Timely topics

The American Psychological Foundation (APF) will sponsor invited programming focused on topics ranging from hemispheric interaction in the brain to countering terrorism to consciousness and its disorders at APA's 2006 Annual Convention in New Orleans. Among this year's programming are the following sessions.

Distinguished speakers

This year's eight APF-sponsored speakers will address various social, educational and scientific topics.

• Montreal Neurological Institute neurology and neurosurgery professor Brenda A. Milner, PhD, will present the Arthur Benton Lecture on Neuropsychology on "Shared Memories: The Problem of Hemispheric Interaction" on Saturday, Aug. 12, at 3 p.m. Milner's research areas include cognition, language and perception, and behavioral neuroscience. Her studies have had direct applicability to patient care, particularly for the neuropsychological treatment of patients with brain tumors or epilepsy.

• Pacific Lutheran University assistant dean and physical education professor Colleen M. Hacker, PhD,will present the William Bevan Lecture on Psychology and Public Policy on "Girls and Women on the Move: Ready, Set, Grow" on Friday, Aug. 11, at 1 p.m. Hacker is the sport psychology consultant for the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team, a position she has held since 1995. Hacker has worked with the U.S. team in three Women's World Cups and two Olympic Games.

• Kennesaw State University psychology professor Randolph A. Smith, PhD, will present the Charles L. Brewer Distinguished Teaching of Psychology Award address on "Lessons Learned: Getting By With a Little Help From My Friends" on Friday, Aug. 11, at 11 a.m. In 1990, Smith received the Sears-Roebuck Foundation Teaching Excellence and Campus Leadership Award, which recognizes outstanding contributions to undergraduate education, student learning and campus life. He is also co-founder of the Southwest Conference for Teachers of Psychology.

• University of Wisconsin-Madison psychiatry professor Giulio Tononi, PhD, will present the F.J. McGuigan Lecture on Understanding the Human Mind on "Consciousness, Information Integration and the Brain" on Saturday, Aug. 12, at 5 p.m. Tononi is studying consciousness and its disorders as well as monitor on psychology the mechanisms and functions of sleep. His work has recently led to the formulation of the information integration theory of consciousness. He is currently investigating some of the predictions of the theory, with particular emphasis on the breakdown of information integration in various stages of sleep and in brain disorders such as schizophrenia.

• Boston College psychology professor Ellen Winner, PhD, will present the Esther Katz Rosen Lecture on Gifted Children and Adolescents on "Giftedness in the Arts" on Friday, Aug. 11, at 10 a.m. Winner is the senior research associate at Project Zero at Harvard University's Graduate School of Education. Her book "Gifted Children: Myth and Realities" (BasicBooks, 1996) was awarded the Alpha Sigma Nu National Jesuit Book Award in Science.

• Stanford University psychology professor and Research Center for Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity co-director Hazel R. Markus, PhD, will present the Arthur W. Staats Lecture on Unifying Psychology on Thursday, Aug. 10, at 10 a.m. Markus's research focuses on the role of the self in regulating behavior and on the ways in which the self is shaped by the social world. She has written on self-schemas, possible selves, the influence of the self on the perception of others and on the constructive role of the self in adult development.

• Flight Captain George Michael Mukula, Honorable Minister of State for Health (General Duties) of the Uganda Ministry of Health, will present the Lynn Stuart Weiss Lecture on International Psychology on "Countering Terrorism-The Role of Participatory Governance For a Peaceful Coexistence" on Saturday, Aug. 12, at 2 p.m. Mukula is a member of Parliament for the Republic of Uganda and has served as chairman CEO for United Airlines and Air Uganda International Ltd.

• San Diego State University women's studies emeritus professor Oliva M. Espin, PhD, will present the Rosalee Weiss Lecture for Outstanding Leaders in Psychology on Saturday, Aug. 12, at 3 p.m. Espin's research interests include cultural and gender factors in human development and psychotherapy and human sexuality. In 2005, she received an APA Presidential Citation for lifelong work on multicultural issues in psychology. She is a current member of the Board of Directors of the Center for Women Policy Studies in Washington, D.C.

Emotion, motivation and personality

APF will host the 11th annual Charles D. Spielberger Symposium on Emotion, Motivation and Personality on Friday, Aug. 11, at 10 a.m. The symposium will be chaired by Charles D. Spielberger, PhD, and the speakers and their presentations are as follows:

• Matthew Lieberman, PhD, of the University of California, Los Angeles, "Putting Feelings Into Words: The Neural and Genetic Bases of Language-Drive Regulation."

• James J. Blascovich, PhD, of the University of California, Santa Barbara, "Challenge and Threat: Integrating Emotion, Motivation and Personality."

• Robert F. Bornstein, PhD, of Gettysburg College, "An Interactionist Model of Interpersonal Dependency."

Special events

The Elizabeth Munsterberg Koppitz Preconvention Workshop in Child Psychology will be held on Wednesday, Aug. 9, at 3 p.m. for graduate students who won 2005-2006 grants or travel awards through APF's Elizabeth Munsterberg Koppitz Child Psychology Fellowship Program. The program provides three $20,000 grants to graduate students researching child psychology and five $4,000 graduate student travel awards. Each of the three grant winners will present a talk on their research at the workshop, chaired by Camilla Benbow, EdD.

APF will host its annual Friends of the Foundation Reception on Friday, Aug. 11, at 7 p.m. This invitation-only event recognizes friends of the foundation and honors individuals and groups who made contributions to the foundation in 2005-2006. Dorothy W. Cantor, PsyD, APF president, will chair this event.

-Compiled by E. Merck