This is a great video and article on the creation and history of Benny the Beaver and the legacy that Ken Austin has left here at OSU.  Austin still continues to be a great supporter of Beaver Nation and his recent $10 million donation is going towards the new business building appropriately named Austin Hall.

Austin Hall Construction Progress

Read the Article

Go Beavs!
-GG

On August 6^th, the rover Curiosity landed in the Gale Crater on Mars.

Jeff Barnes and Dan Tyler have been working for the past four years with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California on a computer model of the Martian atmosphere. They have been using the model to make adjustments to the spacecraft’s control system for its landing on Mars. The model calculates and predicts Mars’ likely weather conditions based on observations of atmospheric conditions.

The Mars Science Laboratory is a continuation of previous research the two scientists have done. In 2008, the Phoenix Mission landed in the north polar region of Mars and both scientists were also involved. In the past, Barnes has also been involved with the Viking mission and the Mars Pathfinder mission.

Jeff Barnes is a professor and Dan Tyler is a research associate professor in the College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences.

To read more: http://oregonstate.edu/ua/ncs/archives/2012/jul/osu-scientists-part-intensive-planning-tricky-mars-landing

Go Beavs!

kg

Once again a big congratulations to the class of 2012!  This last Sunday marked OSU’s  143rd commencement  ceremony and we had the great opportunity to have Michelle Obama as the commencement speaker.   We started out the morning with beautiful sunshine and a light breeze.  Over 30,000 friends and family members filled the seats of Reser Stadium all waiting for the ceremony to begin and the students to begin the march into Reser Stadium.

 check out our full profile of Oregon State’s graduates this year:

• Of this number, 2,498 are men, 2,481 are women.
• All total they will be receiving 5,236 degrees.
• 4,130 will be receiving the baccalaureate degree.
• 231 will receive two degrees today.
• 12 will receive three degrees today.
• 1 will receive four (4) degrees today.
• 766 will receive Masters Degrees.
• 86 will receive the Doctor of Pharmacy degree.
• 197 will receive the degree of Doctor of Philosophy
• 57 awarded the degree of Doctor of Veterinary Medicine in an earlier ceremony.
• 303 graduates earned degrees via distance education in 23 different degree programs.
• 164 of the graduating class are veterans.

 

The First Lady Michelle Obama received a honorary doctorate in public health for all of her efforts in improving the health of children in the United States.  She began by praising OSU for the positive impact is has on the state of Oregon.

You have built one of the most sustainable campuses in America, conducting groundbreaking research from technology to childhood obesity, you are serving others in so many ways

She gave the class of 2012 a 3 things to take away from here speech. “focus on what you have not what your missing, lead a rich life and that is to define success on your own terms, and don’t leave behind any unfinished business with the people you love.”

To watch the video of the First Lady’s entire speech click below:

Michelle Obama Commencement 2012

Enjoy your summer!

-GG

Folklife Festival Exhibitions on the Mall
Happening daily 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

June 27 through July 1
July 4 through July 8

OSU Exhibitions
Displayed under tents every day on the dates listed above.  We will be in the “Sustainable Solutions” sections.

•  Surimi School (located in the main exhibit area) Internationally recognized surimi expert Dr. Jae Park and his OSU Seafood Laboratory team will present the historic origins of the versatile fish paste and how surimi products have created a $2.1 billion industry in the United State over the past 30 years with major growth ahead. Within that, they’ll note OSU’s singular role in the “Americanization of surimi.”  (Learn more about Surimi School)
•  Tech Wizards (located in the USDA 4H area) Octaviano Merecias-Cuevas and others with the nationally recognized 4H program will be leading Folklife participants through the process of building robots. A bilingual after-school program that teaches technological skills to low-income, marginalized youth ages 8 through 18, Tech Wizards is now active at more than 100 sites around the U.S.
•  Making Waves (located in the main exhibit area) The O.H. Hinsdale Wave Research Laboratory will show how scientists and engineers are learning how wave action affects our coastal areas, helping us better prepare for tsunamis and hurricane waves. They’ll be working with one of Hinsdale’s mini-flumes, crashing waves over models of coastal structures created by Folklife attendees.

Other OSU Presenters
Happening on the Mini-University/Discussions Stage

•  The OSU Folklife Committee has put forward a list of OSU and OSU Extension faculty members as potential presenters in the Smithsonian “Mini-University” area. Faculty in this area will be making 15-minute presentations on a wide range of topics throughout the Festival. We’ll provide additional detail on who the Smithsonian curatorial staff has selected as soon as that information is available.

Happy Traveling this Summer!

-GG

To attend the event no pre registration is required and the event is free.  There will be a child  care facility and food will also be provided. Si Se Puede is open to High School students 9-12 grade.  There will be something for everyone.

Si Se Puede Info

-GG

The Daily Barometer: Best Student Newspaper in Northwest Region

The newsroom at Oregon State University’s daily newspaper, The Barometer is celebrating numerous accolades from the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ).  The society’s Northwest region awarded OSU’s Barometer with the top award during the annual conference in Tacoma, WA on March 31^st.  The Barometer was award with the highest honor, best student newspaper in the five-state area.  The awards didn’t stop there.  The newspaper also received the following Mark of Excellence awards:

First place, “Best All-Around Daily Student Newspaper” 4-year college/university
First place, “Sports Column Writing”, 4-year college/university, Jesse Severson writer
First place, “Breaking News Reporting” 4-year college/university, Kristin Pugmire writer
Second place, “General News Photography” 4 year college/university, Vinay Bikkina photographer
Second place, “Sports Column Writing” 4-year college/university, Grady Garrett writer
Second place, “Sports Writing” 4-year college/university, Grady Garrett writer

This is not the first time The Daily Barometer has been recognized by the Society.  SPJ honored The Barometer as the best daily student newspaper in the nation in 2001, and tied for second place in 2002.  The 2012 first place region award winners will go on to the national Society of Professional Journalists competition on September 20-22, 2012 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.  We wish them luck during the upcoming competitions!

To learn more about OSU’s student media: KBVR-TV, KBVR-FM, Prism Magazine, Beaver Yearbook and The Daily Barometer newspaper click here.

Thanks for reading…CYN

Hosted at the OMNIMAX Theater, ‘RELENTLESS’ is a documentary chronicling a year in the life of Global Formula Racing Team. Made up of students in a multinational partnership who design and build formula cars for an extremely competitive international racing circuit, the GFR team hails from Oregon State University and DHBW Ravensburg, Germany. They devote every waking moment to the relentless pursuit of an international championship bid.

The world-winning car and members of the GFR Team will be at a pre-screening reception, so come by and see the machine and the students who created and raced it. The GFR Team are back-to-back world champions.

-bv

Sarina Saturn who is a neuropsychologist and an assistant professor of psychology at Oregon State University has earned The Career Award, which is the most prestigious award from NSF for new faculty members.  Sarina is going to be creating a partnership between the Cross-Cultural Mentorship Program and the College Assistance Migrant Program at OSU to expose first generation and underrepresented students to research opportunities at OSU.

The students will be able to be a part of Sarina’s research on

 how naturally occurring variations in the oxytocin hormone (also known as the “love hormone”) influence the experience and expression of uplifting emotional states and altruism in young children, young adults and older adults

For more information on Sarina’s research click on the link below:

Articles on Psychology Research

 The ewes and lambs are part of ongoing research studies in animal health, breeding, feeding and grazing management conducted by the OSU Agricultural Experiment Station. The animals are used also in instructional programs in the OSU Animal Sciences Department and the OSU College of Veterinary Medicine

Each year the Sheep Center draws thousands of children and adults for the lambing event. This is a great opportunity to cure some of the winter blues and look forward for the spring time ahead.  For more information on visiting the Oregon State University Sheep Center click on the link below.

 OSU Sheep Center

-GG

Two sorority sisters and two frat brothers from Oregon State University are splitting up and going head-to-head in an all-out fitness challenge. The team that gets into the best shape in 6 weeks, scores a trip to one of the biggest parties of the year – mtvU Spring Break 2012 going down in Las Vegas!

Student Bodies at Oregon State University

Watch Episode 1 as these four friends get introduced and begin the competition including sit-ups, push-ups, and the 1-mile run. Under the command of Army ex-special forces Major Harrington and with help from Army ROTC coaches, these students will take on this challenge both physically and emotionally. Keep tuned to see which Beaver duo comes out victorious.

Go Beavs!

-AG

________________________________________________________

THE RESULTS ARE IN!

The Black and Orange teams have gone through weeks and weeks of hard core conditioning and training by current OSU ROTC Cadets to get in shape and win a trip to MTV’s Spring Break in Las Vegas.  After all their blood, sweat and maybe even some tears, the results are finally in.  To recap both teams’ tireless efforts and see which team won the grand prize, check out all three episodes.

Episode 1
Episode 2
Episode 3 – The Finale

Thanks for reading…
cyn