Akiko Takenaka is a professor in the Department of History and specializes in the social and cultural history of modern Japan, specifically the Asia-Pacific War. Takenaka discusses her research on the competing histories of World War II and how she uses the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo as a vehicle through which to analyze those narratives in Japan.
History professor Karen Petrone's new book unearths a wealth of buried stories from the Soviet state about the memory of World War I.
Stephanie Schwabe, a professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, studies underwater cave systems in the Bahamas and is the founder of the Rob Palmer Blue Holes Foundation. She was recently featured on a National Geographic Explorer episode about a dive and a near-death experience. In addition to talking about her research on cave formation, Schwabe discusses the challenges of being female in a male-dominated discipline.
Cynthia Ruder is a professor in the Department of Modern and Classical Languages, Literatures, and Cultures. She teaches Russian language classes and has a particular research interest in the Moscow Canal. Built in the 1930s during Stalin’s regime, the canal has a rich history.
Holly Miller, a graduate student in the Department of Psychology, has recently received a lot of press for her research, which uses dogs as experiment subjects to test the effects of glucose on self-control. Miller's research addresses the physiological reasons for failures in self-control, but her conclusions are not just useful to understanding dog psychology, since expending glucose affects all mammals, including humans.
Ann Morris, an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biology, studies retinal regeneration and development in zebra fish. Morris discusses the potential that her research has to help people with eye diseases.
David Bradshaw, the Chair of the Department of Philosophy, focuses on the history of philosophy, specifically looking at science, technology, and society. His research incorporates a variety of disciplines to address the social, ethical, and technological significance of scientific advances.
Christia Brown, a professor in the Department of Psychology, focuses on childhood psychology, specifically looking at gender and ethnic discrimination among children. Brown and her team work within Fayette County Schools to gather information about the sources of discrimination--sources which are often difficult to pin down.
Betty Lorch, associate dean of Research and Graduate Studies in the College of Arts and Sciences, speaks about the value of an Arts and Sciences education.
Michael Bardo, a professor in the Department of Psychology and the director of CDART (the Center for Drug Abuse Research Translation), is dedicated to finding out the biological phenomena that underlie behaviors associated with drug abuse and to finding ways to make that research useful to programs that develop and provide prevention services. Bardo discusses his findings and ideas for how to enhance drug abuse education in the future.
