January 2021

Heather Williamson, assistant professor of occupational therapy, was named a fellow with the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD). Fellows must have at least seven years of continuous membership with AAIDD, have participated in the association’s professional and business affairs and have made a significant contribution to the field of intellectual disability.

Associate professor Mark Loeffler and assistant professor Christopher Edwards, both from the Department of Astronomy and Planetary Science, were quoted in the Mashable article, “What the first new moon rocks in decades can tell us”. The article discusses the research possibilities of the new moon rocks brought back by the Chinese National Space Administrations Chang’e 5 mission.

Professor of forestry Kristen Waring co-authored the article, “Using Hyperspectral Imagery to Detect an Invasive Fungal Pathogen and Symptom Severity in Pinus strobiformis Seedlings of Different Genotypes” published in Remote Sensing. The study analyzed the potential of using hyperspectral imaging to find and diagnose the degree of infection of the non-native white pine blister rust in southwestern white pine seedlings from different seed-source families.

Alark Saxena, co-PI and assistant professor of forestry; Patrick Jantz, assistant research professor in the School of Informatics, Computing, and Cyber Systems; and Alder Keleman Saxena, assistant research professor of anthropology received a grant from the Norwegian Research Council for the project titled, “Prioritizing the Displacement-Environment Nexus: Refugee and IDP Settlements as Social-Ecological Systems.” The project, led by Anwesha Dutta of Michelsen Institute in Norway, received $1.45 million and will span five years with collaborators in four countries.