Research Prizes and Honors
[Have you or a colleague won a research-related prize or honor? Let the Research Alert know.]
WINNERS OF THE TWELFTH ANNUAL HAMILTON BOOK AWARDS ANNOUNCED
The winners of this year’s University Co-op Robert W. Hamilton Book Awards were announced Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2008, at the Four Seasons Hotel in Austin. The Hamilton Award recognizes the highest literary achievement of published authors at The University of Texas at Austin. The awards are named in honor of Professor Robert W. Hamilton, former chairperson of the University Co-op’s board of directors and the Minerva House Drysdale Regents Chair in Law at The University of Texas School of Law.
The $10,000 Grand Prize winner of the Hamilton Book Award was:
Denise Schmandt-Besserat, Ph.D. – Department of Art and Art History and Middle Eastern Studies, professor emerita, for her book “When Writing Met Art: From Symbol to Story” published by University of Texas Press.
There were also four winners who took home $3,000 runner-up prizes as follows:
- Carlton K. Erickson, Ph.D. – Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, for “The Science of Addiction: From Neurobiology to Treatment” published by W. W. Norton and Co.
- James N. Loehlin, Ph.D. – Department of English, for “Chekhov: The Cherry Orchard” published by Cambridge University Press
- John T. Markert, Ph.D. – Department of Physics, for “Physics for Engineers and Scientists, 3rd edition, extended” published by W. W. Norton and Co.
- Kurt G. Weyland, Ph.D. – Department of Government, for “Bounded Rationality and Policy Diffusion: Social Sector Reform in Latin America” published by Princeton University Press
The University Co-operative Society’s $10,000 Career Research Excellence Award went to:
Ian W. Dalziel, Ph.D. – Institute for Geophysics and Department of Geological Sciences, for maintaining a superior research program over many years at the University. Dalziel has dedicated most of his career to understanding global tectonic processes and to mapping out the geography of ancient times on Earth.
The winners of the $5,000 Best Research Paper Award were:
Andrea Gore, Ph.D. and David Crews, Ph.D. – College of Pharmacy and Section of Integrative Biology, respectively – for “Transgenerational Epigenetic Imprints on Mate Preference,” which appeared in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science in 2007. Gore and Crews found that pesticides and other chemicals that disrupt hormones can affect not only rats that come into contact with them, but might also affect mating behavior in later generations.
The $3,000 University Co-op Fine Arts Award recipient was:
Michael Smith – Department of Art and Art History, for outstanding achievement in exhibition, performance and other forms of personal creativity. Smith’s widely acclaimed exhibition at Austin’s Blanton Museum of Art called “Mike’s World” went on to the Institute of Contemporary Art in Philadelphia. Among other achievements, his performance art video “A Day with Mike” appeared at the Whitney Museum in March.
There was a new award presented this year, The University Co-op Open Source Software Award. A team of faculty and staff from The University of Texas Applied Research Labs (ARL) led by Brent Renfro won the $3,000 award for their platform-independent GPS tool kit that provides a wide array of functions that solve processing problems associated with GPS. Other team members are Tracie Conn, Thomas Gaussiran, Robert Harris, Anthony Hughes, Chris Kieschnick, Jon Little, Richard Mach, David Munton, Brian Tolman and Johnathan Vorce.
News and Information
HAMILTON BOOK AUTHOR AWARD NOMINATIONS OPEN
Nominations for the Hamilton Book Author Awards, underwritten by the University Co-operative Society, are being accepted by the Office of the Vice President for Research.
The awards recognize faculty and staff members who have published the best book-length publications as determined by a multi-disciplinary committee appointed by the Vice President for Research.
The first prize is $10,000 and four other prizes are $3,000 each.
Nominations can be made for published works including, but not limited to, scholarly monographs, creative works (e.g., novels and anthologies of poetry), exhibition catalogs, textbooks and edited collections.
Current University of Texas at Austin faculty (tenured, tenure-track, senior lecturers and lecturers), Code 1000 and staff are eligible. Students are not eligible. Nominated books must have been published between Sept. 1, 2007, and Aug. 31, 2008. Books in any language may be nominated.
Authors may nominate their work by submitting a nomination form, two copies of the book, and two copies of their current CV to the Office of the Vice President for Research (MAI 302, Mail Code: G1400) on or before 5 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 10, 2008.
For more information, please contact Marilyn Harris, 471-2877.
QuotedUT Researchers in the News
[A sampling of recent quotes by university faculty members and researchers. To be included in this section, let the Research Alert know when you or a colleague have been quoted.]
The New York Times
Oct. 19, 2008
HEADLINE: The Guys From ‘Government Sachs’
[From an article about Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr.’s reliance on his old firm Goldman Sachs in the current financial crisis.]
Indeed, Goldman’s presence in the department, and around the federal response to the financial crisis, is so ubiquitous that other bankers and competitors have given the star-studded firm a new nickname: Government Sachs.
While many Wall Streeters have made the trek to Washington, there is no question that the axis of power at the Treasury Department tilts toward Goldman. That has led some to assume that the interests of the bank, and Wall Street more broadly, are the first priority. There is also the question of whether the department’s actions benefit the personal finances of the former Goldman executives and their friends.
”To the extent that they have a portfolio or blind trust that holds Goldman Sachs stock, they have conflicts,” said James K. Galbraith, a professor of government and business relations at the University of Texas. ”To the extent that they have ties and alumni loyalty or friendships with people that are still there, they have potential conflicts.”
Research Opportunities
Important university research deadlines:
Awards and Grants
Limited Submissions
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Breast Cancer Research Program Concept Award
Deadlines: Pre-application, Nov. 6, 2008; Proposal, Nov. 20, 2008
Multi-Disciplinary Basic Research in the Science of Autonomy with Naval Relevance
Deadlines: White Paper, Nov. 21, 2008; Full Proposal, Jan. 23, 2009
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Fundamental Research in Superconducting RF Cavity Design
Deadlines: Letter of Intent, Dec. 15, 2008; Application, Jan. 15, 2009
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
Research on the Design of Policies for Pollution Control Using Market Mechanisms, and Data Gathering for Dissertation and Early Career Research on the Pollution Control Aspects of Environmental Economics
Deadline: Dec. 5, 2008
NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH
Diversity-promoting Institutions Drug Abuse Research Program
Deadlines: Letter of Intent, Nov. 17, 2008; Application, Dec. 15, 2008
Genetic Susceptibility and Variability of Human Structural Birth Defects
Deadline: Feb. 5, 2008
NINR Program Projects in Symptom Management Research and Program Projects in Health Promotion/Disease Prevention Research
Deadlines: Letter of Intent, March 16, 2009; Application, April 16, 2009
Characterizing the Blood Stem Cell Niche
Deadlines: Letter of Intent, Dec. 8, 2008; Application, Jan. 6, 2009
Clinical Pharmacotherapy for PTSD: Single and Collaborative Studies
Deadlines: Letter of Intent, Dec. 14, 2008; Application, Jan. 14, 2009
Interactions between Physical Activity and Drug Abuse
Deadlines: Letter of Intent, Dec. 29, 2008; Application, Jan. 28, 2009
The Mouse Gene Development Initiative
Deadlines: Letter of Intent, Dec. 29, 2008; Application, Jan. 27, 2009
NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
International Collaboration in Chemistry between US Investigators and their Counterparts Abroad
Deadlines: Preliminary Proposal, Nov. 4, 2008; Full Proposal, Jan. 30, 2009
Hydrologic Sciences
Deadline: Dec. 1, 2008
Geotechnical Engineering
Deadline: Feb. 15, 2009
OTHER FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES
Semiconductor Research Corporation Global Research Collaboration
Call for white papers in Analog and Mixed-Signal Devices
Deadline: Dec. 4, 2008
Research Project
[Let the Research Alert know about your research projects.]
STEM IN THE NEW MILLENNIUM: PREPARATION, PATHWAYS, AND DIVERSITY
FACULTY: Chandra Muller, professor, Population Research Center, principal investigator, and Catherine Riegle-Crumb, assistant professor, and R. Kelly Raley, associate professor, Population Research Center, co-principal investigators
AGENCY: National Science Foundation
AMOUNT: $229,797
In this Step type 2 project, the investigators are examining evidence for educational pathways to STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) careers using several different sources of national survey data. They are studying how high school course taking, test scores and type of school attended is related to later career choice in college. They are examining the diversity of preparation for college for students of different backgrounds, the connection between STEM degree attainment and college credits and early college performance, and they are examining the connection between work experience during undergraduate years and STEM labor force entry.
The researchers are using well-known national longitudinal survey data of high school and college students as well as conducting a new survey of students.
