Becoming a somebody
UGA adjunct journalism professor Hadjii’s film Somebodies made waves at the Sundance Film Festival, following packed screenings and positive reviews from Roger Ebert and IndieWire.com. USA Today quotes Hadjii, who goes by his first name: “Just walking around the town or visiting restaurants, people come up and say they just saw the screening and really enjoyed it, and want to tell you some of their stories about college, or ‘I used to live in Georgia, it was nostalgic for me.’ Stuff like that has been happening a lot.”
Ethereal South
UGA history professor James Cobb is quoted in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution in an article examining the changing face of the South.
The South, he says, is “like a lifestyle rather than an identity. The things now we base Southern distinctiveness on are so ethereal.”
Republican siphon
In covering Alabama’s gubernatorial primaries of 2006, the Associated Press turned to UGA political science professor Charles Bullock. Describing Democratic candidate Lt. Gov. Lucy Baxley, who, if elected, would be the state’s second female governor, Bullock said: “She has the potential to siphon off some women who traditionally vote Republican.”
Helicopter parents
The Chronicle of Higher Education notes the rise of so-called “helicopter parents” who hover over their college-aged children, even using legislators to convey their concerns to university administrators.
In the article, Richard H. Mullendore, a professor of college-student-affairs administration at UGA, recalls the time a legislator contacted him after a parent complained about her daughter spending the night in a male student’s room. Legislators might also call even to request a certain dorm room for a student. They “want the info within 24 hours,” says Mullendore. “You’re pretty much on call.”
A good year
The Savannah Morning News quoted Terry College of Business Dean George Benson’s favorable economic forecast for both Savannah and the state: “2006 will be another good year,” he says, predicting that Georgia’s gross state product will increase by 3.2 percent, and job growth will nearly double to 13 percent this year. “The outlook for Georgia is good. Even better than it was last year.”
Good germs
Newsweek crawled past the shield of antibacterial soap and into the human gut, teeming with microorganisms—the good kind. Its article on the bacteria and archaea (ancient forms of single-celled life) quoted UGA microbiologist Mark Schell’s research on Bifido-bacterium longum, which has several hundred genes for breaking apart food sugars, thus yielding calories and energy.
Logos a no-go
The L.A. Times notes that in a new effort to bring more money to the NCAA, some athletic directors are embracing the idea of commercialism compatible with educational values—in other words, advertising. Not all of academia is embracing this: “I don’t want a University of Georgia jersey to look like a European or South American soccer jersey,” says UGA President Michael F. Adams, referring to logos. |
