Arts & Sciences

Adia Harvey Wingfield, professor of sociology at Washington University in St. Louis, has joined the leadership team in Arts & Sciences as associate dean for faculty development. In her role as associate dean, Wingfield works closely with Barbara A. Schaal, dean of the faculty, in ongoing efforts to support faculty across Arts & Sciences.

In launching the St. Louis Queer + Support Helpline (SQSH), senior Luka Cai is providing the local community the support they never received as a queer teenager in Singapore. Cai and co-founder Riott Kochman, a Brown School student, will receive a Holobaugh honor for SQSH at the annual James M. Holobaugh Honors Ceremony Nov. 11.

Washington University in St. Louis climate change experts react to the Trump administration decision to withdraw from the Paris Agreement on climate change.

Arpita Bose, assistant professor of biology in Arts & Sciences, has published new work that reveals how one kind of bacteria “eats” electricity by pulling in electrons straight from an electrode source. The research is published Nov. 5 in mBio.

Nobel laureate Kip Thorne will visit Washington University to deliver a public talk on Thursday, Nov. 7. Thorne’s work in theoretical physics examines gravitational waves, the Big Bang and what these phenomena tell us about the dynamics of the universe.

The team that worked on the Mars exploration rovers Spirit and Opportunity received the Distinguished Science Award from the Huntsville, Ala., chapter of the National Space Club. The award recognizes outstanding contributions in research and discovery that expand knowledge and understanding of space. Raymond Arvidson, the James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor in Arts & Sciences, is the mission’s deputy principal investigator.

Policy responses to school shootings have not prevented them from happening more frequently, but restorative justice has the potential to avert bad behavior and school shootings, finds a new study from Washington University in St. Louis.

Contrary to the belief that drinking can literally shrink one’s brain, a new study that includes researchers from Arts & Sciences suggests that a small brain might be a risk factor for heavier alcohol consumption.

Researchers in Jonathan Barnes’ laboratory in Arts & Sciences have developed a new light-sensitive hydrogel with improved biocompatibility compared with similar materials. Down the line, these materials may be particularly suited for medical uses like prosthetics or transplantable organs.

Kevin Moeller, professor of chemistry in Arts & Sciences, will receive a 2020 Arthur C. Cope Scholar Award for excellence in organic chemistry. The Cope Scholar Award is a national award sponsored by the Arthur C. Cope Fund and administered by the American Chemical Society. Only 10 recipients each year receive the award.