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"I was visiting my mom out in Illinois when the power went out. I suggested calling the power company, but my mom said no, someone else had called. We waited half an hour and nothing happened, so I finally called the power company myself. They had no idea the power had gone out. I was the first person to call. And there was something like 5,000 people without power."
-- John Bargh, professor of psychology, noting that it is human nature to assume that someone else has taken charge of a problem, "Out in the Cold; A Man Nearly Dies Outside Starbucks. A Local Minister Tries To Understand Why," New Haven Advocate, Dec. 15, 2005.
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"We have a post-Romantic, scientifically accurate view of gorillas today. We know their behavior is complex, that they have individual personalities. We're learning about the biological basis of a lot of traits we once thought were unique to man.''
-- Richard Prum, the William Robertson Coe Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and curator of vertebrate zoology at the Peabody Museum of Natural History, noting that the museum's display on the circus gorilla known as "Gargantua" underscores how understanding of the species has changed in recent decades, "The Real King Kong: Gargantua the Great Thrilled Circus Audiences of the '30s and '40s; Yale Exhibit Showcases a Supreme Ape," The News-Times (Danbury), Dec. 18, 2005.
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"If your studies are of rich, white men, you end up with a medicine cabinet full of medicines for rich, white men."
-- Dr. Cary Gross, assistant professor of internal medicine, on concerns about how to increase the number of minority-group members who participate in scientific studies and drug trials, "Minorities Face Obstacles To Joining Clinical Trials," New Haven Register, Dec. 19, 2005.
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"It's not that you get a beefier brain [when you meditate]. It's like a muscle. If you use it, it will build up. If you don't, you will lose it."
-- Jeremy Gray, assistant professor of psychology, on a study showing that the brain grows new gray matter when people meditate, "Meditation Good For Gray Matter, Study Finds," Charleston Post Courier (Charleston, SC), Dec. 24, 2005.
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"If you want a career as a perfumier in France, the training takes seven years, and at the end of that you must be able to identify 600 basic compounds. Repeated exposure to odors and feedback about whether you got it right is the key. ... With just a couple of days' training we can identify the body odors of our families and friends."
-- Matthias Laska, associate research scientist in neurobiology, on the power of the human nose, "Animal Superpowers; Regenerate Limbs, Hold Your Breath For Ages, Get Natural Nightvision, Resist Radiation, Avoid Sleep ... Animals Do This All the Time, So Why Can't We? By Popping a Few Pills or Having the Odd Bit of Surgery We Just Might," New Scientist, Dec. 24, 2005.
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"India is one of the most protected economies in the world today. And this is not where we should be. ... The fact that Indian industrialists are viewing China as a market in which they want to be present and compete rather than ask for anti-dumping duties on imports from China into India reflects the belief that we can be competitive. Still India, believe it or not, has been the largest user of anti-dumping duties among [World Trade Organization] members in the last couple of years."
-- T.N. Srinivasan, the Samuel C. Park Jr. Professor of Economics, "Our Posture in the World Market Should Be 'Come All, We Take You On,'" Financial Express (Bombay, India), Dec. 26, 2005.
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"There is a degree of irony in this. If you believe that you are making progress towards a goal, it can lead you to make choices that move you further away from actually attaining it."
-- Ravi Dhar, the George Rogers Clark Professor of Management and Marketing and professor of psychology, noting that people should focus on the end goal rather than the progress they've made toward it, "The Morning File," Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Dec. 27, 2005.
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"When employees are troubled with spiritual issues and problems, their well-being is reduced just as much as when they have the flu. Employees who are unhealthy, for whatever reason, take sick days, and this means lost productivity and revenue for employers."
-- Travis Tucker, assistant director of the Ethics and Spirituality in the Workplace Program at the Divinity School, on the increasing number of workplace chaplains, "Volunteer Police Chaplain Launches Service For Stressed Employees," The Fresno Bee, Dec. 31, 2005.
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"Accepting scientific evidence means more than cheering medical progress. It is vital to pay attention to the icebergs melting at both magnetic poles, which signals changes in the flow of the Gulf Stream, for example. When cries of fraud clump all scientific research into doubt, it raises the risk that real science, good science, will be disregarded -- and our descendants may suffer in ways we can too well imagine."
-- Bettyann Holtzmann Kevles, lecturer in history, on the recent revelation that South Korean biologist Hwang Woo Suk lied when he said that he had cloned a dog, "Barely a Drop of Fraud; Why It Shouldn't Taint Our View of Science," The Washington Post, Jan. 8, 2006.
T H I S
W E E K ' SS T O R I E S
Three alumni named Yale trustees
NAS honors researchers' work in molecular biology, psychology
Building Yale ties in the Middle East
CPTV show looks at creation of Torosaurus
ENDOWED PROFESSORSHIPS
Koichi Hamada designated the Tuntex Professor of Economics
Daniel Harrison named the Allen Forte Professor of Music Theory
Mark R. Rosenzweig appointed Altschul Professor of . . . Economics
Craig M. Wright designated . . . Moses Professor of MusicU.S. lags in ranking of nations' environmental performance
Grants support project to make scientific literature available . . .
New alliance to foster university collaborations
Exhibit features abstract scenes of London by John Virtue
Smaller paintings by John Virtue will be on view at JE College
Study finds no link between soda consumption, esophageal cancer
F&ES makes progress on efforts to become more 'green'
Lab's research on riboswitches may lead to new kinds of antibiotics
Team's research shows that stress in infancy . . .
Alumnae's artwork depicts Yale 'Encounters and Memories'
LIBRARY NEWS
Staff's quick work helped minimize flood damage
New Orbis features include ability for 'wildcard' searchMichael Wallerstein, noted research scholar on economic equality
Symposium will look at the use of new materials in modern sculpture
Bockenstedt named director of professional development at medical school
Yale nurse devoted to HIV/AIDS treatment and education in China . . .
Campus Notes
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