Colgate University’s Office of Off-Campus Study congratulates the following students who achieved a 3.5 or higher GPA while on an IFSA-Butler Approved Program, placing them on IFA-Butler’s Academic Achievement List:

• Matthew Nelson – Queen Mary, University of London
• Antoinette Nwabunnia – Queen Mary, University of London
• Emily Stabnick – Queen Mary, University of London
• Kayla Sturgeon – Queen Mary, University of London
• Yang Xu – Trinity College Dublin
• Julia Steitz – University College Dublin, Arts
• Elliot Voss – University College Dublin, Arts
• Megan Delaney – University College London
• Tra Hoang – University College London

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On March 30th, in response to the recent terror attacks, the New York Times published an article containing tips when traveling abroad in Europe, which can be found here.

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From an article at www.cardiff.ac.uk

First Minister Carwyn Jones AM, welcomed 15 students from Colgate University, Madison County, New York, to the Senedd.

The students are currently in Wales as part of a Study Abroad Scheme. In addition to their own degree subjects, students are given a unique once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to study modules at the School of Welsh which focus on the language and culture of Wales.

As part of the Wales and the Welsh Language module, the students were afforded the opportunity to tour the Senedd. They also had the unique opportunity to meet and ask questions of the First Minister and Llyr Gruffudd AM, Shadow Minister for Sustainable Communities, Energy and Food. The students posed a number of questions concerning Welsh history, the Senedd and its role in Government as well as Welsh political life more generally.

Joel Sommers, Colgate University’s Co-ordinator, said: “It was an honour to be able to meet the First Minister and Llyr Gruffudd AM at the Senedd, the heart of Welsh political life. Speaking with them and having a tour of the building has given me and my students a deeper understanding of Wales and its politics, society and culture.”

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The New York Times recently posted an article about staying healthy while traveling.  It can be boiled down to drink bottled water, take Pept-Bismol preventively, and avoid hungry lions.

Read the article here:

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The New York Times reports that now is the time to renew your passport.  The State Department anticipates a surge in passport demand throughout this year, and officials hope to avoid a crush that could leave some Americans fuming in frustration with no passport in hand on the day they planned to travel outside the country.

Read more here:

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We had the great opportunity to take the breathing rates of the dolphins. Breathing rates provide helpful information to the medical staff of a dolphin’s health status. For good reason, Dolphins try to minimize their appearance of looking sick. In the wild, a sick dolphin is easy prey. As a result husbandry can be difficult. Fortunately, respiration rates can clearly indicate whether a dolphin is suffering from illness. This assessment was paramount to the health of the dolphin. To complete this task, we took to the boardwalks, clipboard in hand with a positive attitude. Each observer pair focused on one dolphin, recording the number of respirations over a five-minute interval. The total number of respiration in a five minute period was multiplied by 0.2 to find respirations per minute. This information was given to the Dolphin research Center for analysis. The average breath rate for bottle nosed dolphins is 1.5 to 4 breaths per minute. These dolphins can hold their breath for up to 10 minutes underwater. We always think that dolphins are smart; in addition, they are also masterfully adapted to living within an aquatic environment. – Sarah, Alex, and Alex.

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Today we were able to observe Talon perform match to sample. This consisted of three individuals in a line showing Talon 3 objects, two of which were the same and one of which was different. The objects were three dimensional “toys” that Talon was familiar with. The trainer would be in the middle and would hold up one of the two similar objects, while students on either side would hold up the other two. The trainer would signal Talon with a shrug. Talon would then touch the middle object and do his best to pick the matching object one of the students was holding. Talon was not always correct; apparently he had learned the process earlier and seemed to have become somewhat rusty. We were surprised to hear that Talon also tended to have “favorite” objects that he would select even when it was incorrect. He tended to like larger objects such as the ice cube tray and the toy sailboat. The trainer used several methods she used to help Talon identify the correct choice after an incorrect choice. For instance she would create an errorless trial by showing Talon only two similar objects or moving the two similar objects closer together and the different object slightly farther away.

The paper that we read involved showing dolphins planar objects, which would be more difficult, but their success rate was impressive. Two dolphins were seen to have a success rate of 76% and 89%, both of which were statistically significant. The trainer suggested that DRC was not going to do the test with planar objects.

We think that it makes sense that dolphins would be able to perform tasks like match to sample since dolphins rely heavily on recognition for numerous facets of their life. For example in the wild they would need to be able to distinguish optimal prey types when hunting in order to catch the most nutritious food and maximize caloric efficiency. In social settings they need to be able to distinguish between each others signal whistles as well as their visual appearances. It would be interesting to see if they could perform better under the water, as the ability to use echolocation could increase their response accuracy.

By: Trevor Sands and Tori Hymel

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By Elly Hilton, Madeleine Tsao, and Lacey Williams

One study the Dolphin Research Center conducted investigated the dolphins’ capacity to understand object permanence. The idea of object permanence is an animal’s ability to understand that an object still exists or is still there, even when it is hidden from view. Human babies also have to learn object permanence and do so at about one year old, hence the novelty of peek-a-boo for infants. DRC wanted to investigate if dolphins could also grasp this general concept using visual stimuli.

Three identical, opaque, black trash bins were placed in a row at the edge of the dock and weighed down with cement inside. The dolphin is called to attention by the trainer in front of the bins. A second trainer is standing on the opposite end of the dock with their back turned so they do not know the location of the stuffed animal in order to avoid cuing the dolphin. The first trainer puts the alligator into one of the three bins and places the lids on all three at the same time as the lids are connected by PVC piping to form a singular apparatus. The first trainer then turns around, taps the second trainer on the shoulder, and stands with their back to the bins. The second trainer goes up to the bins and gives the signal asking for the location of the hidden object. The dolphin will touch the bin it deems is the correct answer. The trainer then opens the bins and reveals the location of the stuffed animal to the dolphin, rewarding and reinforcing the dolphin’s choice when it chooses correctly.

We all had the opportunity to try out this experiment for ourselves during a training session with Talon. It had been a while since Talon had performed this behavior, and so we first familiarized Talon with the stuffed alligator toy. To do so we placed the alligator around the dock exposed so that Talon could remember to touch the alligator to complete the behavior and receive a reward. We also performed a few trials where the alligator was placed in one of the bins as in a full experimental trial, but the stuffed alligator’s tail was exposed so that Talon could still see. After familiarization, we performed several full trials where the alligator was completely hidden. These steps from fully exposed to fully hidden reflected the training steps undertaken during preparations for the formal experiment.

In the published paper, found here by Jaakkola et al. (2009), Talon was able to locate the stuffed alligator at a success rate greater than 80%, indicating statistical significance and showing that dolphins are capable of understanding the basic concept of object permanence.

A further step in the aforementioned study examined whether Talon could correctly locate the stuffed alligator after the bins had been swapped. This is the equivalent of what we know as the shell game where an object is hidden under one of three containers and then they’re all shuffled around before the individual has to figure out where the object is hidden. Even though the bin was moved over only one spot in front of Talon, he was not able to correctly choose the new location of the stuffed alligator. Instead, he would consistently choose the bin in the position where the alligator had originally been hidden.

Here is a video of Lacey performing a standard trial with Talon.

Here is a video of Elly performing a training trial with Talon, where the alligator was partially hidden.

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Dolphin Lab Journal Part 2!

Day 6: Friday!

Today was our last day of Basic Dolphin Lab, marking the halfway point of our time at the Dolphin Research Center. We started the day off with a Farewell to Friends session with the dolphins, in which we got to do backrubs and ask the dolphins for one final signal. Some of the behaviors we asked for were raspberries (the dolphins make a raspberry noise), scuba impression (the dolphins blow bubbles underwater), bob (the dolphins bob up and down), speed runs, shark (the dolphins imitate a shark) and others. Then the group split up – most people went to Bahia Honda National Park to snorkel and spend time on the beach, while four students – Lacey, Zach, Maia and Anna – stayed behind at the DRC to watch and participate the program offered for the Wounded Warriors, who had just the 2016 Soldier Ride, a bicycle trip through the Florida Keys. For information about the Soldier Ride and an interview about the Dolphin Encounter, check out this link: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/jan/10/wounded-veterans-participate-in-ride-across-florid/)

The students who stayed behind at the Dolphin Research Center got to watch a wide variety of training and enrichment sessions with the dolphins and sea lions before the Wounded Warriors arrived. One of the most interesting sessions was the enrichment session, in which the trainers had no food, and they simply sat on the docks and played with the dolphins who chose to come over to them. Several dolphins chose to take part in this. Both Diva and summer played with balls for several minutes, Diva kept bringing the ball back to the trainer in a game of fetch, while Summer swam away with it and pushed it under the water so that it would fly into the air. Diva also played with a squirt gun; the trainer would squirt water into the lagoon from the gun, and Diva tried to catch the stream of water in her mouth. Finally, Tursi took a scarf from the trainer, and she swam around with it on her fin for several minutes. It was very interesting to see that the dolphins chose to interact with the trainers even when they had no food motivation, and they really seemed to be enjoying the games they played.

In the afternoon, Anna, Maia, Zach and Lacey got to participate in the Heroes’ Welcome for the veterans, where all the DRC staff and guests lined the entrance way and formed a channel that led to the front lagoon (where the encounter sessions would be held). It was incredible to hear that almost all of the veterans were saying thank you to everyone as they walked by – when they really should be the ones being thanked. It was also amazing to see their reactions as they interacted with the dolphins. For some of them, their first interaction with the dolphins was the first time that we saw them smile. The dolphins were very well behaved – they did dorsal tows for the veterans who could hold on, and for those who could not, the dolphins pushed them around in their water by their feet. Additionally, they did many imitations with the veterans, such as bobs, spitting water, dancing, laughing, and more. Tursi and Molly both showed off for the large crowd, doing a full frontal flip out of the water (to see Tursi’s flip, see this link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqN5GY2zH-c). All in all, it was a very special afternoon, and it was touching to see how much the veterans enjoyed spending time with the dolphins. We also got another chance to talk to Mandy, who came up to us and told us more about how dolphins really helped him in his recovery from PTSD. He told us that the impact the dolphins had was not something that could be easily described, but rather see for ourselves, and he was right.

Kat and Elly running with the birds at Bahia Honda

Meanwhile, the other Colgate students had a beach day at Bahia Honda, a state park in Big Pine Key. It was definitely not the best beach day (colder, windy, and rainy) but we still enjoyed our day off! Trevor snorkeled and saw a stingray, cowfish, juvenile sergeant majors, and yellow snapper. The rest of us took walks on the beach looking for shells, and walked on the huge sandbar in the ocean. Our day was uneventful, but very relaxing after the week of Dolphin Lab! After the day at the beach and with the Wounded Warriors, we went to a restaurant that served lionfish sushi, specifically for the lionfish. Lionfish are native to the Indian Ocean and Pacific Ocean, but are an invasive species to the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico. Lionfish are currently posing a huge problem in these places. They are extremely fast breeders, and in their new homes they have no natural predators, instead outcompeting native fish species for prey and are causing severe population decline in native species, as they eat EVERYTHING. Lionfish seem like an unsafe fish to handle and consume due to their venomous spines, but if they are prepared correctly, they are perfectly safe to eat, and quite delicious, as we have tasted! Lionfish are essentially destroying the ecosystems of the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico, and creating a market for them would be both insanely helpful and tasty. Moral of the story: EAT LIONFISH and you will be helping to save the world.

Below are a picture of lionfish in the wild (top) and the lionfish sushi that students ate (bottom)

Image from: http://www.aquariumcreationsonline.net/Lion_saltwaterfish.html

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Today was our first day with the DOLPHINS! The first thing we did was hop into the water for a chance to meet our new friends. Tori and I were in a group with the dolphin Aleta who was 31 and her two-year-old daughter Diva. We were able to do handshakes, got to rub their back and even do some commands. My favorite was when I got to have a splash war with Aleta, Tori’s favorite was Aleta’s giggle behavior where the dolphin imitated a person’s laughter. The young dolphin Diva was still learning some of the behaviors. It was really cute to see her try her best to imitate her mom and perform behaviors requested by the trainer.

After we met the dolphins we attended seminars on maternity, physiology and echolocation. We learned about dolphin parents and how the mother plays a large role, whereas the father doesn’t really. It was also surprising to learn that dolphin mothers often rely on their close friends to help nanny their children. This system is called alloparenting. The echolocation portion was surprising as we learned that dolphins actually use their teeth to help with echolocation. They have evenly spaced teeth, which can sense vibrations and can help them use only hearing to “see” their surroundings.

At the end of the day we were able to observe a medical demonstration. We saw how the trainers make behaviors necessary for them to draw blood or other biological samples into a game so the dolphins are not stressed and feel comfortable. We all cheered and encouraged them a lot for all their medical behaviors in order to reinforce their actions. These behaviors have to be very precise and are very important so dolphins and trainers get very excited when they are performed correctly.

We have been working hard to learn the names of the different dolphins and to do so we rely on differences in the dolphins’ fins and tails for the most part. There are some other differences too though such as Luna’s birth mark or Jax’s scars from a shark attack. At the end of the day we said good night to all of the dolphins at each of their lagoons. They like people so they will come over and look up at you from the water and let you say a nice good night to them.

By: Trevor Sands and Tori Hymel

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Welcoming 2016: Florida Keys Style!

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The Lampert Institute for Civic and Global Affairs continues the Lampert Faculty Scholars program and invites applications from faculty seeking financial support for research advancing the broad mission of the Lampert Institute, which is to promote greater understanding of important issues relating to civic affairs and public policy.

Lampert Faculty Scholars will be awarded funds up to $10,000 to support international travel and on-site research. Up to three scholarships will be awarded annually. The primary activity supported by the Institute is the funding of travel in the service of research by tenure-stream or tenured faculty at Colgate University.

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With support from the Lampert Institute, students can apply for scholarships to support intensive summer language study. These scholarships are meant to support current Colgate students in one or more of the following ways:

• Students who are interested in an intensive and immersive language study over the summer;
• Students who want to study a language not currently taught at Colgate;
• Students who would like to advance their language study in order to participate on a language-based Colgate study group;
• Advanced students who wish to study beyond the levels currently offered at Colgate or to conduct independent research in a foreign language;
• Students whose language study at Colgate has been interrupted by course conflicts or illness;
• Students who would like to participate in a language and cultural immersion program abroad.

Language programs located both within the U.S. and abroad may be supported. Students should work with Colgate professors to determine a reputable language program, and one that fills an important curricular need for the student. Funds can be made available to cover the program fees and travel costs associated with participating in the program.

Students can request up to $3,000 to support the costs of the intensive language summer program and/or travel to the program. Priority will be given to students on financial aid at Colgate. Requests by students studying languages that are consistent with the mission of the Lampert Institute are especially encouraged; the Lampert Institute promotes language study and travel in the following regions: Africa, Asia, the Middle East, or South/Central America. However, students studying languages from other regions will also be considered.

The Language Council at Colgate will review student proposals and make funding decisions. For more information, interested students should contact Aaron Solle, program coordinator for the Lampert Institute and Center for International Programs, by email (asolle@colgate.edu). Applications should be submitted by email to Aaron Solle by February 4, 2016.

Applying for a Summer Language Scholarship

Please include:

1. A personal statement describing the program in which you would like to participate and the reasons for doing so. Please provide specific details, including the name and description of the program, dates of participation, the level of language instruction offered at the program, and the estimated costs of the program (including travel costs). Feel free to list an alternative program as a back-up. Also discuss your goals for participating in the program, and how the program will supplement your academic plan. Please indicate in the statement if you are on financial aid. Limit your personal statement to one page. If relevant, please indicate the other sources of Colgate funding that you are applying for to support your summer language program (e.g., Career Services. summer research).
2. One letter of recommendation from a Colgate faculty member that provides a rationale for participating in the language program and an assessment of the student’s ability for successfully completing the program. The letter should be emailed directly to Professor Simpson.

If you are considering transferring the credit back to Colgate, you must work with the registrar’s office to get pre-approval for the credit well before the program begins. The transfer credit will follow the transfer credit policies at Colgate. Transfer credit that is not pre-approved by Colgate will not be considered after the program is complete. Upon completion of the intensive summer language program, students will be asked to write a brief report about their experience.

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The Lampert Fellowships for Summer Research provide students with a $4,500 stipend, plus funding for travel, room, and board, to enable them to work on topics aligned with the mission of the Institute, which broadly speaking is to engage the liberal arts in the study of civic and global affairs.

The project should culminate in a paper of about 12,000-15,000 words, completed before the start of fall classes. Papers should be of such quality that they might be later published or form an integral part of a senior honors thesis, and they will be printed together in an annual volume of our Lampert Summer Fellows. Fellows will present their work at an on-campus symposium in mid-September. The fellowship also enables the recipient to present the project at a major scholarly conference.

For more information, interested students should contact Jason Kawall by email, at jkawall@colgate.edu.

Applying for a Fellowship

All materials listed below should be sent in PDF format to Mr. Aaron Solle (asolle@colgate.edu)
Deadline: 5:00, Monday, February 16

Applicants will be notified by March 14.

Please include:

1. A cover letter and description of your project (no more than 5 pages) stating:
   • the research question motivating your study and its significance (this should include a brief survey of the literature);
   • how you plan to approach this question, and why you believe you will be able to provide a cogent response;
   • and, a bibliography.
2. Your unofficial transcript.
3. Two letters of recommendation (preferably from members of Colgate faculty).
4. A letter of sponsorship from a Colgate faculty member, confirming that she or he will supervise your research project, assist with its design, and provide on-going advice throughout the process of research and writing up to the point that the final paper is presented. (The sponsor is normally one of the persons writing a letter of recommendation.) For their supervision throughout this process, faculty sponsors of Lampert Fellows have the choice of receiving either a $1,250 stipend or partial SLA credit.
5. Travel Plans: If you believe that travel will significantly advance your research project, you should indicate this in your application. Precise details (dates, modes of travel, etc.) are not needed, but you should provide a clear sense of how this travel would advance your research. The presence or absence of travel plans has no bearing on the success of your application.

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Colgate Seniors, what are you doing for spring break?

 

Students will attend seminars led by Xiamen University faculty, tour local manufacturing plants and businesses, explore centuries-old temples, beautiful islands, and world-class museums. Professor Mandle in the Economics department at Colgate will be joining the group.

 

Apply online here!

Applications are due by December 11, 2015.

The cost for this trip is expected to be $250.

 

If you have any questions, please contact Aaron Solle (asolle@colgate.edu), program coordinator in the Center for International Programs.

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Dear Students,

We are reaching out to all of you who are studying away from Colgate at this time of troubling and tragic developments in France.  Please know that we are thinking of all of you, wherever you may be, with concern for your safety and your personal well-being.  We understand that even that the situation is emotional and stressful even for those who are not in France and is compounded by being far from friends and loved ones. Our thoughts are also with all who were directly affected by the Paris attacks.

We have worked with all study group directors and approved program providers to verify the safety of students in Europe, who mayhave been in the vicinity of the Paris attacks.  At this time we can confirm that all Colgate students in Europe are safe.

In light of the ongoing security situation we urge you to take the following steps as your prepare for the end of the semester and possible travel:

• Be aware of security in your immediate environment.  Avoid demonstrations, protests and locations frequented by Americans.
• If you plan to travel, register your plans with your study group or approved program director.
• Security has been heightened and delays at airports in many locations in Europe are currently the norm, so please reconfirm all of your travel, plan to arrive at the airport early, and pay attention to flight updates.
• Enroll in US Department of State STEP travel program so that you will receive safety and security updates.
• Carry emergency contact information with you.  Please be aware that all Colgate students are covered by and may contact International SOS (215-942-8226)  if you need assistance in a security or medical emergency.  Identify yourself as from Colgate University in making the call.

Please know that resources here at Colgate, including the Counseling Center, are also available to you and are only an email or phone call away. If you have questions or concerns, please contact us.

Thinking of you and wishing you well,

Carol Drogus and

Off-Campus Study Staff

315-228-7216

off-campusstudy@colgate.edu

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Dear students,

In light of reports of glitches in the Colgate Study Group application late Friday prior to the deadline, applications will continue to be accepted until 11:59pm on Monday, November 16.

If you submitted an application but did not receive a confirmation email or are uncertain your application went through, please contact off-campusstudy@colgate.edu and we will check to see if it has been received.

You are also welcome to stop in to Off-Campus Study in 101 McGregory Hall to discuss your options and application.

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Public Health in Rural Uganda

Immersion trip to Southwestern Uganda

January 1 – 16, 2016

Health is a universal human right, and adequate public healthcare is an important dimension of this universal right. The mission of Global Health Initiative (GHI) is to engage the local Colgate community in emerging global health inequalities, and this winter break, GHI is sponsoring an immersion trip to Uganda that will focus on healthcare access and health outcomes in underserved communities. Led by Professor Ellen Kraly, up to five students will visit a grassroots HIV clinic and local hospital.

Students will spend the first week at the Indigo Foundation, which is a community-based organization that supports at-risk children and young people, all poor, many orphaned and many HIV-positive (https://www.indigofoundation.org). Students will spend a second week at Bwindi Community Hospital, which is a nonprofit hospital that provides health services to local farmers and herders affected by poverty, with an emphasis on child health, maternity and family planning, HIV/AIDS, and TB (http://www.bwindihospital.com). In addition to learning about medicine, healthcare policy, and sustainable development, students will gain a first-hand experience how community-level NGOs are shaping public health. To learn more, please view the GHI GetInvolved page or contact ehuiting@colgate.edu.

The trip is open to all Colgate students and will be fully funded (including transportation, meals, lodging, airfare, immunizations, and visa).

Applications are available online at https://goo.gl/JqNttZ.

Application deadline: November 9, 2015 (decisions will be announced during late November to early December).

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In the September 3rd, 2015, issue of the Colgate Maroon News, Sarah Anderson writes about the all new Center for International Programs:

http://www.thecolgatemaroonnews.com/news/article_579740be-5323-11e5-8176-27b1ea5bf297.html

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The last couple days has continued to be packed full of surprises and adventure. Saturday morning we were greeted by a native Kiwi smile: Josie was finally here!

Randyll Butler ’16 and Josie Stockill ’16 meet up in Auckland!

Read more

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