Newsroom Stories

Vladimir B. Birman, PhD, associate professor of chemistry in Arts & Sciences, has received a three-year, $324,815 grant from the National Science Foundation for research titled “Bronsted Acid Catalysis in Enantioselective Acyl Substitution.” … Ian MacMullen, PhD, assistant professor of political science in Arts & Sciences, has received a one-year, $55,000 Spencer Postdoctoral Fellowship from […]

South China Morning Post (Hong Kong) HK to become world genomics research hub 12/27/2010 Hong Kong is poised to become international gene sequencing and genomics research hub, thanks to Beijing’s drive to turn the country into an international science powerhouse by 2020. Already it houses some of the world’s most powerful supercomputers and gene sequencers, […]

With support from a new $3.3 million American Recovery and Reinvestment Act grant from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis are hunting for normal cells that help brain tumors form and grow

What do beer industry giant Tsingtao and the midwest’s handcrafted Schlafly brewery have in common? Hops, barley and business school.  Schlafly’s brewmaster and Tsingtao’s president are recent graduates of Olin Business School’s Executive MBA program that provides a unique experience for students to network with peers around the globe and share stories from the executive suite over a glass of beer.

Scientific American
 A losing personality
 12/23/2010 In recent years, psychologists have begun looking at personality traits as critical variables in the dieting equation. In fact, your personality may well be the strongest predictor of how likely you are to shed pounds, says psychiatrist C. Robert Cloninger of the Washington University School of Medicine in St. […]

Five decades after the discovery of a rare but potentially pivotal immune cell, scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found a way to eliminate it in mice. The finding, which appears in the journal Immunity, will enable more detailed investigations of the important roles the plasmacytoid dendritic cell (pDC) plays in fighting viruses and causing autoimmune diseases like psoriasis and lupus.

Adrienne D. Davis, JD, the William M. Van Cleve Professor of Law at Washington University in St. Louis, has been appointed vice provost at Washington University, effective Feb. 1, 2011. Edward S. Macias, PhD, provost and executive vice chancellor for academic affairs, made the announcement of this new position in his office.

E Science News
 Cornstarch might have ended the Gulf spill agony sooner
 12/22/2010 When British Petroleum attempted to stop the Gulf oil spill by pouring heavy mud down the well bore, physicists watching the situation speculated that the top kill effort would fail due to an instability problem. Washington University in St. Louis physicist Jonathan […]

Taking time off for the holidays? Think about what you can do to help Washington University School of Medicine save energy during your vacation.

msnbc
 Pluto may host an ocean
 12/21/2010 If a new computer model is correct, the dwarf planet Pluto harbors a sizeable pool of liquids beneath its thick, icy shell. Scientists are looking at Pluto’s surface for clues about the shape of its interior. “Pluto’s shape should reflect its construction,” said planetary scientist Bill McKinnon, with […]