A&S Magazine
News Briefs
FALL 2007 Issue
Urban Understanding
A new minor in Urban Studies gives students the opportunity to study all things metropolitan. View this Article »
Spotlight on Inequality
Erasing social and economic
inequality in Latin
America may never be
entirely possible, but with a
$300,000 grant from the Ford
Foundation, the University
of Miami’s Center for Latin
American Studies (CLAS) is
providing the information
needed to understand and
address at least some of
that region’s disparities.
Led by professor of political
science Merike Blofield,
the team is creating a
Web site to serve as a
clearinghouse for data and
ideas that can be used by
universities, governments,
and independent groups
who wish to create a more
equitable Latin America. View this Article »
Making Space for Students
Hidden within the run-down buildings and warehouses of Miami’s
Wynwood Art District are treasures awaiting discovery. The jewels draw
their biggest crowds every second Saturday of the month when the district’s
community of artists invites the public to tour the 40-plus galleries. The event
unites artists with their admirers – both the ordinary kind and the enthusiasts
who, like wine aficionados, toss out comments such as, “This one really has
depth.” Even the occasional, “Too dry,” can be heard from critics as they sip
crisp whites and frown at a particularly bland painting.
View this Article »
Career's End
Most of us look forward
to the day we will retire. We
eagerly anticipate having time to
travel the world, take up a new
hobby, and hang out with our
families. We might even foresee
ourselves clearing out decades’
worth of clutter from the garage.
For several arts and sciences
faculty members, that time is
now. Professors Kenneth Kurtz,
Ronald Newman, Zack Bowen,
Keith Scott, and Marcia Scott
are retiring this year and they are
pleased to be starting their new
lives sans job. View this Article »
What's Old is New
In 1795 when the University of North Carolina opened its doors, incoming freshman were required to be literate in Greek and
Latin. The languages were at the heart of education in all of the oldest western universities and that tradition continued through the
founding of the United States’ earliest schools. Nearly 200 years later, when John Kirby enrolled as a Tar Heel, the requirement had
been dropped, but the man pursued instruction in the classics anyway. Now as the chair of the University of Miami’s Department of
Classics, Kirby hopes to bring the field of study that was once deemed essential to any university education back into the limelight. View this Article »
Movin' On Up
On New York City’s Theatre Row last August, the University of Miami’s Department of Theatre Arts presented its first independent
production – a new musical/dark comedy by faculty members Stephen Svoboda and N. David Williams called Reconstructing
Mama. A preview of the musical, which had an all UM-alumni cast, was performed at the University in July. View this Article »
Students Receive Prominent Scholarships
For three University of Miami undergraduates, the classroom extends
beyond campus to places as near as Virginia Key and as far as Berlin and the
Gulf of Alaska. Armed with prominent scholarships, the trio is gaining handson
experience and conducting research with experts around the world. View this Article »
Chemical Transformation
Each semester over 1,000 students spend hours in the Cox Science Center’s
third-floor teaching laboratories acquiring hands-on knowledge of the principles of
chemistry. At least half of them are studying organic chemistry, or the chemistry
of carbon compounds. While the opportunity to investigate some of the universe’s
most important processes is itself a thrill – at least to some – this fall’s cohort of
chemistry students can add freshly renovated laboratories to the excitement.
View this Article »
One Enantiomer at a Time
University of Miami chemistry professor,
Norito Takenaka, is studying chirality. With
nearly $330,000 from the state of Florida’s
tobacco lawsuit settlement fund, he is trying to figure out how to selectively
synthesize just one enantiomer at a time. The task is difficult because both
entantiomers form at the same rate. The trick, said Takenaka, is to use a
particular catalyst – or substance that accelerates a chemical reaction – that
facilitates the creation of just one enantiomer. View this Article »
Cutting-Edge Chemistry
For centuries, chemists have carried out their experiments in flasks, beakers, and test tubes. The microscopic molecules they
studied roamed freely within the confines of the glassware, ready to react with other submerged particles. While this age-old
approach has led to discoveries that have enriched our lives, the method is not useful for understanding the chemistry
that takes place in small quantities in confined spaces, such as the human body.
View this Article »
