March 16, 2001, Vol. 33, No. 26
Tompkins Calls for Higher State Funding
Board Hears Strategic Plan Update
Senate to Distribute MTEP Survey
Insurance Questions? See Your Blue Cross Rep
Faculty Scholarship Grants Announced
Isle Royale Wolves Fewer but Thriving
C2E2 Invites Proposals
Facilities Seeking Student Workers
Filer Coauthors Second Textbook
Engg Enterprise Session with Pizza March 21
Teaching at Tech: Student-Assisted Teaching
The Fight for Social Justice and the Prevention of Hate Crimes:
Judy Shepard Speaks Out March 27
Doll Display at the Library through March 31
Watercolor Artist in Residence Here March 22-25
Impressions of Finland at Tech Tea
Only Three Months Till June: Learn Dances for Weddings
Water Treatment Expert Here March 20
Computer Science Colloquium March 16
Lake Superior Parks Research Conference March 27-28
Microbiology "Twig" Meets Here March 24
Mineral Seminars Friday
Sigma Xi Seminar March 22
WebCT Panel Discussion March 29
Retirement
In Print
On the Road
Proposals in Progress
Calendar
Job Postings
Bill Curnow, director, University Relations
Marcia Goodrich, Tech Topics editor
Gail Sweeting, electronic marketing assistant
Information to be included in Tech Topics should be submitted to the Tech Topics editor in one of the following ways:
By electronic mail--send information to ttopics@mtu.edu
By interdepartmental mail--send double-spaced, typed copies to the attention of Tech Topics editor, University Relations.
Each week, the deadline for submitting information is Friday at 5:00 p.m. for the following Friday distribution.
News (Back to Contents)
Tompkins Calls for Higher State Funding
President Curt Tompkins told the University's Board of Control March 9 that present state funding proposals are inadequate and must be increased if the school is to avoid levying significantly higher tuition rates.
"Michigan Tech is one of seven public universities being assessed shortfalls in the Michigan Public School Employees Retirement System (MPSERS) fund in Lansing. This assessment is an unfunded mandate amounting to about $1.9 million per year for forty years. And that amount will increase every year due to increasing health care costs."
A one percent increase in the state appropriation to Michigan Tech is worth $543,000, according to Tompkins. This means that each year the state is taking back the equivalent of a 3.5 percent increase in appropriation to cover the MPSERS assessment.
"All of the state's public universities face rising health care and energy costs," he said. "At Michigan Tech, we expect health care costs to increase $1.4 million and energy costs to rise $1 million during the next year. The sum of the MPSERS assessment and increases in health care and energy costs is $4.3 million, which is equivalent to a 7.2 percent increase in state appropriation. So Michigan Tech needs an 8 percent increase in state appropriation just to cover the MPSERS, health care, and energy costs."
Tompkins said each percent of increase in tuition represents about $250,000. The $4.3 million burden of MPSERS, health care, and energy costs translates to a 17.2 percent tuition increase.
"While I don't want to imply that tuition will go up by that amount, you can see that when the state appropriation doesn't cover our needs, it can have a major impact on tuition."
He noted that for the past several years, the legislature has restricted tuition increases to either 3 or 4 percent. He said MTU would have to increase tuition by much more than 4 percent to balance its budget if the 1.5 percent increase in general fund appropriation proposed by Governor Engler is approved.
"It's possible the Senate will increase our appropriation," said Tompkins. "Our Senate hearing is April 20. The final decision on our appropriation will be made in May or June by a legislative conference committee. It's impossible to predict what that final determination will be, but it could range from 1.5 percent to perhaps 4 percent. The likelihood of anything above 4 percent appears to be in the 'miraculous' category.
"So we have some tough budget decisions to make this year, and I'm afraid we'll be looking at some very high tuition increases."
In other matters, the Board of Control gave final approval to a PhD program in Forest Molecular Genetics and Biotechnology and a PhD in Computer Science, and voted to approve an MS program in Applied Science Education.
Board Hears Strategic Plan Update
Provost Kent Wray reviewed the University's strategic plan ("An Action Agenda for 2010") and its implementation plan before the Board of Control March 9, including some refinements developed at a March 8 Board retreat.
Under the plan, members of the University community can submit proposals that bolster any of four major strategic interest areas: Innovations in Education, Emerging Technologies and Research, Residential and Community Campus, and Resources, Size, and Composition. For more information, see the March 2 Tech Topics at http://www.sas.it.mtu.edu/urel/ttopics/textfiles/March-02-01.html#gen89 or visit http://www.doe.mtu.edu/strategic/draft.html
Board members offered several suggestions at the retreat. While many of the MTU employees who will be submitting proposals are accomplished grantwriters, others may have no experience, Wray said. Thus, the University should provide some help developing proposals.
Generally, the proposal due date for the next academic year will be the previous October, so proposals can be incorporated into the budget process. However, that timetable could be too restrictive, so a mechanism should be established to deal with "out-of-cycle" opportunities.
"Full funding of strategic plan initiatives from the general fund is unrealistic," Wray said. Proposals will be judged in part on their cost effectiveness; possible funding sources could be reallocation of internal resources or matching grants from government or private sources.
The rewards for developing a successful proposal should not be limited to the lead personnel, he said. The faculty and staff who teach extra classes or take on additional responsibilities in support of a strategic plan initiative should also receive recognition. In addition, interdisciplinary collaboration should be rewarded.
To underwrite the costs of the strategic planning process, the University may ask for support from the Michigan Tech Fund.
Board members also made suggestions regarding marketing the University. Quality should be highlighted above all other features, including the "best buy" label, in recruitment and marketing efforts, they said.
As the new request-for-proposal process is tested and additional comments are received, the plan will be updated and presented for Board approval on May 11.
The Board tabled action on proposed increases in residence hall room and board and apartment rental rates ranging from 2.9 percent (for double occupancy in a Wadsworth suite) to 3.8 percent (for a three-bedroom apartment in Daniell Heights). Overall, Residential Services estimates that the rate hikes will result in a 3.3 percent increase in revenues for 2001-02.
"How can we afford to be the second-lowest in the state?" compared to other public universities, Board Member Rick Berquist asked. Faced with tuition caps and a minimal increase in the state appropriation, the Board's Finance Committee is considering a 4.9 percent hike in room and board rates. The excess revenues can be transferred to the general fund, and so far the state has not tried to regulate what universities charge for room and board.
John Rovano, director of residential services, said that Michigan Tech's lower charges allow the residence halls to remain competitive in the local housing market. "We have a 60 percent re-application rate, and the halls are full," he said. "We're retaining students who aren't required to live with us, which is to our credit. . . . I think we'd lose a significant number" if room and board rates were much higher.
And the longer students stay in residence halls, the less likely they are to drop out, Rovano said, another benefit to the University.
If room and board rates are significantly higher than the cost of providing the service, with the extra revenues designated for the general fund, "you have 2,100 students subsidizing 6,000," Board Member Bronce Henderson said. He noted that the difference between the Finance Committee recommendation, a 4.9 percent increase in room and board, and Residencial Services' was $170,000.
The measure was tabled until May, when the Board will look at rates in the context of the entire budget.
Vice Provost for Instruction Stephen Bowen reported on a new procedure to review academic departments. The new process springs from the NCA accreditation review two years ago. "Overall, we got a clean bill of health," Bowen said. But among the stipulations in the NCA's report was that the University develop a systematic procedure to periodically review the academic departments.
"Technological universities typically don't do this," Bowen said. So in the absence of benchmarking, MTU worked with RPI and Georgia Tech to develop departmental evaluation procedures.
"The heart of the review is the departmental self study," Bowen said. Departments will prepare a self study from August to December of the review year and then be visited by a review team consisting of two academics from peer institutions and one Michigan Tech academic. Reviews will be held every six years in engineering departments, to coincide with ABET accreditation, and every five years in other departments and schools, to mesh with the ten-year NCA accreditation cycle. The process will begin this fall, Bowen said.
In other business, the Board
Senate to Distribute MTEP Survey
University Senate President Bob Keen told the senate March 14 that he has been developing a survey to gauge the constitutency's opinion on the proposed Michigan Tech Enterprise Park (MTEP).
The document has been examined by a mathematics class dealing with surveys, and should be ready to hand out at the next senate meeting, on March 28. Senators will distribute copies to their constituents.
Senator Mike Roggemann (Electrical and Computer Engineering) asked if information on the MTEP proposal would be available to senate constituents, particularly regarding the University's financial commitment to MTEP. Keen said links would be set up from the senate's Web site (www.sas.it.mtu.edu/ usenate/) to Tech Topics articles and other documents on the subject. "Our purpose is to try to have everything open and up front," he said.
The senate received a new proposal to amend the residency requirement for graduation. Currently students are only required to be enrolled for the last two semesters of academic work, which would theoretically allow a student to graduate from MTU having taken only two semester-long PE courses. The new policy would require students to have completed 30 of the last 36 hours of academic work at MTU or in University co-op or study-abroad programs. In addition, 30 hours must be in 3000-level courses or higher.
The senate unanimously elected Professor John Williams (Chemistry) to serve on the Dean of Engineering Review Committee.
Faculty Scholarship Grants Announced
Four MTU faculty members have been awarded a total of nearly $7,000 from the Faculty Scholarship Grant Committee to pursue scholarly work. The winners, their proposals, and their scholarship amounts are Renfang Jiang and Jianping Dong (Mathematical Sciences), "Statistical Methods for Fine Mapping of Disease Genes," $3,930; Kurt Paterson (Civil and Environmental Engineering), "Authoring a Digital Book for Environmental Data Analysis," $3,000; and Ching-Kuang Shene (Computer Science), "The Impact of Quantum Computing on Computer Science," $2,000.
Insurance Questions? See Your Blue Cross Rep
Representatives from Blue Cross and Blue Shield are making monthly visits to campus. They will meet individually with members of the MTU community to help with medical or dental claim questions or concerns. You can make a 20-minute appointment by calling the Benefits Office at 487-2517 or e-mailing mawilcox@mtu.edu or iecheney@mtu.edu.
A representative will be here on Friday, March 23, April 27, and May 18. All appointments will be held in Administration 226.
Isle Royale Wolves Fewer but Thriving
Submitted by the News Bureau
There are fewer wolves on Isle Royale this year than last, but those that remain are experiencing the best of times, according to Professor Rolf Peterson (SFWP), who has directed annual surveys of the predators for the National Park Service for thirty-one years.
Peterson said the just-completed 2001 survey showed wolf numbers had dropped to 19 from 29 a year ago, mostly because of inter-pack warfare and a decreased crop of moose calves born in 1999, following the hot, dry summer of 1998.
"Mild winters like we had in 2000 may be welcomed by humans, but they can be tough on wolves that rely on moose for their main source of food," said Peterson. "When snow cover is light, moose can move around easily and are much more difficult for wolves to catch and kill." During the easy winter of 2000, wolves on Isle Royale weren't able to kill as many moose as they needed to maintain robust health. The hot, dry summer of 1998 made life difficult for moose because they don't perspire like people do. Instead, they become overheated and hyperventilate, using a lot of energy just trying to keep cool. Those same conditions led to an increased tick infestation the following winter, which further weakened the island's moose. The result was that probably fewer than 100 calves were born in 1999--and calves provide the most reliable prey for wolves.
With heavy snow cover on Isle Royale this winter, wolves in the National Park are having a much easier time. "The 2000 calf crop produced between 200 and 300 animals," said Peterson. "And heavy snow makes traveling tough for calves, so this winter wolves have the advantage; two-thirds of all the moose kills we examined were calves.
"This is about as good as it gets for a wolf."
Peterson said the island's West Pack has been eliminated and their territory taken over by the Middle Pack, which numbers six animals. The East Pack, also numbering six wolves, has maintained its territory on the moose-rich east end of the island. "And there is a third pack of just a reproducing pair and one surviving pup that has carved out a territory for itself on the northeast side of the park, and the other packs have respected its territory," said Peterson. "There are also another mated pair and two single wolves wandering about the island and making do as best they can."
All the wolves seen in the park this winter seemed in good health. However, biologists plan to trap some of them later this spring to check for diseases. No parvovirus, a deadly canine disease, has been found in Isle Royale wolves during the past ten years.
Peterson said the park's moose herd has increased slowly since the summer of 1996 and now numbers about 900 animals. He said a major challenge for moose on Isle Royale lies in the poor winter food supply, especially on the west end of the island, where the animals often have to try to survive on lichens. Moose on the east end fare better because of the large balsam fir stands growing there.
The annual wolf-moose study is funded by the National Park Service, the National Science Foundation, and Earthwatch, Inc.
The Century II Campaign Endowed Equipment (C2E2) Fund Committee is soliciting proposals for the spring semester. C2E2 guidelines have been updated; the new proposal format is available at http://www.admin.mtu.edu/rgs/graduate/c2e2.htm. Click at General Philosophy. Faculty wishing to submit a proposal for consideration this semester should do so by Friday, April 27. Send eight copies to the assistant dean of the graduate school.
Facilities Seeking Student Workers
Residential Facilities is taking applications for summer-student employment in the custodial departments of McNair, DHH and Wadsworth Hall. Pay is $5.40 per hour.
For an application, contact Joan Hembroff, jhembrof@mtu.edu,in the DHH Office or the hall secretaries in McNair Hall and Wadsworth Hall. Call 487-2740 for more information. Hall hours are Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.
Filer Coauthors Second Textbook
Professor Robert F. Filer (Technology) and former technology faculty member George Leinonen have published a new textbook, Programmable Controllers Using Allen-Bradley SLC500 and ControlLogix. The text is aimed at a two-semester courses in programmable controllers in departments of engineering, engineering technology, and science. Written around Allen-Bradley's popular programmable logic controllers (PLCs), this text teaches students how to write sophisticated programs on a real PLC, used in industry to control machinery and monitor production activities. It contains a wealth of structured programming examples, and the up-to-date ControlLogix processor. This is Filer's second book on this subject. The publisher is Prentice Hall.
Engg Enterprise Session with Pizza March 21
Organizers of the Consumer Product Manufacturing Engineering Enterprise are holding an informational session, including free pizza, for students on Wednesday, March 21, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. in Chemical Sciences and Engineering 201.
If you know a student who might like to participate, please encourage them to attend. Students work with corporate sponsor Kimberly-Clark to make a product. For more information, contact Tony Rogers at 487-2210, tnrogers@mtu.edu.
Teaching at Tech: Student-Assisted Teaching
by William Kennedy, director, Center for Teaching, Learning, and Faculty Development
Mention the idea of students teaching other students to some staunchly traditional professors and they will roll their eyes and mutter something akin to "the blind leading the blind!" In Student Assisted Teaching: A Guide to Faculty-Student Teamwork,* editors Judith Miller, from Worcester Polytechnic Institute, and James Groccia and Marilyn Miller, from the University of Missouri at Columbia, present thirty-one distinct models for productively employing undergraduate students as assistants in the instructional process that are currently in use around the country.
For example, in the Spelman College Comprehensive Writing Program, exceptional students are selected and trained as tutors to help other students with their writing. Student writing tutors are nominated by faculty members based on their excellent writing and communication skills, as well as their patience and maturity. Trained tutors are carefully monitored by staff and act as individual consultants, assisting their peers with a whole gamut of writing tasks such as generating ideas, organizing, planning and developing papers, finding resources, and developing skills in revising and editing their writing. MTU has used undergraduate students to staff a variety of learning centers for years, in similar ways. Our learning centers are routinely cited by graduating students as one of the key components of our academic programs.
At MIT, the Experimental Study Group (ESG) program uses undergraduate assistants to provide students with an attractive alternative to the traditional freshman-year, large-enrollment classes. Since 1968, a diverse group of freshmen who are interested in a more flexible and personalized approach to their education have enrolled in the ESG program. The curriculum includes all first-year subjects in mathematics, physics, chemistry and biology. Courses are taught by faculty, lecturers, graduate students, and a cadre of undergraduate teaching assistants (most of whom were ESG participants themselves). Each year, about 55 freshmen, 15 sophomores, 10 staff members, and 20 undergraduate instructors participate in this program, which has been very well received.
At Tufts, a long-standing, student-assisted teaching program has given rise to another version of a Perspectives course. In the Tufts program, small, peer-taught seminars for entering students are conducted by teams of two advanced undergraduates. The seminars explore selected motion pictures both as artistic expressions and as business undertakings. The program is part of a larger advising effort designed to meet the needs of entering students for developmental advising and encouragement through an ongoing small group learning experience. Being in a student-led Perspectives section, according to Tufts students, "means learning to be media literate; learning to be an active, aware viewer and reader, one who is able to articulate concerns as to how and why we respond to the onslaught of images which shape so much of contemporary culture."**
Employing carefully selected and well-trained exceptional undergraduates to participate in the delivery of our first-year academic programs might help us to engage earlier and more effectively with our incoming students. Participating in a course led by a dedicated upperclass student might provide a timely role model and some personal incentive for more of our students to take their early studies more to heart. Many schools are finding that they can improve their educational offerings by using undergraduate teaching assistants in first-year instruction, thereby allowing those institutions to better use their precious faculty resources.
*Anker, 2001
**http://www.excollege.tufts.edu/ep.html
Entertainment and Enrichment (Back to Contents)
The Fight for Social Justice and the Prevention of Hate Crimes:
Judy Shepard Speaks Out March 27
Submitted by University Cultural Enrichment
Judy Shepard visits the Michigan Tech campus on Tuesday, March 27, to deliver the 2000-01 Human Relations keynote address at 8:00 p.m. at the Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts. A question-and-answer session and an informal reception in the lobby will follow. The event is free and open to the public.
Shepard is the mother of Matthew Shepherd, the University of Wyoming student who was murdered in 1998 because of his homosexuality. He was robbed, beaten, tied to a fence, and left to die, a series of events that has now become one of the most notorious hate crimes of recent years. While the Shepard family mourned in private, the tragedy provoked a public outcry from coast to coast and focussed the nation's attention on the growing epidemic of hate crimes. Vigils were held across America, including one at Michigan Tech.
The Shepards received thousands of letters and e-mails of support, which were a factor in helping them turn their grief into something positive by starting the Matthew Shepard Foundation (http://www.matthewsplace.com). Their intention was to carry on Matthew's legacy by embracing the just causes their son had championed and to carry on the fight for social justice and the prevention of hate crimes.
Seven months after Matthew died, Judy Shepard testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee in support of the Hate Crimes Prevention Act. Later she appeared in two Human Rights Campaign public service television spots aimed at curbing anti-gay violence and promoting a greater understanding of gay issues. Making the prevention of hate crimes the focus of her efforts, she is now speaking to audiences nationwide about what they can do to make their schools, universities, and communities safer for everyone, regardless of their race, sex, religion, or sexual orientation. She is adamant in her desire that no other family ever have to endure the horror that she and her family experienced. The depth of her commitment is so deep that she is willing to recount the anguish of the last few hours of her son's life over and over again. It is painful for her, but she believes that she can make a difference, that confronted with the details of her tragedy, her listeners will be moved to take action against hate.
Shepard's visit to Michigan Tech was made possible through funding from the Human Relations Committee and the MTU Committee for Campus Enrichment. For further information contact the University Cultural Enrichment Department (487-2844).
Doll Display at the Library through March 31
A number of dolls made by women with AIDS as part of Stitches: A Doll Project will be on display at the J. R. Van Pelt Library through March 31.
The project was initiated to provide HIV-infected women a chance to express the trials and tribulations of living with AIDS. Stitches gives each of the women a plain cloth doll that they dress, decorate, and attach to a brief narrative. The dolls will be included in an AIDS awareness art project that will eventually travel nationwide.
The dolls first came to campus as part of a Tech Tea featuring Kathy Gerus-Darbison, a 41-year-old mother living with AIDS, and Candice
Moench, deputy director of the Midwest AIDS Prevention Project.
Everyone is invited to drop by the library and "hear" what these dolls have to say.
Watercolor Artist in Residence Here March 22-25
Submitted by the Department of Fine Arts
Nationally recognized watercolor artist Mark Mehaffey comes to Michigan Tech March 22-25 to present demonstrations and a workshop as part of the fine arts department's Guest Artist Residency program. Mehaffey will give four, free, two-hour lecture-demonstrations aimed at a general audience: 2-4 p.m. and 7-9 p.m. on March 22, 10 a.m.-noon on March 23, and 2-4 p.m. on March 24.
"We invite everyone who is interested in art of any kind, creativity, or just hearing something new and interesting to come to the demonstrations," says residency coordinator Mary Ann Beckwith, associate professor of art. "Mark Mehaffey is a wonderful teacher; everyone will find something of value in his presentations."
On Saturday and Sunday, March 24-25, Mehaffey will present a workshop. Pre-registration and a $60 fee are required. For more information on the weekend session, call the fine arts office, 487-2067.
Mehaffey's four public presentations will be held in the Art Studio, Walker 202. His general topic for the MTU sessions, "Design Your World with Shape, Value, Line and Color," reflects the innovations he has brought to painting over the years. Mehaffey is a signature member of the National Watercolor Society, American Watercolor Society, and numerous other arts associations, and also an art educator who teaches in the public schools of Williamston, Michigan. He routinely wins major awards in juried exhibitions across the country. Mehaffey's work is known for its unusual uses of shape, line, and color, and has been published in numerous books and journals, including the recent The Best of Watercolor and Splash 5: The Glory of Color.
The Guest Artist Residency program is sponsored by the Department of Fine Arts with support from the Incha Lee Memorial Fund.
Impressions of Finland at Tech Tea
Submitted by University Cultural Enrichment
Last November, Jay Meldrum, the director of the Keweenaw Research Center, visited Finland for the first time. Bob Ubbelohde, president of Finlandia University, led a delegation of local businessmen, which included Meldrum. Their mission was to continue the process of promoting trade between the U.S. and Finland.
"Today's Finland is a vibrant, well-connected economy," says Meldrum. "Finns are proud of their technologies and look beyond their borders for business opportunities." Meldrum, the guest at Tech Tea Time on Wednesday, March 21, will discuss these opportunities, as well as highlights of the trip, sights along the way, and follow-up visits planned for the future. Tech Tea Time is at 4:00 p.m. in the Memorial Union Alumni Lounge. There is no admission charge.
Meldrum was delighted with the generous and gracious hospitality of the Finns, but "what impressed me the most was the sight of an Internet-connected phone in every ear," he said. The trip was not without a few interesting adventures. On a short excursion to Porvoo, the Volkswagen diesel van in which the group was travelling broke down twice. "We sat for two hours in the cold, late at night, until we finally got it started again. It wasn't too funny at the time," says Meldrum.
Meldrum is optimistic about the outcome of the trip. He invited members of TEKES, the Finnish National Technology Agency, the equivalent of the National Science Foundation, to visit Michigan Tech. "We hope to bid on some TEKES funded projects and collaborate with Finnish companies and universities," he says.
As KRC director, Meldrum supervises a staff of approximately thirty professionals in the areas of vehicle mobility, structural analysis, noise and vibration, and snow research. KRC is an externally funded research arm of Michigan Tech located at Houghton County Memorial Airport.
Tech Tea Time is coordinated by the University Cultural Enrichment Department. For further information call 487-2844. If you'd like to to receive Tech Tea announcements on e-mail, send an e-mail message to <majordomo@mtu.edu>. In the body of the letter, type <subscribe techtea-l>.
Seminars and Workshops (Back to Contents)
Only Three Months Till June: Learn Dances for Weddings
Get ready for the summer wedding and party season! Learn the basics of the most popular couples dances, including swing, waltz, and polka. This class will also help you add some style to your slow dancing. Sessions will be held on Thursdays from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. for seven weeks, March 22-May 3. Classes will be held in the SDC Dance Room 207. The cost is $42 for a student couple, $56 for a nonstudent couple. Sign up at the SDC Central Ticket Office. Class size is limited. For more information, call the instructor, Cari Raboin, at 482-8322.
Water Treatment Expert Here March 20
Vern Snoeyink, the 2001 Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors' Distinguished Lecturer, will be visiting campus on March 20. He will present a seminar lecture, "Adsorption of Trace Organic Compounds from Drinking Water Supplies," at 3:00 p.m. in Dow 642.
Snoeyink is the Ivan Racheff Professor of Civil Engineering at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana and has worked for many years on various aspects of activated carbon adsorption in drinking water treatment, including taste and odor compounds, dechlorination reactions, disinfection by-products, natural organic matter, reactivation, and perchlorate removal. Among his many publications, he coauthored the text Water Chemistry. The lecture is open to the public.
Computer Science Colloquium March 16
Yu Zhuang, of the Louisiana State University Department of Computer Science, will be the guest speaker at a colloquium set for Friday, March 16, from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. in Fisher 328.
Zhuang will discuss "A Class of Globally Non-Iterative, Non-Overlapping Domain Decomposition Methods for the Parallel Solution of Parabolic Problems Using Message Passing Paradigm."
Lake Superior Parks Research Conference March 27-28
The Lake Superior Parks Research Conference will be held Tuesday and Wednesday, March 27-28, at the McArdle Theatre.
The conference is sponsored by Michigan Tech, Isle Royale National Park, and the newly formed Isle Royale Institute. More than a dozen presentations on island-related research are planned. All are free and open to the public; drop by the theater during the conference for a schedule.
Registration begins at 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Some of the talks deal with island wildlife, from wolves and deer mice to beavers and coaster brook trout. Other workshops will focus on geology, hydrology, island history, and more.
For more information, contact Jack Oelfke at 487-9080 (off-campus).
Microbiology "Twig" Meets Here March 24
The Third Annual Meeting of the UP Section (or Twig) of the Michigan Branch of the Society for Microbiology (MI-ASM) will be held Saturday, March 24, at Michigan Tech. Registration starts at 8:30 a.m. in the sixth-floor lobby of the Dow Building.
This group and the meeting are open to everyone interested in microbiology. The registration fee for nonstudents is $5; there is no charge for students.
The meeting includes presentations, a videoconference of speakers addressing the Michigan Branch meeting (which is being held at the same time downstate), and a graduate/undergraduate student poster session. Cash prizes will be awarded for the best posters.
For more information, visit http://www.bio.mtu.edu/EnvMicro/UPTwig/ or e-mail Susan Bagley, Department of Biological Science, stbagley@mtu.edu. For information about the poster session, contact Martin Jurgensen , School of Forestry and Wood Products, mfjurgen@mtu.edu. Registration for both the meeting and the poster session should be made by March 21.
John Rakovan, an assistant professor in the Department of Geology at Miami University, Oxford, Ohio, will present two talks Friday, March 16. Rakovan's visit is sponsored by the Department of Geological Engineering and Sciences and the Seaman Mineral Museum.
He will present "Heterogeneous Reactivity at the Mineral-Water Interface: The Role of Surface Structure on Trace Element Incorporation during Crystal Growth," at 4:00 p.m. in Dow 610. Refreshments will be provided.
A reception for Rakovan will be held at 7:00 p.m. in the Seaman Mineral Museum, followed by a talk at 8:00 p.m. in Dow 642, "Fluorite Mineralization of the Hansonburg Mining District, Bingham, New Mexico."
Robert Pennock, an associate professor in the Lyman Briggs School and Department of Philosophy, will give a seminar, "Should Evolution by Taught in the Public Schools: What Dorothy Learned When the Creationist Whirlwind Hit Kansas," on Thursday, March 22, at 7:30 p.m. in Fisher 135.
Pennock's visit is sponsored by the MTU chapter of Sigma Xi, the Scientific Research Society. Pennock is the author of "Tower of Babel: The Evidence against the New Creationism" and recipient of a 1997 Templeton Award for the Exemplary Paper in Theology and the Natural Sciences.
Creationist members of the Kansas State Board of Education made international news when they voted to remove evolution from the state's science curriculum standards. In this talk, Pennock will look at what really happened in that case and examine some of the problems with the neo-creationist arguments about whether evolution or creationism should be taught in the public schools.
WebCT Panel Discussion March 29
All MTU faculty members are invited to "WebCT on Trial: A Panel Discussion," on Thursday, March 29, from noon to 12:55 p.m.
A panel of faculty members who have been using WebCT in their on- and off-campus courses will discuss ease of use, time involvement, and benefits and pitfalls, as well as suggest ways to get started using this course management software.
Lunch will be provided, but you have to register by Monday, March 26. Call 487-2046 to reserve a spot.
Regular Features (Back to Contents)
Marilyn St. Clair has retired from her position in Public Safety as senior operator/dispatcher. St. Clair joined the MTU staff on November 14, 1996, and her last day on the job was March 3.
"Working here has given me the opportunity to meet and talk with a variety of many interesting people," St. Clair said. "It has been good."
During her retirement, she plans to spend more time with her family, her close friends, and her animals.
Professor David Karnosky (SFWP) coauthored an article, "Genetic Response of Forest Systems to Changing Environmental Conditions--Analysis and Management," with G. Muller-Starck (Technical University of Munich), B. Degen, A. Kremer (INRA, France), L. Paule (Technical University, Slovakia), K. Percy (Natural Resources Canada), F. Scholz (Institute of Forest Genetics and Forest Tree Breeding, Germany), X. Shen (Beijing Forestry University), and G. Vendramin (Instituto Miglioramento Genetico delle Piante Forestali CNR, Italy), in Forest Genetics, Vol. 7, No. 3 (2000).
Assistant Professor Jaroslaw Drelich (MSE) published a paper, "Long-Range Attractive Forces and Energy Barriers in De-Inking Flotation: AFM Studies of Interactions Between Polyethylene and Toner," coauthered by graduate students Anna Gosiewska, Elvin Beach (MSE), J. Nalaskowski, and J. D. Miller (University of Utah), in the Journal of Adhesion Science and Technology, Vol. 14, No. 14 (2000).
Professor Karol Pelc (SBE) presented the paper "Knowledge Fusion Processes in Technology Management" at the International Conference on Industry, Engineering and Management Systems, held March 5-7 in Cocoa Beach, Florida.
Associate Professor Steve Carr, Associate Professor David Poplawski, and Assistant Professor Ching-Kuang Shene (Computer Science) attended the 32nd SIGSCE Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education, held February 21-25 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Carr gave a presentation, "Concurrent Computing in an Upper-Level Computer Science Curriculum." Carr and Shene gave a demonstration of their NSF-funded system, "ThreadMentor," designed to teach students multithreaded programming. Shene presented a paper coauthored with Associate Professor John Lowther (Computer Science), "Computing with Geometry as an Undergraduate Course: A Three-Year Experience." Poplawski showcased the new computer science textbook he authored, Objects Have Class! An Introduction to Programming with Java.
Assistant Professor Charles Wallace (Computer Science) presented a paper, "Specification and Verification of the LC Cache Protocol," at the EUROCAST 2001 conference, held February 22 in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Canary Islands.
Graduate student Jeremy Pletka (MSE) presented a paper, "Recovery of Expanded Polystyrene from Coated Patterns Rejected from Lost Foam Casting," coauthored by Assistant Professor Jaroslaw Drelich, during the 2001 SME Annual Meeting held February 26-28 in Denver, Colorado. Drelich presented the paper "Interfacial Chemistry Aspects of De-Inking Flotation of Mixed Office Paper," coauthored by a number of former MY4520 students.
Researchers, their proposals, and their potential sponsors are
March
National Women's Month
| 15 | Thursday |
| 8:00 p.m.--KSO Concerto Competition Winners' Recital--McArdle Theatre | |
| 16 | Friday |
| 3:00 p.m.--Yu Zhang, "A Class of Globally Non-Iterative, Non-Overlapping Domain Decomposition Methods for the Parallel Solution of Parabolic Problems Using Message Passing Paradigm"--Fisher 328 | |
| 4:00 p.m.--John Rankovan, "Heterogeneous Reactivity at the Mineral-Water Interface: The Role of Surface Structure on Trace Element Incorporation during Crystal Growth"--Dow 610 | |
| 6:00/7:15 p.m.--Club Indigo: Buffet/Singin' in the Rain--Calumet Theatre | |
| 7:00/8:00 p.m.--John Rankovan, Reception/Seminar, "Fluorite Mineralization of the Hansonburg Mining District, Bingham, New Mexico.--Seaman Mineral Museum/Dow 642 | |
| 17 | Saturday |
| 8:00 p.m.--Reduced Shakespeare Company--Rozsa Center | |
| 18 | Sunday |
| 3:00 p.m.--KSO with Concerto Competition Winners--Rozsa Center | |
| 20 | Tuesday |
| 3:00 p.m.--Vern Snoeyink, "Adsorption of Trace Organic Compounds from Drinking Water Supplies"--Dow 642 | |
| 21 | Wednesday |
| 4:00 p.m.--Tech Tea: Jay Meldrum, Impressions of Finland--Memorial Union Alumni Lounge | |
| 22 | Thursday |
| 10:00 a.m./2:00 p.m.--Artist Mark Mehaffey lecture and demonstration (two sessions)--Walker 202 | |
| 7:30 p.m.--Sigma Xi Seminar: Robert Pennock, "Should Evolution Be Taught in the Public Schools: What Dorothy Learned When the Creationist Whirlwind Hit Kansas"--Fisher 135 | |
| 23 | Friday |
| 10:00 a.m./2:00 p.m.--Artist Mark Mehaffey lecture and demonstration (two sessions)--Walker 202 | |
| 24 | Saturday |
| 8:30 a.m.--Meeting: U.P. Section of Michigan Branch of the Society for Microbiology--Dow sixth floor | |
| 27 | Tuesday |
| 8:00 p.m.--Human Relations keynote address: Judy Shepard--Rozsa Center | |
| 29 | Thursday |
| noon--"WebCT on Trial: A Panel Discussion" |
Job descriptions will be available at 1:00 p.m. on Friday, or by e-mail at <JOBS@MTU.EDU>. For a complete listing of available jobs, visit http://www.admin.mtu.edu/hro/postings/index.shtml
The following positions will be posted Friday, March 16, 2001, at 1:00 p.m. through noon, Friday, March 23, 2001, in the Human Resources Office.
Secretary N3--J. R. Van Pelt Library (Regular, nine-month position; thirty hours per week; UAW internal and external posting)
Operator/Dispatcher N4--Public Safety (Regular, part-time position, ten-forty hours per week; varied shifts, may include weekends and holidays; UAW internal and external posting)
Area Coordinator--Residence Life
University employees are reminded to apply in writing prior to noon, Friday, March 23, 2001, to be considered as internal candidates for bargaining unit positions only. Applicants from the recall pool will be given first consideration for non-bargaining-unit positions only. Vacancy announcements are normally posted every Friday at 1:00 p.m. in the Human Resources Office. Complete job descriptions are available in the Human Resources Office or by calling 487-2280. More information regarding employment opportunities is available by calling the Job Line at 487-2895. Michigan Technological University is an equal opportunity educational institution/equal opportunity employer.