The somber peace of the Eugene Pioneer Cemetery is nestled in the heart of our busting campus. We walk by it every day to and from class and feel the eerie, historical presence that exudes a mysterious beauty.

The historic Eugene Pioneer Cemetery contains over 5,000 burial spots and is spread out over a whopping 16 acres. (Nate Barrett/Emerald)

When the sunshine is gleaming from the tree tops onto the weathered headstones, the cemetery provides a unique shortcut through campus or a refreshing place to go for a run. But avoid it at night when it’s dark and ominous. Here are some things you might not know about this eerie corner of campus:

Familiar names

Encompassing 16 acres, the cemetery has 5,000 burials, including Louis Renninger (1841-1908), a Union soldier who received the Medal of Honor for gallantry in the American Civil War, and James Henry Dickey Henderson (1810–1885), a U.S. Representative from Oregon. You’ll also find many of the names that adorn street signs all around town. Just try and find all the Kincaid tombstones.

Stay safe

It may be a beautiful place during the day, but don’t forget to be careful of the dark and isolated area at night. Students often cut through the cemetery late at night on the weekends going from one party to the next. Due to the reports of sexual assaults and robberies late at night, it would be wise to take an alternate route and never travel alone.

Spirits abound

The Eugene Pioneer Cemetery is rumored to be home to many ghosts. According to Kent Goodman, author of “Haunts of Western Oregon,” there has been a sighting of a floating woman in a wedding dress in the cemetery and a more recent sighting of a transparent man in a black cloak.

Go on a hunt

University of Oregon Housing department offers a Ghost Hunting 101 workshop for freshmen. Grab a voice recorder and video camera to go out into the field with real-life ghost hunters and see if you can detect an apparitional presence.

Run for fun

It’s not unusual to see a pair of Nikes flying through the cemetery at lightning speeds as its wearer runs past tombstones during a regular exercise. In fact, Pioneer Cemetery is one of the quickest ways to make it from University Street to the south lawn behind the Knight Library. It’s also one of the more scenic places to go for a quick run.

DuckLife is the Emerald’s magazine for incoming freshmen, made available during IntroDucktion. This story has been reprinted from the magazine in its original form.

Not quite sure what you want to major in? Need a fun class to break up your more demanding ones? You’re not alone. Consider these quirky and obscure classes the University of Oregon has to offer. It could spark an interest you never even knew you had. Note that some of these classes are open to you now, but others require prerequisites.

GEOL 305: Dinosaurs

Overview of the past and present biodiversity of vertebrate animals, including ourselves, dinosaurs and what ruled the ocean when dinosaurs roamed the land. Learn how birds have evolved from the dinosaurs that became extinct 65 million years ago. Take a look into the prehistoric world and learn to distinguish a stegosaurus from a tyrannosaur and an ornithopod.

J412: Understanding Disney

For journalism and cinema studies majors and minors, this class examines the media content, process and audiences associated with Disney. Analyze some of your favorite childhood movies while learning about the largest media conglomerate in the world. Warning: could cause desires to become a Disney princess.

PEAS 368: Basic SCUBA

Earn your basic scuba certification while learning about the techniques and equipment used in underwater diving. Water safety, diving physics, medical aspects of diving, and decompression are all topics discussed in this class. Discover a unique new skill that could lead to a new hobby or something fun to do on vacation.

ENG 280: Intro to Comic Studies

An introduction to the art of comics and the methodologies of comics studies. Learn about your favorite superheroes and villains. If you like it enough, you can even minor in comics and cartoon studies. This department also periodically hosts guest professors from the professional realm, such as Brian Michael Bendis, the man who laid the foundation for Marvel’s Ultimate Spider-Man series.

PEI 201: Juggling 1

With an emphasis on creative exploration, relaxation and fun, this class is an introduction to juggling skills with balls, rings, clubs and other props. In college, we all learn how to juggle homework with work, extracurricular activities and our social lives — why not discover a more fun way to juggle that you can show off to your friends?

DuckLife is the Emerald’s magazine for incoming freshmen, made available during IntroDucktion. This story has been reprinted from the magazine in its original form.

Not everybody has the eye or equipment of a professional photographer, but with the latest technology in smartphones and photography apps, at least there’s a chance to pretend.

Years ago, before cell phones and smartphone cameras, taking photos was a lot of work. Even with the latest camera technology, editing and sharing photos requires access to a computer with editing software and an internet connection. With a smartphone, you can snap a photo, manipulate and edit it, share it online and send it around the world in seconds directly from the device. Smartphones are more practical, discreet and less threatening than a camera in many situations.

According to a 2011 study conducted by The NPD Group, 27 percent of all photos and videos are taken on smartphones, while the prevalence of DSLR camera use decreased from 52 percent to 44 percent from 2010.

Some professional photographers and photo journalists are starting to embrace the latest smart phone technologies and integrating them into their work. In fact, Time magazine used Instagram to cover Hurricane Sandy.

“Smartphones are able to capture and transmit in breaking news situations now more than ever. In those situations, a smartphone allows you to respond quicker and distribute images immediately. There are technical deficiencies, but that’s being improved as we speak,” said University of Oregon photojournalism instructor Sung Park.

One thing the smartphone can do that a DSLR can’t is connect directly to social media, although the photographer sacrifices the technical control of a professional camera.

For his own photography business, Park says he has never used a smartphone on a professional assignment, but rather for personal photography and around town or on vacation when he doesn’t want to carry around the heavy equipment.

Park believes society has developed a false sense that anybody with a smartphone can be a photojournalist. But without talent, equipment won’t help much.

“If you are not a good photographer with a good camera, you will not be a good photographer with a smartphone,” Park said. “If you are not a good photographer with a smartphone, you will not be a good photographer with an expensive camera.”

Bethany Small recently started her own portrait photography business, Bethany Small Photography. Before she started her business, she used her iPhone to shoot, edit and share her photography using the app, VSCO Cam. Now, she uses the editing software VSCO FILM for Lightroom on her computer for her photography business. What she discovered as an app on her phone is now a vital part of her growing business.

Before smartphone camera technology, people often found themselves camera-less during a prime photo opportunity. Small says she finds herself without her professional camera quite often. Considering the size and weight of her camera, Small says it doesn’t make sense for her to lug it around every day unless she knows that she will need it for a specific reason or a photo shoot.

“It captures important moments that don’t necessarily need a professional camera. Plus the iPhone 5 has an incredible camera phone on it. The best yet,” she said.

Aside from the convenience of having a camera on her smartphone, Small says the social media sharing options on her phone have contributed greatly to the success of her new business.

“I am able to boost my business by advertising and meeting other professional photographers in the meantime,” she said.

According to Park, the technology for DSLRs hasn’t gotten any smaller, but in fact larger. It’s likely that future models of cameras will have direct wireless connectivity with photo apps like the ones we can find on our cell phones now. We know one thing for sure, “There will always be something newer, faster, smaller with better quality around the corner,” Park said.

Sex is naturally a huge part of college life, and yet so many people feel uncomfortable talking about it. O Spot is a new app being designed by the University of Oregon Health Center that provides sex-positive information and advice to students.

Keith Van Norman, the center’s health promotion marketing manager, is one of the app’s designers and says the team is hoping to break down the cultural barriers associated with sex advice and encourage discussion, considering it is such an integral part of life as a college student. “Typically, advice comes from really bad sources like magazines, or friends who might be ill-informed or bad websites trying to sell you something,” he said. “A lot of times it’s unhealthy and at worst it can be dangerous. That’s something we’re combating.”

Considering many students pay fees for the health center and never actually walk through the doors, O Spot provides a service for everybody, whether you’re a frequent visitor or not.

One of O Spot’s distinguishing features is its sex-positive standpoint and language. “We’re saying sex is good and it’s better if you’re safe and communicate, but we’re not coming at it from a judgmental place,” Van Norman said. “We’re trying to model how we expect students to talk about it.”

Here’s how it works: The main interface consists of two spinning wheels with one wheel composed of body parts and the other representing various body parts and objects that the user may come in contact with. The wheels can either be spun and will land on a random combination, or the user can manually align the wheels. For every combination, there are three types of information provided: STI risks, safer sex practices and advice for beginners.

“All of this content is available in different spots on campus, we’re just putting it all together,” Van Norman said. The information will provide a baseline of knowledge for students with a variety of sexual experience and knowledge.

Sarah Sprague, a UO junior and supervisor for the Peer Health Education group specializing in sexual health, helped develop descriptions of different STIs and barrier methods for the app. “I think many students have a lot of questions about sexual health and their sexual relationships that they are uncomfortable talking about (understandably so) and this app gives them the opportunity to explore answers to their questions,” she said.

“It removes the stigma and barrier around talking about sex and makes it easy and even fun,” Sprague said.

O Spot will be integrated into the existing UO app and will be available to anybody with a smart phone. The feature is scheduled to launch on October 15, and there will be an event the night of the launch featuring sex advice columnist Dan Savage.

Traveling the world is something most of us dream about but struggle to actually make it happen. Fortunately, there are now online services such as Couchsurfing and World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms, commonly abbreviated as WWOOF, that make traveling abroad easier and cheaper than ever before.

Couchsurfing is an online travel network that began in 2004 that has established a community of six million people in more than 100,000 cities. The premise is to connect locals with travelers in need of a place to crash or a friend to show them around. The mission statement says it best, “We envision a world made better by travel and travel made richer by connection.”

Couchsurfing is more than just a way to find a place to sleep. Users can indicate on their profiles if they have a vacant couch or just down to meet for a cup of coffee. Carolina Reid, a 21-year-old junior used Couchsurfing while traveling in Chile with her brother,  a musician, not only for a place to stay, but a way to meet locals and other musicians. “He met a lot of people that couldn’t house him, but were excited to play music or get to know new people,” Reid said. 

Although couch surfers aren’t expected to pay, Reid said there’s a sort of unspoken rule to contribute in some way that’s not monetary, like providing alcohol or making a meal.

Nicke Parks, 22, used Couchsurfer while traveling in Paris with two of her friends. More than just looking for a couch to sleep on, Parks was hoping to connect with others.

“We wanted to meet people to show us around Paris and teach us what the locals like to do,” she said. 

Parks says couch surfing was one of the best experiences they had while abroad.

“Our hosts were some of the sweetest people. They even made me a cake for my birthday,” she said. “It’s a great way to meet people and having a place to stay is a bonus.”

Although she had a safe and comfortable experience, Parks says she wouldn’t do it alone, and Reid agrees.

“Traveling alone as a girl, you have to be cautious about everything, especially in other cultures like South America where there is a very male-dominant society,” Reid said.

The idea of staying with complete strangers, or as the site calls them, “friends you haven’t met yet,” might come as unsettling to some, and the company is aware of the skepticism. To ensure safety, users are encouraged to review their hosts, and vice versa, so other users can get a sense of what they’re getting into before they arrive at their destination.

“It’s such a friendly community. I’ve never had a bad experience and I haven’t heard of anyone else having a bad experience either,” Reid said.

While traveling in Argentina, Reid also participated in WWOOF, which has a similar concept to Couchsurfing. The difference is that users, known as WWOOFers, volunteer on organic farms in exchange for food and housing accommodations. Aside from a small fee, there is no monetary exchange between farmers and volunteers. Participants stay in a hut on the farm that was built by previous WWOOFers, and once they are finished with their work for the day, they can spend their night however they want.

Reid said there are more difficulties associated with WWOOF than with Couchsurfing.

“Some people have gone to farms in the middle of nowhere and felt like they were slaving away and didn’t have comfortable accommodations,” she said. Luckily this was not the case for Reid. “It was awesome, I got to meet other people from all over the world that were there for the same reason that I was.”

Think you have what it takes to compete with some of the nation’s best DJs? This Saturday, May 11, Campus DJ will be in Eugene for the first ever national competition exclusively for college DJs.

Evan Shapiro, co-founder of Campus DJ and College Battle of the Bands, noticed that over the past couple years, College Battle of the Bands was receiving an increasing number of college DJ submissions.

“It’s a great event, but it’s not the perfect place for DJs to showcase and compete against live artists,” Shapiro said.

Filling the market need, Campus DJ provides a platform exclusively for college DJs.

Sign up is simple and free. DJs create a profile online and submit a mix of their best music. Whoever has the most online votes gets an automatic bid, and is then evaluated by judges. The top four DJs get a chance to captivate the audience and showcase their best spinning skills. The winners for the East, South, West and Midwest regions are selected by judges and then advance to the finale on June 20 at the historic Avalon Hollywood in Los Angeles. In addition to the regional champions, two “wild cards” will get to compete in the finals as well —  whichever DJ has the most online votes or the judges’ choice.

The finalists will compete for the grand prize of a 2013 MINI Cooper S Countryman and a touring package with Live Nation. Other prizes and awards are available for regional winners as well.

Competitors are judged on three main criteria: Originality, energy and presence. UO sophomore Alex Sacco, aka DJ Sokko, is competing and thinks he has what it takes.

“As a DJ, you control the mood of the crowd, which is a pretty amazing experience,” he said. What sets him apart, Sokko said, are his unique vocal mash-ups and his ability to mix quickly and cleanly. Sokko sees this opportunity as an invaluable one. “There is a lot of great talent out there that isn’t in the right place at the right time,” he said. “I feel like Campus DJ gives me the chance to be recognized by someone if they like what I do.”

The tour started on March 30 and will continue through May 25 reaching all different regions including Long Beach, New York City, Austin, Chicago and San Jose.

“There’s amazing enthusiasm from college DJs as well as the schools and administration and all the sponsor support coming in, we’re seeing a lot of excitement on all fronts,” Shapiro said.

It’s not too late to enter to compete this Saturday, but act soon because spots are limited.

Jason Irrgang struggled with drug addiction in high school, which interfered with his education. The 30-year-old was fortunate enough to attend a continuation school that set his life back on track before the education system gave up on him. Now, Irrgang devotes much of his time helping at-risk youth pass their state exams, so they can graduate and have a second chance just like he did.

Irrgang had lived in Eugene for eight years when he decided to transfer from Lane Community College to the University of Oregon where he is now a junior working toward a degree in English. His passion for helping at-risk youth was sparked while attending LCC. His professors held high expectations for all of their students, even the ones that faced difficult challenges.

“They treat those students like they can accomplish a lot,” Irrgang said. His passion for helping others was solidified when Betsy Wheeler, his professor for teen and young adult literacy, required her students to volunteer at a local literacy program. Wheeler’s passion for helping others encouraged him to do the same. “When I started tutoring this one kid, it was like I was looking at me ten years ago. It was very gratifying,” he said.

Today, Irrgang volunteers as a tutor at the Eugene Riverfront School, which is a part of the Looking Glass program that provides youth and family services for more than 8,500 children affected by abuse, neglect, educational deficits, mental health issues, drug addiction and homelessness.

One of his proudest accomplishments so far was when he helped a student pass the Oregon Assessment of Knowledge and Skills exam. The student had taken the exam multiple times without success, but after Irrgang spent months tutoring him, he finally passed and is now able to pursue his dream of going to college.

“I ran around the 7-Eleven parking lot like an insane person, I was saying over and over again, ‘he passed the test!’ People were staring at me, but I didn’t care because he worked so hard,” Irrgang said. “It was his victory, but it was also my victory.”

Irrgang’s goal is to help people get their lives back on track faster than he did. “I’m not trying to change the world. I’m just trying to give people the tools to fix their mistakes.”

Ladies, it’s Friday night, and you’re all dolled up for a night on the town with your girlfriends. After a few songs on the dance floor, you take a breather and strike up a conversation with the tall, dark and handsome charmer sitting at the bar. He puts his hand on your back as he buys you a drink and then offers to walk you home. As flattered as you may be, you can’t help but wonder if you’re receiving special treatment or just another routine pick-up ploy from the all-too-common degenerate scumbag.

So, what do you do? By kindly declining his offer, this will bide you some time to ask around for other opinions and check his Facebook credentials — you know, to see if he’s fresh out of a relationship or if he’s really as good-looking as you remember.

Or you can step away for two or three minutes to check out his profile, ratings, recommendations and reviews on the newest girls-only app: Lulu.

Created by girls for girls, Lulu is the self-proclaimed “digital little black book” for your dating needs.

With more than 200,000 users, women on Lulu find guys they know using a link to their Facebook accounts, attach pictures and review them based on a variety of categories including appearance, commitment, sex, humor, ambition and manners. They can also hashtag his most notable features like #Experienced, #MothersLoveHim, #AlwaysPays or #FriendZone.

According to its website, “Lulu tells you the stuff you want to know: Is he a heartbreaker or your future husband? Lulu is the fastest way you can find out if he has a good track record with the ladies.”

The website states the majority of reviews are positive; used as a way for girls to promote a close friend or brother to other girls and say what’s great about him. It’s also a place for girls to warn others about a guy who did them wrong and caution them to stay away. To ensure validity, other users can click the “agree” or “disagree” button on other user reviews.

Guys, as agitating as this may be for you, you won’t be able to see your reviews unless one of your girl friends are willing to show you. In order to sign in, you must have a valid Facebook account, and if you’re not registered as a female, you’re out of luck. You can, however, access Lulu Dude to select your relationship status, profile photo and get self-improvement tips. Lulu describes it as “Cosmo for dudes.”

University of Oregon student Kyle Schneider was able to access a friend’s account to discover his ratings on Lulu. “I think Lulu is a bit ridiculous, but it really isn’t that new to us guys. We already have similar reviews of girls, but we just lack the social media voting that Lulu offers,” he said.

He said he personally doesn’t care what his reviews are, but if he could request one thing, it would be for users to have the ability to write more detailed comments as opposed to the limited list of short hashtags that are offered.

“We would like to think we are more than just short terms summed up from a small list,” he said.

UO senior Kelsey Rzepecki discovered Lulu through one of her sorority sisters. “I think it’s something to be taken lightly,” she said. “It’s a funny way for girls to have the power for once. It’s a private network for them to be honest about the guys in their life.”

Next time you’re on the fence about a new crush, consider downloading Lulu to see if he’s worth pursuing. As the founders of the app would say, “After all, one girl’s frog might be another girl’s prince.”  

Google Glass is a new “virtual assistant” in the form of a headset with a built-in camera and battery. A recent FCC filing, according to TechRadar, says “Wi-Fi and Bluetooth would be used to send pictures to the screen, whilst bone-induction may be used for sound, vibrating your skull to communicate the sound into your inner ear.”

Glass displays information on a prism that can be seen by glancing upward toward the display. By simply commanding “Take a picture,” Glass will snap a photo of whatever you are looking at. It also has the capability to shooting video, streaming live video chat, providing navigation, translating and answering all kinds of questions.

There is no doubt this could enhance our lives in a variety of ways. The possibilities for apps would be limitless, and the hands-free aspect could allow us to better multitask while using the device. Glass could have the capability of getting to know you and your every need.

Convenient? Yes. Unsettling? Maybe just a bit. While radically new technology provides us with advanced capabilities, there is always the risk for setback.

Take Facebook, for example: While it allows us to stay in touch and reconnect with people, it encourages us to substitute face-to-face interaction for the online variety. Smartphones provide a world of information at our fingertips but take our attention off the world around us and direct it at a little screen.

Google’s new product is certainly revolutionary, but with its recording capabilities there is cause for privacy concerns. How will others respond knowing the tiny camera could be recording their every move? Perhaps more importantly, what happens when virtually everything we say and do can be recorded and traced by Google? The thought of people wearing Glass while driving is unnerving as well. Even though you have to glance upward to see the display, it is potentially very distracting.

With any new gadget, it’s important to look at these implications and weigh them against the advantages.

If our professors don’t allow us to be on cell phones in class, how will they respond to students wearing Glass? Or could this gadget actually benefit our learning experience? With video recording capabilities, students would have the capacity to inconspicuously record lectures, which raises questions of legality. While it is still in preliminary stages, these questions will be answered as more people start using the product.

These will be available in five different colors and will soon be compatible with prescription eye glasses. As of now, they aren’t exactly the most fashionable, but Google is partnering with eyeglass companies to design a more attractive model. While the presale developer model was priced at $1,500, the consumer model is rumored to cost around $750. Google has said it is aiming to release the product to the public by early 2014.

In an era characterized by a generation increasingly captivated by live performances, attending festivals of all varieties has become a sort of college-life rite of passage. In preparation, we incessantly check the Internet for lineups, spend hundreds to buy a ticket months in advance and block out every obligation to indulge in four days of musical bliss with our closest friends. It’s experiences like these we will remember when we look back at our college years.

At least we hope.

Former University of Oregon student Kyle Banuelos realized the impact of these experiences and saw a need to preserve such precious memories — and even build on them. His solution: Stublisher.

With the newest addition to the world of digital archiving, the days of scrapbooking old ticket stubs are long gone and replaced with entirely new possibilities. Stublisher is a website where users can share and organize photos from concerts and events as well as connect with others in the process. By compiling this content on the web, our memories are safe and more vivid than ever before.

The website combines Instagram photos with Facebook-like features, but with an emphasis on concerts and other events. It uses unique geo-location technology to gather media shared in a specific location at a specific event. They are then able to compile Instagram photos and content generated by a mass audience in that location.

“We utilize the public-facing Instagram API, which is open to all developers for pulling images, along with the foursquare API for location,” Banuelos said. This technology allows them to pull all of the media from one location and share it in real-time or after the event. In addition to having access to these photos, Stublisher users can create profiles and connect with other people from the event, such as artists and other fans.

The 23-year-old co-founder studied business and applied economics at the UO from 2009 through 2012. After interning at Acceptly, a startup based in Los Angeles where the CEO encouraged him to pursue something of his own, Banuelos was inspired to start something new. Working with a team of seasoned entrepreneurs helped him realize what he truly wanted to pursue as a career. He and co-founders Billy Vinton and Zachary Collins took part in the Portland Incubator Experiment where they received investments that helped them make Stublisher a reality last July.

The website is a way of organizing an overwhelming amount of content and making use of it. He explains the vision as connecting people based on shared experiences: “We’re focused on building a community around these events, a place for everyone to share, collect and relive, regardless of friend group.”

While concerts and sporting events are common, users can document all kinds of memories.

“Events that have shown high engagement tend to be things you don’t see every day, from rodeos to extreme sports,” Banuelos said. “What’s neat is you get to discover and see photos from things you don’t experience on a regular basis.”

He and his team are still refining some details but so far have received positive feedback from users and partners.

“It’s a neat concept,” said 23-year-old Michel Calhoun, who joined the social networking site a few months ago. “You get to view images of an event from all sorts of perspectives.”

The website’s users aren’t the only ones who find the site extremely useful.

“We’re finding that Stublisher is not only a pretty neat product for people to use but also a valuable tool for artists, brands and teams because they’re finally able to leverage all the media produced at their events automatically.” Banuelos said.

Stublisher has turned out to be a beneficial resource and promising business venture, too. Banuelos says the site is aggregating valuable content and, in exchange, partners have direct access to the content and a network of fans. Artists and management companies can then take the media generated from those fans and use it as they please.

“We’re empowering them to own and design these photo streams on their own websites,” he said.

After looking at data and talking to their consumers, the Stublisher team is figuring out where the product fits in the market. Initially partnering with event organizers and distribution channels, Stublisher has discovered partners are willing to pay for the rights to the technology itself. It has partnered with Kings of Leon’s Vector Management, Twenty One Pilots with Fueled by Ramen Records and Kill Paris, to name just a few. Banuelos’ next venture is teaming up with TEDxPortland for an event on April 27.

“You have to find out who your product is resonating with most,” he said.

As college students, music festivals, concerts and sporting events are integral components of most of our social lives. By simply entering login info from your Facebook account, you can create a profile and start “Stublishing” photos and memories as soon as they happen. After all, we’re only in college once and, let’s face it, we might not always be in the state of mind to remember such experiences in vivid detail.

He said taking the advice to start his own company was the best decision he has ever made.

“I’ve learned so much in such a short amount of time, and I am grateful to wake up each morning and work on something I’m passionate about,” he said.

With the combination of the website’s unique new technology and an ever-growing interest in social networking, the experience of concerts and events can continue long after leaving the venue doors. Now it will be easier than ever to revisit not only your glorious college years, but also that monumental moment your favorite band graced the stage right before your eyes. As the motto declares: “Every day is an experience, Stublish it.”