Small kiln fire causes cancelled classes, but minimal damage

The Art building, 1031 N. Olive Road, was evacuated around 11 a.m. yesterday when wax buildup in a kiln ignited a small fire, officials said.

A bronze casting class was melting the wax off their ceramic molds when the wax buildup in the kiln caught fire, said Carlton Bradford, sculpture instructor and shop technician.

The small fire was more smoke than flames and was put out immediately by the kiln's internal fire suppression system, said Bradford, who was in the building at the time. [Read article]

A survivor of government-inflicted torture in El Salvador visited the UA yesterday to speak out against the use of violence against civilians by militaries around the world.

Carlos Mauricio, a former professor at the University of El Salvador, spoke to about 20 people in the Social Justice Leadership Center. He detailed his time as a prisoner and his fight to bring justice to those who were also wronged. [Read article]

Organizations that focus on campus safety will hold a Safety Fair today to educate students and faculty about the safety resources available year around.

The Safety Fair, which is sponsored by ASUA Safe Ride, Campus Acquaintance Rape Educators and the Women's Resource Center, will be held on the UA Mall from 11 p.m. to 1 p.m.

Josh Wright, director of Safe Ride, said he wanted a way for students to easily find out about the safety resources on campus, which is why he and representatives from CARE and WRC created the Safety Fair and invited organizations in the community to participate. [Read article]

UA Cliffhangers go high, over and above

"Slack, slack!" yells Marcus Zengl, an aerospace engineering graduate student, down the rock face.

Draped with carabiners and other securing devices tied to his climbing belt, he works his way up "Moby Dick," a 600-foot-high rock at Cochise Stronghold near Tombstone.

Further down, Mark Lauer, material science and engineering freshman, sits in his belt. He secures Zengl's rope, but doesn't have any slack left. The rope ends in his hands. [Read article]

Pharmaceutical companies are developing few new drugs to combat infectious diseases despite an increase in infections worldwide, a UCLA doctor told the UA medical community yesterday.

Infectious diseases are the third-leading cause of death in the United States, said Dr. John E. Edwards Jr., chief of infectious diseases in the department of medicine at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center.

Edwards, who spoke yesterday at the University Medical Center, said the door on infectious diseases isn't closed. He stressed that emerging and re-emerging infections, resistance to antibiotics, and bioterrorism are causes for concern. [Read article]

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