Wild things

Mann Library's current exhibitions offer a glimpse of foods that grow in the wild and a look at fantastical sea creatures from an 18th-century book.

"Beyond the Garden Wall: Wild Foods From Page to Plate," on display in the library lobby, features historical illustrations, photography, and old and new texts from Mann's collections, celebrating the edible wild, from nettles to truffles to fiddleheads.

In the Top Shelf Gallery, "Of Tropical Fish and Mermaids: Louis Renard's 'Poissons, Ecrevisses et Crabes'" features illustrations selected from a book Renard published in 1718, depicting then-little-known East Indian Ocean life. Renard drew some of his colorful examples from specimens, and others from his imagination; the exhibition provides historical insight into human perceptions and representations of nature.

The Renard book is from Jay ('77) and Eileen ('76, MBA '78) Walker's private Library of the History of Human Imagination, which is highlighted in a Kroch Library exhibition (through Oct. 29).

The exhibitions at Mann Library continue through Sept. 29. Information: http://mannlib.cornell.edu.

Welcome Weekend

A Street Fair, Casino Night and ClubFest will showcase activities and student organizations on campus as part of Welcome Weekend.

Casino Night, Friday, Aug. 24, will have a pirate theme. It begins at 10 p.m. on the main floor of Willard Straight Hall with music, free food, drinks (mocktails) and hourly raffle prize giveaways at casino-style games including blackjack, craps, roulette, poker and bingo.

The evening Street Fair, Saturday, Aug. 25, on Ho Plaza, features carnival games, dance, music and free food starting at 9 p.m.

ClubFest, Sunday, Aug. 26, 1-4 p.m. in Barton Hall, gives new students access to hundreds of clubs and organizations, with performances, booths and information for new and prospective members.

Information: http://www.rso.cornell.edu/welcomeweekend/events/.

Folk tradition

WVBR's "Bound for Glory" begins its 46th year of live folk music concerts Aug. 26, 8-11 p.m. with John Roberts and Debra Cowan. Admission is free in Anabel Taylor Café.

Upcoming shows feature local guitar-and-cello duo Nate and Kate on Sept. 2; and Robin and Linda Williams of "A Prairie Home Companion" fame, on Sept. 9 with members of Their Fine Group.

"Bound for Glory" is North America's longest-running live folk concert broadcast, hosted since its inception in 1967 by Phil Shapiro, M.A. '69. Music is broadcast live from Anabel Taylor Hall Sunday nights on WVBR-FM, 93.5 and 105.5, and at http://www.wvbr.com.

Globalized policy

Governor of the Reserve Bank of India Duvvuri Subbarao will speak on "India in a Globalizing World: Some Policy Dilemmas," Aug. 28, 4:30 p.m. in Lewis Auditorium, Goldwin Smith Hall. Free and open to the public.

Subbarao assumed office as the 22nd governor of India's Reserve Bank in September 2008, just a week before the global financial crisis erupted. He led the Reserve Bank's effort to mitigate the impact of the crisis on India and was active in the G-20 effort to coordinate an international response. He previously served as the Indian government's Finance Secretary and on the Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council, and was a lead economist in the World Bank from 1999-2004, advising developing countries on public finance management.

His talk is presented by the Mario Einaudi Center for International Studies' Foreign Policy Distinguished Speaker Series and co-sponsored by the Johnson Graduate School of Management. Information: http://einaudi.cornell.edu/node/11408.

Farm-fresh food

Fresh local produce and cuisine is available to the Cornell community every week at the Farmers' Market at Cornell, Thursdays, Aug. 30 to Oct. 25, from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. on the Ag Quad.

Now in its second season, the market has grown from seven vendors on Ho Plaza to about 20 vendors on the Ag Quad, with live music each week.

Produce available includes organic vegetables from Dilmun Hill Student Farm and mushrooms and fresh herbs from Edible Acres. Other farm products range from cheese, organic honey and locally roasted coffee to grass-fed lamb and fresh-cut flowers. Vendors serving food include GreenStar Coop (grocery and deli), The Piggery (sandwiches), Tellez (Mexican), Sadya Snacks (Indian street food) and Xeo (Vietnamese).

Volunteers interested in joining the Farmers' Market should contact Beth Leuin '13 at erl45@cornell.edu.

Workers' playtime

Cornell Cinema presents an outdoor screening of Charlie Chaplin's "Modern Times" Thursday, Aug. 30, at 8:30 p.m. on the Willard Straight Terrace.

Doors open at 8 p.m. and patrons can bring their own picnics. Tickets are $10 general, $8 students and senior citizens. Rain location: Willard Straight Memorial Room. Information: http://cinema.cornell.edu.

The film is being shown in conjunction with the Johnson Museum exhibition "Cinemania: Harun Farocki and Holly Zausner," on display Sept. 1-Dec. 23, with Farocki's 2006 video installation "Workers Leaving the Factory in Eleven Decades." "Modern Times" and three other films excerpted in Farocki's work -- "Metropolis," "Red Desert" and "Dancer in the Dark" -- will screen on campus this semester.

Cornell Cinema also kicks off a 15-part series, "The Story of Film: An Odyssey" with Parts 1 and 2, "The Birth of the Cinema" (1900-1920) and "The Hollywood Dream" (the 1920s). Both segments will screen Aug. 28 and Sept. 4 at the Schwartz Center Film Forum. $5. An Odyssey Pass ($25, good for admission to all eight programs in the series) is available at http://CornellCinemaTickets.com.

Research trends

Sociologist Yu Xie of the University of Michigan will present "Is American Science in Decline?" Aug. 30, 4:30 p.m. in Lewis Auditorium, Goldwin Smith Hall. Free and open to the public.

Xie is co-author (with Alexandra Killewald) of a recent book of the same title, analyzing trends in scientific research and America's dominance in certain fields. His talk is sponsored by the Center for the Study of Economy and Society. Information: http://www.economyandsociety.org/.