“As a result of his special accomplishments in neuroscience, multiple interests, extraordinary skills as a teacher and communicator, and contagious passion for science, Barry was able to develop and teach, for decades, one of the University’s most successful and popular courses, ‘The Brain: A User’s Guide’ — a course that brought the wonders of neuroscience to life for University students of all concentrations and interests,” Princeton’s Ronald Comer said. 

https://www.princeton.edu/news/2020/01/22/barry-jacobs-renowned-neuroscientist-and-serotonin-researcher-dead-77

Princeton University joined with community organizations on Jan. 20 for the annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration at the Arts Council of Princeton. U.S. Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman of New Jersey’s 12th congressional district, who is the first African American woman to be elected to New Jersey’s congressional delegation, spoke at the event along with Princeton’s Ruha Benjamin.

 https://www.princeton.edu/news/2020/01/21/fellowship-and-social-justice-highlighted-martin-luther-king-jr-day-celebration

“He was the first real Latin American historian and the first real Latin American scholar at Princeton,” said Princeton’s Jeremy Adelman. “He had a long and remarkable life, and he was intellectually engaged to the end.”

https://www.princeton.edu/news/2020/01/21/stanley-stein-inaugural-director-latin-american-studies-program-dies-99

Researchers hope to use quantum principles to create an ultra-powerful computer that would solve problems that conventional computers cannot — from improving cybersecurity and modeling chemical reactions to formulating new drugs and making supply chains more efficient. This goal could revolutionize certain aspects of computing and open up a new world of technological possibilities. Researchers at Princeton are working to chart the future of quantum computing through foundational research in their labs and through collaborations with industry partners.

https://www.princeton.edu/news/2020/01/21/quantum-computing-opening-new-realms-possibilities

During Maxwell’s deanship at Princeton, Anthony Vidler, a professor at Cooper Union in New York City and professor of architecture at Princeton from 1965-93, said that Maxwell “established the school as a principal center of design research, history and theory.” His personal warmth and his love of the arts shaped his character in and out of the classroom: Vidler said he was a “friend to faculty and students alike, an accomplished watercolor painter, and celebrated for his exuberant after-dinner, impromptu piano recitals — ragtime, traditional jazz and music-hall songs were his specialty.” https://www.princeton.edu/news/2020/01/16/robert-maxwell-former-princeton-dean-architecture-humanist-perspective-dies-97

About 100 acres on Princeton’s campus meet high standards for improved surface water quality and reduced runoff. The University’s Sustainability Action Plan aims to expand enhanced stormwater management to 139 acres by 2026, and then 222 acres by 2046. In this video, Associate University Architect for Planning Natalie Shivers discusses the importance of managing stormwater, and how the University plans to hit its targets. https://www.princeton.edu/news/2020/01/16/sustainability-action-plan-increases-stormwater-management-efforts-improved-water

Ben Chang, the University’s Deputy Vice President of Communications, is a strait-laced statesman. He’s also a DJ and a photographer. He’s a spokesperson for one of the nation’s oldest, most elite institutions. He’s also a first-generation American who sees himself as aiding and representing those whom the establishment leaves behind.

Ben Chang said: “For years and years, I thought of Princeton and other schools in a sort of word-cloud. You wouldn’t think ‘first-generation.’ You wouldn’t think ‘a leader in financial aid and opportunity.’ You wouldn’t think ‘trying to drive a conversation nationwide about access and opportunity.’ What I realized coming into Princeton was that there was this great sense of opportunity and innovation — things unexpected to talk about at Princeton — but also, a challenge. There’s a perception gap to close. As a communicator, that’s exciting.”

Patricia Fernández-Kelly, a professor of sociology at Princeton, has received the 2020 ASA Distinguished Career Award for the Practice of Sociology from the American Sociological Association (ASA).

Historian Kevin Kruse is mining the newly opened John Doar Papers at Princeton’s Public Policy Papers for his next book, which will reconsider the civil rights era through the life and legacy of Princeton alumnus John Doar, an attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division from 1960 to 1967.

Traditionally, engineering students have learned about the thermodynamics of gas turbines by studying diagrams and solving equations, but this year they also donned hard hats, safety glasses and ear plugs to tour a plant that produces electricity for half a million homes.

Princeton’s Laurence Ralph has focused his research on police violence against black and brown people. His new book, “The Torture Letters: Reckoning with Police Violence,” examines a particularly dark chapter in Chicago history: the torture of people of color at the hands of police from the mid-1970s to the early 2000s.

Could the division of labor in an anthill be driven by the same social dynamics governing the gap between liberals and conservatives? That was the surprising question tackled by Princeton biologists Chris Tokita and Corina Tarnita.

https://www.princeton.edu/news/2020/01/08/ants-and-men-ant-behavior-might-mirror-political-polarization-say-princeton

Have you ever played with a baby and felt a sense of connection, even though they couldn’t yet talk to you? New Princeton research suggests that you might quite literally be “on the same wavelength,” experiencing similar brain activity in the same brain regions.

https://www.princeton.edu/news/2020/01/09/baby-and-adult-brains-sync-during-play-finds-princeton-baby-lab

Princeton University will join with community organizations on Monday, Jan. 20, to support the Arts Council of Princeton’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day community event.

https://www.princeton.edu/news/2020/01/13/mlk-day-program-be-held-arts-council-princeton

Princeton seniors Gabriela Oseguera Serra and Yousef Elzalabany, and University of Oxford student Matteo Parisi have been named recipients of the Daniel M. Sachs Class of 1960 Graduating Scholarship, one of Princeton University’s highest awards.

Princeton climatologist Michael Oppenheimer appeared on CBS’s “60 Minutes” on Jan. 12, speaking with John Dickerson about the threat that rising sea level poses to Venice and other cities. 

https://www.princeton.edu/news/2020/01/13/sea-level-rise-speeding-says-princeton-climatologist-michael-oppenheimer