As much as any science field, astronomy is about origins. Therefore, the origins of stars is a central question in the field. For more than a century, it has been known that stars form via gravitational contraction of clouds of interstellar gas and dust. And for more than a half century, it has been known that weak magnetic fields of uncertain origin can play a crucial role in the star formation process. Unfortunately, magnetic field strengths in interstellar space are notoriously difficult to measure. I will explain why magnetic fields are important to star formation, how we measure them, and what we now know about the interactions between gravity and magnetic fields during the star formation process. Curiously, magnetic fields in space can impede star formation, yet they are also essential to star formation. Without magnetic fields, there would be no Sun, no Earth, and no one to listen to this talk.

Refreshments will be served in CP 179 at 3:15 PM

George Lytle, John Hirdt, Luis Sordo Vieria, Wesley Hough, Darleen Perez-Lavin, Evan Castle and Thomas Barron will talk about Math REUS and undergraduate research.

In the short span of a few hours, an accreting neutron star releases an X-ray Superburst with an energy equivalent to the energy output of our sun over a decade. The energy source driving this phenomenon with its spectacular energy release is presently unknown. It has been proposed that the Superburst is triggered by the fusion of in the neutron star’s outer crust. This scenario requires that fusion of neutron-rich light nuclei is enhanced relative to their β-stable counterparts. To investigate this hypothesis and better understand the fusion dynamics for such nuclei, we have launched an experimental effort to measure the total fusion cross-section for beams of low-intensity, neutron-rich nuclei (< 105 ions/s) such as 18O,19O, and 20O on light targets at energies near and below the Coulomb barrier. Evaporation residues, resulting from the fusion of oxygen and 12C nuclei, were identified by their energy and time-of-flight. Using this technique, the fusion excitation function was measured in the sub-barrier domain down to the ~800 µb level. Extension of our initial measurements of 18O + 12C using a radioactive beam of 19O will be described. Fusion of 19O ions on the 12C target is enhanced three-fold at near barrier energies as compared to 18O. This significant enhancement in the fusion cross-section is remarkable. The results of these initial measurements will be presented along with theoretical calculations and the prospect of extending these measurements to lower energies and other projectile-target combinations will be discussed.

While the African diaspora generally describes the dispersal(s) of African-descended peoples throughout the world from modernity to the present, it demands the sighting of various contexts, causes, results, and memories.  This symposium’s focus on the African diaspora as articulated a transatlantic contexts provides a platform that underscores diversity and the human condition in a national and transnational manner. The cultural, linguistic, ethnic/racial, and generational dynamics of the Black Atlantic provide a fruitful intellectual context for exploring the roles of problematic acts of agency in oppressive spaces.



This mini-symposium examines folktales and folktale-like stories as sites of both abjection and healing.  This symposium will study stories that illustrate how individuals protect their identity and bodily integrity. We will discover how storytellers from the Americas have responded to the effect of colonization and colonialism through oral and literary works that underscore the cultural and psychological characteristics as well as the resilience of their communities. Presenters will examine the carnal violence and brutality associated with sex and gender in folktales and fairytales from the Americas. In so doing, this mini-symposium will put European and African folklore in conversation with the New World’s oral and literary traditions. For instance, in French Caribbean lore, whenever one speaks about evil spirits, one speaks about pacts with the devil and magical practices for white or black magic. Syncretic re-appropriations of Catholicism are often at the heart of measures taken against evil practices. In addition, the nocturnal violation of female bodies by male evil spirits (incubi) resembles the supernatural assault tradition called cauchemar or witch-riding in southwest Louisiana. The Caribbean vampire is often an old woman (a soucougnant or soucouyant) who, at night, sucks people's blood seeking vital energy and, in so doing, recalling the West African witch. Moreover, the consequences of sexual violence do not spare men either.  In French Caribbean folklore, the diablesse (She-devil) often eats men’s hearts while succubi (or other devil spawns) petrify them to death. The dialogues between the various spaces are intriguing to say the least.

The Department of Chemistry at the University of Kentucky will hold its annual Regional Poster Session for Undergraduates. 

Find more information on the Regional Poster Competiton web page. 

UK returns to the friendly confines of Memorial Coliseum on Jan. 29 for its SEC home opener where the team will face the Georgia Bulldogs at 7 p.m.

"We want to let our competition do the talking for us this year," said fourth-year head coach Tim Garrison. "We've got a great group of five seniors that we'll lean on this season and at the same time we have seven freshmen whose transition to the college game will dictate a lot of our success this year. We have a group that will contribute from top to bottom.

The Leadership Exchange is a program in the Office of Student Involvement that promotes leadership and involvement on campus.  One of their programs is involvement advising.  For the program that they will be having at CC2 they will start by showing students how to use Orgsync and some of the cool features that they can use on the program.  After that, everyone will break into small groups, where a Leadership Exchange Ambassador will advise students on finding clubs and organizations that are a good fit for them and how they can get involved.  It's an awesome resource for students who may feel overwhelmed when trying to find ways to be involved or who are unaware of some of the organizations that UK has to offer!!  

Mr. McCarthy will join us to discuss the Koch brothers/Papa Johns contract with UK (see http://kycir.org/2015/12/28/read-the-contracts-between-the-university-of-kentucky-and-the-koch-foundation-papa-johns-ceo/) and the general work of the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting, an upstart investigative shop.