Newsroom Stories

Christopher “Kit” Wellman, PhD, chair and professor of philosophy in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, has been named dean of academic planning for Arts & Sciences, announced Barbara A. Schaal, PhD, dean of the Faculty of Arts & Sciences.The appointment, which is part-time, is effective July 1.

Sediment cores from two lakes in the Mississippi floodplain show that Cahokia, the largest prehistoric settlement in the Americas north of Mexico, emerged during a period when there were few severe floods on the river and that its decline and abandonment coincided with the return of large floods.

For 25 years, Mark Smith, JD, associate vice chancellor and director of the Career Center at Washington University in St. Louis, has been helping new graduates – and their parents – cope with the stress of finding that first job. Smith shares his seven top tips for graduates and their parents.

Researchers have uncovered a unique connection between diabetes and Alzheimer’s disease, providing further evidence that a disease that robs people of their memories may be affected by elevated blood sugar, according to scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

Philip Needleman, PhD, former chair of the Department of Pharmacology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, has been elected a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

At its spring meeting, held April 30-May 1, the Board of Trustees at Washington University in St. Louis elected two new members and heard reports on the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts and plans for the East Campus, according to Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton.

​New research from the Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis shows that short sellers actually have more insight into the stock market than some might think.​

Washington University School of Medicine and the Brown School have received a $4 million grant to study whether a new model of providing family planning services can reduce unintended pregnancies and births. As part of the study, they are recruiting 10,000 women of child-bearing age in the St. Louis area to participate.

David M. Holtzman, a leading expert in researching the underlying mechanisms that lead to Alzheimer’s disease, and Paul Michael Lützeler, an authority on 18th, 19th and 20th century German literature, will receive Washington University in St. Louis’ 2015 faculty achievement awards, Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton announced.

Washington University School of Medicine neuroscientists, led by Michael R. Bruchas, PhD, assistant professor of anesthesiology and of neurobiology, have attached the light-sensing protein rhodopsin to opioid receptor parts to activate the receptor pathways using light from a laser fiber-optic device. They also influenced the behavior of mice using light, rather than drugs, to activate the reward response.