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Jared Diamond, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Guns, Germs, and Steel, gave the James S. Plant lecture at Hamilton College on September 29 as part of the Science Center dedication weekend, "A Celebration of Science." The James S. Plant Distinguished Scientist Lecture series was established in 1987 through a bequest from Dr. Plant, class of 1912 and an eminent child psychiatrist, to bring to the campus outstanding scientists as guest lecturers. Diamond's lecture topic was a discussion of his new book, The New York Times best-seller Collapse.

Utica native Rep. Sherwood L. Boehlert (R-New Hartford), chairman of the House Science Committee, will deliver the keynote address at the dedication of Hamilton College’s new $56 million science center on Friday, Sept. 30, at 5:30 p.m. in the Science Center atrium.

A panel discussion, “Stem Cell Therapies: The Science and the Controversy,” will be presented on Friday, Sept. 30, at 1:30 p.m. in Hamilton’s new Science Auditorium as part of the College’s science center dedication weekend “Celebrating Science at Hamilton College.” The panel will feature Dr. Susan Bryant, (P' 08) dean of Biological Sciences at the University of California at Irvine, and a member of the California Citizens Oversight Committee, and Dr. Robert Almeder, author and the Alan McCullough, Jr. Distinguished Visiting Professor of Philosophy at Hamilton. The new $56 million science center is the largest construction project in Hamilton’s history.

Three events during Hamilton College’s annual Fallcoming weekend, Sept. 29-Oct. 2, will pay tribute to the College’s namesake, the first secretary of the treasury, Alexander Hamilton. All events are free and open to the public.

Professor of History Maurice Isserman has published an essay in Academe (September-October 2005) titled “Whose Truth?” In the piece Isserman relates details of a 2002 invitation he made to David Horowitz, and Horowitz's recollection of that invitation, during a February 2 appearance on Fox News’ The O’Reilly Factor.

Hamilton College has announced the names of the two honorary degrees recipients who will be awarded Doctors of Science degrees during the dedication ceremony for Hamilton's new science center. The dedication ceremony and conferring of the honorary degrees will take place Friday, Sept. 30, at 5:30 p.m., in the science center.

Diane Fox, the Freeman Postdoctoral Fellow in Asian Studies, participated in a Rockefeller funded initiative called “Culture, Art, Trauma, Survival, Development: Vietnamese Contexts” at the University of Massachusetts, Boston on September 17. Fox presented a report based on her scholarly work and on a public education project in which she is involved titled “The Agent Orange Education Project,” which offers educators and community groups resources to educate their students or groups on the lingering consequences of the chemicals used during the war in Vietnam. The project is also drawing together artwork from Americans and Vietnamese; the show of Vietnamese art opened in Hanoi on September 24 and then will come to the United States, where U.S. veterans will contribute art work and poetry.

Steven Yao, assistant professor of English, recently published an article in Comparative Literature titled "The Unheimlich Maneuver: or the Gap, the Gradient and the Spaces of Comparison." This article lays out an alternative model for conceptualizing the category of difference as a foundation for the act of comparison. Yao is also serving on the advisory board for the American Comparative Literature Association.

A selection of more than 100 Hamilton College art and artifacts from the permanent collection will be on display at Hamilton College’s Emerson Gallery from Thursday, Sept. 29, through Friday, Dec. 30, in an exhibit titled “A Century of Curiosities: The Story of Hamilton College Collection.” This exhibition, the third in a series, highlights some of the 5,000 objects included in the Hamilton College Collection, which has grown substantially since its beginning in 1873.

Tim Elgren, associate professor of chemistry, recently published a paper titled "Immobilization of Active Hydrogenases by Encapsulation in Polymeric Porous Gels" in the American Chemical Society journal Nano Letters. The manuscript describes the successful incorporation of hydrogenases into glass-like materials and the demonstration that the enzymes remain fully active in this environment. Hydrogenases are capable of generating hydrogen gas from protons and electrons. They are also capable of catalyzing the reverse reaction, which represents the catalytic core of a hydrogen fuel cell. The work was initiated and completed on Elgren's recent sabbatical at Montana State University and was funded by grants from the American Chemical Society and the Research Corporation. A patent disclosure on this novel application has been filed, the first for a scientific invention from Hamilton College.