University of Alabama robotics team claims third straight victory at NASA competition
Alabama News Center – May 31
For the third consecutive year, a student team at the University of Alabama placed first at a NASA robotics contest. Alabama Astrobotics took the top prize at the NASA Robotic Mining Competition, besting student teams from 45 other institutions in the challenge to build a robot capable of navigating and excavating simulated Martian soil, or regolith. “Winning the NASA Robotic Mining Competition for a third straight year is amazing and humbling,” said team lead Joseph Kabalin, a recent mechanical engineering graduate from Loveland, Ohio. “Our team knows how hard it is to get here and how much work it takes. It was truly a team effort.”
3D Printing News Sliced: Airbus, adidas, Stratasys, Fallout 3
3-D Printing Industry – May 31
This edition of 3D printed news sliced features stories from: adidas, Fallout 3, KXIV, Stratasys, NIDEK Technologies, Cadac Group, MyMiniFactory, 3D Slash, artist Jip de Beer, 3D Orchard, Thor 3D, Dream T&S, University of Alabama, Airbus and Andrew Sink from 3D Central. Alabama takes off with additive manufacturing facilities: The University of Alabama has signed a research agreement with Airbus for use in engineering. As part of the agreement, Airbus will provide the university with additive manufacturing equipment and other tools necessary for the production of aerospace parts.
Summer Sun Safety
Fox 6 (Birmingham) – May 31
This is the time of year when it gets hot and it stays that way. It makes it a dangerous time for people not use to working in hot weather. Heat related illnesses including heat exhaustion and heat stroke, which is more severe, are on the rise. WBRC talked to Dr. Charles Geno with the University of Alabama’s Student Health Center, who says the young and the elderly are the most susceptible…Heat stroke can lead to death if it’s not treated quickly.
Health Matters: Depression
WVUA (Tuscaloosa) – May 31
This month on Health Matters, we’re talking about a variety of mental health issues in observance of mental health awareness month. Increasingly in our society, depression is on the front page. We are aware of people who have had problems, and people who are getting attention and help for it, and that’s a good thing. To learn more about this, let’s listen to a conversation with Dr. John Burkhardt, a clinical psychologist with University Medical Center.
R&D Special Focus: Graphene
R and D Mag – May 31
Since 2004 when it was first isolated, graphene—a one-atom thick, 2D crystal material extracted from graphite—has shown significant potential across multiple industries … We also featured exciting graphene research from a student team at the University of Alabama in the article, How Graphene Could Help Auto Manufacturers. As part of a national competition called EcoCar3, the team successfully fabricated a lighter hood created from graphene into a Chevy Camaro, proving the cutting-edge material can work on a consumer car.
UA professors write book that details struggle to teach evolution in Alabama
WRBL-CBS (Columbus, Georgia) – May 31
A new book is on store shelves detailing the struggles Alabama teachers have teaching evolution. The book by three University of Alabama professors titled “Evolution Education in the American South,” takes a look at the fight to get teaching standards in the state after years of fundamentalist Christian opposition.
Tours give insight to Gadsden’s arts and government
Gadsden Times – May 31
There’s a natural urge to poke around in places where we aren’t meant to go. Behind every “Do Not Enter” and “Employees Only” sign is a hidden world that everyday people don’t get to see … Scott said he decided to work with the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute on the program, making it one of OLLI’s course offerings for the summer session. OLLI provides classes and educational opportunities for senior citizens nationwide at low cost, offered locally through the University of Alabama’s Gadsden Center.
The Art of a Devastating Deal for Distressed Communities
American Progress – May 31
The broken promises in President Donald Trump’s budget, announced last week, seem to have no bounds, with cuts from Social Security to Meals on Wheels. Ultimately, his scorched-earth vision is wrong for so many Americans on so many levels … USDA Rural Development has helped towns such as Woodlake, California, and Manistique, Michigan, invest in their water treatment facilities. The Appalachian Regional Commission supports programs including the Export Trade Financing Program at the University of Alabama, which helps small businesses in Appalachian Alabama get their goods to consumers in international markets—this partnership has created 92 jobs since 2010. In 2016, the Delta Regional Commission helped get 87 new doctors into rural Appalachian communities and made 30,346 free medical procedures possible in low-income communities.
School of Social Work to host course in support of military children
Crimson White – June 1
The Military Child Education Coalition will host the “Supporting Veterans’ Children Through Transitions” course on Friday, June 2 in the Bryant Conference Center, in partnership with the School of Social Work. The event, sponsored by the Alabama Education Trust Fund, will be free to all participants. The class will last from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Military Child Education Coalition aims to benefit the preparation of all military children for college and the workforce, provide ample and responsive resources, and execute a strategic communications plan. The stated goal of the course is “To ensure inclusive, quality educational opportunities for all military and veteran-connected children affected by mobility, transition, and family separation.”