Olivia DrakeAugust 3, 20102min
Q: Debbie, you’re the administrative assistant for the Archaeology Program, Medieval Studies Program and the Classical Studies Department. Anything else?! A: In October 2010, I was given a promotion and added the responsibility of also working for the English Department and Writing Workshop in the new Downey House operations support system. At times it is a bit challenging, but I am good at managing my time and priorities so the work gets done in a timely fashion. I wear many different hats and wear them well. Q: How many years have you worked for Wesleyan, and in what departments? A: I have…

Olivia DrakeAugust 3, 20102min
More than 45 golfers from Wesleyan participated in the Wesleyan Open Golf Tournament July 10. Participants paid an entry fee which includes an 18-hole round, prizes and dinner. A portion of the fees is collected for a different charity in Middletown. This year, the tournament raised $2,000 for the Bielefield School’s “Support Our Troops project.” Connecticut Governor M. Jodi Rell proclaimed July 10, 2010 as Wesleyan Open Day and the city council proclaimed the date Beifield School Day.

Olivia DrakeAugust 3, 20102min
Stewart Novick, professor of chemistry, and Herb Pickett, a visiting scholar in chemistry, received a $323,880 grant from the National Science Foundation for their research titled “High resolution spectroscopy of molecular hydrogen complexed with Transition metal halides and chalcogens: a model for H2 MOF hydrogen storage.” The grant will be awarded Sept. 1 through Aug. 31, 2013. The grant is subcontract with the project’s co-PI Zhenghong Yu at Aerodyne Research Inc. Using the extremely sensitive Fourier transform microwave spectrometer in Novick's laboratory and incorporating "laser ablation" as a source of refractory molecules, Novick and Pickett plan to study the "active site" of the…

Olivia DrakeAugust 3, 20101min
Adam Jensen, research associate for the Astronomy Department, received a $68,012 grant from the Space Telescope Institute, AURA, for his research on “Definitive ISM Abundances through Low-mass X-ray Binaries as Lighthouses.” This research program will use 13 orbits of Hubble Space Telescope (HST) observing time along with archival data from the Chandra X-ray Observatory to better understand the composition of the interstellar dust in our galaxy.  One HST observation was executed in June, with additional observations to follow this fall.  The project is funded through May 31, 2012.

Olivia DrakeAugust 3, 20101min
Laura Grabel, the Lauren B. Dachs Professor of Science and Society, professor of biology, received a $28,750 grant from the Connecticut Stem Cell Initiative for a “Human Embryonic Stem Cell Core” outreach component. The grant is subcontracted with the University of Connecticut Health Center. Outreach activities include running a seminar program for Connecticut colleges and universities, and holding a workshop every summer at the UConn Health Center.

Olivia DrakeAugust 3, 20101min
Ann Burke, professor of biology, received a $5,700 grant from the National Institutes of Health’s Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, to support a symposium on “Evolution and Development in the Lateral Plate Mesoderm.” This symposium was part of the program of the Ninth International Congress of Vertebrate Morphology held July 26-31 in Punta del Esta, Uruguay. The funds supported the housing and registration costs for six invited speakers. The symposium brought together paleontologists, developmental and evolutionary biologists to discuss major morphological innovations occurring in the lateral plate mesoderm.