The UA will host the official dedication ceremony Friday for the Large Binocular Telescope on Mount Graham, a project both hailed and criticized by people across the nation.

Although the telescope is not complete, representatives from institutions who have invested in the LBT will tour the Mirror Lab in the Steward Observatory, followed by the dedication at the Westin La Paloma Resort, said Ann Spitz, special assistant to the director at Steward Observatory. [Read article]

Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., said last night that the rising costs of higher education are "shameful" and said it will take more than "lip service" to achieve the equal opportunity goals set by great American leaders.

At the James E. Rogers College of Law-facilitated speech at the Marriott, Kennedy said after four years of troubling trends, education needs to return as one of the country's highest priorities. [Read article]

An off-campus support group is reaching out to students who have lost loved ones in an effort to help them cope and to let them know they are not alone.

The support group is for people between the ages of 18 and 29 and meets at Tu Nidito, 3922 N. Mountain Ave.

Tu Nidito is a non-profit group that provides support to children and their families as they deal with serious illness and death.

Though the group works mostly with children, for the past three years they've had a support group for young adults as well. Most of the support group's members are UA students. [Read article]

With the deadline for voter registration passed and election day approaching, campus organizations are promoting early voting to ensure students' voices are heard.

Also known as mail-in ballots or absentee ballots, early voter ballots allow students who cannot make it to their polling station on Nov. 2 to cast their vote by mail.

Yvonne Reed, assistant to the Maricopa Country Recorder, said if students want an early ballot mailed to them outside of their registered county, they must submit a written request to their registered county for signature verification. [Read article]

Next month, 10 UA students will have the chance to ask President Peter Likins anything they want over a casual breakfast off-campus.

ASUA University Relations Director Evan Worle said 10 students will be selected for "The President's Breakfast," and any concerns students may have can be addressed.

Worle said the breakfast is held every semester. The breakfast with students started two years ago. [Read article]

UA's Flandrau Science Center is featuring free public viewing of Uranus and Neptune on campus on their 16-inch telescope until early November.

Visitors can view the planets from Wednesday through Saturday, 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., weather permitting. The telescope is Arizona's only free public telescope open on a regular basis.

"It gives you a sense of perspective and your place in the universe," said Michael Terenzoni, planetarium coordinator at Flandrau. [Read article]

The Biology Department is beginning a new career series to introduce students to a wide range of careers in biology.

Carol Bender, director of the undergraduate biology research program, helped organize the new event and said each part of the series would focus on a particular area relating to biology.

The first series focused on undergraduate internships and fellowships. The second series will focus on biology and business, and the third series will look at biology in health professions. [Read article]

Things you always never wanted to know