Research Shows Pesticide Could be Connected to ALS

Assistant Professor of Chemistry Alison O’Neil’s most recent research has drawn a direct parallel between a pesticide commonly used from the late 1940s through the late 1970s and instances of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), according to a paper published in the journal ACS Chemical Neuroscience on December 13. Cis-chlordane was banned in 1988 in the United States, but it can still be found in the environment. “We find that human stem-cell-derived motor neurons are more sensitive to (the pesticide) cis-chlordane than other cell types and their action potential dynamics are altered … Together, our work points to cis-chlordane as a potential sporadic…

There is a moment in Zora Neale Hurston’s book, Their Eyes Were Watching God, where the day is done, people have stopped working and finally have time for themselves. “The sun was gone, but he had left his footprints in the sky. It was the time for sitting on porches beside the road. It was the time to hear things and talk. These sitters had been tongueless, earless, eyeless conveniences all day long. Mules and other brutes had occupied their skins. But now, the sun and the bossman were gone, so the skins felt powerful and human. They became lords…

The 2023 Equity & Inclusion Week, hosted by the Office for Equity & Inclusion, will offer a series of talks, workshops and film screenings intended to foster fellowship, understanding, and collective community learning. “At Wesleyan we hold these values around celebrating and honoring that our community is as diverse as it is. I think we can live out that commitment by continuing to engage identities that are different from ours and also by creating opportunities for folks who have historically been marginalized to be able to come together and share their experience with one another, find support from one another,…

Deep philosophical ideas aren’t the only things Hedding Professor of Moral Science Joseph T. Rouse has been dueling with as of late. Rouse has been training for the United States Veteran Fencing team, a team comprised of fencers over the age of 70. His first national qualifier this season will take place in January at the North American Cup in Louisville, Kentucky. His first bout a year ago against the current world champion in his age group ended in a loss, but Rouse thinks he's got more than a fighting chance, having beaten his opponent the last two times they…

In the face of global climate and environmental crises, Elon Musk wants to launch humanity to Mars. His fellow billionaire Jeff Bezos believes we should build artificial space pods between the Earth and the Moon to increase the resources we need for our technologically soaked lives. They were the only ones who could save humanity from a dire end, they sort of said (and, perhaps, making a tidy profit for themselves in the process.) The messianic vibes were unmistakable. The thought of this baffled Mary-Jane Rubenstein, professor of religion. “The more I learned about the contemporary state of things in…

The past year began in uncertainty due to the global pandemic and the ongoing strife happening in our country and throughout the world. However, the Wesleyan University community persevered and thrived. Faculty explored new and innovative ideas, and students grew in ways that they couldn’t have anticipated. Throughout the year the Wesleyan Connection was there to document the life of a place that is always creative, always pushing for a better and more just world. Here’s a small sampling of the stories that mattered this past year: January The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation funded the Carceral Connecticut Project, a multidisciplinary…

Are you already able to sing Lin-Manuel Miranda ’02, Hon. ‘15’s Hamilton word for word? Have you already binged Bradley Whitford ’81, Hon. ’20 in “The West Wing” and “A Handmaid’s Tale"? Have you read all of Amy Bloom’s books? So now where do you go next to get your Wesleyan creative fix? As winter curls around us, Wes grads and faculty have conjured a new batch of books, music, performances, and television shows to delight and challenge us as we get cozy over the chilly months. Here’s just a small sampling: “From Scratch” Tembe Locke ’92’s powerful memoir From…

An informal poll of a group of three- to five-year-old kids at the recently opened Neighborhood Preschool concluded that the best part of their new school is that they get a chance to climb indoors. And play in the pretend kitchen. The blocks and trains aren’t too bad either. And they like being able to go on the playground. Really, they just like the whole thing. “You seem pretty excited about it, buddy,” a dad said to his son. “Yeah!” the child responded. The students and their teachers, architects, and staff members gathered on Thursday, December 8 to cut a…

With pride in their accomplishments and hopes for a bright future, fifteen students celebrated their initiation into the Connecticut Gamma Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa at a ceremony held on December 7 in the McKelvey Room at the Office of Admission. In order to be inducted into the nation’s oldest scholastic honor society, students must be nominated by the department of their major, have completed their general education expectations, and must have a grade point average of 93 or above. “For students elected in the fall, it is an especially exacting selection process because admittance is based on a student’s…

NASA’s largest telescope in space, JWST, is proving to be powerful enough to measure atmospheric chemicals on WASP-39b, a planet orbiting a star 700 light years away, and find sulfur dioxide, an element found in Earth’s ozone layer. “This is a mind-blowing demonstration of the capabilities of this telescope,” said Professor of Astronomy Seth Redfield, whose research group has been receiving early information from the telescope since its launch as a member of a JWST Early Release Science team. “There is a world that is hundreds of light years away and we can tell you how much sulfur dioxide is…

Get involved locally. Find a specific problem and commit to solving it. And network every way you can. That’s how to begin a career in public service, a group of accomplished alumni said at the 30th Annual Dwight L. Greene Symposium, held November 15. The one-hour panel discussion, held on Zoom, explored the topics of authentic civic engagement, how Wesleyan encourages a life of service, the power of connecting with community, and strategies to build and sustain a career in the public sphere. For the first time in the history of the symposium, the entire panel was comprised of Latinx…

The guardians of reproductive rights in America won an important victory in Connecticut in 1972. The case of Women v Connecticut, where women from all walks of life sued to overturn the state’s onerous abortion laws, paved the way for the Supreme Court’s landmark Roe v Wade decision legalizing abortion nationally. When the Supreme Court struck down Roe this year, revoking what was considered settled law, Professor of Government Sonali Chakravarti felt a need to examine the history of this important Connecticut ruling. On November 17, Chakravarti convened a panel comprised of participants in the suit and other experts to…

Research Shows Pesticide Could be Connected to ALS

Professor Directs New Zora Neale Hurston Documentary

Equity and Inclusion Week 2023

Professor Parries With Ideas and Opponents

New Book Explores Corporate Space Race

Year in Review: 2022

Wesleyan Creates: Recommendations

Neighborhood Preschool Opens

New Phi Beta Kappa Inductees Named

Space Telescope Measures Chemicals in Planet’s Atmosphere

Involvement in Public Service Focus of 30th Dwight L. Greene Symposium

Connecticut’s Role in Quest for Reproductive Rights Explored