More Emmys, please

The Vanderbilt News Service video team has garnered seven regional Emmy nominations this year, and the Learning Sciences Institute’s Lyle Jackson pulled in four, for a grand total of 11 nominations for the black and gold. Kudos to Emily Pearce, Pat Slattery, Amy Wolf, Princine Lewis and Lyle for this fantastic (and highly unusual in higher ed circles) accomplishment.

You may recall we won five Emmys last year, the first year online media was considered for television’s highest honor.

Congratulation all. Here’s the rundown:

Advanced Media Sports: Vanderbilt Women’s Bowling—Emily Pearce (writer, producer); Pat Slattery (photographer/editor); Amy Wolf (reporter)

Advanced Media News Programming: Mending A Broken Heart—Emily Pearce (writer/producer); Pat Slattery (photographer/editor/producer); Princine Lewis (anchor/writer)

Advanced Media News Programming: Your Brain on Law—Amy Wolf (anchor/writer/producer); Pat Slattery (photographer/editor/producer)

Advanced Media Public/Current/Community Affairs: Journey of Discovery—Emily Pearce (writer/producer); Pat Slattery (photographer/editor); Amy Wolf (reporter)

Advanced Media Writer/Producer: Pearce Composite—Emily Pearce (Vanderbilt News Service); Scholar Identity Institute—Lyle Jackson (Learning Sciences Institute)

Advanced Media Video Editor: Slattery Composite—Pat Slattery (Vanderbilt News Service); Scholar Identity Institute—Lyle Jackson (Learning Sciences Institute)

Advanced Media Photographer: Slattery Composite—Pat Slattery (Vanderbilt News Service; Scholar Identity Institute—Lyle Jackson (Learning Sciences Institute)

Advanced Media Documentary: Scholar Identity Institute—Lyle Jackson (writer/producer, photographer, editor)

E-commerce site to sell VU-developed technologies

Vanderbilt is pushing the boundaries of academic technology transfer with a new online marketplace. The online store, http://vuinnovations.com, is selling innovative software, courseware and other digital products developed at the university and medical center.

From the press release:

Setting up such online stores is the latest trend in university technology transfer efforts. At least two other universities, University of Washington and University of Minnesota, have set up similar Web sites.

“After investigating similar Web sites, we have determined that we are one of the first universities to set up an e-commerce site of this type,” said Peter Rousos, senior business development executive in Vanderbilt’s Office of Technology Transfer and Enterprise Development, which set up the new site. “Hundreds of patents have been issued to Vanderbilt and the university has entered into numerous license agreements. We realized that a number of them were suitable for online sales.”

Early product offerings include “Play Nicely,” a video series to help parents, teachers and caregivers modify anti-social and violent behavior in kids; three different tools to help social scientists better use technology to collect and analyze data; and a program that calculates the radioactive doses various organs receive during different radiation treatments.

Visit the store.

Let’s go bowling!

With the Commodores most exciting 31-24 win over Kentucky Saturday night, we officially became… BOWL ELIGIBLE! For the first time since I was rocking purple eyeshadow and really big hair – 1982, baby.

All Commodores fans, now’s the time to get on the wagon! The Bowl Bandwagon that is! Go here now for more information. While you’re at it, send the team a note showing your support here.

Go Dores!

Being part of the solution

Efforts to end illegal music downloading continue to point towards college campuses. This semester, Vanderbilt students are taking matters into their own hands in a class designed to come up with solutions to battle the practice and support musicians. What better place than Music City to have this discussion?

First-year students in the “Stealing in Music City” seminar at Vanderbilt University must devise a workable system for distributing music that delivers content for a reasonable price and allows songwriters, artists and other stakeholders to get paid.

“We are challenging the students to re-invent the music industry for a fair model of music distribution to compensate artists, consumers and labels,” said Holling Smith-Borne, director of the music library at Vanderbilt’s Blair School of Music. The class, divided into three groups, will propose three solutions during class on Dec. 2.

Illegal downloading by students is the focus of new requirements for Tennessee’s public and private higher ed institutions signed into law by Gov. Phil Bredesen Nov. 12 and is addressed in the recently reauthorized Higher Education Act.

Vanderbilt has been working for several years to combat the problem by partnering with student leaders to educate the campus about intellectual property laws, offering multiple legal downloading alternatives, such as Ruckus and Joost, through VUMix, and including a policy against illegal downloading in the student code of conduct.

Read more on VUCast.

Remembering and honoring our nation’s veterans

Veteran’s Day Iraq War Memorial of 4,192 American flags arranged on Alumni Lawn in honor of those U.S. Armed Forces who have lost their lives in the conflict. (Vanderbilt University / Steve Green)

Vanderbilt University students hosted a Veterans Day event today honoring those who have served the nation’s military and supporting those who continue to serve. Students placed 4,192 American flags on the university’s Alumni Lawn to honor those who have fallen in the war in Iraq. Throughout the day, donations were collected to benefit the Operation of Enduring Freedom Clinic at the Nashville VA Medical Center. Evert donor was given the name of a fallen soldier and asked to take a flag from the ground.  The students also invited Iraq War veterans to share their stories and experiences from noon to 1 p.m. on Alumni Lawn.

VU on the election

A round up of VU commentary on last night’s historic election:

EFE (Spain): Obama sella la victoria tras una campaña de masiva movilización de votantes
This Spanish news wire analysis of Sen. Obama’s successful presidential bid credits the campaign’s ability to get out the vote. Erwin Hargrove, emeritus professor of political science, is quoted. Professor Hargrove is also quoted in a related story about the impact of Sen. Obama’s win on Civil Rights-era leaders: Las lágrimas del reverendo Jesse Jackson. (Español)

The Tennessean: Win thrills Nashville-area Democrats
An election-night party held by Metro Councilwoman Megan Barry and Bruce Barry, professor of sociology and management, is mentioned.

The Tennessean: McCain wins Tennessee by wide margin
It was a bittersweet Election Night for party loyalists in Tennessee as John McCain won the state, but Barack Obama won the night. John Geer, Distinguished Professor of Political Science, is quoted.

The Tennessean: 2008 election stirs emotions of Midstate voters
Holly Spann, administrative assistant in the pathology department and active member of the League of Women Voters and the Democratic Party’s Women’s Caucus, is one of the voters interviewed in this election story.

Associated Press: Sen. Lamar Alexander re-elected in landslide
Student Sean Tierney was among the voters mentioned in this election analysis.

NPR interviewed David Lewis, professor of political science, about what comes next now that the United States has elected Sen. Obama to be the next president. The story is available online here.

CNN.com interviewed John Geer, Distinguished Professor of Political Science, on the presidential election. The live interview was conducted using VUStar, Vanderbilt’s on-campus broadcast facility.

BBC World News interviewed John Geer, Distinguished Professor of Political Science, on the presidential election. The live interview was conducted using VUStar, Vanderbilt’s on-campus broadcast facility.

BBC World News did a live interview with Carol Swain, professor of law and political science, on the presidential election.

Federal News Radio interviewed David Lewis, professor of political science and law, about what to expect during the presidential transition. The live interview was conducted using VUStar, Vanderbilt’s on-campus broadcast facility.

WTVF, Channel 5; WKRN, Channel 2; WSMV, Channel 4; and WZTV, Channel 17, included  reports on Vanderbilt students’ voting turnout at Eakin Elementary School.  WKRN also reported on an election results watch party at The Commons in its report.

Get full Vanderbilt coverage of the election here.

And the votes are in!

Not those votes of course. Not for hours yet. But in the meantime, allow me to divert your by-now-bleary-eyed-foggy-headed attention to something other than the election.

News out today that Vanderbilt has been ranked as one of the top 10 places to work in academia by The Scientist magazine. Sure, I already knew this was the place to be, but it’s nice to have it confirmed by our very own faculty. According to the mag, VU ranked No. 9 in places to work based on a survey of 2,313 scientists in tenured or tenure-track positions in academia or non-commercial research institutions. Check out the full results here.

VU campus joins nation in gearing up for election day

From the News Service’s Princine Lewis:

Vanderbilt University students gear up for “Election GameDay” Nov. 4

Just a few weeks after hosting ESPN’s GameDay on campus, Vanderbilt University students are preparing for a different match-up on Tuesday, Nov. 4, and have dubbed their Election Day activities “Election GameDay.” On Election Day, student groups are sponsoring shuttles that will run from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. to take students to the polls. At 5:30 p.m., “Election GameDay” opens at The Commons Center and will feature live music, a special All-American meal in the dining hall featuring Mom’s meatloaf, chili and apple pie a la mode, a number of ongoing activities for students and watching election returns on the big screen.

WHAT:            Shuttle to the polls
Vanderbilt student groups sponsor shuttles to take students to the
polls.

Election GameDay
Evening event for Vanderbilt students will include:
–         Live music
–         Special menu featuring All-American favorites such as Mom’s meatloaf, chili and apple pie a la mode
–         Big screen TVs in three locations
–         An Election bracket and swing-state raffle
–         Concession stands open late-night for students to enjoy hot dogs, candied and caramel apples and popcorn
–         A digital photo booth where students can take a photo with their favorite political mascot
–         Temporary tattoos and campaign stickers provided to everyone
–         Voting rights, candidate issues and pledge to vote exhibits created by student groups

WHERE:         Shuttle to the polls
One shuttle will depart from Branscomb Quad and one will depart from The Commons Center.

Election GameDay
The Commons Center

WHEN:            Tuesday, Nov. 4

Shuttle to the polls
7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Election GameDay
Begins at 5:30 p.m.