Taking on Ebola, riffing on Bearden, learning from Snowden, lecures on outer space and inner consciousness – so many reasons to be thankful for the Columbia community! Happy Thanksgiving!
December 1
9 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Columbia Club, multiple Schools, CAA
Strategies for Fighting Ebola: A Columbia University Summit
Leading experts from the University and other institutions will discuss specific strategies to end the Ebola epidemic. Panels address medical care and public health, containment and eradication, and public policy, economic, and business strategies. Faculty participants include Wafaa El-Sadr, MD(Mailman), Scott Hammer, MD (CUMC), Elaine Larson (Nursing), Stephen Morse, PhD (Mailman), Kathleen Crowley, AVP of environmental health and safety, Ranu Dhillon, MD (Earth Institute via Skype from Guinea), Irwin Redlener, MD (National Center for Disaster Preparedness), and Susan Michaels-Strasser (Nursing). Columbia University Club.
December 2
10 a.m.
Center for Jazz Studies
Improvisation in the Arts: A Symposium
Go if you can – and invite adventurous alumni and donors!
In this interactive program inspired by Columbia Explores A Black Odyssey, a luminary group of scholars and artists explore improvisation in music, literature, theology, cinema, dance, and critical theory. With author and humanities scholar Fred Moten; film director, writer, and theorist John Akomfrah Obe; professor and theologian J. Kameron Carter; dance and performance studies scholar Danielle Goldman; poet M. NourbeSe Philips; and musician Matana Roberts. Inspired by Bearden and, most importantly, together with the audience, the panel hopes to form a new experimental band. Faculty Room, Low Memorial Library.
December 3
12 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Journalism After Snowden – In Defense of Leaks, with Jill Abramson
Journalist Jill Abramson has spent the last 17 years in the most senior editorial positions at the New York Times, where she was the first woman to serve as Washington bureau chief, managing editor, and executive editor. Before joining the Times, she spent nine years at The Wall Street Journal as the deputy Washington bureau chief and an investigative reporter covering money and politics. She is currently a lecturer with the department of English at Harvard University. RSVP is required. Pulitzer Hall, 3rd floor, World Room.
6:30 p.m. – 8 p.m.
Zuckerman Institute and Stavros Niarchos Foundation
Race Matters, but Not How You Think it Does: How Stereotypes Affect How We Live, Work, Play, and Pray with Dr. Valerie Purdie-Vaughns
W.E.B. Du Bois used the term “double consciousness” to describe how societal structures shaped the ways in which African Americans viewed themselves, others, and their relations with American institutions. This talk will use the tools of psychology and neurobiology to show how “double consciousness” is experienced by many groups in American society, with implications for health and cognitive performance. Discussion includes recent findings in brain science that can be used by individuals to reduce stress and improve performance, and that could help bridge racial and gender disparities in the population. Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, 515 Malcolm X Boulevard. (Reminder)
December 9
6 p.m. – 7 p.m.
University Lecture
Why We Explore the Solar System: The MESSENGER Mission to Mercury with Lamont-Doherty director Sean C. Solomon
For decades, the exploration of Mercury lagged behind that of Venus and Mars because of Mercury’s proximity to the sun. Given that each of the four rocky inner planets of our solar system represents a distinct outcome of common physical and chemical processes, we cannot claim to know the workings of our own planet until we are also able to understand why our planetary neighbors are different. Discoveries by the MESSENGER spacecraft, the first to orbit the innermost planet, have substantially challenged many of the leading theories for those differences. Rotunda, Low Memorial Library.
Highlighted above are general interest campus or NYC events across a range of topics of possible interest to alumni, donors, and prospects. This listing is highly selective by design – regrettably, much more is omitted than featured. For RSVP, ticket availability, and other details, follow the links.
As always, I appreciate hearing from you about future events! Best, Jerry