News – Page 118 – College of Arts & Sciences

Biology Professor Teams Up with Surgeon in New Approach to Pain Treatment

September 1, 2012

A chronic pain condition and numerous gastrointestinal disorders may all be caused by a virus. That’s a Tuscaloosa-based surgeon’s theory likely headed for a clinical trial early next year and one drawing support from Dr. Carol Duffy, an assistant professor in the Department of Biological Sciences. The two are teaming up to conduct a clinical trial that will test the effectiveness of a combination of two drugs in treating fibromyalgia. Duffy is serving as the chief scientific advisor for Innovative […]

Collaborative Work Yields Progress on Pardons for Scottsboro Boys

September 1, 2012

Sheila Washington, founder of the Scottsboro Boys Museum and Cultural Center, has asked Gov. Robert Bentley to clear the names of eight of the nine defendants known as the Scottsboro boys, who were wrongly convicted of raping two white women in 1931. Washington’s plea has garnered significant support from professors, lawyers, and legislators and is the bi-product of work from of a two-year community-based research project with students and faculty in the College. The project involved doing historical research for […]

School of Music Benefits from Rock Group Steppenwolf’s State-of-the-Art Studio Equipment

September 1, 2012

The keyboardist with the famed rock group Steppenwolf, Michael Wilk, has brought his state-of-the-art recording studio to the College’s School of Music. Wilk wishes to give music students firsthand experiences in recording and film scoring using the most modern and sophisticated recording equipment available. Last fall Wilk and Steppenwolf’s founder, John Kay, gave a multimedia performance on campus that highlighted some of Kay’s solo work as well as Steppenwolf favorites such as “Magic Carpet Ride.” The group now performs as […]

Geography Students and Faculty Study Hurricane Isaac

September 1, 2012

Just as the winds and rain were at their peak during Hurricane Isaac’s wrath, several College students were in the thick of it all for the sake of science. Under the guidance of Dr. Jason Senkbeil, an assistant professor in the Department of Geography, students measured wind speeds in New Orleans just as Isaac made landfall on August 29. Three of his students were captured by Associated Press photographers and images of the students in full raingear appeared online with […]

Legendary Biologist and Pulitzer Prize Winner E.O. Wilson Visits UA as Scholar-in-Residence

September 1, 2012

Dr. E.O. Wilson, a University of Alabama alumnus and two-time Pulitzer Prize winner will visit as a scholar-in-residence with the College Sept. 11-12. Known as one of the world’s most influential scientists, Wilson is the founder of the theory of sociobiology, which proposes that human and animal behavior is shaped by evolutionary forces,and its offshoot, evolutionary psychology. He also has developed the base of modern biodiversity conservation. Wilson will kick off the 2012-2013 Alabama Lectures on Life’s Evolution, or ALLELE, […]

New College Alumna Makes Waves in Music Composition World

August 31, 2012

Anne LeBaron, well-known harpist, composer, and New College alumna, was recently dubbed the “grandmaster of the hyperopera” by the Los Angeles Times. On Aug. 11, the first movement of her chamber ensemble piece “Telluris Theoria Sacra” will be performed for the first time. The piece, which translates to mean “Sacred Theory of the Earth” will be performed at the University of California-Los Angeles by the 24-member experimental ensemble “wild Up.” It is just one of many works that has brought […]

Chemistry Program Brings Next Generation of Chemists to UA

August 31, 2012

A summer program in the College, funded by the National Science Foundation, is helping train the next generation of chemists and scientific researchers. The Department of Chemistry hosted its Research Experiences for Undergraduates program this summer under the direction of Dr. John Vincent, professor of chemistry, and Dr. Stephen Woski, associate professor of chemistry. Top undergraduate students with strong backgrounds in chemistry are invited to come to the UA campus for 10 weeks during the summer to work with UA […]

College Alumna Wins Fulbright Scholarship to Study in Spain

August 31, 2012

Seema Kumar of Shreveport, La., a recent graduate of the College, has received a Fulbright Scholarship to study abroad during the 2012-2013 school year. While at UA, Kumar majored in Spanish and biology. She will study in Santander, Spain, where she will teach various subjects to local students ages 13 to 15 and serve as a mentor for the Global Classrooms program. During her time in Spain, Kumar will also be conducting several projects that she presented to the Fulbright […]

Washington Experience Students Meet with Scalia and Sewell

August 1, 2012

Students participating in UA’s summer political science internship, the Washington Experience, met with Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia and also Congresswoman Terri Sewell (D-AL). Under the direction of Dr. Michael New, an assistant professor in the Department of Political Science, the Washington Experience annually brings students to Washington, D.C. to experience politics in action. Justice Scalia gave two presentations to the students on how the checks and balances system in the U.S. Constitution gives real meaning to the Bill of […]

Music Professor Awarded Grant for Jazz Ensemble

August 1, 2012

Dr. Andrew Raffo Dewar, an assistant professor in the School of Music and New College, was awarded a New Jazz Works Commissioning and Ensemble Development Grant from Chamber Music America in the amount of $20,500. He was among 10 composers and ensembles selected for awards from a pool of 167 applicants by independent review panels of musicians and presenters. Dewar will use the grant to compose, perform and record a new book of compositions for his San Francisco Bay Area-based […]