Veterans are returning home to an abysmal economy and a tough job market. “Veterans are facing higher unemployment rates than civilians as employers may be concerned about veterans’ struggle with the mental and physical health aftereffects of military service,” says Monica Matthieu, PhD, research assistant professor at the Brown School. The Hire Heroes Act will change veterans’ job outlook, she says.

Nancy Morrow-Howell, PhD, the Ralph and Muriel Pumphrey Professor of Social Work at the Brown School, has been named the new director of the Harvey A. Friedman Center for Aging, effective Jan. 1. Morrow-Howell succeeds John C. Morris, MD, the Harvey A. and Dorismae Hacker Friedman Distinguished Professor of Neurology.

For the first time, Anesthesiology, the premier journal in the field of anesthesiology, focuses entirely on the physicians, scientists and research conducted in a single U.S. institution. The December issue features the work of the Department of Anesthesiology at the School of Medicine.

At WUSTL’s Photosynthetic Antenna Research Center, scientists have made a light-harvesting antenna from scratch. The new antenna, modeled on the chlorosome found in green bacteria, is a giant assembly of pigment molecules. Chlorosomes allow green bacteria to photosynthesize in dim light. The technology may one day transform solar-powered devices.

At the December meeting of the Washington University Board of Trustees Dec. 1 and 2, trustees discussed the university’s innovation and entrepreneurial focus and programs, according to Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton. The board also elected a new trustee. Robert W. Frick, former vice chairman of the board of Bank of America and currently actively involved with young entrepreneurial companies in the San Francisco Bay Area, was elected as a new Ethan A.H. Shepley Trustee for a four-year term ending December 2015.

5 p.m. Monday, Dec. 5

Dept. of Classics Colloquium

“The Magic of Myth in the Getty Hexameters.” Sarah Iles Johnston, Distinguished Professor of Religion, Dept. of Greek and Latin, Ohio State U. Free and open to the public. Cupples Hall I, Rm. 215. (314) 935-5123.

Medical school faculty, staff and student art show call for submissions

The School of Medicine’s 8th Annual Art Show is accepting submissions through Jan. 13, 2012. Any School of Medicine student, faculty or staff member may display their work.?? To have art displayed, fill out an entry form and take up to three works of art to the Farrell Learning and Teaching Center Security Desk any weekday 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

Lingchei Letty Chen

Professor of Chinese literature reshapes cultural identities, creates opportunities. FULL STORY

WUSTL announces 2011 Sports Hall of Fame inductees

WUSTL and its athletic support organization, the W Club, have announced the 14th induction class for the university’s Sports Hall of Fame. The Class of 2011 features eight former student-athletes, two head coaches and a distinguished service honoree. Induction ceremonies will be held at 8:30 a.m. Friday, Feb. 10, 2012, during a breakfast at the Knight Center.