Stupid College Tricks

It's probably not a good idea to build pipe bombs in your dorm room:

Police arrested a UC Davis student Thursday in the discovery of explosives on campus that led to the evacation of about 420 students from their dormitory rooms.

Mark Christopher Woods, 19, is a freshman Economics major from Torrance.

Paul Pfotenhauer, a spokesman for the UC Davis Fire Department, said that shortly before 9 p.m. Wednesday, a woman reported students with possible explosive devices in a dormitory room.

That led to the questioning of four students in the bedroom, including Woods. The other three students were released.

Woods was charged with possesion of materials with the intent to make an explosive or destructive device, and also possession with intent to make such a device on school grounds.

Authorities evacuated students from eight dormitory buildings in the Tercero complex to the common dining area.

Thursday morning, a bomb ordnance team is assessing the room where the explosives were found. Their work had been delayed because a search warrant had to be obtained before the situation could be addressed.

Mr. Woods' economics education will come in handy at San Quentin. He can advise the other inmates on the current exchange rate between cigarettes and shanks.

My brother-in-law teaches at Davis, but as far as I know he's not in the bomb making department.