Kenneth G. DeBono, the Gilbert R. Livingston Professor of Behavioral Science, and Sarah Serbun '06 were recently published in the North American Journal of Psychology. Their article, "On Appreciating the Music of Our Parents: The Role of the Parent-Child Bond," demonstrates that the stronger bond between parent and child, the more likely a child is to evaluate favorably their parent's musical preferences. The article represents Serbun's senior honors thesis research.
Andrew Rapoff, associate professor of mechanical engineering, along with anthropologists David Daegling and Michael Granatosky, of the University of Florida, and Scott McGraw of Ohio State University, published a paper in the American Journal of Physical Anthropology. The article, "Reduced Stiffness of Alveolar Bone in the Colobine Mandible," determined the variation in stiffness of bone adjacent to teeth in "found" specimens of two Old World monkey species using microindentation. The results support the hypothesis that bone stiffness is reduced in this region to mitigate the deleterious effect of high chewing forces on the ability of the bone to withstand these forces without breaking.
Chad Orzel, associate professor of physics, recently gave a presentation at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Washington, D.C. Orzel's talk, "What Physics Knowledge is Assessed in TIMSS Advanced 2008?" evaluated the content of physics tests by comparing them to college and high school curricula and tests developed through physics education research.
Melinda Lawson, visiting assistant professor of history, will kick of the One County/One Book program being sponsored by the Schenectady Public Library. Lawson will lead a discussion of Robin Oliveira's novel, "My Name is Mary Sutter." The program will be held at noon Monday, Feb. 28 at the central library, 99 Clinton St.