The Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 40, No. 7, Ed. 1 Friday, October 10, 1952 Page: 3 of 6
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FRIDAY, OCTOBER 10, IMS
THE THRESHER
SUICIDE SUGGESTIONS 4
Judicial (?) Joker
Presents Pointers
By Jonce Johnson
Many articles have been published on how to beautify your
living quarters. This article gives a few pointers on how to
give your surroundings a happy, joyous atmosphere, and is
dedicated to the residents of the Rice dormitories.
To be successful in achieving your objective, you must be
endowed with a certain talent
called a sense of humor. The
particular brand of humor re-
quired is sometimes referred to by
the uncouth as being "warped." Its
owner is labled by these same peo-
ple as a "practical joker." But a true
artist is above such slams and con-
tinues upon his uproarous-and'often
hazardous—way.
The fundamental principles of this
art are:
1. The element of surprise is
essential. A victim—pardon, I
meant subject—forewarned will
never willingly be a victim.
2. Secrecy is most desirable—
but not absolutely essential if you
are a strong individual, both men-
tally and physically, or are back-
ed up by numbers.
3. Be original. Turn your mind
to concieving newer and more
radical idears for entertainment.
Novelty increases the fun.
4. Be careful to avoid physical
and property injury as far as pos-
sible, since either can enrage the
subject and cause him to retaliate
violently.
For the beginner, below are listed
some fundamental operations for
making your dorm-mates feel at
home.
1. Drowning-out. This is no
longer considered original by
those in the know, even when done
with melted ice cream. If you
must do it, try food coloring in
the water—the results can be
startling. Caution—It is not ad-
visable to use this method on pro-
fessors. They are too old to enjoy
it. *
2. When a room-mate or friend
leaves the dorm, hide the contents
of his drawers, closets, etc.,
throughout the dorm. You may
even dismantle his bed and stow
it away. Then start looking for
another roommate or friend.
3. Flash bulbs in the light soc-
kets are very effective.
4. Try placing a toy that
squeaks when pressed between the
springs of a bed.
5. Spanish moss covered with
congealed soap powder in the bed,
corn flakes under the sheet, spon-
ges soaked with an odiferous
cheap perfume in the pillow, etc.
—these can always be counted on
for a laugh. So can dead (or live)
fish, lizards, tadpoles, angleworms
etc.
8. For the person who is hard
to wake, try smearing tooth paste
on his bar of soap, wash cloth, or
in his shaving mug: A towel scent-
ed with garlic juice has been
known to awaken many a sound
sleeper.
These are just a few ideas guar-
anteed to create a joyous and fun-
loving atmosphere around the
dorms. Of course, there are the old
stand-bys of Short-sheeting, slat-
fixing, and such, but they are too
trite to bother listing. One other
standard practice, which I do not
endorse due to the fact that it
wastes good whiskey (any whiskey
is good) is to substitute Bourbon for
either shaving lotion or hair tonic.
It gives the user such a manly aro-
ma.
Think up your own ideas. And if
you run across some that prove by
experience to be hilarity-rousing,
just drop them by at the Thresher
office, and put them in the box
marked "Warped Humor."
SOCIETY
tits Struck Dumb
Only Scribbling
Sounds Audible
Monday, October 13 is open rush
for all the literary societies until
10:00 PM when Silence begins. Si-
lence is no communication among
freshmen girls and between fresh-
men girls and lit members about
anything pertaining to the literary
societies.
Silence among freshmen girls will
last until 12:00 noon Tuesday, Oc-
tober 14, when all freshmen girls
must have signed their final prefer-
ence cards.
Silence between upper-classmen
and freshmen will last until 10:00
PM, Wednesday, October 15, the
night of the call-in party, except
When a freshman is accepting a bid
from a literary society.
Rush is now drawing to a close
as the last round of parties are be-
ing given this weekend.
The $RLS are giving an "Arty
Party" tonight at 7:30 at 726 West
18th.
Saturday, October 11, is open rush
for the OWLS, OKLS, EBLS, and
the SLLS.
The MELLS are giving a Buffet
Supper on Sunday, October 12, at
6:30 at 5 Still Forest.
0
Civil Service Exams
Held For Exec
Positions
The 1952 Junior Management As-
sistant examination which offers
outstanding young men and women
an opportunity to begin a Federal
career in administration, will be an-
nounced the third week in October
the Civil Service Commission said
today. The positions to be filled,
which pay starting salaries of $3,410
and $4,205 a year in various Federal
agencies, provide for training for
high level executive positions. jp
►Applicants must pass two written
tests in addition to having had col-
lege training or experience in pub-
lic or business administration or
the social sciences. Persons who
successfully meet these require-
ments will be given an interview to
determine whether or not they pos-
sess the personal qualities required
for these positions. Applications
will be accepted fram students who
expect to compelte the required
study by June 30, 1953 and those
who attain eligibility in the exam-
ination will receive offers of em-
ployment upon graduation. - •
Applications may be obtained
from the placement offce, from
most frst- or second-class post of-
fices, or from the U. S. Civil Serv-
ice Commission, Washington 25,
D.C.
Applications must be on file with
the Commission's Washington office
not later than November 18, 1952.
POINT FOUR
STEVENS
Records - Radios - TV
SALES ft SERVICE
RALPH BELL—Owner
•125 Kirby In The Village
National Council of Churches
Will Sponsor Essay Contest
Flans for a nation-wide essay contest on the Point IV Pro-
gram with prize awards totalling $1,800 have been announced
by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A.
The contest, which opens NoV. 1, 1952 and closes at mid-
night, March SI, 196S, is open to all Americans between the
ages of 15 and 28. Names of
winners will be announced
about May 15, 1953.
In addition to the two first prizes
of $400 each, there will be two sec-
ond-place awards of $200, two third
prizes of $100 each, tod twenty
other prizes of $25 each.
Essays on the subject "The Unit-
ed States and the Underdeveloped
Areas," may be submitted at any
time after Noveinber 1.
Explaining that "Point IV is a
two-way street," Mr. Ernest Le-
fever, Chairman of the council's De-
partment of International Justice
and Goodwill, said, "We are natur-
ally concerned with pointing up. U.
S. responsibility to underdeveloped
areas in Asia, Africa, and Latin
Airterica. But we are equally con-
cerned with recognizing our depend-
ence upon these areas fofc raw ma-
terials and markets, to say nothing
of the ideas and values we may
learn from them."
Chief requirements of the contest
are that the essays be kept to one
thousand words or less and deal
with the moral responsibility of the
U. S. and the underdeveloped coun-
tries. The contestants may choose
any phase of this topic as the sub-
ject for their essays.
Judges will be Eric Johnston,
president of the Motion Picture As-
sociation of America and chairman
of the International Development
Advisory Board for the Point IV
.Program; Mildred McAfee Horton,
former president of Wellesley Col-
lege and a vice president of the Na-
tional Council of Churches; and Dr.
John C. Bennett, professor of Chris-
tian Ehtics at Union Theological
Seminary, New York City.
Contest instruction leaflets and
posters announcing the contest will
Rice Engineers
Trained In
Library Methods
Rice Institute is one of only tea
engineering schools in the eounfery
where any attention is paid to blbHo*
graphic and library training for
student engineers, according to the
results of a recent survey made by
the Engineering School Libraries
Committee of the American Society
for Engineering Education. Most
coUeges and universities rely solely
on some sort of freshman library
orientation in order to stimulate
interest. This procedure is usually
inadequate.
According to the Rice Institute
General Announcements, Chemical
Engineering 525a "Is devoted to stu-
dy of the arrangement of chemical
literature and its use in industrial
research work." However, it is more
than this, for it covers not only all
the pure and applied sciences but
also touches lightly on important
works in the social studies.
Knowledge of library resources
and techniques is one of the essen-
tials of a successful, engineering
career, said the ASEE this past
June.
be sent upon request by the Point
IV Essay Committee, National
Council of Churches, 70 E. Adams
fit., Chicago 3, Illinois.
It sparked an
electronic revolution!
Perhaps you've heard something about the
transistor—a tiny and mechanically simple elec-
tronic device based on an entirely new prin-
ciple. It can do many things a vacuum tube can
do—yet its greatest possibilities may lie in ap-
plications where vacuum tubes have not been
used. ♦ .
A few years ago this revolutionary device was
invented and experimentally made by scien-
tists at Bell Telephone Laboratories. Today,
several types of transistors are in production
at Western Electric—manufacturing unit of
the Bell System.
This didn't just happen! Its manufacture is the
result of a lot of teamwork by Western Electric
engineers of varied skills and training.
Transistors are unimpressive looking little
things, but don't let that fool you! The most
delicate metallurgical and manufacturing skills
TIm 2A Transistor illustrated is designed to fit a plug-In
socket. In one use in the Bell System, ribbon leads are
employed as shown above.
are required in their production. In one type of
transistor there are three thin adjacent regions
of germanium, each region containing chemical
elements in exact quantities, the whole unit
being no larger than the heafi of a match! Suit-
able leads, or wires, must be positioned in proper
relation to these layers with utmost accuracy,
using microscopes and oscilloscopes.
Transistors can do many things: transform
radio energy for driving a telephone receiver or
loudspeaker—amplify weak signals—generate
a-c current—convert a-c to d-c—respond to
light—increase, decrease or halt the flow of -
.current. SmaH and rugged, they're going to work
today in the Bell System and in varied types of
military equipment.
Quantity producing these mighty mites-—with
laboratory precision—is typical, of many for-*
ward-looking engineering projects at Western
Electric.
UNIT Of THI till SYSTtM SINCI tW
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The Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 40, No. 7, Ed. 1 Friday, October 10, 1952, newspaper, October 10, 1952; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth230911/m1/3/?rotate=270: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Rice University Woodson Research Center.