By Gail Hairston

(March 24, 2015) — University of Kentucky College of Arts and Sciences Year of the Middle East has scheduled three events this week. They are:

“The Arab Spring: The Youth Revolts of the Arab World Aren't Over” with Juan Cole

Tuesday, March 24, 7 p.m.

UK Athletics Association Auditorium, William T. Young Library

The youth revolts of 2011 and after in the Arab world have permanently changed the face of the region. While most observers have mainly interpreted them through the lens of high politics, this lecture argues that the big story here is the rise of a new generation of young Arabs, the Millennials, who have innovated in grassroots organization (including, but not limited to new ways of using social media for politics). It is too soon to know how the political struggles that they initiated will end, but

By Gail Hairston

(March 24, 2015) — Filmmakers Beth Stephens and Annie Sprinkle visit the University of Kentucky today, Tuesday, March 24, to screen and discuss their film “Goodbye Gauley Mountain: An Ecosexual Love Story.”

In a news release about the film, Stephens stated, “MTR (mountaintop renewal) must be stopped in order to ensure a future that includes clean air and water, as well as social justice. Our activist strategy is to switch the metaphor from ‘Earth as mother’ to ‘Earth as lover’ to garner more love and empathy for the mountains. It will take time, but we’ll get there.”

The free event is slated at 2 p.m. today, in the auditorium of William T. Young Library. It is co-sponsored by UK College of Arts and Sciences, American Studies Department,

By Kathy Johnson

(March 20, 2015) — As the 45th anniversary of Earth Day approaches, the newly formed Bluegrass Earth coalition is inviting the public to celebrate sustainability in Lexington throughout March and April.

Bluegrass Earth was initiated by WUKY’s General Manager Tom Godell to bring together environmental groups in Central Kentucky. WUKY is the University of Kentucky's NPR station.

“Having long been a strong advocate of sustainability issues, I saw a need for environmental groups to come together under one umbrella so that they could share resources and have a greater impact with their outreach, education and events,” Godell said.

Bluegrass Earth is promoting multiple events to celebrate environmental sustainability around Earth Day, which is April 22. The first event is the launch

 By Kathy Johnson

(March 20, 2015) — WUKY's "UK Perspectives" focuses on the people and programs of the University of Kentucky and is hosted by WUKY General Manager Tom Godell.  Today he talks to Molly Davis, director of The Arboretum, about the upcoming 2015 Party for the Planet.  The complete schedule of Party for the Planet events is available at http://www2.ca.uky.edu/arboretum/calendar_events.php.

To listen to the podcast interview from which "UK Perspectives" is produced, visit http://wuky.org/post/party-planet.

"UK Perspectives" airs at 8:45 a.m. and 5:45 p.m. each Friday on WUKY 91.3, UK's NPR station.

By Whitney Harder

(March 20, 2015) — Adib Bagh, assistant professor in the departments of mathematics and economics at the University of Kentucky, was recently quoted in a March 16 Wall Street Journal article examining office bracket pools for the NCAA men's basketball tournament.  

Bagh teaches Introduction to Game Theory at UK and applied his expertise to NCAA tournament brackets, saying, “If you really believe that everyone else is following the same rule of thumb…then you have an incentive to deviate from that rule of thumb.”

Even as a game theorist, knowing he could win

By Guy Spriggs

Concussions and brain injury have become topics of social concern in response to controversies involving sports – namely the National Football League. But Tanea Reed, who earned her doctorate from the Department of Chemistry in the College of Arts & Sciences at the University of Kentucky, has been researching therapeutic interventions in traumatic brain injury since long before concussions became matters of public concern.

While Reed’s research predates popular interest in issues related to traumatic brain injury, she says her interest in this field is a direct result of her time spent working on her doctorate at UK – specifically

By Mike Lynch

(March 19, 2015) — As the anniversary of the most fatal landslide in the history of the continental United States approaches, we are reminded of the importance of evaluating geologic hazards and communicating that information to communities that may be at risk. The Oso landslide occurred March 22, 2014, wiping out a small community near Oso, Washington, and killing 43 people.

"This tragic event can be used to increase awareness, improve communication, and formulate better policy for people living in high hazard areas," said Matt Crawford of the Kentucky Geological Survey at the University of Kentucky

According to the U.S. Geological Survey, landslides occur in all 50 states, causing $

By Lydia Whitman

(March 12, 2015)   The University of Kentucky Gaines Center for the Humanities has chosen 12 outstanding undergraduates as new scholars for the university's Gaines Fellowship Program for the 2015-2016 and 2016-2017 academic years. Gaines Fellowships are given in recognition of outstanding academic performance, demonstrated ability to conduct independent research, an interest in public issues and a desire to enhance understanding of the human condition through the humanities.

Gaines Fellowships are awarded for the tenure of a student's junior and senior years, or for the last two years of a five-year program; students in all disciplines and with any intended

By Gail Hairston

(March 11, 2015) — Excerpts from Doug Slaymaker’s translation of Furukawa Hideo’s latest book “Horses, Horses, in the Innocence of Light” will be published on the online journal Words Without Borders today and Thursday.

The publication is in commemoration of the 3.11 earthquake/tsunami/meltdown disasters four years ago today. The book is the account of how one man, one nation endured an unbearable tragedy. Written in reverse chronology, it begins exactly one month after the magnitude 9 underwater earthquake spawned deadly tsunamis and a nuclear power plant meltdown. It is the distillation of a witness’s narrative of a disaster that killed nearly 16,000, moved the main island of Japan eight feet eastward, and shifted the Earth on its axis as much as 10 inches.

By Whitney Harder

(March 10, 2015) — Showcasing undergraduate research in the chemical sciences from across the Commonwealth and surrounding states, the University of Kentucky Department of Chemistry will hold its annual Regional Poster Competition Friday, April 17, in combination with its annual Lyle Dawson Lecture, and is accepting submissions for abstracts for the competition until April 10.

The competition, which does not require a registration fee, provides an opportunity for undergraduates to share their chemistry research, network with other undergraduate researchers in the region, and compete for monetary prizes.

First

By Dorothy Freeman, Clark Bellar

(March 9, 2015) — The Art Museum at the University of Kentucky is hosting "Looking for Light: Chemistry, Art, Story, and Song," the third annual event of the Math, Arts, and Sciences Coalition (M.A.S.C.). This free public event will take place at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 12, at the museum in the Singletary Center for the Arts, with a reception to follow.

The event explores the idea of interconnectedness between the arts and sciences and features a collaborative mixed media performance by vocalist and UK doctoral student Shareese Arnold, Lexington-based artist

By Gail Hairston and Doug Slaymaker

(March 6, 2015) — The University of Kentucky Japan Studies Program presents the documentary 『ほんとうの歌』 ("True Songs") March 11. The event coincides with the fourth anniversary of the 2011 earthquake/tsunami/nuclear power plant meltdown in Northern Japan.

The documentary will be screened with free admission at 7-9 p.m. Wednesday at the Kentucky Theatre on Main Street, downtown Lexington. 

“True Songs” follows the performances of a dramatic reading of the late Kenji Miyazawa’s “Milky Way Railroad” by several of Japan’s outstanding artists. These include the novelist

By Kathy Johnson

(March 6, 2015) — WUKY's "UK Perspectives" focuses on the people and programs of the University of Kentucky and is hosted by WUKY General Manager Tom Godell.  Today's program explores the STEAM Academy, the unique collaboration between UK and the Fayette County Public Schools.  Godell's guests are STEAM Academy Director Tina Stevenson and UK College of Education Associate Professor Justin Bathon.

To listen to the podcast interview from which "UK Perspectives" is produced, visit http://wuky.org/post/future-steam.

"UK Perspectives" airs at 8:45 a.m. and 5:45 p.m. each Friday on WUKY 91.3, UK's NPR station.

By Gail Hairston

(March 4, 2015) — You, too, can be a STAR, a star student, star leader, star innovator.

The deadline is March 9 for undergraduates to apply to STAR, the University of Kentucky’s Summer Training in Alcohol Research program. Students can study alcohol‐related disorders like alcoholism, fetal alcohol syndrome, cancer, family relationship dynamics, medications development and risk factors.

An innovative grant from the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) funds the UK program that both advances research of alcohol abuse, but also trains tomorrow's problem solvers.

UK

By Deb Weis

(March 4, 2015) — University of Kentucky architecture graduate student Mark Manczyk won the UK Venture Challenge and a $1,500 scholarship with his business idea, "re.3." Second place and $1,000 went to Phillip Gordon with "Nomad Apparel." The "FinanceU" team of Michael Lewis and TJ Barnett won third place and $500. UK

Venture Challenge was held last Saturday, Feb. 28, at the William T. Young Library UKAA Auditorium.

“Congratulations to all of the students who participated in UK Venture Challenge,” said University of Kentucky President Eli Capilouto. “This competition provides students the opportunity to be creative, innovative and entrepreneurial, which is an important part of their educational experience.”

Mark Manczyk, a first-year graduate student in the Masters of Architecture program, said “'re.3' will

By Kathy Johnson, Gail Bennett

(March 2, 2015) — Today, Monday, March 2, WUKY will broadcast a recording of the induction ceremony of the Kentucky Writers Hall of Fame and comments by renowned writer Wendell Berry, the first living writer to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.  On January 28, Berry was honored as well as gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson (1937-2005), University of Kentucky Professor Guy Davenport (1927-2005), Affrilachian poet Effie Waller Smith (1879-1960), New York Review of Books co-founder Elizabeth Hardwick (1916-2007) and Western Kentucky University Professor Jim Wayne Miller (1936 -1996).

The recording of the event will air at 7 p.m. today on WUKY 91.3, the University

By Whitney Harder

(March 2, 2015) — Three University of Kentucky Army ROTC alumni and community leaders were honored last week with induction into the UK Army ROTC Wall of Fame. Inductees included  Lt. Col. (retired) Keith Jackson, Lexington Division of Fire and Emergency Services chief; attorney Pierce Hamblin; and Maj. (retired) Marty Pinkston.  

At the UK Army ROTC annual Mentorship Breakfast Thursday, Feb. 26, cadets, UK Army ROTC leadership and guests gathered to praise the men for their contributions in the United States Army and to the UK community. Inductees also shared their experiences as soldiers and UK Army ROTC cadets, and offered words of wisdom to current cadets.  

"They served during their military career with confidence, commitment and

By Clark Bellar

(March 2, 2015) — On March 3, the Confucius Institute at the University of Kentucky and the Department of English will host a talk by Eugenia Zuroski Jenkins, titled "How Chinese Things Became Oriental." The presentation will begin at 3 p.m. Tuesday, in the Niles Gallery of the Lucille Caudill Little Fine Arts Library and Learning Center.

Following the presentation, there will be a Q&A session as well as refreshments.

Jenkins is an associate

By Whitney Harder

(March 2, 2015) — Many agree that an environment can shape the learner, and in a field like mathematics, an environment that fosters active learning and engaged teaching with no appointment necessary may be the key to success for some students. That environment has been on the University of Kentucky campus in some capacity for many years, but was recently upgraded for present-day students in math courses; encouraging them to take a seat, or move around with mobile workspaces; raise their hand for a tutor, or work on their own; open their laptops, or write on one of many chalkboards.

With new renovations completed over the winter break, the UK Mathskeller is ready to unveil those and other features at an open house from 3-4:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 4, (

By Whitney Harder

(March 2, 2015) — Featuring world-renowned scientists, the University of Kentucky’s 2015 Naff Symposium will host three prize-winning chemistry experts Friday, March 6, at the William T. Young Library's UK Athletics Auditorium. A poster session will be held in conjunction with the symposium in Room B108C at William T. Young Library.

Presented by the Department of Chemistry in the UK College of Arts and Sciences, the chemistry and molecular biology symposium is interdisciplinary in nature, and is attended by students and faculty in the chemistry, biochemistry, biology, pharmacy, engineering, agriculture and medical fields from UK, as well as other colleges and universities in Kentucky and surrounding states.

The symposium was established in honor of