After the shootings in El Paso and Dayton: what is going on in the head of the mass shooter?
De Morgen (Belgium) – Aug. 19
Two wild men, dozens of deadly bursts and 31 fatalities in half a day: the US cannot get a grip on the mass shooters, who strike on average once a day. Three American top experts take a look under the skull of the mass shooter: “In this country, weapons of war are just under the Christmas tree.” To put the rest of the puzzle pieces together, I call Adam Lankford, professor of criminology and criminal law at the University of Alabama, and author of a frequently cited study. Lankford gathered figures from 171 countries, and calculated that there are six times more such shootings in the US than you would expect.
University of Alabama professor awarded grant to study heat waves
Alabama Political Reporter – Aug. 19
A University of Alabama assistant professor has received a grant that will help him study the deadly heat waves, which are becoming more frequent and more severe due to climate change. David Keelings, a climatologist and assistant professor of geography at The University of Alabama, was in Italy in June attending an outdoor wedding with his wife in over 100 degree weather, just as Europe was experiencing the first of two massive heat waves this summer.
Heat waves worsening, says University of Alabama researcher
The Tuscaloosa News – Aug. 17
A University of Alabama researcher says heat waves have become larger and more severe during the last 60 years. “The bigger the heat wave becomes, the higher its magnitude and the longer it tends to last,” said David Keellings, an assistant professor of geography at UA, in a news release. Keelings said climate change is the likely culprit for more severe heat waves, but there’s much more to be learned about the the deadliest weather hazard in the United States.
NBC – Aug. 18
Digital student card for iPhone: More and more US universities are supporting Student ID for Apple devices.
MacTechNews – Aug. 19
Apple is expanding its ability to carry student cards in digital form via iPhone and Apple Watch. In addition to the American educational institutions already offering a digital student ID, a number of other US universities will soon be added. In Germany, however, there is so far no corresponding offer for students. Currently, the Apple-sponsored Student ID is available at the following US universities: Duke University, University of Oklahoma, University of Alabama, Temple University, Johns Hopkins University, Marshall University, and Mercer University.
Todo Tech 2.0 (Barcelona, Spain) – Aug. 18
PHOTOS: Sorority Bid Day 2019
The Tuscaloosa News – Aug. 18
New sorority members enjoy the rush of Sorority Bid Day.
Al.com
The Crimson White
Relieve the Right Anger, Here’s the advice from a Psychologist
Fimela (Indonesia) – Aug. 18
We need to understand first what really triggers anger. Dolf Zillmann, a psychologist from the University of Alabama, as quoted in the book Emotional Intelligence revealed that the trigger for universal anger is feeling threatened. These threats can be triggered not only by direct physical threats but, as more often the case, also by symbolic threats to self-esteem or dignity: to be treated unfairly or to be abused, reviled or belittled, frustrated while pursuing important goals.
University of Alabama mourns Nancy Parker, news anchor killed in plane crashThe Tuscaloosa News – Aug. 18
The New Orleans and University of Alabama communities are mourning the loss of news anchor Nancy Parker, a UA alumna, who died in a plane crash while working on a story about a stunt pilot. Parker, who worked as a journalist for WVUE Fox 8 News for 27 years, was killed Friday alongside pilot Franklin J.P. Augustus, who was a member of a Louisiana group that honored Tuskegee Airmen, the news station reported.
Monsters & Critics – Aug. 17
ABC (Columbus, Ga.)
Fox 6
CBS 42
NBC 13 – Aug. 17
ABC 33/40
WVUA
Fox (Columbus, Ga.)
CBS (Dothan)
NBC (New Orleans, La.)
CBS (Huntsville)
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Weintraub column: We are dying to find our humanity
BlueRidgeNow – Aug. 18
We are a country in denial. We’re the only developed country in the world where loved ones drop their friends and family at the mall, at school or any public place never knowing if they’re saying goodbye for the last time. Mass shootings have become an American fact of life. Just as predictable as the finger-pointing and denial that follows each horrific killing. A major finding in a University of Alabama study was that firearm ownership rates appeared to be a statistically significant predictor of the distribution of public mass shooters worldwide. Many of the nations in the study that ranked highest in firearm ownership rates also ranked near the top in public mass shooters per capita.
Women make up majority of University of Alabama’s first-year law students for first time
Alabama Newscenter – Aug. 18
For the first time, women make up a majority of law students in the entering class at the University of Alabama School of Law. Of the 137 first-year law students who enrolled last week, 53% are women. Enrollment at UA’s School of Law mirrors a national trend, as women have outnumbered men in law school classrooms across the country since 2016, according to the American Bar Association.
Girl Scout Troop provide Sensory Bottles to Police
WVUA – Aug. 18
Sylvia Hollins is with The University of Alabama regional autism network. “When you’ve met one person with autism, you’ve met one person with autism because every individual whether they have autism or not are unique and one person won’t look the same as another.” And knowing that is what brings this room full of police officers and deputies to the training room at the Tuscaloosa police department headquarters.
The Case For Publishing The Names Of Mass Shooters
Yahoo! News – Aug. 17
These days, the media is weighing a similar dilemma: Does detailed reporting on perpetrators of mass shootings function as an accelerant, inspiring would-be attackers to pull the trigger? A growing movement, led by gun control activists and law enforcement and academics, is pressuring news organizations to reconsider how they report on mass shooters. They argue that fame is the end goal and news coverage may encourage copycat behavior. The research is far from conclusive. Adam Lankford, a criminologist at the University of Alabama, looked at the same data set as Towers and did not find statistically significant evidence of contagion within 14 days of an incident. Even so, Lankford is worried about how the media may be encouraging killers by turning them into de facto celebrities.
UA HONORS STUDENTS BEAUTIFY CRESTMONT ELEMENTARY
WVUA – Aug. 16
A gaggle of 38,000-plus students have already begun to return to the University of Alabama for classes next week. But, some students in the UA Honors College is already getting into the swing of things. “We do projects to beautify the Tuscaloosa City Schools,” UA student Hannah Desse said. Thursday morning was early move-in for a few incoming freshman with the Honors College. They’ve officially made the University of Alabama their new home away from home. And, they didn’t waste any time lending a helping hand to Crestmont Elementary.
UA students return to campus
WVUA – Aug. 16
They’re back! The first day of class isn’t until next week for University of Alabama students. But, many of them are already back in town. Most of UA residence halls, sorority and fraternity houses opened today so students will have time to move-in this weekend.
UA takes to Twitter with move-in tips
NBC (Huntsville) – Aug. 16
While some high schoolers are considering applying to Auburn for a 20-20 semester, thousands of high school students across the country continue to move-in in t-town. The University of Alabama took to twitter to share some move in tips for parents and students. First and foremost, each student is allowed only 2 vehicles at unloading zones, no moving trucks or trailers. Second, label everything with your students last name and room number.
UA Leads Nation with Most Instagrammed Campus
NBC (Mobile) – Aug. 16
The University of Alabama’s “Roll Tide” is the most popular college hashtag on Instagram according to an AT&T report. Researchers looked at most popular hashtags for universities nationwide. The study found that almost 60 percent of students have at least one post using the hashtag.
KOAA (Colorado Springs, Colo.)
CBS (Florence, S.C.)
CBS (Raleign, N.C.)
NBC (Huntsville)
CBS (Cincinnati, Ohio)
WERC-FM (Birmingham)
WSTR (Cincinnati, Ohio)
ABC 33/40
ABC (Columbus, Ohio)
Pride, frustration as Hobson City addresses small-town problems in forum
The Cutoff News – Aug. 16
Her town, the first government in Alabama formed and run entirely by African Americans, celebrates its 120th anniversary this weekend. Local luminaries, including a former U.S. surgeon general, will return for celebrations. And yet there’s much that hasn’t changed for this town of 761 people. Leaky water pipes. Little money. No ZIP code of its own. All the politics of a bigger town. McCrory and about a dozen local residents sat down Friday at the FEMA Building, a school-gym-style structure behind the Town Hall, for a forum on the problems of the area’s smallest towns. Arturo Menefee, a faculty member at the University of Alabama’s Center for Economic Development, told the crowd that in planning future development, it’s best for small towns to focus on what they have, not what they lack.
The Anniston Star
NBC (Pocatello, Idaho)
In order to understand the brutality of American capitalism, you have to start on the plantation.
The New York Times Magazine – Aug. 14
This is a capitalist society. It’s a fatalistic mantra that seems to get repeated to anyone who questions why America can’t be more fair or equal. But around the world, there are many types of capitalist societies, ranging from liberating to exploitative, protective to abusive, democratic to unregulated. Many Americans were first exposed to the concept of a mortgage by trafficking in enslaved people, not real estate, and “the extension of mortgages to slave property helped fuel the development of American (and global) capitalism,” the historian Joshua Rothman told me.
New partnership offers more resources for UA entrepreneurs
Crimson White – Aug. 19
This summer, the University forged a new partnership between two local incubators in order to better align resources for students, faculty and community members.Formerly known as the Bama Technology Incubator, a laboratory housed inside the AIME building on campus, the newly named EDGE Labs will be partnering with The Edge on 10th Avenue, a coworking space designed to foster innovation in Tuscaloosa.
University of Alabama Honors List Summer 2019
Tuscaloosa News – Aug. 18
A total of 11,406 students enrolled during the 2019 spring term at The University of Alabama were named to the Dean’s List with an academic record of 3.5 or above or the President’s List with an academic record of 4.0 (all A’s).