April 14, 2005

Vol. 15, No. 38

The "8 1/2 x 11 News" is published each week by the University Advancement Division. News of campus interest should be sent to one of the following editors:   Ed Delaney, 412-268-1609 (ed47@andrew.cmu.edu)
  Bruce Gerson, 412-268-1613 (bg02@andrew.cmu.edu)
  Susan Cribbs, 412-268-7521 (cribbs@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.

2003 Editions are available online.

2004 Editions are available online.

Previous editions are available online.

A group of Carnegie Mellon researchers are part of an eight-institution team that will work on cybersecurity and trustworthy computing issues within a new National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded Science and Technology Center led by the University of California at Berkeley. The NSF will fund the center with a five-year, $19 million award. In addition to Berkeley and Carnegie Mellon, the collaboration includes Cornell University, Mills College, San Jose State University, Smith College, Stanford University and Vanderbilt University.

—Mike Reiter, professor of electrical and computer engineering and computer science, will lead the Carnegie Mellon team in developing new technologies that will help transform the ability of organizations to design, build and operate trustworthy information systems that control critical infrastructure. Team members include Jeannette Wing, professor and head of the Computer Science Department, Adrian Perrig, assistant professor in electrical and computer engineering and engineering and public policy, and Dawn Song, assistant professor in electrical and computer engineering. Further information: http://www.cmu.edu/PR/releases05/050411_trust.html

STUDENTS AMONG GROUP BEING SUED FOR COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT

Twenty-five students at Carnegie Mellon are part of a group of 405 students at 18 colleges and universities nationwide that have been sued by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for illegally downloading music from Internet2, a high-speed network created by universities for academic research. According to the RIAA, the group has downloaded more than 930,000 songs. In addition to the 18 campuses at which students are being sued, the RIAA has sent letters to the presidents at 140 schools in 41 states alerting them to the illegal activity occurring on their campuses.

—Joel Smith, the university's chief information officer, said Carnegie Mellon does more than its peer institutions to educate students on computing practices. He said all students are required to take the Computing Skills Workshop, which includes a module on Carnegie Mellon policies regarding copyrights, computing ethics and computer usage. "The university has the deepest commitment to the protection of intellectual property and copyrighted material and we strive to educate our students in the best and most ethical practices in the use of electronic communications," Smith said.

WATCH CARNIVAL AND THE BUGGY RACES ON TV AND THE WEB

If you can't attend this week's Spring Carnival and Buggy Races (April 14 - 16), you can catch all the excitement on the Web and on Carnegie Mellon TV, channel 17. The Buggy Races will be broadcast live on channel 17 and will air live, beginning at 8 a.m. on Friday and Saturday, on the Web at http://www.cmutv.org. The races will be replayed at 2 p.m. each day. You can also view real-time images from the Midway, Main Stage and Buggy Race Course through the conclusion of Carnival at http://carnival.andrew.cmu.edu. Live-streaming video from the Midway will be available at http://carnival.andrew.cmu.edu/current/carnival.mov. For a schedule of Spring Carnival activities, visit the Web at http://www.andrew.cmu.edu/org/carnival/.

NEWS BRIEFS

—"Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day" is scheduled for Thursday, April 28. The program is open to children between 9 and 15 years old. This is an exciting day to have your daughter and/or son see what your work entails and experience other activities at the university. For further information, visit the Web at http://www.andrew.cmu.edu/org/todtw/index.htm. Register by April 20 to receive a complimentary t-shirt for your child. Registration ends Friday, April 22.

—Next week is Earthweek and to help recognize the annual event students will be stationed in the university parking lots to ask your permission to measure the air pressure of the tires on your car. Their goal is to estimate how much fuel we could save if our tires were properly inflated. Results of the study will be posted at http://www.cmu.edu/environment.

PERSONAL MENTION

—School of Computer Science (SCS) student Ariadna Llitjos and SCS master's student Preethi Bhat are two of the 10 Google Anita Borg Memorial Scholarship winners (each receiving $10,000). Finalists were SCS students Stefanie Tomko and junior Gwen Stockman (each receiving $1,000). See: http://www.google.com/intl/en/press/pressrel/anitaborg.html.

—Kim Kelly, head women's volleyball coach at Gettysburg College since 1997, has been named Carnegie Mellon's new head women's volleyball coach. During her tenure at Gettysburg, the Bullets posted a 250-82 record, captured eight Centennial Conference titles and appeared in eight NCAA Division III championship tournaments.

—Denise Novak, head of acquisitions for the University Libraries, has been elected for a three-year term as vice president/president-elect of the North American Serials Interest Group (NASIG), an independent organization that promotes communication, information and continuing education about serials and the broader issues of scholarly communication. Further information: http://www.nasig.org/

—The College of Humanities and Social Sciences (H&SS) has named Anne Green, a teaching professor of German, winner of the 2004-05 Elliott Dunlap Smith Award for Teaching and Educational Service.

—H&SS has selected Modern Languages Ph.D. candidate Megumi Hamada as the 2005 winner of its Graduate Student Teaching Award. She is a doctoral student in the Second Language Acquisition program who will likely complete her dissertation this spring.

—Alexandra Orgera, a third-year student in the Science and Humanities Scholars Program, has been awarded a fellowship for a week-long summer seminar at the University of Pennsylvania entitled "The Grad School Experience." Fifteen of the country's top juniors in German or German Studies were selected from 70 nominees.

—Jaimie Cherok has been appointed director of Catering Services. "We look forward to Jaimie's leadership in our campus catering operation based on her 13 years as a food service professional, most recently as the associate catering director at the University of Pittsburgh," said Tim Michael, director of dining services.

—Online Faculty Course Evaluations will open on Monday, April 18, and will be available until Friday, April 29, at 11 p.m. Students should go to http://www.cmu.edu/fce/ to begin their evaluations.

CALENDAR HIGHLIGHTS

—Sunday, April 17: Memorial service for Colin Boyarski, son of Dan and Libby Boyarski. 2 p.m., Great Hall, College of Fine Arts. All members of the campus community are invited to participate.

—Sunday, April 17: "Stop U.S. War Crimes," a fundraising reception for the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR). 4 - 6 p.m., at the home of Emeritus Professor Tom Kerr and Pat Swedlow, 1353 Shady Ave. CCR vice president Jules Lobel (Pitt law professor) will discuss the center's work. Information: official.cmu-news, April 11.

—Tuesday, April 19: Feynman Lecture Series. "Seeking New Laws." 4:30 p.m., Doherty Hall 2210. On videotape, the late Professor Richard Feynman summarizes the state of our knowledge of the physical world, probes existing mysteries and discusses a useful method for seeking new laws.

—April 19 - 21: The School of Drama and the Modern Language Department present "Cut Faust!" an original translation and adaptation of Goethe's "Faust" by graduate directing major Sven Miller. 4:40 p.m., Checco Studio, Purnell Center.

—Thursday, April 21: Graduate Women's Gathering. Carnegie Mellon Interactive Theatre: "The Chilly Climate." Noon, Rangos 3. Lunch will be served. To register, go to http://gposerver.as.cmu.edu/registration/multiregis.html

—Thursday, April 21: "Cars of Today...Fuels for the Future" will showcase vehicles that run on alternative fuels. 1 - 5 p.m., Merson Courtyard outside the UC. Following the car show, Isaac Porche III, a Rand Corporation analyst, will discuss "Fuels for the Future" at 5 p.m. in the Connan Room. Porche's remarks will precede a panel discussion that includes Jim Skees, facilities manager for the School of Computer Science, and Mike Griffin, executive director of the Green Design Initiative. Further information: official.cmu-news, April 12.

—Wednesday, April 27: Annual Administrative Professional's Day Luncheon. 11:30 a.m. - 1:45 p.m., Rangos Hall, UC. Speakers: Mike Clark, WTAE-TV news anchor; Indira Nair, vice provost of education; and Barbara Smith, associate vice president of human resources. Cost: $19.50 per person. To register, visit http://hr.web.cmu.edu/ap-day/index.html. Last day to register is April 20.

-Back to the top-