News Archive - 2018

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The healing power of satellite cells

Extraordinary new research on stem cells in our muscles that affects people at every age: Muscle aches and pains, whether from stretching, strenuous exercise or just normal wear and tear, can put a crimp in your day, a limp in your step and be an actual pain in the neck. But no matter the severity, stem cells in the skeletal muscles called satellite cells play a key role in repairing the damage. Without a proper function of satellite cells, as…

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Scientists project drier Amazon, wetter Indonesia in the future

New research published in Nature Climate Change and led by assistant professor of geography Gabriel Kooperman identifies an unexpected but major factor in worldwide precipitation shifts: the direct response of tropical forests to higher levels of carbon dioxide: “People tend to think that most of the disruption will come from heat going into the oceans, which, in turn, will alter wind patterns,” said James Randerson, UCI’s Ralph J.…

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Three faculty members awarded NEH support

Three Franklin College faculty members have been awarded grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities. The awards, announced April 9, are among $18.6 million in NEH grants for 199 humanities projects across the country: Professor of Spanish Elizabeth Wright and associate professor of French Rachel Gabara of the Romance languages department were awarded $6,000 each for summer stipends, highly competitive grants that provide full-…

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Focus on the faculty: Jin Xie

Associate professor of chemistry Jin Xie is using nanotechnology to make chemotherapy and radiation therapy more effective while minimizing their toxic side effects: What are your favorite courses and why? I redeveloped the nanomaterials course, and I enjoy teaching it. Nanotechnology, especially nanobiotechnology, is a highly interdisciplinary field, and it is rapidly evolving. In this course, I not only introduce basic nanoparticle synthesis…

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Scholarship recipients speak at Advance UGA Conference

As we near commencement, with so many Franklin students [more than 1,850] preparing to enter the next stage of their lives and careers, many are reflecting on the impact of their campus experiences and especially those afforded by scholarship opportunities.  A few of those were celebrated on Monday, April 30 at the Georgia Center for Continuing Education at the Advance UGA Conference. Sponsored by the Office of Development and Alumni…

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Spring Commencement 2018

Today is The Day - all of the studying, books, classes, exams, friends, professors, meetings, study guides, notecards, letters home, study abroad experiences, internships, parttime jobs, scholarships, sporting events, weekends, pranks, performances, all-nighters, early coffees, late dinners, awards, honors, roommates, majors, DECISIONS, networking, buses, connections, papers, grades, interviews, accomplishments. It has all built up to this.…

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Suzanne Pilaar Birch: TrowelBlazer

The new issue of Research Magazine, full of great stories about Franklin College faculty, features a refreshed story we have highlighted in the past: archeologist Suzanne Pilaar Birch on the intersection of pregancy and fieldwork In March 2017, Suzanne Pilaar Birch turned to Twitter for help. The archaeologist and UGA assistant professor was considering an invitation to go on a dig in Cyprus, an offer that seemed irresistible—except that…

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Staff Awards & Staff Appreciation

Thanks to all the many colleagues who attended the 2018 Franklin College Staff Awards reception at the Miller Learning Center. As dispersed as the college is, it's always great to see so many of our co-workers in one place. After an opening welcome from Dean Dorsey, the following Staff Excellence in Service Awards were presented to: Kendra Freeman, presented by Lesley G. Feracho, Interim director, African American Studies Shannon Kennedy,…

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Great Commitments: Roberto Perdisci

UGA's recently established Institute for Cybersecurity and Privacy uses anti-malware software developed by the institute’s network security expert, associate professor of computer science Roberto Perdisci, to detect malware downloads on its own networks - a model other institutions are begiining to follow: “Your antivirus software installed on your computer to protect against malware attacks will always be behind,” Perdisci says. Such software…

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Microbes and a changing environment

A striking new study published in the journal Cell shows details how ancient microbes that thrive in some of the world’s most extreme environments and modern-day humans have more in common than meets the eye—namely, they both respire and conserve energy using a similar molecular mechanism, one that has adapted to changing environmental conditions over billions of years: "Nature is really good at finding molecules that work and then modifying…