MONDAY, JUNE 15 – SUNDAY, JUNE 21, 2015
BEST BETS
BUILDING BIRDHOUSES, LEARNING SELF DEFENSE – Elementary and middle school students throughout Tuscaloosa will build birdhouses donated by Home Depot and learn self-defense techniques at the UA College of Education’s Summer Enrichment Workshop at Matthews Elementary in Northport. Each year, around 200 students take part in various arts and science activities, which are led by UA faculty and pre-service teachers from the College. For more information, contact David Miller, UA Media Relations, at 205/348-0825 or dcmiller2@ur.ua.edu.
NOYCE SCHOLARS TO TAKE PART IN 3-D PRINTING LAB DEMONSTRATION – Summer interns from the Robert Noyce Scholarship Program will develop equations for molecular shapes and watch them come to life in the 3-D printing lab in Rogers Library Friday, June 19 on UA’s campus. The demonstration starts at 9 and ends at 11:30 a.m. University of Alabama Noyce Scholars Program, funded by a $1.45 million grant from the National Science Foundation, awards 21 two-year scholarships ($16,000 per year) over the next three years to undergraduate and master’s level students who plan to major in chemistry, mathematics or physics and complete teacher certification. Seventeen students are participating in paid internships on campus this month. For more information, contact David Miller, UA media relations, at 205/348-0825 or dcmiller2@ur.ua.edu.
PHYSICISTS SEEK BIG ANSWERS FROM TINY PARTICLES – A team of international scientists, including a pair from UA, recently resumed efforts near Geneva, Switzerland, to use tiny particles in attempts to answer big questions – really big – like how the universe works. Drs. Conor Henderson and Paolo Rumerio, UA physicists, are working much of the summer at the Large Hadron Collider, the world’s largest particle accelerator. Located at the European Organization for Nuclear Research, or CERN, the LHC recently resumed operation following a nearly two-year shutdown for upgrades, testing and maintenance. The research team plans to use the LHC to further explore the standard model of physics and look for evidence of physics phenomena that lie outside it. Henderson and Rumerio may be interviewed via Skype or e-mail. To reach them, e-mail conor.henderson@ua.edu or pgrumerio@bama.ua.edu. For assistance, contact Chris Bryant in media relations, 205/348-8323 or cbryant@ur.ua.edu.
PROFESSOR LEADS ONLINE TEACHER TRAINING WITH HELP FROM GOOGLE, NSF – Dr. Jeff Gray, UA professor of computer science, will lead a free, online course, sponsored by Google, this summer to train high-school teachers in a new computer-science course and future College Board Advanced Placement exam. An estimated 1,500 teachers are expected to sign up for the online course from across the United States. Tuscaloosa will host the training for 50 Alabama teachers June 22-26. For more information, contact Adam Jones in media relations, 205/348-6444 or acjones12@eng.ua.edu.
CREATIVE WRITING CAMP – UA invites local high school students – incoming freshmen through graduating seniors – to sign up for the Summer 2015 Creative Writing Camp. The Creative Writing Camp will meet from 1 to 4 p.m. each weekday from Monday, June 8, to Friday, June 19, in 301 Morgan Hall. No previous creative writing experience is required.
The instructors are writers who are graduate students in UA’s Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing Program. They will lead a two week-long exploration of creative writing. To register for the Summer 2015 Creative Writing Camp, send an email with the student’s name, mailing address, email address, parent-guardian contact number, school and grade level to Christopher O. McCarter, coordinating director, at uacreativewritingclub@gmail.com. Contact: Richard LeComte, UA Media Relations, rllecomte@ur.ua.edu, 205/348-3782.
UA EXPERT TIPS
UA MATTERS: EXERCISING, WORKING IN THE SUMMER HEAT – Hot, humid weather poses great challenges for those working or exercising out of doors. UA’s Dr. Phil Bishop offers some advice on staying safe in the heat in this week’s UA Matters. Contact: Kim Eaton, UA Media Relations, 205/348-8325 or kkeaton@ur.ua.edu.
UA MATTERS: AVOIDING BRAIN DRAIN DURING THE SUMMER — Summer is a time for students, parents and teachers to get a break from the rigors of academic life and prepare themselves for the upcoming school year. Unfortunately, most students will inevitably fall victim to brain drain during this time. UA’s Dr. Andre Denham offers some tips for parents looking for good educational games to combat summer brain drain. Contact: Kim Eaton, UA Media Relations, 205/348-8325 or kkeaton@ur.ua.edu.
LOOKING AHEAD
THE AMAZING STEM RACE SET FOR JUNE 23 – Students from UA and community colleges across the state will use GPS, the names of Alabama football greats, Denny Chimes, physics, chemistry and math to race across campus in the Noyce Scholars’ first “Amazing Stem Race.” Fashioned after the hit TV show, the competition begins at 1 p.m. and ends around 5 p.m. Tuesday, June 23. They’ll have to solve calculus and algebra exercises and determine the speed of sound across the Quad in teams of two as they try to make it back to the Science and Engineering Complex for the final exercise and, hopefully, the winner’s circle. UA’s Noyce Scholars Program, funded by a $1.45 million grant from the National Science Foundation, awards 21 two-year scholarships ($16,000 per year) over the next three years to undergraduate and master’s level students who plan to major in chemistry, mathematics or physics and complete teacher certification. Seventeen students are participating in paid internships on campus this month. For more information, contact David Miller, UA Media Relations, at 205/348-0825 or dcmiller2@ur.ua.edu.
VENUS, JUPITER SHARE A STAGE – Only the moon outshines Venus and Jupiter in our night skies, and these two planets will appear paired later this month, says a UA astronomer. “This will be the closest conjunction of Jupiter and Venus we’ve been able to see since 1999,” said Dr. William Keel, UA professor of physics and astronomy. Visitors are invited atop Gallalee Hall from 8 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. June 30 to use UA’s 16-inch, research grade telescope to view the pair. Though the planets will appear to be in close proximity as seen from Earth, they are actually 516 million miles apart, Keel says. The event is free, and it is dependent upon the weather. Contact Chris Bryant in media relations, 205/348-8323 or cbryant@ur.ua.edu more details. Contact Keel directly at 205/348-1641 or wkeel@ua.edu.