The University of Maine’s Maynard F. Jordan Planetarium in Wingate Hall will hold its final show April 27, WABI (Channel 5) and WVII (Channel 7) reported. The planetarium, which has been open to students and the public since 1954, will close its doors as the university prepares to open the new Emera Astronomy Center in the fall. Alan Davenport, the planetarium’s director, said the old projection system has served the community well, teaching thousands of children and other visitors about astronomy, but the new technology at the Emera Astronomy Center will allow visitors to experience more than ever before.
Archive for the ‘Outreach’ Category
WABI, WVII Report on Planetarium’s Closing in Advance of New Center’s Opening
Thursday, April 24th, 2014Media Advance 20th HOPE Festival at UMaine
Thursday, April 24th, 2014WVII (Channel 7) and The Maine Edge previewed the 20th annual HOPE Festival that will be held Saturday, April 26 at the University of Maine’s New Balance Student Recreation Center. The festival, which stands for Help Organize Peace Earthwide, is put on by the Peace and Justice Center of Eastern Maine as a way to celebrate the Earth and the people on it. More than 60 organizations that deal with the environment will be in attendance. Live entertainment and family-friendly activities will also be on hand at the free event.
Donations Sought for MBS Corps Bangor Humane Society Fundraiser
Thursday, April 24th, 2014The MBS Corps, the Maine Business School’s community outreach organization, will hold a fundraiser to benefit the Bangor Humane Society from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, April 27 at the New Balance Student Recreation Center. Donations such as pet toys, treats and blankets can be dropped off at the gym during the MBS Corps’ “Nets for Pets” basketball tournament, which will also benefit the Bangor Humane Society. More on the basketball tournament is online.
Franco Symposium Previewed in Press Herald Blog
Wednesday, April 23rd, 2014The latest post on the Portland Press Herald blog, “The Franco-American blog: News and notes from Maine’s French culture,” focused on the upcoming University of Maine spring symposium, “In and Out of Place: Finding Home in Franco America.” UMaine’s Franco-American Centre and Franco American Studies program will host the series of free events April 25–26 on the Orono campus. The symposium is sponsored by the UMaine Humanities Initiative and le Ministère des Relations internationales, Francophonie et Commerce extérieur du Québec, and will feature readings from acclaimed writers, panel discussions by scholars from New England and Canada, and a screening of the film “Le grand Jack (Jack Kerouac’s Road: A Franco-American Odyssey)” directed by Herménégilde Chiasson.
Emerald Ash Borer Research, Symposium Mentioned in Morning Sentinel Article
Tuesday, April 22nd, 2014Research and outreach efforts being done at the University of Maine to learn more about the devastating effects of the emerald ash borer were mentioned in a Morning Sentinel article about how the Asian beetles are threatening the livelihood of Maine’s American Indian basket makers by destroying ash trees, which are needed to create the traditional baskets. The basket makers are part of an anti-borer coalition that includes university researchers, entomologists and forestry officials. For the last several years, the faculty at UMaine’s Senator George J. Mitchell Center and Maine’s Sustainability Solutions Initiative have hosted an annual symposium about the invasive pests. Last year, the event drew 65 people from a variety of state and federal agencies, entomologists and Wabanakis. The article also stated UMaine researchers have begun mapping existing ash and collecting and preserving ash seeds that could be replanted after a potential wave of devastation.
UMaine Cooperative Extension Tick ID Lab Mentioned in Press Herald Article
Tuesday, April 22nd, 2014The Portland Press Herald referred to the University of Maine Cooperative Extension’s Tick ID Lab in an article about Maine ticks surviving the long, cold winter. The article mentioned different types of ticks — deer ticks and dog ticks — and stated if someone is not sure what type of tick was attached to them, they should send the dead tick to the UMaine Extension Tick ID Lab at 491 College Ave. in Orono or call 207.581.3880 for more information.
SPIA Co-hosts Conference on Implications of Diminishing Arctic Sea Ice
Tuesday, April 22nd, 2014The University of Maine School of Policy and International Affairs and the Maine Army National Guard will co-host a conference May 20–21 to explore challenges and emerging opportunities in the Arctic.
The free conference, titled “Leadership in the High North: A Political, Military, Economic and Environmental Symposium of the Arctic Opening,” will be held from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. both days at the Maine Army National Guard Regional Training Institute in Bangor. Speakers will address global, national and state issues and implications related to diminished sea ice in the Arctic, including the changing environment, trade, geopolitics and policy.
Scheduled speakers include: Gen. Charles Jacoby, commander of North American Aerospace Defense Command and United States Northern Command; Rear Admiral Jonathan White, oceanographer and navigator of the Navy, director of Task Force Climate Change; Paul A. Mayewski, director of the UMaine Climate Change Institute; Major-General Christopher Coates, deputy commander, Canadian Joint Operations Command, National Defence and Canadian Armed Forces; Philippe Hebert, director of Policy Development for Canadian Department of National Defence; and John Henshaw, executive director of Maine Port Authority.
Officials from the U.S. Army Mountain Warfare School will share experiences and display cold-weather operations equipment.
For more information, call Lt. Col. Darryl Lyon, 207.430.5888. The symposium is free but seating is limited and tickets are required to attend. For tickets, contact Peter Fandel, peter.fandel@maine.edu.
Lawmakers Support Bond for UMaine Cooperative Extension Lab, AP Reports
Friday, April 18th, 2014The Associated Press reported Maine’s Legislature approved roughly $50 million in bond proposals as it wrapped up for the session. One of the six approved bond proposals includes borrowing $8 million to renovate and improve a University of Maine Cooperative Extension lab that assists farmers and foresters and identifies pests, as well as plant and animal diseases. WABI (Channel 5) and seattlepi.com also carried the AP report.
Black Bear Food Guild Offering CSA Shares, WABI Reports
Thursday, April 17th, 2014WABI (Channel 5) reported the Black Bear Food Guild, a community-supported agriculture (CSA) program that is organized and managed by students in the University of Maine’s Sustainable Agriculture program, is offering CSA shares for the season. The guild is selling full ($475), half ($300) and quarter ($175) shares. Shareholders can pick up fresh produce each week from mid-June to October at the university’s Rogers Farm.
UMaine, O’Brien Medical Collaboration Results in Patented Device
Thursday, April 17th, 2014O’Brien Medical announced it has been granted a patent by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for its Electronic Tuning Fork, or ETF. The device offers a significant improvement over current methods used by doctors to detect diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN), a common precursor to diabetic limb loss.
The development of the ETF was made possible through a collaboration with Dr. Todd O’Brien, president and founder of O’Brien Medical, and the University of Maine.
More than five years ago, O’Brien approached UMaine’s Advanced Manufacturing Center for help developing a proof-of-concept ETF, and then worked with Bruce Segee of UMaine’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering to develop the beta and commercial versions of the device.
Segee calls the project a perfect example of how the university can help grow the Maine economy.
A Maine electronics manufacturer has been selected to produce the ETF, and O’Brien expects the device will be available for purchase in late 2014.
The full news release is available online.
