The Wisconsin Week Wire — Dec. 13, 2006
Top News
Initiative emphasizes campus commitment to arts and humanities
Students and programs in the arts and humanities will benefit from an initiative announced Thursday by campus officials. Using campus funds set aside for reinvestment, the university will provide $500,000 each year to support arts and humanities education across campus.
Dean of students finalists announced
The university has narrowed its search for a new dean of students to three finalists. The finalists are: Lori Berquam, interim dean of students at UW–Madison; Timothy Gordon, associate dean of student services and registration in the School of Continuing Studies at Northwestern University; and Brian Rose, associate vice president for student affairs at Rutgers.
Marriage amendment listening session set for today
A second listening session about the impact of the recently passed marriage amendment on the university will be held from 1:30–3 p.m. today, Dec. 13, in 260 Bascom Hall. The session is designed primarily for students, faculty and staff who were unable to attend a similar session held Nov. 14. Provost Patrick Farrell and interim Dean of Students Lori Berquam will facilitate the session.
Research
Brain’s ‘fear center’ may underlie autistic behaviors
The brain’s emotional center is unusually small in autistic males with the most severe behavioral impairments, UW–Madison researchers reported this month. The new study, appearing in the Dec. 4 Archives of General Psychiatry, represents the first direct link between the size of this brain structure, called the amygdala, and social deficits in autism, says Richard Davidson, a UW–Madison professor of psychology and psychiatry and the senior author of the report.
Researchers clear way to stronger glass
Look at your window — not out it, but at it. Though the window glass looks clear, if you could peer inside the pane you would see a surprising molecular mess, with tiny particles jumbled together any which way. Now, researchers at UW–Madison have developed a new glass-making technique that eliminates some of that mess.
From a lowly yeast, researchers divine a clue to human disease
Working with a common form of brewer’s yeast, University of Wisconsin–Madison researchers have uncovered novel functions of a key protein that allow it to act as a master regulatory switch — a control that determines gene activity and that, when malfunctioning in humans, may contribute to serious neurological disorders.
Learning
The business credentials of language learning
When Dianna Murphy, associate director of The UW–Madison Language Institute, graduated with a degree in Russian in 1989, she had two career options: work in government or teach. This was the case for many language students at the time, Murphy says, but a lot has changed since then.
On Campus
Events calendar
Need gift ideas? Look no further than campus
UW–Madison gift ideas from around campus are ready for Badger fans of all ages this holiday season. Treat your loved ones to cheese from Babcock Hall, books from the Arboretum Visitor Center’s bookstore, mini-Union chairs to hang on the tree — the possibilities are endless.
Looking for the next great Wisconsin playwright
Submissions of original, full-length plays are being accepted for the Wisconsin Wrights New Play Project, a joint initiative among the Division of Continuing Studies, the University Theatre and the Madison Repertory Theater. The project was created to foster the development of new works by Wisconsin playwrights. The winning plays will be featured as part of the University Theatre’s summer season. Information: http://www.news.wisc.edu/13282.html
Film and video students to present their work
Students in film and video production will present their work in a 90-minute program curated by the course instructors. This event gives students the opportunity to see their work on screen for the first time. The work of local filmmakers will also be presented. 7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 15, 4070 Vilas. Information: http://cinema.wisc.edu/
Community
Reminder: Smith Hall continues pilot program for dining facility
University Housing Food Service’s pilot program at Newell J. Smith Hall to determine whether extended dining hours are needed each morning continues through the end of the semester. According to Keri Robbins, director of marketing services for the Division of University Housing, students living in the building and staff working in nearby offices requested a change in hours during the morning. In response, the hall’s dining service now opens at 8 a.m. for breakfast and morning coffee.
Milestones
UHS hires new director of Clinical Services
Sarah Van Orman, currently the medical director at the University of Chicago Student Care Center, has been named director of clinical services at University Health Services (UHS). The director of clinical services provides direct medical care to students and supervises UHS physicians, nurses and other health care staff. The clinical director also serves as part of UHS senior management.
Prestigious fellowship awarded to scientist
A postdoctoral researcher in The UW–Madison biochemistry department has been selected as a recipient of a prestigious new fellowship.