SIGMA XI
The Charlotte Area Chapter Newsletter
Volume 9 Issue 2 May 2003
Science Forum: Communicating Science to a NonTechnical Audience
A reception and science forum on communicating
science to a non-technical audience was held on March
31, 2003 from 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. at Discovery Place
Wachovia Science Theater. This forum, sponsored by
Sigma Xi, the American Chemical Society, and the
Charlotte Area Science Network, featured award
winning scientist and author, Dr. Cathy Cobb, and a
panel of scientists and communicators from the
Charlotte area. Jim Hoffman, Director of Marketing and
Public Relation for Discovery Place served as the MC
for the event and commentary was provided by a the
following panelists:
 Lee Kindberg, CMS School Board member,
Sigma Xi member and chemist
 Jim Hovick, UNC Charlotte Chemistry
Professor, and Sigma Xi member
 John Wendel, Meteorologist for NBC6
 Dan McDonald, American Chemical Society
and Sigma Xi member
Copies of Dr. Cobb’s books Creations of Fire: The
Lively History of Chemistry from Alchemy to the Atomic
Age (Plenum, 1995) and Magick, Mayhem, and
Mavericks: The Spirited History of Physical Chemistry,
(Prometheus Books) can be obtained at your favorite
local bookstore.
Future forums are being planned, and your input on your
level of interest in the following topics and times would
be valuable for planning purposes. Please provide your
feedback on the following questions to Jack Sommer,
jacksommer@aol.com, chair of the Charlotte Area
Science Network’s task group focused on Educating the
Public.
 What days of the week are best for a forum?
 What time of day is best?
 What topics are of interest?
 Nuclear Energy?
 Biotechnology?
 Human Genome Project?
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Environment/Energy?
Public Health/Bioterrorism?
Nanotechnology?
Other?
Sigma Xi Membership Meeting
Immediately following the science forum on March 31st
a chapter membership meeting was held at Discovery
Place in the Wachovia Science Theater. The agenda
included an update on recent and upcoming chapter
initiatives, details of the science celebration event
including NEW Prize and award opportunities, plans for
a southeast regional research conference, membership
and officer recruitment, and presentation of certificates
to new members John Antonucci and Ashley Dunham.
Welcome John and Ashley!
Regional Science Fair
Eleven students, five from Charlotte Mecklenburg
Schools, who competed in the Regional Science Fair
held in Charlotte on April 5th were selected to compete
in the state competition at Meredith College in Raleigh.
In addition, two of those students also went on to
participate in the Intel International Science and
Engineering Fair in Cleveland.
The fair was the first for the area in over five years and
it’s the first time North Carolina will send a
representative to the ISEF, the world's largest precollege science competition. At the ISEF,
approximately 1,200 students from all 50 states and 40
foreign countries, will compete for over $3 million in
scholarships, tuition grants, scientific equipment and
scientific trips.
Teresa Williams, outreach specialist for NASA’s NC
Space Grant consortium at UNC Charlotte, led the
regional competition. In addition to strong commitment
from UNC Charlotte, establishing the regional science
fair was also supported by the Charlotte Area Science
Network (CASN), including several Sigma Xi members.
SIGMA XI
With CASN member Discovery Place as its hub of
public appreciation of science, CASN is hosting public
forums on science topics and is actively involved with
promoting science initiatives, such as science fairs, in
schools in the Charlotte area.
Members of the network including Sigma Xi Chapter
President Hilary Davidson and Steve Huggins secured
corporate sponsors (the Duke Energy Foundation and
Goodrich Corporation) for the event, providing funding
for the regional winners to compete at the state and
international levels. Sigma Xi members instrumental in
helping recruit and serve as judges were Chapter
Treasurer Linda Simpson, Assistant Chair of UNC
Charlotte’s Biology Department and Sigma Xi Chapter
member, Lee Kindberg, CMS Board of Education
representative. Other CASN members instrumental in
helping with the science fair include: Mary Sherburne,
science advocate; David Royster, Director of UNC
Charlotte’s Center for Math, Science & Technology
Education; and Ted Sherburne, President Emeritus of
Science Service, which administers the ISEF.
Sigma Xi Celebration of Undergraduate Research
The award ceremonies and reception, sponsored by
Goodrich Corporation, were held at Discovery Place’s
Wachovia Science Theater from 6:00 - 8:30 p.m.
Among the featured speakers at this event were John
Mackay, President of Discovery Place; Steve Huggins,
Senior VP at Goodrich Corporation; Linda Simpson,
Chapter Treasurer and Assistant Chair of the UNC
Charlotte Biology Department; Jack Sommer, President
of PERI and Sigma Xi Southeast Regional Director; and
Pat Sculley, Executive Director of Sigma Xi.
This year, nineteen undergraduate researchers along with
their research mentors from science, mathematics, and
engineering departments in the Charlotte Area
Educational Consortium were honored at this event.
The 2003 Award recipients are:
From Davidson College honorees included Emily
Oldham (mentor Dr. Mike Dorcas) and Kristine Grayson
(mentor Dr. Malcolm Campbell) for biology; Soren
Johnson (mentor Dr. Julio Ramirez) for neuroscience;
Adam Abele (mentors Dr. Wolfgang Christian and Dr.
Mario Belloni) for physics; Paul Abbott Bryant (mentor
Dr. Mark Smith) and Kindiya Deema Geghman, (mentor
Dr. Kristi Multhaup) for psychology.
From Johnson C. Smith University honorees included
Kristen Wright (mentor Dr. B.K. Chopra) for Biology;
Sandra Lloyd and David Lang (mentor Dr. Joseph Fail)
for natural sciences.
From Queens University honorees included Rebekah
Howell (mentors Dr. Reed Perkins and Dr. Andy
Tucker) for environmental science.
Pat Sculley, Executive Director of Sigma Xi
On April 24, 2003, the Charlotte Chapter of Sigma Xi in
partnership with the Charlotte Area Science Network
hosted the annual Celebration of Undergraduate
Research, the Outstanding Science Educator Awards,
and the new PERI Prize for the public understanding of
science (details provided in this newsletter.) Linda
Simpson, Chapter Treasurer, coordinated this signature
chapter event in style like she has for a decade!
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From UNC Charlotte honorees includes Kelly Donahoe
(mentor Dr. Stan Schneider) for biology; Joshua Mull
(mentor Dr. Craig Ogle) for chemistry; Brian Zapata
(mentor Dr. David Young) for civil engineering;
Nathaniel Sipe (mentor Dr. Walter Martin) for earth
science; Andrew Sumerel (mentor Dr. Michael Corwin)
for physics; Lyndsie Horn (mentor Dr. Jane Gaultney)
for Psychology.
From Winthrop University honorees included Jennifer
O'Neal (mentor Dr. Christian Grattan) and Jerry Dixon
(mentor Dr. Cliff Calloway) for chemistry; Sarah Yount
(mentors Dr. James Johnston and Dr. Laura Glasscock)
for biology.
SIGMA XI
Outstanding Science Educator Awards
PERI Prize for Public Understanding of Science –
Linda Simpson, Treasurer and Secretary of the Charlotte
Chapter of Sigma Xi
Jack Sommer, PERI President and Southeast Regional
Director of Sigma Xi and 2003 PERI Prize winner Scott
Hippensteel
The Charlotte Chapter of Sigma Xi is pleased to
announce the 2nd annual Outstanding Science Educator
Award Winners. These awards, established in 2002,
honor elementary, junior high school, and senior high
school science educators in this region who share their
energy and enthusiasm for science through creative and
innovative methods that inspire students to get involved
in science and discovery both in and out of the
classroom.
This year, eight area K-12 science teachers were chosen
for their contributions to raising the quality of science
instruction in area schools.
The winners of the 2003 Outstanding Science
Educator Awards are:
High School Teachers: Linda Yoder, physics teacher,
East Lincoln High School, Denver; Pam Patterson,
chemistry teacher, Scotland High School, Rockingham;
Larry DeMontegre, Concord High School, Concord; and
Cindy Moss, biology teacher, Independence High
School, Charlotte.
Middle school teachers: Cathy Reynolds, China Grove
Middle School, China Grove; and Jeff Warner, Charles
C. Erwin Middle School, Salisbury.
Elementary school teachers: Angie Larner, Math and
Science Facilitator, Morehead Academy, Charlotte; and
Gray Donohoe, Science Facilitator, Collinswood
Elementary, Charlotte.
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Also included in the April 24th Science Celebration event
was the presentation of the Political Economy Research
Institute (PERI) Prize for the encouragement and
enhancement of public understanding of science and
technology. PERI, headed by President Jack Sommer, is
a private, non-partisan, tax-exempt educational
foundation whose objective is to support the growth of a
free and open society based on the protection of
individual rights and the recognition of individual
responsibility.
Finalists for the prize included Sigma Xi members:
Dr. Paul W. Foos, UNC Charlotte Department of
Psychology; Dr. Paula Goolkasian, UNC Charlotte
Department of Psychology; Dr. Scott P. Hippensteel,
UNC Charlotte Department of Geography & Earth
Sciences; and Dr. Todd R. Steck, UNC Charlotte
Department of Biology
The winner of the PERI Prize was UNC Charlotte
Assistant Professor Scott Hippensteel of the university’s
Department of Geography and Earth Sciences. He was
awarded a $500 prize for a 1999 article published in the
journal PALEO on a study of the evolution of Folly
Island, SC. Participants were asked to submit previous
published articles with a 400-500 word summary
elucidating the nature of the research and its implication
for society. A panel of judges unrelated to the Sigma Xi
Chapter and experienced in media work selected the
winner based on how well the summary was prepared
for an interested, non-specialist general audience.
Congratulations to UNC Charlotte for its outstanding
scholars!
SIGMA XI
Charlotte Area Science Network
The officers of the Charlotte Chapter of Sigma Xi have
played an integral role in building the newly established
Charlotte Area Science Network (CASN). Check out
the last page of the current issue of American Scientist!
The mission of this network is to foster community,
education and industry partnerships to promote science
for life in the Charlotte area. Together with other
CASN members including participants from Discovery
Place, American Chemical Society, UNC Charlotte,
Duke Energy, Charlotte-Mecklenburg schools and
School Board, American Industrial Hygiene Association,
Science Service, Goodrich Corporation, Carolinas
Medical Center and the Arts & Science Council, the
following goals have been established:
1. Market science as fun and integral to life
2. Elevate the science knowledge level of the general
public, the media, and specific influentials
3. Develop Science Champions
4. Build Science Networks
5. Support the schools
6. Position Discovery Place as the hub for public
appreciation of science in Charlotte
7. Leverage science events, competitions, and
resources
To focus on achieving the goals, the following three task
groups have been established. As members of the
Charlotte Chapter of Sigma Xi, you are invited to
become involved in any or all of them by contacting
Hilary Davidson at hsdavids@duke-energy.com.
1. Support the schools (science and technology
related support for primary & secondary schools
in the Charlotte area)
2. Build science networks (identify and involve
businesses and other organizations with an
interest in supporting science and technology
education initiatives in the Charlotte area)
3. Educate the public (to elevate science
knowledge levels in the Charlotte area.)
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Upcoming events supported by the Charlotte Chapter of
Sigma Xi and the Charlotte Area Science Network
include:
 Planning for 2004 regional science fair
 Planning for a regional research conference to be
held in January 2004.
Recent events supported by the Charlotte Chapter of
Sigma Xi and the Charlotte Area Science Network
Members include:
 4/24/03 Sigma Xi Celebration of Undergraduate
Research, Outstanding Science Educator
Awards, and PERI Prize for public
understanding of science.
 4/5/03 Regional Science Fair, Barnhardt Student
Activities Center at UNC Charlotte.
 3/31/03 Charlotte Chapter of Sigma Xi
membership meeting and new member
recognition.
 3/31/03 Charlotte Area Science Network
Science Forum: Communicating Science to a
Non-technical Audience featuring award
winning scientist and author, Dr. Cathy Cobb.
 3/1/03 Science Olympiad at J.C. Smith
University
 2/23-25/03 North Carolinas Juniors Symposium
in Humanities and Science, sponsored by the
UNC Charlotte Center for Math Science &
Technology Education, the Charlotte Chapter of
Sigma Xi, the Charlotte Area Science Network,
and others
There is opportunity for other organizations and
individuals to participate in the Charlotte Area Science
Network. Many Sigma Xi members are employed by, or
active in other organizations that could also bring value
to this network. If you would be interested in
becoming involved in any of the task groups,
activities, or in learning more about the Charlotte
Area Science Network, please contact Hilary
Davidson at hsdavids@duke-energy.com.
Charlotte Chapter List Serve
A listserve, or member e-mail distribution list, has been
established for the Charlotte Chapter! If you have
comments on this newsletter, have news for other
chapter members, or wish to have dialogue among
chapter members, you can send a note to the following
address: Ch561@listserver.sigmaxi.org.
SIGMA XI
Sigma Xi Southeast Regional Director News
Chapter presidents from across the South East Region
attended the annual Assembly of Delegates in Galveston.
Three one-hour meetings of the region yielded three
Task Forces to develop activities of chapters in the
region. One task force is organizing the responses from
the region with respect to the Sigma Xi Strategic Plan
[see Sigma Xi website at www.sigmaxi.org]. A second
task force is gathering ideas for a proposal to the region
concerning collaborative alliances with overseas
chapters of the Society. A third task force has endorsed
a Regional Research Conference aimed at joining
faculty and students in multidisciplinary presentations of
ideas around a common theme.
Already, the Charlotte Chapter, in conjunction with the
Charlotte Area Science Network and other Sigma Xi
chapters is planning to host the first Regional Research
Conference in Charlotte January 30-31, 2004. The
theme of the conference is “Speed: Science and
Celerity.” The topics of the conference will range across
a broad spectrum of scientific and engineering fields. A
call for session chairs and paper submissions will be sent
out in May. This conference will be a test run for Sigma
Xi to discover the viability of such conferences to rotate
throughout the major geographical divisions of the
Society. Those interested in this project, please contact
Jack Sommer, Southeast Regional Director of Sigma Xi.
The Southeast region stretches from the northern border
of North Carolina across to the Mississippi River and
south to the Texas border. Jack began his term of office
in July 2002 and will serve through June 2005. He
invites any chapter members to email him with ideas and
questions at jacksommer@aol.com.
The Sigma Xi Center, a new home for the Society in
Research Triangle Park, broke ground in late March and
the construction of this exciting facility is anticipated by
the end of the year. It will provide greatly enhanced
space for operations and for the conduct of forums both
large and small.
Soon Sigma Xi will launch an on-line weekly digest of
science news. This will be a capsule version of news of
a scientific nature, complete with links to urls for the
original research. Those in teaching may find this an
invaluable source for classroom purposes.
The Board of Directors of Sigma Xi, in consultation with
the International Committee, has initiated discussions on
the possibility of reconstituting a chapter of the Society
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in the Middle East, the chapter at the American
University of Beirut having ceased activities a few years
ago. Jack Sommer would be interested to know if there
are individuals in our chapter who might like to explore
this possibility with him.
The next two meetings of the Assembly of Delegates
will occur in Los Angeles in November 2003, followed
by Montreal in November 2004. Either the president or
the president-elect attends the Assembly meeting.
Charlotte Chapter Membership
Do you have colleagues or coworkers who have shown
noteworthy achievements in a field of pure or applied
research? Honor their efforts by nominating them for
membership in Sigma Xi. Increasing our membership
will increase the amount of local support funds that we
receive from Sigma Xi that in turn will enable us to
support more programs. Nomination forms are available
from the Chapter President or Sigma Xi headquarters at
www.sigmaxi.org.
New Student Membership Initiative: Do you have
students who have shown aptitude and interest in
research? Consider nominating them for associate
membership in the Society. Many Sigma Xi members
were first elected as students. To encourage members to
nominate students, the chapter has set aside funds to pay
for the initiation of a limited number of student
members. If you have a graduate or outstanding
undergraduate that you’d like to nominate, submit your
nominations soon as funds are limited for this project.
Has your Membership Lapsed?
You may be reinstated without having to pay back dues,
by checking out the membership information at:
www.sigmaxi.org/membership/meminfo.htm
Charlotte Chapter of Sigma Xi Officer Positions
2003 - 2004 Chapter Officers Needed!
Are you interested in being an officer of this chapter?
Is there someone you wish to nominate?
We will be accepting nominations for the following
positions: President, President-elect, Treasurer and
Secretary positions. Please send any nominations
(including self nominations) to Hilary Davidson or
Linda Simpson by May 29th, 2003.
SIGMA XI
Election of new officers will occur in June 2003, with
the new term of office beginning July 1, 2003.
2002-03 Chapter Officers
President:
Hilary Davidson
Duke Energy Corporation
P.O. Box 1006 ECI-12ZA
Charlotte, NC 28202
704-373-5738
hsdavids@duke-energy.com
Treasurer & Secretary:
Linda M. Simpson
UNC Charlotte, Department of Biology
9201 University City Blvd.
Charlotte, NC 28223-0001
704-687-4063
lmsimpso@email.uncc.edu
Past President: John Buckley, PE
Attorney at Law
8902 Horsecroft Court
Waxhaw, NC 28173
704-258-3889
jcbuckley@aol.com
Southeast Regional Director:
Dr. Jack Sommer
Political Economy Research Institute
9211 North Tryon Street #4-187
Charlotte, NC 28262
704-779-2824
jacksommer@aol.com
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