Washington University Symphony Orchestra to present “OrganFest” Nov. 19
The Washington University Symphony Orchestra will present “OrganFest,” a concert showcasing the university’s recently refurbished Graham Chapel organ, at 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 19. Dan Presgrave, instrumental music coordinator in the Department of Music in Arts & Sciences, conducts the 70-plus-member orchestra. Featured soloist are William Partridge, Jr., university organist; and Barbara Raedeke, instructor in organ.
Football coach solicits words of wisdom from famous, successful people to motivate his team
Photo by Chris MitchellAbove is a selection of letters football coach Larry Kindbom has collected for his student-athletes since 1998 and self-published in his “Playbook of Champions.”Instead of getting his team fired up with movies or fire and brimstone, Larry Kindbom, football coach at Washington University in St. Louis, solicits motivational letters from successful people in all walks of life. He has received responses from people such as former U.S. Sen. Bob Dole, Vice President Al Gore, Southwest Airlines CEO Herb Kelleher, sportscaster Bob Costas and a host of other notables. This year, Kindbom’s taken the responses and self-published a book, “Playbook of Champions,” for his student-athletes. More…
Firstborns under the right circumstances more likely to be creative
Expectant parents eagerly await the arrival of their bundle of joy, hoping that they will have the most beautiful and intelligent baby in the world. While parents might not have direct control over brains and looks, new research from a business professor at Washington University in St. Louis finds that parents can influence their firstborn’s creativity. More…
Lewis and Clark data show narrower, more flood-prone River
Robert Criss, Ph.D., professor of earth and planetary sciences in Arts & Sciences, has analyzed data from the Lewis and Clark expedition and says it shows that the Missouri River today is but a shadow of what it was two hundred years ago, narrower and more prone to serious flooding.A geologist at Washington University in St. Louis and his collaborator at Oxford University have interpreted data that Lewis and Clark collected during their famous expedition and found that the Missouri River has markedly narrowed and its water levels have become more variable over the past two hundred years. This narrowing, or channeling, created by wing dikes and levees constructed mainly in the 20th century, has put the Missouri River at an increased risk of more damaging floods, the authors say. They blame the fact that the river cannot spread out as it did naturally at the turn of the 19th century, thus forcing water levels higher. More…
NSAID increases liver damage in mice carrying mutant human gene
The large globules in the liver cells on the left are characteristic of alpha-1-antitrypsin deficiency. The image on the right shows normal liver cells.Research performed at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis sheds light on the mechanisms that contribute to liver disease in alpha-1-AT deficiency patients. People with alpha-1-deficiency have a genetic mutation that can lead to emphysema at an early age and to liver damage. Using an experimental mouse model of the disorder, the researchers investigated the effects of a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) on liver injury.
Seven-point system gauges seriousness of heart failure in elderly
A simple points system may soon help guide treatment of elderly heart failure patients. Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis found that by counting how many of seven easy-to-obtain health factors a patient has, physicians can estimate the patient’s risk of dying.
Surgical biopsy may reveal cancer in women with rare but benign breast condition
On a mammogram, LCIS and ALH typically look like small deposits of calcium.In women whose initial breast biopsies revealed certain rare, yet benign breast conditions, more extensive follow-up surgical biopsies found that up to 25% of them actually had cancer in addition to these benign lesions. Most of the cancers were invasive, meaning the tumors had penetrated normal breast tissue and would require treatment. In the study, conducted at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, the women’s initial biopsies had revealed atypical lobular hyperplasia (ALH) or lobular carcinoma-in-situ (LCIS), conditions that increase the risk of breast cancer, but which are themselves considered benign.
Researchers study reimbursing living organ donors for out-of-pocket expenses
More than 80,000 people in the United States are on waiting lists for organ transplants. Some will have to wait for the death of a matching donor, but more and more people are receiving organs from living donors. In an effort to close the gap between organ supply and demand, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine, the University of Michigan and the American Society of Transplant Surgeons are studying ways to reimburse living donors for some of their out-of-pocket expenses when they choose to donate an organ.
Wrongful executions to be examined in law conference
The sixth annual Access to Equal Justice conference Nov. 17 brings to campus Barry Scheck, Roscoe C. Howard Jr. and U.S. Rep. William Lacy Clay Jr.
Native American Indian Heritage month comes and goes with little fanfare
Preserving a treasured culture.Nearly every federal policy directed toward Native Americans since the time of America’s discovery has been a policy of either annihilation or assimilation. For this reason, Native Americans have not been fully recognized as vibrant, valued and productive, says Dana Klar, J.D., founding and interim director of the Kathryn M. Buder Center for American Indian Studies at Washington University in St. Louis. “Our government has sent the message, ‘We’ve been able to assimilate you. Why separate you?'” This paradox, says Klar, helps to explain why Native American Indian Heritage month, which began Nov. 1, often comes and goes with very little fanfare. More…
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