December 2006 (Vol. 6, No. 3)
This Month's Top Stories . . .
National Visibility: UVM Cited in Front Page New York Times Story (up^)
UVM's quality and status as a "hot school" were recognized once again in a front-page story in the December 20 The New York Times on the rise of public flagship universities. "While a handful of public universities have long stood among the nation's top institutions -- the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Michigan among them -- many have only recently joined their ranks," writes reporter Tamar Lewin. "At some of the best public universities, selectivity is up . . . And student interest in these institutions is soaring. At the University of Vermont, where three quarters of the freshmen come from other states, applications have more than doubled since 2001." Read the full article (requires registration) at http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/20/education/20colleges.html?_r=1&oref=slogin.
Interview: President Daniel Mark Fogel (up^)
Personally and professionally, much has changed for President Daniel Mark Fogel over the past six months. UVM's "the view" recently sat down with the president to talk over his thoughts on being back on the job after recovering from a life-threatening illness, the unveiling and discussion of "Signatures of Excellence: UVM in the 21st Century," and the tragic disappearance and death in October of student Michelle Gardner-Quinn. Full story at http://www.uvm.edu/theview/article.php?id=2209.
Enthusiastic Audience Greets "Inconvenient Truth" Producer Laurie David (up^)
It's hard to imagine a more receptive audience for global warming activist Laurie David than the one gathered in UVM's packed Ira Allen Chapel on the unseasonably warm evening of November 29. David, perhaps best known as the producer of the film An Inconvenient Truth, addressed a capacity crowd of more than 1,500 (even the overflow location was standing-room only) with her talk "Stop Global Warming." More at http://www.uvm.edu/theview/article.php?id=2206.
Visiting Scholars Bring Intellectual Diversity (up^)
The James Marsh Professors-at-Large program is bringing a diverse group of outstanding and distinguished honorary faculty members to campus each year. Professors-at-Large are non-resident faculty with six-year terms of office who come to the campus three or four times during that period, each time for residencies of one to two weeks. Their sole mandate: to invigorate the intellectual and cultural life of the University. The program is named for James Marsh, fifth president of the University of Vermont and a major figure in nineteenth-century American intellectual life. More at http://www.uvm.edu/theview/article.php?id=2205.
UVM Hosts Delegation of Chinese Environmental Scientists (up^)
Yang Bin and his colleagues, a delegation of scientists and managers from the environmental protection bureau of Chongqing, China, have a keen eye on advanced American pollution treatments and other environmental technologies. Their home city faces some serious environmental challenges, and their visit to the University of Vermont and other nearby sites in November was part of a search for solutions. The six-day tour was hosted and organized by UVM's College of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences. Full story at http://www.uvm.edu/theview/article.php?id=2214.
UVM Scientists Recognized for Fighting Sunn Pest (up^)
The Sunn pest attacks wheat and barley in Afghanistan, Iraq, and other developing countries, and the impact is devastating. Yield loss from the insect in some regions is estimated at 20-30% in barley and up to 90% in wheat, despite over $42 million spent for control each year. For their research directed at fighting the Sunn pest, Bruce L. Parker and Margaret Skinner, entomologists at the University of Vermont, received the Innovative Marketplace Award December 5 in Washington, D.C., at the annual meeting of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research. Full story at http://www.uvm.edu/~uvmpr/?Page=News&storyID=9788.
Professor's Resilient Robot Featured in Science (up^)
A University of Vermont computer scientist helped develop the first robot capable of detecting its own shape and using this knowledge to adapt to damage. The new technology may have applications for the next generation of planetary rovers or in disaster relief. Joshua Bongard, an assistant professor in the College of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences, is lead author of a paper describing the project, "Resilient Machines Through Continuous Self-Modeling," that appeared in the November 17 issue of the journal Science. Co-authors are Victor Zykov and Hod Lipson of Cornell University. Full story at http://www.uvm.edu/~uvmpr/?Page=News&storyID=9663.
NSF Grant Funds Global Engineering Challenge (up^)
More than 1000 top high school students from across Vermont and the US--as well as their peers in Korea, China, India, Mexico and other parts of the world--are working in on-line teams to find real-world engineering solutions that can help in the fight against global warming. Through Global Challenge Inc., co-sponsored by the University of Vermont and funded by an $891,000 National Science Foundation grant, teams will develop a business plan for a practical product, like a solar car or an advanced heat recapture system for office buildings. The students' designs will be reviewed by judges in April, 2007, and winners announced June 1, 2007. Winners will receive college scholarships and other awards. More at http://www.uvm.edu/~uvmpr/?Page=News&storyID=9712.
UVM Researchers Find New Hope for Smoking Cessation (up^)
In the December Nicotine and Tobacco Research, researchers at the University of Vermont report on an unexpected, effective way to motivate smokers to quit smoking -- cutting back. According to the qualitative review of 19 studies on smoking reduction in individuals who did not want to quit, this method, typically coupled with the use of nicotine replacement products, led to an increase in quitting in 16 of the studies. "Our review contradicts the commonly held belief that quitting requires stopping abruptly and provides evidence that smokers can quit successfully by reducing the amount of cigarettes smoked," said lead author John Hughes, M.D., a professor of psychiatry at the University of Vermont College of Medicine. Full story at http://www.uvm.edu/~uvmpr/?Page=News&storyID=9778.
Women's Basketball at 8-2, Men at 6-5, Men's Hockey Hosts Catamount Cup (up^)
Heading into the holiday break, the UVM women's basketball team stands at 8-2, and Vermont first-year players have won four straight America East Rookie of the Week honors, led by guard Courtnay Pilypaitis with two honors already this season. Vermont is off to its best start since the 2002-2003 season and its best start under head coach Sharon Dawley in her four years at the helm of the program. The men's basketball team improved its record to 6-5 with a 73-62 victory over Dartmouth December 21. Men's hockey team will host the Sheraton/TD Banknorth Catamount Cup Friday and Saturday, December 29 and 30, at Gutterson Fieldhouse. UVM takes on RPI Friday at 7:05 p.m., with Union and St. Cloud State facing off in the other half of the tournament bracket. The winners will meet on Saturday at 7:05 p.m. in the championship game, with the losers facing off at 4:00 p.m. in the consolation game. Vermont won the tournament with a victory over Clarkson last year. More on UVM Athletics at http://www.uvm.edu/~sportspr/.
Campus Kudos (up^)
Dr. Peter Bingham, associate professor of neurology and director of pediatric neurology at Fletcher Allen Health Care, has been awarded a $1.6 million grant from the National Institutes of Health for a study of the use of olfactory stimuli to promote the development of premature infants.
Declan Connolly, associate professor of exercise science and director of UVM's Human Performance Laboratory, was quoted in the December issue of Outside magazine for his work on winter nutrition.
Dr. David L. Johnson, associate professor of anesthesiology, has been named president of the Vermont Medical Society for 2006-2007.
Chester Liebs, professor emeritus of history and founding director of the Historic Preservation Program, was awarded a Fulbright to Japan during the 2006-07 academic year as Visiting Professor of Urban Design in the University of Tokyo's Graduate School of Urban Engineering.
Alexandra Potter, research assistant professor of psychiatry, was lead author and Dr. Paul Newhouse, professor of psychiatry, was a co-author on a paper titled "Central Nicotinic Cholinergic Systems: A Role in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder?" published online November 1 in Behavioural Brain Research. Potter was also a co-author on a December 3 European Journal of Pharmacology article titled "Nicotine Administration Enhances Conditioned Inhibition in Rats."
Susan Sobel, associate professor of psychiatry, authored a chapter titled "Neurodegenerative Genetic Conditions: The Example of Huntington Disease" in the book Individuals, Families and the New Era of Genetics: Biopsychosocial Perspectives (W. W. Norton, May 2006).
Sharyl Eve Toscano, assistant professor of nursing, authored an article, "Sex Parties: Female Teen Sexual Experimentation" in the October, 2006, Journal of School Nursing.
Dateline UVM Would Like to Hear from You: (up^)
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