A Mississippi State computer science major's cooperation with the FBI is leading to the arrest of a Texan accused of planning a major computer "hack" of a Dallas medical facility.

Nearly two weeks ago, Wesley McGrew of Collinsville, a computer science doctoral student at the university, turned over his research about a potential hack to an FBI agent in Jackson. The agent passed the information to the Dallas bureau to investigate for possible federal crimes.

McGrew, a research assistant at MSU's Critical Infrastructure Protection Center, said he communicates often with perceived hackers, but researches only a small percentage of those he interacts with online. This time, however, one showed evidence of threatening public health and safety.

Click here to read more.

Source: MSU News

The MSU ID card is getting a face lift, and those new to MSU and those in certain special categories will get a revised look. For most folks, the current ID card will continue to be the card to use.

A key feature of the new design is a larger ID photo for improved identity verification. Additionally, certain ID cards will have colored stripes to indicate individuals identified by their Vice President as being in one of three special categories including:

- Crisis Action Team member, signified by a yellow stripe

- First Responder to emergencies, signified by a red stripe

- Position Identification, signified by a blue stripe

The Department of Housing and Residence Life invites the Mississippi State family to serve as volunteers for "Movin' You to MSU" (MVNU2MSU) Saturday, August 8, when residence halls open to students.

Duties include working check-in at Humphrey Coliseum, moving boxes from cars to rooms, greeting students, and directing traffic. Volunteers will receive a free T-shirt, a box lunch provided by Aramark and water.

The volunteer application and agreement form may be downloaded
here.

Please return a completed application and form to Courtnay Greer at P.O. Box 9502 (or Mailstop 9502), Mississippi State, MS 39762 by 5 p.m. Friday, July 17.

Source: MVNU2MSU

The Maroon Edition project at Mississippi State University is an initiative to engage all freshmen and the MSU campus in reading the same book each summer and fall. It is intended to serve as a basis for intellectual and cultural discussion as students come to campus and enter into dialogue with other students and with the administration, faculty, and staff.

An ad hoc group of faculty and administrators proposed to the MSU administration the idea of initiating a common reading program for incoming first-year students during the Fall of 2009. For the 2009 inaugural program the ad hoc group recommended John Grisham's A Painted House. All future selections will be made through a university-wide selection committee. The book is to be required summer reading for all incoming freshmen prior to their arrival on campus in the fall.

The first book for the MSU Common Reading Project is one that was written by John Grisham, MSU graduate and New York Times bestselling author. In A Painted House Grisham vividly portrays the rural south as seen through the eyes of a seven-year-old son of a tenant cotton farming family in the Arkansas Delta in the 1950's. It involves the dynamics of race, class, and romance, and the "coming of age" of the youngest of the Chandler family, Luke. Luke suddenly realizes his own family's position in the social strata of the rural community when he discovers that the more well-to-do families have painted houses. Since his family's house is unpainted, he is determined that he and his family deserve better, a painted house.

Taking office July 1, the new MSU Alumni Association officers include (l-r) Jerry L. Toney of Starkville, second vice president; Jodi White Turner of Montgomery, Ala., treasurer; Charles A. Cascio of Cleveland, president; Karen Dugard Lawler of Madison, Ala., first vice president; and A.D. Hunt Jr. of Hattiesburg, immediate past national president.

For more information, click here. (Jun 26, 2009 Photo by Russ Houston)

Source: State Snapshot

A public send-off reception and trunk show for Sara Beth James, Miss Mississippi State University 2009, will take place Wednesday [July 1] on campus.

A sophomore communication/journalism major and President's List Scholar from Madison, James is among 47 young women competing in the July 15-18 Miss Mississippi Scholarship Pageant in Vicksburg. She is the daughter of Faye James.

To begin at 4 p.m. in Lee Hall's Bettersworth Auditorium, the program will feature James' preview of the pageant schedule and a performance of her talent selection. She also will model her competition clothing and discuss her personal platform, the promotion of organ and tissue recovery.

For more information on the campus event, contact Heidie Lindsey at 662-325-3063 or hdl12@saffairs.msstate.edu.

Source: MSU News