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Curveballs and spinning physicists are two of the highlights of the CU Wizards show on "The Physics of Sports With a Spin" to be presented Saturday, April 16, on the University of Colorado at Boulder campus. Physics professors Deborah Jin and John Bohn will present their show at 9:30 a.m. in Duane Physics room G1B30. It is free and open to the public. CU Wizards is an annual series during the school year that introduces topics in astronomy, chemistry and physics and is intended primarily for students in grades five through nine.

A University of Colorado at Boulder professor and his colleagues have taken a page from the writings of an ancient Roman architect and built an underwater concrete pier in the manner of those set in the Mediterranean Sea 2,000 years ago.

Editors: Reporters and photographers are welcome to attend. A complete schedule of events is available by calling (303) 492-4007 or e-mailing caughey@colorado.edu . The hotel is located near U.S. 36 and 104th Avenue at 10600 Westminster Blvd. in Westminster. Colorado Attorney General John Suthers and prominent experts on school violence and school safety will gather in Westminster April 11-12 for the fourth annual Safe Communities-Safe Schools Conference sponsored by the CU-Boulder Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence.

The proposed Institute for Ethical and Civic Engagement at the University of Colorado at Boulder has awarded $50,000 in grants to support 10 projects focused on promoting responsible citizenship in CU-Boulder students. This is the first time the campus-wide initiative has provided grants for faculty to carry out new and existing projects in ethical inquiry and civic engagement. All funding was raised from external sources.

The appearance and perception of comets through the ages and across cultures will be explored at the University of Colorado at Boulder's Fiske Planetarium April 14 and 15. John Weiss, a CU-Boulder doctoral candidate in astrophysics, will present "Comets: More Than You Think" at 7:30 p.m. on both days. While comets are celebrated today, they mostly were feared in the past as portents of disasters, doom and the death of kings, according to Weiss.

Note to Editors: For media registration information regarding the conference, contact CU-Boulder's Emily CoBabe Ammann at (303) 735-5814. A four-day, international NASA Astrobiology conference in Boulder hosted by the University of Colorado at Boulder will include a public symposium April 13 on campus featuring talks by three prominent scientists and a theologian.

Thirteen University of Colorado at Boulder faculty and staff members received the 2005 Marinus G. Smith Recognition Awards from the CU Parents Association. The award recognizes CU-Boulder faculty, instructors and staff who have made a significant impact on the lives of one or more CU-Boulder undergraduates. Students and parents were asked to nominate candidates who were deserving of this recognition.

A photography exhibit by a University of Colorado at Boulder professor featuring landscapes altered by human construction in the West will be on public display through the month of April at Boulder's National Center for Atmospheric Research. Titled "The House, the Road, and the Valley," the exhibit was created to show how modern culture has changed the landscape in both harmonious and discordant ways, said Tad Pfeffer, associate director of the Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research. The show contains 21 photos of the changing West, many of them on Colorado's Front Range.

A free public screening and discussion of "The Greatest Good," a new documentary film made in recognition of the 100th anniversary of the U.S. Forest Service, will be presented April 13 at the University of Colorado at Boulder. The Center of the American West and the International Film Series are presenting the film at 7 p.m. in the auditorium of the Muenzinger Psychology building on the CU-Boulder campus. Producer and director Dave Steinke will introduce the film and answer questions from the audience.

The University of Colorado at Boulder's highest faculty recognition for teaching and research, the Hazel Barnes Prize, has been awarded to sociology professor and women's studies senior scholar Janet Jacobs. Jacobs will receive an engraved University Medal and a $20,000 cash award, the largest single faculty award funded by CU-Boulder. She will be recognized at spring commencement exercises May 6 and a reception in her honor will be held during fall semester 2005.