1. MICHIGAN TECH IN LINE FOR $10 MILLION IN CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS

Michigan Tech would receive $7.5 million from the state to undertake a number of capital improvements under a bill passed March 23, by the Appropriations Committees of both the Michigan State House and Senate.

The capital outlay originated in an executive order by Governor Jennifer Granholm that also cuts appropriations to the state's 15 public universities by nearly $30 million. Michigan Tech's share of that cut would be $855,600, reducing the university's state funding from $48.7 million to $47.9 million this year.

However, the order, approved by the appropriations committees, also includes a bond issue to partially underwrite $313 million in capital improvement projects to 11 of the state's universities and 12 community colleges. The bill includes $10 million for MTU, with the state providing 75 percent and the university supporting the remaining $2.5 million of the total cost.

The bill also includes a provision to restore the $30 million cut from the universities' appropriations if tax revenues are higher than projected.

Michigan Tech plans to spend the $10 million on a variety of projects throughout campus, including lighting improvements, classroom upgrades, new roofs and a number of energy conservation and cost-saving measures.

“This is great news for the university,” President Glenn Mroz said. “These renovations are sorely needed, especially in some of our older buildings.”

The bill is expected to be approved by the legislature after its Easter break.

“We are grateful to Senator Mike Prusi, Representative Rich Brown and their staff members for their advice and support,” Mroz said. “We also appreciate the governor's willingness to develop creative strategies, such as this capital outlay funding, to support the universities.”

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2. YEO ACCEPTS NEW ATHLETIC ADVANCEMENT POST, SANREGRET NAMED ATHLETIC DIRECTOR

Athletic Director Rick Yeo has accepted a new position as senior director of athletic development effective May 2, Vice President of Administration Ellen Horsch has announced.

“Because of Rick's success as athletic director, we're confident that he can move the department to a new level,” Horsch said. "We are grateful that he's dedicated to applying his skills toward enhancing the athletic program's financial future."

Assistant Athletic Director Suzanne Sanregret has been promoted to the position of athletic director. She becomes the first woman to hold the position at Michigan Tech. Kevin Luke, head men's basketball coach, will take over as associate director while retaining his coaching responsibilities.

"We're fortunate to have Suzanne available for this position," President Glenn Mroz said. "She's been involved with the Athletic Department for over 11 years, including eight years as assistant athletic director, so she knows the program inside and out.

"And Kevin is not only a great coach, his intensity and love of Michigan Tech athletics is legendary, and he'll bring that enthusiasm to his new position."

Luke came to MTU 18 years ago as assistant men's basketball coach and cross country coach for both the men's and women's teams. For the past 11 years, he has served as the head men's basketball coach.

The reorganization was prompted by the need to enhance external funding for athletics in an era of falling state appropriations. Yeo, who has broad experience in advancement, says he looks forward to applying his development skills to benefit MTU athletics.

"This is a good opportunity for me to extend my career, and I'm excited about getting out and bringing in some funding," he said. "I view it as a challenge, and I'm looking forward to the career change."

"Our athletic program has made great strides under Rick," Mroz said. "He's attracted great student-athletes, added diversity to our student body and given women great opportunities to participate in sports.

"Rick has also been very good at fundraising, and we look forward to his continued help in this new role," Mroz added. "Philanthropy is an important part of college athletics nationwide, and having Rick concentrate on it will be a huge benefit to Michigan Tech."

Yeo will raise funds for all sports except football. The director of athletic development, Bill Steele, will focus his efforts exclusively on football.

Yeo came to Michigan Tech in 1973 as assistant hockey coach and the director of summer athletic youth programs. In 1976, he went to Lake Superior State University as head hockey coach and, later, as assistant athletic director. He returned to the Copper Country in 1981 as director of annual giving for the Michigan Tech Fund.

In 1989, he was named director of alumni relations, and in 1990 was appointed to his current post.

Sanregret's experience as Yeo's assistant athletic director has been great preparation for the new position, she said. "I'm very fortunate to have worked with Rick for the last 12 years, and I look forward to working with him in the future. We have a great team here, and together we're up to the challenge of bringing Michigan Tech athletics to a new level.

"I'm also excited to have this opportunity to further the academic and athletic experiences of our student-athletes."

Sanregret has risen through the ranks since joining the Athletic Department, serving as business manager and, since 1997, as assistant athletic director. Her responsibilities have covered a variety of areas, including advising on the hiring and evaluation of coaching staff; NCAA Division I and II compliance; budgets; and booster clubs.

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3. OPENINGS FOR AT-LARGE SENATE REPRESENTATIVES

Recent changes in the University Senate constitution have redrawn the constituencies for some academic and professional staff representation groups. In addition, the number of at-large representatives has changed. The academic units will now be represented by four at-large senators, while the professional staff will have two new at-large senators.

The Senate Elections Committee is soliciting nominees for openings in both the academic and professional staff at-large positions. Nominees may be suggested to Erik Nordberg, chair of the Senate Elections Committee, at enordber@mtu.edu or 487-2505. The Senate Elections Committee will contact individual nominees to confirm their willingness to serve.

At-large senators will be elected by a paper ballot distributed to senate constituents. Deadline for suggesting nominees is Tuesday, April 5.

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4. SENATE SEEKS LEADERSHIP CANDIDATES

The University Senate will conduct elections for the 2005-06 year executive positions as part of its special meeting on Wednesday, April 20.

Openings include president, vice president and secretary. Current President Terry Monson has announced that he will not be seeking re-election. Nominees for president must have tenure and the senate budget pays one-third of the president's academic year salary plus one month of summer salary. Current Vice President Becky Christianson has indicated she will seek re-election. Nominees for vice president must be from a unit other than an academic department. Current Secretary Janice Glime has indicated she will seek re-election. Nominees for secretary must have tenure and the senate budget pays one-sixth of the secretary's academic year salary (but no summer salary).

The Senate Elections Committee is hoping to have a slate of candidates for these positions prepared by April 15. Although nominations may be made from the floor during the April 20 meeting, nominees should be invited to the meeting so that they might confirm their willingness to serve if selected.

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5. SMARTZONE PATENTS SEMINAR DRAWS OVER 40 INVENTORS AND ENTREPRENEURS
Submitted by the Michigan Tech Enterprise SmartZone

The Michigan Tech Enterprise SmartZone held its first patent attorney seminar at the Advanced Technology Development Complex (ATDC) in partnership with Brooks Kushman, P.C. of Southfield. The first-time event for the Houghton area saw more than 40 people in attendance. Patent Attorney Bill Abbatt covered a broad range of topics including what can be patented, types of patents, how to file a patent application, licensing and developing patent strategies. He also held initial consultations with several local entrepreneurs and businesses. Pete Radecki, executive director of corporate services, concluded the seminar with a tour through the ATDC.

Jonathan Leinonen, SmartZone program manager, commented, “We were overwhelmed with the response for patent assistance in the area. This reflects the creativity, technical capability and excitement within the community to do something with business ideas that create value and add to the local economy.” Steve Fitzgerald of Consistacom, a local developer of software for the telecommunications industry, said “Having a patent attorney available locally increases our ability to protect our business assets and market position. It's something we've been thinking about, and this SmartZone program makes it much easier.”

The seminar marks the first of what will be quarterly seminars and office hours held by Brooks Kushman in the Upper Peninsula. The SmartZone plans to host the next seminar and appointments in mid-June. Any business or entrepreneur interested in learning more about intellectual property protection including patents, copyrights, licensing and related topics is encouraged to contact Leinonen at 487-7004.  “I hope the success and word of this event encourages even more people to take advantage of the programs and assistance at the SmartZone. We're looking to tailor programs and services to the specific needs of local entrepreneurs and businesses,” Leinonen said.

The SmartZone is a collaboration between Michigan Tech, the cities of Hancock and Houghton and the Keweenaw Industrial Council.
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6. MICHIGAN TECH TO RECEIVE HUMANITIES PROJECT GRANT

The Michigan Humanities Council announces that Michigan Tech has been awarded a $15,000 Humanities Project Grant for “An Interior Ellis Island: Ethnic Diversity and the Peopling of Michigan's Copper Country.” The Michigan Humanities Council awarded the grant as part of its program, “Strengthening Michigan's Communities Through the Humanities,” which emphasizes collaboration among cultural, educational and community-based organizations and institutions to serve Michiganians today with public humanities projects and programs.

“This project will improve access and use of important humanities resources about the Copper Country's ethnic and cultural history,” said Janice Fedewa, executive director of the Michigan Humanities Council. “It encourages collaboration between historians and a variety
of community-based cultural organizations to select content, create web resources and develop a one-day symposium about the Copper Country’s heritage.”

“An Interior Ellis Island: Ethnic Diversity and the Peopling of Michigan's Copper Country” is a collaborative project involving Michigan
Tech, Central Michigan University, Keweenaw National Historical Park, Quincy Mine Hoist Association, a K-12 Advisory Group (involving students and teachers at Hancock High School and the Public Schools of Calumet, Laurium and Keweenaw), and a variety of area historical societies and cultural organizations. A group of historians and archivists from these organizations will create and select content for internet resources and apply educational perspectives to the project. Additional financial support has been provided by Robert and Ruth Nara of Bootjack.

The project will be shared with the public in three ways. The first is a series of web pages exploring the complex ethnic history of Michigan's historic copper mining district. The second adds 2,000 digital objects to the Keweenaw Digital Archives Project, a searchable web-based image server. The third is a symposium and kick-off event to be held in Houghton in October.

“This is a wonderful opportunity for us to share the great historical treasures of our region,” said Phyllis Johnson, director of the J. R.
Van Pelt Library. “It's not simply enough to digitize archival material; we must continue to find new ways to describe, organize and share information that makes it relevant to people's lives. This project will examine the complex ethnic stories that color our region's unique mining and urban history, and it will invite the general public to share their own stories with others.”

The web pages and image server will be opened for public use as part of the kick-off events associated with the October symposium.

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7. FORUM APRIL 6 ON PROVOST POSITION DESCRIPTION

The university community has the opportunity to comment on the new provost position description at an open forum. The event will be held on Wednesday, April 6, from 5 to 6 p.m. in Dow 642. The position description is available electronically at http://www.mtu.edu/mtuonly/temp/provost/index.html. The deadline for comments is Monday, April 11, at 5 p.m. and can be sent to Barry Solomon (487-1791, bdsolomo@mtu.edu).

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8. PORTAGE LAKE GOLF COURSE PREPARES FOR UPCOMING SEASON
Submitted by the Portage Lake Golf Course

Golf season is just around the corner, and the staff at the Portage Lake Golf Course is getting ready. The Pro Shop will be open for business beginning Monday, April 4.

Memberships and cart storage can be purchased at early-bird discount rates through March 31. A membership application is available on the web at http://www.mtu.edu/golf or by calling the Pro Shop at 487-2641. Members receive 10 percent off on all apparel. Female members will receive an additional 10 percent off of their first purchase of apparel this spring.

If the Pro Shop does not have the clubs or other golf merchandise you are looking for, they can place special orders with all of the popular golf supply companies such as Callaway, Titleist, Cobra, Ping and more.

The schedule of tournaments and events planned for the summer include a Memorial Day 2-Person Best Ball May 28-29; the Omega House Fundraising Scramble June 10; the MTU Men’s Basketball Fundraiser Golf Outing June 25; Women’s Invitiational July 12; a Seniors’ 2-Person Scramble July 18; a Couples Scramble July 30; an Alumni Golf Outing August 6; a Men’s Club Championship August 20-21; and the 2-Person Ryder Cup Sept. 24-25. The Women’s Club Championship date is yet to be determined.

The Men’s League will begin play on Thursday, May 26, with a season opening scramble. The Women’s Girls Night Out season is tentatively set to begin on the first Tuesday in June.

Youth golf lessons will be offered at the course this summer beginning June 6 for ages 6-17. The lessons will be broken down into age groups of 6-8, 9-12 and 13-17 years old. The lessons will be in the morning for approximately one hour, twice per week. The lessons will be held for eight weeks. A youth golf league for golfers ages 13-17 will also be organized this summer.

For more information about the products, services and activities at Portage Lake Golf Course this summer, call 487-2641, email golfcourse@mtu.edu or visit our web site at http://www.aux.mtu.edu/golf.

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9. SHOWER POWER

If it rains on your parade next summer, enjoy the moment. You might be witnessing one of Nature's minor marvels.

Physics faculty members Alex Kostinski and Raymond Shaw have proposed an answer to a 50-year-old meteorology puzzle: How is warm rain initiated? They have published their findings in the February 2005 issue of the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society in the paper “Fluctuations and Luck in Droplet Growth by Coalescence.”

Atmospheric scientists have a good understanding of how rain happens in cold conditions, when ice crystals form in clouds. But warm rain is another matter.

"Imagine it's 2 p.m. in Florida," says Kostinski. "You can just barely see a cloud form, and a half hour later it rains. It is surprisingly quick."

Here's why. Clouds are made up of droplets only a few microns in diameter. Raindrops are a millimeter or so across, that is, a million times bigger in terms of volume. Therefore, in order to form a raindrop, a million droplets must collide and coalesce. How can all this happen in 20 to 30 minutes? The odds that any single droplet will collide with enough other droplets to form a raindrop so quickly are about one in a million.

Apparently, however, that's all it takes. If a few lucky droplets prevail against all odds and bang into five or six others, they can really gather up steam, collide with lots of other droplets, and voila! raindrops start falling on your head.

So why do only some of those ephemeral summer clouds form rain? First, there's the presence of turbulence. If the droplets are getting blown around, they are much more likely to crash into each other and form raindrops.

Secondly, not all droplets are created equal. Kostinski and Shaw note that some are bigger than others because they have condensed around larger particles of dust.

And lastly, sun showers depend on a random sprinkling of chance. "To understand warm rain, you don't have to explain how the average drop grows in a cloud," says Kostinski. "Just the fastest, 'luckiest' ones."

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10. CORRECTION

Tech Topics incorrectly identified the department hosting John Towers’ seminar, “Nanocomposite Materials from Microemulsions and Mesophases.” Towers’ visit was sponsored by the Department of Materials Science and Engineering.

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11. TEACHING AT TECH: GETTING ONLINE
by William Kennedy, director of the Center for Teaching, Learning and Faculty Development

A professor recently approached me and said, “More and more of my students seem bored, disinterested, unmotivated and unwilling to do the work necessary to succeed in my classes. What's wrong with them?”

I answered, “What's wrong with them is that they were born 50 years too late, and they don't see the world like you do! A more useful question is ‘What are we going to do about it?’”

His lack of amusement was indicated in his retort, “It's not my problem.”

It is our shared problem. After teaching for nearly 30 years, I have come to see my work less and less as editor, packager and purveyor of disciplinary information and more and more as a creative designer of experiences and activities that foster deeper, more engaging and more durable and lasting student learning for a generation of jaded students. Why are they jaded? Opinions vary.

Let's face it. There is no shortage of easily available prepackaged information in any of the disciplines that we teach. Modern textbooks cascade forth like so many richly festooned juggernauts heavily laden with eye candy, problem sets, sidebars, websites, test banks, streaming video, case studies, author tidbits and insights; all meant, ironically, to entice students who assiduously choose on their own free-time not to read anything, including textbooks. After all, if learning was only about conveying “the material,” then all you'd need is one of these 27 pound textbooks, a computer hooked to the Internet and an answer key. If education was only about content, we'd be out of work.

The obvious truth is that far too many of our students are quickly infected with the idea that college classes are outdated and onerous intrusions into their free time; unpleasant and largely stultifying interludes that must be occasionally endured to get the diploma to get the interview to get the job to insure their fair share of the much-touted million dollars of additional lifetime income associated with possession of a college degree. PowerPoint's not helping.

From a teaching and learning perspective, if we are not able to surmount the motivational challenges that come pre-bundled with many of our students, all of our well-meaning curricular reform efforts and instructional tinkering will go essentially for naught.

It's partially our own fault. We brought some of this on ourselves. For starters, we have routinely confused disciplinary expertise with instructional facility. Unless your education is in pedagogy, it is unlikely your disciplinary expertise prepares you to effectively interface with a roomful of humans carrying a variety of invisible chips on their shoulders and regarding your role as teacher and their role as students.

One of my colleagues recently observed, “If you can do science, surely you can use the same investigative methods to figure out how to do good teaching.”

I responded, “Then if you can do science, surely you apply the same methods to become a great artist or a gifted musician. Horse feathers.” Becoming a good teacher requires reflection, a critical awareness of the changing mores and affinities of our students and a willingness to move the focus from what we value and enjoy to what they need.

Effective communication requires two or more human beings finding common ground and all of the concerned parties being willing to yield some territory. It takes at least two to tango.

I'm not worried about the handful of students in each class that still get it. They would get it without us.

Yeats observed, “Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.” Here's to lighting fires.

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12. “THAT DEAD MAN’S JAZZ CLUB” HITS MCARDLE THEATRE
Submitted by the Department of Fine Arts

The Department of Fine Arts premieres a new comedy by Mary Carol Friedrich, assistant professor of theatre, March 30-April 2, at 7:30 p.m. in McArdle Theatre. “That Dead Man's Jazz Club” hilariously evokes people and customs of Northern Louisiana, where Friedrich lived before moving to the Upper Penninsula eight years ago. McArdle Theatre has been transformed into a local Louisiana bar/jazz club complete with a band and crayfish gumbo. The action takes place during the annual Mardi Gras celebration when some unsuspecting Michigan tourists drop by the club and accidentally crash a Louisiana-style wake and jazz funeral.

The atmosphere, situations and people of this comedy are authentic, Friedrich notes, allowing that “The names and personalities have been altered somewhat to protect the playwright from having to go into the witness protection program.” Judging by the play, however, Friedrich's Louisiana relatives and friends have a richly sardonic sense of humor.

“That Dead Man's Jazz Club” features a cast of 24 students and community actors directed by Christopher Plummer, assistant professor of theatre. The play features music by Mike Irish, costumes by April Heinen, sound design by Joe Kirklin, light design by Friedrich and set design by students in this year's Scenic Design class.

Tickets are available for $8 general, $4 students from the Rozsa Center Box Office (487-3200, http://www.tickets.mtu.edu) and at the door.

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13. WIND SYMPHONY AND CONCERT BAND PRESENT SPRING CONCERT
Submitted by the Department of Fine Arts

Two of Michigan Tech's outstanding bands, the Wind Symphony and the Concert Band, will display their well-honed skills in the annual spring band concert on Sunday, April 3, at 7:30 p.m. in the Rozsa Center. Nick Enz will direct the 80 musicians in a lively program with music to please every taste, from rousing marches to the elegance of Mozart and Bach to the seductive strains of "Malaguena."

Before the concert, from 7 to 7:30 p.m., small ensembles will play informal preludes on stage for audience members who arrive early. The small ensembles include a flute choir, horn quartet, clarinet trio, brass ensemble, saxophone quartet and the Five Percent Skill Percussion Ensemble.

All seats are $4, with tickets available at the Rozsa Center Box Office (487-3200 or http://www.tickets.mtu.edu).

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14. FREE MOVIES ON CAMPUS

The MUB Board will be hosting a free showing of the movie “Amelie” on Thursday, March 31, at 8 p.m. in Fisher 135. The Inter-Residence Hall Council will be hosting a free showing of the movie “Jaws” on Saturday, April 2, at 8 p.m. at the SDC pool.

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15. COMPUTER SECURITY LECTURE AT THE ROZSA

“Hacking is more about following the law than breaking it," says Jon Erickson. He will give a lecture, “The Oldest Trick in the Book: Computer Security and Buffer Overflows,” on Monday, April 4, at 7:30 p.m. in the Rozsa. His presentation will deal with understanding the techniques of hacking as opposed to breaking the rules, and he'll describe which areas are weak and prone to attack. Erickson's visit is sponsored by the Student Entertainment Board with funding from the Student Activity Fee. Admission to the lecture is free.

Erickson graduated with a major in computer science from Michigan Tech in 2000, and now works as a vulnerability researcher in Northern California for nCircle, a leading enterprise vulnerability management company. He has spoken at computer security conferences around the world, from Defcon to HOPE to Chaos Communication Congress. He is the author of “Hacking: The Art of Exploitation” (published in 2003), a book that has garnered numerous favorable reviews. The book is currently on sale at the Campus Store, and Erickson will be happy to sign books following the lecture.

According to Erickson there are many ways to get past a security guard: stealing pass codes, forging identities, sneaking in a back door or if you happen to be particularly adept and the guard is weak-minded, using the Jedi mindtrick (“These are not the hackers you're looking for”).

In the world of computer security hackers have been using such a tactic for nearly half a century to trick weak-minded programs into doing things they were never programmed to do. Hackers call this the “buffer overflow exploit,” knowledge of which has been passed from hacker to hacker (just like knowledge of the force among the Jedi) and can be used for either good or evil. Nearly all internet worms have propagated by exploiting buffer overflows, and a large percentage of all other computer vulnerabilities are also due to buffer overflows.

Erickson will explain what a buffer overflow is, why it hasn't gone away and how it can be exploited to trick a security guard and turn a program to the dark side. He'll also show how an understanding of the buffer overflow exploit can be used to write more secure programs.

The visit of Erickson is being coordinated through the MTU Great Events Series Office (487-2844).

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16. COLLOQUIUM FRIDAY IN WALKER

Professor Angharad Valdivia from the University of Illinois Institute of Communications Reseach will present a colloquium entitled “Biographies of Latinidad: The Rise of Hybridity in Mainstream Representations” Friday, April 1, at 1 p.m. in Walker 109. A reception will immediately follow in the Petersen Library on the third floor of Walker.

Valdivia, an outstanding scholar of Latino/Latina cultural studies, is a member of the Media Studies Program, the Gender and Women's Studies Program and the Latina/Latino Program.

For more information on Valdivia's visit, to see her vita or publications or meet with her on Thursday or Friday, contact Jennifer Daryl Slack (487-3228, jdslack@mtu.edu).

This colloquium and Valdivia's visit are funded by the Visiting Women and Minority Lecture/Scholar Series and the Department of Humanities.

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17. MEEM GRADUATE SEMINAR

Song-Charng Kong of the University of Wisconsin at Madison will present a seminar entitled “Low Temperature Engine Combustion Study Using Detailed Chemistry with Experimental Validations” on Thursday, March 31, from 3 to 4 p.m. in MEEM 112