Humanities & Society

The Crimes Against Humanity Initiative at the Whitney R. Harris World Law Institute of Washington University in St. Louis School of Law recently released the text of a proposed multilateral treaty on the prevention and punishment of crimes against humanity. Leila Nadya Sadat, JD, director of the initiative, says that this is the first time that such a convention has been drafted.

Strobe Talbott, president of the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C., and former deputy secretary of state from 1994-2001, will present “Angels of Our Nature: Polarization in America and Its Challenge to Universities and Think Tanks” at 4 p.m. Monday, Feb. 7, in Whitaker Hall Auditorium at Washington University in St. Louis. Talbott’s policy address will focus on the challenge of polarization in American politics, considered by many to be at its worst level since the late 19th century. He will reflect on the role of universities and think tanks, bastions of fact-based research and academic freedom, as antidotes to the current maladies of America’s political climate.

Bryan Stevenson, JD, prominent death penalty defense attorney and executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative, kicks off the second half of the School of Law’s 13th annual Public Interest Law & Policy Speakers Series Thursday, Feb. 3, with the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commemorative Lecture on “Poverty, Incarceration, and Injustice in America.” The yearlong series “Access to Justice: The Social Responsibility of Lawyers” brings to WUSTL prominent experts in such areas as civil rights, racial justice, the death penalty, social justice, clinical legal education and free speech.

In a marriage of two disciplines that don’t often overlap — politics and medicine — a study by Matthew Gabel, PhD, professor of political science in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, finds that group consensus is an effective method for diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease.

Health 2.0 and the National Cancer Institute (NCI) recently named Ozioma, an online cancer information tool from the Health Communication Research Laboratory (HCRL) at Washington University in St. Louis, one of two winners of a national contest. The Ozioma News Service was chosen a winner of the Enabling Community Use of Data for Cancer Prevention and Control Challenge, a part of the 2010 Health 2.0 Developer Challenge. The Ozioma tool helps reporters and media relations professionals create localized cancer stories for specific populations in specific communities.

A discussion on the need for interfaith cooperation, featuring Rabbi Steve Gutow and the Rev. Michael Kinnamon, PhD, was scheduled to take place at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 1, in the Bryan Cave Moot Courtroom of Anheuser-Busch Hall at Washington University in St. Louis. This discussion has been canceled.

The Advisory Committee for the Diversity and Inclusion Grants has awarded eight grants to Washington University faculty and staff for initiatives that improve the university environment for women and members of underrepresented minority groups.

Growing up in Maryland, Shanti A. Parikh, PhD, knew early on she wanted to be an anthropologist. But at the encouragement of her p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:10.0pt;margin-left:0in;line-height:115%;font-size:11.0pt;font-family:Calibri;} .MsoChpDefault {font-size:10.0pt;} @page WordSection1 {size:8.5in 11.0in;margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in;} div.WordSection1 {page:WordSection1;} mother, Parikh majored in finance at the University of Virginia. A stint in the Peace Corps following graduation returned Parikh to her original passion and to the area of study that would remain her lifetime focus.

When the Senate convenes Jan. 25, it is expected to weigh a resolution to reform the filibuster rule and eliminate secret holds — protocols that many have blamed for encouraging congressional gridlock. Although the proposal is put forth by the Democratic majority in the Senate, it contains a series of relatively modest changes that should hold some appeal to the Senate’s Republiican minority, suggests congressional expert Steven S. Smith, PhD.

Shanti A. Parikh, PhD, associate professor of anthropology and of African and African-American studies, both in Arts & Sciences, reacts with great joy at being named co-recipient of the Rosa L. Parks Award during Washington University’s 24th annual celebration honoring Martin Luther King Jr. Jan. 17 in Graham Chapel.