January 15, 2004
Notices
ACADEMIC OPPORTUNTIES
Seed Grants Awarded
Two research projects from UW professors have been funded by the Center for Statistics and the Social Sciences under its Seed Grants Program. The projects are:
- “Statistical Models for Clustered Social Networks,” Mark Handcock, Center for Statistics and the Social Sciences, $9,371;
- “Spectral Methods for Discovering Communities in Social Cyberspaces,” Marina Meila, Statistics, $13,126.
The goal of the program is to encourage faculty to explore new directions in research and scholarship that contribute to the development of statistical methods for social scientific problems. The seed grants are used to pursue pilot studies, feasibility studies, or preliminary research for a larger project that has high promise of extramural funding, which would be administered through the center. Awards are in the range of $10,000-20,000 and typically include one month of summer salary for the principal investigator and one quarter salary for a research assistant. The project period is about one calendar year.
The deadline for the next round will be announced soon. For more information, see the CSSS Web site, www.csss.wash ington.edu, and go to the seed grants page. For questions, contact Ross L. Matsueda, CSSS Associate Director, matsueda@u.washington.edu, or by phone at 206-616-2432.
Funding available for pilot projects
The Center for Ecogenetics and Environmental Health (CEEH) is offering pilot project funding in broadly defined areas of “gene-environment interactions.” The CEEH fosters basic and applied research into the molecular and genetic basis for diseases with an environmental etiology. The CEEH is also interested in the Ethical, Legal and Social Issues (ELSI) surrounding the use of genetic information from a public health context. Up to five scientific research projects including an ELSI-related project, will be funded in 2004 for up to $25,000 each. Applications are due on Jan. 30, for funding beginning April 1. For applications materials contact Azure Skye, Program Manager/Administrator, Center for Ecogenetics & Environmental Health via e-mail: azure@u.washington.edu or phone: 206-543-4383, Box 354695.
Continuums of Service Conference
Is higher education a public good? Participants of the Seventh Annual Continuums of Service conference will address this question March 10–12 at the Hyatt Regency Islandia in San Diego. The Washington Campus Compact sponsored conference will bring together more than 400 colleagues from the western region and beyond to explore the multiple perspectives on the relationships between higher education and the public good, and the roles service learning and civic engagement play in revitalizing it. Visit http://www.acadweb.wwu.edu/campcomp for additional information on the conference theme, sessions and to register.
OTHER NEWS
Support Group Forming
Interested in joining a free support group for undergraduate students 40+ at the UW? Returning to school, or considering returning to school and looking for others to share experiences and support? Meet at the Women’s Center on Friday, Jan. 16 at 11:30 a.m. and feel free to bring your lunch. This group will meet for one hour every other Friday through the end of March and will continue if there is interest.
Questions? Contact the Women’s Center at womens@u.washington.edu or 206-685-1090.
Progesterone and Sleep Study
Researchers at the University of Washington are seeking women between 55 and 79 years of age for a new study on how progesterone affects drowsiness and sleep. Eligible participants will be healthy, nonsmoking and not currently taking estrogen. Participants must also be available for one to two 12-hour day visits, two 24-hour overnight visits, and two overnight visits of three days at the UW Medical Center during a four-month period. Benefits to participants include some test results and compensation of up to $550 for completing the study. To request more information, call 206-221-3688.
Online English Language Courses
The UW English Language Programs (UWELP) offers quarterly online courses in business English, academic English, and English for science and industry. These courses are designed primarily for non-native speakers of English.
Because of the convenience of studying at home, our online courses are attractive to UW employees who want to improve their sentence-level grammar and vocabulary. All of the courses have online interactive exercises and short assignments to be completed each week. Instructors respond to assignments within two business days, giving detailed one-on-one feedback.
Potential students are encouraged to take the 10-minute self-placement test, available at http://www.uwelp.net/online, to know which courses would be appropriate for them.
In 2004, we will be offering non-credit courses in Topics for Language Learning. These are designed for language instructors and those interested in second language acquisition. For details, visit http://depts.washington.edu/uwelp/online/description_etop.shtml.
For more information, call 543-6242 or e-mail uwelp@u.washington.edu.
Surplus property
The following is available for interdepartmental transfer:
Dell Pentium (200 Mhz). 2 Gbyte hard drive. Comes with monitor, keyboard. You add OS, software. Three available. E-mail Nancy-Lou at npolk@u.washington.edu
Blood supply at emergency levels
The harshest weather conditions in eight years have significantly reduced the amount of blood donations Puget Sound Blood Center has been able to collect, putting the region’s blood supply at emergency levels. To donate blood, please schedule an appointment by calling 1-800-398-7888 or come to one of the blood drives listed below.
Blood drives
Degree Exams
Members of the graduate faculty are invited to attend the following examinations. Chairpersons are denoted in parentheses.
General Examinations
- Ryan Wells Allen, Public Health and Community Medicine — Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, Ph.D. 1 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 21. H670 Health Sciences. (Prof. Lee-Jane Sally Liu).
- Rupaleem Bhuyan, Social Work, Ph.D. 10 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 21. Dean’s Conference Room, Social Work. (Prof. Anthony Ishisaka).
- Kenneth L. Custer, Neurobiology and Behavior, Ph.D. 9 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 22. T474A Health Sciences. (Prof.Sandra Bajjalieh).
- Danielle Elizabeth Endres, Department of Communication, Ph.D. 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 27. 102E Communications. (Prof. Leah Ceccarelli).
- Md A. Fazal, Chemistry, Ph.D. 2:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 23. 102 Chemistry. (Prof. Norman Dovichi).
- Laura Beth Johnson, Pharmacology, Ph.D. 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 21. K550 Health Sciences. (Prof. Sandra Bajjalieh).
- Fumiyo Kobayashi, Asian Languages and Literature, Ph.D. 2 p.m. Friday, Jan. 16. M230 Gowen. (Prof. Edward Mack).
- Chitra Vinayak Kotwaliwale, Molecular and Cellular Biology, Ph.D. 2 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 21. D5-120 FHCRC. (Prof. Susan Biggins).
- Marcus Robert Lampson, Information School, Ph.D. 2 p.m. Friday, Jan. 23. 330W Mary Gates. (Prof. Stuart Sutton).
- Brandon Troy Leader, Public Health and Community Medicine — Pathobiology, Ph.D. 1 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 22. T480 Health Sciences. (Prof. Sheila Lukehart).
- Sorin Lucian Lerner, Computer Science and Engineering, Ph.D. 2:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 26. 203 Paul G. Allen Center. (Prof. Craig Chambers).
- Eun Young Nahm, Psychology, Ph.D. 10:30 a.m. Monday, Jan. 26. 202C Chemistry Library. (Prof. John Gottman).
- Ryan Takeao Nitta, Biochemistry, Ph.D. 9 a.m. Friday, Jan. 23. J412 Health Sciences. (Prof. Brian Kennedy).
- Ignatius Ganzon Rigor, Atmospheric Sciences, Ph.D. 2 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 27. 406 ATG. (Prof. John Wallace).
- Ping Wang, Asian Languages and Literature, Ph.D. 1:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 26. M218 Gowen. (Prof. David Knechtges).
Final Examinations
- Halldor Arnason, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Ph.D. 1:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 23. 322 Harris. “Interactions between incident bore and a free-standing coastal structure.” (Prof. Catherine Petroff).
