In This Issue

Features 2Sydney Norris 3Korey Krumm 5 Entertainment 6Digger Infographic 8Sports 9The Back Page 12

Editor’s Commentary: A Fond Farewell

Adam M. Hawks

January 2014 Montana Tech’s Student Run Newspaper

Jessica Tonkin

The Technocrat 1300 W. Park St. Butte, MT 59701

Contact phone: 406-496-4241

email: technocrat@mtech.edu

The Montana Tech Technocrat is the voice of the student body on campus. The newspaper is written for everyone on campus to help influence their day to day lives. Gandhi said “to be the change you wish to see in the world.” For Montana Tech, that instrument of change is the Technocrat. But change inevitably happens in the world, for better or worse.

The goal of every editor at the Technocrat is to grow the paper. I started at the Technocrat in 2008 with Stephanie Gruss as the Editor-in-Chief. She worked tire-lessly to take the newspaper online. Her efforts did not come to fruition. However, she did create a handbook for future editors that followed her.

Darcie and I had the privilege of working with Aaron Briggs. Aaron changed the format of the newspa-per to the magazine styled layout in your hands now. He brought the Technocrat online with a website and even connected the newspaper to social networks.

The final editor I will ever work for is Darcie Ev-ans. Darcie’s efforts in her short time as editor ushered in a new era of student participation and a new way of distributing that participation. She reconnected the Technocrat and the Montana Tech Athletic Department, and expanding our coverage of Oredigger athletics. She hired Ali Almeshaal as a videographer to film vari-ous student activities on campus. And finally we have a group of talented writers including: Jennifer Grant, Jes-sica Tonkin, Kirstie McPherson, and myself.

There are many claims out there that suggest today’s generation has been dumbed down because of the vast amount of time spent on social media sites including Facebook and Twitter. But a new study con-ducted now argues that social media is actually mak-ing us smarter. Canadian newspaper, the Globe and Mail, claims that social media—especially Twitter—is making us more literate than ever before.

There is powerful evidence that all this time spent texting and tweeting is helping to make young people write and to think better compared to previ-ous generations. Experts have warned that excessive online activity has zombified us and has destroyed our ability to communicate clearly. We use LOL-talk and emoticons to express ourselves, but this mixture of fun status updates, hard news is opening us up to mas-sive amounts of information, new ideas, opinions, and new words on a daily basis. The fact is, this generation is writing more than any generation ever before.

MontanaTechnocrat.comVOL 34 Issue No. 5

Continued on page 2.Continued on page 2.

Is Social Media Making us Smarter?

Features2

The study, as reported by Globe and Mail, states that a freshman paper written in 1917 was on average only 162 words long and the majority of these papers were personal narratives. Yet, by 2006, the average freshman paper, increased to 1,038 words and are much more complex with students using re-searched arguments and better evidence to back up their points.

Years ago, the only writing students engaged in was in the classroom. But times have changed and now as much as 40 percent of all writing is done out-side the classroom. So whether you are texting, tweet-ing, or adding your comment to a status update, you are actually becoming a better, faster thinker, as well as improving your writing and critical thinking skills.

We made it through the fall semester of school and enjoyed a nice long winter break. The first semes-ter can fly by so quickly that it is often over before we know it. Returning to college for the second semester can be a whole new experience from the first semes-ter. The first semester takes some time to adjust to life on campus. But by the second semester, you’ve got-ten into the groove of things, and know what to expect (usually).

Yet, coming back to school after a relaxing holiday can be difficult. After plenty of time spent with family and relatives, as well as old friends, over the holidays, some of you may not be looking forward to coming back to school.

Take advantage of confidence gained from fall semester and learn from your experiences.

For example, do you need to change your room-mate? After spending a whole semester with your room-

Farewell cont.

Jessica Tonkin

Is Social Media Making us Smarter? cont. In late November 2013, Darcie Evans re-

signed as Editor-in-Chief of the Technocrat. She will remain on as assistant editor to assist me with the day to day operations of the newspaper. Being in charge of a high profile position has its challenges, whether it is the chair of the Student Activities Com-mittee, being the Associated Student Body President of Montana Tech, or being Editor-in-Chief of the Mon-tana Tech Technocrat, the challenges are often very difficult to manage at a difficult campus.

I cannot give enough praise to the efforts of Darcie Evans. Her contributions to the newspaper are innumerable. Darcie started as a Staff Writer working under the previous Editor, Aaron Briggs. Her writing worked to connect the readers to people who experienced extraordinary adventures.

Darcie’s writing was even published in the Montana Standard in May of 2012. Darcie told the amazing tale of John “Chic” Sconfienza. Now an 82 year old man, Sconfienza went from a ranch hand to buying exotic European sports cars and racing them on the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah. In 1961, Sconfienza clocked his Aston Martin at 131 miles per hour on the salt flats. Her writing described that an ordinary person can have extraordinary adventures, and we all have amazing tales waiting to be told.

I cannot be grateful enough to have had the privilege of working with one of Montana Tech’s greatest editors and writers the staff has ever had. She elevated the newspaper to a higher level and expected the best of the writing staff.

“The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give it away.”

Pablo Picasso’s quote best describes the ef-forts made by Darcie Evans in her brief tenure in the role of editor and as a talented writer. I now take the reins and become the editor with the goal of elevat-ing the newspaper to even greater heights. I now have very large shoes to fill in a short amount of time.

Second Semester

Continued on page 4.

Features3

Sydney NorrisThe Angelic Assassin

I first met Sydney Norris as she was leaving her class to watch the finale of the bed races. Her Oredigger volleyball coach, Brian Solomon, had been there for about 30 minutes hoping for a tragic accident, like in 2010, the one I was responsible for with the nurses. I’m nervous now because I be-lieve the nurses are still seeking damages, retribu-tion, and here is Sydney Norris, the star volleyball striker is now in the nursing department and walk-ing towards me at the bottom of the hill. “Has anyone crashed?” said Sydney. I laughed out loud, because 30 minutes ago, Coach Solomon said the exact same thing. The two have formed a bond when he recruited her at a Las Vegas tournament when she was a high school student at Governor John R. Rogers in Puy-allup, Washington. Coach Solomon is a “players” coach compared to other high-strung coaches at other schools. Sydney said that the relationship between Solomon and her is a welcome change to other high-strung coaches in her past. “I always say he’s awkward, and he says I’m awkward,” said Norris. “We mesh pretty well. He would watch every game; this is where I knew he was serious about recruiting me.” Two months later, I met Sydney at the Coffee Mill for an interview. Standing 5’9”, you can’t miss the bronze haired woman wearing #6 for the Lady Orediggers. She is always on the court, serving, spiking, or throwing her body on the court for pre-cious second chances to win a valuable point. At the end of games she’s signing autographs or pos-ing for pictures with her younger fans who love the sport as much as she does.Sydney believed her sophomore season went better than her freshman season. Her freshman season, she was sidelined with a microfracture that affected her conditioning. Even though her injury hasn’t healed, the star striker is on the court for entire games. When Coach Solomon took her out of the game for a breather, she returned a minute later to give her team the much needed boost.

“I had to take about five months off and had two with the boot,” said Norris. “I had to work out so hard just to be in shape for the upcoming season.” Even though the season just ended for the Lady Orediggers with a defeat at the hands of Lewis and Clark State College in the Frontier Confer-ence Tournament, Sydney gets a brief break before spring practice starts the preparation for the 2014 season. This means that Sydney will only enjoy a brief Thanksgiving break with family and also very little time to enjoy the foods she loves, specifically ice cream and cheese. Additionally, she will spend more time with the friends she has neglected due to the demands of volleyball. With eight freshmen on the squad, Sydney became a leader on a young squad with eight fresh-men. “I gained more confidence this year,” said Nor-ris. “I am playing the role of a junior or senior with so many freshmen on the team.” Injuries in volleyball are always a threat to a player’s season. Sydney has to battle constant nagging injuries on the knees, elbows, or ankles throughout the season. Injuries aren’t the only risk that a player faces on the court, but many of their battles come from within their mind. “If you make one mistake, you have to get over it and move on to the next play,” said Norris. “When you do make a mistake, it is hard not to be negative. You have to be positive, forget about it, and com-pletely move on. Being older, and if I’m negative and my attitude is down, the freshmen do look up to me, even though I’m only a year older, they do look up to me, and my attitude can affect their attitude.” Make no mistake about Sydney Norris, her posi-tive mental attitude doesn’t mean she is friendly to the other team.

Continued on page 4.

Adam M. Hawks

Photo by: Adam M. Hawks

Sydney often will jump 1 to 2 feet in the air to clear the 7 foot net to spike the volleyball, with the intention of knocking the leather off the vol-leyball. She mentions that she can’t even play board games. Her competitiveness started within her family and is now in her younger brother who is also an athlete like her. Her face lights up with pride as she tells me he was trying out for the high school varsity basketball team. Sydney always wanted to be a doctor grow-ing up. She loves helping people in need and isn’t afraid of imminent danger as demonstrated by her play on the court. Now at Montana Tech, she’s studying Nursing and is preparing for her entrance exam into the Nursing Department.“In high school I took all the medical classes, I got my medical honor corps when I graduated,” said Norris. We end the interview talking about how the season ended her family and her favorite food, ice cream. Sydney Norris may be a star for the Lady Orediggers, never showing signs of fatigue, and always relentless towards opponents, but she is going to be a superstar when her career ends, helping those who need the most vital care necessary. What started off as a tournament in Las Vegas ended up giving Montana Tech a charming assassin on the volleyball court that looks to send volleyballs and other players into agony, but humanity gains a loving person who will end up saving countless loved ones through-out her lifetime.

4

Sydney Norris cont. mates, you now know if you are compatible or not. Do you study well together? Do you get along? Are you respectful to each other?

It’s okay not to be best friends with your room-mate. The important thing is to respect each other and you should be able to live together peacefully. However, some people simply don’t work well togeth-er no matter how hard they try. Remember, it’s okay to get a new roommate if you need to.

Another thing to think about is how well your study habits worked for you during the first semester. Some of you may not have had a problem studying during the fall semester. However, some of you need to change your study habits. This is the time to get a fresh start. Take advantage of the Learning Center in Engineering Hall right away. Additionally, there are tutors available in the computer lab located in the Museum Building. Even studying in the library rather than at home or in your dorm room is beneficial.

Remember not to procrastinate too much and try to get a head start on those bigger assignments that lie ahead. But keep in mind that not everything can be done in a day. Also set aside some personal time for yourself. College should be a fun experience.

This is a great time to get involved on campus and continue to make connections. Join a club or get a job on campus. For example, if you’re good in math or chemistry, you may want to work in the learning center. There are many jobs on campus offered to students. You can apply to work in the library or even with the Technocrat.

Finally, the most important thing to remem-ber this semester is that even though it is called the spring semester, it is still winter time in good old Butte. The weather still requires a warm coat and good boots or shoes. As you head to your class, don’t forget to grab your gloves.

Second Semester cont.

Features

5

Korey Krumm

Adam M. Hawks

For one athlete, it is the end of her workout on the treadmill. With only a few moments left, another person gets on the adjacent treadmill and begins their workout. Even though the workout is supposed to be over, she continues to run, determined to prove that she is the better athlete. For her it’s about finding her limits. After 12 minutes, the person steps off the treadmill to allow an exhausted Korey Krumm to finish her workout session on the treadmill. The total time on the treadmill was 30 minutes.

“I was about dead,” said Krumm. “I increased my speed and was running and running. I didn’t know them, but I was running and running.”

That same competitive adrenaline that she finds during her workouts also moves over to the vol-leyball court.

“It comes with the territory,” said Krumm. “I love the feeling right before a game. Sometimes my hands go numb because I’ve got so much adrena-line.”

The first team Frontier Conference junior from Anaconda is currently finishing her associates in nursing. Since the second grade, Krumm has been competitive in basketball, volleyball, and softball. In the fifth grade, Krumm was travelling up and down the west coast to participate in tournaments. The competitiveness doesn’t end with just Korey Krumm, but it also to her younger brother, Kelley.

“We’re competitive with each other in a good way,” said Krumm. “I’m four years older than him. So I’ve been a lot bigger than him. He finally began to grow. “

Korey challenged her brother, Kelley, to a race two years ago in the summertime. Kelley refused be-cause he didn’t feel that he couldn’t win. For Kelley, the race was a losing proposition, because if he lost to his sister, he’d face eternal ridicule. If he won, he just beat up on his sister.

Korey finally gets her brother to race her. With their mother standing at the finish line, the two race each other. Korey is smoked by her younger brother. Refusing to be defeated, she promptly challenges Kelley to a basketball game.

The result is the same, and a dejected Korey realizes that her brother is now the better athlete.

The first team Frontier Conference accolades also means there is pressure on Krumm to be the leader of the team. With eight freshmen on the team, Krumm wanted the season to go better, and have a better record, but is very pleased with the result con-sidering the inexperience of the freshmen.

“They don’t really know Brian’s [Solomon] coaching style,” said Krumm. “I felt that it went really well. Our freshmen are really athletic and competi-tive. They’re really good people. We were in a lot of games that we didn’t win, a lot of the time that was due to inexperience.”

Krumm also finds herself standing on the front line of defense. Her competitive spirit allows her to have a chance against girls that are physi-cally stronger or taller than the junior nursing student. Some games she finds herself being worn down both physically and mentally, but she works to keep a positive mental attitude on the floor.

“It’s hard when you’re not playing as well as you want,” said Krumm. “I focus on what Brian [Solo-mon] wants us to do. I try to focus on my fundamen-tals and the things I can control. I try to be better than who is across the net from me.”

Throughtout the interview, Krumm empha-sized her competitiveness, and after spending an hour with her, it’s easy to see that Korey Krumm lives for the challenge. She is under constant pressure with the threat of high demands of the nursing pro-gram at Montana Tech, the challenges of being the eldest player on a young volleyball team, and the de-termination to be the best player on the court. Mon-tana Tech’s pressure and demands of Korey Krumm just forces her to work harder to be the best.

The Woman with no Limits

Features

Photo by: Adam M. Hawks

Enter tainment Single with a DogKirstie McPherson

Traveling with Strangers

Sometimes it’s best to ignore the people around you. Other times it could be worthwhile to strike up a conversation. Every once in a while it makes for a great story. Every Thanksgiving I fly home to Colorado. This trip is usually a drag with a few short connecting flights and an extremely long layover. The last trip however, was a whole new experience. I left my house at 5am dreary eyed and grouchy, the idea of being stuck in airports all day made my head hurt and my eyes droop. The most exciting part of any plane ride is the anticipation of who will be sitting next to you; so I pa-tiently waited. I scoped it out pretty well in the terminal and knew I didn’t want to sit with the guy who had the leather shoes and the wandering eyes. For sure didn’t want to sit next to any of the men that had wom-en traveling with them, they always seemed to cause problems. I sat there in my normal seat, 10A, towards the back of the plane; there were several people that went past me, a woman with a baby, a guy around my age in a military uniform, and an elderly man smiled at me and plopped down. He seemed nice enough but I was hoping for the guy who looked like the super model behind him was headed my way. It was quiet for a while as I fiddled with ran-dom applications on my phone and wrote a couple of things on my notepad. He turned to me and intro-duced himself as Ben, and he was traveling to see his daughter in Kansas with his son and granddaughter. It took about ten minutes for me to know his whole life story, the laughs and sadness that comes along with a life lived. It was good to listen, but then the ques-tions about me started. I told him the simple stuff, I was from Colorado, I am going to school, and told him about Montana Tech, yatta, yatta, yatta. Out of nowhere he tells me I would be perfect for his son, who happened to be sitting behind us with his 12 year old daughter. I smiled and didn’t really know what to do beyond smiling. His son was 38 years old, almost twice the age of me, and I was closer to his daughter in age than him. Ben was on a roll though, he was tell-ing me about his son and I’m fairly certain he had our wedding planned out in his head.

6

When we were unloading off the plane in Salt Lake I figured I could sneak off and head off to the next gate without being really noticed by the family. I was wrong. Ben had a hold of my arm all the way through the plane and down the ramp and into the airport. The next thing I know I was being led to his son and granddaughter. Ben introduced us and then began giving his son all of my credentials. I’m not sure who was more uncomfortable me or the son, or maybe the daughter who couldn’t quite figure out what I was doing there. I said my goodbyes and headed off to get a coffee while listening to the scolding that Ben got from his son about always trying to set him up. I thought that would be the last I saw of them but as it turns out they had the same travel plans as me, including picking the same seating arrangement…

Continued on page 7.

Enter tainment 7

Time: 7:30 PM Place: Library Auditorium

Reel Deal Movie Theater

Magicians will always be Weird

Remember when you were a kid and your par-ents took you to that magic show you saw posters of for weeks? I never trusted those magicians. They pull quarters out of your ears and guess your num-ber and know the correct card that you grabbed out of the stack. Now that I’m older and the tricks have gotten more intense such as sawing a lady in half. I re-ally don’t trust them. On my flight from Salt Lake to Grand Junction, I found myself sitting next to a twenty-something French-born Spaniard magician that lives in Los Angeles. He was going to Colo-rado to visit his sister and brother-in-law at their ranch in Rifle, close to my family’s ranch. He was all “cowboy’d up” (as he called it) with the big white Stetson hat, the strange boots that could pass for riding a Shetland pony, and a silk scarf with a ban-dana print on it. Not to mention he also wore skinny jeans. He was comical and fairly charismatic.

He told me stories of growing up in Europe and what it was like to live in LA and how he was making a living tricking people. He said he wasn’t the normal magician that does the quarters and the never ending scarves out of the sleeves. He does more of the optical illusion tricks and makes his money booking shows around the area. I still didn’t trust a magician. It just goes to show you the random people you can meet by chance and how they some-times can give you a different outlook on the people. However, this trip was not like that, and I did not learn anything new about myself or about magicians. I still do not trust them.

Single with a Dog cont.

Enter tainment 8

DIGGER PARKING

2013 FALL ENROLLMENT

Tech students were asked: Did you purchase a parking decal?

Average commute timefor Montana residents

In comparison: Boston University only 2% drive to school

NORTH CAMPUS SOUTH CAMPUS

28%72%

NOYES

10=Excellent 0=Poor

TECH STUDENTS DRIVE to school

OF81%

17.7 minutes

2,010 913

Time it takes to park at TECH

(College Prowler, 2012)(U.S. Census Bureau, 2010)

 

Percentage of Students

Immediately 30%

2 minutes 17%

4 minutes 20%

6 minutes 19%

8 minutes 10%

Over 10 minutes 10% TECH

DIGGER PARKING Darcie Evans

Diggers unable to Avenge Home Opener

Adam M. Hawks

Spor ts9

Digger offense unable to perform another miracle in nail-biting defeat

DILLON- The Montana Tech Orediggers were unable to perform another miracle in the closing min-utes against the University of Montana Western, who was without their star freshman running back Sam Rutherford. The Bulldogs won 20-14 thanks to 205 rushing yards by sophomore Dylan Kramer. Along-side Kramer, quarterback Tyler Hulse went 20-28 for 170 yards passing for two touchdowns, and added 69 yards on 15 carries. The Orediggers were led by sophomore quarterback Herman Tapley who went 25-49 for 231 yards passing and two touchdowns. An ecstatic Hulse was happy to have broken a five game losing streak. “It feels great,” said Hulse. “The last five weeks we’ve been in games and we beat ourselves.” The Bulldogs almost beat themselves again with a fumble with a Kramer fumble with 3:51 left in the game. The Orediggers managed to drive to the Bulldog 28, but Tapley was unable to convert on a fourth-and-three, and the Bulldogs escaped with the narrow victory. “That fumble at the end scared us,” said Hulse. Bulldog Head Coach B.J. Robertson had noth-ing but praise for his players after the thrilling victory.“This is what football is all about, [this] rivalry,” said Robertson. “You hate to have to see someone lose such a great game, compliments to them for coming out in the second half, sticking with it, just competing and competing.” Both Robertson and Hulse had the highest praise for Kramer, who was injured just prior to the end of the first half with an ankle sprain. However, Kramer was able to return on the field to finish with

the 205 rushing yards and the one touchdown. “Compliments to the O-line and compliments to Kramer for coming back out and staying with it, and that’s all heart from him,” said Robertson. “We miss Sam tonight and he’s a great run-ning back,” said Hulse on the missing Rutherford. “But we’ve got three great running backs, and it came out tonight. Dylan Kramer has been running all over the place, he gets hurt; Michael Lake comes in and runs hard. We’ve got three running backs, it doesn’t matter who comes in.” Tapley was upset at the result despite lead-ing another furious second half charge after another lackluster Oredigger first half. “I told my teammates before the start of the game I don’t want to win the game in the fourth quarter,” said a distraught Tapley. “I want to win the game in the first quarter. We didn’t play well in the first half of the game. It just came down to a mat-ter of inches. I felt so confident on that last drive. I said ‘I’m going to win this game.’ It just wasn’t our [game].” In the last three games versus Eastern Ore-gon, Montana State-Northern, and Montana Western, the Orediggers have been outscored 64-17. Coach Morrell understood both fans frustra-tion and the frustration of his quarterback. “We have to find more offensive success in the first halves of games,” said Morrell. “It’s a recur-ring theme throughout this season. We’re getting the ball rolling in the third and fourth quarter, [but] it’s been a struggle for us in the first half.” The Orediggers played their final game of the season against Southern Oregon on November 16 at Bob Green Field. The Raiders defeated the Oredig-gers 59-32 on October 5 in Ashland. The Raiders are on a two game losing streak after losing to East-ern Oregon and Carroll.

Photo by: Adam M. Hawks

Spor ts Diggers Lose to Raiders, Say Goodbye to Seniors

Adam M. Hawks

10

Season ends with heartbreaker

BUTTE—It is the game that happens once a year where seniors are honored in a heartfelt pre-game ceremony. Last year Montana Tech was co-conference champions with their opponent for today’s game, Southern Oregon University Raiders. This year the ‘Diggers were playing for pride, and the Raiders were also saying goodbye to their seniors on a cold windy day at Bob Green Field. The Orediggers lost to the Raiders 31-10 on another frustrating game for the ‘Digger offense. The Frontier Conference’s star quarterback, Austin Dodge, had an atypical game for South-ern Oregon. Dodge threw for 217 yards and two touchdowns and adding 23 yards on 7 carries. Redshirt freshman Melvin Mason led the South-ern Oregon offense with 162 yards on 17 carries including a 60 yard touchdown early in the third quarter. “We came out here excited to play Tech,” said Dodge. “We haven’t beaten Tech in Butte since I’ve been here. It was a great win to send our seniors out.” The Orediggers used three quarterbacks in the game. Senior Brian Schwarzkoph started for the ‘Diggers, sophomore Herman Tapley played the majority of the game, and Junior Clay Caven-der was involved in a few plays in the read option offense. Junior running back Pat Hansen added 59 yards on 20 carries and was responsible for the only Oredigger touchdown. Coach Chuck Morrell had high praise for the ‘Digger defense that was able to hold Southern Oregon well below their season averages on of-fense and scoring. “Holding those guys to 31 points well below their season average,” said Morrell. “If we could have kept in the 30s, I felt we would’ve had a good chance. They have a lot of guys to defend,

[but] proud of that. Our offense sputtered today, but it’s something to work on the offseason.” Coach Morrell was just unable to hold back his feelings when it came to his senior players on their last game ever for Montana Tech. “I love them,” said a devastated Morrell who was unable to hold back his tears. Seniors were just as heartbroken as their head coach “I love it out here in Butte,” said se-nior linebacker Ryan Jones. “I’m glad they recruited me. I got to meet some incredible people. At the end of the day we’re a fam-ily. We all stick together” “Playing here in Butte, Montana, play-ing at 6,000 feet, busting my ass every day for team, at Olympic elevation giving it all we got every day, I love my teammates for putting in this work,” said senior wide receiver Kevin Moss. “Coming from California, I had to get used to the cold,” said senior wide receiver Zach Kinney. “I loved every moment I was here. All these guys I have a lot of memo-ries here, they’re all my brothers and I’ll continue to talk to them for years to come. Kinney also moved into the record books by becoming the single season reception leader with 74 receptions on the season, breaking the 2006 record of 72 receptions set by Casey Kelly. Southern Oregon’s Dodge was happy to send his seniors out with a win. “It’s been a pleasure to play with them,” said Dodge on senior Raider offen-sive lineman Jake Sullivan and quarterback Chris Kammel. “I couldn’t be happier to send them out with them in a win in Butte.” There was a game played on Novem-ber 16, 2013, and it was a football game. And while the home team didn’t come away with the win, friends and family said good-bye to gladiators that gave their heart and soul for football. They will never play on Sundays; they won’t be remembered by

Continued on page 11.

Spor ts 11

Photos by: Adam M. Hawks

those outside of Montana Tech and they’ll never have multi-million dollar endorse-ments or contracts. They came to Butte to play football for coaches and fans who shared their enthusiasm and love for the game. Thank you to the seniors for giving us the memories of a lifetime on the football field.

Goodbye to Seniors cont.

12

The Technocrat Staff

Editor- in-chief : Adam M. Hawks

Deputy Editor:Darcie Evans

Print Team:

Jessica Tonkin Jennifer Grant

Kirstie McPherson

Video/Photography Team:

Ali Almeshaal

Faculty Advisor :Pat Munday

The Technocrat is an inde-pendent, student-run news-paper at Montana Tech. The opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the college or the student body. The Tech-nocrat is funded through student fees from the Associated Students of Montana Tech and adver-tising revenue. All material printed in this newspaper is the property of the creator and cannot be duplicated without permission from the creator. The Technocrat welcomes submissions of material for publication upon editorial approval.

The Back Page

Printed byGreenfield Printers

Jessica Tonkin

Drunkorexia is a term typically used to describe self-imposed starva-tion or binge eating or purging combined with alcohol abuse. In a survey com-pleted by students at the University of Missouri-Columbia, one in six students said they restricted food in order to consume alcohol within the last year.

A growing number of students, researchers, and health profession-als consider drunkorexia a dangerous phenomenon. Others dismiss it as a media-driven faux-trend. And others contend drunkorexia is nothing more than a fresh label stamped on an activity that students have been carrying out for years.

Research is primarily focused on the patterns of college women, but the phenomenon has also been noted in young men. The reoccurrence of this type of behavior can lead to a worsening of physical health, alongside the development of an alcohol addiction.

A typical person suffering from drunkorexia will deprive himself or her-self of food during the day, in an attempt to keep calories under control when thinking later. In addition those who wish to become intoxicated quickly avoid food in order to allow for more rapid absorption of alcohol.

There are serious consequences attached to starving the body of calo-ries on days of heavy drinking. In many cases the user’s body will be unable to absorb or process the alcohol fast enough to avoid alcohol poisoning.

And while some argue drunkorexia is not a real disorder, others dis-agree. For example, in January 2013, MTV was looking for people who choose booze over food for True Life: I Have Drunkorexia. Whether the trend prevalent only in college students or perhaps it is a condition that continues throughout a lifetime, there isn’t enough research to determine if the condition persists beyond college.

For many college students, drunkorexia is becoming a tradition. While it’s not yet a recognized eating disorder, the health risks of drunkorexia are real and this new college trend can be deadly.

Drunkorexia

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