From the Office of Dr. Karen Liller

Not only do you need new directions to find the Graduate School at USF (now located on the second floor of the Administration Building) but we also have new research directions that should position us as leaders in Graduate Education. I am very proud to announce that the Graduate School has opened our new Graduate School Research unit.

Students desiring careers in business and governmental intelligence will soon have an opportunity to sharpen their analytical and critical-thinking skills and take advantage of overseas internships in order to prepare for careers in intelligence analysis.

The Humanities Institute warmly thanks Dr. Karen Holbrook, Senior Vice President for Research, Innovation & Global Affairs for funding the Summer 2011 Humanities Institute Grants. This year was particularly competitive; of the 31 applications evaluated in committee, the following projects were awarded. See page 7 ...

How precisely a rat makes its way through a maze may help more clearly define how robots move through their own environments and adapt to changes in it. This bridging of biology and robotics is the subject of a new study taking place at the University of South Florida Polytechnic and the University of Arizona.

High school students performed engineering work on projects including flight simulations, spacecraft that can explore the moon, and a cardiac compression device that is typically handled by adults during internships at Draper Laboratory this summer.

GOMURC supports coastal marine science, oceanography and related management programs.

The Directorate for Biological Sciences (BIO) has initiated new procedures for the submission and review of regular research proposals to the core programs within the Division of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences (MCB), Division of Environmental Biology (DEB), and Division of Integrative Organismal Systems (IOS). The changes for MCB were previously announced in a new solicitation (NSF-11-545). Effective immediately, DEB and IOS will both implement an annual cycle of preliminary and full proposals beginning in January 2012. Preliminary proposals will be accepted in January. New Solicitations NSF 11-572 for IOS and NSF 11-573 (for DEB) provide further details.

The Office of Naval Research (ONR) published new guidance on Sept. 15, aimed at preventing conflicts of interest among companies competing for business with the science and technology organization.

NIH (including help desks) will be closed on Monday, October 10, 2011 in observance of Columbus Day.

Decreasing expression of a protein associated with susceptibility to depression made old mice resistant to depressive-like behavior while improving their hormonal response to stress, a study led by researchers at the University of South Florida found. The lack of this protein, FKBP51, did not adversely affect their memory, learning, or basic motor functions.

Ask Sherri Berger how she manages an $11 billion budget, and she’ll say: “Carefully. Slowly. Thoughtfully. Strategically.” In August, Berger took over as the new Chief Operating Officer of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), with its 10,000 employees, 5,000 contractors, and yes, that $11 billion budget.

The Florida Nurses Association (FNA) has announced Dianne Morrison-Beedy, PhD, RN, WHNP-BC, FNAP, FAANP, FAAN, Senior Associate Vice President for USF Health and Dean of the College of Nursing, as recipient of the 2011 FNA Nursing Research Award. Dean Morrison-Beedy will be honored at the FNA Membership Assembly September 23-24 in Orlando, Florida.

A research consortium led by the University of South Florida’s College of Marine Science has been awarded more than $11 million through BP’s Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative to continue assessing the impacts of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill on the Gulf of Mexico’s ocean and coastal ecosystems and to build better ways for predicting damage from future spills.

Dr. Ojmarrh Mitchell is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Criminology at USF and was recently awarded the National Institute of Justice's 2011 W.E.B. Du Bois Fellowship . The Fellowship Program's objective is to provide talented researchers with an opportunity, early in their career, to elevate independently generated research and ideas to the level of national discussion.

University of South Florida professor Jayajit Chakraborty received a $389,992 collaborative research grant from the National Science Foundation’s Infrastructure Management and Extreme Events Program.

USF Professor Daniel Yeh hopes to make water conservation a crucial part of green building. Professor Yeh has researched water treatment, wastewater reuse and recovery, bioenergy and desalination. But he sees many of the solutions to Florida's water woes as far simpler.

Ask University of South Florida senior Brittany Leigh what she did over the summer, and you may be amazed at the answer.

The 21-year-old from Riverview is studying cancer-fighting proteins that appear to kill tumor cells, while leaving normal cells alone.

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) will hold a public information session (Town Hall meeting) and Webinar on November 1, 2011 in Bethesda, MD at 9:00 AM Eastern Time to discuss future plans for the NIAID Regional Centers of Excellence for Biodefense and Emerging Infectious Diseases (RCE) Program.

Pulitzer Prize wining author and noted cancer researcher Dr. Siddhartha Mukherjee will visit the University of South Florida as part of the Frontier Forum lecture series presented by USF Phi Beta Kappa Alumni Faculty. Mukherjee’s lecture will begin at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 27, 2011, in the Interdisciplinary Sciences Auditorium room 1051.

So many of the world’s greatest cities are connected to iconic waterways, such as the Seine, Thames, the Chicago River and New York’s Hudson.

Tampa could be one of them, with its meandering Hillsborough River. But a patchwork of hits and misses along its banks has presented challenges, although improvements have been made in recent years.

A new contest hopes drive even more change.