Psychology major Nikko Marko Lencek-Inagaki '07 will study in France this summer as one of 57 Humanity in Action Fellows. Posted 05/02/07 Nikko Marko Lencek-Inagaki '07 is a first-generation American: his father is Japanese and his mother is Italian-Slovene. With his mother he celebrates the arrival of St. Nick; his father made obento for lunch in high school. He also is "quite gay," he says. A psychology major facing "politics of difference", Lencek-Inagaki always asks "Why? Why do people do what they do, think what they think?". "Because I am sensitive to and critical of how differences are construed," he…

More than 40 students, staff, faculty and alumni participated in a recent squash tournament at the Rosenbaum Squash Center. Posted 05/02/07 All but one player got ‘squashed’ for the grand prize during the WesFest Squash Tournament April 21 in the Rosenbaum Squash Center. The community-inspired tournament was open to all faculty, staff, students, family, alumni and friends of the university. This year, a crowd of 45 players spanning all levels of skills and age ranges, took part in the event. “It was great to see such a cross section of squash playing community present at the same time,” says co-coordinator…

Posted 05/02/07 Two distinguished faculty members will be appointed leadership roles in university centers for the next three years, with terms beginning on July 1, 2007.Suzanne O'Connell, left, associate professor of earth and environmental sciences, has agreed to assume the directorship of the Service-Learning Center for a three-year term. O’Connell will be replacing Rob Rosenthal, professor of sociology. O'Connell studies climate change, coastal processes, and diversity in the geosciences. She is the author of more than 50 refereed publications and the recipient of more than $1 million in National Science Foundation grants. Most recently she was the Principle Investigator on…

Posted 05/02/07 A scholar in philosophy and a scholar in literary studies can pick up the same book, read the same words, and come away with completely different perceptions about the contents and messages of the text. It is this phenomenon that is the focus of a conference being held at Wesleyan from May 9-10, titled, “Philosophy and Literature: Reading Across the Disciplines.” The idea behind the conference is to gather scholars from both academic areas and compare how each interpret the same text. This is the first year of our conference and the positive response has far exceeded our…

Michele Chun ’07, who works in Olin Library's preservation services, is one of 44 seniors who receive a bookplate label inside a library book, honoring their service to the library. Posted 05/01/07 In 2004, Michele Chun ’07 became acquainted with the work of author Joy Williams. While studying abroad in Scotland that year, she read Williams’s The Honored Guest, and it’s remained one of her all-time favorite reads. Chun, who worked as a student assistant in Olin Library for four years, will graduate this May, but her love for The Honored Guest will be remembered at Wesleyan long beyond Commencement.…

731 students received bachelor of arts degrees May 27 at Wesleyan. (Photo by Olivia Drake) Posted 05/27/.07 Don’t be afraid of risk, and don’t shy away from service to others. These were among the thoughts offered during Wesleyan University’s 175th commencement ceremony by Jim Lehrer, anchor of PBS’ The News Hour with Jim Lehrer and noted novelist. Lehrer delivered the commencement address before more than 10,000 people at Wesleyan’s campus in Middletown, Conn. During the ceremony, the Binswanger Prize for Excellence in Teaching was awarded to Joyce P. Jacobsen, Andrews Professor of Economics; Richard Slotkin, Olin Professor of American Studies…

John Seamon, professor and chair of the Psychology Department, led a study titled the study, "Do you remember proposing marriage to the Pepsi Machine? False recollections from a campus walk," which appeared in a recent issue of Psychonomic Bulletin & Review. Posted 04/17/07 Did you propose marriage to a Pepsi machine two weeks ago, or did you just imagine it? That's one of the questions John Seamon, professor and chair of the Psychology Department, asked participants in a study designed to determine if memories, and, in particular, bizarre false memories, could be implanted. "We were interested in seeing if merely…