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Feminist theory, poetic praxis
Have you seen those lists that circulate on the Internet: You might just be a _____ if you _____? My favorite is, You might just be an academic if you can analyze the significance of appliances that you cannot operate. And that's exactly the problem with feminism and political coalitions. Feminists have brilliantly analyzed coalitions, but they have not been able so far to operate them. The novelists seldom employ coalition narratives. Instead, they emphasize the role of individualism in women's participation in state politics. In novels, women gain access to high politics through men. Yet political action in the novels requires emotional independence. Again and again, a renunciation of romance and the conventional family is necessary before any woman character intervenes politically.

­Martine Brownley, Goodrich C. White Professor of English, speaking on "Deferrals of Domain: Contemporary Women Novelists and the State," Institute of Women's Studies Colloquium Series, November 9, 2000

The changing face of neuroscience
There's no question that disorders of the brain will become the leading public health matter in this coming century. In fact, they probably already are. Just consider the phenomenon of neurodegeneration. Think of the classic neuro-degenerative disorders of the adult and aging brain--Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and others--and the degenerative diseases of childhood. Add to that the increasing evidence that in many acute disorders there is secondary, chronic neurodegeneration. For example, there is certainly a penumbra around stroke, spinal cord injury, brain trauma, untreated epilepsy, multiple sclerosis. Add that to the viral infections of the nervous system like AIDS, drug abuse, and the neurodegeneration that accompanies excessive use of alcohol and untreated depression. And when you add those all together and realize the burden of neurodegenerative diseases, they far exceed cancer today. And these are all related disorders. They shouldn't be thought of as psychiatric disorders or neurologic disorders--one or the other--they're all brain disorders.

­Gerald Fischbach, Director of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, NIH, speaking on "The Changing Face of Neuroscience," January 10, 2001, sponsored by the Woodruff Health Sciences Center

Volunteers needed for study sponsored by
the Center for Myth and Ritual in American Life
Psychology Professors Robyn Fivush and Marshall Duke are seeking families to participate in their study of the role of story-telling in child development and family well being . If you have a nine- to twelve-year-old child and are interested in participating in this research, please contact Rachel Robertson at 712-9508.