UA Holds Computer Program for Teachers
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – July 25
FOX6 (Birmingham) – July 25
Educators from Alabama and Mississippi are at the Capstone this week to get hands-on experience building cell phone apps …The University of Alabama is one of only two schools in the Southeast to receive a grant from Google’s “Computer Science for High School” program.
UA students raise $10,000 for tornado victims with 5K race in Kansas
Al.com – July 26
Five University of Alabama students from the Kansas City area raised $10,380 for Tuscaloosa tornado victims with a 5K race on Sunday in Overland Park, Kansas, according to the Kansas City Star. Molly Neeb, Sarah Buschmann, Lindsey Green, Abby Jewell and Kat O’Halloran planned Run for Tuscaloosa to benefit the Acts of Kindness Fund, which will provide relief to UA students, staff and faculty affected by the April 27 tornado …
FOX6 (Birmingham) – July 25
TV execs cheer NFL’s return
Los Angeles Times – July 26
… As Andy Billings, a sports media expert at the University of Alabama, put it: “For over a decade, people have questioned whether the NFL has peaked in terms of popularity. Each time the answer has been no and this season’s ratings could be even higher.” Billings points out that last year, the Super Bowl set ratings records again — even though both teams (the Packers and the Pittsburgh Steelers) hailed from media markets outside the top 20. That proves that it’s not really about local fan bases any more. “The NFL brand,” Billings said, “is what is selling.”
Gas prices continue to increase
Florence Times-Daily – July 26
… Peter Clark, a professor of chemical engineering at the University of Alabama and an oil markets expert, said market speculators will have the final say in how much consumers will pay for gasoline and diesel. “There’s a common misconception that oil companies set the price of crude oil and ultimately the price of gasoline,” Clark said. “It’s commodity traders and not the oil companies who determine the price of oil.” He said commodity traders are speculating that world oil demand and the economy are going to improve during the coming months and are bidding up the price of oil futures. Clark said based on the cost of production and current demand, oil should be selling for $70 to $80 per barrel. Because of speculation by traders, it is fetching $90 to $100 per barrel. He calls the $20 difference the “Wall Street tax.” “There is absolutely no benefit to the consumer from all this wild speculation on Wall Street,” Clark said. “The only people benefitting are a few people who are getting very wealthy at the expense of consumers.” …