BEST BETS
UA TO DEVELOP CDC-FUNDED CAMPAIGN ADDRESSING VACCINE CONFIDENCE — The UA Capstone College of Nursing was one of 10 schools of nursing selected by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, or AACN, to develop a campaign to build confidence in COVID-19 vaccines and dispel health misinformation. AACN was awarded $1 million in funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to launch the Building COVID-19 Vaccine Confidence Among Nurses and in Communities initiative and will provide funding for each university’s targeted campaign. UA’s campaign will emphasize providing education and resources to rural communities. For more information, contact Rosemary Russell Kirby, UA Capstone College of Nursing, at rurussell@ua.edu.
UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AMONG TOP 10 MILITARY FRIENDLY SCHOOLS — The UA Office for Veteran and Military Affairs has been acknowledged by Military Friendly® Schools for its dedication to service and leadership during the 2022–23 academic year. More than 1,800 schools applied for the honor, with UA ranking in the top 10. For more information, contact Caroline Gazzara-McKenzie, UA Strategic Communications, at caroline.mckenzie@ua.edu.
UA LEADING WORK ON NOVEL FUEL FOR HIGH-VELOCITY MISSILES — UA is receiving about $9 million from the U.S. Department of Defense as part of a four-year research project to further develop a novel hydrogen fuel. Early work on the fuel shows promise to allow missiles to maintain high speeds during flight, potentially neutralizing enemy missiles bound for the U.S. before they cross land. For more information, contact Adam Jones, UA Strategic Communications, at adam.jones@ua.edu.
UA STUDY SHOWS TRUST IN SCIENCE PREDICTS PANDEMIC COMPLIANCE — Whether it is pharmaceutical measures such as vaccines or non-pharmaceutical measures such as masking and distancing, trust in the community of mainstream scientific research is the best predictor of a person’s compliance with public health measures intended to prevent COVID-19, according to a study from The University of Alabama. For more information, contact Adam Jones, UA Strategic Communications, at adam.jones@ua.edu.
EVENTS
ALABAMA PANHELLENIC ASSOCIATION TO HOST EASTER EGG HUNT —The University of Alabama Panhellenic Association will host an Easter egg hunt on the lawn of the President’s Mansion Sunday, April 3. The event, which is open to children ages 12 and under, will begin promptly at 2 p.m. and last until the last egg is collected. For more information, contact Ines Martinand, director of community outreach for the Alabama Panhellenic Association, at imartinand@crimson.ua.edu.
UA DEPARTMENT OF THEATRE AND DANCE TO PERFORM “BASKERVILLE: A SHERLOCK HOLMES MYSTERY” —The UA Department of Theatre and Dance continues its season with Ken Ludwig’s “Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery” March 28-April 2 at 7:30 p.m., and April 3 at 2 p.m. in the Allen Bales Theatre. The play follows Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s iconic mystery-solving duo, Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, as they come face to face with rumors of an oversized hound terrorizing Baskerville’s residents. Tickets are $10 and can be purchased online at ua.universitytickets.com. For more information, contact Emilia Stuart, marketing manager for UA Theatre and Dance, at epstuart@crimson.ua.edu.
DANCE ALABAMA! RETURNS WITH VIBRANT SPRING SHOWCASE — “Dance Alabama! – Spring 2022″ will be performed March 30-31 at 7:30 p.m., April 1 at 5:30 p.m., and April 2 at 2 p.m. in the Dance Theatre in the English Building on UA’s campus. Dance Alabama! is a concert of performances choreographed, designed and performed by UA students. Tickets are $20 for adults, $17 for faculty, staff and senior citizens, and $14 for UA students. Tickets can be purchased online at ua.universitytickets.com. For more information, contact Emilia Stuart, marketing manager for UA Theatre and Dance, at epstuart@crimson.ua.edu.
BAMA BUG FEST RETURNS IN PERSON AT NEW LOCATION — Bama Bug Fest will return in person to celebrate the diversity and benefits of arthropods at the Alabama Museum of Natural History April 9. The free event from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. will showcase the multitude of arthropods, which includes insects, arachnids, myriapods and crustaceans, as well as true bugs like cicadas and plant-hoppers. More information about the event, parking and things to do can be found on the Bama Bug Fest website. For more information, contact Dr. John Friel, Alabama Museum of Natural History, at jpfriel@ua.edu.
STUDENTS HIGHLIGHT RESEARCH, CREATIVE ACTIVITY DURING ANNUAL CONFERENCE — More than 450 undergraduate students at UA are highlighting their research and creative projects during the Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity Conference April 4. The 15th annual conference, hosted by UA’s Office of Undergraduate Research, will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday, April 4, at the Bryant Conference Center. More than 275 presentations of student research and creative work will be showcased across three sessions. If planning to attend, contact Adam Jones, UA Strategic Communications, at adam.jones@ua.edu.
CURRENT COMMENT
CYBERATTACKS POSE THREAT TO CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE, INDUSTRIES — “Nation-targeted cyberattacks occur on a rather frequent basis and can have varying levels of impact depending on the tools utilized and the resources targeted,” said Dr. Matthew Hudnall, assistant professor of management information systems at UA. “The largest threat in that area is the fear of an unknown or unpublished exploitation that could cripple large segments of infrastructure and industry. Such ‘zero-day’ attacks are typically held onto by hacking groups until ideal usage scenarios and large-scale cyber warfare would seem opportune times to use them. The good news is that this is a battlefield that the U.S. government, industry and critical infrastructure have been fighting daily for multiple decades. However, such attacks could result in significant economic impacts, temporary loss of utility and government services, and other impactful scenarios that other countries have faced in recent years.” To schedule an interview, contact Hudnall at matthew.hudnall@ua.edu.
CLIMATE CHANGE, OUTDATED INFRASTRUCTURE EXACERBATE FLOODING — Much of today’s infrastructure to handle storm water and drainage was designed using old information and guidelines that still have not been updated to reflect altered precipitation due to climate change and land-use intensification, said Dr. Hamed Moftakhari, assistant professor of civil, construction and environmental engineering and a research associate with the Center for Complex Hydrosystems Research. “Our in-place infrastructure is designed to guidelines and data back decades ago,” he said. “This means our outdated infrastructure design is subject to failure, and we should not get surprised with recent flood events.” To schedule an interview, contact Moftakhari at hmoftakhari@eng.ua.edu.
MORE POLITICS NEEDED TO FIGHT MISINFORMATION — From the COVID-19 pandemic to the ongoing war in Ukraine, the past several years have been awash in dubiously sourced and outright false claims, according to Dr. A.J. Bauer, assistant professor in the department of journalism and creative media. Social media only exacerbates a problem that has plagued modern democracies for a century — how to ensure the public is making prudent decisions based on accurate information. Bauer suggests the need for a more historical context. “History shows us that moments like these, where fears of public susceptibility to misinformation are heightened, are also often moments of great democratic opportunity,” Bauer said. “Rather than seek to foreclose the uncertainties of our present moment, what would it look like to embrace them? To realize that what it means to be ‘informed’ is itself subject of political disagreement? My work suggests that times like these call for more politics, not less. Folks concerned with misinformation ought to organize their neighborhoods and workplaces, to promote political visions designed to foster solidarity and collective responsibility in response to the empirical conditions that render all of us vulnerable — from pandemics, to wars, to global climate change.” For more information, contact Bauer at ajbauer2@ua.edu.
IS INVASION OF ASIAN SPIDER IMMINENT? — The large, colorful Joro spider, which arrived from Asia around 2013, is spreading through the southeastern United States and up the eastern seaboard. However, Dr. John Abbott, chief curator and director of museum research and collections at the Alabama Museum of Natural History, said he’s not convinced they will be a huge problem. “Members of this genus are found throughout the warmer climates of the world, and we have a native species right in Alabama. It’s called the Golden Silk Orbweaver (Trichonephila clavioes),” Abbott said. And while Abbott doesn’t expect the Joro to do any harm, he said, “Accidentally introduced species like the Joro spider are never good as they can disrupt the natural balance of an ecosystem.” For more information, contact Abbott at jabbott1@ua.edu.
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The University of Alabama strives to remain neutral on public policy issues. Strategic Communications may facilitate interviews or share opinions expressed by faculty, staff, students, or other individuals regarding policy matters. However, those opinions do not necessarily reflect the views of the University or its leadership, and do not constitute a statement on behalf of the University unless explicitly designated.