Cornell University has created its first permanent, temporary-use office space that will accommodate various campus offices as needed. The housing is at Surge 1, at the entrance of the Cornell Plantations off Forest Home Drive. The first tenants are two centers displaced when the north wing of Martha Van Rensselaer Hall, the home of the College of Human Ecology (CHE), closed in July 2001 due to structural problems. The two centers, the Family Life Development Center and the Bronfenbrenner Life Course Center, were then temporarily housed in the original Mann Library building. (November 19, 2003)
Writer, teacher and public speaker Allan Johnson will give a presentation, "Unraveling the Gender Knot," Friday, Nov. 21, from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. in the auditorium of Martha Van Rensselaer Hall on the Cornell University campus. The presentation is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served at 9:15 a.m. (November 19, 2003)
A train has derailed at the edge of a city, spreading toxic chemicals and fumes over a wide area. Before rescue and decontamination workers can enter the danger zone, they need more information: How widespread is the contamination?
Karen Katen, president of Pfizer Global Pharmaceuticals, a division of the multinational health-care firm Pfizer Inc., will deliver the 2003 Lewis H. Durland Memorial Lecture on Nov. 20.
There is a new reason to enjoy hot cocoa on a cold winter's night in front of a cozy fire. Consider it a health drink. Beyond the froth, cocoa teems with antioxidants that prevent cancer, Cornell University food scientists say. Comparing the chemical anti-cancer activity in beverages known to contain antioxidants, they have found that cocoa has nearly twice the antioxidants of red wine and up to three times those found in green tea. (November 17, 2003)
Six years ago Cornell University researchers built the world's smallest guitar -- about the size of a red blood cell -- to demonstrate the possibility of manufacturing tiny mechanical devices using techniques originally designed for building microelectronic circuits. Now, by "playing" a new, streamlined nanoguitar, Cornell physicists are demonstrating how such devices could substitute for electronic circuit components to make circuits smaller, cheaper and more energy-efficient. (November 17, 2003)
To help Cornell University celebrate Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Day 2003, John Cloud, a geographer with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Washington, D.C., will speak on "Layered Truths: Uncovering the Complex Histories of Geographic Information Systems," Wednesday, Nov. 19, at 2 p.m. on the second floor of the university's Albert R. Mann Library on campus. It is free and open to the public. Cloud will explain how GIS emerged and discuss the cartography it displaced. Also, he will examine how the history of GIS will contribute to the use of the system in future applications. (November 14, 2003)
Linda Donahue has been appointed director of the Great Lakes district for the Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations (ILR) Division of Extension. In her new position, she oversees the ILR school's workplace training and education programs and faculty efforts in the greater western New York area, including training and professional development workshops, college credit courses, research, economic development and technical assistance. The Great Lakes district serves private- and public-sector employers and unions, nonprofits, government agencies, trade and professional associations and community groups. Outreach is one of Cornell's founding principles as part of its land-grant mission. (November 14, 2003)
Although U.S. employment rates rose over the growth years of the 1990s for most working-age Americans, people with disabilities experienced an unprecedented fall in their employment rates.
Cornell University Police will join more than 13,000 law enforcement agencies and other college and university campus police agencies in the national Click It or Ticket Mobilization, which runs from Nov. 17 to 30. "Failure to wear a seat belt is against the law in this state. We enforce this law because it's the best proven way to save lives. If you won't buckle up to save your life, then buckle up to save yourself a ticket," said Sgt. Chuck Howard, traffic enforcement coordinator for Cornell University Police. (November 13, 2003)
Prolific author John Updike, twice honored with the Pulitzer Prize, will read from his works Tuesday, Nov. 18, at 8 p.m. in the Statler Auditorium of Statler Hall on the Cornell University campus. In addition, Updike will lead a colloquium titled "The Craft of Fiction: a Conversation with John Updike" Wednesday, Nov. 19, at 11 a.m. in Barnes Hall Auditorium. Both the reading and the colloquium are free and open to the public. Born in Shillington, Pa., in 1932, Updike is a 1954 graduate of Harvard University and the author of more than 50 books that span many literary genres. But he is perhaps best known as a novelist. Updike's first novel, PoorhouseFair, was published in 1959, and his most recent, Seek My Face, in 2002. High points in his novel-writing career include the quartet of Rabbit novels, Rabbit Run (1961), Rabbit Redux (1971), Rabbit is Rich (1981, Pulitzer Prize) and Rabbit at Rest (1990, a second Pulitzer); and the trilogy of Bech books: Bech, A Book (1970), Bech is Back (1982) and Bech at Bay (1998). In addition, Updike has written collections of short stories, poetry, art and literary criticism, memoirs and a play. (November 12, 2003)
