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UTSA Gets TloketMaster
page 3
Big Apple Swallows Texans
page 5
Olympics Try Duran
pages
UTSA's Indiana Jones Returns
Archeologists discover untouched Mayan tomb
by Sicphanl* HarnandM •nd JalNM H«niand«z
On tit* aama day ttiat "Indiana Jones and tha Tampto of Doom" praniiared, ar¬ cheoiogical ttistory was iMtng made in Qualamala City May 23 as a taam led by Or. Richard E W Adams and associate protect director Qrint Ha* announced thair dtocovery ot an intact Mayan tomb.
Untouctfed by looters and motatura from ttte tropics tor 1600 years, Tomb 19 is ttte first tomb discovered at Rio Azul wtiich haa eacaped the ravages of the lootera who pMagad tha site in 1979 and 1980, matting otf with millions of dollars' worth of rsNcs and. in the pro¬ cess, destroying ttte opportunity for pro¬ per scientific investigation snd excava¬ tion of the area
WhHe Hm was documenting the 28 looted tombs in ttie area, he found a pat¬ tern to ttieir locations Hall consulted with Adams, who calculated that there stiould ba tombs within ttie two flanking
structures abutting a smal temple pyramid In diacovaring ttia tomb, tlia scientists ironically made valuable use of the looters' tunnels in ttie area and diacovered scattered piacea of flint m Apm. A funerary custom among the Maya ia to plac* pl*c*s of fint n*ar a tomb.
Bacauaa ttie tomb was discovered at the end of a scheduled, funded, proiect. it was necessary tor Adams to secure emergerKy funding from ttie National Geographic Society so ttiat work could continua.
After a quick tnp back to the States to secure the emergency anocatk>n, and rushing to beat ttie rainy season In the towland jungles, Adams and his team returned to the site and began digging again on May 9. Six days later and 10Vi feet deeper, they opened the tomb.
Covering the walls ol the tomb sre t>nlliant red hieroglyphs against an orange-yeHow background.  They pro¬
vkle tfi* sstting for c*ramk: veasaM. sn intact mal* sksleton. and a necklace ot carved jade beads.
Til* elaborate cokxed paintings depict three gods who are patrons of royalty They appear to be "watching over the d*c*a8*d," said Adams The paintings, made of hematite oxkle whk:h gives them ttieir red cokxatton, date the burial between 4S0 and 500 A,D
Because the wsll paintings contain Mayan symtxils of auttKXity and the Neroglyphtes on some of the ceramics refer to "Great Son, " a royal title, Adams speculates that the deceased was pro¬ bably a memtier of the ruling family "He wouM prot>at>ly be an administrator, but he wouM not be #1," sakl Adams
Hall aakl the skeleton was in such delk»te conditkin that It had to be rein¬ forced with polyvinyl acetate tielore It could be moved Physics) an- thropotogists will examine the skeleton to determine its age, stature, and to look
for evidence of diseases. Hal explained, "There are a numtier of diseases ttiat will leave marks on tiones. We can ex¬ amine him to see il signs of arthritis or certain kinds of cancar stiow up Another important aspect Is the nutri- tkxial situation ttiat the person tied whan he was living That wiH sometimes be reflected in the bones The bones are a potential source of informatkin about the physical condltkm of the person."
A necklace of grayish-green )ade was found nesr the skeleton It consists ol 16 tubular beads whteh are three- fourths of an inch in diameter and range in length trom one Inch to two Inches Ten of these beads were carved In the shape of skulls, accenting the eyes, nose, snd teeth Since ttie Maya were headhunters and were olten deptoted in paintings wearing necklaces of trophy heads, it Is possible that these skulls
See Discovery.    P^ge 3
BAHAIulA
C}1M4 NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC SOCIETY
Pili^ARO
TUESDAY
June 5, 1984
Volume 4, Number 9
Serving the UTSA community
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New Chancellor Says UT System Can Become the Best
Hans M Mark, a nuclear physk:ist and Deputy Administrator of NationsI Aeronautics and Space Administration, was named May 30 as chanceltor of the University of Texas System, to succeed E  Don Walker
The appointment was announced dur¬ ing a special meeting ot the U T System Board ol Regents in Austin The selec¬ tion was made from a field of 169 per¬ sons wtio applied or were recommend¬ ed by responsible sources in the higher education community
Mark, a nuclear physicist wtiose career tias Included a broad range of academic, administrative and research assignments as well as high-level posi¬ tions in the federal government, will assume the chancellors post on September 1, 1984
"I sm convinced that the University ol Texas System has the clear potential to become the best publk: higher educa¬ tion system during the coming decade," Mark said after being elected unanimously by the university's Board ol Regents
"During my years with the faculty of the University of California, Berkeley I developed some strong Ideas of wtiat a great university is and what it must do to maintain ils stature First and foremost it
must pass on ttie wealth of human knowledge in all Its complexity from one generation to the next Hopefully, it will also pass on wisdom, but I think you know thai this is s much more difficult proposition. Second, a university musl lead In the creation of new knowledge and inaights in the arts and sciences, for without the continuing search for new knowledge, teaching quk:kly becomes a sterile exercise. Third, and this applies especially to a putillc university such ss this one, a university must seek to find ways of enhancing the welfare and culture ol the community that supports It.""
In announcing the selection of Dr Mark to become the sixth chancellor of the University of Texas system. Board Chairman Jon Newton said: "The ap¬ pointment of Dr Mark culminates a nine- month search for an outstanding ad¬ ministrator and academician to succeed Chancellor Walker I believe Dr. Mark has the perfect blend of experience and talent to be the chief executive officer ol the University ol Texas system. He is a distinguished scientist and an ex¬ perienced laculty member, academk: administrator, and researcher With his Air Force and NASA background, he has demonstrated the management ability to
administer effectively a complex organizational enterprise such as the UT System which involves 119,000 students, 50,000 faculty and staff and an operational budget for 1984-85 of $18 billion '"
NASA Is considered to be one of the most highly regarded and well managed agencies in the Federal Governrnpr-'
"In addition to his recognued scien¬ tific and administrative credentials and his experience in dealing with the political process, our interviews with Dr. Mark emphasize that he has a strong in¬ terest in furthering our Systemwide goals in the liberal and line arts," Newton said
The University ol Texas system, a diverse system of universities and health-science Institutions, Includes seven academic campuses, six health- related institutions and the Institute of Texan Cultures.
The UT chancelkjr Is the chief ex¬ ecutive office for the university system which Includes a $2 billion endowment and an annual budget exceeding $16 billton. Only four other states have larger university systems
The current annual salary for the chancellor Is $132,800
Or. Hans Mark, the naw chancellor of the UT System
Outstanding  UTSA Teachers  Honored
[unlik* moat collaga studant* In town, UTSA studant* musl rasort to off-campus facilltlas to anjoy this rairashing ¦ummar pastima.
A bumpersticker reads: "I touch the luture; I am a teacher "" Two professors at UTSA who "touch the future" through their students recently were honored as recipients ol the Amoco Outstanding Teacher Awards
Or Betty Travis, assistant professor of mathematics, and Dr Thomas Hester, professor ol anthropology, were recognized tor their commitment to ex¬ cellence In teaching — the lirst year the university has presented the award to two professors
The "best math teacher I have ever tiad, " noted one of Traivs's students Another said, "She cares about the students and the learning process itself, always asking, probing, trying to elicit responses"
"All I ever wanted was to tie a good teacher," said Travis
A San Antonio native, Travis graduated from Burtiank High Sctiool and was awarded scholarships and grants to Tnnity snd St Mary's univer¬ sities She received her doctorate in mathematics education from UT Austin in 1978
She taught in the Edgewood and Nor- theaat school distrtot and at St Philips before joining the UTSA faculty in 1980. Travis demonstrates her commitment to
math education with her i,-ivolvement In continuing education courses and in- service seminars lor secondary teachers as well as through her UTSA classes lor students studying to become math teachers Travis also is the local and state coordinator of the "Math Counts" contest designed Ip stimulate junior high school students in¬ ters! in mathematics
"Teaching to Or Travis is something which occurs not just In the classroom tHJt at any opportunity the moment presents, ' observed Dr Charles Hathaway, dean of the UTSA College ol Sciences and Mathematics
A colleague said, "She set high stan dards tor her courses and her students and is a role model lor olher teahcers
In addition to teaching. Travis is recognized as a state and national leader in mathematics education Her many profesaional activities Include ser¬ ving aa president of the Texas Council ol Teachers ol Mathematics, state co- director of the Conference lor the Ad¬ vancement of Mathematics Teaching and state director for the annual Fundamentala of Mathematica Con¬ ference
See Taachart, p 3
Army Awards Grant
A $361,696 contract supporting research to develop a method of detecting toxins in the environment was recently awarded lo UTSA by the Department ot the Armv
The three-year project, "Functional Receptors in Semi-plastic and Other Ar¬ tificial Membranes," oflicially began June 1
"This project is an excellent example of how molecular neurobiolgy can be ap¬ plied to an important, socially relevant problem, said Dr Matthew Wayner, proiect co-director and director ol the Division of Life Sciences
"The award will contribute to the university's growing importance in Ihe molecular neurobiological field and represents another step in San Anionics growth as a center tor biotechnology said President James Wagener
The research will explore a process which mimics human physiology in delecting toxic substances using a com¬ bination of biological and artilical com¬ ponents Toxins bind to certain recep¬ tors in the surface membrane ol nerve cells which react to these poisons m distinctive ways The scientists plan to extract receptors trom rat and bovine brains and Irom the electric organs ol torpedos (sea creatures which stun their prey with an electric charge) and place them in artidcal membranes
Once isolated, we can observe the receptors reactions to a wide range ol toxins and will eventually be able to use them to signal the presence ol toxic substances in the environment. ' said Wayner
'This concept has several distinct ad¬ vantages over current detection methods.¦¦ noted Dr James ValOes, lex¬ icologist and the Army's scientific pro¬ gram officer lor this award Current detectors only recognize the presence ol specific toxins while the detectors under study will be abl6 to identify many different toxic substances The recep¬ tors will also be more sensitive than pre¬ sent detection methods — in theory nine orders ot magnitude more sen¬ sitive
"Since we are using neuroreceptors observed Wayner. "They primarily will be used to detect neurotoxins, those poisons that act on the nervous system But because ol the similarity among cell membranes, this technique might well have wider applications — perhaps even to abnormal cells, such as cancer
The receptor research will draw upon the combined knowledge ol scientists m a number ot related tietos In addition to Wayner's expertise m neurobiokigy, assistant professors Or James Chambers and Or Oianna Roberta wiN work in the areas of btochemiatry and immunotogy, respectively Dr David Ross, project co-director, is Chief of the Divison ol Molecular Ptiarmacotogy at the UT Health Science Canter at San Antonio
"This combination of talent* reflects - our     division's     *mphaBi*     on See Biology Or*itt p 3