Humanities & Society

Officials with both President Bush and Senator John Kerry agreed to three debates, including one on the campus of Washington University in St. Louis, at a press conference held September 20. Both Steve Givens, assistant to the chancellor and chairman of Washington University’s debate steering committee, and Jonathan Greenberger, editor in chief of Student Life, express excitement and relief over the announcement in this article by Philip Dine of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

PakrasiA research team of biologists and engineers led by faculty at Washington University in St. Louis is seeking to find the Fountain of Youth — not in Florida, but in photosynthetic cyanobacteria (ancient little blue-green algae). Looking at the cellular systems in cyanobacteria, and then in a model plant and a moss species, these researchers want to determine how these organisms protect themselves from radicals, which are chemical culprits in the aging process in everything from bacteria to human beings.

Adults of all ages are being invited to become volunteer participants in research conducted by faculty and students connected with the Aging and Development Program of the Department of Psychology in Arts & Sciences. Some of the studies deal with practical problems, others with basic abilities such as thinking, memory and perception. Current projects range […]

Viet D. Dinh, professor of law and director of the Asian Law and Policy Studies Program at Georgetown University, will speak about “Liberty and the Rule of Law After September 11th” for the Assembly Series Sept. 22. The talk, which is part of the School of Law’s “Access to Justice” Public Interest Law Speakers Series, […]

The institute’s goal will be to “offer teachers new and engaging ways to teach popular music as a humanities subject,” Gerald Early says.

Photo by David KilperSt. Louis teachers gather at WUSTL to compare notes.At Washington University in St. Louis, teachers from five school districts are working with science and math education faculty in an effort designed to align curriculum to the NCLB standards and to improve instruction. Their work is supported by $6.5 million from the National Science Foundation, through funding from NCLB.

David D. Cole, professor of law at Georgetown University, author of numerous books on terrorism and civil liberties, and cooperating attorney for the Center for Constitutional Rights, will discuss “John Ashcroft’s Paradigm of Prevention and the Future of Civil Liberties”. After graduating from Yale Law School and clerking with the Third U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Cole joined the Center for Constitutional Rights where he litigated several First Amendment cases, including the case that established protection allowing flag burning under the First Amendment. As a volunteer staff attorney for the Center, Cole continues to litigate First Amendment issues.

Viet D. Dinh, professor of law and director of the Asian Law and Policy Studies Program at Georgetown University, will speak about “Liberty and the Rule of Law After September 11” for the Assembly Series. As the U.S. Assistant Attorney General for Legal Policy under John Ashcroft from 2001 to 2003, Dinh worked on a number of important initiatives, including the U.S.A. Patriot Act.

St. Louis Jewish LightFlanceFor retired physician I. Jerome Flance, more than 60 years of helping people as a doctor and teacher wasn’t quite enough. So six years ago, at age 87, he accepted the appointment of special associate for community redevelopment and began what is planned to be a 10-year project to revitalize the Forest Park Southeast neighborhood. Read more in the following article published by the St. Louis Jewish Light Simcha magazine.

An important debate among the three candidates for Missouri’s hotly contested 3rd District seat in the U.S. Congress will begin at 7 p.m. Sept. 21 in the May Auditorium of Simon Hall. Free and open to the public, the candidate debate is sponsored by the Weidenbaum Center on the Economy, Government, and Public Policy, and three local media outlets: KETC-TV Channel 9, KWMU public radio and the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.