College Clips

By Meg Walsh

Published March 14, 2007

Caffeine consumption has life-long affects, study finds

Drinking too many caffeinated beverages can have a long-term effect, according to a recent study by Harvard Medical School sleep expert Atul Malhotra. Sleeping for less than eight or nine hours each night correlates with documented health risks.

Malhotra cited a 2003 long-term study of more than 70,000 women, in which it was discovered that those who slept only five hours each night on average were more than 70 percent likely to have a heart attack than people who had a regular night of sleep. Women who only slept five hours also gained weight during the study at a rate 50 percent higher than those who slept more.

Staying awake for 18 hours could impair a person's cognitive ability as much as an alcoholic drink, and after being awake for 24 hours, a person's cognitive ability decreases to a level equivalent of being legally drunk, Malhotra said.

— The Daily Free Press (Boston University)

Stolen UC-Berkeley Nobel Prize recovered

Earlier this week, the University of California, Berkeley reported its first Nobel Peace Prize from 1939 missing. Local media went into a frenzy, suspecting foul play from rivals at Stanford University.

"We are thrilled, we are so relieved that it's back," said Linda Schneider of Berkeley's Lawrence Hall of Science. "It's so much a part of our heritage."

Physicist Ernest Lawrence received the award for his invention of the cyclotron, a type of particle accelerator. The Nobel Prize was the first for a public university and was housed in a case in the Lawrence Hall of Science.

—The Stanford Daily (Stanford University)

Illinois student does the unthinkable

Often in the church season of Lent, chocolate, soda, television and other simple pleasures are given up in the name of suffering. One University of Illinois student gave up an addiction that plagues almost all college students: Facebook.

Starting Feb. 21, Catholics began their Lenten season, which lasts 40 days and nights. Although some might consider this a time of suffering, for former Facebook addict Courtney Turner, the experience has given her new freedom.

"The account is gone," Turner said. "It took over my life, but now I can spend my time doing other things."

Lent is about remembering the resurrection and life of Jesus, said the Rev. Brian Brownsey, director of vocations at the Catholic Diocese of Peoria.

"Lent is a reminder that calls us back into focus," Brownsey said. "If I can go 40 days giving up something that's not harmful, I might be a little bit stronger."

When Lent ends, Turner said she will not return to the Facebook community.

"I am not a member of any online cult," Turner said.

— The Daily Illini (University of Illinois)