Columbia University News

Merit E. Janow Appointed Dean of Columbia's School of International and Public Affairs

maf2182@columbia.edu — Fri, 17 May 2013 10:58:41 -0400

Columbia University President Lee C. Bollinger has appointed Merit E. Janow as the next dean of the University’s School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), effective July 1.

Janow is a leading expert in international trade and investment with extensive experience in academia, government and business, with life-long experience in the Asia-Pacific region.

Royal Navy Officer Becomes Journalist

maf2182@columbia.edu — Thu, 16 May 2013 15:02:38 -0400

Professor Saskia Sassen Wins Prince of Asturias Award for Social Science

maf2182@columbia.edu — Thu, 16 May 2013 14:50:53 -0400

Saskia Sassen, the Robert S. Lynd Professor of Sociology, has won the 2013 Prince of Asturias Award for social science for her contribution to urban sociology and to the analysis of the social, economic and political dimensions of globalization, according to the prize jury.

Sassen’s main fields of study are immigration and the role of major cities in the management of the international economy. One of her greatest contributions is her concept of the “global city” and its social, economic and political dimensions.

Brian Mulhall, From the Navy to the Law

maf2182@columbia.edu — Tue, 14 May 2013 13:29:22 -0400

Medical Student Helps Build Bridges to Neighboring Community

maf2182@columbia.edu — Tue, 14 May 2013 13:24:39 -0400

Software Developer Combines Technology Skills With Journalism in New Dual-Degree Program

maf2182@columbia.edu — Tue, 14 May 2013 13:20:13 -0400

College Graduate Starts Volunteer Program to Comfort Elderly

maf2182@columbia.edu — Tue, 14 May 2013 13:14:26 -0400

Nursing Graduate Well Schooled in Cancer Care

maf2182@columbia.edu — Tue, 14 May 2013 11:22:05 -0400

After 60 Years of Public Service, Diplomat Finally Earns His Ph.D.

maf2182@columbia.edu — Tue, 14 May 2013 11:17:55 -0400

Two Engineers Harness Solar Power to Help Sandy Victims

maf2182@columbia.edu — Tue, 14 May 2013 11:08:42 -0400

Class of 2013: Graduates With a Story to Tell

maf2182@columbia.edu — Tue, 14 May 2013 11:01:18 -0400

They’ve written final papers and taken final exams. The Ph.D. students have defended their dissertations. Now they’re waiting to hear President Lee C. Bollinger proclaim that they have been “admitted to the degree for which you have qualified” at University Commencement.

More than 14,000 great stories will be standing in Low Plaza on May 22. We tell just a few of them.

Engineering Tissue to Rebuild Damaged Bones and Organs

maf2182@columbia.edu — Tue, 14 May 2013 10:54:17 -0400

From the chimera in Greek mythology to the sphinx in ancient Egypt, humans have imagined making creatures from pieces of different organisms for millennia.

Tissue engineering, the innovative field that uses engineering principles to develop biological substitutes for cells or even major organs, is just the latest version, says Gordana Vunjak-Novakovic, the Mikati Foundation Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Medical Sciences.

Columbia to House El Diario Photo Archive

maf2182@columbia.edu — Tue, 14 May 2013 10:19:48 -0400

Columbia students and faculty, and others interested in the lives of New York’s Latinos, have a new resource to learn about that community. El Diario La Prensa, the nation’s oldest continuously publishing Spanish-language newspaper, has given the University some 5,000 photographs documenting the lives of New York’s Latinos, their struggles and their contributions to the city and its culture.

Faculty Q&A With Martin Chalfie

maf2182@columbia.edu — Tue, 14 May 2013 10:09:43 -0400

Today, Martin Chalfie is a Nobel laureate, having shared the 2008 prize in chemistry. As of this month, he is also one of Columbia’s newest University Professors, an honor that goes to faculty members for exceptional scholarship and service to the University. Only 13 Columbia professors hold the title, the highest academic rank.

In an interview with The Record, Chalfie discusses why not knowing where your research will go is a good thing.

Martin Chalfie and Wafaa El-Sadr Appointed University Professors

maf2182@columbia.edu — Tue, 07 May 2013 10:49:57 -0400

In recognition of their exceptional scholarly merit and distinguished service to Columbia, the University Board of Trustees has approved President Lee C. Bollinger’s appointment of two new University Professors: Martin Chalfie, the William R. Kenan Jr. Professor of Biological Sciences; and Wafaa El-Sadr, Professor of Epidemiology and Medicine. The rank of University Professor is Columbia University’s highest academic honor and, with the addition of professors El-Sadr and Chalfie, there are now 13 current members of the faculty who hold this special honor.

Six Columbia Faculty Members Elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences

maf2182@columbia.edu — Mon, 06 May 2013 17:14:45 -0400

Six Columbia professors have been elected members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, joining some of the world’s most accomplished leaders from academia, business, public affairs, the humanities and the arts in one of the nation’s most prestigious honorary societies.

Columbia Team's Innovative Design Recognized in EPA's First Campus RainWorks Challenge

maf2182@columbia.edu — Fri, 03 May 2013 10:50:26 -0400

Civil Engineering and Engineering Mechanics Professor Patricia J. Culligan and her doctoral student, Robert Elliott, were members of an interdisciplinary team at Columbia University whose design proposal was recognized for innovative technology in a green roof competition sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Their team received honorable mention in EPA’s first-ever Campus RainWorks Challenge.

Study Maps Cancer's Metabolic Paths and Potential for Drugs to Starve Tumors

maf2182@columbia.edu — Fri, 03 May 2013 09:39:29 -0400

A massive study analyzing gene expression data from 22 tumor types has identified multiple metabolic expression changes associated with cancer. The analysis, conducted by researchers at Columbia University Medical Center, also identified hundreds of potential drug targets that could cut off a tumor’s fuel supply or interfere with its ability to synthesize essential building blocks. The study was published in the online edition of Nature Biotechnology.

New Business School Research Reveals Severe Weather's Toll on Manufacturing, Productivity

maf2182@columbia.edu — Thu, 02 May 2013 15:08:41 -0400

Extreme weather can wreak havoc on cities and their economies. Damage from hurricanes Katrina and Sandy is estimated at more than $150 billion and over $60 billion, respectively. Weather-based power failures and disruptions to transportation systems can delay commuters, stall deliveries, and choke supply chains. And even where extreme conditions are common, economic life suffers. Regions with hot, wet climates are less productive on average.

Professor Marcelo Olivares wanted definitive evidence to show whether—and how much—extreme weather affects productivity.

Lamont-Doherty Climate Scientist, Volcanologist Elected to National Academy of Sciences

maf2182@columbia.edu — Thu, 02 May 2013 15:03:31 -0400

Mark Cane, an expert on the El Niño climate pattern, and Terry Plank, an authority on explosive volcanoes—both scientists at Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory—have been elected to the National Academy of Sciences. Membership in the National Academy, given for excellence in original scientific work, is one of the highest honors awarded to engineers and scientists in the United States.

Journalism School Discusses 'A Vision of the Future' With Google

maf2182@columbia.edu — Thu, 02 May 2013 13:53:39 -0400

The role of technology in the Arab Spring and the Boston bombings, repression in North Korea, and privacy in the Internet age were just some of the topics Eric Schmidt, executive chairman and former CEO of Google, and Jared Cohen, director of Google’s in-house think tank, Google Ideas, discussed when they spoke at Columbia Journalism School on April 30.

Ronald O. Perelman Pledges $100 Million Toward New Business School Building in Manhattanville

maf2182@columbia.edu — Thu, 02 May 2013 09:53:40 -0400

Ronald O. Perelman, Chairman and CEO of MacAndrews & Forbes Holdings Inc. and a member of Columbia Business School’s Board of Overseers, has pledged a landmark gift of $100 million to the school. It joins Class of 1969 alumnus Henry R. Kravis’ $100 million contribution as the largest in the school’s history.

Earth's Current Warmth Not Seen in the Last 1,400 Years or More, Says Lamont Study

maf2182@columbia.edu — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 12:46:52 -0400

Fueled by industrial greenhouse gas emissions, Earth’s climate warmed more between 1971 and 2000 than during any other three-decade interval in the last 1,400 years, according to new regional temperature reconstructions covering all seven continents. This period of manmade global warming, which continues today, reversed a natural cooling trend that lasted several hundred years, according to results published in the journal Nature Geoscience by 78 scientists from 24 nations.

Lemann Foundation Makes Commitment to Brazilian Studies at Columbia

maf2182@columbia.edu — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 13:24:32 -0400

With the primary goal of building capacity to recruit and fund scholars and students dedicated to social and civic engagement in Brazil, the Lemann Foundation has signed a multi-million dollar agreement with Columbia University for the benefit of several related initiatives. The gift is Columbia’s largest ever for Brazil-related efforts and is the largest gift from a Brazilian donor.

'Covering Religion' Journalism Class Reports From Rome During Papal Investiture

maf2182@columbia.edu — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 13:51:32 -0400

Thanks to a bit of providential timing, Columbia Journalism had a large news bureau at the installation of Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Square in Rome in mid-March. Sixteen students covered every aspect of the historic event: the pilgrims, the dignitaries, the trinket sellers, the faithful and the protesters.

Some say it was just luck that we were there. Others saw good Vatican sources. In truth, it was because it was spring break, a time when students in my “Covering Religion” seminar can travel without its interfering with other courses.

Book on Loneliness Is Crowded With Insights

maf2182@columbia.edu — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 13:44:05 -0400

If you could take only one volume to a desert island, Columbia Law School Professor Robert A. Ferguson’s new book might be the one.

Ferguson, the George Edward Woodberry Professor in Law, Literature, and Criticism, has written Alone in America: The Stories that Matter (Harvard University Press), which explores the recurring theme of loneliness in American fiction and the possibility that literature can soothe the pain.

Continuing Education Students Launch Innovative Effort to Fight Disfiguring Disease in Afghanistan

maf2182@columbia.edu — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 13:34:37 -0400

When Barbara Becker’s strategic communications class decided to help Afghan women and children afflicted with a disfiguring disease, they focused their campaign on another group in the community—the men.

Three students from her School of Continuing Education class, “Communications for Social Change,” set out to educate male heads of household about leishmaniasis.

Historians Seek to Widen Their Public Reach

maf2182@columbia.edu — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 13:05:44 -0400

The box office success of Steven Spielberg’s Lincoln presented a teachable moment for historians seeking to be heard outside the academy.

That was the message from James Grossman, executive director of the American Historical Association, at a conference last month that explored the benefits of historians engaging a wider public and contributing to life outside the university.

New Computational Model Can Predict Breast Cancer Survival

maf2182@columbia.edu — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 09:51:47 -0400

Columbia Engineering researchers, led by Dimitris Anastassiou, Charles Batchelor Professor in Electrical Engineering and member of the Columbia Initiative in Systems Biology, have developed a new computational model that is highly predictive of breast cancer survival. The team, which won the Sage Bionetworks / DREAM Breast Cancer Prognosis Challenge for this work, published its results—"Development of a Prognostic Model for Breast Cancer Survival in an Open Challenge Environment"—in the April 17 issue of Science Translational Medicine.