A&S in the News- February 6-12, 2016

  1. UA researchers study rainforest recovery
    Tuscaloosa News – Feb. 7
    A pair of researchers at the University of Alabama is among the co-authors of a paper in the latest edition of the journal “Nature” about the rate at which forests in Central and South America regrow after being cut down. Eben Broadbent and Angelica Almeyda Zambrano were among teams gathering data at 1,500 individual plots across 45 sites. The two worked in Bolivia in 2006, gathering information from more than 8,000 trees, shrubs and palms in 29 plots. The paper “Biomass Resilience of Neotropical Secondary Forests” was published online by “Nature” on Wednesday. “What this paper is showing is how long does it take for a forest to look structurally similar to a forest if it had never been cut,” said Almeyda Zambrano, an adjunct professor of geography. As part of the research, the teams explored why it takes some secondary forests longer than others to recover.
  2. Music as therapy not limited by genre
    Crimson White – Feb. 8
    Some Tuscaloosa music lovers recall how the fast paced, aggressive melodies of punk rock helped them cope 
with stress. According to Andrea Cevasco-Trotter, director of music therapy at The University of Alabama, the efficiency of music as therapy is not limited to a certain genre of music. “Research supports the use of a person’s preferred music,” Cevasco-Trotter said. “Yes, hard rock, metal and punk rock music can be relaxing to people who 
prefer it.”
  3. Students take a hearing clinic on the road to rural Alabama counties
    Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility- Feb. 12
    When Dr. Marcia Hay-McCutcheon came to The University of Alabama from Indiana in 2008 as an associate professor in communicative disorders, she tried to continue studying cochlear implants. But she soon discovered the number of people in Alabama with cochlear implants was not sufficient for research, and many communities lacked resources for basic hearing health care. In order to remedy this problem, she launched Hear Here Alabama to take needed resources to the people of rural Alabama.

Also making headlines:

  • Candidates crowd ballot for a shot at Senate seat- Anniston Star – Feb. 7– Nichole Bauer, Political Science
  • PolitiFact and Scripps team up to fact check the last Republican debate before New Hampshire votes- WTFS –ABC (Tampa), Feb. 7– George Hawley, Political Science
  • Up-and-coming organist in recital at downtown church- Anniston Star – Feb. 7– Katie Loudermilk, student
  • UA diversity panel to meet this week- Tuscaloosa News – Feb. 8- Norman Baldwin, Political Science
  • Jeb Bush and majority of Republican voters actually agree on immigration, George Will says– Pundifact – Feb. 7- George Hawley, Political Science
  • Exhibit features audio-visual display of Alabama roads- Tuscaloosa News – Feb. 10
  • UA hosts Evening of Art– WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – Feb. 11