MONDAY, JUNE 30 – SUNDAY, JULY 6, 2014
BEST BETS
UA, MUSCOGEE (CREEK) NATION PARTNERSHIP HOPES TO SHED LIGHT ON PAST – The University of Alabama and the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Cultural Preservation Office are teaming up in an effort to find evidence that links prehistoric Muscogee people within different geographic regions. The Office of Archaeological Research contracted a partnership with the Muscogee (Creek) Nation in Oklahoma to provide a graduate research assistantship in UA’s department of anthropology to look at Creek homeland sites. Ted Clay Nelson, the award recipient, will be doing research in the Southeastern U.S., examining artifact collections from various archaeological sites. Nelson will be guided by Dr. Ian Brown, chair of the anthropology department, and Eugene Futato, deputy director of the Office of Archaeological Research and a 45-year veteran of archaeological research at UA. The artifact collections Nelson will be looking at are mainly housed in archival facilities, but he hopes to also examine private collections and include oral histories. Contacts: Ted Clay Nelson, tcnelson@crimson.ua.edu; Dr. Ian Brown, 205/348-9758, ibrown@ua.edu; or Johnnie Jacobs, manager of the Muscogee (Creek) National Cultural Preservation Office, jjacobs@mcn-nsn.gov; or Kim Eaton, UA media relations, 808/640-5912 or kkeaton@ur.ua.edu
YOUNG SCIENTIST TO MEET WORLD’S BEST – UA graduate student Brandon Hill was selected to spend a week interacting with about three dozen Nobel-Prize winning scientists in a week-long event in Germany June 29-July 4. He’ll join young scholars from about 80 other countries during the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting. These annual meetings provide a forum for scientific debate on issues of global importance. Hill is a doctoral student studying biology. Contact him directly via bjhill@crimson.ua.edu. Reach to Dr. Carol Duffy, a UA associate professor of biological sciences with whom Hill works, cduffy3@as.ua.edu. For assistance, contact Chris Bryant in media relations, 205/348-8323, cbryant@ur.ua.edu
UA EXPERT TIPS
UA MATTERS: TIPS TO ENSURE YOUR FIREWORKS PHOTOS EXPLODE – Fireworks displays are not only beautiful to watch but exciting to capture in print. The University of Alabama’s Kent Gidley, director of athletic photography, will have you shooting pictures like a pro this Fourth of July with these simple tips for capturing great fireworks, http://uanews.ua.edu/2014/06/ua-matters-tips-to-ensure-your-fireworks-photos-explode/. Contact: UA Media Relations, 205/348-5320.
UA MATTERS: WAYS TO AVOID HEAT STROKE – Having some fun in the sun is typically a popular summer activity, but it can also be dangerous. The University of Alabama’s Dr. Anne Halli-Tierney offers a few tips on how to enjoy the summer sun and stay safe, http://uanews.ua.edu/2014/06/ua-matters-ways-to-avoid-heat-stroke/. Contact: UA Media Relations, 205/348-5320.
CURRENT COMMENT
UA EXPERT OFFERS PERSPECTIVE ON HOBBY LOBBY CASE – Dr. Stephen Borrelli, UA professor of political science, comments on the Supreme Court’s ruling on Hobby Lobby’s challenge to the Affordable Care Act:“In many ways, the Hobby Lobby case was an ideal case to epitomize the interaction between religion and Obamacare. Supreme Court cases arise from specific, sometimes unique, disputes that aren’t always generalizable to other cases. The implication is that the Supreme Court’s ruling could possibly give corporations the right to make other policies based on their religious views, which could make employees dependent on having the same religious views as their employers. I don’t think this case will necessarily set that precedent. I think, and hope, that the Supreme Court would be very leery of that. The ruling also opens up the idea of personhood for corporations. If you look back a couple of years ago to the Citizens United ruling, you see that the Supreme Court is beginning to give corporations the same free speech rights as individuals and applying First Amendment rights in the same way they’re applied to individuals. There’s lots of controversy about that. In thinking about Obamacare, it occurs to me that some of these issues arise because instead of going to single-payer health care, we are instead using the existing infrastructure of the health care industry. Conflicts like these are an inevitable consequence of the government attempting to work through the private sector to supply health care.” Contact Borrelli directly at 205/348-5528; or, for assistance, contact Bobby Mathews, UA Media Relations, 205/348-4956, bwmathews1@ur.ua.edu
TECH INNOVATIONS IN JOURNALISM SHOULD CAUSE EXCITEMENT RATHER THAN FEAR – The Associated Press recently became the latest in a line of news organization’s to announce it would use robots to generate more content more quickly. “While most journalists’ first reaction to news like this is probably alarm, these kinds of innovations are actually an opportunity, or a challenge, to journalists to focus their efforts on ‘higher order’ thinking,” said Dr. Wilson Lowrey, UA journalism department chair. “In all fields, tech innovation gobbles up routine kinds of work, and it’s only the professions that are inflexible and too tied to particular routines or technologies that can’t adjust. Journalism can, and will, adjust to these kinds of changes, and we’ll have better journalism because of it.” Contact: Misty Mathews, UA Media Relations, 205/348-6416, mmathews@ua.edu; Wilson Lowrey, 205/348-8608. wlowrey@ua.edu.
LOOKING AHEAD
FREE CHILD NUTRITION CAMP – UA’S Institute for Communication and Information Research, located in Reese Phifer Hall, will host a free nutrition camp for children who have finished kindergarten through fifth grade. Children are invited to attend one of eight sessions on July 14-17, from 9 a.m.-noon and 1-4 p.m. each day. Parents should plan to drop off their children at the Walk of Champions in front of Bryant-Denny Stadium 10-15 minutes before the start of the session and must sign a consent form. Topics covered during the camp will include how to read nutrition labels, how to make good choices for snacks, how to understand food advertising and exercise. Participants are asked to come in shorts (or exercise pants), a T-shirt and tennis shoes. For questions or to register, contact: Dr. Kim Bissell, ICIR director, 205/348-7155, Bissell@ua.edu.