sciences

By Eliana Fiore In an engaging lunchtime talk on Nov. 21, Matt Motta ’13, assistant professor of health law, policy, and management at Boston University’s School of Public Health, presented research findings indicating that one in three Americans harbor some degree of resentment towards scientists and other public health experts. Not only do anti-intellectual attitudes exist to that degree, but his research shows that Americans with these views may act on them. Motta, whose new book entitled Anti-Scientific Americans: The Prevalence, Political Origins, and Political Consequences of Anti-Intellectualism in the U.S. was published in September, defines anti-intellectualism as “the distrust and…

A lack of fast, reliable diagnostic testing has played a major role in the rapid proliferation of cases of COVID-19. Rahul Dhanda ’95 and his team at Sherlock Biosciences are working furiously to change that, potentially shortening the testing’s time horizon to a matter of minutes. Dhanda is co-founder, CEO, and president of the engineering biology startup based in Cambridge, Mass., which is creating two different diagnostic tests for COVID-19—one rooted in CRISPR technology, the other in synthetic biology. The hope is that the tests can be released during the course of the current pandemic, Dhanda said, each with its…

For only the seventh time since Wesleyan’s founding, the planet Mercury passed directly in front of the sun, from the perspective of Earth—and Wesleyan served as a gathering place from which to learn about and observe the event. Faculty and students from Wesleyan’s astronomy department, as well as others from the University and the greater Middletown community, gathered outside the Van Vleck Observatory on Nov. 11 to witness the transit through three telescopes. The mild weather and partly cloudy conditions—particularly at the beginning and end of the transit (which lasted from 7:35 a.m. to 1:04 p.m.)—made for good viewings through…

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The Wesleyan Mathematics and Science Scholars (WesMaSS) Program is a highly selective academic program designed to support students from traditionally underrepresented groups who are interested in pursuing study in mathematics and natural sciences. The program aims to foster community building and provides the scholars, who are all incoming first-year students, with mentoring and academic resources which encourage and facilitate their sustained involvement in these fields. Each scholar also receives a Wesleyan faculty mentor. From July 26-31, 10 of the 32 WesMaSS scholars participated in an intensive introduction to studying science at Wesleyan. Students toured the science departments, became familiar with the…

Fifth graders from Snow Elementary School in Middletown toured Wesleyan's astronomy, biology, chemistry, physics and scientific imaging departments on June 18, 2014. Students also visited the Joe Webb Peoples Museum and Collections in Exley Science Center. (more…)

Ishita Mukerji, dean of the Natural Sciences and Mathematics division, is one of 50 local scientists to be elected to the Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering. Mukerji also is professor of molecular biology and biochemistry and is an expert on fluorescence and vibrational spectroscopy. Mukerji is the 10th Wesleyan faculty to be elected into the academy. She will be introduced at CASE's 39th annual meeting and dinner on June 5 at the Crowne Plaza in Cromwell, Conn. Election to the Academy is on the basis of scientific and engineering distinction achieved through significant contributions in theory or applications, as…

This story has been moved to: https://newsletter.blogs.wesleyan.edu/2014/03/03/mukerjicaseelection/

On Nov. 9, Wesleyan's informal science education class in conjunction with the Wesleyan Science Outreach Club presented Science Saturday, a semi-annual fun afternoon of hands-on science for the whole family. Activities took place inside the Exley Science Center. Wesleyan students taught science lessons that they have been working on this semester, with experiments involving dissections of biological specimens, roller coaster models, and an explosions demo. More than 50 local children and their parents attended. Andrea Roberts, visiting assistant professor of chemistry; Manju Hingorani, professor of molecular biology and biochemistry; and students from the CHEM 241 Informal Science Education course coordinated…

Wesleyan hosted a science tour for Snow Elementary School students on June 19. Faculty, staff and graduate students taught the fifth graders about astronomy, biology, scientific imaging, physics and chemistry through several hands-on activities. The students also visited the Joe Webb Peoples Museum in Exley Science Center. Photos of their science tour are below: (Photos by Olivia Drake) (more…)

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Starting on Feb. 28, Wesleyan will bring together teams of artists and scientists to share approaches, skills and outcomes of their research at the intersection of art and science. The symposium, titled “Innovations: Intersection of Art and Science," is part of the Creative Campus Initiative at the Center for the Arts. "The goal of this experimental program is to elevate the arts as a means of teaching, learning and knowing through co-teaching opportunities for artists and non-artists, as well as commissioning new works by artists who are invited to work with faculty and students across disciplines in their creation process,"…

Matt Motta ’13 Delivers Talk on Anti-Intellectual Beliefs and Politics

Startup Led by Dhanda ’95 Developing COVID-19 Diagnostic Tests

Students, Faculty, Community Observe Rare Complete Transit of Mercury

Faculty, Students Mingle at Wesleyan Women in Science Gathering

WesMaSS Scholars Get Intensive Introduction to Studying Sciences at Wesleyan

Wesleyan Faculty Teach Fifth Graders about Physics, Biology, Chemistry, Astronomy

Mukerji Elected to Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering

Mukerji Elected to Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering

Wesleyan Students Teach Local Children about Science

Local Elementary School Students Tour Wesleyan’s Science Departments

Ligon ’87 Speaks to Hughes Fellows at Summer Science Seminars

Innovations Symposium Brings Together Artists, Scientists on Feb. 28