Why Do People Talk in Their Sleep?
U.S. News – March 4
Sure, you can have my phone number. It’s like having a direct line to God. But better, because I answer. Hold me. I want you to feel greatness. I’m like medicine. Take me twice before going to bed. Warning: I will cause sexiness. I’m not fat. It’s just my awesomeness swelling up inside me. These sound like bad pickup lines or something you might read on a T-shirt, right? Well, they did eventually make it on T-shirts, but the egomaniacal zingers were first uttered by a man who spewed out jokes (and not-fit-for-print phrases) in his sleep. Sleep Talkin’ Man – the name Adam Lennard and his wife use to refer to his alter ego – was born in February 2009 when he shouted, “Enough with the cheese! Enough!” “I ended up laughing him awake because it was so hilarious,” recalls Karen Slavick-Lennard, as the two shared Sleep Talkin’ Man stories in a phone interview from London, where they reside … To find out more about the sleep disorder and what you should do if you or your bed partner starts cracking jokes or uttering nonsense in the middle of the night, U.S. News talked with Ilene Rosen, an associate professor in the division of sleep medicine at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, and Natalie Dautovich, a National Sleep Foundation environmental scholar and assistant professor of psychology at the University of Alabama … “For most people, the talking won’t do any physical harm,” Dautovich says. “It could just possibly be embarrassing and disruptive to other people who share the same bedroom.”
Yahoo! – March 4
Mental illness issues surface in Barbara Grice’s defense following chaotic gun incident at Elberta Elementary School
Al.com – March 4
Mental illness precipitated a Foley woman’s actions last week when she walked into Elberta Elementary School with a loaded gun and threatened to kill her sister inside the cafeteria, her attorney said Wednesday. Barbara Grice’s animated behavior since her Feb. 25 arrest is also indicative of someone who requires mental evaluation, attorney Chris Salter said. Family members have also cited, through social media, struggles that the 51-year-old woman has faced with mental health and substance abuse issues since the death of her husband in 2010. John Gross, assistant professor of Clinical Legal Education & Director of the Criminal Defense Clinic at the University of Alabama School of Law, said the prosecution’s stance is common. “I think the tendency is almost always for prosecutors to claim the defendants were aware of what they were doing and deny they have some kind of diminished capacity,” Gross said. “Just because they cognitively are aware of what was around them, that doesn’t mean their mental illness is not seriously impairing their judgment.”
Alabama state justices: Until US Supreme Court rules on gay marriage, we’re still in charge
U.S. News – March 5
The Alabama Supreme Court has made itself an outlier in the judicial march legalizing same-sex marriages in the United States, drawing rebukes from gay rights advocates and evoking comparisons to Alabama’s defiance of federal authorities during the civil rights movement. The court set up a showdown with a Mobile, Alabama, federal judge this week when it ordered officials in the state to stop issuing same-sex marriage licenses pending a U.S. Supreme Court decision later this year on whether gays and lesbians have a fundamental right to marry. The Alabama ruling contradicts U.S. District Judge Callie “Ginny” Granade, who declared in January that Alabama’s constitutional ban on same-sex marriage violates the U.S. Constitution … University of Alabama law professor Ronald Krotoszynski said the Alabama justices are technically correct in asserting their authority in the case. The U.S. Constitution actually doesn’t say whether state courts must adhere to federal court rulings. It simply created U.S. Supreme Court and authorized Congress to create other federal courts as necessary. But Krotoszynski said the particular circumstances still make the Alabama action surprising, particularly given that the 11th U.S. Circuit of Appeals in Atlanta and the U.S. Supreme Court itself declined Alabama’s earlier requests to delay Granade’s order until after the high court rules this year. Many legal observers have interpreted those refusals as the court telegraphing its intention to rule in favor of same-sex marriage advocates. “Does the (Alabama) court have the power to do this? Yes,” the professor said. “Was it wise for the court to exercise its power this way? I’d say no. … This is just not a standard kind of move in the inter-relationship between state and federal courts.”
Washington Times – March 5
ABC 22 (Dayton, Ohio) – March 5
Vidaenvalle.com – March 5
Alabama Supreme Court blocks gay marriage: What is state really fighting for? (+video)
Christian Science Monitor – March 4
The on-again, off-again march of gay marriage into Alabama has been blocked anew: On Tuesday, the state’s highest court, in essence, reversed a federal appeals court ruling mandating that county probate judges start handing out marriage licenses to gay couples who file the necessary paperwork. The stunning sight of a state court squaring off like a hockey enforcer with the federal judiciary is par for the course in Alabama, where states rights rule and which gave America the “stand in the school house door” by then Gov. George Wallace, who blocked the entrance of the University of Alabama, refusing to allow black students an equal right to an education until the arrival of federal troops … “What I have often been struck by is a sense that when outsiders impose any kind of mandate, Southerners tend to dig in their heels,” says Lisa Lindquist-Dorr, a professor of Southern history at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. For example, in the early 1900s, “there were suffrage groups in the South, but when it appeared that suffrage was going to be won by federal amendment, some of them … lobbied against the amendment because they could not stand the thought of federal action versus state action. That’s how deep resistance to authority runs.”
Alabama’s battle against gay marriage leaves many questions
Al.com – March 4
The Alabama Supreme Court is in a showdown with a federal judge who ruled that the state’s same-sex marriage ban unconstitutional. The state’s justices say they remain the authority on state law, at least until the U.S. Supreme Court settles the question of whether the U.S. Constitution gives gay couples nationwide a fundamental right to marry. … Alabama’s justices don’t dispute that the U.S. Supreme Court has the last word on constitutional questions, but the relationship between the lower federal courts and state courts is more complicated. The U.S. Constitution doesn’t say whether state courts must adhere to federal court rulings. It simply created U.S. Supreme Court and authorized Congress to create other federal courts as necessary … University of Alabama law professor Ronald Krotoszynski says that’s technically correct. But he notes that Alabama stands alone in its reaction among the many states where federal judges have declared same-sex marriages legal. “Does the (Alabama) court have the power to do this? Yes,” the professor said. “Was it wise for the court to exercise its power this way? I’d say no. … This is just not a standard kind of move in the inter-relationship between state and federal courts.”
Athens News Courier – March 4
KRON 4 (San Francisco) – March 4
1100 AM (Charlotte, N.C.) – March 4
UA Law Professor comments on Alabama Supreme Court ruling about gay marriage
WHBQ-Fox (Memphis, Tenn.) – March 4
The Alabama Supreme Court ordered probate judges to stop issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples in the state. It comes after a U.S. District Judge overturned the state’s ban on same-sex marriages, and after the U.S. Supreme Court declines to put that decision on hold. An expert at the University School of Law says that the decision will most likely not affect couples who already got marriage licenses.
WXMI-Fox (Grand Rapids, Mich.) – March 4
Students adjust to time change
Crimson White – March 5
Clocks will spring forward before the University takes spring break, as daylight saving time begins Sunday. Setting the clocks one hour ahead can contribute to the loss of an hour of sleep Sunday night, but the time shift causes the sun to set later in the day. This change provides more daylight at the end of the day during the spring and summer months. Bart Elmore, an assistant professor of American history, bikes to campus from Northport. He said he is happy to have more light at the end of the day in the spring because it makes his ride home a lot safer. “In the automobile nation we live in today, these concerns may not matter to many folks,” he said. “But they certainly make a difference for us who use the energy in our bodies to get to and from work.” … Christopher Lynn, a professor and director of the evolutionary studies program in the department of anthropology, said daylight has a direct effect on human bodies but in today’s society daylight saving time is no longer beneficial. “All over the world, people draw shades to ensure privacy and turn on electric lighting to make up the difference,” he said. “In Alabama, especially in the summer, we’re more concerned with regulating temperature and running air conditioners than conserving natural daylight.”
Lunafest film event coming to Bama Theatre
Tuscaloosa News – March 5
Lunafest, the movie festival “by, for and about women” will return to Tuscaloosa for the seventh year, hosted by the Women and Gender Resource Center on the University of Alabama’s campus. This year’s films range from stories about teenagers being socially accepted, to dealing with partner’s mothers, to women breaking social norms. “They’re really diverse,” said Mollie Tinney, Lunafest coordinator for the WGRC. “These are short films that you’re not going to see unless you’re going out of state.” The Lunafest is a traveling fund-raiser. Proceeds for the Tuscaloosa/Bama Theatre showing will go to the Breast Cancer Fund and WGRC. “It’s like a fundraiser-in-a-box,” Tinney said. “You can really tailor it to meet your needs, whether you do it as a community program or a university.”
Opera theatre performs classic
Crimson White – March 4
Music by Mozart and Italian libretto, or text, by Lorenzo Da Ponte intertwine to form “Don Giovanni,” an opera based on the fictional tales of seducer and libertine, Don Juan. The University of Alabama Opera Theatre brought the popular opera to Bryant-Jordan Hall for an opening performance Wednesday. Additional sold-out performances will be held Friday at 7 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m. Paul Houghtaling, an associate professor of voice and the director of UA Opera Theatre, said revenge is a theme in the opera but the story of “Don Giovanni” provides other valuable teachings. “There are great lessons to be learned in the story about loyalty, faithfulness, love and forgiveness,” he said. “I think those four traits are certainly what anybody – whether they’re a student or a seasoned opera lover – can understand from ‘Don Giovanni.’” Students received their scripts and began preparation over Christmas break, and began rehearsals Jan. 12.
Kentuck celebrates artwork of Tuscaloosa County elementary school children
Tuscaloosa News – March 4
Today at 5 p.m., the Kentuck Art Center in downtown Northport will open its first art gallery featuring artwork by children in elementary schools throughout Tuscaloosa County. Amy Echols, executive director of Kentuck, said the center’s T.E.M.P. Gallery will display the work of 60 students in kindergarten through fifth grade. … “We invited all our elementary schools and home schools in the county to send us their K-5 artwork. We had two University of Alabama art professors come in and choose the top 60 pieces of work,” Echols said. “We had over 300 entries.”
Tide Talks celebrates birthday
Crimson White – March 5
The innovative lecture organization Tide Talks turns two years old Friday and everyone on campus is invited to the birthday bash. Tide Talks X will begin at 7 p.m. in the Ferguson Center Auditorium and will feature speakers, games and even birthday cake. “The very first Tide Talk was given this week two years ago,” said Joey Weed, a junior serving as Tide Talks’ new president. Weed joined the executive team in October, helping with Tide Talks IX under outgoing president Kevin Pabst. “Through this event, we are celebrating the legacy of previous speakers, ideas, and events in addition to four phenomenal new students around campus. Tide Talks X represents where we’ve been and where we’re going,” Weed said. Beginning in spring 2013, Tide Talks was designed for students by students to allow members of the UA community to share their experiences, trials and successes with other students.
Work continues at former site of Bryce Hospital
Tuscaloosa News – March 4
Work continues on the former site of Bryce Hospital at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa on Wednesday. The work is part of a campus master plan for the historic hospital grounds, which includes new academic and residential buildings and recreational facilities. UA purchased the Bryce property from the state in 2010, paying nearly $77 million for the 168 acres on the northeast side of campus and agreeing to pay an additional $10 million for environmental cleanup and historic preservation. The university finally took over the property in the summer after the property was vacated by the Department of Mental Health.
Marshall County veterans seek more support and resources
WHNT (Huntsville) – March 4
According to the University of Alabama, northern Alabama is home to more than 400,000 veterans, many of whom cannot get the resources they need and oftentimes end up homeless.
Greek members compete in 1st Olympics for charity
Crimson White – March 4
Members of the University of Alabama Greek system will host their own Greek Olympics to raise money for children with cancer.Carly Jones, a junior majoring in marine science, biology and telecommunication and film, is the social chair for Phi Sigma Pi Honors Fraternity and created the fundraiser. This is the first year of the event.“I actually thought of the idea last semester, and have been working to put it in place since then,” Jones said. “It is an event where different Greek organizations on campus will be competing in ‘minute-to-win-it’ type games such as relays and tug-of-war to raise money for a philanthropy of their choice.”The event is open to any UA student a part of a club or University organization, with tickets costing $5 per person.
Buford Peace Award Accepting Nominations
Crimson White – March 5
Each year, the Buford Peace Award honors a faculty member whose hard work, teaching, research, practice and professional life has promoted justice and peace among others. The Buford Peace Award was established by Tony Walker, an alumnus of The University of Alabama’s School of Social Work. The award is named after Lahoma Adams Buford, who served her community without desire for recognition. Buford dedicated her life to build a better, just and more peaceful world, Vickie Whitfield, spokesperson for the University’s School of School Work, said. … Whitfield said she was loved and held in high esteem by all who knew her. “The past winners feel humbled and honored to have their peers, co-workers and students recognize the importance of justice and peace in their lives and the way they try to live, greatly adds to the significance of the award,” she said. Cassandra Simon, associate professor in the University’s School of Social Work and editor of the Journal of Community Engagement and Scholarship, was the first recipient of the Buford Peace Award in 2004.
College News, March 5
Blue Ridge Now (Hendersonville, N.C.) – March 4
Molly Elizabeth Penny, a freshman at the University of Alabama, was named to the dean’s list for the fall semester. Penny is a member of Alpha Psi Omega, theater honors society; and Alpha Lambda Delta, national honors society. She is a Musical Theatre and French double major, and a 2014 graduate of Chatham Hall School.