Riverside, Calif., Sept, 2001-- La Sierra's faculty have taken a collective deep breath after their busy summer of travel, research, teaching, and (sometimes!) vacationing, and are headed back to the classroom for the September 24 beginning of fall quarter.

Following are reports from some of the faculty, on their recent activities.

Biology
Lee Grismer, PhD, professor of biology, Hinrich Kaiser, PhD, associate professor of biology, and Jesse Grismer (LSU new freshman) each presented their research at the Annual Meeting of The Herpetologists’ League and the Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles in Indianapolis, Indiana, from June 27-30. The meeting was attended by over 400 delegates from all over the world and comprised several important symposia.

Kaiser and Jason Trujillo (biology sophomore) just returned from a highly successful expedition to Barbados, Trinidad, Tobago, and Venezuela. In Venezuela’s easternmost corner, the Peninsula de Paria, they made a host of discoveries, including as many as eight species new to science, new records, and a significant range extension.

Grismer and Kaiser led a team of scientists and instructors to train 13 LSU students in tropical fieldwork on Tioman Island, Malaysia. The trip was a resounding success, with the discovery of at least three new species, several new island records, and the establishment of the first baseline study on amphibians and reptiles for Aur Island, the remotest island of that archipelago. Two papers co-authored by the group are in press in the international journal Hamadryad.

Ryan Van Deventer, technical associate of the biology department, and his wife Susan wanted to go to Alaska from the day they married. Each year they put off the trip until they had been married for 25 years, but they still had not been to Alaska. This time they decided to wait for their 30th wedding anniversary. But their two daughters and 65 other friends would not allow them to wait another five years. The Van Deventers were surprised when they were given an Alaskan cruise for their wedding anniversary over Sept. 2-9. Van Deventer says: "It was a fabulous and memorable trip and I am humbled by such a wonderful gift from so many friends."

Business and Management
Siddharth Swaminathan, PhD, assistant professor, School of Business and Management, presented a study titled "The Asian Challenge," co-authored with Jacek Kugler (Claremont Graduate University) and Ronald Tammen (Portland State University)) at the Annual Meeting of the American Political Science Association in San Francisco (Aug. 29-Sept 1, 2001. This study forecasts demographic and economic growth in China and India and outlines the structure of world politics in the 21st century.

Modern Languages
During the weekend of August 17-19, 2001, Lourdes Morales-Gudmundsson, PhD, chair of modern languages, was the keynote speaker for the women’s spiritual retreat sponsored by the Panama Conference in Panama City, Panama and held at the Hotel Soloy. Over 500 women were in attendance and some 450 were turned away for lack of space. Dr. Morales-Gudmundsson presented two sermons and a seminar on the topic of forgiveness and reconciliation, and on Sunday, presented the seminar to the pastors and wives of the Panama Conference in the historic Iglesia de la Castellana in the same city.

Music
Elvin S. Rodríguez, EdD, professor of music, performed with Dr. Lyndon Johnston Taylor, Artist in Residence, in the John Fetzer Society’s Second Annual Recital in Berrien Springs, Michigan on June 24. Portions of the recital were performed later in the summer for the Presidential Portraits Preview in the Brandstater Gallery on August 18. As part of a commission from the Spanish evangelist at the Texas Conference, Rodríguez worked on a project to arrange and record hymns, using classical music as a vehicle for the arrangements. The project resulted in a CD and video that combines the musical arrangements with scenes from the Holy Land. The recordings involved a student in the Music Technology program which is officially getting started this year. Most of August and early September have been devoted to planning, installing, and organizing a Music Technology program. The goal is to provide students with a minor by year’s end, and they are working on a major by next year at this time. The program will house three main labs: a general music technology/keyboard lab for use in introductory level teaching, a recording studio which will allow recording on site, and an electronic music studio for more exposure to hardware, software, and 20th century compositional techniques. They hope to become one of very few places in Southern California where students can acquire a degree in Music Technologies.

Psychology
Leslie Martin, PhD, assistant professor of psychology, presented an invited paper in Sweden the end of August. Titled "Personality Predictors of Health and Disease Across the Life Span," it was presented at the sixteenth World Congress on Psychosomatic Medicine in Sweden.
Martin is the co-author of Health Psychology, a book she wrote with M. Robin Dimatteo. About the book, Martin says, "I teach health psychology, I am a health psychologist, and none of the books out there completely met my needs so I thought it would be good to write one." The book is expected to be published on November 9, 2001. Comments on the book include: "A general and comprehensive introduction. Topics include: social and cultural considerations, psychological contributors to and treatments of illness, institutions, future outlook. Seventy-three pages of references." (Book News, Inc). You can read information on the book at amazon.com.

Social Work
Sigrid James, MSW, assistant professor in the Social Work program, was awarded a $25,000 dissertation grant by the National Institutes of Mental Health. James is a doctoral candidate at the University of Southern California and is conducting her dissertation research at the Child and Adolescent Services Research Center in San Diego. Her dissertation will investigate mental health service utilization of children in out-of-home care in relation to foster care placement stability. As such, this study will shed light on processes in two complex service systems that affect the lives of children in foster care.

Physics
Richard Bobst, associate professor of physics, accompanied by his wife Patricia, attended the annual summer meeting of the American Association of Physics Teachers held in early August in Rochester, NY. Then in early September they traveled to Camp Hope, British Columbia, where Richard gave a series of three invited lectures on astronomy to the Northwest SAGE Convention jointly sponsored by the Washington and Oregon Conferences.

Ivan Rouse, PhD, professor of physics, and his wife Beverley enjoyed an 11-day Trafalgar Tour of England, Scotland, and Wales. Upon returning to London they spent another week on their own visiting museums and famous sites around the city. Ivan’s family has roots in Scotland and Wales, so it was an especially interesting time for him to connect with his heritage.

Edwin Karlow, PhD, professor of physics, and his wife Marilyn, analyst and student advisor for the Evening Adult Degree Program, found their way to Jerome, AZ, an old copper mining town about two hours from Sedona. They stayed in the Jerome Grand Hotel (a remodeled 1920’s hospital declared to be state-of-the-art in its day), took the Verde Canyon Railroad into the spectacular Verde Canyon (the only way to reach it), and finally camped at White Horse Lake 20 miles south of Williams, AZ, a place so quiet you could hear your heart beating!