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Follow us on Twitter and Facebook. Read our online exclusives Friday, April 16, 2010
Issue 132, Volume 75
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NSF Center makes move to UH Cougar News Service The National Science Foundation’s National Center for Airborne Laser Mapping recently moved research operations from the University of Florida to UH. Most of the staff was brought to Houston, and they will now operate the center along with the University
of California, Berkley. Unlike other centers at UH, this is the first center completely supported by the NSF. Usually, the University sets up centers using funds or grants. Since the center opened in 2003, Ramesh Shrestha, the center’s director, has focused his work on laser scanning technology and
airborne laser swath mapping. “With the center, we have brought laser mapping’s uses to the forefront and expect to continue to have this impact in our new Houston home,” Shrestha said in a press release. “We plan to establish curriculum catered to this specialty and eventually add a graduate degree in geosensing systems engineering. This is in
addition to carrying out research far surpassing what is capable in laser mapping to date.” UH research professor Bill Carter, who worked with Shrestha in the ’90s and helped establish the NCALM, said he is happy to see the center is being brought to Houston. “Together, we saw its potential to far exceed what was possible with
many traditional methods, such as airborne photogrammetric mapping that uses cameras to detail terrain,” Carter said in a press release. “Laser mapping has the ability to work day or night, as well as generally map areas even though they were covered by forests and other vegetation where photogrammetric methods couldn’t.” see AIRBORNE, page 3
Magazine receives national award By Ashley Evans The Daily Cougar The 2009 edition of Transitions magazine was awarded Best Orientation Publication at the College Newspaper Business & Advertising Managers, Inc., national convention in March. Transitions is a freshman and transfer student orientation guide put together by the Department of Student Publications and distributed via direct mail in the summer. The 2009 issue featured cover stories on the new Calhoun Lofts and the University’s movement towards flagship status, student organizations and a brief history of UH. Matt Miller, who served as editor in chief of Transitions in 2009, said working on the magazine was a positive experience. “Having six weeks to work on the magazine as opposed to the fast paced turn-around of the Daily Cougar really allowed for us to sink our teeth into the project,” Miller said. The 2009 issue also included information about things to do and places to eat around Houston to supplement the regular admissions and parking stories. Transitions, a full-color, 80-page spread, is not the average welcometo-campus handbook. It is a detailed how-to guide with a variety of helpful hints on parking, campus safety, student services, and city life. “(The goal of Transitions is) to make an interesting magazine,” Print Production Manager Matt Dulin said. “Not some handbook that you would toss out without a second glance.” The magazine includes straightforward advice about beginning an academic career at UH see TRANSITIONS, page 3
travis Hensley The Daily Cougar
Pre-finals mania
I
t’s normal to be stressed out this time of year. With finals quickly approaching, many students are trying to get all their projects completed before they begin studying for their exams. Three weeks before finals week, which begins May 10, post-baccalaureate art student Emily Connor puts the final touches on her class projects.
Librarians look for ways to improve By Morgan Creager The Daily Cougar In honor of National Library Week, UH librarians are surveying the faculty and students about what they love about their library. The survey will help librarians celebrate their success and find areas the UH libraries can improve on. “I’m hoping we get a lot of helpful feedback from our students,” Architecture Librarian
Catherine Essinger said. “We want to give them the best services that we can, and to do that, they have to tell us what those services are.” Throughout the week, a survey will be available for faculty and students to provide feedback about the library’s services. The UH librarians have set up booths around various campus locations to give away prizes and answer questions that faculty or students may have about their library services.
“We need to know what people really want so we can expand (our) services,” Essinger said. Booths will be available at the UC Satellite on Thursday and Friday “(This) is a good week to think about (your) library,” Essinger said. All together, UH libraries own more than 2.5 million volumes, 81,000 journals and serialized literature, 20,000 electronic books and 387 computers for students to
use. The M.D. Anderson Memorial Library has also renovated its Learning Commons, providing students with more computer access and the ability to obtain any software needed, such as Adobe design suite, AutoCAD and more. “I would hope that our vision for the library (would) closely align with the needs of our students and see LIBRARY, page 3