Arts & Sciences

WUSTL students, faculty and physicians and members of the community packed Brown Hall on Friday evening, Oct. 4, to hear Jonathan Gruber, one of the foremost authorities on the Affordable Care Act.

Special Parent’s Weekend concert to feature music of Bach, Haydn, Rachmaninoff, Albeniz, Finzi, Saint-Saëns, Dvořák and more Oct. 26.

Leaders from two of the world’s top research universities and several major international corporations will gather in St. Louis Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 19-20, for the Washington University in St. Louis-Indian Institute of Technology Bombay Corporate Conclave, aimed at strengthening the U.S.-India connection around innovation and education, particularly in addressing pressing global issues.

Ramanath Cowsik, internationally recognized for his contributions to neutrino physics and to the understanding of dark matter in the universe, was installed as the James S. McDonnell Professor of Space Sciences in Arts & Sciences in a ceremony Oct. 7 in Holmes Lounge.

Members of the Washington University in St. Louis community will gather at 4 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 15, in the Ginkgo Room of Olin Library to remember Rita Levi-Montalcini, one of two women from the university who won the Nobel Prize. The event, which is hosted by the Woman’s Club of Washington University, is free and open to the public.

Afghan-American journalist and Opium Nation author Fariba Nawa will participate in two Washington University in St. Louis programs exploring the current and future state of Afghanistan: She will give an Assembly Series talk, “Afghanistan, Heroin and Women,” at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 16, in Umrath Lounge; and she will lead a panel discussion, “Aftershocks of the Afghanistan War: What’s Next for Those Who Left and for Those Left Behind,” at 2 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 17, in Mallinckrodt Center’s Multipurpose Room. Both are free and open to the public. Nawa was born in Afghanistan but later moved to California. She returned after the U.S.-led fight began against the Taliban and al-Qaida in that country, and in 2011 wrote a book about the addictions, violence and other tragedies borne of Afghanistan’s opiate industry.

With its blunt depictions of adolescent sexuality and startling mixture of contemporary expression and fin de siècle restraint, Spring Awakening—by WUSTL alumnus Steven Sater—is among the most influential, unexpected and beloved Broadway shows of recent years. On Oct. 25, the Performing Arts Department will debut a new production in Edison Theatre.

KIPP students are working hard to get into college. And yet, many have never visited a campus before. Organized by sorority and fraternity members, Greek Serve 2013: The KIPP College Experience gave KIPP seventh-graders a look at life on campus.

A master’s degree program at Washington University in St. Louis specifically designed for high school science teachers nationwide is helping them learn techniques for inspiring not only the brightest and most motivated science students, but also those with other interests. The two-year program through University College in Arts & Sciences offers teachers online courses during the school year and an on-campus summer institute for three weeks each summer.

At a Board of Trustees meeting in May, some faculty members were appointed with tenure or promoted. Read more to see details.