2006 NSPA Best of Show Winner, San Francisco

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Oct. 31, 2006

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Field construction completed


Too much of a good thing can actually be bad


By Katherine Waldo
Health editor

The construction on the new multi-purpose field that started in May last year is coming to an end.

The construction began with demolishing and leveling the original baseball field. One of the last steps, installing the field turf, has been completed. The outfield grass is green with white and yellow lines for the soccer and football boundaries. The pitchers mound is real dirt but the diamond is a rust brown colored turf and the field turf within the diamond is green.

The field turf is not astro-turf because it has a different chemical composition. Field turf comes from the company Field Turf Tarkett, whose turf composition is patented.

The substance that resembles dirt is a cryogenic rubber, and the grass is composed of polyethylene alloy fiber. Field turf is supposed to prevent abrasions other synthetic grass may cause.

photo by Leah Pope/Executive Editor

Other fields also use field turf, including teams such as the Seattle Seahawks, New England Patriots, St. Louis Rams and the New York Giants and Jets. Washington State University along with 23 other NCAA schools also use field turf.

A new field needed to be constructed because the old field had a hill and was in poor condition. Also, the new field made of turf will have a longer life than that made out of grass and it should last much longer.

Not only will MTHS students play on the new field but also community teams from Mountlake Terrace and Brier.

Community associations have donated around $150,000. The city council has contributed $100,000, Brier Terrace Youth Association has donated $40,000, and the Mountlake Terrace Youth Athletic Association has donated $10,000.

Autism


By Jamie Postle
Hawkeye Staff

Autism is a childhood psychiatric disorder characterized by marked deficits in communication, social interaction, preoccupation with fantasy, language impairment, and abnormal behaviors such as repetitive acts and excess attachment to certain objects. It is often associated with intellectual impairment.

People with autism experience the word differently. The brain of someone who does not have autism interprets the sights, sounds, smells and other sensations that other people experience; but the brain ca not help a person with autism understand. When a person has autism, their brain has trouble focusing on a single job and making sense of the world. They have unusual reactions to their surroundings.

Autistic people have a hard time talking to other people, functioning, expressing themselves, and doing everyday activities. Autism is commonly known as Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs), and is a developmental disorder people are born with. Autism is usually diagnosed at a young age. According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Strokes, three to six children out of every 1,000 will have autism.Having autism functioning, talking, and going to school is a hard task to do. People with autism do better with no change, and they may prefer to stay on the same schedule. Autistic people sometimes communicate with gestures instead of talking.

When a person with autism talks to another person without autism, it can be stressful or frustrating. The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke claims that Òmales are four times more likely the have autism then females.Ó

Autism ranges in impact, from mild to disabling. There are three distinctive behaviors related to autism, difficulties with social interaction, problems with verbal and nonverbal communication and repetitive or obsessive behaviors.People with autism can be slow learners but can memorize facts efficiently. Someone who has autism has trouble linking words with their meanings and acts in unusual ways.

Autism affects how a person thinks and acts. Autistic kids may have a hard time in school. They need extra help in doing activities and remembering things. Autistic children are often confused in their thinking and have a limited range of interests. According to Savonhealth.com, an estimated 75 percent of children with autism also are mentally handicapped. Children with autism have a hard time emotionally bonding with other people, their parents and other family members making them seem somewhat anti-social.

The cause of autism is unknown. Research has pointed to several possible factors, including genetics (heredity), certain types of infections and problems that occur when the child is born. Autism has no long lasting definite cure. Special education, Behavior modification, speech therapy, and medication are all types of cures for autism.