Tags: Human Nature

two men in a lab
All in the family: Father-son NSF grant

The Quinns' working theory: If bio-imaging software can efficiently represent cells and their inner structures as "social networks," then biologists can gain further insight into infectious disease behavior and give public health professionals a better chance at combatting those diseases. The Quinns are a fantastic UGA family through and through, including daughters Sarah and Colleen and Mrs. Quinn, Joanne. Congratulations on this great new…

building, cupola, with blue sky
Klein receives Festschrift commemorating scholarly career

Professor of linguistics, Classics, and Germanic and Slavic languages Jared Klein has been honored with the publication of a festschrift celebrating his career and contributions to the discipline of Indo-European linguistics. The book-length volume of original, scholarly articles, Tavet Tat Satyam, was published by Beech Stave Press on the occasion of Klein’s seventieth birthday. The presentation of a festschrift is a European tradition honoring…

woman outdoors in front of building
Faculty profile: Cecilia Rodrigues

"I've always loved teaching and language, so the university was a natural path for me," Rodrigues said. "I feel a perfect connection with students that is so much more than just being in the classroom and doing research." As campus communicators, we get to spend time with the most impressive people you'd ever hope to meet. Dr. Rodrigues fits this bill and more, and her passion for the humanities makes her one of the crucial expert voices on the…

two men on Jeopardy!
Kudos, September 2016

Jeopardy! a Guggenheim Fellowship, new associate provost for international education and a festschrift... quite a month for Franklin College students, faculty and alumni: PhD theatre student Seth Noel Wilson is on Jeopardy! this week – Wilson won on Tuesday night and will return. What is fantastic news for a graduate student? The University of Georgia moved up three spots to No. 18 in the latest U.S. News & World Report ranking of Best…

ancient hand-drawn map in color
Noted and Quoted, September 2016

Research and expertise of Franklin faculty members mentioned widely in the media in September (plus a few notable examples from August): University researchers discover remains of 16th century Spanish fort associate professor of anthropology Victor Thompson mentioned in multiple outlets – R&B, Beaufort Gazette, The Atlantic, Kokomo Tribune, ABH, Ancient Origins HyperSolar names chemistry professor John Stickney as scientific advisor –…

woman i n lab with glasses
'Good as gold' at the nanoscale

"Medieval alchemists tried to create gold from other metals," she said. "That's kind of what we did with our research. It's not real alchemy, in the medieval sense, but it is a sort of 21st century version." Gold has long been a valuable resource for industry, medicine, dentistry, computers, electronics and aerospace, among others, due to unique physical and chemical properties that make it inert and resistant to oxidation. But because of its…

young woman with mountain
Remembering Ashley Block

Anthropology graduate student Ashley Block, the victim of a tragic accident earlier this week, was a conservationist, athlete and one of our best: Thursday morning, more than 200 people filled the church’s Common Room at Emmanuel, where Block became a treasured member of the church community as soon as she arrived in Athens as a University of Georgia graduate student two years ago. She was a Eucharistic minister for the church, licensed by…

man in the street with hat
'Humans of New York' creator on campus today

Taken together, these portraits and captions became the subject of a vibrant blog. HONY now has over twenty million followers on social media, and provides a worldwide audience with daily glimpses into the lives of strangers on the streets of New York City.   With a degree in history, Stanton moved to Chicago and worked in finance until he decided on a new direction. HNY is truly sui generis in the realm of social media and has had…

words on a chalkboard
The power of mnemonics

While it may not ring with the poetry of 'memory,' mnemonics represent the patterns and associations that allow us to remember - and learn - and will be the topic of what sounds like a fascinating presentation this afternoon, sponsored by the department of psychology and CTL: Henry L. Roediger III, the James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor at Washington University, will provide a quick history of interest in mnemonics and then…

animated portrait book cover
Neupert book explores Pixar revolution

Animation in modern storytelling is the focus of a new book by Wheatley Professor of the Arts in the Department of Theatre and Film Studies Richard Neupert on Pixar's "Chief Creative Officer," John Lasseter: Lasseter films from Luxo Jr. to Toy Story and Cars 2 highlighted his gift for creating emotionally engaging characters. At the same time, they helped launch computer animation as a viable commercial…

woman and man, drawn in color
How do we say it? The variations in sounding Southern

Automated phonetic analysis and a significant grant from the National Science Founation will allow UGA linguistics researchers to delve deeper into what makes Southerners sound Southern: The researchers will use computer software to analyze 64 interviews with speakers from Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas and Texas recorded from 1968 to 1983. "We hope to document the wide range of pronunciations in the South…

still photo of man talking
Linguistics: how language works

The Linguistic Atlas Project is the oldest and largest ongoing American English survey project in the U.S. Under the leadership of its editor-in-chief William Kretzschmar, Harry and Jane Willson Professor in the Humanities, UGA has become a national center for dialect research, and the materials of the LAP are the best source for the history of mid-century American English. In writing about an upcoming grant awarded to Kretzschmar and colleagues…

woman applying blood pressure sleeve
Global research collaboration grants

... The Franklin College of Arts and Sciences' Benjamin Ehlers, an associate professor of history, and doctoral candidate David Thomson are collaborating with Stephen Kenny and Nicholas Fuqua at the University of Liverpool, England, to ­create a database and web portal for researchers and students to access data on pre-Civil War, trans-Atlantic shipping voyages. Researchers are developing the website that houses the data. They will recruit…

digital numerical graphic, blue on black
Informatics Hiring Initiative

The big news about Big Data on campus includes the announcement of eight new faculty members in the rapidly growing field of informatics that we welcome to UGA this year: The new hires, who will work in seven departments and five of the university's schools and colleges, build upon the university's longstanding leadership in informatics. UGA has more than 160 faculty members whose work involves the analysis of massive data sets, and plans are…

women interior portrait
Life and meaning: Carolyn Medine

Terrific Focus on the Faculty profile of Dr. Carolyn Medine, joint-appointed professor in the department of religion and the Institute for African American Studies: I have always loved the arts and been obsessed with the “BQs” — the big questions, as one of my teachers at UNC called them — the eternal questions about life and meaning. My area is arts, literature and religion, and I get to work on cultural production of all kinds. I think that…

historical photo of black nuns
History: The Oblate Sisters of Providence

UGA history professor Diane Batts Morrow has spent much of her career studying the Oblate Sisters of Providence, the first congregation of black Catholic sisters in the United States. A recent Q & A with Dr. Morrow tells part of the fascinating story: When I was growing up in Philadelphia, I had never seen a black nun. And I was a cradle Catholic. I went to integrated parochial schools, where there were white nuns teaching and the…

weather monitor with super G
Climate data in the classroom

New technology installed at two UGA locations will provide real-time weather data and early warnings for severe weather. Donated by WeatherStem CEO Edward Mansouri,the stations were installed in the State Botanical Garden and on the main campus in early August. The station links to the web and provides tools such as text alerts for changing weather conditions and forecasts. Users can also replay time-lapse videos from attached webcams. Marshall…

woman in front of Park Hall
Amazing Student Madison Jones

As we welcome the next amazing class of UGA students, highlighting achievements in rigorous academics and service to the campus community like those of Madison Jones gives us an idea of what it's all about at UGA: My favorite things to do on campus are... I love meeting friends for a quick bite at Bolton between classes since cooking is hard and the commuter meal plan is a gift to mankind. My favorite activities on campus probably happen…

students in the shape of the super G
UGA welcomes incoming Ramsey Scholars, Foundation Fellows

Congratulations to the incoming freshman class of Ramsey Scholars and Foundation Fellows. Administered by the UGA Honors Program, The Foundation Fellowship is UGA's premier academic scholarship; the recipients were selected from among 1,100 applicants. The Foundation Fellowship was created in 1972 by trustees of the UGA Foundation to enrich the educational experience of outstanding undergraduates. The incoming class has an average SAT score…

people with bounce house outside
Heat dangers of bounce houses

A nearly ubiquitous sight on the suburban landscape, inflatable bounce houses mark the fun and frivolity at children’s parties and other events practically year round. But a new study from Andrew Grundstein and Marshall Shepherd in geography examines the heat safety issues that can put children in danger amid all the innocent play: Expanding on the concept of microclimates like those in parked vehicles that cause serious injuries to children,…

salt marsh day
Satellite data show Georgia salt marsh health decline

Scientists at UGA's Marine Institute at Sapelo Island have found that the amount of vegetation along the Georgia coast has declined significantly in the last 30 years, spurring concerns about the overall health of marshland ecosystems in the area: Using data collected by NASA's Landsat TM 5 satellite, which provided 28 years of nearly continuous images of the Earth's surface between 1984 and 2011, the researchers found that the amount of marsh…

two people in a field
Archeologists find 16th-century fort San Marcos

A team of archaeologists led by University of South Carolina's Chester DePratter and UGA's Victor Thompson has located the remains of a Spanish fort erected in 1577 in the Spanish town of Santa Elena, on present-day Parris Island, S.C. For decades, attempts to find it have failed, and Fort San Marcos stayed hidden until new technology brought it to light: San Marcos is one of five Spanish forts built sequentially at Santa Elena over its 21-…

woman in lab with slides
Expanding Graduate Opportunities

Speaking of the research enterprise, how does the university continue to expand it while developing the leaders individual disciplines need and that UGA wants to be known for? By increasing graduate enrollment: The University of Georgia is rolling out an initiative to increase the enrollment of graduate students by offering new funding opportunities, innovative interdisciplinary programs and a wider array of professional development…

head shots of eight people
Willson Center Faculty Fellows 2016-17

Franklin College of Arts and Sciences faculty from an interdisciplinary cross section of research disciplines in the arts and humanities were selected as Willson Center Fellows for 2016-2017: The Willson Center [Willson Fellows 2016-17]  has awarded its 2016-2017 Research Fellowships to twelve members of the UGA faculty in the humanities and arts. These fellowships are awarded in partnership with the Franklin College of Arts…

students ringing bell
Advising UGA Students

The Office of Student Academic Services in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences provides the guidance that helps UGA students build a foundation for success on campus and in their careers. Each week this summer, hundreds of incoming freshmen and transfer students are getting a glimpse of university life that goes beyond Ramsey Center and the residence halls as the classroom and prospective majors take center stage. With so many decisions to…
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