Washington University celebrates annual Founders Day

On Saturday, Nov. 7, alumni and friends of Washington University in St. Louis will join the campus community for Founders Day, the annual commemoration of the university’s 1853 founding. Highlighting this year’s celebration at the St. Louis Union Station Hotel is noted writer and biographer Walter Isaacson. The event also will honor the recipients of the university’s Distinguished Alumni Awards and Distinguished Faculty Awards. In addition, three individuals will receive the Robert S. Brookings Award.

Washington University partners with LaunchCode

LaunchCode
University College in Arts & Sciences and the School of Engineering & Applied Science at Washington University in St. Louis are partnering with LaunchCode to offer a free 16-week basic coding class, called CS50x St. Louis, beginning Jan. 19, 2016.

Mardis named editor-in-chief of case studies journal

Elaine R. Mardis, PhD, the Robert E. and Louise F. Dunn Distinguished Professor of Medicine at the School of Medicine, has been named editor-in-chief of the journal Molecular Case Studies.

Martin’s book cited for excellence in recorded sound research

A book by Lerone Martin, PhD, assistant professor of religion and politics in the Danforth Center on Religion and Politics, has won a Certificate of Merit in the 2015 Association for Recorded Sound Collections Award for Excellence in Historical Recorded Sound Research in Blues, Gospel or R&B.

On the rise: Painkiller abusers who also use heroin​​​

Drug abusers are not completely abandoning prescription opioids for heroin, according to School of Medicine researchers. Instead, many use the two concurrently based on their availability. The researchers’ findings also reveal regional variations in the use of heroin and prescription painkillers.

Morrow-Howell named president of Gerontological Society of America

Nancy Morrow-Howell, PhD, the Bettie Bofinger Brown Distinguished Professor of Social Policy at the Brown School and director of the Harvey A. Friedman Center for Aging in the Institute for Public Health at Washington University in St. Louis, is the new president of the Gerontological Society of America, the nation’s largest multidisciplinary organization devoted to the field of aging.

Lohman named Biophysical Society Fellow

Timothy Lohman, PhD, the Brennecke Professor of Molecular Biophysics at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, was named a 2015 Biophysical Society Fellow.