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Prostitution, which is illegal nationwide except for a few counties in Nevada, continues to create problems for communities and law-enforcement agencies. A new study by an economics researcher at the University of Arkansas analyzes the U.S. prostitution market and provides policy recommendations to increase safety for women and communities and help government agencies regulate or enforce “the oldest profession.”

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Researchers develop fruit fly model to study fat production gene

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University of Arkansas scientists and educators will attack childhood obesity through a five-year, $4.78 million a project funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

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Readers who want to learn more about research at the University of Arkansas can phone it in by using QR codes in Research Frontiers magazine, or on table tents across campus. The codes will lead readers to videos, slide shows and stories about faculty and student research.

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A University of Arkansas physicist has received the largest award granted to an individual researcher from the Army Research Laboratory to search for a novel class of nanomaterials with rationally designed properties.

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Chemical engineering students at the University of Arkansas have designed a system that can provide 3,000 gallons of clean drinking water per day without the use of electricity. Their design, which could be used to treat water in remote or disaster-stricken areas, recently won the Intel Innovation Award.

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Criminal Law Professor Brian Gallini is available to answer questions and provide expert commentary regarding the Department of Justice’s recent indictment of the principals of the three largest internet poker companies.

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Ashok Saxena, Distinguished Professor and dean of the College of Engineering at the University of Arkansas, is available to comment on cracks and metal damage to airplane fuselages. Saxena’s research has focused on metal fatigue of aircraft materials and creep-fatigue interactions, which cause degradation in structural metals and may lead to sudden and catastrophic failure of critical parts.

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As figures from the 2010 census are released, political scientist Todd Shields of the University of Arkansas is available to discuss findings from the 2010 Blair-Rockefeller Poll that offer insight into changing U.S. demographics. The poll revealed uneven economic hardships across race and region and shifting support for the Democratic Party among American elderly.

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University of Arkansas professor Mohja Kahf was born in Damascus, Syria, and recently added her endorsement to the list of signatories of the Damascus Declaration. Currently, she serves as an administrator on one of the many Syrian revolution pages on Facebook and tweets update about the latest news from Syria at twitter.com/DrMohjaKahf . Kahf teaches courses in Middle Eastern studies, with research ranging from gender and postcolonialism to Syrian culture and society.

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Najib Ghadbian studies democratization and leadership in the Arab world, Syrian politics, Islamic movements and US-Mideast relations. He is available to comment on recent events in Syria.

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As figures from the 2010 census are released, political scientist Pearl Ford Dowe of the University of Arkansas is available to discuss opinions of African-Americans on politics and social issues, both in the South and nationally. She draws on findings from the 2010 Blair-Rockefeller Poll.

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As figures from the 2010 census are released, political scientist Angie Maxwell of the University of Arkansas is available to discuss demographics of Tea Party members and their opinions on political and social issues, both in the South and nationally. She draws on findings from the 2010 Blair-Rockefeller Poll.

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As figures from the 2010 census are released, political scientist Rafael Jimeno of the University of Arkansas is available to discuss emerging political preferences and behaviors of Latinos both in the South and nationally. He draws on findings from the 2010 Blair-Rockefeller Poll.

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For questions about the design of the nuclear reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi complex in Japan and the gravity of radiation released from the reactors, please contact Leon West, nuclear engineer and professor of engineering at the University of Arkansas. West has more than 40 years of experience in nuclear physics, radiation protection and nuclear engineering. He worked in the nuclear industry for nine years before returning to academia.

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Panneer Selvam, professor of civil engineering at the University of Arkansas, is available to discuss structural stability of reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear complex in Japan. Selvam has taught structural loading 20 years. His research has focused on methods for obtaining design loadings for wind, earthquakes and other natural disasters relevant to national and local building codes. He uses computer simulation in nanostructures to model the effect of natural forces on buildings.

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For questions about damage to buildings and infrastructure due to the earthquake in Japan, please contact Brady Cox, assistant professor of civil engineering at the University of Arkansas. A geotechnical engineer, Cox specializes in issues related to earthquake loading, soil dynamics and material characterization and response to stress waves.

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As retail environments become more competitive, manufacturers experience greater pressure to strike a balance between satisfying customers and minimizing costs. These suppliers struggle to accurately predict or forecast demand for goods. A new study by a University of Arkansas logistics researcher confirms that relying on retail point-of-sale data can increase the accuracy of predictions and reduce forecasting error. But contrary to recent findings, the new study also revealed that in specific situations point-of-sale data might not be as accurate as simple order data from client stores.

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A team of chemical engineers at the University of Arkansas has developed a method for converting common algae into butanol, a renewable fuel that can be used in existing combustible engines. The green technology benefits from and adds greater value to a process being used now to clean and oxygenate U.S. waterways by removing excess nitrogen and phosphorous from fertilizer in runoff.

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A University of Arkansas researcher and his colleagues have used magnesium isotopes to determine the temperature at which rocks form, which will allow scientists to better study the formation of the earth’s crust and mantle as well as the formation of meteorites.

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Researchers uncovered a serious gender gap in how male and female managers in the information systems field think about the challenges women in the profession face.

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A new study by a researcher at the University of Arkansas shows that Internet kiosks providing information on prenatal and postnatal care for mother and baby have helped reduce infant, child and maternal mortality rates in rural India. Contrary to traditional assumptions about the positive effects of social networks, the study’s findings demonstrated that strong social ties in rural villages did not help women seek and obtain appropriate medical care.

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The Tyson Center for Faith and Spirituality in the Workplace in the Sam M. Walton College at the University of Arkansas is calling for applications for the 2011 International Faith and Spirit at Work Awards. The annual awards program recognizes companies around the world that have implemented specific policies, programs or practices that nurture faith and spirituality inside their organizations. The deadline is May 31, 2011.

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For questions about damage to buildings and infrastructure due to the earthquake in New Zealand, please contact Brady Cox, assistant professor of civil engineering at the University of Arkansas. A geotechnical engineer, Cox specializes in issues related to earthquake loading, soil dynamics and material characterization and response to stress waves.

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Egypt scholar discusses tough questions facing Egyptians, including whether to trust the new ruling council.

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An important family of ferroelectric compounds just became more complicated in a good way, thanks to University of Arkansas physicists and their colleagues. A paper published in the Feb. 9, 2011, journal Nature shows that ferroelectric materials used in cell phones, computer memories, medical ultrasound and naval sonar may exhibit new properties as a result of so-called “geometric frustration.”

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An engineering professor has developed a process for converting amorphous silicon into large-grain poly-crystalline silicon, which will decrease the cost of solar electricity to compete with fossil fuels.

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A new, detailed record of rainfall fluctuations in ancient Mexico that spans more than 12 centuries promises to improve understanding of the role drought played in the rise and fall of pre-Hispanic civilizations.

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Najib Ghadbian,Middle East scholar, is available for comment on current events in Egypt and the Middle East, including Syria.

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Ted Swedenburg, who is on the editorial committee of Middle East Report and active with the King Fahd Center for Middle East and Islamic Studies, is available for comment on current events in Egypt.

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Joel Gordon, director of the King Fahd Center for Middle East and Islamic Studies is available for comment about current events in Egypt.

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For comment on the role of the Internet and social media as it relates to developments in Egypt and Tunisia, please consider Moez Limayem, professor and chair of the information systems department in the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas.

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Consistent investment in high-performance computing leads to greater research competitiveness for U.S. academic institutions, a new study shows.

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NanoBusiness Alliance, the top nanotechnology industry organization, has chosen engineering professor and NanoMech, Inc. founder Ajay Malshe as one of the 10 most influential nanotechnology leaders of 2010. The designation, announced recently by Vincent Caprio, NanoBusiness Alliance executive director, affirms the University of Arkansas as a national leader in nanotechnology research and development.

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Steven Johnson, industrial engineering professor at the University of Arkansas, is available to comment on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s recent proposal to enact federally mandated rules that would require trucks to activate speed limits. Johnson has studied speed limits and car-vs.-large-truck speed differentials on rural, interstate highways and found that different speed limits for cars and large trucks compromise safety by causing greater speed variation and a higher number of vehicles passing each other. He is currently involved in research funded by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regarding the implementation of speed-limiting devices on commercial vehicles.

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D.J. Williams, who overcame a chaotic childhood to become a star student-athlete and a passionate advocate for domestic abuse awareness, heard his name called twice during The Home Depot College Football Awards program, once for football and once for his work off the the field.

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University of Arkansas researchers have developed a tool to determine what factors drive the dependency between the periodic pattern width and thickness of an ultrathin film that exhibits both magnetic and ferroelectric properties. This may be useful in improving the efficiency of some devices.

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A $3.9 million award from the U.S. Department of Energy will allow electrical engineering researchers at the University of Arkansas to continue contributing to the development of a compact and highly efficient silicon-carbide charger for hybrid electric vehicles. The benefits of the project extend beyond vehicles into other areas, such as wind and solar power, and could lead to reduced energy consumption in the United States.

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A survey conducted by the University of Arkansas shows that the health care industry is making significant gains toward adopting global data standards for the health care supply chain, but nearly a third of respondents have not started preparations for adopting the standards.

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A University of Arkansas researcher and his colleagues have created the first methane-producing microorganism that can metabolize complex carbon structures, which could lead to microbial recycling of waste products and their transformation into natural gas.

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Many large environmental nongovernmental organizations prefer to engage firms through collaborative rather than adversarial strategies to elevate the role of business in solving environmental problems, a University of Arkansas study shows.

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Place matters when it comes to health; zip code may be as important a number to physical health as blood pressure or glucose level.

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Amy Apon, professor of computer science and computer engineering and director of the Arkansas High Performance Computing Center, has been elected as the 2011 chair of the Coalition for Academic Scientific Computation (CASC), a national organization of academic high-performance computing centers and government laboratories.

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Marketing researchers surveyed more than 500 smokers and found that highly graphic images of the negative consequences of smoking have the greatest impact on smokers’ intentions to quit.

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Just in time for the World Series, a University of Arkansas law professor weighs in on a classic American debate: Should baseball get rid of the designated hitter rule?

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The 12th annual Arkansas Poll finds Arkansans favoring John Boozman for senator by a substantial margin, concerned about the economy and supportive of existing tax cuts.

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People with “smart phones” can now access videos and slide shows from University of Arkansas’ Research Frontiers on the Web directly from the print magazine using “QR code,” short for “quick response code.”

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African Americans in Georgia: A Reflection of Politics and Policy in the New South offers a comprehensive study of politics and public policy issues with implications for African Americans in Georgia.

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A new study by a University of Arkansas biomedical engineer and his colleagues at the National Cancer Institute demonstrates further promise for chitosan/interleukin-12 as an effective anti-tumor immunotherapy. The researchers had already demonstrated success with chitosan/IL-12 in the treatment of superficial bladder cancer in mice, for which human clinical trials will likely begin in 2011. But recent findings revealed that injections of chitosan/IL-12 eradicated aggressive colorectal and pancreatic tumors as well.

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Leading national researchers in the fight against breast cancer will convene Oct. 26-29 for the 2010 Advances in Breast Cancer Research Workshop at the University of Arkansas. More than 70 scientists from diverse research areas in science, medicine, engineering and technology will participate.