Transforming business: Dr. Peter Harms brings a new perspective to business and leadership.
BHMBIZ – Feb. 26
It all started with the box, that cardboard font of statistics and insight housing the Transformers toys of the ’80s. Dr. Peter Harms, admittedly a studious child, dove for the data about Optimus Prime (good guy), Megatron (bad guy), and all the rest, not realizing that years later he’d link the characters—and their fans—to leadership theories. Now a PhD and assistant professor of management at the University of Alabama’s Culverhouse College of Commerce, Harms says, “Those boxes had these little charts on them, and you had to use a special red cellophane tape to read it, like a secret message. The charts gave stats for each character—how smart this one is, how strong that one is, and so forth. It became really important to me to know who was fastest or best at some skill. “Years later, I began to think about the message the people who created the cartoon were conveying,” he says. “On the surface, it seemed like stupid robots shooting each other, but there were lessons being taught, even if they weren’t intentionally written in.” With coauthor Seth Spain (Binghamton University), Harms looked outside the boxes and into the TV Transformers cartoon of the 1980s for a chapter in a soon-to-be published book titled Monographs in Leadership and Management: Leadership Issues from Compelling Contexts.
UA searching for parents of children with cancer
Andalusia Star News – March 8
Cancer can strike anyone, but it can be especially difficult if you are a parent of a child with cancer. The University of Alabama wants to understand the challenges faced by parents with children with cancer. Dr. Sherwood Burns-Nader, a UA assistant professor in the College of Human Environmental Sciences’ department of human development and family studies is looking to capture a brief snapshot into the life through a new study. “Parents who have a child with cancer have so much that goes on in their daily experiences,” she said. “One day their child may be feeling great, and the next day they’re experiencing side effects from chemo or their immune system is compromised because of treatment.”
Multiple Tattoos Can Strengthen Your Immunological Responses
Infection Control Today – March 8
Receiving multiple tattoos can strengthen your immunological responses, potentially making you heartier in fighting off common infections, according to research by a trio of University of Alabama scholars. However, receiving a single tattoo can, at least temporarily, lower your resistance, says Dr. Christopher Lynn, UA associate professor of anthropology. The research was published online March 4 in the American Journal of Human Biology. Lynn said he had earlier noted first-hand that receiving tattoos can be physically draining. “They don’t just hurt while you get the tattoo, but they can exhaust you,” Lynn says. “It’s easier to get sick. You can catch a cold because your defenses are lowered from the stress of getting a tattoo.”
The false reality of Photoshopping bodies in magazines
Crimson White – March 8
Brandon Hooks was once excited to buy new items for his wardrobe. But at the store, surrounded by perfect-looking photos of models, his enthusiasm fell. The senior majoring in finance said he started scrutinizing the way he looked in everything he tried on, comparing himself to the retouched images in the advertisements. Hooks’ experience is not unlike what many other college students will face in their lifetimes. Students are exposed to many different factors that can affect body image, whether these influences come from social media rankings about people’s looks or advertisements and Photoshopped images of models in media. . . . Researchers like Kim Bissell, a University of Alabama journalism professor, have studied the use of photo retouching in media and its results on adolescents and college students, and have found that eating disorders are prevalent and children are learning to dislike their bodies. Bissell, who is the director of the Institute for Communication & Information Research at The University of Alabama, studied body image distortion as well as media and health literacy. She has been at the University since 2000 and works as the Associate Dean for Research in the College of Communication & Information Sciences. Her experience in journalism led to her discovering how a lack of understanding media can lead consumers to negative body image. Specifically, she expressed how retouched and idealized pictures in the media can influence those with less awareness of the media. “[Consumers] are going look to the images and want to emulate what they see, they’re going to want to say ‘how can I look like that?’ I don’t want to throw the media under the bus for this because they aren’t the only ones… [but] we’re bombarded with these images of the ‘perfect’ body,” she said.
UA professor to help map the Florida Everglades
WVUA 23 (Tuscaloosa) – March 7 (no video available)
A University of Alabama faculty member has been commissioned by the National Parks Service to create a map of Florida Bay in Everglades National Park. Dr. Michael Steinberg, associate professor in New College and geography, and Brad Bates, a graduate assistant to Steinberg, have been working to develop an accurate map of the channels and flats to help ensure the conservation of the bay.
Picasso, Close, other artists to be exhibited at Sarah Moody Gallery
Crimson White – March 8
Works from artists as well-known and diverse as Pablo Picasso, Chuck Close and Elizabeth Murray will be on display in a new exhibit in Sarah Moody Gallery. The show, In This House: Selections from the Permanent Collection will open on Thursday, March 10th and run through through April 10th. The exhibit will kick off with a reception from 6:00 to 8:00 on opening night. Other featured artists include April Gornik, Walker Evans, William Christenberry, Jim Dine, Kara Walker and many more. The Sarah Moody Gallery has been supported by the University of Alabama since the 1960’s. The gallery itself has collected more than 1,500 pieces of work, ranging from drawings, to photography, to paintings.
Notable speakers, students to discuss diversity
Crimson White – March 8
WHAT: The “Discerning Diverse Voices Symposium on Diversity” is in its seventh year at The University of Alabama and explores diversity and its characteristics. It features different speakers, panels, research and presentations about the details of modern diversity. Dr. Robin Boylorn, the coordinator of this year’s event, said that the different presentations are broken into 50-minute sessions to best fit students’ class schedules.“One of our goals is to make sure people understand that diversity is not just race,” Boylorn said. “It includes race, but it’s not limited to race. I think that is reiterated in our panel this year.”
UA SAE’s, KA’s raise $8,000 for the B+ Foundation
AL.com – March 8
A recent fundraising event for the B+ Foundation was held at the Sigma Alpha Epsilon house at the University of Alabama. The B+ cookout featured the local Tuscaloosa band “Sauce,” as well as dinner served for hundreds of UA students who were in attendance. The event benefitted the B+ Foundation, in honor of the late Nolan Fields of Montgomery. Nolan was diagnosed during his senior year with stage 3 non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and endured chemotherapy, a stem cell transplant, and radiation; he faced his disease with enormous strength and character but succumbed on February 20 at Children’s Hospital in Birmingham.