Two University Forum lectures are scheduled to take place at UNLV in April.
The first, set for April 15, is "The World of RNA Viruses: Evolution and Disease."
In view of the HIV epidemic and outbreaks of viruses such as ebola, UNLV professor Marcella McClure will present a realistic overview of what viruses are and why they will always exist.
She also will discuss the difficulties involved in developing effective anti-viral agents to combat RNA (ribonucleic acid) viruses, which are noted for evolving rapidly.
McClure, an assistant professor of biological sciences, recently was awarded two grants totaling nearly $1.4 million from the National Institutes of Health to support her research involving viruses. She studies RNA viruses to try to determine their gene functions and how they will change over time.
On April 29, Allen C. Shelton III of the State University of New York at Geneseo, will talk about "The Ape's IQ: Discipline and the Making of Intelligence."
Shelton, a professor of sociology, will discuss IQ in a cultural and political context. In his talk he plans to counter the assumption that IQ is simply an innocent measure of intelligence. In reality, he suggests, IQ has other implications, including being used as a social indicator of the way in which citizens are disciplined.
University Forum lectures are free and open to the public. The lecture series is sponsored by the College of Liberal Arts.
Both the April 15 and 29 lectures are scheduled for 7:30 p.m. in the auditorium of the Marjorie Barrick Museum of Natural History.
For additional information, call the College of Liberal Arts at 895-3401.
