Latino AIDS awareness
UNM Truman Health Services, along with New Mexico agencies and advocacy groups, kicked off a series of activities to promote HIV/AIDS education. According to UNM, this year’s events are free and open to the public:
Today from 7 to 10 p.m., the 6th Annual Queenceñera and Kingceñera will be crowned in a competitive drag show at N’MPower, 136 Washington St. SE, Suite E.
On Friday from 6 to 9 p.m, Culture Fest will be hosted at the South Valley Multipurpose Senior Center, 2008 Larrazolo Rd. SW, featuring local Hispanic/Latino acts I.Q., Alta Moni, DJ M. Martinez, La Academia de Dolores, Baracutanga, Aspen-Santa Fe Ballet, Mr. Kingceañera and Ms. Queenceañera, as well as educational talks and a variety of entertainment from bands to slam poets.
The event coincides with National Latino AIDS Awareness Day, established in 2003 to address the impact of HIV and AIDS on Hispanic/Latino communities. It was designated for Oct. 15, the last day of Hispanic Heritage Month.
For more information, contact UNM Truman Health Services Outreach at 925-7286.
Free flu shots for students and faculty
UNM Student Health & Counseling will offer free flu shots to UNM students, staff and faculty over the age of 18 on Tuesday and Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the UNM SUB Atrium. Flu shots are also tentatively scheduled for Monday, Nov. 10 and Tuesday, Nov. 11.
According to UNM, SHAC’s “Take One for Raymond” flu shots are dedicated to the memory of UNM student Raymond Plotkin, who passed away from H1N1 in 2009.
Dates and times may vary depending upon the availability of the vaccine. For updated information, contact the SHAC Immunization Clinic at 277-7925 or shac.unm.edu/influenza.htm
World-renowned fiber artist comes to UNM
Lin Lecheng, one of the world’s leading fiber artists, presents a visual review of his work on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. at UNM’s Maxwell Museum of Anthropology, Hibben Center. According to UNM, many of Lecheng’s architectural tapestries are large, sometimes measuring 10 or more yards across, and hang in leading public and private venues internationally.
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He and 35 faculty and students from Tsinghua University in China, where Lecheng is a professor, will be in Albuquerque at the invitation of Nancy Kozikowski, fiber artist and director of the Dartmouth Street Gallery. The artist will also premiere new work at the Dartmouth Street Gallery on Monday, Oct. 20, at 5 p.m.
For more information, contact Mary Beth Hermans at 277-1400 or mhermans@unnm.edu
$1.7 million to expand UNM nurse programs
Gov. Susana Martinez and the 2014 New Mexico Legislature included a nearly $1.7 million recurring appropriation to expand the total number of students enrolling in UNM’s nurse practitioner and nurse midwife programs.
According to UNM, the program was created to boost the ranks of primary care providers in New Mexico to help improve access to health care. The extension of health insurance and Medicaid coverage under the Affordable Care Act means increasing numbers of people will be seeking health care.
The enrollment deadline for the certified nurse midwife program has passed, but prospective students have until Nov. 1 to apply for the pediatric and family nurse practitioner tracks. Classes will start Summer 2015 and students can graduate in 2017.
LAII wins $2 million in grants
The UNM Latin American & Iberian Institute has been awarded Title VI National Resource Center and Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellowship grants from the U.S. Department of Education.
According to UNM, from 2014 to 2018 the LAII will receive more than $2 million to create a stimulating environment for the production and dissemination of knowledge of Latin America at the university, and to support students studying less-commonly taught languages of Latin America, including K’iche’ Maya, Quechua and Portuguese.
UNM LAII is recognized for providing outreach and consultative services on a national, regional and local basis and maintaining links with overseas institutions of higher education and other organizations that may contribute to teaching and research at UNM. The grant also highlights UNM’s specialized library collections and faculty who engage in training and research related to Latin America.
UNM developing life-saving dry vaccine
UNM researchers are developing a dry powder vaccine that could potentially save the lives of people living in remote areas.
A report from UNM states researches have converted a liquid vaccine for listeria — a disease that, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, causes about 1,600 illnesses and 260 deaths annually in the United States — into a powder form that is viable at 75 degrees for one year. This would reduce the need for refrigeration, making transportation of the vaccine to remote areas possible. Reducing the need for refrigeration also reduces the cost of the medicine from 24 cents to 12 cents per vaccination.
A lighthearted review of Dr. Frankenstein’s scientific process
UNM English professor Gary Harrison and biology research assistant professor and research ethics compliance officer William Gannon have co-authored a paper published in the journal “Science and Engineering Ethics.” The paper, a lighthearted and unexpected look at a very serious subject, includes a mock Institutional Review Board (IRB) proposal for research conducted by the Dr. Frankenstein of Mary Shelley’s classic novel. It reviews the steps Frankenstein would have gone through with an IRB, such as the one at the University of New Mexico, including submitting a detailed statement on his scientific rationale for the experiment, an explanation of his objectives and many other specific details.
~ Compiled by Erika Eddy
