Monthly Archives: April 2017

Collaborating for change! Jerry’s and Carolina’s Picks (16:49)  April 24 – May 9

Collaborating for change–from art and brain science to climate to the dynamics of race.

Enjoy and remember to share your story.

REMINDERS

April 26: Precision Medicine Forum: Harnessing the Power of the Genome to Meet Medicine’s Greatest Challenges
April 27: The Shock of Attention: Art, Science, Creativity, and Doubt and The Global Novel: Writing the World in the 21st Century
April 28: Advances in Precision Medicine: Genetics

PICKS

April 24
7:30 – 9:30 p.m.
Presidential Scholars in Society and Neuroscience
Reductionism in Art and Brain Science: Bridging the Two Cultures
Part of the Seminars in Society and Neuroscience series, University Professor Eric R. Kandel, Kavli Professor of brain science, will discuss his new book. Registration required here. Northwest Corner Building, Room 501. (The Future of Neuroscience)

April 28
12 – 2 p.m.
Heyman Center for the Humanities | The Society of Fellows
Fresh Air Children and the Problem of Race in America
Since 1877, Fresh Air programs from Maine to Montana have brought inner-city children to rural and suburban homes for two-week summer vacations. Tobin Miller Shearer (University of Montana) will discuss how the residents who hosted the children from the city perpetuated racial inequity rather than overturned it. Joined in conversation by Frank Guridy, associate professor. 2nd floor, Common Room. (Just Societies)

May 1
4:15 – 6:15 p.m.
Presidential Scholars in Society and Neuroscience
Sound Studies and Auditory Neuroscience: New Perspectives on Listening
Part of the Seminars in Society and Neuroscience series, a discussion with Tim Griffiths, professor of cognitive neurology at Newcastle University; Elizabeth Hellmuth Margulis, director of the Music Cognition Lab at the University of Arkansas; and Ana Maria Ochoa, professor of music. Moderated by Nori Jacoby, presidential scholar in Society and Neuroscience. Reception to follow. Faculty House. (The Future of Neuroscience)

May 3
5 – 7 p.m.
CUMC
Narrative Medicine Rounds: Person Place Thing Conversation with Harriet A. Washington and Randy Cohen
Harriet A. Washington, award-winning medical writer and author of Medical Apartheid, will be interviewed by Randy Cohen, creator of the radio program, Person Place Thing. P&S Building, CUMC Faculty Club, 4th Floor. (Just Societies)

May 4
7 – 10 p.m.
The Earth Institute | Sustainable Development Capstone Workshop
Collaborating for Change: A New Vision of Climate Adaptation
A discussion about the most pressing issues pertaining to climate adaptation and collaborative, interdisciplinary solutions. Includes Steven Cohen, executive director of the Earth Institute; Shaun Martin, senior director of the Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience for the World Wildlife Fund; Peter Marcotullio, professor of Urban Planning at CUNY; and more. Moderated by environmental journalist Andrew Revkin. Columbia Law School, Jerome Greene Hall, Room 104. (Climate Response)

May 9
6 – 8 p.m.
Physicians and Surgeons
Up for Air Screening
The film Up for Air follows five years in the life of Jerry Cahill, one of the oldest living patients battling cystic fibrosis, as he learns about the fragility of life and the power of self-discipline and community in prolonging it. Private film screening followed by a Q&A with Jerry Cahill and the film’s director, Artem Agafonov. RSVP here. P&S, William Black Medical Research Building, Alumni Auditorium, 1st floor.
For RSVP, ticket availability, and other details, follow the links. We always appreciate hearing from you about future events.

The Shock of Attention? Jerry’s and Carolina’s Picks (16:48) April 20 – May 1

Everything under the warming sun! Enjoy and remember to share your story.

REMINDERS

April 18: Opening Reception Invisible Cities: Moda Curates 2017
April 19: The Cyber Threat to our National Security and Privacy
April 20: Precision Medicine and Popular Media
April 21–22: Evidence: An Interdisciplinary Conversation about Knowing and Certainty
April 22: Public Opening and Reception: 2017 MFA Thesis Exhibition

SNEAK PEAK

May 11
7 – 8 p.m.
Nevis Science Center
Space, Time, and Reality
One hundred years ago, Albert Einstein revolutionized our understanding of space and time. Research in our era has pushed this further, even hinting at the quantum threads that may stitch the spacetime fabric together. Brian Greene, professor of physics and mathematics and director of the Columbia Center for Theoretical Physics, will discuss these ideas and visualize them. Reception to follow. RSVP here. Science Center at Nevis Laboratories, Irvington, New York, 136 S. Broadway.

PICKS

April 20
4 – 6 p.m.
Co-sponsors here
Despair is Not a Political Strategy: Leading Advocates Discuss Current Policy Campaigns to Protect New York’s Most Vulnerable
Community organizers focus on specific legislative targets that could buffer the impact of the new administration’s agenda. Featuring Katharine Bodde, policy counsel at the New York Civil Liberties Union;  Charlene Gossett Navarro, regional outreach manager at the New York Immigration Coalition; Yul San Liem, co-director of the Justice Committee; Jose Schiffino, Long Island popular education coordinator at the Rural and Migrant Ministry; and Pete Sikora, New York Communities for Change. Jerome Greene Annex. (Just Societies)

6:30 – 8:30 p.m.
SEAS | Extreme Engineering
Space Medicine: Terrestrial Applications for Human Health, Performance, and Longevity
A talk by Smith L. Johnston, NASA’s aerospace doctor known as the “sleep doctor” for his work on identifying how to manage sleep in an effective way in spaceflight. Teachers College, Cowin Auditorium.

April 21
3 – 5 p.m.
Arnold A. Saltzman Institute of War and Peace Studies
Trump’s Emerging Strategy for Defeating ISIS and Al-Qaeda Across the Middle East
A talk on the emerging policy of the Trump administration toward the Middle East, with a particular focus on Trump’s approach to the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, Al-Qaeda, the war in Syria, Iran, and Yemen. Discussion with Colin H. Kahl, Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service Georgetown University, moderated by Robert Jervis, Adlai E. Stevenson Professor of International Politics and member of the Saltzman Institute of War and Peace Studies. International Affairs Building, Room 1302. (Global, Just Societies)

April 26
5:30 p.m.
College of Physicians and Surgeons
Precision Medicine Forum: Harnessing the Power of the Genome to Meet Medicine’s Greatest Challenges
In celebration of the 250th anniversary of  P&S leading Columbia scientists and clinicians present. Panelists includes Geneticist David Goldstein, director of the Institute for Genomic Medicine (IGM), and Tom Maniatis, director of IGM’s Precision Medicine Initiative. Moderated by Max Gomez, award-winning broadcast journalist.104 Haven Avenue, Roy and Diana Vagelos Education Center, Wu Auditorium, 2nd floor. Registration required here. (Precision Medicine)

April 27
4:30 p.m.
CUMC
The Shock of Attention: Art, Science, Creativity, and Doubt
Rita Charon, founder and executive director of the program in narrative medicine and professor of medicine, will present the Dean’s Distinguished Lecture in the Humanities. 650 West 168th Street, P&S Alumni Auditorium, 1st floor. (Arts and Imagination)

6 – 7:30 p.m.
Columbia Global Reports
The Global Novel: Writing the World in the 21st Century
What will 21st century fiction look like? In The Global Novel, acclaimed literary critic Adam Kirsch examines some of our most beloved writers, including Haruki Murakami, Elena Ferrante, Roberto Bolaño, and Margaret Atwood to better understand literature in the age of globalization. 1313 Madison Avenue, The Corner Bookstore. (Global, Arts and Imagination)

April 28
8 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Columbia Precision Medicine Initiative
Advances in Precision Medicine: Genetics
An inaugural conference bringing together fundamental and clinical researchers to discuss how changes in genetics and genomics are driving precision medicine. Speakers include David Goldstein, director of the Institute for Genomic Medicine (IGM); George Yancopoulos, president and chief scientific officer at Regeneron Pharmaceuticals; and others. Reception to follow. RSVP here. Alumni Auditorium, Physicians & Surgeons, 630 West 168th St. (Precision Medicine)

6 – 7 p.m.
Graduate School of Journalism
Melissa Bell: We Broke the News, Now Let’s Fix It
This year’s Hearst Digital Media Lecturer and publisher of Vox Media, Melissa Bell, will discuss the current media landscape. Reception to follow. RSVP is required at [email protected]. Pulitzer Hall, World Room.

May 1
9:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Knight First Amendment Institute | Tow Center for Digital Journalism
Disrupted: Speech and Democracy in the Digital Age
Free speech, the free press, and essential questions about democracy in the digital age. Welcome by President Lee C. Bollinger and Alberto Ibarguen, president and CEO of the Knight Foundation. Speakers include Nicholas Lemann, dean emeritus of Columbia Journalism School; Michael Oreskes, senior vice president for news and editorial director at NPR; Jameel Jaffer, executive director of the Knight First Amendment Institute; Beth Simone Noveck, director of the Governance Lab; and keynote by Aryeh Neier, president emeritus of the Open Society Foundations. RSVP here. Italian Academy. (Just Societies, Data and Society)

For RSVP, ticket availability, and other details, follow the links. We always appreciate hearing from you about future events.

A spring bouquet. Jerry’s and Carolina’s Picks (16:47) April 11 – 25

The sense of smell is in the air this week, of course, and other Picks include Congressman Schiff on cybersecurity, two Wallach Gallery openings, programs on knowing, proving, and seeing, the neuroscience of movement and the dynamics of race and health  Enjoy and remember to share your story.

REMINDERS

April 11: The New York Premiere Film Screening of Light and Brazilian Democracy: Challenges and Perspectives (livestreamed here)
April 13: The Human Sense of Smell and Neutrinos are Us!
April 14: #StartupColumbia 2017 Festival  

SPECIAL PICK

April 22
3 – 6 p.m.
School of the Arts | Wallach Art Gallery
Public Opening and Reception: 2017 MFA Thesis Exhibition
The first exhibition in the Lenfest Center for the Arts, the new home of the Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Art Gallery, will showcase the work of 29 student artists. Curated by Wallach director Deborah Cullen. Exhibition runs April 23 to May 21. 615 West 129th Street in Manhattanville.

PICKS

April 11 – 12
Columbia University Libraries
The Art of Data Visualization: Art or Knowledge?
Is data visualization art? Is it knowledge? Or is it some combination of the two (and more)? This two-day conference will explore these questions and showcase work from a range of data visualization practitioners. A keynote entitled Data Humanism will be given by Giorgia Lupi, author of Dear Data. Other topics include Conflict Urbanism: Visualizing Conflict Data Through Mapping and Spatial Analysis and Visualizing Social Interactions in Social Networks. Register here. For workshop locations and program visit here. (Data and Society)

April 13
11:45 a.m. – 12:45 p.m.
Mailman School of Public Health
Race, Racism, and Health in the Trump Era: Realities and Evidence-Based Projections
A seminar by David R. Williams, Florence and Laura Norman Professor of Public Health and professor of African and African American studies and sociology at Harvard. Williams developed the Everyday Discrimination Scale, one of the most widely used measures of discrimination in health studies. RSVP here. 722 West 168th St. 532, Allan Rosenfield Building. (Just Societies)

April 18
6 – 8 p.m.
Wallach Art Gallery | Critical and Curatorial Studies in Art History and Archaeology
Opening Reception Invisible Cities: Moda Curates 2017
An exhibition taking viewers on a journey through various media—photography, film, and digital—as it examines the “relationship between representation and mediation” in works expressing “the imagined dreams, the hidden anxieties, and the real desires of contemporary culture.” Curated by Page Benkowski ’17GSAS, Taylor Fisch ’17GSAS, and Georgia Horn ’17GSAS. Exhibition runs April 18 to May 20 at the Morningside Campus location of the Wallach Art Gallery. Schermerhorn Hall, 8th floor. Tour with curators on April 27.

April 19
4 – 5:15 p.m.
Columbia Law | Center on Global Governance | Roger Hertog Program on Law and National Security
The Cyber Threat to our National Security and Privacy
A discussion with congressman Adam Schiff, US representative for California’s 28th district and ranking member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. Reception to follow. Jerome Greene Hall, Room 103. (Data and Society, Just Societies)

April 20
5 – 7 p.m.
Columbia Precision Medicine Initiative
Precision Medicine and Popular Media
Precision Medicine—an emerging approach for disease treatment and prevention that takes into account individual variability in genes, environment, and lifestyle for each person—raises a myriad of cultural, political, and historical questions that the humanities are uniquely positioned to address. Discussion with Sandra Soo-Jin Lee, senior research scholar and medical anthropologist at Stanford school of medicine, as part of the Columbia Precision Medicine Initiative series, Precision Medicine: Ethics, Politics, and Culture. Columbia Law School, Jerome Greene Hall, Case Lounge, Room 701. (Precision Medicine)

April 21 – 22
Center for Science and Society | Institute for Social and Economic Research and Policy
Evidence: An Interdisciplinary Conversation about Knowing and Certainty
With leading Columbia faculty, academic scholars, public policy makers, non-governmental advocates, and media experts. Panelists will examine the use of evidence—from massive data sets to individual case studies. Registration required here. Columbia Law School, Jerome Greene Hall. (Data and Society)

April 25
6:30 –  8 p.m.
Zuckerman Institute
The Neuroscience of Movement
Thomas M. Jessell, co-director of Columbia’s Zuckerman Institute and Claire Tow Professor of Motor Neuron Disorders, discusses the factors that regulate neuronal diversity and their clinical implications. Jessell will also provide examples of the way in which manipulation of the activity of neurons permits insight into the design of circuits involved in motor control. RSVP here. Faculty House. (Future of Neuroscience)

For RSVP, ticket availability, and other details, follow the links. We always appreciate hearing from you about future events.

Really Amazing Weeks! Jerry’s and Carolina’s Picks (16:46) March 30 – April 19

April is the fullest month: too much, too varied, too great to be too picky! Take a long look at our long list. Remember to share your story.

REMINDERS

April 4: Practices Starting a Biotech: Lessons Learned from Industry Leaders
April 5: Data Science Day 2017
April 6 – 7: The Fourth Annual Harriet Zuckerman Conference at the Mellon Biennial
April 7: Surveillance and the Mosque and Cities and Climate Action: New Orleans, Rio, NYC

SPECIAL PICK

April 14th
9:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Columbia Entrepreneurship
#StartupColumbia 2017 Festival  
Panelist will tackle innovations around truth in the media, ways to save the planet, and the burgeoning life sciences scene in NYC. Includes Jacob Weisberg, chairman and editor-in-chief of Slate, University Professor Jeffrey Sachs, and closing keynote by will.i.am, member of the Black Eyed Peas. Complimentary tickets provided for VIP alumni. Please contact Yvette Miller at [email protected] for tickets and more information. Alfred Lerner Hall, Roone Arledge Auditorium.

PICKS

March 30
6 – 9 p.m.
SIPA
20th Annual David N. Dinkins Leadership and Public Policy Forum
Addresses issues in urban ecosystems including mass incarceration, education, the environment, labor, tourism, immigration, and fiscal crises. Keynote address by John R. Lewis, US Representative for Georgia’s 5th Congressional District. Opening remarks by President Lee C. Bollinger, Dean Merit E. Janow, and David N. Dinkins, professor of professional practice at SIPA and the 106th Mayor of the City of New York. Panelists will discuss Reframing Economic and Political Citizenship. Livestreamed here. Miller Theatre. (Just Societies, Climate Response, Global)

April 3
5:30 – 7:30 p.m.
Heyman Center for the Humanities | The University Seminars
New Books in Political and Social Thought
Celebrating the recent work by University Seminars and Society of Fellows alumni David Armitage, Civil Wars: A History in Ideas; Jeffrey Barash, Collective Memory and the Historical Past; and Teresa Bejan, Mere Civility Disagreement and the Limits of Toleration. Includes Mark Mazower, director and chair of the Heyman Center. Faculty House, Ivy Room. (Just Societies)

April 5
6 – 8 p.m.
SIPA
Human Rights, Rule of Law, and the Challenges of Civil Society Activism
A lecture by Navanethem Pillay, former United Nations high commissioner for Human Rights and former president and judge at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. RSVP here. International Affairs Building, Room 1512. (Global, Just Societies)

6 – 8 p.m.
The Harriman Institute | Graduate School of Journalism
Follow the Money: Offshore Finance, Russia and Beyond
Panel discussion with Irina Malkova, Russian Civil Society fellow and editor-in-chief of the Russian online newspaper Republic; Paul Klebnikov, Russian Civil Society fellow; Giannina Segnini, director of the master of science data concentration program at the Journalism School; Jason Sharman, Sir Patrick Sheehy Professor of International Relation at the University of Cambridge; and moderated by Alexander Cooley, director of the Harriman Institute. RSVP here. Brown Institute for Media Innovation, Entry floor, East Wing. (Global)

April 5 – 8
Center for Science and Society | Weatherhead East Asian Institute | Department of History
Weaving: Cognition, Technology, and Culture
This conference, demonstration, and workshop will raise questions about the economic, social, and cultural significance of weaving, as well as broader issues about craft as cognition, cognitive change over time, innovation in craft, and the role of “traditional” crafts in the modern era. Panelists include psychologist Daphna Shohamy; Andrew Goldman, presidential scholar in Society and Neuroscience; Pamela H. Smith, Seth Low Professor of History and director of the Center for Science and Society; and more. Registration required here. Faculty House. (Future of Neuroscience)

April 6
5:30 – 6:30 p.m.
Mailman | HITLAB Seminar Series
Using Big Data to Achieve the Triple Aim
Tina Brown-Stevenson, senior vice president of health systems analytics and decision support at UnitedHealth Group, will be in discussion. Reception to follow. Registration required here by April 5. Livestreamed here. Allan Rosenfield Building, Hess Commons. (Data and Society)

6:30 p.m.
GSAPP | Buell Center for the Study of American Architecture | Orbit Books
New York 2140
A presentation by Kim Stanley Robinson on the release of his latest novel, New York 2140. Through the eyes of the varied inhabitants of one building Robinson shows us how one of our great cities will change with the rising tides. In 2008, Robinson was named a “Hero of the Environment” by Time magazine. Includes a discussion with Dean Amale Andraos and Reinhold Martin, Buell Center director. Pulitzer Hall, World Room. (Climate Response)

April 7
10 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Co-sponsors here
Race, Law, and Exception
What is the relationship between race, law, and states of exception? What are the deep historical roots and global configurations of this relationship? This conference brings together scholars and practitioners from across disciplines to reflect on these and other questions. Maison Française, Buell Hall, East Gallery. (Global, Just Societies)

April 10
6 – 9 p.m.
Mailman Office of the Dean | Office of Diversity, Culture, and Inclusion
Medical Apartheid
A lecture by Harriet A. Washington ’13JRN, science writer, ethicist, and fellow of the New York Academy of Medicine. Washington’s books include Infectious Madness: The Surprising Science of How We “Catch” Mental Illness and Medical Apartheid: The Dark History of Experimentation from Colonial Times to the Present. RSVP here. 50 Haven Avenue, Bard Hall, Lounge, 1st floor. (Just Societies)

April 11
5 – 6:30 p.m.
Global Centers | Rio de Janeiro | Lemann Center for Brazilian Studies
Brazilian Democracy: Challenges and Perspectives
A discussion by Dilma Rousseff, former president of Brazil, on the political and economic challenges facing Brazil. Rousseff will provide her perspective on the current state and future of democracy, progressive politics, and economic growth in Brazil. Introduction by provost John H. Coatsworth and Q&A with the audience moderated by Thomas J. Trebat, director of the Global Center in Rio. Registration for this event is now closed but it will be livestreamed here. Italian Academy. (Global)

April 18
4 – 5 p.m.
Mailman
Statistical Methods for Linking Big Data with Precision Health
A lecture with DuBois Bowman, chair of biostatistics, whose research spans numerous areas including Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, depression, schizophrenia, and cocaine addiction, among others. Reception to follow. Roy and Diana Vagelos Education Center, Clyde and Helen Wu Auditorium, Room 201. (Data and Society, Precision Medicine)

6 p.m.
School of the Arts | Society of Fellows and the Heyman Center for the Humanities | Center for the Study of Race and Ethnicity
Resistance as Music
Vijay Iyer, Grammy-nominated composer-pianist, will be in conversation with students and faculty as part of the Artist at the Center series. Manu Vimalassery, term assistant professor of American studies at Barnard, will lead the discussion and Neferti Tadiar, director of the Center for the Study of Ethnicity and Race, will moderate. Barnard College, Diana Center, Event Oval. (Arts and Imagination, Just Societies)

April 19
4 – 5:30 p.m.
Department of Epidemiology
The Sociopolitical and Medical Import of “Recreational” Genetics
A Epidemiology Grand Rounds with Alondra Nelson, dean of social science and award-winning author. Nelson’s work explores the intersection of science, medicine, and social inequality. Allan Rosenfield Building, Auditorium, 8th floor. (Just Societies, Precision Medicine)

6 – 7:30 p.m.
General Studies | School of the Arts | International Students and Scholars Office | Columbia College
The Global Poets Series: Sholeh Wolpe and Yuyutsu Sharma
A celebration through poetry of Columbia’s diverse global community. Includes Sholeh Wolpe, an Iranian poet whose verses explore violence, culture, and gender, and Yuyutsu Sharma, distinguished poet, translator, and journalist from Kathmandu, Nepal. Lewisohn Hall, GS Student Lounge. (Global, Arts and Imagination)

For RSVP, ticket availability, and other details, follow the links. We always appreciate hearing from you about future events.