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U.S. Students Need New Way of Learning Science

By Guest PostApril 7, 2012Educationamerican students, atoms, cells, conservation of mass and energy, digital organisms, energy, forces, genomics, k 12 school, michigan state university, next generation, prom se, radiation, research project, Science, science standard, scientific fact, simon billinge, stephen pruitt, student assessment, synthetic biology, systems change, united states, variation, william schmidt

EAST LANSING, Mich. — American students need a dramatically new approach to improve how they learn science, says a noted group of scientists and educators led by Michigan State University professor William Schmidt.

After six years of work, the group has proposed a solution. The 8+1 Science concept calls for a radical overhaul in K-12 schools that moves away from memorizing scientific facts and focuses on helping students understand eight fundamental science concepts. The “plus one” is the importance of inquiry, the practice of asking why things happen around us – and a fundamental part of science. (more…)

Geologists Correct a Rift in Africa

By Guest PostMarch 26, 2012Scienceafrica today, australia, climate change, earth crust, east africa, east african rift, eric roberts, ethiopia, geological sciences, giant arc, great rift valley, human evolution, human species, james cook university, Kenya, malawi, michael gottfried, michigan state university, model, nancy stevens, nature geoscience, ohio university, plate boundary, rukwa rift, system, tectonic forces, uganda, vertebrate fossils, volcanic ash

EAST LANSING, Mich. — The huge changes in the Earth’s crust that influenced human evolution are being redefined, according to research published today in Nature Geoscience.

The Great Rift Valley of East Africa – the birthplace of the human species – may have taken much longer to develop than previously believed.

“We now believe that the western portion of the rift formed about 25 million years ago, and is approximately as old as the eastern part, instead of much younger as other studies have maintained,” said Michael Gottfried, Michigan State University associate professor of geological sciences. “The significance is that the Rift Valley is the setting for the most crucial steps in primate and ultimately human evolution, and our study has major implications for the environmental and landscape changes that form the backdrop for that evolutionary story.” (more…)

To Combat Identity Theft, Protect Computer

By Guest PostMarch 21, 2012Technologyanti adware, anti spyware, antivirus, computer, computer related deviance, identity theft, michael turner, michigan state university, online commerce, pirated music, pornographic images, software, thomas holt, triple threat combination

EAST LANSING, Mich. — Having a triple-threat combination of protective software on your computer greatly reduces your chances of identity theft, according to a study led by a Michigan State University criminologist.

In a survey of more than 600 people, the researchers found that computer users who were running antivirus, anti-adware and anti-spyware software were 50 percent less likely to have their credit card information stolen.

The study appears in the research journal Deviant Behavior. (more…)

U.S. Citizenship May Be Determined At Random

By Guest PostMarch 12, 2012Politicsact, americans, civics knowledge, data, fate, immigrant, immigration officer, immigration services, michigan state university, naturalization, noncitizenship, paula winke, sat, test, united states, us citizenship, uscis

EAST LANSING, Mich. — The fate of nearly half a million immigrants hoping for U.S. citizenship may have been determined randomly, at least in part, according to a new study by a Michigan State University researcher who found the high-stakes civics test isn’t a reliable measure of civics knowledge.

To be awarded citizenship, immigrants must correctly answer six of 10 questions on the verbally administered civics portion of the U.S. Naturalization Test, said Paula Winke, assistant professor of second language studies. (more…)

One Year after Triple Disasters, Japan Continues to Struggle

By Guest PostMarch 3, 2012Environment, Generalbureaucratic red tape, catastrophe, coastal city, coastal communities, earthquake, ethan segal, evacuation zone, fukushima nuclear power plant, haiti, hurricane katrina, Japan, japanese government, japanese history, katsurao, michigan state university, nuclear meltdown, rikuzen takata, tepco, tokyo electric power, triple disasters, tsunami

EAST LANSING, Mich. — A year after Japan was struck by triple disasters – earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdown – many citizens cannot find regular work and face the possibility of never returning to their homes and seeing their communities disappear, according to a Michigan State University scholar.

Ethan Segal, associate professor of Japanese history, made two trips to Japan following the March 11, 2011, catastrophe, spending close to two weeks in the northeastern part of the country that was most directly affected. (more…)

Book Sheds New Light on U.S. Presidents and Race

By Guest PostFebruary 24, 2012Culture, Politicsamerican presidents, Barack Obama, black america, black poet, central michigan university, department of agriculture, documentary history, eric freedman, first black president, george washington, jeremiah wright, michigan state university, phillis wheatley, presidents, pulitzer prize, shirley sherrod, stephen jones, thomas jefferson, united states

EAST LANSING, Mich. — A new book co-authored by Michigan State University associate journalism professor Eric Freedman uses rarely seen documents, letters and other written material to shed new light on how American presidents have dealt with issues related to blacks.

Titled “Presidents and Black America: A Documentary History,” the book is designed for everyone from advanced scholars to casual readers of history. (more…)

Making The Bones Speak

By Guest PostFebruary 21, 2012Scienceafrican skeleton, african sun, albania, ancient egypt, andrea clowes, angela soler, anthropologist, bones, british museum, carolyn hurst, cate bird, derek welsby, dietary habits, excavation, forensic scientist, fourth cataract, giltner hall, kailey shelton, lindsey jenny, margaret zywicki, merowe dam, michigan state university, middle ages, mis island, nile river, nubian bones, nubian remains, nubians, sex, skeletal collection, sudan, todd fenton, tracey tichnell, trauma, unexplored culture, yellow scorpion

EAST LANSING, Mich. — In a narrow, modest laboratory in Michigan State University’s Giltner Hall, students pore over African skeletons from the Middle Ages in an effort to make the bones speak.

Little is known about these Nubians, meaning the information collected by graduate and undergraduate students in MSU’s Forensic Anthropology and Bioarchaeology Program will help shed light on this unexplored culture. (more…)

Studying The Evolution of Life’s Building Blocks

By Guest PostFebruary 20, 2012Sciencealbert szent gyorgyi, ancient life, bacterium, basic module, beginning of life, beginning of time, british columbia, building block, chemical building block, chemical reactions, evolution, evolution of life, geneticists, michigan state university, molecular complementarity, molecular paleontology, origin of life, paleontologists, physiologist, robert root bernstein, species, vancouver, vitamin c

VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Studying the origin of life at its building blocks offers a unique perspective on evolution, says a researcher at Michigan State University.

Robert Root-Bernstein, MSU physiology professor, will answer the question of why a physiologist studies the origin of life at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science Feb. 16-20 in Vancouver, British Columbia. (more…)

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