Symposium

On Monday morning, my alarm rang at 5:40 and I pushed the snooze button twice, just like the day before. I got out of bed at 6 and went downstairs to make coffee, just like the day before. I let the dog out, just like the day before. And I opened the dishwasher to unload the dishes, just like the day before. But on this day, I discovered it had been emptied by someone else. Oh joy! Rapture! Oh unexpected bliss! During these decidedly less-than-happy-go-lucky economic times, we ought to be on the lookout for silly little happy spots in our lives and celebrate them.

Women's `Hall' game, ceremony tomorrow The 11th Howard County Women's Athletics Hall of Fame game and induction ceremony will be held tomorrow at Atholton High School in Columbia. Inductees are Tierney Clark Ahearn, Sylvia Groomes, Kisha Jett and Genny O'Donnell Kozusko. The event, which is sponsored by Patuxent Publishing, will be held between the alumnae basketball game, which starts at 5 p.m., and the Centennial vs. Atholton girls varsity basketball game, which starts at 7 p.m. There is an admission charge; proceeds will go to the Women's Giving Circle.

When it was introduced a few years ago, the NFL Rookie Symposium was as anonymous a sports event as any. But anything that moves and says "NFL" seems to generate some sort of attention. ... The NFL, through its broadcast partners and its own NFL Network, has done an impressive job of turning static events into viable TV programming. The NFL draft is certainly the best example, but we've also seen coverage of the scouting combine in Indianapolis and even the owners' annual meetings in March.

Education symposium to hear Ulman Howard County Executive Ken Ulman will speak at an educational symposium, organized by the Young Professionals Network of the Howard County Chamber of Commerce, to be held from 8 a.m. to noon Tuesday on the Columbia campus of the Johns Hopkins University Carey Business School. Local educators, business people and professionals will discuss leadership, image management, community participation and careers and business in Maryland. The event is to kick off the academic year at the business school's Professional Career Services.

For almost a year now, Johns Hopkins juniors Jay Suresh and Hari Chandra have been working for no pay with a limited budget to draw some big names to the Homewood campus for the school's second Symposium on Foreign Affairs."

Some of the nation's top archaeologists and anthropologists will meet tomorrow in Crownsville to discuss discoveries in Virginia and elsewhere that suggest that people arrived in the Americas as many as 30,000 years ago -- more than twice the conventional estimate.The daylong symposium begins at 8: 30 a.m. at the People's Resource Center, 100 Community Place. Directions and information: 410-514-7661.Pub Date: 4/17/98

The first-ever National Urban Symposium begins at noon today and continues through Thursday at the Crimea Mansion in Leakin Park, headquarters of the Baltimore-Chesapeake Bay Outward Bound Program, which is sponsoring the event.The symposium will focus on challenges and opportunities facing urban Outward Bound programs in Baltimore, New York, Atlanta, Boston and San Antonio.Programs of the nonprofit Outward Bound are aimed at urban youths and seek to develop self-reliance, self-esteem and concern for others and the environment.

"Eliminate [racial] bias" in sentencing. That was one of several recommendations put forth on the final day of the National Symposium on Sentencing sponsored by the American Judicature Society in San Diego two weeks ago.The details of exactly how we achieve this lofty goal weren't discussed. Nor was the possibility of eliminating the racial disparity in sentencing addressed. But throughout the symposium there was that constant refrain: There are too many "people of color" in prison. We have to deal with the racial disparity in sentencing.

The University of Santo Tomas Medical Alumni Association of Maryland and the Baltimore County Medical Association are sponsoring a daylong symposium April 12 on "Breast Cancer and Women's Health."The symposium will offer continuing education for doctors and other health professionals on the latest research on breast cancer, as well as information for the public. It will include lunch, a fashion show and a celebrity discussion about the psychological impact of breast cancer on the patient and family.

Housing, planning officials to speak at symposiumState housing and planning officials are scheduled to be some of the speakers at a symposium Feb. 14 on planning and growth management in Maryland.The 9 a.m.-to-noon event is sponsored by the Home Builders Association of Maryland, and meets the new Maryland Real Estate Commission continuing education requirement for a three-hour course on legislative issues. The fee is $40 per person, which includes parking at the Biddle Street garage. The registration deadline is Friday.

On Monday morning, my alarm rang at 5:40 and I pushed the snooze button twice, just like the day before. I got out of bed at 6 and went downstairs to make coffee, just like the day before. I let the dog out, just like the day before. And I opened the dishwasher to unload the dishes, just like the day before. But on this day, I discovered it had been emptied by someone else. Oh joy! Rapture! Oh unexpected bliss! During these decidedly less-than-happy-go-lucky economic times, we ought to be on the lookout for silly little happy spots in our lives and celebrate them.

Three firefighters suffer minor burns in house fire 1 Three Baltimore County firefighters suffered minor burns at a townhouse fire near Catonsville late Thursday, officials said yesterday. No one was home when the fire occurred about 10 p.m. in the 1100 block of Granville Road, fire officials said. The cause of the fire, which was brought under control about 11:30 p.m., is under investigation, they said. From Baltimore Sun staff reports Crane lift to close 3 lanes on Maryland Avenue 2 A crane lift operation is planned in the 1400 block of Maryland Ave. today from 6 a.m. until 5 p.m., according to Baltimore transportation officials.

'Dining with Docs' diabetes talk planned Upper Chesapeake Health will host "Dining with Docs," a dinner, lecture and discussion at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday in Upper Chesapeake Medical Center's Chesapeake Conference Center. Dr. Julie Ducharme, who specialized in internal medicine, will give an overview of diabetes, possible complications and treatment options. The cost is $5 (cash only). Reservations are required. Information: 800-515-0044. Childbirth class at Upper Chesapeake Upper Chesapeake Health will offer a weekend prepared childbirth course from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. June 28 and 29 at Upper Chesapeake Medical Center.

Over two years, Choose Civility in Howard County has grown into a public campaign of workshops, book discussions and school programs supported by 40 community partners, but it may still be best known for its bumper stickers. People have taken more than 35,000 of the green magnetic reminders to "Choose Civility," and displayed them throughout the county on automobiles, refrigerators and file cabinets. The campaign "began taking off after the car magnets became a visible thing," said Valerie Gross, executive director of the Howard County Library, which is the lead partner for the campaign.

A coalition of Howard County officials representing public schools, business and government have scheduled a half-day symposium Thursday at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory. The session is designed to brainstorm about new ways to encourage students to pursue studies in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. About 125 are expected to gather for the 8:30 a.m.-to-1:30 p.m., invitation-only conclave, which is Howard County's first Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics Business and Education Leadership Symposium.

Education symposium to hear Ulman Howard County Executive Ken Ulman will speak at an educational symposium, organized by the Young Professionals Network of the Howard County Chamber of Commerce, to be held from 8 a.m. to noon Tuesday on the Columbia campus of the Johns Hopkins University Carey Business School. Local educators, business people and professionals will discuss leadership, image management, community participation and careers and business in Maryland. The event is to kick off the academic year at the business school's Professional Career Services.

When it was introduced a few years ago, the NFL Rookie Symposium was as anonymous a sports event as any. But anything that moves and says "NFL" seems to generate some sort of attention. ... The NFL, through its broadcast partners and its own NFL Network, has done an impressive job of turning static events into viable TV programming. The NFL draft is certainly the best example, but we've also seen coverage of the scouting combine in Indianapolis and even the owners' annual meetings in March.

Groundbreaking held at Applied Physics Lab Howard County Executive Ken Ulman, county officials and representatives from the construction industry met Friday to break ground for a new building at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in North Laurel. The $62 million, 261,600-square-foot building is scheduled to open in 2009. It will house about 500 of the laboratory's staff members and will replace obsolete facilities in older buildings. The new facilities are to include research laboratories, a mission operations center at which three space missions can be commanded at one time, and modeling and simulation facilities for the Navy's next generation missile combat systems.

Women's `Hall' game, ceremony tomorrow The 11th Howard County Women's Athletics Hall of Fame game and induction ceremony will be held tomorrow at Atholton High School in Columbia. Inductees are Tierney Clark Ahearn, Sylvia Groomes, Kisha Jett and Genny O'Donnell Kozusko. The event, which is sponsored by Patuxent Publishing, will be held between the alumnae basketball game, which starts at 5 p.m., and the Centennial vs. Atholton girls varsity basketball game, which starts at 7 p.m. There is an admission charge; proceeds will go to the Women's Giving Circle.

Minister and TV actor to speak at fall Eisenhower Symposium The 2006 Milton S. Eisenhower Symposium is planning two speakers this week as part of its fall series. The Rev. James Forbes will speak Thursday at the university's Interfaith Center on "A Partnership of Faith: Spirituality and the Youth." The next night, television star Jason Alexander will give a talk titled "America's Youth: The Best of Times, the Worst of Times, " in Shriver Hall at the Johns Hopkins University's Homewood campus.