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Obituary: Clifton Dowell, retired associate professor of Microbiology

Clifton E. Dowell, Jr., 79, of Madison, Wis., retired associate professor of Microbiology, died Sept. 22 after a long battle with Alzheimer's disease.
 
Born in McKinney, Texas, He attended Texas Christian University and received his doctorate in microbiology from the University of Texas.
 
Prior to joining the faculty in 1969, he taught at Caltech, Tulane and the University of California, Davis. His research spanned many areas, focusing on the DNA of viruses that infect bacteria.
 
After his retirement in 1994, he worked with Promega in Madison to produce viruses that could test for safety

Bischoff, Owen honored for garden design at Westfield hospital

The state Department of Public Health’s Western Massachusetts Hospital in Westfield honored associate professor of Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning Annaliese Bischoff and alumnus Owen White on Sept. 21 at the grand opening of its therapeutic garden.
 
In 2009, Bischoff incorporated the project to design a garden for the hospital into a graduate Landscape Architecture studio. Staff at the hospital were delighted with the 13 designs the students suggested, but wanted one design to consolidate the best of so many ideas, she said.
 
Owen White, one of the original graduate students in

Anderson recognized for Best Oral Paper at IEEE NANO conference

Professor Neal Anderson of the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department was awarded first place for the Best Oral Conference Paper at the 12th annual Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers International Conference on Nanotechnology (IEEE NANO) held Aug. 20-23 in Birmingham, England.
 
The paper, co-authored by Anderson’s graduate students Ilke Ercan and Natesh Ganesh, was titled "Toward Nanoprocessor Thermodynamics." As ECE department head Christopher Hollot said, “This is a very exciting and newsworthy accomplishment, and I believe it’s a harbinger of the discipline’s

Ellis wins Living Now Book Award

Richard S. Ellis, professor of Mathematics and Statistics and author of Blinding Pain, Simple Truth: Changing your Life through Buddhist Meditation, received the silver medal in the Meditation/Relaxation category of the Living Now Book Awards on Aug. 23 in Lakeland, Fla.

Blinding Pain, Simple Truthis a self-help book that elaborates on how Ellis transformed chronic headache pains into tranquility through Buddhist mindfulness meditation. Recent studies show that meditation can help relieve suffering by allowing the body’s natural healing powers to flourish.

“Buddhist teachings and daily

Obituary: Chester H. Tidlund Sr., retired dining commons staffer

Chester H. Tidlund Sr., 86, of Montague, a retired assistant foods manager at Hampshire Dining Commons, died Sept. 23 at home.

Born in Amherst, he was a World War II veteran who served in the Army in Europe and Asia from 1944-46 and was awarded the Bronze Star.
 
He began working on campus in 1944 before entering the service. After his discharge, he returned to the University in 1947 and served continuously from 1948 until his retirement in 1991.

He leaves his wife, Florence of Montague; his son, Chester Tidlund Jr.

Riley, Coleman elected to Massachusetts Academy of Sciences

Biology professor Peg Riley (right) and alumna and astronaut Catherine “Cady” Coleman are among the new class of fellows of the Massachusetts Academy of Sciences (MAS) elected by their peers to its prestigious community of scientists, engineers, research physicians and others who are deeply concerned about science and science education in the Commonwealth.
 
Riley, president and founder of MAS, announced the academy’s latest fellows.

Capistran appointed to state Advanced Manufacturing Collaborative

James D. Capistran, executive director of the UMass Innovation Institute (UMII), has been appointed as a member of the executive committee of the state’s Advanced Manufacturing Collaborative. The appointment was announced Sept. 11 by Gregory P. Bialecki, state secretary of Housing and Economic Development.

Capistran was appointed executive director of UMII in September 2011 after serving as interim for three months.

Austin co-edits special issue of Languages and Linguistics journal

A special issue on “Languages and cultures in contact in Africa and the Americas,” co-edited by the School of Education’s Theresa Austin with Reddad Erguig of Chouaib Doukkali University in Morocco, has been approved for publication in Languages and Linguistics with a publication date of December.
 
Austin is a professor in the Language, Literacy, and Culture Concentration in the Department of Teacher Education and Curriculum Studies. Erguig is a faculty member in the department of English, Faculty of Letters and Human Sciences, at Chouaib Doukkali University in El-Jadida.

According to

Danylchuk's 'Fish Meat' documentary to screen at Blue Ocean Film Festival

The Blue Ocean Film Festival will screen the documentary film, “Fish Meat: Choose Your Farm Wisely,” by eco-filmmaker Ted Caplow and featuring fish ecologist Andy Danylchuk of the Environmental Conservation Department, on Sept. 26 in Monterey, Calif.
 
Festival organizers say it honors the world’s finest ocean films through best-in-class film competition, promotes dialogue between filmmakers and scientists to inspire great films, connects ocean filmmakers with the latest technology, financing and distribution resources and engages the public internationally by sharing the “world’s greatest

Schiff and Fedorchak present at youth conference

Tom Schiff and Diane Fedorchak of the Center for Health Promotion presented Sept. 19 at “It’s Your Call: A Conference for Student Leaders on Changing the Culture of Underage and Destructive Drinking on Campuses,” co-sponsored by the Northwestern District Attorney’s office, the Campus and Community Coalition (CCC) and the Strategic Planning Initiative for Families and Youth (SPIFFY).

The three-hour participatory and interactive event engaged student leaders in changing the culture of underage and destructive drinking on campus.

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