Do not let antics distract from academic research, development

No doubt, people are entertained by the recent email exchange between a local university professor and a student political group. Sadly, this student group sought a national stage to air their shenanigans and the expletive retort from the professor. These antics distract from recent academic discoveries and development with global implications.

A few years ago, Coe College introduced a fundraising campaign to build a new science building. In addition to supporting general areas of scientific education, the building includes specific designs for glass research. From my rudimentary understanding of their work, physics professors Mario Affatigato and Steve Feller are developing a type of glass that is dense enough to store nuclear waste. Their efforts continue a legacy of glass and ceramic research, which started with Coe Alum S. Donald Stookey, the inventor of CorningWare.

In 2007, University of Iowa Tippie Business Finance Professor Erik Lie led research in the practice of backdating stock options by thousands of companies. This subtle discovery but costly manipulation indicated the theft of billions of dollars. His research helped the SEC and highlighted early detection of massive corporate greed and scandal.

Please do not let these recent antics deter or sideline the support for needed research and development on our Iowa campuses. The world is thankful for the work of James A. Van Allen and others but continued support for the current generation of scholars and researchers is crucial.

Stephanie Sueppel

Iowa City