Research

Eleven Northern Michigan University students attended the annual Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) National Conference marking the 50th anniversary of the organization. The group traveled to Austin, Texas, and attended several workshops and sessions with internationally renowned speakers. Presenters included Robert Reich, former U.S. Secretary of Labor, and Jonathan Mildenhall, former vice president of marketing at the Coca-Cola Corporation and chief marketing officer for Airbnb who now owns his own firm, Twenty First Century Brand.

Middle East scholar Asaf Romirowsky will present “United Nations Relief and Works Agency: The Crux of the Arab-Israeli Conflict” at Northern Michigan University. He is the author of Religion, Politics, and the Origins of Palestine Refugee Relief. NMU’s Jewish Student Union is hosting his talk. It will begin at 7 p.m. Monday Nov. 5, in the Huron Room of the University Center. Admission is free and light refreshments will be served.

The Upper Michigan Brain Tumor Center (UMBTC) at Northern Michigan University is hosting laboratory tours, followed by presentations by master’s students on their thesis projects. The tours will run from 5-6:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 1, in West Science rooms 1610 and 1612. Refreshments will be served.

The thesis presentations will be held in the Mead Auditorium of West Science, room 2701.

The event comes behind international Brain Tumor Awareness week, which ends Oct. 27. For more information, contact Amber LaCrosse at 227-2377.

Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness, affecting about 40 million adults in the United States. The Department of Psychological Science at Northern Michigan University is researching a nontraditional approach—a mobile phone app—to treat negative emotional symptoms related to anxiety. NMU’s Cognitive x Affective Behavior & Integrative Neuroscience (CABIN) Lab is seeking participants for a six-week study involving cell phone use. A National Institute of Mental Health grant is supporting the project.

NMU Honors Program student and Wildcat football player Aaron Rochow researched the political and economic institutions in the neighboring African countries of Botswana and Zimbabwe to better understand their different development paths. He traveled to Botswana through a Lundin Summer Research Fellowship. Rochow and four other students will give presentations on their summer projects at an Oct. 25 event honoring donor Rich Lundin.

A student organization at Northern Michigan University is hosting a “Medical Cannabis Symposium.” The event will cover a range of topics related to cannabis, including its chemistry and pharmacology, the social impact of legalization, Michigan laws and medical cannabis in K-12 schools. Presenters include professors, lawyers and industry experts.

Northern Michigan University alumnus Robert Torrence ('15 MS) will return to campus to give a presentation titled "Residual and acute effects of cannabis on emotional processing in anxiety disorders." His talk is scheduled from 4-5 p.m. Friday, Sept. 28, in Jamrich 1100. It is open to the public.