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A group of Hamilton summer science researchers are studying ice-like compounds known as methane clathrates, cage-like structures of water molecules that form around a guest molecule. As the quest for alternative energy sources continues, scientists and engineers are exploring new options, and methane clathrates are a distinct possibility.

The U.S. auto industry has caused some anxiety in these tumultuous economic times. The government takeover of General Motors in 2009 was a concrete indication of earlier warning signs of the industry’s problems; meanwhile Ford Motors has been able to avoid bankruptcy. Working under Henry Platt Bristol Professor of International Affairs Alan Cafruny and through a Levitt Center grant, Jeffrey Cardoni ’11 is investigating the business practices of Ford and GM that caused the two companies to succeed and fail respectively.

Assistant Professor of Psychology Jean Burr, Visiting Assistant Professor of Psychology Mark Oakes and May graduates Meredith Kivett and Stephanie Anglin attended the Conference on Relational Aggression June 15-16, in Omaha, Neb.

Two Hamilton students and three faculty members participated in the Flaherty Film Seminar at Colgate University June 19-25. Jori Belkin ’11, Cameron Breslin ’11, Edmund A. LeFevre Professor of English Patricia O'Neill, Visiting Professor of Art History Scott MacDonald, Visiting Assistant Professor of Comparative Literature Su Yun Kim, watched and discussed documentary films from around the world with the filmmakers, and with film scholars, programmers and educators.

For a country with a population smaller than that of Wyoming, Iceland drew a lot of attention this spring when a more typically dormant volcano erupted and brought European air travel to a stop. Over the next two weeks, several Hamilton students will be able to observe for themselves this spectacular country and its many unique geologic features.

Artwork by Assistant Professor of Art Rebecca Murtaugh was mentioned in a Sacramento Bee article “Post-it Notes Celebrate 30 Years” (6/28/10). The article commemorates the birthday of the Post-it note, which, “with its unique ability to organize and communicate, has stuck to its position as an office supply must-have.”

Working under Professor of Psychology Penny Yee, Clair Cassiello ’11, Lauren Liebman ’12 and Mary Meinke ’12 are designing a more reliable and accurate study to better assess the characteristics and behaviors associated with ADHD in adults.

NGC 1999: Spooky Action at a Distance, a work created by Leonard C. Ferguson Professor of Music Samuel Pellman and Miranda Raimondi '08 was presented at the SCOPE international art festival in Basel from June 15-19 as part of an installation titled "The Light at the End of the Tunnel." The show was conceived as a celebration of the Large Hadron Collider that recently became operational at CERN Labs in Geneva.

Professor of Religious Studies Steve Humphries-Brooks was recently interviewed for BBC World Service about the second coming of Christ. The interview was based on a recent Pew Research poll that indicated four in 10 Americans between the ages of 21 and 26 believe Jesus will return by 2050. Humphries-Brooks discussed why the apocalypse is so important to young Americans.

In the DNA of every cell in your body, segments of DNA are constantly jumping and shifting locations. These jumping segments are called transposons and they usually contain the building blocks for genes, but do not provide your body with blueprints like regular genes. But in a group of microorganisms called ciliated protists, some types of transposons (called Telomere-Bearing Element, or TBE, transposons) do contain genes, and they are sometimes even expressed. Working under Assistant Professor of Biology Wei-Jen Chang, Joseph Lobel ’13 is spending his summer trying to detect and sequence these elusive, mobile genes.