l Ap r i/May

The University of Florida
Colleae of Liberal Arts and Sciences

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IN THIS ISSUE:

Pioneering Research:
UF Zoologist Receives $1 Million from
Howard Hughes Medical Institute............. 3

Debating Gators..................... ......... 4

Beating the Odds ...................................... 5

Distinguishing Features:
CLAS Students Stand Out........................... 6

Around the College .................................. 8

Bookbeat ........................................ 10

Pointing the Way to Success .................... 12

Critical Thinking: Sharp
Opinions Recognized by Peers................. 12

al wh y

UNIVERSITY OF

Q FLORIDA
The Foundation for The Gator Nation.
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
News and Publications
2008 Turlington Hall
PO Box 117300
Gainesville FL 32611-7300
editor@clas.ufl.edu
http://clasnews.clas.ufl.edu
CLASnotes is published by the College of Liberal
Arts and Sciences to inform faculty, staff and stu-
dents of current research, news and events.
Dean: Neil Sullivan
Editor: Allyson A. Beutke
Contributing Editor: Buffy Lockette
Contributing Writer: Michal Meyer
Design: Jane Dominguez
Web Master: Jeff Stevens
Copy Editor: Brenda Lee
Intern: Tiffany Iwankiw

Printed on
recycled paper

page 2

The Dean's

Musings

Congratulations to the CLAS of 2006!
One of the most joyous times of the year is in May when we come together as an
academic family to celebrate the accomplishments of our graduating class. The years
of hard work, scrambling to classes and panicking over exams finally come to an end
for another group of students, with the completion of a liberal arts or sciences degree
from the University of Florida.
This year our college has the largest graduating class in its history, with nearly
2,500 receiving CLAS degrees-300 of which have attained a well-earned master's
or PhD. Their education from UF, quickly becoming one of the top-ranked public
schools in the nation, sets them apart in the job market, as we are recognized by
employers for the breadth of training and sound preparation of our students able to
compete among the very best.
CLAS students are among the brightest in the nation, as evidenced by the
numerous awards and achievements they have received (see page 6). They are recog-
nized for not only .I.ll ,i in the classroom but also for their concern for human-
kind, their commitment to others and their drive and ambition to improve the soci-
ety in which we live. This new generation, unlike any other, is serious about its place
in the world and has a better understanding of other world cultures and our need to
strive for a global society in which all people are recognized.
I have great confidence in these new alumni and their ability to change the
world.

Neil Sullivan
sullivan@phys ufl. edu

On the Cover:
The college had its largest graduating class ever when almost 2,500 CLAS students received
degrees on May 5 and 6, over 300 of them earning a master's or doctorate degree. CLAS held two
commencement ceremonies and the traditional Baccalaureate ceremony. Former US Senator Bob
Graham received an Honorary Degree of Public Service and was the undergraduate ceremony's
keynote speaker.

CLASnotes April / May 2006

pioneering research

UF Zoologist Receives $1 Million from

Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Lou Guillette, a distinguished professor of zoology, has been
selected as one of 20 Howard Hughes Medical Institute, or HHMI,
professors and will receive $1 million during the next four years to
support undergraduate science research efforts at UF.

"The scientists whom we have selected are
true pioneers-not only in their research but
in their creative approaches and dedication
to teaching," says Thomas R. Cech, HHMI
president. "We are hopeful that their educa-
tional experiments will energize undergradu-
ate science education throughout the nation."
The institute awarded $20 million to
the first group of HHMI professors in 2002
to bring the excitement of scientific discovery
to the undergraduate classroom. HHMI
does not tell the professors what to do or
how to approach science education. Rather,
HHMI provides them with the resources to
turn their own considerable creativity loose
in their undergraduate classrooms. Some will
design programs to attract more women and
minorities to science. Others will turn large
introductory science courses or classes for
nonscience majors into engaging, hands-on
learning experiences that challenge students
to think like working scientists.
As an HHMI professor, Guillette plans
to build a multigenerational mentoring
program involving high school students, uni-
versity freshmen and sophomores, advanced
undergraduates, graduate students and fac-
ulty at UE He wants to train young faculty
and graduate students to be effective mentors

and to increase the numbers of undergradu-
ates and high school students getting hands-
on research experience both in his lab and in
the field. "If we can get graduate students to
see the value of mentoring undergrads and
undergrads learning to mentor high school
students, our impact on science will be much
greater," says Guillette.
Guillette also proposes a summer
workshop on modern research techniques
coupled with the Laboratory Research
Experience, where students spend 10 to 12
hours per week in a research lab and several
hours each week in lab meetings, learning
the basics of being a scientist. Topics could
include academic honesty, ethics, research,
basic philosophy of science, data collection,
notebook keeping and -., ic I.ll. in science
communication. Guillette plans to target
new faculty and graduate student mentors
with workshops, such as Mentoring the Next
Generation.
"I believe if we develop a mentoring
program early in a student's undergraduate
career that involves inquiry-based learning in
a research laboratory, they will have not only
gained an early appreciation of the difference
between studentship-being a passive stu-
dent and being taught-and scholarship-

"I believe if we develop a mentoring program early in a student's
undergraduate career that involves inquiry based learning in a research
laboratory they will have not only gained an early appreciation of
the difference between studentship-being a passive student and
being taught-and scholarship-the individual or group pursuit of
new knowledge-but will have established a personal network of
mentoring that can be drawn upon during their academic career"
-Lou Guillette

the individual or group pursuit of new knowledge-but will
have established a personal network of mentoring that can be
drawn upon during their academic career.
A member of the UF faculty since 1985, Guillette has
taught thousands of undergraduate and graduate students in
Introductory Biology, Embryology and Reproductive Biol-
ogy and other courses related to his research in comparative
reproductive biology. Internationally recognized, he has
advised countries such as New Zealand, Australia, Mexico
and Botswana on the development of reproductive biology
programs for endangered wildlife.
Guillette and his students work on a variety of organ-
isms from Illi. a.r and fish to frogs and humans. His
research examining the role of environmental contaminants
as inducers of birth defects in various wildlife species and
its implications for children's health has drawn international
attention and has been featured on national and international
media programs, including NOVA, FRONTLINE and the
BBC.
A nonprofit medical research organization, HHMI
was established in 1953 by the aviator-industrialist Howard
Hughes. Headquartered in Chevy Chase, Maryland, it is one
of the largest philanthropies in the world, with an endow-
ment of $14.8 billion at the close of its 2005 fiscal year.
HHMI spent $483 million in support of biomedical research
and $80 million for support of a variety of science education
and other grant programs last year. Visit www.hhmi.org for
more information.
-Allyson A. Beutke

CLASnotes April / May 2006

page 3

Competing in the nation's largest college
forensics competition this year from UF
were, from left to right: Colin Rawls, April
Roam, Scott Stewart, LaToya Edwards,
Eric White, Idania Herrera and Raju Vyas.

While the University of Florida Gators and the George Mason Patriots were going head to head in the
Final Four of the NCAA men's basketball playoffs during the first weekend in April, both universities'
speech and debate teams were busy competing against each other for a national title of their own.
Nearly 500 of the nation's top student speakers converged on the UF campus for the 29th annual
American Forensics Association-National Individual Events Tournament (AFA-NIET) on April 1-3.

"These students are the cream of the
crop," says Kellie Roberts, director
of the UF Speech and Debate Team.
"They had to prequalify in order to
compete, and many of them had
already won major awards. It was very
exciting to watch them square off
against one another."
The event is the largest in college
forensics and 2006 marks the second
time UF has been selected to host the
major tournament, which was last held
on the Gainesville campus in 1996.
"Schools have to put in a bid two
years prior, then I visit the site to make
sure everything is OK," says National
Tournament Director Larry Schnoor,
the retired professor and chair of the
Department of Speech Communication
at Minnesota State University-Mankato.
"UF was chosen for its great classroom
space, convenient location and the
excellent reputation of coach Kellie
Roberts."
The three-day event drew top-
ranked speech and debate teams from
92 universities and colleges from across
the US. The UF team placed 17th over-
all, but while the Gators might have

defeated the Patriots on the basketball
court to go on and become the national
champions, George Mason ranked
higher at AFA-NIET, claiming 8th
place.
"Our goal was to make it into
the top twenty schools this year," says
Roberts. "Compared to George Mason,
and others who placed above us, we are
one of the few programs without schol-
arships and one of the smallest squads.
UF accomplished this top ranking with
only seven students competing."
Scott Stewart, an economics
junior, attained the team's highest
honor this year by placing fifth nation-
ally in impromptu speaking. Both
Stewart and graduating public relations
and political science senior LaToya
Edwards reached the quarterfinal round
in extemporaneous speaking. Public
relations junior Idania Herrera made
it into the semifinals for prose inter-
pretation, while political science senior
Eric White reached the same level for
program oral interpretation. White
was also a quarterfinalist in dramatic
interpretation. Graduating seniors Raju
Vyas and April Roam, along with junior

Colin Rawls, also represented UF in the
national championship.
"There are so many events, it's
easy to find something you enjoy,"
says Vyas, an economics major who
served as the team's president this year.
"Whether you are interested in politics,
science or arts, there is bound to be
something for you."
The first time Tennessee native
Scott Stewart stepped on the UF cam-
pus was for a debate tournament his
senior year of high school. He was so
impressed with the UF Speech and
Debate Team, particularly coach Rob-
erts, he decided to come to UE Roberts
says hosting events like AFA-NIET
helps raise the institution's academic
image. "Because UF is best known for
its athletics and research, it never hurts
to show off what we are achieving aca-
demically," she says.
For more information on the UF
team or AFA-NIET results, visit www.
cwoc.ufl.edu/debate.
-Buffy Lockette

CLASnotes April / May 2006

page 4

beating the odds

Liz Mikell does not remember the first day of summer vacation following her sophomore year of high
school, when she and a friend decided to drive to the lake and get an early start on their suntans. She
has no memory of giggling with her friend as they turned into the neighborhood of the Gainesville,
Georgia lake house where they planned to spend the day, nor can she recall the moment a Dodge
Ram T-boned the passenger side of the small Nissan in which she was riding.
She may not have any memories of the event that her parents thought she would never return to high
forever changed her life, but Liz has spent the past six school, but this spring she graduates from the Univer-
years recovering from its effects. There was a time when sity of Florida with highest honors.
Despite wearing her seatbelt, Liz received an
intense blow to her head during the accident, causing
a severe brain injury. When she finally began to awake
from a two-week coma, the entire right side of her
body was paralyzed. She had to relearn how to hold up
her head, walk, talk, swallow, use the toilet and write.
"I was reverted to infancy," says the 22-year-old.
Liz immersed herself in therapy, spending eight
weeks in a rehab hospital. Amazingly, she was able to
walk out of the facility and return to high school in
the fall only a month behind and, for the first time,
became an "A" student. "I think I came to the realiza-
tion that I better work hard and get things done," she
says. This May, Liz graduates from UF with a bache-
lor's in communication sciences and disorders having
only earned one B+ her entire four years of college. She
has been admitted into the university's MA program
in speech language p rl..l.._, and plans to work with
patients with brain injuries.
"I have experienced the power of speech therapy
and what it can do, so I really empathize with the peo-
ple I am going to serve," she says. Liz has accepted a
graduate assistantship through her department, as well
as a position as a speech language assistant at Tacachale
in Gainesville, the oldest and largest community for
the developmentally disabled in Florida.
As an undergraduate, Liz has worked as a research
assistant in the lab of Lori Altmann, an assistant pro-
fessor of communication sciences and disorders. She
is a member of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship,
where she met her boyfriend of nearly four years, Eric
McKinney, a 2002 UF political science alumnus. She is
also a member of Signing Gators, the National Society
of Collegiate Scholars and Golden Key International
Honour Society.
"Liz is so special, she has worked so hard," says her
mother, Beth Splichal. "The hope of every parent of
a child with a severe brain injury is for them to have
independence, but every story doesn't turn out this
way. It's just remarkable. She's my miracle child. I am
so proud of her."
Liz believes she was spared for a reason, and plans
to spend the rest of her life serving others. "After all
that happened, it took me years to get to where I'm
at now," she says. "It is just such a blessing I am even
walking and able to go to college."
-Buffy Lockette

page 5

CLAnotes April / IVlay UUb6

distin uishinatudens S

CLAS Students Stand Out

Prestigious Scholarships for CLAS Students
T he Goldwater Foundation recently merit from a field of 1,081 mathematics, Enterprise. Before transferring to UF, he
selected three UF students to receive science and engineering students who was president of Phi Theta Kappa inter-
a Goldwater Scholarship, including were nominated by their colleges and national honor society, founder of Civic
CLAS students Donald Burnette and universities. The scholarships cover the Rock and a student ambassador at Bre-
JeffreyWong. cost of tuition, fees, books and room and vard Community College. Florida Leader
Burnette, a sophomore majoring in board up to a maximum of $7,500 per magazine named him one of the top 20
physics and mathematics, plans to earn a year. student leaders of Florida in 2003. Haupt
PhD in physics and to research at a top The Harry S. Truman Scholar- will pursue a master's in public policy and
institution specializing in the study of the ship Foundation has selected two CLAS a PhD in higher education administra-
properties of materials within condensed juniors as winners of its national scholar- tion.
matter physics. He is involved in several ship program for students preparing for The Truman Foundation requires
outreach programs with K-12 students careers in leadership in public service, students to be nominated by their insti-
and has won science fellowships from Ashley Bittner, a history and political tution, and Bittner and Haupt are the
the Center for Condensed Matter Sci- science double major, and Bruce Haupt, only two students selected from Florida.
ences. Wong, a junior, has a double major a political science major, have each In 2006, 75 students from 63 colleges
in microbiology and cell science and received $30,000 for graduate school, and universities were selected as Truman
biochemistry. A Beckman Scholar and Bittner is president of the Honors Scholars from a pool of 598 candidates
Lombardi Scholar, Wong plans to earn Ambassadors and has been active in the nominated by 311 colleges and universi-
an MD/PhD in molecular biology and First-Year Florida course, the Florida ties. Bittner and Haupt will join other
conduct research focused on developing Alternative Breaks program and the scholars in May for a week-long leader-
breakthrough platform therapeutics for Center for Leadership and Service. She ship development program at William
cancer and infectious disease. Lauren has interned with US Senator Bill Nel- Jewell College in Liberty, Missouri,
Culver, a junior majoring in materials son in Washington, DC, and has been and receive their awards at the Truman
science and engineering, is the other UF recognized as a J. Wayne Reitz Scholar, Library on May 21. Visit www.truman.
winner. a Wentworth Scholar and a McLaughlin gov for a list of 2006 Scholars.
Nationally, there were 323 Goldwa- Scholar. She intends to enter a joint Recent Truman Scholarship winners
ter scholarships awarded for the 2006- degree program for a master's in public from UF, who are all CLAS graduates,
2007 academic year given to sophomores affairs and a juris doctor, include Max Miller (2004), Teresa Por-
and juniors from the US. The foundation Haupt is a Campus Diplomat and a ter (2003) and Michael Gale (2002).
selected scholars on the basis of academic member of Chi Phi and Students In Free
CLASnotes April / May 2006

page 6

Go-Getter Gator Wins Scholarship for Graduate Study
enna Battillo, a junior majoring in anthropol- the Research Experience for Undergraduates pro- courageous in the selection of a graduate course of
ogy and classical studies and minoring in geo- gram through the National Science Foundation in study. Since 1975, the program has selected more
gical sciences, is one of 20 national winners of summer 2005. She is an Anderson Scholar and a than 315 college juniors from 94 different schools
the prestigious Beinecke Scholarship. UF was first member of Eta Sigma Phi classics honor society, to support during their graduate study at any
invited to submit one nominee for the scholarship Lambda Alpha anthropology honor society and accredited university. Each scholar receives $2,000
program in 2003, along with about 100 colleges the University Honors Program. She plans to pur- immediately prior to entering graduate school and
and universities. This year, there were a total of 87 sue a PhD in anthropological archaeology. an additional $30,000 while attending graduate
nominations nationwide. The Beinecke Scholarship Program seeks to school.
A native of Hawthorne, Battillo participated encourage and enable highly motivated students to
in an intensive archaeological dig in Cyprus with pursue opportunities available to them and to be

Outstanding International Students
Several CLAS undergraduate and graduate students recently received Out-
standing International Student Awards. They were nominated by their
departments for exceptional academic achievement and honored during a
ceremony held at the Reitz Union Auditorium in April. They are: Xiaohui
Feng, chemistry; Sophie Croisy and Nishant Shahani, English; Joel Black,
Eunhye Kwon and Michal Meyer, history; YoussefHaddad, linguistics;
Sung-Soo Kim, Gheorghe Lungu and Aravind Natarajan, physics. Two
CLAS students also received the Alec Courtelis Award, which is given each
year to exceptional international students by Louise Courtelis in honor of her
late husband, who was the former chairman of the Board of Regents. Aparna
Baskaran (physics) received a $3,000 prize and Maisa A. Haj-Tas (commu-
nication sciences and disorders) earned a $1,500 prize. Francesca Spedalieri
(mathematics) won a $500 Diane Fisher Scholarship.

CLAS Act: UF's Top Student Teachers
She UF Graduate School recently honored the university's most outstand-
Sing student teachers for their excellence in the classroom with Graduate
Student Teaching Awards. More than 50 students were nominated by their
departments campus-wide and, following a rigorous selection process con-
ducted by a faculty committee which included several classroom visits, 20
students were selected for the award-including nine from CLAS. Of these,
the top two candidates were named Calvin A. VanderWerf Award recipients,
established in memory of a former CLAS dean and chemistry professor.
Both VanderWerf winners were from CLAS: Rebecca Brown, English and
Amanda Davis, women's studies. The other recipients were John Bowden,
chemistry; Paul Corogin, botany; DeicyJimnnez, Romance languages and
literatures; Julia (Raymer) Keller, chemistry; Adnan Sabuwala, mathematics;
Nishant Shahani, English; Meredith Terry, psychology and Robert Uttaro,
political science.

CLASnotes April / May 2006

page 7

Hyden Honored for
Mentoring Graduate Students
Distinguished Professor of Political Science Goran Hyden
has received one of five UF Dissertation/Mentoring Awards.
Hyden received $3,000 and an additional $1,000 to support
graduate students. Each year, the Graduate School recognizes
five faculty members for excellence in mentoring doctoral
students. A committee of faculty and students chose this
year's recipients from among more than 200 eligible faculty
members across campus.
Since Hyden's arrival at UF in 1988, he has served on
146 master's and doctoral committees in numerous fields
and chaired 33 doctoral committees. He also has served as
a graduate coordinator in his department and on the CLAS
Graduate Committee.

Going Global
As part of the university's strong commitment to building a
global campus environment, the UF International Center,
Transnational and Global Studies Center and Research and
Graduate Programs annually award "Internationalizing the
Curriculum" grants to faculty seeking to add international
components to an existing course or create new courses with
substantial international content. For the 2006-2007 year, 21
awards of up to $3,000 have been granted across campus. The
following have been selected from CLAS: Sue Boinski, anthro-
pology; Richard Conley, political science; William Conwill,
African American studies; Todd Hasak-Lowy, African and
Asian languages and literatures; Bob Hatch, history; Jeffrey
Keaffaber, chemistry; Won-ho Park, political science; Renata
Serra, African studies and Anita Spring, anthropology.

Women's Studies Art Show
FrogLeggs, the latest art exhibit on display at the Center for
Women's Studies and Gender Research gallery, features the
creations of someone near and dear to the department-office
manager Paula Ambroso. Her acrylic canvases feature insects
and animals painted in bold colors and simplified lines. A spe-
cial feature of her paintings is they are hung from colorful hand-
strung beadwork. The show also includes some of her fused
glass pieces. Pictured above is Ambroso with one of her favorite
pieces during the opening reception in March. In addition to
her work at the center, Ambroso is working on her master's
degree in social work.
page 8

Around

the College

Dufty Receives State Department Fellowship
Physicist James Dufty has received an American Institute of Physics (AIP) fellowship from
the State Department in Washington, DC. He will serve a one-year term that begins Sep-
tember 1. As a fellow, Dufty will choose an assignment designed to broaden the reach and
visibility of scientific expertise within the State Department.
"The fellowship is a rare opportunity for me to observe and learn the process by which
such difficult decisions are made and to influence some of them during my tenure," he says. "I
am honored by the expectation of my peers that I can reflect the value and expertise of scien-
tists in the quite different forum of political policy formation."
Through the development of the State Department fellowship program in 2001, the AIP
became the first scientific society to financially support one scientist annually to work in a
bureau or office of the State Department to provide scientific expertise to those who make the
nation's foreign policy.

Faculty Discuss Research on National Television
Communication Sciences and Disorders Professor and Chair Christine Sapienza appeared on
NBC's Dateline on April 16 as part of a segment on actor Michael J. Fox. She is the recipient
of a $280,000 clinical discovery grant from the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's
Research and is in the process of testing a device she invented, an expiratory muscle-strength
trainer, which may have the capability of strengthening the swallowing muscles of Parkinson's
patients. Aspiration pneumonia is the leading cause of death among those with the disease.
Read a transcript of the entire segment at www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12332849.
Associate Professor of Anthropology Michael Heckenberger was featured in an episode
of The History Channel's popular series Diggingfor the Truth. Heckenberger accompanied the
entire filming of the episode "Lost Cities of the Amazon," which aired April 24.
The episode focused on his research in various parts of the Amazon, specifically the
research that he directs in the Upper Xingu region in Brazil that debunks the view of small
primitive tribes living unchanged in virgin tropical forest. Instead, the UF research demon-
strates a large, vibrant population that had a productive agricultural and fishing economy,
complex settlement patterns and technology, including major roads that linked towns and
* .11 -.. into integrated clusters. Throughout the centuries leading up to 1492, the native Ama-
zonians had transformed the tropical forest into complex, managed landscapes that included a
mosaic of forests, parklands, agricultural production areas and managed wetlands.
Visit www.historychannel.com/diggingforthetruth for more information.

New Faces in the Dean's Office
The dean's office welcomes two new staff members. Sarah Fitzpat-
rick (right) is the administrative assistant to the dean, replacing Carol
Binello, who has taken a position with the College of Engineering.
Fitzpatrick previously was the alumni affairs and special events coordi-
nator for the College of Fine Arts. Prior to her work at the university,
she worked at Interbrand, a branding consultancy in New York City.
She also earned a bachelor's degree in English from UF Fitzpatrick's
main job duties will be coordinating the college's special events, includ-
ing the staff recognition ceremony, Baccalaure-
ate, commencement, convocation, new faculty
reception, homecoming-related events and holiday activities. She also
will handle elections of CLAS faculty members to the UF Faculty Sen-
ate and provide administrative support to the office.
Kimberly Browne (left) is the college's new budget coordina-
tor. She has been the coordinator of university budgets in the provost's
office for more than six years and has worked at UF for almost 20
years, serving previously as a program assistant in the physics depart-
ment and the office manager for the history department. Browne
earned her bachelor's and master's degrees in political science from UF
CLASnotes April / May 2006

IVIdldySldil pIuolesUI LdllIdl Millllll MllllldU I
spending four months on sabbatical at UF at the
invitation of the Dial Center for Written and Oral
Communication. As deputy dean for research and
graduate studies in the School of Management at
University Sains Malaysia, the purpose of his visit is to
study the operations of the McKnight Brain Institute
in hopes of establishing a similar research center at
his university. Ahmad also is exploring collaboration
options on neuroscience research between the two
universities, as well as seeking to create a possible
graduate student exchange program.

cneryl vicNair (lett), tme widow or nallienger
astronaut Ronald E. McNair, visited UF for the first
time April 7 and 8, serving as the keynote speaker
at both the annual McNair Research Day banquet
and the University Scholars Program (USP) awards
banquet. Above, she meets with psychology senior
Trista Perez, a student in both programs. The
McNair Scholars Program, established by the US
Department of Education in honor of NASA mis-
sion specialist Ronald E. McNair, who died in the
1986 shuttle explosion, supports undergraduates
from low-income, first-generation backgrounds
progress toward earning a PhD. Of the 20 UF stu-
dents awarded the prestigious scholarship this year,
12 were CLAS majors. In addition to Perez, these
include: Vera Brown, women's studies; Krystle
Cadogan, political science; Vanessa Fabien,
anthropology; Latori Griffin, psychology; Andrea
Hayes, psychology; Amanda Herrera, sociology;
Sheila LeMarre, political science and women's
studies; Belkis Plata, criminology; Geoffrey Sil-
vera, psychology; Lauren Thornton, microbiology
and cell science and Desiree Wright, psychology.
During the University Scholars banquet, zool-
ogy alumna Emily Mitchem, who graduated with
her bachelor's degree in December, was awarded
a 2005-2006 Best Paper Award for her project,
"Native Florida Crustacean Predator's Preferences
Regarding Non-Indigenous Green Mussel, Perna
viridis (Linnaeus 1758)." She received $250 and a
framed certificate. Her paper will be published in
a fall issue of the online Journal of Undergraduate
Research, www.clas.ufl.edu/jur

Department News
Academic Advising Center
Lynn O'Sickey has been elected finance committee
chair of the National Academic Advising Association
(NACADA). The nonprofit organization has worked
since 1979 to promote quality in academic advising
and the professional development of its members.
Being elected to a NACADA leadership position is
not only a fine tribute to O'Sickey by her peers but
also a recognition of her significant professional con-
tributions to the field of academic advising.

Chemistry
PhD student Julia (Raymer) Keller has been named
one of 60 graduate students to
represent the US as part of the
American student delegation
at the 56th Lindau Meeting of
Nobel Laureates in Germany
in June. Nobel Prize winners in
chemistry, physics and physiol-
ogy/medicine will convene to lecture on this year's
topic of focus-chemistry-as well as host small
discussion groups and informal talks with the young
researchers. The student delegation is sponsored by
the US Department of Energy Office of Science, the
National Institutes of Health, the National Science
Foundation Directorate for Mathematical and Physi-
cal Sciences and Oak Ridge Associated Universities.

Kenneth Men has been invited by the National
Institutes of Health (NIH) to serve as a member of
the Center for Scientific Review's Macromolecular
Structure and Function A Study Section. He will be
involved in reviewing grant applications submitted
to the NIH and making recommendations on these
to appropriate national advisory councils or boards.
He also will participate in surveying the status of
research in his field of science. Met will serve for the
2006-2009 term and was selected based on his own
achievements in his research.

English
Two professors have received a Guggenheim Fellow-
ship for the 2006-2007 academic year. Jill Cement
will use her award to write a new novel, Take All
Heroic Measures. Subtropics managing editor Mark
Mitchell plans to use his fellowship to write a biog-
raphy of the writer Frederic Prokosch. This year's
winners include 187 artists, scholars and scientists
selected from almost 3,000 applicants for awards
totaling $7,500,000.

The journal Exemplaria received a substantial review
in the March 10 issue of The Times Literary Supple-
ment. The review focused on volume 16, number 2,
addressing each essay in the issue, offering generally
favorable commentary on each and concludes:
"...there is always enough substance to merit the
most attentive reading; and the journal remains
unique in encouraging new approaches in a way that
is as inspiring and satisfying for fresh graduates as for
more established medievalists and early modernists,
and for non-specialists with an open mind as

to what medieval and early modern studies can tell
them about other times and other texts." R. Allen
Shoaf is the co-founding editor of the journal.

Sidney Wade has been elected as president of The
Association of Writers & Writing Programs. She will
be responsible for fundraising, overseeing the finan-
cial and budgetary state of the organization, advo-
cacy issues, personnel and developing a broad-based
survey of membership. Wade has been a member of
the organization for 10 years, serving on the board
for the past three and last year as co-vice president.

Mathematics
Douglas Cenzer was named an Exemplary Mentor
at the 2006 Faculty Mentor Recognition Program
of the South East Alliance for Graduate Education
and the Professoriate (SEAGEP) on April 10. Cenzer
mentors PhD student Paul Brodhead, who received
a $20,000 fellowship as a SEAGEP scholar.
The SEAGEP Program includes University of
Florida as the lead institution and Clemson Univer-
sity and the University of South Carolina as primary
partners.

PhD student Hongchao Zhang, with his advisor
William Hager, will receive the Society of Indus-
trial and Applied Mathematics' student-paper prize
for his paper titled "A New Active Set Algorithm
for Box Constrained Optimization." The award,
including a certificate and a $1,000 cash prize, will
be presented at the 2006 SIAM Annual Meeting
in Boston in July. Zhang and PhD student Sujeet
Bhat each have received a two-year postdoctoral
position through the Institute for Mathematics and
its Applications. PhD student Andriana Nenciu has
received the Van Vleck Assistant Professorship at the
University of Wisconsin.

Romance Languages and Literatures
At the invitation of the Louisiana Board of Regents,
Emeritus Professor of French Raymond Gay-Cro-
sier has chaired the selection committee for the
"Review of Humanites Enhancement Proposals" for
the fifth time in the last 15 years. This competition
takes place every three years and allocates approxi-
mately $1 million to $1.5 million to winning pro-
grams in public and private institutions in Louisiana.

Zoology
Jamie Gillooly has received the George A. Bar-
tholomew Award from the Society for Integrative
and Comparative Biology, which is given to the best
young scientist in integrative biology.

Brian Silliman received a Young Investigators' Prize
from the American Society of Naturalists. Four of
these awards are presented nationally each year to
recognize outstanding and promising work by sci-
entists who have received their doctorates in the last
three years.

CLASnotes April / May 2006

page 9

B ookbeat RECENT PUBLICATIONS FROM CLASS FACULTY

Old Dominion, The Word and
Industrial Com- the Being in
monwealth, Unamunos
Scan Adams Poetics, Luis
(History), The Alvarez-Castro
Johns Hopkins (Spanish), Sala-
University Press manca Univer-
Sean Pat- sity Press
rick Adams This book
compares the political economies of unveils the work of Spanish writer
coal in Virginia and Pennsylvania and thinker Miguel de Unamuno
from the late 18th century through (1864-1936) as a literary theorist.
the Civil War, examining the diver- While Unamuno never wrote a
gent paths these two states took in monograph on poetics, his ideas on
developing their ample coal reserves the nature, significance and purpose
during a critical period of Ameri- of literature can be traced through-
can industrialization. In both cases out his complete oeuvre. By contrast-
Adams finds state economic policies ing all those ideas, this book arranges
played a major role. and systematizes for the first time
Using coal as a barometer of eco- Unamuno's literary theory. The main
nomic change, this book addresses tenets of such a theory are quite con-
longstanding questions about North- ventional, yet Unamuno perceives
South economic divergence and the them as existential categories more
role of state government in American than aesthetic values. Ultimately,
industrial development, providing Unamuno's theory combines philoso-
new insights for both political and phy and philology in order to inquire
economic historians of 19th-century how literary discourses determine
America. the formation of writing and reading
-Publisher subjects.
-Author Summary

Reflections of Reflecti of an Introduction to
an Aspiring Enumerative
Curmudgeon, Combinatorics,
Felix Berardo Miklos Bona
(Sociology), (Mathematics),
iUniverse Inc. McGraw-Hill
Why would Written by
anyone aspire one of the lead-
to be a cur- ing authors and
mudgeon? Because, among other researchers in the field, this compre-
things, they mock and debunk pre- hensive modern text is written for
tense and hypocrisy. Curmudgeons one- or two-semester undergraduate
disdain mediocrity and fraud, and courses in general combinatorics or
use humor as their principal weapon. enumerative combinatorics taken by
In the tradition of Mark Twain, math and computer science majors.
Berardo relates his personal experi- Introduction to Enumerative Combi-
ences and observations on human natorics features a strongly developed
behavior to larger societal trends focus on enumeration, a vitally
and changing values. Often hilari- important area in introductory com-
ous, always profound, these essays binatorics, crucial for further study
enlighten and entertain, in the field. Bona's text is one of the
-Publisher very first enumerative combinator-
ics books written specifically for the
needs of an undergraduate audience,
with a lively and engaging style that
is ideal for presenting the material
to sophomores or juniors. This book
is part of the Walter Rudin Student
Series in Advanced Mathematics.
-Publisher

The Spanish j
Civil War: A
Modern Trag-
edy, George
Esenwein (His-
tory), Rout- The Spanish
ledge: London/ civil War
New York A Moen Trgedy
The Span-
ish Civil War has rarely failed to
arouse the passions of and stimulate
interest in scholars and nonscholars
alike. This book provides a dispas-
sionate and illuminating analysis of
this complicated event, identifying
major social and political themes and
breaking new ground in assessing the
impact of cultural issues like race and
gender.
The author uses a wide range of
carefully selected primary source
material to support the text, allow-
ing participants and contemporary
observers of the Civil War to speak
for themselves. The reader will gain
insight into the variety of perspec-
tives held by both famous figures and
minor ones previously overlooked by
Civil War scholars.
-Author Summary
page 10

The i, i c Metacommuni-
of Fishes, David P Imo ties: Spatial
Evans (Zool- Dynamics and
ogy), CRC I Ecological Com-
Press; second munities, Bob
edition Holt (Zoology), METACOMMUNITIES
As with the University Of So indiv.
-... r- [h. r Chicago Press
edition, this This book t .. l i
second edition is a comprehensive, takes the hallmarks of metapopula-
state-of-the-art review of the major tion theory to the next level by
areas of research in modern fish considering a group of communities,
physiology. International contribu- each of which may contain numer-
tions from leading experts detail cur- ous populations, connected by spe-
rent knowledge of locomotion and cies interactions within communities
energetic, gas exchange and cardio- and the movement of individuals
vascular physiology, homeostasis, and between communities. In examining
neurophysiology and neuroendocrine communities open to dispersal, the
control. book unites a broad range of ecologi-
This volume includes a system- cal theories, presenting some of the
atic index organized by genus and first empirical investigations and
species, enabling rapid access to revealing the value of the metacom-
information on topics unique to par- munity approach. Encouraging com-
ticular fish. munity ecologists to rethink some
-Publisher of the leading theories of population
and community dynamics, Metacom-
munities urges ecologists to expand
the spatiotemporal scales of their
research.
-Publisher

African Politics
in Compara- i
tive Perspective, er l
Goran Hyden
(Political Sci-
ence), Cam-
bridge Univer-
sity Press
This book
reviews 50 years of research on
politics in Africa by synthesizing
insights from different scholarly
approaches and offering an original
interpretation of the knowledge
accumulated throughout the years.
It discusses how research on African
politics relates to the study of politics
in other regions and mainstream
theories in comparative politics and
focuses on such key issues as the
legacy of a movement approach to
political change, the nature of the
state, the economy of affection, the
policy deficit, the agrarian question,
gender and politics and ethnicity and
conflict.
-Publisher

CLASnotes April / May 2006

Seeds of the Kingdom: Utopian Communities in the Americas
Anna L. Peterson (Religion), Oxford University Press

She repopulation movement of
Catholic peasants returning
to former war zones in El Salvador
proved a natural choice of study for
Religion Professor Anna Peterson,
whose previous books addressed pro-
gressive Catholic social movements
in the region and religion-based envi-
ronmental ethics. Peterson also chose
to include the Old Order Amish in

her study, as both communities share
a utopian Christian ethic expressed
in agrarian community settings.
"I was looking at how people
from certain religious traditions
lived out their ethics," Peterson says.
"Most people don't-there's a huge
gap between what they say and do.
I wanted to find people who walked
the talk."

Seeds of the Kingdom tells of
two communities that, rather than
wait for the arrival of an ideal society,
attempt to create societies bound
by social and environmental ethics
founded in religion. Both groups,
Peterson says, subordinate certain
values in order to live out their faith
and community. "You have to give
things up. It's not a utopia in the
sense that everyone's happy and
there's no conflict, instead there is
constant negotiation. It's a process."
While surveys show 80 percent
of Americans claim environmental-
ism is important to them, only
20 percent do anything about it.
This disconnect between people's
expressed values and what they do
reflects a common dilemma, says
Peterson, who is affiliated with the
Center for Latin American Studies
and the School of Natural Resources
and the Environment.
Communities that combine
values and actions do teach us some-
thing, Peterson says. Their message:
individuals can't do it alone, but
with strong community structures
and supportive policy, it is possible.
"These communities are saying you
can. That's the take-away message.
Not that we should replicate them,
but that they challenge us to close
the gap a little. There will always be

that gap, but does it have to be as
vast as it is right now?"
There is a price. Individual
interests sometimes give way to the
social, Peterson says. Suffering high
rates of alcohol abuse, some repopu-
lated iI ,I..- banned alcohol, even
for those who drank only a single
beer after work. The Amish refuse
higher education. "It's a trade off,"
says Peterson. "You cannot have it
all, and you have to decide what's
important to you. We have things
in the US that we say are important,
but we don't act on that. We tend
to fall into things, not make real
choices. And the things we end up
not having are often precisely the
things we say we value the most."
-Michal Meyer

Provocations to Dragan Kujundzic (Germanic
and Slavic Studies), Fordham University Press
This book is a marker of the "state of theory" today.
Its rich array of wide-ranging essays explores the dimen-
sions and implications of the work of J. Hillis Miller,
one of the most eminent literary scholars in America.
For nearly half a century, Miller has been known for his
close and imaginative engagement with the implications
of European philosophical thought and for his passion-
ate advocacy of close reading.
A provocation to reading for new generations of students and teachers,
these essays offer important resources for grasping the question of language in
historical perspective and in contemporary life-a task essential for any demo-
cratic future.

CLASnotes April / May 2006

The Cross that Dante Bears, Mary Watt (Italian),
University Press of Florida
Watt proposes that The Divine Comedy employs a
series of strategically placed textual cues to create a meta-
textual structure beyond Dante's literal narrative. As the
pilgrim wends his way through the three realms of the
afterlife, references to medieval maps and to medieval
cruciform churches, together with images of crusading
and pilgrimage, ultimately reveal the shape of this struc-
ture as the reader becomes aware that Dante's journey traces the figure of a
cross.
Watt explores the textual cues, codes and other strategies that Dante
employs to discover how and why he conjures up the shape of a cross. While
the image of the cross within The Divine Comedy has been frequently noted,
Watt approaches the observation and the poem in holistic fashion by arguing
that this image is a clue to the greater underlying structure that gives form and
therefore meaning to the entire work. -Publisher
page 11

pointing the
T his August, the first group of
Students will be initiated into the
Cooperative Academic Achievement
Program, or CAAP, which hopes to
improve the retention and graduation
rates of Hispanic-Latino students at
UF The program was established and
approved for funding in fall 2005, based
on the success of CAAP's sister program
Pledging to Achieve Academic Com-
petance Together (PAACT), which aides
African-American students.
Initiated in 1998, PAACT pro-
vides academic support services and
guidance to facilitate African-American
students' transition from high school to
university. The retention rate of PAACT
students by the end of their junior year
in 2004 was 95 percent. That same year,
the retention rate for non-PAACT Afri-

m

way to success
can-American students by the end of
their junior year was 62 percent. CAAP
will use PAACT's successful program
model to improve the retention rate for
Hispanic-Latino students.
The program's first event, the
CAAP Kickoff, will serve as an orienta-
tion for incoming Hispanic-Latino
freshmen. Faculty speakers, campus
tours and a scavenger hunt will intro-
duce the students to important people
and services on campus. "CAAP will
take away students' fears and intimida-
tion and make them feel more comfort-
able with resources all over campus,"
says Diana Armas, the coordinator of
the program.
Students in the program will
submit follow-up progress reports each
semester, to allow CAAP to address any

critical thinking SHARP OPINIONS RECOGNIZED BY PEERS

E english professor William Logan
has won the National Book
Critics Circle Award in Criticism for
his book The Undiscovered Coun-
try: Poetry in the Age of Tin. Logan
accepted the award at the NBCC
annual awards ceremony in New
York City on March 3.
"Winning was like being struck
by lightning," Logan says. "The best
aspect of the honor is that even my
friends seem impressed. I'm sorry
that my parents weren't alive to
see it-they always said I was too
critical, but they would have been
proud."
The award-winning book
includes essays about Shakespeare's
sonnets, Whitman's use of the Amer-
ican vernacular, the mystery of Mari-
anne Moore and a groundbreaking

analysis of Sylvia Plath's relationship
to her father, as well as the chronicles
of the poet whose sharp opinions of
contemporary verse have sometimes
been controversial.
The NBCC, a 700-member
nonprofit organization founded in
1974, honors authors for quality
writing in five categories: fiction,
general nonfiction, biography/
memoir, poetry and criticism. The
members, all book reviewers, elect a
24-person board of directors, which
nominates and judges books for the
awards.
Logan, who was a finalist for
the award in criticism in 1999, is the
author of three other books of criti-
cism, All the Rage (1998), Reputations
of the Tongue (1999) and Desperate
Measures (2002). He says poets com-

only react to his criticisms with
a blissful-or perhaps a stunned-
silence. "On some occasions a poet
has threatened violence, either jok-
ingly (in the case of the Pulitzer Prize
winner who offered to run me over
with his car) or not so jokingly (in
the case of another Pulitzer Prize
winner who offered to give me the
beating I 'so richly deserved')," he
says. "Mostly, though, poets have
hides thick enough to take criticism,
and perhaps some poets need even
thicker hides to accept praise."
Logan was director of UF's Cre-
ative Writing Program from 1983 to
2000. He continues to teach poetry
workshops and seminars on modern
poetry. "Apart from writing more
criticism, I'd like to think that when
I clear my desk I'll be back writing

poems, which is, after all, where my
imagination seems happiest."
Logan is on research leave from
UF and living in England until
August.
-Tiffany Iwankiw

UNIVERSITY OF

FLORIDA
The Foundation for The Gator Nation.
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
News and Publications
2008 Turlington Hall
PO Box 117300
Gainesville FL 32611-7300
editor@clas.ufl.edu
http://clasnews.clas.ufl.edu

academic issues immediately, while giving students the initiative to com-
municate and form valuable mentor relationships with professors.
"I hope CAAP helps Hispanic-Latino students accomplish their
goals at UF and leads to even more accomplishments in their lives after
college," Armas says.
-Tiffany Iwankiw

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