
Yellowjacket weekend brings Michael Ian Black to Rochester
Comedians Ron Funches, Nick Vatterott, and Michael Ian Black will perform this weekend for students and the Rochester community as part of Yellowjacket Weekend, which celebrates the start of the academic year.
Journeys into the unknown
Stewart Weaver Surveys Exploration Through the Ages What is exploration, and what distinguishes it from travel, discovery, or adventure? Stewart Weaver’s survey of the history of exploration, slated for publication…

Political science researchers earn top awards
Lynda Powell, Gerald Gamm, G. Bingham Powell, Jr., and Hein Goemans will be recognized for their award-winning research during the annual meeting of the American Political Science Association in August.

Women feel threatened by ‘the lady in red’
In a new study, psychology graduate student Adam Pazda found that women believe that other women who wear red are more sexually promiscuous and were less likely to introduce their husband or boyfriend to a woman wearing red.

Monkeys also believe in winning streaks, study shows
Humans have a well-documented tendency to see winning and losing streaks in situations that, in fact, are random. Now in the first study in non-human primates of this systematic error in decision making, researchers find that monkeys also share our unfounded belief in lucky streaks.

When it comes to learning numbers, culture counts
The findings of a new study suggest that number learning is a fundamental process that follows a universal pathway. However, the timing of the process depends on a child’s environment.

‘Vital signs’ of teaching captured by quick, reliable in-class evaluation
A 20-minute classroom assessment that is less subjective than traditional in-class evaluations by principals can reliably measure classroom instruction and predict student standardized test scores.

Scott Paauw, senior lecturer in linguistics, dies at 57
A self-described historian at heart, Paauw thought that the beauty of language lies in “how cultures interact, how cultures define their language, and how contact between languages, cultures, and societies reshapes the language.”

Joanna Olmsted steps down as Dean of Arts and Sciences
Joanna Olmsted will step down as dean of the School of Arts and Sciences on July 1 after two decades of University leadership.
“Joanna has contributed immeasurably to the progress that has been made in strengthening arts, sciences, and engineering, and we are hugely in her debt,” says Peter Lennie, provost and the Robert L. and Mary L. Sproull Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Sciences, and Engineering.

William Spaniel takes on 21st century teaching tools to enhance student learning
Innovative teaching methods and commitment to learners have earned William Spaniel the 2014 Curtis Peck Award for Excellence in Teaching by a Graduate Student.