All News

William R. Kenan Professor of Government Cheng Li was quoted in an article in the January/February 2007 issue of Foreign Affairs magazine. The article, titled “The Faces of Chinese Power,” was written by David M. Lampton, dean of faculty and director of China studies at Johns Hopkins University. The article addresses the importance of assessing the growing power of China accurately.

Anthropology professor Douglas Raybeck was included in a segment on NPR’s Morning Edition on Thursday, Dec. 28. The piece was focused on New Year’s resolutions, and Raybeck reviewed the earliest reliable records of them. He discussed Romans vows that included resolutions similar to ours, to quit drinking and to “improve their bodies,” for example. He also related how they, too, may have been subject to failure in their efforts.

Hamilton will name the Annex, the multipurpose facility adjoining the Beinecke Student Activities Village, the Patricia and Winton Tolles Pavilion in honor of the former long-time dean and his wife. The ceremony officially celebrating the rededication will occur at 4:30 p.m., on June 1 during Reunion Weekend.

Hamilton College has announced the creation of the Richard W. Couper (RWC) Press named in honor of the late Richard W. Couper’44, an alumnus and life trustee of Hamilton and benefactor of the Burke Library. Couper also served as a former president and CEO of the New York Public Library, president of the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation and deputy commissioner of higher education with the New York State Education Department.

The Al Biles Virtual Quintet will present a jazz improvisation on Thursday, Nov. 16, at 4:15 p.m. in the Red Pit. This quintet is comprised of a single performer, Al Biles on trumpet, and his computer program, GenJam, which handles the bass, drum kit, and other instruments. GenJam (short for “Genetic Jammer”) doesn’t simply provide a musical backdrop - it is a computer program that implements an evolutionary computation technique that enables it to learn how to improvise jazz solos. GenJam trades fours or eights by listening to the notes and chord progressions on Biles’s trumpet and constructs its own solo based on the tunes played by Biles. The program will include a brief discussion of the technology behind GenJam. This performance is free and open to the public.

Jonah Goldberg, editor-at-large with the National Review Online, will present a lecture titled "The Case for Conservatism" on Tuesday, Nov. 14, at 7:30 p.m. in the Fillius Events Barn. The event is hosted by the Hamilton College Republicans.

Rand Carter, professor of art history, spoke at the International Network for the Traditional Building, Architecture and Urbanism conference in Venice from Nov. 2 to 5.  The theme of the conference was "The Venice Charter Revisited.” 

Doug McAdam, professor of sociology at Stanford University, will speak at Hamilton College on Thursday, Nov. 2, at 7:30 p.m. in the Fillius Events Barn on Hamilton’s campus. This event is part of the “Inequality and Equity” lecture series sponsored by the college’s Arthur Levitt Center. McAdam’s lecture is titled “The Civic Effects of Youth Service: The Surprising Case of Teach for America" and is based on his most recent writings on the subject.

Professor of History Maurice Isserman and F.I.L.M Director Scott MacDonald will present three landmark films and discuss them with the audience on two afternoons this month in the Kirner-Johnson Auditorium. These programs are offered in conjunction with the current Emerson Gallery exhibition, “WPA Artists: Prints from the Amity Art Foundation.” On Wednesday, Nov. 1, Hands (1934) and The Plow That Broke the Plains (1936) will be screened at 4:15 p.m. On Wednesday, Nov. 15, The River (1937) will be screened at 4:15 p.m.

David Paris, the Leonard C. Ferguson Professor of Government, and Professor of Chemistry Tim Elgren discussed the Hamilton advising system in an opinion piece in InsideHigherEd.com. In "Advising: Less is More?," published on Sept. 29,  the writers emphasized that students want timely relevant information. “…what they wanted above all from advisors was for them to be available for assistance, to provide accurate information about course selection and college rules and to warn against obstacles that might impede their progress in the short term regarding registration and in the long term regarding plans for majors.”