Friday, September 8, 2006

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

Pump it out

Linda Decker, donor resources representative for the Tennessee Valley BloodServices Region of the American Red Cross, says blood donations from the MTvs. Tennessee Tech "Get Pumped for Football" competition will aid a dire situation. "The blood supply today is the worst it has been all summer," Decker says. The blood drive is part of the run-up to the Sept. 14 game between the Blue Raiders and Golden Eagles at Floyd Stadium. Red Cross officials can accommodate up to 252 MTSU students and others willing to donate blood. Kickoff for the nationally televised (ESPNU) game will be 6 p.m.

For more information, call Jennifer Kirk, KUC event coordinator, at 615-898-2590.

The trouble with Katie

The new “CBS Evening News” format with Katie Couric as anchor isn’t exactly revolutionizing what used to be called the “nightly national séance.” That’s the view of Dr. Bob Pondillo, electronic media communication. “More than anything, news presentation needs to give us contextual information, not naïve facticity,” Pondillo says. “We newscasts that not only tell us the oil companies found new oil reserves in the gulf, but why the U.S. does not have a coherent energy policy. We need newscasts that not only tell us the Taliban is back and stronger than ever in parts of Afghanistan because U.S. troops are spread too thin, but why and how this happened.”

Contact Pondillo at 615-904-8465.
pondillo@mtsu.edu

Born to run

The MTSU Veterans Memorial Run/Walk needs you—TO RUN AND/OR WALK!
The fun will start at 2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 17. There will be individual and team awards for top finishers in all age and gender divisions. Maj. Chuck Giles, military science, says the value of each participant packets far exceeds the registration fee. There will be individual and team awards for top finishers in all age and gender divisions, as well as valuable door prizes. Each pre-registered entrant will receive a race T-shirt. Early registration is $15, and online registration will close at 8 p.m. Central time Friday, Sept. 15. All proceeds will go towards construction of an on-campus memorial to military personnel. Media welcomed.

For more information, contact Maj. Giles at 1-888-682-7682 or cgiles@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

THE SWEET SMELL OF SCIENCE--Registration is open for the 2006 Expanding Your Horizons in Math and Science. The conference for girls in grades 5-8 will be held from 8 a.m. until 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, across the MTSU campus. Open to the first 300 girls who register, EYH will be celebrating its 10th anniversary on campus. To register, visit http://www.mtsu.edu/~EYH. Look for the registration button on the left side. Complete, print out, and mail the form to: Dr. Judith Iriarte-Gross, c/o MTSU EYH, P.O. Box 161, Murfreesboro, Tenn. 37132. For more information, contact Dr. Judith Iriarte-Gross at 615-904-8253 or jiriarte@mtsu.edu

BRAIN POWER--The Student Activity Fee funds are making possible two free workshops that can provide students with the necessary tips to earn better grades. Plymouth, Mich.-based Jamie Nast, a nationally acknowledged expert on helping individuals organize their thinking, will lead the “Mind Mapping” sessions from 1-4 p.m. and 5-8 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 14 in the Hazlewood Dining Room of the James Union Building. In 1998, Nast and her husband founded NastGroup, a consultancy organization specializing in optimizing mind potential. Her first book, Idea Mapping: How to Access Your Hidden Brain Power, Learn Faster, Remember More, and Achieve Success in Business, is slated for publication Sept. 20. For more information, contact Dr. Carol Ann Baily, Adult Services Center director, at 615-898-5989 or cabaily@mtsu.edu

A LITTLE “FRESH AIR”--One of the media’s premier interviewers, Terry Gross, host of National Public Radio’s “Fresh Air with Terry Gross,” will lecture at 8 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 19, in the Tennessee Room of the James Union Building. The talk is free and open to the public. “I think it’s a great opportunity to have a nationally recognized award-winning interviewer come here to talk,” Marc J. Barr, EMC professor, said. “She has come to be one of the best interviewers, if not the best interviewer, out there in media.” While the Tuesday night lecture is free, tickets are required for admission. Tickets that were issued for the original April date are good for Gross’ upcoming appearance, and those individuals will be allowed first entry. No new tickets will be issued. However, non-ticket holders will be allowed entry after ticket-holders based on available seating. For more information, contact Barr at 615-898-5118 or mjbarr@mtsu.edu

SAVING OUR HISTORY--The public is invited to participate in a town hall meeting on historic preservation at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 12, at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 315 East Main St. in Murfreesboro. David Brown, executive vice president of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, will be the featured host and speaker. Dr. Carroll Van West, director of MTSU’s Center for Historic Preservation, says, “Brown is the most illustrious alumnus of our nationally recognized historic preservation program … He grew up in the East Main historic district; he brings a love of Murfreesboro and its citizens, but adds a healthy dose of realism and experience to the issue of balancing the past with the present.” Contact the Center for Historic Preservation at 615-898-2947.