Lauren RubensteinOn Monday, April 23, Wesleyan will receive a visit from Reverend Billy (Bill Talen), the anti-consumerism activist and performance artist, who has tried to “exorcise” so many Starbucks cash registers, he’s been banned from the coffee shop chain. He will speak at 7 p.m. in Memorial Chapel. The event is free and open to the public. Talen is best known as the subject of the 2007 documentary, What Would Jesus Buy?, produced by Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Morgan Spurlok and directed by Sundance Film Festival Award-winner Rob VanAlkemade. In his performance art, Talen takes on the persona of an evangelical preacher…
Olivia DrakeEducation reform, conflict resolution and confronting racial segregation are among the topics to be discussed at the fourth annual Social Justice Leadership Conference (SJLC) on April 21. SJLC is a collaborative effort which provides a space for students, student groups, community members, alumni, faculty, and staff to discuss social justice and to learn and refine leadership skills. SJLC seeks to empower its participants to create change by applying the skills and knowledge acquired during the conference. Students, student groups, alumni, community members, faculty and staff facilitate sessions in their area of interest or expertise. Sessions focus on leadership skills that…
In celebration of its 50th anniversary, the Friends of the Davison Art Center present "The Big Draw: Middletown," a community celebration of drawing with workshops for people of all skill levels, from beginners to accomplished artists. The event is free and open to the public: adults, students, and children ages 5 and up. The Big Draw's activities break down the "I can't draw" syndrome and celebrate the visual arts. The event takes place from 1 to 5 p.m., Sunday April 22 on campus. "The Big Draw: Middletown" will feature 10 to 12 drawing workshops throughout the Wesleyan University campus. Wesleyan…
Join Wesleyan students and faculty members at the "Celebration of Science Theses" April 19. The seventh annual event will feature 15 seniors and BA/MA students from the Natural Science and Mathematics departments presenting posters on their research to the Wesleyan community. Among them will be computer science major Micah Wylde '12 presenting "Safe Motion Planning for Autonomous Driving" and molecular biology and biochemistry major Sophia Levan '12 presenting "The Carbohydrate-Binding Activity of Vibrio Cholerae Cytolysin." The event takes place from 1:30 to 3 p.m. in Exley Science Center's lobby. Refreshments will be provided. See photos of the 2011 event online here. In addition, the…
Wesleyan is hosting its first South Asia Film Series starting April 5. All films take place in the Center for Film Studies and are free of charge. Saturday, April 21 at 2 p.m., PATHER PANCHALI (India, 1955), Dir: Satyajit Ray. Music by Ravi Shankar. Acclaimed drama about a young girl, Durga, and her family’s village life. Saturday, April 28 at 2 p.m., EYES OF STONE (India, 1989), Dir: Nilita Vachani. Ms. Vachani will introduce her film. Gillian Goslinga, assistant professor of anthropology, will be on the panel after the film. Documentary about demonic possession and goddess temples. A panel discussion…
During extended space travel, astronauts may experience dramatic health consequences, such as anemia, due to reduced gravity and exposure to space radiation. To help combat the adverse effects of space ailments, two scientists at Wesleyan are developing new molecules that enhance cells' ability to tolerate large swings in pressure, fluid redistribution, temperature and radiation exposure. Christina Othon, assistant professor of physics, and Erika Taylor, assistant professor of chemistry, assistant professor of environmental studies, received a $20,000 seed grant from NASA's Biological and Physical Research Enterprise to work on the project titled "Osmoregulation for Microgravity Environments." The scientists are taking inspiration from…
Almost all light from the Sun is the visible light that illuminates our days, but human eyes cannot detect the light from the million-degree Solar Corona, which is at short wavelengths. On March 27 during the 21st annual Sturm Memorial Lecture, solar physicist Alan Title will describe the instrumentation he has helped develop to make the invisible Sun visible and how this has revolutionized our understanding of the Sun. His talk is titled "Making the Invisible Sun Visible." The Sturm Memorial Lecture is held in memory of Kenneth E. Sturm '40. The annual event features a presentation from an astronomer…
David PesciWhat would you get if you took the feel of the famous "TED" talks but gave them a distinctly Wesleyan flavor? Wesleyan Thinks Big. Wesleyan Thinks Big is a new type of lecture series designed to give audiences presentations by popular faculty in a never-before seen format. According to the event's website, Wesleyan Thinks Big will feature fun and exciting faculty presentations with no slides, no handouts, and no Moodle. It will be an evening of "six faculty members, nominated by students, delivering nine-minute lectures on topics that excites and inspires the professors, even if it’s not something they talk…
Eleven Wesleyan seniors will speak on their undergraduate research projects during the Spring 2012 McNair Fellow Presentation Series March 29 through April 26. The presentations describe the research that students conducted with Wesleyan faculty mentors. Many of the projects also are the subject of student theses or final papers presented for the Wesleyan B.A. requirements. The Wesleyan University Ronald E. McNair Post Baccalaureate Achievement McNair Program was established in 2007. It assists students from underrepresented groups with preparing for, entering, and progressing successfully through postgraduate education. They are often first generation college students from low-income families, OR African-American, Hispanic, Native…
Much like the primaries for both sides in 2008, this race looks to continue its jockeying right into June. But through it there is one resource that provides some clarity, at least when it comes to the money being spent on campaign ads: The Wesleyan Media Project. Created in 2010, The Wesleyan Media Project is a nonpartisan, academically-based effort designed to television track advertising in all federal elections. It is directed by Erika Franklin Fowler, assistant professor of government. The co-directors include Michael Franz, associate professor of government at Bowdoin College, and Travis Ridout, associate professor of political science at…
The influence and power wielded by large corporations in our country has never been more pronounced than it is today. But how did we get here? In a new book published this month (March 27), Woodhouse/Sysco Professor of Economics Richard Adelstein explores the remarkable transformation undergone by business in the U.S. over the half-century following the Civil War—from small sole proprietorships and partnerships to massive corporations possessing many of the same constitutional rights as living men and women. Approaching this story through historical, philosophical, legal and economic lenses, Adelstein presents an original, three-pronged theory of the rise of business firms.…
What are the challenges of building a national museum? Lonnie G. Bunch III, director of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, will speak on this topic during the Center for African American Studies' 18th Annual Distinguished Lecture. The event takes place at 8 p.m. April 4 in Beckham Hall. A reception will follow. Bunch, a historian, author, curator and educator, is the founding director of the national museum. In this position he is working to set the museum’s mission, coordinate its fundraising and membership campaigns, develop its collections, establish cultural partnerships and oversee the design and…