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A year after the tragic events of September 11, 2001, the Hamilton College community will remember those who died with a candlelight vigil and the ringing of the Chapel bell. September 12 will be devoted to citizenship and community service—"The Spirit of September 12." Hamilton College President Eugene Tobin said, "September 11 changed us forever. Let the spirit of September 12 shape the future."

Hamilton College Sociology Professor Dennis Gilbert, who conducted a Muslim America Poll this spring says "American Muslims are one of our most successful immigrant groups. Until 9-11, they were almost invisible to other Americans. Now that they've gotten a lot of unwanted attention, I expect them to become much more active politically."

The anniversary of September 11 is only days away and media coverage is intensifying. Julie Dunsmore, a developmental psychologist at Hamilton College, advises parents, “Turn the television off. Don’t let your kids watch footage from September 11.” She explains, “Children, particularly young children, can’t tell it’s footage from a year ago, not something that’s currently happening.” In her study of children following the events of September 11, Dunsmore found that children who watched television footage were less able to cope with what happened and had more negative reactions to the attacks.

In September, Rand Carter, professor of art, was invited by the Karl Friedrich Schinkel Gesellschaft to speak on the occasion of this year's awarding of the annual Schinkel Prize. The award ceremony and the accompanying colloquium was held in Neuruppin, Germany (Schinkel's birthplace). The subject was "Schinkel und die Gegenwart." The lecture will be published by the Schinkel Gesellschaft.

Maurice Isserman, William R. Kenan, Jr. Professor of History, and Todd Rayne, associate professor of geology, spent 10 days in June retracing the Lewis and Clark expedition route from St. Louis, Mo., to Astoria, Ore. Isserman and Rayne will recount the historical and natural sites they visited and introduce the new sophomore seminar, "The Lewis and Clark Expedition," on Tuesday, Sept. 10, at 4:15 p.m., in the Red Pit.

Philip Klinkner, The James S. Sherman Professor of Government, was recently quoted in the Florida Times-Union. In the article, "Officials Hope Blacks Show for Primary," Klinkner said, "The thing about spoiled ballots is, you don't know if it was yours, and I bet most people felt that their vote was counted." He added, "People show up to vote when they feel a candidate can improve their lives, or when a challenger poses a perceived danger."

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded a grant to Hamilton College for the support of a project under the direction of Associate Professor of Biology Herman K. Lehman, in collaboration with Gene E. Robinson of the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, to study the neural basis behavior in honey bees.

The American Association of Colleges and Universities has selected Hamilton Geology Professor Barbara Tewksbury's introductory geology course as one of four courses to be taught nationally in 2002 as a model course that links the teaching of science to human issues.

Hamilton College’s Arthur Levitt Public Affairs Center is sponsoring a series of lectures this fall focused primarily on issues relating to immigration and global citizenship. The evening lectures are free and open to the public. They are presented in conjunction with the departments of government, economics, history, sociology and philosophy.

The Molecular Education and Research Consortium in Undergraduate Conceptual Chemistry, or MERCURY, program is hosting a conference July 21-23 at Hamilton College. The event features talks by eight national speakers. MERCURY was recently created by seven undergraduate institutions, including Hamilton College, with additional funding from the National Science Foundation to run simulations in quantum chemistry and molecular dynamics on a supercomputer located on campus.