LehighWeek Volume 11, Issue 21

              REMINDER:
Pulitzer Prize-winning Fences
staged here March 6-8,10-12
Wind concert to honor late alum 2
Grads array against noise clutter     5
STAR can guide Clinton's "Hopes"    7
South Mountaineer
Wrestlers prep for EIWA
after beating Pitt
LehighWeek
Inside
News
1-2
People
3,6-8
Events
2,4-5
Calendar
8
Volume 11, Issue 21
Lehigh University Campus Weekly
February 25,1998
pton
Taking it to the streets: Rob Wehbe '99, a
finance and accounting major, shows off his
new store, NeverLand, which sells "street
wear" on West Fourth Street. See story, page 3.
Behe opens his Black Box
to a campus forum
In the two short years since the publication of
his book, Darwin's Black Box: The Biochemical
Challenge to Evolution, Michael J. Behe,
professor of biological sciences, has grown
accustomed to sharp, sometimes personal
attacks.
But even some of his harshest critics credit
Behe with sound research and solid writing, and
admit that he has posed.questions that needed
to be asked.
Sixty journalists and scientists have reviewed
Behe's book, in journals ranging from a Bolivian
airline magazine to The New York Times, and
from Christianity Today to Skeptic, along with
major science journals such as Science, Nature
and Scientific American.
While some call Behe bold, even audacious,
others say he has allowed his religious faith to
color his conclusion that "intelligent design"
must account for the appearance of "irreducibly
complex" body systems.
"Does Behe as a Catholic prefer the illusion of
an intelligent Biochemical Creator?" one reviewer asked. More typical is the Times' conclusion: "Because something is beyond our understanding today does not mean it will be beyond
[our children's]."
Against this background, Behe discussed his
book, and the reaction to it, at the Biological
Please see Black Box on page 3
Student job prospects improve
as economy continues to grow
Graduates from the Class of
1997 are having more success
finding jobs than graduates of
recent years, and more success
than their counterparts at other
universities, according to a survey
by the office of career services.
Donna Goldfeder, the director
of the office, attributes the graduates' good fortunes to the improving American economy, to her
office's efforts to provide more online services, and to the office's
move last year into new quarters
in the Rauch Business Center.
"Not only has the national
economy gotten so much stronger,"
says Goldfeder, "but Lehigh was in
a position to make the most of that
improvement, because of our new
computer system, as well as our
recent move."
A seven-month survey of the
901 students who earned
bachelor's degrees in 1997 found
positive trends in all three undergraduate colleges:
♦ The overall average starting
salary for graduates in the College
of Arts and Sciences was $33,308,
or 24 percent higher than the
national average of $26,780.
♦ The overall average starting
salary for graduates of the College
of Business and Economics was
$33,329, or 11 percent higher than
the national average of $30,043. A
total of 91 percent of the college's
1997 alumni had found employment within six months after
graduation.
♦ Average starting salaries rose
by 10 percent in several engineering disciplines, and by more than
17 percent in the division of
computer science. The average
overall starting salary for Lehigh's
1997 engineers was $39,118, or 3
percent higher than the national
average of $38,013.
About 84 percent of those
earning bachelor's degrees in 1997
responded to the career services
survey, Goldfeder said, compared
to an "typical" response rate of 40
to 50 percent at other colleges.
Goldfeder said career services'
new offices on the fourth floor of
the Rauch Business Center have
impressed students and recruiters.
Both have responded well to a new
Please see Student Jobs on page 3
The job picture in each undergraduate college, compared
to 1993, shows how much the economy for graduating
seniors has improved.
College of Engineering and Applied Science
■ Post-graduate activity
Employment
Graduate School
Military, Travel & Other
Still Seeking
■ Average starting salary
by field
Civil & Environmental Eng.
Chemical Engineering
Computer Engineering
Computer Science
Electrical Engineering
Industrial & Mfg. Sys. Eng.
Materials Science & Eng.
Mechanical Eng. & Mech.
1997
76%
15%
4%
5%
1997
$34,121
$40,006
$40,678
$40,998
$40,364
$38,926
$38,955
$38,894
1993
63%
19%
5%
13%
1996
$31,554
$39,017
$38,660
$35,000
$37,085
$35,247
$36,875
$35,534
■ Overall average for all LU engineering students
■ Overall national average for engineering students
College of Business and Economics
■ Post-graduate activity 1997 1993
Employment 91% 78%
Graduate School 1% 6%
Military, Travel & Other 6% 5%
Still Seeking 2% 11%
■ Average starting salary 1997 1996
by field
Accounting $34,897 $33,603
Economics $34,667 $30,500
Finance $33,167 $31,500
Management $34,000 $34,120
Marketing $29,917 $29,660
■ Overall average for all LU business students
■ Overall national average for business students
Ntl. Avg.
1997*
$33,119
$42,817
$37,000
$36,597
$39,513
$38,026
$38,926
$38,113
$39,118
$38,013*
Ntl. Avg.
1997*
$30,321
$31,294
$31,294
$29,433
$27,874
$33,329
$30,043*
College of Arts and Sciences
■ Post-graduate activity
Employment
Graduate School
Military, Travel & Other
(incl. Pres. Scholar)
Still Seeking
■ Average starting salary
by field
Humanities
Math & Computer Science
Natural Science
Social Science
1997
51%
31%
11%
7%
1997
$31,700
$42,450
$29,111
$29,972
1993
43%
34%
9%
14%
1996
$23,354
$35,286
$27,838
$26,146
Overall LU average for A&S majors
Overall national average for A&S majors
$33,308
$26,780*
•According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers
m LEHIGH
^ir    University
LehighWeek
Office of Communications/Design
422 Brodhead Avenue
Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18015-3067
NON-PROFIT MAIL
U.S. Postage Paid
Permit No. 230
Bethlehem, Pa. 18015