University System News

CONSOLIDATION:
www.mdjonline.com
http://mdjonline.com/view/full_story/24305671/article-Merger-plans-come-together–Papp-says-KSU–SPSU-students-will-be-included?instance=lead_story_left_column
Merger plans come together; Papp says KSU, SPSU students will be included
by Hannah Morgan
MARIETTA — With the new year quickly approaching, plans are coming together for the consolidation of Kennesaw State University and Southern Polytechnic University. KSU President Dan Papp said students at both schools will be included in the planning process each step of the way, from now until the consolidation is final in August 2015. Papp assured SPSU students that the name of their school would remain on their diplomas at graduation, and insisted they would be as involved in the consolidation plans as KSU students and faculty would be.

USG VALUE:
www.times-georgian.com
http://www.times-georgian.com/news/local/article_4f9a6892-7016-11e3-a014-0019bb30f31a.html
Free diabetes prevention program can lower risk
For west Georgia residents at risk for developing type 2 diabetes, Get Healthy, Live Well is offering a free opportunity to turn back the disease. The community collaborative is offering the National Diabetes Prevention Program, which provides lifestyle-changing education that can reduce the chances of developing type 2 diabetes. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-approved educational series teaches people lifestyle changes that can prevent diabetes. …The program will have locations throughout west Georgia. Healthcare facilities like Tanner Medical Center/Carrollton, Tanner Medical Center/Villa Rica and Higgins General Hospital in Bremen will serve as host sites, as well as the University of West Georgia, Oak Mountain Academy, Heard County Library and Ephesus Library.

USG NEWS:
www.myajc.com
http://www.myajc.com/news/news/kennesaw-state-gives-online-education-model-a-try/ncTWb/?icmp=ajc_internallink_invitationbox_apr2013_ajcstub1
Kennesaw State gives online education model a try
By Janel Davis – The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Massive online open courses, or MOOCs, have had mixed results so far in higher education, but that hasn’t stopped Kennesaw State University from launching its first such course.
KSU’s MOOC, offered as part of a University System of Georgia multi-institution partnership with the Coursera company, seems to be off to a fast start. Within two weeks of enrollment opening for the course — on blended and online learning in k-12 education — more than 1,500 participants had registered. By the time class starts Jan. 6, enrollment is expected to top 2,500.

www.myajc.com
http://www.myajc.com/news/news/crime-law/reports-of-rape-on-campus-up-sharply/ncWww/?icmp=ajc_internallink_invitationbox_apr2013_ajcstub1
Reports of rape on campus up sharply
BY SHANNON MCCAFFREY AND STEVE VISSER – THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION
Reports of sexual assaults at Georgia college campuses nearly doubled over two years, according to a review of federal education data and law enforcement records by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Some campus officials attribute the sharp rise between 2010 and 2012 to better education and outreach, which encourages victims to seek help. But even as reporting has climbed, prosecutions have not. No cases were prosecuted at the two colleges with the most reported offenses in 2012: Emory University and the University of Georgia. That year, 127 rapes and other forced sexual assaults were reported at Georgia campuses, according to the most recent data reported to the U.S. Department of Education. By law, colleges must inform the federal agency of all reported sexual assaults, whether they were reported to police or agencies such as counseling services.

GOOD NEWS:
www.nsf.gov
http://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=129983
President Obama honors outstanding early-career scientists
19 National Science Foundation-supported researchers receive award
President Barack Obama today named 102 researchers as recipients of the Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers, the highest honor bestowed by the United States government on science and engineering professionals in the early stages of their independent research careers. The National Science Foundation (NSF) supports 19 of the award recipients… The awards, established by former President Bill Clinton in 1996, are coordinated by the Office of Science and Technology Policy within the Executive Office of the President. Awardees are selected for their pursuit of innovative research at the frontiers of science and technology and their commitment to community service as demonstrated through scientific leadership, public education, or community outreach. This year’s NSF recipients are:… Daniel Goldman, Georgia Institute of Technology

www.mnn.com
http://www.mnn.com/money/green-workplace/blogs/how-green-is-your-campus
How green is your campus?
Jenn Savedge
Did your favorite school make the list as one of the 10 greenest colleges in the U.S.?
Whether you’re home from college for winter break or plotting out which colleges to apply to in the spring, it’s good to know what your favorite college campus has to offer in terms of going green. Best College Reviews put together a list of to 10 greenest college campuses in the U.S., taking into account not only the eco-friendliness of the course selections but also green initiatives on campus like recycling programs, composting, alternative fuels, and carbon neutrality. Here’s a quick glance of the schools that made the list:… 5. Georgia Tech…

RESEARCH:
www.upi.com
http://www.upi.com/Science_News/2013/12/23/GPS-allowed-accurate-prediction-of-Costa-Rica-earthquake/UPI-90401387833104/#ixzz2ovBSly4U
GPS allowed accurate prediction of Costa Rica earthquake
Using GPS to study changes in the Earth’s shape allowed a forecast of the size and location of a 2012 magnitude 7.6 earthquake in Costa Rica, scientists report. Because earthquakes greater than about magnitude 7.5 have occurred on Nicoya Peninsula about every 50 years, with the previous event striking in 1950, scientists were ready with GPS to map out the area along the fault storing energy for release in a large earthquake. “This is the first place where we’ve been able to map out the likely extent of an earthquake rupture along the subduction megathrust beforehand,” said Andrew Newman, a professor in the School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at the Georgia Institute of Technology. U.S. and Costa Rican researchers took part in the study of the subduction zone, a location where one tectonic plate is forced under another one.

Related article:
www.voanews.com
http://www.voanews.com/content/scientists-say-they-predicted-earthquake/1816935.html
Scientist Say They Predicted Earthquake Location, Magnitude

www.huffingtonpost.com
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/12/20/the-physics-of-ants_n_4482287.html
Video Proves That Ants Are Complete Freaks Of Nature
By Robin Wilkey
Just in case we forgot that ants are freaking unbelievable, here’s a video by the New York Times’ ScienceTake to remind us. In a video titled “The Physics of Ants,” New York Times science writer James Gorman explores the curious tendency of groups of ants to move as both a solid and a liquid. “See how the ants drip like some kind of syrup?” asks Gorman, as researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology show one group of ants pouring through a funnel. Meanwhile, another group clumps together like a rubber ball in a beaker. “But then, watch as a researcher pushes down on a ball of ants: it springs back as if it were a solid like rubber.” According to Gorman, researchers had never seen a group of living things behave this way. “To flow, the ants move around,” he explained. “To spring back, they hang on to each other.”

www.spectrum.ieee.org
http://spectrum.ieee.org/geek-life/hands-on/how-to-brew-your-own-conductive-ink
How to Brew Your Own Conductive Ink
Draw working circuits in pen and ink
By W. Wayt Gibbs
I’m not ashamed to admit it—my soldering skills stink. That puts a real crimp in my ability to prototype circuit ideas. Breadboards work, but by design, they significantly constrain how you can arrange components. So I was excited when I spotted a preprint article on ArXiv.org describing a new liquid-metal ink. Conductive inks made from silver nanoparticles have been available for some time; recently, a group at Georgia Tech demonstrated a way to use them in inkjet printers to create custom circuits. But they are quite pricey, and I’m not keen on the idea of pumping metal through my printer.

www.climatecentral.org
http://www.climatecentral.org/news/many-uncertainties-in-climate-changes-role-in-drought-16878
Still Uncertain: Climate Change’s Role in Drought
By Bobby Magill
It’s common for direct connections to be drawn between climate change and the effects of the devastating droughts that have been afflicting the U.S. and other parts of the world over the last decade. A new analysis led by scientists from the National Center for Atmospheric Research says there are still many uncertainties about how climate change is affecting drought globally, though… It’s common for direct connections to be drawn between climate change and the effects of the devastating droughts that have been afflicting the U.S. and other parts of the world over the last decade. A new analysis led by scientists from the National Center for Atmospheric Research says there are still many uncertainties about how climate change is affecting drought globally, though… A study written by Georgia Institute of Technology atmospheric scientist Kim Cobb and published in the journal Science earlier this year showed evidence that both phases of ENSO may be getting more intense because of human-caused global warming.

www.nbcwashington.com
http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/tech/In-2014-Expect-to-Explore-New-Technological-Frontiers–And-Concerns-237078651.html
In 2014, Expect New Technological Frontiers – And Concerns
The coming year will be marked by an increased struggle over the privacy and security concerns related to our rapidly connected lives.
By Jon Schuppe
Andrew Howard, like anyone, loves the rapidly expanding array of gadgets that connect his life to the internet. But it also makes him nervous. Howard, a scientist at the Georgia Tech Research Institute, spends most of his waking hours thinking about how to keep computer networks from getting hacked — a risk that grows with each new household appliance that links to the cloud. And so while he swoons over his new Nest thermostat and smoke alarm, he worries about the day when all of his devices go online, collecting data about him and opening up more “avenues for attack.”

STATE NEEDS/ISSUES:
www.dailyreportonline.com
http://www.dailyreportonline.com/PubArticleDRO.jsp?kw=Ga.%20Officials%20Take%20Lobbyist%20Gifts%20Before%20New%20Rules&id=1202635018053&cn=20131227&pt=Afternoon%20News&src=EMC-Email&et=editorial&bu=Daily%20Report&slreturn=20131127150307
Ga. Officials Take Lobbyist Gifts Before New Rules
By RAY HENRY All Articles
The Associated Press
Lobbyists bought a few last rounds of golf, sporting tickets and other perks for Georgia’s public officials before new rules take effect next year that will cut down on at least some of that spending. The new rules generally ban lobbyists from spending more than $75 at a time on public officials or giving them free tickets to games, concerts and other recreational events. Still, there are plenty of loopholes that will allow for significant influence peddling even after the General Assembly reconvenes next month for its annual 40-day session.

www.daily-tribune.com
http://www.daily-tribune.com/view/full_story/24303078/article-Legislators-looking-toward-fast-2014-session?instance=main_article
Legislators looking toward fast 2014 session
by Jason Lowrey
Local state legislators foresee a fast 2014 session, starting Jan. 13, so their colleagues will make it back to their home districts before the May primaries. “If there’s something that’s very easy for us to debate, [get] through committee, get through rules and get on the floor and get it off very quickly, we will be able to do that,” said Rep. Paul Battles, R-Cartersville. “But because the primary is in May, we are set up that we’re going to go straight through. We’re not going to take any break time. We’re going to go literally through this session. … The only day we’re going to be off is [Martin Luther King Jr. Day], and that’s it, and we’re going to go straight through and hopefully to finish up somewhere around the middle of March.”… Rep. Trey Kelley, R-Cedartown, also expected the Legislature to move quickly through its business. He plans to introduce a bill allowing the road testing of autonomous vehicles in Georgia. “It revolves around autonomous vehicles and making sure that Georgia is capturing the research opportunities,” he said. “… But right now they’re really into the development stage of that technology, which is really something that I think will be the next big breakthrough in automobile technology. I want to make sure that Georgia has laws in place that allow for that technology to be researched on our roads to take advantage of the presence Google already has in Georgia and also to hopefully engage Georgia Tech … to help drive this technology.”

Editorials/Columns/Opinions
www.blogs.wsj.com
http://blogs.wsj.com/cio/2013/12/27/moocs-inflated-expectations-early-disappointments/
MOOCs: Inflated Expectations, Early Disappointments
By Irving Wladawsky-Berger
Guest Contributor
Massive open online courses–online platforms offering courses and educational materials to very large numbers of people–captured our imagination in the Fall of 2011 when, unexpectedly, a free online course in artificial intelligence given by two Stanford University professors attracted 160,000 students. The NY Times called 2012 The Year of the MOOC. Three major MOOC platforms were launched that year, the for-profit, VC-backed Udacity and Coursera, which were each started by Stanford faculty members; and the not-for-profit edX, a collaborative venture of MIT and Harvard University. They established partnerships with a number of universities which offer their own online courses on the platforms. Other institutions around the world have also launched their own MOOCs.

www.svannahnow.com
http://savannahnow.com/column/2013-12-28/commentary-sun-rising-solar-energy-georgia#.UsGjcyjGEeV
Commentary: Sun rising on solar energy in Georgia
By Anthony Coker
Last week, Georgia solidified its place as a national solar energy leader. In a display of bold, thoughtful leadership, the Georgia Public Service Commission dismissed a proposal to punitively tax solar customers. This action allows for the continued trend of Georgia homes and businesses choosing to harness solar technology’s homegrown energy supply. The PSC recognized that more solar utilization is good for everyone, not just those who use the technology. Solar creates energy competition, ingenuity and self-reliance, all of which are desperately needed in the marketplace. It is also a clean, local source of electricity that, as part of a new portfolio of energy generation, helps us move toward the stronger 21st century smart grid that we all want to achieve… I’ve had an exciting front row seat from my role at Suniva, one of our nation’s leading solar manufacturers. Suniva has gone from a bright idea out of Georgia Tech to a manufacturing powerhouse that serves the global solar marketplace.

Education News
www.savannahnow.com
http://savannahnow.com/news/2013-12-28/new-requirements-high-school-graduation-hope-scholarship?utm_source=Morris%20Digital%20Works&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=DailyHeadlinesfromSavannahnow.com#.UsGF3CjGEeU
New requirements for high school graduation, HOPE scholarship
By Jenel Few
Graduating high school just got complicated, and graduating high school with a HOPE scholarship got even more complicated than that. Beginning this year, the state is requiring every eighth grader to complete a high school graduation plan at the end of the school year and select a career pathway to study throughout high school. And if they want to qualify for a HOPE scholarship when they graduate, they’re going to have to meet new academic rigor requirements by taking Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate or dual enrollment college courses. The changes are part of the state’s new College and Career Readiness Initiative.

www.orlandosentinel.com
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/features/education/os-pell-grant-florida-colleges-20131228,0,4730122.story
More Florida college students receive Pell grants
By Denise-Marie Ordway, Orlando Sentinel
The number of state-university students receiving Pell grants has soared in recent years — an indication that more Floridians are having trouble affording rising education costs.
Almost 40 percent of public-university undergraduate students got Pell grants last year, according to the most recent data available from the university system. That’s up from 22 percent six years earlier. Florida’s community colleges also saw a similar spike in recent years.

www.diverseeducation.com
http://diverseeducation.com/article/59745/?utm_campaign=Diverse%20Newsletter%203&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&elq=c7bc0f806fb9414baf6b49522d1b0378&elqCampaignId=146#
Faculty Protest Reforms They Say ‘Dumb Down’ Higher Ed
by Timothy Pratt, The Hechinger Report
…Under pressure to turn out more students, more quickly and for less money, and to tie graduates’ skills to workforce needs, higher education institutions and policy makers have been busy reducing the number of required credits, giving credit for life experience, and cutting some courses, while putting others online. Now critics are sounding the alarm that speeding up college and making it cheaper risks dumbing it down.

www.businessweek.com
http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-12-18/mba-salary-outlook-pay-stays-flat-in-2014
MBA Salary Outlook: Pay Stays Flat in 2014
By Patrick Clark
The value of an MBA isn’t keeping up with inflation for many new graduates. According to research by the Graduate Management Admission Council, 42 percent of employers plan to pay the latest crop of MBAs the same salaries in 2014 as they did this year. Among the companies that responded to the GMAC survey, 45 percent said they would increase wages for new MBAs to keep up with inflation (about 1 percent in the U.S.). Only 11 percent said they planned greater-than-inflation bumps for new MBA hires, compared with 20 percent that plan similar raises for positions filled by workers recruited from other companies.