Iliana Bozhanova steps up Bulgarian dance at Fermilab

Iliana Bozhanova, renowned Bulgarian folk dance instructor

A renowned Bulgarian dance instructor will offer tips at Fermilab tonight during her only stop in the Chicagoland area.

As part of her U.S. tour, Iliana Bozhanova has agreed to teach a master class on Bulgarian folk dance at Fermilab’s Kuhn Village Barn from 7:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.

Bozhanova has worked as a choreographer for groups all across Europe and is currently a choreographer for the Ensemble Voivodintsi in Bulgaria.

Bulgarian dancing is one of the favorite styles practiced by Fermilab’s International Folk Dance Group because it doesn't require partners and offers a choice of musical rhythms.

“Bulgaria is at a crossroads. There are a lot of interesting rhythms in that part of the world, and within Bulgaria, from challenging and aggressive music in the North to the more melodic style in the South,” said PPD’s Doug Jensen, who has participated in the international folk group since it started more than 20 years ago.

Many Bulgarian dances are line dances where people cross their arms in a ‘W’ across their chest, or in a low ‘V’ in front of them. Footwork is characterized as very quick and heavy or slow and “cat-like”.

Mady Newfield, who runs Fermilab’s International Folk Dance Group, invited Bozhanova to come to Fermilab after meeting her at the annual Folk Ball in Madison, Wis., a few years ago. Tonight’s class is free but suggested donations are $8 for adults and $4 for students. No pre-registration is required.

Bulgarian dancer Nina Kavardzikova will give another workshop on March 19.

--Kristine Crane

For more information on the International Folk Dance group, call (630)584-0835, or (630)804-8194, or e-mail folkdance@fnal.gov.

Click here to check out Bozhanova’s choreography:

Entertainment Tonight searches for angels and demons at CERN

From symmetrybreaking, Feb. 11, 2009

Entertainment Tonight offers you a chance to see inside the world's largest science experiment mentioned in the upcoming movie Angels and Demons.

The prime-time television show broadcasts live Thursday and Friday, Feb. 12-13, from CERN, the European laboratory for particle physics research on the border of France and Switzerland.

Angels and Demons focuses on a plot to destroy the Vatican using a small amount of antimatter. In the book, that antimatter gets stolen from CERN and the heroine is a CERN scientist. 

It is unclear how closely the movie will follow the book. In past interviews, Dan Brown has discussed the role CERN played in his book. CERN has posted a Q&A section on its Web site to clarify the distinctions between the events in the book and real-life science at CERN.

The movie stars Tom Hanks and is directed by Ron Howard.

You can see a trailer of the movie here.

Use stimulus to expand scientific research funding

From Houston Chronicle, Feb. 10, 2009

A key question being debated in Congress is, "How much emphasis should we place on immediate economic stimulus vs. long-term growth?" One investment that satisfies both requirements is the proposed expansion of funds for scientific research supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), of particular benefit to the Texas Medical Center, the National Science Foundation (NSF), which supports all of Texas' research universities, NASA and other agencies.

Investments in scientific research, development and education give the greatest "bang for the buck," both in their ability to immediately energize the economy and in their long-term benefits.

Every dollar going into a research grant has a multiplier effect as it supports education, small business and human innovation. Studies show increased economic activity, including wages paid, of at least $2.5 for each dollar invested in NSF, resulting in higher tax revenues for state and federal governments.

Scientific research funds support education by training students and postdoctoral fellows in all 50 states, who in turn recirculate their stipend dollars. Small American companies benefit as they receive orders for specialized high tech equipment - indeed many startup companies depend on such purchases in their early phases - and these dollars also get circulated back into the economy.

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