2009-04-01
- A person’s unconscious attitudes toward science and God may be fundamentally opposed, researchers report, depending on how religion and science are used to answer “ultimate” questions such as how the universe began or the origin of life.
What’s more, those views can be manipulated, the researchers found. After using science or God to explain such important questions, most people display a...
2009-04-01 - Is the communication in your relationship a little frosty? It may be that the little things you’re not doing in daily routines are playing a part, says LAS researcher Leanne Knobloch. Things like forgetting to walk the dog or fuel the car or take out the trash. Disruptions you cause in your partner’s routines can affect the quality of conversation, which is separate from your general...
2009-04-01 - A team of 24 researchers from the U.S., Europe, Taiwan, and Japan, and led by University of Illinois scientists, has engineered a new anti-cancer agent that is about 200 times more active in killing tumor cells than similar drugs used in recent clinical trials.The new agent belongs to a class of drugs called bisphosphonates. These compounds were originally developed to treat osteoporosis and...
2009-04-01 - During college Michael Newbill developed a fondness for the dynamic cultures of South Asia that never quit. The question was how to make a career of it. The answer was the State Department.Newbill, 36, is a diplomat at the U.S. consulate in Mumbai, India, where he serves as chief of political and economic affairs. Cast aside any preconceived notions of a diplomat’s life; Newbill has done...
2009-04-01 - The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences gratefully acknowledges the following individuals for their excellence in teaching and advising in 2009. Their contributions are vital to maintaining LAS as a great college.Recognition of the LAS Teaching Academy Reflective Teaching Seminar Professor Alison Anders, Geology Professor Alison Bell, Animal Biology Professor Patrick Bray, French Professor Lisa...
2009-04-01 - David Clayton is not actually a bird watcher—a bird listener is more like it. Back in 1992, this LAS researcher discovered that when a zebra finch songbird hears a new song from a male of the same species, it triggers a specific gene in the brain. This was one of the earliest discoveries showing that social interactions can turn genes on and off in the brain. Now, for the first time, the “singing...
2009-04-01 - A junior majoring in chemistry was one of only two University of Illinois students to win a prestigious Barry M. Goldwater scholarship for the 2009-2010 academic year. The award will help Anthony Mazzotti, of Taylorville, Ill., finish undergraduate studies in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences before attending graduate school. The Barry M....
2009-04-01 - It’s possible that air traffic controllers are being put out to pasture sooner than necessary, according to new findings from LAS psychology professor Arthur Kramer. Because of the intensity of their jobs, air traffic controllers in the United States are required to retire at age 56. But this poses problems because most of the 14,800 air traffic...
2009-04-01 - By Vernon Burton Dr. Burton is a professor emeritus of history, sociology, and African American studies at U of I and is the author of Age of Lincoln. Abraham Lincoln proclaimed early in 1865 that the Emancipation Proclamation was “the central act of my administration and the great event of the 19th...
2009-04-01 - The students in Urbana High School’s math club were challenged in early April to do something they probably hadn’t done since first or second grade. They did coloring. However, this coloring task was being led by an eminent LAS mathematician, Wolfgang Haken, and it involved one of the most famous math problems in history—the four-color theorem. In its...
2009-03-01 - When Don Quixote mistook a windmill for a giant in the famous Spanish tale, he was facing the kind of quaint structure you see in postcards. But today’s windmills are true giants, with turbines reaching heights of 100 meters (328 feet), not counting their 100-meter-diameter rotor blades. When windmill turbines this big are clustered in massive groupings, they can affect temperature and humidity,...
2009-03-01 - A few years ago, Maj. Gen. Edward Giller (Ret.) would have been surprised to see even a color photograph of one of his old World War II fighter planes, much less a magazine photo of one in flight more than 60 years after the war. A couple months ago, however, Warbird Digest published a recent photo of a P-51D buzzing along with his identification letters. It was the same color, and, true...
2009-03-01 - By Vernon Burton Dr. Burton is a professor emeritus of history, sociology, and African American studies at U of I and is the author of Age of Lincoln.When Stephen A. Douglas learned that Lincoln would be his opponent for the U.S. Senate in 1858, he turned his considerable talents into discrediting him,...
2009-03-01 - As Brazil emerges as one of the world’s largest, most vibrant economies, University of Illinois is staging its own emergence—as home to one of the most comprehensive programs dedicated to understanding this new powerhouse.With a $14 million gift from Jorge Paulo Lemann and family, of Jona, Switzerland, and Sao Paulo, Brazil, U of I will become home to the new Lemann Institute of Brazilian Studies...
2009-03-01 - Wary of fading memories, a history professor studied World War II-era diaries and letters to learn what Germany was thinking during one of humankind’s darkest eras. He found deep insecurity that he believes enabled the Holocaust even as most Germans opposed it. Thanks to avid and detailed writers—and archives where their words were “hidden in plain sight...
2009-03-01 - When it comes to the hippocampus, a brain structure vital to certain types of memory, size matters. Numerous studies have shown that bigger is usually better. Now researchers have found that elderly adults who are more physically fit tend to have bigger hippocampi and better spatial memory than those who are less fit.The study, in the journal Hippocampus, shows that hippocampus size in...
2009-03-01 - Immigrants whittle into a broad earnings gap with American-born workers only about half as fast as long-accepted estimates suggest, according to new research by a University of Illinois economist. Darren Lubotsky says immigrants’ typically low starting wages grow just 10 to 15 percent faster than native-born workers over their first 20 years in the...
2009-03-01 - When it comes time for the spotlight, Penelope Soskin prefers a low profile, joking that fortunately she’s a better advocate for students than herself. After years of thoughtful influence on the college’s honors programs, however, Soskin’s contributions have been brought to light by none other than her students. Soskin, senior assistant dean and director of honors, scholarships, and experiential...
2009-03-01 - Converting certain grasses to biofuels could do more to reduce greenhouse gas emissions than current methods using corn, according to a researcher in LAS. Perennial grasses such as switchgrass and Miscanthus are better than corn at preserving and increasing carbon stores in soil, which can influence carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere, according to Evan DeLucia, professor of...
2009-02-01 - A remote western Illinois field could someday yield tourists instead of crops, adding to the state’s legacy of racial equality that already includes Abraham Lincoln and the nation’s first black president. Once an integrated town that flourished decades before the Civil War broke the grip of slavery, the lost community’s potential as a heritage attraction got a boost last week when it was...
2009-02-01 - Those consumed—or burned—by love may find it no surprise that LAS psychologists say romance is even harder to understand than previously assumed. If you want to know where your relationship is headed, you might need more than a heart-to-heart conversation, according to a recent study. While someone’s mouth might say, “I’m smitten,” her body might be saying, “I’m smothered.” Sounds confusing? No...
2009-02-01 - Each year the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences recognizes a handful of staff members and academic professionals for their outstanding contributions to the college and service to others. These individuals, who were nominated by members of the campus community, demonstrate excellence and enhance the image of the college. Academic Professional Award Alison...-
2009-02-01 - A giant tarantula, the size of a house, has been unleashed on an unsuspecting desert community, the result of an experiment gone awry. Researchers are trying to figure out how to stop the rampaging arthropod when the female scientist suddenly blurts out what May Berenbaum describes as one of the most cringe-inducing lines in cinematic history: “Science is science, but a girl’s got to get her hair...
2009-02-01 - Many people these days wouldn’t trade their problems with the U.S. Federal Reserve’s for all the gold in its vaults, but the nation’s bank still offers an invaluable learning opportunity, as a team of LAS students discovered in the College Fed Challenge. It’s the first time a team from the University of Illinois has participated in the national contest, which started as a way to promote and...
2009-02-01 - When a professional pitcher hurls a 90-mile-per-hour fastball, the batter has roughly 450 milliseconds to swing, 300 of which are taken up looking at the ball, figuring out where it is heading, and deciding whether to swing. That gives a player about 150 milliseconds to actually swing the bat, which is why some pros exploit elementary chemistry principles to speed up their swing, says Jesse...