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.