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May 3, 1999

Keeping the Internet honest	We are not alone
Multimedia hits the ground running	Bay invaders
To decertify, or not to decertify?

Keeping the Internet honest

Is it possible to police the Internet without resorting to censorship? The Web offers everyone endless possibilities for buying, learning, and communicating. However, there can be a price to pay for this accessibility. According to Leonard Sellers, Journalism, writing in the March issue of New Media magazine, consumers and surfers are being targeted by misleading advertising. "It’s commerce … disguised as information and entertainmen t. Information that people want to know… is available at the touch of a keyboard. But an increasing amount of the content being created for the Web can’t be trusted," he said.

Ushering in a new age of planet discovery in astronomy, Geoff Marcy and his team of "planet finders" announced on April 15 the discovery of a three-planet solar system. This new find provides the first proof that solar systems other than our own do exist, according to an Apr. 16 Washington Post article. "We are witnessing, I think, the emergence of a new era of human exploration," said Marcy. And while the newly discovered planets do not show signs of life, Marcy and other astronomers hope to someday find proof that we are not alone in the galaxy.

As special effects and computer animation take on bigger roles in movies and on the Internet, the demand for multimedia artists has jumped. In an effort to meet this need schools like Ex’pression have begun offering intensive multimedia programs that hope to turn out skilled and experienced artists, according to a Feb. 26 San Francisco Chronicle article. But there is a lot of competition around for providing just the right training , says Chris Marler, director of SFSU’s multimedia studies program. "The whole arena of education around multimedia is getting more competitive," he said.

An article in the March 18 San Joauqin County newspaper The Record, reported on the fourth biennial "State of the Estuary" conference. The estuary has benefited from four years of abundant runoff and salmon populations are up, but Wim Kimmerer, senior research scientist at the Romberg Tiburon Center, reported on a major area of concern. He said, "We’ve got to stop the introductions (of exotic species) right now." Invasions by foreign plants and an imals have become the biggest impediment to successful restoration of native species.

U.S. policy on Mexican drug trafficking has failed, but how to change it remains a complicated issue according to an article in the Feb. 26 San Francisco Chronicle. One response would be to revoke its certification as a country that cooperates with U.S. efforts to stem drug smuggling, an action that would enact economic penalties. However, Robert Pastorino, who teaches Latin American studies at SFSU and was national security adviser for Latin America to Presidents Reagan and Bush, points out that "the relationship with Mexico is so important on so many other issues, from trade to immigration, that decertification would just complicate things tremendously." Pastrino goes on to say, "What we need to do is get rid of certification altogether …. But how can any congressman vote for that? It’ll appear that you’re soft on drugs."

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