Nobel Laureate to present
Marker Lectures April 3-4

Harold E. Varmus, former director of the National Institutes of Health, a co-recipient of the 1989 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine and the recently appointed president and chief executive officer of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, will give the Russell Marker Lectures in Genetic Engineering April 3-4 on the University Park campus.

The free, two-lecture series, "New Theories in Cancer Research," is sponsored by the Eberly College of Science. The first lecture, "Genes and Cancer," will be held at 7:30 p.m. Monday, April 3, in the Hetzel Union Building Auditorium; and "Mouse Model of Human Cancer" will be delivered at 4 p.m. Tuesday, April 4, in 101 Thomas Building.

Much of Varmus' scientific work was conducted during a 23-year period at the University of California at San Francisco, where he, J. Michael Bishop and their co-workers demonstrated the cellular origins of the oncogene of a chicken retrovirus. This discovery led to the isolation of many cellular genes that normally control growth and development and are frequently mutated in human cancer. For their research on the genetic basis of cancer, Bishop and Varmus received many awards, including the 1989 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine.

In 1993, Varmus was named by President Clinton to serve as director of the National Institutes of Health, a position he held until the end of 1999.

The Marker endowment allows the Eberly College of Science to present annual Marker Lectures in astronomy and astrophysics, the chemical sciences, evolutionary biology, genetic engineering, the mathematical sciences and the physical sciences.

Sue Paterno is keynote speaker for Take Our Daughters to Work Day

Penn State's fifth annual Take Our Daughters to Work Day, coordinated by the Commission for Women, will be held on Thursday, April 27. This year, the keynote luncheon speaker will be Sue Paterno, a 1962 Penn State graduate and active community volunteer. She will discuss "the right of women to choose their career paths."

Paterno, who along with her husband, Joe, helped establish numerous scholarships and endowed positions at Penn State, has served as a member of the University's National Development Council, chaired the Libraries Advisory Board and is a volunteer for the Grand Destiny Campaign for both the College of the Liberal Arts and the University Libraries.

She helped create the Liberal Arts Alumni Society and the Summer Institute for Academic Achievement, a program that offers underrepresented students additional preparation for college-level work.

This year, about 40 career sites on the University Park campus are participating to offer girls in grades six through 12 an opportunity to explore their career options. Participants will select three sites to visit during the half-day program. Lunch will be held in the South Annex of The Bryce Jordan Center.

The cost for the day is $15 per girl; there is no charge for the mentor. For more information, contact Michaelene Franzetta at (814) 863-0351.

Lecture to focus on bridge developments

Over the past three decades, pre-stressed concrete bridges have emerged from a novelty to a major force in building construction in the United States.

That emergence will be examined in a talk by John E. Breen, the Nasser I. Al-Rashid Chair in civil engineering from the University of Texas at Austin. Breen will present "Research Basis for Technological Developments in Precast Post-Tensioned Segmental Concrete Bridges" at 7:30 p.m. April 6 in the Applied Research Laboratory Auditorium on the University Park campus. The talk is this year's Thomas C. Kavanagh Memorial Structural Engineering Lecture, presented by the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering.

Breen's lecture will focus on research and development activities of precast post-tensioned segmentally constructed box girder bridges. Throughout the last 30 years, the Phil M. Ferguson Structural Engineering Laboratory at the University of Texas has been engaged in both laboratory and field instrumentation research and development programs in design and construction of this type of bridge. Breen served as director of the laboratory from 1967 to 1985.

Rocket engine design leader to receive
McFarland Award, give metallurgy talk

Alumnus and industry leader in rocket engine design John A. Halchak will receive the 2000 David Ford McFarland Award for Achievement in Metallurgy when the 52nd annual lecture and banquet coinciding with the award are held on Saturday, April 15, on the University Park campus.

At 10:30 a.m. on April 15, Halchak will present the McFarland Lecture on "Titanium Applications in Liquid Rocket Engines" in 26 Hosler Building. A reception will be held at 9:30 a.m. in 112 Steidle Building. The public may attend the morning events.

The McFarland Banquet, preceded by a social hour, will be held at 7 p.m. in the Assembly Room of The Nittany Lion Inn for invited guests.

As director of material applications at Rocketdyne Propulsion and Power, a part of the Boeing Co., in Canoga Park, Calif., Halchak leads 125 materials engineers and technicians while overseeing support for liquid rocket engines and other Rocketdyne programs.

The McFarland Award is named in honor of David Ford McFarland, who was head of the Department of Metallurgy at Penn State from 1920 to 1945. It is presented annually by the Penn State chapter of ASM International to alumni who have achieved distinction in the field of metallurgy.

Sport psychology talk set for April 6

Robert N. Singer, chair of the Department of Exercise and Sport Sciences at the University of Florida, Gainesville, will present the annual Dorothy V. Harris Lecture Series in Sport Psychology from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. Thursday, April 6, in 101 Chambers Building on the University Park campus. His lecture, "Attentional Strategies for Self-Paced and Externally-Paced Skills," is sponsored by the Department of Kinesiology.

Singer has been a scholar, researcher, educator, administrator, and national and international leader in sport psychology and motor learning since receiving his Ph.D. in 1964. His many books have been used as texts and resources in countries, and he served as head of the sport psychology area on the first Sportsmedicine Council of the United States Olympic Committee in 1978.

Dorothy V. Harris (1931-1991), a long-term member of the faculty of the Department of Kinesiology, developed one of the first graduate programs in sport psychology in the country.

"X-Files" consultant to speak on April 11

Anne Simon, scientific consultant for the television program "X-Files," will give a free public presentation at 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 11, at Penn State Worthington Scranton as part of the campus lecture series.

In 1994 Simon, professor and associate head of the department of biochemistry and molecular biology at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, was asked to provide input to give "X-Files" its realistic qualities. Much of her expertise informs the character of Agent Scully (played by Gillian Anderson), a skeptical forensics specialist.

For more information about Simon's presentation, call (570) 963-2700.

Lecture kicks off Critical Studies Colloquium

Sara Rich, assistant professor of art history at Penn State, will give a lecture, "Formalism, Semiotics and Abstraction," at 1:30 p.m. Friday, March 31, in Room 210, Patterson Building on the University Park campus.

Her talk is part of the College of Arts and Architecture Critical Studies Colloquium, a new initiative to foster more cross-disciplinary dialogue among artists and scholars. The speakers share a general interdisciplinary approach to research. The colloquium series is free and the public is invited to participate.

The colloquium occurs every other Friday of spring semester and is sponsored by the School of Visual Arts.

"Galactic Metropolis" topic
of next Penn State Forum

Peirce Lewis, professor emeritus of geography and a specialist on the American landscape and the historical geography of American culture, will give the next Penn State Forum address, "The Galactic Metropolis: The Revolutionary New Form of American Cities." The Forum will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday, April 4, in the President's Hall at The Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel on the University Park campus.

Lewis, a member of the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences faculty, also has been a visiting professor at the University of California at Berkeley, Concordia University in Montreal and at Michigan State University, where he held the first appointment as John Hannah Visiting Professor of Integrative Studies.

Forum tickets, which are $10 per person, are available by calling (814) 865-7590. Tickets also may be available at the door. This is the last Penn State Forum of the season.

Modeled after the National Press Club and sponsored by the Penn State Bookstore, the lunchtime series of lectures is an offering of the Penn State Faculty Staff Club and is open to the public. Lunch begins at 11:30 a.m. and the program, including the lecture and questions from the audience, begins at noon.

To find out more about the Penn State Faculty Staff Club, go to http://www.psu.edu/dept/fsc/ on the Web.

College of Medicine offers mini-medical school

Health, medicine and advances in medical research intrigue many people, whether they wish to learn more about their own health and wellness or have a general interest in learning. The College of Medicine will offer a lecture series, "Discovering Medical Science™," a mini-medical school sponsored by Pfizer.

This seven-week lecture series is geared toward adults and will cover topics such as cancer, heart disease, anatomy and physiology, genetics and more.

Faculty from the College of Medicine will provide in-depth lectures including information on the latest medical research and treatments.

There are no tests or grades and no previous medical training is required; however, students are expected to read in preparation for each lecture.

Graduates, those people who have attended all sessions, will receive a certificate of achievement at the conclusion of the series.

Classes will be held from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday evenings, April 25 through June 6, in the auditorium of The Milton S. Hershey Medical Center. Deadline for registration is April 18.

To register or obtain more information, call (814) 531-7965.

Career Mentoring Round Tables to be held

The Department of Labor Studies and Industrial Relations will hold Career Mentoring Round Tables from 1-4 p.m. April 13 in the Alumni Lounge at The Nittany Lion Inn on the University Park campus.

The round tables are open to all students interested in pursuing human resources, labor relations, law, management, government, union organizing and graduate school careers.

Alumni from these careers will be available to discuss their experience, job leads, resume tips and network with undergraduate and graduate
students.

For a list of alumni participating in the event check the Web at http://www.la.psu.edu/lsir/alumni/roundtables.htm or for more information call Amy Dietz at (814) 865-5425.

Worthington Scranton presentation
features solar energy products

"Successful Solar Energy Projects in Northeastern Pennsylvania," a slide lecture featuring passive and active solar heating projects, solar domestic hot water, super insulation and double-envelope projects, will be held at 7 p.m. Monday, April 17, at Penn State Worthington Scranton.

Presenter Joseph Burinsky, assistant professor of engineering, will discuss strategies for the homeowner, techniques for the contractor/builder and ideas for the commercial/institutional client.

For more information, call (570) 963-2575.