2012, Umaine News Press Releases
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The University of Maine DigitalCommons@UMaine General University of Maine Publications University of Maine Publications 2012 2012, UMaine News Press Releases Division of Marketing and Communication Margaret Nagle University of Maine George Manlove University of Maine Jessica Bloch University of Maine Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/univ_publications Part of the Higher Education Commons, and the History Commons Repository Citation Division of Marketing and Communication; Nagle, Margaret; Manlove, George; and Bloch, Jessica, "2012, UMaine News Press Releases" (2012). General University of Maine Publications. 1096. https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/univ_publications/1096 This Monograph is brought to you for free and open access by DigitalCommons@UMaine. It has been accepted for inclusion in General University of Maine Publications by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@UMaine. For more information, please contact [email protected]. UMaine News Press Releases from Word Press XML export 2012 Coverage of Professor's Humbleness Research 03 Jan 2012 Several national news outlets covered research done by Jordan LaBouff, a lecturer in UMaine's psychology department who published a study in the Journal of Positive Psychology which found humble people are more likely to help someone in need compared to those who are more arrogant. LaBouff, who was affiliated with Baylor University at the time of the study, told MSNBC's Vitals blog that humility predicted helping even when social pressure to help was minimal. Medical News Today, Indian Express and the Daily Express of the United Kingdom also covered the news. Contact: Jessica Bloch, 207-581-3777 UMaine Mentioned in STEM Education Article 03 Jan 2012 A Bangor Daily News article about an increase in education in the areas of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) included a note that the Bangor school district, which is seeking to establish a STEM academy, is working with UMaine on several fronts, including the formation of a program that will allow students to enter college with enough credits to be sophomores. Contact: Jessica Bloch, 207-581-3777 Beech Study Noted in Washington Post 03 Jan 2012 A study by researcher William Livingston of UMaine's School of Forest Resources about the effect of warm winters on Maine's beech trees, was noted in a Washington Post story about mild weather and winter landscapes. Livingston found that a certain beetle species boomed during warm winters between 1999 and 2002 and has feasted on Maine's beech trees ever since. Contact: Jessica Bloch, 207-581-3777 AP Features UMaine Graduate Student As First Maliseet Legislator 03 Jan 2012 An Associated Press story about David Slagger, a UMaine graduate student who will be sworn in Wednesday as Maine's first Maliseet Indian legislator, was featured in several media outlets, including the Washington Post and Newsday. The Portland Press Herald ran an item in its State House Notebook. Contact: Jessica Bloch, 207-581-3777 Personality Study Links Humility, Helpfulness 03 Jan 2012 Helping one another in times of need is a cornerstone of quality human relationships, according to a University of Maine psychology researcher who has determined that humility trumps arrogance when it comes to offering assistance. In a three-part research project involving 310 students at Baylor University in Texas, UMaine psychology lecturer Jordan LaBouff and colleagues found that people determined to be humble were more willing to donate time and resources to a hypothetical student in need. The results held true even when researchers controlled the study for potential influencers like empathy, agreeableness and other personality traits. "The finding is particularly surprising since nearly 30 years of research on helping have demonstrated that the situation, not the person, tends to predict whether someone in need will receive help," says LaBouff, who also is a UMaine Honors College preceptor. "This research builds upon a growing body of evidence that humility is an important trait that results in a variety of pro-social and positive outcomes," says LaBouff, the lead author of an article on the study with Baylor researchers Wade Rowatt, Megan Johnson and Jo-Ann Tsang in Texas. "It also suggests that if we can encourage humility in our communities, people may be more helpful to those in need." The researchers believe the study is one of the first laboratory studies to document a correlation between a personality dimension like humility or narcissism with willingness to help others. Humility could be a personality trait that is linked with altruistically motivated acts of helping, according to LaBouff. Researchers reached their conclusions by measuring participant humility through self-reporting, or answering questions about their perceived sense of humility, in addition to gauging reaction time on tasks designed to measure implicit humility, LaBouff says. Participants were then introduced to a fictitious classmate who had suffered a personal tragedy and was requesting help to overcome the tragedy with time and resources from each participant. "Participants who were more humble were most likely to help their peers, even when social pressure to do so was lowest," says LaBouff. "That is, humble people were most likely to help even when they had the fewest external pressures to do so." The study results are reported in the January 2012 issue of The Journal of Positive Psychology. Contact: Jordan LaBouff, (207) 581-2826 Coverage of Event for Collins 04 Jan 2012 The Bangor Daily News covered Tuesday morning's event for U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, which was held at UMaine's Buchanan Alumni House. Collins was congratulated by community and industry leaders for pushing Congress to pass truck weight legislation that will push heavy rigs off Maine's secondary roads. Several local television stations, including Bangor's WLBZ, also attended the event. Contact: Jessica Bloch, 207-581-3777 Humbleness Study in Huffington Post 04 Jan 2012 A study about humble people, which was conducted by Jordan LaBouff, a UMaine psychology lecturer, was the subject of a post on the Huffington Post website. The study found that humble people are more willing than arrogant people to help someone in need. LaBouff, who is also a UMaine's Honors College preceptor, conducted the study while he was at Baylor University. Toronto's Globe and Mail newspaper also noted the study on its website. Contact: Jessica Bloch, 207-581-3777 Brewer Interviewed About Primaries, Caucuses 04 Jan 2012 UMaine political scientist Mark Brewer was interviewed by Bangor television station WLBZ about the differences between the primaries and caucuses held during an election season. Among the differences, Brewer said, is caucuses yield lower voter turnout because of the time commitment, but cater to a more grassroots campaign style. Contact: Jessica Bloch, 207-581-3777 Technology Magazine Features Shahinpoor Robotic Flytrap 04 Jan 2012 The German version of Technology Review magazine, published in several languages by Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has published an article about UMaine mechanical engineering professor Mohsen Shahinpoor and his robotics research. The article features Shahinpoor's robotic duplicate of a Venus flytrap plant, constructed from composite materials with sensitive hairs that behave like artificial muscle. Shahinpoor plans further refinement of the device for military or medical use where tiny robots are practical. Former UMaine President H. Edwin Young: 1917-2012 04 Jan 2012 Former University of Maine President Hugh Edwin Young died Jan. 2 in Madison, Wisc. He was 94. Young, a UMaine alumnus, served as president from Oct. 1, 1965 - June 30, 1968. The Newfoundland native earned his undergraduate degree in education in 1940 and a master’s in economics in 1942 from UMaine, and a doctorate in economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1950. He also was awarded an honorary doctorate from UMaine in 1963. Young began his career teaching at UMaine prior to relocating to the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he taught economics, served as department chair and eventually was named Dean of the College of Letters and Science. His first presidential appointment was at UMaine in 1965, where he served through the some of the more controversial years of the Vietnam War and related student protests on campus. In July 1968, Young returned to the University of Wisconsin to teach and serve as vice president. Two months later, he was appointed chancellor of the University of Wisconsin- Madison, leading that campus through the conclusion of the tumultuous war years. In 1977, he was named president of the University of Wisconsin System, retiring in 1987. According to an obituary released by the University of Wisconsin- Madison, Young’s wife, Phyllis, also a UMaine graduate, passed away in 1993. He is survived by five children. “Edwin Young began his distinguished career as a labor economist at the University of Maine,” says University of Maine President Paul Ferguson. “As UMaine’s 10th president, he brought a commitment to academic excellence and stable leadership in an era of campus unrest. The thoughts of the UMaine community are with his family.” Contact: Ron Lisnet (207)581-3779 Major Media Outlets Cover Humbleness Study 05 Jan 2012 UMaine psychology lecturer Jordan LaBouff's study that found humble people are more likely to be helpful than arrogant people was noted in several media outlets, including National Geographic's daily news website, Cosmopolitan magazine's website and the UPI wire service. Time Magazine's Healthland website also ran a story about the study, which LaBouff conducted with colleagues while at Baylor University. Contact: Jessica Bloch, 207-581-3777 Advance on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Events 05 Jan 2012 The Bangor Daily News advanced the Jan. 16 Martin Luther King, Jr. Day celebration taking place at UMaine. The events include a keynote address by Professor Denise Patmon, director of the undergraduate teacher licensure program at the University of Massachusetts at Boston.