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COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES
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Eminent Linguistics Scholar, Microbiology Researcher Named Distinguished University Professors
Peter Culicover, Humanities Distinguished Professor of Linguistics, and Tina Henkin, the Robert W. and Estelle S. Bingham Professor of Biological Sciences, microbiology, and associate dean, faculty affairs, College of Arts and Sciences, were two of three Ohio State faculty named as Distinguished University Professors by the university’s Board of Trustees on June 3. The title, which is permanent, is the highest recognition Ohio State bestows on a senior faculty member and the only one conferred by its trustees. Recipients have an exceptional track record in three areas of faculty responsibility — teaching, research and service.
Culicover is an internationally recognized authority on linguistic theory and a pioneer in cognitive science and its relationship to mental representations of language, syntax, grammar and language acquisition. Henkin is credited with discoveries about RNA molecules so fundamentally important that they led to a new research field.
The Office of Academic Affairs provides a one-time cash award of $30,000 to support recipients’ academic work. Honorees are expected to continue a regular program of teaching, research, scholarly or creative work, and service.
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School Teachers Explore ‘Silk Road’
 A group of 25 middle and high school teachers from across the U.S. will explore Central Asia’s Silk Road at Ohio State this summer. Their guide, Scott Levi, associate professor, history, won funding to hold a three-week NEH-sponsored summer institute, Central Asia in World History. Along the way, teachers will learn how to weave their new knowledge of this historically and politically significant region into lessons that ultimately will reach thousands of young students throughout the country. |
Research Scientist Examines the State of Marriage Today
Jay Zagorsky, research scientist, Center for Human Resource Research (CHRR), discusses his research on the state of marriage in the U.S. in The Conversation (June 2). There are only about 2 million marriages per year in the U.S., a drop of nearly half a million from a peak in the early 1980s. As a result, barely more than half of adults in the U.S. say they're living with a spouse. It is the lowest share on record, and down from 70 percent in 1967. For many people, the costs of marriage outweigh the benefits. |
Doctoral Student’s Research Looks at Reality TV and Narcissism
Ted Dickinson, doctoral candidate, communication, is co-author of a study finding that people who watched political talk shows, reality shows, sporting events and horror shows tended to score higher on the Narcissistic Personality Inventory. He discusses his research in The Conversation, June 5, 2016. |
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Psychology Professor Leads New NIH Project on Categorization
 Vladimir Sloutsky, professor, psychology, is PI on a new NIH P01 Program Project, "Development and Neurobiology of Categorization,” awarded $5,772,969. The project is designed to advance our understanding of the developmental, neural, evolutionary and cognitive mechanisms of categorization, a critically important human intellectual ability. “Categorization is critical for humans’ ability to learn abstract concepts in many domains, including mathematics, science, ethics and law. Categorization gives us a sense of the ‘big picture’ that omits some of the details, and this sense is often compromised in atypical development and learning disabilities.”
Co-PIs on the project include: Edward Wasserman and John Freeman (University of Iowa) and Bradley Love (University College-London). Co-investigators: Jay Myung and Brandon Turner (Ohio State). |
Speech and Hearing Professor Receives $1.9 Million NIH Grant
 Eric W. Healy, professor, speech and hearing science, was awarded a $1.9 million NIH grant to study the primary complaint of people with hearing loss — limited speech understanding in background noise. The current award adds to an existing $1.8 million collaborative NIH award with the College of Engineering’s Department of Computer Science and Engineering. It will further our basic understanding of how the auditory system extracts speech from noise and how these mechanisms are affected by hearing impairment. Healy's team also will partner with industry to implement their noise-reduction technology into the leading bionic-hearing prosthetic. |
ASC Students Receive Fulbright Grants
Ten Arts and Sciences students and recent graduates have been offered grants from the Fulbright U.S. Students Program for the 2016-17 academic year. They are:
- Timothy Beavers (Microbiology, Political Science) – Poland, English Teaching Assistantship
- William Bezbatchenko (Slavic and Eastern European Studies) – Kyrgyz Republic, English Teaching Assistantship
- Jennifer Boughton (Political Science and Spanish) – Colombia, English Teaching Assistantship
- James Riley Cruttenden (Art) – United Kingdom, Technical Art History Studies
- Jonathon Dreeze (History) – Kazakhstan, Research
- Elizabeth Hutcheson (Spanish) – Spain, English Teaching Assistantship
- Zana Karabatak (French and Linguistics) – Turkey, English Teaching Assistantship
- Amanda Randhawa (Comparative Studies) – India, Research
- Ryan Schultz (History) – Japan, Research
- Keegan Scott (International Studies) – Turkey, English Teaching Assistantship
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Arts and Sciences Welcome Address and Reception
 Mark your calendars for the second annual Arts and Sciences Welcome Address and Reception: Thursday, Sept. 1, 1:30-3 p.m., Hughes Auditorium. Join us to learn more about the college’s strategic roadmap to support the vision pillars shared last year and an update on new initiatives in Career Services to enhance professional development and increase successful outcomes for our graduates. |
Tech Talk: ASCTech launches new VPN
On June 1, ASCTech launched the new ASC VPN service for use by staff and faculty in the college. The VPN allows secure access to internal resources like file shares, remote desktop and SSH (secure shell). |
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Freeman Assumes Presidency, Midwest Association of Pre-Law Advisors
Kevin Freeman, program manager, Politics, Society and Law Scholars, assumes the position of president of the Midwest Association of Pre-Law Advisors (MAPLA), June 2016-2018. Freeman also is on the board of directors for the Pre-Law Advisors National Council (PLANC). |
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Polar Weather and Climate Week, June 4-8
 Columbus is the host city for one of this year’s most important gatherings of polar atmospheric scientists. The Polar Meteorology Group of the Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center (BPCRC) is hosting Polar Weather and Climate Week, June 4-8 at Ohio State. Nearly 80 prominent atmospheric scientists, representing 18 countries, are attending a week of workshops and meetings to discuss the latest scientific developments regarding Antarctic and Arctic meteorology and climate change. |
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IN THE NEWS
Museum of Biological Diversity, on the Ohio State University cicada collection, Columbus Dispatch, June 6
Tim Berra, professor; evolution, ecology and organismal biology, on Darwin’s prolific letter writing, Washington Post, June 3
Vladimir Kogan, assistant professor, political science, on ranked-choice voting, TIME, June 3
Vladimir Kogan, assistant professor, political science, on voters’ willingness to pay higher taxes for education, Bloomberg, June 3
Peter Mansoor, professor, history, on why he’s voting for Hillary Clinton, Columbus Dispatch, June 3
Ellen Peters, professor, psychology, “Let Smokers See the Warning They Need,” New York Times; citing Peters’ research on graphic warning labels, PLOS ONE, June 3
Lonnie Thompson, Distinguished University Professor, Earth sciences, “Investigating climate change the hard way at Earth’s icy ‘third pole,’” Scientific American, June 2
Andrew Luttrell, doctoral student, psychology, on how the perception of morality strengthens an argument, Independent and Washington Post, June 2
Richard Petty, professor, psychology, on why opinions based on ‘morality’ resist change, Business Standard, June 1
Christian Burd, professor, molecular genetics, on the importance of using sunscreen, KUSA, May 31 |
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If you have information or announcements for News & Updates, please submit online, or call (614) 292-8686. News & Updates is published every Wednesday; deadline for content is Monday at noon. Publication Guidelines
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