By: Matt Greenstein

As a freshman, Erica Meyer stepped across the plate during her at-bats.

So to combat that tendency, assistant coach Jessica Merchant gave her a string to help her technique.

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By: Allison Kronberg

Snowmobiles aren’t green vehicles. They emit the same amount of carbon as 250 to 500 passenger cars and produce over 700,000 tons of air pollutants annually.

A new University of Minnesota student group wants to change that.

The 10-person Clean Snowmobile Team tinkers with a snowmobile, modifying its parts and processes to increase its energy efficiency and reduce pollution with the ultimate goal of making the industry more sustainable.

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By: Jasper Johnson

Rep. Rob Erhardt, DFL-Edina, has proposed a bill that would increase the tab fees for the most fuel-efficient vehicles.

The idea of the plan is to make up for the loss in gas tax revenue as vehicles continue to become more efficient with their gasoline usage.

I view such a proposal as completely misguided. I understand the desire for the state to increase taxes or fees due to loss of gasoline revenue, but this proposal disincentivizes owning efficient vehicles.

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A push by Dakota County to develop Lebanon Hills, a 2,000-acre park, has met with significant resistance from those who use the park, the Star Tribune reported last week. Commissioners from the county started an advisory group after listening to nearly 350 park users’ comments at an open house event earlier this month.

Currently, much of Lebanon Hills remains undeveloped, which is useful for mountain bikers, trail hikers and those who ride horses or cross-country ski.

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Two new studies cast a disturbing light on the systemic biases that determine the makeup of academic faculty at universities nationwide.

The first study, which examined 1,500 biomedical doctoral graduates, revealed that minorities and women are disproportionately likely to avoid careers in academia and research.

The research subjects provided various reasons why they chose not to pursue academic careers, including a rigorous tenure procedure in which examining committees may hold different values from applicants.

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By: Jared Rogers-Martin

Football and basketball players account for less than 19 percent of the athletes in the NCAA, but this small demographic makes up more than 80 percent of the NCAA’s academic infractions.

The upper brass in the Big Ten conference is discussing one way of sealing this leak in academic progress by requiring all freshman athletes in the Big Ten to undergo a mandatory “year of readiness” in which they couldn’t compete.

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Dr. Date,

OK, here’s my dilemma: My best friend is like a 10, and I’m about a 5.5 (at best). She’s beautiful, charismatic and smart — the total package. So whenever we go out together, guys flock to her, and I’m completely ignored.

She always ends up going home with someone, and the roster of guys lining up to be with her is never-ending. She’s very modest, and whenever I bring it up to her, she brushes it off.

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By: Danielle Korby

It’s common knowledge that grocery shopping on an empty stomach will lead to extra, unplanned food purchases.

But a study involving a University of Minnesota researcher found that people are more likely to also purchase non-food items, like clothing and electronics, if they go shopping hungry.

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By: Barry Lytton

A Cedar-Riverside restaurant that has fed the area’s lunch and dinner crowd a mix of African and Mediterranean cuisine for nearly five years expanded last week, opening a new storefront in St. Paul.

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By: Jack Satzinger

Early in the second half of Minnesota’s game against Northwestern on Wednesday, the usually deafening Williams Arena crowd was dead silent.

That’s when the Wildcats coaching staff made some noise.

Every time Andre Hollins touched the ball, they’d yell “shooter!” in unison as defenders converged on the Gophers guard. The pressure was enough to limit Hollins for the majority of the game and send Minnesota to a 72-66 loss.

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