University of Kentucky international studies and history major Richard Sellnow will head to China this summer as the sole recipient of the 2011 NSCS International Scholar Laureate Program Award (ISLP).

This $2,000 award was created by The National Society of Collegiate Scholars (NSCS) to help members attend one of the ISLP's many programs during the summer of 2011.

“I am incredibly grateful to the NSCS for honoring me with this most appreciated award,” said Sellnow. “Participating in the International Scholar Laureate Program is an amazing opportunity which will be of myriad benefit to me, but it is also an opportunity which I would have had difficulty taking advantage of without the most generous

However, advancements in string theory over the past decade have led to an interesting twist to the discourse. Scientific developments seem to suggest that while the equations which govern the basic physical laws are unique, their solutions are not. Therefore it appears that there is a "cosmic landscape" of possible universes. And we happen to live in one of them – the one in which life itself is possible.

A delegation of six Iraqi professors from the University of Kufa arrived on campus April 2. They are part of the Iraq University Linkages Program, which pairs Iraqi schools with U.S. institutions that can assist with curricular development.

In 2010, the University of Kentucky was one of five U.S. schools selected to receive a 3-year grant for curriculum development in Iraq. UK was paired with the University of Kufa, which is located in Najaf province in southern Iraq.

Other U.S. schools participating in this initiative are Ball State, the University of Cincinnati, Georgia State and Oklahoma State. Each school is partnered with an Iraqi university by the U.S. Department of State, based upon the specific needs of the Iraqi institution. The goals will be

Rachel Philbrick, a graduate student in classics at the University of Kentucky, has been awarded one of only 33 Jacob K. Javits Fellowships from the U.S. Department of Education. The Javits Fellowship is awarded to students of superior academic ability who plan to undertake graduate study in the selected fields of arts, humanities and social sciences.

As part of the Javits Fellowship, the U.S. Department of Education awards fellowships to students on the basis of demonstrated achievement, financial need and exceptional promise. The selection is made by a panel of experts appointed by the Javits Fellowship Board. The Javits Fellowship covers study at the doctoral and Master of Fine Arts level in selected fields of arts, humanities and social

Although Barbara Hogan was born into a white family and did not have to endure the harsh restrictions of segregation, she was struck by the glaring inequalities imposed by an apartheid government.

Refusing to remain a passive spectator, Hogan became a member of the outlawed African National Congress (ANC) in 1977, joining a chorus of voices speaking out against an oppressive apartheid regime. Ultimately, she not only became the first woman in South Africa to be found guilty of high treason for her “illegal” political activism, but she endured periods of harsh, solitary confinement during her imprisonment.

As a testament to her remarkable spirit, Hogan immediately began working toward the building of a democratic South Africa upon her release in 1990. A passionate supporter of equality, she has focused her energy on improving both the socio-economic conditions of all

With an insufficient budget and no help on the horizon, University of Kentucky Professor Gang Cao of the UK Department of Physics and Astronomy had nothing but bad news for his peers about being able to hold this year's Workshop on Novel Electronic Materials.

After successfully staging two international workshops in 2005 and 2008 on UK's campus, the scientific community was eager for the 2011 plans. "There are a lot of conferences in our field," explained Cao, "but few can address new materials, with such a diverse group of scientists from different fields. The phone just kept ringing."

The Novel Materials Workshop is intended to provide an opportunity to communicate recent developments, tackle challenges and establish possible

by Erin Holaday Ziegler

The University of Kentucky will award two legendary South African anti-apartheid activists with honorary degrees on campus this week.

World-renowned leaders Ahmed Kathrada and Barbara Hogan, both of whom served in post-apartheid South Africa as senior officials in President Nelson Mandela's administration, have changed the lives of their country and the world through their tireless work for freedom and democracy.

UK President Lee T. Todd Jr. will confer the Honorary Doctorate of Letters to Hogan and Kathrada during an academic convocation ceremony at 2 p.m. Wednesday, April 13, at the Singletary Center Recital Hall. The event is open to faculty, staff, students and the public.

Kathrada and Hogan will each deliver remarks on

by Erin Holaday Ziegler and Katy Bennett

The University of Kentucky's largest major will celebrate a world-renowned Nobel Prize winner of its own at the Student Development Council's 17th annual historical marker ceremony next week.

With the help of the Kentucky Historical Society and President Lee T. Todd Jr., the SDC will dedicate this year's historical marker to UK biology alum Thomas Hunt Morgan in a public outdoor ceremony on campus.

Born in Lexington in 1866, Thomas Hunt Morgan was a nephew of Confederate General John Hunt Morgan. Thomas Hunt Morgan attended State College of Kentucky, which became UK, during the 1880s, graduating as