Olivia Drake(more…)
Margot Weiss, assistant professor of American studies, assistant professor of anthropology, and Naomi Greyser at the University of Iowa organized a symposium on Academia and Activism Feb. 11 in Russell House. The event brought together nine interdisciplinary scholars for two open roundtable discussions on the possibilities and difficulties of bridging academic and activist work. Panelists on the two roundtables reflected on a series of questions: "What are the intersections and gaps between activist and academic work? How is activist labor intellectual and when is intellectual labor activist? How might we historicize dichotomies of theory and practice, 'ivory tower' and 'real…
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Q: Alex, you are the coordinator for program housing in Residential Life. Please explain what a “program house” is, and who can live in one? A: In simple terms, a program house is a themed-based living option at Wesleyan. Each house has its own mission statement based on the specific theme/interest (hobbies, lifestyles, languages, cultural, religious) of the house. Sophomores, juniors and seniors are eligible to live in program housing. Q: What would you say are the most well-known program homes on campus? Which are the oldest? A: Program housing has been a living option for students since the early…
Johan “Joop” Varekamp, the Harold T. Stearns Professor of Earth Science, professor of environmental studies, received a $150,000 grant from the National Science Foundation in January. He will use the funds to build a new X-Ray Fluorescence lab in the Earth and Environmental Sciences Department. The lab will be used for analyzing rocks, soils and waters.
Sarah Ruden, a visiting scholar in classics, is the author of “The Old is New Again,” published in the Feb. 21, 2011 issue of National Review magazine. The article focuses on her work translating -- from Latin -- the first extant novel in western literature, The Golden Ass' by Apuleius. Ruden's translation is due to be published this year by Yale University Press. In addition to her essays, the National Review publishes Ruden's original poetry on a regular basis. This fall will also see the publication by Doubleday of the paperback edition of Ruden's 2010 book on St. Paul, Paul Among the People.…
Marshall Johnson’s research is out of this world. For the past two years, the senior astronomy major used the Van Vleck Observatory’s 24-inch Perkin Telescope to study the transits of “exoplanets,” or planets outside our solar system, that orbit another star. His study, titled “First Results from the Wesleyan Transiting Exoplanet Program,” explains a refined orbital period of a newly-discovered planet named WASP-33b (Wide Angle Search for Planets). Ultimately, Johnson may prove that he’s discovered another planet, WASP-33c. “Here in Connecticut, with clouds and haze, we don’t have the best observing conditions, but I was still able to obtain high-quality…
Charlotte Cottier ’12, at right, bikes through rice paddies in Mai Chau, Vietnam during the Cities in the 21st Century Program in December. Cottier spent 17 weeks studying the development of the world’s cities. During the fall semester, Charlotte Cottier ’12 set a lofty goal: “I wanted to pop the Wesleyan bubble and become a citizen of the world,” she says. “I wasn’t quite sure what this meant, but I knew that growth, challenge, and change would be necessary.” Cottier applied for the Cities in the 21st Century Program, coordinated through the International Honors Program (IHP). For 17 weeks, she…
Student-run organizations have the opportunity to win cash prizes through the Dell Social Innovation Competition. The University of Texas at Austin and Dell are looking for university students who are working to combat social problems worldwide. They’re giving away more than$100,000 in cash prizes to at least five winning teams. Shining Hope for Communities, directed by Jessica Posner ’09 and Kennedy Odede ’12, received the $50,000 Dell Social Innovation Competition grand prize award in 2010. This year, three other student-groups at Wesleyan are competing for the awards. Vote tallies, along with the competition judges, determines the $50,000 grand prize winner (more…)
Ray Hardman from WNPR’s “Morning Edition” will serve as emcee and master of ceremonies to Green Street Art Center's second annual fund-raising event and auction, A Feast for the Senses. This Caribbean themed event will feature music of The Fresh Men-toes with Bill Carbone (drums), Gabe Gordon (piano), Zac Rosen (bass) and Andrew Fogliano (sax/flute) performing songs from Jamaica, Trinidad and elsewhere in a calypso and mento style, and a steel pan duo featuring Deborah Fischer Teason and Sarah Sedgwick Heath. A Feast for the Senses will be held April 8 at the Green Street Arts Center at 51 Green Street in Middletown,…