Subject: 8 1/2 x 11 News, Aug. 10 Date: Thu, 10 Aug 2000 09:51:56 -0400 From: Bruce B Gerson Organization: Public Relations (Univ Rel), Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA Newsgroups: cmu.misc.news Aug. 10, 2000 Vol. 11, No. 6 The "8 1/2 x 11 News" is published each week by the Department of Public Relations. News of campus interest should be sent to Ed Delaney, 268-1609 (ed47@andrew), or Bruce Gerson, 268-1613 (bg02@andrew). The newsletter is available on the official.cmu-news and cmu.misc.news bulletin boards. - ---------------- NSF AWARDS $1.84 MILLION TO CNBC FOR GRADUATE STUDIES The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded a five-year, $1.84 million grant to the Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition (CNBC) for graduate student training. The award is part of the NSF's Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT) program, which is "designed to meet the challenges of educating scientists and engineers with the multidisciplinary backgrounds and the technical, professional and personal skills needed for the career demands of the future." The award to the CNBC is one of 19 recent NSF IGERT grants to universities and government and industrial labs totaling $49 million. David Touretzky, principal scientist in the Computer Science Department and a member of the CNBC, and Peter Strick, professor of neurobiology and psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh and co-director of the center, will administer the grant. - -- The CNBC takes a multidisciplinary approach to understanding the activities inside the human brain. Researchers from Carnegie Mellon and the University of Pittsburgh aim to uncover brain events that underlie complex intellectual processes, including perception, memory, problem-solving and language, by using computer simulations, cognitive testing and neuroimaging. - -- "The good investigator of any era is equipped with intelligence, curiosity, discipline and the urgent desire to find the answers to difficult questions~traditional qualities with timeless value," said NSF Director Rita Colwell. "In addition, to make certain our young researchers are highly competitive today, we need to embrace new kinds of training, new habits of mind, more global ways of looking at questions before us. We have to give our graduates the best experiences with the best equipment and resources we can provide. That's what these IGERT programs are all about." - -- In 1999, Carnegie Mellon's Center for Computational Analysis of Social and Organizational Systems within the Institute for Complex Engineered Systems received a five-year, $2.5 million IGERT grant from the NSF. GSIA CHANGES DEGREE NAME TO MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION The Graduate School of Industrial Administration (GSIA) has changed the name of its degree from a Master of Science in Industrial Administration to a Master of Science in Business Administration, effective next May. - --"As we advance deeper into the knowledge economy, we need to continue to renew our management practices," said GSIA Dean Douglas Dunn. "Our commitment to innovation has not varied nor diminished during our 50 plus years of existence, but the new degree name will help the world identify and appreciate one of the nation's top schools for business management education. We see this change as both essential and logical, as our applicants, graduates and other constituents demand a degree designation that is more visible and identifiable in a global economy using search engines and other advanced technology." - -- Dunn said the business school has broad support from students, alumni, recruiters and the school's advisory board about the new degree name, which will be more "recognizable and less confusing." DRAMA ANNOUNCES A SEASON OF ROMANCE, INTRIGUE AND MURDER The School of Drama has announced its presentations for the 2000-01 season in the Philip Chosky Theatre in the Purnell Center for the Arts. The season begins in October with "Appointment in Samarra," a story about the self-destruction of a man victimized by the terrifying recognition of his own commonness. "Grimm Tales," stories of the Brothers Grimm, plays in November and early December. The spring semester performances begin in February with "Lost in a Mirror," a blend of tragedy and comedy. The season ends with "The Baker's Wife" in April and May. Music and lyrics in "The Baker's Wife," a celebration of life and romance, were written by Academy Award-winning composer Stephen Schwartz (A '68). - -- Subscriptions range from $20 to $47 for students and senior citizens, and from $27 to $32 for faculty and staff. For more information, contact the Drama box office at 268-2407. NEED A CD COPIED? VISIT CARNEGIE MELLON'S NEW CD PRESS The Imaging Systems Lab in the Robotics Institute has established Carnegie Mellon's CD Press, a low-volume CD duplicating service for members of the university community. CD Press, in Wean Hall 5320A, copies CDs for $5 each. Labels can be added to each CD for an additional charge of $1. CD Press accepts Oracle charge numbers, checks or cash. No credit cards are accepted. - -- CD Press is directed by Robert Thibadeau, principal research scientist in the Robotics Institute and director of the Imaging Systems Lab, and Robert Kiger, principal research scientist and director of the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation. It is operated by Dennis Marous, senior research technician in the Robotics Institute. - -- CD Press reserves the right to refuse copying materials from CD masters that fall under the copyright protection laws. For more information, contact CD Press at 268-8829 or dcm@cs.cmu.edu. CD Press is open from 9 a.m. -3:30 p.m., Monday - Friday. NEWS BRIEFS - -- During the week of Aug. 28, the Office of Human Resources will be distributing new Port Authority Transit (PAT) stickers to benefits-eligible faculty and staff from 11 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. in Wean Commons, University Center. You must bring your Carnegie Mellon identification card (ID) to receive a new sticker. The sticker allows benefits-eligible faculty and staff to ride all PAT vehicles, including the airport flyers, the T and inclines, at no charge when presenting their university ID. The sticker currently affixed to Carnegie Mellon ID cards will expire on Aug. 31. Questions should be directed to the Human Resources Service Center at 268-4747. - -- Registration forms are now being accepted for this fall's "Architecture for Kids" program, Sept. 16 - Nov. 18, sponsored by the School of Architecture. The 10-week, Saturday morning program (9:30 - 11:30 a.m.) gives children in grades 3-12 the opportunity to learn basic design principles and how to represent their ideas through drawing and modeling. Students are grouped according to grade level. The cost of the program is $140. Registration deadline is Sept. 1. For more information, call Martha Cross at 268-2355. - -- The Graduate School of Industrial Administration's "Program for Executives" brochure, produced by University Publications, recently won an honorable mention award in the marketing communications category at the International Association of Business Communicators District 3 Winner's Circle Awards. Entries included publications from several AT&T units, IBM, Ben and Jerry~s Ice Cream and Coldwell Banker Real Estate. PERSONAL MENTION - -- Gerard Cornuejols, professor of operations research at the Graduate School of Industrial Administration, has received the Fulkerson Prize for his paper "Decomposition of Balanced Matrics." The Fulkerson Prize, sponsored by the Mathematical Programming Society and the American Mathematical Society, is awarded every three years for outstanding papers in the area of discrete mathematics. - -- Sridhar Tayur, professor of operations management and manufacturing at the Graduate School of Industrial Administration, has been voted executive vice president/president-elect of the Manufacturing and Service Operations Management Society for 2000 and 2002. - -- Pattie Moore, former visiting faculty member in the School of Design, appeared in the "21st Century Lives" series on ABC-TV's "World News Tonight" on Friday, July 21. A specialist in gerontology, Moore consults with companies to assist them in creating products tailored to the growing elderly market. The segment, hosted by Peter Jennings, illustrated Moore's lifelong dedication to making life easier for older people through design. - -- Lisa DeFrank-Cole, coordinator of student activities, recently received the Excellence in Advising Award from the Mortar Board National Senior Honor Society at its annual conference in Phoenix. DeFrank-Cole is the adviser to Carnegie Mellon's Eta Chapter of the Mortar Board. - -- David Touretzky and Michael Shamos recently testified in the Manhattan court case in which the movie industry is attempting to stop a Web site from publishing computer code which allows users to download and copy films on DVD. The Web site, www.2600.com, is run by cyberjournalist Eric Corley. Touretzky, principal scientist in the Computer Science Department, testified that computer software is expressive speech and deserves protection from the First Amendment. Shamos, principal systems scientist in the Language Technologies Institute and co-director of the business school's eCommerce program, testified on behalf of the movie industry. He argued that computer code is not expressive speech and that downloading films on DVD should be prohibited by copyright laws. CALENDAR HIGHLIGHTS - -- Tuesday, Aug. 22: Orientation 2000 Community Picnic. Noon ~ 2 p.m., College of Fine Arts lawn. Celebrate the arrival of the Class of 2004 by joining students, their family members, faculty and staff at a picnic lunch. For more information about Orientation 2000, contact the Office of the Assistant Dean of Student Affairs at 268-4886.