Dan Shea, professor of government, thinks that candidate Donald Trump’s rise is a natural extension of the upheaval of the tea party era, CNN Politics reports. Shea, who studies the polarization of the electorate, believes that for Republicans “there is a last-ditch attempt to bring back something that they once had. Then this leads into Trump,...
Professor of Sociology Neil Gross cautions that a newly released paper about how interdisciplinary scholars collaborate “must be considered preliminary, since the authors only studied successful collaborative networks,” Inside Higher Ed reports. While networks can be structured in various ways, Gross said that, given the “importance of these networks for problem solving today, it’s urgent...
Visiting Assistant Professor of Cinema Studies Kyle Stevens recently published an essay on teaching the classic film Casablanca in The Cine-Files, an online scholarly journal of cinema studies. The film, he argues, presents an opportunity to see how surprisingly complex classical Hollywood style can be. His piece is titled, “Teaching Casablanca: Clay, Ink, Documentary, Set.”
A crucial building block for the revitalization of Waterville fell into place this week as a Massachusetts-based IT consulting firm, partnering with Colby, announced Wednesday that it will open a new center in the city’s downtown, creating 200 jobs. Read press coverage: Boston Globe BetaBoston | Globe.com Associated Press Bloomberg Business MPBN Morning Sentinel |...
Professor of English Michael Burke published an essay, “Into the Wildwood,” in the December 2015 issue of Down East magazine. The evocative piece describes the unusual experience of attending a winter solstice service in a tiny, off-the-grid church in the remote community of Reeds Mill, Maine.
Larry Pugh ’56, hailed as “one of Colby’s great leaders” by President David A. Greene, died Dec. 3 in Naples, Fla., at 82. “For those of us charged with leading this great college and ensuring its success well into the future, Larry was a guiding light,” Greene said in a message to the Colby community...
Professor of Science, Technology, and Society James R. Fleming will present four lectures in December on climate science, history, and culture in Beijing, People’s Republic of China. Fleming has been appointed an executive member of the council of History of Meteorological Science and Technology, Chinese Society for the History of Science and Technology.
Birds captured more than 150 years ago are coming to life at Colby. A rare 1860 edition of John James Audubon’s Birds of America is on public display at Colby College through the summer of 2016. The Bien Edition of the iconic work was published between 1858 and 1860. This large-format edition features life-size portraits...
Laurel Anderson ’88 was named the 2015 Ohio Professor of the Year by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE). Anderson, a botany-microbiology professor at Ohio Wesleyan University credited with the creation of an international undergraduate research network, was recognized at a Washington, D.C., luncheon...
Professor of Computer Science Bruce Maxwell spoke about artificial intelligence (AI) on Maine Public Broadcasting Network’s “Maine Calling” Nov. 24. The 50-minute program discussed what AI is and its uses in today’s society.
Maple Razsa, associate professor of anthropology, was awarded the Fejos Postdoctoral Fellowship in Ethnographic Film from the Wenner-Gren Foundation. The prestigious award, given to “scholars to devote themselves to full-time work on a research-related film,” allows Razsa to continue his work on his documentary film The Maribor Uprising: A Live Interactive Documentary about a 2012 uprising in...
Coauthors of a recent study in the Journal of the American Medical Association Pediatrics about concussion-like symptom reporting in high school athletes include Colby professors Joseph Atkins (psychology) and Bruce Maxwell (computer science) and Medical Director Paul Berkner, D.O. They conclude that girls and students with a preexisting health conditions are more likely to report symptoms of concussions.
Jack Sandler, Colby’s head men’s lacrosse coach since 2013, died Nov. 19. He reportedly collapsed while on a treadmill in a hotel. He was 35. Sandler came to Colby following eight seasons as the head coach at Skidmore College. He coached three United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association Honorable Mention All-Americans and the NESCAC Rookie of...
If so much mainstream economic theory is based on the assumption that people are rational and act in their own self interest, why do they make so many lousy decisions, particularly about saving and investing money? That’s a question that Leonard Wolk, Colby’s new Todger Anderson Assistant Professor of Investing and Behavioral Economics, ponders, researches,...
Theater of War, a two-hour program held at Colby Nov. 15, blended classical Greek tragedy with a contemporary town-hall style discussion of armed service members’ and veterans’ visible and invisible wounds of war. It also played to some of Colby’s strengths, showcasing the relevance of the humanities in contemporary society, demonstrating the power of literature...
Colby’s Curator of Academic Programs Shalini Le Gall led a panel titled Foreign Language Teaching at Colby at the New England Museum Association’s annual conference in Portland, Maine, Nov. 5, 2015. Colby professors Audrey Brunetaux, (French), Arne Koch, (German), and Anita Savo (Spanish) described creating opportunities for teaching and learning in the Colby College Museum of Art.
Associate Professor of Mathematics Scott Taylor teamed with Alex Zupan of the University of Nebraska, Lincoln and Colby students and alumni to publish the article “New examples of Brunnian theta graphs,” in Involve: a journal of mathematics. In addition to Taylor and Zupan, the researchers were Byoungwook Jang ’14, Anna Kronaeur ’16, Pratap Luitel ’14, and...
The Boston television show Chronicle visited the lower Kennebec Valley in October and spent time on Mayflower Hill and in the Colby College Museum of Art. When the episode titled “What to Do in Waterville” aired on WCVB5 Nov. 9, it began with beautiful fall views of campus and a visit to the museum for...
Assistant Professor of History Daniel Tortora presented his research in November at the 27th annual Jumonville French and Indian War Seminar in western Pennsylvania. On Nov. 6 he joined scholars for a tour of French and Indian War sites, including Fort Necessity National Battlefield and the grave of Major General Edward Braddock. On Nov. 7...
Family Homecoming Weekend, Oct. 30-Nov. 1, exceeded expectations, with perfect fall weather, a jam-packed schedule of activities, and more than 1,500 parents, alumni, and friends swarming Mayflower Hill. The energy level was high as students and their families and alumni from across the years took advantage of open classes, world-class museum exhibitions, and tours of...
