PURDUE NEWS SUMMARY FOR WEEK OF OCT. 30 TO NOV. 3 This digest contains summaries of the following stories from Purdue News Service and Agricultural Communication Service. All these stories, and more, are available on the World Wide Web at http://news.uns.purdue.edu/html3month/3month.html (Instructions for retrieving stories and photographs via the Internet are at the end of this document.) 1. Purdue engineers develop a chair with 'sense' 2. Shopping online: What does the customer want? 3. Privacy takes on new meaning when it's online 4. Purdue president to address ag alumni in Southern Indiana 5. 2000 children to visit Purdue on Monday 6. Purdue students organize rally for football clash with IU 7. Classic love triangle on Purdue Theatre main stage Nov. 9 8. Kids aplenty, kids galore at PMO Christmas Show 9. Annual London trip to feature theater, architecture 10. Circus barns take center ring at Barn Again! In Indiana 11. The Combined Voices of PMO unveil IUPUI fight song 12. 'Real World' meets the real world at Purdue 13. Purdue calendar 14. Agriculture calendar 15. Best Bets for Journalists 16. National business, finance & technology Package 17. Inside Purdue and Perspective ------------------------------------- RESEARCH NEWS AND SPECIAL REPORTS ------------------------------------- 1. PURDUE ENGINEERS DEVELOP A CHAIR WITH 'SENSE' Purdue University engineers have developed a ''sensing chair'' that can determine a person's sitting posture, research that could lead to numerous applications, from computer-security systems to the design of more comfortable furniture. ''The chair senses how the pressure is distributed in the seat and the backrest,'' said Hong Tan, an assistant professor at Purdue's School of Electrical and Computer Engineering. ''We train the computer to recognize pressure patterns associated with different seating postures by showing the computer examples of such patterns.'' ------------------------ GENERAL INTEREST NEWS ------------------------ 2. SHOPPING ONLINE: WHAT DOES THE CUSTOMER WANT? Many consumers are wary and distrustful of online retailers, and these feelings prevent online retailing from becoming even bigger than it already is, according to a Purdue e-retail researcher. ''Fifty to 75 percent of consumers do not complete online purchases of items they want because of poorly designed Web sites,'' says Richard A. Feinberg, professor of consumer sciences and retailing. ''The most frequent button clicked on e-retail sites is the back button, which is an expression of people's frustration with poor site design and frustration with the e-shopping experiences. If e-retailers are to succeed, they are going to have to create trust and exceed customers' expectations better than they have in the past.'' 3. PRIVACY TAKES ON NEW MEANING WHEN IT'S ONLINE While surveys show that people are quite concerned about privacy in an increasingly wired world, a Purdue professor says perceptions of privacy vary greatly. ''Privacy means different things to businesses, customers, employers and employees,'' says Jacquelyn M. Rees, a Krannert School of Management assistant professor. -------------------- AGRICULTURAL NEWS -------------------- 4. PURDUE PRESIDENT TO ADDRESS AG ALUMNI IN SOUTHERN INDIANA Purdue President Martin C. Jischke will be the featured speaker Nov. 28 during the Southern Indiana annual meeting of the Purdue Agricultural Alumni Association. The meeting will be in Jasper, Ind. Also on hand for the event will be Dean of Agriculture Victor Lechtenberg, who will report on the latest developments in the School of Agriculture. Ag Alumni Executive Secretary Donya Lester also will discuss upcoming alumni events. ------------------------------- ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT ITEMS ------------------------------- 5. 2000 CHILDREN TO VISIT PURDUE ON MONDAY Purdue will welcome 2,000 children on Monday (11/6) for the Children's Theatre Company performances of ''Lyle the Crocodile'' in Loeb Playhouse. Busloads of children will begin arriving on campus at approximately 9 a.m., posing minor inconveniences for students near the Stewart Center. ''We anticipate delays in students walking time between classes because buses will be in the bike lanes and obstructing some sidewalks,'' said Tim Potts, Purdue Police sergeant of operations. ''We are thrilled, though, that so many children will have this opportunity to be exposed to the arts and to Purdue's campus for the first time.'' 6. PURDUE STUDENTS ORGANIZE RALLY FOR FOOTBALL CLASH WITH IU Boilermaker students and fans will celebrate the season and fire up for the Old Oaken Bucket game at a pep rally starting 6 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 16, at Slayter Center. Seven student groups are sponsoring the rally and a sheet decorating contest, with the winner to be announced at the event, said Brenda Shea, chief of staff of Purdue Student Government. Purdue will take on the Indiana University Hoosiers Saturday, Nov. 18, in Ross-Ade Stadium. Kickoff will be at 12:10 p.m. 7. CLASSIC LOVE TRIANGLE ON PURDUE THEATRE MAIN STAGE NOV. 9 Which man will it be, the solid and dependable reverend or the beguiling young poet? Watch the action unfold as Purdue Theatre presents George Bernard Shaw's ''Candida,'' Nov. 9-19. ''Candida,'' set in late 19th century London, tells the tale of a vicar's wife who finds her husband and a young poet vying for her affections. ''Love and a fair amount of comedy combine in 'Candida,''' said director Dale Miller, professor of theater. ''In addition, there is a significant level of sexual tension with a challenge to the conventional thinking of the era.'' 8. KIDS APLENTY, KIDS GALORE AT PMO CHRISTMAS SHOW Of the record 90 children from Greater Lafayette who auditioned for the PMO Christmas Show Kids' Choir in September, a lucky 28 are now getting ready for their December performance. ''The PMO Kids' Choir adds a magical touch to the Christmas Show because, in essence, Christmas is for children.'' said Lee Tartell, Kids' Choir director. ''We love them, they are great, and they are a lot of fun to work with.'' Not only does the choir add a ''magical touch'' to the program, but the experience also provides children exposure to the arts, the opportunity to work with area artists and the opportunity to gain experience performing. ---------------------- MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS ---------------------- 9. ANNUAL LONDON TRIP TO FEATURE THEATER, ARCHITECTURE Purdue's annual educational travel program to London will focus on the performing arts and architectural history.The 2001 London program is scheduled to coincide with Purdue's Spring Break, March 9-17, but is open to anyone who wishes to attend. The tour is sponsored by the Center for Lifelong Learning and the Department of Visual and Performing Arts. 10. CIRCUS BARNS TAKE CENTER RING AT BARN AGAIN! IN INDIANA When the greatest shows on earth stopped globetrotting for the winter, they folded up their big tops and headed for Miami County. The barns that served as the off-season homes for some of America's largest circuses more than 70 years ago take center ring at Barn Again! In Indiana, Nov. 11. Barn Again! is an annual workshop series focusing on rehabilitating old barns. The series is co-sponsored by the Purdue Cooperative Extension Service and Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana. 11. THE COMBINED VOICES OF PMO UNVEIL IUPUI FIGHT SONG The Purdue Musical Organization (PMO) and the IU Singing Hoosiers joined together to sing the new Indiana University-Purdue Univeristy Indianapolis (IUPUI) fight song, ''Let's Go Jags!'' Friday (11/3) The IUPUI basketball tip-off luncheon began at noon in the Indianapolis Athletic Club, third floor. IUPUI's first fight song, a collaboration between PMO and IUPUI written by composer Gary Fry, was unveiled at approximately 12:30 p.m.In 1998 IUPUI changed its mascot from the Metros to the Jaguars. The mascot change coincided with the school's athletic program move from Division II to Division I. 12. 'REAL WORLD' MEETS THE REAL WORLD AT PURDUE Purdue Student Union Board (PSUB) will present two alumni from MTV's ''The Real World,'' at 8 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 16, in a ''Real World Reunion'' at the Purdue Memorial Union's South Ballroom. Rachel Campos-Duffy of 1994's San Francisco season and Colin Mortensen of 1999's Hawaiian season will discuss conflict resolution, diversity and living responsibly. They also will talk about their ''The Real World'' experiences. The event will feature a question and answer session. 13. PURDUE CALENDAR This calendar lists entertainment events, lectures and meetings involving Purdue people during the next month. An online calendar of Purdue events is at http://www.purdue.edu/calendar/ 14. AGRICULTURE CALENDAR This calendar lists Purdue Agriculture events during the next four weeks. 15. BEST BETS FOR JOURNALISTS 16. NATIONAL BUSINESS, FINANCE & TECHNOLOGY PACKAGE These stories were distributed nationally and internationally this week to about 465 writers, reporters, editors and other interested parties. A Web site with links to all the stories and photos in this package is at this URL: http://news.uns.purdue.edu/paks/bizpak.digest.0011.html 1. Innovation 101 puts engineering and business on the same team 2. Christmas e-retailing survey 3. Managing telecommuting demands management to make policy, attitude adjustments 4. In the New Economy, fewer salespeople will call 5. Business, Finance & Technology Briefs 6. Utility, energy and deregulation experts list 17. INSIDE PURDUE AND PERSPECTIVE Check the online versions of Inside Purdue, the faculty/staff newspaper, and Perspective, a quarterly publication for alumni, parents of students, faculty and staff, for other news about Purdue, at http://www.purdue.edu/PER/Periodicals.html. HOW TO RETRIEVE STORIES AND PHOTOGRAPHS ELECTRONICALLY Releases, publication-quality photographs, and a searchable database of Purdue and Big 10 experts are available at the PurdueNews Web site at http://news.uns.purdue.edu. Faculty and staff may register as experts at the Web site. Publication-quality photos also are available at the PurdueNews ftp site at ftp://ftp.purdue.edu/pub/uns/. Purdue News Service also produces e-mail digests of stories on five topics: agriculture; business, finance and technology; lifestyles, education and careers; science, engineering and health; and weekly Purdue News (that's this digest). To subscribe (or unsubscribe) to this service: -- Address your request to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] -- Use a mail form with no text or graphics -- Leave the subject line blank. In the body, indicate which digest(s) you want: subscribe agnews subscribe biznews subscribe lifenews subscribe scinews subscribe pu-news (for Purdue students and employees) subscribe puweek (for non-Purdue students and employees) (The pu-news and puweek are this weekly Purdue News digest) To unsubscribe, just substitute ''unsubscribe'' for ''subscribe.'' Problems? Contact Mike Willis, Purdue News Service, (765) 494-0371, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -- Jeanne Norberg, director Purdue University News Service 1132 Engineering Admin. Bldg. 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