Purdue Today

To ensure you receive your Purdue Today e-mails,
please add purduetoday@purdue.edu to your address book.
Current issue is at https://www.purdue.edu/uns/PurdueToday/current.htm

News for faculty and staff

February 18, 2008

FACULTY NEWS

Annual Faculty Convocation is today

A faculty convocation will be at 3:30 p.m. today (Feb. 18) in Stewart Center, Rooms 302-306. President France A. Córdova will address the faculty.

CAMPUS NEWS

Purdue alumnus gives $2 million to engineering learning laboratory

**Stephen D. Bechtel Jr.**

Purdue will announce today (Feb. 18) that one of the country's leading engineers is giving $2 million to the University's Ideas to Innovation Learning Laboratory, which will be located in Neil Armstrong Hall of Engineering.

The award from Stephen D. Bechtel Jr., chairman emeritus of the Bechtel Group Inc. of San Francisco, will be used construct and equip the $4.3 million learning laboratory. The laboratory is a facility of the School of Engineering Education, which is housed in Neil Armstrong Hall. More

Purdue expands student security patrol, encourages text message signup

Purdue's police department, in response to a request from Purdue Student Government, announced Sunday (Feb. 17) that it will double its student security patrol staff by next fall. More

Liberal Arts will offer Asian American studies minor

Purdue's College of Liberal Arts will begin offering a new program and undergraduate minor in Asian American studies.

"Asian Americans represent the largest ethnic minority on Purdue's campus, with nearly 2,000 Asian-American students, so it seemed vital to develop an Asian-American studies minor," says Bich Minh Nguyen, an assistant professor of English who wrote the program's proposal in conjunction with Purdue's Council on Asian American Studies. More

GENERAL NEWS

Prof: Really listen to college students' reactions to NIU tragedy

Friends and family members of college students should provide a listening ear regarding students' fears and concerns about the Northern Illinois University tragedy, says a Purdue expert who studied how college students coped with 9/11.

"My research suggests that many college students are experiencing some degree of emotional distress as a consequence of the Northern Illinois University shootings," says Erina MacGeorge, an associate professor of communication who studies the role of comforting in relationships. "Even though there is geographic distance between other students and this university, there is still a great possibility for students to experience stress because they can relate to the campus environment. More

RESEARCH NEWS, SPECIAL REPORTS

Linguist tunes in to pitch processing in brain

**Jackson T. Gandour**

More of the brain is busy processing pitch from language and other sounds than previously thought, according to a researcher in neurophonetics at Purdue.

"By studying brain activity at different stages of processing pitch patterns in tonal languages, we have found that early activity in the brainstem is shaped by a person's language experience, even while the person is asleep, and consequently, we now believe it plays a much greater role in speech perception that we thought before," said linguistics professor Jackson T. Gandour. More

Policies key as ethanol 'revolution' links agriculture, energy sectors

The recent boom in production of ethanol from corn grain has tightly linked the agriculture and energy sectors in an unprecedented fashion.

Purdue researchers developed a model, based on a range of possible oil prices, that predicts impacts of federal economic policies on future consumer and government costs, ethanol production and many other aspects of the two sectors. More

PEOPLE

Purdue alum Ryan Newman Wins Daytona 500

For the second straight year, The Great American Race came down to the last lap. This time the drama rewarded Purdue alum Ryan Newman, who hadn't won in more than two years. More

Appointments and promotions

-- Nicholas Oyler will be the new regional director of development for Indianapolis effective March 3.
-- Alisha Kuckartz is the new assistant director of academic advising in the College of Liberal Arts.

Today's events

Here is a list of events happening Monday, Feb. 18, at the West Lafayette campus. More

Events this week

Here is a list of events happening Feb. 28-24 at the West Lafayette campus. More

Purdue to observe Disability Awareness Month in March

A March 4 reception honoring the 2008 Focus Award recipients is among several events sponsored by the Affirmative Action Office to observe Disability Awareness Month, which is recognized each March throughout Indiana.

Brandon Scott, a Purdue student who is a swimmer in training for the 2012 Paralympics, will speak at the reception, 10-11 a.m. in the Purdue Memorial Union West Faculty Lounge. Focus Award recipients will be honored for their contributions to the university's commitment to disability accessibility and diversity. More

Purdue to offer women's leadership conference March 1

A Purdue conference focusing on the achievements, challenges and working relationships that women face in leadership roles will be March 1 in Hillenbrand Residence Hall.

The Student Activities and Organizations area of the Office of the Dean of Students is sponsoring the ninth annual Women in Leadership Conference, which will run from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. It is open to all Purdue students. Registration is $15, which includes lunch and all conference materials. More

Purdue to host Latino Leadership Conference

More than 200 students from Indiana colleges and high schools are expected to come to Purdue's Latino Cultural Center on March 1 for the Latino Leadership Conference. More

How to submit items to Purdue Today

Problems? Contact Mike Willis, Purdue News Service, (765) 494-0371, jwillis1@purdue.edu

Purdue Today: (765) 494-2036; purduetoday@purdue.edu
University Periodicals