Author: Gerry Everding

A new brain-imaging study is shedding light on what it means to “get lost” in a good book — suggesting that readers create vivid mental simulations of the sounds, sights, tastes and movements described in a textual narrative while simultaneously activating brain regions used to process similar experiences in real life.

What is the proper role of American higher education in shaping the values and ambitions of a free democratic society, and more specifically, what are Washington University’s responsibilities as a citizen of the greater St. Louis community, the nation and the world? Getting the campus and surrounding community to reflect on these questions is the goal of the Master of Liberal Arts program’s “Democracy and the University” seminar series.

Herbert F. Hitzeman Jr., 81, retired senior vice chancellor of Washington University in St. Louis, passed away Jan. 16, 2009. A lifelong resident of St. Louis and a 1953 University graduate, Hitzeman rose from an entry-level Washington University development officer in 1966 to become one of the most successful advancement officers in American higher education by the time of his retirement in 1990.

EDITH L. WOLFF (nee Waldman), age 93, died on Friday, December 26, 2008, at Barnes Hospital after a brief illness. She was born in St. Louis on May 23, 1915. She was preceded in death by her beloved husband Alan A. Wolff, who died in 1989. A longtime supporter of Washington University, Wolff recently committed $20 million to support biomedical research at the School of Medicine.

As President-elect Barack Obama continues to fill key cabinet positions from the ranks of D.C.-based public policy think tanks, a new book by longtime policy adviser Murray Weidenbaum examines how the nation’s top think tanks came to play such critical roles in U.S. politics.

Using what cognitive psychologists are discovering in the laboratory to improve learning in the classroom is the goal of a $6.47 million collaborative activity grant to Washington University from the James S. McDonnell Foundation.

Using what cognitive psychologists are discovering in the laboratory to improve learning in the classroom is the goal of a $6.47 million collaborative activity grant to Washington University from the James S. McDonnell Foundation.

As President-elect Barack Obama continues to fill key cabinet positions from the ranks of D.C.-based public policy think tanks, a new book by longtime policy adviser Murray Weidenbaum examines how the nation’s top think tanks came to play such critical roles in U.S. politics.

The profitability of corn ethanol processing, the costs and benefits of ethanol as a fuel source, the impact of the ethanol boom on rural America and the future of the biofuel industry will be among topics explored at a free public forum on the economics of ethanol to be held on campus from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Nov. 14.

The WUSTL 2008 Vice Presidential Debate Steering Committee, led by Rob Wild, assistant to the chanceller, was comprised of 50 key administrators and support staff from across the university.