Corrina KerrOctober 20, 20081min
Failure to adapt in certain military maneuvers or assignments can lead to fatal errors. To help prevent grievous mistakes, the U.S. Office of the Secretary of Defense has asked psychologists to study adaptability. Assistant Professor of Psychology Steven Stemler was awarded a $60,000 subcontract via the University of Central Florida to study the concept and develop tools to measure adaptability. (more…)

Olivia DrakeOctober 20, 20081min
It's a dog-gone good month for Laurenellen McCann ’09. After spending her entire summer working for an independent television production company, the government major's work was finally broadcast Oct. 11 on the network, Animal Planet. As one of three associate producers for the new series Dogs 101, McCann was at the front line of creative thought for each episode. She was responsible for researching the information to be disseminated in every episode, including details about the dog breeds featured and the best stories to make them stand out. (more…)

Olivia DrakeOctober 20, 20081min
Sonia BasSheva Mañjon, vice president for diversity and strategic partnerships, will investigate two partnerships between higher education institutions and urban communities during a conference at Trinity College Oct. 23. The day-long event, titled “Cultural Identity through the Arts in Urban Communities,” will pursue how academic institutions can develop new and innovative collaborative projects with diverse communities in urban settings. (more…)

Olivia DrakeOctober 20, 20082min
Celebrated fiction writer and poet Michael Ondaatje, winner of the British Commonwealth’s highest literary award, the Booker Prize, is this year's Joan Jakobson Visiting Writer. Ondaatje will read from his prose at 8 p.m. Nov. 5 in Memorial Chapel. The event is free of charge and open to the public. "Michael Ondaatje's works are haunting, seductive stories and his prose is stunning," says Anne Greene, director of writing programs. "This is a rare chance to hear Ondaatje's own voice." Born in Sri Lanka of Indian/Dutch ancestry, Ondaatje went to school in England and then moved to Canada. Among his best-known…

Olivia DrakeOctober 20, 20082min
By Intisar Abioto '09 The current Ezra and Cecile Zilkha Gallery exhibition Framing and Being Framed: The Uses of Documentary Photography, challenges the traditional space between the artist, the subject and the viewer. The exhibition of two-dimensional photographs, photo installations, video and web-based works features art by Ann Messner, Perry Bard, Matthew Buckingham, Wendy Ewald, Susan Meiselas, An-My Lê, Emily Jacir, Alfredo Jaar, Eric Gottesman and Kota Ezawa. Curator Nina Felshin planned this exhibition after meeting with Jennifer Tucker, chair and associate professor of feminist, gender and sexuality studies, associate professor of history, associate professor of science in society, several years…

Olivia DrakeOctober 20, 20082min
When Frank, Angela, and their two children are evicted from their New York City apartment, they have no choice but to move into a homeless shelter. After a few difficult months, an apartment becomes available in a nearby housing project. There’s only one catch: Frank needs a job in order to qualify or the apartment will get rented to someone else. While the rest of the city prepares for Christmas, Frank and his 10-year-old stepson, Justin, roam the cold streets of New York trying to find a job by day's end. While this is the story line for the feature…

Olivia DrakeOctober 20, 20082min
During a session on algebraic topology, graduate student Weiwei Pan spoke to dozens of mathematical scholars from around the world on "Categorified Bundles and Classifying Spaces." Pan was one of 220 speakers who presented math-related talks during the 2008 Eastern Sectional Meeting of the American Mathematical Society held Oct. 11-12 at Wesleyan. More than 300 participants registered. "One of the best things about being a mathematician is that there are people all over the world who share your interests, and that mathematics (more…)

Olivia DrakeOctober 20, 20082min
Physicists, predominately from New England and Europe, will convene Oct. 26 at Wesleyan to discuss topics related to mesoscopic systems. The one-day event, coordinated by the Physics Department's Complex Quantum Dynamics and Mesoscopic Phenomena Group, will be the first-ever New England Mesoscopic Systems Symposium. The mesoscopic scale lies between microscopic and macroscopic, which is visible to the human eye. (more…)

Olivia DrakeOctober 20, 20081min
Seiji Naito, adjunct associate professor of Asian languages and literatures emeritus, died in Zama City, Japan. He was 66 years old. Naito was trained as a linguist. He earned a bachelor of arts in education from Yokohama National University and a Ph.D in linguistics from Harvard University. He held positions at the University of Hawaii, Boston University, and Tokyo Junshin Women's College before joining the Wesleyan faculty as adjunct assistant professor in 1993. In 1999 he was promoted to adjunct associate professor, and he left Wesleyan in 2003. (more…)

Olivia DrakeOctober 20, 20081min
Q: Donna, how long have you worked at Wesleyan as the department assistant/customer service assistant for Physical Plant? A: It's been eight years. Q: The extension X3400 is one most people on campus are familiar with. A: This is my number, the direct number for all customer service needs. Q: Have you had any odd-ball calls? A: I have to say the funniest call I received was a request asking that we send someone to clean a refrigerator out because she had rotten chicken that was smelling. (more…)