Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton and his wife, Risa Zwerling Wrighton, take the stage to lead students in “The Dancellor” during the Nov. 5 Dance Marathon of St. Louis in the Athletic Complex. A record number of student dancers — nearly 1,400 — participated in this year's space-themed event, which raised $150,000 for the Children’s Miracle Network.

The university has licensed to Castle Biosciences Inc. the exclusive use of a gene to detect the spread of cancer in melanoma patients. A link between the BAP1 gene and cancer metastasis was discovered by WUSTL scientists J. William Harbour, MD, an ophthalmologic oncologist, and Anne Bowcock, PhD, a geneticist.

Richard L. Axelbaum, PhD, professor of energy, environmental & chemical engineering in the School of Engineering & Applied Science, is the new Stifel & Quinette Jens Professor in Environmental Engineering Science. He was installed Oct. 31 by Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton in a ceremony in Brauer Hall.

The following are among the new faculty members at Washington University: Parag Banerjee, PhD; Danielle Dutton, PhD; Josh Jackson, PhD; Kristina Kleutghen, PhD; Charlie Kurth, PhD; Zhao Ma, PhD; Paulo Natenzon, PhD; Jay Ponder, PhD; Elizabeth Quinn, PhD; and Lucia Strader, PhD. Others will be introduced periodically.

4 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 9

Dept. of Physics Feenberg Lecture

“Almost Absolute Zero: The Story of Laser Cooling and Trapping.” William D. Phillips, 1997 Nobel Prize in Physics and professor of physics, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Md. Free and open to the public. January Hall, Rm. 110. (314) 935-6276.

Blood drive today

A university-wide blood drive is being held today at eight different locations on both campuses and at a variety of times to accommodate busy schedules. An additional collection will take place tomorrow at the School of Medicine.

Rochelle Smith

Love for students shows in medical school recruiting efforts. FULL STORY

Men’s club water polo team wins national title

In its first trip to the national championship game, the men’s club water polo team captured the Division III Collegiate Club title with a 13-10 win over Bowdoin College Nov. 6. Graduate student Adam Gremp scored five goals to lead WUSTL.