A Valentine’s Day special for those in love, or at least in love with chocolate. And there’s plenty more on the menu if your passions run to history, medicine, science, or innovation.
February 11
6 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.
Maison Française
Les Chocolats de Saint Valentin
This Valentine’s Day, join culinary historian and chocolate expert Alexandra Leaf for a tasting and talk in the Maison Française kitchen celebrating the French tradition of dark chocolate. Taste a selection of single origin French-made bars and handmade, award-winning bonbons from Chocolat Moderne, along with champagne. Tickets are $45 and seating is limited. To request a ticket, please e-mail [email protected]. Buell Hall, Morningside campus.
February 12
6 p.m. – 7 p.m.
Asian American Studies | Department of History
“The Chinese Question and Global Politics in the Nineteenth Century”
This University Lecture will consider the broader implications for thinking about the relationship between the local and the global. Mae M. Ngai, professor of history and Lung Family Professor of Asian American Studies, will discuss local politics in the gold-mining regions of the United States, Australia, and South Africa, where Euro-Americans first encountered large-scale Chinese immigration, the differences in politics among them, and the dynamics that brought them together into an idea with global force and reach. Hosted by President Lee C. Bollinger and Provost John H. Coatsworth with a Q&A session followed by a reception. RSVP required. Rotunda, Low Memorial Library. (Reminder)
February 19
3:30 p.m.
Columbia University Medical Center
How Cancer Research is Transforming Cancer Control with Harold Varmus, M.D.
Nobelist Varmus, director of the National Cancer Institute, will speak on the frontiers of cancer treatment as part of the Distinguished Lectures in Precision Medicine. CUMC Alumni Auditorium, 650 West 168th Street, 1st floor.
February 23
6:00 p.m.
The Earth Institute | Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory | Executive Vice President for Research
Preparing for Extreme Weather: Global Lessons from Sandy
This World Leaders Forum will launch the new Columbia Initiative on Extreme Weather and Climate with a panel discussion on the risks to human life and property from extreme weather events and on developing solutions to mitigate those risks. Panelists include: Michael Gerrard, Andrew Sabin Professor of Professional Practice and director of the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law; Lisa Goddard, director and senior research scientist at the International Research Institute for Climate and Society and adjunct associate professor of earth and environmental sciences; Cynthia Rosenzweig, co-chair of NYC Panel on Climate Change, head of the Climate Impacts Group, and senior research scientist at the NASA-Goddard Institute for Space Studies and the Earth Institute; and Daniel Zarrilli, director of New York City Mayor’s Office of Recovery and Resiliency. RSVP required. Rotunda, Low Memorial Library.
March 2 – 3
Columbia Business School | Center on Global Brand Leadership
BRITE ’15 Conference: brands, innovation, and technology
BRITE ’15 will bring together over 500 leaders from business, technology, media, and marketing to discuss how innovation and shifting social trends are transforming the ways companies build and sustain great brands. Participants will come to think differently about the changing global landscape brands face today, and connect with a best-in-class group of innovators, marketers, entrepreneurs, and champions of social enterprise. Register here. Roone Arledge Auditorium, 1st floor, Alfred Lerner Hall.
March 3
6:30 p.m. – 8 p.m.
Zuckerman Institute
In Darwin’s Footsteps: Witnessing the Origin of a New Species in the Galapagos
Columbia journalism professor and Pulitzer Prize winner Jonathan Weiner tells of a team of biologists that has been observing the evolution of Darwin’s finches on a desert island in the center of the Galapagos archipelago for more than forty years. Their work throws light on many aspects of the science of life — including the science of the brain. The lecture is part of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Brain Insight Lecture series of the Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute. Register here. Graduate School of Journalism, Lecture Hall.
March 4
5 p.m. – 7 p.m.
School of Continuing Education | College of Physicians and Surgeons
Narrative Medicine Rounds: Peter Nicks, Author
Narrative Medicine Rounds are lectures or readings presented by scholars, clinicians, or writers engaged in work at the intersection of narrative and health care. Nicks is an Emmy award winning documentary filmmaker whose projects for network, cable and public television explored topics such as immigration, journalism, and technology. Reception to follow. CUMC Faculty Club, Physicians and Surgeons Building, 4th floor.
Highlighted above are general interest campus or NYC events of possible high 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!