Hazing is the beast in academe's basement, often lurking unseen and unreported, only to rise again and again despite countless rules and zero-tolerance policies. It takes many forms, some physically violent, some emotionally cruel, some booze-soaked, some silly. Since 1970, colleges have seen at least one hazing-related fatality each year, and the annual tally of reported injuries and abuse is long. Despite its prevalence, hazing remains somewhat mysterious. It's been the subject of relatively little research, and relevant studies are longer on the "what" than the "why." Nonetheless, recent data suggest that hazing affects more students--and starts much earlier--than college officials may have previously thought. Several scholars have also examined how hazing rituals tend to vary among students from different racial and ethnic backgrounds. Lawrence C. Ross Jr., author of "The Divine Nine: The History of African American Fraternities and Sororities," has written that hazing among white students often involves excessive alcohol consumption, whereas hazing among black students typically involves "brutalizing pledges." But make no mistake, hazing is an "equal-opportunity disgrace." That phrase comes from Hank J. Nuwer, an associate professor of journalism at Franklin College and author of four books on hazing. On college campuses, the ritual infects athletics teams, honor societies, glee clubs, and drama clubs.