For her senior thesis, Maria Stahl of the Class of 2020 studied whether herbivores’ grazing behavior was influenced by how often tracts of land had been burned. Stahl conducted vegetation surveys at 12 sites in Mozambique’s Gorongosa National Park that had burned at least once in the past 18 years, assessing the amount of woody biomass (trees and shrubs), grass both old and new, and bare earth.https://bit.ly/3frSSrB
In recent months, seismometers have seen a sharp decline in the level of background noise as human activity has been curtailed in response to COVID-19. The seismograms recorded in the basement of Guyot Hall reveal the decline in local seismic noise, first after the end of on-campus instruction on March 13, and then a more dramatic decrease after Governor Murphy’s stay-at-home order on March 21.https://bit.ly/2DDTj4g
The New York Times’ Opinion Documentary Series has debuted “The Torture Letters,” a film by Laurence Ralph, professor of anthropology, that primes viewers on the roots of police violence as it persists in the United States. Watch the video online. https://bit.ly/3gVUASI
From NBC’s Today: Princeton’s Eddie Glaude talks with NBC’s Craig Melvin about the debate surrounding the removal of monuments.They also discuss the removal of Woodrow Wilson’s name from Princeton’s SPIA and residential college.https://on.today.com/2WgaA9Z
From Town Topics: In the face of unprecedented food insecurities brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, Princeton University is teaming up with Princeton Public Schools (PPS) and three Mercer County nonprofits this summer to provide thousands of meals to local communities.https://bit.ly/2Wa0BmL
From The Daily Princetonian: The Master in Public Affairs (MPA) program at the School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA) will adopt a mandatory Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) curriculum requirement this fall, according to an email sent to MPA students. https://bit.ly/3iY3BfM
From The Daily Princetonian: On Tuesday, July 7, the Undergraduate Student Government (USG) hosted a 90-minute Q&A with Dolan and Vice President for Campus Life Rochelle Calhoun, the second event of this nature, to allow students to ask questions about the University’s recently-released fall reopening plan. The administrators discussed leave-of-absence policies, housing and dining options in the fall, and how recent U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) guidelines may impact international students.https://bit.ly/3fqSrho
From Princeton Athletics: Mollie Marcoux Samaan ’91, Ford Family Director of Athletics, acknowledged the difficult decision made by the Council of Ivy Presidents: “Arriving at this point required significant thought and consideration to the ever-changing variables of this global crisis and I appreciate the careful examination given by the Council and my colleagues within the league to numerous possibilities for a safe return to play. In the end, the health and safety of our students and of our community must always be our top priority.”https://bit.ly/2DDRYKM
Coverage in the media:
In a message to the Princeton community on Wednesday, July 8, President Eisgruber reaffirmed the University’s support for our international students and criticized the change in policy affecting international students throughout the country that was announced July 6 by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). President Eisgruber wrote, “ICE’s disruptive and ill-defined policy changes, which appeared without warning or prior discussion, come in the midst of a public health crisis that has required Princeton and other universities to do much of their teaching remotely. They also come during a period when the United States has interrupted visa processing and closed its borders to many countries, making it impossible for many international students to reach the United States to receive in-person instruction when it is available.” https://bit.ly/3j1Fa0K
Coverage in the media:
In his recent Class Day presentation, Professor Keith Wailoo, chair of the Department of History, revisited the strange, yet strikingly familiar, debates over the wearing of masks in the 1918 flu pandemic, complete with angry discussions over the closing of commerce, the limits of the state powers of public health, and the quest for a vaccine. His talk uses this history to offer lessons for mask-wearing in the COVID-19 era.https://bit.ly/2AEzx7u
President Eisgruber shares the University’s announcement that, with focus on public health, Princeton will invite approximately half of undergraduates to campus each semester; most teaching will remain online. https://bit.ly/2BJ9vR6
Additional coverage:
Politics & Polls: With a dramatic uptick of coronavirus cases in many states, studies show young people comprise a disproportionate fraction of new cases. Historically, university students are more likely to take risks, so what will happen when they get back to campus? What do social distancing guidelines look like on a residential campus? Laurence Steinberg joins Sam Wang to discuss these questions and the future of the campus college experience in a world after the Covid-19 pandemic. Steinberg and Wang discuss social distancing guidelines, federal bailouts for colleges, and remote learning for new and returning students. https://bit.ly/2ZOoi5d
We Roar: Dark matter physicist Cristian Galbiati describes how he conceived of a “very simple, cheap and effective ventilator” for COVID-19 patients that uses off-the-shelf components — and how his team went from design to production in just six weeks. https://bit.ly/2YUQS5q
Fernando Codá Marques, a Princeton University professor of mathematics, has been named a 2020 Simons Investigator by the New York-based Simons Foundation. The Simons Foundation names investigators each year who are outstanding scientists engaged in mathematics, physics, astrophysics, computer science, or several related fields. https://bit.ly/2AsD8FD
Monica Ponce de Leon, dean of the School of Architecture at Princeton University, has been honored as a “Great Immigrant” by the Carnegie Corporation of New York. Ponce de Leon, who was born in Venezuela, is among 38 naturalized U.S. citizens from 35 countries of origin who will be celebrated for their contributions to American society. https://bit.ly/3grrRVg
Princeton Voices
Eddie Glaude:
Julian Zelizer:
Laurence Ralph: The Scars of Being Policed While Black (The New York Times)
Ismail K. White: How do black people channel their anger about racial injustice? Here’s what we found. (The Washington Post)
Sohaib Nazeer Sultan, Muslim life coordinator and chaplain at Princeton University: Faith and activism: A discussion with three religious leaders in Princeton (Planet Princeton)
Omar Wasow: No good deed goes unpunished for a Princeton professor | Mulshine (Nj.com)
Elke Weber: AAAS Fellow Elke Weber Studies Decision Making During Crises (AAAS)
Allen C. Guelzo: A Monument to Our Shared Purpose (The Wall Street Journal)
Martin S. Flaherty: China’s national security law in Hong Kong doubles down on imperialism (The Washington Post)
Brian E. Herrera: ‘Hamilton’ airs on Disney+: For people of color, an American story ‘that could be theirs’ (NBC News)
From the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs: Covid-19, climate emergencies, and mass extinction all share striking similarities, according to an essay co-authored by David S. Wilcove, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology and public affairs and the Princeton Environmental Institute at Princeton University.https://bit.ly/3f91zH6
From The Daily Princetonian: William A. Massey ’77 has been chased by the words “first” and “only” for all of his life. Now, he’s made a career of ensuring that stops with him. https://bit.ly/31I9zuU
From the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment: Princeton’s Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment and ExxonMobil have renewed a five-year partnership aimed at accelerating the science behind next-generation energy and environmental technologies. The collaboration is executed through Princeton E-ffiliates Partnership (E-ffiliates), a corporate membership program administered by the Andlinger Center. https://bit.ly/2ArsIGi Related from Business Wire: ExxonMobil Renews Collaboration with Princeton Energy Center to Advance Low-Emission Research and Energy Solutions