May 3, 2002
1. U professor elected to National Academy of Sciences
2. Earth inhabited by fewer species, say U of M scientists
3. Mentoring connects students, faculty, alumni, and the community
4. Athletics update: teams will compete next year, AD search begins
5. U students win national Web programming contest
6. UMM may soon move intercollegiate athletics to Division III
7. U of M Happenings
8. Links
U IN THE NEWS
U professor elected to National Academy of Sciences
G. David Tilman, Distinguished McKnight University Professor and director of the Cedar Creek Natural History Area at the University of Minnesota, has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences. Many scientists consider the honor second only to the Nobel Prize. Tilman, a professor in the Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior in the College of Biological Sciences, has achieved prominence for hisdiscoveries of how a varied assemblage of species contributes to the healthy functioning of
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G. David Tilman, a professor in the Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences.
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ecosystems. He has recently broadened the scope of his work to the long-term implications for society of human domination of global ecosystems. A survey by the Institute for Scientific Information in Philadelphia showed that Tilman was the ecologist most often quoted by his peers during the 1990s.
"This is a great honor," said Tilman. "It's the result of teamwork with many colleagues, students and other collaborators, and of support from the University of Minnesota, which values research highly."
A native of Michigan, Tilman grew up near the shore of Lake Michigan and received bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees from the University of Michigan. He has been with the University of Minnesota since 1976. For 20 years he has headed the Cedar Creek Long-Term Ecological Research Project, one of several National Science Foundation-funded projects nationwide. Tilman has broken ground by uncovering mathematical principles that control the character and functioning of ecosystems. Experiments at Cedar Creek have indicated that grasslands with many species of plants survive drought better and produce more vegetation than land with only a few species. Tilman attributes the extra "security" of the more diverse plantings to a more efficient use of resources when many different species are present. He likens the situation to human communities, which work better when different occupations are represented.
"This is fantastic," said Robert Elde, dean of the College of Biological Sciences, when told of Tilman's election. "It's very appropriate recognition, given the impact of Dave's research on the crucial role of biodiversity in maintaining the health of ecosystems."
Earth inhabited by fewer species, say U of M scientists
An eight-year study of New Guinean rainforest plants and the insects that feed on them has yielded a new and dramatically lower estimate of the number of species on the planet. The estimate, which lowers the number of species from approximately 31 million to between four and six million, is based on the finding that insects specialize their feeding, not on individual species of plants, but on genera and even families of plants. In "bringing some reality" to estimates of world biodiversity, the study allows scientists to get a better handle on how fast species are being lost, said University of Minnesota plant biologist George Weiblen, the principal plant expert on the research team.
It is important to know how fast biodiversity is being lost, but this is hard to gauge without a solid baseline, Weiblen said. Scientists advising governments on policies to curtail species losses must have credible estimates of species numbers if they are to shape appropriate policies. The stakes are high because losses of too many species or certain kinds of species can cripple tropical forest ecosystems. Such ecosystems normally stabilize soil and climate, purify and recycle water, and produce food, medicine, building materials, or other useful products, he said.
In addition to Weiblen, the cross-disciplinary study was conducted by insect expert and project coordinator Scott Miller of the Smithsonian Institution, insect community ecologist Yves Basset, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama, and Voytech Novotny, Czech Academy of Sciences.
The team compared insect communities feeding on 51 tropical plant species, most belonging to either the fig family, the mulberry family, or the coffee family. While previous work had also based estimates of total species on numbers of insects--the most species-rich class of animals known--scientists had assumed that each plant-eating insect species tended to feed on one or very few plant species. If true, the estimates of the number of herbivorous insects should be tied to the number of plant species.
"Instead, most insects turn out to be specialized, not to plant species but rather to a genus [grouping of species] or family [grouping of genera] of plants," Weiblen said. "Fewer effective plant 'hosts' means fewer herbivores. Where people had assumed that different insects' food sources overlapped very little, we found that many insects share their food plants with other insect species. There are actually few extreme specialists among tropical insect herbivores."
New Guinea's species diversity made the island an ideal laboratory for the study. Its tropical forests are about the same area as Texas but contain five percent of the world's biodiversity, Weiblen said. The island has 12,000 species of plants; in comparison, Minnesota has only about 1,200 species. The work began in 1994 with studies of the insects eating 15 species of figs--Weiblen's area of specialty--that co-occur in the rainforest. The study then expanded to include the mulberry family, which is related to figs, then members of the coffee family and more distantly related plants. The team used DNA sequences to sort out the evolutionary relationships between plants and looked at how insect species were distributed on them.
They found that the tropical forest plant community was dominated by clusters of closely related plant species and that insects tend to feed on multiple close relatives in a given plant genus or family. Because the number of insect species was tied to broader--and therefore less numerous--categories of plants, estimates of their numbers had to be diminished, Weiblen said. Once the estimate of herbivorous insects had been made, the researchers plugged that number into equations to estimate the total number of species in the world. Such equations take into account the proportion of insects that are herbivorous, the proportion of all species that are insects or other members of the arthropod group, the proportion of all plant species that are found in New Guinea, and other factors. Depending on whether insects as a whole follow the pattern of beetles, whose food preferences are quite broad, or moths and butterflies, which are more particular, they estimated that the world contains a total of between about 4.8 million and 6 million species.
"Our estimates bring some reality to predictions about declining biodiversity in the sense that the consequences for insect herbivores of losing a particular host plant species may not be as dire as previously thought," Weiblen said. "But that is no reason to ignore the decreasing number of species worldwide. [Harvard biologist] E.O. Wilson predicted in his book 'The Future of Life' that half of all species will suffer extinction in 50 years if current land-use patterns continue. Because the consequences are so severe, we've got to refine our predictions and conserve as many species as possible."
Results of the study, funded by the National Science Foundation, are published in the April 25 issue of Nature.
Mentoring connects students, faculty, alumni, and the community
A push in the right direction--that's the gift Katie Brown received. During her final year in the University of Minnesota School of Nursing, she was matched with mentor Garrett Peterson, then a nurse in an intensive care unit. Peterson invited her to come work with him for a day.
"She liked the intensity of the unit and the fast pace," he says. "Although she was afraid to start in the ICU, I could tell--just from talking with her, from having her come in that day, and from her past experience working as a nursing assistant--that she would be able to handle it." Given the current shortage of nurses, he also figured that she would have a good chance of being hired right out of school. He was right. After she graduated in spring 2001, Brown became an ICU nurse in the Fairview-University Medical Center.
Peterson's encouragement was crucial, Brown says. He coached her not as a teacher but as a peer, with the understanding that arises from shared interests and from real-world experiences. In comparison, she says, "school is like fantasy nursing; it's the ideal. It's not necessarily the reality, the things you really need to know and what to expect when you get there."
Peterson and Brown's exchanges are the sort of support people who run mentor programs seek. "The issues can be a lot broader than talking about a specific job match," says Judy Anderson. "What kind of education do they need? What kind of life choices will they need to make? What are the internal politics of organizations? Learning how those kinds of things work are important." Anderson heads the Mentor Connection for the University of Minnesota Alumni Association, which facilitates matches for 350 Academic Health Center students among nearly 1,500 students campus-wide.
"Mentoring could open a whole new door to you," says Anderson, "or it could show you what you don't want to do." Through the College of Veterinary Medicine mentoring program, for example, Heidi Magnuson discovered a large-animal specialty she was considering was not for her. "I'm really glad that I did that," she says of meeting with a veterinarian who treats horses. "That equine vet was wonderful, but it's not the lifestyle that I want."
Mentoring also benefits the mentor. "They learn from you and you learn from them--it's a two-way street," says Ozoemezine Eneanya. Since graduating from the College of Pharmacy more than two decades ago, he has served as a mentor for many. Occasionally one of his proteges will drop by, call, or send an e-mail. "That's the reward," says Eneanya. He adds: "The U was good to me, personally, so if I can do anything for the U, I’m glad to."
Students also mentor students. Through the multicultural Student National Medical Association program, third-year medical student Rehana Ahmed this year committed to advising Cloua Vang, an undergraduate in biochemistry. They are one of 30 pairs of minority students who meet at least once a month.
She and Vang regularly meet off campus for coffee or dinner. They talk about Ahmed's experiences in studying for an M.D./Ph.D. and discuss how Vang can best prepare for medical school and such long-term goals as traveling to Thailand to learn from her grandfather, an expert in Asian herbal medicine.
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Cloua Vang and Rehana Ahmed regularly meet off campus as part of the mentor program.
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Vang appreciates the door of opportunity that Ahmed's mentoring has opened for her as a Hmong woman. She also is pleased that she is gaining much more than information, that she has the opportunity to develop a personal relationship with Ahmed.
The personal aspect also is important to Kim Wicklund, an alum who has been both a protege and a mentor in the School of Public Health's program. "I've made some real strong friendships and professional contacts," she says. Last year, she was matched with Taimur Malik, a medical doctor from Pakistan who came here to study public health administration. "The day I met her, I told her I wanted to go to the United Nations for an internship," Malik says. "She utilized all her connections and resources to help me."
They also became buddies. "We got along well together because of our international interests," says Wicklund, who previously served in the Peace Corps. "We did a lot of fun things." As a newcomer to the United States, Malik appreciated Wicklund's perspective. "I think the Pakistani and American cultures are a world apart--like they're apart on the globe, so are the cultures," he says. "She helped me to adapt."
During a Christmas visit to her family home in St. Peter, Wicklund's father asked Malik how long he expected the relationship with Wicklund to last. Malik says he answered quickly, without thinking: "She's going to be my mentor for my life."
Wicklund agrees that they will keep in touch always and perhaps switch roles. Whatever happens, the connection that has been forged is deep. Like the original Mentor who, while Odysseus was away for years, advised the hero's son Telemachus, Wicklund has become Malik's respected and trusted friend.
Athletics update: teams will compete next year, AD search begins
University of Minnesota president Mark Yudof and vice president and chief of staff Tonya Moten Brown revised their recommendation on eliminating men's and women's golf teams and men's gymnastics. The revision guarantees that all three teams will compete next year.
"We're sensitive to the uncertainty our student athletes faced, and many people, including many of our elected representatives, have urged us to give them time to raise funds to support the teams. This recommendation reflects those concerns," said Yudof.
Under the revision, the recommendation to the Advisory Committee on Athletics will be to eliminate teams effective July 1, 2003, not on July 1, 2002 as originally proposed. The new recommendation also gives boosters the opportunity to extend the teams beyond 2003, if they meet specific goals. First, $900,000 must be raised by June 30, 2002. If that goal is met, supporters must then meet a second goal--to raise an additional $1.8 million by February 1, 2003. If both goals are met, the teams will be extended through June 30, 2005, at which time the University will reevaluate the athletics department's overall financial condition.
"We're giving people a clear goal and timeline," said Yudof. "However, if either of these goals is not met, the University will move forward and implement its recommendation to eliminate teams to help address the $21 million budget gap in intercollegiate athletics."
Moten Brown emphasized that student athletes have been in a very difficult position since learning of the possible elimination of their teams. "I've talked to student athletes, parents, and many others who have requested the opportunity to play one more year. It is late in the year to transfer and secure scholarship funds at other universities. By allowing one year, we will give the seniors a chance to finish their collegiate careers at the University of Minnesota and allow others to explore transfer options," she said.
The recommendation on the elimination of teams is expected to be before the University's Advisory Committee on Athletics within the next three weeks.
AD search begins
Ten people have been named to the search committee for a new intercollegiate athletics director.
Moten Brown, who recommended members of the committee to Yudof, described the committee as balanced. "The committee includes people representing a variety of perspectives, experiences, and constituencies," said Moten Brown. "Everyone we asked to join did so enthusiastically, and we are very confident that this committee will identify and advance outstanding candidates."
Members of the committee are: Mary Jo Kane, committee chair, professor and director of the Tucker Center for Research on Girls and Women in Sport; Dana Baum, student athlete; Billy Bye, alumnus; Arthur Erdman, professor of mechanical engineering; Jean Freeman, head coach for women's swimming and diving; Ronald James, president and chief executive officer, Center for Ethical Business Cultures; Peggy Lucas, alumna and principal, Brighton Development Corp.; Don Lucia, head coach for men's hockey; Laurie McLaughlin, deputy chief of staff for athletics; Craig Swan, vice provost for undergraduate education; and Andrew Tank, student athlete.
"This is a very talented and committed group of people who will bring diverse perspectives to the table, but all share both a deep love of the University and for intercollegiate athletics," said Kane, who is also the spokesperson for the committee. "I expect this will be an engaged and hard-working committee."
The committee is charged with identifying and interviewing up to 10 candidates who have skills and experience consistent with criteria outlined by Yudof and Moten Brown, including strong financial management and administrative skills and a demonstrated record of support for women's athletics. The committee has been asked to advance finalists to the president by June 13. The finalists will then participate in a broader interview process and it is hoped a new AD will be named by early July.
U students win national Web programming contest
Thanks to two University of Minnesota students, 3-D animated movies may soon be available on your cell phone or hand-held without extra hardware--which until now has not been possible.
The invention, by Moe Khosravy, a neuroscience major, and Saeed Akhter, a computer science major, is so impressive that it caught the attention of Microsoft and won first place at the People's Choice Award in the 2001 Microsoft.NET Best Awards competition. The prize netted $15,000 for the students and a $15,000 Microsoft scholarship for the University.
"Winning the competition is a real honor," said Khosravy, a junior neuroscience major in the College of Biological Sciences. "It speaks to the quality of the University of Minnesota, not only that two U undergrads competed against more advanced students, but they also won."
Several companies have already approached the students about buying the rights to the technology, which is named RenderFarm.NET.
RenderFarm.NET is an advanced .NET XML Web service that accepts 3D data in the form of either XML or binary and allows anyone to render high-resolution, 3-D animated scenes as movies or images. The software can also be plugged into professional 3-D modeling suites and run by remote control.
The contest, sponsored by Microsoft, recognizes XML Web service developers who are innovative with XML, SOAP, WSDL and UDDI, deliver the best code, and achieve increased productivity.
UMM may soon move intercollegiate athletics to Division III
Students who compete in intercollegiate athletics at the University of Minnesota, Morris may soon move from Division II to Division III play.
"We will apply for membership in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference, which consists of St. Scholastica, Crown College, Martin Luther College, Northland College and Northwestern College, and Westminster College and Blackburn College in football," said Chancellor Samuel Schuman. "We will leave the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference in accordance with conference procedures."
The move from Division II to Division III play will take several years. Next year, Cougar athletic competition will continue within the NSIC Division II league.
"For all of us, this step represents an effort to strengthen Cougar athletics in a realistic and appropriate way," said Schuman. "The core mission of intercollegiate athletics at UMM is to provide high-quality competitive experiences for the women and men who participate in both 'major' and 'minor' sports here, in the context of our overarching institutional goal of providing a top quality liberal arts education of uncompromising rigor within the University of Minnesota."
Schuman engaged in a comprehensive consultative process in making his decision, seeking input from student athletes, alumni, donors, parents of current student athletes, and campus governance groups.
"I have concluded, and most of those with whom I have spoken and corresponded believe, that our goals can be best achieved by returning to the NCAA Division III status that UMM held during a period of high accomplishments in intercollegiate athletics," said Schuman.
Shifts in regional collegiate conference and divisional affiliations have affected impact UMM's future positioning. UMM has been approached by a group of small, mostly private, Midwestern colleges to assess its interest in joining with them to form a new NCAA Division III league.
"Let me reaffirm my commitment to building a competitive Intercollegiate Athletics program for the 21st century here at UMM," Schuman said. "My personal goal is to reach a level where I would feel comfortable going to any intercollegiate athletic contest in which our students participate with a sense that we would be competitive and that we would have a reasonable chance to win. This will take a while to accomplish, and we will all have to exercise some patience, but it has been too long already, and the time to begin the climb is now."
U OF M HAPPENINGS
Free skin cancer screenings will be offered by the Medical School's Department of Dermatology, Monday, May 6, 8:30 a.m.-3:45 p.m. in the Phillips-Wangensteen Building, room 4175. Appointments are recommended, but walk-ins are welcome. For more information or to make an appointment, call 612-626-4002.
Tune in to WCCO 830 on Tuesday, May 7, at 1 p.m. for "Beyond the U," a monthly radio call-in show hosted by University President Mark Yudof and his wife Judy.
The Great Conversations Series presents its fifth and final installment on Tuesday, May 7, 7:30 p.m. in Ted Mann Concert Hall on the West Bank. John Wright, U of M professor of African American and African Studies and English, and Cornel West, Princeton professor of philosophy of religion, will discuss their work in black intellectual history. Tickets are $25. Discounts are available for faculty, staff, students, and alumni association members. For more information, call 612-624-2345.
The University of Minnesota, Morris' annual Student Honors and Awards program is Thursday, May 9, 7 p.m. in the Proscenium Theatre in the Humanities Fine Arts building. It is free and open to the public.
The University of Minnesota, Crookston commencement ceremony is Saturday, May 11, 2 p.m. in Lysaker Gymnasium, UMC Sports Complex. University of Minnesota president Mark Yudof will be the keynote speaker.
The University of Minnesota, Duluth baccalaureate commencement ceremony is Saturday, May 18, noon in the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center. Sheila Wellstone, working partner of U.S. Senator Paul Wellstone, will be the keynote speaker.
The University of Minnesota, Duluth Graduate School commencement ceremony is Thursday, May 16, 7 p.m. in the Romano Gymnasium. Regents’ Professor George R. "Ripp" Rapp will be the keynote speaker.
The University of Minnesota, Morris commencement ceremony is Friday, May 10, 4 p.m. on the campus Mall. Josie Johnson, a former Regent, will be the keynote speaker. In the event of rain, commencement will be held in the P.E. Center.
For more information on University of Minnesota, Twin Cities commencement ceremony locations and times, see www.umn.edu/twincities/commencement
The annual WineFest to benefit the Department of Pediatrics is Friday, May 17, 6:30-9 p.m., and Saturday, May 18, 6 p.m.-midnight at the Minneapolis Convention Center. Friday features a wine tasting with more than 300 wines from around the world. Tickets are $60 per person. Saturday's events include a black-tie dinner and a silent and live auction. Tickets are $225 per person. You must be 21 to attend. For more information call 612-625-4020 or see http://www.theWineFest.com.
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