come to her home.
LIE hosts over 1,000 Japanese students in America every summer. Students are assigned to families with children of the same sex and age. Any family is eligible to sign up and become a host family. During stay, students are secured with full accident and health insurance. Students are to come with their own spending money while their hosts provide them with a three-day meal, a bed and room, and transportation.
Student exchange hosting programs are also held throughout the country by the Center for Cultural Interchange (CCI). Similar to LIE, CCI offers over 1000 exchange students to families with programs that range from a few weeks to 10 months. The major difference between the two would account for the broad range of foreign exchange students covered in CCI whereas LIE is limited to Japanese students. CCI does not compensate for families who take part in such a program. However, deductions of $50 per month are made on their tax returns for charitable work.
The state of Michigan is currently attempting to host 53 students according to 4-H Program Associate Carol Kreher. “In the past, we have one or two families. We like to have families with at least one youth around ages 12 to 18,” says Kreher.
For more information, email Carol Kreher at kreher@msu.edu or call the MSU Extension office at 482-5830. To learn more about the Labo International Exchange and/or the Center for Cultural Interchange, visit labo-exchange.com or cci-exchange.com.

Nick Jr.’s Emmy nominated show Yo Gabba Gabba! will be returning for its third season on Mar. 8th at 10:30 am. The show, which has a following of toddlers, teens, and adults alike, has been a huge success for Nick Jr. Yo Gabba Gabba! is rich in the arts and makes the imagination work. The show takes place in a fictional world called Gabbaland, following the daily adventures of characters Muno, Foofa, Brobee, Toodee, and Plex. Hosted by a character named DJ Lance Rock, the show features retro style graphics and costumes, and catchy tunes that teach kids life lessons about sharing, sleeping, eating healthfully, and being nice to everyone.
The show’s appeal to families is apparent: it gets kids off the couch and involved in the show, dancing and imagining. A regular segment on the show, called Dancey Dance Time, teaches kids how to do silly dances like the Jumpin’ Jellyfish and the Peanut Butter Stomp. Yo Gabba Gabba! introduces kids to different dancing styles and musical instruments.
Another segment, called The Super Music Friends Show, features well known artists playing a concert for their Gabbaland friends. Yo Gabba Gabba! also has a drawing segment, where artist Mark Mothersbaugh teaches kids how to draw.
Guest stars on Yo Gabba Gabba! have included Mya, The Roots, Of Montreal, Elijah Wood, Biz Markie, The Saltines, MGMT, and many more. The third season promises to entertain – look for stars like Weird Al, Anthony Bourdain, Weezer, Devo, Flaming Lips, and Mos Def.

On Saturday, February 20, The Keweenaw Symphony Orchestra performed their third concert of the season, titled “A Night at the Opera.” In addition to the KSO, the performance also featured Lara Neves as mezzo-soprano.
The performance began with the overture from Franz von Suppé’s Poet and Peasant. Although von Suppé wrote several works in the course of his career, only this and one other piece–the overture from Light Cavalry–are still commonly performed. Poet and Peasant Overture is notable for the contrast created by its sudden shifts in style and tone.
After introducing himself, KSO conductor Joel Neves then moved on the next piece, Otello, Act IV by Giuseppe Verdi, with Ms. Neves singing the aria, and supertitles in the back of the stage as well as notes in the program providing an English translation for the lyrics. Dr. Neves remarked on the irony of conducting his wife in this work: based on William Shakespeare’s Othello, Act IV concerns Othello’s wife Desdemona, who knows that her husband (incorrectly) suspects her of infidelity and plans to kill her. Otello is notable because, while most great works are written before the composer turn 53, Verdi wrote Otello at the age of 74, an age which it was considered impressive simply to live to at the time. It is now often considered Verdi’s greatest masterpiece.
After a short intermission, the KSO returned to play Georges Bizet’s Carmen Suite No. 1 and 2. The suites contain the most popular pieces from the opera of the same name, including the very well known Les Toréadors and Habañera. The suites are often considered to be a sort of “greatest hits” collection for Bizet. Since most sets of composers’ greatest works are drawn from several different greater works, that all of Bizet’s greatest masterpieces are from the same opera shows the greatness of that opera. Indeed, Carmen has long been one of the most performed operas. Ms. Neves again sang the original French arias for two of the works: Habañera and Gypsy Song, again with program notes and supertitles providing English translations.
The KSO will return for one more performance this season. The Bernstein Beat, featuring the works of Leonard Bernstein, and will feature his daughter Jamie as narrator. It will also feature some of the most technically difficult music the KSO has worked on all season, and as such it has already begun preparing for the concert. It will be performed on April 17.