Oregon Academy of Science N e w s l e t t e r February 16, 2000

 

George Fox University is the site of February 2000 Annual Meeting

by Carlisle Chambers, OAS President

xxThe 58th annual meeting of the Oregon Academy of Science is scheduled for Saturday, February 26, 2000 at the Newberg campus of George Fox University. The campus is located at 414 N. Meridian St. in Newberg. (see map for directions and parking instructions). Meeting registration and information will be in the Edwards/Holman Science Center. The individual sessions will be held in Edwards/Holman, the Hoover Academic Building, and the Murdock Learning Resource Center. We invite you to join other educators, scientists, students, and citizens from the Northwest in a day devoted to interpreting and discussing recent scientific discoveries in a variety of disciplines.
xx Our keynote speaker will be Dr. Thomas Connolly from the University of Oregon where he is currently the Research Division Director of the Oregon State Museum of Anthropology. The title of the keynote address will be "Pre- and Post-Mazama Cultural Records in Central Oregon: Reconstructions Based on a Convergence of Disciplines". Dr. Connolly will focus on his archaeological research conducted in the caldera of Newberry Volcano, during which he exposed extensive pre-Mazama-age occupations (ca. 11,000-7500 yrs old), including the oldest known house in North America (a wickiup-like structure ca. 9500 yrs old). Dr. Connolly also will discuss much more recent occupations (<4000 yrs old) of the area. The address will focus on the human story of ancient central Oregon occupations, but Dr. Connolly will also discuss his anthropological research as one component of his group's overall research efforts (geochemistry, geology, botanic analysis, etc.) The multi-disciplinary aspect of Dr. Connolly's work will likely be of interest to a variety of scientists.
xx In addition to the research presentations, several faculty teams involved in the Oregon Collaborative for Excellence in the Preparation of Teachers (OCEPT) will be in attendance at the OAS meeting. xx xx OCEPT participants plan to use the OAS meeting as a midyear gathering time for the next few years.
Please join us then, for a time of collegiality and our feature presentations described in the section synopses listed in the following pages.

Meeting Schedule 7:30 - 8:00 am Registration 8:00 - 11:30 am Morning sessions 9:30 - 10:15 am Poster sessions, Refreshments (central location) 11:30 am - 12:30 pm Lunch, Award presentations 12:30 - 1:30 pm Keynote address, Business meeting 1:45 - 5:00 pm Afternoon sessions

Western Oregon University Hosts the Junior Academy on March 4, 2000.

xx The Junior Academy of Science (JAS) will feature a wide variety of student research presentations. Over one hundred research presentations in physiology, astronomy, environmental science, physics, chemistry, computer science and others are planned. Because of the large number of participants, the Junior Academy will have sections and section chairs according to disciplines. A large number and variety of schools are participating. The JAS meeting will also feature keynote speaker Dr. Emma Dutton, who is a physiologist with SIGA
Pharmaceutical.
xx In addition to the research presentations, student representatives will be selected to present their research at the Junior Science and Humanities Symposium as well as the National Junior Academy of Science. OAS members are encouraged to attend part or all of the March 4th Junior Academy at Western Oregon University. It would provide you with a chance to meet with possible future students in your field and become informed about the research these young scientists are capable of doing. Information about student research will be available soon on the OAS website (http://www.wou.edu/oas) and the JAS schedule of presenters will be available at the OAS Senior Academy conference on February 26.

Congratulations to Dr. Kent Thornburg, Outstanding Scientist of the Year for 2000

xx Kent Thornburg, professor of physiology, has been a member of OHSU’s Department of Physiology and Pharmacology since 1971. He completed his Ph.D. at Oregon State University (1972) and took an OHSU position as a post-doctoral fellow in cardiovascular physiology. His academic success has increased over the past twenty-nine years to a level where his expertise in developmental biology (cardiovascular and placentas) is sought at the highest international levels.
Dr. Thornburg’s eighty plus publications, including monographs, manuscripts, and book/book chapters, are primarily associated with perinatal physiology of the heart and placenta. He is one of the foremost comparative placentologist in the world. He has developed unique sheep models to understand maternal-fetal hemodynamics and more recently added a molecular biological base to understanding congenital heart defects. This work is supported by current grants totaling approximately eight million dollars.
xx It was through Dr. Thornburg's efforts that the International Federation of World Placenta Associations was organized in 1990. He founded and currently directs the Congenital Heart Research Center, a collaboration of multiple disciplines addressing congenital heart problems. He is also the Director of Research, Division of Cardiology, OHSU. In 1989 he was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to be a Professor of Child Health at Manchester University (England). He serves on National Institute of Health study sections, is a past President of the American Heart Association (Oregon), past Oregon AHA Chairman of the Research Committee and serves on the national AHA Research Program Evaluation Committee.
xx In addition, Dr. Thornburg has reluctantly "won" twenty plus teaching awards at OHSU from a variety of students. The awards follow a scientist who is enthusiastic about science and sharing it with people he mentors. It seems everyone from students to administrators value his modeling of science and patience in teaching it.
xx His passion for improving science in the community has pushed him to write and oversee grants that support the regional primary/secondary public schools. He also supports and consults with the organizations associated with the Oregon science community such as the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) and the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust. He is a frequently requested speaker in the public domain at all levels and has the gift to address the audience at the level that they can understand. He is a consultant for multiple colleges/universities and currently is chairman of the Board of Trustees at a local university.
xx A summary of Kent’s impact on science might be encapsulated by his networking skills - both in scholarship and teaching. Kent connects people within the academic disciplines and the community. The Oregon Academy of Sciences is proud to honor this Oregonian who has made a major impact in international cardiovascular physiology and placentology and the application of science to our community.

Congratulations to Richard Duncan, K-12 Teacher of the Year for 2000!
Congratulations to Becky Houck, College/University Educator of the Year for 2000!

xx Becky Houck received her B.S. degree in Zoology from the University of Utah in 1972 and her Ph.D. from the University of Hawaii in 1977. She came to the University of Portland in 1978 after spending a year as a Research Associate in Electron Microscopy at the Pacific Biomedical Research Center in Honolulu.
xx In the 22 years she has been at the University of Portland Dr. Houck has been honored with virtually every award for teaching excellence and outstanding service that the institution can bestow. These include the Sears Award for Campus Leadership and Teaching, the James E. Culligan Award for Outstanding Leadership and Service and the Advisor of the Year Award. This past year she was one of ten educators nationally recognized as an Outstanding First -Year Student Advocate by the National Resource Center for the First Year Experience.
xx In addition, her students consistently rate her as one of the finest teachers at the University of Portland. For years she has fashioned courses in general biology, embryology and marine science in a way that students find both fascinating and non-threatening. Dr. Houck has also been a creative force in revising curriculum, creating courses in biological research methods and biomicroscopy, as well as being instrumental in the establishment of the University’s Honors programs and the Freshmen Seminar program.
xx Dr. Houck’s impact on science education in Oregon has been the result of her willingness to give her time on a personal level to students of all ages. A significant number of her students have gone on to pursue graduate degrees in cell biology or medicine. Without fail, students seek out Dr. Houck to share their successes or difficulties. She maintains correspondence with many of them. These relationships have become a kind of intellectual glue that bonds her to the students who will become the next generation of scientists in Oregon.

Senior Academy Conference Highlights

xx At press time we did not have a description of the Political Science section. For information on this program, contact OAS President Carlisle Chambers at (503)554-2706 (cchamber@georgefox.edu)

Biology: Sixteen presentations and two posters will be some of the highlights of the 58th meeting of the biology section of the Oregon Academy of Science when it meets at George Fox University in February. This is a time when biology faculty and students celebrate their collective work and form networks to enhance biology in the area. It is always stimulating to see and hear the science topics shared from the diverse colleges and universities in our State. Topics this year range from cell biology to field biology and represent ten different colleges and universities. We invite you and your colleagues to join this day of achievement.

Chemistry: The Chemistry section will have 20 oral presentations in two concurrent morning sessions. The 20 minute talks will run from 8:00 am to 11:40 am, ending in time for lunch and the keynote speaker. Session I will have inorganic, organic, and biochemistry talks while Session II will have physical, analytical, environmental, and education talks.

Economics: The Economics session for the 2000 OAS meeting may be short on quantity but certainly not on quality or variety! Attendees at the economics session will enjoy hearing the following presentations:
1) Average Costs, Prices, and Subsidies at Oregon and Washington Public and Private Universities and Colleges. Jeffrey A. Summers, Linfield College; 2) The Effects of Climatic Variability on U.S. Irrigation Adoption. Donald H. Negri, Willamette University; 3) The Origins and Practice of Ecofeminism. Barbara Vatter Hudson, Clark College. Please note that one or two additional presentations may be added to the economics session. For further information about the session, please contact Zenon Zygmont at zygmonz@wou.edu.

Geography: Papers of varied topics include: Meanings of Place in Brussels, Territory and Identity of Football Club Teams in Europe, Ecological Sustainability of the Haida, Visualization and Design of Dams, GIS Management, Soil Chronosequence of Glacial Features on Mt. Thielson, and Technologies for Teaching and Research. The afternoon panel will examine a variety of technologies used by geographers.

Geology: Morning and afternoon sessions are planned for the Geology section, consisting of 14 separate presentations. Topics include: Crystallinity and rheology of basaltic lava flows; Subsurface distribution of the Deschutes Formation; Melting systematics of intermediate peridotites; Silicic melts produced through melting of mafic crust; Deep asthenosphere beneath western North America; Geomorphic evolution of the John Day and Grande Ronde Rivers; Evaluation of an analytic element groundwater capture zone model; Reactivation of an ancient landslide; Analysis of probable landslide dam outburst sediments; Timing and emplacement of coastal dunes; Paleosols and paleoenvironments of early Hominid evolution; Mechanics of pebble transport by ants; and humans as geologic agents from the perspective of Earth history, extinctions and the environment.

History, Philosophy, and Social Study of Science: This year the History and Philosophy of Science section has expanded its scope to include the Social Study of science. This change will be reflected in the future with the name change for this section. As has become the tradition, there will be a panel book discussion as well as individual papers. This year the book is Richmond Campbell's original and controversial work, ILLUSIONS OF PARADOX: A Feminist Epistemology Naturalized. Three philosophers, William Rottschaefer, David DeMoss, and Dave Boersema, will serve on the panel to provide an analysis and critique of this book, with discussion afterwards. Following this panel will be two papers. The first, by Ben Frankamp, Seth Lambert, and Robert Harder, focuses on the role of faith in Kuhnian pre-paradigmatic science. The second, by Dennis Barnum, details a history of nitrate production. Both the panel and the papers promise to be lively.

Mathematics: This year the section offers an exciting variety of topics. The fourteen presentations will cover work in the areas of combinatorics, computer science, group theory, linear algebra, low-dimensional topology, number theory, statistics, vector calculus, and the demographics of algebra students. Four talks on MathExcel, including one by Michael Freeman, will round out the offerings. The presentations will be distributed in both a morning and an afternoon session with the morning session starting at 8:00 AM. It looks to be a great day of mathematics!

Physics: The physics section of the 2000 Oregon Academy of Science includes thirteen presentations and two posters. The talks fall into two categories --- biomedical optics and material properties. The biomedical optics presentations include talks on light propagation, optical diagnostics, laser welding, and optical coherence. The materials talks concern novel thermoelectric materials and analysis of crystalline bismuth and selenium compounds.

Psychology: The Psychology section will feature 16 presentations this year in morning and afternoon sessions. The presentations cover a wide range of topics from testing children to Aluminum workers, new techniques and methods developed and a review of Developmental Psychology.

Science Education: This year Science Education has a good variety of topics from several areas of educational foci - physics, mathematics, and biology. We have seven talks and one panel discussion. Join us for learning some new techniques and improving your old ones. See you there!

Sociology/Anthropology: The sociology/anthropology section has five presentations scheduled. Chris Greaves from the Oregon State University will present a sociological look at internet addiction; James Paul Hester from Portland State will evaluate the impact of a community-based project providing financial assistance for ex-offenders recently released from correctional institutions in Oregon; David Mertes from Pacific University will provide an analysis of the social and religious drives of street preachers; Adam Rafalovich from Southern Oregon University will show how the history of ADHD has been virtually ignored and must be written bearing in mind the impact of medical nomenclature upon the everyday lives of children; and Michael Rogers from Oregon State University will discuss how ground-based remote sensing methods are aids in locating human burials at the Confederated Tribes historical cemetery.

Oregon Academy of Science Information

xx The Academy has launched its own web page to provide members easy access to OAS information. It also allows users to easily communicate with current members of the Executive Council by email.

The URL is: http://www.wou.edu/oas

xx The 2001 Oregon Academy of Science annual meeting is scheduled to be held at the University of Portland. Mike Snow (snow@up.edu) will organize the 2001 meeting.

Directions to OAS Annual Meeting 2000

Directions to George Fox University:
From the south, traveling on I5, take the Donald/Aurora exit (278) north of Salem. Follow the signs to Newberg. From the north, traveling on I5, take the Tigard/Newberg exit (294) shortly after leaving Portland city limits. Stay on 99W until you reach Newberg.

Parking:
Parking is available in the Ross and Hoover lots (#72 and #73 respectively). A small amount of on-street parking along Meridian St. is also available.

Registration:
Meeting registration and information will be in the Edwards/Holman Science Center (#11).

Locations of Individual Sessions:
The individual sessions will be held in Edwards/Holman (#11), the Hoover Academic Building (#17), and the Murdock Learning Resource Center (#24). Please consult the meeting program on the day of the meeting for specific locations of the individual sessions.

Luncheon and Keynote Address:
The luncheon will be held in Heacock Commons (#16) and the Keynote address will be held in Bauman Auditorium (#3).

Map of the George Fox University campus