Evangel students present research at Sigma Zeta National Convention

On March 22nd, four Evangel University students, Adam Engebretson, Kyle Fulghum, Audra Stephenson and Chelsie Brown, presented their research at the 2013 Sigma Zeta National Convention at Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois. Sigma Zeta is a national undergraduate honor society that encourages and fosters scholarly activity and recognizes academic scholarship in the natural and computer sciences and mathematics. 

The research team is supervised by Dr. Fred Fortunato. The Sigma Zeta adviser at Evangel is Dr. Glenner Richards.

In 2012, Engebretson and Fulghum received a student research award form Sigma Zeta to contribute to their research project, titled “The Effect of Molecular Branching on Specific Rotation in Isomers of Alcohols: Separation of Racemic Alcohols into Pure Enantiomers.”  They were recognized at the convention for receiving this award. 

As a part of the convention, the students were given the opportunity to tour the hospital labs at St. Mary’s Hospital in Decatur.

Engebretson’s abstract and presentation photo can be found by following this link to the Sigma Zeta website. 

Fulghum’s abstract and presentation photo can be found by following this link to the Sigma Zeta website.

Evangel Consolidation Update

Evangel University is pleased to anticipate its consolidation with the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary and Central Bible College beginning with the fall 2013 semester, pending approval of accrediting bodies. For information on the consolidation progress, please visit http://ag.org/top/consolidation/

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Fairfield University communication faculty to share their cutting edge research on the internet, politics, roller derby and more

Four Fairfield University communication professors will present their most recent research into such diverse topics as the Internet, advertising, Lyme Disease and roller derby at "Talk About Communication: Twenty-five Years of Communication at Fairfield University," a free lecture series held on campus. The public is welcome to the second session in the series, which will be held at 8 p.m. on Thursday, April 4, 2013, in the DiMenna-Nyselius Library.

The event will feature the following presentations:

Maggie Wells, Ph.D., associate professor of communication, "'It's just growing pains': Chronic Lyme Disease and the discourses of ignorance and invisibility"Colleen Arendt, Ph.D., assistant professor of communication, "A rink of one's own: Gender, sport, and the alter ego in contemporary women's roller derby"Mike Serazio, Ph.D., assistant professor of communication, "From journalism to advertising to politics: Making culture in the 21st century"Gisela Gil-Egui, Ph.D., assistant professor of communication, "Beyond availability and transparency: Applying theories of justice to the open access and open source movements on the Internet"

The lecture series is funded by a grant from the Humanities Institute of Fairfield University's College of Arts and Sciences.

Media Contact: Meredith Guinness, (203) 254-4000, ext. 2950, mguinness@fairfield.edu

Posted on March 21, 2013

Vol. 45, No. 222

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Excelsior College Poll: Research Shows Higher Education Top Priority For Servicemembers

Excelsior College Poll: Research Shows Higher Education Top Priority For Servicemembers

ALBANY, N.Y. (February 27, 2013) — The Patriot Poll, an online survey conducted by the Excelsior College Polling Institute, reveals strong interest among active duty military personnel in pursuing higher education during their transition to civilian life, as well as a desire for flexible options and online learning solutions to complete their degrees.

Results of the Patriot Poll research findings were presented by Excelsior College at the Council of College and Military Educators Annual Symposium, in San Diego, Calif., on February 27, 2013.

The 678 respondents nationwide were loud and clear about the importance of a college degree to success in a post-military career. Nearly nine in ten (88.4 percent) believe that earning a degree was very or somewhat important to their future success. In addition, 43.4 percent believe that salary levels are higher for persons with a college degree.

The majority of participants (75.4 percent) were aware that military job training can be accepted as college credit, an important consideration in planning a degree path as a civilian. More than half of the respondents intend to work while they attend college after military life. Equal amounts, 28.7 percent, stated that they plan to study either full- or part-time while working either full-or part-time. Only 16.6 percent had plans to attend school full-time and not work while doing so.

An “online four-year school” was of most interest to one-fifth of all Patriot Poll respondents (19.4 percent). About one-third preferred a four-year public school (33.7 percent), a community college (20.8 percent), or a four-year private school (13.4 percent).

Regardless of the preferred institution, however, 81 percent expressed interest in online programs that allow students to study at their own pace and take exams when they are ready.

Regarding the use of text books, 37 percent of respondents said they preferred “E-Books” sent electronically to their own devices or computers versus printed & bound text books. Only 17 percent had no preference, 28.5 percent preferred traditional text books and 12.5 percent said they would opt for whichever is less expensive.

In terms of choosing a college, 59.4 percent cited financial considerations the most important criteria. Financial aid was ranked second, at 48.8 percent. However, only half (49.4 percent) indicated they were aware of Veterans education benefits and planned to use them. A full one-fifth (20.6 percent) of respondents said they were either unsure of or did not know how to use these benefits.

Three-quarters of those surveyed indicated support from relatives or their spouse in degree planning and school decision making was “very” (33.7 percent) or “somewhat” (39.9 percent) important.

The Patriot Poll reported the most popular fields of study among service members include business/management (19.4 percent), medicine/healthcare (18.3 percent), criminal justice/law/security (15.2 percent), computer science/IT (13.4 percent), science (7.8 percent) and engineering (5.7 percent).

About the Patriot Poll
The Patriot Poll was conducted by Excelsior College which focuses on military issues and higher education. For full results, including crosstabs: http://bit.ly/PatriotPoll

Research Methodology
The Patriot Poll surveyed 678 active duty servicemen and women. Participants have either earned a degree and plan another; are enrolled in a college degree program; or are interested in a degree but have not yet enrolled. The poll was conducted November 18-22, 2012. Participants completed an online survey. The poll has a +/- four percent margin of error at a 95 percent confidence level.

About Excelsior College
Excelsior College is a regionally accredited, nonprofit distance learning institution that focuses on removing obstacles to the educational goals of adult learners. Approximately 31 percent of Excelsior’s students are active-duty or reserve military personnel. Founded in 1971 and located in Albany, NY, Excelsior offers more efficient and affordable access to degree completion through multiple avenues: its own online courses and college-level proficiency examinations, and the acceptance in transfer of credit from other colleges and universities as well as recognized corporate and military training programs. Excelsior College is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.

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Pranab Das receives $200,000 research grant

Templeton Foundation supports physics professor's international research project.

Professor Pranab Das

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Pranab Das, professor of physics, has been awarded a $200,000 research grant from the John Templeton Foundation.

The grant, titled "Higher-Order Properties of Complex Systems in Multi-Disciplinary and Multi-Cultural Contexts" will run from late 2013 through 2016. Award funds will support Das' research combining the dynamics of complex systems, the physics of emergent properties and philosophical work on emergence. The overall goal is to provide new insight across disciplines with implications for the study of science and religion. This work is expected to lead to the publication of a monograph and several papers.

An exciting element of the project involves collaboration with international scholars in bio-semiotics (Charles University, Prague), Indic philosophical traditions (JNU, Delhi), and Japanese philosophy and spirituality (Nanzan Institute, Nagoya). Collaborating scholars will visit Elon and offer colloquia, class visits, etc. and Das will travel to each site during the course of the grant period.

This grant was awarded through a highly competitive process beginning with a pre-proposal in March of 2012, invited submission of a full proposal in September, and staff and outside peer review in the fall. Overall, the Foundation reports that only about 10 percent of applicants were awarded funding during this grant cycle.

Das recently served as principal investigator and executive editor for the International Society for Science and Religion Library Project and was previously P.I. and program director for the Global Perspectives on Science and Spirituality program. The manuscript for his textbook in science and religion is currently under review with Yale University Press.

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by Pranab Das, Faculty Last Updated - 2/8/2013

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Open research and education: Fielding alumna Gigi Johnson presents globally

Posted by Hilary Edwards on Mon, Oct 29, 2012

The first Open Knowledge Festival was held in in Helsinki from September 17th to 22nd, 2012 with over 800 participants from across the globe. This festival included a week of participatory sessions, keynote lectures, workshops, hackathons and satellite events. This years theme was Open Knowledge in Action: looking at the value that can be generated by opening up knowledge, the ecosystems of organizations that can benefit from such sharing, and the impacts transparency can have in society.

The week was organized through collaborations amongst over 100 guest planners from around the world leading 13 key Topic Streams of whom Fielding Graduate University alumna and current Fielding Alumni Council member, Gigi Johnson, EdD, (ELC '11) presented on Topic Stream 7: Open Research and Education. From her time zone southern California in the middle of the night, Gigi remotely joined team members from Mexico City, Brooklyn, and in Finland at the festival.  Gigi noted, "It went really well. We used Google Hangout to do a four city discussion while showing videos and text from our Peeragogy project. Our cohort on the ground (on-site in Helsinki) worked with our workshop participants, who had contributing new ideas to the research project based on their experiences across several countries."

To view videos of how hundreds of change-makers and experts from private, public and community sectors and helped build an international open knowledge ecosystem in Helsinki:  View the online videostreams today

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Fielding alumna Melle Starsen presents in the US and the UK with research of steroetypes in media

Posted by Hilary Edwards on Fri, Oct 26, 2012

Starsen started off 2012 by traveling to the University of Oregon in Portland, OR, Loughborough University in Loughborough, UK, and John Moores University in Liverpool, UK presenting her research titled: "Cool to be cruel: Mean-spiritedness in 21st century children's TV sitcoms"  Starsen cites, "Much has been written about the proven negative effects viewing television violence has on children and yet there is another kind of violent role-modeling embedded in an unlikely place: children’s television sitcoms. This content analysis investigated live-action children’s half-hour sitcoms and discovered the presence of relational aggression and superiority humor, both of which rely on brutally treating other humans as inferior. The television characters seek revenge on each other, intentionally make others look bad or stupid, humiliate peers and parents, and are rarely punished for their mean-spiritedness and cruelty. The children’s sitcoms are behavioral blueprints of lies and deceit, as the characters unashamedly cheat others, defraud parents and other adults, and attempt to make peers and teachers look stupid and in the vernacular of the culture, “clueless.” Further, stereotypes are not only presented as acceptable, but are reinforced by frequent inclusion into the action. This study discovered myriad examples of mean-spiritedness and cruelty on the part of characters in the programs, ranging in frequency from 7 to 31.25 per half-hour episode, averaging 33.75 per hour for programs viewed. The study includes recommendations for parents and educators to help offset the possible negative effects of these programs."

For the next part of the year, Starsen began presenting her next topic: "Hidden messages: Archetypes in Blaxploitation Films" at the 2012 Film and History Conference-Film and Myth in Milwaukee, WI in September. Starsen states: "Many movie critics and researchers have rebuked Blaxploitation films (1970-1975) as sexist, racist, and, most of all, degrading to black audiences and the black community.  However, this empirical study of blaxploitation films has determined that far from presenting a negative image of the black community, many of the entries in this genre do in fact provide embedded archetypes that present consistent messages for black audiences about the need to eschew exploitation of their own people and communities and instead, support education, crime-reduction programs, and community outreach to improve the communities. The films, though accused of being violent and brutal, actually present messages about the need for black communities to stand together and right the wrongs of the past by supporting an almost sovereign nation-within-a-nation."

Starsen presented this research at the Midwest Popular Culture Association in Columbus, OH in October along with a second presentation titled "The metamorphosis of modern television news into 'entertainment propaganda" which she is scheduled to present at the upcoming Media and Politics Conference at the University on Bedfordshire, Luton, UK on Nov. 1-2, 2012.  

Starsen currently serves as assistant professor of communication at Upper Iowa University  which has an international and online presence; teaching television history, editing, writing for media, television production, media law and ethics, journalistic and online writing, and public speaking. Previously an instructor in communication for 10 years teaching screenwriting and speech. Published author with two novels, short stories in academic journals, and articles in national publications and journals. TV producer-director-writer at university PBS affiliate for nine years, producing documentary programs and PSAs. Researched, wrote and acted as location unit manager for American documentary on Dr Who. Journalist and freelance writer for 20 years, with articles in publications such as The New York Times. Wrote screenplay that is currently in pre-production. Appeared as extra in two films. Ten years’ experience acting and doing technical work in theatre. Ongoing research interests include: 1) using media such as film in successful college teaching; 2) importing real-life experience into university teaching pedagogy; and 3) researching and studying the millennial generation, so-called “echo boomers,” and their visually-oriented learning styles and short attention spans. Hobbies include photography, fossil hunting and collecting sea pottery shards from the UK.

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Psychology major awarded external research grant

The grant supports a project she and her mentor are conducting to examine factors influencing older adults’ ability to memorize face-name pairs.

Elon University senior Ursula Saelzler

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Ursula Saelzler, a psychology major with minors in neuroscience, statistic and biology, has been awarded a Psi Chi Undergraduate Research Grant of more than $1,300.

Psi Chi is the international honor society in psychology. The grant supports the cognitive neuroscience research project she and her mentor, Associate Professor of Psychology Amy Overman, are conducting to examine factors that influence older adults’ ability to memorize face-name pairs.

The research grant is awarded to approximately 30 people each year from the United States and Canada and adds to previous accomplishments for Saelzler, a senior from Charlotte, N.C. Saelzler was also awarded a SURE Fellowship and a Rawls Undergraduate Research Scholarship. She plans to pursue a graduate degree in cognitive neuroscience.

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by Amy Overman, Faculty Last Updated - 12/28/2012

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Psychology major awarded external research grant

The grant supports a project she and her mentor are conducting to examine factors influencing older adults’ ability to memorize face-name pairs.

Elon University senior Ursula Saelzler

*****

Ursula Saelzler, a psychology major with minors in neuroscience, statistic and biology, has been awarded a Psi Chi Undergraduate Research Grant of more than $1,300.

Psi Chi is the international honor society in psychology. The grant supports the cognitive neuroscience research project she and her mentor, Associate Professor of Psychology Amy Overman, are conducting to examine factors that influence older adults’ ability to memorize face-name pairs.

The research grant is awarded to approximately 30 people each year from the United States and Canada and adds to previous accomplishments for Saelzler, a senior from Charlotte, N.C. Saelzler was also awarded a SURE Fellowship and a Rawls Undergraduate Research Scholarship. She plans to pursue a graduate degree in cognitive neuroscience.

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by Amy Overman, Faculty Last Updated - 12/28/2012

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NSBRI News: NSBRI, NASA soliciting research proposals

BCM Communications713-798-4710

HOUSTON -- (August 3, 2012) -- The National Space Biomedical Research Institute (NSBRI) and NASA's Human Research Program are jointly soliciting ground-based, analog definition and flight definition proposals. The NASA Research Announcement NNJ12ZSA002N entitled "Research and Technology Development to Support Crew Health and Performance in Space Exploration Missions" was released July 30, 2012.

This NRA is available through the NASA Research Opportunities homepage and then linking through the menu listings "Solicitations" to "Open Solicitations." On the Open Solicitations page, select NNJ12ZSA002N from the list of Solicitations.

NSBRI is soliciting proposals for six of its seven research teams. Research topics include visual impairment observed in U.S. astronauts. The topic areas include:

Examine the role of venous constriction and compliance in spaceflight-associated visual impairment and increased intracranial pressure, the effects of the environmental conditions likely to be encountered in space on venous compliance, and consequential predisposing factors.

Using operationally relevant scenarios or tasks for the spaceflight environment, develop and validate methods to assess task performance in real-time, provide immediate feedback, and recommend appropriate changes in time to improve mission outcomes.

Integrate and measure the effectiveness of a suite of fully developed products and programs that can heighten the exercise experience of astronauts using the equipment available on the ISS. Outcomes determined should include adherence to fitness goals, aerobic and musculoskeletal health, motor activity repertoire in microgravity, and the alleviation of stress and maintenance of behavioral health.

Refine entirely non-obtrusive objective means of detecting and mitigating cognitive performance deficits, stress, fatigue, anxiety and depression for the operational setting of spaceflight.

Using an animal model that appropriately parallels the anatomical, vascular and retinal characteristics of the human visual system, examine the contribution of the spaceflight environment and any underlying predisposition, to the retinal pathology (optic disc edema, globe flattening, and choroidal folds) described in a subset of astronauts, and quantify decrements in visual performance.

Refine and validate plug-and-play sensor and effector probes that integrate seamlessly with the proposed NASA Flexible Ultrasound System and address or mitigate medical conditions likely to be encountered during exploration missions.

Proposals are solicited by NASA in the areas of Sensorimotor Impairment and Space Motion Sickness; Epidemiological Evidence of Spaceflight Induced Cardiovascular Disease; Computational Models of Cephalad Fluid Shifts; Spaceflight Biochemical Profile; Maintenance and Regulation of Team Function and Performance over Extended Durations; and Development of Safety and Efficiency Metrics for Human-Automation Systems. NASA is also soliciting investigations or technologies lasting no more than one year that provide innovative approaches to any of the defined risks contained in the Integrated Research Plan of the Human Research Program.

Proposals solicited through this NRA will use a two-step proposal process. Only Step-1 proposers determined to be relevant with respect to the solicited research of this NRA will be invited to submit full Step-2 proposals.

Proposals responding to the NASA emphases and NSBRI emphases must be submitted separately, and will result in separate evaluations and awards. Step-1 proposals are due on Sept. 4, 2012, and invited Step-2 proposals are due on Dec. 3, 2012. Participation is open to all categories of organizations, including educational institutions, industry, nonprofit organizations, NASA centers, and other Government agencies.

Proposals must be submitted electronically. Both Step-1 and Step-2 proposals to NSBRI must be submitted via NSPIRES. Step-1 proposals to NASA may be submitted via the NASA Proposal data system NSPIRES or via Grants.gov. Invited Step-2 proposals to NASA must be submitted via NSPIRES.

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