UA students’ early arrival helps Hillcrest
Tuscaloosa News – Aug. 13
With less than a week until classes resume at the University of Alabama, more than 150 UA Honors College students have returned to Tuscaloosa early to spend time in the community doing service-learning projects. Now in its 10th year, Alabama Action, a program planned and run by students, has nearly 100 participants taking part in a weeklong remodeling of Hillcrest Middle School. “Community service is part of our social responsibility,” said Sarah Hughes, a sophomore majoring in political science. “It’s fun to interact with new freshmen and other Honors College students while working on a project so important to so many people.”
Fox 6 (Birmingham) – Aug. 12
Our View: Alabama should ban texting while driving, but lawmakers also should look at stopping other activities that lead motorists to take their attention off the road
Birmingham News – Aug. 13
If the state Legislature needs any more evidence on why it should at least outlaw texting while driving, here it is: At least 1,466 wrecks involving drivers distracted by cell phones and other electronic devices have been reported over the past 13 months. Actually, that number is likely much, much higher. These statistics, collected by the University of Alabama’s Center for Advanced Public Safety, are just the start of what’s to come.
Women feel more pain than men
Discovery News – Aug. 12
Women experience more chronic pain and they’re less tolerant of the pain than men, according to a new review of research. “Globally, women have more chronic pain than men, more recurrent pain, they are more likely to have multiple sources of pain, and they are definitely neglected as it relates to treatment,” said Jennifer Kelly, an independent psychologist in Atlanta. Kelly presented a review of research on gender and pain today at a meeting of the American Psychological Association. . . . “What’s interesting is that there are gender differences across a lot of different measures of pain,” said Beverly Thorn, a psychologist at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. “It holds for acute pain, experimental pain, recurrent pain like migraines, and chronic pain like in the lower back.”
Home sales fell sharply in July
Tuscaloosa News – Aug. 13
Tuscaloosa-area home sales fell 38 percent in July, compared with June, reflecting in part the expiration of the federal tax credit for homebuyers. The credit, which was worth up to $8,000, prompted people who were thinking about buying a home or planning to buy a home later this year to make the purchase sooner. That boosted sales in spring, but took some buyers out of the market this summer. . . . Leonard Zumpano, a University of Alabama finance professor who specializes in real estate, said the three successive tax credits the federal government offered since 2008 had a positive effect on home sales. He noted a National Association of Realtors study that said the credits helped create an estimated 800,000 to 1 million in home sales since 2008. The national association survey of homebuyers listed 19 reasons for buying a home, Zumpano said. Buyers listed their reasons that affected their decisions.
ObamaCare Backlash May Yield Election, Legislative Victories for Pro-Life Groups
LifeNews.com – Aug. 12
LifeNews.com Note: Dr. Michael New is a political science professor at the University of Alabama and holds a Ph.D. from Stanford University. He is a fellow at Witherspoon Institute in Princeton, New Jersey. It is no secret that the upcoming 2010 midterm elections will in part be a referendum on the health care reform legislation that was passed this spring. However the enactment of Obama care will have some important policy and political implications that will last well beyond 2010. This is especially the case for the pro-life movement in America.