Fulbright Scholars

Top producers of Fulbright U.S. scholars and students, 2019-2020: Chronicle of Higher Education – Feb. 9

Several colleges have seen an increase this year in their numbers of award recipients in the Fulbright U.S. Scholar and Fulbright U.S. Student Programs. The exchange programs are sponsored by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Eight doctoral, two master’s, seven baccalaureate, and two special-focus institutions, all highlighted with boldfaced text, were top producers of both U.S. scholars and U.S. students in 2019-20.

Scenes of Violence

Torture prevalent in movies, UA researchers say: Tuscaloosa News – Feb. 10

In 2016 animated comedy “Zootopia,” at the direction of a Godfather-like weasel, polar bears dangle bunny officer Judy Hopps and fox con artist Nick Wilde threateningly over a watery drop, uttering the chilling line: “Ice ’em!” While played for dark comedy, that scene of threatened violence was one of many that made researchers Erin M. Kearns, assistant professor in the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice at The University of Alabama, and Casey Delehanty, assistant professor in the Department of Social Sciences at Gardner-Webb University, hit pause and rewind. Studying the 20 biggest box-office hits for each year over a decade — 2008 to 2017 — the researchers found shockingly high instances of inflicted physical or mental duress in everything from drama to superhero popcorn to animated comedy.
Al.com – Feb. 10

Artemis Generation

NASA/Marshall leading Artemis mission to moon with history-making rocket: Al.com – Feb. 12

This decade is ushering in a new era of human space exploration, and NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center is leading the way forward with a roaring start in 2020 as we near the first launch of the most powerful rocket ever built, the Space Launch System (SLS). We will actively train the Artemis Generation through partnership agreements like the ones we signed in 2019 with The University of Alabama for in-space manufacturing and Auburn University for additive manufacturing.

Valentine’s Day

Still time to make plans for Valentine’s: Tuscaloosa News – Feb. 13

Valentine’s Day arrives Friday — yes, it’s Feb. 14 every year, so duh — and if you haven’t made plans, face it: You’re in trouble. Luckily for you, procrastinator, we’re here to help. Here are ideas to share with a Valentine, a Gal-entine, a Pal-entine… however your love rolls. Hosted by The University of Alabama Department of English’s Pure Products Reading and Lecture Series, there’s a five-minute reading limit, and readers should show up 10 minutes before start to sign up.

Digital Health

Empowerment vs deceit: The darker side of digital health communities: VERDICT Medical Devices – Feb. 13

Chronic illness support communities crop up all over social media and provide a way for people all over the world to connect and support each other in managing their conditions. University of Alabama professor of psychiatry Dr. Marc Feldman is an international expert in Münchausen syndrome, a disorder in which a person deliberately acts as if they have an illness when they are not really sick, lying about symptoms and tampering with test results. People with the condition can go so far as deliberately inducing the symptoms of illness within themselves, motivated by the sympathy and attention they obtain from being unwell.

Black History Month

University of Alabama’s Black History Month spotlights ‘African Americans and the Vote’: Alabama Newscenter – Feb. 15

This year celebrates the 150th anniversary of the 15th Amendment, which gave black men and other disenfranchised Americans the right to vote, and the 100th anniversary of women getting the right to vote. In celebration of those anniversaries, and looking toward the 2020 presidential election, The University of Alabama’s Black History Month celebration is themed “African Americans and The Vote.”