UA researchers help make hydrogen fuel more attractive for cars
KOAT (Albuquerque, N.M.) – March 27
…the University of Alabama, say they’ve made a breakthrough that makes hydrogen fuel more attractive. They say they’ve come up with a way to regenerate the hydrogen storage compound, with chemical reactions in just one container. It’s a significant step forward; because it can reduce the expense and complexity of the hydrogen recycle stage.
Rants and raves
Montgomery Advertiser – March 26
RANT: For the shortsighted souls who fail to see the importance of the nation’s research universities and the work conducted there. A fine example may be seen right here in our own state, where a University of Alabama professor and three students are part of a research team working on an exciting prospect for hydrogen fuel for cars. Their work focuses on a new way to recycle a hydrogen-rich compound that can be used for an environmentally friendly fuel. Given the recent surge in gasoline prices and the fact that oil is a finite resource, this is surely the sort of undertaking that deserves support.
Research aids rural health
Crimson White – March 28
Innovation meets integration at the College of Community Health Sciences Institute for Rural Health Research. The Institute, now almost 10 years old, was founded to bring the highest attainable standard of health to rural citizens of Alabama. John Higginbotham, associate dean for research and health policy and director of the Rural Health Institute, said the Institute was born from another program designed to unite communities and discuss the needs of rural Alabama…
Sleep out on the Quad’ fights hunger, homelessness
Crimson White – March 28
On Wednesday evening, the UA Community Service Center will be hosting Sleep Out on the Quad to promote awareness for hunger and homelessness. At 8 p.m., student volunteers will begin packaging more than 10,000 meals for Stop Hunger Now, an international agency that coordinates food distribution to children and families in countries around the world…Following the meal packaging, there will be a screening of “The Pursuit of Happyness.”…At midnight, the UA chapter of TOMS will host its “Walk Without Shoes,” a barefoot walk around the Quad to promote the TOMS movement and raise awareness of the impact that one pair of shoes can have on a child’s life…After the walk, students have the option of rolling out their sleeping bags on the Quad and spending the night under the stars to raise awareness of homelessness…
All 7 metro Birmingham counties expect to see job growth, with Shelby leading the way
Birmingham News – March 27
…Ahmad Ijaz, an economic researcher at the University of Alabama, said it is unclear whether Jefferson County’s projected job growth was affected by the county’s current financial crisis. He said its projected annual employment growth rate “looks pretty good to me” considering that Jefferson has lost jobs over the past two decades, with the decline averaging 0.5 percent annually. He said the fastest employment growth recorded for Jefferson was in 1994, at 2.7 percent, while the biggest reverse came in 2009, when the county’s labor force shrank 7.6 percent. During the past two decades, average annual growth for the Birmingham metro area was 0.8 percent, with the best year being 1990 (a 4.7 percent gain) and the worst being 2009 (a decline of 5.9 percent). In contrast, Ijaz said, Shelby’s employment growth has averaged 2.8 percent over past two decades, peaking at 7.8 percent in 1994. The county’s worst year also came in 2009, when it lost 7.6 percent of its jobs. “Considering the historical trends and the fact that labor markets are improving at a very sluggish pace, any positive growth in employment should be good for the region’s economy,” Ijaz said…
The Big Bang: Where science and Christianity come together?
Tuscaloosa News – March 26
…“There’s two points of view,” said Louis Clavelli, a professor of theoretical physics at the University of Alabama. “There’s a large body of scientists who believe there’s nothing but atoms and nothing beyond that,” he said. “And there’s those that believe that these scientific discoveries over the last 100 years are making it more and more likely that there’s an external cause to all this, which is the popular notion of God. Of course, Dr. Stephen Barr is one of the proponents of the latter view.”…
LARRY CLAYTON: Science and faith (Alabama professor argues the two coexist)
Tuscaloosa News – March 27
…We need science and faith, however strident, self-serving and smug evolutionists and creationists may occasionally get at the extreme ends of the spectrum. Larry Clayton is a professor of history at the University of Alabama.
DCAF a second year success
Crimson White – March 28
A weekend of music and arts brought approximately 4,000 people to Government Plaza for Creative Campus’s second annual Druid City Arts Festival on Saturday. The festival lasted from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., concluding with a performance by musician Matthew Mayfield.
On Quad, Sno-cones, crafts offer students break
Crimson White – March 28
Students were able to indulge their inner child Sunday as they slurped on sno cones and played on Fun Factory Inflatables at the Residence Hall Association’s Carnival on the Quad. Students mingled with faculty members and their children as they competed in a gladiator joust and obstacle course, lined up for the wax hand booth, or enjoyed some refreshments…RHA decided on hosting a carnival-themed event because they wanted something centrally located on campus…
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – March 27
People run to raise money for UA wheelchair athletics
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – March 26 and 27
…Cold Stone Creamery held a 5-K race to help raise money and awareness, for the University of Alabama’s wheelchair athletics…
Students in media production class help rapper shoot a video
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – March 25
The University of Alabama’s department of media production has teamed up with Detroit female rapper Invincible to make a music video.
College news
Tuscaloosa News – March 27
On March 20, Stephen Cary, Professor of Music at the University of Alabama School of Music, appeared as tenor soloist in Honegger’s “King David” in Columbus, Ga., with the choirs of Columbus State University. In January, Cary sang a solo recital and taught a master class at Columbus State. He was assisted by Kevin Chance of the School of Music faculty. — Garry W. Warren, professor of metallurgical and materials engineering at the University of Alabama, has been named president of the Minerals, Metals and Materials Society…Warren joined UA’s department of metallurgical and materials engineering in 1986 after teaching at Carnegie Mellon University. Warren’s research focuses on electrochemistry, corrosion and hydrometallurgy. He has published more than 80 papers.