Congratulations to Dr. Hung-Chi Su, associate professor of computer science and department chair, who was appointed by Gov. Asa Hutchinson to the new State Computer Science and Cybersecurity Task Force. With members from education, industry and government, the task force will assess the state’s computer science and cybersecurity education programs and make recommendations for continuing and enhancing progress in computer science education.

A research article by Dr. Lori Neuman-Lee, assistant professor of herpetology, has been accepted by the Journal for Experimental Biology. Using field and hormone manipulation studies, researchers looked at how snakes increase their blood sugar in response to a stressful event. This increase was related to hormone increases, but the hormones did not seem to be directly responsible for the blood sugar increases.

Dr. Cameron Wimpy, assistant professor of political science, is co-author of a forthcoming article in Social Science Quarterly, “Abstention, Protest, and Residual Votes in the 2016 Election." The authors re-examine the residual vote measure constituted after the ballot-counting debacle in Florida. Their research has implications for the use of the residual vote as a metric for studying election administration and voting technologies.

The professional organization Graduate Women in Science has selected Dr. Elizabeth Hood, Samuel S. Lipscomb Professor in Agriculture, to receive its Florence R. Sabin Award for Research Excellence. She also received honorary national membership in the society, “. . . in recognition of her outstanding achievement in scientific research” for 2019. GWIS elects several senior honorary members each year, but presents only one research excellence award.

Starting in April 2014, the campus has seen 300 issues of Inside A-State and literally hundreds of items highlighting faculty and staff members for their academic and professional accomplishments. We are confident many more stories still need to be told. Thanks to everyone for your leads and tips; as we prepare to enter 2020, share your idea for a future edition.