Arts & Sciences

Zarqa Nawaz knows something about crossing cultures. Born in England to Pakistani immigrants, raised in Toronto and now living in Saskatchewan, the Muslim writer, producer and filmmaker will give the annual Olin Fellows lecture at 11 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 3, in Graham Chapel. The talk is free and open to the public. A panel discussion featuring Nawaz as well as other panelists will continue the discussion from 2-4 p.m. in the Women’s Building Lounge.

Ramanath Cowsik, Ph.D., professor of physics and director of the McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences in Arts & Sciences, received the 2007 M. P. Birla Memorial Award from the M. P. Birla Institute of Fundamental Research and the M. P. Birla Planetarium in Kolkata, India. The biennial award is given for exceptional achievement in the fields of astronomy, astrophysics, particle physics and allied disciplines.

Leonard SlatkinAcclaimed conductor Leonard Slatkin — music director of the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington, D.C., and conductor laureate of the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra — will return to St. Louis as guest conductor for Washington University’s “Piano Extravaganza” Oct. 28. Presented by the Department of Music in Arts & Sciences, “Piano Extravaganza” will mark the formal opening of the university’s newly renovated 560 Music Center, located at 560 Trinity Ave. in University City. The concert will feature performances by more than a dozen student, faculty and alumni pianists, including Seth Carlin, professor of music, and Hugh Macdonald, Ph.D., the Avis H. Blewett Professor of Music.

WUSTL Photo ServicesAlberto del SazAcclaimed dancer Alberto del Saz, artistic director of the Murray Louis and Nikolais Dance Company as well as co-director of The Nikolais/Louis Foundation for Dance, will teach an open master class in modern dance technique at 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 7, in the Annelise Mertz Dance Studio. Del Saz will spend a week on campus to set choreography for “Tensile Involvement,” a signature work by the innovative multimedia choreographer Alwin Nikolais (1910-1993).

Live from the fabulous Hotel Astor in New York City, it’s “The 1940s Radio Hour”! In October, the Performing Arts Department in Arts & Sciences will present Walton Jones’ nostalgic ode to the glory days of big band music, swing dancing and backstage antics as its fall Mainstage production.

Michael Widlanski, Ph.D., a former New York Times and Cox News reporter with 20 years’ experience reporting on the Middle East, will discuss “The Big Mouth Theory: Communication Power in the Global Arena” as he delivers the second annual Schusterman Lecture at 7:15 p.m. Oct. 8 in Wilson Hall, Room 214.

Zarqa Nawaz knows something about crossing cultures. Born in England of Pakistani immigrants, raised in Toronto, and now living in Saskatchewan, the Muslim writer, producer and filmmaker will give the annual Olin Fellows lecture at 11 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 3 in Graham Chapel. The talk, “Crossing Cultures” is free and open to the public. A panel discussion featuring Nawaz as well as other panelists will continue the discussion from 2 – 4 p.m. in the Women’s Building Lounge.

In a continuing effort to make science accessible to the general public, the Department of Physics and University College, both in Arts & Sciences, are offering their annual fall Science Saturdays lecture series. Beginning this Saturday, Sept. 29, four faculty members will describe their research on successive Saturdays.

David Kilper/WUSTL PhotoRaymond E. Arvidson, Ph.D., James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor, and chair of earth and planetary sciences (left), and Dong Shuwen, Ph.D., vice president of the Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, sign an agreement between Arvdison’s department and the Academy.The Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences in Arts & Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences (CAGS) have signed a research agreement that will involve collaboration on a number of research thrusts, travel between the two institutions, and eventually student exchanges that could lead to some Chinese students attaining doctorates from Washington University in St. Louis. The agreement was signed Sept. 18 at a ceremony and reception held on the third floor of the Earth and Planetary Sciences building.

Zarqa Nawaz knows something about crossing cultures. Born in England of Pakistani immigrants, raised in Toronto, and now living in Saskatchewan, the Muslim writer, producer and filmmaker will give the annual Olin Fellows lecture at 11 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 3 in Graham Chapel. The talk, “Crossing Cultures” is free and open to the public. A panel discussion featuring Nawaz as well as other panelists will continue the discussion from 2 – 4 p.m. in the Women’s Building Lounge.