Newsroom Stories

Thousands of revelers will visit Washington University this weekend for Thurtene, the nation’s oldest student-run carnival. Highlights include thrill rides, performances from student a cappella and improv groups and homemade waffle sticks.

A newly-redesigned poverty risk calculator, developed by Mark Rank, the Herbert S. Hadley Professor of Social Welfare at the Brown School, can for the first time determine an American’s expected risk of poverty based on their race, education level, gender, marital status and age.

Washington University in St. Louis will celebrate legendary poet and playwright William Shakespeare’s 453rd birthday with a special event on campus April 23, featuring performances of some of the Bard’s most famous works. Olin Business School is hosting the event.

A team led by Washington University School of Medicine scientists has found a way to measure tau levels in the blood. Damaging tangles of the protein tau dot the brains of people with Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases.

To help people with hearing loss navigate their daily lives, Nancy Tye-Murray and colleagues at the School of Medicine have developed software tools to improve speech recognition. She launched a startup to provide the software to patients and professionals.

Douglas Wiens was installed as the Robert S. Brookings Distinguished Professor in Arts & Sciences at a ceremony held Feb. 21 in Holmes Lounge at Washington University in St. Louis. He is the second faculty member to hold this professorship, which was established in 2006.

“EnviroSLAM: A Showcase of Environment, Energy and Sustainability at Washington University” will be held at 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 19, at the Saint Louis Art Museum.

A rubber tire hangs from the ceiling. A glittering crowd sips champagne. “To minimal art,” a woman toasts, and promptly falls dead. So begins “Gossip,” a satirical who-done-it by Canadian playwright George F. Walker. Washington University’s Performing Arts Department (PAD) in Arts & Sciences will present the sly, noir-inspired comedy April 20-23 in Edison Theatre.

David H. Gutmann, MD, PhD, an international leader in neurofibromatosis research, received a $3.5 million grant to study why people with a genetic mutation that causes the genetic disorder known as NF1 develop markedly different signs and symptoms.

In a concentrated, continuing effort to link Washington University in St. Louis academic research to everyday business practice, the 10th annual Olin Award recognizes an Olin Business School faculty member who joined two University of Pennsylvania professors in crafting a computer model to guide managers who need to forecast behaviors of newly acquired customers.