David PesciSeptember 14, 20091min
My Vocabulary Did This to Me: The Collected Poetry of Jack Spicer, edited by Peter Gizzi and Kevin Killian, published by the Wesleyan University Press, is one of the winners of the 30th annual American Book Awards for 2009.  The awards are presented by the Before Columbus Foundation and will be formally award on Sunday, October 11th, in New York City.

David PesciSeptember 14, 20091min
Gil Skillman, chair and professor of economics, was a featured guest on WNPR's "Where We Live" discussion on the general state of the economy one year after the demise of Lehman Brothers and the onset of the recession. Skillman and two other economists discuss what led to the collapse and point out some of the danger points that have been under-reported in the newsmedia and have yet to be addressed by the Federal Government.

David PesciSeptember 10, 20091min
The Colin McEnroe Show on WNPR had a discussion about Vodou and Haitian culture featuring Elizabeth McAlister, associate professor of religion, associate professor of African American studies, and Gina Ulysse, associate professor of anthropology, associate professor of African American studies, associate professor of feminist gender and sexuality studies.

David PesciSeptember 10, 20091min
The Department of Film Studies Elia Kazan Centennial, which opens Saturday, Sept. 12, was the focus of a feature in The Hartford Courant. A seminal director and founder of the Actors Studio, Kazan was both a brilliant and influential figure in film. He was also surrounded by controversy during his career, especially during the 1950s and the investigations by House of Representatives Un-American Activities Committee. Kazan was also a "fixture" at Wesleyan, where he often came to write and speak to the classes of Jeanine Basinger, Chair and Corwin-Fuller Professor of Film Studies. His personal papers reside in the Wesleyan…

Olivia DrakeSeptember 3, 20092min
Noah Klein-Markman ’13 learned his first lesson at Wesleyan 20 minutes after arriving on campus. "I already lost the key," he said, carrying in two armloads of belongings. "I think I left the key inside the room." Klein-Markman, of Berkley, Calif., was one of the first students to move into the Butterfield Residence Hall during the Class of 2013 Arrival Day Sept. 1. He joined more than 800 other first-year, transfer, exchange and visiting students in the class. His mother, Laura Klein '78; father Henry Markman; and brother Sam Klein-Markman assisted Noah with the early morning move. The family dog,…

Olivia DrakeSeptember 3, 20091min
International Student Orientation was held Aug. 28-31. ISO offers sessions that address health and medical insurance issues, programs about cultural adaptation, weather adjustment, and liberal arts education, as well as informational sessions about U.S. systems that many international students are not familiar with or are very different from their home country. This program prepares international students to successfully transition to New Student Orientation. ISO concluded with a formal dinner and program on Aug. 31. Photos from the event are below. (Photos by Olivia Bartlett Drake)

Olivia DrakeSeptember 3, 20092min
In order for animals to detect food sources, avoid predators and find mates, they rely on their olfactory system, or sense of smell. The ability to detect and distinguish among thousands of environmental odorants is based on a combinatorial recognition system. A specific smell is coded in the brain by a specific combination of receptor proteins that get stimulated by the unique combination of odorant chemicals elicited by that scent. "The smell of 'lemons,' for example, would result from a specific combination of odorant receptor proteins that become stimulated upon binding the specific set of inhaled chemicals emitted from a…