28
Dec
2004
• The Iowa Tourism Office has released its 2005 Iowa Travel Guide, filled with information about hundreds of destinations in all parts of the state. The new guide's availability is especially timely, as parents are looking for fun, educational places to take their children, many of whom are enjoying a holiday break. In 176 pages, the guide highlights attractions and lodging facilities in Iowa, including thousands of hotels, bed-and-breakfast inns, campgrounds, and RV parks. An enhanced introduction also colorfully describes the state's history, scenic byways and historic routes, significant facts, national treasures, and more. The National Council of State Tourism Directors named the Iowa Travel Guide the best publication of its kind in the nation in 2000, 2001, and 2003. Copies of the four-color guide are available at any Iowa Welcome Center, online at (http://traveliowa.com), or by calling (800)345-4692.
• Meth might get more publicity in the Midwest, but marijuana is a dangerous and escalating threat, Iowa's top drug-fighter warned December 10, according to the Drug War Chronicle. In comments made for Iowa Public Television's Iowa Press program, Marvin Van Haaften, director of the Governor's Office of Drug Control Policy, said, "Our people in addiction treatment for marijuana is going up. It is to the point now where I think we have to take a real serious look at marijuana again for its addictive qualities." He added that investigators are regularly seizing weed containing 24 percent THC, and some plants being developed could contain as much as 37 percent THC. According to the Drug Enforcement Agency, the average potency of kind bud - high-grade marijuana - seized in the U.S. was about 12 percent in 2002, the most recent year for which figures are available. For more information, look at (http://stopthedrugwar.org).
• The Young Professionals Network (YPN) of the Quad Cities began in April 2002 and has grown to a network of more than 750 young professionals. YPN is designed to address the Quad Cities brain drain through the use of three simple concepts in its program development: mix young talent, allowing people to form a peer network while showcasing to them the greater Quad Cities region; empower young talent through professional development and leveraging the network to enhance leadership opportunities; and connect young talent to the community, by leading and participating in social changes and community happenings that make the Quad Cities region a more dynamic, engaging, and diverse place to live. For more information, e-mail Molly at (mtiernan@quadcitychamber.com). Soon you will be able to log in at (http://www.ypnqc.org) for more information.
• The University of Northern Iowa, a member of the Quad-Cities Graduate Study Center, has proposed offering a master's degree in Philanthropy & Nonprofit Development. If sufficient interest is expressed in the Quad Cities, the 30-hour program will be offered starting January 2005, with completion in May 2007. The program is designed primarily for professionals currently employed in the areas of philanthropy and not-for-profit organizations. Most courses will be taught in 10-week modules via the Iowa Communications Network. If you would like more information on the program, contact the GradCenter at (309)794-7376 or (888)331-4723 or check the GradCenter Web site at (http://www.grandcenter.org) or the program Web site at (http://www.uni.edu/continued/master/pnd/index.shtml).
• Documents recently obtained by the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) reveal details about a joint effort between the CIA and the National Science Foundation (NSF) to fund a program that, among other things, is researching ways to monitor online chat rooms for terrorist activities. EPIC's FOIA resulted in press reports about a $157,673 grant being awarded by NSF to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York. The grant is for a project called "Surveillance, Analysis, & Modeling of Chatroom Communities." The documents came to light just a month after former recipients of the Norbert Wiener Award, awarded annually by Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility, expressed "concern about the significant redirection in science funding toward the development of systems of mass surveillance." The award winners said, "It is our view that this research priority could pose a fundamental risk to political freedom, privacy, and Constitutional liberty." For more information, take a look at (http://www.epic.org/privacy/wiretap/nsf_release.html).
• The Quad City International Airport in November posted its 10th monthly record of 2004 for enplanements. The airport had 36,094 departing passengers last month, compared to the previous November record of 32,806, set in 2000. Through 11 months of 2004, the airport had more passengers than in all of 2003, which held the annual record with 407,769 passengers. The airport is still accepting entries in its "Guess the Record" contest, in which you can guess the total number of 2004 passengers at the airport. Winners could receive a round-trip plane ticket or free airport parking for a year. To enter, visit (http://www.qcairport.com) and click on the contest logo. Enter "guess the record" in the subject line, along with your guess, full name, address, and telephone number. The contest closes at noon December 30.
• Two recent advertising campaigns for Trinity Regional Health System have received accolades in national advertising publications for the health-care industry. A complete campaign for Trinity BirthPlace at its Seventh Street Campus and Terrace Park was highlighted in a cover story for the November/December issue of Healthcare Advertising Review, a bi-monthly publication that covers advertising and marketing trends in health care. A newspaper series for Trinity at Terrace Park also was featured in Healthcare Marketing Report's 21st annual health-care advertising awards yearbook. Both campaigns were designed by Charleston/Orwig of Davenport.
• Meth might get more publicity in the Midwest, but marijuana is a dangerous and escalating threat, Iowa's top drug-fighter warned December 10, according to the Drug War Chronicle. In comments made for Iowa Public Television's Iowa Press program, Marvin Van Haaften, director of the Governor's Office of Drug Control Policy, said, "Our people in addiction treatment for marijuana is going up. It is to the point now where I think we have to take a real serious look at marijuana again for its addictive qualities." He added that investigators are regularly seizing weed containing 24 percent THC, and some plants being developed could contain as much as 37 percent THC. According to the Drug Enforcement Agency, the average potency of kind bud - high-grade marijuana - seized in the U.S. was about 12 percent in 2002, the most recent year for which figures are available. For more information, look at (http://stopthedrugwar.org).
• The Young Professionals Network (YPN) of the Quad Cities began in April 2002 and has grown to a network of more than 750 young professionals. YPN is designed to address the Quad Cities brain drain through the use of three simple concepts in its program development: mix young talent, allowing people to form a peer network while showcasing to them the greater Quad Cities region; empower young talent through professional development and leveraging the network to enhance leadership opportunities; and connect young talent to the community, by leading and participating in social changes and community happenings that make the Quad Cities region a more dynamic, engaging, and diverse place to live. For more information, e-mail Molly at (mtiernan@quadcitychamber.com). Soon you will be able to log in at (http://www.ypnqc.org) for more information.
• The University of Northern Iowa, a member of the Quad-Cities Graduate Study Center, has proposed offering a master's degree in Philanthropy & Nonprofit Development. If sufficient interest is expressed in the Quad Cities, the 30-hour program will be offered starting January 2005, with completion in May 2007. The program is designed primarily for professionals currently employed in the areas of philanthropy and not-for-profit organizations. Most courses will be taught in 10-week modules via the Iowa Communications Network. If you would like more information on the program, contact the GradCenter at (309)794-7376 or (888)331-4723 or check the GradCenter Web site at (http://www.grandcenter.org) or the program Web site at (http://www.uni.edu/continued/master/pnd/index.shtml).
• Documents recently obtained by the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) reveal details about a joint effort between the CIA and the National Science Foundation (NSF) to fund a program that, among other things, is researching ways to monitor online chat rooms for terrorist activities. EPIC's FOIA resulted in press reports about a $157,673 grant being awarded by NSF to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York. The grant is for a project called "Surveillance, Analysis, & Modeling of Chatroom Communities." The documents came to light just a month after former recipients of the Norbert Wiener Award, awarded annually by Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility, expressed "concern about the significant redirection in science funding toward the development of systems of mass surveillance." The award winners said, "It is our view that this research priority could pose a fundamental risk to political freedom, privacy, and Constitutional liberty." For more information, take a look at (http://www.epic.org/privacy/wiretap/nsf_release.html).
• The Quad City International Airport in November posted its 10th monthly record of 2004 for enplanements. The airport had 36,094 departing passengers last month, compared to the previous November record of 32,806, set in 2000. Through 11 months of 2004, the airport had more passengers than in all of 2003, which held the annual record with 407,769 passengers. The airport is still accepting entries in its "Guess the Record" contest, in which you can guess the total number of 2004 passengers at the airport. Winners could receive a round-trip plane ticket or free airport parking for a year. To enter, visit (http://www.qcairport.com) and click on the contest logo. Enter "guess the record" in the subject line, along with your guess, full name, address, and telephone number. The contest closes at noon December 30.
• Two recent advertising campaigns for Trinity Regional Health System have received accolades in national advertising publications for the health-care industry. A complete campaign for Trinity BirthPlace at its Seventh Street Campus and Terrace Park was highlighted in a cover story for the November/December issue of Healthcare Advertising Review, a bi-monthly publication that covers advertising and marketing trends in health care. A newspaper series for Trinity at Terrace Park also was featured in Healthcare Marketing Report's 21st annual health-care advertising awards yearbook. Both campaigns were designed by Charleston/Orwig of Davenport.
