News - The Daily Lobo

A robot sits on a shelf during the ribbon cutting ceremony for the Farris Engineering Center on March 1, 2018.

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ABQ ranks well for women in technology

Megan Holmen | March 4

Recently, a study conducted by SmartAsset evaluated cities across that nation to determine which locations were best for women in the technology field — Albuquerque was rated as No. five in the nation. The study also stated that Albuquerque has the fifth lowest gender pay gap in the technology industry. The University of New Mexico’s Computer Science Department and Computer and Electrical Engineering Department are continuously working to support and encourage female student pursuing a career in tech, said Soraya Abad-Mota, a professor of computer science and computer and electrical engineering.

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Lecturer takes audience on a road trip through history

Megan Holmen | March 4

Jon Hunner, Ph.D. presented “Driven by History: A Road Trip through our Nation's Past” Thursday as part of a spring lecture series, “People and Places” through the University of New Mexico Southwest Research and Special Collections hosted. In his lecture, Hunner, a UNM alum and professor of U.S. history and public history at New Mexico State University, discussed a 2016 road trip across the United States, in which he visited over 100 national parks and drove 20,000 miles. According to Hunner, the national parks are an excellent place to learn about the nation’s history.

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UNM opens new medical research facility

Mikhaela Smith | March 4

The University of New Mexico will host a grand opening ceremony Monday to celebrate its newest research facility — the Autophagy, Inflammation and Metabolism Center for Biomedical Research Excellence, or AIM CoBRE. The event will take place from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. in the Dominici Center and will feature an inaugural speech by Randy Schekman, who is a Nobel laureate, professor in the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology and investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute at the University of California, Berkeley. The speech will be followed by a reception and ribbon cutting ceremony, according to Vojo Deretic, Ph.D., a professor and department chair of Molecular Genetic and Microbiologyand director of the Autophagy, Inflammation and Metabolism Center at the UNM Health Sciences Center.

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Round table reveals what it’s like to be a transgender woman sex worker

Tasawar Shah | March 3

The LGBTQ Resource Center at the University of New Mexico hosted a roundtable discussion Friday as part of their Sex Work Education Week. Sex workers and people who work to fight human sex trafficking facilitated the discussion surrounding a variety of topics related to the life and work of transgender women sex workers. The talk featured three trans women sex workers and one member from a Native American anti-human sex trafficking group. All of them wished not to disclose their identity and will be referred to as Speaker 1, Speaker 2, Speaker 3 and Speaker 4 throughout this article per request.

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Genome research could open doors for therapy, saving lives

Danielle Prokop | March 2

When asked about his work in genomics — the study of the human genome — Dr. Tudor Oprea said, “This science is borderline philosophy. We asked ourselves, ‘What is truth?’ And we don’t always have a good answer.” Oprea is a professor of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences as well as the Translational Informatics Division division chief at the Department of Internal Medicine at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine and a leading researcher in biomolecular research.

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Workshop discusses ethnic invisibility, identity

Annie Edwards | March 1

The University of New Mexico Student Health and Counseling hosted “The Self-hood Struggle” student workshop with African American Student Services in Mesa Vista Hall Monday. Desa Karye Daniel, a doctoral student at UNM and a mental health counselor for African American Student Services, gave a presentation titled “A Phenomenological Study of the Invisibility Syndrome Among African American College Students.” This presentation covered the background of Daniel’s own study. Christopher Collins, senior student program advisor at African American Student Services, helped organize the event. “I just think that this was a great event, and we definitely want to raise cultural awareness here, on campus, and just have everyone’s experiences be that much better here at UNM,” he said. Daniel opened her presentation by asking attendees to think about their emotions when they were accepted into college, during their college career and after graduation or right before graduation.

President Stokes greets the Lobo community on March 1, 2018 in the Student Union Building on her first day in office.

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Stokes begins first day as president

Kyle Land | March 1

Garnett Stokes made history by becoming the first female president of the University of New Mexico — her historic term began Thursday in the Student Union Building with a meet and greet with the UNM community. The new president stood in the middle of the atrium, shaking hands and posing for pictures with the swarms of people that came out to see her. Every second it seemed a new group of people eagerly asked her for a photo and a quick conversation. Red balloons and streamers covered nearly every inch of the building.

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Site of incident concerning explosives on Feb. 28.

Madison Spratto | March 1

The suspect pulled over in a parking lot near the UNM Health Sciences Outpatient Surgery and Imagery Services building.

During a traffic stop, a UNMPD officer saw a firearm and what looked like explosives in the backseat of a car, located here. See more in this interactive map.

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Homemade grenades and pipe bombs found on University Boulevard

Kyle Land | March 1

A LoboAlert was sent out by the University of New Mexico Police Department regarding police activity occurring on University Boulevard Wednesday at 3:35 p.m., advising citizens to “please avoid until further notice.” Subsequent alerts said a “suspicious package” had been removed from the scene — UNMPD has now confirmed that the package in question consisted of homemade grenades and pipe bombs. Lt. Trace Peck, public information officer for UNMPD, said in an interview with the Daily Lobo that the initial incident occurred following a traffic stop, when police stopped the suspect’s vehicle because his license plate did not match the vehicle he was driving. The suspect pulled over in the parking lot near the UNM Health Sciences Outpatient Surgery and Imagery Services building.

Stephanie Richardson, a resident at Joy Junction since 2015, watches television as other residents wait to use the phone. Richardson takes online college courses and has graduated from Joy Junction’s Christ in Power Program.

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Joy Junction fights homelessness in ABQ

Madison Spratto | February 28

Thirty years ago one Albuquerque resident saw a need and fulfilled it. There are an estimated 800 to 4,000 homeless people in Albuquerque — depending on which group you ask, their counting method and definition of “homeless” may be a bit different. This is the problem Albuquerque resident Jeremy Reynalds saw and has been attempting to ease over the past three decades.

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Lobo Day celebrates UNM's 129th birthday

Megan Holmen | February 28

The University of New Mexico turned 129 years old Wednesday, and the Associated Students of UNM Lobo Spirit celebrated with the annual Lobo Day. Lobo Day is an opportunity to meet new people and celebrate the University that brings all of us together, said Kaylie Huizenga, the executive director of ASUNM Lobo Spirit. UNM hosts Lobo Day every year on Feb. 28 to bring students together for fun activities and a commemorative photograph.

President Chaouki Abdallah greets Chief of UNMPD Kevin McCabe at his farewell reception on Feb. 26, 2018 at Popejoy Lobby.

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Abdallah honored with reception as he leaves office

Ludella Awad | February 28

A reception honoring current University of New Mexico President Chaouki Abdallah was held Monday afternoon — just two days before incoming President Garnett S. Stokes is set to take office. Abdallah was named interim president in January 2017 and was officially named as the 22nd president by the Board of Regents on Feb. 13, 2018. A large crowd filled Popejoy Hall Monday, surrounding Abdallah, saying their goodbyes and honoring the work he achieved at the University.

Jessica Marrello of Chi Omega was named Greek Woman of the Year during the Spring 2018 Greek Week.

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Greek Man and Woman of the Year selected

Catherine Stringam | February 27

Aaron Ochoa and Jessica Marrello were named Greek Man and Woman of the Year at the conclusion of last week’s Greek Week. Each year, the University of New Mexico’s fraternities and sororities on campus join together for the contests, events and fundraising for a local charitable cause during Greek Week. During the annual Greek Banquet at the end of the week, the philanthropy is presented with a check. This year, over $18,000 was raised for Locker 505, an organization that helps provide school clothing for children in Bernalillo County.

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ASUNM Senate talks Innovation Academy, armed man on campus, Lottery Scholarship and more

Tasawar Shah | February 27

The Associated Students of the University of New Mexico held its third full Senate meeting of the semester on Wednesday in the Student Union Building. ASUNM Vice President Sally Midani chaired the Senate session. The session started with the first guest speaker Robert DelCampo from the University’s Innovation Academy. He said the academy is a program that excites students about innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship across different majors.

Kids gather as they see a nitrogen bomb in front of them at the Lobo Rainforest on Feb. 24, 2018.

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Q&A with “Science Bob” Pflugfelder during Lobo Rainforest Super STEM Saturday

Danielle Prokop | February 27

Air Force Research Lab Super STEM Saturday science demonstrations went off with a bang. Hundreds attended the showcase at Innovate ABQ at the Lobo Rainforest, to participate in a number of science experiments from driving robots and set all kinds of fires. Jewel Meyer-Hagen, president of the University of New Mexico’s Chemistry Club, said helping with demonstrations helps UNM students give back to the community.

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Demonstrators support Black Lives Matter movement

Anthony Jackson | February 27

Over 100 people carrying signs and banners converged at the Dreamstyle Arena Saturday for a Black Lives Matter rally and march. Event Coordinator Shakir Farid Abdullah, a human rights activist with Black Lives Matter, called the turnout “beautiful” and said the event took about two months to coordinate. He said the event’s focus was to bring the community together and meet one another. Demonstrators took to the streets by early afternoon, filling and marching in two lanes westbound on Avenida Cesar Chavez.

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UNM celebrates National Engineers Week

Mikhaela Smith | February 26

The University of New Mexico’s School of Engineering celebrated National Engineers Week Feb. 18 through 22 with several events aimed at getting students interested in math and science. The National Society of Professional Engineers created National Engineers Week in 1951. The week is celebrated in conjunction with George Washington’s birthday, who is considered to be the nation’s first engineer for his notable survey work. The purpose of the week is to celebrate the contributions engineers make to society, as well as promote the field and increase involvement.

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Sports Issue — How does the FBI investigation affect UNM?

Cameron Goeldner | February 25

In September, the U.S. Department of Justice announced it was pursuing criminal cases against some of the most powerful people in major college basketball. It was a bombshell that shook the landscape just before practice for the new season underway. One of the first, and still one of the biggest dominoes to fall, was Louisville head coach Rick Pitino, who was fired following the revelation that an Adidas executive, the school’s official provider of athletic apparel, had conspired to pay $100,000 dollars to the family of an elite recruit to get him to play for Louisville and represent Adidas following the conclusion of his college career. Despite the national prevalence of this story, its effects weren’t felt by the University of New Mexico men’s basketball team. However, this week the investigation reached the Lobos' corner of the basketball universe, as San Diego State’s Malik Pope and former UNLV player Patrick McCaw were linked to the latest round of players who had allegedly received improper benefits from agents — specifically the agency, ASM Sports, in a story released by Yahoo! Sports last week.

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Talk highlights importance of Africana Studies becoming a department

Megan Holmen | February 22

The University of New Mexico’s African American Student Services, Africana Studies and College of Education hosted a “Reaffirming Black Studies” talk Wednesday as part of their lecture series. The series is part of Black History Month events hosted by AASS in collaboration with other departments. David Stovall, Ph.D., a professor of African American Studies and Educational Policy Studies at the University of Illinois in Chicago, was Wednesday’s keynote speaker.

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Air Force Research Lab hosts weekend STEM program

Danielle Prokop | February 22

Looking for a low-cost weekend that involves launching trash cans, making “elephant toothpaste” and melting gummy bears? Then spend the morning at the first annual Air Force Research Lab Super STEM Science Demonstrations, hosted by Innovate ABQ at the Lobo Rainforest Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon. Matthew Fetrow, who leads technology outreach at AFRL told the Daily Lobo that this family-friendly event will have enough science to go around.