BEST BETS
UA RESEARCHERS EXPAND OPPORTUNITIES WITH UPGRADED ATOM PROBE TECHNOLOGY – A new, powerful microscope recently installed at The University of Alabama will expand exploration into nanotechnology and geological sciences, helping research into fundamental science and spurring economic development. For more information, contact Adam Jones, UA media relations, at 205/348-6444 or acjones12@eng.ua.edu.
UA ENGINEERING STUDENTS WIN NASA CONTEST – A team of engineering students from UA won the NASA Robotic Mining Competition in Florida over the weekend for the second straight year. The team was tasked with building a robot capable of digging simulated Martian soil. For more information, contact Adam Jones, UA media relations, at 205/348-6444 or acjones12@eng.ua.edu.
STUDENT-DRIVEN UA SPECIAL OLYMPICS TEAMS LEAD UNIFIED SPORTS INITIATIVE — Add The University of Alabama’s Unified Special Olympics team to its list of national champions. Special Olympics College at UA, a Unified Sportudent club, won the National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association Unified Basketball championship recently, edging Central Michigan 51-43 in Columbus, Ohio, to capture the division’s first-ever title. The Unified division is a partnership between NIRSA and Special Olympics. Unified Sports is a burgeoning, inclusive sports initiative in which teams must have at least 50 percent young adults with intellectual disabilities and the offset from typical students enrolled at UA. For more information, contact David Miller, UA Media Relations, at 205/348-0825 or dcmiller2@ur.ua.edu.
UNIVERSITY FELLOWS EXPERIENCE IN PERRY COUNTY — During May, student members of the University Fellows Experience perform projects in Marion as part of their freshman-year Black Belt Experience. On Wednesday, May 25, students will be working on landscaping at the Perry County Courthouse and working in the Lincoln Normal School’s basketball courts. Details: Richard LeComte, media relations, rllecomte@ur.ua.edu, 205/348-3782.
UA NAMES NEW DEAN OF GRADUATE SCHOOL – Dr. Susan Carvalho, associate provost for internationalization and interim associate provost and dean of the Graduate School at the University of Kentucky, has been named associate provost and dean of the Graduate School at The University of Alabama. Details: Richard LeComte, media relations, rllecomte@ur.ua.edu, 205/348-3782.
MAY INTERIM CLASSES – Professors at The University of Alabama are offering a number of thought-provoking and unusual classes during UA’s May Interim session, which runs through Friday, May 27. Class subjects include fantasy writer Terry Pratchett, the television series “Mad Men,” planning a mock wedding and knitting. Details: Contact Richard LeComte, media relations, rllecomte@ur.ua.edu, 205/348-3782.
UA EXPERT TIPS
UA MATTERS — Many chronic conditions, like high blood pressure, insomnia or heartburn, can be traced to a single common problem: stress. Common advice for fighting stress is to eliminate the stressors, which could mean going to bed early or just saying “no” more often. But that doesn’t address how our brains handle stress hour-to-hour or moment-to-moment, says The University of Alabama’s Dr. Harriet Myers. Find out more in UA Matters. For assistance, contact: Kim Eaton, UA media relations, at 808/640-5912 or kkeaton@ur.ua.edu.
EVENTS
UA HOSTING INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON STUDY OF MICROSTRUCTURES – Nearly 170 researchers from across world will be at The University of Alabama starting Tuesday for the EBSD 2016, the fifth topical conference of the Microanalysis Society in a series on electron backscattered diffraction. Researchers, who study who explore microstructures with high-powered instruments, will be mostly in and around Shelby Hall attending talks and taking tutorials on the instruments in UA’s Central Analytical Facility. For more information, contact Adam Jones, UA media relations, at 205/348-6444 or acjones12@eng.ua.edu.
JONES GALLERY SHOWCASES MINIATURE ART – A new exhibit at UA’s Paul R. Jones Gallery in downtown Tuscaloosa features miniatures through Friday, July 22. The exhibit, “In Miniature: Small Pictures from The Paul R. Jones Collection of American Art,” was curated by Emily Bibb, the gallery’s collections manager, and is free and open to the public. The Paul R. Jones Gallery honors the late Paul R. Jones who, during his lifetime, amassed one of the largest collections of African-American art in the world. Jones donated more than 2,100 pieces of his collection, now valued at $10.3 million, to UA in 2008. The gallery is located at 2308 6th St. in downtown Tuscaloosa. Gallery hours are Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and the first Friday of every month from noon to 8 p.m. For more details, contact Courtney Corbridge, communications specialist, College of Arts and Sciences, 205/348-8539, courtney.a.corbridge@ua.edu or UA media relations, 205/348-5320.
LOOKING AHEAD
CREATIVE WRITING CLASSES — The University of Alabama invites local high school students — incoming freshmen through graduating seniors — to sign up for the Summer 2016 Creative Writing Camp. The Creative Writing Camp will meet from 1 to 4 p.m. each weekday from Monday, June 6, to Friday, June 17, in 301 Morgan Hall on the UA campus. No previous creative writing experience is required. Tuition is free, and free parking can also be arranged. The instructors will be writers who are graduate students in UA’s Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing Program. Details: Meghan Tear Plummer, uacreativewritingclub@gmail.com, 337/499-7648.