Arts & Sciences

David Kilper/WUSTL PhotoOlsen is studying the genetics of two types of clover to determine why one type is cyanogenic (toxic) and the other is not.That clover necklace you make for your child could well be a ring of poison. That’s because some clovers have evolved genes that help the plant produce cyanide — to protect itself against little herbivores, such as snails, slugs and voles, that eat clover. Other clover plants that do not make cyanide are found in climates with colder temperatures. So, in picking your poison, er, clover, ecology and geography play important roles. A plant evolutionary biologist at Washington University in St. Louis is trying to get to the bottom of this botanical cloak and dagger tale.

David Kilper/WUSTL Photo(L-R) Larry Taber, postdoctoral researcher Gang Xu and Philip Bayly examine brain and heart cells to learn something of the mechanics involved in brain folding.Engineers at Washington University in St. Louis are finding common ground between the shaping of the brain and the heart during embryonic development. Larry A.Taber, Ph.D., the Dennis and Barbara Kessler Professor of Biomedical Engineering, and Phillip Bayly, Ph.D., Hughes Professor of Mechanical Engineering, are examining mechanical and developmental processes that occur in the folding of the brain’s surface, or cortex, which gives the higher mammalian brain more surface area (and hence more intellectual capacity) than a brain of comparable volume with a smooth surface.

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.