Science & Technology

As a distinguished theoretical physicist and accomplished writer, Alan Lightman has successfully bridged the gap between science and the humanities. At 4 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 19, in Graham Chapel, Lightman will provide an understanding of one of the greatest triumphs of the human imagination with the Department of English Hurst Visiting Professorship Lecture, “Einstein and Relativity.”

Sexton observes a flooded Marais Temps Clair.In science, it’s best to be good, but sometimes it’s better to be lucky. Ecologist Owen Sexton, professor emeritus of biology in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, had just completed a census of snakes at a conservation preserve northwest of St. Louis, when the great flood of 1993 deluged the area, putting the preserve at least 15 feet under water. The flood provided Sexton with a rare opportunity: his collected data and the flood would combine to make “the perfect study” of how an area rebounds from natural disaster.

The coconut has been popular in lore and on palates for centuries, yet little is known about the history of this palm’s domestication and dispersal around the world. Now, Kenneth M. Olsen, Ph.D., assistant professor of biology in Arts & Sciences, is embarking on the task of understanding the plant’s history by exploring the genetics of the coconut.

The coconut has been popular in lore and on palates for centuries, yet little is known about the history of this palm’s domestication and dispersal around the world. Now, Kenneth M. Olsen, Ph.D., assistant professor of biology in Arts & Sciences, is embarking on the task of understanding the plant’s history by exploring the genetics of the coconut.

Physicist and writer Alan Lightman travels through Einstein’s dreams to help us understand the theory of relativity.

In an effort to create more diversity at the research bench, eight college students – all minorities majoring in science – spent their summer in St. Louis, getting their first laboratory research experience as part of the Genome Sequencing Center’s new Opportunities in Genomics Research summer program.

A software program developed by Washington University researchers is allowing viewers access to data and some early images from the most powerful spectral camera ever sent to Mars. The information is now available on NASA’s online planetary data archive.

Researchers inspect a Lahar flow – a mix of water and rock fragments that looks like moving concrete – near the Tungaruhua volcano close to Banjos, Ecuador. The flow killed three people and shut down access to the road to Banjos in a 2006 eruption.A geologist at Washington University in St. Louis is doing his part to make sure that the small Latin American country of Ecuador follows the Boy Scout motto: Be prepared. Robert Buchwaldt, Ph.D., Washington University lecturer in earth and planetary sciences in Arts & Sciences, is the only scientist from America who sits on an international committee that is seeking ways to address the volcanic threat in Ecuador, especially in Quito, a city of five million nestled against the volcano Guagua Pichincha, which erupted just two years ago.

In their quest to reduce air pollution, states are implementing new and easier ways to ensure that automobiles are both safe and environmentally friendly. Some states, like Missouri, allow private repair shops to conduct both safety and emissions tests simultaneously, making it easier for car owners to renew their license plates. But there’s a potential problem with the new plan, according to a business professor at Washington University in St. Louis: repair shops have very strong incentives to cheat, but not in a way that helps reduce pollution.

Below is a link to the Washington University news release about the U.S. News & World Report undergraduate rankings for 2004-05: http://news-info.wustl.edu/news/page/normal/3627.html To view a full listing of U.S. News magazine, book and Web-only rankings for 2004-05, please visit the U.S. News & World Report site: http://www.usnews.com/usnews/edu/college/rankings/rankindex_brief.php