UA research claims diet and exercise might not be biggest factors in losing weight
NBC 13 (Birmingham) – April 17
Are you dieting and exercising and still having a hard time losing weight? A group at the University of Alabama says there may be a bigger factor to weight loss. Students in Dr. Laura Reed’s biology lab are looking at the impact of diet and exercise in fruit flies. Reed says about 70 percent of the genetic diseases that are found in humans are also found in fruit flies. In order to test the exercise component on flies a senior biology students created a “treadwheel” out of a hotdog spinner that forces the flies to exercise. UA senior Sean Mendez said, “They’re always flying up. If you have them in a vile that are constantly flying up to the top over it. So basically all it does is flip the top of the vile end over end constantly.” Reed’s students are also testing high fat and sugar diets on the flies.
Video report 1 Video report 2
UA Professor receives Presidential Early Career Award
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) — April 17
A University of Alabama professor receives presidential recognition. Dr. Samantha Hansen, a geology professor, was awarded the Presidential Early Career Award for scientists and engineers earlier this week. She was among a group of 100 scientists and engineers greeted by President Obama at the White House. In her study, Hansen is using energy signals from earthquakes occurring worldwide to image the trans-Antarctic mountains. Hansen hopes to better the understanding of how the mountain range formed some 55 million years ago across Antarctica.
A-Day expected to attract big crowd to University of Alabama with a full day of activities scheduled
Tuscaloosa News – April 18
A full day of activities is scheduled Saturday for the thousands of fans expected to attend the University of Alabama’s annual spring football game. Gates will open at 11 a.m., with the first 12,500 fans receiving free posters featuring coach Nick Saban, members of this year’s team and the 2014 schedule. Pregame activities will begin at 9 a.m. with the Mercedes-Benz Fan Fest outside the north end zone of Bryant-Denny Stadium on the corner of University Boulevard and Wallace Wade Avenue. There will be inflatable bounce houses and other activities for children courtesy of Coca-Cola and a 10-foot-by-40-foot television showing highlights of past Alabama games. At the BBVA Compass Alabama Legends tent, fans can get free autographs from former Alabama players, including Antonio Langham, Andrew Zow and Chris Rogers.
Fox 6 (Birmingham) – April 17
Theater student takes roles to next level
Crimson White – April 17
When Sam Hardy felt the hatred rising within him as he spoke his last line as Iago in Shakespeare’s “Othello” last February, he was overwhelmed by the intensity of the emotion. He loved it. “Perhaps one of the things I enjoy most is something we consider most dangerous as an actor: really living at the far extent of [the character’s] emotional life,” said Hardy, a junior majoring in theater. “It’s a safe place to explore emotions and impulses that you usually can’t discuss or express anywhere else.” Hardy has performed in nine productions with The University of Alabama’s theater department, including the upcoming performance of “Urinetown.” He said his favorite role was Iago, because he loves Shakespeare and the role allowed him to explore vast emotions.
Tom Cherones Film Festival held at Bama Theater
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) — April 17
Tonight the Bama Theatre played host to the Tom Cherones Film Festival. The event featured several films created by students from the University of Alabama. Tom Cherones is an Alabama alumnus and television director who has worked on such shows as “Ellen,” “Radio Hour” and “Seinfeld.” Every year, Tom picks a script written by a UA student, and he helps produce the show for the festival. There is also money and prizes awarded to other students that created scripts for the festival. Cherones and the University have already made plans to run the contest next year.
These states have the worst drivers, researchers reveal
Insurance Business America – April 17
It’s a question for the ages: which state holds the dubious distinction of housing America’s worst drivers? Just in time for the increase in Easter holiday traffic and related accident claims, CarInsuranceComparison.com has the answer. By trawling through National Highway Traffic Safety Administration statistics on fatalities, failure to obey traffic signals, drunk driving, ticketing and careless driving, researchers were able to definitely label Louisiana drivers as the worst in the nation. . . . The report comes as holiday traffic heats up and almost a third of drivers report becoming more aggressive on the road when yuletide stressors come into play, according to a recent report from State Farm. “The pressure of the holiday, the pressure of having to find something and running all over to find it and all of those things would tend to distract them,” David Brown, a University of Alabama professor who studies holiday traffic told the Washington Post. “Their mind is on other things, and the next thing you know they’re pulling out in front of somebody.”
Alabama Businesses More Confident Heading into Second Quarter 2014
AL.com – April 18
The Alabama Business Confidence Index moved up 4.4 points to 55.6 on the second quarter 2014 outlook, its highest level of the last two years. The six components of the ABCI, including outlooks for the national and state economies and for industry sales, profits, hiring, and capital expenditures, all increased and were above 50 this quarter. An index number over 50 indicates positive expectations. This is the 50th consecutive quarter that the Center for Business and Economic Research in The University of Alabama’s Culverhouse College of Commerce has surveyed business confidence in the state. ABCI results provide valuable insight into how Alabama’s business community views their prospects for the quarter.
Review: Urinetown
Tuscaloosa News – April 18
It’s a musical for people who love musicals, yet it’s also a musical for people who hate musicals. It works, this “Urinetown” (presented by UA’s theatre and dance department) on so many levels that it’s about as clear, across-the-board unreservedly and wholeheartedly full an entertainment I’ve seen in some time. Good for everyone, assuming they’re not very young kids (although kids would get a lot of the jokes, too) or easily offended. Since its debut in 2001, “Urinetown” has out-produced “The Producers” and out-spammed “Spamalot” via affectionate yet prickly parodying of musicals. Making use of Brecht’s “critical distance” — forcing audiences to remember they’re watching a show — “Urinetown” breaks all the walls, then throws up everything to see what sticks.
Professor featured in Birmingham
Crimson White – April 17
If you walk through Woods Quad, you can’t miss it: Dozens, if not hundreds, of metal squares form a massive sculpture in the center of the courtyard. Its placement on campus allows it to spark conversation among everyone that passes by, not just those who wander into the nearby Sarah Moody Gallery. Similar sculptures are on the roof of a museum in Birmingham, for a similar purpose. From now until Aug. 31, sculptures by University of Alabama professor Craig Wedderspoon will be shown in the Lower Sculpture Garden of the Birmingham Museum of Art. About five years ago, a curator at the museum came to Tuscaloosa to visit with UA faculty and look at their work.
Libraries on campus host distinct patrons
Crimson White – April 17
Rodgers Library primarily serves science and engineering students, McLure Library works with education students, and Gorgas Library is a sort of catch-all for various majors. Katherine Kosich, a senior majoring in English, is a frequent patron of Gorgas and spends a great deal of time at what she calls the “versatile” library. “I’ve held short meetings for conferences in Java City, my friends and I will group sob over all-nighters by the elevators, and I’ve attended book-stitching events in the private rooms on the second floor,” she said. She said she finds a certain aura in the history of Gorgas and its comparatively old-timey feel.