Monday, March 31, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

All things to all people

“Who’s Your Hillary? Why Candidate Clinton Pushes So Many Women’s Buttons” is the title of a talk to be delivered today, March 31, by The New Yorker editor Susan Morrison at 12:40 p.m. in the Keathley University Center Theater. Morrison is editor of the book Thirty Ways of Looking at Hillary: Reflections by Women Writers. Morrison has been the Articles Editor of The New Yorker for 11 years. Previously, she had been Editor-in-Chief of The New York Observer, a founding editor of SPY Magazine, and Features Director at Vogue. This event, which is sponsored by the Seigenthaler Chair of Excellence in First Amendment Studies, is free and open to the public.

Contact Beverly Keel at 615-898-5150.
bkeel@mtsu.edu

The seat of learning

MTSU Scholars Week 2008 begins today, March 31, with an 11:30 a.m. kickoff in the James E. Walker Library quad and will end Friday, April 4, with faculty and student poster presentations from 12:40 to 3:30 p.m. in Murphy Center. Other performance and presentations throughout the week, sponsored by MTSU’s colleges and academic centers, will showcase work being done in these units. Each event will recognize the range and variety of scholarly research and creative activity taking place on the MTSU campus. “Scholars Week is a great celebration and demonstration of the various roles that research and creative activities play at MTSU,” says Dr. Kaylene Gebert, executive vice president and provost and Scholars Week committee chair.

Contact Dr. Andrienne Friedli at 615-898-2071. The schedule of events for Scholars Week 2008 is available on the Web at http://www.mtsu.edu/~research/scholarsweek.html.

Not a very good year

Is the legislation that would allow Tennessee grocers to sell wine dead for this session of the General Assembly? The bill has been bottled up, so to speak, in a Senate committee. Dr. Tony Johnston, agribusiness and agriscience professor and a vintner himself, says, “Liquor/wine distributors are not interested in the proposal because many grocers own their own distribution networks (read ‘are their own distributors’), and this change of law would, effectively, significantly increase their competition rather than expand their market. This proposal marks one of the few times Prohibition-era laws and sentiments have been ‘attacked’ by a non-alcohol industry. It is interesting to note that neither national nor state win industry groups are joining the fight on either side of the issue.”

Contact Johnston at 615-898-2421.
johnston@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

RAD-ICAL!--A series of six Rape Aggression Defense (RAD) classes will be offered at no charge every Thursday through May 1 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. in the MTSU police training room located at 1412 East Main Street. The class will be open to all female MTSU students, faculty and staff as well as to the general public. A workbook/training manual will be provided to each student. Enrollment is limited. For more information or to enroll, call MTSU RAD Instructor David Smith at 615-692-2424.

AROUND THE WORLD--In order to enhance MTSU’s burgeoning integration of international education into its academic life, Dr. Ron Messier, senior lecturer in history at Vanderbilt University and former history professor at MTSU, will return to the Murfreesboro campus in his new role as Director of International Outreach starting July 1. Messier will report to Dr. Kaylene Gebert, Executive Vice President and Provost. “Ron’s expertise and contacts in the Middle East and North Africa are wide-ranging and extensive,” says Dr. Allen Hibbard, director of MTSU’s Middle East Center. “I saw this firsthand when he visited me while I was teaching in Damascus and when the two of us recently traveled together in Morocco. He was a key moving force behind plans to create a Middle East Center on campus and has remained a strong, steadfast supporter of our work and activities.” For interviews with Messier or other MTSU officials concerned with promoting international education, contact Gina Logue in the Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-5081or gklogue@mtsu.edu.

REBEL YELL--Representatives from the Heritage Center of Murfreesboro and Rutherford County and the Tennessee Civil War National Heritage Area will kick off a series of public programs at 5:30 p.m. tomorrow, April 1, beginning with a free guided tour of the new exhibit, The Time that Changed Everything: Murfreesboro’s Civil War Era. Dr. Antoinette van Zelm, Heritage Area historian, will share highlights from the exhibit, with a special focus on the themes of emancipation and Reconstruction. For more information, contact Melissa A. Zimmerman at 615-217-8013 or mzimmerm@mtsu.edu.

ALL THE POET’S MEN (AND WOMEN)--Ernest Suarez, chairman of the Catholic University of America’s Department of English, will lecture on the poetry of Robert Penn Warren at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, April 3, in Dining Room C of the James Union Building. The title of Suarez’s presentation is “Robert Penn Warren’s Conversion Narrative.” Sponsored by the Dr. Virginia Peck Trust, this event is free and open to the public. For additional information, contact Dr. Kevin Donovan at 615-898-5898 or kdonovan@mtsu.edu.

Friday, March 28, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

Do the polymath

It seems as though everyone from Leonardo da Vinci to Steve Allen has been described as a “Renaissance Man.” The term is used today to describe someone who has diverse interests and is competent or knowledgeable in a wide variety of areas. Dr. Fred Beemon, history, says the concept originated with The Book of the Courtier, a 16th century work by the Italian author Castiglione. It was the best-selling book of the century, topping even the Bible. “In it, he defines what the ideal man would be like,” Beemon says. By Castiglione’s standards, the ideal man would know several languages, write poetry, play a musical instrument and be both intellectual and athletic. It also mentions the Renaissance Woman—briefly. “The ideal Renaissance woman is modest, basically only speaks when spoken to,” Beemon says. “It occupies about three pages out of what’s probably a 300-page book. This is a society that’s still about men, for the most part.”

Contact Beemon at 615-898-2627.
fbeemon@mtsu.edu

Crime time in prime time

Do the annual rankings of the “most dangerous cities” in America by CQ Press according to the latest FBI crime statistics really mean anything? Carter F. Smith, criminal justice administration, says, “I am a little concerned about the potential bias (or motivation) of a scholar in last year’s #1 city claiming faulty number-crunching when that city ‘slips’ to #2 … supporting the claims of the police department in this year’s #1.” The rankings declared Detroit the United States’ most dangerous city, followed by St. Louis; Flint, Mich.; Oakland, Calif.; and Camden, N.J. Mission Viejo, Calif., was the United States’ safest city, followed by Clarkston, N.Y.; Brick Township, N.J.; Amherst, N.Y.; and Sugarland, Tex.

Contact Smith at 615-898-2630.
carterfsmith@gmail.com

On the border

The key to avoiding future border disputes like the current one between Georgia and Tennessee is to raise standards in mathematics and science education. That’s the view of Dr. Preston MacDougall, chemistry professor. “A team of surveyors back in 1818 set in stone the now-disputed borderline about one mile south of the 35th parallel,” MacDougall notes. “Various excuses have become legendary from a faulty compass to fear of local Native Americans. Perhaps the dog ate their slide rule. But the one that holds the most water is simple mathematical error somewhere between decrees on paper and degrees on the ground. There is no vaccine against making errors in mathematics, nor is there one for chemical errors. For instance, sugar is a high-energy molecule, and sugar dust is explosive, no matter how sweet and harmless it seems.”

Contact MacDougall at 615-898-5265.
pmacdoug@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

RAD-ICAL!--A series of six Rape Aggression Defense (RAD) classes will be offered at no charge every Thursday through May 1 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. in the MTSU police training room located at 1412 East Main Street. The class will be open to all female MTSU students, faculty and staff as well as to the general public. A workbook/training manual will be provided to each student. Enrollment is limited. For more information or to enroll, call MTSU RAD Instructor David Smith at 615-692-2424.

ART FOR ART’S SAKE--The Todd Gallery at MTSU will present “Domenic Cretara: The Large Drawings,” a 19-piece exhibit by the California-based artist, through today, March 28, in Todd Hall on the MTSU campus. The show, which is free and open to the public, will feature works by the contemporary realist that were created in some of his preferred media—charcoal, pastels (chalk and pencil) and chalk. The Todd Gallery is open 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. weekdays.

SORRY SEEMS TO BE THE HARDEST WORD--Dr. John Stuhr of Vanderbilt University will deliver a presentation titled “Against Forgiveness” at 3:30 p.m. today, March 28, in Room 304 of the James Union Building. Stuhr will define and critically analyze forgiveness from its earlier ethical, religious and legal senses to later psychological, economic and medical ones. Drawing on everything from philosophy books to popular Websites, he will examine how the ways we understand forgiveness reveal the ways we understand ourselves. This lecture, which is free and open to the public, is sponsored by the Department of Philosophy as part of its annual Applied Philosophy Lyceum. For more information, call 615-898-2907.

BATTER UP!—Former Major League Baseball first baseman Orestes Destrade will be the luncheon speaker at the 13th annual Conference on Baseball in Literature and Culture, which is slated to begin at 8:15 a.m. today, March 28, in the James Union Building. Destrade, who played for the Yankees, Pirates and Marlins, has become one of the game’s more recognizable commentators, combining the perspectives of the farmhand, the rookie, the international star, the franchise fixture and the media personality. Destrade will begin his presentation at 12:45 p.m. In addition, MTSU alum and former professional baseball player Clay Snellgrove will read from his recently published book, The Ball Player. Snellgrove’s reading will begin at 2:30 p.m. MTSU students, faculty and staff may attend the conference for free, but those choosing to attend lunch will be charged $15 each. For more information, contact Warren Tormey at tormey@mtsu.edu or Dr. Ron Kates at rkates@mtsu.edu.

AROUND THE WORLD--In order to enhance MTSU’s burgeoning integration of international education into its academic life, Dr. Ron Messier, senior lecturer in history at Vanderbilt University and former history professor at MTSU, will return to the Murfreesboro campus in his new role as Director of International Outreach starting July 1. Messier will report to Dr. Kaylene Gebert, Executive Vice President and Provost. “Ron’s expertise and contacts in the Middle East and North Africa are wide-ranging and extensive,” says Dr. Allen Hibbard, director of MTSU’s Middle East Center. “I saw this firsthand when he visited me while I was teaching in Damascus and when the two of us recently traveled together in Morocco. He was a key moving force behind plans to create a Middle East Center on campus and has remained a strong, steadfast supporter of our work and activities.” For interviews with Messier or other MTSU officials concerned with promoting international education, contact Gina Logue in the Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-5081or gklogue@mtsu.edu.

Thursday, March 27, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

Britney business

The economy is in recession; the presidential candidates are carping; and clashes are intensifying in the port of Basra. Even so, Britney Spears managed to make the news again this week, but not for miscreant behvavior. The troubled singer received good notices for a performance as a silly receptionist on the CBS sitcom “How I Met Your Mother” as she attempted to put her career back together. Combine this with January’s news that the Associated Press planned to add 22 positions to expand entertainment coverage, and the questions about infotainment in mainstream news continue. Dr. John Omachonu, interim dean of the College of Mass Communication, says, “The question is how much priority should be given to news about Britney … in the face of other compelling societal issues. That’s a tricky one. There should be a balancing test.”

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

Misreading dyslexia

What do you think dyslexia really is? Well, there are certain myths that could stand debunking. In a recent Honors College lecture, Dr. Stuart Bernstein of the MTSU Center for the Study and Treatment of Dyslexia said that dyslexics don’t necessarily reverse letters and numbers in their heads. He also stated that the disorder is not a visual problem that can be treated with colored lenses and eye-tracking devices. Furthermore, children do not outgrow dyslexia, and repeating a grade doesn’t help. “Dyslexics have difficulty learning symbol/sound correspondences,” Bernstein said. “Whatever areas of the brain are responsible for linking vision into language are not exactly the same in these people.”

Contact Bernstein at 615-494-8882.
sbernst@mtsu.edu

Around the world

In order to enhance MTSU’s burgeoning integration of international education into its academic life, Dr. Ron Messier, senior lecturer in history at Vanderbilt University and former history professor at MTSU, will return to the Murfreesboro campus in his new role as Director of International Outreach starting July 1. Messier will report to Dr. Kaylene Gebert, Executive Vice President and Provost. “Ron’s expertise and contacts in the Middle East and North Africa are wide-ranging and extensive,” says Dr. Allen Hibbard, director of MTSU’s Middle East Center. “I saw this firsthand when he visited me while I was teaching in Damascus and when the two of us recently traveled together in Morocco. He was a key moving force behind plans to create a Middle East Center on campus and has remained a strong, steadfast supporter of our work and activities.”

For interviews with Messier or other MTSU officials concerned with promoting international education, contact Gina Logue in the Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-5081.
gklogue@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

WIKI WORLD--“Accuracy, Privacy and the World Wide Web: The First Amendment and the Internet” is the title of a day-long event today, March 27, at MTSU’s Keathley University Center Theater. Nobel Peace Prize-winner Al Gore will be joined by Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, author Cass Sunstein, Tennessean Publisher Emeritus John Seigenthaler, The New York Times’ Jonathan Landman, attorney Charles Sizemore, Poynter Institute President Karen Dunlap, and Media Bloggers Association President Robert Cox. This event is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Beverly Keel at 615-898-5150 or bkeel@mtsu.edu.

RAD-ICAL!--A series of six Rape Aggression Defense (RAD) classes will be offered at no charge every Thursday beginning today, March 27, through May 1, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. in the MTSU police training room located at 1412 East Main Street. The class will be open to all female MTSU students, faculty and staff as well as to the general public. A workbook/training manual will be provided to each student. Enrollment is limited. For more information or to enroll, call MTSU RAD Instructor David Smith at 615-692-2424.

ART FOR ART’S SAKE--The Todd Gallery at MTSU will present “Domenic Cretara: The Large Drawings,” a 19-piece exhibit by the California-based artist, through tomorrow, March 28, in Todd Hall on the MTSU campus. The show, which is free and open to the public, will feature works by the contemporary realist that were created in some of his preferred media—charcoal, pastels (chalk and pencil) and chalk. The Todd Gallery is open 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. weekdays.

PARALLEL UNIVERSES?--“What It Means to be Human: Science, Consciousness and Our Place in the Universe” is the topic of the MTSU Science and Spirituality Symposium at 7 p.m. tonight, March 27, in the State Farm Lecture Hall of MTSU’s Business and Aerospace Building. The event is free and open to the public. The lecturers will be Dr. Joel R. Primack, a professor of physics and tone of the world’s leading cosmologists, and Nancy Ellen Abrams, attorney and former Fulbright Scholar. “At the heart of humanity’s problems on this planet is a terrible alienation from nature, both planetary and cosmic,” says Rami Shapiro, an adjunct religious studies professor at MTSU and an ordained rabbi. “The true hope that dialogue between science and spirituality holds out is this: to reawaken our capacity for wonder; to help us realize that we are the way the universe looks at itself and says ‘Wow!’” For more information, contact R. Neil Scott, associate professor of the library, or Bill Black, administrative services librarian, at 615-898-2772.

SORRY SEEMS TO BE THE HARDEST WORD--Dr. John Stuhr of Vanderbilt University will deliver a presentation titled “Against Forgiveness” at 3:30 p.m. tomorrow, March 28, in Room 304 of the James Union Building. Stuhr will define and critically analyze forgiveness from its earlier ethical, religious and legal senses to later psychological, economic and medical ones. Drawing on everything from philosophy books to popular Websites, he will examine how the ways we understand forgiveness reveal the ways we understand ourselves. This lecture, which is free and open to the public, is sponsored by the Department of Philosophy as part of its annual Applied Philosophy Lyceum. For more information, call 615-898-2907.

BATTER UP!—Former Major League Baseball first baseman Orestes Destrade will be the luncheon speaker at the 13th annual Conference on Baseball in Literature and Culture, which is slated to begin at 8:15 a.m. tomorrow, March 28, in the James Union Building. Destrade, who played for the Yankees, Pirates and Marlins, has become one of the game’s more recognizable commentators, combining the perspectives of the farmhand, the rookie, the international star, the franchise fixture and the media personality. Destrade will begin his presentation at 12:45 p.m. In addition, MTSU alum and former professional baseball player Clay Snellgrove will read from his recently published book, The Ball Player. Snellgrove’s reading will begin at 2:30 p.m. MTSU students, faculty and staff may attend the conference for free, but those choosing to attend lunch will be charged $15 each. For more information, contact Warren Tormey at tormey@mtsu.edu or Dr. Ron Kates at rkates@mtsu.edu.

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

Parallel universes?

“What It Means to be Human: Science, Consciousness and Our Place in the Universe” is the topic of the MTSU Science and Spirituality Symposium at 7 p.m. tomorrow, March 27, in the State Farm Lecture Hall of MTSU’s Business and Aerospace Building. The event is free and open to the public. The lecturers will be Dr. Joel R. Primack, a professor of physics and tone of the world’s leading cosmologists, and Nancy Ellen Abrams, attorney and former Fulbright Scholar. “At the heart of humanity’s problems on this planet is a terrible alienation from nature, both planetary and cosmic,” says Rami Shapiro, an adjunct religious studies professor at MTSU and an ordained rabbi. “The true hope that dialogue between science and spirituality holds out is this: to reawaken our capacity for wonder; to help us realize that we are the way the universe looks at itself and says ‘Wow!’”

For more information, contact R. Neil Scott, associate professor of the library, or Bill Black, administrative services librarian, at 615-898-2772.

Ship Tennessee products

Where do Tennessee’s exports go? According to data for the third quarter of 2007, Canada is far and away the top trade partner. Far behind are Mexico, China, the United Kingdom, Japan, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Australia and South Korea. The Volunteer State’s largest export sectors were transportation equipment with $995,571,823 in exports, followed by computer and electronic products, chemicals, miscellaneous manufactured goods, nonelectrical machinery, primary metal manufacturing and agricultural products. Miscellaneous manufactured goods saw the greatest growth over the previous year with 21.3%, while exports of agricultural products declined 38% over last year.

Contact Dr. Steven Livingston at 615-898-2720.
slivings@mtsu.edu

Better chemistry through marketing?

How does one put a human face on chemistry? Dr. Preston MacDougall, chemistry, notes, “In their new marketing icon, Dow lists Earth’s approximate population—7 billion—as the atomic mass of Hu, the human element. Not everybody in the world is a chemist, but we all use chemistry in one way or another. This is the message of another recent television commercial put out by the Public Education Campaign of the American Chemistry Council. In this one, Hollywood special effects make X-ray films disappear as a doctor tries to make a diagnosis, and a toy car loses key parts, spoiling its potential fun. This spot is far more ad than ed and can be seen as the ‘hard sell’ next to Dow’s ‘soft sell.’ Probably not on the playlist, but it effectively conveys the truth of how chemistry is ‘essential2’ much of daily life.”

Contact MacDougall at 615-898-5265.
pmacdoug@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

NO BONES ABOUT IT!--The MTSU Distinguished Lecture Committee and Forensic Institute for Research and Education will present Dr. Clyde C. Snow speaking on “Human Rights” at 6 p.m. tonight, March 25, in the State Farm Lecture Hall of the Business and Aerospace Building. This event is free and open to the public. Some of Snow’s better known skeletal confirmations include John F. Kennedy; the men who fought at Custer’s Last Stand; Nazi war criminal Dr. Josef Mengele; the victims of serial killer John Wayne Gacy; King Tut; and the victims of the Oklahoma City bombing. In the 1980s he went to Argentina to exhume mass graves filled with innocent civilians who had been killed by government death squads during the war. So far, his work has led to the conviction of five officers in Argentina. For more information, contact Becky Snow at 615-494-7713 or rsnow@mtsu.edu.

DUO PEGASUS IN FLIGHT--Duo Pegasus, a clarinet/piano duo from Wisconsin featuring Scott Wright (clarinet) and Linda Halloin (piano), will perform in a free and open concert at 3:30 p.m. today, March 26, in the T. Earl Hinton Music Hall of the Wright Music Building. Works to be performed include Pierre Sancan’s Sonatine, Leo Sowerby’s Sonata, Paquito D’Rivera’s Two Pieces for Clarinet and Piano, John Ireland’s Fantasy-Sonata and Mike Mower’s Sonata for Clarinet and Piano. For more information, call 615-898-2493.

WIKI WORLD--“Accuracy, Privacy and the World Wide Web: The First Amendment and the Internet” is the title of a day-long event tomorrow, March 27, at MTSU’s Keathley University Center Theater. Nobel Peace Prize-winner Al Gore will be joined by Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, author Cass Sunstein, Tennessean Publisher Emeritus John Seigenthaler, The New York Times’ Jonathan Landman, attorney Charles Sizemore, Poynter Institute President Karen Dunlap, and Media Bloggers Association President Robert Cox. This event is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Beverly Keel at 615-898-5150 or bkeel@mtsu.edu.

RAD-ICAL!--A series of six Rape Aggression Defense (RAD) classes will be offered at no charge every Thursday beginning tomorrow, March 27, through May 1, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. in the MTSU police training room located at 1412 East Main Street. The class will be open to all female MTSU students, faculty and staff as well as to the general public. A workbook/training manual will be provided to each student. Enrollment is limited. For more information or to enroll, call MTSU RAD Instructor David Smith at 615-692-2424.

ART FOR ART’S SAKE--The Todd Gallery at MTSU will present “Domenic Cretara: The Large Drawings,” a 19-piece exhibit by the California-based artist, through Friday, March 28, in Todd Hall on the MTSU campus. The show, which is free and open to the public, will feature works by the contemporary realist that were created in some of his preferred media—charcoal, pastels (chalk and pencil) and chalk. The Todd Gallery is open 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. weekdays.

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

Got any potato chip-flavored cigarettes?

In a paper written by Dr. Charles Baum, economics and finance, for the journal Health Economics, Baum writes, “… because cigarette smoking and obesity seem inversely related, cigarette taxes may have simultaneously increased obesity. This paper examines the effects of cigarette costs on BMI (body mass index) and obesity and finds that they have significant positive effects. … 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.”Baum observes that about 30% of Americans are obese, a 100% increase from 25 years ago.

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

Nothing but net profit

The NCAA doesn’t really have to market March Madness, although it does so, of course. But the college basketball tournament sells itself. “People fill out brackets, either for fun or in pools that reward the winner with prize money, cheer for their favorite teams and adopt darling teams temporarily,” says Dr. Don Roy, management and marketing. “March Madness is a prime vehicle for marketers to reach consumers who are full of positive emotions and energy, whether it be through NCAA sponsorship, television advertising or sponsorship of bracket contests online.” Roy encourages others to find their own “marketing madness.” “Maybe it is the local high school sports teams, a half marathon/marathon race or a rodeo,” he says. “Perhaps passions are stirred by things that have nothing to do with sports. It can be an art museum, a community playhouse, a well-respected charitable organization, a community school, or other entities that hold social or cultural significance.”

Contact Roy at 615-904-8564.
droy@mtsu.edu

How long is your extension cord?

Toyota intends to build its first plug-in hybrid by 2010. The car would run on lithium-ion batteries instead of the nickel-metal hydride batteries that power the Prius. How would these compare to other kinds of prototypes of cleaner cars (ethanol, solar-powered, the Honda car that emits water vapor)? Dr. Cliff Ricketts, agriculture and agriscience, says, “The plug-in electric component is one-third cheaper than gasoline. The range of the cars in city driving and by plugging in after every 20 or so miles can result in 100+ miles per gallon.” Ricketts adds, “Ironically, other people did the plug-in on the Toyotas before Toyota did it to their own cars.”

Contact Ricketts at 615-898-2430.
srickett@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

ART FOR ART’S SAKE--The Todd Gallery at MTSU will present “Domenic Cretara: The Large Drawings,” a 19-piece exhibit by the California-based artist, through Friday, March 28, in Todd Hall on the MTSU campus. The show, which is free and open to the public, will feature works by the contemporary realist that were created in some of his preferred media—charcoal, pastels (chalk and pencil) and chalk. The Todd Gallery is open 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. weekdays.

HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS—MTSU Habitat will host a different activity each day through Thursday, March 27, to raise awareness and funds for Habitat for Humanity. Today, March 25, Habitat will raise money by providing a dilapidated car for individuals to bash with a sledgehammer. On Wednesday, March 26, Habitat will sell tickets to a nacho sale for five dollars each at the KUC. On Thursday, March 27, Habitat will provide a nine-hole miniature golf course, a basketball hoop game and a DJ. On Friday, March 28, Habitat members will participate in a local build. For more information, call 615-943-1644 or send an e-mail to mtsuhabitat@gmail.com or wws2b@mtsu.edu.

NO BONES ABOUT IT!--The MTSU Distinguished Lecture Committee and Forensic Institute for Research and Education will present Dr. Clyde C. Snow speaking on “Human Rights” at 6 p.m. tomorrow, March 25, in the State Farm Lecture Hall of the Business and Aerospace Building. This event is free and open to the public. Some of Snow’s better known skeletal confirmations include John F. Kennedy; the men who fought at Custer’s Last Stand; Nazi war criminal Dr. Josef Mengele; the victims of serial killer John Wayne Gacy; King Tut; and the victims of the Oklahoma City bombing. In the 1980s he went to Argentina to exhume mass graves filled with innocent civilians who had been killed by government death squads during the war. So far, his work has led to the conviction of five officers in Argentina. For more information, contact Becky Snow at 615-494-7713 or rsnow@mtsu.edu.

Monday, March 24, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

The Wright stuff?

The latest Gallup Poll shows that U.S. Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) got a slight bump from the speech he delivered on race relations in America last week. Obama now leads U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) 48% to 45%, reversing a week-long slide that saw Clinton up by as many as seven points. But political analysts say lingering questions about Obama’s relationship with controversial pastor Jeremiah Wright will not go away anytime soon. Dr. Russell Church, speech and theatre, says, “… the speech probably diminished Obama’s credibility for at least some segments of the American public. Barack’s elegance could not compete with the grainy images of Wright’s speech in his raspy loud voice while he pounded the podium. Obama’s condemnation of Wright’s words seemed too little, too weak and too late.”

Contact Church at 615-494-7958.
rchurch@mtsu.edu

The crucifixion of ideas

The spate of religious-themed movies on television this past Easter weekend reminded Dr. Larry Burriss, journalism professor and First Amendment expert, that some countries are far less tolerant of a diversity of religious expression than the United States. “Just last week, … a Web site in the Netherlands was shut down because some people were offended that it promoted an as-not-yet released film about the Koran. Last month, YouTube was inaccessible around the world for several hours after Pakistan blocked the site because it allegedly contained comments reflecting badly on Islam. … It seems to me that if any idea really wants to be accepted, it must be able to stand up to criticism, analysis and questioning without the fear that those who disagree will be shot or beheaded. Indeed, it must be able to stand up to being laughed at and made fun of.”

Contact Burriss at 615-898-2983.
lburriss@mtsu.edu

Mp3 is not as easy as A-B-C.

Digital Rights Management (DRM) technology, which was created to protect copyrighted works from piracy, has run into some problems. Consumers sometimes face obstacles in using it on multiple mp3 players, and it has impeded competition. Will the removal of DRM and the marketing of music by Wal-Mart and similar retailers mark the end of traditional record labels? Ken Sanney, adjunct recording industry professor and practicing attorney, doesn’t think so. “You will always have thieves in any market. Shoplifting was going on in places like the now-defunct Tower Records long before the first mp3 was downloaded. Security devices were used to combat this practice, but those security devices did not limit or interfere with a legitimate law-abiding consumer’s lawful use of their purchased music.”

Contact Sanney at 615-456-6502.
ksanney@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

HOLY LAND—MTSU’s Middle East Center will present “The Simulacrum of Jerusalem: Manufacturing the Religious Sublime in the Holy Land Experience Biblical Theme Park” from 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. today, March 24, in Room 100 of the James Union Building. This lecture by Dr. Bill Levine, English professor, will offer a comparison between the Floridian religious sublime, as represented in the Holy Land Experience Biblical Theme Park in Orlando, and the work of the 18th century visionary artist (and sometime faith healer and Kabbalist) Philippe-Jacques de Loutherbourg. The presentation will include visual examples. For more information, contact the Middle East Center at 615-494-7906.

OH, I HAVE SLIPPED THE SURLY BONDS OF EARTH—Vernice G. Armour, the first African-American female pilot in U.S. military history, will speak at 6 p.m. today, March 24, in the Tennessee Room of the James Union Building in celebration of National Women’s History Month. For more information, contact Valerie Avent at 615-898-2718 or 615-898-2987.

BASSOON TUNES--Guest bassoonist Christin Schillinger will perform in a free and open concert at 8 p.m. today, March 24, in the T. Earl Hinton Music Hall of the Wright Music Building on the MTSU campus. Schillinger will perform John Steinmetz’s Goodbye, Old Paint: a cowboy song for bassoon and piano; Robert Schumann’s Five Pieces in Folk Style, Opus 102; Marcel Farago’s Phantasy, Opus 40a; and Henri Duteilleux’s Sarabande et Cortege. For more information, call 615-898-2493 or visit http://www.mtsumusic.com/.

ART FOR ART’S SAKE--The Todd Gallery at MTSU will present “Domenic Cretara: The Large Drawings,” a 19-piece exhibit by the California-based artist, through Friday, March 28, in Todd Hall on the MTSU campus. The show, which is free and open to the public, will feature works by the contemporary realist that were created in some of his preferred media—charcoal, pastels (chalk and pencil) and chalk. The Todd Gallery is open 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. weekdays.

TRIALS, BUT NO TRIBULATIONS--An MTSU mock trial team placed second among 26 teams at the American Mock Trial Association National Tournament at Memphis over the weekend (March 14-16) and was one of three teams at the tournament to qualify for the National Championship tournament to be held in Minneapolis/St. Paul in April. This marks the 18th time in 19 years that MTSU has qualified for the nation’s most elite tournament. A team consisting of Daniel Vaughn, Natalie Schneider, Nick Lee, Julian Kissner, Lani Lester, Rachel Harmon and Austin Purvis compiled a record of six wins, one loss and one tie in rounds against Ohio State, Kennesaw State, Furman and Georgia State. In addition, Vaughn captured a Top Ten attorney award, and Lester won a Top Ten witness award. The University of Texas won the tourney with an 8-0 record while Washington and Lee University came in third with a 6-2 record. The MTSU team is coached by Dr. John R. Vile and Patrick Chinnery of the Department of Political Science and by former alums Brandi Snow and Jamie Kidd. Contact Vile at 615-898-2596 or jvile@mtsu.edu.

HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS—MTSU Habitat will host a different activity each day through Thursday, March 27, to raise awareness and funds for Habitat for Humanity. Today, March 24, students will display a cardboard village on the Keathley University Center (KUC) knoll to dramatize the poor housing conditions that Habitat seeks to alleviate. A few students will spend the night in these buildings. Tomorrow, March 25, Habitat will raise money by providing a dilapidated car for individuals to bash with a sledgehammer. On Wednesday, March 26, Habitat will sell tickets to a nacho sale for five dollars each at the KUC. On Thursday, March 27, Habitat will provide a nine-hole miniature golf course, a basketball hoop game and a DJ. On Friday, March 28, Habitat members will participate in a local build. For more information, call 615-943-1644 or send an e-mail to mtsuhabitat@gmail.com or wws2b@mtsu.edu.

Friday, March 21, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

Race and the race

Some commentators see U.S. Sen. Barack Obama’s speech on race on Tuesday in Philadelphia as one for the ages. Others say, while he elegantly elucidated America’s complicated racial dynamics, he failed to explain satisfactorily his relationship with controversial minister Jeremiah Wright. Dr. Russell Church, speech and theatre, says, “The problem for Obama was that, for much of the American public, there was a lack of understanding that this man that Obama saw as a beloved member of his religious family had uttered words that many heard as hateful and hurtful. The video outtakes from Wright’s speeches were very unsettling to many. They could not see him as a man to be loved or respected. They could not understand that there could be or should be any level of acceptance. They were unable to separate the man from his words.”

Contact Church at 615-494-7958.
rchurch@mtsu.edu

You gotta have heart

Outfielder Pete Gray of the St. Louis Browns played Major League Baseball with only one arm. Former pitcher Jim Abbott played with a deformed hand. Tom Dempsey, former placekicker for the New Orleans Saints, set what was then the National Football League record for the longest field goal (63 yards) with a club foot. Should the disabled athlete compete side-by-side with the able-bodied athlete? Dr. Mark Anshel, health and human performance, says, it depends on whether all athletes have a level playing field. “Gray and Abbott had to overcome their disability to play at an elite level using the same equipment as other athletes. Dempsey used an adjusted shoe, but this alteration did not result in a performance advantage. The shoe did not actually enhance performance; it was merely shorter and was within the rules.”

Contact Anshel at 615-898-2812.
manshel@mtsu.edu

Workin’ on it!

Bill Fletcher, director of MTSU’s Career and Employment Center, says he wants to implement a peer-career adviser program in which students employed in his office will provide services to other students. “I also want to talk to employers and tell them why they should hire MTSU students for internships or post-graduate positions,” he says. “And I want to provide information to the media to let them know who we are.” The work of the center also must adjust to the needs of today’s employers and the expectations of today’s employees, he notes. Fletcher will elaborate on his plans to help MTSU students and alumni, especially during this economic downturn, at 7 a.m. this Sunday on “MTSU On the Record,” a 30-minute public affairs program hosted by Gina Logue on WMOT-FM (89.5). You also can hear the program online in real time at http://www.wmot.org.

For more information, contact Logue at 615-898-5081 or gklogue@mtsu.edu.
To contact Fletcher, call 615-898-2500 or send an e-mail to bfletch@mtsu.edu.

TR EXTRA

EGGCELLENT!--The annual Easter Egg Hunt on MTSU President Sidney A. McPhee’s lawn will take place tomorrow, March 22, from 10 am-12 p.m. There will be games, food and fun for the whole family. Sorority women are organizing four hunts for children ages 0-3, 4-6, 7-9 and 10-12. More than 4,000 eggs will be hidden. Refreshments will be available. The Easter Bunny, Plato from Publix, and Lightning, the MTSU mascot, all will be present. U.S. Bank will sponsor the Kid I.D. Program so that parents can register their children and receive an I.D. that can assist police in locating missing kids. For more information, contact the Office of Greek Affairs at 615-898-5812.

OH, I HAVE SLIPPED THE SURLY BONDS OF EARTH—Vernice G. Armour, the first African-American female pilot in U.S. military history, will speak at 6 p.m. Monday, March 24, in the Tennessee Room of the James Union Building in celebration of National Women’s History Month. For more information, contact Valerie Avent at 615-898-2718 or 615-898-2987.

BASSOON TUNES--Guest bassoonist Christin Schillinger will perform in a free and open concert at 8 p.m. Monday, March 24, in the T. Earl Hinton Music Hall of the Wright Music Building on the MTSU campus. Schillinger will perform John Steinmetz’s Goodbye, Old Paint: a cowboy song for bassoon and piano; Robert Schumann’s Five Pieces in Folk Style, Opus 102; Marcel Farago’s Phantasy, Opus 40a; and Henri Duteilleux’s Sarabande et Cortege. For more information, call 615-898-2493 or visit http://www.mtsumusic.com.

ART FOR ART’S SAKE--The Todd Gallery at MTSU will present “Domenic Cretara: The Large Drawings,” a 19-piece exhibit by the California-based artist, through Friday, March 28, in Todd Hall on the MTSU campus. The show, which is free and open to the public, will feature works by the contemporary realist that were created in some of his preferred media—charcoal, pastels (chalk and pencil) and chalk. The Todd Gallery is open 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. weekdays.

TRIALS, BUT NO TRIBULATIONS--An MTSU mock trial team placed second among 26 teams at the American Mock Trial Association National Tournament at Memphis over the weekend (March 14-16) and was one of three teams at the tournament to qualify for the National Championship tournament to be held in Minneapolis/St. Paul in April. This marks the 18th time in 19 years that MTSU has qualified for the nation’s most elite tournament. A team consisting of Daniel Vaughn, Natalie Schneider, Nick Lee, Julian Kissner, Lani Lester, Rachel Harmon and Austin Purvis compiled a record of six wins, one loss and one tie in rounds against Ohio State, Kennesaw State, Furman and Georgia State. In addition, Vaughn captured a Top Ten attorney award, and Lester won a Top Ten witness award. The University of Texas won the tourney with an 8-0 record while Washington and Lee University came in third with a 6-2 record. The MTSU team is coached by Dr. John R. Vile and Patrick Chinnery of the Department of Political Science and by former alums Brandi Snow and Jamie Kidd. Contact Vile at 615-898-2596 or jvile@mtsu.edu.

Thursday, March 20, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

The Barack Obama speech on race

The speech U.S. Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) delivered on Tuesday in Philadelphia is the talk of the political world, and analysts differ on its ramifications. Dr. Russell Church, speech and theatre, says, “As commentators and the American public ponder (the speech), it is interesting to note that some of the public will feel it was a speech for the ages, whereas others may be disappointed. Those who feel that the speech was one for the ages may have been impressed by his elegance and his ability to see all sides of the question.” Obama felt compelled to address the issue after tapes of inflammatory speeches by his former pastor, Jeremiah Wright, surfaced on the Internet. “Wright was his preacher, a cherished leader of his church and a powerful voice in that community,” Church says. “On the other hand, Obama rejected the vociferous attack on what was viewed by Wright as a hateful and controlling white establishment.”

Contact Church at 615-494-7958.
rchurch@mtsu.edu

“Money, it’s a crime/Share it fairly but don’t take a slice of my pie.”—Pink Floyd

A poll by the Associated Press and MTV indicates that only one percent of people ages 21 to 24 say money is the thing that gives them most joy, but they rank money as their fourth-highest source of stress. But do those findings mirror the academic research? Dr. Tom Tang, management and marketing, says, “For the past several decades, there has been a significant increase regarding the importance of money. For example, only 49.9% of American freshmen in 1971 indicated that the most important reason in deciding to go on to college is ‘to make more money.’ In 1993, that number increased to 75.1%. … The lack of money has become the number one cause of dissatisfaction among university students (out of 10 causes) for the most recent period (1997-2003), up from third (1990-1996) and the second place (1981-1987) of two earlier periods.”

Contact Tang at 615-898-2005.
ttang@mtsu.edu

Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself—title of a book by actor Alan Alda

The “conventional wisdom” is that people who talk to themselves must be crazy. If they hear voices in their heads, they must be paranoid-schizophrenics, right? Not necessarily, says Dr. Tom Brinthaupt, psychology. He says it’s not uncommon for “normal” people to have a sort of “self-talk” going on in their heads. Brinthaupt says this inner monologue (or dialogue) can serve several functions, including self-reward and self-punishment, reviewing and previewing social interactions, and planning and goal-directed behavior. He says research shows that frequent self-talkers show more obsessive-compulsive tendencies and a higher need for cognition than infrequent self-talkers. However, there are no gender differences when it comes to the frequency of self-talk. Possible variables that might affect the frequency of self-talk include one’s place in the birth order, novel or stressful situations, self-consciousness, sleep problems, age, introversion and perfectionism.

Contact Brinthaupt at 615-898-2317.
tbrintha@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

“I’LL SEE YOU ON THE BEACH!”(TOM HANKS IN “SAVING PRIVATE RYAN”)----The next presentation in MTSU’s Women’s Studies Research Series will highlight the work of the reporter who made it to the beach at Normandy on D-Day by stowing away on a hospital ship. “Postcards from the War: A Rhetorical Analysis of Authorship and Audience in Martha Gellhorn’s War-torn Travel Writing” will be the title of a lecture by Dr. Marcie Hinton, assistant professor of journalism, at 3 p.m. today, March 20, in Room 100 of MTSU’s James Union Building. This event is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Dr. Jane Marcellus at 615-898-5282 or jmarcell@mtsu.edu.

YOU MAY BE WRITE—Poet Jeff Hardin, short story writer Tamara Baxter, Wyatt Prunty and William Gay will participate in the first “Gathering of Tennessee Writers” at MTSU today, March 20, at 4:30 p.m. in the State Farm Lecture Hall of the Business and Aerospace Building. This event, which is free and open to the public, will feature readings followed by a panel discussion and a question-and-answer period on such topics as sense of place, the imagination and the role of the writer in the global arena. For more information, contact Dr. Randy Mackin, assistant professor of English, at rtmackin@mtsu.edu.

THAT WASCALLY WABBIT!--Dr. Janet L. Bryant, research scientist and engineer, will speak on “A Multidisciplinary Approach to Science & Engineering at a National Laboratory (a/k/a The Life and Times of the ‘Bunny Slipper Bandit’)” at 7 p.m. tonight, March 20, in Room 102 of the Wiser-Patten Science Building. Bryant, a veteran of more than 26 years at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, will speak to the career flexibility afforded by technical degrees, the need for both a sense of focus and humor and how networking and mentoring truly make a difference in a technical career. This National Women’s History Month event is free and open to the public and is co-sponsored by Women in Science and Engineering (WISE). For more information, contact Dr. Judith Iriarte-Gross at 615-904-8253 or jiriarte@mtsu.edu.

A VIEW FROM ABROAD—The new MT Abroad office will host an Open House today, March 20, from 9 a.m. to noon. Drop by and see the first stop MTSU students make before journeying around the world on study abroad programs. You can check out MT Abroad’s new Web site at http://www.mtsu.edu/~mtabroad. For more information, contact director Jennifer Campbell or coordinator Brandon Fisher at 615-898-5179 or mtabroad@mtsu.edu.

TRIALS, BUT NO TRIBULATIONS--An MTSU mock trial team placed second among 26 teams at the American Mock Trial Association National Tournament at Memphis over the weekend (March 14-16) and was one of three teams at the tournament to qualify for the National Championship tournament to be held in Minneapolis/St. Paul. This marks the 18th time in 19 years that MTSU has qualified for the nation’s most elite tournament. A team consisting of Daniel Vaughn, Natalie Schneider, Nick Lee, Julian Kissner, Lani Lester, Rachel Harmon and Austin Purvis compiled a record of six wins, one loss and one tie in rounds against Ohio State, Kennesaw State, Furman and Georgia State. In addition, Vaughn captured a Top Ten attorney award, and Lester won a Top Ten witness award. The University of Texas won the tourney with an 8-0 record while Washington and Lee University came in third with a 6-2 record. The MTSU team is coached by Dr. John R. Vile and Patrick Chinnery of the Department of Political Science and by former alums Brandi Snow and Jamie Kidd. Contact Vile at 615-898-2596 or jvile@mtsu.edu.

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

Requiem for a heavyweight

Dr. Preston MacDougall, remembers his friend, art professor Dr. Lon Nuell, with a fondness that encompassed both men’s respective disciplines. “The passion and intensity of Lon’s vibrations were strong enough to mix art and chemistry whenever our paths crossed, which did not happen often enough in hindsight. Recently, we would ‘mix it up’ during artist receptions for new exhibits at the Art Gallery. On the latest such occasion, one month before his death, Lon seemed very interested in a new demonstration that I had recently read about, the ‘throbbing oil drop.’ It was typical of Lon’s intellectual curiosity that our discussion of a small, blue, plastic work of art that happened to remind me of a quaternary nitrogen atom in a molecular model kit would end up with him trying to learn how to get a drop of mineral oil to beat like a heart.” (Nuell passed away unexpectedly March 12 at the age of 68.)

Contact MacDougall at 615-898-5265.
pmacdoug@mtsu.edu

Let the sunshine in

It’s “Sunshine Week,” a time set aside to promote open records and open meetings at all levels of government. Dr. Larry Burriss, journalism professor and First Amendment expert, reminds us that sunshine laws are not only for reporters, but for all citizens. “Look at it this way—we are in the middle of an election season where every candidate is making claims and counterclaims. How do you, the voter, know which of these claims are true and which are not? I’m not talking about things about the federal budget or who knew what about Iraq and when they knew it. I’m talking about local politics—how are various officials connected with major construction projects? Who owns that piece of land being proposed for a new school? Are some people who are arrested getting preferential treatment? Those are all local questions that have a direct impact on local voters.”

Contact Burriss at 615-898-2983.
lburriss@mtsu.edu

Whatever happened to “double your flavor, double your fun?”

Sometimes companies that attempt to hold down costs during a recession do so by reducing it in weight or quantity per package. However, Dr. Don Roy, management and marketing, says this isn’t always a good idea. “The Wm. Wrigley Company is opting for holding price and reducing product in its upcoming ‘Slim Pack’ launch of its well-known chewing gum brands. This approach carries with it risk in that consumers may see through the reduced offering and view it the same as a price increase. Even worse, such a move may be seen as a deceptive ploy to maintain profits at consumers’ expense. A comment by (a Wrigley’s vice president) reflects either important insight gleaned from market research or wishful thinking. He said, ‘To them the value goes up because they’re getting a better tasting produce in a better package. Price is not the way the consumer is looking at this.’ For the sake of Wrigley, I hope it is the former, not the latter.”

Contact Roy at 615-904-8564.
droy@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

FOR THE HEALTH OF IT—Three faculty members from the MTSU School of Nursing will provide an update on women’s health from 1-2 p.m. today, March 19, in Room 121 of the Cason-Kennedy Nursing Building. Dr. Leigh Ann McInnis will present “Feeling Good? Looking Better?” She will focus on the implications of cosmetic treatments such as Botox, Restylane, laser hair removal, implants and liposuction/liposelection. Dr. Lisa Warise will present “Cancer: Are You at Risk?” about common cancers in women and the risk factors for each. Dr. Suzanne Prevost will present “Women and Pain: Where It Hurts and What You Can Do.” She will address common pain syndromes experienced by women, including headaches, abdominal pain, chest pain and arthritis. Refreshments will be served. For more information about this National Women’s History Month event, contact the June Anderson Women’s Center at 615-898-2193.

ARABIC ANSWERS--Dr. Said Ennahid from Al Akhawayn University (“University of the Two Brothers”) in Morocco will lecture on “The Archaeology of Space in Arabic Poetry” at 3:30 p.m. today, March 19, in Room 106 of the Paul W. Martin Sr. Honors Building. Ennahid received his Ph.D. from Arizona State University in 2001. He has expertise in Middle Eastern and North African History and Archeology; medieval historiography and historical geography; contemporary Islamic societies of North Africa; Islamic art history, architecture and urbanism; and e-heritage (use of information and communication technologies in cultural heritage. This event is free and open to the public and is co-sponsored by The Middle East Center and the Center for Historical Preservation.

COME FLY WITH ME—MTSU’s Department of Aerospace and the MTSU Future Airport Executives student chapter will hold their second Career Fair from 8:30 a.m. to noon and from 1 to 3 p.m. today, March 19, in the James Union Building’s Tennessee Room. At least 32 companies have registered. The aerospace department includes 850 students and 13 faculty members. Fields include flight dispatch and scheduling, administration, professional pilot, technology and maintenance. For more information, contact Dr. Daniel Prather at 615-898-2289 or dprather@mtsu.edu.

ZING WENT THE STRINGS—The 2008 Tennessee Guitar Festival continues today through March 20 with free and open concerts at 8 p.m. nightly in the T. Earl Hinton Music Hall of the Wright Music Building at MTSU. Duo Firenze will perform tonight, and Christopher Berg will play tomorrow night. Matt Palmer and John Johns will perform Wednesday night. For more information, visit http://www.mtsu.edu/~yelverto/guitfest.html or call 615-898-2493.

THE BIG NOT-SO-EASY—Dr. Craig E. Colton, the 2008 Strickland Visiting Scholar in History at MTSU and Carl O. Sauer Professor of Geography at LSU, will speak on “Extreme New Orleans: Growing Beyond the City’s Limits” at 7 p.m. tonight, March 19, in the State Farm Lecture Hall of the Business and Aerospace Building at MTSU. Colton’s most recent book is titled An Unnatural Metropolis: Wrestling New Orleans from Nature. His lecture is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Dr. Kenneth Scherzer, history professor, at 615-898-2003.

“I’LL SEE YOU ON THE BEACH!”(TOM HANKS IN “SAVING PRIVATE RYAN”)----The next presentation in MTSU’s Women’s Studies Research Series will highlight the work of the reporter who made it to the beach at Normandy on D-Day by stowing away on a hospital ship. “Postcards from the War: A Rhetorical Analysis of Authorship and Audience in Martha Gellhorn’s War-torn Travel Writing” will be the title of a lecture by Dr. Marcie Hinton, assistant professor of journalism, at 3 p.m. tomorrow, March 20, in Room 100 of MTSU’s James Union Building. This event is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Dr. Jane Marcellus at 615-898-5282 or jmarcell@mtsu.edu.

YOU MAY BE WRITE—Poet Jeff Hardin, short story writer Tamara Baxter, Wyatt Prunty and William Gay will participate in the first “Gathering of Tennessee Writers” at MTSU tomorrow, March 20, at 4:30 p.m. in the State Farm Lecture Hall of the Business and Aerospace Building. This event, which is free and open to the public, will feature readings followed by a panel discussion and a question-and-answer period on such topics as sense of place, the imagination and the role of the writer in the global arena. For more information, contact Dr. Randy Mackin, assistant professor of English, at rtmackin@mtsu.edu.

THAT WASCALLY WABBIT!--Dr. Janet L. Bryant, research scientist and engineer, will speak on “A Multidisciplinary Approach to Science & Engineering at a National Laboratory (a/k/a The Life and Times of the ‘Bunny Slipper Bandit’)” at 7 p.m. tomorrow, March 20, in Room 102 of the Wiser-Patten Science Building. Bryant, a veteran of more than 26 years at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, will speak to the career flexibility afforded by technical degrees, the need for both a sense of focus and humor and how networking and mentoring truly make a difference in a technical career. This National Women’s History Month event is free and open to the public and is co-sponsored by Women in Science and Engineering (WISE). For more information, contact Dr. Judith Iriarte-Gross at 615-904-8253 or jiriarte@mtsu.edu.

TRIALS, BUT NO TRIBULATIONS--An MTSU mock trial team placed second among 26 teams at the American Mock Trial Association National Tournament at Memphis over the weekend (March 14-16) and was one of three teams at the tournament to qualify for the National Championship tournament to be held in Minneapolis/St. Paul. This marks the 18th time in 19 years that MTSU has qualified for the nation’s most elite tournament. A team consisting of Daniel Vaughn, Natalie Schneider, Nick Lee, Julian Kissner, Lani Lester, Rachel Harmon and Austin Purvis compiled a record of six wins, one loss and one tie in rounds against Ohio State, Kennesaw State, Furman and Georgia State. In addition, Vaughn captured a Top Ten attorney award, and Lester won a Top Ten witness award. The University of Texas won the tourney with an 8-0 record while Washington and Lee University came in third with a 6-2 record. The MTSU team is coached by Dr. John R. Vile and Patrick Chinnery of the Department of Political Science and by former alums Brandi Snow and Jamie Kidd. Contact Vile at 615-898-2596 or jvile@mtsu.edu.

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

I’m singing in my head, just singing in my head

A recent report on National Public Radio noted that it is not uncommon for the brain to create musical hallucinations. Dr. Oliver Sacks (of Awakenings fame) said it’s not evidence of psychosis. He also says it’s not accidental. “I mean, by the nature of things, there cannot be anything random in the mind. You know, there must be determinance,” Sacks told NPR. Dr. Scott Carnicom, associate dean of the University Honors College, says, “I remember that neuroscience pioneer Wilder Penfield was able to elicit similar musical ‘hallucinations’ via electrical stimulation of the cortex of humans undergoing brain surgery. I would suspect that what he stumbled upon was something akin to memory.” This semester’s University Honors Lecture series explores “The Mind” in all its fascinating dimensions. Lectures are held each Monday at 3 p.m. in Room 106 of the Paul W. Martin Sr. Honors Building and are free and open to the public.

Contact Carnicom at 615-494-7611.
carnicom@mtsu.edu

Fat ain’t where it’s at.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest says that more than two-thirds of states either have no or limited policies restricting the sale of sugary and fatty foods in public schools. Meanwhile, Dr. Janet Colson, human sciences, says “Childhood obesity continues to grow, despite the vast amount of publicity and public education on steps that parents, teachers, school administrators and health professionals should take to reduce the problem. … Changing the foods allowed in schools will not reverse the obesity epidemic overnight. We need to recognize that increases in the average weight of children (and adults) did not occur overnight. It has been creeping up over the last 25+ years. And it will take time to see obesity trends reverse.”

Contact Colson at 615-898-2091.
jcolson@mtsu.edu

They will sell no wine before its time.

Once again, the Tennessee General Assembly is considering legislation that would allow grocery stores to sell wine. Dr. Tony Johnston, agribusiness and agriscience professor, wine expert and vintner, says, “This issue is rather thorny for unseen reasons. Grocers would like to add wine to their product line because of the profit potential and the fact that bordering states allow wine sales in grocery stores. Many consumers have been asking for this convenience for a long time, and it goes hand-in-hand with beer sales in the stores. However, current state law does not allow wine and beer sales at the same location (Note: We have beer/tobacco stores and wine/liquor stores but not combined stores.). … It may well come down to how important the availability of wine at the grocery stores is to Tennessee consumers.”

Contact Johnston at 615-898-2421.
johnston@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

FEMINIST—NOW AND ALWAYS--Visual depictions of feminists, words of wisdom from women in science and visits from dynamic activists are part of the observance of National Women’s History Month, which kicks into high gear at MTSU in the month of March with the theme of “Feminist Now.” Watching the progression of the first response to being called a feminist to the reaction now makes me feel good about the future,” says Terri Johnson, co-chair of the MTSU National Women’s History Month Committee and director of the June Anderson Women’s Center. “When people are educated, they want to work and fight for change,” Johnson says of the opportunities for enlightenment offered during National Women’s History Month. “And even though I know there are challenges ahead, there’s a comfort in knowing we are all in this together.” For the complete MTSU National Women’s History Month Calendar of events, contact the June Anderson Women’s Center at 615-898-2193 or jawc@mtsu.edu.

ZING WENT THE STRINGS—The 2008 Tennessee Guitar Festival continues today through March 20 with free and open concerts at 8 p.m. nightly in the T. Earl Hinton Music Hall of the Wright Music Building at MTSU. Duo Firenze will perform tonight, and Christopher Berg will play tomorrow night. Matt Palmer and John Johns will perform Wednesday night. For more information, visit http://www.mtsu.edu/~yelverto/guitfest.html%20or%20call%20615-898-2493.

TRIALS, BUT NO TRIBULATIONS--An MTSU mock trial team placed second among 26 teams at the American Mock Trial Association National Tournament at Memphis over the weekend (March 14-16) and was one of three teams at the tournament to qualify for the National Championship tournament to be held in Minneapolis/St. Paul. This marks the 18th time in 19 years that MTSU has qualified for the nation’s most elite tournament. A team consisting of Daniel Vaughn, Natalie Schneider, Nick Lee, Julian Kissner, Lani Lester, Rachel Harmon and Austin Purvis compiled a record of six wins, one loss and one tie in rounds against Ohio State, Kennesaw State, Furman and Georgia State. In addition, Vaughn captured a Top Ten attorney award, and Lester won a Top Ten witness award. The University of Texas won the tourney with an 8-0 record while Washington and Lee University came in third with a 6-2 record. The MTSU team is coached by Dr. John R. Vile and Patrick Chinnery of the Department of Political Science and by former alums Brandi Snow and Jamie Kidd. Contact Vile at 615-898-2596 or jvile@mtsu.edu.

ACROSS THE UNIVERSE—The second Science & Spirituality Brown Bag, “Who We Are: A View from the Center of the Universe,” will be held at 11:20 a.m. today, March 18, in the conference room on the fourth floor of the James E. Walker Library. This discussion will be a facilitated conversation led by Rami Shapiro, adjunct religious studies professor and ordained rabbi, on the potential impact of the new cosmology on our sense of what it is to be human. For more information, contact Bill Black at 615-898-2772 or Dr. Gary Wulfsberg at 615-898-2070.

Monday, March 17, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

Trials, but no tribulations

An MTSU mock trial team placed second among 26 teams at the American Mock Trial Association National Tournament at Memphis over the weekend (March 14-16) and was one of three teams at the tournament to qualify for the National Championship tournament to be held in Minneapolis/St. Paul. This marks the 18th time in 19 years that MTSU has qualified for the nation’s most elite tournament. A team consisting of Daniel Vaughn, Natalie Schneider, Nick Lee, Julian Kissner, Lani Lester, Rachel Harmon and Austin Purvis compiled a record of six wins, one loss and one tie in rounds against Ohio State, Kennesaw State, Furman and Georgia State. In addition, Vaughn captured a Top Ten attorney award, and Lester won a Top Ten witness award. The University of Texas won the tourney with an 8-0 record while Washington and Lee University came in third with a 6-2 record. The MTSU team is coached by Dr. John R. Vile and Patrick Chinnery of the Department of Political Science and by former alums Brandi Snow and Jamie Kidd.

Contact Vile at 615-898-2596.
jvile@mtsu.edu

Welcome, bienvenue, welcome!

Attitudes toward illegal immigration are changing in Tennessee, according to the latest MTSU Poll. Forty-seven percent support a guest worker program compared to 40% in the spring 2007 poll. Forty-two percent would oppose such a program, and 10% are unsure. Sixty-three percent would support a citizenship path if it became law compared with 54% a year ago. Half of those polled agree that immigrants fill jobs that others don’t want. “This historic softening of attitudes toward illegal immigrants may be due to many factors including: greater familiarity with—and hence comfort around—such groups and publicity surrounding the fact that sufficient numbers of workers for some jobs such as storm cleanup have been hard to find in areas that have cracked down on undocumented immigrants,” says Dr. Bob Wyatt, Director of Communication Research at MTSU.

Contact Blake at 615-477-8389.
rwyatt@mtsu.edu

The Spitzer syndrome

Wilbur Mills, John Jenrette, Gary Hart, Bill Clinton, and now Eliot Spitzer—only a few of the politicians whose clandestine sexual behavior has been detrimental to their public lives in recent decades. Why would men whose every move is under constant public scrutiny take such chances? Dr. Janet Belsky, psychology, says, “It takes tremendous hubris to make it to the top politically. Power is a tremendous aphrodisiac. Combine this with an addiction to risk-taking, and it makes perfect sense that dangerous sexual acting out is a tremendous lure for powerful men. But men like Eliot Spitzer make passionate enemies on their ascent—people who are watching every move to take them down, which explains why powerful men are also the very people who always get caught!”

Contact Belsky at 615-898-5935.
jbelsky@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

FEMINIST—NOW AND ALWAYS--Visual depictions of feminists, words of wisdom from women in science and visits from dynamic activists are part of the observance of National Women’s History Month, which kicks into high gear at MTSU in the month of March with the theme of “Feminist Now.” Watching the progression of the first response to being called a feminist to the reaction now makes me feel good about the future,” says Terri Johnson, co-chair of the MTSU National Women’s History Month Committee and director of the June Anderson Women’s Center. “When people are educated, they want to work and fight for change,” Johnson says of the opportunities for enlightenment offered during National Women’s History Month. “And even though I know there are challenges ahead, there’s a comfort in knowing we are all in this together.” For the complete MTSU National Women’s History Month Calendar of events, contact the June Anderson Women’s Center at 615-898-2193 or jawc@mtsu.edu.

SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE—Dr. Jim McCollum, whose mother’s lawsuit against his public school system for mandating religious instruction resulted in a landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision, will speak from 1-2 p.m. today, March 17, on Room 106 of the Paul W. Martin Honors Building at MTSU. This year marks the 60th anniversary of McCollum v. Board of Education. The high court ruled 8-1 in favor of McCollum, overturning decisions at the circuit court and state supreme court levels. This lecture is free and open to the public. For more information, contact the Department of Political Science at 615-898-2708.

ZING WENT THE STRINGS—The 2008 Tennessee Guitar Festival continues today through March 20 with free and open concerts at 8 p.m. nightly in the T. Earl Hinton Music Hall of the Wright Music Building at MTSU. Duo Firenze will perform tonight, and Christopher Berg will play tomorrow night. Matt Palmer and John Johns will perform Wednesday night. For more information, visit http://www.mtsu.edu/~yelverto/guitfest.html or call 615-898-2493.

Friday, March 14, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

ATTENTION, EDITORS: The MTSU Office of News and Public Affairs has moved from Room 209 in the Cope Administration Building to the Tom H. Jackson Building just off Middle Tennessee Boulevard between Kirksey Old Main and the Voorhies Industrial Studies Building. Our phone numbers and e-mail addresses remain the same, but our post office box number for “snail mail” on campus is now Box 72. Please continue to visit www.mtsunews.com for MTSU information.

Lottery lessons

At present, lottery scholarship recipients in Tennessee are required to maintain a “B” average or better in order to keep their scholarships. According to the latest MTSU Poll, 65% of Tennesseans approve of keeping that mandate in place. However, 27% think the standard should be somewhere below a “B,” and 5% think the standard should be higher. The rest are undecided. Dr. Ken Blake, director of the poll, says, “Attitudes about lottery scholarship requirements break most strongly along income lines with over a third (39%) of Tennesseans earning $50,000 in household income per year or less favoring a standard somewhere below a “B” compared to under a quarter (23%) of those with higher annual household incomes.”

Contact Blake at 615-210-6187.
kblake@mtsu.edu

Oh, Canada!

Both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama stated in their final debate before the VOTR (Vermont, Ohio, Texas and Rhode Island) primaries that they would consider renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) if elected president. Canada’s Federal Trade Minister, David Emerson, has indicated that, if that happens, America’s priority access to Canadian oil would be on the table. Dr. Steven Livingston, political science, says, “Canada is America’s leading supplier of energy. It accounts for about 15% of American oil imports and about a third of our natural gas imports. So Canadian production is obviously critical to the American price, whether at the pump or at the house.”

Contact Livingston at 615-898-2720.
slivings@mtsu.edu

“Leave the Driving” to Neil

The godfather of grunge rock, Neil Young, has converted his 1960 Lincoln Continental Mark IV to run on biodiesel, and he’s working on making it a plug-in hybrid. The car is nicknamed “Linc-Volt,” and Young is working on a documentary on the car’s transition. Young says “Linc-Volt” will embody “classic Americana from then meeting the Americana of now.” Dr. Cliff Ricketts, agribusiness and agriscience, has a lot of experience with alternative fuel vehicles. He says the old cars can’t be as fuel-efficient as today’s vehicles, “however, the other part of the story is that it is not using fossil fuel; thus, it is better than someone who does not do anything. If it works for him with an extremely heavy vehicle, look at what we can learn to apply to much lighter and more efficient vehicles.”

Contact Ricketts at 615-898-2430.
srickett@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

FEMINIST—NOW AND ALWAYS--Visual depictions of feminists, words of wisdom from women in science and visits from dynamic activists are part of the observance of National Women’s History Month, which kicks into high gear at MTSU in the month of March with the theme of “Feminist Now.” Watching the progression of the first response to being called a feminist to the reaction now makes me feel good about the future,” says Terri Johnson, co-chair of the MTSU National Women’s History Month Committee and director of the June Anderson Women’s Center. “When people are educated, they want to work and fight for change,” Johnson says of the opportunities for enlightenment offered during National Women’s History Month. “And even though I know there are challenges ahead, there’s a comfort in knowing we are all in this together.” For the complete MTSU National Women’s History Month Calendar of events, contact the June Anderson Women’s Center at 615-898-2193 or jawc@mtsu.edu.

SHE BLINDED ME WITH SCIENCE--Dr. Donna J. Dean, national president of the Association for Women in Science, will speak on “Networking and Mentoring: Keys to Success in Science” at 7 p.m. tonight, March 13, in Room 102 of Wiser-Patten Science Hall. “She’s earned many honors and awards in recognition of her work in research and science policy at the National Institutes of Health and the Food and Drug Administration,” says Dr. Judith Iriarte-Gross, professor of chemistry. For more information, contact Iriarte-Gross at 615-904-8253 or Randy Weiler in the MTSU Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-2919.

IT’S INSTRUMENTAL--The Aulos Ensemble, a New York-based period instrument group, will perform in the third and final concert of the MTSU School of Music’s Presidential Concert Series at 7:30 p.m. tonight, March 14, in the T. Earl Hinton Music Hall of the Wright Music Building. Gold and Glitter: From Venice to Versailles is the title of the free and open performance that will include works by Antonio Vivaldi, Bernardo Storace, Dario Castello, Bartolome de Selma, Francois Couperin and Jean-Philippe Rameau. As part of its brief residency, the ensemble’s members also will present a series of master classes at 11:30 a.m. today, March 14 at the MTSU Music School. For more information, visit www.mtsumusic.com, or call 615-898-2493.

Thursday, March 13, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

ATTENTION, EDITORS: The MTSU Office of News and Public Affairs has moved from Room 209 in the Cope Administration Building to the Tom H. Jackson Building just off Middle Tennessee Boulevard between Kirksey Old Main and the Voorhies Industrial Studies Building. Our phone numbers and e-mail addresses remain the same, but our post office box number for “snail mail” on campus is now Box 72. Please continue to visit www.mtsunews.com for MTSU information.

Can you tell me how to get to Sesame Street?

Nearly two-thirds of Tennesseans favor opening the state’s pre-kindergarten program to wealthier children in addition to poor ones, according to the latest MTSU Poll. Dr. Ken Blake, director of the poll, says, “Just 16% support leaving it limited to poorer children only, and 17% aren’t sure. About 2% say the state should not offer pre-kindergarten programs at all. Self-described conservatism makes a difference, with 61% of conservatives supporting pre-kindergarten for all children compared to 69% of liberals and those in the middle of the political spectrum.Gov. Phil Bredesen has proposed offering state-sponsored pre-kindergarten education to all children in the state, regardless of income. Among conservatives, less-educated males are the least supportive, and less-educated females are the most supportive.”

Contact Blake at 615-210-6187.
kblake@mtsu.edu

Can’t get smug about the drug

The World Health Organization reports that about one in every 20 new cases of tuberculosis worldwide is now resistant to two or more drugs. Dr. Stephen Wright, biology, says, “If antibiotics are not taken as directed (skipping doses or not completing the full course of treatment) remaining bacteria can become resistant to the drugs. In the United States, about 1% of the approximately 13,000 annual cases of TB are multidrug-resistant. However, in some parts of the world, the percentage is nearly 20%. This suggests that drug-resistant TB will continue to spread. Physicians are giving excellent advice when they tell us to finish the entire course of antibiotics, and we would do well to heed that advice.

Contact Wright at 615-898-2056.
smwright@mtsu.edu

The color of inequality

More than half of blacks say they are discriminated against when eating in restaurants, shopping, renting an apartment, buying a house or applying for a job, according to a Pew Research poll. Was the survey taken in 1958? No, it was taken in 2008. Dr. Jacqui Wade, social work, says, “African-Americans know all too well that just because in today’s times there are a few more African-Americans in economic and political positions and places where they haven’t been before, especially prior to the late 1960s and 70s, that things are still not equal. They know all too well that the still pervasive incidents of brutality against African-Americans (and other people of color, especially people of Mexican descent) at the hands of the racially hateful white-Americans—whether these incidents make the newspaper headlines or not—are not mere ‘isolated incidents.’”

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

TR EXTRA

SUFFRAGETTE CITY—While American suffragettes organized, marched and petitioned for the right to vote, British suffragettes bombed and burned private property and endured unspeakable tortures in English prisons. Their struggle is the topic of a lecture to be delivered by Dr. Nancy Rupprecht, professor of history, from 5-7 p.m. today, March 13, at MTSU’s Tom H. Jackson Building. This event is free and open to the public. “Gender and Guerrilla Warfare in the British Women’s Suffrage Movement or ‘When Civil War is Waged by Women’” is the title of the address. For more information, contact Rupprecht at 615-898-2645 or nrupprecht@mtsu.edu.

A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC--MTSU School of Music faculty flutist Deanna Little, in collaboration with Lipscomb University pianist Jerome Reed, will present a free and open recital at 8 p.m. tonight, March 13, in the T. Earl Hinton Music Hall of the Wright Music Building. The program will consist of four 20th century American sonatas by composers David Diamond, Robert Muczynski, Emma Lou Diemer and Thomas Pasatieri. For more information, visit www.mtsumusic.com, or call 615-898-2493.

ON TRIAL AND ON TOP--An MTSU mock trial team consisting of attorneys Daniel Vaughan, Natalie Schneider and Nick Lee, witnesses Lani Lester, Rachel Harmon and Austin Purvis, and timekeeper Ben Winter placed third at a regional competition in Birmingham, AL in February. In addition, Lani Lester and Emily Petro each won Top 10 witness awards. The third-place showing qualifies the group for a national tournament to be held in Memphis on March 14, 15 and 16. Dr. John Vile, chair of the Department of Political Science and mock trial coach, says if MTSU’s teams can make the top three in Memphis, they will then qualify for the National Championship Tournament in St. Paul, MN. In 19 years of participation, MTSU has qualified for a national mock trial tournament every year except one. Contact Vile at 615-898-2596 or jvile@mtsu.edu.

FEMINIST—NOW AND ALWAYS--Visual depictions of feminists, words of wisdom from women in science and visits from dynamic activists are part of the observance of National Women’s History Month, which kicks into high gear at MTSU in the month of March with the theme of “Feminist Now.” Watching the progression of the first response to being called a feminist to the reaction now makes me feel good about the future,” says Terri Johnson, co-chair of the MTSU National Women’s History Month Committee and director of the June Anderson Women’s Center. “When people are educated, they want to work and fight for change,” Johnson says of the opportunities for enlightenment offered during National Women’s History Month. “And even though I know there are challenges ahead, there’s a comfort in knowing we are all in this together.” For the complete MTSU National Women’s History Month Calendar of events, contact the June Anderson Women’s Center at 615-898-2193 or jawc@mtsu.edu.

SHE BLINDED ME WITH SCIENCE--Dr. Donna J. Dean, national president of the Association for Women in Science, will speak on “Networking and Mentoring: Keys to Success in Science” at 7 p.m. tonight, March 13, in Room 102 of Wiser-Patten Science Hall. “She’s earned many honors and awards in recognition of her work in research and science policy at the National Institutes of Health and the Food and Drug Administration,” says Dr. Judith Iriarte-Gross, professor of chemistry. For more information, contact Iriarte-Gross at 615-904-8253 or Randy Weiler in the MTSU Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-2919.

IT’S INSTRUMENTAL--The Aulos Ensemble, a New York-based period instrument group, will perform in the third and final concert of the MTSU School of Music’s Presidential Concert Series at 7:30 p.m. tomorrow, March 14, in the T. Earl Hinton Music Hall of the Wright Music Building. Gold and Glitter: From Venice to Versailles is the title of the free and open performance that will include works by Antonio Vivaldi, Bernardo Storace, Dario Castello, Bartolome de Selma, Francois Couperin and Jean-Philippe Rameau. As part of its brief residency, the ensemble’s members also will present a series of master classes at 11:30 a.m. March 14 at the MTSU Music School, in addition to performing tonight, March 13, in Nashville at St. George’s Episcopal Church. For more information, visit www.mtsumusic.com, or call 615-898-2493.

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

ATTENTION, EDITORS: The MTSU Office of News and Public Affairs has moved from Room 209 in the Cope Administration Building to the Tom H. Jackson Building just off Middle Tennessee Boulevard between Kirksey Old Main and the Voorhies Industrial Studies Building. Our phone numbers and e-mail addresses remain the same, but our post office box number for “snail mail” on campus is now Box 72. Please continue to visit www.mtsunews.com for MTSU information.

The “A” word

Abortion continues to be a hot button issue in Tennessee. According to the latest MTSU Poll, 53% of state residents favor some restriction on abortion. Just under one in five think it should be legal “under any circumstances.” About a quarter think it should be “illegal in all circumstances.” Dr. Ken Blake, director of the poll, says, “Tennesseans who fall middle-to-left on the political spectrum are less supportive of restricting abortion than Tennesseans who fall middle-to-right. Behind political orientation, education becomes important, with 12% of Tennesseans with no college experience favoring unrestricted access to abortion compared to 21% of those with at least some college education. And, among the college-educated, support for restricting abortion increases with evangelical Christian identity.”

Contact Blake at 615-210-6187.
kblake@mtsu.edu

A shot in the arm

A report from the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases finds that most adults don’t know which diseases they can prevent with a simple inoculation, save for the flu. Relatively few adults, for example, are getting vaccines against shingles or whooping cough, and only 44% have gotten a tetanus shot in the last 10 years. Have we ignored the need for adult inoculations as we emphasize the importance of certain shots for kids? Dr. Suzanne Prevost, chair of the Department of Nursing, says, “Yes, absolutely! Most adults are very aware of the need to immunize children, and most parents are aware of the Recommended Pediatric Immunization Schedule. However, very few adults realize that the Centers for Disease Control also publish a Recommended Adult Immunization Schedule.”

Contact Prevost at 615-898-5957.
sprevost@mtsu.edu

The Selling of the Candidate 2008

Political candidates have brands just as surely as toothpaste, toys and trash bags do. Dr. Don Roy, management and marketing, says, “Hillary Clinton has positioned her campaign on the experience she garnered as First Lady and more recently as U.S. Senator. Barack Obama has positioned his campaign on one word: change. … The outcome of the Democratic race will come down to which candidate positioned more effectively. A position must resonate with the target market, which is why the ‘change’ position of Obama has been so powerful to this point. … Clinton may have more experience and be better prepared for the presidency, but that is not the point. What matters is whether voters can be persuaded to accept the positioning strategy of a candidate and take action where it matters most: the ballot box.”

Contact Roy at 615-904-8564.
droy@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

ON TRIAL AND ON TOP--An MTSU mock trial team consisting of attorneys Daniel Vaughan, Natalie Schneider and Nick Lee, witnesses Lani Lester, Rachel Harmon and Austin Purvis, and timekeeper Ben Winter placed third at a regional competition in Birmingham, AL in February. In addition, Lani Lester and Emily Petro each won Top 10 witness awards. The third-place showing qualifies the group for a national tournament to be held in Memphis on March 14, 15 and 16. Dr. John Vile, chair of the Department of Political Science and mock trial coach, says if MTSU’s teams can make the top three in Memphis, they will then qualify for the National Championship Tournament in St. Paul, MN. In 19 years of participation, MTSU has qualified for a national mock trial tournament every year except one. Contact Vile at 615-898-2596 or
jvile@mtsu.edu.

SHRIMP BOATS ARE A’COMIN’—Activist Diane Wilson, author of An Unreasonable Woman: A True Story of Shrimpers, Politicos, Polluters,, and the Fight for Seadrift, Texas, will visit MTSU today and tomorrow, March 12 and 13, to speak with classes and deliver a free public lecture. Wilson’s talk, titled “Diane versus Goliath: Taking on Politicians and Corporations to Protect Family and the Environment” will get underway at 6:30 p.m. tonight, March 12, in the State Farm Lecture Hall of MTSU’s Business and Aerospace Building with a book signing to follow. Wilson, a fourth-generation shrimp boat captain and mother of five, learned that she lived in the most polluted county in the U.S. and then decided to fight back by launching a campaign against a multibillion-dollar corporation. For more information, contact Lisa L. Rollins in the Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-2919 or lrollins@mtsu.edu.

FEMINIST—NOW AND ALWAYS--Visual depictions of feminists, words of wisdom from women in science and visits from dynamic activists are part of the observance of National Women’s History Month, which kicks into high gear at MTSU in the month of March with the theme of “Feminist Now.” Watching the progression of the first response to being called a feminist to the reaction now makes me feel good about the future,” says Terri Johnson, co-chair of the MTSU National Women’s History Month Committee and director of the June Anderson Women’s Center. “When people are educated, they want to work and fight for change,” Johnson says of the opportunities for enlightenment offered during National Women’s History Month. “And even though I know there are challenges ahead, there’s a comfort in knowing we are all in this together.” For the complete MTSU National Women’s History Month Calendar of events, contact the June Anderson Women’s Center at 615-898-2193 or jawc@mtsu.edu.

RIGHTS TALK—Beverly L. Watts, executive director of the Tennessee Human Rights Commission, will be the featured speaker at the International Women’s Day Luncheon slated for 11:30 a.m. today, March 12, in the Hazlewood Dining Room of the James Union Building. Considered a human rights expert on state, national and international issues, Watts also is the immediate past president of the International Association of Official Human Rights Agencies and a past chair of Women Executives in State Government. Contact Kippy Todd at 615-898-5756 or ktodd@mtsu.edu.

SHE BLINDED ME WITH SCIENCE--Dr. Donna J. Dean, national president of the Association for Women in Science, will speak on “Networking and Mentoring: Keys to Success in Science” at 7 p.m. tomorrow, March 13, in Room 102 of Wiser-Patten Science Hall. “She’s earned many honors and awards in recognition of her work in research and science policy at the National Institutes of Health and the Food and Drug Administration,” says Dr. Judith Iriarte-Gross, professor of chemistry. For more information, contact Iriarte-Gross at 615-904-8253 or Randy Weiler in the MTSU Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-2919.

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

ATTENTION, EDITORS: The MTSU Office of News and Public Affairs has moved from Room 209 in the Cope Administration Building to the Tom H. Jackson Building just off Middle Tennessee Boulevard between Kirksey Old Main and the Voorhies Industrial Studies Building. Our phone numbers and e-mail addresses remain the same, but our post office box number for “snail mail” on campus is now Box 72. Please continue to visit www.mtsunews.com for MTSU information.

What did you do in the war, Daddy?

A majority of Tennesseans say the Iraq war is going badly, according to the latest MTSU Poll. Fifty-one percent have a negative view of the war, down three percent from the spring poll’s results. Fifty-six percent say sending troops was a mistake, although only 25 percent of Republicans agree. “A similar spread is found on whether sending troops to Iraq was a mistake with a firm majority (56%) saying it was a mistake, as opposed to 44% who think it was not,” says Dr. Bob Wyatt, Director of Communication Research. “Political party again emerges as the important predictor with 86% of Democrats saying yes, while 65% of independents agree. Among Republicans, only 25% say it was a mistake, and 41% of a small contingent of ‘others’ (10% of sample) say it was a mistake.

Contact Wyatt at 615-477-8389.
rwyatt@mtsu.edu

A peace at a time?

Two senior U.N. envoys have told the Security Council that no progress has been made towards an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement since the start of US-sponsored talks last year. Yet, Washington Post reporter Robin Wright sees some hope in grass roots activists using cell phones in Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Iran, Morocco Iraq and the Palestinian territories to push for democracy and human rights. Dr. Karen Petersen, political science, says, “Grass roots movements, while important tools, should not be seen as serious threats to the power structure in this case (or most others). Until the Palestinian leadership (either Hamas or the PLO), Israel, and, most importantly, the Arab states in the region ALL genuinely desire peace, there will be no true and lasting peace.”

Contact Petersen at 615-494-8662.
kpeterse@mtsu.edu

Whaddya know?

The group Common Core, a new organization that says it will press for more teaching of the liberal arts in public schools, has released a survey that shows that fewer than half of American teenagers questioned by telephone knew when the Civil War was fought. One in four said Columbus sailed to the New World some time after 1750. The group concluded that lots of teens have a “stunning ignorance” of history and literature. Dr. John McDaniel, Dean of the College of Liberal Arts, says another recent study “offered the observation that 40% of Americans, most pointedly teenagers, have not read a single book in the last year. Books are just full of contextualized information and ideas, but that vehicle has largely been co-opted in these cyberspatial days by other forms of communication: cell phones, Ipods and, most notably, the Internet, where free-floating factoids rule. Stunning? No. Regrettable? Well, that’s another story altogether.”

Contact McDaniel at 615-898-2534.
mcdaniel@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

ON TRIAL AND ON TOP--An MTSU mock trial team consisting of attorneys Daniel Vaughan, Natalie Schneider and Nick Lee, witnesses Lani Lester, Rachel Harmon and Austin Purvis, and timekeeper Ben Winter placed third at a regional competition in Birmingham, AL in February. In addition, Lani Lester and Emily Petro each won Top 10 witness awards. The third-place showing qualifies the group for a national tournament to be held in Memphis on March 14, 15 and 16. Dr. John Vile, chair of the Department of Political Science and mock trial coach, says if MTSU’s teams can make the top three in Memphis, they will then qualify for the National Championship Tournament in St. Paul, MN. In 19 years of participation, MTSU has qualified for a national mock trial tournament every year except one. Contact Vile at 615-898-2596 or
jvile@mtsu.edu.

DON’T LET IT BE FORGOT/THAT ONCE THERE WAS A SPOT/ FOR ONE BRIEF SHINING MOMENT THAT WAS KNOWN/ AS CAMELOT--Elaine Rice Bachmann, curator for the Maryland Commission on Artistic Property, will be the featured guest speaker tonight, March 11, for the 2008 Lecture Series presented by the MTSU student chapter of American Society of Interior Designers/International Interior Design Association. “Designing Camelot: The Kennedy White House Restoration” is the title of Bachman’s free and open 6:30-8 p.m. talk, which will take place in the State Farm Lecture Hall in MTSU’s Business and Aerospace Building. For more information, contact Carla Sanders, student event coordinator, at 931-308-2117, or Deborah Belcher, associate professor, at 615-898-5604 or dbelcher@mtsu.edu.

SHRIMP BOATS ARE A’COMIN’—Activist Diane Wilson, author of An Unreasonable Woman: A True Story of Shrimpers, Politicos, Polluters,, and the Fight for Seadrift, Texas, will visit MTSU tomorrow and Thursday, March 12 and 13, to speak with classes and deliver a free public lecture. Wilson’s talk, titled “Diane versus Goliath: Taking on Politicians and Corporations to Protect Family and the Environment” will get underway at 6:30 p.m. tomorrow, March 12, in the State Farm Lecture Hall of MTSU’s Business and Aerospace Building with a book signing to follow. Wilson, a fourth-generation shrimp boat captain and mother of five, learned that she lived in the most polluted county in the U.S. and then decided to fight back by launching a campaign against a multibillion-dollar corporation. For more information, contact Lisa L. Rollins in the Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-2919 or lrollins@mtsu.edu.

FEMINIST—NOW AND ALWAYS--Visual depictions of feminists, words of wisdom from women in science and visits from dynamic activists are part of the observance of National Women’s History Month, which kicks into high gear at MTSU in the month of March with the theme of “Feminist Now.” Watching the progression of the first response to being called a feminist to the reaction now makes me feel good about the future,” says Terri Johnson, co-chair of the MTSU National Women’s History Month Committee and director of the June Anderson Women’s Center. “When people are educated, they want to work and fight for change,” Johnson says of the opportunities for enlightenment offered during National Women’s History Month. “And even though I know there are challenges ahead, there’s a comfort in knowing we are all in this together.” For the complete MTSU National Women’s History Month Calendar of events, contact the June Anderson Women’s Center at 615-898-2193 or jawc@mtsu.edu.