UA Preview

MONDAY, OCT. 20 – SUNDAY, OCT. 26, 2014

BEST BETS

NANOTECH CONFERENCE TO BRING RESEARCHERS TO CAMPUS – Approximately 200 researchers from across the state are expected to attend a scientific forum on nanotechnology Oct. 23-24 on the UA campus. The University will host the second NanoBio Summit at the Bryant Conference Center featuring more than a dozen scientists representing various entities. More information is available here. Contact: Chris Bryant, UA Media Relations, cbryant@ur.ua.edu, 205/348-8323

UA STUDENTS SELECTED FOR ENVIRONMENTAL CONTEST – A team of University of Alabama students were selected for a national competition held by the federal Environmental Protection Agency. The students from the UA College of Engineering will explore a new method of disinfecting water. Contact: Adam Jones, UA Engineering Media Relations, 205/348-6444 or acjones12@eng.ua.edu.

UA RESEARCHER DISCOVERS LINKS BETWEEN ARTHRITIC PAIN, DEPRESSION AND SLEEP – Dr. Patricia Parmelee, director for the Center for Mental Health & Aging at The University of Alabama, has discovered links between high levels of pain and symptoms of depression exacerbated by a combination of sleep disturbances due to pain. Parmelee’s four-year study of 367 people in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania showed participants with greater symptoms of depression had experienced more pain and worsened sleep problems. Additionally, the study showed, a combination of sleep disturbance and high pain at baseline led to much greater depression. Parmelee also found that sleep disturbance alone at baseline predicted functional decline over the one-year period. For more information, contact David Miller, UA media relations, at 205/348-0825 or dcmiller2@ur.ua.edu.

LOCHMAN, BOXMEYER TO EXPAND, ENHANCE COPING POWER CURRICULUM – Interventions to curb or prevent aggressive behavior in adolescents are difficult due to the turbulent nature of the puberty and how they handle environmental stressors. The answer, though, could be in a successful program used to treat younger children. Drs. John Lochman and Caroline Boxmeyer of The University of Alabama and the UA Center for Prevention of Youth Behavior Problems recently received a pair of grants totaling more than $2.2 million to expand Coping Power, a children’s behavioral therapy program co-designed by Lochman. Lochman will serve as principal investigator on a four-year, $1.5 million grant to test the efficacy of his Early Adolescent Coping Power program, tested extensively with elementary school-aged children, with 720 at-risk seventh-grade youth and their caretakers in Virginia and Alabama. Boxmeyer, who received a $700,000 grant from the National Institute on Drug abuse, will incorporate mindfulness training elements, like meditation and yoga, in Coping Power strategies to reduce aggression and future drug abuse in youths. For more information, contact David Miller, UA media relations, at 205/348-0825 or dcmiller2@ur.ua.edu.

VIRTUAL REALITY A KEY TO HELPING STEM ADOLESCENT MARIJUANA USE? – Dr. Amy Traylor, assistant professor of social work at The University of Alabama, will lead a two-year study of adolescents’ reactions to contextual cues, like environments and interactions, related to their marijuana use. Traylor was recently awarded a $275,000 grant from the National Institutes of Health to create and test virtual environments to identify common cannabis-related proximal and contextual cues adolescents encounter. The study will include focus groups at The Bridge, a Tuscaloosa-area juvenile rehab facility. “Further down the road, we could look at using it in treatment situations,” Traylor said. For more information, contact David Miller, UA media relations, at 205/348-0825 or dcmiller2@ur.ua.edu.

STUDENTS’ VIEWS ON EVOLUTION SHAPED BY CHURCH ATTENDANCE – College students’ views on evolution are shaped significantly more by church attendance than education, according to a survey of Southern students. The study, accepted for publication in a scholarly journal, was done by UA researchers and based on data collected from some 3,000 UA students. It’s said to be the first in-depth analysis on the acceptance of evolution in the South. For more information, contact UA’s lead researcher, Dr. Leslie Rissler, professor of biological sciences, directly at rissler@ua.edu or 205/348-4052. For assistance, contact Chris Bryant in media relations, 205/348-8323, cbryant@ur.ua.edu.

CURRENT COMMENT

2014 MIDTERM ELECTIONS – The GOP has a chance to control both houses of Congress in the 2014 midterm elections, and the race boils down to a very few key Senate races. Dr. George Hawley breaks down the GOP’s chances and what it could mean for the 2016 presidential races as well. Contact Bobby Mathews, UA Media Relations, 205/348-4956 or bwmathews1@ur.ua.edu

UA EXPERT TIPS

UA MATTERS: WATCHING FOR SIGNS OF LANGUAGE DELAY IN YOUR CHILD – One of the wonderful and thrilling parts of being a parent comes in witnessing a child’s firsts: their first smile, their first laugh, their first step, their first word. Knowing when to expect developmental milestones or how to recognize developmental milestones matters since the late onset of these firsts can be an early sign of other, sometimes more pervasive problems. Perhaps no set of milestones is more important to know than those related to early language development. The University of Alabama’s Dr. Jason Scofield, associate professor in UA’s department of human development and family studies in the College of Human Environmental Sciences, shares a few of those milestones in this week’s UA Matters. UA Matters. Contact: UA Media Relations, 205/348-5320

UA MATTERS: TALKING TO YOUR KIDS ABOUT SEX – The words “sex talk” can strike fear in the hearts of the most veteran parents. It is something we know is essential but not a topic we feel most comfortable discussing. The University of Alabama’s Dr. Melanie Tucker, assistant professor in the department of family medicine at the College of Community Health Sciences and a certified health coach, offers a few tips on how to have those conversations. Contact: UA Media Relations, 205/348-5320

EVENTS

HISPANIC JOURNALIST TO SPEAK – Hugo Balta, a coordinating producer for ESPN, will speak about the role of Hispanic journalists in the media at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 23, in room 324 of Lloyd Hall. His visit is the culminating event for UA’s celebration of Hispanic Latino Heritage Month, which runs from mid-September to mid-October. It also coincides with efforts at the University to establish its first student chapter of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists. Balta is the former president of the 30-year-old organization that advocates for fair representation of Latinos in the media and increased presence of those of Hispanic origin in the nation’s newsrooms. Contact: Krista James, College of Communication and Information Sciences public relations intern, 205/348-6416 or knjames2@crimson.ua.edu or Taylor Armer, communication assistant, 205/348-6416, tiarmer@crimson.ua.edu

NOTED CUBAN POET TO PERFORM — Omar Pérez, a highly accomplished Cuban poet, musician, artist and translator, visits The University of Alabama campus Oct. 20-24. The featured event is a poetry reading and musical exploration at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 21 at the Jemison Mansion in downtown Tuscaloosa. Admission to the event is free and open to the public. A reception and book signing is scheduled prior to the reading. Contact Bobby Mathews, UA Media Relations, 205/348-4956 or bwmathews1@ur.ua.edu.

UA STUDENTS HELP WITH SCHOOL REHABILITATION PROJECT – About 40 freshmen and 10 student leaders from UA will perform service projects at Francis Marion High School in Marion from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 25. The projects include painting the interior of the main entrance, landscaping the grounds and cleaning classrooms. UA’s 57 Miles group is joining with UA’s Honors Year One and Francis Marion High School to revitalize the school. The organization also is partnering with Marion Military Institute for the event. This partner has pledged 15 volunteers to support the afternoon’s projects. Contact: Richard LeComte, UA Media Relations, rllecomte@ur.ua.edu, 205/348-3782

HALLOWEEN PERFORMANCE — Some songs carry a haunting melody, and the organ studio at UA’s School of Music presents a ghostly performance at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 25, in the Moody Music Concert Hall. The performance will eature some chilling organ pieces, including the well-known Toccata in D Minor by Johann Sebastian Bach, Danse Macabre transcribed for the organ by Lemare, and an organ duet by Merkle. An original composition from sophomore organ performance major Matthew Edwards is also featured. Contact Bobby Mathews, UA Media Relations, 205/348-4956 or bwmathews1@ur.ua.edu.

LOOKING AHEAD

DEPARTMENT OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE TO HOST POLICE/COMMUNITY RELATIONS ROUNDTABLE – A panel of six community and law enforcement experts, including Officer Charles Hayes of the Birmingham Police SWAT Department and Tuscaloosa Police Chief Steven Anderson, will take part in “From the Station to the Sidewalks: An Informed Discussion of Police and Community Relations in Light of Ferguson” at 6 p.m., Oct. 27 in Room 120 of Farrah Hall on the University of Alabama campus. This will be a panel discussion that will host community representatives, academic scholars, and law enforcement reps to discuss the events that transpired in Ferguson, Missouri following the death of Michael Brown on Aug. 9, and place the discussion in the larger context of police-community relations. Admission is free to the public. For more information, contact David Miller, UA Media Relations, at 205/348-0825 or dcmiller2@ur.ua.edu.