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Lubi Kutua ’04, a physics and math major, has dedicated 10 weeks of his summer vacation to science research under the direction of Assistant Professor of Physics Gordon Jones. Kutua has been working on a theory that many medical scientists are currently researching, involving the use of MRIs. Scientists hope that they will be able to use polarized helium gas to complete tests on patients that could previously only be done by use of the MRI. Kutua has been building a device, called a nuclear magnetic resonator (NMR), that will measure the amount of polarized helium gas in an area. Kutua had taken an electrics class previously that he enjoyed, so he approached both Professor Jones and Associate Professor of Physics Brian Collett about doing summer research. While research is probably not in Kutua’s future plans, he feels this was a very beneficial experience.

Among the 90 students participating in the summer science research program are Katherine Hankowski ’05, Anna Arnold ’04, and Karen Meagher ’04. The three students are working under the direction of Associate Professor of Biology Herman Lehman and Associate Professor of Chemistry Ian Rosenstein, studying two neurotransmitters found in the nerve cells of the Mandura Sexta caterpillar. The group is attempting to prove that these neurotransmitters do, in fact, exist together, but have been approaching the problem from different angles.

Andy Morgan ’04, a psychology major, has devoted 10 weeks of his summer vacation to science research under the direction of Visiting Instructor of Psychology Jennifer Johnson. Morgan has been studying the correlation between lip reading and dynamic spatial reasoning. It is hypothesized that the large discrepancy in an individual’s ability to lip read is related to one’s ability to see multiple things happen at once, or to be able to spatially reason. At this point in the process, Morgan is generating stimuli and possible tests that could be run to prove the theory. The ultimate goal of his research is to find a way to teach people to dynamically spatially reason, which would then have an impact on their ability to lip read. Morgan is highly interested in this research and hopes to be able to continue working on the project into the fall, when tests would actually be run.

Professor of Economics Christophre Georges chaired a session "Co-evolutionary Learning and Network Effects" and gave a paper "Learning and Nonlinear Misspecification" at the 8th International Conference of the Society for Computational Economics, June 2002, Aix en Provence, France.

Barbara Smalley ‘83 competed in the 2002 Ironman USA, Lake Placid, on July 28. An Ironman competition consists of a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike and 26.2 mile run. The Lake Placid Ironman is one of only four officially sanctioned Ironman North America events. Smalley competed for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team In Training (TNT). TNT has raised millions of dollars toward finding cures for leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin's disease and myeloma. Smalley finished the swim in 1:12:47, the bike in 7:45:25 and the run in 5:47:24, crossing the finish line just after 10 p.m.

Hamilton College President Eugene M. Tobin announced today that two faculty members have been promoted to full professor. Christophre Georges, an associate professor in the economics department, and John McEnroe, an associate professor of art, were promoted effective July 1. In promoting Professors Georges and McEnroe, President Tobin acted on the recommendations of Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of Faculty David Paris, the elected faculty members of the Committee on Appointments, senior colleagues in the departments of economics and art, past and current students and a group of nationally recognized scholars.

In the summer of 2001, Ava Bromberg '02, with the support of an Emerson Grant, completed a project titled "Glaze Chemistry: Where Art Melts with Science, an Interdisciplinary Exploration." Working with Professor Robert Palusky from the art department and Associate Professor Karen Brewer from chemistry, Bromberg performed a time-consuming and somewhat tedious battery of tests on hundreds of ceramic tiles. In an attempt to find viable substitutes for commonly used glazes that are becoming increasingly scarce, she used hundreds of test glazes. In researching possible substitutes for these glazes, Bromberg varied temperatures and materials as she fired thousands of test tiles. She examined the chemical compositon of the glazes in conjunction with the structure and performance of the inorganic oxides, essential for providing color.

Three students in Hamilton’s computer science department have spent their summer researching ways to make computer programming easier. Julie Parent ’03 is working on instruction scheduling, and Eric Hansen ’03 and Geoff Catto ’03 are working on graphic representations of data structures, the first attempt at writing an universally applicable tool.

Henry Chicaiza ’04, Gabrielle Markeson ’04, and Hima Poonati ’05 are working with Associate Professor of Chemistry Ian Rosenstein as summer research fellows. The group is trying to control the activity of radical reactions in chiral canters, working independently on their own piece of the project. They are three of the 90 students on the Hamilton campus doing summer research in an area of their choosing. The Hamilton Summer Science Research Program is a highly selective opportunity for students of all concentrations to experience laboratory research conducted in close collaboration with a Hamilton professor.

Hamilton Assistant Professor of Theater and Dance Mark Cryer will perform in "Errors," a modern take of Shakespeare's play "A Comedy of Errors," reports the Albany Times Union. Cryer will play a "James Cagney-like gangster of a Duke" and recommends that all attend with "a blanket, a picnic and a friend." "Errors" will run Wednesday, July 31, through Saturday, August 3 at 6 p.m., and on Sunday, Aug. 4 at 5 p.m. The performances wil take place in Congress Park, Saratoga Springs. Admission is free.