April 22, 2009

CELEBRATING EARTH DAY—APRIL 22, 2009

In 1970, President Richard Nixon created the Environmental Protection Agency with a mission to protect the environment and public health; Congress amended the Clean Air Act to set national air quality, auto emission, and anti-pollution standards; and twenty million people celebrated the first Earth Day. Today, the U of U continues that 39-year tradition with an Earth Week Extravaganza (hotlink to http://www.sustainability.utah.edu/EarthWeekextravaganza2009.htm).

April 22 Earth Day happenings on campus:

• Of special significance is the groundbreaking for the James L. Sorenson Molecular Biotechnology Building—USTAR Innovation Center, the first of several new USTAR buildings to be built on campus. The event begins at 10:00 a.m. (see the following article in this issue for details). Commenting on this notable event, President Young says, “The operation of buildings on campus contributes to more than 75 percent of the U’s carbon footprint. High performance building construction and retrofitting provides the greatest opportunity to make a difference and reduce energy impacts. The new USTAR complex will lead the way.”

• In addition, an Earthfest celebration on the Olpin Union Plaza, from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., will feature music, food, and at least 20 retail vendors including Cactus and Tropicals, Meredith Frank (scarves made from kimonos), and Ten Thousand Villages. More than 30 information tables will highlight topics such as raising chickens in the backyard and living on less, as well as a climbing wall courtesy of the U.S. Military. A program at noon begins with a tree-planting in honor of Craig Forster, founding director of the Office of Sustainability, who passed away unexpectedly last year from a fall in Zion National Park. The program will conclude with the kickoff of the new UBIKE free rental program, this year’s senior class gift to campus.

• Earlier that day, from 7:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., at the V.R. Turpin University Services Building parking lot (South Campus Drive, immediately west of the Huntsman Center), you can recycle your electronic waste such as old radios, televisions, phones, computers. At that same location, from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., an open house will offer an opportunity to see the newly-remodeled (to LEED CI Gold certification) Turpin University Services Building. Then at 11:00 a.m. and again at 2:00 p.m., in Room 241, a short program will explain alternative energy production on campus followed by a guided tour to explore the U’s first campus photovoltaic (PV) solar array and new cogeneration turbine plant. Advance registration is required. Call (801) 581-6883.
  
  An additional event during Earth Week is a free day—thanks to Salt Lake County voters and Zoo, Arts & Parks (ZAP) Funds—at Red Butte Garden (hotlink to http://www.redbutte.utah.edu) on Friday, April 24, which is Arbor Day. A complete schedule of campus Earth Week events is online (hotlink to http://www.sustainability.utah.edu/EarthWeekextravaganza2009.htm).

 

USTAR #1 BREAKS GROUND
The James L. Sorenson Molecular Biotechnology Building
USTAR Innovation Center

The University of Utah is proud to be a leader in the basic research that advances the scientific understanding of climate change and seeks innovative solutions... This building will support the scientists who will solve the grand challenges of the day, enhancing lives while decreasing harm to the earth.

            —Michael K. Young

The groundbreaking ceremony for the James L. Sorenson Molecular Biotechnology Building—the first of a complex of USTAR (hotlink to http://www.ustar.utah.edu) buildings to be built on campus—will take place on Earth Day, Wednesday, April 22, at 10:00 a.m. on a section of the former golf course located near the northeast corner of Central Campus Drive and the recently-closed Federal Way (east of the Warnock Engineering Building). This structure marks the beginning of a new era of scientific discovery and technology commercialization at the University of Utah. When completed in the fall of 2011, it will be the centerpiece of a plan to bridge the health sciences and main campus in order to accelerate research at the interface of medicine, engineering, pharmacy, science, business, law, and digital media.

The 200,000 square-foot building will support 25 senior faculty and contain extensive wet lab and research computing space, a nanofabrication facility, and core laboratories for optical and small animal imaging. Architects for the project are Lord, Aeck & Sargent, with Salt Lake City’s Prescott Muir Architects. Layton Construction is the construction manager. The building is pursuing LEED Gold certification for energy efficiency from the U.S. Green Building Council. Funding for the building comes from the State of Utah through the USTAR Initiative, with $30 million in University and private funds, including $1.25 million from the Micron Technology Foundation and the cornerstone gift of $15 million from the Sorenson Legacy Foundation. The Sorenson Foundation gift has been recognized by naming the building to honor one of the nation’s foremost biomedical innovators—James L. Sorenson. Additional information about the USTAR initiative is online (hotlink to http://www.innovationutah.com).

A FEW QUESTIONS FOR ESTHER RASHKIN
Professor of French & Comparative Literary and Cultural Studies; Adjunct Professor of Modern Dance

•  What book should every person read and why?
Babette’s Feast  by Isak Dinesen (aka Karen Blixen) is a short story that speaks as eloquently as anything I’ve ever read about love, loss, and overcoming obstacles in life. It’s written with dry humor and a spare, crystalline style that is near perfection.

•  What building on campus do you think is the most interesting architecturally? 
The library renovation looks great and the Carolyn Tanner Irish Humanities Building has beautiful spaces and light.

•  If you could meet any notable person, who would it be and why? 
Sigmund Freud. His work is so often mocked—especially by those who’ve never read it or who have misread it. He certainly didn’t get it all right—far from it. But his ideas about the unconscious, repression, and talk therapy were truly groundbreaking.

•  Name a favorite local place to eat.
The Oasis Cafe: good food and a nice ambience for lunch.

•  What do you like most about your job?
I enjoy seeing students learn something new and think a different way, and I love learning from them. Those are the things that make teaching a pleasure.

•  List two of your favorite websites.
http://www.youtube.com/ is an incredible teaching tool with interviews, lectures, and performances by major figures in literature, film, music, and critical theory.

http://jt.france2.fr/20h/ The French television channel france2.fr gives me nightly news and a very different perspective on U.S. and world events.

•  Will a liberal arts education remain relevant to students in our increasingly technological society?
We must make sure it does by exposing students to the richness of literature, history, philosophy, and the fine arts, and by helping them appreciate how the questions these disciplines raise are central to what makes us human and to our capacity to find pleasure and purpose in our lives.

•  What reading material is on your bedside table?
I read magazines— Newsweek, The New York Times Magazine, The American Psychoanalyst—rather than books, and I catch up on films I’ve missed. Stacked and waiting are Sidney Pollack’s Sketches of Frank Gehry, Vincent Paronnaud’s Persepolis, and Gary Hustwit’s Helvetica.

•  If politicians had to pass an exam before they were allowed to serve in public office, what question would you add to the test? 
What does being “human” mean to you?

•  What is one thing you would like to ask people to do to change the world for the better? 
Do something to help the underserved or disenfranchised.

•  Among the complex moral and political issues that affect humanity, which do you believe will never be resolved and why? 
Greed, as the financial meltdown has made clear, is as intractable a problem as any. There will always be some driven by an excessive desire for more than they could ever eat, spend, or wield.

•  What’s the best advice you ever got? 
A ski instructor once told me, as we looked down a pretty steep slope (steep for me, at least), to “just take it one turn at a time.”  That’s pretty good advice for life, too.

PROPOSALS GET A GREEN LIGHT FROM THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

• College of Architecture + Planning kicks it up a notch

A proposal to establish a Ph.D. in metropolitan planning, policy, and design, and a corresponding Metropolitan Research Center in the College of Architecture + Planning has received final approval from the Board of Trustees. The proposal completes the strategic plan of the college to have an integrated suite of undergraduate, masters, and doctoral degree opportunities facilitated by a metropolitan research center—all of which are interdisciplinary and involve several departments and colleges throughout the University. The plan includes hiring among the nation’s pre-eminent scholars in planning, and investing in new facilities, hiring support staff, and committing resources to the doctoral effort—all of which have been completed.

 

• Joint graduate degrees in engineering and business approved

A proposal for five joint master’s degrees that combine the M.S. in engineering degree with the MBA awarded by the David Eccles School of Business has been approved by the Trustees. The College of Engineering departments involved in this initiative are Bioengineering, School of Computing, Chemical Engineering, Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering. The joint graduate degrees offer students an opportunity to immerse themselves more fully in the experience of innovation and entrepreneurship. The proposal does not establish a new degree but rather allows coordination of the MBA and MS curricula so students earn both degrees simultaneously.

PRESIDENT OBAMA NAMES U ALUM LARRY ECHOHAWK AS ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR INDIAN AFFAIRS

President Barack Obama has nominated U of U alumnus Larry EchoHawk to head the Bureau of Indian Affairs, making him the first Utahn to join the administration’s senior ranks. EchoHawk, a member of the Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma, received his J.D. degree in 1973 from the U of U. He was the first American Indian elected to a constitutional statewide office, serving as attorney general of Idaho from 1991 to 1995. EchoHawk teaches criminal law and federal Indian law at BYU and maintains a law practice in Pocatello, Idaho. If he gains Congressional approval, he will lead the bureau responsible for providing services to 1.7 million American Indians and Alaskan natives and for managing 66 million acres held in trust by the United States for tribes.

KUDOS

• James Agutter receives Honors Professorship for 2009-2010
  

  Congratulations to James Agutter, an assistant research professor of architecture, who has received the Honors Professorship for the 2009-2010 academic year. With Ken Johnson (anesthesiology) and Lee Elington (College of Nursing), he will teach an Honors course titled Empathetic Innovation in Medicine: A Focus on the Patient as a Satisfied Customer. The course will address contemporary issues such as interdisciplinary collaboration, communication of complex health information, and “design thinking” approaches that encourage creative problem solving. Students will visit the hospital, shadow the patients, and propose strategies to help alleviate anxiety by using educational materials, enhanced communication techniques, and environmental considerations, among other methods.

 

• Equity and Diversity Awards announced
  

  Congratulations to the following faculty who have been selected this year’s recipients of the Equity and Diversity Awards, recognizing program and people who have demonstrated sustained excellence in fostering leadership and commitment to enhance equity and diversity for students, staff, and faculty at the U of U.

  Dr. Caitlin Cahill, Assistant Professor
  City & Metropolitan Planning, College of Architecture-Planning
  

  Dr. Jannah J. Hurn Mather, Dean and Professor
  College of Social Work 
  

  Ms. Aretha M. Minor. Program Manager
  Utah College Advising Corps, Continuing Education
  

  Ms. Deidre Hughes Schoenfeld, Program Coordinator
  Outreach & Diversity, College of Engineering

You can read more about the accomplishments of your colleagues at Recognizing U (hotlink to http://unews.utah.edu/?action=recognizingU).

EASING THE FLOW
U of U requests left turn signal on North Campus Drive

To mitigate the increased congestion of westbound traffic on North Campus Drive at the intersection of Central Campus Drive—due to the recent closure of Federal Way—the U of U has asked the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) to consider installing a left-turn signal to improve the flow of traffic making left turns southbound onto Central Campus Drive. UDOT needs to document the traffic flow at the intersection before it can install a signal, and because it manages studies for the entire state, the list of requests is long. Once the study begins, it will take approximately six to eight weeks to finish.

            —From an article by Isabella Bravo in the Daily Utah Chronicle, April 16, 2009

CAMPUS—CITY CONNECTIONS

• Demolition of historic reservoir on 1300 East to temporarily increase campus truck traffic
  The empty reservoir located under the crumbling tennis courts on the corner of 1300 East and 100 South in Salt Lake City’s Reservoir Park will be removed this summer. No longer needed for water storage, the 20-foot high concrete vault built into the hillside in 1901 will be filled in, leveled, and landscaped. Some 3,000 truckloads of dirt will be required to fill in the reservoir. And since the U of U needs to remove a fair amount of dirt from the site of the new USTAR Innovation Center being built on the former U golf course, the two hauling jobs will be combined. The U’s contractor, Layton Construction, will truck the dirt from the USTAR building construction site, south along Wasatch Drive, down Foothill Drive and 500 South to 1300 East, and then north to the reservoir. The project will close down about 100 feet of Reservoir Park’s southern end. Work is likely to begin in July and take a few months to complete. A public open house to discuss the project will be held Thursday, April 23, from 4:30 to 6:00 p.m. in the City & County Building. For more information check online (hotlink to http://www.slcgov.com/utilities/1300EReservoir.htm), contact Bob Sperling, (hotlink to Robert.sperling@slcgov.com) project manager for the city, or call (801) 483-6888.
  
  NOTE: The 108-year-old reservoir has been empty for years due to deterioration of its roof, which is the surface of the now-closed tennis courts. Originally an open-water reservoir, it was covered over with tennis courts in the early 1960s. The historic wall along 1300 East, built in 1914, will be preserved.

• U of U assists with Fisher Mansion project
  As one of several in-kind services donated to complete an Historic Structures Report/Conditions Assessment on the old Fisher Mansion, a significant 1893 home located on Salt Lake City’s west side and recently purchased by the city, Robert Young, an associate professor in the College of Architecture + Planning, and a team of five of his students, including Sara Staffanson, Shalae Larsen, Paul Nielsen, Soonju Kwon, and Kent Brough, recently completed a preliminary Historic Structures Report. “I thank our community partners—the Salt Lake City Planning Department and the Salt Lake Solutions Task Force—for the opportunity to participate in efforts to rehabilitate the Fisher Mansion,” says Young. The building will be renovated for community use.

• Attention bike riders
  Mayor Ralph Becker and City Council member Luke Garrott, who is also a U of U assistant professor of political science, will host the 2009 Salt Lake City Bike Summit on Saturday, May 2, from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the City Library. Join the discussion on how to make the city a great place for bicyclists. Workshop topics include bicycle infrastructure, education enforcement, and economic development. The public is invited to participate and share their ideas. To register or for more information, contact Nick Tarbet (hotlink to nick.tarbet@slcgov.com) or call (801) 535-7603. Registration deadline is Friday, April 24.
  
  

BODY & SOUL

• TIP OF THE DAY

Are you stressed? Get moving! We all have stress in our lives. Stressful situations can be either good (going on a vacation) or bad (having more bills than money), but what's really important is how we manage ourselves in stressful situations. One of the best ways to relieve stress is to move your body.
           —Brought to you by Peak Academy (hotlink to http://www.health.utah.edu/peak/) in the College of Health

• WALK OF THE WEEK

The Eastern Redbud trees located on the gentle slope of grass just south of the Aline Skaggs Biology Building (south of the Park Building) are a real treat with burled flowers growing on their trunks. If you work in that area of campus—or even if you don’t—it’s worth the walk to check them out. Once at the south side of the Skaggs building, walk up the slope to see the trees—a sure sign of spring.

 

STUDY PARTICIPANTS WANTED

• Back pain study
  The Department of Psychology is conducting an IRB-approved study of couples coping with chronic back pain to better understand how both members of a couple view pain problems and react to the challenges posed by chronic pain. They are looking for couples over the age of 35 where one member of the couple has experienced chronic back pain for over one year. Criteria for eligibility include heterosexual couples married or living together for more than five years, no diagnoses of autoimmune disease or fibromyalgia, and back pain must be the primary source of pain. Participation involves a brief telephone screening to determine eligibility. If eligible, both spouses would be sent questionnaires by mail to complete. All study questions are asked by phone or through mailed questionnaires, so no travel to campus is necessary. Monetary compensation for your time will be provided. For additional information, contact Michelle Skinner (hotlink to michelle.skinner@psych.utah.edu) or call (801) 585-5094 or (801) 809-7375.

• Bipolar disorder study
  The Department of Psychiatry is looking for participants for an IRB-approved neuroimaging study of bipolar disorder. Do you have excessively high and low mood swings? Have you been diagnosed with bipolar or think you might have this condition? Eligible participants must be male, age 21-65, and not currently taking psychiatric medication. Eligible participants will receive a complete psychiatric evaluation at no charge to determine if their mood swings are bipolar disorder. This study does not involve treatment. Compensation will be provided. To enroll or for more information, contact Cheryl Garn (hotlink to Cheryl.garn@va.gov) or call (801) 582-1565, ext. 2759.

• Brain imaging study
  The Department of Psychiatry is looking for participants for an IRB-approved brain and aging study. Eligible participants must be female, right-handed, and ages 18-22, 25-35, or 65-75. The purpose of the study is to examine how the brain changes in response to aging. Participants will complete a study evaluation and one magnetic resonance imaging scan. Compensation will be provided. Contact Cheryl Garn (hotlink to Cheryl.garn@va.gov) or call (801) 582-1565, ext. 2759 to enroll or for more information.
  
  

UPCOMING ON CAMPUS

All campus events are listed in the U’s online events calendar (hotlink to http://www.events.utah.edu)—are yours? If not, contact Lisa Westlind (hotlink to calendar@ucomm.utah.edu) or call (801) 581-5819.

 

•  EARTH WEEK EXTRAVAGANZA
Now through April 24
Campuswide
A complete listing of events is online (hotlink to http://www.sustainability.utah.edu/EarthWeekextravaganza2009.htm).

 

•  NO SALES TAX ON APPLES
Wednesday, April 22, 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Campus Store
Faculty and staff save the tax on all Apple products on this day including computers, monitors, Apple software, iPods, AppleCare, and Apple accessories. Free lunch is served from 12 noon to 2:00 p.m. A special campus shuttle will run between the Moran Eye Center and the University Campus Store every 15 minutes between 11:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. Additional information is online (hotlink to http://www.info.campusstore.utah.edu/tvcontent/appleTF_4_22_09.jpg).

 

•  COMMUNITY FORUM MEETING
Thursday, April 23, 4:30 p.m.
Art & Architecture Building (east wing), Faculty Commons Room (Up the stairs to the left)
Community Forum meetings offer an opportunity for the campus community and neighbors of the U to discuss issues of mutual interest. This meeting’s agenda includes updates on the Utah Museum of Natural History and the Universe Project; circulation impacts from new projects; a report from Salt Lake City; and a review of questions from neighbors.

 

• FROM SILENT SPRING TO SILENT NIGHT—FROGS AS CANARIES
With Tyrone Hayes, U.C. Berkeley
Thursday, April 23, 7:00 p.m.
City Library Auditorium
Hayes, a 2004 National Geographic Emerging Explorer, will present his research on the adverse effects of pesticides on frogs and humans. Additional information is online (hotlink to http://www.umnh.utah.edu).

 

• CELEBRATE ARBOR DAY AT RED BUTTE GARDEN
Friday, April 24, 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Red Butte Garden & Arboretum
Free Admission Day
Trees are terrific—in cities and towns—and there’s no better place than Red Butte Garden to celebrate Arbor Day. As Utah’s very own arboretum, Red Butte invites everyone to share the wonderful world of trees. Come for a day of activities and interactive exploration stations throughout the garden. All participants leave with a tree to take home—and it’s a free admission day, thanks to Salt Lake County voters and Zoo, Arts, and Parks (ZAP) funds. More information is online (hotlink to http://www.redbuttegarden.org).

 

•  ARCHITECTURE STUDENT PROJECTS ON DISPLAY
Friday, April 24, 6:00 – 9:00 p.m.
Jon M. Huntsman Center (use door No. 4 at the northeast entrance)
The College of Architecture + Planning will display studio projects along the main concourse by its Master of Architecture students, and will present its annual scholarship at 7:00 p.m.

 

•  SCHOOL OF MEDICINE’S 4TH STREET CLINIC TRIATHLON/5K RUN
Saturday, April 25, 7:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon
Starts at HPER Complex
Looking for a spectacular race to get you ready for the season? Have you always wanted to participate in a triathlon but need to start with a beginner’s course? Do you like that warm fuzzy feeling that comes from helping out a worthy charity? Look no further. The Fourth Street Clinic Triathlon, run by volunteers from the School of Medicine will benefit the Fourth Street Homeless Clinic. For more information, check online (hotlink to http://fourthstreetclinic.org/events_5KTriathlon.php) or contact Rusty Walker (hotlink to 4thstreetrace@gmail.com).

BULLETIN BOARD

•  FYI CONTINUES THROUGHOUT THE SUMMER
FYI News usually takes a vacation during the summer months but we’ve decided to publish on June 3 and July 8, so if you have any news to share with campus, send it to FYI (hotlink to fyi@ucomm.utah.edu).

•  PIERRE LASSONDE HOUSE NOW AVAILABLE FOR RENT
The main floor of the newly-restored Pierre Lassonde House located on Fort Douglas Boulevard across the street from the Guest House is now available to rent—by the campus community as well as by private groups—through the Guest House Conference Services Office. Two small parlors hold 25 to 45 people for conferences, retreats, receptions, and small weddings. The board room, with its unique board table made from the original front door of the Civil War-era home, is perfect for quiet business settings of 10 to 15 people. There is a catering kitchen in the basement with an outside entrance, and parking is available across the street at the Fort Douglas Officer’s Club. Originally built in 1875-76, the Lassonde House is home to the executive offices of the U’s entrepreneurial programs and the Lassonde New Venture Development Center, both within the David Eccles School of Business. (Those offices are located on the second floor.) For more information or to schedule a room, contact the Guest House Conference Services Office (hotlink to www.universityguesthouse.com/Conference-Facilities) or call (801) 587-2980.

•  RED BUTTE GARDEN ANNOUNCES SUMMER CONCERT LINE-UP
Check out Red Butte’s summer concert lineup—another great season of plein air music!

May 31	Neko Case
June 4	Etta James & the Roots Band
June 14	Femi Kuti with Bela Fleck and Toumani Diabete
June 19	Smokey Robinson
June 21	David Byrne
July 7	Indigo Girls
July 13	Death Cab for Cutie with Andrew Bird and Ra Ra Riot
July 19	The Wallflowers
July 31	Diana Krall
Aug. 4	Chicago
Aug. 14	Chris Isaak
Aug. 19	Los Lobos Y Los Lonely Boys
Aug. 25	The Avett Brothers
Sept. 1	Bonnie Raitt & Taj Mahal
Sept. 3	Booker T. & The Drive-By Truckers

Tickets went on sale to Red Butte Garden members April 20 and will be available to the public May 4. More information is online (hotlink to http://www.redbuttegarden.org) or call (801) 585-0556.

•  DONATE YOUR BOOKS, DVDS, CDS, AND VIDEOS
As you clean out your office this spring, consider donating any used books, videos/DVDs, and CDs to the Marriott Library’s Gifts department, located in the Archives Building at 666 South Guardsman Way (across from Steiner Aquatic Center). Your gift could become part of the library's permanent collection or help stock the book sale project (proceeds go toward new acquisitions for the library). Donations may be left Monday, Wednesday or Friday, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. For additional information, contact Scott Wood (hotlink to scott.wood@utah.edu) or call (801) 581-7526.

 

•  FITNESS PLAN FITS INTO WORK SCHEDULES
PEAK Academy offers a variety of classes to faculty and staff including aquatone, circuit training, indoor cycling, pilates, martial arts, total body fitness, triathlon training, walking for fitness, weight training and yoga. These classes are inexpensive, fun, and open to participants of all experience and fitness levels. For online registration or more information, check out PEAK online (hotlink to http://www.health.utah.edu/peak) or call (801) 585-7325.

 

FYI Mystery Photo Contest

FYI Mystery Photo

Where is this? Send your answer (be specific) to FYI@ucomm.utah.edu by 5 p.m. on Monday, Apr. 27 for a chance to win two tickets to see the mesmerizing and sophisticated French-Canadian circus troupe, Cirque Eloize—Nebbia at Kingsbury Hall on Saturday, May 2, courtesy of Kingsbury Hall. The winner will be randomly selected from the pool of those submitting the correct answer and will be listed in the May 6 FYI News.

Thanks to Kingsbury Hall for providing the prize!

Note: This contest is open to U of U faculty and staff only.

Last issue’s FYI Mystery Photo Contest answer Apr. 8 Mystery Photo Click on photo for larger image The Apr. 8 FYI Mystery Photo shows the Orthopaedic Center in Research Park. Congratulations to Daniel Smith, winner of the April 8, 2009, FYI Mystery Photo Contest! Daniel was randomly selected from the pool of 77 contestants who sent in the correct answer. He has been employed at the U for six years and works with the University of Utah Medical Groups as a project facilitator for their clinical operations. Daniel received two passes to Red Butte Garden, courtesy of the Garden. A big thanks to Red Butte Garden for contributing the prize! And thanks to everyone who participated in the contest. We invite you to try your luck again with the May 6 FYI News.