Newsroom Stories

The Interdisciplinary Project in the Humanites Lecture Sries, “FanZ and Enthusiasts: The Passions of Modern Reading,” will open with a program by noted cultural historian Janice Radway at noon on Tuesday, February 17 in the Women’s Building Lounge.

Josephine Olsen, Ph.D., acting director of the Peace Corps, will present the talk “International Volunteering and Service in the 21st Century: Toward Peace and Development” at 4 p.m. Feb. 19 in Brown Hall Lounge. Olsen’s lecture is free and open to the public.

Since the initial announcement of the 2009 Assembly Series schedule was published, there have been several changes and the addition of four programs. The following list provides all the updated information at this time, beginning with the next program. For the most current information on Assembly Series programs, please visit the Web site at http://assemblyseries.wustl.edu or call 314-935-5285. All programs are free and open to the public.

Frank FlinnPope Benedict XVI’s decision to lift the excommunication of British Bishop Richard Williams, along with three other bishops appointed by an ultra-conservative archbishop more than 20 years ago, has created controversy around the world. Williams has said he believes no Jews were killed by gas chambers during World War II. Frank K. Flinn, Ph.D., adjunct professor of religious studies in Arts & Sciences and expert on Catholicism, says this is the latest in series of blunders that are coming to define Benedict’s papacy.

National Science FoundationBuilding on plant virus research started more than 20 years ago, a biologist at Washington University in St. Louis and his colleague at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center in St. Louis have discovered a technology that reduces infection by the virus that causes Rice Tungro Disease, a serious limiting factor for rice production in Asia.

SchaefferJonathan Schaeffer talks about playing checkers with a computer and the interplay between people and technology in his Assembly Series talk at 11 a.m. on Wed., Feb. 18 in Steinberg Hall Auditorium.

A set of 50 genes can be used to reliably identify the four known types of breast cancer, according to research conducted at the School of Medicine and collaborating institutions. Using this 50-gene set, oncologists can potentially predict the most effective therapy for each breast tumor type and thereby personalize breast cancer treatment for all patients.

An on-line tutoring service and a device designed to make custom-fit earphones are the winners of the 2008 Olin Cup competition for entrepreneurs presented by the Olin Business School and Skandalaris Center at Washington University in St. Louis. The two winning companies, Virtual Nerd and Verto, emerged from an original field of 38 entrants to earn a $70,000 investment award and a $5000 cash prize respectively.

Surgeons at the Washington University Eye Center are among the first to use a new surgical device to treat glaucoma. Surgery with the device, called a Trabectome, is an outpatient procedure that takes less time to perform and offers a shorter recovery than traditional glaucoma surgery.

The 2009 spring concert series presented by the Department of Music in Arts & Sciences continues with an array of events that will entertain, inspire and inform music-loving audiences in the St Louis and surrounding areas.