Friday and Weekend, August 26 - 28, 2011
UNL research links Wilder's 'Long Winter' with climate data
Barbara Mayes Boustead
Laura Ingalls Wilder's description of the weather in "The Long Winter" is a good bridge between readers of the historic fiction series and climate science, says Barbara Mayes Boustead, a doctoral student in UNL's School of Natural Resources. Boustead is using historic data to verify Wilder's account of the winter of 1880-81, and her work was featured in the Aug. 22 edition of USA Today.
"The communication of the science is just as important as the science," said Boustead, who is also a National Weather Service meteorologist and climatologist. "I want to show that a scientist can do this type of research and also communicate it effectively. Connecting it to a book like 'The Long Winter' allows me to reach a wider audience that isn't necessarily interested in weather." Read more about Mayes Boustead's research on Today@UNL.
Signup for or update your UNL Alert contacts
New students, faculty and staff can sign up for the electronic emergency notification system used on campus, UNL Alert. During an emergency, subscribers will receive notifications via email, phone and text, based on the signup information provided. This is a free service. It also lets users prioritize which devices to receive notifications.
Many students choose a text message so their phone can communicate that message to them during class, if necessary. Some may also choose to receive a phone call, so in the case of a class cancelation because of weather or another emergency, the notification system will call them. Read more about UNL Alert on Today@UNL.
Fix under way for Blackboard software glitch
A software glitch in Blackboard was discovered that may prevent students from accessing course content. This error occurs when an instructor copies content from a previous course to his or her Fall 2011 course. A "bug" in the Blackboard system causes the links to individual content items to point to the original course, and not the Fall 2011 course.
To resolve this issue, instructors should call the Computer Help Center at 402-472-3970 or toll free 866-472-3970. You will be asked to provide information on both the Fall 2011 course and the previous course containing the content. Blackboard has provided a software update to correct any future occurrences. For instructors wanting to correct this problem yourself, you will need to access your Blackboard Content Collection and change the permissions on the original course and allow students in the Fall 2011 course to have READ access to that content. Read more about this issue on Today@UNL.
Lectures
HAMILTON HALL ROOM 112, FRI 3:30PMChemistry Colloquium - "Computational Modeling on the Catalytic Properties of Gold Nanoclusters and Surfaces"
Professor Jun Li, Tsinghua University, China.
NET program explores Big Ten impacts on academics, research
With Nebraska's move to the Big Ten Conference, there's been a lot of discussion about new opponents and new sports rivalries. But, moving from the Big 12 to the Big Ten means more than athletic changes for UNL — academics and research will also be affected. The NET News production "Nebraska and The Big Ten: Researching the Possibilities" focuses on this additional aspect of UNL's conference move. The program airs at 7 p.m., Aug. 26 on NET1 and NET-HD.
In the 30-minute interview special, NET news director Dennis Kellogg talks to Chancellor Harvey Perlman, as well as Penn State President and former UNL chancellor Graham Spanier, about how the move will impact academics and research. Read more about this program on Today@UNL.
Gifts made toward $1.5M NEH challenge
The Center for Digital Research in the Humanities reports nearly $430,000 has been given to date toward the challenge it accepted from the National Endowment for the Humanities to raise $1.5 million by 2015. Earlier this year, the NEH announced it would provide UNL a five-year, $500,000 challenge grant if the university is able to secure $1.5 million in private support from alumni and friends.
Leadership gifts have been especially helpful in the success of the fundraising so far, including support from Helen and Richard Kelley of Omaha; Mable Musgrave of Denver; Katherine Walter of Lincoln and Sue and Larry Wood of Lincoln. Read more about this challenge grant on Today@UNL.
'Tabloid,' 'Another Earth' open at the Ross
Joyce McKinney from "Tabloid"
The films "Tabloid" and "Another Earth" open Aug. 26 at the Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center.
Directed by Errol Morris, "Tabloid" is based on the salacious adventures of beauty queen Joyce McKinney. In 1977, the former Miss Wyoming pursued Kirk Anderson, the object of her affections and a Mormon missionary, to England. There, she was arrested and charged with abducting Anderson. While awaiting trial in England's Holloway prison, McKinney was accused in the press (but never charged) with chloroforming and raping Anderson — who she said was her fiancé. The resulting tabloid headlines — which included "Manacled Mormon" and "Sex in Chains" — painted Kinney as a sexual predator.
In "Another Earth," director Mike Cahill weaves sci-fi imaginings and quantum physics theories of parallel universes into a provocative story on the prospect of rewriting an individual's life history. Read more about these films on Today@UNL.
