Campus Alert
September 28, 2024: VSU Closure Due to Severe Weather
Fall 2006
Myths & Truths about Biological EvolutionDr. Leslie Jones Hosting Dept: Biology |
Thursday, August 31, 2006 |
Health Physics and Medical Physics at the University of Florida – Academic Programs and Research ActivitiesDr. Bolch, the Director of Advanced Laboratory for Radiation Dosimetry Studies (ALRADS) Hosting Dept: Physics, Astronomy, Geosciences Abstract: The Department of Nuclear & Radiological Engineering at UF is host to three graduate programs at the MS and PhD level – nuclear engineering, health physics, and medical physics. The latter two will be highlighted in this presentation. Health physics is the study of engineering methods for assessment of radiation exposure risk and optimization of radiation personnel dose versus radiation source utilization. Medical physics entails the use of ionizing radiation for the diagnosis and treatment of cancer and other disease processes. Research activities to be highlighted include the (1) emergency medical assessment of contaminated victims following radiological terrorist events, (2) improved methods of assessing bone marrow dose in cancer treatment, and (3) patient-specific anatomical modeling for imaging and therapy of pediatric patients. |
Thursday, September 7, 2006 |
Mad In AmericaBob Whitaker Hosting Dept: English and Psychology Departments
Abstract: We like to think that our society has made great strides in treating the seriously mentally ill. But consider this: The World Health Organization has twice found that outcomes for people diagnosed with schizophrenia are much better in the poor countries of the world than in the U.S. and other rich countries. Why should that be so? A history of our country’s treatment of the mentally ill provides a disturbing—and surprising—answer to that question. This talk will focus on that history, and briefly address some of the difficulties in researching and writing Mad in America. |
Thursday, September 14, 2006 |
Riparian Buffer SystemsDr. Richard Lowrance Hosting Dept: Physics, Astronomy, and Geosciences Abstract: Historically, wetlands were managed to remove excess water as quickly as possible. The goal was to convert wetlands and wetland soils to non-wetland uses or to convert them to farmed wetlands. Wetland management has changed because of a scientific consensus that loss of wetlands adversely affected water quality, flood storage, and wildlife habitat. Today, although some wetland conversion and filling continues, non-farmed wetlands are more likely to be managed to improve water quality, increase flood storage, and enhance wildlife habitat. Best Management Practices (BMPs) for wetlands include wetland restoration, wetland enhancement, wetland creation, and wetland construction. Thus wetland management as a conservation practice can range from building completely new wetlands for wastewater treatment to increasing the ecological functions of existing wetlands. These management approaches are all recognized as separate but often interacting practices and can be used to achieve a suite of conservation and environmental quality objectives. In many cases in highly altered landscapes, managed wetlands may be most effective at outlets of watersheds rather than scattered around throughout the basin. Hydrologic loading is of special importance because the relationship between hydrologic fluxes and storage in wetlands determines the residence time of water. Residence time is critical in nitrogen removal by wetlands and riparian zones. Even in ideal conditions for using wetlands as a denitrification reactor where high nitrate water is put into a wetland environment, there can be low efficiency of nitrate removal due to low residence time of water. The Riparian Ecosystem Management Model (REMM) a model of riparian wetland function will be used to address the effects of varying N loadings on denitrification in wetland soils. In wetland soils with high denitrification potentials, REMM shows that very high loadings will be denitrified and not reach receiving waters. In soils with lower denitrification potentials, a higher proportion of the nitrogen load is passed through the wetland. |
Thursday, September 21, 2006 |
Synthesis and Applications of Porous MaterialsDr. Tolulope Salami Hosting Dept: Chemistry Abstract: Porous materials are materials containing, voids, channels, space, pores or tunnels. They are classified based on their pore sizes and dimensionality (1D, 2D, 3D). Synthesis of porous materials has been an important research area in recent years due to their potential applications in ion-exchange, fuel cell, drug delivery, environmental clean-up etc. My interest lies in the synthesis of two-dimensional extended porous materials (layered inorganic materials). A general description of synthetic methods and applications of some new layered materials will be discussed. |
Thursday, September 28, 2006 |
Sharing Triangles and Pascal’s TriangleDr. Charles Kicey Hosting Dept: Mathematics & Computer Science Abstract: We consider discrete dynamical systems that update a future state based up the previous state(s). One classic example is the competition between a predator and prey species, where for example, a large prey population causes the predator population to grow, which in turn decreases the prey. We focus a very simple sharing scheme, and give a simple solution to its long term behavior. The proof has a surprising connection to Pascal's triangle. A minimal mathematical background is assumed. |
Thursday, October 5, 2006 |
Aquatic toxins, disaster response, obesity and pandemic influenza- a day in the life of a public health epidemiologist.Dr. Carina Blackmore Hosting Dept: Biology Abstract: Any student of Population Medicine realizes quickly that the best way to keep Americans healthy is to prevent them from getting ill in the first place! Clean drinking water, a safe food supply and immunization programs for diseases like measles, mumps, polio and rubella are all successes of such public health efforts in America. Population growth and mobility, individual inactivity, global warming and the cold reality of terrorism have contributed to making obesity, hurricanes and emerging infectious diseases (including West Nile virus, SARS, influenza and HIV) some of the more recent issues for public health in Florida. The talk will focus on discussing a handful of the many current challenges. |
Thursday, October 12, 2006 |
CancelledCancelled Hosting Dept: Biology |
Thursday, October 19, 2006 |
Ligands for Actinide Selective Systems for Environmental Extraction and Sensing ApplicationsDr. Anne E. V. Gorden Hosting Dept: Chemistry Abstract: A resurgence of interest in the coordination chemistry of the f-elements has been inspired not only by a need to assuage environmental concerns, but also to address the potential hazards of radiological weapons or the sabotage of reactor sites and the need to improve methods for reprocessing reactor materials. New ligands and materials are required that can coordinate, sense, manipulate, and purify actinides both for separations and waste reduction in addition to sensors, “sensing” polymers, sprays, or pastes to detect and isolate actinides in decontamination applications. Molecular recognition strategies to develop sensors or waste protection methods for actinides will provide valuable tools as we seek to develop new technologies that will assuage our waste concerns while still being able to take advantage of the unique properties of these materials. Crucial to the expansion of our knowledge in these areas is the development of appropriate novel coordination ligands. In particular, this research will focus on the study of new ligands based on salen or quinoxaline backbones for use in sensors and waste remediation of actinides. Understanding the chemical behavior of these systems will contribute to our understanding of actinide transport, environmental uptake, or decontamination strategies. |
Thursday, October 26, 2006 |
Investigative Interviewing and Detecting DeceptionDr. Kevin Colwell, Dept of Psychology Hosting Dept: Psychology Abstract: Dr. Colwell will detail a system of interviewing and assessment that he and colleagues have developed. This technique is used as an initial investigative tool to assist police and others in the acquisition and evaluation of information during the initial phase of an investigation. Dr. Colwell will discuss specific interview strategies and behaviors indicative of deception, as related to investigations and interpersonal relationships. |
Thursday, November 2, 2006 |
The Medieval Black Death: A New Look at an Old KillerDr. Brian Bossak Hosting Dept: Physics, Astronomy, and Geosciences Abstract: Perhaps the greatest pandemic in recorded human history took place over 650 years ago, between 1347 and 1351 A.D. Contemporary scholars referred to this affliction as “The Great Mortality”, and it was responsible for the deaths of approximately half of the residents of Europe at the time (around 25 to 30 million out of 75 million inhabitants). This affliction, known today by its current moniker - the “Black Death” - has haunted centuries of generations of plague survivors’ descendents within Eurasia. For at least 100 years, since the identification of the Yersinia pestis bacterium by Dr. Alexander Yersin in 1894 during the peak of the Third Pandemic in India and China, the culprit behind the “Black Death” has been attributed to bubonic plague, the human disease state caused by infection with Y. pestis. In fact, many historians today interchange the terms “Black Death” and bubonic plague, and the mere mention of the term “plague” generally conjures references to the medieval “Black Death”.
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Thursday, November 9, 2006 |
Towards a Smarter InternetDr. Zhiguang Xu Hosting Dept: Mathematics and Computer Science Department
Abstract: Today, the Internet is part of everyone's life. In first part of this talk, we will follow the "warriors" like TCP/IP datagrams to tour the Internet and see how it works in a visualized way. On the way back, we discuss one of the promising ways to improve the overall performance of the Internet -- i.e. to equip the routers in the core of the Internet with Artificial Intelligence tools such as Neural Networks and Genetic Algorithms. Tomorrow’s internet will play an even more crucial role in the Global society. It will be:
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Thursday, November 16, 2006 |
Thanksgiving Break |
Thursday, November 23, 2006 |
Adolescents and Development: Is Some Delinquency Healthy?Dr. Sarah Bacon Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminal Justice
Abstract: While some level of experimentation with delinquency and drug use characterizes adolescence for most individuals, research consistently identifies a small group of individuals who refrain from these behaviors entirely. In her developmental taxonomy, Moffitt refers to this small group as abstainers, and posits that the personal and structural antecedents of their non-normative behavior may, in fact, be maladaptive. The current research seeks to not only test Moffitt’s hypothesis that abstainers are maladaptive in childhood and adolescence using a full array of antecedents (i.e. structural characteristics, personal characteristics, early puberty), but also extend this research into an investigation of the consequences of abstention. Prevention strategies assume that abstention from delinquency and drug use should diminish the likelihood of negative adulthood outcomes. Counter to this argument, however, is the proposition that experimentation with delinquency and drug use in adolescence is a healthy part of development, necessary for a smooth transition to a prosocial adulthood. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health) we will assess the relationships among childhood antecedents of abstention, the adolescent period of abstention itself, and the adult consequences for abstainers with respect to their physical and mental health, family formation and social integration, educational attainment, employment stability and advancement, and economic resources. Of particular interest is whether abstention itself makes an individual more prone to maladaptive outcomes, above and beyond individual differences. Based on the findings, the theoretical and policy implications of the results will be assessed. |
Thursday, November 30, 2006 |
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