MONDAY, NOV. 17 – SUNDAY, NOV. 23, 2014
BEST BETS
HOMECOMING WEEK – Homecoming Week continues with the Homecoming Queen election on Tuesday, Nov. 18. The Choreography Competition will be at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 19, at Coleman Coliseum. The Pep Rally featuring the bonfire will be at 6 p.m. Friday, Nov. 21. The Homecoming Parade will be at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 22, before the Alabama-Western Carolina football game. For more information, go to http://alumni.ua.edu/blog/2014/10/16/homecoming-2014/. Contact: Richard LeComte, UA Media Relations, rllecomte@ur.ua.edu, 205/348-3782
LAST WEEK FOR BEAT AUBURN, BEAT HUNGER – The the 21st annual Beat Auburn Beat Hunger food drive contines through Friday, Nov. 21, throughout Tuscaloosa. From 2 to 5 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 19, in the Ferguson Center Ballroom, the Homecoming “Canformation” features student organizations building themed structures out of canned goods. Started in 1994, Beat Auburn, Beat Hunger has helped collect more than 2 million pounds of food. The organizer is UA’s Center for Sustainable Service & Volunteerism. Contact: Richard LeComte, UA Media Relations, rllecomte@ur.ua.edu, 205/348-3782.
WADE NAMED DIRECTOR OF NEW ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ACADEMY – Veteran economic developer Neal Wade has joined UA’s Research and Economic Development team as director of the new Economic Development Academy. A new addition to the Office of the Vice President for Research and Economic Development, Wade’s appointment is effective immediately. In an October address to faculty and staff, UA President Judy Bonner outlined the importance of extending the vice president for research’s role to include economic development as a driving force for student, faculty, community and state-wide engagement. For more information or to request an interview with Wade, contact Chris Bryant. UA Media Relations, at 205/348-8323 or cbryant@ur.ua.edu.
THANKSGIVING WEEK BRINGS DRIVING DANGERS – Automobile crashes caused by deer, alcohol and bad weather are more common during the week of Thanksgiving than the rest of the year, according to a recent study of traffic data by The University of Alabama Center for Advanced Public Safety. Contact: Adam Jones, UA Engineering Media Relations, 205/348-6444 or acjones12@eng.ua.edu
UA SET TO HOST SECOND YEAR OF 3MT COMPETITION – UA graduate students get a chance to show off their research and presentation skills in the second iteration of Three Minute Thesis, and this time the stakes are even higher. Camera crews from Alabama Public Television will record the 3MT finals, which are at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 18 in room 159 at Russell Hall. Cameras are also following some individual presenters in order to tell their stories as they prepare to compete. “The 3MT competition is an amazing opportunity, especially this year since it will be televised, for graduate students to share their cutting-edge research with the larger campus, our community, and now the region,” said Dr. Cori Perdue, director of graduate student, graduate faculty and student-parent programs for the UA Graduate School. For interviews, contact Dr. David Francko, dean of the graduate school, directly at dfrancko@ua.edu or contact Perdue at cperdue@ua.edu or 205/348-2118. For assistance, contact Chris Bryant in UA Media Relations, 205/348-8323 or cbryant@ur.ua.edu.
STUDENT BLOGS ABOUT ROLE IN U.N. CLIMATE-CHANGE CONFERENCE – The American Chemical Society selected eight students nationwide, including a UA senior, as representatives to attend the upcoming United Nations climate-change conference in Lima, Peru. Catherine King, a Huntsville native studying chemical engineering and chemistry at UA, is scheduled to attend the first week of the Dec. 1-12 conference where representatives from more than 190 nations will gather to forge an international climate change agreement. King’s role will include interviewing world leaders and blogging about the talks she will attend in an attempt to prompt others to take additional interest in climate change. King and her fellow students’ writings are posting at www.studentsonclimatechange.com/. Contact King directly at caking2@crimson.ua.edu or contact Chris Bryant, UA Media Relations, 205/348-8323 or cbryant@ur.ua.edu for assistance.
UA PROFESSOR DEVELOPING WEARABLE DEVICE TO TRACK DIET – Dr. Edward Sazonov, an associate professor of electrical and computer engineering at The University of Alabama, was awarded a $1.8 million grant from the NIH to further development of a sensor worn around the ear that would automatically track diet, giving medical professionals and consumers accurate information that can be missed with self-reporting. Contact: Adam Jones, UA Engineering Media Relations, 205/348-6444 or acjones12@eng.ua.edu.
CURRENT COMMENT
‘SILK ROAD 2’ A ‘SHELL OF FORMER SELF’; TAKEDOWN YIELDS HODGEPODGE OF ITEMS FOR SALE – The Silk Road 2 takedown was as much about counterfeit currency and stolen bank and credit information as it was hallucinogenic drugs and stimulants, according to a University of Alabama criminal justice professor. Dr. Diana Dolliver, assistant professor of criminal justice at UA, recently presented results of a study of the “deep web” network at the SECURE 2014 XVIII Conference on Telecommunications and IT Security in Poland, just two weeks before the site was seized by federal and international authorities. Silk Road 2’s vendor listings and structure weren’t as sophisticated – or lucrative – as its predecessor, Silk Road 1, Dolliver says. Still, customers could purchase anything from $1,000 USD counterfeit cash (10 $100 bills), stolen gift cards, 1,000 youtube subscribers, 1,000 Facebook likes, Facebook photos, stolen debit cards with a promised amount left on them (usually over $2,000 USD) from countries like Australia, data for “anonymous AU bank accounts,” EU passports, forged paystubs, and compromised HuluPlus, Xfinity, and Spotify accounts. “These items are advertised with varying amounts of details from many different vendors, but almost all the vendors shipped from Belgium. The U.S. and Canada were slightly represented in this category, but the items were overwhelmingly of Belgian origin,” Dolliver said. “The actual stolen identity stuff – bank accounts and debit cards – make up only about 5-8 percent of this category. SR2 truly was a small, insignificant site.” For more information, contact David Miller, UA Media Relations, at 205/348-0825 or dcmiller2@ur.ua.edu or Dr. Dolliver at 205/348-2062 or DLDolliver@ua.edu.
UA EXPERT TIPS
UA MATTERS: PREVENTING CYBERCRIME — Recent hacks of debit card transactions and financial information at Home Depot and Target have resulted in more than $200 million in losses. Unfortunately, anyone who has access to the Internet is at risk of becoming the victim of cybercrime. The University of Alabama’s Dr. Diana Dolliver, assistant professor of criminal justice, shares some steps people can take to safeguard their financial information and prevent themselves from becoming a victim of cybercrime in this week’s UA Matters. Contact: UA Media Relations, 205/348-5320
UA MATTERS: PREVENTING DIABETES – Approximately 434,000 Alabamians have diabetes, one of the top 10 causes of death in the state. Uncontrolled diabetes can lead to heart disease, stroke, vision loss, kidney damage and, in some cases, loss of a limb. The University of Alabama’s Dr. Joseph Fritz, assistant professor in the department of family medicine in the College of Community Health Sciences, provides some simple precautions that, if followed, can prevent or delay this deadly disease in UA Matters. Contact: UA Media Relations, 205/348-5320
EVENTS
LEADING CHILDREN’S ADVOCATE TO SPEAK AT UA – Melanie Bridgeforth, executive director of VOICES for Alabama’s Children, will deliver, “VOICES for Alabama Children: Priorities for Change,” on Monday, Nov. 17 at The University of Alabama. The lecture will begin at noon in Room 104 of Little Hall. The lecture is part of the School of Social Work’s Colloquium Series that brings speakers to campus to share expertise with UA faculty, staff, students and guests. Contact: David Miller, UA Media Relations, 205/348-0825, dcmiller2@ur.ua.edu
INTERNATIONAL CULTURAL EXPERT TO SPEAK AT SCHOOL OF SOCIAL WORK – Charles P. Goff, an American educator and founding member of Cemanahuac Educational Community, a Spanish and Latin American culture school in Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico, will present a public lecture about Mexican culture on Thursday, Nov. 20. His talk, “Mexico: Current Events and Historical Perspective of Society and Culture,” will begin at noon in Room 223 of Little Hall on the UA campus. The event is free and open to the public. For more information, contact David Miller, UA Media Relations, at 205/348-0825 or dcmiller2@ur.ua.edu.
SCIENCE SUNDAY EXPLORES EARTH’S FORMATION – The Alabama Museum of Natural History hosts Science Sunday from 1 to 4:30 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 23. Titled “Earth, the Early Years,” the event will explore the formation of Earth and the abundance and diversity of life that it holds. The event is free and includes activities for children. Contact: Kim Eaton, UA Media Relations, 808/640-5912 or kkeaton@ur.ua.edu or Allie Sorlie, the museum’s education outreach coordinator, 205/348-6383 or acsorlie@bama.ua.edu
NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM CELEBRATES 60TH ANNIVERSARY OF HODGES METEORITE – The 60th anniversary of the Hodges Meteorite is Nov. 30. Special exhibits featuring artifacts from museum collections of this event are on display this week at the Alabama Museum of Natural History. There will also be a guest speaker at the Science Sunday event on Nov. 23 who will share the story of the Hodges Meteorite event. Contact: Kim Eaton, UA Media Relations, 808/640-5912 or kkeaton@ur.ua.edu or Allie Sorlie, the museum’s education outreach coordinator, 205/348-6383 or acsorlie@bama.ua.edu
LOOKING AHEAD
UA’S ‘DISCOVERING ALABAMA’ CELEBRATING 30 YEARS, ANNOUNCES NEW DOCUMENTARIES – The University of Alabama’s Emmy Award-winning series “Discovering Alabama” announces its new three-part documentary sequence on “Alabama’s Coastal Paradise” will begin airing on Alabama Public Television Nov. 25. The new programs were developed to share the rest of the coastal story, enhancing positive public awareness of the multi-faceted significance of the state’s coastal region beyond the unflattering and lingering attention that resulted from the 2010 oil spill. Contact: Kim Eaton, UA Media relations, 808/640-5912, kkeaton@ur.ua.edu or Dr. Doug Phillips, series creator, producer and host, 205/348-2039, info@discoveringalabama.org