Shattering Western mythology

Julian Rosefeldt, “American Night” (2009).
Tumbleweeds drift past clapboard buildings. A lone rider crosses dusty mountains. A woman waits by a cabin door. In “American Night” (2009), which opens March 4 at the Kemper Art Museum, German artist Julian Rosefeldt turns an amused yet critical eye to the motifs and conventions of the Western film.

WashU Expert: Papal attack plays on longstanding fears of white Protestants

Marie Griffith
While it may seem bizarre for an American presidential candidate to describe the comments of a sitting pope as “disgraceful,” Donald Trump’s recent attacks on Pope Francis should come as no surprise from a candidate whose success hinges on playing to the fears of religiously inspired voters, suggests an expert on evangelical politics at Washington University in St. Louis.

Medical Campus phone outage postponed

The phone network at the Medical Campus and several other School of Medicine and BJC locations was scheduled to be disrupted from late Friday, Feb. 19, through early Saturday, Feb. 20, for maintenance. However, that maintenance has been postponed. A new date has not been set.

Longer-lived imaging agents could hasten Alzheimer’s research

Liviu Mirica
A chemist at Washington University in St. Louis hopes to develop bifunctional compounds that can be both therapeutic and diagnostic agents for Alzheimer’s disease. In the first role, they would block the metal-mediated formation of amyloid beta oligomers; in the second, they would be loaded with a long-lived radioistope (Cu-64) and employed as PET imaging agents.

B. J. Novak brings his standup to Graham Chapel

B. J. Novak performs
B. J. Novak, best known for his role in “The Office,” entertained students at Social Programming Board’s spring comedy show at Graham Chapel. Novak took questions from students, read excerpts from his book, “One More Thing: Stories and Other Stories” and shared favorite memories from “The Office.”

Flags lowered to remember Justice Scalia

The U.S. and university flags over Brookings Hall are lowered to half-staff until sunset Saturday, Feb. 20, in remembrance of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, who died last weekend.

Breakthroughs in the fight against childhood malnutrition

A child being examined by a doctor.
Two new studies led by Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis show that effects of gut bacteria reach far beyond the gastrointestinal tract. Manipulating the makeup of microbes in the gut has the potential to provide new ways to treat and ultimately help prevent childhood malnutrition.