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NEWS TIP SHEET South Dakota lawmakers this week approved the nation's most rigid abortion law, virtually banning abortion in the state. But according to University of Colorado at Boulder law Professor Richard Collins, the South Dakota abortion statute most likely will be rejected in the lower courts because it is similar to the Texas law that was overturned in Roe vs. Wade.

The University of Colorado at Boulder Center of the American West will present a talk by author and historian David Wrobel on March 22 addressing how K-12 teachers and college professors can collaborate -- and have collaborated -- in the teaching of history. The talk, "Partnerships for the Future Built on the Past: How Professors and K-12 Teachers Together Can Revive the Study of History," will be presented at 6 p.m. in room 235 of the University Memorial Center on the CU-Boulder campus. The event is free and open to the public. A reception and book signing will follow.

Screaming water, rising cakes and cooking without heat are some of the topics to be explored during the CU Wizards show "Chemistry in the Kitchen!" on Saturday, March 18, at 9:30 a.m. in the Cristol Chemistry building, room 140. University of Colorado at Boulder chemistry and biochemistry Professor David Nesbitt will present the free hour-long show that will explore the science lurking in the refrigerator and on the kitchen stove.

The University of Colorado at Boulder will kick off the first ever Boulder Solar Day by hosting a March 20 lecture by Alan Title, a nationally known solar physicist at the Lockheed Martin Advanced Technology Center in Palo Alto, Calif. The talk, "Toward Understanding the Sun: Following the Trail of the Magnetic Field From the Solar Interior Through the Heliosphere," will be held at 7:30 p.m. in room A2B70 of the MCD Biology Building. The talk is free and open to the public.

Nobel laureate and Distinguished Professor Carl Wieman of the University of Colorado at Boulder will testify March 15 before the U.S. House Science Committee in Washington, D.C., on the importance of undergraduate science education and how to improve it.

University of Colorado at Boulder Professor Emeritus Neil Ashby has been honored by the largest professional society of physics educators in the country for outstanding work in introducing physics to students and the general public.

The facts in the ongoing debate about evolutionary theory and intelligent design will be discussed during a Saturday Physics Series talk March 18 at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Jamie Nagle, an associate professor of physics at CU-Boulder, will present his talk on "Evolution, Intelligent Design Creationism and Physics" at 2 p.m. in Duane Physics room G1B30. The presentation is free and open to the public and is intended for high school students, teachers and adults.

John "Jan" Hall, 2005 winner of the Nobel Prize in physics for his work in harnessing light to make ultra-precise measurements, will be honored with a public celebration at the University of Colorado at Boulder on March 17.

Lisa Ling, journalist and contributor to well-known TV shows "The View" and "The Oprah Winfrey Show," will offer a free public talk March 9 at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Ling's presentation will begin at 7 p.m. in the Glenn Miller Ballroom located in the University Memorial Center on the CU-Boulder campus. Doors will open at 6:30 p.m. Cameras or recording devices of any kind are not permitted at the event.

University of Colorado at Boulder researchers have used data from a pair of NASA satellites orbiting Earth in tandem to determine that the Antarctic ice sheet, which harbors 90 percent of Earth's ice, has lost significant mass in recent years. The team used measurements taken with the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment, or GRACE, to conclude the Antarctic ice sheet is losing up to 36 cubic miles of ice, or 152 cubic kilometers, annually. By comparison, the city of Los Angeles uses about 1 cubic mile of fresh water annually.