Todd H. Wasserman, MD, professor emeritus of radiation oncology at the School of Medicine, died Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2013, after a long illness. Wasserman, 66, made important contributions to the field of radiation oncology.
In what is believed to be one of the earliest public works by Academy Award-winning filmmaker Charles Guggenheim, Washington University in St. Louis has unearthed and digitized a slice of academia in the early 1950s called The Second Century. Written and produced by Guggenheim as part of the school’s first major fundraising effort, the 30-minute film — filled with 1950s earnestness — chronicles the attributes of not only Washington University, but also the merits of a university education.
A massive earthen mound constructed about 3,200 years ago by Native Americans in northeastern Louisiana was built in less than 90 days, and perhaps as quickly as 30 days, according to new research in the journal Geoarchaeology. The site was recently nominated for a place on the UNESCO list of Word Heritage sites.
Black Anthology at Washington University in St. Louis presents “Metro,” a riveting, dramatic play examining the challenges of criminality and profiling in the life of a modern African-American. “Metro” explores the importance of embracing the intersection between race, identity and sexuality.
The Women’s Society of Washington University (WSWU) is accepting nominations of full-time senior women students for the Harriet K. Switzer Leadership Award. The award is given annually to one or more graduating seniors, recognizing young women who have made a significant contribution to the university during their undergraduate years and have demonstrated exceptional potential for future leadership.
Several of the School of Medicine’s musically talented students, faculty and staff recently performed their second annual winter concert in the lobby of the Center for Advanced Medicine. Shown are laboratory technician Rowan Karvas on clarinet and graduate student Mo Lee on piano in a performance of Paul Jeanjean’s “Arabesques.”
Coverage of the recent shipping crisis on the Mississippi River assumes that the appropriate response to a problem like low water levels is to find an engineering solution. Washington University in St. Louis hydrogeologist Robert E. Criss disagrees. He feels the river has been over-engineered and that many of the engineering “solutions” are not economic if all of their costs, including those to the taxpayer and to the environment, are taken into account.
Tolerance and civic discourse will be the focus of the Master of Liberal Arts Saturday Lecture Series that runs throughout February. Sponsored by University College, this free lecture series begins at 11 a.m. Feb. 2 in McDonnell Hall. George Pepe, PhD, professor of classics in Arts & Sciences, delivers the first talk.
The spring 2013 list of Assembly Series speakers begins January 31 with the prominent young American playwright Sarah Ruhl (left), author of “In the Next Room or the vibrator play” and concludes April 17 with a presentation by General Motors’ vice president of global human resources, Cynthia Brinkley.
The Longer Life Foundation, a joint enterprise of the School of Medicine and the Reinsurance Group of America, is seeking applications for funding in 2013.