A&S in the News: January 27 – February 2, 2019

Thwaites Glacier

Major expedition targets Thwaites GlacierArchy Worldys – Jan. 29

The US icebreaker Nathaniel B Palmer leaves Punta Arenas in Chile on Tuesday to begin an expedition to Antarctica’s Thwaites Glacier … US collaborator Dr Rebecca Totten Minzoni, from The University of Alabama, said: “By discovering the history of Thwaite’s Glacier under past climate and ocean conditions, we can assess the stability of the glacier today.
Planet Genius – Jan. 30

Rural Colleges

Rural colleges are ignoring one of their largest industries: AgricultureThe Guardian – Jan. 29

Farris Beasley stands in a barn on his 600-acre farm, pointing out equipment both ancient and modern and longing for the days when all of it was as easy to repair as his 1939 John Deere tractor … There’s another reason, too: many rural colleges just don’t have the money to run pricey programs in tractor repair or veterinary science, said Stephen Katsinas, a University of Alabama political science professor who directs the school’s educational policy center.
Equities – Jan. 30
Hechinger Report – Jan. 30

Book Drive

Annual drive collects books for Alabama Black Belt countiesCrimson White – Jan. 29

The University of Alabama Center for Economic Development began collecting books for its 14th annual Books for the Alabama Black Belt drive on Jan. 21, and it will end Feb. 18. Thirteen counties, including Bullock, Choctaw, Butler, Greene, Dallas, Hale, Macon, Lowndes, Pickens, Marengo, Perry, Wilcox and Sumter, make up the Black Belt community. The school systems in these counties have a lack of funding, so people on campus and in the community are encouraged to donate new or gently used books found on school reading lists for children in K-12 in the Black Belt.

Fraternal Organizations

Prof. Beito discusses fraternal organizations standing in for the role of the StateLibertarian News – Jan. 30

Fascinating lecture, I guarantee you’ll learn something new from this one.  David T. Beito, Professor of History at The University of Alabama, speaks at Libertopia 2010 on “The Voluntary City & Mutual Aid Societies.”

Trumpet Festival

Alabaster native wins accolades at 2019 Trumpet FestivalAlabaster Reporter – Jan. 30

The University of Alabama School of Music’s Alabama Trumpet Studio traveled to Atlanta in January to participate in the 2019 Trumpet Festival of the Southeast, an annual regional musical conference dedicated to teaching and performance of the trumpet.

Kentuck Art Night

February will be filled with entertainment in TuscaloosaTuscaloosa News – Jan. 31

One tragic national championship loss, two faux-snow-blows, a Realizing the Dream concert and DATE Week later, Druid City arts and entertainment revs to full steam in February … FEB. 7: Kentuck Art Night, the free and family-friendly first-Thursday event, will host openings for works by Tom and Charlotte Wegrzynowski, art instructors at The University of Alabama.

Super Bowl

Would our early ancestors have watched the Super Bowl?Sapiens – Jan. 31

It’s not your fault you watch football all day—man has always been captivated by watching stuff,” states a Coke Zero commercial that aired during the U.S. football season in 2013. The ad shows a person gazing hypnotically at a television, then cuts to an ancestral human staring at a fire. (Christopher D. Lynn is an associate professor of anthropology at The University of Alabama.)

Spiral Galaxy

Hubble spies doomed spiral galaxy plunging into the coma cluster (and losing gas, too)Remo News – Jan. 31

An incandescent stream of hydrogen gas emanates from the D100 spiral galaxy as it dives into the center of the gigantic cluster of Coma galaxies. You can see glowing blue groups of young stars near the center of the tail, where there is still enough hydrogen gas to fuel star formation … Credit: Hubble image: NASA, ESA, M. Sun (University of Alabama) and W. Cramer and J. Kenney (Yale University); Image of Subaru: M. Yagi (National Astronomical Observatory of Japan).
F3 News – Jan. 31

Terrorist Attacks

Why do terrorists claim credit for some attacks but not others?The Economist – Feb. 1

Two terrorist attacks hit the southern Philippines in the final days of January. The first, a double bombing at a Roman Catholic church on January 27th, killed at least 20 people … A forthcoming paper by Erin Kearns of The University of Alabama, covering 102,914 attacks committed in 160 countries between 1998 and 2016, reveals a consistent pattern to these claims and attributions.

Peace Studio

Peace Studio announces a new musical theater camp for teensBroadway World – Feb. 1

This July, teens ages 13-17 with a passion for singing, dancing and acting can hone their skills at Peace Studio: Broadway … Stacy Alley is head of Musical Theatre and an associate professor of musical theatre/dance at The University of Alabama.