CAMPUS NOTES

The North Korean Famine Initiative, a Yale undergraduate group, is sponsoring a benefit concert on Wednesday, Dec. 9, to aid famine victims. The event will be held 7:30-9:30 p.m. at First & Summerfield United Methodist Church, corner of College and Elm streets. The concert will feature Unity, a traditional Korean drum troupe; the a cappella groups Duke's Men and Proof of the Pudding; and chamber music ensembles from the School of Music. Admission is $4 for advance tickets and $5 at the door. Advance tickets can be purchased at Yale Station and in Commons in the week before the concert.

Paintings by Robert Reed Jr. are among the works on view in an exhibition at the Erector Square Gallery, 315 Peck St., New Haven. The exhibit, on view through Wednesday, Dec. 23, features paintings and sculpture by the seven recipients of grants from the Connecticut Commission on the Arts. Reed is a professor of painting at the School of Art.

Students in the Yale Opera program are among the featured guest performers in the Norwalk Symphony Orchestra's holiday concert on Sunday, Dec. 13, at 3 p.m. in the Norwalk Concert Hall, 125 East Ave., Norwalk. The concert, titled "Holiday Miracles," will feature a performance of "Amahl & the Night Visitors." For tickets or further information, call the Norwalk Symphony Orchestra box office at (203) 866-2455 or visit the orchestra's website at www.norwalk.com/nso.

Tamas Merei, who is studying cello at the School of Music with faculty member Aldo Parisot, won first prize in the Hungarian Radio International Cello Competition, held in Budapest Oct. 25-Nov. 7. He also won a special prize for his performance of Kodály's "Solo Cello Sonata, Op. 8." A native of Hungary, he came to Yale this year, and credits his success in the competition to his Yale teacher. "I think that if I didn't study with Mr. Parisot this year, I would not have won," Merei said. "He is an incredibly effective teacher who creates a performer, not just musically, but in every way." As a result of his win, which carries a cash award of approximately $10,000, Merei will return to Budapest for a Dec. 12 performance of Shostakovich's "First Cello Concerto."

Thomas E. Graedel, a professor at the School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and adjunct professor of chemical engineering and of geology and geophysics, has been appointed chair of the National Academy of Sciences' new Grand Challenges in Environmental Sciences Committee. The committee will attempt to identify and prioritize challenging research opportunities in environmental sciences. Graedel has been a pioneer in the developing area of industrial ecology and has done research in many areas of atmospheric chemistry. He is president of the atmospheric sciences section of the American Geophysical Union and is on the National Research Council's Commission on Geosciences, Environment and Resources.

Assistant softball coach Barbara Reinalda is one of five players recently elected to the National Softball Hall of Fame. An 11-time ASA All-American for the Brakettes, she has the most wins of any pitcher in the team's history with a 441-31 record in her 19-year career. She threw 31 no-hitters and 19 perfect games.