Carnegie Mellon University

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April 09, 2015

Personal Mention

Scott SandageScott Sandage reviewed two books for The New York Times: "Where You Go Is Not Who You’ll Be” and "The End of College.” Sandage writes that they are "two deeply felt, intentionally provocative alternatives for college applicants worried about getting into their first choice and parents worried about paying for it: Frank Bruni’s exhortation to go elsewhere and Kevin Carey’s invitation to go online.” Sandage, associate professor of history, is a cultural historian who specializes in 19th century United States and the changing aspects of American identity. Read the reviews.


Maria Rosa RodriguezMaría del Mar Rosa-Rodríguez
has received funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) to participate in the NEH Summer 2015 Institute, "The Alhambra and Spain's Islamic Past," in Granada, Spain. Designed for college and university teachers, the institute will use the magnificent 13th-14th-century Alhambra palace complex in Granada to study Spain’s engagement with its diverse cultural and religious history. Rosa-Rodríguez is an assistant professor of Hispanic Studies in the Department of Modern Languages. Learn more about the summer institute.

Goldwater ScholarsJillian Jaycox, a junior majoring in biological sciences, and Joshua Kubiak, a junior majoring in materials science and engineering and chemistry, received Barry M. Goldwater scholarships to pursue research careers in science and engineering. They were among 260 sophomores and juniors nationwide chosen from more than 1,200 nominations for the 2015-2016 academic year. Jaycox is studying the immune response to bloodstream fungal infections, and designing DNA nanoparticles made of backbone-branched DNAs. Kubiak is working to improve methods of creating quantum dot backlights for more energy-efficient LCD screens for displays such as those on televisions or portable electronics. Goldwater Scholars receive one- and two-year scholarships up to a maximum of $7,500 per year for tuition, fees, books, and room and board. CMU is home to 20 Goldwater Scholars. Learn more.

John NashAlumnus John F. Nash, Jr. (S’48) has been awarded the 2015 Abel Prize from the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters “for striking and seminal contributions to the theory of nonlinear partial differential equations and its application to geometric analysis.” Nash, a faculty member at Princeton University, shares the prize with New York University’s Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences’ Louis Nirenberg. The Abel Prize is the most important prize honoring contributions to mathematics over the course of a career, and is considered by many to be equivalent to a Nobel Prize. Nash won the 1994 Nobel Prize in Economics for his contributions to game theory. The Abel Prize recognizes his work with partial differential equations, which have contributed to the fundamental understanding of structures that describe the physical world. Many mathematicians consider this work to be Nash’s deepest and most important. Learn more.

Art Professor Martin Prekop will premiere an exhibit of his photography, paintings, sculptures and installations from the past four decades tomorrow (Friday, April 10) at the grand opening for Art Space 616, a new contemporary art gallery in Sewickley, Pa. With more than 40 years of experience, Prekop, former dean of the College of Fine Arts, said he continues to be inspired through his passion for art. He called Art Space 616 “surely the largest and most beautiful gallery to open in the Pittsburgh area.” An opening reception will be held from 6 - 9 p.m., Friday. The exhibit runs through May 9. Learn more.

Obituary: Lincoln Wolfenstein

Lincoln WolfensteinLincoln Wolfenstein, an internationally acclaimed theoretical particle physicist, particularly in the area of weak interactions and elementary particles, died of cancer, Friday, March 27, in Oakland, Calif. He was 92.

Wolfenstein received his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in 1949 and taught for 52 years at Carnegie Mellon until his retirement in 2000. Even after retirement he continued to go to his office almost every day, teach classes and remain active in the international world of physics. Following his relocation to Oakland, Calif., in 2014, he began going to the Lawrence Berkeley Lab weekly until four weeks before his death.

“Lincoln was far more than just a great scientist. He was the quintessential faculty member, dedicated to his research, an inspiration to students, a passionate thinker about the human condition and devoted to his university. He will be missed,” said Stephen Garoff, professor of physics and head of the Department of Physics at Carnegie Mellon.

Learn more.