Olivia Drake(more…)
On April 22, Professor of Physics Brian Stewart held his annual Earth Day Rant. This year's topic was "Bending the Curves: Coping with Crises from Car Crashes to Coronavirus to Climate Change." During his talk, Stewart discussed and compared how a car crash, storm, epidemic, and climate change vary in terms of mitigation, adaptation, perception, agency, cost to the United States, and deaths per 100,000 people. The current epidemic has cost the U.S. more than $2.5 trillion, whereas vehicle accidents amount to $277 billion per year (excluding indirect costs), and storms cause $30 billion per year in damages. All contribute…
This spring, a research team from Wesleyan traveled to Death Valley National Park to explore the ways bacteria diversifies in extreme environments. Death Valley, located about 130 miles west of Las Vegas, is a below-sea-level basin known for being the hottest place on earth and driest place in North America. The average rainfall is less than 2 inches, annually. "National parks are ideal for research, in general, because the land is protected indefinitely from commercial development," said team leader Fred Cohan, professor of biology, professor of environmental studies. "Death Valley is a nice model system for exobiology because of its extreme…
Bryan Stascavage '18Several Wesleyan students and faculty were recently awarded grants for research by NASA's Connecticut Space Grant Program. Seth Redfield, associate professor of astronomy and campus director of NASA's CT Space Grant Consortium, was excited about the number of winners. "I was thrilled to see how successful Wesleyan was this year in getting grants through NASA's CT Space Grant program," wrote Redfield. "It demonstrates the diversity and quality of work we do that is aligned with NASA’s mission." "The grants this year support undergraduate, graduate, and faculty research, as well as special events organized by faculty at Wesleyan to promote exposure and…
Lauren RubensteinSara Seager, Class of 1941 Professor of Planetary Science and Physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, will deliver the Sturm Memorial Lecture at 8 p.m. on April 29. She will speak in CFA Hall on "The Search for Earth 2.0." Seager is a pioneer in the field of exoplanets, specifically in characterizing the atmospheres and searching for life on those distant worlds. Her talk will address the age-old question: "Are we alone?" (more…)
In honor of Earth Month, Wesleyan will host a series of speakers and films beginning April 14. At 4:15 p.m. on April 14, the College of the Environment will present a talk, "The Tiger in the Smoke: The Aesthetics of Fog in Post-War Britain c. 1945-55," by Lynda Nead, the Pevsner Professor of History of Art at Birkbeck, University of London. The talk will be in 41 Wyllys, Room 112. It is cosponsored by the Allbritton Center for the Study of Public Life; the Mellon Fund for Lectures in Ethics, Politics and Social Issues; Art History; History; and the Science in…
Natalie Robichaud ’14Throughout April, Wesleyan is hosting its second annual Earth Month. On April 12, Wesleyan is hosting a "Climate Justice Conference of Solutions" event. Participants will lay out the organizing, technological, and policy solutions to the climate crisis and explore how taking action on climate can improve social justice, create jobs, grow businesses, and enhance national security. Register for the event here. Other Earth Month events include a Sustainability Career Panel on April 8, Long Lane Farm grand workdays, WILDWes workdays, a Wesleyan Joulebug Competition, an Earth Week Rant with Professor of Physics Brian Stewart, a Mama Earth Fest, a film screening of Victoria Mamas…
Hannah Norman '16Plant trees, create recycled art, tour a chestnut orchard, work on an organic garden and much more during Earth Month at Wesleyan! During the month of April, Wesleyan's Sustainability Office is hosting several earth-friendly opportunities. Events begin April 4 with a luncheon discussion on "Waste: Uncertainty, Futurity, and Democratic Engagement" at Woodhead Lounge. The Wesleyan community also is invited to the 6th Annual Global Environmental Sustainability Symposium on Transportation, Human Mobility and Sustainability at Central Connecticut State University the same day. On April 6, join student organization WILD Wes to plant the berry bushes and herbaceous plantings for the Edible…
It’s that time of year: crunchy fall leaves and the long awaited end to the summer harvesting season. Long Lane Farm’s ninth annual Pumpkin Fest, held on Oct. 6, celebrated this culmination with free vegetarian food, face painting, live music from student bands, farm tours, yoga, and more. Middletown residents and Wesleyan students and faculty alike came together in what farm enthusiast Josh Krugman '14 called “a celebration of the farm as a student-run project that makes amazing things happen, and also the farm as a community and the possibility the farm has of creating community even outside of the…