Page 1193 – The Source | Washington University in St. Louis

Boyle ramp to close through mid-May

The Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) will close the ramp from westbound Interstate 64/Highway 40 to Boyle Avenue in St. Louis at 9 a.m. Monday, April 7. The ramp is expected to reopen by mid-May.

Science & Technology

Robots on Mars

Before his Assembly Series talk, Adam Steltzner, a NASA engineer in charge of the Mars Curiosity rover landing, met with WUSTL students and discussed their entry for NASA’s Robotic Mining Competition.

Our Washington: Providing resources

Growing up in the segregated South, Associate University Librarian Virginia Toliver was banned from her local library. But her school library opened her up to a world beyond Mississippi. She donates to WUSTL to build a stronger Olin Library.

Humanities & Society

PB&Joy food drive kicks off today; supports Operation Food Search

The goal of the campus PB&Joy food drive is to help feed 135,000 hungry children. Campus Kitchen, which boasts 275 WUSTL student volunteers and serves 2,250 meals annually, is one of many organizations that depends on Operation Food Search.

Medicine & Health

Cutting phosphate in diet reduces deaths, heart problems related to kidney disease

Severely restricting dietary phosphate early in the course of chronic kidney disease can prevent related heart and vascular problems, a new study in rats indicates. Phosphate, an essential mineral, is found in colas, milk, cheese and other dairy products, beans and high-protein foods, and often is added as a preservative in processed foods.

Medicine & Health

Smoking may dull obese women’s ability to taste fat and sugar

People who smoke also tend to eat more high-fat foods. So do obese people. Now, a team of researchers, including M. Yanina Pepino, PhD, at the School of Medicine, has found that obese women who also smoke have a difficult time perceiving fat and sweetness in their food. And that could lead them to eat even more fatty foods.

Business & Entrepreneurship

Time to celebrate

Olin Business School celebrated its 97th birthday March 28 with barbecue, arcade games and fun in the school’s newly opened Knight and Bauer halls. Pictured is Olin employee Nate Quest.

Humanities & Society

The $25 philanthropist: Assembly Series features ‘International Bank of Bob’ author on the joys of microloan financing

Bob Harris wanted to help people living in poverty who had an entrepreneurial streak, so he donated $20,000 of his money to individuals he found on the micro loan financing website, Kiva.org. Then he set out to meet them. Then he wrote a book about them. Harris will talk about his philanthropy and his travels for the Skandalaris Cenetr for Entrepreneurial Studies’ YouthBridge lecture on April 10.

Humanities & Society

Leading Shakespeare scholar to discuss ‘Shakespeare at 450 Years’

Jonathan Bate, PhD, one of the world’s leading scholars of Shakespeare, will discuss “Shakespeare at 450 Years” at 2:30 p.m. Monday, April 7, in Hurst Lounge, Duncker Hall, at Washington University in St. Louis. Bate, who is well known as a biographer, critic, broadcaster and scholar, is provost of Worcester College and professor of English literature at the University of Oxford.

Humanities & Society

Relay for Life kicks off at 6 p.m. Saturday, April 5

Ranked among the nation’s top Relay for Life fundraisers, WUSTL’s event also is one of the most fun. Highlights include a tug-of-war, performances from campus acts and a midnight “silent rave.”