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Dean of the Faculty Joseph R. Urgo published an article in symploke, a comparative theory and literature journal. The article, "Collegiality and Academic Community," appears in volume 13, numbers 1-2. In it, Urgo writes, “…When a member of the academic administration, Provost, Dean or Department Chair is on the job, the work he or she does concerns, above all else, the human relationships that make up the institution.” He notes, "Collegiality, the suggestion that we recognize and even enforce certain communal, behavioral norms, is the creation of the administrative mind, arising out of the conditions of administrative work, and in direct response to recent trends in the doing of academic work that discourages community."

Eric Kuhn ‘09, working this summer as a digital media intern for NBC in New York City, will be the featured guest on radio station WOR’s Joey Reynolds Show, Friday, August 4, from 1-2 a.m.

Heather Parker ’07 (Cherry Hill, N.J.) is on the Hill this summer for astrophysics. She will study pulsating variable stars; stars which change their brightness over a given period. Parker plans to take pictures of her chosen stars with a CCD camera and measure the change in light output, as well as trying to understand why and how these stars pulsate. She will be advised by Peter Millet, the Litchfield Professor of Physics.

Rising sophomore Sharfi Farhana began her research career at Hamilton College before beginning her first class. Farhana was one of 10 participants in Hamilton's intensive summer research program for entering first-year students last year. The program has also generated an increase in the number of Hamilton science graduates who continue their studies in graduate programs.

This summer Daniel Griffith ’07 (Sidney, N.Y.) is back in the lab of Associate Professor of Chemistry Ian Rosenstein to continue two projects which could contribute to an eco-friendly pesticide. “I was kind of getting my feet wet last year,” says Griffith. “Now I know where I’m going.” His two projects center on obtaining a better understanding of the insect-specific neurotransmitter octopamine.

Kathleen Donahue ’08 (Flushing, N.Y.) and Robin Joseph ’09 (Watertown, Mass.) are spending their summer working with Karen Brewer, professor of chemistry. In their projects, they are synthesizing calix[4]arenes, which are chalice-shaped molecules with four aromatic rings. They coordinate rare earth metal ions with calix[4]arenes, then embed the resulting compound in sol-gels which can be processed into glasses. The students examine the light that is absorbed and emitted from the glass.

It’s rare that an Emerson recipient will confess that their proposal was inspired by a pulpy movie with pretty actors, but Rebecca Wagner ’07 (Lyman, ME) gamely admits to just that. The rising senior English major first encountered the story of Tristan and Isolde in her medieval literature class because it was the only part of Mallory’s Le Morte d’Arthur that they did not cover. Later, Wagner saw a recent film adaptation of the legend and became curious about the story. Still curious, she applied for and received an Emerson grant to study the evolution of the Tristan and Isolde story through a historo-feminist lens.

While some people joke that they will save the world or find the cure for cancer over summer vacation, Kathleen Naughton ’08 (Cromwell, Conn.) comes closer to the truth of that joke than many. This summer she has an Emerson grant to do research on a project titled, “Experimental Investigation of the Solution Structures for Bioactive Peptides Derived from Alpha-Fetoprotein.” Previous research suggests that these protein peptides have potential to inhibit and even treat cancers linked to estrogen. She will be advised by Robin Kinnel, the Silas D. Childs Professor of Chemistry.

Hamilton College will host the fifth MERCURY (Molecular Education and Research Consortium in Undergraduate Computational Chemistry) Computational Chemistry conference July 26-28. This national conference is devoted solely to undergraduates who are working on research projects in computational chemistry.

Hamilton College welcomed members of the Blood family at a dedication ceremony for its new fitness and dance center in July. The Charlean and Wayland Blood Fitness and Dance Center is scheduled to open officially on August 25, and will be dedicated formally during the college’s Fallcoming Weekend in October. It is being named for the parents of David Blood, a member of the Class of 1981 and the third generation of the Blood family to attend Hamilton.