UA Professor Researches Alcohol Cues
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – Feb. 3
One University of Alabama professor is looking into how college students view alcohol. And it’s a very in-depth look at alcohol use, as he is monitoring how each subject’s brain reacts to an image of beer, wine, or liquor. WVUA’s Travis Leder got a close look at this research, and joins us with more … I could show you a picture of a cow, then I can show you a picture of a house, and finally I can show you a picture of a glass of beer. And if you focus in on this image more than the others, the response that’s triggered may not be a healthy one. What we found was that simply showing someone a picture of alcohol actually causes them to zero in or focus pretty narrowly on that alcohol cue. Dr. Philip Gable used more than 40 college students in this recent study … What Gable’s study is looking to find is how one’s brain responds to alcohol images.
Display on UA’s history of slavery to open
Tuscaloosa News – Feb. 3
The opening event for “Unchaining Alabama,” a research project by a University of Alabama student into slavery’s history at the Capstone, will be Thursday on the third floor of UA’s Gorgas Library. The event will be at 5:30 p.m. in the A.S. Williams III Collection in Gorgas. It kicks off a monthlong display based on work by UA senior Benjamin Flax, who is researching UA’s ties to slavery as part of an independent research project supervised by history professor Josh Rothman, director of UA’s Summersell Center for the Study of the South. Flax hopes the work will inspire further scholarship on the subject and an open, honest discussion of the topic. Flax and Rothman will discuss exhibit and the overall conversation about slavery at UA during a short talk Thursday. The exhibit, curated by Flax and sponsored by the Summersell Center, will include a sampling of approximately 40 original documents, transcriptions and other research materials used by Flax in his research.
UA designated a military-friendly university
Crimson White – Feb. 4
Hard-working, driven, team players – phrases like these are often used to describe ideal applicants and employees, and they are qualities that Kelly Fodel, editor of Military Advanced Education magazine, said military veterans usually develop during their service. “Unfortunately, despite their service to our country and their many skills, unemployment is a huge concern for veterans,” Fodel said. “Education levels the playing field and helps veterans compete for quality jobs.” To help veterans make informed decisions about their higher education opportunities, Military Advanced Education magazine makes a Guide to Military-Friendly Colleges and Universities. In the newest guide, available on their website, The University of Alabama is designated as a top school. “This year, institutes were evaluated on their military culture, financial aid for veterans, flexibility, on-campus support and online support services,” Fodel said. “Schools that passed a certain points threshold were designated as our top schools and receive MAE’s Military-Friendly logo to use in promotional materials. However, we don’t rank schools in the guide … Rather, we gather the information, organize it and present it so that the student can make an informed decision.”
UA Hosts Autherine Lucy Tour
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – Feb. 3
February is Black History Month and the University of Alabama is hosting several special programs, including one about the life of Autherine Lucy. Lucy became the first African-American to enroll at The Capstone Feb. 1, 1956. As part of UA’s African-American Heritage Month, the College of Communication and Information Sciences is hosting historical campus tours through the month.
Children learn about space from Sesame Street Crew
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – Jan. 31
Kids at the University of Alabama Child Development and Research Center got a chance to learn about space from the Sesame Street crew. A mobile planetarium, sponsored by PNC Bank, taught the children about our sun, stars, and planets. The program is called “Growing Up Great Together Under the Stars”. Valerie Thorington, assistant director of the CDRC: “That just fits in beautifully with our entire mission and vision of what we do here, at the Child Development Research Center.”
UA students participate in Sundance Film Festival
Crimson White – Feb. 4
For one week every January, filmmakers and filmgoers alike converge on the small town of Park City, Utah, nestled in the mountains east of Salt Lake City, for the Sundance Film Festival. For 10 students in the telecommunication and film department at The University of Alabama, this year’s festival was course credit and more. “The Sundance course is made up of the trip to Park City as well as a 15-week spring class called Film Festivals and Independent Cinema,” Kristen Warner, an assistant professor of telecommunication and film, said. “The two parts complement one another and help students grasp the ecosystem that makes up the necessary components of a film festival, including the kinds of films that are programmed, the place of business, stars as well as publicity/press.” The idea for the course, which was first offered in Spring 2013, was rooted in Warner’s own collegiate experience as a graduate student and Sundance attendee at the University of Arizona. While there, she worked for the Arizona International Film Festival, where her primary job was to go to Sundance and recruit short-film filmmakers to submit the films to the festival. “I learned a lot about the business and industry of film festivals and always thought it would be great to bring students once I became a professor,” Warner said. “When I arrived at [The] University of Alabama in 2010, it was one of the first things on my list to accomplish.”
T-Town Pull Down continues to grow
Crimson White – Feb. 4
Climbers from all over the Southeast traveled to Tuscaloosa this weekend to compete in the ninth installment of the T-Town Pull Down, which took place in the University of Alabama Student Recreation Center’s climbing facility. About 25 to 30 climbers from The University of Alabama, Clemson, Georgia State, Georgia Tech and Valdosta State competed in Saturday’s tournament. Next year, the Outdoor Recreation Center plans to host the competition in their new facility at Presidential Village. In preparation for the annual event, the Rec Center’s climbing wall was temporarily closed for two weeks. The Outdoor Recreation staff stripped the walls and created new routes for the competition. “We’ve been working pretty steadily for several weeks getting the routes set, getting the competition ready, getting the gifts and the prizes, everything set up to go,” Sam Bates, a senior majoring in human performance exercise science, said. “All our staff helped set the routes, and therefore, we get to climb them and have fun, so it is a really fun time. We get to use our imagination and climb the routes and climb each other’s routes.”
Bama Covered educates public on health care
Crimson White – Feb. 4
In 2013, the America’s Health Ratings report showed 13.9 percent of Alabamians did not have insurance through their employer or through the government. A new student organization, Bama Covered, now strives to reduce this percentage by educating the public about available health care options. “[Bama Covered is] a non-partisan, student-powered organization working to make sure every Alabamian is informed about their health care options,” Josh Carpenter, president of Bama Covered, said. “The bottom line is that people do not know their options.” Bama Covered’s goals include dispelling myths, training students and going into communities to explain the facts about health care eligibility. Bama Covered is intended to be an objective source of information about health care.
Students Celebrate Chinese New Year
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – Feb. 2
The Chinese weren’t the only ones ringing in the new year this weekend. Friday kicked off the start of the Chinese lunar calendar and students from all over gathered in the Ferguson Center ballroom to celebrate yesterday. The event normally has up to 500 attendees, and about half are not Chinese. University of Alabama student Annie Newton says the variety of people shows the community’s support for this culture.