UB in the News

An article in The State about the unexpected death of pop star Michael Jackson quotes Elayne Rapping, professor of American studies, who discussed his iconic place in popular culture history, as well as the sordid details of his personal life that tainted his later years.

An article on the Discovery Channel about the melting Greenland ice sheet, which contains enough fresh water to raise the global sea level 23 feet, reports on research by Jason Briner, assistant professor of geology, that shows the contemporary tidewater glaciers in Greenland and Antarctica that are retreating into deep waters may begin to experience even faster rates of retreat than are currently being observed.

An article distributed by AP reports Turner Gill has been named grand marshal for the IndyCar race at Watkins Glen International on July 5. The article appeared in outlets that include USA Today.

Elayne Rapping, professor of American studies, is quoted in an article distributed by Reuters about how Michael Jackson's death has sparked renewed interest in his albums, videos and other paraphernalia.

An article in New Scientist on a new study that help explain why some people remain famous after their talent has faded -- if they were even talented to begin with -- reports a 1991 study by William Hamlen, associate professor of finance and managerial economics, found that an objective measure of vocal harmony predicted album sales.

An article in the Chronicle of Higher Education interviews Brian Carter, dean of the School of Architecture and Planning, about the school's students working on "small projects," efforts to redesign much-used public spaces, both to enliven the surroundings and to give students real training. One of the difficulties of being a young architect in America, he says, is there are too few opportunities to break into the field and show one's work. The small projects offer those opportunities.

An article distributed by CanWest News Service reports a study by Jason Briner, assistant professor of geology, has shown just how quickly the planet's massive coastal glaciers could disappear and send global sea levels surging. The article appeared in newspapers throughout Canada, including The Montreal Gazette.

An article distributed by the Associated Press reports that an exhibition of work by Salvador Dali will be presented by the UB Anderson Gallery. The article notes that 15 sketches and a silver sculpture belong to the family of the late Edmund Klein, a world-renowned skin cancer researcher and research professor in the UB School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences who treated the Spanish surrealist for nearly a decade. The article appeared in hundreds of news outlets throughout the world, including USA Today, The New York Times and The Washington Post.

An article on the Reuters "Entertainment behind the scenes" blog about the growing popularity of vampires in the movies and television quotes Elayne Rapping, professor of American studies, who said the latest vampire hits are more like soap operas and are very complex in their portrayal of characters and relationships.

An article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette about Bloomsday celebrations in that city reports that much of the Joycean world headed to Buffalo over the weekend for the North American James Joyce Conference at UB, and notes that UB holds one of the largest collections of Joycean papers and memorabilia in the world.