November 22, 2002 News Releases
Released 11/21/02
AWARD-WINNING
POET PATTIANN ROGERS TO READ AT UTAH STATE
LOGAN — The Utah State University Department of English
Speakers Series presents award-winning poet Pattiann Rogers
Thursday, Dec. 5, at 7 p.m. in the Ellen Eccles Conference Center
auditorium on campus. A reception and booksigning will follow
this free event, and everyone is invited. In conjunction with
the event, the Jenny and Thad Box Creative Writing Award will
be presented. In a separate public event on Friday, Dec. 6,
from 10:30–11:30 a.m., Rogers will participate in a panel
discussion “Science and Poetry,” in Natural Resources
204.
Rogers’s poetry addresses the human relationship with
science and nature. “The discipline of science provides
a balance, a guard against an overly sentimental view of the
physical worlds around us,” she says. Her work also honors
the wonder of the human intersection with the divine, and the
elements of nature that facilitate that relationship. “I
believe the world provides every physical image and sensation
we will ever need in order to experience the sacred, to declare
the holy, if we could only learn to recognize it,” Rogers
says
Born in Joplin, Mo., in 1940, Rogers has spent her adult life
in Texas and Colorado and most of her academic career at the
University of Arkansas. She has won several awards for her work,
including the Tietjens Prize and the Hokin Prize from “Poetry,”
the Toethke Prize from “Poetry Northwest,” the Strousse
Award twice from Prairie Schooner,” three awards from
the
Texas Institute of Letters and four Pushcart Prizes. She has
also received two NEA grants and a Guggenheim Fellowship. She
has been a visiting writer at the Universities of Montana and
Texas, and a faculty member at Vermont College. The mother of
two grown sons, she lives in Colorado with her husband, a retired
geophysicist.
The Department of English Speakers Series was established to
promote the value of arts and humanities in American public
life. The series features faculty research accomplishments and
noted visiting authors sharing their work. Next in the series
is Utah State University folklorist Jeannie Thomas who will
discuss her forthcoming book, “Naked Barbies and Warrior
Joes” Jan. 15, 2003 at 12:30 p.m. in the Utah State Haight
Alumni Center. For more information, contact Marina Hall at
(435) 797-3858.
November 21, 2002
Contact: Marina Hall (435) 797-3858
Writer: Marina Hall (435) 797-3858
UTAH STATE SPACE
PROFESSOR TAKES HOME UTAH’S CARNEGIE PROFESSOR OF THE
YEAR AWARD
LOGAN, UT — The “wave” is known to
sports fans the world over to liven the action when there is
a lull in a game, and while Utah State University physics professor
Jan Sojka is a huge sports fan, he uses the “wave”
for a different purpose. As the students in Sojka’s class
participate in the “wave,” they learn something
about the simple laws of physics.
“Physics can be a tough subject to teach when you are
teaching a room full of students whose first love isn’t
the subject,” said Sojka. “I have to do something
to keep the students awake. My Scottish accent and a sense of
humor helps. But I find what works best is getting the entire
class out of their seats to participate in group demonstrations.”
This interactive teaching style is one of the reasons Sojka
is the 2002 Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching
Utah Professor of the Year. The U.S. Professors of the Year
program salutes the most outstanding undergraduate instructors
in the country. Sojka visited Washington, D.C., this month to
receive the honor. He is the sixth professor from Utah State
to receive the award in the past eight years.
Sojka believes that interaction with one’s audience and
enthusiasm for the
subject go a long way toward bridging the gap between the interested,
the disinterested and the unenlightened.
Sojka’s love for teaching is clear and obvious in his
enthusiasm and energy in the classroom. Sojka volunteered to
teach the large enrollment introductory calculus-based physics
class for science and engineering majors because he wanted to
instill his own enthusiasm for science in others.
“My first upper division physics course was taught by
Jan,” said Jason Sanders, former Utah State student. “His
love for the subject was so strong it was almost tiring. Once
in a lecture he humorously and accurately described the principles
of flux by relating it to bunnies hopping in and out of a garden.
His energy at the blackboard was exciting, he loved the subject
and it was contagious.”
Sojka involves his students in his large classes, such as his
calculus-based intro to physics, but he also makes time for
one-on-one and small group mentoring.
He is the faculty advisor for the NASA Get Away Special (GAS)
project at Utah State and oversees the entire program. The GAS
team includes interdisciplinary undergraduate students developing
experiments that will fly on the NASA Space Shuttle. Utah State
has put more experiments into space than any other university
in the world.
Sojka’s approach to mentoring is hands-off. He is there
to advise the students when needed, but prefers his students
to take risks, make decisions and experience both failure and
success.
“Jan provides leadership opportunities for us and teaches
us to try new things, experiment and then learn from our experiences,”
said Andrew J. Auman, student coordinator for GAS.
He spends hours helping, urging, encouraging and listening to
his students’ successes and failures, said W. Farrell
Edwards, professor of physics at Utah State.
Sojka has also invited many elementary and high schools to participate
in the GAS project the past eight years, involving more than
80 undergraduate students, 200 high school students and more
than 800 elementary school students. Sojka is especially pleased
with his relationship with the Shoshone-Bannock High School
in Idaho, which flew the first Native American payload and which
has subsequently flown two more.
“Dr. Sojka and the GAS program represented a challenge
for our Native American students,” said Ed Galindo, science
teacher at Shoshone-Bannock High School. “We had to meet
the very high standards that NASA requires in order to fly our
experiment. Our highly successful first mission would not have
been possible if it weren’t for the personal dedication
and enthusiasm of Dr. Sojka and the GAS team.”
Teaching and learning physics can be fun, said Sojka. And after
having been at Utah State since 1978, he said he is in it for
the long haul.
Along with his professor and advisor duties, Sojka is also the
assistant director for the Center of Atmospheric and Space Sciences,
the co-associate director for the Rocky Mountain NASA Space
Grant Consortium and the director for the Bear Lake Observatory.
Sojka was born in Duns, Berwickshire, Scotland, and attended
Galashiels Academy High School. He furthered his education at
The University of Edinburgh, Lothian, Scotland, where he earned
his bachelor’s degree in physics. He then moved on to
University College, London, United Kingdom, where he received
his doctorate in space physics. He currently resides in Logan
with his wife, Susan. They have two daughters.
The Council for the Advancement of Support of Education (CASE)
established the Professors of the Year program in 1981 and works
in cooperation with the Carnegie Foundation. This year, the
Carnegie Foundation and CASE recognized winners in 46 states
including the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico and the
Virgin Islands.
Utah State’s previous Professor of the Year recipients
are: Frances Titchener, history; Ted Alsop, geography and earth
resources; Sonia Manuel-Dupont, English; Mark Damen, history;
and David Lancy, anthropology.
November 21, 2002
Contact: Jan Sojka (435) 797-2964
Writer: Maren Cartwright (435) 797-1355, maren.cartwright@usu.edu
ASK A SPECIALIST:
DO YOU HAVE TIPS FOR SAFELY INSTALLING OUTDOOR CHRISTMAS LIGHTS?
The Christmas season is upon us, and outdoor decorations are
being purchased and unpacked with anticipation. The holidays
are enhanced by exterior lighting, but it is important to exercise
caution when selecting and installing them.
Each year, holiday lighting contributes to injuries caused by
electrical shock, falls and fires. Holiday lighting fires annually
cause property damage in excess of $16 million. Consider the
following to avoid injury as you decorate for the holidays.
• When purchasing outdoor Christmas lighting, look for
labels marked with UL or ETL. This indicates the product has
been tested by an independent laboratory recognized by the Occupational
Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Outdoor lights with
these labels satisfy the minimum standards for product safety.
• When selecting lights for exterior installation, be
sure the packaging states that it is designated for outdoor
use. Outdoor lighting is weatherproof and designed for temporary
operation in harsh winter weather. Do not purchase used Christmas
lights or lighting not in the original package.
• When selecting outdoor lights, consider purchasing
strings with miniature, low-heat producing bulbs. These lights
require less amperage and are less likely to overload electrical
outlets.
• Purchase appropriately sized timers to automatically
turn lights on and off. Lights should be turned off when people
are not present and they should not be left on overnight.
• Electrical outlets for exterior lighting should accommodate
three-prong grounded plugs and should be on an electrical circuit
protected by a ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI). Portable
outdoor GFCIs can be purchased at hardware stores if this circuit
protection is not available.
• If extension cords are required for outdoor lights,
use those designed for outdoor use with three-prong plugs. Never
use an indoor cord or a cord without the third prong. Plug the
cord into a grounded outlet and select a cord with the shortest
length that works for your project. Do not use a 100-foot extension
cord for a 10-foot distance. Keep outdoor electrical connections
above the ground and out of the snow and water. If extension
cords must cross walkways, tape them down.
• When connecting outdoor lighting, be careful not to
create a maze of extension cords, plugs and wires that all come
from the same electrical outlet. Electrical outlets and timers
used for Christmas lights should be readily accessible for quick
disconnection or adjustment as necessary.
• When installing lights, be sure to read and follow
the manufacturer's instructions. These instructions should be
stored with the lights and referred to when purchasing replacement
bulbs and on future installations.
• Check the manufacturer's guidelines to determine the
number of light strings that may be safely plugged together.
If the packaging does not indicate the number, connect no more
than three light strings together.
• Before installing newly purchased or previously used
Christmas lighting, plug the string in and make sure all the
bulbs operate properly. When unpacking outdoor lights used during
previous years, carefully inspect them for frayed, loose or
bare wires and damaged bulbs or sockets. Discard damaged light
strings.
• One of the greatest dangers when installing outdoor
lighting involves the use of ladders. Use a high-quality, sturdy
ladder that is the proper height. Be sure it is securely positioned.
To avoid falls, move the ladder rather than leaning on it from
side to side.
• When installing outdoor lights, use screw-in hooks
or other fasteners that will not damage the insulation on the
lighting strings. Nails and staple guns can easily cut or damage
insulation and conductors.
• Refer to the manufacturer's guidelines to determine
the recommended spacing for supports and the maximum span allowed
for the light string. Christmas lights are generally designed
to span distances of only a few feet and should be supported
at intervals every few feet.
• Securely attach outdoor light strings to buildings,
trees or other objects to prevent displacement by wind or other
weather conditions. When possible, point the lamp sockets down
to avoid moisture buildup and do not operate light strings with
missing bulbs.
• Unplug outdoor lights when replacing bulbs so there
is no danger of shock. Reduce damage to lights by handling them
carefully when installing and removing them and when packing
and storing.
• Remove outdoor lighting at the end of the Christmas
season. Christmas lights are not designed to withstand prolonged
exposure to sun and weather.
To see other "Ask A Specialist" columns, visit http://extension.usu.edu/publica/news/aska/
Direct column topics to Julene Reese, Utah State University
Extension, Logan, UT 84322-4900; 435-797-1363; julener@sunrem.com
Nov. 21, 2002
Answer by Richard Beard, Utah State University Extension
Agricultural Engineering Specialist
utah state today/archives/November
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