U of U Professor Awarded Prestigious Faculty Scholarship

Last week Peter Maramaldi, assistant professor at the University of Utah Graduate School of Social Work, was named as one of ten national Hartford Geriatric Social Work Faculty Scholars. The scholars will participate in institutes to further their research and will be paired with a National Research Mentor and a school-based sponsor who will support their professional leadership and research career development. Additionally, over the next two years, each of the scholars will receive $100,000 to improve the well being of older adults by strengthening geriatric social work.

Cooperation and Compassion Instill Good Karma in Kunga House

Finishing touches are being added to the Kunga House. Workers are laying carpet, painting floors and landscaping the yard-all in anticipation of a grand celebration, a “house warming,” to be held onsite, Saturday, Apr. 12, at noon. Members of the media and those who have worked on the extraordinary project are invited to attend. The Kunga House is located at 64 Andrew Avenue (1500 South), between West Temple and Main Street.

Skatin’ Utes Help Organize New Division-I Hockey League

An historic meeting will be held tomorrow on the University of Utah campus to give birth to a new Division-I hockey league. The two- day meeting will begin Friday, Dec. 20 at 7 p.m. at the University Guest House Hotel conference center on the University of Utah Campus.

Weather Prediction Workshop on Thurs. Nov. 7

About 115 forecasters, research meteorologists and other weather specialists are expected to attend the Ninth Annual Workshop on Weather Prediction in the Intermountain West, to be held Thurs. Nov. 7 at the University of Utah.

A New Way to Find Planets Around Stars

Young stars are surrounded by a thin, swirling cloud of gas and dust that may be the birthplace of planets. New computer calculations reveal that a newborn planet signals its presence by a clear, sharp ring of cold dust. Such rings are seen around many nearby stars.

More Blasts from Yellowstone’s Past Hotspot Generated 142 Huge Eruptions, 40 Percent More Than Previously Known

The Yellowstone hotspot, which powers Yellowstone National Park’s geysers and hot springs, produced 142 huge volcanic eruptions during the last 16.5 million years – far more than the 100 previously known blasts, University of Utah geologists found.

‘The Future of Spacetime’

Albert Einstein overturned commonsense notions of our universe in 1905 when he published his Special Theory of Relativity, which proposed that space and time are not absolute. The theory means that for an observer traveling near the speed of light, time moves more slowly and distances appear to contract. In his 1916 General Theory of Relativity, Einstein went further, proposing that gravity warps or curves space and time.

Esteemed Author Mitch Albom to Deliver 2011 Commencement Address

The University of Utah Board of Trustees announced today that Mitch Albom, celebrated author of “Tuesdays with Morrie” and “The Five People You Meet in Heaven,” will deliver the university’s general commencement address on Friday, May 6, 2011.

Let Your Fingers Do the Driving

If drivers are yakking on cell phones and don’t hear spoken instructions to turn left or right from a passenger or navigation system, they still can get directions from devices that are mounted on the steering wheel and pull skin on the driver’s index fingertips left or right, a University of Utah study found.

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