The contest will work similar to the original show. There will be teams of five facing off against each other for the grand prize of a $50 Visa gift card for each of the five people on the winning team. Like the original game show, contestants will be asked questions and will try to guess the top answers given by 100 people.

Four teams will be chosen at random from the entrants and two teams will face each other at a time. After that, the winners will feud it out one more time for the grand prize.

“We are asking that if people want to play that they come to the event in pre-determined 5-person teams,” said Matt Eickhoff, student engagement and activities coordinator and advisor to Entertainment Unlimited.

There is no entrance fee to compete in this event, but you must have your student ID to be eligible and have not received a refund on your Student Activity Fee.

If you plan to participate, aim to have your team ready to go a few minutes before 7 p.m. However, if you don’t plan on entering, you are more than welcome to come to the show and watch the action. Every game show needs a studio audience.

This is the third event in Entertainment Unlimited’s Game Show Series and previous events followed mock-ups of “Deal or No Deal” and “the Price is Right” and it is not the last one planned for this semester.

“Our next game show is coming up at the end of October and we are still deciding what game it will be,” said Eickhoff. “We are throwing around several ideas and hoping to solidify it by Family Feud so we can make the official announcement at the event.”

The series might also be returning next year.

Last Wednesday, Sept. 26, Entertainment Unlimited hosted the second game show, “The Price is Right.” According to Eickhoff, all six contestants won the prizes they were playing for at the event.

When it came down to the Showcase Showdown (the head-to-head competition at the end of the show where the contestants guess the price of a set of prizes), one student walked out not only winning his showcase but his opponent’s as well.

“It was really awesome to see the contestant miss his showcase’s price by less than $12,” said Jamie Brodbeck, student in the college of business.

This event is sponsored by the registered student organization, Entertainment Unlimited and funding is being provided from the Student Activity Fee given by the Finance Division of Student Government.

Steel Drum Band Southpaw Isle Steelband will perform in BRHS Auditorium october 5th, Friday at 7pm. Courtesy Photograph

With Michigan’s fall and winter season approaching, many would find the Caribbean and African influenced performance as “one of the world’s most amazing melodic-percussion traditions,” according to jumbierecords.com.

The exact art of these ten performers is categorized as “Caribbean steel pan and East African Embaire,” which both utilize percussion-based instruments. They use traditional steel pans, and also an African “Kisogo Embaire,” which is one of the world’s longest xylophones at 10 feet, and it is played by six people at a time. They play a variety of jazz, classical, and calypso compositions, mostly based on the traditional music of the Basoga people of Southern Uganda in Africa.

Dr. Skornia, the visiting assistant professor of music and the faculty director of the athletic pep band here at Ferris believes, “the art of steel pan, in my opinion, is one of the number one genres of world music…the colors available for these types of instruments is simply amazing.”

The band has had a strong history of success with the public. At the fairly recent World Steel Band Festival in Trinidad, they were rated as one of the “top eight steel bands in the world,” according to Pan-Trinibago, the world-governing body of the art of steel pan. In addition, they were the only non-Caribbean band at the event.

Ferris student Elizabeth Jensen says, “I think it’s a great idea. It’s neat that we are able to experience such a unique style of music here, especially from a culture that’s so different from our own.” student Katie Knoop said. “It’s definitely a type of music you don’t hear everyday.”

The concert costs $3 for any student, and $5 for general admission. If any additional information is needed, please e-mail wauditor@ferris.edu, or call x5600.

Homecoming Week games kick off on Oct. 14 with the Bedsheet Banner contest. According to the Homecoming website, residence halls and RSOs are encouraged to enter and create a bedsheet banner to be hung all over campus during the homecoming week.

“The winning banner best reflects the Homecoming theme,” the website said. This year’s theme is “Viva Las Ferris, ‘All In.’”

The tentative rules for this year’s bedsheet contest are as follows: $10 entry fee per team must be paid, application must be turned it; twin-sized bedsheets are to be used; any material can be used; a positive message based on the theme should be conveyed; must be displayed in a campus building that is open on the weekend by Oct. 14 at 6 p.m.; for more rules see the website.

A lip sync contest will be held on Monday, Oct. 15. Music must be turned in with the application and fee so that the Homecoming committee can screen the music. The acts will not last longer than five minutes. A limit of 12 acts will be chosen for the show.

On Tuesday, Oct. 16, the annual kickball tournament will be held on Top Taggart Field. The tournament starts at 6 p.m. with each team having at least ten but no more than 14 people. It is limited to the first 16 teams that sign up.

A series of pep games will be held on Wednesday, Oct. 17 at 6 p.m. on Top Taggart Field. The teams, all co-ed, will participate in numerous events where the winning team is the one that finishes with the fastest time. Tennis shoe like footwear must be worn.

Pride Day will be the final hurrah before Homecoming day. On Friday, Oct. 19, a pep rally will be held on the FSU Quad from 12-1 p.m.

“Wear your Ferris apparel or your Homecoming Greek shirts throughout Homecoming Week…,” The website said.

Students spotted wearing FSU apparel throughout the week will be given a Pride Day playing card. These cards can be used to win prizes during Pride Day.

On Oct. 20 at 12 p.m. there will be a Homecoming parade in downtown Big Rapids. Entry forms are online for RSOs who want to register a float. The floats must reflect the theme. For RSOs and Residence Halls entering in the contest dealing with the floats, please see “Competition Entry Rules 2007” on the homecoming website.

As a general rule for all events (with the exception of the parade), all participants must be FSU students. Registration forms can be downloaded online at ferris.edu/alumni/homecoming/.

For more information on any of the homecoming events, see the homecoming website.

Big Rapids Bowling Center Students knock down pins in Big Rapids Bowling Center. This is one of two bowling allies in Big Rapids. Photo By Ben Kramer, Photo Editor

Regardless of the competition’s expansion, BRB Center is determined to keep the hometown feeling alive while adding a few enhancements to its operations.

BRB Center’s three owners, Mike Cwikiel, Marcy Bernard and Jimmy Trouche, recently took over ownership of the bowling center this past July, and their plans for its future are endless.

Located south of campus on Northland Drive, across from Pizza Hut and Ponderosa, BRB Center currently offers 12 bowling lanes, a pro-shop, restaurant, two pool tables, a juke box, four televisions, and a full bar.

Recent improvements to the BRB Center are its newly resurfaced bowling lanes, the replacement of all the bowling pins, and an additional pool table.

In the future, BRB Center’s plans are to add a dance floor in the bar area, along with karaoke and a live Rock-a-Bowl.

Xander’s Restaurant and Pizzeria is also a fairly new addition to the BRB Center. The menu includes a wide array of foods for all appetites, ranging from Italian dishes to south-of-the-border selections.   

It is safe to say that BRB Center offers a variety of entertainment for anyone who walks through its doors. But what most people don’t know is that BRB Center provides more than just fun for the community it calls home.

“Each month we donate a family pack to Mecosta County’s foster care program,” said Cwikiel. “And we also host Big Brothers Big Sisters’ fundraisers.”

The BRB Center has also sponsored golf outings for the local schools’ Drugs Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) program, and has hosted small leagues for Special Olympic bowling teams.

When asked why someone might come to the BRB Center, rather than go to the competition, Cwikiel replied, “Because we are a friendly and relaxed environment. At the BRB Center, customers don’t have to hassle with paying for their games first. You come in, get your shoes and your ball, bowl for as long as you want, and you just relax.”

Trouche added, “We have great customer service because our customers know they can count on us.” He also noted, “BRB Center used to be the most happening place in Big Rapids.”

Sandy Morningstar, the manufacturing and welding department secretary and native of Big Rapids, has been to both BRB Center and The Gate.

“I prefer taking my family to the BRB Center,” said Morningstar. “It’s less crowded and you spend less money.”

At BRB Center, despite all the improvements, prices have stayed cheap. Mondays and Tuesdays are dollar days. Customers can buy a game, shoes, hotdogs, fries and drinks for only $1 each.

On Wednesdays and Thursdays, BRB Center offers two games, shoes, a medium pop and a one-topping slice of pizza for only $6.50.

Then, starting at 10 p.m. on Saturday is black light bowling. For $11 per person you can get three hours of bowling with drink and food specials, and that includes the price of shoes.

Sundays are family days at the BRB Center. For $40, a family of five can bowl for two hours; shoes included, and eat a large two-topping pizza with a pitcher of pop.

Tuesday night’s free eight ball pool tournament is also a hit at the BRB Center. The games start at 7 p.m. and prizes include $25 for first, $15 for second and $10 for third.  It is only open to the first 32 players,

Anyone who wants to improve their bowling skills can also head to the BRB Center for bowl coaching. Cwikiel is a Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) member and a certified United States Bowling Congress (USBC) coach.

Whether you are looking for a little amusement, a bite to eat, or just want to increase your gaming skills, you can find everything you need at BRB Center.

For any other information or to set up a reservation you can call 527-BOWL, or check out bigrapidsbowl.com.

Kid Nation is a television horror show that has taken 40 children out of their homes and put them in the wild. There, children as young as eight years have been split into factions, given very few resources, and thrown into a ghost town. This series is filmed by CBS and shown every Wednesday at 8 p.m.

On the first episode, the four teams of children were competing in a challenge for prizes and money. For adults on ‘Power of 10’, contestants compete for as much as $10 million. On ’Survivor’, contestants are playing for $1 million along with auxiliary prizes that include cars and cruises. But for the children? The winning team won a dollar. And the prizes they were playing for were outhouses. Satan, himself, must have conceived this.

On the second episode, the children were given a message from the producers. That message was to murder innocent local chickens. I thought I had seen it all. But I hadn’t seen a bunch of kids cut the head off a chicken.

Before the scene, a warning was put on the screen. It said that the following scene may be too graphic for small children. I wonder if they gave the small children that were killing the chicken the same warning.

One of the children was sad about the chickens and attempted to protest. Eventually she gave in. After the chicken was beheaded, she ran away crying and screaming. Not surprisingly, she was able to gather herself by supper time.

The best thing about these reality shows is rooting for the people on them to make fools of themselves. This is especially great when watching VH1’s Celebreality because it is hard to find any empathy for the people on the show. It is also great because the people are so dumb and out of touch reality.

But not even washed up celebrities can keep up with children in terms of stupidity. These kids are dumb. And the more I watch, the more I find myself rooting against these kids.

On the second episode, the children were in a challenge for a giant water slide. When they lost, I was happy. Children are our nation’s greatest treasure, and this show is making me hate them. I suspect that this show is apart of an anti-kid conspiracy in the media.

CBS is trying to sell this show as “socially relevant.” This notion is ridiculous. This show is exploitation and absolutely disgusting. With that being said, I will watch it tonight. And next week. And the week after. And I’ll watch the inevitable season two.

Typically, shows like this get more extreme as they progress. By season six, Kid Nation will probably just be an hour a week of kids getting attacked by vicious animals. A “social experiment” of how much child flesh a hungry animal can feast on before its blood lust subsides. I wouldn’t put it past you, CBS.

I’ve had lots of buying experience and this week I want to share some of this with you. I’d like to share my top three retailers for you, in the category of consumer electronics.

Bronze Medal

I’m giving my bronze medal to Best Buy. While I’ll usually only make very large or ‘need-it-immediately’ purchases at the store, it gives me a chance to peruse new products on the market and play with them.

Their prices are usually in the high range among my top three, but their protection plans are top-notch. The extra $30 on larger purchases is worth it in the long run, but I wouldn’t pay an extra $5 to insure my copy of ‘Guitar Hero 3’ against scratches for three years.

They have a wide variety of electronics and are starting to add appliances and home care products to their lineup. They are slightly lacking in the computer hardware area as well.

Their sales staff is knowledgeable but can be bothersome at times. Sometimes, I just want to play PS3 at Best Buy for a little bit; stop asking me if I need help with something!

Silver Medal

This may seem odd but my silver medal goes to eBay. I have purchased many items on eBay including the whole rear amp system in my car and my laptop. eBay gets ranked this high for price and convenience. Sellers compete with each other to give you the lowest price.

I was able to pick up a slightly older Dell laptop with a 2.0 GHz Pentium 4-M processor and a gig of ram for about $300. It was a lucky find, but I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone. In reality, you never know what you’re going to get. There may be some mundane detail that average users could miss that will affect the quality of their purchase. This goes for sellers and buyers alike.

eBay just keeps improving their website, making searches more effective and streamlining the checkout process with their child-company PayPal. If you’re purchasing electronics, you’ll want to make sure they are marked as “new” in their auctions.

Gold Medal

My gold medal will be given to Newegg (newegg.com). Ever since I learned about the website, about five or six years ago, I have built about half a dozen computers from scratch and upgraded them as well. In order to do this effectively and save money over purchasing a computer from a retailer, I needed cheap and reliable parts.

Their prices are the lowest of my top three and sometimes can be very low. On the average, you’ll be saving at least a couple of dollars over Best Buy.

Shipping is cheap and fast, usually arriving via UPS in around three days to the Big Rapids area. Customer service is an area they are always working on, but don’t let that make you believe they are lacking in this area.

Hybrid Buying Plan

When I make a decision to buy a piece of electronic equipment, I like to be as informed as I can. I’ll go shopping to a store so I can handle a product and/or talk to experts. But then I’ll go home and try to find that product cheaper online at Newegg or eBay. I also like to use third party product reviews like at CNET.com.

So next time you need to purchase an MP3 player or a RAM upgrade for your computer, you might want to check it out online.