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Andrea Bartel. RAD Instructor, and Lorenza Dorsey of the APD: preform a self defense exercise during class Tuesday. Self defense has become one of the more popular courses on campus. Kyle Cooper / ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR

Since Auburn freshman Lauren Burk’s kidnapping and murder March 4, many young women have been on edge. But by learning self defense techniques, they can begin to regain the sense of security that was shattered after last week’s tragedy.

Rape Aggression Defense instructor Andrea Bartels teaches a one-hour self defense class for females through Auburn’s Department of Kinesiology.

She teaches the class in three portions: risk awareness, risk reduction and physical techniques.

“We educate women on what they can do to be safer,” Bartels said. “Risk awareness and reduction is 90 percent of taking care of the problem. And then we teach punches, kicks and anti-abduction techniques. We don’t teach women to stand and fight an attacker. We teach them to survive.”

Although she said it’s best for women to not go places by themselves, especially at night, Bartels has safety tips for women who do go it alone.

“One of the biggest things is to trust your instincts,” Bartels said. “If you think there’s something funny about a situation, just walk away. Girls are often raised to be polite and soft spoken, but it’s OK to be loud and cause a scene if you feel you might be in danger.”

Bartels said women should always be aware of their surroundings and should avoid taking unnecessary risks.

She suggests sticking to well-traveled, well-lit places with a lot of activity. She warns women to not be tempted to take shortcuts through isolated areas.

Bartels said joggers should jog during the day and vary their routes.

She discourages listening to mp3 players while exercising because they could prevent a jogger from hearing someone approaching, and make them appear distracted.

Another thing Bartels tells women in her classes is to always lock their doors.

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Sarah Hamilton: a junior in wildlife sciences, studies while dangling her legs in the pool. Lindsey Davidson / ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR

Summer is quickly approaching and many students are already making plans for the 12 weeks of warm weather.

While some students prefer vacationing or returning home for the summer, others find the summer months a prime opportunity to take classes and spend time with friends in Auburn. Registration has already begun for the full summer term, as well as for the two mini-semesters the University offers during the semester.

Although summer school seems like a bleak option for many, Adam Lombardi, a senior in sociology, actually prefers taking classes during this term.

“I’ve stayed in Auburn for the past three summers, and I love it,” Lombardi said. “It’s my favorite time because the atmosphere in Auburn is completely different than the rest of the year. It’s a lot slower, but with the right people around, its great.”

The slowness Lombardi remarks on is often a reason students opt to leave. Amy Galbraith, a sophomore in liberal arts, felt the slower-than-usual Auburn environment in the summer would be boring and prompted her to return home.

“I went back home to Atlanta last summer, and I don’t regret it at all,” Gabraith said. “Most of my friends left Auburn, so I would have been extremely bored if I stayed. I took classes at home, though, so I was able to get ahead with some courses I needed to take.”

Staying on track with school seems to be a predominant reason students decide to stay in Auburn over the summer months. Rather than working or leaving town, students who stay in Auburn tend to be focused on graduating and getting ahead with academics before the hectic fall semester starts.

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Think sweating more during a workout means you’re burning more fat?  Think again.

In a question and answer session on msnbc.com, exercise experts clarified and busted the myth that sweating a lot is a sign of a more productive workout.

Gerald Endress, an exercise physiologist and fitness director at Duke University, said getting a good workout has little to do with sweating and the temperature of the room you work out in.

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A family drives two hours to watch a baseball game, only to find the game is rained out when they get there.

A child is thoroughly enjoying an ice cream cone until the scoop of ice cream falls to the ground.

A student stays up all night studying  for a test, only to realize when he is taking the test that he studied the wrong chapter.

These unfortunate events can only be justified by Murphy’s Law.

Murphy’s Law states: “Whatever can go wrong, will go wrong.”

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Laura Barrett: a freshman in nutrition and food science, attempts to carry her keys, iPod, cell phone, books and backpack, while getting through the door. JD Schein / ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR

For many individuals, a handbag, tote or backpack is a crucial part of their daily wardrobe, yet for others, it is just an object to haul around the things necessary for the day.

Nevertheless, Auburn students are sporting a variety of bags and styles.

“We sell probably 1,200 KAVU Keepers a month,” said Crysten Martin, marketing director for Kinnucan’s. “It’s like the epitomy of Auburn’s student base. They are just $20. You can’t beat them.”

The KAVU Keeper has five pockets and comes in a variety of colors.

You can find this bag at Kinnucan’s as well as Southern Trails.

Southern Trails also offers a variety of backpacks for students.

“We sell a lot of North Face’s Jester (daypacks),” said Daniel Munger, a junior in geography and a sales associate at Southern Trails. “For some reason, everyone gets the North Face stuff.”

These daypacks (North Face’s Jester, Hotshot and BigShot) are usually under $100.

“Most of the time, people are very willing to spend $50 on a pack,” Munger said.

Weekend and weeklong packs are also available at Southern Trails.

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When Microsoft introduced Windows Vista in 2007, its users were faced with a decision: to upgrade or not to upgrade?

Windows Vista replaces Windows XP, which was released in 2001 and has had several updated versions. According to Microsoft.com, “Windows Vista makes it easier, safer and more entertaining to use your PC.” The question is, do consumers agree?

Laci Fralish, a junior in secondary education, said she does not. She said she prefers XP and has not switched to Vista.

“XP is easier to navigate,” Fralish said.

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Students avoid potentially dangerous situations by catching a ride on one of Auburn’s late-night shuttles

The Auburn University Night Security Shuttle has become a vital part of Auburn’s night life.

The bright flashing orange light is a welcomed sight to students all over campus, and with an average of up to 200 riders a night, the five security vans stay in constant motion.

The importance of on-campus night transportation has become even more relevant over the past few weeks.

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Kristen West: washes Courtney Bryan’s hair at Studio One hair salon. Sarah Harriage / PHOTO STAFF

Everyone washes their hair, hopefully, which means everyone buys shampoo. Whether it’s straight from the salon or off the shelves of Wal-Mart, we all buy it.

People can choose shampoo based on price, scent, name or result. Shampoos are as different as the people that use them.

The question is, which shampoo should you buy?

There has always been a debate among buyers and stylists about whether name brand, salon shampoo makes a difference.

Dawn Spurlock, a stylist at Magnolia Hair Salon, said there is a huge difference between salon and generic shampoo.

“Generic shampoo is cheaper because there aren’t as many ingredients,” she said.

Spurlock and the other stylists at Magnolia agreed the ingredients are what matters in shampoo. She said generic shampoos are more diluted and may contain ingredients that can harm your hair.

Spurlock said even ‘salon’ shampoo brands have been diluted to go on the shelves of drugstores.

“Some generic shampoos contain an ingredient similar to dishwashing detergent,” Spurlock said. “The way to tell is if it is really sudsy when you lather your hair.”

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Students should be wary of what information and images they choose to post on their personal Internet profiles

Employers used to decide who to hire by looking at resumés, calling references and analyzing portfolios. Now they are checking out applicants’ Facebook and MySpace accounts before selecting new employees.

Karen Pruett, career counselor for Career Development Services, said she has heard students say employers have looked at their Facebook and MySpace pages.

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What do foods like potato chips and soft drinks have in common besides being located next to each other in grocery stores and vending machines?

Together they could be one of the causes of obesity, especially childhood obesity.

According to msnbc.com, a British study is being conducted to look at the effects salty foods and soft drinks have on obesity.

The study evaluates how eating salty foods leads individuals to drink increasing numbers of soft drinks to relieve the resulting thirst, which in turn, causes the person to consume more calories, many of which have no nutritional value.

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