A team of researchers lead by Dr. Thomas Ratliff, assistant professor of criminology, has published an article in Computers in Human Behavior, one of the top 10 journals on human-computer interaction. For a National Institute of Justice grant, lead author Dr. Matthew Costello, assistant professor of sociology, along with Ratliff, former master's student Tyler Grantham and James Hawdon of Virginia Tech analyzed who is likely to view online materials maligning various groups. Details are online.

An article by Dr. Justin Castro, assistant professor of Latin American history, was published in the latest Arkansas Historical Quarterly. The article examines the interplay of Mexican agricultural laborers, Arkansas politicians, labor organizations and the civil rights movement from World War II to 1964. Castro argues there was a direct relationship between Mexican policies, bracero labor in the South, and the course of U.S. labor and civil rights movements.

Five faculty members are mentors for undergraduate science majors this summer through the Biotechnology Research Internship Program at the Arkansas Biosciences Institute (ABI). The five are Dr. Brett Savary (right), research professor of protein chemistry, Dr. Maureen Dolan, associate professor of biology, Dr. Fabricio Medina-Bolivar, professor of biology, Dr. Malathi Srivatsan, professor of molecular biology, and Dr. Jianfeng Xu, research associate professor. Details are online.

In Keeping Current, the newsletter from Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Region 6 Mitigation, one of the articles features A-State's Regional Center for Disaster Preparedness Education, which is directed by Dr. Deborah Persell, professor of disaster preparedness and emergency management. The center is helping answer a growing demand for training by offering online and classroom-based courses, and training opportunities with professional emergency responders.

Dr. Jody Long, assistant professor of social work, recently gave a presentation about mental illness and geriatrics for Total Life Healthcare at St. Bernards Medical Center. While many think the most common mental illness among elderly is depression, it actually is anxiety. Long said most older adults suffer from some form of anxiety because of life changes such as loss of spouse, finances, health problems and lack of independence.