LEXINGTON, Ky. (Feb. 21, 2014) — The axolotl may look like a creature from a science fiction movie, but researchers at the University of Kentucky say these strange little salamanders have a lot to teach us.

On Monday, Feb. 24, the university will host a daylong symposium, titled "How Mexican Axolotls Promote Science, Conservation, and Creativity," sponsored by the UK College of Arts and Sciences, Department of Biology, and Department of Hispanic Studies.

The axolotl (rhymes with "tax a bottle") is unusual in that it does not undergo a metamorphosis between its juvenile form and adulthood, as do most salamanders, a trait known as paedomorphism, the retention of juvenile traits by adults.

"Axolotls are the most famous paedomorphic

by Whitney Hale

(Feb. 19, 2013) — A new exhibition at the Carnegie Center for Literacy and Learning recounts the remarkable history and work of King Library Press. "Gutenberg to Gratz Park: Hand Printing at the King Library Press," the first off-campus exhibit dedicated solely to the press, runs through March 2014 at the center, located at 251 West Second St. The exhibition is free and open to the public.

This exhibition captures not only the important work being done at King Library Press, but gives viewers an idea of the great significance the press plays in the world of hand printing still today.

"The invention of letterpress printing propagated the written

By Guy Spriggs

For most Americans, levees are man-made engineering projects, rarely mentioned outside of the flooding that follows disasters like Hurricane Katrina.

However, recent research conducted by Earth and Environmental Science (EES) Assistant Professor Derek Sawyer published in the journal “Geology” sheds new light on levees most of us never see – those built naturally by underwater rivers deep below the ocean’s surface.

“On the ocean floor there are rivers gouging their way to deeper parts of the ocean,” Sawyer explained. “As a river moves along the bottom it makes its own channel, and it can run for hundreds of miles.”

These underwater rivers typically form outboard of

by  Derrick Meads

(Feb. 19, 2014) — The Cultural Diversity Festival will celebrate UK and Lexington's global community through several events throughout the month of March.

"With scores of obligations and meetings we often don't pause and appreciate the amazing cultural diversity of our campus community," said Judy "J.J." Jackson, UK’s vice president for institutional diversity. "The annual Cultural Diversity Festival provides the campus with a wonderful opportunity to connect across cultural boundaries, and to engage intentionally with others from different cultures. It helps us to take stock and realize that we really are one humanity and to contemplate what a good thing that is!"

The festival kicks off with one of

By Mary Venuto

(Lexington, KY) – The philosopher, Alkmeon, is said to have been the first to advocate that the brain was the site of the spirit. In the case of D. Allan Butterfield, he is being recognized for both his spirit and brain.

Butterfield, a professor in the Department of Chemistry, is being awarded the Alkmeon International Prize for his contribution to the progress in the science of Alzheimer's disease (AD). He will be presented the award in Rome, Italy by Professor Nistico, of the University of Rome, on April 3, 2014. Dr. Butterfield will also be giving a lecture at the University of Rome II (Tor Vergata) and a seminar in Biochemistry at the University of Rome I (La Sapienza) during this trip.

”It is fair to say that our

By Afton Fairchild Spencer

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Feb. 14, 2014) — Six University of Kentucky educators were recently named recipients of the UK Alumni Association 2014 Great Teacher Award.

The recipients are:

Award recipients will be

by Kathy Johnson

(Feb. 14, 2014) — WUKY's "UK Perspectives" focuses on the people and programs of the University of Kentucky and is hosted by WUKY General Manager Tom Godell.  On today's program, WUKY News' Chase Cavanaugh is guest host, and he talks to Jon Huntsman, former U.S. ambassador to China and Singapore, Utah governor, and presidential candidate, who will present a lecture at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 20, in Memorial Hall. 

To listen to the podcast interview from which "UK Perspectives" is produced, visit http://wuky.org/post/conversation-jon-huntsman.  

"UK Perspectives" airs at 8:35 a.m. and 5:45 p.m. each Friday on WUKY 91.3, UK's NPR station.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Feb. 18, 2014) — Three University of Kentucky authors will present recent books about mountaintop removal mining, and the treasured landscapes and Appalachian communities that lie in its midst, at a book talk and signing Thursday, Feb. 27.  

Erik Reece, of the Department of English, and Jim Krupa, of the Department of Biology, will discuss their book, "The Embattled Wilderness: The Natural and Human History of Robinson Forest and the Fight for its Future" (University of Georgia Press, 2013). Shannon Elizabeth Bell, of the Department of Sociology, will discuss her book, "

by Whitney Hale

(Feb. 14, 2014) — In celebration of the University of Kentucky's upcoming sesquicentennial in 2015, the 71st of 150 weekly installments explores the university's connection to the adoption of evolutionary theory.

Kentucky students were introduced to evolutionary theory as early as 1900. A photograph from campus of an early zoology class has written on the chalkboard, "The Evolution of Evolution Theories." This was long before the controversy regarding teaching evolutionary theory in the 1920s would erupt.

William Jennings Bryan, who had visited with campus leaders in 1912, would become the leading antievolutionist of the time.  In 1922, Bryan returned to Kentucky to further his beliefs speaking to large audiences in Lexington, Paris, Danville, as well as the legislature in Frankfort in favor of the antievolution bill.

An

by Elizabeth Adams

(Feb. 14, 2014) - Former University of Kentucky museum director Mary Lucas Powell was recently cited in The Scientist for her research tracing the prehistoric origins of treponematosis, a complex of diseases that includes syphilis.

The article, "Syphilis: Then and Now," references Powell's work, "The Myth of Syphilis: The Natural History of Treponematosis in North America," published in collaboration with Dr. Della Collins Cook, professor of anthropology at Indiana University in 2005. During her time at UK, Dr. Powell served as the director and curator of the W.S. Webb Museum of Anthropology and as an adjunct assistant professor in the department of anthropology.

In "The Myth of Syphilis," Powell and Cook charged experts to write chapters reviewing archaeological and paleopathological evidence for the existence of treponematosis in

by Keith Hautala

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Feb. 17, 2014) — The University of Kentucky's Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences (EES) formally opened the Pioneer Natural Resources Stratigraphy and Paleo-environments Laboratory at a ribbon cutting ceremony Friday, Feb. 14.

The laboratory is situated on the completely renovated ground floor of the Slone Building. The project was undertaken with $900,000 in support from Pioneer Natural Resources, a large, independent oil and natural gas company based in Irving, Texas. The company provided an initial grant of $600,000 and an additional $300,000 in operating funds.

Additional support for the project came from the UK College of Arts and Sciences, UK Facilities Management, and the Herman Lee and Nell Stuart Donovan

by Katy Bennett, Student Activities Board

LEXINGTON, Ky (Feb. 17, 2014) — Genocide Awareness Week at the University of Kentucky will begin with Derreck Kayongo, a refugee of the Ugandan civil war. Kayongo will share his experiences as a refugee and how he turned his struggles into an opportunity. He will point out how small contributions can save thousand of lives. Kayongo will speak at 7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 17, in the Student Center's Center Theater. This event is free and open to the public and is sponsored by the Student Activities Board's Multicultural Affairs Committee.

After many years of witnessing devastation in his homeland, Kayongo is now a philanthropist and the founder of the Global Soap Project. Used hotel soaps are collected, cleansed,

by Allison Elliott-Shannon

(Feb. 13, 2014) — Open access to information is the goal of higher education, and several members of the University of Kentucky Department of Psychology faculty are participants in an innovative project designed to bring free, up-to-date texts to students. Headed by University of Illinois professors Ed and Carol Diener, the website Nobaproject.com gives instructors and their students access to customized psychology content written by top experts in the field.

120 authors, including seven members of the UK faculty, put together more than 80 chapters in 11 psychology topic areas. All content is completely free, and allows instructors to customize texts by selecting only those chapters pertinent to the goals of the

by Whitney Harder, Whitney Hale

(Feb. 13, 2014) — University of Kentucky Libraries Special Collections is celebrating Black History Month with a display of images featuring prominent African-American figures at the University of Kentucky and various communities, along with Kentucky African-American publications. The free public exhibition will be on display in UK's Margaret I. King Buidling until the end of February.

Photographs on display as part of the Black History Month exhibition include UK Libraries' first African-American employee, Cecil R. Madison Sr., and "Dean Pierre," one of UK's first African-American employees. There are 27 other photographs that

by Keith Hautala

(Feb. 10, 2014) — A Harvard professor will deliver a special lecture at the University of Kentucky about the earliest forms of life on Earth.  

"The Deep History of Life: What Kinds of Life Characterized Earth During the Precambrian?" will be presented by Andrew H. Knoll, of the Harvard University Departments of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology and Earth and Planetary Sciences. Knoll's talk is free and open to the public and will take place starting at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 13, at Memorial Hall. Free parking will be available at Parking Structure No. 2, on Hilltop Avenue. 

The Precambrian period refers to the time when only primitive life forms existed on Earth, before about 545 million years ago.

"Fossils of shells, bones, tracks, and trails record a history of animal evolution more than 600 million years in duration," Knoll

by Whitney Hale

Feb. 10, 2014 — Celebrated chemist, novelist and playwright Carl Djerassi comes to the Bluegrass this week. Known for his work in organic chemistry and as a father of insect and human birth control, Djerassi will take part in several events being held Feb. 13-15, at the University of Kentucky.

During his visit to the Bluegrass, Djerassi will participate in three events. He will first serve as the featured speaker at a luncheon for business and academic leaders. The talk, "Academic Entrepreneurship: Facts through Fiction," will feature his perspective on academic-business relationships in science and technology and will be followed by a question and answer session. The luncheon is Feb. 13, at the Hilary J. Boone Center.

by Whitney Hale, Lawrencia Dixon

(Feb. 6, 2014 ) — Catherine Opie, a documentary photographer known for stretching the boundaries, will continue the Robert C. May Photography Endowment Lecture Series with a lecture at 4 p.m. Friday, Feb. 7, in Worsham Theater at the University of Kentucky Student Center. In conjunction with her visit, an exhibition of Opie's work is on display Feb. 7 through March 9, at the Art Museum at UK. The lecture and the exhibition are free and open to the public.

Catherine Opie photographs complex bodies of work. She usually focuses on sexual, communal and cultural notions of the world. Her pictures are known for showcasing different ideas of masculinity and femininity of transgender, cross-

by Katy Bennett, Student Activities Board

(Feb. 6, 2014) — In honor of Black History Month, the University of Kentucky's Student Activities Board Multicultural Committee is hosting "Pluck! Featuring the Affrilachian Poets," at 7 p.m. tonight, Thursday, Feb. 6, in the William T. Young Library auditorium.

The Affrilachian Poets will share tales of colorful personal history and political statements in their work. Hear from and meet Affrilachian poets, including Makalani Bandele, Joy Priest, Bianca Spriggs and Ricardo Nazario Colon.

The Affrilachian Poets is a group of writers that formed at the University of Kentucky's Martin Luther King Jr. Cultural Center in the early 1990s, led by then program coordinator and current Poet Laureate of

By Mary Venuto

The American Geophysical Union (AGU) is a nonprofit organization of geophysicists with over 62,000 members from 144 countries. At their most recent meeting last December, 24,000 people presented and discussed the newest interdisciplinary and international research in geophysics, which makes Liz Pillar’s accomplishments all the more impressive.

Pillar, a graduate student in the Department of Chemistry at UK, received the “Outstanding Student Paper Award” (OSPA) at AGU’s fall 2013 meeting. Only the top 3% of presenters are awarded an OSPA. This award recognizes the quality research that Pillar has conducted in atmospheric chemistry.

“I was shocked to win,” said Pillar “I had no