A&S in the News: February 4-10, 2018

Dance Alabama!

Dance Alabama! Film Festival makes an encoreCrimson White – Feb. 5

The second annual Dance Alabama! Film Festival will be held Wednesday, Feb. 7 in the Ferguson Theater at 7 p.m. The festival will serve as the premiere for 10 short films of dance produced by students working across multiple mediums. Each piece featured on screen is choreographed, performed, filmed, edited and produced by The University of Alabama students in collaboration with one another.

Vinegar Tom

UA Theatre and Dance department to put on Vinegar Tom (Live Interview)ABC 33/40 Talk of Alabama (Birmingham) – Feb. 5

The fabulous actors who have worked so hard to bring these strong women to life. When does the show run? February 13-18 in the Marian Gallaway Theatre on The University of Alabama campus in Tuscaloosa.

Doug Jones

Doug Jones’ budget vote gets mixed reactions among DemocratsCrimson White – Feb. 5

Two weeks after Alabama Sen. Doug Jones (D) voted with House Republicans on a short-term spending bill, he still has to walk a bipartisan line since the bill expires this Thursday, putting the government at risk of shutting down again if both parties don’t reach a more permanent deal. “The challenge for Doug Jones is going to be voting with the Republicans enough to keep independent swing voters happy, while at the same time voting often enough with Democrats to keep his base happy,” said Richard Fording, a political science professor at The University of Alabama.

Graduate Artists

Graduate artists present work in campus exhibitCrimson White – Feb. 6

At seven years old, a young Amy Smoot pieced together scraps of fabric and spare buttons, proudly presenting her grandmother with a makeshift sock monkey. Now, as a second-year graduate student, she prepares to present her work at the master of arts exhibition, though ceramics will replace her childhood creations. The Department of Art and Art History will showcase graduate students Amy Smoot and John Klosterman Feb. 8-22, in the Sella-Granata Art Gallery. The public is welcome to attend a formal reception Thursday, Feb. 15 from 4 to 6 p.m.

Slave-Trading Past

‘Like we descended from Hitler’: Coming to terms with a slave-trading pastWashington Post – Feb. 7

The family secret lurked in the background as the cousins grew up in Maine, Maryland and Tennessee. Something about the Southern ancestors, back in the Civil War days, that most of the adults wouldn’t talk about, although those who married into the family would occasionally give hints … They were also some of the richest men in the United States, said Joshua Rothman, a University of Alabama historian who is writing a book about Franklin and Armfield. At the time of his death in 1846, Franklin owned more than 600 slaves and was worth the equivalent of $40 million in today’s currency.
Cetus News – Feb. 7
Standard Examiner (Ogden, Utah) – Feb. 8

Art Events

5 art events in Atlanta to check out this FebruaryAtlanta PlanIt – Feb. 7

This month, several Atlanta exhibitions are showcasing photography, paintings and other multi-media works from artists around the world. While the art covers a wide range of topics, some of the works reflect on the Civil Rights Movement and African-American history … The University of Alabama’s Paul R. Jones Collection of American Art contains one of the largest and most comprehensive collections of 20th-century African-American art in the world, which will be on display at the Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia from Feb. 10 to April 14.

Dance Marathon

UA Dance Marathon incorporates new elements for 2018 eventCrimson White – Feb. 7

The eighth annual University of Alabama Dance Marathon is just around the corner and those involved have kicked it up a notch. “It’s so much fun,” said Tatianna Zambrano, a sophomore psychology major and UADM Morale Member. “You get to see all the love first hand, and I think my favorite part of the main event is seeing the children, and getting to play with them, and getting to realize they’re not hospital patients, they’re children. I encourage people to go to get the experience — it’s really motivating and just really fun overall.”

Nuclear War Lectures

History department to host nuclear war lecturesCrimson White – Feb. 8

What: Nuclear War on the Korean Peninsula: Historical Perspectives on a Possible Future. Who: The University of Alabama History Department is hosting the free event for all who are interested.

Black Panther

Anticipation runs high for trailblazing ‘Black Panther’ filmOhio.com – Feb. 9

Ask any fan of the comic book character Black Panther, who made his cinematic debut in Captain America: Civil War, how they feel about the Feb. 16 release of a film devoted solely to that character, and familiar words likely tumble forward … Stacy Morgan, an associate professor who lectures on and researches popular culture at The University of Alabama, said in terms of diversity in casting and storytelling, Hollywood still lags, disappointingly. Therefore, he’s not surprised by the enthusiasm the film is generating among blacks.

Mass Shootings

Researchers discuss how to prevent mass shootings90.5 WESA (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) – Feb. 9

At Friday’s symposium “Responsible Reporting of Gun Violence” at the University of Pittsburgh, researchers discussed how to prevent mass shootings. Russell Palarea, an operational psychologist who works in Bethesda, Maryland, works to thwart intentional and targeted acts of violence. He said that it’s a myth that people snap and then commit mass violence. Some people carry out mass shootings not due to a grievance, but because they crave attention. Criminologist Adam Lankford of The University of Alabama said these murderers know media coverage of them will be negative and they still find it validating.

Naval Observatory

UA, Naval Observatory partnership to improve precise timing educationAlabama News Center – Feb. 10

The University of Alabama has partnered with the United States Naval Observatory (USNO) to train UA students in precise timing and time interval technology, which is used in highly precise atomic clocks on which the military, financial sector, GPS satellites and power grids rely.