Vol. XXXVIII No. 12; April 2, 2008
Interim Editor: Pauline Oo, brief@umn.edu

Read Brief on the Web at http://www.umn.edu/umnnews/Publications/Brief/Brief_04022008.html.

INSIDE THIS ISSUE
--Green Team key in U's new compost program
--People: Ralph Rapson has died; Ann Edgerton is new director of child care center; and more.

Campus Announcements and Events
University-wide | Crookston | Duluth | Morris | Rochester | Twin Cities

U HAS ORGANICS RECYCLING FOR COMPOST PROGRAM. University Dining Services' Green Team has played a big role in the U's compost collection efforts by helping the lunch crowd identify its compost-friendly waste. Read "Every napkin counts."

PEOPLE: Ralph Rapson, who led the School of Architecture for 30 years, died March 29 of heart failure; Ann Edgerton will be the new director of the University of Minnesota Child Care Center effective May 12; Neuroscience professor Robert Miller will receive the 2008 Proctor Medal from the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology; Anne Phibbs, GLBT Programs director, has earned the 2008 Power of One Award from PFund. Read about these and more in People.

CAMPUS ANNOUNCEMENTS AND EVENTS

University-wide:

FROSTBITE IS THE NAME OF THE NEW U APPLE. The Minnesota Landscape Arboretum received more than 7,000 entries worldwide in a naming contest for the apple. Commercial nurseries will soon start propagating the trees, which will be ready for gardeners and orchards to plant in one to two years. The first trees will then bear fruit to sell by 2014. Read the news release.

MINNESOTA PHOTOGRAPHER CRAIG BLACKLOCK has been named senior fellow by the U's Center for Spirituality and Healing. As a fellow, he will support the center's ongoing research and education in optimal healing environments (the use of nature and art to promote healing in health care facilities). Blacklock's work, inspired by the north shore, is now featured throughout the center and the Medical Center's Transitional Care Unit, UMTC.

SENATE MEETINGS (U Senate and Faculty Senate) will be April 3, 2:30-5 p.m., 25 Mondale Hall, UMTC. Interactive broadcast: 308 Selvig Hall, UMC; Kirby Student Center Garden Room, UMD; and Student Activities Conference Room, UMM. Meeting agendas can be found on the Web.

DISCOVERING FLUID POWER, a documentary produced by the U's Center for Compact and Efficient Fluid Power, in partnership with Twin Cities Public Television, will air April 6, 8 p.m., and May 10, 9 p.m., on TPT-channel 17 or channel 13 on Comcast Cable in Minneapolis. To learn more about the center, within the Institute of Technology, read "New fluid power center has faculty pumped."

U LOCAL FOODS TASK FORCE KICKOFF will include networking opportunities, agenda-setting discussions about the group's future direction, and local snacks. To register, see task force. For more information, call 612-625-5793 or e-mail madamek@umn.edu. April 10, 1-4 p.m., Cargill Building, UMTC.

PANEL DISCUSSION ON INTERDISCIPLINARITY will address the importance of interdisciplinarity, how to make it work, and how it has been applied in the past, particularly in the area of rhetoric. The event, hosted by the U's Institute for Advanced Study and organized by the Reconfiguring Rhetorical Studies collaborative, will feature UMC associate professor Mark Huglen and UMD assistant professors David Beard and David Gore. April 10, 4 p.m., Nolte Center. Read the news release.

FIRST DOCTORAL DISSERTATION FELLOWSHIP RESEARCH SHOWCASE will feature more than 30 of this year's 114 fellowship recipients, final-year Ph.D. candidates nominated by their graduate studies programs' directors in a U-wide competition sponsored by the Graduate School. April 15, noon-2 p.m., Mississippi Room, Coffman Union, UMTC. Registration is requested by April 9; sign up online. For event details, see U calendar.

RECIPIENTS OF U's DISTINGUISHED WOMEN SCHOLARS AWARD: Ruth Karras, history, and Stephanie Valberg, veterinary population medicine. The award, sponsored by the Office of the Dean of the Graduate School and the Office for University Women (OUW), will be presented at the OUW spring celebration. April 24, 2:30-4:30 p.m., McNamara Alumni Center, UMTC. For more information or to RSVP, call 612-625-9837.

CALL FOR ABSTRACTS: For Ferulate 08, an international conference on hydroxycinnamates and related plant phenolics, to be held at UMTC, Aug. 25-27. Submission deadline is April 20. For more information or to submit an abstract, see Ferulate 08 or e-mail ferulate@umn.edu.

Crookston:

UMC RECEIVES A GIFT OF MORE THAN $260,000 from the estate of Stanley and Hanorah "Pat" Alseth, of Baltimore, Md. Stanley Alseth was a 1935 graduate of the Northwest School of Agriculture, the residential high school located on what is now UMC. Read the news release.

UMC ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR MARK HUGLEN will be one of three U faculty discussing the need for interdisciplinarity, April 10, UMTC. (See details in U-wide section.)

BUSINESS ACTIVITIES DAY, hosted by the UMC Business Department, March 26, drew 121 students from seven area high schools, who competed in 11 business-related activities. Read the news release.

Duluth:

UMD WOMEN'S HOCKEY TEAM WINS 2008 NCAA national championship, by defeating the University of Wisconsin 4-0 in the final game, March 22, in Duluth. This is the fourth NCAA championship for the Bulldogs, who closed out their 2007-08 season with a record of 34-3-1, the best ever by a UMD squad. The Bulldogs won their first three titles in 2001, 2002, and 2003 and have been coached by Shannon Miller since 1999.

FOUR FACULTY MEMBERS AND 15 STUDENTS will represent UMD at the National Conference on Undergraduate Education Research, April 10-12, Salisbury University, Maryland. The goal of the event, which will see more than 2,200 undergraduates from 300 colleges and universities nationwide, is to promote undergraduate research in all fields.

Morris:

ASTRONOMERS HAVE RECOGNIZED PAUL MYERS, UMM associate professor of biology, by naming an asteroid in his honor. The asteroid, which was discovered on March 29, 2001, by David Healy and Jeff Medkeff at an observatory in Arizona and was numbered 153298, is now officially known as "Paulmyers." It's customary that the discoverer of an asteroid has the privilege of proposing a name for it. Listen to an MPR interview with Myers.

THE 35TH ANNUAL HENJUM CREATIVE STUDY INSTITUTE will be held June 16-27 and will feature art, music, and technology topics for students ages 12-17. Participants who sign up before April 20 may qualify for discounts and scholarships. Registration deadline is June 11. Read the news release.

Rochester:

STEPHEN LEHMKUHLE WILL BE INAUGURATED as UMR'S first chancellor April 4. The ceremony will be held in Phillips Hall, Mayo campus; a reception will follow at UMR. More than 300 people are expected to attend. Free and open to the public.

UMR AND ROCHESTER AREA ALUMNI hosted more than 90 community members on March 19 for "Minnesota's Climate: Lessons From the Past and Implications for the Future," a talk by Mark Seeley, U meteorologist and coauthor of Minnesota Weather Almanac.

CANCER PREVENTION from an economic perspective was the topic of a March 27 town hall meeting at UMR cohosted by the Rochester Area Chamber of Commerce and Mayo Clinic Cancer Center. Nationally acclaimed speakers discussed the benefits of cancer screening and other healthy behaviors, the financial implications of a healthier workforce, and the future of cancer prevention research.

Twin Cities:

ECONOMICS DEPARTMENT WILL MOVE MAY 21 to the new Herbert M. Hanson building on the West Bank, along with the Carlson School of Management undergraduate program. The new address is 1925 4th St. S., Suite 4-101, Minneapolis, MN 55455. All phone numbers will remain the same.

UPLAN WELLNESS ASSESSMENT: If you haven't completed the UPlan wellness assessment for 2008, the deadline to earn wellness rewards is April 30. To learn more, visit Human Resources.

TRANSITIONING TO THE NEW STUDENT RATING OF TEACHING FORM: The new form will be used this spring to assess teaching at the U. Three one-hour sessions will be held on April 7, 14, and 15 to introduce faculty and instructional staff to the contents of the form, how it will be scored, resources for supporting instructional development, and how to document the results. No registration is necessary, and refreshments will be served. For times and campus locations, visit Human Resources. (See related item below: "Theater for Teaching and Learning.")

"COMMERCIALIZING TECHNOLOGY WITHIN A LARGE COMPANY," a 3M-sponsored seminar series for graduate students in science and technology-related colleges. April 7, 5-7 p.m., 3M Auditorium, Carlson School. To register, e-mail hce@umn.edu. For more information, see Carlson seminars.

"WATER AND THE HUMAN RIGHTS OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLES," by Roxanne Ornelas, postdoc fellow in the U's Program on Race, Gender, and Public Policy, will explore the relationship between indigenous cultures and water and the recently adopted United Nations Declaration on the Human Rights of Indigenous Peoples. April 2, 12:15-1:15 p.m., 35 Mondale Hall.

"HAS HIGHER ED ABANDONED ITS PUBLIC PURPOSE?" by Anne Neal, American Council of Trustees and Alumni; response by Phil Tichenor, professor emeritus, School of Journalism and Mass Communication. April 3, 12:15-1:30 p.m., 50 Mondale Hall.

"THE NEXT AUTHORIZATION: TRANSFORMING TRANSPORTATION POLICY?" is the topic of the seventh Oberstar Forum on Transportation Policy and Technology, sponsored by the Center for Transportation Studies. Rep. Jim Oberstar and Rep. Tim Walz will discuss the federal transportation act that will succeed SAFETEA-LU, which expires in 2009. Apr. 7, 12:30-4:30 p.m., Radisson Hotel Metrodome. Free, but space is limited. To register and learn more, visit CTS.

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MUSIC AND THE SENSE OF MOTION will be explored in "Music, Motion, and Subjectivity," a presentation by Eric Clarke, Oxford University. The event, cosponsored by the School of Music and CLA, will include a Q&A. April 7, 3:30-5 p.m., 280 Ferguson Hall.

FOURTH ANNUAL FILM FESTIVAL by the School of Public Health and Minnesota Public Health will include A Crude Awakening: The Oil Crash, April 7, 6:15 p.m.; Salud!, April 8; Unnatural Causes, April 9; and Sex Ed and the Statem, a documentary by SPH graduate Jim Winkle, April 11. All films are 5:30 p.m., Mayo Memorial Auditorium, unless noted. Introductions by public health experts, and Q&A after each film. To learn more, visit SPH.

HELP "STOCK THE TRAILER" with non-perishable food items and cash donations to benefit the Second Harvest Heartland food shelf. April 10, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., and April 12, 8 a.m.-4 p.m., outside St. Paul Student Center. The activity is part of the 92nd Annual Minnesota Royal, April 7-12. For a complete list of events, visit CFANS.

UNIVERSITY OPERA THEATRE presents Monteverdi's The Coronation of Poppea, in Italian with supertitles; directed by associate professor of music David Walsh, April 10-12, 7:30 p.m., and April 13, 1:30 p.m., Ted Mann Concert Hall. Tickets are $20 ($10 students); call 612-624-2345 or buy online.

THEATER FOR TEACHING AND LEARNING will present a series of theatrical sketches related to student ratings of teaching. The sketches will be followed by a discussion on the research surrounding teaching evaluations and how they can be used to improve one's teaching. No registration is necessary. April 17, noon-1:30 p.m., 402 Walter Library.

APRIL IS SEXUAL AWARENESS MONTH, and the Aurora Center for Advocacy and Education Sexual Assault is hosting the film DreamWorlds III, April 4, 12:30 p.m., Club Room, Yudof Hall; table displays ("Taking Action" and "T-Shirt Project"), April 10, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., and April 16, 1-4 p.m., and April 23, 11 a.m.-1 p.m.; a rally ("Take Back the Night"), April 24, 6:30 p.m., Loring Park; and an improv show ("Sex Signals"), April 28, 7 p.m., Coffman Theater, 7 p.m.

FINDING HAPPINESS is the theme of the Annual Ruth Stricker Lecture by the Center for Spirituality and Healing. Keynote speaker Matthieu Ricard will present "Train Your Mind, Change Your Brain: Cultivating Inner Conditions for Genuine Happiness," April 18, 3-4 p.m., Northrop Auditorium; panel discussion and Q&A follow. Free, but registration is required. To learn more, visit CSH.

MORE EVENTS include "Writing Correspondence for Internal and External Audiences" (April 3); "Dirty Laundry" (April 4); "QM08@MSP," conference on global and local sexualities (April 5); "Web of Science vs. Google Scholar Smackdown" (April 8). SEE THESE AND MORE TWIN CITIES CAMPUS EVENTS.

Published by University Relations at the University of Minnesota. Please send comments, questions, or submissions to the editor at brief@umn.edu. The deadline for submissions is noon on the Friday before publication. All Twin Cities event submissions are handled through the events calendar at http://events.tc.umn.edu.

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