The latest Baltimore Sun column by UMBC political science professor Thomas Schaller delves into the Democratic primary election in Maryland’s Sixth Congressional District, a seat held by longtime Republican incumbent Roscoe Bartlett.

Schaller focuses on the candidacy of Dr. Milad Pooran, a 35-year-old Iranian-American physician and veteran of the U.S. Air Force Medical Corps. He sees Pooran as both “a different kind of candidate” and distinct from Maryland current Democratic House delegates who, as a group, “aren’t short on political careerism or business connections.” Learn more in his Sun column.

Picture this: It’s a cool, crisp night and you’re cruising north up Interstate 95, with the city of Baltimore rising up before you. The image of a metropolis can rise and fall with its skyline and its immense iconic representation of the city’s civic aspirations.

Much of Baltimore’s story is written in its skyline. There’s the urban renewal that spawned the National Aquarium and the twin stadiums of South Baltimore, for instance. The city’s history is also etched there in places such as the famous and distinctive Emerson Bromo-Seltzer Tower, which was built in 1911 at the corner of Eutaw and Lombard Streets.

Kelley Bell ’06, M.F.A., a graphic designer and professor at UMBC, was recently given an opportunity to transform the city’s skyline by creating art within the tower’s distinctive clock faces. Her exhibit is based on the renowned astronomical clock in Prague, and features the sun, the moon, and planets and stars circling in orbit around the tower. Bell even did careful calculations to ensure that her representations of heavenly bodies synched up with their celestial counterparts.

Bell moved to Baltimore in 2002, and quickly fell in love with the local art scene. “People are willing to share ideas and collaborate, and that’s an integral part of the work I do,” she explains.

Read the full story in the Winter 2012 issue of UMBC Magazine.

“The protracted battle for the Republican presidential nomination is about to thrust Maryland’s GOP voters into the unusual position of having a voice in a national political contest even though they live in one of the country’s most reliably blue states,” reports today’s Baltimore Sun. The battle for the state’s 37 delegates has begun.

One Maryland lawmaker suggests, “Maryland is a state that could be up for grabs,” but UMBC public policy chair and MIPAR director Donald Norris has a more reserved perspective. “Every delegate at this point is important,” he says. “But could Maryland knock one of them out? Absolutely not.”

UMBC’s Eric Zeemering, assistant professor of public policy, commented in the Baltimore Sun this week on a measure that would allow residents of New Windsor to recall their local elected officials.

Zeemering credited the sluggish economy with motivating recall efforts and petition drives across the U.S. “There is not mass public distrust of government,” he said. “In many cases, this is about the serious budget and services challenges these jurisdictions face as the full impact of the recession unfolds.”

The Washington Post‘s “Maryland Schools Insider” blog reports that UMBC’s David H. Murray ’14, economics, is running for a seat on the Prince George’s County Board of Education.

Murray has previously served as a member of the Maryland State Board of Education and educational liaison for former Councilman Tom Dernoga and Senator C. Anthony Muse. Murray told the Post that he entered the race because the “school system is not up to par. We are lagging behind our peers. You shouldn’t get a different level of education because you live in the side of Laurel that’s in Prince George’s, over the side that is in Howard or Anne Arundel counties.”

“Thing could always be worse,” Robert Provine, professor of psychology, reminds us in an essay published by Business Day.

“We have all heard of the ‘grass is greener’ syndrome. This is its ‘grass is browner’ counterpart, the achievable antidote for broken dreams and bolsterer of the status quo,” he writes.

The essay, “Thing Could Always be Worse,” appeared in Business Day on March 16, and was excerpted from Provine’s answer to the Edge question “What Are You Optimistic About?”

What is the Preview Weekend?
The Biomedical Sciences Graduate Programs Preview Weekend is an all expenses paid visit to the University of Minnesota campus for prospective graduate students interested in one or more of the following Ph.D. programs:

• Biochemistry, Molecular Biology & Biophysics (BMBB)
• Integrative Biology & Physiology (IBP)
• Microbiology, Immunology & Cancer Biology (MICaB)
• Molecular, Cellular, Developmental Biology & Genetics (MCDB&G)
• Neuroscience (NSCI)
• Pharmacology (PHCL).

When will the Preview take place?
The campus preview weekend will be September 27th - 30th, 2012.

Who is eligible to attend?
Those who will be invited to the Preview must be US citizens or permanent residents who will be applying for entry into graduate school in Fall of 2013. The program is most interested in students enrolled at institutions outside the upper midwest who may be unfamiliar with the outstanding training environment provided by the University of Minnesota. Students from under-represented racial and ethnic groups, low-income family backgrounds, first-generation U.S. citizens, and students with disabilities are especially encouraged to apply.

What are the benefits of attending?
The Preview activities will provide opportunities for students to meet informally with the directors of graduate study, faculty and current graduate students of the six biomedical sciences doctoral programs. There will be tours of campus that will let students gain a feel for the research and laboratory environments where they would work. There will be time for the attendees to learn about the graduate programs so that they can decide which one might best meet their career goals and interests. There will also be activities to introduce you to the quality of life in the metropolitan area of Minneapolis - St. Paul. Any participants who apply to one of the biomedical sciences graduate programs will have their application fee paid. They will also be invited to participate in the admission interview weekend for the program they apply to.

What is the Cost to Attend?
All visit expenses (including travel, lodging, and on-campus meals) are provided for those who are selected to attend. Slots for talented students to preview the University of Minnesota PhD graduate programs are limited to 15 so be sure to apply early.

Application & Selection Timeframe
The online application will be available in spring 2012 and the application deadline is August 20, 2012. Applications will be reviewed as they are received. Applicants will be notified by early September if they have been selected to attend the Preview weekend.