Assistant Professor of Biology John Niedzwiecki presented his population genetics research to the Research Club of Nashville on July 29.  This club, the second of its kind in the nation, holds monthly meetings at the Brick Factory in Cummins Station for members to meet and discuss their research passions amongst themselves and with invited speakers such as Niedzwiecki. The Research Club draws academically minded professionals from around the area with a broad range of interests. In addition to Niedzwiecki, July’s speakers included a photographer, who is heading soon to northern India to study landscape tourism on a Fulbright Scholarship, and an enthusiast for the Slow Money movement, which strives to strengthen food access and economic diversity through local investment.

Rachel Rigsby and Kim Daus, of the Chemistry Department, recently attended the 2012 Biennial Conference on Chemical Education (BCCE) at Pennsylvania State University. This international event is the largest gathering of chemistry educators in the world which brings together over 1,000 teachers committed to inspiring tomorrow’s leaders in the sciences. At this five-day event, middle school science teachers, high school chemistry teachers, undergraduate and graduate students, and professors connect with colleagues at all levels through technical and poster sessions, workshops, plenary lectures and a vendor exhibition. Rigsby and Daus attended workshops on computer resources for chemical educators, chemical transformations with food and chemistry of art and conservation science in the laboratory.
They also attended three days of sessions highlighting best practices in chemistry education.  Rigsby presented a poster titled Protein Visualization Throughout the Biochemistry Laboratory presenting teaching strategies she uses in CEM 3510. Daus presented a poster titled Wizard of Oz and Beryllium?  Using a Periodic Table Project to Teach Chemistry and Art which illustrated the project she and Professor David Ribar, of the Art Department, had students complete for their CEM/ART learning community courses. Daus also gave a presentation titled Better Eating Through Chemistry: Using Chemistry to Explore and Improve Local Cuisine which highlighted the accomplishments of her recent Maymester CEM 3015 course.

Professor of Chemistry Kim Daus participated in CHOMP!, a special food event held on July 21 at the Adventure Science Center. This event explored the science of food. Daus conducted four Food Science Demonstrations – two each of “Bread: The Dough also Rises,” which explored the science of flour and yeast, and “Fats and Oils and Water – Oh My,” which examined the science of solubility and how to make stable emulsions.  More than eighty people attended the four presentations.

Ronnie Littlejohn, chair of Philosophy and Director of Asian Studies, has signed two contracts with I.B. Tauris & Co, LTD in London to write Chinese Philosophy: An Introduction and to edit a collection of primary writings entitled Chinese Philosophy: The Essential Writings.  The introduction will be the first monographic work in English to provide a comprehensive historical and analytical overview of Chinese philosophy from the period of Warring States China to the present since the publication of Wing-tsit Chan’s Sourcebook in Chinese Philosophy last issued in 1963 by Princeton UP.  The collection of Essential Writings has as its purpose the goal to provide a basis for an understanding of China’s major philosophical traditions through the most important original writings.  Littlejohn is author of four other books and editor of three others.

Assistant Professor of Nursing B.J. Hutchins is presenting at two professional conferences this summer.   In July she presented a workshop on the Fundamentals of Evidence Based Practice at the National Nurse Staff Development Organization’s annual convention in Boston, Mass.  In August, Hutchins will travel to London, England to present a plenary session at the International Nurse Practitioner/Advanced Practice Nursing Network Conference entitled Frailty in the Older Adult, Implications for Care. She will also have a poster presentation at this same meeting entitled Cardiovascular Effects of Obstructive Sleep Apnea: Implications for Care.

Assistant Professor of Physics  Scott Hawley has contributed lesson plans to the Valve (Software) Corporation online physics-teaching web service www.teachwithportals.com. Since last summer Hawley has worked with Leslie Redd, Valve Corporation’s director of education and outreach, on this project. Hawley’s written two great lesson plans for high school students about Portal “Bouncing” and Oscillations and Simple Harmonic Motion and Hooke’s Law. The lessons show students how to compare and contrast oscillation behavior as it adheres to the game world’s laws of physics versus those of our own. Austin Guthrie, a Belmont physics and mathematics double major, is also mentioned in the introduction to the lesson plans.