Saturday, January 31, 2009

Cognitive Lunch Abstract for February 4

The next Cognitive Lunch will be held Wednesday, February 4.
Time: 12:10-1:10 p.m.
Place: Psychology Conference Room (Room 128)

"Neural Substrates of Visual-Haptic Object Recognition" will be presented by Thomas W. James, Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University.

Abstract:
In humans and many other primates, vision plays the major role in object recognition. But, objects can also be recognized by touch. In fact, visual and tactile (or haptic) object recognition systems have in common the ability to recognize and/or represent objects based on their volumetric shape. The object recognition literature, both behavioral and neural, is dominated by studies of vision, so why is haptic object recognition research important? Besides determining the object recognition capabilities of the haptic system itself, studying haptic object recognition also helps constrain theories of object processing in general. Real-world object recognition can be extremely computationally demanding. The primate visual system is not isolated from other perceptual and motor systems; therefore, it is likely that a recognition system would utilize all available evidence, whatever the input modality, to accomplish its task. Studying object recognition using a single input modality overlooks the importance of the integration of inputs. To explore the interplay between visual and haptic inputs for object recognition, we used behavioral, neuropsychological, and neuroimaging techniques. The data from these studies converge to suggest that shared mechanisms for volumetric shape processing across vision and touch are found in the lateral occipital complex and the anterior intraparietal sulcus. Processing of visual-haptic shape in two separate locations suggests that the two visual streams theory may extend to dorsal and ventral streams of visual-haptic shape integration for action and perception.

Friday, January 30, 2009

Colloquium: Joseph Reagle

You are cordially invited to attend the following School of Informatics colloquium:

Date: Friday, February 6, 2009
Time: 3:00 p.m.
Place: Informatics East (I2), Room 130

Joseph Reagle, New York University, will present, "In Good Faith: Wikipedia Collaboration and the Pursuit of the Universal Encyclopedia."

Abstract:
In 1990 Mike Godwin coined his "Law of Nazi Analogies" to capture the common devolution of online discourse into insulting comparisons with Nazis or Hitler. Eleven years later, Jimmy Wales wrote that it was important that the Wikipedia community "preserve and extend our culture of co-operation, with all of us standing as firmly as possible against the culture of conflict embodied in Usenet." I argue Wikipedia is a realization -even if flawed-of a long-held vision for a universal encyclopedia: a technology inspired vision seeking to wed increased access to information with greater human accord. And I claim Wikipedia's collaborative culture is a big factor for this success: the norms of "Neutral Point of View" ensures that the scattered pieces of what we think we know can be joined and good faith facilitates the actual practice of fitting them together.

Lunar New Year Celebration

It's the Year of the Ox!
Lunar New Year Celebration
Sponsored by IU Asian Culture Center and Monroe County Public Library

Date: Saturday, January 31

Time: Stories and performances start at 2:00 p.m. in the Library Auditorium
Crafts and snacks begin at 2:30 in Meeting Rooms 1B and 1C.
Program ends at 4:00 p.m.

Venue: Monroe County Public Library
Celebrate the year of the Ox with stories, performances, crafts, and snacks on Lunar New Year with ACC and Monroe County Public Library staff members. Drop-in to celebrate! No registration necessary. Grades K - 6, young school-age children should be accompanied by an adult.

For more information, please contact Mai-Lin Poon at acc@indiana.edu

Other Lunar New Year Celebrations:
Saturday, January 31, 6:00 p.m. at the IU Auditorium
Hosted by IU Chinese Students and Scholars Association

Lecture: Brian Riordan

The next CL lunch talk will be given by Brian Riordan.

When: Friday, Jan. 30, 12:00-1:00 p.m.
Where: Memorial Hall 401

Brian Riordan will present, "Redundancy in perceptual and linguistic experience: Comparing feature-based and distributional theories of semantic representation."

Abstract:
In recent years a variety of machine learning techniques have been developed to learn semantic representations directly from linguistic structure. Variations of these approaches have been used in cognitive science to model a variety of semantic phenomena, from semantic priming to word association. The success of these approaches suggests that much information relevant to semantic representations is encoded in the linguistic environment. However, these models have been criticized as inadequate cognitive theories of human semantic learning and representation because their representations are purely symbolic and are not grounded in perception and action. Models based on human-generated features have been argued to give access to such perceptual aspects of lexical semantic representation. I explore the hypothesis that the amount of perceptual information that can be learned from purely distributional statistics has been underappreciated. In this work I demonstrate that, in a semantic clustering task, several distributional models perform as well as human-generated feature-based representations. Furthermore, when trained on child-directed speech, the same distributional models perform as well as sensorimotor-based feature representations of children's lexical semantic knowledge. These results provide support for the hypothesis that, to a large extent, information relevant for extracting semantic categories is redundantly encoded in perceptual and linguistic experience.

Student Academic Center Workshops

The Student Academic Center will offer the following free workshops next week. Workshops are open to all students, and you do not need to sign up in advance to attend. However you are advised to arrive early to get seating. Questions may be directed to Sharon Chertkoff, Outreach Coordinator, Student Academic Center, 855-7313.

Monday, 2/2/09, The Balancing Act: Getting Good Grades and Having Fun, Too, 7:00-8:00 p.m., Briscoe Academic Support Center

Tuesday, 2/3/09, Building Bridges, Not Walls: Learn to Communicate with Your Instructor, 7:00-8:00 p.m., Teter TEF 258

Wednesday, 2/4/09, Building Bridges, Not Walls: Learn to Communicate with Your Instructor, 7:00-8:00 p.m., Ballantine Hall 231

Monday, 2/9/09, Listening Skills for Large Lectures, 7:00-8:00 p.m., Forest Academic Support Center

Tuesday, 2/10/09, Reading Between the Lines: Tips for Effective Retention, 7:00-8:00 p.m., Teter TEF 258

Wednesday, 2/11/09, Reading Between the Lines: Tips for Effective Retention, 7:00-8:00 p.m., Ballantine Hall 231

Colloquium: Diane Kewley-Port

You are cordially invited to attend the following Colloquium presented by the SPHS Department and the SPHS PhD Organization.

Monday, February 9
4:00-5:00 p.m.
Speech and Hearing Building, Room C141

Diane Kewley-Port, Indiana University, Professor of Speech and Hearing Sciences and Cognitive Science, Vice President Elect of the Acoustical Society of America will present, "All about Vowels."

Abstract:
Results from numerous experiments on vowel perception will be presented. One series determined that vowels are more important than consonants for understanding fluent English. These studies investigated the perception of sentences where either all the vowels or all the consonants were replaced by noise. Both normal-hearing and hearing-impaired listeners recognized twice as many words in sentences with vowel only information. As expected, the hearing-impaired listeners with typical moderate hearing loss perform much worse than normal-hearing listeners. Other experiments have established that hearing-impaired listeners have processing deficits for vowels at peripheral levels of the auditory system that are predictive of their ability to identify vowels at more central levels. Similar experiments have also been conducted with second language learners (L2) of English (with normal hearing). While some language groups have extreme difficulty in identifying English vowels, they exhibit a normal ability to process vowels in the auditory periphery. These studies suggest that training protocols should help improve perception by L2 learners. Results from our current training protocol for vowels in single words show surprisingly good generalization to words in sentences.

Seventh Annual Permaculture Course

Announcing the Seventh Annual Permaculture Course: LLC-L 230 Permaculture: Learning through Nature

You are invited to attend our Information Session:
Collins LLC Coffeehouse
Thursday, February 12
5:00 p.m.
Pizza and snacks will be served.

The course will be take place May 31 - June 14 at the Lazy Black Bear Retreat Center in Paoli, Indiana. The course will be run by Professor David Haberman, and taught by Peter Bane and Keith Johnson, two of the best Permaculture teachers in the country. They are former residents of the Permaculture eco-village Earthaven and are the publishers of the Permaculture Activist, the only Permaculture magazine in North America.

Permaculture is a design technique for creating sustainable human communities that are in harmony with the natural environment. It is a rapidly growing and internationally recognized design system for creating better ways of living with our life support systems and with each other. It is a set of principles and techniques that aim to create ecologically sound, economically prosperous, and spiritually rich human communities. This course provides students with innovative conceptual tools and the chance to view the future from many different angles. This is a unique opportunity for hands on experience in a class at Indiana University.

Students who complete this course receive not only three hours of IU credit, but certification in Permaculture, which enables them to practice and teach the art and science of Permaculture. Students must complete an application and be accepted to register for the course. The application deadline is Friday, March 27th. Enrollment is limited to 25 students. In addition to the 3 credit-hour tuition, a fee of $555 will be charged to cover transportation, food, lodging, facilities, and some course materials. The application is available at: http://www.indiana.edu/~llc/academics/permaculture.shtml

For more information, contact:
Professor David Haberman
Department of Religious Studies
dhaberma@indiana.edu

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Kaplan Practice Tests

On February 21, Kaplan will be offering a campus-wide opportunity for students to take a free practice GMAT, GRE, LSAT, MCAT, DAT, or OAT test administered under simulated testing conditions at the IU Kelley School of Business.

Kaplan's Practice Test is a terrific opportunity for prospective business, graduate, law, medical, and dental students to answer a critical question: "If I took the exam today, how would I score?"

Last year, thousands of Kaplan Practice Test participants assessed their test-taking skills while learning valuable strategies to help them ace the real test. Since admission to law, business, graduate, medical, and dental school is competitive, a high exam score is crucial to the admissions process.

We would like to invite you to participate in the Kaplan Practice Test Event taking place on the Indiana University campus. To register, call 1-800-KAP-TEST or visit us online at www.kaptest.com/practice.

Monday, January 26, 2009

LAMP: Liberal Arts and Management Program

Attention Freshmen and Sophomores:

The Liberal Arts and Management Program (LAMP) will be accepting applications from February 1 to March 31.

Are you interested in majoring in the College of Arts and Sciences but also learning about business, management and leadership? Do you enjoy studying multiple points of view? If you answered “yes” then LAMP might be the right place for you. What is LAMP you ask? LAMP is an honors interdisciplinary program offered by the College of Arts and Sciences in cooperation with the Kelley School of Business. It allows students the opportunity to have a major in the College but take classes in the business school that enhance management and leadership skills. LAMP students are drawn from the full range of majors within the College--from Biochemistry to Theater & Drama. Students can complete either a Bachelor of Arts or a Bachelor of Science, and many LAMP students pursue a double major.

At LAMP, students don’t just learn inside the classroom, we provide a wide variety of co-curricular programs for students to get involved in. During any given week a student could attend a Master Class with the CEO of Clorox, have lunch with the Sudan Desk Officer from the US State Department , and attend a workshop on preparing for a career fair. We encourage students to pursue all their passions, whether that is multiple majors, overseas study, or internship experience. We are here to make sure that students can get the most out of their 4 years at Indiana University.

LAMP will be holding multiple information sessions over the next 6 weeks in residence hall and academic buildings to help students become more familiar with the program. You are welcome to call the office at (812) 856-4966 to schedule an appointment with me to chat. Or visit our website at www.indiana.edu/~lamp.

Sincerely,
Stephanie J. Gray
Assistant Director of Student Services and
Academic Advisor
Liberal Arts and Management Program (LAMP)
Wylie Hall 245
100 South Woodlawn Ave.
Bloomington, IN 47405
Phone (812) 856-4966
Fax (812) 856-4672
lamp@indiana.edu

Seminar: John M. Beggs

The Spring 2009 Biocomplexity Institute Seminar Series presents John M. Beggs, Biocomplexity Institute, Indiana University Bloomington.

Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2009
4:00-5:00 p.m.
Swain Hall West 238
Tea preceding the seminar at 3:30 p.m., Swain Hall West 238

Professor Beggs will discuss, "Information Flow Through Local Cortical Networks Is Not Democratic."

Abstract:
The average cortical neuron makes and receives 1,000-10,000 synaptic contacts, suggesting that cortical neurons are connected in a fairly equal manner. The pattern of information flow in such networks, however, is virtually unknown and can not be inferred from anatomy alone. Theory indicates that the presence of even a few hubs, or nodes with many more connections than average, can greatly improve the efficiency and robustness of a network. Accordingly, we tested for the presence of hubs of information flow in local cortical networks. Information flow was very unequally distributed among neurons, and the data were significantly more likely to have been drawn from networks with hubs than networks without hubs. Simulations indicate the observed cortical information flow networks are significantly more efficient in routing signals, can form more associations, and are more robust than control networks without hubs. To our knowledge, this is the fist demonstration of information flow hubs in local cortical networks. We conclude that the highly unequal distribution of information flow among cortical neurons contributes to the efficiency and robustness of information processing in the cortex.

Work done in collaboration with Alan Litke of UC Santa Cruz, Olaf Sporns of Indiana University, and Duane Nykamp of The University of Minnesota.

Friday, January 23, 2009

Marketing your Science Degree

The Career Development Center is hosting, "Making Yourself Marketable in the Sciences: How to Find Jobs and Internships in a Tough Economy."

Date: Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Time: 6:00 – 7:00 p.m.
Location: Chemistry 122

Description: Do you want to learn how to make your science degree more marketable? Join us to learn how to go about a successful job/internship search, resume/cover-letter writing, interviewing and how the Career Development Center can help. Discover resources and strategies that are right at your fingertips. Meet with other like-minded students and Career Development Center staff. This night should be especially useful for students in the sciences regardless of where you are in your career planning process.

Beth Kreitl, MS, NCC
Associate Director, Student Services
Career Development CenterArts & Sciences Career Services
Indiana University Bloomington
(812) 855-9888
kbethany@indiana.edu www.iucareers.com

Student Academic Center Workshops

The Student Academic Center will offer the following free workshops next week. Workshops are open to all students, and you do not need to sign up in advance to attend. However you are advised to arrive early to get seating. Questions may be directed to Sharon Chertkoff, Outreach Coordinator, Student Academic Center, 855-7313.

Monday, Jan. 26, How to Succeed in Accounting A100, 7:00-8:00 p.m., Forest Academic Support Center

Tuesday, Jan. 27, Where Does Time Go? Strategies to Beat Procrastination, 7:00-8:00 p.m., Teter TEF 258

Wednesday, Jan. 28, Where Does Time Go? Strategies to Beat Procrastination, 7:00-8:00 p.m., Ballantine Hall 321

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Lecture: Mathias Niepert

Mathias Niepert, IU Computer Science Department, will give the following talk: On Implication Problems for Disjunctive Constraints.

Wednesday, January 28
4:00 p.m.
Chemistry 033

Abstract:
Implication problems occur in many areas of computer science. Examples include, of course, logic, but also database systems (constraints), data mining (association rules), and reasoning under uncertainty (conditional independence). We provide a general framework for implication problems based on the observation that many can be reduced to an implication problem for additive constraints on specific classes of real-valued functions. Furthermore, we provide inference systems and properties of classes of real-valued functions which imply the soundness and completeness of these systems. We present computational complexity results for an important class of implication problems for which a finite axiomatization exists. We also derive properties of classes of real-valued functions that imply the non-existence of finite, complete axiomatizations.

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Cognitive Science Visitor: George Kampis

We would like to announce the arrival of a visitor, Dr. George Kampis, to Indiana University. Dr. Kampis is the head of the Department of History and Philosophy of Science at Eötvös University in Budapest, and the Director of the Budapest Semester in Cognitive Science. He has a wide variety of research interests, including artificial life, theoretical biology, cognitive science, philosophy of science, evolution and creativity, mechanisms and explanations, comparative behavior, grid computing, and complex systems. His web site is: http://hps.elte.hu/~gk/.

Dr. Kampis has a Fulbright fellowship to support his half year stay here in Bloomington, and he would like to use this time to immerse himself in the local cognitive science community. So, please contact him by e-mail at kampis.george@gmail.com or visit him in his office in Informatics East.

Announced by:
Dr. Robert Goldstone
Chancellor's Professor of Psychological and Brain Sciences
Director of the Cognitive Science Program (http://www.cogs.indiana.edu/)
Indiana University
Psychology Building
1101 E 10th St.
Indiana University
Bloomington, IN. 47405-7007.
812-855-4853 (work). 812-333-0152 (home). 812-855-4691 (fax)
Email: rgoldsto@indiana.edu
Percepts and Concepts Laboratory: http://cognitrn.psych.indiana.edu/

Monday, January 19, 2009

Internship/Job Fair

The Recreation, Park and Tourism Studies Internship/Job Fair is approaching. Please plan on attending the Internship/Job Fair on Tuesday, February 10, from 10:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. in HPER Gym 163. Come prepared to meet with potential internship or seasonal summer job employers. Dress professionally and bring copies of your resume.

This is a great networking event and a perfect chance to secure your summer internship or summer job. Please visit our web site to see participating companies (with more added each day):
http://www.indiana.edu/~recpark/news/jobfair.shtml

You may contact Dr. Julie Knapp by e-mail if you have questions about the event:
Julie S. Knapp
Recreation, Park and Tourism Studies
Indiana University
HPER 133
Bloomington, IN 47405
(812) 856-1068
Fax: (812) 855-3998
E-mail: julknapp@indiana.edu

Sunday, January 18, 2009

Women in Science Research Conference

Women in Science Research Conference of the Office for Women’s Affairs

Friday March 6, 2009
9:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Indiana Memorial Union, Solarium

We invite you to present a poster about your research, and network with other women researchers at the 11th annual Women in Science Research Conference. Cash prizes of $100 for first place and $75 for second place will be awarded for best poster presentations in each of the following categories: Natural Sciences, Social Sciences, Math & Technology. Awards are given to graduate and undergraduate students, respectively, in each category so that undergraduate and graduate students are not competing with each other.

We hope to see a variety of types of research posters, including those that present:
· Key findings from a research paper you wrote for a class
· Research you are doing in a lab on campus
· Conclusions you have drawn based on a literature review
· A draft of your dissertation proposal
· Results from a past research project
· Results from research that is being updated
· Your plan for an upcoming research project

Team presentations are welcome and encouraged!

The conference is open to all undergraduate and graduate women studying Math, Technology, Natural Sciences and Social Sciences. To complete the registration process, please send the attached registration form to wisp@indiana.edu by Friday, February 20, 2009.

If this is your first time assembling a research poster, the Office for Women’s Affairs will hold an optional ‘how to make a poster & give a poster presentation’ workshop for all interested participants.

ATTENTION UNDERGRADUATES! If you have written a final paper for one of your classes in which you cited scholarly research, it is very likely that you can turn this into a poster presentation.

Feel free to contact me to talk about how you can make a poster from a research paper or if you have any other questions:
Brooke Treadwell
Coordinator, Women in Science Program
Office for Women's Affairs
wisp@indiana.edu
(812) 855-3849

Cognitive Lunch Abstract for January 21

The next Cognitive Lunch will be held Wednesday, January 21.
Time: 12:10-1:10 p.m.
Place: Psychology Conference Room (room 128)

"Model Selection for Dummies" will be presented by Rich Shiffrin, Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences.

Abstract:
Model selection in the narrow sense is best viewed as statistical inference, although there are many larger concerns as well. Although a non-expert, I have been involved with many of the modern developments in this area, and even published (with Andrew Cohen and Adam Sanborn) a recent PB&R article on the subject. Access to this field for non-experts is a daunting task, due to technical gimcrackery, uninterpretable terminology, non-stop argumentation among experts about the 'right approach', and mixtures of philosophical, mathematical, and empirical justifications for the alternative approaches. Yet statistical inference in the modern age absolutely requires the use of these modern approaches. Thus scientists are increasingly using model selection techniques, mostly in the form of such simple approximations as AIC and BIC, often without understanding the inference issues that are involved. Even experts can lose their way and lose sight of the basic underlying conceptual issues, and non-experts often cannot find their way at all. In this cognitive lunch talk I will discuss some of the larger model selection issues, but spend most of the time on the narrow issue of statistical inference. The exposition will be almost entirely non-technical (certainly by the standards of this field), but will nonetheless focus on the two or three leading modern approaches to model selection. I hope to illuminate the core conceptual issues. (There will be ample room for experts to express their horror at any mis-characterizations I introduce, but with luck, even experts may find a few nuggets of wisdom in the discussion).

Colloquium: Farnam Jahanian

You are cordially invited to attend this School of Informatics colloquium:

Date: Friday, January 23, 2009
Time: 3:00 p.m.
Place: Lindley Hall 102

Farnam Jahanian, University of Michigan, will adress, "The Evolution of Internet Threats: A Case for Security in the Network Cloud."

Abstract:
Threats to the availability and security of the Internet have undergone a rapid and dramatic evolution over the past few years. Highly visible attacks against Internet users and infrastructure began only a few short years ago with the emergence of Internet Denial of Service (DoS) attacks and highly virulent Internet worms. Today, we are in the middle of a fundamental shift from attacks that primarily target infrastructures to coordinated attacks launched from a malicious service platform (botnet) that harvest the resources of infected hosts (bots). Spurred by financial gains or political motives, attackers have become proficient at hiding themselves using compromised hosts as proxies and amplifying the power of their attacks using distributed software. The result is vast numbers of compromised computers, or bots, enabling a rapid increase in spam, phishing, and identity theft. These challenges illustrate how we are at the limits of existing detection and mitigation technologies. This presentation discusses the changing Internet ecology and the evolution of zero-day threats. I will also introduce a new security model for networked environments based on the concept of shifting security services into the network cloud. This framework is inspired by successful detection and mitigation solutions in service provider environments. The key insight is use of multi-resolution distributed sensors deployed inside the network and on end hosts that integrate data from different perspectives to reason about the security of the network as a whole. To illustrate the utility of this model, we will discuss results from two experimental projects that enable security as a service in the network cloud: the Dark Oracle and CloudAV.

Friday, January 16, 2009

Student Radio Station WIUX Seeks Volunteers

WIUX 99.1FM (wiux.org) is seeking volunteers for the spring semester. Student organizations are a great way for individuals to supplement their experience and learning in the classroom with real-world opportunities.

Our informational call-out meeting is Wednesday, January 21, at 8:00 p.m. in the Fine Arts building room 015. The meeting should not last more than 30 minutes, and we will let students know how to apply or get involved.

At IU's student radio station, students can host music, news, talk, or sports shows. In addition the station has multiple committees which can supplement what students in various disciplines are learning in the classroom. Our committees at WIUX include Business Operations/Underwriting, Programming, Engineering, Music, Sports, and more.

Questions may be directed to:
Craig Shank
WIUX Station Manager
815 E. 8th St.
Bloomington, IN 47408
cshank@wiux.org

IU Asian Culture Center Outreach

The IU Asian Culture Center Outreach is sharing news about ACC Programs, Student Organization Events, Employment/Internship/Scholarship opportunities and other related events with the IUB campus and the greater Monroe County Community!

Year of the Ox - "This year of the Ox is one of particular significance to the nation as it is the year in which President-elect Barack Obama was born."

APIA U: 101 Leadership Workshop (Free - Registration online)

January 21 - Martin Luther King Week presents "Of Civil Wrongs and Rights: The Fred Korematsu Story," a Movie and Discussion

January 23 - Who Are Asian Pacific Americans? (Talk Series #1)
Topic: "Hello, My Name is Nadir Ratanaruengjumrune, but my Friends call me Bob"

January 29 - Asian American Studies Program Speaker Series presents "Perceptions of Social Support among Minority Immigrant Parents" by Professor Grace Kao, UPenn

January 30 - What's cooking this Friday?

January 31 - It's the Year of the Ox! Lunar New Year Celebration
Sponsored by IU Asian Culture Center and Monroe County Public Library

Weekly, Bi-Weekly, and Monthly Events
See www.indiana.edu/~acc for details.

Summer Seminar in Philosophy

The 2009 Colorado Summer Seminar in Philosophy will be held July 13-31, 2009: Boulder, Colorado. Sponsored by the Department of Philosophy at the University of Colorado, Boulder.

The Seminar is intended for outstanding undergraduates who are considering graduate school in philosophy. The aim is to introduce students to the atmosphere of a graduate-level seminar, giving participants a chance to explore and sharpen their philosophical abilities before they commit to a graduate program.

In addition to offering the experience of a graduate seminar, we hope participants will benefit from meeting other students with similar interests and from interacting with prominent faculty in the field. Anyone interested is encouraged to apply, but the program is particularly intended for two kinds of students: first, for those who do not have access to graduate-level classes at their own colleges; second, for those whose undergraduate institutions are not well-known as "feeder schools" into graduate programs. The Seminar is designed to prepare participants for graduate school, and to help participants gain admission into the best programs.

The class size will be between 15 and 20. The course is highly intensive, meeting five times a week for three weeks, for three hours a day, with a further student-led discussion session in the evenings. The readings will be dense and difficult, and students will be expected to participate extensively. Several papers will be required. Preference will be given to students with significant background in philosophy who have not yet applied to graduate school.

The topic of the Seminar changes every summer. In 2009, the Seminar's topic, Identity, will focus on metaphysical and ethical questions concerning identity.

For more information, please visit:
http://www.colorado.edu/philosophy/outreach_summer_seminar.shtml

Colloquium: de Ruyter van Steveninck

What: Colloquium presented by the SPHS Department and the SPHS PhD Organization
Where: Speech and Hearing Building, Room C141
When: January 26, 4-5 pm

Speaker: Dr. Robert de Ruyter van Steveninck, Professor of Physics

Title of Talk: "Signal, noise and neural information processing:
Lessons from the fly visual system."

Abstract:
The fly visual system is very well suited to study quantitative aspects of sensory signal processing. In this talk I will review experimental data on sensory transduction and neural computation in the fly, within an overall context of processing of signals that are representative for natural conditions.

We hope you will join us for this presentation.

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Patten Lecture: Werner Sollors

The third speaker in this year’s Patten Lecture Series is Americanist Werner Sollors, professor of English and African and African American Studies from Harvard University. He will give two free lectures.

January 20, 2009
7:30-8:30 p.m.
Chemistry 122

Sollors will speak on African American Intellectuals and Europe between the Two World Wars. He will discuss in his first Patten Foundation lecture the period that witnessed the rise of communism and its transformation into Stalinism, the emergence of fascism, and two momentous "interwar wars," and numerous African American intellectuals that met their counterparts in Europe. Encounters include: Countee Cullen and Claire Goll (Paris), Claude McKay, Alain Locke, and George Grosz (Paris, Berlin, Moscow), McKay, Vladimir Mayakovsky, and Leon Trotsky (Soviet Union), Horace Cayton and Nancy Cunard (Paris and Hamburg), Alain Locke and the "Black Watch on the Rhine" (French-occupied Rhineland), Langston Hughes, James Yates, and the Spanish Civil War, and W.E.B. Du Bois in Nazi Germany. Common human misunderstandings create a comedy of intellectuals against the climate of political violence in interwar Europe.

January 22, 2009
7:30-8:30 p.m.
Chemistry 122

Sollors will speak on ’Heil, Johnny’: Billy Wilder’s A Foreign Affair: or, The Denazification of Erika von Schlütow. He will discuss in his second Patten Foundation lecture how on August 16, 1945 film director Billy Wilder proposed "Propaganda through Entertainment" to the Information Control Division of the American Military Government in Germany, offering to make an "entertainment film," "a very special love story, cleverly devised to help us sell a few ideological items." Working with a comedy that was a Paramount Studios property, Wilder transformed it into the film A Foreign Affair (1948), starring Jean Arthur and Marlene Dietrich. Set against the background of ruined Berlin, the film deals with denazification and fraternization. Sollors will discuss how the Production Code Administration intervened and how reviewers responded to a movie that poked fun at what were undoubtedly serious issues.

For more information, visit http://www.patten.indiana.edu or see IU News Room article at http://newsinfo.iu.edu/news/page/normal/9565.html.

Study Abroad: IU SPEA in Central London

Comparative Risk Management: IU SPEA in Central London

This is a new summer overseas study program sponsored by SPEA at King’s College in Central London. Eligible students from other schools are more than welcome to apply.

In summer 2009, SPEA will offer two courses at King’s College, University of London: “V450/V550 - Managing Hazards in Europe and the United States I and II.” The following fact sheet and associated Web pages provide key details, including a program application:
http://www.indiana.edu/~overseas/flyers/london_sum.html

Undergraduates needing more information should consult SPEA Student Services Assistant Director, Liz Peck, SPEA 240, 812-855-0635 or epeck@indiana.edu. Graduate students needing more information should consult SPEA Student Services Director Jennifer Forney, SPEA 260, 812-855-9485, or jjforney@indiana.edu.

Courses will be taught by SPEA’s Dean, Dr. John D. Graham (http://newsinfo.iu.edu – click on Public and Environmental Affairs) and Professor Ragnar Lofstedt of King’s College.

Sunday, January 11, 2009

ThinkSwiss Research Scholarship

This is a Call for Applications for the 2009 ThinkSwiss Research Scholarship. ThinkSwiss offers 15 scholarships for a research stay in Switzerland. This scholarship program supports highly motivated and qualified U.S. undergraduate and graduate students to do research at a public Swiss university or research institute for two to three months. The scholarship is open to students of all fields. Visit www.thinkswiss.org

Requirements
To apply for a ThinkSwiss Research Scholarship, you must:
- Be currently enrolled at an accredited U.S. university/college
- Be a graduate student or an undergraduate student who will have completed your sophomore year by the time the research stay in Switzerland begins
- Provide a written confirmation from a professor at a Swiss university that he/she will accept you for a research stay in his/her group.

This program does not provide health, accident or liability insurance. Applicants must make sure that they have insurance coverage applicable for their stay in Switzerland. While German, French or Italian language skills are not required for the research stay in Switzerland, knowledge of any of these languages would be helpful in daily life. The working language will generally be English.

The ThinkSwiss Research Scholarship program provides a monthly scholarship of CHF 1,000 (approx. USD 830) for a period of 2-3 months (CHF 3,000 maximum). By accepting this scholarship, you agree to participate in a blog to share your experiences during your research stay in Switzerland. After your return to the U.S. you also agree to involve yourself in some limited activities as student “ambassador” to promote Swiss research. The scholarship will be paid at the end of your research stay and after your final report has been received. To get a better idea, please visit: http://thinkswiss-research.blogspot.com/

If you are interested in the ThinkSwiss Research Scholarship program, please send the following documents by e-mail to the contact address below:
- Cover letter, including information about your educational and professional background, goals for your research stay in Switzerland, why you have chosen that particular Swiss university, and one reason why you would make an excellent student “ambassador” to promote Swiss research in the U.S.
- Résumé
- Letter of acceptance by a professor at a Swiss university into his/her research group
- A current official university/college transcript
- A letter of reference from a senior academic in your field of study

Application Deadline is March 31, 2009.

Contact:
Embassy of Switzerland, Office of Science, Technology and Higher Education (OSTHE), 2900 Cathedral Ave., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20008
E-mail: was.science@eda.admin.ch, Phone: (202) 745-7958
Website: www.eda.admin.ch/washington/Studying_in_Switzerland
www.sbf.admin.ch/campus-switzerland

Paul Klinge Scholarship

The Paul Klinge Scholarship is available to science majors. While this scholarship is administered through the School of Education, it is available to students in the College of Arts and Sciences. In fact, the committee likes to award a scholarship to a Science Education major as well as at least one student from the College. In the past, the award has been at least $2,000 for the following school year, but the amount varies.

Please visit this web site: http://education.indiana.edu/scholarshp
and look for information about the Paul Klinge Scholarship.

Applicants will need to be enrolled full time for at least one semester of the 2009-2010 school year. In other words, December 2009 graduates may apply.

For more information, please contact:
Dorothy Slota
Licensing Advisor, Undergraduate Recorder
School of Education, IUB
dslota@indiana.edu
812-856-8528