Research Expo is Today at Ted Constant Convocation Center
Climate change, the responsible conduct of research, entrepreneurial cooperation between universities and businesses, and assessments of democracies around the world are topics to be explored at the 5th annual Research Expo today at the Ted Constant Convocation Center.
The 2008 event, from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., is organized along the theme of "Communities of Research: Discovery, Innovation and Entrepreneurship." It is sponsored by Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk State University, Old Dominion University and Virginia Tidewater Consortium for Higher Education, and is free and open to the public.
Richard Alley, a Penn State University climate-change researcher who shared in the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize with former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, will be the keynote speaker at 3 p.m.
Alley, the Evan Pugh Professor of Geosciences at Penn State, served on the United Nation's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that won the Nobel Prize with Gore "for their efforts to build up and disseminate greater knowledge about man-made climate change, and to lay the foundations for the measures that are needed to counteract such change." Alley's research interests include glaciology and ice coring to reveal paleoclimates.
"Global Climate Change," also is the topic of a panel discussion from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. featuring experts from NASA and ODU. (See full list of panels below.)
The 9 -10:30 a.m. panel discussion, "Responsible Conduct of Research: Fostering Quality and Integrity, will bring together some of the nation's leading authorities on research ethics.
The final panel discussion in the 1-2:30 p.m. timeslot will be "Examining Democratic Principles Around the World" presented by an international panel composed of faculty members and graduate students from ODU and NSU.
New this year will be a Corporate Connection networking session bringing together businessmen, entrepreneurs and academic researchers to discuss partnerships. That session is from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. The first hour will focus on technology transfer and collaborations in bioscience, modeling and simulation and advanced sensors. Refreshments will be served during the second hour and there will be time for personal interaction. A presentation on the Small Business Innovation Research Program will highlight the third hour.
Close to 1,500 people attended last year's Expo and even more are expected this year, said Kaethe Ferguson, director of research development in ODU's Office of Research and the chair of the Expo steering committee. "We invite alumni and friends of our participating institutions to attend, as well as anyone else in our communities who would like to know more about the best work of our faculties and students."
Posters, exhibits and demonstrations in fields ranging from nuclear physics to fine arts will make up the basic program. Musical performances and an art show will be included in the event, as well as demonstrations of research accomplishments in areas such as biofuel production and medical modeling and simulation.
Mohammad Karim, ODU's vice president for research, said, "This forum promotes collaborations between researchers from various disciplines and different schools, and it allows people from business, industry and government to begin dialogues with us about cooperative ventures. Our goal is to find applications for our academic research that will be valuable to our region and state."
Larry Mattix, associate dean for sciences and technology at Norfolk State, Bill Wasilenko, associate dean for research at EVMS, and Lawrence Dotolo, president of the Virginia Tidewater Consortium, are also key members of the event's steering committee.
RESEARCH EXPO 2008 PANEL PRESENTATIONS
Panel One: Responsible Conduct of Research: Fostering Quality and Integrity (9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.). Moderator: Bill Wasilenko, associate dean for research, EVMS. "Current Perspectives on Research Integrity," Nicholas Steneck, Federal Office of Research Integrity; "Recent Research Survey Studies of NIH Junior and Senior Research Scientists," Raymond DeVries, professor, bioethics and medical education, University of Michigan; "Academic Perspective of the Issues Related to Training and Behaviors," Philip Langlais, vice provost for graduate studies and research, ODU.
Panel Two: Global Climate Change (11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.). Moderator: Richard Whittecar, University Professor, Department of Ocean, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, ODU. "Future of Energetics in a Changing Global Environment," Dennis M. Bushnell, Chief Scientist, NASA Langley Research Center, "Potential Future Health Impacts of Climate Change," Patricia Hentosh, professor of Medical Laboratory & Radiation Sciences, College of Health Sciences, ODU; "Global Climate Change and the Science and Politics Problem," Glen Sussman, professor of Political Science, ODU.
Panel Three: Examining Democratic Principles Around the World (1 to 2:30 p.m.). Moderator: Regina Karp, director, International Studies Programs, College of Arts and Letters, ODU. "Civil Society and Democracy in Ukraine," Vlad Galushko, doctoral candidate, Graduate Program in International Studies, ODU; "Democracy in Nigeria," Carol Pretlow, associate professor of political science and founding director of the Consortium for Strategic and Global Studies, NSU; "Democratic Transitions in Latin America," Francis Adams, associate professor and chief departmental advisor, Department of Political Science and Geography, ODU; "Political Elites, International Institutions and Democratic Transformation in the Czech Republic and Slovakia," Eva Sigmon, dissertation fellow, Graduate Program in International Studies, College of Arts and Letters, ODU.