MONDAY, DEC. 7 – SUNDAY, DEC. 13, 2015
BEST BETS
UA TO HOLD WINTER COMMENCEMENT CEREMONIES – UA will hold its winter commencement exercises Dec. 12 at Coleman Coliseum. The ceremony begins at 9 a.m. More than 2,400 diplomas are scheduled to be awarded to undergraduate and graduate students from all colleges and schools. Students from the Culverhouse College of Commerce, College of Communication & Information Sciences, College of Engineering and School of Social Work will participate in the 9 a.m. ceremony, while students from the College of Arts & Sciences, College of Education, College of Human Environmental Sciences and Capstone College of Nursing will participate in the afternoon ceremony at 1:30 p.m. For more information, contact David Miller, UA Media Relations, at 205/348-0825 or dcmiller2@ur.ua.edu.
WHAT’S IN STORE FOR 2016? LOOK FOR UA’S ANNUAL FACULTY PREDICTION PACKAGE – For the 35th consecutive year, UA’s Office of Media Relations offers predictions from faculty experts for the coming year. Our list of “Educated Guesses” for 2016 is coming soon. Predictions for the new year include: Trump Will Make a Run, but Clinton Will Prevail, Package Delivery by Drones Closer to Reality, In-state Jobs to Increase by 1 Percent and Regulations, Cheap Natural Gas Mean No Return to Coal. For more information, contact Chris Bryant, cbryant@ur.ua.edu, 205/348-8323 (print/online media) or Shane Dorrill, sdorrill@ur.ua.edu, 205/348-8319 (broadcast media).
STRINGS IN SCHOOLS TO HOLD ANNIVERSARY CONCERT AT UA – Strings in Schools will celebrate its 10th anniversary with a concert tonight, Dec. 7, at the Moody Music Building on UA’s campus. The concert, which is free and open to the public, begins at 7:30 p.m. The Tuscaloosa City Schools program has grown from 18 students in its first year to 315 this year. Middle school and high school students will perform Monday night, and slideshows featuring SIS graduates and former instructors will be shown. For more information, contact David Miller, UA Media Relations, at 205/348-0825 or dcmiller2@ur.ua.edu.
UA-AFFILIATED TECHNOLOGY AIMS TO IMPROVE DRINKING WATER – A method of cleaning drinking water with light is being tested and developed at UA with the hope of creating a product available for homes and businesses. LiTeWater, a company spun off from the technology, will be one of five teams competing in the Alabama Launchpad Startup Competition Dec. 10 in Huntsville. For more information, contact Adam Jones, UA media relations, at 205/348-6444 or acjones12@eng.ua.edu.
UA STUDY: HOLIDAYS DANGEROUS TIME FOR YOUNG DRIVERS – The 12 days leading to Christmas are some of the worst days for crashes involving young drivers, according to a recent study of traffic data by UA’s Center for Advanced Public Safety. For more information, contact Adam Jones, UA engineering media relations, 205/348-6444 or acjones12@eng.ua.edu, or Rhonda Stricklin, associate director of CAPS, at 205/348-0991, or rstricklin@cs.ua.edu.
UA EXPERT TIPS
UA MATTERS: STOCKING STUFFERS FOR CHILDREN – Although holiday shopping is in full swing, stocking stuffers seem to get lost in the shuffle. Sometimes it’s difficult to come up with cute ideas for your children. UA’s Amy Walker provides some tips on finding the ideal stocking stuffers for your children in this week’s UA Matters. Contact: Kim Eaton, UA media relations, at 205/348-8325 or kkeaton@ur.ua.edu.
UA MATTERS: GIFTS CHILDREN CAN MAKE FOR THEIR PARENTS — Children love to make things for their parents, especially during the holidays. They feel a sense of accomplishment and pride in anything they make, and parents usually love whatever it is that they have worked so hard on. UA’s Amy Walker offers a few simple ideas that children can make for their parents this holiday season. Contact: Kim Eaton, UA media relations, at 205/348-8325 or kkeaton@ur.ua.edu.
CURRENT COMMENT
HOUR OF CODE CAN SPARK INTEREST IN COMPUTING – Code.org, a nonprofit dedicated to expanding access to computer science, is promoting and sponsoring the Hour of Code, a grassroots campaign that aims for tens of millions of students around the world to try hour-long tutorials in coding. There are dozens of events registered in Alabama. Dr. Jeff Gray, UA professor of computer science, is a member of Code.org’s Education Advisory Council. “The potential to spark an interest in some students and to help them become aware of career opportunities is a strong reason for classrooms at all grade levels to participate,” Gray said. “The type of logic-based problem solving, while contextualized in an environment that is a lot of fun (e.g., Star Wars, Frozen, Minecraft, Angry Birds,) introduces students to a new set of concepts that are not covered in other classes at their school.” For more information, contact Dr. Jeff Gray at gray@cs.ua.edu, or Adam Jones, UA media relations, at 205/348-6444 or acjones12@eng.ua.edu.