Who Knew?

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Who Knew? is intended to inform and entertain by publishing answers to questions of campus interest posed by faculty and staff. E-mail questions to wisweek@news.wisc.edu or send to Wisconsin Week, 19 Bascom Hall. Josh Orton of University Communications will seek out answers.

What’s the origin of the chalk markings near Library Mall that say “DM” and “Doyle and McCallum,” surrounded by a big heart? Is Ed Thompson up to something?
Nope, it’s not politics — at least “DM” isn’t. It stands for “dance marathon,” a fund-raiser started last year by a group of students to raise money for the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation and Camp Heartland, a youth camp for AIDS patients founded by Neil Willenson. Glaser and Willenson are alumni.

Lasting 18 hours and spanning two days, last December’s marathon raised $24,000 from about 200 dancers and was hosted by MTV quasi-celebrity Eric Nies, a former “Real World” cast member.

An official UW student organization, Dance Marathon plans a second run this year Nov. 15-16. Dancing will start at 7 p.m. on the 15th and continues until 1 p.m. the next day. Organizers plan hip-hop DJs, local bands and free dance lessons. This year the UW Children’s Hospital joins the list of charities.

Don’t pull out your dancin’ shoes quite yet — unless you’re ready for a serious commitment. Participants are required to stay on their feet the entire 18 hours, and are monitored on bathroom trips so they don’t take more than five minutes. No word, however, on what constitutes actual dancing, or whether polkas and the “Electric Slide” will be tolerated.

Dance Marathon organizers claim that the concept is “the largest national student-run organization devoted to charity.”

For more details, along with information about registration and volunteering, visit http://www.sit.wisc.edu/~dance_marathon/.

What are “EnginEarrings?”
Back in the mid-1990s, students in Materials Science and Engineering made their own jewelry to benefit student programs. Tagged “EnginEarrings,” the fashionably practical jewelry pieces were made of aluminum in the department’s laboratories after engineers there found a supply of nearly pure aluminum while breaking down an old foundry. The aluminum was shaped, treated, colored and attached to hooks, then sold at the Engineering Expo for $3 to $10 per piece. Total sales pulled in about $1,000.