Friday, February 22, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

Yet to overcome

A Pew Research Center survey of African-American adults shows that less than half believe that life will be better for them in the future compared with 57 percent in 1986. More than half say they still face discrimination when eating in restaurants, shopping, renting an apartment, buying a house or applying for a job. Dr. Jacqui Wade, social work, says, “African-Americans know all too well that the White-American penchant for cultural dominance and socio-political and economic control of this society is manifested not only in the actions and behaviors of organized ‘hate groups’ such as the Ku Klux Klan, but in the formal and informal policies, procedures and practices of most American institutions which effectively and unfairly give collective advantage to White-Americans, even if White-Americans individually do not equally benefit from this pervasively unfair social set-up.”

Contact Wade at 615-898-2477.
jewade@mtsu.edu

Oops, they did it again.

In an internal memo obtained by The New York Times, the Los Angeles assistant bureau chief of a major American newsgathering organization wrote, “Now and for the foreseeable future, virtually everything involving Britney (Spears) is a big deal.” Dr. John Omachonu, interim dean of the College of Mass Communication, says, “Britney Spears is a public figure—according to the law, this is someone who is a household name, influential and has instant access to the media. The (U.S. Supreme Court) has maintained that because these people have the means to defend themselves in the event of libel by the media, they generally do not need protection by the law. So, from that standpoint, I can understand why the L.A. Assistant Bureau Chief would consider Britney a ‘big deal.’”

Contact Omachonu at 615-898-2695.
omachonu@mtsu.edu

Raising taxes and poundage

Is there a relationship between cigarette taxes and weight gain? Dr. Charles Baum, economics and finance, has written a paper on the subject for Health Economics. Baum says increases in cigarette taxes might have an inadvertent indirect effect on body mass index (BMI) and obesity. “Preferred estimates indicate that increasing the cost of cigarettes by $0.77 would increase BMI by roughly 0.60 index points and the prevalence of obesity (overweight) by roughly three (to five) percentage points,” Baum notes. “Further, these effects are significantly larger for those with less income and those who are younger, potentially because they are more sensitive to cigarette costs. In addition, these estimates are significantly larger when accounting for lagged effects.”

Contact Baum at 615-898-2527.
cbaum@mtsu.edu


TR EXTRA

AN ARTIST’S DOZEN--The Department of Art’s second 12”x12” biannual national juried exhibition is on display through today, Feb. 22, in The Gallery at MTSU’s Todd Hall. Dave Hickey, nationally acclaimed culture and art critic, served as the juror for the exhibition. More than 200 artists from across the United States submitted more than 600 pieces of work for consideration. There were no media restrictions, and all works were to measure no more than 12” in any direction. Three-dimensional pieces were not to exceed 12” in any direction including the base. Included in the show are the works of Tennessee artists Rocky Horton, Nashville; Arlyn Ende, Sewanee; Dwayne Butcher and Trever Nicholas, Memphis; Melissa Krosnick, Cowan; and Sarah Shebaro, Knoxville. The exhibition is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Dr. Lon Nuell at 615-898-2505 or lrnuell@mtsu.edu.

RAY OF SUNSHINE--WKRN-TV morning meteorologist Jeff Ray will bring his expertise to the classroom when he visits the Regional Science Olympiad at MTSU tomorrow, Feb. 23. The event will be held from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at various venues across campus. Dr. Pat Patterson, an associate professor of chemistry, says Ray, who will oversee “Severe Weather” in the middle-school students’ meteorology event, is a popular coordinator because of his weather knowledge and status as a broadcast personality. For more information, contact Patterson at 615-898-5085 or Dr. Amy Phelps at 615-898-2077.

MAKE A JOYFUL NOISE—As part of MTSU’s celebration of Black History Month, the eighth annual Gospel Music Extravaganza will be held at 6 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 24, at Tucker Theatre. The benefit will feature performances by choirs, vocal groups, solo singers and spiritual dancers. The cost is $10 for adults and $5 for students; children six and under will be admitted free. This year, the Community Benefit Recipient is Karen Jordan, who has been a diabetic for more than 30 years and a dialysis patient for six years. Despite the loss of both legs to diabetes, Jordan donates great amounts of her time and energy to community service. For more information, contact Mary E. Glass at 615-898-5145 or mglass@mtsu.edu.