Wednesday, April 4, 2007

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

Some cheese, if you please

Cheese and wine are rooted deeply in the national soil and culture of France. To explain, Professor Mireille Hardy of the University of Caen Basse-Normandie, IUT Cherbourg Manche, will lecture on “Gross Foods and Culture, or the French Attachment to Rotten and Smelly Cheeses” TODAY from 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m. in Room 106 of the Paul W. Martin Sr. Honors building at MTSU. Hardy will present the palette of French cheeses, talk about how they’re made, and describe the rituals of table etiquette. She will try to help us understand why unpasteurized, traditionally made cheese has become a symbol of the French “cultural exception” and an emblem of “slow food.” This event is free and open to the public. It is made possible through the efforts of Dr. Nancy Goldberg, foreign languages and literatures, and is co-sponsored by the University Honors College.

Contact the Honors College at 615-898-2152.

All that jazz

Two MTSU faculty members will be among the featured composers for the second annual Jazz Writers Night with the Nashville Jazz Orchestra (NJO) this FRIDAY. Trumpeter Jamey Simmons’ written works have been performed by groups ranging from the Glenn Miller Orchestra to the Rochester Philharmonic and the Buffalo Symphony Pops. He won the Best Arranger Award from Downbeat magazine in 2001 and 2002. Jim Williamson, an instructor at MTSU and the University of Tennessee, is director of the NJO. The founder of two high school jazz programs, Williamson has performed with a variety of artists ranging from Dinah Shore to B.B. King. There will be two shows, at 7:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m., in the Steve and Judy Turner Recital Hall at Vanderbilt University.

For ticket information, call 615-889-6335 or 615-322-7651.

Twinkle, twinkle

Learn all about “White Dwarf Stars” at the MTSU Department of Physics and Astronomy’s latest First Friday Star Party this FRIDAY from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in Room 102 of the Wiser-Patten Science Building. Dr. Eric Klumpe will deliver a 30-45 minute public lecture followed by outdoor telescope observation, weather permitting. This event is free and open to the public. There will be free parking behind Wiser-Patten after 4:30 on Friday only.

Contact Dr. Charles Higgins at 615-898-5946 or Dr. Eric Klumpe at 615-898-2483.

TR EXTRA

LEARNING ABOUT LEARNING--Scholars Week at MTSU continues TODAY as the College of Liberal Arts will show off its creative endeavors. On THURSDAY, the College of Mass Communication and the College of Graduate Studies will showcase their scholarship. The festivities on tap for the celebration of academic excellence include talks, readings, performances, posters, multimedia performances, invited speakers and luncheons. Updates on details, including times and locations, may be found at http://www.mtsu.edu/~research/scholarsweek.html. Contact Dr. Andrienne Friedli at 615-898-2071 or afriedli@mtsu.edu.

TO TELL THE TRUTH--“Bioterrorism and the Corrosion of Truth in the Age of Enron: Ethics in the University and the Real World” will be the subject of the Ethics Conversation Hour from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. THURSDAY in the conference room on the second floor of the Paul W. Martin Sr. Honors Building at MTSU. Dr. Tom May of The Medical College of Wisconsin and Dr. Tom Cooper, MTSU’s Ethicist-in-Residence for the College of Mass Communication will lead the discussion with Tara Prairie, MTSU Compliance Officer, as the moderator. This event, which is free and open to the public, is sponsored by the College of Graduate Studies in conjunction with the MTSU Committee for the Responsible Conduct of Research. Contact Dr. Pam Knox at 615-898-5331 or
pknox@mtsu.edu.

THE CAMERA NEVER BLINKS--Documentarian Rory Kennedy, co-founder and co-president of Moxie Firecracker Films, Inc., will be this year’s Windham Lecturer at 5 p.m. THURSDAY in the State Farm Lecture Hall at MTSU. Kennedy’s most recent film, The Ghost of Abu Ghraib, recently premiered on HBO. Her films also have aired on A&E, MTV, Lifetime, Oxygen, Court TV, The Learning Channel, and PBS. Kennedy’s body of work tackles social issues including poverty, domestic abuse, drug addiction, human rights, AIDS and mental illness. Her human rights work includes the development of the Teacher Transfer Program between the U.S. and Namibia following her work at the Dobra Resettlement Camp. Contact the Events Coordination office of the College of Liberal Arts at 615-494-7628 for more information.

SPRING OUT!--MTSU’s Lambda Association will present its annual “Spring Out!” activities this week, and the media are welcomed. TODAY from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., Kevin Lawson from Nashville Cares will lead participants in a workshop titled “Let’s Talk About Sex.” Comedian and political satirist ANT will perform at 7:30 p.m. THURSDAY in the State Farm Lecture Hall of the BAS. And the film “Imagine Me and You” will be shown at 8 p.m. FRIDAY in the Keathley University Center Theatre. For more information, contact Dr. Trixie Smith at 615-904-8153 or mtlambda@mtsu.edu.

“DIVERSE TALES FOR DIVERSE TOTS”--The Diversity Subcommittee of the President’s Commission on the Status of Women is requesting donations of children’s books about any aspect of diversity now through April 27. The books could be old or new and for any age group. Gift certificates from your favorite bookstore also are welcome. These donations will be presented to MTSU’s Project HELP Program to help build up its new Dede Rucker Memorial Library collection. You can drop off your donations at several on-campus locations, including the Sociology and Anthropology mailroom (Room 335 in the Todd Building), the Upper Division English office (Room 323 in Peck Hall), the June Anderson Women’s Center (Room 206 of the James Union Building), and the Study Abroad office (Room 103A of Peck Hall. For more information, contact Dr. Ida Fadzillah at 615-904-8275 or ifadzill@mtsu.edu.

BRICK BY BRICK--Each and every brick to be laid in the MTSU Veterans Memorial will represent the support of an entire community for the enlightenment and inspiration of future generations. The bricks may be reserved by all those who wish to honor a veteran or active-duty service member or merely acknowledge their support for the construction of a permanent on-campus memorial to MTSU faculty, students, staff and administrators who perished while serving their country. The bricks will be integrated into the overall memorial design. All proceeds will help to pay for the memorial, which will be an outdoor classroom that includes a wall with the names of the military personnel. To purhcase a brick with a memorial message, send a tax-deductible check of $150 payable to “MTSU Foundation—Veterans Memorial,” to P.O. Box 109, Murfreesboro, TN 37132. Credit cards also are accepted. Address any questions about brick purchases or donations to Robyn Kilpatrick at 615-898-5223 or rkilpatr@mtsu.edu.

GET INTO THE SWIM OF THINGS--The works of Kenda North are on display through April 19 in a photography exhibit titled “Urban Pools” at MTSU’s Baldwin Photographic Gallery. This exhibit is comprised of color Iris prints ranging in sizes up to 33” x 47”. The images were photographed underwater with a Nikonos 35mm camera. The original color negatives have been scanned and worked through Photoshop. The gallery will be open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and on Saturdays from 12 noon to 4 p.m. Exhibitions and lectures are free and open to the public. This exhibit is co-sponsored by the National Women’s History Month Committee. Contact Tom Jimison at 615-898-2085 or tjimison@mtsu.edu.