Monday, April 10, 2006

Voices of victims and men

On New Year’s Eve 1995, Andrea Cooper returned home from a party to find that her 20-year-old daughter, Kristin, had taken her own life. Cooper eventually learned that Kristin had been so traumatized by an acquaintance rape that she had fallen into a deep depression that spiraled downward even further when her boyfriend rejected her. Cooper will talk about Kristin at 7 p.m. WEDNESDAY in Tucker Theatre. Immediately following Cooper’s address, Ben Atherton-Zeman will lighten the mood at Tucker Theatre with a humorous presentation poking fun at some male attitudes toward women through movie characters such as James Bond, Austin Powers and Rocky Balboa. These Sexual Assault Awareness Month events are free and open to the public. MEDIA WELCOMED.

Contact the June Anderson Women’s Center at 615-898-2193.
jawc@mtsu.edu

Not-so-intelligent design?

Raiders for Rationalism will host a talk titled “Is Intelligent Design Falsifiable?” at 7 p.m. WEDNESDAY in Room S118 of the Business Aerospace Building. The speaker will be Sarah Jordan, a campus and community organizer for the Center for Inquiry on Campus. The theory of intelligent design posits that life on Earth occurred through an” intelligent agent” instead of through evolution. Dr. William Langston, associate professor of psychology and faculty adviser for Raiders for Rationalism, says, “Intelligent design, which depends on the intervention of a supernatural designer, is often criticized for being a wholly religious hypothesis that offers no testable scientific claims.” He says Jordan will argue during her lecture that two criteria for intelligent design are inadequate and principally rhetorical.

Contact Langston at 615-898-5489.
wlangsto@mtsu.edu

He has a story to tell

Former astronaut Story Musgrave, a veteran of six space flights, will be the headline speaker for the “Tennessee Summit on Mathematics & Science Education: Educating Tomorrow’s Workforce Today” event TOMORROW AND WEDNESDAY at the Doubletree Hotel in Nashville. Musgrave will present his address following the 6:30 p.m. dinner TOMORROW. Governor Phil Bredesen will speak following the 11:30 a.m. lunch WEDNESDAY. The purpose of the summit is to bring together business, government and education leaders together from across the state to emphasize the need for improved math, science and technology education for all Tennessee students. MEDIA WELCOMED.

Contact Dr. Ray Phillips or Dr. Dovie Kimmins at 615-904-8573.

TR EXTRA

IT’S A BEAUTY WAY TO GO!—TODAY, 10 a.m.—MTSU alumni, friends, and students are invited to participate in Campus Beautification Day starting under the blue tents on the Keathley University Center knoll. Participants will help with painting, picking up litter, and planting trees and flowers. Boxed lunches will be provided. Please register by calling 1-800-533-6878. MEDIA WELCOMED.

QUARK, STRANGENESS AND CHARM—TODAY, 3 p.m.—Dr. Vic Montemayor, physics and astronomy, lectures on “The New Physics: Some Strangeness in the Proportion” as part of the Honors Lecture series “Paradigm Shifts: Ideas That Changed the World” in Room 106 of the Paul W. Martin Sr. Honors Building. For more information, contact the University Honors College at 615-898-2152.

LOTSA MATZOH—TONIGHT, 6 p.m.—Celebrate Passover, the eight-day commemoration of the freedom of the Israelites from Egypt during the reign of Pharoah Ramses II, with a traditional seder in the Terrace Dining Room of the James Union Building. Learn the traditions and enjoy kosher cuisine. The cost is $7 plus tax or swipe your meal card plan. For more information, contact Dr. Laurie Witherow, director of the Academic Support Center, at 615-898-2339 or lwithero@mtsu.edu.

POWWOW POWER—TOMORROW, 9 a.m.—Georgia Dennis, coordinator of the annual American Indian Festival, conducts a satellite videoconference tour of the powwow, featuring cultural traditions, native arts and crafts, game and skill demonstrations and more for students in grades 4-8. For more information, contact vmoxley@mtsu.edu or call 615-898-2737.

JUGGLERS ARE THE ULTIMATE MULTITASKERS—TOMORROW, 7 p.m.—The Golden Dragon Acrobats, a troupe of 25 artists, will dazzle the audience at Tucker Theatre with their gravity-defying juggling act. This group has earned seven National Association of Campus Activities “Entertainer of the Year” awards and a Campus Activities Today “Performers of the Year” award. Tickets are $5 each. They may be purchased in advance in Room 308 of the Keathley University Center or at the door. For more information, call 615-898-2551.

BOYS AND GIRLS AND EXERCISE—THURSDAY, 3:30 p.m.—Dr. Kathryn Davis, health and human performance, lectures on “The Influence of Gender on Teaching Elementary Physical Education” as the final presentation in the 2005-2006 Women’s Studies Research Series in Room 100 (the Faculty Senate room) of the James Union Building. For more information, contact the Women’s Studies Program office at 615-898-5910 or Dr. Trixie Smith at 615-904-8153 or tgsmith@mtsu.edu.

ATTENTION: MTSU AUDIO CLIPS

MTSU Audio Clips and radio-ready stories for your newscasts are available at:

http://www.mtsunews.com

Click on "MTSU Audio Clips" on the right side of the page.

TOPIC 1—BATTER UP!: It’s spring, when every young fan’s heart turns to baseball. Dr. Ron Kates, associate professor of English and Chicago Cubs fan extraordinaire, will celebrate this annual rite of rebirth with the Baseball Literature Conference March 31st. Special guests will be East Tennessee State University’s Dr. Don Johnson, editor of the sports literature journal “Aethlon,” and former Boston Red Sox and Montreal Expos pitcher Bill “The Spaceman” Lee.

TOPIC 2—NATIONAL WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH: The president of the American Civil Liberties Union, Nadine Strossen, will be the keynote speaker for National Women’s History Month at MTSU. Dr. Elyce Helford, chair of the Women’s Studies program, discusses Strossen’s upcoming appearance and the other events on tap to celebrate women’s fight for equality and justice.

Radio stations, if you need audio from MTSU, please call 615-898-2919 or email news@mtsu.edu. We will be glad to send MP3 audio via email or post the audio on our Audio Clips web page http://www.mtsunews.com. Click on "MTSU Audio Clips" on the right side of the page.

VIDEO UPLINK

TV stations, if you need video from an event at MTSU, interviews with MTSU experts, or other specific video from the MTSU campus, please call 615-898-2919 or email news@mtsu.edu. With sufficient advanced notice, we have the capability to uplink video to stations with digital decoding equipment, or we can make arrangements to deliver tape or DVD to you.

04/10/06