Dr. Frank Hsu recently joined the Yale faculty as assistant professor of medicine/oncology at the School of Medicine and codirector of the immunology research program at the Yale Cancer Center. Dr. Hsu's research interests focus on immunotherapy of malignancies, especially with regard to lymphoma. Much of his work centers on the use of vaccine therapies for various forms of cancer. He is known for his novel approach to vaccinating lymphoma patients using dendritic cells as a vehicle. Before coming to Yale, Dr. Hsu completed a fellowship in oncology at Stanford University Medical Center.
The featured speaker at the Thursday, Oct. 31, session of Books Sandwiched In, the noontime book discussion series sponsored by the Friends of the New Haven Free Public Library, will be Barbara Oberg, editor of the "Papers of Benjamin Franklin" and senior research scholar in the history department. She will be discussing the book "Founding Father" by Richard Bookheiser. The talk, which is free and open to the public, will be held at 12:10 p.m. in the United Church on the Green, corner of Temple and Elm streets. Participants are invited to bring a lunch; coffee, tea and cookies will be available in the basement of the church 11:20 a.m.-12:10 p.m.
The 1996 Brown Award of the Ecological Society of America has been awarded to Andrew Beckerman, a doctoral student at the School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. The award goes to the best student poster presentation at the annual ESA meeting, which was held in August. Mr. Beckerman's winning poster portrayed part of his doctoral research, which examines the effect of food resources on competition between two grasshopper species. At Yale-Myers Forest, where he is conducting his study, Mr. Beckerman has been comparing grasshopper competition in old fields containing different ratios of grasses to herbs. The research examines both social and physical factors affecting the amount of grass or herbs in a field.
University Chaplain Frederick J. Streets delivered the 30th annual Greenhoe Lectures at the Louisville Seminary, Kentucky, in October, speaking on the topic, "Faith and Hope: Fashioning a Vision of Community in American Society." The lecture series honors the ministry of Theodore M. Greenhoe, who was pastor of Presbyterian congregations from 1936-74. While in Louisville, Chaplain Streets met with Yale alumni. "We invited Chaplain Streets in recognition of his scholarship in the service of the church," noted the Reverend Charles Brockwell, director of graduate studies at the Louisville Seminary. "The theme he spoke on helps to give pastors insight into how their churches can be communities of hope for the larger community."
Volume I of "Foundations of Futures Studies: Human Science for a New Era," a two-volume work by Wendell Bell, professor emeritus of sociology, was recently released by Transaction Publishers, Rutgers. It focuses on the history and purposes of futures studies. The second volume, concentrating on the ethical foundation of the discipline, will be forthcoming in November. Futures studies is a new field of inquiry involving systematic and explicit thinking about alternative futures, with the goal of demystifying the future and increasing human control over it. Professor Bell maintains that despite its sometimes doomsday rhetoric and widespread use by special interests, futures studies offers hope for humanity and concrete ways of realizing that hope.
Four Yale historians -- Robin W. Winks, the Randolph W. Townsend Jr. Professor and chair of the history department; Glenda Gilmore, assistant professor of history; Cynthia Russett, professor of history; and Stephen Lassonde, lecturer in history and dean of Calhoun College -- delivered talks at an Oct. 24 conference honoring Franklin Delano Roosevelt. The conference was held at Hyde Park, the Roosevelts' family home, in observance of Roosevelt History Month, designated by President Clinton for October, 1996.
A Yale alumnus, a patient and a community leader were honored by the School of Medicine's section of cardiovascular medicine at the first Friendly Hearts Award Dinner, held Oct. 12 at the New Haven Lawn Club. The event celebrated the establishment of a new fund created by Yale and New Haven physicians, along with recovered heart patients, to benefit cardiovascular research. The "Outstanding Alumnus" award went to Dr. Martin B. Leon '75 M.D., director of cardiovascular research and education for the Cardiology Research Foundation at the Washington D.C. Hospital Center, who was honored for his many contributions to the field of interventional cardiology. The "Outstanding Patient" award was presented to Carmella Kolman, who continues to pursue a career as a still-life artist specializing in oil painting after undergoing open-heart surgery at Yale-New Haven Hospital in 1994. Receiving the "Outstanding Community Service" award was John L. Lahey, president of Quinnipiac College in Hamden, Connecticut, who was honored for his support of the American Heart Association, particularly for his role as co-chair of the H. Lender-Quinnipiac College Heartfest, which benefits the association.
Robert A. Berner, the Alan M. Bateman Professor of Geology and Geophysics and associate editor of the American Journal of Sciences, has received the 1996 Arthur L. Day Medal of the Geological Society of America. The award is presented for "application of physics and chemistry to the solution of geological problems." Professor Berner's research focuses on sedimentary geochemistry, biogeochemistry and geochemical cycles, including the application of chemical thermodynamics and chemical kinetics to the study of natural waters and sediments.
Dr. Marie Egan, assistant professor of respiratory medicine at the School of Medicine, along with Dr. Regina Palazzo, director of the Children's Hospital Cystic Fibrosis Center at Yale-New Haven Hospital, will be sharing updates from the 1996 American Cystic Fibrosis Conference at the Y-NHH Cystic Fibrosis Center's informational Family Day, to be held on Saturday, Nov. 2. The day, intended for families of children with cystic fibrosis, will also include a panel discussion on "Growing Up with Cystic Fibrosis," a session on "Disabilities & the Work Place" and breakout sessions on nutrition, the role of exercise in health maintenance and family response to chronic illness.