David LowGrant Brenner ’92, Daniel Bush and Joshua Moses are co-editors of Creating Spiritual and Psychological Resilience: Integrating Care in Disaster Relief Work (Routledge), which explores the interface between spiritual and psychological care in the context of disaster recovery work, drawing upon recent disasters including the experiences of Sept. 11, 2001. The book contains three sections structured around the cycle of disaster response and focusing on the relevant phase of disaster recovery work. In each section, selected spiritual and mental health topics are examined with contributions from spiritual care and mental health care providers. This is a useful reference volume for theory…
Cynthia RockwellDaniel Pollitt ’43, University of North Carolina Kenan Professor Emeritus and longtime civil-liberties and civil-rights advocate, was awarded the Order of the Long Leaf Pine, one of the state’s highest honors, last summer. Nominated for the award by state Sen. Floyd McKissick Jr., whose father, Floyd McKissick Sr., worked with Pollitt on a number of civil-rights issues, Pollitt was presented with the award by Sen. Ellie Kinnaird, with whom he was wed last April. Bestowed for a lifetime of “integrity, learning and zeal,” the award recognizes his activism and commitment to the causes of social justice. In the 1950s, he…
Jerry Melillo ’65, a senior scientist at the U.S. Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, Mass., says in a study published in Science that the new generation of biofuels will actually emit more carbon dioxide, averaged over the first three decades of this century, than gasoline—although the fuels were meant to be a low-carbon alternative. A Reuters report on the study noted that governments and private industry are spending billions of dollars on research into making fuels from wood and grass in the hopes of cutting carbon emissions while not competing with food, as corn-based biofuels do. Melillo and his…
Olivia DrakeCultural historian Richard Slotkin, the Olin Professor of English, Emeritus, is featured in an Oct. 25 Hartford Courant article titled " Wesleyan Professor Sees 1864 Civil War Battle As Microcosm Of Racial Divide." The article focuses on Slotkin's most recent book , No Quarter: The Battle of the Crater, 1864. The title of the book references one of the battle's major controversies, which Slotkin addresses unsparingly: It was Confederate policy to take no black prisoners, resulting in summary executions of POWs on both sides. Slotkin says his fascination with the battle goes back to his interst in the Civil War.…
Angus McCullough ’10 was mentioned in a Nov. 1 New York Times article titled "Grand Visions for a Faded Bronx Boulevard." McCullough is participating in an exhibit titled “Intersections: The Grand Concourse Beyond 100,” at the Bronx Museum of the Arts. A result of a nine-month competition sponsored by the museum and the Design Trust for Public Space, the show focuses on seven visions for the future of the Grand Concourse in the Bronx that range from urban farms to high-tech sound barriers for a nearby freeway. McCullough's proposal, "Live Wired," would create video and audio installations in strategic points…
Several Wesleyan faculty, graduate students and alumni participated in the 2009 Geological Society of America Annual Meeting Oct. 18-21 in Portland, Ore. Suzanne O'Connell, associate professor of earth and environmental sciences, director of the Service Learning Center, presented a research poster and delivered a presentation titled "Techniques and Tools for Effective Recruitment, Retention and promotion of Women and Minorities in the Geosciences." She spoke about the grant-funded organization Geoscience Academics in the Northeast (GAIN), which was established to build a community of academic geoscience women within a small geographic area. Johan Varekamp, the Harold T. Stearns Professor of Earth Science,…
Cem Duruöz, guitar private lessons teacher, will present the music of his native country, Turkey, in a CD release event at 5 p.m. Nov. 15. at the Milford Center for the Arts, 40 Railroad Avenue South in Milford, Conn. The CD is titled "Treasures of Anatolia: Guitar Music from Turkey" and is released from Tutti Music. The program includes a guitar recital with Turkish Music, discussion of the origins and styles of Turkish Music, selections from the CD with historical and stylistic information about the pieces, a short Turkish Folk Dance class and a reception and refreshments. Tickets are $20 by…
Willard M. McRae, co-founder of Wesleyan's Upward Bound Program, recently received Liberty Bank’s ninth annual Community Diversity Award. The Community Diversity Award was introduced in 2001 to recognize people who build bridges between those of different races, economic backgrounds, faiths, cultures and capabilities, according to the bank. McRae was awarded at a reception among area dignitaries at St. Clements Castle in Portland, Conn., in late October for his lifelong dedication to creating opportunities for children and adults in the areas of education, mental health and human services. In presenting the award, Liberty Bank President and CEO Chandler Howard called attention to…
Fred Cohan, professor of biology, delivered a presentation titled "Darwin vs. Mayr on the Origin of Bacterial Species," during a Darwin conference, celebrating the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin's birth. The event was held Oct. 29-31 at the University of Chicago. Cohan joined other evolutionary biologists, historians and philosophers who connected their work directly with Darwin. 2009 also marks the 150th anniversary of Darwin's The Origin of Species.
As part of Connecticut Gov. M. Jodi Rell's "Day of Caring & Compassion," Nov. 6, Wesleyan students and their families helped collect 20,000 pounds of food. "The goal of the statewide food drive was to replenish the state’s food banks and food pantries for the holidays, especially as the number of people seeking food-assistance has increased by over 30 percent from last year," Gov. Rell said in a Nov. 9 Middletown Press article. "I am proud to say that thousands of Connecticut residents and visitors rose to the challenge and showed how much they care about their friends, family and…
Gary Yohe, the Woodhouse/Sysco Professor of Economics, was quoted in a Nov. 3 New York Times article titled "Obama Administration Weighs Costs of Doing Nothing." The article examined the Obama Administration's inaction on significant climate change measures and how it is "struggling to reach its own conclusion," a stark difference from the President's campaign rhetoric of speedy action on climate change issues. The sticking point appears to be the cost versus benefit calculations or "social costs" of deciding whether to enact specific measures. Yohe says, in part, that the difficulty lies in objectively quantifying these costs. "You can't really quantify…
Corrina KerrJoel Pfister's book The Yale Indian: The Education of Henry Roe Cloud was published by Duke University Press in June 2009. Pfister is the chair of the English Department and the Kenan Professor of the Humanities, along with being professor of American studies.