Record

The commute is about to get a little easier for employees and patients heading to Washington University Medical Center. After more than a year of construction activity, the improved Interstate 64/Highway 40 interchange at Tower Grove Avenue is scheduled to open the afternoon of Friday, Aug. 29.

Since the shooting of Michael Brown, the eyes of the world have turned to St. Louis. Over the last several weeks, associate professor Bob Hansman — one of the area’s most prominent community activists — has quietly ushered hundreds of students through the neighborhoods of north St. Louis, chronicling the racial, social and urban histories that have shaped conditions on the ground.

In continuing the university’s role as a welcoming place to discuss issues surrounding the events in Ferguson, Mo., the Office of the Provost at Washington University in St. Louis, in coordination with the Gephardt Institute for Public Service and the Office of Human Resources, are beginning a series of “Conversation Circles” on the Danforth Campus onThursday, Aug. 28.

University Provost H. Holden Thorp, PhD, dons safety glasses during a new faculty orientation Aug. 19 in Umrath Hall Lounge. Thorp says the university has an obligation to instill a culture that promotes safety.

D. Tab Rasmussen, PhD, professor of anthropology in Arts & Sciences, died Thursday, Aug. 7, 2014, after an accident at his home in Edwardsville, Ill. He was 56. Rasmussen was a highly recognized physical anthropologist specializing in paleontology and behavioral ecology, especially among primates.

Todd P. Margolis, MD, PhD, the Alan A. and Edith L. Wolff Distinguished Professor and head of the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, has been awarded a $115,000 grant by Research to Prevent Blindness to support research into the causes, treatment and prevention of blinding diseases.

Tao Ju, PhD, associate professor of computer science and engineering, has received a three-year, $234,668 grant from the National Science Foundation to advance his work in biological informatics.

On Monday, Aug. 25, the following will close because of construction on the Medical Campus: the sidewalk on Duncan Avenue along the garage construction site; one lane of Children’s Place west of Taylor Avenue along the St. Louis College of Pharmacy (STLCOP) garage; and the sidewalk through the center of the STLCOP west of Taylor Avenue to Whelpley Hall.

Applications for the K12 Clinical Hematology Research Career Development Program scholars are being accepted through Oct. 20.

Washington University has joined forces with Operation Food Search to collect food for Ferguson and surrounding communities. Faculty, students and staff are invited to drop off canned meat or other food items at 21 bins located throughout the Danforth Campus as well as at West Campus, North Campus and the School of Medicine. The drive, modeled after the spring food drive PB&Joy, will run through Labor Day (Sept. 1).