Discover 2012

Discover MARQUETTE UNIVERSITY RESEARCH AND SCHOLARSHIP 2012

The science of making friends Helping teens with autism

W

elcome to the 2012 edition of Discover magazine, highlighting some

of the exciting research and scholarship of Marquette University’s talented faculty, ranging from fundamental work in individual disciplines to innovative, and often interdisciplinary, approaches to solving some of the most critical issues of our time.

Marquette has a strong tradition of scholarship in the humanities. Civil War historian James Marten, winner of Marquette’s 2010 Haggerty Award for Research Excellence, examines issues faced by Civil War veterans in his most recent book, published during the sesquicentennial of the Civil War. Margaret Urban Walker, recently recruited to Marquette as the Donald J. Schuenke Chair in Philosophy, explores reparative justice and the social and political conditions of moral accountability.

Marquette scientists are also making impressive advances in their fields, including Chung Hoon Lee’s pioneering work in nanotechnology. Another interdisciplinary strength at Marquette is in health-related research. Robert Wheeler’s state-of-the-art research in basic neuroscience is providing a better understanding of how neural regulation of emotion exerts control over adaptive and maladaptive behavior, while Amy Van Hecke’s work with autistic children and teens takes an innovative approach to evaluating the impact of the PEERS intervention on the brain. Marianne Weiss, along with her Marquette collaborators Kathleen Bobay and Olga Yakusheva, provides insight into how factors such as nurse staffing and overtime hours affect readmission rates and emergency room visits. Due to the work of these scholars and others on campus, Marquette is well poised to take a leadership role in the emerging regional consortium designed to improve health care access and delivery through a focus on economics and innovation.

The featured scholars described above provide a glimpse of some of the important work being done at Marquette today; additional short features and the bookshelf section provide other great examples. I invite you to also explore marquette.edu/research for more examples of Marquette research and scholarship.

Dr. Jeanne M. Hossenlopp Vice Provost for Research

Discover MARQUETTE UNIVERSITY RESEARCH AND SCHOLARSHIP 2012

2 The science of making friends An innovative program for teenagers with autism is changing lives — and the brain.

6 Coming home Dr. James Marten explores the postwar lives of Civil War veterans in his new book.

8 Architect of the infinitesimal Dr. Chung Hoon Lee’s nanostructures are helping to electrify and illuminate science’s tiniest frontier.

12 The tragedy of addiction Dr. Robert Wheeler is trying to solve the mysteries of motivation in cocaine addicts.

14 In search of justice In a world still plagued with war and political violence, what is the role of reparative justice?

IN BRIEF 18 Speak for yourself 19 Awake for genes

A new look for school counseling

20 Fighting pollution, one molecule at a time

The philosophy of art

21 The ethics of pinkwashing

What’s the value of a legal brief?

22 On a mission to improve refugee dental care 23 Poking holes in the golden parachute

Engineering safer roads

24 Marquette bookshelf 25 Research and scholarship at Marquette

16 Go home, stay home New research examines the connection between nursing workload and patients’ readmission rates.

Discover: Marquette University Research and Scholarship is published annually by the Office of Marketing and Communication.

Editor: Nicole Sweeney Etter, nicole.etter@marquette.edu Designer: Joan Holcomb, joan.holcomb@marquette.edu Contributing writers: Jessie Bazan, April Beane, Andrew Brodzeller, Tim Cigelske, Stephen Filmanowicz, Becky Dubin Jenkins, Brigid Miller, Charles Nevsimal, Christopher Stolarski and Kate Venne Cover illustration: Stephanie Dalton Cowan Photography: Dan Johnson, Ben Smidt Stock images: iStockphoto.com, Jupiterimages.com, Stock Illustration Source

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Discover

The science of making friends How an innovative program for teenagers with autism is changing lives — and the brain

By Nicole Sweeney Etter Fifteen-year-old Nick Sansone, who has autism, has always struggled to make and keep friends. But after the 14-week PEERS program at Marquette, the Highland, Ind., teen started high school with a new set of tools: how to start a conversation. How to exit gracefully when it’s not going well. How to find his niche.

“Before I started doing this group, I didn’t have any friends and wasn’t involved with anybody or anything at my school. But now, I have switched schools and have been talking to kids there and slowly building friendships,” says Nick, who is now active in his school’s book club, film society and theatre program, even landing a small role in It’s a Wonderful Life.

Until now, most autism research has focused on what children with autism can’t do. Dr. Amy Van Hecke, assistant professor of psychology at Marquette, is setting out to show what autistic kids can do. First developed at UCLA, the research-based PEERS (Program for the Enrichment and Education of Relational Skills) teaches autistic teens how to make friends.

Marquette’s PEERS program, the only one in the Midwest, has quickly become a sought-after resource.

Illustration by Stephanie Dalton Cowan Marquette University

3

Students who participate show external

and some drive for hours to attend

measures of progress, including more

the weekly sessions.

friends and get-togethers and improved

Van Hecke first became interested

social skills that help them navigate

in autistic brain activity while studying

the tricky social waters of middle and

the neurological and physiological

high school.

responses in children with autism to

But Van Hecke is the first to examine whether the PEERS intervention changes kids’ brains. And, indeed, it does. Using

people they know and people they don’t know.

“Much of the research is ‘They

electroencephalography to compare

don’t do this, and they don’t do that,

teens’ brain activity before and after the

and they lack this.’ And what I’ve

14-week program, she has seen signifi-

seen is that children with autism will

cant changes in the parietal-temporal

do much more with someone who is

lobe, which is related to social behaviors,

familiar to them,” she says. “It’s when we

becomes increasingly isolated. About half

and in the frontal lobe, the “executive,”

bring this unfamiliar tester in the room

of autistic kids have average or high IQs,

decision-making part of the brain.

that they shut down.”

and it’s only their social interactions that

“Even though autism is considered a brain-based disorder, no intervention to

Amy Van Hecke

Sure enough, she found that autistic children had the same neurological

reveal that anything’s wrong, she says.

“You’ll say, ‘Oh, Johnny is interested

date, anywhere, for any age group, has

responses as children without autism

in video games, and you’re interested

ever looked at dynamic change in the

when reading a story with their care-

in video games. What could you do if

autistic brain due to intervention,” Van

giver — but their heart rate sped up in

you hung out together?’ And they’ll have

Hecke says.

the presence of the nonparent. “So really

no idea. You have to make that leap

the heart of autism is a mobilization or

for them,” she says. “The shy kid will

do has never been more important.

a flight or fight response to unfamiliar

still know what to do, but the action is

“Autism rates are increasing at an expo-

people. It’s not all people,” she says.

impaired. In autism, it’s both the knowing

The focus on what autistic kids can

nential rate. We went from 1 in 10,000

But that fear of others can cause

and the action. They may want to make

in the 1980s, and now we’re down to

problems as the child enters school and

friends, but they don’t understand how.”

1 in 110. The rate of increase is alarming, and the autism research community

Figure 1: Pre-intervention alpha EEG activity in

is very focused on understanding why.

participants with autism. Red indicates more activity,

However, it’s also crucial to help people

white indicates moderate to low activity and blue shading indicates even lower activity. Activity shown is

with autism lead satisfying lives now,”

in the alpha frequency band, which is inverse to overall

Van Hecke says.

brain activity. This image depicts low activity in temporal-parietal areas responsible for social

Marquette’s PEERS program started

information processing.

in fall 2010, and 35 students have gone through it so far. Though Van Hecke is still gathering more data — using kids on

Figure 2: Post-intervention alpha EEG activity.

Figure 1

Figure 2

information processing.

group — she plans to present her early

Figure 3: Pre-intervention gamma EEG activity. Activity

findings at the International Meeting for

shown is in the gamma frequency band. This image depicts low-moderate activity in frontal areas responsible

Autism Research in Toronto in May.

for social decision-making.

With funding from the Autism Society

Figure 4: Post-intervention gamma EEG activity. This

of Southeast Wisconsin, Marquette is

image shows increased neural activity in frontal areas

able to offer PEERS to families for free.

Pennsylvania have asked to participate, 4

Discover

activity. This image shows increased neural activity in temporal-parietal areas responsible for social

the program’s waiting list as the control

Families from as far as Montana and

White shading shows a decrease in alpha band

responsible for social decision-making.

Figure 3

Figure 4

Other autism research at Marquette Dr. Norah Johnson, assistant professor of nursing, is developing

because these children often have sensory deficits as well as motor

interventions to decrease challenging behaviors and anxiety in children

coordination deficits, and yet little is known of the etiology of these

with autism during health care encounters. She is testing an iPad

deficits or their learning deficits in general,” he says. Doctoral student

application to see if preparing families in advance can reduce parent and

Nicole Salowitz examined visuospatial processing differences between

child anxiety and speed up procedure time during X-rays.

children with autism and a control group, thought to be a significant

Dr. Abir Bekhet, assistant professor of nursing, studies the effects

contributor to autistic children’s movement problems.

of positive cognitions, resourcefulness, and resilience in overcoming

Wendy Krueger, clinical instructor with the Marquette University

stress and adversity in vulnerable populations. Bekhet, with funding from

Speech and Hearing Clinic, is incorporating music into speech-language

the American Psychiatric Nurses Foundation, is working with Johnson to

therapy sessions with young children with autism to see if it leads to a

examine how nurses can help promote the health and functioning of

significant increase in skills. An early pilot showed that music can be

caregivers of those with autism spectrum disorders.

used to calm or energize a child and keep him or her focused on therapy.

Dr. Robert Scheidt, associate professor of biomedical engineering,

“Perhaps most exciting, however, has been the increased engagement,

studies motor control in children with autism. His lab’s overall focus is on

awareness of others and verbal output that we have seen when

how the brain uses sensory information to guide learning of movements

clinicians communicate with the child via singing rather than speaking,”

with the body. “Autistic children are an important population to study

Krueger says.

But PEERS isn’t just about improving a teen’s social life. Numerous studies have

especially plastic, making it the perfect time to forge new pathways.

One of the post-program measures is how often the teens are invited out by

shown the detrimental effect social

For an hour and a half each week, the

isolation can have on physical and

teens meet with a trained facilitator while

has been around longer, shows that the

mental health, including increasing one’s

their parents meet separately. PEERS

program’s influence lasts even three and

risk of depression, anxiety and suicide.

breaks down the social instincts that

five years later.

“Having at least one good relationship

many take for granted. For example, to

others. Data from UCLA’s program, which

“It’s like we’re teaching these kids to

— it’s quality, not quantity — is protec-

break into a circle of people talking, you

fish socially … once they get that kick,

tive. And these kids who are isolated

first eavesdrop to find a natural opening,

that boost, they’re on a different path,”

— if we don’t ameliorate that, they’re

then wait for a pause before interjecting.

Van Hecke says.

just continuing on a path of negative

If the circle doesn’t let you in, you feign

outcomes. The areas of the brain that

an excuse and slip away.

respond to social stimulation may atrophy,

“We all know what to do when things

and once they atrophy, there’s not a lot

get awkward. But kids with autism don’t,”

we can do,” she says.

she says. “So we teach them how to get

Marquette’s program targets students 11–16 because Wisconsin only provides

out of a situation and keep their cool.”

Another session focuses on cliques

For the Sansones, PEERS was worth the four-hour round-trip drive every week, even if Nick’s progress is slow but steady.

“He definitely puts himself out there more. He hasn’t made any great friends yet, but he’s building a nice base of

intensive intervention until age 11, though

and crowds so that teens can figure

acquaintances,” Michael Sansone says of

the program will expand to autistic young

out which group they might fit in with

his son. “He likes school for the first time

adults this fall.

best. And there’s homework, too: Make

in years, so that’s a big step, and we’re

a phone call. Invite a classmate to hang

confident friends will come in time.”²

“We’re really trying to fill a gap in the community,” says Van Hecke.

But puberty is also a critical intervention point because preadolescent brains are

out. Parents are assigned to help their kids find a new extracurricular that could give them a fresh social platform.

Marquette University

5

Coming home Dr. James Marten explores the postwar lives of Civil War veterans

By Jessie Bazan

F

rom the decisive battle at Gettysburg to the bloody battle of Antietam, America’s Civil War was filled with some of the most unforgettable clashes in our country’s history. Northern and Southern soldiers alike entered each new conflict with a strong sense of pride and commitment to the present struggle. But what happened to these men after the final gunshots? Dr. James Marten, Marquette professor and chair of the Department of History, explores the postwar lives of these veterans in his new book, Sing Not War: The Lives of Union & Confederate Veterans in Gilded Age America.

As a child growing up in South Dakota, backyard games of “Army” and

the other ones we don’t know much

Kurt Russell action movies sparked

about.” So Marten delved deeper into

Marten’s fascination with the Civil War

the veterans’ lives.

at a young age. The allure of America’s

Marten researched the book off and

deadliest internal struggle followed

on over 16 years. For firsthand accounts

Marten into adulthood and to Marquette,

and stories from veterans, he searched

where he has spent his time researching,

out 19th-century veterans’ newspapers

teaching and writing about everything

like the American Tribune and the

their families and former communities.

from the war’s effect on children to

Confederate Veteran. He found a particu-

While only a small percentage of return-

displaced soldiers on the edges of

larly unusual, if small, set of sources at

ing soldiers ended up in homes, their

society. In his latest book, Sing Not War,

the Veterans Affairs hospital library

stories of rejection and struggle reflected

Marten examines the struggles Civil War

in Milwaukee.

those of the larger veteran population.

soldiers faced while reintegrating into

“For some reason, left behind some-

Northern and Southern soldiers alike

society after combat — a topic few

where was a big ledger with disciplinary

faced tremendous obstacles as they tried

historians previously tackled.

actions against the men, health records

to acclimate to postwar life.

“If they do fine, they’re not very interesting to historians,” says Marten,

6

Excellence. “We know about them. It’s

and a few other little things,” says Marten.

Inside these records, Marten found

“You’re worn out. Even if you didn’t get wounded or didn’t miss a day, you’re

who received Marquette’s 2010 Lawrence

stories of marginalized veterans stuck in

just not well quite often,” Marten says

G. Haggerty Faculty Award for Research

rambunctious group homes, away from

of the men who spent their 20s at war

Discover

Home Again: Circa-1866 lithograph by Fabronius; painted by Trevor McClurg. Courtesy of the Library of Congress.

instead of gaining ground at home, as

Southerners, on the other hand, had

War combat units, which were organized

some successful businessmen did. “They

a straightforward admiration for their

by region. Today’s veterans have a

feel like they lost out on the best years.”

veterans. “In the South during the Civil

similar connection to their hometowns.

War, you were a soldier. It’s a less

According to Marten, “The link between

emotional hardships, needy Northern

Along with the economic burdens and

complicated approach,” says Marten.

the community and individual unit is

soldiers also faced a harsh social stigma

“They had the same problems going

very close … because they are our

when they returned home. Unlike their

on as Union soldiers, and economically,

neighbors, bosses and teachers.”

rural Southern counterparts, whose

it was much worse. The South was

poverty was accepted as the normal plight

devastated by the war … but they’re

passed since Civil War veterans returned

of postwar adjustment, soldiers in the city-

perceived very differently.”

home, some of the themes of Sing Not War

driven North were often condemned for their economic problems.

In the end, the Civil War was challenging

So while more than a century has

are still relevant today. Says Marten, “I

for all involved. Like today’s soldiers, many

hope I’ve captured ways in which soldiers

of whom serve in National Guard or

adapted or failed to adapt to peacetime

veterans who can’t keep up and don’t

Reserve units, Civil War soldiers came from

and the attitudes toward veterans of the

get a good job lapse into low-level

communities, and Marten sees similarities

people who stayed behind.”²

poverty, and they’re blamed for it. That’s

between past and present veterans.

“In the North, as the century goes on,

the American work ethic — if you’re

“If they had a bad day at battle, that

poor, it’s your fault,” explains Marten.

town had a bad day,” Marten says of Civil

Marquette University

7

ARCHITECT OF THE INFINITESIMAL Dr. Chung Hoon Lee’s nanostructures are helping to electrify and illuminate science’s tiniest frontier

By Stephen Filmanowicz Illustration by Christiane Beauregard

Marquette University

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Typical human hair

Nanogap

M

arquette assistant professor of

something, it really helps to understand

almost impossible,” says Lee. “And if you

electrical and computer engineering Dr.

it as a molecule. That’s the single build-

were lucky enough to do it once, you

Chung Hoon Lee is going boldly where

ing block.” Further fueling interest is

had to start all over again. It was very

few have gone before. But it’s not the

the awareness that tiny particles of

difficult to replicate your work.”

far reaches of interstellar space. In his

certain substances can prove particularly

Lee was among a few in the field who

fourth-floor lab in Haggerty Hall, he and

sensitive to heat or electric and magnetic

began approaching the problem from the

student assistants explore the microscopic

fields, opening up exciting applications

opposite direction. If you could build a

frontier of molecular electronics, honing

for them in sensors, transistors or

nanostructure with tiny electrode arms,

their ability to apply electric current to

other nanodevices.

you could use mists to drop desired

particles as small as a single molecule.

This corner of nanotechnology is

Captivating as it is, nanoscale electronics is not for the faint of heart. About a

particles into place. Then you’d know exactly where to look for them — right

seeing a flurry of research interest these days — in part, Lee says, because oversized insights tend to emerge

in the gap between the

“THROUGH CREATIVITY AND DESIGN,

electrodes, ready to

I’M ABLE TO MAKE SOMETHING LIKE

Since coming to

NO ONE ELSE HAS BEEN ABLE TO MAKE IT.”

from the study of

Marquette in 2008 from California State University at Fresno,

substances in their smallest form. The

half-dozen years ago, the only way to

Lee has developed the ability to build

advances are akin to what occurred

electrify a tiny particle was to isolate it

these very nanostructures out of metal-

when biologists began to understand

within a massive ensemble, to spend

coated silicon, tens of thousands of them,

human cellular structure in the 19th century.

hours or even days searching for it with

on campus. It’s his contribution to an

“You can try to understand the human

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be electrified.

a high-powered microscope and then

effort involving collaborators at Cornell

body as a single object or you can look

to perform the even harder task of

University and Department of Defense

closer. ... You can see how liver cells

positioning electrodes just right to make

grant support.

differ from heart cells and how they

a connection. The difficulty level was off

function differently,” he explains. “The

the charts — like finding a snowflake on

exciting milestones. He has bridged his

same principle applies with nano-

a hockey rink and positioning a Zamboni

gap of between two to 10 nanometers

technology. If you want to understand

to touch it without crushing it. “It was

(about 1/10,000th the diameter of a

Discover

In the past year, Lee has passed some

Other nanotechnology projects at Marquette human hair) with zinc oxide molecules

Dr. Chieu Tran, Pfletschinger-Habermann Professor of

that glow when electrified, creating one

Analytical Chemistry, is focused on gaining insight into

of the world’s smallest LED light sources.

complex chemical and biochemical systems and processes,

Tests at Cornell will soon determine

as well as developing green methods to synthesize novel,

whether he also has been able to bridge

high-performance supramolecular composite materials for

the gap with thin layers of graphene, a lattice-like arrangement of carbon atoms generating intense buzz in nanotechnology circles.

But his biggest strides may be in design and fabrication itself. Unlike predecessors, Lee’s nanostructures have arms that are suspended, rather than resting on the base layer, or substrate.

use in water purification and chemical and biosensors.

Dr. Rajendra Rathore, professor of organic chemistry, researches the design and synthesis of novel electroactive molecular wires and organic materials that hold potential for the construction of modern photovoltaic devices and for applications in the emerging field of nanotechnology, as well as in biomaterial applications.

Interference is avoided. Perhaps most remarkable has been his resourcefulness.

Dr. Fabian Josse, professor of electrical and computer

Whereas pioneering peers created

engineering and director of the Microsensors Research

somewhat similar nanostructures with

Laboratory, studies solid state sensors and microelectro-

an etching process involving $5 million

mechanical systems devices for liquid-phase chemical and

electron-beam lithography equipment,

biochemical sensor applications.

Lee didn’t have that luxury. So he originated an approach involving an

Dr. Jeanne Hossenlopp, professor of chemistry and vice

everyday optical lithography exposer that

provost of research, studies factors that control the structure

was manufactured before he was born

and reactivity of layered metal hydroxides with nanodimen-

and was gathering dust in a New Jersey

sional interlayer galleries, as well as the development and

laboratory before he snatched it up for

characterization of these materials for chemical sensor, fire

$7,000. The high-end electron-beam

retardancy and water quality applications.

equipment is a logical choice for tackling precise work at the nanoscale. His old warhorse, not so much.

“It’s like deciding not to drive a car from Milwaukee to Madison but riding a bike instead,” he explains. “But through creativity and design, I’m able to make something like no one else has been able to make it. I’m really proud of that.

And the optical lithography equipment

Dr. James Gardinier, associate professor of chemistry, examines ways to manipulate electron or energy flow in supramolecular assemblies with the purpose of designing new molecular wires, fluorescent dyes and/or lightharvesting antennae.

Dr. Krassimira Hristova, assistant professor of biological sciences, specializes in molecular and environmental

is actually very common in industry. If

microbiology to develop nanoparticle-based molecular

this proves useful, there will be no big

assays for environmental monitoring and to study

technical breakthrough required to

nanoparticles’ toxicity to bacteria, yeast and plants.

move from the design level to the manufacturing level.”²

Marquette University

11

The tragedy of addiction Dr. Robert Wheeler is trying to solve the mysteries of motivation in cocaine addicts

By Christopher Stolarski

12

Discover

F

or the most part, human motivation is intuitive. From

giving the rats quinine, a bitter liquid, resulted in decidedly

the anxiety of a looming deadline to the enticement

unfavorable expressions.

of a cash bonus, positive and negative scenarios are powerful and obvious motivators that dictate how

Needing more than mere facial reactions, Wheeler also measured fluctuations in dopamine, a key neurotransmitter

we respond to a given situation. Behaviorists, like the noted B.F.

in the brain responsible for a wide variety of behavioral and

Skinner, have long studied the ways in which positive reinforce-

cognitive functions, including reward and motivation. Using a

ment affects human behavior and cognition.

technique known as fast-scan cyclic voltammetry, Wheeler was

Dr. Robert Wheeler, an assistant professor of biomedical

able to measure dopamine concentrations, in real time, in one

sciences at Marquette, is interested in negative affective states,

of the brain’s reward centers known as the nucleus accumbens.

those “bad feelings,” which he posits impact life the most.

Not surprisingly, the rats’ dopamine levels spiked significantly

And his research has uncovered a counterintuitive relationship

immediately after the Kool-Aid treat. Turning back to addiction,

between positive and negative reinforcement in cocaine addicts.

Wheeler then wondered: How would the animals react to the

“Positive reinforcement is the best way for us to learn. However, the negative has a profound influence on life,” Wheeler says. “But we don’t have a good neuroscientific understanding of it.”

Wheeler focuses his research on what he calls “the tragedy

Kool-Aid when paired with an infusion of cocaine?

Taking a prompt from the Pavlovian playbook, Wheeler taught the rats that they would receive cocaine (something they enjoy) immediately after the Kool-Aid (something else they

of addiction,” a disease marked by a cycle of abstinence and

enjoy). Over time, the rats’ dopamine levels measured incredibly

relapse. The relapse, he says, is normal human behavior; how-

low after the administration of the sugary drink. Further, they

ever, it’s also the most tragic part of the disease.

showed decreased reward sensitivity and displayed visually

“As addicts use more and more, they stop doing things they enjoy,” Wheeler says. “They are pushed in one direction at the exclusion of everything else they used to love.”

This study of reward-seeking behavior, known as “hedonics,” is helpful in understanding the behavior of those addicted to cocaine and other narcotics. More important, he says, it can

aversive behaviors, such as negative facial expressions.

The rats were also given a differently flavored, but similarly sweet, concoction, which resulted in increased dopamine and favorable behaviors. Only the Kool-Aid, which they now associated with cocaine, caused a negative reaction.

“It seems counterintuitive, but essentially the cocaine changes

help unravel the intricate neurological circuitries and chemical

the way the rats feel about the Kool-Aid,” Wheeler says. “What

signals that cause these behaviors. And better understanding the

they once loved, they now have no taste for.”

neurophysiology of addiction could lead to improved clinical treatment options.

Wheeler’s findings, published in 2011 in Biological Psychiatry, counter previous research contending that a stimulus

To measure hedonics, Wheeler turned to the same subject

associated with cocaine causes an increase in dopamine and a

that Skinner did: the rat. As a baseline, he first examined how

pleasurable feeling in rats, suggesting that the positive feelings

the animals reacted to something they enjoy — in this case,

promoted drug seeking. “This is important for recognizing and

Kool-Aid. The saccharine-infused water garnered positive facial

hopefully avoiding the complex psychological forces that cause

expressions and mouth movements, which Wheeler says are

relapse in cocaine addicts,” Wheeler notes.

relatively universal among mammals. On the other hand,

But the significance of his work extends beyond combating addiction. Associations are environmental influences that infiltrate everyone’s lives, and Wheeler suggests that negative emotional influences promote other undesired behaviors, such as compulsive overeating and gambling. “We examine decreased dopamine release, reward insensitivity, and drug-seeking behaviors as a way to understand how our environment changes our emotional state and our behavior,” he says. “The next step will be figuring out what we can do about it.”

Wheeler adds, “The true value of this work, we hope, is that it contributes to a more complete understanding of the human condition.”² Marquette University

13

A

international teams of human rights

As significant as this progress is,

War, 4 million Africans, denied of any

scholars and practitioners with the

it is an ongoing and difficult process.

personal freedom and liberties, toiled in

International Center for Transitional

Victims and offenders must be prepared

fields picking cash crops for plantation

Justice. The first project was to help

and open to face past transgressions,

owners. By the end of World War II,

make reparations after political violence

and in some cases, one or both sides

6 million Jews in Europe were system-

and repression more sensitive and just to

might not be ready. Walker points to the

atically murdered in gas chambers and

both genders. The second project was a

failure of the Japanese government to

concentration camps. In 1994, in just 100

study of how various measures — such

properly acknowledge that thousands of

days, roughly 500,000 Rwandans were

as criminal trials, truth commissions and

women, mostly Korean, were coerced

killed and countless women were the

memorial sites — actually work. Walker

or kidnapped into sexual enslavement

t the outset of the American Civil

victims of brutal rape.

In such cases, where torture and brutality were systematically carried out, is justice possible? What does it look like, and how is it achieved? Dr. Margaret Urban Walker, the Donald J. Schuenke

IN SEARC

By Andrew Brodzeller

Chair of Philosophy at Marquette and author of Moral Repair: Reconstructing

focused on how truth commissions

Moral Relations After Wrongdoing, has

function and can be effective.

made it her life’s work to better understand

exciting experience both to learn from

it. “All through history, when it was over,

scholars and practitioners worldwide

it was just over,” Walker reflects. “We

and to contribute to one of the most

cannot just turn the page. Instead, we

remarkable phenomena of our times —

need to look at issues and rebuild trust

the systematic pursuit of justice in the

and hope.”

aftermath of massive political violence,”

Walker says the past 50 years have brought a historical shift in our under-

she says.

This progress has moved the idea of

standing of justice, a time in which

justice from exclusively one of retribution,

in Japanese Army brothels during World

international systems of norms for the

which focuses on punishment of the

War II or the Lakota Sioux’s refusal to

basic protection and recognition of

offender, to one that includes reparation.

accept a monetary settlement from the

individuals have taken hold. Germany’s

This form of justice is meant to help

U.S. government for the theft of the

payments to Jewish survivors of the

release victims from the disgrace,

Black Hills.

Holocaust started what has become a

dishonor and contempt of the wrong

growing international emphasis on the

they’ve witnessed or endured, while

think about continued transgressions

human right to individual reparation. As

offenders or countries admit to and

worldwide, Walker thinks incredible

a moral philosopher, these developments

apologize for the crimes committed.

strides have been made in recent genera-

allow Walker to not only think about

Reparative justice, according to Walker,

tions and that there is hope for a better

the nature of moral rules and shared

helps exemplify and establish mutual

future. “Through all the history of the

norms but to witness how human beings

accountability as moral partners in a

world, most human beings have had to

progress morally and come to new

shared future. Reparative justice can take

hope for luck or mercy rather than justice

convictions and understandings.

many forms, including public apologies,

when they have been terribly wronged,”

The author of several books, Walker

14

“It has been an extraordinary and

what justice means and how to achieve

Though it can be disheartening to

monetary or material amends, creation of

she says. “But now there is a glimmer of

has also taken an active role to help

memorials, the exhumation and proper

hope that some justice, however small

define and articulate this new concept

reburial of human remains, and access to

and undependable, is within reach. That

of justice. Twice she has worked with

medical services.

is, humanly, incredibly moving.”²

Discover

H OF

JUSTICE In a world still plagued with war and political violence, what is the role of reparative justice?

Illustration by Paul Schulenburg Stock Illustration Source

Go home, stay home!

How nurses can help reduce the rotating door of hospital readmissions

By Charles Nevsimal

16

Discover

A

trip to the hospital is rarely

quality of discharge teaching patients

out how you make those upstream changes

a pleasant experience — all

received. They also researched readmission

when there’s no benefit to doing so.”

jokes about hospital food

data within hospital databases.

notwithstanding. There’s the

stress of undergoing a procedure, however major or minor it may be, the talk about

What did they find? They found their hunch to be dead-on.

“When nurse staffing is higher,” says

Though some health care reform legislation does change the payment model to incentivize preventing readmissions, it’s not an overnight process.

risks involved and hypothetical worst-

Yakusheva, “patients feel the quality of

case scenarios. There’s the pain of the

care they receive is better and thus feel

made three recommendations based on

procedure itself, the pain of recovery, of

more prepared at the time they leave

their findings: 1.) Keep staffing levels

rehabilitation — and then there’s the bill.

the hospital. Additionally, having fewer

more stable and avoid understaffing;

overtime nursing hours leads to a drop in

2.) Implement a standardized protocol for

emergency room visits after discharge.”

assessing the quality of discharge teaching

All things considered, however, the cost a patient incurs is minimal compared with the overall cost of admission. And

Nevertheless, Weiss and her team have

According to their findings, just 45

and a patient’s readiness for discharge;

when it comes to the cost of readmission?

minutes of extra nursing care per patient

3.) Support the transition in health care

Generally, those costs can be avoided —

per day can reduce the patient readmis-

financing at the national level toward the

certainly not all the time, but some of the

sion rate by 44 percent. That 45-minute

bundling of payments for hospital and

time — with greater nurse/patient interac-

increase in non-overtime nursing care

post-discharge care and incentivizing of

tion and better discharge teaching.

could also save the 16 nursing units in

appropriate staffing levels to achieve the

the study more than $11 million a year.

best possible patient outcomes.

Such was the hunch, anyway, of an interdisciplinary team of researchers at Marquette that included Drs. Marianne Weiss, Olga Yakusheva and Kathleen

So why aren’t hospitals doing back flips over these findings?

The problem is health care’s current

“I think what our research does more than anything,” says Weiss, “is highlight what we already know about nurses.

Bobay. The three joined forces in 2008 for

payment methodologies. They don’t

Namely, that RNs make a difference. The

a study that looked at 16 nursing units in

provide any advantage for hospitals to

number of total hours an RN spends in

four Midwestern hospitals and included

increase the number of nurses per shift.

direct contact with a patient every day

information collected firsthand from 1,892

Further, payer savings from reduced

makes a difference.”²

medical/surgical patients.

readmissions aren’t applied to offset the

“Our research was something we could do together but not alone,” says

costs of increased staffing.

“Here’s the dilemma with what we

Weiss who, along with Bobay, is an

found,” says Weiss. “Essentially, if you

associate professor in the College of

increase staffing a little bit, readmissions

Nursing. Yakusheva is an assistant

decrease. That’s what the data shows.

professor of economics in the College of

The problem is hospitals accrue the cost

Business Administration (currently doing a

of staffing, but they don’t see the benefit

post-doc at Yale School of Public Health).

on the readmission side. The payers see

The team collected data from electronic hospital data systems and from patients

the greater benefit. So it’s an interesting dance to figure

themselves, looking at staffing data as it related to registered nurses and the

Drs. Kathleen Bobay, Olga Yakusheva and Marianne Weiss

Marquette University

17

Marquette Research IN BRIEF

SPEAK FOR YOURSELF Speech language pathologists often give clients with severe speech disorders alternative communication tools — in other words, machines that do the talking for them. But Dr. Jeff Berry, a Marquette assistant professor of speech pathology and audiology, thinks we can do better. He wants to help survivors of traumatic brain injuries regain their own voice.

“A lot of this arose from working with people who have severe motor speech disorders who were just dissatisfied with the idea of using, for example, a speech-generating device for the rest of their lives,” says Berry, who directs Marquette’s Speech and Swallowing Lab in the College of Health Sciences.

Berry thinks the path to better rehabilitation could start with a portable electromagnetic tracking system called the Wave. Last year, he published the first accuracy study with the Wave in the Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research and, with help from Marquette engineering students, designed software that makes the commercial device even more useful. “It’s the only software in the world that I’m

“By changing how the acoustics are occurring in real time, we can trick you into modifying how you’re articulating.”

aware of that takes movements of the tongue, lips and jaw and converts them into real-time speech,” he explains. “We can take somebody who is unable to consistently and reliably produce voicing on their own but can move their mouth and, essentially, when they move their mouth, the system will provide the voice.”

Most speech synthesis devices are text-to-speech systems in which the user types what he or she wants to say. But Berry’s innovation is more than just another way to create a robotic voice that speaks for you. “We want to be able to understand and trigger in people with motor disabilities some of the preserved reflexive abilities of the motor system in order to use that reflexive response to modify their speech,” he says. “By changing how the acoustics are occurring in real time, we can trick you into modifying how you’re articulating.”

That could mean tricking people into pronouncing a vowel a different way or, in the case of people with severe motor speech disorders, adjusting tongue height to achieve the correct sound.

Berry’s speech synthesis software is critical because, until now, researchers could only manipulate acoustics for healthy speakers who could produce a high-quality acoustic signal. Now involuntary adaptations can be studied in survivors of traumatic brain injuries.

But first, Berry, who has funding from the American Speech and Hearing Foundation, is refining the technology. After developing a baseline using healthy young adults, he expanded the study to survivors of traumatic brain injury and stroke and presented the results at the Conference of Motor Speech in February.

“It’s a technically challenging line of research and a conceptually challenging line of research,” he says, “but we’re making good progress.” — NSE

18

Discover

AWAKE FOR GENES Your body is a clock. It knows inherently when to wake and when to rest independent of zeitgebers, the scientific term for external cues (sunrise, sunset, your 6 a.m. wakeup call). It has its own cycle. It’s called circadian rhythm.

“The circadian system actually starts deep inside your brain,” says Dr. Stephen Munroe, a professor of biological sciences whose current research plays in the circadian arena.

“There’s a particular visual pathway that conducts light to a small region near the hypothalamus. Here rests something that seems to be a master clock. This master clock triggers the hypothalamus, which in turn signals the pituitary gland to help coordinate all the clocks in your body.”

But Munroe isn’t so much interested in circadian rhythm, per se, as he is interested in a very specific gene that affects circadian rhythms: Rev-erbα, a regulatory receptor protein that shows dramatic daily variations in the liver of many mammals. Hence his rather unusual research subjects: the cells of a small opossum, a rat kangaroo and the platypus, a unique egg-laying mammal found only in Australia.

“We were stunned to discover,” says Munroe, “that in our hands we can see what is approximately a 250-fold difference between Rev-erbα at its peak time and at its lowest.”

In other words, it varies widely, ranging from less than 1 percent to 100 percent at its maximum — every day. Such range is thought to exist in humans as well, though we typically function during the day, while opossums and rats are nocturnal.

When Rev-erbα gene was first discovered, it was found to overlap the gene for a variant form of the receptor protein that binds thyroid hormone. And it was the idea of the overlap between two genes encoded on different strands of DNA that originally inspired Munroe and guided his early research using antisense RNA to probe requirements for mRNA splicing. In fact, it’s what guides his research today.

“There are important questions here,” Munroe says. “We don’t really understand how splicing is regulated. And now we know the vast majority of genes in complex organisms (i.e., humans) undergo splicing. We also now know both strands of DNA are often copied into RNA, but only one strand codes for a given protein. How this affects gene activity and the expression of proteins is another important question.”

Though it won’t explain what makes one either a morning person or a night owl, Munroe’s research involving the sequence elements within the thyroid hormone gene that controls splicing will help us understand alternative splicing and how gene regulation is controlled in a broad sense. It’s research that occasionally disrupts Munroe’s own circadian rhythm (he has been known to return to his lab while the rest of the Marquette campus sleeps — at 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. — to conduct a circadian collection on rats with a couple of eager students).

Because for Munroe, it’s research important enough to lose

A NEW LOOK FOR SCHOOL COUNSELING Debates about educational achievement gaps often focus on the roles of teachers, administrators and even politicians.

What can get overlooked is the importance of a comprehensive school counseling program, according to Dr. Alan Burkard, chair of Marquette’s Department of Counselor Education and Counseling Psychology.

Burkard also serves as president of the American School Counselors Association.

“School counseling has changed,” Burkard says. “Today’s counselors are taking a close look at the data of what schools need and creating programs with accountability to promote student achievement.”

Burkard says this new model of school counseling is a departure from what many associate from experience, which is often a primary focus on the mental health of students.

“In the past, school counselors focused on topic areas that they enjoyed,” Burkard says.

“The problem was they didn’t have data to prove that this is what schools always needed.”

Current programs first require an investigation of a particular school’s challenges, then work to narrow achievement gaps from a multitude of angles. Some areas that call for attention include preventing bullying and violence, providing expertise for career and post-secondary questions, building relationships with families, and reinforcing positive behaviors to increase attendance.

Results of research from Burkard and others indicate that fully implemented comprehensive school counseling programs reduce truancy and suspensions, increase graduation rates, and boost performance rates on state math and reading exams compared with high schools without similar services.

“You have to show that you’re having an impact because of your program,” Burkard says. “That’s how we know school counseling is important to attain academic and personal success for all students.” — TC

sleep over. — CN Marquette University

19

Marquette Research IN BRIEF

FIGHTING POLLUTION, ONE MOLECULE AT A TIME In a lot of ways, for Dr. Adam Fiedler, the job of a chemist is tantamount to that of a cabinetmaker. The nature of craft is essential. Attention to detail is pivotal. And the end product is a molecule that may have never before existed.

“The whole idea that we can make molecules that have never been made before,” Fiedler says, “that’s what interests me about chemistry. The process of designing, constructing and analyzing.”

And those tiny molecules could have a big impact. Fiedler, an assistant professor of chemistry, studies the role certain molecules called metalloenzymes play in naturally breaking down environmental pollutants. The work won him a Faculty Early Career Development Award — and five-year grant — from the National Science Foundation.

About 40 percent of all the enzymes in our body are metalloenzymes — enzymes that require a metal ion to perform their biological function. For example, when we breathe in dioxygen (O2) molecules, they bind to the iron center in hemoglobin proteins, which transport dioxygen to all the cells that need it. Other metalloenzymes use O2 to carry out oxidations within metabolic pathways. Fiedler studies a class of iron-containing enzymes called dioxy-

THE PHILOSOPHY OF ART For thousands of years, Chinese art remained uniquely untouched by Western influences. Now Dr. Curtis Carter, a Marquette professor of philosophy and expert in aesthetics, is studying how the East and West have influenced each other.

“After Mao, there was more of an opening of ideas,” Carter explains. “By the 1980s, Chinese artists began to explore a wider range of Western-influenced modern and contemporary art including a form of pop art inspired by, but different from, Western pop art. At that time, China had no commercial culture, so its pop artists used art as a critique of Western pop art and their own Chinese political culture.”

Carter has had ample opportunity to examine the evolution of Chinese art up close. Last fall, he was invited by leaders in the Chinese art world to speak at several events in Beijing. He was one of three Americans to present at the National Academy of Painting’s 30th Anniversary Symposium at the National Museum. While in Beijing, he spoke at the Sunshine International Museum, for which he is an honorary curator, during the opening ceremonies for an exhibition of contemporary Chinese artists.

Carter also gave a lecture to graduate students at Beijing Normal University.

And last summer, he hosted a first-of-its-kind East Meets West conference between Western and Eastern philosophers and artists at Marquette. The conference’s goal was to build a bridge between Western aesthetics and art and Chinese aesthetics and art.

It’s a fascinating time to study Chinese art, says Carter. Although all Western influences were cut off during the cultural revolution, there is now more freedom for artists to explore almost any subject except for the critique of the government.

“Artists in China are trying to assess how their current practices are related to traditional Chinese art and culture,” Carter says. “Contemporary ink and brush paintings are part of this effort. The latest movement is to find ways to reinsert ‘Chineseness’ into the practices of contemporary art while also maintaining their place in the international global art world.”

Understanding Chinese art is even more important in today’s global society, he says.

“As Americans expand political and economic engagements with Chinese colleagues, it is essential to comprehend the role art and philosophy have held in Chinese society throughout its history and continues to hold today,” says Carter. “Philosophy and art are at the roots of cultural understanding.” — KV

genases, which incorporate both atoms of O2 into the product of the reaction.

“We’re trying to understand at a very fundamental, atomic level how specific iron-containing enzymes operate,” says Fiedler. “We want to know how these enzymes work in certain bacteria to help degrade common pollutants like PCBs, dioxins and aromatic hydrocarbons.”

His findings may ultimately prove useful in practical applications down the road.

“By designing and synthesizing certain complexes that mimic the function of these metalloenzymes, we’re getting to the bottom of how these dioxygenases truly work,” he says. — CN Carter, left, at an art museum in China.

20

Discover

THE ETHICS OF PINKWASHING: Is pink the new black?

But not all pink products — which signify

donation is not tied to product sales,”

to toasters, consumers may notice more

breast cancer awareness — carry an

Berg says.

product packaging increasingly turning

equal benefit.

From shoes to fried chicken and cars

Unfortunately, most charities are reluc-

Specifically, Berg’s research critically

tant to speak up against a business that

fashion than with marketers aligning with

analyzed the marketing ethics of Mike’s

donates money to them, Berg says. As a

breast cancer awareness. But is this always

Hard Pink Lemonade and KitchenAid Cook

result, she recommends that communication

a good thing?

for the Cure. Berg’s methods applied a test

practitioners and industry leaders should

shades of pink. The hue has less to do with

that measures the marketing campaign’s

take a stand for universal standards for

of public relations, found in her research

fulfillment of truthfulness, authenticity,

cause-related marketing.

that some brands may be engaging in

respect, equity and social responsibility.

Dr. Kati Tusinski Berg, assistant professor

a process known as “pinkwashing,” or

“The persuasive communication used in

marketing that has more to do with the

these campaigns fail to meet the five prin-

business bottom line than giving back.

ciples of the test,” Berg says. “We argue that

“Some companies take advantage of consumers’ concern about breast cancer,”

In one example, Mike’s Hard Lemonade failed to disclose on its packaging that its

marketing pink products while donating

donation to the Breast Cancer Awareness

little or nothing to the cause.”

Foundation was not tied in any way to

last decade for cause-related marketing, which attempts to gain customers by tying purchases of goods or services to charity.

“Think before you pink,” she says. — TC

consumers are particularly vulnerable.”

Berg says. “In reality, they’re profiting from

Berg noted a dramatic increase in the

And in the meantime? Consumers should be wary.

consumer purchase or action — which may have encouraged fewer sales.

“Their message is deceptive because the packaging does not explicitly state that the

WHAT’S THE VALUE IN A LEGAL BRIEF? As a practicing attorney, Chad Oldfather

In developing his methodology,

What he found in the preliminary data

often wondered how fully judges engaged

Oldfather and his research partners, who

is, first, enough of a correlation between

with the briefs he submitted on behalf of

include University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee

the computational and human assessments

his clients.

computer science professor Dr. Joseph

to support the conclusion that the compu-

Bockhorst, employed three ways of analyz-

tational methods are getting at what they

Law School, Oldfather has devoted much of

Now a professor at Marquette University

ing a group of cases decided by the U.S.

are intended to measure. There was also

his scholarly attention to exploring just how

Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. Two

a “relatively surprising lack of correspon-

focused on input from litigants judges should

of the analyses involved computational

dence between opinions and briefs,” says

be. Most recently, he used computational

methods, which allowed researchers to

Oldfather — suggesting that judges weren’t

methods to assess whether decisions issued

“read” large numbers of documents in a

strongly influenced by the briefs that

by the court actually reflected the briefs sub-

short period of time. The first, in effect,

attorneys labored over. As the methodol-

mitted by the litigants in a particular case.

treated the briefs and opinion in each case

ogy becomes more sophisticated, it has the

as a collection of words and assessed the

potential to provide payoffs to academics

on faith that judicial opinions accurately

“Legal scholarship has historically taken

overlap among them. The second measured

and practitioners alike.

reflect the facts of the cases they discuss

the overlap in authorities cited, such as

because there was no alternative,” he

statutes and prior cases, in the opinions

of assessing how courts behave, which may

continues. “This work can help us assess

and briefs. The third used a structured

in turn be useful for assessing if they’re

whether that is true.” It might also help

reading of the three documents, includ-

behaving as we want them to, and thinking

inform practicing attorneys about whether

ing a series of human judgments about the

about how we might respond if they are

certain features of briefs tend to resonate

extent to which the opinions responded to

not,” concludes Oldfather. — BOM

more with the court.

the briefs.

“We are trying to develop another way

Marquette University

21

IN BRIEF Marquette Research IN BRIEF

Tanzanian refugees receive dental education from a camp health care worker.

ON A MISSION TO IMPROVE REFUGEE DENTAL CARE When Dr. Toni Roucka first arrived at

“The biggest concern we had was that

clinics at the refugee camps and to provide

many patients might return to the dental

a 1920s dental chair in the corner of a

a two-week training course in emergency

clinic with post-operative complications

dark room. There was no running water,

dental care and health promotion to 12

after treatment,” she says. “What we found

no dental X-ray equipment and very little

refugee health care workers.

was the students followed our instructions

space to set up instruments. The floor was a muddy mess.

Through lectures and clinical training, the dentists taught refugee workers how

to the T.” In fact, of the nearly 2,000 patient visits

More than 50,000 refugees living in the

to do basic exams and triage procedures,

recorded at the clinics from November 2007

Mtabila and Nyarugusu camps in the Kigoma

administer anesthesia, manage infections,

to August 2009, fewer than one percent

region of Tanzania receive dental treatment

and prioritize treatments while also stress-

returned with pain, swelling or bleeding —

— primarily tooth extractions — in these

ing the importance of patient management

proving to Roucka that the model works.

conditions, typically delivered by health care

and oral health education.

providers with no formal dental training.

“When you look at the big picture — food, safety, shelter — dental care is a low priority, but it is a quality of life issue,” says

This model for providing access to

Next, she hopes to return to Tanzania to monitor the long-term progress of the pro-

dental care in refugee camps is the first of

gram and then introduce it with a camp

its kind, according to Roucka.

population in another cultural environment.

The focus of the trip was training.

She will also continue to provide care

Roucka, an assistant professor of general

Roucka’s research looked at whether this

in the Dominican Republic and other

dentistry in Marquette’s School of Dentistry

kind of training was self-sustaining, portable

nations through Compassionate Dental

whose research on refugee dental care was

and repeatable. She returned to the camps

Care International, a nonprofit agency she

published last year in the International

in 2008 to evaluate the progress of the

founded in 2005 to deliver dental care to

Dental Journal.

health care workers since the first training

those in need. — ALB

Improving dental care for underserved

22

dentists in 2007 to establish small dental

the Tanzanian refugee camp, she found

and to provide a two-week refresher

populations is a passion for Roucka. She

course. In 2009, she returned once more to

first traveled to Tanzania with three other

evaluate the program’s success.

Discover

POKING HOLES IN THE GOLDEN PARACHUTE resigns with good reason. The double-

news, they should

Street movement took to the streets of

trigger, or golden parachute, package occurs

pair a single-

lower Manhattan in 2011, in part to lambast

within a certain period of time after the sale

trigger severance

corporate CEOs for purported greed. Their

or acquisition of a company. The executive

agreement with a

argument: These chief executives are

receives compensation for the same reasons

highly variable CEO

overpaid, blessed with “golden parachute”

outlined above.

pay structure.

Protesters in the so-called Occupy Wall

clauses and devoid of transparency.

“Those ‘causes’ or ‘reasons’ are different

In view of the very

from company to company and often

public criticisms of

of accounting at Marquette, has been study-

poorly defined,” Ling says. “The perception,

CEO compensa-

ing the interplay among CEO severance

and often the reality, is the CEO benefits

tion, severance

packages, salary and transparency. And her

greatly from these agreements.”

and transparency,

Dr. Qianhua “Q” Ling, assistant professor

findings could help shape how corporate

Ling’s research found that CEOs who

these findings highlight

boards approach these compensation and

have single-trigger severance packages

important strategies that corporate boards

governance issues.

are more prone to conservative financial

can use to more ethically guide their

reporting and they tend to disclose bad

organizations, Ling says.

In a paper slated to be published in 2012 by the Journal of Accounting,

news sooner. From the boards’ perspective,

“Quite simply,” she says, “I’m interested

Auditing and Finance, Ling examines the

Ling says, this is the silver lining of having a

in how governance affects information and

association between pre-negotiated (or ex

severance agreement. “This association

how information affects decisions.”

ante) severance agreements and the timely

remains positive in the CEO’s last year of

Ling’s next project is no exception.

disclosure of bad news to governing boards

tenure where performance is poor,” she

She’s now examining the link between

and shareholders. She looked at “single-

adds. “And the association is stronger among

chief executive compensation and

trigger” and “double-trigger” severance

CEOs with a highly variable pay structure.”

financial performance of nonprofit

packages. According to Ling, the former

Ling suggests that if boards want to

entitles a CEO to compensation if employment

capitalize on the impact severance agree-

is terminated without cause or the CEO

ments have on the early disclosure of bad

human services organizations. — CS

ENGINEERING SAFER ROADS There are more than 11,000 miles of state roads in Wisconsin, and Dr. Alex Drakopoulos has studied all of them.

It’s all part of the research the associate professor of civil,

Drakopoulos also conducted research on the national standards that govern traffic signal indications and road markings. Results from this research, with additional findings from other investigators,

construction and environmental engineering has guided during his

are now included in the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices,

19-plus years at Marquette, hoping his findings help federal and

a publication that sets nationwide standards for traffic agencies.

state transportation agencies implement safety changes for roads.

His latest work includes a federal grant to analyze the effect of trucks on congestion.

“A truck accelerates much slower than a passenger car. So as the

Another one of his projects was the first U.S. installation of special pavement markings that were used in Japan to slow down drivers before dangerous turns. These markings, installed by special permission from the Federal Highway Administration

speeds drop when you have congestion — perhaps it’s a work zone

at a Milwaukee freeway location, are now widely used across

or peak-hour traffic — you’re going to have the trucks create a lot

the country.

of gaps ahead of them,” he says. “This certainly is going to impact congestion.”

And when there’s congestion, there’s driver frustration. When there’s driver frustration, there are accidents. Drakopoulos hopes his data will provide new information about how to make congested highways that carry a lot of trucks operate more safely and efficiently.

Even though he says his research “focuses on things that people don’t ordinarily notice on a daily basis” — a blinking red light bulb in a traffic signal or lines etched on the pavement surface, for instance — he knows small findings can mean big change.

“If you have the chance to improve policy because of your findings, it is a great help to people who need it,” Drakopoulos says. — BDJ Marquette University

23

MARQUETTE BOOKSHELF Looking for new reading material? Check out some of the latest works written and edited by Marquette faculty.

Global Perspectives on Re-entry

By Dr. Richard Jones, associate professor of social and cultural sciences An international perspective on the challenges facing ex-prisoners as they attempt to return to society after serving time in prison.

Enlightened Monks: The German Benedictines 1740–1803

A collection of essays by members of the Catholic Theological Society of America’s Interest Group on Global Warming that demonstrate ways to approach the climate crisis from a Catholic, theological perspective.

Imagination and the Contemporary Novel

Addresses the social, cultural, philosophical and theological challenges the German Benedictines faced between 1740 and 1803 and how the Enlightenment influenced the self-understanding and lifestyle of those religious communities.

An examination of the preoccupation with the imagination among literary authors in contemporary Anglophone literature and a restatement of what the imagination is and what it means for contemporary culture.

By Dr. John Su, associate professor of English

The Creolizing Subject: Race, Reason and the Politics of Purity

Abuse of Power: How Cold War Surveillance and Secrecy Policy Shaped the Response to 9/11

By Dr. Michael Monahan, associate professor of philosophy

By Dr. Alan Theoharis, professor emeritus of history

A philosophical study of race and the challenges it offers, arguing that race should be understood as an ambiguous and indeterminate process of social negotiation.

Censored on Final Approach

Describes the U.S. government’s secret activities and policies during periods of “unprecedented crisis,” recounting how presidents and FBI officials exploited concerns about foreign-based internal security threats.

By Phyllis Ravel, artistic associate professor of performing arts

American Boy

The Eighteenth-Century Novel Edited by Dr. Albert J. Rivero, professor of English, and George Justice Contains 10 critical essays and 10 book reviews spanning the 18th century, including Aubin, Defoe, Edgeworth and Austen.

Discover

Edited by Dr. Jame Schaefer, associate professor of theology

By Dr. Ulrich Lehner, assistant professor of theology

A play chronicling four Women Air Service Pilots who gather to reminisce about their challenges and successes during World War II.

24

Confronting the Climate Crisis — Catholic Theological Perspectives

By Larry Watson, visiting professor of English A novel about a young man coming of age in Willow Falls, Minn., during the 1960s.

Right Here I See My Own Books: The Woman’s Building Library at the World’s Columbian Exposition

By Dr. Sarah Wadsworth, associate professor of English, and Wayne A. Wiegand Examines the progress, content and significance of this historic first effort to assemble a comprehensive library of women’s texts.

RESEARCH AND SCHOLARSHIP AT MARQUETTE • In fiscal year 2011, Marquette faculty received $26.5 million in award dollars for research, instruction and other projects.

• Marquette continues to play a critical role in the Clinical and Translational Science Institute of Southeastern Wisconsin, a collaborative effort between eight major institutions that is supported by a $20 million grant from the National Institutes of Health.

• The university supports research through several programs: three-year Way Klingler fellowships, sabbaticals for junior faculty and the Lawrence G. Haggerty Faculty Award for Research Excellence.

• The Department of Special Collections and University Archives houses more than 17,000 cubic feet of archival material and 11,000 volumes, including approximately 7,000 titles in the rare book collection. The J.R.R. Tolkien Collection features many of the author’s original manuscripts, including The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.

• Marquette has more than 20 academic centers and institutes that foster research in the areas of end-of-life care, ethics, neuroscience, rehabilitation engineering, transnational justice, water quality, sports law and other areas.

For more, go to marquette.edu/research.

• Marquette faculty edit a number of scholarly journals, from the Journal of Orthopaedic and Sports Physical Therapy to the International Journal of Systematic Theology.

Marquette University

25

Office of the Provost Zilber Hall, Suite 448 P.O. Box 1881 Milwaukee, WI 53201-1881

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POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Marquette University, Office of Marketing and Communication, P.O. Box 1881, Milwaukee, WI  53201-1881, USA.

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