Contact: Phil Hearn
STARKVILLE, Miss.--Faculty and staff at Mississippi State University's Social Science Research Center have teamed up to win a blue ribbon in national poster competition.
The easy-to-follow visual display, titled "Spatial Clustering of Cause Specific Mortality," was among 31 recognized from among 259 entries during the Population Association of America's recent annual conference in Philadelphia, Pa.
Designed by research associate and media laboratory coordinator Dallas Breen, the MSU entry was based on maps and analysis provided by research associate and graduate student Wesley James and research fellows Jeralynn S. Cossman and Ronald Cossman.
Jeralynn Cossman also is an assistant professor of sociology, anthropology and social work, while Ronald Cossman also is an assistant research professor at the center.
"They selected 31 posters as superior in terms of quality, content, problem significance, visual design, originality, presenters' ability to explain ideas clearly in person-to-person interviews, and overall impression," said Ronald Cossman.
The competition was divided into several judging sessions by a panel of leading scientists in the field of demography. Entries from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, and Arizona State, Penn State and Brown universities also received awards.
"PAA members have developed a very high style in presenting material that is sophisticated in terms of problem formulation, and theoretical and methodological approaches," observed a writer for the association's newsletter.
"This is the third time the SSRC has won for a poster designed by Breen at PAA," said SSRC director Arthur Cosby.
The MSU poster, which features seven maps that illustrate specific findings detailed in the research text, may be viewed at www.ssrc.msstate.edu/presentation/poster_a.pdf.
Established in 1950, the SSRC regularly conducts research on social, economic, political, human resource, and social-environmental problems facing the state, nation and world. The center combines expertise and capacities of multiple institutions, disciplines and professions in addressing a variety of complex problems.
NEWS EDITORS/DIRECTORS: For more information, contact Dr. Ronald Cossman at (662) 325-4801 or rcossman@ssrc.msstate.edu.