Monday, January 6, 1997Arts and Architecture receives $500,000
gift
UCLA’s School of the Arts and Architecture received $500,000,
one of its largest gifts from a single individual, recently.
Donated by Albert Peskin as a lasting tribute to his late wife
Ruth, the gift will be used to establish the Ruth Peskin
Distinguished Artist Fund, which will help the school bring
distinguished artists, performers, cultural leaders and arts
scholars to campus.
"My desire in making this gift is to reflect on Ruth’s
appreciation for women in the arts," Peskin said.
By using the gift to establish a permanent endowment fund, the
donation will be used this year to bring Ben Vereen and Leslie
Uggams to the UCLA Center for Performing Arts on March 16.
"(This gift) will enable us at the School of the Arts and
Architecture to continue our mission to educate the cultural
leaders of the 21st century," School of the Arts and Architecture
Dean Daniel Neuman said. "At a time when state assistance provides
less than one quarter of the university’s entire budget, we are
deeply appreciative of this type of outstanding generosity from the
private sector."
UCLA scientists involved in new NASA observatory
Eric Becklin, UCLA professor of physics and astronomy, has been
appointed chief scientist for a new $484.2 million NASA project
that will study infrared radiation given off by planets, stars and
galaxies.
NASA’s Stratospheric Observatory For Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA)
project will study science topics from the nature and composition
of newly formed stars and planets to the birth of the
earliest-forming galaxies, said Becklin, a renowned expert in
infrared astronomy who conducted research aboard SOFIA’s
predecessor, the Kuiper Airborne Observatory.
"SOFIA will collect data 60 times faster than its predecessor
flying observatory and will have a clearer view of the far infrared
than all present or currently proposed infrared telescopes," added
Becklin, who was the first director of NASA’s Infrared Telescope
Facility in Hawaii.
A modified Boeing 747, SOFIA will fly in the Earth’s
stratosphere (between 41,000 and 45,000 feet) and carry an
eight-foot infrared telescope to view objects in the universe in
the infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum. At this
altitude, SOFIA will enable scientists to study radiant heat
patterns from stars, planets and other celestial sources.
Other UCLA scientists who will work on the project include Mark
Morris, professor of physics and astronomy; Ian McLean, professor
of physics and astronomy; and members of UCLA’s infrared imaging
lab.
The world’s largest flying astronomical observatory, SOFIA is
expected to begin flying in 2001 and to make more than 160
scientific flights per year.
Psychology professor Mays receives award
UCLA Psychology Professor Vickie Mays was presented the Black
Women in Health Profession award by the the Black Caucus of Health
Workers of the American Public Health Association in December.
The award was presented to Mays by the caucus for achievements
"that serve as inspiration for other black women in the health
professions."
Mays conducts studies of HIV in the African-American population
and, along with other UCLA professors, was recently awarded
$927,548 from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious
Diseases to study HIV in young African-American gay men.
The research will study the factors that contribute to
HIV-related risk-taking behavior in young African-American gay men
and seek ways to reduce their risk of contracting HIV and
transmitting that infection to others.
Compiled from Daily Bruin staff reports.On Dec. 5, 1996, the
Daily Bruin ran a caption accompanying an article titled "Swimmer
sacrifices paradise in determined pursuit of success" that
contained an error. The swimmer pictured was Lindsay Etter. The
Bruin regrets the error.