January 16, 2003

Vol. 13, No. 25

The "8 1/2 x 11 News" is published each week by the Department of Public Relations. News of campus interest should be sent to
Ed Delaney, 412-268-1609 (ed47@andrew.cmu.edu) or Bruce Gerson, 412-268-1613 (bg02@andrew.cmu.edu). The newsletter is available on the official.cmu-news and cmu.misc.news bulletin boards.

2001 Editions are available online.

2002 Editions are available online.

Previous editions are available online.

Carnegie Mellon's annual celebration of the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. will be held from 12:30 - 6:30 p.m., Monday, Jan. 20, in the University Center (UC). All classes are cancelled from 12:30 - 4:30 p.m. that day to allow students, faculty and staff to participate in the programming.

—The following is the afternoon schedule:

—12:30 - 1:30 p.m. "State of Diversity at Carnegie Mellon," by President Jared Cohon. Rangos Hall, UC. Cohon, chairman of the university's Diversity Advisory Council, will review the progress Carnegie Mellon has made toward its strategic goal of increasing diversity across campus. He will also outline next steps in the process.

—1:30 - 2:30 p.m. Presentation of the Martin Luther King Jr. Writing Awards. Area high school students and Carnegie Mellon students will read personal narratives and poems revealing their experiences with racial difference and discrimination. Rangos Hall, UC.

—2 - 2:45 p.m. "The Tree House" puppet show and puppet making for children. Kirr Commons, UC.

—2:30 - 3:40 p.m. Panel discussion on Dr. King's "Six Steps for Nonviolent Social Change" moderated by Everett Tademy, the university's director of equal opportunity services. Panelists include Indira Nair, vice provost for education at Carnegie Mellon; Joe Trotter, director of the Center for Africanamerican Urban Studies and the Economy and head of the History Department at Carnegie Mellon; Esther Bush, president and CEO of the Urban League of Pittsburgh; and Father Bryan Summers of the Roman Catholic Newman Center. Connan Room, UC.

—3:45 - 4:25 p.m. Community Collage, Carnegie Mellon students and staff use artistic expression to pay tribute to Dr. King. Kirr Commons, UC.

—4:30 p.m. Candlelight procession from the Purnell Center Rotunda to Rangos Hall, UC.

—5 - 6 p.m. Keynote address, "Why We Can't Wait: The Need for Social Transformation," by award-winning author and ordained minister Dr. Michael Eric Dyson. Rangos Hall, UC. Dyson's path-breaking book, "Making Malcolm: The Myth and Meaning of Malcolm X," was selected as a notable book by The New York Times and named one of the outstanding black books of the 20th century. His "I May Not Get There With You: The True Martin Luther King, Jr." was a national bestseller and nominated for the NAACP Image Award. Dyson's most recent book, "Holler If You Hear Me: Searching For Tupac Shakur," also a national bestseller, has been nominated as one of the best books for youth by the American Library Association. It was also named one of the best books of 2001 by Publisher's Weekly.

BIOMEDICAL SECURITY SOFTWARE AVAILABLE TO PUBLIC HEALTH GROUPS

Software that detects a sudden increase of symptoms indicative of a possible bioterrorist attack has been made available at no charge to public health organizations. The software was developed by the Biomedical Security Institute (BMSI), a joint collaboration of Carnegie Mellon and the University of Pittsburgh.

—The software is available from the Real-time Outbreak and Disease Surveillance System (RODS) Web site at www.health.pitt.edu/rods. Although the software is free, a simple license agreement is required.

—BMSI co-directors are Carnegie Mellonıs Andrew Moore, the A. Nico Habermann Associate Professor of Robotics and Computer Science, and Pittıs Michael Wagner, associate professor of medicine and intelligent systems.

—RODS monitors hospital admission and emergency records in real time for trends and anomalies suggestive of disease outbreaks, such as flu symptoms, respiratory illnesses, diarrhea and skin rashes. A sudden increase in any of these symptoms might indicate a bioterrorist attack. The software is now in use at hospitals throughout Pennsylvania and Utah. It was used during the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.

—Further information is posted on official.cmu-news, Jan. 14.

CARNEGIE MELLON PLACES SECOND IN "RUSH TO RECYCLE" CHALLENGE

Carnegie Mellon placed second in two categories of the Department of Environmental Protection's 2002 RUSH to Recycle Challenge for 19 Pennsylvania colleges and universities. Carnegie Mellon was second in the overall amount of recyclable material collected (143.30 tons or 286,600 pounds) and in the pounds per student (48.22 pounds) categories. The challenge ran from Oct. 7 through Nov. 30, 2002. Recyclable materials collected included bottles, cans, cardboard, office paper, newspaper and plastic bottles.

NEWS BRIEFS

—The next class for drivers of university vehicles will be held at 8:30 a.m., on Thursday Jan. 23 in the 3rd floor conference room of the FMS Building. Anyone who drives a university vehicle, or any other vehicle on behalf of the university, must take this class once every three years. To register for the class, contact Jim Gindlesperger in Environmental Health & Safety, 8-3760 or jg57@andrew.cmu.edu.

PERSONAL MENTION

—Psychology Professor David C. Plaut has been honored by the National Academy of Sciences with its Troland Research Award, which includes a prize of $50,000 to support research. He will receive the award at the April 28 National Academy ceremony in Washington, D.C. Plautıs research uses computational models to investigate normal and disrupted cognitive processes in reading and language.

—Everett Tademy, director, Equal Opportunity Services, Diversity Advisory Council secretary, and university ombudsman has been elected chair of the board of directors of the Pauline Auberle Foundation. Previously vice-chair of the Auberle board of directors, Tademy will continue to lead the Auberle Human Resource Committee. Auberle serves abused, neglected and at-risk children, youth and their families.

—Microsoft Research University Relations has announced this year's funding decisions for Learning Sciences & Technology. The College of Fine Arts Entertainment Technology Center received $107,000 for its "BioHazard Games-to-Teach Project." The principal investigators are Randy Pausch, Don Marinelli and Jesse Schell.

—Devra Davis, visiting professor, Heinz School, will be on Bill Moyer's PBS program, NOW, at 9 p.m., Friday, Jan. 17, to discuss her new book, "When Smoke Ran Like Water: Tales of Environmental Deception and the Battle Against Pollution."

CALENDAR HIGHLIGHTS

—Friday, Jan. 17: A tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., sponsored by the Black Faculty and Staff Association. 12:30 - 1:30 p.m., McConomy Auditorium, UC.

—Friday, Jan. 17: Regina Gouger Miller Gallery. "Comic Release: Negotiating Identity for a New Generation," an exhibition of work by artists who use cartoon and comic imagery. 6 - 8 p.m. Regina Gouger Miller Gallery, Purnell Center. The exhibition continues through March 21.

—Sunday, Jan. 19: Winter Conference sponsored by Student Affairs. "Building a Better You: Paths to Personal Success." Registration information is posted on official.cmu-news for Jan. 14. Registration is due by 4 p.m., Friday, Jan. 17, in the Office of Orientation, Morewood Gardens.

—Tuesday, Jan. 21: Graduate Women's Gathering #8. "Negotiation Styles and Gender." Linda Babcock: professor of economics, Heinz School. 12:15 - 1:15 p.m., Rangos 3 UC. Registration: www.cmu.edu/adm/apaa/gpo/

—Thursday, Jan. 23: Professional Development Seminar #4. "Intellectual Property and Collegial Collaboration." Speakers: Richard Champney, manager, New Product Introductions, North America, Marconi Communications and Carl Ronald, attorney in IP, Tucker Law. 1-3 p.m., Connan Room, UC. Registration: www.cmu.edu/adm/apaa/gpo/profdev/seminar.html

—Thursday, Jan. 23: Cuarteto Latinoamericano. Guest artist: Robert Aitken, flute. 7:30 p.m., Kresge Recital Hall College of Fine Arts. For tickets, call 8-2383.

—Thursday, Jan. 23: SCS Distinguished Doctoral Dissertation Award presentation and lecture. 4 p.m., Wean Hall 7500. "Exploiting Text Structure for Multiple-Selection Editing and Outlier Finding." Robert C. Miller, assistant professor, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

-Back to the top-