Campus Chronicle

More than three-quarters of Illinois residents have been at least somewhat financially affected by the high price of gasoline, and more than half have reduced their driving in response, according to a poll released Wednesday. The Chicago Tribune/WGN-TV poll shows 77 percent of those surveyed feel high gas prices have affected their finances ``a lot'' or ``some,'' while 21 percent said they have not felt much of an effect.

The NCAA on Thursday rejected Bradley University's bid to escape a list of colleges whose American Indian nicknames, mascots and logos will be banned in postseason play starting next year. An NCAA staff review committee ruled the Peoria school's Braves nickname creates an environment where fans, opponents and others can exhibit behavior hostile and abusive to Native Americans.

Can a personal computer be programmed to behave like a student and work with a human classmate to solve difficult problems in computer science? And, can this computer student "peer" find acceptance among female undergraduates, whose enrollment numbers in computer science are on the decline? Barbara Di Eugenio, an associate professor of computer science at the University of Illinois at Chicago, thinks so.